Am I really this lucky?

I know we haven't even been home a week, but honestly, this last week has been so easy! (knock on wood that I don't regret saying this!) Our little munchkin has been doing so well. Josh has been looking after her until midnight so I can get a little sleep, then we put her down in her crib and she usually fusses a little. I nurse her for about 5 minutes then she goes right back to sleep. She is usually up once, maybe twice, a night then I wake her up around 6am so we can snuggle in bed before Josh has to get up for work. I know this won't last forever, but it is great while is last! She is just the cutest little thing. I think she is going to be a sucker. Last night, she decided she wanted to nurse every hour. She would eat for maybe 2 or 3 minutes, then she would just suck like I was her own personal pacifier. We gave in and gave her a pacifier last night and she took it for about 3 minutes then passed out. I am ok with giving her one every once in awhile, but I don't want her to be one of those kiddos that has it until she is 5!

We got up this morning and went for a walk. She just slept the entire time. We are running some errands today. I am excited about getting out for a bit. Since I have to wait until Wednesday to be cleared to drive, I have been stuck at home while Josh was at work the last 2 days. I think I'm going a little stir crazy!

How many diapers can a baby go through?

I mean seriously? We have become pros at "saving" diapers! Alex loves to poo, wait until we change her, then poo again...sometimes mid-diaper change! Twice today I have heard her poo, waited a few minutes, changed her diaper, then she immediately pooed again! Apparently this kiddo doesn't know how expensive diapers are. We bought 1 package of preemie diapers on Friday, then bought another package yesterday. For some reason, preemies are really hard to find and when you do, they are like $11 for 30 diapers. The larger size diapers are much cheaper, why are tiny little diapers so expensive? I guess the good thing is, we have like 250 size 1 diapers...when she finally gets that big.

I am washing clothes everyday. She has like 2 sleepers that fit her and she usually goes through both of those each night so I am forever washing her clothes. I love how petite she is, but I am hesitant to buy too many preemie clothes because from what I hear she will only wear them for about 2 weeks. Hopefully her other clothes will fit her soon!

Today is my first day at home alone. It hasn't been that bad so far. Josh came home for lunch so it was a nice little break in my quiet day. Alex was awake most of the morning so I had her in her stroller so she could be in the bathroom while I was in the shower. Hopefully in the next week we can make a trip to Babies R Us to get a swing and pack and play.

I'm in love!

I can not believe how one day can completely change your life. One week ago today Alexandra was born. I could not even imagine how different my life would be in such a short period of time. I can't tell you how many times I have just looked at her and started crying. She is just the most perfect little thing I have ever seen and I can't believe she is mine. She is just so peaceful. Last night, I was sitting on the couch while she was sleeping in my lap, Josh was sitting next to me and Cooper was on the floor at my feet. I couldn't believe how perfect everything is. I have the most wonderful husband, a beautiful healthy daughter and the cutest dog. I just can't believe how lucky I am. I thought I would miss feeling the little kicks and movements in my belly, but I don't. I have the real thing here now.

I look at Josh with our baby girl in his arms and can't help but smile. He is so amazing with her. His voice calms her if she is fussy and she just looks so at home in his lap.

We had a great day yesterday. We had a followup doctors appointment and the munchkin has gained 2 ounces. It doesn't sound like much, for her, it is. Her bilirubin levels also DECREASED! This means she is out of the borderline area and her jaundice is clearing! This was the best news ever. If they had continued to rise, the doctor would consider readmitting her to the hospital for bili-light treatments. I don't think after having her for 2 days at home I would have been able to handle her being in the hospital again.

We ran some errands this afternoon and she was so good. She just sleeps. She doesn't get fussy in the car and barely makes a peep when we get her in and out of the car. I guess I should enjoy this time while it last. She finally has some clothes that her Nomi sent her that fit her! She looks so adorable in them. Who am I kidding, she looks adorable in anything.

The Next 5 Days...

