1 Week Old

Charlie, Your mommy isn't sure that she is going to be able to keep up with weekly blog posts because she has to make sure to have plenty of time to enjoy you and would much rather be doing that then being on the computer.

Your mommy can't believe it's already been a week since you were born.  You melted your Daddy's and Mommy's heart from the first moment we saw you.  Your daddy had this look in his eyes was so sweet and precious when he first saw you.  (I remember the same look on our wedding day.)

Your mommy had this giddy little laugh and smile and couldn't stop smiling (even when you pooped on your mommy seconds later!).

We are definitely very proud of you.  You did great at the hospital.  You had no jaundice and were one of the bigger babies in the nursery.  Your nurses said you slept very well.  They said they had to wake you up when it was time for me to nurse.  I elected to let you go to the nursery at night because I was trying to sleep.  Although, I don't know that my sleep was great in the hospital.  I am very happy with that decision because the nights right after you came home, I learned what an hour of sleep was really like.  However, sometimes after our 5am feedings, I just couldn't send you back so I would keep you until the pediatrician came and was anxious to get you back to my room.  Your mommy had a great hospital stay as well.  The nurses took such good care of us.

We left on Thursday and by that time, your mommy had crazy hormones and was very nervous about coming home and being left to take care of you.  You didn't seem too stressed abou thte thought of going home.  Here you are in your going home outfit:

Luckily, your mommy had help from you daddy and your Mim. 

Also, your Aunt Meredith and Pops came to see you that night and stay with us for a few days. 

Your Aunt Meredith will probably not forget the day you were born because she broke her foot on that day.  Since she has been out of work, she has been able to stay with us and mommy doesn't think she's tired of holding you.  Your Mim has been here and your mommy doesn't know what she would do without her.  She has cooked, cleaned, laundered non-stop.  Your mommy cried about as much as you did on the first day/night home and felt a little panicky when it was time to go to bed.  (You will learn that your mommy has refined the worrying skill.)  By Friday morning, your mommy was ready to go back to the hospital so the nurses could reassure her that everything was okay with her and with you.

You weren't the best nurser for the first few days.  Friday morning, we had a weight check at the pediatrician to learn that you lost more weight and were down under 8 pounds.  Your mommy cried through the entire pediatrician appointment.  Your mommy really felt like she wasn't doing as good as a job as she could.  Breastfeeding is a challenge and your mommy didn't realize the amount of work it would take for you and her both.  The pediatrician recommended that we go to a lactation specialist since your mommy's milk wasn't in yet.  So, Friday afternoon, your mommy and daddy went to that with you in tow.  The appointment was helpful and the lactation specialist thought you were being a little lazy.  (Mommy blames that trait on Daddy.) :-)  Both your daddy and mommy couldn't believe that they would ever have a child that didn't care about eating.  Anyways, we had to start supplementing you with some formula for a few days to get your energy back up to nursing properly and your mommy had to pump to try to get her milk in.  Luckily, that happened by Saturday.  We made several trips for weight checks which meant you got used to the car seat and the car.  So far you seem to be like riding in the car.

Over the next couple of days, things got significantly better.  Your mommy started feeling better physically and emotionally.  You started eating more and more and are now a champ!  At your appointment on Monday, you were back over 8 pounds again.  You started opening those beautiful eyes more and more.

Your mommy and daddy think you are pretty advanced because you have wonderful head control.  You really do a great job with tummy time.

Your daddy had to go back to work on Monday which was super hard for him.  He missed you as much as you missed him.  And I missed him too.

You love your swing.  While it's hard to put you down during the day, you use it while we eat.

Your Aunt Meredith and Mim think your hair has lightened a little and may be growing.  You seem to be a little longer.  Hopefully, we will get a length on you at your 2 week appointment.  You did develop diaper rash already which looked super painful, but your doctor recommended that we get some Triple Paste which we hope will do the trick as Desitin wasn't cutting it.

You wear a lot of clothes during one day and so does your mommy.  It seems that you like to pee, poop, and spit up on whoever is holding you (you aren't picky).  You have so many cute clothes to choose from.

We have found that Huggies diapers aren't fitting you and leak so we are only using Pampers for now.  We haven't tried any other brands yet because we still have diapers from shower gifts.

