Emma's Birth Story

I've been working on this since Emma was born,

But as she turns FOUR months old today,

I'm determined to finish:)

Sam and I have learned so much these past four months,

Parenthood is better than we could have imagined.

***************************

August 12, 2016 was the most surreal day of my life,

Our little Emma Ann was born,

And just like that our lives were changed forever:)

My mom made a comment to me a few weeks after Emma was born that has stuck with me,

She said,

"Emma has been waiting so long to come and be with you guys, she is so happy to be here with you and Sam."

It's amazing how we reconnect here on earth and really are familiar to each other.

When Emma was placed in my arms,

I knew she was my girl because she has always been my girl,

I love her a lot and this is her beautiful birth story:)

Saturday - August 6th, 2016

Six days before Emma's birthday I started experiencing some light contractions,

Haha, I was so nervous and thought she was going to be coming that very night!

Sam was working that day for my Dad at the funeral home and when I started feeling worse,

I gave him a call and told him he was done working for the day and I was coming to pick him up!

We were in Blackfoot hanging out with family and I just felt miserable.

(ha, I didn't even know miserable...labor is a beast!)

Sam and my father-in-law gave me a blessing, it was so sweet and just what I needed.

When Sam and I got home later that evening, I was just so excited to lay in my bed.

I was a nervous wreck and thought,

Baby is coming tonight.

Sunday - August 7th, 2016

Well I woke up in my bed and not in the hospital,

Which means Baby Cannon hadn't come yet, darn!!

I told Sam I wasn't going to church because

I was to nervous that my water would break at church, haha!

Plus I wasn't feeling well so I just stayed in bed.

As soon as Sam pulled out of the driveway for church, I felt great!!

Really it was the best I had felt my entire pregnancy, I was so frustrated!

Just when I thought Baby Cannon was coming, she pulls a fast one on us!;)

Monday - August 8th, 2016

I had an appointment scheduled for the following day with my doctor,

But after everything that had happened over the weekend,

I thought I should go in a day early.

I was feeling great but secretly hoping that I was dilated to a 10!;)

At the appointment, Doc said I was dilated to a 2!

(not a 10 but I'll take it!)

I told her I was a manger at a facility and it would be really great if

I could have my baby on a weekend,

She told me that if baby girl didn't come by Friday, she would induce me!

I signed the paperwork and walked out the door thinking to myself,

"This baby is coming before Friday, see you soon Doc!"

Tuesday - August 9th, 2016

This is the day I guessed Baby Cannon would come,

I seriously told the entire world I KNEW she was coming this day.

I also really wanted her to come on an odd day because my entire family has odd birthdays,

And it's just one of those important traditions I wanted to keep going!;)

This was also my sister-in-law, Hannah's birthday

and I thought it would be so fun for them to share a birthday!

But I woke up feeling fantastic, better than the day before!

Once 11:59pm rolled around, I knew she wasn't coming today...

Wednesday - August 10th, 2016

I felt great!!

I kept telling baby girl,

"Stay inside, today is an even day, come tomorrow!"

Thursday - August 11th, 2016

Today consisted of me doing many squats and walking around the apartment trying to induce labor.

Sam and I decided that we would go on one last date because if baby girl didn't come today,

We knew she would be here tomorrow!:)

At dinner I started experiencing those contractions again and was so hopeful that we would be checking into the hospital within the hour,

Because like I said we were banking on having an odd birthday;)

But 11:59 rolled around again and I knew baby girl wasn't coming that night...

If you have made it this far, bless you!!

I really just needed to blog all of that so ten years from now I remember all these sweet moments leading up to Emma's birth:)

But here we are,

August 12th, 2016!!

Yes...baby girl decided to come on an even day, ha!;)

We had to be to the hospital by 7 a.m.

I was so nervous as I was trying to get ready and get all the last minute things together.

Before Sam and I left for the hospital,

We headed into Emma's nursery and knelt and said a prayer,

It was such a sweet moment as we left our home as a family of two

and would come back a family of three:)

Emma was born on a beautiful summer day,

This was taken right before we headed into the hospital,

LOOK AT THAT BELLY!!

 We got all checked in and headed into the room our sweet girl would be born in!

They already had the little warming bed ready to go for when she was born:)

They started me on Pitocin around 8 a.m and I was still dilated to a 2!

I started feeling some contractions around 9 a.m but they were manageable,

I asked my nurse when I could have an epidural and she said she would go find my Doc and ask her.

