I can't believe it finally happened....

I was able to actually speak with the nursing supervisor of the Labor and Delivery unit for Riverton hospital last week Friday. She assured me that she had received all my messages, and that things had just really been crazy. She told me that she wanted me on her team, she just didn't have a place for me at the time. She told me to please keep checking in with her on a regular basis, and that I would be hired as soon as there was a place for me. So I figured the earliest there might be an opening would be this coming Spring, as that is when that unit tends to be the busiest. So, I was planning on a rather lengthy wait. After this conversation, I promptly emailed the nursing supervisor of the med/surg unit at Riverton to inquire about needs there. She sent me a reply the next day stating that she wouldn't be able to do any more hiring until possibly January, and that she would gladly snap me up when she got approval to hire...either way, I was going to end up at that hospital!

I continued to call in for my scheduled shifts, and my extra ones. On Tuesday night I started feeling funny, scratchy throat and burning lungs, no head congestion though...so i thought maybe it was some air pollution irritation...until the fever started and the coughing began. By Wednesday I was totally miserable, and I was scheduled for a 12 hour shift that night, which I worked - it was seriously the longest night of my life. I had a puppet show the next morning which I dragged myself to and through. By the time I got home I was a total wreck. I shoved something down my throat and dragged myself up to my bed. This was about 1 p.m. Thursday afternoon, I didn't wake up until 7a.m. Friday morning. I have never slept that long in my entire life, and I felt much better for it. I still feel kind of crappy, now it's in my head...headache, stuffy/runny nose....maybe that means it's on its way out....

Anyway...on with the story....I was getting ready to head out to a puppet show for my son's entire 4th grade, when my cell started to ring. I, of course, didn't reach it on time, so I immediately redialed the number and Nina Griffin from Human Resources answered. She asked me if I remembered applying for a position in Riverton's Labor and Delivery unit and I replied that I most definitely did, and then she asked me if I was still interested and I said, "Yes, of course!" And then she uttered some of the most beautiful words one can hear from any one in a position to hire..." We would like to extend and offer of employment to you..." I was just giddy with excitement, I couldn't believe it, FINALLY!!! So, my start date is December 27th, I am so excited - I can hardly wait!

Life Goes On.....and on......and on

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! It's been a couple of weeks, so I figure I better update! A few weeks ago, I received a couple of missed calls on my cell while I was at work. They were from Rob because the night had been particularly rough. Quentin kept waking up every hour crying and in pain because he could not breathe. His crying would wake up Haedyn, and she would start crying. Rob would get Quentin re-settled and then Haedyn, and then Quentin would wake up again, and the cycle would start all over - poor Rob. I finished my shift at the hospital, took a nap in the back of my van, went to perform a puppet show, and came home. I could hear Quentin before I saw him, he sounded horrible, and I knew he would require a trip to the doctor's office...ugh...I was so tired, I just wanted to go to bed! But I knew I would just get woken up by a sad and tired little boy, so I called the doctor, and they were able to get him right in. By the time I got him there, he was in pretty bad shape. They gave him a breathing treatment, but he didn't improve much. It was then decided that he needed an epinephrine nebulizer treatment. Normally, this would require a trip to the ER, but we were in luck, it could now be done in the doctor's office - it only required a 4 hour observation......WHAT? I had only gotten about 2 hours of sleep in the last 36 hours or so, and I was exhausted, but he wasn't improving, and I wanted to avoid a hospitalization, so I agreed. Poor little man slept through most of the treatment and was just an irritable little creature through most of our stay. I wasn't able to sleep either, as there was really no place to lay down in a pediatrician's exam room, so it was pretty miserable all the way around. Eventually we were able to go home, but the doctor really thought we were going to be back in the ER again that night because Quentin really wasn't showing much improvement after 5 and a half hours of treatment. I took him home and put him to bed and put the cool mist humidifier in his room on full blast, it wasn't long before he was sleeping comfortably. I went down to fix dinner and then Rob had to leave for class. The night didn't end there either...oh no...I had gone and signed up for a Zumba class for a relief society girl's night out. Glutton for punishment that I am, I went. It was a lot of fun even if I was beyond the point of exhaustion. I guess it was good that I was so tired, because I could see that I was the fattest woman in the room, but I didn't really care. I worked really hard during that class and I figured that I would not be able to move the next day. Amazingly enough, I wasn't the least bit sore the next morning!

I have been working a lot of hours lately as well. December is traditionally a slow month in the health care business. No one wants to be in a hospital during the holidays, and so I get cancelled a lot. So I have been putting in 40 hour weeks to hopefully lessen the blow when the shift famine starts. I actually got to put in a shift at the new Riverton hospital this last Wednesday, and I really enjoyed it. I was talking to the night nursing supervisor while I was there, he was someone that I knew from the 8th floor at Intermountain Medical Center, I told him about my dilemma with the Labor and Delivery floor there, and he suggested that I just show up on the floor in the next few days and reconnect with the nurse manager, and see if she will give me an answer. He then mentioned that if they didn't want me, that their unit could definitely use me. The charge nurse was also in on this conversation, and told me that she had already emailed her boss about hiring me out of the float pool. Just a side note, her boss used to be our Education Director in the float pool, and she knows me quite well. So, there might be an opportunity there - we'll see...

