Happy Birthday Ashlyn Elizabeth!

She has arrived!!!!! It took us a little longer than we thought, but she is finally here! Here stats are 7-6 and 20 inches long! She put her brother to shame in that department! I forgot the camera cord (which will make sense at the end of this blog) in all of the craziness so I just have the picture from my phone. I promise better ones to come.

So...yesterday I came up to the hospital and went into their evaluation area. I was evaluated and despite contractions (and painful ones at that) I was not dilated any further than I had been on Monday. After talking to the doctor on call (not MY doctor) they decided to send me home. I was irritated and a little embarrassed. I had been sure that this was it and labor had begun (for the record, I was right). Anyways so we came home and I had a second night of constant contractions. When morning came around I was in so much pain with the constant contractions that I was pretty grumpy. Because of what had happened the day before, I hesitated and didn't want come in again and be sent home. I second guessed myself and spent all morning in terrible pain under the impression that I was just a big baby. By 10:30am my attitude was screw the nurses and that I was going to the hospital and not coming home no matter what they said. (Foe those of you that don't know, the hospital is an hour away so these drives are not easy to make under normal circumstances!) I called Pete to come home and had him call my doctor and speak with his nurse. She recommended that I go straight to the hospital. It's about and hour drive and by the time Pete was home and I was able to get dressed, I was literally crawling on the floor because the contractions were so constant. The drive to the hospital was awful and with about 15 minutes to go, I realized that it was time to push. This baby was ready to come and I rolled over (I was in the very back with my sister) ready to go. Lynne and Pete both panicked and begged me to hold on. We finally arrived at the ER and Lynne ran in to get someone. The next part is straight out of a terrible movie comedy with me barely being able to sit in the wheel chair having to explain to the VERY slow receptionist that I was in labor and about to deliver the baby right there in the lobby. After some yelling on my part the ding dong lady finally realized that I needed to get upstairs right then and there. She wheeled me upstairs and instead of labor and delivery took me to the evaluation area. I was really screaming at this point as I knew my water had broken and could feel the baby's head between my legs. As luck would have it, my OB was having lunch there with some of the nurses and heard me screaming. He came over a little shocked at how forceful I was being and told the nurses that he would do my evaluation. He again was shocked to discover that I was fully dilated and the baby was coming. In between telling Pete that I was just too tired to push and actually pushing, I had my beautiful baby girl out in about two minutes! I never even made it into Labor and Delivery!

Ashlyn was born in the teeny tiny evaluation room. After she was out, the nurses from the day before all came in to see me and were shocked at how fast the whole process was. The receptionist from L&D that was so irritated that she had to do my paperwork twice actually came in and apologized for saying anything. The long and short of it was that they should have kept me yesterday and monitored me for longer. If they had, then they would have noticed that I was indeed in full blown labor not in pre-labor. My OB was quite irritated with the process but was glad that it all worked out. He even joked that now he gets to sleep in tomorrow morning because I was his first patient of the day!

Preston came up to see his sister and was so sweet with her. He kept saying, my sisti" and telling us all to "ssshh the baby is sweeping". I can't wait to upload the pictures.

I would like to say a BIG thank you first to my sister. She sat in the back of the car with me while I was having the single most uncomfortable car ride of my life and simply sat with me so that I did not feel alone. The second BIG thank you I have is for my mom. My mom has Preston and he is happy as can be having his cousin Dyer and his "Mawm Mawm" with him. That was my biggest worry about giving birth and knowing that Pres is in such good hands really is a huge help. I know that I will come home to a happy Peanut, a clean house, and lots of love. That is priceless.

Here is a picture of Ashlyn and I taken from my phone. I'm pretty tired looking after two nights of no sleep!




My baby girl peacefully sleeping!



Daddy and Ashlyn!

Labor has begun...

Here we go! I am so glad that it is happening on its own and that I will not have to be induced. I'm still at home now just riding out the storm so to speak! I've been having contractions for a few days and today they really started to go. Right now, I'm about every 10 minutes and have been for the past hour or so. I'm waiting until they are about 6 or 7 minutes for a constant hour until I go to the hospital as per the instructions of my OB's nurse. She told me to take some extra strength Tylenol and try to rest at home until I come in...yeah right...the Tylenol did not help at all so I'm up walking around just killing time and having fun with the contraction counter!

