JSBKT The Imperfectly Perfect Family of 5: September 14, 2010 = 5 Years Old

I thought it would be cute to share some of my favorite pictures of Travin over the past 5 years. WOW!! The past 5 years?? Really, is that even possible? TODAY MY LITTLE MAN IS 5 YEARS OLD!! I'm not sure where the time has gone. It feels like only yesterday that Jason, Kalyssa, and I were sitting at the doctor’s office for what we thought was just a normal prenatal appointment. Little did we know, Travin was ready to make his way into our world.

Everything happened so fast. Our mid-wife told us to get over to the hospital. She told Jason to get me checked in, make sure the girls were with a sitter, and then back to the hospital as soon as possible. As soon as she walked out of the room, I picked up the phone and called my parents while Jason called is dad. We explained to them that our mid-wife had checked me and that I was dilated to about a 2 or a 2 1/2. She was pretty sure that things were going to move fast so she wanted me in the hospital right away. We were both in a state of complete shock. I wasn’t having any contractions, I wasn’t in pain or uncomfortable (well at least not from being in the beginning stages of labor), I felt fine. How could I be getting ready to have a baby?

I was admitted into the hospital around 10 am on September 14, 2005. Jason left the hospital with Kalyssa. He went home packed a bag for the girls and got all of my stuff in the car. He dropped Kalyssa off with our friends and then called the school to let them know where Bryanna was supposed to go after school that day. He rushed back as quickly as he could. When he got back he was surprised to see me in such good spirits. I was in the hospital bed chatting with the nurses about my girls. This was not a normal sight to see. The nurses kept asking me if I was feeling any pain. Apparently I was having some pretty good size contractions. Of course I wasn’t going to complain about not being in pain!

I don’t remember exact times but I do remember that my father-in-law showed up and then not too long after that, our mid-wife came in. She asked me if I wanted an epidural. I should have said yes but I didn’t. She said “are you sure because I am going to break your water and once I do, things are going to move very fast. It will be too late if you don’t do it now.” Brilliant Shannon said “no I’m ok.” They were really hoping that my water would break on its own but after checking me a few times, they pretty much assumed that it wasn’t going to happen. This wasn’t a big surprise. My water had to be broken with both my girls. Having your water broken by a doctor isn’t exactly comfortable and it doesn’t make things any better. After she broke my water, my contractions sky rocketed.

I am very grateful that things moved as fast as they did. There were a few times when I wanted to give up. I felt like I couldn’t do it anymore. At one point my mid-wife made me focus on her. She told me that I was strong and that my son was waiting to meet me. She said “I promise you one more push and he will be out.” She grabbed my hands and said “here it’s your turn.” I reached down and was able to pull my son out and into this world. It was the most amazing moment of my life! At 1:14 pm, I became the mommy to a beautiful 8 lb 13 oz baby boy! (Did I mention his head circumference was 14 1/2 inches? The whole room gasped when they measured his head). I held my son while they cleaned him up. I remember looking over at Jason. I was crying. He had the biggest smile on his face. He kept telling me how proud he was of me and that our son was beautiful. I’m pretty sure that at that moment, time stood still for just a few seconds.

From the first moment I held Travin I knew that life was going to be different. There was something about him that changed the way I felt about my life. I looked into his eyes, rubbed my finger against his soft cheek, and then kissed his head full of black hair. At that moment, I knew my life was complete. Travin David Mall completed our family circle. From that moment on we became JSBKT The Imperfectly Perfect Family of 5, that's practically perfect in every way!

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