Her head band can double as an eye mask apparently.
Monday, September 28, 2009
New Eye Mask?
Petunia fell asleep in her cradle before church while I was blow drying my hair. When I found her, this is what we saw: 
Monday, September 14, 2009
Three's Company
I can't wait until she smiles....and not because she is drunk off of breastmilk. A real smile. She has dimples and I hope she doesn't lose them.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
For some odd reason I might have assumed that my most recent labor was going to go the way I had it all planned. The baby was going to eat the way I assumed my other babies have eaten and when I wanted her to eat. The baby would sleep when I thought she should sleep. My body would perform the way I assumed it should perform. And everything was going to be hunky-dory.
But this has been the LONGEST three weeks of my life. For those of you who prefer c-sections over the more "traditional" method of delivery.....for the record, I think you're nuts. (Prepare to hear me whine)
I have been slightly miserable. (My husband would say thats an understatement)
How many more times do I have to be told that "I just had major abdominal surgery?" I guess I needed to be reminded since I never in a million years thought it would be happening to me and never did any kind of reading/studying on the topic. I still have done little reading on the recovery and just decided to wing it. Not the smart approach, but the approach I took. Ignorance is bliss...at least temporarily. When Jiggs was 2 weeks old I began having a few "issues" with my incision. I guess if I would have read a little bit I would have known it was "normal." I think its strange, the doctors say its normal.
I then began getting headaches and I was feeling really, really tired. SLEEP was my friend and my head felt like I was in a fog. Fever soon came. I attributed it to my body being out of whack and hormones. After a few days of that I woke up to a very bad pain in one of my breasts. For sure a clogged milk duct. I was dedicated to the nursing thing and I knew this was just one side affect. But it hurt a lot. I did a little research on the internet to find some answers and went to the Urgent Care.
Turns out I have Mastitis.
Holy Cow. I never had this problem when I was nursing before. It turns out the flu symptoms I had been experiencing was a symptom of the infection. So---after a nice shot of antibiotic (in my booty...thanks) and a prescription for more antibiotic I was set to go. I knew the fly symptoms weren't in my head and as miserable as I was, I was happy to know where they were coming from. All of this pain so that I could feed Baby Jiggs! I thought about quitting, but I just couldn't stand the thought of it. Pain or no pain the show must go on! :)
I am up a lot at night these days. As expected I guess. I have my best premonitions as I sit on the edge of my bed at all hours of the night feeding Baby Jiggs. Then when daylight breaks my brain turns to mush. (All I can seem to worry about is when will Jiggs take that LONG nap so that I can catch one too)
I am waiting for the day where I feel like I have everything down and its "easy." Don't all laugh at me at once.
Maybe its because when I look around me to other new moms with babies they make it look easy. Even though this is our third, I feel like its all new again. I want to know their dirty little secrets and tips. ---Or I want an "Easy Button." Yes....I will take whatever I can get.
But this has been the LONGEST three weeks of my life. For those of you who prefer c-sections over the more "traditional" method of delivery.....for the record, I think you're nuts. (Prepare to hear me whine)
I have been slightly miserable. (My husband would say thats an understatement)
How many more times do I have to be told that "I just had major abdominal surgery?" I guess I needed to be reminded since I never in a million years thought it would be happening to me and never did any kind of reading/studying on the topic. I still have done little reading on the recovery and just decided to wing it. Not the smart approach, but the approach I took. Ignorance is bliss...at least temporarily. When Jiggs was 2 weeks old I began having a few "issues" with my incision. I guess if I would have read a little bit I would have known it was "normal." I think its strange, the doctors say its normal.
I then began getting headaches and I was feeling really, really tired. SLEEP was my friend and my head felt like I was in a fog. Fever soon came. I attributed it to my body being out of whack and hormones. After a few days of that I woke up to a very bad pain in one of my breasts. For sure a clogged milk duct. I was dedicated to the nursing thing and I knew this was just one side affect. But it hurt a lot. I did a little research on the internet to find some answers and went to the Urgent Care.
Turns out I have Mastitis.
Holy Cow. I never had this problem when I was nursing before. It turns out the flu symptoms I had been experiencing was a symptom of the infection. So---after a nice shot of antibiotic (in my booty...thanks) and a prescription for more antibiotic I was set to go. I knew the fly symptoms weren't in my head and as miserable as I was, I was happy to know where they were coming from. All of this pain so that I could feed Baby Jiggs! I thought about quitting, but I just couldn't stand the thought of it. Pain or no pain the show must go on! :)
I am up a lot at night these days. As expected I guess. I have my best premonitions as I sit on the edge of my bed at all hours of the night feeding Baby Jiggs. Then when daylight breaks my brain turns to mush. (All I can seem to worry about is when will Jiggs take that LONG nap so that I can catch one too)
I am waiting for the day where I feel like I have everything down and its "easy." Don't all laugh at me at once.
Maybe its because when I look around me to other new moms with babies they make it look easy. Even though this is our third, I feel like its all new again. I want to know their dirty little secrets and tips. ---Or I want an "Easy Button." Yes....I will take whatever I can get.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Where do I begin?! I can hardly believe that Baby Jiggs is almost two weeks old.---Probably because the past two weeks have almost been a complete blur. A complete blur, but yet I can recall every little detail. Strange how that can be.
