As I write this, it is 7:41 p.m. That means that 2 years and 10 minutes ago, Gracie was born. She was a stubborn unborn baby, who arrived 11 days after her due date! Below is a picture of me on January 11, 2011... Gracie's due date. Below that is January 20, 2011, the day before I was admitted to the hospital to get that little girl out!
We drove to Kentville on January 21, 2011, at 8:30 in the morning. I had a 9:00 appointment to get the induction started. Since we were at the beginning of an incredibly nasty snowstorm, Dr. Rudd was kind enough to admit me so that I wouldn't have to drive home that night and come back the next day (since induction is usually a 2-day process). By 10:30 a.m., the appointment was over and I was told to "go enjoy your day" but be back by 5 p.m. so they could check my progress. I can tell you that immediately after the appointment, my contractions (which I had been having steadily for about 5 days) changed from Braxton Hicks to the real deal. But it was nothing too severe, they just felt different! We headed out to do some shopping, and get some lunch at Coras. The contractions gradually got stronger... nothing too bad, but enough that I had to stop walking when one came on.
We headed back to the hospital around 4 pm, and couldn't see the road in front of us. We got dumped on. Around 30 cms. It was really wet and heavy snow, and it was fairly mild during the day. Of course that evening, the temperature plummetted, the roads turned to complete snow-packed ice, and my parents had a 5 1/2 hour drive ahead of them the next day. Yay.
The contractions got stronger and stronger, and by 10:00, they were strong enough that I needed some assistance sleeping. So the lovely nurse shot me in the ass with some morphine, and to sleep I went. Until 1:30 a.m., when I woke from a morphine-induced coma and realized that this was probably the real deal. I walked the halls of the hospital by myself until about 4 a.m., when I couldn't do it anymore and had to wake up Danny. We walked and paced and breathed and moaned for another 6 hours, when I agreed to an epidural. After that, the day was quite lovely. We relaxed in our room and chatted with my sister, and parents (who finally arrived around 3 pm), and at 5:30, the nurse said "you're 10 cms." They gave it another hour, just to make sure, then told me to push that baby out. At 7:31, Gracie Helena Ford made her grand entrance. Here's her first photo, about 10 minutes old!
We had a nice "relaxing" weekend in the hospital, and by Monday morning, we were ready to get the hell home!
We settled in at home, and it wasn't long before all the "firsts" started happening... first smile, first laugh, first word, first step...
And before we knew it... it was her first birthday!! I was already 3 1/2 months pregnant with Ella when this birthday rolled around, and I couldn't believe we were here already. Time moves so fast once you have kids it's unbelievable!
And now, here we are... at Birthday #2! We celebrated Gracie's birthday on Saturday with all of her friends, and she was so excited! This morning she couldn't stop grinning, and I have to admit, I couldn't either. It was so amazing to see our tiny little baby grown up into this two-year old! Every new word, expression, and even tantrum, makes me realize how lucky I am to have such beautiful children... I can't wait for next year, just because every birthday makes me look back and fall in love all over again with how little she used to be, how far she's come, and look with excitement at the amazing lady she's going to grow up into. Happy Birthday Gracie!! xox
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