Flowers and Fog

Last week, while I was at home on the couch holding the little one as she ate, I heard a knock and quick doorbell ring. I got up to see what it was and to my surprise it was a package. Pro Flowers was written on the box and inside there was a note from my husband. Suhweet! I've never gotten flowers in the mail and I loved it. Thanks baby!

We've also had a ton of fog at our house. On our way home, one evening, it was so thick that we had to pull over to the side of the road. As we were pulling over, a huge truck was driving by on the wrong side of the street and would have hit us head on if we had not pulled over!!! Just kidding. We obviously needed to spice up this part of the blog post a little so we could post these amazing pictures! Hee! Hee! We're dorks.

Padre

Today, another year has gone by since my dad passed away. I think about him a lot but I especially think about him in December. I would have never thought that 3 years from this day I would be married and a new mom. It is a very bitter-sweet time. I try to imagine what he would be like with Kelsie and how he would have responded when he heard her birth weight! I'm sure there would have been many times he would have stopped by on his way home from work in Tooele to see her. But, I can not dwell on what might have been for too long or it will make me cry.

He was a wonderful father. He made so many sacrifices for me. Being a new parent myself, I can only understand part of that sacrifice. I definitely can see why it's so important for my children to have a good relationship with their dad. His influence has reverberated through my life and I'm sure it will continue to do so. I think he would be happy to know I feel this way. That was probably one of his goals as a good parent. I can just see him now, patting himself on the back:)

I added a few of my favorite pictures of him below. Pardon the quality of pictures. They were photos that I scanned in a while ago.

My dad was also a more than 10 lbs baby. Look at those chubby cheeks!

I'm pretty sure this is Joel. The oldest and therefore his first child.

My baptism day. I love his jumpsuit. Classic.

One of my favorite pics of our family. It cracks me up every time. Speaking of cracks, Sethy.

A family photo at Draper Park.

This was a snowy winter. I'm sure he was clearing the driveway here.

I am a head case!

Hi! My name is Beth. I'm a new mom and I have a problem. I'm not really one that stresses too much about things. In fact, you might even say I'm a pretty cool headed lady. People at work used to always comment on how calm I was in stressful situations. Well that calm person has left the building.

Case in point. Kelsie Nelson's arrival to this world.

First stress. Baby freaking out every night for hours when we first got home from the hospital. We figured out she was still hungry and we were not feeding her enough, so we started giving her a bottle at night.

Second stress. Baby hadn't pooped in 3 days. She had a blowout the next day.

Third stress. Milk did not come in until almost the 5th day. Jami told me to relax, take a hot bath and start pumping.

Fourth stress. At two week appointment, baby's weight was 9 lbs 8 oz. Under her birth weight. Started eating a grain called Quinoa to help milk production.

Fifth stress. Baby acne or is it a rash? Had to call doc to make sure.

Sixth stress. Baby spits up more often and does this gagging thing. Reflux? Made an appointment today just to make sure and check her weight again.

Not to worry everyone. Kelsie is back up to 10 lbs 2 oz. That means she gained 10 oz in a week. Wahoo! I was so freaking excited and the doc was not worried that she had reflux because of her weight gain and sleeping habits. He said that most babies have some reflux. Now I can start thinking of something else to stress about. Sounds like a plan.

2nd Week and Some Pics For Heather

Here are some pics of our 2 week old. Hope you like them.

Notice her Spock Live Long and Prosper Sign

Kelsie's Birth Day (Warning! Super long post!)

This is what I woke up to one morning this week. They are both on their sides with their arms across their bodies. Hilarious. And Kelsie was squishing into my space of the bed just like her dad does.

It has been an insanely crazy week. Time just flies by when your doing nothing but breast feeding! Everyone tells you how much 'your life changes', 'you better get your sleep now', 'girls are the best' and yada yada yada.....but you seriously have no clue what it's like until it happens to you. I remember leaving the hospital and thinking 'They are letting me take this baby home and I have no idea what I am doing. Are they freaking crazy?' Oh and 'My bum is killing me in this car. Get me home quick.'

Let's back track to Friday night. Chad and I left for New Moon at 3:30 in Ogden. I had been having random contractions all day but nothing alarming or consistent. While watching New Moon, I was having them more often. (Which may tell you how good a movie it is!:P) Chad starting tracking them when we got out and they were coming every 10 minutes. Woke up at about 11:30 and they were 6-7 minutes apart. Finally at 4:30 they were 5 minutes apart and we decided to go the hospital. I was at 6 and feelin' fine.

