Welcome Fiona Jane Grenko!

Fiona didn't make us wait too much longer, perfecting the art of being fashionably late already.  She was born at 11:00pm on April 22 and lives up to the name Wee Baby Grenko, weighing in at just 7 pounds and 20 inches long.

Immediately Post-Delivery

Labor started Sunday night, although I was able to sleep through the contractions, and I wasn't sure if it was real or not at that point.  Things got real when I noticed the contractions coming every 6 to 7 minutes consistently Monday morning.  By the afternoon, I was trying to sing myself through the contractions.  As a contraction began, I focused on singing the lyrics of whatever song was playing and dancing around.  Tim described it as bad karaoke at a dive bar at 3am because I made up lyrics if I didn't know them or mumbled the tune loudly if there weren't lyrics at the moment a contraction was peaking.  It wasn't pretty but it worked for me.  By the time we got to the hospital, I was 5 to 6 centimeters dilated, which they were very happy with.  I got checked in and admitted to a delivery room immediately.  At this point I had started a new method of pain management: saying the ABCs through out contractions. I don't know where I got this idea, but it was something rote that I could focus on repeating over and over without thinking.  It seems ridiculous now (and even then) but it helped me make it through the birth sans epidural so I won't question it.

Fiona is just perfect and was fortunate to spend a lot of time with loved ones already.  Grandma, Grandpa, and Nana spent most of the day at the hospital with us on Tuesday, and Papa visited us tonight at home.  We expect more visitors this weekend, but for now, Tim, Fi, and I are resting at home.  We have tons of photos of Fiona, but I haven't had time to upload them all yet so stay tuned.