For the record, it has already been 6 weeks since I gave birth to her. I'm pretty sure I wrote down my birth story with Anderson within about 6 hours. Oh well.
This story actually should start at my 36 week appointment. It was the first time that my OB did a cervical check. To my surprise I was effaced and 2cm dilated! I never made any progress with Anderson before I was in labor. Since i had Anderson 4 days early, we all became SURE that I would have her early, or at least around the same time I had Anderson. Then 37 weeks came, 38, 39, and 40 weeks all came and went. Every week there was no change and although I had every pre labor symptom in the book and nights of endless contractions. Nothing.
At my 39 week appointment my blood pressure was high, but not so high that my OB wanted to induce me. Since I very much did not want to be induced and my BP was not "critical" she gave me one more week. Monday January 26, 2015 was my 40 week appointment. I was 2 days past my due date and, well, frustrated. Thankfully, my parents came in town the Friday night before that appointment. We hoped I'd go into labor over the weekend, but if not they would be here to watch Anderson while Todd and I went to that appointment since we knew we'd be talking about an induction. Unfortunately, my blood pressure was too high. Really high actually. Like 158/95 high. I don't even treat my own patients when its much higher than that. So, needless to say, there was no more waiting it out. It was time to have a baby. I was not happy at all and cried quite a bit. My OB was very understanding, but with my best interest at heart, she was doing what needed to be done. I went into labor spontaneously with Anderson, and had a drug free birth. Of course I wanted the same thing again with Aubrey. And yes, I know "at the end of the day you have a healthy baby" blah blah blah. I know. But I was still entitled to be disappointed with the situation.
Around 11:00am I was admitted to the Labor and Delivery Unit. My OB didn't let me go home first. Todd went to get our stuff and make sure Anderson was good once I was settled. After about an hour of paperwork, blood work, IVs, etc I was started on the pitocin. The plan was to increased as slowly as possible so that I could still try to have a natural delivery. An hour later, around 1:00pm my OB came and broke my water and inserted an internal monitor on Aubrey so they could better monitor the contractions. I was 3cm dilated at this point. Todd made it back and we watched TV and talked. For someone who labored at home for the majority of my labor with Anderson, sitting in a hospital bed, in amniotic fluid, watching Food Network while being starving was not at all how I imagined this birth to go. About 4:00pm I was only 4cm dilated and now getting frustrated with the process. Only 1 more cm?!? Pitocin contractions are no joke. They are irregular, unnatural, and when you can't do anything to really help alleviate the pain, it takes over you fast. Around 5:30pm I was at my breaking point. I started crying and telling Todd that I couldn't keep this up for much longer but I really didn't want an epidural. As with Anderson, he suggested I get checked one more time then we'd talk about the epidural. And, as with Anderson, in one hour I went from 4cm to 10cm dilated. My breaking point, I should have known, was transition.
At that point I was honestly surprised, I didn't feel the need to push. My nurse said she'd go get stuff ready and we'd let a few more contractions happen to get her to drop lower. After 2 more really hard contractions she came back and asked me to push....which quickly ended with a "STOP! I need to call the doctor!" Miss Aubrey went from not ready to really ready very quickly. Unfortunately, at this point I was having one contraction after another, my whole body was shaking, and the only relief was to push. I pushed one more time and out came her head... on the bed... and it was just me and Todd (and now Aubrey) in the room. Todd really has the better story for this part. In the two seconds before he was about to reach down and get her about 4 nurses ran into the room, scrambled for gloves, and yelled at me to stop pushing (like is that even possible?!?). One nurse finally caught her just as she came the rest of the way out, my doctor did not make it in time. And at 6:33pm Aubrey Nicole entered the world. She weighed 6#9oz and stole our hearts with her first breath.
Tuesday, March 10, 2015
Reopening the blog
After a VERY long hiatus from blogging I have decided to *try* to blog again. Mostly for myself to document my life, our kids lives and put some of my random thoughts on paper screen.
I have deleted a few posts for privacy reasons and decided to keep it open this time.
As for a quick re-cap?
We now live in Abilene, Texas. We moved back in May 2013. Anderson is now almost 3 and half years old. Time really does fly. And on January 26, 2015 we welcomed our baby girl, Aubrey Nicole to the world. My first official post will be her birth story.
I have deleted a few posts for privacy reasons and decided to keep it open this time.
As for a quick re-cap?
We now live in Abilene, Texas. We moved back in May 2013. Anderson is now almost 3 and half years old. Time really does fly. And on January 26, 2015 we welcomed our baby girl, Aubrey Nicole to the world. My first official post will be her birth story.
Friday, September 14, 2012
10 months!
As usual I am late with this post. We've been busy busy around the Saksa home! We traveled to Denver for a wedding over Labor Day weekend and then the following weekend we traveled to Texas for the Aggie football game and to see family.
Anderson is still just as fun and active as can be! He's still crusing EVERYWHERE and standing a little on his own and taking a few steps on his own but overall he's still pretty content with his cruising. He gets into everything and especailly loves drawers. He loves the dishwasher, the refridgerater and the pantry and especially pulling ziplock bags out of a bottom drawer in the kitchen. I always laugh because we have alphabet magnents on this fridge and he pulls them off and I find them in the funniest places :) He still babbles all the time, says 'mama' and 'dada' and 'ella' for Bella and 'mmm' for more. He waves and claps and sings. Makes my heart smile :) He loves to eat finally after getting his reflux meds figured out and is really good at feeding himself now. Unfrotunately the poor guy still only really has 2 teeth that he can use. He's now nursing just twice a day and drinking a cup of breast milk at lunch. Over the next month and a half we will completely wean from breastfeeding and start transitioning to whole cow's milk. I can't believe we're so close to havinga toddler!! He still sleeps and naps great and loves going to daycare. Somedays I feel like my heart could just bust with how much love I have for this sweet little boy!
Todd is busy busy busy with work. He'll be going back to Vegas in October for Green Flag as an instructor to prepare his squadron for their January deployment. He'll also find out in October if and when he'll get into Weapons School. So lots of change may happen soon OR none at all.
As for me, still working 2-3 days a week and loving that. Started my first two doctoral classses and loving them. It's a great challenge and just enough balance in my life.
We're looking forward to Todd's parents visiting in a few weeks. Overall Octrober should be a quiet month around here then November brings Anderson's first birthday and then the holidays!
Anderson is still just as fun and active as can be! He's still crusing EVERYWHERE and standing a little on his own and taking a few steps on his own but overall he's still pretty content with his cruising. He gets into everything and especailly loves drawers. He loves the dishwasher, the refridgerater and the pantry and especially pulling ziplock bags out of a bottom drawer in the kitchen. I always laugh because we have alphabet magnents on this fridge and he pulls them off and I find them in the funniest places :) He still babbles all the time, says 'mama' and 'dada' and 'ella' for Bella and 'mmm' for more. He waves and claps and sings. Makes my heart smile :) He loves to eat finally after getting his reflux meds figured out and is really good at feeding himself now. Unfrotunately the poor guy still only really has 2 teeth that he can use. He's now nursing just twice a day and drinking a cup of breast milk at lunch. Over the next month and a half we will completely wean from breastfeeding and start transitioning to whole cow's milk. I can't believe we're so close to havinga toddler!! He still sleeps and naps great and loves going to daycare. Somedays I feel like my heart could just bust with how much love I have for this sweet little boy!
Todd is busy busy busy with work. He'll be going back to Vegas in October for Green Flag as an instructor to prepare his squadron for their January deployment. He'll also find out in October if and when he'll get into Weapons School. So lots of change may happen soon OR none at all.
As for me, still working 2-3 days a week and loving that. Started my first two doctoral classses and loving them. It's a great challenge and just enough balance in my life.
We're looking forward to Todd's parents visiting in a few weeks. Overall Octrober should be a quiet month around here then November brings Anderson's first birthday and then the holidays!
Thursday, August 16, 2012
Milkin Mama
I'm very proud to say that Anderson and I will meet my goal of breastfeeding for the first year! We're at 9.5 months and he's still nursing well and I'm still able to pump enough when I'm at work. I had to take "inventory" or my freezer stash last weekend because I found a few almost too old bags of milk so I needed to organize. I currently have over 300oz of frozen breast milk! Holy cow right? While it seems like a lot, in actuality if it were all he was to drink it would only last about 2 weeks. Shocking huh? Anderson is actually not a huge fan of frozen milk and now that I feel confident we'll make it to the 12 month mark I decided to start the steps to donating the frozen milk and just sending him fresh milk to day care. Milk donation is actually in very high demand because premature babies need human milk and most mother's of premature babies have a really hard time establishing and maintaining a milk supply for their babies because they have to exclusively pump. Talking with our wonderful lactation consultants at our hospital they recommended going through a company called Prolacta. They take human breast milk and turn it into "Human Fortified Milk" specifically for premature babies and send it to NICUs all over the country. I've filled out the initial donor "interview" and now wait for them to send me a kit where I'll send blood and milk samples for them to test. Once that gets done and processed and they deem my milk "worthy" they'll send me pre paid coolers, gel packs and all essentials to ship the milk. The whole process takes about 2-4 weeks. As an added bonus. If my application goes through successfully by September 30 and I donate 300oz of milk then I'll receive a $300 "pump reimbursement" check! Talk about a win-win situation! Help premature babies, get my freezer space back AND get a little extra cash :)
Moo!
