Introducing Brady Joseph Udell!

I really wanted to document Brady's birth story, not just for family and friends to read, but also so I don't forget the details of Brady's entrance into this world.

Before this story gets started, you should all know that the night I went into labor, there was a full moon. I had multiple people tell me to that they thought Brady would make his debut...even though he was 3 weeks early. So who know if that contributed to me going into labor, but I'm pretty sure it did.

Ok, so here it goes...
On Thursday, August 18th, Eric and I finished up the nursery (nesting!) and then went for our usual nightly walk around the neighborhood. About halfway through our walk, I started to have INTENSE lower back pain. I honestly thought nothing of it and just chalked it up to yet another uncomfortable symptom of pregnancy. We got back from our walk around 8 pm, ate some dinner, and then started to watch the Olympics. Around 11 pm, I started having really mild, but regular contractions about every 5 minutes apart. I really didn't even think they were that strong, just uncomfortable. But Eric told me to go ahead and start timing them anyways. Around midnight, they started to come every 3-4 minutes apart. I think Eric was ready to take me to the hospital at that point! But we just kept watching the Olympics and timing contractions. At 12:45, I started shivering, which supposedly is a major sign of labor? We had to google it to find that out. And that's when Eric said, "I'm packing the car and we are going to the hospital now." And he was adamant. So Eric sped to the hospital and we made it there around 1:30 am. Of course the hospital took their sweet time putting me in a triage room, as I shivered to death in the hallway of labor and delivery. Once we got in the triage room, the nurse hooked me up to monitors, checked my cervix (only 1 cm dilated and 80% effaced), and told me they were going to just monitor me for a little while. The contractions still weren't super strong at this point, just very regular. 30 minutes later (around 2:30 am), the doctor came in and said they were going to send me home. Not exactly what I wanted to hear. I seriously thought my body was going into shock with all the shivering that was happening. But whatever...I decided to just get dressed anyways. Well as I was sitting up to get dressed, my water broke. And of course the nurse didn't believe me, but Eric demanded that she get the doctor. Doctor came in, checked under the covers, and confirmed that my water had definitely just broken. Thanks Sherlock.
Brady was going to be born whether we were ready or not.

Things moved very quickly from that point. I was admitted, taken to a room, and hooked up to an IV. At this point, I had started having painful contractions about every 2 min apart. Around 4 am, the nurse came to check me and told us I was 2 cm dilated and 90% effaced, and to expect things to happen very fast from this point on. Because of my heart defect, I had to push a certain amount of fluid before they could give me the epidural, and I also had to have IV antibiotics 30 minutes before delivery (which is super hard to time perfectly...). So they kicked the IV in overdrive and I had the epidural at 5 am. Once the epidural was done, my BP dropped drastically and wouldn't come back up for awhile. I had to have 3 doses of meds to get it back up. Once that was under control, the nausea happened. They had to give me zofran to keep things down.

At 6 am, I was 3 cm dilated and 90% effaced. At 8 am, I was 8 cm dilated and 100% effaced. And then at 8:45 am, we were ready to rock and roll. They started 2 different IV antibiotics at 2 different times so they could try to time it perfectly with delivery. At 11:30 am, the nurse gave me the go ahead to start pushing. The actual delivery is a little blurry, so I had Eric document a few things as it progressed. The pushing itself really wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. It wasn't super painful (thanks mr. anesthesiologist), but it was uncomfortable and it was tiring. I remember my O2 saturation got super low and they had to keep making me take a break from pushing until it came back up. And most of the time it wouldn't come back up unless I had on an oxygen mask, which ended up staying on the last half of delivery. About 20 minutes before Brady was actually born, the nurse told me that my doctor was finishing up a delivery in another room and that I needed to just do slow, gentle pushes until she arrived. (Umm excuse me, what?) That didn't last long. By the time the doctor got to my room, Brady was pretty much here.

Brady was born at 1:48 pm on Friday, August 19th. And it was the most surreal and overwhelming feeling in the whole world. His Apgar was an 8/9. He weighed 6 lbs, 13.5 oz. He measured 19.5 inches long and his head circumference was 12.5 inches. During our hospital stay, he passed his hearing screening, congenital heart defect screening, and jaundice screening.

Last picture with just the 2 of us!

First picture as a family of 3!

We look absolutely exhausted!

I stayed for the required 48 hours and we got to go home on Sunday. I seriously can't believe they let us just walk out with him! I feel like I should have passed a test or something first!

The first week at home has been rough to say the least. We literally have NO IDEA what we are doing, but we are trying to figure it out one day at a time. We are sleep-deprived, emotional (me, not Eric), and hot messes, but we are so in love with our Brady boy and he makes everything so worth it.

He has already had his first newborn checkup at the pediatrician. He weighed 5 lbs 14 oz (so tiny!), but overall, the doctor said he looks great and we go back next week.

I honestly could not have done this whole thing without Eric at my side. He was my cheerleader and supporter in that delivery room, and I am so grateful for him. He has been the best dad to Brady and I'm so glad we are figuring this out together.

Now that Brady is here, I am hoping to start posting his monthly updates for everyone to read about. His one month update will be coming before we know it!

{Disclaimer: Brady has arrived! This post was written one day before Brady decided to join the world...I just forgot to publish it.}

This week, Brady is the size of a honeydew melon. And I definitely feel like I have a melon in there. He is almost 7 lbs and around 19 inches long. His lungs are almost fully mature, he is gaining around half a pound a week, and he is practicing breathing, sucking his thumb, blinking, and pivoting side-to-side (which is very uncomfortable for me).

