Wednesday, December 30, 2009

i think i'll ride, thanks

Asher and I tried out the Beco Baby Carrier yesterday. He was fussing pretty bad for awhile, so Drew suggested giving the carrier a go.

Turns out that was the best idea!



Asher loved being snuggled up against me so securely. As a huge {and unexpected} bonus, the Beco managed to keep his pacifier wedged in. Replacing someone's fallen paci has become my secondary job it feels.



We still need a little practice getting in and out of the carrier, but I'm confident before too long it will be second nature.

For now I love being able to hold him close while still getting things done around the house.

Who wants to make the salads for dinner? I will!





Here's hoping Ash continues to like his ride so Mommy can get some chores done once we're home alone all day.

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

2 weeks old

Asher is 2 weeks old!



On one hand I don't know where the time went. It still seems like yesterday that Drew and I were rushing off to the hospital days before we expected to.


On the other hand, Asher has changed so much in such a small amount of time that it feels like he's been here for a lot longer than 2 weeks.


Drew and I have learned a lot about what Asher prefers, what his different cries mean, and how he likes to sleep {or not sleep}.

At 2 weeks old Asher:
  • eats every 3 hours during the day
  • eats every 4 hours at night
  • sleeps for a lot of the remaining time
  • looks in my direction when I talk
  • screams bloody murder while getting a diaper change
  • has grown a super cute double chin and chubby legs
  • wears size Newborn diapers
  • has started to outgrow some size Newborn clothes
Drew and I tried to weigh him using the very inaccurate "me, then me + baby" measuring system. According to that he weighs 8.5lbs. I believe it!

I'm trying to cherish every day with him because I see already how quickly babies change and grow. Your daddy and I love you very much baby Asher!

Monday, December 28, 2009

aunt erin's visit

Last week my sister, Erin, came to visit baby Asher!



He was so excited to meet his aunt. Fortunately he waited until she headed home to shower us with his poo explosion situation. Aunt Erin loves him very much, but isn't a big poo fan.

Who can blame her.

Some things only a mother can love. :o)





We can't wait until she is able to come back with Asher's Aunt Jenn and cousin Owen next month!

Friday, December 25, 2009

merry christmas!

Merry Christmas!




Thursday, December 24, 2009

what they don't tell you...

In preparation for the bean's arrival I read lots of books and took a newborn class. I think this worked pretty well in terms of being ready to breastfeed and give baths.

Since we knew we were expecting a boy everyone had the same advice.

Be prepared for a shower. Boys like to spray all over when getting their diapers changed.

You know what no one told me....

That babies also have pressure loaded back-ends.

Look what happened when I went to change Asher yesterday.



I took off his diaper and poo started shooting out at me. Literally shooting out.

I had no idea little bums could be this powerful.

Moms-to-be beware! :o)

After all that he was pretty exhausted.


Or maybe my incompetence at diaper changing just gives him a headache.

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

asher's birth story

It's taken me a while to get this posted, mostly because I don't want to leave anything out and my hands are {literally} full for most of the day. We're going to give it a try now - let's hope someone naps long enough for me to finish!

On Saturday, December 12th Drew and I did a ton of stuff. We were planning on having the induction on Wednesday, 12/16 and wanted to get some things done ahead of time. So on Saturday we cleaned the whole house, went to the mall to walk around {hoping to encourage baby along without the induction!}, and had a delicious lunch of Chick-Fil-A.

That evening we had plans to have dinner with our friends Carl and Karen, but around 5:00 I stood up from the couch and felt a little whoosh of fluid.

I wasn't completely convinced that my water had broken {denial, anyone?}, so I went upstairs to monitor things. I figured if it was my water it would just keep coming - which is exactly what happened. The fluid just keep coming out in little bursts and I decided to fill Drew in on what was going on.

He immediately jumped into action loading the car and making me something to eat. I wasn't having any contractions at this point, so I didn't feel too rushed. I decided to get a shower and change into some comfy clothes for the duration.


