Two Weeks Old

It seems like we just got home from the hospital yesterday. And I know, tomorrow he'll be leaving for college.

Benjamin's Arrival, Part 3: Visitors, Etc.

Here are a few more pictures of visitors and our time in the hospital. Everyone was patient with me and my hacking cough. :)

My sister, Amanda

Sweet Benjamin...working on losing some weight and getting jaundice. His jaundice is slowly going away, and we're working on his eating. He's back up to 9 lbs., 6.5 oz. now, but not up to his birth weight yet.

Being held by my dad and introduced to his twin cousins, Mary Ann and Darcy.

Jonathan started Benjamin's Lego education right away!

Curious kids!

My mom

My brother, Todd

Our friend, Patty (Scott came, too!)

My good friend, Jen. It made me happy that she came to the hospital and happy that we've been friends for long enough that she had also held Grace in the hospital!

Doreen

Getting ready to go home. This outfit was Jonathan's. Since their birthdays are a week apart, the hand-me-downs will work beautifully. However, Jonathan was 2.5" longer than Benjamin at birth, so I think Benjamin will be fitting into things for a bit longer. Which is fine!

My sister-in-law, Corinne

Possibly the proudest big brother ever. He calls Benjamin "Little Benjy." I don't think the rest of us will be calling Benjamin Benjy...Benjy is a book character. Like this one or this one. But we don't mind if Jonathan does. It's pretty cute.

Home in the cradle.

This gown is from Michelle and Jamie. We thought Benjamin looked like a sweet candy cane in it.

A visit from Leslie, who has been coordinating meals for us. Soooo very helpful!

My favorite boys!

I told you he was in love!

My dad with all three kids.

This one's not about Benjamin, but I love the picture of Jeff and the older kids. We are truly blessed and also adjusting to our new blessing!

Benjamin's Arrival, Part 2: Meeting His Siblings

Can you believe we have three kids? Sometimes I can't.

Grace was more interested in Benjamin's hat than anything. I had a cute, coordinating outfit for her to wear, but by this point, somehow she was only wearing the pants. I'm not sure where everything else came from. At least she was dressed!

That's Gracie's hand trying to figure everything out.

Inspecting his brother.

Benjamin's Arrival, Part 1

Early in the morning December 17. Could I possibly get any bigger? Not likely.

My mom came over early to get the kids up, dressed, and breakfasted, and then a sitter came to stay with them so that Mom could be at the hospital when the baby arrived. A neighbor helped me get Jonathan to and from school. I was thankful for the help! Mom braided my hair for me. When Jonathan and Grace were born, I remember thinking it would be soothing to have Mom braid my hair, but it was short (and we were out of state when J. was born.) This time, she braided it for me, and I was so thankful to have it out of the way during surgery and recovery.

Waiting to be wheeled into surgery. I was having contractions, but I didn't know it. My ribs would go through excruciating pain, which I was used to, and then the nurse would tell me that I was having a contraction. The problem was that the contractions were pushing the baby up, not down. I'm not sure labor would have been very productive with this baby. Things were going in the wrong direction!

And here HE is...our boy! Benjamin Jeffrey, 9 lbs., 12 oz., 20.5" long, born at 9:21 a.m. He's my shorty of the three. :) He cried right away, which was so reassuring. As soon as he was out, someone in the OR (don't remember who?) told me we made a good decision to have a C-section. His head was already bigger than J or G's were, and he was a week early. We were just so overwhelmed and thankful to have him here safely, and grateful for the gift of our baby boy.

Quick mommy & daddy moment

First bath

A moment for the little guy to relax.

My boy.

Proud daddy.

More posts to follow...

A New Era

Our big boy has lost his first tooth.  He is so proud that he has to show everyone the hole in his smile.  At 5:30 this morning (while I was not in there as I was taking care of Benjamin) Jeff tells me that Jonathan ran into our room, turned on the lights, and made the big announcement that his tooth had come out, on its own, while he slept.  What a rite of passage.  Jeff shared in his joy but sent him back to bed, of course.  :)  Come to think of it, we've never thought to mention the tooth fairy to Jonathan, so we'll have to figure out what to do about that...

Checking Out Their Brother

I will post pictures and stories about Benjamin's birth soon. These two posts were my big accomplishments for today...

Family Christmas Picture...Attempts

We do plan to send out Christmas cards/pictures at some point. But, since the emphasis may be at some point, I thought I'd share the pictures we took last night. Merry Christmas from our family to yours!