I have been having LOTS of uncomfortable contractions...nothing regular though. They come and go right now, so I haven't really had to start timing them too much yet.

I had a checkup this week and everything still looks great. Brady's heart rate was 136 bpm, my BP was still low (pretty typical), and I have gained 23 pounds so far (same as last week). I have started to have a tiny bit of swelling, but I honestly don't know if it's due to pregnancy or just the Texas heat. Being pregnant in the summer is no fun.

Eric and I are still thinking that we won't make the September 7th due date. There are just way to many pre-labor signs happening right now. I say that, but watch him not come until September 14th! I go on maternity leave next Wednesday, so I'm hoping he comes shortly after that!

The nursery is pretty much done, except for putting things in the dresser drawers. I think I mentioned it a few blog posts ago, but the theme for Brady's nursery is deer and arrows. We used a couple of the antlers from bucks Eric has shot in the past, Eric's wooden carved bear from Breckenridge from when he was a kid, decorations some of our family made for our baby showers, and of course, Hobby Lobby did not disappoint with all the extra decor! Eric's brother made the dresser and nightstand, and I seriously couldn't be more pleased or excited with how they turned out. They are beautiful and look perfect in the room!! It is exactly what I pictured.

So here you go...nursery pictures!

{Up next...Brady's birth story!}

Brady is the size of a honeydew

This week, Brady weighs 6 1/2 pounds and is around 18-19 inches long. His immune system is developed enough to protect him from infections outside the womb, his circulatory system is perfected, and his ears are extra in tune to everything these days.

I'm slowing down a little these days...definitely getting tired a lot easier than usual. Even the shortest day at work feels extremely long. I've started having round ligament pain every now and then and the sciatica pain continues off and on, but for the most part, I've been able to stay active. Although, I'm at the point where if I drop something on the ground, I leave it there and walk away! It's so hard to bend over now! I've been having Braxton-Hicks off and on for the last few weeks, but they have started to get more frequent, especially when Eric and I go for walks. I have gained 23 pounds to date and starting to level off a little bit, which is fine by me!

The dogs have started to act a little different lately...wanting to be close to me at all times and following me around the house. Apparently, that is a sign that labor is approaching soon, according to Google. (And Google's always right...)

We had an ultrasound and a checkup this week...I feel like this is doctor's appointment number 80. Between cardiologists appointments, high risk OB appointments, and general OB appointments, I just can't keep up. I literally write everything down after appointments or else I will get it confused with a different one. So insane.

Anyways, Brady looks great! He measured 6 1/2 pounds on the ultrasound, he has a full head of hair (no surprise there), and his heart rate was 136 bpm. I'm a little terrified, because if what they say is true about the baby gaining 1/2 pound a week, then he will end up being an 8 1/2 pound baby. Yikes. But at my OB checkup, I was already dilated and almost fully effaced (probably TMI)....meaning it could literally be any day now or it could be a couple weeks from now. We are thinking we won't make it to the September 7th due date, which I am totally okay with. (Except for the whole "raising a tiny human being and not knowing what you are doing" part of it...) Brady will be full term next week, so my doctor said she is ready when he is!

The nursery is slowly coming together. We are finishing it up this weekend...putting stuff on the walls, setting up the dresser, and organizing the closet. My mom is a rockstar and made our crib skirt, blankets, curtains, and pillowcases. Here is a picture one of the blankets she made! It turned out so great!

The pack'n'play is in our room ready for Brady, our hospital bags are packed, and I made 30 freezer meals last weekend that are ready to put in the crockpot and eat whenever he gets here. We are pretty much ready physically. Not sure about mentally though! We are just so excited to meet him!

Only 5 weeks to go! I can't believe our baby's due date is almost here. As miserable as I have been, this pregnancy has honestly gone by so fast. Everyone said it would drag on, but it really hasn't. Maybe because we had so much going on throughout the pregnancy? Whatever the reason, I'm glad it hasn't felt crazy long.

This picture was taken right before we went for a long walk...excuse the workout clothes that are getting a little tight.

This week our baby boy weighs in around 5 and a quarter pounds and is around 18 inches long. He continues to gain fat and his lungs continue to mature. He jabs me and kicks me in the sides of my stomach constantly and he is continuously rolling around and wiggling. He never stops moving, especially in the evenings, which has really messed with my sleep. I guess he is preparing me for what's to come!

I have gained about 22 pounds to date...nothing crazy, but when I workout, it definitely feels like I packed on the pounds. It's getting a little harder to breathe during my workouts, so I've had to take it slow. Lots of walking happening around here now! Eric and I took our last trip this past weekend before the baby is born. We went to Dallas (Eric had some hotel points to use up) and we had a relaxing weekend just being together and enjoying each other's company before it's not just the two of us anymore.

I went back to the doctor this week for a checkup and everything is looking good. The baby's heart rate is holding steady at 140 bpm. I now start going to the doctor every week until the due date. Pretty crazy!

And you will be happy to know we have officially decided on a name!

IS FOR...

BRADY JOSEPH UDELL! Eric's middle name is Joseph, so we are carrying that on...and he will have my first and last initial. Obviously, the BU was not a coincidence. {Sic 'em Bears...and sic 'em Brady!} We cannot wait to meet you baby boy!