The Russo's

Our little girl is finally here! The day went smoothly with no complications. This is my last pregnant picture at 39 weeks, the morning of the induction. I had to be at the hospital at 7:00 a.m. I had visitors throughout the day, including Hudson. He wasn't too fond of seeing me in the bed hooked up to the machines. He was ready to see his sister and she wasn't here yet. This is the break down of how the labor went. I changed rooms at one point, so I have added the rest of the day. 4:15 4-5 cm 5:15 9 cm 5:35 10 cm 5:45 started pushing 6:14 time of delivery I was starting to think it was going to be a repeat of Hudson's birth (18 hours from start to birth). The doctors and nurses kept telling me if I made it to 4 cm, I would go fast after that. It was just taking a little while to get to 4 cm and I was getting a little discouraged. I tried to hold out on the epidural because I didn't want it to slow down the labor. I endured for as long as I could...

I'm making progress... 1 1/2 cm dilated and 50% effaced. My doctor wants to give me more time to get further along before inducing. If Gianna doesn't come on her own, I'll be induced in one week on the 18th. They didn't check her weight because the ultrasound can be up to one pound off and my doctor isn't concerned about it. I've measured exactly with my weeks, so I'm anxious to see her size and of course her too!!

> I went to the doctor on Wednesday to get checked and had an ultrasound. I progressed to 1 cm, but not thinning. It seems it will be a little longer until she comes. She measured between 7 and 7 1/2 lbs, so she might be a little bigger. It looks like she has some chubby cheeks from her pictures. We also saw that she has hair :) She is doing well and looks good. I'm going back on Tuesday to get checked again and maybe check her weight too.

Gianna's room is almost done. The last piece is her dresser. We bought an antique dresser that we would repaint. It turns out it needs to be stripped first, so I'm waiting on Josh to do it. Here are pictures of what I have so far. On Thursday, I had my 36 week check. I'm dilated a fingertip and starting to thin. I wasn't expecting to have any progress yet, so I was happy. I'm still having contractions, so we will see this week if there is anymore progress. I'm also having an ultrasound this week to check on our little girl's growth.

It's still hot outside, but it's also been raining a lot. We have been seeking indoor activities to do. One day we went to the library for a program called Zoo Zoom. They take animals that are injured or that people couldn't take care of. The kids got to get an up close look at some of the animals and pet them. Hudson only wanted to touch a few, but he really enjoyed seeing them. Josh and I took him to see Cars 2. It was his third movie to see at the theater. He did really well because we brought his car seat and buckled him in. He also had snacks to keep him busy. We took a trip with the Russo's to the aquarium in New Orleans last Saturday. It was very crowded and I didn't get many great pictures. I guess everyone was looking for an inside activity. Hudson was excited to see the animals and had a great time. Jen and Nash were in town for a few days and stayed with us, so Hudson had a lot of company. Him and Nash played pretty well together and Hudson was looking f...

We went to Orange Beach, AL for a 4 day trip with my family. Dillon and Jen were able to come, so it was the whole gang. The last time we all took a trip together was 5 years ago. The pools were perfect for kids with shallow pools and lagoon type pools. Hudson did so well with his floaties and was swimming in deeper water with them by the end of the trip. He got brave and was jumping off the side. It was the first trip with all the grand kids together. My side is growing, we will have 6 by the end of the year with Gianna and Jen's baby. Vacations are all about the kids now and they had a great time and got along good. Last summer we went to the beach twice and Hudson did not like the sand at all. I'm so glad to report that he liked playing in the sand with the girls and it didn't bother him. It was Nash's first beach trip and he liked it a lot. I wish we could have spent more time with my family, but I'm glad to be home. I was worn out with the preparation, packing ...

It was a busy weekend with a few different celebrations. We got to relax some on Sunday, but Josh didn't have any special requests for Father's Day. Hudson gave Josh a Jeep cap and he had to put on a hat for the picture. Emerie had her 3rd birthday party at Bouncing Tigers. Hudson had a great time and didn't want to stop jumping. He worked up a sweat and took a good nap that afternoon. I went to the doctor today and we were able to do a 4D sonogram. Gianna was very cooperative and we got some good pictures of her. This is a foot. It looks long and slender. Her fingers also looked long and thin, but no picture. Her cheeks looked chubby and her bottom lip pouty.She may look nothing like this when she comes out, but it was fun to get an idea. They say their noses look wide in 4D, so that makes me feel better. This is Hudson at 28 weeks in 3D. My glucose was fine from the last appointment. I'm moving right along at 31 weeks, in the single digits for weeks left!