Tuesday, May 29, 2007
It's called NEGLECT!
That's right - that's what I've been doing to this blog - TOTALLY NEGLECTING IT!! I really don't have an excuse, either, because I should have plenty to write about. Nik is now almost 5 months old and I can't hardly believe that. It seems like only yesterday I was writing about being pregnant and now he's nearly half a year old!
Our lives have changed dramatically since Nik's arrival, but for the better. Pete & I both cannot imagine not having him around. Here are a bunch of pics of our Little Guy. We love him SO much!!!
Here is a very recent picture of Nik - taken on Mother's Day. More to come, and more often - I promise!!
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
Nik is here!!
On 1/2/07, our son, Nik, came into the world. It came as quite a surprise since my due date was not until mid/late-January.
On 1/1/07 at about 10:00, I was getting ready to go to bed and went to the restroom. I noticed that I had a little spotting and this concerned me because that had not happened the entire pregnancy. I woke Pete up and we decided it might be best to head to the hospital. I had felt crampy all day long, but didn't think much of it. I honestly just thought my back hurt from moving Christmas decoration boxes around, but apparently it was something else. Pete went to start the car and by the time he got back in the house (approximately 30 seconds), my water had broken. We then knew it was really time to get to the hospital. We did try to pack a few necessities because we hadn't gotten around to packing a real bag yet.
We arrived at the hospital around 11:00 pm. I was immediately placed in a gown and strapped to all sorts of medical monitoring devices. They told me that I was already dilated to a 2 and 100% effaced, which surprised me because I hadn't really felt any contractions. I soon realized that the lower back pain I'd felt all day were contractions, I just didn't know it at the time. At that point in the night, I thought that labor was going to be so easy because I wasn't in any pain at all....so far!
My labor did progress pretty quickly and the contractions started getting stronger and stronger. I had gone into labor thinking I was going to do it without any drugs, but quickly realized that I might need to reconsider. As my contractions kept getting more intense, I seriously thought about having some pain medicine. I didn't want to go the epidural route yet, so they gave me a very low dose of Stadol (sp?). It did seem to help and got me through until I was dilated to a 9. It was at that point that I started to consider an epidural. The contractions just hurt really freaking bad!! I told Pete that I wanted one and he started to leave the room to get the nurse to let her know. Before he got out the door, I told him that I changed my mind and didn't want it. Then, probably when the next contraction came and went, I told him again that I wanted it. He waited in the chair just a little bit before getting up and again, before he got to the door, I told him that I had changed my mind and I could make it without one. Finally, a few minutes later, I completely caved and told him I did want it. He went outside and told the nurse. I found out later that she told him that I might have waited too long and that they may not be able to give it to me. She told him to come back and tell me that it was on its way, but he was worried! Luckily, it wasn't too late and I did get the epidural just in time. Just in time to push for THREE hours, that is!
The pushing...it was horrible. Lil Guy (what we'd been calling him since we hadn't yet decided on a name) just didn't want to seem to come out. After about an hour of pushing and me feeling like absolutely nothing was happening, the doctor decided to do an ultrasound to see if he was face up, as she was thinking he was. The ultrasound confirmed what she was thinking and we did find out that he was "sunny side up". They told me that the delivery would be extremely difficult to do with him in that position because his head would not compress to get him past the pelvic bone. So, they rolled me on my side and pushed all over my stomach trying to get him to turn over. That, unfortunately was not successful. So, we started the pushing thing again. This was frustrating to me, because I felt like I was doing all of that work for no reason. The nurses and the doctor kept assuring me that I was making progress, but I sure didn't believe them. The doctor finally decided that they needed to try something else, so they pulled out the vacuum. I'll spare you all of the delivery details, but after about another hour of pushing and suctioning Lil Guy's head, he finally arrived at 10:19 am on 1/2/07. We soon found out that he was the first baby born in Enid for the year 2007! We made the front page of the Enid News!
Since that time, our lives have been flipped upside down and completely changed, but it was all so worth it. Before we left the hospital, we decided to name him Nik. It was the first thing that came out of Pete's mouth when he held him for the first time, so I felt like that's what his name should be. We definitely struggled to come up with a name, but Nik fits him so perfectly.
I am sure I will be posting more about Nik in the coming days, but for now here is a picture of our perfect little son. I am still amazed that we created something so wonderful.