My adventure doesn't end there however, as I had to return to Riverton this morning with Haedyn. It seems that croup has visited us again. Haedyn wasn't in as bad of shape as Quentin had been, but I wasn't going to wait for it to get to that point. I had put the cool mist humidifier on her for the past two nights, and she was starting to get worse. When I got to the ER, I was the only one there and was immediately taken back. Treatment was started immediately with a cool mist nebulizer which was followed by a decadron syrup dose which we hid in apple juice. By the end of two hours time, she was hardly wheezing and had stopped coughing. The doctor warned me that she might get worse tonight and that we should bring her back if that did happen. I am working a 12 hour shift right now, and my phone has been quiet, so I think she is probably fine for now. At this point, I am just hoping to remain awake for the next hour or so, so that I can return home, crawl into my bed, and sleep for a few hours. There is a plan that includes my mother in law, sister in law, my daughter, and myself going to see New Moon later on today. I saw Twilight with Brenna when it first came out, and was really disappointed along with a lot of other book fans. I have been promised that this movie is a much better representation of the book....we shall see.....

Yep...I'm bragging...

I just finished with yet another round of parent-teacher conferences. The boys did okay. Jaron got told that he just needed to relax and not stress so much, that he was doing fine. He has made huge strides in his reading levels. Cade is his usual rambunctious self, he has a need to touch everything, it's harmless, but people outside of his everyday life just freak out. His classmates like to use it to set him off. They tattle on him everytime he starts checking something out and then he gets in trouble, and then he gets mad. He hates being singled out, always has. I think if everyone concerned would just quit freaking out over nothing, then he would be just fine. He has also greatly improved in his reading levels and mathematics just seems to come naturally to him, but he hates to write. He seems to be struggling a bit this year, but I am sure that once we straighten things out, things should get better for him.
Brenna, on the other hand, is a whole different story. This child has gone and gotten A's in just about every academic area, especially in language arts. She got B's in Math and Science. She says that since she has gotten her glasses, math has been a lot easier - since she can now see the numbers and problems up on the board! She went and entered into the yearly Reflections contest this year. She created 4 separate entries for this contest, one in 3-d art, one in photography, one in music composition, and one in general fine arts. She ended up placing 1st, 2nd, and 3rd and received a participation award. She basically placed for every entry, it was amazing! None of the projects have been returned to her, so we are guessing that they go on to the state level competition. She did every last project on her own, granted, she waited until the day before they were due for a couple of them (can you say stressed out mommy?) but she got them all done and turned in! During her parent teacher conference,her teacher showed me her results from last years state end of year tests....she beat the STATE'S top score by a clean 20 points, I was - once again - completely amazed! Yeah...I was proud too...just a little...

I Can't Believe He's Four!

Quentin Joel Fox turned four today! When did that happen? It's almost as if he went from baby to big boy overnight, kind of sobering.

We started the day with the traditional birthday pancake. Quentin wasn't all too thrilled with this at first. He covered up his face when we started to sing to him and wanted us to stop. But after he blew out his candle, he was just fine, and happily plowed his way through two of them. After breakfast, his older siblings went off to school, and Quentin was ready to go to the toy store - NOW. He slapped on a pair of sandals and headed outside to get in the car. We were able to lure him back in the house, where Rob read him a Seuss Birthday Book, then he took a bath, and then we were ready to go! I had a puppet show to go do, so he came with me, and he actually watched it! After that, we hit Toys r Us, and he was in heaven. He of course wanted just about everything in the store that was transportation related. He found the battery powered ride on toys and decided that the kiddie Cadillac Escalade was the ride for him. He kept telling me, "but I wuv it mommy, I wuv it!" I then told him he already had something similar at home, to which he replied, "I pwomise, but I pwomise!" Not sure exactly what he was promising, but we eventually left with a nice wooden train set. He fell asleep on the way home, and I woke him up trying to get him into the house (that kid is heavy!) He wasn't ready to wake up and was pretty ornery for about 15 minutes, until we opened his new train set. Then he was once again his jolly little self. We then took him out for a late lunch at
Wendy's, where he downed an entire kids meal, then we went to the local library where he checked out an entire pile of Bob the Builder DVD's. Then we returned home again, where he continued to play with his train set for hours, and was still going strong when I left for work. We will be having a party for him this Saturday, where we will do the cake and ice cream thing - the kids were rather disappointed about the no cake thing tonight stating that it was his birthday today, and he just HAD to have a cake! But there was no cake tonight, and Quentin really didn't seem to mind. He knows he is having a birthday party in a couple of days and he is excited for all his friends to come and celebrate with him.
Love you birthday boy! Thanks for choosing our family! I hope you had fun today!

