How the time flies

What?! It's December 14?! WHAT?! My baby girl is 3 weeks, 3 days old?! When did this happen? Make it stop!

I have been loving every single minute I've had at home with Miss Ainsley and I am positively dreading going back to work in 3 weeks! I wish there was some way to make money while hanging out with your daughter, or for Justin to make money going to school. Then I could stay home!

Justin and I went out on a date, all by ourselves, on Sunday night! We left Ainsley in the very capable hands of 2 friends and went to see Harry Potter. It was wonderful and also so strange! Only a couple hours away from her and I missed her sooo much - how am I going to do 8 hour days when I go back to work?

Friday Ainsley and I are going to Fergus for the weekend - we have a baby shower at Mom and Dad's on Saturday and I'm so excited! I haven't been home since July! The drive should be interesting - hopefully she'll just sleep the whole time. I'm excited to see friends and family that I haven't seen since this summer, and to just be home again.

Next Tuesday Justin's dad and sisters fly in to spend 2 weeks with us, so we're busy getting ready for that, and Justin is sooooo excited! We haven't seen them since last Christmas, so its a long overdue visit.

I'm recovering very well, feeling good and (mostly) getting enough sleep. Naps are a wonderful thing! I've been feeling good enough to putter around the house a little, though I can't get a whole lot done with a newborn! I make sure to allot myself more than enough cuddle time on the couch with my snugglebug! I know how quickly these precious days are going by, so I'm eating up every single minute!

Michelle

Ainsley Pix

Ainsley Marie Distel

November 20, 2010

4:26pm

7lbs 5 oz

18" long

She's here!

I started having contractions Saturday morning around 7:00. We went on a walk and before long, they were about 5 minutes apart and 1 minute long. The labor and delivery nurse suggested taking a warm bath to try and relax and call again when they were to the point of not being able to talk or walk through them. I soaked in the tub for a long time, and as soon as I got out, the contractions got harder and right on top of each other, so we went in around 3:00. When the nurse checked me, I was dilated to 5cm, but she didn't think she felt the baby's head where it was supposed to be, so she went to get the ultrasound machine and another nurse to make sure. She still wasn't sure even with the ultrasound, so the other nurse took a look and sure enough, she found her head way up by my ribs. She checked me as well, and felt a little foot! Then things started happening fast. By then, Mom and Katie were there. Because she was footling breech and I was already in active labor, they weren't willing to try and turn her, so C-section was the way we were going. By 4:00, I was in the OR, and at 4:26, she was out. They found that not only was she breech, she also had the cord around her neck 2 times. And they found a "good-sized" fibroid in my uterus, which they removed. When they announced she was a girl, Justin (and most of the people in the room) were very surprised! Then they announced her weight, and I was very surprised! I was expecting her to be much bigger than she was. They cleaned her up and we got a few pictures while they finished with me, then took her and Justin up to the nursery. I was in recovery for about 45 minutes, and by 6:30 we were all in our room and I had my little girl in my arms!

We came home on Tuesday morning, and Mom is here until at least Thursday. Dad and Katie were here until Sunday afternoon, and just got here for Thanksgiving, so we're all just relaxing at home.

Welcome to the world, Ainsley Marie!

Michelle

Who would have thunk it

I saw my doc this morning for my 40 week appointment. 4 months of sitting down to keep Baby D from coming out, and here I am at 40 weeks! And, I have an appointment scheduled for next Tuesday, with no promises or even hints that Baby will come before then! And the potential for induction was brought up! My doctor didn't say either way whether he thinks I'll make it to Tuesday (we told him he jinxed us last week by saying he probably wouldn't see me today!), he just said to schedule it for then and hopefully baby will come before. If I were to be induced, the earliest that would happen is next Friday. (If it comes to that, I won't wait past then!) He checked me and I'm STILL at 1.5 cm, but I'm now 100% effaced, which is good news. At least there's some progress going on.

