My Sophia's Birth Story

I finally wanted to write Sophia's birth story while I still remembered all the details of truly what is and will forever be the most amazing day of my life. But as I am sure every mom out there knows, there are no words that can ever describe the feeling of that day. And every sentence I type out here will fall short of the extraordinary memories in my mind.

But I will try as best as I can to capture as many details as possible leading up to the moment that literally changed my life, when her little body was placed directly on mine the second she entered this world.

It all started on Wednesday, June 8th, my due date. That morning I woke up around 8:30, made myself breakfast and began checking my work email from home, like I had done that entire week. However, something about waking up that day just felt different. Maybe it was because the night before I had talked to my Mama and told her that I thought Sophia would still be coming on her due date. I am pretty sure she thought I was a crazily optimistic pregnant lady since that was the next day and I was showing NO progress at my doctor's appointments, but either way she knew better than to burst my bubble. After all the "every first time mom is late" comments I had heard leading up to that, I don't think I could've handled another one. Plus, all along, I knew my little lady would be punctual. After all, she knew how extremely anxious her Mom and Dad were to meet her.

At about noon that day, I started to notice some light spotting. I didn't think anything of it, but called my doctor just to be sure. She didn't seem concerned and just told me to keep an eye on it. Once Matt came home from work at 2:30 (he had shifted his hours that entire week), he convinced me to go to the hospital just to get checked out. After resisting for a couple hours, I agreed, and we headed in around 5 p.m. We had packed our hospital bags for "just in case". They admitted us immediately and after hooking me up to the monitors and doing an internal exam to make sure it wasn't my water, they had sent us home. Little did we know we'd be coming back in shortly thereafter.

After coming home, it was business as usual as Matt fired up the grill and we enjoyed dinner on our patio.. Then we decided to invite our neighbors over (hi, Ben and Michelle :). At around 8 p.m. we came inside and just relaxed on the couch. At exactly 9 p.m. I started feeling contractions. We immediately started timing them, and they were very regular and about 4-5 minutes apart. How I went from feeling no contractions to them being so close together, I have no idea! All I know is that Sophia clearly had plans of her own and Mama was just a happy participant in all of this. We timed my contractions for exactly three hours. I have to honestly say that my contractions at this stage still weren't as painful as I had imagined them to be. They were more uncomfortable than painful. And as long as I just remembered to breathe through them, they were not bad at all! But at around midnight, they were exactly 3 minutes apart.

At this point, it had finally hit me that this was it. It was really happening. No more wondering, no more questioning her arrival...we were going to the hospital and I was finally going to meet my baby girl. The next hour was a blur - calling our families, grabbing our bags and sneaking in one last snuggle with Charlie (which instantly brought on a flood of tears). The next time we'd be coming home, it would be with our daughter.

The following twelve hours were the most exciting, intense and at times most emotional of my life. After getting checked in initially at 1:30 a.m., I was still only 2 cm dilated, but my contractions were still 2-3 min apart. At this point the nurse asked me to walk around the hallway for an hour to see how much progress I could make by moving. This is also the time my Mom and Dad came...seeing them automatically put me at ease. As my dad waited in the main lobby, my Mom, Matt and I walked around the labor & delivery unit hallway for an hour, trying to speed up progress. My contractions continued to get stronger but I was completely calm. I knew that the next time they checked me, I would be in active labor. Sure enough an hour later I was already 4 cm dilated and getting wheeled into our room where I would be giving birth! And then my little sister came! To see her was a wonderful feeling. My little sister who hates hospitals, blood, needles and everything else, was there through it all to support me. I cried. Her, my Mom and Matt took turns holding my hand and encouraging me through the contractions which were now coming every 2 minutes. Around 5 a.m. the on-call doctor came in and decided that I was far enough to break my water. This part actually wasn't painful at all, but the contractions that immediately followed were nearly unbearable. My goal through this entire process was to hold off on the epidural as long as possible, as I knew that if I got it too early it could possibly stall the entire process. I wanted to progress as far as possible on my own. So, at around 5:30 a.m. and at 6 cm, I finally asked for the epi and the relief was unbelievable. At 7:30 a.m. they checked me again, and I was already 9 cm and what I thought was close to pushing! I couldn't believe how fast I was progressing. But my Sophia had different plans.

