A surprise is born... *Updated with DHS

[jenniferkeala808]

HEY! joining in on the fun! Can't wait to read more!

 

[Laura.bora]

Thanks for reading everyone! Not much has been going on here. We did manage to grab out airfare down to Florida for $74/pp! That's from NY to FL! So now we just wait for the price to be right for the way home!

Other than that, I've had an infected wisdom tooth extracted , patiently awaiting the announcement of Free Dining , and not so patiently awaiting the birth of our son - and really hoping that the last two don't fall on the same day!!!

 

[3princesses+aprince]

Hi, just checking in! I hope you got the Free dining. We did!! We were with the QS plan that I had with my pin, but since we are staying at Port Orleans riverside we have the regular ddp, i'm so happy. We got great ADRS too!!! My kids are going to love the dining.

Did that baby of yours arrive yet?

 

[Laura.bora]

Ok - so I've been very very bad at updating my PTR on the Dis..but I've been updating on TGM - so I'll cut and paste everything that has been happening - as you'll find out, I've been very busy!

4/18

So I am still waiting on Free Dining and a baby! So of course, since Disney changed the MNSSHP dates and Spectro dates, and I'm still waiting, I took the time to rearrange my schedule, because Disney's change in schedule left me with 2 days of yellow parks. You didn't think I'd keep my schedule the SAME this WHOLE TIME did you!? So here are the new plans:

September 14th - Our flight arrives at 9 am - so we'll be in the parks around lunch time!! We are still hitting MK this day. No change in schedule here. Still going to Kona for dinner.

September 15th - Still hitting MK this day too. Still going to Tony's for lunch. Still staying for Wishes.

September 16th - We are still going to Epcot this day, however we are using this as one of our "rest/take it easy" days. We'll be touring World Showcase instead. We'll be there for WS opening at 11, which gives us some sleep in time. We'll wander about for a few hours, mostly shopping and snacking and finish off with a walk over to Beaches and Cream and head back for an early evening of relaxing over at Wilderness Lodge.

September 17th - Crazy day over at DHS. We'll be there from park opening until park closing - but no F! so park close is at 7. We are going to Hollywood and Vine for lunch at 1 - perfect time for a long AC break. We'll do CS for dinner.

September 18th - Today is a rest day. We have a Chef Mickey's breakfast ADR at 11:10. We'll do a little shopping at DTD later in the day, dinner at WGP Express or Earl of Sandwich and La Nouba. If we cannot swing La Nouba, we will go to Kona for dinner at 5:30 instead. Either way, it will be a time of relaxation today!

September 19th - We are going to the AK today. We aren't celebrating Nathaniel's birthday today. We'll do that on our 2nd day at AK. We'll go to Yak and Yetti for Lunch and Kona for dinner. We'll see if we can stay for the parade, but who knows.

September 20th - Today we are keeping the plans the same. Mk for Ainsley's birthday. There is a green Spectro night on the 17th which I'd prefer to do, but I won't be able to get the 8:00 BBB appointment, and that's a top priority for me. I'm not too worried about it. Our main goal for the day is Tom Sawyer Island and collecting FP's to use later at night. A yellow day isn't going to affect TSI at all. We're still going to the castle for dinner as well. Spectro and Wishes tonight. Hopefully it will be the Main St. Electrical Parade.

September 21st - Today is a rest day. Nothing planed except breakfast and dinner at Kona Cafe and going to the Fort Wilderness Campfire Singalong.

September 22nd - Another MK day. And it's green! It will however be our very last day in the MK. We'll go to the Liberty Tree Tavern for Lunch and Crystal Palace for dinner. I was back and forth over whether to go to CP or not. Finally guilt over not taking Ephraim to see his favorite characters won out!!

September 23rd - We hit Epcot FW today. We have a reservation at Coral reef for lunch and Teppan Edo for dinner. We'll be staying for Illuminations this night. By the way - rescheduling all my ADR's online this late was a breeze. There are SO MANY open ADR's. Don't be afraid if you need to reschedule for now. I'm sure as soon as they announce Free dining that will all change!

September 24th - Today we celebrate Nathaniel's birthday. Kind of stinks that we celebrate on our last day here, but we decided to stay the full day and catch the earliest non stop out on Saturday instead. And The choices for green parks today were DHS or AK, and I felt AK would give us more time to pack, swim and enjoy our last day at the park....that and I think Jade may revolt if she has to wait this long to go to DHS! We have a 10:20 reservation with Donald and we end our dining experience with a bang! Artist Point tonight at 5:40.

