Birth of Lior Sent

At 4:30 AM on Saturday, March 31, Esther-Mirjam is woken up by a sharp pain in her back. She gets up and wonders whether the contractions have started. At 5:30 AM, she decides that this is indeed the case and calls "the troops": Tante Daphne and Aafke to be present during the labor and Opa Ben and Oma Alie to babysit Luna. Aafke grabs a taxi from Utrecht to Nijmegen and the others hop in the car. Esther-Mirjam also sends text messages to the baby's siblings, which prompts Lenneke to travel by bus, train, and taxi from Apeldoorn to Nijmegen. What a sister! At 6:30 AM, Tante Daphne and Esther-Mirjam arrive at the hospital. At 7 AM, the gynaecologist informs mom-to-be that her cervix is dilated (only) 3 cm and that he will stop by every two to three hours. Shortly afterwards, Aafke arrives and so does a seemingly continuous flow of contractions. At 8 AM, the obstetrician stops by and finds that the baby will not keep everybody waiting for much longer. Shortly afterwards, Esther-Mirjam's membranes rupture and the pushing contractions start. Fortunately, Lenneke arrives just in time to witness Lior's arrival at 8:18 AM.

At the hospital Esther-Mirjam is attached to a machine to monitor the baby's heart beat as well as the contractions. The baby seems to be doing well (middle right), while mom is not finding these contractions too difficult (far right).

Esther-Mirjam is disheartened by the news that her cervix is dilated (only) 3 cm. Shortly afterwards, the contractions start becoming stronger and lasting longer (far left). This calls for Tante Daphne's support (middle left).

Lior makes his lovely appearance at 8:18 AM, with the first rays of sunlight shining through the hospital window. His mom is very happy, though the picture does not convey this (middle right). Lior immediately receives a perfect Apgar score of 10 (far right). And he is very eager to start breastfeeding.

Esther-Mirjam gets to cut the umbilical cord (far left) and the obstetrician shows the membranes, placenta, and umbilical cord that kept Lior happy for 38 weeks and 2 days (middle left).

Lior weighs in at 2375 grams, which is roughly 5.2 US pounds (middle right). Esther-Mirjam enjoys a much-deserved piece of Dutch rusk with anise seeds (far right), which is a "Dutch treat" to celebate a baby's birth (far right). The anise is presumed to be good for the mother's milk and scare away evil spirits.

Lior is lucky to have no fewer than five big sisters, as well as one big brother. The two oldest big sisters, Lenneke and Aafke, admire their new brother (left).

Opa Ben and Oma Alie walk over to the hospital with Luna, which takes about ten to fifteen minutes from Esther-Mirjam's new house, so Lior's youngest big sister can meet her new brother (right). Luna enjoys kissing and hugging him, though has to learn to do so gently.

Tante Daphne gets to go to the city offices to register the birth of her nephew, little Lior Noah Sent.

Lior has to stay in the hospital because his temperature is on the low side, as is his blood sugar level.