Welcoming Nora~The First Week

Many people have asked me how having four kids is. Well, maybe the fact that I haven't blogged any of the fourth child's life and it has been a month and a half since I have posted anything will give you an idea! Life is busy but it is all worth it :)

Here is a little of the story of welcoming Nora:

Here I am the night before I delivered. Nora was my fourth scheduled induction! I am four for four on having my children this way.
Nora ended up being my longest labor of all! I went in at 7 AM, got the Pitocin going at 8 AM, and didn't have here until 2:22 PM. Since Coy took all of 2.5 hours, I was kind of expecting that again, but no such luck! This was also the labor with the most painful contractions I've ever experienced! I don't think I even quite made it to a 4 dilation before I was begging for an epidural! I guess they are all different! She gave us a little scare right before she came when her heart rate dropped drastically. We soon found out it was because she had the cord tightly wrapped around her head and hand. Thus, she was black and blue! We didnt' know quite what she looked like for the first little while since she was so swollen! Here is her right after birth mugshot:
Here she is in her little bassinet at the hospital. After several nurses about fainted when seeing her as they would come in the room to check on us, they decided it would be best to put a little sign in her bassinet that said "I'm bruised." It got a little comical to see them gasp as they thought she was purple from suffocation.
Little did we know that she later would really turn purple as she started choking on amniotic fluid that first night! She was taken from me for over 4 hours as she was watched and had her stomach pumped to get it all out. She had me so worried that night! I also was worried because she had some very unique ears! I was worried that they were a sign of a more serious problem, but after talking to no less than 3 different pediatricians about them, I was assured that they were nothing to worry about! (She has actually almost grown out of them as of today.) See how the tops of here ears kind of form an "M"?
Here are a few more precious shots of her at the hospital. Oh, she is so sweet!!!
All ready to go home! Kind of bittersweet! I just love the days in the hospital getting to know a newborn without the cares of home. Mylie got to come with us to get her ready and take her home. She was in heaven! She even got some alone time with her before the boys came home.
Here is her coming home outfit. Of course it drowned her!
First sponge bath at home. She was very alert! She especially loved getting her hair washed under the faucet.
Coy is SO in love with her! I love hearing him talk in his high pitched, sing-song voice to her.
And some more pictures. I can't believe how much she has grown since these were taken! And I can't believe just how bruised her face was. It took a long time for her black eyes to go away completely!
We are so happy to have Nora, even if it means I can't get anything done! She is just so sweet and precious and such a wonderful gift from heaven!