avery claire

avery was born on november 25th at 5:59 pm- thanksgiving day! even though she was 4 days early, i felt like she was 40 days late since she stayed in the womb longer than any of my other kids! we are so thrilled to have her here safe and sound! she weighs 6 lbs 9 oz and is 18 1/2 inches long.

probably about 20 minutes before avery was born... in between contractions
i got lucky this time with being in labor in the middle of the day and not the middle of the night. hair was somewhat done and makeup on!
first family portrait.

macey loving avery... for about 10 seconds

isaac snuggling avery
big brothers
cameron, isaac, macey, and avery
early this morning

first bath, just a few hours after birth
not long after birth. i think this was one of her first pictures.

i'm recording her birth story on here. so if you don't want to read it, don't. :)

i had been having mild contractions since wednesday evening, all night wednesday night (i was up every 30 minutes all night with cramping), and into thursday morning. i noticed around noon on thursday that i lost my "cork." the contractions became slightly more frequent after that and a little more than just mild cramping. i was still helping prepare some things for thanksgiving dinner and playing rummikub with tyler and his mom while the kids were in quiet time (all while timing my contractions, seeing that they were anywhere from 3-15 minutes apart. random).

by probably 2 or 3 pm, i noticed the contractions were getting stronger. i quit talking and walking through them. (should have headed to the hospital at this point, but didn't). by the time dinner was ready around 4 pm, i didn't really want to eat thanksgiving dinner. the contractions were getting painful enough where i knew i'd be headed to the hospital soon. and i didn't want to poop while delivering like i did with macey. so i was avoiding eating very much, even though i was super hungry. i asked tyler for a blessing around 4:45 pm, after he finished eating. immediately after, i had a pretty strong contraction and knew it was time to go. we arrived at the hospital at 5:15. i was assessed at being dilated to a 6-7 and rushed into the labor and delivery room. with my track record (not that those have mattered this pregnancy), of quick labors and deliveries, the nurse called my doctor who came probably 15 minutes later. he checked me and i was dilated to an 8, almost 9. he broke my water, and during my next contraction, i literally felt avery's head slip right down, and a gush of fluid that came with it. i was pushing during the next contraction. after 3 big pushes, she was out! yay! 45 minutes after arriving at the hospital. my 1st dose of antibiotics was just barely finishing as she was delivered. (i have group b strep and have with every baby).

so, of course, since i didn't get my antibiotics in time, i have to be here for 48 hours. avery may have to be here longer. she ended up going to the nicu in the middle of the night, since her blood work came back with her white cell count "critically high." her oxygen saturation was also only at 50% when checked. she also threw up a lot while in there and stopped breathing for a moment. they kept her until about 5:30 this morning when she was doing better. she has been fine since, but they are just watching her closely for infection and administering antibiotics just incase through her iv. hopefully she continues to do well and her blood work comes back normal so we can take her home tomorrow night with us when i am discharged!

she is a little darling and we are in love all over again!