love my bubs

eli is 12 weeks old and such a wonderful addition to our family. I was so nervous about having a boy, and thought I may not know how to be a 'boy mom'....but this little man has melted my heart and I couldn't imagine my life without him!!

Little cuddle bugs

Emma has decided that we "can keep him" and also this week she has stopped calling eli "it" and started calling him "he" or "eli"...we r making progress :)

twins?

Emma and eli side pofiles

birth story

It has taken me a while to get this posted because it has been a crazy couple weeks at the martin house! But here it is as promised.
At my 39 week visit my doctor and I discussed induction dates after she checked me and I was only 1cm and 50% effaced. So being 'not so favorable' meant the little dude got to keep cooking away for another week. We set induction for the 6th or july but also wait listed me for the 5th. My wonderful doctor was moving to chicago the 10th, so we wanted to make sure she got to deliver our little one.
The 4th of july rolled around and I thought for sure we would go into labor on our own after long walks, and accupressure! But no such luck.
On the 5th, we had our bags packed and every couple hours the labor and delivery unit would call and say they were too full for us. At 6 pm (after deciding it wasn't happening today and beng ok with it), they called and said to be there by 8 pm! Ah! I was so nervous and excited!
Brandon and I drove up to the hospital after leaving emma with my mom and sis at our house. It took awhile to get situated in the hospital room and get all hooked up to my iv. The good news was that the nurse started my iv in one attempt this time (instead of 4, like with emma). I took that as a good omen and tried to relax.

The didn't get pitocin started until about 11 pm. They had checked me first and surprisingly, I was dilated to a 2 and 70% effaced. So they started the pitocin and I opted to wait as long as possible before the epidural because I felt so crappy with it when I had emma. Brandon picked out some movies for us from the L&D units locked VHS movie closet..haha...he picked stargate and happy gilmore...

We watched both movies and in between we took walks in the hallways to try and tough out the contractions. Eventually we had to stop watching movies because they had turned the pitocin up all the way and I still hadnt had any pain meds. Brandon was awesome and was doing counter pressure on my lower back to help ease the contractions. But, by about 730 am, I was dilated to a 4, and they had broken my water so the contractions were pretty intense...so I decided to have the epidural

Well, just like with emma, only the right side of my body was numb...I could feel everything on the left side and even the right side wasnt fully numb. But my right leg was totally dead, so i couldnt move it or position myself very well. And just like with emma, Eli's heart rate started dropping so I had to lay on my side and wear oxygen. After I got as comfortable as i could, I let Brandon get some sleep because I thought we had a long day of laboring ahead of us. Around 11 am the babies heart rate kept dropping pretty low and the nurse came in to try and position me to help him get more oxygen. I was in lots and lots of pain and felt tons of pressure. she checked me and i was at a 5. She had the anesthesiologist come in and put more medicine in my epidural, but even after that I felt tons and tons of pain that was constant....so she checked me again (this was about 5 min after the first check) and i was a 7 and then went to an 8 while she was checking. The babies heart rate was in the 70's at this point so she yelled for some doctors, (my doctor was on her way but not there yet), so the anesthesiologist and 3 docs and 2 nurses are in the room. They were all scrambling around, putting the internal monitor on Eli's scalp and prepping the room. They started talking c section cuz his HR was so low and maybe needing a pediatrician to check him as soon as he was born. I started to get really nervous, and just wanted him out. Well my body must have listened to me cuz I felt the urge to push and told the nurse. Sure enough, they checked me and i was 10! I pushed 2 contractions and our little man was out! He looked a little pale but overall just great. His apgar scores were 8 and 9! Just like his big sister! He weighed in at 7lbs and 7 oz, 20 inches long. I got to hold him right away and he started nursing like a champ. My doctor managed to walk in the room right after he was born and she helped the other doctor stitch me up after (only 2 stitches, awesome). So, I went from 5 cm to 10 cm in about 10 minutes. haha, crazy!

Anyway, Brandon and I both fell in love with our little Eli right away. He was (and is) such a good little baby and we can't imagine our family without him!! I'd have to say that except for the small scare at the end of my delivery, the overall experience was very pleasant. I felt great after and the recovery so far has been awesome.

