I know several people with birthdays at the beginning of September.
My MIL has one. Mike's brother, one of the kids' uncles, has a birthday this week.
MIL was telling me how it took over 48 hours of contractions before labor really got started.
And it made me think of my own birth stories. I love how each of our children begin in different ways, right down to the day and hour and manner in which they are born.It is just another way that proves how God is in the details of our lives, both big and small.
Sometimes I need to just sit still and remember all the details that He has orchestrated for me.
If you have a Labor Day story (or more than one!), I'd love to hear it.
You can reply here or send me a message.
Showing posts with label birthday. Show all posts
Showing posts with label birthday. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 2, 2014
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
"So, are you ready to have another one?"
The little guy celebrated his first birthday a week or two ago. (Yes, one day I'll post about that too... maybe it will be the same "one day" when I finally upload all the pictures that are sitting, worthless, in my camera, on my memory card where nobody can see them.) Now when people ask how old he is, I respond "one year old." And you know what happens? They ask me one (or both) of these things: "Is he walking yet?" Ok, normal milestone kind of question. I'll accept that. But by far the more popular (and, to me, shocking!) question is "How many kids are you going to have? Are you going to stop at three, or go for more?", or, more bluntly put "So when are you going to have another one?" ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! He is the third baby! Some very respectful families are completely content with three (or possibly even less) children. And secondly, since when is it so prevalent in our society for everyone to have babies less than two years apart?! Goodness. Give me a break, please.
Have you gotten questions like this, too? Does anyone else find this line of questioning somewhat disturbing? Is it ok to ask a stranger, or someone that you don't know well, about their family size/desire to have more children/TTC and/or conception plans? Would love to hear your thoughts.
Have you gotten questions like this, too? Does anyone else find this line of questioning somewhat disturbing? Is it ok to ask a stranger, or someone that you don't know well, about their family size/desire to have more children/TTC and/or conception plans? Would love to hear your thoughts.
Friday, November 26, 2010
Our new baby
NOAH MICHAEL HUMMEL was born
10:09am on Friday November 26th 2010.
He weighed in at 8 pounds, 1 ounce.
Labor and delivery was really fast!
Thank you God for this precious baby boy! :)
10:09am on Friday November 26th 2010.
He weighed in at 8 pounds, 1 ounce.
Labor and delivery was really fast!
Thank you God for this precious baby boy! :)
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Learning to Walk
Today was Mike's birthday.
Since we and everyone else in NC was snowed in, we had a very quiet day at home. (We even had "church at home"!) It would have been very nice and relaxing if I was not sick with the flu and some kind of respiratory/sinus infection. Tylenol pm is helping with the head-cold part, but not helping me sleep or keeping me from constantly coughing and sneezing.
Moving on...
In the past 4 weeks, Aliah has gone from tentatively taking her first steps in January 6th to full-time, full-force, real, life-like walking. In the past 4-5 days she has begun practically running around the house, trying to keep pace with Hannah. It is still half-surprising to see Aliah walking down the hallway with her head held high, with a doll or toy in each hand - sometimes I half-expect her to be crawling still, or just rolling around on the floor as she used to, like an infant. It astounds me how quickly children learn and grow. I want them to stay little girls forever, but I know that like us adults, they will continue to learn and grow and get older with each passing day.
Since we and everyone else in NC was snowed in, we had a very quiet day at home. (We even had "church at home"!) It would have been very nice and relaxing if I was not sick with the flu and some kind of respiratory/sinus infection. Tylenol pm is helping with the head-cold part, but not helping me sleep or keeping me from constantly coughing and sneezing.
Moving on...
In the past 4 weeks, Aliah has gone from tentatively taking her first steps in January 6th to full-time, full-force, real, life-like walking. In the past 4-5 days she has begun practically running around the house, trying to keep pace with Hannah. It is still half-surprising to see Aliah walking down the hallway with her head held high, with a doll or toy in each hand - sometimes I half-expect her to be crawling still, or just rolling around on the floor as she used to, like an infant. It astounds me how quickly children learn and grow. I want them to stay little girls forever, but I know that like us adults, they will continue to learn and grow and get older with each passing day.
Friday, January 29, 2010
Wake-up!
