So... these are late... because I forgot. But they're too cute not to post.
Happy (belated) Valentine's Day!
Sunday, February 17, 2013
Friday, January 4, 2013
She's Three! (months)
Okay, actually she's almost 4 months but I had to match Noah's "three" :)
Lydia is a very happy and healthy growing girl! At her 2 month appointment she was already 13 pounds, and from our scale at home she is now 15.2 pounds! And almost 24 inches long! That means she is already in 6 month size clothes. (I know that is pretty standard, but it is weird to me! I kept squishing her into 3 month size like my poor NICU mom brain just couldn't comprehend that she could wear a size up.) As you could probably guess from those facts, she is still an excellent eater. She is doing pretty well with the sleeping thing too and has slept all the way through the night quite a few times already. She still doesn't like sleeping flat and would prefer to be snuggled in someone's arms or in her swing.
She is so smiley and talkative=super adorable! She is a big fan of having "conversations" and has recently learned to both screech and yell. Just like her brother was, when she is awake those legs are usually a kickin'! She is starting to like to look at books and toys and was especially fond of Noah's shiny birthday balloons. She adores her Daddy and I think she has comfortably found a place for him right around her little finger. :)
Noah is still doing great as a big brother, and still refuses to call her anything other than GirlBaby. He likes to bring her a paci or toys and will ask, "What does GirlBaby want?" or will inform me, "My sister is crying." (Although he really doesn't like it when she cries and it will sometimes set him off, so I am VERY thankful that she is so happy!)
Overall I'd say we are adjusting well. Honestly, the whole 2 kids thing hasn't been that hard for me; it's the cleaning and cooking and being expected to fully function thing on top of it that is tricky. ;) But I know these are precious times and am trying to soak up as many baby smiles and snuggles and toddler antics and adventures as I possibly can.
I loooooove my Lydia!
Lydia is a very happy and healthy growing girl! At her 2 month appointment she was already 13 pounds, and from our scale at home she is now 15.2 pounds! And almost 24 inches long! That means she is already in 6 month size clothes. (I know that is pretty standard, but it is weird to me! I kept squishing her into 3 month size like my poor NICU mom brain just couldn't comprehend that she could wear a size up.) As you could probably guess from those facts, she is still an excellent eater. She is doing pretty well with the sleeping thing too and has slept all the way through the night quite a few times already. She still doesn't like sleeping flat and would prefer to be snuggled in someone's arms or in her swing.
She is so smiley and talkative=super adorable! She is a big fan of having "conversations" and has recently learned to both screech and yell. Just like her brother was, when she is awake those legs are usually a kickin'! She is starting to like to look at books and toys and was especially fond of Noah's shiny birthday balloons. She adores her Daddy and I think she has comfortably found a place for him right around her little finger. :)
Noah is still doing great as a big brother, and still refuses to call her anything other than GirlBaby. He likes to bring her a paci or toys and will ask, "What does GirlBaby want?" or will inform me, "My sister is crying." (Although he really doesn't like it when she cries and it will sometimes set him off, so I am VERY thankful that she is so happy!)
Overall I'd say we are adjusting well. Honestly, the whole 2 kids thing hasn't been that hard for me; it's the cleaning and cooking and being expected to fully function thing on top of it that is tricky. ;) But I know these are precious times and am trying to soak up as many baby smiles and snuggles and toddler antics and adventures as I possibly can.
Saturday, December 15, 2012
He's Three!!
Our little tiny baby boy is three years old!! Oh how far he has come. And what a fun and wonderful time it has been.
In no particular order, here are some memorable things about Noah at age 3:
-Weighs 26ish pounds and is 37 inches tall. (His pants fall down a lot.)
-Has a truly amazing memory. Example: The first time he saw the Christmas tree up at my parents' house this year he asked after a few minutes, "Grandma, where is the Mary and Joseph and Jesus ornament?" Grandma: "Um, here's one." Noah: "Not THAT one, the yellow one." How crazy is it that he remembered a specific ornament, one that he had only seen when he was barely two, and within a few minutes realized it was missing? And try to skip or change words when we are reading a book? Ha. He will usually correct me and say, "I mean...." (Sometimes I honestly wonder if he has a photographic memory because of the details he remembers)
-Is in the "why?" stage. Oh my is he is the "why?" stage. And he has recently started adding "Really?!" after we tell him an answer he is finally satisfied with.
