Nina's 2 Month Stats

Nina had her 2 month appointment and weighed in at 12 lbs, 3 ounces and was 22 inches long. Compared to Jack who was 12 lbs, 4 ounces and 22 inches long. They're roughly the same size. Huh. Nina seems so much chunkier. (The shock is sincere, I looked it up as I am typing this out.)

She is smiling, growing, eating, fussing. She's wonderful, honestly. We had one horrible night that involved gas, a bit of constipation (when people tell you EBF babies don't get constipated, I'm here to tell you it's okay to punch them in the mouth. They're wrong) and once we got through the night she was pleasant as could be. The only think I can think of is that we had butternut squash the day before and maybe that made her excessively gassy. Nothing else I ate was new.

I am down 9 pounds (with clothing on, 12 without) from my pre-baby weight. I honestly think it's a bit of giving up fast food (makes the wee one HORRIBLY gassy) and coke. Coke, my lifeblood, my first love, had to be given up because the caffeine gives me headaches. We'll see how long my exhaustion headaches last before giving in again. I've been drinking sweet tea instead. Could be the natural vs processed ingredients, who knows?

We've all been sick this week. Nina wound up in the ER a week ago Saturday because she was having retractions with her breathing. She got nebulized, a chest x-ray, and some high powered moisturized air. We were sent home with instructions to continue nebulizing her. We're a week in now and she is doing a million times better. She never seemed bothered by her cough or the cold in general. Never got a fever. Continued sleeping through the night (minus the one night with the gas/constipation).

Jack spiked a near 104 fever (103.6) that lasted from Sunday thru Tuesday. His cough kept him home from daycare on Friday because he was getting to the point where it would cause him to vomit. Note: I don't do vomit. Blech. Thankfully, it only happened twice and he's learned to take a drink when he starts going. He also politely covers his mouth when he coughs. So, he seems to be doing better. His face is still quite chapped, causing him to look a bit leperous. He keeps wiping at it and won't let me put anything on it. He tells me he needs the "boo-ies out!" but he doesn't have any so I'm thinking his chapped nose/upper lip is driving him bonkers.

I am much better, but the subfreezing temperatures have been making me miserable. Our house sits between 67-70 degrees and I just can't get warm. Jack runs around in a shirt and diaper or bare bottom and I'm buried under 5 blankets (I'm not a bad mom, he just refuses to wear pants...) I don't get kids.

I also managed to injure my back somehow. Oh, that's fun. I was able to get my first chiropractic adjustment this week. There was almost instant relief in my ribs. My back was still a bit tender, but over the next day and a half started feeling much better. Then we left the house and I messed it up all over again. I think it's from lifting Nina's carseat and bearing the weight all on one side. I don't remember it happening with Jack, but like my doctor said, my body has likely gotten used to carrying Jack around and is unprepared for the stress of the carrier. If it weren't BELOW FREEZING I would ditch the carrier seat and switch her into her convertible carseat, but the convenience of the carrier in 20 degree (or lower) weather is pretty much necessary right now. She's layered in blankets and her fleece carseat cover and never realizes she's freezing. When it starts to warm up a bit I will just start putting her in warmer clothing and carry her down the stairs to the car.

I really meant this post to just be Nina's stats and a picture. So, here's the picture. Enjoy the cold. Wish for snow! (because if it's going to be this freaking cold, it may as well be pretty outside, too!)

Nina's Birth Story

Now that Nina is nearing 2 months, I have time to document her birth story. It was mostly uneventful, but I want to have it written down so that I don't forget later.

In some ways, Nina's birth was more anxiety ridden than Jack's. Not that there were any complications, but that I had time to anticipate being cut open. With Jack's birth, our worry was my blood pressure; then, it was the face that he would be a "late term preemie"; and then finally, it was the fact that he went into distress with each push. With Nina, I was able to go 39 weeks even with blood pressure issues.

We had to wake up at 6 AM to head to the hospital. My c-section was scheduled for 8:30 so we had to be there no later than 6:30. I am absolutely NOT a morning person. I hate mornings. It usually takes me a while to wake up and be perky enough for the day. The morning of Nina's birth was surprisingly normal. I took a couple of Tylenol PM the night before and actually got a decent night's sleep.

We got to the hospital, met our wonderful day nurse and the anesthesiologist. When we arrived, I didn't know who was going to be doing my surgery. As of the previous Friday, my doctor still didn't know if she planned on taking the day off or if she'd come in just for my surgery. The anesthesiologist was the best. He put in my IV and walked me through the medications, how he would administer them, what their affects on me would be. He numbed my hand, which is something the nurses don't do routinely.

When 8:30 came and went, we found out that the doctor performing my surgery was in another surgery but was finishing up. The doctor who did Nina's c-section was the same doctor that did my ectopic surgery. I saw him a couple of times during my pregnancy with Jack. Having a face that I knew, and trusted, made me much more able to relax. At around 9, the nurse and anesthesiologist came back to escort me to surgery. Let me say this: having the first scheduled surgery of the day has its advantages. I had to walk myself to surgery, which I knew about. My anesthesiologist allowed Todd to come in and hold my hands during my spinal placement. My nurses were surprised, as this isn't a normal practice, but they were pleased that the doctor was comfortable enough to allow it. I think our laid back approach to this surgery helped a lot. We weren't hyped up, Todd isn't the fainting type, and he was nice.

