One Week Old

Baby Harlow is

1 week old today!

Daddy and Harlow

She looks so sweet when she sleeps

First family photo

She already looks so different from the day she was born

We tried to get her professional newborn pictures done today but she wasn't cooperating very well. she was really fussy and wouldn't fall asleep. we got a couple of good ones but the photographer said she would come back another day and try again.

She's Finally Here!

Harlow Emi Hafen

Born on April 3, 2010

at 7:52 a.m.

6 lbs. 14 oz.

20 - 1/4 inches

Harlow Emi Hafen is finally here, and only 7 days late!

On Friday April 2, 2010 Pete and I went to Clovis Community Hospital after my Dr. told me she had scheduled for me to be induced. I was definetly nervous to be induced. You can never really know how you body will react to a medication. I didnt like the idea of being given a medication to force my body to do something that it should do naturally but I was also SO ready to have this little baby out already!

We got to the Hospital at 6pm and checked in and was given a room almost immediately. It took them a couple of hours to get everything ready to go before they finally gave me the pitocin. By 8pm they gave me my first dose and almost immediatley I was contracting. I did think that I was already contracting on my own before we even got to the hospital but they definetly werent consistent. After a couple of hours the pain got a little more intense. but not something I couldnt handle. My parents came to visit and so did Pete's mom and family. Ali, Meridith and Andrea also came down to see me and wait it out in the waiting room for awhile. They are crazy! I dont think I would have stayed for as long as they did. It was a long wait.

Finally I was starting to dilate and make some real progress. But thats when my contractions got really intense and I asked for an epidural. Once that was done things went a little more smoothly and with a little more speed. When I was about 5 cm dilated they decided to help speed things along by breaking my water. But the next couple of hours were slow to progress. It took me almost 4 hours to go from 6-7cm. During this time the nurse kept coming in to check on the baby's heart rate. She finally told us that it looked like the baby's heart rate dropped everytime that I had a contraction. They thought that maybe the issue was that the baby was on the umbilical cord and when I contracted, it put too much pressure on it. The baby's heart rate recovered each time the contractions stopped but there was an intense 4 minutes when the heart rate didnt pick back up and stayed under 100. This made things a little more scary for us and for the doctors. They eventually tried to pump warm water back into me so that it could take the pressure off of the umbilical cord, but I dont think that it worked as well as they were hoping for.

So finally after hours or waiting and no progress happening, the Doctor came in and discussed our options. One we could wait it out and keep trying to dilate to 10cm with no gaurantee that we would actually get there and then have to go to a c-section last minute or two, we could just go with a c-section now and ensure that the baby was safe and that I was safe. We chose option 2 only because I really felt like something worse could happen the longer we waited and I would rather be safer than sorry later.

They had the epidural guy come back in, it was different one from the first time because of the shift change in the middle of the night. Because I had already had an epidural and some other sort of medicine for the back labor (Yes, back labor, like everything you hear about it, is true. its NOT fun!) The epidural seemed to do something funny to my left side. They think that it was slightly more to my left than my right side because all through the labor process I couldnt feel my left leg as much as my right leg. there was a huge difference. I could wiggle all my toes and move my legs myself on the right side, but on the left leg it was like dead to the world. This created a problem for the epidural guy who wanted to make sure I was ready to go into a c-section and not be able to feel any pain. WELL... he finally decided that I shouldnt go into the OR with some much feeling on my right side and that they should remove the epidural and instead put in a Spinal.

They prepped me and got ready to take me to the OR and put the spinal in. In this process Pete had to wait outside of the OR until they were ready to deliver. I'm hugely afraid of needles and by this time this was like the 5th one of the night and the 2nd one in my back. I was very emotional about the well being of the baby and the fact that I was going to have emergency surgery. It was all a little overwhelming and I really felt like I was going to be sick but it never happened. The nurses in the OR were awesome at telling me exactly what was going to happen and when it was happening. When it was time for the guy to put in the Spinal he prepped me on the effects and what it would feel like. He said I would be numb from the chest down, that FREAKED me out, and so I asked him if I would be able to still feel my arms and hands and be able to use them, he said yes. He also told me that most people who have a spinal before a C-Section say that it feels like they arent breathing because you are so numb from the chest down that you cant feel the rise and fall or your chest or the reaction your body has when you breathe. So he gave me the spinal and almost immediatley i felt the numbing in my body and had to have the nurses hold me on the table so that I didnt fall since I couldnt control my body anymore.

