So this is what happened...

Fri, 8 May 2009 22:43:42 -0400

For those of you have not heard the full story of Joshua’s arrival, here is how it all went down.
It all started on Saturday morning around 10 am. Randi and I were just getting up. Randi got up out of bed and felt “something” when she stood up. She quietly went into the bathroom and in a minute or two, I hear “Nick, can you come here a minute?” I walk into the bathroom and Randi looks at me and says “I think my water broke.” We were both in a little bit of shock, but we called the doctor and she said there was no rush to get to the hospital at this point. She said to do what we have to do around the house, take a shower, take a walk and when we were ready to head to the hospital.
At this point we realized that we hadn’t packed Randi’s hospital bag yet! We packed one REALLY quickly I can tell you! Randi took a shower and washed her hair. We took a walk around the circle and into the back yard, but came in because it was suddenly way too hot to be outside walking. That should have been our first clue that it wasn’t going to be a nice cool April day.
We came in and decided to watch some TV to pass the time. Randi had started to have some contractions by this point. Nothing too scary, but she could feel them. By 2:00, we just couldn’t sit around the house anymore, so we decided to get in the car and head for the hospital. As soon as we got in the car the contractions started to get a little more intense. By the time we got to the hospital they were about 5 minutes apart. As we entered the hospital lobby a contraction started and I had Randi lean against a chair. The receptionist asked if we needed a wheel chair, but Randi declined. The receptionist got the elevator for us and we headed to the Maternity floor.
The nurses in the birthing center checked Randi in and brought her to her labor and delivery room. We noticed immediately that the temperature was not getting any cooler. The nurses soon informed us that the hospital’s policy was not to turn on the air conditioner until May 15; today was April 18! On top of that, the windows did not open and electric fans were not allowed because of health regulations. Needless to say, it was going to be a long HOT night.
Once Randi was settled the nurse checked to see how dilated she was. At first check she was 4cm. We were right on schedule! Randi was connected to the fetal monitor and fitted with an IV. At this point we decided that we would call Randi’s sister and parents to tell them it was OK to come to the hospital. When we called they were already almost there!
The contractions were getting much stronger by this point. Randi tried walking around the room to help things progress. The family arrived and we were moving right along. By 5:00 pm Randi was ready for the epidural! Everyone left the room except me, the nurse and the anesthesiologist. The nurse and I held Randi while he inserted the needle. Randi did a awesome job. I saw the needle! It was not pretty!
The pain soon disappeared and Randi could only feel some pressure. She was now in the bed for the duration of the night. Now it was just a waiting game until it was time to push.
Around 9:00pm Randi was about 7cm dilated and by midnight around 9cm. By 1:00am it was time to push. By this point, It was Randi, Jacki, the nurse and I in the room we were ready to go. They eased up on the epidural slightly so that Randi could feel enough to push. After about an hour of pushing, Jacki and I could see the top of the head. What an amazing sight!
Around 2:15 Randi’s doctor, who was herself 8 months pregnant with twins!, came in for the home stretch. She was very calm and relaxed and put us all at ease. In just about 15 more minutes out came little Joshua! I can’t tell you how proud I was of Randi at that moment. She was a trooper through the entire process! The doctor placed Joshua in Randi’s arms. What an awesome moment.
Joshua had a few tiny cries, but for the most part was pretty quiet. He was very alert and looking all around at what was going on. The nurses cleaned him up, weighed him, and foot printed him. He was soon swaddled up and given to Daddy and then to Mommy. After Grandma and Grandpa and Jacki got a good look at him, he was taken away to the nursery to be thoroughly cleaned and measured. Soon Randi and I were the only ones left in the room. There was just one dim light on in the corner and Randi looked at me and said “Did that really just happen?” Very shortly after Randi could walk, we were moved to the mother and baby room where Randi would spend the rest of her time at the hospital.
When Joshua was born, he had a slight fever, so he was admitted to the NICU so they could administer antibiotics just to be sure he didn’t have an infection. Everything turned out fine, but he did have to stay in the hospital one more day then Randi.
Those first few days were such a whirlwind. We all came home on Wednesday, April 22 and were glad to sleep in our own bed for a change. Our first visitors were Grandmama Shelley, Grandpa Norman and Aunt Jacki. Grandmama stayed over for the first few nights to help out. Then Aunt Jacki stayed for a few days to help out also. Since then we have had a few more visitors. Grammie and Poppy came all the way from Ticonderoga. Jeff, Anissa and Andy came to see Joshua as did cousin Lisa and cousin Eric. We also had a visit from Lana and Jessica.
Keep checking the blog because we have so much more to tell in the coming days. Thank you everyone for the support and the wonderful gifts. We love you all.

