Your cart is currently empty!
Category: Pregnancy
-
Welcome to the Family, Adley Mae
Well, I blinked and somehow our little Adley Mae is already over a month old. Mama’s don’t joke when they say that it goes by fast. I’ve been taking this last month to soak in every sweet, little moment, figure out our new normal and live life at a much slower, but sweeter, pace.
Now don’t get me wrong — pregnancy is hard, giving birth is REALLY hard, life with a newborn is hard. And while everyone’s journey is different, I feel completely blessed to have had a pretty smooth pregnancy, labor & delivery, recovery and first month with my girl. I am by no means giving myself a pat on the back because y’all, all glory to Jesus because He is really the one who’s got my back through all of this and has answered countless prayers for an easy pregnancy and healthy baby.
Anyway, today I wanted to share a little bit more about Adley Mae’s birth, her first month here with us and life as a new mama.
It’s pretty wild to me looking at this sweet little baby and remembering “oh yeah, I gave birth to her.” LIKE WHAT?! I’M FREAKING AWESOME. Of all the things I was most fearful of during pregnancy, it was definitely the actual giving birth part. I mean, no one can really prepare you for what it’s like because everyone is so different, but that’s kind of the beauty of it because we really need to have major faith here.
Happy Birthday, Adley Mae!
So rewind….I was absolutely convinced this girl was coming early. I just had a feeling for months that she’d surprise us at least a few days early. Yeah, I was wrong. Girlfriend wanted to come right on time and ended up being born on her actual due date, March 10th. The day before Adley was born I woke up feeling so pregnant, so tired and just so ready to meet her. Barely one cup of coffee into the day and I was starting to feel like maybe I would just be pregnant forever? (Irrational pregnant thoughts, I think most mama’s understand….) But after the cramps I’d been feeling all week turned into mild, but somewhat consistent contractions I started to think maybe all those pineapple smoothies and walks around the mall had worked their magic. But of course, I didn’t dare tell anyone, I mean I didn’t want to get anyone too excited just in case it was a false alarm. Josh was off at school presenting a mid-term review of his thesis (after pulling an all nighter) so I figured I’d wait until he got home to mention it.
By the time Josh got home, I was all sorts of grumpy, crampy and starting to feel pretty uncomfortable. So I took a shower, packed the rest of my hospital bag, put on a little bit of makeup (I mean I wanted to look somewhat presentable, even if I was going to be at the hospital. In hindsight…SOOOO not important.) But, I still hadn’t told anyone. Finally around 9, when I was pretty sure it was happening, I
casually mentionedmoaned in pain to Josh that I thought I might be in labor and no, I did not want to play a board game…LOL. After a few hours of waiting it out at home, my mom (proof that we always need our mama’s….so shoutout to mine, who came all the way to frigid North Dakota from sunny California to be with us, help us out, cook us meals & clean our stove…because that’s what moms do, right?) drove us to the hospital, we got checked in and I was admitted at 1am.The rest is such a blur of closed eyes, heavy breathing and trying to convince Josh that I needed to have an epidural (code word: I love North Dakota) yeah I thought it was that bad. I didn’t get the epidural but I ended up just having two low dose pain killers through an IV during labor and by the time I was ready to give up, my nurse told me I was already dilated to a 7.5 and I was almost done. Those nurses, oh my word, they really know what to say to keep a girl goin’….even if their translation of “almost done” means a few more hours.
Around 6am, they told me it was time to start pushing…which y’all, I though the contractions would be the hardest part. Boy was I wrong. Thank God for my sweet husband who stood by my side the entire time, coaching me through my breathing, holding my hand and encouraging me every step of the way. I really wasn’t sure how involved I’d want him to be in the whole birth experience, but I literally could not have done it without him. He was amazing (and mind you this is after about 48 hours of no sleep for him….what a guy.) After reaching a point where I wasn’t sure I could even do it, Josh turned on one of our favorite songs that we’d played a lot for miss Adley before she was born, “So Will I (100 Billion X)” by Hillsong, I
criedsobbed and forty excruciating minutes later, our girl was born and in my arms and the last five hours of pain faded away.
