The future

Camping & letterboxing
Trips to zoos, museums and parks
Ballet &/or other dance
Girl scouts, 4-H
Sleepovers and slumber parties
Birthday parties
Playing "Barbies" "Dress-up" and/or "Cars"
Sports

Whatever she wants to do.

We had a little doctor's appointment today. Miss Ivy has been pretty fussy and gassy and wanted a better way to help her out since the Mylocon isn't working. But the good new that she is 9.1 pounds now at 6wks 2 days.

One Month

Ivy had her first Christmas! She got some money, toys, books and clothes. I cannot wait for her to be older and really enjoy the holiday. She's been able to track us and hold eye contact with us. I weighed her yesterday and I think she is 7.5 pounds but the scale is off - so who really knows. She's up to 4 ounces of formula now - however, she doesn't always finish that. Sleeping is a crap shoot thought. One night she's out like a light all night, the next night will be sleepless. Last night was one of those nights. I think it was mostly because she was really gassy. We've set up a routine: Bath if needed, diaper change, bottle, burp then lights out and it's worked - of course it's only been a couple days.

Growing Girl!

Yesterday marked Ivy's 3rd week of life. Yesterday was also Ivy's due date. I cannot imagine still being pregnant.

She is doing wonderfully. She still sleeps quite a bit during the day but is beginning to have more and longer waking moments. She is now eating 3 ounces at pretty much every feeding. We haven't had her weighed since her last appointment, but I'm willing to guess she's 7 lbs and maybe 8 ounces. She makes the most wonderful faces and noises - sometimes resembling smiling and laughing.

I always thought that I'd be happy going back to work. While I'm tired of being in the apartment, I do not want to leave my child with someone else to care for. Oh if only we had the money.

We're now at 6lbs 7.5oz.
Just over her birth weight.
And everything else looks great.
Yeay!!

Some People.

I hate people sometimes.
Okay. So we had quite a bit of success with breastfeeding after coming home and having trouble because of formula feeding and not latching on. Found a solution and whammo. Everything was working.
Then the biliruben spiked. And pedi said to supplement after breastfeeding. Which disheartened me. Ivy started fighting me again because the bottle is easier. So we'll have to overcome this again. Do-able.

We went to the hospital for another biliruben screen. While there it was time for her to nurse. I asked for a place to go and was told to go back to the chapel. No problem - I head on back. And then I get stopped in my tracks. "NO BABIES PAST THE LOBBY!" Gnuh! Yes, I'm aware of that. Find somewhere for me then. Good luck.

So they start saying staff lounge - oh but men! Oh how about the ladies room. We'll get you a chair and pillow. Me = (o_O)?? So they start pulling a huge chair and I was all: Uh, no way. Forget it. Nevermind. And they kept bugging me about it as I fixed her an effing bottle saying that it's a clean bathroom. HELLO! Would YOU eat in a bathroom? I'm certainly not going to feed my child in a bathroom. I wasn't born and raised in Wal-Mart. So, instead Ryan feeds Ivy. And THEN some heffer comes up to me and says "you can go in the chapel now." I scoffed her off.

Right. I'm going in the chapel now, after the crap you fools pulled about no babies and trying to shove me in a bathroom AFTER she's been fed. Because that makes all the sense in the world. But thank you for making it that much harder to get my kid to latch on.

Oh and we have to be back there again tomorrow.

Update: Jaundice

Ivy was born a little jaundiced -nothing major- and we were told to get her into some indirect sunlight over the weekend. Well, it's been cloudy the whole time as a stupid front is making its way in and we attempted to drive her around through a partly cloudy day. We would have done window light but the angle is so extreme that there was never any light coming directly in.

So she had her first pedi appointment today which went pretty well.We were sent to the hospital for a total & direct lab on her biliruben levels today. Okay, done. By the time we got home, the pedi's office called saying that her count went up significantly. We have to supplement with formula after every nursing. We go back tomorrow morning for another bili count and if we have to, we can get her started on light/photo therapy sooner.

I just absolutely LOATHE that we have to bottle feed her and use formula. It makes me feel like I can't provide what she needs or provide enough for her. When she wasn't latching on, she had to be supplemented and I HATED that - knowing someone else was feeding her, getting to bond with her and I couldn't at all.

Ivy's Birth Story

Just be aware that I do talk about some mildly graphic stuff. And this whole post is gargantuan.

Also, Ryan created an account for Ivy on Flicker: Ivy Nation (no, nation has nothing to do with her name at all. It's just what Ryan created - you'd have to ask him about that). I'll put this link up permanently in the sidelines.

Thrown for a loop

It's A Girl!!!
Ivy Rae
Tuesday November 24, 2009 at 2:37pm
6 pounds 3 ounces
19 1/4 inches

Today TODAY

Never did get to take the maternity pictures. So much crap went down yesterday and I so wasn't in the mood to gussy up and smile for a darn thing. Oh well. Belly cast is painted. Just need to put a ribbon through it and hang it. I think I'll do some other stuff to it later after the baby's here. Everything is packed. Sleep didn't happen very well last night. Just woke up at 3 and couldn't get back to sleep until about 5. Then Ryan got up for work at 545. I was able to sleep for a couple more hours though - until the lawn service guys started their racket. I just hope that whatever is going on with my nose will resolve itself soon. I'm snoring like crazy and then there's something else up with it - I don't know. It just makes sleeping and breathing difficult. I'm (well, WE'RE) taking a LOT of pictures today and tomorrow so there will be a whole bunch of pictures posted later. All our parents are on the road on their way here.