So now we continue to wait. And my child just grows more. Goody.

Michelle

Waiting and waiting...

Our beautiful little one has yet to join the world... Everyone else due around the same time has their babies, and we're still waiting to meet ours! It is good to know that it really won't be long - even though every day we don't get to meet Baby D seems to drag on, it's truly a matter of days!

The signs seem to point to sooner rather than later - at my 38 week appointment last Wednesday, I was 1.5 cm dilated and 60% effaced. Baby's movements have slowed down quite a bit, my Braxton Hicks contractions have settled down, Baby's dropped massively. So here's hoping we get to meet this little person this week! I see my doctor again tomorrow, as long as Baby hasn't arrived yet.

This week is officially my last week of work before starting maternity leave, and I'm definitely ready to be home and just be with my baby and husband. I'm not ready to be broke for 2 months, however! But we'll make do. My federal student loans are in deferment, so that's a huge burden lifted for us. And the rest will fall into place.

Come on out, Baby D!

Michelle

4 weeks!!

Holy crow, my due date is in 4 WEEKS!! And baby really could come any time now! Yay!!

I saw my doctor yesterday and he did say that there is a less than 1% chance I will deliver over the weekend. I've been having lots of false labor and/or Braxton Hicks, but I still think it's gonna be another couple of weeks. I don't know about 4, but 2 would be just fine with me!

Mom and Katie are coming up tomorrow to spend the weekend with me, cooking and cleaning and finishing getting ready for baby! I have a whole list of things for them to do! :) I am sooo excited for them to come! Justin will be gone all weekend, so it will just be us girls. I'm hoping in addition to the cleaning and cooking, we'll get some shopping in as well.

We're really pretty set for baby at this point, still a few necessities to pick up, but the car seat is installed, I have my bag packed for the hospital, we have the nursery pretty much done, just a couple little things to finish. So my panic of a month ago and having nothing done has subsided immensely and I'm feeling good about it all!

In still other news, my job has once again changed, and I have accepted a different position with Lighthouse. Instead of going back as House Coordinator, I will be the new Administrative Assistant/the boss-man's right hand man. The pay is the same as what I was offered with the other position, but the hours are primarily day-time office hours. Granted, I'm still working in a field that always requires flexibility and the potential for having to cover an evening or weekend shift, which is fine. As excited as I was about the House Coordinator position, I'm 1000% more excited for this position! I think it's going to be a really great move for me career-wise, and it will be much better for our family as well. And everyone I work with at the office is super excited to have me in that position, which makes me even more excited for it! So I will be going back to work on January 5, the day after Justin's family flies out.

So, other than the nearly constant heartburn ( I swear, I've got a mini Sasquatch growing inside me! ), all is well in the Distel world! :)

Michelle

Oh me oh my

I cannot believe this is week 35! I realized today that this week is my last appointment-free week before baby comes! That kind of freaked me out a littlea, but in a good way. It's just another one of those reminders that this baby is real and is really coming and is really coming soon! This whole time, even with the obvious signs that there is a baby coming, it's still been pretty surreal, but now everyday it gets more and more real. The deadline to get everything done is fast approaching!

Baby is still super busy, and those movements are just getting bigger, stronger, and more painful for me! Just when I thought it couldn't get more difficult to move, it does... And now my feet are swelling, everything hurts, I'm continually exhausted. I love this baby and I'm sooo excited to meet baby, but I really do not love being pregnant. Very little about this pregnancy has been fun. And I just want to meet my baby!

The first of the baby streak that we're in has been born, which is also making this alot more real. There's only 1 more person in the streak due before me... and then it's my turn! Holy hannah!

My dear Oakie friends are having a baby shower for me on Thursday, and I'm super excited! Even just hearing about the treats they're making is exciting! After the shower, we get to reevaluate everything we need, and when Mom and Katie come in 2 weeks, we're going shopping for the rest! Yay!

Michelle