Thursday, January 14, 2010
First Smile!!
I was laying on the bed after feeding him Monday and was playing with D.J. I started saying hi and smiling at him. It took him a few times of him staring at me, but he eventually started copying me. He was making noises and smiling!! I couldn't believe it. I continued to repeat what I was doing and he kept going. I called Dave in and he did it when Dave did the same thing. It was the cutest thing. I kept thinking that it couldn't be a smile but he continues to do it when I say hi to him. I haven't gotten a picture or video of it yet but will try to this week so everyone can see. It really is the cutest thing he's doing right now.
Monday, January 11, 2010
First Sick Scare
D.J. wake up Sunday morning with a pinkish tint to his pee. We called the doctors office and spoke to a nurse. She thought that it might have something to do with my infection and antibiotics I was taking but suggested calling for an appointment Monday. He continued to be pretty tired most of the day and sleeping in our arms. We started noticing before every feeding he hadn't peed either. This was completely not normal for him. He had only pooped in the morning which was even weirder. I was beyond nervous because he went about 12 hours without peeing or pooping. Dave fed him a bottle at 10. We decided if he didn't pee after that we would go to the emergency room. Luckily he ended up peeing which eased some of my worry. He woke up with a small amount of pee but I still wanted to be seen to make sure nothing serious was wrong.
We saw the doctor and D.J. checked out fine. His weight was 8lbs. 14oz. which is normal weight gain for him. The doctor said that he's dehydrated that could be from my infection. That could have affected my milk for a few days. He wasn't too concerned since his weight gain was good. He suggested to give him a few more bottles if he doesn't seem to be taking to the boob as much and also trying to feed him a little more often. He usually feeds every 3 hours so I'm trying every 2-3 hours until he seems to be back to normal.
I am noticing a change already though. He's pooped 2 times since his doctors appointment and peed more often. I didn't have to hold him for any of his naps today!! I put him in the swing this morning so I could get ready for the doctors. When we got home from the doctors we both laid down in our bed after his feeding. He ended up falling asleep without me holding him. His next nap I put him down while he was tired but still awake. The doctor said we could start trying this and if he doesn't sleep to go ahead and pick him back up. He's still too young to let him go too long by himself but letting him try to fall asleep on his own is a good start. He looked around for a little then started whining so I gave him his pacifier. That ended up settling him down for a nap. He didn't last long but it was time for a feeding anyways so I didn't mind. When Dave got home he had just finished a feeding and was a little cranky. Dave put him down and he was awake for awhile before falling asleep. Unfortunately he seems to like falling asleep with his pacifier. I'm noticing once that falls out he wakes up looking for it to be put back in his mouth. It will be nice once he's able to do that for himself. I'm hoping him not feeling well is why he hasn't wanted to sleep in his bed. Let's hope he will sleep in his bed for a little tonight so we can both get a little better sleep.
We saw the doctor and D.J. checked out fine. His weight was 8lbs. 14oz. which is normal weight gain for him. The doctor said that he's dehydrated that could be from my infection. That could have affected my milk for a few days. He wasn't too concerned since his weight gain was good. He suggested to give him a few more bottles if he doesn't seem to be taking to the boob as much and also trying to feed him a little more often. He usually feeds every 3 hours so I'm trying every 2-3 hours until he seems to be back to normal.
I am noticing a change already though. He's pooped 2 times since his doctors appointment and peed more often. I didn't have to hold him for any of his naps today!! I put him in the swing this morning so I could get ready for the doctors. When we got home from the doctors we both laid down in our bed after his feeding. He ended up falling asleep without me holding him. His next nap I put him down while he was tired but still awake. The doctor said we could start trying this and if he doesn't sleep to go ahead and pick him back up. He's still too young to let him go too long by himself but letting him try to fall asleep on his own is a good start. He looked around for a little then started whining so I gave him his pacifier. That ended up settling him down for a nap. He didn't last long but it was time for a feeding anyways so I didn't mind. When Dave got home he had just finished a feeding and was a little cranky. Dave put him down and he was awake for awhile before falling asleep. Unfortunately he seems to like falling asleep with his pacifier. I'm noticing once that falls out he wakes up looking for it to be put back in his mouth. It will be nice once he's able to do that for himself. I'm hoping him not feeling well is why he hasn't wanted to sleep in his bed. Let's hope he will sleep in his bed for a little tonight so we can both get a little better sleep.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Sleeping
Well this ended up being a long week. Last weekend my parents flew home. D.J. did not seem to adjust well to getting back to our so called schedule we had before my parents came out. The problem we had is that we spent most of the days at my sisters place. That meant we didn't have anywhere to put him down when he fell asleep, which meant that someone held him pretty much the whole time. That was for 2 weeks straight and I think he got used to that. Since then he has been refusing to stay asleep when we put him down in his crib. Before we would rock him to sleep then lay him down. Now every time we try to put him down, he wakes up immediately and starts flipping out. So it was a LONG weekend of trying to get him to sleep and most of the time just having him sleep in our arms so we could get some rest ourselves. Plus Dave had to go back to work so I didn't want to have to keep him up at night so I was the one taking care of D.J during those early morning hours.
