Skylar Ann Stucki

Since I am always trying to be better at documenting events in our lives, I am going to write a little bit about Skylar's arrival into our family. (3 1/2 months late)

My pregnancy was started off sick (like usual) and I didn't really feel completely better until about 23 weeks.  I didn't throw up a ton, but just felt sick.  It was mostly at night which was great for this time in my life, teaching spinning and babysitting other people's kids during the day.  Probably not great for Matt because I kind of fell apart when he got home and would usually fall asleep by 9.

Once I hit 25 weeks, I really felt pretty good.  

We went to Disneyland when I was 30 weeks and walked for about 3 days straight...a lot!

The only thing I could complain about were sore legs at the end of the day...like kind of insanely sore.  But it was definitely worth it.

When I was 35 weeks (Picture below) I thought I would have to be done teaching spinning, when I bent over it hurt so bad.  I realized I just needed to wear looser bottoms and it solved that problem!

I taught up until about 5 days before I had her.  Honestly, I feel like it made all the difference in my pregnancy and recovery.  So worth getting up in front of 15 students every week and feeling like I was dying and honestly, kind of embarrassing myself at times.  

My sweet Mylee was so into my belly and watching it grow and worried about how the baby would come out.  I took this picture a few days before Skylar was born, me  and my girls!!

Our last family of 4 picture.  

I was nervous going into delivery and had put a lot of thought on how I wanted it to go.  With Mylee, I was induced (basically because my mom could be in town, and Matt was in law school so life was a little crazy)  I got in there, had an epidural, felt great, hardly even had to push Mylee out and felt nothing.  Well... I also had a 4th degree tear and broke my tailbone (found that out after the epidural wore off)  and it really hurt to stand up for almost a year after I had her.  She was 9 lbs.  and just came so fast.  I was paranoid that would happen and my tailbone would ache for the next year.

So, I decided it was the epidural that did that to me and I did not want to get one.  I asked friends birthing techniques and read up on it, but wasn't really convinced going in that I was not going to get one.  Especially because I was still getting induced because my doctor thought it would be best with the chances of having a big baby and my history of delivering so quickly.

I was back and forth on being induced or not, and the morning of I decided I could do this.

I went in at about 6 am and by the time I got all of the paperwork done and hooked up it was a little after 7 am.  The nurse checked my cervix and said I was only dilated to a 3 and 20% effaced. My doctor had told me the week before I was at a 4 and 75%.  She said doctors were always so liberal and I wasn't close to that.  My doctor came in about 20 minutes after I got hooked up and started putting his gloves on.  She quickly told him she had already checked me, he said, "Oh no, I'm breaking her water."  Yikes.  Every time I have gotten my water broke before, that's when the baby comes..and pretty fast.  

That's when the contractions started a lot stronger...it was almost 8 o'clock.  The nurse was good about telling me breathing techniques.  I was using those for about an hour and didn't feel like it was too hard to handle.  At about 9 am I started feeling like it was hard.  She kept asking if I wanted an epidural.  Matt was kind of trying to convince me to get one, but he also knew my feelings and I asked him if he would please help with my decision to not get one.  The contractions were about 1-2 minutes long with 15 seconds rest by 930.  I begged him to get the nurse to ask her to check me again because I was feeling so much pressure (but once again I have never felt this before)  I was in a ton of pain.  She came in and said I was maybe at a 6 and that was good, but I probably still had a while.  Are you kidding me??  I said, fine, I want an epidural.  I was not getting any breaks at all and didn't know if I could do this for another couple of hours.  She said there was something else they could do called an interthecal that was an option to just numb the area briefly.  Matt talked to both of our parents and told them it would be a while before the baby came.  The only thing that helped with the pain at all, was Matt pushing my hips together from the back, like he was probably sore the next day from pushing so hard.  I kept telling him he wasn't doing it hard enough..haha.  Poor guy (but not really)

So..right after she checked me, I felt like I needed to start pushing.  I told Matt to get the nurse again and that I really needed to push.  He was a little embarrassed and didn't want to get her.  My body started going into the pushing motion and I couldn't stop.  He got her finally at a little before 10 am.  She told me to try and stop pushing...uuuuh really?  So I think she finally realized it was real and got everything set up and got the doctor.  As I was pushing, the guy for the interthecal came in and literally as I was pushing on my side he numbed me.  I sat up and pushed her out within a few minutes.  It was pretty amazing.  I felt the contractions and felt I had to work a little to push her out (she didn't just pop out like Mylee did)  If you can count pushing for 3 minutes as working to push her out!  I was able to get up and walk around right after and felt so good.  

Her name: Skylar.  It was going to be McKenzie up until week 37 of my pregnancy.  I was watching Skylar Diggins (WNBA bball player) play basketball and I kind of fell in love with the name Skylar. That's basically it.  I would love to call her Sky but so far it's been Skylar.

She weighed 8 lbs. 4 oz. and was 22 inches long.

I felt like when they laid her on me she was soo tiny.

I just hadn't held a newborn for a while!

I also thought she looked just like Mylee when she came.  Now I think she is more of a mix of my 2 kids.  Here is mylee on the left and Skylar on the right.

Skylar on the left, Mylee on the right.

2 weeks old.

This is the best picture I got of my 3 kiddos together.

They have both been so good with her.  I couldn't have asked for a smoother transition.  There are definitely hard days with 3 kids, but more good days than bad.  

Skylar at 3 weeks old!

Memorial Day 2014

My cousin, Tenille, had a baby about 5 weeks before Skylar.  Here they are!

Skylar was blessed on June 1, 2014.

She was an angel.

It was perfect.

I don't think she cried for her first month of life unless she was getting changed or getting a bath.  She is just a content and chill baby.  

And of course, she has a ton of hair!

I keep telling Matt I needed her in my life.  After trying to get pregnant for over a year, I was ready for a baby.  so ready!!  She has seriously made me so happy.  We love everything about that little girl!!