Ella's Arrival

Here we are heading out the door to go to the hospital for our 11:30 PM induction appointment! Hudson had no idea what he was in store for when we got home.
This is the point where I was being wheeled into the OR. Ben had to wait in the lobby at this point until the c-section started.
The ultrasound was right. Ella was born weighing 8 lbs and 15 oz. It was no wonder I had to have a c-section.
Finally, the family of three.
Here she is freshly out of the womb.

We arrived at the hospital on Wed. night at 11:30 pm to start the induction. The nurses got things started at 1:30 am and we attempted to sleep some. Unfortunately, I only got about and hour and a half of sleep. Around 4:30 am I started having light contractions. We began walking to help things along and then headed to the room to get more sleep when suddenly at 7 am my water broke. At that point I knew we would be going home with Ella. With my water breaking the contractions became much stronger. The tools we got at our birthing class came in very handy at this point.

Our friend Donna arrived at 11:30 am. We asked Donna to be with us during the labor and delivery to help us. She did that and more. Through out the day we labored and at 2 pm I got the blessed epidural. I was able to sleep some at this point and Ben and Donna played some scrabble, which they both love.

The labor was long and at 11:30 pm things slowed down considerably. I stalled out at 8 centimeters and never progressed beyond this even as they upped my pitocin levels. We began to suspect that we were headed to a c-section which is what our doctor recommended at 3:30 am.

After arriving at the hospital 30 hours previously, Ella was born at 5:24 am on July 25th just one day after her due date.

phohawk and lot's of hair!

Ella - our daughter

Operation Ella

Here is a 3-D picture we got of Ella today. You can see just how chubby her checks are and how cozy she currently is.

So we went in for yet another ultrasound today (we have had five in all) and found out that Ella is a big baby. They estimate that she is about 8 lbs 14 oz right now and that her head is huge. Her head is measuring at 41 weeks and 2 days. I currently am 39 weeks and 5 days. She must need a big head to hold that brilliant brain of hers.

Since she is so big and only getting bigger, with our doctor we decided that we would induce labor. Tomorrow night Ben and I will head to the hospital at 11:30 pm to start the process. The actual induction will start Thursday morning. I am thinking that since this is my first baby and it is an induction we are in for a long day. If Ella is born on Thursday then she will be born her actual due date. She would be part of the 10% of babies that are born on their due date. Albeit forced into that 10%.

Please be in prayer for us. We are very excited and at the same time a little nervous for the birthing process. We will be updating the blog with pictures of her as soon as can.

The Wait is on

So we are simply waiting now for Ella to make her arrival. It would appear she is going to skip all shared birthdays. Saturday was Ben's birthday, yesterday was her aunt Heidi's birthday, and today is Grandpa Steve's birthday. This little girl wants her own birthday.

We are trying to stay busy and not think about her coming so much. So we are working on projects around the house in effort to do this all the while thinking about her coming. We are ready to meet our daughter and would love for her to make her debut sooner then later. In an effort to encourage her want to see this world, I am trying to stay active by cleaning, moving around, and walking. Tonight we are going to have spicy Thai food. We have a friend that went into labor twice after eating at the

Tiger Garden so we are going to give it a try.

We update the blog with progress on her arrival. Be sure to check it.

Tara

Learning to have Ella

Ben's venture into pregnancy!!!!
Looks kind of silly but effective.

Last weekend Ben and I attended our birthing class at Legacy Hospital. It was a great class. We learned a lot about what to expect and got a lot of tools on how to handle labor and delivery. Another great thing they had at the class was the empathy belly. Guys wore the empathy belly to feel a little of what it is like to be pregnant. There was a band that went around the chest to restrict breathing and even a pouch that went under the belly over the bladder that simulated a baby sitting on a bladder.


Here are the pictures of Ben wearing the empathy belly. We even got the side by side picture of us both pregnant. It was a lot of fun.

Ella's Room is Done

After many months of working on Ella’s room, it is finally done. I love how it has turned out. Sometimes I go into her room and just sit. We are getting very excited for Ella’s arrival. Today is three weeks until my due date. We are hoping she comes early. We are anxious to meet our daughter.
Ben’s big project in Ella’s room was to put these shelves in her closet for storage. They work great.
Here is her changing table/dresser. The picture on the wall that says "Child of God, Child of Mine" was chosen by Ben. The dragon fly picture was a gift from my aunt and uncle.
Here is Ella's new light that Grandpa Whitney put up for her.
I finally completed refinishing my rocking chair from when I was a kid. I love how it turned out and the owls.

Her room is coming together

For some time we have been working on Ella's room. We have bought things to decorate her room with, bought her furniture, and painted. We are now beginning to see the room come together. I am looking forward to seeing it done.
Here is her dresser we bought her at a baby boutique. They were having a wear house sale and we found this dresser for a great deal. She will be able to use this dresser for many years to come. I love the flower light we got at Ikea.
This was my rocking chair I got on my first birthday. I have kept it over the years with the idea they my kids would rock on it one day. The fabric covering the chair is torn and worn, so I will be recovering it with new fabric.
This ottoman was another great find at the wear house sale. It will go great with our rocking chair and will provide us a spot to put our feet up when Ella is awake late at night. On the ottoman are some things I will use to decorate her room and her new light from Ikea. We will have to have grandpa over to put the light up.