6 months overdue

I have been postponing posting this birth story for long enough. I have debated editing this, and making it "nicer" for the online community, especially for those who know me in real life. But I finally decided that I should just leave the honesty from the first draft. For those who know me as a natural-birth advocate... By comparison, on the pain scale, my first two births were heaven, and my third birth was uncomfortable, and the fourth (the twins) was difficult. This one was HELL. I still totally endorse natural birth, and will most likely continue to plan homebirths assuming we have more children... but I totally understand if you decide to go the hospital/epidural route.

As an intro, this is the birth story that was typed the day Marie was born. She was due on October 3rd, a Monday, which is exactly when she ended up coming.

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I had hoped that she would make her appearance a few days early, so I was pretty disappointed when I was still pregnant over the weekend. While sitting at home on Sunday afternoon I started feeling some light crampy contractions around 3:15pm. They came about every 10 minutes or so, but not very strong. Around 6:15pm I went to move laundry and got into a deep squat so I could reach to move everything from the washer to dryer (front-loaders), and I had a GOOD contraction. But then I didn't feel any more after that, so that was kind of discouraging.

6:45pm - I was sitting at the kitchen table for dinner when I felt another contraction coming. Remembering the good one I felt while moving laundry, I got down in a deep squat again, and sure enough I had a GOOD contraction. After that, they were still coming every 10 minutes or so, but much stronger. But then nothing changed. I was up and moving around a lot, helping get the kids ready for bed, and they didn't seem to get any closer together, or any stronger. Between contractions I kept second guessing myself. It just took SO long for the next contraction to show up, and I didn't feel anything in between. But during each contraction, I KNEW this was it. I just didn't think I could be feeling something so strong that wouldn't actually do anything. Just after 8pm I had DH move our bedroom around and inflate the birth tub. Around 8:45 I called my midwife and let her know what I was feeling. I really wanted her to come tell me I was actually dilating. While I waited for her and her apprentice to arrive, I lay down to see if the contractions would keep coming. I did have two more while lying down, but they were 20 minutes apart.

10pm - Midwife & apprentice showed up. I asked for an internal. 4cm, 25% effaced. Baby sounded great, and I was doing fine. I also had called my mom to come help with the kids since they didn't seem to be falling asleep. (I think they could sense that something was happening.) Around 10:30pm Midwives suggested that I lie down and try to get some sleep between contractions. They figured I was in early labor, which, given my history, could pick up at any time, and they wanted me well-rested. I tried to sleep for about an hour. Contractions kept coming around 10 minutes apart.

11:30pm - I got up to go to the bathroom soon after a contraction, and had another one on the toilet. That seemed a bit faster than before. I went out to see the midwives, and found that my mom had gone back home. The kids were asleep, and she only lives 3 minutes away. She figured that if it was early labor, she should get some sleep too. Anyway, while I was out talking with the midwives I had two more contractions only 5 minutes apart. Since things seemed to be picking up if I was up moving around, they gave me two options. I could go try to sleep more and stay rested, but let things move slower. Or we could go for a walk and try to get them to pick up more. I was really feeling like I just wanted baby out sooner, so I chose the walk.

12:30am - by the time we got back from our walk, contractions had gone from 8-10 minutes apart to only 3-4 minutes apart. I asked to be checked again to make sure these were doing something before I committed to having the tub filled. Still 4cm, and now 50% effaced. I was pretty bummed, but two contractions later I decided I really wanted to get in the tub anyway. While waiting for the tub to fill, I went to the bathroom a couple of times and let my body clean itself out. This was another sign to me that this was really *real.* I also started feeling a bit dizzy, lightheaded, and kind of flu-like, and I started shaking a bit between contractions. I honestly believe I was starting transition at this point.

1:15am - I got in the tub which was WONDERFUL, and tried to get some more rest. Contractions spaced out to 6-8 minutes or so for a while, with a couple gaps of 10-12 minutes, but they got much longer and much stronger, so I didn't worry too much about them. I started dozing on the edge of the pool between contractions, but they were getting super strong and honestly quite painful. I kept thinking that I probably couldn't take much more of this.

