2 weeks later

First of all, I really appreciate the support I received after that last blog post about my birth experience.  I really feel like I have the best friends around!

Secondly, it’s amazing what a difference a week makes!  David is now 2 and a half weeks old and I feel totally different than I did when he was one week old.  I feel GREAT!  I’m tired, but doing fantastic!  For the most part I feel back to my normal self again.  I’m back in my normal clothes, I’m not taking pain pills, I feel pretty normal. 

Thirdly, Paul had family in town this past weekend and we took lots of pictures, but I’m not ready for that blog post yet so here’s some pictures we took of David when he was 6 days old.  Enjoy!

After his first bath

Awake

and Asleep

I think this one is my favorite though!

David Daniel Thomas

For those of you not on facebook, you might not have heard that David Daniel Thomas was born on Monday, August 29, 2011 at 1:45pm via cesarean section.  He was 9 lbs 2.4 oz and 21 inches long.  He is gorgeous and wonderful and we are so glad to be home and have him be a part of our family.

For those of you who want to know more details, I’ll do my best to blog about my birth experience, although I still can’t talk about it without crying.  Those who don’t want to know all the details, feel free to just look at the pictures. 

Paul holding David

Brian and Christian holding David

Brian LOVES him!

His going home outfit

Christian kisses him as often as possible

Christian was trying to help burp David

I asked Aaron to help burp him the other morning.  I can’t believe how big he’s getting!

Now for David’s birth story. We chose to be induced 4 days after his due date so that my own doctor could deliver my baby. I could have been induced a week early by another doctor in my OB’s practice, but my doctor wasn’t able to induce me before she went out of town without a medical reason to take the baby early. (In hind sight, I REALLY wish we had been able to do that, but unfortunately we didn’t know then what was going to happen).

We arrived at the hospital at 5:20am for our scheduled induction and the hospital was kinda busy. We waited an hour before they put in my IV (which really hurt!) another half an hour before they put the IV in the pump to start giving me fluid, then half an hour later my doctor arrived to tell me she wanted to wait until after she did another c-section before she got started with me. So again we waited. An hour later they started my oxytocin. One more half an hour later Dr. Corovessis broke my water then another half an hour later I got my epidural. We waited another hour and a half before the doctor came back to check me again.

At this point she told me I was progressing well, had gone from 3-4cm to 7cm, but she could feel that his left hand was resting on top of his head. Yep, he was waving at us! She and the nurses had me shift positions a few times trying to get him to move his arm and she tried to move his arm physically too. At this point I was at 9cm and it was 11:30am. A few minutes later I began to push.

After pushing for nearly an hour and a half my doctor made the decision that I needed to have a cesarean section. David still had his left hand on top of his head which could have caused him damage and made it difficult for me to deliver him. He also had his head turned off kilter, he was trying to come out a little crooked, thus making it even more difficult for me to deliver him. While I was nervous at the thought of having a c-section, I trusted my doctor and knew it was for the best.

David was born at 1:45pm and came out looking pretty beat up. His left hand was all puffy, there was a small dent in his head where his hand had been resting, and his face was all puffy where he had tried to come out sideways. Paul said he looked like he had been in a fight! Paul took him to the nursery and we found out he was 9 lbs 2.4 oz. They called back to the OR to tell us and my doctor said “Wow, He really WASN’T going to fit!” The nursery didn’t give him back to us for several hours as they had to clean him up and run several tests, but by the time I was able to hold him for the first time he looked great.

Dr. Corovessis holding David SECONDS after being born

See how beat up he looks!

I however, was completely unprepared for the after effects of the c-section. First of all, I assumed that I would have an easy delivery since things went so well with my delivery of Christian. I had never entertained any thoughts of having a c-section and really didn’t know what to expect. There are still several emotional repercussions from that.

I’m grateful for the epidural which allowed me to have a successful surgery without any pain. One effect of the medication, the procedure, and a very cold operating room, was that I was shaking uncontrollably for over an hour. That was pretty annoying! The epidural also made me itch like crazy for about 24 hours. Also pretty annoying.

I’m also grateful for the pain meds which I am on here at home which allow me to manage the pain from my incision. I am healing well, but it DOES hurt and I’ve been told it may continue to hurt for a long time. Today was better than yesterday though and I am hopeful I will continue to feel better everyday.

David is nursing GREAT! My other boys all had trouble nursing while in the hospital, but David nursed so well that my milk came in while I was still in the hospital. That’s good and bad, but mostly good that he’s doing so well.

I’m very grateful to my mom who stayed at my house for 4 days while I was in the hospital. She took care of my boys when I wasn’t able to and I knew I didn’t have to worry about them at all. Thanks mom!

I’m also very grateful for all the love and support my friends have given me. I got over 60 comments on my Facebook status that he was born! I have felt such an outpouring of love these past few weeks and feel truly blessed. Thanks to all those who have visited and have offered to help. I hope I am as good a friend to them as they all are to me!

