I wish I could tell you our new baby's name...

A new baby is here!

Exactly on time, and exactly perfect.  I'll get around to posting the entire labor story when I am not sleep deprived, but here is the short version:

I had my 39 week appointment on Wednesday and my doc asked me if I wanted her to "get things started."  I knew she'd be asking since she already told me that they don't like VBAC's going past 39 weeks, and I knew I'd be tempted to say yes.  Since I was trying really hard to be patient, I brought all of my children to my appointment to hold me accountable ;~) and she agreed to let me wait another week.  

Imagine my surprise then the next morning things started all on their own!

After arriving at the hospital too early, we left so I could labor more comfortably~ in the van.

We arrived back at the hospital in the perfect amount of time.  No time at all!  No iv, no monitors, no pressure gauges, no being forced to lay on my back in the bed.  No doctor.  

  Just 12 minutes in the hospital and our baby arrived!

Can you read that scale?  9 pounds 12 ounces and 19 3/4 inches.

A whopping 2 pounds bigger than my previously biggest baby!

Hello Biggest Sister!

Baby is so big, the hat the Belle made is too small!

Yet another perfect detail, Dad was right by my side to welcome this new precious life.

So blessed!

And hello to biggest brother!

This baby is big and strong!

Baby's first morning in the Word with daddy.

All right, I'll tell you, we have a new baby GIRL!  We kept the entire family in suspense because the children wanted to find out together if they had a new brother or sister.  She was born at 4:42pm on Thursday and we were able to leave the hospital around 9:30 the very next morning.  The children were at home eagerly awaiting the arrival and big reveal of their newest sibling.  That will be another blog post.

Her birth was everything I wanted minus being at home~ every detail played out perfectly.

You will have to email me if you want to know her name...  It's perfect, too.

Quick Update. Great News.

In case you were on the edge of your seat, I thought I better not leave you hanging.

I am still pregnant. With only 11 days until my due date, this baby is now my "latest" baby aside from Belle (my first) and I'm huge. Ready. Excited. Seriously, I'm huge. Even the casher tells me so.
and
My husband is still home.
Did you hear what I said???
I am in complete awe that my husband is not going to miss the birth of our baby. God saw fit to move some things around and he will be here until... further notice.

I am super elated.  It took me a few days to believe it.  But the squadron is gone, and my husband is sitting right here beside me, ready to catch a baby at any moment.  This is fantastic.

Hopefully, my next post will include a picture of a sweet new baby and a less huge momma.

Fear, or Faith?

I thought I might let you know that I passed my glucose test.  After getting the results, I am even more irritated about it than when I was starving, hyped up on sugar, and being poked in the arm repeatedly.
Can anyone explain to me why during the 3 hour test you get the full 3 hours to have your glucose levels drop below 140, but 140 is "failing" for the 1 hour test?  Why didn't they just give me 3 hours to begin with?  I wonder if this is just another scam to get my insurance $ for a test I didn't really need...

It prompted me to poke around a bit...

 Instead of being vigilant about picking up on problems, many health-care providers (doctors far more than midwives) over-test because they fear liability and simply expect trouble. Many of these newer tests were created to diagnose problems in high-risk pregnancies. But with the increased medicalization of pregnancy, they have become routine for healthy women with no known risks. This does not mean that every test is right for everyone, however, or that they are risk-free themselves. There may be a problem that prenatal testing doesn’t show, or aproblem may not exist even if the test suggests it does. Results that are unclear or even misleading can plague your peace of mind and decrease your confidence. The barrage of tests can also make you feel like your health-care provider knows everything there is to know about your pregnancy, which is not the case. 

You can read the entire article here.

I am definitely discovering a lot more fear mongering and playing on our own ignorance.  Suddenly we think the doctors are gods and we ourselves know nothing, that pregnancy is a medical condition that must be treated and not a miracle and blessing.

Do I really need all those tests?  Do I really need to be poked and prodded every 2-3 weeks?  If I don't go to every appointment, get every ultrasound and blood test, is something bad really going to happen?  Is it really my doctor that decides the condition of my baby?

I think not.

For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.                                                 ~Psalm 139:13-16

Single Digits, People!

I am down to the single digits for how many weeks of pregnancy I have left.  I think I actually have only 8 weeks left. Where has the time gone?!

Sure, there are days that feel like years and I wonder if I have been pregnant forever, but this pregnancy has truly flown by.  Maybe it is because I seem to have misplaced my brain somewhere along the way...

