Pictures of Drake

I wanted to make sure and get some pictures up. Recovery has been tougher this time around so I am not back in full-swing just yet but I'd like to share some photos of our newest addition. Also, with both Dilan and Drake, they have come out of the birth canal so hard and so fast, they both have had purple faces for a few days. So, please forgive the bruising on Drake's face - it has already gone away so that is good.

mom, dad, and drake

Our attempt at a family photo in the hospital

the boys - Damon, David, my dad, and Drake

4 generation photo - my grandmother (dad's mom), my dad, me and Drake

Brothers - Drew and Drake

(and Dilan's finger in the picture playing with Drake's hair)

Little pumpkin going home outfit

Drake

Drew holding Drake with my dad and grandmother at home

Drake is here!

After 17 hours of contractions, I really wanted my epidural. I was at the point where I was grabbing the side railing of my hospital bed each time I had one. The doctor wanted me to wait until she was ready to break my water and luckily that coincided with me being at my limit. So, around 1:40 p.m. I got my epidural. Still not a pleasant experience, I was happy to have it. Then, around 2 p.m., the doctor broke my water. At that point, I was dilated to a 4, and then around 4 p.m., I was dilated to a 7, then 4:30, an 8 and when she came back in a little after 5 p.m., she tested my pushing skills to see if I could deliver this baby now. Sure enough, it was time!

I have to say I usually average 3 contractions to push my babies out and I did this time as well, but I definitely had to push harder. The difference this time as well is that I could feel a lot more - the epidural was not as strong. When the baby came out, the cord was wrapped around his neck so tightly, the doctor said David couldn't cut the cord because she had to cut it right then and there. Then it was imperative I had to push the baby out now. So, when I did, he went limp and was blue. Apparently, he took a breath but wouldn't take another one. The doctor told my sister to turn the video camera off (which you only do when things could go wrong) and she stood up rubbing his chest trying to get him to breathe. I don't think I could see much of what was going on which was good for me because I was unaware of how scared it was making everyone in the room, including my sister and David. They were both pretty shaken up afterwards but Drake starting breathing at the right moment and then she put him on my chest and the tears flowed. We are so happy to have this big boy with us - 9 lbs 12.5 oz and 20.5 inches long! All is well now and hopefully, we get through this first night together okay!

and on and on and on and on...

Going on 14 hours of labor now, Kinsey has had the petocine drip going now for about 2 hours, and the contractions are getting bigger and more frequent. She is getting more miserable and actually a bit grumpy! I can't complain since I'm not in charge of having the baby!!!

The doctor is supposed to come back in and check Kinsey and break her water sometime in the next 30 minutes or so.

Hopefully, after the water breaks, she'll progress quickly and we'll welcome Drake into the family (although Keely's husband's birthday is tomorrow, so we know he's rooting for Drake to take his tim!)

More updates to follow...

Morning is nigh, and baby is not...

So, Kinsey is now done with the Cervadil, and is waiting for the petocine drip to start in about the next 20 minutes. Unfortunately, the Cervadil didn't help all that much, she is still dilated to a 2, so I'm pretty disappointed that we didn't get our money's worth out of that one. I'm sure that little present will cost Drake his first semester's books. That's right folks, I'm going to make our kids pay us back for their birthing expenses (I keep it all in an Excel Spreadsheet, signed and dated so there is no confusion!!!)

Kinsey didn't get to sleep too much last night and has been laboring now for 12 hours. The doctor is optimistic that after about an hour on the petocine, she'll break Kinsey's water, then "it moves pretty quickly from there." I'll keep my fingers crossed, but I'm not going to hold my breath...

There is some concern on Kinsey's part that the epidural isn't going to happen fast enough. I think she's ready for it now, but the doctor prefers she wait until after the water is broken. I don't know if Kinsey will make it that long before the pain gets too intense.

I'll post again after the petocine drip gets started and we get some real movement!

Nighttime in the hospital

As a lot of you know, I blogged throughout my delivery with Dilan so I could keep the information straight and record it as well. So, tonight I start this process with Drake's birth:

We arrived at the hospital tonight about 8:30 to check in for my induction tomorrow morning. For some reason, they had to get all sorts of paperwork together before they brought me to my room and asked us to stay in the waiting area for a while. We ended up staying in the waiting room for an hour and a half but the unexpected started happening while we were there. I told David I was having some contractions. Pretty soon, he was telling me they were about 7 minutes apart. When I got to my room, I asked the nurse if I could take a shower and she gave me some time to do that. After getting into the wonderful hospital gown, they hooked me up to the monitors, got my IV going, and I kept having contractions. After I was on the monitor for a while, the nurse let me know that I am having contractions now that are 2-4 minutes apart. That is when I asked, "So, if we were at home right now, you'd want me to come into the hospital, right?" And she said, "yes," and said this baby wants to come now; he's ready! It's kind of funny because I've always wanted to go into labor on my own and here I am doing just that.

