see, aunt cindy, she really does cry!
Saturday, March 31, 2012
week 5
bunny does cheer moves in her sleep. what a cheer prodigy!
see, aunt cindy, she really does cry!
see, aunt cindy, she really does cry!
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Birth Story (from Blake's notes)
One of my jobs during Tiffanie's labor with Emery (in addition to being both comforting and handsome) was to keep notes on everything so we could remember it later. Now one month after the birthday party, I'm going to review my notes and write an account of the day.
February 27, 2012
2:36am - first contractions
5:30am - wakeup, three hours of contractions
6:40am - call to doctor
7:45am - in with registration (after having gone up the pink elevators)
Breakfast: Honey Nut Cheerios and orange juice (we shared a bowl)
wearing my striped/plaid shirt (I was later told I looked like a lumberjack or someone bailing hay)
TT is wearing a North Central long sleeve shirt (Go Rams!)
Cool but clear weather; had to scrape the windows off and defrost
We went to bed around 11:15pm, planning to go to work in the morning. At 5:30am, I was wakened when Tiffanie put two hands on my shoulders and said, "Sweetie, I'm contracting." I affectionately said, "Can you come back in a couple hours?" I got up and got myself ready to go, not knowing how quickly things would progress, or if this was a false alarm. I put away laundry and tried to straighten a little.
TT varied between moments where she seemed perfectly normal and others where she was clearly laboring. Her breathing became much more focused and her stomach grew tight in pain.
Triage Room #4 - changed into gown, put on baby monitors, ask questions about health, pregnancy
Looked over and winked at me. She looked beautiful in her pre-departure photos.
8:18am - 5cm dilated, 100% effaced
She's here to stay today. Sent notifications to parents, Cindy, Sarah
They had difficulty putting an IV in her arm.
Dr. Maddox said everything looked good. Transitioning things over to Dr. Emery. Isn't it ironic that Dr. Emery will deliver our baby?
8:35 - contractions appear to be growing in duration, frequency, and possibly intensity. Difficulty to lean back, but nurse asked her to so they could continue monitoring baby's heart.
9:10am - 7-8cm dilated, fully effaced.
Dr. Emery decided to stay at hospital instead of going to office for a few hours. Was in office clothes but went to get changed.
Called L/P Klud and then Alan at work to tell them things were progressing nicely. Cindy and Sarah wrote back by saying, "Aacckkk!"
Tiffanie is going to get an epidural. We may have this baby before lunch time.
9:35am - epidural is in. Anesthesiologist mixed several drugs into a container, then administered 3-4 shots. The first two appeared to be pretty painful.
Now they've laid TT back so the medicine doesn't all go to her feet. They're giving her 20 minutes before they're going to rupture membranes. She still can feel her contractions, but they said those should grow less and less intense (in terms of feeling) as the drugs kick in.
9:40am - Renee (our nurse) is checking TTs blood pressure and the baby's heart rate. Renee said getting comfortable is like getting into a warm hot tub. Told TT to relax and try to rest. TT has been up since 2:30am. The lights are turned down and the contractions are getting just a little shorter and less intense.
10:10am - Leon and Pat arrive.
The doctor broke Tiffanie's membranes earlier. There are large pad underneath her to catch everything, and they will change them as needed.
10:25am - A beeping alarm went off and said there was an error in the line, so TT called the desk and asked them to come in. Renee came in and corrected the system. We're all reading right now. TT is reading Parents magazine from 2007. Leon is reading an Express. Pat is reading what looks like a Guideposts.
11:05 - The epidural has slowed down the progression somewhat, at least by my untrained eye. They gave her a small dose of Pitocin to help things move along. She's still able to feel the peaks of the harder contractions, and her breathing is labored.
On a completely unrelated note, we sold our Corolla yesterday. Today I got a call from someone who also wanted to buy our Highlander. I remarked, "We're going to leave the hospital with a baby and no car!"
