Lil Ariza Monster

1 Kings 18:8 – And he answered him, “It is I. Go, tell your lord, ‘Behold, Elijah is here.’”

October 22, 2008 Wednesday at about 9:30 am Kaci’s OB broke her water. This is really where the fun began. Only moments after this Kaci contractions began to be much more intense. After a couple of these contractions Kaci asked for an epidural. Right at that moment we saw a mad dash down the hall for a delivery in another room. Which also meant there was no one available to do Kaci’s epidural. So like a champ she held on with no relief. Finally we got the anesthesiologist in to do the procedure. Unfortunately it took a bunch of tries to place the needle in Kaci’s back. All the while Kaci’s contractions increased in frequency and intensity. During the placement of the epidural she dialated from 6cm to complete. Eventually the doc showed up, Kaci did some series pushing and out came our incredible little boy. Once his little head poked out the doc saw the cord was around his neck. Luckly she caught it right away, gave it a quick snip, and he didn’t suffer any stress because of it. In what seemed like a whirl wind Elijah Daniel Ariza was born 7lbs 10oz at 12:32.

Check out some photos of our little boy.

Tuesday October 22 we had our final doctors appointment. They gave her the usual exam and determined she hadn’t progressed since the previous week and her blood pressure seemed high. It was also high the previous week. Because of this they felt it was a good idea to induce and get this show on the road. The doctor called to see when they could fit us in at the hospital and they said “Grab your stuff and come on in”. So the adventure began.

We arrived at the hospital at around 4pm. We found our room, had Kaci change into the proper attire and attached her to many wires, hoses and machines. Somewhere around 6 they began the pitocin regiment.

Through the evening Kaci’s concractions increased. She’s a champ and never seemed to complain. She didn’t progress much through the night. They did give her a little something to help her get some sleep. We both tried to get some rest but I don’t think either of us were able to sleep much.

So here we are at 7:15am. She is about 3 cm and the contractions seem to be fairly mild at the moment. Sometime this morning the doctor is expected to break Kaci’s water which will take this game to another level. So we wait.

Last Thursday our small group thrrew us a pre-Pablo party at the Kennedy’s house. Pablo is what they lovingly call our baby. We had a wonderful time at our last small group before he comes, hanging out, eating cake and getting some good talks in. We are so thankful to have such an amazing group of friends praying for our baby. We thank each one of them for their love and support through out the pregnancy. We can’t wait for everyone to meet him!

Yesterday Melissa was so kind as to take some maternity photos for Kaci and I. Which meas we had the opportunity to pose awkwardly in a public place and try and make it look natural. Which is surprising a lot of fun. I posed in whatever manner they told me to and tried not to look like a complete goon. Kaci on the other hand looked great and will probably be seen on the next installment of America’s Next Top Model. …Or are they only doing transvestites now? Who knows. It’s not really my area. In any case we’re excited to see the final photos and maybe we’ll actually put something in all those empty frames on the wall.

We also had another doctors appointment yesterday. Still looking good. Kaci is now 2 centimeters and 80% effaced. Which is fancy doctor talk for “he’s coming soon”. But only God knows for sure and he’s not saying.

Had another doctor’s appointment today. Everything is looking really good. Baby is in position, head down, has dropped and I am 1 centimeter dilated. Funny thing is I had my due date wrong. Looks like my due date is October 24 not the 23. Oh well, I’ll take another day. Not that you can base everything on that due date cause honestly it can happen any time now. We are ready to see him! Feels exciting and scary at the same time.

Well here we are only 19 days away from my due date. Seems crazy to think. I’m definitely ready though. Life is getting pretty hard. Bending over to pick up something that I’ve dropped is no longer an option. My feet are swelling up to where my toes look like lil sausages They (moms) say the last few weeks of pregnancy are tough and boy are they right. I can’t complain too much, I’ve had such a wonderful pregnancy. Now I just can’t wait to see his beautiful face. Had my doctors appointment last Tuesday and she said that everything is looking good and baby is in good position (head down).

Daniel and I are trying to relax and enjoy our last days together just the two of us. We spent today out on the lake for what will probably be one of the last, if not the last, weekend on the lake before lil ariza monster comes. It was a beautiful day!

Here I am at the lake at 37 weeks and 2 days.