Our girl was here, she was healthy and the nine months of waiting to meet her were made so worth it with just one look at her sweet, little face. I’ve never experienced a greater rush of emotions in my entire life; happiness, relief and a completely, overwhelming sense of joy. It’s crazy how this tiny little person has the power to stir up emotions I never even knew I had.
Adley Mae Cristy
Born: Saturday, March 10th, 2018 at 6:40am CST
Where: Sanford Family Birth Center in Fargo, North Dakota
Weight: 7 lbs. 4 oz.
Height: 20 1/2 inches
Hair Color: Blonde
Eye Color: Blue
One Month of Adley Mae & One Month of the Best Job Ever.
Now that Adley’s been in our lives for nearly five weeks, I almost don’t remember a life without her. She has her daddy’s eyes, her mama’s lips and the sweetest smile that just melts our hearts in an instant. This girl eats like a champ, sleeps like her daddy, loves her swing, tummy time & music. She’s finally found the carseat somewhat tolerable and is really starting to actually enjoy bath time. She outgrew her newborn clothes at about three weeks old and I finally put them away last night and couldn’t believe how tiny they seemed!! Our 11 pound chunk has the sweetest little cheeks and I’m amazed by how much she grows and changes every day.
Being a new mama sure has it’s growing pains, but this is by far the best job I’ve ever had. This past month I’ve been amazed by how those “motherly instincts” just kick in….our hearts expand, our bodies heal, our love grows, and it’s all pretty darn amazing if you ask me. Never has something so new felt so natural to me. What a blessing and a gift to get to be a mama; sleepless nights, countless diapers, spit up, changing body and all. So excited to have the opportunity to share this journey with y’all!
Sending love from up North,
-
Third Trimester Update
I literally started writing a pregnancy update when we were at the 100 day mark and well, we’re now less than 50 days from this little gals due date and I’m finally getting around to posting it. That pregnant life though…
But it’s hittin’ me. This baby is going to be here soon. I’ve had this weird feeling since the beginning that she would come early and well so far, my mama intuition hasn’t failed me about really anything so far during pregnancy…so we’ll see! Personally, I’d be really ok with it if she decided to come (safely) early. And while half of me is in full on panic mode as the to-do lists really only seem to get longer, the other half of me is simply on cloud nine knowing that we’ll be holding our sweet Adley girl in mere weeks.
Whew, third trimester y’all. It’s no joke. I can’t bend over anymore, getting out of bed is a major chore and putting on pants or shoes is way more difficult than I’d care to admit. But, oh what a joy it is to feel this girls constant kicks and dream about what kind of little person she’ll be. Of course pregnancy has its fair share of discomforts, but what a blessing it really is.
Week 33
Due Date: March 8th
Baby C is as big as a: a pineapple, holy cow! 2 weeks ago we had an ultrasound & little lady was already weighing in at almost 4 pounds….with her head firmly pressed on my bladder. (Yeah, I feel that.)
The Bump: Feelin’ large & in charge….but seriously bless the strangers that have told me how small I look. I’ll gladly accept the confidence boost.
Feeling: Overall, pretty good. My skin is definitely feeling stretched and bending over just isn’t happening anymore, but in general — I’m good! Emotionally though — I literally cry all the time. For no reason. Last night I somehow managed to be hysterically laughing while simultaneously sobbing….don’t ask, cuz I really don’t know why or how for that matter.
Craving: Pickles and cheese. Oh and now that it’s finally open in our town, all I really want is Chick-fil-A.
Food Aversions: Broccoli really still isn’t happening at the Cristy household. Third trimester nausea is no joke people & I’m most definitely feelin’ it.
Wearing: Leggings, all day every day because real pants are just not happening at this stage.
