The real new mommy test

Today was a day I was dreading. Nathan had to go to work. I'm SO glad we had Eli on Thursday because even though he had to cancel a full day of patients on Thursday, it left him home for three days after that without missing patients/work days... He was such an amazing daddy over the weekend and helped so much (and took soooo much bossing and nagging from me) to get me well rested. But today came and went surprisingly smooth. It certainly helped that Eli slept in until 9:30, which left me time to get Bryson and Dallin fed and dressed and myself fed and dressed before I had to go through the ritual with Eli... Aunt Emily was wonderful and drove Bryson to and from preschool also- having him out of the house for that time was a big help too.

Bryson and Dallin hard at work on their laptops... Bryson's 'waptop' is real- he was concentrating very hard on a Thomas the Tank Engine game. Dallin's laptop is a kids educational thing Bryson borrowed from Aunt Sandy, and even though it's WAY over either of their heads, they both think it's pretty cool and that they're hot stuff when using it. We actually borrowed it the night before Eli was born, and Bryson went to sleep 'working' on his waptop- after he went to sleep, Nathan moved it to the bottom bunk... when he woke up in the morning, Aunt Emily (who was sleeping on the hide-a-bed) said he came down at 6:30am carrying the laptop and sat on her bed typing away until Dallin woke up.

Dallin is so taken with Eli. It was quite interesting trying to feed Eli this morning with Dallin trying to sit on my lap pointing to Eli's nose and eye's... when I wouldn't let him, he grabbed and twisted my nose and poked out my eyes.... oh, to have another set of hands!!

No, no, Eli hasn't grown that fast *grin* Dallin discovered this little gem while I was feeding Eli.... It kept him entertained for most of the feeding. I suppose I can't get too bugged by him crawling in and taking a swing because technically, he's within the weight limits...


I took Eli in for his first doctor appointment today- Apparently the whole super speedy labor/delivery thing with nothing in the room, let alone ready in the room left the nurses a little flustered.... They recorded Eli's length as 17 1/2 inches.... that's kinda short for a term newborn... but considering genes and all, sure... except that today at his appointment he was 18 1/2 inches long- hmmmmm... an inch in four days? I WISH!! He's also 4 ounces over his birth weight, which I do take a little cautiously because scales do weigh differently, but I do believe he's at or above his birth weight because this child can EAT- I think he's eaten more already than Dallin did the first month of his life.

So there's our little update. Survived day one. I'm not counting on tomorrow being as easy.

Home Sweet Home

So we're home now... since Eli was born so early in the day (and so quick... I'm still not over that) and we were both doing so well, we were sent home this morning... barely 24 hours later *grin* That's fine with me though- I hope I sleep better in my own bed tonight! We're both doing well- Eli slept great last night and continues to eat like a champ *ouch* His bili this morning was 5.1 so we can assume he does NOT have spherocytosis (the genetic blood disorder Dallin has) and probably won't be too jaundiced!! YAY!! Hopefully this will be the first baby not on phototherapy for us!

Bryson was excited for us to get home- he held Eli for a little bit, commenting that he has little hands and a tongue and sharp teeth... what?? Oh, good, it's just Bryson's wild imagination... Dallin has pretty much played with the balloon from my dad the whole time since we've been home (minus his 3 hour nap- thanks Dallin)... so we're adjusting well to the little growth spurt in our family... for now at least!!

Overheard at my house...

Mommy: Bryson, don't kick your brother (Dallin, not the baby)

Bryson: Or pick your nose, right?

Sorry it's taken so long....

I know, I'm a slacker. The baby was born 6 hours ago, and I'm just now getting pictures posted... I promise to do better next time *grin* Are you dying to know what the baby is??? Well, here's a few pictures....

Born at 8:29am- 5 minutes old in this picture

6lbs, 2.7 oz, 17 1/2 inches long

Literally, it was less than ONE hour of labor... 30 minutes of 'uncomfortable' contractions, one REALLY PAINFUL contraction, my water broke and HERE COMES THE BABY!!!! No epidural, the doctor didn't make it in time, the nurse barely did (and only had one glove on) and we're all doing great!! I feel amazing... still want to know what it is???

