Introducing...

Elias Christian
Sunday, December 18th @  9:04 PM
7 lbs, 4.7oz
20 inches

Let the TMI, gooey birth story ensue:
(You can read Annie's birth story here.)
Tuesday, December 6th, I had my 36 week appointment. Baby was head-down and low and guesstimated to weigh about 6 lbs 4 oz. I was also dilated to 3 cm and 50% effaced.
A week later, on December 15th, I was 3.5 cm and 100%. By this point, Braxton Hicks contractions were common and becoming stronger.
Late Friday afternoon (December 16th), I was laying on my bed and felt a small gush of fluid. It was only about 2 Tbs and clear and odorless so I wondered if maybe my water started leaking. Within the hour, I started getting really crampy and uncomfortable. I took a hot shower that night and had a hard time falling asleep from cramps and heartburn.
Saturday morning (December 17th), I woke up at 4:30 AM with a little more fluid and strong, regular contractions. They were between 5-10 minutes apart and hurting enough to make me stop whatever I was doing to breathe through them. Around 6:30 AM, I had my bloody show and kept losing parts of the mucus plug throughout the day. When contractions were 3-5 minutes apart and didn't let up for a few hours, we decided to head in to the hospital to get checked. Plus, if I really was leaking amniotic fluid, they'd need to see me within 24 hours anyway. By this point, I was in enough pain that I was hoping they'd admit me and it would all be over soon. Unfortunately, the amniotic fluid tests came back clear (I'm still not sure I wasn't leaking), and I wasn't dilating fast enough to stay. As the nurse said, "37 weeks is far enough along that we won't stop labor, but early enough that we won't help it either." So I got sent home with mixed feelings. I'd much rather labor at home than in the hospital, but I was really hoping things had progressed enough to stay. I spent the evening in a hot bath, and contractions slowed to every 10-15 minutes for a couple hours, though they remained strong. I went to bed ready for another night of no sleep.
Sure enough, on Sunday (December 18th), I was up again at 3 AM with the same contractions, still 5-10 minutes apart. Something also felt different at my cervix and when I used my fingers to check, I could feel my amniotic sac bulging out (I warned you this would be TMI and gooey). A hot shower offered little relief so we sent Annie to church with the family while Tucker and I stayed home, and I labored. I tried some walking and swinging and even some very gentle jumping on the trampoline, but mostly just bounced on my exercise ball and squatted and breathed through contractions. Tucker offered more than once to break my water, but with how quickly Annie came, I was too scared of having him on my living room floor. I just really, really hoped I was making progress and felt so lost about when to go back to the hospital, seeing as my contractions had stayed the same strength and were still anywhere from 2.5 - 12 minutes apart. Around 4 PM, I told Tucker that even though my contractions weren't changing, we'd check to see if I'd made any more progress, and if I had, we'd head to the hospital. A self-check guesstimated I was between 5 and 7 cm (don't worry, we were clean and careful about it) so we gathered our stuff, left instructions with my brother watching Annie, and headed back to the hospital.
A friend tipped that the loudest people are more likely to be admitted so I was sure to add some moaning through contractions as we checked in, even though I'm the type that gets really still and silent when I'm in pain. Luckily, I was able to talk enough to check in, and Tucker could answer whenever I couldn't. A quick check in triage showed I was at 6 cm, and with bulging waters that could break at any moment, they suddenly seemed to hurry things a little faster, which I was grateful for. Unfortunately, it took them 3 different tries to get my IV lock in and start me on fluids so that was annoying, but I was mostly just focused on each contraction. I almost broke Tucker's fingers a couple times so he had to adjust my grip so only his thumb was turning purple.
With Annie's lightning delivery, the doctor warned me that I very likely wouldn't have time for pain meds this time around so I was prepared for that. But this time, after 2 days of early labor and no sleep, I was ready to rest and enjoy my delivery. So I signed those epidural papers gladly. The anesthesiologist was waiting for us as they wheeled me into the delivery room and got to work right away. She was a nice old lady and chatted with Tucker about all the dads who faint and the resulting hospital rule of "Dads must be sitting during the epidural." It wasn't long before the tingly warmth started to spread, and a few contractions later, I was nice and numb. My one thing with epidurals is that I already have a tendency towards low blood pressure, so when you combine that with spinal anesthesia, I get a little droopy. I was prepared for that this time though, so I was able to warn the nurses and ask for oxygen. It's especially bad laying on my back (I'd get dizzy on my back all through pregnancy anyway) so I had to keep flipping from side to side every 20 minutes to make sure the epidural worked evenly. I still ended up with a deader left side, but I loved that I could still move and feel pressure and function enough. Last epidural, I was 100% dead from the abdomen down and couldn't move or feel anything.