It was really scary because just like he said, he said it would feel like I wasnt breathing. and it really did feel like that, I was freaking out, i really felt like i couldnt breathe. But he had me keep looking at the monitor to see my heart rate and show me that it was staying stable. He said that if I could talk to them that meant that I was breathing and to keep talking to them. At first I could and then slowly it felt like I couldnt get words out of my mouth anymore and I couldnt feel a single part of my body. I could hear everything going on around me but couldnt keep my eyes open or feel anything, I couldnt squeeze the Doctors hand when he asked me to and then all of a sudden, the Nurses were yelling for a doctor to get in and somthing about respitory dificulty and it was like all fo the Nurses turned into ants and started scurrying around so fast and yelling. Finally they had Pete come in and sit down by my head. He kept talking me to me and i could hear him but couldnt answer him. I felt like i was outside of my body and had no control over it anymore. The epidural guy kept asking me if I just wanted to be put out for the whole thing, but that was one answer i could answer, i kept shaking my head. I was DONE with drugs! i didnt want anymore ever again.

the c-section seriously happened so fast. I could hear the Doctor say, time of incision 7:50, time of delivery 7:52 and then it was literally over. I could hear the baby cry immediately which was a huge relief. Pete went and cut the cord and came back. I could hear the Doctors cleaning her up and fixing me up and finally they brought her over to me. That was the first time through the whole operation that I forced my eyes open. They held her next to my head, she was perfect! and she had her eyes open so wide.

After the c-section my body was doing a let down from all of the medication and I was shaking uncontrollably. Finally when it got a little better, they brought me back to recover and I finally got to hold her. I'm sad that my first reaction to holding her was that I was too scared because I was so shaky I didnt want to drop her, but i'm so glad I got to hold her! I'd been waiting for so long to do that and to see her! She's really here! finally!

Though this delivery is nothing like i expected it to be and it didnt nearly go as smoothly as i had hoped, i am so overwhelmed with how glad that i am that she is here. FINALLY! it was worth every pain imaginable because now I have her.

THE BEST GIFT OF ALL IS THAT SHE WAS BORN ON DADDY'S BIRTHDAY. HARLOW AND PETE WILL ALWAYS SHARE THAT SPECIAL DAY. HAPPY BIRTHDAY DADDY AND BABY!

She's Late, She's Late, She's Late For a Very Important Date!

So today marks the day that our baby is officially 6 days LATE!

Doesn't this kid know that her mother doesn't wait for anything! This has been a true test of patience for me. I am probably the most impatient person you'll meet. I like things done on time and done right NOW! Nothing can wait once the thought has crossed my mind. So when a Dr. gives you a Due Date, in my mind she better be early or on time!

It never even entered my mind that she would ever be late, and 6 days late at that!

On Wednesday we went to the Dr. and I was still dilated 1-1/2 cm (the same for the last 3 weeks). The Dr. ran a few tests to check the baby's heart rate and my fluids to make sure everything was going well still. It was, everything was normal. So I didn't feel good about inducing just yet. I told the Dr. I would wait until Friday, come see her again and then go from there.

That same day I was having some INTENSE contractions. I actually had a few that were really painful and they got down to where they were 7 minutes apart. But eventually they turned into 40 min. apart and then an hour apart and then totally stopped.

Thursday... Not a thing happened. I barely had any contractions!

Today (Friday) we went to see the Dr. She had decided we should try inducing and I agree. I'm done being pregnant and I want this baby out, she's had her time, its not like she needs more days to grow or develop. Any way she comes out now is fine with me! I am still a little weirded out by being induced. I mean its drugs that forces your body to do something that usually nature does for you. But hey, I'm ready to get the job done!

SO TONIGHT I GO TO THE HOSPITAL TO BE INDUCED!

We'll finally get to meet our little baby either late tonight or sometime tomorrow! I'm so excited! And a little nervous. Hospital, meds, needles, Dr.'s - none of those things usually agree with me or my anxiety very well. I get overwhelmed easily so I'm hoping everything goes smoothly. wish us luck!

hopefully my next post will be of baby pictures of baby Hafen!

39 week update... well almost 40 weeks

39 Week Update/40 Week Update:

-tomorrow I will actually be 40 weeks but better late than never.
- i had my last Dr. appointment on Wednesday morning.
- i am still dialated 1-1/2 cm
- thats the exact same as last week
- and am about 80% thinned
- thats not much more than last week
- i really thought that i would have a baby at home by now
- i am getting really impatient
-tomorrow is my due date.
- and there are no signs on contractions
- as long as she is here by the 31st, i'll be fine
- if shes much later than that, my family and friends coming into town will miss her
- come on baby!!!!!!!!!!!!!
- only 1 day left!

