A Two Month Review: What I've Learned So Far

"I'm 2 months!"

We've been parents for 8 weeks now! Its been a great 8 weeks. First off, I LOVE being Jackson's mom. To break it down, its been a combined 5 weeks of awesomeness, 2 weeks of total confusion, and about 1 week of 'WHY did I want a baby???' All in all its been a pretty fantastic time. Then again, I think I have a pretty easy baby.

Besides the obvious some-things-just-don't-matter-as-much-as-they-used-too feeling you get now that you have a tiny homo sapien glued to you 18 hours a day, there are quite a few random things that have changed that surprised me, or; I was not expecting to experience.

• Spit up is no longer "gaaa-roooose"...or, lets just say body fluids in general. 

Seriously contemplating if he's still hungry or not. 

I've been peed on, poo'ed on and spit up on enough now that I barely give it a brief  'aww, darn' before wiping it off and continuing what I was doing. Sometimes its even cute...say what?? If I don't have time to mess around (Like if I finally got into work clothes in the morning), I'll throw a whole receiving blanket on the shoulder and call it good. Coming from someone who was scared of babies and their hazardous waste products - this is a big deal.

• Baby socks are no easier to match than adult socks. 

Not only are there 297 different designs floating around, they are also 1/10th the size of a normal sock. So if you were lucky enough to not to lose one before removing it from tiny humans foot...you probably won't be lucky enough to see it return from the dryer before it gets sucked up into an air vent or something. 

Since we're talking about laundry...

• I used to be completely fastidious about folding shirts, pants, etc exactly how I liked it. 

Turned right side out, sleeves neatly tucked away, stacked perfectly. That life has ended. Good bye. Gone. If its clean, its gets folded in half and lucky enough to be stuffed into a drawer in my closet. Hey, gotta safe time somehow.  

Nap time at Aunt Elizabeth's.

• Pump-and-Dump is harder than I thought. 

Yup, I'm talking about boobs and breast milk here. Sure I'd love to enjoy 2-50 glasses of wine on occasion, but when that means waiting 2 hours, and then pumping a beautiful 4-6 ounces of liquid gold and then THROWING IT DOWN THE FREAKING DRAIN, it is not such an appeasing idea anymore. Just get me a milk shake please. Not expecting that - I love wine.

• Watching your baby is often times more entertaining than TV. 

Who needs cable anymore? The unique and often adorable faces that your baby makes seem to keep us plenty entertained for now. I've had to re-watch about 10 episodes of Fringe because I ended up spending most of the time staring at baby, or cooing at their babies like moms do. I still do watch quite a bit of Netflix...its just that baby wins more than I thought. 

• Standard humor is not the same anymore. 

...because nothing is funnier than when your little boy lets a giganteus motor boat fart that your pretty sure the neighbors next door heard with you. What can I say...farts are funny now! 

Jackson prefers to be "worn." This is how we roll at the parks. 

• Baby wearing is amazing. 

I used to see those parents pushing their babies around in the expensive and adorable little strollers. Everyone say awwww. I thought I'd be joining the stroller herd, but let me tell you this; baby wearing is MUCH better. First off, your baby is happier. Pending hunger crys, little baby has never cried in the wrap for no apparent reason. Secondly, your not pushing a big stroller around the grocery store, and you have two hands to do normal things. Thirdly, it keeps your baby close and snugly and we just love that. I know all babies don't agree with wrapping, but our baby does. I've used a stroller once in the past 8 weeks. We just love wrapping baby Jackson up and taking off! 

• Falling asleep is easier, now. 

I've never been a very good sleeper, but I guess that changes once you have a limited amount of sleep to your name. I never understood how Seth could pass out after just 2-3 minutes. It takes me about 20 minutes of gentle reflection to pass into the sleep realm, and even after that, I'd wake up once or twice at night just "for." But, when your newborn just closed his eyes, and you've only got about 4 1/2 hours until your alarm goes off - I'm pretty sure I meet the 2-3 minutes mark now, myself. 