After an hour of chilling and watching Heavy Weights and deliberating over names some more, they checked me at 7:30, and I was at 8 cm, but my waters still hadn't broken. Then around 8:30, Tucker asked when they'd check me again. The nurse said probably not for another hour, but I let her know that I have a history of progressing quickly. She said that my dr would come in and check me as soon as he finished a delivery so we'd see then. Around 8:50, he came in, and I was at 9cm. He broke my water and walked out to let me finish progressing. Except I immediately felt pressure like I had to poop so I told the nurse, and she speed-walked right out after the doctor to get him to come back while the other nurse got my legs into the stirrups. The doctor quickly got his apron on, and sure enough, there was baby, (Tucker: "Karli, he has hair!!!") and 6ish pushes later, he was out!
I remember looking down and seeing that scrawny, grey, goopy baby as they passed him up at immediately put him on my chest and suddenly feeling that overwhelming high of hormones. My heart beat faster, and I just felt so much love and gratitude and amazement at that tiny little human. I loved being able to recognize that moment and really remember it because for some reason, I didn't experience that with Annie. Of course I still loved her, but that rush of hormones was overshadowed by shock, I think, so bonding happened more over time with her.

As we rubbed him down and patted his back to help him clear his throat, the doctor clamped off the cord and instructed Tucker where to cut. Remembering the trauma from my first delivery, I suddenly thought to ask the doctor if I tore at all and was so surprised and grateful to hear a "Nope! Doesn't look like it!" A few minutes later, I delivered the placenta, which the doctor also held up and showed me - So cool! I passed the baby off to a nurse to get weighed and measured while the other nurses pattered around turning off monitors and cleaning up and such. Tucker and I both bet that this boy was smaller than Annie (6lbs 13oz, 18.5in) because she was 10 days early, and he was 19! But we were wrong! Little Boy surprised us at a healthy 7lbs 4.7oz and 20 inches! And then we got some time to ourselves to sit and look at our tiny boy.

Pretty quickly, Tucker said, "I think he's Daniel." Before going to the hospital, Daniel Reed had been our top name choice, but I could never fully commit to it. We also knew we liked Christian and Levi. But as soon as Tucker said the name out loud, I knew for sure it wasn't right. And the more he said it, the more he also knew it wasn't right. So we tried out our other name ideas and nothing was fitting! It's a bit of a scary feeling to be holding a human you made and have no idea what his name is supposed to be! So then we started tossing around other random names. Names that we'd probably brought up at one point or another but quickly dismissed or never thought about seriously. Tucker started going through biblical names: "Matthew? John...? No." Then I randomly had "Ephraim?" pop into my head, but that definitely wasn't right. But then Tucker stuck with the "E" train and suggested "Elijah? ...or Elias?" Definitely not Elijah.... And then we both kinda went "Huh...interesting." Elias just seemed to fit so well, but it also felt weird to just know that was his name so quickly when we had no inkling a second before. So I told Tucker we'd wait until morning to make a real decision.

Meanwhile, my mom had left pretty quickly after we let our parents know I was being admitted, and she pulled into town right after I had him. While we tried nursing, she was nice enough to go get Tucker and I big, juicy hamburgers and fries and shakes. Never has a hamburger and shake tasted so good, lemme tell ya!

After two hours of bonding (around 11PM), they moved me to a bigger recovery room with a comfier bed. I was a little sad to say goodbye to my delivery nurses Christy and Rachel because they were so awesome, but the recovery nurses were great too. I guess they were pretty busy because they said the wouldn't have time to take him away for a bath until morning, which I was just fine with. It wasn't long before the epidural completely wore off, and I was able to get up to use the bathroom and become a little more mobile. Of course, that first night is always a little rough because the nurses are coming in every hour to check on either you or the baby so we didn't get a ton of sleep, but we did get in lots and lots of snuggles.

First thing the next morning, Tucker and I confirmed that our little boy was officially Elias (Eli) Christian Denton, and every time we say it, we just marvel at how right it is for his little self. It was a bit surreal writing it on the birth certificate paperwork and realizing that this is his name for the rest of his life.

After breakfast, my mom brought Annie to meet Baby Brother. Up until that point, she'd been convinced his name was Daniel Tiger, but the moment she saw him, she sang "Baby Eli!!!" and ran to him with kisses and loves. Seeing Tucker sitting there with both our kids on his lap just about killed me with cuteness and love. I have a whole different post waiting to brag about the amazing dad and husband he's been during this transition. I've loved every minute of watching our growing little family together.

