In my last entry I said I was going to the hospital to get check out to see if it was my water that broke. And sure enough, it was!!  I called the duty hut on base and the guy went to Homer's room and woke him up.  He was about to go back to sleep but I called his cell phone to see if he was awake or not and he answered.  Homer packed up his car and started driving about 4:30 am.  My mom and I got ready and headed to the hospital.  We got there about 5 am and they had me strip down, hooked me up, and started examing me.  My doctor came shortly after and actually sounded a bit annoyed that I was there.  Since he had just seen me in his office 16 hours prior and my cervix was in no way ready for birth, he thought this was a false alarm (and I think maybe a little annoyed that he had been woken up at 3 am with a phone call).  He said, "A lot of women confuse a heavy discharge with their water breaking, but we'll check it out anyway."  Sure enough when he put the speculum in me, a big gush of fluid came out.  He said my cervix was still thick and 1 cm and that it was going to be a LONG day.  At first they were sounding like it would be into the night before I had her.  So they cranked up the pitocin and told me to bear the pain as long as I could b/c the epidural would slow things down.  So about 9 am I was 3-4 cm and surprised them all.  And the pain was so bad that I was about to start crying, so they gave me an epidural.  It wasn't bad at all!  I felt some pressure and a stick, but WAY worth it when I was able to talk and watch tv afterward.  I progressed along a lot faster than they thought I would but around 12 I started feeling contractions again. They gave me 2 more doses of medicine, but I got no relief.  Half of my body was numb and the other half still had feeling.  So the dr had to replace my epidural (his 1st one to have to replace in 2 years!!)  The other one worked so well that my left leg was completely numb and so heavy that my mom had trouble moving it for me.  About 2 pm Homer got to the hospital and right after him, my dad did too.  They checked me and I was ready to push.  Since we were waiting for him to get there to push, I had already been 10 cm and we let the contractions do some of the work of pushing to make it easier on me.  So after a short visit, the nurse worked with us to push.  I pushed for about 2 hours.  Although this is a long time, it's still average and she said that I was a good pusher and she doesn't just say that.  Since you can't really feel the muscles you're using with the meds, she said to push like you hadn't had a bowel movement in 3 months.  That helped me to distinguish the muscles to use.  They called the dr when I got close to crowning and Homer got my mom.  The pressure from the contractions makes you want to push and so while he was getting dressed and gloves on, I wanted to push and push.  So they let me, but then all of a sudden he stopped me and said don't push anymore!  Then on the next push, her head came out.  And then her body followed.  It wasn't painful, just weird I guess.  When they pulled her out and put her on my tummy, she was purple and covered in white stuff.  The dr held her upside down and shook her while Homer cut the cord.  Then he handed her off to the nurses who started cleaning her and trying to get her to cry better. All she was doing was whimpering and so they called in a nurse from the NICU to look at her.  She worked with her for a good few minutes and decided to get another nurse for a second opinion.  They decided to take her to the NICU for observation b/c she had some fluid in her lungs.  I got to hold her for a minute and Homer carried her down to the NICU to stay with her while they finished up with me.  I started crying when they told me she was going to the ICU.   Even though they weren't panicy in the delivery room, I knew it wasn't good news that she had to go.  It was upsetting that my little girl was finally here and they were taking her away from me already.  They let me stop by and see her on the way up to my recovery room. They were giving her a bath when I got there and then she had to lay under a warmer for a while.  They ended up bringing her up to my room about 930 at night and she got to stay with us from then on.  The lactation consultants worked with us on breastfeeding and by the time we left the hospital Friday, we both were getting pretty good at it.  I was so excited that she got to wear the going home dress that I made for her.  She was so pretty in it!! 

Today is our first full day home.  Homer went to golf with my dad and my mom and I have been taking care of Kaylee Beth.  She didn't sleep very well last night.  I had to get up with her every 1 1/2 and stayed up for a hour for feedings and changings.  So by the 6 am feeding, I was so exhausted and almost fell asleep with her nursing.  My milk still hasn't come in and so I've been pumping and nursing all day long.  It's like she can't get full! We had to supplement a little of formula for one feeding.  My mom says that Kaylee Beth is using all of her energy to get the colostrum and so it doesn't tied her over for long.  But I've managed to pump almost 2 oz for Homer to feed her tonight. (That is our trade off for him going to golf today)  Even with sore breasts and tired eyes, I am completely in love with Kaylee Beth!  Homer and I just layed in bed this morning watching her stretch, make faces, and, yes, even sleep.  As soon as he came in from golf today, he came to see her and kiss her.  It's so sweet!!  Well, as you can tell, time to myself is limited (I had to stop writing this 4 times to feed her) and so I'm off to give her a bath, feed her, and watch a movie we rented (and probably fall asleep during the intro).  I'll post some pictures later of her when I get more time.

