Birth Story - December 26, 2014

Well, another little boy has made our way into this world. Our late Christmas present. I feel like I was much more coherent this time around and remember most everything that happened... So here we go.

We arrived at the hospital at 7 in the morning on Friday, December, 26, 2014 at St. Johns Medical Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. We went to our delivery suite where we settled in for the delivery of our new itty bitty. I will say that the last several weeks had been pretty difficult, a lot of pain in my hips and pelvic region... I couldn't move in bed, needed help sitting, standing up, and walking hurt like heck. We did what we could to try and induce naturally but had no luck and honestly I couldn't take the discomfort anymore so induction was the name of the game.

It took about an hour to get the show on the road and to start the dreaded pitocin. I started out at about 4cm dilation and 75% effaced, I was having inconsistent contractions for the last couple of weeks but were unable to really feel them. It didn't take long at all for the pitocin to make it's presence known and the real contractions started. Mr. W was a champ, he would count down my contractions for me and let me squeeze the tarnations out of his hand as they came and went about every 2 minutes or so tilted slightly on my left side. 7cm in and around 10:00 I asked for an epidural, the pain was unreal and I was gripping the guard rails for dear life. This is unfortunately where things started going wonky. The anesthesiologist came in, and because of hospital policy Mr. W went out - spouses weren't allowed in the room while epidurals are administered. While the nurse and Dr. discussed their holiday schedules he attempted twice to administer my epidural before he said he was successful. The pain while he was administering it was crazy. I could feel the epidural needle in my back both times and I just had to sit there perfectly still and take it. God only knows how I didn't move during it. I then felt the "ice chill" down my back and was relieved that my pain relief was well on it's way. They kept asking if my feet were getting heavier, but the heavy feet never came, the dullness of the contractions never happened... I kept pushing the button every 15 minutes for more medication but all that happened was my stomach numbed from my chest to my belly button... which if you've ever been in labor that isn't really where your pain occurs. Because I had a epidural I had to get a catheter. I assume the nurse just assumed that my  numbing was taking a little longer but was in the process because she began inserting it, and I WASN'T numb. Oh my lanta. There are NO words of the pain of getting a catheter and not being numbed. I think that was the only time I cried and maybe let out a shout. That hurt like crazy.

It took about 50 minutes for them to do the epidural attempts, and I sat there feeling everything for about hour. When they were going to go get the anesthesiologist to see about trying the epidural again they decided to check dilation, in that hour I dilated to 10cm and the urge to push started. I started saying I couldn't do it, I wanted to go home, squeezing Mr. W's hand and the guard rail of the bed. The pain was unreal. I laid there trying not to push while they started preparing the room for the delivery. I vaguely remember  my doctor coming in and me jokingly mentioning that I got a epidural and it didn't work in between the contractions I was having. At about 12:20 it was time to start pushing, I had to be convinced to hold my legs because all I wanted to do was hold the rails of the bed. It took about 11 minutes of pushing, before he made his arrival.

So I unintentionally had a over 10 pound baby all natural. Where's my medal? Haha! Labor and delivery were crazy intense.... but the moment that he was placed in my arms it all melted away and I was just happy he was in my arms finally. Raiden is adjusting to life as a big brother still. We went to Texas the day after he was born for some reinforcement from my parents and sister. We spent a week there before we headed back home to settle in to life with our new addition. It is overwhelming, crazy, and just plain exhausting... but absolutely amazing. That being said... I think I am good waiting several years before you hear another birth story come out of me! I am good with just me && my boys.

Kingston Augustus Gotham Williams

Born on December 26, 2014 @ 12:31PM

10 pounds 4 ounces, 22 inches long

Dear Kingston,

Dear Kingston,

I haven't met you yet. I am 39 weeks + 2 days pregnant with you. I did something similar for your brother - Writing you before I even had a chance to meet - and figured I would carry on the tradition. You have been a whole different cup of tea in terms of pregnancy then your brother was. Not to say he didn't provide his difficulties, but you my little man, wanted your presence to be known from the get go and always made sure you weren't too far off in my thoughts with your insistence of  kicking, flipping, squirming, and rolling. And this last month... Wow, you stepped up your game. With that being said I am really ready for your appearance. Yes, the introduction to your letter probably isn't as sentimental and sappy as your  brother's was. But something your father and I have learned is that there is a difference between facing parenthood for the first time and going at it a second time.

It's hard to believe we are about to start this new journey, your big brother will be roughly just 21 months old when you are born. I am excited to see the bond that you two develop over time. My hope is that in your brother you find your best friend. Someone to weather the storm with, someone to share secrets with, someone to share laughs with... He is too young to understand right now that you are about to enter his life, but I already know that he will love you instantly.

Your dad and I are already smitten with the thought of you.... Scared, but smitten all the same. We are so excited to meet you, to add you to our family, and you don't know how many people are out there that are anxiously waiting for your arrival!

