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Getting to Know You
Posted by Jennifer on May 16, 2013 | 1 Comment
My biggest concern with adding a new member to our family wasn’t how I was going to manage two kids but how those two kids were going to interact with one another. I was really worried that Sophia would become jealous and resentful once we brought Jack home and she realized he wasn’t just some transient staying with us for a few days. (Not that we allow transients to stay with us as a regular practice.)
Any concerns I had are long gone though.
Sophia has been amazing with Jack. She’s interested in everything that involves him. She constantly wants to hold him (which involves the support of the Boppy pillow), is always concerned when he doesn’t have his paci (“Oh no! Jact [Jack] drop paci!”), and she wants to assist in feeding him which poses an interesting dilemma since I’m breastfeeding (she’s worked out a routine where she holds the top of whichever breast I’m nursing from; to this I say “whatever”).
The majority of her interest has been self-propelled. We don’t really push her to play or interact with him constantly because we want her to 1.) still be her own person, not Jack’s entertainment and 2.) don’t want her to think he’s just a toy to be played with. The biggest surprise for me is her empathy towards him. If he’s crying she’ll shush him and say “it okay baby”, wish him “sweed dweams, Jact [Jack]” before bed, and even rub his cheek with the back of her hand and call him “sweedheart”.
And now that Jack is become more alert during the day I can see he’s starting to take an interest in Sophia as well. He’ll stare at her while we play and he seems to enjoy when she talks to him.
I’m sure in a few years there will be fights and a lot less “sweed dreams” from both sides but for now I think they’re enjoying getting to learn about one another.
State of the Weight Wednesday: Week 1
Posted by Jennifer on May 13, 2013 | 3 Comments
It took me about six months after Sophia was born to realize breastfeeding was not going to take me all the way back to my pre-pregnancy weight and shape like I had hoped it would. I came to the sad realization I was going to have to put actual effort into losing the remaining pounds and tighten things back up. I reluctantly started P90X with Tim shortly after Christmas 2011 and stuck with it for a few weeks but it really wasn’t for me. (Tony Horton is annoying.) Around the time I gave up on Tony the weather was getting warmer and I decided to try running with Sophia in the jogging stroller after work. It was hard work to get myself out there and not give up the second I felt like dying which was approximately thirty seconds after I started running. I pushed myself a little more each time I went out there and miraculously I started to enjoy my time on the jogging path. I then started adding in a thirty minute workout that I could do in my home office. Three times a week I would get down on the floor next to my desk and knock out crunches, push-ups, sit-ups, flutter kicks, planks, dips, squats, and a few simple yoga moves. I started to feel awesome and I was seeing results on the scale and in the way my clothes fit. When I saw my weight fall ten pounds below what it had been prior to getting pregnant with Sophia, I was hooked on exercise.
I have been dreaming about getting back on the jogging path and back into my thirty minute routine since I was about twenty weeks pregnant with Jack. I want my energy back and I don’t want to be fighting with clothing at six months postpartum because I’ve just been sitting on my butt doing nothing. With the need for accountability I’m joining the linkup hosted by Miranda at Not Super Just Mom.
I put on fifty pounds throughout my pregnancy with Jack. The day I delivered him I weighed 180.4 pounds according to the hospital’s scale. In the almost three weeks since he’s been born, I’ve dropped down to 151.2 pounds…a far cry from the 130 pounds I was at nine months ago. Since I’m not cleared to return to exercising yet I’m setting out to work on minding what goes into my body. I’m terrible at judging the calorie content in a meal and what an actual serving of food is supposed to be. To help me combat my poor estimations I’ve download the MyFitnessPal app(feel free to friend me by clicking here) for my phone and my goal for the next two weeks will be to track my meals and my portion sizes. Since I’m breastfeeding I’ll need to be mindful of keeping up a healthy intake of protein, carbohydrates, and fats so I won’t be cutting anything out of my diet aside from the junk food that I tend to graze on during the course of a day. I also need to push my water intake throughout the day…I find that I’m guzzling water between 8 and 10 p.m. and when I come back to bed after feeding Jack during the night. I probably wouldn’t be nearly as thirsty if I would sip throughout the day.
