Hospital Stay with Baby

I started composing this post immediately following my last post, and here it still sits, months later...this is my reality. 

Just a few more things to share from Evelyn's birthday story. After all the excitement and frenzy died down, we were able to move to our room and spend time resting and visiting with family. Amazingly, we were gifted a hospital suite from Chase's parents, and it was perfect. We had LOTS of people there, but we could have privacy in our own room and separate, gorgeous bathroom. Chase had a comfortable, queen-sized bed to himself, and we ate gourmet meals. It was worth every penny...that we didn't have to spend. THANKS BOB AND DONNA!

Everybody wanted to watch as Evelyn had her first bath.

And of course EVERYONE was so excited to get their hands on her! We had a visit from Kylie at some point as well, but I couldn't find a picture anywhere! She will be in many future pictures with Evelyn, though!

Mrs. Val

Aunt Susan

Danny, Ronda, Ty, and Taylor

Aunt Ronda must've been operating the camera.

I was sad we hadn't gotten a picture of the three of us together, so Chase took this selfie.

Uncle Dustin and Jane

We asked Jane, "What's the baby doing?" Her exasperated reply to our obvious question was, "Sucking!" No pun or irony is lost on us; there have been many moments since when she has been quoted.

Aunt Michelle

Beth stopped by to say hello, and it was really special to see her!

Daddy with his fun t-shirt. I mean, it's so true.

And our food...

So...much...food!

Our stay there kind of spoiled us. Everyone talks about having difficult birth experiences for one reason or another, but the hospital was the easiest part of having a baby for me. Maybe I expected the worst and was pleasantly surprised. The all-night childcare was definitely a perk! We had a great time in the hospital and made wonderful memories there that we will cherish forever.

Well, It's About Time!

Since my last post, a few significant things have happened: I had a baby, that baby turned one month, I went back to work, she turned two months, three months, we had Thanksgiving and Christmas, she turned four months, five months, I stopped working, and she's almost SIX MONTHS OLD! Needless to say, I've had no time until now. I'm DETERMINED to share something of this precious babe!

In the beginning...I was induced on September 3. Nobody wants to know every detail of a birth story, but there are a few things I want to remember about Evelyn's birthday. We "picked" the date for her birth because Chase's birthday is June 3 and mine is November 3. Of course I could have been in labor all day and night and not had her until the fourth, but we thought we'd give ourselves the chance. My goodness, I was ready to meet her! Scheduling the induction meant that we had a chance to get everything ready and packed. We also could let family know in advance. We have a lot of family. We're blessed that they were all so excited to meet her and all wanted to be there! Nerves were taking over in the morning, and things progressed slowly and steadily. Basically, the first time I said, "Ow, this kind of might hurt," the nurse asked, "Are you ready for your epidural?"

"Yes. Yes I am."

This is the part of the story where people start to hate me. And by people I mean everyone who's had a difficult labor. Once the epidural started, I was HAPPY. I did not know how much pain I was experiencing until I was more comfortable than I've ever been in my life. It felt like stepping into a piping hot bath for the first time. I took a nap, and in the afternoon the nurse came back to check my progress. She decided not to tell me what it was because she needed a "second opinion." Panicked, I told my mom, "This is it. I haven't made any progress, and they're going to have to start discussing other options." I just knew it was the worst case scenario. The more experienced nurse came in and checked and said, "Yep, you thought right, nine and a half and plus one." Looking at me, she said, "Let's start trying some practice pushes."

We were ready!!!!!!

Practice pushing is code for real pushing, and about an hour later we had this sweet thing looking back at us.

When I first saw her as the doctor held her up, I said, "She's huge!" My doctor responded, "Yeah, she's a lot bigger than I expected!" Those rolls, my friends, are credited entirely to Blue Bell.

This daddy was so excited! He was jumping up and down and crying and clapping! I just love him.

This picture of Chase reminds me so much of my favorite picture from the night we were engaged. I think it's the relieved peace that comes with knowing the most anxious part is over.

8 pound, 13 ounce Evelyn Elizabeth rocked our world. She was curious and wide-eyed from the get-go, and everyone remarked how alert she was. 

SO MUCH more to come, but there's a little lady awake in the other room who needs her momma.

Pregnancy Pics: Weeks 23-40

Amazingly enough, I'm actually writing this blog BEFORE Evelyn's arrival. I'm shocked that I managed to get this done before I went into labor, but having a baby right after a 3-day weekend has its perks. We've been so busy getting prepped for the big day, and I've had lots of extra time to get everything done! It's refreshing to feel so ready. 

Here are all the photos we've taken of my pregnancy progress (actually, NOT EVEN CLOSE to all of them...Chase was ambitious with the weekly photographs). Weeks 32 and 33 are missing because we were in Vegas, and then took maternity pictures.