2:19am - I asked for another internal and was now 6cm and 75% effaced. But, my midwife said I was super soft and stretchy, and since I was starting to grunt and groan during contractions and she suspected I was feeling pushy, she told me to just go with it. The contractions by this point were TERRIBLE! I felt like they were at least 2 minutes long, but they had a horrible peak that lasted at least 30 seconds and felt pushy, but a painful pushy. Now I think this is because my body wanted to push before it was really ready to. After a few more of these contractions I started trying to guess how far I was. I guessed/hoped that 3 of these nasty contractions = 1cm dilated. I decided to wait for three more contractions and then ask to be checked again. During the next contraction, I completely forgot about that decision as my mind was totally occupied with just surviving the contraction. I was moaning, groaning, grunting, almost screaming, and clinging to Dave. I was holding his hands and pulling back away from him so I could recline a bit in the pool. I hoped this position would help my cervix line up with the birth canal a bit better and allow baby to help dilate things faster.

After this contraction, I tried to remember what I had been thinking about before it, but couldn't... instead, I started thinking about my mom and figured someone should call her so she could come. I had decided earlier that if she wasn't busy with the kids, I wanted her to come witness the birth. I felt it was probably close to time to call her. But the next contraction started before I thought this through enough to say anything. I was practically writhing in pain for this one, and started sobbing, and it seemed to never end. Then I felt quite a bit of movement, almost a pop, and lots of pressure. When the contraction ended, I reached down to see if I could feel anything, and found a bulging bag of waters blocking the birth canal. I exclaimed that she was crowning, Dave said "Oh good! I should probably turn on the video camera now." My midwife took the hand that Dave had been holding so he could go deal with the camera, and when he finished that I told him to call my mom. He picked up my phone and started to walk out of the room to call her, when I felt the next contraction coming. I told him to stop and come back NOW. I knew she would be born with this contraction and I didn't want him to miss it. Sure enough, as the contraction started, I felt a huge urge to push and pushed as hard as I could. Her head slowly emerged and finally cleared the birth canal with a small pop, as the amniotic sac finally broke. My big surprise came next, when I actually had to wait for the next contraction for the rest of her (my last four babies practically shot out after their head was born). When I found I couldn't push her out on my own, I waited for the next contraction, which came quickly, and then pushed to clear her shoulders, and then the rest of her slowly slid out.

She was born at 2:53am, only 35 minutes after I was checked at 6cm. At 8lbs1oz, she's our biggest baby by far. Our previous biggest was 7lbs4oz, and the others were all under 7lbs. She was also 20 1/4inches, not quite our longest, but close. And yes, she was born ON her due date... which I did not expect.

We drained some of the water in the tub so that I could sit and nurse a bit, and we waited for the placenta. My mom arrived shortly after 3am (Dave called her about 2 minutes after the birth), and got to see her. Also, Dave woke up each of the girls, one at a time, and brought them in to see their new baby sister. They were all pretty groggy, though happy to see a new baby, and then happy to go right back to bed. After the placenta, Dave cut the cord, and I got up to shower while the midwives did the newborn exam. I got cleaned up and in bed by around 4:30am, and the midwives got everything cleaned up & packed up and left around 5am.

I've spent most of the day resting, napping, checking out facebook & such, and just enjoying baby. She's beautiful and we're SO in LOVE! She nurses nearly constantly anytime she's awake, and part of the time she's asleep also. The kids all adore her and we've had to figure out a holding rotation so that everyone gets a turn with her. I didn't have my camera nearby when the girls had their turns today, but I did get some cute pics of the boys and their turns.
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So... there's our story. Though now M is 6 months old, sitting up, beginning to crawl, and a super happy, though sometimes clingy baby.

Since everyone loves pictures, and I haven't posted any in this post yet... here's a few of our newest from the past few months:

Watching TV with K

Falling asleep in C's arms

Santa!

Enjoying a late-night snack with Daddy

3 months!

Napping with C

Playing in the car

6 months!

K's silliness & M's adorable cheeks

Lunch: Fail

I have learned several things today:

1. Lunch time is not negotiable for my children.

2. My children are very good problem solvers.

3. Apparently I need a more "open concept" kitchen.

4. It IS physically possible for my boys to be quiet... but only when they choose to be.

5. Sometimes having a clean kitchen requires several deep breaths (mine) and the consumption (by me) of a few handfuls of chocolate chips and/or mini-marshmallows.

6. My husband has a sense of humor, one that frequently presents itself just when I need it most.

Soaps & Bonbons

Several times in my childhood I remember my dad coming home from work to find the house a mess and dinner not even started. My parents would joke that my mom must have been sitting on the couch all day watching soap operas & eating bonbons.

