Chewy meeting his baby sister for the first time. He loves staring at her!
Arista's first ride in the car!
Arista in her prom dress 16 years in the making!
Arista with her Birth Bear that Grandma Sue got for her!
Arista Miracle was born at 9:50am. She is 9 pounds 20 1/2 inches long!
She is a very mellow baby, and we have never been happier! Mom and baby are doing great! More pictures soon!
The doctor checked my cervix Tuesday night, and unfortunately it was very unfavorable. So they started giving me suppositories every night to ripen things up. I have had 2 already and don't feel any different. Which just means that it's not time for Arista to make her grand appearance.
I talked with my doctor yesterday and we are scheduled to be induced Tuesday at 8am! The 24th was our original plan, so the countdown I made is right on the dot. 5 days! My parents arrive tomorrow night which I think will make the weekend fly by!
Please continue to keep us in your prayers! We can't wait for you all to meet her!
Growing up my Mom did everything in her power to get us up at 6am to read scriptures. It took us all about 15-20 minutes to work our way out of bed and then down the stairs to the family room. Once everyone was downstairs my Dad would emerge from his room to join us. When I envision these early mornings I see myself with a huge blanket around me, laying on the floor, with one eye open. My older sister Kelsey sometimes doing the same thing, and my younger siblings irritable and grouchy. I could not tell you one thing we read about, and honestly I didn't really care.
I graduated from Seminary which I am really grateful, but honestly I had no interest in attending whatsoever. I either had Seminary for my first period class, which was a great time to get some extra sleep at home, or I had it right after lunch. We were given a 40 minute lunch.... Um that was not long enough. Needless to say I was gone from Seminary more than I was there. When it came down to graduation time, I had 45 days of make-up work to do. It seemed impossible, but my Mom was eager for me to graduate. So after finishing all the work I was eligible to graduate. I attended the graduation and received my "diploma" but deep inside I felt like I was totally not worthy of it.
After graduating high school and moving out to Virginia, I was able to attend Institute every Tuesday. Not only was it a great opportunity to mingle and meet people, I found myself really interested in what the teachers were teaching us. I came to have a better appreciation for what I was being taught, and a better understanding of the scriptures.
I never did personally read the scriptures while in Seminary, because I was too busy with all the other important things in my life. (Which was my mind set) I would start reading the Book of Mormon and end up around 2 Nephi, and I would give up. It wasn't until Preslie died, where I felt like I needed something more than just grieving books. I signed myself up for Institute and slowly started reading sporadically through the scriptures. I loved attending my class, but I still didn't have the time to add scripture reading into my routine 100%.
This past July something really hit me hard, and I knew that what I was doing was getting me no where. I made a goal to myself that I was going to read The Book of Mormon before Arista was born. I decided since Arista could hear sounds I would read to her everyday so that she could hear the scriptures too. I read out loud from 1 Nephi- Mosiah. Once I hit Alma I continued to read silently everyday to try to reach my goal.
It's amazing how time flies and how my daily reading helped me through the anxieties and stresses of this pregnancy. For the first time I understood what I was reading, and found myself wanting to ready them more and more.
Yesterday I finished reading The Book of Mormon. I reached my goal, and I know that the last things I read I was suppose to read at this point in my life. My testimony of The Book of Mormon has strengthened, and I know that everything I read really happened and is true.
A few of my favorite parts/stories are:
* When Christ appears and ministers unto the people
* When the babies were able to speak
* The story of the Brother of Jared, and the seeing Jesus Christ
* Ether Chapter 12, where it talks about Miracles happening after the trial of faith.
I am so grateful for taking the time to read The Book of Mormon, and for the guidance and help it has brought to my life. I am grateful that we are able to have the scriptures to help guide and prepare us for the different stumbling blocks that come along our way. I know that what I have read is true, and that through the atonement of Christ we can all return to our Heavenly Father's presence someday. I know that miracles do happen after our faith is tried, and It has been a constant reminder to me especially these past few days. I know that Preslie is near, and that someday soon we will be with her again. Families are Forever!
.JPG)
The Good:
* I have not completely gone stir crazy yet. Yesterday was the first day in these past few weeks, where I felt like I had cabin fever. I have been keeping myself pretty occupied by reading, watching shows, and playing card games. Also taking much needed naps.
* Arista is doing great. We have had no problems(knock on wood) thus far with her. She continues to try and stretch her little body out, and her little foot is always in my ribs.
* We have moved back into OB Special Care today. Back to a nice quiet room with big windows!
* I was able to attend our support group meeting last Thursday night. It felt great to get out and interact with women who had just recently given birth. It was nice to hear their stories and see that they have survived the long stay here.
The Bad
* I have been through everything on the menu multiple times, and the food doesn't seem to get any better the second time around. They do however, have the best no-bake cookies!
* Alarms go off during the night, and you can always hear some speaker in the hall.
The Ugly
* We have been awakened many times from women in the room next door to us screaming during labor. It's a good thing I have already experienced childbirth, or I would have run out the door in terror.
I spoke with our Dr. this past week and we have come to a compromise. She will check my cervix on Tuesday to see if it is favorable. If so we will go ahead and do an amino test to see if Arista is developed enough. If so, we will go ahead and begin the induction no later than Wednesday. The thought of Arista coming out this week makes me so excited, however I am trying not to get my hopes up. My cervix with Preslie was very unfavorable, and I was overdue. We are grateful for family and friends who have fasted and have kept us in their prayers for an early easy delivery.
I have begun to have painful contractions here and there, but nothing to spark up labor. :o(
Cheers to a good week, and hopefully the arrival of sweet little Arista. We will keep you all posted!