Still waiting....

and waiting, and waiting. Anyone who knows me well, knows how much I HATE waiting! IHC Riverton is opening in just a few short hours and I am still, as of yet, not on their payroll. Labor and Delivery called me back for a third interview, it has all been kind of strange. I got a call from the recruiter stating that the nurse manager had some additional questions for me and how soon could I meet with them. I of course said whenever, name the time, I'm there! She told me to go to the hospital that Thursday at noon. Thursday came, noon arrived, and I was at the hospital, in the brand spanking new Labor and Delivery unit. I wandered around a bit, there were tons of people there, all staff doing training modules and pass-offs (lucky ducks!) I was finally able to locate the nurse manager, and she looked slightly confused to see me standing in front of her. I told her who had sent me and why as well as who I was. She told me that she remembered who I was and was happy to see me, but that she had not been told I was coming for another interview. My heart started hammering at this point and I was starting to feel kind of stupid. But she countered all that with an "I wanted to talk to you again anyway, so there is no better time than now!" Thank you! Panic attack averted.....
She took me to her office and we sat down and started to chat. She relayed to me that the recruiter had told her that I had additional questions for her. Ummmmm, welllllll, not really, the recruiter had told me that the nurse manager had additional questions for me. Things were really starting to not add up, but I refused to be swayed. We continued talking and she asked me if I had any Scrub Tech experience to which I replied that I did not. She asked me if I had any HUC experience to which I replied that I had plenty of administrative assistant experience, just not in a Health Unit Coordinator position. She asked if I could use the company computer system, to which I answered yes, and I also added that I had helped HUC's on other units assemble patient charts. That was a plus that pleased. She of course asked about my puppet shows and I told her that these were entirely negotiable - they could be rescheduled, cancelled, or performed by someone else...not an obstacle at all. She then started ruminating about how soon she could work me into a scrub tech class, and told me that of course I knew that I would start out in the HUC position and then once I was done with the scrub class that I would move into Scrub Tech (this means I would be assisting with cesarean sections) very interesting work, and a decent pay scale bump as well. Then she asked if I had any questions for her. I asked about the class and how long it would take, she never really answered me. She was thinking out loud at this point, trying to figure how she was going to fit me in for all this, and then I asked her when I might be contacted for start dates and such. Then the bombshell dropped....she looked at me with a rather pained expression and said,"I interviewed someone yesterday and offered her the position." I remained cool, calm, and collected, although I wanted nothing more than to run out of her office, screaming like a banshee, "NOT AGAIN!" then she said, "but....." my ears perked up, hope started to bubble from the depths...."the other candidate has another job on the weekends and doesn't want to work them. She has until Monday to accept or decline the offer." My eyes nearly bugged out of my head. She offered this person a job when they flat out said they would not work weekends.....WHAT THE.....and I got turned down after the first round because they 'thought' I might not be as available as I claimed to be???? HUH????? So, as all this contradiction is swirling in my brain, I look at her and ask her to clarify the position, after all, she did say 'techs'. She then informs me that that is the ONLY position she has available at this time and that if I don't make it in this time, that I will be at the top for next time in December/January. Oh heaven help me, does it never end???????? I feel like the proverbial horse with a carrot dangling in front of my nose. I feel seriously toyed with.
All of this occurred on the 22nd of October. I have still heard absolutely nothing. I am quite positive that if the other candidate had declined the offer, that I would have been offered the job already. So I really have no other choice than to accept the inevitable rejection. I have called the recruiter, I have called the interviewing nurse manager, and I have spoken with my current nurse manager. The first and latter of the above mentioned group know nothing and have heard nothing. The nurse manager I spoke with hasn't returned any of my calls. I don't feel I can continue to call her without making a complete pest of myself. So now I pull back, and wait...and wait..and wait.......and wait some more. Serious Frustration Inflicted....need I say more?

IHC Maternity Hates Me

Pass me the short straw, find me some worms, here we go again.....I interviewed with Riverton hospital for a position in their maternity unit about 3 weeks ago. I even got called back for an individual interview. My nurse manager gave me the green light and a glowing recommendation when she was called as a reference. I got a strange email Wednesday morning about attending another interview at the hospital for the same position and that I needed to call to set it up. I called and played a bit of phone tag with the recruiter. When we finally caught up with one another, she began rapidly giving directions on where I needed to go and what I needed to bring and that I needed to be prepared to answer a question during the interview, which she would email me within a couple of hours. When she paused to draw breath I jumped in with, "Would the question, by chance, be this..?" and I proceeded to give her the question verbatim. She sounded very surprised that I knew the question and asked me how it was that I came by this knowledge. I informed her that I had just interviewed a little over two weeks ago and had even been through the individual portion and answered said question. "oh....ummmmmm.......let me get back to you after I find out what it is the nurse managers want." "okay" I said.."If they are doing another round of interviews to narrow down the field, I am game." We hung up. She called me back a couple hours later and informed me that they had given her the wrong list and that I was not needed at the interviews on Friday. Tonight, right before I called in for my shift, an email appeared in my inbox from Human Resources....