I also don’t want to be completely focused on the numbers on my scale. I want to see whatever results my efforts produce whether that’s in the form of shedding pounds or shedding inches from my body, so once I’m cleared for exercise again I’ll keep track of my body measurements.
Two Week Goal: Track all my meals and snacks using MyFitnessPal app; drink 64 oz. of water throughout the day.
Are you working on losing or maintaining your weight or just getting into a healthier routine? What keeps your motivated and how do you stay on track?
Recovery
Posted by Jennifer on May 10, 2013 | 2 Comments
Do you know what happens when you deliver a ten pound baby in under fifteen minutes? Your tailbone suffers the consequences.
Seriously.
I haven’t been able to sit down correctly in two weeks. When I woke up the morning after delivering and tried to get back in bed after a trip to the bathroom, I was in the worst pain I have ever felt. I pretty sure if I had skipped the epidural delivery would have had nothing on this pain. Nothing else hurt, surprisingly. I could have performed cartwheels down the hall if I wasn’t walking like an eighty year old woman and pleading for a doughnut to sit on (and not the Dunkin variety). Saturday night was so bad I was in tears and I think my nurse was ready to mark me down as a postpartum depression watch if I hadn’t choked out “my ass just hurts so bad.”
Every doctor from my OB practice that was on duty that weekend came in to offer me their opinions on my ass. They offered me Percocets (no thank you), ice packs, a wrap to add some counter pressure and stability, physical therapy but sadly no miracle cure. They all recommended the same thing though, time. We all know the huge problem with this recovery option: I am not a patient person.
The insult to the injury, other than the fact that it’s MY ASS BONE, is that I would feel one hundred percent if I didn’t wince every time I sat down or stood up. I feel so much better this time around than I did with Sophia, both mentally and physically. I’ve got my energy back, breastfeeding has been a breeze, I’m way more confident, and I’m even getting some great stretches of sleep at night. But my ass…my aching ass.
I hoping the doctors are right and I just need some time because the Google search results on “coccyx injury” don’t paint a lovely picture when it comes to other treatment options.
Here’s Jack!
Posted by Jennifer on May 6, 2013 | 10 Comments
I almost can’t believe it’s taken me ten days to write this post but then I remind myself I have two kids now and that actually keeps one pretty busy. When I last left posted I was completely flabbergasted that I was 5 centimeters dilated and not in active labor. I was really worried that I would end up having to be induced again. Thankfully someone finally got the message and decided to get things started without a doctor.
The morning of the 26th I woke up around 6:30 a.m. with noticeable but not painful contractions. I had been having the same ones in the early morning hours for almost two hours but had fallen back to sleep so I obviously wasn’t too concerned about them. Tim had left for work over an hour before I woke up. I decided to take a shower and get dressed, if things didn’t calm down I’d ask him to come home and call the doctor. I took a nice long shower but things didn’t slow down but they weren’t any more painful than a muscle cramp at times but they were 4 to 6 minutes apart. I text Tim and said he should come home and I called my doctor’s office. When I spoke with the nurse who answered I think she almost fell out of her chair when she heard I was 5 centimeters. “Please get to the hospital as soon as you can,” she said. I assured her I would but it would probably be an hour since I was waiting for Tim to come home and my sister-in-law to come over to watch Sophia (and bring me a bagel for breakfast).
Tim and Jamie showed up at the same time. While Tim put our bags in the car and changed out of his uniform I enjoyed some of my bagel because I was not going to starve while in labor again. We got to the hospital and were set up in a triage room within ten minutes. The triage nurse was my first labor & delivery nurse when I was induced with Sophia. She set me up with the monitors and a hot, two sizes too big hospital gown. Lauren, the nurse midwife from my OB practice, came in a few minutes later to see how things were going and see if things had changed. Things were still the same as they were on Wednesday and my contractions were starting to space themselves out again but Lauren was confident that it wasn’t false labor and she really didn’t want to send me home when I was already so dilated so we agreed that getting me set up in a labor and delivery room upstairs was the way to go. We’d give my contractions an hour or two to see what they did and then maybe break my water and go from there.
