Today is the day!

Staying cool!

So today is the day! I called the hospital and we are on schedule to be induced as planned this evening. I'm a little nervous but not nearly as bad as I was. I think the *dress rehearsal* of what happened Saturday night actually kinda helped.

Since we need to leave the house in about 4 hours, you'd think that I'd be packed and all ready to go but that isn't the case. I'm still packed from the other night but I want to re-pack just to make sure I have everything I really want (versus the stuff I just tossed into a suitcase on Saturday) and I also need to take a shower and have nice fresh hair.

Right now we're waiting for my brother to get here and we're going to take some pictures of big sister Emersyn. Wish us luck, this is NOT an easy age to get pictures of.

I so appreciate your prayers and well wishes. I'm praying for a miraculously quick and easy delivery. I can't believe this day is finally here. Sometimes I look down at my tummy and can't believe I am even pregnant, let alone ready to deliver. Everett is going to be a very special little boy, I am certain of it.

Signing off for now..... :)

Labor = FAIL

UGH!!!!!!

So when I left you last I was in active labor, remember?

Well, I decided to try to get some sleep at the hospital on the horrifically uncomfortable bed. I was able to sleep for a little over an hour and guess what happened while I was sleeping? NOTHING. My contractions stopped completely. It was SO strange. I woke up and had a new nurse and she was......interesting. I didn't feel like we clicked well initially and it almost seemed like she didn't believe that I had been in labor which irritated me. She said that since my contractions had stopped that she would talk to the on-call dr. since my own dr. was not on call. I walked around for a bit but was SO tired from getting no sleep. The contractions never really started back up. The nurse checked me and I swear, she nearly dislodged my uterus from reaching up SO high. She couldn't feel my cervix because apparently Everett had decided to go back up in my ribs so she had to go find a nurse with longer fingers. This was strange to me because I never encountered this with Emersyn and each time a nurse checked me at this hospital, I felt like I was being assaulted, ha!

The nurse came in and said that she had spoken with the on call dr. and that she said for me to go home and see if things progress here. I was SO irate. My previous nurse had been 100% certain that he was going to be born today and she has been doing this for over 30 years so silly me, I believed her!! I was also irate that I had to deal with the pain of the IV in my arm. I am one of the lucky 20% of women that has group B strep (whatever the heck that is) so that means I have to have two doses of antibiotics before the baby comes so that he doesn't get it.

We headed home at about 9:30am and I felt about 50% annoyed but 50% relieved. The bright side is, I get another day to savor my girl. I get another day to wrap my mind mentally around giving birth. I also will get a new nurse and hopefully one of the bigger rooms. I guess on a certain side of the hospital you get smaller rooms and I was in one of the smaller ones which wasn't a big deal but more space is always nice.

Brett and I came home but stopped for a donut on the way since I was craving one from watching hours and hours of "Cupcake Wars" while in *labor*. Don't judge me, I earned that donut.

Came home and my mom and MIL were waiting to hear the whole story. Thankfully my mom hadn't gotten to the hospital yet but she had been on her way. My brother and sister-in-law weren't too far from us so they were able to hang out with us at the hospital for 45 minutes or so and witness some of the random antics of our labor nurse.

Another plus is that my brother is borrowing a really nice video camera to film the birth and the birth experience and he wasn't able to get it until tonight.

Brett and I came home and slept nearly 4 hours in our obscenely hot room. Our downstairs is nice and cool but the upstairs is awful. We're going out to the Olive Garden tonight in lieu of missing lunch today and I'm jazzed. My brother and sis-in-law will join us which will be fun.

In other news, I can't quite looking at Emersyn's new hair cut. She is such a big girl!!!!

So as of right now, I'm taking it easy. I don't want to trigger more contractions and then be confused if it's real labor or not and knowing myself I'd be stubborn and hold out and refuse to go the hospital aand then end up giving birth with no epidural on the kitchen floor. That would not be ideal.

Just wanted to update everyone. I'm still scheduled to be induced tomorrow evening at 6pm. Praying everything goes well and praying that somehow the hospital bed gets more comfortable between now and tomorrow. I'm not that hopeful though for that specific wish though. :)

Guess what!?!!?!

So today was a busy day for us. This morning we woke up and went to visit our friends who just had their new baby. Emersyn and Stella are two months apart and now their little siblings will be about 4 days or so apart.

After we met precious new Emma, we headed to the airport to pick up MiMi! I'm REALLY glad that she got here this afternoon. More on that later......

After we grabbed some lunch, we went to get Emersyn's first hair cut in honor of her becoming a big sister. Her hair has been kind of a struggle to work with lately because it's so thin and she hates it when I comb it. I thought that with Everett coming, now is a good time to chop her hair and let it thicken up a bit. I cannot believe how big it makes her look, seriously.

