Welcome to the World, Finnegan!

After a long-awaited arrival, Finnegan Jasper Dahl arrived at 6:23pm on Wednesday, May 13!

I have posted long and detailed birth stories for both of my other kids, so it's only fitting that I do the same for Finn. However, there was nothing long about his birth other than the pregnancy! In fact, I can probably cover it in a few sentences.

At 10 days overdue and after having had my membranes stripped unsuccessfully, my midwife sent me home with a container of castor oil and instructions to take 2oz. every two hours until I had taken all 6oz. At around noon, I held my nose (carefully making a point to not sniff the stuff before drinking it) and downed my first dose mixed in with a glass of pineapple juice. It was actually not too hard to get that first bit down. I fell asleep soon after that and napped for about two hours.

When I woke up, I felt crampy and kind of awful, but I chalked it up to the fact that I'd been feeling that way for a couple days, anyway. I thought it was just the gastrointestinal effects of the castor oil. I did not have any huge GI problems with the castor oil like some people have experienced, but it did make me have to use the bathroom a few times. No biggie though. I decided to get into the bathtub to help with the general queasiness I was feeling.

About three hours after I took the first dose, I texted my midwife and said I didn't want to take the second dose because I was feeling kind of icky. She encouraged me to try it, so after putting it off another hour or two (and rolling around miserably in the bed), I took the second dose. It was not so easy. I got about halfway through and had to spit a little out. And then, when I chugged the last bit, I started vomiting. I laid back down on the bed and within minutes, I started having defined contractions.

About 10 minutes passed before I pulled out my contraction timer at 5:10pm. My contractions were about one minute long and 2-3 minutes apart. That's fairly consistent with how my other labors started, but my others took 10/6 hours respectively. My hopes weren't up initially. But within just a few contractions, they were longer than a minute each and less than two minutes apart. My husband happened to arrive home around this time, and I told him we needed to go right away as I was already humming/moaning through the pain.

He told me he needed to fiddle with our baby gate arrangement before the big kids got home, and I told him, "Um, no. Uhhhhhhhhhhh. Uhhhhhhhhhh. Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. We have to go NOW."

As he helped me to the van, the kids drove up with the grandparents. Harper and Ezra were waving and saying, "Hi, Mommy!" I heard them, but I ignored them. I was humming and focusing on the pain. And even though we were in Portland's rush-hour traffic, we arrived at the birth center about 15 or 20 minutes later. The drive wasn't as miserable as my previous drives to the birth center because the contractions weren't quite as painful. I actually remember everything about Finn's labor - and I didn't with the other two because there were parts that were so unbearable.

When we arrived at the birth center, the midwives had already filled the birthing tub for me. There were candles lit, and it was a beautiful scene. I very quickly stripped down and got into the water. Ahhhh, relief. I asked for gas (nitrous oxide), and the head midwife responded that there was probably not enough time to get it set up before I would need to push.

Ha. Ha. HA! I thought that was hilarious given that my pain wasn't completely intolerable just yet, and my other labors had lasted far longer. But OK. I let one of the student midwives check my cervix (reluctantly - I REALLY didn't want to hear that I was only a 5 or something like that), and she said, "Um, you're complete. You can have this baby when you're ready."

What? WHAT? I mean, I did feel a little bit of a burning sensation on the way to the birth center (the kind that tells you that pushing is near), but I had no idea I was so close. But with that, I pushed down a little just to kind of test how it would feel, and sure enough, this baby was coming. Just a couple (maybe three? Head, head, body?) pushes later, and he was here.

That's right - from first contraction to delivery was a total of about an hour and 23 minutes. The contractions were definitely painful, but the whole thing was so quick that I never got exhausted, and they never hurt so badly I couldn't hum my way through them to cope. It was actually quite unbelieveable! When he came out, I sat in amazement that this thing had just happened. AND, Finn was my biggest baby at 8lbs 10oz. and 21" long. Ezra, my smallest baby, was my most painful since he was in the posterior position. Ouch.

There was actually no blood when he was delivered...no tearing...no stitching or any of that. Seriously, DREAM birth. The midwives estimated that I only lost 100cc of blood during the whole process which I guess is an extremely small amount for giving birth. They were all kind of in amazement at what had just happened.

Finn latched on to nurse within a couple minutes of being born, and we let his cord pulse for a while. Finally, I delivered the placenta, and they cut the cord. And that was that. His APGAR scores were 9/10. We ordered sushi to the birth center (which I didn't eat because the excitement of everything made me feel a little sick!), and the kids stopped by after their dinner with the grandparents to meet their new brother. I took a shower and settled in for the night with my new little guy. We went home the next day after being pampered with a massage and catered meals at the birth center.

Like I said, DREAM BIRTH.

