Part II-Time to Meet Ian!

After I received my epidural I would say that I got in a good 4-5 hours of sleep before my doctor came in and decided to give me some Pitocin to speed things up a bit.  After that, within the hour my water broke (I could not even tell), I was 10cm dilated and it was go time!  Instead of pushing my baby out in 1.5 pushes like I did with Isaac, I took my time and pushed Ian out in about 20 minutes at 9:16 am.  I definitely recommend you take your time when pushing your baby out because I received only two stitches this time in comparison to the 20, yes 20 I received when I delivered Isaac.  I did not have a fever this time around, so there was a lack of urgency to get the baby out due to possible infection and no vacuum this time either, thank goodness! 

Once our baby boy was out he was weighed, measured, given his Apgar score of 9 like his big bro (this is used to assess the health of a newborn immediately after birth; scale from 0-10), given his first bath and was then nestled on my bare chest to get that skin to skin contact.  We also made sure to do the same with daddy so that Ian would have that connection with him as well.  We were then transported up to our post partum room, which became our home for three days. 

We were most apprehensive for the meeting of Isaac and Ian because we did not want our Isaac to feel left out or anxious.  Both grandmas brought him and Isaac being Isaac walked in, saw us and then tried to walk back out because he was upset that we were not home with him.  He eventually came back in and started to warm up.  Once he was calm, we introduced him to his baby brother and he was so sweet with him!  He gave him a kiss and everything and that definitely made our hearts melt. 

Some things we did differently the second time:

• Packed 3 days worth of clothes, pajamas, underwear and hygienic items for daddy
• Packed 2-3 cute baby outfits because we had a little newborn photo session in our delivery room with the hospital photographer
• We waited until my contractions were close together before heading to the hospital so that we would not have to play the waiting game there.  Taking a hot bath prior to leaving definitely helped.
• Hubby ventured out to nearby restaurants to purchase food for himself since the food in the hospital cafeteria is not the best (we are used to flavor and spices).  We also packed healthy snacks.
• My mother in law bought me a super soft robe type cardigan that I could throw over my hospital gown when I had visitors.  I used this for myself and as a nice blanket for Ian to snuggle with me. 
• I took a shower before the nurses gave me the okay.  I knew I was not as damaged as I was with Isaac and taking a shower the night after delivery was the best!  I felt so refreshed and clean!!
• I was very calm.  I think already going through it and knowing what to expect had that effect on me, so instead of panicking we went with the flow, which made for a much more enjoyable experience. 

Funny Story (TMI Alert!):

Ok, this is embarrassing, but what the heck, I have decided to share it all, so here we go!  I believe it was the night after giving birth; I needed to use the restroom.  I am sorry, but after giving birth, going to the restroom is disgusting with all the blood.  Anyway, I would always wait to the last minute to use the restroom and have to run there every time.  Well this time I think I waited a little too long because by the time I got up I started to pee, now this would have been something that the hospital pad could have handled if I didn’t have a bucketful of pee come out of me!  I peed all over my room floor as I was running to the toilet and was like, “Omg, Love I need your help!”  Next thing I heard while in the bathroom was Jon’s voice like, “What the heck happened here?! “  His reaction caused me to crack up.  I was laughing so hard while telling him that I peed myself and he was rightfully disgusted.  He told me how there was blood mixed in with the pee and he did not know how to handle it because it was everywhere.  I told him to get some paper towels and clean it up.  He did that, even got creative, and used the hospital hand sanitizer to wipe down the floor lol.  Did I also mention that this was in the middle of the night?  Without hesitation, the following morning, we asked for housekeeping to come and mop down our floors.  All I can say is man, you know you’re loved when your boo will wipe down a floor that you just peed all over (mixed with blood, eww) in the middle of the night lol!  And yes, we are a crazy couple and family, but that’s why we’re always cracking up!

Round Two!-Part I

No wonder I felt pressure down there!

I cannot believe that it has already been 7 months since I gave birth to our little Ian!  My hubby and I often recap how much easier labor and delivery were this time on me, but the pregnancy, oh man, that was something else!  Honestly, if my first pregnancy was anything like the second, I think that I would only have one kid.  I was sick everyday for most of the day, constantly throwing up (I would often have to pull over at the side of highways to throw up), I lost weight while preggers, the pain I felt was crazy and I was beyond exhausted!  Nevertheless, I would try to suppress it because I still had a toddler to care for and other responsibilities as a wife and friend.  I remember often crying quietly to my hubby and praying for God to help me quickly get through that time because I was extremely grateful and happy to be preggers again, but did not expect the severity of my symptoms. 