My Birthday and 38 Week Update

My 26th Birthday was yesterday. I hadnt planned on doing anything, i'm too tired and too pregnant. haha. I did wake up early though and went to get a mani and pedi with my friend Terra. Pete even came for a little bit just to hang out. I tried to talk him into getting a pedicure too but no luck. Dont let that fool you though, he's had one before and loved it. I cant decide if I like the pedicure or the massage chair more. haha. Afterwards, I went to get my eyebrows done. Now I feel completely beautified and ready for baby to come. Then we went to lunch and made a pit stop at Nordstroms Rack, not that I fit into any cute clothes but I did get a pair of sunglasses and a really cute dress in my before pregnancy size (which i'll use for motivation to get back down to my regular size).

I still had to work that afternoon until 8pm. When I got in the car to drive home, I called pete like I always do. He seemed a little too calm and he said he had been pretty busy meeting with some guy about work which seemed weird becuase that doesnt take 4 hours, more like an hour tops. He asked me what I wanted for dinner and he kept suggesting things he could make at home and he never wants to cook. So I tried to get him to order sushi (all cooked, so sad.) and when I got off the phone with him, I was under the impression that he was calling in an order. But when I walked into the house, I walked right in to a surprise party thrown by my family. SURPRISE! is right, it actually scared me for a second. We had some good food and GREAT cupcakes. had a little present time and hung out for awhile. It was a good birthday by far. They have gotten me with a surprise party 2 years in a row. they are good! THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING AND FOR MAKING MY BIRTHDAY SO SPECIAL! 26 should be a great year.

38 WEEK UPDATE:
- my ankles and feet have started to swell, this is not so cute.
- I have gained 30 pounds, yikes!
- I think I felt my first contraction yesterday but it went so fast that I knew it couldnt really mean much. And I was right, it hasnt happened again since.
- my back hurts so bad that I am *miserable* at night time.
- I havent been sleeping much either.
- I lay awake last night from 3am - 6:30am watching Full House
- I went to the Dr. this morning and when she checked me she said that I was 1-1/2 cm dialated and 75% thinned, so her best guess was this weekend by the earliest.
- that sounds good to me!
- Only 10 days to go!

Update

i havent updated in awhile and its not because i've been too busy, its because i've been too lazy. it feels like i have ZERO energy these days.

I'm 37 WEEKS!:
- Yikes!
- i've gained 29 pounds (yuck!)
- we have found a pediatrician
- pre-registered at the hospital
- taken birthing classes
- and toured the hospital
- now i feel like i know too much, it makes me more anxious than i already was.
- Break the Barriers threw us a baby shower, i had so much fun and it was awesome to see all the kids i coach and their parents having fun too.  they were so generous.  she is already spoiled!
- i'm considered full term now, so if she was born any time now, her little lungs are good to go!
- i'm done being pregnant, if that makes sense
- i think each week i get bigger, i officially have nothing to wear.
- i wear the same 3 shirts and jeans every day, but i only have 3 weeks left, pointless to buy maternity clothes now.
- i had a check-up with the doctor today, everything is going fine and is still on schedule.
- we did another 3D/4D ultra sound a little after Valentines Day, she looks like a real baby now!
- and she has hair!  woowhoo!
- i cant remember the last time i had a restfull nights sleep, its more like mini naps all night long. i'm sleep deprived before the baby is even here!
- ONLY 17 MORE DAYS TO GO!

Baby Shower With Friends!

This past weekend, Jenn, Terra and Amanda threw me a baby shower. it was the so cute, and all of the decor matched baby Harlow's room. Terra brought a diaper cake and amanda picked out all the place mats that had Baby Hafen written on them and matching candle favors, and jenn turned into martha stewart and made cute polka dot cupcakes and decorated sugar cookies. sooo cute! I'm so glad everyone got together, its not often i get to see all of my friends together. as we get older our lives get busier and harder to coordinate times to see each other, especially with some of us not living in town anymore. I LOVE MY FRIENDS! YOU GUYS ARE AMAZING! i really enjoyed myself and had a blast. thank you, thank you, thank you! now everyone brush up on your baby skills cause next time we'll have a party at my house to welcome baby hafen. LOVE YOU!

Sam, Amanda, me, Terra and Jenn

Andrea, Ali, me and Meridith

eek, look at my chubby face!

the whole group

Place mats and cookies

Table all set up, soo cute!

Jenn, Terra and Sam

Jenn's cupcakes and cookies

Terra's diaper cake :)

of course, cheer picture just like the old days

ack! :(

Andrea, Ali, me and Mer

Ali got her a cute leotard, cant wait until shes prancing around in that!

Mer really liked the cupcakes :)

yum!

Remember this mirror from Pottery Barn that I LOVED? well for $699 it will never hang in my bedroom. but....

