We are so excited to welcome our newest addition to the family, Andrew Graham Praskins! He was born on December 29th, weighing in at a healthy 8lbs, 10oz, and was 19 inches long. He is absolutely perfect!! His BIRTHday turned out to be quite an exciting day! I really wanted to try to have a VBAC, which is a vaginal birth after having a c-section. I knew the risks and knew I could very well end up back in surgery for a second c-section, but Erik and I decided it was worth a try! We went in at 8am to get induced due to some insurance technicalities....Oh how I love insurance!! When we got to the hospital, I was dilated at 3cm (I need to be 10 to deliver)....and by 6pm, I made it to a whopping 5cm! Needless to say, I was frustrated. Not only was my body not responding, but little Andrews heart rate kept dropping. Everyone was on edge and Dr. B was ready to do the emergency c-section if needed. He too wanted me to be able to have a VBAC, so he was patient with us and kept encouraging me that I could do it! I was so uncomfortable, tired, and just worn out. I was ready to give up, thinking my body was never going to cooperate. The nurse kept changing my position to keep Andrew's heart rate up. And that is when God said, "its time!". Within a 20 minute period, I went from 5cm-10cm, and Andrew was on his way out!! Once the nurse saw I was at a 10, she ran from the room to get the doc and thats when the fun began. Dr. B was so excited, he ran down the hall and picked up the nurse and swung her around, then ran in the room sand gave me a big hug! He is seriously the coolest doctor ever! Everything happened so quickly. So quickly in fact that nobody had time to get to the hospital! Thankfully, Erik was there, along with my mom and my little sister, Mandy. I was so thankful to have them there to experience the birth with us. After about four pushes, Dr. B told me to look down and I got to see him pull little Andrew out! I immediately started bawling uncontrollably and was overcome with immense joy. It was the most amazing experience I have ever been through! He was absolutely perfect! The rest of the evening was spent with family and friends. Dylan was also able to come and visit his new baby brother. It was really sweet to see Dylan's reaction to the baby. He kept trying to kiss him and just wanted to stare at him and figure out who this new little person was that everyone was excited about. I could not have asked for a better day! Glory to God for blessing us with beautiful and healthy baby boy. Now the REAL fun begins!!
