Wordless Wednesday: Piratey Blankie

Making Sure Everyone Poops

Yes, this post is about poop.  And not just mine or the baby's.

At 2 months pregnant, my biggest fear was constipation.  Well, that and losing the baby.  But I had a good feeling about this baby.

The constipation made me have nightmares.

I had to battle it once before adjusting my diet.  For 2 days I was slowly becoming more and more miserable.  Then I discovered prunes.  A couple of those once a day, plus an increase in fiber and water intake, and I was golden.

GOLDEN!

After the baby arrived, my husband asked the nurse when I should start worrying about not having a bowel movement.  She told us that some women may take up to a WEEK to have that happen.

I was proudly announcing to everyone on Friday morning that I'd pooped.  All the doctors and nurses knew, and my husband was a little tired of hearing it.

Once we came home, the focus turned to the baby and his bowels.  Counting diapers was something we never really did, we just made sure we saw poop semi-regularly.  When the doctor learned he was eating soy formula the first question he asked was if the baby was constipated.  We proudly announced that he had at least 1 good poop a day if not 2.  The doctor let us know that some babies actually could go days between pooping, and if it was more than 4 days to call them.

I distinctly remember my husband's eyes when he said that.  I think he was wondering how anyone could do that.

Now, the baby has been fine in the almost 3 months he's been alive.  I think there was a day where there was nothing, and the next day we had 3 poops to deal with.  But none of them were huge, and thanks again to the soy formula we can smell it before he's even had a chance to recover from his red faced pushing.

He, by the way, thinks pooping is funny.  When we wrinkle our noses and tell him he stinks he laughs and laughs and laughs.

We will be in so much trouble once he gets to school.  I already feel bad for his future teachers.

In the middle of all this baby stuff, we have started to let each other know if we have pooped each day.  Some nights, the last conversation we have is to confirm if we each had a chance to poop or not, and if not should we try before sleeping.

Romance is still alive and burning bright in our lives, can you tell?

This started because I realized one day that I hadn't pooped in 2 days.  I wasn't in pain or uncomfortable.  It was just a fact: I hadn't had the time.

I am seriously amazed by what the human body is capable of when push comes to shove.

You see, it's not like I didn't need to poop.  It's just that I'd finally want to, start heading in that direction, and someone else would wake up or fuss, and my brain would immediately adjust focus to him and his needs.  Even with A here to help, I just kept going and moving and did what I needed to for the baby in those first few weeks.

What I find hilarious is that it's happening to A now.

Work for me is picking up, so I spend more time doing that and less doing baby things during my work hours.  This means that A is stepping up as daddy even more, so much more that I realized this last weekend that I hadn't had time to talk to the baby all week.  And A realized at some point that he never pooped on Friday.  That it'd been almost 48 hours, but like me weeks before, it wasn't pain or discomfort that brought that realization forward.  It was just something that had happened when it came time to be there for the baby.

So, now we both take time to talk to the baby, try to schedule meals so we can sit at the same time and enjoy them, and also take breaks from working our jobs during the day together.

And always make sure that everyone poops.

The Name

For years my husband and I talked about what we would name our children.  We tossed around so many: Steven Roger, Anthony Stark, Edward Brock.....

As you can tell, we were serious about having a boy and making sure the name was something special.

Even last October we were talking boy names, and I had wanted twins so I could name them Samuel and Dean with them sharing the same middle name: Winchester.

Okay, yes.  We have some issues.

Once that call came that we were definitely expecting a boy in early January, the lists began.

Now, we weren't making pages and pages of lists.  I think we played with it on 2 or 3 different nights for about 6 weeks.  There were some interesting names, plenty of unique names, and then ones that made us laugh as I caught on to what he was doing.  My favorite was when he handed me his choices and in the middle I saw William Ryker and had to stop to realize where I'd heard it before.

But when I saw the name we ended up with, I didn't recognize it from anywhere, I just loved the way it sounded.  And that's when I learned he had snuck it in as a half joke and told me the story.....

My husband has always played games.  It was console games forever, playing through Resident Evil and Pokemon and Kirby, not to mention everything Super Mario related.

His best friend convinced him to try a computer based game with him.  This started a love that hasn't ended, and it was because of Star Craft and Diablo that he wound up playing the Warcraft games, and eventually online with World of Warcraft.  We met there, over 6 years ago now, in that virtual world.  Our characters grew together there, and even after moving in together and then marriage and a move across the country we still played that together.

But he explained that it was that first game that started it for him.  The story from Starcraft sucked him in, and the characters made him love the story and keep playing.  If not for that first game, then we may never have met and fallen in love.