My dad called to see how we are doing. I told him we were reading magazines. He laughed and said, "Been there." Almost an hour ago, we heard a baby crying next door. Someone else had delivered. When I went to pay our Baby program fee, I saw what looked like four other label/names on the list. When I was out the hall recently, I heard another woman in registration say she was 7cm in the doctor's office. Our baby is going to have lots of birthday buddies. I hope she makes friends in the nursery.
11:15am - Tiffanie said her pain level was the same as it had been before the epidural. Renee came in and asked the doctor if she could increase the meds. T looked at us and said, "Anyone want to change places with me?"
11:20 - Doctor came in to see how things were progressing. Said T will be able soon to start pushing with contractions. The head is moving down and that's why the pain has increased.
Another alarm went off. This time it was a low battery. The nurse coming in to check said, "Congratulations!" She thought we already had the baby. I said, "It was next door." The woman said, "Okay, what's the problem here, low battery?" Then she looked at Tiffanie and said, "I can't change your battery."
11:27 - Anesthesiologist came in and asked how she was doing. Said she could give more pain medication once this dose kicked in. T said her legs were somewhat numb, but the rest of her midsection was still in a lot of pain. She has her hand on her head, eyes closed, somewhat concentrating, somewhat trying to relax. It looks as though the contractions are very regular, coming every minute or so. The peaks aren't as high as they were earlier.
11:35 - Leon retreated to the lobby about 30 minutes ago. I asked Pat, "Are you okay staying here?" I know what's coming, and I want to give her an out. She said she's fine staying. I have a feeling she's going to cry, but that's okay.
11:52am - Renee came back in and asked about pain. T said things are tingly, but the pain is down at a zero.
12:05pm - Doctor came in and checked dilation. We should be ready to start pushing soon. They're emptying T's bladder to make everything easier. She can't stand now, so they're using a catheter.
12:13pm - Renee is leaving to go get supplies, then we're going to start the pushing process. Here we go.
12:30-12:45pm - First rounds of pushing. Rotating to different sides to try to loosen things up.
12:45-1:00pm - table down to encourage pushing
Born 1:01pm
7lbs. 8 oz., 21 inches long
APGAR 8 (1 min) and 9 (5 min)
Baby looks great, little crying here and there. Mom is getting stitched up. Cord draw people took placenta.
E's head is a little cone-like from the suction cup. They said it will go away in a couple days.
Baby has short, reddish/brown hair.
3:00pm - Well we've had a chance to catch our breath. We've posted to Facebook and seen an incredible response. I called my mom, brother, and left a message for my dad. I also texted our church and Cindy. Everyone loves us. Now we're ready to move over to a new room on the same floor. We've been in room 312 and we're moving to 332.
3:06pm - The transport is here now and we're moving.
5:50pm - Spoke with my dad. He's super excited for us. He wondered if he could get a bike helmet for E or if he could fit a carseat on his motorcycle. I told him it would be a hard sell. Bill and Mary Frasnelli came by to say hello. They prayed for little E and encouraged us. Mary took a turn holding, as did Leon.
We are here for the night. Leon and Pat left and only Cindy is scheduled to visit.
6:05pm - We're continuing to try to feed and keep E clean. We've changed her diaper twice.
6:15pm - Tiffanie had a wrap, fries, and apple juice for lunch, and now I'm putting in an order for dinner. Southwest salad, fruit/cheese, cheesecake (!), cranberry juice, milk. I'm gonna go eat after Baby's bath.
6:25pm - Tiffanie rested while E and I went to take a bath. The nurse sponged her all over, which E wasn't too thrilled about. But afterward, they bundled her tight like a burrito, including a shirt and pants. She spit upon the shirt but quickly got a replacement. E also got a Hep B vaccine. And she got her little feeties on the inkpad.
7:00pm - I brought her back to the room and said goodnight to our nurse Alicia. E is bundled tight and quietly gazing up at me. We're friends.
She's developed a case of the hiccups, which is similar to what she had in the womb.
