Friday, October 29, 2010

Book Review Time!

Alright, it's time for a baby break! I finished up these books in the last month of pregnancy. I really thought my book reading would be over once Ethan got here, but suprisingly I get a lot of reading done while pumping. Nothing like multi-tasking!

The Heartmender

This book and the next book I'm going to review were recommended to me by my stepfather. They aren't books I would typically pick up, but I have to admit that they weren't too bad and I'm glad I was exposed to something a little out of the ordinary for me.

Andy Andrews is an Orange Beach, AL native which happens to be where my mom and step dad's condo is located and where both these books are set to take place in. I have to say that this book was my favorite of the two. I believe it was a little more well written and is a little bit about WWII which happens to be a favorite subject of mine.

It is a story about second chances and learning to let go of hate and forgive. It's a pretty fast and easy read and it's definitly one that keeps your attention. It starts off with a litlte bit of a mystery when the author of the book finds a German sub-pack with Nazi uniform buttons and pictures in it. He then goes on the search to figure out just who the man is in the picture and the story of how it got there. I can't reveal too much else, because I think it would spoil the read so I'll let you go from there.




The Noticer

I would classify this book more as a self help book in story form. The main character, Jones, appears in people's lives around the small town of Orange Beach and seems to always provide the right advice at the right time. I felt like the book was a little too simplistic and spelled out for my taste, but I did benefit from some of the lessons the old man had to share. Again it's another short one at about 150 pages and is an easy read as well.




The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

I have to admit that I started this book a long time ago and then set it aside and decided to read baby material instead. After reading some other bloggers reviews of it though, I decided to try to tackle it again and I am so glad I did.

It is a little tough to make it through the beginning of the book. I think my problem was there were so many characters introduced with odd names and odd locations that really didn't seem to tie in together. However, they do all come togther pretty quickly after the first couple of chapters so just push through. It's well worth it. It's an awesome crime/mystery book and I cannot wait to read the next two books in the series.



Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Just a Few Things I've learned

Who knew it was possible to survive on such little sleep? I believe the sleep deprivation has finally taken a toll on me this week. Until now I have been running on some crazy fumes. Thankfully my mom saved me this afternoon from a mild meltdown by letting me take a glorious 2 hour nap and I feel completely back in action. Bonus is that she is coming to stay tomorrow night and is going to let me get even more sleep.......ahhh I will be a new woman!!!

I've been slacking on documenting all the juicy details of the new mom life so I'd like to remedy that by making a list of all the things I've learned in these past few weeks.

  1. Going jean shopping 3 weeks postpartum is pure torture.
  2. Trying on shapewear to suck in all the extra fatness should simply be illegal! I seriously think I almost injured myself......for real.
  3. Diaper rash is baby and mommy's worst enemy right now...especially since every little fart produces some kind of poo. We are going through diapers like nobody's business at this point and unfortunately with diaper rash cream you have to use the disposables.
  4. Pumping makes me feel like a dairy cow, but I'm in love with the shorter process and the control freak in me is enjoying know exactly how much I'm feeding my baby.
  5. I'm torn on the pacifier...I love that it calms him down, I hate that I have to get up every 10 minutes to put it back in his mouth.
  6. Sending thank you notes to people you thanked in person is seeming a bit silly to me at the moment. I'm all about some Emily Post etiquette, but with a newborn....time is precious and I'm doubting my notes are making much sense these days.
  7. I've realized that an external hard drive is going to be a must have gift for this Christmas....the amount of photos being taken is purely ridiculous.
  8. I'm totally getting dry cracked hands from all the bottle washing I've been doing lately - and seriously is it necessary to sanitize them in the dishwasher EVERY single day...seems a bit much.
  9. I think Ethan has me on his own diet plan. It never fails when I sit down to eat....the screaming begins.
  10. It's crazy how much planning it takes to leave the house now. Time to feed, pack him in the car and time to go! The countdown begins as soon as you pick up the bottle!

Overall everyone is still adjusting. I think everyone will be much happier if we can just make it to week 5 and drop the 2AM feeding. The extra sleep will do wonders I think.

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Breastfeeding Woes

I must admit, Ethan is wonderful as far as breastfeeding goes...my body on the other hand doesn't seem to be co-operating.

Yesterday I decided to introduce bottles. Ethan is only two weeks old and in all fairness my milk only came in about a week ago. I'm aware of the nipple confusion thing and that they recommend to not introduce bottles until 4 weeks, but I'm really okay with doing bottles solely so I decided to go ahead.

Ethan had been getting very fussy after the 4:00 feeding and would continue to be fussy until about the 12AM feeding. Let's just say the sleep deprivation was starting to take a toll and something needed to be done. Everything seemed fine, besides the fact that he still appeared to be hungry so I decided to test how much I was actually producing and see if that was the problem.

The first time I gave him the bottle I almost teared up a little. He took it then turned back to me as if saying "I liked the other way better", but after the first one, he's been okay with it. I started keeping track of my production around 4 yesterday and discovered that I was in fact producing less than 2oz during the late afternoon feedings. The rest of the feedings I was maintaining at 2oz if not a little more.

