2 weeks!

sammy is two weeks old this week, and if she wasn't (here) i'd be 40 weeks pregnant!  yup, this was the week she was due, according to my dates, but fortunately she showed up on the 10th and i've realized that her timing was perfect.  this week has been another busy one.  while samantha has continued to eat and sleep and grow like a little champ, we've been running around trying to get everything in order to close on our new house.  sammy got to see the new house for the first time on sunday when we went for our final walk-through.  she didn't seem impressed and slept the whole time we were there (good baby!).  she and noah also got to come with us on thursday, august 23rd when we closed on the house and both of the kids were actually really great considering we had to sit in an office and sign and/or initial nearly a zillion pieces of paper.

today we had sam's 2 week check up and the news was all great!  i forgot to mention last week that we had to take sam to have a bilirubin lab draw done when she was only 4 days old to make sure that she didn't need treatment for jaundice.  she was a trooper for the heel stick and she's spent lots of time sunbathing since then.  at her follow up today she was looking very good (much less orange!) and the doctor was very pleased and said she didn't need any further labs, just to keep eating and sunbathing :)  she weighed in at 7 lbs and 12 oz, meaning she has gained nearly one pound since her first visit (she was 6 lbs 14 oz at her first check up) and has more than surpassed her birth weight of 7 lbs 1 oz.  way to go, sammy!

otherwise, i've just been trying to get our little girl used to some sort of routine.  it's much easier with her than it was with noah, because i've already got our day laid out, it's just a matter of fitting in nursing times for her.  she gets a bath every night before bed, which she doesn't seem to really care for.  fortunately, she lost her cord stump this week so now instead of sponge baths we can switch to real baths.  yay!  hopefully she will like those better!

1 week old

sweet samantha has already been in our lives for a whole week!  and while she hasn't been doing too much (other than the typical eating and sleeping) our week has definitely been busy (because aren't our weeks always busy?!).  matt had to go back to work on tuesday, but my mom was able to come over and help me with the kiddos while i continued to rest and recover.  it was nice to have company and an extra set of hands around until matt came home from work, but i was worried about what the next day would hold...

wednesday i got my first chance to take care of both kids all by my lonesome.  matt worked from 1:30 pm - 9:30 pm, so i not only had the kids by myself, but also got the chance to figure out how to bed navigate dinner/bathtime/bedtime for noah while having to nurse a newborn.  let's just say... it's a work in progress ;)  i did get both kids down for bedtime at a reasonable hour.  and fortunately, sam has been pretty good so far about only needing to eat every 4 hours at night.  yay!
this week also included my first time away from both kids (thursday) when i had to go to work to get some blood work drawn for my company insurance policy (a wellness screening).  i was gone for less than two hours, but it felt good to be up and out of the house for a bit, and matt did a great job with both kiddos.  the next day we took sam's newborn pictures with a new photographer i found and had her take noah's 18 month pics, too.  sammy was great for the photo session and only started getting crabby (i.e. hungry) towards the very end.  i can't wait to see all the pics!
check back next week for another newborn update!

some sneak peeks from ariana photography

the hat in this pic was made by my friend chris chapman,

and the blanket was made by matt's grandmother (sam's great-grandmother!)

quality time with her big brother

kisses!

samantha comes home

here's a video of noah and sam's first few minutes together:

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samantha grace king

she's here!  our sweet little girl arrived early on friday morning after a short labor that started late thursday evening.  since she wasn't quite as anxious to arrive as her brother was (she waited until nearly 39 weeks gestation to make her debut), we were able to have her at the birthing center like we had planned with the assistance of a supportive group of friends and my wonderful husband.
the official announcement info:
samantha grace king arrived on august 10, 2012 at 2:28 am.  

she weighed 7 lbs 1 oz and measured 20 inches long. 

