Charlotte Catherine Sharon Jamieson

My new baby girl is finally here and as I sit down to write this post she has started squeaking on me again.  I'll see how far I can get before I start typing with one hand :)

Here is the story of Charlotte's arrival

I don't know where I got this idea from but somewhere in the last month of my pregnancy I became convinced that I would have Charlotte early.  Not weeks early or anything like that but maybe a day or two, Vaughn and Greta both came right on time and for some reason I just had it in my head she would come before her due date.  Well I was most definetly wrong about that!  You'd think by my third baby I'd know better but alas I did not. 

I love being pregnant, I think I've mentioned this before.  I don't love the heartburn and the aches and pains but I love feeling my baby move and having that special time with them.  That being said I'm never really in a hurry to have them on the outside, I don't mind waiting and taking my time.  This pregnancy was different though, with Matt living two hours away I had this constant anxiety that he was going to miss our baby being born and that was not exceptable to me!  So the Saturday before my due date when I thought I was in labour poor Matt made a quick drive from Hamilton to Petrolia after a day of me calling and crying and not knowing what to do (gotta love pregnancy hormones :) )

I'll rewind, thanksgiving weekend arrived as did the Brigden Fair.  For those of you non-lambton county people, the Brigden Fair is the biggest fall fair around and is THE fair to go to.  My grandparents go every year and I often got to go with them.  The plan this year was to take the kids with my grandparents to the fair, I love fairs, I love the atmasphere, watching the kids take it all in, I just love it.  So when I decided I wasn't up to going you have to understand that I really thought I was in labor.  I had contractions off and on all day and generally just felt awful.  This was kind of how I started my labor with Greta so I decided that this must be it and asked Matt to come.  We loaded up and headed to the hopsital in Sarnia because by this time I had realized that there was no way I was driving in the car for two hours to deliver a baby in Kitchener (I finally made the decision on where to have this baby it just took me thinking I was in labor to do it).  Once we got to the hospital it turned out I wasn't really in labor, although they did tell me I could stay the night and see if things kept going.  I opted to go home because I would rather sleep in my own bed than a hospital bed! 

The next morning there was still no baby, Matt and I did some power walking to see if I could convince her to come but no such luck.  We were of to Chatham that night for thanksgiving with the Shaw side of the family when just as we are ready to leave I thought my water broke . . . back to the hospital we go only to find out nope no water breaking and no baby today.  The only good thing that came out of my multiple trips to the hospital is that Dr. Rutledge suggested she take me on as a patient so I have a dr. locally and could do my last few prenatal appointments in Sarnia.  This turned out to be a huge blessing as Dr. Rutledge really is amazing!  At my next appointment she suggested we book an induction date since Matt needed to get back to Kitchener.

4 days past my due date, we loaded up and headed in to the hospital but this time was different because I knew I would be coming home with my new baby girl.  Being induced worked our nicely because I was able to plan out childcare and have everything lined up and ready to go.  Here is how the morning went for Vaughn and Greta

Wake up with Grandma
Grandma got them up, ready and took Vaughn to school.  (After dropping Vaughn off she joined us at the hospital)

8:30 - 11:30 shift with Greta was Uncle John - he took her to Mommy and Me at the church and she had a blast

11:30 - 4:30 pm was with Hannah with John picking Vaughn up from school and dropping him off at home

4:30 pm - 8:30 pm - Hannah and Jessica brought the kids to Sarnia fed them supper and brought them to the hospital and got them back home and in bed

8:30 pm until Matt and I got home with Charlotte was Grandma

It worked out perfectly and Vaughn and Greta didn't seem to mind a bit that I was gone.

Ok Back to the hospital . . .

When I got to the hospital I was still have irregular contractions but  nothing too serious.  I was 4 cm dialated all ready so I was glad that the false alarms at least had been useful!  I got hooked up to all the monitors when I had a contraction and Charlotte's heart rate dropped pretty dramatically.  It was a scary few minutes as they had me switching sides and making sure the heart rate came back up and could handle the induction drugs.  Once they were satisfied everything was ok they got the drugs started.  Nothing really got going though  until they broke my water and then everything happened rather quickly. 

All in all I was in labor for about an hour with maybe 14 minutes of pushing.  She was out very very quickly.  I can laugh now but looking back I handled Greta's delivery very well, I might even say with dignity.  There was no screaming or yelling of real significance . . . I'm not sure what was different this time but there was screaming and yelling.  I'm embarassed of how I acted now, you'd think by my 3rd I'd have been better prepared but I think I knew how long it could go on and how awful it is and that made me nervous that it would be hours and hours.

