She's Here!

I woke early in the morning on 12/8 with labor pains that were regular, though 10-15 minutes apart.  I progressed slowly through the morning, hovering between 8 and 10 minutes apart for several hours. The pace picked up quickly right around the kids quiet time though and we headed off to the hospital.  A quick check determined that I was 4.5 cm dilated and we would be staying!  We were quite happy to hear that after a few false starts.

 They didn't have a labor room for me, so we spent a few hours in the small room where they determine if you're actually in labor or not.  My contractions started getting harder and we were having a hard time figuring out how to help me cope.  By the time they moved me to the labor room I had progressed to 7cm and was entering transition.  I asked for an epidural at that point and thankfully the anesthesiologist was right next door. The epidural worked better on one side that the other and never really got a chance to take full effect, 45 minutes later I was ready to push.  8 minutes later our healthy, beautiful baby girl was born!

Named for my sister, Margaret Jade was born at 8:22pm on the feast of the Immaculate Conception.  I had a special devotion to St. Anne during my pregnancy so it seems rather fitting that Mara be born on the day that celebrates Anne's conception of Mary.  Her nickname, Mara, means "Mary" in Hebrew.

She weighed in at 8lbs 5oz, our largest baby by far!   

In the past week and a half she has proven to be a wonderfully cuddly baby, with eyes like deep pools, and the ability to make everyone coo adoringly. 

Her brother and sisters are absolutely enthralled with her.  They're quick to go to her when she cries, and offer help whenever asked. 

Gabe seems especially taken, coming to her several times a day to give her cuddles and kisses saying, "I love you, baby,"

Our parents have been wonderful, coming almost every day to help out as we all adjust to daily life with a newborn.  The frequent lack of sleep can be painful, but mostly we're all just adoring this beautiful gift God has given us.  

How truly blessed we are!

Waiting...

I apologize for the lack of posting lately, things have been in high gear around here for a while.  Steve and I have spent the last month getting the house ready for the new baby by cleaning, organizing, and doing as much as possible.  My nesting has been in overdrive.  So we've been incredibly productive and have gotten done everything on my To Do list!  I keep finding more things that can be done, but have reached the point where my body is no longer cooperating.  Lately the days have me feeling uncomfortable and quite exhausted. When I do have the energy to do something I've been doing odd little crafts and projects for myself and our home instead of cleaning.  It's nice to take a break from that, since we've done most of it anyway, and do something I enjoy that I know I'll get little chance to do once baby makes her debut.

So, now we wait.  We've had 2 false starts and are feeling very much in limbo but are trying to keep on with the every day, knowing that she'll be here before we know it.

Surprise Blessing

I am very happy to announce that we are expecting a baby this December!  We are so blessed by having Addie, Gabe, and Ana in our lives and this baby is such a wonderful gift. Our hearts overflow with love for our children and we are so excited to meet this little butterbean!
Addie and Gabe are especially excited.  They give my belly rubs, pats, and kisses every day saying, "I love you, baby!"  We're reading books about having a new baby in the house but Ana doesn't seem to grasp the idea yet.  Maybe as my belly gets bigger she will start to make a connection.

Small Successes

1. I have been able to get a handle on my nausea.  Hooray!  I've been eating small meals and snacks every 1.5-2 hours and, at the recommendation of a pharmacist, am taking a daily dose of the B6 vitamin.  It's not an instant cure, but taken daily has really helped to quell the queasies.

2. The kids went back to gymnastics today after a 2 week absence.  I was worried that the time away would make them forget how the class progressed and things like paying attention and sitting when asked to.  (Not so simple for a 3 year old.)  But their teachers (one of whom is a close friend from early childhood) said that they were fantastic, 98% improvement from their last classes!  They each have 2 make-up classes to take and I have signed them up for separate classes.  Addie will have 2 weeks of ballet/tap (squee!  leotards and slippers, hooray!) and Gabe will have 2 weeks of sports introduction (golf, baseball, soccer, football, and hockey, oh my!)

3. Ana has taken her first (assisted) steps!  For quite a while now she has pulled herself to a standing position and just stood there or bopped up and down gently.  But today, she grabbed hold of my fingers and proceeded to walk a good 4 feet across the kitchen!  She still has a ways to go to get the coordination figured out, currently it's more of

Raise left leg up and SLAP it down 5 inches in front of herself.
Tiny step with right leg.
Bop up and down.
Tiny shuffle of right leg to even up with left.
Repeat.

Surprise, Surprise!

We're having a baby! Again! Heh. Though this pregnancy was definitely a surprise, we are excited to meet this newest butterbean. The prospect of having four children under four is certainly daunting, but we trust in the Lord to guide us as we know He doesn't give you more than you can handle.