And so, that's how our son was named after a character in my husband's first computer based game.  And I have to thank Blizzard for creating a name that I fell in love with before even realizing just how much it really meant to the two of us: James Raynor.

Wordless Wednesday: 400 Posts Later, We Have Come So Far

Crying for Joy

I last saw my family together on April 20, 2010.  We had dinner together, cried in the parking lot, and then said goodbye.

The next day I left CA and headed for VA.

I was pregnant only months later.

We were lucky and able to get my mom here for my shower in March.  It was only 2 days, but it was so good to see her and see she was healthy.  I love her so much and miss her everyday.

My brother, sister, and I were always mistaken as friends rather than siblings back home.  There was some resemblance between us, but the thing that always struck people was our closeness.  We laughed and joked as old friends do, not like typical siblings.

My nieces have grown into that, and when you had the five of us together I think there were times even my mom was dizzy.  From one topic to another, sharing inside jokes, and just loving life.  That's how I remember time with them at the table after meals.  On weekends, piled on the couch, watching movies or playing games.

And it's been so long since I had that with them.

Yesterday, my sister and nieces bought plane tickets.  They'll be here in November for 2 weeks.

Not nearly enough.

But I'm going to spend every minute with them getting that back into my system.  From baking to movies to shopping.

They will meet my son.  I will be taking so many pictures to show him later so he will know them when he sees them next.

96 days.  They'll be here in 96 days.

And I can't stop crying because my heart can't wait to be with them again........

Parenting Oops #1

There are and will be plenty of stories like this one, I am sure.  So I'm actually going to try to keep track of them somehow to see where we get.

So, here's what happened on Sunday...

One of the joys and rites of passage to be a parent is to be peed on by your baby.

People, there is no way around it.  It's going to happen.  Whether a diaper leaks or your holding them after/before a bath and find yourself with a puddle.

With little boys, it's more of a challenge.  The equipment is built so that if this happens you are subjected to being "fountained".  It's what we have called it here since it happened to A the first time.

You should know that apparently he did this on a daily basis to his mother as an infant.  She joked about how she basically began taking a washcloth into his room and after removing the diaper she would strategically place it so that if he did go again at least it wasn't getting everywhere.  I actually called her the first time this happened to A, while she was at work, and listened to her laugh for 2 minutes about it happening to her son.

I seriously love his family.

I'm fast when changing a diaper, but I've still been hit twice in 11 weeks.  My husband has gotten smart about it, but there was a week there where he was a hit at least 4 times until he got into the habit of opening the diaper, let in some cool air, and then laying it back down for a minute to make sure it was safe.

Everyone has their own way.

Yesterday, the little man awoke from a nap and I changed him while daddy prepped his lunch bottle.  He laid on the changing table while I set up the new diaper and a wipe.  We've taken this little arch from the portable bed he has and put it on the changing table for entertainment.  Above his head hangs a small stuffed bear and also a cube that he likes to talk to.

For the record, this has resulted in calling it his Companion Cube.  If you get this, you are so my hero.  Just don't tell GLaDOS.

So, he's talking to his bear, I grab both ankles with my left hand, lift his butt in the air and slide out the old diaper.  I slide the new diaper right in and then I notice the sound.  Like running water hitting vinyl.  And as I drop his feet I realize what he's done.

Apparently while in mid-air, he began to pee.  The arch his bear is on has a vinyl cover, so he was hitting that, the top of his own head, his bear, and the top of the changing table.  By the time his legs came down, I was able to cover him with the diaper just as he was finishing.  Nothing had hit his face, just the top of his head, and he was there with his goofy little grin.

And that's when I began to laugh.  Left hand holding down his diaper, head on the edge of the changing table, right hand on my knee.  Unable to breathe or stand up.

Now, A could hear this and after a minute came to see what was so funny.  The baby is still all grins, and if I stand up I start to hyperventilate because I cannot stop laughing.  Eventually he figures this all out and has to take over the diaper changing and clean up because it's to the point where I'm about to pee MY pants from laughing so hard.

I still am giggling and it's been 24 hours since it happened......

...And The Ugly.

Are you tired of my bragging about my son?  The natural sleeper who never fusses, smiles at everyone, and still smells so good?  Who lets us nibble on his cheeks when he giggles and actually will raise his cheek to us if we stop playing too soon?

Cause, yes, he is awesome.  He could give Barney Stinson a run for his money.  I often think we should have named him Barney Stinson just so people would know just by the name.