Charlotte ended up coming quicker than the nurses were prepared for, which I blame myself for.  I knew I was getting ready to push, I could feel it but I was afraid to ask the nurses to check me because I didn't think I could handle it if they told me I still had a long way to go.  So I left it too long and Dr. Rutledge had to rush to get there.  Too Much Information Warning  . . . I left it so long in fact that the nurses where holding Charlotte's head in waiting for the doctor while I so screamed like a crazy woman, "I don't care who gets her out, just somebody get her out."  My nurses who were absolutely amazing commented during one of my fits of "I want her out" told me, "Well they don't come with handles you know"  I love that there was humour even amid the screaming, I even managed to crack a joke inbetween pushing which made my nurse tell me it couldn't be that bad if I was still joking . . . but it was that bad I just have an uncontroable need to talk all the time. 

It turned out to be a good thing they waited for Dr. Rutledge because Charlotte had managed to get the cord wrapped around her neck twice.  Again can I say how fabulous the nurses were through everything, after each screaming fit I apologized to them for yelling because it's not their fault I decided to have a baby.

She arrive at 11:47 am weighing in at 6lbs 3oz, my smallest baby.  She has similar features of my other two but is also uniquely Charlotte.  Where my other two were blond from the start Charlotte is sporting dark hair.  Not wanting to jinx it but so far she seems to be my most mellow baby, although we'll see if that stays true once we are in Kitchener and there aren't as many hands to hold her and she is forced to get used to her crib, bouncy chair etc.

I love my little Charlotte and I am so glad she is finally here.  She grew 13 oz this week and is almost at 7lbs, which is a good thing but makes me sad because I know she is going to grow up on me.  I am doing my best to cherish every minute of each stage because it goes so very very quickly.  Welcome to our family Charlotte, you are the perfect fit and exactly what we needed.  We love you lots and can't wait to see what God does in your life and the woman you grow to be.

38 Weeks

Here I am at 38 weeks, well technically 37 weeks and 6 days but close enough for this blog. I can't believe the time is pretty much here, it feels like I've been pregnant for forever and not very long, all at the same time. While I am excited to meet her, to see if she is actually a girl, see what she looks like, watch her personality develop, snuggle my last newborn I am also not ready. I love being pregnant, yes I do grumble a bit and no I don't love heartburn or using the bathrooom every few minutes but being pregnant I love. It is such an amazing feeling when your baby moves around inside you, knowing that your body is creating a life that you will love without condition. With only 2 weeks left I've had a few moments where I felt done and ready to get her out but on the whole she could stay in a while longer, I'm not ready for this stage of my life to be done. Little girl I can't wait to meet you but don't be in too much of a hurry ok? Vaughn asked me the other day if she was coming soon because he wants to see what she looks like. The kids are getting anxious too, I think they think Mommy has been pregnant for ever. It will also be nice when Greta stops asking people to see the baby in their tummy, hopefully once the baby is here she'll lose interest in checking everyone elses tummy's. Although she'll probably have a new fascination with breast feeding which could be much much more embarassing I suppose :) My patience has been short with my amazing kids lately and I feel bad for that, hopefully these next two weeks don't continue to bring out the worst in me or else they really will be ready for the baby to get here. There are still so many unknowns but the Lord has also been so faithful. We have renters in our house that signed a 6 month lease which means we can start looking for a place of our own for November 1st. It will be nice to have some time at my Mom's with the baby because it means I will have lots of help in the first few weeks but I am also looking forward to starting our new normal. There are going to be bumps along the way as our new family of 5 figures things out but I am confident that it is all in His hands because well, He hasn't forgotten me yet. We are still waiting on a vehicle that can hold us all and I haven't decided where I'm going to deliver the baby yet but it will work out. Logically I should have the baby in Sarnia because it's closer but I love my midwife and would love to have that experience with my last delivery. But in the end the only things that really matter is that Matt makes it in time for the birth (he's 2 hours away) and that baby and I are healthy at the end. Pray with me for these things and the rest are just the makings of good stories for later on. On Thursday I was 1.5 cm dilated and 70% effaced (sorry for the details) which means I am on my way to meeting our new bundle . . . hurry up and slow down please. I can't wait to add you to our family, you are already deeply loved by so many!

