Happy (Belated) Birthday Daddy!

Chris's 29th birthday was on June 29th and these pictures were taken that day. Imogen wore a pretty dress and bow just for her daddy! We had his mom here and my family and celebrated with some dinner, gelato and spice cake -- one of his favorites!

What a Difference a Year Makes

May 28, 2007: We went to the Pittsburgh Zoo for our 2nd Anniversary and got our picture taken in front of the big polar bear
June 27, 2008: In front of the same polar bear, but with a special gift, our little Imogen.

One Month Old

Imogen's one month birthday was this past Tuesday June 24th. This picture was taken that day. I can't believe how big she's gotten! At her one month doctor appointment this week, she weighed 9 lbs 2 oz! She was born in the 25th percentile for weight and has now escalated to the 50th percentile. The doc said she's growing great :-) They did not take a length measurement, but will do that next month.

Imogen is now fitting very well into her 0-3 month clothing, so it's really fun to dress her every day! She is very aware when she is awake and loves to look around! She is a great sleeper (takes after me on that front) and usually gives us nice 4 hour stretches at night, which is pretty good considering she's breastfeeding. Imogen has great head/neck control, even though we still call her 'bobble' every so often. She'll hold her head up all by herself for awhile and then it will bobble over and hit your shoulder -- so we are very careful!

Chris and I have loved being able to see her grow and change so much over the past month. She is, by far, the cutest little girl we have ever seen -- and we're definitely not partial ;-)

Happy Birthday Mommy!

Today is my 27th birthday and I have the greatest gift in my arms. I've had a wonderful day! It started with only having to wake up once last night with Imogen. Then this afternoon my parents, nana and a few siblings came over to make me dinner and we had gelato cake from the creamery afterwards...delish!! Now, Imogen is hinting in the picture to where we are headed next -- a nap together while Chris cuts the grass. I hope everyone is enjoying their 2nd day of summer as much as I am!!

Happy Father's Day!

Imogen loves kisses from her daddy! And we'd like to wish all the fathers (and father's-to-be) out there a very happy and special father's day! Here's to many more...

The Long Awaited Birth Story

Our last picture as a 'couple'

The last picture taken of me before Imogen was born. With my Nana, sister (Anna), and mom.

Sorry it's taken me so long to get this posted, but life with a newborn baby is unpredictable at times...as many of you know! Here goes:

Due to my high BP, starting at 38 weeks I was scheduled for weekly non-stress tests at the hospital to check how the baby was doing and also to monitor my BP. My first (non-emergent)one was scheduled for May 22nd, and although I wasn't looking forward to it, I really wasn't concerned since I had already had one the week before. I sat in the chair and the nurse put the BP cuff on my arm and the belts around my belly. The baby was looking perfect on the monitor, but after only 2 BP readings, the nurse said, "Let me go get the doctor." Minutes later, a doctor that shall remain nameless walked in and said, "Congratulations, you're going to be a mother." I said, "Yea....." and he said, "And you're going to be a mother today. We're going to induce you because of your BP and we'll have a nurse wheel you up to labor and delivery." Then he turned around and left!! I was in shock...Chris was in shock. It just wasn't what we expected on a normal Thursday when I was feeling totally fine.

We got up to L&D and I wouldn't let anyone do anything to me until I spoke with my midwives. There were two of them in L&D that day and they were really great and supportive and thought it was best to get the baby out ASAP for my health. So, the induction process started...I won't go into toooooooo many details here, but in a nutshell, after 19 hours on cervidil and pitocin, I was only 1 cm dialated and 80% effaced and the baby was at a -3 station (aka...really high up in there!). So, the midwife suggested to stop pitocin and start another 12 hour round of cervidil, which I did. After that 12 hours, and then an additional 4 hours on pitocin, I still hadn't changed from that initial 1 cm!! I was devastated needless to say. Being induced was the last thing I wanted and then to be faced with a possible c-section because it wasn't working was horrific to me.

As me, Chris, my mom, Anna and Nana were sitting in the room talking about the options on the table, the baby decided she had other plans...and 'POP!' She broke my water! That was at 2:15pm on Saturday. It was honestly a pop that both Chris and I heard -- it was that loud! After it broke, my contractions because 1000 times more painful than the pitocin contractions. After about an hour of attempting to breath through them (more like crying), I had the midwife check me to see how far along I was. I thought if I was already like 8 cm, I would try to hold off on the epidural because I really didn't want one. But she checked and I was only 2 cm!!! I asked for the epi at that point because the back spasms with every contraction were more than I could bear. About an hour after the epidural went in, I got checked and was at 6 cm...I was so elated I can't even describe the feeling. An hour after that, the nurse decided to check me and she was shocked to exclaim that, "Oh my, you are complete and the head is right there!" She called in the midwife because it was time to push. I was scared because I hadn't gotten any rest (like I thought I would with the epi) and was very fatigued -- not eating for 12 hours will cause that. But I was also so excited to meet my little girl, so she kept me going.

