And time does fly

It seems times flying by quickly. Andrew will be five months old tomorrow and I haven't updated this site in two months! I really should've because he's been accomplishing a lot and I don't want to miss putting down any milestones or praises. Unfortunetely I can't remember all of what he accomplished last month but I'll try!

First, we'll mention his appointment last month. The fourth month check-up our little Tigger weighed in at 15 Ibs 2 Oz and was 26 1/4 inches long. That put him in the 50% for his weight and 90%(!) for his height. All the things the pediatrician asked us if he did he either has been doing for a while or had just barely started. Here's his accomplishments since my last update.

The 4th Month (3-4 months):
-Started rolling from his back to front
-By the end of the month rolling from both his front to back, and back to front.
-Pushes up quite a bit when on his tummy
-Discovered his feet near mid-month
-Giggling and laughing more often
-Full of smiles
-Grasps things pretty well
-Still trying to get that paci in his mouth, still winds up trying to put it in backwards
-Still trying to pull himself with crunches, once did it when he was on me and got in an upright position for a few seconds

The 5th Month (4-5 months):
-Becoming a pro at rolling back to front, and front to back
-Such a pro at rolling he'll be a few feet from where we put him if we leave the room a minute
-Thinks squealing is fun. He does it when he's tired (which is the worst because that hurts the most), squeals when he's happy, and squeals to be heard
-Babbles, often
-Starts making noise if we put our finger over his mouth, that way we start making it sound like he's an indian. Will have to put up a video sometime to show it since the explanation isn't the best
-Pushes off his tummy VERY well
-Of course very full of smiles and laughs
-Reaches and grabs objects (this has become a problem because he rolls and has wound up finding things, like pieces of paper. House is now being baby proofed and floors cleaned from items)
-Along with reaching out and grabbing objects, putting them in his mouth
-Has occasionally been on his back and pushes off the carpet to move along the floor a couple feet
-Will wind up in different positions in his crib, like being 180 degrees from where he started or sleeping on his side or tummy. Will add pictures of that soon
-Been introduced baby food. Had some funny faces at first :) Enjoys banana and applesauce (only two he's been introduced too). He's fed by spoon, but doesn't eat it too often, yet
-Feet are now being pulled up to mouth and put in his mouth

We have a little sheet of paper they gave us when we had Andrew called "Owner's Manual". It has months and what milestones they should have accomplished. He's accomplished everything he should be in the fourth month and some for the sixth month. I figure I'll put down a little checklist.

4 Months Old
Babbles
Smiles/Laughs
Raises body on hands
Rolls front to Back
Good Head Control (how about GREAT head control?)
Reaches for objects
Grasps without release

6 Months Old
Single COnstanants (Does ooos and mamamamamas count?)
Makes sounds back if you make sounds first (We have conversations with eachother sometimes)
Rolls both ways
Sits with Support (this is a question mark because he'll sit when on us but isn't stable yet, but he's got a month to work on that)
Picks things up with a raking grasp
Transfers cubes (Nope? That one I don't get what they're meaning)
Looks for dropped items (and tries getting them)


So he's doing great on his milestones, to say the least. There's other little things he does otherwise too, but if I put them all I'd never end this. I'll try to update things more often. Take care, everyone!

I apologize

It's so hard to believe my little man is already 3 months. It's surreal as it still feels like he should just be a newborn. I remember so much of the details it's hard to think he could be three months at all. And here I haven't been writing down all the details of what has been happening.