School Open House

Tonight I got to go to Vaughn's school open house. It was very cute letting him show me around the school I attended for 9 years of my life. He seems to really love school and I am so glad. He's made a friend who he calls his buddy, I'm not sure he's the best influence but I keep reminding him how Mommy and Daddy expect him to act at school and praying he listens. Mrs Bandla is his teachers name, I felt bad for her because she didnt recognize Vaughn when we came into class. I don't blame her at all she has had just over a week to get to know both jk classes and Vaughn had his patch on which he never wears to school. I tried to subtly help her out, 'Vaughn say hi to your teacher'. She told us that he sits and pays very good attention during story time which would explain why he comes home and tells me the entire story they read that day. She pointed out that he has a very good memory, which for me isn't always great because he remembers everything, lost toys, promises made etc. She also noticed his perfectionist tendencies. It can be very frustrating working with him, if he makes a mistake or something doesn't turn out just how he wants he won't work on it anymore. Mrs Bandla said she reminds him that school is for learning and making mistakes and that is why they have erasers. Hopefully he will be able to let go of his need for everything to be perfect. He showed us his journal, his art work, where he plays and the time out chair. I love that little boy so much and I love to see how well he seems to be adjusting. I am so proud of how Vaughn is doing. He can sing me the new songs he's learning, tell me the stories he hears. He can spell and write his name. I knew he was ready for school but it surprises me how fast he seems to be picking things up. I can't wait to continue to watch him learn and grow.

Helping Daddy

Labour day weekend turned into an actual labour day for Matt as he helped my sister and brother in law build a deck on the back of their house.  What was going to be a one day job for John got complicated when they took down the old deck and found everything they had planned on reusing rotted and no good.

Matt came down on Saturday night to spend some time with us which worked out perfectly so he could help John with his deck.  Sunday after church, John and Matt took Vaughn on a guys adventure to Home Depot to pick up all the supplies.  I don't know if Vaughn stopped talking the whole time, while getting his shoes on and into the truck, he was talking as fast as he could get the words out.  He came home with his very own real hammer and measuring tape so he could help the next day.

Monday morning came and I loaded the kids up to go over and check out the progress John and Matt had made.  We managed to slow down the work for about an hour while the kids 'helped' build the deck.  Thankfully noone really seemed to mind all the extra 'help'.  My Grandparents surprised us and came by to see how things were going.  We had an impromptu lunch of Salmon and Tuna sandwiches, pickles, cucmbers and homemade tarts and cookies.  It was perfect, just like how I remember Saturday's growing up.  My Grandparents coming over and we would all have a simple lunch together but now I get to share it with my husband and kids.  I couldn't have asked for a better day.

As much as I joked about moving because the weather was awful that wasn't why I left.  I loved my life in Edmonton and as they days go by I find myself missing my friends more and more.  But labour day Monday with my family was exactly why I moved back.  Seeing my Grandpa showing Vaughn how to hold the hammer and everyone being together is worth it all.  The move hasn't all been easy, we don't have our own place, I miss my friends, my job and my life but I would do it all over again even if it was only for one more day like Monday.  You only get one chance to be with your family and life is too short to waste.  Thank you Lord for a perfect labour day!

First Day of School

Vaughn has successfully managed his first day of school.  I think that Junior Kindergarten was all he hoped it would be!  It was very strange to walk my son to my old school and have him line up in my old school yard.  It was surreal, something I didn't think I'd ever experience but good old Queen E came through and gave him an awesome day.

I had my alarm set to get up early on his first day to make him a special breakfast.  I'm not really into making big breakfast's, I usually serve 'typical' breakfast foods for lunch or supper but I decided his first day of school deserved to be different.  When I got out of the shower I was very surprised to hear Vaughn already up waking up Daddy and I was even more surprised that he not Greta had been the first one up, proof that he was just a tad excited.

After his special first day of school pancake breakfast we got dressed, got his lunch box out of the fridge, put on our shoes and walked outside.  We then quickly walked back inside to put on jeans, it was freezing outside!  How often is the first day of school cold enough to wear jeans, usually  you buy your back to school fall clothes and then have to wait to wear them because it's too warm.  Oh well, his outfit wasn't what I had planned but at least he was warm. 