So I called the lactation department at the hospital and they have recommended that I start taking an herbal supplement called Fenugreek along with a prescription drug called Reglan. I'm hoping that this will solve my milk production problems so everyone can be a little happier. Until then they recommended that I supplement with formula on the two feedings I'm a little short on. I'm not so keen on that, but there's no reason for Ethan to be hungry.

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

All Things Icky

This past week I have experienced all kinds of baby liquids. In our newborn session he peed at least 5 times. All over me, the photographer, the chair, the sheep skin rug...you name it...it's got baby pee on it. Let's just say, naked baby spells trouble! Can't wait to get the pictures back though - I'm sure they will be uber cute and worth all the extra cleaning.


I have also been pooped on, thanks to my lovely husbands suggestion that he just need to "air out" for a bit. Right....


The worst has been the projectile vomit in the face. Yum...nothing like half curdled milk coming within mere inches of going inside your mouth.


Speaking of vomit...we've been doing that a lot more lately and I'm not really sure what's up with that. I'm thinking that he's taking in too much breast milk too fast. I'm going to try burping him more in between and hopefully that will take care of the problem.


Who knew both Ethan and I would be going through 3 outfits a day. Unfortunately I don't have near as many clothing options as he does at this point. Laundry overload for sure!

Saturday, October 16, 2010

Ethan's Birth Story

I started out with high hopes that Ethan would make his appearance on his own, but quickly realized that he loved his warm uterine home too much to leave it without some help. We scheduled the induction for Tuesday and got the call Monday evening around 8pm to come in the next morning at 5am to start the process.

I had already sent Michael out for Panera bagels to eat before we left, but they sadly told me over the phone that I couldn't eat or drink anything after midnight. So instead I ate breakfast at 11:30pm because I knew the next day would be a long one and I needed all the energy I could muster.

I showered and Michael got everything into the car and we were in bed by midnight. Around 1:30am I woke up to my stomach being hard as a rock on the right side. I tried several positions, but could never get comfortable. At first I thought maybe it was a contraction, but it never ended. I later found out that he had just balled up all on one side. It happened to be pretty chilly in our room that night so I blame it on the cold. I finally got back to sleep around 3:30 only to wake up at 4 to get ready to leave for the hospital.

I was amazingly calm that morning. I think I had gotten all my nerves out the day before so I was pretty relaxed when we arrived. We filled out our paperwork, were shown to our room, I got in the lovely gown, and they started the pitocin and just like that things were underway.

We had forewarned everyone that it was probably going to be a long day. When I arrived I was fully effaced but still only 1.5cm dilated with a pretty firm cervix. I asked my mom to come around 9 and told everyone else to take their time. No reason to hurry up and wait. My doctor came in around 10:30AM and broke my water and hooked up several apparatuses inside of me (who knew there were so many places to hook things to in there??) Let's just say it wasn't a fun process considering I was only at about 2cm and still felt like my cervix was in my throat. FYI for all expectant mothers out there...use the bathroom before they break your water. Walking over to the chair with the plastic bucket to pee with all kinds of liquids and wires coming out of you is really not fun.

The painful contractions began almost immediately. At this point my pitcion was up to an 11 out of 20 and they were coming about a minute apart and felt insanely long. I went unmedicated for about two hours during which all the family showed up and I could barely talk to them. The contractions along with an empty stomach made for a very nauseous situation and just as I threw up the nurse thankfully walked in to tell me the anesthesiologist was on her way.

The epidural was not nearly as bad as I thought it was going to be, in fact the birth process as a whole was much less traumatizing than I had made it out to be in my head. I barely felt a prick and my back was numb and she went about her business in setting up the epidural. The only weird feeling was her putting the tube down my back. It seriously felt like a car jack or something. Not painful - just weird. A couple minutes later - I was all back to smiles.

Around 2PM I was checked again and at a 4...still going slow. The next check was at 5 and I was at 9cm and about ready for action. They came back 30 minutes later and I was fully dilated and ready to push. The doctor informed me that his head was still not as far down as he liked but was willing to let me push and see where that would go.


An hour later, as I was starting to give up hope the nurse informed me that she could see his head. I even let Michael look after swearing I wanted him to not see any of that. At that point though he'd seen enough gross stuff that I figured it didn't matter anymore. Thankfully he reported that Ethan had dark hair and I doubled my pushing efforts. Half an hour later though my doctor had a coming to Jesus talk with me. It just wasn't happening. The only thing coming down was the swelling of his head and he was afraid if I pushed much longer that I would just get him more stuck in my pelvis and make him difficult to get out even via C-Section.

I cried of course. The last thing I wanted was a C-Section, but I knew he was right and I was just thankful that he let me try it my way. He informed me that I could still have the 4 children I wanted and that he would even make the cuts to where I could try a vaginal birth the next time if the stars aligned. His information calmed my worries somewhat, but I was full of nerves again and shaking like nobodies business. At 7:03 they wheeled me into the OR and I quickly asked the anesthesiologist for some nausea medicine and just like that the shaking and nervous stomach came to a halt.

