Kiddy update and blah blah blah...

Ryan is 10weeks and 1 day old today... he had his two month checkup earlier this week. He was 12lbs 1oz and 22.5 inches long - which is actually not nearly as high in the percentile charts as he was when born, but I never went searching for the breastfed baby charts, which are supposed to be more accurate than the "normal" charts based on formula-fed babies. He is starting to roll a bit - manages to get up on his side sometimes. He smiles a lot more - I love that huge toothless grin! He is constantly "bothered" by his brothers who just can't love on him enough. I guess you could say he's attacked by me, too - I just can't stop kissing his sweet soft cheeks!

Levi is a little conversationalist - and very opinionated. He has a love/hate relationship with the car wash - wants to go so badly, but is scared when going through it. LOL! He went to his first movie theater showing yesterday - Oz: The Great and Powerful - and slept through most of it, which was for the better anyway... he was having trouble sitting still and being quiet. He has been sleeping in his own bed since probably June of last year. He has trouble falling asleep on his own still, so Mommy or Daddy have to lay with him until he falls asleep. It has been mostly Daddy doing the duty since I'm usually busy with Ryan at night. Over the past week, Levi will wake up and come into our room and ask Daddy to come lay with him. Not sure how to stop that, but maybe he'll just start sleeping all night and essentially grow out of it.

Tyler started kindergarten this past fall. He already decided that he doesn't like school. (He's really not going to like going everyday next year.) It could mean a very long 12 years until HS graduation... ugh! He is learning to read this year and I think he is doing quite well. I am amazed at listening to him read books to me. His handwriting is also improving - when he concentrates on it. He frequently comes home with his writing "books" only partially filled out, so we spend far too much time finishing them at home... all because he just stares at the pages or doodles on them instead of doing the work. He has improved on that "flaw" somewhat, but we have more improvement to make. He doesn't have any trouble concentrating on other things, so it is just a matter of making him realize that he is wasting time sitting there instead of just getting his work done so he can go off and play.

Tyler and Levi play together pretty well most of the time - they like pretending they are transformers. There are also lots of times they don't play well together, but luckily those moments are becoming less and less - but still more than I'd like. The playtime has been much improved since I've taken away most of their toys and only left out a few things. I enjoy not having the room covered in a layer of toys all the time, and I think they are actually playing with the toys left out instead of going from one thing to another so quickly. It has made for some more imaginative play and they aren't quite as overwhelmed at the task of "cleaning up".

I have unbunked the twin beds in their room - mostly because Levi was in the process of destroying the ceiling fan. I started taking the ladder down so he couldn't get up on the top bunk (that he was forbidden from), but being the monkey that he is, he was able to scale the side to get up there... something his big brother can't do. So I was forced to unbunk the beds or end up getting a new fan and repairing the ceiling. I picked the lesser of two evils. The room lost some floor space, but at least now I have more wall-space to hang things up and the beds are WAY easier to make.

The "nursery" has been de-nursery-fied when I moved Levi out of the crib. I took down all the nursery decorations and disassembled the crib - the back of the crib became the headboard for our double bed. I also took down the wallpaper border in there and began trying to figure out how I wanted to paint in there... before i had the chance to completely make it over into the guest room, I found out I was pregnant with Ryan. So, I decided that I should go ahead and turn it back into a nursery somewhat. I put the changing table back in there, and hung back up some of the nursery decor. I have since figured out what color I want to paint in there, so when the weather breaks for good, I'm going to get started on that. I certainly want to have it painted and give it plenty of time to fume off before I have anyone sleeping in there. I haven't completely decided how I want to do the sleeping arrangements when Ryan is out of our room, and I'm sure that I'll never fully have it figured out. I can't tell you how many times I've moved the beds and furniture around... within the rooms and between the rooms. At least with the paint color I picked out, it doesn't matter what beds go in there because it'll match either way. I'm always rearranging the living room furniture in search of the "perfect" arrangement, but I haven't really found one that is completely ideal. There's always something I'm not super-pleased with. Either, I don't like where the TV is because either the sound travels too well up the stairs to our room or the channels don't come in well through the antennea. The ideal place for the TV makes the couch be in a non-ideal location. And so on and so forth... needless to say, I stay busy rearranging furniture when I'm bored. It's a pretty cheap way to "redecorate". I always enjoy the freshness of a new arrangement... almost like I'm on vacation. :-) Ha!

