HE'S HERE!

Well Holy Cow. I never ever in a million years would have thought that Pierson Andrew would have made such an early appearance. Especially on his Daddy's birthday. Bryce had been back in NY for finals. We flew in together for Thanksgiving and I stayed and he went back for 2 weeks to finish his classes. My due date was the 30th and he was due back on the 12th so we had plenty of time.....RIGHT? So the day he got back we went to a party at his brother Andy's house and we did some line dancing.....maybe helped out with some dilation. The next day, Saturday the 13th we had a bowling party at Fat Cats for our birthdays, mine was on the 8th and his the 14th. I only bowled a couple times, Averie took most of my turns but I was running around getting Pizza cake and drinks for everyone. Not to mention I woke up at 7am to make a batch of cupcakes, a cake and a gigantic salad to be at the bowling alley by 10:30. We left fat cats and headed straight to the Marriott in SLC (a surprise for Bryce's birthday). It was snowing on and off all night, we went to a movie at 3:40 at the Gateway, went and walked around temple square, slowly but surely, then went and had sushi (of course no raw fish for the pregnant one) at Happy Sumo. Then at 8:30 we were back at the hotel sitting in the Hot Tub with lots of Kids splashing us and lots of stares wondering why such a huge pregnant woman was sitting in the hot tub. Not the most romantic part of the evening. I woke up at about 2 with some contractions, then 3, then 4, not thinking much of it until I had some other signs of labor (if you care to know diarrhea and loss of some mucous). I woke up Bryce about 4:30 and told him I thought I might be starting Labor and I thought should get up and drive home because I didn't have my bag packed for the hospital, I didn't have any of my Hypnobabies books with me (the hypnosis program I did to prepare for my natural birth)I didn't have my birthing ball to labor on, nothing comfortable to wear, SO UNPREPARED TO BE IN LABOR and so scared I wasn't going to be able to keep myself hypnosis under control in the hotel. I called my doula and she told me to take a bath and see if it eased some the labor I was having in my back and she told me to go eat breakfast. SO I obeyed and they didn't ease up in the bath and they were getting to be more like 4 minutes apart instead of 5. They weren't unbearable so I just kept feeling like we had time to go home but I called my mom and had her pack some things up for me and had Bryce's mom go get Averie from her so she could come to the hospital if she needed to. My doula said she would come meet us at the hotel since it was snowing and we didn't want to drive back to Kaysville in the snow. I guess I should mention I was planning to have the baby at the IMC hospital in Murray so that's why we didn't want to drive to Kaysville because we were already so close to the hospital. Well we headed down to breakfast bar at about 6:45 and I couldn't really eat as my contractions were pretty apparent and getting to be about 3 minutes apart. We headed back up to the room and I layed in bed listening to my hypnosis tracks while Bryce called the doula my mom and the Midwives to make final plans. He was on the phone calling everyone all while I was making him put firm pressure on my hips so I could lift up on my belly (a technique I learned to ease back labor). Men are not the best at multitasking so it was difficult for him but necessary for me to survive. He later told me he didn't even really think I was in labor and he thought I was just sleeping, little did he know I was on the verge of loosing it at any second. But thanks to my hypnosis tracks I was able to remain relaxed and let my body do the work. I got up to use the bathroom and sitting isn't a good position to be in while having a contraction. I gave out a little yelp and Bryce said "Get up, WE ARE GOING TO THE HOSPITAL!" It was a rough drive but I was relaxed and made it to the hospital, when I got there my doula was waiting for me at the doors and I had to stop and hug her, go limp and had about 4 contractions in a row with no break at the nurses station before going into a room. That's when everyone knew it was for real, (everyone else that is, I had known since about 4am). So I got back to the room and they asked me to give a urine sample and get into a gown. I sat down on the toilet and got a cup and crinkled it up and threw it on the ground. The toilet is not a good place to be while trying to be in hypnosis and not conducive to relaxing during a contraction. The nurse said never mind, you don't HAVE to give a urine. So I ripped off my clothes, put on a gown and laid down on the bed flat on my back and didn't move again. The nurse checked me right