3 month portraits:

Oops!

I guess I never mentioned this...

JB got a job!!! He had two interviews - one with the safety guy and the second with the big boss man. The day after the interview with the big boss, he got the job and started on Monday (Dec 10). He's driving a big truck delivering gas/diesel to rigs, farmers, plants, etc. He loves to drive, so he will enjoy this job. The pay isn't bad and he's home every night, on call every 4th weekend. It's really nice having my hubby home.

Logan is crying. Gotta go. (He doesn't like being ignored!)

Where has the year gone?

It seems that 2007 is very quickly coming to a close. I cannot belive how quickly the past year has gone by! I especially can't believe how quickly the past 11 weeks has gone by... someone told me that time flies even faster when you have children, and they are right!

Logan is doing good - growing like a weed! He's into Size 2 diapers now and is out-growing most of his 0-3 month clothing (which makes me sad - those little sleepers are so cute). He's awake so much now and so very alert. He doesn't like lying on his back (under toy bars, etc.) very long... he wants to be sitting up, looking at everything. I can't wait until I can put him in the exercauser and jolly jumper - probably another month or so before that can happen - I think he'll love it.

We went to my company's kids Christmas party (though I haven't received an invitation to the grown-up Christmas party, and that makes me a little sad) yesterday. It was fun to chat with people from work and a lot of fun just to watch all the older kids playing and having a ball. There was one of those air-bouncer castles and the older kids loved that. Then Santa came to hand out presents... Logan sat on his lap and didn't even cry (he didn't take his eyes off me the whole time). I'm trying to get my hands on the pictures of Logan from the party, so when I do I will post a couple here - especially the one of him on Santa's lap!

I think yesterday was a very big day for Logan... especially with all the noise and activity at the Christmas party. He barely slept all day and when we left the party and went to Gran's house he was very grumpy. We finally got home and he cuddled up and had a good long nap in my arms. Little grumpy man! I think between noon and 6:30pm he maybe napped for 30 minutes total... normally he'd get a couple hours spread out in that time.

On December 17th I have 3 month pictures booked for Logan. Hopefully he cooperates better than he did for our family pictures! Here's a question for you girls... do you want a copy of his 3 month picture? If so, I will mail your Christmas card after the 17th (thus meaning they won't likely make it for Christmas).

Family picture:

Poor Munchkin!

My poor little Munchkin wasn't feeling well today. At two of his feedings I think he threw-up half (or more) of what he ate... poor little guy! He did manage to keep his last bottle down, so whatever was ailing him seems to have been very short-lived (which is a good thing).

Because he spit-up/threw-up so much today, he absolutely reeked of sour milk... eeew! So, Logan had a bath tonight and now is sleeping all snuggled up in a soft blanket. My favorite part of bath time is snuggling afterwards... we always have a snuggle after baths.

Tomorrow is my cousin's baby shower. We finally get to meet Zachery... who I finally figured out is Logan's second cousin (thanks to this relationship chart... genealogy is very confusing!) and is 11 days younger than him. Last I talked to his Mom, our boys are about the same weight right now.

Last weekend I went to a Christmas craft and bake sale. While there, I ordered a blanket for Logan (the woman had to make it)... now I can't find her name or number... I really hope she calls me this weekend (she said it would take about a week), as I really want that blanket. Thankfully I haven't paid for it yet... to be paid upon pick-up. Grrr...

Feeling better

Last night I told JB how I was feeling - which, much to my amazement, made me feel better. Also, today I took a solo trip into town and did some shopping. I feel much better after that couple-hour break.

While in town I picked up our family pictures from Wal-Mart (not a fan overall of the Wal-Mart portrait studio, but I had to cancel my booking at Superstore when JB switched work schedules a while back) and they actually look okay. We are not the most photogenic family... mostly because I am overall not a photogenic person. Plus, Logan decided to wake up just as the session started and wouldn't stop crying! Out of the usual 7 shots that Wal-Mart does, we only took 2 and then we gave up! We got their package where you have to use the first shot, and then we used a second shot for our Christmas cards. My oh my... was that ever an adventure! I really hope Logan is happier for his 3 month pictures in December (which are booked at Superstore). I'll scan and post a picture later on.

