She's Here!

Kate Smith

April 20, 2012

9:51 a.m.

7 lbs. 9 oz.

19 1/2 inches long

Our sweet baby Kate is finally here, and we couldn't be more happy to have this little angel here for us to hold and love. She is a perfect fit to our family and we love her SO much! There is so much love to go around, and we definitely are giving a lot of it to Kate. She really is so special to each one of us!

My due date with Kate was April 24, but I scheduled to be induced on April 20. I was really happy that I made it to that date for a number of reasons...it just seemed like the perfect day to have this little angel. I was contacted by the hospital the day before and was told that I was going to be their first induction of the day...YAY! With Isaac, I wasn't contacted to come in until 7:00 at night! It made for a very, VERY, long day, so I was beyond thrilled when I was told to come in bright and early at 7:00 a.m.!

I was very lucky to get a very good nights rest the night before. I was seriously so exhausted from getting everything ready for my absence for the next few days. My mom was an angel and came to spend the entire weekend with the kids! I was so thankful for all of her help! She arrived on Friday morning at 6:15, and Doug and I were off to the hospital soon after. I just had to say goodbye to the kids, and when I did they woke right up instead of going back to sleep! Ugh! I guess they were just as excited as we were to have this baby!

After we arrived at the hospital, we got settled in and met with our nurse. I was very insistent to the nurse that I wanted to get my epidural before they broke my water. All of my labors have been exactly the same...as soon as my water breaks, my labor takes off! Within the hour I am completely dilated and ready to deliver, and I just knew that it would be the same with this one! With Leah and Isaac, they waited to give me my epidural and it didn't work because I progressed SO fast! SO, this time I wanted it beforehand. I got my wish and got my epidural before they started the pitocin or broke my water at 8:45. BUT, I could tell that the epidural wasn't working as it should as soon as the doc broke my water. My right leg was numb, but my left one wasn't. I waited it out, but I was starting to feel the contractions within 10 minutes, and they hurt so badly. I know that some people prepare for this kind of pain, but I am just not one of them! The doctor came back to adjust my epidural, and about 5 minutes later my left leg went numb, BUT I could still feel my contractions! The pain from labor is definitely not in your legs! I could feel the contractions where it counts and I was starting to go insane by all the pain. SO, once again, the dang epidural didn't work! I was frustrated, but at the same time I understood why it didn't work...my body progresses too fast for the epidural to work! It kicked a little bit of the pain, but definitely not enough to matter! By 9:40 I was pretty much crying from the pain, so the nurse checked me and I was dilated to a TEN! I had gone from a 4 to a 10 in less then one hour! Crazy! The doctor came pretty quickly, and during my next contraction I pushed ONE time and our baby girl was here! Seriously, this was definitely my fastest labor and delivery. And as bad as it sounds, I am so thankful that it went as fast as it did...pain and all. I probably wouldn't be saying that while I was in labor, but now that it's all done, it was worth it :).

As soon as Kate was born, they put her on my chest. I couldn't stop staring at this precious little girl...she was beautiful! I kept thinking to myself how perfect this baby was...she was absolutely perfect! During the first few minutes after she was born, the nurses tried to get her to cry, but she wouldn't. She kept grunting, but not crying. They were nervous that she had a lot of fluid in her lungs and couldn't cry, so they took her to the nursery to make sure she was OK. Doug went with her and everything was just fine with her. It turns out she is just a mellow little girl and didn't want to cry...I don't mind that one bit! Although, she did finally cry as soon as she was given a bath, and I don't blame her at all! After an hour, they brought her back to me and we were able to cuddle and love on her the rest of the time that I was in the hospital.

That first day with Kate was wonderful! It was just so great to finally be able to touch her and look at her. That feeling is the absolute best! What was even better was having her meet Noah, Leah, and Isaac for the first time. That was a moment to remember! The kids have taken to her so well...they all can't get enough of her and love her SO much! She is definitely loved by her siblings, that's for sure!

My stay at the hospital went by very fast, thank goodness! Coming home was all that I wanted...to come home and really start living our lives with this new bundle of joy! Life with Kate has been so wonderful! We couldn't ask for anyone better...she really is a perfect fit for our family!

Last picture of me pregnant.

One of the first pictures of Kate.Family of SIX! I still can't believe that there are six of us! I love it :).Daddy cuddling with Kate on our first night in the hospital. She LOVES to cuddle :).I still can't believe how much hair Kate has! When she was born, the nurse asked us if our other kids had that much hair, to which we said "yes" because at first it didn't look like much. As soon as she had a bath and it was all "fluffed" up, we were so surprised to see how much there actually was! Leah had long hair, but not as much as Kate. All of the nurses in the hospital would come in and say "Look at all that hair!". I just hope that it stays...I doubt it though.Getting ready to go home...