A Two-riffic Day for the Sitzman's

After many months of carrying around the world's fastest growing beach ball (filled with sand of course) my sister decided that February 7, 2011 would be the day that she met the two dumplings she was baking in there. The c-section was scheduled and plans were made, days were taken off, plane tickets were bought. The day before the release of thing one and thing two, I could tell my little sister was nervous, but in a good way. I could see that she had so many wonders and worries going on in her head, but didn't know how to arrange them all to make sense of them. I knew she was nervous about the c-section, and as anyone would be the gore that comes with it. Most of all though I could see the amazement and shock that it had truly come to this point and she tomorrow was about to become a mother. This wasn't just a normal, you are going to be a mom in nine months (by the way it is actually 10), it was after years of trying, crying and hoping this is really happening. There are no words for moments like this, only support and taking it in mentally. I was so excited for her and Keith, and to be honest I was excited for myself. I finally was ready to get a taste of the "auntie" ways, at this point I had been the loan parent of the trio and I was ready to have a kid(s) to kiss on and when they started leaking in anyway hand them back and say, "I think they need you." I was also ready to have someone join Jaaron and I on the parent side of the fence. It is hard to be the one with the kids, the lame ones that can't do anything fun. Hey would you guys like to go to a bar and watch the game? No thanks have these kids things here, but would you like to head to chuck-e-cheese with us? There is pizza involved and games too! Sadly no one jumped to our side. Now they have to**insert evil laugh here** any way I digress.

On the morning of February seventh, I got up early, got ready for work (I was only working a half day) and headed in. On my commute though, all of a sudden I freaked out. What am I doing? Why am I not there? They are cutting my sister open and I am going to work? Who am I? WTF???!!! So of course I did what any normal Broadbent would do at this moment, I called my mom because I knew she was freaking out waaaayyyy worse than me. When you are losing it, call someone who is a little more over the edge than you. Mom was also a mess, and being so far away was killing her. She had the same why's that I did and we lamented on the decisions we had made and then promised that if either of us heard anything we would call instantly! Ok now onto watching the clock for a couple of hours, I am sorry were you talking to me? Oh I was watching my cell phone, waiting for it to ring, everything else around me is just noise, like a annoying fly, shoo shoo-go away! My patient is here, um do they know I am a basket case today, they do, ok good send them in!

10:07 am the signal from a simple text on my cell phone came in, the sound of an angel, and I found out that I was an aunt of two very healthy babies, and my sister was doing wonderful. This is when I did the happy dance, huge sigh of relief, and an overwhelming feeling of joy that I was an aunt! That day could not roll on fast enough, and finally after pushing my last patient out the door as fast as possible (they look at you funny when you pull their walker faster and make them pick up the pace, but speed is good grandma, enjoy it), I raced to the hospital to meet the dynamic duo. After getting cavity searched and x-rayed, I finally got to go to my sisters room. I walked in and I was greeted with my sister laying in bed with Jackson Davis and Genevieve Paige and it was instant love. I have no idea which part I liked more that day, the introduction of two perfect new family members or seeing my sister as a mother for the first time. It was sublime, and there was no way I could describe the feeling. After cuddles and kisses and some stories and diaper changing, I asked how they felt as parents. They both said it was all so surreal, but as I watched them tell the tale of how their precious babies came into this world I saw the amazement of life and the joy of becoming a parent on their face. And nothing had to be said, but at this point I sat back and my heart yet lifted again, and for selfish reasons this time, now I had someone on my side of the fence. But the thing about being over here is, only you know how special it is to discover the feeling and intense love of being a parent. And it is more majestic than anything else you will ever experience in life. 02.08.11

You are my Sonshine...

January 26, 2010

4:00 am: Wide awake, staring up at the ceiling looking at the time, today is the day that I will add an addition to my family. Today is the day I will have a son, a little boy, just thinking it sounds so weird to me.

4:15 am: Get out of bed finally. Takes me about 3 minutes just to be able to stand up. This pregnancy is brutal, my hips and back hurt so bad that I feel as if I am about 80 and have arthritis as bad as at gets, nope just really preggo and ready to have my body back.

4:30 am: Hot shower, relaxing and still a race is running in my mind. Do I have everything I need for the hospital? Is everything ready for the baby to come home? How will Havely do without me for two days? How will Havely react to having her baby brother home? When is the last time I scrubbed this tile in here?

