A Wet Problem

Since April we've been in the middle of a home improvement project. Well, we've finally got the walls put up for the extension of our kitchen. We had to wait for the trusses to come in so it was covered with plastic so that if it rained it would be covered. There was a week where we weren't going to be having anyone working on it since they would be out of town. Of all weeks it decided to rain like crazy this week. We were in no way prepared or even set up for it and the basement was being flooded. This all happened because the water was running off the roof and right down onto the plastic... there it would leak down the house and into the basement or it would leak through the many holes in the plastic and through the spaces between the floor boards. It was also trying to come into the room with the carpet and attempting to get the insulation in the wall wet. This is what it looked like. There was a lot of water as you can see in the picture with the coolers.

There was a lot of water that came down in those 2 days. In the bottom picture there are buckets randomly spaced behind the view of the camera that were catching the drips from the floor boards above. The stuff on the floor came down the wall against the house.

Our New Arrival

After a very short and intense labor from being induced, we finally have our new arrival. His name is Brody Quinn. He was 7lb 8oz and 19 1/2 in. long. They put me on the oxytocin at 4:30 and the doctor came in at 7:00 and broke my water. They worked me up to 8ml an hour of the oxytocin and my contractions were coming so strong and close together that they turned it clear down to 2ml an hour. As soon as I felt contractions after breaking my water I said, "I want an epidural!" I had already signed the paper (thankfully) and so all I had to do was wait for the guy to finish up with the girl before me and I was next. They got the epidural in and waited a little bit for me to feel somewhat comfortable and Phyllis checked me. She didn't have to go far because I was complete and ready to push. They went to get the doctor and he was running back and forth because the girl that got her epidural before me was pushing at the moment. He delivered hers first and came in to deliver mine next. They had me pushing shortly before he came in, but things didn't take long. He made it in time for a couple of contractions and he was out. I only had to push for 30 minutes. My doctor loves delivering babies so much that every morning if he has patients being induced he'll come into the OB and start off his day with, "Let's break some water!" He was so excited to be delivering 2 so close together. Brody was born with a lovely head of hair. I would guess it's about an inch long. His sucking reflexes are very good because he is constantly practicing. Even in his sleep he sucks on his tongue. The last 2 days have been spent with him constantly begging for food. The pediatrician said he's perfect and strong. I was so excited to hear these words. We stayed in the hospital for just over a day and a half. After that we were on our own. We've been doing pretty good and appreciate all those meals we have and will recieve. Shane went to sacrament meeting today and they announced his birth so the ward has stepped in to help out. This has so far been a scary but wonderful experience. Brody is wonderful and we love him so much. Even when he's crying inconsolably he's still cute. Luckily he gets tired fast so he's pretty easy to take care of. Hope you enjoy our pictures.

This was taken just minutes after he was born. At this point the cord has been cut and he's been slightly wiped down. Shane got to give him his first bath in the nursery.

A lot of the pictures we've taken are of him sleeping so we just took this one for fun because he was alert. I still can't get over how cute he is.

He looked so cute lying in his bassinette in the hospital so I had to take a picture. This is a place he rarely ended up. There was always someone just dying to hold him or he was just dying to be held. Phyllis took him to the nursery to wait for the pediatrician to look him over and he insisted she sat in the rocking chair and rocked him till she came. Being a "serogate" grandma she gladly obliged. She told me during delivery to push like I was constipated with a bowling ball. It made me laugh which was good because it made me forget about the pain.

Tentatively!?

I went to my last prenatal visit today for this pregnancy. WOOHOO! They did all the usual stuff and he said I've maybe dilated another centimeter. He also said he was amazed that I was still around. They scheduled me for an induction on Thursday at 4:00 am. They gave me a paper on it and I was frustrated when I read it. I guess this whole scheduling thing doesn't mean I will really get induced. I'm "tentatively" scheduled meaning they may not be able to handle all scheduled inductions and all medically requested ones will be taken first. Mine is an elective so if there are no rooms I get put on the chopping block and moved to a later time. I guess I will just pray that I'm able to have this baby when I'm scheduled since I'm sooooo tired of being pregnant, sore, and hot. I guess if I don't get in to the OB on my scheduled time they will make sure i'm induced before the end of the week. All I can say is they'd better get me induced on time since I have family trying to come and see me this weekend. I would also be interfering with a family camping trip if he has to come later. Whatever happens will happen and I have no control over it so I guess I'll just buckle myself in and prepare for whatever ride it ends up being.

