Introducing: Margaret Anne

After a long and successful labor, Emily delivered Margaret Anne at 10.48pm on Sunday. Emily did an amazing job not only laboring all day (walking the mall, pacing our street), but in the hospital as well doing just what she was supposed to and listening to my constant reminders to b r e a t h e.

Margaret was born health, hungry, and without complication to her or Emily. Both have spent today recovering nicely and enjoyed getting some rest last night (finally!). We were fortunate enough to have both sets of parents in town for Margaret's birth. Mom (Peggy) went to the hospital with us and was great to have for all the extra love, help, and support. I don't want to oversell Margaret's birth, but it appears to have brought both Republican and Democrat together in a way not seen before.



Addie was so excited - despite having to be woken up to come to the hospital - to finally see her new baby sister. Margaret reacted to her voice and definitely recognized it. Before heading back to the house, Addie got the chance to hold her sister. Pleased as she was, it was quite a lot for her to take in.

It's sounding like we will be discharged from the hospital either late Tuesday or early Wednesday. Mom will be in town through Wednesday to help out with everything and get some Margaret time in.



We tried very hard over the past 6 days to put Margaret's birth in God's hands. Some times were harder than others, especially as things did not seem to be progressing from doctor visit to doctor visit. But now He has delivered this baby from His hands to ours and we couldn't feel more blessed.



7lbs-11oz 20-1/4"

Baby Update

Still no baby!
The doctor did strip my membranes today which might help to encourage labor along. He did discuss the option of inducing labor but we decided that since the baby is healthy and neither of us are having any real medical issues at this point that it was better to wait instead of rushing things. If I don't go into labor this weekend I have another appointment on Monday and we will talk about inducing again and do another non-stress test along with the exam.

Baby Update

At my appointment today they said that I really have not had any progress since last week. The doctor is going to have me come back in on Friday morning to see if there are any changes. Depending on what happens between now and then they may talk to us about inducing labor. We really did not discuss it today so if they decide to induce I don't know if it would be Friday or the following week. Once we know more we will let you know. But for now Margaret has decided she is comfy right where she is...

Baby Update

For those of you wondering.... Still no baby. Today is my due date so I'm sure it will happen fairly soon but it's not going to be today as far as I can tell. I do have a doctor's apt. tomorrow morning so if they have anything of interest to say I'll post it after the appointment.

Baby Update

I had my doctor's apt. this morning. During my check up the doctor said that I'm apx. 60% effaced and 2-3 centimeters dilated! So it appears that my body is gearing up for the upcoming delivery. The doctor said that we could expect the baby to be delivered anytime between now and my due date. She was pretty confident that I would not go over and thought that there was a good chance Margaret would come before my doctor apt. next Friday.

It's a good thing we got the car seats installed last night! I also double checked my hospital bag and Margaret's. I think that we are ready any time she is. It's hard to believe that I might have her 2 weeks early! BUT we are being realistic about the fact that I might just go another two weeks and be uncomfortable the whole time.

Baby Update

I had my weekly baby appointment yesterday. All went well. Things are progressing like they should be so hopefully that means I will be having the baby in 3 weeks or sooner! She is head down and has dropped. I'll be seeing the doctor once a week from now until my delivery. I'll try to keep everyone posted on any changes.

I finally got the diaper pail in place and sewed the pail liners as well as a couple wetbags for the diaper bag. The car seats are ready also. The only thing left to do is to pack our hospital bag which I'm planning on doing this weekend! We should now be ready when ever Margaret decides she is ready...

Tis the Season...

Tis the Season...
for loving our Lord
for being to busy
for holiday gatherings
for preparing for the birth of our own child

Maybe I can be a little bit to optimistic at times but I really thought that things would be slowing down this month. I could not have been more wrong! It seems like we are just as busy but just with different things going on. We have however made a very concious effort to keep Advent at the center of our lives. Every evening after dinner we sit down as a family and do an Advent learning activity. Addie loves it and has been really getting into it. She loves bring out the pieces of her nativity set one at a time and learning the full story of Advent.

Addie and I also had a lot of fun on Dec. 6th which is St. Nicholas's feast day. We read books about him and the great things he did. Then we made 4 dozen cookies together and gave them out to elderly neighbors, our priest, the nuns, and a lady from our Church who is a recently widowed shut-in. Addie had a great time handing out cookies and also understood why we gave to those people and not just our friends. She understood that St. Nicholas gave to those in need and that is what we should do also. She had a lot of questions about widow we visited but in the end she saw why it was important for us to visit with her and even go back again in the near future to give her some companionship.

It was actually a really busy week for Addie! She had her first dentist appointment on Tuesday. She really enjoyed learning about all the tools they used and what they do to clean your teeth. She asked lots of questions and hygienist thought that she was at least 5 or 6 years old because of her questions and the great job she has been doing cleaning her own teeth. Of course she had no cavities and her teeth looked great.

