Oh have we been busy!

I just feel terrible for not posting as often as I'm sure all of you would like but getting used to being a mom is taking a lot longer than I thought. Finding time to sit and write is VERY hard! Life was blissful after the first few days, but man, after two weeks of not sleeping bliss is far fetched.

Last I posted Emma was doing fairly well breastfeeding. Well, every day is different and I'll agree with my best friend Nikki that it's one of, if not the hardest thing I have ever done. I cry a lot and wonder if I'll ever feel normal and not want to scream when she latches on. Poor thing has no idea how much it hurts me, she just sits there and sucks away! I've been to three lactation consultants and finally feel confident that I am doing it right, it's just going to take time to heal I guess. The good news is she's gaining weight like a champ and the doctor's are very pleased with her progress.

We went to the pediatrician last week for her two week appointment and learned she's in the 25th percentile for weight and 50th percentile for length. Now if we could only get her in the 100th percentile for sleep we'd be good to go!

So about this thing we call sleep. I don't think I even know what it is anymore. Emma has her days and nights mixed up and I'm not very good at taking naps like I should. How can I when I have work to do, a house to clean and people to see and talk to! We're experimenting with her feedings and awake time so hopefully soon we'll see a few restful hours. I knew it was going to be bad but geez!

Big news... we actually went out to dinner last night! Emma was amazing and Dave and I were so happy to be out of the house. We went to Cafe Asia, our favorite restaurant. It was so yummy! I even had a martini! I know, but the small things are just so dang exciting!

Well miss fuss is acting like she's hungry again so I am going to post some recent pics and get outta here. I cant promise I'll post soon, but I sure am going to try!

She's here and beautiful!!!!

I bet you're wondering what took me so long. Well, mommyhood is pretty darn time consuming and finding just a few minutes to sit down and post has proven to be difficult. But, if I've learned anything in the last week it's to be patient and forgive yourself.

I promised the birth story so here goes...

We went in Friday morning (8th) for the induction at 7:30. By 8am my doctor administered Cervidel, which is a gel to help dialate the cervix. She also broke my water and started mechanical dialation, a bag of fluid placed above the cervix that pulls down and helps things move along. Contractions started almost immediately. They were 4 minutes apart and pretty strong. We walked the halls and tried to stay on top of them but it wasn't easy. Poor Dave, he didn't know what to do.

By 12:30 my doctor wanted to start Pitocin and break my water. I asked for the epidural but the doc said she didn't think my pain was enough. (yeah right!) She just so happened to come in between contractions!!!! I was not happy but couldn't really argue. By 4pm I was 4cm and 50% efaced. Contractions we about 2 minutes apart and my doc finally ordered the epi. Man what a relief, I thought I was going to die!

The next few hours I got to hang out with my family that drove in from Michigan. Little did I know that it was the lul before the storm. My doctor came in around 6 and checked me, I was 9cm and 100%, almost ready to push. The nurse told me I had had 8 contractions in a 10 minute period! She asked if I could feel down there and couldn't so they took me off the epidural - that's when it all started. Within minutes the drugs started wearing off and I was having contractions through the roof almost every minute! 15 minutes later I started to push, drug free!!!! I pushed for 2 hours and even after two shots of lidocain (sp?) I could feel everything! I gave up. I was so tired and just didn't have it in me anymore. My doctor said she would try the vacuum, but if it didn't work they'd have to do a c-section. At that point, I could have cared less, I was in so much pain it didn't matter and it didn't seem like she was coming out naturally, no matter what I did. So, out came the vacuum. 6 pushes later at 8:34pm miss Emma was born. She was 19" long and weighed 6lbs. 10oz. My doctor said that if she was a half pound bigger she wouldn't have been able to be born vaginally.

I am very thankful that I didn't have to have a c-section, but I do have a third degree tear and a sulcus, which I was told was an internal tear on the vaginal wall. I am still very sore, even after 7 days, and cannot wait to be able to walk normal again!!!!

Emma is a great baby. She rarely cries, only when she's cold or being probed by the doctor. She does have GERD (reflux) which makes her hiccup and sneeze all the time, but I'll take it over anything more serious.

She took to breastfeeding right away but I wasn't doing it right and now have cracked and bleeding nipples. Every time I nursed I felt like crying it hurt so bad. I finally went in to see a LC nurse this morning and let me tell you, it's a whole new ballgame now.

Nights are pretty good. The first night was HORRIBLE, but we expected it. She woke up every hour and we had a really tough time. The following two nights were awesome in comparison, feeding every three hours. The third night was bad also, cluster feeding every hour for 6 hours, but last night made up for it, she slept for 5 hours straight!!!! Dav and I couldn't help but check to see if she was breathing! I'm hoping tonight is as good, it felt amazing to wake up slightly rested!