We stayed in the hospital until early Tuesday afternoon, and the transition to home has been fairly smooth. Annie is a good helper though is definitely a little more needy, which we're trying to be patient with. And with it being the holidays, there's plenty of family around to snuggle and help.

Mostly, I'm just so glad our little Elias was here for Christmas and that our family feels so much bigger and more whole with him in our lives.

Bumpdate: Week 36

My heart is heavy as I type this.
If you follow me at all on Facebook, you know it's been a rough week for a couple of my friends. On December 6th, a high school friend lost her month-old baby son to SIDS. And this morning, another friend's sweet baby son passed in his sleep after being diagnosed with aggressive brain cancer just over 6 months ago.
And I just ache and ache for them.
Every time I feel this precious boy move inside me, my heart breaks a little more for my friends. There is nothing so different from me and them. Those little boys are just as pure and perfect as this one. And for some reason, they have to bear this burden.
It's not paranoia that this will happen to me. That mindset can lead down a million different roads. It's more a connection to the precious gifts of life and forever families. And a reminder to be thankful for every small moment - every snotty nose and bedtime struggle and lost shoe and frustrating mealtime. And it's a lot of the reason why I just can't seem to kick Annie out of our bed when she sneaks in and hogs our blankets every night. Because I can't even imagine life without the possibility of those middle-of-the-night snuggles.
So that's kind of where I am right now. Heartbroken and humble and so so eternally grateful for these two precious spirits that have been entrusted to me, especially this sweet, growing boy.

Week: 36
Cravings: Nothing in particular. Basically just all the food. 
Weight gain: 40ish pounds. Ugh. I know. Still healthy, especially for a 2nd pregnancy. But also annoying to lug around.
Nicknames: Blueb. Little Boy. Baby Brother.
Maternity clothes: I've officially reached the stage of pregnancy where I cannot stand real bras or pants for more than a few hours. So I spend a lot of time in pajama pants and sports bras. #sorrynotsorry
Aches and pains: All sorts. Plus contractions are getting nice and crampy so that's fun. The other night, I was hobbling into Walmart for a few things, and an old man was returning his motorized wheelchair cart to the entrance. He looked up and saw me and immediately asked, "Would you like to use this?" I hardly even hesitated before answering "Yes, please!" Thanks, kind old man.

Dr. Appointments: We're now having weekly appointments, and everything still looks good. We got an ultrasound last time to check position and size, and Baby Boy is head down (pretty low, too) and guesstimated to be about 6lbs 4oz at this point (Annie was born at 6lbs 13oz). I'm already dilated to a 3 and 50% effaced so Dr. says any time now. Obviously, it could still be a few weeks, but we're hoping for sooner than later.
Names: Um. We MAYBE have one. MAYBE. But I'm not going to talk about it because I don't want to jinx it.
Looking forward to: Seeing if I've made any more progress by my next appointment. I was up a lot last night with painful, regulated contractions so I'm thinking my body is getting ready, but we'll see. I'm actually really interested to see how labor is going to go this time and if it's at all similar to the whirlwind we experienced with Annie. And I hear the hospital food is good so that's a plus.

To-Do List: Yikes, this part stresses me out. So we do have the bassinet up next to our bed. And we finally got the carseat out this evening. And I also started packing a hospital bag tonight. But I still have to finish redoing a tall dresser because the one we currently have is small and only holds Annie's clothes. And I still have to go through all the boxes of clothes for this boy and sort them into sizes and see what we need more of. I've got a Target trip planned for tomorrow for some stuff (like diapers - kinda important) so hopefully that alleviates some stress.

Basically, we're just all really excited to meet this new little human!

Bumpdate: Week 33

33 weeks

I've had multiple friends point out that I've been horrible at posting bumpdates this pregnancy. I'll go awhile without seeing someone, and their first words are something along the lines of "Wow! I didn't realize how big you'd gotten!"

18 weeks

And since we're nearing the end, I might as well post an update, right? I mean, if this baby comes around the time Annie did (which is what we're hoping for, or earlier), we've only got 5ish weeks left. WUT.

18 weeks

Overall, this pregnancy has been much, MUCH more pleasant and easy-going than Annie's. I think a lot of that just has to do with being in a better place mentally and physically. Just more prepared for the most part, though now that we're nearing the end, my typical response to "How are you feeling?" is simply "squished and sore." But what pregnant lady isn't by this point?

Lovin' on Baby Bwudo

Alrighty then.
Due date

• Back to January 6th. I personally feel like the 2nd is more accurate, and that we'll probably have a baby before even then, but I'm not the medical professional so...

