A baby story

1-Where were you when you found out? I was at the doctor's office. I had taken two pregnancy tests the day before and they came back negative but I went to the doctor because I was having stomach pains. We had only been trying for a month so I really did not think I was pregnant. But lo and behold, I was. I went straight to Casey's work and told him!!

2-Who did you first tell? I told Casey of course!! We didn't want to tell too many people until I was out of my first trimester but we couldn't wait. We ended up going to dinner with my parents and telling them. We didn't tell anyone else until we went to Bear Lake a few weeks later and were able to tell Casey's parents.

3-Did you find out the sex of the baby? Yes

4-Did you have morning sickness? Every morning until about 20 weeks. I got used to it though and it became just another part of getting ready in the mornings!! Other than getting sick every morning, I only got sick about 3 or 4 times in the afternoons.

5-How much weight did you gain? 25 lbs

6-Did you get stretch marks? I got one about half an inch long on my tush. I was lucky!

7-Did you have any cravings? The only thing I really remember was I always wanted chocolate, especially my mother-in-laws delicious chocolate cake!!! That cake is to die for, I still crave it. And her and KJ were so nice, they brought me that cake almost every time they came up and visited!!!

8- Were there any complications? When I was pregnant, I never got very big so they always monitored that. I had to have extra ultrasounds to check on things and they found that my fluids were a little low so I had to make sure a drank a lot of liquids. Other than that, no, I had a pretty easy labor and delivery.

9-When and where did you go into labor? I went into labor at two in the morning at our house. I woke up thinking I was just having a little cramping like usual. I didn't want to wake Casey up so I went into the living room and sat on the couch. After about an hour of my cramping getting worse and coming about every 5 minutes, I decided to wake up Casey. I did not think I was in labor but wanted to see what Casey thought (like he had any better idea!!). After a little bit longer, Casey talked me into going to the hospital just to see. We figured the worse they could do was send us home. But the nurse got me into a room, checked me, and told me I was going to have a baby! It was fun calling our parents at 4:30 in the morning and saying we were at the hospital!!

10-Did your water break? Not on its own

11-Who drove you to the hospital? Casey

12-Who was in the room for the birth? Casey and my mom. My dad, Casey's parents, and Casey's sister were all in the waiting room.

13- Was the baby born early or late? 9 days LATE! I was scheduled to be induced that Wednesday. The worst part was that my doctor was convinced that I would have her the weekend of the July 3rd because when I went into my checkup that week I was dilated to a 4 and 75% effaced. The next week I was dilated to a 5 and Olivia was stationed at a +2, meaning she was ready to come out!! But she didn't decided to come until the 20th. (I was due July 11th)

14-How long were you in labor? From the time I woke up at my house until I had her, 8 1/2 hours. Like I said, I was already dilated to a 5 but it still took awhile for me to get to any further. It took awhile to get to about 7 but after that I quickly dilated to a 10. My labor was so smooth, I only had to push about 3 times, which took less than 5 minutes!

15-Did you have any drugs? Yes, an epidural. It wouldn't take on my right side so I had to lay on that side for a long time to try to get it to go but right before I got to a 10 it finally took. Love the epidural!

16- Natural or C-section? Natural

17-What was your first reaction after birth? Finally, I have a baby!! A sweet, beautiful little girl!

18-How big was the Baby? 6 lbs. 10 oz., 19 in. long. She was still pretty little for being so late.

19-Date and time of birth? July 20, 2008 10:25 A.M.

20- Baby's Name? Olivia Chaliese

21-Does the name have any significant meaning? We always knew her middle name would be Chaliese because that is my middle name but we had a hard time deciding on a first name. We "decided" on a ton (First Emma, then Peyton, Brynlee, Summer, Kambrie, Tulie, Presley, and lastly Ashtyn) but then when she was born Casey brought her over to me and said he thought she looked like an Olivia. He had always liked that name but I didn't think it worked for a baby. But she did look like an Olivia so that is what she was named. I can't imagine my little Livie being called anything else!!