-Is very logical. A couple weeks ago we were at story time at the library and the book was about dinosaurs doing things, to which Noah replied, "Actually, they don't, because dinosaurs don't have hands." Today his ears were really dirty and there is a page in a Dr. Suess book with a bird in someone's ear so I said, "Maybe there is a bird stuck in there." He then told me, "No, Mama. Birds live outside in trees."
-Is getting to be quite the little diplomat. Often when I tell him he can't play with or do something right now he will say, "SOMEtimes you let me do that." Or "SOME kids play with that." Oh boy, what are we in for.
-Overall he is so polite and it is so cute! He almost always thanks me for making him meals or for helping him with something. He likes to say thank you to all the servers and cashiers when we are in town. Sometimes he will stop when he is playing with something and say, "Did I say thank you for this?" and it bugs him when a package is delivered when we aren't home because noone said thank you to the delivery man. :) (Of course, he also gets in quite the demanding moods! He has told us, "I'm a boss too.")
-His vocabulary and grammar are pretty spot on. Although he still has his own pronunciation for a few things, like 'debanas' 'debloons' and 'desprise' for bananas, balloons, and surprise.
-Uses so many little expression and uses them appropriately, like "actually" "I guess" "Well..." "Oh boy!" and "gosh!" (Those last two he picked up from Mickey Mouse. ;) He has also started using his hands a lot when he talks for emphasis. So stinkin' cute.
-Is quite the little conversationalist. He will try to get right in your line of vision if he wants to talk to you. And he likes to peoples' names when he is talking to them. The other week at church a kid took his sister's boot and ran off with it and Noah turned to her and said, "Well Addison, sometimes I have one boot on and one boot off too." :)
-If he doesn't understand something he will ask, "What are you talking about, guys?"
-Has a great imagination! We will pretend things for hours. Yesterday while surrounded by all kinds of new toys, he was playing with an empty laundry basket and a stick. He took me to his bus garage, a restaurant and the beach. :)
-Still loves tractors and buses.
-Still loves to read. (His birthday party was a Richard Scarry "Busytown" theme. I think that deserves a post of its own later. :)
-Still loves to snuggle. I'm a lucky mama. (He still like to play with my hair too, although I did get a pretty major haircut.)
-I love my 3 year old!
In no particular order, here are some memorable things about Noah at age 3:
-Weighs 26ish pounds and is 37 inches tall. (His pants fall down a lot.)
-Has a truly amazing memory. Example: The first time he saw the Christmas tree up at my parents' house this year he asked after a few minutes, "Grandma, where is the Mary and Joseph and Jesus ornament?" Grandma: "Um, here's one." Noah: "Not THAT one, the yellow one." How crazy is it that he remembered a specific ornament, one that he had only seen when he was barely two, and within a few minutes realized it was missing? And try to skip or change words when we are reading a book? Ha. He will usually correct me and say, "I mean...." (Sometimes I honestly wonder if he has a photographic memory because of the details he remembers)
-Is in the "why?" stage. Oh my is he is the "why?" stage. And he has recently started adding "Really?!" after we tell him an answer he is finally satisfied with.
-Is very logical. A couple weeks ago we were at story time at the library and the book was about dinosaurs doing things, to which Noah replied, "Actually, they don't, because dinosaurs don't have hands." Today his ears were really dirty and there is a page in a Dr. Suess book with a bird in someone's ear so I said, "Maybe there is a bird stuck in there." He then told me, "No, Mama. Birds live outside in trees."
-Is getting to be quite the little diplomat. Often when I tell him he can't play with or do something right now he will say, "SOMEtimes you let me do that." Or "SOME kids play with that." Oh boy, what are we in for.
