Dancing with little man

My little man LOVES music. When ever he hears it (even if it’s on TV) and will say “dance mumic” then begin to squirm and jump around!

*sorry for the technical difficulties.  I’m working on getting the video up *

Preview of my lovely

If you are on the list of people who get Christmas Cards, then don’t be surprised if you get this in the snail mail.  Otherwise, here is the official announcement

Stationery card

View the entire collection of cards.

& baby makes 4!

I was going to title this post “the quickest way to lose 10 lbs in 1 day”, but that doesn’t really do justice to the amazing experience of becoming a mom again!

On Thursday April 12, 2012 we awoke knowing that this would be no ordinary day.  My husband and I had dropped off our son at my parents the night before, so the eerie quiet that filled the house was setting the stage for something that will rarely ever happen in our house again (unless no one is home).  I woke up on the couch with our first-child (aka Diesel the 100lb Weimaraner) in my lap.  He was fully aware something was about to change, hence the snuggle fest.

At 40 weeks and 5 days, I was scheduled to be induced.

I was to arrive at the hospital for check in at 7:30 AM.  The hospital had remodeled since I delivered my little man.  This would be the room where I would be getting comfortable until she decided to make her entrance, then we would move to a different room for recovery.  Turns out my doctor had 3 others being induced that day…guess no one was in favor of a Friday the 13th baby

At 9 AM we started the Pitocin, and waited.  Having been induced with my first child I knew we were in for a few hours of waiting while the contractions got stronger.  We were prepared this time.  We contacted friends and family to see what time everyone thought our daughter would be born, I hunkered down to a crossword puzzle or two, and the husband tried to read Hunger Games to pass the time (but I kept interrupting him to chat).  Shortly after noon, the doctor came in to break my water, hoping to speed things up a bit.  At that point I was formally committed to having the baby and was measuring 3 CM.

While contractions were still tolerable, I knew that my body responded much better after the epidural last time, so I went ahead with it at 3 PM.  At that point I was dilated to 5 CM (halfway there). A sigh of relief. We settled in and turned on the Brewer’s vs. Cubs game and waited (Cubs won).  While the epidural was extremely helpful in getting my body relax, there was a small “window” where the epidural didn’t take.  Meaning while a majority of pain was gone, there was a small spot on my left side where I felt everything.  In that spot, the epidural had taken the edge off, but the pain was quickly growing extremely strong.

At 4:45 PM we still were passing time by texting family with updates and checking out Facebook.  When the nurse (Maureen) came to check on me I shared the growing discomfort on my side. I had already pushed the button to up the meds with no relief.  At that point she checked me and exclaimed, “You’re going to have this baby within an hour.” I was in transitional phase.  She prepped everything to prepare for doctor and baby.  I did one practice push, and was quickly halted, “Okay, no more pushing.  This baby is going to arrive within the next 15 minutes.” The nurse  called my doctor (who is incredibly laid back doctor) and told him he needed to come immediately.  My doctor asked “do I have time to get caught up on some work?” to which she replied, “No, you need to come now, she’ll be done in 1-2 contractions.”  Doctor arrived just in time to gown up and get his gloves on.  I patiently breathed through 3 contractions while the doctor prepped.  1 push- head was out, 2nd push- shoulders were out.  At 5:07 PM we welcomed EllaMae Sandra to the world.

I was very excited to have a friend capture the precious moments immediately after she was born, as both my husband and I were busy and caught up in the moment with the birth of our new daughter (I’ll share those soon).  Being that I wasn’t sick this time, I was able to enjoy skin-to-skin time with our little girl.  She was eager to look around and check things out.  Within 5 minutes she had found her fist, and managed to put her thumb in her mouth.  The nurse came in and was shocked…”Get that thumb out, let’s get a boob in her mouth!” And she hasn’t stopped eating since! After a little snack on her part, there was a nursing shift change (good-bye Maureen; Hello Emily) and both were fabulous to work with!  EllaMae was officially weighed in at 7 lbs 15 oz (just 7 oz. heavier than her brother) and 19.5 inches long (1 inch shorter than brother).  I will say her feet and fingers are SO long!  Literally her foot is slightly shorter than her entire calf, and just longer than my middle finger.

As you can see, she is very fond of her daddy.  I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship!

