Ivy: The Details

It's almost been a week since Ivy was born, and I'm beginning to see how having more than one child affects the frequency of blog posts . . . and I haven't even been left alone with them yet. OK, here's what happened last week:

My water broke on Sunday at the church when I stood up to go home after ward choir. No one there noticed, and luckily it wasn't a complete gush. We hurried home, called the doctor, finished packing my bag (which I'd only started to pack the night before), packed an overnight bag for Sophie, who we left with a friend, and made it to the hospital in about an hour and a half. I'd had contractions at home 5 minutes apart and was getting somewhat uncomfortable, but when we got to the hospital, they slowed to about 8-10 minutes apart, and then almost stopped completely.

Here I am in the triage, which was this weird place they put you right when you get to the hospital. It was basically a bunch of beds separated by a bunch of curtains with a bunch of nurses sitting right outside. I thought I'd have to deliver the baby here, but luckily I didn't. Oh, and I was showing off a pathetic little contraction I'd just had, hoping for more.

This was kind of a repeat of the beginning of Sophie's birth with my water breaking and then not going into labor. In Provo, they only let me wait three hours before inducing me. Here they were a lot more liberal. (We were in Berkeley, what do you expect? :)) I was grateful because I really wanted my body to do this on its own. Unfortunately it didn't. After 14 hours of little or no progress, we started a Pitocin drip at about 7 AM the next morning.

All week I've been comparing Ivy's birth with Sophie's (as well as the recovery) and although my epidural was extremely spotty and almost non-existent toward the end (Gee, I'm glad my leg was numb when she came out. That helped a lot.), this time around has been easier by far. I feel really good. Not exactly ready for a walk around the mall -- or even the grocery store -- yet, but I feel fine doing simple things around the house and taking care of the girls. Nursing has been a breeze, and I don't know if it's because I just weaned Sophie six months ago or that I know what I'm doing this time around, but the girls don't hurt that much. And boy, am I glad to have them back. Seriously.

Having lots of help this week has also made things lots easier. Steve's mom, Judi, drove over from Sacramento the night Ivy was born and stayed until Wednesday. My parents, who had originally planned to fly out Dec 18th, jumped in their car and drove 14 hours to be here on Thanksgiving. It had been a long time since I'd had a T-day dinner cooked by my mom -- complete with mashed potatoes made from real, still caked with Idaho dirt, potatoes that they brought with them. Judi made a couple of pumpkin pies while she was here, and my mom made a pineapple pie -- a favorite of mine that my grandma makes. (And mom, I had a piece for breakfast and it tastes just like Grandma's.) We've got leftovers and pie coming out of our ears, but what's not to love about that?

Sophie on the left & Ivy on the right.

Enough about pie, I'm supposed to be telling you about Ivy. My not-quite-six-pound bundle is probably the smallest baby I've ever held. We've had to get her preemie diapers and clothes and most of those still fall off of her. The first night she was home, she screamed most of the night and having previously been spoiled by Sophie's calm nature, Steve and I wondered, "Is this what it's like to have a normal baby?" Luckily her nights have gone more smoothly and everyone is getting more sleep. I think her temperament is like Sophie's after all. Whew. She's adorable, too, and we think she looks more like Steve then Sophie did. She managed to get my crooked pinky fingers and weird toes, though. Looking back at Sophie's newborn pictures, you can definitely tell they're sisters. We decided, about a day after she was born (and about 15 minutes before the birth certificate office closed), to name her Ivy Lena. Lena, after Steve's paternal grandmother. We like it, and we think it fits her.

I love the newborn "o" face.

Speaking of Sophie, I think she likes having Ivy around. She was pretty moody the first couple of days after we came home, but she's fine now. She likes to point out Ivy's facial features and body parts (which includes sticking her finger in her eye, but that was no surprise to me), and loves to bring her a binky or a diaper. She can even say her name, "AH-vee".

Sophie and Ivy meet at the hospital.

Extra little tidbits that didn't fit into the rest:

• I only gained 35 lbs this time instead of 60. And my weight right now is where I was three months after Sophie was born. I may actually put on a swimsuit next summer.
• Ivy's initals are ILP. A few of you may find that amusing. (ILP is the program that took me to Russia, where I ended up meeting Steve.) It didn't happen on purpose.
  
• If you by chance have a giant sack of potatoes in your car when you come into California, don't be scared when they ask you at the state line if you have produce. Potatoes are OK to bring in.
  
• Steve probably isn't going to Utah, so if I can just get through the next two weeks until finals are over, we'll have three weeks at home together to adjust. (BIG WHEW)
• Some of you commented about me blogging while I was in labor. Ya, that does seems weird, but it's not like I was doing lamaze breathing, trying not to scream while I was typing. The contractions I was having weren't any stronger than the ones I'd been having all week. And during the half hour that the epidural was working, I didn't feel anything at all. Plus I'd just gotten lots of sleep (that's how weak the contractions were). I'd also gotten lots of texts asking how things were going. For the most part, I hate texting. I am the slowest texter ever. I'd rather just post it to my blog or send out an email, that way everyone knows the same stuff.
  

Major snaps go to Ivy for coming last week. Most of my pregnancy dreams came true, too. How many women get to sneak out of the last two, painfully uncomfortable weeks of pregnancy with an early baby? And not only an early baby, but right before a major holiday that enabled extra help of family members. I'm grateful that it was Thanksgiving so Steve wouldn't have to miss as much school. I'm grateful for all of the wonderful friends and family who have stopped by or helped out, too. I'm really glad we live here with such great, supportive friends. I'm grateful for the Spirit that accompanies a newborn into the world. Once again, we're reminded of the love our Heavenly Father has for us.