Maybe I've started a new thing to keep me from being bored... renewing my interest in keeping this blog updated! And maybe trying to become the paparazzi for my kids - because I certainly do not take as many pictures and video of them as I would like. I also need to catch up on making our photo books and several sewing projects that I have in the works. So, maybe this blog will continue to be ignored. Or maybe I'll want to share all the things that have kept me from boredom by posting about them here... only time will tell!!!!

Ryan Cole Labor Story

To be honest, I had fully intended to completely abandon this blog, but I figured that I might as well try to keep it limping along. Who knows? Maybe I'll actually keep up with it again... and maybe not. Anyway - so much to update on, so I'll keep it to the big stuff (or the stuff I remember anyway!) Firstly, this past December - the 28th to be exact - we welcomed a new addition to the family. The following is the labor story... posted mostly for my own benefit and not for any sort of bragging or the like. I'm not shy about sharing the story, so here it is for those who care to know my journey through labor and delivery. Hopefully, it might inspire someone else to try for a drug-free labor, because I don't think there is anyone that is more of a baby in regards to pain than me. SO, if I can do it, certainly anyone can. Ryan Cole was born 12/28/12 at 2:07am after a short(er) labor compared to the other two boys. I think I was only in hard labor for 3ish hours. I don't know if I can attribute that to going into labor completely naturally or because I didn't have/need any drug interventions during labor. I was actually sent in to the hospital to be induced because the amniotic fluid levels were really low (which meant my placenta was starting to die off). I was very disappointed knowing that I wasn't going to get my drug-free labor that I had been envisioning and preparing for. As luck would have it, when I got to the hospital and hooked up to the monitors, I was actually contracting every 2-3 minutes on my own already and didn't know it! I didn't feel a thing and was already 4cm (from almost 2cm at the doctor's office earlier in the day). The midwife from my doctor's office was the one on call, so she was there and figured that she'd break my water and see if that gets my labor kicked into high gear and maybe I could avoid getting pitocin. That was roughly at 8pm and then family started showing up, so my room was full of people (and a doggie, too!). They started trickling out and were gone by 10pm at which time my contractions were getting to be more than just cramps. They were still super manageable, though. So, Josh, my Doula, and I were just sitting there talking. I decided that the rocking chair was just not working anymore, so Josh started to blow up the exercise ball for me to sit on, which ended up being the best thing at that point in labor. The whole L&D floor was busy that night, so they finally got around to bringing in all the papers to fill out and sign at that point... so between contractions, I'm filling out paperwork that is asking me questions I feel I have already answered a bazillion times already. It was probably 10:30-11:00pm and I decided that the ball wasn't comfortable anymore, I need to be a little more supported during contractions (was getting afraid of falling off the ball!) so I moved to the bed to be on my hands and knees. What ended up happening was that the head of the bed was elevated about 45 or so degrees. I ended up kneeling backwards and laying over the top of the bed between contractions and then sitting up on my knees during contractions. This was my position for the remainder of labor (and the poor nurse was having to hold the heart monitor to my stomach because it wouldn't stay with all my moving around.) I soon got to the point where I was starting to cry and saying I wanted to go home and that I was done - in all honesty, that was my way of asking for the epidural without actually saying it. Josh knew what I wanted, but refused to acknowledge it, so he and the doula just kept on ignoring my request and telling me that I was doing great. The doula was wonderful because she kept my mind from going into dispair and reminded me to stay on top of the contractions. As long as I stayed mentally strong, they were manageable - but don't get me wrong, they were still the most painful thing(s) I have ever experienced. I just had to keep my mind "in the game" and not mentally give up. At this point, they called the midwife back to the hospital because they knew that I was getting close. I was confused as to why they were having her come already when I probably had lots of time left to go. Keep in mind that my other labors were over 12 hours long and we were only on (from what I could gather) about maybe 5 hours since my water had been broken. When the midwife came in, they had me turn over on my back (the most excrutiating position ever) so that she could check me - I was 8cm at this point. I can't recall how that made me feel knowing that I still had 2cm to go. I think my mind was focused on getting back into a more comfortable position and just getting through the next contraction. They kept asking if I felt like pushing, and I didn't so they suggested that I "grunt" the baby down during contractions. If it brought the baby down or not, I don't know - but it certainly gave me something to focus on and a "job" to do during contractions. I can't recall when it was decided that it was time to push. I faintly remember being checked and only having the anterior lip left to dilate, so I think the midwife just figured that it will only be a couple contractions from the full 10cm. I don't have a clue how long I was pushing because I could not for the life of me open my eyes but a crack here and there. It was almost like sensory overload or something. I also had trouble letting go of the rails and holding my legs back - I had to have the nurses and Josh hold my legs up for me. The coolest thing about pushing was that without the epidural, I could really feel my body doing the pushing for me. I wasn't pushing correctly until my body did it involuntarily and I could push with that. And honestly, once the pushing started, the contractions weren't painful at all. At the point where it felt to me like my baby's head was crowning, was probably the point where his head was just peeking out... because when he was crowning, I was the classic screaming woman in labor. That was the one and only point where I screamed during the whole process. Something I'm semi-proud of after the fact, but nothing I really strived for during labor/delivery. I just felt that if I screamed, things would get worse because it was like i was letting my body give up and I really needed to stay in control. During crowning, I guess I let myself go because it was so close to the end... and that ring of fire was truly the most aweful experience of it all. It wasn't so much of a "ring" as it was more of a semi-cirle of pain, but still fire-like nonetheless. I was screaming to have them "get it out". Thankfully I had a midwife deliver because Ryan came out as 9 pounds 4.3 ounces and not a tear in sight. In comparison, I had an episiotomy with Tyler (7lbs 4.6oz) and tearing with Levi (7lbs 14oz), so it is truly awesome that I pushed Ryan out with no damage. I was surprised that he was so big... the ultrasound earlier in the day had estimated his weight at 9lbs 6oz, but I didn't believe that to be accurate. Afterall, weights are not very accurate late in pregnancy, and how in the world could this baby be so big when my belly measurements were usually on the smaller side and my other two children were not even close to that size. And I gained something like 10 pounds less with Ryan than I did with Levi and about 20 pounds less than with Tyler. It just didn't make any sense why I would have such a large baby... but I did. To be honest, I never had intentions at first in going drug free... afterall, when there's a way to do it pain-free, why would you go through that? I changed my mind when I watched "More Business of Being Born" on Netflix. I had already watched "Business of Being Born" awhile ago, but this was more in depth on certain topics. One topic in particular was on Ina May Gaskin who is considered THE midwife, and "The Farm". I think they also discussed the role of Doulas and how they support the woman in labor. I wanted to know more, so I looked for a class to take that wasn't associated with any partiular method (like Bradley) and I found one called "Birth Outside the Box". It was something that you could take online where they would email you the class little by little or you could just buy the whole class in a book (which is what I did) I read that book in a matter of a few days and it really solidified my desire to give drug-free an honest try. My desire to do this came from wanting the best start for the baby - I wanted him born alert and free from anesthetics with the hopes that breastfeeding would start off effortlessly. I wanted to have an easy recovery and I didn't want to risk of having the epidural complication I had during labor with Levi (BP bottomed out). Besides, the process of getting the epidural isn't the most pleasant experience and it was stressed to me that I should get it before labor gets too intense to hold still. I got it pretty early on with Tyler and Levi and I remember that it was hard enough holding still for that without a contraction. In the end, I'm so glad/proud that I was able to experience labor and delivery the way God and nature intended. I feel without the Doula, I wouldn't have been able to go through with it. I highly recommend using one if you are thinking of a completely drug-free labor. She kept my mind at ease and I had complete trust in her that she was going to take care of me. It was all mental, and I knew that going into it. I had faith that my body could do it and I had faith in her to support me.

