On Wednesday, June 9th our family left for California. I was scheduled to be induced June 10th. On our way through St. George, we stopped to drop Lincoln off to stay with my parents. When we told Link we were leaving and would be bringing home a baby, he just said “bye-bye,” and off he went to play. He was in good hands.

Miles and I made the rest of the trip that night. We spent a lot of the trip talking and daydreaming about what it would be like to have another child in our home. We were very excited!

We picked up the key to our friends apartment, dropped off our stuff, cleaned up and got ready for a late dinner dinner at Cheesecake Factory. Nothing better than cheesecake to give you energy for labor!

Even with all the anticipation, I got more sleep that night than I expected.

We got to the hospital at about 8:30am. We pulled into a very busy parking lot. All of the Labor/Delivery spots were take but one. It turned out they were having a busy morning.

We were admitted and sent to a labor/delivery room with our nurse. The paperwork took awhile. And because they were busy and I was there for an induction, I was kinda a last priority. It took them awhile to get things going.

A resident checked me and informed me I was still only 2 cm and 60-80% effaced. It was hard to believe after a week of early-labor contractions!

Finally they started the pitocin at 10:30am. I was a little bit apprehensive not knowing what these “artificial” contractions were going to feel like. I’d heard they are often more intense. But the nurse and CNM assured me they would start me out at a very small dose, and any time I wanted my epidural they’d call it in.

It wasn’t long until I was wanting them to pump up the volume and get things moving. They were increasing the dosage every 30 min or so. Miles and I were pretty bored just hanging out. I think I watched 4 episodes of I Love Lucy. I was in no pain yet. I think I was finally 3 cm at about 3 hours. Needless to say, things were moving very slowly. After this point I started feeling a bit of cramping, but nothing like what I remember with Link. So, the CNM instructed the nurse to start increasing the dosage every 15 min. After another hour or so, I finally started feeling some discomfort. Yay, pain was feeling good.

The resident checked me again and I had progressed to a 4. The contractions were still easy. I could have done this all day. There was talk about breaking my water to further augment labor. My goal was to get to a 5 before they did this. But then, the CNM (who I really loved) came in to check my progress. While checking me, she said she was going to go ahead and break my water. That was intense. There was A LOT of water. The midwife even commented about how my belly was all water. I was grateful things were picking up! The midwife told me I might want to order the epidural because the contractions were going to get pretty intense. So even though I thought I could labor without it, I went ahead and had them order it. I labored about 45 minutes though contractions that finally felt equal to those I labored through for 7 hours with Lincoln.

Getting the epidural was more uncomfortable than I remembered. Last time I think it was just such a relief, I didn’t care how uncomfortable it was. And this epidural was much stronger. I could feel it when I pushed with Lincoln. This time there was no sensation whatsoever.

After getting the epidural, it was another hour or so until the resident said I was at a 5. This was going way slower than I expected. She asked me if I as feeling any pressure down there. I told her there was constant pressure. About 10 minutes after the resident left, I started to feel pressure that rose and fell with the contractions. This was what I remembered feeling when pushing with Link. I remembered thinking, yay, progress! I might be a 6 now.

A few contractions later, something unexpected happened on the monitor. All of a sudden the baby’s heart rate dropped or was lost. A nurse ran in, and not knowing what was going on, she called for the midwife. This made me nervous, and my first thought was a possible cesarean. The midwife came into the room a minute later. She told me she was just going to check to see how the baby was doing. When she looked she said something like, “oh, that’s why! The baby is coming!” WHAT?! Only twenty minutes before I had been a 5.

People ran around the room getting things ready. Three minutes later the midwife was suited up and ready to deliver. She told me I was contracting and to go ahead and push. Well, I didn’t need anymore explanation, I was a pushing pro!

I pushed through three contractions—less than 5 minutes—and Claire was born!

She was so beautiful! People in the room commented on how healthy and pink she looked!

Truly, there isn’t a more joyous moment than when your child is born. But the emotion this time was a little different. With Link there was a deep relief wrapped up in the blissful moment. With Claire, it was pure elation and euphoria. Both experiences so different. Both so beautiful and unforgettable.

I can’t believe we’re a family of four now. That really hit me when I read a card from my Grandma that was addressed to “Michelle, Miles, Lincoln, and Claire.”

One of the highlights of this experience was introducing Lincoln to his sister. He loves her and is being very sweet to her. He’s proving to be very secure and doesn’t seem to be threatened. At least not yet. It’s so fun to see him acting as an older brother.

The last five days with Claire have been a dream! She is one content little girl. She nurses well, poops well, travels well, and sleeps well! Hallelujah! I think I must have done my time with Link! Everything seems easier on this one! It has truly been a blessing. Thank you Father in Heaven, for sending us one of your little angels!