The last "pre-baby" baby update!

I went in to the doctor today and was happy to know that I am finally starting to show some progress! I am at 3 cm. They scheduled the induction for 5 am Friday morning at the Southeast Alabama Medical Center. I will be at 42 weeks then and my doctor thinks that its the safest thing for me and baby to go ahead and induce. Apparentely, I'm not so good at "doing my part" and starting this labor process on my own. My OB today did some stretching to hopefully speed up the natural process and I am going back on Thursday for more of the same with the OB and then on to handle to induction paperwork. They are really hoping that I just naturally go into active labor before Friday.

I am SO over being pregnant at this point and am seeing that the medical necessity of the early delivery last time had some positives to it! I have no room in my belly at all and bending down is basically impossible at this point. Ashlyn has had a huge growth spurt in the last week and my doc informed me that she was going to be a big girl. Yikes...Pres had a huge head but was only 6 pounds 8 ounces...let us just hope that she does not end up with the Dean head like her daddy and brother have...if so...I will deserve a medal for delivering her naturally!!!!!

Preston is starting to notice that something is going on. He is constantly asking me if I am okay and is being very sweet with me. I am moving around slowly these days and he seems to not care at all that I am sitting down when we play outside. He happily rides his bike in circles around me and giggles when I get him with my feet. I couldn't ask for a sweeter boy and between he and Pete, I am being quite spoiled right now. Preston has even taken to rubbing my toes when Pete rubs my feet! My boys rock and poor Ashlyn will be spoiled rotten between the two of them!

The next update will be from the hospital! Whoo-hoo!!!!!!!

What feels like the millionth baby update!!!!

I went to the OB today. Everything is still great (fluid and heart rate) so it is just a waiting game now. I did test positive for the strep thing so I will have to receive antibiotics during labor, but that is pretty common. I really enjoyed the description of the virus I got from the doc. It goes like this and remember that he has a British/South African accent..."you know how the British colonized the Americas? They didn't really belong there, but they took it anyways. That is what this step B is, it doesn't belong there but has colonized your vagina." Oh my! He cracks me up. I didn't know that my vagina could be colonized! I bet his nurses could write a whole book about his funny descriptions. He also said to me today that he is "just waiting for me to do my part and go into labor." HA! If only I could snap my fingers and get this process started. I told him that I was working on it!

On a more serious note, for any of you that are new to the Wiregrass area and in need of a good OB/GYN, I would highly recommend the Women's Medical Center. All of the doctors and nurses are just fantastic and they run a tight ship. They are also connected to the Southeast Alabama Medical Center, and the Women's Center there is just awesome (hello-jacuzzi tub in your LDR room!)

Baby Update

Last Friday Pete and I had the big OB appointment. We were all ready to go just in case and had all of our bags and stuff with us. To our amazement, everything was perfect. I've lost no more fluid and my heart rate was right where they want it to be!!!!! I think all parties involved were shocked!!! I was so excited! This means that for now, I am able to be normal. They have scheduled an inducement, but not until after 40 weeks. YEAH!!!!! I get to have the experience of going into labor on my own!!!!! This is what we have been praying for all along and God has been so gracious to allow us this wonderful blessing. They are still checking me at the cardiologist and OB each week and reserve the right to induce me, but much of the concern is gone! If Ashlyn comes now, she will be perfectly healthy! I didn't make it this far with my last pregnancy, so I am in new and uncharted territory as far as how big and uncomfortable I am and I couldn't be happier about it. Thank you to you all that have been praying with us on this crazy journey. We'll keep the blog updated with information and hopefully soon our new addition will be here. Pete bought me a wonderful new camera and laptop to take with me to the hospital so I will be able to put up pictures pretty quickly!

Florida

Preston and I snuck down to Florida for about a week. When I say snuck, I mean with a capital "S" because my doctors would be none too happy to have me far away. Oh well...Pete was leaving, I needed to try out my new meds and couldn't be alone...after all, I am supposed to be resting. I didn't really have any other options. Luckily my mom came and drove me down and then will be driving me back on the 7th.

