Bath time!

Daddy is officially in charge of evening bathtime. When I bathe Lauren, she seems to hate it. When Chad bathes her, she loves it! Since I spend so much time feeding her, this'll be a good way for Chad to bond with her. I think he'll be in charge of the bedtime routine (with the exception of feeding time) from now on :-)

Good night!

Love,

Mindy & Lauren

A rough day yesterday~

Well, I ended up getting sick right after Chad recovered. I woke up yesterday morning and ended up spending the day in bed with flu symptoms. (Yes, I DID get a flu shot a few months ago. A lot of good it did...) I called Chad at work and he came home to take care of Lauren for me. I also called the pediatrician because I was concerned about whether I should continue nursing her when I was so sick. But the doctor reassured me that I must keep nursing now more than ever so that Lauren gets the antibodies for whatever virus I have. Now we're watching her closely for illness. I am praying she stays healthy--she's just too young to get sick.



Today I feel much better. It really was just a 24 hour bug. Lauren slept well last night, so that helped me to get some sleep. Now she's taking her morning nap--it's peaceful here right now, but I miss her when she's asleep. Almost makes me want to go wake her up...almost.



~Mindy and Lauren

More pics...

Okay, so she isn't ALWAYS sleeping... Here is her hospital picture. She's got piano-playing fingers!



Today, I had planned to do a photo-shoot with Lauren to get some pictures for birth announcements. A friend of mine was going to take the pictures but she had to cancel, so I thought I'd try to take a few myself. This one breaks my heart :-(

I did get some really cute pictures though, but I don't think I'm going to put them on this blog until I decide what I'll use for birth announcements. Right now, Lauren is sound asleep in her crib. Now that my mom and sister have left, Lauren has to learn to take her naps in her crib rather than being held for all of them. So far...so good! Poor Chad woke up with the flu today. He's feeling pretty crummy and is totally bummed that he can't be near Lauren. He was really looking forward to spending the weekend cuddling with her. Please keep him in your thoughts and hope that he gets better quickly and that Lauren and I don't get sick! Thanks!

Love,

Mindy & Lauren

It's hard work being a baby :-)

Here's my little sleepyhead. I realize I'm biased, but I just think she's the cutest little girl. Here are more pictures--this time they are all pictures of Lauren's favorite hobby...sleeping!

Have a great weekend~

Love,

Mindy and Daddy's Sleeping Beauty

A week old already?!?!?!

Hi everybody! We've had a great weekend visiting with family and getting adjusted to having Lauren at home with us. She's doing so well--she sleeps a ton, including at night (I know, I know...enjoy it now because it will probably not stay that way). At night, I typically give her a 10p.m. feeding and then she gets up around 3 a.m. and 7 a.m. to feed. Then she sleeps until about 11a.m. when she wakes up to feed again. Then she sleeps again. Notice a pattern here? I'm actually getting a little more sleep than I had anticipated, so that helps.

Lauren just had her first appointment with the pediatrician this morning. At the hospital, her weight had dropped to 6lbs 13oz, which they were a little concerned about because her weight loss exceeded the 10% amount that they are comfortable with. But today she is up to 7lbs 8oz, so she's doing great! Here's a joke for you...how can you tell if a woman is a "first time parent" at the doctor's office? The answer...she has a camera and takes pictures of her child's first doctor's exam :) Yep, that's what I did! Here's my little peanut:

Lauren liked her baby papasan swing when we let her try it out. The only problem is that she's too lightweight for it and it starts swinging way too fast even on the lowest setting when she's in it. She kinda looked like she was about to catapult across the living room. Guess we'll have to wait until she's heavier before we can really use it.

This weekend, Lauren got to meet her Uncle Ryan and Aunt Jenny for the first time.

Here's Mommy's little Badger fan. The hat is a little big, but she needed to wear one to go out in the snow for her trip to the doctor's office today. And this is the only hat that matched her outfit. That's important :-)

Until next time...
Love,
Mindy & Lauren

A sleepy girl~

Here's Lauren meeting her Grandpa and Grandma Steighner for the first time.

Here's Lauren with her Grandma and Grandpa Lucas.