Jackson and Daddy snuggling on the couch.

• Getting up at 5am is easier, now. 

Let me rephrase that. Getting up at 5am is easier...when you have a crying baby that gives you no other choice. 'Ok! I'll get up, just please stop screaming! Here, have a boob!'. I can't complain too much, though. Jackson goes to bed around 10pm and usually sleeps 6-7 hours. Yay! I used to 'practice' waking up in the morning. Dragging my but out of bed by 6am was depressing and discouraging. Now, 6am feels like sleeping in. I guess that's normal. 

• The challenge of breastfeeding is (nearly) equal to the challenge of labor. 

You do all these things to prepare yourself for labor. Labor labor labor. Prepare prepare prepare. Especially when you do a natural birth. In my opinion labor was almost easy when comparing it to the non-stop challenges of breastfeeding and nursing. Why does no one tell you how completely hard and un-natural breastfeeding can be? No wonder so many moms choose other methods, like formula, or exclusive pumping. The nurses say "After the first two weeks, its easy." I say "The first two weeks are excruciatingly PAINFUL. The next two weeks hurt, but at least your not crying. And by the fourth and fifth weeks, you MIGHT feel like you know what you are doing." Finally, at 8 weeks. I will admit that breastfeeding is FINALLY easy. I swear I almost died a couple times, but alas, I did not give up. 

"I'm precious, and I know it." 

• The baby only loves me for my boobs. 

He's a boy, what can I say. But no, seriously. Jackson used to cry a lot when I held him because all he wanted to do when I held him was nurse. He'd be happy and sleepy in Seth's arms. Then, when he was handed to me, he'd immediately start rooting and whining to be fed. I was a little saddened by it at first, but I guess God makes them like that so they eat and gain weight. He finally quit doing this around 5-6 weeks, and now he's happy to lounge in mom's arms between feeding without demanding to be fed. 

"It's too HOT for clothes."

So yes, besides all the obvious shockers of becoming a parent, this pretty much concludes all the major items in the past 2 months I was not really expecting. Its been a thrilling, and exhausting two months. But totally worth it, and totally fun. Its not all glitter and sparkles 100% of the time, but it is most of the time, and that rules out the less enjoyable moments. 

We love you, Jackson! 

Dana & Seth 

A Natural Birth Story

Just a few minutes old! 

Jackson has been here for 4 weeks now! 1 whole month of us parents staring in amazement, awe and wonder. He's the perfect addition to our family. He's so cool and chill and obviously our child. I don't know what we did to deserve this little miracle, but I'll take it!

I had an incredible natural birth experience. Jackson was born February 27th, at 7:13pm. We were 10 days overdue! He weighed 9 pounds and 8 ounces, and was 22 inches long.

Around 1 1/2 weeks before delivering, I developed sciatic nerve pain which only worsened as the day approached. This was probably the only real uncomfortable side effect from my pregnancy. I worked from home the last week and was pretty inactive.

I was starting to get REALLY worried that I would go too far past due, and no longer "qualify" to deliver at the birth center. Luckily, I had great midwives, pineapple, the "miles circuit", acupressure, 6oz of castor oil, etc, etc, etc, that put me into labor before my time was up. My water broke at 1pm on 2/27. I was actually on the toilet when it happened, and my initial thought was "Great...my bladder is officially shot." it took a moment to realize I wasn't peeing :p. TMI, yet?

Once I decided that my water may have broken, I called Seth (who was on the way to class, of course) and told him "I THINK my water broke... Though I'm not really sure." I told him to go to class anyways, because I had always read that it can ‘take hours to days’ before you go into labor from your water breaking. I called the midwife next (Melissa happened to be on call!) and she had me come up to the birth center for a check. Then I called Wendy! (my Mother-In-Law). While packing, I experienced that HUGE gush you only hear about in the movies, which confirmed it. I called Seth and Melissa back and said "it's DEFINITELY broke".

