Greyson's Birth Story

OOOOHHHH......WOW....my child is almost 3 months old and I'm just now updating my blog with his birth story. (There are A LOT of reasons for this, but I will get around to that later.)  Let's pick up where I left off almost 3 months ago with my final few bump pictures........

37 Weeks

38 Weeks

39 Weeks...didn't make it to 40!

So the Tuesday of my 38 week appointment I went in for my usual check up.  My "usual" checkup actually included a sonogram each week because I had an issue with my thyroid levels during pregnancy.  Long story short, they would check 8 factors in each sonogram (heart rate, fluid levels, etc.) and I had to make an 8 out of 8 each time to avoid having an immediate C-section. Like every other week, I made the perfect score and then met with the doctor.  I had not "progressed" naturally at all, but he was a little concerned with Greyson's growth (or lack thereof-at that point, babies should be growing a half pound each week). Soooo......he pretty much told us to come in the following Monday and we would pick a day to induce. (He insinuated that I would probably have progressed on my own by then, too.) His exact words were "Baby's coming next week!".  So after a brief panic attack, J and I call our families and get all hands on deck.  We were actually super excited to know that we'd meet our baby boy the next week. 

I tried to keep myself as busy as possible that week waiting on Monday.  Monday finally came around and J and I giddily put our bags in the car before the appointment, just in case they wanted keep us in the hospital. I passed the sonogram with flying colors again and pretty much skipped (as much as a 9 month pregnant person can skip) into the exam room to find out what D-day will be.  Unfortunately, I had STILL not progressed at ALL and the doctor didn't feel like there was any reason to induce that week since my sono looked great. So he delayed the induction until the next Tuesday. We walked (I waddled) out of the office like whipped puppies, like someone had cancelled Christmas.  We had to call our parents (who also had their bags packed) and told them unless something major happens, no baby that week. Well.....something major DID happen! I decided to try every wives tale in the book, including eating greasy food.....on Wednesday I scarfed down some chicken and waffles with 3 strips of bacon with my fellow 9 month pregnant friend.  We both joked about how it was gonna send me into labor. When I got home, I leashed Manny up and we walked for probably 3 miles.....well....low and behold.....at 2:30 a.m. I felt something odd, like I had to go to the bathroom...or had I already?...I think I had forgotten I was pregnant in my sleep and then it hit me like a ton of bricks....MY WATER BROKE!  So just like in the movies, I had to wake Jeremie up, who was actually sleeping upstairs in the guest bedroom because of my pregnancy induced snoring habit.  Mr. Sleepy did not hear my first few yells for him, so I actually had to waddle (with water breaking) up the stairs, shake him and tell him "Um, babe, I think my water just broke!" And just like the movies, he FLUNG those covers like they were on fire and said "Are you SURE?!" (As if this has happened to me before.) He was running around like a mad cat, loading the last couple bags while I striped the bed, straightened my hair, etc....I knew I still had a good 24 hours. Jeremie finally yelled "We need to GO!!!!"  So off we head to the hospital, speeding down Parker Rd. at 3:00 a.m. I had absolutely no contractions at this point. The front doors to the hospital were actually locked, so we had to page the maternity floor for them to buzz us in.  Once inside, they established that I actually was in labor and the adventure began. I got all hooked up and checked in and we finally had a moment to call our parents---I was SHOCKED that my mom didn't answer her phone on the first ring, but I eventually got a hold of them and I think they were on the road 90 seconds later. Labor started off all smiles and giggles but quickly progressed. The doctor (of course mine was off that day) came in and it was established that the cord was possibly wrapped around Greyson's neck. (We had heard before that this was a possibility and that it is more common than you think.) This still made me nervous though. My contractions were a little too close together/not consistent, so they administered some Pitocin to help them along. Now that stuff is for real. The contractions started getting pretty tough and J had to help me count through them. So I told them I was ready for the "juice" (an epidural) and they told me it'd be coming right up.  Well.....after an HOUR, I wasn't so polite and was pretty much like "WHERE ARE MY DRUGS??" and they told me the anesthesiologist had an emergency C-section and a girl who needed it more across the hall.  I finally got my turn. PSA: GIRLFRIENDS. If you are remotely questioning whether to get an epidural or not GET.IT. I didn't even feel it go in and it was amazing. I didn't feel "drugged" by any means, in fact, it relaxed me SO much more to be able to concentrate on everything else going on around me and what the nurses were telling me about labor, Greyson's condition, etc.  If I hadn't gotten it, I don't know how in the world I would've been in my right mind to push efficiently and correctly when it was time.

