Sunday, August 16, 2009

Get Ready...Here Comes 2-Year-Old Josie!

Today, my baby girl turns two years old.  TWO! Two? How can that be??  She's my baby.  She's supposed stay little...not turn into a temper tantrum throwing, "MINE" screaming, two-year-old!

Since I shared the stories of Patrick and Katie on their birthdays, it's only right that I share Josie's story, too.  Hers is a little more interesting, but still doesn't have the dramatic element so many others have.  So here's the story of Josie.

This is what I expect to encounter this year--the antics of a 2-year-old.
In the fall of 2006, I was beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel...Patrick was 16 months old and becoming quite independent, Katie was 3 years old and could do many things on her own.  I felt like I was getting my life back, no longer the sleep deprived, breastfeeding, infant carrier toting person I had been for the past 3 years.  WM and I had decided that since we had a girl and boy that our family was complete and we were done having kiddos.  So when in late October I found out I was pregnant AGAIN, my world came shattering down (trust me, WM and I were trying NOT to get pregnant).  I was not happy about it at all and cried...A LOT.  We were in shock, or at least I was.  My emotions were all over the place--it was one of the wonkiest times of my life.

About the time I came out of my "I'm pregnant" fog (about week later), I miscarried.  And I was surprisingly devastated.  I still hadn't even accepted the fact that I was pregnant, so why was I so saddened about this loss?  It forced WM and I to talk about more children.  I think that miscarriage was God's way of forcing us to talk and think about what we really wanted for our family.  Was that week of me being so upset about being pregnant His way of saying, "yes, your family is complete," or was my sadness over the miscarriage His way of telling me, "you want more children."  I don't know...but I think it's the latter.

Before we could figure out what we wanted for our family, God made the decision for us.  A little less than four weeks after the miscarriage I found out I was pregnant again (like I've said, I'm a fertile turtle).  Again, I was in shock--mostly because I didn't think it was possible.  But I was surprisingly at peace about it.  Although it did take some time for me to really grasp the concept that another baby was on the way.  We told our families about the baby and my dear, good friend, Susie.  But other than that I didn't tell other friends, co-workers, etc. until I was well into my 4th, almost 5th month.  I was due August 25th, 2007.

We actually had a lot to do to prepare for this little one...we'd gotten rid of ALL our baby stuff.  Remember, we thought we were done.  Gone were the baby bathtub, diaper Genie, Bumbo, bouncy seat, car seats, etc.  I've never been one to find out the gender of our babies, but I decided that since we were going to be re-buying everything, we might as well find out what we're having so it can be gender appropriate.  So in March of 2007, we found out we were having a baby girl.

My pregnancy was again uneventful, I felt great, ate normally, gained normal weight.  My OB sent me to a high risk specialist for a special ultrasound, but only because I was AMA or Advanced Maternal Age (a.k.a. Old Lady Having a Baby).  She just wanted a specialized ultrasound to rule out anything.  Baby looked fine, by the way.

Josie on the day she was born.
So summer came, got hot.  And I got big--my belly, that is.  In mid-July my OB started talking about possibly inducing this time around.  I was not a fan of that.  I'd had super duper easy, practically pain-free labors and I didn't really want to mess with the good thing I had going.  But as early August came, induction was looking more attractive.  Mainly because my OB said the baby was getting big (keep in mind that Patrick was 10 lbs, and normally each baby gets bigger).  In early August she was measuring about 7 1/2 pounds.  If everything went as predicted we were looking at an 11+ lb. baby.  Plus, with an induction, I could have my mom here and ready to watch the kids.  So, "ok, let's set a date" we said.  And we chose August 16.

This is what my life had become after the birth of Josie--three very small children (one seemed to always be crying).
The morning of August 16th came, we left the house early (had to be there around 7:00 a.m.) with Katie and Patrick still asleep.  My mom sent us off with a big hug and kiss.  My friend Susie met us at the hospital and got me all checked in and comfortable.  Got all the meds started, called for the anesthesiologist for the epidural, and we waited.  For about 3 hours.

Josie's first attempts at crawling.
I pushed for maybe 5 minutes (2 or 3 pushes I think??) and at 11:59 a.m. on August 16, 2007, Josephine Amelia was born.  Weighing in at 8 lb, 12 oz (glad we didn't wait the two weeks for her due date).  Beautiful black curly hair and the iciest blue eyes you've ever seen.

Josie's first steps.
Here in my arms was the little girl who was never planned, we'd never sat around saying "when we have a baby", no books were read about what to expect, etc. But here she was, the most perfect little baby I'd ever seen. I whispered "I love you" into her ear over and over, daddy held her.  At that moment in time I couldn't imagine that she was never part of my plan.  All I could do was look at her and thank God for giving me what I didn't know I wanted and needed.  God knows.  And He provided.

Josie on her first birthday.
Josie is such a joyous addition to our family.  She still has those pretty blue eyes and curly (though not dark) hair.  She's still perfect in my opinion.  She's very, VERY high spirited, opinionated, head strong, funny, precious...I could go on and on.  But her very big personality is what will get you.  Her doctor has told us "she has fire in her blood."  She knows what she wants and doesn't want and is not afraid to let it be known.

Josie today--on her 2nd birthday!
Happy Birthday my sweet, spirited Josie.  I love you so much!  You will always be my baby.

(Whew--that was loooooooooooong.  Sorry).

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yea! Happy Birthday sweet Josie!

Dawn said...

She is so precious!!! I just love birth stories!

I hope she had a wonderful birthday!

We'll be celebrating a 3rd birthday in the not so far off future! Oy!