September 25th - Our flight leaves at 9:50, so it will be a bright and early morning! Sigh. It makes me sad just thinking about this. I don't want to go home already.

 

[Laura.bora]

4/23 -

I'm having a repeat performance of Ephraim's labor. I'm on day 8 of labor right now. So hopefully sometime soon he will arrive! I thought last night was going to be the night, but not so much!! I'll update with pictures as soon as he shows up!!

 

[Laura.bora]

4/24 -

Thanks everyone for the prayers! As you can see, I'm still home!! He beat Ephraim's 5 days of labor. But spirits are high and I'm just waiting for the Lords perfect timing for Felix to arrive!

 

[Laura.bora]

4/27 -

This update was written by my best friend on TGM:

I'm going to spread the news on behalf of my best friend....she had a very, ummmm, let's say INTERESTING, delivery experience...

http://www.whec.com/news/stories/S1532408.shtml?cat=566

Luckily everyone is happy and healthy!!!

Now if only Disney would announce Free Dining - then Laura's month would really be complete!

 

[Laura.bora]

4/27 -

Lol - My Lauren is correct!! Felix Matthew Tangel was born at 12:42 PM this afternoon. He weighs in at 7 lbs. 9 oz. and is 20 inches long. Wait for it.....he was born on the side of I-390!! Vicki (My sister) and Ken delivered him. He just couldn't wait! Besides that I wouldn't have to have to be poked and prodded all through labor and delivery (LOL - Prayer Answered! Just not in the way I would have thought!) , my prayer was that Felix and Free Dining would not arrive on the same day. So now that I can make the phone call - C'mon FREE DINING!!!!

http://www.urmc.rochester.edu/hh/about-us/news/Highland-Welcomes-Baby-Born-on-I-390-Rochester.cfm

I'll give the full details later on!

 

[Laura.bora]

I gave birth on the side of the road....it doesn't even seem real. I feel like I'm telling about a dream I had instead of real life! But I shall try and relay my story!

So, as you know, I'd been sick with morning sickness for 9 months, and had really been hoping for an early delivery. Ainsley's pregnancy was very similar, and I had her nearly 2 weeks early, so I thought this pregnancy would follow suit. But as the 13th came and went, I knew that my hopes for an early delivery were not to be. Looks like I get to learn a lesson in patience and endurance again!

