Talli Brienne

Well after beginning to think I was going to be pregnant forever or at least think that I was going to go over and have to be induced, she finally decided to come meet her family and I am so grateful. She is just beautiful and I am so excited to have another sweet little spirit in our family. She was born on Sunday, March 28th at 4:26 am, she weighed 7 lbs 1 oz and was 19 1/2 inches long. We are all so in love with her.

Labor Story...

On Wednesday I had my doctors appointment. I told him I that I did not want to see him next week for a doctors appointment and I did not want to have to go to church on Sunday and hear "you are still pregnant." So I asked him to please help me out. He laughed at me and said he understands that the women at church sometimes tend to have foot in mouth disease (he's LDS, used to be the Bishop in our ward). Anyways so when he checked me I was just praying for a change, he told me I was dialated to a 3 almost 4 and he stripped my membranes. He said he would be seeing me this weekend if not tonight. So I got really excited. I thought ok I am almost done, I can do this. I called Fawn to let her know the update, she said she was already on her way up. Then I called David and let him know the news. He wasn't nearly as excited as I was. He was right in the middle of block week and still had three more exams. So he asked me if I could please just take it easy and let him get two more tests done. So instead of going walking, which I was dying to do, I came home and hung out with the kids and waited for Fawn to arrive. I had a few contractions, but still just hung low. Fawn showed up and we ran to the store got some errands done, had a few more contractions but nothing that was getting me excited. I went to bed that night knowing it was going to be at least another day. So David got his test done on Thursday and only had one more to go. I figured with only one to go, I didn't care if I went into labor, having to make up one test wouldn't be too big of a deal. So Fawn and I had a busy day on Thursday. We took the kids to the mall and walked around and just kept ourselves busy. But I wasn't having any contractions. I was getting a little frustrated. So Friday morning came and David was done with his last test by 9 in the morning. So when he got home it was time to start some serious walking. So we all headed out to Target to walk around and then we headed to the park and flew kites with the kids. The kite got stuck in the tree... Then we put the kids down for a nap and David and I headed to the mall to walk some more. We walked for two hours and I only had three contractions. Nothing was happening. All I was doing was hurting my bones and wearing myself out. Not to mention getting frustrated. So Saturday morning came and I was in tears. My bones hurt so bad and I really was just done being pregnant and I wasn't feeling anything. So we decided to take the kids to the Zoo thinking that would require a lot of walking. But nope I only had one contraction the entire time.

So again we came home and put the kids down for a nap and then David and I went out to walk some more. We walked all over our neighborhood and out in the desert for two hours and I only had four contractions. So we came home tried any other wives tale we could think of and then went walking for about 15 minutes. And bam I started having contractions and they were about 3 to 6 minutes a part. So we headed home and David wanted to head to the hospital right then. I wanted to wait a while and make sure it was the real deal but David was very insistent. So we headed to the hospital. But I told him I would be very upset if they sent me home. At the hospital my contractions were about 4 minutes a part but I was only dialated to a four. The nurse thought the doctor would send me home but when she called him he told her to keep me. YES!!!! I figured it was because he was a little afraid of having to see me at another appointment. And I found that I love Nevada's rules way better then Arizona's rules. In Nevada the nurse is allowed to break the water, and give pitocin when she wants to. So she told me we could make this labor go however I want, we can start on pitocin and have a fast labor or go natural which ever I wanted. Well I was group B positive. So she told me if I had the baby before I got my antibiotics in that the baby would for sure have to stay at the hospital for 48 hours but if I got my antibiotics in then most likely her pediatrician would let her leave after 24 hours. So we decided to get my four hours of antibiotics in, then after that I would get my epidural, break my water. The first four hours flew by, my contractions were very bearable, so David and I just watched TV. Then at 11 my nurse called the CRNA, since she knew it would take about an hour for her to get there. She got there at midnight, gave me my epidural and then my nurse broke my water and started me on super low drip of pitocin. With Dutch and Maylee after my water was broke I had them 45 minutes later, so I was thinking it would go the same way. But also my epidural never really worked, I still felt all my contractions. Well my epidural worked very well this time and seemed to slow things down a bit. I wasn't feeling anything. So David and I turned out the lights and tried to get some sleep. At 3:50 I was woken up by a super strong contraction and when I yelled out it woke up David. He came over and my nurse came in about 5 minutes later because she saw my heart rate spike really high. She checked me and said, ok I'm going to go call the doctor you just need to hold on about 20 minutes. She called the doctor and came right back in and then for the next 18 minutes her and David just did everything they could to get me to not push. I really wanted/needed to push. After every contraction the nurse would look under the blanket and say, she's still in, I think she was getting a little nervous. The doctor walked in the room at 4:18 and she was here at 4:26. They laid her on my belly and she just cried and cried. It was the most amazing sound. They got her cleaned up and then handed her over to me. The nurse took out my epidrual and said when I felt up to it she would walk me over to our recovery room. Well my epidural wouldn't wear off. So I couldn't walk over to my room, I got wheeled over. The nurse told me not to get up on my own at all. She came to walk me to the bathroom and I fell down because my knee was still completely numb. The epidural is suppose to wear off after 1 or 2 hours. My knee was still numb after 12 hours. So they called the CRNA in for examination. Luckly it finally wore off about 15 hours later and I was able to walk on my own. It was very scary feeling for awhile. But other than that everything went great.