Here are some updates:

Tried the new heart meds and did not tolerate them AT ALL! I was stumbling around like an old drunk man! I went back down to my old dose and am doing okay. I'm having some uncomfortable tachy moments, but nothing too severe.

Pete is in SERE school. We miss him-especially Pres. My little guy is having MAJOR separation anxiety and won't let me out of his sight right now. He asks for daddy as soon as he wakes up from nap and bedtime and it gets a little hairy as I remind him that daddy is away at school but will be home soon. I hope this will taper off in a week or so as he gets used to the routine again with just me. Sneaking to Florida has helped as my dad is helping with lots of snuggles for Pres. This means that either myself or my dad has Pres nipping at our heels all day long. As for myself, it sucks being 9 months preggo (tomorrow!)without the hubby.

Chrissy and Asher are coming to visit!!!!!! I am so excited! For the last 10 days that Pete is gone my BFF is going to come and be with me! Woo-hoo!!!!! If I can't have Pete with me then Chrissy is the only person that can come close 2nd(sorry Chrissy...I think Pete is cuter or you'd probably be my number 1!) I also get to meet that beautiful baby boy of hers and I CAN NOT WAIT! She will come and boss me and make me rest and that is why I love her! Not too many people have the balls to put me in my place but Chrissy is one of them!

Please pray for a family member. They are not doing well and it looks as if they won't be with us for much longer.

Last and certainly not least, Ashlyn is coming soon! I can't wait to meet her and I also can't wait to not be pregnant! I look forward to the days when I have two beautiful children, normal size hands, feet, and face and no more porn star boobs...oh and a heart that beats like a normal persons!

OB Update

Yesterday was yet another check up with the OB. I was able to get a little redemption from my last visit. You see, every time the cardiologist increases my meds, I spend about a week swelling up like a balloon. I have explained this side effect again and again to my OB but each and every time I just get a look. A look that says, "suuuure...you are just a fat pig." It is super annoying and I have finally reached a point where they can just kiss my swollen Macy's balloon tushy! Anyways...I digress...so I go to the check up yesterday and surprise surprise I have actually lost weight from my last visit. My OB looks at me and says that I must be having some issues with swelling. In my head all kinds of sarcastic and mean things are going on so I just looked at him and said nothing. His response was that I was sitting there looking at him like he was an alien (I am such a terrible liar that even when I say nothing, my face gives it all away!). At that statement I again said nothing. I just couldn't for the life of me think of something nice to say. I think all of this time stuck at home is really beginning to get to me! I did manage to change the subject and was so proud of myself for finally just letting him know how aggravated I am that he and my cardiologist seem to have some sort of pissing contest as to who's time is more valuable. Seriously can't they just put ego aside and finally come up with a delivery plan for me or what?! (They can't decide on a date to meet and the cardiologist did not like the date the OB picked out and it goes on and on!) Luckily for me, my OB agreed that they needed to put their information together. Hopefully something will finally come from that, but if not, I will just have to keep being bold with these doctors.

I'll end this post as well with some pictures of Pres.

The first one is for Gramma Susan. I want for her to see all of Pres' curls.


The next one is of us having fun with shaving cream. My mom is here to help out right now and we played in the back yard. Please ignore my swollen feet and face!

Cardio Update

So...I went to the cardiologist yesterday and got the same news I get every time. My heart is tachycardic. I really would like to tell them, "DUH"...I mean isn't that why I keep having to go to the cardiologist?! Can you tell I am really starting to get tired of having to go to the doctor? The long and short of it is that they want to increase my meds (same as last time) and this time I am going to be a good patient and do what they say. I have a month left until my big OB appointment and I am only 50mg away from the max dose. I am praying that this dose will put my heart rate at what the docs want so that I can have some sort of peace and be able to deliver naturally and when Ashlyn is ready to come.

