other little stories

Okay so ever reread something and then think of all the other little elements you forgot about... here is the rest of the story.... :) in list form 'cause that's how I'll remember it...

1. Those of you who know me will be shocked to hear that the whole time we were in the hospital following Dax's birth I didn't wear one stitch of make up. Not by choice mind you, Dustin held my make up hostage and wouldn't bring it to the hospital.

2. From the time we left the house until we got to the hospital and even until Dr. Shannon said "Yes your water broke" I kept saying, I am going to feel so dumb when I get sent home 'cause my water really didn't break. Course that didn't happen but I was sure it was going to.

3. Dustin made at least 3 trips home on the 24th to get stuff for me... my bag to start with, then the laptop and I can't remember what the other trip was for but he said he felt like we were moving in.

4. We had THE BEST OB nurses and Acute Care nurses (well most of those). Our OB nurses were so sweet and caring and patient. They let us do our "thing." They were never pushy or ever made me feel uncomfortable. Even though it was the very first time I had met these women they treated me like their long lost friend. I am truly grateful for that experience.

5. We had one male nurse in the Acute Care area. I think we intimidated him. He hadn't changed a diaper and I couldn't do it at the time and it was the middle of the night and Dustin was fast asleep. He had to call another nurse in to help him. Totally cracked me up.

6. I have the best man in the entire world. Dustin is amazing! I have said that over and over but I really truly mean it. He is so sweet with Dax and he has done such a great job taking care of us. From helping me out of bed and to the bathroom, taking Dax and making me go take a nap, and the list goes on and on. I know this is the stuff that is supposed to happen but when it does happen it just feels so great. The best part, he didn't even think twice about any of it. I love you Dustin. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!

7.I always thought I would want my parents and my closest friends at the hospital when Dax arrived but when it came down to it all I wanted was Dustin. It worked out pretty well that things were dragging along because I kept putting people off coming up because it was taking so long so in the end it ended up being just me and Dustin. It really was perfect.

8. One of the worst parts of Dax's arrival was being re-admitted for his jaundice. Our wonderful nurse was so sweet the day before and gave us a heads up about his levels and what to expect. I was completely emotional. I cried a lot. Not because I was sad but because I wasn't in control and wanted Dax to be totally and completely healthy. Dustin was great, he kept telling me that Dax is tough and that he'll be okay. Thankfully it was only 2 nights but by the time we got home I was completely DONE with hospitals!

I think that's it for now.... or at least what I can remember.... :)

Dax Paul is here!

Dax Paul arrived on October 25 at 7:02 am weighing in at 6 pounds 15 ounces. Wow do I wish his arrival was as easy as that sentence was to type. Dax took 30 hours to get here from the time my water "broke" at 1:30 am on October 24th until he made his appearance but more on that in a moment. :)

Dax is such a sweet baby. He sleeps for several hours at a time, eats like crazy and is doing a great job of filling his diapers. He's a snuggler and would like nothing more than to be in your arms all day long. He makes the cutest little squeaking noises. We couldn't ask for a better little man!

Okay on to his arrival...

At about 1:30am I got up to go the bathroom only I really didn't "stop" going... but it wasn't the big gush I thought came with water breaking. I called the OB nurse at the hospital and asked what she thought was going on. Since I wasn't sure and she wasn't sure my water had broken she said to go back to bed and see if I kept leaking. I fell back to sleep until about 6am... when I felt another little...umm... leak... I got up called the OB nurse again and decided that I would take a shower and we'd go into the hospital just to be checked out. I really didn't think anything was going on and was pretty sure I'd be sent home.

We got to the hospital, got all set up on the fetal monitors and Dr. Shannon confirmed that my water had in deed broke. We were in for a long road as the nurse said and Dr. Shannon explained that he figured it would be anywhere from 10-20 hours before our little guy arrived because I was only dilated to 2cm. Boy was he off!

So got started on Pitocin a couple hours later as my contractions weren't very strong and were pretty spread out. I would like to also note that I had no pain medication at this point and didn't get any until 11:30 that night. Can you believe that??? I still can't!

Dustin was AWESOME through all of this. He was bossy when I needed him to be, comforting when I needed him to be, and made me laugh frequently. I didn't really want to walk but he got me up and moving, even if it was only for a few laps around the floor. When the nurse suggested using the jacuzzi tub it just didn't sound like a great idea at the moment but Dustin said I should try it. I was in there for about 45 minutes (this was still before I got any pain meds).