TT's dinner arrived, but now she's trying to feed again.
E loves to put her fist up to her face. She loves the contact of her own fingers.
February 27, 2012
2:36am - first contractions
5:30am - wakeup, three hours of contractions
6:40am - call to doctor
7:45am - in with registration (after having gone up the pink elevators)
Breakfast: Honey Nut Cheerios and orange juice (we shared a bowl)
wearing my striped/plaid shirt (I was later told I looked like a lumberjack or someone bailing hay)
TT is wearing a North Central long sleeve shirt (Go Rams!)
Cool but clear weather; had to scrape the windows off and defrost
We went to bed around 11:15pm, planning to go to work in the morning. At 5:30am, I was wakened when Tiffanie put two hands on my shoulders and said, "Sweetie, I'm contracting." I affectionately said, "Can you come back in a couple hours?" I got up and got myself ready to go, not knowing how quickly things would progress, or if this was a false alarm. I put away laundry and tried to straighten a little.
TT varied between moments where she seemed perfectly normal and others where she was clearly laboring. Her breathing became much more focused and her stomach grew tight in pain.
Triage Room #4 - changed into gown, put on baby monitors, ask questions about health, pregnancy
Looked over and winked at me. She looked beautiful in her pre-departure photos.
8:18am - 5cm dilated, 100% effaced
She's here to stay today. Sent notifications to parents, Cindy, Sarah
They had difficulty putting an IV in her arm.
Dr. Maddox said everything looked good. Transitioning things over to Dr. Emery. Isn't it ironic that Dr. Emery will deliver our baby?
8:35 - contractions appear to be growing in duration, frequency, and possibly intensity. Difficulty to lean back, but nurse asked her to so they could continue monitoring baby's heart.
9:10am - 7-8cm dilated, fully effaced.
Dr. Emery decided to stay at hospital instead of going to office for a few hours. Was in office clothes but went to get changed.
Called L/P Klud and then Alan at work to tell them things were progressing nicely. Cindy and Sarah wrote back by saying, "Aacckkk!"
Tiffanie is going to get an epidural. We may have this baby before lunch time.
9:35am - epidural is in. Anesthesiologist mixed several drugs into a container, then administered 3-4 shots. The first two appeared to be pretty painful.
Now they've laid TT back so the medicine doesn't all go to her feet. They're giving her 20 minutes before they're going to rupture membranes. She still can feel her contractions, but they said those should grow less and less intense (in terms of feeling) as the drugs kick in.
9:40am - Renee (our nurse) is checking TTs blood pressure and the baby's heart rate. Renee said getting comfortable is like getting into a warm hot tub. Told TT to relax and try to rest. TT has been up since 2:30am. The lights are turned down and the contractions are getting just a little shorter and less intense.
10:10am - Leon and Pat arrive.
The doctor broke Tiffanie's membranes earlier. There are large pad underneath her to catch everything, and they will change them as needed.
10:25am - A beeping alarm went off and said there was an error in the line, so TT called the desk and asked them to come in. Renee came in and corrected the system. We're all reading right now. TT is reading Parents magazine from 2007. Leon is reading an Express. Pat is reading what looks like a Guideposts.
11:05 - The epidural has slowed down the progression somewhat, at least by my untrained eye. They gave her a small dose of Pitocin to help things move along. She's still able to feel the peaks of the harder contractions, and her breathing is labored.
On a completely unrelated note, we sold our Corolla yesterday. Today I got a call from someone who also wanted to buy our Highlander. I remarked, "We're going to leave the hospital with a baby and no car!"
My dad called to see how we are doing. I told him we were reading magazines. He laughed and said, "Been there." Almost an hour ago, we heard a baby crying next door. Someone else had delivered. When I went to pay our Baby program fee, I saw what looked like four other label/names on the list. When I was out the hall recently, I heard another woman in registration say she was 7cm in the doctor's office. Our baby is going to have lots of birthday buddies. I hope she makes friends in the nursery.
