She's here!!!!

She is here!!! We welcomed Elleana Yvonne Weaver Saturday morning, at 8:40 a.m. She weighed 7 lbs. 11 oz. (same size as big brother Eli) and was 20 1/2 in. long.

Birth story:
Now Friday evening I cut Ross, Eli, and Dom's hair, and decided to vacuum the house, just so I don't have to do it tomorrow. After I got done doing that Ross helped get the boys bathed, and dressed and took Eli up to church for his last night at VBS. My back felt really crampy/achy, and just felt "different" then it normally did. I wondered in my head if that could be the start of something, but didn't want to think anything more just in case it wasn't. I did remind myself that I did just do a lot of stuff lol. So after Eli got back from VBS, and got into bed, I relaxed with Ross for a bit. I was feeling ready for bed, so I went to bed around 10 p.m. Then around 12:30 I woke up to a contraction, but I thought maybe I had dreamt it, so I got up to go pee. I noticed that when I got up Elle felt even lower then before, and there was a lot more pressure than before. So after coming back from the bathroom, I laid down and waited to see if there would be another contraction, and sure enough 9 min later there was. Once I had another one after that I knew I was finally in labor and wanted to go downstairs to time them, cause there was no way I was going to be able to go back to bed. The first few contractions were 9 min apart, but then went down to 5-8 min. Once I timed them for a little over an hour I called my mom around 2 to let her know this is it and I need her to take off to come stay with the boys. My mom got to our house just before 4 and by that time my contractions were coming every 3 1/2 min- 4 1/2 min apart, so Ross and I got our stuff in the van and car seats transferred over to my mom's yukon, and took off to the hospital. We arrived at the hospital about 5 and got into a triage room. They checked me and I was 5 cm and 80%- 90% effaced. Since they were really busy, they said they cant admit me to a Labor and Delivery room until I was 6 cm or my water had broke. So they wanted me to wait an hour and see if I progress to a 6. Well we waited an hour and I didn't progress to a 6, which I was so bumming cause I just wanted to get the epidural, because the contractions where really uncomfortable. So they said to walk around the halls and we would check again in about an hour. So Ross and I walked the halls, and the contractions got so intense that I needed him to rub my back when a contraction came on, because of wonderful back labor. Well I could only take 45 min. of walking, so we came back to our triage room so I could get checked again, and I was a 6! YAY! I was so concerned I would lose my window of opportunity to get an epidural that I asked if I could get my IV hooked up right away before they moved me over to my L&D room (because I assumed it would be a little bit before they got around to moving me). So the nurse got an IV in me and after that my water broke (the time was 8:10 a.m.). The nurses all knew how fast Dominic came after my water broke, so they literatlly hurried me up to my L&D room right away after that! The cool thing was, I was in the same L&D room from when I had Dominic, but anyways once they got me in the room I wanted the epidural ASAP! So the anesthesiologist came right in to get my epidural going, right before she poked my back I had a contraction, and I said that it was starting to feel like Elle was going to come out. The nurse asked if I wanted them to check me before doing the epidural, and I said no just get it done with before she comes lol. So they proceeded with the epidural. Ross sat in a chair right in front of me to hold my hands. I had one more contraction before the epidural got done and it was SO SO painful that I said she is going to be coming with the next one I had. Now this is were it got crazy lol.  It turned out to be pointless to even get the epidural in the first place, cause it takes 15 min. for it to fully kick in. I just didnt expect her to come so fast, I thought I had 15 min for it to kick in before she was going to come lol. But they laid me down on the bed, checked me, and sure enough fully dialted and effaced! The next thing I know I see Ross on his knees leaning over the sink LOL. I asked the nurses if he was ok cause he had three nurses over by him  and come to find out he was dizzy, and felt like he might throw up lol. After asking if he was ok, I didnt have any time to worry about him, cause my next contraction was coming, and this was going to be it! Since Ross was out of commision to help, my girlfriend that was there for Elle's birth, and to take pictures, stepped up to help hold my leg and coach me :) Thank God she was! She was the one that helped me get through it. It was absolutey painful, but 2-3 pushes from that contraction we meet our sweet little Elle. She came out so fast, she was ready to meet the world! I didnt have a doctor in the room to deliver her, the nurses had to do it. Ross got to see Elle's birth from across the room, but didn't get to cut the cord. They had him lay down in the room next door and have juice and a sand which. Once he had that he started feeling much better and he came back to the room to see Elle and I. It was quite funny, and we laughed pretty good about it. We still chuckle when it comes up. Its a very special birth story that we can tell Elle many more times, as she gets older. He has no idea he reacted that way, cause he was just fine with Eli and Dom's birth. He thinks its because I was in so much pain.

We are doing good. We found out after having her, that she has a minor (nothing severe) cleft pallet, in the back of her mouth on her soft pallet. So I cant breast feed her because she cant latch on (cant get enough suction/latch), and that was hard for me to hear at first, but I am pumping and thats all that matters is she is still getting my milk. We had no idea that she had a cleft pallet, so it was shocking and hard to take right at first, but its all good. She is more then perfect, and we just cant thank God enough for this beautiful little girl he has given us. Its hard to believe our little girl is finally here! The boys are in love with her, and love to just watch her. Our fist day home has been some what busy but I cant be happier to be home, we have missed the boys and our bed :)

                                                               Our sweet Elleana

The end is SO close!!

