Friday, January 11, 2013

It's a GIRL! Welcome, Calla Lucile!

Here she is!



Okay, okay, okay...
I haven't posted in a LOOOOOOOONG time.
With the holidays, and family visiting, and HAVING A BABY, time really gets away from ya.  :)

So... for those of you actually still reading out there (hi, Mom), here is little Miss Calla Lu's birth story....

I had hoped this baby would hold out until after Christmas.  I really wanted to have Wren's first (technically second) Christmas to be relaxing and fun.  I was excited for the new baby to come, but I wanted to relish in the calmness of our little family of three just a little while longer before the craziness of a new baby was added.
Success!
Christmas came and went, baby-free.
Whew.
Wren had a blast opening gifts and playing with her new kitchen set that Santa brought, we enjoyed the morning at Chris's parents' house, and Chris and I were able to go see Les Miserables that night... it was a lovely Christmas- just as I had hoped!
The day after Christmas brought the most snow Indiana has seen in a long time!  A full-on blizzard!  We weren't going ANYWHERE.  Now I was really, really hoping that the baby would hold out a little longer.  My 39 week prenatal appointment was scheduled for that afternoon, but due to the weather, the whole office was shut down.  So instead, I spent the day taking down Christmas decorations and the tree (so, so glad that I did!), and playing in the snow with Wren later that afternoon.
The next day was the 27th and we were still pretty much snowed in.  I was feeling kind of restless all day.  Christmas had come and gone, the tree was down, presents were put away, now it was just time to wait for baby #2 to make his/her appearance.  So I decided to spend the day just playing with Wren.  Really playing with her.  Not flitting-around-doing-a-hundred-things-at-a-time-while-Wren-plays-in-the-same-room-as-me.  No.  I PLAYED with her.  We played with her new kitchen, and with blocks, and playdoh.  We read book after book after book.  I am so glad I had that day with her.  Just Momma and Wren time.  Little did I know, it was my last day with only ONE baby girl!
I had been having contractions sporadically throughout the day.  Nothing to hardly even make note of, though.  I had been dilated at 2cm and 80% effaced since the week before, so contractions coming and going were pretty common.  At around 5:00pm I was Skyping with my mom and had mentioned to her that I was having contractions a bit more regularly, but I still really didn't think much about it.  Chris came home from work, we ate dinner, and gave Wren a bath.  Contractions were coming more and more frequently throughout the night.  After we put Wren to bed at 8:00pm, I decided that maybe I should start timing those bad boys.  I hadn't been keeping track for more than a half hour when my water broke!  Chris had called his parents earlier in the night to put them on standby just in case things progressed.  After my water broke, he called them up and told them to head over so they could stay with Wren.  We called my doula, Tess, and she told us to get a bite to eat, pack up, and head to the hospital.  We left the house around 9:30pm with my contractions only 2 minutes apart.  They were strong, but definitely not unbearable.  I was unsure about heading to the hospital so early.  With Wren, my water broke at 2:30am and she wasn't born until 6:35pm.  I figured I had plenty of time and had wanted to labor at home as long as possible.  With contractions being so close together though, we decided to get moving.  Tess met us in the elevator on the way up to the hospital.  We got all checked in and settled in the room by 10:00pm.  I was dilated to 5cm, but the contractions seemed to be coming closer and closer together.  I didn't want to do anything besides sit and rock on the birthing ball in the room.  Tess and Chris helped me get through each super long contraction.  Chris rubbed my back and Tess talked me through each contraction.
(Oh, and P.S... hiring Tess as my doula was one of the BEST decisions I've ever made.  Seriously.)
Around 11:30, Tess suggested to the nurse that maybe she should check me again because my contractions weren't letting up.  I wasn't sure how I felt about getting checked because I was worried that I hadn't made much progress.  It would have been so disheartening to hear that I was only dilated to 6cm or something!  The nurse did the check anyway, and announced that I was already at 9.5cm!  I couldn't believe it.  She called the doctor in, I started pushing at 11:40pm, and after the longest, hardest 12 minutes of my life, Calla Lucile Tilson was born at 11:52pm on December 27!
Completely drug-free!
No epidural!
 8lbs. 7oz. and 21" long.
Another sweet, sweet baby girl!
We are so happy!
:)

 \
Just born!


Our new baby girl!


She's here!


Proud Daddy


My family of FOUR!  :)


Grandma O' made the trip to meet her newest grandbaby


Wren holding her baby sister for the first time


Going home.  Not so happy about the whole riding in a car seat thing...


Calla Lucile!


Big sis and little sis


So awake and alert


Love, love, love this!
<3