Clara Irene Ripka is born!

Dear Friends and Family,

Clara Irene Ripka was born on April 20th 2011. She weighed 6 pounds 11.5 ounces and is 19 inches long. She is so beautiful and we are enjoying every moment with her. As you know, I was induced on Wednesday just short of 41 weeks pregnant. I was started on pitocin around 8am and ended up delivering at 7:08pm. My period of active labor was incredibly quick. I progressed from 3cm to 9.5cm in an hour and a half. (It was an excruciatingly painful hour and a half but thankfully things moved quickly!) I pushed for about 40mn. Joey was awesome and really supported and encouraged me through the labor process. The nurses and doctors at Yale-New Haven Hospital were also wonderful. The last few days with Clara have been a lot of fun but also extremely exhausting. The second night home was difficult because Clara had an upset stomach and was only able to sleep for about an hour. We are very lucky that Joey's mom is here and is happy to watch her while we take quick naps during the day. She has also been cooking and cleaning for us. I am feeling better everyday and recovering quickly. It is such an incredible feeling to transition from a family of two to a family of three. We are excited to watch Clara grow and develop. We will try to update the blog when we can. Obviously it was much easier to find time to post before the baby came. We hope you all had a wonderful Easter.

Best!

Erin and Joey

Induction Scheduled!

Exciting news! We may be meeting our Clara very soon. I have been scheduled to be induced tomorrow morning at 6am. I am supposed to call at 5am to make sure they have room for me. I was hoping I wouldn't have to be induced but not much had changed at my doctor's appointment today and the baby is starting to get quite large. (As am I!) I am feeling nervous and excited. After being pregnant for over nine months it's hard to imagine actually holding and seeing our baby. Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers. We are praying for a healthy, happy baby. We promise to update as soon as we can.

Erin and Joey

40 WEEKS PREGNANT TODAY!

Well, today I am officially 40 weeks pregnant. I am feeling tired and anxious and would really like to begin the labor process. Unfortunately, as of now, the timing is not up to me. My next doctor's appointment is this coming Tuesday the 19th. If I make it to that appointment we may decide to try to induce labor towards the end of the week. She really needs to be born before Easter because I have a beautiful blue Easter dress ready for her to wear. haha! For now her section of our bedroom sits ready and waiting. I have officially taken leave from my violin teaching and so my days seem long and unscheduled. Joey is still busy with school and trying to get a start on some large, end of the year papers. Hopefully we will have some exciting news very soon. Come on Clara, we are ready to meet you!

New Blog!!!

Welcome to the new Ripka family blog! We hope this will be a fun way to help stay connected with family and friends. Life is truly an adventure for us right now. Our baby girl Clara is due literally anytime and we are waiting to figure out our next move as Joey completes his degree at Yale this May. It is a somewhat stressful time but also a time of great anticipation and excitement. Since we live so far from friends and family we look forward to keeping you all somewhat updated through this blog. We wish you all well! Stay tuned.....

Erin & Joey