Claire's Birthday- June 26,2009

Wow, it has really taken me a long time to get started on this. For those of you who haven't had a chance to hear about Claire's eventful, two day long arrival-- here goes. I'd been having some problems managing my blood pressure and she was also measuring really small. I was put on modified bed rest about 3 weeks before her arrival, but in true form, I did not rest much. About a week before she was born, one side of my body began to swell very noticeably and my blood pressure shot up pretty high. I normally run 90/60 and was having readings of 175/102. There were no other symptoms of pre-eclampsia and my blood pressure would quickly return to normal. Finally after a few days of high readings (though not consistently) combined with the fact that she was continuing to measure pretty small for gestational age, the decision was made to induce me. After two days of cervidil and petocin, followed by big contractions and zero dilation, they wheeled me into the OR for a c-section, something I had hoped to avoid.

She came out screaming, but it was a few minutes before I was able to see her and even longer until I was able to hold her. They gave her to Joel first and I could hear him talking to her, but could only tilt my head enough off the operating table to catch a small glimpse of her as Joel held her up. About an hour later, after being wheeled into recovery and having my vitals checked, I began to feel my toes again and met my sweet little girl for the first time. Having heard others' stories, I assumed it would not be love at first sight and it would take me a while to bond with her. I was so wrong. Immediately I was consumed with emotions I couldn't begin to understand and the days that followed were a blur of frustration, hormonal fluctuations, recovery pain and an intense biological need to protect this little creature from anything and everything. There were a few times when I went nights without sleeping, simply because I couldn't bear the thought of not being near her. After that, I learned to cherish my sleep because I could easily be awake 36 hours through her crying and my stressing about not being able to meet her needs. All in all, it was both easier and harder than I ever thought it would be. So welcome to the world, Baby Claire! It's a better place with you in it.

8 months down, 1 to go

Well, it seems like June 30th is just around the corner. It's so hard to believe Baby Claire will be here so soon. All in all, it has been a pretty uneventful pregnancy. Aside from the miserable morning sickness, any complications have been from simply not knowing how much pregnancy takes out of you or changes your body. It's been a shock to have to slow down and pay attention to the limits of my body.

I was planning on starting maternity leave June 12, but it looks like I may start a bit sooner. Joel's mom will be coming in to help us the week she is born (thank goodness!) and my parents will be in for a visit shortly thereafter.

One question I have is "When does the perpetual brain fart go away?" I always thought 'pregnancy-brain' was an excuse made up by a woman for typical absent-mindedness. But I can hardly follow complex sentences and can never remember where I parked my car. I lose track of my thoughts mid-conversation and ridiculous, off-topic phrases come out of my mouth with no control. Gone are the days of reading and understanding a National Book Award piece or Pulitzer Prize winning literature-- no, we're down to the Confessions of a Shopaholic series and its sisters in the chick-lit drama.

Also the weight gain-- 40lbs and counting! Here's hoping this last month will go a bit more smoothly.

Wrapping Up 2008!

So, 2008 was really quite the year for our family. We settled in Houston, announced our engagement, bought a house, Joel took and passed the TX bar exam, we made new friends, got married, went to Mexico, got the best dog in the world (Shelby) and embarked on the joys of pregnancy, two months after entering wedded bliss.
It makes me tired just thinking about it, but it was a year to savor for us. The economy tanked and work got stressful at times, but all in all-- life was grand.