Pretty Baby

 

 

Times are a Changin'

So I've been thinking about the many changes Daniel and I have been through in our almost 4 years of marriage. I have decided that when we do things, we do them BIG!

Those who really know me, know that I am a huge planner. Spur of the moment doesn't really cut it for me - it gives me anxiety. When we decided to move out to here to California, the decision was made and we moved within a week and a half. We had no idea what was in store for us here. All we knew was that Daniel was going to go to school. We ended up buying a house because it was cheaper than rent and both landing jobs very quickly.

Here we are 2 years and 1 child later... We have made another huge decision, perhaps even bigger decision than the last. We have joined the Army. Lets be realistic - I've joined too, just in a different way. Many people thought it was a decision we made quickly. We discussed it with just a few people. However, what people don't realize is this decision has been a long time comin'. Daniel swore into the Army September 11, 2013. We immediately started getting our house ready to put on the market. The house was on the market September 24th (I think) and in contract October 7th (which is also my birthday! Great birthday gift, huh).

I think this will be one of the hardest moves I will make for many reason. Besides the Army business, Daniel and I have transformed this house. When we moved in there was nothing except a crappy kitchen and bathroom. We have molded this house into a home. A home that we love. We have put our sweat, blood, tears (okay, my tears) into this place, began our family of 3 here, etc... Maybe it's so hard because everything is kind of unknown territory right now. Who knows where we will be this time next year. Again, I'm a planner, so that is hard for me.

Leaving the friends we have made here is going to be so tough. Whether they be friends we made at work, or through our ward family, it's going to be so hard. We've made many friendships that mean so much to us.  So grateful for FB, Skype and Dominion online :) At the moment, I have to put it out of my mind. If I don't, I'm going to lose it and start bawling like a baby. Ain't nobody got time fa' that!

Anyway, just so I can preserve the memory of the changes to my house (and the cleanliness), here are before and after pictures:

Before....

 

 

Just for fun... She's a bleeder.

AFTER...

Under Pressure

I bet when you saw the title of this blog post, you thought of the song by Queen, “Under Pressure,” right? Well, if you didn’t, you should’ve. Good song.

Anyway, I write this today because I kind of wanted to vent. As a first time parent, I feel as though I am under a lot of pressure. How so, you may ask? See the examples below: 

*Note – these are real examples*

“Your baby is 8 weeks and isn’t sleeping through the night yet?”

Um, no. She is a baby. They don’t really do that for a while. Some parents are very fortunate and get that early. Haven’t you ever heard the phrase, “sleep like a baby?” That means waking up every two hours wanting to eat. (why anyone would want to sleep like a baby is beyond me)

“Your baby is 7 weeks and hasn’t rolled over yet?”

Um, no. Again, she is 7 weeks, and that is not supposed to happen for awhile.

“Don’t hold your baby all the time, she will become spoiled.”

 Babies need to be held; maybe not ALL the time, but often. That is how they gain trust and know you will be there for them. 

“Wow, your baby is so young! I can’t believe you would take her out at this age!”

You can stay in the house cooped up all you want, but this Mom has gotta get out!!

“You need to let your baby cry it out. That will get her to sleep through the night real quick.”

Thank you for the awful advice. I would actually prefer to build trust with my baby, so that she knows I will be there for her. 

Many people give so much unsolicited advice/comments and it kind of brings a girl down. Granted, some of this comes from strangers who I don’t give a crap about, but it boggles my mind that people feel the need to open their mouths and say anything like this. Some days, I feel as though raising a kid is made out to be a competition or a race. Every baby is different.

Nope, my kid does not sleep through the night, but she’s freaking cute when she smiles at me at 3 am. I hold my baby a lot, but I won’t be able to soon because they grow so fast. I am going to take my baby wherever, whenever because I’m not going to stop my life because I have a baby (just make sure you pack a lot of diapers). Cry it out this young? Please. I’m not THAT heartless.

A few days ago, I decided to ignore the shenanigans and ENJOY my kid.

Olivia's Arrival

Some of my friends have wanted to know the birth story of my little girl, Olivia Lake. Since she is sleeping, I guess now is the best time to share!

I knew from the beginning that I was going to be overdue. Some first timer’s are fortunate to have a baby early, I knew that was not going to happen to me. On Feb 4, my doctor and I discussed my induction and set it for Friday, Feb 8. We set it for 5 days overdue so Daniel could have as much time as possible to help out and be with the baby. We were excited to finally have our baby in our arms.