At this point I'm feeling nervous, but excited and honestly, still in disbelief.  Everything I did, I was thinking "this is the last time I'll get a shower/brush my teeth/eat an English muffin/etc" as a non-mom.  It was hard for me to accept that Asher was actually going to arrive soon.  I couldn't wait to meet him, but the planner in me couldn't work past the fact that he was suppose to come on Wednesday!

About 2 hours after my water first broke we arrived at the hospital and got checked into triage. I still wasn't having any painful contractions and when the resident checked me I was only 2cm and 70% effaced.


She wanted to start me on Pitocin since the clock was ticking. The chance for infection goes way up 24hrs after your water breaks, so they wanted Asher to be delivered by then. I was hoping to avoid the Pitocin, so Drew and I opted to walk the halls for a few hours to {hopefully} help things along.



Around midnight they checked me again and I was still only 2cm. Boo. I agreed to have some Pitocin and they started me on a very slow drip. That little bit was all the encouragement my body needed - the contractions started to get really strong and frequent. As far as the pain goes it wasn't fun. Drew was a great coach and tried to lead me through the breathing techniques that we learned in class.  I say he tried to lead me through them because I hushed him more often then not.  When I'm under stress I need quiet.  Really quiet.  I tend to go within and draw my strength from there.

That said, Drew really was great!  He supported everything I needed and was a great advocate for me.  At one point the nurse offered me some pain meds {not an epidural, but narcotics} and I quickly said no thanks.  I knew from the get-go that I didn't want narcotics and didn't change my mind while laboring.  After I said 'no' the nurse kind of rolled her eyes, but Drew gave me a big smile and thanked me for being strong for our baby.  That really meant a lot.


Since I was on a Pitocin drip I had to be in bed on the monitors and wasn't able to try any comfort techniques besides the breathing. Because of this I wasn't ashamed to ask for the epidural right away. In the lab if we tie a mouse down and apply painful stimuli without anesthesia it's considered cruel. I think I should be held to the same standards as a rodent.

The insertion of the epidural was the least painful thing I experienced the whole night. If you're not sure if you want one because you're worried about it hurting, please don't. It's a breeze.

The epidural was awesome for awhile, except that it made my blood pressure plummet. Because of this the doctors were hanging around monitoring me for forever so I didn't get a chance to sleep at all. By the time they left I realized that my pain was coming back big time. As it turns out they didn't hook up my pump, so I couldn't dose myself with more medicine when the pain increased.

Are you kidding me???

By this point Drew was snoozing in the recliner and the lights were off so I could "get some rest." Yeah, right. I tried to tough it out for awhile, but back labor set in pretty intensely and before long I couldn't keep quiet.  In retrospect I realize that I was going through transition during this time.  When everyone was gone/asleep and the room was dark I started to feel really scared and alone.  That's common during transition, but I didn't put the two together.  All I knew was that I didn't want to bug Drew and I didn't want to be whining to the nurses.

However, after crying quietly into my pillow for 15 minutes I remembered that I'm the most important player in this game and, darn it!, if I want the lights on then they are coming on!  If I want to sit up, get on my hands and knees, or do cartwheels down hall then that's what I'm doing!  I woke Drew up and called the nurse, demanding that they help me sit up or do something to relieve the pain.

Before the nurse was willing to help me move she wanted the attending OB to check me again since it had been a few hours. The OB came in, checked me and said "well, no wonder you're uncomfortable, you're complete." I had gone from 2cm to 10cm in just 6 hours.

They called my OB who was able to come in for the delivery. I started pushing at 6:45am and kept pushing and pushing...

Everyone assured me that we were making progress, but I was starting to doubt them.

3 hours later {and 17 hrs after my water broke} little Asher made his arrival!


It turns out that he was twisted the wrong way coming out and got himself hung up on my pubic bone for awhile. In the end he had a big bruise on the back of his head. Besides that he was perfect!

I feel so blessed to have had a relatively easy labor and delivery. To be honest I was sort of dreading the induction - I'm so happy that Asher decided to come a little early on his own.

Monday, December 21, 2009

one week old

Asher is 1 week old!

I'm going to continue the weekly "belly" photos by showing how Asher is growing and changing with each week for the first year. We have already noticed his face filling out more. With the way he eats it's really no wonder.

