Samantha Jane's Birth Story

If you are in any way connected to my little corner of the universe, you are no doubt aware that as of 2:48 pm last Thursday, November 3rd, Ben and I are parents again! We welcomed our sweet baby girl Samantha Jane after a short and very easy labor. I know some people like to hear how the birth went, and some people don't, so rather than posting it on facebook for all to see, I decided to make a blog post about it. (Hey- I needed to update the blog anyway!)

I went in for my weekly OB checkup on November 1st, thinking I would at least find out if I was making any progress. The doctor checked me, and told me I was about 2-3 cm dilated. I gave consent for my membranes to be stripped, hoping to get things moving on my own. (And let me tell you folks...that little procedure is no picnic!) Ow. After that was done, the doctor told me I was at 3. We then discussed induction due to my climbing blood pressure, and it was decided that Thursday would be the day.

I was a little uncomfortable Tuesday night, with cramping off and on, but I expected that after the procedure. I went to bed thinking of all I had to do the next day to get ready for the baby. Wednesday morning came, and I was still uncomfortable, but not unbearably so. My mom called to check on me, and I told her I felt pretty good and that I didn't think anything would happen that day. Well...needless to say, about 2 hours later, that changed.

My cramps got more intense and I started feeling major contractions. These were much worse than any braxton-hicks contractions I had ever had, and they were starting to form a pattern. I tried to ignore them and kept making my preparations around the house. When the pain got really bad, I poured myself a hot bath and soaked for a while, which seemed to help. For about 20 minutes. When the pain came back, I knew this was it, since my doctor and my pregnancy book told me that real labor doesn't go away for anything, until the baby is born. So, I dressed and went downstairs to tell Ben it was show time.

We got our hospital bags into the car, strapped Sadie into her seat, and drove to the hospital. When I got to the Labor and Delivery department, they hooked me up to monitor my contractions and the baby. I was checked again, to see if the contractions were making any more progress. I was unchanged, and since the contractions were between 5 and 8 minutes apart, I elected to go home and wait it out for a while.

I was given strict instructions from Ben to remain in bed for the rest of the day. I got the laptop and settled in. We had dinner delivered, and the waiting began.

I had contractions all night, and was very uncomfortable, but after another bath I was able to get some sleep. At 5:30 Thursday morning, Ben called the hospital to see when we needed to come in. We were told 7:30, and so we got dressed and ready to go.

We arrived at the hospital, I was prepped, and signed a lot of paperwork, and we settled in to wait for baby. I was 4 cm dilated the first time they checked me. Which meant I had made some progress overnight, hooray! They started the pitocin around 9. I got my epidural around noon. Ben's mom arrived around noon to take care of Sadie for us.

My midwife (who is awesome by the way- love her) came in at 1 to break my water. She said things would go very quickly after that, and she was right! Within an hour it was time to push. I pushed for 20 minutes at the most, and our beautiful Samantha Jane was here! She weighed in at 6 lbs 9.9 oz, and was about 19.5 inches long. She had (and still has, so far) a head full of thick dark hair, and midnight blue eyes. We fully expect them to turn brown like her father's eyes.

She has been a champion breastfeeder, and she really only cries when she's hungry. Of course, she's only a week old, so that could all change, but so far she seems to be very calm in contrast to the banshee baby that was her big sister! We all love her to death and are very happy that she's finally here! Even big sister Sadie is more fascinated with her than jealous of her. I can't wait to get her home to South Carolina and introduce her to everyone!

The Possibility of a House

As most of you know, Ben and I are moving next month! We are having our baby, then packing our things and moving from Oklahoma to Georgia. I am so excited, and I can't wait to settle into our new life as a family of four.

This week, my sister-in-law Sarah generously took time out of her fall break to go down to Richmond Hill, GA to look at some houses for us. We had a list narrowed down to about 10 houses, and she worked with the realtors to look at each one and help us decide which ones were the best. After two days of appointments, we decided on two houses, one of which is in our favorite neighborhood!

The first house she looked at is the front runner at the moment. It's in a great neighborhood, with a park, preschool, and primary school right outside the subdivision. It's also very convenient to shopping and grocery stores. So...who wants to see pics?!

 

This is (obviously) the front of the house. Love the dormers and that porch! I already have plans for that porch...

  

Living room with gas fireplace. Loving the fact that we'll have a fireplace! Not sure  how often we will need it in south Georgia though, haha. I'm loving the big windows too. 

  

Living area continued, with dining area. I adore the hardwood floors..and guess what? They are brand spanking new! Explains the shiny-ness. In this photo, you can see one of the only two things I don't like about this house. The vine stencils. They are on this wall, and on the wall going up the stairs. But, I'm willing to deal with those for such a pretty house. 

