"God HAS Answered Our Prayer"

I want to write down Elyana's birth story before I forget too many more details. I can imagine one day we can have a good laugh about it before she gives birth to her first baby. *sigh*

The joys of having a daughter.

Right after the first of the year, my O.B. and the perennial specialists continued to have concerns about baby girl so they decided that it was best to induce. I was laying on the sonogram table when they made the official decision and I shared that I was concerned about being administered pitocin. The specialist asked me what I was concerned about. One, I have heard that it can pose danger to the baby. Two, I have heard that the contractions can be more painful. She gave me the LOOK and she declared, "Honey, a contraction is a contraction is a contraction." I didn't know about that but we agreed that I would let her know that if indeed that was true. January 12th was the designated rendezvous day.

I was very apprehensive about being induced. We tried EVERYTHING to try to get labor going before 1.12: I ate the spiciest foods I could create or order, I took herbs, I pumped, we walked, I did the stairs in our house, I "walked the curb," we had more sex than any 9 month pregnant person should have, and the list could go on. No baby. I mean, up until the night before Joe and I were praying and praying that she would decide to come on her own but then I resigned to the fact that I needed to get rest so I was ready for her big day.

My wonderful in-loves came the night before so they could be there when Isaac woke up the next morning. It was so comforting to know Isaac was in good hands so I could focus on the task that was at hand. We woke up at 4 a.m. to get ready so we could be out the door by 4:30. Joe was a little surprised when I walked out of the bathroom because I had fixed my hair and put on some make up. I just couldn't meet my girl looking frumpy, right? I also had this sense that I was givin' birth to a diva. Only time will tell :)

We arrived a little early and they had me hooked up to the "juice" by 6:20.

One of the other concerns I had about being induced is that you don't have the same mobility to labor through the contractions. When you are being administered pitocin, the baby has to be continually monitored and thus, they prefer you not to move or it messes the monitor up. You also have this massive IV in your arm. Let me say, that thing hurt worse than the contractions for the first several hours! God was so gracious to give me a wonderful nurse who had given birth naturally to her four children. She was very understanding when I would have to move around, stand next to the bed, and even sit on the birth ball next to the monitor. She never complained for the countless times she had to readjust the monitor. God bless you, Judy!

With Isaac, my water broke on its own so I didn't know what to expect when my OB came in with this big long tool. I called Joe over to my side, squeezed his hand, squinched my face and braced myself for the worse. Then, I hardly felt a thing. That part was a breeze.

Its official, with my water broken, there was no turning back.

One of the amazing parts the second time around was that based on my pain level and what I was feeling, I knew exactly how much I was dilated before the doctor even would check me. That really helped me pace myself and have proper expectations along the way.

I am grateful for friends and family who came to keep me company and distracted :)

Here are the parents-to-be anxiously awaiting our sweet baby GIRL.





Here's me updating my facebook with the latest details!







My sweet sister, Stephanie, was on hand and to think she is going to be doing this in a few months. I can't wait to meet sweet Hayden Davis. yipee!

Here is one of my favorite people in the world and she brought her fancy new camera and took beautiful pictures. To see those you can click here. She got some really good "action" shots.

So thankful to have my big sis here this birth and so grateful for her strength and encouragement!

When I had Isaac, my dad didn't want to come until after I had him (he was a little nervous :). I was so proud that he came early and hung out with me for a couple hours while I was having contractions. Isn't he cute!?!

Back to the story...

Everyone was hanging out in the room and they were starting to get hungry. I sent them all off to have some mexican food at Guadalajara's. It was perfect timing because it was about 1 p.m. that the contractions started to kick up a notch. The most prominent pain was in my back from back labor, but Joe was on the job rubbing my back and helping me to breath/relax through each contraction.

As I was getting closer to being dialated to a 10 I had this irresistible need to use the restroom. The nurses were all concerned that if I went into the bathroom that I would end up delivering the baby in there. They, along with Joe, escorted me. We ended up having a party in the bathroom. All along, Elyana was doing great and the nurses said that her vital signs looked perfect. Thank you Lord!