Last Day of Work...for now

Wed, 8 Apr 2009 22:55:52 -0400

Today was Randi’s last day of work at CNBC before Baby O arrives. It was a big day. Some good friends and co-workers threw a wonderful baby shower for us. Thank you guys! It was such a great surprise! On top of that, it was the 1000th episode of Mad Money. What a fitting way to go out!
We had another doctor’s appointment on Tuesday. Things are progressing nicely. Baby O has turned around and is getting ready to leave the building! The doctor said that Randi is 2 cm dilated already. Not to worry...this doesn’t mean delivery is happening tomorrow...but things are happening!
The baby furniture will arrive tomorrow morning just in time for us to put away all of the great baby cloths, blankets, bottles and toys that you gave us all at the showers.
Time is winding down fast. In just a couple more weeks we will be parents...kind of scary...don’t you think?

Busy, busy, busy...

Sun, 29 Mar 2009 20:06:09 -0400

It has been a busy last few weeks. We finished the walls in the nursery. Nick and I put up the jungle border in the room. It looks great! I am so happy with the way it came out! We also got a call from the furniture store telling us that all our furniture was in and we just need to set up a time to have it delivered. After that, all we need is the baby! :-)
On friday I had another doctor’s appointment. From now on, I will go every week. He said everything looked good and was on track. He told us that Baby O’s head was already down and he was getting ready to make his appearance in the next month or so. It is all going by so quickly! Only about 5 weeks to go...hopefully! It is funny when I first told people I was pregnant I had 2 other friends that were due before me. It always seemed so far away that we were all were going to be Mommies. First Lisa had her beautiful daughter, then Alison had her beautiful daughter then I realized...Holy Cow I’m NEXT! I am so excited and scared at the same time. I cannot wait for our little man to arrive so I can finally hold him in my arms (instead of having him kick me in the ribs!) I have been having some more back pain but I guess that is to be expected. Sleeping has been next to impossible and I am sure once he is here I will sleep even less!
This past weekend My mom and sister threw a baby shower for us. It was amazing! Everything was wonderful! It was at an Italian restaurant in Commack. The centerpieces were diaper cakes and boxes full of goodies (bibs, socks, burp cloths, etc)! There were about 60 people that were there. We had friends that drove in from Syracuse, Plattsburgh, Essex Junction, VT, Boston and Connecticut and of course all over the Island! Not to mention that my cousin Phyllis and my cousin Lisa flew in from Florida and surprised us! It was awesome! And I can’t even tell you how much it meant to me to have people travel so far for us! We got so many great gifts I don’t even know how to start thanking people for their generosity! My mom and sister thought of everything. I know this little boy is going to be spoiled beyond belief! They even had people bring books to build up his first library!
We don’t really have any major plans for the next few weekends except trying to get organized and put away all the great things we got from everyone...once we get the furniture to put it all in! We are going to try to relax and spend some time together while there is still just 2 or us!
And I just want to say another quick thank you to everyone that has given us gifts and most of all your love and support! We love you all and we cannot wait for you to meet the new addition to our family!

P.S. If anyone has some great pictures from the shower, we would love to see them. You can e-mail them to us by clicking here.

Lots to talk about!