Then, on the 15th, I wake up to contractions! Yeah! Felix will be born today. But as the day progressed, I suddenly realized we were in for more of the waiting game. Contractions were coming strong every 10 minutes....and doing nothing. They didn't get closer, they didn't intensify. They just were there. It was a repeat performance of Ephraim's labor. Ok - That lasted 5 days last time. We'll just have to wait them out.
The morning of the 20th came, and the contractions woke me up...and they were coming harder and faster! Yeah! The time has come!!! We had a Dr. appointment in the morning, so we canceled it. We said we'd be coming in later - labor had finally started to pick up. Ken took the day off of work and we waited....and waited....and waited. Contractions coming steadily every 5 - 7 minutes....and yet...nothing. I finally decide to lay down and they putter out to 15 minutes apart and I can sleep mostly soundly through them. The minute I stand up they are back up to 5 - 7 minutes apart again. Sigh. Ok - not today. I tell Ken to take the rest of the week off. Something in me was terrified to have Ken go anywhere remotely away. I figure, "take the week off - the baby has to come sometime this week, right?" Wrong.
Friday we call the Dr. and let them know what is going on. We schedule an appointment for Monday so that certain family members can calm down. I was CERTAIN Felix was doing fine during this whole ordeal. He was the most active baby I had ever had this late in a pregnancy. We knew going into the Dr. appointment that induction was not going to be an option for us. Well, it would be an option, we just weren't taking it. We had trusted Jesus this far, we just didn't feel led to go and have medicine interfere.
Monday morning came and the contractions were practically non existent. Ken asked what I thought, and I told him that it felt like the calm before the storm.
They did the stress test and all the Dr. really had to say was "hmmm...VERY active baby. I think it should be any day now." Felix was in the right position, VERY low, I was dilated some what. We just continued to wait on the Lord's timing fir Felix's arrival and be patient.
By Monday night, the contractions had started up yet again, but this had been the normal for so long that we didn't want to get our hopes up. We went to bed, and I slept through most of the contractions again - but I noticed that they didn't slow down this time. They didn't pick up speed or intensity either.
Tuesday morning started off like all the rest of my labor days. 5 - 7 minutes apart, same intensity, but I was fairly certain that this was it. We had an ultrasound appointment at 1:30. I didn't want to drive all the way up to the city, come back home and have to go back up again to deliver, so at 10:00 we canceled the appointment, called my neighbor to give her the heads up (she was watching the kids for us) and told the kids they had the day off from school.
Around 11 or so, I decided that if I was going to get a shower today, it had better be now, so I took a nice hot shower. I started to have waves of nausea in the shower, not unusual for me, so I asked Ken to make me some lunch.
As I am getting dried off, I'm hollering out when I'm having a contraction so my sister can keep track of it. (My sister, Vicki, had come up at the end of March to help out around the house and be here for the birth. She was such a Godsend! I don't know how I would have done anything without her here!) I have one contraction and then another crazily close together. "Really?? 3 minutes apart..."Vicki tells me. Probably from the shower - no big deal. I tell Vicki to make the kids lunch and send them over to the neighbors house after they finish. While I'm eating my lunch, the contractions suddenly pick up intensity. I tell Ken to hurry the kids up and get them out the door. We need to go soon. It's about 12 at this point, and the first time I had any thought of "it's time to head to the hospital now".
Our neighbors come over to pray over and anoint me before we head out the door. I make one last bathroom run and as I go to head out the door another contraction hits and hits hard. I suddenly think, "Should I be going??" I wasn't so sure. But Ken and Vicki were hurrying me along, so into the car I went. We didn't even get out of the driveway before another contraction hit. I screamed for them to stop the car. We have a gravel driveway and the rocking of the car on the gravel while enduring the contraction was a bit much. The contraction stops, on we go and I as I take one last look at the house I thought, "Oh....I forgot a garbage bag and towels to sit on in case my water breaks in the car....should I tell them to turn around for it....nah." So on we drive. As we head out of town, a contraction rocks my body and I yell at them to pull the car over, turn around and head home. I was suddenly pushing. Ken looks at me and asks, "Seriously??" but by that time the contraction had stopped. I started praying out loud for wisdom on what to do. Ken heard and said "If you are not sure, then you are going to the hospital." And on we drove.
About 4 minutes later, I was very aware that my contractions were 1 minute long and 1 minute apart. Hmmm...not a good sign. We hit the turn for the highway and I very matter-of-factly realized that we aren't making it to the hospital and we weren't making it back to the house. The peace of Jesus was with me because I wasn't nervous, scared or anything. It was what it was and Jesus had the whole situation.
And suddenly there was another contraction, I had the urge to push and I could feel his little head going down the canal. I yelled out something to the effect of "I'm PUSHING!!!" Ken said something along the lines of "well, don't". Lol -yeah, like that works. The contraction ended and Ken asked what he should do. I said, "Well, my water hasn't broke, so he can't be born yet." Not 15 seconds later is another contraction, and my water breaks and his little head hits the seat of the car. I lift my self off of the seat and scream "PULL OVER!!!!!!! My water broke and he's here." Vicki in the back seat is rubbing my shoulder and assumes I jump up because my water broke and it feels gross. Ken tells Vicki to call 911, pulls over to the shoulder, but doesn't really stop. He looks over at me questioningly and says, "Seriously??" To which I so sweetly reply "STOP THE FR.....(grumble grumble Jesus help me control my tongue) CAR!!!!" He stops, and I hear Vicki reply to the 911 operators question of "911 what's your emergency?" "Having ....a baby??" and then she hands the phone over to Ken. Vicki jumps out of the car, opens my door and I tell her to get my seat belt off. I'm trying not to push but I can feel he is here. As Vicki gets my seat belt off, she asks, "Do you need to stand through a contraction or something?" I answer by standing up and saying "Pull my pants down and catch!!!" She gives me this quizzical look, but obeys. In Vicki's words, "I pulled down your pants expecting to see your privates, but instead I thought...Oh! That's not supposed to be there!!!" Vicki Put her hands on the top of Felix's head, I sat down and gave a push while Vicki caught Felix's head and yelled out a very coherent "KEN!!! HEAD!!! HE'S HERE!!!" Ken made a mad dash around the other side of the car and took over. One final push and Felix landed in his Papa's arms on mile marker 58.2!

We had about a 10 - 15 minute wait for the ambulance to arrive - so those first few minutes were just the 4 of us. No running around and whisking him away from me and giving him this shot and that medicine. Even though we were on the side of the highway - it was the best birth experience I've had yet. It was so wonderful to just be there with my little boy and not have cray amounts of people buzzing around me. So at 12:42 Little Felix Matthew entered the world - less than an hour from the first time I realized that we needed to head to the hospital!

