Papa and Grandma meet Natalie

It didn't take long for Dave and Cindy to get to Austin to meet their only granddaughter! 

They, too, thought she was so pretty and couldn't believe how much hair she has and how long her fingers are! They got to see her alert and awake for a few times during their visit, but in her usual fashion, she slept through most of the party!

We had a fun weekend just keeping it low-key and hanging around the house! Nico went on his usual mornings walks, helped cook breakfast (chipped beef on toast, of course), and had a blast with his Papa and Grandma.

He was cracking us up with his singing and dance moves. He's quite the entertainer and likes to make people laugh. One of the songs we heard 87 times was the chipmunks version of "All the Single Ladies."

My parents came over on Saturday afternoon, and we had Via 313 pizza for dinner. It was another time that comes few and far between where all 4 of Nico's grandparents were in the same room. I kept trying to tell him how fortunate he is!

 

Natalie's arrival!

Oh, what an unforgettable experience this was!!........

We arrived at the hospital at 10 pm on Sunday for what we thought would be a long induction process into the following day, but Natalie had other ideas.

Apparently, the reason for coming in at 10 pm was that the initial induction medication, which is given every 4 hours, usually takes between 2-4 rounds before thinning occurs in the cervix. In doing the math, this would take us into the usual business hours of the following day for convenience of scheduling, doctor availability, etc. I was mentally prepared for a loooong night and morning.

11 pm: Let the games begin. The pill was inserted up near my cervix. Just doing that hurt like heck, and I was reminded how much of a wuss I am! IV antibiotics were also administered since I am positive for Group B strep. (It's some random bacteria that no one knows why or how you get, but you need meds to prevent it from being passed to the baby with delivery?!)

1 - 1:15 am: I had been resting (trying to sleep but couldn't) in the hospital bed while David was snoring in the chair next to me. Contractions had been subtle for a little while, but this was the point in time that I remember thinking that my pain tolerance must be horrible. How could I be struggling already after just 2 hours?! I became very uncomfortable to the point of having to purposely work on my breathing with each contraction. I never timed them but they seemed 4-5 min apart in my mind. I woke up David at this point, since I was starting to worry and didn't know what else to do, plus I needed him to unhook my cords so I could go to the bathroom. Sitting on the toilet provided some relief, so I stayed in there for a little while. I called the nurse afterwards and asked her if it was possible that these contractions were enough warranting an epidural, because I wasn't feeling too good. I was hoping that she would be able to tell from the monitor that things were truly progressing. She said that the medication causes contractions, and that it doesn't necessarily mean that labor has begun or my cervix has changed at all. This sounded discouraging. I figured that it was unlikely that anything was already occurring down there, so I decided to hold off on pursuing the epidural. It had only been a couple of hours, and surely I could just deal with this until I am certain that I need help with the pain, right?! I hated the idea of having it too early, because it surely can't be good for me or the baby to have all these meds pumped into me all night and morning long.

1:45 am: Change of plans. I decided that I desperately needed this epidural!!! The pain had continued to steadily get worse to the point that I didn't really know how to handle it. I tried to sit different ways, to stand, to lean over the bed, and to work on breathing through it. I basically had no clue what I was doing. I remember I kept repeating to David, "This is bad. This is really bad." The nurse checked my cervix. With a shocked look on her face, she told me that I was completely thinned and 4 cm and that now would be the time to get that epidural after all. She said that we would likely be having this baby tonight!

1:50 am: Nurse returned with frustrating news. I would have to have another lab draw to test my abnormally low platelet count of only 86 (normal range is 150-450). The anesthesiologist realized that I have chronically low platelet counts, but he wanted to ensure that the count hadn't dropped any more in the few hours that I was there. I had my first fearful thoughts that this epidural might not be happening for that reason.

2 am: My lab was redrawn, and now it was a waiting game. With each contraction, I remember bargaining with myself, "I only have to get through a few more of these, and I can have relief..." I kept breathing forcefully through the pain. I will never forget how miserable and helpless I felt in these moments.

2:20 am: I got out of bed again out of desperation to do something differently. My water broke...all over the floor. I sat down, and the gushing continued all over the bed. I then had to ask for a vomit bag, because I was certain that I was going to throw up. It ended up only being a lot of spitting. Good news though- my labs were fine and the epidural was on its way!!!

