Our Roadside Adventure

Well, after much waiting and tribulation, our new little guy has arrived. We had quite an adventure getting him here, and though childbirth is always kind of an adventure no matter what, I thought I'd better chronicle the whole thing, so he someday can know the whole story if he wants to. We have my in laws here for the last week, so I'd been trying not to lose patience waiting for our baby to arrive since that's what they came half way across the world to see. His due date wasn't till the 28th of October, but we really expected to see him much sooner since I was consistently measuring big. Plus, I'd been having pretty consistent Braxton-Hicks that sometimes got pretty strong for the last month or so. So on the 26th, I started to feel contractions (or birth-waves as my hypnobabies training would have me call them) that were strong enough I had to close my eyes through them. They were still six or seven minutes apart, but we decided that once I was sure they were actual labor pains, no matter how far apart, we would just make our way to the hospital  mostly because I tend to have a harder time focusing in the car and would rather be able to settle in at the hospital for the hardest part of birthing time rather than be driving through it. And we live about 35 minutes away from the hospital, so we just didn't want to take any chances. So, we packed up our mountain of stuff and started the trip. About five minutes into driveing, my contraction started getting further apart and lightening up quite a bit. We almost turned around and went home, but decided to just go there and see. When we called, the midwife wasn't super optimistic that we would be ready to admit yet, so she said to go and get checked and the hospital would let her know. When we got there, they checked me and I was about a 3. Since they couldn't admit me until I was at least a 4, they told me to stay an hour and they would recheck me. During that hour however, my birth waves had really slowed down. They only came about 1 ever 12 minutes. So after the hour passed I hadn't made any progress at all. They told me to go home and not come back until the contractions were 2-4 minutes apart, or were significantly stronger.

So we made the walk of shame back to the car, and let everyone at home know they were releasing us. But I was still pretty sure I was in the first stages of actual labor, so we decided to stay in the area and go see a movie and stay at a hotel so that we wouldn't have to go home and immediately come back. During the night my birth waves almost completely died off though, so in the morning we just went home. Charlie was very patient with me and very sweet about the whole thing. At home I lay down to rest and watch some Alias, and the waves sped up and strengthened quite a bit, but stayed put at around 7 minutes apart. Although they were consistently pretty strong, we kept waiting for them to get a little closer together so that we wouldn't end up going to the hospital and coming right back home again. After several hours of this I wanted to change tactics so I got up to start a bath. The walk over to the bath tub, and waiting for it to fill up, I had a few waves that were about a minute apart, but as soon as I sat down on the edge of the tub, they spaced out again. After getting in the tub, I had one wave that was seven apart and the next one was a two. Then I started to feel some pressure, so I got out and went to the toilet and the next contraction (one minute later) broke my water. We grabbed some clothes and ran to the car, but the waves stayed at about 1 minute apart and before we even left Spanish Fork, I was feeling the urge to push. We stopped at the Spanish Fork Clinic and Charlie ran in to see if they could possibly deliver a baby. As you can expect, he said the women looked quite shocked at the question, so he just said never mind and we started out of town. We pulled off the freeway again Provo, but then got back on again since getting to American Fork Hospital at that point seemed about as likely as getting to Provo Hospital considering the long drive through town. At this point I was sort of crying/yelling. Charlie tried to calm me but he was quite freaked out himself. On my part, it was less fear than it was my only way to deal the sudden onset of such strong and close birthing waves. It just felt better to yell. But at about 1/2 mile from the Pleasant Grove exit I told Charlie I was pushing and so he stopped and he had the presence of mind (through the scary situation of having a screaming wife and knowing he was going to have to deliver his baby) to call 911 and calmly let them know the situation. They connected him with a closeby emergency vehicle and talked him through what he should do. By the time the ambulance arrived, the head was all the way out. The EMT sort of pushed Charlie out of the way and then got me to push the baby the rest of the way out. Then he smoothly cleaned up the baby a little and suctioned out the baby's mouth and nose and cut the cord. He tried to deliver the placenta as well, but Charlie told him it usually took a while before my placenta came out, so they thankfully just left it and lifted me up onto the stretcher and into the ambulance where I got to hold and feed the baby while Charlie followed a long behind in our car. When we got to the hospital Fae and Mom were there waiting already. We went into Labor and Delivery and the midwife came and delivered the placenta and sewed me up and stuff. Our beautiful smart little dude took right to breastfeeding. And the EMTs stuck around for a minute for pictures and congratulations. They were (rightly so) quite proud thier part in the birth. One EMT said he got a little teary eyed.