After the jacuzzi I think I stood through a few contractions and then laid back down in bed. This was when they started to get more intense and I was getting really tired. The nurse checked me again and I was only dilated to 3 cm. Still too early for an epidural. Damn! So she suggested that I take a narcotic (I can't remember the actual name of this one). After I took it I felt even more sleepy and was able to sleep between contractions but it did NOTHING to help with the pain! NOTHING! After about an hour or two of no real relief I asked for either something else or more to try to help. I then got another drug called Stadol (sp?) still didn't help at all. Apparently narcotics do nothing but make me loopy. Not the best feeling in the world.

At about 5 am I think Dr. Shannon came by to check on me and after realizing I hadn't made any change suggested we try a epidural and see if by getting me to relax things would progress. Okay before I say anything about the epidural I will say after it was completed it was worth it BUT getting the epidural was probably one of the scariest parts of Dax's whole birth. It hurt and I had strong contractions so it was very hard to sit still but after I was all numb I felt great... actualy I felt completely foreign 'cause I couldn't feel my legs! I was finally able to fall asleep. Poor Dustin was sitting by my bed, his head on the side of the bed trying to fall asleep too. The only problem was when I would fall asleep I would start breathing so shallow that my oxygen levels would drop and would set off an alarm. So poor Dustin spent the next about 30 minutes?? saying BREATH every time the alarm went off. We didn't get any sleep.

Dr. Shannon checked me again and decided that since I hadn't progressed and we were past the 24 hour mark we needed to get Dax out. He was still doing great inside, heart rate was great but it had just been too long. I lost it at this point. A combination of being exhausted and pretty sure that I wasn't going to have a C-section caught up with me. Dustin was so sweet, he held my hand and just kept telling me that everything was going to be okay and that he would be right there with me.

We were taken down to the operating room, holy cow it's cold in there! When Dustin came in he got to sit by my head and my anesthesiologist, Scott started talking to me about what I'd be feeling and such. He told us a story about a baby that was "supposed" to be a boy but ended up being a girl. I then asked when they were going to get started and he said "well they are almost to the baby" I don't really remember this happening but Dustin said I had this look on my face like "what the???" I was so surprised. Dustin said he knew they had started and knew that Scott was talking to be so intently to see what my reactions were as they started. The only thing I remember really about Dax coming out was the amount of pressure they put on my ribs to get him out. Wow!

The rest is kind of fuzzy. I remember asking Dustin what he looked like, what color his hair was and if he was still a boy. (to which Dr. Shannon kind of giggled and said Yes it's a boy). I remember getting to see him finally and kiss him and I remember Dustin going to be with him while they finished up with me. I fell asleep though so everything is kind of... blurry... I had to ask Dustin several times to clarify when certain things happened. I do remember being in recovery and watching Dustin watch Dax being cleaned up and assessed but I couldn't actually see Dax. I don't remember though how we got from recovery to the room. So strange to have gaps but that's probably a good thing too.

Well that's the story of Dax's arrival. I can't believe I just wrote a book but I'm going to print off all of my entries about my pregnancy for Dax's baby book....

We spent from Saturday- Wednesday in the hospital for his birth and then when we were leaving our WONDERFUL nurse, we really do love her, told us that because his bili levels were high we would probably be re-admitted the next day after our Dr's appointment. Which is exactly what happened. So we got 1 night at home and then 2 more nights in the hospital for a total of a week! Oh we were so happy to be home once his jaundice got better.

Thank you to everyone who has sent notes, texts, and visited. We love you all and are so happy you could be part of our little man's life!

The happenings at 36 weeks...

Hi Everyone,

Well I think I would consider us in the home stretch now, we're officially 36 weeks along and only 28 days from his due date!

I had a Dr's appointment this afternon (who in there right mind would schedule a 4:30 appointment???). We didn't learn anything new... I gained 2 pounds and am measuring 34 weeks instead of 36 but my Dr. said not to worry about that. It was a good appointment and we have an ultrasound scheduled for bright and early Monday morning. Hopefully it will be the last one. :)

In the last week I feel like my body has truly been taken over by another being. Dax seems to think that he doesn't have any more room (and I tend to agree with him) and is using all of his might to stretch out his little hot tub. Pretty sure he would like to have my ribs removed until he vacates- last night I had to put my arms over my head and stretch out as far as possible just to get him to stop pushing on them. I really do still LOVE feeling him move around but it is getting much more painful. Last night he had the hiccups for quite awhile and they actual hurt. I made Dustin put his hand on my belly because you could REALLY feel them from the outside.

