Harper Olivia Kozlen

Harper Olivia Kozlen was born July 11, 2013 at 6:47 pm. She was 8 lbs, 21 inches long and absolutely perfect.

Stephen and I were instantly in love. 

 I mean look at that face! So perfect. (the tiny one, not mine. ha)

Stephen wrote a great blog post about the labor. You can read it here. A few of my additions are below.

• All the classes we took and none of the first steps they tell you are going to happen did for us. We didn't labor at home for more than 2 hours and there was no 5-1-1 (contractions 1 min long, 5 mins apart, for 1 hour). I woke up to contractions ranging from 9 to 4 mins apart (they are supposed to be consistant before you go to the hospital). Then within a half hour they went to 1 min long, 6 to 3 mins apart. Another half hour and they were 1 min long 2-3 mins apart! 

• Chewie wanted to be near me when I was attempting to get comfortable on the couch. Comfort didn't happen but it was nice that he wanted to help me out

• We were mins from walking out the door when I remembered how I wanted to get a picture of me in my last hours pregnant. In my mind this would have happened in the hours of laboring at home we didn't do. haha Instead this picture was taken seconds before/after a contraction when we needed to be walking out the door to the hospital. haha
• In my mind it didn't take almost an hour to walk from the doctor's office to the hospital, it felt much quicker. But it did feel like it took an hour to get an epidural and in reality that was 15 mins. haha
• I had no idea I was having back labor. Looking back at it now all the signs were there, as I could only get comfortable standing with Stephen rubbing my back, but since I had never been in labor before I had no idea that was what was going on! 
• I had been very concerned with back labor and paid extra attention during all the classes on the best ways to labor and deliver with back pain. Too bad I was in too much pain to know what was happening. haha
• Fun fact for you...When my mom delivered me I was sunny side up (back of the babies head facing the spine) as well, giving her back pain AND when my grandma had my mom she was also sunny side up! I knew this fact which is why I was paying attention in class, even though there isn't any proven correlation between how your mother gave birth and how you will. 
• My nurse told me after we did some practice pushes and she thought Harper's head would be able to be turned with delivery that all morning both her and the doctor were sure I would have to have a c section. But with my stellar pushing skills (haha) and the fact that Harper was able to be turned as she was being delivered (she never did turn on her own when I was laboring down) we were able to deliver her vaginally as we intended.
• My nurse was AWESOME. She was no nonsense, told us how it was and was really supportive and helpful. The doctor who delivered was also amazing. They worked so well together you could tell they were a team that enjoyed being paired up when it happened. 
• Stephen was my rock. He was truly amazing and I will never forget the looks on his face while I was pushing. He was so excited and so proud of me it was unforgettable for sure.
• I was unsure of how birth would go, I mean you really have no idea. I would go from thinking "yeah I bet I could do the whole thing natural" to "maybe I'll just get an epidural right off the bat". I really really wanted to stick to my plan of getting to 6 cm and deciding from there. My main reason was I didn't want to be stuck laboring in bed, especially since you have no idea how long it will take you to get to 10 cm. When the doctor first told us I was 3-4 cm the amount of pain I was in I was a little disappointed cause I was thinking there is no way in hell I can make it to 6 with this pain. Walking definitely got me to where I wanted to be and further. I am proud of myself for sticking it out and choosing to walk, even if it was miserable and took an hour. :) 
• Looking back the whole day seem's so crazy and it feels like it went so fast. I labored for 8 hours and pushed for 2 (1 hour and 57 mins actually). I never once said I can't do it. I had my best friend by my side (oh and my mom, dad, sister and mama came and said hello for a while too when I was just hanging out waiting for her to turn). In the end I got to meet the most important person in the world to me. Worth it all I would say. 

After labor was an intense few hours/days. Stephen has also already done a blog on the whole experience you should go read here. 

I was able to hold our sweet Harper after she was born but she was quickly wisked away to the NICU. Stephen went with her and my mom came and sat with me while the doctor finished things up. Once I was able to leave the delivery room and be moved to my recovery room they wheeled me to the NICU to see Harper first. Here we are hanging out for the first time :)

Week 39

Where: Greenlake, Seattle, WA - chilling on the water!