22-Did the baby have any complications? The only thing was that she swallowed some fluids when she was born so that first afternoon and evening she kept choking. I took her to the nursery and they had to pump her little belly. It was so sad to watch! They ended up having to do it the next day too.

23-How old is the baby today? 8 months today!! I can't believe she is 2/3 of a year old!!

24-What kind of temperament has the baby had so far? Olivia is such a happy girl. She cried hardly at all when she was a newborn. She is already funny and will do things and then just laugh at herself. She is mommy's girl (which I love) and my little cuddle bug, especially when she is sleepy or sick. She is the light of our lives and we love her so much. I can't imagine what we did without her!

25- Would you change anything about it? No, my pregnancy, labor, and delivery were great!! I actually enjoyed all of it! Like I said, I was lucky.

Like the girl whose blog I saw this on, I tag anyone that wants to do this. I mainly did it for my own journal.

What's a mom to do...

My daughter loves raw hides. I don't know how, but she always seems to find Dexter's raw hides and get them into her little mouth. And she gets mad when you take them away. It is so gross!!! Of course Dexter doesn't make it any better, when they are not close to her he brings them over. AHH!!! Oh well, what do you do? I guess there could be worse things she could put in her mouth. Not many worse things but a few. Olivia is still not crawling. I know, everyone keeps telling me that I should be thankful because your life changes when they can crawl and they get into everything and yadda yadda yadda. But I think it will be fun to see my little munchkin motoring around. This is about as far as she gets in crawling though, just up on her arms. She hasn't quite figured out how to get her legs under her. I think soon though!! .

First Walk of the Year

Last Sunday (March 1st) it was so nice outside, so we decided to go for a walk after church. I love going for walks!!! Plus, I won't be the pregnant lady waddling around the neighborhood this year, so that is even better! Last summer we went for walks all the time and hopefully we will be able to this year too. It was still a little chilly so we bundled Olivia up so she stayed nice and warm. She had fun. She loved to just look around at everything. And of course Dexter had fun, lots of new smells and plenty of things to leave his mark on!! On a sadder note, I have to stop nursing Livie. I was really shooting for a year but I guess 7 months will have to do. I really don't want to stop but for some reason I have lost my milk supply. I have been trying different things that people have told me to try to get my supply back but nothing is working. So instead of making my daughter suffer, I am going to stop. So we will be using what milk I have stored and then on to formula! It is kind of weird, I was very unsure of nursing and kind of freaked out about the whole thing while I was pregnant, and really struggled with it for the first month or so, but I love it now and am really going to miss it. I loved that it was MY time with my daughter, nobody else could do that for her, I did not have to share that joy. I know that is selfish but it's true. And it made me feel good that I was able to provide the nourishment my daughter needed. Maybe other nursing mothers out there can sympathize with me. If you don't have children and are debating about nursing, I say do it. Even when it is hard, do it because it is a wonderful experience. I will really miss it. Sorry everyone, I know I am going on and on here, but this really is a big deal for me. Guess something I get to look forward to for baby #2, whenever that may be!!!

Sleepy Girl

On Wednesdays, Liv gets to stay home with her Daddy while I go to school. When I got home last Wednesday, this is what I got...

I guess she was sitting in her highchair playing one second and then asleep the next. Pretty cute though! Sucking her thumb and everything. Maybe I am crazy but in this picture, doesn't it look like she has a little hair??? So maybe its the lighting.

6 month checkup

16lbs. 8 oz. (50th percentile)

26 in. long (50th percentile)

Well, we just got back from Livie's 6 month appointment. Everything went good; she is growing just fine and dandy!! She was a little upset about getting shots. (Note to self: Next time don't schedule during nap time!!) Everything else is going good at our house. Casey and I are still plugging through school and jsut waiting for Spring Break. I guess it is President's Day on Monday so we get that day off, whoo-hoo!!! Anyways, here are some random picutures we have taken in the last little bit, hope you enjoy!

This one was taken on my phone so it is not that clear but so cute I had to post it!! Livie in her pretty Sunday dress

Big smiles for Daddy!!