Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Evelyn Grace's Birth Story

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

I didn't take a 36 week and was waiting for the 38 week....but Evelyn came at 37 weeks and 5 days! 



Today, Mommy got up as she normally would with your big sister Eleanor. We ate breakfast and watched some Elmo. Eleanor and I tried to play outside, but the heat index was already up to 90 at 9:00 AM! We definitely were experiencing a heat wave.  Mommy's friend, Jan, came over to visit and play with Eleanor. Around 12:15 Mommy put Eleanor down for a nap, and was having some bad cramps. I laid down on the bed and texted Daddy that I wasn't feeling well. Around 12:50, I walked down stairs to get some lunch. I felt this little gush of water when I sat down. I thought maybe mommy peed her pants. I texted daddy again and told him that I though my water broke. He decided that he was coming home right away! Since I hadn't showered, I jumped in and took a quick shower and then dried my hair. I realized that this probably was the real deal! Mommy called Aunt Tacoma, who immediately told me to hang out the phone and call the Doctor's office!

Mommy and Daddy called Grandma Corbin to come over and watch your big sister. Grandma almost headed to Bay City because Great Grammy was going to the ER due to severe back pain! Eleanor was still napping. Mommy and daddy were particularly calm, making sure that we had all the necessary items before we left. Mommy ate a quick bagel and cheese sandwich, a mango Greek yogurt and a nectarine because it had been almost 7 hours since she had eaten breakfast!!

We arrived at Royal Oak Beaumont around 2:45. Daddy thought it was funny that Mommy wrote "leaking" as the reason we were there! Remember, with your sister, I didn't go through this experience...

Once we were admitted, they confirmed that my water had indeed broken. Dr. McClosky came by to tell us that I was not in active labor and not dilated and more than likely I would need another C-section. However, since mommy had just eaten lunch they had to wait 8 hours, so we were scheduled to deliver you at 9:30. In the mean time, they decided that if I did go into labor, we could try a natural delivery.

The nurse who did the IV was super nice, but with the adrenaline of the whole experience, Mommy ended up having a minor panic attack. It was quite scary, but I did recover.  Eventually we got a room around 5:00. Mommy was still only dilated to a 1. I decided around 7PM that I needed to get up and move around. This caused me SEVERE backpain. It was because your face was against my pelvis! It seemed like the longest 15 minutes of my life because the nurse could come in and get me an epidural. Once the epidural was in around 7:30, I felt more comfortable and could rest a bit easier. Daddy then went down for food as mommy rested. The nurses kept watching your heart beat because it was accelerating and decelerating in a weird pattern.

At 9:15 mommy was 3-4 cm dialted. The Doctor spent about 30 minutes with us trying to get the contraction monitor to register mommy's contractions. She asked daddy for a quarter. That magic quarter worked because then we could see the contractions. Mommy's pain kept breaking through the epidurla, and even with the bolster of medication, I was still in pain.  Mommy and Daddy watched "Whose Line is it Anyways" because "So You THinK You Can Dance" was not on due to the All Star Baseball game. (Mommy was NOT happy about this!)  Our nurse, Menka, took great care of Mommy and made sure she knew everything that was going on.

At 10:30, a resident came in to check mommy again because she had this overwhelming sense to push. The resident thought he was being funny, and asked Daddy to guess how far along Mommy was. Daddy said "For her sake, I hope she's a 10." Then he asked Mommy, and as I rolled my eyes with less optimism, I said 8. At that point, he said Dad was right and that it was time. Daddy barely got text messages out to your grandparents to come to the hospital.   The whole room transformed into a delivery room. Once I started pushing, and figured out what the feeling was, there was no stopping  Mommy. She was all in, especially when they mentioned getting the foreceps and Vacuum out to possibly help. Mommy thought "NO WAY..." and that motivated me even more to push. After 31 minutes of intense pushing, I felt you come out, and you were placed directly on my chest. You had this most beautiful head of dark hair and had the cutest pouty lip.

I couldn't believe that at 11:17,( Daddy made sure that your birth certificate said 11:17 not 11:18 because the wall clock said 11:17.) you had arrived. Mommy only pushed for 31 minutes!! You were 7 lbs 10 oz and 20 inches long. We decided on Evelyn Grace. You were almost Addison or Adelyn, but Evelyn means wished for child and you were definitely wished for!





Thursday, June 20, 2013

30/32 Weeks


We've made it this far baby girl! Mommy has started feeling crummier....mainly because you are growing so big and well, there's not alot of room in mommy! You like to kick and punch right as I'm trying to sleep. The other night you got the hiccups at 11:00 PM! Mommy has only gained 23 pounds so far and when we went to the Doctor your heartrate was 147 beats per minute.

Your room has been painted and the decals are up. Your bed is made and the changing pad is on your dresser.

Mommy can't wait to meet you little one!

