Marshall-The Next Jimmer

This kid has some great talent. We moved the hoop up to the cedar chest making it 5 1/2 feet tall. Now you tell me, do you know any 2 1/2 year olds who can repeatedly make baskets in a hoop that tall?!

Marshall playing basketball with Jimmer, in his "big Jimmer shoes".

And, on an un-related note, Marshall has been long overdue for a haircut. He has had some pretty awesome hair styles every morning, had to document it.

Bridget's Birth Story

***Read only if you want all those wonderful details about the childbirth process.***

Bridget was due on March 10 and for weeks I had an induction date scheduled for March 11. I was induced eight days late with Marshall, so I was fairly certain I would have to be induced again. With the next week being Match Week, my OB was very accommodating and told me that she would induce me as early as 39 weeks if I wanted. I assured her I was fine waiting until after my due date because I wanted to see if my body could do this on its own and seeing as I went past 41 weeks with Marshall, I was certain I could wait it out until 40 weeks. Well, I will admit, that there were a couple of days when I seriously regretted that decision, and wished I had just scheduled an induction for 39 weeks, but I stuck it out! At every visit I had after 36 weeks, my OB always assured me that I wouldn't make it until March 11, but I always smiled and told her that I would see her on the 11th. :) Anyway, onto the story...

Richard and I woke up nice and early on Friday, March 11th, and checked in at the hospital at 6:00 am. I had just had a doctor appointment that Monday and I was dilated to a 2, so at the hospital they just decided to start the pitocin and wait for my doctor to arrive and break my water before they checked me again. The pitocin was going by 6:30 am and they continued to increase the amount every 15-30 minutes. By 9:00 my doctor still hadn't arrived to break my water (with Marshall she broke my water at about 7:30) so the nurse called her to see if she was coming; otherwise, a resident was just going to do it. But, my doctor said she was on her way. A few minutes later my doctor came in and said she was just going to go grab a nurse and then they would break my water. Well, she didn't come and didn't come and didn't come! At about 9:30 my nurse came in and said that another patient from my clinic needed an emergency c-section, so they grabbed my doctor and took her into surgery. So, the waiting continued.

Finally, at 10:10 my doctor came in to check me and break my water. At this point I had been on pitocin for almost four hours and I was having contractions every three minutes. My doctor checked me and said that I was between a 2 and a 3 and Bridget was at +2 station. What?! I was less than thrilled with this news. I came in at a 2!!! What had my body been doing for the last four hours?! My doctor broke my water and assured me that this would speed things up.

They closely monitored Bridget for the next 20 minutes to make sure that she was doing okay and she was. So, they let me get up and use the bathroom and then I was able to get the wonderful and glorious epidural! It took them a while to place it, the same thing happened with Marshall, it was either too far to the right, or too far to the left, but eventually it was in and all was well.

By 11:00 I was on my side, not feeling a thing, watching TV and dosing off and on. Life was good. :) At noon my nurse came into check me and turn me to my other side. I had progressed to a 4-I saw this as at least small progress and was happier with this news. :)

At 2:00 they checked me again-I was still at a 4-WHAT?! This, I was really NOT happy about!!! Two hours and still at a 4. They tried to console me and tell me that the baby had dropped to 0 station, so that was in deed progress and that everything would be just fine. Richard kept telling me to relax, but I called my mom and told her this was going to be a long day and that there was no way I was having this baby in time for Marshall to come see us that day. A little bit dramatic, I know. :)

Well, as the hour ticked on, I started feeling A LOT of pressure. At 2:30 I received a new nurse and I told her that I felt like I was making progress and she said that she was sure I was, but didn't want to check me quite yet. At 3:00 I called her back into the room because with every contraction it was all I could do to not push, despite the epidural. So, the resident came in and checked me and I was at a 10 and Bridget had dropped all the way! I was ecstatic! At 2:00 I thought I was going to be in labor for hours and hours, and at 3:00 I was ready to go! I was so happy that I had the epidural. With things progressing that fast, I'm pretty sure I would have passed out from the pain and intensity of it all without it!

So, at 3:00 they called my doctor and began prepping the room. They told me to just try and relax and that would help the baby move down even more, which would mean less pushing in the end. This was SO hard to do. With every contraction I just had to close my eyes and breath through the urge to push. I can't imagine what that would have felt like without the epidural!

Anyway, at about 3:25 my doctor popped her head in and said she just needed to change and that she would be right in. When she came back in her scrubs she had me do a "practice push" because she wanted to see how low the baby really was and what position she was in. I gave one push and she said, "Good, I better hurry and get my gown on! She's coming!"