-Overall he is so polite and it is so cute! He almost always thanks me for making him meals or for helping him with something. He likes to say thank you to all the servers and cashiers when we are in town. Sometimes he will stop when he is playing with something and say, "Did I say thank you for this?" and it bugs him when a package is delivered when we aren't home because noone said thank you to the delivery man. :) (Of course, he also gets in quite the demanding moods! He has told us, "I'm a boss too.")
-His vocabulary and grammar are pretty spot on. Although he still has his own pronunciation for a few things, like 'debanas' 'debloons' and 'desprise' for bananas, balloons, and surprise.
-Uses so many little expression and uses them appropriately, like "actually" "I guess" "Well..." "Oh boy!" and "gosh!" (Those last two he picked up from Mickey Mouse. ;) He has also started using his hands a lot when he talks for emphasis. So stinkin' cute.
-Is quite the little conversationalist. He will try to get right in your line of vision if he wants to talk to you. And he likes to peoples' names when he is talking to them. The other week at church a kid took his sister's boot and ran off with it and Noah turned to her and said, "Well Addison, sometimes I have one boot on and one boot off too." :)
-If he doesn't understand something he will ask, "What are you talking about, guys?"
-Has a great imagination! We will pretend things for hours. Yesterday while surrounded by all kinds of new toys, he was playing with an empty laundry basket and a stick. He took me to his bus garage, a restaurant and the beach. :)
-Still loves tractors and buses.
-Still loves to read. (His birthday party was a Richard Scarry "Busytown" theme. I think that deserves a post of its own later. :)
-Still loves to snuggle. I'm a lucky mama. (He still like to play with my hair too, although I did get a pretty major haircut.)
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Of Ivory Soap and Hurricane Sandy
So I am thinking about how I almost lost it over Ivory soap yesterday. Actually, the smell of Ivory soap. You know how they say smells can be very strongly linked to memory? I'm guessing many of us have experienced that sensation of getting a whiff of something and being transported to a memory of a certain time and place. Well for me Ivory soap=NICU. I'm not 100% sure why, I think because it is supposed to be more gentle, but Ivory soap is always what you are given in the NICU to wash things, mostly pumping gear. And so me and Ivory soap spent many a time together washing up after pumping yet again. And then I had to get some when we got home because that is just the way is was and I still keep a bottle around. But when I use it and smell that particular scent, I am standing in Noah's pod or in the NICU pumping room. I can still see every single detail of those places in my mind. Sometimes it doesn't phase me at all, but sometimes I tear up and almost start crying into my dish water.
What people went through and the damage caused by Hurricane Sandy is just crazy. The thing that got me the most was hearing about the NYU NICU having to be evacuated. NICU nurses carrying babies in their arms down 9 flights of stairs in the dark, with other nurses carrying IV pumps and lines and wires, and other nurses bagging the babies (forcing air into and out of their lungs--basically breathing for them). Noah was bagged more times than I like to think about, but the one time I actually saw was when he had to leave the NICU and go to a different part of the hospital for a test. I remember our nurse explaining what would happen, that an RT would be with him the whole time "breathing for him" and then awkwardly thanking her as they left for saving our baby's life...again. And so hearing about the Hurricane Sandy situation of course makes me shudder. But it also give me a sense of... pride I guess? In that I know first hand what those amazing nurses are capable of and am part of this "NICU community", I guess, of parents and staff who have been touched by NICU experiences.
I am so thankful that looking at my almost 3 year old son, you would never know that he had to be bagged and poked and kept at the hospital for three months. And I am so thankful for my precious daughter and that I got to experience her birth at full term and kind of redeem my thoughts about the whole giving birth thing. That I got to bring her home right away and be a "normal" mom. But in some ways, I will always be a NICU mom. Ivory soap and Hurricane Sandy remind me of that.
What people went through and the damage caused by Hurricane Sandy is just crazy. The thing that got me the most was hearing about the NYU NICU having to be evacuated. NICU nurses carrying babies in their arms down 9 flights of stairs in the dark, with other nurses carrying IV pumps and lines and wires, and other nurses bagging the babies (forcing air into and out of their lungs--basically breathing for them). Noah was bagged more times than I like to think about, but the one time I actually saw was when he had to leave the NICU and go to a different part of the hospital for a test. I remember our nurse explaining what would happen, that an RT would be with him the whole time "breathing for him" and then awkwardly thanking her as they left for saving our baby's life...again. And so hearing about the Hurricane Sandy situation of course makes me shudder. But it also give me a sense of... pride I guess? In that I know first hand what those amazing nurses are capable of and am part of this "NICU community", I guess, of parents and staff who have been touched by NICU experiences.