IT'S

A

BOY!!!

I can hardly believe how fast this happened! The doctor didn't totally pressure me into being induced today, but he put enough fear of a home birth (because there would be no time to get to the hospital) into me at my appointment yesterday that I was completely willing to be induced... AND FOR GOOD THING!!! After the delivery, Nathan informed me that from now on, I have to be induced... the doctor completely agreed and SO DO I!! I don't want to have a baby at home and with how FAST this little bugger came, I would have if my water had broke at home... heck, even just a few good contractions on my own! I was on pitocin for ONE hour when he was born and only 1miliunit per hour at that... ie: I got ONE miliunit by the time he was born- that's not very much pitocin... normally an induction would be with 30-60 miliunits per hour... Yikes. Sooooooo glad we were here!!


I don't know if it was not having an epidural or not, but for the first three hours of his life, he was SO alert and awake! (Hence the amount of time it took for me to post this *grin*) He was just quietly taking it all in. He even latched right on and nursed well on both sides.


Dallin is SOOOO taken with little Eli (that's what we're naming him... Eli John Cotton, John after Nathan's dad). When he and Bryson got here, Bryson wanted to check out all the 'equipment' in the room and Dallin just couldn't stop looking at Eli and saying 'beebee' with a huge smile on his face- it was precious!

We'll need to get a family picture with all THREE boys looking at the camera later *grin*

February 21, 2008

That's gonna be our baby's birthday. I finally succumbed and decided to be induced- tomorrow morning, 6am. My doctor kinda seemed a little glad because he was afraid I'd go really fast and have the baby at home or waddling into the hospital or something... great, now I'll probably have the longest labor ever. So check back tomorrow- we'll post pictures as soon as we can!

Bad hair day

We just cut the boys hair on Saturday, and I just have to laugh because Dallin has the worst hair. Ever. Bryson's isn't much better, but everyday is a bad hair day for little Dal... I don't know if these pictures do the number of cowlicks justice... he's got at least four on the top/back of his little head, with another in the front and one at the base of his hairline. We have to keep his hair so short just so it's not sticking up everywhere! All the cowlicks seem to compete with each other and none win. Bryson's got competing cowlicks also, but at least there's only two (though they are unruly)... with each subsequent child's hair getting worse, who KNOWS how bad this baby's hair will be!

Bathroom talk....

Good thing that we've been in our house almsot 6 months and we're just now starting to actually get it decorated... I love how the kids bathroom turned out. The painter called me in when he started painting the green to make sure that I was okay with the color... it was awfully bright, but I love how it turned out! We got the cute pottery barn towels and shower curtain and stuff when we lived in Kentucky on the majorest of sales- and then it sat in my attic for forever until we had a cute house to put it in. Bryson loves it, and I love the non-white walls.

Taking pictures of small bathrooms is hard!

39 weeks...

Here's the belly...

Nothing left to do

I have officially completed my to do list... I honestly do not think I can nest any more! I'm not going to bore you with the things I got done today- they are utterly boring, which is why they were the last things to get done! *grin*

We went to my parents tonight for dinner and FHE (my brother and his family are in town tonight) and I did the stair stepper for a while- and then my sciatica was killing me too much... *sigh* The lesson for FHE was fantastic- it was on Satan's snares, and my dad had three different visual aides- a duck decoy, a fishing lure and some ant bait.... he discussed with the kids how each is meant to kill, but they all go about it differently.... the decoy doesn't actually do any harm, but it meant to get the duck close enough so the hunter can shoot it, the lure tricks the fish until it's caught and can't escape, and the ant bait doesn't kill immediately, but is meant to be brought back to the rest of colony and kills them all later... fantastic object lesson.  It was funny to hear the kids interpretation of it though, a lot of the symbolism was lost on them I think- but they got the point.