2:30 am: The anesthesiologist showed up. It took him what seemed like eternity to set up his equipment. In slow motion, he explained the reason why he was going to go through with this despite my low platelet count, along with other side effects and information. In my mind, I was so angry and cursing him over how slowly he was talking and moving. I kept thinking that if he was the one in this pain, he wouldn't be operating this way. The pressure seemed to be getting lower as if I could really sense that this baby was going to come out soon. I remember having this same feeling with Nico just before he arrived.

2:35 - 2:40 am: I was literally in a flexed position and holding a pillow with the nurse in front of me. Slow motion man was behind me cleaning off my back and ready to get this epidural going. All of a sudden, my body literally started pushing on its own and against my control. I felt that I had to push her out. Right this second. The nurse quickly helped me back down on my back and said that she could check me again. I was 9 cm dilated! She said there would still be time to get this done if we did it right then. The sole agenda on my "birth plan" was to get that epidural, so of course I tried to sit back up. That lasted for all of 2 seconds before I realized that I had no choice but to push instead. Sh*t!

David had left the room to avoid seeing the giant needle, and when he got about 50 ft down the hallway, he heard a nurse yelling to the doctor to get in the room and that we're having this baby now! He was shocked to see her enter our room. He claims that as he walked by to get on the right side of my bed, he saw the head coming out. He didn't want to look and may still be traumatized over this, ha!

2:41 - 2:46: It was go time. I think the absolute most fearful moment of my life thus far is the moment that I realized I was at the point of no return and going to have to push her out without the darn epidural. In no way was I prepared for this. I remember the pain getting so bad that I literally was in a state of panic. The nurse forcefully told me to look into her eyes, and she instructed me how to breathe and how I was going to push. The doctor came in, and as my legs and feet were set up, she told me that I should push now. Holy sh*t, this was really happening. I knew that I had to give it my all and be strong through this, for no other reason than out of fear of creating any complications by not doing a good enough job of pushing. David was SO perfectly there for me, holding my hand with his face down by mine. (I guess I can't continue to give him grief for being on the other side of the room and behind the curtain with Nico.) My first push produced a giant splash of fluid all over the place, as if a water balloon had popped. Surprising and so gross! It was the remainder of the amniotic fluid. Push #2 was less eventful. And push #3 at 2:46 resulted in our beautiful baby girl entering our world. I will always remember how cool of a feeling that was.

The nurses immediately put her on my chest for some skin-to-skin cuddling and nursing while they cleaned her off and did their testing. David and I just kept starring at her and couldn't believe that she was sooo identical to Nico! The whole experience happened so fast, and I think it took a while to sink in that I was finally in the moment that I had been dreaming about. I was holding our perfect little girl. And she was worth the wait.

 

 

She was so pretty from the very beginning. Because she basically fell out of me, she didn't have the cone shaped head or any other goofy temporary post labor features. I remember thinking how big she seemed to me and how crazy to think that she fit in my belly. She weighed 7 lbs, 13 oz and was 20.5 inches tall. Besides not being able to believe how identical to Nico she was, we particularly noticed how much dark hair she had, her nice coloring, and long fingernails. David pointed out that she must be his, because she's got his nose.

 

We cuddled for about an hour and a half before we were taken to our more permanent room. She was so content, nursed well, and even opened her eyes some. David and I then passed out from about 6-7 a.m. before the day started with frequent visits from the hospital staff and pediatrician.

Big brother Nico couldn't wait to meet his little sister. I couldn't wait to be a part of this moment either. It was another one of those big moments that I looked forward to and thought about often throughout the whole pregnancy. He walked in with a big grin on his face and immediately asked, "Can I pet her?!"

 

He chose to wear this shirt today, and he definitely wore it proudly! He was pumped.

 

Proud grandparents.

 

 

We got Nico a few big brother gifts from Natalie to open here at the hospital. We wouldn't want him to feel too deprived for even a few minutes, right?! He had been talking about wanting this particular monster truck for weeks.

The proud, big brother held her multiple times and was so gentle. He kissed her forehead and talked to her in his sweet little voice calling her words like cute and adorable. At one point, he wanted to look at her boobs (random?!) and giggled about how little they were.

