Introducing Ruby Meghan White

Well our little lady finally made her grand entrance!  She sure made us wait until she was good and ready - that's for sure.  We are so excited she is here though - she couldn't be more perfect.
On January 11th we were schedule to head into the hospital for me to be induced.  We headed in after getting ready and Ross pranced off to his best little buddy, Wesley's to play for the morning and our friends, the Vosses, watched him until my mom came the next day.  

Ready to go!

My coach and me. :)

Trying to get going

The hospital was wonderful - another nice experience for us.  We got started around 9 with a small dose of pitocin and Steve and I hung out rewatching some psych episodes and How to Train Your Dragon waiting for when the contractions got more intense.  Like I said - Ruby wasn't interested in coming on our terms - just hers.  Contractions were mild and I was pretty much a happy camper all morning long.  By about 3 the doctor came in and broke my water - that got Ruby going for sure, because within about 15 minutes I was already at my wits end and calling for my best friend, the anesthetist, Marilyn.  She came right in and put me at ease - it was another fabulous epidural - I fully endorse those, and have no idea how women did it without them...and think other women who choose to do it without are nuts!  Steve of course wanted to observe the doctors and nurses doing EVERYTHING (just like when he was entranced watching my c-section with Ross - such a medical nerd - who I love).
Things started moving along, but a bit slowly.  I was reminded again and again that this could very easily end up in another c-section seeing as I was high risk for a VBAC and I wasn't progressing quite fast enough.  Ruby did really well throughout the whole labor however - just a few drops in heart rate here and there, but she's a fighter. :)  By around 8 I was dilated to a 6+ and my new nurse, Alison (British AND a midwife who I ADORED) and Dr. Rotberg were hmmming about what they thought the labor would turn in to.  They let me go until 11 and by then my nurse was pretty much prepping me mentally for a c-section.  My doctor was a little more positive and let me go a bit longer to see if I could get any better as I was at about a 7 or 8 by then.  Steve and I talked and felt good about letting it go longer if it was safe to do.  
Just after midnight, I still wasn't completely ready to go, but they thought I could try pushing to see what would happen.  In my mind I thought they were just going to let me have a little bit of experience pushing for the sake of going through it before they called a c-section since they said if Ruby was distressed in the slightest they were going to call for a c-section.  I pushed for about 15 minutes before they started getting more serious with me pushing.  Steve was an amazing support.  I found cheering me on (yes totally self-centered) was what was the best motivation for me to stay consistent with the pushing.  He was fabulous doing whatever I needed him to do.    

Ruby taking her sweet time

The info

A happy camper with my epidural and ice chips

I will say pushing vs. a c-section was a whole different experience.  My epidural wore off just enough for me to feel a bit of what was going on - though I had no pain.  Somehow I thought there would be some serious pain with pushing but it was pain free (obviously until after everything when the epidural wore off).  
When Ross was born - I suppose he felt he needed to wait to come until the next day since he was born at 1:30AM after I went into labor.  I think Ruby wanted to follow suit because she made her grand entrance at 2:08AM.  She came out sideways - which explained the extremely long process of 17 hours of labor, but she was perfect.  She had a slight fever, as did I from all the laboring, but that soon went away. 

Our 8lb darling

Getting situated to her new environment

We did it!

So happy!  And tired. :)

One happy daddy.

Recouping - yes - the hair has been disregarded - you would disregard too if you had labored for 17 hours. :)

Alison - my nurse - LOVED her.

