It's a GIRL!!

After 40 weeks and 2 days, our sweet little GIRL finally made her debut.  Meet Alison. 

I was just about 100% convinced I was going to have to be induced, but 3 days before the tentative induction date, I went into labor.  I woke up around 2am having painful, painful contractions every 10 minutes or so.  I thought to myself "could this really be it?!?" and then began making a mental checklist of what we would need to do should I really be in labor, and did my best to sleep.  For the next 4 hours the contractions continued and got closer together and I got about 10 minutes of sleep. 

James and I had discussed the "ideal" labor situation.  The thing I wanted most was to go into labor during the day, more specifically in the morning.  I didn't want to have to wake Zack up in the middle of the night only to drop him off with Alexis in a parking lot. 

It appeared as though my "ideal" labor might be happening.  We met Alexis at the hospital around 8ish.  Sadly, the 15 minute drive to the hospital pretty much stopped my contractions.  I was bummed.  We still left Zack with Alexis and then headed to the mall to do some walking.  Our walking involved a walk to Starbucks where I got a blueberry scone.  The barista told me it must be my lucky day, since I got the last one.  If only he knew how badly I wanted it to be my "lucky" day.  After some walking at the mall, a nap at home, cleaning at home, bouncing on the exercise ball, and just hoping and praying that my contractions would get regular and stay that way, I decided that I needed to go to the hospital.  Not because the contractions were regular, but because they hurt so, so badly.  I was hoping they would see the strength of the contractions and keep me based on that. 

We got to the hospital around 2pm, and I was once again not having very regular contractions, but was definitely progressing.  The nurse sent me on a walk.  She said to try and go for 30 minutes, and that 45 would be even better.  I lasted 25 minutes.  I was dying.  That painful walk did it though.  I dialated another centimeter (in 25 minutes, no wonder I was in so much pain unable to breathe), my contractions were regular, and they were going to keep me. 

We got into our room around 4:30, and I finally got an epidural around 5pm.  Ahhhhhhh, sweet relief!!  At this point things were still moving along, so we just hung out and waited.  Around 6:30 I felt a weird contraction, and then I was all kinds of wet.  My water broke.  Things really started to pick up after that.  There was a nurse shift change at 7pm, and around then I started to feel more contractions, so I pushed my epidural button for more meds.  The new nurse asked me how I was doing cause she noticed that I was receiving more medicine.  She then gave me a list of symptoms to let her know about and would check me again, otherwise she would be back around 8 to check me. It was now 7:15.  I told her that maybe she should check me now.  She did and said it was time to have a baby.  She quickly began getting everything ready and called the doctor in. 

When everything was ready they had me push.  Apparently Alison was quite ready to be born.  I pushed through 2 contractions, and at 7:31 we had a baby girl.  Just like when Zack was born, the doctor let James announce to the room what it was.  He declared her to be a girl, and we marveled over her.  I had happy tears rolling down my cheeks and a huge smile plastered on my face. I could hardly believe we had a daughter.  I still can hardly believe I have a daughter.  So far we think she is perfect and wonderful and all things lovely. 

They let me hold her for a few minutes before taking her to get her cleaned up and get all her stats.  When the nurse called out that she was 7lbs 12oz I nearly fell off the bed.  She was over a full pound bigger than her brother.  I thought for sure if the baby was a girl she would be between 6 and 7 pounds, and that if it was a boy he would be over 7 pounds.  I was clearly wrong.  I have also decided that if we have another child it will most likely be close to 9 pounds....maybe 2 children will be enough. 

I am crazy tired.  Crazy, crazy tired. I'm so tired it hurts.  I think I could sleep for a week straight if I didn't have any other obligations. But, I have a baby who needs to eat, a 2.5 year old who wants his mama's attention, and a husband who is doing a great job keeping the house running. 

40 Weeks Pregnant

I'm now 40 weeks pregnant.  A milestone that most people didn't think I would achieve, based mostly off the fact that this is my second child and Zack was a week early.  Therefore baby number two HAS to come early, right?  I've done my best not to get caught up in this assumption, which is a good thing.  Otherwise we would have one very grumpy Karen.  We surely do have a tired, and uncomfortable Karen, but overall, I'm not too grumpy.  And I think James would agree.  And even if he doesn't agree, he would say I'm nothing but wonderful. 

I have, however, come up with a list of the 10 best things to say to a woman who is 40+ weeks pregnant. 

1.  You look lovely!!  (While ignoring the fact that the bottom of my belly is hanging out of my shirt.  And also ignoring the fact that this shirt has stains on the belly.)

2.  Would you like some chocolate??

3.  Let me do this dishes, you just go sit on the couch.  (James has this one mastered, FYI)

4. 

5.
6.

7.

8.

9.

10. 

Ok, so maybe there are only a few acceptable things to say to a woman who has been pregnant for forever. 

