Labor and Delivery

 To the left is me at 41 weeks pregnant....

And below is me on induction night!  (Who has two thumbs and can't wait to have her baby?  This girl!)

Seriously, I was sooo ready not to be pregnant anymore.  The ligaments in my (ahem) groin area got stretched in some weird way around 37 weeks and I was soooo sore.  Forget Body Pump and Zumba.  Even walking hurt.  (My friends all chuckled and said that's why they hated me during my other pregnancies where I would go to Zumba class the day of my induction...at 41 weeks.)  Ugh.  So, I was definitely ready to bring Britta into this world!

So...I went into the hospital Thursday evening and got settled.  My nurse, Devyn, turned out to be LDS and was really great.  My mom and Harvey were at the house, wrestling the other kiddos into bed and Cubby stayed with me for a bit before heading home.

It was a long(ish) night.  I always take an Ambien, but, for whatever reason, it didn't seem to do much and I don't think I slept for more than 3 hrs.  Around 5 a.m. they started me on Pitocin and that started some contractions.  Britta kept moving around and they were having a tough time keeping a monitor on her so around 6:30 they told me they needed to put a internal heart monitor on her and to do that they needed to break my water.  So, I called Cubby bright and early and he called my mom to come back to the house so he could hurry down to the hospital since my labors usually progress pretty quickly once my water gets broken.

This time, however, my labor went more gradually.  Britta refused to drop.  Like, at all.  Like, I was fully dilated before she finally dropped.  Knowing how hard and fast the contractions come once the pitocin is going and my water gets broken, I had gotten my epidural shortly after 6:30 and I was soooo numb.  My nurses were wonderful and pretty much did all of the work trying to get Britta to drop down.  They had me lay on my right side, then my left.  They sat me up super straight.  They had me use a peanut-shaped exercise ball that often helps babies to drop.  None of that worked.  We then repeated the process (with these sweet nurses hefting me and arranging pillows since I couldn't feel anything from the waist down).  I was also SUPER tired.  As in, I was almost falling asleep a midst all of this.  They finally gave me some oxygen which helped to wake me up some.

Finally, around 10:15, the resident doctor came in to check and low and behold, Britta had dropped!  (And, she had dropped so much that I was told not to push at all before my doctor arrived!)  Well, Dr. Schropp got caught up in traffic and so it took him a little bit longer to arrive.  When he got there he pretty much said hello and told me to push with the next contraction.  I pushed once and out she came!  Yup, easy-peasy for this girl :-).  Oh, and as an added bonus, because she was so high up right up until she was born, Britta's head was perfectly shaped!  (I've never had a cone-headed baby, but hers was extra perfect just the same :-).)

Well, that's my labor and delivery story for little Miss Britta-bear.  I've never been so tired after a birth, but, I healed very quickly and the cramping wasn't as bad this time around (which is weird bc usually it gets worse with each baby).  I was just so happy that she was here and safe and healthy.  I definitely count my blessings each day and am thankful that she is one of them.

Meeting the Siblings

To say that the kids were excited to meet Britta would be an understatement.  They were soooo anxious to get down to the hospital once they heard she had been born.  (But, since she was born later in the morning, they had to wait until after naps to come.  Which, was good bc I was EXTREMELY tired and needed to rest up before they all invaded :-).)  

The big moment did arrive at last and they were all so thrilled to meet and hold their newest sister!

Miss Kari-belle and Britta-bear

Juliana is behind Christian--they all just couldn't get close enough!

So excited!!

Looking up at Daddy--love this!!  Cubby actually didn't really get to hold her until that afternoon bc between the nurses checking her over and  Britta nursing, Cubby had to go home around noon to help Grandma with lunch and naptime.

They came back the next morning too and the love continued :-).

 Does Christian mind having ANOTHER sister?  Not one bit!  (At least not until they're all teenagers, maybe...)  He is beyond sweet with Britta and I love watching him care for her!

Christian's an old pro at baby holding.
Baby in one arm, binkie in the other.  Feet up and watching some TV.
He's going to be an awesome dad one day!