Walking throughout the zoo.  38 weeks preggers

Twenty weeks later, I finally stopped throwing up and even though I still experienced intense pain and exhaustion, I felt like a new woman!  One of my besties recommended I use a maternity support belt to help with all the pain on what felt like my pelvic bone.  I definitely heeded her advice because she said that it helped with her pregnancy and I am so glad I did!  It provided the support I needed to be able to walk and maintain an active lifestyle.  I talked to my doctor about this as well and she explained that after having your first child your ligaments stretch, so some women experience intense pressure in their pelvic area and some even describe it as feeling like the baby was going to come out!  Nighttime was the worst though because I was inactive and turning from side to side was such an ordeal.  This is why I barely slept during my second and third trimesters (meanwhile hubby was next to me snoring it up).   I was trying everything from the pregnancy pillow, to sleeping upright in a chair, to heating pads and what made the most difference for me was proper positioning of the pregnancy pillow.  I had to have it between my legs when I lay on my side and that really alleviated the pressure/pain. 

Another reason this pregnancy was very different from my first had to do with a very active toddler named Isaac.  Even though all I wanted to do was sleep, I would struggle through each day for the sake of our son.  I did not want him to suffer or incur any disruption in his routine.  I also kept a watchful eye on lifting Isaac when I became super preggers.  By nature, we are a very touchy family and lifting up our 36-pound toddler for snuggles and kisses is a regular thing.  However, whenever Isaac would come up and say, “Mama, hold me please,” I would try to reply with, “Let’s sit down and we can snuggle.” That somewhat worked for us (I was stubborn and still lifted him a good amount) and if we were out and this happened daddy would take over and carry him easily. 

End of my first full day of contractions

When it was finally go time, instead of the four days of contractions I previously experienced with Isaac, I only had two days worth this time, so I was definitely grateful for that!  I know that sounds crazy, but this appears to be the norm with my labors.  I hope that next time it will just be a day!  I am also contemplating giving birth in water for our third baby (God willing).  When my labor pains were at its worst, I took a hot bath and soaked in the tub and wow, it made such a difference!  Oh yes, and how could I forget having my awesome hubby massage my lower back with two tennis balls.  The force he used to massage my lower back was probably making me black and blue, but I’m sorry, when those contractions came on, they felt amazing!!  

Few hours before it was go time!  In between contractions

As usual, my contractions were most intense at night and by 2 a.m. on February 24; we knew our little angel was coming.  We decided it was time to head to the hospital when my contractions were 2-3 minutes apart.  (In case you were wondering, Isaac was fast asleep when most of this occurred and my parents were at our home well in advance of me giving birth.  This time they knew to travel from Florida with ample time and good thing, because I delivered at 39 weeks.)  As we were walking to our garage I thought Ian was about to make his debut.  I remember crying to my hubby, “OMG I think I’m about to have our baby in the garage, I can’t sit!” (This was in the midst of a major contraction by the way)  Once that contraction passed I was like, “Okay, we need to book it to the hospital so that I can get my epidural. I need that thing now.”  Oh yeah, I was not playing around this time thinking I was going to do this drug free, pshhh!  Fifteen minutes later, we were at trusty Northside Hospital and upon check-in, our nurses asked how they could help me and I remember saying one word, “epidural.”  Thank goodness, I was already 5 cm dilated so they put in the request for my epidural right away.  Once I got that bad boy, it was easy street after that!  I was finally able to sleep and that felt like heaven! 

Getting ready to push

Sleeping away

In Part II I will share what I did differently for delivery and things we improved upon the second time around.  

Carry My Baby Like a Kangaroo?

If you’re like me, when I had my first born I immediately opted for a car seat and stroller travel system.  I figured this would make things more convenient and it just seemed like all mommies owned one.  Isaac would frequently fall asleep in his car seat to our destination and instead of taking him out; I would just unclick the car seat and snap it into his stroller.  This was seamless

because our little one would remain fast asleep.  I also enjoyed going to places in a fairly fast pace with the stroller, the ability to load it with my heart’s desire of bags and the protection it provided our baby from sun, rain, winds, you name it.  I absolutely loved this part of having a stroller, however there were some things that began bothering me with continued use.  Going in our trunk and fetching the stroller in and out of it, trying to get through doorways and small spaces using one hand to steer and another hand to hold the door open and not being able to cuddle up with my little guy as much as possible. 