But really, I haven't had too many insensitive comments.  I have wonderful friends who are all quite empathetic and hope for my sake that this baby comes soon.  Thankfully no one has suggested to me how to help get this baby out.  I'm quite efficient at doing a google search, and trust me, I've researched the ways to naturally induce labor.  And none of them seem like good options, nor do they seem to be effective.  If sitting on the couch and eating ice cream was a suggested method, I would be all over that, but I have yet to see that recommended. 

James, however, is getting all kinds of off the wall comments.  My two favorites are:  "Does your wife cry every day??" and "Does she yell at you a lot??"  The answer to both questions is no.  For being 100 years pregnant, I'm quite sane and rational.  I've cried a few times this pregnancy, but only due to things like watching Soul Surfer (seriously, I almost completely LOST it watching that movie), watching the Olympics, and trying to get a teething, out completely out of his mind 2 year old dressed and into a car seat.  And the only one getting yelled at in this house is Walter.  He's a stinky dog (a good reason to yell, right?) and finds it necessary to start kicking his food bowl every afternoon around 4pm.  And the never ending food bowl kicking gets me every time.  And the yelling has no effect on the beagle.  He just keeps kicking.  And on occasion howls.  And I just keep yelling at him until I give up and just feed the beagle. 

A couple of weeks ago I thought for sure this baby was going to be born soon.  I was having all kinds of contractions and "aggressively nesting."  As I've gotten closer to, and now almost past, my due date, I'm having fewer and fewer contractions, and my intense need to clean the house is dissipating (maybe cause there's nothing left to clean....).  Every night before bed, I used to tell James "I'll wake you up when I'm in labor!"  Now I just tell him, "See ya in the morning, I'll still be pregnant!" or, "I'll wake you up if you are snoring."  I've even gone to bed a few nights in a row without having to have all of Zack's toys picked up.  I'm a rebel like that.   

I know that in God's perfect timing this baby will arrive.  And when he or she gets here, we will be over joyed.  Until then, James and I are doing our best to enjoy our last days as parents of just one child, and doing our best to spoil Zack and shower him with as much attention as we can before he becomes a big brother. 

I love YouTube

I never knew what a valuable resource YouTube could be until now.

Our sweet little boy has quite the fascination with trucks.  Fire trucks and garbage trucks are at the top of his list, followed by bulldozers and dump trucks.  I find myself driving through construction zones on purpose, just so Zack can see these big trucks. 

We've recently discovered the joys of garbage truck videos, as well as firetruck videos on YouTube.  I'm not all that surprised at the huge number of firetruck videos, there are firetruck parades after all.  But the sheer number of videos of garbage trucks picking up garbage amazes me.  These garbage truck videos also amaze Zack.  Seriously, endless entertainment for the 2 year old.  These videos are going to come in very, very handy once we've got ourselves a new baby in the house. 

Last night Zack and James were watching garbage truck videos together.  The differences in their reactions was hilarious.  Zack is excited about the different colors of garbage trucks, and he seems to really enjoy it when it's raining in the videos.  James, however, talks about how inefficient some of the garbage trucks are, and wonders how many garbage men fall off the back of garbage trucks every year. 

I love my boys.   

Come on Baby!

I've decided I would like to be done being pregnant.  While my child is close to 1 million times easier to take care of while it's still growing in my belly (in comparison to how "easy" newborns are...), I'm pretty uncomfortable, and I'm getting quite antsy to meet this little person.  Are you a boy?  A girl??  Will you look like your big brother??  What is your personality going to be like?  Do you have hair? And the list goes on, and on. 

At night I'm getting a solid hour to hour and a half of sleep in between bathroom breaks.  There are a few rare occasions when I sleep for 2, or maybe even 3 hours straight.  Those stretches are amazing, and absolutely a gift from God.

I've been cleaning everything in site.  I think I clean the shower every 3 days.  And we've never been this caught up on laundry.  Ever.  Today I took it upon myself to wash a soap dish as well as the container that holds James' mouth guard.  Things are beginning to get out of control.  The space under the stove is clean, as well as under the fridge.  The walls behind the toilets have been disinfected, as well as nearly every single surface in the house.  It's a good thing the dog moves, otherwise I'm sure I would be trying to disinfect him as well.  Thankfully I have some self control, and I have yet to vacuum the grass as this would surely break my back and make my belly feel as though it's going to fall off (but not get me any closer to having a baby, just make me very, very sore). 

My doctor keeps telling me "it could be any day now."  But, with each day that passes, my belly just grows bigger and my heartburn gets a little bit worse.  Only God knows exactly when this little bambino will arrive (along with whether is a boy or a girl, and exactly how many hairs it has, or doesn't have, on it's sweet little head).  So, for now, we will do our best to rest on God's promises, and know that He knows best, and has the most perfect plan for this wee one. 

And while we wait, I will continue to wear the same 5 shirts that mostly cover the expanding belly, and clean until I can clean no more. 

James is the BEST

My husband is the best ever. 

