A Few Pictures from our Postpartum Haze

Julia and Opa

Rudy's really getting pretty good with holding Julia. He's a loving brother, and getting more loving with each day. Today he started making little comments like "Hello Miss Juila!" and "Look at her cute little bum!" It's so nice to see him doting on her. I'm still bracing myself for him to get sick of her, but so far, so good. :)

On Friday, we absolutely HAD to get outside. Both Rudy and I needed some vigorous exercise, and some time to goof off together, like we did when Julia was still in my belly.  I strapped Julia onto my chest, where she slept contentedly while we built a giant leaf pile and played all sorts of games with it.

Rudy's favorite was a simple DESTROY THE LEAF PILE game. He'd run at it, plop himself into the middle of it, and then make havoc of all those unsuspecting peaceful little leaves. Then I'd chase him with fist fulls of leaves all over the park.

It was good for him. He's had so many "be gentle" prompts lately, that I'm sure it was a relief to just be as wild as wild can be.

All three of us left in good spirits, though Julia may as well have been napping at home for all the notice she took of our rumpus. She's so easy to please. So long as there's food, warmth, and a loving touch, she's content. :)

Note to Self:

 

don't try to bake less than two weeks postpartum. It just doesn't work.

Julia's First Trip to the Park

Don't worry-she did NOT ride to the park on Rudy's lap. I used the wrap a friend of mine passed down, and loved it! Thanks so much Amy!

Rudy, my Mom, Julia, and I took a stroll to our favorite park on her first full day home from the hospital. I was dying to get some fresh air, and to introduce Julia to the great outdoors. It was a beautiful day, and so fun to see Julia right at home sleeping in the grass with the autumn leaves rustling around her and the birds chirping above her.  And it was good to give Rudy some running around rowdy time. ;)

Julia's Arrival

Julia Elizabeth Drummond

Born November 3, 2010, 6:57 am

6 pounds 15 ounces

19 inches long

It was Tuesday, November 2nd, a full 14 days away from my due date, when I had the irrepressible urge to get to Target and buy all those last minute things on my list of "Before Julia Arrives" purchases. Hand sanitizer, new hand soap for the kitchen and bathroom, baby Tylenol.

Throughout the day, I'd had a few random surges (Hypnobirthing vocab for contractions) which seemed alot more down to business than the 'practice surges', or Braxton Hicks, that had been keeping me company for the last couple of months. I hadn't thought too much about them, but by 9 pm, when they were getting more regular, like every 15 minutes or so, I was definitely thinking about them. 

Try as I may to convince myself that this was just a practice run, the surges keep coming, more and more regularly, and more and more strongly. My Hypnobirthing training worked beautifully, and I was able to keep calm and relaxed as my body worked it's way toward birthing.
I didn't sleep, like my Hypnobirthing instructor had counseled us to do if labor began at night. Really, how can you expect a person to sleep when she feels the workings of such a big event as birthing her baby beginning? It's like asking a 6 year old to sleep in on Christmas morning! Instead, I found myself scrubbing the tub, because Heaven knows I was NOT going to have a filthy tub when the baby came home. (Never mind about the state of the kitchen. For some reason, the tub was the target of my final deep cleaning frenzy.)

By 2 am, I was pretty well convinced that we'd be heading to the hospital that night, so I woke Jason and called my mom to drive down from Midway to stay with Rudy. At about 4:00, my surges were strong enough that I felt comfortable going to the hospital.  I was still able to stay relatively comfortable through the surges by practicing my relaxation techniques and squatting down when they came. 

We checked into the hospital about 4:30, and were stuffed in an oversized closet of a 'room' for observation to be sure I was actually in labor. After about an hour, they agreed that I was going to have my baby, and let us settle into an actual birthing room. By then, my surges were getting stronger and a bit harder to manage with simple breathing and visualization. I hopped into a nice hot bath for about a half hour before the surges changed to serious birthing surges. Jason helped me move from the tub to the bed, which we put into the full sitting up position. I leaned on the inclined part of the bed in a sort of modified all fours position, which was really great to labor in for me. Things went pretty quickly from there. I remember my doctor stopping in to ask me how I felt about having my water broken if things stalled. I told him as politely as I could that I was sure that would not be necessary. A half hour later, my baby was in my arms as he hurried into the room to 'catch' her.
Jason, Julia and I enjoyed family bonding time for several hours before her stats were taken. It was a beautiful time for us.

All in all, I'm really happy with how our birthing experience went. I was hoping to be this miracle momma who  somehow birthed her baby with all the quiet composure of a birthing animal, but that was not to be. I did a bit of yelling as Julia made her way down the birth path, calling out to her, "Come, baby, come!" I know I was probably the joke of the hospital staff that day, but oh well, it's what helped me stay focused on the fact that all that pressure was bringing me my baby, and that I'd be seeing her any minute, which is what helped me stay in the right frame of mind to be able to work with Julia and Jason without fear.
One thing I loved about my second time around in Hypnobirthing was the increased connection I felt with Julia as we birthed together. I really felt like we were working together, and I was more tuned in to her position and her progression to and through the birth path. I also loved the fast recovery I enjoyed. After a good breakfast, I felt really amazing. All those endorphins from the birth kept me in my ultimate comfort zone for hours and hours after my birth-it was like I'd been sitting in a hot tub. We're so happy to welcome Miss Julia into our home, and so thankful to have enjoyed a smooth and gentle birthing experience.

A Beautiful Fall Day

I cherish the moments when the pure joy of motherhood surrounds me, and there's nothing else I'd rather be doing. These are the times all the mundane 'homemaking' tasks of keeping a family running culminate into a rich, beautiful awareness that family is the greatest gift I've ever been given.

Check List

Hospital bag packed?-check
Rudy care arranged for and backed up?-check
Nursing and bottle feeding supplies stocked?-check
Clothing for the first 6 months of life washed and organized?-check
Paper diapers for both kids stocked and ready to go?-check
New crib set up? -check
Car seat installed and safety checked?-check
HypnoBirthing techniques reviewed?-check
Baby room beautified?-check, check, check!

Now, I feel about as ready as I'll ever be. Now, maybe I can sleep instead of sitting up at night fretting about if I'll be putting my little girl down to sleep in a thrown together mess of furniture, blank walls, and bare windows. Was I this neurotic when Rudy was almost here? Probably.