Jillian and Bridget now have their own blog!
You can catch it here: http://jillandbridget.blogspot.com
Hope you enjoy it!
Monday, September 20, 2010
A Birth Story, Part II
We have a new addition to the family! Bridget Evelyn Woodruff was born on September 17, 2010 at 10:19 a.m., and was 8 lbs 7 oz in weight and 21-1/2 inches long. She has lots of thick, black hair and a little dimple in one of her cheeks. For the full report, read on:
Mommy, Daddy and Jillian woke up early on Friday morning and started getting ready for the big day. Grannie Woodruff stopped by at 6:30 am to pick up Jillian for the weekend, and of course, she was very excited about that. Mommy and Daddy then made the drive down to Southwest W
shington Medical Center for an 8:00 am check-in time. When we got there, Mommy remarked about how strange it was knowing that in just a couple hours, we would be holding a new baby. Mommy was put into Room 102, and got into her gown and made herself comfortable in the bed. Our nurse for the day would be Annette, and she was very nice and helpful. The paperwork started coming, along with IV hookups, drugs and monitors on the baby. Auntie Greta and Dany showed up during the prep time, ready to go. We had met with several OBGYN doctors leading up to birth-day, but it ended up that the one doing the procedure would be Dr. Chang, who leads the entire OBGYN program at SWMC. He came in to introduce himself, and made us laugh the entire time; he had a great sense of humor. It was obvious, though, that he knew what he was doing, so we felt good about that.
At about 9:30 am, it was time to head to the operating room. We walked with the nurse, and Mommy went in to the room to get her spinal anesthetic while Daddy waited outside. Once all of the doctors had shown up and were ready to go at just after 10:00 am, Daddy went in and sat next to Mommy. The music was blaring, and the doctors started moving fast with the C-section. The anesthesiologist kept us up-to-date on what was happening as he watched over the curtain. When it was time for the baby to come out, the first thing he said was “Whoa, that’s a big baby!” Shortly after that, everyone in the room said “Look at all that hair!” Little Bridget Evelyn had arrived!
Bridget then moved over to the respiratory therapists. They were amazed at how quickly she had “pinked up”, and immediately gave her an Apgar rating of 9 out of 10. They cleaned her up and suctioned her out, while Daddy took photos and showed them to Mommy. About 5 minutes later, they gave her a full rating of 10. They measured her at 21-1/2 inches long, and weighed her in at a big 8 lbs 7.3 oz. After a quick wrap job, they put Bridget on Mommy’s chest. Mommy was so happy!
The doctors finished up the procedure, and moved Mommy to a new bed. While holding onto Bridget, she was wheeled out of the operating room and placed in the recovery room with nurse Annette. We spent the next hour there while both Mommy and Bridget were monitored by the nurse. Both Mommy and Bridget checked out great! Eventually, we got to leave and head back to Room 102, where Auntie Greta and Dany were waiting. Mommy announced to them that the baby’s name was Bridget Evelyn. Mommy had always liked the name Bridget, and the name Evelyn was her Grandma Peterson’s middle name. Auntie Greta and Dany were thrilled to finally meet Bridget, and enjoyed holding her!
While Auntie Greta and Dany went to get lunch, Mommy and Bridget rested in the room. One thing we found out was that Bridget was a pretty mellow baby, and she liked to sleep. She did cry when she was hungry, but other than that, she stayed pretty quiet.
At about 2:00 pm, big sister Jillian showed up with Grannie and Papa Woodruff. Jillian came running into the room yelling “Mommy, did the baby come out?” When Mommy said yes, Jillian then yelled “The baby popped out!” Bridget was laying on Mommy on the bed, so Grannie held Jillian up so that she could see her. Jillian was all smiles, and was very excited to see her little sister, giving her a nice kiss. But when Bridget started crying loudly, Jillian tried climbing up Grannie’s head trying to get away. She was a little spooked by the crying. After Grannie had held Bridget, Jillian was asking “Can I hold the baby?”, so she sat with Daddy on the sofa and got to excitedly hold baby Bridget for the first time. She was a little wary though, saying “Baby’s crying” if Bridget even made a sound or wrinkled up her face.
