A baby girl is born!
Welcome to the family...
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Darek is great at documenting events as they happen so he doesn't forget the little details that may normally be lost. I, on the other hand have been a little preoccupied so I am just now getting around to recounting the events that led up to the birth of our beautiful daughter, Carina! (Kah-ree-nah)
On Friday, 11/8/2013 I was starting to have very infrequent contractions. I knew they were different and that something would be happening soon, but based on my experience with Tobiah's birth I did not know how long it may still take. I had an appointment with my midwife and things were progressing as they should, but there were not strong signals to indicate when Carina would make her big appearance. I was told to enjoy the weekend, help clean up the last of the leaves and get the Christmas lights up so then we could have the baby and the outdoor work would be finished. :-)
Well, I did just as she suggested and on Saturday I helped clean up the plants that needed to be pulled out and disposed of. Darek cleaned up the leaves in the back yard (along with the help of our neighbor Tim in the front yard) and Jerry and Darek finished with the outdoor Christmas lights. Throughout the morning and remainder of the day I was having contractions, but again, nothing regular or close together. This time they were stronger than I remembered with Tobiah so I had a feeling that the process was beginning. I took a nap on the couch that evening before going to bed, waking every half hour / hour to work through another contraction.
Sunday morning around 1:00AM I started timing the contractions as they were strong and more frequent. I did this until 3:00AM and decided it was time to call my midwife and see if she thought I should head to the hospital. After about 10 minutes on the phone with her we both agreed that I should get to the hospital as quickly as I could because my labor and delivery with Toby were pretty quick. I called LuAnn and thankfully she answered right away!! Then, I went upstairs and woke Darek up. I told him that we needed to leave and his mom would be there soon to watch Toby. He took a quick shower and loaded the car. We were in the car waiting when Jerry arrived to stay with Toby. Darek and I were off to the hospital by 3:45.
The contractions were strong by this point and about 3.5 - 4 minutes apart. I was using my Bradley Method techniques to breathe through them, while praying that we didn't hit any bumps on the road. At one point there was a deer that we had to brake hard for, but it turned out fine and we continued on. :-) We arrived at the hospital at 4:00AM. I must add that throughout my pregnancy I had been praying for a fast, easy, pain free delivery with the right staff, at the right time, and without the need for extra medical intervention. I spoke these confessions daily and believe that I was mentally prepared for what was to come.
We entered through the ER entrance and they whisked me up to the Labor and Delivery floor. I was changed into a gown and beginning to go through the intake process before Darek was able to park the car and make his way up to the L&D floor. The nurse checked to see how things were going and decided to call Jamie (my midwife) in right away. I was very close to delivering. Darek answered questions and signed some forms while I was having contractions and trying to remain quiet and calm. I was having a lot of success just taking really deep breaths through my nose and out my mouth. I did not need oxygen this time! I kept telling myself that it's like a wave and when we would get to the peak I could relax for a minute. We did not quite make it through all of the paperwork before I felt the urge to push.
I told my midwife that I thought it was time and she calmly came over, sat on the bed and said to go ahead whenever I felt the need. 7 Minutes later, Carina Joy was born!! She was placed on my chest immediately and she was very alert. She had her eyes open for 2 hours straight after her birth! She was alert and absolutely perfect!!
Darek, Tobiah and I are very blessed to have a beautiful baby girl in our family now. We are overjoyed! Tobiah has been very excited to have a baby sister. He wakes up each morning and she is the first person he wants to see after he gets up in the morning. He is very interested in holding her and he continues to say "she getting bigger!!!" because we told him that once she's bigger he will be able to play with her more. It's the sweetest love!! :-)
Carina is doing great and we are all learning how things work as a family of four. We are learning her signals and working on the whole sleep at night concept. It's not nearly as difficult the second time around and I feel more confident and understand the baby needs a little more than I did with Toby.
We are thrilled to have Carina in our lives and look forward to sharing her with all of you. She is such a blessing!