Our parents all arrived around 1:00.  Never been so happy to see all of our parents;  I felt like my "prayer team" had finally arrived.  My mom put a little bit of makeup on me, so we were ready for Baby Greyson now! But the wait lasted much longer than I expected! Also, Greyson's heart rate started dropping fairly frequently (possible result of the cord around his neck ) which really started to scare me and earned me an oxygen mask. (Not because of anxiety, but to make sure he was getting enough oxygen because of the stress of labor.)  The doctor kept coming in the room and staring at the monitors saying things like "Hmmm...and Come on"...which REALLY started to make me nervous.  They adjusted me into different positions to find where Greyson was most relaxed and told me NOT to move! Around 5:00 p.m., they told me I could start pushing in an hour! Finally! The doctor came back in and told me "I'm SO SORRY, but I have a family engagement I HAVE to be at, so I'm going to introduce you to the next doctor on call".  I LOVED the current doctor, so this totally freaked me out that at the ninth hour (well, actually 15th hour) I was getting a new doctor.  I tried to be calm and just said "Ok." She watched the monitors a few more minutes, left the room, and came back saying that she had worked something out with her family and she was going to stay to deliver Greyson. Praise the Lord!!! She also said that because of the dropping heart rate, I didn't get an hour to wait to push, that we really need to go ahead and get Greyson out. If Greyson didn't come within the first few pushes, I'd be rolled straight into a C-section. So the next few minutes were absolute chaos! A million people (including a respiration guy from NICU) rushed into the room, the nurses described how to push, and they threw J some scrubs to put on in case I went into a C-section. J was holding my hand and just praying over everything; he was amazing. Even though my main concern was a safe delivery for Greyson, I really didn't want a C-section after 16 hours of labor! So as I breathed some oxygen, I looked J in the eye and told him I was about to push like no one has pushed before. Everyone was in place and they told me to start pushing. It was seriously like a movie, people counting and all! After about 4 sets of counting to 10, Baby Greyson made his debut!!! The sound of his cry was THE BEST sound Jeremie and I have ever heard. It is a feeling I cannot describe when they hand you your baby for the first time. After waiting 9 months to meet him, this moment was one of complete fulfillment.  Greyson was born at 6:00 p.m. and was 6 pounds and 19 inches! He was perfectly healthy and the cord actually was just draped over his shoulder, no issues. 

After a couple days of recovery, we were finally able to take our little bambino home!

More to come on the days and weeks that followed! 

Bump That: Weeks 29 to 36

Whew!!!!  I can't believe we are so far along!!! Here is how "The Bump" is progressing:

Week 29

This week I was in fully nesting mode! Organized the laundry room and washed most of Greyson's clothes which was super fun!

Week 30

We kicked off our 10 week countdown with a sonogram! It had been 10 weeks since we'd seen Greyson and he had obviously grown quite a bit! In fact, he was so much bigger, we didn't get as good pictures as we did for the 20 week sonogram! We went to our birthing class this week which was very......informative.....

Week 31-This week was crazy: I was busy and J was out of town, so belly picture did not get taken! 

Week 32 

Nursery reno began this week! Super fun to get his room ready! 

Week 33

Ooops!!! Wore the same dress for bump pics!  

Week 34

Not much to report this week other than catching a nasty cold! 

