Wendy Lauren Kimball

 Well now that Wendy is 1 year old, it seems a good time now to record her birth!

WARNING: There are LOTS of pictures as well as some potentially gross details... Cont to read at your own risk! ;)

Thurs December 13, 2012 I woke up around 4:00am with some mild contractions.  Nothing major, but timid enough that I fell back asleep.  Around 8:30, Dan started texting me that the weather for that weekend was looking pretty aweful and that he most likely won't be able to come home.  (Side note: He made it home EVERY weekend the ENTIRE 5 MONTHS he commuted! Total Divine Intervention.) I told him that I was having some mild contractions and that he needed to be aware of them.  I told him I was going to get in the shower and see if anything happens.  So I showered, did my hair and make-up and got dressed.  During this time they were pretty minor and nothing real note-worthy.  So around 11:00, I finally headed downstairs to do lunch for the kids.  As I was walking down the stairs I felt something wet... I went to the bathroom and found that I had possibly just started the process of my water breaking! My anxiety IMMEDIATELY went through the rough.  I called Dan and told him what happened.  To which he got pretty excited and said to call the Dr's office and see what they had to say. Thus began the nurse phone tag!  During all the phone tag, I called my Mom who happened to be pretty close by running errands.  She came over IMMEDIATELY.  While I was waiting to hear back from the nurse, I decided to pack the kids overnight bag, which I totally had neglected AND finish packing last minute details in MY hospital bag.  All the meanwhile my contractions were getting stronger and closer together, ~ 6-10 min apart. After about 30 minutes of phone tag with the nurse to the doctor in between appointments, they told me to go into Labor & Delivery to get checked out!

So around 12:00pm, I took the kids to an already planned playdate at my friend Amanda's house. When I dropped off the kids I told her "So... instead of just being home and getting some stuff done, I'm actually heading into the hospital.  I think my water just broke and I'm having contractions. So... I will let you know what happens and who will pick the kids up at 4:00!"  Her face was priceless!  She was totally fine and happy and sent me on my way.  To which, I then DROVE MYSELF TO THE HOSPITAL! My mom followed me over and my Dad met us at the hospital to do the car switch stuff.

So I finally get into a triage room about 12:30/1:00 because they were SUPER busy and full. (People were there STILL from all the inductions and C-sections on 12/12/12!) Now, I had been check earlier in the week and I was barely bigger than 1 cm dialated.  I had been that way for 3 weeks solid. But when the nurse finally checked me I was a 3, but did NOT break my water! (gross detail: it turns out I had only lost my mucous plug that was more watery than normal.) SOOOO... my Doctor, Dr. Harding (who is AMAZING!) comes in and tells me that I need to walk around for 3 hours and see if anything gets going.  When they had hooked me up to the monitors, they saw SOME contractions, but they weren't reading anything big... (LIES!) So began my 3 HOURS of walking around the hospital, in a gown... OH! and you can't leave the floor! BAH! So, my Mom stayed with me and we made a route.  Walking TOTALLY got my contractions going, but I would NOT rest for very long because I was NOT going home like this. 

So, around 2:00/2:30, I called Dan.  I played a mean joke... I told him that I was a 7 and he needed to come NOW! HAH! He FREAKED OUT, and I had a good laugh and said "just kidding"!  To which, I told him I really wanted him to start heading over because I just had a feeling we were in for the real thing.  (He was going to wait until they checked me again to come...)  So, he JUMPED in the car and raced here from Grand Junction (4 hrs away). 

On the phone with Dan telling him to come.

Walking the halls...

 So finally around 3:30 when I couldn't walk anymore, I sat down on a birthing ball until the nurse came again.  At 4:00 they hooked me back up to the monitors and checked me again... No real big contractions on the monitors and I WAS STILL A 3! I almost burst into tears.  She told me I had 2 options: 1) walk the halls for ANOTHER 3 HOURS -OR- 2) go home and come back later.  Again, almost MORE TEARS! So the nurse went out to check something and while she was gone I readjusted the monitors. All of the sudden, BAM! HUGE AND REGULAR CONTRACTIONS!  My nurse came back in and went "WOW! You ARE contracting!"  UMM... DUH?!   So she went out to call my doctor again.  I was a mess with my mom.  I didn't want to walk anymore and I didn't want to go home because I KNEW we were having this baby that night and I didn't want to wait until it was too late OR do this AT HOME.  The nurse came back AGAIN and said "How would you like to have a baby tonight?"  This time, I did start crying.  My amazing doctor, Dr Harding, told them to admit me and if I needed some pitocin, they could give me some.  She also knew of my situation with Dan needing time to get here for the birth too.  So around 4:30 they started getting a room ready and admitting me. I was SO HAPPY!

The room where we became a family of 5

My amazing nurse that helped me so much!

The only food I ate ALL DAY!

Calling Dan to find out where he was after I was admitted...

...and texting him...

My AMAZING doctor, Dr Harding.

 So, we loved her so much, and she loved our story of what we were doing (plus the fact that we WERE all going to be on the 23rd), she stayed around that night to deliver me.  She wasn't even the doctor on call.  She told me she wanted to see our family through this. Like I said, she A-MA-ZING!

