Cutest Nursery Ever

Not quite done, but getting there. Yes, the PINK dresser is an accomplishment- I painted it when I was 9 months prego... ok, ok, Adam helped a tiny bit... but not really... ;)

Madeline Joyce is born!

Yes this is old news by now, but I'm trying to be better at blogging. (I sound like I would after a General Conference session where I make all these new goals like keeping my journal updated, being a better wife, being honest with myself, etc.) But to the rest of my friends out there who I haven't talked to yet, I HAD A BABY! And of course she is the most beautiful, amazing, perfect baby in the whole world!! (And yes I still think that even though in the past month she has kept me up with her screaming several times until 3 a.m.--that just means I'm prepared for NEXT General Conference session to NOT feel guilty about my lack of patience.)

The birth was actually surprisingly uneventful. I went into the hospital on Sunday Aug. 12 (Jared's birthday) because Adam and I were sick of waiting for this baby to come (her due date was Aug. 8). I was so embarassed because I knew the nurses were just going to send me home because I wasn't in "movie labor" you know, the kind of labor you always see in the movies, with the sudden gush of broken water, and the yell to the husband that "Honey, it's time!!" At which point the husband puts his pants on backwards and drives like a maniac to the hospital usually taking a couple of wrong turns on the way. Although, I wasn't having "movie labor" I had been having contractions on and off for the last 15 hours, and we just decided, "hey- what the heck, let's give it a whirl and try to talk the Dr. into inducing me".

So we went in and for some miraculous reason, I dialated from a 3 to a 4 in that hour hooked up to the monitors on the bed, while Adam returned a bunch of phone calls.

The Dr. came in and said they would keep me. "Hallelujah! I just wanted this baby out!"

After an hour or so I got an epidural, and let the fun begin... We watched the first "TMNT" and the end of "Grease" and "Austin Powers", we were hooked to TNT, since we don't have cable at home. We took a nap and at 5 a.m. Monday morning I started pushing and an hour later our beautiful Madeline Joyce was born! Adam had made a "Labor PLaylist" on the ipod for the event, and so the pushing was serenaded by Queen, John Denver, and Mark Knopfler.

I can't begin to describe the joy of giving birth to a baby. An actual person that Adam and I created. I could hardly speak afterwards I was filled to the brim with emotion. I just cried when they put her in my arms. It was a different emotion than I have ever felt. Somehow, in that one moment it made all my 9 months of suffering worth it. I would have done it again right then. All for another Madeline Joyce.