E- things to remember about my baby

My baby girl is growing up so fast and so there are parts if who she is right now I want to write down so I remember what she was like early on:

* E is social. She wants to be sitting up and in the know and see everything. 

* E has a short fuse, and a quick recovery. She gets mad in a heartbeat but if you help her out, she calms down quickly. 

* E has adjusted well to eating rice cereal! It's like she's been ready for a while!

* E likes to sing and talk and likes it when you mirror her noises. 

* E likes to grab stuff. She likes to pump her right fist up and down and up and down. 

* E doesn't cry when she wakes up. She really only cries in her car seat as we drive or when she gets too hungry. Or when she's played with a loud toy for a while. 

* E can get across a room through a slow army crawl and rolling. 

I sure love my little sweet E! Can't believe how big she is already!

Baby E's Furious Entry Into the World

A number of folks have asked me about the birth story of our newest daughter, Eleanor.

Here is her story:

I got up to pee at 12:45 PM. 
Then I felt like I peeing all the time but I tried to lay down.
I sat up a few minutes later and felt like puking. 
And I did. I made it in the toilet. 

Since I puked, I woke Russ up and said I thought I should go to the hospital and just get checked out. 
I figured they'd just send me home, so I told Russ that I'd just drive myself to the hospital.

Thankfully, Russ said that he would drive me. He got dressed and I went and got P from her room and put her in the car. We started the short drive to the hospital.

I made Russ promise me that he wouldn't tell anyone that we'd tried to go to the hospital if it was a false alarm. I didn't want to be known for crying wolf I guess.

I had two contractions in the car that were pretty intense. I think they were about 3-5 minutes apart. 
Still, I didn't think much of it. Russ did not speed, I did not feel like he should drive any faster, and I think we made jokes along the way about how rough the morning would be teaching seminary and going through our work days.

We got to the hospital and I got out of the car and walked in while Russ parked the car and brought Phoenix in. I puked two times while walking in- and I think this is when Russ knew we would be here.

I remember thinking that I must look drunk- walking and then puking, walking and then puking.

Well, I got in the hospital and no one was at the desk. I pressed a button and told the nurse, "I may be in labor, but I don't know".

In fact, I filled out paperwork right there and wrote "possible labor, I puked" for the reason I came in.

Walking to the triage room I started having a contraction and the nurse said I could stop and wait for it to pass (what a novel idea! I would've kept moving...). 

Russ and P caught up with us at this point.

We got to the room and she handed me a puke bag. This is about the time I quit caring about things and just wanted to be checked if things were serious.

She gave me a gown and I quickly switched my clothes.
When the nurse saw how quick I changed, she quit asking questions and checked me.

Here is the how it went, conversation wise:

Nurse: Oh my goodness you are at an 8 or a 9.

Me: Where's the epidural???

Nurse: No epidural, you're having this baby right now.

Me: No... I can't do this. Please.... RUSS TEXT THE BEAUREGARD'S TO COME GET P!

Nurse: We have to move you to the delivery room

Me: Is that where the epidural is?

Nurse: No, I mean we can try, but it takes about an hour with blood work. You are just going to have this baby.

*****
We got to the delivery room and nurses were running everywhere.

Some nurse came in and tried to talk to me about blood cord banking.
Another nurse yelled at her ,"forget the blood cord there's no time"

I scribbled on some consent forms.
And I kept screaming about an epidural and that I couldn't do it without one.

P and Russ were patting  my back as the nurses told me to breathe and push.
Then P started crying.
A nurse tried to take her from Russ but that wasn't happening.

A nurse checked me again and touched E's head.

A lady doctor I have never met came in and sat down to deliver the baby.

Our friends showed up and took P.

Russ came back in.
And this is where I really lost it.

I asked for a Russ for a blessing. 
Then another contraction came and he just put one hand on my head and pushed down.
Not sure what good that did.- but he was trying to accommodate through the madness.


I kept yelling "I can't feel my feet"

And "I can't do this"

The doctor said, "Do you want to feel your baby's head?

And I said something like, "No, I want this to end"

She said, "Once you push the head the rest of the way and the shoulders then you're done."


I asked if I had to wait for another contraction.
She said no.

So I monster pushed and E was born!

P had been gone maybe 10 minutes. We had left our home about a hour before.

Then I laid there shaking in shock for about 40 minutes, scared to move.

I'll do a follow-up post if you have any questions... that aren't too personal!

"Any day now!"

Listen folks, I'm pretty good at sharing when things happen in life- and I know what it feels like to have a kid. No need to remind.

But I realize my baby bump is the elephant in the room and you want to say something about it.

Well here's an update:

How far along are you?
About 34 weeks.

Total weight gain:
18 lbs.- 4 more and I'll weigh as much as I weighed when I delivered P.

Maternity Clothes?
yes. And I just bought a maternity bathing suit! Can't wait for my morning swim tomorrow and to not have to squeeze into my old swimming suit!