Moo!
Friday, August 3, 2012
9 Months!
Where does the time go? Seriously?! Has our sweet, busy boy been with us now as long as he was inside of me?? Are we really only 3 months away from his first birthday?
It's fun and exciting but also sad in a way to see the days/months just tick away before my eyes. It truly does feel like just yesterday we were bringing him home from the hospital.
So what's going on with the little man? At his well baby appointment he was a healthy, long and skinny busy boy! Weighing in at just about 19 lbs and measuring just shy of 29". I'm hoping he'll put on a few more pounds now that we finally got him switched from zantac to prilosec to better manage his reflux. He is as busy as ever! From the time he wakes up with the exception of his two naps he's on the GO! Crawling, cruising, climbing and getting into EVERYTHING! Side note on his crawling- for months he did what we called the "lurch"-something between an army crawl and a bear crawl but suddenly this month he decided to crawl "normally". He is starting to stand on his own for a few seconds and getting really brave cruising one handed pushing his truck. Walking is just around the corner!! He's still a smiley, happy boy that waves "bye bye" babbles at everyone and gives them huge grins. He has two solid teeth now and 2 that have still just barely cut. His teeth seem to be in no huge hurry to make a grand appearance. He nurses or takes a cup 4 times a day, eats three solid meals and at least one snack. He's getting really good with table food/finger foods and loves cheese, blueberries and mini raviolies the best. He loves cruising from sofa to sofa antogonizing the dogs and banging anything together to make the loudest noise possible. He is obsessed with climbing on the dishwasher. He still loves his daycare and Ms. Nicole who takes such good care of him while I work. He plays so hard that he usually cat naps on the way home! He's still a great sleeper- takes two naps that are usually 1-2 hrs each and sleeps from 7:00pm-6:30 am on average. He's definitely an early riser. I've tried putting him down later and he's still up bright and early so for now that's just how it is. As usual, I'm sure I'm forgetting stuff but that's all I can think of for now :)
Work is still going good for me. Will likely get busy with the rally coming up this week. I was officially accepted to the University of Utah to start my doctorate this fall! Very excited/nervous!
Possible exciting changes coming with Todd and work, will update as we know more! He succussfully completed his "Package Commander" and "Mission Commander" upgrades at Red Flag.
Sunday Todd and I have a babysitter and are going for a date night rally style to see the Zac Brown Band in Sturgis! Very excited!
Until next time....
It's fun and exciting but also sad in a way to see the days/months just tick away before my eyes. It truly does feel like just yesterday we were bringing him home from the hospital.
So what's going on with the little man? At his well baby appointment he was a healthy, long and skinny busy boy! Weighing in at just about 19 lbs and measuring just shy of 29". I'm hoping he'll put on a few more pounds now that we finally got him switched from zantac to prilosec to better manage his reflux. He is as busy as ever! From the time he wakes up with the exception of his two naps he's on the GO! Crawling, cruising, climbing and getting into EVERYTHING! Side note on his crawling- for months he did what we called the "lurch"-something between an army crawl and a bear crawl but suddenly this month he decided to crawl "normally". He is starting to stand on his own for a few seconds and getting really brave cruising one handed pushing his truck. Walking is just around the corner!! He's still a smiley, happy boy that waves "bye bye" babbles at everyone and gives them huge grins. He has two solid teeth now and 2 that have still just barely cut. His teeth seem to be in no huge hurry to make a grand appearance. He nurses or takes a cup 4 times a day, eats three solid meals and at least one snack. He's getting really good with table food/finger foods and loves cheese, blueberries and mini raviolies the best. He loves cruising from sofa to sofa antogonizing the dogs and banging anything together to make the loudest noise possible. He is obsessed with climbing on the dishwasher. He still loves his daycare and Ms. Nicole who takes such good care of him while I work. He plays so hard that he usually cat naps on the way home! He's still a great sleeper- takes two naps that are usually 1-2 hrs each and sleeps from 7:00pm-6:30 am on average. He's definitely an early riser. I've tried putting him down later and he's still up bright and early so for now that's just how it is. As usual, I'm sure I'm forgetting stuff but that's all I can think of for now :)
Work is still going good for me. Will likely get busy with the rally coming up this week. I was officially accepted to the University of Utah to start my doctorate this fall! Very excited/nervous!
Possible exciting changes coming with Todd and work, will update as we know more! He succussfully completed his "Package Commander" and "Mission Commander" upgrades at Red Flag.
Sunday Todd and I have a babysitter and are going for a date night rally style to see the Zac Brown Band in Sturgis! Very excited!
Until next time....
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
7 & 8 Months
Yes, I'm behind. I'm sorry. Somebody in this house is a VERY busy boy that doesn't give mama much time to sit and blog!
I can't remember exactly when he started doing things now so I'll just give you the list of what he's doing how at just about 8 1/2 months :)
-climbing anything he can
-crawling everywhere
-pulling up and cruising on anything he can
-saying 'mama', 'dada', 'baba', 'lala', 'gaga' and I'm sure a few more combinations I'm forgetting
-starting to sign "more"
-starting to mimic
-waving 'bye bye'
-getting very close to clapping but is more slapping one hand of the back of the other
-still taking 2 solid naps and sleeping 11-12 hours a night. He did recently go through a period of thinking 5:30am was wake up and play time but fortunately h'e back to his usual wake up.
-Still breastfeeding or taking a bottle of breastmilk 4 times a day (but still hates the bottle), eating three meals and one snack. We've recently starting letting him try all sorts of table foods and he's loving that.
-Self feeding himself bread, cheese, pieces of fruit, pasta and beans.
-Has the beginnings of 4 teeth but they still haven't decided to make a great appearance yet.
-plays, plays, plays! The boy does NOT like to sit still!
I think that's all the big things. He's growing like a weed! I can't wait until his 9 month well baby check to see where he is height and weight wise, last we weighed him he was close to 19 lbs but we haven't measured him. He is just so much fun right now I can't stand it. So curious and smart and busy. Exhaustingly busy!
I'm still working 2-3 days a week and Anderson loves his daycare. Big news for me and work is that I've officially decided to start my doctorate at the University of Utah! I may be crazy but when we really talked about it and looked into the program it really is the best time to do it. It's all online and will take about 2 years to finish. I'm excited and nervous all in one! I'll start my first 2 classes in August.
Todd leaves for Red Flag in Vegas on Friday for 2 weeks of training. He recently completed his Multi Ship Mission Lead (MML) where he basically can now be the mission lead for a 2 jet mission. While at Red Flag he's going to get his Mission Commander upgrade where he will be the mission lead for not just B1s but all aircraft in the mission usually including F15s, A10s, AWACs and KC135s. He's very excited about his new roles and abilities in the B1.
My sister was here the entire month of June and it was WONDERFUL spending so much time with her and having the extra set of hands with the little man! We miss her tons!
While she was here we made our big summer vacation to Salt Lake City for a wedding, for me to visit UofU and see some new places. It was a lot of fun but very tiring with an 8 month old!
No big plans for August then hoping to head to Texas in September and catch a football game!
I can't remember exactly when he started doing things now so I'll just give you the list of what he's doing how at just about 8 1/2 months :)
-climbing anything he can
-crawling everywhere
-pulling up and cruising on anything he can
-saying 'mama', 'dada', 'baba', 'lala', 'gaga' and I'm sure a few more combinations I'm forgetting
-starting to sign "more"
-starting to mimic
-waving 'bye bye'
-getting very close to clapping but is more slapping one hand of the back of the other
-still taking 2 solid naps and sleeping 11-12 hours a night. He did recently go through a period of thinking 5:30am was wake up and play time but fortunately h'e back to his usual wake up.
-Still breastfeeding or taking a bottle of breastmilk 4 times a day (but still hates the bottle), eating three meals and one snack. We've recently starting letting him try all sorts of table foods and he's loving that.
-Self feeding himself bread, cheese, pieces of fruit, pasta and beans.
-Has the beginnings of 4 teeth but they still haven't decided to make a great appearance yet.
-plays, plays, plays! The boy does NOT like to sit still!
I think that's all the big things. He's growing like a weed! I can't wait until his 9 month well baby check to see where he is height and weight wise, last we weighed him he was close to 19 lbs but we haven't measured him. He is just so much fun right now I can't stand it. So curious and smart and busy. Exhaustingly busy!
I'm still working 2-3 days a week and Anderson loves his daycare. Big news for me and work is that I've officially decided to start my doctorate at the University of Utah! I may be crazy but when we really talked about it and looked into the program it really is the best time to do it. It's all online and will take about 2 years to finish. I'm excited and nervous all in one! I'll start my first 2 classes in August.
Todd leaves for Red Flag in Vegas on Friday for 2 weeks of training. He recently completed his Multi Ship Mission Lead (MML) where he basically can now be the mission lead for a 2 jet mission. While at Red Flag he's going to get his Mission Commander upgrade where he will be the mission lead for not just B1s but all aircraft in the mission usually including F15s, A10s, AWACs and KC135s. He's very excited about his new roles and abilities in the B1.
My sister was here the entire month of June and it was WONDERFUL spending so much time with her and having the extra set of hands with the little man! We miss her tons!
While she was here we made our big summer vacation to Salt Lake City for a wedding, for me to visit UofU and see some new places. It was a lot of fun but very tiring with an 8 month old!
No big plans for August then hoping to head to Texas in September and catch a football game!