JB has a job interview tomorrow morning for a job he only put a resume into last night! I have no doubts he'll get the job, so hopefully it pays enough for us to pay our bills. It wouldn't be a "career" type job, but it would give him some construction experience to put on his resume so that when all the builders start hiring in the spring again he can get a position as a 1st year carpentry apprentice somewhere.

Logan is such a little stinker sometimes (though a very cute one)! There are days when that boy will hardly sleep... thus meaning he's just cranky and wants to be held all day long. It makes it rather difficult to get anything accomplished those days... and they are usually the days when frustration levels peak for JB and sometimes me too.

Shrek the Halls is on TV tonight... hopefully it's funny... and hopefully it isn't on at the same time as Private Practice!


Edit: Well, there isn't a new episode (or any episode) of Private Practice on tonight, so there isn't any conflict in my Wednesday night TV viewing. Oh, and a quick side note... my Christmas shopping is 95% done! I have one last gift to get - the problem is that I have no idea what to get!

Edit

I'm a lot frustrated (but not just about the previous post) and there is definite tension in the house. *sigh*

Neat-o!

I received the neatest gift for Logan yesterday from one of JB's Aunts & Uncles... a Babywrapper towel! I've never seen anything like it before - the things some people think up! I'm going to make sure it's washed and ready for Logan's next bath time.

There is a baby shower for my cousin and her little boy (he was born October 3, so 11 days after Logan) on Saturday - should be a good time, as I don't get to see her often because they live in Saskatchewan... the shower is at another cousin's house. Hopefully I will get a picture of Zachery and Logan together and post it.

Still no job for JB. I'm a little frustrated with the job-hunting (or lack there of) situation. That's all I have to say about that.

2 month pictures:

No pants for me!

Practicing for the UFC in my sleep.

I am one stinkin' cute baby!

Growing like a weed!

Burger made a comment on my last post that Logan is getting big... well, you have no idea! :D

Today we went for his 2 month shots (poor little man) and while there he also got weighed and measured for his growth chart. Oh my! When he was last weighed (November 6th), he was 9 lbs 10 oz. He is now 12 lbs 2 oz! No wonder he's been feeling heavy these days...

The public health nurses chart Logan's height, weight, head circumference and combined weight-length on graphs that give percentiles (ie: you put 100 babies all the same age in a room and it's where your baby falls when compared to the others - 75th percentile means 75% of babies are smaller in whatever is being compared).

Logan's percentiles at birth:
- Length = 63rd
- Weight = 50th
- Head circ = 36th

Logan's 2 month percentiles:
- Length = 33rd
- Weight = 63rd
- Head circ = 73rd
- Weight:Length = 75th

So, my interpretation: our son is a little on the short side, a good weight, with a little bit of a big head. Overall... a good sized little boy... not too big, not too small!

2 month pictures will be posted later. I'm hoping to get some more before I download them off the camera once he wakes up and is (hopefully) feeling better.

2 months old & household turmoil:

First off... wow... I can't believe it's been 3 weeks since I last posted. Where the heck did the time go and what the heck am I doing with my time? Oi!

So, tomorrow marks Logan's two month birthday. And what are we doing to celebrate... we're taking him to be poked with needles! That's right... his first set of immunizations. I am so very glad JB will be home to go with me, as I don't like anything that makes my little man cry. I'll take some pictures sometime tomorrow (I think I'll wash a really cute outfit I bought for him and take the pics in that, if it fits) for his formal monthly pictures and then I'll post them on Facebook and put up one or two here.

Things are going pretty well with us. We are slowly getting used to things. Some days I am very productive and manage to get things done around the house. Other days, I get absolutely nothing done! I do manage to get out of the house a couple (three, four) times a week so I don't go nutty. Oh... I'm playing volleyball on Monday's now... very exciting! This past Monday was my first week playing. I have new glasses... I can finally see (I haven't been able to see clearly since early in my pregnancy)!

