Photoshoot-Thanks Tiff!

These pics were taken when sweet Reese was a week old. A friend from work came over and took them. It was challenging taking pics of such a little baby and she did pee on me but it was worth it.

Weekend

This weekend flew by. We had Charlie, Michelle and 2 year old Brock over for a visit on Saturday morning, and actually got some use out of the playroom. Brock really liked the mats on the floor you can take apart and put back together and kept busy with those. I was patting myself on the back for finding them so cheap!

That afternoon we took a long walk using the BOB stroller and saw all the new houses they are putting up in the neighborhood. The weather was amazing and there were lots of people out. I saw 2 ladies from my book club who got to meet Reese and of course, said she was beautiful!

That night we grilled out and had Matt and Krystal over. The live across the street and are moving to Annapolis next week, which makes me super sad. They are renting the place to someone for three years so I am hoping they'll come back! They are great people and great neighbors, I'm really sad to see them leave.

Reese did not sleep well Saturday night so we were pretty tired Sunday but I wasn't able to nap. We took a quick trip to Kiawah island and had lunch at Bohicket Marina. We sat outside since the weather was so nice and Reese did really well. She woke up a little but didn't cry, and we just rocked her car seat until she fell back to sleep.

As soon as we got home I had to get ready for Erin's bridal shower at Voodoo. The restaurant is loungy and a great place for a shower. The food was awesome and it was nice to have a skinny girl pina colada. I was sad to leave Reese, it was my first time away from her but she did really well with the bottle and the restaurant was close to the house. I think it's important to keep up my friendships and especially with those that don't have kids.

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Vacuum

All hail the vacuum!

Carl was telling a coworker about our plight with Reese and her crying. She told Carl her son had colic issues and they used a vacuum to calm him down. When Carl came home last night he grabbed it from upstairs and plugged it in next to Reeses' crib and turned it on. And amazingly enough, it worked! Reese instantly settled down and even fell asleep!

I couldn't believe it. We also started giving her gas medicine and last night was a much better night. She woke up every 2.5-3hrs but there was no screaming and wailing (from her or me!)

At one point after her 2am feeding she started to get fussy, I made a beeline for the vacuum and turned it on and she was knocked out. Carl even has a white noise app on his iphone and we used that as well. Today, after some sleep and a little quiet, I feel like a new person. I'm glad that we finally have something in our arsenal that works, it makes me feel like I can comfort her and help her. I know we will still have bad nights but it is such a relief to make a little progress and to be able to manage some of her issues.

Also, I just need to again say how lucky I am to have Carl. Two nights ago he was up helping me calm her down most of the night, then went to work all day. He had to field tearful calls from me, run errands to get gas medicine after his day of work and then took her off my hands as soon as he walked in the door. I was able to shower and try and unwind, I even got an hour of sleep. He is such a good husband and such a good dad. CJR I love you so much!

2 weeks 1 day

Yesterday was Reese's two week birthday and to celebrate, her belly button stump fell off! YAY! I did not like looking at that but felt a little sad to already have a milestone behind us.

This has been a really hard week. She is doing lots of crying and lots of screaming. Her doctor thinks she has colic which was really distressing to hear. Her cry is ear piercing and there is little we can do to calm her down. She usually starts one of her fits in the evening but today it has been on and off all day.

The doctor told me there is nothing we can really do to make it go away and we just have to wait it out, until she is about 12 weeks.

I have no idea how I am going to get through these next 10 weeks, every time she has one of her fits, I completely lose it and cry and become hysterical. It is the worst feeling to not be able to do anything to help her and to make her calm down.

I'm trying to be positive and to realize that she will stop crying, this is temporary but I lose sight of that every time she starts screaming.

Reese is here!

Hi all!

Well, after much waiting little Reese Caroline was born on February 8th at 6:14pm. She was 8lbs 4oz and 20 inches long. The last week before she was born was a little crazy and stressful but worth it.

I was put on bed rest the Thursday before she was born, Feb 3rd because of my blood pressure creeping up and an increase in swelling. That night I had to call the on call doctor because I woke up and my face was huge. I looked like an extra from the Nutty Professor. So that morning I had to go back to see my midwife and they found my blood pressure was higher than the day before so they admitted me to start an induction. I called Carl around 11:30 and said, "don't come home to make me lunch, meet me at the hospital, we're having this baby." Carl went home and grabbed our suitcases and I called our parents. When I got there they hooked me up to a fetal monitor and started taking vital signs and my blood pressure went down. They watched me all afternoon and sent me home around 7pm!!

