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Wednesday, August 31, 2011

All Clear

Today was my 6 week postpartum check up.  I have been dreading it.  Just the thought of having someone mess with me down there knowing how tender I still am around my incision did not excite me.  Fortunately the appointment went better than I expected.  My blood pressure was finally back down to the normal range.  Yay! for 120/82.  I think my doctor and nurse both did a happy dance.  They kept commenting on how much better I looked and how they could tell I felt better so I asked Chris if I really looked that bad.  His answer was yes, I looked pretty rough for a few weeks.  That's good to know.  I blame the pain meds because they made me feel like a zombie.

The doctor says I am all healed and released to return to all manners of normal activity.  I have also lost all of my baby weight and then some.  (We won't talk about the additional 30 pounds I need to lose.)  So I guess that means I am good to go back to work in a couple of weeks.  (Boo!)  The weird part is I don't have to go back to the doctor for a year.  That seems so strange after seeing her and her office staff so much over the last year.  I won't know when the receptionist has her baby in a couple of months.  They probably won't recognize me when I walk in the door anymore.  After all, I was in the office once a month since December and almost once a week since June.  I can't say I am going to miss going to the doctor so often but it will feel like I am forgetting something for a while.

Here is some baby cuteness to celebrate passing the 6 week mark:
Jackson and I were snuggling while Chris was getting ready for work and Chris just had to get a picture because this baby couldn't be anymore adorable if he tried.

Monday, August 29, 2011

A Boy and His Dog


I heard many people say that their pets could sense when they were pregnant and paid special attention to them during that time.  I was actually surprised that I didn't receive a similar reaction from Maverick.  It wasn't until the end of pregnancy that he started paying closer attention and could sense something was up.  I don't know if it was rearranging the house and his living quarters or what but he definitely knew something was up and would get antsy whenever Chris and I would leave the house.  He also had his own way of greeting the baby.
I was hoping that there wouldn't be any drama between the dog and the baby when we returned home but I wasn't totally sure how Mav was going to react to yet another new person in his house.  I had confidence that Maverick would adapt well and I was right.  Having the baby in the house has actually calmed my rowdy pup a bit.  He has become quite the protector for Jackson.  He has to check on him when he is crying and he even sits in the door of the nursery guarding the room whenever I am in there changing the baby.
There is definitely a lot of love between my two boys.  I really believe that Jackson will grow up thinking Maverick is his puppy.  I am just happy that my fears where unfounded.  Well, all except the one about Maverick licking the baby to death.  That still might happen!

Saturday, August 27, 2011

Jackson's Newborn Photos

For some reason it didn't dawn on me to check out photographers before I had Jackson to setup newborn photos.  I had no desire to take maternity photos so researching photographers never crossed my mine. I used a photographer that my brother and his wife recommended from their Sunday School class.  That meant Jackson's newborn photos were closer to 1 month photos because they were taken when he was 4 weeks old.  I just wanted to make sure I had something to document my baby's early days.  J-Man was not a fan of having his picture taken either.  However, Jenni did a great job of capturing a few sweet moments with my little man.  Here is a link to her blog highlighting Jackson's photo shoot: Jenni Roberts Photography

Thursday, August 25, 2011

Tiptoeing Back to Reality

Chris went back to work this week.  I was pretty anxious about being left at home with both of the guys for the majority of the day but it has been a relatively smooth week.  Jackson has been pretty easy to handle and Sean went back to school today so that has made the week go by faster than I expected it would.  However, this turn of events means that it is only a matter of time before I head back to work myself.  I am scheduled to have about 3 more weeks off work.  The sheer thought of going back is tearing me apart.  I don't want to leave Jackson even though I know he will be in the safe and loving hands of my mom for the first couple of weeks after my return to work.  But still it is going to kill me to feel like I am missing out on my time with my son.  I just love watching him sleep.  I love the adorable faces he makes when he is dreaming his baby dreams.  It's going to be so hard to leave him and be away from him for the better part of 10 hours a day.  I knew it would be difficult but I had no idea how much I would dread it.  Chris caught me crying last week because I found out my co-workers are counting down the days until I return to the office.  It just really upset me.  Jackson is already growing so fast that I just know I am going to miss some important parts of his life if I am not with him every day.
I snapped this picture of Jackson with my teddy bear, Trevor, this afternoon while Chris was getting ready for work.  The outfit is a newborn outfit that he has worn a couple of times before.  The shorts were too big initially but now he can actually wear them (although I still think he looks like ghetto baby in shorts).  He just isn't listening to my instructions to stay tiny forever.  