5:15 am: Angela shows up and is pretty awake for this early in the AM. She is going to spend the morning with Havely and then take her to daycare so that Havely can have somewhat of a normal day. Now I am getting nervous, it is time to go, time to do this. I say goodbye to the dogs, make my husband change his shirt (there will be pictures today, one of us has to look decent), and go upstairs for one last moment with Havely. She is upside down in her bed as usual, I turn her back around, kiss her on the forehead and then head downstairs. The next time I come home I will be a mom of two.

The ride to the hospital is good, it is cold and raining today. Traffic is very light, and Jaaron and I talk about different things as we go down the highway, and discuss how excited we are to be parents to another child. We arrive at the hospital, and gather our belongings and check in. I sign all the paperwork and we are off to check into room 17. We are greeted by my nurse Kathi, who had one of the most welcoming smiles and personalities, I just knew today was going to be a good day.

6:30 am: IV is in and was done in one shot, with Havely I had many many problems with this and ended up with two horribly bruised forearms to hold a baby in, OUCH! So I was very happy that this went well, one thing down. Pitocin was started and the contractions came with it. The first hour was not too bad, they were coming every 4 minutes but it was nothing I couldn't handle, I was even able to keep up with the conversation.

7:00 am: Jessica arrived and was ready for the day. She even brought a bag full of snacks for the team and some activity books. She was ready to be here for the long run. Contractions were getting a bit worse by this time, but I was still doing pretty well.

8:00 am: Dr. Feinstein enters the room and is ready to get things progressing. I am only dilated to 3 cm. She takes a small hook and breaks my water. This is when things really get going. Contractions get worse and more frequent. I am trying my best to hold out and get through them, but by 9 am, I have decided that it is time to throw in the towel and get the epidural.

9:15 am: Where in the hell is the anesthesiologist? These suckers are brutal and I am ready to kill my husband for doing this to me. Good god how do women do this naturally? They must be crazy or already self medicated. Dr. Rhodes enters the room and I think he is surrounded by an aura of light, he is here to end my suffering, my knight in shining armour!

9:20 am: Epidural is in-this doc is not kidding around. He is quick like lightening and very good. In one swift move he puts in more meds and my legs go numb, ahh tree trunks and no pain. This feeling is so strange, I cannot feel anything from my sternum south, but the contractions are not blinding me anymore and that makes me one happy girl.

I cannot really give you much of a timeline right now, this is where things began to get a bit fuzzy. I could not maintain my temperature and kept shaking uncontrollably. I was layered in warm blankets but yet still shivering. I also felt like I was off in space a bit, just not myself really. Then the baby's heart rate would drop with each contraction. They told me that the cord was probably stretching when there were contractions so they needed to put me on some oxygen so that we could make sure he was getting all he could. This freaked me out a bit because I knew the cord was around his neck. Havely's was as well, and she is fine so I am trying to focus on the fact that they know what they are doing and if he was in danger they would make the best decision.

11:55 am: Dr. Feinstein is back to check on me. I am dilated to about 6 cm, but the baby is at zero position, so she wants the nurse to have me do a test push. She is off to check on her pre-op and will check in with me before she goes into surgery. Either this baby is coming now, or I have to wait about two hours.

12:00 pm: Kathi waits for a contraction and tells me to push. A count of ten and she tells me to stop. She announces that this baby is ready and calls the doc back up. It is time, I am going to have my baby soon, be able to see him and hold him. Jessica calls Angela to let her know what is going on, but Ang is stuck in traffic and is trying to get to the hospital as fast as she can.

12:10 pm: We are ready to go, doc is in place, nurse is ready, Jaaron is ready and Jess is a go. Wait for a contraction and GO!!! 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6,...STOP. He is out. I can see him. The cord is wrapped around his neck, the doctor gets her fingers in there immediately and has Jaaron cut the cord. She then pulls him the rest of the way out and puts him up for me to see. He is perfect. So perfect.

Grant Robert Thomas was born at 12:15 pm on Tuesday January 26, 2010. He weighed 5 lbs., 12 oz, and was 19 1/2 inches long. At this moment I feel in love with a boy so deeply and more than I ever thought I could. He has me mesmerized by every move he makes. My heart sings with happiness just looking at him.

8:00 pm: Mindi arrives at the hospital with Havely. My son and my daughter get to meet each other for the first time. This is priceless, this is my moment. I watch her watch him and hold him and I see a change in her face. She is a big sister now and she will be one of the best. She is in love with a boy also and I know that my kids will share a bond so great and I can't wait to watch them interact in life. Yup this is all mushy gushy love stuff, but when you are a mom and have wonderful kids you will understand the mushy gushy stuff is the best. As a mom life little moments are just as important as the big ones, and I plan to cherish every bit of them.

While we try to teach our children all about life,
Our children teach us what life is all about.