6 months ago, my angel was born!

I visited my friends and their new baby in the hospital the night she was born.  It really made me remember a mere 6 months ago when I was in that same position and think I want to have that recorded for my memories.  So, here goes.



A picture of our SON!



The road to a fully cooked kiddo!! :)

13 weeks

19 weeks



22 weeks




26 weeks




28 weeks




30 weeks



I had a great pregnancy with a healthy baby developing all the way through.  He was on track in all the right places and I was able to keep up with my high activity lifestyle.  Zach and I even climbed a mountain in Vancouver on our babymoon in July. 



Here's my healthy baby at 32 weeks!




Grouse Grind Challenge- climbed the mountain at 26 weeks preggo!

 I came back to school in August and worked until the middle of September when I was put on bedrest for high blood pressure. It was quite the shock when we were told of my high blood pressure originally.  Zach and I were sure to go to the gym about 4 times a week and I was determined to stay in shape so that my baby would have the ultimate health benefits, and  recovery and baby fat loss would be quick.  Luckily, the doctor said it had nothing to do with health, all to do with pregnancy.  So, at 36 weeks, September 27, I was put on bed rest.  I had  my appointment on a Monday morning, and intended to head in for my remaining half day.  The doctor said nope, I was not to go to work. 
I was checked into the hospital to be monitored overnight.  Through all of this, I was informed that I would be induced at 37 weeks, On October 5, to be sure that Carter was not in harm's way.  I had mixed feelings about this.  My number one goal was to have a healthy baby.  First and foremost.  But this news didn't sit well with a stubborn woman insisting on a natural birth.  The Pitocin itself is supposed to make labor pains more intense and an induction can lead to a much longer labor and delivery.  I know I'm stubborn and have a fairly high pain tolerance, but was afraid if I was induced, I would end up needing the epidural.  Don't get me wrong, I'm not against women using it, it's a great thing!  I'm just more scared of that needle and possible side effects that I would rather do it naturally (note though that I rarely even take medicine for anything, it's just not me).  In fact, sometimes I wonder if I'm crazy for wanting the au natural way.  :)
After our childbirth classes, they discussed many techniques on dealing with labor pains and I was excited to use them.  I was especially interested in taking a bath and using the medicine ball while having contractions.  Once I was put on bedrest and discussed my desires with my OB, she told me she would support me doing it without an epidural but that I would not be allowed to move at all because she needed to have me monitored at all times in case of baby's hearbeat dropping or complications with me.  I was really discouraged, scared that without coping methods, I would not make it.
We were scheduled to be checking into the hospital on October 5th at midnight to spend the night and start the induction.  Boy, did I pray hard that Carter would come on his own!  I had contractions for a few days, some getting painful enough that I would have to pause in what I was doing to catch my breath, but knew I wasn't in labor yet.  On Sunday, October 3, they began getting pretty strong.  Monday was constant through the day, and by the time Zach got home, I was really struggling to concentrate on what we were talking about, or anything else for that matter.  We didn't want to be the couple that thought we were in labor and sent home, so even when we timed them and realized they were just minutes apart, we chose to wait.  Well, at home I can use any coping methods I want! :)
 Finally, there were more times that I was hunched over than not, so we called the doctor and told him the contractions were 1 minute apart and he said get here now.  We went into triage (GREAT!  They're going to send us home) and as soon as I was checked, the nurse asked me..."How far do you think you are dilated?"  I responded, "2 cm...?"  She laughed and said "Nope, 5 cm, we're checking you in now!"
We were so excited!  Carter was coming on his own, I didn't need to be induced!  Already, a son who listens to his mommy! 
The women in my family have been known to have very quick labors, I'm talking about 3 hours or less, so I expected the same.  HA!  NOT QUITE!  We checked in at midnight dilated to a 5, meaning I did a lot at home on my own.  I began pushing at 7 am.  I wouldn't say I was blessed with the quick-labor-gene.  Zach was the best coach for me though and made it easier to endure!  He was wonderful.  The contractions were intense, I mean, not like anything I've experienced before.  He was wonderful about suggesting different things or trying to rub my back...and patient when none of it was working and I laid there silently in the most horrendous pain. He was so suuportive though and loving.  I knew he was exhausted too, but he never showed it.  He continuously was helping me, telling me how great I was doing.  I couldn't have done it without him.
 Luckily for us, in one sense, my doctor wasn't the one on call that night (bummer cause I wanted her...but...) so I had another doctor who asked me if I wanted a room with a bath tub, did I want a medicine ball...etc? I asked if that was ok for me with my blood pressure and he said yes as long as I monitored it in between!!  Thank you Lord for watching over us! :)  I took full advantage of all of it!
And some of it helped, and some didn't at all.  But it was nice knowing I could do what I wanted.
So, are you wondering if I made it the whole way without the epidural.....yep!  Happily.....nope!  I asked Zach to get them to give it to me- but I outsmarted myself.  Before going into this, I figured there would be a moment of intense pain that I would do this...I also knew how much I wanted to do it on my own, so we came up with a code word.  When I'd ask for it, he'd say, Do you want the vacation?  And I'd be strong enough to say...no (defeated).  I knew I didn't want it.
 So time to push at 7 am!  After being told it would probably be a couple hours of pushing, which shocked and scared me- I didn't think I could handle a couple HOURS! , I turned to the nurse and said, truly can you give me a target time that you think it would be possible to have him by.  She said I think in about an hour. 
Boy did I focus on that clock!  8:00 was my goal!!  I pushed and guess what, Carter arrived at 8:06!  I probably drove the doctors crazy asking what time it was every few minutes, seconds?  But it's what I needed to do to help me get through it.  I was 6 minutes off but sure felt good about that!! 
WOW!  Our beautiful baby boy is here!!  Zach was brave and cut the cord and then got to accompany them to weigh and measure and all that fun.  Carter was 7 lbs 1 oz 20 1/4 inches long.  A perfectly healthy baby!! 
They gave him to me and that's when my life was enhanced forever more!!  We had our complete family now!  And it's funny...I now can't quite remember the pain.  The reward just made it all worth it!!!  What a blessing.