The doctor came in and I am now dilated to a 2. She wanted to give me the cervidil anyway because I am not effaced at all. The cervidil will not put me into labor and they won't check to see if I am dilated anymore until the morning or until the contractions get more intense, and I ask for the epidural. They did start me on my bag of fluid now so that when the time comes to get the epidural I'll be ready. If I keep dilating on my own, I won't need the petocin in the morning so we'll see.

David went home to get some sleep and hopefully I can get some too. Although with these monitors, an IV, and contractions, I'm not sure how that is going to happen exactly! :)

Fall Festival Butler's Orchard

My whole family is coming in for the birth of this little one. My mom, and my brother and his family arrived Saturday. So, we headed out to the Fall Festival at Butler's Orchard to have one last fun outing all together before I head to the hospital tonight and have this baby tomorrow. The kids are having a blast having their cousins here and to make it even better, my dad, grandmother and sister get in today, followed by my brother-in-law on Friday. Drake is so fortunate because he has a lot of family awaiting his arrival! :)

On the hay ride: My mom, Dilan and me, Amy and Damon

Drew and Lacey (cousin) on the hay ride with Landon (cousin) and Dilan in the background

David and Dilan ready for the pumpkins

Lacey and Drew at the pumpkin patch

David and Dilan with their pumpkin

Lacey and Drew

Family photo in the pumpkin patch

Amy, my Mom, and me

(I didn't need to hold a pumpkin considering I am carry one already)

My mom, my brother, Damon, and me in the pumpkin patch

Dilan's favorite part - feeding the goats

Drew and Lacey on the bouncy blowup things

Dilan dancing to the outdoor music

My mom and Dilan

Lacey and Drew jumping in the hay- they both were itching like crazy afterwards

Me and Dilan in the hay barn

GO TEXAS!!! Hook 'Em Horns!

Every fall I try to at least take one picture of my kids in their Texas Longhorn gear. Let's just say this season is less than stellar, but we still love our team and know where we come from! What I loved most is that Drew and Dilan chose to hold hands for the picture! :)

The Plan

We have an official plan for Drake's birth now. I have been scheduled to go in Monday night, October 25 (also Drake's due date) at 8 p.m. They will give me cervidil, a medicine to soften my cervix, in order to prepare for the baby's birth on Tuesday. Tuesday morning, October, 26, they will start me on the petocin to induce labor and hopefully, I'll have this baby by 'midday.' With Drew and Dilan, I didn't have to have cervidil and I simply went in the morning to get all of this going but I also didn't have my babies until almost 11 p.m. So, I'm hoping this baby will get an earlier debut than nighttime!

The doctor has assured me the baby is ready to come, but it's just my uterus that isn't ready. So, I'm okay with this process even though it is different this time around. Sometimes, I wonder how late I would go with each of these kiddos if I just left it up to nature. But it's worth it to me to have a plan especially when I don't live near family, my family is flying in for the birth, I have small kids at home, and I really do fear going into labor in the middle of the night when I just moved here and don't want to call anyone in the middle of the night.

My family will start coming in on Saturday and the rest on Monday! Can't wait to meet this little guy - one thing I know for sure is that he will be very loved by his mom and dad!!!

Georgetown Cupcake

One of the things I have been wanting to do since we got here was to go to Georgetown Cupcake. When an invitation with some ladies from church came along, I had to take them up on it! Even being less than a week from my due date, I ventured into town (Bethesda) with them to get my hands on these famous yummy treats. If you've never heard of them, they are a very successful gourmet cupcake place that started here in D.C. just some years ago by two sisters, and they even got their own show on TLC this past summer.

Dilan and me in the store after we placed our order

Outside with cupcakes in hand!

and yes, my belly looks like a very big round beach ball now. :)

At home for our taste test:

Chocolate ganache, Lemon, Chocolate regular

Red Velvet, Chocolate sprinkles, Salted caramel

My favorite was the chocolate ganache but surprisingly I also loved the lemon one! Drew ate the chocolate sprinkles cupcake because he loves sprinkles but he also doesn't love frosting and it didn't have a lot on it. I figured out the secret to these cupcakes is definitely the frosting and how moist they are. It's so fun to try so many different flavors!!!

D.C. Temple Visitor's Center

Friday night we decided to take an evening trip to the D.C. Temple. We wanted to go to the visitor's center to see the Bronze exhibit which is only there until the end of this month. It was a really nice evening - Drew could not believe how big the D.C. temple was and he loved meeting the missionaries inside.

Our family in front of the Christus

(yes, I indeed do look 10 days away from my due date here)

David with the kids in front of one of the many bronze sculptures on display

David reading and explaining each sculpture to Drew - each sculpture referred to a story about Jesus Christ in the scriptures

Dilan trying to get behind certain displays and at this point, she has taken her shoes and socks off

Drew and Dilan in front of the D.C. temple

David's 33rd birthday!