One night a couple of weeks ago, we heard some strange noises coming from the laundry room.  It sounded like an animal had been trapped in there.  I did what every good pregnant lady would do, retreated to the couch, with my legs pulled up (cause that would for sure protect me!) and told James not to let "it" get out of the laundry room. 

James armed himself with the swiffer and a rubber mallet, and headed into the laundry room.  He found nothing.  But he did hear some little scratching noises coming from the dryer vent.  We are rebels, and don't have a cover on the vent.  We assumed that a bird had flown into the vent and was stuck.  James ran the dryer for a bit, while I did all kinds of silly google searches on how to get birds out of dryer vents, etc.  We didn't hear any more noises, and assumed that the heat from the dryer encouraged the bird to fly up, up, and away. 

The next morning the dryer wouldn't start.  James banged on it a few times, and then it worked.  It's very important for our dryer to work since it's how we "iron" clothes these days.  It's also how we dry clothes.  That's maybe a little bit more important than our method of ironing. 

That night when James came home he took apart the dryer, to take a good look inside to see if somehow this bird had become lodged in the dryer.  (Thank you YouTube for the how-to video!)  He found nothing.  So we figured that this bird had made it's escape and the dryer not turning on that morning was just a random fluke. 

We were wrong.  On many accounts. 

The next day, I put a load of wet clothes in the dryer.  I was greeted by the smell of death.  I then did the logical thing, and texted James, informing him of the stank coming from the dryer. 

That night, James once again disassembled the dryer.  This time he also removed the drum (which really is a 2 person job....and more challenging than necessary when the second person is close to 100 months pregnant). 

And then he found it.  It, being a dead mouse (most likely a pack rat).  EWWWWW.  One pair of kitchen tongs (which were disposed of, EWWWWWWWWWWWWW!) and a whole lot of bleach later, the stank was gone as was the offending creature. 

James is my hero. 

After the clean up was complete and the dryer was back in one piece, we moved on to our next freak out session.  Hanta Virus.  Thankfully I'm a master at google searches.  Heat kills the virus, and dryers get plenty hot.  Bleach also kills it.  And that was used.  And, there haven't been any cases of hanta virus in Pima county that this google master could find.  And, if it was indeed a pack rat, I don't believe they are typically carriers of the virus. 

We believe this rat may have been a distant relative to one that Walter terrorized a few months back.  Over the summer there was a rat or mouse that had some sort of injury stuck in our backyard.  Walter did what every good beagle would do.  He howled at it.  He howled at it so much he could not howl properly without his poor tired voice cracking for days.  Our "hunting" dog lost his voice because he howled at a rat for hours on end.  Thankfully he's not much of a hunter, and therefore left this mouse alone (kinda....I suppose he did howl at it forever).  He's just a loudmouth.  Maybe as payback for the sheer terror that hours of howling caused (while we were gone....sorry neighbors!!) his rat friend decided to lodge himself in the dryer.  Unfortunately for him, it didn't turn out well.

Beds are Overrated

Back in August, we bought Zack a twin bed.  I even made him a quilt to go on this new bed.  He has yet to actually use this quilt as it's intended to be used.  He mostly freaks out if we try and cover him with it.  So, he sleeps on top of it.  But, as of late, he hasn't been using his bed for it's intended purposes either. 

Some nights, we will peek in at him and find him sprawled out in the middle of his rug, cuddling with a blanket.  Sometimes he will take all the stuffed animals off his bed and create himself a nest in the middle of the floor.

Then, there are times when he goes for the really uncomfortable position.  Such as halfway out of his room, with his head on the hard tile floor.  Though he did manage to take a 3 hour nap that way. 

Just a few days ago I found him sound asleep in his little armchair.  His legs were hanging off it, and his face was smashed into an airplane toy.  Ouch. 

I'm guessing (and hoping!) that someday he will realize that beds are more comfortable than the floor/chair/hallway.  Until then, I suppose it will just sit there and look nice, and get used on a few rare occasions. 

Genesis-According to Two Year Olds

We are studying Genesis in BSF this year. The past couple of weeks have been all about creation.  Creation is such a fun, and easy topic to discuss with a two year old. Zack makes it easy for us, as he's constantly pointing out flowers, the moon, the mountains etc.  Now, when we ask him who made the pretty purple flowers he answers us with a simple "God did," like it's the most obvious thing in the world.  However, when I ask him who made the baby in my belly he tells me the name of my doctor....hmmmm....maybe the "Who made [insert object of God's creation here]" game is getting old. 

He did, however, surprise me the other day.  Out of the blue he told me, "mommy, God turned lights on."  Completely unprompted by me.  I think he's getting it, at least as much as a 2 year old can comprehend creation. 

Zack also has a very thankful heart.  Just this past Monday we were driving home from the leader's meetings.  On Mondays, all of the leaders children get a special treat, a lollipop.  Zack was happily sucking on his lollipop, talking to me about all the dump trucks, mail trucks and other vehicles he was seeing.  Then, out of the blue he says, "Dear God.  Thank you, lollipops.  Amen."