Thursday, May 3, 2012
Half Birthday!
Yesterday Anderson turned 6 months old! I can't believe he's already half way to his first birthday! He's a very busy boy! He's crawling, bear crawling, trying to pull up, playing and putting EVERYTHING in his mouth. He's full of energy and always looking to do the next thing! I fear he is going to be an exhausting toddler!
At his 6 month appointment he weighed in at 16lbs and almost 27" long. His doctor was pleased with his growth and everything he is doing. Next check up won't be until 9months.
He's now taking 2 naps a day both ranging from 1.5-2hrs on a good day and going to bed between 7/7:30 and waking up sometime between 6:30/7 usually. We certainly have our "off" days but overall I'm really happy with our current schedule.
He's still breastfeeding 4 times a day and eating solid foods 3 times a day. It's still a little hit or miss on the solids. Some days he can't get enough and other days he's not too interested. His favorites are definitely apples, avocados,carrots and yogurt. We tried a few "puffs" and a "mum mum" yesterday and he was a big fan of feeding himself.
We switched his car seat from the infant carrier to the convertible this past weekend and he loves it so much better. He loves sitting up more and looking out the window. And its nice to not have to lug around the super heavy carrier when we run errands! Now he sits in the basket when we go to Target or the grocery store and he loves it.
His favorite things to do right now are sit and play with toys, crawl and try to pull up on things and blow LOTS of raspberries. He is just so fun right now:)
As for me...only working 1-2 days a week right now because my day care lady is still on maternity leave but thats ok. Todd is busy busy busy at work. So busy that we decided to delay our trip out to Glacier until later this fall. Bummer.
Gosh, I know I'm leaving things out but someone is waking from his nap....
At his 6 month appointment he weighed in at 16lbs and almost 27" long. His doctor was pleased with his growth and everything he is doing. Next check up won't be until 9months.
He's now taking 2 naps a day both ranging from 1.5-2hrs on a good day and going to bed between 7/7:30 and waking up sometime between 6:30/7 usually. We certainly have our "off" days but overall I'm really happy with our current schedule.
He's still breastfeeding 4 times a day and eating solid foods 3 times a day. It's still a little hit or miss on the solids. Some days he can't get enough and other days he's not too interested. His favorites are definitely apples, avocados,carrots and yogurt. We tried a few "puffs" and a "mum mum" yesterday and he was a big fan of feeding himself.
We switched his car seat from the infant carrier to the convertible this past weekend and he loves it so much better. He loves sitting up more and looking out the window. And its nice to not have to lug around the super heavy carrier when we run errands! Now he sits in the basket when we go to Target or the grocery store and he loves it.
His favorite things to do right now are sit and play with toys, crawl and try to pull up on things and blow LOTS of raspberries. He is just so fun right now:)
As for me...only working 1-2 days a week right now because my day care lady is still on maternity leave but thats ok. Todd is busy busy busy at work. So busy that we decided to delay our trip out to Glacier until later this fall. Bummer.
Gosh, I know I'm leaving things out but someone is waking from his nap....
Monday, April 9, 2012
5 Months!
Last week Anderson turned 5 months and he's doing more and more everyday! We didn't have a well baby visit this month but he did have his first ear infection at the end of March and he weighed in right at 16lbs and was around 27inches long. He is completely in 6-9month clothes now.
We started solids right around 4 months because the boy is also SO HUNGRY! Although he seemed so ready to start he didn't pick up on it and seem as interested as I thought he would but man once he finally decided that food was good and filled up his tummy more he has been LOVING it! So far we've introduced sweet potatoes, Japanese sweet potatoes, peas, pears, apples, carrots, papaya, butternut squash and banana. Carrots are by far his favorite but he eats everything pretty well. He also loves drinking juice (1oz of pear juice with 2oz of water) from his straw cup and he's starting to drink more breast milk from the straw cup instead of the bottle to so we'll see if we decide to get rid of bottles soon. He's breastfeeding 5 times a day and getting 2 meals of solids and 1 "snack" a day. I've found giving him the mid day "snack" helps with his reflux a little more. He likes to hold the spoon and put it in his mouth when he eats-such a Mr. Independent.
We finally made the transition between 4 and 5 months to 2 long naps and 1 evening cat nap a day and he's still consistently sleeping 11-11.5 hrs a night! Every once in a while when he stirs around 5am he decides he's hungry and will nurse and go back to sleep until 7 but I'm hoping adding the solids will eliminate this random waking to eat.
Developmentally he is going crazy! He is officially sitting independently for extended periods of time. He loves to sit and play now! He is also currently obsessed with his feet. If he's on his back or on the changing table chances are his feet are in his hands or in his mouth. He rolls back to tummy and tummy to back both ways, does a little army crawling backwards and is soooo close to crawling that he can't stand it. He does this half roll inch worm that is just hilarious :) I give him another week or two then I fear it will be time to start baby proofing! He is a talking/babbling/screeching/squealing machine lately too! I never knew so much noise could come out of something so little! I love listening to him find all the ranges of his voice and am thankful that at least for now, he's not a screamer. He loves any toy that lights up/makes sound and anything that he can put into his mouth.
I think that's all the exciting Anderson updates. Work is still good for me but I won't be working as much during April and May since my daycare lady is on maternity leave. She had her baby boy on April 7. Todd is taking a few days off here and there so I can work and a friend of mine who used to nanny is going to watch him in May a few days a week. Todd is still super busy at work. We had a lovely Easter just the three of us.
We started solids right around 4 months because the boy is also SO HUNGRY! Although he seemed so ready to start he didn't pick up on it and seem as interested as I thought he would but man once he finally decided that food was good and filled up his tummy more he has been LOVING it! So far we've introduced sweet potatoes, Japanese sweet potatoes, peas, pears, apples, carrots, papaya, butternut squash and banana. Carrots are by far his favorite but he eats everything pretty well. He also loves drinking juice (1oz of pear juice with 2oz of water) from his straw cup and he's starting to drink more breast milk from the straw cup instead of the bottle to so we'll see if we decide to get rid of bottles soon. He's breastfeeding 5 times a day and getting 2 meals of solids and 1 "snack" a day. I've found giving him the mid day "snack" helps with his reflux a little more. He likes to hold the spoon and put it in his mouth when he eats-such a Mr. Independent.
We finally made the transition between 4 and 5 months to 2 long naps and 1 evening cat nap a day and he's still consistently sleeping 11-11.5 hrs a night! Every once in a while when he stirs around 5am he decides he's hungry and will nurse and go back to sleep until 7 but I'm hoping adding the solids will eliminate this random waking to eat.
Developmentally he is going crazy! He is officially sitting independently for extended periods of time. He loves to sit and play now! He is also currently obsessed with his feet. If he's on his back or on the changing table chances are his feet are in his hands or in his mouth. He rolls back to tummy and tummy to back both ways, does a little army crawling backwards and is soooo close to crawling that he can't stand it. He does this half roll inch worm that is just hilarious :) I give him another week or two then I fear it will be time to start baby proofing! He is a talking/babbling/screeching/squealing machine lately too! I never knew so much noise could come out of something so little! I love listening to him find all the ranges of his voice and am thankful that at least for now, he's not a screamer. He loves any toy that lights up/makes sound and anything that he can put into his mouth.
I think that's all the exciting Anderson updates. Work is still good for me but I won't be working as much during April and May since my daycare lady is on maternity leave. She had her baby boy on April 7. Todd is taking a few days off here and there so I can work and a friend of mine who used to nanny is going to watch him in May a few days a week. Todd is still super busy at work. We had a lovely Easter just the three of us.
Thursday, March 8, 2012
4 Months!
I sat around all day today wondering if I ever blogged a 4 month post...apparently I did not! It's been a little busy around here to say the least. We got back from our whirlwind 3 week trip on February 21, I started back to work on February 28, Anderson turned 4 months on March 2,Todd got home on March 4 which also happened to be my 28th birthday.
Of course everyone wants Anderson updates first! At his 4month well baby appointment he was right about 15lbs and 26inches long and perfectly healthy as can be :) Dr. Mueller gave us the go ahead to start introducing solids since he is an ever hungry boy! We tried rice cereal, rice cereal with pear juice and oatmeal and none of which he seemed to be too interested in so I decided to just go straight to purees and he loved sweet potatoes! He's not consistently eating a whole lot yet but we're working on it. Right after he turned 3 months he decided that he wanted to have nothing to do with the bottle which was not good for this wanting to go back to work/have a social like breastfeeding mamma! We've literally tried everything and finally found that the only way he will take on is if you sit him in the Bumbo but even then he'll really only take enough to "take the edge off" and will hold out for the boob. I fear weaning is going to be a challenge! At the lactation consultants recommendation we have been working on drinking from a cup. He's actually quite good with the sippy cup and will finish maybe an once of pear/water juice over the course of the day. Of course the OT in me doesn't want him to use a sippy cup so I still work with him with the straw cup as well :) He started daycare 2 days a week so I could go to work and its been going really well with the exception of the bottle. He is always happy with Nicole and naps and plays really well and apparently really likes studying what 15month old Lincoln is up to. He's still sleeping about 10-11 hours at night with random early morning wake ups to eat and still taking 4 naps-2 long and 2 short. He decided he was done with nap time swaddling and the pacifier on the same day but is still sometimes working on the self soothing. He's rolling tummy to back all the time, pushing up on extended arms, playing with toys on his tummy, standing in his activity center and playing with toys, putting everything in his mouth but mostly still his hands, has rolled back to tummy once in his crib and is trying REALLY hard to sit independently which he is doing for about 20seconds or so at a time and LOVES to stand up holding on to anything. He talks all the time and it cracks me up, especially when I'm changing his diaper. He sure has a lot to say for saying absolutely nothing! So far 4 months is as fun as everyone says it is :) It is so fun to watch him grow and develop and become this little person with a funny personality. I just love this little boy to pieces :)
As for me, I started back to work 2 days a week and while it is so hard to leave Anderson all day it definitely makes me feel like I still have a purpose. I enjoy the adult interaction and using my very expensive education :) Two days is definitely the perfect balance of work and being at home. As he gets older I'm sure I'll want to work more though. I will always love my job.