Now, I was thrilled that this event seemed so imminent, but I was also cautiously optimistic because I pushed for 1 hour and 50 minutes with Marshall. Once my doctor was ready I gave three pushes with each contraction for the next three contractions. At the end of the third contraction my doctor said "The head is right here, let's just hope it stays here until your next contraction. Oops, there it goes. She moved back up a little bit, but that's okay." I laughed a little bit at this because that was the entire story of pushing with Marshall, progress, no progress, on and on and on. But, on my next contraction I gave a push, and than my OB said, "Okay, one more push and this one is for the shoulders." What?! She was out?! I was shocked! The next thing I knew I heard her cry and then they put her on top of me at 3:43 pm and Richard was cutting the cord.

I was SO happy! Happy that the pushing went so quickly. Happy that Bridget was here safe and sound and happy that she looked perfect and beautiful.

A couple of weeks before Bridget was born Richard and I were talking about what a momentous year in Wisconsin to have a baby. So far in 2011, the Green Bay Packers had won the Superbowl and our entire state government was falling apart because of our budget crisis. Well, once we got to the hospital and turned on the news, we learned about the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, making March 11th quite the day. Also, later that night the BYU Basketball team had a game, which they won, and Jimmer Fredette broke all kinds of records that night. And, lastly, when Bridget was just three days old, we found out that Richard matched into a radiology program and that his dream of becoming a radiologist had been fulfilled. And then, when she was six days old we learned that we matched in Milwaukee for residency and that this would be our home for five more years. What a week little Bridget had!

Anyway, she is two weeks old today and still doing great! She is an easy little babe and is easily soothed by simple things (may that continue!). Here are some pictures of our new little one.




We are desperately hoping she keeps her darker hair. And, we love her little mullet in the back. :)

Match Day

The results of Match Day are in! Yesterday we gathered at the medical school at 11:00 am with all 200 of Richard's classmates. Envelopes with each student's name were drawn out of a bin one by one. Inside this envelope was a letter that would tell us where our next five years would be spent.

Richard's name was called in the first half, at about 11:15. He had told me that he wanted to open the letter by himself on his way back to me so that he could have a minute to process what it said and then he could watch my reaction while I read the letter after him. As he walked back I could see him open the envelope and then I had to turn away because I did not want to see his reaction. My heart was pounding!!! A minute later he came up behind me and handed me the letter...

The results are:

Transition Year: St. Joseph's Hospital in Milwaukee
Radiology Residency: Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee

We are thrilled! Both of these programs were our number one choices on our rank lists! Richard interviewed at some great programs and we knew that no matter where we went that we would be happy and have five more wonderful years. But, Milwaukee is where we wanted to stay and these two programs were at the top of our lists.

During this whole process I had always felt that we had a good chance of staying here for residency, but once our rank lists were submitted I began to think about the odds of us getting both of our number one choices. I felt like it was nearly impossible and so I began to prepare myself for the fact that we would be moving.

Well, definitely not impossible, because it happened! We are grateful to be staying here. We both really like the two programs Richard matched into. He will have great training with doctors he very much respects. We get to stay with wonderful friends. We get to experience five more fantastic years in Milwaukee. We couldn't be happier!

So, there you have it. The Leakes will be in good ol' Milwaukee for five more years! And, in the excitement of the morning and in my sleep deprived state, this is the only picture I thought to take. Can you tell we are happy?!

The First Night

Last night Richard and I were on our own for the first time with our two children. I will admit that last night I was less than thrilled with how the night was going, but today I am able to laugh about it. So, I figured I would document it because in 20 years this will make me smile even more. :)

Bridget slept almost the entire day and woke up at 8:00 pm. From 8:00 pm until 2:00 am the only time she was sleeping was while she was eating or being held. This meant that I didn't get to bed until 2:00 am. Bridget woke up at 4:00 to eat and she had a poopy diaper. She cried during her diaper change, which led to Marshall waking up. Richard went in to help him and Marshall was incredibly upset. After a few minutes he calmed down enough to tell Richard that he wanted cereal. Richard, choosing not to fight this, took Marshall to the kitchen and poured him a bowl of cereal.

So, there we were...4:00 am, our children are both eating and Richard and I are on the couches half awake. After two bowls of cereal Marshall said he would go back to bed if Richard slept on his floor. Again, choosing not to fight it, Richard grabbed a couple of blankets and curled up on Marshall's floor.

I woke up again with Bridget at 7:00 am, but we both went back to bed. At 8:45 Richard and Marshall woke up and I was up at 9:00. Fortunately, Richard didn't have to work today, but tomorrow he's back at the hospital.

We'll see how tonight goes...as long as I can get to bed before 2:00 am I'll be happy. :)

Just A Clarification

Just wanted to clarify the previous post for those of you who have no idea what it is talking about...