Every time the doctors and nurses would do an internal check, Sophia's heart rate would suddenly drop and once the internal was over, it would go right back to normal. As the doctor's described it, she was calling the shots and we just had to wait. They wanted her to drop as much as possible on her own, so that I would only have to push for a short period and this would minimize the stress on the baby. So, we obliged and we waited, and waited, and waited. Until 12:30 p.m. And it was just around this time that something else took over. Somehow it just happened. My baby girl made her mind up that it was time, and did all the hard work for her mama. After pushing for only 15 minutes, our daughter was healthy and finally in our arms. I have to honestly say that overall labor was much easier than I expected. Maybe it's my selective mommy memory that forgets the bad and only remembers the good, but I could do everything and so much more a hundred times over again for such a special little gift.

And since I'll only continue to fumble over my words, here are a few pictures of our very first days together...

I'll let her sweet face sum up our joy.

She is here!

On Thursday, June 9th we welcomed our beautiful, healthy daughter into our family.

Our sweet Sophia Elizabeth.

We're both head over heels in love.

She is our everything and I am already so proud to be her mom.

Thank you for all of your thoughts and prayers and I will update with a full birth story as soon as we are home and settled in.

Possible last update?!

Well, here we are, three days until our due date! I could have this baby at any moment.

::reminding myself to breathe::

And with that, excuse me as I get a little sentimental on you all. But what an incredible journey this has been! Matt and I have shared so many wonderful moments though this experience and we will forever have everlasting memories of our first pregnancy. And, after 6 years together when it seemed impossible to grow any closer, these last nine months proved us wrong. I can honestly say that we are even more in love with each other today than ever before. And I can only begin to imagine how eventful, intense, and unforgettable this new adventure will be. We are going to be parents very soon!! I simply cannot wait.

In other updates, I had my 39 week check last Thursday and I can now officially say that some progress is on its way. My cervix is thinning and I am one cm dilated. I have also been having very dull cramping since last Tuesday, and I am pretty sure that just this morning {warning- possible TMI} I lost my mucus plug.

::throws confetti & grabs a celebratory cupcake::

And while all this can mean that labor is still days away, I have a feeling that we will be meeting our daughter soon! I hope mama's right.

In the meantime, any happy thoughts or prayers would be greatly appreciated. As always, thank you for all of your sweet comments and support! I love you all.

Edited to add: here is my 39 week, 5 day bump photo... possibly my last one! yay!

Take back the GPS

Because our little one has a good sense of direction! She is head down after all and in perfect position... I am so relieved, to say the least! I know that labor is essentially only a means to a beautiful end, and we would've of course done what's best for her. But as crazy as this may sound, I am actually looking forward to labor and a part of me felt like I would be missing out if we would've had to have a scheduled c-section. So yay for a head down bebe! And the ultrasound tech also had a little surprise for us... this little lady has hair!! We were able to see some fuzz on the screen, and yes, I currently may or may not have 12 hair clips in my Etsy cart.

• The ultrasound tech did also mention that they are currently estimating her at around 7 lbs 2 oz, which she said was perfect! But we think that there's a strong possibility that she'll be a little rolly polly based on the pictures. I just want to pinch and kiss those chubby, chubby cheeks and rolly arms!



