We have started to settle into a routine!  I am now getting some sleep (AMEN!) and everyone is doing great!  Josh and I are getting good at reading her cries..."I'm hungry" vs. "I'm tired" etc.  All of our visitors have come and gone.  It's back to normal.  Except a new version of normal.  The dogs are getting used to their new sister as well.  Mugsy is always concerned when he hears her crying.  Monty could care less about her unless she is being held by me.  Then he goes into sad dog mode.  I try to make sure to give them some time each day too.

This week Juliette went to the pediatrician for a checkup.  She has gone from 5 lbs. 10 oz. (her discharge weight from the hospital) to 6 lbs. 7 oz. today.  At our lactation appointment three days ago she was 6 lbs. 4 oz.  Not too shabby for only 15 days worth of eating!  About an ounce a day!  She has also grown from 18 3/4 inches long to 20 inches long.  She is eating like a little piggie.  She consumes between 2-3 oz. at each feeding.  Her next pediatrician appointment isn't until April.  At that appointment, she gets immunizations.  Daddy will have to take her to that appointment since Mommy will not be able to watch!

Last week Juliette had her newborn photo shoot by Meghan who was also our wedding photographer last year.  The pictures we have seen so far are soooooooo adorable.  We should get them back in a week or so!  I can't wait to put together her birth announcements!

So far, so good!  We are catching on to this parenting thing pretty well so far!  

We welcomed Juliette home on Saturday, February 16th.  The real adventures have begun!  She got her first bath...and a second one already.  Took a trip into St.Augustine, took our first walk around the neighborhood, slept through her first Stonewood meal and had some visitors!

As I write this let me start by saying, it's 4:40 a.m. I've had possibly 10 hours of sleep (total) in the past week.  Juliette is FINALLY drifting off to sleep in my arms.  And I wouldn't change a thing.

The Grueling Process
Monday, February 11
10:30 a.m.
We head into what becomes our last prenatal visit.  After checking my blood pressure for the millionth time, I get sent back up to Labor & Delivery.  This time, I am not leaving empty handed.  I get admitted.  

12 p.m.
They check my cervix. Only 1 cm dilated.  The doctor determines that I will need cervidil to ripen my cervix.

8 p.m.
I eat my last meal.  Fried chicken, turnip greens and macaroni & cheese.

9 p.m.
Cervidil starts.  Throughout the night I am given fentanyl to help with the pain.  The fentanyl works for about 45 minutes each time.  And I have to wait two hours before they can give me any more.  It hurt.  A lot.

Tuesday, February 12
7 a.m.
After 10 hours of cervidil, they check my cervix again.  Still 1 cm.  Ugh.  Dr. Virture decides to start me on pitocin.  Little do I know that the pain I felt the night before would be nothing compared to what was to come.


12 p.m.
Contractions have been in full gear for a few hours.  So far, not so bad.  Pappaw gets to the hospital.  They check my cervix again.  Only 2 cm dilated.

1:15 p.m. Pappaw leaves to head to the airport to pick up my mom (Grams).

1:25 p.m.
My water breaks on its own.


1:45 p.m.
Contractions go from not so bad to "the worst pain I have ever felt."  I am only about 2.5 cm dilated.  The pain has gotten so bad that I soon get an epidural.


36 Hours after the start of the cervidil...
Wednesday, February 13
5 a.m.
I am barely 5 cm dilated.  Dr. Virture comes in to the room and gives us two options.  #1  Keep on doing what we've been doing for HOURS or #2 give in and go with a c section.

I am exhausted and in pain.  We opt for the c section.  Within minutes I am wheeled into the OR.

6:02 a.m.
Juliette Margot Jones enters the world!

The Aftermath...
We have been so blessed to have such a beautiful little girl!  Each day she changes and grows.  The loss of sleep fades away as soon as you look at her!  She was worth the pain!

By the way...I did get my Magic Hat #9 in the hospital.  Josh brought me one on Valentine's Day.  I(Since I was on pain meds, I did not drink it though!)

A special thanks to my mom, Grams...thank you for helping me get through those first few rough days.  You kept me sane when I thought I had lost it.  It means more to me than you'll ever know.  I love you!


UPDATE 8/27/13: Six months later...just so you know...Daddy says I was not given a choice after the 36-Hours...it WAS going to be a c-section.   Guess Mommy isn't very good at listening.  

Hola everybody!  This is Juliette's father checking in.  Its Wednesday February 13, 2013 and I'm filling in for Juliette's preferred blogger this afternoon who apparently is too occupied at the moment.  She's claiming to be too sore or tired or something.  Not exactly sure why.  She's just been laying around in a bed for the past 3 days.....big deal.  :).  (I'm sure she'll make a future post soon enough detailing the "grueling" process.)  

Just to fill everybody in,  Juliette Margot Jones decided to join us this morning at 6:02 AM EST via a Cesarean section.  She weighed in at 6 lbs and 2.2 ounces, measuring 18 3/4 inches, and by all accounts possessing more beauty than any baby born in weeks... years?...decades?  Who can really say?   

Anyway.....Enjoy some pictures of North Florida's Cutest Newborn!  Jen will be back soon with a more in depth update.  