We didn't though.  I still have to share how we got his name.  Maybe next week.

So, yes, we have no real complaints.  He is truly an angel, and we know we were blessed.

At least until feeding time.

You see, his cleft palate has turned into the issue.  Especially now that we are supplementing with a little rice cereal a couple of times a day.

I should explain more....

For those not in the know, a cleft palate is what they call it when the roof of your mouth is open.  A complete cleft would mean that you quite literally have a line down the roof of your mouth that opens up into the cavity above.

My darling doesn't have a complete cleft.  It starts just inside the roof of his mouth and continues towards the back, but stops just before reaching all the way back.  And not just one, but two of those openings are visible.

When he yawns and lets you peek inside what you see is the bottom of the inside of his nose.

Take a moment to process.

Done?

Cause when I say "ugly" it has nothing to do with his appearance at all.  It has to do with what he does during eating.

See, he needs to inhale and eat.  When you and I do that, air comes in and out the nose.  Food goes down the throat.

When he does that, food comes out of everywhere.

He seriously doesn't choke, never complains unless you attempt to clean him mid feeding, and eats like a champ.  If you looked at his thighs alone you would know that he is definitely getting plenty of nutrition.

It wouldn't be as bad if he wasn't actually exhaling while things were dribbling out.  Cause the exhaling....oh, and not to mention if he happens to sneeze while all this is happening.  Even the cat knows to run.

We now leave nothing in front of him until feeding is done and over.  I have learned that dried rice cereal on the face of an iPhone means removing the case and scrubbing it with glass cleaner.

Don't even ask about the arm of the love seat.  We've kinda given up.

And we've also started taking turns because it requires a change of clothing for all involved if he is really trying to guzzle fast and makes a mess.

If only we could communicate that we are in no rush......

I'm actually looking forward to spoon feeding him as soon as he is able to.  I'm hoping that he will get into swallowing it and not exhaling.  Though we'll still need a drop cloth if his enthusiasm towards food continues in the manner it already has.

...The Bad...

Internets, this having a baby thing is expensive.

I won't go into the deep details with you.  I can barely keep it straight since the doctors and hospitals and labs all seemed to bill everything at once in June.  I can tell you that AFTER insurance did their thing my share of the bill was a little over $2K. 

And that is on top of the cost of prescriptions, meeting a $250 deductible, their adjustment because everything was in-network, and their paying 90% of the bill for me.

We are a single income family.  My maternity leave put me on disability, where I brought home 2/3 of my normal pay for 6 weeks.

And because I didn't collect a paycheck from work, the costs of the benefits that are normally deducted were put on hold and I now am playing catch up with them.

I am learning to like coupons for everything right now.  Trust me.

One thing the hospital didn't mention was an assistance to pay program they have.  I found it by accident on their site, and I completed the paperwork and sent it in.  They called 1 week later to say that we were approved and received a 40% discount on everything.

Bringing the bill down to just over $1K.

So now we are doing a monthly payment through a credit program called MedKey.  I was approved for some enormous line of credit towards medical expenses, and slowly pay it monthly at a low interest rate.

Just what we needed, another bill, right?

The baby has his surgery coming in a couple of months, so now I have to see if I can use that line of credit towards his expenses as well or if I need to start from the beginning.

Either way, it's going to be a long road out of this mess. 

But I can still say I wouldn't trade any of it for anything in the world.

Wordless Wednesday: Touch the Pacifier and I'll Scream

The Good...

I have officially been released by The Colonel.

After the appointment today I don't go back for another official visit for a year.  I even made that appointment already for August 2012 so that it's on the books.

The incision area is so close to being closed.  There isn't any room to pack gauze, but I do have to make sure it is dry and covered during the day.  Which, compared to what we have been doing, is cake.

Add to this that we are getting full nights of sleep, I'm about to start my first real period in a year any day now, and I am proud to report that we are headed in the right direction for recovery.

The baby is still not rolling for us, but his hand usage has increased in leaps and bounds.

He isn't napping as much, there is so much to see and do, but when he isn't playing with us he is content to have toys to talk to, a mobile that plays music, and of course Sesame Street.  Which are all wins for two parents who are trying to keep him entertained and still get things done.

Next up: The Bad...

Today

Someone slept 11 hours straight, but that still had him awake in his crib at 6am.  He talked to his stuffed animals for 30 minutes and then bellowed for food.

I nudged A and he got up to prep a bottle. 

I was greeted by cooing and gurgling as I walked into the baby's room.  We did a diaper changes and I nibbled on his cheeks while he laughed.