• We also had our weekly doctor's appointment this week to check my progress, and we finally have something to report! My cervix is starting to thin and the doctor thinks that she is slooooooowly but surely starting to drop! I still have yet to experience a single contraction so keep sending me that labor dust, ladies! But thankfully I am not to the "miserable, ready to have this baby any day now" stage yet. I am actually pretty proud of myself for still waking up every morning and having energy to curl my hair and do my makeup. I may be large and in charge, but this mama ain't no slob ;)

And this week officially marked 38 weeks, which means that we have less than TWO MORE WEEKS to go! I never thought the day would come when we would be only 2 weeks away from meeting our little miracle... It seems like it was just yesterday when we found out we were going to be parents that sunny September afternoon. And then, here we are today. Surreal is the only word I can think of right now to describe this feeling.

And here is my 38 week bump photo! I am wondering how many more of these I will take :)

Mildly Hyperventilating

This is not my car. It can't be.

Could someone please be kind enough to pass me a paper bag? So, so surreal.

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Also, on another note, we had our 37 week appointment Wednesday and found out that I may be pregnant forever this little lady already has a mind of her own. Apparently, she has decided to stay in mama's ute until preschool, at least.

According to my doctor, she's still very high, not engaged and there's been no progress at all. She just seems to be pretty comfy and cozy in there, which is still okay with me. I am still loving feeling her Fred Astraire ballroom dance moves in there and I know when she finally makes her debut, that will be one part I know I'll miss. And because she is apparently still under the impression that she's auditioning for next season's Dancing With The Stars, the doctor really couldn't tell her position. So this means that we now get another ultrasound next Tuesday to see her exact whereabouts. I am so excited to see her again, and for this bonus ultrasound! Originally we were not going to have another one, and I was a little disappointed. Not to mention that we're keeping our fingers, toes, arms, legs and yea pretty much everything else crossed that she's head down. Otherwise this mama will have to spend the next two weeks standing on her head :)

I'll be back next Tuesday with an update! Thanks everyone for your sweet comments below. You sure know how to make a pregnant chickadee feel good. I am sending out a hug to you all! Have a fantastic weekend!

37 Weeks and an updated bump pic!

Tomorrow we will be hitting the 37 week milestone which in the pregnancy world means that the baby is FULL TERM! Woot woot! This means that our little one is now physically ready to land on planet Earth! So, whether I give birth tomorrow (yes!) or in three weeks next week, this little girl is pretty much 100% ready to face the world outside of Hotel de Mama. : )

And on that note, you know you’re getting close to the end when…

• It requires you 5 large pillows to find a comfortable sleep position. I feel like I’m 5 again, building a fort every night before crawling in.

• And speaking of sleep, you have to mentally prepare yourself for the chore that is rolling over in bed.

• Friends and family members are more anxious to talk to you now than ever before. EVERYONE picks up on the very first ring, and"hello" has been replaced by "are you in labor?"

• Speaking of excitement, even strangers are starting to feel bad for you. My errand running this weekend resulted in 4 complete strangers stopping me to inquire "when on earth is that baby coming out?"

• You become a public toilet expert due to suddenly having to pee immediately after peeing. I now even consider myself a toilet paper aficionado. Ex. My local grocery store isn't splurging on the nice stuff, Starbucks is. I also may or may not have on a few occasions been spotted carrying a roll of nice TP from home in my purse.

• Anything above 60 degrees is considered sweltering heat. I am only comfortable if my husband/co-workers can nearly see their breath. I did feel sorry for my poor work crew, and brought them all hot chocolates this morning : )

• Cooking at the stovetop should require a fireproof vest. This belly is starting to get dangerously close to those front burners.

• That TV show you used to hate suddenly becomes a lot more interesting after not being able to reach the remote.

• And finally, every single Google ad on your laptop now has to do with "natural ways to induce labor." :)

And here are a few updated bump pics. I think she's dropped a little! What do you all think?

A beautiful love

There are so many little things I love about where I am at this exact moment in my life that I kind of want to just pause everything and stay here a little while.

All my life, I have dreamed of being a mother. And this little chapter of our life together has been, without a doubt, the best one yet. The last nine months have often felt so surreal.