Well I figured I would update my blog about my doctors appt I had this morning. It went a lot better then I thought it would. I was expecting at this appt. to not have much to talk about and my doctor to say, we wait some more! But I was wrong. On some of it that is lol. She did tell me we wait, but she scheduled my induction date for next week Thursday, the 25th (Eli's birthday). Thats if little miss E hasnt made her entrance yet. Now I was totally surprised how my doctors office does inductions. I was under the assumption that when you get induced, you go the hospital, and they get an IV in you and get patocin  going and let you body get into labor, but my doctor's office does it differently I guess. What I will do is go to my doctors office at 2 (thats my appt. time) and when I get there they will check me to see how dilated and effaced I am, and depending on my progress I will either take a pill, or ingest a drink, and I cant remember what the other possible thing was, but I take one of those and go home. What I take will ripen my cervix, and get things/labor going. She did say that they usually dont do the induction till late afternoon/evening so then I most likely wont go into labor till the next morning, but of course that all depends on my beginning progress of my cervix, and the person. It's funny in a way that my induction day is on Eli's birthday. My original due date was Eli's birthday (the 25th). The odds of her coming on the actual 25th arent any greater then not having the induction that day, if that makes sense lol. God knows when she is coming, and if his plan is for her to come on the 25th, then thats what it will be! Eli and E will just have something extra special together, on sharing their birthdays :) My doctor wanted to do the induction originally the 24th, but the ladies that do the scheduling said the 24th is out, they were busy! So the 25th it is! I mentioned something about stripping membranes at my last appt. but my doctor doesnt recommend it, and doesnt like doing it because it can just increase the risk of bacteria and infection, so she said to just go with the induction. Which now that I know how they do it, of course I will take the induction over the stripping of the membranes lol! It doesnt sound bad at all!

Of course I want things to happen naturally, so that is my main prayer this next week, for things to start naturally. I am really hoping something happens today or any day from now till this weekend! The boys yesterday were talking to her and telling her to come out :) And my husband keeps texting me from work asking if I am in labor yet? lol! Which cracks me up, cause if I was I would be calling him right away :) We are just all so excited to meet out little one, the one that is going to complete our family. Just praising God for this journey he has put me on, and I cant wait to see/meet this precious miracle he is blessing us with real soon!

Ready or Not!

Well I am 38 weeks and 1 day today, and I am impatiently waiting to meet out sweet little girl. Yesterday I was thinking maybe, just maybe something would happen based on the way I was feeling. I felt horrible yesterday! I was very achy in my back hips, and pubic bone area. I was exhausted and crampy. I was just feeling off. It was all pregnancy related, I never once thought "maybe I caught a bug." On Saturday at my mom's I was also achy, and crampy. So I would assume thats all a good thing. But nothing started yesterday, nor has anything today :( I know I am only 38 weeks and 1 day, and I have just less then 2 weeks till my due date, so thats still plenty of time for labor to start, but its so hard to not get impatient when 1. Your first child was born when you were 38 weeks exactly 2. Your second child was born when I was 38 weeks and 4 days and 3. Your extremely uncomfortable and ready to meet your baby! So in my mind I keep thinking/hoping that any day this week she is going to come.

Back in the beginning of my pregnancy a very kind lady at our church got me a Mommy to Be journal, and I have been filling out my journal through out my whole pregnancy. I love it too! It is a christian journal, so it makes me think about God and what I am going through, and leaning on him through it all. So today I decided to grab my journal (because it had been a few days since my last entry) and fill some more of it out. I want to share what my journal entry was about, because I know God is telling me something.......

Here it is:
Did you ever think about the fact that Jesus was willing to endure the cross because of the joy set before Him? Everything He went through was somehow buffered by joy.
Joy is a wonderful motivator, especially as you face the final days of your pregnancy. When you look forward to your delivery day and to that little baby you'll soon carry in your arms, the joy will surely be overwhelming. And that same joy will give you the strength to endure any pain you might face.
Every woman wonders what her delivery day will be like, and you're surely the same. Will you be in the grocery store when your water breaks? Will you be sleeping soundly in the middle of the night when those first contractions awaken you? Will you be washing dishes or tending to toddlers when those twinges in your lower back hit? Will you find yourself completely unprepared, or so you think you will have all your ducks in a row?
Whether you're ready or not, baby will come-and on her timetable! Perhaps you have the perfect date in mind, the date you're praying she'll make her appearance. She's sure to come on a different day. Maybe you have your bags packed and ready to go and are counting down the seconds until you are truly in labor. Likely, baby will make you wait even longer then you hoped! Maybe you've already made a run to the hospital or birthing center, only to be sent home again with the words "false alarm!" ringing in your ears.
No matter how much preparation you've made for the big day, it's likely you'll still be taken by surprise when the moment comes. God is in the surprise business, and He's pretty good at sweeping in when you least expect it.
As you enter the final days of your pregnancy, lean on the Lord as never before. Take care of the business at hand- nesting, nursery preparation, bills, ect., but don't forget to stop and smell the roses. Once that baby arrives, the words "free time" will be a thing of the past. You've paid your dues: carrying the child all of this time; dealing with changes in your body, your emotions, and your marriage; making purchases; pre-washing baby clothes......now it's time to rest- while you can.
And relaxing your mind is equally as important as giving your body the rest it needs. Make a conscious effort to rid yourself of any fears; turn to the Lord every time you start to question or wonder. And trust that He's just as excited about the big day as you are! The angels are likely circled about, perched and ready to usher your child into the world with a rousing hallelujah chorus.
Let the celebration begin, Mom-to-be! Let the celebration begin!