You are a great sleeper.

Your mommy and daddy love to snuggle with you.

Your Grammie and Grandpa are also very proud of you.

They have been over a few times to visit with you.  You have had a few visitors and your mommy and daddy don't do a great job taking pictures.

You have many more visitors that want to meet you soon.  It's just been a fast few days and there haven't been enough hours in the day. 

Happy one week birthday my little man.  I love you more and more every day and look forward to the weeks/months/years ahead. 

 

Transitioning...

The days seem to have flown by and I have indeed lost touch with the real world.  I don't think I realized how much my world would be flipped upside down once we got home.  Luckily, we have had a lot of help because I don't know for the life of me how people do it without.  I've had to call on several favors.  My mom has helped with the cooking and laundry on top of taking a few nighttime hours to help with Charlie and give Matt and I some relief.  Of course, I'm feeding every 3 hours (and it takes an hour to feed which really means only 2 hours in between).  Sleep has been limited of non-existent.  :-)  Matt has been on full time duty with me and it's just been so nice to have such a hands-on partner that has taken his on his share of the responsibilities with doing diaper changes, burping, grabbing whatever he can for me, etc.  Sometimes he just comes in and talks to me while I'm feeding which is wonderful to have at 4:30 in the morning.  Unfortunately, for both us, he has to go back to work tomorrow.  Charlie and I are going to miss him a lot and this is what we think about Daddy leaving us.

We introduced Wally to Charlie on Thursday after getting home. 

Matt and I have been trying to prepare Wally for the changes that were going to occur but knew that there was no way to actually prepare him for the road ahead until Charlie got here.  Wally was definitely very excited to check him out but I think he was more excited at first to see me after I had been gone for the last several days at the hospital.  It was nice to see that he missed me! 

At first, when Charlie would cry, Wally would bark.  However, that was short lived (thankfully).  Now, Wally has settled right in and I think he's going to make a great big brother.

Well, it's my downtime and I have 1.5 hours until it's time to go again so I'm going to catch some zzzz's but I promise to post more pictures very soon but here's a sweet picture to end this post on.

Hospital Pictures

We weren't the best at taking pictures when all the visitors arrived and I wish we had but it was pretty busy and we were just really too consumed in enjoying the baby and our company.

Here are just a few that Matt took mine and Charlie's stay. 

In his sweet blanket:

 Meeting his buddy Wyatt:

 Thinking about going home:

 A close up of his going home outfit:

My birthing story

Well, I have to say that the day could not have gone any better and I only wish for every woman to have as good as an experience as I did.  It was pretty uneventful and painless.  We entered into the hospital around 8:30 and really didn't get good and started until 10 or so.  At the point when I came in, I think my body was ready which helped.  So, my doctor broke my water and started me on some Pitocin to help with getting my contractions more regular.  The contractions started out pretty weak but were strong by about noon.  At that point, I wasn't sure I was ready for an epidural but Matt said that he thought I was.  :-)  So, the anesthesiologist came quickly after we said the word.  I had been nervous about having one and it wasn't bad at all.  The anesthesiologist was so nice.  She told me that she left at 7 and wanted to meet this baby before she left so that she was sure it would happen before then.  (And she did come in see him before she left which impressed me because I really didn't expect her to be back.)  Anyways, she also told Matt to go eat lunch for me to sleep.  I didn't actually sleep but I did relax and rest while Matt grabben himself a bite down at the cafeteria.  Around 3, the nurse told me that I was ready to push.  However, I ended up having a reaction to epidural and my blood pressure started dropping fairly rapidly.  I started feeling lowsy and it got down to about 70/36 at one point which scared me half to death.  They nurses worked at trying to get it back up by pumping me full of fluids, stopping the Pitocin and the epidural, and even giving me some medication but it just wasn't coming up high enough.  So, the anesthesiologist came back.  She immediately gave me a larger dose of medication and within about 30 minutes, I was feeling much better.  At that point, the nurse told me I was ready to go which was about 4:30.  I pushed for about 2 hours and while it was exhausting, I wasn't in pain.  My doctor was in and out all day long and I loved having her around.  She is an excellent doctor.  I had wonderful nurses that took care of me.  Matt has coaching me along the whole time and was really wonderful throughout the whole process.  As soon as Charlie was born, I will never forget how wonderful it was to hear his cries.  He is such a sweet baby and I will never forget the moment that I first laid my eyes on him. 