Weeks

• 33! (Annie was born at 38w+4)

Cravings

• Still just sweet, tasty deliciousness. Fruity stuff. Sugary stuff. Ice creamy stuff. I'm doing my best to keep it reasonable, and I passed my glucose test so I'm not too worried. My favorite treat these days is a Dove dark chocolate and raspberry sorbet bar. Mmmmmmmm.

22 weeks

22 weeks

Weight gain

• 33ish pounds. Which feels absolutely huge to me. With Annie, I gained 30 total. I know it's healthy and everything, but my body and joints don't handle it very well.

Sex

• This is old news, but it's a boy! Annie's pretty stinkin' excited about having a "baby bwudo" around to love on and squish. Who am I kidding - we're all pretty stinkin' excited! 

Look at his cute little face!!!

Nicknames

• Still Blueb. Or just Baby Boy. Or Little One. 

28 weeks - 3rd Trimester!

Maternity clothes

• Rocking them. Or leggings or pajama pants or Tucker's basketball shorts. I scored a dress, a pair of pants, 2 pairs of shorts, and like 4 shirts from Ross one day in addition to what I had left over from Annie. But these days, pretty much everything is uncomfortable.

Aches and pains

• Yup. SPD (symphysis pubis dysfuction) and SJD (sacro-illiac joint dysfunction) are my demons right now. If you don't know what that means, essentially my pelvis over-reacts to the hormone Relaxin (helps prepare the uterus and cervix for labor) and my pubic bone and either side of my sacrum start separating. It makes it hard to walk and hard to sleep and pretty much hopeless getting from sitting to standing by myself, especially if I'm sitting on a hard, flat surface because my hips will spread out of position and make it so my legs can't support any weight. The only cure is giving birth. So in the meantime, I wear my belly band and waddle like a drunken goose. It's actually pretty hysterical, especially for onlookers. In fact, I was at Costco yesterday and slipped as I stepped sideways, causing my pubic bone to pop and me to almost fall straight into the splits on the floor. Luckily, I had the Finding Dory display to cling to as I slowly got my legs back under me. So that was fun. And while we're on the subject, anyone know how to get ahold of a temporary handicapped parking tag?

Almost 30 weeks (29w+5)

Dr. appointments

• Everything has been going really well. Doctor is planning on him coming early, around the same time as Annie, but his main concern is getting me to the hospital in time, seeing as my labor with Annie only lasted 2 hours. I'm measuring right on, and there's nothing to worry about. With my last pregnancy, my Dr. only did ultrasounds at the first appt. and at the 20 week anatomy scan. But with this one, we've had 3 ultrasounds so far (the first time they tried to do the anatomy scan, they scheduled it too early, so we got lots of pictures and got to come back a few weeks later and see him again!), and Dr. wants to do one more in a couple weeks to check size and position (he was breech at the last ultrasound). Not complaining because we sure love seeing that cute little boy wiggle around in there!

Annie had a baby up her shirt too :)

Names

• THIS IS GIVING ME SO MUCH ANXIETY! Tucker and I don't agree on many baby names, especially boy names. Tucker likes very traditional names, even better if there's a biblical influence. I love old names that haven't been used in awhile, bonus if there's a literary tie-in. We've got a couple that one of us really likes and the other is just ok with, but nothing that we're like "Yes! This is his name!" So I'm stressing out about it. Suggestions are more than welcome! We're also thinking of using Tucker's middle name, Christian, as baby boy's middle name.

32 weeks and feeling HUGE!

Looking forward to

• Getting this baby here. And family pictures. And Thanksgiving with family. And my baby shower. And Christmas with family. And Layton and Liberty's wedding. And finding out whether Tucker will be hired full-time next semester or where he'll continue his part-time student-teaching. So many wonderful things right now! 

33 weeks!

First Bumpdate: Week 16!

A couple weeks ago, we surprised everyone with the news that we're expecting Denton #2!

Then again, some of you weren't actually all that surprised. I'd already lied to a handful of people, and that just felt weird. But I really wanted to stick to my plan of waiting until Annie's birthday to tell. I'm sorry, ok?!

May 2nd: I was 3 days late, and Tucker came home from work with a box of tests

We are so excited! After their initial congratulations, I've had a few people ask, "But how do you really feel about it?" Totally understandable because for a long time, I was completely terrified at the thought of having another child. I mean, one is hard enough, right? But Annie is such a fun and happy toddler, and I'm in a really good place with my mental health, so I felt good about it. I told Tucker I knew I was ready to start trying for another baby when my reaction would be more excitement and joy instead of mostly terror and stress. And that's exactly how it has been. I am so excited for this cute little baby to get here!
Ok, ok, let's get on to the important stuff.

