Happy Birthday!

I know this is almost 2 weeks late, but we've been enjoying being home and adjusting to having a little one in our lives and house. Becca is definitely our little miracle and she makes us so happy every day!

Tuesday morning arrived and we were ready to get to the hospital and finally get to meet our baby girl. We didn't have to be there until 9:30, so we had a little time to waste in the morning. We took one last belly and family picture. Thankfully the cats seemed to be getting back to themselves as well!!

39 weeks and 6 days

Just the two of us

We got checked in at the hospital very quickly and before we knew it we were in the triage room. Jordan and I were by ourselves for a bit as they got me hooked up to the monitors and the IV. The IV unfortunately took two tries because they missed the vein and I moved my arm a bit. I still have a bruise from that one!! Soon enough our parents were able to come in and hang out with us. As we guessed, the surgery got pushed back from 11:30 until 12:30 and then again until after 1:00. It wasn't a bad wait and Jordan's brothers and grandmother showed up during that time as well.

 My doctor came in to check on me just before the c-section and decided to do one last ultrasound since we had a little extra time before the operating room would be ready. We got a big surprise at that point, Becca had flipped to head down! I had never felt any big movement or flip just the normal things I felt daily. The doctor left for a minute to get another nurse and Jordan and I had a chance to talk. We decided to go through with the c-section anyway for a number or reasons. I was mentally prepared for the surgery and recovery and the thought of being induced and laboring was a little scary. Plus, even with the induction she still wasn't engaged yet, so there was still a chance she could flip back or we could end up with a c-section depending on the way labor went. Bottom line was, we were both ready to have our baby with us.

We had a chance to quickly tell and grab our family in the waiting room and were hurried down to the operating room for prep. I got my spinal block while Jordan got dressed in the waiting room. Before I knew it I was lying on the table, numb and ready for surgery. They brought Jordan back to the room and probably within 5 minutes of the first incision they were pulling out Becca and we heard her cry. Jordan watched while they pulled her out and they showed her to me over the curtain right away.

Ready for surgery

Looking good!!

Jordan went to watch her get checked out and take some pictures and then he was able to bring her back to me for a few minutes. He went with her up to the nursery while they finished the surgery. Once I was in the recovery room Jordan was able to come in and show me some more pictures. Our family got to stay up by the nursery and watch Becca getting examined.

After only about 45 minutes in recovery, they brought me up to the mother/baby unit. I saw our family along the way and I felt pretty good and with it. I got settled in the room with Jordan and pretty soon they brought Rebecca down to us. I was able to try breastfeeding right away with the nurses assistance and they spent some time checking our vitals and helping us out. We had sent our parents to dinner while we got settled because there was still a lot happening in the room, but soon enough everyone was able to come back and meet/hold their granddaughter and niece for the first time.

Holding my baby girl for the first time <3

Daddy and his little girl <3

The proud grandparents

Aunt Jenn and Uncle Robert

It was a whirlwind of a day, but we finally got to meet our sweet little Rebecca Anne. It was love at first sight!

Purr-babies

One of the biggest things Jordan and I have worried about was the adjustment our kitties would have to make to the new addition. They are our babies, but we know that once we bring our baby girl home she will be much more important to us, but we still wanted to make sure Chloe and Izzy are important.

As we've cleaned house, moved their food and litter box, decorated and put together a nursery we took each step slow so that they could adjust. In doing reading and talking to friends (thanks Betsy!!) we were all set to bring something of Becca's home from the hospital for them to smell and adjust to and then when we brought her home from the hospital to let them approach her.

I have always said I will do everything I could to keep our cats and make the adjustment easy for them.

Then came this past Sunday. There are a couple "stray" neighborhood cats. One of them has been coming over and attacking our cats through the windows. Usually Izzy will be upset for a bit and hiss and growl and Chloe because she thinks she is the outdoor cat, but generally will be better in a couple hours. Sunday morning I woke up at 6:30am to the hissing/growling/running in the house. I woke Jordan, because he can move faster than me, and he went downstairs. Izzy was up high hissing and growling. Come to find out she has also sprayed in the house. We spent most of the day trying to get them to tolerate each other again, but each time Izzy would hiss, growl, and sprayed twice more. Totally not how we wanted to spend our last day before we became parents!!