After Ems got her overpriced sweet children's salon hair cut, we took her and my mom home and then Brett and I headed out to an old friend's wedding. I was a guest book attendant and it was record high heat here in Portland, 94 degrees! It was the first day in 2011 to break the 90 degree mark, which is a record in and of itself I believe.

At the wedding I was definitely having contractions but go figure, I was standing in 94 degree heat and I am almost 39 weeks pregnant.

The wedding was short and sweet and we headed home to pick up my mom and Ems for some dinner. We decided Burgerville sounded good since Ems is such a cheeseburger fan. We even listened to the "cheeseburger" song on her Veggietales DVD on the way there because it was just too silly. :) After dinner we went to the grocery store to get some basic groceries but not too much food since I am was going to be induced on Monday.

Got home from the store, relaxed for a bit and the headed to bed. When we got into bed I noticed that I was having more frequent contractions so I decided to time them. It turns out they were coming every 3-5 minutes or so but weren't very intense. I timed them for about 40 minutes and then decided to call the nurse at the hospital. She said to give it another 30 minutes or so and then decide what to do. After I got off the phone I had a couple more painful contractions and decided that we better head into the hospital and get checked out. We hadn't even packed our hospital bags yet, isn't that awful??? So we packed our bag (and Lord knows if I remembered everything...probably not), I snuck into Emersyn's room and packed her bag and also packed up the bear that she made for Everett. Brett gathered the camera, laptop, etc. I was 90% sure this was a false alarm BUT I just had a friend who didn't get to the hospital in time for her epidural (she was already at a NINE) and I decided to learn from her experience and take a more cautious approach.

I got to the hospital and we felt silly rolling in our mini suitcase but it had our laptop in it and I didn't want my car randomly getting broken into and having that stolen while in the hospital. They got me into a bed and started monitoring me. I was having contractions pretty regularly but they weren't very strong so my nurse wasn't overly optimistic. She monitored me for about 15 minutes and then checked me. She said I was at a 3 still and just about 50% effaced, same as I was at my appointment on Thursday. I was a little disappointed but also relieved because that meant I still had time. I wasn't really emotionally prepared to give birth tonight!!! She said that since this isn't my first baby, they weren't going to send me home yet and that if I wanted I could get up and walk around and they would check me again in an hour. I walked around for about 20 minutes but was tired (at this point it was almost 2am) and headed back to the room. They hooked me up to the monitors again and my contractions were still coming regularly but this time they were painful. Before the contractions were just tight and uncomfortable. Now I could feel them down low and they HURT. The nurse went to check me again and her face changed and I just knew. She said that I was at a 3.5 and 90% effaced. She said I am going to have this baby today. Holy.Cow.

My thoughts: I am thrilled that Everett's birthday is that much farther from Emersyn's. I'm happy I didn't have to be induced and go through pitocin, although I didn't think it was *that* bad but I know inductions can have higher c-section rates, etc. I'm happy that my mom got here just in time. I'm happy I was able to go to my friends wedding this evening and that was really the last big milestone I wanted to accomplish before having my little man. Other thoughts: I'm feeling very nervous this time around just because I know more what I am getting into and because Everett is measuring SO much bigger then Emersyn did. I totally have not wrapped my mind around having my baby today. I had plans to go to church tomorrow, go to lunch...enjoy the last day as a family of three on Monday and maybe do something special with Ems....but it's really okay. I am happy that I went with my instincts to come to the hospital AND I totally had instincts about him coming early too which turned out to be true. It's kinda funny, here I am in labor and I can't even tell anyone because it's 4:45am and everyone is sleeping. I know I could text them all but it's going to be awhile and they might as well sleep. After I post this I am going to try to snooze. My nurse thinks the baby will be here around 1pm today. The kind of cool part is that Brett's brother is down from Seattle for the weekend and also his dad is off on Sundays so he can be a part of the birth (like in the waiting area, you know what I mean).

My plan is to call my mom (who's home with Ems) at 7ish and let her know what's going on and tell her to head on in whenever she can. Hopefully Brett's brother can go hang out with Ems while I'm here and then once Everett's born they can all come up. We'll call Brett's parents at 7ish too. I already texted my brother and his wife and I suspect they will call me once they wake up. :) David is supposed to be documenting this process again but since this took us by surprise, Brett has been taking some video on our little Flip camcorder.