Charlie's sister, Meli, recently had her baby in the backseat of her car as well, in the parking lot of the hospital. Afterwards, she seemed like the only one who was calm about it. Her mom who was there, and her husband both seemed a little traumatized. I always wondered about that, but now I understand a little better. As far as my part of bringing the baby into the world, it wasn't much different than it would have been in the hospital. The Birth waves in the car weren't very pleasant I can tell you, so there probably would have been less screaming in a place where I would have been able to focus, but other than that, everything I did would have been about the same no matter where I was. Charlie's part was drastically different however. He was wise and level headed about the whole thing, but he was also traumatized by having his wife screaming and having all the weight of the decisions rest on him. Our other two kids Charlie caught when they were coming as well, but they were in a very controlled and germ free environment, with a midwife over his shoulder talking him through it. He admitted that he came away from this birth emotionally exhausted  I'm very proud of him and what he did. He made it possible for me to feel safe and confident in a situation which otherwise might have been very scary for me, or made the labor even harder. He also helped me not to tear very badly either. Great job hubby! The EMTs were great too. I was worried about giving everyone on the freeway a show, but they were very careful to keep me modest, and they were quite efficient and charming. So, not exactly like I had hoped for and my birth plan went out the window, but we feel great and the baby is doing great and Charlie will hopefully recover soon. :) I feel very blessed to be married to such a man. And blessed that the baby seems to be fine despite the unsanitary conditions. Heavenly father was certainly watching out for us.

Sometimes I think being pregnant is a little like shaving your head. If I decided to pull a Natalie Portman and go bald, I think I would be revealing a very lopsided, bumpy head. But I've heard that you never know until you try it. Some people thought theirs would be bumpy and it turned out not too bad, and others thought it would be smooth and it ended up really bumpy, apparently. I would never shave mine anyway, I just don't have the face for it, let alone the head for it.

Well for some reason, when I'm pregnant, my stomach looks like I have a very lopsided, bumpy volleyball under my shirt. Some people wear their baby bump kind of hidden, which must have its own set of problems.  Then there are those of us that keep it way out front and I can tell you it gets incredibly awkward and uncomfortable. And of course there are lots of in-betweens.


Before I got pregnant, I guess I thought I would look something like this, 

Instead, I always look more like this.

Anyway you just never know. It doesn't seem to have very much to do with body type, as far as I can tell. People stop me on the street to ask me if I'm having a boy or girl because apparently carrying way out front is indicative of having a boy. (Course, I was carrying way out front with Lydia too, but why spoil their delusions?) But I've never met anyone else who carried a baby out as far as I do. It often makes me the target of some speculation in public, especially toward the end of my pregnancy. I'm not really a fan of cavorting with strangers, cuz I'm awkward and somewhat antisocial. And its still my stomach, you know? Every little bump is still me, and its not like I poke it out for display on purpose.

What does that really have to do with shaving my head? Well....not much, I guess. I only said it was a little like it, ok? So um, there ya go. Here is a picture of the actual baby bump, just to make up for this lame post. 23 weeks and counting! Can't wait to meet you baby boy!

Our new baby

Yes, she looks peaceful, but don't be fooled...Zoe has as much energy as one of our kids!

Snow where did you go.?

I love snow. I really do. I know that's not very popular nowadays, at least among adults. I think the general distaste for it has something to do with driving in the snow, which of course must be miserable. And honestly, I don't drive that much, so that may have something to do with it. Except I have to say I like driving in the snow. Its kind of exciting. And, especially at night, the snowflakes in the headlights make me feel like I'm flying the Starship Enterprise. Awesome. Of course, I also like it when there's a power-out (yippee! Hide-and-go-seek in the dark!), so maybe I've just forgotten I'm supposed to be an adult now.

Anyway it hasn't been the snowiest of seasons this year. We've had some snowfalls, but nothing that has stuck for more than a few days (usually not more than a few hours). So last week when the radio told me there was going to be a big storm all weekend, I was super ready for that to happen. I mean, come on already! And true to their word, it did snow: a little. And the next morning it melted. And though there has been one other day of snow, it already mostly melted as well. The thing that really steamed my britches though is the complete lack of apology from the weather service. Logically, I know that it isn't their fault the snow fizzled, and I also know that the weather is like a living thing so it would be pretty impossible to predict. But still, couldn't they at least have had a repentant tone, or a "so its taking a slightly different turn than we thought", or at the very least a formal, notarized, written apology to me. But no, I've continued to listen to the weather every day, and even when there are changes from a prediction made a half hour before, they still give the each weather report like that is what they've been saying all along. I never thought I would be one of those people who was so bitter that they blamed defenseless weathermen for the weather. But man, I get so miffed with their smug assurances lately that I want to turn off the radio with a satisfying click every time they come on. But I don't. Cuz that would be rude. Also because I'm lazy. And forgetful. What was I talking about?

Sometimes I'm Awesome

I do a lot of DIY projects, not necessarily because I always like it, but because I'm kind of a cheapskate  Most of the time, my plans don't work out the way I hoped. But I still try. And my latest project actually worked out. I was so happy after I realized it was going to work that I took pictures so I could show you all. I call it, Wrought Iron Curtain Rods for a dollar. Yes, I italicize and capitalize in my mind too, it's that awesome. Yep. Here's the list of needed items.

