She's Here!

Gracie Lyn Cranmer

Born 10/18/10 at 10:35 PM

9 lbs and 22 in.

We are so glad she is finally here and that labor and delivery went so smoothly. We couldn't love her more!

I started having contractions at about 3:30 on the 18th, and checked into the hospital by 5. At 6:15, they gave me my epidural and a dose of penicilin because I tested positive for the strep b virus. By 7, they gave me petosin, to speed things up, and broke my water. At this point, I was only at a 4, so we thought we were in for a long night. Two women came in ready to deliver, so the doctor and staff were very busy and only checked to see if I was feeling ok, not for dialation, until 9:00. The nurse about fell over when she found I was at a 10! The problem was, the penicilin needed to be in my system for 4 hours before delivery. So, I had to resist the very strong urge to push until at least 10:15! A few times, I thought the baby was just going to fall out! But, we made it. At 10:30, my doctor, two nurses, and the nursery staff set up, I pushed 3 or 4 times, and out came baby! She was practically crowning by the time we were ready. It was such a contrast to my two hours of pushing with Aiden, that Bryce and I looked at eachother like "thats it?"

She came out perfect and healthy, and though she was a bit yellow, we didnt have to use the Bili-bed for jaundice. Yay! Since then, she has been an angel baby. From day 4, she has slept for two- 4 hour shifts at night and 3 hour shifts during the day. I dont know how we got so lucky.

Aiden has loved having her around, though the first week was rough because everything was about "the baby." But, we made it through and are back to our regular routine. He always asks to hold her, throws away her dirty diapers, and whenever she cries, he says "you're ok, sweetie." Its very cute.

Having two kiddos is no easy task, but its totally worth it.