Week 35

Nasty cold continued.....I was not happy about having my picture taken, but didn't want to skip a week! 

Week 36

Feeling better and on our way to our Dallas shower in this picture. The shower was a tailgate theme, right up our alley! We had a blast! 

If everything goes as scheduled......only 4 bump pictures remaining!!!

The Maine Event-Our East Coast Vacay!

Well, it is utterly sad that I am JUST NOW posting about our fabulous vacation that happened in MAY!!! With such a big topic and hundreds of pics to choose from, I keep waiting until I "have the time" to really work on this.  But now that I'm having a baby in less than 5 weeks, I realize, there's no time like the present, so I'm trying to catch up on everything random from blogging to cleaning out our linen closets. (Because that MUST be done before you have a baby, right?) 

So anyway, in May, Jeremie and I celebrated our five year anniversary and upcoming baby with a trip to the East Coast.  I have been wanting to do this for as long as I can remember! The rocky beaches, the darling Cape Cod homes, the lobster rolls......so we booked it and hopped on a non-stop flight to Boston! We arrived in Boston but immediately headed to our first destination: Kennebunkport, Maine which is the MOST DARLING town I have ever been in! The drive to Kennebunkport was SO pretty, we took the scenic route through several little charming towns including, that's right:

We stopped in Ogunquit to take a look at our first Maine beach....It was beautiful...

We stayed at the Seaside Inn, which was over 100 years old. It was precious, right on the beach and served the most fabulous home cooked breakfast in the mornings.

Reminder, I was 17 weeks pregnant at this point......mama was TIRED....so we headed to a darling restaurant to watch the sunset and another restaurant for some dinner.

The next day we were ready to explore, so we took a walk on the beach and met some sweet people who had been coming to Maine to vacation for over 20 years! They gave us some fabulous recommendations. That day we hung out in Kennebunkport, and rode to several little surrounding fishing villages including Cape Porpoise and Goose Rocks Beach. Everything was totally breathtaking.

I just THOUGHT the bump was starting to show in this pic! HA!

We also had our first lobster roll which was AMAZING. I could eat one every day. J embarrassed me by asking someone at the visitors center what a lobster roll was before we went to lunch. That is like asking a Texan what BBQ is. I thought I had explained the lobster roll. 

This is George Bush's summer home, Walker's Point

Cape Porpoise....you can't see it, but there is a light house out there.

I was a little obsessed with all the Cape Cod style homes.

Goose Rocks Beach

That night we ate pizza and actually drove BACK to Cape Porpoise for some blueberry pie that the lady at the visitor's center had told us about. When you say blueberry pie to a pregnant woman, you'd better stand back. On the way, we caught the most beautiful sunset.

So we arrive at this restaurant specifically for the blueberry pie; we are already full from pizza.  Well, apparently, the restaurant is REALLY famous for their fresh lobster and our waitress made that QUITE apparent. She looked at me and J like sinners bound for hell when we didn't order lobster. J was totally embarrassed and made me scarf down my pie before they threw us in the boiling water with the lobster. As we were paying the check, the waitress said "Well, next time, maybe you can come back for the lobster."  Yikes. As a Southern lady, I guess I understand. That'd be like showing up to my tailgate and not eating any of my sausage balls. So next time, We will hit up Nuna's for the  lobster. We promise.

The next day saw a few more gorgeous landmarks before heading to our next destination of Cape Cod.

The "Wedding Cake House" in Kennebunk

One of our favorite suggestions from the sweet couple we met on the beach was a little area called Perkins Cove. There are several charming restaurants right on the beach and a 1 mile walking trail that connects Perkins Cove to Ogunquit.  If you ever go to Maine, I would highly suggest this! We walked the trail and then ate an amazing meal at Jackie's Too and even ran into our sweet couple while there!

The rocky beaches are just breathtaking. I think I may even like them more than sandy beaches. 