Many more visitors began showing up. Cindy Stephenson arrived, and then Auntie Greta and Dany returned. They had brought a cake from Olive Garden, so everyone sang “Happy Birthday” to Bridget. Later in the afternoon, Grandpa Ken, Auntie Sheryl and Cousins Meagan and Adam showed up. Cousin Adam got to hold Bridget, and was also a little scared when she started crying. After that, he was content to just watch. Grandpa Ken was celebrating his birthday right along with Bridget, so it was a very happy birthday for both of them!
That evening, Mommy worked on getting Bridget fed while trying to recover from the surgery at the same time. It actually went pretty well, as Bridget latched on pretty quickly and fed for 10 to 20 minutes at a time before getting tired and falling asleep. Her internal clock was a little off, though, as she was awake and demanding food throughout the night. Eventually, she settled down at 4:30 am and went to sleep for a few hours.
On Saturday, all the activity must have worn Bridget out, because she was very sleepy throughout the day. She continued to receive visitors, including Cousin Tierney, Uncle Clark, Beverly, and the Johnson family (Uncle Kevin, Auntie Julie, and Cousins Cale, Ty and Brock). Big sister Jillian also visited again, giving little sister Bridget a card that she had made herself. Mommy continued her recovery, getting up and moving around, and even getting a chance to shower. Nurse Maria worked the night-shift, and was someone that Mommy had gone to high school with. She was very nice and helpful.
On Sunday, Dr. Chang visited and said that everything looked good with Bridget and Mommy, and that if they wanted to leave that evening, he would discharge them. So, we agreed to leave later that day. Sunday was a pretty restful day, and Bridget continued to eat and sleep and snuggle with Mommy. It was becoming apparent that Bridget was going to be the sleeper and snuggle buddy of the family, as Jillian was already our active little go-go girl. There were many more doctor visits, including a lactation nurse who had some great advice. After Aunt Lee was our final visitor, we packed up our things and put Bridget into the carseat and got into the car. Bridget was a great little traveler, sleeping the entire way home.
When we arrived home with Bridget, we got things in order, and then big sister Jillian showed up an hour or so later when Grannie and Papa Woodruff and Cousin Tierney dropped her off. Once again, Jillian was very excited to see Bridget, wanting to hold her many times. It was a very happy reunion for all of us, and a special night as a family of four. We are so excited to have Bridget!
Mommy, Daddy and Jillian woke up early on Friday morning and started getting ready for the big day. Grannie Woodruff stopped by at 6:30 am to pick up Jillian for the weekend, and of course, she was very excited about that. Mommy and Daddy then made the drive down to Southwest W
shington Medical Center for an 8:00 am check-in time. When we got there, Mommy remarked about how strange it was knowing that in just a couple hours, we would be holding a new baby. Mommy was put into Room 102, and got into her gown and made herself comfortable in the bed. Our nurse for the day would be Annette, and she was very nice and helpful. The paperwork started coming, along with IV hookups, drugs and monitors on the baby. Auntie Greta and Dany showed up during the prep time, ready to go. We had met with several OBGYN doctors leading up to birth-day, but it ended up that the one doing the procedure would be Dr. Chang, who leads the entire OBGYN program at SWMC. He came in to introduce himself, and made us laugh the entire time; he had a great sense of humor. It was obvious, though, that he knew what he was doing, so we felt good about that.