Buying: All those little essentials for baby girl that we don’t already have! We’re covered with the basics of eat, sleep, & well….diapers, just in case this little gal decided to make an early appearance. Also, stocking up on postpartum essentials and comfy clothes for those first few weeks/months at home.
Working on: Planning maternity leave, finalizing baby girls nursery & getting the hospital bag packed…just in case!
Missing: High waisted jeans, sleeping on my stomach, sleeping through an entire night.
Looking forward to: Holding our sweet baby girl so, so soon!
Sending love from up North,
SaveSaveSaveSave
-
Coming Soon….
Now that we’re almost halfway through this little babe cookin’ (seriously, how the heck has it already been 19 weeks?!) I figured it might just be time to hop back on the blogging game and give a little life update. So in case you didn’t know, the hubs & I are having a BABY. Yep, sweet little Baby Cristy will be here in the beginning of March and we are just simply overjoyed by this little miracle that is quickly taking over our hearts.
Before even getting married, we’d really prayed that the Lord would give us just at least a year to become established in our marriage as just the two of us before we brought a baby into the mix. It was a trying but sweet, sweet year full of so much growth, love and joy to finally be together, in the same place after years of long distance. Well a year in, we decided to take the leap and see if it was the right time. Which, realistically, the right time never really exists, but God was so good to us and has blessed us abundantly with this pregnancy and the timing of it all is really just a representation of God’s goodness and sweetness through it all. Sure, I could’ve done without the all day nausea I experienced (and sometimes still experience from time to time) but if that’s about the worst we’ve had to deal with so far, I’d say we’re in good shape.
Baby C has been healthy with a strong, little heartbeat at every doctors appointment and this soon-to-be mama is feeling pretty darn good as well. Though some days it still just doesn’t feel real yet! Besides my expanding waistline and the occasional backache, I’d say life seems pretty normal most days…other than the fact that the countdown to meeting this little babe is ticking away way faster than I ever could have imagined.
I always knew I wanted to be a mom. It’s something I’ve realized over the past few years with even more intensity as I’ve often found it hard to find passion in my work and found so much more joy in serving and loving my family….(I mean who doesn’t?!) But really, you can’t quite tell people at job interviews that your dream job is to be a mom, not that there is ANYTHING wrong with that, but I’ve just gotten some funny looks in the past. But really, I can’t think of a better title out there (besides Mrs. Cristy — because that’s a pretty awesome one, too.)
So as I sit here making to-do lists, adding the cutest little baby things to our registry and counting down the days until we meet our little one, I’m just overwhelmed with a deep sense of gratitude that Josh and I get this opportunity to experience this miracle of growing a baby. And seriously y’all, it is nothing short of a miracle….I mean growing a baby is no joke. The fact that this tiny little person grows from the size of something nearly microscopic to a full on baby in only nine months is CRAZY. God really designed this whole thing in such an awe-inspiring way and I’m purely amazed by it all every time I find myself thinking about it.
Week 19
Due Date: March 10th
Baby C is as big as a: Mango
The Bump: Pretty sure it’s at least 80% food baby in most pictures, but it’s starting to pop a little!
Feeling: Really good! My new pregnancy pillow is proving to be a lifesaver for my sleep. (File this under….things I never though’t I’d say…ha!)
Craving: Hot Barbecue Wings from BW’s (seriously, ask Josh….)
Food Aversions: Still so grossed out by broccoli.
Wearing: Anything and everything loose & flowy and officially not wearing any pre-pregnancy jeans. (Thank you Jesus for Madewell maternity jeans. Amen.)
Buying: A new mattress — HALLELUJAH.
Working on: Baby C’s registry! And holy moly…..there are waaaaay too many choices out there.
Looking forward to: Nursery shopping in a few weeks & finding out if Baby C is a boy or a girl on November 8th!
That’s all for now sweet friends! Sending love from up North,