In her crib

Some probably won't understand why I waited so long and others will empathize and wonder why I did it so soon. Abigail is now sleeping in her crib on the OTHER side of the house. She's three months old. Both boys made it into their cribs earlier than three months of age but their rooms were also right beside mine at the time. Having a split floor plan is nice in that you don't have to be quiet when in the master bedroom....but it breaks my heart to put my infant daughter so far away from me at night. Believe me, the monitor is at full volume!

Cloth?

I have a friend who uses cloth diapers on her little boy. She hooked me up with some of the "Fuzzie Bunz" and "Bum Genius" brands...I can't decide which I like better but the cloth diaper idea ain't so bad! I think Abigail likes them, too. They kind of give her more junk in the trunk - like J-Lo!

Tummy Time

AB loves spending time on her tummy.

At ten weeks old, she does a good job of holding her head up.

Do you notice the smirk on her face?

Moments

AB gets some sweet cuddle time with her brother and grandma.

Just precious.....

Two more precious pictures of our sweet baby girl.
(photographer, Holly Tye / http://www.hollytyephotography.com/)

Sleeping through the night

Neither of my boys slept through the night (what I consider a five hour stretch) until they were between 8-12 months old. AB has been sleeping through the night for the past three days and it has been wonderful...for both me and her. She's only 6 weeks old and I know every day will bring change but this feels really good right now!

Sweet baby photo session

My friend, Holly, is an excellent photographer. Here's proof! She took some sweet pictures of AB today. I can't wait to share more with you and get the hard copies. Please visit her website to see her photo galleries and other information. Holly is truly using her talent to glorify the Lord. Thanks, Holly!

*YAWN*

Expressions

"Let us pray"

Looking around.....

Aren't they cute?

Rub-A-Dub

Asleep

"She is precious in His sight"

One week old

AB at one week of age. She looks big to be only one week. We took her to her first doctor's appointment today. She's gaining weight and has already grown an inch in a week's time.

AB Stats:
Birth weight = 7 lbs 11 oz.
Weight when leaving the hospital = 7 lbs 1 oz
Weight at one week checkup today = 7 lbs 14 oz

(The pediatrician called me a "milk goddess")

Length at birth = 20 inches
Length at one week old = 21 inches

The first 24 hours

Today is our first day together as a family of five (well, Mitch needed to go to the office so he wasn't actually here all day with us but my mom was so she can count as the fifth person!). A and L played outside in the water while my mom and I watched. AB decided she wanted to sleep most of the day. It was also due time for her first bath so below is a picture of her fresh out of the tub.

Going Home

It's good to finally be home after giving birth to our daughter, who'll I'll begin referring to as AB since I already refer to baby #1 as A (baby #2 is L). Here we are being transported out of the hospital down to our car. What a wonderful weekend this has been. However, I am heartbroken for my friend, C, who's father passed away shortly after we welcomed AB into the world. As I am celebrating the new life of this covenant child, C is kissing her father goodbye. C, I am thankful you know Jesus....He is dancing with your father now & celebrating his new perfect body.

It's me...

Hey, everyone. Mitch typed the last post and put up the pictures. I am having "computer withdrawal" so I just had to take a few minutes to post my own words. Our daughter is in the hospital nursery right now having her daily routine checkup with our pediatrician. Mitch is at church with our boys so I'm actually alone right now. It's kind of freaky! I'm watching the Wimbledon men's championship as I type.

My stay in the hospital has been fantastic. I love having my babies here and have always received the best care. I am in no pain (thanks to the wonderful drugs I've been given) and am enjoying this time. After undergoing a section, a mother has to stay four days and three nights so I've got one more to go before I enter back into "the real world". Our precious daughter is just that....precious. I can't believe I have a little girl.....oh my gosh, I have three children! Both of the boys favor me and my side of the family but I definitely think that our newest addition looks like her daddy's side of the family. Who would have guessed that I'd give birth to a black haired baby? She doesn't have the fair skin like the boys so maybe she'll be the one in the family who can enjoy the sunshine without getting burned. It's sweet to watch Mitch with her. He is the best father in the world!