I am so thankful that looking at my almost 3 year old son, you would never know that he had to be bagged and poked and kept at the hospital for three months. And I am so thankful for my precious daughter and that I got to experience her birth at full term and kind of redeem my thoughts about the whole giving birth thing. That I got to bring her home right away and be a "normal" mom. But in some ways, I will always be a NICU mom. Ivory soap and Hurricane Sandy remind me of that.
Saturday, October 27, 2012
Family of 4 Update
I can't believe it's already been over a month since we brought Lydia home and became a family of 4! Overall we are doing great. Lydia is good at all the things she is supposed to be, eating, growing and making dirty diapers. I am thankful she has been a very good nurser right from the start, and she is putting on the weight to prove it! She is not quite as skilled in the sleeping department, but it's coming. Ordinary baby stuff, right? We'll take it. :)
Obviously things are very different this time around. And obviously
most of those things are very good! But there are a couple things that
are actually harder. For one, Noah was like a three month old in some
ways when he came home, meaning he was sleeping flat in his crib and
could take a bottle. Oh, and sleeping at night. It took Lydia a few
days to get that whole night and day thing figured out. She seems to have a little reflux and doesn't like being flat. And there has just been a bigger adjustment period overall.
When Noah came home, I already knew him super well, his habits and
likes/dislikes and little quirks. And I learned them and how to handle
them with the most qualified staff possible by my side. We have had to
do that "getting to know" Lydia at home by ourselves, and if feels very
different. But I'd say we are doing a pretty good job. :) (Oh, and the
whole sleep deprivation thing. Getting almost no sleep plus recovering
from a c-section is not the best combination. I would gladly have
taken a few night nurses. :)
Recovery has gone very well except for one thing--it turns out I am very allergic to steri-strips (little strips of medical tape that are put all along the incision). We're talking blistered and swollen and so painful and itchy I thought I might lose my mind. But the incision itself has healed up just fine. It was very hard to not be able to take care of Noah and things around the house. But Corey got to take a couple weeks off work and was awesome. And my mom came over a lot. Noah was very fond of this part of having a new baby! And so was I; even though I am a mom, I still like having MY mom around. :) Thanks, Mom!
Noah has done very well so far. Yes, there have been a few times where he has asked if she can go back to the hospital, but he usually is pretty positive. :) He still calls her "GirlBaby" most of the time. His cutest brother moment so far is when he laid down next to her and said, "GirlBaby and me are friends! And God loves GirlBaby and God loves me!" I know he is kind of bored with this little person that only sleeps and eats and gets changed. He will often ask "Can she walk/talk/etc yet?" The other day he told her, "Lydia, this is how you hold a toy. You put it in your hand and hold it!" I am excited for when they can actually play together. :) But for now I will enjoy all the cuteness and baby snuggles.
Here are some similarities I have already seen between them:
-Breech, small for their age, and very skilled at hiding from monitoring equipment
-Super long eyelashes
-Does NOT like to be swaddled (Yes, yes, I know; "all babies love to be swaddled." Have you ever seen a baby fight for 20 minutes to get their arms out of a swaddle and then fall asleep? We have. Twice.)
-Likes her paci and has even found her thumb a few times already
-Has already started grabbing my hair
-Overall content, happy, and alert
And what kind of person would I be if I didn't put a few more pictures... ;)
So, so blessed.
We love you, Lydia!!
Recovery has gone very well except for one thing--it turns out I am very allergic to steri-strips (little strips of medical tape that are put all along the incision). We're talking blistered and swollen and so painful and itchy I thought I might lose my mind. But the incision itself has healed up just fine. It was very hard to not be able to take care of Noah and things around the house. But Corey got to take a couple weeks off work and was awesome. And my mom came over a lot. Noah was very fond of this part of having a new baby! And so was I; even though I am a mom, I still like having MY mom around. :) Thanks, Mom!
