Daisy @ 20 weeks
I couldn't resist the matching hat!
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what do you think?
Does she look more like her mom or her dad?
Will this one help? (probably not)
what a busy, fun weekend!
FRIDAY:
Slept in a little. I love that sleeping in now means Darin bringing Daisy my way at 7:30 am. She is such a joy in the mornings and makes getting up that much easier.
Daisy and I hung out and cleaned a bit. She didn't want to nap at all. I was planning to head to the office after her mid-day nap, but she refused to take it. Finally I gave up and fed her, planning to leave once done. But she fell asleep, really asleep, and I knew she needed to sleep so she'd be in a better mood that afternoon. So we cuddled and I watched internet TV.
When she woke up we headed to the office where Mom and Dad met me after not too long. Mom took Daisy and CC for a walk, and Dad headed to the hotel to check in while I got a few things done. Then we all met up at the house, where Debbie was too! Mom and Dad took us out for a great Olive Garden dinner and then we played a round of Scattergories after tucking Daisy in. I still can't believe Darin beat me, and I am still claiming there must have been some cheating involved!
SATURDAY
Darin made us all breakfast and then we bundled up to head up the road to Cornwall park and see Debbie do a cyclocross race. We had fun strolling around the park catching here at different spots in the race and cheering as obnoxiously as we could. I'm glad she's not embarassed by us!
Daisy was the warmest of all!
When the race finished, we left Debbie to get cleaned up and headed home to warm up with steamy mugs of coco. Darin again whipped up a great meal when Debbie arrived and after playing with Daisy some more (who can resist?) us girls went shopping before Debbie had to leave. I have a new favorite consignment store in town where I snagged 2 skirts, 2 sweaters, and a great pair of Danskos for $22!! We miss you already Auntie Debbie. Come back soon!
Mom and I then decided to hit Sears and Costco. Whoever decided Costco on a Saturday afternoon was a good idea was sorely mistaken. But we survived. We then did a little tour of I-5 trying to get Daisy to sleep, she did fall asleep, but woke soon after arriving home ready to play. Tyler and Stacey had arrived by then so we hung out, entertained the kiddo, and had a wonderful dinner together. No pictures though...
SUNDAY
The evil alarm clock struck again. I had set it nice and early to get to work and get things set up there before people arrived at our house. But daylight savings was set to end this weekend before congress changed it. So my dear alarm set itself back and I was an hour behind before the day even began.
Luckily I've got a great husband and parents who arrived early to setup the breakfast, so all was well.
We had a great continental breakfast at our house with friends and family. Check out the fruit spread Darin created:
Then we all packed up and headed to church to have our darling daughter dedicated to God. Basically we are agreeing as her parents to raise her in the ways of the Lord and teach her all about Jesus. We are praying that God will use her in mighty ways to affect our world for His good. Stacey and Tyler, as her Godparents, stood up with us to agree to help in our efforts and to lift Daisy (and us) up in prayer.
As Pastor Bill was introducing Daisy to the congregation, he called her our newest staff member. As the happy kid she is, she sits in my office and greets visitors with the most wonderful big smile. People who come in can't help but leave a little lighter because of her smile. I love the thought that she is already being used for God's glory.
After church we took a few group photos:
What a fun morning! Then we rushed to get out of town and head up the mountain to the Mt Baker chalet for a wedding. Two of our Fircreek staffers from the beginning in 2004 were getting married. Unfortunately 15 minutes late meant we missed the wedding, but were able to enjoy some time at the reception with "old" friends and even Darin's cousin from Missouri (who worked a summer at the Creek in 2006).
The centerpieces were so great: smore makers! But the burners went out so we improvised with the candles.
Daisy meeting cousin Tiffany:
The beautiful cake made by the same guy who made the cake at my baby shower:
After taking a "fircreek reunion" photo, we headed back down the mountain and got to visit with our friend Ben who was up from California to be a groomsman. We got to bed around 9:00, but since the book I'm reading is so good, I didn't hit the pillow until 10:00. I slept great though.