Carry Ian in our Boba.  Sound asleep

That is when I discovered baby wearing and O.M.G. my world changed!  At first we bought a Baby Bjorn because and I am embarrassed to say this, but honestly because I saw many celebrities with it. Yeah, do not do that.  It was not until I went to one of my best friend’s medical school graduations that I was enlightened about the possible harm one of those carriers could cause to my baby (hip dysplasia).  One of my friends (who I consider the baby-wearing guru) suggested I try a carrier called Boba as it carries baby in an ergonomically correct position, has snaps to hold your purse/diaper bag, has a snap on hood to protect baby from weather or privacy to breastfeed, holds up to 45 lbs and is easy to handle.  I thought why not, I will try to do whatever is best for my little guy.  Well let me tell you, once I bought my Boba I became a baby-wearing mama and love it!  Why??

Dad even gets into the baby wearing

Experienced mommies always tell me how time flies so make sure to cherish these times with my little ones.  What better way to spend precious time with your little one than with him/her snuggled up close to you especially while out and about?  When my little people look up at me in their carriers and give me the sweetest smile I immediately melt.  There is also the added convenience of being able to carry baby and have your hands free.  This is especially handy when grocery shopping or if you have a toddler in tote.  You also do not have to worry about navigating through crowds and spaces to get to a destination.  I am also a breastfeeding mama so being able to either use the hood of the carrier or just slip a nursing cover over while having baby on me and moving about is an added bonus.  Oh yes, did I also mention that for the most part, carriers are cheaper than strollers? That is some extra cha-ching in your pocket!

BOB Duallie Stroller

I am a mommy to an almost 3 year old and 6 month old that both enjoy being carried.  My toddler prefers the back carry, while my youngest son prefers the front.  I now own three carriers (Boba, Tula, Bali baby wrapsody) and use them on a daily basis, especially since Ian, our second son prefers a carrier over stroller.  The only drawback I can think of is while you can speed walk and hike with a carrier, you cannot run/jog while baby wearing and with this remaining post partum pudge, I need to kick my workout into high gear.  My hubby and I have a couple, ok fine a few pounds to lose, so we gave in and bought a duallie jogging stroller to fit our workout lifestyle of running (I wanted to cry when we bought it because they’re not cheap and those of you who know me, know I always try to be economical!). 

Isaac's phase of only wanting to go everywhere in his car

We are a family who enjoy and embrace baby wearing, but we also do not knock strollers because we own our fair share of them.  I think it is important to have an arsenal of baby gear, ready for whatever activity your family will engage in. Some kids prefer baby wearing, while others say forget that and opt for the stroller or walking.  I say do whatever works and best fits the needs of you and your child!  You are the judge and if you should happen to enjoy wearing your kid (pun intended) like a kangaroo go for it!  I know I do! 

Speedy Update on What’s Been Going on & Why I’ve Been MIA

Hey Guys!

38 weeks preggers here

First off, let me apologize for my extremely long absence from blogging.  I was distracted and overwhelmed by my spirited 2 year old at the time and then became preggers again!  Unlike my first pregnancy, which I absolutely loved, I had a rather difficult time this go around.  I was throwing up like crazy, to the point that I lost weight while pregnant, had tons of pubic bone pain (it felt like my baby was resting completely on my vay jay jay bone!) and had to try to keep up with a very active toddler in the midst of it all.  The important thing is that I’m bizack now and I am going to make a concerted effort to consistently blog and start vlogging as well. 

Life is very busy and while I feel overwhelmed and exhausted beyond belief, I wouldn’t trade it for the world!  I feel very full right now in life and I can say that I definitely want more kids in the future lol!  Call me crazy!  My almost 3 year old is finally over his crazy tantrum phase (I’ll definitely blog about this), I’m studying at nights for my GMAT (planning to get my MHA), my 6 month old baby boy is starting to crawl all over the place and my hubby is now teaching Biology at GA State University.   Oh yes, and did I mention that I am getting back into running to lose the remainder of this post partum weight. 

The struggle to get fit

In future posts I plan to talk about differences between my first and second pregnancies, labor and delivery for the second, juggling life with two babies, handling a spirited toddler, products I cannot live without, and the list will go on and on so stay tuned! 

Our loves