We're home! We were discharged from the hospital yesterday and came home around 2p.m. We were greeted at home by my mom and Karlee as well as one VERY excited golden retriever. He went nuts when he saw me but that doesn't compare to how he acted when Chad introduced him to Lauren. He got sooooooooo excited and was trying to lick every part of her. We put him outside to calm him down and only let her get close to her when he was calm. Last night while I was holding her on the couch, Westin curled up next to me and rested his head across her legs. Then he just stared at her and looked like he was trying to figure out how his new squeaky toy works...


While at the hospital Wednesday night, we had several more visitors stop by to meet Lauren. She got to meet a former student of mine, Terra Miller and Terra's mom Jodi. She also got to meet a few of my current kindergarteners, Vivian and Claudia, who dropped by with their moms! Andy and Rachel Herbst stopped by as did the Blaha's again. This time they brought a birthday cake for Lauren and Topper Sticks for Chad (his favorite...).

Daddy is totally in love with his new cuddle bug.

She looks so tiny in her carseat!

Last night was a lot easier than I anticipated. I tried putting Lauren down for the night at 10:00 but she was pretty fussy. I fed her for 45 minutes from 11:15 until midnight. Then she slept until 3:45, at which point I fed her for another 45 minutes. She slept until 8:45 just when I was about to wake her up to feed her again. That feeding ended at 9:30 and she's been sleeping since then! So I ended up with nearly 8 hours of sleep myself on her first night home. Not too shabby. Since Chad went in to work today, I let him sleep undisturbed. I think he enjoyed that :-)

We're so thankful to be home and to have this beautiful, healthy daughter to love and care for. She is truly a miracle and we feel so blessed to have her in our lives. I'll do my best to continue posting pictures of little Lauren for all of you :-)

Love,

Mindy and Lauren

Hi everybody!!

I'm a mom! How weird is that?!?! I know Chad has done a great job of updating our blog with the big news and pictures. I've always known that he's a great writer, but wow! When I read his birth announcement message, I cried. Way to go, Daddy :-)

Things are great here. We are still in the hospital and should be sent home tomorrow (Thursday). Lauren is doing very well. She's eating well and has really begun to get the hang of nursing. She had her hearing screening earlier today and passed with flying colors. Her weight is down a tiny bit to 7lbs 7oz, which is totally normal. She's had lots of diaper changes. In fact, Daddy's taken care of all of them (except one that I did). He has jumped right in to fatherhood and is an absolute natural. He loves to cuddle her, talk to her, stare at her...and he just keeps whispering "wow" every time he holds her.

We had a very busy day yesterday. Lauren had lots of visitors. She's a pretty popular girl :-)

My co-workers came after school yesterday. Lauren loved meeting Sara, Michelle and Erin.

Lauren also got to meet some of the girls from our dinner club. She's excited to be joining the dinner club, but hopes that soon there will be other kids close to her age in it :-)

Yesterday was wonderful but very tiring. I didn't nap at all and I had been up all night following my surgery. I was just so uncomfortable, so I was up pretty much all night. Now last night was a different story. I fed Lauren until midnight and then we let them take her to the nursery. The nurses told me they'd bring her right back when she woke up. Well, I slept soundly until they came in at 4:15 with my hungry daughter. She ate until 5 a.m., at which point she was pretty alert and kind of fussy. The nurse insisted that I get a little more sleep so I can build up my strength so they took her back to the nursery and Chad and I slept in until 7:15!!! I guess we better enjoy that while we can :-)

Here's a few more pictures of "Daddy's Little Princess" (that's what he's called her).

I just took a long, hot shower and am feeling excellent. I plan on doing a lot of walking around the birthing center today so that I can start feeling back to normal. I can't begin to tell you how excited we are to take our little girl home tomorrow. We feel so blessed! Thanks to everyone for the well wishes. We really appreciate it :-)

Love,

Mindy, Chad and Lauren

Pictures!!!!

Here is the world debut at 1:00am.


After a full night of sleep....

Let the party begin!

My Two Girls (from Chad)

January 14th, 2008 has now become the greatest day of my life. My beautiful wife gave birth to our precious new daughter, Lauren Elizabeth, at 10:34pm via cesarian section. Lauren is 7 lbs, 10 oz and 19.5 inches long, has lots of dark hair (like her dad) and long eye lashes.

After a total of 14 hours of labor and a baby who seemed to be lacking GPS or a map, the call was made to move to the O.R. With baby having managed the labor very well, we took our time and I got suited up. Within about 10 minutes of being in the room, the baby was out and I got to tell Mindy it was a girl. We were shocked seeing as how we were convinced it was a boy.