I have been reading and researching nonstop to get some help with this issue. Everything I have read says that this is normal and not to stress too much about it. I shouldn't start worrying until at least 4 months when we can start sleeping learning. That is the time we will teach him to fall asleep on his own in his own bed. I was worried that this was going to be a habit. I read that he is too young to learn bad habits like this. That made me feel better about letting him sleep in our arms. I also read that we should just keep trying to put him down so he can get used to it again. I'm hoping this helps. The swing has been wonderful as well to give us a break. Last night we did have a small breakthrough though.
I have been finally pumping enough milk that Dave can give him a bottle. Dave decided to take the late night feeding, most of the time around 1am. After drinking from the bottle, D.J. is passed out pretty hard core. I decided to try to swaddle him and put him in his bed. We have been having problems swaddling so I wasn't sure if that was going to work either. I wanted to try though because I think all the movement when he lays down wakes him up so I was hoping the swaddle would eliminate that. I read to leave one of his arms out now at this age so he can use it to soothe himself a little. After I swaddled him he continued to sleep so I laid him down and he didn't wake immediately! It didn't last long but it was a much needed 30 minutes in his bed!!! I'm going to continue to try to put him down like that and see how it goes. I always have the swing. :)
So we haven't been doing much but trying to adjust back to the 3 of us. I ended up waking up Friday morning with a 102 temperature. Luckily the doctors were able to see me first thing in the morning. Dave was able to come home after checking into work so I didn't have to take D.J. with me. As soon as the doc saw me she knew I had a bacterial infection in my breasts that was causing my temperature and pain. She prescribed an antibiotic and said everything is safe for the baby to continue to breastfeed. That made me feel better cause I was soooo worried about giving D.J. something. Most of the time it's so hard for him to get something from me since my milk gives him the antibodies my body is producing to fight the bug. I was pretty exhausted Friday and took a lot out of me. Dave was the best though and allowed me to catch up on sleep until I had to feed him. Having him feed a bottle during the late night feeding helped sooo much as well. As soon as I was done pumping I went right back to sleep. That was probably the best sleep I've gotten at night since his birth. It definitely helped because I woke up Saturday feeling so much better. I took over with D.J. so Dave could catch up with some of his sleep. He did that again for me last night which really seems to help. Unfortunately he's got to work so I'll be taking over tonight getting him to sleep at night. Keep your fingers crossed for us that he continues to sleep longer and longer in his own bed. I will post how this week goes.
I have been reading and researching nonstop to get some help with this issue. Everything I have read says that this is normal and not to stress too much about it. I shouldn't start worrying until at least 4 months when we can start sleeping learning. That is the time we will teach him to fall asleep on his own in his own bed. I was worried that this was going to be a habit. I read that he is too young to learn bad habits like this. That made me feel better about letting him sleep in our arms. I also read that we should just keep trying to put him down so he can get used to it again. I'm hoping this helps. The swing has been wonderful as well to give us a break. Last night we did have a small breakthrough though.
