Alana Owen has arrived!

Hey everyone! I've been off the radar lately but it's been for a great cause. On October 28th I just didn't feel right and after calling my doctor it was decided I needed to head to the hospital to get checked out. At barely over 35 weeks it was still too early for Alana to enter the land of the breathing so they stopped my contractions and decided to keep me overnight for observation. They also noticed my blood pressure was running a bit high and I was dilated to 4cm.

The next day after some conversation with my doctor it was decided I was staying put until I had the baby. At 36 1/2 weeks they did an amniocentesis which showed the lungs were not quite ready so they set my induction date for November 12th which put me at 37 1/2 weeks. My due date was November 30th so this was a lot earlier than than we expected.

During the the two weeks I spent my time cross stitching, reading and doing puzzle books. I also got more than my fair share of Dr. Phil and my favorite "trash TV"... The Real Housewives of Atlanta. I also had lots of visitors and made friends with the nursing staff at the hospital.

On Sunday the 9th I started having some pretty strong contractions and it looked like my time had finally arrived but they stopped the contractions again and the wait continued. I was really upset because by that time I was really just "done" with being in bed and missed my kids a lot... I was just ready to get the show on the road and get home.

Finally, it was Wednesday, November 12th. At 7:30 AM I got an IV and the Epidural was soon to follow. At 8:00 AM my doctor arrived and broke my water and started the Pitocin to get the contractions going. After that we just waited. My mom, Mike and I were just chit chatting and playing the waiting game. We didn't have to wait long at all. At 9:45 AM the nurse said she was going to check me again at 10:00 to see how much I dilated. A few minutes later I felt the urge to push and told my "coaches". My mom jumped up in a hurry and ran for the nurse. I think the nurse was surprised when she checked and saw I was fully dilated and the baby was coming out. Within about 5-10 minutes the doctor arrived and it was roll time. At 10:07 AM and with one small push Alana Owen was born.

She's a beautiful baby and so far is pretty easy. Now we just need to adjust to having a third child but so far that's going pretty well. It feels great to be home... although I have to admit at this moment I am missing the peace and quiet of my hospital room with just me and Alana getting to know each other.