Week in Review

We made it another week!!! Charlie is now 4 weeks old.  We made it!  Before he was born Travis and I had prepared ourselves to have a rough time from labor through the first month - and we are not on the other side of the first month.  And we were pretty much right - it was a little rough!  My memory of having a new born baby was correct.  We had a lot of chaos, tears (Charlie and the rest of us), a lot of growing in patience, and now the calm has begun to set in.  Charlie is eating about every 3 hours through out the day and every 4 - 6 hour over night.  He is having times of being awake and calm, which is new within the last week.  Before it was either sleeping or crying.  We've learned that this boy really really loves to be swaddled.  Wrapping his arms up tight almost always immediately soothes him.   In the last week or so:
We made it to church and Charlie slept almost the whole time.
I went to Escape on a Wednesday and Travis had both kids alone at bed time.
Charlie went to the doctor for an infected clogged tear duct in his eye.


Savannah is doing really well too.  She hasn't had any "this is why I don't like Charlie" moments in a while.  She's learning to be okay when things have to change and learning to be much more flexible.  We have eaten way way more meals in the living room in front of the TV lately and I know she's loving that!  She's been great to help us with Charlie and also at occupying herself when he's having a rough time and wont stop crying.  Usually when she's starting to get warn down from his crying she disappears into another room and plays pretend with her dolls or her stuffed animals - loudly.  She's joyful in it so I just let her sing and yell at them as much as she wants.

Here's a picture that I stole off of Savannah's class room website.  She cracks me up!

She loves Charlie so much. Even when he's crying.  She says "I'm glad Charlie cries because I want him to tell us that he needs something"

Spiritual frontline

Since about a week before Charlie was born I have had one heck of a time getting my head together to spend any kind of time focusing on talking to or hearing from God. I'd attribute that to a few things : tiredness, lack of routine, believing lies, and having little connection to church I name a few. Today we finally got back to church for the first time in a while. Our church has a section in the back for people with babies. Charlie did great and slept the entire service! Travis and I did not do so great. We talked most of the service. We have no attention span hen we are that far back. We'll try again next week!

The other thing that has helped me to not totally lose touch is the book and the app - One Thousand Gifts. The book and the vision behind it all are written to help people remember all the gifts of grace that God has given us. The challenge is to make a list of 1000 gifts, big and small, that God has brought into your life. I've been using the app to record at least 3 gifts a day and its been a (small) way that I can spend a couple moments a day connecting to God and thanking Him.

This week I start back to work with Escape, we are going to go to connection group and I hope to spend a little time reading through 1 Thessalonians. Baby steps!

Yo Gabba Gabba Yo!

Oh man!  This is awesome. We had the Gabbaland Gold treatment!

So the other night I was having a little pity party for myself, when my phone rang and we were offered free tickets to Yo Gabba Gabba Live.  Long story short - Leslie Hall and Kate Kennedy had tickets for the show to give away and they thought of us!  Leslie was on tour last year with Gabbaland so they gave her some tickets to the show in Des Moines and since she's seen the show "like 90 times" - she wasn't going. I had so badly wanted to take Savannah to it last year, but it wasn't near enough to us and it was too expensive.  The night before the show, Charlie had kept me and Savannah up with some crazy crying fits and I could tell we were both about to lose it.  So it could not have been better timing for us!  My mom came over and helped with Charlie and we took off.  

Not only did Leslie hook us up with tickets to the show, but she also gave us passes to a little after party/meet and greet event where we got to hug on and take pictures with and dance with all the Yo Gabba Gabba peeps! They also had a coloring station and free fruit snacks.  Swanky!

I will also mention that from what I observed - DJ Lance is actually a genuinely nice guy. He obviously had some kind of cold or something, but he still talked to and swung around each kid that was there.  Sometimes I wonder about those characters from kids shows - like, they could be total jerk creepers or something.  

Savannah colored pictures for some of the characters and was totally confused when they didn't take them out with them when they left.  What's funny is that she knows they are just people in costumes, but she still expects them to take gifts as if they were really Gabba people.  She's still in a pretty fun imagination stage. 

Another highlight - more for me than for Savannah I think - Savannah got pulled on stage in the middle of the show to make beat box noises with The Diabolical Biz Markie!  For those that don't know, he was big in the early 90's.  Then they kept her and the other kids up there to dance for a song - she was all over the stage.  I'll try to post a video sometime - it's more a process to get those from my phone to the blog. 

We were so blessed by this little 4 hour get away.  Thanks again and again to Leslie for getting us in!  We're a better Momma and a better Big Sis because of it! 

Two weeks later

We've been fairly silent with updates lately because there aren't many. Turns out raising a second infant is less eventful than the first. Charlie is definitely experiencing a much more laid back approach to parenting than Savannah was at this point in life. Of course, two weeks down the road with her we were just figuring out that she was lactose intolerant and we were in the middle of moving in with my parents.

