21 Weeks!

So we made it through the ultrasound and I shopped my way through the weekend!  It's way too hard to resist those sweet baby girl clothes! :)

On Saturday, I started feeling achy and flu-like.  And then I got that all too common (common for me anyway) pain in my back, which is a sure sign, its a bladder infection.  I went up to L&D and spent the afternoon doing urine samples (I had to do two for some reason) and listening to baby bump and thump all over the monitor.  The nurses were very impressed that they could get a good read of her heartbeat since I was only 20/21 weeks.  She definitely slipped off the monitor a few times and I got to listen to the lovely alarm, but for the most part, she was in the 140's the entire time ;)  Anyways, they had me out of there relatively quickly (4 hours?) and on meds.  Today, Tuesday, I am feeling much better.  I do think I'm having some sinus or allergy problems... I'm hoping the antibiotics I'm on for the UTI will kick whatever junk is in my face/head out....

I'm pretty sure we have a name picked out for this bub... but as always, its a secret.  It feels good to have a name though :)

I feel huge- like wide huge.  Such a difference from my pregnancy with Henry!  Henry was like a basketball- all out in front- it was actually kind of nice because I think the majority of the weight just went straight to my stomach.  This time around its all over- my thighs, my hips, butt, etc.  Blah.  I am 3 lbs above what I started the pregnancy at now.  With Henry, at 21 weeks, I was getting a lecture from Dr. P about putting on too much weight ;) haha- I think with Henry, I had put on at least 20+ lbs by this time... insane!  The funny thing is, I look bigger (body wise) with this baby- even though I weigh about 15 lbs. less!  

Here's me & the watermelon baby bump...

 My body just sort of absorbs the bump huh? ;)


The baby is the size of a banana this week!

I have been feeling oodles and oodles of movement, which is by far, the BEST part of pregnancy!  She is all over the place, and I love it.  My hormones have been all over the map as well.  I don't know what its been, but I've had more melt downs over the past 3 days than I have all year I think.  Saturday I cried in bed for about 30 minutes after the kids went to bed, because I missed my mom.  Sunday, Ryan and I were in the middle of talking about how we think this baby girl is going to complete our family, and I burst into tears because the thought of this being my last pregnancy really got me upset... so strange.  Yesterday, I read Maeve "On The Night You Were Born" and I sobbed the whole way through.  It must have stuck with her, because as soon as Ryan got home, she ran up and told him that we read a sad book today and "mama got so sad."  Speaking of Maeve and the things she says, I'll end this post with what she told me when she ran in my room this morning:

"Mama!  Good morning!  You're so big today!" 

nice ;)


...oh and a photo challenge on this (really) boring Tuesday...


The theme is "SURPRISE!"  Maeve's favorite thing to do on the beach is chase the seagulls- the way they swoop so low, always thrills and surprises her ;)

Things To Remember.

I keep meaning to write this post- I didn't keep a baby book with Henry, but instead blogged about my prenatal visits, pregnancy ups & downs, belly pics, etc. I know I already blogged about Henry's birth story, but I didn't add in all the *special* moments, people and memories that I don't ever want to forget. With that said.....

*My awesome nurse Michelle Scott (she's Dr. Scott's wife actually!). She was amazing and truly my lifeline. It's funny that you rely so much on complete strangers during your labor. I probably won't ever see her again, but I'll always have a warm spot for her. She was great :)

*After my water was broken I stood up to go to the bathroom and there was a FLOOD- then in a panic I ran to the bathroom leaving a giant water path in my wake. I was too embarrassed to call the nurse to have her come clean up the giant mess so Ryan got on his hands and knees to clean up the spill. I sat on he bed laughing hysterically (in between contractions of course:)

*Dr. P & the nurse came in to break my water. After he broke it, Michelle asked if I was going to want an epidural anytime soon. Feeling brave and *OKAY* I said "No... not yet." Two seconds after she left the room, I got my first post-water breaking contraction and instantly regretted my response to her question. Next time she was in the room I was BEGGING for an epi!

*The moment I realized that my epidural actually worked this time- PRICELESS! haha :)

*Walking the halls for what seemed like hours (but was really only 45 minutes?) and hearing a girl screeeeaming her lungs out in a room. I started crying and had to go back to our room- I think I was seriously considering boycotting the whole induction and making an escape! :)

*When the nurse came in to check me after I got my epi- I was 7 cm. and she told me that if I feel the urge to push to make sure and let her know. I said okay. She left the room and I felt the urge to push- Ryan ran out and got her, she came back in, checked me, and said "you're ready!" What a great moment!