Monday, August 22, 2011

One Month Later

Jackson turned a month old on Saturday.  It's hard to believe that a month has gone by already.  Time really does fly.  I am amazed at how much our lives have changed and how much I enjoy being a mom to this sweet little boy.
I keep trying to figure out some way to get paid to stay at home and watch Jackson sleep all day.  I just love his little antics and expressions.  I constantly want to know what he is thinking and why he looks like he has the weight of the baby world on his shoulders.  I still have a lot to learn about this parenting thing but I feel like I am getting the hang of it.  I'm so glad I get to see this face each day and to hold him and love on him.  I know I had my doubts about having a child in the past but I truly wouldn't change it for the world now.
After all, how adorable is this little boy?

Sunday, August 21, 2011

The Aftermath

All total I was in the hospital almost 6 days for Jackson's birth.  That included 2 days for the induction, 1 day of bed rest, and 2 and a half days of postpartum.  I was a lot worse off after the delivery than I expected to be.  Having an epidural for a full 24 hours plus pushing for 3 hours plus 24 hours of bed rest meant my legs couldn't function when I was finally able to get out of bed on Thursday night.  It took me several days to feel comfortable walking without Chris nearby to help me.  I think I was home for a week before I really felt like I could get around on my own and walk for more than a few minutes at a time.

They aren't kidding when they say 24 hours either.  Once 10:30 Thursday evening rolled around, my nurse was in my room with a wheel chair to take me to the postpartum wing.  Bye-bye nice giant labor and delivery room,  Hello tiny, oddly shaped postpartum room.  The best thing about moving at that time was that we requested to leave Jackson in the nursery for the night so Chris and I (mostly me) could get some sleep.  I literally hadn't slept in almost 3 days at this point and I was delirious.  I couldn't see straight because I couldn't focus using both my eyes (I later found out that was a side effect of the morphine used in my surgery) but I was still trying to entertain family and friends who had come to see me and the baby.  I requested an ambien once I got settled into my room and that was probably the smartest decision I made the whole time I was there.  That coupled with my pain meds meant I was asleep in less than 5 minutes.  It was the best night of sleep I had gotten since I stopped being able to sleep on my stomach.

By Friday, I felt more human again.  I was able to get out of bed on my own and sit in a chair if I wanted to.  I took a shower and got a fresh gown to wear.  I no longer sounded like a drunk person when I tried to talk or smelled and looked like a homeless person.  Plus I was finally able to get some pictures with the baby.  I wouldn't allow anyone to take my picture until I was clean.  You could tell I was still tired but I felt so much better by this point.  I was also really getting to spend time with Jackson.
Saturday brought more visitors and my parents decided to head back to Alabama.  It was also the day I freaked out about going home and having to take care of the baby on my own.  Chris was scheduled to start his patrol training on Monday morning after I got out of the hospital.  I knew I was still having too hard of a time getting around to be able to take care of Jackson on my own all day long at first without having some help.  So he was able to work out his schedule to take the first four weeks off with me. (He actually goes back to work tomorrow.)  That was a huge relief because I really did panic at the thought of trying to do everything on my own.  Finding out I wasn't going to be able to drive for at least 2 weeks also sealed the deal because I would need someone to take me and Jackson to our followup visits with our doctors.