Seth met me at New Birth (along with his mom, Wendy) where Melissa checked me and declared I was 4 cm dilated. She also confirmed I was having legit contractions. Woho! I was administered antibiotics for my Group B strep, and the plan was for me to go home and labor there until my next dose of antibiotics 4 hours later. Yah! This is exactly why I chose New Birth.

We went home to our cozy apartment (only about 12 minutes from New Birth). I packed up the rest of my things super quick, while Seth cleaned up everything spick and span spotless for the soon-to-be arrival of our baby boy. Stronger contractions came on fast! I proceeded to labor on the floor of our apartment like a complete wimp. I had grand plans of walking and moving around while laboring, but with my nerve pain, that was the last thing on my mind. I laid happily on my left side, putting some pressure on my belly (recommended by Melissa to help get Jackson into better positioning) and timed my contractions with my "contraction timer" app on my phone. Yes, they make an app for that ;)

The contractions hurt A LOT. Not gonna lie! But it was a good hurt. Each one felt productive, like it had a purpose. Each one was bringing my son a little close to us. Around 4:30pm, contractions were lasting about 2 minutes long, and we're about 3 minutes apart. Fun! I'm still lying on the apartment floor like a beached whale. I probably sounded like one too! Or a dying cow... That probably would give you a good audible picture. I was excited, and I knew I could do this. It was just a matter of time before Jackson was with us for real.

About to get weighed and measured!

We called Melissa around 5pm, and told her my progress. She must have had great faith in me, or maybe I just should have sounded worse on the phone, but she told me to wait until 6:30pm before coming back. ‘WHAT?’?! was the reaction going on in my mind... but I resumed the beached whale position back on the floor.

Seth was absolutely marvelous this whole time. Always right next to me, rubbing my back and sides through contractions (which helped immensely!) but not bothering me or asking too many questions. He knew I was prepared for this, and that I was confident my body knew what to do (it did!)

6pm came around. Somehow, everything was packed and ready in the car. (go Seth!!) I miraculously managed to lug my contracting, nerve pained, doubled over self out to the car. I attempted to eat an apple on the way there. I knew eating would be important to keep up my energy. Sitting through contractions in the car was the worst. By now, they were full blown. I felt the beginning of "transition" and I was fighting not to "push". Of course, there was an accident on the highway and lots of traffic. I tried to focus on my apple. We made it there eventually with Seth's mad driving skills.

Walking into New Birth was exhilarating. I had imagined the day I would finally walk up to that building for the "real deal". That day was finally here! I'm pretty sure Melissa and the nurses knew my answer when they asked "You look great! Would you like to stay here?"

‘Holy Lord, thank you Jesus YES YES YES’.

I actually just say "Yea" but I was a lot more elaborate in my head. I went to the room, where I assumed the standard whale position on the queen sized bed. Ahhhh, love this place... I chose the "Contemporary" room. It had all my favorite colors, and it was the same room my sister-in-law had her baby (Jackson's cousin!).

Dressed to impress! And go home. Such a rockstar!

Melissa told me they wouldn't check me for a while unless I felt like I needed to push. The pushing sensation had sorta died since I was fighting it off in the car. I laid in the bed for a few minutes until I had to pee. I forgot there was something worse than contractions in the car... contractions on the freaking toilet. Oh my lord… Yup, that pushing sensation was back. I resumed whale position back on the bed, where they administered my second dose of antibiotics.

Melissa and the intern (whose name I have forgotten) checked my cervix. Almost a 10?! What? 2 more contractions later, I was a legit 10 cm dilated. It's about 7pm now.

Somehow, Mom, Dad, Dedi, Wendy, and Seth are all in the room now... Along with Melissa and a whole team of nurses. It's time to push (after dad leaves, of course). I was still on my left side. This position felt the most comfortable all day. Why change things now? Wendy held my leg up for me, while Dedi coached me on pushing. "Chin to chest!" Was the most helpful advice. My body knew what to do. I knew which contractions were "good" ones to push with. It was VERY painful, but still an effective pain. Yes, I was a bit of a screamer towards the end. Dedi coached me to hold the scream (and my breath) and turn it into pushing. This helped! I do not know what I would have done without my team.