Around 7 PM my little man arrived with my parents.  While he had been prepped and excited, saying “mommy,” “baby” the entire drive to the hospital, the sight on mommy in the bed and our photographer set him into a panic mode.  He was very scared and left the hospital room with my mom.  Thankfully I had a gift and our photographer had a few suckers to coax him in and comfortable enough to sit next to mom for a while.

It wasn’t until his big cousin, Dakota- a familiar friend, came shortly after he arrived that he really became more relaxed and interested in the baby and mom.

Everyone gathered around as EllaMae got her first bath.  She was NOT happy, until she settled into the warm water and heat lamp. (She gets pissed when she’s cold!) And yes she really was this red.  According to my neice Dakota, she was so red “because she must have been in there too long.”

It wasn’t long after bath time that we transitioned to the other room.  The family went ahead as our Nurse (Emily- who was so amazingly sweet) got me prepped for the move.  She wheeled me down the hall in the wheelchair as my husband drove the cart with all our stuff.  When little man saw me in the wheelchair, he was so upset that he threw himself on the floor with a complete meltdown (when he saw the wheelchair in our last room, he thought he was going to ride with mom).  Without skipping a beat, Nurse Emily told him it was his turn for a ride.  She helped him onto my lap and away we went down the hall for a ride.It was just what my little man needed, and when he returned to the room, everyone cheered and we was back on top of his game ready to take on the big brother role.  We nestled into the double bed where big brother held EllaMae.  He must learn a lot from those girls at daycare because he immediately looked at her and started shushing her like mom!

Around 9 PM the extended family left and it was just our time to cozy up to our little one.  After a few hours of shady internet connection, I finally emailed the news and pictures.  Facebook would have to wait until tomorrow.

At 11 PM EllaMae went to the Nursery for the night and dad and I settled in for some much needed sleep.  Brent kept commenting how tired he was, and that he didn’t do anything all day- but that wasn’t exactly true.  He waited on me hand and foot, he was so supportive and comforting throughout the entire process.  The rush of emotions to meet our little daughter was enough to send us into a deep slumber.  And luckily, EllaMae held up her end of the bargain.  She came in to eat every 3 hours to eat, plus a little snuggle time! Welcome to the world Little Miss Mae, have a good night and dream big!

Becoming Mom {part 2}

Dearest Beatrice (your womb name),

It has been 40 weeks and 5 days since you’ve become a part of my body, and I can’t believe how fast the time has come.  Tomorrow we’ll be induced and coax you to come out.  Tonight, there are a zillion and seven things going through my mind and even though I’ve been here once before I feel like it’s all new to me.  I don’t know that a woman ever becomes “experienced” at giving birth or becoming a mom.  While I might have learned some things with your older brother, there is so much more I have yet to learn.  And without a doubt, you will mold and shape me in ways I never knew were possible (as I sit here looking at my belly, I guess you could take that sentence literally)!

We have spent weeks preparing for you.  You’re room is in order with a delightful wardrobe awaiting your sweetness.  We’ve been practicing “how to be a big brother” with little man, and anticipating how schedules and routines will be altered with your entrance to the family.  And while this is all so amazingly wonderful and exciting, there is still a little fear and anxiousness.  Round 2 of pregnancy was so different than with your brother, and I have to think about all the unexpected things that we will face together.  Tomorrow is just a piece of the puzzle as we begin our life together.  You have been so kind on the inside, embracing my body with sincerity and empathy as we made our way through trimesters 1 and 2.  With very few curses of pregnancy symptoms, I was able to carry on with life without many nagging reminders.  You made the incubation period seem so seamless that I felt I was able to enjoy more of our nesting time together.  On the flip side, this makes me a little nervous.  Your brother was relentless on the inside, but is very mellow and laid back on the outside.  Will you be laid back on the inside and a little terror on the outside?  I guess we’ll have to wait and see

While I was hoping you’d make your way on your own, I feel prepared and shocked that tomorrow we will finally welcome you into our family.  We know you are a girl and we were able to plan accordingly.  You have an abundant wardrobe waiting for you, complete with accessories and shoe collection that rivals your mom’s.  (Between you and me…We may have an issue with closet space, but don’t worry, we can always invade the boys! Shh, that will be our secret plan).  I even sewed you a little dress…actually  almost 2 dresses.  Thanks to a friend of mine, I was able to get together with her and make your baptismal gown out of my wedding dress, which then sent me into a sewing frenzy that I made a skirt and few other accessories.  I have a feeling there will be a few more coming!  We also chose your name, but are keeping it a surprise.  Even your dad joined in on the fun with making some fun wall art that will be reveled to the rest of the world when you arrive, as we wouldn’t want to give away any hints at your name!  Your dog-brother (Diesel) keeps us company every night as we have taken up sleeping on the couch, and subsequently I’ve been replaced in bed by your older brother.  That’s probably a good thing, since dad needed to be reminded of what it’s like to wake up in the middle of the night to help out when needed.  Also your brother needed some daddy bonding time, so that when you and I spend time together he is cool hanging with dad.