So this will be my last post for a little while. Who knows when I'll get around to posting again.

ToDos

• The baby's laundry is almost done. This time it's receiving blankets. The clothes have been done for quite some time.
• I finally finished fixing the belly cast. It needed reinforcing and smoothing. So that's done. Ryan wants to leave it white. I want to paint and finish it. I may sand it but now that I smoothed it down, I don't think it really needs sanding.
  
• We installed the car seat today.
• Tomorrow (cross-yer-fingers) we're going to take some nice maternity pictures. I should look up some examples.
  
• I think we're 95% packed - just a couple of things left for me. But Ryan ... needs to get on it.
  

Down to the wire

Things left to be done:

• Baby's laundry
• Vacuum
• Swiffer
• Install car seat
• Finish packing

Yeah. I'm drawing a blank now.

Last Days

As the big day nears I can't help but think about the mind-blowing fact that these are the last few days of us being a child-less couple. Today is the last Wednesday without having a son or daughter and it is awesome in every sense of the word. I'm honestly surprised that the fear and anxiousness I had anticipated experiencing near the zero hour are nowhere to be found. Instead I find myself left with a sense of wonder at the entire process of life and the amazing history of our species on this planet.

It reminds me of "Third Planet," a song about new fatherhood, by Modest Mouse.



I also must grudgingly admit that I am beginning to see how creating new life is, as mom has always said, a miracle. Not necessarily in the small-scale sense of the replication of life on this planet, or our ability as two people to have a child, but the sheer unlikeliness of 1.) our existence in the vastness of the universe, and 2.) our continuation in the vastness of the universe. Given the billions upon billions of solar systems out there, bringing a child into the world is like winning a cosmic lottery. It is, as stated previously, mind blowing.

Peace.

It's Setting In

I'm about to start freaking out.
I'm going to be a mama next week. NEXT WEEK. As in possibly MONDAY.
As in I'll be in PAIN and I have no idea what to do with myself right now. There's still quite a few things that need to happen to the baby's room (a light bulb for one - who the heck puts in such a craptastic light fixture like that?!).

GAAAAHH!!!!!!!!

Getting Prepared

Well, since we have a "date," it's crunch time. I have to get a few PPTs and lessons ready this week. I also need to organize old lessons that can just be done.
I have ONE class taken care of. 4 more to go.

So that's what I'm doing today.

BABY!

So we had our regular weekly OB appointment. Everything went well all was normal. Dr G stated that we'd go ahead and have our regular appointment next Monday and then decide from there when to induce - looking at between Wednesday and Friday of next week if not longer. Went to the hospital for the NST and only stayed about 30 minutes. Got done and was told to hold on the the monitor straps and blood pressure cuff. Cool. See ya next week.

Then we went to Best Buy to look at and possibly purchase a camcorder. Then I got a phone call. Apparently Dr G wants to go ahead and "pencil me in" for induction on Monday after my regular OB appointment. Flustered I said um ok and told Ryan. He has me call them back to find out exactly why. I had a couple of high spikes in my bp during NST and she wants to go ahead and get the baby out. So what does that mean? I might possibly be induced on Monday evening or she may wait until Tuesday morning. Who knows?

I'm glad that the majority of baby stuff is done and taken care of.

We'll be delivering at Presby of Rockwall.
Directions

Packing and such

Yesterday we went to Babies R Us (we were doing other things out in Mesquite anyway) to purchase some more stuff for the baby. I still had 89 dollars on a gift card. I wanted to get some more sheets and another mattress pad - just to make life easier. Also got some more bath towels with the corner hood. And there is still money on that card.

I've been trying to get ready for the hospital stay. Packing the bags and whatnot. I'm trying not to over-pack though.

So, we have another weekly OB appointment and NST today. Maybe they'll do another sonogram too. I'll put details up after we get home.

So during this whole time, I haven't really had many cravings. Or wanting anything strange. I don't know if you'd consider this a craving but I could totally scarf down creamsicle stuff. I know how to make a creamsicle shake - if only the freezer could accommodate some sherbet. Bahama Bucks had a creamsicle (dreamsicle) snowcone. But you know the strange part. I don't like creamsicle pops.

On RLS

When we first heard about RLS (restless leg syndrome), we thought it was a gimmick to get people to go get medicated for nothing.

Apparently it's real. And apparently in comes on in late pregnancy. I've been dealing with it for quite a while now. Usually a walk around the apartment to the bathroom does the trick. Not so now. Last night I couldn't get t sleep so I got up and Ryan popped a movie into the dvd player for me. I eventually fell asleep around 11 on the couch and woke up at 12 and went to bed. I normally go to bed around 9:30.

Tonight was a bit different - we had dinner in Dallas. Our last "big" dinner date before the baby. So we were out later. We didn't get into bed until 11 I guess. I don't know. And so now, I'm up. I can't get my legs to stay still. So I've got another movie going and then this. And the baby keeps pressing on my bladder making me feel like I've got to pee.

And it's so convenient that there really isn't anything you can do about it. Just give birth. And as someone else put it (maybe it was me at some point) the real trouble sleeping begins. Nice.

On Food and Pictures

Let the Freezer Cooking begin!
Ryan's made a HUGE batch of pancakes. mmmmmmmm.

Later, we should be going grocery shopping and possibly cooking some more good stuff.

ETA - Pictures