Since September...

We've been up to a lot these past few months... Not even sure where to start!

For Halloween, Tyler wanted to be a deer... so I made him a deer costume and bought some antlers on eBay - he loved it and wanted to wear it all the time! To make the boys coordinate - I made a sleeper out of camo for Levi to make him the hunter. However, it wasn't as big as I was hoping. He didn't even wear it because it was so cold for trick or treat and I couldn't fit anything underneath! So, he wore his bear bunting suit instead!

Thanksgiving was great - we were able to go to our hometowns to visit with family. Some people were meeting Levi for the first time, so it was special for that reason, too!

Christmas was really fun. This year was Tyler's first year that he really "got" the whole Christmas thing. We skyped with Grandma and Grandpa Basinger so they could watch the paper-tearing chaos! Tyler really enjoyed everything Santa brought him. He definitely associates the snow with Christmas, because now everytime it snows he tells me that we need to put up our tree and get our decorations out!

Levi started to crawl just before Christmas, so the tree was safe for most of the season. He would crawl over and grab at the lights and branches at the bottom. He recently started to pull himself up to standing at everything he can. He's gotten so good that he lets go with one of his hands and bends over to pick up his binkie! Josh caught him standing "hands free" for a few seconds the other day. It won't be long before he's walking around! Still no teeth, though. I don't know what is taking them so long - I've felt them just under the gums for quite awhile...

