Monday, June 15, 2015
Wednesday, May 27, 2015
one month old
I can't believe our little buddy is a whole month old already! I just want time to slow down -- I feel like 12 weeks will just not be long enough to spend all day with him. So far he is still eating about every 2 hours during the day and sleeps in 3-4 hour stretches at night. He takes a bottle but it is not his preference. His favorite things are his mamaRoo for daytime naps, his sleep sack at night, and gripe water to get rid of hiccups. Least favorite things are getting out of the bath, getting dressed/undressed, and vitamin D drops. He seems to recognize when he's with mom or dad vs. someone else but he does ok with other people still as long as he's not hungry or feeling cranky. His biggest accomplishment is sleeping for 4 hours at a time on several different nights.
Ok, now for some photos :-)
Ok, now for some photos :-)
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| being a baby is exhausting |
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| mom - what do you have on my head? |
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| nap time :-) |
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| heavily disgruntled |
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| look mom I'm standing! |
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| this chair is TOO big |
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| laying on my mom... my favorite place |
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| some kids suck their thumbs - I go for the whole hand |
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| so precious |
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| guys, why'd you wake me up? |
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| sweet as can be |
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| loves his sleep sack - so secure and snuggly |
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| sleeping peacefully |
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| grandpa and buddy discussing baseball |
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| superhero |
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| serious side eye |
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| loving tummy time... sort of... |
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| worn out after tummy time |
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| resting with daddy the morning after a hawks win |
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| this face is just too much :-) |
Wednesday, May 13, 2015
more photos because I am totally obsessed
Little Buddy is 16 days old today and he is changing so much already; I feel like I have to photograph him every hour just to capture it :-) I can't believe how much I love this little guy! In super awesome news, he finally slept for 4 whole hours last night vs the 2 hour stretches he had been doing since we got home from the hospital. He was asleep by about 10:30 and when I woke to him stirring and saw it was 2:40am I almost didn't believe it. Sleeping for more than 1.5-2 hours at a time is amazing :-) He did wake up again 2 hours after I got him back to sleep but the one 4 hour stretch was a blessing.
Ok now for the photos...
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| how amazing is he? |
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| happy momma |
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| smiles :-) |
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| mom - what is that big bright thing? a window you say? |
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| waiting on daddy at the dentist |
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| had to nap because being cute is so hard |
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| hanging out with daddy showing off my cute belly button |
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| whew - what a day |
Thursday, May 7, 2015
Our birth story
Well we didn't have to go out to 41 weeks on the pregnancy posts :-)
Things started at about 6am on Monday the 27th of April when I woke up to my water breaking. I was not expecting this since I had read that only something like 8% of women start labor with their water breaking but nevertheless that's what happened. I called my OB b/c I wasn't having contractions yet but they said to come to L&D anyway. B and I got up and showered and he got another pharmacist to trade shifts with him so he could still go to work in the afternoon if it was a false alarm. We grabbed our bags and the carseat and headed out. In the car on the way there I started having contractions about 8 minutes apart.
We got to L&D around 8am where they confirmed that my water had broken but I was only 1cm. In order to get things going they gave me a medication to help speed things up since pitocin isn't effective until at least 3-4cm. So with that B and I prepared for a long day.
My contractions got stronger with the medication and I was having back labor which is not something I would wish on anyone. I had planned on getting an epidural but even if I hadn't been, the back labor would have changed my mind. Around 11:30am the contractions started to get really bad and I employed all the breathing and coping techniques I had learned in birthing class. By the time they came in to check me around 1:30pm I was definitely suffering so I was glad to hear I was 4cm and I could start pitocin and get the epidural. That all occurred over the next 45 minutes or so and aside from the fact that they made B leave during the epidural placement, everything went as expected. After the epidural the OB broke my water the rest of the way and they started the pitocin and B and I settled in to wait some more.
I labored with very minimal pain/discomfort for the rest of the afternoon and evening but by the time they came in to check me around 9pm I had only progressed to 5.5cm and the baby was not showing signs of coming easily -- the OB said he was pretty sure he was posterior and we knew from the 36w ultrasound that he was likely quite large. At that point the discussion began about continuing to wait and see if I progressed or whether to just go for a c-section. As contributing factors, my epidural was no longer controlling the pain from the contractions and my BP was becoming more elevated despite the epidural (which typically lowers the BP by around 20mmHg). After discussing with B and our OB we decided it was best to just go for the c-section rather than wait for things to become emergent. I remained pretty calm about the whole thing until the anesthesiologist came in and started talking about things -- it all suddenly got very real and, as familiar as I am with surgery in general, the idea that someone was going to cut into me to retrieve my baby was a bit terrifying. B was really good and kept telling me everything would be fine and that I was doing great and all the right things.