Three weeks later and the novelty of Britta still hasn't worn off!  All of the children continue to ask if they can hold her, kiss her, and love her :-).

Welcome, Britta Kathleen!

She's here!  Britta Kathleen Lindseth was born on Friday, September 26, 2014 at 10:44 a.m.  She weighed in at 9 lbs, 7 oz and was 22 inches long.  She is absolutely beautiful and everyone couldn't be more in love with her!

Check out that sad face!

Sooo quiet and still :-).

Dr. Guy Schropp--he has delivered all five children!

Our newest addition to the family picture!

 I will post her labor and delivery story, along with the "meet the family" pictures in another post!

Impromptu Zoo Trip

Kari was our navigator

Last Thursday, the day before my "alleged" due date, was beautiful and, for the first time in two weeks I woke up feeling pretty darn good!  So, I decided to take my little girls to the zoo for one last hurrah!  Since I wasn't about to try and push two girls in a stroller, I did what I've never dared to dream of trying--going to the zoo without ANY stroller.  And, let me tell you, it was glorious.  The girls were so well-behaved!  We had a really great time:-).

First stop, the "dino dig"

We also hit up the bear canyon before lunch.

On our way back up, we enjoyed the gorillas.

Kari took this picture :-).

Final stop-the aquarium!

Peek-a-boo!

 Kari had also brought her money and was super excited to be able to stop in the gift shop that the aquarium just so conveniently spits you out into at the end.  She bought herself a blue stuffed animal sea horse (I hate stuffed animals bc we have a MILLION of them).  But, she had been so good and since it was her money (and it was small), I caved.  Both girls left happy bc Kari let Juliana hold her new "pet" all the way to the van.  So sweet.

And, after a full morning, I was blessed with both girls napping--ahhhh:-).

Apple Picking 2014

 Our apple picking at the Flynn's tradition continues!  We went early this season as I am (over) due at this point to have this baby and we wanted to make sure we got it in :-).  We invited some of our neighbors along to join us in the fun and it was a beautiful evening (in spite of the mosquitoes being bad this year).

 The kids all got right to work and the trees were just dripping with HUGE, delicious apples!  (The extra rain we've gotten this year brought the mosquitoes, yes, but it also produced some terrific apples!)

 Juliana loves apples--she really liked getting them right off of the tree!  (They're all grown organically so all you have to do is watch for bird poo or worms :-).)

Christian and Cubby thought this apple looked like a bum-crack.
Yes, they're very mature boys.

Brian and Kahlan

Sullivan and Christian

Family picture!

My friend, Andrea, and her boys, Sullivan and Conway.
(Husband and daughter were at soccer.)

My friend, Audi, and her sweet family.

Emily and Kahlan being silly.

 After picking, all of the kiddos wanted turns on the rope swing hung from this huge tree out front.  Such a terrific evening!!

Big Sister, Little Sister

One afternoon, Emily sat down with Juliana and started reading and playing quiet little games with her.  It was so sweet and melted my heart to see them bonding.  Emily has a special talent when it comes to playing with younger kiddos.  (My mom and sister also have this gift.)  She just knows how to play and relate to them on their level.  I continue to be grateful for my big girl!

Fall Soccer 2014

Taking a turn at goalie

 Fall soccer is now in full swing!  Christian is once again playing for Evolution soccer club and is playing U9s this year--yikes!  His coach moved a couple of the boys up a year as he believes it helps them play up and better.  Seems to be working as the kids have done very well despite being younger than a lot of the kids they're playing against.  We were just happy he continues to be on the same team as his good buddy, Sullivan, and, that he continues to be having FUN!

These are all pictures from his first game.  It had been a rainy day (we've had a LOT of those lately), but it cleared in time for the game and was a GORGEOUS evening! 

Doing a throw-in

Half-time pep talks

 Emily got a hold of my phone and took a couple of funny selfies :-).

Post-game picture with Christian's cheering section.
Grandma, Grandpa, Auntie Erin, and Uncle Kyle all came out to show their support!
(Emily decided to be camera-shy after all.)

Here's to the start of another great season!  Go Evo!