Alexandra's Birth Story

So dear Alexandra decided to come two weeks early! I was not expecting an early arrival AT ALL.  Ari was almost two weeks late, so I assumed we would make it to the date of our scheduled C-section, February 12th.  Alexandra had her own plans.  Flashback to Monday, January 27th. Hubby and I both had off of work due to the cold weather.  We also knew already that school was cancelled for Tuesday, the 28th.  So that Monday we did absolutely nothing.  We literally just laid around the house and played with Ari.  Keep in mind we really didn't have much prepared for the new baby.  We had the necessities taken care of, as we still had them from when Ari was born.  But we had a laundry list of "to do" items before baby girl arrived.  

I had been sleeping awful for probably the past two weeks.  My hips would become numb and I'd find myself constantly waking to reposition and turn over to the other side.  This entailed me pulling on hubby this way and that because I couldn't even turn over by myself anymore.  So between the repositioning and peeing, I wasn't getting much sleep.  Gus came to bed around midnight that Monday night.  As he was getting out of the shower I told him to come and look at my belly.  The baby had made a massive shift and now was positioned on my left side, rather than the right.  She had been on the right side for weeks. My belly was sooooo lopsided! I really didn't make much of it though and fell asleep. Throughout the rest of the night I kept waking up "leaking".  I was pretty sure I wasn't leaking pee because I kept going to the bathroom and emptying my bladder.  A few minutes after laying down from going to the bathroom, I would feel more sneak out.  This happened about 4-5 times throughout the night and I was starting to worry.  I woke up Gus at this point and he suggested calling the doctor.  I said I would wait until the morning and tried falling back to sleep.  Around 4:30 my lower back started hurting. It felt as though I was getting my period.  I said to Gus, "Something is going on."  We had a scheduled doc appointment for that day, so again I told myself I would just call in the morning and ask to come in earlier.  Gus put his arm around me and moved closer to me to spoon me.  When his legs nudged my butt, I felt even more leaking and got up to go to the bathroom.  Just as I entered the bathroom, I felt the gush.  My water had broken!

Gus and I looked at each other and said, "She's coming today! She's really coming!"  I put in a call to my OB's office and was waiting for a nurse to call me back.  In the meantime, I jumped in the shower.   Luckily, I wasn't experiencing any contractions, so was able to enjoy that last shower pregnant.  The nurse called me back and wanted to verify that my water had really broken.  She told me to come on in and asked what time they should expect us.  I said about 45 minutes.

Gus and I looked at each other and our next thought was, "What do we do with Ari?"  Not only was it 5 o'clock in the morning, but it was almost one of thee coldest days of the winter.  School was cancelled and it was about -5 degrees outside, -30 with windshield.  We contemplated calling one of Gus' brothers to come to the house and just be there with him when he woke up versus bringing him to the hospital.  Gus then said, "We're a family. We're going to go together."  So we started the remote start on the truck and woke up our son.  I quick threw a few things in a bag for the hospital and stocked Ari's diaper bag.  We did a pretty good job packing...except for the fact we forgot toys and books for Ari.  :( We called Gus' parents on the way and they said they would meet us at the hospital to watch Ari.

All bundled up, ready to head to the hospital 

Last belly shot at the hospital....37 weeks 6 days 

We arrived at the hospital around 7 a.m.  We were admitted into one of the triage rooms on the labor and delivery floor so a nurse could check and verify that my water had really broken.  Once it was verified, things moved right along...quickly.  The nurse told me Dr. Dobbs would be doing my c-section, since she was the doctor on call.  I politely told her that Dr. Powell had told us she would do my surgery, even if she wasn't on call that day.  The nurses said they would check my records and give her a call.    Around 7:45 a.m., they told me they planned to start the c-section around 9 a.m.  I looked at Gus and said "Good, we have another hour to make a decision about her name."  We both knew we wanted it to be Alexandra Margaret long ago.  We had that name picked out for a girl when pregnant with Ari.  There were a couple other names though that came up the weeks prior that we were considering. About 20 minutes later, Dr. Powell showed up in her scrubs ready to go.  She sat down on her stool, crossed her legs, and said "How are you doing?" She was such a God send to us throughout my entire pregnancy.  I can't thank her enough for all the extra love and care she gave me throughout my visits.  I felt at ease knowing she was there and would be doing the surgery.  I knew she would take care of me and Alexandra.  Gus' parents had arrived now and had Ari out in the waiting room.  Gus said he was going to go check in with them and go to the bathroom.  A few minutes later, a nurse came in and said "Everyone is here, we're going to wheel you back and start early, if that's okay with you."  I asked Gus to bring in Ari one last time to say goodbye to him before the surgery and by 8:20ish I was wheeled back.