The 1st Month (0-1 months):
-Recognizing us
-Pays attention to us
-By the end of this month he became more alert and aware of everything around him
-Sleeps most of the time
-Eating about every 2-3 hours
-Lost his umbilical cord and had his first bath at 13 days young


The 2nd Month (1-2 months):
-Becomes very responsive
-Starts "talking to us" with oohs and ahhs
-Pays close attention to us
-Trying hard to control hand movements, but has no success
-Mid-month has wonderful head support
-Starts paying attention to the fish that go in circles on his oceanwonder swing
-Near the end of the month starts mocking our laughs
-Occasionally smiles (not gas related)
-Sticks out his tongue as a game, Aldon or I will try to grab it and it'll cause him to smile
-Awesome head support by the end of the month, has turned into a little superman (pictures will be up soon showing our little Superman)
-Attempts to move his head around to put back in his paci if it falls out
-Tries to do pushups when it is tummy time
-Is such a wiggle worm
-Eats around every 3-4 hours

The 3rd Month (2-3 months)
-Starts to gain more control of hands
-Discovered his hands, which now start going into his mouth
-Tries using his hands to push his paci back in his mouth (only once or twice with success) but mostly winds up pulling it out
-Starts grasping at things.. mainly mommies hair but also toys (which then go into his mouth)
-Very talkative, tries to communicate with a lot of sounds... coos, ahhs, squeals, etc.
-Starts giggling more, thinks daddy is such a blast
-Knows he's ticklish, he'll respond to tickled feet by jerking them away. Going to take after daddy and become a kicker when he's tickled, I can tell.
-Loves having his face touched
-Does wonderful pushups when on the floor
-At the end of the month (May 12th) my mother came to visit. He showed gramma the good stuff. When he was on his back he started to turn to the side which we've never seen before. However, he could only get to his side because he couldn't figure out where to move his arm. The day mother was leaving (technically 3 months old, May 15th) he went the distance. My mother got him on camera, for the very first time, rolling from his back to his tummy. Success!
-At the end of the month tries so hard to pull up, like he's doing a crunch to situp. Gets around halfway
-Eats about every 3-4 hours, at night usually wakes up once or twice

He's been so active. Personally, I think he's trying to be an overachiever. I don't mind, I love seeing his milestones. I know if he could, he'd be crawling by now. Everytime he's on his tummy he tries so hard to move. We'll see how long it takes the little man to master crawling. For now, we'll work on his sleeping schedule :grins:

I promise I'll update more and promise the album website will be up within the week.

The Birth Story, Our Valentine's Day Baby

It's been *five* weeks since delivery, and since I have time to sit down I figure it's time I get into the birth story of Andrew. It's about time, now isn't it? Considering I've been trying to write this post for the last three weeks. Please pardon my grammar and my run on sentences. For all those who are english teachers, run now, or hold your breathe.

February 6th was my 40 week appointment. I was still 2 CM dialated, 50% effaced and the baby was around -3 station. She mentioned that she'd want to have me induced sometime around Valentine's Day and to make another appointment for my 41st week. She scheduled me for a NST also. Unfortunetely I couldn't get an apopintment that would satisfy my schedule for my routine, but I did get my NST scheduled.

February 10th I had gained 3 pounds in a single day and I didn't feel like the kiddo was moving much so they had me come in. They monitored me for 20 minutes. I was still only 2 CM dialated and probably 60% effaced by then. Andrew was doing fine and was moving a ton there so they had me leave.

February 13th was my NST appointment. Andrew's heartrate was doing great, and having peaks, which they like to see. The amniotic fluid was also doing very well. The lady there was very considerate and was able to schedule my check-up for that day. After the NST appointment we had time to go downstairs and get some Subway's. Afterwards we went back up for my appointment.

I saw a man named Dr. Q, for short. I was still the same CMs and effacement. He did a quick GBS test, since they needed to update it after 4 weeks. During the appointment he said that I'd hate him very much. I paused a moment then asked him, "Wait... you're going to strip my membranes, aren't you?" He smiled and said, "Someone has been doing their homework, haven't they?" I can tell you, I was in a ton of pain while the neverending minute of having my membranes stripped was going on.

After the appointment, around 3:45 PM, we had to go down to the laboratory to give them my GBS test. I started going into contraction heaven. At first they were going on every five minutes, but two hours later I was having them every 2-4 minutes. At 7 PM we decided to go to Labor & Delivery since I was having them constantly and they were getting intense. Unfortunetely I was only 3 CM dialated and they said they couldn't keep me unless I was in active labor which is at 4 CM. They told me to walk the hospital for two hours and they'd see if I was further then.