The doctors got the OR ready and B put on his OR outfit and they told us he would walk down with us but then would have to wait outside until they had me prepped. Queue panic mode. I did not like that he had to leave me again. That said, I maintained composure (minus the extreme shivering I was doing) and in we went.
I won't go into detail too much on the time in the OR but suffice it to say it was not super fun. I know the epidural made it so I couldn't feel pain, per se, but the sensation was not pleasant. That said, when they got our little boy out and I heard him cry I immediately burst into tears and told B to go see him and take pictures. I saw our baby for the first time on B's iPhone but once they got him checked out by the peds folks (meconium stained fluid and high birth weight) they brought him over for me to kiss him and then let B hold him while they finished closing my incision. The closing process was not fun and I really wanted to hold my baby and I know at some point the anesthesiologist brought out some anxiolytic medications because I was really uncomfortable and very anxious. B tells me that it took about an hour after our boy was born to finish things - I don't remember it feeling like an hour but I think I lost some time secondary to the medications I was getting.
After they finished they had to get me back onto a hospital bed and I was finally able to hold my baby boy while they wheeled me back to L&D. While there I was having a lot of bleeding and my BP was elevated so I bought myself an overnight stay in L&D rather than moving to the mother/baby unit. I got a couple doses of a medication to slow the bleeding along with the pitocin and then because my blood pressure was still elevated I got to experience 24 hours of a magnesium sulfate drip. Let me tell you - that was a blast. Not. Basically it gives you a headache and makes you feel like you have the flu. Not my best moments. The next 24 hours were less than ideal as I was stuck in bed and not allowed to eat until dinner on Tuesday but I had a beautiful baby boy and my wonderful husband to keep me company so it wasn't all bad.
The rest of our stay was relatively uneventful - because of the c-section I ended up staying until Friday morning and I was very ready to get out of the hospital at that point. We got home around noon on Friday and thankfully have had both our moms here to help us cook, clean, and do laundry so despite only sleeping about 4 hours a night I am doing pretty well. Overall it was not what I expected but I think everything turned out for the best.
So, if you made it this far - go you and here are some stats and photos as a reward :-)
Baby Boy (henceforth known as Buddy in blog world)
Born 4/27 at 10:17pm
10 lbs even and 21.5 inches long
Things started at about 6am on Monday the 27th of April when I woke up to my water breaking. I was not expecting this since I had read that only something like 8% of women start labor with their water breaking but nevertheless that's what happened. I called my OB b/c I wasn't having contractions yet but they said to come to L&D anyway. B and I got up and showered and he got another pharmacist to trade shifts with him so he could still go to work in the afternoon if it was a false alarm. We grabbed our bags and the carseat and headed out. In the car on the way there I started having contractions about 8 minutes apart.
We got to L&D around 8am where they confirmed that my water had broken but I was only 1cm. In order to get things going they gave me a medication to help speed things up since pitocin isn't effective until at least 3-4cm. So with that B and I prepared for a long day.
My contractions got stronger with the medication and I was having back labor which is not something I would wish on anyone. I had planned on getting an epidural but even if I hadn't been, the back labor would have changed my mind. Around 11:30am the contractions started to get really bad and I employed all the breathing and coping techniques I had learned in birthing class. By the time they came in to check me around 1:30pm I was definitely suffering so I was glad to hear I was 4cm and I could start pitocin and get the epidural. That all occurred over the next 45 minutes or so and aside from the fact that they made B leave during the epidural placement, everything went as expected. After the epidural the OB broke my water the rest of the way and they started the pitocin and B and I settled in to wait some more.
I labored with very minimal pain/discomfort for the rest of the afternoon and evening but by the time they came in to check me around 9pm I had only progressed to 5.5cm and the baby was not showing signs of coming easily -- the OB said he was pretty sure he was posterior and we knew from the 36w ultrasound that he was likely quite large. At that point the discussion began about continuing to wait and see if I progressed or whether to just go for a c-section. As contributing factors, my epidural was no longer controlling the pain from the contractions and my BP was becoming more elevated despite the epidural (which typically lowers the BP by around 20mmHg). After discussing with B and our OB we decided it was best to just go for the c-section rather than wait for things to become emergent. I remained pretty calm about the whole thing until the anesthesiologist came in and started talking about things -- it all suddenly got very real and, as familiar as I am with surgery in general, the idea that someone was going to cut into me to retrieve my baby was a bit terrifying. B was really good and kept telling me everything would be fine and that I was doing great and all the right things.
