Good News & Bad News

Good News: I'm ready to have a baby.
Bad News: The baby doesn't seem to feel ready to come out yet.

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Good News:  Nesting instincts have kicked in and I'm feeling much more energized.
Bad News:  I'm using the extra energy for recreational purposes instead of productive purposes.

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Good News:  We've finally decided on a name.
Bad News:  We *might* change when we see the little guy, so we're not going to announce it yet.

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Good News:  Thanks to several generous donations (Lori, Sarah, Desiree) and one fun shopping spree we have clothes to put on the baby. 
Bad News:  We still don't know where to put the clothes so all the baby's things are in bins in a corner in our room.  Convert the den or stuff two kids in one small room?

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Good News:  We have tickets tomorrow night (Date#4 from my parents) for Mary Poppins.
Bad News:  None known.  I'm just excited and wanted to share.

Sadie's Arrival

My due date is one month from today.

As I prepare for the future I keep thinking about the past.

I've been reminiscing about Sadie's birth these last few weeks and wondering what this next one will be like. Tonight I decided to read through Ben's journal entry from the day she was born. This is how it goes:

8:05 am - started pitocin. Alicia was already 3 to 4 cm dilated and 80% effaced at a -1 position.

8:25 - Mary called and we talked with her and Christy (at BYU).

8:35 - Increased pitocin to 5 from 2. Alicia is starting to feel some Braxton-Hicks type contractions, but nothing too painful and nothing too frequent.

9:05 - Dr. Marcelli came in and checked Alicia. She said she's 4 cm and 70 - 80% effaced and still at a -1 position. She broke the water. There was a little meconium so they are going to do an amnioflush. Still not many contractions.

10:30 - Alicia received an epidural and feels great! Contractions are steady and strong, now we just relax and wait for Sadie to come! Alicia is trying to sleep now...

{Later on} It turns out there wasn't much time for sleeping. Beth came in to change the bedding at about 11:30 and noticed a lot of fluid. She hadn't planned to, but decided to check Alicia's progress. Alicia has been very relaxed and has not pain, so you can imagine our surprise when Beth announced, "You are complete!" Alicia replied, "What exactly do you mean 'complete'?" She told us it was time to push. We could not believe our ears!

The nurse went and got the doctor, who confirmed it was time to push. However, she had a patient a few rooms down, so the nurse stayed with us and helped Alicia know when to push.

We pictured this phase of labor as extremely stressful, painful, long and drawn-out. But it turned out to be quite peaceful and very thrilling. I was extremely nervous about this stage, because I didn't want to see Alicia in pain. Seeing her so comfortable was very calming and reassuring for me. It allowed me to enjoy the anticipation of the arrival of our little baby.

It wasn't long before I could see the top of the baby's head. I was thrilled to see hair!

I could tell we had made a lot of progress and the time was at hand. The nurse told us to take the next few contractions off while she went looking for the doctor. Dr. Conner came to deliver the baby because Dr. Marcelli was still with her other patient. We were glad to have Dr. Conner there for us.

At 12:46, after less than an hour of pushing, Sadie was born 6 lbs. 9 ozs., 19 inches long. It was a totally unbelievable, joyous, happy, thrilling moment!

{Sadie, shown above, two hours old}

Life since then has been a real whirlwind!  We've come a long ways....

{Pictures of Sadie taken on our morning walk today}

Hopefully I'll love this next baby as much as I do Sadie (seems impossible at the moment), and hopefully, the labor will be as peaceful, happy, and memorable as it was with Sadie!

One more month!

Celebrating Mother's Day

Ben did an amazing job making mother's day special.  We actually spent most of the weekend celebrating.  We like to make holidays last as long as possible!

On Friday we had Date #3 from my parents (we're running a little behind).  We went to see the Blue Planet Florida Orchestra performance.  It was excellent!  They projected the best scenes from the series Blue Planet (like Planet Earth) while the orchestra played music.

Saturday morning Ben gifted me with my first Mother's day present.  {Drum roll please}....A fishing pole!  I'm pretty sure he's a little embarrassed by the gift but I quite loved it.  We tried it out on the poor fish in the lake in our community.  We caught at least 6 or 7 tiny little fish.  Sadie was really amused by it all.

 {I caught the biggest fish - shown above}

After fishing we cooled off in the community pool.  So relaxing!  We came home, got cleaned up, ate lunch, and ALL took a nice, long nap.  It was perfection!  We spent the afternoon cleaning the house and then ate my favorite meal of all time - Lemon Butter Chicken.  We topped it off with a visit to Rita's Italian Ice, and then Ben spent the evening working on a talk he gave in church on Sunday.

On Sunday we met up with the family at Mike and Sarah's where the guys made us girls dinner.  And, wow, did they do a good job!  They made kabobs, corn on the cob, and sweet potatoes with a decadent chocolate cake.  I'm not sure what their secret was but they were the best, most tender and flavorful kabobs I have ever had!

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I don't have too much wisdom about motherhood, but this is a quote I like:

David O. McKay said, “Motherhood is the greatest potential influence either for good or ill in human life. The mother’s image is the first that stamps itself on the … young child’s mind. It is her caress that first awakens a sense of security; her kiss, the first realization of affection; her sympathy and tenderness, the first assurance that there is love in the world”

Mothering Sadie is the most challenging yet rewarding thing I have ever done in life.  I'm so grateful for the opportunity I have to be a mother and wife.  It's more life-changing and entertaining than I ever imagined!

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Special thanks to:

• Joe and Julie for watching Sadie on Friday night - good job!
• Michael for planning and preparing a steller meal on Sunday night.
• My mom for all her years of service and love and lessons.
• My mother-in-law for raising the most near-perfect human being I've ever found.
• Ben and Sadie for their patience with me as I figure out this whole motherhood thing.

Hello & Goodbye

They came, they played, and they left.  Kimmy will return; Christy will not {until the end of the summer}.

They are on their way to Washington D.C.  That's where my dad grew up and where my parents met and were married.  My uncle and a lot of their old friends still live up there.  It should be a fun little getaway for them.

This will give Sadie and I time to rest and recooperate from the whirlwind of fun we had while they were here.

I love having siblings!