Mommy Koerner

Saturday, March 15, 2014

Joshua Kolbe

I know, I know! Josh is one month old…so, before doing that post, I figured I should write about his birth!

The stats before the story:

Weight: 6 pound 12 ounces

Height: 20 inches

Head: 14 inches

Born at 4:59 pm

On Monday, February 10, I was scheduled for my weekly OB visit. Josh had a two vessel cord (one artery and one vein in the umbilical cord, instead of two arteries, one vein), so each doctor visit starting at 28 weeks I had an ultrasound with a Biophysical Profile. Basically, they checked for four things each week, and Josh got 2 points for each thing if it was good to go. For all of the weeks, leading up to my 39 week appointment this day, Josh had scored an 8/8 on his ultrasound! As I headed into the ultrasound, I was prepared for the usual appointment and was thinking in my head of all of the things I needed to get done that day. Today was the day that Josh scored a 6/8. The ultrasound tech assured me that nothing was wrong with Josh, he just wasn't moving his diaphragm within his allotted 15 minutes. His heart was great, he was moving like crazy…no huge concerns.

I sat waiting for the doctor. The doctor came in and told me I was heading to the hospital to be induced….AHHHH…the words I did NOT want to hear. I got angry right away and super defensive. I asked why and she said the because he had scored an 8/8 at this point every week and I was one week away from my due date this was the "best thing to do." I asked to go home and get my stuff and my husband…she said no…

Upon arriving at the hospital, after a quick phone call to my friend, Elizabeth, I walked into my L&D room…I was very grumpy. My nurse came in, and I let her know how pissed I was to be induced. After all the paperwork and initial things were taken care of they started my pitocin drip around 11:00. Pitocin contractions are no joke…they hurt 100 gagillion times more than normal contractions…not even joking, here! My nurse kept checking on me adjusting my levels. One time she walked in…I was in tons of pain with contractions, but managed to smile and say hey. She looked at me and said, "oh you can still smile…I need to adjust your levels to be higher, I guess…" So I stopped smiling and just acted pissed and in pain when she walked in after that…It was a good thing I had so many people entertaining me via text messages!

After nearly four hours on pitocin, I had only progressed 1 cm. I was so grumpy! I decided there was no way I could power through these contractions like this and possibly only progress 1 cm at a time over several hours…so I asked the nurse for the epidural. This also broke my heart. At this point, my plan had been thrown out the window. I never expected to be induced when walking into my appointment that morning. The nurse pushed my fluids and got the anesthesiologist. The anesthesiologist walked into my room, did his thing, and was gone by 4:15. My nurse checked me again, and I was at 7 cm, five minutes later my water broke, and 10 minutes later I was pushing! I pushed through 7-8 contractions, and my sweet boy arrived into the world.

There are not many things more wonderful than hearing those first cries, watching my husband cut the cord, and holding that sweet baby! The plan I had didn't matter any more at this point…I was holding my sweet little guy, and that was all that mattered. That's how God arranges it…a woman tears her body apart in labor because in the end she knows she gets to hold the child she has been carrying for 9 months.

Some pictures from Josh's big day! (I downloaded them in order…but they didn't show up in order…sorry!)

Hi World!

Daddy and another little man!

Snuggles with mom

Big Brother

Grammy meets the little guy

Big Sister

sleeping baby

Rebecca and Deacon Mike and Linda came to visit! They brought wine…it was wonderful!

I had to send this picture to Maria because she only saw Josh swaddled and didn't believe he had arms and legs.

First Family of 5 photo!

The world is bright.

The world is cold.

The first meeting of the siblings!

Sunday, January 19, 2014

Tiny Dancer

No lie...since the day Maria was born I may have been counting down until she was 3 year old...why, you ask?

Ballet.

As the fall progressed, Maria showed an interest in dancing. She would dance, sway her arms, point her toes, and glide (sometimes not so gracefully) across the family room floor. She was ready. January could not come soon enough!

