You Are Here!

Sweet Baby Girl… It has already been over six weeks since you came into this world. It is so hard to believe that you have been here that long- and yet it seems like forever. This is Mama writing by the way. I want to use this blog as a way to let you know how I really, truly, feel about you while you are too young to understand it.

So, let’s start from the beginning. Mama and Daddy got married on May 28, 2011. On July 6, 2011 Mama found out she was pregnant with you. And she was scared. It was really scary because I didn’t think I was ready to be a Mommy just yet. After the shock wore off, we were both really excited that you were going to be in our life.

Your due date was March 7, 2012. Originally I wanted you to be born on March 10th, as it would be the beginning of Spring Break for my kiddos. (I am a Middle School Spanish teacher at Eastgate Middle School in North Kansas City, MO). However, you had other plans.

I started bleeding a lot after church on January 29th. Because of that I had to stay in the hospital for four days and then stay home on bed-rest for a while. After that little scare, I had a few episodes of Braxton-Hicks contractions, and we thought you were coming!! (You decided to play tricks on me). Finally, March 7th came and went and there was still no little baby! My doctor, Dr. Tom Kettler, scheduled an induction for the night of March 11th.

Daddy and I went into the hospital that night at 9:30. Grandma and Grandpa Culp drove down from Minnesota so they could be there when you were born. Everyone was so excited for you to come. You are the first grandchild on either side of the family- and I know you are going to be spoiled (even though daddy doesn’t like that).

They started Cervadil at 11:00 p.m., which was supposed to get Mama’s cervix all ready for you to come. The nurse told me that even though it shouldn’t, she thought the Cervadil would put me into labor. (I was 2-3 cm and 60% effaced before they started). Boy was she right. I started having contractions at about 2:30 a.m. the morning of March 12th, but I thought they were probably just Braxton-Hicks again and just waited for a while. At 3:00 a.m. they were hurting enough that I woke up Daddy, and things just kept going at lightning speed from there!

By 5:30 a.m. I was in a ton of pain and was throwing up with the contractions, so I asked for the epidural.  The anesthesiologist was my new best friend, and I told him that when he came in the room at 5:45 a.m.. He was great, waited during contractions, and got the epidural placed correctly the first time. He was done by 6:15, and in that time I had gone from 6 to 9 cm. You were just ready to come into the world!!

Dr. Kettler arrived at 6:45, and checked me, saying I was complete. My water never broke, so he had to do that for me. He waited for a little bit, and had me start pushing at a little after 7:00. You got stuck on my pelvic bone, and Dr. Kettler had to lube your head and give me an episiotomy to help you come out. You arrived at 7:31 a.m. on March 12, 2012.

I was so happy to be your Mama that I started crying. I didn’t get to hold you right away because you had meconium in your fluid and had to be checked out by the NICU team. Daddy was so amazed by you that he couldn’t even speak. The NICU team gave you a clean bill of health, and then the nurses started cleaning you up and getting you ready. They weighed you, and told me that you were a big little baby girl at 7 lbs 14.5 oz. and 19” long. You were short and compact :)

Mama was getting sewn up from her 4th degree tear, so I didn’t get to hold you for almost 30 minutes… and it seemed like forever. The nurse gave you your first shots before you came over and you did not like that at all. You kept screaming and screaming, and I felt awful. It made me so sad to hear you scream, even though you couldn’t produce tears yet.

They finally brought you over to me and I was so incredibly happy. I loved you immediately more than I have ever loved anyone, even Daddy. You were very alert for the first few hours and you kept looking at me with your beautiful dark blue eyes. You had only a little bit of brown hair, which made your Daddy really happy, and we couldn’t even really see your eyebrows at all.

You nursed after a little bit, and then Grandma and Grandpa Culp got to come in and meet you. They were so excited!!

This is the first picture of you!! (Grandpa is holding you in this picture) We hadn’t told anyone your name, and had been calling you “Baby Girl” to everyone. When Grandma and Grandpa came in we told them your name, Noelle Marie, and they loved it.

We just spent the first few days holding you and loving you. You were so little! Everyone kept saying you were the most beautiful baby, which you were and are. You are our first little baby, and will always be my Sweet Baby Girl. I love you oh-so-much.

Love,

Mama