The doctors got the OR ready and B put on his OR outfit and they told us he would walk down with us but then would have to wait outside until they had me prepped. Queue panic mode. I did not like that he had to leave me again. That said, I maintained composure (minus the extreme shivering I was doing) and in we went.
I won't go into detail too much on the time in the OR but suffice it to say it was not super fun. I know the epidural made it so I couldn't feel pain, per se, but the sensation was not pleasant. That said, when they got our little boy out and I heard him cry I immediately burst into tears and told B to go see him and take pictures. I saw our baby for the first time on B's iPhone but once they got him checked out by the peds folks (meconium stained fluid and high birth weight) they brought him over for me to kiss him and then let B hold him while they finished closing my incision. The closing process was not fun and I really wanted to hold my baby and I know at some point the anesthesiologist brought out some anxiolytic medications because I was really uncomfortable and very anxious. B tells me that it took about an hour after our boy was born to finish things - I don't remember it feeling like an hour but I think I lost some time secondary to the medications I was getting.
After they finished they had to get me back onto a hospital bed and I was finally able to hold my baby boy while they wheeled me back to L&D. While there I was having a lot of bleeding and my BP was elevated so I bought myself an overnight stay in L&D rather than moving to the mother/baby unit. I got a couple doses of a medication to slow the bleeding along with the pitocin and then because my blood pressure was still elevated I got to experience 24 hours of a magnesium sulfate drip. Let me tell you - that was a blast. Not. Basically it gives you a headache and makes you feel like you have the flu. Not my best moments. The next 24 hours were less than ideal as I was stuck in bed and not allowed to eat until dinner on Tuesday but I had a beautiful baby boy and my wonderful husband to keep me company so it wasn't all bad.
The rest of our stay was relatively uneventful - because of the c-section I ended up staying until Friday morning and I was very ready to get out of the hospital at that point. We got home around noon on Friday and thankfully have had both our moms here to help us cook, clean, and do laundry so despite only sleeping about 4 hours a night I am doing pretty well. Overall it was not what I expected but I think everything turned out for the best.
So, if you made it this far - go you and here are some stats and photos as a reward :-)
Baby Boy (henceforth known as Buddy in blog world)
Born 4/27 at 10:17pm
10 lbs even and 21.5 inches long
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| just a few hours after his birth |
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| bored in the hospital :-) |
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| finding his fingers |
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| contemplating the mysteries of life |
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| father-son bonding |
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| sleepy but so happy |
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| eyes open and the rare unfurrowed brow |
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| my little model |
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| sleeping on mommy |
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| baby's first chair |
Sunday, April 26, 2015
40 weeks
How far along: 40 weeks - happy due date to me!Size of baby: About the size of a jackfruit (see photo to right - why does this fruit have to look so intimidating?)
Total Weight Gain/Loss: up about 24 pounds from pre-pregnancy so hopefully this little guy comes soon and I can stay under my goal of 25 pounds total gain
How I'm Changing: I think I'm just kind of over being pregnant at this point... ready to have an outside baby and feel like I have a little more control over my body again
Gender: baby boy
Movements: He's given me a couple little freak out moments this week because he isn't moving quite as much (at least not all day long) -- he still has active periods but with more BH contractions I sometimes can't feel him moving as much
Sleep: still not sleeping - must be getting me ready for when this guy keeps me up all night :-)
How I'm feeling: see "how I'm changing" - basically just tired and having quite a bit of pain in my hips/lower back/pelvis
What I Miss: I no longer care about red wine or sushi - I miss being able to walk/stand without pain
Cravings: all the food.
Best Moment(s) of the Week: nothing specific happened this week really but it is exciting to know how close we are now - Tuesday we have another NST, OB appointment, and if no progress at the OB appointment then another u/s to check size again and then probably start talking induction... my hope is that I just spontaneously go into labor sometime in the next couple of days so we don't even have to do any of these appointments :-)
What I am Looking Forward To/What I Really Need to Get a Handle On: B and I are going to soon be responsible for another human being... for the rest of our lives... it is terrifying and awesome at the same time :-)
How I'm feeling: see "how I'm changing" - basically just tired and having quite a bit of pain in my hips/lower back/pelvis
What I Miss: I no longer care about red wine or sushi - I miss being able to walk/stand without pain
Cravings: all the food.