I have been finally pumping enough milk that Dave can give him a bottle. Dave decided to take the late night feeding, most of the time around 1am. After drinking from the bottle, D.J. is passed out pretty hard core. I decided to try to swaddle him and put him in his bed. We have been having problems swaddling so I wasn't sure if that was going to work either. I wanted to try though because I think all the movement when he lays down wakes him up so I was hoping the swaddle would eliminate that. I read to leave one of his arms out now at this age so he can use it to soothe himself a little. After I swaddled him he continued to sleep so I laid him down and he didn't wake immediately! It didn't last long but it was a much needed 30 minutes in his bed!!! I'm going to continue to try to put him down like that and see how it goes. I always have the swing. :)
So we haven't been doing much but trying to adjust back to the 3 of us. I ended up waking up Friday morning with a 102 temperature. Luckily the doctors were able to see me first thing in the morning. Dave was able to come home after checking into work so I didn't have to take D.J. with me. As soon as the doc saw me she knew I had a bacterial infection in my breasts that was causing my temperature and pain. She prescribed an antibiotic and said everything is safe for the baby to continue to breastfeed. That made me feel better cause I was soooo worried about giving D.J. something. Most of the time it's so hard for him to get something from me since my milk gives him the antibodies my body is producing to fight the bug. I was pretty exhausted Friday and took a lot out of me. Dave was the best though and allowed me to catch up on sleep until I had to feed him. Having him feed a bottle during the late night feeding helped sooo much as well. As soon as I was done pumping I went right back to sleep. That was probably the best sleep I've gotten at night since his birth. It definitely helped because I woke up Saturday feeling so much better. I took over with D.J. so Dave could catch up with some of his sleep. He did that again for me last night which really seems to help. Unfortunately he's got to work so I'll be taking over tonight getting him to sleep at night. Keep your fingers crossed for us that he continues to sleep longer and longer in his own bed. I will post how this week goes.
Friday, January 1, 2010
Lots of News
I realized that I haven't posted anything in over 3 weeks. There has been so much that has happened that I hope I remember to write. I'll talk about D.J. first.
He has had 2 doctors appointments since my last post. His first appointment was his 2 week one. He ended up gaining back his birth weight which is right on track. The doctor suggested I change how I breastfeed a little to help him gain faster. I was letting him drink for 20-30 minutes from one breast. According to that doctor, having him feed 10-15 on both boobs will help him gain weight a little quicker. At first I was a little annoyed because I felt like I was just getting used to breastfeeding and now I had to change everything and kind of start over. Plus I was afraid what that was going to do to my milk supply. But I wanted to try it for my son. The doctor also showed us how to correctly rub his eye to help open his tear duct. Other than that he checked out great for that appointment. The next appointment was for his 1 month check up. His measurements are weight: 8lbs 3oz and height 22.5in. He measures 25% in height and his head measurement and 75-90% in height. They say you can't predict anything until they are 3 but we are keeping our fingers crossed he continues to grow lengthwise and be a tall boy! The doctor looked at his big toes and gave us some suggestions to help. His nails weren't growing over the skin and was causing some blood under them. The doctor said that it looks like it had fixed itself but told us to try clipping the nail after a bath to help it grow correctly. He checked out great and will go back when he's 2 months for the dreaded shots :(
I'm going to take a picture with the pig each month to show his growth.
I cannot believe that it's been a month already. I can definitely understand how everyone says how quickly they grow. Within that month we celebrated his first Christmas. My family was able to be come out here and spoil him. We decided to do a grab bag instead of buying for everyone. The funny thing is that everyone ended up getting each other gift cards since no one knew what they really wanted. My brother gave me and Dave the best gift. We are planning on flying home to Pittsburgh in March and he's going to buy us our round trip flights. With a new baby, we couldn't have asked for a better gift. I tried telling my family not to buy much for D.J. since he won't remember any of it. I think he ended up having more presents to open than the rest of us. He got a bunch of books from my sister. My mom bought probably every first baby ornament that was out there. He received a Steeler blanket and basketball bath toy. It was a great Christmas. The best part is that my mom brought out a Santa outfit for D.J. to wear. We ended up stuffing it to make him look like he had a belly. We pretty much tortured him to get pictures.
We had a great turkey/ham dinner. That night we played different board games with the fam and our friends Jen and Aaron. It truly was a great first Christmas as a family. We are looking forward to starting traditions with D.J. next year.
Sad part of our holiday was finding out that our Grandmother passed Christmas Eve morning. She had Alzheimer's and was getting worse and worse the last couple of months. We pretty much knew it was coming but it was still pretty hard hearing the news. I felt bad for my mom since she was out here and couldn't be there for my Grandpa. She thought about flying home but my Grandpa insisted on her staying here. They are having the funeral next weekend when they are back. My siblings are flying home for it but unfortunately I won't be able to with D.J. being so young. My family understands and we will plan something when we go home in March. I know that my Grandma is in heaven watching over us.
We also got to celebrate the New Year as a family. We didn't do much, just went to my sisters and hung with my parents. The best part was that D.J. was actually awake to see the ball drop. It truly was a great end to our 2009. I'm looking forward to 2010 and seeing our boy change and grow so much.
My parents left this morning. It was so great to see them with D.J. They are the happiest grandparents with their first grandchild. I know he will be loved and spoiled by them. My mom is already planning on coming back in February now that she is retired. It was hard for them to leave. It was cute because they kept asking if they could take him home with them. These are times I wish we lived closer.
