Summertime Fun

I have been so busy enjoying the summer that I have forgotten to write more often. I have been hiking, swimming, and camping. It's been a wonderful summer! I'm so blessed I've never been on more trips or did more things and here I thought that I would miss out because I'm a mom now. Here are some of the pictures that cronicle our super busy summer.


Carnival with Rory and Ryan


Hiking with Abby, Xander, and Rory


Feeding Rory while we are camping

The summer isn't even over yet! I have loved every minute of being a mom. Loralei is now able to roll over and is almost able to sit up by herself. She laughed out loud for the first time for me today. Man I love that kid!

Other than the baby, Ry is back at his job with Burningham Trucking. It's awesome. We are in Jacob now with the Book of Mormon challenge! We're gonna finish by the end of this year! It has helped our family so much. Ry wants to build a model train layout for all his childhood model trains. I'm trying to get Brad and him to let me make zombies or Harry Potter layout but they aren't having any of it. I have also read a pretty good book, it's called the Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe. It was a mix between historical fiction about the Salem Witch Trials and fictional research based on the trials. I liked it. I also reread the Twilight Saga and I really like those books even more than before but I will never watch the movies! I have heard how much they change and I am just not interested.

The Travels and Doings of Rory Roo

I am averaging about once a month which isn't good! Let me start off by saying how truly grateful I am to have this time with my daughter and how good Heavenly Father truly is to me. Rory is growing so big and is advancing everyday. Today, she rolled over for the first time!

We went to Alabama two weeks ago. It was so nice to see my family and to introduce my little girl. It was a great trip and it left us with a lot to mull over. Rory didn't seem like she liked the humidity much but that takes getting used to.

Since we've been back Rory has started "talking" more and smiling all the time. Her smile is like the sun in my sky. It makes me so happy to see her happy.

Ry is working a temporary job that keeps him working 10-12 hour days. It's only a couple blocks away so he's able to come home for lunch some times. I love that he is so devoted to supporting our family.

Being a stay at home mom is hard on the finances but completely worth it. Nothing I have ever done means more than what I am doing right now. Here are some pics from the last month.

Update

It's been a few weeks since I last posted. Life has been so blissfully busy that I couldn't tear myself away. Rory is doing fantastic. We went to California when she was three weeks old, it was a big surprise trip for us. We didn't decide to go until 9PM the night before. It was a madhouse trying to pack everything for Loralei and ourselves and thankfully we did a good job. Cali was phenominal, I am so truly blessed to have a great family of in-laws who love Rory so good and let us mooch on their fabulous trip. I can now say I have been on the beach on both coast of the country as well as the Gulf of Mexico. It was fantastic I went to Disney Land and rode two rides, hey it was an accomplishment for a 3 weeks out from a c section and nursing Rory every three hours! My favorite part of the trip was the beach it was so beautiful. Here's a picture.



Life after the trip has been so great! Rory has topped ten pounds and learning to gurgle and coo. She is just the love of my life :). I made a slide show of Life after Baby and I'll keep adding to it as we go along. This Sunday is Rory's baby blessing and we went along with Abby and baby Xander to have a blessing outfit photoshoot. I'm so excited to see the pics and they will be posted soon!

Birth Story

I had my daughter Loralei Grace by c section on May 12th, 2009 at 8:27 AM. It was the most amazing experience of my life and I want to write all my memories down know while they are still fresh.

The morning was gorgeous as we drove to the hospital. It was surreal to be driving to have baby when I wasn't having any pain or contractions. It did not feel real. Of course I did not hardly sleep at all the nite before and I was so nervous and thirsty. That was the worst part of the whole of the before surgery, the anxiety and the thirst. As soon as Ry and I arrived, they whisked us to a room so they can start monitoring me and hook me up to an IV. I was so scared and Ry was definitely wired. Here's a picture of me before the surgery. Looking at it now I can't believe how swollen I was.

Ry was so excited. They reeled me into surgery and started my spinal. The spinal was no sweat at all. They local anesthetic didn't even really hurt. However the spinal worked so well that my blood pressure crashed and I started feeling really nauseous and dizzy. The nurse anesthetist had to add some epinephrin to get my blood pressure back up. That was the scariest part of the whole thing but it didn't last long and soon I felt 100% better.

