First Day of School

Today was a big day at the Crandall house because not only was it Reese's first day of 1st grade, but it was also Finn's first day of school ever!  He was so excited about going to school this year and has been talking about it non stop.  We got a letter a few weeks before school started telling us that his teacher was Ms.Katie and he's been talking about her every day and asking when he gets to go to school.  It was getting so bad that every time we left the house he would try to grab his bag because he thought he was going to school.

When I asked him what he wanted to be he replied "no" the first few times and I was having visions of him as a 30 year old still living at home, then he changed his answer to lion and I figured at least that was something.  Reese tried explaining to him that he couldn't be a lion, but he would just roar at her in an attempt to prove her wrong.  

He enjoyed his first day of school, but I think it was a bit tiring for him because he was a bit grumpy when I picked him up and ready to go home.  Once he snapped out of his mood and I got him to talk about school he was very excited again and told me about playing ring around the rosie and singing songs.

Reese was a bit jealous that Finn found out who his teacher was before her.  She was very excited to go to registration day last week to find out which class she would be in.  She's in Mrs.Sivley's class and I think it's going to be a good fit for her.  Reese was very excited about being in 1st grade because that means she's on the big playground and she doesn't have to have a bus sticker anymore.  I was a little shocked this morning when she told me that I could just drop her off at the curb if I wanted to, at this rate she'll be asking me to drop her off around the corner next year.  She's very eager to be independent, but she did allow me to walk her in to class and help her get her stuff settled. 

Little Pooper

It is a well known fact in our home that Sage must poop on every new outfit, to christen it I suppose.  Every single time she's worn something for the first time she has had a blow out.  She just likes things a lot better when they're covered in poop.  Today I was washing sheets so I pulled the sheet off her bed and but a brand new one on, not thinking that her love of pooping on new things extended to bedding.  I put her down for her nap and when she woke up I left her for a few minutes because I was helping Finn with a puzzle and she was happily talking to herself.  When I went in there and picked her up I discovered poop EVERYWHERE!!!  She had pooped out while lying on her back, then proceeded to roll over and scoot all around her bed smearing the poop all over the sheet, her stuffed animals, her clothes, everywhere except her face thank goodness.  Finn, being the clearly intelligent child that he is, informed me that Sage had pooped (thanks bud). While I was carrying the little pooper out to the changing pad (as far from my body as my arms would allow) Finn proceeded to inform me "poop, poop, poop, Sage pooped everywhere," and Sage smiled and kicked with glee at how funny she is for smearing poop all over herself.
I wish I had taken pictures, and actually thought about pausing to get the camera, but we already had such a big mess that I wasn't interested in allowing her to make it bigger while I took the time to document it.  

Sage Ireland Crandall

It's a new year and the last time I posted on my blog was a year ago when I made my resolution to be better about posting, it was my first failed resolution of 2013.  Many things were missed through 2013 that I wish I had posted about, but that's life.  Hopefully I'll be better this year, but before another day passed I wanted to document the birth story of Sage.  This blog is a journal of sorts for me and I don't want to forget the details of my last baby's birth.