Just as I did with your brother you are a constant in my daily prayers. Prayers of guidance, strength, and abundant love for you my child. Prayers that we raise you boys with the care and thoughtfulness that you deserve. Prayers that when we mess up and make mistakes we are still able to use it to teach you, and that you will have the open heart to listen and take in what it is that we teach. We hope and pray that we make you as proud as you make us. I pray that I do my due diligence in recognizing at all times that although you are close in age to your brother, that you are your own individual and to treat you as such at all times.

My promise to you is that I will always be there for you, that we will always be there for you. To hold on tight when you want us to, and to let you go when you need us to. All any parent can hope for is to always show a outpouring of love with a open mind and a kind heart and that it reflects in their children as they grow.

Soon our family of 3 will become a family of 4... and you are by far the most amazing Christmas present any of us could ask for. We love you with every fiber of our being Kingston... and we are so ready to meet you!

Your mom.

This should be my 29 week update

...but it's not.

October marks the beginning of my favorite times of the year - The 'ber' months. October also is my husband's and my anniversary month, not wedding, but the anniversary of when we decided to give the whole dating thing a try. I recently had a girls night and briefly discussed our relationship but it really got me thinking.

Honestly, Devin and I went through a lot of trials that first year together. The fact that we came out of it intact is surprising. We both put each other through the ringer. We were young, I had my issues, he had his. But even when we argued I knew I didn't want to argue with anyone else. And somehow we made it past that first year... And here we are now, married for a couple years, with a beautiful little boy and another on the way.

So many people we associated ourselves with back when we started dating doomed our relationship from the get go. Giving it an expiration date again and again. This October marks 7 amazing years and the foundation that our relationship is built on continues to get stronger and stronger. Sure there has been storms weathered and cracks in the foundation, but we've repaired them and have continued to build to it along the way together.

And then there were those people who never really knew either of us outside of a casual friendship who thought we were just the perfect couple. We are far from perfect. Our relationship has had its turbulence. The only different between us and the relationships of so many 20-somethings we know is that we went into this knowing it wasn't going to just be all sunshine and cupcakes. We knew it was going to take work.

Marriage is not something that is effortless. It is a daily effort to nurture it, grow it, and maintain it. It is a daily effort to go out of your way to make sure your spouse knows how much you love them and how important they are. You must take care and and time every single day, even if it is a simple text. It gets harder when kids come into the picture, you aren't just husband and wife, you are mommy and daddy. But you still have to uphold your relationship with your husband with the utmost importance and respect. Never taking for granted your spouse, never forgetting them, never replacing them.

Back when Devin and I were just flirty 21 year olds I never thought that I would fall in love with Devin, even if I could stretch the imagination enough to see potentially dating him, marrying and having children with him wasn't even in my realm of possibility. It's funny looking back because I can see how into him I was but how much I held back because of something as silly as race. But everything has it's season and I am glad that we ended up getting together when we did because it unfolded as it should have and might not have if we had gotten together any earlier.

Having the privilege of watching Devin grow into the man, the husband, and the father that he is today is truly a blessing. Getting to know him, being a friend, being his girlfriend, eventually becoming his wife. I truly appreciate the 7 years we have spent together and look forward to all the years ahead. Growing old together and having that type of connection with another person that you always hope for. Because that is what he is to me... Our relationship, is everything and more that I could ask for. I am forever grateful for the opportunity to have such an intimate and gratifying relationship and to have that type of person in my life because not everyone is so fortunate.He truly is my one true love, and I thank God everyday that I found him.

Happy 7 years my beloved. Your love astounds me, supports me, and lifts my spirit in a way that nothing else can. You gave me a beautiful gift by giving me your heart, and then took it even a step further and gave me the gift of becoming a mother. There is no one else I would rather share my life with, raise children with, or lay my head next to at night. The fact that you chose me, you gave yourself to me, you love me... I couldn't be more grateful. I hold my relationship with you in the highest regards. You are truly an amazing man and I am honored that you chose me to be by your side come what may. Thank you for showing me a love that I thought only existed in fairy tales. You make me a better person and make me strive to be better. You are my love, my best friend - and knowing you is knowing the best of me. You're an amazing individual and I love you.

Here is to the root of the root and the bud of the bud and the sky of the sky. I will always carry your heart.

Oh yeah... Blogging.

So I am absolutely horrible with updating my pregnancy on here this time around. Things are just so different with work AND a toddler. When I find time to myself the last thing I want to do is get on the computer after work and getting the little man down for bed. So... Sorry.

I am 25 weeks pregnant today. 25 WEEKS!? Seriously. Time is going at warp speed here. So much has happened in the last several weeks I don't even know where to begin. Directly after unveiling Baby W #2's name we were accused of "stealing" his name... that was fun. Then a week later we had a not so perfect visit for or 5 month OBGYN and discovered I had complete placenta previa. Our doctor was concerned of rupturing placenta, and in a town our small we would be faced with losing Kingston, or even on top of that me bleeding out. It is when you're faced with real issues that the trivial seem even more absurd then before.

Was put on pelvic rest - I am so glad to report that at our 6 month visit my placenta had migrated by itself and it seems we are almost in the clear. Just praying for the additional movement needed for my doctor to consider me in the clear. If it doesn't move I will remain on pelvic rest and they will schedule a c-section for me.