On 1/1/07 at about 10:00, I was getting ready to go to bed and went to the restroom. I noticed that I had a little spotting and this concerned me because that had not happened the entire pregnancy. I woke Pete up and we decided it might be best to head to the hospital. I had felt crampy all day long, but didn't think much of it. I honestly just thought my back hurt from moving Christmas decoration boxes around, but apparently it was something else. Pete went to start the car and by the time he got back in the house (approximately 30 seconds), my water had broken. We then knew it was really time to get to the hospital. We did try to pack a few necessities because we hadn't gotten around to packing a real bag yet.
We arrived at the hospital around 11:00 pm. I was immediately placed in a gown and strapped to all sorts of medical monitoring devices. They told me that I was already dilated to a 2 and 100% effaced, which surprised me because I hadn't really felt any contractions. I soon realized that the lower back pain I'd felt all day were contractions, I just didn't know it at the time. At that point in the night, I thought that labor was going to be so easy because I wasn't in any pain at all....so far!
My labor did progress pretty quickly and the contractions started getting stronger and stronger. I had gone into labor thinking I was going to do it without any drugs, but quickly realized that I might need to reconsider. As my contractions kept getting more intense, I seriously thought about having some pain medicine. I didn't want to go the epidural route yet, so they gave me a very low dose of Stadol (sp?). It did seem to help and got me through until I was dilated to a 9. It was at that point that I started to consider an epidural. The contractions just hurt really freaking bad!! I told Pete that I wanted one and he started to leave the room to get the nurse to let her know. Before he got out the door, I told him that I changed my mind and didn't want it. Then, probably when the next contraction came and went, I told him again that I wanted it. He waited in the chair just a little bit before getting up and again, before he got to the door, I told him that I had changed my mind and I could make it without one. Finally, a few minutes later, I completely caved and told him I did want it. He went outside and told the nurse. I found out later that she told him that I might have waited too long and that they may not be able to give it to me. She told him to come back and tell me that it was on its way, but he was worried! Luckily, it wasn't too late and I did get the epidural just in time. Just in time to push for THREE hours, that is!
The pushing...it was horrible. Lil Guy (what we'd been calling him since we hadn't yet decided on a name) just didn't want to seem to come out. After about an hour of pushing and me feeling like absolutely nothing was happening, the doctor decided to do an ultrasound to see if he was face up, as she was thinking he was. The ultrasound confirmed what she was thinking and we did find out that he was "sunny side up". They told me that the delivery would be extremely difficult to do with him in that position because his head would not compress to get him past the pelvic bone. So, they rolled me on my side and pushed all over my stomach trying to get him to turn over. That, unfortunately was not successful. So, we started the pushing thing again. This was frustrating to me, because I felt like I was doing all of that work for no reason. The nurses and the doctor kept assuring me that I was making progress, but I sure didn't believe them. The doctor finally decided that they needed to try something else, so they pulled out the vacuum. I'll spare you all of the delivery details, but after about another hour of pushing and suctioning Lil Guy's head, he finally arrived at 10:19 am on 1/2/07. We soon found out that he was the first baby born in Enid for the year 2007! We made the front page of the Enid News!
Since that time, our lives have been flipped upside down and completely changed, but it was all so worth it. Before we left the hospital, we decided to name him Nik. It was the first thing that came out of Pete's mouth when he held him for the first time, so I felt like that's what his name should be. We definitely struggled to come up with a name, but Nik fits him so perfectly.
I am sure I will be posting more about Nik in the coming days, but for now here is a picture of our perfect little son. I am still amazed that we created something so wonderful.
Thursday, December 28, 2006
Random Ramblings
As of today, I have 3 weeks and 5 days until my due date. Doesn't seem like very long, does it!? Here's what really gets me, tho, I actually only have 5 days until I am considered full term (37 weeks). THAT IS NUTS! That means I could potentially have a new child next week? WHAT!? Seriously - WHAT?!
I honestly cannot believe it will be that soon and we'll have a little baby! Wow.
I guess I should probably say something else here, tho...I am sincerely hoping it is next week or the week after when he arrives because I honestly don't know how much more of this pregnancy thing I can take. My feet are swollen and it looks like I've contracted elephantitis. I don't know that I will be able to handle being "overdue" if that's what ends up happening.
