On October 4th at 11:53 a.m., Regan Emma Laine Shaver came into the world at 7 pounds, 5 ounces, and 18 1/4 inches long.
(Photos by Alisha Rudd Photography)
It was absolute love at first sight. Seeing her face for the first time instantly transported me back 6 years ago to when I saw her sister for the first time too. There is no doubt that they are twinning!
Robert and I have somehow developed a “thing” for Shakespeare, which is where her first name came from. Since I am a former English teacher, I’ve always had a love for Shakespearean plays. He was one of the first writers in history to ever make a female character the hero in literature, after all. 😉
Robert and I got married on April 23, which is Shakespeare’s birthday. Olivia’s name was invented by Shakespeare in one of my favorite plays, Twelfth Night. So when we were juggling around baby names for this second babe, I looked up a list of female Shakespearean characters, and the name Regan, from the play King Lear, was our favorite of all.
Her middle names Emma and Laine came from my great-grandmother’s middle name (Emma) and my and my mother’s middle names (Elaine). And her initials, RELS, ended up being the same as Robert’s.
I’m so amazed how different her labor went in comparison to my first with Olivia. Around midnight – early Wednesday morning I woke up to my water breaking and thought I had peed the bed. Haha! I had absolutely no signs of labor leading up to that.
With Olivia, it was totally opposite. I labored for 16 hours at home with the most awful back labor contractions, hardly any progression, and not one sign of my water breaking.
But this time, once I was sure I hadn’t actually had an embarrassing wet-my-pants-pregnancy-moment, I called my midwife, and Robert and I practically danced our way to the hospital where we were admitted at 5:30 a.m. I had barely the slightest twinge of a contraction and was laughing through it all.
As soon as we got into my hospital room, they started me on pitocin, and the smile on my face went away REALLY quickly. I remember telling my nurse what a total wimp I am when it comes to pain, and that I would be ready to start an epidural as soon as I got uncomfortable.
After an hour of fast progress, I was begging for the epidural, but the anesthesiologist was so backed up, that he couldn’t get to my room fast enough.
I progressed from 2 cm to 9 1/2 cm in 3 hours without any pain meds, and I remember praying during every single contraction just begging God to help me through them (and also cursing Eve a little bit because that chick really ruined this baby birthing thing for all of us).
I don’t know how I would have made it if Robert and my mom weren’t in the room encouraging me through the contractions.
20 minutes before it was time to push, the anesthesiologist arrived to give me an epidural, but it ended up only working on one side of my body. I still felt everything.
But once I realized there was no way out, that this was my reality I had to accept and there was no giving up, I hit an adrenaline rush. I’ve never felt so determined, so empowered, so strong in all my life. And in a matter of 5 pushes, our beautiful, healthy baby girl was born. I immediately forgot all about the pain.
The hospital room around me buzzing with nurses and doctors was a blur. And all I cared about more than anything was this warm, squishy ball of a baby lying on my chest, who was screaming to high heaven. It was the greatest sound in the whole world.
In the middle of all of that immense pain, I wanted to be mad. I wanted to scream (and okay, maybe I did towards the end). But when it was all over, I was dang proud of myself because I would have never learned how strong I really was if it weren’t for that greatest challenge I’d ever faced.
And you know… it really taught me even more about life itself. Yes, we’re going to face trials and tribulations. We’re going to face moments that scare the daylights out of us. But when it’s all over, we’ll be stronger knowing we kicked butt and conquered it.
Already this little girl has taught me so much, and I cannot wait to see what other great things, what other eye-opening life lessons God has planned for us through being her parents.
When Olivia came to the hospital to meet Regan for the first time, it took a while for it to really sink in for her that this was her baby sister.
Now that we’re home, she’s been the best little helper with grabbing blankets and burp cloths for us, helping us bathe her, singing to her. Seeing the two of them together melts my heart. I fall deeper in love with our new family of four every single day.
We are so thankful, and we feel so blessed.
“Every good and perfect gift is from above.” James 1:17
Congratulations on your sweet blessing, Lauren and family. Savor it all.
Thank you for sharing your story with us.
Your family is beautiful!!
She is beautiful and the pictures are lovely!
Thank you, Debi!! Alisha does an amazing job!
Beautiful story, beautiful baby! 💕💕💕💕💕
Thank you!!
Congratulations on your sweet bundle of joy! She is adorable!