I found 2 of these this weekend at Home Goods! I love them even more than the Pottery Barn version, and they were MUCH cheaper. I cant wait to see them hanging side by side above my dresser.

Valentines Day this year was a bust. Pete won tickets to see the All-Star NBA game in Arlington Texas through his work. The owners of the company he works for took him and like 3 other guys to the game, put them up in hotels and paid for the flights and treated them to a great weekend. He was only suppose to be away from Wednesday to Saturday for a Managers meeting in Utah but turned out to be even longer. He did send me flowers while he was away though. So I made him his favorite cupcakes. Funfetti cupcakes with Funfetti frosting. I am attempting one more project for him but that one turned into a flop. I'll attempt a redo in a few days.

While Pete was away I had some time to get crafty. I saw this idea on a website and now I cant remember what site it was from. Loved that it was green so it kind of goes along with St. Patricks Day. it was an easy turn around from the Valentines Day one I had done earlier.

At Joann's i found sheets of Moss that i used to cover a cardboard "H" that i also found at Joanns.

I cant believe i forgot about the weekly pregnancy update this week, i think i'll just combine the 2 in the next one. i'm too lazy right now.

ANOTHER BLOG OF MANY TITLES

NEW CAR UPDATE:
the new car that pete "surprised" me with is starting to grow on me a little. it does drive smoothly, it looks nice, gas is great, and all the gadgets in it are pretty cool. not to say that i wouldnt have been just as happy with a 2010 Camry (especially because of the price difference). but whatever, pete makes car decisions, i make decorating decisions. he hasnt argued or put up a fight about anything i have wanted to do to the house or the baby's room. but next time we buy a car, i will definitely be going with him.

Lexus ES350

(not in love with the wood accents but what can you do?)

GARAGE REDO:

This Sunday, super bowl sunday to be exact, pete decided that he was going to prime and paint the garage. who am i to argue? i like a painted finished room more than anyone i know. it was his idea too, you would think that after painting the same bathroom twice in less than a week he would have no desire to want to paint anything any time soon. but the garage is his room, he can do what he wants with it. i think he's just excited for the big tool box he ordered. i dont think he realized how big of a project it really was. he also wants to epoxy the floor but i dont think that will happen for awhile after this. While Pete was priming and painting, i organized our shelves and made a give-away pile. so not only are our walls finished but things are put away in their proper place now. wow!

BEFORE

BEFORE

with one wall already primed

BEFORE

wall already primed

AFTER
the color is Glidden's Wood Smoke

AFTER

Pete ran out of primer so the ceiling will have to be finished at a later date. maybe whenever he gets around to putting epoxy on the floor (i dont see that happening any time soon).




BABY BEDDING:

last weekend we were able to finally put the baby bedding in the crib, her room is now complete!

BABY BASSINET:

pete also got around to putting together the baby's bassinet together this weekend. it is sooo cute! Thank you Grandma Lori!

NEW CAR

I sent my husband out on a mission to buy a car, i couldn't go with him to help pick it out because i had to work. but we talked long and hard about what kind of car we wanted and a budget we wanted to stick with.

HA!

so when we last talked we had settled on getting a 2010 Toyota Camry. a good reliable gas friendly car. and not to mention it was a price i didn't cringe at.

WHAT DOES HE COME HOME WITH?

definitely NOT a Camry or any Toyota at all. He came home with a Lexus ES350. first of all, thats not the kind of car we discussed or by far the price range we discussed. he thought he would just surprise me with it when he got home. WHAT IS IT WITH BOYS AND THEIR TOYS? let me just state that this is exactly what happened last time we bought a car. He went out to look at older used SUV's and he came home with the Yukon on 24's decked out with navigation, tinted windows, sunroof, etc. My husband is a salesman for a living but what he doesn't realize is that he got SOLD. how do you go to a dealership with your final decision you and your wife have discussed and come home with something so completely different? i would just like to state that i have LEARNED MY LESSON. never send your husband out alone to buy a car. it only took me two tries to learn this but... lesson learned. At least there isn't a third dirt bike somewhere in the garage too. it wouldn't surprise me if there was and he was just too scared to tell me about it now...

ask me again in about 3 weeks how i feel about the car. i may have softened a little by then. it is a NICE car, nicer than a Camry for sure. i'm just a little shocked.

32 Week Update

I'm a slacker, i haven't gotten around to this in awhile only because facebook gave my new laptop a virus and geek squad is currently holding it hostage. don't believe them when they say they will return it within 24 hours. liars!

