Thursday, May 7, 2009
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
The saddest day ever...
Rowan is 15 weeks old today and it is his first day with Melyssa, our nanny. I've been a basket case for over 24 hours now, since the anticipation of leaving him was too much to cope with. However, things went as smoothly as they could go this morning when I left. Rowan was in a great mood and I left him with George, which I think was a lot better for me than leaving him with the nanny. I think George can handle leaving him with Melyssa better than I can right now. Don't get me wrong, I like Melyssa a lot and my brain knows that she is a wonderfully competent and compassionate person. The horrible feeling of dread and panic comes from some place much deeper and much, much less rational. This has to get better. Everyone says it does but it's hard to believe them right now. My boss came into my office today and asked how I was holding up. In a failed attempt not to cry in front of her, I said I was OK. She said "Remember, he won't remember this. It's much harder on you than it is on him right now." That makes me feel a little better. I'm still getting out of here early. Must cuddle with my baby!
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Where to find pictures of Rowan...
Check out my Picasa web album for Rowan pics. I update it every couple of weeks so check back for new shots!
I Heart Cloth Diapers
No, really. And I'm not usually so granola-birkenstock, despite living in Seattle, but I highly recommend cloth diapers. They have failed us much much less than the disposables, throwing them in the wash is not a problem, and we have not even made our way through one box of disposables from Costco in the 11 weeks Rowan has been on the outside. Yay for not having to buy a lot of diapers (we use disposables at night because he doesn't feel wet in them so he sleeps longer). OK, that's today's soapbox. Go cloth diapers!
Monday, February 23, 2009
New Discoveries
OK. I'm discovering that it's very difficult to keep up with this blog. Rowan will be 5 whole weeks tomorrow. Wow, where does the time go. I can't believe that I'm nearly halfway through my maternity leave :( Anyway, in these last few weeks I've made some new discoveries about life as a mommy.
Breastfeeding is HARD! And sometimes painful. And always boring. This is something that I had not anticipated. We are both getting better at it, and I hear that it's worth sticking it out through the tough first weeks. We'll see about that :)
Showers (when I can catch one) have taken on a new level of awesomeness. I used to be a strictly utilitarian showerer- in and out quick. Now I stand in the steamy hot water for as long as I as can before the boy needs to eat again.
Baby wipes are extremely versatile. Not just for baby bums. Also for baby pukes all over the floor (or couch), for "washing" hands when baby is having a meltdown and needs to eat NOW, or for cleaning up whatever the baby happens to hit with his unexpected pee fountain (like the changing pad, fireplace, or his face).
And as for one of Rowan's new discoveries...he's just figured out how to smile. It's heart melting. I'll get a picture or video of it soon, but he opens his mouth as wide as he possible can and turns up the corners of his lips. At first I though he was hungry and kept shoving a boob or bottle in it, but he wasn't interested in eating. He just opened his mouth wider as if he was amused by my misguided efforts.
Breastfeeding is HARD! And sometimes painful. And always boring. This is something that I had not anticipated. We are both getting better at it, and I hear that it's worth sticking it out through the tough first weeks. We'll see about that :)
Showers (when I can catch one) have taken on a new level of awesomeness. I used to be a strictly utilitarian showerer- in and out quick. Now I stand in the steamy hot water for as long as I as can before the boy needs to eat again.
Baby wipes are extremely versatile. Not just for baby bums. Also for baby pukes all over the floor (or couch), for "washing" hands when baby is having a meltdown and needs to eat NOW, or for cleaning up whatever the baby happens to hit with his unexpected pee fountain (like the changing pad, fireplace, or his face).
And as for one of Rowan's new discoveries...he's just figured out how to smile. It's heart melting. I'll get a picture or video of it soon, but he opens his mouth as wide as he possible can and turns up the corners of his lips. At first I though he was hungry and kept shoving a boob or bottle in it, but he wasn't interested in eating. He just opened his mouth wider as if he was amused by my misguided efforts.
Friday, February 6, 2009
2+ weeks already?
Wow, has it already been over 2 weeks? We've settled into a routine of sorts with feeding, changing, and sleeping with Rowan. He's doing well, though the pediatrician today said that he need to eat more & bulk up more. So we're increasing his milk intake and supplementing with some pumped milk to ensure supply stays high.
His head, hands, and feet are growing. He's still kind of scrawny in the body, though. We're going to make sure that changes. Bulk up, kiddo!
His head, hands, and feet are growing. He's still kind of scrawny in the body, though. We're going to make sure that changes. Bulk up, kiddo!
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
1 week
It's hard to believe Rowan is over 1 week old! His feeding habits have gotten a lot better (breastfeeding is non-trivial), he's already trying to pick his head up (with moderate coordinated success), and he's rolling over on his side. At this rate he'll be driving by 3.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Rowan's Grand Entrance
Tomorrow Rowan will be a week old, and I'm just now getting around to writing about labor and delivery. We went into the hospital at 8am on Monday, January 19th for an induction due to my high blood pressure. We had high hopes for a fast labor, since I was already 4cm. dilated. We should not have gotten our hopes up. Twenty-seven hours later, Rowan had arrived.