Quick nap to pass the car ride...

In about 3-4 good pushes, I was able to reach down and feel his squashy little head. In about 2 more, he was OUT and they handed me this wide eyed beautiful slimy boy who I instantly knew was OURS! He rested skin to skin on my tummy and let out an annoyed little cry when nurse Aubrey started toweling him off. He was perfect, and he was here.

We did the delayed cord cutting, so he could get all his blood back before clamping. Seth cut the cord, and they laid him on my chest skin to skin. It was a wonderful, glorious moment. Most of the staff cleared out, and things got quieter. Holding Jackson was the most surreal thing I've ever experienced. So much love for this tiny creature with the cone shaped head and squinty eyes. Yet he's so perfect and so OURS that you can barely contain the emotion. It's still like that now.

Seth held him while Melissa helped me deliver the afterbirth. The placenta was pretty fascinating...

I got to drink my New Birth fruit smoothy and relax for a few minutes with our son. Then we started breastfeeding! Its harder than it looks, by the way. Cats, dogs and horses make it look easy... Later I was served breakfast in bed. Yum! The nurses baked a delicious chocolate cake and sang us Happy Birthday. Then I relaxed in a hot herbal bath to promote healing.

We were able to stay the night at New Birth. Aubrey was our nurse, and she was perfect! Well trained and very confident in her work. We were in excellent hands. She checked on Jackson and I every hour or so while we rested, and also helped us breastfeed.

We were discharged around 7am on 2/28. We had two home visits 24 and 48 hours later. Normally you'd have one, but with the Group B Strep, a second visit is made. Both nurses checked us out, and offered more support with breastfeeding.

The next morning, recovering and relaxing at home! 

My birth experience was amazing, and it was everything I wanted. My midwife Melissa was fabulous. The whole New Birth team was fabulous. My family and friends were fabulous too.

Jackson is the best baby a mom could ask for. We love love love him to pieces! He the next step in mine and Seth's life, and we could not be more pleased that he is ours. We love you Jackson!

P.S: I went to the chiropractor 1 week after delivery. She was completely able to eradicate my sciatic nerve pain! Woho! 

Getting Down to the Wire - Nearly 39 Weeks

Remeber this???

Wow! I can't believe it - I seriously just cannot fathom how close we are to the main event. My due date is in 9 days. We are counting down in single digits now, people! One midwife told me that first time moms often go 1 - 1 1/2 weeks overdue, which is fine, because that's STILL super close... Holy cow.

I've been revamping my workout routines with lots of hip-moving-cardio (arc-glider, walking) and about a billion squats and lunges. Hopefully this baby starts thinking about coming. I'm worried he is a bit too cozy, but I don't really blame him with this ridiculously COLD weather we've been having... 

I've got to give a public shout out to my wonderful husband! He has just been fantastic throughout this whole adventure. He goes WAY above and beyond when carrying out his I-Have-a-Very-Pregnant-Wife duties. Whether its cooking and cleaning, comforting massages, encouraging words, or just helping me carry my bags to the car (I carry about 3 bags of stuff with me throughout the day), he is seriously awesome. Better yet, he's become a great prenatal workout buddy for me!

Walking lunges. Supposed to help
the baby get into position for labor. :) 

Being pregnant has been wonderful - and I'm seriously not just "saying that." I've tried (with success) to make my pregnancy an "enjoyable experience." I love learning in general, and I've loved experiencing the differences and changes that a pregnant body goes though. Plus, feeling your adorable baby moving and kicking inside you is enough to make any ones heart melt...

