Kindergarten is Complete!

Kindergarten has come and gone and it has certainly been a mixed bag of a year.  I am so proud of how well Dakota did academically but we had our days that put me to the test.  This little girl was almost a perfect angel at school but some evenings she came home and ate.me.alive - like a little Jekyll and Miss. Hyde action.  I tried to be patient because I realized what a big transition she was going through (no longer taking naps, long days of continuous activity, new friendship dynamics, etc.) but I probably wasn't the best mom in the world this year.  I found out I was pregnant the day after she started kindergarten and didn't have Sage until 5 weeks before the whole thing was over; I was basically pregnant for her entire first year of elementary school.  I was also working full-time and studying to become a licensed architect - all of which made me a little exhausted and a little on edge at times.  All I wanted to do in the evenings was sleep, I certainly didn't want to explain the differences between a nickel and a dime.  Side note:  Dakota had perfect report cards except for 2 in which she just couldn't correctly name the coins and their values.  I'm not sure why it stumped her so bad but I'm thinking she won't be a finance major.  So, while I don't think I gave her the attention she deserved and needed this year, I am so thankful that we survived and that she still loves me unconditionally.  I am looking forward to 1st grade - I think she's got the school thing down and since I'm not working and pregnant (nor plan to be!) I feel like I will have the energy needed to be a mom of a school ager.  I'm not so naive to think that each year won't have its struggles but I think K will be marked as one of our tougher ones - that is until, gulp, puberty.  Let's not get ahead of ourselves though...there is a lot of summer fun to be had. 

The day before her last day her music class put on a performance of all of the best songs they learned throughout the year.  It was super sweet and I was really impressed with the music program and teacher. 

 BFF's

 Dakota with her Kindergarten teacher Mrs. Jones.

I'm proud of this girl.

Sweet Sage, you'll be in Kindergarten before we know it....

Sage - 1 month Old

1 Month Old

Milestones:

Smiling

Sleeping from 11p-5a

Sage Smiles

I can't get enough of these sweet pictures.  Sage has been giving us smiles for a few days now and they are totally legit, non-gas related, happy smiles.  She's only 3 weeks old but ready for the world to see her bright personality and her dimple in her right cheek.  I will treasure her first smiles forever.

Sage Nicole Cartner

On April 18 we added a new ingredient to our delicious bowl of life - a heaping spoonful of SAGE was just what was missing.  Like a perfectly crafted meal by a world famous chef, our family is now 5 star.  Thanks for those who have prayed for my pregnancy, delivery and for baby Sage since arrival.  God is too good to us.

My 31st birthday was on April 17 and throughout my pregnancy I kept telling people how neat it would be to share the day with our baby.  After an 11:30 check up that day, I figured I still had several more days until baby decided to make her debut.  Jacob and I met for a bday lunch after my appointment and then I went home feeling kind of "blah".  Could have been the chicken or the milkshake but I kept hoping it was the beginning of labor.  That afternoon I sat around watching TV and napped before the kids came home and by 5pm I was having some fairly uncomfortable contractions.  They weren't regular but they were definitely getting painful.  After a few hours, I thought they might be the real deal.  I warned our friend who was "on call" to help with the kids that she might want to keep her phone in hand.  We put the kids to bed and I did a few things around the house in the event that we would be going to the hospital.  I told Jacob I would make a decision at 11 so he rested a little bit.  I would have a contraction then not have another for 15 minutes, then I'd have two within 3 minutes of each other and they were really starting to hurt.  I told Jacob we needed to go to the hospital because some of the contractions were so strong that I thought my water was going to break at any minute.

Our friend Lake met us at Methodist just after midnight to pick up the kids and we are so gracious for her help - especially since her surgeon hubby was on call and she had to wake her son up to ride along.  They admitted me and observed me for an hour.  I had progressed 1.5cms since my appointment 12 hours before.  Even though the contractions were still inconsistent (totally unlike my textbook delivery with Dakota where they were 4 minutes apart on the dot) they were really strong and made good progress.  I spent the rest of the morning trying to rest and eventually got an epidural around 4 or 5am.  My doctor was working (such a blessing!) and we started delivery at 9 something.  Everything was going really well but baby was having a little trouble coming out.  After her head was free it was determined that she was stuck at her shoulder and her heart rate dropped.  A few more pushes and some yanking from the doctor (my doc commented that it would have been very difficult on me without the epidural - I'm not sure what was going on but we'll leave it at that) and sweet baby Sage was here.  The shoulder dystocia that she experienced during delivery led to respiratory distress and she was not breathing correctly on her own.  The NICU team was called in and unfortunately they had to take her with them.  I got to give her a quick squeeze and then I didn't get to see her for several more hours.  She was given oxygen, had a chest x-ray and was given some antibiotics in the event there was any type of infection.  Some of her blood tests were high but in the end the docs determined that she was healthy and her numbers were off due to the trauma caused at delivery.  She stayed in the NICU for 48 hours but thankfully we got to take her home when I was discharged on Saturday.  We are so gracious to God for her health.  Even though we were only in the NICU for 2 days, it definitely opened up my eyes to a world that a lot of people have to experience and it makes me hurt for them. 

Sage is 3 weeks old now and we are loving every minute with her.  She's such a good baby and a great sleeper.  The last 5 nights she has slept from 11-5 which seems like a full night of rest to me.  Dakota and Corban are the sweetest big siblings and have been such great helpers.  Enjoy these photos from her first days (they came in out of order so I'm just going to leave them like that - sorry) and I'll try to keep the blog updated as she grows.

 Dakota wanted a baby sister so bad.  Holding her for the first time.

 Daddy getting to hold her for the first time.

 Gigi made it here as soon as she could.  She was such a big help.

 He is such a sweet brother.  I hope the newness never wears off.

 Her tubes are gone, she's been bathed and her swelling has finally gone done.  Looking like a healthy, perfect baby.

 First time I got to hold her - almost 7 hours after birth but she was oxygen free.

 Just born.

 This is what she looked like when we first got to see her after birth.  It was a little alarming but we are thankful that in her case the tubes and wires were short lived and she is healthy.

 Can you believe that sweet hair??  I love it.

 First picture together.  I wasn't allowed to hold her until she was off oxygen.

 First picture of daddy and Sage.

 Sweet little hands petting rubbing her.

Corban was not quite sure about the whole situation but he quickly got over it.  Dakota was ecstatic from the beginning. I love these 3.