(You can really see Benjamin's jaundice in these pics. And even though Grace is the most expressive kiddo we have, she wears a blank look in the pictures. Silly girl.)

Home

We came home from the hospital today and are so thankful to be together as a family. Here's Benjamin Jeffrey, our sweet baby boy. Thanks to everyone who has written or called. I haven't checked any messages online and haven't been able to talk on the phone because I am still fighting this horrid cold. I start hacking every time I talk, it seems! Hope I haven't given anyone cause for concern. We are all so thankful that our boy is here safely. He is doing the same things the other two kiddos did: losing weight and needing extra help nursing, so we're working on that.

We are thankful for so many blessings right now, especially that he is here safely, and we count you among our blessings, too.

Plans vs. Reality

Well, with our planned c-section on Friday, I had plans.  Granted, this baby has kept me from feeling great for quite some time, but I thought I could still get some meals planned for my family, make sure they have clean clothes and clean house, get a few groceries, etc.  I planned to blog Thanksgiving and birthday pictures, and if things went really well, to catch up on thank-you notes for birthdays.  The first few items didn't seem too out of reach.

Instead, I have been totally knocked over by this cold.  I have gotten nothing done at all.  Grace has been watching videos while I lay on the couch.  It hasn't been pretty.  Huge thanks to everyone who has been helping me and encouraging me.

And, last night, Jeff and I were up for a good portion of the night while I had some very consistent contractions.  We talked to the hospital people and they told us to come in, and we called our friend who is our overnight point-person and my mom who will get the kids up in the morning for breakfast, etc., when the baby comes.  So they lost a good bit of sleep, as well.

When I got out of bed to get ready to go to the hospital and stood up for a bit, the contractions stopped, and we didn't end up going to the hospital.  But it was a very uncomfortable night with very little sleep.

All this to say, we'll have some stories to tell this baby boy or girl someday.  Having each of our kids has involved a different kind of journey.  I've certainly never had one quite like this before.  If we can make it until our morning appointment to welcome Baby into the world, that will be great.  This will be my last post until then...and we really appreciate everyone's thoughts, prayers, and encouragement!

I'll close with a quote from this morning from Jonathan, who has been a good sport through all of this:  "Contractions make me think of Mouse Trap, because contraction rhymes with contraption."  There you go!

A Planned Birth Date

Having a cold when I'm pregnant is really crummy.  Now, on to more important news...

I had an NST and met with my midwife this morning.  The baby was asleep for the test and was not impressed by my gulps of cold orange juice like he/she usually is.  Usually, I sit in the NST room alone and push a button when the baby moves, but today my midwife chatted with me for quite awhile about how the baby is doing (just fine, even when asleep,) what the perinatologist had recommended, what my deliveries with Jonathan and Grace were like, and what the best plan would be for this baby.  We both talked a lot about the risks of delivering the baby via the traditional exit vs. the risks of delivering the baby via c-section.  At the beginning of this journey, we were all in favor of letting the baby call the shots and coming whenever he/she was ready.  However, as the baby has gotten bigger and bigger and things have gotten more complicated with the polyhydramnios, I think everyone's view has changed.  She suggested that a c-section is probably a less risky delivery for this baby than a natural one, and with the reading I've done as well as my personal feelings about it, I agree.  So does Jeff.  So, we are scheduled to check in to the hospital Friday morning and to be delivered two hours later.  We are praying for a safe delivery of this baby, and we hope to have news to share on Friday.  I would like to, and will try to, have calls made to everyone that I can.  The reality is, though, that Jeff will likely get to the Internet before I get my calling done, so if you find out online, I hope you won't be offended!

Some side benefits to the scheduled delivery are that I get to cancel my AFI and ultrasound and the perinatology place this week.  So as long as I don't go into labor on my own before Friday, I don't have to do any more medical visits until we go to the hospital.  It's going to seem like a very calm week and will hopefully give me time to sleep off my cold.

My midwife didn't "check my progress" today since there was no need to do that, but she did measure me.  I am 38 weeks along but am measuring 43.  Nice, yes?  We both agreed that it felt like I had an ocean swishing around in my belly.  When Jonathan was born, I lost 30 lbs. over my 3-ish days in the hospital.  Over my 4-ish planned days in the hospital this time, I wonder how many lbs. I'll leave behind?    It doesn't really matter, of course...we're just so thankful for this baby and thankful that the finish line is in sight.  It has been quite a journey.