We were sent up upstairs and the nurse, Molly, had to do a few blood draws on me and get an IV started so I could eventually get my epidural. She tried to go in on a vein at my wrist and I thought I was going to kill her…it hurt so bad, I felt like she was hitting my bone. Thank God she gave up quickly…I still have a nasty bruise from it and I don’t think I could have lasted very long with an IV set up there. She set the IV up in my hand and things were much better from there. She hooked up the monitors again and left us to ourselves for a while. We watched TV and I snacked on small bites of my bagel. It was probably about noon when Lauren came in to check on me. My contractions were being fickle and would show up for a little bit and then take a break. Lauren and I agreed to that it was time to break my water in hopes that would get my contractions to become more consistent. I asked her to hold off on doing so until I could get my epidural though.
The anesthesiologist came in about a half hour later and introduced himself as Dr. Pierre. He asked me if I had an epidural before and how it went for me. I told him I did have one with Sophia’s birth but getting the epidural was pretty painful for me. He was surprised and assured me he would make it as painless as possible for me. Dr. Pierre delivered in full on his promise. The only part that hurt was the local anesthetic and it was nothing more than a bee sting. Dr. Pierre talked me through every step of the process and was incredibly calming. Once the epidural was in, it took about fifteen minutes for me to start to feel the effects. I was little worried because my right leg felt the effects before my left leg but my left leg quickly caught up. Lauren came back in about twenty minutes after Dr. Pierre left and she broke my water. Everything looked good and she said she’d be back in a few hours to check on me. I took the time to doze off and goof around on the internet via my cell phone.
Lauren came back around 2:45 p.m. and checked me again. There wasn’t too much change and my contractions were inconsistent, she used the word “irritable”. She said she wanted to start a low dose of Pitocin just to kick start things. I was hesitant but I felt like I was just spinning my wheels with the inconsistent contractions. I agreed and Molly set up the Pitocin in my IV at the lowest dose possible and within a few minutes it was already making a difference in the quality and timing of my contractions. I also noticed a huge difference in what I was feeling compared to my labor with Sophia. While I wasn’t in pain, I could definitely feel the tightness and pressure of the contractions this time…it wasn’t a bad feeling. According to the monitors, things were going well and I could feel increasing pressure.
Around 5 p.m. Molly came in and asked if I would consider allowing a paramedic student observe my delivery. He needed to observe five live births during his twenty-four hour rotation. She assured me he would only observe and not assist. I figured it couldn’t hurt and whatever he learned could help someone later on. The student came in and introduced himself. His name was Raymond and we talked for quite a while. He told us that he had been an EMT for the last eight years and we talked about his schooling, himself, and his family. He was really nice and asked Molly what seemed like intelligent questions about the contraction and heart rate monitor readings.
Raymond left us and we continued relaxing and watched the 6 o’clock news and then Nightly News. Molly came in around the time the Nightly News started and turned off the Pitocin because it was making my contractions come one on top of the other. She was also disappointed that she wouldn’t be able to stay for my delivery since her shift was ending in a half hour and she didn’t think I’d be pushing before then. She handed me over to another nurse and I cannot remember her name to save my life. Right around the same time as the shift turn over, Lauren came in to check me and nonchalantly says “Want to start pushing?” I said, “Sure!” She and the nurse went out of the room to get some supplies and then came back and got me into position to push. I remembered how I had pushed with Sophia and gave one good push with the next contraction. Everyone in the room was a little surprised at what that one push did. I turned to look at the clock and it read 7:20 p.m. I joked with Tim that I was going to try and beat my record of forty minutes of pushing with Sophia.
I actually did beat my record…by twenty-five minutes. I don’t know at what point Dr. White, an OB from the practice, showed up but Lauren said to her at one point “Oh my God! Look at his cheeks!” I pushed again and at 7:32 p.m. everyone in the room let out sounds of shock and “Oh my God”s and then Lauren put Jack up on my chest and I understood why…he was HUGE. Tim turned to me and just “He’s huge!!” The nurses helped rub him with a blanket and he started to cry. I could vaguely hear everyone speculating how much he weighed…everyone’s guesses were well in the nine pound range. I just kept thinking how good it felt to have him out of me…I felt as light as a feather and I said as much multiple times to Lauren and Dr. White.. The nursery nurse asked if she could take Jack over to the warmer to be weighed and cleaned up a bit which I happily obliged. When she placed him on the scale another round of exclamations went off because the scale read “10 pounds 4 ounces.” Yep…I delivered a ten pound baby in under fifteen minutes.
