Birth of Balle baby number 4

After I had the baby I had all sorts of feelings and felt like I had so much to say about it all,  but when I sit down to spill it out I can't really remember what I had to say....

Run down

- I feel like we should have named her Paul Anka in honor of the countless hours I spent watching 7 seasons of Gilmore Girls towards the end of the pregnancy. To be honest, it was an awesome time. I got two blasted UTI's back to back around September. I was soooo tired I couldn't believe it.  I could hardly get around the house and it was the first time in probably my whole life that I HAD to take a nap every day. SO I watched me some Gilmore Girls.  Kept on watching till baby was born and then finished up mid December. So now when I think back on "the time we had the baby" I feel all Gilmore Girlish. Or maybe it's the other way around. When I think of Gilmore girls it takes me back to the last of my pregnancy.

- When I had Ivan I went into labor on my own. They induced me with both Jack and Emery. This pregnancy I wanted two things; to not be induced and to go quick enough that I could do it unmedicated. I caved to the induction part. I just wasn't progressing like I thought I would and I was ready to be done. Due the 15th. Induction set for the 10th.

Night before

- We arrived at the hospital about 7:30. About 8:30 they started the pitocin. I started feeling the labor pains. 9:45 they broke my water. Pains started REALLY picking up. We figured I'd work through them as along as I could. They started getting really good and when I couldn't do it anymore I told the nurse I wanted to change my mind about the epidural. She checked me and said, "nope, I think we can have this baby right now." She called the doctor. Doctor came down pretty quick. We pushed some awful 4 or 5 pushes and baby came at 10:50. A few phrases I remember are, "momma help me,"  "Shhhhhit." " I can't do it" and "I think my butt is going to explode." Luckily it didn't.

-We went back and forth with names. When we left the hospital Sunday we put down Dani LaVer Balle. When we got home we called the hospital to see if they still had our paper work. They did, pulled it out and gave us till wed to change our mind. Wed we called and changed it to Kate Laver Balle.

"Big Kate's"- welcome for  "little Kate" 

Is it really almost DECEMBER!?!?

Ok, school just started right? How is it beginning to look a lot like Christmas then? Golly. I guess I'll sit and blog to the enjoyable sound of Ivan and friends down stairs banging that dang ball repeatedly against the wall. Cuz since the baby was born I'm trying to hang on to the sweet emotions and pure joy I've been feeling. So I refuse to let that sound anger me.....

Well, like I said, school started. Emery is a poser. I was taking pictures of her every day she went to school and she always has to hit a dance pose.

We enjoyed another season of flag football for Ivan and soccer for both boys. Raiders took 2nd in the "super bowl." We love coach Fern

We had halloween

 Ivan  was going to be storm trooper until Nielsen bought Cole a skeleton outfit that was too small so he had to get him a bigger size and gave us the smaller size. Then he wanted to be that instead.

 The front office 

 My moms

 Mike's moms

 Annual neighbor friend picture

I was pregnant

(I know, it's inappropriate)

 I had to post this one so we could remember these awesome pajama's I wore, that Mike could not wait to get rid of. It was actually a dress I ordered and it was horrid and quickly turned into pajama's. Ugly, but comfy. 

Mike and Ivan went fishing over winter break and Ivan insisted we eat the fish. He couldn't quit talking about that fish. It was in the freezer for a couple days and he'd get it out periodically and say how exciting it was we had the fish in the freezer. 

I suffered through 2 bladder infections back to back that sucked all my energy and kept me on the pot. 

Jack started Jr Jazz. Ivan started Futsal (indoor soccer). Emery has been doing dance.

I had the baby and it went just how I was hoping it would. We are all in love with her.

Mykel, my niece delivered her own baby, in the car, at the gas station, a week after our baby

Now we are waiting for my cousin Shelley and my other niece Hillary who are due in a couple weeks.

Mike had a birthday. 

We  had thanksgiving with Mikes family on his bday (20th). 

"kid table"

Thanksgiving day Mike, his mom and the two boys went to St George for a soccer tournament. They had a nice little trip and Emery and I had Thanksgiving at Aunt Ronda's and a nice little girls weekend at home. 

I got all my Christmas shopping done before the baby came so now we will just sit back and enjoy the holidays!!

19 week and 4 days

I've recored pregnancy symptoms with each kid. They are on the PC and it no longer works. We got all our files off of it, so they are on the hard drive somewhere? Wish I had put them on the blog dang it. Here's for baby #4……

I'm feeling great. We went in for our 20 week ultra sound today and everything looks really good. That's what we want to hear. Mike's been so nervous with this pregnancy. And the doctors do use, "because of your age" a lot. But despite my age, everything looks great and I feel great.

First trimester I was really tired. More tired than I remember feeling with my other pregnancy's. I don't remember taking naps, but I did get a few naps in during those first few weeks.

I had the standard nausea, but that has gone away.

I felt really bloated from day one. I swear nothing fit from the beginning. I'm finally fitting good in maternity clothes and I like that  a lot better.

I try to go walking most mornings. I've listened to, "I Have Lived a Thousand Years," and "The Happiness Advantage."

I danced through each of my other pregnancies and was sad I wasn't doing it through this one, but turns out I got to do a clogging class with Jamie for the first part and maybe I'll start up again in the fall before she comes.  We'll see if it gives the girl rhythm.