On the way home we were going to Walgreens to get some caster oil, but 1/2 way there I told Nathan to just go home instead.... as a nurse, I know that there are risks (ie: meconium stained amniotic fluid, which could be aspirated at birth and cause respiratory distress) associated with taking caster oil (small as they may be) and I've taken care of plenty of babies in the NICU who suffer from respiratory distress syndrome (probably with NO link to caster oil, but nonetheless)... I'm not on a soapbox... I know plenty of people who swear by caster oil- I wish I could- I wish I were ignorant about it, but I'm not and would never forgive myself if something went wrong. LOTS of women have been just as pregnant (and MORE)- I know that eventually this baby WILL be born..... right?

PS You all will probably be so glad for me to have this baby so I can rant about something else I'm sure.... Hopefully it won't be diarrhea though- Dallins diapers have been GREAT!

It's been a good day.

No baby, but a good day nonetheless. I actually slept last night for 5 hours straight!!! Unfortunately I don't think I moved a muscle during those five hours and for those of you who know the pains of the hormone relaxin (it does to all the joints in your body just what it sounds like) at the end of pregnancy, you know how much pain I was in when I awoke at 5 am. I had been laying on my left side and felt like the entire right half of my body had melted into the left half of me.... it hurt so bad to move! BUT, the sleep was worth it- I must've been in a coma or something. I continued to pay the price at church, multiplying the pain with the heels (hey, they make my cankles look smaller) I had chosen to wear....

I checked FOUR things off my 'before baby' to do list today:

#1 On the way home from church we got our mail from yesterday and the last thing we needed for taxes had come- YAY! I'll drop all the stuff off at our accountants tomorrow and not have to worry about it after the baby comes...

#2 I got the cutest diaper bag at Babies 'R Us a few weeks ago, and it came with a mini version of it that I'm using as a purse (it's brown with green trim.... love it) but the front pockets didn't have any closures so when I put my keys or phone in them, and then lean over (as moms of young children do a bajillion times a day) whatever is in the pockets fall out- So last week I bought some snaps to put on the pockets and actually did it today- I'd been kinda nervous about doing it because I didn't want to ruin the bag, but it looks great.

#3 Did my visiting teaching for February... okay, so I just wrote notes to send, but I don't want to have to worry about calling to cancel if I go into labor... wait a minute, maybe if I make appointments, THAT would put me into labor... whatever. Cards will have to do this month.

#4 And the one thing I am THE most happy about crossing off my list- I finished Dallins scrapbook today!!! I've committed to doing only the first year of my kids lives (sooo much more manageable) and I finished it today- when Dallin was born, I think I only had Bryson's done until his seventh month or something... sooo happy it's DONE!

I discovered today also that it's a good thing this little person hasn't been born yet because I got out the video camera to record how cute the boys were being, and realized there were only two minutes left on the tape... so I used up those two minutes (perfect- new baby, new tape!) and went to put in a fresh tape only to realize we had no more tapes!! How terrible if we'd gotten to the hospital with only 2 minutes left on the tape and no more tapes! So baby (and uterus), you have my permission to wait until I can get to Walmart tomorrow.

Dear Uterus (again)-

You probably think you're pretty funny... well, I don't. You almost had me convinced last night... but not quite. Most of the signs were there, but I just am NOT going to buy that I'm truly in labor until the contractions actually HURT... You're gonna have to work a lot harder to get me to go to the hospital- even if you do contract every 3-4 minutes for THREE hours... (well, at least for now)...

I am trying to be patient, but would like to kindly remind you of our friend Mr. Pitocin whom I am sure you remember... please recall how he tends to dramatize things a bit. Because I am trying to keep this letter amicable, I'll only mention Mr. Scalpel... just to remind you that there are ways of making you comply if you continue to refuse to cooperate. I'm sure we both agree we'd rather do without either of those interventions...

Sincerely,
Jani

Urg.....

There's not much more I feel like saying right now.

Dear Uterus-
Let me begin by thanking you for your hospitality to my unborn over the last nine months. You have been a fantastic host, and apparently have made him/her feel quite welcome. The time has come though to apply a little pressure (no pun intended). My cervix is complying quite nicely, but can only do so much by itself. I know how overextended and stretched to the max you feel right now so it is really for own good good that I suggest you quit being so flexible! If you ever want to regain that girlish figure of yours, start contracting! Again, thank you for your accommodation's and adaptability in the past, I look forward to our continued working arrangements in the future.

