Elijah Neal {birth story}

Elijah Neal Rogers entered our world on Wednesday, March 23, 2011 at 1:55 pm.  He weighed 9 lbs. 5 oz. and was 22 inches long.

        I will start off by saying that this birth experience was completely different from our first.  Although they were both beautiful and miraculous, Eli’s birth was much less stressful, shorter and trauma free compared to Josiah’s birth.  Let’s start from the beginning…

        Jordan and I decided to get a hotel Tuesday night in Wichita Falls because I had to be at the hospital for pre-admissions and lab work at 4 o’clock that evening and then back to the hospital for the induction Wednesday morning at 5:30 am.  My parents and grandparents also stayed at that same hotel Tuesday night to take care of Josiah (they have been such a blessing!) So Jordan and I arrived at United Regional Hospital at 5:30 am on Wednesday morning and by 6:00 am the nurse had already started me on Pitocin…boy, does that stuff start working fast!  I have a very high pain tolerance but by 8 o’clock, my pain level was already at a 7 so they gave me some pain medicine (I can’t remember what the name of it was so I will just call it “wonderful”) that made the contractions much more bearable.  At 8:30 am, Dr. Lamar came in and broke my water and I was 3 cm dilated.  This was music to my ears because with Josiah, it took 17 hours to get to that point! By 10:15 am, the pain meds had worn off and I was 4-5 cm dilated so I went ahead and got the epidural…it was also “wonderful”. At 12:15 pm, I was 6 cm…12:30 pm, 7 cm…and at 1:20 pm, I was 9 cm dilated and Dr. Lamar was on his way. I pushed about 15-20 times and our beautiful Eli greeted us with his strong lungs at 1:55 pm.  I cannot explain the joy that I felt when he was placed in my arms or when I got to nurse him shortly after…pure bliss!

        I could sit here and make so many comparisons between Josiah’s twenty-six hour birth and Eli’s eight hour birth, but to me, what matters most is the outcome…God has blessed Jordan and I with two beautiful boys that I just can’t get enough of.  I’m literally at a loss for words right now…some may call that writer’s block, but I prefer the term “humbled”  I am completely humbled that God has chosen me for something so amazing- bringing children into the world for His glory.  I can think of no higher calling that to raise our boys up for the Lord to further His kingdom…what an unbelievable blessing! Thank you Lord!