For those of you who actually got this far and read all that…wow…you deserve a medal! We’re home, we’re happy, we’re doing great! I am so glad to have my beautiful baby boy here with me and have our family all together. I’m glad they’re mine!

August 25, 2011 Update

I first found out I was pregnant on Christmas morning and when we went to the doctor in January the doctor told us our due date was August 25, 2011.  I am officially 40 weeks pregnant today and still very pregnant!

I had LOTS of contractions last night, but they never got very regular and when I went to the doctor this morning she said I hadn’t really progressed much.  I’m still having contractions and am starting to be much more uncomfortable and get a little grumpy and I’m really ready to have this baby. 

One benefit to still being pregnant though is that I was able to have some prenatal photos taken last night.  With my belly this big, I had to have it properly documented!

I’m scheduled to be induced on Monday morning, August 29th if he hasn’t come yet and that is the first day my doctor will be back in town and could deliver my baby too.  Whether he comes in the next few days or waits for medical intervention I have no control over it.  He’ll come when he comes and there’s nothing I can do. 

My next post should be about his birth, unless something crazy happens between now and then!  Everybody wish me luck!

Brian’s Foot

As many of you know, Brian cut the bottom of his right foot on Saturday.  Since several people have inquired about the details, here’s what happened. 

We had been swimming at my moms house and having a great time and had just gotten out of the pool to dry off.  We were sitting around talking and he decided to get up and go up the outside staircase, but I asked him to come back down since I didn’t want Christian trying to go up.  He came down and stepped on a broken flower pot (assumedly broken by a stray golf ball). 

There were immediate shrieks of pain and quite a bit of blood.  My mom and I worked together to get him to sit down so we could evaluate the problem.  We held towels to his foot to stop the bleeding and when it stopped my mom took this picture before we bandaged it. 

It’s a jagged cut all the way across the bottom of his right foot.  There are flaps of loose skin and several of the cuts are quite deep.  Once bandaged, we helped carry him into the house, gave him some tylenol, and let him relax.  We only stayed at my moms house about another hour then we carried him to the car and I drove home.  Not surprisingly, he fell asleep in the car.  

Shortly after arriving home I finally got in touch with Paul who was at an overnight staff development meeting for his Woodbadge scouting program over an hour away.  When he realized what was going on he opted to come home early to help and suggested we call a good friend, Chandler Knies, who is an ER nurse, to evaluate whether or not he needs stitches.

Chandler came over, determined that while some of the cuts were deep, the flaps of skin were quite thin and that the ER would probably NOT give stitches.  Instead, Chandler helped clean the wound better with water and hydrogen peroxide then administered liquid bandages and steri strips to basically glue his foot back together and tape it closed. 

That was MISERABLE as Chandler and I tried to hold him still to work on him.  Being 9 months pregnant and trying to hold down a 45 lb 5 year old who is crying, screaming, and begging us to stop was just about more than I could handle.  Luckily Paul got home as we were finishing and was able to help. 

His foot continues to heal slowly, and so far nothing looks infected.  He DID go to school for the first day of kindergarten with his foot wrapped, a sock on it, and wearing Aaron’s crocs which are a size bigger than what he normally wears.  He walks on his toes, but limps along pretty well.  We took off the bandages Monday evening to soak it and clean it and here’s what it looks like now. 

It feels slightly better every day and we hope he will make a full recovery.  I haven’t taken him in to the doctor for his 5 yr check-up, but will as soon as the baby is born, so we’ll have the doctor check it all out and see if she recommends anything different.  As for now, thank you to everyone who has expressed concern and love for my son.  We are surviving!

First Day of School

Aaron is starting the 2nd grade

and Brian is starting kindergarten.

Both kids like their teachers so far and are excited for school to start!  (Brian is on one foot because he hurt his foot over the weekend and is limping/barely walking today…maybe I’ll blog about that later!)

There’s too many kids in this tub

 

There's too many kids in this tub
There's too many elbows to scrub
I just washed a behind that I'm sure wasn't mine
There's too many kids in this tub.

Shel Silverstein

(Just wait until the 4th boy comes and joins the group!)

Brian turned 5!

Happy Birthday to my wonderfully sweet 5 year old boy. 

This slideshow of less than 20 pictures starts with pictures of him opening presents, then of the friends who were at his birthday party at Chuck E Cheeses, then finally some pictures of the birthday boy. I kept telling him to look at me and smile at the camera…this is what I got! Enjoy!

Baby D: Almost here! (38 weeks so far)

We are anxiously awaiting the arrival of our 4th son.  His due date is August 25th and we have no idea exactly when he will arrive.  Aaron was 3 days late.  Brian was induced 10 days early.  Christian was induced 5 days early.  I am not being induced with David though, so there is a lot more uncertainty and no solid end in sight.  While we know he “could” come any day, we don’t have any reason to believe he will make his appearance early at all.  It makes things a little more crazy around here. 