*When Henry came out and Dr.P put him on me- I thought he was a teeny 6 lbr. again. After they stabilized him and weighed him, they shouted over to me that he was 8.7. Even Dr. P had to say "WHAT??? 8.7??" :)

*While getting stitched up, Michelle lifted up my dang umbilical cord to show it off to everyone in the room. There were "oohs & ahhs" all around- apparently it was a really nice looking cord? :)

*After the whole birth when the nurse pushed on my uterus to get it to contract, urine literally shot out half way across the room. oops:) At this point, I'd lost any modesty so I just had to laugh. I DID say sorry though :)

*The cafeteria was closing at 7 PM and I wouldn't be in my postpartum room until around 7:30-8ish, so they nurses told me to order something because I needed to eat. I really didn't want to eat in the horrid birth room that still had yucky towels and gross stuff all over the place but I was STARVING. So I ordered a yogurt and fruit. Ryan was also pretty hungry (those guys work hard ya know) so he went down to the cafeteria and loaded up a giant plate filled with burritos, cheese, rice and beans. Um. Yuck. Even the nurses were a bit appalled that he was eating that right away... they warned me to not even look at it- I might vomit! :)

*Going to my postpartum room, they asked me if I needed a wheel chair. I felt really good so I said "no." But little did I know my body was still numb from the epi. I had nurses on both sides, completely freaking out about me falling. I kept saying "I feel fine! I just can't feel my right leg- that's why I'm wobbly!"

*My night nurse, Liz- absolutely wonderful :)

*When Dr. VanSchoik came in to get Henry for his circumcision the next morning... I was the one who had just gone through labor AND breastfed a baby through the whole night. But who was the one snoring on the couch??? Yup, Ryan. It actually got so uncomfortable Dr. V had to stop his conversation with me about the circumcision and address Ryan's snoring. I think he said something like "You've gotta give us guys some credit, right?" After the doc left Ryan got a book thrown at him...

*The ridiculous students who were in and out ALL DAY LONG. I know they've got to learn, but WOW. All I wanted to do was sleep and not only were they having to do a bunch of stuff on me, but then they'd sit there and talk about it and take notes. I got annoyed really fast. One time when they knocked on the door, I made it to the bathroom as fast as I could and told them I really needed to take a shower...

*Bonding with Henry over breastfeeding... Maeve didn't breastfeed for a few weeks- so it was amazing for me to have that with him right away.



All in all, it was a great birth experience! I'm sure there were a lot more funny, priceless, memorable moments- but these are ones that stick out that I HAD to write down before they eluded me.

Henry's Birth Story... 11/23/2009

Okay- where to start??? I guess Monday morning- I was one of those annoying people that call RIGHT ON THE DOT- 5 AM. (maybe even 4:59). L&D said to come up around 6:15 so we started getting around. Took a shower, did some last minute things around the house, waited for my mom to arrive and somehow ate breakfast (even though my stomach was in a giant knot!). When I was induced with Maeve we waited in registration for about a half hour so this time we thought we should get there a little earlier in order to get up to L&D by 6:15. haha- this time registration was dead! Not a person in there! I got registered and put in a room by 6... a nurse was in right away to hook up the IV and ask all those dumb questions (are you in an abusive situation? Do you have a problem with crack/coccaine?) Around 7 they started the pitocin. I was already having contractions 5-7 minutes apart, so the pitocin definitely added a little kick to them! Dr. P came in around 8 or so and broke my water and assured me I will NOT go home preggo! WAHOO! :) INSTANTLY- I mean the next contraction- after my water was broken, I was in some major pain. My contractions started coming consistently around 3-4 minutes apart. I labored in bed for about 2 hours- thinking "OMG this is going so fast!! I'm going to have this baby before noon!" The nurse came in to check on my progress and told me I had not changed A BIT!!! Even though my contractions were good and strong, I shot up in bed and said "WHAT????" She told me to get up and do some walking...

Ryan and I walked the halls of 4 North :) for about 45 minutes or so. I was in a ton of pain- each contraction I felt like I was going to fall into a pool of jello onto the floor. I could definitely feel a pick up in the intensity and frequency of the contractions. I thought we should head back to the room because I wasn't sure I could stay on my feet much longer- also, the screaming coming from one of the rooms was freaking me out!!!

Back in the room I decided to give the rocking chair a try. THIS is what got me through until I got the epidural. I kind of got into a trance just rocking through my contractions- they still hurt like crazy heck but the rocking seemed to help. The doc came back in around 1 and checked me- 5 cm! YEAH!! I had made enough progress to get an epidural! :) I requested one immediately- for 2 reasons: My first epidural with Maeve didn't work- and if that were to happen again I wanted enough time to be able to get another one. And 2, I remembered that when getting one with Maeve, the anestisiologist didn't actually get to my room for like an hour. This time, luck was on my side though :) The anest. got there within about 30-45 minutes AND the epi worked like a charm. I could've kissed that guy who put a catheter in my back! :) While I was getting the epi I started to get the shakes really bad. The nurse said it was because I was probably transitioning. After the epi was in place and I had some time to relax she checked me again- I was 7-8 cm. She told me that if I started to feel pressure I needed to let her know. NO JOKE- within 5 minutes of her leaving the room, I felt a huge urge to push. I told Ryan to get the nurse. She came back in, checked me, and said "You're ready to go! You have nothing left! Not even a lip of cervix!"

