Just a short 7 hours after the birth of Elliot Hart, the Daily Mom team excitedly welcomed in the fifth newest baby since our launch! Little Miss Julia Rose was born to Social Media Manager Heather, and her husband Derek. Julia Rose is filling the role of little sister perfectly to her big brother, Benjamin. Julia was born on January 18, at 12:55 a.m., and was 7 lbs 14 oz and 20 3/4″ long.
When asked how she is adapting to being a Mother of Two, Heather replied, “I’m not really sure it has has changed me that much, if at all. I do know that I’m often much more patient with my 2-year-old, Benjamin, now that Julia is here, and I’ve been doing a lot more fun at-home activities with him than I ever did before. I know that he needs some extra attention now that he has a little sister, and keeping him occupied with projects makes him happy, which in turn keeps him out of trouble (like jumping off the furniture and trying to eat dog food!). I’m learning to multitask and juggle challenges like never before!”
We cannot forget about the men of the family, and how they are adapting to life with a tiny little girl. “Benjamin has surprised me so much with how well he’s adjusted. He’s a sensitive little guy, and always has been, so there have been a few extra moments of sensitivity, but it’s been far better than I ever imagined. He wakes up in the morning and immediately wants to “See baby!” and give her kisses. It gives me the warm fuzzies all over to see how much he genuinely seems to love her already.”
We adore the unmistakable bond between a father and daughter. Heather says that Derek is more delicate and careful with Julia and that it makes her smile when she sees him holding her, talking to her, and loving on her. She’s excited to watch their bond blossom over time.
Heather was able to successfully achieve a vaginal birth after cesarean (VBAC) and says this about her experience, “Having a drug-free VBAC was the most amazing, empowering, and fulfilling experience of my life. I went from no labor signs to intense contractions that were two minutes apart, and I arrived at the hospital 10 centimeters dilated, much to my surprise. Pushing was so much easier than with my son (when I had an epidural) – I could actually feel what I was doing, and it was surprisingly much less painful. The labor was so fast and chaotic that I didn’t even have time to even worry about the VBAC. After she was born, less than three hours after my first contraction, I was simply in awe of what I had just accomplished, and I could not stop smiling. I’ve been known to tell random strangers in the grocery store that I just had an all-natural VBAC, because I’m so proud. I’m learning to resent my c-section less because it allowed me to have this amazing VBAC experience that I so deeply cherish.”
When asked if she had any words of encouragement for women who may be seeking to achieve a VBAC, she replied, “Trust your body – it was meant for this! If you attempt a VBAC, you statistically have a great chance at succeeding. My best advice is read, read, and read some more – I spent the entire pregnancy researching birth statistics/outcomes, VBAC preparation methods, and encouraging stories from empowering websites like Birth Without Fear. Seeking all that knowledge was the very best thing I did to prepare, because it allowed me to understand how amazing the human body is – trusting your body and your intuition is the best thing you can do. This preparation helped me the most at the very end of my pregnancy when my medical team was pressuring me to induce. Despite the fact that I was 41 weeks, attempting a VBAC, and had gestational diabetes, I knew Julia wasn’t ready to be born and if I ended up being induced, I probably wouldn’t be able to achieve the drug-free birth that I so badly wanted. I was able to hold my ground in the face of some intense moments of medical opposition, listen to my body, and trust that my baby was not ready to be born just because they said she was. The “big baby” they warned me about was not big at all, and at 41 weeks, Julia was over a half a pound smaller than her older brother, who was born at 39 weeks, 5 days.”
Please join all of us in wishing Heather and her family a huge congratulations on their beautiful new addition.
Photo Credits: Jill Serrano Photography
Congrats on such a beautiful family and successfull VBAC! I am striving for a drug free delivery!
Beautiful baby and wonderful VBAC story! Congratulations to the whole family!
Great name! (My eldest is also Julia Rose) 🙂 Congratulations.