I'll post more later, but time is a valuable commodity these days and I need some couch time. Just know we are totally in love and can't wait to share her with the world. We've been advised to keep visitors away for 6 weeks because of flu season and RSV so as much as we would love to introduce her to everyone we need to hold off. I hope you all understand.

Here are some pics of your beautiful baby girl, miss Emma St. Clair Simpson

It's my due date!!!!

Hi everyone! I wanted to post over the weekend but decided to wait until today to fill you all in on what's been going on.

First, Cooper had surgery and is recovering very well. He has a 4" incision on his neck and a drain to drain out all the fluid build up. He has to wear a sock-like bandage on his neck to hold the gauze in place and absolutely HATES it! He shakes his head and the bandage falls off and the tube just flops around, it's really annoying to have to put the dang thing back on every half hour or so. But, good news is, he gets the drain out tomorrow and will only have to wear an e-collar for another week. We were giving him pain medicine but he was acting really weird. We decided to stop giving it to him and so far so good. He sure is a trooper.


On to what you all are dying to know I'm sure... sorry but no Emma yet. Today is 40 weeks but the doctor says my cervix is still very tight and closed up. She's way too comfortable in there. So, we've scheduled to be induced this Friday at 7am if she doesn't show her little face before that. We're pretty excited... just can't believe we will have her here in a few short days.

We do have a concern that I will have to have a c-section. My doctor told me that if I don't start effacing or dialating that there is a 40% chance I will have to have a c-section. So, in order to speed things up she recommends lots of walks and 4 pills of Evening Primrose Oil per day. It's supposed to help move things along. Send some good vibes that this little girl starts making progress, I really don't want a c-section!

We had a pretty eventful weekend... we put in the cabinets!!! It's so much different in the kitchen now. We still don't have countertops on the new parts, but we're planning to do an ebony stained wood until we can afford more granite. We also still need to get the new microwave for over the stove but that will come in time. Dave is going to be working this week on the electrical, water line and duct work, he's not looking forward to it but it needs to be done and we're running out of time! Here are some pics...



And, here's the official 40 week picture, taken this morning. I've only gained 25.5 lbs and am soooooo excited about it! Hopefully they will fly off when I have her and start breastfeeding. :) Thanks mom for the good genes!


I'm feeling pretty good aside from having a hard time getting around. I have lots of pelvic pain and have been having some contractions. They haven't been bad but they do happen and it makes me feel like I have to pee every time. Getting through a tv show these days without a trip to the bathroom is quite difficult! I think on average I get up about 5 times per night too, so that's fun. And, I officially now only fit into three shirts and have taken to stealing clothes from Dave. It's a good thing I don't have to go out every day, I think I'd have to wear the same outfit over and over again!

Work is under control, finally, and I feel ready. After today it should be smooth sailing until Friday. Yay!

Well, I'll post later this week if there's any change, but maybe, just maybe, the next post will be with pictures of our new little girl!!! Send love and prayers out way! I can't wait to meet her!

Coopers X-ray

If you haven't read Cooper's story scroll down before you look at the pictures...

In this image his head is to the left.

In this view his head is at the top and you're looking down at his throat.

Please pray for Cooper

You may all remember that about two months ago we took Cooper to the emergency vet because we thought he swallowed something. He had been choking and throwing up constantly and in pretty bad shape. The prognosis was that he had bad gas and digestive issues.

Over the last two months he's been wheezing and couching a lot but still the same old Coop so thinking positively we thought he was okay. Last week Dave noticed a lump on his throat that over the weekend got progressively bigger. We scheduled an appointment for this morning.

After an x-ray to his throat is has been determined that Cooper swallowed a needle and it is lodged in his throat passing through to his airway. He has to have surgery to take it out. The doctors at our practice are not comfortable with such a risky procedure so we are going for a consultation with a surgeon on Friday morning and hope to have Cooper admitted for surgery that day. Rest assured, Cooper is doing fine, he's still the same lil guy but with a large lump in his throat. He's happy and playful but is running a fever and not much of an appetite. He can't eat solid food so we are blending it to a plup with applesauce to give to him. It's quite disgusting actually but the only way he'll eat.

We're a little shocked by this news. The poor guy has been living with a needle in his throat for two months. Needless to say we are also very upset with the emergency doc for not taking an x-ray of his throat the night we went in. He would have had to have surgery either way to remove it, but two months of discomfort and meds for the "gas" were wasted.

