Well, Rachel is now over a week old and we are doing really good. I'm actually very surprised. I had kinda prepared myself for the worse with bringing home a newborn and still taking care of two toddlers. But we are all settling in to a routine and it seems to be working. Rachel makes it easy though. Everyone kept telling me that their third was really laid back and easy to take care of, and that describes her to a T. She usually only cries when she's hungry, and the rest of the time she's either sleeping or just watching things go on. There's usually a lot of action with Elijah and Hannah, so I guess they are keeping her entertained. And I thought I would have difficulties with them being loud and waking her, but she will sleep through all of it! Even the screaming right by her ear! Here she is just looking around.

Elijah and Hannah are adjusting very well with her too. They like to watch me change her diapers, and when she cries they will run to get me and they'll ask "Baby's hungry, Mama?" It's really cute. I can already tell that they are going to be protective over her. Josh's dad asked them last night if Rachel could stay with them, and Elijah got really upset and said no and that she had to go home with us. :) I also think having the baby has diverted their possessiveness over my attention. They don't seem to fight as often, and I'm catching them playing nicely with one another more. So that's been a plus as well! Here's Elijah talking to Rachel. She turned towards his voice and was really listening!

Hannah wanted a picture with her too!

So, life is really good right now. I feel so blessed to have Rachel. She's just a joy. The only real complaint is the cramping and the boob soreness! My milk is definitely in abundance, and I can't really figure out what I should do to fix it. I've had to pump for the last few nights, because I couldn't even lay down they were so full. But I know if I keep that up, my milk will never even out. You'd think I would be a pro at this by now. But with Elijah, I was pumping all the time because he wouldn't breastfeed for the first couple of months. Then when Hannah came, I absolutely refused to pump. I refused to pump or give her a bottle, because I just wanted it to work so badly. Now this time, I would like to have some stored milk and I would like to try a bottle with her when she's a little older, so I'm kinda new to this. But I know things will get better! And we'll figure it out.

I'm definitely not ready to take them all out by myself, so nothing much going on except for us hanging out at the house! And right now, naptime is calling my name...

Rachel Grace - Her Birth Story!

Well, we had our precious baby girl for those of you who haven't heard through facebook! She was born on Thursday, October 7 at 11:09 pm.

The day started out very normal. I had a scheduled doctor's appointment that morning. I was supposed to have decided if I was going to allow the doctor to schedule an induction, and I was going to talk to the doctor that day about it. Because of all that going on, Josh decided to go with me to the appointment to give me some moral support and to just meet the doctor and all. When we got there, they hooked me up to the monitor like always. Nothing was really going on until about half-way through when it started showing contractions about every 5 minutes or so. They weren't painful at all, so I honestly thought it was still Braxton-hicks going on. The doctor came in and commented on them and asked if I would like to be checked. I said yes! Please! I thought that would at least help me make a decision about the induction.

So he checked me, and I was 4 cm!! That's when I started getting excited. We were getting some progress now! He said he would like for me to go to the hospital to continue to get monitored because we might actually have a baby today! I asked if I could go home first to get my hospital bag, and he said that would be fine. So Josh and I went home and got everything together. We got the babies bag packed, my bag packed, and then we ate a nice lunch together. I was seriously taking my time, because I didn't want to lay in a hospital bed all day! Then we went to Josh's parents' house to drop the baby's bag off and check on them. Then we headed to the hospital; it was about 2 p.m. when we got there. I was feeling contractions during all this, but nothing that really made me think I was in labor.

We got to the hospital and they got me all checked in and strapped in. Contractions were still regular, but staying about the same for about an hour. Then they started getting smaller on the monitor. The funny thing is that these contractions were the strongest ones! I asked the nurse about that and she said that it's not always accurate. Well, after a little while of those they decided to send me home. They scheduled me an appointment for Monday, and a tentative induction for Tuesday. I was pretty sure I would go into labor before then, though, but I still didn't think it would be that day!

So we drove home and I dropped Josh off, and then I went to pick up the babies. I got to their house and layed down with Abbie in the bed and watched TV for a while until the babies got up from their nap. The contractions were slowly getting stronger and stronger and closer together. By about 5 I was pretty sure I was in labor. Contractions were about 5 minutes apart and starting to get hard to talk through. I wanted to do as much of the labor at home though, so I went for about an hour and half like that. Then about 6:30, they were about 3 minutes apart but still manageable. I went to the bathroom though, and I was bleeding. This scared me more than anything. I didn't bleed with my first two, so I either thought something was wrong or I was about to have a baby right then! Josh's mom told me it was probably the mucous plug. I debated staying home a little longer, but Josh was concerned so we decided to head back to the hospital. Everyone kept telling us that your third labor would happen a lot quicker too, and we were not prepared for a home birth!

