Noah's Birth Story: 7-10-2013

This pregnancy was difficult to say the least. I had a lot more pain and discomfort then I did when I was pregnant with Noah...and a lot more stress! Because we had to move July 26th, we wanted our little guy to be as old and healthy as possible before moving. Since we definitely wanted him to be at least 2 weeks old in order to fly, we decided to be induced if everything was looking great. Well the time came for my 38 week appointment to get checked to see if I was 'favorable' (dilating, effacing, and head down) for an induction. I was only dilated to a one and 60% effaced. I was not favorable. So we starting worrying a lot that I would not be able to be induced on July 9th liked we had scheduled. I needed to be at a 2 and I had been a 1 for 2 weeks already so I probably was not going to change. The doctor told us we could go the night before to be given medication to help ripen my cervix, but it would increase risk for c-section. And I didn't want to be induced unless my body was 'ready' on its own. I'm already not really for being induced...I like to go on my own-its just my own personal preference. So Sean and I went home from that doctors appointment worried and feeling like nothing was going our way. We were sure I wasn't going to be able to be induced.

But then Friday came and I started contracting. I thought perhaps I had gone into labor on my own, and even earlier! Contractions kept going about every 5-8 minutes apart...BUT they weren't really getting stronger. So we waited at home hour after hour. My contractions had been going regularly for over 8 hours so we decided although they weren't much stronger, we should just go get checked. We arrived hopeful at the hospital but the news was once again not what we hoped. I was only a 2. But I had progressed so the nurses had me walk for two hours and then come back. We came back really hopeful because my contractions had gotten stronger. Not as strong as I remembered with Aben, but stronger. They checked and I was still only a 2. So we left the hospital feeling sad, but excited at the same time. Being a 2 meant I could be induced, and safely so!

July 9th came, and we were so excited. My parents were in town so they could watch Aben and help with new baby and Sean's parents were leaving that day to come see us. Everything was planned and was working out perfectly. But I should have known it was too good to be true. We called that morning to make sure they had a bed, and of course, no bed available-they were packed. They said call back later. So we did...and still no bed. Then they called and cancelled my induction that day completely. Once again I felt like the induction would never happen. So the next day we started over again. We called to check for an available bed and once again we were turned down and it wasn't looking hopeful for the 10th either. But finally the day went our way and we got admitted for an induction on July 10th.

Once we got to the hospital, everything got started really quickly. I knew this delivery would be different then Aben's but I didn't expect it to be as different. With Aben I was in labor from 2am till 4 pm. Noah came MUCH faster. The pitocin was started around 10:30 and my water was broken shortly after. The contractions didn't start of nice and calm like a normal progression. They hit hard and fast. The doctor checked me an hour to two hours after the pitocin was started and I was only a 3. I knew the day was going to be long if I was only a three! And baby was still at a station of 2- (still very high) and only 70% effaced. So we buckled down for the long haul. An hour or less later, the contractions were getting strong and very painful. My husband was a great labor support but with how fast and strong the contractions were I knew I couldn't last long with such awful contractions (I blame the pitocin for making my contractions so much stronger and closer together). So even though I was only a three I decided to get an epidural. I had wanted to wait till I was at least a 6 but...it hurt! So I got my epidural and it was heaven instantly! Sean and I were watching a movie, trying to relax, and about 45 min after my epidural, I started feeling a lot of pressure. I tried to just ignore it cause it had only been an hour and half since they checked me and I was only a 3, so there was no way I was complete. The pressure got more uncomfortable so I called my nurse in just to check. And surprise! I was a ten and baby was coming quickly at a station of 2+. The nurse jokingly said "Try not to push" but she was serious at the same time. So she quickly paged the doctor who got there 10 minutes later. The doctor made the comment that I would probably only have to push twice. I just laughed and said there was no way that would be the case. I pushed for 2 1/2 hours with Aben! So I started pushing thinking I would have to for at least 30 min. First contraction I pushed through and baby was head out. Only one more push and baby was here! Only five hours of labor and only 5 pushes-2 contractions to push through! I was such a better delivery. I did manage to pass out twice after delivering :)..WOOPS. I guess I forgot to drink enough water afterwards and thought I could still get up to the bathroom. Gratefully I didn't fall on the ground...I just got some extra cuddling time with my nurse in the bathroom and then again once she got me into a wheelchair. But all was well after drinking some extra water and some more IV fluid.

Noah was healthy and beautiful! He weighed 6 lbs 15 oz and measured 18.5 inches.How in love we were with him the instant we saw him! I can't wait to get to know him!

 

 While I loved holding my new sweet boy, I couldn't wait until Aben could come see us and his new brother. He loved seeing the baby and was so excited to kiss him and hold him. He was so sweet! He was worried about me too...with all the wires and IV hooked up he wanted to make sure I was okay and was so cuddly. I loved it. What a special moment it was to watch him meet his new baby brother!