And yesterday, Maria attended her first ballet class. Leading up to the class was just as exciting. Last week, I took Maria to register at Buford School of Ballet. I fell in love with the studio and the director. Maria cried as we walked away after registering as she had not gotten the chance to dance. A few days later we headed to the store to buy her shoes, leotard, and tights. I had so much fun on this little outing with her! She was beaming the entire time we tried on shoes and leotards! Again, as we left she cried at the disappointment that ballet class was not that day.

Such a pretty girl in her leotard!!

THE BUN!!!

Ready to go and dance!!

Strike a pose!

I honestly had WAY too much fun getting her ready! I even put hairspray in her hair...true story! She was excited. I was excited. And off we headed to the studio!!

Here are some of the photos I took through the glass door of her studio room!

She had a wonderful experience and cannot wait to go again next week. It was such a great transition for her, as her dance teacher is also her preschool teacher at Prince of Peace. The familiar face helped tremendously as we started this new activity!!

Saturday, January 18, 2014

Bump Watch: 36 weeks

This was taken last week sometime.

How far along? 36 weeks...4 weeks left...3 if Josh is like Greg and Maria...18 days if my Mom's predication of February 5 is correct!
How big is baby? 19 to 22 inches long, 6.5 lbs (about the size of a watermelon)
Total weight gain? 28 pounds (pretty much on target with what I gained with Greg and Maria)
Maternity clothes? I have bought one thing maternity this pregnancy (please note-I did not have anything maternity prior to this pregnancy!) I only bought a pair of jeans because the kids' preschool called and needed an emergency sub and I was in my pajamas. The bella band has been my best friend...and yoga pants.
Stretch Marks? I have never gotten these with any of my pregnancies. Praise the Lord!
Belly button? My friend Elizabeth put this perfectly...it looks like the butt-end of a hotdog. Yes...gross, yet perfectly described!
Exercise: I was really great about this for the first 21 weeks...going to the gym to run or take a class. Around 20 weeks, I started some great BeachBody workouts (ChaLEAN Extreame). The last 10 weeks have been hard...I do light walking and stretching and some thigh toning workouts...I'm not really sure what happened to my motivation to work out. Time was a big factor and the fact that 5 pm hits and I'm pretty much miserable for the day. First it was nausea and now it's terrible Braxton Hicks and Josh moves completely to the front of my tummy and I'm just in a lot of pain. Working on making more time to get a good work out in...Greg has been super supportive in seeing I get some "me" time each day.
Sleep: In a word...sucks! Falling asleep is normally not a problem...and then I wake up to pee around 2:30/3:00 and one of two things happens....insomnia ensues and I am awake until 5:30/6 (which give me maybe 30 minutes to sleep) or I toss and turn miserably for the remainder of the night.
Movement: ALL THE TIME! HA! He is so active and since room is getting tight in there, I constantly feel slow jabs and rolls across my belly! But I love it!
Food cravings/aversions: no cravings. I pretty much have been able to do most foods this whole pregnancy. No big issues in this department. I usually want something salty or sweet at the end of the day! I have not been a huge fan of meat this go around...which has worked out since my husband is vegan. Also, I hate, HATE, going to the grocery store. Greg has been awesome and has pretty much taken my list and gone every week for us.
What I miss? comfy sleep. I don't need to sleep in or not wake up in the middle of the night...I just want to be comfortable, again!
What I'm looking forward to? Getting the baby out....I have definitely reached the "I'm done stage" haha!
Milestones? I cannot see my feet anymore...and my belly finally sticks out further than my boobs.
Say What? Oh people...all of the comments I get are pretty much the same. "You're so tiny for 4 weeks left." (Yes, but I still feel like a house.) "Wow...you must have tiny babies...lucky you." (False: Greg was 7lbs 1 oz and Maria was 8 lbs 3 oz)
Sweet moments: I love my evening prayer routine with Greg and Maria. We say our prayer, offer up intentions, sing the Hail Mary...and then they take turns loving all over Josh...trying to get him to move and just lots of belly hugs and kisses!
Make room for baby: YES....about that...we are in the process of gearing up to sell our house...so I feel unprepared! I feel like, "oh, I should buy some things for this little man." He has a crib, I'm his food source, we have a few boxes of diapers...so necessity wise we are set....but I really do need to get on purchasing some things!
Compared to Greg and Maria? I feel like I have been a lot more emotional this pregnancy! I am exhausted by the end of the day and usually feel like crap. My Braxton Hicks are extremely painful and I didn't have these at all with the other two. Really, though, I cannot complain...all three pregnancies have been relatively easy and uncomplicated!

