2 weeks old

Brooke is 2 weeks old today.

She does a lot of this.
One of these days I'll get a picture of her with eyeballs showing!

Today she celebrated her 2 week mark by totally coating me with spit-up. Yesterday she had her 2 week checkup, and she's up to 7 lbs 10.5 oz. She's right in the middle for height and weight. She also hasn't shown any signs of colic, which has been a tremendous relief to me. Her nights are still inconsistent, one night being up all night and the next waking briefly just to eat and go back to sleep. But as long as she's not crying and screaming, I'm totally okay with that! I've heard people talk about their "easy" babies, and now I think I really understand. Part of me also feels like we've earned this. Is that so wrong?

Google Verb! A Meme.

Allanna posted this on her blog and I thought it looked like fun...





1. Heather needs two therapists.
Yes, I believe that's true.

2. Heather looks like a drag-queen Michael Jackson impersonator.
One word: Ouch.

3. Heather says "Give beets a chance".
I don't even like beets.

4. Heather wants to kick Pamela Anderson's (butt).
No, not really.

5. Heather does it better.
Why, thank you!

6. Heather hates you.
That's just not true.

7. Heather asks "Did you cheat on me with Nancy?"
My husband's manager's name is Nancy... Hmmmm...

8. Heather likes cookies.
Yes, I do. I really do. And you couldn't tell that just by looking at me?

9. Heather eats almond butter.
Sounds delish, but since I have an almond allergy I don't see that happening.

10. Heather wears crown and sash.
Just call me Princess, folks!

11. Heather arrested on DUI charge.
Okay, that's just never, ever going to happen. Ever.

12. Heather loves poetry.
It's pretty cool. And this result was a ton better than the hundreds my google search originally pulled up by Heather Graham!

On my own

Today Dan returned to work and I was on my own with the kiddos for the first time. A little scary, but we all survived. I like to make daily to-do lists so I can make sure I get the things done that I need/want to get done for the day. My list today was:

Dishes
Laundry
Brooke's 2 week doctor appointment
Thank you card for the woman who set up our celebration meal
Call the pharmacy
Make out a summer-fun calendar for Isaac


What I got done today:
One load of dishes
One load of laundry (colors)
Made it to the doctor's appointment
And the store

I was just so busy with mommy stuff that it was hard to get anything else done. I mean, even to brush Isaac's teeth or help him make his bed, I had to do it with one hand because I had to hold Brooke with my other arm or else she'd pitch a fit (she's a total snuggle-bug). Just putting the groceries away, I put her in her bouncy chair and put her in the kitchen with me while I put things away. One time today she was napping in her bassinet until Isaac accidentally crashed into it while spinning and woke her up. My whole day was like that, just busy and when I was getting things done it always seemed to be with one hand!

Because today I was on my own for about 12 hours, and I had to drive for the first time, I stopped taking my narcotic pain meds as of last night. I hurt. I also feel like my body is going through a bit of withdrawal after being on them for 2 weeks, since I've had a slight headache, nausea, and light-headedness. That tells me right there that it's time I stopped them, so today I've been using my prescription Ibuprofen and Excedrin. I'd rather be in some pain than get hooked on any meds.

Tomorrow will be my second day on my own. Will I get the whites washed? Will dishes get done? Will I be able to do any of it with both hands? Time will tell!

Doing it right

How to be a good parent:

Like wet dog

Today it was over 70 degrees and raining. My son had been in the backyard running through the sprinklers (fully clothed) while hubby weeded the veggie garden. When I let my offspring into the house and upstairs to get him dressed in something dry, I noticed an odor. My wet son reminded me of the smell of wet dog! Thank heavens little boys wash!

Last night was our first night sleeping upstairs in our bed since Brooke and I came home from the hospital. It was nice, even if I didn't spend a lot of time actually in bed. Brooke had me up from about 12am to 3am, but I don't mind since she wasn't crying/screaming the whole time. But it was still nice to be able to handle the stairs well enough to make it to the 3rd level where our bedroom is and be able to climb in and out of bed! It felt normal again. We're adjusting well with Brooke, and it's a huge relief and enjoyable to have a baby that doesn't cry all the time. I really don't mind being up with her in the middle of the night, since mostly she's just bright eyed and wants to snuggle. I spend a lot of time playing Myspace games during those wee hours!

Tomorrow is Dan's last day of vacation... I can't believe it's been 2 weeks already! I thought we'd drive each other nuts, but we've actually done really, really well and it's been nice having him home. In the past, when he's been home for shorter amounts of time we've driven each other crazy, but this time has really been nice! I'm sorry to see it end.

A celebration dinner

Delicious dinner with "Mormon wine"

When we left the hospital last Friday (a week ago already?!), I saw a cart out in the hallway that had tiny sparkling cider bottles on it. As we passed by I asked the nurse about it, and it was a celebration dinner that all new mothers are supposed to receive after their baby is born. There was supposed to be something in my paperwork that mentioned it, but in my case there wasn't and none of the nurses mentioned it so I didn't know about it at all. I think the major problem was that I was on a liquid diet to begin with then put on quarantine for my rash, so fancy dinners were the least of anyone's concerns. I was really seriously sad that we had missed such a special treat. Later someone from the hospital called to find out how our hospital stay was, and Daniel happened to be the one who answered the phone. He mentioned to her about us missing the dinner and wondered if they could offer us a credit or gift certificate for their cafe as replacement. She said she'd get back to us. Sure enough she called the next day and they offered for us to come back and celebrate the special dinner, we just pick the day and time! I was so thrilled that they offered to do this! Also a little silly since we were so eager to go eat hospital food (but it's good hospital food, I swear!) So tonight we had our celebration dinner, complete with tiny bottles of sparkling cider. We dined on salad, grilled salmon, steamed veggies, orzo pasta for me and a baked potato for Dan, a dinner roll, and cheesecake topped with a drizzle of chocolate, a chocolate mint stick, a dollop of whipped cream, and a strawberry on the side. YUMMMM!