Noah has done very well so far. Yes, there have been a few times where he has asked if she can go back to the hospital, but he usually is pretty positive. :) He still calls her "GirlBaby" most of the time. His cutest brother moment so far is when he laid down next to her and said, "GirlBaby and me are friends! And God loves GirlBaby and God loves me!" I know he is kind of bored with this little person that only sleeps and eats and gets changed. He will often ask "Can she walk/talk/etc yet?" The other day he told her, "Lydia, this is how you hold a toy. You put it in your hand and hold it!" I am excited for when they can actually play together. :) But for now I will enjoy all the cuteness and baby snuggles.
Here are some similarities I have already seen between them:
-Breech, small for their age, and very skilled at hiding from monitoring equipment
-Super long eyelashes
-Does NOT like to be swaddled (Yes, yes, I know; "all babies love to be swaddled." Have you ever seen a baby fight for 20 minutes to get their arms out of a swaddle and then fall asleep? We have. Twice.)
-Likes her paci and has even found her thumb a few times already
-Has already started grabbing my hair
-Overall content, happy, and alert
And what kind of person would I be if I didn't put a few more pictures... ;)
So, so blessed.
We love you, Lydia!!
Friday, September 21, 2012
Welcome to the world, GirlBaby!
Lydia Ruth
6 lb 15 oz
19 inches
Everyone is doing well! We love her!
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
One more update!
One last update before GirlBaby makes her appearance TOMORROW at 10:30!!
I lost count, but I know I had at least a dozen ultrasounds, plus more doctor visits, so I am ready to be done with that part!
She decided to catch up in growing a couple of weeks ago, measuring 5 1/2 pounds, so she should be right around 6 1/2 tomorrow, at 39 glorious weeks! When my doctor looked at that ultrasound he said, "If this was the only ultrasound I ever saw I would assume it was from a perfectly healthy and routine pregnancy." What a nice change from his first description of "rare and special." :) We are so, so thankful.
To be honest the whole concept of a c-section doesn't really bother me at all. Some women act like it is the end of the world and somehow makes you less of a mom, but when you have been through what we have, anything other than the end of the story being a mom and baby is pretty much just details. I don't know if my doctor would have let me try for a VBAC anyway, but GirlBaby made it perfectly clear that she was not moving from as breech as she could possibly get, so that made that decision easy. I am so ready to not have someone literally sitting on my bladder!
That being said, I am actually a little more anxious for this one considering I have had more than 10 minutes to think about it and won't be completely sedated. But I know it will be worth it! Corey and I were talking about how different it is going to be to actually be among the first people to see and touch our baby. Yup, pretty excited about that.
Noah is still excited and hopefully will be tomorrow too! We had a "Big Brother Party" for him tonight and had lots of fun. I know there will definitely be some adjusting, but I think he is going to be an awesome brother!
Thank you so much for all your love and prayers!!
(I'm sure just a few pictures will be taken tomorrow :) and we will try to post some soon.)
I lost count, but I know I had at least a dozen ultrasounds, plus more doctor visits, so I am ready to be done with that part!
She decided to catch up in growing a couple of weeks ago, measuring 5 1/2 pounds, so she should be right around 6 1/2 tomorrow, at 39 glorious weeks! When my doctor looked at that ultrasound he said, "If this was the only ultrasound I ever saw I would assume it was from a perfectly healthy and routine pregnancy." What a nice change from his first description of "rare and special." :) We are so, so thankful.
That being said, I am actually a little more anxious for this one considering I have had more than 10 minutes to think about it and won't be completely sedated. But I know it will be worth it! Corey and I were talking about how different it is going to be to actually be among the first people to see and touch our baby. Yup, pretty excited about that.
Noah is still excited and hopefully will be tomorrow too! We had a "Big Brother Party" for him tonight and had lots of fun. I know there will definitely be some adjusting, but I think he is going to be an awesome brother!
(I'm sure just a few pictures will be taken tomorrow :) and we will try to post some soon.)
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