Sincerely,
Jani
Please RSVP (respond soon to verify participation)

4 centimeters.... and counting....


Membranes stripped- check


Pressure points stimulated at massage today- check


Contractions....... check back later

Finally ready....

So now that I'm finally ready for this little bundle to come (or at least open to the suggestion), I'm afraid that it'll never happen!! With Bryson my water broke at 36 weeks and they pretty much induced me (it's called augmenting when labor has 'started') because my contractions were pretty wimpy.... with Dallin I was induced at 39 weeks.... so I really have no idea what it is like to go into labor.... with every new ache or pain or slightly different feeling contraction, I think, "Is this it? Is this how labor starts??" It's pretty tough to think about anything else! And I'm sure that now that I am SOOOOOOOO nested (my mom laughed this morning when she stopped by my house because I am THAT nested) it's jinxed me into going 42+ weeks and having to be induced.... Whatever.

All I can say is that while the thought of having a baby is exhausting because of all the work and laundry and late nights and such, it's also inviting because with the birth, also comes the ability to SLEEP once more!! I wake up most nights around midnight now and just lay in bed... tired, but not able to sleep.... it's so frustrating! Well, even more frustrating was the false labor I had Sunday night.... no kidding... I woke up at 12:30am really achey-especially in my low back and was having really hard (but not very painful) contractions... after a few, I started glancing at the clock and realized they were every 8 minutes, and then every 6 minutes.  They didn't hurt all that bad, so I didn't wake up Nathan. I got up several times to potty and/or get a drink of water and they continued.. and then around 2:30am, I dozed off and woke up with nothing..... SOOOOO frustrating!!

I think that what's pushed me over the edge for wanting to have this baby was getting out my cute little girl clothes.... I am READY to find out what this baby is! I honestly have NO idea, no inkling either way- by default I think boy because that is my frame of reference...

At my 36 (and 6 days) appointment last week I was dilated 2 cms and 50% effaced... I go in again tomorrow... Oh, and then I have an appointment for a massage- SO excited... AFTER my massage, my baby is welcome to come, but please, not before... I'm really looking forward to this massage...

Mind Games

Okay, this is sooooo wild! My sister emailed it to me... you'll need to pull up your calculator and have a piece of paper to write on... it takes two minutes and is so amazing how it works!!

1) Go to the link below. After reading each window, click on the boy in the lower right corner of the picture.

2) In the last window type in your answer in the white box using the Keyboard (there is NO cursor).

3) Watch the paper in the boy's hand.

http://digicc.com/fido/

pictures

Bryson was SOOO proud of the 'tallest' tower he build all by himself.

So I don't dress the boys alike that often, but when I do I can't help but take pictures. We actually got these shirts at the Gap Clearance Center when we were in Kentucky- 49 cents each!! I love that store! Anyway, Dallin loves to lay on the bottom step of the stairway, and thought it was pretty cool when Bryson did it with him.


You really can't see here how much snow we've gotten... I think it was probably 12 inches here- much more if it hadn't compacted over a few days- the piles on either side of our driveway are up to my waist!

Can you say FASHION FORWARD?? Holy cow! I usually pick out Bryson's clothes or at least 'guide' him to his outfit and then let him dress himself, but this day Dallin was sick and I was sooo tired from being up with him all night and so I told Bryson to pick out his clothes.... and he did! This is his favorite shirt (on backwards mind you!) and when given the opportunity, ALWAYS picks out sweat pants instead of jeans.... ya- needless to say, we didn't leave the house that day!!

Aaaaand here I am in all my pregnant 35 week glory.... this was a week and a half ago-- I'm 36 1/2 weeks now... TODAY gestationally is when I had Bryson *gulp*

In Memory of President Hinckley

When we heard the news of President Hinckley's passing, Nathan commented on the reception he was having in Heaven. What a glorious event that must have been! I am so happy for him and his reunion with his sweet wife. Today as we sat watching the funeral and commentary's on his life on BYU-TV, Nathan commented how sad it is that most of the world has no idea what has happened, and what an amazing man and leader has passed.