A big surprise from Christmas was Josh's brothers (and SILs) pitched in to get us a new TV. I suppose the little 24(ish) inch 1990's era TV wasn't getting the job done for them anymore! So, now we have a 42" Vizio LCD flat panel. It certainly didn't fit in our entertainment center, so Josh bought some wood to make one! He is almost done with it - just a little more staining, some clear-coat, and the installation of some hardware and it'll be ready for entry into the house! Currently, the TV is on top of our blanket chest, so it'll be nice to get in there to access blankets if I need to!

Since we got the new TV, we had to get the Blu-ray player, too! So, now we can watch Netflix instantly, and Tyler knows how to start it all up and bring up a movie he wants to watch. How in the world does a 3 year old know how to do all that?

Tyler has been sleeping in his own bed in his own room for the past three nights... which is quite nice. I moved the cot back out of our room so we can now walk around a little easier. It's nice to have our room back to being "our" room. Tyler can't wait until Levi gets old enough to be able to sleep in the same room.

Well - i guess I might blog again in several months, or something very exciting just might happen soon (i.e. Levi walking) that I just might have to talk about!

My poor unfortunate blog...

I have neglected you so! (And will probably do so again in the future!)

Life has been lovely with two little boys - the adjustment from one to two hasn't been too rough yet. Levi actually sleeps fairly well for being just shy of 3 months. He gets up once - sometimes twice - a night and about half the time will go right back to sleep after nursing. The other half, I "get" to rock him on the recliner in the living room and watch middle-of-the-night TV programming. At least I can watch Discovery Health and the CMT in the 400's that actually shows music videos.

Daisy doesn't seem to be bothered by the new little fella, but he isn't very mobile yet. She didn't mind Tyler, either, until he started getting mobile and would chase her and "pet" her...

I recently went back to work - did all 3 days in a row. Not really what I wanted to do, but due to COBRA coverage having to kick in soon and our sitter being off, I didn't have much choice! It went well - no tears shed and both boys survived getting back into the groove.

I also started cloth diapering with Levi and that is going really well. I have an arsenal of AIO's and pocket diapers to make it as easy as disposables to put on... only I have to wash them. It's not as bad as it seems, and even the sitter is on board with it. SO - I'm pretty glad to not have to buy any more disposables! I just need to get a permanent clothesline installed outside so I can hang them out in the sunshine to "bleach" out any stains.

Well, I need to cut this "short" because the little man woke up and needs changed... ahh the life of a mom. I love it!

Levi Marshall's Birth Story

Levi was born on June 14, 2010 at 8:15pm. He weighed 7 pounds and 14.3 ounces and was 20.25 inches long.

I'd have to say the process got started Wednesday June 9th - I was having some minor contractions all morning from about 4:30-noon. However, they just fizzled out to nothing. Friday morning I had a check-up at the OB-GYN and those contractions must have done something because in 5 days I went from nothing to 1-1.5 cm. That evening, my parents arrived to help us out with getting some projects done and to be here for the baby's arrival. I went all day Saturday with nothing, then I woke up Sunday with some slightly uncomfortable contractions and was hoping that this was "it". Well, once again, they fizzled out to nothing by noon. No matter, because the next morning I was scheduled for an induction....

SO - Monday morning at 5:30, Josh and I head out for the hospital. I was given an IV, was checked (1.5-2cm this time) and started on pitocin. The pitocin was being upped every 20 minutes, and I was doing well managing the contractions, which were coming every minute but weren't painful yet. My water spontaneously broke at 10:00am on the dot and felt like a giant popping kick in my pelvis. Then, it all started gushing out. It was the weirdest feeling ever. When my water broke with Tyler, I only felt a teeny tiny little squirt and that was all. I guess Levi's head was not as low, so the cervical opening wasn't closed off as much as it was with Tyler. I think at this point I was about 4 or 5 cm dilated. Anyway - by 10:30, I had decided that I should get my epidural before things get going too much since I knew I wasn't about to deliver without one. Josh went out to get some coffee and then the pain just intensified 100x - I was glad that I already had the epidural "on order". (It seemed every time Josh left, something would happen.) Anyway - I got the epidural about 11:00 and by 11:30 my blood pressure was dropping low - I think it got to a systolic of 67 at the lowest point. The anesthesiologist gave me some ephedrine (i think) and that helped for a little while. Then, my blood pressure went down again, and this time was effecting Levi. So, they shut off the epi and my pit drip for an hour to let my body get regulated again and give Levi a break.