Charlie is doing well. He is eating about every three hours around the clock and doing about half fussing and half sleeping during the times he's not eating. Unlike big sister as a Baby,Charlie loves to be swaddled an like to be carried around in a baby Bjorn carrier while I clean house. He is much more of a snuggler than our crazy girl was. We started giving him formula last week. Nursing, and all that goes with it, not only stresses me out and makes me feel violated, but it was also making me super depressed. I felt like I could never have anyone over or go anywhere. I know I didn't give it a very long shot, but Travis and I both agreed that in the long run formula was better for us. So now we are in trial and error mode with trying to find the right formula.

Savannah buns is great. She is getting more used to her role as big sister and since we changed our feeding strategy I have been able to spend more time with her. Every once and a while she gets upset - like when we tell her she has to quiet down or when we have to break the regular nap routine because Charlie needs me, but we are reminded that this is part of why we had another one. She's a wonderful and caring girl who is now discovering that not even my entire world is just about her - I'm hoping that this will give her an even greater desire to love people and love God.

Next week I start my way back to work at the church.  I have a couple meetings and things to go to, and I'm planning to bring baby Charlie to some of those.  If you think of if, please pray for him to be a good sleeper and to be quiet.  I feel a little like I'm diving into something that's totally unknown, which is strange because I've had this job for 6 years.   Here we go!

Birth : how i lost 20 poouds in 2 days

Some people want to know all that went down with Charlie being born, but I'm not one for telling that entire story, so I'll give some bullet points here:

- Charlie was due on December 18th.  Since we all know that due dates are just guesses, I was hoping that he'd come early.  I was ready and my schedule was cleared after December 6th.

- The day after Charlie's due date I went in and was checked and they told me that it would likely be another week before he arrived.  I didn't believe them because Christmas was right around the corner and I just knew that he'd come before that.  But he didn't.  So Christmas came and went and was pretty weird because everyone had expected him there.  And because I'm bad at having my plans changed.

- The next week I went back (he is now 9 days past due) and I asked to be induced.  At that point I had less than a week left of Travis and Savannah's winter Break - you know, the one I was planning on having all of us home every day for to help with the new baby.  They scheduled the induction for Friday night and called me later to push it back to Saturday morning.  UGH.  God was really teaching me to not make plans.  Every "plan" I had for Charlie's arrival had not come to pass.

- Saturday morning Travis and I checked into the Hotel  Hospital.  The nurses gave us all this paper work, asked a hundred questions, then hooked me up to an IV full of Pitossen. I HATE IVs, and I knew that getting stabbed in the hand would be the worst part of the whole thing.. and it actually kind of was.  They continued to dose me with Pitossen, increasing it every hour or so through out the morning.  It wasn't until about noon that I began to feel contractions at all.

- Once contractions started it was still 3 hours before they were anything to complain about.  Our nurse kept coming and and finding me checking facebook and pinterest and saying "I need you to be more uncomfortable than this!".  So she kept upping my dosage.  One thing is for sure - that boy did not want to come out.  Around 3pm the contractions starting hitting hard and by 4 they were on top of each other - so I asked for them to get me an epidural.  I had planned all along to get one.  I got one with Savannah, but I had foolishly waited until I had been in intense labor for over 12 hours.  I didn't want that again.  So at 4:30 I got the epidural.  About 5 minutes later it was a whole new ball game.  But still not totally numb - so at 5:30 I got another dose of something into my back that made me totally numb.  We started watching Harry Potter on TV because I knew it would help me rest and hopefully nap to get ready for pushing.  Unfortunately, just as I started to doze off (around 7:30pm, the midwife came in and checked me out and said I was ready to push.  I wasn't expecting that at all - it kinda freaked me out.  But they rolled everything in and we went for it.  Travis and the nurses had to totally lift and hold my legs because I could not move or feel a thing from the waste down.  Some people dont like that - and to be honest, I didn't love not feeling ANYTHING - but it has to be better than feeling EVERYTHING.  During the whole pushing process I got really light headed and felt like I was going to pass out.  They put oxygen on me but it didn't really help.  I actually had the thought "Is this it?  I'm I going to get this kid out as the last thing I'll do?" But no - I made it through.

- 8:36pm, Charlie Baylor comes on out.  I was still light headed so I didn't get really into it all right away.  I'm not really like that anyway so I wouldn't have anyway.  They cleaned him up and all that jazz while I directed Travis to take pictures and tried to get my head together.  It's so gross - the whole birthing thing.  And once they had him out, I'm reminded by the midwife "Okay, we just have a few other things to get out of there!" - YAAAAY.  Just what I want to do!