Now, it's hard to believe that my baby was that little.  He's come so far.  He's so healthy and strong!  I am looking forward to the upcoming 6 months with this angel baby too. 





Guess who's heeerrree!!

Congratulations Katherine and Eric on your beautiful baby girl, Brie Addison! This was a surprise, btw, as they chose to not know the gender until Delivery Day! She's stunning.  She weighed in at 7 lbs 8 oz and 21 inches long.  It was so special getting to meet her last night and see you guys right after your big event!  Your lives will forever change in the greatest of ways.  I can't wait to hear all about your adventure the whole way through, and go through some of it with you.  We are so excited for ya'll and I'm looking forward to play dates with our little ones.  You guys did so good, you will be amazing parents! 

The sweet Webster family!

So many people love you already, Brie!

Me loving on the little angel

Selia loving on Brie

Uncle Brent and Aunt Rachel

Her Pop

Congratulations to the whole family!  What a blessing this new life will bring!

The Zoo

Wednesday was a perfect day for the zoo!!!  It was sunny, 75, and clear skies.  My sister has a zoo pass so on half off Wed., it is basically free for her to bring us along!  Thanks Christi!!  :) 
Mom showed up with Starbucks in hand for us 3 girls- my perfect way to start the day.   With Carter and Landon strapped on to us girls and Kenadi in Gigi's arms, we began our zoo extravaganza at opening (10 AM ). 

I think this is the best time to go because all of the animals are active!  It makes it so fun for the kids to see them moving and grooving.  Especially Kenadi who gets so excited. She recognizes the animals and imitates them too.  Here she is being an elephant...

And showing us what flamingos do...

 The boys are starting to be interested in the sights and sounds.  In fact, Carter squealed for a good 10 minutes walking through.  I wonder if it was because he was mocking the animal sounds he heard?  :)  I will say though, to have an 18 pound excited child with flailing legs strapped on sure does do a number on the ol back!!  Dunno if I'll be able to carry him that way much longer- at least when he is all pumped up!  I think with all his kicking, he was going to power off the carrier and those lil running legs would lead him running through the zoo.  I guess this is insight into what's to come when he can walk!!  I might have to become one of those mommas with a leash haha....doubt it.  BUT I will have to have eyes all over my head.

The most fun is just hanging out together and watching the kids interact and having some adult conversation with my special girls!!!  I love zoo days! 
The boys are interested in eachother....hey look!  Someone my size!  And Kenadi is always so sweet with both of them.  She loves on them all the time, and lets us know if one is crying or has a dirty diaper.  She makes a sound like (geerlgeeerllllgeee).  Can you hear that as you read it?  :)

What does YOUR skin feel like?



In conversation

We stopped to have our picnic lunch at the zoo too and it was a blast!  Carter sang to us....

The boys learned to share and play with eachother nicely....