But when I think about how quickly time has gone, it is a bittersweet feeling. At the very beginning of this journey, I made a promise to myself to enjoy every single day of this beautiful ride. And as uncertain and anxious as I have sometimes felt, the last 250 days have been the best days of my life. I have loved every minute of this pregnancy, and even the minutes where I am uncomfortable and cranky. I thank God every single day for giving me this chance and entrusting this beautiful little miracle to me.

Knowing that just around the corner is something we've dreamed and prayed and wished for since the beginning is an undescribable feeling.

29 more days until I finally get to hold my sweet daughter in my arms.. : )

35/35!

First thank you all for the supporting words about my last semi manic post. It does help knowing I am not the only lunatic out there :) And for those of you that said nesting would follow, I can't even begin to tell you how right you all are!

So, nesting. Cleaning. Organizing. List Making. Whatever you want to call it… it's entered my life in full force and it's showing no signs of slowing down.

Case in point- yesterday I took a little trip to a store that I love more than anything... Target.

And I passed up this

and this

to buy this???

Who AM I?

I’ve done so much sweeping and dusting and scrubbing in our house these last few days that I would honestly have no problem licking pretty much any given surface in my home. I really hope this nesting bug wears off... or else I may be renting out my cleaning services so stay tuned!

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Oh, and before I forget to mention today is the big 35/35 milestone! It still feels unreal that 35 weeks have already gone by and that we only have 35 days left. I have truly LOVED being pregnant and as much as I can't wait to meet her, I want to enjoy these next few weeks as much as possible. I love feeling her little kicks and movements and I know I'll miss them. Here is the 35 week belly bump update. And I promise more nursery pictures to come soon!

Diary of a rambling pregnant woman...

I am feeling completely overwhelmed.

With only 5 weeks left (yes, you read that right ohmygod holycrap 5 WEEKS) until our tiny, cute new little roommate arrives, I feel like I have NOTHING done. Every single second my brain (pregnancy brain too, may I add) is going crazy… like a swirling, raging tornado with things that I know we still need to do like, right now.

Finish thank you notes, wash and fold all baby clothes, finish nursery, find crib skirt, put away this mount Everest of baby gifts that’s currently occupying our dining room, write out a transition maternity plan for that little thing that is my JOB, pack the hospital bag, FIND A PEDIATRICIAN, clean our living area so that the protective services don’t immediately confiscate our child and I am sure a thousand and four more things that I am currently forgetting.

Yes, realistically, I know if our baby girl were to make her appearance tomorrow (don’t get any ideas in there!), we’d be perfectly fine with what we have. But as prepared and organized as I have felt this entire pregnancy, I feel like I am slowly starting to lose it. Sigh. Oh, and the fact that I woke up this morning to a quick realization that today is MAY FIRST, did not help AT ALL.

Tell me I am not alone?!

Showered - Parts 2 and 3

*warning- photo overload*

Since I am trying really, really hard to be better at updating on the Little Miss Thing (and no, that won't be her name.. we're deciding to keep that a secret), I wanted to share with you all pictures of my other two baby showers!

Two Saturdays ago, an incredibly sweet group of girls threw me a tea party baby shower. I feel so blessed to have friends who would coordinate such a wonderful event for me, while working AND while living in different cities. Thank you Nicole, Molly and Cassy! I love and appreciate you all so much! Below are just a few of the hundreds of pictures we took. And how cute is this little tea house? I loved all the time and effort they spent working on the details.

Thank you again to all my girls who threw the shower and the ones who came as guests! This little girl is very lucky to have such sweet aunties. :)

____________________________

And this last weekend, hubs and I packed up our car and headed home for a baby shower his family had planned for us! We had the best time. It was nice having hubs there with me as we opened gifts. Watching him 'ooooh' and 'aweeee' all the little dresses was priceless! : )

I feel very blessed to have so many people in our lives who love us and are excited for this baby! Our families and friends are just the best.

Mr. Photographer, I think I'm ready for my close-up!