Welcome to the world Eli Ezra Martin!! We can't wait to see what the future has in store for you!!

l

Dadda holding eli for the first time

Eli Ezra Martin has arrived!!

On july 5th, I went to the hospital to be induced. All went smoothly (will post birth story later) and at 11:25am on July 6th Eli Ezra Martin made his grand appearance!! Weighing in at 7lbs 7oz and 20 inches long. He is a sweet sweet baby and looks just like his dadda and big sister emma!  Welcome to our family Eli. We love you so much!!

Changes

Well its been a fun summer so far! Emma and dadda are best buds and having a blast while I'm on modified bed rest. Emma loves to swim and play with her cousins. We had her first dance recital and it was a blast. Emma decided to potty train herself a couple weeks ago and the timing couldn't be more perfect.

As for the pregnancy, we are anxiously awaiting the arrival of our little eli. Can't wait to see what he looks like! I'm on modified bed rest due to some pre clampsia concerns. Its hard to relax when we have so much to do to prepare but brandon is a huge help!

My emma

Thought it might be time to update on our little emmabean...she is 2 and a half...going on 5. She has a varied and impressive vocabulary and somehow is picking up spanish pretty effectively from watching cartoons. I frequently don't understand when she throws a spanish word into her conversation haha. She loves her dadda, doesn't like sharing her mama and is a super picky eater. She is a super skinny minny and we are hoping she hits 30 lbs sometime in the year...or two....hhaha..she is a super sweet girl and we couldn't imagine our lives without her!!

PASS

I am happy to say that I passed my 3 hr glucose test. How awesome. The stuff I had to drink was nasty, I felt sick the rest of the day and am so glad I passed. :)  Here's hoping the rest of this pregnancy goes smoothly

FAIL

Yes, I indeed failed my 1 hour glucose test. I passed it easily when I was pregnant with emma, and thought for sure I would pass it with our little baby Eli, however my body had other plans....

This doesn't mean that I have gestational diabetes, it just means now I have the priviledge of spending 3 hours of my life next saturday at the u of u hospital lab getting my blood drawn every hour for 3 hours...

I have already started researching the GD diet plans and have decided to pre-emptively change my eating habits and decrease my carbs to help the process along. Ill probably stick to this eating plan for the rest of pregnancy regardless of the results because you eat 6 times a day- little meals and snacks. For me, its really easy to forget to eat because I am so busy with work and a toddler. I have gained alot less weight with this pregnancy than i did with emma, so I am still a little surprised at my results.

It seems like this pregnancy has been full of all sorts of craziness...well as long as Eli arrives healthy and happy in about 10 or so weeks, Ill be a happy mama. We are so grateful for the blessing of having a baby boy on the way...although I can't make any promises about a 3rd child for us at this point ;)

Wish me luck on my test next saturday....I really dont want gestational diabetes and the possibility of a 10+ pound baby! ah!

My baby girl

I can't believe how time flies...I remember when she was so tiny and would sit on my lap and cuddle for hours (probably cuz she wasn't mobile yet so she didn't really have a choice, haha)..now our little sweetheart is two and a half years old...I still have her in the crib upstairs in the nursery, although she does have a big girl bed and her own room on the main floor. Im not quite ready to have her sleeping downstairs yet though...Part of me wants to hold onto that little baby girl as long as I can.

The other day emma looked in the mirror at herself and exclaimed "Mom!! A little girl!!" it was so cute but also kinda heartbreaking at the same time cuz she usually refers to herself as "the baby"

I love the little person she is becoming and I cherish the little baby girl she used to be....

I just wish I could slow down time a little before this too is a distant memory of my sweet baby girl.......

Baby Dreams

soooo...I guess the name game continues for us...
Last night I had a dream that we named our baby Sawyer instead of Eli...interesting...
I think its a totally cute name but we have been pretty stuck on Eli for a long time.
I think the baby is trying to tell me something..call me crazy!

So, what do you think of the new name choices:

1. Eli Sawyer Martin
2. Sawyer Eli Martin
3. Sawyer Elijah Martin

Any input from anyone- even if i dont know you and you are a blog stalker is welcome!!!