The other great thing the last 2 weeks is that Dave's work ended up giving them time off for the holiday. He was supposed to have to work up until Christmas and then again until New Year. When he was on baby leave, they changed their minds and gave them almost 2 weeks off. He just had to go in 3 days to check in. That was great time we got to spend as a family. I know he appreciated being able to spend more time with D.J. and so did I. It was a quick 2 weeks and sucks he has to go back to work this week. We don't have much planned for the weekend. We watched the bowl games today. We are just going to relax and enjoy the last few days the rest of the weekend.
He has had 2 doctors appointments since my last post. His first appointment was his 2 week one. He ended up gaining back his birth weight which is right on track. The doctor suggested I change how I breastfeed a little to help him gain faster. I was letting him drink for 20-30 minutes from one breast. According to that doctor, having him feed 10-15 on both boobs will help him gain weight a little quicker. At first I was a little annoyed because I felt like I was just getting used to breastfeeding and now I had to change everything and kind of start over. Plus I was afraid what that was going to do to my milk supply. But I wanted to try it for my son. The doctor also showed us how to correctly rub his eye to help open his tear duct. Other than that he checked out great for that appointment. The next appointment was for his 1 month check up. His measurements are weight: 8lbs 3oz and height 22.5in. He measures 25% in height and his head measurement and 75-90% in height. They say you can't predict anything until they are 3 but we are keeping our fingers crossed he continues to grow lengthwise and be a tall boy! The doctor looked at his big toes and gave us some suggestions to help. His nails weren't growing over the skin and was causing some blood under them. The doctor said that it looks like it had fixed itself but told us to try clipping the nail after a bath to help it grow correctly. He checked out great and will go back when he's 2 months for the dreaded shots :(
I'm going to take a picture with the pig each month to show his growth.
I cannot believe that it's been a month already. I can definitely understand how everyone says how quickly they grow. Within that month we celebrated his first Christmas. My family was able to be come out here and spoil him. We decided to do a grab bag instead of buying for everyone. The funny thing is that everyone ended up getting each other gift cards since no one knew what they really wanted. My brother gave me and Dave the best gift. We are planning on flying home to Pittsburgh in March and he's going to buy us our round trip flights. With a new baby, we couldn't have asked for a better gift. I tried telling my family not to buy much for D.J. since he won't remember any of it. I think he ended up having more presents to open than the rest of us. He got a bunch of books from my sister. My mom bought probably every first baby ornament that was out there. He received a Steeler blanket and basketball bath toy. It was a great Christmas. The best part is that my mom brought out a Santa outfit for D.J. to wear. We ended up stuffing it to make him look like he had a belly. We pretty much tortured him to get pictures.
We had a great turkey/ham dinner. That night we played different board games with the fam and our friends Jen and Aaron. It truly was a great first Christmas as a family. We are looking forward to starting traditions with D.J. next year.
Sad part of our holiday was finding out that our Grandmother passed Christmas Eve morning. She had Alzheimer's and was getting worse and worse the last couple of months. We pretty much knew it was coming but it was still pretty hard hearing the news. I felt bad for my mom since she was out here and couldn't be there for my Grandpa. She thought about flying home but my Grandpa insisted on her staying here. They are having the funeral next weekend when they are back. My siblings are flying home for it but unfortunately I won't be able to with D.J. being so young. My family understands and we will plan something when we go home in March. I know that my Grandma is in heaven watching over us.
We also got to celebrate the New Year as a family. We didn't do much, just went to my sisters and hung with my parents. The best part was that D.J. was actually awake to see the ball drop. It truly was a great end to our 2009. I'm looking forward to 2010 and seeing our boy change and grow so much.
My parents left this morning. It was so great to see them with D.J. They are the happiest grandparents with their first grandchild. I know he will be loved and spoiled by them. My mom is already planning on coming back in February now that she is retired. It was hard for them to leave. It was cute because they kept asking if they could take him home with them. These are times I wish we lived closer.
The other great thing the last 2 weeks is that Dave's work ended up giving them time off for the holiday. He was supposed to have to work up until Christmas and then again until New Year. When he was on baby leave, they changed their minds and gave them almost 2 weeks off. He just had to go in 3 days to check in. That was great time we got to spend as a family. I know he appreciated being able to spend more time with D.J. and so did I. It was a quick 2 weeks and sucks he has to go back to work this week. We don't have much planned for the weekend. We watched the bowl games today. We are just going to relax and enjoy the last few days the rest of the weekend.