Stretch Marks?
No. And I haven't used that stupid expensive lotion either.
I think that stuff is a scam.

Best moment this week:
In regards to the pregnancy? Well I crave everything that's talked about. Orange juice, grape juice, hot dogs. But today I drank an epic PB Chocolate shake. That was cool.

Miss Anything?
Yes. Sleeping through the night. Sleeping on my stomach.
Running. Not having heart burn.

Movement:
This kid likes to push on my ribs for long periods of time. Lots of pressure, if you call that movement.

Food cravings:
Everything and anything that is talked about.

Anything making you queasy or sick?
The Walking Dead scene where the guy changes a baby's diaper in the middle of the zombie forest.
Heartburn.

Gender:
It's still a surprise! I'm getting a little nervous about it!

Symptoms:
I bump people with my belly regularly. In court, in the office, at church.
I am sometimes tired but sometimes have energy. I always have heartburn.
And then there's the daily contractions that keep me alert that labor and delivery will soon come to pass.

Belly Button in or out:
In. But dangerously close to out depending on how much I eat and where the baby is sitting.

Wedding rings on or off?
On and really loose! I've almost lost them a few times!

Happy or Moody most of the time?
Happy. But I cry pretty easy.

Looking forward to:
Finding out who this little person is- boy/girl and what their name is.
Watching LOST during late night feedings.
The moms visiting... eventually.
Helping P understand her new role as big sister.

I guess I'm pretty excited! But also nervous. I don't have a thing set up at home. I just feel like it's too early. But I have prepped my work through July so nothing falls through the cracks at work.
Maybe in the next few weeks I'll get the home stuff together.

Dear Daughter...

Dear Daughter:

This cold snap we are experiencing has proven that you inherited my dry skin. I am so sorry. You've got a red rash goatee going on and it's not your fault. Get ready for a lifetime of lotioning and scratching. You will be teased throughout school. Sigh... Good Luck.

Sincerely,

Mom

Almost 1...

P is pushing up against the big 1-2... months that is. Over Thanksgiving I kept thinking, "I've got to write these things down." Well... here I go:

• P loves to push her brown bear around in this little Playskool shopping cart. (unrelated- but why not spell it properly?)
• P pushes the bear around and stops and talks to the bear, pointing out things and babbling. I think she is imitating what I do with her on her walks. It is very flattering... but also I like to think I point out more interesting things than a white wall or a crumb on the floor.
• P will grab a burp cloth and wipe the bear's mouth and face. 
• She folds her arms when we say that it is time to pray.
• If you ask her, "P, where is the tree?" She will look at the Christmas tree and after a few minutes point at it and say "Ree".
• If you catch her with the baby wipe lid open, she will shut the lid and look and smile (nevermind the small pile of wipes she's already pulled out).
• She wave bye-bye.
• If you show her a picture of a little kid or a baby on your computer, she looks at it and smiles, maybe even giggle.
• P has this Baby Body Book that labels baby emotions, clothing, actions, etc. She will sit and read it and giggle when she gets to the babies playing peek-a-boo.
• She will give you five when you say, "Gimme 5!"
• If you say "Now you try" then she claps.
• She thinks it is funny to look above and under things. Like if she's in the crib you look at her above, she giggles, then you look at her through the slats, she giggles. It's the funniest thing to her.
• She self-feeds and has a special affinity for Cheerios. 
• She can drink out of a sippy cup.
• She can 'fetch'. I was trying to teach her how to throw a ball one day, but instead she would just retrieve the ball for me.

She sure is great! I love being her mom and teaching her new things.

Hello, Blog

I know I'm in and out and in and out of blogging. But I shall not give up.

The past two months have been busy. Let me explain:

• Took the bar exam
• Started a new job
• Went to Canada
• Went to Utah
• Had LASIK eye surgery
• Planned a dinner for 180 people

I think that's it. I mean, aside from the day to day stuff.

I hope to take the time to blog about most of these events. Actually, some I've already blogged about- like the bar exam.

And some things I won't mention much about- like my job- just because I'd like to keep this blog FUN!

So I guess that leaves two trips and an eye surgery to blog about! (no one wants to read about a dinner planning!)

More to come! Life is good!


-----
I think what I want to blog about a bit now is- for the lack of better phrasing- "the kind of mom I am"

It hit me at the park tonight, that there are types of "moms"

What sparked this thought? Well, P was nibbling on the swing. And I didn't stop her.

I thought for a second, "I should be really worried about germs right now!"

Then I thought, "Well, she's not sucking on dirt or something people walk on"

So I just made faces with her and giggled, and thought about how I wasn't a "hygiene mom".