I am no longer breastfeeding (much to my dismay, as I had hoped to keep that up quite a bit longer than I did). I don't think my let-down was fast enough for Logan, as once his stomach got bigger he was very grumpy and not staying latched. Once I started supplementing with formula my milk supply diminished, as I wasn't pumping as often as I had been nursing. So, he is now 100% formula fed. But, he got breastmilk for the first 6 weeks of life, which they say is the most important part. And formula-fed babies turn out a-okay (I never received any breastmilk as a baby, since I was adopted). So, although I would have liked to breastfeed longer, Logan is doing really well now that he's on formula - gaining weight and much happier. Plus, I'll be honest, it is so much easier to go places and do running around with him on the bottle.

As for the turmoil... JB quit his job last week! He was sent away for a week and absolutely hated being away from Logan and I for that long (he was home for the entire first month of Logan's life and after that only went away for one night at a time). So, he's in the process of switching careers as he can't stay in the oilfield if he wants to be home more. He's attempting to get in with a company as a first year carpentry apprentice. Hopefully we will have news on this topic soon. Money will be tight for a couple years, but it will be well worth it to have a happy hubby who is actually home!

Daddy's lil ghoul:

Reflections on the past month... and 9 days!

Okay... I had intended to do this post a heck of a lot closer to Logan's one month birthday (Oct 22), but it just didn't happen. So, here I am (finally).

First off, there was something I forgot to mention in the post about Logan's birth - and that is the night after he was born. Logan got more sleep than I did! I had heard that for some women, the feeling after giving birth is best described as euphoric. Well, that would be how I would describe it. That night I could not fall asleep, though heaven knows I was utterly exhausted. I probably only got 2 hours sleep at most, dozing off here and there. The rest of the time was spent staring at my son in amazement. I am still shocked by the fact that something so amazing came out of me. At one point a nurse caught me simply staring at Logan and remarked, "You're in love, aren't you?" And yes, for the first time, I knew that love at first sight was indeed possible.

The first month as a new little family has been full of ups and downs. Most of the "downs" are usually linked to a severe lack of sleep. All-in-all, life is good right now.

We have experienced thrush - and that is not a fun experience, let me tell you! Both Logan and I just finished our medicines for that on Sunday. I'm really glad his medicine is all gone (mine was a cream), as it was really upsetting his poor little tummy. We went through a heck of a lot of gripe water during that week!

I had the flu Monday night/Tuesday, but so far Logan is fine (apparently babies receive antibodies in breast milk so they don't necessarily get sick when Mom does). Thank goodness James was home Monday night! When I fed Logan at 2am I was so shaky and weak from fever/chills that I was scared I would drop him if I tried to move him. So, I had to call for James who then took care of him until his next feeding, by which time my fever/chills had subsided enough that I knew I'd be okay to function when James was at work on Tuesday. I still had a bit of a fever all day (100.5 deg F) and felt really weak - Logan and I spent pretty much the whole day on the couch watching TV. By bedtime, my temperature was back to normal and today I'm feeling good - just a little tired. I am so happy that Logan didn't get sick at the same time as me!

Logan is a little fussy at times - he fights falling asleep almost all the time and he wants to be held almost constantly when he's tired/sleeping. If he wakes up during the day and I had put him in his swing, he gets mad. And let me tell you, this little man has a temper! His lungs will be well developed, that's for sure. The only reason I'm able to be typing this post is that I am finally making us of my Moby Wrap. We are attempting the cradle hold right now. I need to put the wrap on a little tighter next time I attempt this, but all-in-all it is working well. I have two hands free and Logan is happily napping.