Friday, May 17, 2013

28 Weeks

Wow Baby! We've made it to 28 weeks! You are definitely a mover and a shaker! Daddy and I watch you do flips at night!!! When we went to the Doctors, you had a heartbeat of 145. Mommy has only gained 19 lbs so far and is very happy about that!  It's getting harder for mommy to get comfortable at night, and apparently you think it is fun to tap dance right on mommy's bladder! Mommy has been craving Nutella and graham crackers at night, and in the last week, Oj has tasted extra yummy! Unfortunately, Mommy has started with the same itching that caused your sister to be born early. So, the doctors are being extra careful and watching mommy's blood levels. You are tentatively scheduled to be delivered on July 30th, but we have a feeling you just might come earlier.

Keep growing baby girl, and we cannot wait to meet you!


Sunday, April 21, 2013

Nursery :)

Your nursery has its first coat of paint :) We are working hard to get it done, since the furniture is ready to be  delivered! :)

Saturday, April 20, 2013

24 Week

We've made it to 24 weeks baby! Mommy is feeling larger by the moment! We have picked out your nursery paint (a pretty purple) and the theme. (Carter Zoo Animals). We even bought your nursery furniture! You will have the same color as your sister, but a different style. You are starting to really rock and roll in mommy's tummy! Last night daddy watched you for about five minutes while my tummy danced and danced.  You seem to be most active in the afternoon and late evening. Mommy still hasn't developed the cholestasis, and we are hoping it stays away!

Mommy tries to walk often with the neighbors to keep the leg and feet cramps away.

It's hard to believe we are getting closer to your arrival! Looks like mommy and daddy will have to bring back all the baby stuff that is sitting patiently in the basement.

Keep growing baby!!! We are excited to meet you!


Friday, March 29, 2013

Half way!

Well Baby, we've made it half way! Mommy and Daddy are getting ready now to start planning for your nursery. We went crib shopping but your older sister had a meltdown so we had to leave.

Mommy's feeling better by the day! You have started moving and are a little jumping bean! You prefer to move around at night, although you like to jump on mommy's bladder when she's teaching!!

Mommy and Daddy have decided to go with a frog theme for your bathroom you'll share with your older sister. :) We are excited to paint it a bright teal!

We tried to go shopping for nursery furniture, but Eleanor had a meltdown at the store. We are planning on going this weekend while Miss Megan babysits.

We will hear your hear beat again on 4/2/13. We hope you continue to grow and grow!

We are getting excited to meet you baby girl!




Monday, February 25, 2013

It's a....

GIRL! We are expecting another bundle of girly joy! We took our parents to a surprise early ultra sound where we were able to find out we are having another girl.  I think at first, we were in shock, as we thought it was a boy, but with all the time to let the news sink in, we are so blessed that God is giving Eleanor a sister.

We are now in the planning phases for her room and get to think about all the fun nursery planning.

One healthy baby is all that we ask for, especially for this little miracle!

Saturday, February 16, 2013

Can I just feel human again?

Here we are at 16 weeks. I wish I could say I was feeling better, but I'm still battling morning/all day sickness. I've had a perpetual cold which has made it impossible to feel human! In fact last week I ended up with a sinus infection that was the worst pain I've felt in my head. I couldn't even open my mouth!!! Then we ended up at the Ob's office because I had an allergic reaction to the antibiotics...itching. Thought it was that dreaded cholestasis showing up WAY to early. But, Here I am, 16 weeks, and patiently waiting to find out if it is a boy or girl at our 2:30 ultra sound on March 6th! :) I'm excited...I'm hoping for a boy (mainly because I've had way different symptoms that Eleanor) but ultimately will be ecstatic for a HEALTHY baby. The Snoogle has been busted out in bed, and I'm still taking benadryl to make it through the night.  Here's to waiting...

PS. I told Patrick that I'm not doing this whole pregnancy thing again. While I'm beyond grateful that I'm pregnant, I remembered that this is not my favorite state of being...I'm much happier being after the end product!!! :)


Monday, February 11, 2013

How far along? 15 weeks and 5 days
Total weight gain/loss: 6 lbs
Maternity clothes? Some of my pants and a few shirts. I've not really gained a whole lot yet...
Stretch marks? NO
Sleep: I've been REALLY tired because of this killer sinus infection. It really took me down! I'm tired of being sick!! 
Best moment this week: Hearin gthe baby's Heart beat twice in one week. 146 last Tuesday 2/5 and 150 today. :) 
Have you told family and friends: YES!
Movement:  Not yet
Food cravings: I wish I craved things...I want salty things..pickles, etc. 
Anything making you queasy or sick: Anything can at the drop of a hat!! 
Have you started to show yet: YES!
Gender prediction: Hoping for a boy this time...
Belly Button in or out? IN
Wedding rings on or off? On. 
Happy or Moody most of the time: Depends on the time of the day!! :)
Weekly Wisdom: Sudafed is evil...and getting sick while pregnant has to be the worst!!! UGH! 
Milestones: Making it to week 15. :) 

Monday, January 14, 2013



Hi Everyone! :) 

Week 12


11 weeks: Baby is the size of a fig

Your baby is now about as big as a fig. (Length: just over 1 1/2 inches, head
to bottom.)