I love my girls so much, and I am so thankful that I get to be a stay-at-home mom right now. But I am run-down. I give all I can to them, and don't have enough time at the end of the day to properly care for myself (let along washing things, household chores, paying bills, etc). Just feeding Aliah is a full-time job in itself! I find myself eating granola bars or chocolate milk as meals, sometimes pbj sandwiches - whatever I can grab and consume with one hand. And more often than not, remembering to take my vitamins and meds is a forgotten habit that I just can't seem to get going again.
Right now Mike is working as many overtime shifts as he can, just to ensure that we can pay all our bills and put food on the table. He is severely stressed and burned-out. He never gives himself a break.
This morning, after I had been up all night long with Hannah, who was refusing to go to sleep and insisting on interrupting my sleep-time every hour or two, Mike came home ranting about having to get a new driver's license, and how he couldn't find some important papers.... Ok yeah, the papers were important to him, but it was not necessary to wake up everyone else in the house at 8am. He acts so angry and aggressive, and I don't just mean sometimes. He doesn't have time for a hobby with his insane work schedule, so he ends up taking it out on me. It's not fair, and I'm not trying to make excuses for him... That's just what happens.
Something has got to give, but I am scared about what exactly that will be, and what it will look like.
In the meantime, we have lots of birthdays to celebrate over the next 3 weeks.
Mike is turning thirty this weekend. He is feeling really, really old.
I told him that for my birthday, I want two hours by myself. With NO interruptions. I Need Me Time. We'll see if that happens.
Right now Mike is working as many overtime shifts as he can, just to ensure that we can pay all our bills and put food on the table. He is severely stressed and burned-out. He never gives himself a break.
This morning, after I had been up all night long with Hannah, who was refusing to go to sleep and insisting on interrupting my sleep-time every hour or two, Mike came home ranting about having to get a new driver's license, and how he couldn't find some important papers.... Ok yeah, the papers were important to him, but it was not necessary to wake up everyone else in the house at 8am. He acts so angry and aggressive, and I don't just mean sometimes. He doesn't have time for a hobby with his insane work schedule, so he ends up taking it out on me. It's not fair, and I'm not trying to make excuses for him... That's just what happens.
Something has got to give, but I am scared about what exactly that will be, and what it will look like.
In the meantime, we have lots of birthdays to celebrate over the next 3 weeks.
Mike is turning thirty this weekend. He is feeling really, really old.
I told him that for my birthday, I want two hours by myself. With NO interruptions. I Need Me Time. We'll see if that happens.
Sunday, January 17, 2010
Remembering Amber Grace
We miss you, sweet baby.
Today, our little friend Amber would be celebrating her first birthday. She would eat cake & ice cream for the first time. She would be learning to take her first steps. She would clap her hands, laugh, and rip pretty paper and bows off of gifts.
Instead, this day is marked with sadness. Her parents will be trying to get through the day with empty arms and aching hearts. Rather than getting Amber a birthday present, all I can do is leave flowers on her grave, and say a prayer for her and her family.
Amber Grace was only 4 1/2 months old when she went to heaven. She went peacefully, in her sleep. Such a tragedy, what a terrible, terrible loss. We cannot understand why God chose to take her home so soon, but we can choose to accept it.
She is deeply missed by her parents, Kristie and Cory, her big sister Samantha, her grandparents, and many friends and relatives. We take comfort in the fact that she is now living with Jesus.
You live on in our hearts, dear one.
We remember you every day.
Amber Grace Rasmussen
Born January 17th 2009 ~ Reborn June 6th 2009
Today, our little friend Amber would be celebrating her first birthday. She would eat cake & ice cream for the first time. She would be learning to take her first steps. She would clap her hands, laugh, and rip pretty paper and bows off of gifts.
Instead, this day is marked with sadness. Her parents will be trying to get through the day with empty arms and aching hearts. Rather than getting Amber a birthday present, all I can do is leave flowers on her grave, and say a prayer for her and her family.
Amber Grace was only 4 1/2 months old when she went to heaven. She went peacefully, in her sleep. Such a tragedy, what a terrible, terrible loss. We cannot understand why God chose to take her home so soon, but we can choose to accept it.
She is deeply missed by her parents, Kristie and Cory, her big sister Samantha, her grandparents, and many friends and relatives. We take comfort in the fact that she is now living with Jesus.