Walking around was *horrible*. I was in so much pain that every two minutes I'd have to stop and hang onto Aldon. I took breaks and everytime Aldon or my mother told me to start walking again I would protest before giving in. Two hours went by and they checked me again. Still was 3 Cm so I was sent home with some tylenol and ambien, to help me sleep.

That night was horrible. I took the ambien and tylenol but since my stomach was uneasy I quickly lost it. Even though I lost the ambien I think it quickly went into my system because a few times Aldon had to catch me because I was falling asleep standing up. I spent the night walking between rooms, trying to find a place that I could sleep comfortabably. My mother says I walked more between the night then I did when we were at the hospital. I was feeling bad, and the contractions weren't lightening up. Around 4:30 AM, after having the contractions every two minutes, I was able to sleep between contractions. I found relief in sleeping on a stability ball. Yes, I slept on a stability ball. I sat down on it and put a pillow on the couch nearby and laid my head down on it. I really didn't sleep, to say the least, since every two minutes I'd wake up in pain.

Around 10 AM I kept having the feeling like I was needing to use the restroom. I was quickly becoming frustrated because despite my effort, I couldn't. I decided to take a bath to see if that'd comfort me. I know this will sound gross, and you could skip this little italisized part, but for some reason I decided to "feel" down there and noticed I felt something inside me that was very soft and shouldn't have been there. I mentioned this to my mother and we decided it was time to call the hospital. Since they couldn't tell if what I was describing that I felt was either the umbilical cord or not they told me to get in as soon as possible.

We arrived there at 10:45 AM. For what reasons I'll never know, but we parked far away from the entrance. I darted from the car and ran to the elevator, which I think surprised my mom since she's never seen me go that fast. We got to the Labor & Delivery room and they sent me to a room to be checked. I kept telling Beverely, the sweetest nurse I've ever known, that I had to use the restroom. Every time I attempted I failed. She started asking me questions about that and had the doctor in very soon. The doctor told me I was 10 CM dialated and had a little lip left. What I was feeling was my water bag! I was quickly rushed into a delivery room. Dr Q. was so proud to see me in there. He checked me out and said I was 10 CM with no lip.

Since I was positive for GBS they hooked me up to some antibiotics. Not once did any of the doctors or nurse leave the room and if they did, there was someone there to replace them. Around 11:30 they told me to start pushing. They weren't going to pop my water bag so they put on saftey goggles incase I gushed. I was trying to push as hard as I could but wasn't doing that well. 30 minutes later they decided it was time to pop my bag. I was told that there was a thick amount of meconium, which meant the baby had his first bowel in utero. As I was pushing everyone kept encouraging me. Dr Q. suggested a vaccum pump if I needed it, since he knew I was tired and lacked energy. I didn't accept it and continued to push. Andrew Blake Wallace was born at 12:57 PM. He was 7 Ibs 10 Oz and 21" inches long. Unfortunetely he had breathing problems so they had to take him and started giving him some oxygen.

After they were finished I got to see him a few moments before they took him away. I hadn't had an episitiomy and only had two small tears. One required a single stitch, and the other one didn't. Within less then an hour I was walking around and visiting Andrew.

They had to keep Andrew in a little oxygen hood since he was having problems breathing. They were going to keep him on 12 hours and then ween him slowly off. I visited him often that day. The morning of the 15th at 7:30 I went in there. He was still on the hood. One of the nurses told me that he was being weened off earlier, and at 3 AM he started wheezing so they were giving him a little longer. The took him off the hood around the same time and he did wonderful. He was able to room-in around noon. He was also receiving antiobiotics because I wasn't able to receive 4 hours of it before delivery.

On the 16th, around 5 PM, we were all able to leave the hospital. Thus starting a hectic, but wonderful relationship with the newest addition to our family.