Due date: January 2, 2017
Weeks along: 16 already! 

Today at 16+1

left to right: 8w, 10w, 11w (bloat goes down), 12w, 14w, 15w

Cravings: Sonic frozen strawberry lemonade mostly. I also had an intense craving for Little Caesar's Crazy Bread and tater-tots. But with the first trimester, it was mostly fruity stuff that sounded delicious, which is funny because with Annie, all I wanted was eggs and greasy, cheesy, meaty things. A few weekends ago, we went on a quick date for frozen yogurt, but I really felt like I needed Subway first, and even though I just stuck with my normal order, it was the yummiest thing I've ever had, and I almost cried. So that was probably hormones talking. And also, Panda's Orange Chicken always sounds amazing if anyone ever gets the random urge to bring me something. ;)

Boy or Girl: No clue. Tucker was leaning towards girl but now thinks boy. Annie keeps saying "sister!" and "girl!" I keep thinking how cute a boy would be. But I really have no feelings one way or another. We'll find out in a few weeks!

Nickname: Blueb (Variations: Blewb or Bloob), short for Blueberry. No idea why. Ask Tucker. Remember how Annie was Diggle?

Morning sickness: Hardly any! It's been a miracle because I was so so so sick for close to 4 months with Annie. But I only had about 2 weeks of mild morning sickness with this baby, and things have been great! Last week, there was one random bout of sickness, and Annie stood next to me patting my head and stroking my cheek and saying "Good job, Mommy!" and "Yay, Karli!" and "I flush Mommy's barf!" It was cute, but mostly I just wanted to barf in peace.
Maternity clothes: Recently got them out, and I'm loving them! I can still fit into most of my clothes, but pants are definitely getting more snug so it's nice to have that big ol' stretchy part that doesn't dig into my abdomen.
Other Symptoms: Hip pain. Yes, already. Most of the time, it's just a dull ache, but if I sit or lie in one position too long, I get really stiff and sore and have to hobble around for awhile in a lot of pain. I sleep a LOT at night, but I'm usually able to get through the day without a nap. Usually.
Announcing: We announced to my family Saturday, June 25th while they were in town. I made this little tag, and we stuck it to a bag of the pink and white Circus Animal Cookies. I handed it to them right as we were leaving out the door to go to the circus, and they loved it!

We never officially announced to Tucker's family. My MIL saw ginger-ale and Saltines on my nightstand at the cabin a month ago and knew but never said anything. She told my FIL her guess, and my SIL had been bugging me about it for weeks ever since she saw a bit of a bump because of the way I was holding Annie above my tummy. One week, she stopped me in the middle of a sentence and put her hands on my belly exclaiming, "I really think there's a baby in there!" I denied it, but she wouldn't drop it, and eventually my face gave it away. The younger in-laws found out on Annie's birthday when she opened a present with the ultrasound pictures. She really didn't know what was going on, but when we did presents and cake, one of the gift-bags had a paper with "Brother or Sister?" on it with the ultrasound pictures inside. We snapped pictures and shared on Facebook for our public announcement.

Dr. Appt: Our first appt wasn't until Annie's birthday, which is why we waited so long to announce. We thought I was about 12w+5, but the US showed me measuring about 4 days ahead at 13w+2. After the initial paperwork, they took us right back to the ultrasound room, and we got to see our little Blueb swimming and squirming! At first, I was sad we had to wait so long for our first appointment (they usually do them between 8-10 weeks), but now, I'm am so glad because we got to see more than just a jellybean in there! Cute little face and tummy and heart-beat and spine and legs and hands and toes! I wish we could have just stayed in there forever. But then it was time to meet with the doctor. After talking with him and verifying that my cycles are a little longer than average, he decided that we could move my due date from January 6th to January 2nd. I know it's only 4 days, but it just seems so much sooner! Especially when it practically pushed me into the second trimester already! Everything looked good, and he's not worried at all. He even gave me the ok for Disneyland as long as I use good judgement!!! And since I was 13 weeks and not 12 weeks, he booked my next appointment for 5 weeks out instead of 4 so we can just do the anatomy ultrasound and find out if Annie will get a brother or sister!

face

head, spine, tummy, and heart

I'm so excited, and honestly, I'm really loving this pregnancy so far. I realize I'm pretty lucky because my first was nowhere near this pleasant. Plus, it just feels like it's going by so fast, and I hope it will continue that way. We can't wait to meet our little Blueb!