I started pushing and after 9 contractions (about 15 minutes) she was out! It was the most amazing, surreal moment of my life. A true miracle is the only real way to describe the entire pregnancy and birth.

And if any of you were wondering why that pesky induction wasn't working, it's because Imogen decided she wanted to be a ballerina while still in the womb -- she came out one arm first and her other arm beside her head which was tilted upward instead on tucked under. So those arms of hers were blocking her from properly dropping into my pelvis and the lack of pressure was causing me to NOT dialate. Go figure. Anyway, my "active labor" time was recorded as 3 hours and 52 minutes because that's how long I was truly in labor. My water broke at 2:15pm and she was born at 6:07pm. Not bad.

Although I didn't want to be induced, when I look back at the whole situation around her arrival, I wouldn't change a thing. I know I made informed decisions regarding all my labor care and that's what I spent the 9 months preparing for. She is an angel, so perfect that I couldn't have dreamed her to be any more perfect. God is great!

Wearing Imogen

Picture of her before a walk (it's just so cute!)

One thing that I love to do is take Imogen for walks during the day while Chris is doing school work. We got a great wrap at the shower and wearing Imogen is my favorite way to walk with her. She falls right asleep! I've also worn her around the house when I'm trying to get laundry or cooking done and I know she really likes being close to me!

Imogen in the wrap

First Trip to Nonna & Nonno's House

Last week, we took Imogen to my parents house for the first time. She got to meet quite a few friends and some family that still hadn't seen her. We dressed her in one of her many ice-cream outfits for the occasion. She did great in the car and didn't mind being held by others.

Proud Grandparents look on

Imogen & her Zianna

Imogen & her Uncle Mike

Anyone Else...?

Imogen is such a great baby! She is so content all the time and loves to lay awake and look around. However, she does get into a discontent mood sometimes, and when she does, she pulls her hair! I finally captured a picture of it to share....but I'm serious -- she'll pull her hair and start screaming, then let go and stop. Clearly she is not aware of her hands yet, and we can't help but laugh when she does it. So, anyone else have this problem with their two-week-old? :-)

We put mittens on her hands to stop it sometimes, but she is a great thumbsucker, so we hate to have them on her all the time. We hope she'll grow out of it soon!

First (Sponge) Bath

Imogen had her first sponge bath this week. We have to wait to give her a real bath until her umbilical cord stump falls off -- which should be any day now. She did surprisingly well given the fact that she hates to be naked. And when the cold air hit her, she peed all over the teddy bear sponge! But don't worry, we got her all cleaned up and she smells terriffic :-) A natural beauty she is for sure.

The Best Anniversary Gift Ever

Today is our 3 year anniversary and we couldn't imagine spending it any other way than taking care of our precious angel sent to us from God above. She has completely stolen our hearts -- we can barely take our eyes off of her! The above picture may just be my favorite so far. She is wearing a cloth diaper underneath that pretty cover...cute tush for an even cuter baby girl!

Birth story is still in the works (hey, I like details and it takes awhile!) but wanted to add some more pictures...these are her current hairstyles:

Hairstyle 1: The 'spike do'

Hairstyle 2: The 'mohawk do'

Hairstyle 3: The 'professional do'

Welcome to the World...

Imogen Eliana

May 24, 2008

6:07 PM

6 pounds 13 ounces

20 inches long

Thanks to everyone who has followed along with our pregnancy blog -- Baby Girl (otherwise known as Imogen) has finally arrived! Birth Story to follow...Stay Tuned :-)

Her name, Imogen, is an Irish name that Chris and I both really love and also has a great meaning -- Image of Her Mother (which she definitely is!). Her middle name, Eliana, is a tribute to many important women in our lives: One of each of our grandmothers, Elsie & Elvira, and both of our mothers (Linda & Anna).

Name pronunciation for anyone who is curious: Imogen (Im-O-Jen) Eliana (Ell-E-Auna)

Week 39

Baby Girl's Development in Week 39: She is waiting to greet the world! She continues to build a layer of fat to help control her body temperature after birth, but it's likely she already measures about 20 inches and weighs a bit over 7 pounds! The outer layers of her skin are sloughing off as new skin forms underneath.