Week Recap ~

• Total weight gain/loss : +41.5 lbs
• Sleep : Sleep was hard this week due to the heat wave we had here in Seattle. Unlike the Midwest the heat of the day here doesn't start till around or after 5pm, just in time to get the house hot enough and not cool down for bed time.
• Best moments : Stephen and I had a really wonderful last weekend alone. Even if the baby doesn't come when she is due, this next week starts our flow of visitors coming to meet baby k. We did things over the weekend for us, for the dogs and for the baby. It was a really nice and relaxing, but productive weekend. Pictures way below on all of the things we did. 
• Movement : Nothing different than how she has been.
• Symptoms : Is HOT a symptom? See above and below mentions of the heat wave.
• Maternity clothes? : Yes, if I am wearing many clothes at all. Haha We had a heat wave this week and it made for a lot of pantsless sitting around
• Food cravings or aversion's? : Nothing really different. Still loving some pie, but its too hot to eat a lot.
• What I am eating : Thank goodness for a shaded deck and grill! If we ate at home this week Stephen grilled up dinner. Even though the evenings are the hottest, the sun has moved off our back deck so we would sit out there and eat. It was much cooler out there then in the house.
• Exercise : Lots of walks! I have been trying to walk this baby out. We were deterred some by the heat wave this week. It made for some sweaty walks. 
• Gender : Little lady
• Labor signs : No change from the last two weeks at the dr this week.
• What I miss : Not thinking 80 degrees was 100. We had temps in the 90s this last week and that is just crazy around here. Especially for a place where AC is not standard. I would say I have been missing AC as well!
• What I am looking forward to : Our due date! Also, my family is in town and it will be nice to spend time with them. Hopefully baby k gets excited to spend time with them and decides to show her little face soon!
  
  
  Other Happenings:
  Our neighborhood hosts the largest one day car show in Washington each year. While neither of us are into cars, we only live 2 blocks away so we had to go check it out. We went early while it was still being set up and took the dogs. It was also a good chance to get out and walk before it got too hot out. 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Saturday afternoon we hit up Greenlake for some time on the water. We rented a trampoline that you could take out on the water. It meant that we were just floating around partially in the water. It was awesome. 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Yuri has been ridiculous this week with his cuteness. I had to share a few pics. He is just too cute to handle some days. 
  
  
  
   Snuggling his dad.
  
  
  
   His new favorite spot to lay at night...my hospital bag.
  
  
  
  I am working from home everyday and he will beg to get up on my lap. One day he crawled up onto the table (ok I let him up. shame on me) and he curled up like this while I worked. Too freaking cute!

13 Days and Predictions!

13 days left till our due date! It is rapidly approaching. Stephen's work took predictions this week and it got me thinking that we should have our family members do the same. I had everyone send in when they thought she would be due and how big she would be. Some guessed as early as 12 days before my due date (the super moon has people thinking she will arrive this weekend). So I have been trying to take it easy this weekend. Ha. Below is what our family has submitted as their guesses, by order of date of arrival. Who will be the closest???

**Blogger keeps messing up the formating, so sorry if it doesn't look very nice. I tried a few times to fix it**

Name Date         Weight
Mama 6/24/2013 7 lbs 8 oz
Stephen  7/1/2013 7 lb 15 oz
Me         7/3/2013   8 lbs 5oz
Holly      7/4/2013 8 lbs 6 oz
Sue        7/4/2013 7 lbs 5 oz
Mike      7/5/2013 7 lbs 6 oz
David     7/5/2013 6 lbs 14 oz
Nancy 7/6/2013 7 lbs 4 oz
Kim       7/7/2013 8 lb 4 oz
Ellen      7/8/2013 7 lbs 9 oz
Brian     7/8/2013 8 lbs 2oz
Karen 7/9/2013 7 lbs 15 oz
Jessica 7/10/2013 9 lbs

Baby Shower

This post is super late, but better late then never right? Good thing baby girl can't ready yet, don't want her to think that way. hehe. Anyways, Easter weekend Stephen and I hoped a plane and headed to St Louis. My sweet family threw me a baby shower. It was a wonderful time, got to visit with many people and celebrate the soon to be new addition to the family.

 

My sister & mom put together a great day, with the help of my aunts, mama, cousins and mother in law. All of the decorations were so great, the food delicious and the company delightful as always. :)

Me with my mom and mother in law.

Aunt Nancy and I :)

Jessica and I :)

Family! Thanks ladies for helping out with the shower. I had the best time!

Kozlen ladies :)

 

Sisters! Ellen spear headed the shower and she did a great job. Everything was amazing.

Old friends! So great Holly was in town too, so she got to come celebrate with us :)

BFFs :) Love all these ladies and their little men!

Thanks to everyone who came to celebrate! I can't wait for everyone to get to meet our baby girl.

