On Sunday, April 12, 2026 at 8:27 a.m. a beautiful new life entered the world. When Petra Noa was placed into my arms, the room stopped spinning and the moment stood still. She was here with us, and her presence felt like an honor. We welcomed her with happy tears and gratitude. For she was a beautiful reminder of God’s steadfast love.
I’ll be honest - going into another pregnancy, labor, and delivery scared me. We had been through it three times before, and each experience was so different. That uncertainty made me nervous. I understood that the only way to go through this again is by changing my mindset.
We started off by pouring our hearts out to God. Then I curated my Instagram algorithm to women going into labor with a positive and peaceful mindset for inspiration and encouragement. Then we brainstormed on how we can move things around the house to make some room for the baby. From that point on, it was just a waiting game.
We were so grateful to find out we were pregnant right away. We saw God’s hand in all of this. My pregnancy was a breeze. This is the least OB appointments that I’ve ever gone to with the least interventions. As well as the most stretching and exercising that I’ve done (which may explain all of the Braxton Hicks that I’ve been having.) This made me think that I’ll be having this baby sooner rather than later.
At week 39, I began to eat dates and drink raspberry leaf tea twice a day. That same night, my Braxton hicks were so strong that they kept me up all night. That’s it, I thought to myself. I’m in active labor. So at midnight, I went downstairs and did some more cleaning until I felt fully exhausted. I dosed off towards the morning and the Braxton hicks eased away later that day. I decided to give it another try that day. Dates, raspberry leaf tea and some light pelvic stretches. Except this night, the contractions were even stronger but at 10 minute intervals and more consistent this time.
Tracking the frequency, duration, and the intensity, I practiced taking deep breaths and used my hair comb to drift my mind off the abdominal pressure and back pain. I thought I had it handled, and whenever I started to waver I gathered myself and focused every bit of strength to steady my mind.
The contractions were strictly 10 minutes apart up until 3:30 a.m. Being in so much pain, I knew that if I stayed in my bedroom much longer, I would have definitely lost it. I felt claustrophobic in that space. I needed more room to breathe so I went downstairs; but not to clean this time. I turned my audio Bible to Psalm 11 and kept making laps around our living room and dining room practicing deep breaths with every contraction. As the Psalms were being read, I couldn’t help but feel a deep sense of peace - even knowing something super hard was just ahead.
The duration was picking up and around 6 a.m. they were 3 minutes apart. That’s when I headed back to my bedroom, woke up my husband, took a shower, texted mom, and packed our bags for the hospital stay.
While we were packing, our daughters woke up and helped us pack. They were always so curious, involved, and even helpful with this pregnancy. We kept them in the loop and they were aware of what’s going on. From choosing a name to nursery decor, our girls were fully committed. They couldn’t wait to meet their little sister.
When mom arrived at 7:15 a.m., she found me sitting on the floor, clutching a barf bag. That’s when it hit me - it was probably time to head to the hospital. The contractions were now 2-3 minutes apart and at times they didn’t even stop. We said our goodbyes and rushed to the hospital.
During our 15 minute drive there, I felt so much pressure in the pelvis which I believe was the descent phase. I almost gave birth in the car, haha! I had the urge to push but I kept praying and saving it. I was not trained for a delivery in the car🤪
When we arrived at the hospital, I was already at 10 cm and ready to go! Well, that’s a first! Of course, I was told that my OB was unavailable and a different doctor was on his way. I was asked to wait for 10 minutes before pushing. I remember telling them multiple times, “I need to push!” They kept reminding me that the doctor is on his way.
Once he arrived, within four pushes, Petra was born at 8:27am. I kept repeating “Thank you Jesus! Thank you Jesus!” As I came back to myself, I noticed the staff caring for Petra; she came so fast that she was stunned and couldn’t even cry. I looked at my husband as he was standing next to the team, observing. Soon, she let out her first cry. He came up to me, gave me the tightest hug as he whispered “she’s ok.”
She let her first cry out and was placed into my arms. The moment stood still and I savored every minute of it. A healthy baby girl. A perfect big little gift. Thank you Jesus! We will take good care of her❤️