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Summary of Week 1/2 Old
My posts are going to start being a lot different now that D.J. is here. I'll probably write more about him than myself. I wanted to make a quick post while he's sleeping about his first week and half of life!
We came home from the hospital Thursday afternoon. My sister was a big help that night and stayed with us. I'm not sure how we would have made it without her because we took shifts and both Dave and I were struggling with our awake times. We were both sooo tired. Having my sister there to talk with us was a lifesaver. Friday we pretty much tried catching up on our sleep while D.J. slept. Nothing really exciting. Friday night our friends Jen and Aaron stopped over for a little to meet D.J. My brother Teal also came over to spend sometime with his nephew. It's so neat to see my family with D.J. It's a different kind of love that I never knew they had. Saturday we had his 2 day appointment. Unfortunately his weight was down a little too much so we had to go back in 2 more days to check it again. Other than that he checked out fine. The good thing was that I knew my milk was coming in so he should start gaining weight before the next appointment. My friend Jodi's daughters first birthday party was Saturday afternoon. The great thing was that it was right down the street from our apartment. We didn't want to take D.J. out of the car with the other kids. I was very happy to stop by so all the girls could see him and I could spend a few minutes with them. I cannot believe it's been a year since Mackenzie was just like D.J. I wish I could have stayed longer but D.J. was getting restless and I was getting tired.
Sunday we went to my sisters house to watch D.J's first Steeler game. He slept pretty much the whole game until I needed to feed him at the end. It was probably a good thing because we lost. Our season is pretty much over so D.J. will just have to wait until next year to help cheer them on.
Monday we went back to the doctors and he had gained 3 oz. The doctor was pleased with that weight gain so we just have to hope he gets back to his birth weight by his 2 week appointment. Balboa isn't accepting any new patients so we got to choose a civilian doctor. Dave and I were both very happy with that because military doctors are not always the best. We have his next appointment Dec. 16th.
The weather hasn't been the best and actually had a really hard rain storm Monday so we came home from the appointment and stayed in. That's about all we've been doing this week is hanging by the house enjoying our son. There have been some hard times but they don't last long. He ended up waking up Thursday with a lot of mucous coming out of his eye and having a hard time opening it. Dave was worried that it was pink eye so we called the nurse. He told us unless his eye has redness or swelling that it's probably a closed tear duct. I had never heard that newborns could have this but I guess this is pretty common. He suggested to just try to keep it cleaned of the mucous and rub the tear duct. He was A LOT more cranky because he couldn't open his eye when he tried to. Dave had to go into work this morning and having D.J. being extra cranky was hard but I made it. His eye started clearing up tonight and he seems so much better already.
It has been a great first week as a family even though we didn't do much. It sure is different having a baby in our lives. I'm so glad that Dave was able to have this time off with us cause I'm not sure I would have made it. I'm definitely not looking forward to him being back at work this week. Luckily my sister doesn't have to work. We are still trying to adjust to his schedule of feeding at least every 3 hours. Since I'm breastfeeding it has been a little harder on me but I'm managing. I am sooo happy to have him in our lives.
I won't be doing much this week but will update if anything happens at his doctors. My parents come in Friday night so I'm sure I'll have lots to post with Christmas right around the corner.
We came home from the hospital Thursday afternoon. My sister was a big help that night and stayed with us. I'm not sure how we would have made it without her because we took shifts and both Dave and I were struggling with our awake times. We were both sooo tired. Having my sister there to talk with us was a lifesaver. Friday we pretty much tried catching up on our sleep while D.J. slept. Nothing really exciting. Friday night our friends Jen and Aaron stopped over for a little to meet D.J. My brother Teal also came over to spend sometime with his nephew. It's so neat to see my family with D.J. It's a different kind of love that I never knew they had. Saturday we had his 2 day appointment. Unfortunately his weight was down a little too much so we had to go back in 2 more days to check it again. Other than that he checked out fine. The good thing was that I knew my milk was coming in so he should start gaining weight before the next appointment. My friend Jodi's daughters first birthday party was Saturday afternoon. The great thing was that it was right down the street from our apartment. We didn't want to take D.J. out of the car with the other kids. I was very happy to stop by so all the girls could see him and I could spend a few minutes with them. I cannot believe it's been a year since Mackenzie was just like D.J. I wish I could have stayed longer but D.J. was getting restless and I was getting tired.