Holding her for the first time after she was all cleaned up. And talking to my Dad.

David went and picked up Fawn and the kids so they could meet little Talli. Dutch was so adorable with her. He bought his train book so he could show Talli his trains and then he wanted to hold her the entire time. Grandma had a hard time getting to hold her because Dutch really didn't want to share. Maylee showed a little interest in her. But she really just wanted to lay the baby in her crib because she needed a "nappers". When we wouldn't let her do that she found a diaper and wanted to change her. She is quite the little mommy.

Talli loves Dutch's trains.

Fawn left and about two hours later Mom got here. Those have been Talli's only visitors since she has been born. It's so weird having a baby in a different state.

Heading Home.

We got to come home Monday morning. The kids have been so cute with her. Dutch just wants to sit and hold her. Every time she cries Dutch will say, "She just wants me." and then he wants to hold her. He is so great with her. He loves her so much, when he is around nobody else really gets to hold her. It's always his turn. Maylee likes her but she hasn't shown as much interest in her as I thought she would. I think Dutch just understands a lot better than Maylee that Talli is his sister and she isn't going anywhere. But I think Maylee thinks that she is here just for a visit and is wondering when she is leaving.

Maylee is reading her a story.

I had a sweet conversation on the drive to my friends house today with Dutch. It went something like this....

Dutch: "where is Mimi's house"

Me: "it's in Arizona"

Dutch: "oh" (super bummed)

Me: "But Mimi is going to come to your house on Sunday. After we get out of Church Mimi will be here."

Dutch: "Yeah, I'm so excited."

Me:"And Grandma will be here tomorrow."

Dutch: "Oh I love them"

Me: "They love you too, so much."

Dutch: "And Jesus' loves me"

Me: "Yes and Jesus' loves you too"

It melts my heart when I get these small moments to know that the things I tell him and the things he is learning in Primary are sinking in and sticking with him.

I need to write this story down before I forget it. A couple of weeks ago when we were car shopping Maylee said she needed to go potty. So I take her into the bathroom, it was pretty busy in there at least 3 or 4 other women. I take Maylee into the stall and put her on the potty and nothing. She decided she didn't need to go after all. So I take her off and tell her Mommy is going to go potty. I sit down and Maylee walks around to my side and as soon as she hears me start to pee, she starts yelling very loudly while clapping her hands, "Yea Mommy go poop on the potty, Yea Mommy!" (She always calls whatever she does on the potty poop.) So now I'm a little embarrassed and I say to her, yea Mommy is going pee pee on the potty. She just kept cheering me on until we left the stall. For some reason she always waits until we get to a store to decide she needs to use the potty, she never will go at home before we leave. So now every time we use the bathroom, whoever is in there can hear Maylee cheering me on. Yea Go Mommy!

SURVIVIAL MODE!!!!

I put the title in all capital letters because it 100% describes what my family and I have been doing lately, we have been surviving. We are down to the last four weeks of this pregnancy and we can all tell that everyone in this family is DONE with me being pregnant. I found out last week that I do in fact have something wrong with my bones. It's more rare than common, not very many pregnant women get it, but I was just "lucky" enough to. Where my hips come together in the front (which is why I have been saying my pubic bones it, that's more the location) the bones have separated too far and too fast. It's called symphysis pubis dysfunction. . He pressed on me exactly where it hurts and said, "does it hurt here", "Ummm YES". The only thing he could tell me was it will get a lot worse the lower the baby drops, Great Just Great. The only thing that he could recommend me doing was walking side ways. Sure like I can do that for the next month. Basically I can't lift my legs up, when I put my pants on in the morning I have to lay them on the ground because even lifting my foot 5 inches off the ground causes severe pain, lifting my legs on the couch is something I try to avoid at all costs, it's pretty miserable. And I of course got it to the most severe. So surviving is what we are doing. I can't bend over either, or get on the ground, because then I can't get back up. I'm sure if someone was watching from out the window it would look pretty funny. But honestly if I get down on the ground to clean or play with the kids it takes about 4 minutes of grunting and groaning and pain to get back up. So I've stopped cleaning (which is not easy for me) and I can't play with the kids (I feel so bad for them). So I am truly and sincerely hoping that the baby will come next weekend. That will put me at almost 37 weeks. If I could plan it and have it my way, I would go into labor next Friday labor at the hospital why David is in class and then when he gets to the hospital push her out. I'm telling you when it rains it pours at our house. Because aside from everything else I was told on Monday that I have group B, so I have to have 6 hours of antibiotics in me before they'll let me deliver the baby. So no matter what it's going to be at least a 6 hour labor. (Which is why I prefer do to that part why David is in school). I really wanted to labor at home for as long as possible and make it to the hospital for the last hour or so. But now I can't do that because of the Group B. This pregnancy is not like the others. But I know that it will all be worth it when I bring home a beautiful little girl at the end of all this.