away and I thought to myself, if she tells me I'm only 5 cm. dilated I just might quit right now. Well she said you are 8 cm and I thought Okay, I can do this for maybe another hour. The midwife walked in a couple minutes later and she checked me and said....You are a nine and I can push back your cervix all the way so with the next contraction or two you may want to start pushing. I then thought PUSH, what I just BARELY GOT HERE AND JUST LAID DOWN. Sure enough the next contraction I got the most intense feeling I have ever felt in my life and with a ho heave ho and a lusty yell I pushed with all my might. I have been asked, how did it feel? I cannot even begin to describe the innate and automatic feeling that comes with pushing a baby out. I asked Bryce what he thought it was like watching me when I first started pushing. He made a great comparison. It may sound weird but he said it was like watching someone throwing up violently where the urge is uncontrollable. I had to agree, but it it of course didn't feel like throwing up, it's just a good comparison to the uncontrollable nature of the desire to push. After about 3 pushes she said she could see the head and it was almost through my pelvis bones and if I gave this a good push then I would almost be home free so I pushed him through the bone. Then she said I could get him to crown with the next push, which he did. So when having a baby naturally they tell you when the baby crowns you will feel what they call " THE RING OF FIRE" which it somewhat did, but not as terrible as it sounds. It did burn somewhat but they tell you not to be scared and hold back because that feeling may make you reluctant to push, but you need to push through it and it will feel much better to push then it's pretty much over. So I pushed again and out he came at 10:37 am after a few short hours of what I would deem completely bearable labor. Let me quote my dear friend Natalie though who also just had a natural birth...."Please don't tell me I am LUCKY" or that "I had an easy labor." Trust me that wasn't the case. The 2 contraction that I mentally let go of my hypnosis and gave into the pain were what others would call unbearable, but through out my intense preparation for this birth I learned how powerful the mind is and because I was able to relax and let my body do it's thing is why I believe he came in good time. Thank you Hypnobabies. I highly recommend the program.
Well they put my baby on my chest and he felt like he was about 2,000 degree's. He lifted his head up and looked right into my eyes and it was so amazing that he just wanted to meet his mommy and take a good look. After about 5 minutes and a little contraction I delivered the placenta. I had two tiny tears on the side which took about 4 quick stitches and I was good to go. The nursery didn't even come in to maul my baby(via my request) Bryce and I cleaned him off ourselves and he stayed with us for the first 2 hours. They didn't even weight him for about a half hour. He weighed in at 6lbs 12 oz., a tiny little fellow and was 20 1/2 inches long. I nursed him in the delivery room then I got up out of bed by myself, went to the bathroom and they wheeled me and my baby up to post partum. They even came in our room to give him a bath and he didn't leave the room again. It was such a great experience. For anyone considering a V-bac, throw your fears out the window and give it a go. It went great as a normal pregnancy and delivery should. And may I say that the midwife that delivered my baby from IMC Midwives, Angel Murdock was AMAZING. She was truly an angel and she's only a year older than me.
We do have some pictures but I'm waiting to get the CD and we got some more done today so stay tuned for pictures of the tiny squirt to come.
I do have to say one thing about having a natural delivery. It is fabulous and all, and the recovery MUCH EASIER THAN ANY OTHER WAY, but.......Everyone thinks you are FINE the second you get home from the hospital. I think my husband was fooled by going to the hotel one day and sitting in the Hot tub, and coming home the next day with a baby. Even though it's an EASIER RECOVERY, there is still a recovery. I still felt very tired, my body was weak and sore and hormones, well lets just leave it at that. Not to mention raw nipples. Put that all together and there is still some time needed to just LOUNGE with out any other responsibility. I have to say the hardest part has been that no one will cut me a little slack. I might have had what seems to be quick and easy labor, but it still took A LOT of work and my body is still recovering. That's my only gripe of the week. Otherwise, my baby is wonderful, has a great set of lungs, eats fast and well, and sleeps a lot. I am one HAPPY NEW MOTHER!!