Getting warm

Ruby weighed 8 lbs. even - we were all a bit shocked.  I was sure she would be in the 7 range, but again - all on her terms!  She was 20 inches long - just like Ross.  She has dark, dark hair - like her daddy's - with the same widow's peak hairline - like her daddy's.  Her look is her own - she has really long fingers and toes (we have no idea where those came from) and her nose is also similar to Steve's.  I hope she gets his dark eyes as well.  She's a gem - a Ruby actually. :)  When she scrunches up her face, she looks like a little raisin - thus Steve giving her her first nickname of Raisin. :) 
They layed her on my tummy (another different experience that having a c-section - getting to hold her right off the bat) and wiped her down while Steve and I completely adored her.  I looked at his face while they were stitching me up and sorting everything, and he had tears in his eyes - I'm so glad he's the father of our children - he totally understands the beauty and purpose of fatherhood.  LOVE that he's my husband.  Ruby just layed there and looked at us - sizing us up to be her parents I'm sure - but it was such a sweet moment in that room for me.  The hospital is small and fairly quiet so it was nice and serene.  I got to keep Ruby with me all the way until it was time for her to get bathed and me to get some sleep.  It was beautiful!
The rest of my experience was great.  I was worried I would have high blood pressure since I did with Ross, but I stayed consistent and progressed well.  We stayed for 2 1/2 days and I felt like I bounced back (so far) MUCH MUCH better than the first time I went through the whole labor/birth process.  I think maybe since I knew what I was in for and knew the routine a bit more with nursing and knowing what to look for with little newborns.  
Ross and my mom came the next day to visit and Ross instantly wanted to hold Ruby saying "Hold you!" "Ruby!"  He has thought he was interesting to look at in between playing with toys, but I noticed his real interest in her yesterday when I had laid her down and went upstairs for a minute.  She started to cry and my mom had picked her up.  Ross ran and came up half the stairs calling "Mommy help! Mommy help!"  When I started back down he looked at me and said "Ruby - mommy help!"  He was very concerned she was crying and I wasn't there to help her.  He had tried to put the binky in her mouth - though she didn't want it - and came to me for help.  He was relieved when I got back.  SUCH a sweet boy.  He loves her and likes to say her name and point out all her features.  When she cries he looks at me and says "Sad" waiting for me to fix it.  

Ross is trying to figure out what this baby is crying for. :)  Already concerned...or maybe just wondering what this baby is doing with us.

Observing the new sister. ;)

He approves. :)  Yes - I'm still tired here.

Happy Grandma!

Some nice volunteers crochet baby blankets and hats for us to take home with us!  SO beautiful.

Getting ready to go home.

A happy mama - and a bit more put together. 

Daddy holding his little Raisin.

Some adorable booties my friend Kim made for Ruby.  SO cute!

I forget how tiny newborns look in their car seats! 

Precious!

My mom has been a rockstar helping here at home - it has been a DREAM.  She make delicious meals, cleans my house, and gives Ross all the attention he could hope for.  She can't leave!  Ross LOVES playing with his grandma and prefers playing "Ashes Ashes" and when they fall down he says "Feet up!" and puts his feet in the air and waits for my mom to do it too.  
Steve has started his internship and loves it.  It's nice having him close to home too.  He has been a GREAT support (at night when it's hard too) and is completely adorable with his little daughter.  I feel like I'm starting to heal better and hopefully can get moving more without feeling like an old grandma when I walk.  

Having a happy dream. :)

Her good side. :)

Daddy and Ross having some boy time

Ross finding a new place to sit.  He LOVES his crocks that he can slip on his feet on his own. :)

Ruby is a VERY sleepy little baby (so nice right now).  She wasn't too great our first night home, but the second night went MUCH better.  Her little digestive system is getting going and I'm sure it's uncomfortable getting used to what her body is doing.  She likes to snuggle and sometimes has a hard time deciding if she likes her binky or not.  She is definitely a sleep nurser which is tricky to keep her going, but hopefully that will get sorted soon as she gets more alert.  She is definitely a girl and likes one position one moment and then can't stand it the next - until she's asleep.  We love having her - our little Ruby. :)

Ruby's first bath was today...she liked the warm wash cloth but not when it was taken away.  Her umbilical cord fell off today already too!  Ross had a pic in this towel too.

She's over getting her picture taken - and wants some clothes.

A bit warmer now and happy. :)

SO cute!

Our little Ruby. :)