You live on in our hearts, dear one.
We remember you every day.
Amber Grace Rasmussen
Born January 17th 2009 ~ Reborn June 6th 2009
Friday, September 25, 2009
Almost Party Time
Aliah just fell asleep in her highchair during lunchtime. She had cereal and applesauce smeared all over her face, yet she slept on. Can you imagine it? I love those kids of baby pictures!
My youngest brother's birthday was yesterday. He just turned nineteen.... oh, that makes me feel so old! He was so little when Mike first met him. He was only 11 years old when we got married!
The big birthday party for my Dad/family reunion is tomorrow.
Relatives are flying into DC & Baltimore tonight. Almost party time!
Unfortuneately, Mike will miss the party. He had to drive home last night, so that he could make it to work today. He's had over 2 weeks off, and although I know he enjoys his time away from work, I think he was gettng restless and bored just sitting around. I think working hard for the next 3 weeks will be good for him. After this roration, we'll get to take another family trip to PA! I can't wait for this college reunion, I just know that camping with all our favorite Cal U friends will be so much fun!
My youngest brother's birthday was yesterday. He just turned nineteen.... oh, that makes me feel so old! He was so little when Mike first met him. He was only 11 years old when we got married!
The big birthday party for my Dad/family reunion is tomorrow.
Relatives are flying into DC & Baltimore tonight. Almost party time!
Unfortuneately, Mike will miss the party. He had to drive home last night, so that he could make it to work today. He's had over 2 weeks off, and although I know he enjoys his time away from work, I think he was gettng restless and bored just sitting around. I think working hard for the next 3 weeks will be good for him. After this roration, we'll get to take another family trip to PA! I can't wait for this college reunion, I just know that camping with all our favorite Cal U friends will be so much fun!
Sunday, July 12, 2009
ChuckECheese, and other childhood adventures.
Our cute little Chubby Bunny is such a happy baby girl! Even with a bizzare rash covering most of her body (our dr. called it something like "pitoriosis"?), she will still smile at anyone who pays attention to her, and laughs and squeals at her parents and big sister.
Aliah ate peas for the first time this week. She did not have a high opinion of them. As you can see, she preferred her thumb more than the peas. Now we will be moving on to pureed squash.
Our Hannah-Princess is getting taller, and learning new things by leaps and bounds. She wore this outfit all around the house the other day... and to the store, and to the museum!
Yesterday we went to a friend's birthday party at ChuckECheese. This is one of my least-enjoyed places of the modern world, but Hannah loved the rides and games so much that we were the last ones to leave the party! I could not drag her out of the hamster tube play area (she called it an "inside playground.")
Mike is working too much these days, but I won't complain, because I know that God is protecting us and providing for us abundantly.
And yes, to those who are still wondering, we did get a new AC unit. After several thousand dollars and quite a few hours of hot sweaty labor, it has been installed, checked, and re-checked. Our house is now a decent temperature, even cool enough to sleep comfortably inside of it!
Aliah ate peas for the first time this week. She did not have a high opinion of them. As you can see, she preferred her thumb more than the peas. Now we will be moving on to pureed squash.
Our Hannah-Princess is getting taller, and learning new things by leaps and bounds. She wore this outfit all around the house the other day... and to the store, and to the museum!
Yesterday we went to a friend's birthday party at ChuckECheese. This is one of my least-enjoyed places of the modern world, but Hannah loved the rides and games so much that we were the last ones to leave the party! I could not drag her out of the hamster tube play area (she called it an "inside playground.")Mike is working too much these days, but I won't complain, because I know that God is protecting us and providing for us abundantly.
And yes, to those who are still wondering, we did get a new AC unit. After several thousand dollars and quite a few hours of hot sweaty labor, it has been installed, checked, and re-checked. Our house is now a decent temperature, even cool enough to sleep comfortably inside of it!
Monday, February 23, 2009
Four Years Ago....
Four years ago, at 10:15am, I became a mother for the first time. It changed my life completely. Hannah will always be our special little girl, no matter how many others come after her.
Becoming a mother was breathtakingly beautiful and pitifully painful all at once (as other moms know!). Having Hannah forced me to be more loving, more appreciative, more joyful, more relaxed, more responsible, more selfless, more protective, more playful, and more attentive to the little things in life.