We sit and wait. I go to bed every night wondering if this is the night I will go into labor -- waking Chris up at 2AM with those words, 'It's time.' Like the song says, "All our bags are packed, we're ready to go...." These pictures are taken with our new camera :-) and that was the last piece we were waiting for (I mean, baby girl was waiting for).

I am still working from home so that I can lay down most of the day, and although it is extremely hard (for any of you who know me well, that wouldn't surprise you), I am taking it easy! I know most, if not all, of you are anxiously awaiting the news of baby girl's arrival and you can see her first pictures here on the blog! I will update it as soon as I can after we get home. I apologize in advance if you call and we don't answer or don't return your call -- but we are surely busy and will get back to you as soon as we can!

Here's to another week of being pregnant and the impending birth of our baby girl! I really hope you've enjoyed sharing the pregnancy with us! Will I take a 'Week 40' picture? Only she and God knows...

Relief...

As some of you already know, I had my 38 week appointment on Tuesday and it was more eventful than either Chris or I would have liked. My blood pressure was high! eek!! The midwife checked it several times and decided to send us over to the hospital for a non-stress test (for the baby) and blood pressure monitoring for me. We were there for about 4 hours and every time they took my blood pressure while I was laying on my back or sitting up, it was elevated or high. When they would take it while I was laying on my side, it was normal. So, I was placed on bedrest to keep it within a normal range. The baby looked extremely happy in there...the fluid levels were perfect and her heartrate was perfect. I wasn't really contracting all that much. My blood tests came back normal and there wasn't any protein in my urine, which is good because these are all signs of a very dangerous pregnancy complication called pre-ecclampsia. Since there weren't any signs of pre-ecclampsia besides the elevated blood pressure, which was normal when I layed down, they sent me home.

Today I had a follow up appointment so that I could get my blood pressure checked multiple times a week. It was back down to within a normal range. There still was no protein in my urine and I have no other symptoms of pre-ecclampsia, so that is very good! Chris and I were extremely relieved -- we had our bags ready to go just in case the midwife would have sent us to the hospital to get induced. Now, I have a regular midwife appointment scheduled each week and a non-stress test at the hospital each week until baby comes to make sure we are both healthy, but as of now, they are going to let baby girl come when she's ready!

The midwife said the head was very low and she expects baby girl to come soon!! :-) Stay tuned...

Zianna's Home!!

Just wanted to shout a resilient

WELCOME HOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

to baby girl's Zianna (aka...my little sister Anna!) Baby girl has been waiting for her homecoming before she made her appearance :-) Glad you had a great time in Sicily, Anna, but we are so excited to have you back in PA. Love you!!!!!

Week 38 -- Happy Mother's Day!!

Baby Girl's Development in Week 38: She has really plumped up! She weighs close to 7 lbs and is over 19 1/2 inches long. She has a firm grasp, which we'll soon be able to test when we hold her hand for the first time! Her organs have matured and are ready for life outside the womb. Wondering what color her eyes will be? If she's born with brown eyes, they'll likely stay brown. If she's born with steel gray or dark blue eyes, they may stay gray or blue or turn green, hazel, or brown by the time she's 9 months old. That's because a child's irises (the colored part of the eye) may gain more pigment in the months after she's born, but they usually won't get "lighter" or more blue. (Green, hazel, and brown eyes have more pigment than gray or blue eyes.)

This week we had a very quick midwife appointment. My blood pressure was back to normal, baby girl was still head down (and probably too big at this point to turn over), and I was still measuring 38 cm! The swelling in my feet was nothing to be concerned about as well, so all is good.

We also finished packing our bags for the Midwife Center! I am very excited about that. We have her coming home outfit selected, which you'll see in pictures in the near future :-)

I definitely think she has dropped...but only because I can really feel my belly on my lap when I sit down. The midwife said I may not experience the 'relief' that some women do when the baby drops (such as increased lung and stomach capacity) because I have a short torso.

This week we went to Babies R Us and picked up all of the remaining essentials for baby's first few weeks at home. Chris set up the co-sleeper today and we have all of her clothes and sheets washed. Now we sit and wait patiently, knowing that at any moment, our lives will change forever.

Happy Mother's Day to all mother's and moms-to-be out there!!!!!!!

The Nursery

We finally got everything opened, washed and sorted and have the nursery almost complete! Here are a few pictures :-)

My nursing corner. The chair is SO comfy cozy!

Our beautiful double dresser made by the Amish. It's quite large and heavy! (and gorgeous!)

The matching bookshelf, complete with all of our children's books! Thank you to everyone who gave us one. Baby girl will have bedtime stories to listen to for years to come.

