The amazing Alison Jaramillo with her daughter's River (34 months) and Autumn (1 year). Alison and her husband were together for quite a few years before they decided to get married and have children. She was able to conceive within about a month of trying. Her pregnancy progressed without complication and she went into labor on her due date. She had thought she'd labor at home for a while but as she got in the shower and prepared to rest she realized they needed to get to the hospital. While she had hoped to labor naturally she opted for Nubian for pain relief. When she got to the hospital the nurse told her she was "only a three" (Alison would have loved to hear she was already a three!) and they anticipated she still had quite some time to labor. Within five hours from her first contraction her daughter was born. While River was perfectly healthy the effects of the Nubian hadn't yet worn off and she slept for her first 24 hours of life. Alison had a difficult time getting her to nurse and at her first weight check she had lost almost a pound. Alison had a lot of support from her family and friends through her breastfeeding struggles and after about 9 weeks of working with a lactation consultant she was able to find her stride and nursed River until she was 12 months old.
Alison was able to conceive Autumn without complication as well, if fact she found out she was expecting before they'd even started trying. At her visit she learned she was just a few weeks pregnant. She had been feeling like something was off and at her first ultrasound her doctor told her that she had one baby that was measuring at 8 weeks and another that had stopped at 5 weeks and appeared to be a vanishing twin. Alison began to reconcile what that meant for her and just a few weeks later at another ultrasound was told that there was no evidence of a second baby which further added to her confusion. She experienced spotting and bleeding until she was about 25 weeks along due to a subchorionic hemorrhage and once things resolved she had a healthy pregnancy thought it was much more stressful than her first. Just like her sister, Autumn's labor started right on her due date but progressed much more slowly this time. Alison very much wanted to delivery without any medications or interventions this time and was able to do just that. Autumn took to nursing without complication and is still breastfeeding today. Alison wanted to participate in this movement for her daughters and to share her story as an inspiration for other women as they have been for her.