Week 26

Where: Fisher's Restaurant, Belleville, IL

Week Recap ~

• Total weight gain/loss : +19.5 lbs, no change
• Sleep : So, so. I was battling a cold most of the week that made it hard to sleep. 
• Best moments : My mom and sister threw me a wonderful baby shower. It was so great to celebrate baby girl and spend time with friends and family. More to come on the shower, it deserves it's own post.
• Movement : Yes. I can tell she is getting bigger too. She spent all of Friday moving around in all kinds of new places.
• Symptoms : I had a rough week, body wise I was a mess. So it was hard to notice any pregnancy related symptoms. I said I was battling a cold, well on top of that mid week I rolled my right ankle. This caused me to fall to the ground and bang up one of my knees pretty bad. Don't worry I am alright, just sore and scratched up. My ankle was fairly swollen but it is going down each day. It wasn't my worst rolled ankle to date. ha
• Maternity clothes? : Well with my fall I was down a pair of pants. I ripped open the knee on one of my jeans. Thank goodness it wasn't my favorite pair! I had a coupon to Gap, so Friday after work I decided to go and just look. Well I walked out with 2 pairs of jeans to replace my one tore pair. :) They were on super sale too!
• Food cravings or aversion's? : I wanted pizza pretty bad this week. We decided Friday night to try out a place in our new neighborhood that we heard was really good. It was SO disappointing  It for sure didn't satisfy my craving. Will have to try for pizza again next week. 
• What I am eating : Pasta - my mom brought me my favorite pasta all the way from New Jersey over the weekend. Sal's Penne Vodka, no pasta anywhere compares to it. I ate it for a few meals while in St Louis. 
  
  Steve also grilled for us a few times this week, sausage and peppers one night and steak, mushrooms and sweet potatoes another. Breakfasts were the same as always - greek yogurt, oats, fruit. Lunches were mainly pasta, salads or chicken sandwiches. 
• Exercise : Did some light, short neighborhood walking and we went to Ikea (counts as exercise these days, plus that place is huge)
• Gender : Girl!
• Labor signs : None
• What I miss : My family! It was so great to see almost everyone (missed you dad!) over the weekend. We are a long ways from all our family most of the year. We love getting to see everyone. I know it is going to get harder over the next few years when we have a little one. Everyone will need to start making plans to come visit us more often :)
• What I am looking forward to : The sun! When we got back to Seattle the weather was amazing. I was convinced it was here to stay until next winter. Unfortunately the forecast changed to rain all week :( Also, child classes start next week! We are signed up for a variety of classes, but the main one is a 6 week course, once a week. 

Week 21

Where: Gasworks Park, Fremont, Seattle, WA

Week Recap ~

• Total weight gain/loss : +13lbs
• Sleep : Meh. I haven't slept that well this week. I get a few good hours in and then about the second time I wake up to use the bathroom I end up wide awake. I spend the next 2-3 hours tossing and turning. Poor Steve, a lot of the time this wakes him up too. At least then I have a buddy to talk to if we want.
• Best moments : Spending time with my parents. With each of us living on different ends of the country we do not always get to see each other very much. It was good to have them around. Mom and I also registered at Babies R Us while she was here. I was glad we got to do something baby oriented together too.
• Movement : She is starting to move around some more. I don't feel her a ton, but every now and then she makes herself known. Last night, after we had dinner, she was really kicking(punching?) in one spot. I let Steve know and he was able to feel her for the first time. It was really exciting. She would stop until I would start talking, then she would start it back up.
• Symptoms : Bad sleep, using the bathroom a lot more and I also have some small back aches. It is usually just at the end of long days and I feel it when I go to lay down.
• Maternity clothes? : Yup. My two pairs of jeans seem to be stretching out after just a few wears. I am starting to think they aren't the best fit. I am torn between if I should try on a different brand and get some new ones or just tough it out for the next 19 weeks.
• Food cravings or aversion's? : I haven't really listed any aversions yet, but I do have some. They are a few things that pre-pregnancy we ate a lot of. Banh mi (Vietnamese sandwiches) sound terrible to me. They are one of the most tasty things ever (cheap too!) and the thought of eating a baguette really turns me off. One other is something we used to eat once a week, shwarma plates from Mr Gyros. The last time we had this I felt really uncomfortable afterwards, so this is more remembering that feeling than the sound of it that turns me off.
• What I am eating : Oh man we ate a lot this week. With my parents in town we went out to a lot of good and nice meals. Crab club sandwich, fancy dinner with tons of small plates, Serious Biscuit, King's burgers, another nice dinner of crab cakes & clam chowder, sausages and chicken livers, just to name a few of the things we ate while they were here! Since we are moving we have also been eating out a lot. Not being the healthiest this week, but I am still having a lot of fruit.
• Exercise : Some small walks and a good one on Tuesday with the birthday boy! Chewie turned 6 this week!
• Gender : Baby Girl! (also my favorite thing to call her right now)
• Labor signs : none
• What I miss : A good nights sleep. Hope I can get one in this weekend when I know I wont have an alarm set.
• What I am looking forward to : Moving! We got the keys to our new rental house last night. We are going to take some things over this weekend and move our storage unit. The big move wont happen until next Saturday though. We are also going to go look at paint for the nursery!

