Announcing our sweet baby ::part two::

our stay in the hospital was a little longer this time...thanks to the c-section :)  i am usually home in 24 hours, but that definitely wasn't the case this time.  i sing praises to all of you c-sections mommas...especially those of you who nurse too.  when getting out of bed takes everything you've got, it sure does make it hard to be up and down nursing all. night. long.  i made it out of bed 12 hours after surgery and then again the following morning, which is when i slowly managed to get these shots...


when i woke up, i was so glad that my sweet baby had joined our little world and was here...safe and sound.


after the day he was born, we spent an additional two days in the hospital.  they brought us our meals and we loved on our baby...










i managed to shower that day, which took a whole lot of help from rob and a whole lot of time.  just keeping it real, please know that some tears were shed.  the pain was terrible.  and i felt like i had been cut in two.  however, i soon learned that after a c-section, you can neither cry nor laugh.  or cough.  or really anything else...ha!  so, i learned to keep my tears inside.


mama c. brought emma and carson for another visit on day two...there aren't any photos of mr. carson for this one.  he spent his time stuffing his face with petit fours :)  that night, we had more visitors too...aunt char, uncle steve, nic, christa, and collins.  there are no photos to show for that either...let's just say i was heavily drugged :)


on day three, i managed to shower again.  huge accomplishment, folks, huge.  my aunt margaret stopped by early that day and we began the discharge process.


i love his mouth...


and just like that.  i went in like this...


and left like that...


and we were on our way home....


and to be honest, i was scared. to. death.  i had no idea how i would get into my very own bed and i really wanted to take the hospital bed with me....

Announcing our sweet baby...

here's my birth story of sweet baby number three...

we headed to the hospital on the night of the 28th for an induction.  the original plan was to arrive in the afternoon at 2, then it moved to 5, and then to 7 pm.  my doctor was very busy that day :)  so, here we are leaving our house with the nervous jitters.  my sweet mom had my two little ones.  thank heavens for her...


we checked right in and this became our new home...


and this was my room...


and our sweet baby would be put in here...we were so excited to find out boy or girl!


so, i checked in at 7 pm.  i changed into my gown and the nurse started with the iv.  she got it on the very first try, which is the biggest. deal. ever.  you know me, and i did threaten first :)  the nurse promised me she wouldn't try unless she thought she would be successful.  she was right, so then i decided she deserved a raise...ha!  after that, they drew my blood, and then my doctor came in around 7:30 for the cervical ripening.  that was a piece of cake too.  she confirmed that i was still just 1/2 cm dilated and 50% effaced...shucks, but truthfully, this was all just going too well.

here i am around 9 pm with my special noodle necklace for good luck.  miss emma made me all sorts of things before heading to the hospital...she's such a thoughtful little one :)


rob and i took a walk around the hospital from about 9:10 to 9:40 and then we settled in.


this was me around 10 pm.  after midnight, for about 30 minutes, we went for another walk, and then tried to get some rest.  morning finally came.  it was a long, sleepless night, and at 5:03 am, they started my pitocin at 6 mL/hour.


getting anxious, we took another half hour stroll around the hospital at around 5:30.  i had had mild contractions all night, but the pitocin really kicked things into gear.  when we came back to our room at 6, the anethesiologist was there to give me my epidural.  this is me after the epidural at about 7:30 am...feeling nothing. at. all.  it actually worked this time.  things were looking up :)


we were pretty certain that this would be our sweet baby's birthday, and after forgetting to buy the paper the last two times, i guess the third time's the charm, and we got it right for this one :)

at 8 am, the cervical ripening agent was removed, and it pretty much went all down hill from there.  the nurse checked me, and i could tell by the look on her face and the dead silence that something was terribly wrong.  her body froze and she wouldn't move. at. all.  i kept asking her, "how many centimeters am i?"  "what's wrong"  "please tell me something."  and after what seemed like an eternity, she told us that she felt "parts" and for one of us to hit the panic button on the side of the bed.

i had visions of my sweet baby torn into "parts."  were the limbs detached?  was the baby okay?  were we all going to all make it out healthy?  i had a billion thoughts spinning through my head.  after all, that's what she said....  "parts."  such a simple word that can have such great meaning.

within seconds, my room was filled with doctors and nurses.  another nurse checked me and confirmed that the baby had turned....transverse to be exact.  if you looked at me from the front, the baby's head was on my right, and its legs were on my left.  i was in tears.  i pleaded for them to turn the baby, but i was already 5-7 cm dilated, so that was not an option.

my doctor was on her way.  they brought in an ultrasound machine to confirm the baby's position, and yes, the baby had turned....during labor.  rob and i were worried, upset, crying, and everything in between.  any of my long time friends who know me well know that a c-section was always one of my greatest childbirth fears.  i had had two babies naturally and couldn't believe my ears, but it was out of my control.

they began prepping me for surgery, and i began to pray...


at 8:55 am on August 29th....


our little bundle was brought into our world.  it wasn't how we planned, but nonetheless, our baby was here...


and it was a BOY!


i got my first glimpse...love.


and off he went...




he weighed 8 pounds and 6 ounces and was 21 3/4 inches long.


and was pink :)


still in the OR, i got to hold my sweet baby...between the drugs and my completely horizontal position, i was afraid that i would drop him, so i just held him a little tighter.


at my two week check up, my doctor clarified to me what the nurse meant by "parts."  it's "fetal parts" to be exact, which is medical terminology for the position of the baby.  they are either head down, breech, or fetal parts.  i'm pretty sure that a meeting was held to inform the nurses that "parts" isn't the best choice of words for a momma in labor.


obviously my vision of "parts" was completely wrong.  he was perfect in every way.


and we were so blessed that day.


i brought this sweet little bunting from home to decorate our baby's hospital crib...


and then, i was wheeled off to recovery where i found my mom...


and carson.  he got to meet his teeny tiny brother.




and rob got to meet his newest son...






after that, they moved me to my postpartum room, which is where we stayed for the rest of our visit.


Please meet...
Landon Robert Douglas
Born on August 29, 2013
At 8:55 a.m.
Weighing 8 pounds, 6 ounces
Measuring 21.75 inches long


in our room, carson got to hold him for the first time...


and was so proud.








and if i'm being honest, i don't remember a whole lot from that day...


except that we were blessed with a sweet baby boy.


i love his fuzzies :)


aunt lindy came to meet him.


as did grand-dad...


and nana...


i am certain i still didn't believe what had occurred that day, but i was so grateful to have made it to the other side...healthy momma & baby.


our first photo with landon...


that afternoon, emma got to meet her new little brother too...


and i had picked up a cookie cake to celebrate...


they were in love.








it was such an amazing day...


just like that, we were a family of five...


landon got a bath that evening, and then we turned in for the night.  we were exhausted. and traumatized.  and blessed.  very. blessed.


we attempted to send out our mass text to announce his arrival.  i downloaded a mass text app the week before delivery, saved my distribution list, and was ready to go.  ha!  that plan failed too, so i went on with my rest and loving on my new baby :)

stay tuned, i have lots to share, but am short on time...hugs!