She is absolutely perfect, Lauren, and yes she really favors Olivia! It’s not always how you plan it to be, but it is always how it’s meant to be! Enjoy these moments! XOXO
Congratulations, she is absolutely gorgeous, just like lauren.
So excited for you guys! She’s absolutely perfect as are you. Enjoy this time together and soak up every minute you can. Big hugs, CoCo
She is so beautiful. Congratulations to you and your family. Enjoy!
Thank you, Donna!!
Congratulations! She is adorable!
(I was at the hospital that same day as our daughter gave birth to our 5th grandchild… a grandson!
Yay for Oct 4th! 👶🏻)
Thank you, Jayne. And, AWESOME!!! Yay for October 4th!!
Such a beautiful bundle of joy and such a beautiful family you all make.
Beautiful, happy, and healthy Mommy and Baby. Congratulations !!!
Thank you for sharing your story and the lovely pictures.
Blessings.
She is beautiful!!
I am so happy for you and your precious family. I know you will enjoy everything God has in store for you. Love the pictures.
The most beautiful baby! So perfect in every way. I am in awe of your pictures..so natural and not posed. Congratulations and may you have the best day ever!
Thank you, Linda!!
Congratulations! She is absolutely beautiful.
Such a beautiful family! You are truly blessed. Our first grandchild (a girl) finally arrived this morning—at 42 weeks. So thankful that she is here and is healthy. Enjoy that little one! Can’t wait to hold my granddaughter!
Congratulations! What a beautiful and wonderful Blessing.
Beautiful baby! And what a lovely story. Congratulations!
What a beautiful family, and Regsn is absolutely angnelic! Your story brought tears to my eyes. May God always bless your family!
The emotions all came back while writing this one. Thank you, Mercedes.
Congratulations! She’s a beauty.
How wonderful! You have a beautiful family.
Congratulations! Regan is absolutely beautiful, and your sweet family is precious! Love all the pictures…many ooohhs and ahhhhs! Enjoy every moment of this amazing time!
What a beautiful family you have and how blessed you are! Thanks for sharing. Congratulations!
Every good and perfect gift IS from above. What a beautiful, sweet gift she us!! Just looking at your beautiful pictures I can almost feel her warm cuddly body and smell her heavenly goodness!! Pure joy for sure!! I’m so happy for all of you!! I had six children and 23 ( one being still born) grandchildren that I have been blessed to enjoy and love!!
Congratulations on the birth of little Regan! I love the story of your girl’s names. Enjoy every moment with your family of 4. God bless you!
Ellen, Thank you!!
She is just beautiful!! Congratulations to you all!
Thank you, Shelley!!
Congratulations on your precious little Gift from God. My sweet baby Regan is 26 years old, but it seems like just yesterday she was that tiny. Enjoy and soak up every second. I think you chose the most beautiful girl name in the world! 🙂
Blessings to you and your family!
Congratulations on your newest bundle of joy! I have a daughter Olivia, and if her twin were a girl we were going to name her Regan too. I didn’t know they were both attached to Shakespeare though 🙂 Thann you for that teachable moment.
I am still able to teach a little English lesson after all. 🙂
Congratulations, on your baby girl…she is beautiful. She does indeed look like her big sister – they both are beautiful little princesses.
I have an Emma Layne granddaughter also – my husband’s name is Lane and her mother was named after him, Melissa Layne. So, she named her daughter after both of them. She also is a beautiful brunette that just turned 13 years old.
Enjoy, because they really do grow up so fast.
God bless you and your beautiful family.
Thank you, Daphne! Names are so special. Thank you for sharing!!
Congratulations to you all! So beautiful – so precious – so loved! Thank you for sharing with us – enjoy this wonderful time <3 –
What a gorgeous family and a beautiful little child you brought into this world. Best of Luck and God Bless.
Congratulations! Your family is adorable!!! Your photographer did an excellent job; the photos are beautiful.
Congratulations!!!! What a sweet addition to your beautiful family. Four our of my five pregnancies were natural (I tried the epidural on number two and never did it again). We women were made to do this! Enjoy your new bundle of joy.
Oh Lauren,
She is beyond precious. Congratulations to the whole family and especially to you for making it through that delivery. Way to go! Amazing how God makes the pain just fade away with the first glance at that tiny face….
Now, sleep as much as you can and drink in every second. We will be here!
Lisa
The fact you put out a post with 3am cryings means you are amazing! Love each photo. What a precious family. To be surrounded by love is a gift. Many blessings to each of you.
Congratulations! So happy for you and your family! What a wonderful blessing!!!
