Is it Baby Time? Labor Day Post 7

Introducing Miranda Kathryn -

born at 12:05 p.m.

9 lbs 5.6 oz

21" long

Labor got pretty difficult for awhile, probably around 10:30 or so. Grant was my awesome support and helped me focus on relaxing through some pretty brutal contractions.  I ended up pushing for about 15 minutes.  Wow, was that intense. No tears or anything, praise God!  

I'll probably write a more detailed birth story sometime soon, but for now, all is well, Miranda is beautiful and perfect, and I'm feeling very good, thankful for some Motrin for those afterbirth pains.  

Is it Baby Time? Labor Day Post 6

9:50 a.m.

Breaking of the waters definitely picked things up - contractions coming every 2-3 minutes and are pretty intense, but I'm handling them just fine.  Baby was perfect on the monitors. 

Hopefully it won't be too much longer!!

Is it Baby Time? Labor Day Post 5

We've had a change of shift, so I have two new nurses, Connie and Jessica, and a new midwife also, Blair - who was actually the one I was hoping for all along, hurray! At around 9am Blair checked me and I was dialated to 5cm, but she thought that I was not really in active labor since my contractions have been irregular. So she suggested breaking my water to get things going. As she broke my water I stretched to 6cm, 100% effaced and the baby's head at zero station. Things should start moving along faster now. I'm also now required to stay on the monitors for 15 minutes to make sure the baby is reacting well to having the waters broken.

Is it Baby Time? Labor Day Post 4

7:00 a.m.

Arrived at the hospital/birthing center around 6:00 a.m.

Had a 20 minute monitoring session, the baby sounds great.  My contractions slowed down while resting in the bed, but are picking back up now that I can move around.

Dilated 3 cm. 

Things are quiet here at the center - very nice.  My nurse is named Karen. She seems really nice.  Nurses can make a big difference in how things go, so that's a relief!

Is it Baby Time? Labor Day Post 3

5:15 a.m.

Contractions are still 4-6 minutes apart, but now a little over a minute long.  Definitely stronger.  

We're gonna head to the hospital now.

So thankful that it's early on a Sunday morning and we don't have to worry about tunnel traffic at all. 

Is it Baby Time? Labor Day Post 2

4:00 a.m. 

I called the answering service - the midwife on call is Beth.  There are four midwives in the practice, and Beth is the newest one and I've only seen her twice.  That being said, another one of the midwives, Jennifer, I haven't seen at all - every time I've been scheduled to see her, something came up like a labor or she was sick, so I'm glad she isn't the one there today!

Beth thought I should wait at home a little while, that since my contractions are not yet a minute long (45 sec), I was still a bit early in labor.  

I woke Grant, we both got showered and dressed, and now we're just taking care of last minute things before we go. 

Haven't woken my parents yet, although Grant's coffee grinder might have done the trick. 

Is it Baby Time? Labor Day Post 1

My 5th pregnancy has presented a challenge that I had not yet experienced.  While I have had Braxton Hicks contractions with all of my other pregnancies, it has never been to the extent that I've had them this time.  There have been at least four occasions that I had regular contractions for several hours and was convinced it was the "Big Day", only to have the contractions fade away and nothing end up happening. 

  

Very frustrating.  

Especially when my friends who have been pregnant with me have all delivered their babies already, my parents have been here for several days and my dad will be headed back home on Thursday, and for heaven's sake, I want him to get to see his new granddaughter!  

Today is my actual due date.  

I have not had a baby born on the due date yet.  My first was 12 days late, my second was 6 days early, the third was 9 days late and induced, and the fourth was 1 day early.  

It is 2:32 a.m. and I was awakened about an hour ago with contractions that are much more intense than what I have had up to this point.  Probably about 6-8 minutes apart at this point, nothing super regular, but definitely meaning business. I am confident that today is the day.  

I hope I don't have to come back and eat those words!

Can't WAIT to meet my new baby girl!

And the Baby is a.......

Perfectly healthy and beautiful baby 

GIRL!!!

She was yawning and it looked like she was trying to take a bite of her knee!

Update

Wow, so this is the longest I've gone without posting since.....well, since I was pregnant with Ellia two years ago.  

Here's what's been happening:

• I have gotten significantly sicker than when I last reported, although I have managed to only vomit in the mornings when I first get up.  I do spend quite a bit of time in bed, particularly in the afternoon and evenings.  I know I'm dehydrated, because fluids of any sort make me so nauseous I tend to avoid them. But I'm getting by without IV fluids, so I'm hanging in there. 
• My mom has been here for two weeks; just one week left. :(  She has carried so much for me, with grocery shopping, taking the girls to gymnastics, cleaning, cooking, changing diapers, dishes, all that stuff.  I am so spoiled!  Not quite sure what I'll do when she has to leave.....hopefully I'll be stronger then.
• We had our first ultrasound last week - very exciting!  It never gets old, seeing the miracle of life.  I was 8 weeks-4 days along at the time.....the baby was about the size of a grape, with a rapidly beating heart and tiny arms and legs.  We could see the blood flowing in the umbilical cord.  So amazing.  
• Grant was a bit disappointed that we're not having twins.  We had been talking about the possibility and what that would mean as far as vehicles (have to get a different one) and such....and while the thought was quite daunting, it was also exciting.  Me, well, I would have been thankful for twins, but I really wasn't disappointed at all.  
• I can't wait to feel better and get back to cooking and baking.  I miss being in my kitchen. I miss enjoying my kitchen.  
• I even miss exercising.  I'm feeling more flabby all the time.  Lying in bed all day will do that to a person.
• We're still managing to keep up with schoolwork.  Grant has been teaching Corban his math early in the mornings before he goes to work and that helps me a lot.  Some days are better than others, but we're getting through it.  
• Thanks to inspiration from Kimberly at Raising Olives, I embarked on a Read the Bible in 90 Days venture at the beginning of the year.  I have not succeeded in reading the Bible through in a year in I don't know how long, probably 15 years.  So I figured if I had a shorter time frame to work with, and more to read each day, I wouldn't be as likely to skip a day.  I was right.  I am still on schedule to finish the Bible at the end of March, currently reading in the minor prophets of the OT (Hosea, Joel, Amos). It does feel rushed at times, but I'm enjoying the new perspective I'm gaining from reading so much so fast.  And I've definitely established the habit of Bible reading now, which is huge for me.  
• Early pregnancy is the only time of my life that I don't enjoy chocolate.  In fact, I'm generally not interested in sweets at all.  Pretty different from the normal me!  I am liking Tootsie Roll Pops and Now and Laters sometimes, though.        
• Thanks for all of your prayers and support!  I look forward to a normal life again soon!