That's pretty much how I feel right now. I haven't posted in over 3 months, and I pretty much have nothing to show for it. I've been sitting here all morning wondering what we've done since I last posted... and I can't think of much. I mean, I definitely watched too much HGTV, and too much Disney Jr., and I definitely ate way too much chocolate & sugar... but what else?

(What else is there?)

I guess the most important thing that happened in the last three months was that we went from this:

to this:

As many of you heard, Marie Frogley joined our family on 3 October 2011 at 2:53am. Yes, that was her due date (little stinker). She was 8 lbs 1 oz (by far our biggest baby) and 20 1/4" long. She was born into a birth tub in our bedroom at home, after about 8 hours of labor.

We all ADORE our newest addition. She is incredibly sweet, and very quiet compared to the rest of our brood. She can be VERY loud when she needs something, but most of the time she is content to sit and observe the chaos around her... as long as she can see what's going on.

Just because I know you all love baby photos as much as I do, here's a couple more of her:

5 Oct 2011 (2 days old) - J1 & M

6 Oct 2011 (3 days old)

9 Oct 2011 (6 days old) - First day at church, wearing a dress that used to be mine.

13 Oct 2011 (10 days old) - Skinny jeans

14 Oct 2011 (11 days old)

15 Oct 2011 (12 days old) - Daddy cuddles

23 Oct 2011 (nearly 3 weeks) - Blessing day

23 Oct 2011 - J2 & M

23 Oct 2011 - Dave, C & M

And from her photo shoot @ 3 weeks (26 Oct):

J2 & M

J1 & M

C & M

D & M

K & M

Dave & M (one of my favorites!)

We have done a few other things, but that's about all I have time to post right now. Hopefully it won't be another 3 months before I post again. :) I think I'll leave you with my favorite picture of my new beautiful daughter.

In the Zone

No, I haven't had the baby yet.

Since I am still pregnant, I guess it's time for me to update the blog.

In all of my previous pregnancies, I have had babies between 8 days and 1 day before the due date I came up with (not always the same as the OB's date). My "official" date this time is October third. By our calculations, our "birth Zone" started on Sunday, and stretches to this next Sunday. If baby waits until after Conference weekend, she'll simply create a larger Zone (though, my last two births were 2 days before, and 1 day before, so she could follow that pattern and just go longer than the previous one, and be on her due date, or just after). So, I'm currently sitting around waiting to go into labor at any time, which is incredibly annoying, and frustrating. I'm at that point where I just want to have baby out. I'm tired, sore, and totally cranky.

I did have some maternity pictures taken just over a week ago, but I'm combining that session with a newborn session, and I won't get any of the pics until we're done taking all of them, so I don't have any good belly pictures to show.

So, here's a bad belly picture from this morning. Bad lighting, bad hair, no make-up, weird face... but at least you can see the 39 week belly.

So as not to end this post quite so depressing... we do have good news. We moved into our new house about a month ago now, last night we committed to buying a new (to us) van, and we received the official letter from BYU stating that Dave finished all master's & thesis requirements and will receive his diploma when they are mailed out after December graduations!

The only "new" thing for this year that we're still waiting on is baby...

A Light at the End of the Tunnel

A lot of things have happened since I last blogged. Thankfully, they all tie into nearing the end of our time in Limbo.

Dave ended up getting job offers from three different positions within Intel, one in Chandler, and two in Hillsboro. After flying to Arizona for an interview, Dave decided Arizona was way too hot and dry for us. We love the green of the north-west and the cooler temps, and even the rain. But he also learned that the Chandler group had people working in Oregon also, so that was still an option. Dave selected one of the positions and started working a permanent job with Intel, in Hillsboro, about a month ago now.

The last week in July Dave flew back to Utah to defend his thesis. The defense went well and he is now officially done with his Master's degree. We'll be getting the diploma shortly after Christmas, but he's DONE!

The next big thing to deal with is our housing arrangements. We are currently still staying with my parents, but we have plans to move in just over two weeks... into our own house!