Another chapter in your family’s story. One in which every word has a glint of gold:D Sooo thrilled for you all! Loved hearing her birth story. She is a beauty like her big sister. I think Mommy and Daddy had a lot to do with that;) Congratulations! now put your feet up and enjoy!
Thank you, Cindy!!
Congratulations! So happy for you and yours. What precious photos.
Congratulations! Little Regan is adorable and just perfect! You have a beautiful family, you are blessed indeed. Enjoy all the snuggles!
So many snuggles. I am definitely not complaining. Thank you, Michelle!!
The most lovely story ever. Beautiful baby girl. Congrats!!
Regan is precious. Thank you for sharing the story of her arrival and all those beautiful pictures. The picture where she is “smiling” needs a thought bubble above her head, “I love my family, my nursery, and my new home!” Best wishes to All!
Oh Lauren! She is exquisite! Your family is once again blessed beyond measure! Congratulations!
Congratulations!!! Reagan is simply adorable 😍😍
Congratulations, she’s beautiful. i had the same birthing experience with my daughter.
Thank you, Lara. I am certain I will always have a special connection with those who have the similar story.
Congratulations! Regan is so pretty! 😀
Thanks for sharing your story. She is a perfect little gift!!
Congratulations and blessings to all of you.
Oh my goodness – she almost looks artificial she is so perfect, like a little doll…congratulations and hope you can get some hard earned rest ❤️
Beautiful baby and a beautiful and BLESSED family !!!! Your story has in reinforced in me to never give up in trying times. I, and my family, are having a rough time right now with a situation involving a baby. We have no control over the situation, but I KNOW God does. It will be worked out in HIS timing. Thanks for sharing such an intimate event with us, your readers. Truly inspiring !!!
SO happy for you and your family! I’m glad grateful God keep you both safe under his wings. Congratulations!
Congratulations! Such a beautiful post and family!
Lauren, thanks for sharing your beautiful family with us! Your family pictures are lovely! Little Regan is just so precious! Such sweet pictures of Olivia with her new sister. May God Bless you all!
God bless your beautiful family. Thank you for sharing the lovely pictures. Enjoy it all even the lack of sleep for it goes by so fast.
Congratulations! Thank you for sharing your beautiful baby girl with us. I love the story of her birth. I just heard a great message explaining that it’s not true that God never gives us more than we can handle – the truth is He never asks us to handle it alone, He walks through the impossible with us. So happy for your family, enjoy every sweet second of it!
Congrats, Lauren! God is so faithful! A God-given adrenaline rush that most of us don’t have at the end! Woot! All babies are precious, but not all are born gorgeous! Regan is just beautiful… really!
Congratulations to you and your little family, Lauren! Regan is gorgeous, and how sweet Olivia is with her! Thank you for sharing your news and those beautiful new family photos! God bless you as you take this next big step in your life journey!
Your daughter is absolutely beautiful and so is your family!! Thank you for sharing the story behind your girls’ names (they’re gorgeous!) & your birth story. Daughters are such a blessing! Enjoy this new season.
Congratulations! Regan is just beautiful, like her sister! Gorgeous family! I had a similar experience, where my labor sped up very quickly and my epidural did not kick in until after I had delivered! Once they placed her on my chest I forgot all about the pain too. Rest up and enjoy!!
Congratulations! You have a beautiful family, enjoy this time! The pictures are amazing❤️
congratulations! much love and happiness to you and your family
She’s beautiful! Congratulations to all.
Congratulations! I had all 3 of my girls in a birthing center with no meds and you are right – it is incredible to go through that and realize how strong our bodies are and how determined we can be! 🙂 Regan is gorgeous! Rest easy and enjoy each moment you can. Bless you all!
May God bless your new baby. Pictures are beautiful. Thanks for sharing your pics. ❤️
I had tears in my eyes from the third photo onwards! What a perfect story you share – not how you had planned, but how perfectly God had planned! You are one amazing warrior mom and the love for your family shines through these gorgeous photos and words. Thank you for sharing them with us. xx
What a blessing your precious girls are! I had two girls as well and even as young women they are still the lights of my life! And we are now expecting our first grandbaby! I so enjoyed your story and beautiful pictures.
Thank you for sharing!
I am soooo happy for you all! And what beautiful pictures!!!
Her birth story is just like my daughters- water started leaking in bed, but it was almost Christmas Eve, and I still needed to pick up a couple things I had ordered thru J.C.Penneys catalog! I called the doctor from Penneys… They induced me at 3:00, and my beautiful baby was born at 1am. She was, and always will be, my most wonderful Christmas present ever! We are both truly blessed!