Hannah continues to teach me values such as patience, gentleness, and love. She reminds me daily that I should have faith as simple and straightforward as a child's. That I should say, and show, my "I love you's" every chance I get, and that usually the process of creating something is even more rewarding and enjoyable than the actual product at the end.
I love how helpful she is how easy to please she can be. She's such a great help with Aliah, she absolutely adores her, and it is precious to watch. Hannah thinks eberything is better if you can hold someone's hand while doing it.
My favorite Hannah quote of the day: It is 11am. Hannah knows that today is her birthday. We are talking about how old she is. She tells me "Mommy. Im not four. I'm still three, because we didnt eat my birthday cake yet!" So I guess she didnt 'officially' turn 4 until 7pm, after dinner, when we finally ate dessert.
Becoming a mother was breathtakingly beautiful and pitifully painful all at once (as other moms know!). Having Hannah forced me to be more loving, more appreciative, more joyful, more relaxed, more responsible, more selfless, more protective, more playful, and more attentive to the little things in life.
Hannah continues to teach me values such as patience, gentleness, and love. She reminds me daily that I should have faith as simple and straightforward as a child's. That I should say, and show, my "I love you's" every chance I get, and that usually the process of creating something is even more rewarding and enjoyable than the actual product at the end.
I love how helpful she is how easy to please she can be. She's such a great help with Aliah, she absolutely adores her, and it is precious to watch. Hannah thinks eberything is better if you can hold someone's hand while doing it.
My favorite Hannah quote of the day: It is 11am. Hannah knows that today is her birthday. We are talking about how old she is. She tells me "Mommy. Im not four. I'm still three, because we didnt eat my birthday cake yet!" So I guess she didnt 'officially' turn 4 until 7pm, after dinner, when we finally ate dessert.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
update
Yesterday, Mike spent the afternoon in ICU while I went home to spend time with Hannah. For my birthday, my mom took Hannah and I to get new haircuts. It was a cute girly thing to do and it got us all out of the house for a little while. Even better, I got to take a shower for the first time in four days!
Aliah was awake for about three hours in the afternoon. It was so nice to see her bright blue eyes open and looking around. Mike is such a good father! He sat by her side for eight hours and barely left the room!
Now Im eating a midnight snack, and Aliah is AWAKE! This is especially exciting because normally at home she would be awake at this time, between 1-2 am.
The attneding dr said that the RSV virus should be running its course and ebbing away within the next couple days, and that we should start to see more recovery very soon. Her iron levels are still dropping. We have decided to supplement with vitamins first, to see if that helps, and wont worry about doing a blood transfusion quite yet. (Alisha, you are totally right about the hemoglobin levels! She is five weeks old and just barely beginning to produce it on her own. They explained it to me, I didnt know that.) Im sure im forgetting something, but these are the main things.
I was excuse from jury duty this week :) And my aunts/uncles left me a really really sweet birthday message a few hours ago that made me cry! In spite of all this, Feb 4th turned out to be a positive day after all. We are feeling much more optimistic right now about her recovery. I'll update more as we know more.
Aliah was awake for about three hours in the afternoon. It was so nice to see her bright blue eyes open and looking around. Mike is such a good father! He sat by her side for eight hours and barely left the room!
Now Im eating a midnight snack, and Aliah is AWAKE! This is especially exciting because normally at home she would be awake at this time, between 1-2 am.
The attneding dr said that the RSV virus should be running its course and ebbing away within the next couple days, and that we should start to see more recovery very soon. Her iron levels are still dropping. We have decided to supplement with vitamins first, to see if that helps, and wont worry about doing a blood transfusion quite yet. (Alisha, you are totally right about the hemoglobin levels! She is five weeks old and just barely beginning to produce it on her own. They explained it to me, I didnt know that.) Im sure im forgetting something, but these are the main things.
I was excuse from jury duty this week :) And my aunts/uncles left me a really really sweet birthday message a few hours ago that made me cry! In spite of all this, Feb 4th turned out to be a positive day after all. We are feeling much more optimistic right now about her recovery. I'll update more as we know more.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Poor baby
It's my birthday today. Not such a happy one.