I was completely satisfied with the way labor and delivery went this time around. I didn’t feel like we were performing an eviction this time around; even though my body needed a little help it had at least started the process itself. I’ll always be especially grateful to Dr. Pierre because that epidural was magical. I was in no pain but I still had a lot of sensation so I ended up actually feeling Jack being born and the enormous physical relief it brought with it. My recovery has been different this time around as well but that is an entirely separate post. In the end I feel like I did things my way and am so glad I didn’t get rushed into an induction. I have to wonder if things would have gone so smoothly and as hands off as Lauren was had they done the pre-induction ultrasound and found out Jack was as big as he was; obviously I’ll never know…I’m just relieved I stuck with my gut instinct.
The last few months of complete discomfort and lack of energy were so worth it and completely understandable now.
Jack Declan born 04/26/2013 at 7:32 p.m.
10 pounds 4 ounces 21.5 inches long
Oh For F*ck’s Sake!
Posted by Jennifer on April 24, 2013 | 3 Comments
So yesterday I was all “woe’s is me I’m still pregnant and I’ll have to have the induction talk with the OB tomorrow”. Sure enough I woke up pregnant again this morning and headed out for my appointment. I’ll spare you all the details but I had my exam and sure enough I’m 5 cm dilated and about 80% effaced. “5 mother fucking centimeters” is the text I sent to Tim after my appointment. Is this some kind of sick joke?
(Source)
I know, I know I shouldn’t be complaining that I’ve made it halfway without too much discomfort. I know other women would kill for this kind of progress. Now I’m not even feeling sorry for myself…now I’m a little ticked off. I just can’t believe this is still going on and I’m finding it really difficult not throw both of our phones out the window of a moving car because people want stop calling us and asking “Did you have the baby yet?”
The OB offered to just send me to the hospital and break my water today to get things going but I just didn’t feel like it was a good option. If it was a guarantee I’d be all over it but I really don’t want anything other than an epidural flowing through my veins once it’s necessary. We talked about induction and I was adamant that I wanted to put it off as long as possible. We compromised on trying to schedule me for either late Tuesday or any time Wednesday (of next week) if by some miracle against gravity I was still incubating this child. That would put me at 41 weeks and a few days. I had to agree to go in for a non-stress test on Monday but I really don’t care about that…it’s more boring than anything.
Of course I hit Google hard when I came home…looking for stories of women who went into labor the instant they found out they were at 5cm. No such luck. (I know Jill from BabyRabies was unknowingly walking around at 7cm with her second pregnancy.) I also was looking for the next full moon hoping to God it would be soon and do something for me. Turns out it’s tomorrow night at like 9 p.m. I’d offer up a goat (or some goat cheese from my fridge) tomorrow night to whatever moon god there is if it would help things along.
My biggest concern now (besides never ever having this baby) is getting to the hospital on time. The OB gave me a stern “no dilly-dallying” talk before I left today. She put big bold notes in my computer file and told me to call even before the 5-1-1 rule and to remind the doctor I speak with that I’m already 5 cm and this is most likely not a drill. I really want to make it to the hospital on time…I don’t want to end up like my sister who almost delivered in a wheelchair in the elevator with her second. And I’d really like that epidural too.
P.S. – thanks to everyone who left some words of encouragement in the comments or on my Facebook or Twitter feeds yesterday.
Defeated
Posted by Jennifer on April 23, 2013 | 5 Comments
So this is still going on.
And I feel like I’m repeating history all over again; a history that I would really like to avoid. Last time I took it all in stride and tried to laugh about it but when I woke up this morning still hugely pregnant I just felt so defeated. Like this will never end the way I want it to end, pitocin induced free.
I’ve had midwives and OBs tell me for the last three weeks “You’ve made some awesome progress. You’re going to go anytime. We won’t see you for the next appointment,” and sure enough who shows back up still pregnant at each appointment? This girl. Tomorrow I have another one, another one they swore I wouldn’t have and I know the talk of induction is going to start and I’m going to fight hard not to be induced until 42 weeks but I can already feel my will power dissolving into a puddle of self-pity and discomfort. If the OB does agree to go along with my plan for pushing out induction until 42 week I’m just thinking of all the appointments I’ll have to attend for monitoring and the circus it is trying to arrange for someone to watch Sophia.