My husband and I passed each other in the hallway.  Me headed for the living room and the early morning feeding.  He was headed back to bed to relax a little bit longer.

After a feeding, a burping, and a poop, someone was ready to play.  That means time on the play mat with Sesame Street in the background.  Don't judge.  We play together too, but he likes all the music and noise in the background.  And at least it's educational.

I took a minute to run back to our room, where A was now in the shower.

I said good morning.  He said happy anniversary.

It's been 3 years today since we married.  This our first year with a little one.  No special trip or dinner out.  We're on a budget and trying to stick to it.  Which is fine, because I like our new routine.

Life feels good.

7 Hours After That Last Post....

The baby has been napping on the couch during the day.  It's convenient for everyone involved, and since he doesn't want to roll over there has been no danger of accidents.

Yesterday, I had finished lunch when I heard him starting to stir.  He was talking, so I peeked and there he was.  On his tummy, facing the back of the couch, talking to his stuffed Pluto. 

Since he wasn't fussing, and was entertaining himself, I left him alone and came back to work.

When the fussing began 10 minutes later, I stood up and took the 3 steps to where I could see him on the couch.

To find him on his back, looking up at the Pluto he was now laying against.

My husband's reaction was a cross between "That's my boy!" and "Oh crap! He's mobile!"

Things are only bound to get more interesting from here on out.

Wait, How Many Weeks Now?

Since I'm still not 100% healed, I still have to see The Colonel.  Though nothing like before, with my daily appointments.  Last time we went was 3 weeks ago, and he told his to see him in a month.  So I made the appointment for Friday the 5th.

And that has now been rescheduled to next Tuesday.

He's a busy man.

When his nurse called to discuss rescheduling and how I was, we started to talk about the baby.

Now, I have to tell you that both the women who work in his office remind me of characters from a movie.  Not because of appearance, but because of the way they took care of us for all those months, and the way they just are.

Ever see Practical Magic?  Yes, witchy chick flick movie, but one of my favorites, and something my sister and I can watch and giggle at.

It's the Aunts.  They remind me of the Aunts and how they were together and handled things and looked after everyone.

So when I get on the phone with one of them, it turns into a conversation about how we are, how the baby is, and if we need anything.

It's kinda great.

So, with yesterday's call I caught her up on the things that our son is doing.  She asked if he was teething yet, and I told her I thought it was too soon.  I mean, yeah, he is gnawing on his fist the last couple of days, and the drool is seriously out of control, but isn't it early for that?  I mean, he's only.....

Oh.  10 weeks.  It's been 10 weeks.

Which would explain why he is reaching for things when he has tummy time and looks like he wants to figure a way to get them.

Which is why he HATES being on his back and staring at nothing when he could be having conversations with his stuffed animals.

Which is also why we have to lay him down in his crib near the bottom of it, with his feet to his changing table, only to walk in to help with his pacifier in the middle of the night to find him all the way at the other end of the crib.  Then on the next pacifier fussing he is now laying parallel to the changing table, but still at the far end of the crib.  And then when awakens in the morning he is back at the end of the crib he started at the night before, only now he's facing the changing table.

Apparently he is able to perform a complete loop of his crib on his tummy.  In his sleep.  EVERY NIGHT.

We're only a couple of weeks from celebrating 3 months of parenthood, and the changes are coming in leaps right now.  He likes to watch things moving, talk to us, family, and inanimate objects.  And he has no interest in rolling but really likes to push up when on his tummy and try to hook his feet under him to push and scoot.

Where is the pause button?  Cause I keep thinking that we are missing parts of this, though we are here with him everyday.

Wordless Wednesday: My Saturday Night Date

I'd Almost Forgotten....

I woke up yesterday in a mood.

And I mean a MOOD.

There was no reason for it.  Nothing was too horribly wrong.  I could have used more sleep, but that's about par for Monday morning.

Then I came out to eat breakfast and take my morning pills.

Since I am not breastfeeding, I've been taken off the daytime insulin routine and placed back on Metformin.  Two pills a day and life is normal.

Along with the morning dosage I take another pill.  One that will allow us to return to another regular activity without worries of providing our son with a sibling in the near future.

One that I started earlier in July.

One that I realized I was now in the third week of taking.

So, on top of this missing my tiny little baby being inside me, I am now dealing with the beginning of a monthly cycle.  Something that I haven't really had to deal with, as far as being pill induced, for over 2 1/2 years.

Oh, this is going to be a fun week for everyone. 

I'm thinking of heading to the store later for some chocolate....