And Kenadi ate her fruit with me.  :)

She even wanted to kiss on the boys during diaper changes! :)

Gigi snuggled and loved on the kids!

It was a great day!

He's interested in something that might have surprised him.  :)

Gigi took K exploring he animals

This lil munchkin is so sweet!  I love my nephew!

Hiners

love

I sure am hoping this becomes an every Wednesday tradition...before it gets too hot in Texas!

Unexpected Roadtrip

Wednesday I was heading to the zoo with my sister, mom, and kiddos!  On the way to the zoo though, I got a call from Pops saying that he was in the hospital.   He went to work after having chest pains and shortness of breath since 6 pm the night before.  They took one look at him and called an ambulance.  He was checked in and tests were started. The docs said it was unbeliebable that he was alive since he toughed out that much trauma the night before.  He wasn't sure what it was or how long he'd be in the hospital.  Zach and I decided we needed and wanted to go down to be with him and talk to the doctors to get the scoop on exactly what's going on.  We continuously got updates throughout the day.  So far, we knew it was an irregular heart beat and that tests needed to be done to see if and how much the heart was damaged.  The doctors said his lungs filled up with fluid since his heart was working so hard.  That's the reason he couldn't breath.  Luckily, his lungs drained themselves once he was put on medicine to lower his heart rate. 
We loaded up ( A TON of stuff---it sure takes a lot to travel with a baby, even for 4 days ) and headed out about 30 minutes before C's nap.  Bright idea on our part!!  He slept for the majority of the drive and woke up when we stopped to eat- which is when we needed him to eat.  The hour plus down that remained was easy and he entertained himself well.  I seriously think I have the best baby!!! :)  I'm partial, I know.  :)
We went straight to the hospital and Zach went in to see him and get the updates while C and I played outside on a grassy hill- didn't think it was a good idea to take him into the emergency room.  After getting to Pops' house and setting up our junk, Zach went back to spend the rest of the day with him and be with him through a procedure that they cut a slot into the groin to insert a tube up- to the heart.  Here they were looking for clogged valves, plaque on the heart, etc.  They were shocked that it looked pretty clear.  He spent the night in the hospital Wednesday and Thursday night. 
I was able to get his place clean and Zach and I cooked a few weeks worth of  (HEALTHY) dinners to freeze.  Carter went with me to the grocery store and had his first ride in a shopping cart without the carrier.  BIG boy!  He wasn't sure what to make of it, it was fun, it was scary.  It was new! :)

He was released Friday with instrucrtions to come back Monday for another procedure (an ablation) very similar to the first one, only this time 5 tubes will be inserted and  pictures will be taken the whole way through.  Here, they are looking for the cadence of his heart, extra knobes, and any rogue cells.  He is in right now with things started, so I will update when we know final results. 
It was a scary reason to head down, but resulted in a nice time with Pops.   We told Pops if he wants us to visit, he can just ask, doesn't need to head to the ER! :) The doctors said he could go about normally, so we took him on Saturday to lunch and to the outlet malls- we only went into 3 stores but it was nice to get out and I'm sure for him to move around a bit.  We had yummy dinners with him the 2 nights he was home with us.  I think the best kind of medicine is loving on a sweet baby.  Carter had fun with his G-Pops.  The 3 guys even dressed the same in their gator gear one day.



Carter's trying to figure out the Gator Chomp that they're showing him

Carter did great on the ride home too- it was just as smooth! 
Please keepPops in your prayers for easy and informative operation and healing.  We love you G-Pops!

Girlfriends and Baby Food: A Delicious Weekend

Friday began in the best of ways.  Zach came home early, which gave us some good family time before I left for my girls night.  My high school girls are so special.  We've all been close since junior high or high school and still to this day, after graduating 10 years ago (almost) we are still (even more) close.  In fact, I would say some of those friendships have grown stronger or deeper since then.  We've gone through so many different life events and still managed to maintain such a special connection- I mean we turn to eachother through all of those moments.  Girlfriends (the truest kind) lift eachother up and support eachother.  They make eachother laugh.  They stand by eachother when everyone else turns away.  They make you laugh until you cry.  They cry with you.  (That's what I thought of when I was thinking of my friends).  My girlfriends are all of that and more.  All of us are married, many of us are moms, some of us are almost moms....and we still have our girls nights when we can.  It's so much fun too how conversations have evolved.  In high school it was what to wear, where to go, who to date.  Now it's (what to wear ;) ), husband stories, tips on baby care, where to travel, and of course memories from our past--which I must say are hilarious!  I must thank our husbands as well for taking the kiddos, or being willing to spend a night on their own while we play.  Thank you guys! :)  We met in Grapevine at Esparza's, which is in an old converted house and is adorable.  We gabbed and gabbed at our round table-literally.  Then headed to a wine bar for a glass.  It was so refreshing to be with my girls.  I love them all!  This will hopefully start happening more often than every few months!!!  It's refreshing.