I decided to take his photos on the quilt that I made for him. We need something that will still be big enough when he's a year old. He also has a super cute elephant toy that I threw in for some sense of scale.

Here he is!



Saturday, December 19, 2009

first bath

Asher got his first bath yesterday!



He still has his little umbilical stump, so it was just a sponge bath. Based on how he reacted in the hospital we assumed bath time would equal a major emotional meltdown. This boy does not like being naked!





I was pleasantly surprised when the pacifier was enough to keep him calm. Asher didn't seem to mind the warm water at all and smelled so good afterwards!



Friday, December 18, 2009

old habits

Does this...



look familiar to anyone else?



Too cute!

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

asher's first few days...

We've been extremely busy around here getting to know {and care for} a certain someone, so I don't have time to post the birth story just yet.

Here are some more photos, though, as promised!









Monday, December 14, 2009

our bean has arrived!

Please welcome...

Asher Thomas Wilkinson


born December 13, 2009

7 pounds, 5 ounces

19 inches long

Mommy, Daddy, and Asher are doing well and spending lots of time together!





Lots more photos and the whole {surprise} birth story to come in the next few days!

Friday, December 11, 2009

baby quilt

It's finally done!



Yesterday I managed to finish the baby's quilt that I've been working on for the past few months. A lot of that time was wasted because my sewing machine broke. This quilt was a lot easier to make than my first attempt. I don't have a specific idea of how it will be used right now. Mostly I just want baby bean to have a comfy quilt to cuddle with or play on.



My mom made me quilts growing up and they were always my favorite blankets to use. I want my baby to have those same memories!



I started small (since he'll be small), but will make something bigger if he wants one someday! The colors and patterns don't exactly scream "baby" but I like it.



Basically I'm just glad the thing is staying together and that the pattern looks (mostly) planned on purpose.

In other news, my first day at home was very productive! Although I am super tired today, so maybe I overdid it a bit. Yesterday I managed to:

1) finish the quilt
2) make + freeze 2 cookie doughs
3) run several errands
4) wrap Christmas presents
5) do 2 loads of laundry

Just 5 (or fewer) days until the bean arrives!

Thursday, December 10, 2009

first day off work

Today is my first day at home. The baby isn't here yet, but I decided to take a few days before he arrives to get some things done at home and just re-adjust my mindset. I think it would be really disorienting to go straight from working in the lab to being a mommy. These few days should be great.

Plus I'm not sleeping well at night and having the freedom to nap whenever I want is a luxury I need to take advantage of before it's too late!

However there's always a catch.

Before I had a chance to get too comfy at home I remembered that I forgot to give my boss back the lab Procurement Credit Card yesterday. Great.

This isn't something that I feel comfortable mailing in, so I'll be making a trip back to the lab! I just can't stay away.

Over the next few days my goals include walking as much as possible and eating lots of pineapple to encourage the bean along. I guess one more trip back to work won't mess with this too much!

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

the end, the beginning, the drop

Today is my last day of work for...I'm not sure how long. As I mentioned a few months ago, with the birth of this baby I'm starting a new career as stay-at-home Mom!

I know this isn't something that every family can do and I feel so blessed and lucky to have this chance.

While I'm really excited to have all of my time available to spend with the bean I'm also pretty nervous about what my new life will look like. Ever since I graduated from college I've been working. If you haven't been able to tell yet I love having a schedule. Work provides this. Babies do not.

Things will undoubtedly be different, but I'm confident that, with time, the bean and I will figure out a new "normal" together. I can't wait!

Since today is my last day of work, tomorrow starts my final baby countdown to-do list. I am (really, honestly) going to finish his quilt today. After that, over the next 6 days, I need to make some cookie dough and clean the house. Assuming I don't go into labor this should be very do-able. In fact, if doing all of this puts me into labor I won't complain.

If the bean doesn't force his own early timetable then in just 1 WEEK I'll be in the hospital getting ready to meet my little boy.

OH MY.

Drew and I try not to talk about it in those terms too often because it's just too anxiety inducing exciting.

In other news, I think that winter has finally reached Cleveland. We've had pretty mild weather so far this fall, but Mother Nature looks ready to hit us good.

