Some pics of brand new Lula

Our life with Lula Rae

It seems impossible that our tiny Lula Rae is six weeks old today, and even more impossible that I'm already sitting at my desk back at work part time. Our first month with her flew by at an astonishing rate, and I know I will blink and both of our kids will be graduating high school and starting their own life adventures. I haven't yet stopped to sit down and write about the day Lula was born, so that is what I'll document in this first post of my new blog. I decided that since I'm not pregnant anymore, and probably won't be again, it was time to graduate from lolospreggerspage. So here we go... After a false alarm trip to the hospital a few days earlier, I was at work training the High Meadows parent who would be filling in for me during my maternity leave. We planned to have a couple of weeks together getting her ready, but I was pretty sure that experience would be abbreviated. The last few weeks of my pregnancy were pretty uncomfortable, and I had the distinct feeling that Lula would be coming early. I had a doctor appointment that morning and I was 4cm dilated and about 80 percent effaced, so we were all expecting a baby soon. The nurse midwife did a procedure called a membrane sweep which is supposed to help things move along if the baby is ready. By about half way through the day I was pretty sure I was in early labor. I had a number of contractions while at work, but didn't want to have another false alarm, so just continued about my business. I came home and made dinner, played with Parker, and waited for Chris to come home. By the time Chris got home, I was having regular contractions about 5-6 minuts apart, with increasing discomfort. I decided that I wanted to spend some time laboring at home, so I paced around the house, put Parker to bed, and read a little. At about 10 p.m. Chris was getting kind of nervouse. "I think it's really time to go to the hospital, Laura," he said, slightly irritated that we had waited so long. We still had to drive Parker to Selina's house and make the half hour trip to the hospital. I agreed to call the midwife, who promptly told me to come to the hospital. We dropped off Parker, who barely woke up, and zipped down the highway. My memory of the next few hours is a little fuzzy. We checked in, they did a check and confirmed that I was 5 cm dilated with "bulging water," which apparently meant I was ready to have a baby! They broke my water, and I immediately began having really intense contractions. I didn't waste any time ordering the epidural when I started feeling nauseous, because I didn't want to spend hours getting sick like I did with Parker. Once I had the epidural, Chris and I both took a nap. When I woke up a couple of hours later, the midwife came in and did another check. Low and behold, Lula was positioned to make her appearance! She was so low, they told me they didn't even want me to push! "Just give me a little nudge," she said, and Lula slid right out. I couldn't believe it was that easy!!! Lula looked a lot different than Parker did at birth. She was an adorable, compact and pudgy little baby! She weighed in at 7lb 1oz and 19 inches long. Born on July 17th, she was almost two weeks early, but clearly ready to be here! She nursed immediately when they laid her on my chest and held onto my finger. As I knew it would, my heart grew three sizes. After letting us have some skin to skin time, they took Lula across the room for her first bath. She loved it! The nurse was so gentle and ritualistic with the process. She let Lula enjoy the warm water and gentle touch. She loved having her hair washed and combed! They gave her back and we got to enjoy our first hours with our new, beautiful daughter. In the morning, Selina brought Parker to come meet his sister, which was SO fun! He was vibrating with excitement, and fell immediatly in love with her. Even now, six weeks later, he has been so sweet, patient, and understanding of her needs. I am so proud of what a kind and gentle boy he is. Selina and Rylee visited with Lula for a while, and brought us all flowers. We are so lucky to have them in our lives. Selina has agreed to watch Lula this year, which is an immense relief to us all as this means she won't be going straight into a daycare center. Later that day, Beth and Garrel (Mimi and Papa) arrived from North Carolina. They spent some time getting to know Lula, helping with Parker, and visiting with me and Chris. Beth stayed two weeks to help us transition into our new life with Lula, which was much appreciated! She was very understanding and helpful, even when I had post-partum mood swings! Luckily I had only a couple of weepy moments, and a couple of crabby ones, and then got back to feeling like myself. I will write more soon about our sweet baby girl and what a wonderful and peaceful girl she is. For now, I need to get back to work. Love, Laura