what i've learned...

... now that I have been a mom for almost 7 weeks. It is by far the most amazing thing I have ever done. There have been some tough times and we have rolled with the punches. This is what I know:
1. Breastfeeding is amazing. It was by far the most painful part of the entire process (yes, I think it was more painful than labor). All was well and then all of the sudden when Dylan was about 1.5 weeks old, it became so painful that every time he latched on I would have to bite my finger to prevent myself from screaming in pain. And that lasted for 5 days. And then the pain was gone. Those were the hardest days for me - desperately wanting the pain to go away and feeling absolutely helpless because Dylan was hungry and I was the only one who could feed him. I was in so much pain and afraid to use the breast pump because I was told by so many people not to introduce an artificial nipple to Dylan otherwise he might not breastfeed. I finally used the breastpump and it didn't hurt at all and Dylan did okay with the bottle and still prefers me to the bottle. I really think that all the pain I was in could have been gone sooner had I tried pumping sooner because the pump really helped me heal. I did try to make myself feel better by reminding myself that it could be worse - women can develop bacterial and yeast infections and have to breastfeed with that. It didn't really help because it was still so painful. I am SO GLAD that I got through it because now everything's wonderful - the pain is completely gone and Dylan and I are working so well together. Now the problem is that he prefers me to the bottle making it difficult for anyone who's watching him when I'm not around (which makes me feel great, but I know that it's not fair for everyone else).
2. Newborn diapers leak. A LOT. Dylan has grown into Size 1 and he doesn't leak out of his diaper nearly as often now. In the newborn diapers we were getting peed on all the time because it was just coming out of the top of the diaper. Not to mention when we were changing him the pee would fly.
3. Be careful when changing them. Because they will poo on you. And breastfed baby poo is projectile. We've all been pooed on while wiping Dylan's toosh. Runny projectile poo. Awesome.
4. I cannot carry on a conversation without talking about breastfeeding and baby excrement. Obviously, considering this blog post.
5. I love love love out baby bouncer - it's like having a baby sitter when no one else is around! The chair vibrates which is so super soothing to the baby. We have the FP Precious Planet Khaki Sands bouncer.
6. I love our bassinet. It vibrates and plays different sounds - the best being the sound of a heartbeat. It helps him fall asleep without being in our arms (though sometimes we have to hold him). We have the First Years Carry Me Near bassinet. And if we take the bassinet part off, a changing table is underneath. I will say that the bassinet part is SO heavy without Dylan in it that I would never carry it around like they claim you can. And, sometimes Dylan will start waking up, and I have to be honest, I hit the vibrate button on the bassinet and he will fall back asleep. It's like a snooze button on the baby. And sometimes just what I need to completely wake up and feed him. I love it!
7. You really do need a ton of onesies. And he really does wear several a day. Because he spits up all over them and then they're soaked. Luckily we have so many super cute ones. And we get to see him in all of them!
8. I LOVE MY BABY. I want to look at him all the time, and am constantly amazed that something so small and perfect and beautiful is all mine. And I like to look at all his different parts and decide if they're Adam's or mine. He definitely has Adam's fingers and toes. He has my chin, nose, ears, and red hair. He has Adam's forehead. I cannot decide whose eyes he has. Yesterday was the first time I thought he looked like he has Adam's shoulders. And he's ours. So much love!

Dylan!

I had my son, Dylan John, on June 28, making him three weeks old and 3 days old! He is a wonderful little boy and I cannot believe how much I love him! He looks a LOT like me, and he has red hair! He is a very good sleeper, usually only wakes up once during the night (though sometimes he winds up awake for 2 hours which isn't fun at 4 am). I ended up having a C section (turns out I have a weird shaped pubic bone and will have to have a C section for any future children as well) and am recovering perfectly. I was having problems with my hip bothering me for at least the last three months of my pregnancy and that pain went away immediately with the delivery of Dylan. People have asked me if I miss all those baby kicks, and I haven't had time to notice that I'm not getting kicked inside anymore.

I just love him so much!

38 weeks!

It has been a long 9 months, but the end is very very near and soon a baby will be here! I am uncomfortable most of the time, can't take a proper deep breath, and am so going to miss getting kicked and punched by baby. I have gone to classes, gotten a tour of the hospital, and am now waiting patiently for something else to happen. I haven't slept through the night in months, I have no dexterity in my hands and tend to drop everything, and I cannot bend over. I haven't had to deal with much swelling (some, but not much), I haven't had much heartburn (again, some, but not much), and it really has been like all the awful side effects you hear about from pregnancy skipped me (thank goodness!). I'm being induced next week, I'll know more tomorrow after I go to the doctor. I'm getting really anxious and excited. I really want to meet my little peanut!!

