A Teenager!

Wow! Can you believe as of today I have a teenager? I am not old enough to have a teenager!
Samantha has always been such a good girl. I am sure she will continue to be the best teenager ever :D

Samantha too arrived with great timing, considering she was supposed to have been born June 10th. On April 28th I graduated from BYU, a few days later we went to Christie's graduation from Ricks. On the drive home from Idaho my legs started swelling. Wednesday I had a Drs appt. in Calgary and told the Dr my legs were swelling and he basically told me, "You're pregnant, your legs are going to swell". Friday it was worse and I called the Dr. They said they didn't have appt. that day and to stay off my feet for the weekend and watch my salt in take, and made an appt. for Monday. The swelling got so bad at my parent's that I had to have Brad help me lift my elephant legs over the side of the bathtub to get in to have a shower. Monday I went to the Dr and he took one look at me and my blood pressure and asked me how I felt about going to the hospital that day. I told him "I'd rather not" and he told me to go home and pack my bags and check in that afternoon.

My blood pressure was really high so I was put on bedrest. Samantha was breech and would need to be born C-section. Wednesday I remember talking to Dr. Gurvich (incidentally the Dr. who delivered me) and he told me that the next day we would schedule a day for my C-section.

Wednesday night I spoke with a resident who wanted my profile for some research and she really thought I should have a sedative to relax and go to sleep. I said OK and somewhat reluctantly took the pill, then around 2am (I think) I remember waking up and thinking, "Crap, that stupid sedative made me wet the bed"... then I realized it wasn't urine. I called the nurse and told her "I think my water broke" and she replied "I don't think so" (I always thought that was a strange response)

I think I started to go in to shock as I started shaking uncontrollably and I couldn't get warm. They kept piling warm blanket after warm blanket on me, but I couldn't get warm. They gave me general anesthetic to totally knock me out and performed the C-section. I vaguely remember them showing me Samantha at some point but I was really out of it. The morphine made it really hard for me to stay awake.

She looked perfect, just like all c-section babies; with a nice round head. She was 5lb. 15oz. She was a perfect size. It was an extra special mother's day for me that year, since we got to come home from the hospital on Mother's Day.
So sweet!

3 weeks old

How could I say "no" to that face?

In her Easter Dress

Samantha has always been a nice girl and loved by everyone around her. She has always loved to talk and talk and talk. She has also loved to read since she was very small and there is no question whether she still loves to read! She has also always been way ahead of the curve in school. She was reading small chapter books in Kindergarten, and continues to do well in school.

Grade 1 portrait

Baptism Day

Lobster fishing in 2004

Samantha is a great example to her younger siblings, we are lucky to have her as our oldest child. Now we look forward to the teenage years. It is fun to see how she is changing and growing into her own person. She will be volunteering at the High Desert Museum this summer and I know she will do a great job.

Samantha decided it was her prerogative to wear her pajamas all day after we got home from church since it is her birthday

So... HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my brand new teenager.