My little chatty Cathy :-)

My little Mi is over 2 months and almost 14 lbs!! Holy crap. She's doing great. This weekend has been so amazing. Saturday morning we all woke up and played in bed together. She is staying up so much longer now. In the mornings she is so rested and happy, she makes faces and plays around for hours. It is so nice to have my husband home with us on the weekends. She's holding her head up amazingly and getting really strong. She is vocalizing so much more now, i'll post a video of her being chatty last night.

F and I went to see the Gators play again yesterday. We kicked Tennessee's little orange and white butts! It's funny, the University sent out an email to tell fans to wear Blue (we are Orange and Blue), because TN's colors are orange and white. It was hella hot at the stadium. The student section isn't shaded, so we sat in the sun from 3pm-7pm, needless to say we forgot sunscreen! Oops! We look like tourists with our sunglass tan lines now. Our friends Christy and Ashley watched Mimi for us, they claim she was an angel, thank god, I always pray that she's not being "Mimi the Miserable" for other people, when she gets like that nursing is really the only calming thing.

Breastfeeding is still going really well. For a mostly-nursed baby, I feel like i'm always sterilizing bottles! She gets my frozen milk via the bottle when I'm away or need a break. I use a Medela double electric breastpump, which seems to work really well. I can pump 8-10 ounces in about 5 minutes. My friend used the Medela Swing, which is the single (less powerful I think) electric breastpump. She didn't have the same speedy pumping I have, don't know if it was her supply issues, or a weaker pump, but mine works great. Sometimes I think I have overactive letdown because if she unlatched my milk will spray her in the face, nice eh? I continue to be thankful that breastfeeding is comfortable for both of us and that I have an adequate supply. I generally have about 20 bags of milk (4-5oz) in the freezer. I'm also really thankful to not have to buy formula!

Going to school while taking care of Mimi almost full time has been really stressful. I constantly feel like i"m playing catch-up and constantly feel like I;m letting someone down in some way. Next semester will be easier, I am only TAing one class. I envy mom's who can stay home full time and still have adequate finances. I get to stay home with Mi, but I have to work while i'm at home writing and taking online classes and I leave for one class on T/TH. People always ask me, is it hard taking care of her? and I say--no, taking care of her is not too difficult, it's taking care of her AND going to school AND teaching AND writing my dissertation that is hard. Mimi is a good baby and a joy to be around, even when she' "Mimi the Miserable."

I love her more and more and more everyday! I love watching her grow and change and we're enjoying every minute. She's out of her 0-3 month clothes so it's kind of fun putting her new stuff on her.

Thanks to everyone who reads and comments. Ask is you have any questions!

Bye

She's Gaining, I'm Losing!

Hey Guys,

I put this cute sleeper on Mimi today before bed and realized it is the last time she'll probably wear it! Her feet hung about 3 inches out of the bottom of the feet! Good thing they are footless jammies! I can't belive that she's two months old this wednesday.

I had kind of a scare today, I woke up with a really sore throat and feeling really run down. I thought, oh no, I must have caught a bug being on campus or something, hopefully not swine flu! I quickly too my temperature, which was normal and was careful not to kiss the baby at all today. That made me so sad, one of the best things is kissing her fat little face. I was even more diligent with hand washing, which I wash my hands so much as it is that my skin is dry and cracking on my hands--which shouldn't happen in the middle of summer in FL! Hopefully it was just a scratchy throat from the fan blowing on my face at night and my asthma meds. I'm going to keep taking my temperature and avoid kissing her fat little face I guess for awhile.

I have only gotten to go running twice in the last week and a half. It's really hard to get out of the house to run while F is with her when it's not 90 degrees out. I guess I should start going to the gym. They have a free daycare at our gym for babies 6 weeks and older. It looks very clean and well staffed, but with the number of cases of this H1N1 flu in our city I think it's best to just leave her at home with F and get to the gym alone when I can or run on the track.

Breastfeeding continues to go pretty well, I had some pains in my breasts today and thought maybe the run down feeling I have in conjunction with the breast pain might be mastitis, but I don't have fever or any redness. My supply is dropping back a little, which is nice because before I would leak a lot and wake up at night saturated in breastmilk. Now I seem to produce what she needs plus an extra bottle or maybe two bottles (4-5 oz) a day. That is fine with me. I have over 20 bags of milk (4-5 oz) bags in the freezer now. I try to replace what bottles get used each day, plus pump with the medela pump one more bottle at least for backup. I just want to have enough extra milk so that if I had to take a medication or something that wasn't safe for breastmilk Mimi could still get exclusively breastmilk.

