Our Miracle Before Christmas

Sorry for not updating sooner, I know I have been slacking off with the blog.   I do have a good reason though:)

Lady L was scheduled to be induced last Wednesday, December 19th.  However, at her appointment on December 17th, she was moved up to Tuesday evening.  Before the work day had ended on Monday, she had been rescheduled for Tuesday morning at 8am.  We were ecstatic, anxious, and so excited to meet our little bundle of joy.  Our plan was to go to bed early, sleep as late as we could, and get ready and do a final clean of the house before heading in to the hospital. 

Our plans changed when my phone range at 4am, and it was J- Lady L's husband.  She had been having contractions, and they were heading in to the hospital.  Aaron and I clearly have two different memories of what happened next.  I jumped in the shower, took an 8 minute shower (which is a record for me) and told Aaron we may as well head in, no use in hanging around the house.  He agreed, and while he was pondering how many sodas he should bring along, I was in the car, honking (yes, 4:30am- sorry neighbors) to move him along.  He still hadn't moved all that quick, so I backed up to save him a few steps, before I realized it was trash day, and yes, I knocked the trash bin over. 

We made it to the hospital and hung out in the family waiting room before Lady L and Josh brought us back to the room. She was dilated to 5, and had an epidural put in. We chatted for a while, and watched part of "Christmas Vacation" before she was ready for some rest. Aaron and I went back to the waiting room, watched a movie, ate some food, and napped. At 11:00am, contractions had slowed down pretty good, but she was dilated to 6, so they broke her water. At 1:00, there had been no change, so they started her on pitocin to get things moving along. Aaron was planning to buy a newspaper, and maybe grab a snack. Just before he was about to leave, he received a text from hi friend wondering how things were going, and he had just started to reply. One of the nurses came back to the room and let us know that the time was coming soon. She warned us the the pediatric team had joined the room, not to be alarmed, but Lady L's fluid had a tinge of color in it, an indication that the baby may had swallowed the meconium, and that they would use suction to remove it all and check her lungs. The nurse told us to use the restroom if we needed, gather our stuff, and make our way back. I was ready to go immediately, and Aaron was answering his text before we were on our way. The nurse came out and told us to hurry, Lady L was about to push (guys, listen to your wives when they tell you to put your phone away FYI.)

We made it into the room, set down our stuff, and Lady L moved her oxygen mask to ask the doctor if she could push. They said yes, she pushed once, and out came our sweet little miracle. She screamed, wailed, and showed off those perfect lungs enough to make the peds crew smile, tell us they would suction her mouth, but her lungs were in great shape. Aaron cut her umbilical cord, and they dusted her off. She settled down really quickly, and we saw what a beautiful, sweet baby she was right away. At 2:46pm on Tuesday, December 18th, Maizy Sue Klassen Dube was born 20.5 inches long, and 7lbs, 1oz. We took turns holding her, and of course Lady L was right after us. The expressions on both of their faces was amazing. Maizy scored 9 on both of her new baby tests.

We hung around for a while, before we were transferred to our own rooms (lady L was next door) and we spend the next couple of days getting to know our baby. All of the doctors and nurses commented on how alert she was right away. She is a perfect combination of Aaron and I. She definitely takes after my dad's side with the big blue eyes (so far:)) but has Aaron's nose, and a combination of the rest of her features. Lady L was able to leave before noon the next day. We stayed until Thursday, and were released into a perfect Minnesota blizzard. It was a nice ride, no worries with the roads.

Maizy has been a good sleeper, with the exception of one night from 12-6am when she was a little mixed up on her schedule. She isn't fussy, but wails sometimes when we change her clothes or diapers. She doesn't seem to be a fan of being cold, but we'll fix that:) She smiles a lot of the time (we know they aren't intentional, but they are beautiful anyway) and she is very comfortable and content with new friends, kids, and odd cats. She has been to 2 family Christmas gatherings, and her first mass. She was a perfect champ at both.