Breastfeeding is going okay, other than the recent bout of thrush. Most days Logan has himself (I am demand feeding, not attempting to do scheduled feeding at this point) on a 3 to 4 hour schedule, which isn't too bad. Some night he'll sleep longer - 5 or 6 hours... which is really nice, but hasn't happened lately. However, I think he went through his "6 week growth spurt" a week early, as Sat/Sun/Mon he was feeding every 2 hours (thankfully at night he went his usually 3 to 4 hours). Apparently babies go through growth spurts around 3 weeks, 6 weeks, and 3 months - though each individual child can be off that schedule a little bit. He is very gassy (poor little guy). I'm avoiding dairy, though I caved and had some ice cream the other day, as apparently that is one of the biggest causes of gas in breastfed babies. I miss cheese! I hope he gets less gassy soon, I feel bad for him. I'm really hoping he didn't inherit his father's stomach - JB has a really finicky, easily upset stomach.

I can't believe Logan is over 5 weeks old already! The last month has been a blur. Some days I feel like I'm getting into a routine, but others I find myself overwhelmed. Life completely changes when you bring a little one into the world. I'm sure things will get more organized, but I think it will take a while yet. Perhaps by 3 months I'll feel like things are under control again.

I was going to dress Logan up for Halloween today - he was going to be a yellow M&M. However, due to my flu I never made it into town to pick up something I needed for his costume from my friend. So instead he is simply wearing his little diaper shirt that JK bought for him - it's black with a glow-in-the-dark ghost on it and it says "Daddy's lil ghoul." I'll take a picture of him in it sometime today and post it.

Well, that's it for now folks. Hopefully I can manage more than one post every 2 weeks from now on! I will definitely try my hardest...

Sleep deprivation

I still haven't gotten around to doing that "real" post (or my thank you cards for that matter)... yesterday was a pretty long day, and an even longer night. We opted to get our little guy circumcised and as such, he's not too happy. He's doing okay, just needs extra cuddling and his diaper changes take a little more care and attention right now.

So, no "real" post today, as I got very little sleep last night. Logan is napping right now and I really need to do the same.

20 days old already!

Firstly, we are alive and we are doing well (pretty well, anyways). I will post a real post, hopefully this weekend. I'm starting to feel like things are getting a little more "normal" around here - other than the headaches I've been having... likely partially due to changing eyesight from pregnancy (can't go to the optometrist for a couple weeks yet). Chat you later!

Logan loves his Daddy (picture was taken on Oct 7 - Thanksgiving dinner at Gran's house, that is my Mum's new designation!)...

Logan's Birth Story

Okay, Logan is now 11 days old and we are starting to get used to our new life as one little family. However, I am still suffering from a serious lack of sleep and am dehydrated most of the time (I am working on both of those), thus meaning I am getting a number of headaches (going to the chiropractor for my neck only perhaps on Friday). Anyways, as I'm not planning on doing much of anything today - it's JB's first day back at work, which means I was a little emotional last night - I thought I'd try and post Logan's birth story:

~ ~ ~

I ended up being induced because of my high blood pressure. When I was admitted to be induced, Jenn D. was my nurse! She got a kick out of being assigned to me and then seeing my birth plan where I asked for her if she was available (she was recommended by a co-worker and his wife). When she went off duty, Jenn looked at who was coming on-shift and picked out a nurse for me who works in much the same way as she does (and also works with midwives) - Jenny. I was so thankful that Jenn cared enough to do that for us... Jenny was amazing!

Before she left, Jenn D. predicted a "hard and fast" labor because of how quickly the inducing medicine affected me - normally it's left in for a full 12 hours, but it was taken out after only 7 hours (I told them to take it out despite the risk of slowing labor... and my doctor called and told them the same thing not more than 5 minutes later!). No one really believed Jenn, but it turned out she was right!

When Jenn D. went home (3pm), I was only 1-2 cm and after an hour in the tub - so 4pm - I had no change. I got out and tried to walk around and change positions, but it became very clear that I was much more comfortable in the tub, so back in I went. At this point, still just 1-2 cm, my contractions were about 45 sec long with just 45 - 60 seconds in between so I was getting no rest and that was making things quite hard. (Before they took the medicine out of me, I was having 30 - 45 second contractions with 30 - 45 seconds rest, so I guess it did technically *slow* labor.)