In the ambulance:

Aunt Vicki aka head catcher (who gave the shirt off her back to wrap Felix in!)

The kids meeting Felix for the first time:

Proud Papa:

Little Felix

 

[3princesses+aprince]

OH MY WORD!!!!!!!!! I don't even know what I want to say right now. You must have been scared, your poor husband must have been scared. WOW!!

Congratulations!!! He is absolutely beautiful!!!! I'm so glad everything went well with you and that felix is nice and healthy!!!! Keep those pictures of that cute little guy coming!!!!!
The pic of all of the kids at the hospital with the baby is really cute too! Your husband looks so proud. I know all new parents are but his job was definitely a different experience.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Your Disney plans look great, we'll be there the same week, but it looks like we have different parks planned for each day, but ya never know, we may run into you guys!!!!

 

[Laura.bora]

Sooo - Free dining was announced AFTER Felix was born (Yeah! Another answered prayer. Thankfully Lauren was on stand by for us just in case!)

Before Free dining came out - the Stay and Play deal came out, and Lauren suggested that I do some Disney math to figure out the best deal. So Free Dining comes out AND a 40% off Resort Room on the same day! And that's when the wheels started turning...we have 2 rooms to book...which means I can arrange people in the room reservation so that I can make the best of the deal. So after a whole lot of Disney math on the Disney website, here is what I booked:

Wilderness Lodge
9/14 - 9/25
Woods Room view
Connecting Rooms
9 day base park pass

Room 1:
Me
Nathaniel
Ainsley
Ephraim
40% off plus added dining plan - save nearly $700 over Free Dining!! Thank you Lauren and Disney Math! I would have just booked Free Dining without thought before hand.

Room 2:
Ken
Jade
Kris
Felix
Free Dining - to book with the 40% off plus added dining plan would have cost $200 more than Free Dining!

So thanks to Disney math, deals, and Lauren - I saved about $900!

And last night I had my very first Disney dream. We told the kids, told them to pack their suitcases, we had less than 2 hours to get to the airport and then suddenly we realized, "Where is Kris!?" We then realized he was over an hour away in the opposite direction of the airport, and we were trying to figure out how we were going to get him to us and get to the airport on time. Lol - mental note - Make sure Kris is with us when it's time to leave!

 

[3princesses+aprince]

Great looking plans!!!!!

I still can't believe your article though!

 

[Laura.bora]

OH MY WORD!!!!!!!!! I don't even know what I want to say right now. You must have been scared, your poor husband must have been scared. WOW!!

Congratulations!!! He is absolutely beautiful!!!! I'm so glad everything went well with you and that felix is nice and healthy!!!! Keep those pictures of that cute little guy coming!!!!!
The pic of all of the kids at the hospital with the baby is really cute too! Your husband looks so proud. I know all new parents are but his job was definitely a different experience.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Your Disney plans look great, we'll be there the same week, but it looks like we have different parks planned for each day, but ya never know, we may run into you guys!!!!

Actually, we weren't scared at all. We had known that my labor could go very fast - and so we had jokingly prepared ahead of time, not REALLY expecting to deliver Felix on our own. We even watched a youtube video on how to deliver a baby unassisted! Little did my sister know how handy that would come in! She said she caught the baby's head and all she could think was "What came next in the video....WHAT CAME NEXT??? KEN!!!!"

We loved the experience of delivering our own baby that we are doing a home birth next. Partly because we are afraid we won't make it to the hospital on time again and partly because we want that hands on experience again.

And we are all loving little Felix! He is getting so much attention, between me and Ken, Kris and Jade, and Nathaniel, Ainsley and Ephraim - the boy never gets put down!

 

[Laura.bora]

Great looking plans!!!!!

I still can't believe your article though!

Lol - I lived through it, and I still can't believe it either!!!

 

[3KidletsMom]

I just stumbled across your pre-trip report and started reading and I am amazed at your birth experience! I had short labors with my first two kids (6hrs and 3hrs - 2nd child delivered 12 minutes after we arrived at the hospital) and when I was pregnant with my third I joked "I just don't want to be that woman on the news that has her kid on the side of the highway!" I'm glad everything turned out great for you and your family!

 

[Laura.bora]

It never occurred to me that I might go on the side of the road! I thought either home or the hospital. It didn't really dawn on me that in the hour commute to the hospital I might give birth!

