I'm sorry this has taken me so long to post. I have about a million other things (maybe not quite that many) that I wanted to post from the time of my last post and hen she was born, but it makes me feel overwhelmed trying to do all of that to catch up. So, I'm going to skip ahead to our most recent and exciting news! And I may or may not get to the other stuff, but I gotta start somewhere.
We will start our story on the morning of Dec. 31. We really weren't expecting her to come early, because none of the other kids had. Easton was 3 days late, in fact. Anyway, we started out this exciting day going to the shop with the kids to get some work done, with the promise of some fun as soon as we finished a few things. I was feeling contractions here and there, but nothing consistent and nothing really painful. So I think I was helping sew up a deer or something, I know- sounds like fun right? :) When we finished that afternoon, we went home ate lunch and decided it was time for the kids to get some use out of the new sleds they had gotten for Christmas. Oh, I should mention, we were anticipating the arrival of Grandma and Grandpa Briggs. They were coming to stay with us until little Montana arrived to help with the kids and they were on their way. So, we just went to the park where there is a nice mellow hill that we thought would be fun for them.
The above pictures are of the kids going over the sweet jump! I am the shadow taking the picture. I had as much fun watching and taking pictures as they did sledding. :) Now, at this point I was feeling more regular contractions, but not real painful yet and not too close together.
Josh was brave and took all the kids at once down the hill. In the end they crashed, but they were all smiles!
After all the fun we went home to have hot chocolate to warm us up. At this point my contractions were getting closer and I was becoming convinced that this was the real thing, and really hoping that my parents would get here soon! They got to the house just about the time that we were finishing up our hot chocolate, and perfect timing too! Because we were just getting ready to leave for the hospital. I think my contractions were about 5 minutes apart, but I didn't want to wait for them to get any closer because with Easton, we waited longer and we almost didn't make it to the hospital! So, Grandpa volunteered to stay with the kiddos while Josh, Grandma, and I went. I was still pretty calm and breathing through my contractions pretty well by the time we arrived. We went in the emergency entrance (since it was after hours), they got us signed in and took us up to the labor and delivery. I guess I didn't look like I was in too much distress because they didn't look like they were in too much of a hurry getting me into a room. But after they checked me and saw that I was at a 7, they knew I was for real. I was surprised that I was already that far because I wasn't in as much pain as I remembered with Easton. Deep breaths in and out really helped me manage my pain, that's the only way I can explain it. We were going to go natural again and I admit, I was pretty nervous because the last time I remembered ( I thought I remembered) how much pain I was in at the very end and it scared me to think of doing it again. But the reason I still wanted to was because of how I felt afterward and how the baby was. So, I guess there's not really a lot to tell. My breathing got me through even the really painful contractions, all the way up till it was time to push. I admit it did get more painful and when it was time to push, I felt like I lost it. There was some screaming...but to my defense, Josh says that I really only really screamed for less than a minute, although it felt like longer to me. :) But he said they were all very impressed by how I handled it all. Which made me feel good, but in my mind it got a little crazy at the end. But, she arrived safe and sound and beautiful.
We are soooo happy she is here with us:) We had to stay a little longer in the hospital because I tested positive for group B strep and they wanted to make sure nothing was passed to her. But almost 48 hours later, we were able to go home. It was disappointing that the kids couldn't come and see her in the hospital because they were not allowing anyone under the age of 14 because of flu/RSV season.
 |
| With Daddy |
 |
| First carseat ride...so tiny |
 |
| With Mommy |
 |
| Easton loves her soft baby skin ;) |
 |
| Saralyn can't wait to learn how to change her diaper :) |
 |
| Alma is an especially helpful big sister! |
 |
| With Grandma and Grandpa B |
 |
| Of course, Easton had to get his snuggle time in. |
She has been a part of our family for 2 months already! I can't believe how fast the time goes by and how quick they grow. We love her so much and are so thankful for her safe arrival.
We love you Montana!
Oh, and about her name. Josh and I were having a hard time deciding on a name that we both liked and there were a lot of names thrown around. But the first time "Montana" was mentioned, we both liked it from the start :) and we didn't need too much time to decide that it was the winner! Her middle name, May, is after 3 wonderful women on both sides of our families whom we love very much. We hope she will grow up to have many of their same qualities mixed in with many of her own.