So here's what we have been up to. The kids watch way to much TV, they eat frozen bagel pizza bites and chicken nuggets for lunch and dinner everyday, (it hurts to much to stand for a long time and make anything that takes longer than 45 seconds in the microwave). I only bath them about every 3 or 4 days when I notice that they are starting to stink (sad and gross I know but what can you do). They never get disciplined anymore because I can't get up and carry them to time out, so they are getting pretty big attitudes. David said the other day that they are going to be in for a big surprise and shock once I have this baby and I can start following through and disciplining them again. I keep telling my friends here that I sure hope the kids don't remember this time in our lives and they won't remember crazy pregnant mom. Like for instance this is what is happening to my sweet Maylee, she is driving me to insanity and I don't know what to do with her. This morning right before we left to go over to our friends house, Dutch yells to me, "Mommy Maylee is peeing on the floor." So I look over and sure enough she is standing there legs apart peeing, so I say "Maylee no, we don't pee pee on the floor." And you know what she starts to do, laugh, she starts laughing, she thought it was so funny. And last night the kids are eating dinner and they are banging there forks on the table as loud as they can. So I told them to stop. Dutch stopped, but Maylee looks at me from the corner of her eye, making sure I am watching and then starts banging her fork again and starts laughing. This girl is a whole different child then Dutch. Sitting in time out works on Dutch, Maylee thinks it's hilarious and when she does something she knows is bad she'll just go to time out by herself when she is done doing whatever it was she wasn't suppose to be doing. The girl is wild. And in my pregnancy state of mind, some days I really think that I might throw her out the window. The only thing saving her is how cute and adorable she is.

As for me, I'm still crafting. Trying to finish the last of the projects for the baby. I lay on the couch more than I like, and it's all I can do to keep my eyes open to watch American Idol in the evenings. This week I feel asleep all three nights before the show ended. So I never get to see the last three people sing and I missed watching which girls went home. David has a really big shelf exam on Monday so he has to spend all his time studying, but a few nights when he can tell that I'm about to kill over, he's volunteered to watch the kids so I can take a long hot bath. It's the only thing I have found, that gives me relief from my bones hurting. But of course I feel so guilty, because I know he needs to study and study. So he is really excited for me to have this baby so he doesn't feel like he is abandoning me anymore. And to top it all off, my mom had surgery so she won't be able to come up and help out when the baby comes and my mother in law has a missionary leaving this month, so if I go into labor to close to that event she can't come either. So it's definitely starting to weigh on my mind about what do to with the kids when I go into labor. Do I call a friend and asked if they can watch the kids and then call another friend and ask her to drive me to the hospital if David is in class. Or do I just drive the kids places and then drive myself to the hospital while I'm in labor. It's going to be interesting to see how this all plays out. Lucky for me I do have good friends (hint hint Jenny) that are more than willing to help out if the need arises. But I have such a hard time asking for help, so now I'm starting to think that this must me Heavenly Father's way of teaching me how to get over my stubbornness and insecurities and just ask for help. But hopefully I can get my way and the baby will be born on a weekend with David completely available. But with my luck she is going to come March 24th, which would be right in the middle of David's exam week at school, and then I would just have to hope that he would be able to make it in time for me to push her out. So lesson learned, getting pregnant the first year of medical school, not the smartest idea.

Here are two of the projects that I finished this week... A bow board (as you can tell I like the flowers the best) And a car seat cover... Yesterday while the kids were playing in there room I just went in and laid on Dutch's bed to watch them. So then they each got there doctor kits out and played doctor on me. I got shots in my belly, my blood pressure was checked, my heart sounds good and my eyes and ears look great. They took really good care of me.

And Brittany this is for you. Yesterday while I was laying on my bed watching Ellen, Maylee gathered up all the baby shoes that I just recently got out of storage and lined them up on my balcony. Just one of the things the kids do that make me laugh.

Yesterday our church time changed to 1:00 due to the Ward being split. I was not very happy, two kids at church during nap time just didn't sound like any fun. But I made sure to put Maylee down for her nap at 11:30 so she could at least get an hour in before we had to leave. David quietly went into her room to get Dutch's church clothes and then he came out and told me to look at Maylee. She was sound asleep on her tummy completely naked. She took off her diaper before she fell asleep. She hates wearing diapers now that she's potty trained. Well about 10 minutes later it was time for me to wake her up, so I got my camera, took a picture and then picked her up. I took her downstairs, she was NOT happy about being woke up. I asked her if she needed to go potty but she wasn't quite awake yet. So I told David to run upstairs and grab another dress and panties for her just in case she pees on the way to church. (Dutch was already in the van waiting for us to leave). So I'm standing at the bottom of the stairs and David comes down with the clothes. And then I heard it, so I asked David "is she peeing". He looked down and sure enough there was a steady stream coming down from her, over my belly, down my legs and all over my shoes. And it was just one of those moments where you don't know what to do. So I just stood in one place and let her finish, no point in having it all across the carpet to the bathroom. Then David took her from me, cleaned her up, while I went up stairs and had to completely change all my clothes and wash my legs and feet. It was a great start to church that day.