Monday, December 22, 2008
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Sunday, November 9, 2008
All About Eve
Our second daughter, Eve, was born Wednesday, November 5th (my sister Whitney's birthday!) at 4:39 pm, weighing 5 lbs 13 oz and measuring 19 inches long. Despite being such a little peanut, Eve is healthy, content and quite the sleeper!
If you're interested, here are the birth details...
Since 32 weeks I'd been monitored closely by doctors for oligohydramnios, a fancy word for low amniotic fluid. So we arrived at the hospital on the second day of 38 weeks for a scheduled induction.
The pitocin IV was started at 8:45 am (by the way, I had the greatest nurse, which makes all the difference), and I began having contractions immediately. They were very manageable though -- I read, watched TV, and stared longingly at Greg's lunch -- until 2 pm, when my doctor came to break my water. Things got serious (painful) at that point, and intense contractions came every minute or so. I was released from pitocin at 2:30 pm, but I was only at 3 centimeters and figured I'd be having these till midnight (my labor with Lydah was a day-long event). I began pacing the room, showering, and having Greg rub my back -- anything to ward off these contractions that felt as bad as my hardest ones with Lydah. This went on until 4:30 pm, when I suddenly felt an urge to either expel something monstrous from my body, or get hooked onto the finest of the medical world's anesthetics. It was a total surprise when the nurse calmly announced, "OK, you're fully dilated." She also added, "But don't push." Yeah right, I thought, and began pushing immediately. At that point I didn't care if I had to catch the baby myself -- she was coming out. The nurse and Greg urged me to pant through the contractions and wait for the doctor, but the nurse finally decided to grab the nearest midwife to catch the baby. A few concentrated pushes later, and Eve was in my arms! (I have to mention that my dear husband, in an effort to get me to wait to push, glanced at the monitors, misread them, and told me that Eve's heart rate was low. Of course, this had the opposite effect.)
Now we're at home, we're adjusting well, and all four of us are surviving on precious naps and homebaked goodies from both grandmas.
Thanks for everyone's prayers!
If you're interested, here are the birth details...
Since 32 weeks I'd been monitored closely by doctors for oligohydramnios, a fancy word for low amniotic fluid. So we arrived at the hospital on the second day of 38 weeks for a scheduled induction.
The pitocin IV was started at 8:45 am (by the way, I had the greatest nurse, which makes all the difference), and I began having contractions immediately. They were very manageable though -- I read, watched TV, and stared longingly at Greg's lunch -- until 2 pm, when my doctor came to break my water. Things got serious (painful) at that point, and intense contractions came every minute or so. I was released from pitocin at 2:30 pm, but I was only at 3 centimeters and figured I'd be having these till midnight (my labor with Lydah was a day-long event). I began pacing the room, showering, and having Greg rub my back -- anything to ward off these contractions that felt as bad as my hardest ones with Lydah. This went on until 4:30 pm, when I suddenly felt an urge to either expel something monstrous from my body, or get hooked onto the finest of the medical world's anesthetics. It was a total surprise when the nurse calmly announced, "OK, you're fully dilated." She also added, "But don't push." Yeah right, I thought, and began pushing immediately. At that point I didn't care if I had to catch the baby myself -- she was coming out. The nurse and Greg urged me to pant through the contractions and wait for the doctor, but the nurse finally decided to grab the nearest midwife to catch the baby. A few concentrated pushes later, and Eve was in my arms! (I have to mention that my dear husband, in an effort to get me to wait to push, glanced at the monitors, misread them, and told me that Eve's heart rate was low. Of course, this had the opposite effect.)
Now we're at home, we're adjusting well, and all four of us are surviving on precious naps and homebaked goodies from both grandmas.
Thanks for everyone's prayers!
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Eve Maydella Coates is here!!!
5 lbs 13 oz
19 inches long
Born at 4:39 pm on November 5
Mommy, Baby, and Daddy all sane and healthy
Pictures below
Gotta go
19 inches long
Born at 4:39 pm on November 5
Mommy, Baby, and Daddy all sane and healthy
Pictures below
Gotta go
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Pictures and Parties
These last two months have been BUSY for the Coates' Family. It seems like we throw or attend a birthday party once a week! Lydah's 2nd birthday was especially eventful, with a party at home attended by friends from church and other friends we've made in Indy, as well as Grandma (Christy) Probst, Aunt Whitney (with Cousins Henry and Ben), and Great-Grandma and -Grandpa Sheridan (Christy's parents). In one of the pictures you'll see how Lydah and Henry bonded over Lydah's new dress-up clothes, and in another, the two cousins even share a post-party smooch!
The preschool here at the church threw Lydah a party as well, which made her first day at preschool a big hit. Later you'll see pics of the preschool field trip to a nearby pumpkin patch, where Lydah discovered a taste for hayrides, picking out pumpkins, and raw sweet corn!
Finally, there are some home photo shoot pics: Lydah saying 'hello' to the new baby (still in Mommy's belly, but not for long now!); Lydah in her new 'big girl bed', which is the bottom bunk of a bunk bed (babies sleep in cribs, she now says); and 'reading' to herself at home, one of her favorite introvert activities.