32 WEEK UPDATE:

- this weekend we are taking a birthing class. usually i wouldn't go out of my way to take a class for anything i didn't need to BUT i get really anxious in new situations and when i don't know what to expect. better to have somewhat of a game plan then stressing myself out when there are other things i should be paying attention to.

- we had a baby shower last weekend. thank you to everyone who came.

- the baby's room now has the crib and bedding set up. clothes and diapers organized.

- everything else is pretty much the same

- more people have commented recently that they are starting to see the growth of my belly change more often. don't know if that's a good thing or not :/

- the baby is about 16.7 inches long from head to heel.

- she had toenails, fingernails and probably some hair (if shes anything like me)

- she weighs about 3.75 lbs according to babycenter.com

- only 50 more days to go!

Baby Shower with Family

This Sunday my family had a baby shower for me. We went to Sal's because I have been craving mexican food on a weekly basis. It was good to see everyone all together. Its rare that we all see each other outside of Christmas, Thanksgiving and New Years. Thank you to everyone who came.

While we were all at the baby shower, Pete went golfing with his brother and some friends. So as soon as he got home I put him to work unloading the car and taking everything upstairs to her room. We got to put the baby bedding in her crib (finally). I'ts so cute! And of course the first thing Pete had to play with was the Baby Monitor that he registered for. It was the only thing he REALLY wanted on the registry. Not my choice, it was 100% his.

My mom and Pete's mom

Cake

THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR COMING AND FOR THE WONDERFUL GIFTS!

ON A SIDE NOTE:

This morning it became offical. We sold the GMC Yukon. No more 24's, navigation, blacked out windows and tail lights. It was a rappers dream car. (or my husbands small glimpses of his youth). If you see it driving around Fresno, dont honk and wave, its not me anymore :( so as of 10 a.m. this morning I am carless. As we speak the Husband is out wheeling and dealing to get me a newer and better ride. We didnt need to sell the Yukon but it would just be smarter to have a smaller car payment and gas payment each month with a baby coming. What money we save we will be able to put towards a savings account. Which makes me, the worry rat, feel much better about our future and unforeseen emergencies. Not to mention, by selling the Yukon it could potentially enable us to have a car without a car payment. No who doesnt think that sounds nice? Hopefully by later this afternoon I'll have a car to get me to work twice a day, otherwise you might see a 32 Week pregnant lady riding a bike down Shepherd. wish us luck!

Bathroom Redo x2

Remember my oops in the bathroom? Pete painted the whole bathroom the color i told him to. when he was done i realized that i hated it. it turned out to be more blue than gray. but since Pete is so great (and he secretly agreed with me about the color being gross) he REpainted the bathroom (after i did all the taping). yea! i should have just gone with my first choice of color. this time we painted it the darker shade of gray that i second guessed myself on. now I LOVE IT!

BEFORE

BEFORE

BEFORE

BETTER AFTER! YEA!!!!

AFTER

AFTER

AFTER

AFTER

AFTER

Now all this bathroom needs is maybe some curtains and i'm thinking of adding a touch of bright yellow. but who knows....

oh yea, and please excuse the gross basic builders light fixture. hopefully that will be changed out for something nicer soon.

next up. the master bedroom. sometime in the near future it will get put together. i hope.

31 Week Update:

- i have gained 22 lbs! can you believe that!? 22 pounds!! holy cow!
- my bellybutton is *thisclosetopopping*
- i cant get my wedding ring off unless i'm freezing cold
- with that said, i'm HOT all the time!
- my back still aches all the time
- now my hips have been feeling pretty sore too.
- i cant for the life of me do the splits anymore. thats terrible for a gymnast!
- and remember how i said i can still hit a great handstand... not so much anymore, it takes me a couple of trys to find my center of balance. sad.
- the baby is over 16 inches long from head to heel
- and she weighs close to 4 lbs. (which makes it hard to believe i've gained 22 lbs, maybe donuts for breakfast need to stop)
-and she moves ALL the time.
- only 59 days to go.
- yeah for a baby shower this sudnay with the family!

****

on a side note:
i have been extremly emotional. during the first few months i was pregnant i found out i was really emotional then too. you know that SPCA commercial that shows all the abused, battered and starving animals asking you to donate money? i had to either change the channel or hide my face under the covers, i could never bare to watch it. i would cry!

it has gotten much worse, but most times if i immediately think of something else it goes away. but today i read an online story about a mom who has had multiple miscarrages and even the birth and death of a baby in the same day. there were pictures too... i didnt just cry as i read her story, i bawled my eyes out. i had to stop mid story to grab tissues. I'M A MESS! how some women deal with such traumatic events and still come out strong in the end is beyond me. that is a kind of strength i dont think i would have. they are amazing women!