As nice as it had been to have all the help from the nurses at the hospital and knowing we could send Jackson to the nursery if we needed a break or to get some rest, we couldn't wait to be discharged on Sunday.  Because of the issues with my blood pressure, my doctor told me to stay until at least Sunday with the possibility of being extended to Monday if my BP didn't come down enough.  Fortunately, my last few readings before leaving the hospital were in the OK range so I was able to go home.  Chris was so ready to get out of there, we didn't even stop long enough to get any pictures of Jackson in his going home outfit (an Alabama onesie and the blanket my mom took me home in).  I didn't mind much though.  I was tired of the uncomfortable bed and the constant interruptions from the nurses which kept me from resting well.  I just wanted to be in my own house even though it would be a couple of weeks before I could get in my own bed again.

I noticed something strange when I got home.  Everything looked different.  I can't really explain it except I felt like I was viewing things with new eyes.  Nothing had actually changed except I had a baby now.  I was a mom but everything felt different all the same.  Even Maverick looked like he had changed during his week at the kennel.  I guess I had a new perspective on everything.  Either that or I had just felt really out of touch with everything while I was in the hospital for a week.

Thursday, August 18, 2011

The Birth Story: The Final Installment

Around 6:45 on Wednesday evening, the time finally came for me to push.  And push I did for the next 3 hours with my nurse, Lauren, and Chris encouraging me the whole time.  The on-call doctor came in around the 2 hour mark to check on my progress and told me that we would have a different conversation the next time she came in if the baby still wasn't here.  That's exactly what happened.  At the 3 hour mark, it was determined I had not made enough progress to continue.  The doctor gave me the option of forceps or a c-section.  Since there was no way I was going to let them try to yank my baby out, I went with the c-section.

At that point, things started moving quickly.  Suddenly there were more people in my room and things were happening.  They were stopping the pitocin and stopping my contractions.  Chris was given scrubs to wear and told to wait outside the operating room until they came to get him.  Everyone was moving around me but I was only slightly aware of it.  I was so exhausted at this point, I decided it would be a good time to nap.  So I nodded off quite a bit over the next 30 minutes while they moved me and prepped me for surgery.  I vaguely remember them throwing a bunch of things on the bed and wheeling me down the hall and moving me from the bed to the operating table.  Next thing I knew, I was prepped and ready to go and Chris was sitting next to me.

At that point, the doctor did the pin prick test to see if I was numb so she could start the surgery.  I felt the first prick and let her know so they increased my anesthesia and started the surgery.  Only the anesthesia hadn't taken full effect yet or something because I felt it when the doctor started the initial incision.  At least I was aware enough to let them know so they were able to correct the problem and continue on.  After that, I felt a lot of tugging and pulling which was pretty uncomfortable.  I know I let out a few audible moans because the anesthesiologist kept checking on me to make sure I was alright.

At 10:33 on July 20th after 34 hours in labor, Jackson Christopher Short finally made his arrival into this world.  Complete with big feet, long toes, and pink skin, he weighed 7 pounds and 4 ounces and was 20 inches long.  I would like to say I was excited but I was still drifting in and out of consciousness at this point while I waited for them to finish stitching me up.  Chris was able to get some pictures of him and the anesthesiologist kept holding back the corner of the curtain so I could see him while they were working on him.  Once Chris was finally able to bring him to me, I gave him a kiss and apologized for not being able to stay awake.  To say I was tired at this point would be an understatement.

Jackson and Chris then headed to the nursery for his bath and to continue checking all his vitals.  I was sent to recovery for the next hour for monitoring.  Once Chris was done in the nursery with the baby, he came to sit with me until I headed back to my room.  I was immediately put on 24 hour bed rest with a continued magnesium drip because of the preeclampsia.  My mom and dad were still there when I got back to my room and they finally brought Jackson to me so we could spend some time with him before we went to sleep for the night.  Because of the bed rest, Jackson couldn't be left alone in the room with me unless someone else was in there awake.  Since Chris hadn't gotten much rest either, we sent the baby back to the nursery to settle in for the night around 3 AM.