Todd got back from SOS and got thrown right back into the daily grind here flying a lot. Not much going on for him work wise until July thankfully.
As for us as a family, we're planning to make our first family vacation up to Glacier National Park in May, stay tuned for details!
Of course everyone wants Anderson updates first! At his 4month well baby appointment he was right about 15lbs and 26inches long and perfectly healthy as can be :) Dr. Mueller gave us the go ahead to start introducing solids since he is an ever hungry boy! We tried rice cereal, rice cereal with pear juice and oatmeal and none of which he seemed to be too interested in so I decided to just go straight to purees and he loved sweet potatoes! He's not consistently eating a whole lot yet but we're working on it. Right after he turned 3 months he decided that he wanted to have nothing to do with the bottle which was not good for this wanting to go back to work/have a social like breastfeeding mamma! We've literally tried everything and finally found that the only way he will take on is if you sit him in the Bumbo but even then he'll really only take enough to "take the edge off" and will hold out for the boob. I fear weaning is going to be a challenge! At the lactation consultants recommendation we have been working on drinking from a cup. He's actually quite good with the sippy cup and will finish maybe an once of pear/water juice over the course of the day. Of course the OT in me doesn't want him to use a sippy cup so I still work with him with the straw cup as well :) He started daycare 2 days a week so I could go to work and its been going really well with the exception of the bottle. He is always happy with Nicole and naps and plays really well and apparently really likes studying what 15month old Lincoln is up to. He's still sleeping about 10-11 hours at night with random early morning wake ups to eat and still taking 4 naps-2 long and 2 short. He decided he was done with nap time swaddling and the pacifier on the same day but is still sometimes working on the self soothing. He's rolling tummy to back all the time, pushing up on extended arms, playing with toys on his tummy, standing in his activity center and playing with toys, putting everything in his mouth but mostly still his hands, has rolled back to tummy once in his crib and is trying REALLY hard to sit independently which he is doing for about 20seconds or so at a time and LOVES to stand up holding on to anything. He talks all the time and it cracks me up, especially when I'm changing his diaper. He sure has a lot to say for saying absolutely nothing! So far 4 months is as fun as everyone says it is :) It is so fun to watch him grow and develop and become this little person with a funny personality. I just love this little boy to pieces :)
As for me, I started back to work 2 days a week and while it is so hard to leave Anderson all day it definitely makes me feel like I still have a purpose. I enjoy the adult interaction and using my very expensive education :) Two days is definitely the perfect balance of work and being at home. As he gets older I'm sure I'll want to work more though. I will always love my job.
Todd got back from SOS and got thrown right back into the daily grind here flying a lot. Not much going on for him work wise until July thankfully.
As for us as a family, we're planning to make our first family vacation up to Glacier National Park in May, stay tuned for details!
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Blogging from Bama
I have done good up to this point blogging at least monthly about our Anderson's happenings but the 3 month mark was just at the begining of the whirl wind trip that we're on right now! On February 1 we traveled from Rapid City to Dallas, Anderson's first airplane trip! He did AMAZING! With the exception of one day of travel he has done so awesome with all the hussle and bustle and sleeping in different pack n plays and in different houses or having to sleep on my lap in a plane. He's also done exceptional at not getting too overwhelmed with meeting all the new people that he has met lately. I never knew you could be so proud of a 3 month old :)
While in Dallas we saw Aunt Karen, of course, Randi Rose and a a few of Karen's other friends. We went to Randi Rose and Joshua's beautiful wedding and then headed to Austin for a few days to hang out with Grandma and Grandpa Anderson and meet great grandmother Mimi and great Aunt Susan and Uncle Mark. We also got to hang out with my dear friend Stephanie that I have not seen in over 3 years while in Austin!! Successful Texas leg of the trip!
Now we're in Montgomery, Alabama with daddy! We're crammed into a one bedroom hotel room with a kitchenette. Definitely not ideal but we're making due and at least we're all together for a few weeks. Todd has class everyday while we're here but we'll be traveling to Pensacola to see old friends this weekend-just Saturday/Sunday and then next weekend we're meeting up with Todd's brother Trevor, sister in law Tracie and 2 of our nephews in Panama City for the long holiday weekend. I'm also hoping to meet up with Elise in Atlanta or somewhere else to meet her sweet baby Vincent. Hopefully we'll work something out!
Between the 2 and 3 month mark Anderson got diagnosed with reflux and started perscription zantac for it. He's always had some reflux issues since he was born and they gradually got worse and worse to the point that he was screaming when he ate and spitting up all.the.time. He's been on the medicine about 3 weeks and some days I feel like its improving and some days I'm not so sure. When we get back to South Dakota he'll have his 4 month well baby check and I'm sure I'll have a lengthy discussion with Dr Mueller about it :)
Last he was weighed he was about 13.5# and about 25in long! He started wearing 3-6 month clothes about 2 weeks before he turned 3 months and fits them a little too well! He has perfect head control now and *loves* sitting up. He hasn't had his bumbo this whole trip and I don't think he's liking being propped up on pillows or being held so much. You can tell he's trying so hard to sit on his own! He stopped rolling as much lately to work on pulling forward on the floor on his belly- I think we're going to have an early crawler! He definitely wants to GO! He's reaching and grabbing EVERYTING now! He's even starting to reach for food on my plate when I hold him while eating-I think he's definitely going to be ready for solids soon! He's so aware of the world around him now and likes to observe everything and everyone. He's very interested in his feet these days but is still trying to figure out if they belong to his body or not. He's sleeping wonderfully now- averageing about 10 hours a night! and still taking 4 solid naps a day. Fortunately since he eats A LOT faster now we have more awake/play time! His newest thing is scratching the surface of objects and hearing the noise-the seat belt, the bathtub, anything. It's pretty funny. He also started screaching and squealing and I think he surprises himself when he makes such loud noises. He smiles and laughs all the time and is quite the flirt with girls :) Its so amazing to watch him grow and learn and figure out how to do new things. Its also so amazing how much more I love him each day.
We get back to Rapid City on February 21 and one week later I'll start back to work 2 days a week. I'm excited to have something for me but so anxious to leave him. Then we'll have his 4 month well baby check and will hopefully start trying to introduce solid foods shortly after. Todd gets home around March 12 and all will be well again :)
While in Dallas we saw Aunt Karen, of course, Randi Rose and a a few of Karen's other friends. We went to Randi Rose and Joshua's beautiful wedding and then headed to Austin for a few days to hang out with Grandma and Grandpa Anderson and meet great grandmother Mimi and great Aunt Susan and Uncle Mark. We also got to hang out with my dear friend Stephanie that I have not seen in over 3 years while in Austin!! Successful Texas leg of the trip!
Now we're in Montgomery, Alabama with daddy! We're crammed into a one bedroom hotel room with a kitchenette. Definitely not ideal but we're making due and at least we're all together for a few weeks. Todd has class everyday while we're here but we'll be traveling to Pensacola to see old friends this weekend-just Saturday/Sunday and then next weekend we're meeting up with Todd's brother Trevor, sister in law Tracie and 2 of our nephews in Panama City for the long holiday weekend. I'm also hoping to meet up with Elise in Atlanta or somewhere else to meet her sweet baby Vincent. Hopefully we'll work something out!
Between the 2 and 3 month mark Anderson got diagnosed with reflux and started perscription zantac for it. He's always had some reflux issues since he was born and they gradually got worse and worse to the point that he was screaming when he ate and spitting up all.the.time. He's been on the medicine about 3 weeks and some days I feel like its improving and some days I'm not so sure. When we get back to South Dakota he'll have his 4 month well baby check and I'm sure I'll have a lengthy discussion with Dr Mueller about it :)
Last he was weighed he was about 13.5# and about 25in long! He started wearing 3-6 month clothes about 2 weeks before he turned 3 months and fits them a little too well! He has perfect head control now and *loves* sitting up. He hasn't had his bumbo this whole trip and I don't think he's liking being propped up on pillows or being held so much. You can tell he's trying so hard to sit on his own! He stopped rolling as much lately to work on pulling forward on the floor on his belly- I think we're going to have an early crawler! He definitely wants to GO! He's reaching and grabbing EVERYTING now! He's even starting to reach for food on my plate when I hold him while eating-I think he's definitely going to be ready for solids soon! He's so aware of the world around him now and likes to observe everything and everyone. He's very interested in his feet these days but is still trying to figure out if they belong to his body or not. He's sleeping wonderfully now- averageing about 10 hours a night! and still taking 4 solid naps a day. Fortunately since he eats A LOT faster now we have more awake/play time! His newest thing is scratching the surface of objects and hearing the noise-the seat belt, the bathtub, anything. It's pretty funny. He also started screaching and squealing and I think he surprises himself when he makes such loud noises. He smiles and laughs all the time and is quite the flirt with girls :) Its so amazing to watch him grow and learn and figure out how to do new things. Its also so amazing how much more I love him each day.