11:15am - Tiffanie said her pain level was the same as it had been before the epidural. Renee came in and asked the doctor if she could increase the meds. T looked at us and said, "Anyone want to change places with me?"
11:20 - Doctor came in to see how things were progressing. Said T will be able soon to start pushing with contractions. The head is moving down and that's why the pain has increased.
Another alarm went off. This time it was a low battery. The nurse coming in to check said, "Congratulations!" She thought we already had the baby. I said, "It was next door." The woman said, "Okay, what's the problem here, low battery?" Then she looked at Tiffanie and said, "I can't change your battery."
11:27 - Anesthesiologist came in and asked how she was doing. Said she could give more pain medication once this dose kicked in. T said her legs were somewhat numb, but the rest of her midsection was still in a lot of pain. She has her hand on her head, eyes closed, somewhat concentrating, somewhat trying to relax. It looks as though the contractions are very regular, coming every minute or so. The peaks aren't as high as they were earlier.
11:35 - Leon retreated to the lobby about 30 minutes ago. I asked Pat, "Are you okay staying here?" I know what's coming, and I want to give her an out. She said she's fine staying. I have a feeling she's going to cry, but that's okay.
11:52am - Renee came back in and asked about pain. T said things are tingly, but the pain is down at a zero.
12:05pm - Doctor came in and checked dilation. We should be ready to start pushing soon. They're emptying T's bladder to make everything easier. She can't stand now, so they're using a catheter.
12:13pm - Renee is leaving to go get supplies, then we're going to start the pushing process. Here we go.
12:30-12:45pm - First rounds of pushing. Rotating to different sides to try to loosen things up.
12:45-1:00pm - table down to encourage pushing
Born 1:01pm
7lbs. 8 oz., 21 inches long
APGAR 8 (1 min) and 9 (5 min)
Baby looks great, little crying here and there. Mom is getting stitched up. Cord draw people took placenta.
E's head is a little cone-like from the suction cup. They said it will go away in a couple days.
Baby has short, reddish/brown hair.
3:00pm - Well we've had a chance to catch our breath. We've posted to Facebook and seen an incredible response. I called my mom, brother, and left a message for my dad. I also texted our church and Cindy. Everyone loves us. Now we're ready to move over to a new room on the same floor. We've been in room 312 and we're moving to 332.
3:06pm - The transport is here now and we're moving.
5:50pm - Spoke with my dad. He's super excited for us. He wondered if he could get a bike helmet for E or if he could fit a carseat on his motorcycle. I told him it would be a hard sell. Bill and Mary Frasnelli came by to say hello. They prayed for little E and encouraged us. Mary took a turn holding, as did Leon.
We are here for the night. Leon and Pat left and only Cindy is scheduled to visit.
6:05pm - We're continuing to try to feed and keep E clean. We've changed her diaper twice.
6:15pm - Tiffanie had a wrap, fries, and apple juice for lunch, and now I'm putting in an order for dinner. Southwest salad, fruit/cheese, cheesecake (!), cranberry juice, milk. I'm gonna go eat after Baby's bath.
6:25pm - Tiffanie rested while E and I went to take a bath. The nurse sponged her all over, which E wasn't too thrilled about. But afterward, they bundled her tight like a burrito, including a shirt and pants. She spit upon the shirt but quickly got a replacement. E also got a Hep B vaccine. And she got her little feeties on the inkpad.
7:00pm - I brought her back to the room and said goodnight to our nurse Alicia. E is bundled tight and quietly gazing up at me. We're friends.
She's developed a case of the hiccups, which is similar to what she had in the womb.
TT's dinner arrived, but now she's trying to feed again.
E loves to put her fist up to her face. She loves the contact of her own fingers.