A couple of hours later, I was awoken by a lab tech entering my room to draw more labs.  Considering that I had barely gotten 2 hours of sleep at this point, I was none to happy especially when she ignored my concerns over my difficult veins and proceeded to stick me anyway.  She missed and I completely lost it.  Chris made her leave the room only to have my nurses show up a few minutes later.  They calmed me back down and drew the necessary blood for the lab work and let me go back to sleep.  Unfortunately, I had a new contraption, compression cuffs on my legs, to keep me awake.  So sleep still wasn't to be had.  It didn't matter though because once Chris woke up, they brought Jackson back to the room.  And I have to say, through all of it, he definitely is worth it.

Monday, August 15, 2011

The Birth Story Part 3

With the epidural in place, I was more comfortable and thought I would be able to get some rest.  Unfortunately, the cervidil wasn't doing anything more than make me contract so it was time to bring in the big guns.  Two hours after getting my epidural, they removed the cervidil and started the pitocin.  I was in for a long night.  With the pitocin in place, Chris and I tried to settle in for the evening.  However, with nurses checking on me periodically and the blood pressure cuff going off every 15 minutes, sleep was not to be had. One of my night nurses even asked if I ever slept to which I responded that I was resting but the noise from the BP cuff was keeping me awake.

At some point during the night, I got quite a scare.  The nurse had come in to make some adjustments to my IV and I started to get a tightening in my chest.  It felt like I had something sitting on my chest and I couldn't breath.  Since I was still on the potassium, I freaked out thinking it was messing with my heart.  So somewhere around 1 AM I received an EKG to see what was going on.  Fortunately everything came out OK but I was still worried.

My doctor showed up around 8 AM the next morning to check my progress.  After more than 7 hours on the pitocin and a full day on the cervidil, I had only made it to 2 cm.  I was annoyed.  So she decided to break my water and see if that improved my progress.  She told me she'd be back around lunch to see where I was then and to decided what to do next.  At her next visit, I had still only made it to about 3 cm so they decided to reduce the pitocin levels and then slowly bring them back up to see if that would kick start my labor.  By this point, I had been in the hospital in early labor for 24 hours.  I still wasn't in active labor.  The doctor said if I made it to 4 cm and didn't go any further then we would start talking c-section.  At that point, I reminded her that my mom had 3 c-sections and I fully expected things to go the same way for me.  However, my doctor didn't remember us having this conversation before so this was news to her.  She then told me she would see where I stood at 5 when she made her rounds again.

I have to admit I was praying I would stall at 4 cm because I was tired and I was ready for Jackson to come out.  I was perfectly fine with the idea of a c-section because I had always suspected I would need to have one.  I also didn't have my heart set on having Jackson delivered naturally.  I just wanted him to come into the world safely and healthy.  So you can imagine my disappointment when I was checked again and the nurse determined I was between 5 and 6 cm.  However, she also commented on the small size of my pelvis which would indicate that it would be difficult for the baby to come out that way.  Unfortunately, that particular nurse went off duty shortly after all this and wasn't there when the time came for me to try to push.

My parents arrived from Alabama somewhere around 4:30 that afternoon and brought my brother and his wife with them to the hospital.  Chris's parents also showed up some time that afternoon.  I am not really sure when everyone got there.  I just remember them having a lively conversation in the corner of my room while I was in pain on the bed.  I was none too thrilled about this at all but I was way too out of it at that point to tell them to do anything different.  However, they did finally get kicked out of the room when it was time for me to start pushing.

I should also mention that sometime during the night, I realized that my epidural wasn't working properly.  My legs were pretty much numb and my upper abdomen was as well but nothing in between was numb.  I could still feel all the contractions.  It was miserable.  I had to have my epidural increased twice before I started pushing.  Even that didn't help though.  By the time I started pushing, I basically couldn't feel the epidural anymore.