I think breastfeeding really helps with weightloss. Still have 5 lbs left to lose to my pre pregnancy weight, which I think is awesome for 8 weeks. I am happy with my progress so far. I hope to continue to lose past that weight because I was a little overweight before becoming pregnant.

This week was a really hard week. I'm getting really overwhelmed with schoolwork, housework and staying home with Mimi. I had a little breakdown about it today with my husband. He reminded me this is the last semester I have to take any classes and next semester will be better. He's right, just need to make it through the next few months.

Hope all is well, congrats to Courtney and her little baby Sophie! She's adorable! Can't wait to hear how her birth went.

Getting into a groove

Hey guys--CAUTION--long blog post

My little Mimi is a month old now. It's funny how sloooooow the end of pregnancy is and how fast the time with your baby flies. She's growing strong and fat :-). I went to a postpartum luncheon this week at the hospital where I delivered. They offer them every Tuesday from 11:3-2 pm. They are run by a lactation consultant and it seemed very well attended. You sit at this large oval table with all the moms eating your free chicken salad and you take turns speaking about issues or questions you have with breastfeeding, or any other concern. It was really nice in a way because all these babies are right around the age of your child, so you can look around and compare sizes etc. From what I gather, these women use this luncheon as a place to VENT about things driving them nuts. Fifty percent of women bitched about their husbands and the other 1/2 bitched about how their babies don't sleep or about low milk supply. By the time they got around to me I felt bad because not only does my baby sleep 9 hours a night with one break, and I have enough milk for 3 children, but my husband is pretty awesome. My husband deals so well with sleep deprivation and stress. I don't know what i would do without him to mellow me out. I'm always afraid to say Mimi is a good sleeper out of fear that she'll revert to prove me wrong! Breastfeeding is also going really well. I usually pump an extra 8-10 oz a day to store plus feed her all day. I could probably pump another 4 oz is I had the patience, but I figure right now 2 extra bottles a day is enough to store. I use the Medela 'Pump in Style' double electric pump, it seems to do the trick. My nipples have been getting a little sore again, but I think it's because I get more and more lax about making sure she latches good each time. I keep my eyes open for thrush in her mouth though, I know that can make my nipples irritated too.

I was watching my usual blogs on youtube, and one girl I follow was talking about her experience with possibly having PUPPPS or ICP and maybe having to get induced early, packing her hospital bag, and last minute items she needed etc. So I thought I would just jot down a few notes on what I did as far as "must have" items and packing my hospital bag. You can check out her vlog also: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZaWRw

As far as the hospital bag goes, let me just say up front that I live not more than 10 minutes from the hospital I delivered at, and we had a dog at home that needed to be let out and fed, so running home to grab anything we forgot wasn't' a big deal. I also was having a scheduled c section and new I wouldn't' be going through labor either. So I packed light,the hospital moves you a around from a deliver suite, to a postpartum room etc. So you don't want to have all this crap to tote around. Also, people come and visit you and bring more crap (food, flowers, etc.) Plus, the hospital not only provides you with a ton of stuff, but the send you home with a ton of crap. So I brought:

A pillow from home--put a pillowcase on it that's not white so you can tell it apart from the hospital's

Toiletries--I brought shampoo, conditioner, facewash and a nice smelling bodywash. After I had the baby taking that first shower was like heaven. splurge and get nice stuff for yourself. I also brought the obvious toothpaste, toothbrush, deodorant. I brought my makeup but never put it on. I mean, what was I thinking? Getting all gussied up to fall asleep off and on all day?

Eyeglasses--most places won't let you wear your contacts

I brought a comfortable nightgown, nursing bra and comfy shorts. I wore the hospitals nightgowns the first two days, this was just easier because of the IV's and tubes and stuff. Not to mention all the bleeding. I wore comfortable short on unde the gown so i didn't moon my husband or visiting friend every time I stood up. After the first two days, all the tubes, IV's and censors were off me and putting on my own nightgown felt nice. I wore a comfy nursing bra too. I had a bathrobe also, but just a light cotton one, not a gigantic terry cloth one. I had comfy clothes to go home in. Maternity clothes--You still look about 6 months pregnant when you leave the hospital. I never brought slippers, I wore flip flops when I wasn't in the hospital bed. I live in Florida, we wear flip flops 24/7.