From my perspective,
~Steph
Carina Joy Schwarz
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November 10, 2013
5:31 AM
6 pounds 10 ounces
17 inches long
On Friday, 11/8/2013 I was starting to have very infrequent contractions. I knew they were different and that something would be happening soon, but based on my experience with Tobiah's birth I did not know how long it may still take. I had an appointment with my midwife and things were progressing as they should, but there were not strong signals to indicate when Carina would make her big appearance. I was told to enjoy the weekend, help clean up the last of the leaves and get the Christmas lights up so then we could have the baby and the outdoor work would be finished. :-)
Well, I did just as she suggested and on Saturday I helped clean up the plants that needed to be pulled out and disposed of. Darek cleaned up the leaves in the back yard (along with the help of our neighbor Tim in the front yard) and Jerry and Darek finished with the outdoor Christmas lights. Throughout the morning and remainder of the day I was having contractions, but again, nothing regular or close together. This time they were stronger than I remembered with Tobiah so I had a feeling that the process was beginning. I took a nap on the couch that evening before going to bed, waking every half hour / hour to work through another contraction.
Sunday morning around 1:00AM I started timing the contractions as they were strong and more frequent. I did this until 3:00AM and decided it was time to call my midwife and see if she thought I should head to the hospital. After about 10 minutes on the phone with her we both agreed that I should get to the hospital as quickly as I could because my labor and delivery with Toby were pretty quick. I called LuAnn and thankfully she answered right away!! Then, I went upstairs and woke Darek up. I told him that we needed to leave and his mom would be there soon to watch Toby. He took a quick shower and loaded the car. We were in the car waiting when Jerry arrived to stay with Toby. Darek and I were off to the hospital by 3:45.
The contractions were strong by this point and about 3.5 - 4 minutes apart. I was using my Bradley Method techniques to breathe through them, while praying that we didn't hit any bumps on the road. At one point there was a deer that we had to brake hard for, but it turned out fine and we continued on. :-) We arrived at the hospital at 4:00AM. I must add that throughout my pregnancy I had been praying for a fast, easy, pain free delivery with the right staff, at the right time, and without the need for extra medical intervention. I spoke these confessions daily and believe that I was mentally prepared for what was to come.
We entered through the ER entrance and they whisked me up to the Labor and Delivery floor. I was changed into a gown and beginning to go through the intake process before Darek was able to park the car and make his way up to the L&D floor. The nurse checked to see how things were going and decided to call Jamie (my midwife) in right away. I was very close to delivering. Darek answered questions and signed some forms while I was having contractions and trying to remain quiet and calm. I was having a lot of success just taking really deep breaths through my nose and out my mouth. I did not need oxygen this time! I kept telling myself that it's like a wave and when we would get to the peak I could relax for a minute. We did not quite make it through all of the paperwork before I felt the urge to push.
I told my midwife that I thought it was time and she calmly came over, sat on the bed and said to go ahead whenever I felt the need. 7 Minutes later, Carina Joy was born!! She was placed on my chest immediately and she was very alert. She had her eyes open for 2 hours straight after her birth! She was alert and absolutely perfect!!
Darek, Tobiah and I are very blessed to have a beautiful baby girl in our family now. We are overjoyed! Tobiah has been very excited to have a baby sister. He wakes up each morning and she is the first person he wants to see after he gets up in the morning. He is very interested in holding her and he continues to say "she getting bigger!!!" because we told him that once she's bigger he will be able to play with her more. It's the sweetest love!! :-)
Carina is doing great and we are all learning how things work as a family of four. We are learning her signals and working on the whole sleep at night concept. It's not nearly as difficult the second time around and I feel more confident and understand the baby needs a little more than I did with Toby.
We are thrilled to have Carina in our lives and look forward to sharing her with all of you. She is such a blessing!
From my perspective,
~Steph
Belated Congratulationss on your beautiful daughter Stephanie! I saw pictures Emily posted on facebook when she was born but wasn't able to find you on Facebook to congratulate you! I That's so cute that Toby says "she getting bigger!!" lol so sweet! I hope all is well with you guys!
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