Aliah is having some issues this morning.
Her core temp. went down to 95 degrees and stayed there for a few hours, so she is now under a big warming lamp. Her bp has been kind of erractic, and she didnt pee at all while I was sleeping from 1-5am.
They are also concerned that her iron levels are low and continuing to drop. (This is mostly my fault, since I'm an anemic vegetarian.) They said the usual course of action to fix it is... a blood transfusion. This seems a bit extreme to me, as a first course of action, but then again, what do I know?
My main concern right now is pumping enough milk to feed this kid. I am worried that I might not have enough supply for her. Right now she is getting about 3 oz every three hours. At home, I had no problem pumping out this much, but as it is, I am struggling. Maybe the stress is getting to me?
One good thing: she's still gaining weight! When we were admitted she was 4.78 kgs and now she is just over 5 kgs (sorry, I dont do metric conversions in my head).
Aliah is having some issues this morning.
Her core temp. went down to 95 degrees and stayed there for a few hours, so she is now under a big warming lamp. Her bp has been kind of erractic, and she didnt pee at all while I was sleeping from 1-5am.
They are also concerned that her iron levels are low and continuing to drop. (This is mostly my fault, since I'm an anemic vegetarian.) They said the usual course of action to fix it is... a blood transfusion. This seems a bit extreme to me, as a first course of action, but then again, what do I know?
My main concern right now is pumping enough milk to feed this kid. I am worried that I might not have enough supply for her. Right now she is getting about 3 oz every three hours. At home, I had no problem pumping out this much, but as it is, I am struggling. Maybe the stress is getting to me?
One good thing: she's still gaining weight! When we were admitted she was 4.78 kgs and now she is just over 5 kgs (sorry, I dont do metric conversions in my head).
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Sick kids
Hannah shared her cold with Aliah, and now the baby is coughing and congested too. I am concerned for her, she is lethargic and not eating well. Mike keeps checking on Aliah, and listening to her breathing with his stethoscope. He says the cogestion is mostly all in her nose and throat, and that it's just a cold. I am still worried abut her though.
Today is Mike's birthday. He is one year away from thrity, and feeling very old. Last night we went out to dinner with my mom to celebrate. It was fun.
My birthday is on Wednesday, and Hannah's is a few weeks after that.
Today is Mike's birthday. He is one year away from thrity, and feeling very old. Last night we went out to dinner with my mom to celebrate. It was fun.
My birthday is on Wednesday, and Hannah's is a few weeks after that.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
One month old. Pictures. Sick kids.
Mike and I celebrated our birthdays tonight with his mom and dad. Here are some pictures from Hannah's point of view:
Can you guess which one of us is turning 26 this year?
Guess who is one month old today?
At her check-up, Aliah weighed in at 10 lbs, 5 oz, and was 22.5 inches long. She sure is growing - although I guessed that she would be closer to eleven pounds. Oh well, it just means she can fit in her 0-3 months clothes a little bit longer.
Poor Hannah has a nasty cough and a cold, courtesy of a friend, and she has now generously shared it with Aliah. Yuck. Yesteday she used up an entire box of tissues on her runny nose. Hand-washing has recently become part of our hourly routine.
My MIL, Mike's mom, has been such a gigantic help during her stay with us! She deep-cleaned our kitchen yesterday, and has been baking delicious meals for us all week.
Last night was Mike's first shift back at work - the night shift - and it was hard on all of us. Hannah has been so used to him being home at bedtime, so that was an even greater struggle than usual. Then Aliah stayed awake from 11pm-4am! I seriously just wanted to curl up in a ball and cry, I was so incredibly exhausted (and already running on just 3 hours of sleep!) I considered driving her around the neighborhood, in the car... then thought about bundling us up to go outside when it was 30 degrees, and decided not to. Maybe I should have done it though, just to feel like I was accomplishing something. At least I got a small reprieve, when I didnt have to feed her again until 8:30am.
I hope and pray that we all get more sleep tonight!!!
Can you guess which one of us is turning 26 this year?
Guess who is one month old today?
At her check-up, Aliah weighed in at 10 lbs, 5 oz, and was 22.5 inches long. She sure is growing - although I guessed that she would be closer to eleven pounds. Oh well, it just means she can fit in her 0-3 months clothes a little bit longer.