I brought an outfit for the baby. Luckily, I brought two, good thing too, the sleeper we brought for her to come home in was newborn size and it was too small :-( The entire time we were there we kept her in the little shirt the hospital had on her, this made it so much easier for diaper changes, plus they have to undress them a lot to do vital checks, etc. The hospital gives you hats, blankets, diaper, wipes, alcohol swabs, babywash, nasal aspirator, etc etc etc. We had our carseat installed and it was in the car.

Take everything home form the hospital that they give you--the peri bottle, pads, etc. It's likely your charged for it anyway.

I did not bring clothes for my husband, he went home once a day for a shower and to feed/let out our dog. He would grab takeout on his way back.

Other than that I had my cell phone and cell phone charger and our camera. I thought about bringing my boppy pillow, but passed, I didn't really need it anyway.

Here is list of baby things I really used the first few weeks:
-Newborn size diapers--we didn't' buy any but the size one were way too big the first two weeks
-birp clothes and receiving blankets
-easy to put on sleepers or gowns
-Wipes
-My breast pump and storage bags for breastmilk--I ended up being quite the dairy cow
-Changing table--my husband actually admitted how handy it was
-We used the bassinet for the first week, then she wouldn't sleep in it anymore and preferred her crib in her room
-extra crib sheets--our baby spits up a lot!
-baby washcloths for sponge baths
-My ultimate fav--the kiddopotomus Snuzzler--this thing is awesome, we put it in her bouncy seat and her carseat-it supports their head, neck and shoulders really well and it makes them feel more snuggled and comfortable
-her bouncy seat--she lives it when we're not holding her or put her in her crib

Things we thought were crucial, but not needed:
-those special swaddling blankets--expensive and not neccessary--get large stretchy cotton blanket--like the ones gap has--my first favorites--cotton receiving blankets, the little flannel ones are great a birp clothes, or to throw over them or cover yourself while nursing, but after about 2 weeks, she wouldnt' stay in the swaddle, she would break out
-the wipes warmer--it dries out the wipes and she screams whether we change her with warm wipes or room temperature wipes
-plethora of adorable ruffled clothes--bought by your family for being cute, but uncomfortable and not practical for newborns--sleepers and onesies are the way to go
-swings--I think this might come in handy later, but for now, she screams it in
-high chair--why buy one now? they can't sit in it for like 4 or 5 months


Other than baby items, I realized how nice it was to have things on hand that you wouldn't think of, because it's hard to get to the store the first week or so. Things like tissues, toilet paper, handsoap, and easy snacks and meals.

What's scary is when I watch other womens' vlogs or read their blogs about their pregnancy, a small part me misses being pregnant and wants to do it again. Then I snap out of it and think "Jesus Jenney, don't you remember how miserable you were the last 10 weeks?! Don't you remember the asthma? the 4 chins? the constant peeing? the crazed hormones?!" Then I think, yeah maybe in a few years. So if you're pregnant, don't wish it away even if you're miserable.

Heading out for Supplies...

Mimi is going to be one month old this week and i've officially run out of something baby related. I think I did pretty well preparing if it takes a month before I physically NEED to leave the house for something. Wipes and breast pads..now there's a list for you. My friend with a baby said she never used breast pads and was surprised at how many I went through. Then she saw my freezer full of milk and understood. I guess it's a blessing to have too much milk, but it's also annoying, you leak milk just by smelling your baby's laundry, or hearing her cry. Some nights (when I would forget breast pads at night), I would wake up saturated in my own breastmilk---I know, gross. I use the lansinoh brand and it seems to work for me. The other thing I am almost of out is wipes. I seem to be bad at wipes--I use far too many, hopefully I will improve.

The bills from the doctors are rolling in now which is fun to deal with. I have two insurances and one is in my maiden names and one is in my new married name. So this makes it ultra fun to deal with the hospital billing office, lol. It's crazy, you get a bill for the "room and board" for your baby---except the baby was in the room with me, and I fed her. I also got charged the same fee--does this not make sense to anyone else? That's just the begining of the fun.

This week will be the first week where I am ALL ALONE with no houseguests (see previous post for my feeelings on this) and my husband will be back at work. We'll see how it goes. The week after that my mom will be here. I'm kind of excited for her to see the baby though, I think it'll be nice.

Mimi is doing great, the last two nights she slept 5-6 hours, woke up, ate and slept another 2-3 hours. AWESOME. I actually woke up before her, 1. wondering why she hadn't cried yet 2. my boobs were going to spray breastmilk everywhere. I pumped 8 oz!!! and went back to bed until she woke up. The women's body is an amazing thing.