Last but certainly not least, our beautiful crib! It turned out better than we ever expected!

Chris and I have just been sitting in the room in the evenings because it's so comfortable in there. I'm sure we'll both be spending a lot of our time in the nursery in the days to come. The countdown continues...

Week 37 -- Full Term!

Baby Girl's Development This Week: Yay! She is officially full term! So if baby arrives now, her lungs should be fully mature and ready to adjust to life outside the womb. She weighs a little over 6 pounds and measures between 19 and 2o inches.

This week we had our 36 week appointment at The Midwife Center. Everything was looking good. Baby Girl is again measuring two weeks ahead – now measuring 38 weeks! The midwife said this is still in the normal range and is nothing to be concerned about. She felt baby’s position…still head down with her back anterior (which is good!). Her heart rate was in the 140s, so quite consistent, along with my consistently low blood pressure. It’s amazing how the midwife can do it, but she closes her eyes and feels the baby in my belly from all different angles and then she says, “The baby weighs about 6 pounds 4 ounces.” Just like that. I guess when you don’t rely on ultrasound equipment you get good at going by touch. I love our midwives!!

We also reviewed our birth plan and what to do in the event that my water breaks or contractions start at home. And we've done it folks -- we finally packed our bags!! Well, except for the few items that we need to go out and buy, but I'm relieved to have that mostly done. Many of you know it's been weighing on my mind...

This past Saturday was my baby shower and it was a-m-a-z-i-n-g in every way :-) The generocity of others never ceases to amaze me! We got so many great gifts, too many to mention in fact! (although I have a few pictures of ones from my immediate family below) A special thank you to everyone who traveled from afar to share in my special day! You all mean so much to me...and you know that baby girl is so lucky to have a great extended network of friends and family. She tells me every day how much she can't wait to meet you all!!!


A very special gift from my mom. On the right are some ice-cream Robeez shoes. Could baby girl wear any other?? And on the left is a dress that my mom made for ME when I was a baby. She hasn't saved much from when we were little, but she did save this dress and gave it to me so baby girl could wear it. It's just beautiful!


My older sister, Lisa, knitted baby girl this awesome blanket! It is just as soft as it looks. I'm sure she spent countless hours on it and baby girl (and me) appreciate it so much!!


Finally a gift from my younger sister, Anna, who is studying in Sicily now. She sent the little mask case from Venice...and also baby girl's first pair of earrings! It is an Italian tradition to give jewelry to the baby and she now has her first hoops. We'll probably get her ears pierced around 6-8 weeks of age and these hoops will look just adorable on her. They are so tiny!

I want to reiterate how very thankful that Chris and I are for everything!!! We love our friends and family so very much :-)

Have a great week everyone -- and let the countdown begin...

Week 36 -- The Start of the 10th Month

Baby Girl's Development This Week: She is still packing on the pounds -- at the rate of about an ounce a day. She weighs almost 6 pounds now and is around 18.5 inches long! She's shedding most of the downy hair that covered her body, as well as the vernix caseosa, the waxy substance that protected her skin during her nine-month amniotic bath. Baby girl swallows both of these substances, along with other secretions, resulting in a blackish mixture, called meconium, that will form the contents of her first poop! (We'll be cleaning that up soon!) At the end of this week, baby girl will be considered full-term -- which is the start of when we can deliver at the Midwife Center. We are very excited about that :-)

The best part about this week was the wonderful, beautiful weather! I got to take lots of walks at lunchtime. However, the walks and weather (I think) both contributed to my slightly swollen ankles. Hmmmm....not much fun, but oh, well. I don't have to deal with them much longer. I can't believe that, most likely, baby girl will be here in the next four weeks! Chris and I are in a last minute push to get all of our home projects completed. This week, we painted the office, bought some furniture for the man-room, put up blinds, finished the last few details of our closet, among a few other things. Oh, and I did the first two loads of laundry of baby girl's clothes this week and hung them in her closet. They are so cute and so tiny!! I can't wait to see her in them!

Have a great week everyone! See lots of you on Saturday :-)

Week 35

Baby Girl's Development This Week: She doesn't have much room to maneuver now that she's over 18 inches long and tips the scales at around 5 1/4 pounds! Because it's so snug in my womb, she isn't likely to be doing somersaults anymore, but the kicking still abounds. Her kidneys are fully developed now, and her liver can process some waste products. Most of her basic physical development is now complete — she'll spend the next few weeks putting on weight.