Oh, one more thing...some of you who live where midwives are not as accessible have asked how the midwife thing has worked here.  This particular practice has midwives and doctors working together in the same office, and I've always known that if things got too complicated medically, then the doctor would take over.  Well, that has officially happened.  We are planning to deliver at a time that my midwife can assist with the birth but a doctor (whom I've heard great things about from friends) will perform the actual surgery.  I'm nervous about major surgery, but relieved that we won't be worried about the risk of injury to the baby during birth.

Thanks to everyone for your kind words, thoughts, and prayers, and we'll keep you updated as best as we can.

A Weekend of Celebrating

It's late Sunday evening and I'm about to turn into a pumpkin, but I thought I'd post to let you know that a) No, I'm not at the hospital and b) Jonathan and I both had really nice birthdays.  We had a very simple, very small, brunch-time birthday party for him on Saturday morning.  (Muffins, my mom's famous cinnamon rolls, juice, coffee, gifts, and cupcakes.)  Something I have discovered as a parent and some of you may have also discovered as parents is that the way to a parent's heart is through the kiddo.  Even though the birthday party is to celebrate Jonathan and not to make sure he gets gifts, I was really touched by the way everyone seemed to thoughtfully choose a gift for him.  He received a variety of special things and he loved every one.  He is enjoying the things to play with (and build and read!) as well as the PJs and shirts that he needed.  Special thanks to everyone who thought of him around his birthday time and at his party, too.

My birthday was today, and it was quiet and relaxing.  (I would have gladly accepted a non-relaxing day due to our baby's arrival, but that was not how today went.  It was a good day, though!)  Lots of people made me feel special, and Jeff was very sweet to make sure I didn't have to do much.  Today was the first day in a long time that, for whatever reason (?) I could sit on the couch comfortably, and after we went to church this morning, I put in a lot of time on the couch!  We relaxed all day and went out to look at Christmas lights tonight.  (Last week, Jeff had a business trip that started first thing Sunday morning, so it was especially great to have him home this week!)  All I wanted to do today was spend time at home with our little family, and that's what I got to do.

I never would have predicted that I would be 36 years old and 38 weeks pregnant.  36 sounds so middle-agey and grown up.  I guess it is.  I am prepared to enjoy it and thankful for the blessings of this season of life.

Six

Our sweet boy is six.  I can hardly believe it.  We love him more each day!  I did long posts last year about the day before he was born and the day he was born, so rather than reinvent the wheel, I'll link to them here.  Even though I'm feeling pretty badly this year, physically, this year is better for us in other ways.  We're very excited about the upcoming arrival of our baby, of course, which is an unmeasurable blessing.  Also, last year, my dad was diagnosed with liver cancer on Jonathan's birthday, which will not happen this year.  He was in the hospital for Jonathan's birthday party, which was on my birthday.  This year, Jonathan's little family party will not be on my birthday and my dad is not in the hospital.  Both great things for which we are thankful!

37 Week Appointment

The details are below for those of you who want to know...maybe just the grandmas?  For the rest of you, the baby continues to get bigger and pass its NSTs.  No delivery date planned yet.  Now, details...

I had my most recent NST and met with the midwife just after 37 weeks.  The baby is still doing fine.  I am continuing to dilate, but only to a 2, which is nothing to write home about.  She said that we need to pray for the baby and talk to the baby so that it will come down lower.  (Which will hopefully help with how I'm feeling, because the pain has gotten worse.)  In order for the midwife to break my water and deliver the baby, the baby's head needs to be very low.  (Grace was induced at 41 weeks and I was already dilated to a 4 1/2 before being induced.  My midwife assures me that we will not be waiting until 41 weeks this time!)  Right now there is so much fluid that the baby is just floating around, and if she broke my water, there is a possibility that the umbilical cord would come out first, which would be very dangerous.  (That's also one of the complications of polyhydramnios that I've read about.)  Also, she said that girls' lungs mature before boys', and since we don't know the gender of this baby, she'd like to see us wait until 38.5 weeks before taking any action to deliver the baby.  (That's in line with the timing the perinatologist mentioned.)  I had never heard that about boy/girl lungs before.  This midwife, who also delivered Grace, said she's comfortable with me delivering an 8 or 9 lb. baby, but she's leery of anything over 10.