"Thank you for your interest in the position of Patient Care Technician/CNA - Maternity - Riverton Hospital-65677 We appreciated the opportunity to discuss your experience and background related to this position.

We have narrowed the field of candidates to those whose training and experience most closely matches our needs. Unfortunately, you are not among the final group of candidates being considered."

Heart hits the floor, turn on the waterworks....my night is ruined. Rob gave me a sympathetic hug and said, "Don't give up" I just said, "whatever, this just keeps happening."

So, why is the one place I want to be most, the one place I'm not allowed to be for whatever unknown reason? What's the deal universe? Give this girl a break! I know all that good stuff about the Lord's timetable, and patience has not been one of my strong points and there is probably a very good reason as to why....but I am just too distraught/pissed/downhearted to see it and/or accept it with any sort of grace.

That's all folks.....

Time Flies When You are Insane(ly) busy......

My four older children have been out in California having the time of their young lives, so what's my excuse?
I thought while the olders were gone, that I would finally get a handle on the mild chaos that is my house.....well, I thought about it! The only thing I got done was to get all of the clothes off the boys bedroom floor, really ambitious, eh?
Rob and I have been spending a lot of time with our adorable little baby, and both of us have been trying to keep on top of school work as well. I have been pulling extra shifts whenever the hospital will let me, which has been quite often lately. And I also got an interview for the maternity unit at the new Riverton hospital that is slated to open here in November. I interviewed last week Friday with a group of about 20 other women. They only held back a handful for individual interviews, of which I was one. I was told that they were looking to fill the positions within a week, I called today and was told that they were still checking references and that no offers had, as yet, been extended. I took that as a pretty good sign that I was still in the running. Because if they weren't even the slightest bit impressed by me in the individual interview, then I would've already gotten the rejection e-mail. It still might very well be in the works, but I will try to stay positive on this one.
So, that is the latest in this neck of the woods....

Meeting the Prophet

We had a very spiritually fulfilling day today. My husband and I, along with our 3 oldest children, attended the final dedicatory session for the Oquirrh Mountain temple. It was a beautiful service, wonderful talks, lovely music. The kids got really squirmy during the session..the boys did..Brenna managed quite well. We did the Hosanna shout, sang "The Spirit of God" and headed out to the van to return home after the closing prayer was said. Rob suggested we go up to the temple to see if we could catch the prophet as he left. I said sure...Cade just wanted to go home, but Brenna and Jaron were game, so we went.
Rob had worked security detail for a dedicatory session on Friday evening and had been within 5 feet of the prophet as he left for the evening, and so Rob directed us to about the same spot he had been standing that night. They had temporary barriers set up from the front of the temple out to the parking lot, so we knew we were in the right place. All of the sudden there were a lot of security folks milling around and a couple of them approached those of us standing behind the barriers to give us the 'protocol' to follow when dealing with the church brethren. We were not to approach them, they would approach us. They also told us that it would be at least 50 minutes before we could expect the prophet to exit the temple. We were more than willing to wait so that the kids could have this experience! It turns out that that is one of church security's stall tactics that they use to 'thin' crowds. They hope that people will be put off by the possibility of a long wait and that they in turn will leave. No one there 'bought' the wait time, and no one left. Shortly thereafter, we noticed two nice Mercedes sedans pull up to the edge of the sidewalk where we were standing, and the security level increased ever so slightly. Suddenly, I heard the faint strains of "We Thank Thee O God For a Prophet" coming from the group by the temple entrance. Rob looked to his right and spotted President Monson and President Eyring, he pointed them out to me and the kids, but we couldn't see anything just yet due to the crowd. Gradually they made their way down the sidewalk, greeting fellow members and shaking hands, until the procession stopped right in front of us. President Monson walked right up to my kids and shook each one of their hands, he shook my husbands' hand as well. I was a little too slow on the uptake, and missed out. I was just thrilled that my kids got to meet a prophet in person! As we were walking away, we passed by President Eyring's car as he was walking to it. He stopped, and approached my family and shook all of our hands and thanked us for coming. Brenna was quite impressed with all of it and decided that she was never going to wash her hands again...that lasted until she got home and played with her brothers' geckos..then I made her wash her hands. I told her she could write about it in her journal if she would like, but that a case of lizard caused salmonella poisoning was not an option if I could help it! Jaron was happy and excited about meeting the prophet, Cade...well...when that kid is done...he's done! He was happy to shake the prophet's hand, but it was immediately followed by, "Can we go now?" This kid pulls no punches...what a pill...before we even got out of the van, he wanted to go home! Seriously though, It was a wonderful moment, and I hope my kids remember it for the rest of their lives. I didn't get any pictures..didn't think to bring my camera and didn't have my phone with me..Oh well, this one will go in the heart vault....

