Monday, March 30, 2009

Whew....5 kids is A LOT!

So, I'm still getting into the swing of having 5 kids!! Jason just went back to work this past week after being home for 3 weeks with us. It was really nice having him home b/c we all just kind of hung out and did whatever we wanted to. I'll admit, I was kind of glad for him to go back to work. I do miss him a lot, but now that he is working I am finding my own routine being home with all 5 of this kiddos all day! It is really going pretty well and we already have a pretty good routine worked out. I am just in awe of the amount of laundry that 7 people can make!!! I was already doing laundry everyday anyway, but now it's not really an option. Once you factor in clothes, jammies, undies, socks not to mention towels and cloth diapers it adds up! Just the normal daily running of the household takes up a huge part of my day! Once breakfast is cleaned up, kids are dressed, and kids are dropped off it's time to start lunch and laundry and dishes and before you know it it is time to get Brodie, make dinner, do baths, and get ready for bed! Honestly though, I love it! I love being home with the kids, I love being here for every minute of their lives. It is HARD, and there are times when I just want to cry because I am so overwhelmed but the good always outweighs the bad. We'll find our way!! We are getting there!

Sunday, March 15, 2009

She is here!

~Elliot Wren~
born 3/4/09 @ 5:23pm
8lb 5oz / 21.5 inches

Friday I had a regular OB appointment and when my doc checked me I was a 2. She said we can schedulke and appointment for a week away or go ahead and schedule an induction for Wednesday (which is when she was on call). I would be officially 1 day past my due date at that point so I said yes to the induction. The fear of a huge baby outweighed my fear of another painful induction.

So we checked into the hospital at 6:30 am on Wednesday morning. I got in my gown, they did my IV, and got my antibiotics going (since I was GBS+). My doc came in right away and checked me and I was a 3.5!! Woo-hoo!! She said that she could not break my water until I had had a full bag of antiobiotics but we could go ahead and start the pitocin. That stuff started working FAST!!! My nurse (who was awesome!) hooked the bag of pit up and before she even got out the door I had my first contraction. They came pretty regularly from then on, but were not nearly as painful as I remember from the last time. Around 9 or so, my mom and dad came out with the boys. I was so glad to see them!!! Them being there really helped take my mind off of my contractions.

Around noon, my doc came into check me again and now I was about a 5-6 and she said if I want my epidural to do it now. So I said to bring it on! I didn't want to wait to long and then not get it! So the anesthesiologist came in and he was WONDERFUL!! Best epidural I have had! He was very fast about it, I didn't feel any pain, and it worked perfectly! I was not too numb, but numb enough to feel good! After that I took a nap, the boys left for the waiting room, and Jason and I kind of settled in for the next part of labor.

I came on a CRAZY day! There were twins about to be born. The mom was right ahead of me. The rest fo teh rooms were full as well so they were kind of short staffed. There were also 3 deaths on the ward that day which was very sad So, they decided they wanted to kind of hold me off if they could until thos twins were born b/c if we went at the same time there would not have been enough baby nurses to go around!! I was fine with that! My labor was progressing and I was relaxed so I was fine with that! Once the twins were born, my doc came to check me and break my water. I was at an 8!!! Once she broke my water things went FAST and HARD!! I knew they would I went from an 8 to a 10 in about 20 minutes and the pressure to push was more intense than I had ever felt before with the other kiddos. It was the most painful transition I had ever experienced! They got my in the stirups to push and I think I pushed about 3 times! She HURT coming out though! Worse than any of the boys! She was born at 5:23pm. I was so relived when they laid her on my chest and Jason cut the cord. She was beautiful!!! She looked just like Sawyer when he was born except with a head full of dark hair!! All my other boys were baldies for a long time! I had no tearing and needed no stitches which made recovery a BREEZE! She weighed 8lb 5oz which is over a pound smaller than Sawyer was I nursed her about 45 minutes after she was born and she took to it like a pro!

The boys were the first to come in and meet their sister. The looks on their faces when they came into the room were precious, I will remember it the rest of my life Overall, I had a wonderful birth experience! I'm so glad she is here and my family feels complete now.

Monday, March 2, 2009

Wednesday is the day!

By Wednesday evening, I will be holding my daughter in my arms!!! I cannot believe how fast this pregnancy has flown by and that it is already time for her to be here! My doc is on call on Wednesday and told me to come on in to be induced. I'm not REAL thrilled about being induced, but also I don't want to go too far past my due date and have another huge baby like Sawyer because that was NOT fun!! I'm just so nervous about birth and anxious to meet my little girl. The boys are so excited, too. They were literally jumping up and down when I told them that she would be here on Wednesday. They are all such good boys and I know they will all be great big brothers to Elliot. I just still can't wrap my mind around the fact that I am going to have a daughter! It seems so unreal. I guess it will seem a lot more real once she is here :)