 

[Laura.bora]

We were at the Dr.'s the other day for Felix's check up (which by the way went well) and while we were there, I had Ainsley's height checked. Turns out my little peanut has passed the 40 inch mark!! That means she can ride Splash, BTMRR, Soarin', Test Track and a whole bunch of other rides that she's wanted to !!!! YEAH!

Felix is growing by the day and is wonderful! He's already sleeping through the night! Right now I'm on the search for a baby wrap to wear him in Disney. I have 2 - One ring sling, and a wrap. The wrap I have is perfect for cooler days, but I think we will both die of the heat if we wear it in Florida!! I'm seriously thinking of this one.

http://www.wrapyourbaby.com/balibabywhitman.html

and maybe this one:

http://www.wrapyourbaby.com/eco.html

Anybody happen to have one and can give me thoughts/opinions?

Besides searching for cooler fabric baby wraps, I've been thinking on coordinating outfits! I pulled out Ephraim's summer clothes today and he has TONS of REALLY cute shirts, many that match Ken's - so now the wheels are turning! We'll be searching the stores for good deals on shirts for Nathaniel and Kris, as both closets are lacking - and I'm neurotic about having coordinating outfits!

 

[Laura.bora]

So after just not being satisfied with the original surprise plan, we came up with a new one! We will invited the borroweds over for a family birthday party for Ainsley and Nathaniel. That won't strike them as odd because 1. They are always here anyway and because 2. They were here for family birthday parties for Ephraim, Ken and me. We will hold the ever popular "game night" - or day as the case may be, as part of the celebration. Instead of the usual Family cranium, Mastermind or Bingo, we will have a scavenger hunt. We will tell them that a prize awaits them at the end of the game.

Here's the rules of the game:
1. No running.
2. Work as a team and stay together.
3. Any mess you make while looking for a clue must be cleaned up before you go to the next clue.
4. You must open the clues in order.
5. Clues can be found inside or outside.
6. The name on the envelope tells who gets to open and read the clue.
7. Have fun!!!

The clues are as follows - I am not going to give you the answers yet - please try to guess them and post the answers so I know if they are too hard to understand!!! You guys can be my test run! Thanks!!!

1.) The first clue will be found where you rest your head.
You'll find the clue under your _______.

2.) Hurry! Find the next clue! Don't wait 'till later.
The clue is getting cold in the _____________.

3.) Just ask Pa, Ma, and Little Carrie.
The next clue is hidden with ______________. (Hint: This clue will be read by Ainsley)

4.) Pretend to make burgers with all the fixin's.
You'll find this clue in the _______________.

5.) Soaps and suds clean muck and mire.
You'll find the next clue by the ______________.

6.) Here's the mail, it never fails.
It makes me want to wag my tail.
The next clue can be found with the ____________.

7.) This one will be tough.
I know this for sure.
You'll find the next clue hidden behind a ____________.

8.) The next clue is in the Living Room.
That is for certain.
Good luck finding it behind the ____________.

9.) Dinner will be on the floor if its not stable.
You'll find the next clue under the ___________.

10.) It's not impossible to find the next clue, "For nothing is impossible with God."

11.) This one will be tough. I just have this feeling. You'll find this clue hidden up on the ___________.

12.) Scrubba dub dub. There's a clue in the _________.

13.) It's the Great Big Book of Everything with everything inside. Take a look around it. The clue is right inside.

14.) Zone 2 holds the answer - I know it for sure. You'll find the next clue on the CLOSET FLOOR. (You wouldn't know the answer, because you don't know our cleaning schedule!)

15.) We use these to eat beans and lentils.
You'll find the next clue with the _______________.

16.) Look under there.

So the first clue will lead to an envelope with a piece of paper that reads "In just two weeks..." along with the next clue to lead them to the next envelope.
So here's how it will play out:
1st envelope - "In just two weeks..."
2nd envelope - "We will be going to..."
3rd - "Buffalo!"
4th - "What are we doing in Buffalo?"
5th - "We will spend the night at a hotel..."
6th - "and bright and early the next morning..."
7th - "We will have breakfast."
8th - "That's it??"
9th - "No." (I'm so mean! Lol - I'm going to drive them nuts!)
10th - "Then we are going to visit the airport!"
11th - "Are we going to ride on an airplane?"
12th - "YES!!!"
13th - "Where we are going?"
14th - "We are going to Disney World!"
15th - "we arrive in Disney on September 14th and are staying for 11 days! Our home away from home will be the Wilderness Lodge." They will also find a bag of goodies such as pins and lanyards, autograph books, Epcot passports, Disney Journal.

 

[Laura.bora]

 

[Laura.bora]

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