I also have watched quite a few movies/tv shows with people going in to labor. From what I've heard about what will happen, probably the most realistic is "Knocked Up". The goofiest is when mommy-to-be's water breaks and they rush out the door ("Friends" Rachel). I'm sorry, but if your water does break, you're not going to go anywhere without changing your clothes (when you're at home, if you're on the street you cannot do that -"Sex and the City" movie)! You have enough time for that at least. And then there's the immediate rush to the hospital because mommy-to-be had a contraction ("Sex and the City" Miranda, "Steel Magnolias" Darryl Hannah character). Contractions start long before you must rush to the hospital. 30 mins apart, then 15 mins apart, 10 mins, and no need to go to the hospital until they're 5 mins apart and that's lasted for an hour. That's a lot of contractions before needing to call the doctor or head to the hospital. In "Knocked up", Alison started having contractions and waited at home (in the bathtub) for Ben to get there and take her to the hospital. Probably the most likely thing to happen, though I would be worried about sitting in the tub and not being able to tell if my water had broken or not.

from the mouths of babes

My parents and Eli went out for breakfast this morning. After their meal, the waitress came by the table. The following exchange occured:
Waitress: How was everything?
Parents: Great, thanks!
Waitress (Leaning in to Eli): How was your food?
Eli: I farted!
Waitress: What?
Eli: I farted!
Waitress: okay... (and she walked away)

The waitress may not have understood Eli-speak, but Nana did, and has been laughing ever since!

shopping for maternity clothes

today, i went out looking for something to wear to a wedding that adam and i are going to in a few weeks. jcpenney has a decent selection of maternity clothes online, so to penneys i went. I found a cute really dark blue jean skirt on clearance for $12 - so I'm feeling like I got a pretty good deal. I also tried on a bunch of maternity shirts. They all hit me mid-thigh and were so long that I just looked really short and wide in these ridiculous shirts. Each shirt I tried on would have looked great it they were at least 6 inches shorter. Apparently I'm supposed to be 6 feet tall in order to not look like a weirdo in these maternity shirts. My next step is just look for bigger regular shirts, because I am not a fan of these maternity shirts. Regular shirts don't make me look so short!

TMI

Alright, I realize I may be having a bit of a TMI moment right now, but I'm putting this out there anyway.

My child thinks my bladder is a punching bag. If my bladder gets too full and is invading baby's space, good golly does this kid put the beat down on my bladder until I drain it. I think the personality of a first child (especially my first child) is shining through already.
What a little peanut.

One of my students just said to another student "Well aren't you a smarty pants? Smarty wanna party!?" They really are hilarious.

monthly update

apparently I am down to only blogging monthly. I'm really going to have to work on this. But, what's been happening?

1. Baby. I'm at 24 weeks. I feel baby kicking lots. It's so neat to have something moving inside me that isn't me. Baby is especially active while I'm in class. But as soon as baby's around Adam, baby stops moving. If you've ever seen Adam with a baby, you will be immediately amazed because he has an extraordinary power to lull baby to sleep. I've decided his amazing ability even works in utero. He has felt baby twice, but I know he's ready to feel more kicks and baby is just not cooperating. I have also entered that stage where I am HOT all the time. Over the winter my mom was amazed that I was spending so much time under blankets. Now, I'm hot all the time... particularly while I'm in class teaching. My students told me tonight that I'm waddling already.

2. Furthur. Was AMAZING. third row seats and totally fabulous. Phil and Bobby were fantastic. John from Dark Star Orchestra only sang three songs while we were there (he's the 'Jerry'), while most of the songs were sung by Bobby or Phil and Bobby together. I have a top ten favorite grateful dead songs (and they move up and down the list, but mostly the top ten doesn't change) and they played 2 of my top 10 - and considering the number of songs that are in the Dead repertoire, I'm amazed that I got 20% of my top ten. What are these two songs, you ask? Uncle John's Band and Scarlet Begonias. So fantastic. Which, Scarlet Begonias is extremely often combined with Fire on the Mountain in concert, and they continued that tradition this night too. Other highlights - China Cat Sunflower > I Know You Rider, Eyes of the World (sung by Phil), Jack Straw, Wharf Rat. We had to leave early to catch the train, and I checked out the setlist the next day. We missed Box of Rain, which is my mom's all time favorite song, and in my top ten, but we had to catch that train! Bummer, but oh well. Of course the people watching provided some entertainment. In particular, a guy was dancing like a nutso, even during intermission. My favorite was when he stuck his ticket on his forehead and danced around staring at the ceiling like the ticket was his ticket to the universe. Absolutely hilarious. I'm not really doing him justice, but believe me, he was great people watching material.

3. My dad. Broke his leg. At the bottom of his fibula. The poor guy has a boot on his foot and cannot put any weight on it. He's been pretty bummed out about it, but I went and saw him this past weekend and he has a system of using a walker, scooter, and wheelchair, so he's getting around pretty well. He's accidentally fallen twice since this happened and aggravated his leg again, but he seems to be okay. He goes to the doctor in three weeks for another x-ray and to find out if everything's healed or not. Nerve-racking!

Alright, that's all for now.