When they started my epi back up, it was started at a lower dose and unfortunately they had to start back at square one with the pitocin and gradually bring that back up to the level it was. So, it just took some time to get back to where we were with the pit. I can't exactly remember what time I started pushing - I think it was around 7:30pm. Of course, the pushing phase had to be dramatic. Levi's heart rate was dropping with the contractions and I had to get oxygen and breathe really deep between to bring it back up. Low and behold, this little man didn't have the cord wrapped around his neck (or tied in a knot like Tyler's) but he was essentially choking himself with his own arm. He came into this world healthy and screaming at 8:15pm... and pooping on the doctor. He was placed on my stomach and I instantly fell in love with him!

My post-partum experience was wonderful - no problems with me whatsoever. Quite a stark contrast to my experience with Tyler where I had hemorrhaging from what I believe was retained placenta bits. Levi was doing good until the second night when the nurses told me he hadn't peed since midnight (and this was now 8am) He was supposed to be getting his circ done that morning, but it was pushed back to 1pm until after he peed. Well, at 1:00 he still hadn't peed, so we decided to start supplementing him with formula and at 3:00 he peed like a champ. So, at 4:00 he was taken for his circ and then we had to have him pee again before he could go home. So, we waited and waited... and waited and waited... and waited some more. At 11pm, the nurse came in with a pan of water to sprinkle on him to make him go. She thought that he might have gone (we think otherwise) so she took the diaper to some better light to see if it was pee or just some petrolium jelly. Well, she determined that he peed, so we were FINALLY able to be discharged. We got back home about 12:15am completely exhausted... That first night home - he had several wet diapers, so he was perfectly fine - just tired of people messing with him I guess!

5 weeks out and everyone is doing good. Tyler loves his little brother - too much sometimes. He won't leave Levi alone when he's sleeping in his bouncy seat!!! Levi is just now in size 1 diapers and his newborn clothes are starting to get a little tight in length. He doesn't sleep super well at night - does better when he's sleeping more upright on mommy's chest. He's getting better on just staying asleep (around 3 hours between feedings - as opposed to every 1.5-2 hours), but I hope his tummy gets better so he can start laying on his back in his bassinet or even his crib. Last week, Levi rolled over from his belly to his back already. He's such a strong little man! In a couple weeks, I take both Tyler and Levi to the doctor, so updated stats coming soon!

Ultrasound today

Just a quick update...

We had our ultrasound today and everything is going good - fluid levels are normal and Baby is head down. I had a bit of a scare thinking that I was spurting some amniotic fluid this morning, but that turned out to be not true (thank GOD!) According to the ultrasound, the baby is measuring at 5 pounds and 9 ounces, which I'm hoping is not entirely large for this stage in the game. We were trying to get some 3D pics, but Baby had his arm in the way and refused to move it. C'est la vie! I start going to the Dr every week now, so there'll be lots of waiting in the waiting room in my future!

Baby Update: 34 weeks and 3 days

We're creeping up on 35 weeks this Friday... it doesn't really seem possible that we're that close already. Tyler seems to be getting the idea that he'll be getting a baby brother but I'm not sure he quite gets that he's not going to be an instant playmate for him. We have the bassinet all ready to go, and Tyler plays with the mobile on it and rocks it (we're trying to get him to rock it GENTLY). He knows what room is the baby's, but says the baby can have the top bunk to his bed and he'll sleep on the bottom. :-) Could be quite a while before that happens!

Tomorrow, we go for what should be our last ultrasound. From my memories of when I was pregnant with Tyler, this ultrasound is basically to check the amniotic fluid levels to make sure that everything is still okay and on track. I'm dreading the fact that I THINK I'll start having weekly appointments now. I've mentioned this before, it's just that I hate waiting in the waiting room. I have much better things to be doing than sitting there people-watching. Of course, I go on my days off work, so I'm usually thinking of all the things that I could be getting done at home... I guess my appointments are just built-in rest time. It's just a shame they don't have ottomans to kick up your feet - that might make me change my tune about the waiting room!

I've been actually having Braxton Hicks contractions this time around - never had them with Tyler. A couple days will go by without having them, and then I'll have a couple in the same day. As the definition states, they don't hurt, but it just makes me feel a little "blah" while it's going on. The baby's been moving quite a bit, and with the cramped quarters that means that he's really poking me. It's quite funny being able to see all the movement from the outside (again, something I never experienced with Tyler). As I'm pretty sure I've noted in a past post, I'm also not fitting into the same clothes as I did with Tyler... All this makes me a bit nervous that I've got a big baby in there. I'll be sure to ask what my OB thinks tomorrow... hopefully everything is still right on track! I'm just hoping to make it to the evening of the 8th at least.