Dream Come True

I'm still trying to wrap my head around this amazing gift we've been given. Ever since I was old enough to play with dolls, I dreamt of having a little girl that I could dress up, and share all my secrets of womanhood with. I had such an amazing and strong relationship with my mom as I grew up, that I could hardly wait to pass that on to my own daughter.

Each time I learned I was pregnant, I immediately started to anticipate finally getting my little girl. With the genetic history in Christopher's family, I knew not to hold my breath when we learned we were pregnant for a third time. I thought about what a long shot it was to actually get a girl and kept reminding myself how much I've enjoyed my little boys. When Thomas was born, I knew that he was exactly what I wanted, and what we really needed at that time. Both he and Andrew have taught me so much about myself and about how fun and precious little boys are. The awesome responsibility of raising two men was more exciting than I had ever expected.

When we learned that we were in fact having a girl, it was the most exhillerating feeling I think I've ever experienced. I truly felt like we had just climbed Mount Everest. We broke the chain and gave hope to all current and future wives of the Hand boys! I also knew that we'd be giving Christopher's mom the long-dreamt-of and seriously deserved little girl she'd always hoped for. And of course, my mind was flooded with all of the hopes, wishes and dreams I'd lived with for so long. Wow, I don't think anything could have brought me down at that point.

I look at Maddy and still can't believe that I have all of those wonderful moments ahead of me. It seems surreal and exciting and sometimes a little scary, too. Today's world can be a tough place for little girls. Body image, social acceptance, balancing life and career if she so chooses - it's so overwhealming. And to think that Christopher and I will have to prepare her for that!

I wonder how her older brothers will influence and protect her and remember the days when I used to wish for an older brother to protect me. I'm convinced that she'll always try to keep up with them, and may be a bit of a tomboy for that, but I hope she still enjoys some girly things, too.

I can't wait to see how her relationship develops with Christopher - the father/daughter bond is such a special one. I have an amazing relationship with my dad, and hope for all of that and more for Maddy. Mostly I just can't wait to see the little person she becomes!

Happy Birthday, America!

Our first attempt at a long distance car ride coincided with Madeline's one month birthday! Once I learned what a great, content baby Madeline is and especially that she lets us get some sleep at night, I decided that we should head down to the lake for the 4th of July. I had originally thought we'd never make it, but was ready to take on the challenge.

We had a wonderful weekend and I'm so glad we went. Maddy beats Thomas' record first visit to the lake at 4 months old by three whole months! The boys had a great time fishing and both caught their very first fish -thanks Uncle Butch! They also did a little swimming and got a boat ride in before we had to leave on Sunday. We had lots of great family time and saw several friends as well.

Maddy continues to be a great baby and in the last two weeks has started going longer stretches at night. Usually one 4 hour stretch, then every two to three hours after that. It has definitely given me more energy during the day! She still eating very well and by the first of the month is weighing in at 9 lbs. 4 oz.! I just can't believe how fast she's growing and filling out - it's so rewarding!

The boys also started swimming lessons this week and the added distraction seems to be helping. Andrew is getting some much-needed extra attention and it will provide me with at least one reason to get Thomas out and active while he's home with me for the next six weeks.

Getting Stronger!

Things have continued to improve this week and I am so enjoying my little girl! My recovery is going amazingly well and I've had the energy to get out and go to lunch with Mom, walk around a local shopping district and by the end of the week am back to driving and doing a lot of my usual activity. I'm still under certain restrictions this week and definitely pay for it when I over do it, so am really trying to force myself to take it as easy as possible.

Madeline continues to be a wonderful baby. She's so alert, and we were even able to do some tummy time this week which she really seemed to enjoy. The boys are adjusting to having her home pretty well, too. Andrew has regressed in several areas, which we expected, but I don't know that I expected that it would be so frustrating. He's wonderful with Madeline and checks in on her every day when he gets home from preschool - it's Daddy and me that he likes to test every chance he gets. Thomas is at summer school most of the day and usually plays with our next door neighbor in the afternoon until dinner. He's completely in love with Maddy, though, and loves to hold her and help me burp her.

Maddy had a great final newborn check up with the pediatrician this week and was up to 8 lbs. 1 oz.! She's also already grown a 1/2 an inch!

We sent Mom to the day spa on Thursday then she and I had a nice lunch together. Dad showed up Thursday night and he and Mom headed for the lake Friday morning. We were sad to see her go - the extra set of hands has been so wonderful - but we're ready I think. It's now or never, I guess!

Uncle Joe got to meet his first neice this weekend, too, on his way through to Hawaii! Other visitors this week included my friend Tasha and a few of our neighbors.