Here are a few pictures of things we’ve been doing since moving back to Utah.

Link has been spending lots of time in our “backyard.” Though it’s not fenced in, we’re so happy to have a little grass and playground behind us. It sure beats being in a second floor apartment!

There’s a saying in Utah that goes something like, “If you don’t like the weather now, just wait 30 minutes.” That’s for sure. Link experienced playing in real snow for the first time just three days after we spent the afternoon at the pool!

On the 2nd, we celebrated Link’s and Daddy’s birthday. I attempted to make a tractor cake, but this was a day I was having what we found out later was false labor, so just the fact that it somewhat resembled a tractor was a victory. Tractors and big trucks are Link’s new thing lately. Herriman is a pretty rural area, so we see them around frequently. I’m not sure if it’s because he’s had a little cold or because he turned two, but he has been a handful lately! The following picture says a lot.

After we gave him a popsicle he was a little happier.

We always look forward to the weekend when Daddy can spend more time with us. Yesterday we went on a trip to the Kennecott Copper Mine that’s about 15 minutes away from us. It was really incredible to see. And of course, Link wouldn’t stop talking about the BIG trucks and BIG tractors!

I really didn’t want to post this picture in all my huge glory. Just remember I’m at the bitter end people!

Link is playing quietly in the other room, so I thought I’d take the chance to write up a few more details about what’s going on with us. I’m sure many of our friends and family members are super confused! Heck, we’re really not sure about anything ourselves! Mostly, this is for Claire.

One week ago, I had an appointment with my midwife in California. So a couple days before, Lincoln and I packed up and drove to St. George. My sister had kindly offered to watch Link while just my mom and I ran down to Irvine for my appointment. While there, with the help of some wonderful friends, we packed up the remainder of our stuff (we had left a few things thinking Link and I would be camping out there for a couple weeks) and were planning to return to St. George the next day. The appointment went well, but to our surprise, after she checked me, the midwife told me I was “on the brink of having this baby.” I was soft and would go sooner rather than later. Oh, and in addition, she stripped my membranes without asking. I was like, whoa, we’re gonna have this baby soon! We went ahead and scheduled an induction date for June 10, but again the midwife commented that she didn’t think I’d make it until then.

After some prayer, Miles and I decided it would still be okay if I returned to St. George the next day, though we weren’t certain if going all the way home to Herriman was a good idea. So the next day (Saturday) my mom and I headed for St. George, wading through the Memorial Day weekend traffic. We spent the night in St. George. I was really pushing to go home at this point, but Miles was still hesitant. I planned to leave Sunday morning, but then my mom offered to give us their piano. She thought this was a good opportunity to get it loaded and have my little brother, Danny, drive it up on his way to EFY. So we waited to gather my dad and brothers to load it onto the trailer. This didn’t happen until about 5:00pm. So by 6:00 we were finally ready to go. I was anxious to just get home!

WARNING in the next line there will be some graphic detail . . .

While taking my last potty stop before leaving, I found just a little mucus on the toilet paper. I consulted my sister, and she agreed it was probably the beginning of my cervical mucus plug. In case you didn’t know, mucus plug is a technical term! I went back to the bathroom just to check again, and sure enough, I found my mucus plug.

Now, you’ll need a little background information to see why finding my mucus plug was so profound. My labor with Link went like this: I had a few contractions, found my mucus plug, an hour later my water broke which put me into full active labor. Miles and I had agreed beforehand that if I found my plug he would immediately jump on a plane and meet me in California. So, feeling very nervous that I’d be laboring intensely in the car, my mom and I headed back to Irvine. We did keep in mind that Vegas and Barstow have hospitals.

Miles got a ride to the airport from the High Priest group leader. He arrived at the airport at 7:00pm, told them his wife was in labor and had him in first class on the 7:45 flight. He made it to Irvine hours before we did!

Luckily, in the car I only had some menstral-like cramping and early labor contractions once in awhile. So we got there with no problem. We set up our air mattresses in the empty apartment and hoped to get a good night’s rest. But we got more than we hoped for. The early labor had stopped by morning. But we were still optimistic. We planned a day with lots of walking. We went to the mall and bought an outfit to take maternity pictures in at the beach. The menstral cramping and early contractions continued for the remainder of the day. But by the time we returned to our apartment that late afternoon, I felt very discouraged that active labor had not started. So, while my mom and Miles napped, I knelt down beside the air mattress and prayed to know what in the world I should do. It just wasn’t possible to hang out in California for a week. Literally as soon as I ended my prayer, my phone rang. It was my good friend Bridget, who just so happens to be a doula! She was returning my call from Friday and had no idea any of this was happening. This was undoubtedly an answer to my prayer!