Poor Hannah has a nasty cough and a cold, courtesy of a friend, and she has now generously shared it with Aliah. Yuck. Yesteday she used up an entire box of tissues on her runny nose. Hand-washing has recently become part of our hourly routine.
My MIL, Mike's mom, has been such a gigantic help during her stay with us! She deep-cleaned our kitchen yesterday, and has been baking delicious meals for us all week.
Last night was Mike's first shift back at work - the night shift - and it was hard on all of us. Hannah has been so used to him being home at bedtime, so that was an even greater struggle than usual. Then Aliah stayed awake from 11pm-4am! I seriously just wanted to curl up in a ball and cry, I was so incredibly exhausted (and already running on just 3 hours of sleep!) I considered driving her around the neighborhood, in the car... then thought about bundling us up to go outside when it was 30 degrees, and decided not to. Maybe I should have done it though, just to feel like I was accomplishing something. At least I got a small reprieve, when I didnt have to feed her again until 8:30am.
I hope and pray that we all get more sleep tonight!!!
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
The birth story.
Here are all the knitty-gritty details of Aliah's birth...
How it all started: Early on Sunday morning I woke up at 3am, went to the bathroom, and realized that I was having mild contractions. They were coming about every five minutes. My first thought was “YES! Let’s get this over with!” I was so excited to finally end this pregnancy and have a baby in my arms.
Too excited to go back to sleep, I got up and made sure my hospital bag was ready, packed up the camera bag, and wrote out directions for my mother to get to the hospital. Took care of some bills and things on the computer, then at 4:30 am I woke up Mike. I shook his arm: “Honey, wake up”, but he didn’t move. Louder, I said “Wake up, we need to go the hospital soon, I’m having contractions!” He didn’t believe me; he mumbled something like “No you’re not. You’re kidding, you’re lying to me. Go back to sleep.” Finally he got up and stumbled to the kitchen, made some coffee.
I called the midwife to let her know that we’d be coming soon. She said “You sound too cheerful and friendly on the phone”, and didn’t believe that I was in real labor! She told me to take a walk for 20 or 30 minutes and call me back. So, at 5 am, there I was, walking around our neighborhood in the dark, by myself, completely alone (I did take my cell phone, just in case). The only other living thing I saw out there was a deer. I just enjoyed the early morning quiet. I spent some time praying. I walked about two miles.
When I got back to the house, I called back to confirm that I was indeed having contraction, coming ever 3 or 4 minutes now, and she agreed to meet me at the hospital. We got there around 6am, parked, and found our way to L&D. The sun was still down. Everything was very quiet and surreal.
By the time I finished signing consent forms and got into triage, it was 6:30. The midwife examined me at 7am and I was 6cm dilated. Nice! I was excited! They admitted me to a room, we got settled in, and took some more laps around the hospital.
Nothing much happened for the next 4 or 5 hours. I was still having contractions every 3 minutes, but they weren’t really getting stronger. We made jokes about how boring it was to wait around the hospital for the baby to come. The nurse and midwife kept saying “I can’t believe you’re in labor, you’re so calm and happy!” Mike watched a marathon of “HOUSE” on tv. I remember hearing another woman laboring in the next room, and shortly after, the cries of a newborn baby.
When we checked at 12:30pm I was still only 7 cm dilated. I was anxious to get things going, and at that point I was getting tired of just sitting and waiting for things to get moving, so we decided to break my water around 1pm. And from then on, it got very intense.
Contractions got much longer and harder and faster. Everything went really quickly. Tried a birthing ball but it didn’t feel right. For a little while I was walking around the room, leaning onto things for support, rocking my hips back and forth and panting through the pressure. But after maybe 20 minutes of that, my legs and feet were getting really tired, walking around so much, and it just wasn’t comfortable. After that, I mostly labored sitting up in bed. I sat up, with my back straight up, cross-legged on the bed, and each time a contraction would hit, I would push up on my hands, rock back and forth with my hips, and let gravity take over.
It took a very short time to go from 8cm to fully dilated. Soon I started moaning and groaning and growling, and I knew that it was time to start pushing. I had a VERY STRONG urge to push, but they made me wait through a few more contractions. The midwife helped push back a small bit of my cervix, and immediately, I was determined to get that baby out.