Also, to watch Matt as he first saw his son was one of the more precious times in our relationship. 

I don't know how we made such a beautiful baby. 

I told Matt that I have always said that babies are cute but that I am 100% positive, I will never see anything cuter that our baby.  :-)  Does that not sound like a proud mother?

Welcome Charlie!

Matt and I proudly welcomed Charlie into the world:  Tuesday, May 10th, 2011 at 6:32 pm.  He weighed 8 pounds 6 ounces and was 20.5 inches long. 

Charlie and I are doing wonderfully.  I will post more about the day but for now, I probably need to be resting and am just busy holding my little boy.  Matt is a very proud father and we just can't wait to introduce him to all our friends and family.

Charlie is on his way

Surprise!  I'm being induced.  This was decided upon last Thursday if he didn't come sooner.  Charlie has held on so here we are.  We arrived at the hospital at 8:30 this morning. 

We'll keep you updated!

Week 39 and a half

As you can see, I missed both Week 38 and Week 39.


Here is a picture of me at Week 38 for our wonderful Easter dinner which we celebrated at Matt's parents along with celebrating Matt's dad's, Dick's, birthday.

Here is the most recent picture:

These are my last bump pictures.  I'm honsestly quite over the being pregnant part at this point and feel just as big as I look.  I'm learning exactly how big that is though.  I now am uncomfortable sliding into booths at restuarants (embarassing, a little!).  My belly rests on a pillow at night and is heavy when I roll over (which isn't easy by the way). 

The last couple of weeks have flown by in many ways but some days/hours/minutes seem to drag by.  I've been busy at work wrapping up items and I think my boss appreciates that Charlie stayed put for him to go on a little vacation and I got to wrap up final items. 

I went to the doctor last Thursday (4/28) and she told me that it looked like I may not make it for next weeks appointment and that Charlie could come in the next week.  Ha!  I was very uncomfortable after the appointment which continued through Saturday.  On Sunday, it was a new day and I started feeling better.  The work week was long last week but when I went back on Thursday, I found out I had not progressed any.  So, my thoughts are that Charlie is laid back like his Daddy and perfectly content just hanging out.  So, my doctor was suprised but said don't rule out the weekend.  Well, this weekend came and went and no baby!  I read that eating pineapple and mexican could induce labor so I tried them both.  :-)  I just can't wait to meet him.  However, it's so soon and patience have never been my strong suit.  So, we'll wait just a little bit longer.

Everything is going well.  My blood pressure has been a little higher at the last couple of appointments (in the 130s/80s) and my feet swell.  Last week, I actually weight 2 pounds less than the week before but at this point I know it's all fluid that is affecting my weight.  Of course, I'm sure Charlie is plumping up just a bit.

We had friends that were due before us and they welcomed their little girl, Charlotte, into the world on April 26th.  So, Congrats Matt and Sheena.  My sister's friend was due the same day as me and she had her son, Luke, on May 5th.  So, it's time in my eyes!  :-)

Week 37

Week 37

Charlie is the size of a baby!  He's full-term.

Total Weight Gained: 24.5 pounds

This week:

Well, there have been many happenings in the Wheawill home.  We have baby items everywhere.  Car seats are in the cars.  Pack and play is up.  Swing is set up.  His sleeper for our bedroom is together and waiting for him.  Wally hasn't been real thrilled with all of these items but for the most part, he seems to have ignored them.  Matt and I managed to get it all accomplished last weekend.  I was more of a supervisor than able to put things together but I tried to do my part.  I'm not very good at sitting back and watching so this has been a new role for me.  I think it's probably been good for me to sit back and let someone else, who is more than capable, do it.  And, Matt has done a wonderful job getting everything ready for our baby boy! 
 