We had another midwife appointment this week and it was really great! My blood pressure continued to be low and I was still measuring at 35 weeks (same as two weeks ago!)...which means that my growth has stabalized a bit. Because of this, we talked to the midwife and decided that the additional ultrasound was not necessary.

You'll notice in the picture that my belly looks quite large at the top and is a bit smaller towards the bottom -- this is because of baby being in the head down position. Her bum and legs are all scrunched up at my ribs, and I really haven't noticed any decrease in her movement. The swiping continues...I'm not sure when she is supposed to 'drop,' but I don't believe she has yet.

Also, this weekend we got to pick up our crib!! Here are a couple pictures:


It is so gorgeous in person! Both sides go up and down -- and the star finials are awesome...we just love it! It looks exactly like the picture we gave to the Amish guy. We hope within the next two weeks to pick up the additional two pieces of furniture.

Professional Maternity Photos

I have always wanted to get professional maternity photos...and when I was 32 weeks 6 days, we did just that. An amazing photographer, Sandy, from Red Lotus Photography came to our home and took some very beautiful pictures. We really had a great time and captured some wonderful belly shots to commemorate our growing baby girl.



Curtosy of Photographer: Sandy Yetter
http://www.redlotusphotography.com/
412.216.3914

Week 34

Baby Girl's Development at Week 34: She now weighs about 4 3/4 lbs (like an average cantaloupe) and is almost 18 inches long! Her fat layers — which she'll need to regulate her body temperature once she's born — are filling her out, making her rounder. Her skin is also smoother than ever. Her central nervous system is maturing and her lungs are continuing to mature as well.

I'm so excited to have made it to 34 weeks -- now we can breathe a sigh of relief knowing that if baby girl decides to come early, she will do just fine. Not too much going on this week. I've been feeling less of the kicks and more of the 'swiping' (as I call it). My definition of 'swiping' is when baby girl rubs her foot back and forth, back and forth along my side. I have also been feeling her body parts more as she pushes out and keeps applying pressure. Sometimes it actually hurts. Sometimes it surprises me. Sometimes she down right wears me out (and she's not even born yet!). I'll just be sitting on the couch and she will be moving so much, I won't be able to concentrate or relax because of her movements. But I wouldn't have it any other way!

Unless you also ran the race, you probably won't recognize the long sleeve t-shirt I'm wearing in the photo above -- it's from the Great Race that I ran way back when I was 6 weeks pregnant! It's getting quite tight around my belly now :-) But Chris and I plan on running it again this year on September 28th. Let me know if you're up for it and I'll sign you up for Team Creamery!!

Have a great week everyone!!

I miss......It is all worth it because.....

In no particular order, I miss...

1. Sleeping on my belly
2. Not having to pee every 5 minutes
3. Being able to shave easily
4. Sleeping through the night (see #2)
5. Being able to put my socks and shoes on easily
6. Being able to bend over
7. Not having back pain
8. RUNNING
9. Being able to get in and out of a car without grunting
10. My non-maternity clothes

It is all worth it because...

1. I don't have to share her yet
2. I get to feel her every movement
3. I am never alone
4. I get out of cleaning the litter box
5. Maternity clothes may not be cute all the time, but they are comfortable
6. People do anything for a pregnant girl
7. I will be a mommy soon
8. Giving birth to my baby will be one of the most incredible experiences of my life
9. Having this baby means that Chris and I are truly a family and not just a couple
10. I can't wait to meet this person that Chris and I created together!

Week 33

Baby Girl's Development This Week: She weighs a little over 4 lbs now (think the weight of a pineapple) and has passed the 17-inch mark. She's rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and her skeleton is hardening. The bones in her skull aren't fused together, which allows them to move and slightly overlap, thus making it easier for her to fit through the birth canal. These bones don't entirely fuse until early adulthood, so they can grow as her brain and other tissue expands during infancy and childhood.

I had another midwife appointment this week. My blood pressure was great, I don’t have any swelling and the baby is still head-down (yippee!). However, baby girl is continuing to measure big. This time, I was 32 ½ weeks at the appointment and she was measuring at 35 weeks. Can you believe it? Do I really look that big? Anyway, I am scheduled to get another ultrasound so they can check the fluid level and baby’s measurements to make sure everything is okay. I may opt out since it is after our next appointment at the midwive's office...we'll see how that one goes first.

I am feeling pretty good -- the normal lower back pain and uncomfortable stretching of my skin, but nothing to really complain about. I definitely enjoy being pregnant, but at the same time am really looking forward to wearing my normal clothes again! It won't be long now. This baby is surely going to be a sports lover. She has some pretty hard kicks and I'm sure will come out with nice leg muscles!