Birth Story (from Tiffanie's perpective)
on february 27 around 2:30am, i started feeling pains that lasted what felt like about 10 seconds at a time. i wondered if they were actual contractions since they felt so short, but i could definitely feel them start and stop, which i hadn't felt before. usually the pains i felt were more like cramps that stayed for a long time and had no clear beginning and end. i didn't time them very carefully at this point because i was still in bed, but i think they were like 15-20 minutes apart. after about an hour, i realized i wasn't going to go back to sleep so i went out to the couch. i decided to time one of the pains and it was exactly one minute long. hey, maybe these are contractions! some were about 10 min apart some were more like 7 minutes depending on whether or not i got up and walked around. by about 5:30am i was trying to decide when to wake up blake. i had about 3 in a row that were 6-7 minutes apart and pretty consistent. i decided it was time to wake him up since i figured it might take us a while to get ourselves together if we decided to go to the hospital. i went in and whispered: "i'm having contractions. they're 7 minutes apart." he said something like: "ok. are you doing ok? can i go back to sleep?" poor guy was so tired or he was being funny - i wasn't quite sure. so i went back out to the living room and continued to time them. blake got up, and by that point they were about 5-6 minutes apart. blake started getting ready, putting some things in his bag, and folding some laundry. i started getting ready and we decided to call the doctor's office around 6:30am, told them i had contractions 4-5 minutes apart, and they said to go to the hospital. we got a little bit of cereal and juice and finished getting stuff together.
we were on our way by about 7:15am. we arrived at 7:30am and checked into the front desk. we got up to the triage area and i got into a gown and hooked up to the monitor. the doctor on call came and checked me and said i was 5cm dilated. he said: yep, you're staying! so once a room was ready, we moved into our room and one of my doctors, Dr. Emery (coincident - we didn't name her after the doctor) switched shifts with the on-call doc and came in to check on me. it was close to 9am by this time and she said she was going to her office to get some things done and would be back around lunch time. then she decided to check me before she left. i was 7-8cm by then and the head was "bulging" - she said: i guess i'm not going to the office! she asked if i wanted an epidural and if so, they'd do that before she broke my water. the contractions hurt but they were manageable, but i decided that they were about as much as i could handle and anything more would be too much. plus i was progressing so quickly that i decided to go for the epidural.
around 9:30am the anesthesiologist came in and got me set up. they laid me back to let the medicine work and i was pretty uncomfortable laying down, waiting for the meds to work. i felt tingly but still felt pain about an hour later. the contractions slowed down, so they gave me a little pitocin to get them going again. around 10am, Dr. Emery checked me again and i was 9.5cm dilated, and she decided to break my water, which turned out to be a pretty easy task - i think it took her about 5 seconds. the nurse explained to me that there was a little bit of meconium in the fluid, so when the baby came, she'd need to be cleaned first before i could hold her. i was fine with that. she let the pitocin kick in some more and get more regular contractions. my folks arrived around 10:15.
the pain was more manageable, so i decided to flip through a magazine. however, after about 30 minutes, i told Dr. Emery i could still feel the contractions and i think she thought i meant the pressure. i told the nurse they felt as painful as they did before the epidural so she quickly called the anesthesiologist to come back and give me another dose. once that was administered, she said it would about 20 minutes until it kicked in. i was hurting pretty bad and she said she could do one more dose at the end of the 20 minutes to make sure it worked. after the third dose, i finally stopped feeling the contractions. my dad decided to go down to the lobby at this point, which i was fine with - my mom said she'd call when the baby came.
around 12noon and the doctor said it was going to be time to start pushing soon. so around 12:25pm, i started pushing. after about 4-5 pushes, they brought in a mirror so i could see myself. i was surprised at how little of the baby we could actually see after all of that "you're doing great, way to go, good pushing." i figured she'd be halfway out by then! haha. i kept pushing and Dr. Emery said she wanted to use the kiwi cup to pull her head out. by the end of the head coming out, i could feel the pain and what i can assume was the tearing. it didn't take long to get her to come out after that.