We got to the hospital about 7 and I got strapped in again. (By the way, I loathe those straps! And having to lay on my back!) And it was confirmed, I was definitely in labor. The nurse checked me and I was 6 cm. Which was kinda disappointing. I had hoped to be farther along than that before I headed to the hospital. But I was excited too, because we were definitely having a baby! Well, I labored in that darn hospital bed (so uncomfortable!) for about 3 more hours! Josh was so good. He stayed right beside me, and helped me through each contraction. The nurse checked me at about 10 p.m. and I was only 8 cm. I was beginning to think that I wasn't going to make it through this delivery without pain meds. I was soooo extremely tired too. After some really hard contractions, I begged her to check me again! I was at 10 cm at about 11 pm!! Finally! My water had still not broken though, and I asked if she could get him to come break it. (They had to break my water on my first 2)

So the doctor came in and they got me in the position to push. When the next contraction came, he told me to start pushing. I had just started to, when he was like "Oh! Your membranes are still intact!" So he broke it right then, and the baby's head immediately popped out! But I had no idea! They hadn't told me anything. He was doing something, but I couldn't see. Apparantly, I found out later, he was sucking out the baby's mouth and nose, but I thought he was just getting things ready down there for the delivery. He then told me, "ok, one good push!" So I pushed again, and I felt the release of the whole body come out! I was so surprised, and relieved! That rush of adrenaline came, and it was amazing! I felt so amazingly good! I absolutely LOVE that feeling! So I had a hard labor, but the actual pushing lasted all of 30 seconds! I am still in shock that it happened so quickly! Actual birth time was 11:09 p.m.

So, they took her and got her all cleaned up and weighed and measured. She weighed 6 lbs. and 0.3 ounces, and was 19 inches long! Then they gave her to me, and she immediately started sucking. She nursed for about 30 minutes, and never had any problems! Thank you Lord for a good nursing baby! She's done very well ever since too!

We were released from the hospital on Saturday, and have been taking it easy ever since. I had a doctor's appointment on Monday. I had a small superficial clot on my left leg. And then Rachel had an appointment yesterday. She's doing great. She weighed in at 6 pounds even. So not much weight loss at all! Today was my first actual day of being alone with all three kids. And it was a lot better than I imagined! I actually got a shower, and the kids were all fed and we all got a nap! Pretty good I'd say!

I'm so tired...

of being pregnant and dealing with doctors. I had another discouraging appointment today. Everything went fine, just the conversation with the doctor upset me.

They put me on the monitor as usual, and the babies heartrate was looking great. He came in and started asking me questions about what the specialist said. I told him about growth being good, and he immediately asked if the doctor had said anything about inducing at 39 weeks. Can't this guy talk to me about anything else??

I know it's his job and he's probably just being cautious, but I was very annoyed. He said that again that it would probably be good to induce, and I finally just stepped up and asked him why he thought that, and how I didn't understand why I couldn't go full term if the baby's growth was good. He basically said that they induce at 39 if there might be a problem, because that's when the babies lungs are usually developed enough. He said that the baby was in the 5th percentile on size, and they wouldn't be able to tell if anything was wrong until it was delivered. So it really felt like scare tactics. And that's what I am now, just plain scared.

He said if I really wanted to I could refuse to be induced, but I would have to sign a waiver saying I refused. I'm just confused, and don't know what to do. I don't want to jeopardize the baby's health, but I also know that God has everything planned with this baby and my body. I just want to do the right thing, and I honestly don't know what that is right now.

I'm really still praying that my body will go into labor this week, and all this worrying will be over nothing. I have to make a decision about the induction by Thursday though. And if I go with the doctor, then they'll induce on Monday.

So to all my readers, can you please pray for God's will to be done, and for me to hear from God about the right choice, and for peace during this time? I would greatly appreciate it, and hopefully this will all be over soon!

Gender Prediction :)

A few weeks ago I did some online tests and old wives' tales that supposedly predict gender. They were not very conclusive whatsoever. About half said boy and half girl.

