Arrival

Our sweet girl is officially here. I guess that would have been more exciting if she wasn't already almost 5 weeks old. It's amazing how much time you don't have even though you really do have time with a newborn. Anyone relate to that? 

Adilynn graced us with her presence on Thursday, February 2nd at 7:42 in the morning and was every bit as perfect as we thought. My induction pretty much went by the books and maybe even better than what I and the nurses expected. I had heard horror stories about induction and labor in general so I definitely planned for the worst case scenario. Thankfully, my labor and delivery was anything but worst case. 

We arrived at the hospital on Wednesday at 3 pm after being called off 2 days in a row due to a high number of women having babies. To say that I was frustrated is an understatement. I am not a sit and wait type of gal, especially knowing the end result was our baby girl. But it's amazing how things work out exactly how they should. More on that in a bit. 

The sweet nurses got us all set up and ready to begin the process of the induction. Our doctor had ordered 3/4 of the induction medicine and we had to do it in 1/4 sections. They said that after they did 1/4 of it, they would check to see when I needed the next one. Unfortunately, the nurses who got us all settled in left after just a few hours with us. I was so bummed because they were so helpful and relatable and I just wanted them to stay all night. Little did I know that our next nurse, Patti, would be our angel in disguise of a nurse. 

Patti took over and was actually the charge nurse so she was extra attentive. When my family and Michael went for dinner, she and I had some good discussions and that was when I decided to get the epidural. I had been having contractions for a while, and they got to the point of being uncomfortable. She guided me through the decision and the incision with Dr. Cherry. She was with me every step of the way and I don't know if I'll ever be able to repay her for that. 

After the epidural, it all went fast from there. The medicine they had given me for induction was doing it's job x2. Patti had to give me some medicine to make the contractions slow down. Thankfully it didn't stop my progress at all but definitely gave me some relief. She made that call and it turned out to be the right one. She checked on me every hour and during her check in around 3:00, she decided to go ahead and check to see how far along I was. To her surprise, and mine, I was already almost to 8cm dilated. She decided to go ahead and call my doctor as it seemed Adilynn was ready to make her appearance, even before they gave me the pitocin which is what is suppose to really get the party going. 

Patti was in and out and on the phone with my doctor. Around 6:45 or so, she checked again and could already feel baby's head so she started getting every gathered. Michael had gone to get coffee and she told me to get him to the room asap. My mom and sister were still in there hanging out as all the nurses started making their way in to the room to get set up. Patti told me we were going to do some practice pushes to get me ready for the doctor. We got through about 2 and she made me stop because Adilynn was already in position to make her debut. 

Thankfully Michael walked in about 5 minutes before my doctor and we did a few more practice pushes. Once my doctor came in, I pushed for about 12 minutes and our sweet girl was here. All 8 pounds 15 ounces of her and her dark hair. Patti grabbed Michaels phone, put Adi on my chest and snapped picture after picture for us. Our sweet girl was officially here. 

Disappointment

I am that person that will arrive somewhere 30 minutes early in fear of being 2 minutes late. I hate to make people wait and I hate to not be where I need to be on time and ready to roll. So last night, as Michael and I were driving to the hospital to get things rolling so we could meet our baby girl, we received a phone call. One that I wasn't expecting and hadn't thought would come. They were overbooked and we were postponed. All kinds of questions popped into my mind? For later this evening? Tomorrow? Later in the week? What does this mean. The lady kindly apologized and said she would call after she talked to our doctor. 

What?
How does that even happen?
Is this a joke?

I had spent all day yesterday doing laundry, cleaning our house, and just getting everything ready for baby. I didn't go to work so that I could just relax and enjoy our last day at home before we brought a baby into our home later this week. I'm not good at just sitting and doing nothing so I tried to keep myself busy all day long. 

And yet we were left waiting. Waiting for the phone call that finally came and said "welp, we are going to have to postpone until tomorrow at 3pm." I couldn't help but feel disappointed, overwhelmed, emotional. We should be sitting at the hospital, getting ready to meet our sweet girl this afternoon, yet here I am, at home, with nothing left to do but wait until we try again. 

