Quinn's arrival.

It's hard to believe that tomorrow night marks two whole weeks since we checked in to the hospital to have Quinn. Everything - everything! - has changed since she got here, and in the best ways! We are kind of obsessed with our new addition. She is pretty much perfect in every way.

The story of Quinn's arrival, as remembered by her mother:

Part 1: Hospital Check-In, Labor, Labor, and More Labor
Spenser and I arrived on the Labor & Delivery floor around 5:45 p.m. for our appointment to be induced. We were directed to our room and soon thereafter nurses arrived and started hooking me up to various machines and drips (external contraction monitor, fetal heart rate monitor, IV fluids and penicillin). I had been in light labor throughout the day and everyone was very encouraged to see that I had made some progress to 2 cm dilated and about 50% effaced, which bode well for a successful vaginal delivery as planned. The nurses gave me Cervidil to get things going. Spens and I ordered egg salad sandwiches from the cafeteria and watched the Gene Wilder Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. We are kind of amazed that this movie is shown to children; we both watched it multiple times during our childhoods but agree as adults that it is probably one of the creepiest films ever made.

A few hours after they gave me Cervidil, the contractions really started picking up and it was NOT a pretty sight. I am not good with pain. I am a serious pansy! Haha. The lighter contractions of early labor just felt like menstrual cramps but once they ramped up I started to feel like someone was ripping me in half at the midsection. I think I might have been able to cope better if I hadn't been hooked up to so many monitors and drips; they made it hard to move around so pretty much all I could do was sit on the edge of the bed, clutch the side rail in a white-knuckled grip and drool on myself/shake silently. Eventually a beautiful, beautiful man they called Gabe the Nurse Anesthetist came to our room with his magical epidural toolbox and made the pain virtually disappear. I pretty much wanted to kiss him on the mouth and I don't even think Spenser would have held it against me. At this point, I was dilated to 5 cm.

The next 20 hours or so passed relatively uneventfully. I slept off and on, Spenser paced the room like a caged animal and nurses and doctors periodically popped in to check progress and attempt to speed it up. I had my water broken. I had an internal contraction monitor placed (the external contraction monitor can tell you if you're having contractions, but not measure how strong they are). But no real progress; I had only dilated to 6 cm. So finally around 10 p.m. on Thursday night after 28 hours of laboring in the hospital, Dr. Fox called it and said we would be going the Cesarean route. Part of me was just relieved (yes! Get her ooooooooooooooooooout!) but part of me was disappointed. I knew that surgery would impact my participation and it would be a while before I was able to cuddle and care for my daughter.

Part II: Quinn Arrives
Right after we all agreed to proceed with the c-section, the nurses got things going and said we would proceed directly to the OR. They gave Spenser some fancy scrubs and a funny hat, and instructions on when he could enter the room and what his role would be in that setting. I was exhausted and soooo ready to get the show on the road. Also, for whatever reason the pain of contractions started to return which really put me on edge. Unfortunately, someone else on the floor needed the OR before us so we had to wait another hour and a half or so before it was our turn. It seriously felt like an eternity but what can you do?

In due time, Gabe's comrade Landon the Nurse Anesthetist showed up and administered anesthesia for the surgery. People started poking me and asking if I could feel anything; I couldn't, really. They wheeled me in to the OR, put up a curtain around my neck and started their routine. Spenser joined us. Then there was lots of tugging, tugging, tugging and then CRYING! That was the coolest moment ever. All the doctors and nurses started exclaiming "Wow! She's such a beautiful big baby!" and big she was - 9 lbs 15.6 oz, just 0.4 oz short of 10 lbs. She was born at exactly 12:00 a.m. on Friday, August 17th. I was so excited and had tears pooling in my eyes which Landon dabbed away for me because I was flat on my back and had my arms strapped down. Eventually they handed her to Spenser and he brought her over to my head. They had swaddled her and put a little cap on her head. She was incredibly calm and alert; she just laid there, moving her big dark eyes around slowly, taking it all in. I couldn't get over how perfect she looked; I was prepared to see some bruising or uterine fluid remnants but her skin was absolutely flawless and soft and her features were so beautiful. It was awesome!

Part III: Recovery, and Getting To Know Quinn
I was so anxious to hold her but it seems there are many things to attend to when a person has had major abdominal surgery. We were all temporarily wheeled (well, Quinn and I were wheeled - Spenser walked ;) back to our labor room, where the nurses started to knead my abdomen to shrink my uterus - PAIN! Eventually I got to hold and feed her for a few minutes before they wheeled us to our recovery room.

The nurses in postpartum were absolutely amazing and so incredibly helpful, but that first night was still probably one of the most difficult of our married life so far, haha. I was still hooked up to a bunch of stuff that made it difficult (or impossible, actually) to leave the bed, and in a certain amount of pain to boot. I thought pregnancy swelling was bad? Holy cow, try post-op swelling. I couldn't even bend my legs. So if Quinn woke up (which she did - a lot), Spenser either had to get her and calm her himself or at the very least get her and bring her to me...so I don't think he slept at all. We were so excited to be with her but it was a challenging situation! I was pretty anxious to leave the hospital and get into a more comfortable setting.

After we were discharged, we stayed at my mom's house for a week or so and mom, Vince and Whit were a huge help with night shifts and everything else! Spens, Quinn and I are back at our apartment now getting into our own little routine. I can't believe we got so lucky: a beautiful, healthy (a miracle in its own right) little girl surrounded by people who love and support her. This baby thing is pretty awesome! ;)

Getting acquainted at the hospital.