Well, just for fun Josh and I did them again including a few that I didn't do before. Here are the results:

I took 3 different quizzes-

Old Wives' Tales- 67% Girl
Childbirth.org- 72% Girl
Just Mommy- 83% Girl

Needle over belly- It went from side to side, which predicts girl.

Wedding ring on string- It also went side to side, Girl.

Even & Odd Myth- This one said that you take the mother's age at conception, and the year of conception. If they are both even or both odd, it's a girl. If they are different, it's a boy.
Well, I was 26 and it's 2010.....so Girl again!

Chinese birth chart- Now I did this one last time and it said boy. But the site was super complicated, where you had to change the age to lunar age with a formula and using your longitude. I found a much easier site this time that changes that for you, and got a different result. Girl this time! So I'm not sure which one was accurate....I still believe in my math abilities. But it's crazy that it was girl this time.

Lastly, I did the drano test. I was cleaning out a cabinet and found some drano in the back, but it wasn't the crystals it was in the form of a gel. But I still tried it.
This one said to mix your urine and drano. If it changes to a dark color, it's a boy. And if it stays the same, it's a girl. Well when I mixed them, they just stayed seperated. So I stirred it with a stick outside, and it just turned a dull yellow. So, this test was probably not very conclusive. But if I had to go one way or another, I guess I would say girl!

So that's the results! If all is correct, we're having a girl! haha. I don't trust these tests at all, so I'm not expecting anything. But it was fun testing it all out!

I love good reports!

Well, this week didn't start off that great. I went in to see my regular doctor, and during the monitoring, he noticed that the baby's heartrate was going down when I had some contractions. It didn't happen everytime, but a few times. He said that it could indicate low amniotic fluid. So he made me wait to get an ultrasound done. When he did the ultrasound, he did notice that the amniotic fluid was low, but he wanted to get a second opinion. After waiting forever, and praying like crazy!, Dr. Adcock came in and did another one. This time he found that the fluid was just fine! Jesus is good! It feels like doctors just like to scare you. They tell you the worst possible scenario for everything.

Well, the amniotic fluid was good, but he also measured the baby and said that it was still very small. I was scheduled to see the specialist on Thursday, so he said that I should still go to that, but he was fairly confident that they would need to induce me on Friday. I'm so tired of hearing those words! I asked him several questions about it, and if we could go a more natural route like stripping my membranes or breaking my water. He said that those are not guaranteed to put me in labor, so he would need to use pitocin. That way it would be easier to keep my blood levels right. I was so frustrated! It felt like he wasn't listening to me at all. I know he was probably just being cautious, but I don't understand what the difference is in having a natural birth. I did it with my first two, without complications.

Anyways, I left there a complete wreck. Frustration just brings tears in my case. So I cried all the way home. I just didn't feel any peace with the whole situation. And I left there basically thinking we were going to have a baby on Friday, so I had to get things ready.

So that's basically what I've been doing all week. Just trying to tie up loose ends, get the house clean, pack the bags, everything I could think of!

Well, yesterday was my appointment with the specialist. Over the week, I had started feeling a lot more peace. (Thanks for the prayers!) And I had a gut feeling that everything was going to be just fine with the growth of the baby. I was still a little nervous though. So Josh's mom drove me to Albany, just in case I did go into labor. (Seriously, I'm having contractions like crazy these days!) I got my ultrasound, and the doctor came in and said that the baby was growing just fine! It had grown 15 days-worth of growing in 15 days, so it's right on track. It's still small, though, estimating about 5 3/4 lbs. But they are thinking it's just a small baby.

I was sooo very happy to hear him say that! I actually forgot all my other questions to ask him, because that's really all I wanted to hear! He did say they would probably like to induce at 39 weeks because of the baby being small. Which I really don't understand. But I'm just praying that I just go into labor before that time comes. I really feel like it could be any day now!

The baby was also laying horizontally during the ultrasound. I really think it's just moving all around though. Because last week it's head was down. I think it'll get in the right position, when he/she is ready to come!

Josh and I were talking about dates the baby would come, and we realized that it could actually come on 10/10/10! Wouldn't that be really cool??

It's getting closer!

I can't believe how fast this pregnancy has flown by. In some ways, I just want it to all slow down so I can be a little more prepared, but I'm definitely getting to the point of not wanting to be pregnant anymore! To be able to eat what I want again, to have energy again, to move without hurting! But the newborn stage is so hard to me. I've heard someone call the first three months "baby bootcamp." And I definitely understand that. The sleep deprivation and all the crazy emotions are extremely hard to deal with at times, but I know we'll get through it!