I'm sure i'll post later this week. Thanks to everyone who commented. Feel free to comment and say hi, or complain about my parenting, or offer suggestions, ask questions, whatever.

One Week Postpartum

Well our little Mimi is one week old. It has been a crazy week. We had her last Wednesday at 12:50 pm, so she's officially one week now I guess.

The C section itself was not all that bad. I went to the chiropractor one last time Wednesday morning before we checked into the hospital at 10am. The Chiro thought maybe the baby had moved but I had my doubts. I still felt her little head camped out behind my belly button. Sure enough, the sonogram showed her still camped out in complete breech position. They put in my hep lock---one of the worst parts of the c section, and drew some blood from the other arm for some reason. I hadn't had anything to eat or drink, so the hole putting in IV's taking blood thing made me a little sweaty and sick feeling. Before we knew it, they wheeled me into the OR, put in my spinal, which was the second least pleasand experience, the spinal sent a lighting bolt of pain down my left leg and I got really scared and of course was crying. The guy was teasing me, which I didn't find very funny. They put up drapes so that I couldn't see anything and my body began to tingle and go numb from my chest down. My asthma was pretty bad that day and I was coughing, but with my diaphram numb, it was very difficult to cough. It felt so strange. They brought in my husband decked out in scrubs with his camera and began to cut. It actually felt like tickles. Within in minutes they held the baby over the drape and said "it's a girl!" She was crying and pinked right up. They cleaned her up and suctioned her mouth and nose and gave her to F, he brought her over to see me and I of course began to cry. So surreal to see your baby, to love something so much instantly without ever having seen it. By this time, they take the baby to the nursery and my husband followed and they give you some morphine while they stitch you back up. I had staples instead of stitches in my incision, which the doctor says heals better. They brought me into recovery for an hour before the baby came back to the room. I felt awesome. I was relaxed and calm and pain free. I felt this way for the next several hours. They keep you hooked up to several monitors, Iv's and such for the first night, which was really uncomfortable. You have cuffs on your legs to prevent clots, a blood pressure cuff that takes your pressure every 10 mins, and and IV and catheter. About 6 hours after the surgery the nurses help you up to the bathroom to get cleaned up and get you on your feet. This was a little crazy, I felt weak and sick. They gave me some anti-nausea medication after I was back in bed. I also felt very itchy, still no pain though. I don't remember much of the first night. I know I nursed the baby a bunch, and F changed her 8 poopy diapers. The next day I was in pain but the pain medication helped. I was able to get up to the bathroom and sit in a chair and hold the baby. I began to eat solid foods also. The next 2 days we had vistors, we slept, we fed the baby, and that's about it. The nurses come in almost every hour to massage your uterus, check your bleeding, and give you all sorts of drugs--some for nausea, some for itching, some for swelling, some for pain, some stool softeners, etc. etc. The doctors and midwives came in every day and checked on us as well. We opted to stay one extra day because I was in a lot of pain and discomfort and I knew once I got home I wouldn't get to relax as much, which is exactly what happened!

We got discharged Saturday afternoon. It was really exciting to take her home, but really painful to sit up in the car on the way home! lol. Mimi slept the entire way, I winced ever bump my husband hit in the road.

Since we got home, we've just been relaxing and getting used to having her around. People have come to visit and brought food which is so nice. It's really nice to not have to cook. We just heat up what people brought and voila, dinner! F has been somewhat helpful, he's great with the baby and does things when I ask, but he does let me do a little too much. I'll be doing dishes and be almost done and he'll be lack, oh honey dont' do those. I'm not very good at relaxing so it's not his fault. By the end of the day I can tell i've done too much. I get emotional and cranky and weepy and irrational, and I know it's time for a hot shower and some sleep.

My pain is getting easier to deal with and the incision is healing nicely. Breastfeeding is going great, I actually have too much milk--which is annoying because it leaks and she has trouble latching, but it's nice because I already have a couple of bottles frozen for later. I've been using my Medela pump after eat feeding, and sometimes before.

It's been really hard adjusting to pain and hormones and sleep deprivation but so worth it. I watch my husband hold her and kiss her and whisper little sweet things to her, and in the middle of the night I'll nurse her and she puts her little hand on me and I know it's all worth it.

I still feel brain dead and tired and like a train wreck, but everyday things get a little easier.