We had our 3/4D ultrasound two weekends ago and seeing our daughter was amazing. We were so excited to see her again, since we had not seen her in almost 12 weeks! I have been looking forward to this for two entire months and it was the best 30 minutes of my life. :)

I am still in awe of just how much she already looks like a little person. And seeing her smile at us melted our hearts completely!

And now, when we think about our baby girl we can actually visualize her adorable, precious face! Not only did we get to see some of her sweet little features, but best of all we got to watch her move and play the whole time! It was an incredible experience. We saw her play with her feet, try to put them in her mouth, yawn, move her hands and, of course, best of all flash that little grin over and over again! She's definitely a crowd pleaser. Even our ultrasound tech could not believe how much she was smiling! I hope we have one happy baby! Or maybe she felt her Mommy smiling at her. :)

{sweet pouty lips and cute chubby cheeks}

{smiley, smiley baby}

Any ideas on who she looks like? So far, the popular majority says that she looks like her Mama. ::blushes with excitement::

And now that we've had a chance to see her, one thing that’s been really getting to me lately is just pure excitement. I can’t wait to meet her! Who will she be like? Will she be blessed with her mother’s witty, fabulous personality and amazing taste in shoes? ;) Or is she going to be a sports loving, beer drinking, genius/computer geek like her dad?

I can’t wait to meet this amazing little person and spend every day getting to know her. 7 MORE WEEKS!

My new view?

Where did my feet go? I can hardly even see them now. While my baby bump might have taken a while to show, I definitely think that it's making up for lost time now! Every morning when I wake up it looks and feels a little bigger than the day before. And I am loving every second of it. Except when it's time to put on my shoes, and after minutes of grunting, I realize that I can no longer bend over and have to sit down. And yes, I am still wearing heels. I keep saying that I'll have to retire them soon, but it's so much harder than I thought :)

Happy Monday, all. Hope it's the begging of a wonderful week!

Showered!!

Last Sunday, my mom, sister and grandma threw me an amazingly wonderful baby shower and it was just the best day! They put so much thought and effort into every single little detail and it was so nice to spend the day with some of the closest women in my life. I felt very blessed. Everyone's generosity was so overwhelming and it makes me super happy-teary eyed when I think about just how loved we are and this little princess will be.

Oh, and did I mention that this is the first baby on my entire side of the family and hubs' entire side too? Spoiled little girl alert, right?! Lord help us!

I can’t believe that I'll be 30 weeks this week and that in just over two months we will finally meet this little person. I really can’t wait. :)

All the little details that they put together! And yes, there were little baby pictures of me framed everywhere. So sweet & thoughtful.

More wonderful details, including pink lemonade and cute party favors.

With my two hostesses, my beautiful Mama and Sis!

The beginning of gift opening... and boy were there a lot of gifts to open! We got the majority of our big items, including everything from our baby food maker, to the high chair, stroller and car seat!

The world's most excited auntie to be!

And the proud Daddy :)

I will try to be back later this week with my 30-week update. Talk about a big milestone!

Another Update!

I know I have been pretty hit and run post and run with my blog updates these last several months, and I am so sorry you guys. But in these next few months I do want to try and make a better effort to keep you all posted on mine and baby girl's progress! I will also post some previous bump pics so that you can see just how much this little girl has grown! It really amazes me every single day.

So, here is a little pregnancy survey I took from another blogger {waves hi Mrs. Dew!} and I also added in a couple other things I though you all might find interesting.

Survey!

How far along? 28 weeks - hello 7th month!

Size of baby: this lil' miss now weighs in at about two and a half pounds and stands (or rather lies) at almost 16 inches.

Maternity clothes? I am pretty much still only wearing maternity pants. All of my tops and dresses are still juniors! Maternity clothes still just seem so giant to me.

Stretch marks? none yet...and boy am i trying everything to "prevent" them! ::knocking on every piece of wood i can find::

Sleep? Yes, please. All day, every day. I am sleeping 9-10 hours every night. Sleep is my friend.