My weight is steadily growing which my doctor thinks is a little bit of swelling that is attributing to the growing number.  (Don't get me wrong, I see a noticeable difference in this growing belly, so it's not all swelling.)  My doc. said that during the last month, weight fluctuates so it's hard to tell a lot from a number.  My feet stay a little bit swollen even when I wake up in the mornings and my fingers and hands are swelling more.  I haven't been able to wear my wedding rings for a while but now my watch is getting tight.  I'm still wearing tennis shoes which I understand a lot of women can't wear.  I've had to give up a few pairs of my shoes because they are too uncomfortably tight.  Despite a little bit of swelling, my blood pressure is still good (116/80).
 
So, Charlie was happy at the doctor's appointment and had a strong heart beat.  I'm not getting as many kicks from him because he just doesn't quite have the space.  But, he's still moving around which I love. 
 
This week, I've been uncomfortable and since last week was so good, I'm not willing to say this is for sure the new normal.  In fact, I have no idea what is normal (every pregnancy can be so different and every woman is different in how their bodies respond).  My doctor says that he's dropped even more from last week and I'm dilated 1 cm and my cervix is continuing to thin so I'm progressing as she would expect at this point. I think the worst is the hip pain, especially at night.  My doctor says this is due to my pelvic bones separating.
 
So, I don't know when Charlie will make his debut and can't wait for him to do so.  However, I am okay with the idea of him staying put for another week or two.  It's been hard to prepare for leaving work.  I'm certainly excited about my maternity leave but will miss work.  (I know to some that sounds crazy!)  I like my job and I like routine, both of which are going to be a little different for me.  I know I will adjust to a new normal which will take me some time to figure out.  :-)  And I also know work will do just fine without me.  But, if they want to miss me, that's fine with me too.  Even if they just miss me a little bit!  :-)  As my due date approaches, I've been working on transitioning much of my duties over.  It's hard to think that everyday I need to leave like I may or may not be in the next day. 
 

Week 36

Week 36

Size of baby: size of a crenshaw melon

Total Weight Gained:  21.5 pounds

This week:

What a big week!  Yesterday was pretty busy.  I had my 36 week appointment.  However, Wally scared Matt and I to death yesterday morning.  We always give him a treat before we leave the house so, we did just the ordinary but Wally got choked.  It was quite possibly the scariest thing I've been through with Wally.  Bless his heart, he was trying to get it up but wasn't able to.  He looked so helpless.  Matt tried getting it out but it was too far back so then I tried without success.  He was producing a little saliva but he was just making this horrible choking sound.  By this point, I was worried he was going to stop breathing.  I freaked and did everything you are not supposed to do.  I cried hysterically, started pacing back and forth.  Matt continued to try to work with Wally.  I have to say he was doing so good with him.  He kept talking to him and we were both, saying, "Come on Wally.  Keep trying.  Come on.  Stay with us."  He even tried to do the Heimlich on the dog.  It was very emotional.  I told Matt to go to the vet with him.  So, Matt grabbed his leash and they left within seconds of me saying to go.  Wally was able to walk out the door and even started running when Matt ran to get him to the car.  (In the meantime, I needed to get myself together to go to the doctor so I called my mom hysterically crying because she tends to be able to calm me down.)  Matt said he got a few blocks down the road and noticed that Wally wasn't making the choking sound anymore so he looked in his mirror and Wally was sitting there looking out the window with his normal goofy looking smile.  So, Matt pulled over and sure enough, Wally was fine.  He got it down!  Thank goodness.  It was pretty awful and I have to say Wally got a lot of extra loving yesterday because of it.  He came straight in and went over to where the treat was and tried to finish the part of the treat that he didn't choke on.  Stupid dog. We traded that out with him for a piece of bread covered with butter, which I think hit the spot.  Matt said that Wally was going to put me in labor! 

