The Story...

I was very anxious for this delivery once I found out I tested positive for strep B again. I had it with Kate as well, and she came so fast, that I almost didn't have time to receive my antibiotics that protect the baby from getting sick. I was worried it would happen again, so we scheduled to be induced September 22, a few days before my due date, to hopefully avoid that again.

I have been late with my other two pregnancies, so I had no reason to think that I would be anything but late with this one too. Matt had scheduled a trip to Las Vegas for work on Thursday, September 17th, and as long as I felt good, he was going to go. The night before he was supposed to leave, I felt fine about him leaving, so he printed off his boarding pass and got ready to go. When he woke up that morning at 5 to leave, he had the strongest feeling not to go to Las Vegas. When he talked to me about it, I said I felt fine, but if he felt he shouldn't go, that he shouldn't go. We went back to sleep. When I woke up at 7, I got up to go to the bathroom, and I was wet. I've never had my water break before labor starts, so I assumed that's what it was. We called our brother-in-law over and rushed to the hospital (again, thinking that if I was in labor, we needed to go and get those antibiotics). We got there, they checked me out, said it wasn't my water, let me stay for an hour to see if contractions started, and when they didn't sent me home. (Because I was 1 day shy of being 39 weeks, they wouldn't admit me and give me pitocin to get things rolling) Bummer!

I came home, jumped around with Tanner at Kindermusik, went walking, tried some other stuff, and then laid down to take a nap. As soon as I laid down, I started having contractions again. But this time, they were coming pretty regularly and they were getting stronger. I told Matt we better go back to the hospital. We got there at 4:45, the nurse checked me out, admitted me, gave me my first dose of antibiotics and then it was just a matter of waiting. They couldn't give me a second dose until 8:30, so we waited...

Right before my epidural.

Since I was induced with Tanner and Kate came so quickly, I wanted to see what real labor felt like. I went as long as I could, had one painful, REALLY painful contraction and then asked for my epidural. Once I had my epidural, they checked me and I was dilated to an 8! That was probably at about 7:45 or so. Ahhh, sweet epidural. It kicked in and life was good. By 8:30, they gave me the 2nd dose of antibiotics and checked me. I was at a 10, but my water hadn't broken yet, so I wasn't feeling the need to push. The doctor came in and broke my water at 8:55 and Andersen was born at 8:58. It only took one big push and one little one, and he was here! I am so grateful everything went well with the delivery.

Right after, you'd think he'd be a bit bigger with how big my tummy was, but he's just my little guy.

Holding him for the first time, it was only for a second then they had to rush him to the nursery. His heart rate was normal, but his breathing was really shallow, so they wanted to check him out to make sure everything was fine. Matt went down to the nursery with Andersen and I stayed in my room and went to sleep.

Showing his muscles!

About an hour later, Matt came back and said Andersen was doing great. They had to take some x-rays and found some cloudiness in his lungs, which ended up being the aerioles (sp?)in his lungs, they weren't quite working to full capacity. They gave him a c-pap breathing treatment for an hour and everything was registering normal again.

Matt least favorite stage with babies has been the newborn stage. Because they are so dependent on their mama for everything, he just feels he hasn't been able to bond with them until they were a little older. The sweetest thing with Andersen is that he was able to go in the nursery and be with him for the first hour and a half of his life. He said he was wide awake and alert, he was talking to him, singing him songs and being able to create that bond. It is so heart warming to see how much he feels towards this little guy. I am so glad he was able to have that experience.

After the breathing treatment, me getting to hold my baby and just look at him and study his every feature and facial expression. I love new babies, it is such a miracle to have them, I feel so blessed to have 3 healthy, beautiful children!!

The next morning, the kids came to meet their little brother. Kate jumped up in the bed with me and wanted to hold him right away. I love how she is looking down at him. She's going to be a great big sister!!

LOVE this picture!! (Minus my puffy swollen body, I LOVE the after effects of having a baby). =)

My 3 children!! I can't believe I'm a mother of 3!!

Me and Kate are officially out-numbered! But that's okay, I'll take these three good-looking guys any day!!