Mindy was then taken to recovery and the baby was taken to the nursery to be checked out. The baby was crying and screeming and seemed to recognize my voice, definitely Mindy's and even quieted down when we said the name Westin. I went to tell the grandparents that mom and baby were doing great, I showed them the footprints and measurements, but refused to tell them the name or gender. An hour and a half later, once Mindy was moved back into her room and the baby brought in, we paraded the grandparents and Karlee into the room, then showed them two baby blankets and asked them to take the blue one home because we needed the pink one. You can imagine what happened next. Lots of pictures, tears and oohs and ahhs. Then we sent them home.

It is now 2:54am, Mindy is sleeping and the baby is in the nursery. I just wanted to share the great news before trying to get some sleep. We're going to need it.

Thank you to everyone whose thoughts and prayers helped us navigate the hours.

AND, Thank the Lord for wonderful doctors and nurses whose vast knowledge and comforting words allowed me to wake up with one girl and fall asleep with two. Today I saw a miracle.

- Chad

Update from Dad

Well, here's a post before everyone heads to bed....except us.

Since the last update, we were able to progress enough that the Dr. broke Mindy's water at 3:45pm. That was after an hour of thinking we would either be going home or waiting here over night and trying again tomorrow. Once the water was broken, guaranteed baby in less than 24 hours (I remember that from class).

At this point, we just passed the 12 1/2 hour mark for pitocin, have had the epidural in for 1 1/2 hours and at last check (approx. 1 hour ago) only made it to 4.5 cm. Mindy is comfortable and can barely feel the contractions, but Dr. is a little concerned that things aren't moving faster. He will be back to check in about another hour and hopefully things have progressed.

Good night everyone.

An update from labor & delivery...

Well...I've been here for almost 8 hours and am getting a little frustrated. We checked in at 7 a.m. and they started me on Pitocin at 8 a.m. to try to get contractions started. My doctor has tried twice to break my water and hasn't been able to. That's an excruciatingly painful process. I'm officially "all about" the epidural and that isn't because of painful contractions!!!

Both of our sets of parents are here and Karlee is too. They're all just hanging out being patient but anxious to meet our little one.

Not sure if I've progressed with dialating, but the contractions are super mild still so I doubt it. I think we're in for a LONG night....

~Mindy

So, Monday it will be!

With no signs of imminent labor today, it appears that tomorrow will still be the BIG day! We tried to sleep in today but as soon as Westin woke me up early, I couldn't fall back asleep. I was just too nervous and excited, thinking about what tomorrow will bring.

We took Westin for another long walk through the neighborhood and even let him run throughout the soccer fields across from our house. He LOVES that. He ran around in giant circles and kept rolling all around in the snow. What a goofball.

We also went to Super Wal-Mart to stock up on groceries and to walk around some more. Still no contractions though, although the baby is moving around a ton right now.

Well, as I sign off for the last time before the baby is born, I'm full of different emotions. I'm super excited to finally meet my little guy (or girl, but I'm predicting boy) and I am very happy that tomorrow is finally the day. However, I'm also very nervous and scared to go through labor and delivery. Who wouldn't be? I'm also a little sad that I won't be pregnant anymore. I've loved being pregnant (except for the discomfort in the ninth month) and I made Chad promise me that I'll get to experience it again some time (although not anytime soon). I'm also nervous about how much our lives are about to change. Nothing will ever be the same for us. But we're ready and are eager to welcome this little person with open arms. Wish us luck! We'll post the big news with pictures as soon as we are able to...

Love,
Mindy and Baby S.

Another day without baby news :(

As promised, Chad and I slept in late today and then took Westin for about a two-mile walk. Maybe that isn't very long, but it wore me out! Still...no contractions and no water breaking. I'm convinced now that the baby won't be here until Monday's induction.

We spent the afternoon with most of our dinner club friends for a Packer game party. Despite Chad's urging, I decided NOT to spend the entire game walking up and down their staircase. That just didn't sound like fun!

We just got home and now Chad is watching Ocean's Thirteen. We plan to sleep in late again tomorrow for the last time (late for us is about 9:30). Then we have absolutely no plans. We'll probably walk Westin and finalize our packing for our hospital stay. I think our parents may all be driving to the area tomorrow afternoon, but we've requested to spend the day and evening alone just the two of us. Hey...it could be the last time for many, many years! So the folks will all be camped out at a hotel and will join us at the hospital some time on Monday.

