We Survived! Cole's First Month

As hard as it is to believe, Cole's first month is in the (baby) books, and I'm happy to report we're all still standing. Ok, maybe more like leaning... but definitely not down-and-out.

We've had some rough days/nights, but our first month with Cole was much easier than our first month with Brady. I wish I could say that it's because Cole is an easier baby, but that's not necessarily the case. Maybe it felt easier because we had a lot of help. Or because breastfeeding is going a little better the second time 'round. But overall, I chalk up our "success" to not being first-time parents anymore. No offense to our 3.5 years ago-selves, but we had no idea what to do/expect when Brady was born. Now that we have confidence in our ability to keep our offspring alive, it sure makes the journey a lot less stressful.

Don't take that to mean we are pros now, because we are re-learning so many things. It's been three-and-a-half years since we were at this rodeo! Over time, a person tends to forget (block out?) all the unpleasantries when it comes to taking care of a newborn... like the thousands of diaper changes in a single day (and don't forget the joy of being peed and/or pooped on!) And what's with the unexplainable fussing? The ear-piercing crying? And the grunting at all hours of the night? Oh, the grunting!! Or my personal favorite, choosing between showering, eating or sleeping. Heaven forbid I am clean, full and rested all in the SAME DAY!

Besides floating through each day, without any kind of routine (sheer madness for a Mama with OCD), I honestly think the "hardest" part so far has been trying to fill in the moments when he's not sleeping, crying, fussing, grunting or getting his diaper changed. I forgot how difficult it is to entertain a newborn! It's nice that Cole's able to follow us with his eyes now, and I am overjoyed with every smile he gives me, but this not-old-enough-to-play-with-toys stage is really a tough one. I feel like he looks at me like, "well, do something really entertaining to hold my attention or I'm going to cry/poop/fuss/grunt!!", but nothing comes to mind. So I basically just make high pitched sounds or move him from one apparatus to another, until he gets tired enough to sleep. For 15 minutes.

But he sure is cute, and that alone gets me through each day. My heart could not be any fuller than it is right now! Happy One Month to our little Cole Bear. You are an amazing addition to our family.

I was going to post all his 1 Month stats, but his doctor's appointment isn't until Wed., so I'll just wait to post them then. Matt thinks he's tipping the scales at 11 lbs already. I'm guessing he's closer to 10 lbs. 5 oz. Check back in a couple of days to see who's right!

Cole's First Bath

I know what you're thinking... Cole is almost a month old and you're just giving him his first bath?! No, no, sillies. I just got my first "free" moment to catch up on my posts!

For the record, it took 17 days for Cole's umbilical cord to fall off. We were beginning to think that he was going to go to Prom with that nasty little thing! I honestly cannot believe that I left it alone for that long; I am such a picker and it was screaming "do it! do it!"at me every time I changed him. But I was good, and as soon as that shriveled little raisin fell off, it was straight to the sink!

Unlike his big brother, who screamed and cried through his first (and second, and third...) bath, Cole very much enjoyed his first time in the "tub". Perhaps because his "tub" is the comfiest looking thing ever! In fact, I'd like to take a bath in it myself. It's called a Blooming Bath, and I knew I had to get it the moment I saw someone blog about it months ago.

Doesn't it look dreamy??

"Cover my goods, Dad!"

"Hi Internet peeps!" 

Brady helping out

I look forward to the first time we can put both boys in the bath together, but until then, I think little CJ will be very happy in his private flower :)

Introducing Cole Joseph

I can't believe Cole is almost 2 weeks old and I'm just getting this "announcement" up on the blog. When Brady was born, I had his welcome post up within 24 hours! They must have had better drugs at Northwestern :)

Without further ado... Matt, Brady and I are proud to introduce the newest member of our family!

We have been having a wonderful time these past two weeks getting to know our little man, as well as enjoying the company of many out of town guests. We couldn't have made it through the 4 days in the hospital without the help of my brother and parents watching Brady, and the first days at home were made easier thanks to my mother and father-in-law.

We appreciate all the calls and notes of congratulations! I'm sorry if I haven't gotten back to everyone but we've been very busy... and sleep deprived... I promise to be in touch soon!

It may be awhile before I can post another update, so until I log on again, here are a few photos from the first few days of Cole's life. The rest can be found here. Disclaimer: Some photos are of a "graphic" nature (ie, naked baby).

Love at first sight!

Brothers!

Our first photo as a family of four!

So alert already!

Brady loves giving Cole lots of kisses!

If you're interested in hearing the details of Cole's arrival, I am going to be posting his "Birth Story" on Mama Dish sometime this week, so check over there when you get a chance!

