1. Please describe the moment you found out you were pregnant.
I woke up one morning, a week late, and decided it wouldn't hurt anything to take a test. An immediate "positive" showed up and I couldn't believe it. I was filled with so much happiness. What made the moment even more special was being able to share it with my mother. She was visiting us from the states at the time.
2. How did you announce your pregnancy to your friends and family?
We shared the news with our families right away, but waited to announce it to the rest of the world until I was 12 weeks along on social media.
3. Name the most beautiful and the most unpleasant pregnancy experience
The most beautiful pregnancy experience I had was just that, pregnancy. Nothing in this world compares to carrying life inside you. Two beating hearts in one body. The kicks, the nudges, the hiccups. It's amazing.
The most unpleasant pregnancy experience was the aversions to food. I remember one week it was so bad that the only thing I could handle eating was salads. A week straight of salads. Breakfast, lunch and dinner. My poor husband.
4.Tell us about some pregnancy problems that the glossy books don’t really talk about
I was extremely fortunate enough to have a relatively easy and healthy pregnancy, but one thing I was unaware about was the all day sickness that can occur during the first trimester. When I heard about "morning sickness" I figured it was just that, sickness that happened in the morning. No way. The sickness lasted all day, everyday for me during those first months. The mornings were actually the easiest part of the day while the evenings were the worst.
5. Your giving birth story, anything you want to share
I was 40 weeks + 3 days when I went into labor. I woke up to my first contraction at 1:15am. With each contraction after, they got stronger and closer together. When we realized how quickly things were happening, my husband decided to start timing them. When they began to be 4 minutes apart, he called the hospital. My water hadn't broke at this point and we were told to wait, eat something, take a paracetamol and have a shower. My contractions were so intense by this point that none of that was going to happen. I couldn't think of doing anything else but getting thru each contraction and not thinking about the next one. When they rapidly went from 4 to 3 minutes apart, my husband called the hospital again. Thankfully, a different midwife answered and she told us to come in. I endured a 40 minute car ride, laboring in the front seat. Not knowing it at the time, but I began to transition during that time. When we arrived at the hospital I was 5cm dilated, but in a matter of minutes, I was fully dilated. After 20 minutes of pushing on June 17th, 2014 at 6:28am, our beautiful son was born. All 7lbs 5oz of him. After a 5 hour and 13 minute natural and completely unmedicated labor.
6. Which personality traits do you hope your future children learn from you?
I hope they learn kindness and compassion. Open-mindedness, creativity and always have a good sense of humor. I hope they are courageous, stand strong for what they believe in and are never, ever afraid to follow their dreams, but most of all, I hope they will always know how much they are loved.
Follow the story of Hailey Haugen @mynorthernstory ♥