General Updates...because it's been awhile....

I keep telling myself that I need to keep track of all the unique things my 3 year old says. Some of the stuff is just so dang funny. So I will list a few here, and update as new ones are heard/remembered.

'Quentinisms'
chawbwy/chubby - strawberry
gwinch - wrench
benenenenana - banana
pedder - computer
Iseewus - I'm serious
banks/binks - thanks
num nums - M&M's
Donals - McDonald's
McDonals - donuts
dacter - tractor
bishop - spaceship
sicky cup - sippy cup
mook - milk
bee - fly
twain/twuck - train/truck
Weeam - Liam
myfeewex - Felix
budderjewwy - peanut butter and jelly sandwich
chicken - any and all meat
pweese - please
muster - hamster
mymakween - Lightning McQueen car

As is typical of any three year old, most everything he says is prefaced with 'my'. He is generally delightful, as far as three year olds go, he entertains himself, and is happy most of the time as long as he is getting his way! When he is on the flip side of happy, he can often be heard saying "FINE!" with his chubby little arms folded across his chest and running off in a huff to go be in his room. If you bump into him, he will tell you to "Watch you going!" If you reprimand him, he breaks into loud sobs and wails of "I sawwy, I so sawwy!" It's really quite difficult to stay mad at the little fellow for very long, especially when he turns his big brown puppy dog eyes on you. He knows all his letters and most of his numbers, and I won't be too entirely surprised if he is reading in the next year, as he is starting to sound out the letters he so loves to play with.

Cade was baptized last weekend, and it was a very special occasion indeed. Family came from out of town for the event. I couldn't stop the tears from flowing, the Spirit was so strong! The love in the room was overpowering. His Aunt Shauna and myself sang "Beautiful Savior" while his sister Brenna accompanied. Uncle Jesse gave a wonderful talk on baptism, and one of his former primary teachers, Brother Radford, gave an awesome talk on the Holy Ghost that came with a little bag filled with physical reminders of the gift itself. One of the items that came in the bag was a little hand carved wooden heart. Cade walked around with that in his pocket for days. I have noticed that Cade has been trying really hard lately to be kinder and more loving, of course, he is also still the same rough and tumble, rambunctious boy we all know and love. But baptism seems to have really left an impression on him, and I appreciate the subtle change in him.

Jaron earned his Wolf badge in Scouts and has advanced to the Bear den. He really enjoys the scouting program and is looking forward to Scout Camp this year. He has really taken off with reading, and has discovered the Captain Underpants series. He has reached that fine old age where all humor bathroom related, armpit farts, and burps has become ever present. He loves to watch Cartoon Network on the computer, and hates doing his homework. When things don't go his way, you will hear his catchphrase of "Ugh!" ring throughout the house.

Brenna is progressing rapidly with her piano lessons. We got her a MIDI keyboard for her birthday. She doesn't quite appreciate exactly how cool it is, she wanted a digital piano. Brenna is also a voracious reader. She spends hours reading. We go to the library on a regular basis and she checks out a small mountain of books each time and she is generally done with them before the three week time limit is up. She had her 11th birthday on the 6th and invited a plethora of girls over for her party. We had 16 pre-teen girls in the house, it was just a small uproar for about 4 hours or so. They watched Ferris Bueller's Day Off, ate Chinese food, had their faces painted and generally had a pretty good time. So we officially have a 'tweenager'....more adventures ahead, I am sure.

Haedyn is slowly getting bigger. I have really been appreciating this time that I have had to enjoy her while she is so small. All my other babies just got so big so fast, it is nice that this one is taking her time. Although I am getting a little tired of all her newborn clothes and am wishing that she would just get a little bit bigger so that I can put her in all the cute 3 to 6 month stuff that I have. I took her in about 2 weeks ago for a weight check, and she weighed in at 8 lbs 6 ozs. The MA there said that by her 2 month visit, she should double her birth weight..which means she should be about 13 pounds by now, they would like to see her between 10 and 12 pounds. I have an appointment for her today to get her first set of vaccinations and to re-evaluate her growth. Right now, I am supplementing her with formula per doctor's orders. If she has gained enough weight, then I can cut back on the formula. I am glad she is such an easy going baby. She doesn't care how she gets her food, just as long as she gets it. She sleeps a lot and well, is easy to soothe, and doesn't cry too much. It doesn't hurt that she is also incredibly cute! She has started to interact with others by smiling and cooing, and she tries really hard to control her head so that she can see what is going on around her - but she is still really wobbly at this point. We had her baby blessing done the same weekend as Cades baptism. It was lovely. Rob blessed her that she would be a kind, happy, and healthy child, and that she would look to serve and help others throughout her life. He blessed her that she would listen to her parents, and follow the example of her siblings. She was also blessed that she would enter the Lord's House with a choice son of God to be married for time and all eternity and that she would be able to raise a family of her own. Haedyn didn't make a peep during the blessing, and waited to fuss after everything was done. We had everyone over at our place afterwards, there was a lot of good food and good company. It was a nice weekend overall.