We had a great Christmas - three get-togethers in three days in three separate locations...how can that not be a good time!? It was a little bit much for me now that I look back. I was very tired at the beginning of the week and I think all of the traveling, poor eating and extra activity really contributed to my new case of elephantitis. I am feeling ten times better today after being somewhat back to normal life for a day or two.
I have my next doctor's appointment tomorrow morning. I will now start going weekly, which makes the delivery day seem so much more imminent, as well. Apparently tomorrow I will get tested for Group B Strep. I guess it is pretty common and can be harmful to the baby if I do have it during delivery. Anyway, I'm so not looking forward to the test because it means intruding on my private areas, but I suppose it has to be done. I guess I should probably get used to it. All of the women that have already had babies tell me that everyone and their dog will look "down there" by the time the baby actually comes. Awesome.
Stay tuned for updates on the path to delivery!!!
I honestly cannot believe it will be that soon and we'll have a little baby! Wow.
I guess I should probably say something else here, tho...I am sincerely hoping it is next week or the week after when he arrives because I honestly don't know how much more of this pregnancy thing I can take. My feet are swollen and it looks like I've contracted elephantitis. I don't know that I will be able to handle being "overdue" if that's what ends up happening.
We had a great Christmas - three get-togethers in three days in three separate locations...how can that not be a good time!? It was a little bit much for me now that I look back. I was very tired at the beginning of the week and I think all of the traveling, poor eating and extra activity really contributed to my new case of elephantitis. I am feeling ten times better today after being somewhat back to normal life for a day or two.
I have my next doctor's appointment tomorrow morning. I will now start going weekly, which makes the delivery day seem so much more imminent, as well. Apparently tomorrow I will get tested for Group B Strep. I guess it is pretty common and can be harmful to the baby if I do have it during delivery. Anyway, I'm so not looking forward to the test because it means intruding on my private areas, but I suppose it has to be done. I guess I should probably get used to it. All of the women that have already had babies tell me that everyone and their dog will look "down there" by the time the baby actually comes. Awesome.
Stay tuned for updates on the path to delivery!!!
Tuesday, December 19, 2006
New Hair, Parties, Change...
I cut my hair, finally. This time you can actually tell. Pete always says that everytime I get a haircut that it looks exactly the same. Here is a picture of what it looks like now:
In the picture with me is Kaylee, my cousin's little girl. She is a little sweetheart! We are at the OSU graduation watching my cousin, Troy, get his diploma. It was a fun day!!
This past week was pretty busy for us. We celebrated Pete's Dad's 81st birthday on Thursday with fajitas and cake. It was a great party! In addition, my company Christmas party was on Friday night. We went to a nice restaurant in town, had a great meal and just enjoyed each other's company. Here is a picture of Pete & I at his sister's house before the birthday festivities began (pre haircut):
I am 34 weeks and 4 days pregnant in the picture above. I honestly can't believe that our new little guy will be here in just over a month. I was just telling Pete last night that a pregnancy seems like it would be such a long time, but mine has actually flown by! People keep asking us if we are "ready" for the baby. As Pete says, we will never be fully ready for the adventure upon which we are about to embark. I am sure he is absolutely right. We have no idea what to expect, so how could we possibly be ready?? I know it will be fine and we'll have a great time going through this life change, but I also know that there will be some difficult times. I guess that's what you sign up for when you agree to bring a human being into the world. As my "labor day" rapidly approaches, I find myself being more scared of the acutal child raising than the one day that everyone seems to get all worked up about. Don't get me wrong...am I scared to go through labor - CERTAINLY!!! But, I think that what comes afterwards is way more frightening than that one day! I've read new mother's blog posts and see that they all feel the exact same way I do, so I guess this is all normal. That is comforting, but it still doesn't take away the worry and fear.
It will most likely be after Christmas before I post again. I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas and an extremely Happy New Year!!
Wednesday, December 06, 2006
Something Sad...