I have a sneaking suspicion that you are going to be a daddy’s girl through and through!  Your dad is so cute and giddy.  I’ll have it be known that your dad decided your name.  Choosing a name for your own child is no easy task when your parents are teachers.  He is so excited by your name and talks to you all the time.  Your brother also is so in love with you, giving you kisses and showing me his baby all the time.  The girls at daycare (he’s the only boy) have trained him well, as he crosses his arms and says “Sh-Sh-Shh” as if to be holding and calming his baby sister. We are surrounded by an amazing group of boys (Dad, Diesel and Caleb).  It makes me wonder if you’ll be more of a tomboy or a girly girl?  I might need some help in the girly girl department.

Well little miss Bea, I think this is good night.  I will look forward to meeting you on the other side.  Safe travels and be well my little one

Love you more,
Mom

Preparing for You {pregnancy}

Dear Little Miss Bea,

On Saturday we will celebrate our 38th week together and already the doctor is talking about inducing me.  Based on your brother’s late arrival, I assume you two schemed up a plan!  Either way I wanted to catch you up on the fun and crazy memories we’ve shared over the last few months!

First of all, we know you are a girl.  This news has un-ravelled a sequence of events.While your dad and I have decided on a name months ago, we’re trying to keep some elements of surprise.  In light of this we have thrown out lots of unlikely possibilities (Gertrude, Juanita, and our favorite Beatrice).  Somehow Beatrice has stuck and thus you are now being referred to as “Little Miss Bea.”  Only your brother and dad are calling you by name on occasion.

Your brother is more versed in “baby” than your actual name.  He believes you are my belly button.  In the first half of the pregnancy he’d lift my shirt and show you off, thankfully he’s taking up just pointing to my belly now.  Although he has no shame in showing off his “baby” by lifting his shirt, and has even lifted the shirts to show some bare belly of the girls at daycare.  Boys – you never know what they might do. We are sharing stories and introducing him to other babies.  He seems very excited to see and hold other babies, so I’m very eager for you 2 to meet.

Your room is almost complete.  We have a few finishing touches to add, which will likely wait until your arrival so we can include your name and portraits to the wall.  I’m very excited that you will have a very chic room that is un-traditional for most nursery decor.  While we converted the guest room into your new room, it really was my room in terms of closet and storage.  This forced me to purge the closet to create some shared space.  Based on the start of your wardrobe, this may be an issue of contention in future years.

You have been kind on your mom, and surrendered her the agony of morning sickness.  You often remind me of what I should or should not be eating (or you really want me to drink mil), as often I am struck with  unbearable heartburn following a few triggered foods.  We had one major concern in January where I was rushed to the emergency room with chest pains.  What they thought was a pulmonary embolism (Blood clot in the lung) was ruled out later that day with a CT scan.  Thankfully we were okay and moving on.  Several weeks ago I got to see you again thanks to an Ultrasound.  While I was measuring small, you certainly were not to blame.  At 34 weeks an average baby weighs 4 – 4.5 lbs and you were almost 6 lbs.  The ultrasound tech was a bit taken back by the length of your leg bones.  She thought you and might be tall like your mommy. Unfortunately you were positioned sideways into my pelvis so I wasn’t able to see your face.  To date we have been pretty sensible and I have done a much better job being aware of my weight and exercise (we’re still under the recommended weight gain, unlike the near 65 lbs I gained with your brother).  Fortunately the unseasonably warm weather has kept us outside on walks and playing outside more than we might typically do during a normal March in Wisconsin.  This has resulted in some swelling of the ankles and relentless hot flashes.  I can’t say my maternity wardrobe was prepared for summer attire in March!  We’re getting by and enjoying every drop of sunshine we can.

