Baby Shower for Number 6

A couple of weeks before my due date, some awesome ladies in my ward (Jordan and Corrinne) decided to throw me a baby shower.  It was kind of silly, considering the fact that this is number six for me. But then on the other hand, it really is not that silly because I got rid of every single baby thing I owned.

The shower was amazing and I can't believe how many women came to support me. I felt very loved.  There were a ton of women from my new ward and then lots of old friends through the years who live here in Utah. It was so fabulous.

Michele, from my Atlanta days.

Ginger, a friend from when I was engaged and then when I went to college.

And of course my amazing friends from the Sunset ward in Henderson.

After the festivities, Echo, Alexa (her daughter) and Melanie came over to my house for a tour and a nightcap.  I had a Marie Callender's pie that was just begging to be shared.  We ate pie, reminisced, and caught up on the latest happenings. It was so fun to hang out with the ladies.

It was a perfect day.

It's a Girl!

Finally, I am not pregnant anymore!  Wahoo! I am starting to feel my old self re-emerging and I am very grateful.  Since I didn't go to church today, I was able to do a lot of baking and cooking. I reclaimed my kitchen and it felt so good. 

But you can see that I have been out of commission for quite a while. So there is a lot to update in this blog. 

My mom came into town a few days before my scheduled C-section. She was one busy grandma with the addition of three new grandchildren, Danny, Paul, and my babe. She stayed with us one night and then headed down to Provo to spend some quality time with new mama Catye, her youngest daughter.  It was nice to see her and spend some time with her. Julia was especially excited for grandma to visit.  Julia sure liked to get lots of attention from her. They played dolls and had some good bonding time together.



I headed to the hospital super-early in the morning on Monday, September 30.  I had to be there at 5:30 am to get prepped. I was pretty nervous about my C-section. I had to get one since I had already had 3.  I asked Rinar and Jamie to give me a blessing the night before and I know that it really helped me to not be so anxious.



After all the prep work, I was finally ready to walk into the operating room at about 7:45am.  The anesthesiologist, Dr. Peterson, was fabulous.  The spinal block did not hurt at all and he really talked me through everything as all of the medications coarsed through my veins.  It was not easy. The first needle was no problem, the very part I was worried about.  But once I was all numb, my body did not like all of the medications he gave me. I felt nauseous and on to the point of self-destruction. It really did not feel good.  I didn't vomit, but I felt like I was on the brink. Finally, once they began to operate, my body settled down and then it was great. 

After a significant amount of tugging and pulling, the baby emerged.  Everyone in the operating room was excited to see what it would be, a boy or girl. 

Finally we had our answer at 8:10am.

A girl!!



Meet Noelle Stephanie.  She weighed 7 lbs. 3 oz. and was 20 inches long at birth.  And can you believe all of that hair.  A perfectly full head of hair, a uniform coif, thick and dark.

It took a while to sew me back up, but before I knew it I was being wheeled away to the recovery room, floating on a drug-induced cloud.

Rinar went to check on Noelle and then came back to tell me that she was not doing so well. She was having trouble absorbing enough oxygen. They had to give her an IV and antibiotics and a pulse-ox monitor.

Oh great. Another one of my kids in the NICU. Drat.

I went to my room soon enough and then started to feel really crappy. I vomited several times, but finally started to feel better once all of the medication started to wear off.

After she was monitored for a while and stabilized, I was able to hold my little girl. And she is just so darling.

 

And daddy's little girl, for sure.

It was also fun to have some visitors, like Melanie. Aren't they a cute pair?

And my kids were excited to see their new sister.

I stayed in the hospital until Friday, drinking a ton of water, cuddling and feeding my baby and working on getting mobile again.

The plan was to go home on Friday morning, and everything was looking good. Then Noelle decided to scare us all and turn a little blue in the middle of the night.  They put her on an oxygen cannula and I got the bad news at about 3:00am when I went looking for a baby to feed.  It was not good and I did cry a bit.

I let Rinar sleep, though, and told him that Noelle would not be coming home with us when it was morning time.  I was discharged and Noelle stayed.  Fortunately, she stabilized and we were able to take her home the next evening on an oxygen tank.  So she has been home now on a leash, stuck in our bedroom and will be for another week or so. But Noelle is doing fantastic. She is growing and eating and looking like a good little baby.

Our family is very blessed.

I think I have always known for a few years now that I was supposed to have one more girl. The thought had crossed my mind many times. It was no fun being pregnant and I was pretty darn whiny about it, but I absolutely love the result...and not being pregnant anymore!

 

 

 

Catye and Mike Have a Baby

Monday was an incredible day.  I got the call I have been waiting for from my sister Catye. It was time. Her baby was coming.  I was so excited. I really hoped to be able to be there for the birth of her first baby. It was such a privilege.

Catye went into labor in the morning. I got there just before lunch. And then we waited. At about 6:30 she started pushing and it lasted for two hours. Amazingly enough, I was able to stand there and help her for most of it. But then I got tired and thought it was probably a good idea to have a seat and rest.  The doctor came in at about 8:30. The news was not that good.  The baby's head was up instead of down and he just was not going to come out.  There were two options: forceps or a c-section.

