Meet Olivia

I try to start on this and something deters me or I get distracted.  As I sit here waiting for THE basketball game, it seems the appropriate time.  My love was a tiny Tarheel.  When I'd yell "Go Heels", she'd get all excited and the first word she said was GO.  Coincidence?  I think not.

Condensed version of the beginning....uneventful pregnancy except that it was wonderful.  If I could be pregnant every day and not give birth, I'd do it.  I loved it.  Labor was 10 hours almost exactly.  I received an epidural that was not effective.  It hurt horrifically!  I had minimal relief for about 90 minutes.  I pushed completely naturally for an hour and 20 minutes and gave birth to this beautiful baby doll.

I don't have a digital image.  Were there digital images in 2000?

Olivia had enough hair that I needed one of those monogrammed bows immediately, but I didn't know about them yet.  She weighed 6 lb 11.5 oz.  She seemed so tiny...she did after she came out.  Prior to that, she seemed like a sumo wrestler.  When I saw her, held her for the first time, I truly felt like my heart would burst.  I can't explain it any other way.  There is no other feeling; no other love like the love I felt as a mother.

Olivia was a good eater at first.  She had a good suck reflex and nursed in the delivery room.  She had been practicing.  She had a sucking blister on her lip when she came out!

Those couple of days in the hospital were calm.  There weren't any problems.  She barely cried except when she was hungry or wet.  She slept....all the things a newborn does.  We went home to start a life of pure joy.  I was joyful.  All I had ever wanted was to be a mother.

Little did I know that our world would change just 11 days into this.  There aren't pictures or other major items to document.  It sneaked up on us.  There are pros and cons to that.  There was no preparation, but there's no guilt associated with it either.  I went home and loved my baby.  She loved me, too.  Her favorite place was attached to me.