Porter Willis

Wow! Being a mom to two boys under 3 has got me all kinds of crazy the last few weeks! Porter is now 3 weeks old. I am writing this post on my phone in bed with him cuddled next to me. Silas is napping, and it is pretty peaceful around here for now. Although I have a million things I need to get done, I just can’t find the time for anything other than my boys at this point. I honestly can not believe that I am trading valuable nap time for writing, but I have been reading other blogs and finally got some motivation to write again. 

So… here is the birth story of sweet little Porter Willis 😊. 

There was no shock and awe on the day he came into our lives. He was a planned cesarean and was scheduled for delivery at 39 weeks. I did not go into labor early, so on May 25th at 4am our bags were packed, I kissed my first born goodbye as he slept, Pates mom prayed over us, and we headed for Mercy in Springfield.

We arrived at the hospital right on time and got checked in. We were able to take some fun pictures in front of the labor and delivery signs. We were then taken straight back to our room where the nurses prepped me and got me and baby hooked up to the monitors. About an hour and a half later my doctor was there and I was being prepped for my second c-section. 

This experience was SO drastically different than our first. With Silas I went into labor unexpectedly, my doctor was out of town, I labored too long and ended up going into emergency c-section where I had to be completely put under bc my epidural had worn off. It was crazy and dramatic and painful. Porter’s delivery was calm and precisely planned. I was numbed from my chest down and could not feel a thing this time except for a little pressure when they would push on my abdomen. Pate got to stay for the whole delivery and was the first to see and hold Porter (also drastically different than with our first). This was so sweet to see and I will treasure those moments forever. He was such a proud daddy and i was overjoyed to be able to see him experience holding his son for the first time. 

Porter Willis came into this world at 7lbs 10oz and 20-1/4 inches. He was perfect! 

After the nurses made sure Porter’s vitals were all good, and I got all stitched up, I got to have skin to skin time and they wheeled us back to our original room. We stayed in there for a couple hours and got lots of one on one time with Porter. Pate’s parents showed up with Silas a little while later and he got to meet his baby brother for the first time. It was a very sweet time and Silas did really well with everything. He was gentle with momma and baby and I didn’t really feel like he was jealous of baby brother. 

At this point I was still very numb from my belly down. It felt so weird, but honestly I wish it would have lasted longer! Healing from c-section #2 has definitely not been easy! Three weeks later and I’m still taking ibuprofen and Tylenol occasionally. I couldn’t get up at the hospital for 24 hours and when I did I wished I could just stay in bed. Even with meds every few hours it was one of the worst pains I have ever felt (next to my first and second pregnancies). The day we came home, I was an hour late on taking my medication and I was shaking by the time I laid down in bed. I definitely scared my two year old that day, but at least he realized that momma is hurting and you have to be gentle. 

Since then we have had 3 weeks of healing, learning, and coping. We had lots of help the first week home. Pate’s mom was here helping me almost every day. We had meals brought from church members for a week, which we are eternally grateful for. My first day left alone was definitely a challenge and the first week was even more so. I don’t know how my friends that have more than 2 little ones do it! You are all supermoms in my book :). We are finally getting the hang of things in week 3 now though and I feel like I can finally come up for some air and maybe take some time for myself. 
I have been so thankful for many things during this time of change in our lives. Number one is my relationship with Christ. I know i could not have made it through all this without Him as my constant companion and most of all His love and strength. I started a new devotion on the Bible app 9 days ago when I started feeling really down on myself and just didn’t feel like I could do this. It’s called Joy For All Seasons by Carol Burton McLeod. It has been such an inspiration to read every morning while I’m nursing Porter. Number two that I am thankful for is my supportive and extremely hard working husband. He has been so amazing with taking care of me and the boys. And last but not least is my wonderful family. We have had so much support and help and could not do this without them. 

Well that is all for now. Porter just got really upset and is nursing again! He has been wanting to feed about every 2 hours today. He is a growing boy and is so so sweet! We can’t imagine life without him 😍.