Have a relaxing Sunday~
Love,
Mindy and Baby S.

Sorry it's so late...

but still no news. We went out to dinner tonight and just got back. I'm feeling fine despite the long, busy work week. I had to say good-bye to my students today and that was hard. There were lots of tears and when I told them that the baby will probably be born on Monday, they asked me if I'd come back on Tuesday and bring the baby with me. Poor kids--they're too young to understand and they get so attached. But we've hired a great person to take my place so they're in good hands. I'm off now until April 7th. That seems so weird!

The baby has been moving around like crazy tonight. I'm hoping that's a sign that he or she is trying to find the exit!

Tomorrow I plan to take Westin for a long walk (or two) through the neighborhood. Then we're considering going to a friend's Packer party, although they live at least an hour's drive from the hospital. We'll probably go and just take our hospital bags with us, just in case. Maybe that's silly, but we're worried because it would take us an additional hour (so two total) to go home and get our stuff and then get to the hospital if we needed to. So we'll be cautious and take our stuff with us.

The induction is still on schedule for Monday morning. Hopefully we won't need it and Baby Steighner will decide to come out tomorrow or Sunday!!!

Good night!
Love,
Mindy and Baby S.

No, I'm NOT in labor :-)

I realize this post is being put online later than I posted the last few days....sorry to disappoint, but I am NOT in labor. Just lazy.

I had another hectic day at work. Maybe that's the problem. I'll bet our baby is scared to come out because it thinks it's going to be surrounded by 27 five and six-year-olds. Heck, I'd refuse to come out too!! A few of my little girls suddenly got really concerned about me today and said "Mrs. Steighner! You're going to stretch out your clothes!" I got a good laugh while I tried to explain about maternity clothing to a bunch of kindergartners.

This afternoon, I worked late again to try to wrap things up in my classroom. It's weird to realize that I'll be gone for the next 12 weeks. I'm nervous about leaving them for that long.

Chad and I are just taking it easy tonight--no long walks this evening. I'm totally convinced right now that this baby won't be here until the induction on Monday. But I'll let you know if that changes.

Good night!
Love,
Mindy and the one who doesn't want to come out!

No news to report...

Contractions yesterday slowed down in the evening and eventually went away. I actually slept pretty well and felt energized today. In fact, I was energized enough to stay after school until 5:30 to work on unfinished projects in my classroom. (Hmmm....is that my "burst of energy" that supposedly comes right before labor??)

I just finished making dinner for Chad and I and now we're going to go for a looooonnnnnggggg walk...at Target :-) (Hey, it's warmer there!)

Good night!
~Love,
Mindy and Baby S.

Another long day...

I've had another busy day in the classroom chasing kindergartners, to no avail... The doctor's exam yesterday set off a night full of cramps and discomfort. I thought for sure last night that I was going into labor, but nothing became of it other than a night of very little sleep. Now this afternoon I've had quite a few contractions but nothing very intense. I haven't tried timing them though. Maybe this seems silly, but I'm not sure when to start timing each one because I can't tell when they start. I just realize that my stomach is really hard each time--I don't necessary feel them starting. Hmmmm.....not sure what to do about that.

Tonight I'm going to try drinking red raspberry herbal tea. I've been told by a few different people that it works to start labor. We'll see! Wish me luck!

Love,
Mindy and Baby S.

An Eviction Notice!

We just returned from another doctor appointment. This time, we learned that I am 2 cm dilated and 70% effaced. Also, the doctor said he touched the baby's head with his fingertip while he was examining me. Then he shared with us that he'll only let me go until next Monday before he will insist on inducing me. So...based on a 7a.m. induction appointment for next Monday, January 14, I felt that the following notice needed to be issued:

January 7, 2008

Baby Steighner:

Please note that this Thursday is January 10, which, as you have been orally reminded for several months now, is the "Due Date" referenced in the lease that you agreed to approximately nine months ago, and thus the date by which you are supposed to vacate your current premises. Following a routine inspection of the property this afternoon, I have been advised that you have not made very many preparations towards moving.