We put Izzy in the spare room, hoping that overnight things would magically be better. We have been trying to reintroduce them to each other. Things are a bit better today, but not perfect. We're hoping with a little time they will at least tolerate each other. Problem of course being we won't be home to monitor things.

 I realize that once we get to the hospital and Miss Becca arrives she will be our main concern, but for right now my heart breaks every time I think about our kitties. Let's hope that time really does heal all wounds!

39 weeks

It's the final countdown! I am 39 weeks and still, for the most part, enjoying being pregnant.

39 weeks

The big news from our doctors appointment this week is that we have scheduled a c-section. Becca is still breech and we decided that we weren't comfortable attempting the version procedure. In talking to our doctor and some research, the success rate is a little over 50%, however, it is a very painful procedure and often the baby has a tendency to flip back to their original position. Often if they are able to flip the baby they will induce you to get the labor started while they know she is in the right position. Even then a vaginal delivery isn't always possible because the baby wasn't in position long enough.

The rest of the appointment was good. All my lab work was normal, along with Becca's heart rate. We talked to the doctor about the process of a c-section and what is expected. Unless something happens naturally, Becca's birthday will be April 17th. So we have one more weekend to get some things done and enjoy life as the two of us.

Other than that this past week has been busy doing more baby prep work. It is all last minute things that aren't that important, but would be nice to have done before she arrives. Staying on top of laundry (both ours and hers), decorating, cleaning and relaxing! We spent most of Sunday with Jordan's family to celebrate Easter. It was a beautiful day!

Relaxing nights! Cranberry juice for me, wine for Jordan!

38 weeks

Still pregnant! And still feeling good, which I suppose is even better in the 9th month!

38 weeks

We had our doctor's appointment on Monday and ultrasound Tuesday. Ideally they are usually at the same time, but the ultrasound tech was off on Monday for a funeral so we had to reschedule. The doctor's appointment went well; all my vitals and Becca's were good! We also discussed the various options based on the results of the ultrasound. The Tuesday appointment couldn't come soon enough! We were able to find out that Becca is still breech. Everything looked good though and her weight was estimated at 6 pounds. Of course she still has a couple more weeks (hopefully) to grow. Since she is still breech at our doctor's appointment next Wednesday we will be scheduling a c-section.

The rest of the week has been pretty busy, but productive. Over the weekend we had dinner with Jordan's family for Justin's birthday, I went to a baby consignment sale with Carolyn, went to a Final Four party at Betsy's dad's house, and Sunday got some cleaning and organizing done. Monday I worked on and completed the second pom pom ball for Becca's room (pictures coming soon!). Tuesday we visited our friends, Jen and James and big brother Riley. We got to meet baby Colin, can't believe that will be us in a few short weeks!

Reality Sets In

One of the typical questions I get at this point of my pregnancy is "are you ready for it to be over" and in reality that is the hardest question to answer. I've been so lucky with how I've felt the whole time that I have never minded being pregnant (besides missing my glasses of wine!). I get tired a little quicker, have some slight swelling in my hands and feet, and of course some aches and pains from the extra weight. Overall though, the last couple weeks haven't been bad and I am happy to wait a couple more!

Of course I can't wait to meet our precious little girl, but it is a scary as well. Jordan and I are so used to it being just the two of us. Things will be different with a baby, activities will take a little more planning, relaxing nights on the couch will be fewer, and date nights will have new meaning. And of course add in the fact that you have a new little person that you are responsible for. Never again will it only be each other that we worry about, but there will always be someone else whose life seems bigger and more important than your own. Don't get me wrong, we of course realized this back when we chose to have a family, but reality sets in a little more when the future is not so far away!

Even though that it may be scary and things may change, we are very ready to start our family. To have someone to love and love us unconditionally is an amazing thought. With all the nerves and anxiousness we are getting to experience the joy of parenthood. We'll take the bad and the good; smiles and tears, laughter and tantrums. Our little girl is going to open our eyes to a whole new world.

 If she wants to give us a couple more weeks to adjust though, we'd be perfectly okay with that too!!