Wonderful, Fabulous, Exciting News......and the not so great news.

Good things first, shall we?

We're going to have a baby! 

Baby number 5 is scheduled to arrive on October 9 (which will make three October babies for us, along with a September and a November.  We like our fall season to be busy.  Hahaha.)

We are super excited and the kids are ecstatic, with Corban (7) at once demanding that "It had better be a boy!" and Marissa (5) constantly whispering, "I hope it's a girl!" and Annika (3) declaring very matter of factly, "I think it will be a boy OR a girl."  Case closed.

Truth be told, Corban has admitted that since he adores Ellia (1) so much, he'll really be okay if the new baby is a girl, and Marissa has similarly concluded that a boy will be just fine. 

There are few things in life I love more than babies, and even fewer things that I love more than my own babies.  However.  This brings me to the not so great news.

Pregnancy is not my best friend. You know those women who rave about being pregnant and say it's just the best thing ever?  Yeah, I'm not one of those.  I consider pregnancy a great blessing and a privilege, and surely worth going through, but it is not something I relish or even remotely enjoy. 

To start out with, my first trimester is traditionally....how shall I put it.....miserable.

In the past, I have had severe morning all day sickness with frequent vomitting, IV fluids for dehydration, the inability to stand practically any smell, and the loss of 8-10 lbs. with each of my pregnancies, my girl pregnancies being worse.  And that's with every medication doctors will prescribe for pregnant women for nausea. Add complete exhaustion and fatigue on top of it and it makes for just no fun.

The second trimester brings relief from that, thank God, and any other physical complaint is trivial compared to the stomach issues.....but goodness, when you've thrown up over 600 times during 4 pregnancies, it's a bit hard to forget.   

I have to say, this pregnancy has started off better than the past.  I am 6 weeks and 1 day along, and have yet to throw up.  I think that's a record for me.  There are a lot of people praying for me, and I'm trying a few different things this time.
I went to see a friend who owns a food/herbs store with lots of natural remedies.  She hooked me up with catnip and fennel extract, which I mix into water and drink a couple of times a day.  It tastes like black licorice.  It's supposed to calm the stomach.  I'm also taking a good quality probiotic, using eucalypus oil on my feet, eating blackstrap molasses, and drinking red raspberry leaf tea.  

I have been nauseous, and I am extremely sleepy/tired/fatigued often, but I'm hanging in there and actually still functioning like a human being for the most part.  :)

My mom will be coming to help out in a week, and she's staying for 3 weeks!  We can't wait to see her and I'm so thankful that she's doing this again.  (She came out while I was sick with Ellia's pregnancy also.)

All this to say, my food preparation is minimal these days and I'm not attempting anything new.  The blog will likely be void of new recipes and goodies (unless my mom makes some) until my second trimester (7-8 weeks away). 

The day after we found out we're expecting, the kids and I went to Sam's Club and stocked up on lots of chicken breasts and ground turkey.  I cooked it all (baked the chicken with salt and pepper, browned the turkey with onions and garlic salt) and froze in recipe sized portions.  It has been wonderfully easy to just grab a package of cooked meat out of the freezer and add it to something simple to make dinner.
 
The sight and smells of raw and cooking meat are usually some of the worst things for nausea, so I avoid that.....and what a great time saver as well.

Last pregnancy I had made a few meals for the freezer ahead of time, one in particular was a triple batch of meat, beans and rice burritos.  A great recipe, one I loved.  After eating it for the first time and throwing it up, I couldn't bear to eat it or even think about it for the rest of the pregnancy (or the year following). So I had 2 whole batches worth that ended up getting thrown away.   
I didn't want to waste like that again, so I just cooked the meat this time.  That way I can use it in different recipes and not be tied down to one that I don't feel like eating.  Smart, huh? 

Hopefully I'll be up and running again (that's figurative.....not planning on running during pregnancy, we'll save that for the postpartum weight loss plan) before too long.  I still plan to post family stories and stuff as I feel like it.....and maybe we'll get lucky and get a recipe or giveaway in there somewhere!  We'll just have to see how it goes!

Pregnancy Photos.....27 Weeks

Just in case anyone was wondering what I look like these days (ahem....MOM.....), here ya go.

Funny story: The day these pictures were taken, we had a gathering with our small group for a cookout. The 20 month old son of our friends was sitting in his high chair waiting to be fed and happened to turn around and see me right behind him. He grinned, pointed right at my belly, and yelled,

"BALL!"

Well, I thought it was funny. Especially since just that morning, a friend came up to me in church and said it looked like I was trying to smuggle a basketball into church in my shirt.