Best Moment(s) of the Week: nothing specific happened this week really but it is exciting to know how close we are now - Tuesday we have another NST, OB appointment, and if no progress at the OB appointment then another u/s to check size again and then probably start talking induction... my hope is that I just spontaneously go into labor sometime in the next couple of days so we don't even have to do any of these appointments :-)
What I am Looking Forward To/What I Really Need to Get a Handle On: B and I are going to soon be responsible for another human being... for the rest of our lives... it is terrifying and awesome at the same time :-)
Sunday, April 19, 2015
39 weeks
How far along: 39 weeks
Size of baby: About the size of a watermelon (see photo to right)
Total Weight Gain/Loss: still up about 22 pounds from pre-pregnancy - maybe the attempts to not eat all the food are working a little :-)
How I'm Changing: Well I think the fruit picture from this week is speaking to me -- I definitely feel like I am carrying a watermelon around
Gender: baby boy
Movements: A little less movement than before but still regular stretches and kicks - he must be running out of room in there at this point
Size of baby: About the size of a watermelon (see photo to right)
Total Weight Gain/Loss: still up about 22 pounds from pre-pregnancy - maybe the attempts to not eat all the food are working a little :-)
How I'm Changing: Well I think the fruit picture from this week is speaking to me -- I definitely feel like I am carrying a watermelon around
Gender: baby boy
Movements: A little less movement than before but still regular stretches and kicks - he must be running out of room in there at this point
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| 38w3d |
Sleep: Lots of interruptions still but at least I'm not working now so I can sleep in in the mornings
How I'm feeling: large, tired, and very very hot most of the time - glad the weather is nice enough that I can sleep with the window open now
What I Miss: I no longer care about red wine or sushi - I miss being able to walk without pain
Cravings: all the food.
Best Moment(s) of the Week: My first days of maternity leave have been quite lovely - we had really nice weather on Wednesday and Thursday and I was able to get several things done that I needed to do before the baby comes.
What I am Looking Forward To/What I Really Need to Get a Handle On: Looking forward to a few days of rest at home and meeting our little guy :-) only 7 days until his due date!
How I'm feeling: large, tired, and very very hot most of the time - glad the weather is nice enough that I can sleep with the window open now
What I Miss: I no longer care about red wine or sushi - I miss being able to walk without pain
Cravings: all the food.
Best Moment(s) of the Week: My first days of maternity leave have been quite lovely - we had really nice weather on Wednesday and Thursday and I was able to get several things done that I needed to do before the baby comes.
What I am Looking Forward To/What I Really Need to Get a Handle On: Looking forward to a few days of rest at home and meeting our little guy :-) only 7 days until his due date!
Sunday, April 12, 2015
38 weeks
How far along: 38 weeksSize of baby: About the size of a pumpkin (see photo to right)
Total Weight Gain/Loss: up about 22 pounds from pre-pregnancy - I've been trying to continue making healthy choices but I'm finding it somewhat challenging at this point. I just want to eat ice cream mostly.
How I'm Changing: Someone must have been listening/reading my post last week because I am now going to be spending more time at home relaxing as the OB wants me to be done at work... turns out my BP was slightly elevated at my last appointment so now I get to have weekly NSTs and considerably more rest. Fortunately I'm only going to be off 8 days earlier than I had planned so no major impact on my leave overall.
Gender: baby boy
Movements: Lots of stretching and some punches/kicks still - he's getting very strong now.
Sleep: Lots of interruptions... I wake up to go to the bathroom at least 3 times a night and usually a couple more just to change positions.
How I'm feeling: large, tired, and very very hot most of the time
What I Miss: red wine, sushi, the ability to get up without the use of my arms, bending over, generally just being able to move in the ways that I want
Cravings: all the food.
Best Moment(s) of the Week: Well my birthday was this week -- 28 years old, I can hardly believe it. Yesterday we went into the city for dinner to celebrate and it was really great. We walked around the public garden and just absorbed the nice weather and sunshine - stopped by the "make way for ducklings" statues and took a picture because they were all wearing adorable Easter hats :-)
We then went to POST 390 in the back bay which was quite delicious - highly recommend if you are in the Boston area and looking for a good farm to table dining experience.
What I am Looking Forward To/What I Really Need to Get a Handle On: Looking forward to a few days of rest at home and meeting our little guy :-) only 2 weeks until his due date!
How I'm feeling: large, tired, and very very hot most of the time
What I Miss: red wine, sushi, the ability to get up without the use of my arms, bending over, generally just being able to move in the ways that I want
Cravings: all the food.
Best Moment(s) of the Week: Well my birthday was this week -- 28 years old, I can hardly believe it. Yesterday we went into the city for dinner to celebrate and it was really great. We walked around the public garden and just absorbed the nice weather and sunshine - stopped by the "make way for ducklings" statues and took a picture because they were all wearing adorable Easter hats :-)
We then went to POST 390 in the back bay which was quite delicious - highly recommend if you are in the Boston area and looking for a good farm to table dining experience.
What I am Looking Forward To/What I Really Need to Get a Handle On: Looking forward to a few days of rest at home and meeting our little guy :-) only 2 weeks until his due date!
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