Could it be worse? Absolutely. I am thankful that they called before we got there. I'm thankful that the nurse who called tried to be as positive as she could. I am thankful that the mommies who needed to be there for emergency situations had a room to go to. But I'm also a tad bummed. It's like waking up for Christmas and someone saying "well we've pushed Christmas back a day. You'll have to try again tomorrow". 

I feel like a brat even being disappointed about it. We will still get to meet our girl, it just won't be the exact plan I had planned on. And truly, what's wrong with that? So instead of drowning in the "what if's" and "I wish this would have happened", I'm going to list some pros of being postponed for the day. 

• More than likely she will be born February 1st which is a pretty birthstone. 
• M and I will be able to go eat a nice big lunch before we head to the hospital. 
• His parents will be there for her arrival after a little medical emergency. 
• I get one more night at home in my own bed next to my handsome husband. 
• I will have time to go to target and hobby lobby to finish up her door decorations. 

Okay, I officially feel better about having to wait a little longer to meet our sweet Adilynn. Thank you for letting me vent that out friends. Keep us in your prayers as we journey towards this new chapter in our life. I have no doubt it will be my favorite and most teachable chapter yet. 

Shower Perfection

This past weekend, my sister and her sister in law hosted our last baby shower before Adilynn arrives and it could not have been more perfect. They put so much thought and effort into sweet little details and just made sure it was classy and perfect for us. From sweet cookies with her monogram, to a candy bar filled with my favorite candies, and even beautiful crosages for my mom, sister, grandmother and I to wear. The pictures don't quite do it justice but here are a few of them. 

It's amazing to look around and see people who love and support M and I and know that those same people are looking forward to loving on our sweet girl once she makes her arrival into this amazing world. To be blessed by the friendships and families that we have is such a wonderful feeling. I know that the months to come are going to be some of the hardest, most amazing months of my life but to know we have so much support lets me know that we will conquer and survive. 

Precious Weekends

There seems to be more and more moments lately that I take a look around me, and see how blessed I am by this precious life that I am living. The little moments mean more to me than ever before and the big moments just make my heart want to burst with happiness. I'm sure it's partly because I know that big changes are coming but I also think it's because I'm able to slow down enough to see the wonderful things that each day brings. This weekend was definitely a reminder of how close we are to a huge but precious change and how lucky we are to be surrounded by people that are going to love and support us along this new journey. 

I haven't quite decided if "nesting" is going to be one of those pregnancy things that my body/mind totally skips over as we near our date to meet our sweet girl. I'm a pretty organized person in general but I do find myself getting into little kicks of doing random cleaning. I most definitely cleaned our entire fridge...like shelves cleaned off and then hand washed and organized drawers all over our house. I don't know if it is because I was feeling lazy but because it really needed it but non the less, it is complete. Afterwards, I felt I owed myself a quick shopping trip so off to target and hobby lobby I went. I snagged this sweet letter from Hobby Lobby for Adilynn's "guest book" for the showers we are having. I have to admit that it turned out pretty precious. 

My sweet momma and sister came to town later Saturday evening and we not only enjoyed each others company but they put me to work in Adi's room, hanging things up and arranging it how I want it. I'm a bit indecisive (that's a big understatement) and so I had set things up but needed my sister to say yes or no before I put holes all over the freshly painted walls. I can't wait to get around to taking pictures so I can show it all off but for now, 

On Sunday, my sweet friends in the town I live in hosted our first baby shower and it was nothing short of amazing. I kept trying to talk them out of it because I literally hate feeling like the center of attention and I didn't want people to feel obligated to come to the shower, but alas, I am so thankful to them for talking me into it. It was really amazing to look around in the middle of the shower and see these sweet women who have all impacted my life as friends, mommies, mentors, and family celebrating such a fun new journey that is about to begin. I feel so blessed and honored that they spent their day spoiling our sweet girl and left feeling even more thankful than I already am for friends who have become like family in my new hometown. Here are just a few pictures that I will cherish forever. 

 I'm looking forward to a busy but great week ahead including a shower at my campus, volunteer hours, a swim meet, and then our last shower over the weekend. I hope you each have an great week.