Our first pic as a family of FOUR! Our family is complete :)

 

 

 

When everything calmed down, and it was just David and I left for the evening, the events of the day all finally hit me. What a day. My heart was and is so incredibly full. I'm not sure life can get much better than this.

 

We had such a great first day and night. I'm so in love. She pretty much slept non-stop, other than when she tried to eat her hand to signal that she was hungry. In the middle of the night, she finally had an extended period of time when she was so wide eyed and alert. One of my favorite moments to date. It was so hard to put her back in her little crib. I could have just held her all night! And how cute does she look in her little sister pajamas?

 

Day 2 in the hospital went smoothly as well, and we were cleared to go home later that afternoon! My parents and Nico came to visit again (thanks to Mom and Dad for watching Nico for a few days), and the day flew by with plenty of baby snuggles.

Sweet Natalie did a good job of nursing and only lost 5% of her weight. (Goal under 10%). She gave me some early reassurance that she was, in fact, getting plenty of milk, because she had SIX dirty diapers! She seems to love to be swaddled and is a big fan of sleep.

All ready to head home!

Happy Father's Day!

We weren't sure if we were going to remain a family of 3 for this Father's Day, but Natalie did hold off a few hours to give David his last full day of being only Nico's dad!

On Saturday night, we kept it low key and went to Torchy's Tacos for dinner, followed by Baskin Robbins. It definitely wasn't an extravagant Father's Day like David deserves for being such an amazing dad, but the circumstances of this ticking time bomb in my belly really limited our options (along with my energy and desire to even get dressed to go out!) It was a bittersweet knowing that it was our last dinner as just "the 3 best friends."

Can't say enough things about how wonderful of a job that David does in raising our strong willed, energetic boy! Nico is one lucky guy to be so spoiled on a daily basis and to be able to "LTD" it! (I use that acronym a lot around here in reference to them... living the dream). I don't know of any kids that have it as good as this guy does.

On Sunday, we went out for lunch with my parents to County Line BBQ to celebrate MY dad! Happy Father's Day to you, too, and thank you for all that you do for our family!

38.5 Week Doctor's Appt: Eviction notice!

Well, our doctor's appointment was very encouraging yesterday, and there is light at the end of this long pregnancy tunnel! The BIG news is that Dr. Breedlove suggested that we schedule an induction for THIS COMING Sunday @ 10 pm!!! I'll get some medication to slowly start the process that night and then the real stuff (options like pitocin, water breaking, epidural) will likely start later into the morning. It's surreal to think that in less than 1 week, I'll be holding our little girl!!!

Scheduling this induction is such a foreign concept to me since everything just naturally happened with Nico. The basis of this decision is that my doctor feels that once the baby is around the due date, especially with a history of unexplained pregnancy loss, it's best to just get her outta there. She specifically picked Sunday-Monday because that's when she's on call. The benefits outweigh the risks in her mind. It seems like the only downsides to inducing are a higher chance of a C-section and longer labor.

I do feel a little hesitant about messing with a process that, in my mind, is supposed to come naturally when the baby and my body are ready. In a way, I'm questioning if I'm messing with the universe and God's timing of all of this. I love and greatly respect this doctor though, so I can't help but follow her lead. (Although, I'm still betting on this happening before Sunday...)

Everything is measuring perfectly as it should. My weight was about the same as last time (+27), which was shocking considering how huge and swollen I feel. The baby's HR was in the 120's over Doppler. I did casually mention to her that I felt that there was a little less movement these past few days than usual, but it could just be being my paranoid self. She hooked me up to a heart monitor to take a look for reassurance. Over a 20 minute span, the HR bounced around as expected without any concerns.

 

(And go figure, the little one kept me up all night with a crazy amount of movement and the most intense contractions yet! At one point, I thought that this was the real deal. Unfortunately, the only thing that really came of last night was sleep deprivation though!)