This past weekend, we had to put our basset hound, Libby, to sleep. We were told a few weeks ago that she had cancer, but I honestly thought we'd have a little more time with her than we ended up having. Following are the sad details...It was an extremely tough weekend. We had decided to go to OKC on Saturday to get a few more things we still needed before the baby arrives and when we got home that evening, Pete came and said that Libby wasn't doing very well. I went back to the sunroom to see what was going on and saw that she was having a really hard time breathing. She also would not get up, at all. For the past few weeks, she had been moving around more slowly than normal, but she was still able to get up and around. Pete did get her into the kitchen and we tried feeding her, but she wasn't interested in eating. I could tell that she wasn't feeling very well and that was really, really hard on me. It's always hard to see someone you love suffering. Pete stayed on the kitchen floor with her all night. He said it was rough at times, but she made it through. I honestly thought I would wake up that morning and he would tell me she was gone. Sunday was more of the same, trying to get her to drink water and offering her food. She didn't want either. Pete had a couple of phone conversations with the vet who kept telling us that there wasn't anything we could do except make her comfortable. This brought a rush of emotions to me because I've heard that all too many times after losing several family members to cancer. I positively HATE that disease!!
Later on Sunday evening, we discussed the idea of maybe putting her to sleep. She was really going downhill and started barking and yelping, so we knew she may be in more pain than she had been and neither of us wanted that for her. I think Pete wanted me to just make the decision to do it, but that was honestly not a decision I could make. Libby had been his dog for much longer than I've even been in his life and I knew that he needed to make the decision on his own. I know it was EXTREMELY difficult for him to decide to do it, but I know in my heart it was the right decision as waiting would have been really difficult on both of us and on Libby.
We made the trip to the vet's office, which was an extremely difficult drive. She was sleeping the entire time - probably from the pain medicine we had given her throughout the day. I started to think that maybe we were making the wrong decision, but I know that is just one of the thoughts/emotions that you go through in a time like that. The vet took a little longer to arrive than we did and it was really difficult to just sit there in the parking lot waiting for what was about to happen. When the vet arrived, Pete carried Libby into the room on her doggie pillow. The vet told us it would happen very quickly once he injected her. Just before the vet began the injection, Pete said, "She is looking right at me and it looks like she is crying." I knew that it was Libby's way of saying goodbye to her very best friend and trying to tell him that everything would be ok. Pete told her he loved her and she was gone in just a few seconds.
I've had to endure many tragedies in my life with losing family members and friends and I can honestly say that this experience has been just as difficult. Libby was truly a family member who meant so much to us. I find it very hard to get through a day without shedding some tears just because this is hard for me to deal with and I know that it is extremely more difficult for Pete. My heart hurts so much for him and I wish that I could do something to take away his pain, but I can't. Only time will help, that I know.
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
It's Raining Presents!!!
It's been a little over a week, but our baby 'shower' was November 4th. We hauled home LOTS of great gifts and had an awesome time with everyone that came. We tried to refrain from calling it a 'shower' because my husband and several other guys did come and they don't typically like going to baby showers!! Our hostesses really put on a good party, that's for sure! Lots of great food!!! It was GREAT and exactly what we wanted!
Here are a few pics that were taken at the party. Thanks to everyone who came, thanks to everyone who brought or sent a gift and extra thanks to the hostesses!!
Here are a few pics that were taken at the party. Thanks to everyone who came, thanks to everyone who brought or sent a gift and extra thanks to the hostesses!!
Ma & Pa-To-Be:
Gifts:
Aunt Tandy, Me, Cousin Lindsay:
Our AWESOME Hostesses:
Friday, October 20, 2006
Wow...
I haven't posted on here in a coon's age. That's terrible. Maybe it's because I'm too busy with babycenter.com, myspace.com, ebay.com and various other websites that I have forgotten about my little, old blog? Possibly...
So, last time I posted I said I felt IT move. Well, we can now officially say that I felt HIM move! Yes, we found out that it is going to be a bouncing baby boy! I am excited about it, although I swore when I first found out that I was pregnant that if it was a boy I would send it back to wherever it came from. I guess impending motherhood has its way of changing you? I am now completely happy that it is a boy and have stuffed his little room with lots of blue outfits and have completely avoided looking at anything pink since we found out!!
So, last time I posted I said I felt IT move. Well, we can now officially say that I felt HIM move! Yes, we found out that it is going to be a bouncing baby boy! I am excited about it, although I swore when I first found out that I was pregnant that if it was a boy I would send it back to wherever it came from. I guess impending motherhood has its way of changing you? I am now completely happy that it is a boy and have stuffed his little room with lots of blue outfits and have completely avoided looking at anything pink since we found out!!