Tue, 17 Mar 2009 23:04:45 -0400

The last week has kept us very busy. We finally picked up the paint for the nursery last week and began painting on Thursday night after work. I painted again on Friday night and then on Saturday morning we headed to Ticonderoga for the baby shower that my Mom and my Aunt Kathy put together for us. We had such a good time! It was nice to see all of my family together. Mom and Aunt Kathy did a great job! Randi’s Mom and Dad and Jacki made their first trip to Ticonderoga to see where I grew up. I gave them the grand tour which even included a tour of the Leerkes farm! (Thanks Erik & Chris!)
Last night I finished the painting in the nursery. We just have to put up the border around the middle of the room and wait for the furniture to arrive...oh...and the baby!
We also want to congratulate our friends Alison and Andy on the birth of their daughter Evelyn on March 13. She was 8 lbs, 13oz. and 23” long. We are so happy for them both!

We Graduated!

Sun, 8 Mar 2009 21:30:12 -0400

Today was the final session of our birthing class. We talked about c-sections, induction and did some more relaxation techniques to use during labor. I don’t know how I let this happen, but I ended up giving Randi a hand massage as one of the relaxation techniques! All of you may not realize why I think this is funny...I constantly ask Randi to give ME a hand massage and after a lot of persuading, she sometimes does it. All in all, I think the class was helpful and I think we both feel a little more at ease about the entire process.
P.S. Yes Nate, we did watch the birth video and I am still here to tell about it!

Birthing Class

Mon, 2 Mar 2009 21:42:24 -0500

On Sunday we took the first half of our birthing class. We will finish up with part 2 next Sunday. The first part went over all of the options that we have to consider for the big day. We went over early labor, active labor and pain management. We also did some breathing techniques and some back massage for relaxation during labor. We took a tour of the birthing center and went over what would happen when we arrive at the hospital. All of the rooms are private which we both liked. Each room is very nice and doesn’t feel like a hospital room at all.
There were six couples in our class, three of them were from New City. One couple is due a week before us and another is due three days after. We’ll see if we run into them at the hospital.
Our instructor was a funny lady. She kept us laughing the entire time. She is a delivery nurse and she has worked at the hospital for 32 years! She knows her stuff!
Next week we will be discussing C sections and I’m sure we will be watching the birth video. We’ll let you know how it went.

Daycare...CHECK!

Mon, 23 Feb 2009 21:16:23 -0500

So we went back to The Goddard School to see what a typical day in the infant room was like. (The first time we went there it was on a Sunday afternoon during their 4th Birthday celebration so there were no classes going on at the time.) We went before work and spent about 1/2 an hour in the room talking to the teachers and just watching all the things going on with the kinds. There was one little girl there that could not take her eyes off of Nick. She was very cute. We really liked the 2 teachers that were in there and all the children were happy and playing. So after we left the classroom we met with the director and talked. And after about another 30 minutes, we had worked out all the details we needed to work out and we were in! We figured we would need to start our little man there around the beginning to middle of July. To our surprise there was not a waiting list for that time period. So we just have to send a deposit about 90 days before he is going to start and we will be all set. We are very happy with our decision and it is a huge relief to know there will be a spot waiting for him. One major decision down...millions to go!
As you can see we posted another belly picture. Our little one is growing bigger everyday...and so is his Mommy. :-) We have started going to the doctor every 3 weeks instead of every 4. Pretty soon it will be every 2 weeks then every week. It is all going by so quickly!
We also want to say Congrats to our friends Lisa & Grady who welcomed their baby girl Madeline Amelia into the world on February 15. We are so happy for you guys! They have a blog set up also. It is http://madformadeline.blogspot.com/ so check it out!
Until next time...

Daycare

Sat, 14 Feb 2009 12:03:56 -0500

We have looked at several daycare centers between our house and CNBC. We have narrowed it down to 3 choices. One is an independently owned center and the other two are chains. All are within a few miles of each other. I think we would be comfortable with any of the three. None of the centers are “babysitters” they are all schools. We hope to make a decision by the end of the month so that we can get him registered and hold his place.
Other than daycare visits we have been slowly getting his room ready for the big day. Right now we are emptying the room of its contents. Anyone need a child-sized desk? Our landlord said we could paint the room, so we have chosen a few paint samples and hope to paint sometime soon.
The Mom-to-be is in her final trimester and still feeling good except for heartburn and back pain. We have a Dr. visit on Monday and we will keep you all updated.
Happy Valentine’s Day!