I will probably add pictures at a later date/time. But if you absolutely must see pictures, there are some on Facebook..you can find me under the username momof5foxes............tatafornow!

In Quentin's World...

My son, Quentin, is at that age when just about everything that comes out of his cute little cherub mouth is belly - laugh worthy. Take, for example, this past Monday. Shauna, my sister-in-law, was over at my house visiting. She had a really snazzy looking top on (Shauna, if you ever want to 'donate' it...well, you know...) It had lots of randomly placed sequins on it, and Quentin was, well...intrigued. He innocently pointed at a group of sequins, and said in his cute little three year old voice, "Waas dat?" Shauna replied, "That's a sequin." "Is Quentin's?" queried my toddler. Shauna chuckled..."No...it's a sequin.." "SeaQuentin's?" came the reply. It was all over then...sides splitting, eyes watering... Quentin just stood there..he giggled a little because we were all laughing, he didn't understand what on earth was so funny, just that he had once again done something devastatingly cute. He gave an ever so charming, dimpled grin, and scampered downstairs to play with his ever growing horde of cars.
None of us will ever be able to say or hear the word 'sequin' without giggling...ever again.

And now we are Seven...

I went in for a regular Midwife appointment on Tuesday morning, never expecting the events that followed.....

I had an appointment at 11:30 a.m., and had planned to be told the same.."Sorry, no change", run a couple of inconsequential errands afterwards, and then return home to continue the never-ending waiting game. Boy, was I wrong!

I was taken back to the exam room and all the routine stuff was done. My midwife for this visit was Teresa Demery, someone I had met with before and enjoyed visiting with. We chatted while she checked for the baby's heartbeat, but she couldn't find it after about 2 minutes of searching. Things got real quiet as she continued to search...she asked me if I had felt any movement that morning, I answered that I had not. I could feel the panic start in the pit of my stomach, she looked at me and told me to come with her to the ultrasound room. We moved quickly and quietly down the hall and started the scan. She looked for a good five minutes...nothing...I started to bawl and moan "NONONONONONO" over and over..this couldn't be happening! She tried to calm me down and assured me that she was not an ultrasound technician, and that she was probably just missing something. She personally walked me down yet another hall to Maternal Fetal Medicine where they performed another scan and after five minutes of nail-biting searching, found a heartbeat. She was just fine..just curled in a really tight ball.
The midwife and I returned to the office, the whole staff cheered when they got the news that everything was fine. We returned to the exam room to discuss options. She checked me and found me 80% and 1 cm dilated and asked me if I would consider induction. I was so rattled by what just happened that I said yes. She was rather shaken as well and told me that she just didn't have a good feeling about sending me home to wait this out and she also said that this just doesn't happen...finding a heart beat at 39 weeks right away is the norm, it shouldn't have to be searched for and wasn't a good sign. I was instructed to go get some lunch and to produce myself at Labor and Delivery at 1:30 p.m. to get started.
I called Rob and gave him the heads up, I was still crying and scared. Rob wasn't too happy with my emotional state, but was able to calm me down, and told me he would meet me there in a few hours.
I went down to L&D, got checked in and proceeded to wait. They hooked me up to monitors and watched the baby for awhile and actually tried to talk me out of the induction, but I wasn't budging. At 3 p.m. they hooked me up to Pitocin and there was no turning back. Rob came at 6 p.m. and the contractions were just starting to get painful and much closer together. We walked for a little bit in the halls, but that even got hard to do, as I felt like I was getting hit every 30 seconds. My main plan for pain control, besides movement, was to labor in water. Wouldn't you know it, Labor and Delivery was absolutely slammed, and the ONLY room they had available was a room with a shower! UGH! So, at about 7 p.m. I couldn't handle walking any more, and there was no tub to float mindlessly in, so they brought me a birthing ball and I sat on that and rocked while the hot water from the shower beat down on my back. I had the ball sitting right over the drain and ended up flooding the entire bathroom...most awesome... I hit transition in there, and I have to say...it hit hard! I couldn't handle the pain and became extremely uncooperative. As usual, Rob had his hands full trying to keep me focused, and he was doing a pretty good job assuring me that this pain was getting me closer to my goal and that I was almost done. I didn't feel almost done, but I knew that I was DONE feeling like this, so I asked for an epidural. I said I would forgo one if I was at a 9 (then it's too late!) Angel, the midwife, checked me again..I was a good stretchy 7 cms. But I wasn't a 9, so I was done! I returned to my bed to await the anesthesiologist...it was the worst 15 minutes of my life. I was out of my mind with the pain, but he finally came. It was about 9 p.m. at this point, and I was pretty sure that I still had a good 2 hours to go before I was finally finished. Dr. Kelly Meyer administered the epidural, and he let me remain lying down while he worked. I don't think it was the most optimal positioning for him, and I couldn't remain as still as he wanted me to, so he had to stick me at least 4 times before the catheter was finally placed. He pushed the first bolus of medication in and I felt instant relief, and I was also instantly quiet and that made everyone else in the room laugh....I only said one word...."warm". Dr. Meyer cleaned up all his goodies, and the nurses and midwife set about positioning me in the bed. I was useless at this point with my legs feeling like inflated blimps, but I tried to help with my arms...it kind of worked. Anyway, they got me positioned, and Angel took a peek down at the business end of things, she looked up at me and then at the nurses..."um...umm....weeeellll...she's right there!" She said "maybe two pushes, she's coming folks!" It was a flurry of equipment at this point..Angel was trying to get her gown on and gloved up, there wasn't any time to break the bed down, she just got covered and sat down on the end of the bed and caught the baby as she quite literally just dropped out! The only thing I was aware of was the extreme amount of activity in the room, then the next thing I knew, Rob was at my side telling me he could see the head, then the head was out, then Angel lifted the baby up and onto my belly and I closed my hands around the smallest most perfect little thing I had ever seen. She was warm, squirming and screaming for all she was worth. The next thing I felt was this warm little river flowing down my side as she peed on me, and some warm gooey stuff in my hand that was covering her bum. Well, at least I knew she wasn't broken! About 15 minutes later, the placenta delivered and it was discovered that I had two lobes, so there quiet possibly could have been twins in the beginning, and also my placenta was starting to deteriorate, which explained the scare we had in the morning. It was a good thing we brought her when we did! So, after 6.5 hours of labor, we got ourselves a fine healthy, albeit little, girl!