At about 9:30 am, it was time to head to the operating room. We walked with the nurse, and Mommy went in to the room to get her spinal anesthetic while Daddy waited outside. Once all of the doctors had shown up and were ready to go at just after 10:00 am, Daddy went in and sat next to Mommy. The music was blaring, and the doctors started moving fast with the C-section. The anesthesiologist kept us up-to-date on what was happening as he watched over the curtain. When it was time for the baby to come out, the first thing he said was “Whoa, that’s a big baby!” Shortly after that, everyone in the room said “Look at all that hair!” Little Bridget Evelyn had arrived!Bridget then moved over to the respiratory therapists. They were amazed at how quickly she had “pinked up”, and immediately gave her an Apgar rating of 9 out of 10. They cleaned her up and suctioned her out, while Daddy took photos and showed them to Mommy. About 5 minutes later, they gave her a full rating of 10. They measured her at 21-1/2 inches long, and weighed her in at a big 8 lbs 7.3 oz. After a quick wrap job, they put Bridget on Mommy’s chest. Mommy was so happy!
The doctors finished up the procedure, and moved Mommy to a new bed. While holding onto Bridget, she was wheeled out of the operating room and placed in the recovery room with nurse Annette. We spent the next hour there while both Mommy and Bridget were monitored by the nurse. Both Mommy and Bridget checked out great! Eventually, we got to leave and head back to Room 102, where Auntie Greta and Dany were waiting. Mommy announced to them that the baby’s name was Bridget Evelyn. Mommy had always liked the name Bridget, and the name Evelyn was her Grandma Peterson’s middle name. Auntie Greta and Dany were thrilled to finally meet Bridget, and enjoyed holding her!While Auntie Greta and Dany went to get lunch, Mommy and Bridget rested in the room. One thing we found out was that Bridget was a pretty mellow baby, and she liked to sleep. She did cry when she was hungry, but other than that, she stayed pretty quiet.
At about 2:00 pm, big sister Jillian showed up with Grannie and Papa Woodruff. Jillian came running into the room yelling “Mommy, did the baby come out?” When Mommy said yes, Jillian then yelled “The baby popped out!” Bridget was laying on Mommy on the bed, so Grannie held Jillian up so that she could see her. Jillian was all smiles, and was very excited to see her little sister, giving her a nice kiss. But when Bridget started crying loudly, Jillian tried climbing up Grannie’s head trying to get away. She was a little spooked by the crying. After Grannie had held Bridget, Jillian was asking “Can I hold the baby?”, so she sat with Daddy on the sofa and got to excitedly hold baby Bridget for the first time. She was a little wary though, saying “Baby’s crying” if Bridget even made a sound or wrinkled up her face.
Many more visitors began showing up. Cindy Stephenson arrived, and then Auntie Greta and Dany returned. They had brought a cake from Olive Garden, so everyone sang “Happy Birthday” to Bridget. Later in the afternoon, Grandpa Ken, Auntie Sheryl and Cousins Meagan and Adam showed up. Cousin Adam got to hold Bridget, and was also a little scared when she started crying. After that, he was content to just watch. Grandpa Ken was celebrating his birthday right along with Bridget, so it was a very happy birthday for both of them!That evening, Mommy worked on getting Bridget fed while trying to recover from the surgery at the same time. It actually went pretty well, as Bridget latched on pretty quickly and fed for 10 to 20 minutes at a time before getting tired and falling asleep. Her internal clock was a little off, though, as she was awake and demanding food throughout the night. Eventually, she settled down at 4:30 am and went to sleep for a few hours.
On Saturday, all the activity must have worn Bridget out, because she was very sleepy throughout the day. She continued to receive visitors, including Cousin Tierney, Uncle Clark, Beverly, and the Johnson family (Uncle Kevin, Auntie Julie, and Cousins Cale, Ty and Brock). Big sister Jillian also visited again, giving little sister Bridget a card that she had made herself. Mommy continued her recovery, getting up and moving around, and even getting a chance to shower. Nurse Maria worked the night-shift, and was someone that Mommy had gone to high school with. She was very nice and helpful.
