2 Months Old

Dear Liam,
You are growing so fast! I can't even believe my eyes! You weigh in at 14lbs 8oz!! Mommy has a bin full of your newborn (which you never really wore) and some of your 0-3 month clothing that no longer fits. It's strange to have a bin of things you no longer need. We are getting more and more used to your cues and know what you need when you need it. You are eating about every 3 hours during the day, and sleeping through the night. Everyday I count my blessings that you let me get so well rested. You wake up so happy and smiling it just melts our hearts! We usually wake for your big morning feeding around 6:15am. You fall back asleep for an hour and then we play a bit and you usually fall asleep again for 30 mins before waking up happy and ready to eat again. The day continues like that, and you have now let Mommy get dinner cooked (and sometimes eaten) before you need to eat again. Around 8:30 we start our bedtime routine which consists of singing and putting lavender lotion on the bottoms of your feet and your chest/belly, getting your night-time diaper on, and your jammies. You love this routine, and I love the little sigh you give when you get all snapped up and ready to snuggle. Sometimes you get your diaper changed in the middle of your feeding since you fall asleep. This helps you wake up enough to eat a bit more before falling asleep for the night. Otherwise I feed you after, and snuggle a bit before putting you in your bed. You love your aden+anais blanket tucked up next to your head, your nuk, and sometimes your bunny under your other arm. We play summer night sounds on the sound machine as well as turn on the twilight turtle. Sometimes you fuss a bit, but for the most part you are out for the night. Mommy and Daddy go to bed around 11, and Mommy wakes around 6:15 when you fuss. Since we have realized this new schedule you are so happy all the time! Always smiling and babbling about.

Best.Picture.Ever.  (like father like son...)

Playing on the Mat

You still love the swing, but we moved it into the kitchen now so Mommy can get more things done, so you dont use it as much. You also have recently just started liking your bouncer more. It is interactive, and you are kicking around so much more and making it go off. We have been working on tummy time more each day, but you still don't enjoy it very much. You would much rather be on your belly while laying on Mommy or Daddy. When you are on one of us, you use your arms to lift yourself up and look around. You also love love love to stand up! I can't wait to bust out the Exersaucer and the Johnny Jump Up in the upcoming weeks, you are going to love it! You are flailing your arms around  with more intent and catching objects on your playmat. It amazes you when you make things move around. You also enjoy seeing yourself in your mirror. You just watch this cute baby copying you, even when you are crying. You have also begun to search out your left hand to suck on your fingers. You have recognized Mommy a few weeks ago, but have recently recognized Daddy. You also turn your head to follow us if we cross the room, or if we start talking.

Napping with his bunny.

Your hair is beginning to grow back, it looks dark brown--like Daddy's. It is still very fine and short, so we'll see if it has any curl like both Mommy and Daddy's hair. I know I will probably say this every month, but I am so excited to see what month 3 brings! You are growing and learning so much already, I cant wait to see what the next thing will be!
Love,
Momma

Leg Rolls Starting! :-)

Labor Update 2

So, my labor stalled around noon today, but there was a lot going on around me, and it was definitely distracting. I had a few contractions, but nothing compared to what I had been having. They still were just as intense and painful, however, not in any sort of pattern. At 2:00 I tried taking a nap in the recliner, and managed to fall asleep for about 30 minutes. I woke up extremely disappointed since I thought everything had stopped. I messaged my doula and told her what was up. She said that my body probably needed a break, and to make sure I ate a protein snack/meal and try to relax/sleep again. I ate, and Billie gave me an amazing foot rub while I was laying in my cool dark room. A few hours later, I began having a few contractions again (yay!) I didn't time them, but they were definitely more patterned. I was hungry again and decided to make some rice and veggies for dinner. It was so tasty! After dinner (about 8pm) my doula called again to check on me. I mentioned that I thought things were starting to pick back up since the sun was setting. She recommended for me to take a light walk and get settled in for the night. I have since walked and took a nice long shower. And here I am...about to crawl into bed time some contractions and read or just plain pass out. I have to admit, my body is tired, my brain on the other hand...has other ideas. We'll see who wins out. Hopefully my next post will be when I have my little boy in my arms! :)