Haedyn Janae Fox arrived March 31st, 2009 at 9:31 p.m. weighing 6 lbs. 13 ozs. and measuring 19 inches long. She is proving to be a quiet, mellow little thing who likes to sleep a lot so far. We are happy to have her and she is well loved!

The frustration sets in....

At week 36 of this pregnancy, the midwife I saw that day put in my chart that I was to be induced at 39 weeks if conditions were 'favorable'. I've been jinxed.....I have had non-stop contractions since that point, but none of it is 'changing' me to a more 'favorable' state. I GIVE UP!
I lost five pounds, and the midwife today told me that I am 70% effaced..but shut tight as a drum. I now have the cast iron cervix and the incredible floating baby...she won't drop. And if she doesn't drop and apply some pressure to my 'girly parts', then heaven knows how long she will be in there! The midwife also informed me that fifth pregnancies often go this way...lots of useless uterine irritability and little to no progress....mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmkay'....thanks!
In other news, I have officially taken leave of the hospital. My nurse manager and I agreed that it would be better for everyone if I started my maternity leave now, so I can come back that much stronger in about a month or so. She offered me a total of 14 weeks off....I don't think I need that much. I may take 8, tops. When I come back, there will be a high need in maternity, and I will finally get to cross-train, so that definitely has me looking forward to returning!
Even though I have been through the birth process a few times, I still find myself getting just a wee bit nervous as to how I'm going to handle it this time. If I am already in this much pain...how the heck am I going to deal with it when it's 'for real'? Will I even know? I am starting to get to the point where I can almost ignore the contractions, because I know they aren't doing anything to pay attention to. About the only thing that might get my attention is my water breaking...that I might have to do something about!
Sorry for the whine, folks....the wait is on.....for how long? Who knows?

OH MY HOLY FREAKIN' OUCH!

I went in for my external version today...it was one of the most excruciatingly painful moments of my life! They turned her...it took a half an hour to do so, she was VERY stubborn about being moved! I about ripped Rob's hand off, it hurt that bad!

It turns out that she was in a frank breech position, meaning that if I went into spontaneous labor and she just happened to be born, her butt would make it's entrance first, with her legs folded in front of her face. She had her little head tucked up right underneath my heart...guess she liked the sound..maybe I will try a ticking clock once she arrives and see if she sleeps through the night...

I went in to see my midwife a couple of hours later. I thought she might have flipped right on back to her former position, and the midwife could not tell by palpation if the head was still down. So they popped me into an ultrasound really quick..and she was still head down. All I can say is...PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE stay there!!! I will do almost anything to avoid a C-section...but if they have to do this again..then they are inducing me immediately afterwards!!! I swear I am going to have bruises on my belly for days!! Tonight is definitely a Lortab night!

