Bradley James Norris

It's a boy! Yes, it is true I am now the mother of THREE boys! I was due June 4th, and I was starting to think I may just make it to the due date, but then I was awoken around 1:30am on June 2nd. I remember I was having a dream and in my dream I was feeling my belly get crampy and when I woke up I realized it was a contraction! They started coming about every 20 minutes, not very close, but I remembered Nate's labor picked up pretty quick so I showered (yes, in the middle of the night), got myself ready and by the time I was done... the contractions were still around 20 minutes apart! So I figured I would go back to bed, though I didn't sleep much. My mind was racing wondering if this was it. That morning they were still about 15 minutes apart. I was so tired I laid in bed most of the morning. I even took a 45 minute nap (without a contraction). I was starting to think maybe it was false labor. They were uncomfortable, but not extremely painful. I hadn't tried walking around yet, which I know can get labor going. I decided I should give it a try. I had a hunch things could possibly pick up quickly so I told Chance I wanted to drive to the hospital and walk around there. I was glad that I did!!  Contractions were about 10 minutes apart on the way to the hospital. When they got there I decided to try to check in first and see if I was dilated. The nurse checked me at 2pm and I was about 3cm. We left to walk around and within 5 minutes the contractions started being about 2 minutes apart. In texted my mom at 2:18pm saying "I think I'm in labor".  - I think! Ha! We went back to get checked around 2:30pm and I was dilated to 4cm. I then let my mom know she should head down. From that point on labor flew! By the time my mom arrived I was practically in transition! When I finally wanted to start pushing they made me wait a contraction or two to make sure I was fully dilated. Once they told me I could push I was so ready! Though I didn't expect to feel the baby crown immediately! He came out with several pushes in the first contraction! Labor was intense and painful, but it was only that way for about an hour and 20 minutes! I was so nervous about labor. I had always heard the third labor was a bit of a wild card. I never dreamed it would be THAT fast. Chance was supposed to announce the sex but I saw he was a boy before he could say anything. I'm not even sure what my reaction was. Everyone thought I was having a girl, and there was a small part of my that was starting to believe it. He felt so bony in my belly, I thought maybe it was a little girl. Instead it was a 6lb 15oz boy! I would be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed to not have a girl. Bradley may very well be my last boy and it's a little hard to close the book on the idea of experiencing the things that come along with raising a girl. But I can say I wouldn’t want Bradley to be anything other than who he is. God wanted me to have him and I love him to pieces. In a way, I guess I thought I would have Bradley AND Shayla. But the night he was born, I held him in the bed with me and felt so incredibly blessed to have three HEALTHY boys. Blessed beyond what I deserve, for sure.

The boys were so excited to meet him. When they came to the hospital, they both wanted to hold him and kiss him. I thought Nate would be jealous, but he adored him! I felt a little like I was trying to protect my new baby in the eye of a hurricane! I suppose I will have that feeling a lot in the months to come. Let the chaos begin!

The last day Bradley was in my belly!

And the first day he was in my arms!

 Our first family photo shoot!

Here is Luke on the way home from Bradley's first check-up. He just LOVES his new little brother!

Oh, and last but not least, here is the moment the boys heard the big news. It's a bit grainy, because it was long so I had to compress it. Do they seem excited? LOL