Big Baby for 13-year-old, Small Mum

I found out that I was pregnant on January 8, 2006, when I was 10 weeks gone. Even though I was only 12 at the time (I turned 13 a month later, in February), I decided there and then that I was going to keep the baby – I'd already grown to love it.

I didn't tell my parents, because I knew how mad they would be, and I really couldn't face that. I hid my pregnancy by wearing baggy clothes and spending the majority of my time in my bedroom. As the months passed, I grew more and more excited about meeting my little baby. Just because I hadn't told anyone that I was pregnant, it didn't mean I didn't care. I bought a pregnancy book with my allowance and over the months, it became my bible. It told me everything, from what I should be eating, to a week-by-week pregnancy guide.

When Mia was born, I was on my own. My mum and dad had gone into town to do some shopping. We live quite a way out in the countryside, so we haven't got neighbors nearby.

I'd been having contractions all night, and because no one even knew that I was pregnant, I didn't tell a soul. I just stayed in my room, out of the way. By 11 a.m., the contractions were becoming a lot stronger and harder to hide. It was so hard, trying not to scream with each one.

When my parents went out, I was so relieved. I knew they wouldn't be back for a few hours. About half an hour after they left, I had a massive contraction, along with an unbelievable urge to push down. I lay on my bed, propped up by the pillows, and pushed without thinking. It hurt so bad, and I screamed out as I pushed. I didn't think that it would hurt this much. I pushed and pushed and pushed. I could feel the baby moving down, but every time I stopped pushing, it felt like it had gone back up.

I was getting hysterical by this point, as I just wanted to get this baby out of me. I began pushing down without a contraction, and it hurt so bad, but I didn't stop. I pushed as hard as I could, again and again.

I'd been pushing for about an hour and a half when I reached down and felt the baby's head. I took a deep breath and pushed again. I felt a bad burning, stinging sensation as the head crowned. I yelled in pain and reached down to feel my baby's head. I waited for another contraction, and I pushed again, and again, and again. This baby did not want to come out!

I pulled myself up, so I was squatting, and began to push with all my might. The head slowly came out and I let out an almighty wail as the head was born.

I lay back against the pillows and waited for the next contraction. When it came, I didn't hold back. I pushed and strained and yelled and screamed for all I was worth. The shoulders slowly squeezed out, and with one last massive effort, I pushed my baby girl into the world. She was born after nearly two hours of pushing.

She started crying straight away, and I picked her up and held her close. I felt an amazing rush of love as I cradled her in my arms.

About 10 minutes later, I heard my parents' car pull up in our drive. My mum came upstairs, expecting me to be doing my homework. Instead, she found me half naked, cradling a newborn baby. At first, she looked like she was about to faint; then she went into autopilot. She bundled me and the baby into the car and drove us to the hospital, speeding through every red light in sight.

A few hours later, once everything had settled down a bit, my parents started asking me questions, like, why didn't I tell them and stuff.

I decided to call my baby Mia Dakota. Although I never had one checkup when I was pregnant, both Mia and I were fine. She was full term, 22 inches long, and she weighed 9 pounds, 11 ounces (a big baby, seeing as I'm only just 4 feet, 11 inches).

Once we were back at home, things became a whirlwind of feeds, nappies and no sleep. I had no idea that it would be so hard, looking after one baby. My parents helped me out a lot, though, and now, we're all doing great. Mia is getting really cheeky, and she's got this smile that can melt anyone's heart.

I attended school throughout my pregnancy, and I'm still at school now. My parents look after her during the week when I'm at school, and I look after her in the evenings and at weekends. It's not an ideal situation, but I have to finish my education if I'm ever going to get a good job and be able to provide for Mia. Everything I do in my life is for her.

Some people look down their noses at me, being a teen mum, but I love my daughter more than life itself, and at the end of the day, I think that's all that's important.