We get back to Rapid City on February 21 and one week later I'll start back to work 2 days a week. I'm excited to have something for me but so anxious to leave him. Then we'll have his 4 month well baby check and will hopefully start trying to introduce solid foods shortly after. Todd gets home around March 12 and all will be well again :)
Saturday, January 7, 2012
2 Months...a few days late
Anderson turned 2 months on Monday! I'll just go ahead and submit to the saying that time really does fly! I already find myself forgetting the not so pleasant parts of the first weeks-the up all night, sleep deprived, evening fussiness, no routine days. I finally feel like maybe I actually know what I'm doing...most days...
Anderson had his 2 month well baby check up on Monday too. He weighed in at 11lbs 12oz and 23 3/4 inches long! He's about the 50th percentile for weight and 80th for height! Long and lean, just like I keep saying :) His little peanut head is in the 40th percentile. I absolutely love our pediatrician. He talked with us for almost an hour and answered my lengthy list of questions without making me feel rushed or stupid. He gives Anderson such good care. His nurse is equally wonderful, every time I call about something random that is going on as well as in the office. Poor little guy had to get his shots though :( HEARTBREAKING! I've never heard Anderson cry so loud! (and trust me, I've heard that boy cry!) Big, flowing tears and the saddest cry you've ever heard. Fortunately, that lasted about 15 minutes then he fussed a little bit more before falling asleep but overall I'd say he handled the shots wonderfully! I gave him 2 doses of baby Tylenol that afternoon/evening and he slept well and never spiked a fever. As granola as I am about so many things pertaining to Anderson shots are the one thing that I won't not give him. Working in health care I truly value the importance of immunizations and would much rather he be protected from deadly diseases.
After another dreaded growth spurt just before New Years we've found ourselves getting into a decent little routine. Anderson is consistently sleeping 7-8 hours a night (last night he slept 9.5 though!). He wakes up between 6:30 and 7:30 most mornings and after all the reading of all the different baby routines out there I've decided that what works best for us is a feeding schedule. A typical day he eats at 7, 10, 1, 4,7 and 10. Granted this is more of a guideline than a schedule. Depending on when he wakes up determines that first feeding and then some days he's hungrier a little early and sometimes a little later so it's a give or take of about a half an hour. Basically it comes down to eating every 3 hours during the day which I'll keep until he's getting close to 4 months and I'll try to stretch him out to 4 hour feedings. After he eats we play until he gets tired. He still loves tummy time but is also loving batting at objects on his back or sitting in his bumbo and playing with rattles or ring o' links. Once he starts showing me he's tired I swaddle him up, read him a book and he takes a nap. Naps are where I differ from the many parenting books, I let Anderson dictate his naps. Sometimes he only likes to nap for 45 min, sometimes for 2 hours so I follow his lead on that one. We've started a nighttime routine for bath time which he now loves and then I let him stay up/catnap until he's ready for his last feeding and bed. I always second guess if what I'm doing is the best but it's working for us and gives our (my) day some structure and he's sleeping well at night so here's hoping it keeps working.
Highlights at the 2 month mark:
-Sleeping 7-8 hours at night
-Cooing/"talking", so adorable!
-A drooling machine!
-Eating his hands/starting to put toys in his mouth
-Holds and shakes a rattle
-Batting toys hanging from his activity mat
-Still loving tummy time but gets pretty mad when he can't roll over, which he does about once a day
-Loves bath time and kicks and splashes
-Smiles/laughs all the time, also so adorable!
-Has amazing head control (thanks to his small head) so likes to sit up more
Overall, Anderson is a healthy and happy baby. We have significantly less fussy times and when we do it's a lot easier to know why he's fussy so we can get it under control before it gets out of hand. I'm excited for the next few months as he'll start being awake more and playing/doing more.
Todd left for SOS yesterday so it's just me and the little man until my mom comes up on the 19th and then we'll travel to Texas and Alabama for 3 weeks in February to see Todd, family and friends before I start back to work at the end of February/early March.
And that is all the exciting happenings in the Saksa house :)
Anderson had his 2 month well baby check up on Monday too. He weighed in at 11lbs 12oz and 23 3/4 inches long! He's about the 50th percentile for weight and 80th for height! Long and lean, just like I keep saying :) His little peanut head is in the 40th percentile. I absolutely love our pediatrician. He talked with us for almost an hour and answered my lengthy list of questions without making me feel rushed or stupid. He gives Anderson such good care. His nurse is equally wonderful, every time I call about something random that is going on as well as in the office. Poor little guy had to get his shots though :( HEARTBREAKING! I've never heard Anderson cry so loud! (and trust me, I've heard that boy cry!) Big, flowing tears and the saddest cry you've ever heard. Fortunately, that lasted about 15 minutes then he fussed a little bit more before falling asleep but overall I'd say he handled the shots wonderfully! I gave him 2 doses of baby Tylenol that afternoon/evening and he slept well and never spiked a fever. As granola as I am about so many things pertaining to Anderson shots are the one thing that I won't not give him. Working in health care I truly value the importance of immunizations and would much rather he be protected from deadly diseases.
After another dreaded growth spurt just before New Years we've found ourselves getting into a decent little routine. Anderson is consistently sleeping 7-8 hours a night (last night he slept 9.5 though!). He wakes up between 6:30 and 7:30 most mornings and after all the reading of all the different baby routines out there I've decided that what works best for us is a feeding schedule. A typical day he eats at 7, 10, 1, 4,7 and 10. Granted this is more of a guideline than a schedule. Depending on when he wakes up determines that first feeding and then some days he's hungrier a little early and sometimes a little later so it's a give or take of about a half an hour. Basically it comes down to eating every 3 hours during the day which I'll keep until he's getting close to 4 months and I'll try to stretch him out to 4 hour feedings. After he eats we play until he gets tired. He still loves tummy time but is also loving batting at objects on his back or sitting in his bumbo and playing with rattles or ring o' links. Once he starts showing me he's tired I swaddle him up, read him a book and he takes a nap. Naps are where I differ from the many parenting books, I let Anderson dictate his naps. Sometimes he only likes to nap for 45 min, sometimes for 2 hours so I follow his lead on that one. We've started a nighttime routine for bath time which he now loves and then I let him stay up/catnap until he's ready for his last feeding and bed. I always second guess if what I'm doing is the best but it's working for us and gives our (my) day some structure and he's sleeping well at night so here's hoping it keeps working.
Highlights at the 2 month mark:
-Sleeping 7-8 hours at night
-Cooing/"talking", so adorable!
-A drooling machine!
-Eating his hands/starting to put toys in his mouth
-Holds and shakes a rattle
-Batting toys hanging from his activity mat
-Still loving tummy time but gets pretty mad when he can't roll over, which he does about once a day
-Loves bath time and kicks and splashes
-Smiles/laughs all the time, also so adorable!
-Has amazing head control (thanks to his small head) so likes to sit up more
Overall, Anderson is a healthy and happy baby. We have significantly less fussy times and when we do it's a lot easier to know why he's fussy so we can get it under control before it gets out of hand. I'm excited for the next few months as he'll start being awake more and playing/doing more.
Todd left for SOS yesterday so it's just me and the little man until my mom comes up on the 19th and then we'll travel to Texas and Alabama for 3 weeks in February to see Todd, family and friends before I start back to work at the end of February/early March.
And that is all the exciting happenings in the Saksa house :)
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Anderson's Birth Story
** Somehow I deleted this post but was able to get it back so it's being re-entered**
Once we get home I promise to upload pictures of our new baby boy but before the (hopefully) pregnancy amnesia sets in I wanted to get his birth story written down.
I'd say it all started on Tuesday November 1. I woke up just "not feeling right". Nothing I could really pinpoint just that I was a little crampier than usual, had a little nausea but really nothing horrible. I went about my day, ran errands, etc. The point I really knew something was different was when I ran- it really felt uncomfortable. A lot of pelvic pressure/pain and it was extremely difficult to make it 3 miles. By the way, I'm extremely happy that I ran until the day before I went into labor :)
Fast forward to Wednesday November 2. I woke up about 4am for my usual bathroom break and laid awake in bed having a few mild contractions. Not really thinking much of it I went back to sleep until about 8am. I felt like I was having regular contractions so I started timing them about 9am. Sure enough they were regular and consistent averaging about 10min apart for 30 sec and felt like "text book" contractions. I was still not convinced that I was in labor but Todd stayed home from work "just in case". We spent the morning doing usual activities- walking the dogs, having breakfast and making sure we had everything ready to go. Contractions stayed consistent and got to 5min apart for about a minute pretty quickly but they still weren't strong enough that I felt we needed to rush to the hospital. I walked, sat on the exercise ball and laid down in the Bradley Method relaxation position until about 6:30pm when contractions were starting to get very uncomfortable, were less than 4 min apart and lasting at least one minute of more- we decided it was time to head to the hospital.