Full Term +5, Part Deux

How sad is it that about 3.5 years ago I wrote my first post titled "Full Term +5", and here I am doing it again? Argh.

Yes people, I'm still pregnant. I get it... I'm late for everything and so are my kids, ha ha ha. I love irony as much as the next gal, but c'mon, can the joke be over now?! What if I promise to never be late for anything ever again? Now THAT'S funny!


Here's a quick update:


We had our 40 week appointment on Wed. afternoon and unfortunately, I still hadn't made any real *progress*. That basically means no dilating or contractions, but I was at least starting to soften. I didn't get an ultrasound, but Dr. assured me baby is still "head down"... though he is up really high. Thankfully, he doesn't appear to be in that head-to-hip/oblique position like I feared. Phew! I am officially retiring from my job as self-diagnosing internet doctor.


On the bright side-- there were two really good pieces of information that came out of the appointment-- 1) I actually LOST a half a pound (whoo hoo!) and 2) I was able to reschedule my c-section from 7/23 at 5pm to 7/24 at 7:30am. It doesn't necessarily give us that much more time to go into labor on our own (although every hour counts!), but 7:30am is a way better time to have a major surgery, in my opinion! Who wants to go an entire day, entertaining family, caring for a 3 year old and not eating for 8 hours BEFORE going into a c-section? A c-section you really, really don't want to have? Not this girl. I am very happy with the change.


My brother arrived on Tuesday night and it's been nice to have the help/distraction/peace of mind. It's been really great for Brady too, because if it was just him and I, we'd be spending most of our day on the couch watching movies. But instead, he's able to go to the park to play baseball and frisbee, ride his bike, go for walks (ok, that part I do) etc. with Uncle Mike. Every day he keeps saying, "isn't it so much fun to have Uncle Mike here?" He is really going to go through a rough time when family is all gone in August :(


My parents arrive tomorrow morning, so things are about to get a little more hectic around here. While I know everyone is here to "help" there is still that feeling like you need to entertain everyone, which I don't really have the energy to do. On the flip side, it's no fun to sit around here by yourself while everyone else is off doing fun stuff/playing. We'll just take it one day at a time, I guess!


As I mentioned, our c-section is scheduled for the morning of 7/24, so the pregnancy is going to come to an end and our baby will be here very soon... one way or another. I'll try to get in another update in the next day or so; hopefully it will be about his (own) arrival!


Thanks to everyone for your thoughts, prayers, interest & well wishes. We can't wait to share details of our little man soon!

xo

Full Term + 2

"Full Term + 2". A pregnancy term I am *uncomfortably* familiar with. Unfortunately, I've even been acquainted with Full Term + 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 & 8, as well... but I hope and pray that we do NOT get that far in the count this time. Full Term + 8 is 7/23, and the date my c-section is currently scheduled for.

Two days past due, and honestly, I am a bit surprised. I am obviously no medical professional, but in my heart I always figured that I never progressed into labor with Brady because he was breech. It seemed to make "sense" that one would only dilate, efface, etc. if the baby's head was in, or at least somewhere near, the canal. I've been told that this baby has been head down all of my third trimester (confirmed again last week via ultrasound), so I had hoped that we'd be moving along "as nature intended" and that I'd be dilated (or at least feeling more contractions) by now.

As of my 39 week appointment last Tuesday, nothing is happening. No dilating, effacing... nothing. "Closed shut" is the official term my wonderful doctor prefers to use, and it feels awful to hear. I want nothing more than a little reassurance that my body is with my heart in its desire to succeed with this VBAC. It definitely is making me start to wonder-- what is wrong with my body?! Why can't I "have" babies?

Some days, I feel like I am so close. I get little bits of encouragement that tell me that maybe labor is just a step away. I walk long distances every day (sometimes twice!) and I swear the baby moves lower and lower, and afterwards I have that crampy feeling. Is this the beginning?, I wonder. Then I catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror and he's still high up, or I get heartburn and/or kicks in my ribs, and can't help but feel defeated.

And lately, I've also started to feel like his head in actually stuck above my right hip bone. I thought nothing of it really, until I "Google-searched" it (damn Internet!), then I started to worry that he's in what's called oblique position. Technically "head down", but not in a real engaged position for labor. If he is oblique, I think there is still a possibility that he could slip into the canal, but from what I read there is also the possibility that I will need a c-section after all. Awesome.

Anyone with real-life experience care to weigh in??

All this back-and-forth, waiting, worrying, has caused me to have some serious insomnia, which doesn't help matters at all. And I know what you're thinking... GET OFF THE INTERNET! It's funny how you can get online "just to check Facebook" and end up in tears 5 minutes later thinking you have to give up your dream of a vaginal delivery because you do one stupid search that leads you down a rabbit hole. But I just wanted to find a solution, that's all!

