Finn's Story

SO. It has been quite the week. If you're up to it, settle in for the loooong version of how Finn came to be a part of this family.

Firstly, I had a c-section scheduled for Sunday the first, but Thursday afternoon I started to have some serious contractions about three minutes apart. Luckily, I had a doctor's appointment, so he went ahead and checked me and said my lazy cervix was acting like I wasn't even pregnant. Boo. Anyway, I ended up being awake (and in pain!) for the entire night. I was bleeding and feeling like I was legitimately "in labor," but I toughed it out until morning, and Dr. Anderson was right. The contractions went away, and I stayed pregnant until Sunday.

The picture above is me as we got to the hospital. Even though this was my third baby I was really nervous, and it still feels weird to just waltz into the hospital like any other day and say "I'm not in labor, but I'm here to have a baby!

This was after they did the epidural, Don't be fooled by my smile. That is not my favorite procedure in the world. Although, this time I had an amazing anesthesiologist. He was so sweet and concerned about me. I don't know about regular births, but with c-sections he stays right by me the whole time. After the baby is born Nate always goes with the baby and I usually feel pretty alone, but this guy held my hand and encouraged me and pet my head. (Yes, even c-section moms feel pain and need encouragement!) The last one I had was on his i-phone the whole time checking the weather. I was not excited. Next time I will ask SPCIFICALLY if I can have Dr. Gardener.

This is the smashing outfit Nate gets to wear for the occasion. I think he looks like the lunch lady...
I will spare you the gross (read:awesome) surgery pictures Nate got and skip right to the baby pics. Apparently, Finn pooped in the womb, so he came out a little green...gross! I was so happy to hear his cry though! That is the best feeling in the world! My first two questions after my babies are born are:

1.) Is he OK?!

2.) Does he have any hair!?

Usually the answer to the second question is no, but this time my little man came out with some serious dark hair (well, serious for this family) yay for hair!

He was pretty tiny compared to my other boys (Reid was 8lb 7 oz and Link was just under 8), but he has HUGE hands and feet! Maybe he will be tall? I won't get my hopes up!

Unlike last time they brought him over to me while they were stitching me up. I was so happy to spend a few minutes looking at my little miracle before they whisked him away to get cleaned up. I have to say here that this was by far the most painful c-section I have had. They didn't drug me up as much, which was nice, but I sure acted like I was in labor while they were doing the procedure. I could even move my feet a little bit! This freaked me out and my hilarious doctor responded: "Good thing we're not doing surgery on your feet!" Hilarious.

Still covered in poo! Everyone has said they think he looks like my other boys, but I think he looks SO different. What do you think?


After an hour in the recovery room I finally get to hold my little man. Best feeling ever! Although, I am not looking as cute at this point...

Daddy and his third son. We are little boy factories over here!

My mom and Nate's parents were here, and they brought my boys over to meet baby Finn, and to my delight they were super excited! Success!

Man, my looks just keep deteriorating, don't they?

I was so glad to have my mom here. I ended up staying in the hospital longer than we anticipated, and she stepped right up to the plate and took care of my big boys. She did so much and I am so thankful that she made the sacrifice to come and help me and my little family. Thanks, Nana we love you! I don't have many pictures of her because I was in the hospital the whole time, and she didn't really get to hold Finn after the first day, AND she went home before he came home. Bummer.

Nate's parents were also still in town, and I think Marg and my mom made a great team. Marg is always so helpful, and whenever she is around I always find clean laundry magically placed back in my drawers and closets. I love having her here, and I am so grateful that she stayed. I am so lucky to have such great women in my life to help me when I need them!

This is my brilliant OB! He is the greatest doctor ever. Really, I drive 20 minutes south to go see this guy. If you are in the Utah Valley area and need an OB, Dr. Anderson is your guy! He has taken such great care of me and addressed every little concern I have had. He even let me pick my c-section date. After I have a baby I am always a little sad to say goodbye to our regular visits and his corny jokes. Thanks for getting my guy here safe and sound.

So, this is where things get interesting. Sunday night my nurse thought Finn looked a little jaundace, so she did a blood test and ended up putting him under lights. When the test came back they rushed him up to the NICU because his levels were dangerously high. They even discussed doing a blood transfusion. This all happened really fast, so I wasn't exactly sure what was going on, and I may have had a few melt downs...

Then they took me up to the NICU to see him, and explain what was going on. Apparently Nate and I have a blood incompatibility (it's called ABO incompatibility for anyone interested) and it means that while I was pregnant with Finn my body created antibodies that attacked Finn's blood causing him to become extremely anemic and jaundace. That is kind of the short explanation, I guess. What it meant was he was going to be OK, but he earned himself a week-long stint in the NICU where I could only take him out for 15 minutes at a time 3-4 times a day. This was pretty tough on him and his momma for sure.

I did learn a lot about the NICU though, and I came to love many of his nurses. I have heard before that NICU nurses are the best, and I really believe it's true. This was such a hard experience for me, and I have to take my hat off to those of you that have had babies in there for long periods of time (Maci, Natalie!). It's so hard to hold your little one when they are covered in wires!


I came home from the hospital on Thursday morning, but Finn didn't get to come until Saturday. It is a hard thing to leave your baby behind! I cried the whole way home! I also didn't get to see him all day Thursday or Friday because I developed pneumonia from the surgery. That has been a great time. I am feeling much better today, but life was rough Thursday and Friday for sure! Do you have any idea how hard it is to have a coughing fit after a c-section?

Getting ready to come home! I was so excited! My mom got him this cute little coming home outfit, but the only thing that fit was the BYU hat. Sorry, mom he will have to wear the rest later!



Here are my boys getting to see him at home. They have bother been really sweet. Link has been a little jealous, but nothing compared to the way Reid reacted with Link!

First bath at home!

Since it was Mother's day today I only asked for three things:

1.) a nap
2.) for Nate to cut the boy's hair
3.) a picture of me and my boys

I should have known that last one was too much to ask for. What have I gotten myself into with three boys!?

This one is a little better. I actually went to church today for a bit. It was nice out, and it felt good getting out of the house. You can only keep me inside for so long before I
start to turn into a crazy person!

My cute buddy!

Reid has been such a great big brother. He came in from riding his bike yesterday and asked to hold baby Finn before he could even get his helmet off. Silly boy!

Giving kisses

This has been a tremendous experience. I do have to say though that I KNEW something was wrong this pregnancy. You might say I was just paranoid, (because usually I am) but I checked into the hospital two different times, and was unsettled before every doctor's appointment. I couldn't pin point why I felt so uncomfortable, so there was nothing I could really do, but I believe that my mother's intuition was telling me that I needed to be prepared for something. Now, it didn't turn out to be horrible, but I have been learning to listen to and trust myself a little more.

Anyway, kudos to you for staying and reading through this short novel I have written. I just didn't want to forget any of the details.

We sure love this boy, and are so excited to be a family of five full of sweet little boys. I LOVE being their mommy!