How far along? 11 weeks 5 days
Total weight gain/loss?  +5lbs 
Maternity clothes?  I have busted out my maternity pants and some shirts. The pants are way to big, but are more comfortable. Best to take advantage of it! 
Stretch marks? None, thank goodness.  
Sleep?  Taking unisom and b6 at night helps me sleep through the night AND prevents me from barfing in the morning! 
Best moment last week? Seeing my baby again! 
Movement?  I Nothing as of yet....
Food cravings? Let's see: Indian food and....honey combs cereal. I did buy pickles because they sounded good. :) 
Gender? Still a BUG! 
Labor signs? Nothing! 
Belly button in/out? In. 
What I miss: Feeling human and not wanting to barf when i sit down to dinner. This evening sickness is OLD. 
What I am looking forward to: Finding out what we are having!!! 
Milestones: Going to Vegas this week! :) Babymoon! 

Tuesday, January 1, 2013

Here we go again!

Believe it or not...we are pregnant! On our own...no help....On 11/24/12, (the day after Thanksgiving...) I took a pregnancy test. I took it because I realized only then that I was 5 days late! The morning went something like this.
P: Did you start your period?
B: No...I think I was supposed to start Wednesday. Last month I was 5 days late, so I'm not really concerned. I'll go pee on a stick though.
P: OK.
I walk to the bathroom, pee on the stick...and HOLY CRAP...there are 2 lines! I start shaking and say:
"Umm honey...I think you need to come in here..."

I think we were in total shock for a few minutes. (or a few days!!!)

 The frist beta that I had drawn was 2737. Then it was 6738 3 days later. This means we are really having a baby! We go for our first ultrasound on 12/13. I'm still skeptical just because this all seems unreal to me! We are very blessed that's for sure! 

Update:

We went for our Ultra sound on 12/13/12 and we have a BUG! :) (Baby of unidentified Gender)! The heartrate was 154 and the baby is due August 1st! :) I'm still keeping my posts in draft form, and will go public, as soon as we tell our families. :) So, if you are reading this, I'm still blogging, but I've been waiting to go public. 


12/21/12
I've been experiencing some of the WORST nausea! I have been sick all day long...well not throwing up, but i sure do feel like it!  I've started the b6/unisom trick, and that seems to be helping. We head back to the GYM for our next ultra sound on the 28th ( A great 32nd birthday present to me!)

I've also been doing some thinking. Just about how God work in funny ways. I remember the day we got the call that we only had one viable embryo through the IVF process. I was devastated. I thought to myself, what if we can't get pregnant again. What if we have to go through the IVF process all over gain? But now  almost 2 years later, here we are pregnant...on our own. And I'm almost thankful that we only had one embryo. What if we had another one frozen? What would we have done? Would we have chosen to have the baby? I guess I'm lucky we don't have to have that conversation and we are able to enjoy the pregnancy with baby #2. :)

12/28/12

We went for our 2nd ultrasound! Baby is doing GREAT! The little peanut is already measuring a week ahead of schedule! :) He was happy because I had eaten a muffin just before I went in. :) The hearrate was measuring at 177! 

Thursday, October 25, 2012

5 day tease

I thought maybe this month we had got it on our own. The OPK didn't work right, my temps were all wacky and I seriously wanted to throw it all in the garbage. It's really not fun to do the BD when you are peeing on sticks and having that dictate to you when to ... well do it.

So, Saturday came and went...no AF. Then Sunday ..Monday, Tuesday..still NOTHING..I peed on two PT but got the BFN. I thought...well, maybe it's too early to tell. But alas, Thursday morning came, and there she appeared, in full fiery force. It's weird because I don't get cramps anymore and I really didn't feel much of anything.

Here's to hoping we get lucky on our own...it sure is less expensive!!!! :)

Monday, October 1, 2012

Two steps back...

After my sonohystogram, I thought "maybe this will be our month" after everything was cleared out. But, we ended up with AF last week. I was heartbroken because I thought we might have had this one on our own. So, I went to get all the medication and stuff lined up, and in the process we decided we couldn't do it right now. Our lives are just not in the place we were when we were trying for our first. So we decided to get the medication filled (which btw the way is WRONG and they gave me 5 viles of each....I don't know how that is supposed to work when the one drug requires 4 viles a day..so I'm off to figure that out tomorrow...) Anywho, we are going to possibly try an IUI in January, and if that doesn't work, we'll explore IVF in the summer months when school is not in session and I'm not bound to a strict 8-3 schedule. 