On Sunday, Dr. Chang visited and said that everything looked good with Bridget and Mommy, and that if they wanted to leave that evening, he would discharge them. So, we agreed to leave later that day. Sunday was a pretty restful day, and Bridget continued to eat and sleep and snuggle with Mommy. It was becoming apparent that Bridget was going to be the sleeper and snuggle buddy of the family, as Jillian was already our active little go-go girl. There were many more doctor visits, including a lactation nurse who had some great advice. After Aunt Lee was our final visitor, we packed up our things and put Bridget into the carseat and got into the car. Bridget was a great little traveler, sleeping the entire way home.
When we arrived home with Bridget, we got things in order, and then big sister Jillian showed up an hour or so later when Grannie and Papa Woodruff and Cousin Tierney dropped her off. Once again, Jillian was very excited to see Bridget, wanting to hold her many times. It was a very happy reunion for all of us, and a special night as a family of four. We are so excited to have Bridget!
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Bridget Evelyn
When Rick, Heather, and Bridget get home from the hospital there will be a long blog and pictures from Rick, I'm sure, but I can share a little. Jillian is so proud of her new sister. She made a card for her today and was thrilled when Bridget looked at it wide awake. She likes to hold her but the moment Bridget cries, that's the end of the holding. Jillian is fascinated by all the long hair and so far is content to caress it, not pull it like she does with us when she's tired. Today she got to see Daddy change a dirty diaper which again was something very interesting, especially when Bridget turns bright red from wailing very loud. I'm sure Jillian will be a big help to Mommy and Daddy when Bridget comes home.Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Scheduled Birthday
Mommy went to the OBGYN today, and Daddy and Jillian tagged along. Jillian had been wanting to go to the hospital, saying "I'm going to tell the doctor I have an owie." She's been hoping that they'll give her another band-aid. When the nurse showed up and Jillian told her about the owie on her knee, the nurse said she didn't have a band-aid and that her knee was looking much better. Oh well.
The nurse checked Heather's blood pressure, and it was high again. When Doctor Fox came in and did some other checks, she provided some options about what to do next, but she also said that she highly recommended that a C-section be performed sooner rather than later, to avoid any problems that come with going past the due date. And when she said "sooner", she actually meant in the next day or two. We weren't quite prepared for that, but Heather said that if Friday was open, then she'd like to do it then. So, the new baby will be born on September 17, and share a birthday with her Grandpa Ken and Auntie Karen.
The nurse checked Heather's blood pressure, and it was high again. When Doctor Fox came in and did some other checks, she provided some options about what to do next, but she also said that she highly recommended that a C-section be performed sooner rather than later, to avoid any problems that come with going past the due date. And when she said "sooner", she actually meant in the next day or two. We weren't quite prepared for that, but Heather said that if Friday was open, then she'd like to do it then. So, the new baby will be born on September 17, and share a birthday with her Grandpa Ken and Auntie Karen.
Monday, September 13, 2010
Interesting Day
Papa had to get a colonoscopy so Jillian and I spent time shopping. At Michaels she saw a sand castle and I explained that she would have to paint it and she was excited about that. Then we went to Ross and we found some Dora clogs which had fleece in them that were for cold weather. Next stop was Starbucks when we got a call to pick up Papa. He was in a room in the surgical wing so when we went in the door to that wing, Jillian showed she knows what doctors and hospitals are for. As soon as we went in that wing there were several nurses and she pointed to her knee and said she had an "owee". The nurses were captivated and came over to look and one said they would get her a band aid. She continued to talk to them while I got Papa. Soon the nurse came back with the band aid and put it on her knee. She said, "Thank you" and then she said loudly, "Thank you ladies." She had them completely charmed.
Next we played outside for a couple hours after lunch and then Jillian went down for her nap. As soon as she woke up she remembered she had her sand castle to paint so she wanted to do it right away, bed head and all. She did a very careful job painting and she was proud that she didn't get any paint on her clothes. Maybe there is an artist there somewhere. Then it was on to Cale's football game where she got to see Aunt Julie, Brock and Ty.
