Getting there…

For about 2 years now we’ve been slowly re-doing our ENTIRE house. Inside and out. Inside is done (will post those photos soon), and we’re in the middle of the exterior project right now. Below is a photo of our progress so far (click on photo for larger image). It’s getting there. I’m guessing I’ll have some final comparisons by end of November.

What’s left?
Carport, black shutters, red door, side yard basketball court, fence in the side yard, and general landscaping.

The Human Body

The human body is amazing. Here is a shot of my stomach a few days prior to going in to labor, and then a shot of my stomach 2 weeks after giving birth. It’s wild!

Labor Story

On Friday night (Sept 12^th), I started having contractions. They continued throughout the night about 40 minutes apart lasting about 30 seconds. All day on Saturday (Sept 13^th), they continued about 30 minutes apart. The pain was mixed from mild to bad, but mostly moderate.

Around 7:00pm they were every 20 minutes and getting more painful and lasting longer – eg. 45-60 seconds. I called the doctor (Andrea Chisholm) at the hospital, and she said to hang in there and to call back if they got any closer – eg. 5 minutes.

Around 8:15pm the contractions were every 10-15 minutes, and were increasingly painful.

By 9:15pm they were about 8 minutes apart and extremely painful. I couldn’t take the pain any more, so I called the doctor and was told to come in.

Once at the hospital, the doctor discovered that I was nearly 6cm dilated, so I was brought to a labor room. It was baby time!

Once in the labor room, the contractions were every couple of minutes and were lasting much longer – eg. 60-90 seconds.

Around 11:30pm I couldn’t take the pain any more, so I asked for the epidural. The epidural was wonderful. The contraction pain went away entirely.

Around 12:30am (Sept 14th) the doctor came in to check on me, and I was about 7cm dilated. Since the epidural slowed down my labor, I was given some medicine to help keep things moving along.

Dave slept in a chair while I watched “Man vs Wild” on the television. As hard as I tried, I just could not sleep. I don’t think Dave really slept either…

The doctor came to check on me again around 4:00am, and I was fully dilated. I was told that if I had the urge to push to let the nurse (Jessica) know – she was checking on me every 20 minutes.

At one point the baby’s heart rate decreased, so a bunch of nurses came running in and had me change my position in the bed. They also gave me oxygen. Her heartbeat was back on track. For the remainder of the labor, I was on oxygen.

Around 6:00am the doctor checked on me again. She thought the baby was turned around in a position that may require a c-section. So again, they had me change positions in hopes that the baby would flip over. I asked the doctor how much longer she thought we’d be waiting, and she said we’d have a baby by lunch time. It can take hours of pushing.

At 6:45am I started feeling the urge to push. The urge became so intense that I called the nurse 5 minutes later. She came in and told me how to do a practice push upon the next urge. During that practice push the baby crowned, and she immediately called the doctor.

As the doctor was rushing in to the room, I had to push again. They told me to try to wait until the doctor was ready, but I couldn’t. The baby crowned again.

At 7:15am the doctor was at the foot of the bed and ready, so at the next urge I pushed and plop! Out came baby! There was such a feeling of relief both physically and emotionally.

The doctor and nurses were all smiling and laughing because of how fast it all happened.

The nurses took the baby and started doing whatever they do. It was overwhelming to hear her crying. Once she was cleaned up, they gave her to me for a few minutes. AMAZING.

The doctor needed to fix me up, so Dave took the baby for a while. I watched the 2 of them and couldn’t stop smiling.

Not too long after, Paul, Meme (Dave’s mother) and my mother got to the hospital. Dave took the baby to the recovery room to meet the family, while I continued to get cleaned up.

A little while later I was wheeled over to my room. When I got there, Dave said, “How about Julia?” That name was on our long list, but not really discussed. I have always loved that name. I told him that I needed to look at her. She didn’t look like a Calleigh, or Talia, or Jayne, or Dana… she was Julia.

Julia Rae Gauthier
September 14, 2008
7:15am
7 pounds, 11 ounces
20.5 inches

And that’s my labor story.

Photo Shoot!

At Julia’s hospital “photo shoot” I got in on the action…

Julia Rae Gauthier!!!

She’s here!!!
Born on Sunday, September 14th at 7:15am.
7 pounds, 11 ounces
20.5 inches

Here are some photos of proud daddy after a long night, big bro Paul, and Julia. This week I’ll be getting lots of photos up on the Shutterfly site… so stay tuned!

Testing

So I went to the hospital today for some tests. Everything is still looking good even though she is SOOO late. My blood pressure is good, her heart rate is good, she’s moving and responding well, I’m dilated, I’m contracting… I’m just not contracting enough for show time yet. Booooo! The doctor said “things” have definately started though… So I could “go” at any moment – OR – they induce the labor early morning on Tuesday the 16th. That’s where we’re at…

It’s gotta be soon…

Well I went to the doctor yesterday and even though I’m late, everything is good. I’m having a very healthy, no complications pregnancy. The doctor said that it’s very common for a young, healthy first timer to be late. Last night I was having some intense contractions, but nothing regular. I also passed the “plug”, which from what I’ve read means that something will happen soon. I went for a walk today to see if that would kick-start anything, but nothing yet. Maybe tonight.

Some interesting notes about her potential arrival -
a. If I have her today, the 11th, it’s Nanny’s birthday (and my friend Michelle’s)
b. If I have her tomorrow, the 12th, 12 is a multiple of 3. Paul’s favorite number is 3, mine is 6, Dave’s is 9. Plus, she won’t share a birthday with anyone that I know.
c. If I have her Friday, the 13th, that’s exactly 1 month after Tyler’s birth (August 13th)

OUCH!

So my feet have DOUBLED in size. I’m not sure if the photo below does it justice, but believe me - my feet/ankles are typically skinny/boney. Today, I can’t even put on sneakers with loose laces. My feet are SOOOO huge. And they hurt. That all being said, this is my ONLY complaint of this entire pregnancy.  

Week 40!!!

So when are YOU coming?!?! You’re fully baked now. Feel free to come knocking. I’m more than ready at this point to get the whole birthing process finished. I’m counting down the days when I can lay on my stomach again!

It’s been a while since I’ve posted a belly shot. It’s kind of gross with my stretch marks and all, but it could be worse!!

1.5 cm dilated

I went to the doctor’s office today for an internal. I’m 1.5 cm dilated, cervix is soft, something else is thin, and the baby’s head appears to be heading in to position. The doctor says any time now… This waiting game stinks!!! Another thing that stinks is that if I don’t go naturally they cannot induce me until September 16th!!! They induce 1-2 weeks post a due date, so I shouldn’t be surprised with that timing – but that seems like forever! They can’t take me any sooner because of scheduling reasons. Apparently EVERYONE is having babies in the next week. I am really going to have a tough time if she doesn’t come for another week! AY!!!

Also, I’m mentally going back to the “original” due date they gave me upon my first visit, which is September 8th. Obviously today isn’t it… so maybe on Monday!