Sunday, August 14, 2011

The Birth Story Part 2

Chris didn't show back up at the hospital for another 3 hours.  I knew I had given him quite a list of things to accomplish on top of getting my stuff and getting Maverick to the kennel.  Since we were completely unprepared for Jackson's pending arrival, I had also told Chris to wash all the newborn clothes and sheets and anything he thought we would need as soon as we got home.  Needless to say, by the time Chris got back to the hospital, I was beside myself.  Here I was in labor in the hospital alone.  I was not happy.

The rest of Tuesday went on pretty much the same.  I had contractions.  I was uncomfortable and I was tired.  But nothing was happening.  I wasn't dilating so the labor was progressing.  Even though I wasn't in a lot of pain, I was uncomfortable enough that they gave me a couple of sedatives so that I could relax and get some rest.  After the second sedative wore off, I told the nurse that the contractions were stopping.  She thought I meant the pain until I explained to her that no, it wasn't the pain so much as the contractions were coming one right on top of the other.  There was no break in them.  At that point, she ordered the epidural.  That was somewhere around 9:30 Tuesday night and they still hadn't started the piticon yet.

Getting the epidural was no walk in the park.  I was having what they referred to as labor shakes where I was shivering like I was cold only I wasn't cold and I couldn't control it.  There was nothing I could do to stop shaking which is bad when they are trying to insert a needle into your back and you need to be still for it.  Apparently the anesthesiologist had a hard time getting the epidural lined up properly because I kept feeling a stinging sensation above my left hip.  Once it was in, I started to feel relief from the contractions and I was much more comfortable than I had been.  I would later learn, however, that the epidural didn't work properly for me and only numbed portions of my body, not the area that needed to be numbed.

I should also mention that I was having other issues while all of this was going on.  Because of the preeclampsia, I was placed on a magnesium sulfate drip immediately upon entering the hospital to reduce the risk of seizure from my elevated blood pressure.  My labs also revealed that my potassium level was really low so that was added to my IV as well.  I had to have a drip of potassium for 4 hours and then my blood would be drawn 4 hours later to check my levels.  I guess they never got high enough because I ended up having 3 potassium drips during the time I was labor.  I also apparently don't breathe well while I am asleep (I blame that on the swelling because I also snored while I was pregnant) so I had to have oxygen on top of everything else.  Between the IV in one arm, the blood pressure cuff on the other arm (that took my BP ever 15 minutes), the oxygen mask, and the baby and contraction monitors, I was covered in stuff.  It was no wonder I couldn't get comfortable or get any rest.  Every time I moved they would have to reposition the baby monitor to make sure Jackson was OK.  I definitely didn't like having all of these contraptions attached to me.  It required an act of congress every time I moved which was often because they kept making me lay in different positions in order to help things progress or to get a better reading on my BP.

The Birth Story Part 1

Disclaimer: I wasn't sure if I would want to share Jackson's birth story with everyone.  If you aren't interested in reading all this then by all means, skip this (and any related posts). However, I want it documented for my sake because there are things I have already started to forget and it just happened 3 weeks ago. This is going to be long and it might have to be broken up into several posts.  So I apologize in advance.

I went in on July 15th for my 38 week appointment.  This was the first time I was going to be checked for any progress towards having the baby so I was cautiously optimistic about what the results would be.  I also felt like crap.  It was one of the hottest days we had had so far in the summer and I (wisely) decided to go shopping with my coworker, Jennifer, after we got off work that day.  (Yay for half day Fridays!)  The thought was I needed to be up and walking around to get this baby moving.  Well, apparently that did something.  While I was only dilated 1cm, my blood pressure was high enough for the doctor to actually get concerned so she decided to do some further testing.  I was sent home with a jug to do a 24 hour collection (yep, you know what I am talking about) and orders to have blood drawn at the lab on Monday morning.  So I took it easy for the rest of the weekend because the crappy feeling only continued (and actually got worse) as the weekend progressed, only heading out on Saturday night for my belated birthday dinner and to see the final Harry Potter movie.