Sincerely,


Juliette's Body Guard 


PS: Don't be scared to support the sponsors.  -------------------------->
Juliette's college fund could use a boost.  Every click helps.  :)

How far along? 38 Weeks
Maternity clothes? Oh yea
Stretch marks? None yet!
Sleep: Going downhill...each night it seems like sleep is getting harder and harder to come by.  My mind won't rest and I just cannot get comfortable.
Best moment this week:  Knowing Juliette is doing better then myself! 
Miss Anything?  My freedom.  Going into Week #4 of bed rest has become a mental challenge.  I miss being able to do things like a normal person.  
Movement:  Juliette is still having a ball in there.  I think she's just having so much fun in there that she doesn't want to come out.
Food cravings: Nothing stands out.  Someone better bring a Magic Hat #9 to the hospital!
Anything making you queasy or sick: The only thing that makes me queasy is when I have to get blood drawn.  I absolutely cannot stand it.  I have to look away. 
Gender: Girl.  One diva, stubborn little girl that I would LOVE to meet...NOW!
Labor Signs: No contractions still.  Cervix has dilated a bit but not thinned.  Juliette has dropped some! 
Symptoms:  Does boredom count?  Boredom and mentally drained.
Belly Button in or out?  Somehow still in.  Barely.
Wedding rings on or off?  Off.
Happy or Moody most of the time: I'm going to have to go with moody this week.  All this sitting around is turning me into a basket case.  I have way too much time on my hands to think.  I am a ticking time bomb.
Looking forward to:  HOLDING JULIETTE IN MY ARMS!!!!


Hands down this has been the hardest week.  It's become a mental game with me.  At my doctor appointment Monday, my blood pressure was 170/90.  It was so high that the doctor sent me directly up to the Labor and Delivery floor at St. Vincent's to get hooked up for some tests.  Within minutes, I was whisked away by wheel chair to L&D.  I got put into a L& D room.  They hooked me up to the fetal monitor and blood pressure cuff for about three hours.  Pappaw was in town so he and Josh got to hang out with me.  I honestly did not think I would be leaving without a baby in a car seat, not still in my belly.  A little after 5PM, they discharged me and sent me home to rest some more.  So...here I sit.  Still on bed rest.  Laying on my left side.  Watching T.V .  Thinking about meeting this little girl.  And wondering when I will finally be able to hold her in my arms.

I guess it at least got me out of the house for the day.  It's back to the doctor on Thursday for the 1,000,000th fetal non-stress test, ultrasound to check her amniotic fluid level and to check my cervix.  At least Juliette is happy in there :)

I found this on a blog and couldn't agree more.  Bed rest sucks.

"Bed Rest Isn't A Happy Fun Time Vacation"
By Heather Spohr

When my sister-in-law was pregnant with my second nephew back in 2006, she developed an active, bleeding clot between her placenta and her uterine wall. If  the clot got bigger, it could cause a placental abruption, ending the
pregnancy  and seriously risking her life. Her doctor put her on strict bed rest
from her  fourteenth week of pregnancy until late in her seventh month –
basically, five  months of bed rest. And even though I was a little nervous for
her, I mostly  thought five months of bed rest sounded awesome. I was
such an idiot,  and I apologized profusely to my SIL when I was put on strict
bed rest the following year.

Bed rest for a pregnancy complication is, quite simply, awful. It’s not like being confined to a bed while you recover from surgery, or are sick with a terrible flu. It’s not fun. It’s not a vacation. You don’t get to sit around and  read and watch TV and eat bon bons. You are in bed because something is wrong with you and/or your baby. I put that in italics but I think I should  bold it, too: You are in bed because something is wrong with you  and/or your baby. Does that sound fun or relaxing? My ten weeks of  bed rest during my first pregnancy were some of the worst weeks of my life.

When I was on bed rest, I couldn’t get out of bed except to walk two steps to use a portable toilet. I could shower for five minutes, as long as I was sitting  and someone was right outside the stall.

When I was on bed rest, I could only sleep in small bursts because all I did
was lay in bed. I was in a constant fog and couldn’t concentrate on anything. I 
couldn’t read a book, or a magazine. I couldn’t learn how to knit, or catch up on TV shows or movies. I could barely carry on a conversation.

When I was on bed rest, I couldn’t do anything for myself. I needed help getting up to use the toilet. I couldn’t make myself food. I needed help
turning  over in bed. I went on disability for work. I had to let my husband do 
everything around the house. And I didn’t have another child at home that
needed  care and attention, which would have compounded things significantly.

When I was on bed rest, my body fell apart. My muscles atrophied, my hips screamed in pain, and my back was hunched.

When I was on bed rest, I blamed myself. I couldn’t safely carry my baby. Something was wrong with me. My baby was going to die, and it was going to be my  fault.

 When I was on bed rest, I wanted to give up. I didn’t care about being pregnant. I didn’t care about anything. I wanted it all to end. And I  am one of the most positive people I know.

So if you know a pregnant woman on bed rest, don’t tell her to enjoy it.  Don’t tell her to stock up on sleep, don’t bring her knitting needles or crossword puzzles. Know that what she is going through is TERRIBLE. She feels like a failure. She has what feels like an insurmountable amount of time stretching out in front of her. Always call before you visit. Send her emails and texts every day.

 Know that she is terrified, and absolutely nothing about pregnancy bed rest 
is “fun.”