We're home!

Well we are home and reality has kicked in! What a whirlwind these last few days have been! We got home Friday afternoon and it was just the most surreal thing to be home with a baby. My mom flew in just a few hours later and has been superwoman. I really don't think we could be surviving without her. My laundry is done, my freezer and fridge cleaned out and stocked with fresh fruits and veggies and snacks from Costco! It is SO hard right now to take care of Jane all the time while recovering from this c-section. I am just so sore in my tummy and have absolutely no stomach muscles to pull myself up! It is the weirdest thing and by far the most frusterating thing for me. I just have such a hard time asking people to do things for me all the time and I feel like I'm just helpless. Things are looking up WAY more than they were on Saturday.

Ever since the delivery I was getting these terrible headaches on and off. I told my nurse and the doctors but they said it was probably just stress and hormones and that they could be caused by a million different things. Saturday morning we had to take Jane in to the peidatrician to check her Billy Ruben count and as soon as we got in the car my head just started pounding. It got so bad I couldn't even keep my eyes open. I've never had pain like that in my whole entire life. We sat in the waiting room and when we got taken back into our room and the Dr. walked in I was just balling. I was in so much pain. I think the Dr. was like, "Wow, we've got a drama queen on our hands!" There I was laying down on the table that Jane was supposed to be laying down on and we called my Dr. and she said we needed to rush over to the E.R. and she was gonna call ahead and tell them we were coming. We finished Jane's chaotic appointment and ran over to the hospital. It was clear that I had a spinal headache. If I laid flat, it went away. The second I got up the pounding began. The E.R. was packed that Saturday afternoon and the staff at the hospital was the most amazing group of people I have ever worked with. They made it happen. They took me back into a unit in the hospital that is only open M-F, an 8-5 type a thing, sent me down a nurse from upstairs somewhere (I had her all to myself), called anesthesia and they were so on top of it. They took me up to the PACU and just did a procedure called a blood patch. They take blood out of my arm and the anesthesiologist pokes in my spine and finds the air bubble that's leaking spinal fluid and then they put my blood in there and form a clot to stop the leakage. The relief is almost immediate. I had to lie flat for 45 minutes, then they sit me up at 45 degrees for 15 minutes and 90 degrees for 15 more minutes and the headache was gone. It was so amazing. I was seriously a new woman after that got fixed. What a blessing it was to have the most amazing care while we were there. I couldn't even believe it, Scott and I were just in awe. The best part of all is that Jane was THE BEST baby that day. The pediatrician hooked us up with all these formula bottles knowing we were gonna be at the hospital all day and I couldn't nurse and Jane took those bottles all day like a champ! She chowed and chowed and didn't cry ever, she was so good for Scott. Scott was super dad. Sorry but can I say this? It's so sexy watching him be a dad! I loved every second of him running around with that girly diaper bag and a car seat in his hand all day!

Now that that my headaches are gone I am a million times happier and healthier. It's still frusterating because now with this blood patch I can't bend over to pick anything up, squat down, cough, sneeze, anything like that for 5 days or it will rupture this patch and I'll have to go do it all again. So that's killin me but thank heavens for my mom and Scott and Jane being such a champ of a baby.

Nursing is going great! I was worried after her having that formula all day Saturday she wouldn't latch on but she did great! So I'm nursing and pumping too because she takes a bottle so well and that's been the easiest thing in the middle of the night since I'm still somewhat immobile. It's so lame. Every day is getting better though.

I can't even describe in words how much I love this little girl. I could never have imagined loving someone this much. I feel like we just have a little angel in our presence and in our home. Her little spirit is so sweet. My mom and I were talking the other day in my room and Jane was just laying on the bed and my mom said, "Why are we whispering?" And we just started laughing. It's like she's so peaceful that it makes you feel like you need to be peaceful too! I am looking forward so much to being able to be recovered and just enjoy every moment with this little girl. I am SO SO SO grateful for Scott and my mom for all they are doing to make everything go as smoothly as it is. There's no way I could survive without them (not to mention all of our friends and neighbors who have gone way over the top to serve us).
Here are some pics of sweet Jane! These ones are so much better than the ones I posted first. She is so healthy and beautiful! I am so in love with her legs! It's funny how I thought she was such a chunk when she was born. She is SO TINY to me now. Granted she's lost a pound but maybe I'm just getting used to her. She was much more swollen and bigger it seems like when she was first born. She is such a little peanut.LOVING HER HAIR. I've got to get the bows goin'.And I'll leave you all with this one. Don't know how this couldn't make you smile! How awesome is that dimple too?

Sweet Baby Jane!

JANE ADELE ELDER

Born August 17th at 2:50 PM

8 lbs. 4 oz.

20.5 inches long

August 17th at 2:50 PM Scott and I became the luckiest people in the whole entire world! Our sweet little Jane is here!!