I started pushing around 4:30. It was hard. Really, really hard. Finally around 4:50 I had pushed the baby's head down enough that Dr. P was called in. I have to say- this was probably the worst pain I've ever felt- worse than with Maeve. The Dr. looked while I pushed and then said "Ashley- STOP pushing- do not push." I think I might have sworn. :) But next thing I knew Dr. P was pushing the baby's head back in- um... PAINFUL. I heard him say "nuchal cord x2" and since I watch baby shows religiously I knew that the cord was wrapped around his neck twice, and that's why he had to get the head back in- to unwrap the cord. SOMEHOW, by the grace of GOD I held off on pushing while he untangled the cord. Then I heard a snip and I gave one last huge push and out came Mr. Henry Ryan McKenney! He was born at 4:59 PM.

The doc put him on me right away, but he was blue and not breathing and super limp. I kept asking anyone and everyone if he was okay- a nurse swept in and grabbed him and shouted into the hallway to call pediatrics. I was in a full blown panic. It was probably a minute or so before he even made a whimper. FINALLY, things started to calm down a bit and Henry started making teeny tiny kitten-like noises. It was completely terrifying. Thankfully, everything was fine and I got to hold my bubba beans. He felt so tiny- even though he weighed 8.7 & 20.5 inches long! I couldn't believe it! Woooahhh baby! After getting stitches (UGH yes... another episiotomy- thankfully, the Dr. said this one wasn't as bad as my first one) and a stupid cath. (for some reason I couldn't pee after the birth) we got to move into post-partum.

I can't say enough wonderful and beautiful things about my little man. I am in love like I thought I couldn't be again. I wish I could snuggle him all day long. He is seriously the most amazing baby- he slept through his circumcision, his shots, all the blood pokes. Seriously- nothing phases this kid. And that's a good thing- because he's got one wild sissy to deal with! He's already had his nukies stolen out of his mouth, his arms stretched, his face poked at... he's such an angel. This is totally different for me since Maeve was quite the high maintenance baby!

We're home now- resting, getting to know Henry & spending time with Maeve. My parents offered to keep her for another night and as appealing as that sounded, I felt like she needed to be home. So here we are, all getting acquainted with each other :)

Thanks for all the thoughts & prayers! We're a family of FOUR!!!

the girl who cried labor.

Yup, that's me- my hand is raised! You'd think after already going through it once I'd KNOW what labor feels like. Granted, I DID restrain myself from going in last night, but still- I had my mom on alert, my poor husband freaking out- packing, cleaning and pacing... it was sad waking up this morning still preggo.

I got my membranes stripped yesterday and felt funny immediately- by "funny" I mean crampy, loss of appetite, just weird feeling. I didn't say anything to anyone for a few hours- but after having a good solid 2 hours of contractions 5-7 minutes apart I called Ryan and told him to "KEEP THE PHONE ON!" Unfortunately Ryan has class on Tuesday nights and with the contractions keeping up I told him I felt uncomfortable being at home by myself. So he ran out to JCC, turned in his homework and told his teacher I was in labor (good Lord). We ate some dinner (I still was feeling sick to my stomach) and put Maeve down. Then we started seriously timing my contractions- they were lasting a minute and coming anywhere from 4-7 minutes apart. This lasted until I finally fell asleep (around 11 or so?). I definitely did not want to go into L&D just to be sent home, so I stuck it out and I'm glad I did. I woke up a few times during the night with some painful contractions, but nothing that lasted long enough to keep me up and really get my attention. This morning the contrax. were back but after getting up and eating breakfast they've slowly disappeared. How frustrating :(

Luckily I'm feeling really good lately. I have that extra burst of energy that often comes with the end of pregnancy. I've been on the go and cleaning a TON. It feels good to have a really, really clean house! And believe it or not, I am actually hoping to make it to Monday- a few weeks ago, I would've given anything to go into spontaneous labor... but next week seems to be a perfect week to have a baby. My sister will be home from Kansas to visit, Ryan will be off of work all week, as will my mom- so Monday is feeling pretty golden.

I will continue to update... but if I "cry" labor again don't get too alarmed... apparently I'm not such a good judge of it!