Food cravings: Oh lord, yes! Fruit, fruit, fruit and more fruit. More specifically pinapples from Costa Rica, Oranges from South Texas and Fuji Apples. I know, I feel like I have turned into a produce expert overnight. Long gone are the days where we can buy whatever fruit is on sale. Ha. And if we do, I will literally throw a fit and have a meltdown take one bite, cringe and have to throw it out. I am still not sure how a child that CRAVES fruits of all kinds can be the product of me & hubs!

Food Aversions: Nothing so far. But my hunger levels are in a category all on their own these days. I think I go from completely full to starving in a matter of minutes. And then watch out. I literally feel like I’m 2 seconds away from gnawing my arm off like a rabid raccoon.

Gender: Team pink!

Movement? YES! A one-person dance-off is happening in my belly as we speak. Flips, tumbles, kicks, you name it, she's doing it!

Best moment this week? Hearing her heartbeat. It never, ever gets old. Passing my glucose test! Getting my girl scout cookies! (no one said all the answers had to be pregnancy related). Also, I just love sitting in bed at night with hubs, watching the belly move.

And, on a more shallow note, an overall best moment this entire pregnancy would have to be that I have not had one bad hair day this while time. Pregnancy hormones seriously equal winning!

Looking forward to? My baby showers that are quickly approaching. And also seeing my little mini-me at our 4D ultrasound! And of course finally meeting her in about 12-ish weeks!!

What I miss: Doing things on my own — like moving things, being able to lift anything, getting something off the top shelf…I’m getting too awkward to fit into small spaces and/or to stand on a chair, so I always need help.

Milestones? Baby girl's eyes are now opening and closing! If I lift up my shirt and stand near a bright light she will now kick and move!

I think that's all for now. I hope that you all have a wonderful weekend and enjoy this fantstic weather! I miss you all.

xoxo

A letter to our baby girl.

Every day I am amazed by how much love I have towards someone I have yet to meet. I’ve heard it said time and again, that once a mom holds her baby in her arms, the amount of love that swells in her heart is overwhelming. It’s something I’ve been told that I can’t imagine until I experience it. But for me, it’s not that hard to believe, actually. Though we haven’t met you yet, your Mommy has loved you unconditionally from the second my eyes saw those tiny two pink lines.

In three short months, we’ll meet face to face. But you’ve already brought so much love and happiness to so many. I can only imagine the hearts you’ll touch and the lives you’ll change, including mine and daddy’s, when you step onto the planet.

I can’t wait to kiss you and tell you each and every day that I love you and I am thankful for you.

I promise to always love you unconditionally, just as you are, no matter what. I will always do my best to be the best mama that I can be so that you may thrive and flourish to become the best that you can be. I won't always be perfect or right, but I promise you that I will always do my very best that I can. Always.

Thank you for the giving me the privilege and choosing me to be your Mommy. Thank you for giving me the gift of knowing a mother’s love for her child even without meeting her.

You are so so wonderful to me. And every day as you grow, so does my love for you.

I love you, baby girl.

Hi, friends.

Oh gosh, I don't even know where to begin. It feels so good to finally be able to talk about our tiny little bundle of love that is on the way. It's all we think, talk and dream about over here! And thank you so much for all the love and the congratulations messages below! It really means a lot reading through your emails and comments! We have literally been on cloud nine since finding out, so we held off as long as we could to share the news because we wanted to experience it just us for a little while. This has been the most amazing time of our lives. I have never known that such happiness could ever exist.

I am a little over half way through my pregnancy, 24 weeks, and am due in early June. And so far, our baby is looking healthy and right on track! We can't wait to meet our little miracle. We've been waiting (sometimes patiently, sometimes not so much) for this baby for a long time. June can't come fast enough!

I hope to be back to update again soon. Until then, I will leave you all with the latest picture of our little one. I am in love.

A new year and a brand new beginning..

Happy New Year to all of you from the three of us!

:) :) :)