A Post of Pics

Abigail and Her Pretty New Glasses

I'm Foaming at the Mouth...I've got Ba-bies!

I Have No Control Over the Muscles in My Face

Autumn Will Only Let Me Take Her Picture if Bridget is in the Shot

Precious

I LOVE All the Pink!

Sleeping, Unswaddled, Having Startled Several Times...Did I Say Sleeping?!!!

Breast Milk and Beer: A Comparison

Sadly, it has take until baby #3 for this epiphany to occur to me.

In this scientific comparison, it is a baby drinking the breast milk and an adult of legal age partaking in the beer.

#1- Just a couple of sips and you get very relaxed
#2- Drink enough and you'll pass out.
#3- Drink too much and you'll throw it all up (this does not deter you from going back for more).
#4- Both can give you the shits.
#5- Both are better drunk from the tap, but a bottle of either will suffice.
#6- Baby milk and beer can really pack on the pounds.
#7- It's ok for milk to be nursed. However, you will be made fun of by your friends for nursing your beer.

Am I missing anything?

Just Enjoying Life

I really have nothing to say. Life has been good. We've really enjoyed having Bridget join our family. She seems to bring out the sweeter, more patient side of everyone. She has given us a week and a half of surprising good sleep (surely not meant to last) and she cries less than the big girls. Friends and family have brought us meals we've enjoyed and appreciated. So, I'll post a few pictures because I'd rather be off the computer living my life, than writing about it.

Look at My Baby Blues

Bridget Meeting Her Cousin Quinn

Snoozing

With Biggest Sister Abigail

With New Big Sister Autumn

First Time Out in the World

1 Day Old

The Birth Story

Bridget Elise Murphy

09/04/09

8 lbs 7 oz. 21 inches

The adventure actually began seven years ago when we found out we were pregnant with Abigail, the illogical reasoning began in high school. The illogical reasoning is this: sometimes I choose to do something just to see if I can. I gave up red meat when I was 16 not because of the poor injustice to animals or because I think it's bad for you. I just wanted to see if I could. I have now spent more than half my life not eating red meat. About the same time I gave up pork (mostly because I'm not a huge fan of pork chops and other cuts of pig. Your parents will make you eat it if you don't like it, but if you no longer eat pork, well....I again proved to myself that I could do something, just because). So, when I weighed my labor pain management options, the top of the list was to go unmedicated....just to see if I could. With Abigail it was after 15 hours of labor and 8 cm that I got an epidural (it may seem last minute, but she stalled at 8 for about 4 hours). With Autumn, I went for a midwife because certainly I would get the support I needed to achieve my goal....not so much. During transition she insisted I "had to really want it." Listen lady, no one really WANTS it during transition, this is the point you say "you can do it, you're almost there"...even if it's a big fat lie. 30 minutes after the epidural I was ready to push. All of that to get to present day.

Babigyrl Murphy was due August 23rd. After an intensive grad program and being on my feet for long shifts, I thought for certain she would come early. My others were "overdue", but I felt like I was tempting fate having a due date so close to graduation. Clearly I had nothing to worry about.

The Belly- 41 weeks (5 days before delivery)

At ten days after my due date, my midwife and I discussed "the plan" to get this baby out into the world. Thank goodness the word induction was enough to scare our little lady out. I had already prepared for an induction, feeling disappointed and relieved, when I went to bed Thursday night. Around 3:30 AM I got up to go to the bathroom (again) when I heard a POP! Having never had my water break until delivery was emminent, I was not quite sure what to do. My first reaction was clinical, time, color, amount... I was hoping for a trickle, as some women describe, but I was not so lucky. Seriously, talk about messy. We don't get to choose, but I much prefer not having my water break. I am also very thankful that I was not in bed or some other fabric covered surface when it occured. Gross.

After a brief pondering, I decided to wake Brian up to get the in-laws over to the house. This at least gave me piece of mind that we could leave at a moment's notice if labor was faster than I expected. Called my midwife at 5 AM to give her the FYI. She was giddy. Contractions were minimal, so I decided to lay down for a bit. BIG MISTAKE. That brought on a huge contraction. At 6:30, it was time to call the midwife and get to the other side of town before things got unmanageable. I was 7 cm and still felt pretty good. It was all back labor again, but for some reason I was able to relax, open my eyes, and converse in-between contractions (in sharp contrast to my other two labors).

Brian was amazing during labor. He got all caught up in my midwife's excitement for each contraction. He began to welcome them, instead of fear them. He was the perfect counter-pressure masseuse during the intense contractions. Once we were at the hospital, it was time to use the birthing ball to encourage descent. It was quite comfortable, almost too comfortable. I actually had an 8 minutes reprieve and began to wonder if it was slowing things down when I had one of two incredibly memorable contractions. Hurt so bad I was asking for an emesis basin(yes, even in all the pain, I was still formal...no puke bucket for me.) That was the sign my midwife needed to get the jacuzzi tub going.

