Anna Kate

Due to the busyness of having 3 children and the sleep deprivation caused by a newborn, I have yet to write anything about Miss Anna Kate.  I have to say, I was a little anxious about how a new baby would affect the family dynamic.  We have a pretty good thing going over here...sweet, well-behaved (mostly)kids...both potty trained and fairly independent, and going back to Newborn square one made me a little nervous. I worried about how Ella, who is used to having my undivided attention all day, would do with a baby.  I worried that Aidan, being the oldest, would feel like he was getting the short end of the stick, attention wise.   But, as usual, my worries were unfounded.  Everything has gone beautifully.  Anna is a sweet, cuddly baby, and Aidan and Ella are head over heels for her. 

So, here's the story of little Anna's birth:

Monday, the 21st, I woke up at 5:00 not feeling very well.  There was nothing specific wrong; I just didn't feel right.  But, I didn't think much of it, because I had been having contractions off and on for almost 3 weeks.  So, while I was hopeful that this was "it," I didn't get too excited.  I couldn't get back to sleep, so I cleaned the house instead.  We had a doctor appointment that morning.  I was hoping she would say something like, "YOU cannot be pregnant one minute longer!  Go immediately to the hospital and have your baby right now!"  But, she didn't say that.  She said what she always says...it could be any day!  She offered to schedule an induction for me, but I told her I would think about it.  I was already dilated 2 cm., and really wanted to go into labor on my own like I had with the other two.  She wanted to do a sonogram to check my fluid levels and the baby's size.  While we were in the waiting room, I started having contractions.  But, this had happened before, so I didn't get too excited.

While we were at our appointment, my brother and his wife were at the hospital having a C-section that would deliver their little girl, Harper.  After our appointment, we had lunch at McAlister's Deli, and I continued to have contractions, about every 6 minutes apart.

We then went to the hospital to meet little Harper.  She was born at 12:12 that day.  She was pink and perfect.  We were so excited...and even MORE anxious to have OUR baby!  I had contractions the whole time we were at the hospital, but on the drive home, they stopped.  I wasn't having contractions anymore, but was having a constant ache in my back and abdomen.  When I got home, I took a nap. 

When I woke up, around 6:00, I was having fairly strong contractions every 7-8 minutes apart.  I was still skeptical, because of all the false alarms over the previous couple of weeks.  I had some soup and put the kids to bed.  By 9:00, I was having contractions every 5 minutes and was starting think it might be the real deal.  Around 11, I called the doctor.  Her nurse called back and said something to the effect of, "This is your 3rd baby?  And you're having contractions every 5 minutes?  Don't your labors go really fast?  You need to go to the hospital NOW!"

So, we woke the kids up...not an easy task.  Ella was a little unnerved by the whole thing and cried quite a bit.  Aidan didn't know what was going on at first, and I couldn't get him to wake up.  But, once he finally got awake, he was very excited.  We took them to my parents' house and went to the hospital.  We got there around midnight.  My labor was fairly uneventful.  I decided to get the epidural from the beginning.  With Aidan and Ella, I waited until the very end, but with Ella, I almost didn't make it in time.  I started feeling the urge to push while the epidural was going in...so, I decided not to risk waiting this time.  This time, they had trouble getting the epidural in.  I'm not sure what was happening, but some part of the epidural wasn't working right and they had to try several times.  I was getting pretty nervous about the whole thing.  I hate epidurals almost as much as labor...not a fan of having a needle and catheter put into my spine.  But, they finally got it working and all was well.  Anna was born at 5:44 am on Tuesday morning.  She would have been born earlier, but we had to wait for the doctor.

 She was perfect right from the start.  This was by far, my longest labor...Aidan was only 6 hours, and Ella was around 3 hours...but my water had broken with both of them, so I'm guessing that's why they went so fast.  My brother made arrangements with the nurses to have us put in the room right next door to him and his family.  Anna and Harper got to spend some good quality cousin time together in the nursery.  I am hoping they will be very close, since they were born only a few hours apart.  Plus, Harper is going to need some girls in her life, since she has 2 rambunctious brothers!

We feel very blessed to have 3, healthy, beautiful children.  The Lord has been very good to us.  We now spend our days fighting over who gets to hold Anna next and acting like complete morons because everyone wants to be the first to make her smile...so far, she has only teased us with a grin here or there.

I apologize for the long post...I hope it all makes sense.  My brain has been feeling a little like mashed potatoes lately!

Anna Kate

November 22

7lb. 11 oz  20 3/4 in. long

Big Blue Eyes and Big Squishy Cheeks :)