  

Check out this kitchen!! It's huge in comparison to what we are used to, and I love the white, and the fact that it has a window overlooking the backyard. This kitchen also has a large pantry, which will be so helpful in saving cabinet space. 

Stairs leading to the second floor, and there are the rest of the vines. Like I said, not my style but I think I can deal with it. 

  

Master bathroom, and helloooo garden tub! I intend to make very good use of that! These photos show you the only other thing I dislike about this house: the sponge painting in the bathrooms. But again, I will deal with it for this house. 

  

Back of the house, with another lovely porch and a patio. The back porch is not screened in like I originally thought, but it is covered. We'll just have to invest in some citronella candles for the summer! 

  

This is the back yard. While it's not huge, it offers plenty of room for two little girls to run around and play. We might have to get a play house :). 

  

And finally, our carport and storage building. This has a spot for one car, but there is plenty of driveway for parking our other vehicle. The storage will come in handy for seasonal things or outdoor stuff. 

So there you have it! Our potential house. I am so excited to finally have a house, even if we don't own it. It will be such a nice change from living in duplexes and apartments. We are submitting our application today, so keep your fingers and toes crossed that it will go through for us! 

Telling Stories

I received an email today from my grandmother. This always brightens my day, but this time it really made me smile because she told me about her trip to the National Storytelling Festival in Jonesborough, TN.

The National Storytelling Festival is held annually on the first weekend in October. It's a gathering of storytellers, musicians, and the like that takes place in the tiny town of Jonesborough. Everyone gathers in large tents to listen to the folk tales and different stories and listen to the music. I've only been one time, back around 2004 I believe, but I really enjoyed it.

My grandmother told me that my favorite storyteller from the festival passed away in June at the age of 93. Her name was Katherine Windham and she was such a fascinating lady. She grew up in Alabama, the youngest of 7 children, during the great depression. Her stories were always so interesting to me. One of my favorites is the little anecdote she told about buzzards. Did you know, if you see a buzzard gliding through the air, you should watch it until its wings flap, or it's bad luck? (I don't advocate doing this while driving...)

I listened to some audio of her last performance at the festival last year, and one of the things Mrs. Windham said really struck a chord with me. She said  (I'm paraphrasing) "there is no way of saying 'I love you' that is more pleasant than telling someone a story." I really agree with that.

People have always told stories in my family. I think maybe it's a Southern thing, but it's something we've always done, and I grew up hearing some really good ones. From dairy farmers to biochemists, I have a lot of characters in my family tree. Which leads to what my next "project" is going to be.

I would like to start compiling my family's stories into a book. My goal isn't to be published, I just want to collect them in one place so that my daughters can always have them to read and cherish the way I have. I'm going to start by talking to my grandmother when I get home, to see which stories I should include and to ask her for details. I'm really excited about this, and I can't wait to get started. Wish me luck!

Georgia on my Mind (Happy Birthday to me!)

As most of you probably know, yesterday was my 26th birthday. I'm officially almost 30. And I used to think 30 was SO old! I think I've changed my mind about that.

Ben gave me the best birthday present I could have asked for. News that we are moving to Fort Stewart at the end of this year! I almost cried when he told me. I just couldn't believe it. There was only 1 slot for a class of 66 soldiers, and we got it! It's like a dream come true.

The area we are moving to is right outside of Savannah, and minutes from the beach. There are a couple of large farmers' markets and plenty of shopping. Not to mention the historical areas to satisfy my interests. We are looking at houses in the town of Richmond Hill, GA. It's one of the more expensive areas, but it's closer to "civilization" than Hinesville, the town right outside post. (And the houses are prettier. I can't lie and say that's not a big factor!)

I am just so thankful that we have this opportunity to be closer to home. The Lord must have heard our prayers! Now if only our moving date was closer...

Where Will Our Next Home Be?

Since Ben and I were married three years ago, we have moved three times. That's about typical for his rank, since they are constantly in training for the first few years of their career. I've been told Ben's next duty station will probably be our home for the next three years. That will be nice change, to feel settled for a while instead of going to a new place knowing we will be gone within the year.

Ben has been given a list of the available slots for his class. This list of openings is based solely on the needs of the Army and where personnel is needed. So what that means for us is we get to make a "top 5" list of places we'd like to go, out of the available slots. Our list is as follows:

1. Fort Stewart, Georgia

Fort Stewart is our top choice because it's so close to home for us. We would be able to make frequent trips home, and be available for family gatherings and holidays. Fort Stewart is also close to Savannah, which is a city we love and could have a lot of fun in. At Stewart you are within driving distance of the beach as well, which would be nice for the girls. 