We walked the hallways, sat on the labor ball, did some squats, ate some food, drank some water and was checked again 3 hours later. Still at a 6. The on-call doc wanted to break my water or start me on low dose pitocin which I wanted nothing to do with. We asked for another hour and got it. My doc was called and told my nurse I can do whatever I want and I can tell her when I want my next exam. I love my doc.

By about noon, it had been about 6 hours since I had entered the hospital and I had them check me again. Still a freaking six. I told Chad that if I was the same at the next check then we would brake my water. So I did and that's when labor all started to change. My contractions were harder and more painful. I was getting really annoyed with having to be put on the monitor where I couldn't really move to get comfortable. Granted I know they have to cover their butts but I can definitely see the annoyance for someone wanting to have an unmedicated birth.

I hit 9 a little while later and was starting to feel the need to push. It is so excruciating to have this need and be told not to push. Seriously, it's is like telling someone who's been holding their full bladder for hours....DON'T PEE! Chad was doing all he could to comfort me but I was telling him to stop touching me! I also had flashes of all the friends and family members blogs that recently had kids (who had epidurals) and how calm/peaceful they looked. What was I doing?

Finally, I was at a 10!!! Wahoo I can push. Yeah right. Really. You want to push but then when you have to push like a millions times for an hour you just want to die! And if any of you know of the 'ring of fire', then you know that the explanation of it does not do it any justice. It should be 'the ring of incomprehensible pain', or 'the ring of you want to shoot yourself it hurts so bad', or 'the ring of why the hell didn't I get an epidural'. I could go on and on.

She was born at 3:44 in the afternoon. Weighing in at a very healthy 10lbs 3oz, stretching 21 inches long and with a head circumference of 36 cm. What the?

It's been a really hard week. But I feel the blessings and stresses of motherhood all around me. From the moment she came, I knew I would love her and worry about her constantly. I've never prayed so much in one week in my whole life. I've never loved Chad so much either. He has been a huge rock and has let me cry to him all the time. Each night when going to bed, I think about how I seriously could not love him more.

Please no more pictures! She raised her hand up like this right before I was going to take the picture. I felt like the paparazzi.

Ten Days to GO!

That's right. 10 days, 11 hours, 33 minutes, 24..23....22...seconds to go. But who's counting really. People kept telling me the last month is the worst and then when I was into the last month they told me the last two weeks are the worst. I would always think "How could this possible get any worse in just the last two weeks?" HAHAHAHA. Oh how naive am I. On the two week countdown I was instantly having more contractions at night that were more painful, waking up pretty much every 1-2 hours and driving in my car started to become increasingly uncomfortable. Are you freaking kidding me? Today at my doc appointment this is what I found out:

-Dilated to a 4

-70-80% effaced

-Baby is most likely at -1 station

-I've always measured bigger than my due date. (I think I could have guessed that one!)

-Heather is psychic. She always texts me the day I go to the doc.

-I could have this baby any day. I think today would be a good 'any day'.

-I already told the baby if she is late, she is grounded so maybe she's taking me seriously.

Halloween Costume

The decision to wear a Halloween costume this year came a few months ago when I saw this t-shirt being sold on KSL by a lady making them in Provo. I laughed hard when I happened upon it and so I ordered one.

Little did I know what a commotion I would stir up. I wore it to work on Friday because I wasn't working on Halloween and immediately was a hit. All the nurses loved it. Then when I started walking the hallways patients and their families were commenting on it. I was a celebrity!:) To top it all off I had four, that's right four people take a picture of me. Our unit secretary, one of the social workers, an nurse practitioner and trauma doc all took a picture.

Later on that night, me, Chad, my sister Kelli and Nate her husband went out to McGrath's for dinner at the gateway. I continued to wear the shirt and still had many people point and laugh at it. Even in the restaurant people commented on how they loved it. After dinner we went to a Halloween movie (Macfisto) that Kelli's friends make every year. It was at the Rose Wagner theater in downtown SLC. So of course they have a costume contest and I was very much coerced to even enter. We're in this huge packed theater and I have to make my way all the way down to the stage. No freaking way. I've had quite enough attention for the day. They go through all the contestants and I get sent up on stage first. After a few more contestants go up, the crowd cheers for the winner. Guess who one? Yep me! I was completely embarrassed the whole time. But very proud that my baby bump got me a prize! Woot! Woot! Kelsie will be so proud one day. When we were leaving (waiting for Kelli to stop her social butterflying), a worker at the theater asked me if he could take a picture. He loved it but thought it was creepy! So if you see my picture floating around the Internet you know why!

The infamous t-shirt!

My loot! The box is caramels from V Chocolates!

The t-shirt has the star of the movie Macfisto in the left hand corner!

Happy Halloween everyone!