Sage Ireland Crandall

11-9-2013

8 lbs 8.8 oz, 21.25 in long, 13.5 in head circumference

With this third and final pregnancy we had decided not to find out the gender of the baby.  There were times when I really really wanted to know, but overall it was exciting and I enjoyed hearing everyone's guesses and reasons behind them.  More people thought I was having a boy than a girl, but even though I flip flopped in the beginning and middle of the pregnancy I was pretty certain we were having a girl the last couple months.
Baby was measuring big from my first ultrasound, but my doctor said we would wait until the second one to decide whether or not we would change the due date.  At my second ultrasound I was measuring 8 days big but they don't change your due date unless it's a difference of 9 days or more.  I was pretty upset that they weren't changing my due date because they had me as the 20th and I was certain I should've been earlier from my calculations and they can't induce you more than 1 week early.  I was convinced I'd be having another 10 lber like Finn if I had to wait until my due date.  Since I was so worried the doctor gave me another ultrasound at 35 weeks which showed the baby to be in the 60th percentile, except the doctor who did the ultrasound HAD changed my due date to the week earlier so I was in the 60th percentile for a different due date than my doctor was basing me on.  Once I pointed this out to my doctor he looked through all the info again and finally changed my due date to Nov 12th which meant I could be induced as early as the 5th.  Since my mom was arriving in town late on the 7th and I would go in to the hospital the evening before my induction we opted to start the induction on the 9th.
All through the weeks prior to her birth I had been having lots of contractions and thought for sure that this would be my first time actually going in to labor on my own, but at every check I was still not dilated which was disheartening considering all the discomfort I was having.  At my last doctor appt I was finally a 1 but my Dr decided we should go ahead with the plan to go in the night before to start the cervadil since my previous inductions were so slow.  So Nate and I went to the hospital at 6pm on Nov 8th and got checked in and settled in a room.  The nurse put me on the monitor and checked me and I was still a 1 but I was finally vindicated because the monitors were showing my contractions and I was actually in labor (which was the good news) but since I was in labor I didn't need the cervadil so we just had to wait until the next morning to start the pitocin.
Since Nate was planning on staying the night with me and there was no one else in the delivery area, they moved us to a nicer room that had a pull out couch for him to sleep on and a giant jacuzzi tub that I got to relax in.  After a nice long bath they gave me a sleeping pill and it was actually a relaxing night, especially considering we were in a hospital.  They woke me up around 5am and checked me and I was at a 1 and a half, so hardly any progress considering I was having pretty regular contractions.  They started the pitocin and then checked me a few hours later and I was only a 2 so the doctor came in around 9:30 and broke my water, which was extremely painful.  He told me to make sure I didn't wait too long to ask for an epidural because the pain would become pretty intense.  I had been doing so well even with the pitocin up to that point that I figured I could handle it for a little while longer.  I made it til 10am when I figured I shouldn't wait any longer.  The period of time I spent waiting for the anesthesiologist was excruciating, it felt like she was trying to claw her way out of my abdomen.  He came in at 1030 and I think he was done around 1045; that epidural was the best feeling ever, to have that intense pain melt away.  They checked me when he was done and I was at an 8, I had progressed a lot in the short amount of time since my water had broken.  I spent the next little bit relaxing and when the nurses came back in to check me a short time later I was at a 10 so they called for the doctor and started getting me prepped to push.  It only took a couple pushes to get her crowning at which point the nurse asked me if all my kids were born with blond hair.  Once her head was out the doctor had me stop because the cord was wrapped around her neck three times and while it wasn't tight on her it was too tight for him to just loop it off so he had to cut the cord right then.  I had told the doctor and nurses that I didn't want them to tell me the baby's gender, that I just wanted them to hand her/him to me so I could see for myself since I had waited so long to know.  So after my last push the doctor immediately lifted her in to the air and asked me what I had had.  I then announced (even though everyone else had already seen) that she was a girl and they laid her on my chest and started cleaning her off.  In that moment the entire delivery was a success in my mind because not only was she here safely but I had gotten the two things I had asked for 1. to not have anyone tell me the gender and 2. to have her immediately placed in my arms.

After I held her for a little while the nurses took her over to weigh and measure her while the doctor finished with me.  The doctor commented that it was a good thing they had changed my due date and induced me early since she was so big, but to Nate and I she appeared so small.  She was born at 11:38am weighing 8 lbs 8.8 oz, her head was 13.5 in and she was 21.25 in long.  They got her cleaned up and then let Nate and I have time alone with her to feed her and just spend a little time alone with her new little girl.  We had had a girl name picked out already so we didn't have to wait to give her her name.

After a little while the nurse took Sage and Nate to the nursery so she could have her first bath and do whatever else they do, I wasn't really paying attention at this point, while the nurses got me to my room.  We called family and let them know that the baby had arrived but we had already decided that we wouldn't be revealing the gender or name until after the kids had come to the hospital to see her, we thought they should be the first.  We had told my mom it would probably  be about an hour before they could come down when we had called the first time and she told us Reese was itching to get down to the hospital to see if she had a brother or a sister.  When they called back we said to go ahead and head down and I told Nate to go check on Sage.  I believe it was around 2pm when they finally got to the hospital and Sage had only gotten to our room just a few minutes prior so we didn't get a chance to put her in her little sister shirt to reveal her like we had intended too, but the kids didn't mind.  Reese was beyond excited to have a little sister, it was what she had wanted.  Finn gave her a few minutes of his time and then proceeded to play games on the tablet in true Finn fashion.
And that is the story of Sage's birth