Birth Day- Sutton Grace

Several people have asked me about Sutton's birth story and I thought the best way to get everything documented was through our blog so here is how our sweet girl came into this world!

I had my 40 week appointment scheduled with my OB on Wednesday, March 21 at 10am. I have been going to a lot of these last appointments by myself because its always the same thing... heart tones of the baby, vitals of me, and talks about kick counting and signs of labor. This day was different though. I really wanted to Woody to be there for what I thought would be our second to last or maybe last appointment if I went into labor that week. My OB was running behind (like always) so we didn't see her until about 11am. We did all the normal stuff and talked about a possible induction for the following week (at 41 weeks) and discussed March 30th being the big day! After getting the date on the calendar she went to do my cervical exam and after telling me I was 20% effaced and 1cm I felt a rush of fluid. After a quick check by my OB it was determined that during my exam she accidentally broke my water. Immediately she told us we were not being induced next week but that we were actually going to have a baby THAT day! She instructed us to head over to the hospital where she would meet us in a few hours after I got all checked in. Can you imagine the surprise and freak out moment that Woody and I had when she left the room?? I have never seen Woody so terrified in his life! We immediately whipped out our phones and started calling our families to tell them IT WAS TIME!

By 11:15am we were checking into Labor and Delivery at Seton hospital and it was official that our baby was on the way. I was given Cytotec (to soften the cervix) and I dilated on my own to 2cm. It was determined after about 2 hours that Pitocin was needed to help my labor along and that was started about 2pm. Within about 20 minutes I was dilating and contracting and my life went from excited and happy-go-lucky to extreme pain and discomfort. I only labored for about 2 hours before I called for that anesthesiologist! What can I say... I have zero pain tolerance! Over the next few hours I dilated slowly first to a 5 then a 7 then finally to a 9. This is when things went downhill. I stalled at 9cm for many hours and after several cervical checks it was determined that Sutton had entered the birth canal sideways and wasn't going to turn. Dr. Gooch (our on-call doctor) tried physically turning her but she went right back to being sideways. The words I have not wanted to hear my whole pregnancy were finally being spoken to me... "You're going to need a c-section." In that moment I was absolutely devastated that Sutton not only wasn't going to get her naturally and on her own but now they were going to cut her out of me while I was strapped to a table.

In only a matter of minutes Woody was suited up and we were being wheeled down the hall to the OR for my first major surgery. I knew that getting Sutton here safely was the most important thing but I was scared for her and myself as we entered the bright room. Everything happened so fast but the few things I remember were the pain in my shoulders from the air bubbles of the c-section, the tugging and pulling, Woody talking me through everything and of course our beautiful baby's first cry. After she was born Woody went over to the table where they were checking her out and assured me she was beautiful and healthy and everything was fine with her. After a few minutes of them checking her out it was time for her and Woody to head off to the nursery while they finished fixing me up and completing my c-section.

There are several reasons a mother would not want a c-section but I have to say the saddest part was that I missed the first moments my family and friends shared with the newest love of my life. Woody was one proud daddy and showed everyone just how perfect she was. We were able to meet up in the recovery area and this is where things get blurry. Literally. I was so drugged up that I don't remember a whole lot but apparently I was pretty entertaining for Woody and the nurses.   What can I say? I'm a regular stand-up comedian on highly powerful drugs!

Getting moved to my permanent room was the best part of my day because I was able to hold my angel for the first time and I will never forget the moment we looked into each others eyes. It was almost like we had an unspoken love for each other the second we touched. Although things didn't go how we planned, I am so blessed to say that Sutton Grace Sitz entered this world a happy and healthy 6 pound 15 ounce baby girl. More stories to come on our days in the hospital in my next post!

40 Weeks!!

I cannot believe that right now when people ask me when I'm due I say... FRIDAY! Just a few little tidbits about where I am at 40 weeks!