We found an adorable, affordable, super-tiny, 4 bedroom, 2 bath house with a great yard, only a 10 minute walk from Intel. We're nearly done with the mortgage/inspection/appraisal/repair process and we're completely on track to close August 30th. We're planning to move over Labor Day weekend. :)

Limbo: How long can you go? AKA: Chronicles of a Ping Pong ball

So, the first 4 years of our marriage were fairly uneventful. We were both students when we got married, we lived in student housing for the first year and a half, then moved to an awesome basement apartment where we stayed for 2 1/2 years. During our time in the basement, I graduated from BYU, we had two beautiful daughters, and Dave got his bachelor's degree as well.

Then the adventures began.

We both decided we wanted to move to Oregon, so as Dave's first graduation drew closer, we packed everything up, rented a truck, and said goodbye to our lovely basement. Approximately 48 hours before rolling out of Utah, Dave got a job offer for a 6 month internship with Intel. During that time, we lived with my parents to save money, and dreamed of what it would be like when Dave finished the internship, got a "real" job, and life could really start. We also had our third beautiful daughter. :)

Unfortunately, 2 months after the internship ended and C was born, we realized there were no "real" jobs for Dave in Oregon at that time. Somehow, there were jobs in Utah. After an interview-packed few days in Utah, Dave accepted a position with a company in Lehi, and we moved back to Provo. Once back in Provo, Dave realized the real reason we needed to be in Utah was for him to go back to school and get his Master's.

Yuck... more school.

We moved from our adorable little twin-home, to a cheaper town-home closer to campus (and somehow back in our old ward), and began the student life again. About a week into Dave's first semester in grad school, we found out we were pregnant again. When our first ultrasound a few months later told us we were expecting twins, we decided to move yet again, to save more money on rent... and ended up back in the same basement apartment we had left 2 years before.

One year in the basement apartment and Dave was making great progress on grad school. All course-work was nearly complete and he just had the dang thesis left to wade through. Learning that doing the thesis remotely was an option, we decided to move back to Oregon, with another Intel internship. Unfortunately, that internship came to a close with ZERO progress made on the thesis, and Dave decided it would be best to be back in Utah where he could be on campus with his professors all day while working on thesis.

Thankfully, our awesome relocation package from the Intel internship had left us with no consumer debt, and a healthy savings account. Also, some very dear friends of ours agreed to let us live in their fully furnished basement, rent free, for one semester so we could live off of our savings so Dave wouldn't have to hold a job AND work on the thesis. And my parents agreed to store all of our belongings in their dining room until further notice. (Actually, my mom claims she's holding it all hostage until we move her grandchildren closer to her.)

Our time in our friends' basement ended the first week of May, and we decided to head back to Oregon... again... (third time's a charm, right?)

This time, Dave had been applying for lots more "permanent" jobs with Intel, and we were praying that an offer would come quickly so that we could really start to settle down somewhere and our days as Ping-Pong balls would be over. Unfortunately, we apparently have to endure Limbo for a bit longer.

Dave's thesis is coming along, and he's currently on track to defend exactly one month from today, though he's terrified that something horrible with happen and he'll have to start all over. Assuming all goes as planned (and I'm confident it will all be fine), he will be walking at August graduation (one more trip to Utah...), though his diploma will officially say "December 2011."

On the job front though... Dave has had several 4-hour technical interviews, with no offers... until yesterday.

Finally, after years of back & forth, and after months of uncertainty, and weeks of nothing... Dave got an offer for a permanent position with Intel here in Hillsboro, OR.

But, our Limbo days are not quite over yet. Dave's job search has been going so well the past couple weeks, that he actually has two more on-site interviews with Intel this week, both of which could result in more offers. One of those interviews is actually in Chandler, AZ. We don't expect to hear anything from those interviews until at least the middle of next week, simply because both Monday and Tuesday are holidays for Intel... but hopefully, we'll hear back on Wednesday and then we'll be making our final decisions.

At this point, it's nice to know that our worst-case scenario still includes a permanent job with Intel. :) But the question now is will that job be in Hillsboro or Chandler? We're on track to move and settle somewhere before this next baby makes her appearance (have I mentioned on the blog that it's a girl?), but where will it be?

Hopefully, I'll be able to let you know in a little over a week. :)

16 Weeks

This is my least favorite part of the belly pic stages. I feel more fat than pregnant... not enough belly to be obviously pregnant, but enough that I don't have a true waist. At least I can fit into some of my maternity pants... so much more comfortable!

And please excuse the wild hair... I have no idea what my hair is doing this morning.