The reactions from family and friends have been positive. We're so blessed to have such wonderful people around us who not only understand but also respect and support our faith and life choices. (I did have one friend compare me to the Duggar family. Hmm, 4 kids to 19. That's a bit of a stretch, don't you think?) But in the sense that we leave the ultimate decisions of children to God, she is correct. (Though, I don't know if the Duggars practice NFP as we do.)

It is still very early in the first trimester, around 6 weeks, so I am deep in the throes of all-day-sickness ("morning" sickness is a joke) and exhaustion. I'm managing fairly well with sleep, going to bed early and trying to nap and rest when the kids are sleeping. I am really struggling with the nausea, though. I have found some tea that seems to be helping, Get Maternal, but it can only do so much. I am trying to snack every two hours or so, but I am finding it increasingly difficult to find foods I am able to eat.

I have suffered from moderate to severe IBS for over a decade now, though I have found ways to manage my symptoms very effectively. Unfortunately, many of the things I have given up eating are the very things recommended for pregnant mothers. I cannot eat ANY type of dairy (cheese, milk, yogurt, etc) or high fat foods (anything fried obviously, but things like egg yolks and avocados, too.) I know my stomach can handle things like crackers and pretzels but, funny enough, their lack of flavor can actually aggravate my nausea. One of the only things I can consistently get down is a toasted bagel with Toffuti Brand Cream Cheese. It's a great snack because it has a decent amount of protein and carbs. Ideally, all my snacks should include those two. I'm having serious problems thinking of other things to eat though! (I would normally say hummus, but the smell and taste are too much for me right now.) Anyone have any ideas?

Here we go!

I had a routine OB apt today and everything checked out wonderfully. I made my way home and spent the next hour playing with the kids, just having a good time. My water broke shortly after and we made our way to the hospital to be checked out. As of around 7:00 or so I am 2 cm dilated and 50% effaced with contractions coming every 2-3 minutes. Mt Dr walked in the room and laughed saying,"Didn't I just see you a few hours ago? You sure don't waste any time." He thinks I'll be in "rip-roaring labor" (wonderful phrase, no?) in 2-3 hours, so hopefully this labor will be smooth, quick, and easy. I ask for extra prayers as this night continues. We will keep our parents updated to spread the news, so the next time I post, it should be along with some pictures of our beautiful baby girl!

Catch up

Blame pregnancy for the lack of posting. For the most part, it's been smooth sailing with no complications or worries. As will happen in the third trimester though, things have started getting... uncomfortable. I've been having problems with my back lately and it's been really limiting what I can get done in a days time. I haven't been doing much of anything that's high activity, I even gave up our daily walks (well, that's mostly due to the inhuman heat and sciatica.) But I still am needing to lay down for most if not all of the kids nap time and am pretty much out of commission for the rest of the day. I'm starting to wear shoes in the house because I'm thinking walking around barefoot on hardwood floors isn't doing me any favors. So hopefully that will help some. Otherwise, I'm taking Tylenol and being very thankful that Steve is here to pick up the slack.

In other news, Gabe has become obsessed with NASA's launch of the space shuttle Atlantis which we saved on the DVR. It's the first thing he thinks of waking up in the morning and will ask to watch it several times throughout the day. "Ya-yet!" (rocket) he says. "Ya-yet peese." and points to the TV. He can't even get through a meal without thinking about it, pulling food out of his mouth to voice his requests and making the sign for rocket. (Tonight he also made the sign for helicopter and rabbit several times out of the blue. I don't quite know how all those string together but hey, we know what he's thinking!)
This evening we were cleaning up from dinner and Gabe made the sign for potty but said "bub-iss," which normally means pacifier. So I said, "No, Gabe, not pacy, potty. Say Pah."
"Pa"
"Tee"
"Tis"
"Potty"
"Ya-yet!"

23 weeks

Right now I have a good amount of energy and, for the most part, only a few annoying pregnancy symptoms. My sciatica has been acting up a bit and getting a good night's sleep can be a challenge, but overall I feel great!

It's a girl!

Meet Little Miss Flutterbump!

Profile with leg extended


Face shot (left hand up by the face) and profile together


Baby foot

19 weeks

Surprise, Surprise!

Many of you have known for a while now that my lack of posting has been due to exhaustion and morning sickness. Yes, that's right, we're having another baby! This child is such a blessing, making it's way into this world without the help of fertility medication, which in the past was the only way were were able to conceive. While we are sure things will be hectic, we couldn't be more excited to welcome this new child into our family.