Keeping track of a few thoughts

Right now Abby is sleeping and I wanted to take a minute to record some of thing things that have been going on these past few days before I forget them all! I also wanted to write down the things that I remember about the delivery and the hospital stay.

We arrived at the hospital at 7am on the morning of January 13th. Poor planning, since it was so dark and I was wearing a black shirt, but here is a picture of what I looked like going into the hospital. (I didn't take any pictures of what I looked like going out, since that's just not a fun reality to face, but we did take pictures of the little monkey we got to take home with us!!)Once we got inside, we headed straight up to labor and delivery and they took us to our room and I got changed and ready for the nurse to come in. It took about an hour to get me all settled and the IV placed (which they had to do twice... yuck) and right around 8am the pit was running through the IV and we were watching TV waiting for the action to start. It didn't take long, and then I was feeling the pain. I waited a while to ask for my epidural, and finally Kristopher called the nurse for me and made me get it. Not sure why I thought it was a good idea to wait... There was another girl that asked for hers just a few minutes before me, so we had to wait for the anesthesiologist to finish with hers before he came to do mine. That was the longest time of my life!! Once he came and got my epidural placed I was MUCH happier, and the pain went away after only a few minutes. He did such a good job with it... it was the perfect blend of not feeling the pain but not feeling like I was missing my lower half. After that, we settled in for more TV watching and computer using. My mom came by and we visited with her for a bit, and then Kristopher's mom stopped by as well. We kept a log of guesses as to when I would deliver and the size of the baby on the whiteboard in the room, and I am happy to announce that my mom won for time, and I won for weight. We kept joking that whoever won got to name the baby, and since mom was rooting for her getting a middle name, I guess we both got to name her =)When we got to the hospital in the morning, I was fully prepared that it would be an all day process, so I was pretty surprised when the nurse said that it was time to start pushing in the early afternoon!! I pushed for an hour and a half all together, with Kristopher and the nurse there to help me. The nurse called the doctor, who walked in the door 1 push before she came out. The look on her face was so great when she walked in the door, because I knew when I saw it that I was almost done!! She got suited up way fast and was there to catch the baby and give me a small snip, and then the repairs afterward. While she was taking care of me Kristopher was able to cut the chord and watch the nurses take care of Abby and get her all cleaned up. When she finally came out I was all bawly, which surprised me, not because it hurt really (thank you, epidural) but because I was so happy and excited that she was finally here!A little while after the birth, my mom, Spencer, and Megan came in to see the baby and we got busy calling and texting friends and family with the good news. Sorry for any of you that got a somewhat woozy call from me... I was a little hopped up on the drugs!A few hours after delivery, they took me down to mother/baby for recovery and Abby to the nursery for her first bath and short check up. Kristopher was able to go with Abby while the nurse helped me get cleaned up, moved, and settled. Here is Abby getting her first bath. =)The recovery room was smaller than labor and delivery, but still really nice. Kristopher had a way comfy pull out couch that he barely fit on and we pretty much just camped out until it was time to go home. The nurses were all really nice, and were always asking if there was anything that we needed. It was so relaxing not having to worry about anything except for resting and taking care of our new baby! We had lots of visitors and it was so fun to see so many people that we care about so much that wanted to meet Abby! She was such a good sport being passed around so much. She really is quite easy going and such a good cuddler. We learned that she loves to be swaddled and she loves to be held!

On the last day of our stay at the hospital, the pediatritian told us that he wanted Abby to spend a while under the bili lights because she was just barely under the limit for jaundice and he didn't want us to have to take the lights home. She spent a good part of the morning and a little into the afternoon under the lights, and when they retested her just before we left they said that her levels had dropped and that she was ok to go home without the lights. We did have to take her back into the lab the next morning and have the levels checked again, and we will take her back one more time tomorrow morning to make sure she is still doing ok. After the nurse gave us the ok on the bili levels, we got packed up and ready to head home. I was so excited to dress Abby up for her first little trip! We put her in a cute outfit from my mom's friend Kim and Abby LOVED it! She took a little nap in her carseat and didn't cry at all when we went outside in the cold or when we were driving.
When we got home, Kristopher had to go to a class (some of his teachers have been pretty unhelpful about helping him to miss a few classes!) so Ashley Havasu came over until Kristopher got back from school and my mom came over. We mostly just hung out and held the baby all night, until it was time for bed. When we got into the closet under the stairs to grab some blankets for my mom just in case it got cold, we found out the floor of the closet was wet! A few days ago the city had some problems with the water, and when they turned it back on it didn't come on gradually enough and shook some things loose and caused a little leak. So, instead of bed, mom and I visited with my aunt and cousins who live upstairs while my uncle and Kristopher sorted things out with the house. It was very hectic! Then, just when I was getting comfortable in bed, the baby was hungry and we started a very fun eating every hour night.

The next morning I woke up to this lady making us pancakes and eggs. Then, while we were taking the baby in to the lab to have her bili levels tested, she cleaned and cleaned and cleaned. She even detailed my oven! I have the best mom EVER. Poor Kristopher still has to keep up with his studies... he is going to be one busy guy this semester. He is already the cutest dad and he loves the baby so much! Since we got home we have been relaxing and sleeping and playing with the baby. Yesterday we went over to my parent's house where Ashley and Stacie came over and took some pictures of Abby... they looked so cute, I can't wait to see them! Then I took Abby shopping, so that she would start learning early what to do for fun =) and then we finished it off by visiting Kristopher's family at his parent's house. By the end of the day I was exhausted! Tomorrow Kristopher has to start work again, but at least he has the day off of school. Back to (or starting, really) real life. We feel so blessed that we have this sweet little girl in our home to look after and teach, and we can't wait to see all the things that she will learn and do. We love her so much already, it is hard to belive it has only been a few days that she has been with us. We love you Abigail!!