I'm sure you can all imagine how upset we are, not just for poor Coop but for the timing. I'm trying not to stress too much, but it's hard knowing that I could deliver little Emma any day now and my puppy is going in for a pretty major surgery in a few short days. Please pray for him, and for us, that we make it through this time with little complication. Pray that Cooper pulls through and recovers amidst the stress of having a new addition to the family. Pray that we sail through delivery of Emma and can come home quickly to care for our babies. Pray that in these trying times we grow stronger.

I wanted to post some happy news as we are just a few days away from my due date, but the world has a funny way of working... I just keep telling myself that things happen for a reason.

Love to all.

Doctor's Appointment

We just got back from the doctor and to her amazement THERE HAS BEEN NO PROGRESS!! She was amazed that my cervix is still very tightly closed and Emma doesn't want to go anywhere any time soon. I guess I'm treating her too well and she's perfectly happy with her current living situation :)

So, in terms of delivery it's looking more and more like I'll be induced. We're still not sure when yet but once we make it to 4o weeks (on the 4th) we'll start making arrangements. I am still very okay with how it's all panning out - I'm actually getting very organized and using this time to get things in order - something I should have done a long long time ago.

Other than that there isn't much to report. Just piddling through each day. We do have fun plans for the weekend though, we're going to the Melting Pot tomorrow night with some friends then I have two parties on Saturday, one baby shower and one jewelry party. Fun! Sunday we're going to Fredericksburg to take the last of the stuff that needs to be stored. We're hoping to get our cabinets this week so we need to clear out a bunch of stuff. Man I can't wait for that kitchen to be done.

Well, back to work. Have a great weekend and I'll keep you all posted!

Two, maybe three weeks left!

Hi. Doing pretty good here and starting to feel more and more prepared every day. We're also making huge progress on the house and office, thanks to Barbara. We're getting so organized!

I'm feeling pretty good considering I'm 38 weeks pregnant. I'm sleeping very well aside from getting up 5 times a night to go to the bathroom (you think I'm kidding don't you?). I'm grateful that it's pretty easy to fall back asleep after the pee trips, I hope it's that easy after the 2 hour feedings when Emma's here. But seriously, I don't mind the waking up every two hours or so, it's preparation for when she's here, right?

We are so thankful to everyone that has helped us prepare for Emma. We are truly blessed to have so many generous friends and family members and I just want to say thanks to everyone for their support. We really wouldn't be where we are if it wasn't for all of you. I especially want to thank all our friends and family that have donated clothes and baby items to us including my sister-in-law Su, Aunt Jackie and Uncle Dan, Kerry and Pat Adams, and the Burner family. Thank you all so much!

As of now my mom is coming in to visit for just over a week to help and my dad and step mom are coming the weekend after she's born, whenever that is. I'm hoping my sister and brother can make the trip as well but it's up in the air because of work and school. I really can't wait for all of them to meet Emma - it's going to be so surreal! I also can't wait to introduce her to my 2 nieces Katie and BethAnne - they are so excited to have a cousin and BethAnne already decided to pass along her nickname "peanut" to Emma. She says she's grown and thinks of herself more as a cashew these day. Man she makes me laugh.

Cooper is coping. I think he knows something is going on. He's been really rebellious the past few days and really getting on Dave's nerves. He even peed on his bed a few days ago just after Dave took him out (he was out there for 10 minutes and didn't do anything!). I have a feeling he's going to be just as hard to care for as Emma! But, he's still our baby and still cute as ever. Spoiled and cute.

Okay, so I've decided that Emma is going to have a LOT of hair. This heartburn thing is terrible! It's the one thing I am not going to miss about being pregnant. I think I pop about 6-8 Tums a day and half the time I pass it up since I don't want to take too many. Oh how it reminds me of my hiatal hernia days.

Good news on the pediatrician front. We have a consult scheduled for next Tuesday with a doctor that my friend Elizabeth recommended. I'm siked about it - they're close, take our insurance and it's a recommendation I trust. I also have another recommendation from my friend Kim that we're going to check into. So, yay!

Well, I'm tired so I an going to hit the couch and read one of the 4 books I'm in the middle of. Think I can finish one before she's born?

I'll update more on Thursday after our appointment... pray for progress!

Here's the update for this week:
Your baby has really plumped up. She weighs about 6.8 pounds and she's over 19 1/2 inches long (like a leek). She has a firm grasp, which you'll soon be able to test when you hold her hand for the first time! Her organs have matured and are ready for life outside the womb.

Wondering what color your baby's eyes will be? You may not be able to tell right away. 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 won't get "lighter" or more blue. (Green, hazel, and brown eyes have more pigment than gray or blue eyes.)