Introducing...

Caiden Lucas Walde!

I think it's a Beatles song that I've been singing for the last two weeks. It goes like this..."Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful...beautiful boy." I am so in love with my precious baby boy. Caiden Lucas Walde arrived Sunday, April 10, 2011 at 12:47 am. He was three weeks early so I was really nervous while I was in labor but our little boy is perfectly healthy and very strong. He was 6 lbs. 8 oz. and 19 inches long. He is a very happy baby who loves being cuddled, especially by his Mommy, eating, sleeping and swinging. He hates diaper changes, clothing changes, anything cold, being gassy, and having the hiccups.

Here are some pictures of our little bouncing baby boy!

This is the very first picture of him. Daddy got some excellent video of him immediately after coming out though.

Cuddling with Mommy. I did get to hold him immdiately after he came out this time so I was very excited about that. With Ayla I didn't get to hold her for five hours so I was blessed this time.

After his first sponge bath.

I went into labor around 7:00 on Saturday night. Lucas was gone grocery shopping. I really didn't think that it was actual labor at first. The contractions were painful but not too bad. They lasted about 30 seconds or so and then I would be fine for the next 5-7 minutes. I called the doctor and she said that if I could, I should lay down and try to drink some water. If they slowed or stopped then it wasn't actual labor. I tried it and it didn't work. The contractions really didn't feel that bad, (I do have a high pain tolerance) so I decided that I didn't want to go to the hospital until I needed to. We got Ayla to bed and called Lucas's parents to come over, they live about 45 minutes away. I thought that this wouldn't be a problem. Well suddenly the contractions really started to kick it up and I was having a hard time. The contractions were about two minutes apart around 11:00 and Lucas's parents still weren't at our house. We got Ayla up got her shoes and coat on and were just about to walk out the door when his parents pulled in. At this point I decided to cuddle with Ayla in between contractions because suddenly I got very emotional thinking that this would be the last time I would cuddle with her when she would be my only child. Lucas was irritated with me for waiting so long and now was irritated with me because I was taking the time to cuddle with Ayla. By the time we left for the hospital it was about 11:15. We got to the ER about 15 minutes later and they immediately sent me up to labor and delivery. They got me into a bed, hooked me up to a bunch of monitors and checked me to find out I was already dilated to 9 cms. At this point I was thinking maybe I wouldn't have to have a c-section with this baby. The nurse called the doctor and she and I were on the phone discussing it when suddenly I got a horribly bad contraction and started yelling, the nurse checked again and said "You don't have a choice this baby is coming now!" I had to start pushing, I was yelling that I wanted an epidural and the nurse said that there was no time. I started pushing and pushed for about 45 minutes before my beautiful boy came out. It was the hardest 45 minutes I've ever experienced, but it came with a great reward. I was not happy at the time but now I am very glad that I was able to experience an all natural delivery. It really made a big difference. Within an hour of delivering the baby I was not hooked up to any medical equipment anymore, I was up and walking around and able to go to the bathroom. Quite a difference from the c-section I had with Ayla. Caiden was very alert and able to cuddle with me immediately after delivery and nurse shortly thereafter. It really was an amazing experience. I, of course was sore, but within a few days I felt normal and about a week later I was back to 100%. I pushed so hard that I burst a bunch of blood vessels. Some in my eye and all around my mouth. You'll see in the pictures.
Notice the broken blood vessels around my mouth.

I feel very blessed to have been able to bring a second child into this world. Childbirth really is a miracle and makes you feel so close to the Lord. I feel so lucky to have two healthy happy kids and to be given the opportunity to raise them. I am very blessed to have a wonderful husband who loves and supports me and was there with me every step of the way. I am loving my life and very happy to be a mom.

Ayla is handling being a big sister very well. She loves him and wants to hold and kiss him all the time. I'll have more on Ayla's first time with baby brother next post.