I had been looking forward to this weekend for a long time, and it was even better than I hoped.
yipee!!!
THIS has been keeping me smiling for weeks now. And I'm glad it's finally out in the open.
Isn't God's timing amazing? Just when you start to give up and plan fun kid-less vacations, next thing you know you're vacationing with the toilet twice a day.
Mark your calendars for May 22!
so proud
So yesterday Daisy and I are working away. She's just finished eating and is enjoying some play time. So I spread out the blanket on the floor to the right of my desk and give her a chance to do some tummy time. A few minutes later I spin my chair and start to step out to run to the copier, when I realize I'm about to step on my baby! What in the world? There she is smiling up at me, clearly not in the position I laid her down in.
So I set her back on her stomach and watched her, lickety split, roll over onto her back. She was so fast it was hard to get it on film!
She hasn't quite figured out how to roll the to the left yet. Or back over. But this is the first sign that life is about to change for us all over again!
what is this?
Does this ever happen to you? Your phone rings and you answer only to realize that the person on the other end of the line has no idea that their phone called you. And you can sit there for the next few minutes and feel like a spy into the world of their pocket or purse.
I got that feeling the other day when downloading the stuff of the camera and stumbled upon this video.
Did the camera turn itself on? What in the world is happening here?
Maybe Darin can shed a little light...
a trip down memory lane
I realized the other day, after reading a post from BreAnn, that even though I started writing it in June, I never finished (and therefore never posted) Daisy's birth story. So, I'm editing and adding photos and will try to get this figured out so they'll post in order below.
I hope you enjoy!
birth story (part 1)
On Tuesday afternoon Daisy and I made our first solo outing together and hit the local library. After paying my fine (3 weeks just isn't enough time for me to finish a book, 4 weeks is perfect) we checked out some children's CDs, a couple parenting books, a book on play time for little ones, and a c-section video. Normally watching any type of surgery makes me nauseous; I even have to look away on ER when there's too much blood. But ever since hearing Darin talk about my c-section I've been dying to know what went on behind that curtain. So I was excited about the video find. Turns out they didn't show as much of the surgery as I was hoping. But the video was interesting in that it interviewed 4 women who shared their c-section experiences. Reminded me that I really do need to write my story down before I forget it. So, while Daisy's napping this evening and Darin is off at the REI garage sale, here we go...
On Tuesday, June 5th I had two appointments scheduled: an afternoon visit with Dr. Madsen (fillling in for my doc on vacation) and an evening appointment at the hopital for a cervidil treatment. The first appointment, while with a very nice doctor, didn't go so well as he was discouraged about the lack of progress. Three options were given me: 1) continue with the cervidil treatment that night with the very guarded hopes that it would work, 2) go ahead and schedule a c-section, 3) wait it out. The third option, of course, being wait it out only as far as Dr. Cook got back into town and would put an end date on it all. (I believe June 16th was mentioned.) But both doctors now were warning me that even if I did go into spontaneous labor, my chances of delivering vaginally were decreasing every day. I asked Dr. Madsen if I could talk with Darin and call him back, which he agreed to.
So I drove up the road to Darin's work site and tearfully explained our options. I really didn't know what to do. After all our planning and preparations, I really wanted to not schedule a c-section, but I also was frustrated by the lack of progress. I was also really tired of being pregnant, and although still before my official due date, the thought of waiting until the 16th and having to have a c-section anyway was daunting. So we decided to go ahead with the cervidil as planned, and if it didn't work to re-evaluate at that point.
So that evening we packed a few things and drove up the road to the hospital (but not before taking one more belly shot).