Wednesday - By 1am the contractions are 2-3 minutes apart. I am still only dilated to a 2 so no epidural. The doctor comes in to check on me and he says he will give me the epidural once I get to a 3. (I like this guy) They give me some kind of pain medicine that let's me sleep for an hour. They say I can have 6 doses before the epidural so I am going to get as much as I can so I can get some sleep. I end up getting another dose at 4am. Still only at a 2. Another dose at 6am. The nurse checks me at 6:30 and I am at a 2.5. By this point I am quoting "Smalls" from the movie "The Sandlot" and I mumble "I can't take this anymore!" Luke is sleeping as comfortably as possibly on his couch. Its close to 8am and the nurse finally breaks and agrees I am a 3 and ready for the epidural. The anesthesiologist does his thing...and I am numb. Numb all the way up to my chest. a headache ensues and vomiting. He looks worried....which makes me worried. Within 5 minutes of the epidural I am at a 5-6. The doctor checks me and my water breaks. She suspects the baby is breech. I can't feel a thing! Two minutes later they are performing an ultrasound....and it appears that sometime in the middle of the night the baby changed her mind and turned around. The doctor informs me we have to do a C-section. I turn my head and look at Luke---and I start crying. Not a c-section!
Thursday - We made it through another night in the hospital---this time with a baby. I am ready to eat---when I am informed by the nurse that breakfast will consist of water, chicken broth and Jello. UGH! I am ready to have Luke smuggle me in some real food.
Sunday - Got our hopes up after we met with the doctor in the morning. If the Bili reading was under 10 at the 3pm blood draw she could go home. Results came in at 4:30....and it was 10.2. Had to leave the hospital empty handed....again.
I am wondering how long it will be before I forget every painful moment from the day Jiggs was born and the days that followed. Let's see---
Tuesday - Induction Day! I am not exactly thrilled about it, but the hospital calls at 9am and says to eat breakfast and be there at 10am. Grandma Hogue arrives at the house bright and early to take care of the boys for the next few days. After we arrive at the hospital they begin to give me antibiotics (for GBS) and tell me that at 5pm they will give me the Cervadil to start the induction. The boys come to visit us for a bit. By 9pm the contractions are irregular and nothing exciting going on. I watch Big Brother with Luke and Julie from my cozy hospital bed.
Wednesday - By 1am the contractions are 2-3 minutes apart. I am still only dilated to a 2 so no epidural. The doctor comes in to check on me and he says he will give me the epidural once I get to a 3. (I like this guy) They give me some kind of pain medicine that let's me sleep for an hour. They say I can have 6 doses before the epidural so I am going to get as much as I can so I can get some sleep. I end up getting another dose at 4am. Still only at a 2. Another dose at 6am. The nurse checks me at 6:30 and I am at a 2.5. By this point I am quoting "Smalls" from the movie "The Sandlot" and I mumble "I can't take this anymore!" Luke is sleeping as comfortably as possibly on his couch. Its close to 8am and the nurse finally breaks and agrees I am a 3 and ready for the epidural. The anesthesiologist does his thing...and I am numb. Numb all the way up to my chest. a headache ensues and vomiting. He looks worried....which makes me worried. Within 5 minutes of the epidural I am at a 5-6. The doctor checks me and my water breaks. She suspects the baby is breech. I can't feel a thing! Two minutes later they are performing an ultrasound....and it appears that sometime in the middle of the night the baby changed her mind and turned around. The doctor informs me we have to do a C-section. I turn my head and look at Luke---and I start crying. Not a c-section!
Ugh!
Within 5 minutes I was being wheeled into the OR for a C-section.
Within a few more minutes I heard crying.... and I started crying. It was her...finally. In the midst of everything going on over the past 24 hours I seemed to have forgotten that I was going to be getting a baby out of this deal. Once I heard Baby Jiggs cry, it all became clear again.
Within 2 hours the boys were at the hospital to meet their sister. They were very excited---to say the least. I was so happy to see the boys so happy that their sister was here. I was starving---and ready to grub. I had decided not to eat dinner the night before because I thought FOR SURE I was going to be delivering a baby through the night. As Luke is about to take my food order I am informed by the nurse that I cannot eat anything for 24 hours. Ugh!
Thursday - We made it through another night in the hospital---this time with a baby. I am ready to eat---when I am informed by the nurse that breakfast will consist of water, chicken broth and Jello. UGH! I am ready to have Luke smuggle me in some real food.
By 2:00pm the nurse comes into the room to do another Jaundice test on Jiggs. Shortly therafter another nurse returns and says they are taking Jiggs to the NICU because her Bili Ruben results were high. I am confused and assume she could be back in hours.
Friday - Jiggs is still in the NICU and go over every 3 hours to visit and feed her.
Saturday - I am released from the hospital. Jiggs has to stay. Not the way I wanted to leave the hospital...but I am trying to tell myself that there are a lot worse scenarios. Tubbs is crying all the way home. I pretend to be happy and tell him that she will be home soon. Thankfully my mom and dad arrive in town shortly after I got home. They would make everything better. My parents head over to the hospital with me late that night and my dad gives her a blessing.
Sunday - Got our hopes up after we met with the doctor in the morning. If the Bili reading was under 10 at the 3pm blood draw she could go home. Results came in at 4:30....and it was 10.2. Had to leave the hospital empty handed....again.
Monday - First day of school. I wouldn't miss this---even though I couldn't drive. My mom drives me and the boys to school and Luke meets us there. I call on the way to school to get the results from the 6am Bili draw. The results--- 10.1. Ugh. This was killing me. I went over to the NICU at 9:30 with my mom to feed Jiggs. The doctor gets the results and decides to let her go home. Joy---overwhelming joy is all I feel. Baby Jiggs is coming home. The boys get home from school and see Jiggs sleeping on Grandpa's chest. They are so excited to have her home! Yay!
Tuesday - Let the real fun begin.
Naps for Jiggs and Grandpa
Grandma and Grandpa (aka chauffeur, chef, message taker, door answerer, bug-sitter, errand runner and baby snuggler) and the kids the morning they left to head home.
My little cabbage patch doll
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