After what seemed like an eternity of waiting...Elsie Joyce Dick has finally arrived!!! We are so happy she is here and she is just a little angel!! She was 8 lbs and 20 and 1/4 inches long!
She always had her hands up by her face in my ultrasounds...and that continues to be a habit of hers :)
She is not much of a crier. However, during her first bath we definitely heard that tiny little cry of hers. Even that was cute as can be!!
Here's her story:
From early on in my pregnancy there were some worries. Before I was pregnant with Elsie, I had a miscarriage. It was so frustrating because I feel I never got any good answers as to what was really going on with my body and the strange symptoms I had. So, when I was finally able to get pregnant again after many many months of waiting and worrying, we were very excited!!
During my first trimester, however, I was given the flu mist rather than the flu shot. I was not aware this was an issue and the technicians never even asked...so, unfortunately it happened. When Ryan told me that was bad for pregnant women, I immediately started crying. I was so worried about having another miscarriage or causing some damage to my sweet baby. My doctor was very kind and could sense my worry, so he scheduled us for a detailed ultrasound and genetic counseling. After talking to the counselor on the phone my fears were put to rest.
Later on in my pregnancy, they found a cyst on her brain which put her at a higher risk of Downs Syndrom. though my doctor assured me he was not all that concerned, he could again sense my fears and scheduled us, again, for genetic counseling. Again, after talking to the counselor and have a detailed ultrasound of every part of her body...our fears were put to rest. Also, I could not help but feel that I just knew this baby was going to be fine, despite all the worries and fears that had arisen.
When the day finally arrived for me to be induced, I was MORE than ready!!! This pregnancy felt more difficult than the others. I just had more symptoms than I ever had before, more early anxiety than I ever had before and even a few very scary panic attacks. However, I made it through, and the long awaited day had finally arrived!!
We went in a 7am on Monday, April 14th. I was checked in and started on Pitocin my 9:45am! Ryan and I were getting very excited to meet our Elsie!! However, things were SLOW going for a LONG time...13 hours in fact!!! I was getting the full dose of Pitocin and having some uncomfortable contractions, however, I could tell they weren't really increasing. When they checked me after many hours of this slow labor and I was only dilated to a three, I was devastated!! They even offered to stop the Pitocin for awhile so I could eat something. They said they didn't want me to be too uncomfortable. In my head I said, "Are you crazy? Let's just get this ball rolling. Out loud, however, I politely declined and asked if we could just keep moving forward!!
After what seemed like an eternity of waiting, my doctor came and broke my water. It didn't take more than a few minutes for the contractions to get super strong and very uncomfortable. My fear of Epidurals and the fact that my amazing sister had just given birth naturally caused me to wait a bit too long before finally giving in and getting an epidural. By the time the anesthesiologist came in to give me the epidural I was feeling like I was going to pass out and literally shaking...I know...I am a bit dramatic and silly, but boy a person forgets how intense those contractions can get. And I was really not going to be able to keep it together much longer!! Luckily, the epidural came just in time. Once the epidural kicked in, my nurse checked me and I was dilated to an 8!!
Not much more than an hour after I received the epidural i felt an intense need to push!! this was new for me. With both of my other epidurals I never really felt this sensation. However, this time I did...and it was strong!! My nurse let me push through a set of contractions, then decided to wait fifteen more minutes then call the doctor. I was uncertain this was a good decision, because the need to push was growing much more intense! So intense that I called her back in and told her I didn't think I could wait!! She let me push through another set of contractions and we could all see Elsie's head!! The nurse immediately tried to call my doctor but for some reason was unable to reach him. She called in two other nurses who looked shocked when they came in the room to see what state I was in. They all kept asking me to hold on. However, I knew this was not going to happen. The feeling was so intense that it was painful. I told them I couldn't wait when all of a sudden the pressure was gone and Elsie had slid right out without much effort whatsoever!! She had the cord around her neck and came out face up with her hands up. So the nurses quickly took care of the situation and handed Elsie right to me!
I couldn't believe i had delivered my baby without the doctor! What felt like 30 seconds later, my doctor arrived looking stunned to see he had missed the show. He wished me congratulation then went to work fixing me all up...while gently (but obviously annoyed) asking my nurse what happened and why he was not called sooner.
The whole thing felt quite dramatic, but I was very blessed and things could not have gone smoother despite all the drama. Elsie was perfect and healthy and I had not torn at all, for the first time in any of my deliveries!! And now we have this sweet little angel to enjoy!!
Beckham and Jane were able to come and visit me in the hospital and it was wonderful! Beckham was only mildly interested in Elsie, and more fascinated with all the buttons and gadgets in my hospital room.
Jane just loves being a big sister again! Holding Elsie is her favorite thing to do right now and Elsie seems to enjoy it too!!
Here are Elsie and Mama coming home from the hospital!! I could not wait to get out of that hospital where people were pocking and prodding baby Elsie and I all day and night. And the bed was the most uncomfortable bed on this planet. However, I must add that all my nurses were very sweet and took very good care of us :)
Enjoying the comfort of being home!!
Here are Baby Elsie's cute little tootsies!!
sorry its sideways...but here is baby Elsie all ready for her very first doctor's appointment :) She is quite a looker!!
I feel so incredibly blessed to be home with our new little bundle of joy to be together as a family again!! I can definitely see Heavenly Father's tender mercies through this whole experience. I had been praying the everything would go well and that the transition wouldn't be too rough for me because we are moving to California in three weeks...and driving there-eeek! And things have really gone amazingly. Elsie is a little angel. She is super patient and content. She never makes much of a fuss. She has been amazing at nursing and sleeping at night which has never been my experience with my newborns!! I haven't felt the baby blue's hardly at all. And I just feel extra strength and support as I am trying to get back to normal as quickly as possible since we have so much coming up. I am so grateful to Heavenly Father for blessing us so much!! And I am so excited for the fun adventures we have coming up!!