Check out the temperature drop between today and tomorrow.

Yikes.

Let's all pray that things warm up a little and the snow stays away for my trip to the hospital next week!

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

38 weeks

Another week down -- we made it to 38 weeks!



How funny is this shirt?

It's the same one that I was wearing for this 17 week photo -- much difference?



I think the baby grew a little over the past 21 weeks.



I've been having lots of signs that the bean is ready to make his appearance, but I'm pleading with him to wait a few more days. There are only 8 days until my induction and I would really love for him to come on the 16th.

On one hand, starting labor naturally is much much preferable.

But.

On the other hand, I have a couple of reasons (purely selfish) for wanting to wait until the 16th:

1) my to-do list is scheduled out evenly over the next 7 days
2) my Mom has a plane ticket to arrive on the 15th
3) my in-laws will be back from Florida and able to come meet the bean by then

All of these things are flexible -- our parents can change their travel plans and if the cookie dough doesn't get made it will be ok. Truly I have everything done that needs to be done for the baby to arrive, so whenever he wants to come I'll be excited!

Today is my 38 week OB appointment, so we'll see if any progress has been made since 36 weeks. Stay tuned!

How far along: 38 weeks
Net weight gain: 25 lbs.
Maternity clothes: made of some pretty amazing material (see photos above)
Stretch marks: nope
Belly button: out/flat -- weird
Sleep: getting worse -- lots of hot flashes and bathroom breaks
Baby movement: slowing down a little
Food cravings: caramel popcorn, yum!
Food aversions: nothing, very hungry
What I miss: sleeping on my stomach
Looking forward to: the 1 week countdown!
Best moment this week: our last date night as a childless couple on Saturday
Milestones: the bean is totally ready and could meet us any day now...

Monday, December 7, 2009

springing a leek?

I'm still here.

That's right, we made it to 38 weeks!

Baby Center claims that the baby is now about 19.5 inches, about as long as a leek.



He weighs almost 7 pounds and is ready to spring this joint at any time!

I'm not quite ready to insist he leave yet. As much as I'm growing weary of the backaches, hip pain, and nasal congestion I really like having him so close.

There won't ever be another time when he is so warm and safe.
There won't ever be another time when he is so easily moved from place to place.
There won't ever be another time when he is this quiet.

That said, I also desperately want to kiss his little cheeks and snuggle into that new baby smell!

Tomorrow is my 38 week OB appointment, so we'll see if any progress has been made towards a delivery date!

Friday, December 4, 2009

let's pick a birthday - remix

Since I now know the latest date that baby bean will make his appearance I decided to make a new poll. Shameless copying off of Jocelyn is my new favorite thing to do.

Currently we have:

1 vote for Nov 29 - Dec 5
3 votes for Dec 6 - 12
14 votes for Dec 13 - 18
1 vote for Dec 19
9 votes for later than Dec 19

I have reset the poll to be daily, so feel free to vote again if you want!

---------------------------------------

One thing I've noticed since entering the 9th month is that people are really starting to pay attention to what I do and where I am. There are a couple good stories relating to this from the past few days.

1) Monday morning Drew accidentally "butt dialed" his parents at 6:00am while putting his Blackberry in his pocket. When they saw that it was him they both assumed it was baby-related and bolted out of bed, ready to hop in the car for the 7 hour drive to Cleveland. Luckily they got him on the phone before starting to drive!

2) Then on Wednesday I didn't have anything interesting to post here, so I simply didn't. Apparently this lack of blogging got the attention of my friend Karen (hi, Karen!) who immediately wondered if I was in the hospital. Don't worry Karen, we'll give you a call when the big day comes! :o)

3) Yesterday I decided to take off from work and get some stuff done around the house. Of course, I called my boss to let him know, but I didn't think about telling any co-workers. They all assumed I was gone for good and were pretty surprised to see me this morning!

4) Just this morning I called Drew around 7:00 (which I do every day, by the way) and the first thing he said, before 'hello' was "Is this it? Do I need to come get you?"

