Born at 10:45 am, 8 lbs 5.5 oz, 20 inches
Our little one was due on May3rd, and we were going to be induced that morning. But he had his own plans :) On Wednesday afternoon, I wasn't feeling well and something seemed different. At work people were asking Kenny if the baby was coming early and he laughed and said I had no signs of labor, which was true. Except he didn't answer my texts, so he didn't realize until he came home that things were feeling different. My contractions started in the night, and I basically didn't get any rest on Wednesday night. I watched some tv and let Kenny sleep. At one point I knew that the baby as coming, but since my contractions weren't intense or even close, I thought maybe it would be sometime in the afternoon, and Kenny could get a few hours of work in. Then around 4-ish things started speeding up, and I decided I should probably take a shower because it would be nice to go to the hospital clean. In the shower I realized that since I had 3 contractions in the 15 minutes I was in there that we would need to head to the hospital sooner. I was hoping we could get the kids to school, and then head over, that way they would be taken care of. As soon as I stepped out of the shower my contractions intensified, but I crawled back into bed. I told Kenny that we would be heading to the hospital soon and he asked if he needed to get ready. I told him no to go back to sleep. Well I then started timing the contractions and since they were 3-5 minutes apart, and a few were hurting me, I told him maybe he should shower, and we had to figure out what to do with the kids. So at about 4:45, I called my friend Patty. Luckily she answered her phone and was very willing to come over and stay with the kids and get them to school. So while Kenny finished getting ready, so did I, and I packed the kids lunch, told Patty about the morning routine, and then we headed to the hospital. We arrived about 5:30, and once we were there, they put us in triage and the nurse hooked me up to see my contractions, and then we waited. None came for a long time, and I totally felt like a liar. But finally one did, and it was intense! The baby also didn't like it, his heart rate dropped a little. So she told me we were going to a room. I asked, "Does this mean I get to stay?" and she said yes. I was soooo happy, I was very afraid of being turned away. Once I was in the bed, I asked for the epidural, and we got the ball rolling. I had to get 2 IV sticks and 2 epidural sticks, but after that, I was feeling much better. Then the dr came and broke my water. At about 10:15 the nurse told us we could start working on getting him out. So they called over my doctor, and we worked on it. I pushed for about 15 minutes, which wasn't too bad, since he was faced the wrong way. Little Miss was too, but I had to push for 2.5 hours with her, so 15 minutes was great! At 10:45 our little one came out and greeted us. He was healthy, and perfect!
After a few hours we decided we should probably decide on the baby's name. Making that final decision is always hard for me. We finally decided on his name because all 4 of us really like it. We took a little longer trying to get the middle name figured out. But we did, and he got to have his daddy's name, since his daddy is one of the most amazing persons you'll ever know. After we decided on the name, Kenny went and picked the kids up from a friend's house. They came over to the hospital and met their little brother. Their smiles were priceless. They adore him and can't seem to get enough of him. They were able to hang out in the hospital for a few hours, then my sister got in town from Seattle, and after she held the baby, she took the kids home for the night. I'm so grateful that she was around to be with my kids and keep them happy. She took them out to several activities, and made dinner, and kept my house clean.
Little One wasn't very sleepy in the hospital. At one point the nurse took him out to do some tests. She brought him back saying he was totally sound asleep. After 3 minutes he woke up crying. I was so exhausted so I asked the nurse to take him for a bit. They don't have a nursery in the hospital, but she said she would keep him by her while she did some paperwork. He apparently fell asleep after a little while. I don't know what it was, but being near his parents, he couldn't stay asleep. That was the first stretch of sleep I had gotten since Tuesday evening, and it was only 2 hours. But since then, he's been a pretty good sleeper. One night he screamed for 4 hours. After trying to console him, I lost it. I couldn't handle another colicky baby like our other 2 babies were, plus I was sleep deprived. So I handed the baby off to Kenny, and went to bed. Luckily that was just one night since he's been born. Right now he sleeps anywhere from 3-5 hours. One night he did 7. That was heavenly! But the good thing about his night-time sleep, he will wake up, eat, and go right back to sleep. He seems to be good about just doing his wake time in the day. He also will sleep in his crib, which neither of his siblings would do for a long time. They had to have the bouncer or swing.
getting ready to head home
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I love this outfit! Thanks to my sister for going all over Seattle to get it for me :)
Almost ready to leave
A few days after my sister left, my mom came to help out. She was able to help the kids get ready for school in the mornings, pick them up from the bus stop, she cooked, cleaned, packed, and ran errands. We even made it out to the store a few times together. (We even got pedicures one night, NO KIDS!). I'm so lucky she was here to help. And the kids enjoyed getting some adult attention from her. Once she left, I was very sad. I felt lonely. My sister had been here the first weekend, then Kenny stayed home from work for a week, and then my mom was her another week. After she left, I was on my own. I cried a little. But I'm starting to adjust. Plus Kenny's back from his trip and that was a big part of why I was sad. (I HATE when he's gone!)
This delivery was by far my best! I of course was sore, but could still function. I was able to walk around the hospital a little, I didn't pass out, and we only stayed over 1 night. He's also been a pretty easy baby compared to the other 2. He has pretty good neck control, and has been smiling for about a week. Each day I look at him and just say, he's perfect! I know there are lots of trying days ahead, but I am grateful for this new little spirit in our home. He's wonderful, and has brought so much love and joy already into our lives.
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