How far along? 40 weeks!
Total weight gain: 27 lbs
Maternity clothes? ONLY maternity... even a lot of the maternity tops are short! She sticks out pretty dang far at this point!
Stretch marks? Sadly 3 tiny skin colored ones... but you can barely see them so I'm still thankful that I survived the pregnancy pretty stretch mark free!
 Sleep: Much better than in the beginning! Only waking up 2 times a night but getting out of bed is the hardest part! I feel like a 90 year-old woman with all the back pain and hip pain!
Best moment this week: Waking up Sunday morning knowing that we'll be meeting our sweet baby very soon! We're in single digits and I can't wait!
Miss anything? Mexican Martinis and Sushi... still miss both of these things! Can't wait for my first mexi-mart!
Movement: Still very active! A little more "stuck" in place but she is very strong and still gives me good movement all day every day!
Food cravings: I have been craving Louisiana Longhorn Cafe in downtown  Round Rock almost all the time. Woody has only taken me once but I definitely going to get back there before she makes an appearance! I also STILL eat an Eggo waffle and drink orange juice every single morning.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Not really... still taking the Zofran everyday. I tried 6 or 7 times to get off the nausea meds during this pregnancy and ended up sick every time!
Gender: Sweet baby Girl
Labor Signs: Lots of braxton hicks and dilated 1 cm... hey its progress!
Symptoms: Morning sickness, back pain, dry skin, headaches
Belly Button in or out? Still in but somewhat out... you can see it through my shirts sometimes!
Wedding rings on or off? ALL off! Sad day when I had to remove them! Better to be safe than sorry!
Happy or Moody most of the time: Not moody... pretty happy just tired.
Looking forward to: MEETING OUR BABY GIRL!!!

I can't believe I'm posting this but here is the belly at 38 weeks!

The Nursery

When you first get pregnant there are many things that go through your head... like... "oh my gosh, I can't believe it's really happening" or "when is my due date" or "when do I tell my work." Not Me! The very first thing I thought of when I found out I was pregnant was, what was the nursery going to look like! The wait to find out if we were having a boy or a girl was the most stressful part because all I wanted to do was get a nursery going and as you will find out, that's really hard when you don't know what you're having! Anyway... I am so happy with the way her nursery turned out and its all thanks to everyone who helped get it ready! The biggest thanks goes to her Gammy who sewed, painted, measured and stocked just about everything in her nursery! She really is a crafty wonder! Here are some pics:

Her Crib... my favorite part!

The picture wall and changing station!

Her window to the world...

And book and toy shelves at her level of course!

I'm embarrassed of the amount of clothes she has but wanted to show off her cool chevron design in the back of her closet! Thanks Gammy for spending all day measuring and painting! It turned out so cool!

Our First Baby Shower!

It's hard to believe sometimes that I'm still pregnant and Woody and I are very soon to be real parents of a real baby. Having a baby shower, however, is probably the closest thing I have been to realizing how REAL this baby is going to be. I think a flood of emotions has gone over me in the past month or so... I've experienced everything from happy and anxious to scared and nervous but all my books tell me I'm normal. Ha... what's normal? What am I proud to say is that this sweet baby is coming in less than six weeks and Woody and I both have finally wrapped our heads around what this will mean for our family. It means new... It means excitement... It means work... It means sleepless nights... It means love.

My first shower was hosted by my bestest friends: Emily Shugar, Carly Feuerbacher, Ryann Fox, Sarah Williams and Ellen Williams. It was absolutely beautiful and we received the best gifts! I think the attendees/my friends and family pretty much cleared the baby registry! Woody and I are so fortunate to have people in our lives that really want us to get a great start with our new family!

One of the coolest parts of the shower was the hostesses had everyone make a quilt square to have sewn into a quilt. At first everyone was hesitant to make a square but by the end of the night (and a few bottles of wine!) everyone had made 2 or 3 or even 4 quilt squares for our sweet angel. I can't wait to see how the quilt turns out! She will know from her very first day of life just how much she is loved.

Here are a few pictures from the shower:

The food table was beautiful! It was like straight out of a magazine!

Cupcakes with the baby's monogram. So classic!



Can't believe I have been friends with these girls for more than 10 years!

Sarah Jeanne and me!

Mommy and Daddy... 31 weeks pregnant!

After 6 years...We've Changed.

After multiple facebook posts about how Woody and I have changed in the last few years I decided it was time to recap them all in a blog post. Here is my best attempt at remembering all the things we did in the "good ol days" and how things have changed since then! Happy 6 years together... to my best friend!

Sleep
I think at least 3 or 4 nights a week we have our lights out and are entering REM sleep by at least 9pm. If I had a dollar for every night we looked at each other and said, " we're so lame," we could totally both retire and move out to the country. I remember nights when we would stay up until after midnight, even  when we had to work the next day, just to spend a few more hours together. We've changed.

Outdoor Adventures
Woody and I use to be quite the outdoorspeople (is that a word). We camped, hiked, floated the river, took our dogs on adventures and practically lived outside. Now we are lucky to get our fat dogs up to the park (within walking distance of our house) once or twice a month. (Don't get all PETA crazy on me here... our dogs are not Sarah McLaughlin commercial dogs... they have a huge backyard they run around in!) Camping is a thing of the past... I guess I'll let this one slide as sleeping on a cot in the wilderness sounds awful at 8 months pregnant, and our outdoor adventures typically consist of me watching Woody drink a beer on the back patio while laying in the hammock. We've changed.