I'm about 36 1/2 weeks now, so we are almost there! I had two doctor's appointments this week, and everything looks pretty good. I'm still measuring a little small, but he said the baby's heartbeat is looking really good. I had one strong contraction today, like peaking around 100, and I asked him about it and he said that they would not try to stop labor from now on. So it really could be any day, even though I feel like I still have a couple of weeks at least. I would definitely like the baby to get a little bigger. I have another ultrasound next Thursday to check growth, so hopefully everything will be fine.

They are actually beginning to discuss induction if the baby is still small next week. He said that it might be good to induce at 39, so that he/she will have a better opportunity to grow outside of the uterus. It's not definite yet, but just talking to me about it makes me nervous. I REALLY want to go as natural as possible, and inducing at 39 just seems silly. I want to do the right/healthy thing for the baby, but I honestly don't understand why they would need to induce if the baby is growing. What if it's just a small baby? I'm not very assertive at all, but I really want to tell him no. I mean, is there a graceful way to tell a doctor that I think he's wrong, and refuse to be treated??

I'm praying that it won't even come to that. Either the baby will have made leaps and bounds in growth. Or I'll have the baby on my own before 39. It's so strange. I've been worried this whole time about going full-term with this baby, and now they are already discussing taking it early! I can't seem to please anyone with my pregnancies! :)

Good news, though, is that I had my last progesterone shot on Monday! This is the medicine that was supposed to help me go full-term without being on bedrest, and I think it did a pretty good job! So, I'm not sure how the medicine wears off or anything, but we'll see how next week goes without it!

A week full of doctors!

This week has been somewhat busy, but it's only been busy because of all the doctor's appointments!

Monday, I had a doctor's appointment first thing in the morning. I went in and they put the monitor on me. I could already feel that I was having some contractions that morning, but they were not regular at all, and I felt like they were just Braxton hicks. The monitor was showing some faint contractions, but they were so randomly spaced. So, when the doctor came in I asked him if the machine would pick up braxton hicks, and he said it would but I was probably not able to feel them. I assured him that I was feeling every single one. They weren't painful, but I could definitely feel things getting tight and then relaxing. He started asking me all these questions about how they felt, and then I think he was just being overly cautious. He wanted to do a fetal fibronectin test, which can tell you if you would go into labor within the next 3 days. And while waiting for the results, which he said would be about an hour, then he wanted me to go to the hospital to continue to be monitored. So, I went to the hospital and got strapped in again. I was still having contractions, and they were pretty close together, but not very strong at all. I thought I would only be there an hour, but it ended up being like 4 hours. It gets so extremely uncomfortable laying on your back and being strapped to a monitor. I really thought I was going to go crazy! FINALLY, they came and told me that the test came back negative, which was a big relief. But they wanted to give me some brethine to stop the contractions before they let me go. So eventually, the contractions stopped all together and they let me go home! I was starving when I left!

I took it easy the rest of the day, and relaxed on Tuesday as well. Then I had another appointment with the specialist on Wednesday. They did an ultrasound, and said that the baby was still a little small, weighing about 5 pounds. But it had grown 13 days worth in 14 days. I thought that sounded pretty good, but I have to go again in 2 weeks to check growth. The doctor really thinks that it's just a small baby, which is fine as long as he/she is healthy! The ultrasound also showed that the baby was stretched out sideways. So still not completely in the right position, but closer! :)

Then today, I had another appointment with my regular doctor. He monitored me again, and he said the baby looked really good and no contractions at all! So that was really good! He also felt my stomach, and he thinks that the baby is head down! So that's really good!! I think because it is so small that it's still just swimming around in there! :)

If we could go a few more weeks, I would be happy. Just to get him/her a little bigger, and for me to finish some things around here. I've been nesting like crazy, but I feel pretty good at what's been accomplished. I have a total of 7 frozen casseroles in the freezer, and I have one more I'm planning on making. And then just some basic clean-up and packing is all I feel i have left. It would be so great to know when labor will begin. That way I could clean the house the day before! I just keep thinking about how I just want to come home from the hospital to a really clean house. Weird, the things that I think about!

Oh, very exciting news! (At least to me!) Only one more progesterone shot! Good thing, because the muscles in my butt are starting to retaliate!