Wow! It's been a while since I've posted anything on here!I think a part of me really needed a break for a bit, and just some time to relax before some major life transitions. Regardless of my lame excuses, I'm back! And I am bringing a little half-me along for the journey :-).
The Push
Lela was way over-baked. She was due May 18th. A week came and passed, and no baby.
Anything over two weeks late is considered a medical condition, so they scheduled me for an induction on May 31st.
Thankfully, that morning I went in to labor myself. We checked in the hospital at 9:00 A.M., and the nurses decided to admit me (was sent home the day before- false alarm). After they broke my water my contractions increased. It was time to give me the juice.
Epidural: Epi-Do It!
After my water broke the pain and contractions significantly increased, taking place every three minutes or so. After they gave me the 'juice', no pain. The mood in the room completely changed, and both myself and my husband were much more at ease.
Around 7:00 things had come to a standstill, and boredom kicked in. Vinh ran down to the store to pick up a pack of cards, and we played games until it was time for me to start pushing. By 10:51 P.M., we had ourselves a baby girl!
Settling in to Parenthood
The first night at home was frustrating. Breastfeeding is hard! The poor thing literally didn't get anything from me to eat, and she essentially starved until we decided to go against the advice from the hospital and sub her intake with formula so she would get something to eat (for which we got yelled at for later by the lactation). I'd rather have a happy and full baby than a half-starved one any day. Sure, exclusive breastfeeding is great if it's successful. But I can't be convinced that if mom's supply simply isn't catching up to baby's demand, that it's better to let the baby starve than to give her a bottle. Feedings should be as stress free as possible for both parties. I'll end my little soapbox speech here :-). 
There's still some problems in that area, mostly with falling asleep while feeding or general fussiness. Other than this ongoing difficulty we couldn't ask for much of an easier baby (knock on wood!) She sleeps very well at night and overall is fairly quiet... Unless she's hungry, which she's developed quite a desperate cry for (I would too, after starving my second night in existence).Being a new parent is going to be an incredible adjustment. Here's to the next 18+ years of overcoming the challenges of parenthood as they arise.
