Yesterday

Well, so much for blogging about our trip to Utah. I obviously haven't gotten around to doing it yet.

I must tell you about yesterday! Yesterday was a very special day. Little Miss Lauren turned 12 years old. Is that even possible? I just can't even believe it! Let me tell you a little bit about Lauren.......

It took us 5 years of infertility and 1 miscarriage to finally become pregnant with our little miracle baby Lauren. We wanted her so very much (and still do, of course). When I found out I was pregnant, I was nervous and scarred. I was fearful of this pregnancy ending in a miscarriage as well. But, then on New Years Eve 1996, I began feeling so very sick. I had morning sickness that seemed to last all day long. It was not fun! I won't even go into those details, but it certainly wasn't great! The first time I heard her heartbeat, I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. So, I giggled. It was the most amazing thing to me! Then, at about 14 weeks we had the darn AFP test done. This is where they can test whether or not your baby could have Spina Bifida or Down's Syndrome. The only problem with this test, at least back then is that there is a high false positive. Well, of course, my test comes back that there is a possibility of the baby having Down's Syndrome. I was devastated! Why, because I had waited so long to have a baby, how could I not possibly get a healthy baby? Now, I think had Lauren had Down's Syndrome, it would have all been okay. We would have loved her and been challenged differently by her, but it would have all worked out. Anyway, we ended up having an amniocentisis done and found out that not only was she's healthy with no birth defects, but we were also having a girl! I was thrilled! I wanted a girl so badly and she was coming to us! I found this all out over the phone from the genetcist and was hollering and jumping up and down in my office at work. I left work and went and got pink flower to take to Devin. This was my way of letting him know that we were having a girl. The pregnancy progressed and I still was sick off and on and then began having back problems. I had to wear a back brace or I would end up with severe lower back pain and would occassionally have my left leg go out from under me. It wasn't fun! I was miserable! The brace made me hotter than I already was and it was the middle of summer in Utah. Good times!

I was due on August 13th. A couple of weeks before my due date, my doctor would say to me, "I'm sure you'll have this baby before your next visit." The next visit would come and and I unfortunately would show up to my appointment, still pregnant! This happened for several weeks. The week of my due date, my doctor said, " well, let's go ahead and schedule and induction for next week, but I think you'll go into labor before then." At this point I really didn't believe I would. Sure enough, I didn't and ended up at Jordan Valley Hospital on the morning of August 19, 1997 ready to have my baby.

The nurse started me on the pitocin and a Dr. came in and broke my water. By about 2 p.m. I was having hard contractions (I was determined to have this baby natural). They gave me some pain meds in my IV, which didn't really do much of anything. I felt like I needed to push and told Devin to get the nurse. She was sure that I couldn't possibly be feeling that way, "since this was my first baby and all". She checked me and sure enough, I was at a 9. By this point my Dr. hadn't even been called yet and was clear across town at another hospital. They called him. I gave up and asked for an epidural and they actually gave me one at the last minute. This relieved my desire to push greatly. However, the nurse would have me push until the decided to wait for the Dr. as every time I pushed, Lauren's heartrate would dip way down. Not good! Anyway, as soon as the Dr. got there, I pushed a couple of times and she was born at 4:45 p.m. weighing 7 lbs. 12 oz and was 19 1/2 inches long. She was beautiful! I loved her instantly! After almost 6 years of marriage, our dream came true!

Lauren Elizabeth Ladle

Hospital Picture

4 days old (yup, I was insane and took my baby to the mall for pictures at 4 days old. By the time we left, I was hurting!)
Lauren in her blessing dress at 6 weeks old.
I have so many studio pictures of Lauren, I could add more and more, but you would definitely get tired of seeing them all!

Fast forward 12 years......she's still beautiful and there are instances where she drives me insane, but I still love her! She's a wonderful young lady and has so much going for her! She told me recently that her top colleges to get into are Julliard, Harvard, Yale, and Princeton. If she can't get into any of them, then she said she will settle for BYU. I said, "you go for it! You can do anything you put your mind to." Only a few short 6 years and we'll know the answer to that one!

Lauren is super excited to be entering the Young Women program at church, super excited to be able to wear make up now, and super excited about her social life. She just got her haircut and looks a bit too grown up for me! But, it was bound to happen. That about sums it up! Lauren, I love you!

Love,
Mom