Now...the spinal vs an epidural placement. There was a difference. The spinal hurt more. But, it wasn't a horrible stinging injection. It was a lot of pressure. As far as I know, I was only poked one time. Todd got commended for being a good coach. After the placement, Todd got to help me lay down and then was escorted to the top of my head. My arms were strapped down and the doctor came in.

Because I had time to think about, and prepare myself (ha!) mentally for this surgery, I shook much more than when I had my c-section with Jack. I did get nauseated. I didn't throw up, and in turn received some pretty heavy duty anti-nausea meds. They were nice. I joked throughout this surgery. I complimented the doctor on my ectopic scars, told him I was thankful and happy that he was doing my surgery, and was overall pleasant. The nurses were surprised I was calm.

The biggest physical difference between Jack's and Nina's birth is the trauma. Jack was in a birthing position. He was 10 oz smaller, and easier to get out. Nina was wedged deep into my pelvis and up into my right ribs. It took a lot of work to get her out. I would say there was a solid 2 minutes of pushing and pulling. It's when I got the most sick. I was holding my breath because I was uncomfortable. I KNOW I'm not supposed to do this. I let the doctors know and was given some additional meds.

When Nina finally emerged, she screamed bloody murder. It was announced she was indeed a girl and Todd got to take photos. She continued to voice her displeasure. When she was finally dried off, weighed, and swaddled she was handed to Todd. He held her while I was closed up. When I was done with my surgery and transferred back to my original bed, the nurses handed me Nina and she got to ride with me back to my room where I was able to immediately start nursing. Jack was what they call a "late-term preemie" and despite his high APGAR scores, he had to go to the nursery before we were able to hold him. I don't think it affected our bonding or nursing, as he nursed for 13 months and is still quite the mama's boy. I went home only about 50 hours after surgery with the promise that I'd take it easy. I wanted to be home for Thanksgiving. I did relax. I didn't really even need pain medication after about Friday.

I can honestly say that, though I've had two completely different births, they were both calm with easy recoveries. Even though Jack's surgery was an emergency c-section, I never felt anxious that anything would go wrong. I never focused on the negative, just that he had to come out one way or another and I'd take whatever I could get. With Nina, I did worry (a lot...), but the team I had in the operating room helped put any worries I'd had to rest. They were calm, they laughed at my jokes (always necessary in potentially high risk situations), and I had a doctor I trusted.

Catching Up

I've started about 4 different entries, stopped to do something (care for children, find something for husband, remember to eat...) and forget about my poor blog. Top it off with not having enough time to compose, edit, and add photos and you've got nothing. Add the ever frustrating lack of photo placement tool in the iPad app, and I'm just not bothered enough.

So. It's the new year. 2013. Good things to come, I hope. Nina is 8 weeks old today. She's a chunk, loved by all, and has been smiling for a couple of weeks now. Gorgeous, light-up-the-world, gloriously toothless smiles! We love them, and cannot get enough of them. We fall in love all with this little girl, over and over again, everyday. She's a calm baby, for the most part. We will get to her quirks.

Her 2 month well baby is on the 21st, so I don't have an accurate weight, but she's in the 12 lb. range. The general rule for weight gain in the first year is to have tripled baby's birth weight. Nina is well on her way. She is a fantastic little eater, and holds the record for furthest distance spitting up (for our house, at least). We think she may have a slight bit of reflux. She sleeps well during the day, and will happily sleep on the floor, in the pack n play, in her bouncy, in someone's arms, but when it comes to nighttime she gets too fussy to sleep flat on her back. She's been sleeping propped on boppy in our bed for quite some time. We have no problem keeping her in our bed with us, I would just like to break her from sleeping on boppy before she starts really moving around at night. We are researching options right now. I think we will venture out and purchase a rock n play. I've heard good things. She wouldn't sleep in her bassinet (thankfully, I found it for $35 at our local kids consignment shop) and I think that was a comfort issue. Too soft. She likes the pack n play, but our bedroom lacks space. Travel lite pack n plays are stupidly expensive for our use, double the price of our current pack n play!

As far as our initial concerns about her temperament, she has mellowed out considerably. She can be calmed and fed by daddy now (oh thank the heavens above, I was ready to return her for being daddy defective!!) and I'm sure if I were able to, I'd be able to nap while Todd has her. Unfortunately, I think I'm going to miss something, apparently, and cannot nap while my kids are awake!

Jack is amazing with Nina. He is gentle, loving, and playful with her. I think he gets a bit frustrated that she's not big enough to play back yet. He likes to out his face right up next to hers and screams and giggles when she accidentally touches him. She smiles at his reactions. I'm sure they'll be good toddler friends. I hope they'll be good friends later in life, as well.

I'm actually going to post this (right now, I swear! I will update with Jack stats later), but please forgive the lack of photos. I assume anyone reading this blog is also a FB/IG friend and sees our many photos there. It's 1:20 am, babies are sleeping, and now mama's brain is allowed to shut down.