Me Just After One Serious Contraction

Still Managing to Get Comfort in the Breaks

Can I just say I am IN LOVE with the jetted tub. I know some may find it over-stimulating, but it felt amazing. I'm sure the contractions were still there, but I only felt the peaks. I wasn't able to fall asleep in between, but it was so comfortable. It was also nice not to be hooked up to IV fluids that would eventually make me look all puffy and bloated. No constant heart rate monitors and other cords that would keep me from moving into a comfortable position.

Brian's poor fingers really took a pinching. It may not seem like a lot, but I got great comfort just knowing they were always there for me to grab onto. Despite the pain, I was amazed at how warm the water stayed. At home it always cools off too quickly. Turns out they had to add ice water to cool the bath back down because a laboring woman generates so much heat that I was actually raising the water temperature! Insane. Memorable contraction number two had me wanting to puke again. This is when I overheard my midwife tell my husband, "We're having a baby!"

It was out of the tub and time to deliver. Let me just say it was the most excruciating pain I have ever experienced. Words really can't describe it. Then I hear "the baby is crowning." What, what, what? That's all. At that point I thought her head was halfway out! Only crowning!! Well, if she's crowning then just pull her out, why don't you? After an eternity (more like five minutes), she was finally with us in this world. I looked down at the baby on my chest and saw the head full of black hair and wondered, "who's baby is this?" I know it just came out of me, but my others looked so much alike, a light dusting of copper hair, blue eyes, pale skin.... But Bridget was beautiful and together (with a team great supporters) we accomplished my totally illogical goal for a completely unmedicated birth.

Bridget Elise

If any of you had the opportunity to talk to me this day, I apologize for the less than enthusiastic conversation. I was beyond exhausted. It took all the energy I could muster just to keep breathing. I'm sure I seemed rude, but I really was happy to talk to you. I really was thrilled and happy to meet my new Baby Bridget, but I had nothing left to express myself.

This Picture Perfectly Captures My Exhaustion

My Amazing Midwife

Bridget was born on her sister's birthday and we were honored.

Mommy and Baby All Cleaned Up

Autumn is Officially a Big Sister

Proud Papa, My Amazing Husband

Abigail Meeting Bridget

Tickle Toes

Daddy's Three Princess

Now the question is, had I known then, what I know now, would I go au'naturale again? Maybe. I'm glad I did it. I feel empowered and know that I can do anything I set my mind, too. But I have a new appreciation for the pain relief I received with my epidurals.

Welcome to the world and your family, Bridget Elise.

It's Started!!!!!

Water broke almost 2 hours ago. Some contractions. It's about time.

12 days past the due date.

If You're in Chicago

I can't possibly sum it up better than Brian did on his website.

Please follow the link if you would like to help a well-deserving family member and a chance to tell cancer to bugger off.

http://mightyshamrock.livejournal.com/
Entry: Not Only A Good Cause, Sept. 3, 2009

Might As Well Take Advantage of My Time

Since I've got more time...I figured I would download some pictures. We have a new camera and I love it. I've been playing around with it some. They're nothing fancy, but it takes pictures super fast and crisp. Plus, the girls are now obsessed with having their picture taken.

My Little Egghead

My Little Princess

The Girls Giving the Baby Some Love

Girls Gawking at the Big Ol' Baby Tummy

Can You Find the Moth?

Baby Turtle, Slipped Under the Water Awfully Fast

Autumn Loves the Flowers, I Love Her Hair

Autumn Missed Abigail

Big Girl Autumn (insisted I get her shoes in the picture)

No Dice

Well, the midwife appointment was less eventful than I had hoped. Not sure what I was expecting. Despite my knowledge to the contrary, I think many pregnant women look to their care providers as if they might have a crystal ball in their brains. Each appointment they hope to hear "you'll deliver this week or tomorrow is the day" despite that being totally illogical. You anxiously await the internal exam hoping that their is significance in the numbers, after all, doesn't 3 cm sound like you are closer to the onset of labor than 1 cm? You'd be wrong, but it sounds like it should. For the record, I'm at two. Why am I discouraged when I know this number to be meaningless? If this post has already given you the TMI willies, then check back in on another day.

At over 41 weeks, you start investigating ways to get the show on the road in hopes of avoiding a pharmaceutical induction. Despite personal evidence to the contrary (and not much scientific data to back it up), stripping of membranes is the next step to encourage the uterus to stop slacking and do its job. Alas, if your cervix is too posterior (like mine was), even this feeble attempt can not be performed. And nipple stimulation with a breast pump to promote the release of oxytocin...really it just makes you sore. Evening Primrose oil? Take it orally or apply it directly to the cervix...well, so long is there is no harm, why not?! I draw the line at castor oil. Because it's only effective if your body was ready to deliver anyway, so now you've taken the awful tasting stuff and have to deal with the shits while you're in labor. How is that a good idea?

So, I've got another appointment tomorrow afternoon to discuss "the plan" and a biophysical profile. Thought this was going to happen Monday, but there really was no indication, especially since this is not my first adventure past my due date and the baby is not going to be far off from average. Guess I'll post more tomorrow. If not baby news, then appointment fun it will be.