So, I was on strict bed rest the whole weekend and told to report Sunday afternoon to be admitted and we would be induced Monday am. It was crazy laying on the couch all weekend knowing she would be here in a few days and my to do list wasn't done. That was hard.

My mom came in Sunday afternoon and we all took off for East Cooper. Sunday night was uneventful, Carl watched the Super Bowl from a hospital room and I tried to rest. The next morning there was no progress from the medicine I got Sunday night but they put me on a pitocin drip to start the labor. I had contractions all morning and afternoon and had Carl right there with me to help me with my breathing and relaxation. Around 3pm, I was checked and no progress. I'll spare you all the details but they inserted a foley catheter into my cervix to help it dilate. Way worse pain than the contractions. I got more medicine to help my cervix progress and a dose of pain meds and we waited.

The next morning Carl and I decided if there was no progress we would do a C-Section, I couldn't stand much more pain but we were in luck, I was 4 centimeters! We started the pitocin drip back up and I sat in the chair for a while. My contractions were in my back and it was so sore from the day before, after a few hours I threw in the towel and asked for an epidural. The anesthesiologist told me I was in luck, that he liked putting epidurals in tall women and the whole thing went smoothly. I was scared to death of a needle stick in my spine but barely felt anything.

After that I rested and slept a little, my nurse turned me from side to side and put me in funny positions to help me dilate. And I did! We did have some hiccups, I dilated so quickly Reese's heart rate dropped to 62 and my nurse and midwife came running in dropped my head, put me on oxygen, flipped me to my left. I was scared, being a nurse and responding to emergencies I could tell something was wrong. Her heart rate picked back up pretty quickly and didn't drop again. I ended up having the epidural turned down because I was way too numb and shivering like a mad man. I'm glad I did, she was born a little while later and it made pushing much easier. I pushed for about 45 minutes and she was out! They put her to my chest and suctioned her mouth and nose. She didn't cry right away and those first 30 seconds seemed like an eternity.

Also, I heard my midwife tell the nurse under her breath, "oh my gosh, look at this, her cord is tied in a perfect knot." YES, you read that right, a knot! Who knows how long it was like that, she was super active in my belly but how did she do that?? It was pretty tight too, of course not so tight her blood supply was cut off but tight and my heart skipped about 10 beats seeing it.

I still can't wrap my head around everything and will probably edit this post a bunch when I think of things I forgot. Seeing her for the first time was so emotional, it had been a long road and we waited a long time for her. I even had to block everything out, even the baby when I was pushing or I would have lost it. She was so beautiful and of course still is. I knew she would look like Carl and she does! It's ok though, I like the way he looks. She was in the room with us for about and hour and then went for her bath and to be checked out.

I have to stop writing soon, we need to eat dinner but I have to put how great Carl was. He never once left my side. He was so patient and helpful. I feel so lucky to be married to him and to have him as my little girl's dad. He has stayed great too, since we have been home he has helped me with her so much. I was so tired from 2 days of labor and our first night home was sleepless, he had way more patience than me and did so much. He was either with her or with me. My mom was here the whole time too and we would have drowned without her.

playroom

Here are some pics from the playroom. The baby books in the smaller bookshelf were given to us y my bookclub, they threw a shower for me last month!! It was really fun and everyone picked so different books.

The playroom was the office but we moved the computer, desk and printer to the bedroom. So far it is working out well and we are using the MAC much more. The playroom isn't near done, I am going to hang our old baby blankets on the wall and need a table and chairs and toy chest but all in time!!

37 weeks

Well, now we are a little over 37 weeks and just started the month in which the baby is due! We are both super excited. We have almost everything we "need" and are reading books on newborn care and breastfeeding. It occurred to me last night that Carl and I have no idea how to take care of a baby and we are going to be bringing one home. I know everyone says you learn on the job but it's starting to sink in-we don't know what we are doing at all!!!

This weekend we took it easy and did a little organizing around the house. We had a new dog park open in the neighborhood and within walking distance, so we went there 3 times and so far the dogs love it. Gibbs didn't run around as much as we liked but for most of the time they were the only 2 dogs, he mostly sniffed around. When another dog was there, he was much more interested in play. Here is a pic of the dog park!