Directionally Challenged Baby

I went in yesterday for yet another ultrasound to check the baby's size. She is not quite 7 lbs, + or - 13 ounces......AND.......she's breech. I am scheduled to go in on Tuesday for an external version, which I am NOT looking forward to! You see, even the midwife doing the simple act of rolling the doppler over my belly causes me pain, and this procedure is going to be 100 times the pressure! The doctor told me that there was a good chance that my water would break during the procedure, as well as a risk of placental abruption (placenta tearing from uterine wall - VERY BAD!)

End result....if all the drama mentioned above actually does happen, then I am whisked downstairs for an emergency C-section. I am thinking that the worst that will happen is that I will have a VERY sore belly for a couple of days. Maybe, if I am lucky, this kid will just decide to flip on her own and I can just forgo all the aforementioned drama!

So, everyone....start sending your good vibes this way...turn...turn...turn...

'Baby Door update"

I am now in the weekly check mode..I am almost done! The midwife checked me and I am 60% effaced, baby is still ballotable, and no dilation has happened. Upon palpation, baby is found to be between 5-6 lbs. Which is on the large side for this point. The midwife suggested that I might want to consider induction at 39 weeks to keep the weight manageable. I told her that there was absolutely NO way that I would consider a chemical induction! She told me that they would just break my water if I was 2-3 cm dilated and let things take their course. I agreed to that. So, whether I go on my own, or am induced, this kid is coming by the end of the month!

The Final Countdown

I have 7 weeks left to this pregnancy...where did all the time go? Of course, at the same time I am asking myself how I can possibly hold out another month and a half, it is a wonderful conundrum.
I took my first futile trip to labor and delivery yesterday afternoon. I have at least one of these visits with every single pregnancy. I worked an eight hour shift at the hospital on Sunday evening, and arrived home around 12:30 a.m. I was feeling vaguely uncomfortable, but that is kind of normal at this point...comfortable just plain ceases to exist! I finally laid down to sleep at around 1:30 a.m. and immediately started experiencing contractions..I didn't pay too much attention to them..I figured they would go away eventually and I would be able to fall asleep. They didn't go away, and I didn't get any sleep. I even had a couple of incidences where I felt like I needed to push...which freaked me out.
I got out of bed in the morning feeling absolutely miserable and extremely irritable, and STILL contracting! It didn't matter what I did, these things would not get lost! I showered, ate breakfast, and fed the 3 year old. I then went upstairs and informed Rob that I thought there might be a small problem. He volunteered to come with me to help with my puppet show - I think I accepted with poor grace...something to the effect of "If you want to.." We proceeded to the show, he carried everything in and did most of the set up, helped me with the entre act, and even sat behind the stage and handed me puppets during the show. I managed to get through all of it without any major trouble, we cleaned up and left. As we were right down the street from the hospital I am delivering at, we went straight there.
They hooked me up to all the monitors, asked me the standard zillion questions, and did a bunch of tests. They even stuck an IV in my hand and dropped in a bag of saline for good measure. They found my contractions to be mild ones, but at the rate of about 3 to 5 minutes apart. It was kind of a weird pattern....I would have a cluster of about 10 to 15 with that time spacing increment, then nothing for about 10 to 20 minutes, then they would start over again. All the tests came back negative, and they checked the 'baby door' and found it shut nice and tight, they checked it again before they let me go, and again found no change. My midwife was a bit puzzled by everything, as was I. I absolutely hate it when things go haywire with no reason as to why! My midwife wanted to give me a shot of morphine so I could go home and sleep, but I really didn't want to be that far gone, so she compromised and sent me home with a prescription of hydrocodone and orders to take it easy.
I still had contractions last night, but none with any regularity or pattern to them, thank goodness! I was scheduled to work another 8 hour shift last night, but decided I had better take my caregiver's advice, so I called in sick, took a pill, and went to bed!
I slept quite well last night, woke up this morning, and went to do another puppet show.

All quite on the western front....for now!

A Face In the Making....

Here are some shots of our baby girl that is due to arrive in April...

11 weeks and a sharp side profile...

The reason why face shots were SOOOOOO hard to get!

26 weeks...she had her arms OVER her face AND her legs folded in front of her face as well...

22 weeks....you can see some fluffy cheeks in the making...

17 weeks...still more alien than human at this point...

I went for my last ultrasound this past Friday, and she was pronounced perfect! They immediately started in on scanning her heart, she turned at just the right moment, and we got the most perfect view of her aortic tract that you could hope for! The doctor came in and scanned through all the shots, looked at me, and said, "The baby looks great! You don't need to come back anymore!" HOORAY! My prediction for this girl's appearance...well...from what I can see of her face at the 26 week shot...she looks an awful lot like her brother Cade...we shall see....