Back to my reality.  Home to my two guys!  This is my perfect reality.  The girls night is good little "get away" for me time.  But home with my guys is where I belong.  The highlight of Saturday was letting Carter try his carrots.  I put a video of him eating his bananas first for a good comparison.  If you only watch one, watch the second (the carrots).  Does he like them?  Here are the videos.

I am having so much fun watching him go through these stages.  And I get a kick outta him not enjoying some of those foods....mean mom moment?  Hardly...right,?  That's just pure funny.  I couldn't stop laughing.  I didn't do the carrots justice in the length of recording.  I should have continued because the gagging went on for a few more minutes.  By the time he got to the sweet potato, he was just telling Mommy and Daddy off.  He was mad that we were giving him yet another orange colored food.  He talked through the entire thing.  :)

Sunday was a beautiful day with our family.  We love going over to my sister and brother in laws.  It's always fun with the kids.  And yes, the big back yard is a bonus!  The men play horseshoes, the babies swing, nap, play on the blanket, and the women gab away watching all the fun going on around us (well, we're having our own fun too of course! :)
Another great weekend.

Luck of the Irish

Ireland is the place to be today!
 

Kilarney, Ireland




This is what all of Kilarney looked like.  Fairy tale.



I was excited to celebtrate this holiday with my old Schell Coyotes at the closest we could get to Ireland, Idle Rich, an Irish Pub in Uptown.  :)  But hey, we were all sporting green for the holiday!  It was wonderful seeing them and getting some time to be with friends. 
I couldn't help think though what it would be like to be in Ireland now.  I've been there before and it's so much fun to get wrapped up in their friendly, hard to depict accents.  It's a really cool place to be.  It's fashioned around drinking and music.  Two wonderful things!  I've been there twice with 2 very different experiences.  Once when I was studying abroad with a very good mix of international students and once with Zach at Christmas time.  :)
Favorite memories in Ireland with my study abroad crew.



Lise, Marina, Me, Selia, Javier, Aline, Sandra outside of our hostel

 1.  Hostel Cooking
We stayed at a hostel and shared a room between us.  We cooked a delicious meal at the hostel in the shared kitchen and had a feast among us.  What makes it so fun is the kitchen is full with people from all over the world who have the same interests and want to get to meet people, so striking up an interesting conversation and learning about another country is very simple. 




Our dinner at the hostel.  These are some amazing friends!  We had a blast together!

 

2.  Kilarney Castles

We rented bikes and rode to Kilarney National Park- in the freezing cold.  It was gorgeous.  On the way, we passed castles nestled behind the gorgeous landscape.  It just accented the beauty of the countryside.  It was a favorite because it was so peaceful, serene, and indescribable.  We stopped in the park at castles to just take in their beauty.  It's not rare to find castles in Europe (they're everywhere) but here, it took on a different feeling because of the untouched scene around it.  We climbed up on one of the castles for a group photo shot.  :)

Me riding up to the gorgeous castle--is this real?

3.  The Bike Incident

As I said, we were riding our bikes around on this cold day, so we were bundled up.  I was wearing a white winter coat.  It's Ireland, so it rains.  We were leaving the castle heading downhill.  Sandra decided she was going to go as fast as she could down the hill.  (She's the one on the last stair of the castle in the picture above).  I looked at that and agreed.  Challenge accepted.  So, I sped up in an effort to pass her.  I got nervous though with the wet pavement and slammed on my brakes.  Bad choice.  I flipped my bike and landed in a big puddle of mud with my bike on top of me.  My white coat was now spotted brown.  I couldn't do anything but laugh.  All my friends crowded around worried that I was really hurt, but immediately burst into laughter when they could tell I was A OK! :) 



Huddling up preparing for our bike ride on a cold day.




