Levi James

I was scheduled to be induced on June 22^nd. The day before, I had my 39 week appointment to just check and make sure all was well for the following day. What happened was something I did not expect.

The Dr. told me during my exam that I was not dilated as far as I had been before and he couldn’t feel the baby’s head. He decided to do an ultrasound to check the baby. He found that the baby was in a transverse position, side to side instead of head down. He also noticed that the fluid around the baby was low. Both were a problem for my induction and he brought in Dr Rose, who was the Dr. scheduled to induce me to discuss my options.

I had the option of trying an external aversion, which is for the doctors to manually turn the baby from the outside into a head down position. If it was successful, they could induce me. If it wasn’t successful, or it created problems for the baby, I would have to go straight for a c section. My other option was to just go for the c section and get it over with. I chose to try the external aversion because I really didn’t want to be cut open and have a longer healing time. The only complication for that option was that the fluid around the baby was low and I was instructed to drink as much as I could the rest of the day to try to build that fluid that would help move the baby.

The next morning, I was checked in at 3 am. The night nurse got me set up with iv fluids and we waited until 7 am for the procedure. I was supposed to have at least three bags of fluid to help the baby move. I tried to get a little sleep, but I was nervous and anxious about what was to come. I knew that the day would be painful.

At 7 am, Dr Rose and Dr Morales came in. Dr Rose did an ultrasound and found that the baby was even higher up than the day before and facing up toward my face instead of down toward my feet like the day before. The nurse gave me a shot of medication that would stop my contractions and make my belly soft so they would be able to work on turning him without problems. After about fifteen minutes, the meds kicked in and Dr Rose covered my belly in gel and then she and Dr Morales both pressed their hands down around the baby and began to twist him in a counter clockwise motion. Hard.

I won’t lie about an external aversion. It’s done without any kind of pain medication and if you have one, you will wish you would just die and someone would kill you. Even labor does not compare to the feeling of having your insides twisted and manipulated like a fork in spaghetti. I almost screamed at them to stop and just do the c section, but I gritted my teeth and tried to focus on my hands squeezing the railing or the nurse rubbing my feet and telling me how amazing I am or the fact that by the end of the day I’d be holding my son.

The aversion was successful. Dr Morales had to hold him in place while Dr Rose did another ultrasound to make sure baby and cord were okay and in place. They placed a tight binding wrap around my belly to keep him in place since he was still high and able to turn again. After that, they started pitocin to restart my contractions and gave me a shot of demoral for pain.

After a few hours, the anesthesiologist came in and gave me an epidural. I hadn’t had luck with my previous deliveries, so I was hoping it would work this time. After the Dr left, my blood pressure dropped dangerously low. I felt light headed, nauseous, and was starting to black out. The nurses scrambled to get me on oxygen and the Dr ran back in to give me a couple shots of ephedrine. After fifteen minutes or so, I was stabilized but I had to remain on oxygen. If I took it off I would start to get light headed.

After a while Dr Rose came back. I was only dilated to a three and she was disappointed that I wasn’t going faster. The nurses were having a hard time keeping tabs on the baby’s heart beat from the external monitor so she decided to break my water and place an internal monitor on the baby’s head so they could have an accurate reading. I was grateful that the epidural was working and my pain was basically nothing. She wanted me to sit up in bed instead of lay down( I was laying still so baby wouldn’t move out of place and I wasn’t allowed out of bed) so gravity could help him move down. The nurses moved me and it made my blood pressure drop again and I almost passed out. I ended up vomiting a couple times. After being stabilized, I sat and watched tv. My mom and Fernando had both left to go run errands and check on the kids and grab some food. Since I was still at a 3-4, I figured they had time. The nurse came back in and told me that I had a fever and they would give me antibiotics to prevent any infections to me and the baby.

A couple hours later, I started to feel some low pressure in my bottom. I tried to ignore it, but after a half hour I told the nurse. She checked me and told me I was at a nine. I asked for my cell phone and sent out texts to Fern and my mom to get back quickly. Within fifteen minutes, they returned ( also my dad came) and the nurses began to set up. At 8 pm, 11 and a half hours after they started the induction, Dr Rose had me start to push. It only took three pushes and two minutes for him to come popping out. As Dr Rose placed the baby on top of me, he grabbed a fistful of my hair. I knew then that my suspicions of him being a troublemaker were confirmed. 

Levi James Piri Pineda was born on June 22nd at 8:02 pm. HE was 7 lbs, 1 oz, and 20 inches.

 

My mom

My mother gave me life

and never once asked for

anything in return. That

is her secret you know;

always giving without

expectations. She is as

constant as the sunrise,

the moon, the stars, and I

count on her. She helps

me find my way through 

the years and makes me

laugh while doing it.

There are some things

that only a mother can do.

I love you mom.

Last years soccer

I was a sucky blogger last year. I'm trying to repent and catch up. Last year was Azure's first season playing soccer. She had fun, but I don't really think she liked being confrontational when it came to getting in the middle of the pack to get the ball. She was just happy to run around, or rather gallop, across the field. Her team was the Pink Flamingos and her Coaches were coach Robert and Coach Katie. Here are a few pictures from the season.

My girls

Last week I decided to get a couple pictures of the girls. Azure as a 6 year old and Claire as a 4 year old. I love them. They are my life. I couldn't live without them now that I have them.

Azure's 6th birthday

Dear Azure,

You are six now. I never thought you would ever be six. It blows my mind that I have a daughter that old. 