We are so thankful for this perfect miracle in our lives. We could not have done this without all of the support from our family, and friends, and we are so appreciative of all of your prayers and well wishes. Of course, we are forever in a debt of gratitude to Lady L and her family. They all made huge sacrifices over the year so that Aaron and I could finally have a child that we have wanted for so long. We will never, ever take her for granted.

Xoxo

Maizy's first picture, about 4 minutes old

First family shot

Lady L and Maizy

After we got into our room

Snuggling with daddy

 

Mommy's turn

Maizy and Nana, 3 girlies

 

Lady L and her family

First big smile on camera

Chillin

Her favorite ob doctor

Maizy and her doctor from Reproductive endocrinology.  He has know her since she was a 5-cell embryo:)

Just leaving the hospital

Lady L and J out on a date

First Santa experience

Tomato baby

Loving her dad

And mom

Looking at her grandpa.

 

Many, many more picutres to come.  We have over 500 now, and it's just the beginning:)

 

 

The Waiting Game

This has been a long week.  As you know, we had prepared for baby girl to arrive early, after an ultrasound revealed that our sweet girl was measuring large for her age, I think it was by 3 weeks or so.  We have been prepared for her arrival for so long, we can hardly remember not being ready.  So, here we sit, as she is now 8 days late, and we hope for her to make her entrance soon.  The plan is currently to induce Lady L this Wednesday, December 19th, but that date might be pushed back as far as December 26th.  Tomorrow afternoon Lady L has an appointment, and we are hoping to know more then. 

As anxious, nervous, and on edge I have been feeling for the last few weeks, it's very hard to feel sorry for myself.  Many, many people are nowhere near as lucky as we are.  Although I want our baby in my arms more than anything in the world, I have absolutely nothing to complain about. 
Keep Lady L, her family in your prayers.  They didn't expect our little girl to be as late as she is.  And keep Bebe in your prayers, she is going to have a serious relocation soon, and we pray for a very quick, easy delivery, and a healthy screaming baby soon:)

Xoxo

Overdue

We are so ready for this baby to be born.  Today would be ideal, as Lady L is running out of juice, and we are beyond excited to meet our little bebe.  Yesterday's appointment showed that Lady L's cervix has progressed, but there are no signs of labor at this point.  The doctor stripped her membranes again, and was confident that things should be moving sooner than later. 

He made an appointment to induce her if she doesn't go into labor sooner, and that date is one week from today, December 19th.  That seems like years away.

Baby was doing just fine.  Snuggled into some tight quarters, but still has plenty of fluid, and a heart rate of 136.  The doctor did the ultrasound formulated estimate, and baby weighs in around 7 pounds, 9 ounces.  So, tick-tock little one, let's get this show on the road!

I know it may seem vain to pray for anything other than a healthy baby, but if you wouldn't mind giving the big guy a shout, my sanity is being tested with each passing day:)

Thank you!
Xoxo

No News

I know many of you have been curious, and I can tell you nobody is more excited/anxious than we are:)  However, there is nothing to report right now.  Lady L has no signs of labor, but will go back for a check up tomorrow afternoon.  Hopefully things are moving along by then, but our bebe may have other plans.  I'll keep you posted!  Xoxo

News

This week's appointment showed that Bebe is still head down, and has a good heart rate of 130.  The exciting news is that the doctor is confident that she is close to ready to be born.  Since Lady L's strep B test was negative, he is ready to strip her membranes, on Monday!
We are excited, nervous, and very anxious.  Of course we know it's a possibility that she could be born at any time, but this news encourages us to be totally ready when we go to bed Sunday night.  I will be at school all day Saturday getting things in place, and on Sunday we'll be getting everything ready around the house.  Our bags are ready, the car seat is ready, and Bebe's bag is ready.  So now, we will just wait for the phone call that it's time to go.  And then, something magical will happen:)

37!!!