39 Weeks 4/7 Days (or 2/7 Days)

Isn't it amazing how close I am to the end? I still can't believe it. And while I'm not really thinking about delivery and I'm not too nervous, I still am at the same time. I don't think anyone is ever prepared for the end. The delivery. How do you prepare for an event like that besides packing your bags? Which I haven't completed, by the way. That's the task on today's agenda. I just don't think there is anyway to physically and emotionally prepare yourself for the day.

My mother arrived here Friday, January 27th, which is very nice to have. She's leaving here February 14th, that way she should be here for the birth and be here long enough Aldon will be home. The extra hand with her being here has came in handy. That, and it's great to have her around. Plus it's been good on my sleeping schedule, in a way. I wake up when she wakes up, since I'm a light sleeper. Today, though, I woke up before her because my cats were making too much noise at 8 AM.

We've accomplished so much since she's been here. We've got the crib set up, clothes washed and put away, more of the painting accomplished, and so much more. It's been a relief.

Monday, January 30th, was my 39th week appointment routine checkup. My blood pressure was 124/78 which was still good to me! Considering my weight gain and everything I'm really surprised my blood pressure has been very good. My weight was a bit bad though. I've gained a ton. The doctor pointed it out, as if I should "watch my weight", and obviously I have been watching it... it's been going up. LOL. Seriously, though, I haven't eaten all that horrible lately so I don't know what is going on.

The babies heart rate is doing very well and my uterus is measuring right on schedule. She then did an internal exam. I'm already 2 CM dilated and 50% effaced. The baby is stationed at -2 which means he's right in there where he needs to be. He's head down (don't ask me how she found out! It hurt like a mo-fo). So everything is going along well. When she was doing the internal she started moving her finger back and forth and I started complaining about the pain so she stopped. She was trying to strip my membranes! She said if I was ready to go into labor it would help push me into it. And if it wasn't time, I wouldn't. She mentioned though she so wanted to "strip the bejeebus out of" me because she swears I would've gone into labor. Only reason she didn't was because I was in pain. Who the hell wouldn't be? One thing she mentioned is that daughters tend to take after their mother in delivery. I think that made mom a little anxious, considering she had her first delivery take only 9 hours (quick for a first delivery) and that was because he was breached and I only took an hour and a half.

After the appointment I wanted to show my mother the birthing rooms so she could feel at ease about everything. The second we got onto the floor she mentioned she was now getting nervous. I asked one of the ladies on the floor if she had an open room available so I could show mother around. She walked us around every area of the place. She showed us the room (which has the biggest tub in there), she showed us where the baby would be circumcised, the incubators (?), everything. She also answered every question I could think of. Questions about circumcision, what they'd do if I don't have enough time to get antibiotics for my GBS, if I could still relax in a bath during labor, etc.

That night I was in contraction heaven. Mother was getting very worried because I kept getting contractions every 5 minutes for around 30-45 seconds long. But they were irregular since a few were 10-15 minutes apart. They say true labor involves back pressure/pain and that is exactly what I was having too. They settled down when I moved around and we both went to sleep. This next part is a little gross so those who may be relatives skip over the italicized part: Yesterday I noticed I've lost part of my mucous plug which means my body is prepping. Today I lost a ton more of my mucous plug. It doesn't necessarily mean I'll be in labor soon, but it means my body is taking a step in the right direction.

Ever since that appointment, though, I've been having more contractions. Not really any today, thankfully.

That is pretty much all there is to say. Pray Aldon makes it home in time!

A lot of time has passed

Well a lot of time has gone by and I never got the chance to update this blog. Although I am sad that I didn't get to write down all the wonderful things that have happened in this pregnancy, I still have those memories which will last a lifetime. But here's what I can tell you...

In August we moved from Georgia to Washington. After a week of RV problems we made it to Idaho where we spent a week then promptly headed to Washington (where we had another RV complication). We spent a while Manufacture Home searching (since the houses down here are so expensive). We had put in an offer on an house, was accepted and had a thirty day closing time. Ten days til closing the seller backed out, pissed because there was a few *minor* repairs she'd have to do on the house for our lender to close. We went back on the MF home hunt and we finally found one we liked which was the exact replica of the other, in the same Mobile Home Park, but so much better in condition. It was ironic since it was awaiting approval when we first saw it. The luck of small favors.