Monday, January 6, 2014

Maria's THREE!

Waking up this morning, I realized I had many things today to be excited about. Today is Epiphany...the wisemen came to seek our Lord and today we celebrate the end of the Christmas season! Most of you know, I just love all of the liturgical feast days of the Church, and get super excited to celebrate these with my little ones as they roll around! Today is also the BCS National Championship Game for college football. Last season, my Auburn Tigers had a pretty ugly, unimpressive season, but today the Auburn Family celebrates together as our beloved team has risen to the top! WAR EAGLE! But most importantly, today, I celebrate the second time that God made me a Mommy! Maria turns three! It is so hard to believe that she is this old already. It seems like just moments ago we were adjusting to life as a family of 4!

Birth Day!!

1st Birthday!

Maria has brought much joy to our hearts and lives. Her sassy personality is dramatic, to say the least. She has an answer for everything and attitude that I am sure she got from none other than myself. She is as independent as they come. She wants to do everything by herself, and beams with pride when she accomplishes the tasks we thought she would need help with. She's a sweet sister (most of the time) and holds her own with her very active brother! She loves school, and surprises me every day with how smart she is! She has a big heart. She loves to snuggle...but on her own time! She is my introvert...people in large amounts drain her. She has a bubble, and you better not attempt to enter her space uninvited. She does not like people in her face or grabbing her from Mommy and Daddy. It doesn't take her long to warm up in social situations, but when the party is over she is ready to nap or ready for bed!

2nd Birthday!

Maria, we are so very proud of you! We love how sassy you are! You bring so much fun into our lives with your personality, lists of questions, and love for those around you. You take such care to make sure we know we are loved by you with your endless snuggles, kisses, and hugs! You are one special girl and we are so blessed that God has chosen us to raise you! You make life fun...even if you have to do everything on your own without our help! You have grown up so much faster than we had imagined, but you are one, fun toddler to be around!

Maria's Birthday Interview:
1. Who is your favorite person in the whole world?
Mommy
2. What is your favorite color?
Orange
3. What is your favorite TV show?
Jake and the Neverland Pirates

3rd Birthday!

4. What is your favorite sport?
Football
5. What song do you like the most?
We Wish You a Merry Christmas
6. What do you want to be when you grow up?
Ariel
7. Who is your best friend?
Mommy
8. What is your favorite book?
Bear Books
9. What are you really go at?
going to school
10. What would you buy if you had $1000 dollars?
food
11. What is your favorite food?
Macaroni and Cheese
12. What is your favorite part of school?
playing
13. What is your favorite toy?
bears
14. What is your favorite animal?

Ariel Cake!

bears
15. What is your favorite movie?
The Little Drummer Boy

For Maria's birthday party we had an indoor pool party! It was so wonderful to celebrate our sweet princess turning three with some family and friends! Maria had a blast! Her party theme was Ariel!

Swimming with Daddy!

Party Room

Brother and Sister!

Cold Maria and Mommy

Maria got her own ATV!

Tired Boo and Papa

Friday, December 20, 2013

Let's do fall!

It's true...2013 was not my blogging year! I really want to get back into this, and have made it one of my resolutions for 2014. So much is happening in the lives of my babies and I have been a huge slacker in documenting online for all of my family to see! So sorry. So here's a brief recap on FALL!

Maria had her very first day of preschool! She has done great with school. She has not once cried leaving the car...big brother walks her to her classroom everyday!