Welcome to the Jungle

Sun, 18 Jan 2009 21:08:29 -0500

As you can see the baby O’Blog has a new look! We decided to model our website after the bedding that we picked out.
We registered at Babies R Us last weekend. We got the big things like a stroller, car seats, bedding and a swing out of the way. We still had to finish up with the smaller things, and we did that this weekend with Mom, Dad & Jacki.. I am sure we will still be adding stuff that we forgot along the way but we got most of it on there. We also did some shopping for furniture for the baby’s room. We found a 5 drawer dresser and and a dresser/changing table. Now we just have to order them!
We are now at 25 weeks, so we thought it would be a good day for a new belly pic. As you can see, the belly is coming along. It is getting bigger and bigger. Our little baby boy is really starting to move around a lot now. The other night my stomach was hurting..I think there might have been a foot kicking me...so Nick was rubbing my belly and then he says “I FELT THAT ONE!” It was the first real big kick he felt. It was awesome!
Everyone keeps asking if we have picked a name yet...the answer is...not yet. We are still discussing and have not made any final decisions. We will keep everyone updated on this one but I have a feeling we are not going to have a final answer until our little one joins us on the outside. We have a doctor’s appointment on the 27th, so we’ll post any news then.

Its been a while...

Mon, 5 Jan 2009 20:18:00 -0500

Well, it has been while since our last entry, with the holidays here and all, we got a little behind, so I figured it was time to let everyone know how baby O is doing. He is great! :-) I am feeling him move around more and more. On Christmas day / the 5th night of Hanukkah my Mom, Dad, Jacki and Anissa all came up for dinner and a little gift exchanging. We had a big meal and had a wonderful day. Since both Nick and I had to work the day before and the day after Christmas we decided to celebrate Christmas a few days late with Nick’s Mom and Dad. We drove up to Ticonderoga on the Saturday after Christmas and stayed there overnight. While we were there Nick and I were watching TV and Nick had his hand on my belly (which he does a lot hoping to feel something) and this time it payed off. He felt a very small little kick. He said he would not even have known what it was if I didn’t say “Hey, did you feel that?!”. It was very exciting. He has not gotten that lucky since...but I sure he will feel plenty of kicks in the next few months.
I had another doctor’s appointment on Monday, December 29. I was working an early shift that day so I went after work. Which unfortunately meant Nick could not go because he was working his regular shift. This was the first appointment he could not go to. :-( The doctor listened to the baby’s heartbeat and said everything looked and sounded good. He also had all my test results back from our last ultrasound (which was on December 5) and he said all the measurements for our little boy looked good and there were no problems. PHEW....
Last week in the mail we got our welcome packet in the mail from Good Samaritan hospital in Suffern, NY. That will be where our baby boy makes his first appearance into the world. They sent us all the pre-registration paperwork and information about different classes they offer at the hospital. It also gave us information about going for a tour of the maternity wing. We still have to make an appointment to do that within the next few weeks.
Today we stopped at Babies R Us to just scope things out. I think we are going to do our registry within the next 2 or 3 weekends so we wanted to just see what was there and what we liked. And to our surprise Nick and I actually agreed on some bedding and a “theme” for the nursery! That was a first! I am not going to tell all of you what it is just yet because nothing is set in stone and we may still change our minds. But after we register I will post pictures of what we picked out. While we were there we also looked at some furniture for the nursery. We are not sure if we want to buy it from Babies R Us because we don’t know if it is good quality. We are looking to get a dresser and changing table. We saw some there that we really liked but we are still hesitant. If anyone out there knows a good quality store to get furniture for the nursery please let us know!
I have also started doing some research into daycare centers. I have found a few websites for places that look nice but of course Nick and I are going to check them out in person to see if they live up to everything they say on the website. We will see...
Well, I guess that is all for now. My next doctor’s appointment is January 27, so I will post some more news then...if not sooner....