The 5 days after her birth were a little crazy to say the least. I was moved into my own room, which was TINY since they were pretty full. We decided to have Alex room in with us to make it easier on feedings. We all basically relaxed and rested the rest of the day. The rest of the days kinda blur into each other so I'll just let you know what happened since I can't remember what days it happened. It started out her blood glucose level was low and she wasn't able to maintain her body temperature. She was very slow to feed and my milk wasn't in yet so she that's why her glucose level was low. They said once my milk came in, it should fix the problem and it did. To help her maintain her temp, they bundled her up with 2 layers of clothes, 2 swaddles and a fleece blanket on top. By the 3rd day she was maintaining her own temp. Friday, the doctor thought she looked jaundice. She had also lost 140 grams of her weight overnight, which was concerning since she didn't have much to lose to begin with. My doctor had already told me I could be discharged, but if they were keeping her an extra day, I could board in so I could keep my room, but the nurses wouldn't check on me and I wouldn't get meals. It was basically so I could be there for feedings through the day and night. Alex's doctor decided she wanted her to stay an extra day so she could get photolight treatments. The treatments could be done in our room. It looked like a flat bag that went right up against her skin and had a blueish green glow. She had to wear an eye mask type thing to protect her eyes. It was so sad seeing her in the little mask but it didn't seem to bother her. Since I was no longer a patient, I could come and go as I pleased. Josh and I both decided it would be good for me to get out of the room for a while so Alex went to the nursery while Josh and I went home. I got to see Cooper, who I missed so much and I packed a few things, we went to Walmart to get a few things, then had dinner. I was only gone for an hour and a half so I didn't miss a feeding. After I got settled back in, Josh left to take Cooper to Linda's since we didn't know when we would actually be going home. Alex fed like a champ that night which was amazing. My milk came in so she was getting more calories which was supposed to help with the jaundice. The next morning, they did blood work and her bilirubin levels had gone up and she lost 100 more grams. The only thing we could do was stay another night and continue with the feedings and light treatments so we did that. The next morning, she had actually gained weight and her bilirubin levels had still increased, but it was nothing to be alarmed about. Around 11am the doctor told us Alex would be discharged, but we would have to have her to have blood drawn in the morning and follow up with her pediatrician later that day so they could check her bilirubin levels. We did that today, she gained 2 oz and again her bilirubin levels increased. (they are supposed to increase every day since your body can handle more and more each day, but she still continues to be on the lower part of borderline.) We have another appointment tomorrow to have her levels checked again so we will see how that goes.

Yesterday was surreal bringing home Alex for the first time. She was not too happy about being in her car seat, but she got used to it in the quick ride home. We brought her in and just sat with her a while. When we put her in her crib she cried, but only because she was hungry. I started doing things around the house because it looked like a wreck. Over all, the evening went pretty well. She was a little fussy, but we expected that since it was a new place. Josh went to pick up Cooper and when he came in, he was immediately mesmerized by the baby. He licked her head, hands and feet. She didn't even flinch. He let out a few little barks which also didn't faze her. The picture above is their first meeting. We put her back in her crib and he didn't like it since he could no longer see her. The bumper is actually 4 separate pieces, so we took the front one off so he could see her. The slats are just wide enough for him to stick his nose through so he kept an eye on her. He spent most of the evening going in and out of her room just looking at her. Any time we moved her, he had to be right there. Josh crashed on the couch around 9:30 with Alex in his arms and Cooper at his feet. I got her around 11 for a feeding then put her down. We had a great night, only 2 feedings! Cooper of course was right by my side any time I got up so he could keep an eye on both of us.

We relaxed this morning, the headed out to run a few errands. We went to have her blood drawn. I let Josh hold her because I knew I wouldn't be able to handle it if/when she started crying. I of course started tearing up a little, but she was great. She cried for a few minutes, then all was good. She fell asleep and pretty much slept while we wan errands. We went to Toys R Us to get a few things. We found some shirts that will fit her. All of her clothes just swallow her because she is so tiny. We also went to Circuit City to get a new camera. Then we grabbed lunch and headed to the doctors office. She was great. I am hoping every night will be as easy as last night, but I know that is just wishful thinking!

Nap time for me, the days events drained me a bit!

Alex is Here!

Our sweet little girl decided to come to meet her parents earlier than expected...here is her story.

As most everyone knows, I have had the easiest pregnancy. We got pregnant within about 2 weeks of starting to try, I didn't have any morning sickness, everything has been surprisingly easy since day one!

Last week started like any normal week. I went to work, we relaxed at night and just did our thing. Little did we know everything would change on Wednesday, July 8th. (FYI, I'm going to be pretty blunt and some of it is gross, but hey, there is no way around it!)

