Baby is Born.......

It's a ....... G I R L !!!




Baby Girl Lawhon was born February 5th 2009 at 12:55 p.m. in Suite 5. She is the 5th grandchild on both sides of the family. Mommy was pregnant 40 weeks and 5 days and labored for 5 hours 20 minutes. ....could 5 be her lucky number?


At birth she weighed 7 pounds 14 ounces and measured 21 inches long.


My last dr appt was Friday, January 30th and within that week I had progressed from 1 to 2-3 cm dialated and from 30% to 80% effaced. My doctor was sure the baby was gona come any day but wanted to schedule an induction the following Thursday (5th) just incase because that was the last day she would be in the hospital before I was a week over due (at 1 week overdue they would induce anyway). We agreed, however, I really did not want to induce. So the next few days we played the waiting game with just one nite of I 'think' it might be time (that Friday nite). Induction (eviction) day morning I think was the coldest day of the year and we were late, of course, but I didn't care. Were suposed to be there at 6 a.m. and got there at 6:30. When we got into the truck, Sawyer Brown was on the radio - I took that to be a sign that it was definately a boy since baby would be named Sawyer and didn' think much of it until "she" came out.

They broke my water and started the meds at 7:45. I was kind of bummed out because I had not made any progress since my last appt when I felt like I had - I was still at 2 cm! At 9:00 my nurse was like "honey, do you want me to call for your epidural?" I was like 'it's been an hour? don't I have like a bunch more hours of this?' she was like "you might, but you are climbing out of the bed with each contraction." I wasn't ready to be tied to the bed so I refused. Up to that point I have done very well with my pain but after the nurse asked me that it went downhill from there. 30 minutes later she insisted and Joey begged me to get it so they ordered it. By 10 - 10:30 I was shot up, oh and they decided to check me THEN rather than while I was cussing or blubbering and I was 9 cm dialated! The anestition said if I'd waited a little longer they wouldn't give it to me and we'd have to go 'a la natural' (which my mom said I could have done it if I'd gone that far with nothing). After the shot all the meds went to my left side, which means I could feel my contractions on the right side, and they hurt like a mother. Imagine what it's like when your whole arm or leg is asleep, that is what my left side felt like - then excrutiating pain on the right. They rolled me to the right to get the epidural to flow that way but the baby's heart rate dropped drastically so they quickly flipped me to the left and the dude pulled the tube out a little bit and the meds began to flow to the right. They put an oxygen mask on me and I think I fell asleep. This is when Joey sent out his text 'the egg has cracked' and bam the family was at the hospital.


As a surprise baby, not knowing the gender, she really was a surprise. The whole pregnancy 95% of people were sure the she was gona be a he - even Joey and I were leaning more towards a boy so when she first popped out the doctor sort of held her close to her and said "hey you guys don't know do y'all?" I wasn't even thinking which she was, just that OMG there's the baby! The doctor took a peek, flipped her around and showed us "It's a girl!" She had this big smoshed wide face with puffy eyes and the biggest hands and feet I've ever seen on a bebe. I thought she's huge, gotta be a 9#er. When she started crying she really sounded like a girl - so cute. I thought good thing she's a girl cuz she really sounds like a girl. Next thing you know the nurse brought her back to me and said try to feed her, I was like are you serious? She was and the baby took to it in no time (big eater....wonder who she got that from?). Mom came in (she always unwraps babies to get a good look), she had to undo her diaper to be sure that it was a girl. Dad came in and said "did you have a baby" I said 'yup, it's a girl' and he was like "what the hell?" (in a disappointed tone). Sounds terrible, but it was pretty funny in dad's humor. Aunt Jessica, Lisa and Candice were also one the first there and they were taking lots of picture. I think Candice had her on Facebook within the first 2 hours of her life.


Next, she had her big first bath, one of daddy's proudest moments - you've probably heard him tell this story. There was a sink in the room with a kitchen faucet, when the nurse held her under to rinse, the baby grabbed with both hands and sort of pulled her self up - she's very strong.


Later, Joey's parents Ed and Neenie and Uncle Kelly came by. And Aunt Trish who took the best picture of us, our first family photo. We look so happy and tired! Joey's dad took him to eat and while they were gone my nurse got me up to go to the bathroom. I think it had been about 7 hours. And of course she was called out and the baby started to cry. I was about to cry too cuz I just wanted someone to help me (where was my mama!). Little did I know that this was a precursor to the next several months. Thankfully, Neenie was there to get the baby while I figured out 'how' to go pee ... really.


My appetite set it quick and all I wanted to eat was candy! So, Jessica to the rescue! That nite, Jessica, Ericka, Robert, Robin, David Mankus, Tana, and Leah came up for a visit. Mankus brought up some very good Crown (which I finally got to taste a month later with my granite guys when the counters were fully installed), so we had us a little baby birthday party in the hospital. While they were there they moved me to the small room.... pooie.... but it was ok, the bed was much more confortable and we had some really great nurses that nite.




We were pretty much up all nite and went to sleep good at about 7 a.m. - David Merritt came to see us at about 10 and was like "why are y'all stillll sleeping?!" Then Andrew Castleman came .... in the firetruck! Cool! We got to hear all the calls on his radio, then he left cuz there was a structure fire - we later saw it on the news. We had many visitors this day. Mom, aunt Cheryl, cousin Mike also stopped in that morning. Aunt Jess, Jane, Jason and cousin Madilyn soon stopped by. Tom, Crazy Christi, Chuck Moats, Vickie and Katie; Eric, Angie and Emma; Mike, Jeannie, Sharon and Devyn; Joey's parents, Kelly and Melissa. I'm sure I forgot some - I'm sorry, mama brain.



Saturday, we were slated to leave this morning, but they would not let us go without naming her. At 7am, utterly exhausted, I woke up Joey and said please name the baby. I had officially given up. All those childhood 'I'm gona name my lil girl this' was out the window. But, in my state of mind nothing sounded good or right or she looks like a [fill in a name], so I thought he could make the best decision. He picked his girl name for her first name and Anne we decided on months ago because we liked how it sounded with Taylor and plus the fact we met thru Anne so it has some meaning to us.