Please note that, if your departure continues at this pace, you will be in violation of the lease, which was entered into in good faith, with the expectation that you would honor its terms. Accordingly, I have no choice but to advise you that if you do not voluntarily remove yourself from the premises within the next 7 days, I will have no choice but to commence formal eviction proceedings, and I have already put the proper authorities on notice. As you have been repeatedly advised, your new accommodations are in fact ready and awaiting your arrival, so your cooperation in voluntarily moving out of the current premises, avoiding the time and inconvenience of more formal, compelled proceedings, would be much appreciated. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Sincerely,
The Landlord

A Lazy Sunday Afternoon~

Still no baby news...we slept in late today and took Westin for a long walk. Then we proceeded to hang out on our couch and watch the DIY Network all day. I've been feeling lots of cramps throughout the day but that's about it.

We have another doctor's appointment tomorrow afternoon so we'll post an update tomorrow night.

Have a good night!
Love,
Mindy and Baby S.

Walking, walking and more walking...

but nothing yet~ I had a rough night of sleep last night and woke up several times with pretty strong contractions but nothing became of them. This morning, I took Westin for a long walk in the neighborhood while Chad washed cars. Yeah...you read that correctly. Temps were in the 40's here today (heat wave!) so Chad decided to scrub down the cars in the driveway. I think the automatic car wash would've been faster and warmer, but that's just me...

Later in the afternoon, we went and walked around Mayfair Mall and then Lowe's. Despite a lot of discomfort and pressure while I was walking, I really don't feel like it has made much of a difference. No major contractions this evening anyways.

The coolest thing that has happened today is that I've suddenly been able to feel the baby's feet with my own hands on my stomach! I was feeling sudden and distinct movements at the top of my baby belly and each time I put my own hand there, I could definitely feel a little foot. It's such a cool feeling! I push on it and it either pushes back or moves away. Heehee...now I'm going to try to annoy the little one by playing with his (her?) feet until they finally decide to come out!!!

Have a good night!
Love,
Mindy and the little feet

Hi again~

Still no baby update other than the fact that I've been feeling cramps in my lower abdomen area all afternoon. They aren't too painful but they are annoying. Maybe it's a sign that labor is near???

Today I had to tell my students that our class guinea pig passed away during Winter Break. I was anticipating tears and lots of sad questions. Instead...the first question they asked was "Can we get another guinea pig?" This was followed immediately with the second question they asked..."Can we get a dog?!?!" I guess they weren't as sad as I thought they'd be!

No plans for us at all this weekend. We're about to leave and go out for dinner- probably the Olive Garden. I've been craving it all day. Other than that, well...I'm hoping I will be in labor! We'll let you know :-)
~Mindy and Baby S.

39 Weeks!!

Still no baby news~ I went back to work today and had a great day with the kids. They seemed happy to have me back, since I had told them there was a good chance I wouldn't be there. They were also really well behaved considering the fact that they had been away from our classroom routines and rules for nearly two weeks. I was very proud of them!


I felt minor contractions throughout the day and evening today but nothing too serious. Believe it or not, I wasn't feeling very tired at the end of the work day so Chad and I went shopping for a little while. We had been wanting to get a camcorder before the baby is born so we went to Best Buy tonight and found a nice one. Now we're all set to record the baby and make DVD's for the grandparents :-)



Here's another picture I took today. My co-workers told me that it looks like the baby definitely dropped pretty low over winter break. See for yourself~

Have a great night!

Love,

Mindy and Baby S.

No baby yet~

Hi everybody. I've been told by many of you that you check here often to see if I've gone into labor or had the baby yet. The answer so far is...nope. I feel a lot more pressure today, so maybe the baby has dropped down further. I hope so! I also seem to be having more frequent mild contractions today. They aren't painful but are definitely noticeable. I may start timing them later today if they don't go away. My doctor said to call him whenever they get to be five minutes apart, lasting 1 minute each, for at least an hour. He also said I'd probably be VERY uncomfortable and would likely struggle to talk through them at that point. I'm definitely nowhere near THAT right now. So we'll see.

Chad went back to work today but I don't start up again until tomorrow. My co-workers think I'm nuts to return to work tomorrow, but I would start using up my limited maternity leave days and I don't want to do that before the baby is born. Chad predicts it'll only take one day of me chasing all my kindergartners around again and I'll go into labor. That'd be tomorrow night. I'll keep you posted!

Love,
Mindy and Baby S.