Oh, Stacie, Homer sends a shout out to you b/c she says you'll be reading this soon (haha).

I had another doctor appointment this afternoon.  My weight remained the same this past week which is good. That means that I lost the weight that Kaylee Beth gained!  I am 1 cm dialated, but I didn't ask about effacement b/c we were busy discussing next week.  He wants to see me Monday morning again, but we've set up for me to have Kaylee Beth next Thursday, June 5.  I'll go into the hospital Wednesday afternoon and he'll insert a balloon into my cervix to help dialate it.  He said they'll keep inflating it and it'll just help open up my cervix.  Not really sure how comfortable that will be, but I guess I'll see.  So we'll be spending an extra night in the hospital--fun fun.  So this is the plan unless Kaylee Beth decides she wants to come earlier.  So in 9 days, I'll officially be a mommy!!

Homer is coming Thursday for 3 weeks, so he'll be here for her birth unless she decides to come tonight or tomorrow (which I really don't see happening!).  So we'll have almost a week together just the 2 of us before our little one arrives.  But I think we're both ready to meet our daughter!  

Some updates on how I'm doing:  My feet and hands are still constantly swollen.  They've even gotten to where they're still a little swollen before I even get out of the bed.  The heartburn is still bad.  A couple of nights ago I was up for about 2 hours crying b/c it was so uncomfortable.  I went to the bathroom a couple of times thinking it was actually coming up, but no such luck.  I've started taking naps during the day since sleeping at night isn't so easy with all of the bathroom trips.  And today I had some spotting after my exam--I heard this is normal after exams and even sex, which makes sense since it's not used to a whole hand being up there poking around!  Kaylee Beth doesn't like me to sit forward b/c I squish her head since it's so low in my pelvis.  Her movements are very slow since she doesnt have much room to move. And a lot of the time it feels like pressure instead of a movement like she is trying to stretch out and make some more room. 

Well, mark your calenders for June 5 for now!!

I finally got around to adding a few of the pregnancy pictures Eloree took for us last weekend.  They turned out really well (except for my fat face and feet).  A friend of mine mentioned seeing them on Facebook and thought I was crazy when I said Eloree took them and they weren't professionally done.  Maybe Eloree should become a photographer.  I printed some out today at Walgreens for my scrapbook and a couple to frame.

Homer is visiting one of his groomsmen in North Carolina this weekend.  And he's put in to take leave starting Thursday. So when he comes home next week, it'll be for good--we'll never have to be apart again.  The sad part is that it kinda blows my mind to think that we'll actually be together from next week on and we've been married for almost a year now!  So next week I'll finally really get  a husband and in less than 3 weeks, I'll be getting a daughter as well.  Everything seems to be happening so quickly now.  But yet, it seems like time is standing still too since I'm just waiting for Homer and Kaylee Beth to get here. 
She actually has been rather quiet today.  She hasn't been moving as much as she usually does.  But I know she's ok b/c I'll shake her up every couple of hours to make sure.  Even then, she doesn't give me a good kick like usual, it's just more of a little squirm and a nice jab in the bladder.  I'd imagine she's running out of space in there--I'm definately running out of space out here!  I went to the gym again today and walked another 1 1/2 miles.  I don't know if it's actually helping progress labor along and causing my cervix to dialate at all, but I definately have more pelvic pressure/pain for a hour or so after I get done.  I keep having a few contractions throughout the day with a few of them hurting enough to make me change positions.  And I'm producing more and more colostrum (pre-milk) to the point where I can't be without a bra even at night unless I want wet spots/rings on my shirts. The other day my mom and I were going out to run errands.  I was getting ready and didn't pay attention to the bra I had put on.  After we left the house, I realized that I had put on one of my first pregnancy bras that is 2 sizes too small!!  Needless to say, I was uncomfortable and very unsupported! 

Throughout the pregnancy, I've been carrying Kaylee Beth kinda low, at least compared to Brittany, so i've had a fair amount of pressure on my bladder and pelvic area the entire time.  But lately it seems to be even worse since her head is down there more.  So, I'm thinking that she's "dropped" already.  I also seem to have a little more room at the top under my ribs (at least until she stretches out).  Since her head is getting lower, I've been finding comfort in stretchy pants and pjs.  All of my other pants are uncomfortable to wear for long periods of time.  Never in my life have I walked in public with my pants unbuttoned and unzipped!  I mean, most people get embarassed if they leave their fly down... But not me!  I just pull my shirt down even lower and hope my pants don't fall down--which is very unlikely since my big belly seems to hold them up just fine!