My due date was 4th May 2002 but when I had my ante-natal appointment on April 29th Taylah wasn't showing any signs that she wanted to enter the world anytime soon. I was very healthy and still feeling ok and Taylah was very happy to stay put, for the moment anyway. So I went home prepared for along wait.

After seeing Mark off to work at 6am, I started having shows and getting Braxton Hicks contractions. At first I didn't think anything of it but through out the day they got stronger so I called Mark to let him know something was happening and to see if he could come home early. I then called Mum (Nanna Loz) who was on her way back from Sydney and asked if she could come straight up. Nothing more happened but I didn't get much sleep as I was constantly thinking about Taylah and when she was going to be born.

Mark, Mum and I kept busy throughout the day by going shopping etc. By the afternoon we were starting to wonder how much longer it was going to take as I was still only getting strong Braxton Hicks contractions. None of us got much sleep that night as we were so excited about what was happening.

The contractions started to get alot stronger. I kept track of how long they lasted and how often they came to keep my mind occupied. By the afternoon they still hadn't gotten much stronger so Mark, Mum and I drove to Mum's house to get her some more clothes. When we were there the contractions started getting painful, I handled them well by breathing deeply and walking around. When we got back home at 6:30pm I rang the hospital to see what I should do. At this stage the contractions were 3-5 minutes apart and slightly painful. The hospital said that I was in pre-labour and if I could handle staying home for a couple more hours it would be good. So Mum and I cooked dinner and watched 'Big Brother' to keep occupied but by 8:30pm I was ready to go to the hospital. By then the contractions were 2-3 minutes apart and lasting about 60 secs.

We got to the hospital at 9pm and as soon as we got there the midwife hooked me upto the trace to see how strong the contractions were. The midwife said that she thought I would only be 2cm dilated and that she would give me some pethadine to knock me out so that I would be strong enough for Taylah to be born the next day. But I wanted her to give me an internal exam to check how far along I was and then I would decide what to do. The midwife checked and to her surprise I was already 8cm dilated.

The midwife took us down to the delivery suite and I got straight into the shower. I kneeled down on the ground, leaning over a chair with Mum running hot water over my stomach and Mark massaging my back. The contractions were very strong and when I felt a strong urge to push, I stood up and my waters broke.

Mark and Mum helped me to the bed and I started to push. The midwife was really great and helped me alot with instructions on how to push. Mark and Mum held my hands and after 4 big pushes Taylah was born.