Tuesday was just like any other day, I went into work and Scott started his first day back at school. I had a Dr.'s appointment over my lunch break and headed there. Things all looked well. Dr. Hedrick did a pelvic exam and she was feeling around "up there" for what felt like forever! She finally finished and said, "Alright Miss Teddy, so Jane's little feet are right there, BUT so is her cord. We've got to get this baby out. You're going to deliver this baby TODAY." I was shocked! I was not expecting to have a baby that day, it was nuts to even wrap my head around! Dr. Hedrick explained (in simple terms) that if my water were to break with the umbilical cord right there, it could come out and baby Jane could die (prelapsed cord). I drove straight to the hospital and checked in and Scott borrowed someone's car from school and met me there! As crazy and unexpected as it was, it was all perfect. It wasn't too rushed, I felt like everything went so smoothly. All that mattered was that Scotty was there with me and we had a healthy baby on the way.

We headed down for surgery at about 2:20 and the c-section was amazing! I hate to say it but it was easy peasy! I loved every minute of it! (not so much the night after) As soon as I got that spinal I didn't feel a thing and was completely awake and alert during the whole thing. I swear within 3 minutes they pulled little Jane out and it was so amazing. Scott was a total stud through it all. I really just had the biggest smile on my face the whole time! It was amazing.

Here I am just waiting to go down to surgery:

On our way!Getting sewed up!

Jane is a big baby! She was 8 lbs. 4 oz and has a TON of dark black hair. She is a total chunk and the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. She was working just a little too hard breathing, which they say is super common with c-sections because the baby just has so much gunk in their lungs that doesn't get out like it would with a vaginal delivery. So they took her to the NICU to monitor her breathing and her blood sugar was low. Unfortunately she is still there, but she seems to be doing really well. She is breathing well and off oxygen, but they're just really monitoring her sugars. It's so hard to not have her up here with me but I know she's in great hands down there. I get to go down and visit anytime I want. I can't believe how much we love that little girl already. Aaaaaahhhhh I just love her so much. Are you ready to see some pics? I feel so bad that she has all these cords in for these pics, but she doesn't anymore and she's so beautiful! More pictures to come I promise.

More to come and updates as well. Thank you all for your love and prayers! We feel like the luckiest parents in the world. What a sweet blessing this is.

Forgiveness

I really wanted to share this on our blog because it's impacted me so much. No matter what your religious denomination is, I think this video can put life into perspective for all of us. I admire this man so much and hope to be more like him.

For some reason the right side is cut off on my layout so here is the link for the full screen. Enjoy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7zwQ_7q-fU

Baby Update

I thought maybe it would be good to give a little baby update since I haven't in awhile. Okay so here's the scoop:

Baby J is still breech. Dang that little gal, we've been praying for her to turn and as of today, no luck yet. I already knew going into the Dr. today that nothing had changed as I can feel her head right under my you-know-whats. She is straight up and down, feet down at the bottom. Not to be graphic, but I had a pelvic exam today and when the Dr. reached up there she said she felt her feet and she thought one of her knees as well. That was crazy to me! I couldn't believe she just touched her, I am so jealous! She said, "Yep! She is definitely breech and you're dilated to a 3." I've been kind of bummed the last few weeks knowing that she was still breech and hadn't turned. It's not the end of the world and I know there's still a chance that she could turn. I just feel like she would've turned by now and just my instinct is telling me that she's tried and she just can't. And I have a feeling she's just too big to be doing somersaults in there anymore. But we'll keep praying and crossing our fingers that maybe she'll turn. Scott just keeps telling me it's not the end of the world if I have to have a C-section. Let me just explain this though, my whole life I've thought about delivering a baby. Just going through that whole experience, pushing, holding my sweet husband's hand while he gets me through it, just that whole "high" of childbirth ya know? And it's just weird to think that I'm not going to have that with this one (most likely). The good news is I have an ultrasound next week and if she hasn't turned we're gonna schedule the c-section for 39 weeks which I'm great with. I'm totally ready for this little gal to come. I keep having dreams of having her and then I wake up and see my tummy and am instantly reminded that sure enough, she's definitely not here yet. But that means we're most likely having a baby THIS MONTH! That's crazy! Anyway, sorry for my venting. The bottom line is I know Heavenly Father knows what He's doing and if little Baby J doesn't turn, it must be for a reason. All I have to say is that I'm just so grateful I'm not a pioneer woman because that would be a lot more to stress over having a "feet first" baby. I am so blessed and I am SO GRATEFUL to have a healthy baby, no matter how she comes it's going to be amazing. I have also been so lucky throughout this whole pregnancy. Yeah, the first couple months were awful with being sick but other than that I've been so healthy and felt so great. I am still able to exercise and carry on with a normal schedule, nothing really holding me back. I feel so lucky. Let's do this though! 35 1/2 weeks down, 3 1/2 to go!!! Wooohooo!!!!