We certainly have been busy preparing for this new addition. His room is nearly complete, we've got the 'shower' scheduled and it seems to be right around the corner and we also have the 3D ultrasound appointment set (just a little over a week and we might actually get to see what his face looks like - how cool is that!?). I must say that I honestly can't believe how excited all of this crap makes me. I honestly didn't think I had the "motherly" instinct in me, but being knocked up has sure changed me...for the better I suppose, especially since I'll begin raising my own offspring in about 3 short months!
Here's a picture of me from yesterday - 26 weeks and 4 days pregnant. The little guy sure is getting big in there! I honestly went from barely showing to pa-pow, you're pregnant! I am a little concerned that I will not have a thing to wear in the last few weeks of pregnancy, but I'll cross that bridge when I get there.
Monday, August 28, 2006
I FELT IT MOVE!!!
On our way to a 1-year-old's birthday party this past Saturday, Pete & I were in the car and I felt the baby move for the first time. It was a very strange feeling!! We also have our sonogram to hopefully determine the sex on Tuesday, September 5th - one week from tomorrow. I CAN'T WAIT!!! I am ready to buy something either blue or pink!! All we have so far is green, yellow & white clothes & blankets! I am also very ready to go shopping for the nursery decor. So, hopefully the little guy or gal will cooperate and will let us know FOR SURE what will be coming out in January! All of this is very surreal & exciting!
Thursday, June 29, 2006
June - you were exciting & busy!
Ok, quick recap of the excitement in June:
- Told everyone and their dog that Pete & I will be parents on or about January 23, 2007 (see photo above).
- Took a trip to Atlantic City, NJ, Reading, PA, Hershey, PA & Philadelphia, PA with my mother and also managed to get a little work done while we were out there.
- Took our nephew, Tyler, and one of his little friends to an Oklahoma Redhawks game.
- Had a visit from my cousin Jaime, and her parents, Rob & Sue.
- Celebrated several birthdays, including my own.
The month is just a few days from being officially over, but it was another busy one for us! Let's see what July will bring! I know it will bring at least two things...Pete's 35th birthday and our 4th wedding anniversary. Looks like we'll have some exciting & fun things to do next month as well!
Thursday, June 01, 2006
May - oh what a crazy month you were!!
Well, since my last post, several things have happened in my life:
- My sister did actually graduate, but nothing has really changed yet because she is still taking some summer classes that have to transfer back for her to REALLY graduate. I am sure she will be moving somewhere in the very near future, where that will be no one seems to know!!
- In addition to my sister's college graduation, I attended two high school graduations, one in Kansas and one in Oklahoma. Let me tell you, Oklahomans sure know how to do graduations right! We were in and out of that auditorium in 45 minutes, flat! It was excellent! Plus, the school had very comfortable seats and extremely adequate air conditioning. Go Laverne, OK!! The one at Bucklin was quite different because the speaker was a guy I went to high school with that was involved in a terrible accident that ended up claiming the life of his wife (who I also attended high school with) and severely burning him. Too much to type on that subject for this post...I'll have to do a separate post sometime on all my feelings associated with that tragedy. But, it was really nice to hear him speak and share his story, which I am sure was not easy for him to do.
- We started a new tradition at work where one of us ladies has a get together at our house. This get together will happen each month and I happened to host the first one, which was on Cinco de Mayo. It was a very good time and I found out some very interesting things about some of my co-workers that I probably would have never had the opportunity to know had we not started this new tradition. A couple of the girls brought a Dora the Explorer pinata filled with adult-themed items and we ended up breaking it in my front yard (which is subsequently on a very busy street in our town). Right as the first person was being spun around, the owner of our agency and his wife drove by. Too hilarious! They probably thought we were all nuts!! Like I said, it was a fun time and I'm looking forward to the next one which is next week.
- Finally, two sad items of note...
- My cousin who at the time was 7 months pregnant lost her husband in an auto accident. He was 30 years old. Again, I have so many feelings and thoughts about this situation, but not enough time to get them all out of my head right now.
- A good friend of mine lost his mother to a battle with cancer. He is 29 years old. All I have to say about these two items is that I cannot imagine losing my husband or my mother at this point in time. I honestly don't know how I would cope, but I know that my cousin and my friend will make it through this dark time in their lives.
Like I said, May was one hell of a month! Please, oh please, June let's make it a good one!! My birthday is this month, so that's one good thing, I suppose. Plus, I have to go to Pennsylvania for business and my mother is going with me and we're going to hit up Atlantic City and see what that place is all about. So far, June is looking up, up, up!!!
