Random Baby thoughts

-There's nothing like having a tiny baby to make you open your eyes and realize that your older child is no longer a tiny baby. Holy cow, she is big and mature! 

-I'm acutely aware that we probably won't have another kid and I really really don't want Adam to change at all. When Laura was brand new, I couldn't wait for her to start moving, talking, crawling, etc. But this time, I'm already sad about the changes I can see in him from a week ago. I hope I don't smother him and turn him into a dependent mama's boy. ha

- I love it when newborns stretch. They arch their back and stick back their bottoms and heads, curl up their fists and stick them in the air, and wrinkle up their foreheads like old men. So cute.

-Its amazing how you will let personal hygiene go when you are super sleep deprived. But this morning, I showered, put on clean clothes AND brushed my teeth and hair. Big day for me.

Code Pink

Been meaning to tell this story while its still fresh in mind, so here goes...

As I was wandering the hospital halls after we had Adam, I saw the Director of Nursing at the nurses station. I know her because she also attended the Seattle conference last summer with me. She came over and gave her congrats and ogled the baby appropriately. Then she asked us to help her out with a Code Pink drill, which is the code they use to announce a lost baby. She explained the scenario and we put on a show. Jim took Adam to an administration office to hide and I asked the nurse to get my baby from the nursery. When she couldn't find him in the nursery, they called the Code Pink and the entire hospital went into shut down. Everyone left their posts to stand in the halls and look for Adam. Cops came to interview me. All the babies were emptied out of the nursery and returned to their moms. They stopped and searched everyone leaving the hospital from all exits. According to the scenario, they were supposed to be searching for a lady with a red bag who supposedly stole the baby. But instead, they latched on to Jim and thought he was the one who stole him. They described him over the PA and kept asking me if we were having marital problems. Then they called it off and told everyone that they found Jim in the admin office. He had to do the walk of shame, bringing Adam back to me while everyone glared at him on his way back to the room. Poor guy. So that was our exciting hospital story (besides the birth of our baby, of course). I found it much more emotional than I thought it would be. We were afraid to leave our room until the nurses found out that it was just a drill. Some of the nurses had been so emotional about it and worried about me, it was truly touching. We felt pretty guilty to put them through that, but glad that they run drills periodically. Turns out that they did stop the red bag lady to check her bag, so they would have caught her.

tiny tank

The home care nurse stopped by today to check out Adam and I. When we left the hospital on Tuesday, he was 7 pounds 6 ounces. Today (3 days later), he was 8 pounds even. Dude. I felt like I was feeding him a lot, but now I *know* that I am feeding him a lot. The nurse said she typically looks for a 1/2 oz gain every day. Well, we blew by that somewhere around noon on Wednesday. Anyways, its great news and everything else is going well with both of us. 

Here's a video of Laura singing Happy Birthday to Adam. Might have to turn up the volume.

First Family Photo

Laura's latest

Gramma Ann and Laura seemed to have a great time while Jim and I were at the hospital.

Tea party!





Look Linda! The lego table works with Duplos too. Its been lots of fun.

more

had some trouble getting more pictures on the last post. here's another try. thank you to everyone for their congrats and well wishes. We are home now and feeling pretty well.

Playing with the hospital bed was at least as much fun as seeing her new baby brother.

Arrival of Adam Robert

Adam was born 5:22pm November 23, 2008, a healthy 7 lb 13 oz and 21 1/2" long.



More details and photos to follow.

Adam!!

he's here!! Adam Robert was born yesterday November 23rd at 5:22pm. He weighed 7 pounds 13 ounces and was 21 1/2 inches long. He has a nice head of blond hair and was nice and pink and healthy from the beginning (apgar of 9 if you know what that means). He's nursing well and slept some last night so we all got a little rest. Big sister laura is beside herself excited and gets to meet him today.
Pictures to follow when we can.

Conversations

You know, I can definitely see what we as a society have sacrificed to have our independence from each other. In neighborhoods like ours, where you sort of know your neighbors.  You wave as you go in and out of your garage but don't really spending much time with each other. Having my mom here the last few days has made such a change in my perspective. Its crazy to have another adult around all day! True, the help with the housework and Laura has been great, but I don't think that's everything. The adult conversation, and with another woman (no offense, Jim or Laura), really makes a difference in your day. I'm sure Jim appreciates that I don't just run from the mouth when he comes home now. This is what it must be like in cultures that live in close quarters with their extended families. Sure we'll probably get sick of each other after a while, but it is really nice to have someone to communicate with throughout the day. I know I chose to not work, so I don't mean that I'm complaining about my choice. Its just that stay at home moms really do have a tough time when their only interaction during the day is with a child. I can see why my other SAHM friend and I generally talk several times on the phone each day (also because we're good friends and enjoy each other's company). I hope I don't neglect her while my mom is visiting. 

nope, not yet

i'd like to blame my 9 day blog hiatus on the fact that our new baby is taking up so much of my time. But...that's impossible because he's still in my belly. And my mom is now here helping do EVERYTHING (its truly wonderful!) so i can't even say that I've been too tired from housework and toddler care. 

Everything here in this household is pretty good. I'm a little anxious about when the baby will come, but not really just dying to have him show up. I'm excited to meet him and all, but he sure is easier and safer inside than outside. We'll take him when we get him. And Laura is pretty thrilled to be an almost-big sister. 

That's all I've got right now. Will say more when there's more to say.

Budding artist

Here is Laura's first happy face. 100% her idea and 100% her handiwork. 

And so it begins....

Our first real snow of the season last week. It had melted by afternoon, but the kids had fun for a little while. Those are the poofy-est mittens ever! 

Laura-isms

A few things that Laura has said lately that I want to remember...

"I'm Dr. Seuss the Bandage Girl!" (ala Dr. Dan the Bandage Man Golden Book)

"Your fur is soft, Mommy" as she lays her head on my arm. Yes I know I have hairy arms, thanks for pointing it out, kid.

"When I grow up into a big girl, I will paint my fingers blue and my toes purple. And I'll buy the paint at the store!" (I clarified that she meant her WHOLE fingers and toes, not just nails)

"When I grow up, I will put cold stuff in the microwave and push buttons. Then I'll check it and it won't be warm enough, so I will push more buttons until its warm enough."

What would a good mom do?

So, Laura slept really long at nap time today. To the point that I wanted to check on her. I opened the door slightly and she was rolling around groggily. I tried to close the door, but she spied me and said "I just want to sleep more". From experience, I knew that if I just left the room, it would spark a total breakdown. So I came in quietly and curled up next to her to enjoy the infrequently witnessed 'wake up procedure'. She closed her eyes and wiggled around a little. Then, she proceeded to shove her pointer fingers up her nose. I mean, seriously shove them up there. Sometimes both sides at the same time. She was really digging for gold. So then I get the Mom Instinct to say something like "Laura, please don't put your fingers in your nose. Use a kleenex if you want to get the boogers out." But then I thought, I barged in on her alone time and how sad would it be to have the first words I say to her be an admonishment? It would totally ruin the mood. Plus, she's not really a nose-picker yet (or so I thought). So I chose to stay quiet and cringe during the 10 minutes of nose digging. I didn't see any go in her mouth, thankfully. I'm not sure if she's thought about that yet. I was rewarded with a nice, cuddly time with my daughter and some nice, germy hugs after she woke up. 

Parenting is full of moments you never would have imagined.