Party of Four

Well hello readers! I bet you didn't expect to be hearing from me--but miraculously, both babies are sleeping and so I have two minutes of peace and quiet! Too bad my brain still feels jumbled and I can't really put together a beautifully coherent thought...

At any rate, I wanted to share the news (for the few of you who didn't already know!) that our daughter, Hemingway Rose, arrived in the early morning hours of June 2nd!! She was (and still is!) a tiny little peanut, weighing in at a whopping 5 lb 10 oz and 18 inches long :-). She may be tiny, but she sure is growing like a weed already!

I'm not sure where to even begin--unlike with Isaiah, I haven't yet written out her birth story in full detail, and I'm not sure when I'm going to find the time to do so! But I thought I'd share the high points, for those who are curious and mainly for my own memory, which is suffering mightily from baby brain.

I'm not sure why, but I just had a strong feeling all pregnancy that this little girl was going to arrive on the early side. Call it a mother's intuition, but I felt for certain that she would never make it to her estimated due date of June 9th. In the weeks leading up to her birth, I was having strong episodes of contractions, some of which even fell into a nice, rhythmic pattern . . . but, since they seemed to subside after an hour or so, we all just went along with our daily routine.

Heading to the hospital!

Aaron and I woke up early on the morning of June 1st. It was a beautiful Sunday morning, and like usual, we got up before Mr. Isaiah in order to have some quiet time to sip coffee and get ready for church. I felt a little "funny" that morning and--sorry to be a bit TMI--kept thinking I was peeing on myself a little, ha! It was a strange sensation, and looking back, I can only laugh at myself for not realizing what was going on. I suppose I just always envisioned your water breaking in high, dramatic fashion--but that wasn't the case for me!


 Needless to say, we didn't make it to church that Sunday morning, as I wanted to avoid said dramatic breaking of water! So we excitedly settled in and couldn't believe that the time was now very near for our daughter's birth!! My contractions started to pick up, and we went for a nice long walk to do our part to help things along. Around lunchtime, we decided to head on to the hospital--Aaron and I went first to check in and get settled, then my mom followed, once our sitter arrived and settled in to take care of Isaiah.

It always takes quite some time to check in, it seems, and over the course of that process, my contractions were really picking up! It's strange to be excited about pain, but oh how excited I was--pain = baby on the way! The nurses and staff were all in a hustle and bustle now, excitedly saying how this little girl would certainly arrive before the end of the day . . .

Well, that probably would have been true--if I hadn't experienced a nightmare with my IV line!!! Understandably, the nurses want to start a line in order to have access in case of an emergency and to administer fluids to prevent dehydration, etc. But for whatever reason, things did not work, and I ended up being stuck a total of four times--and not just "stuck"--I'm talking the nurses digging around in my veins. And if you know me at all, you know that I do not do needles very well to begin with . . . so it was truly a horrific experience! The nurse blew out two of my veins on my left hand and arm, which resulted in a massive hematoma on my hand--incredibly painful and scary-looking! Then other nurses tried for a line on my right arm/hand and blew out those veins as well. This whole process took several hours and resulted in many tears!!

Eventually, when I simply couldn't handle another nurse poking at my arms, they had to call the anesthesiologist to place the line. I think he was a bit dumbfounded to be called for this kind of task--but between his skill and a little lidocaine to numb the surface, a line was finally placed. At this point, I looked like a long-term IV drug user, and my contractions had completely stopped because of the stress and anxiety of the whole situation. Hemingway is 3 weeks old today, and my bruising has just now finally gone away. It was so awful--truly, the worst part of this labor and delivery!

So, after the IV circus, we settled in and started walking, walking, walking the halls of the hospital to try and restart my labor, but those contractions just weren't strong enough...and as much as I hate how painful pitocin-contractions are versus natural contractions, I gave them the green light to start it. I just wanted this little girl to get here!!

Finally checked in and settling in for labor!

Of course contractions aren't exactly a pleasant experience, but I was amazed at how much easier it seemed this time around. I'm not sure if I was just more relaxed because I knew what to expect or what, but all I know is that the laboring part was much more manageable than with Isaiah! Aaron slept for a while, and mom and I had a good time watching The Bachelorette :-). I'd say it wasn't until the end of the episode that things started to "heat up."

Things progressed fairly quickly, and before I knew it, the dreaded transition phase of labor was upon me--unfortunately, whether it's your first or fourth baby, there's no way around the pain and intensity of transition! (for an unmedicated labor, that is). I honestly can't remember how long this phase lasted, I just know that I was thrilled when I felt that overwhelming need to push! At the last minute, sweet Hemingway decided to turn her little body and ended up being born sunny side up!! While my laboring was easier with her, the pushing phase was more intense--so thank goodness she was tiny :-). However, things still progressed rapidly, and in a few minutes with a few pushes, she was born!

She's here!!

It's indescribable, the feeling of holding your just-born child. Feeling her little warm, wet body on my chest was simply the best thing in the world! It's hard for me to process that the LORD has allowed me to experience this blessing twice!

So, those are just some high points--Hemingway Rose entered this world surrounded by love. What an incredible blessing to have my mama there again!! She was with me when Isaiah took his first breath too. Planning was a lot trickier this time around, already having a little one to take care of, but God was gracious and allowed our sitter to be able to stay with Isaiah the entire time. She stayed the night at our house, so little man didn't even have to change his routine at all!

First picture as a family of four! 

I'm so very thankful for the way God worked in all of the details, big and small, and I'm overwhelmed to have a healthy child and a safe, uncomplicated labor. Even in our day of modern medicine and technology, giving birth is a big deal! And, like last time, it feels empowering to have done so naturally, without pain meds. It's painful at the time but so worth it afterwards, in my opinion, as your recovery is much faster and easier! I'm also thankful that I have tiny babies, hehe :-).

Today, miss Hemingway is officially 3 weeks old! Time is already flying by, and I can only imagine how fast this next year is going to be. We are doing well and settling in to our "new normal." My mom and grandmother were here with me for four glorious weeks and just went home this past Saturday (talk about an emotional, difficult goodbye!). I can't even put into words how wonderful it has been to be here with my mom, who has so selflessly showered me with love, support and amazing food :-). My mom is one incredible woman--this I've known for a while, but seeing her in action this past month only confirms how amazing she is. What a role model for me as a mother! This week, I am blessed to have my mother-in-law here. How thankful we are for our sweet family, who are willing to travel so far to be with us and help us make the transition to a family of four!

Well, there is much more I could say, but I'm pretty sure one (or both) babies are either crying or about to cry, so I better go :-). Here are just a few more pics! Hopefully there will be more to come on this blog, though I'm not making any promises. For now, I'm just trying to keep everyone alive, fed and maybe try to shower every now and then ;-).

Mimi and her babies

Precious big brother Isaiah! He loves his sissy and is so sweet to her--always giving her kisses :-)

Our precious new addition--we are blessed!!

Blessings,

~Mere