Summer Fun!

 

Helping papa out in the yard!

Loving to fish with daddy!

If his smile doesn't say it, he LOVES the four wheeler! We couldn't get him off!

Helping papa with the church breakfast activity

Four wheeling at Henry's lake

 

Fun with the Rutschke cousins!

My big boy on Easter!

Fishing at Henry's Lake. Aben loved holding his new cousin Anniston!

Aben loves finding chairs his own size. He found this one when we were at Ikea :)

Loves going down the slide!

Henry's Lake on the boat with his cousin Camden

Thought he looked pretty cool in daddy's hat. He even put in on the "cool" way by himself

Favorite toy at Grandpa Rutschke's house!

Dance time with cousin Lexie!

Aben loved to reel the fish in, but wasn't quite so sure of the fish itself :)

Aben decided he needed the pillow more then dad when we were at the ER

Some of my favorite things!

I love this new stage Aben is in. Yes, it also means he's getting into his terrible twos and the tantrums, whining, and hitting has begun, but there are so many fun things that come with all the learning and growing. Aben has learned so much and he has picked up so many cute habits and phrases. Here are some of my favorites:

I love:

• How he sings "Twinkle, Twinkle, little star". He knows pretty much the whole song and it is just so stinkin cute when he sings it.
• When you ask him if he's okay and he is, he says "Yeah, I'm fine."
• Is learning to count, but seems to think 2 comes first so he says, "2, 1, go!"
• Loves playing hide-and-seek and will tell you to "SHH!" when you hide
• Always asks "Ready?"
• Will randomly look at you and say "Silly (sissy) momma/dadda"
• How he runs and jumps and hops around all the time
• How he loves playing with his cousins, Aunts, and Uncles and always asks for them by name. 
• I just love how he is learning to say new words everyday and remembers people by name! 

He is really the light in our home! How sweet our baby boy is. I love to cuddle and snuggle him and I love that he will still snuggle with his mommy. Its hard to think our cuddling time won't happen as often with our new baby boy coming, but oh how excited I am to watch them play and grow up together! 

Missouri and a new baby...no big deal!

I have been the worst at keeping this blog updated since I started working...so to catch up, I'm going to try to summarize these past several months.

Sean and I:

Sean got accepted to medical school! It was a stressful summer and winter applying for schools and praying to get interviews. Finally and answer to our prayers came and Sean interviewed at Kansas City. Then came the waiting game again. We had to wait 3 more weeks after the interview to find out if he had gotten in. The day after Christmas a letter from Kansas City came and Sean had been accepted! We are so excited to start this new chapter in Missouri but terrified at the same time. We will be far from home and family but are excited to make new friends and live somewhere we never would have otherwise.

During all of the interview process, we decided we wanted to keep our family growing and are now pregnant with a beautiful baby boy due July 16th! I am so excited for Aben to have a little brother to play with. It has been a really hard pregnancy, especially with working full time but we are making it through. I was definitely a lot sicker during the first trimester and I seem to have a constant head cold or some other virus. I just can't seem to stay healthy. But our baby boy is healthy and growing fast. I am measuring about a week a head of my due date and I pray that means this one will come a little early. :) I will most likely be induced, which I would have never done otherwise, but with having to move July 26th, I want this little one to be as old as possible- 3 weeks old would be great! I am excited to enjoy the newborn stage again and excited to see how Aben will be with the baby. Even more so, I am excited to be home with my boys. I hate leaving them for work, and I am looking forward to taking some time off to be a mom.

Aben:
Aben is changing too fast. He use to always be in the 30th percentile for everything but head size which was generally in the 70th. But now he averages in the 85th percentile for everything! He just hit a huge growth spurt between his 1st birthday and his 18 month appointment. He is a solid and stocky boy and I love it! He is so smart and learns new words everyday. He loves playing 'hide and seek' and loves looking for mom and daddy and saying "Where are you!". He tries to repeat anything we say and he generally gets really close to saying it correctly, especially names. He can say almost everyone in our family's name, including cousins. He is starting to say phrases and multiple words like "apple juice" (which he loves and is always asking for). He is starting to count, but his favorite numbers are 2, 4, 9 and he thinks those numbers are in order :). He does always say "1, 2, 3" before he runs off or jumps up. He loves running and hopping around. He is just such a busy boy and so independent. He absolutely loves playing outside on the playground. Sometimes he loves the slide, other times he would rather just run around and play with other toys or a ball. He is learning how to spell his name (he needs help, but he usually just says "A, B, and then waits for you to help." He is so good at asking for help when he needs it and says the word "help" so clearly. He is also really good at saying "thank you" (aug-you), "love you" (uv-you), and "please" (peez). He is finally becoming a better eater and will try and like most things, even vegetables- especially cucumbers and asparagus. He eats better when it is something he can use a fork with to feed himself because he does love feeding himself- which can make eating yogurt and cereal very messy :). We finally took the binki away and he did really well with it. Nap times were the hardest, but he is definitely off the bink and is great now. I wish we could get him potty trained before the new baby comes, but he is not even close to ready. All well!

