The "New Baby" arrives!

One morning, very, very early, I awoke from a restless sleep thinking, "well I just can't get comfortable, so I might as well get ready to go to clinicals." After a few short moments of being out of bed, gravity began to have it's effect on me. I was in labor! "No, not today! I have school, I can't miss!" I thought. But yes, Caroline decided to come on November 11, 2003... My 22nd birthday! I call her my birthday present. She wasn't supposed to come until the 26th, which would have been fine, because then midterms would be over and we'd be on our way to Christmas break. I decided to VBAC (vaginal birth after cesearan). We went to the hospital at around 6am, I was told, "oh you're not in labor, honey but we'll keep you until the doctors get here anyway." By the time the doctors came an hour later I had dilated from 0-3! It was painful, and I was already begging for an epidural. By the time we made it from triage to the delivery room, I was 5cms and hurting a lot so we got the epidural right away. Things moved so fast after that. The "New Baby" was born @ 12:30pm and weighed 6# 15oz. She ate like a champ, and did very well. However, she didn't have a name for two days! I finally named her Caroline Olivia, without the final ok by daddy, of course! But it turned out that he was ok with it. We brought her home two days later and she pretty much had to fend for herself from that point on, because I was really busy with school, Sam worked 12 hour swing shifts. It was a really crazy time! Caroline spent several months miserable; she had eczema and it took us a few months to figure out what helped- all unscented, sensitive products. She had to use unscented dove soap, unscented lubriderm lotion. She didn't get to smell like a sweet little baby. But she was a sweet little baby, and is sweet and affectionate to this very day. I always use to tell her she was "my honey" and it wasn't long before she started calling me her "honey" as well. It was so cute. In March 2005, we bought our first home, which we are still living in. It's located well off the beaten path, in Greenback. It was a new construction and the perfect little home for our family of four. In June of 2007, Sam and I started entertaining the idea of becoming foster parents and one day adopting a third child. In 2008, Caroline would no longer be the baby of the family.