Tanner is sooooo proud of his baby brother. He just can't figure out why he wants to sleep all day and not play with toys???

Can't you just feel the special bond they have? Look at the trust in his eyes as he glares up at Matt. I love this picture!!

So that's the story! Yes, I did actually go into labor early, a whole 8 days early! I'm so, so grateful that Matt didn't go to Las Vegas, and I am so, so grateful that my water didn't break, even though I was at a 10, which allowed me to get the 2nd dose of antibiotics, which allowed Andersen to be born healthy. I am just so grateful for everyday miracles!!

6 was too many...

About a week before Andersen was born, Matt went out of town for work. It was then that I realized that I would NOT be able to handle our 4th child when the baby came, especially when Matt would have to travel for work. I told Matt that we needed to make a change.

We sat down with the kids and told them that with a new baby coming mommy's and daddy's responsibilities would increase. We explained how Tapio was one responsibility that we were worried about, that with the baby's needs, and Tanner's needs, and Kate's needs, that he might be forgotten. Of course they weren't too happy, so we asked them if we should get rid of Kate instead? They both said, no, no! Then we asked if we should get rid of Tanner? Again, no, no.

So, it was agreed that we would sell Tapio to a family who could give him a lot of attention and somewhere where he would not be forgotten. Within a few days, we found a perfect home for him. I bet he doesn't even miss us. We will miss you Tapio, you were a fun dog, we just got you at the wrong time. 10 years from now would have worked much better.

Oh, but Matt did promise the kids a replacement pet. Meet the new "Tapio:"

Tanner loves that this pet can sleep right next to him in bed.

Ahhh, everyone (ESPECIALLY me) is happy! =)

Andersen James Jesperson...

He's here...

Andersen James Jesperson

(Andersen after my Mother's family heritage and James after Matt's Grandpa Jesperson)

Born September 17, 2009

Weighing 6 pounds 15.5 ounces (7 pounds)

18 1/2 inches long

He is so cute and has us all smitten!

More pictures and labor story to come...

BYU (14) - Oklahoma (13): WE WERE THERE!

This was easily the most intense, exciting sporting event I have ever been too. The teams, the implications, the stunning venue, and the multiple emotional swings from heartbreak to elation, combined for a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

Summer Climbing

This summer has been one of the best. Thanks to phenomenal climbing buddies and the best wife on earth! Here's a short summary of photos from recent climbs in Wyoming. More pics and good stories on my Mountain Album Website.

New Tannerisms and Kate-isms!!

Enjoy! These two keep me laughing all the time!

Jonny and Leah get married!!!

Yesterday Jonny, Matt's brother got married to the most wonderful girl, Leah. We love her so much and are so grateful she is now part of our family. Matt's other brother, Ryan, got married about 4 months ago, and his wife Becky is also awesome!! I couldn't be more excited for the new sister-in-law's I'm lucky to have.

But back to yesterday...lovely day, didn't start out so lovely with it raining, or pouring I should say, but after the ceremony, the rest of the day was just gorgeous. And 70 degrees for the middle of August, we really lucked out! They had their reception in Matt's parent's backyard and was just perfect! (Matt's parents are supposed to be in Mexico right now on their mission, but some boundary changes in the mission have held them back a little bit. But it was sure nice that they were both able to be there).

After the temple ceremony. They got married in the Mt. Timpanogos temple. (My personal favorite, that's where Matt and I were married). I love this picture because Tanner is doing his airplane arms. I love it!

Jonny and Leah, aren't they the most beautiful couple?!!

The Jesperson's, minus Lauren, Matt's sister, who is on a LDS mission in Oakland, CA. And yes, I know I look like I'm about to pop! I feel like it too, less than 6 weeks left...and definitely counting. =)

Kate was on could 9 that she matched "Pretty Princess Leah." She's convinced that she's ready to get married in the temple now because she has a pretty white dress. ( I LOVE this age!!)