I Believe...

I believe....

I believe that we are magic

that all things are possible

that life is precious

that peace is reasonable

that laughter is special

that blessings are divine

that love is grand...

and that you are the best thing thats ever happened to me!

I love you!

Over 5 years years ago I was lucky enough to marry my best friend. I am so lucky and still so in love :) Happy valentines day to a great husband and father!

Belly Shots- approx 20 weeks

For the sake of documenting the gigantic, enormous boy growing inside of me, I have taken a couple belly shots. According to our last ultrasound he is growing fast, and big..haha..I left my pregnancy ticker at our original due date..but most likely he is coming in june instead of july. I have been able to feel him move for a couple weeks now and I look forward to it everyday. I already love this little guy so much and sometimes I get teary-eyed thinking about how amazing it will be having another precious child in our family.....cant wait to meet him!!!

The name game..........

So now that we know we are having a little boy..the name game is on!!
We are debating between two names...one that I prefere and one that brandon prefers..I won't say which is which...but would love to have your input...so here they are

1. Daniel Elijah Martin
OR
2. Eli Daniel Martin


Which do you like best? :)

Scary Day..

So monday morning I woke up and felt a little cramping on my left side...I thought nothing of it, dismissed it as probably round ligament pain and headed off to work. Once at work the pain got substantially worse and I could hardly stand. I was doubled over in my office..there was no way I could see a full day of patients. I quickly called my husband to take me to the ER (note: if you need to go to the ER- ALWAYS go to the U OF U). He drove me up to the u of u..the whole time we were noticeably nervous..what the heck was happening? Could something be wrong with the baby? I didnt know if I could handle losing another one....

Well they got me back pretty quickly, gave me some IV morphine, got labs, and then wheeled the ultrasound machine in..and thank goodness the baby was doing great!!! kicking and moving, great heart rate. Whatever was wrong with me wasnt the baby. I figured I could handle the pain as long as I knew our little guy was ok.

We spent the whole day in the ER and finally got a diagnosis of: KIDNEY STONES. wow..who saw that coming? definitely not me. Anyway..when they say that kidney stones feel like labor..yes..it is 100% correct. It is sooo painful. so they sent me home with pain meds because any other treatment options could hurt the baby.

So I have spent the last two days waiting...and waiting for this to be over...it is getting slowly better so I think the end is in sight. However, i must say that my husband has been absolutely wonderful- making me food, taking care of me when I throw up from the pain and watching little emma. He is great and deserves a treat when this is all over. Because seriously? A pregnant wife with kidney stones sounds like a mans worst nightmare to me..haha..

Anyway, I would like to end by saying that my kidney stones are really a blessing because I was so terrified that something was wrong with our little peanut...I would gladly deal with this anyday and cant wait to have him safely in my arms in about 5 months :)

It's a..............

BOY!!!

We couldnt be more thrilled!

We went in for an ultrasound today to check on some concerns my doctor had..everything checked out ok. AND..the tech was able to tell the gender of our baby!! The baby basically flashed us the money shot and it was pretty obvious what it was once she pointed it out to me!!

The baby is also measuring big, which is great news. he measured at 15 weeks today and based on my due date i should only be 14 weeks 3 days...Well Im so grateful that things are going well for us so far this time.

Hopefully this sweet little boy continues to grow and be healthy, We can't wait to welcome him into our family in late june/early july!!!!!

Blog Stalking...OK or just plain creepy?

Soo...blog stalking has been on my mind lately. I love reading my friends blogs and seeing what they are up to, especially since alot of my friends live in different states. Well, sometimes I notice an interesting title or post in their friends list..so I check out the blog. Most of the time its someone that I have met or at least is an aquaintance.
But sometimes its a total stranger and I read their post and move on...sometimes though their stories are really intruiging and even have moved me to tears at times. Its amazing how we all have a story..a heartbreak... a tragedy..and of course..joy....

Is it totally creepy to look at other peoples blogs or is it ok? Is there anyone out there that follows our blog (highly doubtful..Im pretty boring). If so..feel free to post so we know who you are and can check out ur blog too ;)