Sunday was our first full day on our own and it was certainly full of trials and tribulations. We have a whole new balance to figure out with an infant and two active boys under our care. It's going to require a mountain of patience for awhile while we figure it all out but I'm hopeful that we won't go insane, or do any permanent damage to our children in the process!

Welcome Home, Little One!

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh............ (that's a sigh of relief, not distress!)

It feels so amazing to finally be home. We have had such a great first week and Madeline is a total dream baby. When awake, she's alert and so content. She's nursing well and I'm tolerating everything so much better this time around. My recovery is going very smoothly now that I'm home and I feel like I'm bouncing back very quickly.

Mom has been here and has been a complete god-send as always. Luckily, Madeline is pretty content and has been sleeping well enough at night that I've been able to handle it with a little relief from Christopher. I think that's made this visit a little more relaxing and enjoyable for Mom, and means she has more energy to help out during the day.

Our first weekend home, Dad came back and brought Grandma Cox to visit and meet Maddy. Jackie T also came for a visit and was totally enamored with Maddy. We had a great Father's Day weekend including Thomas' baseball game and a yummy dinner of steak and potatoes for Christopher Sunday night. Maddy got lots of attention and cuddles, and we made it to Mass on Sunday morning for the first time.

I've had so much fun introducing Maddy to her new home, dressing her in the millions of adorable dresses, onesies and outfits I've been staring at for months. We have had an amazing first week and I can't wait to see how she grows and develops.

Maddy visited the pediatrician on her one week birthday and weighed in at 7 lbs. 4 oz. She is very healthy and our doctor is thrilled with her weight gain. We go back one more time next week to make sure she doesn't have any big losses then we're home free!

Going Home!

Well, after a fairly long 72 hours in the hospital, I am beyond relieved to be going home. I've had a mysterious, but intense headache that started on Saturday and has made coping with all of my other aches and pains almost impossible. Luckily, we were checked out by both Dr. Saunders and the pediatrician in the morning so were on way by lunch time.

We did have lots of visitors during our stay, including our good friends Nikki and Jeremy Toon and my Aunt Carol and Uncle Butch. The nurses were all wonderful, as well. The boys visited us every day but my absence from home was definitely wearing on them.

When we finally got the ok, I got Maddy dressed in her homecoming outfit, strapped into her carseat and we left as quickly as was humanly possible! She had done so well feeding that my milk was already in Saturday night and she left the hospital four ounces above her birth weight - WOW!

I can't wait to sleep in my own bed...

Welcome to the World Madeline Reis!

She's here! She's here!

Madeline Reis was born via c-section at 8:02 a.m. on Friday, June 6, 2008. She's a very healthy 6 lbs. 15 oz. and 20 1/4 inches long. She has a head full of dark hair and is already starting to sprout dark eyelashes. She has long fingers and toes, Mommy's lips and Daddy's eyes and nose. She's perfect in every way and we feel beyond blessed!

Both sets of grandparents arrived on Thursday. Christopher and I had a nice lunch with Boss and Nanna Thursday afternoon, followed by a little bit of shopping on the square in Liberty. Grammy and Papa arrived just in time for dinner, which we enjoyed at the Olive Garden in Liberty. We had a nice, festive meal and everyone was definitely charged and excited about what was coming the next day. I ran around most of the evening of course, making sure everything was in order since I'd be gone for the next four days.

We woke up around 4 a.m. Friday morning and were on our way to the hospital by 5. After a very quick check in, we were led to our room and the nurses began prepping me for the surgery. I felt pretty calm and relaxed right up until the moment they were ready to take me down to the OR. Grammy and Papa arrived around 7 a.m. and Dr. Saunders stopped in to greet us as well. When I put on the hairnet and saw Christopher suited up in his paper scrubs, the adrenaline rush began. By the time I was in the OR, I was shaking uncontrollably but the anesthesioligists were amazingly calming and understanding. I was able to do some deep breathing and stop the shaking long enough for them to get the spinal block in and felt an immediate warming and numbing in my legs.

The surgery was quick and amazingly uneventful with no side effects or discomfort whatsoever. Soon, we heard Madeline's first screams (which I understand happened as soon as her head was out!). I was immediately overcome with emotion, so happy that she was healthy and strong and so excited to see her. They finished the delivery and held her up over the curtain so I could get my first glimpse of my little girl. I immdiately noticed the dark hair and how much she reminded me of Andrew. They quickly moved her to the warmer for her first Apgar tests. She pinked up right away and scored a 9 then a 10. The nurses were amazed at how quickly she pinked up and how strong her lungs were!

She continued to scream the entire time she was in the OR with us which was surprisingly reassuring! I saw her one more time after she was wrapped up, then she and Daddy went to the nursery for her first bath.