And from above:

I ran out of energy to do a collage from start to finish, but I included the pictures from my previous post for comparison's sake. Culling through and choosing which pictures to use, and then actually making the collages took about three hours. That's a lot of swelling time for my cankles.

Pregnancy is so beautiful, and I loved every moment...right up until the first moment of my third trimester. I may have "birthing hips," but my rib cage is another story. I've had this nerve pain on the right side of my ribs for the last ten or so weeks. The more I sit, the worse it gets. Sleeping? What a joke! I've been cranky and fatigued and a downright pleasure to be around, I'm sure. My sweet husband...he needs an award for putting up with this hot mess. Oh, and hot, I forgot to mention hot. I've never been hot this much in my life! I'm one of those people who takes a sweater everywhere. Not. This. Summer. Oh, right...back to Chase. Could any man be more tolerant and long-suffering? I mean, I already knew this because he married me, but he's been even MORE obliging and gracious. I won the husband lottery, and I hope he knows how much I'm thankful for him!

Really, I am thankful for such a smooth, drama-free pregnancy, but this emotional desire to be free from this weight on my chest runs much deeper than logic. It's hormonal. 

It really helps when strangers at the grocery store ask if you're having twins, too. 

Dear, sweet, beautiful Evelyn. COME OUT, ALREADY! It's much more fun out here!

Nursery

If you know anything about me, you know I like to be original. Taking ideas from others and making them my own is fun for me, and once I get an idea in my head I don't stop until it happens. For our nursery, I wanted it to be a room I enjoy, and I wanted it to be personal. Themes are scary. You tell one person you're doing a "Nursery Rhyme" theme and it's OVER. I was careful to never say that because the room is so much more. Inspiration came from your favorite site and mine: Pinterest. At first, I was lost, which is unusual for me. And then I found this:

It's called Nursery Rhyme Toille, it's gender-neutral (one of my requirements), it's traditional, and it's everything I love about children and childhood without being cheesy. Words, books, songs, rhymes, and scripture are all extremely important parts of childhood for me. I have had the great joy of attending infant and toddler music classes as part of my job as a nanny. I have noticed that many of the songs being taught in these classes are vaguely memorable from my childhood. Poems and songs introduce language and knowledge in a fun and engaging way. I can't emphasize how important they are for development, and I want our Evelyn to be surrounded by words and music.

Everything in this nursery has special meaning from a family member or friend. I loved every second of planning and preparing it, and I'm especially thankful for all the help I got...including some extreme, late-night contributions from my mom and mother-in-law.

We have some very talented friends who live down the street who helped us with several aspects of Evelyn's room. Julie taught me how to sew, and we spent some late nights making the crib skirt. For my first attempt at using a sewing machine, it turned out great (if I do say so myself). Thank you to my spectacular teacher!

My sister-in-law Michelle is amazingly gifted in many areas. She crocheted this beautiful (and SOFT) blanket for Evelyn, and it is a treasure.

My sweet mom worked with her neighbor to make rail covers with some of the leftover fabric, and they are perfect! She even used the extra ribbon from the blanket that Michelle made.

I found inspiration for this collage on Pinterest, and casually showed it to my mother-in-law one day. She responded, "Oh, yeah, we can do that. We just need to..." That was that. We labored several hours piecing, pasting, and painting this masterpiece. She put in much more time than I did, and it shows how attentive she was to detail. The cards, a family tree, favorite hymn music, scripture, and a picture from the cover of Chase's baby book make it personal and beloved. One day, I know Evelyn will realize how special this piece is for all of us. Thank you, Donna!

Once again, I love all things old, traditional, and special. I found this mobile online after I had decided to go with the books/rhymes/music/words "theme." It's designed and made by Irmi, and my mom hunted down one that is in working order with all the pieces. It's very important to me that mobiles spin and play a song, and this one does both! Thanks, mom, for finding and procuring it! Evelyn will spend hours gazing at it, I'm sure!

This little tree has fingerprints from the people who came to two of Evelyn's showers, and it was drawn by my mother-in-law. Such a sweet reminder of all those who love our little girl already!

Listen, God knows what we need before we do. He blessed us this summer with Alina, a precious girl who lived with us this summer. I think her love language is doing the dishes...and she did a LOT. I'm not sure she knew what she was getting into by moving in with a lady in her third trimester of pregnancy, but we're so glad she did. Another talented contributor to the nursery, she painted the picture on the right from the artistry in a book of nursery rhymes. I told her that this specific lullaby is one my family has always sung, but that the two verses in the book were not the right words. She surprised me at a shower with this amazing painting. Thank you, Alina, for your care for our family, and this precious piece that will remind us of you forever.

