July 5th, 2011-- The Bleeker family, formerly a "Boy's ONLY" establishment for the past 6 1/2 years, admitted their first female member, Madeline Bleeker, thus ending the era of the Bleeker Boys and ushering in the the era of The Bleeker Kids. That transition went something like this:
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| The Bleeker Boys at the Taste of Chicago 2011 |
On the evening of Friday, July 1st I started having contractions about two and a half minutes apart. They were so consistent Joe started packing bags while I tried to rest between contractions so I could have enough energy for what we thought would be a night of labor and delivery but as Joe walked down the stairs to say he was ready to go the contractions slowed down to a slow and steady pace of one every ten to twelve minutes. I decided we'd just go to bed and see what happened in the morning. The next day we decided to go to the Taste thinking that perhaps the walking would bring on more contractions and that we'd be able to get our minds off of the impending labor.
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| At the Taste of Chicago with my boys-- still having contractions! |
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| Pregnant on my b-day |
The next day, July 3rd, was my 31st birthday. Joe and the boys woke me with breakfast in bed and presents. Though I'd been dealing with contractions for 48 hours this was a wonderful birthday full of family time, yummy food and as much relaxation as was possible given the situation.
I slept restlessly that night but still no change in my contractions. We'd decided that if I didn't progress any more that day I' take castor oil that night to hopefully push labor along just like when I'd been pregnant with Thomas. So after going to the Antioch 4th of July parade, we invited my parents over for dinner and to spend the night so if day three of labor turned into delivery they would be there so we could leave. They took the boys to the fireworks while I chugged some castor oil and waited for baby to make him/herself known.
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| 4th of July Parade.... yup- still having contractions! |
July 5th- Contractions were getting stronger and I was getting very tired. I had an appointment with my midwife to get an ultrasound and double check on the baby's weight, position and overall health to see if baby was healthy enough to stay in a little longer. We did not get to the ultrasound. After being checked by my midwife we got the news that I was, in fact, in some sort of labor and was at 4 1/2 cm. She suggested I go over to the hospital, let my membranes get ruptured and then walk around for a little bit to get things moving along. I agreed and instantly felt a strange mixture of both relief and nervousness- perhaps a premonition of what was to come in the next few hours.
I labored on my own for three hours and still did not progress despite having regular contractions that were just two minutes apart. I was very frustrated. It had been days of start/stop labor and nagging contractions and I was starting to feel that the baby would just hang out in-utero forever. So when the OB suggested that I use a little pitocin and said "I'm sure you'll go very fast and be done soon" I think the only words I heard were "fast" and "done", so I said yes.
I'd done pitocin before with Johnny's labor and during that labor I hadn't used any pain meds so I thought that I could do it again. Without going into too much detail let me just say- I soon regretted this decision.
I labored for three more hours with increasing amounts of pitocin. The only way I could get my contractions to be productive was to stand and rock back and forth. If I sat in a chair or on a birthing ball they would slow down to my previous pace and the nurse would come in to turn up the pitocin- again. Finally after two emotional breakdowns, some incredibly intense pain, a broken tailbone and a lot of support from Joe (both literally and figuratively) I gave birth to a very posterior baby.... girl!
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| My sweet Maddie (and me- so glad to be done with that four day labor and to be holding my baby) |
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| The presents Johnny, Brandon and Thomas brought as offerings to their baby sister. I know- you all wish you got Sprees when you were born... it's ok, you can be jealous. |
Johnny and Brandon were estatic! They'd wanted a girl through my whole pregnancy. Johnny prayed every night that he'd get a little sister always explaining, "Mommy, we have enough boys, we need some girls." Thomas was a little less excited. When I told him he'd had a sister he responded by saying, "No, she's not a girl, she's a boy and her name is Thomas." He wore his Thomas the Train overalls that day in her(his?) honor. |
| The balloons they picked out for Madeline. Notice that Thomas' is blue- it said "It's a BOY!" funny kid! |
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| Three big brothers that love their baby sister. Thomas now calls her "My Precious Baby" So Maddie has been with us for almost two months now. She is tiny, sweet, snuggly and good spirited. She puts up with her overly loving big brothers and has started to smile and laugh. She has some definite likes and dislikes. She loves being held and swaddled, she loves her sound machine and does not mind sleeping in a closet or during the construction of a two story room addition. She likes being whistled at and listening to her mommy play guitar. She likes to burrow her head into the crook of your arm to sleep and giggles out loud when she dreams. Her brothers make her laugh. She does not like being alone or being cold. She HATES her car seat and will not take any type of pacifier. She has a very sensitive gag reflex and can shoot poop farther than should be humanly possible. |
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| Loves a good swaddle |
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| Is it bad I think that her crying face is cute? |
People ask me if I'm happy to have finally gotten my girl and I've tried to consider this question carefully. I never went into any of my pregnancies hoping for a certain gender. I always knew that the little person sent to our family was the child that needed us and that we needed him/her so beyond that, gender never really mattered to me. I adore my little boys and I've LOVED being a mom of only boys for the past six years. I think I learned more in those six years of my life than I have in the other 24 1/2 combined (and that includes the years that I learned to speak, read and do math so that's a lot of learning).
My kids!
But I AM happy to welcome Madeline Dorothy- so to answer that burning question, I think it's not just because she's a girl that I'm so happy but because she is such a special little person that adds a whole new dynamic to our home. Through her our boys have learned so much about service, about putting their wants behind someone else's needs and the meaning of unconditional love and though my pregnancy was so difficult and my labor so epic I would do it a million times over if it meant bringing this girl into our lives.
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| Mommy and Madeline - 4 days old. |
So perhaps the changes in our family do not have the same social influence as the fall of the exclusive Garrick's Club but Madeline's birth has had a great influence on our lives and our hearts. And just like the romanticized idea of the British Gentleman's Club has melted away so has the fear that I wouldn't know how to be a mom to a girl, even though sometimes I still call her Thomas in the middle of the night and I occasionally mix up the pronouns she/he when I talk about her and how a few times I've asked her, "How's my little boy?"
I think I'm getting the hang of things-- and I might even be starting to like the color pink... or maybe that's just the hormones speaking. All I know is that even though she hasn't been around long, I can't imagine our family without her. I smile when I see her, even if it's one, or two, or three am and I am so grateful she was sent to us, here on Bleeker Street.
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| Our sweet Maddie girl |
