Always happy to come home from the hospital

(With the convenience of Instagram and Facebook, I've been slower at posting on my blog.  I'm sorry for the repeat of some pictures.)

 

Kielle and I came home on Sunday.  

We have taken it easy the past week and the kids have rotated through each other numerous times a day for their turns in holding her.  After getting her through the first three days, she has finally figured out (a little more) that night time is for sleeping.  I was only able to get eight hours of sleep the first three days.  Somehow, it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be.  I think adrenaline always kicks in and you make it through it. 

With this baby, it has been a really easy and fast recovery.  Probably my easiest.  I have gotten through several projects that I needed to organize and do.  Its also weird having someone their that watches her.  I know there is a huge age gap but its actually been really nice!

Kielle's debut

The picture below reveals all the details, but not the story.

Kielle (key-ell) definitely resembles our other kids, but my pregnancy with her was nothing like my past pregnancies. Which is why I was not surprised that her labor and delivery was anything but routine.

My water broke at 6:25 AM.  I've never had my water break before.  I woke up in bed and remember thinking something felt weird.  I got up to go to the bathroom and realized that I was about to "splash".  My water hadn't broken yet but I knew it was coming.   As I ran into the bathroom, it broke, luckily inside my bathroom (on the tile.)  My labors are normally less than four hours so Jacob and I hurried to get to the hospital thinking we wouldn't have much time.

 

Jacob loves the super bright overhead lights in the delivery rooms (he calls them the "action" lights). In 2006, I had an emergency C-Section when Katanya was born. I really wanted a VBAC  so long as it was safe. The doctor said that as long as my delivery was progressing she would let it go for 24 hours before we would have to go the C-Section route. My labor was slow and for the most part fairly mild. I progressed so slowly. My labor ended up being 15 minutes shy of 15 hours. 

For the first time since McKay, my epidural worked.  The anesthesiologist was amazing.  He said he had a hand full of techniques he would try if it didn't work and he seemed to know what he was doing.  It worked right away.  Because we weren't sure if it was going to work, they put the epidural in around 10 AM.  I was comfortable and not in pain for most of the labor.

Finally at 9 pm, I was fully dilated and ready to deliver.  The delivery was my easiest yet.  It is true when they say "good things come to those who wait."  I truly believe that a slow and patient labor probably helped with my chance of a successful VBAC. 

Kielle honestly came out wanting to eat and smacking her lips.  I wonder sometimes if she is going to grow as fast as Kirsten did.

Our friends that were staying with the kids that night brought the kids over to meet their sister. 

We had picked her first name a few weeks ago were no where near being able to agree on middle names. The long labor gave us time to talk about names.  Kielle came from a list of names I came across 3 weeks ago.  Its origin is Hawaiian.  Athena came from the goddess.  Kirsten had been reading Percy Jackson the night before so at the hospital I went over a list of complete (Greek, Roman, Egyptian, and Celtic) goddesses and really liked Athena.  After all she is the goddess of wisdom so how could Jacob not like it?  Magdalena came from Jacob.  He had heard the shortened name Magda and looked up the long name - Magdalena.  He also liked the fact that it was an Eastern European name.  I wasn't ever worried about not having a name nor agreeing on anything beforehand.  Life always works itself out.  We are so blessed to have little Kielle join our family.  I already can't imagine life without her.

On the way

Post #999

Last night I told McKay that she could not set her alarm any earlier than 7:00 AM because I wanted to sleep. She was not happy to hear that. The irony is that my water broke this morning at 6:25 AM and I ended up being her alarm.  Also,  when I got to the car I realized that I forgot to put on shoes.  Jacob ran back into the house and grabbed me these. For some reason he felt so rushed that he grabbed his flip flops for me to wear....... more to come! #inNeedOfMinolaBlahnik

A numbers game

Our family blog is coming up on it's 1000 post. I'm sort of hoping that "Baby G" (girl) will make her debut so she can be the 1000 post.  And yes, we still have NOT decided on a name.  I'm actually not really stressing about it since it will work itself out.

 

This picture is actually when I was 36 1/2 weeks along.  The baby basketball picture below is at 37 1/2 weeks.  Its a little more current.  After our last ultrasound, the doctor said that it would probably be my biggest baby yet.  Now this has me a little worried.  My biggest baby was Cruz weighing in at 6 pounds, 5 ounces.  They had figured at 36 weeks the baby was already 5.75 pounds.  I'm just hoping she comes a little early like the rest of mine have.

So we have bets going on for when she decides to come and how much she weighs.  Her due date is July 12.  I can't get induced because I'm opting for a VBAC and they won't start me due to my last C-Section.  So here are our guesses.

Jacob - June 27 - 7 pounds 6 ounces
Amy - July 2 - 7 pounds 2 ounces 
(7/2 and 7/2, trying to play the number game)
McKay - July 1 - 7 pounds 11 ounces
Kirsten - June 30 - 7 pounds 3 ounces
Cruz - July 5 - 7 pounds even
Katanya - July 3 - 6 pounds 10 ounces

We would love to hear your guesses!

It couldn't hurt to try right?

 I'm officially 2 1/2 weeks away from my due date.  So my brother and his wife are visiting this weekend and my sitster-in-law and her family came in for a short hello too.

The girls decided to try to get the labor stages just a little more advanced.  They had me do a minute of vigorous tummy rubbing followed by 3 minutes of squats and lunges (x2).  This was there labor dance.  I was so sore in my thighs by the second time that I volunteered to go run a mile with them if they had bellies too.  Of course they did.  It was fun.  I made it slowly jogging with only one bathroom stop and one "catch-my-breath-stop."  And as my kids have asked me numerous times, no I don't think a baby will be coming tonight.
And although I'm pretty sore tonight, I can't wait to get out and do this for real.