Mia Gabrielle is Here!

Our princess has arrived! She was born on Wednesday morning, January 21st, at 7:27 a.m.. She weighed 6 lbs & 9 oz at birth, but when we left she was up to 6 lbs & 11 oz! She is 19 inches long, which makes her the longest of all 3 girls! And she has some pretty big feet and long toes! Of course she was born with the signature black hair that all the girls had at birth! She is a perfect mixture between the girls, in my opinion! And she has Pat's cute button nose & cheeks!


Here are a few pictures from the hospital. We had a lot of visitors to welcome Mia into the world! I cannot post too many pictures, but here are a random few....

A few minutes after birth...
Big sisters waiting for baby Mia!

Day 2 of life... Tia Bety & Cousin Siena

Friday...We're going home! YAY!!

The Birth Story:

On Tuesday, I had worked all day at the school. At 2:30, when we got off I was so tired. Pat took the girls to the park and to Walter's so I could rest. I took a short nap (about 20 mins) and then went to Target. I walked around Target for about 1 hour and a half. They were setting up a new floor plan, so everything was moved around and I couldn't find anything or maneuver around the aisles. So, yes, I shopped slowly! The rest of the night was normal. The girls went to bed after their bath and picking their clothes for the next day! I attempted to go to sleep, but couldn't get comfortable. At around midnight my lower back started hurting. I got up and walked around, rubbed my back, sat down, did whatever I could to make the pains go away. Pat asked if tonight was the night...and I said, "No. It's too early. My back probably hurts from working all day. Go to bed!" Well, 1 o'clock came around and the pains kept coming. I couldn't fall asleep with the pains, so I decided to shower. If they were false labor pains, I 'd be ready to go to work in the morning! After blow drying my hair, the pains got super intense. So I decided to flat iron my hair! Again, if it was false, I'd be ready to go to work in the morning! Well, close to 2 a.m. I decided to call the doctor. The doctor on call at Clear Lake told me that if I came in, I would be sent home since the contractions were only 8-10 minutes apart. I was not happy with him! So I stayed up. I told Pat to go back to bed...until the pains were so unbearable. t 3 a.m. I told him to shower and that we were going to hospital. So we left for the hospital and got there at around 3:45. By that time I was struggling to breathe through the contractions. I kept telling Pt to remind me to breathe! Once we got admitted and I was on a bed and hooked up,we discovered that the contractions were 3-4 minutes apart and I was 6 centimeters dilated! (At this point I wanted to kill the doctor that told me to stay home! And I wanted to kill Pat, and the sweet nurse that was my nurse!) At some point I gave up squeezing Pat's hand, cause it took too much energy. And I needed the energy to breathe! Can you tell that I hate pain? So, for about another 45 minutes I suffered through more contractions...and I kept asking for the epidural. Where was the anesthesiologist?!?!?!!?! ( Somebody wake up Mr. Hot Shot...cause he was kind of cute...but even that didn't help me!) I didn't get my epidural shot until 4:45. I was so not a happy mom-to-be during that time though! Anyway, I ended up falling asleep until 6:30 a.m. Then I was happy as pie! By 7:15 we were waiting for the doctor, which was supposed to be the same doctor that told me to stay home! But in the end, a doctor from my office came. Not my specific doctor, but one of her partners. And he ended up being super nice. Anyway, at 7:20 they told me to stop pushing cause she had crowned already. So when Dr. Klein came in all we did was the one set (3 breaths) of pushes...and Baby Mia came into the world at 7:27 a.m. When they first showed her to me, I clearly saw her black hair and her chubby cheeks! I was in love again! Once she was cleaned off, Pat cut the umbilical cord and followed her to the bassinet where she was weighed, warmed up, and tagged with all her hospital tags including her "Hugs" tag, which is the lo-jack for babies! Then I got to hold her...and her life as a Landry girl begins!

Ok, I'll end it here...enjoy cause I know I am enjoying her. And so are the girls!

A Gorgeous Sunday!

Wow! Today has been the most beautiful day so far in 2009! It's sunny, about 70 degrees, and there is a nice cool breeze! We decided to have lunch at the park. The girls were so excited about going to eat at the park, walking on the trail, and playing at the playground. It's been a long, cold, gloomy winter for them...so a day like today is such a treat!
We sat and ate lunch first. Then we cleaned up our picnic table and headed down the trail. Unfortunately Hurricane Ike left a big mess of fallen trees all over Friendswood Park's trail. But it was still a walkable trail. The girls loved running in the path. I was a little slower of course. But I tried to keep up with them. James, Pat, Penny and the girls were loving climbing over tree stumps & branches, crossing paths, and walking everywhere. I was OK with it, but after a while I started to enjoy it. But trust me, as soon as I saw an opportunity to go back to the normal part of the park, I took it! And everyone followed!

After the trail we let them ride their bike and tricycle. After a short while they both gave up and took off in the direction of the playground! And they played there for a while! And I got to sit on the swing and rest!

Our lunch...

The trail begins...
Riding their bikes...
Nothing like a good workout after a good lunch!

Oh yeah, Penny's hair has been cut! So that is why she looks a tad different. Anyway, I hope the rest of the winter days are this nice. I am not a fan of cold weather at all.

Pajama Party!

Yesterday the girls had their Pajama &Pizza party at school. Leanna had been looking forward to this party since we mentioned it last week!