Ry was allowed back in the OR and they started almost right away. I was so numb that I didn't know until someone told me. It was the oddest sensation because I kept feeling the waves of movement right under my chest. They took out 2700 cc's of fluid which is over 90 ounces!! I knew I sloshed but I didn't know there was that much. Then they delivered Loralei. She started crying immediately and I burst into tears. As they were lifting her out Dr Smith said "Jessica, I hope you know that this was the only way this baby was getting out, she didn't even know where the birth canal was." Loralei measured in at 9 pounds and 6 ounces! I can't believe all of what I had inside me! Here is a pic of Loralei when she was freshly evicted.

Big big baby. They took her and Ryan down to the nursery and I was left to get stitched up. The c section was a breeze and honestly not the huge worry that I let it become. The days after were much harder than the surgery itself. All in all tho, my pain has been minimal and I definitely wouldn't fret if all my kids had to be born this way. I will write more on the hospital and the days after in a few days. Feel free to comment!

Pregnancy Pics

I have taken some of my last pregnancy pics this weekend. I'm sure Ry and I will photo document the whole day of the birth but these are the last pics of me out and about (most likely anyway.) Feel free to comment!!

Now that we know that Loralei is coming on Wednesday, I've been thinking about everything that I am going to miss about being pregnant. The realization struck sometime last weekend that I have no idea how to maneuver without my huge stomach. I am actually going to miss it. It has served as my TV tray, attention getter, and my personal favorite free drink getter from 7-11. I will miss my huge stomach because I have had it so long that I don't remember life without it.

I'm so excited for Wednesday! I can't wait for Loralei to get here and for me to be able to see her. Any advice is very welcome!!

C-Section and Other Pregnancy Developments

Wednesday I had my 38 week appointment. I had been looking forward to this appoint since 35 weeks because this was the day that we would discuss induction or basically what our plan will be with the she-hulk child. It did not start out well, we invited Brie to come see my baby on TV this time and when we all arrived at the doctor's office we found out that the ultrasound tech had called in sick and there was no ultrasound. I almost started crying, with all the pregnancy hormones combined with the fact that I hadn't slept well all week. Ry and I went up to our appointment with Dr. Smith just crestfallen.

After a short wait, we were able to see Dr. Smith and I tentatively asked about being induced. We told her about Ry's grandma being in town and how we would love her to be present. Then Dr. Smith laid a bombshell. She told us how since I have literally been measuring full term for five weeks that she would have expected to see more progress than I've been showing and that frankly she thought that I was headed for a C section. Honestly, I have been mentally preparing myself for this for a long time so while it was a shock and dissappointment it was half expected. Dr. Smith was very calm and forthcoming and told use our options of induction or c section and gave us the night to think it over. She asked us to get the ultrasound done at the hospital at 10 pm that night and she would call me on Thursday to talk about what we decided.

We left for home and decided to go shopping since we didn't know when she would decide it was time for Loralei to come. We had a fun time spending all the money that the super generous ladies from my work's CA office gave us. We rested and headed for the ultrasound appointment. Looking at the baby again was just magical. For once, she wasn't being a diva and let us see her face. She is so adorable and looks like one of those fat cherubs. She was even waving her hands, she looks like she had inherited my "fat kindergartener's" hands. It was magical. When it was time to reveal the weight she came in estimated at 9 lbs 2 ounces, plus or minus 22 grams which is just over a pound. I asked the tech about it and he said "That's one big baby...I would go with plus." Hee hee, Ry and I know how to make and grow big babies evidently. That cemented Ry and my decision to follow the doctor's advice of a c section. I have read about how bigger babies have a harder time through the birth canal and since my pelvis is all funnel shaped we just thought that it would be better to follow the doctor's advice and hope for a more normal sized baby next pregnancy.

So C-section it is! It is scheduled for Wednesday the 13th, with the possibility of it being moved up to the 12th. I'm doing my research and being as optimistic as possible. Today is my last day at work which is very bittersweet. It's been tough to work as big as I am, but I really thrive off being needed and work fulfils that for me. I will miss everyone I work with and know I'll have work withdrawals.