The MOMENT Dan FINALLY got there!  6:20

 Once Dan got there, they OFFICIALLY broke my water and I got my epidural soon after. When they checked me at this point I was a 4/5. (7:15)

The kids came and saw me at the hospital before I had Wendy.  Tanner was terrified, especially of the heart rate beeping monitor.

One last hug before little sister joined us!

One last visit before I got some rest before delivery.

So everyone left around 9:15/9:30 and I finally had my epidural and wanted to sleep a little before the big moment.  At 9:45 my nurse came in saying she need to check me because my contractions were really big on the monitor.  She told me that I was 10 and it was time to get ready! WHAT?! I progressed SUPER fast and everything just whipped into shape.  They put me on some oxygen while they got the room/bed ready and called my doctor.  Dan text my family at about 10:15 that we were going to do a couple "practice" pushes before the doctor came.  I started my practice push and they told me to stop and wait.  She was crowning.  Dr Harding came in told me to push twice and then to cough... yes... COUGH! After that, SHE was here!  Like I said before, we knew the sex and so did my parents, but NO ONE ELSE DID!  Not even our OB, our ultrasound tech didn't write it in our file on purpose when we told her what we wanted to do.  Little did I know, my parents and family were able to sneak to the hall right outside the door and heard her cry just in time.  :)

At a 10! Time to go!

Dan cutting her cord!

Meeting my little girl, Wendy Lauren Kimball! 

The name Wendy, has lots of meaning to our family.  It was the name of Dan's sister that passed away in April 2011.  Dans sister Wendy, was (and is) an AMAZING woman.  We knew if we were to have another girl, we would want to name her after Wendy.

Lauren is also special name.  It is a name that is a combination of our mothers, Lanee and Karen.

So unbelievably happy and so tired!

My smallest baby yet! 7 lbs 2 oz. She is also the earliest, arriving 10 days ahead of her induction date!

Meeting Grandma Na-may and Grandpa!

 Meeting her Aunt Haley and Uncle Collin!

Such a proud and happy Daddy!

 Usually they took my baby into the nursery for their first bath, but the nurse on duty brought everything to our room and did it in front of me!  I had never seen it before and LOVED watching and being apart of it! They also let me stay the night in the deliver room since all the Mother/Baby rooms were full. 

She LOVED getting her hair washed! Just like her Mama!

All clean!

FINALLY, some food after my LONG day!  We even got "WENDY'S"! ;)

A Wendy's Frosty in honor of WENDY BABY!

One tuckered baby and Mama!

 That night I was SO exhausted.  More so than with any of my other deliveries! Everyone didn't leave until ~2:00am.  Then the nurses kept coming in to check my stats.  I remember at one point being so tired that I couldn't even open my eyes for very long, but the nurse telling me I needed to sit up because my blood pressure was 40/20! yah!  SCARY!

My family all started coming back at 9:00 to meet little Wendy.  My grandma came, along with my aunt and uncle and cousin.  I LOVE getting visitors in the hospital.  I don't know why, but I LOVE when ANYONE comes to see me! (people TAKE NOTE!) ;)

The kids came after lunch to meet her.  We have thing where we like to "simulate" that baby "joining" our family.  So we put Wendy in the nursery and then had the kids come in.  They said hi to me and gave me hugs and I showed them my "jelly belly" and that there isn't a baby in it anymore.  That's when Dan goes to the nursery and brings her in to show them she is JOINING us, not "taking my Mommy".  (Make sense?)

Tanner was enamored at first.  But he did NOT care to see her fingers or toes or hold her AT ALL.

Brooke on the other hand was IN LOVE that she now had a SISTER!  If I would have let her, she would have held her ALL DAY, EVERYDAY!

Showing the kids Wendy's tiny features of fingers and toes.

Our first picture as a family of 5!!!

"All because 2 people fell in love"

Wendy brought the kids each a "big brother" and "big sister" bag of goodies.  Tanner was just excited to see that Polar Express was a movie on the hospital TV. :)

my THREE kids!

Her first smile caught on camera

Getting ready to head home!

Playing on the cart!

Our going home outfit!

She still loves her fingers

I remember having a LOT of anxiety at this point of leaving the Mother/Baby floor.  I was seriously thinking "HELLO?! DOESN'T ANYONE SEE HOW MANY KIDS I HAVE?! ARE YOU ALL REALLY GOING TO LET ME GO HOME WITH ALL OF THEM?!"  Thus the beginning of baby blues...

All loaded up!  Mini Van now being put to good use!

Driving home...

My sweet brother Aaron and my Grandma decorated the house for our arrival.  It was so fun to pull up to. 

Later that night, Dan had to drive back to Grand Junction so he could work that week and then have ALL of Christmas and New Years off.  It was so hard to have him leave and there were LOTS of tears. Luckily though, my sweet angel of a mother came and stayed with me and took great care of us.  That was when she introduced me to Downton Abbey! (yay!) 

We love you Wendy and we're SOOO happy you joined our family! 

Wendy Lauren Kimball

7 lbs 2 oz

20.5 inches long

December 13, 2012 (12/13/12) at 10:33pm