I cannot believe that today was my last day as a mama of one and I didn't even know it. :)

My dear sweet Everett, I cannot wait to meet you. I have a feeling you're going to be a stinker and I love that about you already. Your big sister turned out just like I thought she was going to (for the most part) based on what I got to know about her while I was pregnant with her and from what I know about you, I can tell you're going to be a busy and active little boy. Your sister is going to love chasing you around and playing with you and we all just can't wait to meet you. Go easy on mama today though, okay? No freaky positions coming out, no hands by your face, no giant head, okay? I love you I love you I love you already. I hope you're just like your daddy because I just adore him too.

Wish me luck friends.....I'll keep you posted.

Today I am praying for....

My sweet girl, saying bedtime prayers for her baby doll

Today I am praying for....

*a friend's marriage that needs a miraculous intervention from the Lord

*a friend who just lost her job and doesn't know where she's going to go

*a friend who desperately wants to be pregnant

*my upcoming labor and delivery

*a friend's mom who has terminal cancer

*an acquaintance whose husband took his own life last week and leaves behind a widow that is close to my age and two young children

If you feel led, would you pray for these things too?

"Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ." Galatians 6:2

Monday :)

Look how much Emersyn has changed since her big announcement in January!

My dr. appointment went well today. Everett is still measuring on the big side but ultrasounds this late in the game are usually pretty subject to a large margin of error. I'm not stressing about it. I pushed Emersyn out just fine, I'm sure Everett will be the same even if he's bigger. I feel like people tend to over react about big babies so I'm not advertising this freely on FB or anything. :)

I am dilated to a three and about 50% effaced. My dr. said that everything seems ready to go and she agreed to induce me Monday evening. She was not pro-induction by any means and I know that everything had to line up for her to induce me so this makes me happy.

Sometimes I get so weary of women and their opinions. Why is it when it comes to having babies that we get so judgmental? Inductions or not, breastfeeding or not, etc. I definitely have some opinions about what I feel is best but I really feel to each their own. I know not everyone in my life *approves* of inductions and I don't think that is very fair. I have out of state family to consider and a daughter with a REALLY close birthdate that I am hoping to avoid. Besides, I have one of the best birth stories that I have ever heard before with Emersyn and I was induced with her. This is just a side rant but I needed to get it off my chest. I would never do ANYTHING to endanger my baby or myself (and neither would my dr. obviously). I am already in an early stage of labor technically being dilated to a three. I plan on being very active again this weekend and getting Everett good and ready to head out. :)

Today I got a mani/pedi and a hair cut. I feel like a new woman. I'm hoping for a burst of energy tonight as we get the house picked up for the cleaners in the morning. I'm thankful to have the time to get in these last minute pampering services. :)

Happy Thursday everyone!!!

Ramblings & the Beach!

This has been such a great week so far. It's surreal to me that this could be my last week with just one child, my last week pregnant EVER, my last week before having a son.....just so much to wrap my mind around. I am feeling ready though, or at least as ready as I'll ever be. It's funny this time around, I was just getting ready for Emersyn last time and didn't have to care for anyone else in the meantime. Going to work was a lot easier in a sense. My house stayed cleaner, that's for sure.

I had nothing planned for Monday and was going a bit stir crazy around the house which surprised me. I normally love a good day at home, simply because they don't happen as often as they probably should. Something about the summer makes me want to be outside enjoying it, not inside. Anyways, on Monday I decided to take Ems out for lunch at Panera so I could eat this amazing summer salad they have that I was craving. We ran a couple other errands too but for the most part didn't have any plans and I realized quickly that days at home are NOT what I need this week. Thankfully I've had other plans. Monday night I went and saw "The Help" with some friends and it was SO GOOD. I haven't read the book yet but I definitely want to after seeing the movie.

Yesterday I knew I wanted to do something fun and different. I had a playdate scheduled with my friend Caitlin and her daughter Emery and I asked if they would want to go to the beach since it was supposed to be so nice here. We live a little over an hour from the coast. She was totally willing to go to the beach and we decided to take our girls on an adventure.

It was such a fun day in the sun and the weather couldn't have been better. 98% of the time, the Oregon coast is cold, windy and raining. This was a rare day full of sunshine and warmth and it was SO much fun. The only part that was a little brutal was hauling our gear out onto the sand and close to the water. I swear it was 1/4 mile walk from the car to the area we sat which isn't a huge distance except when you are hauling gear and walking in the sand and it's hot. Plus, my daughter is PHOBIC of sand. Initially I put her on my shoulders and then was hauling a heavy bag and stroller that did NOT want to be pushed in the sand so I had to drag it. After about 10 steps I realized that I was going to black out if I kept that up so I put my daughter down and told her that today is the day that she overcomes her fear of sand. She did it, thanks to a little peer pressure. Emery can't get enough of the sand. Caitlin and I were laughing/whining the entire way there and back. I told her that if I went into labor on the beach, they were going to have to lifelight me to the hospital because I was NOT going to be walking back.