Anyway, that's what's going on here. My brother arrives late tonight which is a huge relief, because one way or another, at least I now have the comfort of knowing that Brady will be taken care of and won't have to be uprooted from his life too much. I have my 40 week appt. tomorrow (technically 40 week/3 day) so I hope to have more answers at that time. Trouble is, my Dr. isn't truly supportive of the VBAC in the first place, so I feel like he'll jump at the chance to c-section me/us. Fingers crossed I can get an objective opinion.

I'll keep everyone posted...

InstaFriday- This Week in Instagram Photos

I've been wanting to participate in the InstaFriday link up on Life. Rearranged for months, but to be honest, I really don't take that many photos with my phone. When I realized on Wed. that I had already taken several, I decided this would be a good week to join the link up! So I've been holding the pictures in my phone... til now. (If you follow me on Instagram, I apologize because you just saw all of them pop up in my feed about 20 mins ago!)

1. I don't think I'll ever get used to seeing this. He's growing up too fast!

2. My smiley guys making breakfast. To my dismay, it was not for me.

3. God's gift to pregnant women everywhere.

4. Brady has been bringing me "breakfast in bed" the last few days. I just wish it wasn't a small bag of almonds... every day.

5. Bubba and I sharing a smoothie at Posh Bagel after a nice morning walk. Might be the last time we can do this for awhile!

6. Matt came up with a BRILLIANT idea to get Brady interested in learning! This is the Letter Parking Lot. I have never heard Brady so excited to "practice his letters". Way to go Dad!

7. This is what 39 weeks, 3 days pregnant looks like. On me.

39 Week "Bumpdate"

I often participate in Toddle Along Tuesdays on Growing Up Geeky, but recently she started a link up for prego Mamas to share their weekly "bumpdates". I am obviously at the end of my pregnancy (let's hope this is my first & last "bumpdate"), but I still thought it would be fun to share my stats and link up.

She follows the same format on her blog every week, so I just thought I would follow suit...

How far along? 39 weeks, 2 days

Weight gain/loss: Ugh, really? I have maintained a weight of exactly 150 lbs for the last 3 weeks (yay me!), which was more or less where I was when I "delivered" Brady. I started this pregnancy out about 2.5 lbs heavier than I was with B, so my total weight gain has been 34 lbs to date (3 lbs less than with Brady). So technically, I've met my "goal" of gaining less than pregnancy #1. Hey, every lb counts!!

Feeling: Overall I feel okay. I little tired and achey some days. Mostly just anxious for him to come before 7/23, because that's when my c-section is scheduled and I really don't want to have one!

Maternity clothes? I absolutely hate maternity clothes. Thankfully I don't have to go to an office, so I usually just wear (non-maternity) yoga pants and maternity t-shirts from Gap or Target. I did buy one pair of jean capris from Pea and the Pod (on sale!) that I actually like, so I wear those quite a bit too. It has been pretty warm here, so I wish I could wear more shorts or dresses, but my varicose veins don't really allow me to do so :( I really hope they go away some after the baby is born.

Sleep: I am a night owl and so is baby. He is usually active between 11p-12a, so I can't fall sleep until he slows down. Between the late bedtime and the trips to the bathroom every 2 hours, I'm averaging about 5 hours of sleep every night. Ugh.

Food cravings: Sweets. Cereal. Milk.

Movement? Lots of moving still, which really hurts because he is out of room. It's way different this time 'round, because I can actually feel his feet in my ribs. Brady was breech, so I never got that with him. It's amazing (and somewhat nauseating) to feel and SEE his little heels stick out of skin. I am also getting a lot of pressure "down there" and on my hips as he starts to descend. Lots of Braxton Hicks, but no "real" contractions (I don't think).

What I miss? Wine. Oh how I want a glass (or two!) of wine.

Best moment this week: Making huge progress on the nursery and getting other odds and ends tied up. I know we'll never be "ready" for his arrival, but I feel like we are much, much closer than we were one week ago.

What I'm looking forward to:  Meeting our baby! Due date is only 5 days away, but the real finish line is the 7/23 c-section appointment, as far as I'm concerned. I really, really hope and pray that he comes on his own before then. Now that I know he is head down and there aren't any other extenuating circumstances, I really do not want an unnecessary surgery.

Next Appointment: In 30 minutes! I hope we get some good news (as of last week, I had not dilated). Next appt. is Wed. (7/18). Full term +3. Hopefully we won't be there!

Milestones: Baby is fully developed and is just adding ounces and shedding the vernix.