So, two steps back, but in the mean time we are going to enjoy our perfect little family. 

Monday, September 3, 2012

It's like we never left....

We went for out consult and have decided to move forward with more treatment. Patrick and I have opted to do the sonohystagram (this THURSDAY!) and then move forward with and IUI with injectable drugs in October. If that doesn't work, then we will talk about IVF in January.

It was an eerie feeling getting the scripts and the bloodwork paperwork. Part of me had flashbacks as if we just did it yesterday. It's funny how everything floods back to you, including the emotions of wanting another baby. I came home and kissed my beautiful girl on the head and rocked her to sleep with tears streaming down my face because I realized just how lucky we are and that our journey ended in such a miracle the first time.

Here's the the next journey and hoping our footsteps lead us down a similar path....

Saturday, August 4, 2012

Starting again

So, AF showed up this morning again, which I had a hunch based on dropping temps and cramping yesterday. I'm glad my body has returned to normal cycles, 26 days on the dot!

DH and I discussed our next plan of action. We are both in agreement that if my tubes are truly blocked, that we are going to possibly skip the IUI and head right back to IVF. We won't be able to do this until January in order to get our HRA money. What it does mean, it talking to the RE, getting her opinion, and just jumping in feet first.

I know some people will say "Try Naturally. So many people I know did IVF and then got pregnant with their second on their own."  DH and I want to believe that this too would be our fate, but medical facts of my tubes being full of scar tissues is hard to ignore. We will continue to try until after the first of the year.

I know some other folks might think "You have one beautiful healthy baby. Isn't that enough?" My DD is the most wonderful gift God could have ever blessed us with. I will NEVER take her for granted, but there is this piece of me, our family, that just seems incomplete in some regard. It's hard to express to those who have not walked this journey or who get pregnant if they sneeze. While our family is perfect now, we still have the desire to make it grow. It's not necessarily selfish, but just a hope and dream we continue to have.

So, Monday I call the RE. I'm going to go back on my quest to lose some weight, gain some muscle and take care of myself better than I have been.

Here's to the journey to the next addition to our little family. :)

Thursday, August 2, 2012

New Course of Action

I've decided to contact my RE and let her know that we have started trying. Part of me gets this panicked feeling like we are running out of time, but I know that we have a good window to have another baby. I know that having a baby naturally COULD happen, but knowing the damage to my tubes and how wacky my hormones are, I best get started now, rather than wasting precious time. I love my little girl more than life itself, but I know there is one more little one out there to complete our family. So tomorrow I will make the call to figure out the next steps in our journey.

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Currently waiting

So while we are "trying" for baby number 2, we decided not to take the super scientific approach the first few months. I've only monitored my temps a bit, and I have not been using my Ovulation monitor. Maybe we can start that in the fall, but I figured I'm going to put it in God's hands right now. With the baby, the 2ww isn't so bad...and I don't think it's 2 weeks with me anyways! Here's to always waiting, wishing and hoping!

Sunday, July 1, 2012

Baby #2?

Our sweet baby girl continues to amaze me everyday. I cannot believe she is already 7 and a half months old already. I say down today and was reading through the trials and tribulations we went through to have her, and I must say, while it brings tears to me eyes, the tears are mostly of joy because I have a healthy, happy baby girl to hold. (Well, when she lets me now!)

Of course the question comes up, are we ready to try for baby #2? I figured that like the first, my blog is a good place to turn, because I'm not sure what the 2nd journey will bring. The question always comes to my mind "Will we have to endure the same process? Will IVF become our fate once again? Can I watch those I love around me get pregnant again before me? Do I have the strength to walk down this emotional rollercoaster?" If these questions pose to be true, we are more than ready to go through with it again. I will hold my head up high, smile, and know that there is a bigger plan for us. However, in the meantime,we continue to enjoy our beautiful little girl and know that if another baby isn't in our future, we have been blessed with a miracle and a blessing far beyond what I can put into words!

So here's to our 2nd journey, no matter where it leads us. :)

Friday, February 24, 2012

Breakthrough

Well, we ALMOST built a house. I say almost because I came close to having a nervous breakdown. Why? I think was was afraid to be consumed with this house and then miss out on my baby girl's first year. What happens if she is our only child? What happens if I'm not longer able to have children? While I believe in my heart that we will have another baby, I have to face the reality that we may not be able to. I guess what it shows is that I will always be infertile. I know for a time I was pregnant, and blessed with a miracle, but that doesn't mean I won't have the same struggles again for baby number 2. It's a world that I was not part of for 9 months, but slowly walked back into as soon as my baby girl was born. It's a world where I know I find strength and support from those around me. One that is familiar. Here's to hoping baby #2 is around the corner...