Yesterday I asked Belle if she could please wash Bucket's hands and face without getting her hands wet.
The day before that I responded with "Yes, Wal-Mart" when Bucket pointed to the Ocean.
Today, I gave my empty bowl to Sis and asked her to please put it in the Chicken.

My children are sure getting a kick out of this pregnant amnesia, they even said they are going to start writing the stuff I say down somewhere so we can remember it forever...

I'll start taking guesses as to when this baby is coming (I am due May 18th, my first was 2 days late, 2nd, 3rd and 5th were 3 weeks early, 4th was 4 weeks early, and 6th was 2 weeks early), and if he is a he or if she is a she.
Leave your guesses in the comments.  :~)

6 Months in a Blur!

This little Bucket of sweetness is growing fast! I for some reason imagined that she wouldn't grow much since we left Mississippi. Maybe I thought all the time in the car seat would stunt her growth, but no. She is saying "da-da" much to her daddy's delight, she started sitting up a couple of days ago, and last night I came across the scale and she is a whopping 17 lbs of squishy cuteness! She absolutely loves being squished and snuggled and smooched and we sure enjoy spoiling her. She is going to be running before we know it!

Bucket is 3 months. Already!

Lil' Bucket is 3 months old.  I have said it before, and I will probably say it every time I talk about her, she is getting big fast, and time is flying!

She is "talking" to us all the time, and she is almost never not smiling.  She is such a happy baby!

She doesn't get to nap long, it is inevitable that some doting brother or sister will give her a hug or a kiss and "accidentally" wake her up.  Then, said brother or sister will announce "The baby is awake, and wants me to hold her!"

 See, she's 12 pounds now.  I know because I weigh her on my postal scale once a week. Ok, sometimes every day.  Or twice a day. Yes, I'm a bit obsessive.  She doesn't mind.

 Hanging out in the car waiting for Dad, I think her eyes might stay blue.  She has the same reddish hair that Guys had, and her eyes stayed blue.  

 Checking out some toys at a friends house.

 Napping in her homemade t-shirt.

Bucket is a very cuddly baby, she loves being snuggled close.  That is a good thing, especially since Butter can't walk past her with out giving her a really smooshy kiss and a big bear hug.  You can tell by Bucket's expression how she really feels, but she's a good sport. Most of the time.

In our home someone is always reading and someone is always holding Bucket so that means someone is always reading to Bucket! This week she's learning all about Confucius and The Great Wall of China, Fancy Nancy, Gospel Powered Parenting, and Systematic Theology. Maybe she'll be really smart?

It has been a quick three months with her, yet somehow it feels like she has always been with us. She has certainly brought much joy to our family and we are so blessed by her smiles and coos.  

Bucket is a month old!

This little girl has stolen our hearts! She is definitely one of us, her eyebrows are raised even while sleeping! 

 She's been a bit of a stinker, eating lazily just like her big Sis did, so I am having to pay special attention to nursing her to get some weight on her.  I said when I was pregnant that I had a feeling she was going to take some of Sis's features because Butter seems to favor Guys and it just has to be even.  I think Bucket misunderstood, I meant Sis's looks and not her personality.  :~) She won't even sleep but for a few moments unless someone is holding her, just like Sis when she was a newborn!  That is just fine by us, we love holding her and we are sure blessed by Sis, picky eating and all.

Watching the Padres

Bucket is almost 3 weeks old.  Time is flying.  It makes me sad how fast time flies!

Who do you think she looks like???

Announcing!

Baby Bucket

Bucket has arrived~she's almost two weeks old, actually.

Her birth was everything I prayed for, praise God! I started having contractions Thursday night so we went to our good friends the Mom-a-lot's house since they were planning on watching our other children. We decided to stay the night and I slept until about 2am when I was having a lot of back pain. I realized baby was sunny side up so I got on my hands and knees for a while and I can't be sure but I swear I felt her turn around. I went back to bed. At 4:30 I couldn't sleep anymore. I woke dad up and told him it was time to go. He woke Guys because we decided she was going to come with us. We woke Mom-a-lot and let her know we were leaving. We got to the hospital at 5:15am and to my glad surprise I was 8 cm. With each contraction the baby's heart rate dropped and the nurse was nervous and kept messing with me but my midwife was totally calm and kept her in line. The Dr. on duty wanted to put in a pressure monitor but my midwife kept delaying, saying we were going to push any minute. She rushed me along a bit, to keep the Dr. at bay, so I started pushing before I was ready. It was totally awesome though, because it worked and Bucket was born just a few minutes later. 6:34 am, just the right amount of time to be at the hospital. I got to hold her immediately and when they tried to take her the midwife whispered for me to start nursing her. I got to hold her for about an hour when they insisted they had to take her to the nursery.