Sunday we went to my sisters house to watch D.J's first Steeler game. He slept pretty much the whole game until I needed to feed him at the end. It was probably a good thing because we lost. Our season is pretty much over so D.J. will just have to wait until next year to help cheer them on.
Monday we went back to the doctors and he had gained 3 oz. The doctor was pleased with that weight gain so we just have to hope he gets back to his birth weight by his 2 week appointment. Balboa isn't accepting any new patients so we got to choose a civilian doctor. Dave and I were both very happy with that because military doctors are not always the best. We have his next appointment Dec. 16th.
The weather hasn't been the best and actually had a really hard rain storm Monday so we came home from the appointment and stayed in. That's about all we've been doing this week is hanging by the house enjoying our son. There have been some hard times but they don't last long. He ended up waking up Thursday with a lot of mucous coming out of his eye and having a hard time opening it. Dave was worried that it was pink eye so we called the nurse. He told us unless his eye has redness or swelling that it's probably a closed tear duct. I had never heard that newborns could have this but I guess this is pretty common. He suggested to just try to keep it cleaned of the mucous and rub the tear duct. He was A LOT more cranky because he couldn't open his eye when he tried to. Dave had to go into work this morning and having D.J. being extra cranky was hard but I made it. His eye started clearing up tonight and he seems so much better already.
It has been a great first week as a family even though we didn't do much. It sure is different having a baby in our lives. I'm so glad that Dave was able to have this time off with us cause I'm not sure I would have made it. I'm definitely not looking forward to him being back at work this week. Luckily my sister doesn't have to work. We are still trying to adjust to his schedule of feeding at least every 3 hours. Since I'm breastfeeding it has been a little harder on me but I'm managing. I am sooo happy to have him in our lives.
I won't be doing much this week but will update if anything happens at his doctors. My parents come in Friday night so I'm sure I'll have lots to post with Christmas right around the corner.
Saturday, December 5, 2009
David James Smith Junior :)
I finally got some time so I wanted to update everyone about his birth. I woke up Tuesday and had some back pains that I hadn't had throughout the pregnancy. I didn't think much since we started walking the night before. I figured I was just having pain from carrying my belly. I went to lunch with my brother and sister and continued to have small pain. When I got home I laid on the couch hoping to stretch out and relieve the pain. It seemed to work a little. Dave got home from work and we went for another walk. As soon as we started I just had a feeling that I was in labor. We made one lap around our apartment complex and the pain just kept getting stronger and stronger. Dave and his mom went to get some food and I jumped in the shower cause I knew we were going to be going to the hospital that night. I started tracking my contractions about 9:30 and they were about 15 minutes apart. Dave showered and tried to lie down for a little. Unfortunately as soon as he was done about 10:30, my contractions were about 6 minutes apart and getting more and more painful. I wanted to make sure that we had enough time to drive to the hospital and get an epidural.
Once at the hospital I was checked and was 4cm dilated so they admitted me at 12:15 am Wednesday morning. After getting into the room the nurse said the anesthesiologist would come and explain the procedure for the epidural. Literally a minute later he came in. They offer it when someone is at least 4cm so it was up to me to get it now or wait. I made sure that it wouldn't run out before giving birth and decided to do it then. It took him 3 times to find the bubble to inject the medicine. That was definitely not a good part. I had to sit hunched over trying not to move through my contractions as he pricked around with the needle. But that little pain and time it took was definitely worth it. As soon as it kicked in I didn't feel a thing the rest of the time.
The waiting game began. Luckily the labor progressed really quickly. The next time they checked about and hour later I was 7-8cm. The nurse told me to try to relax and rest for the big push! We watched Zoolander and How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days while we waited. I was also able to close my eyes for a little. Another 2 hours and I was 9cm. The babies head wasn't quite there so they made me wait another hour. I was ready to push after that.
The nurse scared me just a little right before having to push. She warned me that it's up to me how long it could take. At that point I convinced myself I'll do whatever it takes to get him out as quickly as possible. The epidural was working so well that the nurse had to tell me when I was having a contraction and to push. At first it was weird cause I didn't know if I was doing it right. The nurse was a great coach though because she kept encouraging me to push stronger and harder. It did not take long until she started seeing the head and got the doctor. Once the doctor came in, I pushed a few more times and D.J. was out with only 27 minutes of pushing. He joined the world at 6:57am Dec 2.