I’ve tried all the old wives’ tales. I’m over walking round and round the neighborhood and just don’t have the stamina to attempt a trip to a store or the mall with a toddler who only walks and yells “NO HANDS” at the suggestion we hold hands; never mind that my bank account and house don’t need to feel the after effects of a pointless shopping trip. I’ve had pressured points rubbed, eaten spicy food (although another round of samosas and korma doesn’t sound like a bad idea), and even faked nesting in a fruitless attempt to trick myself that this show can finally get started. All any of this got me was all the neighbors commenting that I’m still pregnant, a pedicure, a heartburn after some really good Indian food, and a semi-clean house.
I know 40 weeks isn’t the expiration date and that anywhere from 37-42 weeks is considered normal delivery time but I really am over this. And if this does end with another induction I’m going to feel like my body totally failed me and I was robbed of a life experience (because we are definitely NEVER doing this again). I look on Facebook and blogs and other corners of my life though and I see all these women delivering right before or right on their due dates without any intervention to get things started and I can’t help but feel like I missed out on a key lesson during pregnancy on how to end it at a reasonable time. Like maybe this is some type of punishment because I’ve been more than open about just how much I don’t like being pregnant and that I see it as a means to an ends.
Maybe the OB will have better news for me tomorrow and I can come back here and share with you all or not share it at all because I’ll be in a hospital bed cursing for the anesthesiologist to get to my room with my epidural. Somehow though I have a feeling that won’t be the case and I’ll either come on here and bemoan my fate or just curl up in bed with the remaining Easter candy for the rest of the day.
39 Weeks
Posted by Jennifer on April 17, 2013 | 3 Comments
Any day now. At least that’s what the OB’s office has been telling me since last week and my OB’s shock was apparent when she saw that I was even there for my appointment today; she had assumed with the progress I had made I would have had delivered already. I know better though…apparently my kids like to get your hopes up and then do things in their own sweet time. The only plus side of today’s appointment was my weight has held steady for two weeks in a row.
(This is my “Ask me: ‘Haven’t you had that baby yet?!’” face. Note the slightly crazed eyes.)
I’m fighting hardcore the feeling that I’ll be pregnant forever or at least as long as I was with Sophia. (I DO NOT want to be induced again!) I don’t have much in the way of “nesting” to do. Jack’s room is completed, I finally ordered replacement parts for my breast pump since the last ones met an untimely death in the dishwasher, and frankly I don’t want to do much of anything. I have been day dreaming about the things I can do once I do deliver this kid though. Here they are in no particular order:
- Enjoy a frozen margarita with salt. (Godparenthood is offered up to whomever can bring me one in the hospital.)
- Exercise. No lie I’ve been dreaming of the day I can walk miles around the park with my double jogging stroller and start my mission to pass the Army’s PT test.
- Sleep uninterrupted by peeing or inability to roll over. Sure I’ll be up in the middle of the night but as long as I don’t look like a beached whale getting out of bed or need to fish around the bathrooms cabinets for more toilet paper it’ll be all good.
- Regain visual sight of my entire anatomy.
- Continue to eat like I’ve never been fed before. If history repeats itself, I’ll be able to eat for two for the majority of the time I’m breastfeeding. BOOM!
What did you do to keep your sanity in those last few days waiting for labor to start?
Crunching the Numbers on Nursery #2
Posted by Jennifer on April 12, 2013 | 2 Comments
Like I said in my last post about the nursery, I had a really difficult time coming up with inspiration for Jack’s room. You would think with the gift of Pinterest I would have been drowning in ideas and I think that was just it…there was too much inspiration out there…my brain just overloaded. I’m happy with the results though and like I said once we get to know Jack, his personality will start to shine through in his room.