There are so many things that I am curiously waiting to learn.  Will you have a full head of hair like your brother?  How about your demeanor and personality- laid back and relaxed, or more of the high maintenance type?  Mommy’s or daddy’s girl?  High-fashion or Sports?  Who will you look like?  Will you break the myth of second child characteristics, or make your daddy yearn for a 3rd just like you?

In just 2 short weeks we will meet in person and you will shape a whole new chapter of our life story.  Rest up little Bea, because you are in for one exciting adventure!
Love you more,
Mom

Ponderings of a Pregnant woman!

Hello- is this thing on.  Phew, let me clean out the cobwebs and dust a bit quickly.  uh-um

As you may have noticed I’ve been living life and not documenting it so much.  Since my last post (was it seriously around Thanksgiving?!?!?) I’ve grown (not so much vertically), we had a few Christmas celebrations (I think one every weekend) and look at that, we are in a whole new year.  Thankfully I have a few months to get my head around the idea that we’ll be 3 + 1 family soon. On the little man front things are happening so fast- everyday is a new adventure.  New Words, New Explorations, New Stories, and new routines.  I’ll dedicate a separate post to the Caleb Times in a bit.

While it may appear that I’ve abandon this blog, or I’m not dedicating the time and energy to my 2nd pregnancy story (My mom reminds me weekly how the second child is going to feel when she- yes she- finds out I didn’t blog the experience for her like I did little man), that’s absolutely not true.  I almost feel as I have done less complaining and more reflecting with round 2.  You see with round 1 I was too distracted by my need to puke, and then the heartburn and insomnia, extremities the size of watermelon’s and my out-of-control weight gain.  Round 2 is a complete opposite, minus the basketball attached to my belly button, I feel great.  There are days I’d like to go to the gym and pretend I have a new years resolution.  I do have self-induced heartburn after a selection of foods, but really most cravings and pregnant tendencies have been under control. 

I also feel more prepared, more organized with this round.  (Here’s where I might need to point out how laid-back I am in comparison to many first-time moms).  You see round 1- we had 1 ultrasound, people were trying to prepare me for many different scenarios, giving me pointers on aids and remedies to progress things along. Well I don’t learn very well by listening or reading…I guess I need to experience it myself to make everything click. So this time around it just seems more organized and yet, even more laid back.

To begin we prepared a fun little announcement by having little man be the bearer of good news (either in person or via picture for those who lived far away) with a home-made shirt.

Then we opted to find out the gender of our little one- which for round one I appreciated the element of surprise.  Again we were a bit festive and decorated a cake (pink on the inside) announcing the news to family….only to come home and realize that the dog had eaten the entire cake.  The back up plan was a pretty entertaining story

We did a family and mini maternity shoot a few weeks ago…literally my husband and I did the photography seeing how I own a photography business and all .  Little man decided to keep things true to form. When asked where the baby was, he showed us…

He even offer his little sister a kiss…

Staying true to tradition…here’s the bump at 24 weeks.

Now that the Holidays are over and we don’t have plans to host company for a little while we are giving little man’s room a big boy makeover, and turning the guest room (Also known as the red room) into the new girly nursery.  Fun thing about girls is I can take things I thought were cool during wedding planning and turn it into some inspiration for a girls bedroom….hopefully I’ll have a few pictures to post this weekend (although you might want to keep an eye on my creative blog- Fosteringacreativelife.com for all the details)

I also went Christmas shopping and happened to pick up a few things for the in utero child from her older siblings (Diesel is still our first born- I just didn’t have quite the labor pains with him).  A few bags of girls clothes from some generous friends and the closet is quickly filling….which means I better keep cleaning out my stuff

In just 3 more months-ish we’ll have a daughter to greet you.  Hopefully, I’ll get on the ball and post a few more updates between now and then!

Grateful

On this thanksgiving day I have much to be grateful for.

I’m grateful for my husband who is always willing to help out with mundane (or special requests) to make life easier around the house.  Like helping making a salad,  an appetizer, vegetable and dessert for Thanksgiving meal last night before going to bed.

I’m grateful for my little man who “helps” me fold laundary by decorating the house and himself with his mom’s socks and underwear.  Maybe next time I’ll wait to introduce him to Christams decorating after all the laundry has been folded!

I’m grateful for our dog-child who will cuddle up to you and do everything possible to make your day a little brighter.

And last but certainly not least, I’m grateful for the opportunity to be an incubator to our future daughter.  I am blessed each day with her squiggles and the relentless heartburn.

 

Hope you and yours have a happy and safe thanksgiving Holiday