After I read that, all I could do is tear up and say WOW! A lot went through my mind 1. God is telling me to be patient, give it to him. She is going to be here in no time. 2. Slow down! God wants me to slow down and take this last bit of time (before it gets really busy) and enjoy it, relax, soak up more time with Eli and Dom before most of my attention is going to need to be on her 3. God knows her birthday (I knew He knew, but he is just reminding me). 4. He is going to get me through these last days/weeks, and ease my uncomfortableness. I never once thought about God being just as excited as I am for E's birthday. It made me tear up thinking of it, cause he loves her way more than I do, and I know he cant wait for us to meet her!

Reading that is just what I needed to read/hear from him, and it makes me feel SO much better! So I may still be a little impatient, but I see things clearly now, and what I should be doing with my time before she comes, and that is all I need to know/do right now! So today the boys and I had lots of fun after lunch playing a ton of board games, and watching cartoons. Lots of laughing and time spent with them. Makes my heart happy! Tomorrow morning the boys and I are going to go watch Despicable Me 2 (unless E comes in between now and movie time). I am so excited to take them! It will be both of their first times at a theater, and I know all 3 of us are going to enjoy it! Then Wednesday and Thursday is Eli's t-ball practice, and I have my 38 week check up doctors appt at 3 on Thursday, and Friday I will catch up on Laundry and then Ross and I and the boys have nothing planned for the weekend. Looking forward to what we have planned this week, and if God decides to sweep in when we least expect it, to introduce baby E, then we will be SO excited and ready for that!

37 weeks and Eli's birthday

So yesterday I hit week 37! Full term!!! Its amazing to think I am there now! Its also SUPER exciting that she is going to be here really soon!! I went to my doctors appt on Thursday, and it was a quick one. The boys went with me and they thought it was very cool to hear the baby's heart beat on the doppler. Eli told Ross when we got home that it is fun going to mommy's doctors :) But anyways, her heart beat was in the low 140's, and the doctor didnt tell me what my belly was measuring (I forgot to ask too) I think we got distracted by the boys, but she said she has grown a lot since the last appt. Which is good! I told her about how I am having horrible heart burn and acid reflux at night, and she put me on prilosec, cause tums wasn't cutting it at all! It is working, and I love it! My heart burn was getting really bad! My next scheduled appt is July 11th. I wont be going in for my 37th week check up because of the holidays I guess, but by my next appt, I am going to be almost 39 weeks, so it is very possible I wont be making it to my next appt! I hope so! :) Ross and I were taking our guesses on how much E is going to weigh and how long she is going to be, and Ross thinks she is going to be 6 lbs 4 oz, 20 in long, and my guess is 6 lbs 13 oz, 19 in long. So we will see who is the closest :) Braxton Hicks contractions are coming a lot, even more then my last blog, so thats a good thing!
I have everything ready! I have our room set up with her pack n play/changing table station up, all the stuff I will need in the middle of the night. Our hospital bag is packed as much as I could pack it, and her diaper bag is all set! I just need to get her car seat in the van, which I want to do today when Ross gets home from work. Everything on my "To do list before E gets here" is done! Now we are just waiting! So come on baby girl!!!!
We will be very busy in the mean time of waiting, so waiting wont feel like waiting lol! Eli starts t-ball practice today, and he is so excited! Then he has two more practices next week (July 10th, and 11th), and if I do have E then my mom will be taking him to them. The boys and I also have to get grocery shopping done today, then this week is a holiday week, and we have plans with friends and family on Wednesday and Thursday, so we are looking forward to a fun week! Then my mom's 4th of July party on Saturday! Which we just had a fun weekend this past weekend! Friday we went in to Grand Ledge, to do Eli's birthday dinner, which he picked Pizza Hut, and then we went to a few stores. We couldn't do his putt-putt golf because it was raining. Then Saturday we had Eli's and his cousin Ben's birthday party, which was a great time! The rain held off just in time! An answered prayer, so thank you Lord! Then Sunday we went to church came home, had lunch, and took off to do putt-putt golf and take Eli to Meijer's to spend his birthday money he had. We had a very busy but fun weekend! Eli did great at putt-putt golf. Ross and him hit a whole in one, one time! I even got one too (with Dom's help of course) :) It was a great family adventure weekend!
Well this could possibly be my last blog, but we will see! Hopefully my next blog post is "She is here!"