Today I got the picture CD from my sister of Lain's birthday. It has only been three months, but I have loved reliving that precious day. Seriously, one of the greatest day of my life! I know it sounds crazy, but I have used the word "fun" often to describe Lain's birth - a day I couldn't have planned better and such a truly laid back and fun way to bring a person into the world. It started off like a pretty normal Friday, because even though my body was tired and hurting like crazy we were still three weeks away from my due date. I went in for my weekly doctor's appointment and found out that things were pretty much the same, except that I/we had grown 4 centimeters in one week! I was actually kind of glad for the confirmation that what I had been thinking and feeling wasn't crazy and this baby was getting bigger fast! My doctor was on call that weekend, but said she didn't have anyone ready for labor, so I told her I hoped she got the weekend off. After a great appointment, Kasey and I took the kids to lunch and decided to take them to the outdoor back to school party at Let's Jump.

Maelie and Henry were living it up, but Lorelai was not that impressed and I was hot and feeling huge so she and I decided to head home early to take a nap. A little while later, Kasey stopped by the house to drop Maelie off and I asked her to take Lorelai with her instead so I could actually nap :) I was laying around, almost asleep when I thought I heard/felt my water break. I was beyond excited, but a little nervous to jump the gun. I called Kyle and by the time he got home I was sure that was what was had happened, even though I was having zero contractions. I showered, did my hair and packed while I waited for Kyle to get home. It was so exciting to be getting ready to meet our little guy, and the fact that I was in no pain yet made it even more fun. Kyle got home, we got the carseat out of the box and headed for the hospital.

Signing in at the hospital! They got me all situated in our room, and the most precious nurse came in to help take care of us. I have been so blessed to have an amazingly sweet nurse with each one of my babies. I remember each of their names and the kindness that they showed to my family. This night, our nurse was Emily and she was so great at being fun and friendly and at the same time professional. Around 6:30 I started having mild contractions. By about 10:00 I was at a 4 and having contractions about every minute. I decided to go ahead and get my epidural. Genius. It went great and I felt so good! They did it light enough that I could still feel my feet and move around a little so I never got too uncomfortable, but I still couldn't feel the full contraction. It was perfect. My blood pressure was a little wonky, but sweet Emily kept working with me and helping me feel the best I could as we got more and more ready to meet our new little guy. Finally, a little before midnight, I told her I felt a little weird and wanted her to check me. Her exact words were "don't cough and don't sneeze!" She called the doctor and our favorite OB came in and started to chat a little, but the nurse said - Go get ready, she's ready to go! Dr. Wood got ready and bby that point the room was ready to go and so was I! I kidded with her that I never imagined I would be the reason she didn't get the weekend off :) She said "Okay, let's have a baby! Start pushing whenever you're ready!" Three pushes later, with some laughing and chatting in between, our sweet Lain was born. I couldn't believe how fast and easy it was.

He came out screaming, but it was so sweet that after I held him for a minute, they checked him and laid him on my chest and he immediately got quiet.

What an unbelievably sweet way to welcome an unbelievably sweet boy into the world!!