I am profoundly grateful for the opportunity I had to meet President Gordon B. Hinckley. I don't know if I will ever be in the presence of such a great man again while on this earth. While Nathan and I were dating at Ricks College, President Hinckley visited to dedicate the Kimball Building. As we were watching the dedication via tv broadcast in another building, Nathan suddenly didn't feel so well... a few minutes before the end, Nathan bolted out the door and I knew it couldn't be good....fifteen minutes after the dedication was over, Nathan finally emerged from the restroom looking quite green- he hadn't even made it to the bathroom when he first lost it, but he did catch the vomit in his hands.... and shirt sleeves! It took him a little while to finish emptying his stomach and clean himself up so we were among the last to leave the building. As we were walking through the parking lot of the Manwaring Center, a couple of cars drove past and parked about fifteen feet from us and out stepped President Hinckley! Though his destination was in the opposite direction of us, as he got out of the car he looked all around with a smile on his face and saw us... we had frozen when we saw him. He promptly walked over to us and warmly greeted us- Nathan was a little hesitant to shake his hand (that he had just vomited on!) but couldn't refuse President Hinckley's outstretched hand of course! He noticed Nathan's scriptures and asked if he was using them to which Nathan replied he could to do better. He was then called away- saying goodbye with such love in his eyes- such depth. We stood there for a while, watching him walk away and somewhat amazed by the experience we had just been privileged with. I am thankful for that opportunity to stand in the midst of such a great man... and to be able to have shared it with Nathan.

Nesting Nesting Nesting

I have been a busy bee nesting... wait... bees build hives- but 'busy as a bird' doesn't sound very busy... regardless, I've been busy. I am quite relieved to be where I am, but I still have a LOT to do before this little bundle of joy makes it's appearance, ie: I have yet to get out or set up ANYTHING for the baby-- just a lot of 'other' stuff I've been doing, but soon I will be able to get the crib up and stuff.... We've been wanting to move the boys into the other bedroom upstairs, but not until it's been painted... and the rest of the house too-- that's been the hitch! Not that we're not capable of painting ourselves, but when the amount of time it would take us (probably a week of late nights after the kids go to sleep, mind you) is weighed against the end results of having a professional (which does a FAR better job along the ceiling...) do it on trade, requiring oh, an hour of Nathan's time as a dentist- We'd BOTH rather have someone come it and do it for us. We had several people give us bids and want to do the job, but getting them here is a whole other feat! Finally we had someone come last night to get the majority of the two bedrooms done- he'd going to finish up the detail work Monday and then I can set up for the baby... aaaaaaaand eventually he'll finish the rest of the house and fix the awful lines along the ceiling that I attempted...

I digress... I've been busy! Since I couldn't set up for the baby, I've filled my time with LOTS of other stuff- mainly sewing projects-

My wonderful in-laws (I hate to even refer to them as that because I call them 'mom' and 'dad') got us a glider rocker for Christmas the Christmas before Bryson was born- I love it.  I also love to put my feet up, but unfortunately there was no matching ottoman available. This summer I bought a glider ottoman which clashed horribly with the burgundy upholstery of the rocker. My intention all along was to re-upholster both so they'd match, and I finally got the motivation- Since we don't know what we're having, and I didn't want something bland (not that my choices in fabric are all that 'out there') I decided to make two slipcovers- one for if the baby is a girl, one for if it's a boy.... I made sure to get machine washable fabric too, since babies are messy- which also prompted me to make a waterproof cover for the cushions to go under the slipcovers... Let me just say, I have never attempted anything like this- I had to completely cut apart the existing cushions to use them as a pattern and during the process thought more than once that I had bitten off WAY more than I could chew, but I am quite pleased with the results!

Slipcover #1 is a blue gingham if it's a boy...

Slipcover #2 if it's a girl- it's green and pink and cream striped, but you can't really tell from the pictures...