Oh wait, I guess this is the last belly shot :)

About to become proud parents of two! 

Last few moments with Ari before heading into surgery

Once I got into the operating room, things continued to just fly by.  They prepped me for surgery and in a matter of minutes my doctor was doing "the test" on me to make sure I couldn't feel anything.  I was laying there with every possible thought and emotion going through my mind as the surgery got started.  I couldn't help but remember laying in that same place about 17  months ago when Ari was born.  Ari had a very traumatic entrance and I was so worried our daughter would also endure complications.  Doctor told me they were getting close and a couple minutes later they pulled out our beautiful daughter.  She instantly started crying!!!! What a relief.  My eyes teared up knowing she was doing well upon her arrival.  Gus even got to cut her cord, something he didn't get to experience with Ari.  Gus watched the nurses clean her up and get her ready to meet mommy.  He was able to hold her and sit with me the entire time I was being sewn up.  This was so special to us both because Ari had been whisked away to NICU when he was born. Our daughter never left our sides.  Gus brought her down to my level and I kissed her sweet cheeks.  In the recovery room, I breast fed her for the first time.  What a champ! She latched on without any hesitation and has been an amazing nurser ever since.  Once I was finished in recovery, they wheeled me upstairs to my room where I would stay for the next three days.  My nurse went over our folder with us and gave us a chance to ask any questions we had.  We were so anxious for her to leave.  We just wanted Ari to be able to come join us with the rest of our family that was there.

 First pic of Daddy & his daughter

 Recovery room

Ari's expression when he walked in the room

 Ari wanted to reminisce

 Alexandra Margaret

 Cuddling with mommy

 Meeting his baby sister for the first time

Nonee and Alexandra

Auntie and Alexandra

Nap time 

Pretty girl 

He looks proud

My heart could not be any more full

Everyone was so anxious to meet precious Alexandra Margaret, born on January 28th at 8:56 a.m.  Even though she was early, she was still a big girl weighing 8 lbs 8 ounces and was 21.5 inches long. We chose the name Alexandra Margaret after both of our late grandmothers, who were both so influential in our lives.  Alexandra's nickname is "Elle", which means sun ray or shining light.  She definitely is a ray of light in all of our lives, and already has brought us so much bliss.  I find myself staring into her eyes and literally pinching myself...how did I get so lucky to have a beautiful son AND daughter?!?!?! I am a firm believer that God has a plan for all of us.   God's timing for our family of four couldn't be any more perfect.

We had a wonderful stay in the hospital.  A lactation specialist came and saw me every day.  We worked on perfecting our latch while waiting for my milk to come in.  On my last day there, I was sure it was about to come in as my boobs felt like they were full of rocks.  It did indeed come in that next day at home and we've had a pleasantly smooth breast feeding experience so far.  It was such a treat to have cousin Nicole as our aid the last day there.  It wasn't very busy that day on the recovery floor, so she was able to spend lots of time with Elle and I in our room.  Going home day was kind of hectic.  Daddy went home that morning to pick up our car seat, knowing we would probably be discharged from the hospital after lunch.  He got home and to our dismay....the car seat was nowhere to be found.  He called me at the hospital and was like "Uh, the carseat isn't here."  We remembered that we had borrowed it out to some friends of ours, but were told it had been returned to our house and was no longer at Nonee and Papou's house.  Daddy called Nonee and she went to her house to double check and sure enough, it was still there in a closet.  So Daddy had to drive out to Holy Hill to pick it up, which put a little hiccup in our going home plans.  Luckily, Nicole was still with me which helped the time pass.

We still are in shock over her dark hair! 

 Going home day 

Elle's birth was so relaxed, especially in comparison to what I experienced with Ari.  It all went so fast, I didn't have much time to process and worry.  There wasn't much time for my anxiety to set in.  I think it happened this way for just that reason.  If she would have waited until her scheduled c-section date of the 12th, I would have been a mess worrying about a safe delivery.  She's here safe and sound and an absolute perfect baby.  We are blessed.  God is good.

Welcome Alexandra Margaret! We love you so much!!!!!