"I could tell she was going to be like that since before she was born."
Have you ever heard or said that?
Fact: Ian sleeps late and is hard to motivate, but he always gets things done at the last minute.
Truth: When my water broke with Ian, he refused to be born. I was induced 30 hours after my water broke and he was born 14 hours later. Just in time to avoid a C-section.
Fact: Shane often doesn't know what is going on around him. But he always ends up in the right place at the right time.
Truth: I didn't even know I was pregnant with Shane until I actually felt him. He was breech until the third trimester. But he was born just fine with no interventions.
Fact: Evie is a bit of a perfectionist. She takes such a long time making sure every detail is correct that it drives me crazy.
Fact: Evie was born on a day that Laura wasn't feeling well enough to go to school. Laura stayed home with Ian and Shane. My labor was slow enough that Mark was able to squeeze in a Taekwondo class before we needed to head into the hospital. She was slow enough that Mark was able to get himself some Jack-in-the-Box for dinner after we checked in at the hospital. She was born at such a perfect time that Mark was able to leave the hospital and pick Laura up from work and take her home.
Truth: Fiona is crazy and vivacious and aims to please.
Fact: Fiona was our first homebirth. Homebirth is just crazy. But she aimed to please: we were worried about Ami and Laura's schedules for school and whether or not one of them would be available to help us out with Ian, Shane, and Evie. I said, "Well, hopefully my water will break tonight and she will be born by the time Ami needs to go to school." My water broke within a half hour and she was born at 3:30ish AM. Mark greeted Ami with her new little sister one minute before her alarm clock went off.
Truth: No one makes Daniel do things he doesn't want to do. No one but ME. And he changes his mind on a regular basis. He wants to do something, I support him, he changes his mind to do the opposite.
Truth: Daniel didn't want to be born. He got the process started four days early, but labor stalled. For hours. It took forever for him to get in a good position. He kicked like crazy all through labor, like he was trying to keep from coming out. But I won in the end.
Fact: Lula is super snuggly. She would still ride around in the Ergo facing in if I could still fasten the belt around my big, pregnant belly. She is also the best sleeper in the whole family.
Truth: I rarely felt Lula move while I was pregnant with her. I would have to purposely drink juice and wait for her to get a boost of blood sugar and move. She was born quickly, but went right back to sleep for the next few weeks. I thought she was going to sleep herself to death and ended up bottle feeding her just to get her to wake up and eat.
Fact: Heidi is a spunky ball of energy. She loves jumping on the little trampoline and the beds and riding the spring horse. She is attached to me in a totally different way than Lula is. While Lula snuggles in, Heidi kicks me all night long, just to make sure I'm still there. She needs to hold my hand while she sleeps, but she doesn't just hold it, she laces her fingers in mine and immediately pulls her hand away, but then wants to go through the finger lacing again.
Truth: Heidi was quite the gymnast before she was born. She tumbled and kicked until I felt sick to my stomach. Heidi took her own sweet time getting born, just like Daniel and Evie. But with Heidi? I wanted her OUT of my body. I was so tired of being pregnant with her. Just like I want to sleep without being kicked or holding someone's hand right now.
And finally, Fact/Truth: I don't know what this next baby's name is, but I do know one thing. He is strong. He likes to move. But he doesn't make me feel grumpy. He actually makes me quite happy. So instead of his movements meaning he is kicking in crankiness, I think he is just a jolly, active little boy who is going to love trampolines, swings, and running.
I can't wait to meet him!