Lady L is officially "full-term" with our sweet daughter.  Anything after 37 is full term, so we are there!  We had an appointment today, and her heartbeat was very strong.  The best thing was that I got to feel her kick (and punch, possibly bunt, all sorts of flailing of the limbs.)  We met with the social worker to go over the birth plan, and I am truly so blessed beyond words to have such an amazing person as my cousin.  She is the epitome of selflessness, as generous as they come, and overwhelmingly good. 

Last weekend we were able to meet with a photographer and have some maternity/surrogacy pictures taken.  I will post the two that I have, and I have permission to link to the rest of the photos.

Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/heidi.k.dube?ref=tn_tnmn#!/media/set/?set=a.433323243394850.97094.128117047248806&type=1

Link to her direct website:  You will need to enter password: baby
http://takentodaytreasuredtomorrow.shootproof.com/event/101971/view#a_all-grid


Also, two weeks ago, my amazing crew that I am lucky enough to call my friends threw a baby shower for us.  Again, I was reminded of just how fortunate I am to have crossed paths with some of the loveliest people in existence. 

 

This is one of my faves!

I know I should have fixed the scarf, but I love this one.

 

The pictures don't do this justice, I have never been prouder of any of our craft projects:)

 

As we were finishing up.

 

Thanks so much for following our journey, and caring enough about all of us to keep us in your prayers. 

34

We are trucking right along in this pregnancy!  I am so thankful that Lady L and her family are doing so well.  We were able to spend a fun afternoon with them on Sunday, and yesterday we had another appointment.  Baby is measuring right on track now, and which makes us happy.  She must have had a growth spurt right before our last appointment when she measured pretty big.  She has a good amount of fluid, a nice heart rate of 136, and she is still a girl:)  We love seeing her on the ultrasound machine, as that's our time to connect with her.  Lady L feels a lot of movement, punching and kicking, but bebe must sense when we are around, as she really starts to behave then;)  I told Aaron I hope we get to feel her kick sometime, and he replied "you'll regret that phrase when she's 2 or 3."  Lol, totally not what I meant.
We have a few pictures, close to the same facial shots as last time.  We got a really cool view of her rib cage and heart pumping away, but no picture of that.

Next appointment is at 37 weeks (November 19th), and then will increase to weekly check ups.

Thanks so much for your heartfelt good wishes, prayers, and kindness!  Xoxo.

Quick One

I have just a quick post to report today.  I shared our very happy news with my students yesterday.  I showed a picture of Lady L and I, and told them they would recognize one of the people in the picture.  They were very excited, and said that it was me.  They started guessing who the other person was, starting with my sister, and quickly figured it was my cousin.  I told them that she is really special, and a few girls said that she has a baby in her tummy, and one of the boys corrected them, noting that the medical term is actually "pregnant."  Then, I told them that one of the reasons she is so special is because she has a really good tummy for growing babies.  My cousin found out that I didn't have such a good tummy, so she said that the doctors could put my (and my husband's) baby into her tummy, and let it grow there until it's ready to be born.  So, in December I will be leaving, and returning after 12 weeks of being home with our baby.  Most of them looks a little suspicious, like that can't really happen, but decided to believe me anyway.  One girl asked how the baby got there, an I told them I don't know, since I am not a doctor:)  And, another said that I would technically be a grandma once the baby is born, ha ha.  Here are a couple of pictures:

30 Weeks 

32 weeks, 5 days. 

30

Today is the day we all leave the 20's behind, and are 30 weeks along!  Woo hoo! We had an appointment yesterday, and things were looking good.  Lady L is doing pretty well.  She is getting to the uncomfortable point in the pregnancy, and is having some trouble with her feet.  We wish that she didn't have to have any side effects of course, but she is handling everything well.  The doctor took a look at our girl, and she looks just beautiful.  We could see her face smiling at us, and even the lenses over her eyes moving around.  Aaron and I were both there, and there was a moment that Aaron was getting emotional:)  See, he's a big softie after all!  Lady L had her son with, so he got to check the baby out, too.
She is a big baby- measuring at 32 weeks, when yesterday she was not quite 30 weeks!  We thought it would be funny if she was born a few days late on 12-12-2012, but that's pretty much out of the question now:)  I will have to have my sub plans ready extra early, just in case. 
Here are a few of the facial pictures, along with us at the appointment:

Xoxo!