Monday morning I took my jug to the lab and had the blood work done and was told I would have results in 1-2 days.  That seemed odd to me since I figured what they were testing for was pretty pressing but who am I to question how this stuff works.  I had also told Chris that morning that I didn't care what happened that week, it was going to be my last week at work.  It was getting to be too difficult to get up in the mornings because I was exhausted and felt terrible.  The heat was really getting to me and I was just over a week away from my due date.  It was time to focus on me and the baby and to take it easy.

That whole discussion didn't really matter because I got a call from my doctor at 8 AM Tuesday morning that pretty much changed all of that.  As she said, a call from your doctor that early in the morning is never going to be good news and she was right.  I had tested positive for mild preeclampsia and that meant the baby needed to come out.  Since I was 39 weeks and considered full term at that point, there was no need to wait.  I had to get to the hospital immediately.  They were going to induce me.  I hung up the phone, tried to call Chris, and started to cry.  I was scared.  I didn't want to be induced.  And even though I had spent 9 months preparing for Jackson arrival, the reality of it terrified me.  While I waited for Chris to call me back, I went into my boss's office to let her know what was going on (yes, I was at work as this all was happening) and to figure out what needed to be taken care of there.  Fortunately, Chris was only 10 minutes away because he was in patrol training rather than being at our house 45 minutes away and was able to come get me once he got my message.

We made it to the hospital in record time that morning.  The whole way there I was making phone calls to my family and friends to let them know what was up and that we would definitely be having a baby within the next 2 days.  My Mom and Dad started figuring out how they would get from Alabama to Texas.  We also made arrangements to drop Maverick off at the kennel since we knew we would be at the hospital for the next several days.  It seemed like everything had just kicked into hyper mode.  Once we got to the hospital, the nurses were waiting for us and took me straight to my room.  I guess they had received notification from the doctor's office that we would be there so they could be prepared.

I started getting settled in my room while we got a run down of what was going to happen.  They would start the cervidil immediately, which I would be on for 12 hours, to help with my progression.  Once that was done, it would be time for the pitocin.  It was going to be a long night.  I gave Chris a list of everything I needed from the house and sent him home to change while the nurse started all my labs and inserted my IV.  I can just imagine what they thought when he walked in dressed in full Sheriff's gear complete with duty belt and everything.  At least I was well protected at the hospital.  

Shortly after I ordered my lunch, the nurse came in with the cervidil and informed me I couldn't sit up for an hour after it was inserted.  So I got to stare at my meal for a good 30 minutes before I was able to eat it.  I had been having mild contractions for a couple of weeks at that point so the cervidil took those and ran with it.  Within 15 minutes, I was starting to have regular contractions.  We were on our way and I was optimistic that I follow in the footsteps of one of my friends who only needed the cervidil to induce her labor and had her baby less than 24 hours after starting on it.  I should have known better because I should have known that child birth was not going to be an easy process for me.

I'm Not Superwoman

One of my friends had to remind me on twitter yesterday that I am not, in fact, superwoman.  That is something I guess I am having a hard time with.  I had a baby just over 3 weeks ago via c-section (more to come on that later).  A c-section is a major surgery.  It takes time to heal and recovery.  You cannot resume normal activities immediately after.  Somehow, I cannot get that message through my head.

I feel like I have gotten mixed messages on how to handle recovery.  Some say get up and get moving while some say take it easy.  I went with get moving which meant going to the store, going to the mall, going to church, anywhere we needed to go I went.  Mom was worried I was over doing it and kept telling me I didn't need to be taking Jackson out this early.  Apparently, she was right only Jackson wasn't the one we needed to worry about.

I ended up back in the hospital.  As if 6 days at delivery wasn't enough, another 24 hours was just what the doctor ordered (ha!).  When I went to the doctor Thursday for yet another blood pressure check, they got concerned because my BP was elevated again and I mentioned the persistent headache I had been having for about 2 weeks.  I tried to tell them it was either stress, hormones, or the heat (it is after all 107 here!)  But they were worried I was still feeling the effects of the preeclampsia so back to the hospital I went for 24 hours on magnesium to see if that would help the issue.  I was not happy.  Chris and I ran home from the doctor's office (which of course is across the street from the hospital) to gather our things and make arrangements for Sean for the evening and then headed back to the hospital with Jackson in tow.  Fortunately it didn't take too long because I still had my toiletries and a few other items packed from my last trip to the hospital.  The difference this time was that I wasn't 9 months pregnant.  I was 3 weeks postpartum.