Pete was able to come with me to this visit, so he was able to share the annoyingness of the whole thing with me. I met with the PA and she talks super fast and is very perky. She really needs pom-poms in her hands as she meets with you! I thought Pete was going to throw his phone at her. Instead he made gestures behind her back and was able to make the appointment go by much faster for me than it usually does! Thank you hubby!!!!!!

This afternoon is my OB appointment so I will have some new ultrasound pics tomorrow!

I'll end this post with a picture of Preston because his silly self always makes me feel better! He's become really interested in my slippers lately and walks around the house in them. This particular picture was taken when I was trying to get him dressed for the day. All I got was his jammie shorts off before he went and got the slippers and a couple of hats. I couldn't be mad because he was just too darn cute! It never fails to make me laugh to see him clomping along, tripping over his own feet!

Pregnancy Update (not a good one)

Today I visited my cardiologist for the first time here in Alabama. I will admit that I have been really putting this off because I have felt great and honestly thought that I was getting better. Needless to say, I thought wrong. The news was not good and today has been a tough emotional day for Pete and I. I've been beating myself up for letting this slide and poor Pete is trying to be my rock when I know that he is worried as well. I had to go for some tests today and we should get the results soon. They are again going through the process of eliminating other causes for the trouble. They want to make sure that it is just the pregnancy and nothing else. I would like to really say a quick nice word about the SAMC in Dothan. The lab was quick and the people were wonderful with me considering I was a blubbering idiot the whole time I was there.

They have increased my heart medication in the hopes that it will lower my heart rate as much as they need it to be. (So if my post is loopy, I started the new dose and it always makes me feel funny for a few days! I can't drive again...yuck!) They are going to monitor me weekly to make sure that the medication is doing what it is supposed to do. Apparently my body has adapted to the high heart rate so I don't feel any symptoms from the racing heart. (Which is why I thought I was getting better). My body being used to the racing heart can be a little dangerous as I am not feeling the signs that your body typically gives you when something is wrong. The good news is that the doctor can do it for me and the bad news is that I am stuck going to the OB and cardiologist each week. (It's almost an hour drive each way.)

Monday I go back and they are hoping that a week on the higher medication will do the trick. If not, they will bump me up again and that is as high as they can go while I am pregnant. (Let's not even think about what happens after that) I also am going to have another echocardiogram and a diagnostic ultrasound for the baby to make sure that my heart is healthy and that the baby is not feeling the effects from what has been going on. Please join us in prayer that none of this has had any effect on my sweet baby girl.

We are headed to Florida this weekend for a quick trip to be around people that love us. It will be good for Pres with all of the doom and gloom in our house right now to see his beloved Grandpa!

I would like to thank my FF gals-Chrissy, Abs, and Jax who rallied around me with just a simple text message. I love you three dearly and would not be able to do this without you! Chrissy...thank you for talking to me so that I could come home and be mommy this afternoon!

Belly Pictures

My view now...I have to bend over slightly to see my toes!




The natural view...even though this is baby #2, I still can't believe my body does this! It's a little gross and beautiful at the same time!

Quick Update

Last week flew by so fast! I can't believe that it is already February. I want to give my sister Lynne and Miss "L" some birthday shout outs! My sister turned 28 on Monday and Miss "L" turned 4!

Not too much going on around here. Pete's still in his bubble and we are really enjoying having him home from lunch time on! It's nice to have someone play with Pres after he is pumped from his nap.

I am trying to pick out a new dining room set and am amazed with how difficult it's been. Who knew that you could find 50 tables with ugly pineapples and trees carved into them but forget about finding a simple table with clean lines that has a matching hutch and buffet! Really...it could be where I am shopping...excess seems to be the design theme here in good 'ole Alabama. I much prefer a little boring. It is after all going to be a table to entertain our friends, their kids and our kids. Anything elaborate would ultimately end up with crayon on it!

The pregnancy is going well. I have been SUPER tired lately and have found myself taking afternoon naps. This is a rare thing for me and I wake up feeling like I've wasted the day. I've also found myself enjoying the wonders of my baby resting on my sciatica! All I can say about that is "OUCH!" Luckily it goes away as quickly as it comes so I'll hurt for a couple of days, Ashlyn will finally move position and then I can relax until she goes right back to the same spot! Pete has been wonderful about back and knee rubs during these periods and I am so thankful to have him home with me! (Any suggestions from you other mom's that have been pregnant about how to help with the pain, I am ALL ears!)

