The {Seemingly Eternal} Bliss Watch 2014

This might be my longest blog post to date…which goes right in line with my crazy pregnancy. If I’m being honest…I didn’t have the greatest attitude this time around. It wasn’t too bad to start…but, after the move, things seemed to go down a slow, downhill slope! Nearing the end, I wasn’t sad!!! I was READY!!! More than I ever was with the boys. My sweet girly was ALL up in my lungs…and I couldn’t breathe. I even had a few panicky moments!!! It was just time!

But, truth be told…the thought of going into labor on my own was super scary to me. And, there was a list of things that I really wanted to do before Bliss Priss made her sweet arrival.

Here are the things I really wanted to do before she came:

Monday, April 7th {37 weeks, 6 days}: Quinn’s First Grade Field Trip
I had signed up to be chaperone and really wanted that special time with my biggest boy! I was so thankful for the whole day that I got to spend with up. What a love he is..and I loved seeing him in his school element a little bit. We laughed and had a great time!

That deer in the background was a MEAN one…she even bit a few kids. Q grabbed a stick and was standing guard…letting everyone know that she was grumpy!…
Friday, April 11th {38 weeks, 4 days}: Go on a date with my guy!
We went to a dine in theater and saw Draft Day. It was relaxing and much needed. How I love my Baby Daddy!

Saturday, April 12th {38 weeks, 5 days}: See one more of Nash’s soccer games

I'm so glad I made it to this game. He scored his first goal…and was quite the super star!
I wanted the “Poe Dudes” to do some fun guy things together…before their world got overrun with pink!!! They had a blast at the Houston Dynamo game and Nash & Matt had a great time at the Astros game. Sweet time for a Daddy and his boys!!!

Saturday, April 12th {38 weeks, 5 days}:
I really wanted to go on one last SPECIAL family date. We went to the dine in theater and had a blast seeing Rio 2 together. I have loved being just a “boy mom” for 7 years!!!
It was soon after all of that fun that things took a BAD turn.

Here are all of the things I DIDN’T want to do/plan on doing:
This big ‘ole pregnant Momma got strep! It was NO FUN!!  At the same time, my sweet Nasher got awful headaches and ran fever too. We were a pitiful mess!!!
 
Matt called his mom & dad to come and help! There was NO WAY I could handle the boys on my own. I was MISERABLE!!! But, thankfully, things started looking up.

Matt and I took a walk in our beautiful neighborhood park one morning to try to get our sweet Bliss ready to make her appearance!

But, just as soon as I started getting better, I got worse. I started having AWFUL allergy problems and migraine headaches. I was beyond miserable and couldn’t get off the couch without feeling like I was going to fall over from the pain. My husband was a rock star. Doing EVERYTHING for the kids and taking such good care of me.

 
I was MISERABLE all weekend long and my parents came in town on Monday, April 14th to help take care of me and to start getting ready for Bliss’ impending arrival.

On Tuesday, April 15th {39 weeks}, I went to my doctor and was dilated to a 2! She was great with inducing on Wednesday the 16th!!! I was SO excited and SO ready!

So, at 4:45 a.m. on Wednesday, April 16th, I got up and made the exciting phone call to the hospital to hear them give me the “OK” to come on in! But, that’s not what happened! Unfortunately, the hospital was SLAMMED and there were no rooms for us! I couldn’t believe it and was SOOOO disappointed! They had me call back a few more times in the day, but there was still no place for us! UGH!

Due to my recent sicknesses, I hadn’t been the most pleasant to be around. So, once I got over the initial disappointment, I decided to be thankful for a day to be HAPPY and get some stuff done around the house! And, there's always tomorrow to have a baby!
 
But, on Thursday, April 17th, it was the same story! NO ROOMS!!! Are you kidding? I was shocked…and is was so different from my experience with the boys. …Then, because the hospital has super strange policies, I wasn’t on the schedule for induction again until THE NEXT THURSDAY!!! WHAT?!?! They already had too many elective inductions on the schedule the days before so there was NO way I was going to get in. Unless I went into labor on my own, we weren’t having a baby for quite a while!!!

Mammer and Slickpaw truly saved the day. They packed lunches, got little boys to and from school, went on adventures and let me be a big ‘ole miserable pregnant girl! I was SOOO tired and was sleeping horribly at night. I needed all of the help I could get and was so glad that were able. Matt was still trying to work as much as possible so that he could take off when Bliss finally decided to come. It was a LOOOOOONNNNG week!!!
 
It was so crazy to me that I even got to attend Easter service on Sunday, April 20th. {39 weeks, 6 days}  I had dreamed of staying home with a new baby when my whole family went to service. But, God had other plans! I was thankful to get to see the amazing service our church does at a HUGE outdoor pavilion…about 5,000 people attend! I was huge…but it was a special day! Service…lunch…egg hunting…and a nap, of course!

Tuesday, April 22nd {my due date!!!} came and went and there was no Bliss Priss in my arms. My doctor stripped my membranes (they should name that something else…that name is terrifying!!!) but it didn’t help speed things up! We tried the whole elective induction thing again…and again…and again! (6 times total!!!) Getting up at 4:45 to get the “I’m sorry we’re full” message was getting more and more frustrating! For whatever reason, God wasn’t quite ready for this little Miss to come yet. I tried to be patient. But, I wasn’t doing a very good job. I was miserable!!! Seriously miserable! And, the emotional rollercoaster of the “no’s” from the hospital was exhausting!
 
I had a choice to make about 100 times every day…to have a joyful heart or to be frustrated! I tried to choose joy as much as possible. I was so thankful that Mammer, Slickpaw and Matt were able to be so helpful! And, I did get to experience sweet “last minute” moments with just my guys! I noticed freckles and cute voices and snaggle toothed grins! I watched them swim…and got to go on a date with my hubby again…and tucked my boys in a few more times before nursing would take priority! I thanked  Jesus for the blessing of my family!!! And tried to trust in HIS timing…instead of trying to plan it all myself!
 
On Friday, April 25th, {40 weeks, 3 days} we went on a fun family date to Top Golf! Saturday was SUPPOSED to be the magic day for induction…my doctor was confident that I would finally “get in!”

Q has recently started getting into golf and it was fun to watch him!

Around bedtime on Friday night, I started having contractions. Not crazy…but fairly consistent. And, they stayed pretty steady through the night. They would wake me up…but I was able to get some rest! I was terrified of going into labor on my own and not being able to make it the hospital. (silly, I know!) Because I had never experienced going into labor on my own, I didn't know when it was time to pack up and go to the hospital. But, I was confident that I had plenty of time!

But, to my shock and frustration, when we called the hospital on Saturday morning KNOWING we would get the green light, they told me, once again, that they were full! I immediately called my doctor in a panic because I couldn’t believe it. I told her about my contractions and she told me (if my contractions continued) to go in at 9:00 and go to triage!

The contractions DID continue…and they were getting more and more intense. At about 8:45 a.m. on Saturday, April 26th {40 weeks, 4 days}, we arrived at the hospital and went in to triage. THANK THE LORD…I was at a 4…and they admitted me because I was IN LABOR!!! Today was FINALLY going to be my Sweet Bliss Priss’ birthday! The waiting was OVER…and we were all over the moon!!!

{her birthday details coming soon!!!}