Kiefer Josef Lachnitt is here!

Yes, I am a little late posting this but Kiefer Josef Lachnitt was born Monday, May 17, 2010 at 10:50 AM. He weighed 7 pounds 5 1/2 oz. and was 19 1/2 inches long. He was 27 days early but is healthy! I was getting very big and uncomfortable and kept telling people this baby was going to be huge and I hoped it came early! Monday morning I woke up and felt icky and thought I don't want to go to school but then thought I had better get up and go. This was 6 am and as I started to get up my water broke. I guess I am not going to school today after all I thought! I had felt contractions but they were very irregular and didn't really hurt so I didn't think I was in labor. I told Gerhardt but also told him I thought we had plenty of time. I took a shower and told him he would have time to do the same. I didn't have time to get a sub for school so I just called in and said no band today, I am having a baby! We got to the hospital about 7:30 am. I was already at 5 cm and 100% effaced. I was having regular contractions but wasn't feeling all of them, only the big ones. I told them I wanted an epidural. They said there might not be time, I had to have a bag of fluids via IV first. I got the bag and they said we could try the epidural. I had the catheder put in and the contractions were getting painful. They gave me one dose of medicine and it did nothing to help the pain. I asked the nurse if they could give me more and she said, "you are going to feel much better real soon. I am going to get Dr. Hays and you are going to have a baby." Dr. Hays came in and I pushed 5 times and he was here! I couldn't believe it! First of all the ultrasound tech told the nurse after I left the room but was still in ear shot that it was a girl so I was a little surprised it was a boy. I didn't tell anyone what I overheard because I didn't want to spoil the surprise and wasn't sure she was talking about me. Anneliese had been 10 days overdue, I had to be induced, had 10 hours of labor and 3 hours and 13 minutes of pushing. I felt horrible the next day. With Kiefer, 27 days early, 3 hours of labor, 10 minutes of pushing and I felt great 2 hours later. Kiefer was a little jaundice so we had to have daily blood tests for a while but he wasn't bad enough to be hospitalized. He sleeps a lot and is doing pretty good at night. He sleeps for 3-4 hours at night. Anneliese has had trouble sleeping with all the changes in her life. She did sleep through the night last night which was good. She is adjusting well. She loves her baby brother. She wants a lot of Mommy attention but that is understandable.

Kiefer right after birth
Kiefer Josef Lachnitt, born 10:50am May 17, 2010, 7 pounds 5 1/2 oz. 19 1/2 inches long.
Anneliese and her new stroller. This was her big sister gift from Kiefer.









Anneliese having fun after her bath.

Daddy and Baby Kiefer in hospital
Baby Kiefer ready to go home from the hospital in the outfit his big sister picked out for him.






Daddy and Anneliese ready to take Mommy and Kiefer home from the hospital.








Kiefer right after birth and cleaning up.

Anneliese holding Baby Kiefer for the first time. She was scared of him at first but gradually has gotten braver. Now she gets her step stool and puts it in front of his crib so she can talk to him.
Anneliese picking flowers for Mommy in the backyard.
Kiefer after his first bath at home.
Anneliese visiting Mommy in the hospital

Big Girl!

Anne has been using the potty for a long time now so this may not seem like news but everytime she has gone on the potty it has been with one of us helping her. Last night I said something like it is time for Anne to go potty. Where is Anne? She was already in the bathroom. She had her pants and underware pulled down and was sitting on the potty peeing all by herself. We were very happy and she was pretty proud of herself too. Gerhardt told her this morning how proud he was of her for doing that last night. She said, "I did a great job!"

We had sibling preparation class this morning. I was a little silly and I doubt she got much out of it but I don't know how much her little brain does soak up. She had fun anyway. There were 6 children there. 3 were Anne's age and the others were older, probably at least 7. The nurse talked about having a new baby at the house. Anne was so shy and so was another little girl. The 3rd girl Anne's age talked the whole time. It was very cute. They dressed the kids up in a hospital gown, booties, and a hat which Anne thought was great fun. They took their pictures and gave them a tour of the maternity ward and let them see a baby. Anne also colored a card for her new baby brother or sister. They gave us some tips on how to prepare her for the new baby. Many of the things we are already doing but it is good to know you are doing the right things and we got some new ideas too. The nurse had the kids hold a doll like a baby and change a diaper. Anne was very serious and paid attention. When it was her turn to try she did a really good job. The serious look on her face was pretty funny though.