We went in to Kaiser at 5:15 pm Friday night and got everything registered and ready to go. I was taken to my L&D room where my baby was to be born. I was so anxious and excited, but mostly terrified. I got my gown on and hopped into the bed so they could get my IV in my arm. After two nurses and an anesthesiologist, I finally had my IV. Needless to say, I’m a rather hard stick. I was given a medication to help get things going (to soften my cervix) at about 7:30 pm. I was having contractions consistently, but my cervix was not softening up and I was only 1.5 cm.

 At 6:30 am, Saturday, I was started on Oxytocin. They couldn’t give me anymore meds to soften my cervix because I was contracting too much. Daniel and I were walking the halls, trying to get the baby out, and I was having contractions frequently. However, after every cervical check, I never made any progress. When the evening came, I was having contractions every two minutes, but I had no idea. I could feel them at all. The nursing staff would ask me if I was having a contraction and I would look at the monitor to tell them yes or no. 10:00 pm came, and there was still no sign of Olivia coming. My body was no longer having good contractions and was becoming used to the Oxytocin. The midwives/doctors talked to me about my options. They could put in a foley bulb, take me off Oxytocin for the night, blah,blah,blah, OR I COULD GO HOME. In my mind, going home without my baby was not an option. I was so emotionally and physically exhausted. I wanted to ask for a c-section so badly, but I could not bring myself to do it. I called my mother in tears, and she told me we needed to pray about the decision. After the prayer, I asked Daniel what he thought we should do, and he wanted to proceed with medical treatment. I then asked him what he FELT we should do and he said to go home. I told him I felt we should go home also. From that point on, I could not stop crying. It was such a hard decision. The hospital gave me some sleeping meds to take home. I cried all the way home, and right until I fell asleep. I was completely devastated.  

Sunday morning came, and I had slept through the night for the first time in 9 months. I could not function. All I could do was sleep and go to the bathroom. I was so broken hearted. At 3:00 pm, I finally decided to get out of bed. I went to the bathroom and went to the living room to see Daniel, and my water broke.

We got to the hospital about an hour later, roughly 4:00 pm, and were checked in by some of the nurses that sent us home. They were so happy to see us and that things were progressing on its own. After a little bit, we got settled into a different L&D room. I was finally experiencing the real contractions. Yeah, they hurt, no monitor needed to tell me I was contracting. We were walking the halls again, trying to get things progressing. At midnight-ish, I was in so much pain, they gave me Fentinal to help try to ease the pain. That worked alright for about 45 minutes. The contractions were hitting hard, so at 1:30 am, Monday morning, I got an epidural. No regrets there. At about 3:00 am, about 5 people rushed in the room. There were people everywhere, I had no idea what was going on. They gave me a shot in the back of the arm to stop my contractions. It was really scary. I guess Olivia’s heart rate dropped off the monitor longer than it should have and I was having contractions 1 minute apart and that is dangerous. They had to put an internal heart rate monitor on her head. At that point, I was only 4 CM along. 

I was in and out of sleep until 8 am. When they checked me at that time, I was 10 cm. They were just waiting for her to drop down a little farther. At 9:30 am, it was time to start pushing. We did a couple practice pushes, and they decided we were ready to go. Then, my contractions stopped. Just. Completely. STOPPED. After a while, they decided to put me on Oxytocin, AGAIN, so contractions would get started. At this point, I didn’t think she would ever come out. I was so emotional. It was so hard. I finally started to get contractions, even though they were not “good quality” contractions. They decided to do a couple more practice pushes and decided to keep going. I pushed for 23 minutes and Olivia was here. It was an amazing, and emotional moment. I was in tears.  

Olivia started nursing like a champ right away. We had some bonding time. I handed her off to her dad. It was pretty crazy. Then I started passing blood clots, and lots of them. I was losing a lot of blood. I won’t go into details about that. After the doctors/midwives decided I was done passing clots, they moved me to postpartum and the fun of parenthood began. 

My first labor experience was difficult. Leaving the hospital the first time without a baby in my arms was one of the most heart wrenching experiences of my life. I would never hope that on anyone. All-in-all, I am glad Olivia is here, and is happy and healthy. 

Olivia at 6 days old