Introducing Alise Harper Levreault!

We proudly welcomed Ali on October 20, 2010 at 6:08 pm.  She weighed 6 lbs, 12 oz and measured 20 3/8 in.  After 36 hours of labor, we finally had to deliver Ali by c-section and found out that her umbilical cord was wrapped around her neck twice.  Dad survived and even watched the c-section!  I know everyone (especially me!) has been curious to see what Ali looks like.

Here's one of her first pictures during the baby exam in the delivery room.

Proud Papa got to hold Ali first since Cindy had a c-section.

Daddy shows Ali to Mommy for the first time:

 

Ali is all cleaned up!

 

Definitely Headed to the Hospital Today!

Well, I think I'm having contractions right now, so we may have a baby on the way soon!  I've been trying to time them because I'm not supposed to call my doctor until the contractions are 5 minutes apart, lasting for 1 minute each and have been on this pattern for at least 1 hour.  Currently, they are about 10 to 15 minutes apart.  If the contractions progress, Ali should be born soon! 

However, we are also scheduled to go into the hospital tonight at 8pm to start the induction process.  The plan is to start Cervidil tonight and hope that induces labor.  If it doesn't, then I will get Pitocin in the morning.  I'm in my 41st week, and my doctor does not want me to get to 42 weeks because she said that baby mortality and morbidity rates significantly increase at 42 weeks. 

Soooo... either way, I will be in the hospital tonight, and we'll have a baby soon!  We'll see if Ali decides to come on her own (hope so!) or if I end up having to be induced. 

We'll keep you posted!

Fashionably Late...

I hope this isn't a sign of how stubborn Ali is going to be!  I'm now 4 days past my due date, and Ali has decided that she's not ready.  Guess she's having a hard time deciding what to wear to her party.

I also think that this is God's way of helping me deal with my fears of labor and delivery.  I used to be completely concerned with how painful L&D would be and scared of the whole process.  I used to go to work every day hoping and praying that my water doesn't break while I'm in a meeting.  I used to worry about what this child might look like and what I might think when I first see her.  Well, all those thoughts are gone.  I don't care how painful L&D is.  I don't care where I am when I go into labor, and I just want to see her!  It worked, God.  I am really ready to have this baby.

In the meantime, I've been addicted to a Halloween mix that my college friend Jen introduced to me.  I still make it every year.  I can't stop eating it, so I thought I would share it with you guys.  It's so simple and so addicting.  Enjoy!

Ingredients:
Candy Corn (both regular and Indian)
Candy Pumpkins
M&Ms (this year, I used both regular and peanut)
Peanuts

Final Belly Shots at 40 Weeks!

Baby Classes Completed? - Check.
Car Seats Installed and Inspected? - Check.
Hospital Bag Mostly Packed? - Check.
Stocked Up on Necessary Baby Gear? - Check.
Diapers and Clothes Ready? - Check.
Baby Book Ready? - Check.
9+ Months of Pregnancy Done? - Check.

Baby? - Not Yet!
I can't believe I made it to 40 weeks.  Here is the final progression of belly shots.

12 weeks:

17 weeks:

20 weeks:

24 weeks:

28 weeks:

 
32 weeks:

36 Weeks:

40 weeks:

Here's the 40 week full length shot, and here's to hoping she decides to come soon!

Sneak Peek at Ali's Nursery

Many people have asked me for pictures of Ali's nursery.  I haven't posted pictures yet because unfortunately, her room's not quite finished.  I've had some challenges with this project.  At least that's what I'm blaming it on.  First, the crib that we ordered Memorial Day weekend didn't arrive until August.  After it was delivered, we discovered a few cracks, so the manufacturer had to send us a replacement crib headboard.  We didn't receive that until September.  Once the crib situation was resolved, I opened the bedding and found that the bumper was missing tufts on it.  We then had to wait for the replacement bumper.  I finally went to pick up the bumper, and I absolutely hated it in the room.  The ladies at Lone Star Baby were so nice, and they were able to convince the manufacturer to refund my money because the bedding was not well made.  I was back to square one, except that the entire room had been decorated around that first bedding.  So, I had to find a bedding that would fit into the room that I had started.  Lucky for me, I found a great fit at Pottery Barn Kids, and I'm so happy now with my bedding.  I'm still working on stuff for the walls, so stay tuned for those updates. 

Here are a few sneak peeks.  I wish it were more completed, but hopefully it will be done soon.

This is the view from the door.  I didn't find a cute mobile that I really liked, so I decided to hang paper lanterns above the crib instead.  I figured it was interesting and might be something to entertain Ali.  My mom recovered the glider for us, and I had a blanket monogrammed for the back of the chair.  I probably need to get some curtains, but that's still a work in process.

Here's a closer look at the bedding.  I did a mix and match for this bedding at Pottery Barn.  Lucky for me, the green dots in the bumper go perfectly with the light green on the walls and coordinate well with the balls above the crib.

As most of you know, I really don't like birds, but these two on the inside of the bumper were sort of a cute touch.  

Here's another view from the door.  I don't know if you can see it very well, but I replaced the knobs on the dresser with crystal knobs to add a little bling to the room.  The lamp on the nightstand also has a crystal base.  And, there are no pictures in the frames yet....  We'll do a newborn photoshoot, so I'll put those pictures in those frames.  

Pumpkin Hunting!

I dragged Todd to help me pick out pumpkins tonight, because I didn't think I would be able to move around pumpkins to pick out the perfect ones.  We had fun searching for our pumpkins, although I'm not sure Todd would admit that.  One of the guys working there asked me if I was hiding a pumpkin under my shirt - ha!

Apparently, I'm drawn to the unique pumpkins and squashes.  I'm excited because I think I can leave these up until Thanksgiving as opposed to just a normal Halloween pumpkins which I may feel like I have to take down after Halloween. 

Still Pregnant...

Not sure why, but I have always thought Ali would come earlier than her October 12th due date.  It's October 4th, and I'm still pregnant.  I'm starting to think that she'll never come out, but my doctor assures me that in all of her years delivering babies, she's never had a case where the baby didn't come out.  Whew!  At my appointment today, there wasn't much change.  I'm still 75% effaced, about 1 cm dilated, and the baby has dropped and is in position ready to come out.  The doctor said my uterus was measuring pretty small, so we did a sonogram just to make sure there was nothing wrong.  No complaints from me - I was happy to get to see her again.  Since her head is pushed so far down, we didn't get a look at her face, but based on the measurements, she currently weighs about 6.5 lbs.  We passed the test and everything looks good.  So, I'm just back to the waiting game.  We did talk about an induction date, and if Ali doesn't decide to come on her own, I'm scheduled to go into the hospital Thursday, October 14th to start with cervidil and spend the night.  I think the plan would then be that I go into labor some time on Friday, October 15th.  So, if Ali doesn't decide to come on her own, I do have an end in sight!

In the meantime, I got my new camera this past weekend!

I've was very excited to play with my new toy, and Coco was my lucky subject.  I've mastered the auto modes, but I need to play around with the manual settings a little more.  I had some photography classes in high school, but I'm starting to think I should take a refresher course.