And I think here's the kind of "mom" I am. More to be discovered, I'm sure as P gets older. But here's what I got so far:

• I'm not a germ-a-phobe mom.
• I must play with P for an hour after work. I'm a mom that plays.
• I'm a tv-nuetral mom. Not one of those moms who avoids children and tv in the same room until they're 2 or whatever. But P had yet to watch anything on TV.
• I am not a organic all-natural mom. I am a go-with-the-flow mom. Do your best and don't guilt-trip over the rest.
• I am not a social mom. This is really apparent from P's school. I don't like to sit and mom-chat. I think I've rubbed some class-moms the wrong way because of this. But... sorry. I'd rather get my girl home and play with her than chat diaper brands with you. 
• I am a selectively-selfish mom. I don't mind some folks holding and loving on my girl. But there are some people that I just want to say, "Please don't ever touch her. Just admire from afar." It's not consistent at all though. So... I think this trait is still in development.

I think that's all for now. Kind of funny to me though. I used to be a social butterfly. But now I just don't care as much. Well, c'est la vie!


I think that's all I have right now.

Babies in Blue Bonnets

"Take your picture and let me be, mom"

"Pose for a picture? Ok, I can do this."

"Ok, I'm not crying, but I'm not going to pose like he did. I'll just lay here"

"Hey! You already took one! I might cry if you keep this up!"

"Now you want the two of us together... well alright but I'm kind of done..."

"Ok! I'm Done!"
Pres: "Aw, don't cry. This will be cute when we get married someday..."

Pres: "Wait... I don't want to leave my mom! Marriage sounds awful!"
Phoe:"I hate these flowers! And I don't know what marriage is"

"Let's never do this again! Flowers are so sad!"

Baby Weight: Plans for Losing It

Perhaps this blog is premature, because I can't say that I've succeeded at my plan. But maybe someday I can tell you if this worked or not.

Baby weight. Most moms of a newborn is trying to lose it. Yes, I've met a few women who want to keep it- but they were wiry to start with.

I've heard a lot of advice for how to make it work. I've seen a lot of moms that at my point (10 wks post-delivery) that have done it. But I've done things a bit differently.

What happened:
Phoenix was in the NICU for her first 9 days of life. This was VERY stressful and any attempt to watch what I ate went out the window. I lived on fast food and Dr. Pepper. I did my best to stay up as much as I could with her.

When Phoe came home, I did do a few yoga sessions and go on walks. But I did not have a consistent exercise routine. Further, I had bought tons of treats to make Christmas cookies before being 'surprised' by Phoenix's early arrival. So when I got home, my mom began making those delicious cookies. While I tried to deliver those cookies to others, most ended up in my belly.

Then I had law school finals. That's a whole other wave of stress. Not only stress, but long hours of studying without working out.

How my body handled it:
At first I dropped a lot of weight. But as I ate those cookies and spent a lot of time studying, the weight came back very easily. * Although I don't really regret it, I think this is what caused Phoenix to bulk up as fast as she has.

The Plan:
Now that finals are done and I'm getting into a rhythm, I'm trying to get back in shape and be more active. I've contemplated what I want to do the past few weeks and here is what I'm doing:

• Accountability: Every time I go to the gym, I check-in on FB. Some may find it annoying, but it is my way of acknowledging I am doing something.

• Once a Day: I like to get in a good hour workout. But that can't always happen with a newborn. So I've learned to take what I can get. 
• Today for example. Phoenix blew out her diaper (peed all over her dad) and I couldn't leave for the gym when I planned. When I finally got to the gym, the child-care center was only open for 40 minutes. So I ran for 30 minutes straight, got the best workout I could, and went home. In a way this is a positive- because it forced me to get a good workout done. And it's the first time since getting pregnant that I ran for 30 minutes straight. In a way, not having a lot of time is a good thing!

• Default Exercise: I would love to be in a spin class and an ab class everyday- or every other day. But truth is, I can't. And I don't always have time to make up a workout. So, I have my default workout: Running a 5k. When I can't plan, I just run a 5k- and I try to do a little better than the last time I ran it.

• Utilize Resources: Russ is a wonderful husband for this. He is very willing to compromise and watch Phoenix so I can go work out. There's been a few times where Russ wants to run to the store and I want to work out. Instead of taking 2 cars, or rotating our time in doing what we want, Russ will drive and drop me at the gym and I'll work out. If there is a bunch of kids in the child-care place, he takes Phoe with him to the store. If there are only a few kids in child-care at the gym, Phoe comes with me. Really, it's a huge help to make sure I get in my gym time.

• Back-Up: Sometimes making it to the gym is just not possible. So I try to have a workout at home. Pinterest is great for having workout lists. 25 jumping jacks, 100 crunches, etc. I've pinned some of these so I can do one real quick on days the gym is not an option.
• Another back-up I've used is running a trail near where I live. I've previously tracked the distance and I know it's the distance of a 5k. Sometimes I've used this to work out.

That's about it for my plan. Any suggestions?

And- I realize I've said nothing about food. I'm off soda for Lent, but other than that I haven't done much to alter my intake. I'm still getting over my sugar love that started after having Phoenix. (When I was pregnant, I couldn't stand sugar. Now that I'm not pregnant anymore, I've gone the other way to loving sugar.)

More to come, I'm sure! I'll at least update in a few months to say if this has worked or not.