Let me tell you, I was so nervous for labor, like kill me now is what I kept telling myself leading me up to this day, haha! So I wanted to make sure I could get that epidural ASAP!!

My nurse came back in and said that once I dilated to a 3 and was showing consistant contractions, I could have my epidural.

So I did my best to relax and let my body do it's thing.

At noon my nurse came in a checked me again and said that I was a 3!

YAY YAY YAY!!

Unfortunately the hospital was PACKED that day and everyone needed their bums numbed,

So I didn't see my anesthesiologist until 3 and I was so relieved to see him!!

When I got my epidural Sam started to get light headed, HA!!

So my nurse was kind enough to hold my hand through the entire thing!

P.s epidurals are so not bad to receive, BEST CREATION ON THIS EARTH!!

And then this is where things got CRAZY!!

My body did not want to take the epidural,

The only thing that went numb was my right leg...

Kill me now, right?!

The anesthesiologist kept coming in every 10 minutes saying...

"Just give it 10 more minutes, it will take!"

When 6:00 finally rolled around I was dilated to a 6 and my right leg was still the only thing numb,

My anesthesiologist said that he would try again. HALLELUJAH!!

Luckily Sam was able to make it through this epidural, haha;)

My body finally took the epidural and went completely numb around 7:30!

The nurse checked me right after I went numb and I was a 10!!

(Picture taken right after I went numb, yes yes yes!!)

My nurse told me to "labor down" for an hour because baby was still so high and STUCK!

I had to keep a peanut ball between my legs for an hour in hopes that it would help baby get unstuck,

If not, I would be going in for a c-section.

Sam and I turned on the tv and watched Tangled together,

It was our last little bit just the two of us and it was so special:)

Up to this point we had planned on naming Emma, Piper!

We were in love with the name and had already started calling her Piper for the past few weeks.

But we both started feeling like Piper wasn't her name as soon as I dilated to a 10 and decided to add two more names to the pool, Oaklie and Emma, and see what she looked like when she was born.

When my nurse came in an hour later she said we could try a few trial pushes and see if baby was unstuck.

(Picture taken right before I started pushing. I'm pretty sure I was thinking, 

"How am I supposed to push when I'm so numb?!)

Things were looking up from there!

I pushed over two hours to get our sweet babe here,

But when Sam exclaimed,

"I see her head!"

I lost it completely.

I was moments away from holding my little girl in my arms,

From being a mom!

And then our sweet Emma entered the world at 10:50 pm,

She was absolutely perfect and I was overcome with so much love as they placed her on my chest:)

Emma didn't want to cry for us when she was born,

So the nurses quickly took her away and got all the stuff out of her lungs and throat.

They quickly brought her back to me but placed her so I couldn't see her face,

I could just see her cute little head in her cap.

When they turned her around my heart just melted.

My girl was finally here and never knew a love like this could exist!

She was so cute and hungry right away, haha!

And so was I,

I remember I literally drank 10 sprites after delivery,

And was craving a cheese burger!

Every time for the next three days if a nurse would ask if I wanted something,

I would tell them to bring me a sprite, ha!

This was the picture we sent our families once we got into our recovery room,

We were so excited to share the news:)

The next morning our babe was still nameless,

We were having such a hard time choosing a name.

So much responsibility;)

But Sam snapped this picture and we just knew her name was Emma Ann:)

This picture reminded me of a little pioneer baby with her cap on,

And I knew that Emma was the perfect name for her!

It was such a beautiful, timeless name.

We were in love!!

Emma was so alert from the beginning,

We couldn't get over her eyes, her hair, and that she was ours!

We were so anxious to bring Emma home,

We were excited to start our lives as a family of three:)

We love you so much Emma,

You have brought us so much happiness.

As I always tell Emma,

"You're my girl"

"And I'm your momma!"

Emma Ann Cannon

August 12, 2016

10:50 pm

8 lbs 3 0z

20.75 inches

WELCOME BABY

Introducing

EMMA ANN CANNON

. Born August 12th, 2016 .

. 10:50 pm .

. 8 lbs 3 oz .

. 20.75 inches .

Heavenly Father sent us a perfect little angel,

And we are loving having her sweet spirit in our home.

I can't believe she is here and all ours,

We love our sweet Emma Ann and those kissable cheeks.

I'm a new Mommy,

I get to watch Sam be a Dad,

And now we have our Emma with us forever.

I have such a beautiful life:)

- Chelsie C.

OUR LIVES ARE ABOUT TO CHANGE

Today I'm 39 weeks and one day pregnant!

