Welcoming Samuel Jacob!

I had thrown in the towel last year when we moved from Vienna to Minnesota. I figured it was a good natural break from blogging. I said my farewell and got the "Two Little Monkeys" blog published in a hardcover book for the boys to enjoy years and years down the road.

Then I got pregnant.

Tony gently reminded me throughout the pregnancy that it wouldn't be fair not to blog once this baby came along. Since we love having the memory book for Alexander and Isaac, I had to agree with him. I had to get back on the blog. A new one though--welcome to Three Little Monkeys, where I will attempt to highlight the ongoings of Alexander, Isaac and Samuel...when I find the time, that is :)

First things first...My pregnancy and Introducing Samuel Jacob Radecki!

When we found out I was pregnant, Tony and I were very excited! We weren't as surprised as we were with Alexander, nor were we really expecting it like we were with Isaac. We figured, we had already been through it twice before and we were happy for our growing family!

The pregnancy went along per usual, although with a little less morning sickness. A little less! I was still "mom on the couch" for about two months. At our 24 week appointment (after we found out we were having a little boy!), the doctor told us that the baby had a two-vessel umbilical cord. Normally, the cord has three vessels. There are theoretical concerns with a two-vessel cord, so Of course I was worried for our baby, but the doctor assured us that we should still expect a healthy and normal pregnancy and baby. Besides that, this baby was sitting very low!

The summer flew by--- with cousins and play dates and birthdays! We even snuck in a baby shower, where I was given my very own blessing way necklace. It was a great summer! August was coming to an end and we were on the cusp of sending Alexander to kindergarten. I was nervous, but trying not to show it. I really was looking forward to getting Alexander situated at school, Isaac at preschool, and then finally come October being ready to welcome baby boy #3. I had a lot still to do.

a few days before delivery- sent as text to Liz saying "I feel huge!"

September 6th: It was a beautiful day!! We had a very busy morning....walking around and doing shopping at our neighborhood garage sales. I went with Kristin while Tony took the boys with coins from their piggy banks. I remember Kristin commenting that she can just "see the baby's butt" sticking out from my belly. The boys came home with certifiably junky 25 cent toys...And were thrilled beyond belief! (Why do we ever pay full price for toys anyhow?!) Afterwards, we had planned for Unkie Chris to come over to take pictures of our family of four. (In retrospect, the timing was impeccable!).
In the afternoon, I was feeling very tired and not 100%. I remember saying at one point, "I am just tired of being pregnant and feeling so big." Tony was worried since we had plans to go out to a nice restaurant that evening. But no, I didn't want to cancel and I was looking forward to date night. I took heartburn medicine, hoping that would make me feel better and we were off to what would be our last date night for a long time! Dinner was great, but my weird heartburn did not go away. We strolled along the Mississippi river afterwards, enjoying a beautiful late summer evening.  We chatted about life, how things will change in a few weeks time, and did some more baby name brainstorming. "We have time," we concluded. We came home, thanked Paul for babysitting, and went to bed.

Last date night for awhile!

September 7th (35 weeks 0 days)
At 2:45am, I woke up to what I thought was a reminder to use the bathroom. Not wanting to get out of bed, I tried to fall back asleep. That's when I half-thought I may have peed my pants; I half-thought my water was breaking. My mind raced- "it's too soon, this can't be right, something is wrong!"

I attempted to wake up Tony as I got out of bed and went to the bathroom. By that time, I knew it was my waters breaking. Petrified doesn't begin to describe my feelings.  "Tony! Something's not right!" I called to him. Awake and totally in shock, Tony stepped up to the plate. He called his parents and started getting a hospital bag packed for me. I was useless! I couldn't remember anything to pack. I tried calling my mom who was in Vienna, but only got through to Therese. She really calmed my nerves and told me mom was in church, and would call soon. 

By 5am, we had a hospital room at the Mother Baby Center and we were coming to grips with the fact that a baby was coming today. By 7am I think we had informed our families that the baby was on his way. This labor progressed slower than my others. It gave us lots of time to decide on a baby name :) . After hours of walking around and bouncing on that darn birthing ball, I was approaching my pain limit. I told the nurse I couldn't continue like this for hours more. I was so exhausted from not sleeping or eating all day. I had been "talking" to baby all day, telling him it's okay to come out, that mama wanted to meet him. The nurse
encouraged me to hang on for another 20 minutes. Good thing she did because that's all the time we needed! With a snap of the nurse's fingers, the nicu support team was there. (They had already told me it was necessary since I was so early). Three pushes and out came Samuel Jacob at 6:01pm, weighing 5 lbs 2oz.! 

I was so relieved to see my precious baby! It all happened so fast- tony cutting the cord, snapping a few pictures, and then saying goodbye to my baby as they wheeled him away to special care.

Spent hours on the birthing ball!

5 pounds 2 ounces

First snuggles!