Double Digits

Max turned 10 on April 8th. What an amazing child. I am so glad to be his mom and have him in my life.

Max's birth was different from all the rest. He's always been a mover.My midwives had moved from Augusta, GA to Asheville, NC. Even though it was over 4 hours away, we figured all would be well if they attended my birth. This would be my third birth with them, and none of my labors were less than 4 hours, so we were confident they would arrive and be present for the birth.

I had about one week left before my official 40 week mark of the pregnancy. I woke up in the middle of the night (around 1:00am) having had a dream I was punched in the stomach. I realized it might have been a contraction, and confirmed my suspicions with a bit of the cervical plug appearing. I woke John and told him I might be in labor. It never fails to amaze me that I could question whether or not I was in labor. But I did. I hadn't had another contraction. I was worried about calling the midwives and having them drive over 4 hours, and then it not be actual labor. John made me call anyway. When I called, they were up. They somehow knew I would be calling that night and had stayed up late to watch a movie and wait for my call. Have I mentioned how much I love my midwives? I told them I wasn't sure, and that I didn't want them to drive all that way for nothing, blah, blah, blah. Whapio said, "Mindy, our bags are already packed. We're leaving right now." As soon as she said they were leaving right then, I had another contraction, and it was a doosie. I knew I was in labor. Somehow, knowing they were on their way let my body relax enough to continue having contractions.

Labor set in pretty hard at that point. I was in my favorite gliding rocker, rocking with the contractions. Alex and Sophie were asleep in the next room. We didn't have a camera at that point, and I wanted to have pictures of the birth. I tried to persuade John to run down to the 24 hour drugstore and get a disposable camera. He kept gently trying to talk me out of it, reasoning that he was the only person in the house...what if the other kids woke up and needed someone? I relented and forgot about the camera. John was busy getting the crock pot filled with water and compresses. I began laboring heavily and told him to stop with the crock pot and join me. A couple more contractions, and I was in my usual birthing position on the floor, leaning over the sofa. At this point, an almost 4 year old Alex woke up and joined us. He was so sweet. It was amazing having him there. He kept saying, "Good job pushing that baby out Mommy." Max came quickly,and the midwives did not make it. He was born at 2:50, which means my entire labor lasted under 2 hours. Whew! As I said, he's always been a mover! We paged the midwives and they talked us through the immediates and continued on their way to us. When the arrived, all was well. Max weighed 9 lbs 10oz. He also suffered from a cephalahematoma, which sounds scary, looks scary, but is essentially a big ole' bruise on his head. He looked like ET for while, as it takes about 3 months to eventually go away. I remember always covering his head with blankets and what not so people wouldn't ask what was wrong with him. The hematoma faded, and his curls, sprinkles, and amazing personality emerged in it's wake.

1 year old Max with curls and his lamby

2 Year old Max with his favorite hand me down pink galoshes

3 year old Max with his new hair cut, his pokemon hat, and yes, he's still wearing the pink galoshes

5 year old Max...and his hat passion comes to life with this Greek fisherman's hat he found at a yard sale

6 year old Max with Mommy

8 year old Max hunting crystals with Madeline & Co.

9 year old Max

The newly 10 year old Max showing off his newest passion in the form of T-shirts...WoW

Doing the pinata with some neighbor friends

Max's Carrot Birthday Cake

Making Wishes