It was very empowering, to labor with no medical interventions, no pain meds, nothing hindering me. The only people in the room besides Mike and I were the midwife and a nurse. The atmosphere was very calm and serene. I couldn’t have been more pleased about this birth experience. I started pushing a little after 2:30pm, and our baby was born at 2:57 pm. And it was a girl! Mike couldn’t have been more surprised! He had us all convinced that we were having a boy, and when the baby came out and Meg held it up, he said “It’s a girl? We have a girl?” We weren't disappointed though!
ALIAH GRACE HUMMEL entered the world!
Mike cut the umbilical cord. There was a true knot in the cord. Another anomaly was that she came out sideways. She has a small bump on her head from trying to come out sideways. She was head-up, facing her daddy.
Four minutes after she was born, out came the placenta. I had a second-degree tear somewhere internally, so they spent a little while stitching me up.
She is such a miracle baby. We are just so thankful that she is healthy and well! She weighed 8lbs, 10.9 oz and was 21 ¼ inches long. (And with a 14 inch head, no wonder I’m so sore!) This was no small baby!
Hannah got the news right away, and was absolutely ecstatic that she now has a baby sister. She jumped up and down and said “IT’S A GIRL! I WAS RIGHT!” Must have been so cute, I’m sorry that I missed it!
Hannah and my mother were our first visitors. They arrived at the hospital about half an hour after the baby was born, and big sister Hannah got to help push the new baby in the bassinette, into the new hospital room. They weighed her again when we were moved into a recovery room, and she had somehow gained an ounce!
Mom and Baby had to stay in the hospital for 24 hours because there was some meconium, and they just wanted to make sure that everything was fine. At 3pm the next day, they did a hearing test and a newborn screening test with all kinds of blood draws, and finally let us go home.
It is very nice to be home, and we are all adjustong pretty well to being a family of four. Aliah is a good little eater, sleeps all the time, and seems to be a very content baby. My mom is here with us this week, and she has been a tremendous help.
I will post more pictures in a few days.
Have a very happy New Year!
How it all started: Early on Sunday morning I woke up at 3am, went to the bathroom, and realized that I was having mild contractions. They were coming about every five minutes. My first thought was “YES! Let’s get this over with!” I was so excited to finally end this pregnancy and have a baby in my arms.
Too excited to go back to sleep, I got up and made sure my hospital bag was ready, packed up the camera bag, and wrote out directions for my mother to get to the hospital. Took care of some bills and things on the computer, then at 4:30 am I woke up Mike. I shook his arm: “Honey, wake up”, but he didn’t move. Louder, I said “Wake up, we need to go the hospital soon, I’m having contractions!” He didn’t believe me; he mumbled something like “No you’re not. You’re kidding, you’re lying to me. Go back to sleep.” Finally he got up and stumbled to the kitchen, made some coffee.
I called the midwife to let her know that we’d be coming soon. She said “You sound too cheerful and friendly on the phone”, and didn’t believe that I was in real labor! She told me to take a walk for 20 or 30 minutes and call me back. So, at 5 am, there I was, walking around our neighborhood in the dark, by myself, completely alone (I did take my cell phone, just in case). The only other living thing I saw out there was a deer. I just enjoyed the early morning quiet. I spent some time praying. I walked about two miles.
When I got back to the house, I called back to confirm that I was indeed having contraction, coming ever 3 or 4 minutes now, and she agreed to meet me at the hospital. We got there around 6am, parked, and found our way to L&D. The sun was still down. Everything was very quiet and surreal.
By the time I finished signing consent forms and got into triage, it was 6:30. The midwife examined me at 7am and I was 6cm dilated. Nice! I was excited! They admitted me to a room, we got settled in, and took some more laps around the hospital.
Nothing much happened for the next 4 or 5 hours. I was still having contractions every 3 minutes, but they weren’t really getting stronger. We made jokes about how boring it was to wait around the hospital for the baby to come. The nurse and midwife kept saying “I can’t believe you’re in labor, you’re so calm and happy!” Mike watched a marathon of “HOUSE” on tv. I remember hearing another woman laboring in the next room, and shortly after, the cries of a newborn baby.