David turned 33 yesterday and after work, we took him to Outback Steakhouse for dinner. He had ahi tuna for an appetizer, filet mignon for dinner and the kids did pretty well for him to enjoy it all. :)

Dilan and Drew coloring while waiting for the food

Once we got home, David got one picture with the kids before Dilan went to bed - it was about an hour past her bedtime at this point (which is why her hair is a mess!)

David's traditional Baskin Robbins birthday cake - mint chocolate chip ice cream with chocolate cake inside. Because David is playing on a work soccer team this fall and Drew is playing soccer as well, we went with the soccer ball theme!

blowing out the candles

David had lots of wonderful birthday cards to open - he has a lot of people who love him! :)

Drew took this picture of me and David - we got him the new Halo Reach game, a new shirt and tie that Drew picked out, and a new Sony Blue-ray DVD player to go with his new surround sound system.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DAVID!!! WE LOVE YOU!!!

Professional Pictures Fall 2010

These are the photos/images I picked out from our professional photographer, Chantell Prescott. Just wanted to share because some of them were not on facebook. Can't wait for Drake's newborn photos to be taken in November and we get a new family shot with our newest addition! :)

Happy 33rd Birthday, David!!!

David turns 33 years old today. Just in time to have his 3rd kid too! We are planning a fun family dinner out to wherever David chooses and then presents and the traditional Baskin Robbins ice cream cake when we get home! David already bought himself (and put it up) a new surround sound system for his birthday this past weekend and has been enjoying it ever since!

We did go to Drew's Fall Festival at his school this past weekend. I'll admit it was kind of lame (even though Drew didn't know otherwise), but Drew was able to make this fun pumpkin with David and it was literally the only picture I took. Now you know if I took one picture, I wasn't too impressed. But it was worth going because Drew could say he went, he did see some friends from his class, and he and Dilan's favorite part was just simply playing on the playground.

Swim Lessons

Drew is taking swim lessons this fall along with his soccer class. He goes twice a week for three weeks before the baby comes. Because we move every summer and then go to Texas for vacation for weeks during the summer, he has not had a chance to take proper swim lessons the last few years. Now that he is 5, this is a must for me even if during the school year.

So, he goes to the Germantown indoor swim center and he is loving it. I think we have a boy who will be a lot like his dad - soccer and swim team! (neither of which I did when I was young - it was tennis and dance for me!)

But he is so eager to do everything the coach is asking him to do from putting his face in the water, going down the big slide, being dunked in the water, etc. I am loving watching his progress. There is something to be said about someone else teaching your child to swim. He would never do any of those things for us.

We only had a problem last night for the first time... Drew got in trouble for fighting!!! Well, to be fair, he and this other boy are always raising their hands to go first and volunteer to try something new. When they both put their hands up in the air, the other boy grabbed Drew's hand and they began pushing and grabbing each other's arms to get to the stairs first. When the coach saw it and had to break it up, both boys had to sit out for a minute. Afterwards, Drew's feelings were hurt, and I could tell his mood had changed. We have a pretty sensitive boy and indeed when I went to get him minutes later after the lesson was over, he cried all the way home upset that he got in trouble. I explained to him that he was not in trouble anymore, that he had already had his time out, but that we needed to discuss what we could learn from it (keeping hands to oneself, not always having to be first, not everything is a competition, etc.). I think we have a very competitive boy on our hands - everything is "I win!" and we've been having a lot of talks about it lately. Hopefully, he will learn from this and the good news is that he does want to go back to swim lessons and he's not deterred by this one incident. Maybe he will have a passion to compete and that's not a bad thing but we have to be careful to teach him how to compete with integrity and good sportsmanship! :)

Harper's Ferry, West Virginia

Our Saturday morning adventure was out to Harper's Ferry, West Virginia. It's only about 45 minutes away and with the rain all week long, Saturday was a gorgeous day to get outside with the kids. (Plus, General Conference doesn't start here until noon so we figured we would get out when we could.)

Harper's Ferry is a historical site for the civil war for a few reasons - it was a site for making weapons and storing them there (later to be used by the South). And John Brown led a raid attacking the arsenal to protest slavery, and this incident ended up being a catalyst for the civil war. The historical buildings were not as impressive as just how beautiful this place was. It sits right on the Potomac and Shenandoah Rivers.

Historical streets of Harper's Ferry

The old rail road tracks behind David and the kids

Under the tracks and onto the river

And old bridge over the water behind David and the kids

Someone offered to take our family photo near the river

Just beautiful looking out seeing the river run by

This was the walkway where you could walk across the Potomac River and alongside the railroad tracks

Once again if you look beside David you'll see some Amish people walking with us

our little boy skipping his way on the bridge alongside the tracks

The tunnel at the end of the bridge

Walking back - Dilan finally holding David's hand. He kept asking her and she kept shaking her head no. She is so independent!

Monument dedicated to John Brown

View of this historic town

Walking back to our car, we just had to walk on the actual railroad tracks!