I didn’t really have a budget in mind this time but I knew I would probably come in less than what we did with Sophia’s room because two of the larger pieces of baby furniture were being recycled into his room. The grand total for his room was $798.99 which is $435.44 less than what we spent assembling Sophia’s room. Not too shabby! Here’s the breakdown:
Paint: Glowing Green by Valspar (didn’t factor into total because the room needed paint regardless of its new occupant)
Recliner: Lane; Marshall’s; recycled from Sophia’s room
Blinds: Levolor White Plantations Blinds 35″ x 64″ White Faux Wood 2″ slats; Lowe’s $44.97/each (2)
Curtains: Threshold Farrah Window Panel 54″ x 84″; blue; Target $13.59/panel (4)
Curtain rods: Room Essentials Square Café Drapery Rod 28″-48″; nickel; Target $13.39/each (2) (no longer available)
Dresser: Storkcraft – Beatrice 5 Drawer Chest; espresso; Walmart $199.00
Lamp: Bran 12″ base & Jara 9″ shade; clear & white; Ikea $18.99 (base) & $9.99 (shade)
Owl: Unfinished plaster cast; Michael’s; 2 coats of light blue spray paint & 1 coat of clear coat finish; $10.00 total (estimate)
Glass jars: ACMoore $16.99
Crib: Graco Freeport 4-in-1 Convertible Classic Crib; espresso; Walmart $139.00
Bedding: Sweet Jojo Designs Blue & Green Argyle 9 Piece Crib Bedding Set; Overstock.com $169.99
Drawer dividers: Skubb box 5 3/8″ x 2″ x 21 5/8″; IKEA $7.99/4 pack (2) (additional pack left over from Sophia’s room)
Name Art: ACMoore; 12″ MDF letters; white; $3.99/each (4); Scrapbook paper $1.99/each (4); Mod podge; $20.00 total (estimate)
Calvin & Hobbes Art: Prints found online $3.99/each (2); Home Collection matted for 8″ x 10″ photo; black; ACMoore $19.99/each (on sale buy one get one free)
*Not pictured: changing table & changing pad; canvas bins in white for changing table storage; all recycled from Sophia’s room
Kid-less and Fancy Free
Posted by Jennifer on April 10, 2013 | 3 Comments
Wheee!!! Today is Wednesday #3 that I have been kid-free for the entire day. It has also been by far the best of those three Wednesdays.
I’m thoroughly enjoying my time off and getting to spend it with Sophia every day. We’ve fallen into a nice little routine and I haven’t had crazy expectations that we must do ALL THE THINGS before Jack arrives. We take it one day at a time.
With that said though it’s tough work keeping up after an almost two year old (seriously how did that happen?). Her attention span is still severely limited and she must constantly be on the go which means I must be right behind her. I was smart enough to schedule my weekly OB appointments for early in the morning midweek. This allows me to drop Sophia off at our sitter for the whole day. Wednesdays are when the majority of the kids our sitter watches are in attendance so Sophia gets to see all her friends and I get a nice little reprieve before finishing out the week.
The last two Wednesdays I’ve been running errands and doing things around the house which of course needed to be done. Today though was seriously all about me and it felt awesome to be just a little selfish. I treated myself to some McDonald’s breakfast before my doctor’s appointment (screw the weight gain at this point) and then came home and did some blogging work, had an awesome lunch (garlic cheese on English muffins with cucumbers is fabulous…just putting it out there) and then watched The Hunger Games while eating all the Krackel minis out of the Easter candy bag. The only thing I didn’t get to was a nap but I think I’ll survive.
(How could I not enjoy myself with the windows open & a warm breeze blowing?)
The best part about this whole day though? I feel zero guilt about it. Zip. Zilch. Nada. Because let’s be real…when is this going to happen again once Jack arrives?
A Baby Boy’s Nursery
Posted by Jennifer on April 8, 2013 | 10 Comments
I’m not going to lie…I had a very difficult time decorating this room. As soon as the ultrasound tech confirmed he was in fact a he my brain just went blank. I grew up with a little sister and even though we were tomboys and played with the neighborhood boys as much as we played with the girls I still feel like boys are a complete mystery. I didn’t want his room to be a mishmash of clichés (sports or trucks or dinosaurs). There’s nothing wrong with any of those things but I want him to grow into the room and making it his own as much as Sophia has put her own stamp on her room.
Here’s what I came up with and yes at the very bottom I’ll reveal his name just like I did with Sophia’s name. I’ll also come back in another post and tell you where I found all the pieces and breakdown the total cost of the room. Let’s do this!
DRUM ROLL PLEASE…
His full name is Jack Declan.
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