Friday/Saturday Nights
Talk about quite the change... I think the last time Woody and I went downtown (like out) was over a year ago... come to think of it, maybe the last time we went out was after our wedding. Wow... that would be really sad. Not that we were crazy 6th street partiers but we definitely have some good memories of drinking together downtown, just the two of us. Now, we have lights out and we're reading books like Hunger Games at 8pm on Saturday night! We've changed.


Saturday/Sunday Days
A good Saturday 4 or 5 years ago consisted of floating the river or going downtown and swimming at the lake... today we do projects. I say this so bluntly because it feels like the projects never end. We're installing new ceiling fans, putting up crown molding, painting a room, putting in elfa shelving or maybe raking leaves, mowing the yard, cleaning tile grout or even just doing lame Sunday laundry. We've changed.




I wrote this blog today because I wanted to remember all the things we "use to" do. I wanted to remember because our lives are out to change so much. Looking back on all the things we "use to" do inspire me for the future. In only 8 short weeks, we will be responsible for someone elses life. We will start to take that special little someone to do all the things we "use to" do. So even though we have changed, its all for this moment in our lives. We've changed to prepare for her. We've changed... and I couldn't be happier.

Epic Fail... Bed Situation... 30 Weeks!

Well maybe not an epic fail but I definitely did not pass my glucose test the first time. They want you to have a score less than 140 and of course lucky me, I scored a 140. What does this mean? It means I spent this morning (all morning) from 8:00am to 11:30am sitting in the doctors office lobby waiting to get my blood drawn every hour on the hour to check my blood sugar levels. The glucola drink was absolutely awful and tasted like a gatorade with way too much sugar and a nice irony medical flavor attached. I know all the ladies waiting for their appointments surely were wondering why I had my pillow, book and legs propped up on another chair! Anyway... I found out on Wednesday if I have gestational diabetes and lets all hope I do not because along with that lovely diagnosis comes shots, more exercise and regulated diet! You know... all the lovely things you want to worry about in your last trimester.

Another update... I have moved to the guest bedroom indefinitely! I could not be more excited about this move because although it hurts Woody's feelings a bit, I am sleeping sooooo much better! The bed in the guest room is my bed from college and I swear if I could talk Woody into sleeping in a full size bed with me, I would move it into our master bedroom permanently! It's my bed from college and its the most comfortable thing in the world! I guess after the baby comes I might have to re-enter the master bedroom but for now I am totally and completely happy with sleeping/flopping alone!

Just a few stats to keep everyone up to date: (stole this from a friend!)

How far along? 30 weeks
Total weight gain: 17 lbs
Maternity clothes? Can still make a bunch of my long tops work but definitely not wearing any pants that aren't maternity!
Stretch marks? None yet, thank you very much!
Sleep: Going potty 2-3 times are night and flipping back and forth makes for waking up another 2-3 times but since I moved beds its MUCH better!
Best moment this week: Just being in bed in the morning when I wake up and can really feel her moving around. It's a nice time just for mommy and her to spend together. I like talking to her about what our plans are for the day and making her promise to be nice! (aka not yaking!)
Miss anything? Mexican Martinis and Sushi
Movement: All day every day... we have a very active little girl!
Food cravings: I eat an Eggo waffle and drink orange juice every single morning. My only real craving has been pickles (so cliche) but really I can eat them all the time!
Anything making you queasy or sick: Waking up... :)
Gender: Sweet baby Girl
Labor Signs: I hope not... just a little cramping and stretching
Symptoms: Morning sickness, back pain, dry skin, headaches
Belly Button in or out? Still in but definitely starting to expose itself!
Wedding rings on or off? Band on, Engagement off, Aggie Ring off
Happy or Moody most of the time: Not moody... pretty happy just tired.
Looking forward to: Our 32 week sonogram on Feb 1 where Dr. B tells us how big she is, if shes head down and what we can expect at delivery!

Time for your close up!

So we'll just have to settle with what we got! If there is one thing I have learned in the last week its that my sweet baby girl is very active and very flexible! We went to do the 3d/4d sonogram again today in hopes that she would be a little less stubborn and a little more cooperative. Not so much. Worse this time actually! Last time she had a foot and a hand in her face, this time, all 4 limbs right in her face! We have a few video moments where she is actually sucking on her big toe! Although a little frustrating that we couldn't see her sweet face close up, I'm happy to report that she is growing quickly and developing perfectly. I'm a very happy mommy to have a thus far, healthy pregnancy. Here are a few pics of our sweet angel girl!

Hey there cheeks! (foot next to face)

Toes by face!

Sweet baby girl!

Totally get smashed in the face by the placenta! Poor girl!