Here are a few things you should know about you at six:

You are in kindergarten at Oak Mesa Elementary School. Your teacher is Mrs. Arreguin. You have lots of friends at school- Isabelle, Emma and Evie, Natalie, Stephanie, to name a few. You are a bit forgetful at turning in homework. You hate getting up early for school. It's a challenge every morning to motivate you.

You are very bossy.

Mrs Arreguin taught you to read. Right now, you are reading second grade level books, like Junie B Jones and The Magic Tree House.

You played your first season of soccer last fall. You were on a team called the Pink Flamingos. You were best at galloping around and staring at the sky. Sometimes you kicked the ball. But it wasn't in your nature to be an aggressive player.

You love horses. 

You want to be a teacher when you grow up. When school started, you wanted to be a veterinarian, and then a zoologist, and then a cowgirl. I can't wait to see what you want to be next.

You are excited about getting a new brother.

Even though sometimes you get annoyed by your sister, you still are a good sport and include her and love her and make sure that she is taken care of. Sometimes I make you. Most of the time you handle it on your own though.

You love to write little stories and words. It makes me excited to see all the things you have already learned in one year of school.

You are such an amazing person. People look up to you already. They count on you. I know that sometimes I put a lot of pressure on you to be an independent individual. But that is because I know you can handle it and I believe in you. As the eldest child, you have many responsibilities. Being a good example for the younger siblings is one of them. You are doing a wonderful job with Claire and I know that you will be so loving and caring to your new brother when he comes.

I want you to know that I love you with all of my heart. We butt heads a lot, we do. But that is because we are so similar. I see so much of myself in you and I want you to reach your potential. I forget sometimes that you are still little because you are so smart and brave and independent. 

I promise that I will always be a good listener for you. I am trying my hardest to be a mom you deserve to have, one that will help you to flourish and grow into an amazing woman. I hope that you will always remember that you are beautiful, not just physically, but spiritually too. I hope that you will stay close to our Heavenly Father and seek out the truths he's given us for your own well being. I want you to trust your dad and I that we are here to help you make the right decisions and we are here whenever you need us.

Here's to another adventurous year.

I love you.

Mom

Baby brother

A couple weeks ago, we took the girls to get a 3d ultrasound of the baby brother in my belly. He was moving around so much and hiding his face from the tech that we spent almost the entire time poking him to get him to settle down and cooperate. I really love technology and that we were able to get such amazing pictures. Looking back at the girls pictures from just a few years ago, their pictures are not nearly as clear.

So here is baby 3 in utero being a silly goofball!

Mommy's wedding dress

A couple weeks ago, it was Azure's spring break. I was trying to come up with inexpensive activities that didn't require a lot of movement on my part. I had seen an idea on pinterest where a mother had taken pictures of her daughter in her wedding dress. Since I still have my dress, I thought it would be very fun for the girls if we took pictures in my dress. So we did!

Azure loved loved loved it. She is really big into weddings and getting married and pretty dresses. She was enthusiastic during the whole shoot and was really good at coming up with poses in a gigantic dress.

Claire thought it was fun for about two minutes. She is tiny and the dress is really heavy so she only stuck around for a few pictures and decided she was done. Here was our result:

Claire's 4th Birthday

Dear Claire,

     Today, you are four. But you still seem like my baby. I love that you are still so small to fit in my arms, but your mind is wise beyond your years. You are smart, you are friendly, you smile at everyone you meet. I don't know of a single person you have met that doesn't love you. Your natural charm, obedience and loving persona draws people in. They want to be around you, holding you, talking to you. Even at the park, you make friends easily. When we go, you always tell me, " I'm going to make new friends today." And you do! I am amazed by your lighthearted confidence and your ability to do things on your own. You aren't afraid to ask when you need something or want to do something.

You are brave. You are strong. You are fearless.

     One of the things I admire most about you is your spiritual intuition. You seem to know everything about God and life. You say things that are Heaven inspired. It makes me sure that you are one of God's choicest children. And I feel honored to be your mother. 

     Last fall, when you were just three and a half, you told me that for Christmas you wanted a jacket for your baby brother. I had laughed it off because just two days before I took a pregnancy test and it was negative. I was sick that whole week, thinking I had the flu. But just one week after you told me, I found out I WAS pregnant. You were right. And you were adamant that it was your brother coming. Fifteen weeks later, we found out it was a boy. You were right again. And you never stop being right about little things. It's like you can see into Heaven, a place where no one else can see. 

     I hope that you never lose that piece of yourself. I always want you to be sure of who you are and what you believe. I want you to see the world, not for what it is, but for what it can be. There is still good here on earth. I believe that you will be a great leader some day. It may not be the same kind of leader that everyone looks to, but you have that quiet inner strength about you and that pure wholesome love that will hold people up. They will look to you for strength and guidance and wisdom. 

     I can't wait for you to be a big sister. You have so much to offer this new baby when he comes. He is so lucky to have you for a sister. I hope all your hopes and dreams come true. I hope that I can be half the mother you deserve. I hope that I can teach you all you need to know to get through this life. It won't be easy, but it will be worth it. And you have made it look so effortless thus far.

     My darling girl, please remember that I love you. I helped to make you. I wanted you before you were even created. You are so special to me, and to the Lord. Stay close to him, stay close to his teachings. Follow him with faith and you will never go wrong.

All my love to you, my beautiful girl.

Mom