- Savannah met Charlie first, with just us.  She came in and introduced herself.  She was so so so excited.  Then our parents.  We didn't invite many people up this time, which I'm glad for.  Last time we had a revolving door of visitors - that's what we thought we wanted.  This time we had a 2 day, super relaxing, super easy stay.  Travis got a little bored, but that's partly because he was so tired from sleeping in a chair for two nights.  I love Mary Greeley.  The nurses, doctors and other staff were awesome.  We came home around 1pm on Monday and took some time for naps and showers before Savannah came home.  It was good to just settle in a little before little miss got here.

So that's the story.  And here he is!

Apps and Amenities

This first week of having a new born again has made me so so so thankful for my iPhone.  Not that things were rough with Savannah, but boy does technology make things easier!  There are a few apps that I have really appreciated in this time:

Camera Plus

I have had this for a while - I use it for all my picture taking. I think it cost me like $1.99 to buy and it was well worth it.  It takes faster pictures and lets you edit them and then save them to your camera roll.  I usually just download everything from my camera roll once a month or so and then delete most of it from my phone so it's nice that I only have the pictures I actually wanted to keep in the camera roll.  But mostly it's nice because it takes better pictures.  

iBabyLog

Just got this one last Sunday, while we were in the hospital.  With Savannah we wrote down all her feedings and diapers and sleeping on a paper - not that it was so awful or anything, but it's just way nicer to have it on my phone, that is always with me, and doesn't require searching for pen.  It has timers on it so when we start a feeding I just hit the start button and let it go.  It also lets you go in and manually enter things, because I forget all the time to do it in the moment.  It was free.

Rainmaker 

This app was essential to our whole family in the hospital.  We've had this for a long time too and we use it in our room on the those nights when it's too cold for a fan in our room, and too warm for a space heater.  In the hospital it was great because there are so many sounds in the hall way and so many things to think about.  When it was time to sleep I'd just crank on the rain, and out we all went.  Charlie seemed to like it quite a bit there too.  Now that we're home we have another sound maker in his room (it's a sleep sheep stuffed animal that plays white noises - love it).  

Netflix

Another more recent mention is the netflix app on my phone.  I brought some headphones up to our room and have been watching season 3 of Glee while I feed Charlie in the middle of the night. It's amazing how much quicker feedings go this way compared to when I just listen to the sound of his sucking and fight sleeping. 

And while we're at it, I'm giving a HUGE nod to the Hotel we stayed at... I mean Hospital we stayed at, Mary Greeley.  This place is NICE.  All the birthing rooms have a huge TV, a whirlpool bath, and people the bring you any kind of food, drink, or drug you want - straight to your bed!  I think the nurses here are more friendly than any hotel staff I've ever encountered.  

And here's another bonus - They'll do things like wheel your baby out and wash them in the middle of the night while you sleep!  The night Charlie was born everything didn't wind down until almost midnight.  Our nurse came in and said that it was time for his first bath, but if i'd rather sleep than watch, she would take him to the nursery and gladly take pictures for me.  How great was that?!  So Travis and I got to sneak in about an hour of sleep alone before the new parenting started.  I should also throw in that I did not change one diaper until we got home.  Love this place. 

Borned

So, baby Charlie Baylor Pierce finally made it into the world!!!! We had to force him out a little with an induction, but after only about 8 hours of labor, he finally came! I plan to blog later with more birth details (for people who like that) and also with some apps I'm really thankful for the last couple weeks. For now I'll give you what you probably want : a quick run down of how we are and some pictures.

Charlie: doing great. He has been eating and sleeping like a two week old, which makes scenes seeing as though he would be two weeks old had he come on time. When he screams, one thing that almost always calms him (even I only for a few minutes) is his big sister singing to him. He's already addicted to a pacifier - whoops and slightly dependent on the sound of rain when he sleeps.

Savannah: loves being a big sister ad care taker. She scolds me if I go get him from his room without her. She needs to know where he is and what he's Doug at all times. She over showers him with kisses and hugs and songs. Today when he was crying for a while I found her siting at her little card table with head phones on coloring. She said she just needed a little break. Isn't she the best? She has been an amazing helper already with laundry, dinner, and diaper changing. I'm so proud of her!

Travis: after two nights in the recliner at the hospital (the only thing we did not live about our stay there), Travis was sooo glad to sleep at home. He's been completing list after list for me of house work the last 24 hours. He loves being a daddy of a boy. Travis is also the diaper changer around here - which means he's been peed on several times because we keep forgetting that boys squirt ya!

Me: I'm tired, but not exhausted. I have no idea how to care for two kids, but
People say it will come. I have a hard time relaxing and resting, but I really want to. Junk food has taken over my life, but I figure I have a week or so left of guilt free eating, then I should probably wise up. So bring on the cakes and cookies! I'm enjoying Savannah and Charlie most as siblings. I love them separately too, but it's just magical to see them interact.