This morning a bit after waking up I got a call from Mom H. asking if I had heard from Julie (Kent's brother Ralph's wife). I could only assume that question would lead into that she had had her baby. She had! Hannah Jean Hinkson was born today, March 7th at 6:19 a.m. weighing in at 8 lbs 2 oz and was 21 1/2 inches long. Congratulations Ralph and Julie!!
Apparently Julie had gone in for a stress test yesterday and her blood pressure was high while the baby's was low so they wanted to admit her for monitoring. Her water broke around 1:30 a.m. and Hannah was born about five hours later. This delivery was faster and easier than Julie's older daughter (she was in labor for 40+ hours with Amber, Julie is quite the woman!) so Julie was feeling great when I talked with her. Understandably by the time Kent III and I got ready for the day Julie was tired and wanted a nap so we put off going to visit her until later in the day.
While I did some cleaning I got a call from the PTA President at the girls' school. Today was the maturation program for the 5th and 6th graders and the PTA usually got some cookies for the kids and parents. Unfortunately, no one had volunteered to help gather refreshments and she had forgotten about it until that morning. She asked if I would be willing to pick up some cookies then she would do the same on her lunch break and between the two of us it should be covered. I told her I would be happy to do so and told her I got a Costco card for my birthday (thanks again Mom H.!) so would pick the cookies up there if it was ok. She told me she didn't have a card so I offered to just pick up all the cookies since I would be there anyway then she wouldn't have to take time during her lunch break and the local grocery store would probably be a lot more expensive. She agreed to let me get all the cookies and told me she had called on me because I am always willing to help and good in a pinch. That made me feel extra special as lately I have been feeling less than dependable and reliable.
Yesterday was my sister Melinda's birthday but her co-workers wanted to take her out to lunch yesterday so my parents opted to take her to lunch today. They kindly invited me to go along. So on my way to Ruby River I stopped at Costco and picked up the cookies. For 11 in the morning there sure were a lot of people there! The lines were very long! I was going to be about 10 minutes late to lunch and I had forgotten my cell phone at home. Doh! I tried to hurry and was worried until I pulled into the parking lot right in front of Melinda. You can't be late to a birthday lunch if the birthday girl isn't there yet, right? :)
Below is a picture of us at the restaurant. Left side front to back: My Mom, my nephew Matt (Melinda's son who works at my parent's shop) and my Dad. Right side front to back: Kent, Kent III, Me and Melinda
After lunch I had just enough time to stop at my house for some platters to put the cookies on and then get to the school to set up. The maturation program for the 6th grade girls was about health, exercise and body image. (Ironic they had cookies after, don't you think? :)) Alas sweet Kent III is getting too old to have at such things and I spent half the time with him in the hallway. It was ok with Savannah though, she didn't need my support and presence like she did last year when they talked about their periods and bodies.
The cookies seemed to be a big hit as several of the 6th grade boys took 3-4. The PTA President thought we would be ok though until the 5th graders walked in to the lunchroom looking for their treat. She had forgotten to add in the 5th grade classes when she asked me to pick up the cookies. Oopsie! Oh well...she said she would take them all a treat later.
After the maturation program I had to go pick up puppies from the vet. I pondered long and hard on how I was going to get six post surgery puppies home with only two carriers. They really shouldn't be together because they can aggravate the healing process. I finally realized the only way I could do it was picking up two at a time. The first run went smoothly and I was back at the vets in no time (they are only about 5 minutes from our house) but the second time the waiting room was jam-packed so I had to wait over 40 minutes before any techs were available to get two more puppies for me. That put a little time constraint damper on my schedule. (I still needed to finish straightening up the living room and make the birth certificate for the new owners coming at 5.) Kent was also late getting home from work because a costumer cornered him right before he was leaving work so when I got home I finished getting ready for the new owners before I went back for the last set of puppies. Luckily it didn't take too long but I hate feeling rushed and unprepared. Kent got home and that helped me relax a little and not feel so rushed. Kent stayed with Kent III while I went to get the last puppies. The last run was like the first and I was out of there in less than 5 minutes (the waiting area was completely empty). And then the new owners called to say they were stuck in traffic and would be late. Woot! That gave us time to eat dinner before they showed up. Shortly after Multi went home with his new owner, Fawn's owners arrived. They stayed and talked for a bit and when they left we got a call from Julie.
I had called her earlier in the day to let her know I had a crazy schedule and probably wouldn't be able to visit until the evening. She was wondering if we still planned on coming by. We told her we would love to if she was up for the visit. She graciously allowed us to come over even though it was almost 9. We quickly jumped in the car and headed to the hospital only to realize a few blocks away that we had forgotten the flowers we had for her and the roses Ralph had us get for her. A quick turn around and a trip into the house and we were back on our way.
Julie looked great and Hannah is adorable! You forget how very tiny they are when they first arrive. It was great to see Julie and to meet Hannah when she was only 15 hours old (I wasn't able to visit Amber in the hospital because I was sick). Kent III kept trying to grab the baby so we just let him walk around the room. He enjoyed exploring, pushing buttons and trying to open and close drawers and cabinets. Julie said Amber did most of the exact same things when she was there earlier in the day. I guess those cousins do have things in common. :) We tried not to stay too long because it was late and Julie deserved some rest and because it was late and Kent III was getting cranky since it was after his bedtime. It was great to visit with Julie and to hold and cuddle Hannah. I am very excited for her and Ralph and know Ralph is on pins and needles until he visits from Iraq in April.
Adorable Hannah
Radiant Julie and adorable Hannah
Tonight after we got home from visiting Hannah and Julie I posted a few pictures of Hannah on our family website. Kent then commented that I had told Julie I wouldn't. I thought I had agreed not to post pictures of Hannah's diaper change but then got really worried so quickly had Kent take down the pictures of Hannah I had put up. After I thought about it for a moment I realized how wrong I was to post those pictures before Julie had a chance to do it herself. Of course it is the right of the mother or father to post pictures of their baby on a family website before anybody else does. Which I respect and agree with, I don't know what I was thinking. I just get so upset with myself when I do stupid things like that. I just got caught up and didn't think and could have potentially damaged relationships with people I care about and respect a great deal. Luckily I have a husband who has it together and helps me stay on the right path. Julie gets home on Sunday so look for pictures on our family website the beginning of next week and as soon as pictures are posted there I will post one here just so you can see how radiant Julie is and how very cute Hannah is.
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