More updates to come soon!

Precious Moments

These are two moments that have happened recently that I don't ever want to forget. I really do believe children recognize God and God's spirit  even though they are so young and have yet to truly learn who God is in this life.

I had the opportunity to take Aben to the Brigham City Temple open house with my parents. There was a long wait and it was a long tour. Beautiful, but difficult for children. Aben was extremely anxious and wanted to get down and walk around. We had to pass him around constantly to try to keep him happy. He was very squirmy but we were all trying to enjoy the beauty around us. The tour was coming to an end and we went into the Celestial room. I was holding Aben at the moment and the minute we walked into the Celestial room Aben instantly stopped trying to squirm out of my arms. He looked up and all around and you could tell he was in awe. He looked at the chandelier and said, "Wow", and he kept saying it was he looked around the room. I know he could feel the Spirit in that room and he recognized the feeling.

Aben has a book with pictures of Christ with the words to the song "If the Spirit Stood Beside Me". Aben loves reading books and this is one I like to read to him and sing the song to before bedtime. I always point to Jesus and tell him who it is. Aben can now say "Jesus" and it is the cutest thing ever. At church, when he gets fussy, sometimes we walk around and point out the pictures of Jesus in the hallways. He will repeat the name "Jesus" after we tell him who it is. But one Sunday, after Sacrament meeting we walked out of the chapel and there was the picture of Chirst, one that Aben hasn't seen. Aben saw it and pointed and said "Jesus". He recognized the Savior.

I love these precious moments! What a testament they are of the light of Christ and the innocence of children. I love being a mom and the opportunity I have of being a part of these wonderful experiences.

15 months: "New" Tricks!

So the last time I updated all the things Aben has learned to do was 10 months. So much has changed since then! Aben has grown up into a little boy...he is definitely not my little baby anymore :(.

Since 10 months Aben's "new" tricks are:

• Says "ma ma, da da, uh oh, ouch, ow, ya, no, hat, hot, up, out, bath, ball, num num, cheese, socks, shoes, na na (for banana)".
• Knows what dogs, monkeys, lions, and cats say
• Signs milk, more
• Walks all over the place (started this at 13 months)
• Still loves climbing up and down the stairs, and absolutely loves throwing things down the stairs
• Loves putting lids on and off of containers
• Rides in a front facing car seat! This has made our lives on rides so much more enjoyable!
• Dances with his arms in the air and stomps his feet
• Loves being chased
• Loves teasing! He now sticks his finger up his nose to tease us. He also started refusing to say "ma ma" because he thinks it's funny to call me "da da". 
• He still loves food, but is definitely more picky. He also loves feeding himself. He doesn't like us to really help...which can make things difficult sometimes because he isn't too coordinated with forks and spoons just yet.
• Loves being read books
• Is finally starting to go to sleep on his own for naps. 
• Spins/walks in circles
• Loves playing by himself in the mornings
• Wakes up signing milk and saying "na na". He loves a cup of warm milk and a banana for breakfast.

I love my goofy, handsome boy!

10 Of My Favorite Things

10 Things I love.....

1. When Aben dances: he shakes his booty, picks up his feet and stomps them back down, and moves his arms all around.
2. How Aben moves his eyebrows when he is drinking: especially chocolate milk and yummy juice!
3. When he eats something he likes he says "MMMM!" and gets really happy.
4. Loves bath time! And has figured out how to climb up on the shelf in the bathtub...slightly dangerous but really cute.
5. How he laughs when he's thrown in the air.
6. How he starts to breath really fast and move as fast as he can when we tell him we're going to get him and start to chase him.
7. Loves being scared by mom or dad.
8. Pokes his head around you to look you in the face to say "hello".
9. Randomly sprawls out on the floor and cuddles his blankey.
10. Sean has worked so hard at teaching Aben this new trick, and I have to admit, I absolutely love it. Aben now on cue will do an 'evil' chuckle...."Ha, Ha, Ha". Of course, it doesn't sound evil when Aben does it but rather absolutely hilarious and adorable. Oh how I love my boy!  

There are a million other things I absolutely love about this boy but these are some of my 'favorites', if you can have favorites. Aben has been such a joy in our lives. It's hard to remember what life was like before kids. When I do think back, it just seems like it must have been so dull! (I love you Sean! ;) ). No, I do love my alone time with my hubby, but children really do bring true joy into your life!