We were excited to head to Cape Cod, but honestly sad that we only stayed in Maine a couple nights. It was a last minute add on to our trip, but definitely one of our favorite destinations. We will definitely be going back in the future.

The drive to Cape Cod took a good 3.5 hours as opposed to the 2 we were expecting. Boston traffic was terrible, but we finally made it there and enjoyed the view from our new hotel in South Yarmouth. Now I may be retracting my statement about the rocky vs. sandy beaches.

The next day we spent driving all the way up "The Cape", hitting up some darling towns like Chatham, Provincetown (which was quite eccentric) and Brewster. All these little towns had their own personality/style.

Chatham Beach was probably the most beautiful beach I have ever seen. 

 Jeremie and I agreed on this home overlooking the beach. 

This picture is not impressive, but Provincetown was probably the most crowded little town I have ever seen. The streets are super tiny with shops, restaurants, and people EVERYWHERE. It was crazy.

On our way back to South Yarmouth, we stopped at some antique shops this old general store in Brewster.

The next day we were up BRIGHT AND EARLY to catch the ferry from Hyannis to Nantucket. I was a little nervous about how my preggars self would do on a boat,but the motion was actually totally relaxing for me. An hour later, we were on the PRECIOUS island of Nantucket. Definitely another one of our favorites. 

We took a van tour around the island which had a little delay because we had a flat tire. After lunch, we spent a LITTLE too much time tracking down this candy store that had chocolate covered cranberries our tour guide told us about. (But they were totally worth it.) Then we made a quick trip to the whale museum which was super interesting. 

The next day were were gone like bandits again to our next destination: Boston! We stopped in Plymouth on the way and toured the Mayflower replica and had lunch. The history lovers in both of us LOVED some Plymouth! Such a cute town. Plymouth Rock itself is what it says......a rock. We discovered there is actually some mis-information in the fact that the pilgrims first landed at Plymouth. They actually landed in Cape Cod, but first SETTLED in Plymouth. (In case you were up late at night wondering.) 

Yep, that's it folks. The Plymouth Rock.

J inside the Mayflower penning a letter. Pretty sure we weren't supposed to touch the relics.

We arrived in Boston to the first nasty weather we'd had on the trip.  It was rainy and chilly. Fortunately, we hopped the trolley pretty quick and rode around Boston before checking into our hotel, The Harborside Inn.  That night we actually went to a Christian concert at the House of Blues-Jesus Culture and Kim Walker were performing. It was really great except for the fact that our tickets didn't mention it was standing room only. After about an 1.5 hours, this mama literally plopped herself on the floor of the House of Blues. 

In Boston, also went on a historic tour on the Freedom Trail, which is a trail around Boston that holds several American History landmarks. It was fabulous and led by a guy in full Paul Revere-ish costume. Lord knows I love a costumed tour.  And American history. The tour included stops like where the Declaration of Independence was first read, the Boston Massacre took place, and the Granary Burying Ground where people like Sam Adams, John Hancock, and Paul Revere himself are buried. 

The rest of our time in Boston we spent walking around places like Beacon Hill (the "upperclass" neighborhood), Faneuil Hall, Quincy Market, the public library, etc. It really is a beautiful city! 

We also went on a harbor cruise, which was a great way to see the city!

That night, J took me to The Chart House, a seafood restaurant we went to in Daytona Beach. Again, the seafood is great, but the dessert is really what I was after.  This place has HANDS down the BEST dessert I've ever had in my life.......chocolate lava cake. You have to order it 30 minutes in advance because they hand prepare each one. I'm drooling just thinking about it now.  

On our way out of town, we swung by Harvard for a little while, which was a beautiful campus. 

We had SUCH a blast on our East Coast trip. I just love seeing different parts of the country, but most of all, the time spent with J is the best.  It's crazy to think that this was our last big vacation before we have a baby! 

And now that I have finally blogged about our vacation, I can move onto other nesting obsessions, like alphabetizing our canned goods.....just kidding....maybe....