3rd Trimester

28 weeks, the most beautiful title I have ever heard. We have ventured into the 3rd trimester, which is so amazing and wonderful. Our baby girl is now at least 2.25 pounds, and 15 inches long. It is so much fun to read each week all of the changes that take place with her every week. Her eyes are now developed enough for her to intentionally blink, she can see, and if we had some high tech camera inside of Lady L's belly, we could even see her eye color, although that often changes before babies are 6 months old.

 
We are praying that this final stretch goes smoothly for sweet baby girl, and that she stays put until December. We are praying that Lady feels as comfortable as possible as her belly grows pretty quickly in these last 12 weeks. We are hoping that this time passes quickly, as both Aaron and I are getting anxious to finally meet our daughter.

 
We have a doctor appointment in about 2 weeks, just shy of 30 weeks. Lady L will have her glucose screening test at that time, and then the doctor will check on her and the baby later.

I have a couple of new Lady L belly pictures, enjoy!

Side view

View from the top:)

25 Weeks

We are now 25 weeks along in this amazing pregnancy.  We had an appointment two days ago, and our little girl is still very active, moving around and shaking her stuff all over the screen:)  They didn't do any measuring of her length, but hopefully next time they'll be able to tell us how she is measuring (there was a medical student performing the ultrasound, and she didn't do some of the checks that our doctor normally does.)  Anyway, I think she had a heart rate of 143, which our doctor said is perfect. She has lots of fluid to give her space to practice her acrobatics.  The next appointment is September 28th, and Lady L will have her glucose test then.  I'll be there cheering her on, and will bring some things to pass the time.

Lady L is doing well.  She has had some swelling in her ankles, and the heat/humidity hasn't helped that any.  But she has a great attitude, and is looking marvelous.  There is no question that she is pregnant, and she really looks amazing!  I'll post a few pictures.  She and her kids have such a great outlook on this journey, and we are so happy for that.

This week was my last week of summer.  I have been in my classroom a lot, but still have a long way to go.  Monday is our first official day of workshop week, and the kiddos start on September 4th.  I am of course a little sad to see summer go, but I am so incredibly anxious for December to get here, and I know we have to get through the fall in order for winter to arrive. 

We have most things ready for our daughter to arrive.  Her nursery is nearly complete, and a few of the bigger things that we have been waiting on getting we will wait until closer to her due date.  I have been sewing and making some fun things for her to have when she is ready.  I will be taking 12 weeks off of work to hang out with her at home, and we are hoping to find someone who will stay with her (one on one) until my summer break, which is about 3 months later.  Then, next fall, we will likely bring her to a child care center or an in home daycare. 

 

I told you she looks great:)

 

As always,  we appreciate sharing this very special experience with us.  We are truly blessed. Xoxo.

Birthdays

I can't let too much time pass without writing a post in honor of our sweet angels' birthday.  Yesterday was Savannah and Charlie's first birthday, and of course also the anniversary of the day they went to their final destination.  When I think about all of the people who have left before me, I am honored that both Savannah and Charlie are in such good company.  I think of both of my grandfathers, talking to the twins about farming, and agreeing with my Dad's wishes for more rain. (It's coming, Dad:)).  I imagine my Grandma K and my godmother-aunt Margaret smooching their little fingers and toes, playing house together before my granny has to go watch her "program."  I know Aaron's grandpa is teaching them about mechanics, airplanes, and how to fix things.  We have so many friends and family who left before us, who I know are having the best time with our children.  None more so than one of the greatest ladies I ever had the pleasure of knowing, Aaron's mother, Sue.  She exhibited kindness and compassion with every ounce of her being,  She had more patience than most, and could find the time to go the extra mile for everybody.  I know she is loving and taking the best care imaginable of Charlie and Savannah.