Pres is now talking up a storm and comes up with the funniest things. I still can not get over him coming into the room and saying, "Hi momma". It literally melts my heart every time. His favorite saying right now is, "I'm okay". He says it anytime he falls, slips, or drops something so we hear it all day long.

I need to wrap this up and get dressed. Our friend Mark graduated today from WOC school and we are off to his house to celebrate with his family. They have two little girls and Pres loves playing with the oldest who is 2.

2008 in Pictures

So Megan did this great blog of their year in pictures. I loved it and decided to completely steal her idea. Here we go with our year in pictures. We've had a lot of changes this year and are looking forward to at least one big change next year!

January

January brought Pres at 6 months and crawling all over the place! It also brought in two bottom teeth...OUCH! Pete turned another year older and put his 20's well behind him by turning 31.





February

February made me another year older at 28 and was a calm month full of family fun!







March

March began our first step toward heading to Alabama. We renovated the kitchen to make it more appealing. This took a little longer than expected as it went into April, but it was well worth the effort! Pres was beginning to get into everything and his strong willed personality was coming out full force over the battle of the TV doors. Eventually we took the doors off and admitted defeat!





April

This was my best month. Pres just blossomed and was so much fun. Gramma and Grampa Blanchard visited us this month as well. We also made a lot of head way in the kitchen renovations.








May

This was my first Mother's Day with Pres and we had a great time celebrating with my mom and sister while daddy was having a boys weekend in Vegas. This was also the month that Pres discovered the fun of the toilet and I learned to pick my battles (in other words, he can play away in the toilet because I have bigger "no's" to say to him!)






June

June was a big development month for Pres. He celebrated his first b-day, began to walk which opened up a whole new world of things to make messes with. I got to see my FF gals in St. Louis for Chrissy's first baby shower and Pres and daddy were alone together for the first time. His obsession with books was also in full force and I read "Hickory Dickory Dock" and The Itsy Bitsy Spider" more times than I like to think about!

We had our first family trip this month to Disney World and had a wonderful time celebrating Pres' 1st birthday at the Shades of Green Resort!














July

July was a busy month. Pete and I celebrated our 6 year anniversary and I went to Canada with Chrissy for her second baby shower. Chrissy came and Pres was able to meet his Aunt Chrissy for the first time. Jen and Greg also came to visit, meet Pres, and fill us in on their beautiful wedding that we missed due to lack of babysitter :( Pres continued to leave behind his babyhood and was well on his way to being a toddler. We also had the big water leak of 08 in the Villas and Pres found a new best friend...Grandpa Mike!













August

This was our big bumps and bruises month. Pres decided he wasn't content to just walk and would run everywhere. This led to so many nasty bumps and cuts that I didn't think I he would come out of this month unscared (he did, but only by the grace of God).

We took our second Disney trip this month and took the plunge to get year passes!







September

This was a scary month as well. Pres got sick for the very first time and it was a doozy. He had a fever of 104 and 105 for three straight days and even the Motrin could not keep it down. There were doctor visits and some scary nights but eventually his fever came down and we were brutally introduced to the childhood disease of Roseola.

The offical Alabama move countdown began this month as well and I stressed for the whole month about moving to a new place and then being left alone.







October

October we enjoyed the Food and Wine Festival at Disney. We had a great time at the Winter Park Fall Festival with Grandma and Grandpa Crotty, Dyer, and Beanie. We also had a trip up to Fort Rucker and found our house. As if that trip wasn't big enough, we finally decided to let the world know that we were expecting baby #2!






November

November brought our big move and Pete's departure. THe first few weeks here in Alabama were tough but things are slowly getting better (much in part to the awesome people I am meeting...Alabama itself still sucks!)

Pete also left for WOC school and we began our new time in a new place without him.






December

December has brought lots of wonderful new friends into our lives and Pete was able to come home and spend it with us! I am sad to see him go on Friday, but am looking forward to the new year and all that it will bring!