After that he was taken to the side to be checked, given his shots and cleaned. He was 7lbs. 14 oz and 21.5 inches. The doctor had to stitch me up and soon enough I was able to hold my baby boy. It was such an incredible feeling seeing him for the first time. I was holding it together until I saw Dave just break down and cry. The two of us couldn't be happier though. They were definitely tears of joy to finally start our family.
I was very happy how my body handled the birth. I was in little pain and it didn't take long. It makes me feel good about having more. I love being a new mom and love my two men with all of my heart and soul!!
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Thanksgiving Week
Well we had a busy but relaxing holiday week. I took my mother in law to the beach Tuesday afternoon. We laid on the beach until it got a little too windy and cold. After I took her to the Wave House for some lunch. Unfortunately the big wave wasn't running so it kind of defeated the point of going. Lunch was still great though.
My parents flew in late Tuesday night so I spent Wednesday with my fam catching up. My sister was hosting Thanksgiving and hadn't prepared anything so I helped her do some cooking. We made pumpkin bread, pumpkin pie, apple pie, cranberries, cut up everything for the stuffing, spinach dip and nacho dip. I was pretty wiped after that. I spent some of the time sitting on a chair trying to help. My mom has a great picture of me in action. Dave and I cooked dinner for everyone that night. Gotta love living in San Diego so we could cook out at the end of November. It was a simple but delicious meal.
We spent Thanksgiving at my sisters place. It was such a great day and dinner was sooo good. I thought how great it would be being pregnant during the holiday to eat what I wanted. Boy was I wrong. Eating all I did made my belly so hard and difficult to move. I have not felt like this whole pregnancy so it was hard. I had such a hard time sleeping that night.
Dave and I started shopping on Black Friday last year and want to continue that tradition. I wasn't going to go but I have the Best Buy card. We took my sis and mom down to the Navy Exchange first thing. We left at 4am and had to wait in a VERY long line until 5am. It was definitely worth it and got some great Xmas gifts for cheap. After we went to Best Buy and got some great blu-ray movies dirt cheap. After we went to Ihop for breakfast. I came home and took a much needed nap. After I walked to my sisters for leftovers and family time. Dave and I put up our outside xmas lights that night. We wanted to do our tree but was too tired after our LONG day.
Saturday Dave, my dad and brothers went golfing. I spent the day relaxing cause I was pretty tired from the last couple of days. It was actually an ugly, rainy day so I didn't mind laying on the couch. I had a little scare with the baby. I hadn't felt him very much that day. He's been a very active baby during this whole pregnancy so I felt something was wrong. Once Dave got home we called the hospital and they said to come on in to get checked. We got there about 5:30 and they didn't have any rooms until 6:30. Once we were in, they put monitors on me for the baby and my contractions. I ended up having a few pretty strong contractions once hooked up. I thought that might be the start. Unfortunately I was wrong cause after about 30 mins they stopped and didn't come back. They monitored the babies heart beat for 20 minutes and said he looks great. They did an ultrasound to check a few other things then checked my cervix. I was about 90% thinned and 2cm dilated. They sent me home after that since there were no signs of labor starting.
Sunday Dave took his mom to the swap meet and I spent time with my parents. We meet up with my brothers for lunch then came back to my sisters place to hang out. The Steelers game was Sunday night so I cooked my meatloaf for everyone. We played Baltimore and needed to win. Ben ended up not playing because of a concussion and our normal back up was hurt too. We played Dixon who had never played an NFL game. He didn't play too bad until he turned the ball over in overtime. That pretty much cost us the game. We lost by a field goal in overtime. It's been a depressing few games to watch cause we're not playing well. I'm done talking about it cause I'm getting mad.
My parents flew out early this morning. I had an appointment today since I haven't given birth yet. Our normal midwife went home sick so we saw someone else. She was very nice though. She did the normal measurements and check up. Everything looked good and D.J. is still heads down!!! When she checked my cervix she asked if I wanted her to scrape it. That sometimes helps get the process going a little faster so I said sure. Little did I know how weird and painful that was going to be. She was able to open up my cervix though. She said that should help cause it could be delaying going into labor being closed. If I haven't given birth by Thursday, we're going to another appointment for them to monitor the baby to make sure everything still looks good. And if he still hasn't come on his own, I will be induced Monday at 9pm. So he should be here no latter than Dec. 8th. I'm very excited to know the end is almost here!! We're still hoping he comes before Dave's mom leaves but that's not up to us.