1/2 way through making the slipcovers, I was pondering on paint colors for the boys room. While we're keeping Dallin in his crib for a while longer, we bought bunk beds for the boys and Bryson has been very eager (to say the least) to get them set up... Naturally I had to have matching quilts for the beds, but couldn't justify spending $150+ per bed JUST for the quilt, so I decided to make my own- what was I thinking?? I got some great sheets and then some extra flat sheets to use in the quilts (so they would coordinate with the sheets)...
I don't LOVE how they turned out-- mostly the color choices- I think it looks too nautical- but they have really grown on me since I've finished them and put them on the beds. And you can't have quilts without matching shams! Crazy, crazy, crazy, considering that TODAY gestationally (36 1/2 weeks) is when I gave birth to Bryson!

So I never posted about end result of Dallins (and Brysons - though to a lesser degree) diarrhea... remember Run, Dallin, Run!!? FOR SIX MONTHS the diarrhea would always get better and then so slowly get so terribly bad again I just got used to it-- taking Dallin off milk/lactose helped for a few weeks... then it started to get worse again... the doctor was always hesitant to do stool cultures until it'd been really bad for 2 weeks straight, but usually I'd see some sign of improvement and would put it off-- collecting stool from a diaper is not too fun or easy... especially when considering how much is needed! Anyway, just before Christmas Bryson got diarrhea really bad and we did stool cultures on him (since he's much easier to collect them on being toilet trained).... I'll skip the nitty gritty and report that they had giardia! Happy day! I really was elated when I heard the news because NOW I COULD DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT!!! (FYI- giardia is in a lot of fresh water lakes and streams in North America and we spent a lot of time in lakes this summer.... it may even go back to our trip across the country in March when we stayed in several hotels an swam in their pools- it can be found in pools that aren't properly cared for) I had spent the last six months constantly bleaching and cleaning and bleaching and cleaning and wiping down every door knob and light switch and EVERYTHING that the kids touch trying desperately to stop the 'chain of transmission' as we refer to it in the health care field-- But all along, it was the same bug just lying dormant and then becoming active again and again- After some drama with getting the prescription, it took 3 days of a twice daily 'anti-protozoal' and they were cured... for a bit and then we had to re-treat and THEN they were cured.... and then last Sunday, Dallin started throwing up and was horribly bloated and had terrible diarrhea (all of which can be symptoms of giardia) but this time it was so different- the consistency, smell, color etc. (again, I'll spare you the details)... It was a good thing we've been in our house for as long as we had so I didn't completely freak out when my carpet got puked on *grin*

I was kinda depressed and at whits end because I am SO SO SO sick of diarrhea! Dallin hardly ate anything all week, but managed to stay hydrated- I did bring him to the doctor early in the week hoping it was an ear or throat infection since he was swallowing funny and feverish (and irritable!), but alas, he checked out fine-- 'comfort measures' was all the doctor could recommend. Then on Friday, Bryson started throwing up... and having diarrhea, but while Dallin mostly had diarrhea with a little vomiting, Bryson was mostly throwing up with a little diarrhea on the side. He couldn't keep anything down all Saturday (and it came up all OVER my carpet, despite our best efforts) and as emotional and frustrated and angry (not at the kids....) as I was, I was eventually comforted by the possibility of this just being a stomach/GI bug and not giardia again... They're both doing much better today (Dallin had two GREAT poopy diapers *grin*) and hopefully Nathan and I both have skipped out on this fun little bug...

So that's what I've been up to... and then some- since my sewing machine was out, I finished all my mending I've been putting off for the last year- and hemmed six pairs of maternity pants I got at the Gap Clearance Center while we were in Kentucky... I've still got lots on my TDL, but I'm happy with where I am and am actually feeling quite good pregnancy-wise... the pain and aching through my hips and pelvis has all but subsided as long as I don't do toooooooo much and maintain proper body alignment. Give me two more weeks and I'll be open to the possibility of having a baby *grin* My lack of preparedness has worried me that this baby will come early, so I did go ahead and pack my hospital bag to ward off labor.... and today I set up the bassinet in my room to hopefully ward it off a little longer *grin*