Our group on our bike ride

  

The bike spill

 4.  Brave (or lucky?) Javier and the Guiness Factory
Javier was a smart man getting himself into a trip with 6 girls.  We sure had a blast with him.  One of my favorite memories was the Guiness Experience.  We toured tbe brewery which was fun to go through, but the most fun we had was in the shop.  We were like kids.  We tried on everything, and took pictures with everything we could in there.  I'm sure the employees were hoping we would find our way our of there quick.  Javier, rather than rolling his eyes at girls being silly girls, joined in on the fun and was goofy with us!  It was a few hours of play time that we spent in the shop laughing and running around.  They are the best group of people to travel with. 

Javi and his ladddiiieeesss



One lucky bird

4.  The Coffee shop in Dublin
We all are coffee addicts.  Works good in our traveling adventures together because we find cute little places to stop and enjoy.  This is one of my favorite parts of any trip abroad.  I LOVE finding coffee houses or little delis or bakeries and going to sit and watch the people, feel the atmosphere, listen to the sounds, take in the culture.  I love it.  We found an adorable coffee shop and sat for a long time having great conversation.   Amongst topics is the difference in the cultures we come from, the politics of our countries, our travels, school and Hogeschool Zeeland (where we attended...errrr...when we attended)  :)   Studying abroad allowed me the opportunity to make some really great friends who I still stay in contact with.  Anyways, it was fun to deepen our friendship and our understanding of eachother while enjoying a delicious pick me up at the same time. 



Aline and I enjoying our coffee break

 5.  The Airport Snooze
My final favorite memory from the trip was sleeping in the airport.  We decided that for our last night, we wouldn't book a hotel because we booked the flight that left Dublin at 6:00 AM, so being there an hour-two early, we decided we would just go party through the night and then sleep for a short time at the airport.  That's exactly what we did.  The day was spent in Cork, Ireland.  We rode the bus back to Dublin with all of our luggage and didn't think about a few things.  A. The bars a bit tight in Ireland.  B.  Could it be possible that they wouldn't want us to come in with a lot of luggage?
We  went into the first bar and realized that as small as it was, it would be impossible to bring our luggage in.  So bar #2.  They weren't thrilled that we showed up that way, but didn/'t turn us away.  This was actually a great bar too because they were playing the ole traditional Irish Music.  We had a blast talking to locals and singing along to their funny songs.  All of us decided to head to the airport to sleep except Sandra and Javi.  When we got there, it was freezing cold but we were exhausted so we curled up close and set our luggage around us and tried to snooze on the cold, cold floor.  We had a free "lullaby singer" too, as apparently another group of students had the same idea, only they clearly partied a lot harder then we did.  They got a hold of the ticket counter's speaker system and continuously sang "The Wheels on the Bus Go Round and Round.."  At first, it was hilarious.  By the 9th go around, we were annoyed and wanting to sleep.  Where was the airport security ps? 



Javi and Sandra came back and thought it was hilarious that we were curled up.

 Ireland with Zach at Christmas 
1.  The Irish Pub Crawl- in the rain
A definite favorite experience from anywhere I've gone.  Zach and I decided we wanted to embrace the culture, which is drinking and music.  Too favorites. So we started at a pub with a good ol' Irish beer and listened to the first couple songs.  The musicians would explain briefly their instruments and where the song came from.  Most of the Irish songs are centered around drinking, sex, or funny experiences.  So, the explanations were quite humourous.  We left that pub with the musicians and throughout the night wandered the streets of Dublin to 4 different pubs, each pretty different from eachother.  And at each stop hearing a few new songs.  It was even more fun because it started pouring rain and the wind was very strong, so we had our umbrella, that by the end of the pub crawl was turned inside out with broken spokes.  We had a blast trying to sing along to their jigs.

2.  The Guiness Experience
I did do this on my first trip here, but we had a much different experience.  We really enjoyed learning how they made the beer and going through the whole tour.  At the end we were up in their sky bar that was 360 degrees that had views stretching out across Dublin.  It was gorgeous and the beer was very yummy!  We spent the late afternoon up their looking at the city and relishing the tasty beer (that we now know how it was made).

3.  The pub
Zach and I found a pub on our first night there that we went into and saw that it was dark wood decor, with huge plush chairs, and fireplaces.  It was fairly loud with many conversations going on but yet intimate enough that we could have a conversation ourselves.  Zach tried some of the local food here, including a soup that was carrot puree.  Delicious though it sounded a bit odd. The experience was enhanced by, of course, the Irish music playing in the background.
The rest of our trip was just as wonderful.  We did the sightseeing and toured castles and jumped on the hop on hop off bus.  But these were the things that stuck out the most!


So, lift your (green) beer and CHEERS to another great St. Patty's Day!