More Visitors! YEAH! Tanner & Emily

Tanner and Emily (my brother and sister in law) came out this weekend for a little visit. We had a BLAST of course. We always love having company. Especially Averie, she Love's seeing her aunts and uncles. I think Averie has a crush on Tanner. She was kissing him on the lips all day on Sunday and was holding them for a little too long! As you can see in the hilarious pictures. we didn't do a lot (I promise I tried to be a good hostess) but Tanner and Emily just wanted to chill and hang out which was fine with me and still plenty of fun. We mostly went out to eat A LOT! We almost completely FROZE but I'm sure they have thawed out by now in the warm land of Arizona. We got to watch part of the BYU - U game at The ESPN Zone, went shopping and got some fabulous purses and H&M gear, and they came to listen to Elder Holland speak with us. We had a surprise Stake Conference (after we already had stake conference 2 weeks ago) with Elder Holland who gave a FABULOUS talk how NOW is the time to stay closest to the Lord & gospel when times will be hard and are only going to get harder. Thanks for coming to stay with us Tanner and Emily. It was fun to hang out with the only other "STUDENTS" in the family. See you Soon!

DAMN PESKY VERMIN!

This is #4. I should feel grateful, I have friends here who catch one a night. But the first year we were here we had NOTHING. Since we've been back from the summer we've had a large cockroach, a small one, a centipede (Thanks Tara Kerr, I told you I would have a run in with one as soon as I read your post, and sure enough, 5 days later) and now our 4th mouse. They're not a problem like I've heard in other buildings but I'm sure sick of them. And why do they always come out when I'm on the computer. Every time I spot one it's mid morning and I'm on the computuer and I catch it running from under the stove in the kitchen to behind the bookshelf out of the corner of my eye. So the traps at night haven't been working. I realized if I turn out all the lights while I take a nap in the afternoon while Averie is sleeping they sneak out and I wake up to squeaking. The glue traps are really a weird invention and I can't believe they expect you to kill the mouse after he gets stuck on it. Needless to say, Bryce is never around when the little sucker shows his face so I have to go plead with the doorman or superintedant to come and rid of my friend. Well hopefully after we come back from Christmas break with the baby, we'll only have about 5 months left in this dirty city, cross your fingers.

My sister in- law's (Bryce's brother Andy's wife Rachel)sister Libby was in town and I met her and some of her friends at Serendipity for Dinner. It's always fun to have anyone from home come to visit. I just wish a babysitter could ever be a part of my vocabulary cause Averie didn't have a nap and couldn't stop crying for like 20 minutes so I couldn't thoroughly enjoy girl time but hey, It was fun anyway.

Just for fun!!!

Averie and Ruben dancing at our church Halloween Party!
Listening to a scary story!

Thriller Dance party!

Ready to go Trick or Treating!

Watching a scary movie at our Friends Party.

My Friend Kate, Natalie and Michael, I can't remember the other 2's names on the right. They went to BYU with Jed and live in The Bronx.

Averie and Ruben, who stayed up WAY TOO LATE and ate WAY TOO MUCH candy!

Mommy, I'm ready to go to Kates party. Which is all she cared about. Every door we knocked on to trick or treat, Averie would say, Mommy this isn't Kates house.

Trick or Treat, ( Do you like my home make paper bag, it's hard to get to the store in NY!)

My beautiful Fairy in the Pink Primrose!

Our only Halloween decoration, Our carved pumpkins, we baked the seeds this year! I highly recommend baking your seeds, delicious.

Mommy and Averie, When I'm too lazy to dress up I just like to wear orange and black. It makes a great costume!

We had a fabulous Halloween. We carved pumpkins. We went trick or treating in our building, and in Kates building. (Trick or treating is very "TRICKY" here in the Big Apple)I made Cream of Potato, Broccoli soup, and Orange cupcakes with butterscotch pudding. I highly recommend it. We went to a party at Kate and Jeds that started at 8 (Averies bedtime). She and Ruven(as she calls him) wrestled the whole time, ate way too much candy and single handidly ruined the environment using way too many Styrofoam cups. We didn't get home till well after midnight and Averie suprisingly went right to bed and didn't wake up today until after 11. I woke up at 3 am feeling all the yummies I ate at the back of my throat. That was the first time I have thrown up this whole pregnancy. Like a child who ate too much candy on Halloween. Anyway, we had alot of fun!