I've only had heart burn once so far

I always have a heightened sense of smell so I can't tell if it's any different with pregnancy

I've been on two vacations where there are rides available that I can't ride on

I don't really have any food aversions

The kids are so dang excited, which is unique to this pregnancy because they are all old enough now to know what is going on.

Baby girl, you must know that your brother Ivan is soooo excited and so very sweet about it. He can't wait to meet you and to snuggle you and help take care of you. You are lucky to be the baby of the family and have 3 siblings who love you so much

Did I mention I feel great. I feel happy and healthy and excited to be pregnant. At first I was bummed by the memory of how fat and uncomfortable you feel in the first trimester and 39 weeks seemed like along time. After I had Emery I wasn't sure if she was the last and I started feeling like I needed one more so I could really focus on the pregnancy and enjoy every little thing. I didn't know if I was going to be able to do that at first, but i'm at a good spot now and love feeling your little movements and i'm enjoying this last one

I didn't do any genetic testing with the other kids, but decided to do the 10 wk test for downs and a few other things with this one. That's when we found out gender and all the tests came back negative.


It took a while to make this happen. Not physically, just mentally and emotionally. After Emery, I just couldn't tell how I felt. Dad was for sure ready to be done and there were lots of reasons I wanted one more. I wanted a sister for Emery of course and I felt so torn with Emery as a baby, I would get so sad when she would do fun things like, smile and take first steps and so on because I didn't want it to be my last experience with all that fun stuff. Lots of people said it was normal to get sad because it's a way of mourning the end of that phase of life. Anyway- then time marched on. I felt dumb brining it up to dad because he just couldn't even imagine it. Especially as Emery got older and we were free'r to do things. When Emery was about 2 my dear friend Kate decided to try in-vitro and man I wanted nothing more for her than to get pregnant. It didn't feel right for me to go and get pregnant at a time she was trying. So time just continued to march on, everyone getting older, life getting a tad easier, the idea of a 4th baby becoming less of an option. However, I still couldn't quite get rid of our baby stuff and I still had this secret hope that maybe it would happen accidentally, but it never did. ANYWAY- then last winter it just seemed to build and build until I had a little crying breakdown and with that we decided we better give it a try. About the next month, we found out I was pregnant! The reality of it scared me a tad, but now 4 months into it I'm so dang excited!! Then I found out my cousin Shelley is a month behind me and my two nieces are within weeks after me. Yay!!

Can't wait for you to get here

7/5/16 -Gums do bleed easy
-feeling lots of little movements now
-brushing my teeth makes me gag a lil w all the spit

7/16/16- lots of little movements
-my allergies were horrible for the ute stampede last night
-crave cheeto's
-mood swings. I can be happy and then just so mad about something. However, maybe that's not pregnancy, maybe that's just me

10/20/16- Did I say I was just going to sit back and enjoy this pregnancy? well goodness gracious, no offense baby, but lets get this thing done and over with!! Middle of September I got a bladder infection. Wow those are no fun. I hadn't ever had one before. One night Ivan had a soccer game. I used the restroom before we left and by the time we got there I just felt this intense pain and pressure and worried maybe the baby was coming out. Half way through the game I had to go to the bathroom so bad. I had to walk clear across 3 fields to the outhouse where just a dribble came out. I thought, what in the world. Then on the way home I thought i was going to die. So much pain, I had to go in the restroom like every 5 minute. Later that night I realized it was probably a bladder infection. I started to feel pain back in my kidneys. Luckily I got to the doctor the next day and after taking the first antibiotic pill I felt tons better. It cleared up by the end of the week and then about a day later I got another one. I was dehydrated so I was tireder than I have ever felt. It's hard to get rid of a bladder infection during pregnancy. Some people have it the rest of their pregnancy. I could not do that, i'm lucky it cleared after that second round of antibiotic. I've been feeling much better since. Except for last night my darn hemeroids started manifesting.

Other than those two things, i'm still feeling good and trying to enjoy everything about it. You move around a ton and we are getting so anxious to kiss your little face.

11/8/2016- I'm sorry to report that this year our country has to vote between Hilary Clinton and Donald Trump. Donald Trump it is. In better news, you are about to enter the world. I'm being induced tomorrow and feel all sorts of things about it. I didn't really want to be induced, however I don't really want to go full term. We are ready to have you here. Each pregnancy has gone pretty quick and for some reason I just thought that when I started my weekly checks the doc would discover I was progressing early and quickly. Not really the case. First check I was only dilated to a 1. Next check up a 2. They stripped the membrane at that point and NOTHING happened. I shouldn't have been puzzled, but I was. Then this weeks apt I was a 3 and she stripped the membranes again and figured that would put me at a 4. I'm 90% effaced so again I figured I just go into labor after that. NOTHING. That was yesterday. Today the guys came to start re-tiling the shower and I've been out getting tile and running all sorts of errands and still not feeling a thing. I really wanted to go on my own and I'm disappointed in myself for not holding out. Oh well. I'm glad I'm feeling good. I've enjoyed each of my pregnancies. This is the end. I'll miss this phase of life. We are excited to meet you. Ivan, Jack and Emery are super excited!