Brock Michael Norton - Dec 5th, 2011

Well, as most of you already know Brock Michael Norton was born on Monday December 5th, 2011 at 2:47 pm.  Weighing in a 7lbs 3.7oz and 19.5 inches, he came into the world wide awake and ready for action.

As planned we checked into the hospital at 6pm on December 4th.  I was given Cervadil and left to "marinate".. I started having contractions immediately (we actually suspect they started before we arrived).. they were mild and actually made me laugh - which kept throwing off the monitors, much to Scooter's dismay.  (He got VERY good at reading all the charts by the end of our stay at Tomball Regional).

By 2 am the contractions were no longer "funny"... but I stayed up and stayed quiet so that Scooter didnt worry, and got some sleep for the both of us.  By 4:30 am I was in tears -- this was not what I had expected and there was no way I could do this for much longer.  When the nurse confirmed that dispite the contractions I had "not made any progress", a phrase I am all too familiar with, I thought I might die.  Instead I threw out all plans of a 'natural' childbirth -- it was an ill advised idea anyway -- and I took the pain killers..

Less than 2 hours later I was dialated and ready for Pitocin, which I was told would make the contractions increasingly more severe.  ARE YOU KIDDING ME??? But I was also informed that I was far enough along for the epidural.  Hey - I already took the narcotics, and they have worn off.. I have a LONG way to go and this wonderful angle (nurse Erica) is offering me COMPLETE pain relief.  Who was I to turn it down?? At 8 am I was feeling like a rockstar, that could no longer walk due to complete numbness of my lower body.

At 2pm we were informed it was time to start pushing... 20 minutes later, and still feeling GREAT, I was told I had to stop pushing because baby was going to make it before Dr Davidson.  At 2:30 Dr. Davidson was in position and we were moving again.  Brock made his appearance at 2:47 pm, and because of an earlier conversation with the "angel", Nurse Erica, about Courtney Kardashian's strange, reality TV, child birth (you know the one where she caught/delivered her own baby)... I decided to do the same.  Really it wasnt a conscious decision, and by the time I realized what I was doing it was too late to back out...

Plus there were much more important things to wory about like -- IS IT A BOY OR A GIRL??

Obviously it was a boy, we named him the next day after long debates on possible names.  Two long days later we were allowed to go home.

Last night was our first night at home and I am sure that with each passing day it will get easier and more routine, right?? 

I hope the update wasn't to descriptive or too much info for anyone (remember you chose to follow the link and read the blog).. but it is feeding time now and I dont have time to edit before I post.  Love you all!!!

Last Day of Work

So (unlike November 18th - that now seems SOOO long ago) this will really be my last day of work.  Even if baby decides not to make an appearance until the end of next week I dont think it is safe for me to be at work when I am 42 weeks pregnant.

Dont get me wrong - I am NOT worried about my health or the health of baby Norton.. I am worried about "snapping" one day - completely loosing my mind, that is.  And I figure a middle school is not where a person should be when they finally loose it.

So for the safety of my students and my co-workers,, I will officially be on maternity leave after 2:45 pm today (December 2nd).

Oh my god -- I cant believe it is December already!

Pregnancy Updates

Okay... because I dont want to be one of those obnoxious people on facebook that post EVERY DAY about their pregnancy, I have come up with a solution that I can stomach. (no pun intended)

Now that I am 41 weeks and counting - I understand that many of our friends are chomping at the bit for daily updates.  Here is where you will find them (maybe not daily - but regularly until I finally go into labor).

I was due on November 26th or November 28th (depending on the conflicting paperwork we have).. Those due dates have come and gone and I am back at work trying to save every possible maternity leave day that I can.

On Tuesday I had my final Dr's appt, where I thought they would schedule me for a labor induction in the beginning of my 42nd week.  NO SUCH LUCK.. but we are getting closer.  I have been assured I will not be pregnant forever.

I have been instructed to check into Tomball Regional at 6pm on Suday December 4th.  If there is still no progress (as has been the case for the last 5 weeks) They will administer Cervadil (sp) and I will have to spend the night.  On Monday morning, if the Cervadil has worked it's magic, they will be able to start giving me Pitocin (sp) to induce labor.  However if the Cervadil does not help labor advance as desired, I will be sent home for another week.

Past that I have no idea what the plan is...

So here we are, putting all our sanity on the success or failure of the Cervadil.

WEEEEEEeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!

Well we are back from our fantastic trip to France.
It was the most amazing vacation; we will post photos shortly.
We have to cut the 566 picture we took down to a more managable size.

But speaking of too many pictures...........
The long awaited wedding photos have been edited.
There are quite a few - I hope you dont feel overwhelmed once you see them.

Thanks for waiting so pateintly....
http://www.pictage.com/client/music.do?event=345995

The Wedding

Thank you to all of our friends and family that were able to make it to New Orleans for the wedding. We had the most amazing time there, we could not have hoped for anything better.

We should have picture links up for you soon, although it will probably be June before we actually have them.

We miss all of you terribly and wish we had an excuse to get everyone together like that every year.

Hope you all had as wonderful a time as we did.

Love Always,
Stacie & Scooter

Container Ship Allides with San Francisco Bay Bridge

Heard about this on the radio and immediately checked the website gCaptain that a coworker maintains. Aside from learning about the allision between the Cosco Busan, a container ship, and the San Francisco Bay Bridge I also learned a new word....you might have figured it out by now or you think that my spelling skills are slipping. The word allide is different than the word collision in that it is predominately used in the maritime industry to describe an incident where a moving vessel strikes a fixed structure or anchored vessel. The word collision is used in the industry when the two vessels involved were both underway.

The case of the Cosco Busan is considered an allision due to the fact that the ship was underway and the bridge was a fixed object. Without getting too deep into maritime law, the vessel that was underway at the time of the allision is generally responsible. If the vessel can prove that the stationary object (in this case, the bridge) was obstructing the navigable waterway which is usually uncommon.

From reports, the spill check out gCaptain coverage of the incident and the Coast Guard press release. The page has quite a bit of interesting information as well as more links for additional coverage. For my friends that were with us coming back at night from Alcatraz and we saw the pilot transfer in the bay, there is a good description of the pilot's duties and responsiblities.

Engagement Photos are Up

Hey guys,
Just a quick note to let ya'll know that the engagement photos are up for viewing by following the links to the right. Our photographer Julia Bailey did an amazing job in the French Quarter capturing the two of us (and the dogs). In case you could not tell by looking at the dogs, it was pretty hot that afternoon but we had a great time and are very pleased with the results. The link to the slideshow is off of Juilia's blog (www.juliabailey.blogspot.com).
As promised this is the end of it........