After my doctor finished my surgery, he told me that the cord was wrapped around our daughter's neck three times so even if I had attempted the VBAC, as I had so desperately wanted, it would have eventually led to the OR due to probable fetal distress. She hadn't even dropped into my pelvis due to there being no slack in the cord for her to do so. That explains why she was always sitting so high as well as why I made no progress in the last few weeks of pregnancy. Also, the midwife told me that my uterus was so thin that it was transparent - not good. I asked if that would matter in regards to having more babies and it was recommended that I only have one more. The more sections a woman has, the thinner her uterus gets. Did you learn something new today? HA! So, I'll never get to try the VBAC like I wanted but I believe in the sovereignty of God. This delivery happened just as it was predestined to occur. The providence of God is a glorious thing. He is good.

Most of my family....I wish the boys had been present for this picture as well as my sister and her family and my brother.

Abigail Arrives!

Abigail Rayne made her appearance at 1:03 this afternoon (7/6/07).

She has a beautiful head full of black hair, weighs 7 lbs. 11 oz., and is 20 inches long.

Jawan and Abigail are both doing well (and finally getting a little sleep at 10:15 p.m.)

BUT - I know that you really just want to see the pics:

Here's the fam just before Mom and Dad departed for the hospital.

Mom and Dad in the delivery room getting their first close-up look at the sweet baby.

Here she is - in the midst of getting her first bath!

"Hey sweetheart, welcome to the world."

Finally - another girl in the house!

The Grandparents

"Dad, does Abigail like nuggets and fries?"

Abigail meets two of her cousins.

Luke says, "Hey wait a minute. I'm the BABY!!!!"

C-section

It's on the calendar. Our sweet baby #3 will be born sometime tomorrow early afternoon. We can't wait to meet our new addition and neither can A and L! What an exciting time. Look for pictures and stats to be posted sometime tomorrow night.

Frustration

I am so frustrated. Today has been a hard day. Much disappointment....

I went for my 39 week checkup today only to find out that I've still made no progress. I've been stuck in a rut for three weeks. Baby #3 is comfortable where she is. My midwife is on vacation so I saw one of the physicians today. She said that since I've made no progress in the past three weeks it would be best to go ahead and put a repeat scheduled c-section on the calendar. She doesn't want me going past my due date with a third baby. I was disappointed but I agreed.

The nurse said she'd call me late this afternoon to tell me when the section would take place. That call came at 4:30 p.m. She told me it would be another seven days (my due date) until my section because the hospital was jammed full until then. I asked if I could have a specific doctor perform it and she said he wasn't available that day. I then told the person on the phone that I had already talked to a friend of mine (who is a nurse at Hospital B where I want to give birth) who told me that they were not booked up for the next three to four days. That's when the nurse on the phone realized she had spent all day trying to book me at Hospital A when I was actually registered at Hospital B. She said my chart read Hospital A.....I just don't get it. I have followed all the rules....I went to my consult back in January and wrote down in my chart that I wanted to give birth at Hospital B. My husband and I, together, went and registered at Hospital B when I was 28 weeks so they would have all my insurance and paperwork info ahead of time. So, how is it that now I have to wait another two days to find out when I'm gonna have a c-section (tomorrow is a holiday so the office is closed and it will take all day Thursday before they call me back, I'm sure)? I need to shut up, confess, and repent. We've all made mistakes.

A is still screaming and crying when being placed on the potty to poop. I just don't get it. I am trying hard to parent him to the glory of God. My sin runs deep and is rampant. Please pray for me. I never knew potty training would be this hard. I think I'll start soon with baby #2.

*Sigh*

38 weeks update

My pitiful attempt to write a "cheesy" poem at almost 2 a.m. -

Another weekly routine check today;
No progression has been made.
Not surprised - I am the typical case.
All the walking I've done this week, I'm in a race.
The ultrasound performed today
Showed she's measuring at seven pounds, they say.
Membranes were stripped - no comment to add
Haven't had the first contraction since, too bad.