Black craft foam sheet
PVC pipe (at desired length and width)
Christmas ornaments
Hot glue
Flat black spray paint
L bracket

Most of those items I already had. I was making rods for 3 windows, so I bought like 3 10 foot lengths of PVC at Home Depot for something like 39 cents each. Then I got the Christmas ornaments for 7 for a dollar at the dollar store, and the dollar spray paint at Walmart. The L brackets I bought 4 for 2 dollars. They're just the cheap brass looking kind, two inches long on each side. I had everything else, but I think you can get a paper sized sheet of the craft foam for really cheap (you don't need much of it.)

Cut your PVC to the desired size. You'll probably want it to extend beyond your window a few inches on each side. We used charlie's Leatherman saw blade to do it. No need for one of those fancy pipe cutters, unless you already have one, and then, you know, might as well use it. Then get your L brackets, ornaments, and pipe and get painting. This is obviously the most time consuming part. You may want to give them a couple coats. We painted them first with primer because we had some, but it didn't seem to make much difference. The paint still scratched off kinda easy. I figured it didn't really matter if I was careful, since once they were up, they would be hard to scratch. But if you plan to have those metal ring on it to hold your curtain, you may have to rethink the quality of paint used. There may be more steps in this case. You just have to decide whether it's worth it the extra few bucks. It wasn't for me. I did do three coats of paint though. I ended up using less than 3 cans for everything, but you could do with even less if you're less picky.

Then you measure the circumference of the pipe, and out of the foam cut little 1.5 inch strips the length of the pipe circumference.

Then put a line of hot glue along the short edge and quickly bring the two short ends together, making a circle.

After its dry, reshape it into a the best circle you can, and then put a line of glue along the side.

Stick it onto the end of the ornament, covering the loop end. Hold it on tight until it dries.

Then simply slip on the curtain, and slip on the little end you just made.

Then you just have to attach your brackets to the wall and the rod to the brackets via screws.

The end.













Awesome.

Bloggy stuff

I lose stuff a lot. And forget stuff. You know, like forgetting to turn the car off before I get out, or forgeting where I parked or which car I was driving or what my car even looks like; the kind of stuff that makes people say, "Faralee, there is something seriously wrong with your head." That hurts my feelbads, but they are right. There is. I believe its called absent minded. It sure sounds serious. Like, "Oh, she does have a brain and everything, just the mind is gone. So sad."

I lost my purse the other day at school. I do that a lot. And I don't always find it again, since it takes a while for me to even notice it is gone, and I don't even know where I had it last. This particular time I would have been stranded had I not found it, since it contained my phone and keys and money and everything. After lots of searching and frustration and bugging random strangers, I luckily (luck didn't really have anything to do with it) encountered some janitorial staff moving some rolling chairs with my purse draped over the top. I screamed and swiped it and muttered something about thanks that's mine and they got away from me as fast as they could. Phew, disaster averted. Luckily I remembered where I was parked, and found my car (I recognized it by the puke stain on the dashboard), and made it out there only an hour late. Maybe I need a different purse. Like one that can be surgically attached to me.

Wahoo!!

Well, we found a house, made an offer and the offer has been accepted!! Sorry we didn't update our progress along the way, we were just trying not to get too excited prematurely. Someone else did make another offer on it at the same time as us. We were worried we would end up in the same boat as with the other house, since we didn't have a lot of leeway on the price we'd already offered. But in the end, we did get it. Phew, super stressful for me! There is still more paperwork to be signed before things can even get started, but that should happen today. Of course, nothing is ever for sure until they are giving you the keys, but we have decided to allow ourselves a little excitement now. Yippee, we found a house! It is bank owned, in Spanish Fork, and built in 2006. We saw it on the market a while ago, but never went to see it because the price seemed a little steep for the square feet. But it turns out almost all the information on the listing was wrong. The house actually has a thousand more square feet than listed, one more bedroom and bathroom than listed. They had it listed with the wrong year, the wrong acreage, even the pictures misrepresented it. And there are lots of cool features in the house that the listing never mentioned, like custom doors and brushed nickel finishes and a huge master suite. Its not super fancy, but it has a good layout its big and open. It's really kinda sad for the bank that their Realtor didn't try very hard (or at all), but happy for us to have found it in our price range.We got a new couch to celebrate the occasion. 'New' being a term which here means saggy, threadbare, smelly, but free. Anyway, here are some pictures! Elesa was nice enough to come take these for us.

The front

Lydia in the backyard.

Front entry/living room - into family room

Scroungy Faralee wondering how she is

going to keep her house clean.

Kitchen

Landing/bonus area

Master bedroom

Master Bathroom

Owen hiding from Colin (not becuase they

were playing, but because Owen is scared of him).

Well, Thanks Elesa and Richard for coming to take pictures.

We hope all goes well, but we'll let y'all know. Our closing date is the end of September, so we still got a while. Luckily there is lots to do in the meantime. Hurray!