I was only in recovery for 10 minutes or so (it seemed) before they brought Maddy to me for her first feeding. She was a pro right from the start and everything came back to me immediately so we were off to a great start! Nanna and Boss arrived soon after with Thomas and his face absolutely lit up when he saw Madeline. We finally were transferred to our extended stay room and the rest of the family had their chance to hold Maddy for the first time.

We had a few more guests throughout the day, including several friends of mine from work and Andrew came in later in the afternoon with Christopher. He was initially interested in seeing Madeline, but once he got his first look, kept his distance. He would wave hello and goodbye to her, but from at least several feet away.

I was up and out of bed for the first time before Andrew arrived and gave Madeline a feeding from the chair in my room. The nurses were amazed at how quickly I was ready for that, but my motivation was primarily to get rid of the nasty cathedar!

We had a great first day, and Christopher and I finally settled in to get some much needed rest around 9 or 10 p.m. Maddy went to the nursery between feedings and continued to nurse well through the night.

We feel so incredibly blessed and thankful for a healthy, strong baby girl. That was my only prayer throughout my entire pregnancy and I'm so thankful that God had the same thing in mind!

38 Weeks

This is it, my last week being pregnant. Up until about Monday, I was pretty content to continue being pregnant for awhile. Then, Monday night the baby was so far up in my ribs that I barely slept all night and I am now more than ready to have her join us on the "outside!" I still have occasional thoughts that I will miss this belly and not being ready to let her go, but mostly I'm looking so forward to finally seeing her face, holding her in my arms, kissing her cheeks and nursing her. I just can't wait to meet her!

We had a great final appointment and we're all set for the c-section on Friday! We'll be up bright and early as we're scheduled at 7:30 a.m. and have to be at the hospital two hours before. I'm not really sure when it will hit me that I'm a Mommy of three, Mommy to a little girl and that we are now a family of five! I'm trying not to get too anxious about the surgery or worry about any possible complications. I just want to enjoy the moment as much as possible and be ready to meet our little girl!

37 Weeks

Everything is still going smoothly and uneventfully with the baby and me this week. Her heartrate is consistent and I'm still measuring behind. We will see Dr. Saunders one more time next week before we have the c-section. I can't believe she's almost here!!

Thomas had his pre-K graduation from Spectrum Station this week, too. He looked so cute and grown up! They did the whole "Pomp and Circumstance" and procession to the stage then his class performed a few songs. We got some great pictures of him with his best friend, Drew, and the rest of the family. He is so excited about starting summer school and kindergarten in the fall. Makes it much easier on Mommy that he's excited and emotionally ready. Summer school will be a great distraction for him, too, after the baby arrives. He'll be home with me starting in early July and I'm hoping he'll be a big helper!

36 Weeks

We had another great check up with Dr. Saunders this week and all is going well. The baby is measuring in the 26-27th percentile (definitely on the small side) but Dr. Saunders isn't concerned at this point based on my smaller stature. It's nice that this is my third because we have my history to go by, which is that I have little babies, but they more than make up for it once they are born.

I am pretty tired this week and it's definitely getting more difficult to put in a full day at work. My feet and ankles are consistently puffy and sore every afternoon. We broke down and turned on the AC this week as it's been in the high 70s and 80s every day now. The baby has actually been MORE active this week. She must be training for some marathon birth!

35 Weeks

Note: I am FINALLY updating my blog and will try to bring you all up to date as much as my journals (thank goodness for those) and my foggy memory will allow. Sorry for the delay!

We had a great time with the boys last weekend and I know they really enjoyed their special days with us. We definitely will be doing that more often as our family grows and we have less opportunities for one-on-one time.

The baby and I are doing great. I saw Dr. Saunders this week and we agreed that we should have an initial sonogram to check my fluid levels, but as long as they were good, we wouldn't do another one before I deliver. I explained how anxious it made me with Andrew and felt like we'd scheduled the delivery at an appropriate time anyway even if my fluid levels did drop. Luckily she listened and agreed which was hugely empowering!

We did the sonogram on May 14th and my fluid levels were a 14 (normal is 5-25. Andrew and Thomas were both delivered when my levels were at 6 and 8). We're home free!

We had a great Mother's Day weekend in Des Moines and got to see a lot of family. Everyone had lots to say about how big I'd gotten and Great-grandma Cox was even speculating that the baby had dropped and I'd go early! We got some very nice gifts from Papa Bill and Nana Karla and from Grammy and Papa. Everyone is so excited to meet the baby!

I'm definitely getting uncomfortable now and am very ready for Sweet Pea to arrive. Our friends the Kimbrels had their baby girl this weekend - Grace Ann. She and Sweet Pea will have so much fun growing up together!