My daughter Annabella was due to be born on October 15, 2015. I was quite surprised (and in denial!) when I went into labor 15 days before her due date.  

At 3 o'clock in the morning on Wednesday, September 30, 2015, I woke up to my water breaking. I thought maybe I was wetting the bed, so I jumped up and waddled to the bathroom. All of the signs that my water had broken were there, but I didn't want to believe that I was in labor. 

So I went back to bed.  

I slept restlessly for the next 4 or 5 hours, kissed my husband, Jeremy, goodbye when he left for work, and then finally got up to work on my to-do list, not mentioning my impending labor to even him. 

I started cramping, but it was very light. It wasn't even as bad as cramps I had felt when I had my period. Finally, at noon, I began having contractions. I told myself I would wait one hour, and if I felt another contraction at that time, I would know I was in labor. When 1 pm rolled around, I had another contraction. Still procrastinating, I ate lunch and took a shower.  

The nurses on the hospital tour my husband and I went on a few weeks prior had told us that if the contractions were real, they wouldn't go away when taking a shower. If the labor was false, the contractions would stop under the warm water. 

The contractions persisted throughout my shower, so I finally decided to call someone. 

The first person I called was my mom. I couldn't help but burst into tears when she answered the phone. A sudden rush of emotions hit me as I told my mom that I thought the baby was coming today. 

I felt afraid, excited, happy, ill prepared, and yet so ready to have my baby. 

My mom called my sister and I called my husband. Then, I called the hospital to let them know we were coming and that I thought my water had broken early that morning. 

Jeremy quickly left work and didn't even bother to change out of his work uniform - scrubs. He rushed me out the door so fast that he didn't even grab everything we would need for our hospital stay!

When my husband and I arrived at the hospital, we were taken into the triage room where they checked my cervix and did a test to see if my water had indeed broken, which it had. I was already dilated to 4 centimeters, so they prepared a delivery room for me. 

Our family began arriving to the hospital - Jeremy's mother, father, and brother, and my mother, father, and oldest sister Monique. Jeremy's best friend Travis even dropped what he was doing and rushed to the hospital. My little sister Daniella was already getting ready to leave her job on campus early to drive from Pueblo to Colorado Springs.  

The next few hours were a blur. I remember being administered Pitocin since my water had broken 12 hours earlier and just a lot of people coming in and out of the room. I was happy and scared. Jeremy was terrified. I was more afraid that someone would see my bottom since I was only wearing a hospital gown and those mesh panties! 

A few hours in, I felt the worst contraction I had all day. At that point, I decided to ask for an epidural. At about 9 pm, it was time to push. Everyone was in the waiting room besides my husband, my mom, my mother-in-law, and my two sisters. My sister Daniella brought her camera and became our birth photographer. 

At 10:25 pm, Annabella Grace Kelly was born. She weighed 5 lbs 15 oz and was about 19.5 inches long. She is the most beautiful newborn baby I have ever seen.  

My first thought when I finally opened my eyes and saw her was, "She looks just like her dad!" Followed by, "She's mine!" 

My labor and birth experience was beautiful. It went smoothly and I recovered quickly. I have no regrets about the choices I made during my labor and birth - although I do wish I had utilized the hospital's jacuzzi before getting my epidural! 

I felt safe and at peace during Annabella's delivery, and she came out very alert and ready for cuddles. My goal was a healthy baby and calm mama, and I think we achieved both!