Welcome Little Angel!

Cole Mitchell Pace
He's here! We had it all scheduled, but this little guy had plans of his own. Here's the story:

At 1:00 AM on Wednesday, I woke up to my water breaking. Luckily I rushed to the bathroom so there wasn't a big mess. Wendell and I had been using an internet phone company to talk, where he could dial my phone or computer. I could dial his computer from my computer - but he'd have to be on the computer at the time I called. It was 2:00 AM in Mexico, and I took the chance that he was on the computer pulling an all-nighter to finish the convention video he was working on. Luckily he had just gotten on the computer and I got ahold of him. Yes, I was bawling. This isn't how it was supposed to happen! And I knew that since my water had broken, there was no way to prolong things until he got home. I had to get to the hospital!

He called Elese, his sister, and she came to my house to pick me up. Her son, Bud, stayed with the kids so they could sleep. Elese drove me to the hospital, where she stayed with me the whole morning (bless her heart!). I'm so glad I had someone I could trust and feel comfortable with. We got to the hospital around 2:00 AM (I had to rush and pack bags at home, first). They pretty much immediately started me on pitocin and the epidural.

The rest of the morning consisted of me laying in bed hooked up to everything, half numb and sucking on popsicles. I progressed pretty quickly to 4 cm, but was stuck there for several hours after that. I believe they checked me between 9:30 and 10:00 AM and I was still barely past 4 cm. I remember talking to Lisa, my sister, at around 10:30 and telling her I was going to be there all day long because I wasn't progressing. Right after that, they emptied my bladder (I know, gotta love the details- right?) and left the room. I immediately felt pressure. But I *knew* I was only 4 cm dilated, so I was doubtful it was anything- but called them in anyway. Well, they checked me and I was complete! So they set everything up, Elese got the camera ready, and I started pushing. A couple of pushes later, out came my little boy! I couldn't believe how fast it went! Right after I delivered, Wendell happened to call, to say he was at the airport in Mexico waiting for his flight. It was great timing. I was able to tell him his son was just born!

He was born at 10:56 AM on Wednesday, April 25.

He weighed 7 lb 9 oz, and was 20 inches long. He just sat there silently the whole time he was being measured and poked and prodded. A very mellow little thing.

They gave him to me for an hour or so, and he nursed right off the bat. Then they wheeled him away to the nursery to do their thing, with Elese in tow.

Elese was my cameraman and did a really good job getting pictures of everything. Here's a picture of me, my CNM (Certified Nurse Midwife), and the nurse. Deb, my CNM is the one on the right.

Elese had to leave after they brought me to recovery. She and her husband own a business and she had some stuff to do. I'll forever be grateful she was there with me for the birth. She kept me laughing and talking during my labor - and kept me from wigging out about not having Wendell there. She even got to cut the cord! She's the one a couple pictures down, holding Sydney and the baby. I wish I had gotten a better picture of her.

To top it all off, she's had my kids at her house for the past couple of days. That afternoon, she and her husband brought them in to see their new brother. Sydney LOVED him!

Ethan couldn't have cared less! He was more interested in my snacks and my drink, and the little toy truck the baby gave him. And he kept wanting me to hold him. Poor thing - his world is going to be totally different now!

As soon as I had called Wendell that morning, he worked really fast to get his video done. It was a highlight video of an AutoLiv convention and they were showing it later that morning. So he finished up and they got him on a flight leaving right away. He spent all day on three different flights to get home. He flew on a tiny scary plane to Monterey, Mexico. Then on to Texas, and then got into Utah around 11:30, I think. He got to the hospital at 1:30 AM Thursday morning. I had been given a sleeping pill (I wasn't able to sleep all day) so I was pretty gone, but he climbed in bed with me and got some rest. I had them bring the baby back in around 5:00 AM or so, so Wendell could see him. I took these snaps of them together. Then we all got some more much needed sleep. You can tell from these pictures how worn out Wendell was!

We left the hospital around 5:30 PM on Thursday. I couldn't stand being there. I wasn't getting ANY rest! We finally decided on a name before we left and then came home, where I've actually been sleeping a ton! The kids are now at my Mother-in-law's house. Cole is doing very well. He's nursing really good, and sleeping great.

Thanks so much for all of your prayers and support!