But, I can hardly complain.  I still feel great and look pretty good too if I do say so myself.

Thank you to my wonderful mother who blessed me with her genes…4th baby and still no stretch marks!  Am I tired?  Sure, I’m 38 weeks pregnant, what do you expect?  But I cat nap when I can and go to bed early so I’m surviving.  My children and husband might disagree since they get the brunt of my occasional grumpiness, but they’ll survive too…right?

We actually have a lot going on right now.  My mom who typically lives 30 min away is out of town for the baby blessing of my newest niece, so she wants me to wait until she gets back next Wednesday before I have the baby.  Sunday I’m singing in our ward choir at Stake Conference.  Tuesday is Brian’s 5th birthday, and we’re having a birthday party at Chuck E Cheese’s.  Wednesday is kindergarten orientation and meet the teacher night at the elementary school.  A few days later on Friday and Saturday Paul has some scout training he’s supposed to attend.  Then the next Monday is the first day of school, so the first day of 2nd grade for Aaron and the first day of kindergarten for Brian.  The due date is the following Thursday!  I happen to think all these things are fairly important and don’t really want to miss them.  That combined with the fact that my doctor for the past 8 years is now out of town and won’t be back until after my due date makes me mostly ok with the thought that I’m probably not going into labor any time soon. 

The doctor  tried to help move things along this past week, trying to help me have this baby before she left town, but it obviously didn’t work.  I’ll admit I threw a little bit of a pity party when the disappointment of still being pregnant sank in, but I realize I’m still 2 weeks away from my due date, so there’s no real reason to cry.  I know David will come when my body is ready to kick him out and since I’m doing well I really can’t complain too much. 

Thanks for all the love and support I’ve gotten from my friends and family and we look forward to updating you all with information when he’s born (but I’m guessing we’ll post updates about Brian’s birthday and the boys first days of school first!)

Our Toothless Wonder

The two front teeth came out 10 days apart and we love his new look!  It’ll be a great way to start the 2nd grade!

More Summer Fun

I can’t believe how fast this summer has flown by.  School starts in a little more than 2 weeks and the baby is due in less than 3 weeks.  We’ve had a lot of fun even though we’ve spent most of our time at home.  We’ve had lots of playgroups, hanging out with friends, and spending time at Grandma’s house. 

My grandfather (96 yrs old) came in town and so did my sister, Marcia, with her 3 yo Brycen and her 2 mo Brooklyn.  We hung out at grandma’s house and at Lake Conroe and had a great time with all of them and my Aunt Nancy and Uncle Tom.

Brian especially loved hanging out with Great-Grandpa Fuller

Aunt Nancy, Aaron and Uncle Tom

Grandpa and I

Christian LOVED the “baby” and pointed at her ALL THE TIME

Brian and Brooklyn

Aaron and Brooklyn

Marcia, Brooklyn and I

Aaron, Paul and Brian on the jetski

Brycen and Christian playing ring around the rosies

I took about 15 pictures of this and still couldn’t get one where everyone was looking at the camera! 

The boys had so much fun playing with Brycen and were very sad to see them go home.  I especially appreciated having my mom and sister come help me get things ready for this baby to come, moving furniture, making freezer meals, organizing kids clothes etc.. 

Road Trip Days 4 and 5–Salt Lake City, UT to Albuquerque, NM then on home to Houston

Finally we began our way back home.  We decided not to make any big stops on the the drive back, just to get home as quickly as we could.  We did look for several geocaches at rest stops, and a few others along the way, but mostly we just drove home. 

Geocaching at Hole N The Rock

The first day, Saturday, was a shorter day on the road.  We had breakfast in the car, lunch in Moab, an oil change in Cortez, Colorado, dinner along the side of the road somewhere in New Mexico, then we stayed the night in Albuquerque. 

Christian really did great on the road trip, here he’s just relaxing reading a book!

We found one geocache at a random statue off the side of the road in New Mexico.  Odd, but beautiful!

Our last day, Sunday, we stuck to the freeways to maximize rest stops, but made one quick detour in El Paso to see the house where I had spent my high school years.

We then continued along I-10 all the way across Texas to get home at 1am on Monday morning.

Lots of miles with nothing but huge windmills

I think by the end of the trip, we were ALL tired of being in the car, (we drove A LOT this trip, not just to Utah and back but to the Uintah’s, Provo, Pocatello, etc..) but I was thoroughly impressed with my kids and how well they handled our cross-country road trip.  Although I never want to do this again while I’m 7 months pregnant, I’m sure we’ll make the drive to Utah several times in the next 20 years and see all the sights there are to see between Texas and Utah!