Anyway, that was more than one paragraph, sorry! Now, Finn is sleeping on my chest as I type this. And I'm sure I have something I need to be doing. So, I will leave you with that! :)

Harper's First Dance Recital

Lately it's been all business and no family fun here on the blog. But today I want to share with you these photos of Harper at her first dance recital. Sometimes it's easy to get sucked into work and chores and responsibilities and forget about the beautiful and simple little things around us - like this girl's smile. I've been struggling these last few months with finding a balance between work and family, but looking at these photos makes me want to stop and savor every moment.

Sweet Home Alabama

I've been noticeably absent from the blog for a few days because we've been vacationing visiting with family in Alabama. I marked out "vacationing" because...well...as anyone with kids can tell you, traveling with kids leaves a lot to be desired in the R&R department. I like to say that vacationing with kids is just like being at home but with different scenery. In fact, I might even argue it's harder than being home since your routine gets disrupted, and you don't have all your creature comforts nearby. It provides for fun adventures nonetheless.

My dad's house is just across the road from a sprawling cotton field, and because of all the rain this year, the plants are shoulder-height. Just amazing. I couldn't wait to snap a few shots of Harper in the field. The first photo is of her with her Grandpa Jim (my dad), and the one above is Harper with Aunt Alli (my little sister).

As evidenced by the photo above, we've discovered that Harper has no fear of critters. She chased lizards, caught ladybugs, grabbed Granddaddy Longlegs ("itsy bitsy spiders") and handled fish like a true southern tomboy. Apparently she is just like her mommy.

Ezra is having a great time, too. It was important to me for him to be able to meet his Great Gramma (above, my dad's mother) since she is getting older and suffering from Alzheimer's. He seemed at home in her arms and in the swing, too.

Harper looks really happy in the photo below, but this was right before she landed on her face on the ground. Two-year-olds apparently aren't so great at holding on to the chains... (Don't worry, she was fine.)

Growing up, my dad and I went fishing all the time. He lives on a lake that is stocked with catfish and bream, so this was a perfect opportunity for Harper to catch her first fish.

She was a natural with a bamboo rod!

...and not afraid of the fish at all.

Looking at these photos, I see just how quickly she is growing up. She's really a little girl now - not my baby anymore. Even Chunk (Ezra) is growing up so fast. Someone stop them, or I might just need another one!

More photos to come...

KCW Day...(I dunno!): V-Neck Cardigan

Kids' Clothes Week started really strong for me and went downhill around day 4. First, Harper was a bit under-the-weather. Second, my serger broke. And third, we went out of town on Saturday for a little impromptu family bouldering trip.

BUT, I did manage to get this last little gem completed before the end of the week.

The pattern is the V-Neck Cardigan by Peekaboo Pattern Shop (affiliate link). I've had this pattern in my stash for quite a while, but I hadn't sewn it up because of my buttonholes-on-knits-especially-rib-knit-aphobia. It wasn't so bad though.

The main garment was constructed in minutes. MINUTES I tell you! Seriously, so quick and easy with a serger. After that, I nervously sewed my buttonholes (no big deal - stabilize, stabilize, stabilize!). Finally, I sewed on the buttons while on our way to Joe's Valley on Saturday. Harper actually wore the shirt there as soon as we arrived - buttonhole markings and all. She loves it.

I made the size 2T, and it fits well with room to grow. One size smaller would probably be the PERFECT fit, but I like the slouchy look and the fact that she will be able to wear this one a while.

The main fabric was left over from my Lady Skater Dress, and the ribbing came from my stash of hand-me-down, miscellaneous fabric bits. They aren't a perfect match, but the little bit of contrast is actually ideal, I think.

As for the photos...well, they turned out OK given the circumstances. We had a few minutes to kill before meeting daddy for a lunchtime playdate, and I spotted this giant art wall. It was only about 50 degrees (with hurricane-like winds, as you can see) and at the worst possible time for shadows and direct sunlight, but oh well. I take what I can get.

I call it "grumpy with a chance of smiles."

Linking up:

KCW Day 3: Heidi & Finn Urban Unisex Hoodie (Sort of)

My poor girl has come down with a cold, so she was a reluctant model today. She still looks pretty cute though considering how she was feeling!

This pattern started out as the Heidi & Finn Urban Unisex Hoodie, but it evolved into something that only remotely resembles the original pattern. There was nothing wrong with the pattern, but the "sweatshirt fleece" I bought at Joann had ZERO STRETCH. What kind of sweatshirt fleece has ZERO STRETCH?! And what kind of sewist buys it? Me, apparently.

I made the size 3T after reading several online reviews that said the sizing ran small. The 2T would have been great if this fabric were stretchy, but the 3T was perfect for my modifications.

Hopefully I can find some high-quality french terry or sweatshirt fleece WITH STRETCH to make more of these adorable hoodies for both Ezra and Harper. I (think) I love the pattern!

Speaking of Ezra...he's still around. I just haven't gotten around to sewing anything for him yet. I have some stuff planned, but you know, those little babies...they grow so fast! I don't love sewing for them when they are so young. Hopefully I can whip out some cozy sweatpants and a sweatshirt later this week.

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