Kids’ Birthdays Make Moms Reflect On Childbirth. Ouch.

My middle daughter turned 5 yesterday and at her birthday dinner last night I was asked to recount the story of her birth.  Sure!  Women tend to have those labor and delivery horror stories at the ready, and we're happy to share.  Because we lived through it!

Ladies, I'd love to hear your story too.  We're all in this together.

On that day back in 2009 I was induced at around 8:20 in the morning and the first few contractions were no big deal.  I was confident I could hold off on the epidural and that I was going to be tough, plus I had heard an epidural makes labor longer and I just wanted to get it over with.  So I kept telling the nurse I didn't want it yet.  Around 10:30 my doctor came in and broke my water and told my spouse at the time that things were about to get crazy, and that now was the time to go get something to eat, but be back soon for the duration.  Plenty of foreshadowing right there.

Over the next 15 minutes my life changed from okay, to a near death experience.  Oh mylanta.  I went from coasting along to the worst pain ever!  Men will never understand. They just can't possibly know what it feels like to have your abdomen muscles totally betray you like that and try to kill you.  It felt like was thrown up against a velcro wall of pain, and I wanted the epidural that instant!  And then it took 45 minutes for the nurse to get it in, and she had to do it twice.  Horrible.

BUT, once the epidural had taken effect it was the best feeling ever!  I didn't have a care in the world and felt like I was floating on a raft.  If only they would have allowed me a drink with an umbrella, I might have thought I was vacationing in the Bahamas.

And then she was born.  The doctors thought she was going to weigh 6.5 or 7 pounds because I just had a little basketball belly, but she popped out weighing 8 pounds 2 ounces.  Um, yeah.  Ladies understand.

And now she's 5!  The horrors of childbirth only make you love your child more I think. And the willingness to sacrifice comfort for them never goes away.  You just want your child to be happy.  And she is!  She got a Snackeez cup for her birthday yesterday and a cool messenger bag.  Life is good.