I didn't feel a thing during the delivery. A lot of people say they feel pressure, but all I felt was a weight lifted off when they delivered Ethan at 7:20. I heard his screams and felt relieved. They cleaned him up and finally brought him over for me to see him.


It was an amazing feeling but I really just wanted to get my hands on him and couldn't. I told Michael I was fine and to go with Ethan so he could capture every moment. I felt like I missed out on some of the excitement while they were sewing me up. Michael reported that he pooped 3 times and peed all over the nurses.


I was finally wheeled back into my room where I deliriously talked to my parents and sadly found out that I couldn't eat anything until the next day. I had been dreaming of Carrabbas through the whole birth! Thankfully I talked the nurse into some chicken broth and that had to tide me over till 11AM the next morning.

I finally got to hold my baby at 10:30PM. The nurse came in with him and was talking to him and loving on him while she was trying to explain how to breastfeed. I had the urge to scream "GIVE ME MY BABY!". All was well though and she was a really sweet person so I'm glad I controlled myself. He was perfect in every way and even though I knew nothing about him, I did love him at first sight.

He latched on perfectly and breastfeeding was suddenly not as weird as I thought it was going to be. In fact it was pretty natural. I do contribute a lot of that feeling to the fact that Ethan had no problems getting latched on and doing what he was supposed to do. And just like that I was a mom.

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Friday, October 15, 2010

My First Week with Ethan


I can't believe that 10 days ago I went from this....


to this....a mommy!

This first week has been a whirlwind and I can't wait to get a little bit more time to write up his birth story before I start forgetting things. I never knew just how I would react to having a baby since I have never been a baby person, but I have to admit that things have just come very naturally to me and I am beyond thankful for that.
 
The first night home wasn't the easiest. We quickly learned that infant gas medicine is a must have. We've been peed on countless times and I quickly learned that while giving a spot bath, you should always have a diaper on the baby and to definitely not lay him on a nice white towel.


Michael has been an amazing husband and father. He took excellent care of me in the hospital...let's just say giving birth isn't pretty! He's an expert swaddler and has been helpful at night even though he's the one that has to get up and go to work in the mornings.


Little Ethan has had tons of visitors who have thankfully stocked our kitchen full of food. We are hoping for a pretty laid back weekend though so we can find our new normal, just soak it all in and enjoy.


Hopefully I will be getting back into the rhythm of things soon. There is so much to share and I don't want to forget a minute of it.

Saturday, October 9, 2010

New Arrival

Ethan Michael Sager



Born: October 5, 2010
Time: 7:20PM
Weight: 8lbs 7oz.
Length: 20.5 inches


Everyone is home and doing well. Just trying to adjust to a whole new life. I can't wait to update everyone on the birth story and the new love of my life when I get the chance. Isn't he beautiful? I'm in love.

Monday, October 4, 2010

It's Official....I'm Going to Go Crazy!

I've cleaned the house a million times.....still I'm unsatisfied, it needs a full on spring cleaning sessions, but really....impossible with my current size.

Several dinners are ready to go in the freezer, but the fridge and pantry are empty. I should probably go to the store, but really - what's the point...everything might be spoiled or well on it's way by the time we get back.

All the laundry has been completed - minus some folding....I hate folding.

I've caught up on all my shows and the DVR has been cleared out to make room for all the ones I'm going to continue to miss with our upcoming arrival.

I really think my son might be as directionally challenged as I am because it seems like he wants to escape out my belly button or possibly even the right side of my body. (Head down boy! And get small!)

I've had 10 billion phone calls today. Seriously people - he's not going to come on his own. You and I both are going to have to wait until tomorrow.

It's freaking cold outside and my maternity wear is strictly summer and my husband thinks it's cute to remind me to zip up my normal sized jacket.

Is it too early to pack up all the maternity clothes??? Yeah I thought so.

I've never been so nervous/excited in my life although I have to admit that I'm mostly nervous.

What does one eat before being induced...or do you eat???

I really need to figure out how to work the camcorder (do people still call it that???)

Finally I'm really hoping this is the last post with no baby and no pictures.

Friday, October 1, 2010

We Have A Plan!

Today I was a huge ball of nerves/excitement since at our last appointment there was talk of a possible induction today. Baby boy passed all his ultrasound tests though and has yet to be evicted. He is a whopping 8lbs and 7ozs at this point (give or take a pound they said - hopefully we are on the lesser side for my sake) and still moving around with plenty of fluid and doing his breathing exercises. All good things.

As for me, I am now 80% - 90% effaced and about 1cm dilated. We are still struggling with the "firm" cervix issue. We are hoping that baby boy will be moving down the chute sometime soon to soften that up. If not we might still be looking at a c-section due to an extra large head. He better have lots of smarts in that huge head and get some college scholarships to make up for that one (just kidding - kind of).

So now we are waiting for him to possibly make an appearance on his own. If not we are going to be induced on Tuesday. I feel much better. I'm somewhat making progress and we are getting to give him time to do his own thing.

Now I just need to find things to do to get my mind off all this! I think I'm going a little crazy!
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