Congratulations to all! Baby Regan is adorable, and big sister Olivia looks so sweet holding her. Thanks for sharing your wonderful news.
Congratulations! She is beautiful!
Thank you!
What a blessing! Congratulations on the birth of sweet Regan. Our daughter Reagan was born about this time a year ago, and she is our second daughter as well (3rd child). Just discovered your blog and LOVE your sense of style and approach to homemaking. Enjoy these upcoming weeks of newborn snuggles and the joy of mothering two precious girls!
AWESOME! It is interesting with the ‘us too’s that we share. Margaret, welcome to the blog. Thank you for your sweet message.
Congratulations on your safe arrival a gorgeous Regan. Bless your beautiful family.
Thank you, Maggie!
Congratulations! She is absolutely beautiful! So happy for all of you! You can tell Olivia is going to be the best big sister!
Congratulations to you and your Precious Family! ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ The pictures and you are an Amazing Mom!!!! Thank you so much for sharing your pictures with us. Take the time to enjoy every moment with your new Angel and take time for yourself too. Prayers, Love and Hugs, Cheryl.
Beautiful pictures………congratulations again!! 💗💗💗
She is beautiful! Looks a lot like Olivia. Such a lovely family. May God bless you all.
She is precious and your family is so sweet! Congratulations! And photos are beautiful…..
How precious! Congratulations!!!
Congratulations, she’s perfect!
Sweet baby & beautiful family.
When my baby was born there were never any epidurals or any other pain block. I also received “pit” as my water had broken almost 12 hours earlier. I still remember the pain & that was 38 years ago. But well worth it!
Thank you, Trudy! The pain is certainly worth the end result.
Oh, Lauren – what a blessing – what a miracle!
I am so thankful all went well for you – and especially happy about all the loving help you are getting!
I won’t forget this one – you had your Regan on my birthday! AND my 15 year old niece/god daughter is named Reagan. : – )
God be will you and you open your arms and hearts to your sweet beautiful wee angel.
Lauren~
She is such a beauty and a precious blessing that fits perfectly in your arms. Isn’t it just like Jesus to fill our hearts and homes with the best things in life? Goodness gracious, how awesome! I know you all will love her to pieces as she fills your home with added joy. Let a lifetime of love and spoiling begin!!! 🙂
She’s absolutely beautiful! Well done and congratulations to you all x
Thank you, Rachel!!
Congratulations to all of you! You are one strong mama Lauren. When I had my first two I had epidurals and all and it was fine. But for the other two, we had moved to Greece where there were no epidurals and I also had to have all natural births. If that doesn’t test your mettle nothing will. But in the end, you are left with this little blessed bundle of joy and all is forgotten. May you always be as happy as you are today!!
Congratulations and what a sweet announcement post💗. The photos are wonderful and how they include your home, each of you and your precious Regan. Blessings and rest!! Recycle old posts!!!! You have many that we’d enjoy again and you could have a much needed family ‘leave’. We want you to show the world strong means taking time for you and your family right now!!! (Oh dear – I’m so bossy!!!! )
Congratulations! Beautiful family Lauren!
Thank you so much for sharing Regan’s birth story and the beautiful photos! Oh my. You’ve filled my heart with happiness for your family of four. I bet Olivia is loving being the big sis. 😍👏💖
Congratulations! She is beautiful.
So very beautiful…. Congratulations!
Congratulations to you and your beautiful family!
Thank you, Terry!
41 years ago when I gave birth to my daughter my mother told me I would develop “mother’s amnesia” ~~ that all I would remember was the precious baby being born, not the pain. And it is true ~~
Congratulations. You did it! You rocked it!
The one of Regan smiling- ahhh, love it!
Love her name! My daughter is Reagan Strang (her middle name is mine and my mom’s middle name). Glad you had such an empowering birth. My 2nd (Reagan) was a very similar story, and I love the feeling of overcoming such a difficult thing. Enjoy this time with your new family of 4!
beautiful baby, beautiful family…one of your best projects ever!! thanks for sharing.
Congratulations on your new addition. It is refreshing to watch parents raising their children under the influence of Christ. I wish you well in your endeavors and pray that God will continue to bless and keep you and your lovely family.
Lisa Faris
Proverbs 22:6 Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.
What a precious bundle of joy. My Grandson is also 6 years old. And I am a labor and delivery RN