Emery Annabelle was born at 1:01pm and blake cut the cord. (blake said 1:01pm is the same time he was born!) the first thing i said was: she's purple! (she was sorta grayish/lavender.) the doctor said she'd get pink once she got the oxygen in her system - that made me feel better. blake was trying to take pictures from the far side of the room and they told him he could go over and see her. they said her APGAR scores were 8 and 9 and that she was doing great. blake got to be the first one to hold her.
my mom kept calling my dad and he must have been somewhere without cell reception because he wasn't answering. i kept telling her that i was ok with waiting since i was still being sewn up. finally the doc finished and they gave me the baby. she was so warm and bundled up. we finally found my dad and he came in too. everyone got to hold her.
-----------------------------
we picked the name Emery because we liked it - it's a familiar enough name that people understand what you say, but it's not common or popular. plus, it's feminine and different.
we picked Annabelle for these reasons (and we realize this is stretching it a bit):
ANN = middle name of pat, missy, and cindy
A = blake's dad Alan
B = blake's brother, Brandon, tiffanie's brother, Bryan
EL = blake's mom's middle name: Elaine; sarah's middle name: Elizabeth
LE = Leon, laura's middle name: Lee
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Sunday, March 25, 2012
first manicure - 3.24.12
saturday, emery finally got a manicure. after lots of scratches to her own face and mommy's face and neck, i trimmed her nails and they look (and feel!) so much better.
emery also practiced being in the ergo carrier for the first time.
emery also practiced being in the ergo carrier for the first time.
Saturday, March 24, 2012
emery and kitty - 3.23.12
today, emery went shopping for the first time. gramma, tiffanie, and emery went to babies r us and bought a lot of fun things with gift cards from so many nice friends. after shopping, emery met kitty for the first time. kitty was a little curious about all the crying, but emery wasn't too impressed. after 3.5 weeks of carrying around this little bundle, kitty feels much bigger, longer, and of course, fluffier. kitty has at least 1-1.5 lbs on emery. but that won't be true for long!
Thursday, March 22, 2012
first cheer practice - 3.22.12
today emery went to cheer practice for the first time. well, the first time since being born - she went to lots of cheer practices last fall. i remember lots of kicks during the loudest parts of practice. today, for the majority of practice, i had her in a wrap and she slept great the whole time - i even instructed with her strapped to me and she didn't budge.
here's her first picture with coach christina.
here's her first picture with coach christina.
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
bunny ballerina - 3.21.12
isn't this the cutest outfit ever? i think she should wear a tutu everyday.
Monday, March 19, 2012
first walk - 3.19.12
the weather has been so lovely for a few weeks now - although Tiffanie and Emery haven't really left the house very often. so, tonight we took Emery on her first walk in our neighborhood. aside from the bumpy side walk, we think she enjoyed herself.
Sunday, March 18, 2012
first trip to church - 3.18.12
today was Emery's first trip to sunday morning church. she slept through worship and started to stir after greeting time. so i took her to the nursery for a change and feeding, and she was barely awake enough to eat. we went back in to the service and she enjoyed (napped through) the rest of the sermon. we went to the royal ranger chili luncheon and she enjoyed some gramma snuggles until she was ready for her own chili luncheon.
Saturday, March 17, 2012
JCC baby shower - 3.17.12
today was the church baby shower for emery. we played fun games.
1) in sealed brown paper bags were 12 baby objects and we had to guess what the objects were by feeling them through the bag - no peeking! blake got more right than tiffanie!
2) we had to place styrofoam plates on our heads and draw a baby on it with a sharpie. alicia's was the best.
3) everyone got a card to write a message to emery on her future birthdays - folks could choose the birthday, there were envelopes with every year through 18.
1) in sealed brown paper bags were 12 baby objects and we had to guess what the objects were by feeling them through the bag - no peeking! blake got more right than tiffanie!
2) we had to place styrofoam plates on our heads and draw a baby on it with a sharpie. alicia's was the best.
3) everyone got a card to write a message to emery on her future birthdays - folks could choose the birthday, there were envelopes with every year through 18.
Friday, March 16, 2012
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