During this time I was trying to get Tricare to change my regions over. I filled out all the papers and sent them in. About three weeks after I did I called them explaining how far along I was and that I needed approval. The lady forwarded everything to her supervisor and in a week I was approved. Making that a total of three months (a whole trimester) without being seen by a doctor.

I'm 38 weeks pregnant now. I am either due around February 4th or 6th, depending on if you're speaking to my old doctor or new. I go by February 4th since that is what I was originally told and that's what all the websites say I am. Although, personally, I'm praying that the little one holds out because Aldon is out to sea currently and will be back soon after. I'm going to break down what we know and what is going on. Edited 6/15/2010: Bravely posting what I looked like around 38 weeks pregnant!! Don't mind the face - it never looks like I'm smiling even when I was!

Felt babies kicking: September 9th, about a month after I could see the kicks.

Morning sickness: No, just always the blah feeling but nothing more.

Type B Strep (GBS): Tested positive, will be receiving either Arythimicin or another drug during delivery since I'm allergic to Ammoxicillian/Penicillian and Cleocin (their two top drugs they use).

Gestational Diabetes: Tested negative both at 8 weeks pregnant and around 33 weeks pregnant. That was good news for me!

Anemic?: Nope, those test came back normal too.

Complications?: Nothing bad has happened to me. The only time I had any problems was on my birthday, September 25th. I told Aldon I felt like I was going to faint and he didn't believe me. Two seconds later he wound up having to catch me, since I almost fainted. We figured I had low blood sugar since I just mentioned being very hungry. That and I was in a hot shower. One of my appointments the little guys heart-rate was high too, which caused me 30-45 minutes of being monitored which they then decided he was fine.

Gender: We're expecting a baby BOY. Found out on my second ultrasound which was late in the pregnancy, on December 20th.

How I'm doing now: Since we've moved in I've been doing the same as always. Everyone expects me to feel horrible right now but I don't. I'm still doing the cleaning and painting (yes, with a respirator and not too often). I've kept everything up and have felt great. Exhausted? Of course, who wouldn't be. But nothing to complain about! No swelling, no "morning sickness", although occasionally I have felt a little more icky but that is to be expected.

Where am I delivering: Well, this is the unfortunate part. Since I'm enrolled in Tricare Prime and there is a military facility "not too far away" they say in my contract I have to go to them for OB/gyn care and the delivery. So instead of getting to birth at the place I want to, which is only a mile from my home, I have to take a fifteen minute drive to the Naval Hospital. Their facility is nice, but I still say there is a lot of idiots there. Long story. Or actually, a short one, let's just say they've screwed up a few times on my file and even once after just ASKING me they put on my files I wasn't allergic to Ammoxicillian. Big mistake.

Oh and incase you're wondering... my mother is coming down here from Idaho tomorrow. She's going to be here almost three weeks. She wants to be sure to be down here for the birth incase Aldon can't make it in time. She also wants to be here long enough to give me some help when he is born and make sure Aldon will make it back before she leaves too. I love my mother.

Pictures added 6/15/2010. The baby room: You should see it! I've been updating a website Album that has pictures of it there but it's currently down so no one can see it until it's completely done. I painted Baby Looney Tunes pictures on the wall and then about 2/3 down the wall I made Baby Looney Tunes stencils and used them to create a border. The top of the wall is in the color Butterfly Flutterby (try saying that five times fast) and the bottom color is Silly Old Bluebird. Those are Behr Disney Colors which can be seen if you click this: Disney Behr

That's the update! I might add a me picture on this Saturday, since I'll be 39 weeks along and my mother can take the picture. Plus I just bought two wonderful outfits yesterday since I was sick of having my tight panel pants and not many good pregnant shirts. Got pants that are maternity that hang under the belly, are so much more comfortable, and look so much better. That and they'll be something I could wear for a little bit after the delivery. I'll make sure to add a picture, promise :o)