We checked in, I gowned up and climbed into bed. Darin wasn't planning to spend the night (we do only live 10 blocks from the hospital) so he was hanging out until things were underway. The kind nurse hooked me up to the moniters, had us fill out lots of paperwork, gave us bracelets, and started the IV line. And then we watched the monitors and waited and waited and waited. While I had gone to the hospital telling myself it wouldn't work, everything the nurse was doing was preparing us to be in labor in the morning. So I was starting to get a bit hopeful. That is, until she came back and told us we'd have to go home. Once again I was contracting too much and not feeling a thing. They couldn't induce. So we drove home tired and frustrated.
The next morning we called the doc because now we were down to options 2 and 3. Hearing the events of the night before, Dr. Madsen was even more sure that a vaginal delivery wasn't going to happen. So we asked him to see about scheduling a surgery for later in the week. A few minutes later he called back. "Thursday and Friday are full," he told us. "But I could operate tonight at 5:00." OMG! I think Darin's heart stopped beating for a second. We looked at each other quite stunned, but knew we had to decide right then. Darin asked a couple more questions, and then we just looked at each other and said, "Let's do it." We were told to check into the hospital at 3:00.
The shock of our decision quickly hit me, and after I called my mom to tell her to come to B'ham, I called my friend Amy. "Tell me I'm not taking the easy way out," I told her through my tears. I didn't want to be one of those ladies who schedule their births for convenience or because they were tired of being pregnant. But Amy reassured me that anything was better than an emergency section, and that it would be better for both of us to do it this way.
Feeling thus reassured, Darin and I spent the day tidying up the house, repacking our hospital bags (guess we don't need all those things we gathered for labor), and enjoying our last moments just the two of us. And at 2:45 we loaded the car and drove up the road.
birth story (part 2)
We arrived at the hospital at 3:00, checked in and were excited to be greeted by our nurse Katherine, who happened to be the one who took us on our hospital tour a few weeks back. She was a kick! She also had a student with her, so I knew I'd be well taken care of.
Once again I peed in a cup, gowned up, filled out paperwork, was braceleted, and generally prepared to have this baby. My parents arrived and hung out with us too. Unfortunately, this time my IV line was not going in. The nurses tried a couple times unsuccessfully before calling in the charge nurse, Kerry. Now this was one serious nurse. Probably 6'+ and 200 pounds, she strolled into the room and took charge. But even she couldn't get the line in. And by this time I'd had enough! (All that poking really hurts.) So they finally called in the anesthesiologist to get the deed done, but I had to have it in my arm instead of wrist or hand (making it hard to nurse later on).
Katherine took the time to explain the surgery and the procedures, and even suggested my parents hit Anthony's for the early bird special while I was in surgery. Dr. Madsen stopped by to check in and answer questions and I also heard from Dr. Amy (the anesthesiologist) her plan. Darin put on his gear, and by 5:00 we were ready to roll.
At this point I think I should mention that I've never spent the night in the hospital nor had surgery before, so it was a little shocking to walk into this sterile extremely bright room. Dr. Amy did a great job getting the anesthesia in while (it felt like) 200 people buzzed all around getting things ready. I lay down on the table, they put up the drape, and in seconds I was numb. It was weird to know that people were washing, shaving, and cutting me and I couldn't feel a thing. Dr. Amy and Darin stayed with me at my head and talked me through things and reassured me. Pretty soon I got nauseous, so my darling husband held the bowl for me to throw up in. Although I'd been fasting since breakfast, so there wasn't much to heave. (Yeah, let me tell you how much a 9 month pregnant lady likes to fast, especially while her dad and husband enjoy pizza for lunch!)
Honestly, what happens next is kind of a blur. Darin stood up to watch the goings on, and gasped when the water broke. Not too long after that I heard Daisy's first cry. They brought her over for me to see, and then took her to the table for her checks. Darin left me at that point and went with the baby. He kept explaining to me what they were doing, and I was really glad about that. She really didn't like having her footprints taken, which I thought was kinda funny. I pretty much just had to lay there and listen to all the sounds around me. I remember finding it intersesting just how many times they counted the surgical instruments.
