Happy Fall!

Ok. I know that most people out there love the summer, and technically that doesn't end until next week. However, I love fall. So when mother nature gave us a bunch of fall weather, it was time to dress the boy as such. This was his daycare outfit today....

For the record, I also love overalls on babies... they are a PITA to put on but the end result is fabulous. He looked so cute and seemed to scream "HAPPY FALL WORLD"!

I am so looking forward to showing Mikey fall... I know he will really like the colors and pumpkins. But we are taking him for a train ride on Thomas, apple picking, and his first Halloween! It is all so exciting to me. I am really looking forward to the road ahead.

We have also chosen the fall to baptize him, then there is Thanksgiving. Fall will be busy...

But I wouldn't change a thing.

First illnesses...

First illnesses for the record.... suck pretty badly.

I breastfeed, so the risk is less for some bugs, ear infections and other stuff.

But the common cold... not so much. So as my son is battling congestion and a stuffy nose, I do what I can to make him comfy. This includes steamy bathrooms and lots of cuddles. It turns out that all his little friends at daycare had the cold too, which now I know where it came from.

But for the record, it kills me that he is sick and I really can't do too much for him... I would take it away from him if I could...

But unfortunately all I can do is share it.

Memories!

So the Monkey started school this week. It is daycare, but it is also a school. They learn stuff. And he loves it. I do too, but that is another post for another day.

Today is about excitement... over book orders.

He got a Scholastic Book order today. It still has the book order smell and the thin paper. Remember that?

It brought back all those memories. I wanted every book in the small flier and I always got the new Babysitters club books or some sort of mystery. I devoured the thing four or five times before deciding what to get. And it was like Christmas when they came in. I got caught reading under my desk quite a lot as a kid. I LOVE to read.

Now I get to experience book orders with my son. I went through the fliers a couple of times and carefully picked out some books for the Monkey.

The difference is that now they have online ordering and the classroom gets free books if you order. Huzzah!

Happy School Week!

Monkey started School/Daycare this week on the campus where I went to school. Drop off went fine, although I completely lost it when I went back to my car. I love our day care. It has a pre-school there, so he will be able to go there for years! Even the infants have a curriculum. This month is all about the bugs! (Mikey is the spider! It is like they knew I am afraid of spiders!)

Now I know the teachers, but it still makes me sad having to leave him to have fun with someone else all day. Especially after the weekend!

So to those parents dropping off their kids for their first day of either day care or school today, good luck and may your kids have a wonderful and happy school year!

Baby Afterglow...

So the next four days were a flurry of excitement, most of the time good... some times really bad. We were in the NICU for a day and night for trouble breathing and under the lights for almost 2 days for jaundice. We had a flurry of friends, family and nurses visiting and making sure we were comfortable. Brigham and Women's was amazing. I can not imagine having my children anywhere else now.

Finally we were all cleared to go home and spend time as a family.

It was the greatest feeling ever.

This is what I was always destined to be.... a Mommy. One time in my life I focused on a career because I thought that that was what was important. Now, I look at my family and swell with pride. This is what I have always wanted, even if I didn't acknowledge it for a while.

I love getting to know my son. I love that the Thomas the Tank engine show makes him smile. I love that he bitches to the lion on his bouncy seat when he gets all angry. I love the look he has when he is full and content right after eating. I love the little sigh he does when we are cuddling. I love watching his daddy and him interact, because they have this amazing unconditional love that blows my freaking mind.

Breastfeeding has gone better than I expected. The pumping can sometimes be a challenge, and I feel like a cow, but I am getting used to it! Monkey has become a little bit of a milk snob though. I have to alternate for feedings during the day for him (my pumping production is low), and he makes a horrible faces when presented with the formula bottles. I have determined that this is because... as a nacho, Mexican food is better than the horribly smelly formula.

Unfortunately, I can't be a stay at home mom... so I am back to work. The 11 weeks I had at home full time with him were amazing and I will never forget what it felt like to be able to be fully devoted to my child 24/7. (Mind you I was also recovering from the surgery so we spent a ton of time in bed playing peek a boo and checking out Thomas.)

This week he is with family while we wait for daycare to open. I miss him terribly, but just thinking about getting home to my boys makes the day easier.

Also, YAY three day weekend!

Labor Part 3: The part where all plans are thrown out the window...

In the morning, after being in labor for about 18 hours or so... I knew what was going to end up happening. Monkey was not responding well to the epidural lowering my blood pressure, so they had to continue to drive it up with medicine.

But epidurals = win. I am not going to pretend to be brave about it. Labor hurt. Like A TON.

So at about 8:30-9ish my doctor (who is amazing) came in and checked me and I could tell by her facial expressions that we were done.

"We need to get him out now!" She said and she was gone to get her scrubs.

There was something completely surreal about the 10 minutes that followed. My doctor left, put on her scrubs and came back in in a manner of a minute. They handed Mr. scrubs and the lovely pain meds people talked to me. I gave my consent for the procedure and off we went.

At the OR, I was separated from Mr., and prepared for surgery. It was nerve wracking and exciting all at once. We made sure the cord blood was going to be donated to Dana Farber. (Our son gave a second chance at life to some one and I am so proud of that!)

Then they laid me down and laid out my hands, they put up the blue sheet and brought Mr. in. After about a minute and a half of the the violent tugging and pressure, my little Monkey was born screaming even before the suction. Mr. got to see him pretty much right away.

And then I was by myself on the table while the doctors were working on me, and it felt like forever.

They forgot to raise his head to show me, so all I saw were his boy parts. I got the doctors laughing by proclaiming that "All I saw were his balls!" I couldn't wait to see his face and meet the little boy that I had gotten to know over the last 9 months.

Then Mr. came around the corner, sat down and said "This is Monkey". My heart melted... it still does thinking about it.

But finally both my boys were in my sight, and it made life feel a little sweeter.

We finally got moved back to our labor room, where Monkey and I got to bond over milk and snuggles, and we got to spend our first moments as a family.

Life is good.

Labor Part 2: We are the 5%...

So we went in for the first part of the induction process... We went armed with Netflix on our phones and yahtzee. We showed up, got checked in and they put me on the monitor. Everything looked excelent so they started the gel treatment.

The doctor said "There is no way you will go into full labor or have your labor progress from this. There is a 5% chance of labor starting or progressing from this. There will be some cramping, but it will get better." Then they monitored us and they sent us home.

After a nice lunch with my mom, the cramping began to really get intense.... Then it never ended....

So Mr. called the Dr.

Dr: Do the pains come in waves or is it constant?

Mr.: They come in waves.

Dr.: How often do you think the waves happen?

Mr. : I don't know... every 2-3 minutes or so.

Dr.: I think you need to bring your wife to the hospital...

Mr.: What do you think is wrong?

Dr.: I think your wife is in labor.


That's right folks... I am the five percent that went into full labor from the gel treatment.

We got in and settled down. It was going to be a long night. But at least I had a late night Sox/Yankees game to keep me company while the epidural kicked in!