First bath at home!

Learning about our family's sacred Sunday afternoon nap tradition.

And practicing her many adorable facial expressions/learning how to use her eyeballs!

We LOVE you, baby girl! Welcome to our family!!

The big day.

How are we feeling at seven days overdue?

Me (the physical resemblance is striking):

Spenser:

...but also super excited, because tomorrow night we check in to Labor & Delivery at Providence St. Vincent Medical Center to HAVE OUR BABY!! My understanding is that upon arriving, I will have a dose of a med called Cervidil applied to my cervix (is this TMI? I seem to have totally lost my filter) to soften things up, then early on Thursday morning they will start administering Pitocin to get contractions going. Obviously, going into labor naturally would have been ideal but I have faith that we are in very capable hands and fully expect a good outcome. Prayers and fingers crossed that my body is receptive to the process and our little girl makes a willing exit without too much trauma! :)

{Photo sources: Here and here.}

Happy due date.

{Trust me, Fetus - this cozy bassinet is EVEN MORE comfortable than my uterus!}

Happy August 7th to all! Yes, to anyone keeping track, this is our fetus's expected date of arrival and although it is statistically rare for a baby to be born on their exact due date, she is essentially fully baked and could make an appearance at any time. I don't know how much detail everyone wants on the progress (or lack thereof) of labor, but at my last few appointments I haven't really shown any at all. No dilation, no effacement, and still carrying the baby pretty high...although she is positioned head down, which is a good thing. My doctor scheduled an induction for Wednesday, August 15th (because it is not so good for babies to go too long over their due dates) so if she doesn't come naturally before that day, we'll be headed to the hospital for a chemical nudge.

I must admit that Spenser and I are getting a little impatient to meet her (and wish she would be more responsive to our efforts to coax her out ;)! Overall, I have enjoyed the experience of being pregnant but it is starting to get a little ridiculous. I carry her almost entirely in front; if you saw me square on from behind, you might not even be able to tell I am pregnant but the front of me is huuuuuuuumongous. I can't buckle my own seat belt, bend over or down to retrieve anything I drop, or be more than fifty yards from a bathroom at any given time. Complaints aside, I know it will be worth it!

And until you hear otherwise from us, here is the most concise update we can offer: http://www.haveyouhadthatbabyyet.com/ :)

Summer flowers.

How beautiful is this bouquet from Spenser's Aunt Jane's garden? Yay summer! I wish I had a green thumb, but I guess I should at least be grateful that those I know who do are willing to share. :)

Nature's way.

{Spenser's cousin Tiffany is back in town, so our Friday night babysitting gig with her two cute daughters is back on! :) Here is baby Jac initiating a trans-utero connection with her cousin...}

Let's be perfectly honest: babies are a bit daunting. Even though I've had some previous experience with childcare and I feel pretty confident that we will be able to handle the demands of parenthood, I've still been really happy to have this little one cooking away while we enjoy the last few months of setting our own schedules, sleeping enough, going out without having to find a babysitter, etc. But I'm here to report at 39 weeks gestation that nature has its way of making a woman more than ready to say goodbye to all of those things in exchange for the ultimate reward: not being pregnant anymore having that cute little baby outside of you!! I'm so lucky that once morning sickness subsided, I have had a really comfortable pregnancy...but over the past week I've definitely started to max out on being huge. I can't remember the last time I was able to completely fill my lungs with air or effectively clip my toenails...and I have to say that my frustration with pregnancy discomforts is officially starting to outstrip any reservations I had about motherhood. Two weeks!! (Rant OVER.)

Three weeks to go.

Summer greetings to everyone! I am happy to report that as of today, I have officially reached 37 weeks gestation - "full term", meaning that if our little lady baby was born today, her lungs would be mature enough to survive life outside the womb. That's a comforting thought, but I hope she keeps cookin' until closer to the due date of August 7 because we still have some stuff on the pre-baby to-do list to accomplish before dirty diapers, doctor appointments and nocturnal schedules have us totally occupied.

Hope everyone is enjoying warm temperatures and summer fruit!

Congrats to Brad & Steph.

I just got home yesterday from Utah, where we all traveled to participate in my brother's wedding to the lovely Stephanie! The whole day was wonderful and the two of them seemed supremely happy. I lived (and was just about literally attached to the hip) with Stephanie for six ridiculously fun weeks at the end of my mission, and so one of my favorite parts of the trip was meeting her family in person and seeing where she comes from. Missionaries always describe and swap stories about their family members, but it is something different entirely to actually meet them! She has an amazing family and I am not surprised they produced such a quality person.

It was also great to spend time with my grandma and Paul in Salt Lake City. I spent a lot of weekends at their house when I was a student at BYU, but this is the first time in two years that I have had a chance to go visit them. I am excited for them to come up and visit us in August after our little lady arrives!

Aaaaand of course...it was way fun to see some other former mission companions, namely Hanalei and Amy! Hanalei and Austin always let me tag around with them but never make me feel like a third wheel, which I love. And I am currently hatching plans to visit Amy in LA because, well...she's just awesome.

Thanks to my family for massaging my swollen feet and putting up with my pregnant self in general. I missed Spenser a lot (he wasn't able to come due to work), but there are a lot of people in Utah who are very special to me so it was totally worth the trip. :)