Welcome to the world, sweet baby boy.

Ethan Ryan Copeland was born July 11, 2011, on our two-year wedding anniversary. He was 9 1/2 pounds, 21 inches long. Labor was long. My water broke Saturday evening and he was born early Monday morning. We used the HypnoBirthing method and it was a rewarding experience that bonded Ryan and I in amazing ways. He was a champion throughout such a long and difficult labor. They told me I could begin pushing and Ryan leaned over and whispered, "Happy Anniversary," and kissed me. I looked at the clock and sure enough, it was midnight. After three hours of pushing, our sweet baby was here. The moment he arrived was intense - he was in some trouble. I was shoved backward, all the nurses in the room jumped on me, one of them pushing hard on my stomach, and I heard the midwife, who had been so encouraging and positive the whole time, say frantically, "Lola, push NOW." She had told me the last one was the final push and I thought I'd given everything I had, thought I had no more to give, but in the split second that everything was happening, all I knew was that tone in her voice. I knew I had to summon everything inside of me and give all the strength I didn't have. I'd tried so hard to keep labor peaceful and quiet so my baby could enter the world gently, but it was in that moment that I finally really cried out as I reached inside and gave everything. And then he was there. The next few moments were emotional and crazy, but when he eventually heard my voice, he stopped crying. They laid him on my chest and I knew that he knew me.

 We love this beautiful baby.

"For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."