We had hoped to go medicine-free through labor, but I was also open to things as long as it was me that requested it and not the nurses that pushed it. I needed something because I was quickly running out of strength - physical and mental. So, I tried the laughing gas, but just could not use it effectively. Since I was barely dilated, an epidural was not an option yet. I had hoped to avoid narcotic drugs because of how they affect me, let alone the possible effects to baby. Jenny explained that because I was only 1-2 cm, by the time baby arrived the drugs would be worn off (still no one believed Jenn D!).

I needed something to help me get a little rest - so I ended up with a low (my doctor was reminded how drugs affect me) dose of Demoral combined with Gravol. When that kicked in, the contractions were still basically continuous but I would feel the peak of each one and I would be able to relax sooner and control my breathing better. James said I even managed to doze off between a few of them - I was sure I dozed for longer, but the longest break was only about 40 seconds by that time! That was a bizarre feeling.

Well, sometime around 6:30/6:40pm things started getting really intense. I asked for an epidural (again!). When checked (still in the tub!), I was still only 3 cm (my emotional low). But, after consulting via phone with my doctor they were going to give me one anyways as I needed to rest, even though they aren't normally given until 5cm I think due to the risk of stopping labor.

When Jenny went to go get an IV to put in me I started having the strongest feeling that I needed to push. This scared me so badly because I had just recently been checked and was only 3cm... JB went to find Jenny as I was really panicking myself. He kept talking to me (he was amazing through the whole thing) and telling me to talk or scream or whatever I wanted... because that meant I wasn't pushing. I heard a couple more nurses come in the room (including the charge nurse) and someone said that I really was acting like it was time to push so they decided I needed to come out of the tub ASAP!

My doctor was paged at 7:00pm as they were getting me out of the tub. They got me to the labor room where the anesthesiologist was waiting. He got an IV in me, but I was still insisting I needed to push so I believe it was him that suggested they check me once more before he gave me the epidural. I was checked and the nurse said "there's nothing there"... all of a sudden the room became a little more chaotic as they realized baby was coming with or without the doctor!

My doctor made it - after running every red light on the way to the hospital - and arrived in the labor room at 7:10pm. My waters were broken by him at 7:18-ish pm and Logan arrived at 7:20pm! Jenn D. was right... fast and furious! I went from 3 to 10cm in less than 20 minutes... that was scary! The doctor said the only thing keeping Logan in as long as he was is that my membranes didn't rupture (water didn't break) on their own (much to the delight of the nurses... you could feel the tension ease when my doctor arrived).

Oh - and though I had Logan much sooner than the nurses expected, I wasn't dopey at all during labor and he wasn't either... the Demoral had given me the break I needed but was worn off by the time I needed it to be.

~ ~ ~

So, that's my tale. Much to my surprise, I never cried once during labor. However, when I was watching JB with Logan during his first moments of life - while getting his check-up under the heat lamp, holding Daddy's finger - I did cry, but those are a different kind of tears. Before he had his check-up, I did get some bonding time with Logan - Jenny insisted on it (she was an amazing nurse). She also kept us in the labor room as long as possible so that we could have quiet bonding time before being moved to our permanent room (which is shared, no single rooms on the maternity ward unless it's a really slow day, which doesn't happen often in Red Deer anymore).

I did tear a little during labor and my doctor gave me an episiotimy to prevent the tearing from getting worse and to be able to control the direction of it. So... I'm on the mend and Logan is doing really well. He was just about back to his birth-weight when we had our public health nurse visit last week. If I'm on the south end of town this week I'll probably pop in to the health unit and weigh him.

~ ~ ~

So, the details:

Logan Tyler B. was born at 7:20pm on September 22, 2007. He weighed 7 lbs 14.5 oz and was 20" long.

I never really believed in love at first sight until I saw my little Baby Bee for the very first time. For an amazing picture of him, visit Ashley's blog (the amazing photographer that did my maternity session) - Logan had his photo session on Sunday!