Times Square after Lion King
On our way to Church, in our Lobby

After Ice Cream in Brooklyn. Obviously we're good at letting others share the work!

The American Stock Exchange!

Jared's Motto, What doesn't kill you makes you a runner!

The Bright lights of the city.

Walking the Brookly bridge. I get 3 extra points for doing it Pregnant.

My brother Jared and sister-in-law Kim came out a couple weeks ago and visited. We had a BLAST and a much needed mid-term break for Bryce from school. We went to see Lion King and Grease with Ace from American Idol. We walked the Brooklyn bridge (my first time) and got pizza at the famous Grimaldi's and had Ice Cream at the famous Ice Cream shop in Brooklyn. Despite Jareds reguards for waiting in the hour long line. Thats just part of the experience though. We went shopping in China town, Daffy's, and Century 21. We walked the Peaceful Central Park and ate Chicken and a Waffle at Syvia's in Harlem (@ Jared's request!) We ate the best burger you ever had at the Shake Shak in Madison Square park, not to mention the best fries and Custard Shakes. We had some of the best sushi I've had and by far some of the cheapest in the city. By the way, YES, Infact I did gain a significant amount of weight over the weekend, but that's what being pregnant is all about hu! Jared ran ALL THE WAY down Riverside park from 120th to Battery Park (way down town) almost the lenth of the island. Bryce and Jared went to the Top of the Rock in Rockefeller Plaza to see the view of the city while Kim and I went to Grease. Best of all THE BOYS TOOK AVERIE!! Jared and Kim took a nice LONG bus tour of the city to see it all. We love having family here and Averie sure misses her aunt and uncle. She adores her Ellie dog that Uncle Jared gave her when he came.

Sorry, I couldn't fit all the pictures in one slide so there are 2!!!

BACK IN ACTION

WELL It has been way too long and I can't believe how little I seem to be able to get done just cause I'm growing a baby. I FINALLY figured out how to get my pictures off the stupid CD they were trapped on for the last 2 months so now you can view all 500 of them in my slide show. ( Sorry I'm way too lazy to sort through the pictures so you'll just to look at the doubles and triples).I have to say we had the most unbelievable summer ever. It seems like it was so long ago already that we were loving the sun and living it up in good old Newport. Our tans have long since faded and we've returned to our pasty old east coast selves. We enjoyed a whole month in Utah before our adventures in California visiting family and Averie absolutely enjoyed playing with all her cousins. Disneyland and Disney World all in one year for 2 year old is more than a heart desires. I have to say, we are continually showered with blessings and the adventures never cease in the Waters home. Since we've been back Averie has started preschool, got a new big girl bed, and developed her new found agency. What a struggle it is to have a wonderful baby turn into a toddler with "Agency". We think we found the solution to the "getting out of bed issue" with the reward chart but only time will tell. Averie LOVES her school and I love going to the gym for 2 whole hours. ( No I'm not working out harder, just a lot slower) Averie loves being able to not have to always ride in her stroller and get some "exercise" as she states every time we let her walk somewhere close by. We are so excited to get to have our baby in Utah and pray that the natural delivery works out with all the hours of preparation I have put in. It does take A LOT of preparation to try to have a natural delivery you know. Averie constantly tells me that Pierson needs to get big and come out. I swear she understands too well for her age that she will be having a little brother. We are coming home to Utah on November 25th and Averie and I will be staying until the baby comes and Bryce will leave after Thanksgiving to go back to NYC for finals and return on the 12th of December. I am due December 30th and we will stay until mid January. My brother Jared and sister in law Kim will be coming out to stay with us over Bryce's mid term break and we are SO excited. We will go see Lion King and do all the other NY musts.
It will be nice not to be a single mom for a weekend at least. Speaking of Bryce being very busy in school, Please pray that he will find a job upon graduation. The market is kind of freaking us out (along with the rest of America). Well I hope now that I'm caught up that I will be a little better at keeping up on the blog. I hope to find all of you well and missing us as much as we miss you.