Ready For Round 2

Saturday I got a phone call from one of Shane's cousins asking if she could throw me a baby shower. I told her if she wanted to she could. Since my due date is coming up really fast we decided to do it today. A lot of people showed up and once again I felt quite spoiled. We got so much stuff for the baby and I swear I have enough stuff to clothe triplets. The crazy thing is I don't really feel like I'm lacking in any area as far as supplies go for the baby. When I get asked if there is anything I need, I have a hard time coming up with something to tell them because I have so much stuff. At that point I just say, "I really don't know what I need at the moment, but I'm sure when the baby is here I'll figure out some things I need." At the shower we played lots of games including: guess the size of Mandy's belly, Predicting what the baby will be when he'll come and how big he'll be, and Guess the items in the bags that go along with the letter on the bag that when they are put together spell IT'S A BOY. They also had some yummy desserts like raspberry cheesecake, chocolate pudding cake, and better than "anything" cake. I really had fun socializing with a lot of Shane's side of the family. They are a lot of fun when we get together.

This is one of the outfits that I ended up getting 2 of at the shower. Everyone had Shane in mind when they picked this one out because of the camo. It says Major Cutie on the front of it. Mikaela is the one sitting next to me. She is my sister-in-law. She painted me a poster that says, "Congrats on the new baby." I thought it was really sweet of her to do that.

This is my sister-in-law Malea. She is 3 years old and extremely cute. The picture is a little dark, but I couldn't resist putting it on here. She was born while Shane was on his mission and she likes him about 50% of the time, but we love her anyways. Well, that was the excitement from the day. Hope you enjoyed it all.

Sorry You're Feeling So Well

Yesterday my mother actually said, "Well, sorry you're feeling well." This meaning, "I'm sorry you're not in labor." With all the excitement of me starting to dilate and everything, I have managed to stick around at 3 centimeters for the last 2 1/2 weeks. That was my report at today's doctor appointment. The good news is I know that if I don't go into labor in the next 10 days they will induce me on the 31st. That is exactly one week after my due date. It is nice to know where the light at the end of the tunnel is if nothing happens before then. I am so ready for this baby to come.

Yes, I'm Still Pregnant

I went to the doctor today and it has been confirmed that I am still pregnant. Not that I had any question about it... My doctor is out of town until Friday so I had to meet with the other OB-GYN that practices at the hospital. I'm pretty sure that my doctor had me meet with her since she will be the one delivering my baby if he happens to come before my doctor gets back. She did the exam and reported that I'm still 3 centimeters, I'm now 80% effaced, and I'm at station -2 for any of you that actually understand all of that. I will say that the station numbers determine how far they have progressed down the birth canal. There is a place on your pelvic bone that is "0" which means they are half way there. If the number is a negative number up to a 5 that means they are still pretty high and if it is a positive number they are past 0 and closer to coming out. +5 would be where you are pretty much at the pushing stage. When you are at 10 cm., 100%, and +5 that is when delivery starts and you get to push. I hope that was as clear as mud for everyone since it's really hard to explain. I may end up delivering by the end of this week or I might end up being pregnant into August. That is one of the joys of pregnancy... everyone is different and you truly don't know what to expect.

Uneventful Doctor Appointment

Nothing exciting happened at this week's doctor appointment. No fire alarms... no emergency deliveries or anything like that. Just routine things, but there is some exciting news. I am now 3 centimeters dilated. The doctor is amazed. He said he rarely finds a first time pregnant mom that at 36 weeks is 2 cm. and here I am at 37 weeks 4 days and I'm 3. He wont be here next week so he's having me meet with the other OB doctor, but he did say, "I want to see you the week after that if you're still pregnant." It sounded like he doesn't think I'll make it to then without having the baby. I think it would be funny if he came sometime in the next few days because Shane will be at scout camp until Wednesday evening. I think he's hoping he'll get a call so he can hurry home. He wanted me to go into labor last night because he was having mixed feelings about leaving for camp. Good thing they have good cell service up there. My mom says I need to thank my lucky stars I haven't had to deal with much pain so far.