When we checked at 12:30pm I was still only 7 cm dilated. I was anxious to get things going, and at that point I was getting tired of just sitting and waiting for things to get moving, so we decided to break my water around 1pm. And from then on, it got very intense.
Contractions got much longer and harder and faster. Everything went really quickly. Tried a birthing ball but it didn’t feel right. For a little while I was walking around the room, leaning onto things for support, rocking my hips back and forth and panting through the pressure. But after maybe 20 minutes of that, my legs and feet were getting really tired, walking around so much, and it just wasn’t comfortable. After that, I mostly labored sitting up in bed. I sat up, with my back straight up, cross-legged on the bed, and each time a contraction would hit, I would push up on my hands, rock back and forth with my hips, and let gravity take over.
It took a very short time to go from 8cm to fully dilated. Soon I started moaning and groaning and growling, and I knew that it was time to start pushing. I had a VERY STRONG urge to push, but they made me wait through a few more contractions. The midwife helped push back a small bit of my cervix, and immediately, I was determined to get that baby out.
It was very empowering, to labor with no medical interventions, no pain meds, nothing hindering me. The only people in the room besides Mike and I were the midwife and a nurse. The atmosphere was very calm and serene. I couldn’t have been more pleased about this birth experience. I started pushing a little after 2:30pm, and our baby was born at 2:57 pm. And it was a girl! Mike couldn’t have been more surprised! He had us all convinced that we were having a boy, and when the baby came out and Meg held it up, he said “It’s a girl? We have a girl?” We weren't disappointed though!
ALIAH GRACE HUMMEL entered the world!
Mike cut the umbilical cord. There was a true knot in the cord. Another anomaly was that she came out sideways. She has a small bump on her head from trying to come out sideways. She was head-up, facing her daddy.
Four minutes after she was born, out came the placenta. I had a second-degree tear somewhere internally, so they spent a little while stitching me up.
She is such a miracle baby. We are just so thankful that she is healthy and well! She weighed 8lbs, 10.9 oz and was 21 ¼ inches long. (And with a 14 inch head, no wonder I’m so sore!) This was no small baby!
Hannah got the news right away, and was absolutely ecstatic that she now has a baby sister. She jumped up and down and said “IT’S A GIRL! I WAS RIGHT!” Must have been so cute, I’m sorry that I missed it!
Hannah and my mother were our first visitors. They arrived at the hospital about half an hour after the baby was born, and big sister Hannah got to help push the new baby in the bassinette, into the new hospital room. They weighed her again when we were moved into a recovery room, and she had somehow gained an ounce!
Mom and Baby had to stay in the hospital for 24 hours because there was some meconium, and they just wanted to make sure that everything was fine. At 3pm the next day, they did a hearing test and a newborn screening test with all kinds of blood draws, and finally let us go home.
It is very nice to be home, and we are all adjustong pretty well to being a family of four. Aliah is a good little eater, sleeps all the time, and seems to be a very content baby. My mom is here with us this week, and she has been a tremendous help.
I will post more pictures in a few days.
Have a very happy New Year!
Monday, December 29, 2008
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, NEW BABY!
Our newest addition is here!
And it's a... GIRL!!!
Meet our new daughter: ALIAH GRACE!
Mike was shocked, he had everyone but Hannah convinced that we were having a boy.
She is completely thrilled to finally be a big sister!
Our miracle baby, Aliah, was born at 2:57pm on December 28, 2008.
She weighed 8 lbs, 11 oz and is 21 1/4 inches long! This is no small baby!
((In fact, this is the size that Hannah was at 2 months old!))
Labor & delivery went well, Nicole is healing nicely and Aliah is doing great.
We are all looking forward to sleeping in our own beds tonight.
And it's a... GIRL!!!
Meet our new daughter: ALIAH GRACE!
Mike was shocked, he had everyone but Hannah convinced that we were having a boy.
She is completely thrilled to finally be a big sister!Our miracle baby, Aliah, was born at 2:57pm on December 28, 2008.
She weighed 8 lbs, 11 oz and is 21 1/4 inches long! This is no small baby!
((In fact, this is the size that Hannah was at 2 months old!))
Labor & delivery went well, Nicole is healing nicely and Aliah is doing great.
We are all looking forward to sleeping in our own beds tonight.
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