These past 39 weeks have been incredible and the most amazing experience.

Our bodies are absolutely amazing and I'm so grateful for these past nine months to truly see what a mother's love means.

I never thought I would be able to say I reached week 39,

But time has flown by and here we are in the last week of this pregnancy:)

I had a doctors appointment scheduled for Tuesday (tomorrow) but over the weekend I started experiencing some contractions and thought it would be best to see my doctor a day earlier.

Doc told me that I was dilated to a 2 (YES YES YES!!) and that she would induce me Friday morning if our little babe doesn't decide to come on her own!

Sam and I are OVER THE MOON excited to know that by Friday, at the latest, we will be able to meet our little girl!:)

I love Sam with my whole heart and this week our lives are going to change forever:)

It's amazing how much my love for Sam has grown during the course of this pregnancy,

He has been so positive, helpful, and excited about everyday!

He is going to be the best papa to this little girl,

And when I think about how terrified I am for labor,

I just think of how sweet the moment will be when I get to see Sam become a Dad:)

From meeting Sam over 7 years ago at a stake dance,

To dating him through the last little bit of high school,

To sending him on his mission and writing him love letters for two years,

To marrying the boy of my dreams in the most special place,

To now as we embark on our greatest adventure yet,

Parenthood:)

There is no one I would rather do this life with than you Sam!:)

And no one I would rather spend my future sleepless nights with!;)

Cannon party of three coming at you all soon!

Can't wait to see you soon baby girl:)

We sure love you!!

- Chelsie C.

FAMILIAR

Today I've been crying,

Actually, let's back up.

I've been crying since Monday when we went in for our last ultrasound.

I'm not a crier but hey, pregnancy does weird things to you;)

On Monday we had our last and final ultrasound before baby girl decides to come,

It was our 3D ultrasound so you can imagine how excited Sam and I were!

When they pulled our babe up on the screen I couldn't take in that moment enough,

There she was.

I was getting a glimpse of what our sweet babe looks like.

Yesterday Sam asked me a question.

"Do you think our baby knows she is going to be born?"

If she is having any of the same thoughts I've been having, I would say no.

I think baby girl just wants to stay inside me forever and remain lodged in my ribs;)

Only kidding, August just seems so far away I don't think I'll ever be able to breath normal again!

But this question has been floating around in my head all day,

"Does our baby know she is going to be born?"

Does our baby know that we pray for her everyday?

Does our baby know how long we've waited for her to join us?

Does our baby know how much we already love her?

My new answer is, yes.

Our baby does know:)

I hung up one of our 3D ultrasounds on the fridge,

And yesterday I found myself looking at the picture over and over again.

Memorizing her nose, her eyes, and those chunky cheeks!

At dinner I told Sam,

"I can't figure out who she looks like, but she looks familiar to me."

I've seen her before, she is familiar to me, she's my little girl.

That's how I know our baby knows she is going to be born,

Because we were all together before we came to earth.

I have felt this happiness before and this sweet spirit in my home,

It's all familiar to me.

So these tears that I've been crying,

They are tears of happiness and pure love.

I'm anxious for our baby to come,

To bring her home and to love her.

I feel nervous and unprepared but totally ready at the same time.

Like I said before,

This is all familiar to me:)

Chelsie C.

I DREAM OF BABY

Most of my thoughts as of lately are consumed of what our baby girl is going to look like!:)

A few weekends ago Sam and I each went through our baby books looking at pictures of us when we were just little humans!

Of course I snapped a picture of every page of Sam's baby book and only got one of mine,

But a few of these are too cute not to share!:)

Sam: 1 year

Chelsie: 4 months

We are excited to see what our little peanut will look like!:)

Four months from today is baby's due date!!

Sam and I haven't purchased a thing except a cute dress when we found out the gender.

Good thing we still have four months to get everything ready!;)

Chelsie C.

CLASS OF 2016

I DID IT!

I FINALLY graduated with my Bachelor of Science in Exercise Physiology

With an emphasis in Program Design!:)

After Sam and I got married I had one more semester to finish my Associate of Science in Medical Assisting and as the semester was getting closer to getting done,

I just kept thinking about how badly I wanted my Bachelors!

I was so excited to be getting done with school and that I would be able to work full time and put Sam through school,

But I could seriously not get the thought of earning my Bachelors off my mind!

Sam of course was so understanding and encouraged me to keep going to school if that's what I wanted to do,

So we made a plan and I didn't look back!