Dad and Guys went with, and with a little patience and a tiny bit of arguing, the found a nurse that would bring her back and do all of the checking and stuff in the room with me. After that, the staff was great, they didn't even bat an eye when we said no vaccines. They let Guys give Bucket her first bath, what a special experience to have her there for the birth of her sister!

Dad, Guys, and I spent the day taking turns holding baby...

...and finishing up our traditional gift from the new baby to her brothers and sisters.

Dad brought the kids to see their new baby sister.

They were so excited, each taking two turns of holding her and looking at her toes and belly and hair and ears and every little new part they could uncover!

They were very sad to leave, and I really hate that they couldn't stay!  Luckily we got to go home the next morning.  Everyone is so excited and blessed to have our newest family member finally here with us!

another baby project finished!

It's not perfect, but it's the first blanket I've ever made.  It's summer-y and unique and complete with batting and a silky edge.  I hope it holds up in the wash :~)

Wanna guess?

I'm taking bets as to when the new baby is coming, weight, length, and name.  Leave a comment with your guess.  :~)

It's almost B-day

As in Birthing day.

I have hit that spot.  I am 36 weeks along and my mind is gone.  Baby's clothes are washed, bags are packed, plans are made, and there is nothing left for me to do but wait.  I do not like waiting!!!

I figured out the average number of days my babies come early.  I do things like that when I am waiting.  Based on that information, this baby should be born on July 16th.  That is a good day for me. Sis is insisting that I wait until my due date since it is her birthday and a new baby would be the best birthday present ever.  I think I will have gone insane from waiting by then...

I decided to make cute skirts to pass the time.  They are finished.  I decided to figure out how to make a blanket to pass the time.  I just have to pick up the right thread to sew on the binding and then I'll show you a picture.  I have organized all my clothes, the too small maternity set, the right after baby set, and the few months after baby set.  I switched around car seats and cleaned the van, although it needs cleaned again.  I cleaned my room and even tried to clean out the shed but my darling hubby said no.  He thinks I get a little crazy with the projects right at the end- I've done it every time ;~)
I really have a hard time waiting!  I want to meet this sweet little hiccuping baby!

I take comfort in knowing that every day is ordained by God.  He knew before time what day this baby is going to be born.

     For you formed my inward parts;

you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.

     I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

Wonderful are your works;

my soul knows it very well.

     My frame was not hidden from you,

when I was being made in secret,

intricately woven in the depths of the earth.

     Your eyes saw my unformed substance;

in your book were written, every one of them,

the days that were formed for me,

when as yet there was none of them. ~Psalm 139:13-16

Now all I need to do is wait...

Baby Face

My midwife said I should get an ultrasound so the doc's won't have any excuse to recommend a c-section in labor. Plus they wanted to make sure baby will be big enough if I go into labor early or something like that...

I had been a bit concerned because I was feeling lots of kicks in my hip, a lot like when Butter was breach so I agreed to have the scan. 

On June 23rd Baby Bucket was measuring 5.5lbs (plenty big) and is head down.

Way. Down.

Yeah!

here is a nose, lips, cheeks, a fist over the eyes, and a bunch of other stuff

and the ultrasound confirmed there is a foot in my left hip

 

here are some toes and my hip bone

I cannot imagine Bucket is very comfortable being head down with a foot in my hip, but it is much better then not being head down with a foot in my hip.

A Bed for Baby Bucket!

Daddy made a wonderful gift for our new baby and I am so excited.  I just love that he is teaching himself (with the help of a friend, and a bunch of littles) to build things, and he enjoys doing it very much.

This little bed/changing table is custom size to fit right beside my bed.  This will start out as Bucket's bed, but once baby is big enough to roll over we will use it as a changing table.  It is just perfect for what we need, and it is beautiful too.  Great job dad!

(I wonder if he realizes this means I'll be putting in a request list for book shelves and whatever else we need once we are back in to a house, hehe!)