Pregnancy Week 27

This week has marked the end of my 2nd trimester! Hurray!! Just 12 more weeks! St. Patty's day was a blast! Liam jammed right along with us while listening to my brother-in-law's Irish rock band play. Friday his other band played locally as well, so we had fun listening to some bluegrass as well! Our last birth class went well. I'm sad they are over. I love spending time with Rachel and getting to know her and the whole birthing process. We ended with breastfeeding and newborn care. Most of which I already knew. --(other than the techniques of breastfeeding). Rachel is also the La Lache League leader in my area, so she is a fantastic resource for breastfeeding. Also, I have realized that my calendar is beginning to fill up with appointments and special dates before Liam's due date. It is becoming a bit overwhelming so I definitely need to find my daily planner and start writing out to do lists and such. Next week we will be purchasing our birth kit and birthing pool. I cant believe we are already this close! I will also start a list of "hospital bag" items, just in case. I wont pack that for awhile yet, but I just need to get my thoughts in order. Anyways, this week Scott and I went to the eye doctor. I havent been in at least 3 years. I am sick of my glasses, and my eyes reject my contacts now. I know you arent supposed to get new glasses while pregnant since your eyes can change shape and whatnot. But we have the insurance now, and we might as well take advantage of it. My eyes did change .75 in each eye. And I have a pair of trial contacts on order to see if it was just the style of my contacts or not. I can't wait to see my new frames! They should be in this week. Scott got new frames as well, although his prescription only changed .25 in each eye. He cant remember the last time he was at the eye doctor. Must be nice. :) I have made a chiropractor appointment for april 3rd. I have been having terrible back and sciatic pain as well as pubic pain. I described it to Rachel and she thought it sounded like pubic symphsis. More on that later. .Anyways, enough rambling onto week 27.

How far: 27 Weeks

Weight gain: I will update this when I get back from my midwife appointment on Wednesday

Stretch marks: more and more

Maternity Clothes: yes and yes! And I cannot wait for the weather to warm up so I can wear my flip flops instead of attempting to tie my shoes.

Sleep: I would definitely say bad, but I know its only going to get worse. I wake frequently, not usually to use the bathroom, but for some odd reason. Attempting to roll over is always a challenge, one that I know wont improve anytime soon.

Best moment this week: Feeling Liam jam out to the music we have been listening to. Birth class, eye doctor.

Miss anything: not anything new. coffee mostly this week. I think more so because I'm so tired.

Cravings: pretty much the same. Hot ham and cheese on deli roll with dijon mustard. and of course OJ.

Anything make you queasy or sick: not really

Gender: Boy

Belly Button: In

Wedding rings: Off, again only for trying to get my hands back to normal. The dry winter (pseudo-spring) is terrible for the skin.

Movements: you betcha! Especially to the fiddle music!

Mood: tired, but good.

Looking forward to: my 28 week appointment on wednesday. I cant wait to find out if he is still head down.

Symptoms: back and pelvic pain, swollen feet/ankles, tired, sleep sucks, hungry all the time. Here's the low down on Pubic Symphysis.

This is where your pubic symphysis is.

 The following is an exerpt I found on what to expect.com

What symphysis pubic dysfunction is

Symphysis pubic dysfunction, or SPD, is one of those weird pregnancy conditions that sounds bizarre and well, kind of is. It means the ligaments that normally keep your pelvic bone aligned during pregnancy become too relaxed and stretchy. This, in turn, can make the pelvic joint — aka the symphysis pubis — unstable, causing some pretty strange sensations and sometimes pain.

What causes symphysis pubic dysfunction during pregnancy

The culprit behind SPD is the aptly named hormone relaxin. Its mission is to make your ligaments stretchy so your baby can ease his or her way into the world. But sometimes relaxin does its job too well, making the ligaments around your pelvic bone during pregnancy too loose too soon (way before baby is ready to come out), and that causes instability (and unfortunately, pain) in the pelvic joint.

What you need to know about symphysis pubic dysfunction

While your legs won't actually fall off (promise), it may seem like they're going in opposite directions from each other (and the rest of your body). Walking, standing, or rolling over in bed can really hurt as one side of the joint shifts more than the other, throwing everything off-kilter. In very rare cases, the joint may gape apart noticeably, a condition called diastasis symphysis pubis, which can cause serious pain in your pelvis, groin, hips, and buttocks (truly, a pain in the rear!).