People are asking a lot about the possibility of a c-section, and she hasn't mentioned it yet.  The medical folks seem to be taking this one appointment at a time rather than making longer-term plans for the baby.  Whatever we need to get the baby into the world safely, we'll do it.

I have one more AFI and one more NST this week.  Jeff just got back from his final business trip for 2010, and Jonathan's birthday is Friday.  We're having a very small family gathering for him on Saturday morning.  I hope we can make him feel special as he turns six even though I have so little to give right now.

The Cradle Is Back!

It's here in the living room.  My uncle Dave brought it by and let us borrow the cradle again.  It's so helpful to have a sleeping place downstairs, and it's a very special cradle, too,  We're thankful to be able to use it!  Jonathan suggested I get Grace used to it by letting her dolls sleep in there.  Not a bad idea!  She's in a new phase that involves deciding that her Stella doll needs to eat, sleep, be held (by me, of course) which is pretty cute.  We hope she'll do as well with the baby!

Kicking Off the Christmas Season

Last night, we enjoyed a tradition that we've come to look forward to each year: Dave, Jen, Ella, and Delia came over to make Christmas cookies with us. We had a great visit with all of them and enjoyed some cookies, too! The evening looks a lot different now than it used to with just two kiddos between us. And, catching up with our friends lifted my spirits and kept my mind off of how I was feeling. We tried to include Grace more this year, but between a 7 p.m. bedtime and being mad that I wouldn't let her eat raw cookie dough, she didn't see much of the action. Jen got some great pictures and wrote a great post here. I love the pictures that she got. Be sure to look at the links to previous years if you want to walk down memory lane. The kids were (and are) awfully cute!

So, I'm cheating a bit by just linking to Jen's pictures. But here's one thing I'll add. The cookie making ended with Ella and Delia making their way upstairs to play, and Jonathan and the grownups finishing the cookie making. I seem to remember last year ending this way, too. Our methods have changed quite a bit since the first year of baking when the kiddos were so much younger and needed so much hands-on help. They are so independent now! Well, except for Grace, but she went to bed.

Thanks to our friends for a great evening and for kicking off a wonderful Season!

37 Weeks

Oops, my hair is wet in this picture. Oh, well. Jonathan took this pic at Jeff's suggestion. :)

Proud of Herself

36.5 Week Ultrasound

Well, first I'll be honest. I have lots of cute pictures from Thanksgiving, and cute pictures of the kids in general, to post, but they're going to have to wait. Sitting really hurts me most of the time, so you may not see many posts, and I'm behind on emails, too. Driving is the most painful activity I can think of. When I started having three appointments each week for NSTs and AFIs, I put a lot of our daytime activities on hold indefinitely: Bible study, MOPS, playgroup/moms' group, Jonathan's gymnastics, etc. I do all the non-negotiable stuff, but that's about it. I am so thankful for everyone who is helping me out with childcare for Grace when I go to these appointments, and I'm tired of asking for help, but I have to keep it up for now.

So, today I had my four-week follow-up ultrasound at the perinatal place, and I'm so happy to tell you that the baby seems to be thriving in its fluid-filled home. The sonographer (who is super nice and the same gal I had last time) says she estimates the baby's weight to be about 8 lbs., 12 oz, and the AFI jumped up to 36. I asked her about the accuracy of the weight, knowing that measurements this late are often off by 10% in either direction. She said that she's probably within a few ounces. She says that it often happens that a mom will deliver the same day as her ultrasound, so she can check the accuracy of the weight, and it's usually very close. I thought that was interesting. Also the sonographer said that the baby looks very filled out, and that she can see a layer of fat on its tummy. Here are a couple profile shots of the filled- out baby:

After the ultrasound, the perinatologist-a different one this time-came in and told me that the baby is doing well even though it's big, and that he wants to see me again in two weeks if I haven't delivered by then. He thinks I will. I doubt it, but I hope I'm wrong. If I am still pregnant in two weeks, he says he'll want me to go ahead and have the baby because the prematurity risks will be gone and the complications from polyhydramnios will not be bad yet. You can Google the complications of polyhydramnios if you want to freak out, but we know that God is knitting this baby together no matter the outcome. The doc says to be sure to keep up my NSTs, which I am doing faithfully. All that driving and the need for childcare is making me crazy, but we are so thankful for this baby and it will all be worth it. And now this post is done because my ribs are killing me.