Richard is a 4th year medical student and all 4th year medical students must apply for residency. It is a long process that began last summer selecting places to apply, submitting applications, getting rejected by programs, and being invited for interviews. Richard had interviews November through January. In February we submitted our rank list for the programs he interviewed at. To keep it simple, he interviewed at 11 different radiology programs, so our rank list was 1-11. Each program also ranks the candidates they interviewed, 1-???.

Anyway, yesterday was "Black Monday" when every single 4th year medical student across the country received an email at 11:00 CST letting them know whether or not they matched into their desired specialty. Needless to say, our nerves were a little raw all morning long.

Richard was glued to the computer from 10:40 on, I was aimlessly pacing the house, and my mom had taken Marshall on a walk. At 11:00 Richard said, "Jenny, come look at this." and my heart was pounding, but I knew it must be good news, he didn't sound depressed. He showed me the email he had just received, with the subject being, "Did I Match?" and the body of the email said, "Congratulations, you have matched." Nice and straightforward. :)

Anyway, huge sighs of relief were had by both of us! I told Richard he should post something on our blog, and because this is Richard, he just posted the email he received, silly guy. :)

So, that's how it goes. Now we just have to wait until Thursday to find out where we matched and where we will be going for the next five years of our lives! Stay tuned!

Did I Match?

Congratulations! You have matched.

Baby Bridget

Baby Bridget is here! She was born on Friday, March 11, at 3:43 pm. She weighed 8 lbs. 2.2 oz. and is 21 inches long. We are all healthy, home, and doing well. Marshall is being a great big brother. More details to come later, but for now, here are some pictures.

An interesting note that I thought I would throw in...

Marshall was born at 3:47 pm. He was 8 lbs. 2.5 oz. and 20 3/4 inches long.
Bridget was born at 3:43 pm. She was 8 lbs. 2.2 oz. and 21 inches long.
I guess they are related!

Random Marshall Moments

Marshall went through three days of being obsessed with Richard's ties. He wore this tie all day on Friday, even to Walmart, he received many compliments.

Of course he had to wear a tie on Sunday. He just looked so grown up; both good and bad in my book. But, still adorable. He was a little camera shy, hence all the photos in the corner. :)


So pensive...



And lastly, this little boy is not so consistent at nap time anymore. If we are out and about in the morning and he can burn off a lot of energy, a nap is a guarantee, but if not, its hit and miss. This makes me sad, because I was looking forward to double nap time with the two kids, I won't lie! Anyway, on Tuesday we had been with friends all morning, but apparently he wasn't tired enough to sleep. I left him in his bed for 90 minutes while I took care of things around the house. Finally, at 2:30, I decided to give up and I opened his door, this is what I saw...


I couldn't help but laugh out loud, and of course, grab the camera. He was a little concerned about what had happened to his shirt, but so happy to tell me that he had reached "the big picture" on his dresser. :) What a kid; he makes me laugh every day!

The Last Hurrah

I am the oldest in my family and I have a brother who is 2 1/2 years younger than me. For over four years, it was just the two of us and my parents before my next brother came along. My brother Ben and I like to joke that our lives went downhill once Danny was born. Don't get me wrong, we love Danny, and our family would not be complete without him, its just something we like to laugh about. Two of my favorite memories from before Danny was born were going swimming every Saturday as a family and having grocery shopping races. We would all go to the store together and then we would split the list. I would go with my mom and Ben would go with my dad. I honestly have no idea how many times we did these races, and maybe we really just did it once, but it sure stuck with me! But, we really did go swimming almost every Saturday, and it was a highlight of my week.

Anyway, a few days ago I was talking to my mom and she brought up this running joke about my life falling apart once Danny was born and we had a good laugh about it. But, it also got me thinking about how Marshall's life will change once this little one arrives. Marshall will just barely be 2 1/2 when she is born, so I'm not sure how much of his only-child life he will actually remember, but this morning I wanted to give him one last hurrah (and I also wanted to wear him out so he would take a nap)!

So, we bundled up and went to the zoo. We had a grand morning and he basically just ran around for two hours straight while I waddled around and tried to keep up with him. It was fun to see the animals, many of them were much more active with the cold weather, and we had a fun time.

The animal highlights for Marshall were the penguins, tiger, lions, gorillas, fish, and all the birds that were roaming free. He also enjoyed running around shooting pretend basketballs into the air and pushing his stroller. I definitely didn't mind him pushing the stroller and his slower pace, because by that time, I was completely exhausted.

So, that was our fun morning, I hope to always remember it, even if he doesn't. I know that I will still have more one-on-one time with him as the years go on, but it will just be different. But, here's to our wonderful morning at the zoo and Marshall who is sleeping soundly. :)

There were peacocks all over the zoo today. We really probably saw ten of them and many of them let us get very close. Marshall loved it.

Marshall chased these geese until they were smart enough to head for the snow.

My little helper. :)

Adorable little Marshall, who today, is only smiling with his eyes closed. :)