Dixie Lorraine

It's time for a birth story! This pregnancy was pretty hard on me. Especially when around 36 weeks, I got extremely itchy. All over, but more severe at night and on my feet. I couldn't sleep at all at night because I couldn't stop scratching, with no relief. My dr tested me at 37 weeks for cholestasis, a liver disorder that occurs during pregnancy and can cause stillbirth. The results took a week and showed that I didn't have it, but my doctor tested my liver function again and it showed elevated levels of...something? I can't remember, but it indicated that I did in fact have cholestasis, and I got the call that I was being induced the next day! We were thrilled because I was desperate for some  relief. All of this is happening, of course, in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic. Lance has been tracking the virus since January and had a good idea of what might happen, so we were prepared emotionally and supply-wise, but it was still somewhat of a shock when things started closing down. Luckily for us, my mom found herself with lots of free time since she couldn't work, and she drove out early. She kept the kids occupied during the last week of my pregnancy. I was terrified that Lance wouldn't be able to be with me when I gave birth because visitor restrictions were getting tighter every few days, and Lance was super paranoid about me and baby being in the hospital and wanted to get us in and out as soon as possible. The moral of story is, we were ready to go! Lance dropped me off at the hospital at 7:30 pm and then hurried home to finish getting the kids in bed. 

The only thing he missed was 4 attempts at putting an IV in and a blown vein, which ended up being the worst part of the whole thing. By the time he got back, I was hooked up and things were in motion. 

I was already at a 3 and having uncomfortable (but not painful) contractions before I came in, so they put me on a low dose of pitocin while I got my antibiotic for being Group B Strep positive. Contractions picked up quickly and I got my epidural before they were too painful- yay! My dr came at midnight and broke my water. I finished dilating pretty quickly and by shortly after 1:30 was feeling lots of pain and pressure. I was ready to go! Lance distracted me with music and I managed to hold off until my doctor got back. 3 pushes later, she was born at 2:03 am. Boy they come out funny looking.

 Best feeling ever!!

In line with her siblings, she weighed in at 7 lbs 1 oz, giving us a 3 oz range (excluding outliers). 20 inches long, although it somehow got recorded incorrectly as 22 inches. 

Lance is just thrilled that I'm not pregnant anymore. 

Here's a plethora of pictures because I was (and am) obsessed. 

What a lucky guy.

Lance spent all day Friday with us at the hospital, then left at dinner time to help Grandma with the kids at home.

First outfit! I just almost died of cuteness overload.

He came back after they were asleep and we did Dixie's first bath.

And her first nightgown. I can't even handle it. 

Snuggly sleeps after Daddy left!

Saturday morning, it was time to go home! Dixie and I checked out just fine with our docs so we got her all ready to go. 

View of our house from my hospital window. It was so nice being so close!

Here we go!

There were some very anxious girls waiting at home for her. They couldn't even wait for her to get out of the car!

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Blade was surprised but very interested. 

The whole motley crew.

Grandma is the best at calming babies down!

We took Dixie on her first walk that afternoon, which she loved, and let her try out the swing, which she did not love. 

First day at home- the girls were so excited to have her for church.

She actually took a nap in the swing. Hasn't let me put her in it since. 

I snapped a few little newborn pics. 

I managed to get this gem:

I'm no photographer but she is perfection.

The past week has just flown by with lots of snuggles and naps (she has her days all topsy turvy and loves to pull all nighters). She is a champion nurser when you can get her to wake up during the day. We weighed her last night and she was back to birth weight exactly at 8 days old. 

It's so hard to wake her up every time she needs to eat!

Lots of sun baths and walks to help her mild jaundice.

None of us can get enough.

 Blade screams "Baby!!!" every time he sees her. Or thinks that he sees her.

We had Dixie's name picked out months ago. She is named after two of her great great grandparents- my dad's maternal grandfather, Nathan "Dixie" Hiatt, and Lance's dad's paternal grandmother, Lorraine Brunson. We are so grateful to have this sweet spirit join our family! Can't wait to see who she turns out to be, but right now we are soaking up every minute.