Oh goodness....where to begin. Many of you know that Ansley was to be a scheduled c-section on the morning of Thursday March 3, but she had different plans. On Tuesday March 1, I thought my water had broken in the late afternoon. I had plans that evening with a friend (a last hoo-rah before our babies were born--she was expecting also), so my friend and I decided that it wouldn't be a bad idea to call labor and delivery to see if they thought I needed to come in and be checked. Of course they did. So, I left, on my own, and headed to the hospital. I knew that there was not going to be any news, so I asked Matt to stay at home and watch Avery and that I would be home late since I was swinging by the hospital on the way to meet my friend for coffee and dessert. When I got there, they immediately put me in a room and checked to see if my water had broken. First test (the rapid test) was negative---see, I was right: no news. The second test (the longer one), however, indicated that my water did in fact break. The doctor said that it was probably just a small tear, but it had broken nonetheless. Therefore, I would have to stay overnight, and they would reschedule my c-section for the following morning (a day early). Now, if you know me at all, you know that I had everything planned to a T. This whole business of the baby coming a day early threw all of the plans out of whack. I had many phone calls to make. Matt needed to find somewhere/someone to watch Avery that night and the next day. I called my coffee and dessert friend to cancel our plans...we ended up sharing Dr Pepper in the hospital room that night. Around 8pm, my water really broke...I mean like in the movies. Thus my actual labor started. I was not prepared to go into labor; I was a scheduled c-section!! I did not handle the labor and contractions very well, and I'd like to say that it was because I was not mentally or emotionally prepared for it. The night was agonizing, and I will spare you any details, but the next morning made it all worthwhile. A beautiful baby girl was born. Ansley Nolan Knierim entered the world at 7:51am weighing in at 6 pounds 1 ounce and 19 1/2 inches long. She was so alert immediately after birth. She had very dark blue eyes (although not as dark as Avery's), a head full of dark hair, and sweet little facial features. 10 fingers, 10 toes. Her APGAR scores were 9 and 9. She was perfect! Below are some pictures of little Ansley right after her birth, but none of the gross ones :)
Getting hooked up to the warmer in the NICU:
Little sun bather...(by the way, I think that this picture makes her look like a big baby, but she is anything but big!)
So alert; showing off to the NICU staff...
Looking around and taking in everything about this big, new world....
Sweet baby feet...
**All of these pictures were taken during her short stay in the NICU. At my hospital, it is protocol for c-section babies to go to the NICU for 2 hours or until they have warmed up.
