Finley Grace

Last night was amazing! Sweet Finley only woke to nurse last night at 10pm, 2am, and 6am. Since I’m a bit of a schedule oriented person, that’s always my goal. I remember when Cori was 5 days old, she was already on this schedule. Now Finley, 6 days old, is following in her sisters footsteps. Praise the Lord because the night before last was not so good!

I can’t believe it’s been 6 days since delivery. This delivery was a bit different than CB’s – mainly because Finley was right on time and Cori was 5 days late! The Tuesday before we had Finley, my doctor had said that I was 4 cm and 80% effaced and that if I didn’t go into active labor on my own that he would schedule for me to come in on Friday (7-1-11)morning at 6am to be induced. So, that’s what we did.

One last belly shot!

We arrived at the hospital right on time and checked in to the OB floor. My room was ready and it was room 11. Not that I’m into lucky numbers or anything, but I have always liked the number 11 – mainly because I was born 11 minutes to 11 on August 11th. So, I’m a bit partial I guess and it’s always been my number in sports. Anyway, I’m going off topic here! :) … So, we checked in at 6 and got settled into our room. The nurse came in at 6:30 to put the IV in. Let me just tell you, that was one of the worst things about this delivery!! And, that’s pretty sad when your IV hurts worse than delivery!! She wiggled and wiggled that needle in my hand. It seriously took her 15 minutes to get it in. I was literally in agony! Then, once she got it in, she couldn’t get any blood out of it. So, she had to then stick me in my arm to draw blood. She was a sweet nurse, don’t get me wrong, but she needs some practice on placing an IV. The nurses had shift changes at 7 and we got this amazing nurse named Gwen who was with us the rest of the day. I LOVE her! She was amazing!!

At 7:15 our sweet doctor showed up. He is such an amazing doctor and I feel so blessed to have him as our OB. At 7:30 he broke my water. This was different than with Cori as well. When they broke my water with Cori, nothing came out because her head was so low. This time, even though Finley was low as well, the water came out. It felt like a slow leek, but I finally know what that warm rushing feeling feels like. At the time he broke my water I was somewhere between 4-5 cm and 90% effaced. Making progress.

At 8:20 the Epidural was placed .. and I only had to get it once! HA! I actually had TWO epidurals with Cori. I was so thankful the first one worked this time. I was in NO pain when I got the epidural and it pretty much stayed that way the whole way through! Gotta love those epidurals!! I know I do! The only problem this time was that it made me SO itchy! From head to toe, I was ITCHY!!! Dave tried his best to scratch every place I asked him too, but finally, I had to ask for some Benadryl. It didn’t take ALL the itch away, but it certainly helped. So, with Pitocin in at 9 and Benadryl, I actually took a nap! It was glorious – especially because I didn’t sleep at all the night before!!

At 11:15 Dr. Duff came back to check on me and I was 8 cm and fully effaced. I had actually napped through part of transition! Duff went to check on another patient and came back to see me at 11:30. In all of 15 minutes, I was completely dilated and fully effaced! So, he rushed to change his clothes into scrubs, get everything set up for delivery, and at 11:45 am I started pushing. Even with the epidural, I had complete feeling in my legs (could hold them on my own), and I could tell when each contraction was coming. They didn’t hurt AT ALL, but I knew they were coming by the pressure I felt. I actually told our doctor when it was time to push rather than the other way around – and he was the one looking at the monitor telling him when a contraction began. … After 16 minutes of pushing, Finley Grace was born at 12:01 pm. They placed her on my chest right away and in that instant I was a mother of TWO. It was such a surreal feeling to hold another newborn baby on my chest for the second time. I loved every minute of it!!

She was 7lbs 14oz (just like Cori) and 20 inches long. We debated back and forth about whether or not she looks just like Cori. It still changes day by day, but she definitely resembles her sister. Here is a picture of each one of them on their first day of life – even though one has her eyes closed and one has eyes open. They are both so sweet.

Finley

Cori

A few hours after delivery we were able to move across the street to the nice mother/baby floor. It really is super nice over there! Lance and Lauren showed up with Cori and a few treats for us just as we were leaving our delivery room and heading across the street. Once we got settled over there it was time for Cori to meet her new sister. She looked a little confused and went from being interested in the baby to being disinterested within seconds. This process repeated itself pretty much the whole time they were visiting. She did hold Finley a few times and kiss her head, which was such a precious sight to see.

our first family picture – I just wish I had changed out of that hospital gown!!

We were released from the hospital Saturday at noon and made it home for lunch. Both of our parents were here to welcome us with Publix subs to eat. They were delicious!

 

So far so good at managing two kids. I’m SO thankful that my AMAZING husband is home with me for a few weeks. He has been such a big help and I appreciate him more than words can even express!! I LOVE my sweet family of 4!!

Until next time…