Sunday, September 12, 2010
New Stuff XXIX
At 2-1/2 years old, Jillian keeps letting loose with all kinds of crazy and interesting things:
1. The Puma and the Polar Bear : If you want to see Jillian get all excited and run around like a wild-girl, just mention "the puma and the polar bear" to her, and then step back! We have no idea where it came from, but whenever she talks about the puma and / or the polar bear, she immediately starts screaming, and maybe even hiding or wrapping herself up in blankets. She also wants us to get involved, either running away with her, or saving her from them.
2. "Rojo" : So, red is not just red anymore; now it's rojo. When we come up to a stoplight, Jillian starts yelling "stop Daddy, it's rojo". Yet another Dora influence.
3. The Wrestler : Another way to get Jillian all worked up is to lay on the floor where she can attack you. Then, it becomes a big wrestling-fest. Jillian will begin by throwing herself at you just like in WWF, so it's best to keep a close eye on her. Her next move is to grab you by the head and squeeze. Meanwhile, she screams and laughs. Lastly, she loves to jump up and do the "knees to the stomach".
4. The Good Mommy : When she's not destroying things, Jillian is nurturing her little baby doll that she calls "Apple Dumplin'" (from Strawberry Shortcake). She wraps the doll up in blankets for night-night, and takes the doll for walks in her little shopping cart. And of course, the doll gets to go to bed with Jillian.
5. "Save Me!" : Not only does Jillian like to get tickled, she also likes to yell at whoever's nearby, saying "save me". Once she gets saved, she goes back and says "tickle me", which is immediately followed by another "save me", again and again.
6. "Do you see my little tear?" : Jillian asks us this after she has been crying.
7. The Prayer Book : One of the baby shower gifts for little Jillian was a book called "Baby's First Prayers", which contains over a dozen small prayers for kids. We've read this off and on for quite a while, and apparently Jillian was listening, because now when we read it to her before bedtime, she'll recite every prayer. Not only that, she recites them loudly, so that everyone in the house can hear her!
1. The Puma and the Polar Bear : If you want to see Jillian get all excited and run around like a wild-girl, just mention "the puma and the polar bear" to her, and then step back! We have no idea where it came from, but whenever she talks about the puma and / or the polar bear, she immediately starts screaming, and maybe even hiding or wrapping herself up in blankets. She also wants us to get involved, either running away with her, or saving her from them.
2. "Rojo" : So, red is not just red anymore; now it's rojo. When we come up to a stoplight, Jillian starts yelling "stop Daddy, it's rojo". Yet another Dora influence.
3. The Wrestler : Another way to get Jillian all worked up is to lay on the floor where she can attack you. Then, it becomes a big wrestling-fest. Jillian will begin by throwing herself at you just like in WWF, so it's best to keep a close eye on her. Her next move is to grab you by the head and squeeze. Meanwhile, she screams and laughs. Lastly, she loves to jump up and do the "knees to the stomach".
4. The Good Mommy : When she's not destroying things, Jillian is nurturing her little baby doll that she calls "Apple Dumplin'" (from Strawberry Shortcake). She wraps the doll up in blankets for night-night, and takes the doll for walks in her little shopping cart. And of course, the doll gets to go to bed with Jillian.
5. "Save Me!" : Not only does Jillian like to get tickled, she also likes to yell at whoever's nearby, saying "save me". Once she gets saved, she goes back and says "tickle me", which is immediately followed by another "save me", again and again.
6. "Do you see my little tear?" : Jillian asks us this after she has been crying.
7. The Prayer Book : One of the baby shower gifts for little Jillian was a book called "Baby's First Prayers", which contains over a dozen small prayers for kids. We've read this off and on for quite a while, and apparently Jillian was listening, because now when we read it to her before bedtime, she'll recite every prayer. Not only that, she recites them loudly, so that everyone in the house can hear her!
Four Days to Go
Here's a photo of Mommy and Jillian in front of Grace Lutheran Church. The new baby is due to be born this Thursday (September 16), though she hasn't shown much sign of wanting to come out. Mommy is definitely ready, and Jillian talks about wanting to "feed the baby".
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