Elizabeth Ann

She is here! Elizabeth Ann Hoppie 9lb 15oz 21 in. 10-19-10 1:56 pm. The big day finally came...okay, so we forced the big day, but she's here! We are just so excited to have another member in our family and are thankful for all the support and prayers that have helped us through this journey.

Alright, so here are some details...just in case you want the whole story;-) I really hesitated to be induced because I just really feel that things go better for everyone when the body does its own thing...but in the same breath Aaron was 41 weeks, 10 lb 12 oz with only 90 minutes of labor...a smaller kiddo and a more controlled delivery were sounding good. I decided to go ahead and be induced. Would I do it again? I'm not sure...but I AM sure that 39 weeks was a good idea...holy cow, she would have been HUGE if we let her grow for 2 more weeks!!!

We got to the hospital at 7 a.m.--I was only 3 cm and 60% effaced...grrr. The doctor broke my water around 8:30 and I moved to a 4...woohoo. We started the pitocin and 2 hours later...I was still a 4, dang! This continued for quite some time...lots of contractions but not a lot of action...my body really wasn't ready to give birth and baby girl seemed content to stay in as long as possible. We had a few rough moments where baby's heart rate dropped but a little oxygen and repositioning for me and she was okay. They tried to back off the pitocin to let baby rest but every time they did that the contractions stopped. Not slowed down or weakened, stopped. So we would restart the pit nice and slow and when the contractions got good and strong she would struggle, we would stop the pit and the contractions would stop...this vicious cycle continued on until about 1:30. At this time I was at a 7 and 80%...not too bad. Baby had an episode and we turned off the pit...but the contractions continued! Woohoo!!! Baby was in trouble a bit so Dr. checked again and holy moly it was baby time...once my body kicked into gear it was good to go! Baby girl was struggling so they decided the best thing for me to do was to just get her out...a few good pushes and welcome to the world Elizabeth!!! So how long was labor? I don't know...if you start from the induction time it was about 5 hours...if you start from the time my body kicked into gear it was about 1/2 hour...crazy!

She is here and she is wonderful. I just love how soft and snuggly they are when they are new! She does have a broken collar bone from delivery...ouch! Babies heal so quickly that by next week you won't be able to tell it was ever broken so we're just being a bit gentle with that arm and giving her extra kisses. She also has a heart murmur...but is not showing any symptoms of distress...we're not doing much for that either right now, just watching her a little more closely and hoping she'll grow out of it soon...most newborns do. We can't wait for everyone to meet her and thanks again for all the support and well wishes! Have a great day!!!