2. Fort Campbell, Kentucky

Fort Campbell is our second choice. We have friends that just moved there, so it would be nice to see them again. Also, I've done my research and I really think I would love to live up there. Fort Campbell sits right on the border of  Kentucky and Tennessee. It would be about an 8 hour drive home, so that's manageable.  It's also not far from the mountains and one of my favorite vacation areas, Gatlinburg, TN. Unfortunately, Campbell seems to be the place everyone wants to go in Ben's class! 

3. Fort Bragg, North Carolina

Our third choice is Fort Bragg in Fayetteville, NC. There are two reasons we didn't put this one higher on our list. One, at Fort Bragg, there is always one brigade on "alert status" at all times. What this means is, if Ben is assigned to the brigade on alert status, he cannot leave the immediate area of post and could be called up to deploy at any time. Two, I have heard some not so good things about Fayetteville. It is affectionately called Fayette-nam, to give you an idea. However, all that being said, Bragg is still super close to home and Ben may not be assigned to the brigade on alert status.

4. Fort Hood, Texas

Even as I'm typing this section, I'm breathing a heavy sigh. I just do not want to end up in Texas. Nothing against Texas, it's just I'm so tired of being in this part of the country.  I honestly don't know too much about this post, other than I don't want to go. By the way, I realize this makes me sound whiny and spoiled! 

5. Fort Lewis, Washington

This is another post I don't know much about.  We put this one on the list because we would rather end up there than at Fort Drum, in New York.  We've heard Lewis is a nice post. 

So those are our choices. Ben is being interviewed by his branch managers this week, and we should know something by mid- August. We've both been nervous since the list came out. We just want to know where we're going. Rest assured, once we have an answer I will be making a post about it so ya'll will be updated. Have a great Sunday! 

The Pregnant Lady and the Glass of Water

Today was an adventurous day. Ben, Sadie, and I took a little road trip to Oklahoma City for some baby shopping. The heat was predictably abominable, but we had a great time. The girls got some clothes and we finally managed to settle on a double stroller.  After months of research, this is the one we chose.

  

Not exactly pink and girly but we like the features.  I snagged an outfit for Sadie and some booties for the baby girl, then it was off to the mall. We did some shopping there, and decided we were hungry. So we went to the Cheese Cake Factory. 

...And this is where our story becomes interesting. Sadie was behaving beautifully, and we had just finished eating. While waiting for our check, Sadie decided she wanted to sit with me. We managed to get her to my side of the table just as one of her spider monkey extremities connected with my glass of water. My ice cold glass of water. 

(I should pause here to mention that today I was wearing my favorite pair of linen pants. They are white. I think you need this small detail to truly understand how humiliated I was.)

So there I was, with a lap full of ice water and wearing transparent pants. I said to Ben "How do I walk out of here in see-through pants?!" He and the poor waiter hurriedly mopped the flooded table while I attempted to dry myself. Sadie, of course, found this whole situation hysterical. I think I need to sit down with her and explain the definition of "funny." 

Of course, then we actually had to get up and exit the restaurant. I have never been so embarrassed in my life! People were openly staring at me, although thankfully my maternity shirt was long enough to pull down and keep everything covered. That's when it dawned on me. I was an obviously pregnant woman, with a soaked lap. They thought my water broke! Ben holding Sadie and my arm probably reinforced this notion. I half walked, half waddled my way out to the car and we headed home. 

I guess I'm glad I can find a little humor in this! I would still be dying of shame if I couldn't. I think I'll file this one away in the story vault and save it for retelling when the girls are old enough. It will probably still be hilarious then! 

Captain Daddy

Today was a very proud day for our family! Ben was officially promoted to Captain. Sadie and I went to the ceremony, and she removed his Lieutenant rank. I'm glad that she was able to participate.

Last night dinner, I told Sadie that Daddy was going to be a captain today. So I said, "Can you say Captain?" She said in her adorable way "cat tan!" We all got a good laugh at that. Then I had an idea. I turned to her and asked "Can you say Captain Daddy?" She excitedly said "Cat tan Dah-ee!" That resulted in more peals of laughter from all of us.

The title has stuck too! She said it all the way to the ceremony, when I told her we were going to see daddy. "Yay! Cat tan dah-ee!" was what she shouted over and over. She is such a daddy's girl, and it warms my heart when she gets so excited to see him.

I am truly thankful that God saw fit to bless me with such a wonderful family. Ben is a wonderful father and a great husband. With our second little one on the way, I think our little family feels complete. So, (since I know you are reading this!)  thank you Ben for all you do for us, and we are so proud of you! We love you!