 

More happenings:

 

My Parents were in town!

 

 

I mentioned we ate a lot :)

 Lunch at King's Hardware, one of our favorite spots.

 Birthday dinner part 1 at Staple & Fancy Mercantile.

Birthday dinner part 2 at Ray's Cafe. Thanks for the new shirt Ellen!

 

We took advantage of having my dad in town and had him take a few shots of us together. We don't have any of both of us from the last 21 weeks! Here are just a few:

Thanks Dad!

 

This post is getting long :) But I cant go without posting pictures of the birthday boy. Chewie turned 6 on Tuesday!

 After a nice walk around Ballard we went to the corner bar to celebrate with a beer and water :)

He loves going to the bar. He just chills in the booth the whole time. Happy 6th birthday buddy!

 

Ok one last thing :) I stoped during lunch one day in Marshall's and picked up these goodies. The purple & pink one will be going in the nursery. I am not sure where the black & white will go yet. We will have to see how we set up the new house. Thought they would be good for baby girls toy's. :)

 

Week 19

Where: Suson Park, St. Louis, MO



Week Recap ~

• Total weight gain/loss : +10 lbs (big gain week!)
• Sleep : Pretty decent this week. I wake up a lot to go to the bathroom
• Best moments : Spending last weekend with my bffs, still reeling from it. Also, talking baby names with Stephen. Oh an hearing the heart beat. Baby is sounding good!
• Movement : Still none
• Symptoms : Been a little tired lately, had some long work weeks. I also cannot eat full size meals, the food doesn't sit right. I still can't seem to stop eating too much sometimes at lunch or dinner.
• Maternity clothes? : Yup. Loving my flare jeans (seen in the picture above)
• Food cravings or aversion's? : Same old same old...mexican, fish & chips. No big aversions..taking it easy on spicy foods.
• What I am eating : Greek yogurt parfait (from the grocery store and they are amazing), turkey salad wrap, pickles, sausage with rice and broccoli, bananas, spicy beef & broccoli, breakfast for dinner. fish and chips, meatloaf, oranges
• Exercise : A nice walk in the park with the kiddos. The sun is finally shinning here in Seattle, hope it stays over the weekend for some walks.
• Gender : We find out in 6 days!
• Labor signs : None
• What I miss : Hmm not sure this week.
• What I am looking forward to : Diaper class tomorrow and my parents visiting! They get in next Thursday evening and are staying till Tuesday (some people have birthday's coming up! Chewie and I!)

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year from Steve and I (Chewie & Yuri too!)

2011 was a pretty big year for us, who knows what 2012 will have in store. We do know a few things: we are going on a 18 day trip to Ecuador in April, we will be getting back into shape, we will be experiencing more of what this wonderful city has to offer. We hope: to have more visitors so we can show off this place we love so much, to get to spend some short trips to see friends and family members and to not have to go to any funerals this year.

While 2011 had a few sad moments, we lost too many loved ones this year, it had a ton of awesome moments. Steve and I were so busy this summer that I stopped documenting everything we were doing on this blog. So here is a short recap of a few things we did this year...

We made a huge life decision and Steve took a job that moved us to Seattle, WA.

We rented our house in Olathe, KS sold over half our possessions and made a huge move accross the country.

The move allowed us both to take amazing road trips(separately) with our best friends.

I quit my job and then found one quicker than I was expecting.

We visited West Virginia for Rebecca and Randy's wedding. We had a great time getting to spend time with family members we don't see very often. It also was Steve's first time in WV so we did some hiking and saw the bridge and gorge.I got to go and visit with some of my girlfriends in Omaha, NE for Molly & Ben's wedding reception. It was a good time, as it always is with my friends.

Yuri went swimming and loved it. Chewie hated it so there are no pics of him.
We did a good number of hikes. This one is from a 4 mile hike to a mountain lake. Steve got in and said it was so cold he felt his heart stop! It was so beautiful. Too bad I broke one of my toes hiking the 4 miles back to our car.

We took up some water sports. There is so much water here it is hard not to do something on the water each weekend. We did stand up paddle boarding in the sound and once in a lake.

We kayaked a lot also. This is us kayaking through the arboretum, which is really cool with all the lilly pads and secret passages. You even go under highways to get to it.

We had visitors this summer too. Steve's parents and Jessica came out to visit, as did Ellen and my mom and dad.

We celebrated our 2nd anniversary with dinner at one of the nicest restaurants in town.

We got to experience the Cardinals World Series Game 6 win from downtown St. Louis, with two of our best friends.

Goodbye 2011 we had a great time!