Kate loved the little bouquet of flowers that I had, why...because they were just like Leah's of course. I had to many things to worry about, so I didn't have a camera, but I grabbed Matt's grandma's camera and snatched this photo of her. I LOVE it. And the bruise on her head (she got it a week ago when she ran into the corner of the wall in my room) only adds to the personality of this picture. She's definitely my rough and tumble girly girl. =)

This one is blurry because she was twirling, but I love this shot. She seriously thought she was a princess last night. I LOVE it!

Can you believe the brothers would take advantage of their beautiful sister Lauren when she was completely defenseless and unable to defend herself. Of course they wouldn't have been doing this if she was there in person, right guys? You know La would kick your trash! =)

The yard looked so beautiful! I absolutely loved the colors Leah choose, they were just gorgeous in the backyard. Great taste Leah!

Dancing the night away. We really had to try to keep them happy towards the end. When you're used to going to bed at 7:30 every night, you aren't very happy at 9:00, but Matt was amazing at entertaining these two so we could be there for all the festivities...

...But most importantly to keep them up so they could see Jonny and Leah get blasted by the TONS of baby powder we poured down their A/C vents in their car. Talk about the best decorating trick ever, what a great idea Becky!!

Again, Congratulations Jonny and Leah! We sure love you guys!

Epic Duet!

I have the BEST husband in the entire world!! Matt took the kids this weekend so I could go down to Las Vegas with some of my friends to go to The David Archuleta concert. We got the VIP tickets which were so worth every penny! Before the concert, they had a VIP meet and greet where we were able to go into this small room and have an intimate acoustical performance from David. It was incredible. There were only like 100 people there. So cool!! We were also able to get our pictures taken with him. And even though I wasn't thrilled to get a picture 7 1/2 months pregnant where my face looks super chubby (especially in this not very good picture of me), it's pretty cool that I will be able to have this to put in my scrap book!

But that's not even the best part...they had a raffle where they chose 3 people from the audience to come up to the front to ask David a question. I was one of the 3 chosen. So when I got up there, I asked him if I could sing with him. He said yes! We sang part of his beautiful song, "To Be With You." Here's a recording of it. The first minute or so we are just chatting, then he starts singing, sings part of the first verse and I come in with the harmony part for the chorus. It was seriously one of the COOLEST experiences of my life. I loved every minute of it!! I SANG WITH DAVID ARCHULETA!!!!!

Independence Day 2009!

Here's Tanner and Kate in their patriotic attire wishing everyone a very Happy 4th of July! I hope everyone had a great weekend. We had a very fun, but long day on Saturday. Here's the rundown:

6:00 a.m. - Woke the kids up to go see the hot air balloons. (didn't actually get out of the car, just drove by and let the kids watch from the car, they were happy with that).

7:00 a.m. - Went to the parade route and hung out with family while waiting for parade to start.

9:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. - Provo parade!! The kids had a blast! They loved the balloons, the dinosaur float, the army trucks, the motorcycles, and Kate especially liked the beauty queen floats, or the "princesses" as she would say.

12:00 p.m. - quick lunch

12:30p.m. - 3:00 p.m. - Family nap! Even Tanner fell asleep. It was very nice!

4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. - Swimming with cousins

5:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. - Family BBQ!! So much yummy food! I love having SO many great cooks in the family!

9:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m. - Our very own fireworks show with our cousins. It's so fun to be able to do your own fireworks in Utah. In Texas, it was illegal, so I never experienced that growing up. Tanner and Kate loved it, especially the sparklers that they could hold all on their very own.

10:00 p.m. - Fireworks watching party at our good friends house. We could see Stadium of Fire from her front yard. Very cool! Again, tons of yummy food, but my poor pregnant belly was stuffed, so I didn't eat too much.

11:00 p.m. - Everyone in bed fast asleep, especially mom. =)

Here are a few pictures of when the kids were swimming and I actually remembered to pull my camera out. I hope my brain comes back after the baby is born, because I sure feel "air-head-ish" these days.

This is what Kate called her "Shamu pose." (We went to Sea World last week when we were in San Diego).

Kate cracks me up! Her mannerisms, her giant vocabulary, and how she puts the two together can keep my laughing for hours. Tanner was too busy swimming and jumping off the diving board with his cousins to pose for any pictures. At least I got him in a couple.