Bridget and I discussed my predicament, and she offered an idea I never would have thought of. She suggested I have the midwife check me again and possibly augment the labor. Well, because Kaiser works a little differently I couldn’t just call up my midwife so we decided to go into the hospital to be checked by the midwife who was on duty. It was here that we got some disappointing news. I hadn’t progressed at all since my Friday appointment! Are you kidding me? And because I was still only 37 1/2 weeks along, they couldn’t augment/induce me—which we totally understood. Making sure the baby is strong and healthy is the most important thing!

Alright, it was time to just go home. Screw Kaiser (pardon my language) if they don’t cover the emergency delivery. We still haven’t been able to get a straight forward answer about whether or not they would cover the delivery if I’m admitted through the emergency room, even after talking to the claims department and membership services multiple times. Being away from each other and our home just became too much. We shouldn’t have to deal with all of this crap.

That night, Miles was able to give me a very comforting priesthood blessing. In it, I was told I didn’t need to worry, and that I would not have the baby traveling home. We packed up AGAIN, and headed back to Utah. This time we picked up Link in St. George and drove all the way home. It is so good to be all together at home again.

We continue to wait. I feel like I’ve been in early labor for a week now. I’m learning a lesson in patience. We are so anxious to welcome this little girl into our family. To be continued. . .

First of all, I have to thank everyone for their advice and input! Many of your suggestions we hadn’t thought about or considered. A couple days ago, while doing the dishes, I found myself crying out of gratitude for all the wonderful people the Lord and placed in my life. Through all of this people have been so supportive— willing to do anything to help our situation.

I thought it’d be fun to respond to each of your comments in a post.

Thanks for your support, Jessica. It’s nice to know other people have made it through similarly difficult circumstances!

Michelle, you’re right about the fact that we at least have insurance. I could be worse. Your encouragement that it is possible to take care of the kids by yourself was helpful. I am more confident now that Link and I will be okay. For now, staying in California while Miles is in Utah looks like our best option. I can’t believe that the medical bills for Isabelle were so much! That definitely put things into perspective when we were considering just taking a chance and paying out of pocket in Utah. Thanks for your prayers! And no, we don’t have any idea where we’ll be living. We’re looking at a few complexes that are close to Miles’ work, at least within biking distance. That way, he won’t need a car and can leave it for Link and I to use.

Lilly, it was good to talk to you about this in person a little bit the other day. You’re right that making a few phone calls doesn’t hurt. We are planning to talk to HR hopefully Monday or Tuesday after we get all the details of the offer in writing. As for the Kaiser possibilities, from the phone calls I’ve made we really have no possibilities. It stinks.

Jason, it was good and surprising to hear from you! Your advice was definitely comforting and informative. And we’ll possibly hit you up for that dinner when we finally arrive in Riverton! We too feel guided by the Spirit in all of this. Hopefully we’ll be in contact again soon!

Sara, through all of this, the option of delivering in a birthing center was not excluded. I definitely think natural child birth is a good thing and it is cheaper. However, we decided there is still a risk of being transferred and then we could still be stuck with a huge hospital bill. It stinks that making these decisions comes down to money! Good to hear from you! It’s been awhile!

Amber, I appreciated your insider’s view about how the hospitals work. I’d heard similar stories from a couple other people but you helped clarify how this works. Though we don’t have a strong Plan A, working with the Riverton hospital is our Plan B. You’re a very wise women.

Laura, I’m so excited we’ll be living closer! I thought about that the other day and am wondering where you live exactly. Is your condo in South Jordan? I couldn’t remember. I’m not sure how the move-in part is going to go, but we might just take you up of your offer for help. At this point, I think Miles is planning to drive the Uhaul up next week while I camp it out in California.

Monica, unfortunately Kaiser doesn’t have any out-of-network coverage options except for emergency services. Thank you so much for your well wishes!

Abbi, I couldn’t believe how creative your idea was! I brought it up to Miles, be alas, we figured out that we’re not going to have a lapse in employment. Miles will be receiving paychecks from the University through May. And unfortunately living in “poverty” as students here in California doesn’t equate to poverty in Utah. So, we don’t qualify for medicaid even with our current salary.

Bri, like I mentioned to Sara, I thought natural child birth would be a great option, but it doesn’t solve our problem with not having insurance. And yes, I agree that it stinks to make the decision based on money!

Thanks for your kind words Jackie! You’re such a sweetheart!

Love you all. We’re so so so grateful for your kindness!