I'm so glad I decided to continue to go to school,

I took some amazing classes that I learned so much from,

Met classmates that will be my close friends forever,

And learned from professors that I felt was such an honor to sit in their classes.

I could not have accomplished this goal without the help of so many!

My parents dropped me off for my first semester of college,Winter of 2012.

I cried everyday that semester because college was so different than what I had expected!

I missed home, I had no idea what I was going to major in, and just felt lost.

After that semester though something sparked inside of me and I began to love school!

This last semester, Winter of 2016,

Was much like my first semester!

Sam can testify that I pretty much cried everyday this semester, haha!

Most of the crying came from all the hormones I'm experiencing due to pregnancy,

But this semester was just tough!

I was sitting in one of my classes this semester listening to the teacher lecture

And I just started crying.

I was completely lost with the material we were learning that day for some reason.

I made a plan that I was going to drop the class,

Maybe one of my other classes as well,

And I was just going to finish in the spring semester.

I even had my phone out on the school website ready to drop the courses.

I decided that I wold talk to Sam later and make sure I was making the right decision!

When I got home Sam told me I was absolutely crazy, haha!!

I was more than halfway through the semester

And he told me that he wasn't letting me drop my classes.

Thank you lover for encouraging me every single day to finish strong,

I couldn't have done it without you:)

All I have to say is...

YOUR NEXT!!

I can't wait to see my Sam in this black graduation gown and cap next year!:)

I love you forever Sam.

From my first semester to my last semester,

My parents have encouraged, helped, and pushed me to reach my goal of graduation!

I can't thank them enough for the help they gave me physically, emotionally, and financially.

My parents are wonderful and I love them with all my heart,

I was so excited to accomplish this goal and make them proud!

Thank you Dad and Mom,

I love you both.

Also a shoutout to my siblings,

These three are the absolute GREATEST!

We each have gone off in different directions with our lives,

But we will always be there to support one another.

It meant so much to me that they all made it to my graduation,

I love you guys.

I love my Cannon family,

They too have been apart of my college journey since day one!:)

From my first semester,

Momma Cannon would send me packages encouraging me to keep doing my best and they meant the world to me!

I was so grateful that so many took time out of their busy schedules to be apart of my graduation!:)

I love being a Cannon and this family means everything to me,

I love you guys.

My grandparents were also able to be at my graduation,

And was so grateful that they came back early from St. George to be here!:)

They spent the entire day with us,

Even for italian sodas and cookies at 10:30 at night!;)

My grandparents haven't missed a single event in my life

And I'm so grateful they could be at my graduation,

I love you both.

I will always cherish my time I spent here at BYU-Idaho:)

I loved being able to go to school with my sweetheart these past couple of semesters.

I'm excited to continue encouraging him through his schooling,

And see him accomplish his goal of graduation next year:)

Thank you again to everyone who encouraged me along my way!

The prayers on my behalf did not go unnoticed.

This is a time in my life that I've been able to grow closer to my Heavenly Father and Savior as they have led and directed me in the way I should go.

As one chapter of life closes another chapter opens,

I am so excited for my next adventure and goal!

Becoming a mommy to a baby girl in August:)

Chelsie C.

THE BIGGIE

Today I had my BIG 20 week appointment!

Sam and I were so excited for this appointment because we were having an ultrasound which meant we were going to see our baby girl and how much she had grown!:)

And YES,

The ultrasound tech did in fact confirm that we were having a girl,

So excuse me while I order anything and everything pink, YAY!:)

When we checked in for our appointment,

Everyone kept saying, "Ohhhhhhhhh it's the big appointment today!!"

These comments made Sam and I even more anxious to get in and see our babe!

This ultrasound was so so neat!

When the ultrasound tech would point out what we were seeing,

All we could say was,

"NO WAYYYYY?!:)"

The ultrasound tech measured our baby, her brain, her heart,

And all the fluid that surrounds her!

Amazing.

So far in my pregnancy I haven't felt a thing!!!

I've been slightly worried because so many people would tell me that I should feel something at this point in my pregnancy and I haven't been able to.

Doc told us today though that my placenta is anterior, which is why I haven't been able to feel any movement thus far in the pregnancy,

And that the placenta is muffling all the baby's kicks and movements.

So being able to see our baby today moving and waving hello put my heart at ease:)

I'm anxious to feel those first kicks and hope they come around sooner rather than later!

All is well though,

Baby girl is growing and looking cute as ever!:)

Have I mentioned how excited we are to meet her?!

Look at that cute little foot!!

We just love her:)

- Chelsie C.