It's so sweet of everyone to be on high alert for us! There aren't too many times in life when people will assume that an early morning phone call or lack of blog posting correlates to you being hospitalized.

I already told Drew that he needs to bring his laptop when we go in for the big show. Once I'm all hooked up to the epidural and cruising through labor (hey, a girl can dream -- it is Christmas after all) I'll post updates on how we're doing.

Or maybe I'll just take a nap. We'll see.

Have a great weekend!

Thursday, December 3, 2009

the final countdown

We have an end date!

At my 37 week appointment on Tuesday my doctor suggested an induction date of Wednesday 12/16 and I'm going for it!

It's still totally possible that the bean will decide to arrive before then, but it feels good to know that we won't be waiting beyond the 16th.

Having that knowledge is the good part.

The fact that it's now less than 2 weeks away is the scary part!

As anxious as I am to meet the bean (and finally announce his name!) I'm also pretty nervous about actually having a newborn to care for. It feels like there are still lots of things to get done around here. In reality, we're all set with the priority items. We have all of the baby stuff washed, set up, and battery powered.

The things I still need to finish include:

1) making Christmas cookie dough to freeze now and bake later
2) thoroughly cleaning the house (including all those little spots that always get overlooked, like the baseboards and behind the bed) Can you say nesting?!
3) finishing the baby quilt
4) buying and wrapping the last couple Christmas gifts

We'll see how much actually gets done!

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

37 weeks

The bean is full term!



I have to admit that throughout this whole pregnancy part of me has been waiting for something bad to happen. At first there was the fear of a miscarriage, then later of pre-term birth and months in the NICU. At this point, however, it seems pretty sure that we are actually going to have a baby and that he'll be born ready to breathe on his own!



God has blessed us so abundently!

Today is another weekly OB appointment, but I'm not expecting anything exciting. I'll get the results of my Group B Strep test, but that's about it. I decided to opt out of a cervical check this week. Either I'll go into labor or I won't -- there's no point in knowing more details at this point.

We still have the option of doing a voluntary induction at 39 weeks, but I'm really hoping that won't happen. My best case scenario would be to go into labor naturally and have some time to labor at home before heading into the hospital.

We'll see what happens!

By the way -- anybody need a "Mary" for a live nativity? I don't claim to be carrying a Savior, but I am quite round and not the least bit afraid of stable dwelling livestock.

How far along: 37 weeks
Net weight gain: 23 lbs.
Maternity clothes: the bands on my jeans are getting uncomfortably tight
Stretch marks: not yet
Belly button: out for the remainder, I assume
Sleep: interrupted by lots of bathroom breaks
Baby movement: still very strong -- he wants out!
Food cravings: peanut butter Smidgens
Food aversions: nothing, very hungry
What I miss: having more constant moods (I think this is Drew's pick too)
Looking forward to: finishing the baby quilt
Best moment this week: getting a pedicure with my mom-in-law!
Milestones: the bean is full term!

Monday, November 30, 2009

lettuce out

I think that's the anthem the bean and I are singing together.

Based on his very strong pushes and punches I assume he's getting tired of being smooshed in there and wants out soon. I'm cool with that.

Over the weekend we reached 37 weeks! That means the bean is full-term!

In some ways I'm really excited about this (we'll meet him soon!) but in other ways I'm a little sad (this special time is almost over...). The great news is that he could be born any day and would be completely developed.

Baby Center claims that he is about the length of a stalk of Swiss Chard (19 inches) and is 6.3 pounds. At this point all babies are a little different, so I'm not sure how much stock (stalk? haha) I put in this.

At any rate, we're doing great. I feel more tired and achy than ever, but I know it's for a good cause. I'm also starting to have some major mood swings -- which I thought were supposed to come after the birth -- but can't be fun for anyone else. I literally go from crying to happy to grumpy in a matter of minutes. Awesome.

Thankfully I feel like I can indulge a lot of my exhaustion with naps and general laziness. Most of the baby prep is finished. The nursery is stocked and ready for a little one. We have diapers, clean clothes, and lots of blankets. What else could a bean want?

Oh, and we have a Christmas stocking for him! Now I just have to finish getting ready for the holidays and we'll be all set.
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