The Arrival

Jaemus came at a great time for us, since I had just had two days of fun and relaxation. I had been having contractions all week and they were beginning to frustrate me and distract me with their disappearance. So, on Thursday I put a lot of effort to put distractions aside and enjoy my last few days with Bailey and some time to myself. Bailey and I spent the morning at Irvine Park where we rode the train, Bailey rode Dan the pony and we went to feed the ducks but ended up feeding a gluttonous peacock instead that blocked us from the lake and ate all our bread- pretty funny. It was a really nice morning and I loved having some special time with her.

After that Bailey went to my mom's house for her nap and I went and got a manicure and pedicure treated by my dear friend Natalie. She had empathy for my frustration having just been through this a few months earlier herself. She sent me to a salon she enjoys where they massage your arms and legs with hot stones. It was super relaxing and I loved every minute of it. Plus, I had beautiful hands and feet for labor- pretty important.

My awesome day continued with a nice evening with Brandon and Bailey followed by the best nights sleep I have had in a long time.

I woke up Friday morning refreshed and early enough to kiss Brandon before he left for work

and Bailey happened to sleep in until 8:30am! This gave me an hour and a half to shower, watch the news, and eat breakfast. The morning kept getting better with an early morning visit from Natalie, Emily and Evan. They were in town early that day and came by for a couple hours. It was a fun morning to spend watching Bailey play with Emily and enjoy talking with Natalie totally enjoying the distraction. I never would have expected that by 1:00pm I would be having contractions that appeared promising.

By 3:00 pm I was convinced enough to tell Brandon and gave him the option to come home before traffic. He came home right away in a bit of a nervous frenzy trying to rush me off to the hospital but I assured him I was fine and that we were good to spend some time at home. I truly did not think that we would be going to the hospital until much later in the night but by 7 pm we decided to head over there. I was happy to have dinner with Bailey and time to repeat the hospital plan with her. She totally had it down- "mom and dad will go to the hospital to have the baby while she stays with Nana and Papa. Then we will come home with her baby brother." She was really cute when she repeated the whole plan.

We arrived at Saddleback about 7:30 and walked around before checking in. We had to check in by 8 pm to enter in through the women's hospital side, so I made Brandon walk with me until 7:55. When we got in I did not feel like Jaemus was going to be born soon. I was having consistent contractions but I didn't feel they were intense yet. However, I was so wrong and so was the nurse- when I checked in the nurse even said, "we'll see if we need to send you home for a little while." But I was 8 cm dilated and we were all very surprised so I was admitted into delivery right away. And 2 1/2 hours later I was holding Jaemus Lee.

It was exactly what we prayed for, a smooth, safe, and quick labor. The pain was intense but it was easier to get though it having had the experience. Brandon was the real champ. Using our previous experience he was really confident and encouraging. His energy kept my spirits up as he was able to motivate me and remind me it was almost over. He never let go of my hand and he rubbed by back or shoulders the entire time. It was much easier for the both of us this time knowing the signs that it can't be much longer.

The reward was a beautiful healthy baby boy. Brandon and I felt so humbled sitting there looking at our son realizing how good the Lord is to us. We were both surprised by his size, and dark skin and hair. Bailey too had dark hair but we both were for some reason expecting a light haired boy. However, Jaemus has soft dark hair on his back, side burns, and is tanner than both of us. He reminds me a lot of my younger brother, who too a big baby, tan, with a hairy body and full head of dark hair. Ryan (my little brother) is super cute though, so I can definitely live with that.