A Bushel and a Peck

38 weeks with Sweet Boy and 38 weeks with Baby Girl This is Part 2 of 3. Click here for   Part 1  and  Part 3 . Baby Girl was born almost two years ago, on a warm June day.  I was 39 weeks pregnant and so ready to be done. I was pretty sure this baby was bigger than Sweet Boy had been, mainly because my belly was noticeably bigger and I'd had a lot more pressure and soreness in my pelvic area those last few weeks. The top reason I wanted Baby Girl out was because I'd had multiple "false alarms" and was getting pretty discouraged. At 37 weeks, I started having mild but regular surges ( Hypnobirthing language for contractions), 2-3 minutes apart for several hours. We got packed up for the hospital, convinced we'd be heading there in the middle of the night. But almost as soon as I lay down to get some sleep, they stopped. Both Stephen and I were a little frustrated.  A few days later, it happened again. We got all excited, but once again, the surges d...

Photo by Ashlee Schroeppel   This is Part 1 of 3. Click here for   Part 2  and  Part 3 . Okay, so what I'm about to share isn't technically a secret, and it's not necessarily a guaranteed ticket to a pain-free labor. However, I somehow managed to miss this both times I took the Hypnobirthing course, so it was somewhat of a surprise to me. And yet, it's really the key to the whole philosophy. Let me explain. Sweet Boy's birth was an incredible experience. I was able to give birth without any pain medication, which was something I never thought I would be able to do. Even better, I gave birth to the sweetest, most precious little boy I've ever known. He is my son and I am his mommy, forever. All magical moments aside, my labor with Sweet Boy was also difficult for me. After finishing the Hypnobirthing classes the first time around, I naively expected labor not to hurt at all. ( Disclaimer : Hypnobirthing does not promise a pain - free labor, but it d...

So, it's been a while (ha, how many journal entries have I started off that way?). Between PPD, anxiety, going back to school, moving a couple of times, and trying to figure out how to be a mom of two kids, I was able to come up with enough excuses to take an 18-month break from my blog. But I've been feeling a pull to get back to it. So here we are. I'm still working on Baby Girl's birth story, and will post it in the next week or two ( spoiler alert : Hypnobirthing worked way better for me this time than the first time ), and I'll soon be giving the blog a much needed makeover (and domain name change!).  Until then, I hope you all have a wonderful week! <3