 

 

It's funny how I have known that this could happen any day now, but now being on the schedule for Sunday has put this all into a new perspective. It's as if it's SO much more real now and on another level. I found myself getting emotional last night for my last sleepover with Nico as my only child. (We do Monday night sleepovers while David is at hockey, and Nico always gets so thrilled for this special, quality time to cuddle up with me and chat the night away.) For 5 years now, we have poured our hearts and souls into this little boy, and despite being so thrilled for our new addition, I just can't help but feel some sadness and guilt that now our time, efforts, and love will have to be shared. He even asked me last week if I will love his baby sister more than him. That broke my heart to think that that was even a question in his mind. He's just been our world, so to know that our world will be changing and attention will be divided brings out mixed emotions for this hormonal, pregnant lady. I don't want to miss out on a single cute, little detail of either of them growing up because of my time being divided.  

 

 

With all of that being said, that is the main reason why I continue to keep up with this blog. This is the best way that I know to freeze the moments in time that matter the most to me. I can only imagine how special it will come many years down the road when the memories of my sweet little ones have begun to fade. I want to always remember these days, because they are simply the best. And they are about to get even better!...........

38.

Nico has been bouncing off the walls for his first week of summer! He has made it to the pool every single day this past week, and some days, he went twice! His tan is already far superior to what mine will be after an entire summer.

Here he is sportin' his first tattoo, Captain America.

Baby wise, there hasn't been much to update on, which is a good thing! We're just in a day to day waiting game!  I reaaaaaally am hoping that she comes a little bit early (assuming this means she is healthy and ready of course). I'm predicting that it will be THIS week! As I am writing this now, we are already a few days past the pregnancy timeline for when Nico arrived, so that may be the reason for my extra bit of anxiousness. I have even started googling ways to naturally induce labor. Turns out, the only medically supported way requires the effort of walking, sooo I spent this past weekend walking A LOT extra than the previous lazy weekend of doing nothing other than laying on the couch 3 days straight watching softball playoffs. (I did have a relaxing pedicure and lunch with my mom, though, to start the weekend off right. Thanks, Mom.)

Our little family of 3 went to the Barton Creek mall on Friday night for the main purpose of getting a few hours of air-conditioned walking in! Oh, how our Friday nights have changed. This included a trip to the candy store ($14 later...), Lego store, some kids clothing stores, and dinner at the food court. It was actually a fun little family trip, despite the fact that David and I generally despise the mall.

We had a mommy-Nico quality time at the pool for a few hours on Saturday morning, and it was my first dip of the summer. Nico was extra pumped that I got in the pool since it's a rarity with David always being the one to take him. I threw him balls as he ran and jumped in the pool. He let me know that he was Jason Witten on the Cowboys, so that made me Tony Romo. He practiced his swimming one side to the other and also chased me around pretending to be a shark. I had so much fun with my little guy.

The compliments, hugs, and general clinginess have continued to increase, which I'm still soaking up and totally loving. He sure loves his mama. It's these types of days and moments that I hope to remember years down the road. (Disclaimer: He has had a LOT more of an attitude at times, especially to David, which we are trying to be patient about given the big changes about to happen.)

This morning, we took another trip to the Mueller Farmer's Market. That place is growing on us, and it was hard to resist not going back there after we had such a perfect Sunday morning last month. Nico rode his scooter around this time, and we made sure to grab some more La La's Lemonade and Brazilian cheese bread. Tacodeli had a tent there, so we were finally able to try Austin's "best breakfast tacos." When we told the guy that we had never had them before, he replied with, "You guys must be new to the area!" Nico held some tiny animals at the petting zoo and played at the park too, until I begged to leave due to my excessive sweating issues.

I had a 37 week doctor's checkup back on June 3 with Dr. Cox (my doctor was out of town.... boo) and yielded only the good news that we had expected and hoped for. I am 1-2 cm dilated!! Let's hope this labor goes as smoothly as it did with Nico since things are starting to happen down there! The head is still down and in position to get this show on the road! Her HR was great in the 140's. In less fun news, I apparently have really have bulked up this week with a 4 lb weight gain in just 10 days. Yikes. It's gotta be that ankle swelling... not the extra TCBY trips and giant plates of pancakes for dinner, right!?! If only pancakes induced labor, she would be out by now...

I still have been feeling pretty good overall, and while I'm still trying to stay positive and grateful about having a healthy pregnancy, the whining at home has increased from the added uncomfortableness. I'm feeling more whale-like these days, and turning over in bed has become a sport of its own. Almost there though!!!!