What to do about symphysis pubic dysfunction during pregnancy

Try stabilizing those floppy ligaments by wearing a pelvic support belt (readily available online), which "corsets" the pelvic bones back into place during pregnancy. And be religious about doing your Kegels and pelvic tilts, both of which strengthen the muscles of the pelvis. More tactics to try: Sit down to get dressed, and avoid heavy lifting and pushing (which you should be doing anyway).



I hope this helps anyone else who is experiencing this kind of pain. It definitely sucks, and I'm glad I made an appointment with the chiro. Scott also found some interesting information online about swelling feet can be caused more severely by your legs not being the same length. Which is true in my case. My left leg is slightly longer--you cant notice it at all, but sometimes if I'm walking a lot, I will notice some pain.) Anyways, this all ties together. If I truly have SPD, then it is messing with my alignment, and so my normal stance is all out of whack, which can cause more swelling. Hopefully going to the chiro will straighten out all of these issues, or at least improve them!

Thats all for now, enjoy your week!
Nikky

Pregnancy Week 21

Wahoo I'm finally doing this on time!! Today is Saturday, and my weeks turn over on Sundays! w00t!! 

Today I had a blast with my bestie Billie! We went to Hobby Lobby and the local bookstore to check out some wedding stuffs for her upcoming wedding!! (I get to be her matron of honor too! yay!) We also stopped for some groceries before heading to her house for lunch and gettin girlie with wedding magazines and shellac nails! I chose a bright florescent pink with a coral shimmer topcoat. Super cute! Anyways, Billie got to feel Liam move around and that was awesome!! :) It's so fun to be able to share in the joy of him flip floppin! 

How far: 21 Weeks

Total weight gain: +3 pounds

Stretch marks: nothing new since last week

Maternity clothes: yes! Usually when I get home I immediately switch to my comfy pj pants.

Sleep: Changing once again. The last few nights I've noticed I have been sleeping deeper--which is so unbelievably wonderful! But I also wake up around 5:30 every morning to pee, of course. I am able to sleep lightly from then until I need to get up for work. Also this morning was the first bad dream I had so far. It was really silly actually, but I was terrified and woke up (@5:30) screaming for Scott.

Best moment this week: We had a crappy snowstorm on Thursday, which is when we have our childbirth class. Well Rachel (the instructor) is also our doula, and she had to cancel the class, not so much because of the snow, but apparently the snowstorm was making some of her mommies go into labor! So anyways, Thursdays is the only evening Scott has off, so we made dinner and settled down to watch a movie and had a nice evening just hang out! Also, I visited my old boss on Monday. She's due with her first baby in just a few weeks. It was so nice to catch up with her! On the way home, I visited with my Mom and Stepdad and they both got to feel Liam moving around :)

Miss anything: coffee!

Cravings: blueberry anything

Anything make you queasy or sick: not really

Gender: Boy

Movements: more and more! bigger and bigger too!

Symptoms: backache, stuffy nose, acid burps (yuck!), out of breath, tired

Mood: Great!!

Looking forward to: my next childbirth class, my parents coming to my next appointment in 2 weeks, getting more organized for baby, spring, and St. Patty's day!

I ordered the cutest monster sleeper from The Children's Place, along with some clearance items. I saw this sleeper on a mommy vlogger on YouTube. Her name is Plus1Please. Check her out! Her son is adorable!!

Until next week...N.

Home sick...

Last night was brutal. I had a terrible time going to sleep. Scott was so sweet, he gave me a nice long back rub to help me relax. Finally about 9:45 or so I fell asleep. 10:15 I woke myself up coughing, couldn't breath. Took my inhaler. It seemed to help deepen my breathing. Still coughing, but better. Finally fell back asleep. 11:15 wake up coughing again. No reprieve this time. I couldn't stand it, it was making my stomach upset too. I finally took a half dose of cough suppressant and finally passed out in bed. 

Getting up was ok, considering. Took a shower got ready for work, still coughing and exhausted, but that usually goes away once I get going. No such luck. I couldn't make it through my shift at work. Too darn tired, and losing my voice on top of it. 

So here I am, home sick, humidifier going, mucinex d in my system (pharmacist said it was ok for the possibly pregnant ladies) laying in bed, waiting for domino to deliver my gluten free pizza so I can eat and pass back out! Ugh! 

Symptom wise, dizzy, tender breasts, mood swings, exhausted, nausea.
DPO10
More later
Nikky