Keeping Up with the Taylor Tots: Welcoming Elise Catherine!

At 10:16am on January 16th (my dad's birthday!), we welcomed Elise Catherine to the world! What a joyous day! She weighed in at 7 lbs 1oz and measured 19 1/4 inches long.

I was determined to work up until her birth so I had as much time as possible to spend with her once she arrived. Fortunately, my boss was very flexible and had allowed me to work from home. The only challenge with this plan was that when my labor did set in around 9:30pm on January 15th, I was tired! I had worked all day, we had just put Ashton to bed and sat down to dinner ourselves when I started feeling 'funny'.  Since my water broke with Ashton and I ultimately had to be induced because contractions weren't happening on their own, I wasn't really sure if what I was feeling was in fact the real thing though.

So, I carried on...never one to skip a meal, I had dinner and tried to relax with some TV.  Things seemed like they were getting more intense though, so I decided to get in the shower - just in case. :) Afterwards, I laid down to try and get some rest and then at about 2am called my doctor. She advised us to come to the hospital. Fortunately, my mom was staying with us so we got our stuff together, woke her up, kissed Ashton goodbye and headed downtown to the hospital.

By the time we arrived, my contractions had increased and I was pretty sure at that point it was the real deal.  Turns out, I was right; I was 4.5 cm dilated. I knew I was getting an epidural this time around so at 6:30am and about 5.5cm, I called uncle. What sweet relief! I could rest finally as I was super tired. We turned down the lights, kicked on Pandora and zoned out to some chill music. Around 8am, my water was broken since I hadn't progressed very far. Two hours later, at 10cm, I was ready to push! It was all such a peaceful process - so much so that Jeff had to be woken up! After literally 2 or 3 pushes, Elise made her grand entrance. It was honestly surreal - it all happened so quickly!

What a sweet baby girl! Elise Catherine, you are such a blessing and we're so glad to have you in our lives!