My champion pooper

Yes, my little Abrie is a champ at pooping.

I've actually been quite excited about this. She didn't start passing her meconium poops (only one little one in the hospital) until Monday, and that was only one. She started passing them like crazy starting at her doctor's visit on Tuesday, and is now regularly passing the yellow- mustardy/seedy poops. Maddie and Faith are so very intrigued by her poops, and Maddie keeps saying "yeah Abrie! You're a healthy girl!" Faith is constantly wanting to check her Beeba for "boops." 

And, me? I am one proud momma of my pooper. It makes me feel quite accomplished that she's clearly growing already and digesting so well, and that I am her sole provider in the feeding department. 

1st appointment

Abrie had her first check-up today. She'll be four days old tonight!

She now weighs in at 5 lbs, 12 oz. She's too darn cute, and so small! Dan and I keep saying that we thought Faith was small! The doctor said she's doing incredibly well though, and actually mentioned that he couldn't believe she can nearly roll over completely.. something that Dan and I thought was all in our heads. She has done this now twice where we swaddle her at night and put her on her side against the bumper, and she somehow manages to roll over onto her stomach. It's crazy.. and quite scary actually. 

She sleeps SO much, but I'm thinking that will change very shortly. Knowing my luck, it will happen on Dan's first night back at work when I get the night shift all to myself!

Abrielle Hope

Baby "Beeba" is here and we are all so in love with our little Abrie.

Her name has so much significance to both Dan and I, and I couldn't help but be reminded of that during her difficult labor (the actual delivery though was quite easy-- by the 2nd push, her head was already out and they were telling me to wait!) on Friday. "Protected by God/ Strong one of God" is our Abrielle. I don't think it could be more fitting. 

She had to be induced unexpectedly on Friday morning at 37 weeks and 2 days. I knew I was being induced because of a ridiculous amount of proteins in my urine that had the doctor worried about the onset of pre-eclampsia, but I didn't realize my blood pressure would coincidentally also soar drastically starting on Friday morning. I never had a reading above 151/100 (which was with Faith and worried me to no end)- and actually never had a problem with my blood pressure at all during this pregnancy- and my first reading that morning was already 162/112. It scared me so bad. It got worse and even got over 180/120, and it never came down at all. We were so tired of that dumb machine beeping every 5 minutes when they would take my pressure. I was already anxious enough about the penicillin IV that they would have to give me because of the Group B Strep coming back positive, but then the doctor said they would have to give me magnesium sulfate for my blood pressure through an IV as well. They did try two other medicines through my IV to lower my pressure, or at least stabilize it, but they did not work. I was terrified of the magnesium. I was even more terrified of the possibility of seizures and/or a stroke without the magnesium.

I knew though that my little buddy, my companion for these 9 months, was with me through this whole thing. She kept moving and kicking and letting me know that she was there and as strong as could be. The penicillin burned so badly and the magnesium left me feeling as though my body was on fire (and then left me feeling in a total daze for the next 24 hours since I had to stay on that until Saturday night), but we kept going. They finally were able to start the Pitocin in the afternoon, and they broke my water by about 5pm or so. Dan had been so worried to leave my side, but I felt as though he could leave and told him to go get himself something for dinner after they had broken my water. He kept insisting that he was worried something would happen, but I insisted everything would be OK. Wouldn't you know within a few minutes of him leaving the room, two nurses came in and had me changing from my right side to my left side and wanting me to get on all four's, etc because Abrie's heart rate was now in the mid-50's. I was given an oxygen mask, and was more than terrified when they started calling on the emergency button to have every available nurse and doctor come into our room. There were about 10 different nurses, doctors, and residents all there trying to get my baby's heart rate back to normal. They had to turn off the Pitocin as a last ditch effort and they gave me a shot through my IV that would speed up my heart rate, which they hoped would help her. Eventually, it did work. Dan made it back in during the very end of the episode and was so incredibly upset. They ended up having to do this a second time within another hour or so because of the same reason, but the 2nd time it wasn't as bad.

Finally though I felt the pressure to push at about 8:30pm and Abrielle Hope was born at 8:42pm on Friday night, April 24th, 2009. Our third little girl, and our third precious daughter. I've never been the type to cry because of happiness, but holding her was extremely overwhelming. I saw both of her big sisters in her little face, and yet she was totally her own person. She weighed in at 6lbs even and was 19 1/2 inches long, our smallest little girl yet. 

She is precious and perfect in every way. She fits so perfectly into the little family that we have here, and Dan and I keep telling each other "what would we do without our Beeba?" It's as though she was always here, and has always been meant to be here. God knew what he was doing in giving her to us, and we feel so privileged and blessed to have her here with us.