It got a little intense. Catye started to get a bit panicky.

Look, I have had 3 c-sections and am getting ready to have number four. I told her it was not a big deal. If they had to do a c-section, it would be fine.  Catye was very fortunate that she was under the care of a very experienced doctor and so they chose to use forceps.

There was a lot of tugging and pulling. Thank goodness this girl had an epidural.

But, it was all worth it.  Look at that chunker!

Paul, 8 lbs 9 oz and 21 inches long. Catye was not that big, but man she made a a nice chunky little rascal.

He is so precious. I am so proud of my little sister. She was definitely a warrior.

Now it is time to be a mama.

Welcome to the world, Paul. You are lucky to have two wonderful parents.

First Time Kokopelli

One proud Mama moment, right here.

Rinar asked Zach a few months ago if he would like to do a triathlon, and Zach was eager and willing.  He trained a little bit every week and was able to do some bricks with Rinar: a bike and a run.  It was great bonding time for the two of them.  Zach was very excited for this triathlon, the Kokopelli in St. George, Utah. He would tell everyone that he does triathlons.  I guess it is now his thing.

Raef has always been the sporty one with football and basketball. Zach is more likely to be playing the piano or reading a book.  But now he has something physical that he can do. I just love it.

The race was this last Saturday. They all got up really early. Unfortunately, I couldn't go because of Raef's football game. We had to divide and conquer.

Here he is getting ready to light up the swim. One minute before the race started, Zach scraped his toe pretty bad and it was bleeding. Rinar raced up to the paramedic for a bandage and he got it all doctored up just in time. Then they were off.

After the swim, Zach was off on his bike. His transitions were really good because he just swam in his running clothes. It worked out really well.

His bike is really heavy, so the bike time will definitely get better with an equipment upgrade. But he made up for it with his run.  His mile time was 8:09.  I am pretty darn impressed with that.  I think he has a future in running, for sure. He finished 6th in his age group and was really close to a podium finish.  I think if we work on it, he will get a lot better quickly.

Rinar also participated in the sprint triathlon. So both my boys got a medal.  Way to go, Zach and Rinar.

Eli went along for this little trip also. He was able to have some fun cousin time with Tru.  Then when they headed for home, Eli slept most of the way. He was one tired kid from waking up so early and playing hard.

Reconnecting

What a blessing it is in life to reconnect with old friends.  About a month ago, I went to the dermatologist's office for a routine check up.  While I was sitting in the room waiting for the doctor, I got a huge surprise.  The PA was a good friend from our Atlanta days, Steve A. We went with his wife Michele and another couple on a few Thanksgiving trips. The first year we went to Gatlinburg, Tennessee and the next year it was at a beach house in Destin, Florida.  It was so much fun.

I contacted Michele and we set up a dinner date, which happened to fall on my birthday.  It was so much fun and they live pretty close to us. Their kids played with ours really well and we were able to catch up on old times.  

Rinar used to play tennis with Steve a lot while we lived in Atlanta. I have a feeling the tennis matches will resume pretty soon.

My Birthday Stuff

First of all, I must mention my darling five year-old again. He built these Lego dragons all by himself, from his own imagination. And let me tell you, the kid is pretty darn proud of himself. I took this picture on my phone, and he makes me get it out all the time so he can show people his awesome creations.

"Am I so awesome?"

Yes, Eli. You are. Pretty darn awesome kid.

This past weekend was my birthday and my husband had lots of surprises up his sleeve. First, he gave me a beautiful necklace and earring set. Then he took me to a fancy schmancy dinner at La Caille. It is in Cottonwood Heights and is quite the place. It is a fancier version of the Gable House. I enjoyed every bite of it. And since my steak was too big, I was able to have a fancy schmancy lunch after church the next day. Sweetness.

Then he took me to the Conference Center for a special concert. James Taylor sang with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and the Utah Symphony. The concert was fantastic. I just love James Taylor. His first number was "Carolina on My Mind" and I got a little misty-eyed thinking about North Carolina and the things there are to love about that place. I am excited to go back next year to visit.

James Taylor did three encore numbers and people shined their phones brightly in the air and waved to the music. It was a Mormon rock concert!

Okay, now my birthday is over and I am settling in to 37. Next on the agenda is to have this darn baby!

A Little Fishing Trip

Rinar went on his annual fishing trip with his brothers a few weeks ago.  He actually came home with a bunch of trout for our family to enjoy.  Eli has a thing for fish. He just loves it. Salmon is his favorite, but he was especially enamored with dad's home caught meal.  Eli was amazed that dad caught the fish all by himself.

So naturally, Eli wanted to go fishing too.  And he meant it. He reminded Rinar all week to take him fishing. As luck would have it, August 31 was a no-game day.  Raef and Eli both did not have games, so Rinar took the three little ones fishing.  Amazingly enough, there is a little fishing pond in Draper made specifically for little kids.

After stopping at the store to get the necessary fishing treats, the four of them were off to the pond.

And they all caught a fish.  Not going to be eating them for dinner or anything, but they were all happy to catch something.What a sweet moment with their daddy.