We took the girls on the merry-go-round, had fun in the sand and water, got them ice cream cones, brought home candy for the daddy's, and it was just the distracting day that I needed. I got home feeling pretty beat and let Brett give Ems a bath while I took a shower.

Today I have a few errands to run and then we're going to swim at Auntie Jenny & Uncle David's pool, whoo hoo!! The first thing Emersyn said when she woke up today was "can we go to Auntie Jenny's pool?". I told her I needed to check with Jen to find out what time works and Ems said, "Oh I already checked with Uncle David and he said to come over". Ha!

Tomorrow I have an u/s and dr. appointment. I'm praying for wisdom and discernment for myself and my dr. Like I said before, Everett is on the bigger side and unfortunately in the medical profession, I feel like this leads to an over reaction among dr's and they start throwing out words like c-section. I've pushed a baby out just fine before and am not worried about pushing Everett out, even if he is a little bigger. But I'm praying that I can be induced so that my dad can see the baby for the most time possible since his visit is shorter then my moms and I would love Everett's bday to be as far away from Emersyn's as possible. Those are both very superficial reasons for wanting an induction and I know that so I won't be devastated if it doesn't work out, that's just my hearts desire right now. We'll see though. I know most of the time women don't get to plan out when their babies are born and that's okay too. I'm trusting the Lord. It's hard when you have a prior experience to compare it to, and that prior experience happened to be perfect!!!!

Friday we are having the house cleaned (hallelujah!!!!!) and I'm going to get a mani/pedi while that's happening. My mom gets here on Saturday and I am 99% sure that we are going to get Emersyn's hair cut that afternoon. She is going to look like SUCH a big girl with shorter hair and I'm not sure that I'm ready for that but her hair is really thin on the bottom from being baby hair and I think cutting it will help it thicken up. Plus, shorter hair will be easier to manage while I'm still adjusting to having two kiddos. Saturday evening Ems is having a date with her MiMi while Brett and I go to a wedding that I'm helping with. Sunday we'll go to church and then I really want to go to the Olive Garden for that soup that I'm obsessed with. Then, on Monday I will be 39 weeks and we'll see if that is the big day......

Here are some pics from our fun day at the beach!

Wedding!

Here are some pics from the wedding festivities this past weekend!

Emersyn really did great considering. :) She fell asleep on the way out to Tillamook both times and she's a little like her mama in the fact that she wakes up somewhat on the cranky side. She was really excited to be in the wedding though. I wonder if she thinks that you just are in weddings each summer. Last summer she was in two and this summer one. I'm sure she's assuming she'll be in another one next year and who knows, maybe she will. :)

Ems at the rehearsal dinner. I love this dress on her. I got it on major clearance at the Gymboree outlet when I was down in California in June and she hadn't gotten a chance to wear it yet. The rehearsal seemed like a great special occasion to wear it to. :)

The wedding venue was beautiful and the weather was a little on the chilly side but not bad. I'd much rather be a little chilly then blazing hot!!

On the morning of the wedding we took Ems out to breakfast and then to Toys'R'Us to pick out a new baby as a *reward* for being sweet and cooperating in the wedding. In the picture above she's introducing her old baby to her new baby. She was SO excited to get this baby out of the box. I was waiting with the new baby at the end of the aisle as she walked down. :)

Brett decided to wait with Ems and the bridal party and I was the one to be at the end of the aisle since she was less likely to want to leave me. She was really shy and hesitant at first but eventually walked to me. She forgot to spread the petals though. Oh well, how much can you expect from a not quite three year old? :)

Since the wedding was outdoors, I just cleaned up Emersyn's saltwater sandals instead of buying her new white shoes and they looked darling with her dress. I got her dress at Target around Easter time and I think it was the most perfect flower girl dress!!

Emersyn and Ian, the groom's nephew. These two are buddies and love each other, it's SO cute.

These two little boys competed for Ems attention all night. Hilarious!

First dance with a boy!!! Emersyn LOVES dancing. The whole day of the wedding (and the rehearsal) she kept saying, "Is it almost time to dance"? She danced for the entire reception, literally from the first song to the last. It was adorable. She also insisted that Daddy be on the dance floor with us. I'm praying that 90 minutes of dancing resulted in a dropped baby for me!!!

This joyful face pretty much sums up how Emersyn felt about dancing. :)

I'm so thankful to the Meichtry and Connolly for including Emersyn in their special day. This wasn't Emersyn's first Meichtry wedding though. She went to Daniel's brother's wedding when she was only three days old. :)