In my neighborhood, there is a group of ladies who have adopted me as another child (and Evelyn as a grandchild). One of those sweet ladies made this beautiful blanket, and it goes perfectly with all the other parts of the room. Thanks, Kathleen!

This little photo bomber loves Evelyn's room already...TROUBLE.

Chase made these bookshelves for the room. They look exactly how I wanted them to look, and he did such a great job!

These two pieces are my "alley finds" along with the window hanging on the other side of the room. Eric and Julie over at Davis Wood Design fixed up the little chair and a highchair we bought. They did a fabulous job, and we are so thankful for their help!

My sweet husband (with some help from my mom) gave me these two frames for Mother's Day this year. The plan is to restage the picture with Evelyn when she gets here. He is a thoughtful gift-giver. Thanks, honey!

We simply cannot wait to bring our precious girl home to this room that's filled with love from friends and family! Hopefully the wait won't be much longer!

Maternity Photos

We have the most amazing neighbors in the world. Hands down, ours are better than yours. They're our family. Matt also happens to be an AMAZING, TALENTED, and GIFTED photographer. His photographs need absolutely no words, but I'm me, so let's get real, I'm going to write a few.

I knew I wanted something comfortable and sweet (you know, just like pregnancy). I wanted the pictures to capture us in our "normal" state. Matt kept laughing at me because the nature of maternity pictures is that they're NOT NORMAL. We don't sit around talking with Chase's hand on my belly. Nobody does. Nor does anyone stare tenderly and longingly at their belly. Nonetheless, Matt was able to get the perfect shots of us, and I'm in love with them. Seriously, I can't stop looking at them. I didn't want to fancy them up with anything, so I'm leaving them without any kind of arrangement.

Normalcy in our house often involves a cat or dog in your face. We're those weird people who have both, and they're both pests...that we love. I had to include these because they made me laugh so hard when I saw them!

This one is my personal favorite. I just like the expressions we both have, and how natural it looks. Of course I love that they're in our kitchen into which we poured all of our blood, sweat, and tears for 2 months! I also now find it humorous that I'm barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen...the perfect wife, right?

I could not be more pleased. Matt, thank you so much for capturing this special time for us. 

36 Week Letter to Evelyn

I wrote this on Monday morning, more for me than anything. If I wait much longer to post, it won't be relevant so I'll save pictures for another day...

Sweet Evelyn,

I'm 36 weeks along which means just 4 more weeks until I meet you... Maybe sooner! Your daddy and I can't wait!

I woke up at 5 today because my ribs hurt. Why? Well, we saw you on a sonogram last week and you already weigh six pounds. Being horizontal for more than 6 hours has become basically impossible. I told Daddy that you're probably the only one who truly understands my discomfort since you're all squished in there. I also can't go back to sleep because you have the hiccups. You get them about three times a day. Since the day I started to feel you moving, you've rarely stopped. I guess your hiccups woke you this morning because it feels like you're having a party in there now! I have a feeling I'm going to frequently see 5:30 AM in the coming months...

Seeing your chubby cheeks last week makes the waiting practically unbearable! My doctor says you're developing perfectly! We could see your hair floating and waving in the sonogram. You're facing perfectly toward my back which means that we couldn't see your face much, but we did get to see you open and close your eyes a few times. You are just beautiful, my sweet girl!

I've been so busy preparing for you. Yesterday I washed your carrier and all the parts. Daddy is so anxious for me to "pack a bag." I think it's one of the things he knows we have to do, and he wants to help. We finished your nursery last week and started ordering all the other things we'll need for your arrival. There are so many special little gifts in that nursery from all the people who love you! It's so neat to have shelves and paintings and a collage crafted just by people who can't wait to meet you! It's filled with words and pictures to teach you about the greatest love you'll ever know!

I think about you constantly. Will you look like me? Will you talk a lot like I do? Will you have your daddy's eyelashes? His eyebrows? Don't worry, I'll teach you how to tweeze and tie your shoes before kindergarten if you do. Most of all, I wonder if I will be a good mommy to you. Will I give enough grace? Will I have enough patience? Will I teach you to trust and depend on God instead of yourself? I can't do it with my own strength. I hope I can be a prayer warrior like your Nana and a servant like your Daddy and Grandma. I realize more everyday how big this parenting job is. It humbles me and drives me back to the best Parent I've ever known. He's a Good Father who gives good gifts to His children. He's given me you...a precious little one to be cherished and nurtured. I pray for grace to do it well. He promises that His grace is sufficient for me because His power is made perfect in my weakness. What a relief to know that I don't have to be perfect...or even close. What a peace is mine to lean on the everlasting arms!