After what seemed like a horrible 15min drive (they say labor slows on the car ride, it definitely did not) and waiting for about 10 minutes in the Emergency Department before being taken to Labor and Delivery triage I was finally being hooked up to monitors and being assessed to see if I was "truly in active labor". Fortunately, I was having strong, regular contractions, Anderson looked good and I was 4cm dilated and 80% effaced so Dr. Diehl admitted me but everyone was convinced we still had a long night ahead of us. I told my nurse my plan was no epidural but that I was wavering at this point in the game. She admitted us into the one L&D room that had a tub and suggested that I sit in the tub and try some natural pain relief for a while before I decided. I'm SO thankful now that my nurses listened to my wishes and encouraged me to follow through with them. We got settled in our L&D room and they said they'd leave me off the monitors for 30min since everything was fine so I got in a nice warm tub for about 30-45min and labored. Contractions were getting pretty strong at this point so I laid down, again in the Bradley Method relaxation position were I labored to the point that I told Todd that I couldn't see getting through several more hours without the epidural- the contractions were getting way too intense. About that time my nurse came in and we talked about the epidural and other pain relief. Since she knew I didn't want the epidural she suggested checking my progress and deciding from there. After only 2 hours we were all amazed that I was 8-9cm dilated and fully effaced! She and Dr Diehl (and Todd and I) were all in shock! So my wonderful nurse and Todd encouraged me to not get the epidural and to try a Fenatyl (sp?) shot to "take the edge off' while I worked through transition (it conveniently wore off just as I got to pushing). Transition was definitely the hardest part of the laboring but the pain meds helped just enough to get me to 10cm in less than an hour. My water broke somewhere between 8 and 9cm and things went kind of fast from there. They started getting things set up as I was feeling the urge to push all while my whole body was shaking and I was going from hot to cold quickly, it was a very out of body experience. I tried a few pushes on my own but clearly needed direction so my nurse coached me through about 3 and then they paged Dr Diehl.
Pushing was a whole other ball game that I was not prepared for! About 3 pushes in they realized I had a second bag of water (didn't even know that was possible) so they were all standing guard for it to explode everywhere which was actually kind of funny. Fortunately, it did not and Dr Diehl broke it as soon as he came in. I pushed for a total of about 45 min, which seemed like eternity! Pushing was extremely difficult but it was so odd that in between contractions I was able to rest, catch my breath, collect my thoughts and get ready for the next one while Dr Diehl joked with the nurses and myself. Everyone was so positive and encouragin. I do honestly feel like not having the epidural helped because feeling everything going on helped me push harder with each contraction. I definitely felt the "ring of fire" as he crowned and the amazing relief when he was all the way out. He came out instantly crying and was placed on my chest right away. Todd got to cut the umbilical cord and I think I stayed in a state of utter shock for the next 2 hours of what had just happened. I did suffer a 2nd degree tear that took Dr. Diehl about 30 min to repair and Todd got to go with Anderson to his first bath and nursery assessments while I did all my post partum checks. About 2 hours after delivery I was able to shower and we headed to our post partum room.
So far I'm feeling pretty good. Very tired from lack of sleep and all the work that labor is and very sore from pushing/tearing. Anderson has passed all his tests with flying colors and has been sleeping peacefully with very little crying. Breast feeding has been the biggest challege but we're getting there with the help of the amazing lactation consultants. Since I delievered so late we won't get to go home until tomorrow, but thats ok.
All in all labor was scary and painful and exciting all wrapped up in one :) I'm so very thankful for the amazing nurses we had that encouraged me and cheered me on and I'm especially thankful for my amazing husband that was an amazing labor coach. And of course I'm so thankful that Dr. Diehl delivered our beautifuly perfect son, I could not have imagined having it any other way.
So there it is, my roughly 15 hour labor and delivery of Anderson Phillip Saksa, born Wednesday November 2, 2011 a 11:41pm weighing 7lbs, 10oz and measuring 21inches long. We are so in love with this miracle and feel so very blessed.
Once we get home I promise to upload pictures of our new baby boy but before the (hopefully) pregnancy amnesia sets in I wanted to get his birth story written down.
I'd say it all started on Tuesday November 1. I woke up just "not feeling right". Nothing I could really pinpoint just that I was a little crampier than usual, had a little nausea but really nothing horrible. I went about my day, ran errands, etc. The point I really knew something was different was when I ran- it really felt uncomfortable. A lot of pelvic pressure/pain and it was extremely difficult to make it 3 miles. By the way, I'm extremely happy that I ran until the day before I went into labor :)
Fast forward to Wednesday November 2. I woke up about 4am for my usual bathroom break and laid awake in bed having a few mild contractions. Not really thinking much of it I went back to sleep until about 8am. I felt like I was having regular contractions so I started timing them about 9am. Sure enough they were regular and consistent averaging about 10min apart for 30 sec and felt like "text book" contractions. I was still not convinced that I was in labor but Todd stayed home from work "just in case". We spent the morning doing usual activities- walking the dogs, having breakfast and making sure we had everything ready to go. Contractions stayed consistent and got to 5min apart for about a minute pretty quickly but they still weren't strong enough that I felt we needed to rush to the hospital. I walked, sat on the exercise ball and laid down in the Bradley Method relaxation position until about 6:30pm when contractions were starting to get very uncomfortable, were less than 4 min apart and lasting at least one minute of more- we decided it was time to head to the hospital.
After what seemed like a horrible 15min drive (they say labor slows on the car ride, it definitely did not) and waiting for about 10 minutes in the Emergency Department before being taken to Labor and Delivery triage I was finally being hooked up to monitors and being assessed to see if I was "truly in active labor". Fortunately, I was having strong, regular contractions, Anderson looked good and I was 4cm dilated and 80% effaced so Dr. Diehl admitted me but everyone was convinced we still had a long night ahead of us. I told my nurse my plan was no epidural but that I was wavering at this point in the game. She admitted us into the one L&D room that had a tub and suggested that I sit in the tub and try some natural pain relief for a while before I decided. I'm SO thankful now that my nurses listened to my wishes and encouraged me to follow through with them. We got settled in our L&D room and they said they'd leave me off the monitors for 30min since everything was fine so I got in a nice warm tub for about 30-45min and labored. Contractions were getting pretty strong at this point so I laid down, again in the Bradley Method relaxation position were I labored to the point that I told Todd that I couldn't see getting through several more hours without the epidural- the contractions were getting way too intense. About that time my nurse came in and we talked about the epidural and other pain relief. Since she knew I didn't want the epidural she suggested checking my progress and deciding from there. After only 2 hours we were all amazed that I was 8-9cm dilated and fully effaced! She and Dr Diehl (and Todd and I) were all in shock! So my wonderful nurse and Todd encouraged me to not get the epidural and to try a Fenatyl (sp?) shot to "take the edge off' while I worked through transition (it conveniently wore off just as I got to pushing). Transition was definitely the hardest part of the laboring but the pain meds helped just enough to get me to 10cm in less than an hour. My water broke somewhere between 8 and 9cm and things went kind of fast from there. They started getting things set up as I was feeling the urge to push all while my whole body was shaking and I was going from hot to cold quickly, it was a very out of body experience. I tried a few pushes on my own but clearly needed direction so my nurse coached me through about 3 and then they paged Dr Diehl.
Pushing was a whole other ball game that I was not prepared for! About 3 pushes in they realized I had a second bag of water (didn't even know that was possible) so they were all standing guard for it to explode everywhere which was actually kind of funny. Fortunately, it did not and Dr Diehl broke it as soon as he came in. I pushed for a total of about 45 min, which seemed like eternity! Pushing was extremely difficult but it was so odd that in between contractions I was able to rest, catch my breath, collect my thoughts and get ready for the next one while Dr Diehl joked with the nurses and myself. Everyone was so positive and encouragin. I do honestly feel like not having the epidural helped because feeling everything going on helped me push harder with each contraction. I definitely felt the "ring of fire" as he crowned and the amazing relief when he was all the way out. He came out instantly crying and was placed on my chest right away. Todd got to cut the umbilical cord and I think I stayed in a state of utter shock for the next 2 hours of what had just happened. I did suffer a 2nd degree tear that took Dr. Diehl about 30 min to repair and Todd got to go with Anderson to his first bath and nursery assessments while I did all my post partum checks. About 2 hours after delivery I was able to shower and we headed to our post partum room.
So far I'm feeling pretty good. Very tired from lack of sleep and all the work that labor is and very sore from pushing/tearing. Anderson has passed all his tests with flying colors and has been sleeping peacefully with very little crying. Breast feeding has been the biggest challege but we're getting there with the help of the amazing lactation consultants. Since I delievered so late we won't get to go home until tomorrow, but thats ok.
All in all labor was scary and painful and exciting all wrapped up in one :) I'm so very thankful for the amazing nurses we had that encouraged me and cheered me on and I'm especially thankful for my amazing husband that was an amazing labor coach. And of course I'm so thankful that Dr. Diehl delivered our beautifuly perfect son, I could not have imagined having it any other way.
So there it is, my roughly 15 hour labor and delivery of Anderson Phillip Saksa, born Wednesday November 2, 2011 a 11:41pm weighing 7lbs, 10oz and measuring 21inches long. We are so in love with this miracle and feel so very blessed.
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Where does the time go??
Seriously? I know I've heard it at least a million times since finding out I was pregnant, "they grow up so fast", "time just flies by". Of course, I nodded and smiled and went on with my way but now I seriously can't believe that this little person napping next to me is going to be ONE MONTH OLD in 4 days!! He has already changed *so much*.