With this birth, the urge to push was much stronger and almost irresistible. They rushed my doctor into the room and at this point, I was a little frantic. The room had gotten really hot with all the bodies and they said they were having problems with the air conditioner. Just imagine me- sweating, Joe putting cool cloths on my neck, my mom feeding me ice chips, my older sister bracing my back, and I was reminding my doctor of my desires (not the time to do this). I'm asking her, with desperation in my voice, you're not going to give me a episiotomy, right? You're going to wait until the cord stops pulsing before you cut it, right? Do you think I can do this?

Then everything was prepared for me to push, but I ran out of gas. I hit a wall. I didn't think I could do it anymore. For some strange reason, this cloud of exhaustion and discouragement came over me and I didn't know if I could do it. Everyone in the room encouraged and cheered me on. Within a few pushes, she was crowning but there was sudden concern as they announced "CORD." I have never seen a person move so fast as my doctor worked stealthily to grab the scissors and cut the umbilical cord from around Elyana's neck. It all happened so fast and I didn't have a good view of what was going on. Everyone who saw how tight the cord was and how exquisitely my OB worked was rattled. It was just one of those scary moments and all I could do was thank God for His gracious mercy!

She is here. Honestly, I couldn't believe it. I just couldn't.

From there, I had to deliver the placenta and it was not coming on its own. That was more painful than pushing the baby out. They had to restart the pitocin to get the placenta to come out because they were concerned if it didn't happen quickly that I would have internal bleeding. OUCH! Within a few minutes, the placenta was delivered and we were all in the clear.

Their concerns about Elyana's stomach turned out to be nothing and mama and baby were doing great! Within 20 minutes, I nursed her and she latched on like a diva and never looked back!

Daddy giving the news!

My mom was so helpful along the way - always encouraging and right there to do anything we needed. You are such a blessing to our family; we love you "JJ!"

Before we left the hospital.

Elyana means "God has answered our prayer" and He has done that in great abundance. Truly, she is a joy and God's gracious gift to our family!

This hat is the one that the hospital volunteers sewed for the new arrivals! So cute!

Welcome to our family, little one!

Twins?

Here they both are at 6 weeks. Are they twins separated by two years?? :)

Our Little Fighter!

Oh, I love having a little girl. I wasn't sure what it was going to be like. It is already SO DIFFERENT. A little bit of it may have to do with her personality. Isaac is such a firecracker and full of personality and will. She on the other hand is so sweet, compliant and easy going. Wow. Could she really be my daughter!?! The thought may have crossed my mind that they switched up the babies at the hospital if it weren't for the fact that she looks so much like little Isaac!









In her first few weeks of life, baby girl handled RSV like a rockstar! We stayed overnight in the hospital with her for them to observe her. She didn't cry when they pinched and poked and examined her so many times.

I guess if she's going to be Isaac's little sister, she's going to have to be one tough cookie to keep up with his shenanigans!

My lamb and llama

My dear, dear friend Laura (or "Lomommy" as Isaac calls her) came up with two nicknames that I adore. "Little lamb" for the missy and "Little llama" for the toddler. Could that be any more perfect?!? They've stuck

The first few weeks have been filled with thankfulness. Birth the second time around was just plain fun (story to come). Isaac is in l-o-v-e with sweet Elyana but isn't quite sure what he thinks about sharing mom and dad.

The second night that we were home from the hospital, Isaac learned to crawl out of his crib. I heard his door click open and when I ran in the hallway I found him crying, "Hold the baby...mama...hold the baby." As a mom, there is that peace of mind that you hold onto when you can lay your little one in the crib and you know they're not going anywhere. Since his discovery, we have had a whole new "big boy bed" adventure to add to the transition of it all. On top of that, he has been begging to go the bathroom in the potty. Mommy is just not ready for ALL of that right now. Maybe next month ;)

Now here's two of my little lamb early on...