Tuesday night was like any other night. We had some friends over to watch a few shows, I did some stuff around the house just like any normal night. Around 3am Wednesday morning, I woke up because it felt like I peed on myself a little. Sounds gross, I know. I got up and went to the bathroom to check it out. It didn't look like pee because it was clear, then I felt a little more. I still wasn't exactly sure what it was. I never thought it would be my water breaking since only 5% of the peoples water actually breaks. I got back in bed and just laid there for about 5 minutes, then I felt it again. I got back up, changed clothes and got back in bed. Silly me was still kinda thinking it was just pee and maybe the pressure from Alex was causing me to leak a little. I leaned over Josh to see what time it was and it woke him up. He asked what was wrong and I told him I was leaking a little and I thought it just may be pee. He got up and went to the bathroom, not even thinking twice about it. I kept feeling it so I got up and went in the bathroom too. Once he actually saw the leakage he said we needed to go to the ER in case it was my water breaking. I insisted on taking a shower first which pissed him off. He thought I was acting too calm like it wasn't a big deal. My thinking was, if this was labor, I wanted to shower because who knows when I'll be able to again. He got dressed and fed Cooper and I took the fastest shower of my life and got dressed and we headed out. I still thought we would be back home soon so I only took my purse with me. I had read you should have a bag packed at 36 weeks just in case, that was on my to do list for the following weekend.

So we got to the ER around 4:15am and the lady at the desk called labor and deliver to come get me. Since they weren't sure if my water broke, they put me an a recovery room so I could change into a gown so they could check. They basically have a strip of paper, if it turns blue your water broke, if it doesn't you just peed or it is discharge. As I was changing clothes, I started leaking even more...on the floor and on the puppy pad. (I call them puppy pads because they remind me of the pads you put down for puppies when you are potty training them, this is basically the same thing, but bigger, and it is on the bed in the hospital rooms.)

So of course, the paper turned blue immediately and they took me to a labor and delivery room. I wasn't having any contractions at this point. They hooked me up to the fetal monitor and the other monitor that tells you when you are having contractions (in case you don't know). While 1 nurse was hooking everything up and taking my blood pressure, the other was starting an IV. She had a hell of a time finding my vein so another nurse pressed around on my arm while she dug the needle around until she hit the vein. I actually started crying it hurt so bad. I think Josh was nervous at that point...I mean, if an IV makes me cry, what was pushing a baby out going to do? So they finally got the IV set up and one of the nurses said she was going to do an internal. For those of you who don't know what an internal is, they basically stick their fingers up you to until they reach your cervix to see check for dilation, effacement and the baby's
station. (dilation= how open your cervix is, effacement= how thin your cervix is, station= where the baby's head is in comparison to the lower part of the lower part of the pelvic bone). You usually have internals at your weekly appointments starting at 36 weeks. Since I didn't make it to 36 weeks I had never had an internal. So the nurse started. Again, I cried. It hurt like nothing I have ever felt before. I was already 2 cm dilated, 70% effaced and Alex was at station 1 (goal is 0 or a negative number.) She started me on a Pitocin drip. Pitocin basically induces your contractions so you dilate quicker.

At this point, it was time to just wait. About 30 minutes later I started to feel contractions. They weren't too strong or consistent, but they were there. About this time, the nurses had a shift change so the new nurse came in. She wanted to do another internal. I warned her I cried at the last one, she warned me she is rougher than the last nurse, so she was pretty sure I was going to cry again. I was 3 cm dilated at this time. She came in a few minutes later to tell me the anesthesiologists was next door so if I wanted an epidural now would be the good time to do it. She said once I had the epi, she could crank up the Pitocin to get me ready faster. I was scared to death, but thankfully, it was quick and almost painless. I mean, compared to the IV, this was a piece of cake. Once the epi started to work, I didn't feel a thing. She cranked up the Pitocin and I just relaxed. She same in several time to do more internals. I continued to dilate to 5 then kinda got stuck. She asked to make sure I couldn't feel anything then she started stretching my cervix. She opened me up about 1 cm so I was at a 6. She came back a while later and checked again and I was to a 7. The next few hours I just hung out, we watched TV, I started a list of things Josh needed to get me from the house and my parents showed up.

