The Day Our World Changed: MJ’s Birth Story
Leading Up to Her Arrival
Writing this nearly six years later feels like opening up a time capsule full of hope, hormones, and hospital mesh underwear. I was 26 years old — wide-eyed, big-bellied, and brimming with dreams of the kind of mom I was going to be and a long list of things I swore I’d never do (spoiler alert: I’ve done most of them — oops). To protect her privacy, I’m going to call my sweet girl MJ.
Two weeks before my due date, I woke up before 5:30 a.m. on a Tuesday with light cramps and a weirdly specific gut feeling: This is it. I sent my husband to work with his phone close by and called my family, who promptly hit the road for the five-hour drive to our Florida home. We were officially on baby watch!
Labor: The longest Hours Of My Life
For the rest of the day everything felt manageable until the next morning. I woke my husband up at 4:30 a.m. to help me time the contractions and decide if it was time to go to the hospital.
I had the perfect birth plan and labor playlist all ready to go! My goal? No meds. Natural birth. I was ready to be a warrior.
But as it turns out, MJ had other plans.
After several uncomfortable (okay, borderline traumatic) cervical checks, I stalled at 5cm. That’s when Pitocin made its grand entrance, followed swiftly by the sweet relief of my friend the epidural. Twenty hours in, my wonderful doctor finally said those magical words:
“It’s time to push.”
The Moment Everything Changed
At exactly 12:35 a.m. on a Thursday, after just 13 minutes of pushing, MJ arrived. She let out the tiniest, most beautiful cry — and just like that, I forgot about the hours of waiting and the million things that hadn’t gone “according to plan.”
She was healthy. I was healthy. And just like that, everything changed — in the best possible way.
The First Hours
Although nursing was painful, I was determined. I struggled to keep her from losing too much weight, but the 20 hour marathon IV drip made her extra puffy so she lost a lot of weight quickly. This was the first big moment of motherhood where I had to advocate for us.
A night-shift doctor suggested supplementing with formula using a syringe. Looking back now, I know fed is best and every journey looks different. But at that moment, something inside me said: Nope. We’ve got this. And we did! We figured it out together. I nursed her through our hospital stay and beyond — 22 months to be exact!
Looking Back With A Full Heart (And A Little More Sleep)
I see those early days for what they were: magical, messy, and meaningful.
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is this: Two things can be true at once.
Birth is allowed to be beautiful AND hard. Becoming a mom can be the most amazing thing you’ve ever done AND make you question everything.
In those quiet and exhausting newborn hours, I knew MJ needed me — in that all-consuming way babies do. But what I didn’t expect was how much I needed her too. Her tiny smile. Her warmth. Her Joy. Her unconditional love when I felt like I was messing it all up.
To that sleep deprived and terrified mom laying in that Florida hospital bed:
You are stronger than you think.
Everything will be okay.
MJ is now the kindest, funniest, and sweetest little girl.
And p.s. You go on to give her the most precious baby sister, too.