Let me give you the short list:
-Weighs almost 10 lbs (haven't attempted to measure his length)
-Still wearing newborn cloths and an occasional 0-3month- he's long and lean like his parents :)
-Holds his head up for at least 30 seconds at a time and moves it side to side
-Brings his hand together and to his mouth. I'm not sure we're going to be able to avoid a finger/thumb sucker
-Still not a huge fan of the pacifier or swing but LOVES his bouncer (aka baby papasan)
-Still working on "well established breastfeeding" eats well at least 8 times a day but we still have a little ways to go before we get to try a bottle (sigh)
-Likes bathtime but hates getting out of the tub
-Loves tummy time and laying on his back on his activity mat. I think he's starting to intentially reach and grab but maybe thats the OT in me :)
-Likes looking at lights, especially the Christmas tree
-Looks super cute in his Bum Genius cloth diapers that we were able to start using at about 2 1/2 weeks!
-Sadly his poor hematomas on his head from delivery are still there but we've noticed a tremendous decrease in them over the past week!
-HATES going to bed most nights, seriously takes almost an hour to get him down :( We think he's still working on the day/night reversal. BUT once he gets down he sleeps well.
It's so hard to believe that just 4 weeks ago he was still inside me and now he's this curious little person who is starting to do more every day besides sleep, poop and eat :)
How are Todd and I? We're adjusting to our new normal. Todd's been back at work and the nights before he flies I let him sleep which is more work for me at night but I figure its the price I have to pay to be married to a man that flies a multi billion dollar plane that drops bombs :/ I'm already dreading going back to work and doubting how much I actually want to work. Hormones and lack of schedule and not wanting to leave Anderson with a stranger (to him) are all factors affecting my decision. I know I still want to work but I'm begining to think I may want to work even less...at least until he's older. I don't know...I still have time and fortunately in a position to dictate what I want to do. A lot of people have been asking me how I'm feeling/healing. I'm feeling really good physically, I'm pretty sure I'm "all healed up" but won't push doing too much until after my 6 week appointment. I've started running about 5 days a week, still slower and only for about 30-45min and added my old weight routine 3 days a week. I'm thankful that I was able to start wearing my pre pregnancy clothes again about 2 weeks postpartum but still have a little weight to lose, however, I won't be pushing the weight loss until the 6-8 week point because I don't want to jeapordize my milk supply.
Thanksgiving with my family was great and we're hopefully looking forward to Todd's parents coming out in December. Otherwise it should be pretty quiet around here until Todd leaves for Alabama after the New Year.
We have a ton of picutures to upload on the computer and will take more this weekend to mark his one month with us :) Will hopefully update again soon!
Let me give you the short list:
-Weighs almost 10 lbs (haven't attempted to measure his length)
-Still wearing newborn cloths and an occasional 0-3month- he's long and lean like his parents :)
-Holds his head up for at least 30 seconds at a time and moves it side to side
-Brings his hand together and to his mouth. I'm not sure we're going to be able to avoid a finger/thumb sucker
-Still not a huge fan of the pacifier or swing but LOVES his bouncer (aka baby papasan)
-Still working on "well established breastfeeding" eats well at least 8 times a day but we still have a little ways to go before we get to try a bottle (sigh)
-Likes bathtime but hates getting out of the tub
-Loves tummy time and laying on his back on his activity mat. I think he's starting to intentially reach and grab but maybe thats the OT in me :)
-Likes looking at lights, especially the Christmas tree
-Looks super cute in his Bum Genius cloth diapers that we were able to start using at about 2 1/2 weeks!
-Sadly his poor hematomas on his head from delivery are still there but we've noticed a tremendous decrease in them over the past week!
-HATES going to bed most nights, seriously takes almost an hour to get him down :( We think he's still working on the day/night reversal. BUT once he gets down he sleeps well.
It's so hard to believe that just 4 weeks ago he was still inside me and now he's this curious little person who is starting to do more every day besides sleep, poop and eat :)
How are Todd and I? We're adjusting to our new normal. Todd's been back at work and the nights before he flies I let him sleep which is more work for me at night but I figure its the price I have to pay to be married to a man that flies a multi billion dollar plane that drops bombs :/ I'm already dreading going back to work and doubting how much I actually want to work. Hormones and lack of schedule and not wanting to leave Anderson with a stranger (to him) are all factors affecting my decision. I know I still want to work but I'm begining to think I may want to work even less...at least until he's older. I don't know...I still have time and fortunately in a position to dictate what I want to do. A lot of people have been asking me how I'm feeling/healing. I'm feeling really good physically, I'm pretty sure I'm "all healed up" but won't push doing too much until after my 6 week appointment. I've started running about 5 days a week, still slower and only for about 30-45min and added my old weight routine 3 days a week. I'm thankful that I was able to start wearing my pre pregnancy clothes again about 2 weeks postpartum but still have a little weight to lose, however, I won't be pushing the weight loss until the 6-8 week point because I don't want to jeapordize my milk supply.
Thanksgiving with my family was great and we're hopefully looking forward to Todd's parents coming out in December. Otherwise it should be pretty quiet around here until Todd leaves for Alabama after the New Year.
We have a ton of picutures to upload on the computer and will take more this weekend to mark his one month with us :) Will hopefully update again soon!
Friday, November 11, 2011
Our First Week
Anderson is down for a nap in his crib so I finally found some time to get on the computer and blog a little and write a few thank you cards. First let me say how much I *love* having an Angel Care monitor in Anderson's room! We started him in his crib from night #1 and having the peace of mind that the alarm will go off if he stops moving/breathing makes us sleep at least a little better and it gives me the peace of mind to be downstairs on the computer or elsewhere while he happily naps upstairs.
Delivering at almost midnight and not getting settled in postpartum until 4am then having the routine of doctors, nurses, aids, visitors, etc the next day made getting any rest impossible. We did end up sending Anderson to the nursery Thursday night between his two late night feedings so that we could try to get some uninterrupted sleep. I feel like I was "jet lagged" from labor/delivery for about 3 days. We were finally released home about 11am on Friday November 4 and pulled into the drive way just minutes before my sister pulled up as well. Introducing the dogs to Anderson was fun- they were VERY curious but everyone did great. Brody has been such a good dog! He comes running as soon as Anderson cries and sits next to the bouncy seat when he's in it and gets on the floor next to him when we do tummy time. I can tell that he is going to be very protective of Anderson and they are going to be best friends some day. Bella is also doing well but she's overall pretty indifferent to the new man in the house.
Overall things are going about as good as expected with a newborn. Breastfeeding has gotten MUCH better since we came home. Anderson eats every 2 1/2-4 hrs. I still have to wake him up during the day sometimes but he has no trouble waking me up at night! Some nights he can make it 3 1/2 hours but he more frequently likes to get up about 2 1/2-3 hours. which doesn't equal a whole lot of sleep for me. Todd has been a huge help with diapers and clothes changes since we'd like to wait at least another week before we try bottles.
At Anderson's 5 day check up he was already back at his birthweight! The pediatrician was very happy with everything and he's passed all his initial tests so we don't even have to go back until he's 8 weeks old! We also love our pediatrician. He was highly recommended from several of my co workers and so far we've loved him. He's younger (but not too young) and approaches most things from a "this is what I would do with my kid" perspective and backs up all his advice with what the American Academy of Pediatrics says which I like.
Anderson spends his days sleeping and eating for the majority of it and when he is awake we do some tummy time, read, sing and give him all the love we can. The OT in me feels like we should be doing more but of course I know a 9 day old doesn't do much yet :) He doesn't like bath time or diaper changes much. He really just doesn't like being cold. He loves his bouncer. He isn't really taking to a pacifier much which I'm perfectly fine with but I think we're going to have a finger sucker at some point.
Having Karen here for his first week at home was a great help! She helped with laundry and cooking and also gave Anderson lots of love. We were sad to see her leave.
I'm healing and recovering well. I was religious about my sitz baths the first week which I think helped the healing. We started walking the Saturday we got home and every day has gotten easier. I went for my first run yesterday. It was only 20 min and very slow but it did feel good. I'm definitely not trying to push it but its a start. I definitely feel the emotional ups and downs of the post partum hormones and some days are definitely harder than others. I also have frequent night sweats which doesn't help the already limited sleep. But as a friend told me, every part of parenting is just a stage.
We love our little man more than words can say and feel so blessed that he is here. I know I'm leaving out lots but that's all I have for now.
Delivering at almost midnight and not getting settled in postpartum until 4am then having the routine of doctors, nurses, aids, visitors, etc the next day made getting any rest impossible. We did end up sending Anderson to the nursery Thursday night between his two late night feedings so that we could try to get some uninterrupted sleep. I feel like I was "jet lagged" from labor/delivery for about 3 days. We were finally released home about 11am on Friday November 4 and pulled into the drive way just minutes before my sister pulled up as well. Introducing the dogs to Anderson was fun- they were VERY curious but everyone did great. Brody has been such a good dog! He comes running as soon as Anderson cries and sits next to the bouncy seat when he's in it and gets on the floor next to him when we do tummy time. I can tell that he is going to be very protective of Anderson and they are going to be best friends some day. Bella is also doing well but she's overall pretty indifferent to the new man in the house.