Dave's mom leaves Thursday afternoon. I'm looking forward to having our house and piece and quiet back but it's been great having her out. We discovered skype so she's kind of accepted not being here when D.J. is born if it's after she leaves. I have a feeling we're going to be getting skype calls all day long between his mom and my mom. That's a pretty neat free service though. We have used it the last 2 days to talk to Dave's nieces. We haven't seen them for almost a year so it was great talking and seeing them. If you have skype let me know your name so we can chat.
Well if anything happens with our baby this week I will try to update as soon as possible. Have a great week!
My parents flew in late Tuesday night so I spent Wednesday with my fam catching up. My sister was hosting Thanksgiving and hadn't prepared anything so I helped her do some cooking. We made pumpkin bread, pumpkin pie, apple pie, cranberries, cut up everything for the stuffing, spinach dip and nacho dip. I was pretty wiped after that. I spent some of the time sitting on a chair trying to help. My mom has a great picture of me in action. Dave and I cooked dinner for everyone that night. Gotta love living in San Diego so we could cook out at the end of November. It was a simple but delicious meal.
We spent Thanksgiving at my sisters place. It was such a great day and dinner was sooo good. I thought how great it would be being pregnant during the holiday to eat what I wanted. Boy was I wrong. Eating all I did made my belly so hard and difficult to move. I have not felt like this whole pregnancy so it was hard. I had such a hard time sleeping that night.
Dave and I started shopping on Black Friday last year and want to continue that tradition. I wasn't going to go but I have the Best Buy card. We took my sis and mom down to the Navy Exchange first thing. We left at 4am and had to wait in a VERY long line until 5am. It was definitely worth it and got some great Xmas gifts for cheap. After we went to Best Buy and got some great blu-ray movies dirt cheap. After we went to Ihop for breakfast. I came home and took a much needed nap. After I walked to my sisters for leftovers and family time. Dave and I put up our outside xmas lights that night. We wanted to do our tree but was too tired after our LONG day.
Saturday Dave, my dad and brothers went golfing. I spent the day relaxing cause I was pretty tired from the last couple of days. It was actually an ugly, rainy day so I didn't mind laying on the couch. I had a little scare with the baby. I hadn't felt him very much that day. He's been a very active baby during this whole pregnancy so I felt something was wrong. Once Dave got home we called the hospital and they said to come on in to get checked. We got there about 5:30 and they didn't have any rooms until 6:30. Once we were in, they put monitors on me for the baby and my contractions. I ended up having a few pretty strong contractions once hooked up. I thought that might be the start. Unfortunately I was wrong cause after about 30 mins they stopped and didn't come back. They monitored the babies heart beat for 20 minutes and said he looks great. They did an ultrasound to check a few other things then checked my cervix. I was about 90% thinned and 2cm dilated. They sent me home after that since there were no signs of labor starting.
Sunday Dave took his mom to the swap meet and I spent time with my parents. We meet up with my brothers for lunch then came back to my sisters place to hang out. The Steelers game was Sunday night so I cooked my meatloaf for everyone. We played Baltimore and needed to win. Ben ended up not playing because of a concussion and our normal back up was hurt too. We played Dixon who had never played an NFL game. He didn't play too bad until he turned the ball over in overtime. That pretty much cost us the game. We lost by a field goal in overtime. It's been a depressing few games to watch cause we're not playing well. I'm done talking about it cause I'm getting mad.
My parents flew out early this morning. I had an appointment today since I haven't given birth yet. Our normal midwife went home sick so we saw someone else. She was very nice though. She did the normal measurements and check up. Everything looked good and D.J. is still heads down!!! When she checked my cervix she asked if I wanted her to scrape it. That sometimes helps get the process going a little faster so I said sure. Little did I know how weird and painful that was going to be. She was able to open up my cervix though. She said that should help cause it could be delaying going into labor being closed. If I haven't given birth by Thursday, we're going to another appointment for them to monitor the baby to make sure everything still looks good. And if he still hasn't come on his own, I will be induced Monday at 9pm. So he should be here no latter than Dec. 8th. I'm very excited to know the end is almost here!! We're still hoping he comes before Dave's mom leaves but that's not up to us.
Dave's mom leaves Thursday afternoon. I'm looking forward to having our house and piece and quiet back but it's been great having her out. We discovered skype so she's kind of accepted not being here when D.J. is born if it's after she leaves. I have a feeling we're going to be getting skype calls all day long between his mom and my mom. That's a pretty neat free service though. We have used it the last 2 days to talk to Dave's nieces. We haven't seen them for almost a year so it was great talking and seeing them. If you have skype let me know your name so we can chat.
Well if anything happens with our baby this week I will try to update as soon as possible. Have a great week!
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