This past week they had two different Christmas programs at the library. Addie was able to go to them both. One was a dramatic reading of the Grinch by the local theater group. She really got into it. She could hardly sit still during the program. Then on Saturday morning she went back for a Frosty Winter activity. They read about Frosty then each child was able to create their own winter wonderland scene out of food. Michael took Addie to this one so that I could work on her Christmas presents. They both had a great time together.

I finished washing baby stuff this week. I also was busy finishing up my baby sewing projects. I had a few more diaper covers to finish. The only thing left to sew is some diaper pail bags and wetbags. I also have everything set up accept for the swing (goes where the Christmas tree is) and putting the car seats in the car. With only 4 weeks left I'm trying to get prepared!

Saturday afternoon Michael and I went to Shipshiwanna while Addie stayed with the babysitter. It was nice to have some alone time before the baby arrives. We where able to stock up on two months worth of meat and bulk foods. As well as eat a wonderful dinner out on the town. It was a great way to slow down and enjoy some time together.

Week 32

We are at week 32 of the pregnancy now. It's hard to believe that we will be welcoming home our new baby girl in less then 2 months! The time has flown by so fast. I've been working hard to try to get more stuff ready before the baby gets here. Just today I sewed 10 diaper inserts for the cloth diapers. I've also ordered diaper covers and am looking into who has the best price for the newborn sized prefolds I was going to try. With Michael's help we hung a wall organizer thing on the wall by the changing table. I've started to fill it with diapers and wipes. Things are coming together and I'm sure by the time she gets here we will have everything ready. I just find it amazing how prepared I was with Addie and now I'm so busy with Addie that I've put off getting ready for the second child.

Addie had her Big Sister class at the hospital on Sunday. She was so excited about going to the class. Well, we got there and she asked if the baby was leaving mommy's tummy then. We had to break her heart. I'm still not sure where that thought came from but it was there. She enjoyed the class and hopefully will be a little bit more prepared to see us in the hospital and also life at home with a newborn. The most interesting part of the night was when we where walking through the lobby of the hospital to leave Addie asked Michael if we would have to pay the hospital for Margaret. Wow! Only Michael and I's child when be thinking about how much this will cost us :) Michael nicely said us we will have to pay the hospital and then asked her which chair she liked because we are helping to pay for those nice brand new chairs.

Monday I had a baby appointment. Everything went well. Heart beat was strong, right amount of weight gain, and belly not as big as "normal" but the doctor thinks that is because I'm tall so I have more space to spread it out vertically. Thank goodness for that! My poor back could not handle any more stress.

Week 28

Yesterday I had my 28th week baby appointment. At this appointment they did the lab work to check for diabetes and for anemia. Since I have not received a call yet I'm assuming that all is well with those two issues. The baby's heart beat was strong and she is growing as expected.

Michael was able to put the new chimney caps over the to flues on the roof before we went to the appointment. We where both glad to have it done before the next storm rolls in. Hopefully that will keep us a little drier.

27 Weeks

Today I officially start my third trimester. A couple weeks ago I could not believe that I was as far a long as I was. Now I feel like I'm farther then I am! It's just the little things like heart burn and backaches. Nothing to big (other then my belly).

I had seen these things called baby legs online and they seemed really cool. They keep the baby's legs warm and go all the way from the top of the thighs to the ankles. It should keep a baby's legs warm when their pants ride up when they are in the sling or carrier. The only thing was that they were $12 a pair plus shipping! So I did some searching online and found a pattern for taking ladies knee hi socks and sewing them into baby legs! It only takes about 10 minutes total time to do the sewing. Below is a photo of the pair I just made. I gave them to my neighbor who has a little baby girl. She is going to let me know if they work. If so I'll be making some for Margaret Anne.

The other big baby prep thing we did was last night Michael removed the old standard rod and shelf out of Addie's closet and replaced it with a new closetmaid system with shelves in the middle. It should make a big difference in her closet which we really need since she will be sharing it soon!

Week 26

It's hard to believe that I'm already 26 weeks along in my pregnancy. Just three more months to go and Margaret Anne Lah will be joining us. I'm sure the next few months will go super fast with the holidays. Today I started sewing cloth diapers for when she does arrive. So far I have four of the prefolds embellished. I have another three to finish embellishing tomorrow. Then I'll move on to the harder diapers (prefitteds and fitted diapers). I have everything already cut out they just need to be sewn. I'm sure I'll have photos posted soon of my diaper sewing adventures!
Addie had a great day today. She was able to have a play date with one of her classmates. The girls had a great time. Addie was sad when it was time to leave. She never seems to have enough playtime with her friends. At least according to her...