Overall things are going about as good as expected with a newborn. Breastfeeding has gotten MUCH better since we came home. Anderson eats every 2 1/2-4 hrs. I still have to wake him up during the day sometimes but he has no trouble waking me up at night! Some nights he can make it 3 1/2 hours but he more frequently likes to get up about 2 1/2-3 hours. which doesn't equal a whole lot of sleep for me. Todd has been a huge help with diapers and clothes changes since we'd like to wait at least another week before we try bottles.
At Anderson's 5 day check up he was already back at his birthweight! The pediatrician was very happy with everything and he's passed all his initial tests so we don't even have to go back until he's 8 weeks old! We also love our pediatrician. He was highly recommended from several of my co workers and so far we've loved him. He's younger (but not too young) and approaches most things from a "this is what I would do with my kid" perspective and backs up all his advice with what the American Academy of Pediatrics says which I like.
Anderson spends his days sleeping and eating for the majority of it and when he is awake we do some tummy time, read, sing and give him all the love we can. The OT in me feels like we should be doing more but of course I know a 9 day old doesn't do much yet :) He doesn't like bath time or diaper changes much. He really just doesn't like being cold. He loves his bouncer. He isn't really taking to a pacifier much which I'm perfectly fine with but I think we're going to have a finger sucker at some point.
Having Karen here for his first week at home was a great help! She helped with laundry and cooking and also gave Anderson lots of love. We were sad to see her leave.
I'm healing and recovering well. I was religious about my sitz baths the first week which I think helped the healing. We started walking the Saturday we got home and every day has gotten easier. I went for my first run yesterday. It was only 20 min and very slow but it did feel good. I'm definitely not trying to push it but its a start. I definitely feel the emotional ups and downs of the post partum hormones and some days are definitely harder than others. I also have frequent night sweats which doesn't help the already limited sleep. But as a friend told me, every part of parenting is just a stage.
We love our little man more than words can say and feel so blessed that he is here. I know I'm leaving out lots but that's all I have for now.
Monday, October 31, 2011
39 Weeks
Here we are... 6 days from D day. I just got home from my weekly OB appointment. I'm finding myself leaving my appointments very frustrated lately and not for any particular reason. For the past 4 weeks they have been uneventful, which is of course a good thing but I still find myself frustrated. Everything is still perfect- weight, blood pressure, measurements, urine, etc. Anderson is moving lower and lower but my cervix has still not moved from its "very posterior" position. Dr. Diehl even tried to get to it a little more today but still couldn't (he could if he really wanted to put me in pain). On one hand I like that I can't dwell on the fact that I'm so many centimeters dilated or so much effaced but on the other hand I think it messes with my head that I'm also not making any forward progress toward labor. Other than increased pelvic pressure and a very random contraction I still feel overall good- not like I could go into labor any day. I'm not sure you're supposed to feel a certain way though and I think its just a mind game. If I make it to my appointment next week we have to schedule an induction and I'll have to have a Non Stress Test and Biophysical Profile to make sure everything is still ok. I REALLY don't want to be induced for so many reasons so we're going to be praying super hard that he comes on his own! The good news- my doctor is on call this weekend! YAY! Bad news- we have a winter storm coming this weekend as well! It could be an interesting week! Here is my 39 week picture-taken after we went to the Rush hockey game Saturday night :) I promise to actually have Todd take a decent picture this week!
So what have we been up to other than being on "Baby Watch"? Fortunately, we finished our "Must Do" list including finishing the nursery, Todd finishing his Master's class, setting up baby stuff, installing the car seat, etc and going over our hopeful birth plan. Now we're working on our "Like to Do" list of mostly things we won't be able to enjoy as a "couple" for quite some time. This has included a nice dinner at our favorite restaurant in town, a Rush hockey game, hiking Bear Butte (pictures below), Todd riding the Harley as much as he can and this afternoon we're going to go see a movie. That one is actually kind of funny because we really don't go to the movies all that often but since we know we definitely won't be seeing one for quite some time we figure we'll go. We're going to see Footloose which I'm pretty excited about. We've also been spoiling the dogs absolutely rotten with long walks and lots of cuddle time which may be counter productive once Anderson gets here and they are no longer the center of attention. So thats all I have for now, going to enjoy this beautiful day we're having before the weather changes to cold and snow overnight :( Here are two pictures from our hike yesterday!
At the top of Bear Butte- just over 4,000ft. It was a 2mile hike with a 1,000 ft elevation change. And yes, we were matching :)
Bear Butte
Monday, October 24, 2011
38 Week Appointment
Another pretty uneventful appointment. All is still well. Anderson has dropped a little more but my cervix continues to be "very posterior". Dr. Diehl said he could check my cervix if he really wanted to/needed to but said it would be extremely uncomfortable and unnecessary at this time. He said he was very confident that as I go into active labor my cervix will move so he doesn't want to schedule a c-section. My only fear is that I will be that small percent that will labor and labor and it won't budge and I'll end up having a c-section. So we continue to wait and see what happens. He told me the only day he's off in the next week is Saturday so I'm hoping Murphy's Law won't put me into labor the one day my doctor wouldn't be there! Personally, I think Anderson is pretty content at this point and I don't see him making his entrance any time soon but we'll see...
Saturday, October 22, 2011
The finished nursery
I finally took some pictures of the nursery this morning to share!
The only "theme" per say is an Aggie theme. As some people know, neither of us really wanted a "baby" room and we also didn't want to have to just store all of our Aggie stuff after moving it out of what used to be our office. Plus, I really liked the curtains in this room so that was actually the starting point. We figure he's not really going to care what his room looks like for several years anyway. It's unfortunately not a super huge room but it has everything it needs, its right across the hall from our room and it will definitely serve its purpose.
Yes, we'll probably be "those parents" who will tell our son that he can go anywhere he wants to for college but we'll only pay for it if he goes to Texas A&M :)
In case you didn't know his full name will be Anderson Phillip Saksa. Anderson is obviously my maiden name and one of the few ways I can honor my family as there are no boys in my family and Phillip is my father in law's first name and despite there already being 5 nephews in the family none of them have Phillip in their name.
He already has SO MUCH stuff! The dresser is also full of clothes and his diapers! I'm amazed by how much stuff babies need! I *think* we have everything. Like I told Todd, if we don't have it, I don't know we need it!
So there you go, Anderson's nursery, ready for his arrival. I'm 38 weeks tomorrow!
Monday, October 17, 2011
Full Term Baby
Today I am 37 weeks, 1 day pregnant so Anderson is now considered full term! YAY! I'm so thankful that we have made it to this point without any major, or even minor, complication. I had my 37 week appointment today and for the most part everything is still "beautiful" in the words of my doctor. My weight, blood pressure, urine, measurements, everything are good. I'm not having any swelling or heartburn or any of the other usual late third trimester problems except for fatigue. My group strep B test came back negative so that was a relief to not need antibiotics before delivery. On the down side, Dr. Diehl decided to do an internal exam today to check my cervix. His first response was "well his head is very low", um, yea, my 5 nighttime bathroom trips could have told you that! His next response was that he can't check my cervix because it is still facing backwards toward my spine. This isn't a new piece of information. I've known about my backwards cervix since I've started having regular pelvic exams/pap smears. It always makes for a pretty uncomfortable time. I mentioned it pretty early on in my pregnancy and he was confident it would straighten out as my uterus grew. Well, now we're just over 37 weeks and it's still not straight. He thinks as my pregnancy continues to progress and as I begin labor it still could straighten and allow for a vaginal delivery but if it doesn't I will have to have a c-section as they will have no way to know if/when I'm fully dilated to start pushing and I would be pushing him the wrong direction. So while we now have answered prayers for a full term baby and a father-to-be home from war we need to say a few more prayers that my stubborn cervix figures out which way to face!
Sunday, October 16, 2011
He's HOME!!
Almost exactly 3 months to the day Todd is HOME!!
After what seemed like the most flight changes/cancels/etc I've dealt with in our 6 years in the Air Force I finally picked him up today! I continue to be extremely thankful that we didn't have to do another 6 month deployment this go 'round and that he will now officially be here when Anderson decided to grace us with his presence!
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
36 week appointment
Today I had my 36 week appointment! As of now if I were to go into labor then they would not stop it! Thats kind of scary! Everything still looks good-weight,BP,etc. I'm supposed to start going every week at this point but my next appointment is actually going to be a week and a half from now so that my appointments become every Monday since my due date is on a Sunday.
During what seemed like a fairly routine appointment Dr. Diehl randomly asked me if I was getting excited and I said, honestly no, mostly because of Todd not being home and because of everything we went through to get here. He said, "it definitely hasn't been an easy journey and its ok if you're not excited yet, you'll get there." My eyes instantly filled with tears. I don't know why I thought the pain of infertility would magically disappear being pregnant. I feel so incredibly blessed to be where we are and to have the same doctor through the entire process. I told him I was going to cry if he wasn't in the delivery room!
In good news, while its not 100% set in stone, Todd *SHOULD* be home by next weekend!! YAY!
During what seemed like a fairly routine appointment Dr. Diehl randomly asked me if I was getting excited and I said, honestly no, mostly because of Todd not being home and because of everything we went through to get here. He said, "it definitely hasn't been an easy journey and its ok if you're not excited yet, you'll get there." My eyes instantly filled with tears. I don't know why I thought the pain of infertility would magically disappear being pregnant. I feel so incredibly blessed to be where we are and to have the same doctor through the entire process. I told him I was going to cry if he wasn't in the delivery room!
In good news, while its not 100% set in stone, Todd *SHOULD* be home by next weekend!! YAY!
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