It hasn't all been peaches and cream, but about 88% of it has, which is totally fine with me. Its not like you feel 100% all the time when your NOT preggers anyways...so how can I complain? Working out and staying positive has been my medicine. Sometimes I back that up with a Tylenol and a nap. :P 

I'm super thankful for all the support I have had throughout my pregnancy! Last night, I met with Dedi, Wendy, Mom and Seth to talk about my expectations of labor. If you don't already know, I've chosen a non-intervention natural birthing facility called New Birth Company. Its run by a team of certified Midwifes. We talked about labor stuff and also about what I wanted each of them to do to help me through the process. Mostly managing pain and discomfort, because they do not offer epidurals or other pain medications at the birth center. 

Kettle-ball squat swings. Also supposed
to help baby drop, rotate and get into a good
birthing position. 

I'm an over planner, of course. Mom says I'll breeze through it without a problem. I think a little bit of over planning helps with the breezing process ;) 

The nursery is basically ready, and everything else has been properly nested. Jackson could come anytime, and I'd be ok with it. I've even nested at work! I'm amazed by all the things that have been given, purchased or gifted to us. I started out with ZERO, and now I have everything I need to welcome a newborn. I'm so thankful for all my supportive friends and family! 

I don't know if I'll be posting again before baby Jackson comes, so the next post might be about him. Can't wait! 

Dana Alley 

35 Week Photography

Warning! This post is very image heavy, so if you don't like photos...you might want to leave like, NOW! :D
Last weekend we met with the lovely Dawn  and she took some fabulous shots of me, Seth and the belly, aka. Jackson. The weather was pretty cooperative, and the photos just turned out GREAT. Here are some of my favorites!

So I'm 36 weeks now, and still doing well! I get lots of pushes and shoves now instead of sharp kicks. Its super cute and fun to both feel and watch. Having a little baby moving around inside is just the coolest thing. He seems to be pretty well behaved, for the most part. Can't complain!

I simply can't wait to meet this baby boy. The next 4 weeks are going to be great! Our new dresser will be delivered this Thursday, and I've got a pre-natal massage coming up this weekend. Lots of other little details are coming to a close as well. The baby room is nearly complete, and I'm wrapping up my DIY and sewing projects as well.

Thanks for checking in... Stay tuned for my next post!

Dana

35 Weeks & The Best Baby Shower Ever!

Welcome!

Well, LOTS has happened since my last post. I've been meaning to write about it, I promise! So far this
pregnancy has been such an awesome experience. I've taken lots of tips and tricks that have been offered up to me from friends and family; like using belly bands, tummy support belts, exercise balls, and of course, - staying active and working out!

Oh, and I listen to my mid-wives and take my red raspberry leaf and alfalfa capsules. Both designed to help in labor (stronger contractions, less bleeding, etc). Both of those equate to 13 capsules a day...goodness! I feel like I'm always popping pills. ;) 5 weeks to go!

Here are some highlights....

• Had my baby shower!
• Jeep died/ Leased a new car ('14 Toyota Corolla! It's amazing!) 
• Had 35 week maternity photos taken by Dawn Vieux (blog post coming soon on this!

The baby shower that my mom (and company) threw for me was friggin' amazing! It was everything you'd expect a baby shower to be. First off, it was co-ed, which really made my dad since Seth and I are friends with lots of "couples" who either have kids, are expecting, or are just plain awesome. We wanted to celebrate with them! 

The decorations were amazing (lots of sweet boy colors popping up everywhere), the games were hilarious and the cute cottage setting was just perfect. Not to mention the food! Mom made all the food, and the presentation just impressed the heck out of everyone. I seriously thought she had it catered...turns out she's just that good. Be jealous, my friends. ;) 

I'm so very grateful for my family for putting on this amazing shower, and to all the people who helped also! I truly believe I have surrounded myself with the most awesome people and each of you bring infinite joy and support to my life. I can't wait to introduce my baby boy to you all! 

And of course I got LOTS of amazing gifts from my family and buddies. 

Until next time! - Dana 

Jackson's First Baby Pictures - Our 3D/4D Ultrasound Experience!!