The whole experience was miserable.  The only redeeming factor was being placed in a labor and delivery room which is larger and nicer than the other rooms in the hospital not that I was able to get up and move around and enjoy it.  After a couple of hours on the magnesium, I felt worse than I did when I entered the hospital.  I had a full blown migraine and I was completely nauseous.  Nothing they were doing was making me feel any better.  There were a lot of tears shed in 24 hours.  I couldn't hold Jackson because of everything hooked up to me and I couldn't be left alone with him so Chris had to take him whenever he left the room.  And to top it all off, I'm still not 100% certain what was wrong with me.  I left the hospital with more pain meds, some for incision pain and some for headaches, and orders to basically do nothing.  I've been told housework can wait.  I need to focus on taking care of myself and Jackson and that is it.  The crappy thing is Chris goes back to work in a week so I will have to start doing more around the house then.  I guess I should have taken more advantage of having him home instead of trying to accomplish every possible task while I had him here.

So here I am kicked back on the couch staring at my messy living room wondering which maid service would be the best one to call.  (My mom has offered to hire someone to clean the house for me.)  I feel bad because I feel like I am ordering Chris around but he keeps catching me grimace if the pain gets a little bad and telling me to go sit down.  I don't like feeling helpless.  But I guess I have to get it through my head that I am supposed to take it easy right now.  That not only is it necessary but it is OK.  It's one of the few times in my life I will get to do this so I should enjoy it while I can.  It's just hard when you are used to being the one running the household.

The irony of the situation is that I walked into the hospital on Thursday and was told how great I was walking for someone who had  c-section 3 weeks earlier only to be wheeled out of the hospital the next day because I could barely stand up.

Saturday, August 6, 2011

Jackson is Here!

I guess it is time that I finally updated everyone on Jackson's arrival.  Baby J is 2 and a half weeks old now.  And because I have to share, here is a bit of baby cuteness for you to enjoy.

As I am sure you can imagine, my life has been turned upside down.  It is amazing how quickly my focus has shifted away from budgets and invoices to dirty diapers and feeding times.  We are still trying to get adjusted and get into a routine.  Right now, Jackson seems to have no problems sleeping all day only waking up for diaper changes and bottles.  The nights are a different story.  He apparently thinks 1 AM is a great time to wake up and party for a little bit.  Fortunately for me, Chris has been taking the night shift so I am able to rest at night.  That is going to change soon though when Chris heads back to work in a couple of weeks.  For me, I am dreading going back to work.  Mostly because I don't want to put Jackson in daycare but I am not sure what other options we have at this time.

Recovering from the delivery started out quite a bit slower than I expected.  Thanks to some late pregnancy complications, I was in the hospital for 6 days.  Since I have been home, I am doing better than I expected I would be at this point but I still have a long way to go.  I am also still having a few issues with my blood pressure but hopefully it will resolve itself soon.  I plan on going into more detail on Jackson's birth in a future post.  Trust me, that's going to be a long one.

I will also say that it feels a little weird not being pregnant anymore.  I got so used to the big belly and everything else that went along with it that I haven't quite adjusted to it yet.  I missing being able to feel Jackson move.  At the same time, my body is starting to return to normal.  At my last doctor's appointment on Thursday, I had lost 22 of the 25 pounds I gained while I was pregnant.  My belly has pretty much returned to normal as well even though I am afraid to try on any of my pre-pregnancy pants.  I will probably start pulling out my clothes this week and determining what fits and what doesn't.  I am sure this will depress me because I was heavier than I wanted to be when I got pregnant so I know I will probably have to do some shopping before I return to work.  It's either that or go on a crash diet to lose 20 pounds in 4 weeks and somehow I think that would be a bad idea.