the rest of the story, for those interested:
we had our scheduled appointment at 9:30 am on thursday morning and everything looked great.  i had been having a few contractions that morning, but nothing else and didn't even get checked for dilation while we were there.  the rest of the day proceeded like any other thursday: our family of three made a trip to costco, we came home and had lunch, played a bit and then matt went to work while we did naptime, some cleaning, and the usual afternoon routine here at home.  by late evening i was having contractions again, intermittently, while feeding noah his dinner.  by bathtime and bedtime they seemed like they were becoming more regular, but i knew that i needed to get noah to bed before i could focus on any sort of "real" labor.  i also figured that since we had cleaned the house that day and i had been so busy, that once i relaxed, ate a good meal and rehydrated myself the contractions would probably go away like they had in the past.  no chance!  by 8:30 pm i was having strong, regular contractions and called my mom to give her the heads up that she might need to come over to stay with noah.  i took a shower (and even shaved my legs!) and the contractions didn't change.  i notified our friend stacy, our friend and bradley instructor, and amy, my amazing friend and midwife, that baby was probably on the way, then sat down to eat and watch some olympics coverage while waiting for matt to get home from work.
by 9:15 pm the contractions were getting *very* strong and i had actually had a chance to time them: every 3 - 4 minutes, lasting for about a minute.  i called matt to see if he was leaving work, and fortunately he was, he said he had a hunch that i was calling for "that reason."  as always, he asked if he needed to pick anything up on the way home and i told him there was one thing i needed: apple juice (i ended up drinking the entire 1.75 L bottle in the time during and after my delivery.  it was SO good!).  after matt got home he took over timing the contractions while we watched more olympic coverage including Bolt's run into the history books with his back-to-back medals for men's 100 and 200M.  by 11 pm the contractions were getting to the point that i could no longer talk through them and we called my mom over, loaded up our bags, and notified amy that we would be ready to meet her at the birthing center.
we arrived at ABC sometime just before midnight (i think the time in my chart was 2350).  amy checked me and told me i was dilated to about 5.5 cm, and that the baby was low in my pelvis.  the next few hours are honestly mostly a blur for me, i know i labored in the tub, on a ball, and in bed while we were there.  my water broke when i started pushing, and about 30 minutes before our baby girl arrived.  surprisingly, i didn't deliver her in the water like i had thought i might, instead we delivered on the bed at 2:28 am.  she came out pink and healthy, crying just like she should.  matt got to cut the cord and we spent the next few hours snuggling our little girl and resting.
we left the birthing center later that morning, sometime before 10 am and got chick-fil-a on the way home.  chicken minis? yes, please!  we met my mother and noah inside the house and got to introduce noah to his new baby sister.  the reception went better than i planned, with noah being very excited about the "baby, baby" that we had brought home with us.  he was even so sweet as to tell us that she was sleeping ("night-night") and that we needed to "shhhh" :)

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it is crazy to think that in another 18 months our newborn baby will be walking and talking just like her big brother is now.  time to enjoy these first few sleepy weeks and snuggles, and prepare for all the milestones to come.

more pictures in the link below:

samantha grace king

38 weeks

we've made it to 38 weeks and counting!  no real changes to report this week.  we had another visit to the birthing center this morning and everything is still great.  our little girl still has a strong heartbeat and good measurements, although it does seem she has "dropped."  i noticed this sometime around the beginning of the week, when i suddenly realized that i could breathe again.  nice!  guess she's getting ready to make her big debut sometime in the next week, or two, or three.  we'll just have to wait and see!

maternity quiz

total weight gain: ~17 lbs

maternity clothes: no changes this week

sleep: just enjoying getting to sleep through the night on my nights off.  i know these days are numbered!

best moment this week: another week down, still cooking! 

cravings: apple juice!

what i miss:  being able to hug matt without my tummy in the way.  but this is only a short-term problem ;)

what i'm looking forward to: meeting this sweet girl!

weekly wisdom: remember that there's no way to plan for what's ahead, just enjoy what you can!

milestones: more pregnant than i've ever been :)

37 weeks: full-term!

yay! finally made it to full-term!  i'm happy to report that there have been no signs of impending labor and no indications of complications.  not only does this milestone mean that our sweet little girl should have less risk for complications when she's born, but it also means that we should be able to have her at the birthing center.  now, instead of worrying about when she might show up i can sit back and try to enjoy the last bit of my pregnancy -- as much as possible when planning to buy a house, move the week after i'm due, and when it's nearly 800 degrees outside ;)
we did have an appointment this week, which brought with it another first: the advent of weekly appointments.  the checkup went well, my measurements were all good and our newest king still seems to be in a head-down position.  i declined the exam to know how dilated/effaced i might be, but my CNM did say that our little one did feel very low in my belly and commented that it would probably be sooner rather than later.  of course, there's always the possibility that we could go all the way to 42 weeks, but only time will tell!

maternity quiz

total weight gain: ~16 lbs

maternity clothes: running out of wardrobe options! (and not really wanting to buy new clothes just for these last few weeks)

sleep: trying to get as much as i can... i remember the sleep deprivation that comes with a newborn!

best moment this week: no surprise: being full-term

cravings: nothing this week

what i miss:  any type of cool weather.  it's not bad inside, but i wish noah and i could go on walks or go to the playground.  it's just too hot!

what i'm looking forward to: finding out when her birthday will be

weekly wisdom: only a few more weeks (or days?), enjoy the family three now

milestones: full-term!

maternity photos

Leah Luquette met us the other day (July 20) to take some maternity photos before we get to meet this sweet baby girl.  Despite being *very* warm outside by the time we were done, we got some good pictures during the morning hours.