I am so excited to have my daughter's birthdate set out and I'm so grateful that she and I are healthy. I have truly been blessed. I am spending this weekend taking my last pregnancy photos and will hopefully upload soon!

Please Oh Please Oh Please!?!

Today is my 38 week appointment and I get to have another ultrasound. I am so very excited to see my baby on TV again, but I am even MORE excited to see her in real life. I am desperately hoping that my doctor will talk to me about inducing Loralei today. I don't necessarily want to be induced today but tomorrow would be great or any other date pretty close to now. I am so ready to not be pregnant anymore and to start the mama phase. I think I really might cry if she doesn't talk to me about it. And the tears are really close to the surface as I've already cried once this morning and almost teared up last nite at dinner. Dumb hormones and lack of sleep. I was awake from 3:00 AM this morning until pretty much when my alarm went off at 5:15 AM. Sleep deprivation is LOVELY :P Just being prepared for Loralei's arrival.

On other news, my husband's grandmother is coming in from Washington today. Ry is SO SO excited. That's another reason why he wants the baby here so badly. Ry's sister Jessica (yep i know :P) is graduating from the University of Utah this week and we're so proud of her! I hope to cement this momentous occasion with my daughter's birth, who now, just fyi, has the hiccups.

Full Term!!

Woot Woot!! I'm finally full term so there is no worries if this little girl decides to make her entrance anytime. I am so ready for her. I am really really tired of being pregnant, well not pregnant persay but tired of being so so big. I'm sorry I don't have very many pictures. I don't have a scanner for pics that are printed out. Maybe Ry and I need to have some sort of photo shoot before Loralei gets here.

My really good friend Abby had her little boy last week. It was a scary emergency situation, but she has truly been blessed by Heavenly Father. Xander was born weighing 3 pounds and 7 ounces and just the cutest little baby ever! The miracle is that even 7 weeks early he is breathing and maintaining his body temperature! We went to see them on Saturday and he is just so adorable. He got Abby's finger toes and definately has looks like a mini CJ! Mom is doing well and was able to go home yesterday. I am so grateful that Heavenly Father blessed my friends.

I have another doctor's appointment tomorrow. I think it will be a quick one again because even if I made TONS of progress I'm not having any contractions. Here is my personal prediction. I think that next week on my next doctor's appointment when I have another ultrasound that my doctor will then start talking about induction or possible c section. What I want to happen, I want to either go into labor before then, or be induced soon after May 6th. I don't want Loralei to get so big that she can't fit through my pelvis or I need to have a c section. But of course my top priority is to get her here as safe as possible.

For me, this pregnancy is starting to really wear on me. I think it's because I got full term big so quickly and my body is really not having fun anymore. I've been full term size for about 5 weeks now and considering I'm doing well. The new symptoms that I have are just an overwhelming fatigue and soreness everywhere. Oh well, Loralei is so worth it.

Pregancy Updates

I had an ultrasound yesterday, April 17th to determine why I am so big. Luckily, my mom wasn't right. I am only having one baby!! Yay for a single birth! It turns out that I measure big because Loralei is 8 pounds plus or minus 1 pound AND I happen to produce more fluid that usual. So put those together and you get me, a really really big pregnant girl. It was so wonderful to be able to see Loralei again before she gets here. She is still perfect. You could see her fat legs which look like little cabbage patch legs and she already has a buddah belly! I was so happy to see her healthy. She wouldn't let us see her face, but we did get her measurements and she's measuring all 38 to 39 weeks.

The doctor told me that we are just going to hold out for a little while and get another ultrasound in 3 weeks if I'm still pregnant. She checked me and I wasn't dilated at all but I was already 75% effaced and the cervix was really soft. My doctor made it sound like I could go in labor at any time and everything would be ok. I just so glad that Loralei looks healthy and I don't really care when she comes as long she is healthy. The only "bad" news was that I am at a higher chance of having a c-section because my abundance of fluid allows Loralei to swim around and doesn't force her to engage in my pelvis, but the doctor said that there isn't really anything to fret over right now.

I am just so relieved that everything is still looking really normal. I was a little sad that she is measuring so big, but honestly all I really care about is that she is healthy and comes at the best time for her.