First Day of School Pancakes are 'Taaaaasty'

After a little photo shoot out front and running back in because Greta needed her Minnie lunch box we loaded the kids into the wagon and we were off.  Of course we were a little early because I'm just like that.  We found the door, checked in with his teacher and helped him say hello to a few of the kids in his class.  The bell rang and my throat got a little tight as we helped him line up along the fence.  Matt and I got a quick hug and kiss and off we went without looking back.  Grandma yelled, "have a fun day" as he was walking away and without evening looking back he yelled, "I will!"  He was so ready for this and I was so proud of how he handled it.

All ready to go!

Family picture!

So grown up and ready for school!

Greta not happy that Vaughn got to go to school without her

I got a little teary but Greta saved me from crying because she was NOT HAPPY that her brother was leaving.  She cried and cried that we had to get Vaughn.  It was absolutely adorable and heart breaking at the same time!  It is nice to know that despite all the fighting and bickering she does really like her brother.  She got over her sadness pretty quick when we got home and she discovered that she could play with the iPad without having to share it.  Matt and I also took her to Tim Hortons and on a special trip to the library, I think she got over being sad pretty quick.

On our way back from the library I wanted to stop in and check on Vaughn but they were out having recess so I resisted.  3:00 took a long time coming but I was so glad when we were able to go get him and bring him home.  He loved his first day and asked if he could go again and again and again.  I know that in a couple of weeks when the excitement wears off he might not be as excited to go but for now I'm enjoying the fun. 

Settling In

I've been absent from my blog lately and it's not because there aren't things to say but because it's hard to know where to start.

The kids and I boarded the plane on August 12th to begin our first step in our new life. I didn't cry when we left but my heart felt heavy. It was surreal to walk away from my house and my life after so many years. But as much as I was sad to go, without Matt with us Edmonton really wasn't home anymore. If our family is not together then we are not home and in saying that I still am not 'home'.

The kids and I are settled in at my Mom's and having a great time. I can't begin to thank her enough for allowing us to come in and take over her house and essentially her life for an undefined period of time. I don't know what I would do without her and I am truly truly grateful. It's nice to have any extra set of hands and a babysitters just a phone call away! Tonight we are celebrating Tyler's birthday and I actually get to be a part of it which is what I wanted from the beginning. We have been to the cottage, spent time with my Grandparents, next week I'll see my Dad and other Grandma. The kids are doing swimming lessons starting on Monday adn the next week Vaughn starts school. Life is great here but we aren't home yet.

As I said before home is when our family of 4.5 is all together again. In seeking the Lord and talking with good friends I get the sense that the Lord is on hold with the sale of our house. That something needs to happen in our hearts and lives to see that release. I am praying that Matt and I can continue to seek the Lord and find that as we grow closer to Him and put our focus on Him that the other details will fall into place.

Being in Ontario is great and actually seeing Matt even if it isn't everyday is wonderful. Now I am praying that our hearts and minds will be focused on the MOST important thing.

I have lots more fun stories and posts and I'll hopefully get to those this week but this what has been on my heart and what I want to remember. And after all as much as I love that other people read my blog it is really for me to look back on someday and remember where we've been and how we got where we are.

Goodbye's

With only 2 full days left in Edmonton I am realizing that I haven't done a very good job at saying goodbye.

There are so many friends that have been a huge part of my life here in Edmonton that I won't get a chance to say goodbye to. That makes me really sad but it is really my own doing. I hate goodbyes, I hate the tears that come and the sadness I feel so I've been avoiding them. I didn't really tell many people on Sunday it was my last Sunday. There were so many people I would have loved to have hugged and had that goodbye with but I just couldn't bring myself to go through the emotional experience. I hope that someday I don't look back and really regret this.

What I really hope is that my friends know how much they have meant to me. I was blessed to be a part of a wonderful group of women from the church. They took me in and befriended me and I will always be grateful for that. Just knowing these woman has changed me for the better and enriched my life. I am not naming anyone because I would for sure leave someone out and then feel awful but with my whole heart I thank my friends for being just that my amazing friends.

Matt and I have had amazing friends that have loved us and loved our kids. We have spent meals together, evenings together and loved just being the real 'us; with them. Warts and all these families have accepted us. Again in my emotional immaturity I have neglected to say a few important goodbyes. It's not a lack of love, I just don't think I'm really ready to say goodbye . . .

So, Edmonton I have 2 more days and a few goodbyes left that I can't avoid and I'm not looking forward to. I have loved my life here and leave a stronger and better person than when I arrived.

Love to you all!