After the trauma, off we went to the doctor.  By that point, I was exhausted and running right on time with no minutes to spare.  Matt dropped me off at the door and went and parked.  Luckily, we made it all in time.  The ultrasound was first.  Matt and I saw Charlie for what I think will be the last time on ultrasound.  His head is down.  He's measuring at 6 pounds 12 ounces (that's the weight that I was when I was born!) and is in the 77th percentile.  The ultrasound showed my due date as May 4th this time.  The ultrasound tech said he has a chubby little face and he has hair!  Matt and I didn't have much hair when we were born so we'll see how much he actually has.  He was moving around and breathing well on his own.  The tech was very satisfied with what she saw.  Charlies HR was lower than normal at 128 but maybe he was resting after all our excitement earlier!  :-)

My blood pressure was excellent (120/84).  My doctor is impressed at how well I've done throughout this entire pregnancy and so am I.  Pregnancy isn't easy but compared to a lot of ladies, I've had a really good pregnancy and no complications.  Thank goodness!  I am not dilated yet which wasn't too much of a surprise but I'm 50% effaced so my body is preparing.  My doctor said she would take Charlie as early as week 39 but wouldn't let him go past week 41, if I don't go on my own.  At this point, Matt and I have decided we want Charlie to come on his schedule so we'll just wait and see.  If I don't go by week 40, we may talk about inducing but that is still a ways away and hopefully Charlie will decide he's ready so we don't have to make that decision.  I'm kind of hoping for a Mother's Day gift. 

After my doctors appt, I came on in to work and they threw me a very sweet baby shower luncheon.  Charlie got some more goodies and we also played the game of  "How big is Stephanie?"  Some of my coworkers were kinder than others.  :-)

This past week has been excellent.  I had a blast this past weekend at the baby shower that was thrown for me by Ali (will do a separate post) and enjoyed a good visit with my Mom and Dad.  Matt and I cooked lunch for our parents on Sunday, which was a lot of fun too.  The weekend flew by and it was jammed pack.  My mom and I worked on a sewing project that I'm going to try to work on some more this weekend.  I'll post pictures on it as well. 

I've felt really good this week and have no real complaints.  Charlie is lower which is actually giving me some relief.  No indigestion and no kicking me in the ribs!  I can't wait to meet our baby boy soon but until then I will keep updating with my progress as I have weekly appointments until he comes.

Week 35

Week 35

Size of baby: size of a honeydew melon

This week:

When I was a little kid, I always thought 28 was really old.  I think I knew someone that was 28 and remember thinking that when I get to be 28, I'll be old.  Of course, now that 28 has come and gone, I don't think it's that old.  It's all about perspective, I guess.  So, in thinking about this pregnancy, 35 weeks seemed to be really pregnant to me.  I remember when my friend, Ali, was pregnant, when she got to 35 weeks, I remember thinking, the baby could come anytime.  Of course, Wyatt waited and came at the end of week 39.  So, in the following weeks, I'm sure I'll feel even more pregnant, but I keep telling Matt and I really can't imagine my belly getting bigger.  Maybe at my 36 week appointment next week, I'll know more about how I'm progressing but 5 weeks isn't very long to wait.  And I'm definitely counting down now.  I'm a little uncomfortable and just can't wait to see what he looks like.    I feel like I no longer have a bump but I have a basketball in my stomach.  My belly button is still an inie which is good with me.  I've heard belly buttons never look the same after pregnancy.  As for Charlie, I read that he won't get much longer but will just be plumping up for the next few weeks.

We have started preparing Wally for his rude awakening.  He moved sides of the beds months ago (back in Jan.) and has adjusted well to being on Matt's side.  Last weekend, someone told me that they heard that it was good to play the sound of a baby crying to your animals so they could get used to it.  So, I googled baby crying and was able to get it.  Matt was downstairs at the time and Wally and I were upstairs.  So, I played it and Matt said that it sounded like this moaning coming from upstairs and he shot up off the couch at first, thinking I was in labor.  He was in go mode until he realized what I was doing.  As for Wally, he didn't react in the slightest.  Not that we have a very smart dog, but I think he is smarter than that.  He knows the difference so I don't think that was very helpful.  We have received other pieces of advice in preparing Wally so we are working with him.  We have a couple other good ideas:  1)  We are bringing a blanket to the hospital to wrap Charlie in and Matt will take it home so Wally can check it out and hopefully get adjusted to his scent before Charlie and I come home from the hospital.  2)  We want to have a basket of treats for Wallyand when any guests come over, we will ask them to pet him and give him a treat before holding the baby. 

We have a busy weekend planned.  My parents are coming in town and Ali is throwing me a fun baby shower.  I can't wait!  Friday afternoon can't get here soon enough.