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Lydah Quips and Baby #2 Update
Looks like as long as Courtney is updating the blog, entries will only come every 2 months or so... sorry!
Here are some Lydah stories from the last few months that we thought were cute...
I suppose it's obvious we're living in a high-tech world when you find yourself looking for nature's plug-ins. Upon finding a smashed cricket on the sidewalk, Lydah squatted down, pointed, and asked, "Bug, Mommy?" "Oh Lydah, that's a dead cricket. Let's not touch it," I told her. She contemplated all of this, then asked, "Needs batteries?"
For as young as she is, Lydah has already gotten the essentials of the faith down pat. Last night I was surprised when she completed all the phrases of the Lord's prayer with me before bed (Ex. "He leads me not into..." "Temptation!"). Once I found her sitting in the rocking chair with a baby doll in her lap and a Bible storybook in her hands. She opened the book to a drawing of Jesus with animals and children dancing around him and read, "Jesus died, and the puppy ruffed."
Sometimes, for a change, Lydah prays before our meal. She usually remembers to say "thank you for this food," but the rest of the prayer is a mixture of gibberish, sometimes about people she knows, or something else completely random. A few days ago she was obviously a bit ruffled about a mealtime conflict, and prayed, "Jesus, thank you for food. Thank you for saying 'no!' Thank you for saying 'MINE!' Amen."
The terrible twos have begun in full force. Tantrums and timeouts are quite common, and Greg and I often wonder if our point is getting across. A break-through came yesterday when Lydah and Daddy were coloring together, and she asked Greg for markers. "We're just going to use crayons right now Lydah," Greg told her, which led to an all-out tantrum. Greg placed her in the timeout spot (on the rug in the bathroom), and when he came back, Lydah had tears in her eyes and looked very pitiful. "Do you know why you're in timeout, Lydah?" Greg asked. She obviously did, because she put on a little performance of what her tantrum looked like and even yelled out, "MARKERS!"
Baby #2
On Friday, October 24, I went to the doctor for a regular exam, and they told me to head to the hospital very soon to be induced for birth. Apparently my amniotic fluid was very low again, and she was worried about the baby's health. So I went home, packed a bag and made some phone calls (and stopped at the grocery store for some last minute shopping), and went to the hospital. They tried three times to put an IV in my arms (ouch!), and failed each time. The good news was, all the baby's movements and her heartbeat were normal, and not worrisome at all. So when the doctor arrived around 5:30 pm, she apologized and said she was changing her mind. She wanted me to stay the night in the hospital to be monitored, but if the baby was still OK, I would just go home. So here I am! I will go back to see her each day for monitoring until the baby is born, but that is all the news I have!
Here are some Lydah stories from the last few months that we thought were cute...
I suppose it's obvious we're living in a high-tech world when you find yourself looking for nature's plug-ins. Upon finding a smashed cricket on the sidewalk, Lydah squatted down, pointed, and asked, "Bug, Mommy?" "Oh Lydah, that's a dead cricket. Let's not touch it," I told her. She contemplated all of this, then asked, "Needs batteries?"
For as young as she is, Lydah has already gotten the essentials of the faith down pat. Last night I was surprised when she completed all the phrases of the Lord's prayer with me before bed (Ex. "He leads me not into..." "Temptation!"). Once I found her sitting in the rocking chair with a baby doll in her lap and a Bible storybook in her hands. She opened the book to a drawing of Jesus with animals and children dancing around him and read, "Jesus died, and the puppy ruffed."
Sometimes, for a change, Lydah prays before our meal. She usually remembers to say "thank you for this food," but the rest of the prayer is a mixture of gibberish, sometimes about people she knows, or something else completely random. A few days ago she was obviously a bit ruffled about a mealtime conflict, and prayed, "Jesus, thank you for food. Thank you for saying 'no!' Thank you for saying 'MINE!' Amen."
The terrible twos have begun in full force. Tantrums and timeouts are quite common, and Greg and I often wonder if our point is getting across. A break-through came yesterday when Lydah and Daddy were coloring together, and she asked Greg for markers. "We're just going to use crayons right now Lydah," Greg told her, which led to an all-out tantrum. Greg placed her in the timeout spot (on the rug in the bathroom), and when he came back, Lydah had tears in her eyes and looked very pitiful. "Do you know why you're in timeout, Lydah?" Greg asked. She obviously did, because she put on a little performance of what her tantrum looked like and even yelled out, "MARKERS!"
Baby #2
On Friday, October 24, I went to the doctor for a regular exam, and they told me to head to the hospital very soon to be induced for birth. Apparently my amniotic fluid was very low again, and she was worried about the baby's health. So I went home, packed a bag and made some phone calls (and stopped at the grocery store for some last minute shopping), and went to the hospital. They tried three times to put an IV in my arms (ouch!), and failed each time. The good news was, all the baby's movements and her heartbeat were normal, and not worrisome at all. So when the doctor arrived around 5:30 pm, she apologized and said she was changing her mind. She wanted me to stay the night in the hospital to be monitored, but if the baby was still OK, I would just go home. So here I am! I will go back to see her each day for monitoring until the baby is born, but that is all the news I have!
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