We brought chicken nuggets and juice for Isaac,
and he enjoyed sharing our cheesecake dessert!

Yesterday

Yesterday was Brooke's first doctor visit for her newborn checkup. She's already back to her birth weight! The doctor was very surprised and impressed. When we left the hospital on Friday she was 7 lbs 2 oz and yesterday morning she was back up to 7 lbs 6 oz. That was a relief for me to hear since I didn't think she was a very good eater, only taking in an ounce or an ounce and a half every few hours. She's healthy and looks great, and the doctor said she was a strong "whippersnapper". That cracked me up since the doctor isn't much older than us and he used the word whippersnapper. Her cord should fall off in the next week, and the dry skin she's shedding from being in my tummy will also go away soon. Next week we go for her 2 week checkup and I think that's when she'll get her first shots, poor babe.

Yesterday was also Isaac's last day of school! I can't believe summer vacation is here already. I've made a rough list of things we can do this summer, preferably free. I don't want us to be stuck indoors like lumps all summer. Once I'm all healed up I'd like to take the kids to the small park 2 blocks down and we could do picnic lunches there. We'll continue to take our Friday library trips. And we'll go to community events going on, and hopefully even a fair or two. I'm hoping to make this a fun and creative summer!

Brooke's first outing

Today we took our first out-of-town trip since Brooke was born. She's 9 days old today. My grandparents hadn't been able to travel up here to meet Brooke, so we drove on down. We had a nice visit and everyone had some good cuddle time.

Brooke meets Grandma and Pappa

Brooke waves hello

Snuggle time with Grandma

So cozy

Brooke meets her cousin Bailey.
Bailey is thrilled to have her first girl cousin,
and the fact that someone else has a "B" name.

We finally took a picture of Isaac holding Brooke...

They're sharing snuggles and kisses...

You can tell how much Brooke already adores
her big brother by how much she watches him!

7 days old

I have so many pictures of Daddy and son in this position after Isaac was born.

Brooke is 7 days old today. A week goes by so fast. Yesterday I saw my regular doctor because I was feeling so miserable and couldn't stop crying. Poor Isaac... When he'd say his prayers he kept asking mommy to feel better and to stop crying. I've been put back on to my old antidepressant for postpartum depression. I knew this was a strong possibility of happening and I'm grateful that she's been on the bottle already so there's no need to worry about transitioning there. Today is my second day on the medication and my first day with having no tears and already starting to feel that emotional heaviness beginning to lift.

Today was my appointment with my OB/GYN and everything looks good. I'll have to post later about Brooke's birth, but the incision looks good and the rash on my back is looking alot better. I still have a ton of swelling in my left foot but the doctor said that will go down in about another week as hormones and my milk and everything levels out. Weird, huh? I also asked her about my hot and cold flashes and that's another hormone thing. Instead of continuing on percocet I'm switching to vicodin in its place and still alternating that med with ibuprofen every 3 hours. I'm hoping within another week to be totally off the heavy meds.

Look at all that beautiful soft hair!

Brooke is doing well. I hate saying it because I'm afraid of jinxing it, but so far she's a happy little baby. She isn't quick to cry at all. When she wakes up she takes a little bit to open her eyes and look around and decide if she's hungry. If she's hungry she'll start to fuss a bit. She has to be really upset to really start crying and carrying on. It's been a huge blessing to have a baby with her temperament after the colic we had with Isaac. She could still develop colic, but so far we're off to a great start. She'll sleep between 2-4 hours and her usual feeding is 1 - 1.5 oz of formula. We'd like her to take in more but I'm not worried at this point. Her first doctor visit is tomorrow so we'll see what the doctor has to say. She's starting to have longer awake periods during the day, and last night instead of being up for 3 hours straight she would wake every 2 hours and eat and within 30 minutes be asleep again.

I think by next week I'll be feeling a ton better and Brooke will have a pretty predictable routine. Good thing too because next week Daniel returns back to work and I'll be on my own! That idea is a little scary but I know that by then my pain will be a little better and my moods leveled out, so I know I'll be okay.

5 days old

I just took this picture of Brooke. We're doing well, just extremely tired. She seems to enjoy sleeping during the day and she's eating fairly well. The only thing is that she likes to be wide awake for about 3 hours straight, usually between the hours of 1am-5am. Isaac gets up for the day at 6am. The night before was horrible because I was up with her the whole 3 hours and she was crying and passing gas and lots of poop. Last night was much better and not nearly as many tears. Plus, Dan and I split up the 3 hour block so he did the first hour and a half and I did the second. We're going to take naps this afternoon and readjust our sleep around Brooke's schedule.

I think I'm healing well. Every day is a little better than the day before. I still have bad swelling in my left foot, but my doctor appointment is on Tuesday so I'll bring that up. The clogged milk duct I had since the afternoon Brooke was born is finally feeling better. I don't want mastitis again! My milk has also come in, which has been impressive. I'm hoping that's short-lived too. Having boulders in my bra isn't exactly comfortable! The baby blues has also hit so I'm trying to take care of myself.

I'll hope I get faster at typing with one hand!