I didn't go to their classes to for this party because I was in a Pajama party myself. I did not wear my pj's, although I was tempted to since I could live In my pj's! But I don't own any fleece ones and the ones I own were not warm enough to wear to school.

Anyway, the PJ & Pizza day just consisted of the kids wearing their pj's to school and having pizza for lunch. It gives them a break from the ordinary day and gives the parents a break from having to get dressed for school and having to pack them a lunch! So it works out for all! Here are the only few pics I took of the girls. Oh, and Leanna chose to add her rain boots to the emsemble!

Outside of school.
This is an attempt to get some of the "teacher's" kids...

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Here are some pictures of Penny sleeping in the Boppy...yes, I am getting a new one for Baby Mia. Penny has slept in this Boppy since we had it for Leanna. And then when Kayla was born, she would sleep in it too. I think she thinks she thinks it belongs to her. SO I am giving it up since the dent in the middle doesn't help to keep a baby propped up properly. And this will make Penny so happy. Plus, I won't to change out the cover EVERYTIME she gets on it!

36 Weeks and Counting!!

OK, so I have to say that the past week was a big challenge for me. We went back to school, which we were all waiting for. The girls were so ready to see their friends and teachers, and I was so ready to see my kids too! But it was a tough week for me. I am so much bigger than I was when we left for Winter Break. So each day was a challenge!

Starting this coming week, I will be working 3 days a week...and hopefully I can handle that! And starting tomorrow, when I officially start week 36, if I have any contractions, my doctor said she won't do anything to stop them. But that's if they are 5-7 minutes apart for an hour. I had a few questionable contractions on Thursday. But I think it was brought on by the fact that I had been working all week! And I'm sure it was my body getting ready for the birth!

So now, all I'm doing is waiting for this baby to come. I don't drive too far now. Mom, my sisters, and Pat don't think it's a good idea for me to be on the road, specially now that I'm closer. And if I go into labor with the girls in the car, it's probably not the best idea! So I guess for the next few weeks, I'll be stuck at home. I have yet to pack my bag...and I still need to go and get a pedicure...and I probably should get my hair trimmed...So much to do!

Oh yeah, and the other night when I could not sleep I discovered that the crib Mia will be sleeping in has been recalled! Wonderful. I submitted my form, but the process will end up taking about 2- 3 weeks. So now I feel that I shouldn't have submitted the form, since it was a voluntary recall. So if Mia is born within the next 2 weeks...where will she sleep? Like I said before, so much to do! And I'm just not feeling my best!

Anyway, here is my huge stomach one day before I hit 36 weeks. I seriously CANNOT & SHOULD NOT grow anymore!

Winterfest at Independence Park

Yesterday the Pearland Parks & Recreation set up a Winterfest in the park. I had planned on taking both the girls. But since I'm just not feeling all that energetic (or great), Pat and James took Leanna instead. They said it was really cool. You had to park at the high school and then ride a school bus to the park. When Leanna was in the school bus, it was like a dream come true. She has always wanted to ride in a bus. And she got the chance yesterday! She was all smiles!

Once they were in they, got on a carousel, a swing ride, and she went in the moonwalk. They also got on other rides. And you can't go to a carnival without getting some cotton candy! They had carnival games, and Miss. Leanna won a blow up dolphin on some ducky game! BUT, they said that her favorite part was the Snow Hill (we call it that, since that's what we used to call it at Astroworld!). She went on a small one and then her and Pat went on a big one. They said that she wanted to keep doing that over and over! Next year, when I'm not so huge, we all have to go! And I can't wait!

Going down the Snow Hill!

Getting on the bus!

All smiles...

When she got home she was so excited to tell me all about it. She told me how she had won her dolphin, which she named Lily. And she told me about the bus ride and the snow. It was sweet. I'm glad she had a fun time, since I won't be able to much with them for much longer!

Mia's Baby Shower

This Sunday, my wonderful friends had a baby shower honoring Mia and I. And it was such a fun, cute gathering. Of course there was tons of food, tons of drinks, and tons of fun. The cake was super adorable. It was a baby rattle with Baby Mia on it...and it was delicious. (I'm still enjoying some of it!) There were brownies, cupcakes, candy, cookies, fruit, fruit salad, chips & dips, pasta salad, tea, sodas, and a delicious sherbert punch! It was such a great shower. Hats off to my friends and family for making it a success!

Thanks to those who came to celebrate with me. And thank you for all the wonderful goodies that Mia got. I even got a robe! That was cool! Mia got some of the cutest outfits too. And it just reminds me of how small a newborn is...cause some of the things I got were so tiny! Now all I have to do is wash the new clothes and blankets that we received, get the bottles ready, and set out diapers. And maybe clean the baby room again. But for the most part the room is ready. Oh and I probably will pack my bag for the hospital next week sometime! I am ready to meet baby Mia and I hope she is ready to be here. But I'm only on week 35 (starting today), so I still have a few weeks left! Although I'm hoping she'll arrive sometime in the 1st week of February! We will see!

The chocolate cake!Cute decorations

Stacy working and smiling!

Hardworking Joan.

Leanna & I before the shower

Some of the guests...

Mom and I ...she won the belly measuring game!

The kiddoes at the shower...My nieces, Sara & Dawnie!

Mrs. Del Aguila, Luisa & Sylvia

Pat showed up after everyone left
Thanks once again for celebrating with us!