I didn't start actual active labor until 8:30 on Monday evening, and the first 3 hours went very smoothly. I hurt. A lot. But I was making good progress and at the end of 3 hours the doc said that I was entering the "transition" phase and would be pushing soon. Transition is the most intense and painful part of labor, but it tends to be the shortest. I was so glad to have had the extraordinary support of George and my doula Flora and was continuing labor without pain medications. And hour of transition came and went and I seemed to have stopped progressing. Two more hours came and went and I was DONE with the pain. I was stuck at 8cm. dilated, so at 2:30 am I went for the epidural. It was the best thing ever! I think I may have told the anesthesiologist that I loved him. Within minutes I was feeling a lot better and in half an hour I couldn't feel anything below my waist. Yay!
We all slept for about 3 hours and then it was time to start pushing! The doc said that I was fully dilated and we went for it. I pushed for 2 hours with no progress. In fact, I un-dilated (didn't know that was possible) to 9cm. and the baby's heart rate began to drop with each push. They stopped the pushing and knocked down the pitocin to give the baby a chance to recover a bit. A couple of hours later I had still not fully dilated and my contractions had almost disappeared. The doctor gave me the option of pushing for 2 more hours and if that didn't work, we would have to do a c-section.
The possibility of a c-section terrified me, but I the idea of pushing for 2 more hours and still having to do a c-section scared me even more. So I decided that since I had been resting, that we should just go ahead and do the surgery. I was so ready to meet my little guy and there was a bit of relief to know that the end was in site.
The rest of the delivery went so fast. At 10:30am on Tuesday the 20th they ordered the c-section. At 11:00 I was in the OR being prepped. It was the most well orchastrated set up I've ever seen. There were about 10 people buzzing around me, hooking me up to things, strapping my arms down (yes, that was alarming, but aparently they don't want you accidentally contaminating the open wound), and setting things up for the doctor. George says that at 11:25 they started cutting and at 11:30 Rowan was born. It was amazing to hear his cry, and everyone was relieved. By noon I was patched up and back in my hosptial room with my little baby boy.
Once they got in there to get him out, they discovered that he had the cord wrapped around his neck twice, and that there was no way he would have come out the other way. That's why his heart rate was dropping when I pushed. My doctor says that they call them "bungie babies" because everytime I would get him into the birth canal, the cord would snap him back up :)
The whole process was pretty amazing, and I'm happy with all the decisions we made along the way. We are so thrilled to have Rowan and at this point it's hard to remember life before him. There have been many comments about the date of his arrival, and I agree that it's an excellent birthday. Many have said that Rowan just couldn't bring himslef to enter a world where George W. Bush was president and I couldn't agree more. Welcome Rowan!
I didn't start actual active labor until 8:30 on Monday evening, and the first 3 hours went very smoothly. I hurt. A lot. But I was making good progress and at the end of 3 hours the doc said that I was entering the "transition" phase and would be pushing soon. Transition is the most intense and painful part of labor, but it tends to be the shortest. I was so glad to have had the extraordinary support of George and my doula Flora and was continuing labor without pain medications. And hour of transition came and went and I seemed to have stopped progressing. Two more hours came and went and I was DONE with the pain. I was stuck at 8cm. dilated, so at 2:30 am I went for the epidural. It was the best thing ever! I think I may have told the anesthesiologist that I loved him. Within minutes I was feeling a lot better and in half an hour I couldn't feel anything below my waist. Yay!
We all slept for about 3 hours and then it was time to start pushing! The doc said that I was fully dilated and we went for it. I pushed for 2 hours with no progress. In fact, I un-dilated (didn't know that was possible) to 9cm. and the baby's heart rate began to drop with each push. They stopped the pushing and knocked down the pitocin to give the baby a chance to recover a bit. A couple of hours later I had still not fully dilated and my contractions had almost disappeared. The doctor gave me the option of pushing for 2 more hours and if that didn't work, we would have to do a c-section.
The possibility of a c-section terrified me, but I the idea of pushing for 2 more hours and still having to do a c-section scared me even more. So I decided that since I had been resting, that we should just go ahead and do the surgery. I was so ready to meet my little guy and there was a bit of relief to know that the end was in site.
The rest of the delivery went so fast. At 10:30am on Tuesday the 20th they ordered the c-section. At 11:00 I was in the OR being prepped. It was the most well orchastrated set up I've ever seen. There were about 10 people buzzing around me, hooking me up to things, strapping my arms down (yes, that was alarming, but aparently they don't want you accidentally contaminating the open wound), and setting things up for the doctor. George says that at 11:25 they started cutting and at 11:30 Rowan was born. It was amazing to hear his cry, and everyone was relieved. By noon I was patched up and back in my hosptial room with my little baby boy.
Once they got in there to get him out, they discovered that he had the cord wrapped around his neck twice, and that there was no way he would have come out the other way. That's why his heart rate was dropping when I pushed. My doctor says that they call them "bungie babies" because everytime I would get him into the birth canal, the cord would snap him back up :)
The whole process was pretty amazing, and I'm happy with all the decisions we made along the way. We are so thrilled to have Rowan and at this point it's hard to remember life before him. There have been many comments about the date of his arrival, and I agree that it's an excellent birthday. Many have said that Rowan just couldn't bring himslef to enter a world where George W. Bush was president and I couldn't agree more. Welcome Rowan!
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Pics from Rowan's first day
Here are some pics from Rowan's birthday! He's been doing really well. As you can probably tell he loves to be swaddled and complains if he's uncovered/undressed.
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