Here's my amazing little guy (this is my favorite pic that we've taken so far)...

I will post... really...

I will post soon... things are just a little chaotic at the moment.

Well...

...this is it, folks... next time I post I should be a Mommy! I'm just finishing up some last minute organization tonight and then it's off to bed as I have a very early morning ahead of me. Lately, especially last night, I've been suffering from some serious insomnia and haven't been getting much sleep. With lack of sleep comes headaches. I would rather go into tomorrow feeling my best... but we shall see. I will post when I'm home again.

Productive day...

Today has been a fairly productive day... more-so than other days recently. It's not really by choice, but because I have no more days to get my house somewhat clean and organized. Nej will be here either late tonight or sometime tomorrow morning, and then it's off to the hospital very early (be there before 7:30am) Saturday morning and when we come home we will have Baby Bee with us... though he potentially won't arrive until sometime Sunday. Thus, today is my final day to try and get feeling somewhat good about the state of my house. Thus far... semi-satisfied. I'm finishing up the main floor and then I just have two tasks to get done - my bathroom and vacuum up all the cat fur (perhaps give them a brushing too).

My sister called me this morning just to see if there was a baby yet! She makes me laugh... I told her I would call her when he arrives. I feel kind of bad not telling my family that I'm going in to be induced on Saturday morning, but I don't want people showing up unannounced when I'm in labor... I want us (JB, myself, and Baby Bee) to have some quiet time before visitors start showing up as well. Thus, I can't tell my family specifically - JB's family would respect our wishes, but I can't guarantee that mine would. So, only a couple friends know the situation.

I am not sleeping well these days. Part of it is my belly - I seriously feel like I'm *squishing* Baby Bee. But, I asked my doctor and he said that I'm not. I still wake up and am very uncomfortable or have a really hard time getting back to sleep. The other part of my not sleeping well is getting to sleep in the first place... I'm a worrier - always have been, always will be. Sometimes I can't shut off my brain (which drives JB absolutely nuts because I worry about things that are beyond my control... which I know, but that doesn't stop me worrying). So, my brain has been working overtime these past few days. It's a good thing I have a strong, rock of a husband to keep me (mostly) grounded.

Well, I think I've rested long enough. JB's Mom is showing up in about an hour so we can go car shopping with her and I would like to get some more things done around the house... just in case Nej does show up tonight.

One last thought... here's what I look like the day before Baby Bee's *official* due date (really round, I know):

Pregnancy & My Little Sister

Well, perhaps my Dad was right... perhaps getting pregnant was a good thing for my sister... She has been a different person the past couple months. We went *years* barely talking, as she was engulfed in the wonderful drug scene and I had no desire to talk to an addict - if I could even reach her. Now she calls me "just to chat" or because she's bored... that would never happen before.

She's also found a new understanding and appreciation of money - she even paid us back for the $15 of gas we put in her car the day she started her job as a pizza-delivery girl (she wasn't sure how/when she was getting paid and gas is kind of essential for that job). JB and I gave her a gift card to Wal-Mart for her birthday (I figured that way she could either get some maternity clothes, food, or treat herself... her decision). Well, she called us last night to thank us for the wonderful present (I don't think she's ever received a gift card for a present and was very excited about it!) and to say how she's been feeling guilty because we always get her stuff, but she hasn't/can't get us anything. So I told her how much it means that she's been so very different these past few months and that's the best gift she could ever give us.

The poor girl though... she got the morning-sickness bug! In fact, she had to go to the doctor to get Diclectin as her throwing-up was affecting work - which she cannot afford to miss. Expensive stuff! She's feeling a lot better now that she's on it. I've known women who have taken it and their children are fine.

Hmmm... I should eat some breakfast and get ready to head into town. I have to go for my second NST this morning and then head up to my doctor's office. Before that I want to stop at Wal-Mart, as I need AAA batteries and I want the new Reba Duets CD... I don't buy CD's often, but I've recently re-fallen in love with Reba's music.