Yesterday wasn't all tears.  Savannah and Charlie were loved and treasured for every second of their existence, by many, many people.  We wanted to honor and celebrate as much as we mourned.  We had a busy, day, but just after dark, we had planned to go to the cemetery, and let go two floating lanterns.  Apparently, our kiddos do have a fantastic sense of humor.  At their site, we have two solar lights, one butterfly, and one dragonfly.  They are so beautiful, as is their stone.  It's been a very peaceful, tranquil place for us to visit.  The lights change colors, and they are so bright that we could see the lanterns perfectly to prepare them.  We lit them, let them fill up with heat, and when it was time to let them go, the one I started got stuck in a tree, and Aaron's floated gracefully into the night sky.  So we laughed a little, and watched until all of the embers in mine went out.  After a  good chat and a good cry, we left for home.  Aaron thought we should take the route in the direction that his lantern floated.  On the drive, we saw some fireworks.  When we got close to the farm letting them off, we pulled over, just as they were lighting off the grand finale,  A true gala for our twins.

In another interesting twist of fate, today is Lady L's birthday, which we also celebrated last night.  She turns 30 today, and we had a great time at her party at her folks' house.  In fact, it was very reminiscent of her birthday parties I remember attending when we were young kids.  Her children and their friends were having a great time, rounding up the night by searching for zombies with flashlights at dusk.  Happy birthday, Lady L.  We love you!

As our excitement for our daughter's arrival continues, we still mourn the loss of what might have been, but wasn't. Although I would change the course of fate if I could, there have been many, many blessings that we are so thankful for as a result of our loss. Many of our friendships have been strengthened, and some mere acquaintances have now become family. Aaron and I have witnessed true acts of friendship, and watched in admiration as people who we wouldn't have expected surround us with love and so much support. So many of you have reached out and shown us your compassion, your sorrow, and grace. Thank you.

Lady L and I at her birthday party

Lady L and her husband J, enjoying the night

The lantern Aaron let go, far away in the night sky

The Big Ultrasound

As you can imagine, my day began with so much excitement, and a bit of anxiety.  I have been very positive throughout this pregnancy, but at the 20 week ultrasound is where things went wrong with Charlie and Savannah last summer.  Besides being a little off kilter from a strange dream in which Aaron told me our cat had chlamydia, I woke up feeling good.  And it continued throughout the day.

After we arrived at the clinic, we went right back to start checking the baby out.  Right away, we saw our wiggly, active bebe showing off for the camera.

The ultrasound tech scanned everything, and found everything LOOKING GOOD!  That was exactly what I needed to hear.  The baby is in the 55th percentile for size, has a heartbeat in the 140ish range, and is just as beautiful as little girls can be.  That's right, it's a girl!  We are thrilled, and can't wait to meet her this winter.

Lady L's 20 week belly.  It's there!

Sorry for not posting earlier, we had some phone calls to make to family members first:)

Thanks so much for all of your prayers.  They are working!

Xoxo

Check Up

Today Lady L and I had a regular ob appointment.  We saw the cutest little baby wiggle around, open and close the mouth, and even waved to us.  The heartbeat measuered at 150 beats per minute, and our little bebe is just over 12 cm from crown to rump.  Here are a few pictures from our visit today:

Just us girls, her son the photog:)

Our sweet alien baby looking our way

Arms

High five everybody!

I don't really know what this is.  Any ideas? 

At 17 weeks (tomorrow) the baby has hair, eyebrows, and fingernails.

Lady L is feeling good, and looking great.  She has not felt any giant kicks or jabs yet, but feels the baby fluttering around.  We will be returning in 3 weeks to have the big anatomy ultrasound.  We are very excited to see more of our sweet babe.

Love,

Heidi