The Ai-owl-lo Nest: July 2012

She is here! Now that I have a moment free from the chaos of life with a newborn, I wanted to write down some of my thoughts on the past three and a half weeks. First of all, I have never been so exhausted but so unbelieveably happy and grateful. Our hearts are so filled with love for our precious little baby. She is our whole world and we cannot imagine life without her. I spent 9 1/2 months wondering what she would look like, what kind of faces she would make, who she would take after, what she would like to do, and now we finally know!

Dearest Arden, here is your birth story...
The day before you were born, Daddy and I went to Cheeseburger in Paradise...where we had our first date. It always holds some sort of nostalgia for us. Our first date and welcoming you into the world...how full circle is that? I had started sleeping on the couch the last couple of weeks I was pregnant since I was so uncomfortable in bed. Daddy was always by my side. Or my feet, I guess. :) I did not get much sleep the night before the big day. We played our little game. I would rest my arm at the top of my belly and you would playfully kick my arm as to say that you were happy and content and were excited to come out and meet me. I felt so close to you and as silly as it sounded, I hoped to always be that close to you. I did not sleep well that night...I felt like a kid before Christmas. I could not wait until the next day, but I was also very nervous. I was nervous to have surgery and to stay in the hospital. Thoughts were flooding my head. After only a couple of hours of sleep, it was time to get ready to head to the hospital. Daddy and I took a shower, finished packing our bags and checked off the last minute items off our list and headed to the hospital. We got there in about 20 minutes and it was barely light out since we left at 5:30 AM. The car ride was a blur. I could not focus on anything. I was so excited to meet you, but was very ready for the scary surgery part to be over. We walked into the hospital and headed up to the third floor. I had thought of this day ever since we found out I was pregnant with you. Every time I drove up to the hospital I thought there will come a day when we will drive here to have our baby and that was today! We took the elevator up to the third floor and we got checked in. I started getting bad cramps and thought would you be coming soon anyways?? Here is the last picture I have of both of us together:

Very quickly I got changed into a hospital gown. I was hooked up to an IV which thankfully was fairly easy when it has not been in the past. I had monitors strapped to my belly to monitor your activity and heart rate. I felt some strong contractions and the nurse confirmed they were the real deal! You were very active and were kicking up a storm. Your heart rate would spike whenever you kicked. The nurse that gave me the IV left and nurse Hannah was going to help me into surgery. It was a sign! Guess what she was wearing?! Owl earrings! I told her that your room was decked out in an owl theme and she agreed that it was a great cooincedence! Dr. Star came back to talk to me which made me feel a lot more calm. He has been such a great doctor and I had been going to him since I was eighteen years old so I really trust him. It was time...I walked down to surgery and Daddy was so sweet and held my hand. He had to stay behind when I got a shot in my back, but came in as soon as he could. Here he is waiting to meet you:

Nurse Hannah held my hand while I got my shot and I remember how sweet she was to let a stranger squeeze her hand. After a couple of pricks, my bum and legs went numb and I knew there was no turning back now. I was told after that point, you would be here in about ten minutes! The anesthesiologist tried to pinch my skin to make sure I could not feel anything. I could feel that! They waited a little longer for the medicine to start working. He asked again if I could feel it. I said, "I don't know..." And he said they were poking me pretty hard with an instrument. Then he asked one more time if I could feel anything. I said, "I don't think so." He said, "Good...because he has already made two incisions." Yikes! I'm glad I couldn't feel it then!! I asked Daddy to hold my hand and talk to me. He asked what I wanted to talk about and I just said anything. I was so scared and the doctors were trying to get you out and were pushing and prodding me, but it didn't hurt at all. There was music playing and the doctors and nurses were talking and chatting like they do this kind of thing all the time. Well, they do. Then they put on Stevie Wonder's, "Isn't She Lovely." They knew you were a little girl. The doctor told me you were almost here and asked Daddy if he wanted to see you come out. I knew he did, so I told him to look. I felt an intense pulling and I heard you cry right away. It was the most amazing sound I had ever heard in my whole life. I have never felt anything so emotionally provoking. I started crying and could not stop. I was sooo happy! So emensely happy you were here!! Daddy went over to you because I wanted you to hear someone you were familiar with. He told me your Apgar score was a 8 & 9 and I knew you were healthy and that was the most important thing! You were born at 8:04 AM and weighed 7 pounds 9 oz and measured 20 1/4 inches long. After you were cleaned up, Daddy brought you over to me and I instantly fell in love with you. You were beautiful! I felt so proud and humbled that someome so precious was living inside me just minutes before. I kissed and cuddled you. Everything went by so quickly! You were here. All of these months for this moment. I will never forget it, Arden. The best moment of my life along with the day I married Daddy. We had added to our family and my heart was so full of love for you and for Daddy. I promised to be the best Mommy I could possibly be to you and to always be supportive of you and love you through and through. I will always keep that promise. Below are some pictures of the first couple of weeks of your life. You have grown so much already and I cannot wait to see who you will become!