Once they got there, Josh headed home to tend to Cooper and grab my stuff. When he got back I was dilated to a 9 and just kinda stuck there. Alex has dropped a lot but it still wasn't time to push. She did all sorts of things to help me progress, like actually pushing Alex's head up to help me loose some more of the amniotic fluid. It wasn't helping. I decided to take a nap and wait. When I woke up a new nurse came in, checked me and told me it was time to start pushing. My parents were sent out and all the equipment was wheeled in. At 3:35 the doctor showed up. Oh, I left out one detail. my normal doctor was on vacation so another doctor I had never met was delivering Alex. He came in earlier in the day to meet me and make sure everything was ok. So, back to it, I started pushing at 3:35. It wasn't as hard as I thought it would be, or as painful. I highly recommend getting an epidural. It was a life saver and made the delivery so much easier for me. I pushed 3 times for 10 seconds each with each contraction. As I started to push the doctor snipped me to make sure I didn't tear when she was coming out. I didn't feel a thing, but it sounded disgusting! Around contraction #5 Josh said he said her head come out. Since it was on the 3rd push he said the doctor pushed her back in. When the next contraction came, it took one push and out she came. Josh had said he wasn't going to watch but he ended up watching the whole thing. He said once her head and shoulders came out she kinda flew out like a torpedo. I heard her cry and I immediately started crying. They wiped her down and put her on my stomach so I could see her. She stayed there for a few minutes, then they took her to the other side of the room so they could weigh her and take measurements. While they were doing that the doctor put a few stitches in where he snipped me. Josh stayed with Alex. They brought her back to me and I got to try breastfeeding for a while. Josh went out to share the news with the family . Everyone got to come in and see her for a bit. We were all in love from the minute we saw her.

It's feeding time to I'll add a post tomorrow with everything that happened over the next 5 days.

Alexandra Rae Stafin
born July 9, 2008
3:44pm
5 lbs, 12 oz, 19.5 inches long

more nursery pics!

Here are a few more pics of the nursery. We are still working on it, so there will be more pics when everything is done!

exhausted, excited, did I say exhausted?

We had another shower this last weekend. I can not believe what a great family and friends we have. I don't think Alex will be wearing the same thing twice for quite some time. We, or should I say she, received so much stuff! I am so glad to be having a little girl because little girl clothes are just so cute and sweet. I have spent the last 2 afternoon/evenings sorting through all the gifts. Her room which has been the cleaning in the house is now the messiest. There are clothes, blankets, bags, toys and all sorts of other thing scattered everywhere. My goal tonight is to get as much as I can in order. I took a little break from doing our laundry to start washing her stuff. I do have to admit, I HATE laundry, but for some reason, washing and hanging baby clothes doesn't bother me. Again, maybe because it is so freaking cute! If Josh's clothes were half as cute as Alex's maybe I wouldn't mind washing his stuff more often! :)

So back to the shower. I don't have any pics, but once I get them I'll post them. The decorations turned out amazing. My sister, along with Laith and the kids, all pitched in to make everything. She mailed it from California since she wasn't able to come to the shower. It turned out beautiful. I am still amazed at all the work they put into it. She made the most adorable canvas letters spelling out Alexandra Rae, which I have to find a way to use them in the nursery. She also made the cutest topiaries that look perfect in her room! Well, they will look perfect once I figure out where in her room I am going to put them. Right now they are by the windows and they look pretty cute, so they may stay there. My Aunt Pam, cousin Mallory and my Mom busted their butts to set up everything for the shower. The food was soo good! I couldn't stop eating. Once everyone left, I ate some more! The cake and petit fours were so cute and tasty! I know I say cute all the time, I think it is Josh rubbing off on me, he can't see something for Alex without using the word cute to describe it. Overall, the shower was a hit!

I had another doctors appointment on Monday. Everything is still looking good. Her heart rate was around 145 and my belly is measuring about 34.5 weeks, almost 35. My next appointment is 2 weeks from tomorrow, then I start going weekly. I can't believe Alex will be here in less than 6 weeks. I know I always say it, but the time is flying by!

I can actually say for the first time, I am ready for her to come, not only because I want to meet her, but my whole body aches most days. If I sit too long, I need help getting up and I am so restless when I sleep. Her favorite "beat up Mommy" time is at night. Last night we were in bed and I was just laying there watching my belly. I swear, it looked like she was trying to kick her way out of my side. Josh said it reminded him of Aliens. She was kicking so much I could hold my hand about an inch from my side and she would kick it. Yea, the kicks were cute at first, but then they just got painful. If I get up at night to pee, which I do once or twice every night, she starts kicking me when I lay back down. This little girl better not be a night owl.

We are heading to Josh's parents lake house Thursday evening and spending 2 night there, then going to see my parents on Saturday and heading home Sunday. I am excited to see everyone again, especially since this is my last official weekend I can travel. My doctor recommended no traveling after 35 weeks so this is my last hurrah! After this, we are home bound until she arrives, then I'm sure for quite a while after she gets here.

Well, the dryer is beeping, I better get back to all those cute clothes!