Taylee Keremoana Tolman

Our little bundle of joy came May 8th at 3:01 pm weighing a whopping 5 lbs 14 oz and 17 in long!
Here's the story:
My water broke at about 11pm on the 7th. We headed to the hospital (american fork - BEST STAFF EVER) and after a simple test they admitted me. Then the fun began! I started having contractions and was really glad to have Matson by my side. As many of you know, I was trying to go natural (no epidural). My midwife came at around 3:oo am. Everything was progressing really well. At about 7am I was 6 cm. We were on our way! ...or so we thought.... A few hours later I was at an 8. Three hours later - still at an 8. So we decided to give me a little Pitocin, which I wanted to stay clear from but was necessary. They gave me a 2 to start out with and STILL nothing! So a 4 of Pitocin - talk about PAIN!!! After 6 hours at an 8 - we had to do SOMETHING. My midwife explained that because they gave me the max of pitocin (without an epidural) and I wasn't dilating that I could stay at an 8 for who knows how many more hours and by the time baby came my body wouldn't have the energy to push. She wanted me to get an epidural. I refused. I had worked so hard and prepared myself to do it natural. Matson then went on her side. :) I still refused. Before I knew it there was a room full of people explaining to me that it might be the only option in order for me to dilate. So - I caved. I got an epidural. The difference was night and day. They gave me more pitocin but I still wasn't progressing. They were monitoring babys heart rate and when I had a contraction, her heart rate dropped to about 60. My heart rate was rising. They immediately gave me drugs to stop my contractions. The midwife looked at me and said "if her heart rate doesn't go up, we'll have to do a c section". I died! The only thing I didn't want more than an epidural was a c section. My eyes were fixed on the monitor, watching her heart rate and praying harder than I ever have that she'd be okay. Her heart rate returned to normal when I wasn't contracting. They brought in the surgeon. I told him that I REALLY didn't want a c section and that I was a great pusher! :) He said ok - lets see what you got! I pushed a couple if times with everything I had but when I pushed her heart rate dropped again. There was no way I was going to have this baby vaginally. In a split second - tons of people running around, throwing scrubs at Matson and giving orders. They ran me down the hall to the OR. Preping took forever. Then Matson came in. He stood by my head and got to watch the whole thing. They even let him take pictures. With some pressure - baby was out! I heard the surgeon say that the cord was wrapped around her neck 3 times. My heart dropped. She barely made a noise. Her lungs had collapsed. They showed me her for about 3 seconds then swept her away along with Matson. And 4 hours later I FINALLY got to hold my baby girl. They had IV's and tubes all over her. Scary - but she was fine. It was the CRAZIEST experience of my life to say the least. And at the end of the day I'm so grateful that she's out and beautiful and healthy. I couldn't ask for anything more. I also believe that the epidural was heaven sent! The c section would have been a much longer process if I hadn't gotten it.
Matson was a TROOPER! He did fantastic! He was always there calm, cool and collected. I couldn't have asked for a better coach and supporter. The anesthesiologist raved about how well Matson did. He said he'd obviously seen a lot hard situations like that and that Matson handled it like a pro! (which he did) Matson says that he'll never let me try to go natural again because it was too hard to see me in that much pain - but we'll see! :)
We've been home for a week now. It seems pretty surreal, like she isn't ours, like we're babysitting or something. And while being a first time mom hasn't been the easiest thing - I love it. She is the most amazing baby ever! She never cries - like really - she's cried once! She nurses great (although it nearly kills me). And she even sleeps for 4-5 hours at a time sometimes. She has BLONDE hair and very long toes. :) We don't think she looks like me or Matson, with the exception of her mouth - TOTALLY Matsons! Matson has been the best Dad. He always offers to wake up with me and takes her right when he gets home from work. It's a lot of adjusting but sooooo amazing to have her sweet spirit in our home. We couldn't be happier!
Thanks to all our friends and family who've helped SO MUCH. We can't thank you enough for your service. I'm so excited for this new chapter in our lives. We are so blessed!