(This was last week - 24 weeks 1 day)

How far along? 25 weeks

Total weight gain: 15lb.

Maternity clothes? Nope

Stretch marks? no

Sleep: I wake up once a night to use the bathroom

Best moment last week: A good visit with the OBGYN!

Miss Anything? Sandwiches. I want deli meat SO badly!

Movement: Kingston kicks the most late at night and early in the morning. You can physically see it now.

Food cravings: Grilled chicken salads... mmmmm

Anything making you queasy or sick: Just when it is too hot out.

Labor Signs: I started getting legit contractions a month ago. I get them every couple of days but my cervix is closed so it is nothing to be concerned with.

Symptoms: All of them!

Belly Button in or out? in but I don't think for all that much longer

Wedding rings on or off? on

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy!

Looking forward to: Getting the boys room cleared out to start decorating this month!

The Name Game

We kept Raiden's name a secret on my blog until after he was born. Not quite sure why but we did and he was affectionately titled Baby W until d-day. Raiden's name selection was tedious and never ending it felt like, even right up to the day he was born we were tinkering with possibly changing his middle name, we ended up sticking with our original name.

With Baby #2 we started picking girls names shortly after finding out we were pregnant. My husband was so convinced it was a girl that I think he not only convinced himself and me but also everyone else around us as well. When the she was discovered to be a he the best thing was that we had our name list from when we were expecting Raiden to go off of - Only a handful of names from that list stayed on for this name game of choosing our next son's name.

There was one name, always persistently on our higher up choices, always mentioned when people asked for what names we were thinking of, and one that is close to our hearts. Mr. W and I were married in Jamaica in June of 2012, it was an experience and trip that touched us in so many ways and stayed with us. Honoring that trip, our nuptials, and our love of Jamaica in general seemed natural for both of us. We thought of this name for Raiden but decided to go a different route, but 2 years later it is still something we love and the meaning behind it. This explains the first name.

The middle name, many would probably agree is a little 'out there.' While I don't think that the middle name is just free game for whatever crazy or oddity that strikes your fancy, I do think there is more room to play with the name. I mean the only people that use my middle name when addressing me, are occasionally my parents, my friend Amanda, and my husband jokingly every now and then. Raiden has my initials, RJ, and because of that I really wanted Mr. W to have more influence. He wanted something that paid homage to something that he held dear all through his childhood and life in general. Initially I wasn't just ecstatic about the idea, but I warmed up to it pretty quickly since it was something that really meat a lot to the husband. We wanted something distinctive - After considering how popular location names have become... No one said it couldn't be a fictional location.

So with that, I don't think anymore explanation is necessary, and I am sure 98% of my friends just scrolled to the bottom to see the name anyways...

Baby Williams #2 is named, so awesomely...

Week 19

Week 19 is upon us and as we near the halfway mark we also finalized our newest addition's name! I think I am going to start a list of things you shouldn't say to a pregnant woman because I forgot how rude or insensitive so many people are to you when you're pregnant.

I've also started getting pieces for my Fall/Winter wardrobe. Of course it's still all Buckle all the time, this time around I am really committed to not buying one single maternity item of clothing. So far so good. My Fall wardrobe --> Tights, tank tops, cardigans, && boots. Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezey.

How far along? 19 weeks & 2 days

Total weight gain: 4 pound
Maternity clothes? Nope
Stretch marks? no
Sleep: I still wake up to nurse little man.
Best moment last week: Had some quality time with the husband and baby boy.
Miss Anything? My figure!
Movement: Kicking every here and there, mostly at night.
Food cravings: Mint chocolate chip ice cream
Anything making you queasy or sick: This heat!
Labor Signs: No
Symptoms: Exhaustion.
Belly Button in or out? in
Wedding rings on or off? on
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy!
Looking forward to: Our 20 week ultrasound!

Week 18 #BabyWilliams2

So I have been horrible at updating my pregnancy here - Which you would think I would be just as good or not better then last time around because now I am actually updating people because all our family and friends live so far away from us. But life is different then it was when I was going around this merry go round last time. Now I have a toddler to wrangle and keeping up a full time work load.

So I am 18 weeks along. Crazy to think we are almost half way though this adventure. It's been a very different pregnancy then the last one. I had MAJOR food aversion that still comes and goes from time to time. I lost all the weight I had initially gained and as of today I am a pound over my pre-pregnancy weight.

We also found out on July 9th that we are having another boy with a 3d ultrasound!

How far along? 18 weeks

Total weight gain: 1 pound
Maternity clothes? Nope
Stretch marks? no
Sleep: I sleep anyway I can - with co-sleeping I have to work around a little 15 month old.
Best moment last week: I started feeling kicks here and there.
Miss Anything? My appetite.
Movement: A little but not too much.. 
Food cravings: Nope - I wish.
Anything making you queasy or sick: The thought of food period has a tendency to make my stomach turn.
Labor Signs: No
Symptoms: Exhaustion.
Belly Button in or out? in
Wedding rings on or off? on
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy!
Looking forward to: Finalizing a name!