Penelope Elise

My heart might explode. Penelope Elise is earth-side. She is perfect. I'm enjoying this newborn stage more than ever.

Right before we drove to the hospital

Penelope Elise's Stats:

    Weight: 7 pounds 15 ounces

    Length: 20 inches

    Birthday: October 10, 2023

    Time of Birth: 3:53pm

    Hospital: Riverton-- had a great experience there. 

Birth Story:

Being the planner I am, I scheduled an induction for little miss at exactly 39 weeks. My doctor, Dr. Peacock ended up having to be out of town, so another doctor delivered sweet Penny. Dr. Burgett was excellent.

I was told to arrive at the hospital at 7:30am on October 10. When I got there, I was dilated to 3cm (I had been this dilated for a few weeks). 

At 8:38am, I started pitocin.

At 10:10am, I got an epidural.

Around 11:00am, I was told that babies heartbeat was going down after every contraction which was worrisome.  The doctor stopped the pitocin. Worst case scenario a C-section would be necessary. I was still only dilated to a 3 which was surprising.

At 12:22pm, they broke my water. They also put in a monitor to keep a closer eye on baby's heart. This helped them determine exactly how much pitocin to give me. 

At 12:33pm, I started pitocin again. The heartbeat was looking better. Baby didn't like it if they ever turned the pitocin up above a 4 (which is low-- the highest is 20). After another heartrate drop when they upped my pitocin to 7, it was decided to keep the pitocin at 4.

At 1:35pm, baby pooped. Inhaling meconium can be harmful for baby. I was informed that the NICU team would be in the room for delivery in case baby needed treatment.

Around 2:40pm, I felt a lot of pressure. I called the nurse and she said I was dilated to 9 and a half centimeters. They called my doctor and we had to wait for him to finish up a surgery. He arrived around 3:30pm.

While I was pushing, Dr. Burgett asked if any of my babies were born sunny side up. NO! I panicked. Luckily, baby didn't end up being turned completely like the doctor suspected, but she was kind of sideways. He was able to adjust her.

At 3:53pm, our world was forever changed. Penelope Elise made her grand entrance. I've never been happier to hear loud screams. Her lungs were fine and weren't effected by the meconium. The NICU team was not needed. Penelope has a full head of dark hair and gets lots of comments! Continue to the end of this post to see my hair when I was a baby. 

Despite a couple scares (the dropping heart rate and meconium), everything worked out! Jessica came by later that evening and brought us Chick Fil A (which was as delicious as it sounds). Jessica flew in from LA to help with baby which was so kind of her! My mom (yes, it's true) flew in from Brazil and brought the kids by first thing the next morning to meet their baby sister. It was precious.

I like to be discharged from the hospital as soon as possible, but Penny had to have routine testing done at exactly 24 hours old. We had to wait around all day Wednesday. Fortunately, Penelope passed her bilirubin, hearing, and heart test and we were discharged around 5:15pm on Wednesday, October 11.

Leaving the hospital

My mom being here for Penny's birthday was truly a miracle. There is a long backstory, but my mom tested positive for Covid close to my induction date. It was super stressful. In fact, at my doctor's appointment that day, my blood pressure was high and my doctor said if it didn't go down, I would have to be admitted to the hospital. Thankfully, my blood pressure went down. The day my mom was supposed to fly to UT (Monday, Oct 9), my mom tested NEGATIVE for Covid. We were so grateful and wanted stay healthy, especially Penny. We definitely saw God's hand in the timing of it all.

Having my mom around was amazing and felt normal. We ate lots of yummy food that she has missed. She doted on and spoiled my kids. She became my lactation expert and gave me priceless tips. My mom and Jessica played "O My Father" in my ward on October 15. My grandparents came to listen and meet Penelope. I am extremely grateful that my mom was able to be here and Jessica too.

Father of the year right here. This guy has bent over backwards to make sure I'm comfortable and that the house continues to run smoothly. His work was shocked to see him back in the office on Friday, Oct 13. (He also worked a half day on the 12.)  He will take more time off when I start piano lessons back up. 

I am overwhelmed with gratitude. People have been so nice. We have been well fed and showered with gifts and love. My list of thank-you cards keeps getting longer and longer. What a wonderful time. My kids have also been the sweetest older siblings I could have ever hoped for. We are all just completely enamored by Penny. And, I'm starting to dread nights less, so here's to hoping my 8:00pm bedtime will change soon. 

As you can see, we have taken plenty of pictures and will continue to do so. Stay tuned for more... Our niece snapped some family and newborn pictures and we'll get them back in a few weeks. Penny, we have waited and prayed for you and you're finally here. You are a delight. Our world is changed by your sweet spirit.

These last 3 pictures are of me as a baby! The pictures are low quality, but worth it. If you can believe it, I had even more hair than Penelope!