Let me just start out saying that the 4D Ultrasound experience I had was not at all what I was expecting! I figured we'd go in for 15 or minutes or so, snap some cute face photos of the baby, and watch it for a bit on the video monitor. I'm excited to admit that the whole experience was about 10X more glamorous and exciting that I ever though it would be!
I originally DID want to get an Ultrasound, but I talked myself out of it after reading some pretty grey reviews online... and also the price. I was anticipating the former experience. What we got was totally different. The owners of the "shop" were so sweet and kind, and you could really tell they loved babies! We spent about 50 minutes flipping between the 2D and 4D ultrasounds to basically watch a live video of what baby Jackson was up too! It was amazing! Cindy was super sweet and took extra time and effort to work with my active baby boy (and my huge anterior placenta which was right in the way of the imaging!). We left with amazing photos and video!
Some highlights about Jackson...

• With an easy flip, he can change from pointing east to west in about 3 seconds. 
• He had about 5 hiccups! Takes after his daddy with that one! 
• Loves loves loves playing with his toes! I'm pretty sure he was holding onto one foot the whole time. 

I think the most amazing part of the whole "watching" process was seeing his little head thump up and down during the 2D ultrasound. With each of my heartbeats, his little head was pushed up just a tiny bit, so it looked like he was head bobbing to the rhythm of my heart! Cindy said he just happened to be resting on a major blood supply (either the placenta, or my own) that was causing the movement. No wonder little babies like to hear mom's heartbeat once their born! I used to think that was "cheesy", but after seeing that happen...just WOW! 

Hearbeat! 130 bpm! Thumpa Thumpa Thumpa!

Sweet little black and white face with his hands in front of his chin. 

Just look at that sweet face! He didn't open his eyes at all, but he did make some pretty fun squirmy faces!

aaaaaand....here is the squirmy face! 

...but then he settles down and looks like this again. Almost a little smile?! :) 

Cindy said he's "nuzzling" here. I hope he's a snuggly thing!

Then back to total cuteness!

Yup he is sucking on something here! Couldn't tell exactly what, but its either the hand or foot or something floating around in there :P

And here is a 40 second video to top it all off!!! I swear he must have been sleeping during this part, because this was the quietest he was for the whole ultrasound. 

The whole experience was just amazing, and I have my wonderful and generous parents to thank for treating me to this wonderful event!! I'm so happy I did it! 

Dana 

27 Week Update (Third Trimester!) and Some Awesome Project Photos

Hello!

Thanks for visiting! Not a whole lot of interesting news has popped up since my last post on here, which is a good thing right? No news is good news!

Sunday (11/17/13)  marks the first day of my third trimester! Jackson is doing super well. We both check out great at our monthly appointments. In a few short weeks (once we hit 32 weeks) we'll have appointments twice a month, and then weekly at 36 weeks. WOW! That, combined with all the classes I've taken, it sorta feels like I live there a little ;). So far, I've taken a 4 part breast feeding education class, a water birth class, a 2 part Labor, Delivery and Postpartum Care class, and a Fearless Birth group meeting. Yay! I feel rather educated, and ready as I can be to birth this baby and maybe even take care of him properly, too!

Jackson spends most of his days sleeping and kicking my bladder repeatedly. Besides the constant trips to the bathroom, its been fun! I feel great, and my energy level has pretty much stayed the same. I do get tired a little earlier in the day, and every now and then I actually take a nap (like on the weekends :P). Hopefully I can maintain some of this energy once Jackson joins us for real...

I still work out about 4-5 times a week (I've had to modify quite a bit) - I think that helps a lot!

I've kept busy on several sewing projects! Keeps me distracted, and it passes the time well. I've been able to use the sewing machine mom bought me a couple years, and its just been great!

Crochet baby blanket!

Refinished baby swing cover and padding. 

Large minky baby blanket - super soft. 

Still in progress! Puff quilt crib blanket! 

Still a work in progress - putting on the borders. 

These items are definitely not perfect, but they are full of love and hopefully little Jackie will be able to tell that!

Next Tuesday, mom is treating me to a 4D Ultrasound, so hopefully we can get some great face shots of Jackson up on the blog. Can't wait!

Until next time!

Dana Alley