Speaking of my wonderful man, he has been giving my belly a lot more attention lately. He thinks it's hilarious to wake Mr. Dax up, especially when I am all settled into bed. It really doesn't bug me because I love that Dustin wants to feel the baby move and knows exactly what to do to get him to move around. I am SO excited to get to watch Dustin with him once he arrives.

Rhea's daughter, Keona, came to visit me on Wednesday. The following is the conversation we had as she was rubbing my belly:

Keona: Is the baby still in your belly?
Me: Yes he is
Keona: I can't see him yet?
Me: Nope not yet
Keona: but I want to see him
Me: (grabbing the ultrasound picture off my wall) well this is actually a picture of him in my belly
Keona: oh, okay. He is very cute

I just love 3 year olds!

Okay that's all from me this week! Hope you are all doing WONDERFULLLY! I can't wait til I get to post a Welcome Baby Dax announcement!!!

New Favorites!

I have two new favorite websites that I check DAILY! If you are a mom OR if you have friends who are having babies you need to check these sites out:



www.babysteals.com



and



www.mamabargains.com



I just got myself and a friend a nursing cover for half what they would have cost in the store!! So awesome. :)

What I know from my Dr's Appointment today...

... NOTHING... I know nothing!

Basically, my placenta is no longer covering my cervix BUT is close enough that we're going to have to do another ultrasound in a few weeks to determine if it has moved far enough out of the way to not become a problem. Needless to say, I am completely frustrated. I am SO happy that I don't have to worry as much about bleeding and other complications that go along with a Complete Placenta Previa and SO grateful that I haven't had any of the issues but so frustrated because I really thought that we would have answers at this point. I guess not... so we're still in limbo... we still just don't know if Dax will be arriving via C-section or not.

Below are two of the three ultrasound pictures we got at the ultrasound.

We finally got a profile shot!!!! His hands were still up by his face but enough out of the way to get this picture and one other of his profile.

We also got another picture of his nose and lips AND his chubby little cheeks. Aren't they just too cute!!

Some other cool facts we found out at the ultrasound- Dax is weighing in at about 5 pounds and the really cool thing we found out... HE HAS HAIR! I still can't believe that hair can be seen on an ultrasound. Now we'll just see if it's accurate when he arrives.

Just 6 more weeks until his due date!!!

Things...

SO I have a WONDERFUL cousin, Megan, who is due the exact same day as me with her first baby, a girl! Oh how I wish she lived closer! She recently posted on her blog about somethings that she wished she'd known before she was pregnant. This got me thinking so thought I'd generate my own list of completely random things that relate to this pregnancy...

1. losing sight of my toes- I can still see them! I can still paint them even! It's a little more difficult and I usually end up putting glitter over the paint to disguise the mistakes but I can still do it all on my own.

2. My belly button- I still have one y'all! It hasn't popped or flattened out yet... guess that means that baby isn't done yet, right?

3. The size of my belly- I seriously thought that with only 6 weeks to go in this pregnancy that I would be toting around a GIGANTIC belly but I am still getting the "oh you're so small" comments everyday... except from Dax's handsome father who reminds me that even though my belly isn't huge it is definitely there. haha!

4. Ultrasounds- I totally did not realize how much joy and frustration ultrasounds would bring into my life. The joy and excitement that comes each time I gaze at Dax on the fuzzy screen or learn something new about him blows my mind and makes every ache and pain worth it BUT the frustration that comes with the bill after each of them and the uncertainty of how he is making his way into this world is driving me nuts! I did get the results from my last ultrasound... but I'm saving those for after my Dr's appointment tomorrow so I have "official" news instead of my assumptions to tell y'all.

5. Preparedness- Is that really a word? Okay so I seriously thought that by this point I would feel like I knew what was going on, I thought I would feel in control and like everything is where it should be. I totally do not! I know we are ready for him, I know that we have all of the essentials, and I know that really truly you can't be prepared for your first baby BUT that doesn't stop me from wondering " Are we REALLY ready?" "Can we handle taking care of a brand new baby 24/7??" okay must pause with post to take deep breaths haha!

6. I did not realize that people telling me how my baby is going to act would drive me completely bonkers! Seriously people, if I don't even know him REALLY how can YOU know what he is going to be like??

7. I will never get tired of how excited and curious my brother is about this coming baby. He is always poking my belly and trying to get his nephew to move so he can feel him-- it hasn't worked yet. I've also been amazed at the questions he has asked me about being pregnant and how I feel-not just about being pregnant but being a mom in general.

8. How wierd it still feels to know that I'm pregnant. Ever since I was little I have wanted to have a baby, to be a mommy but now that I actually am it feels so foreign, so odd. Maybe that's related to how much of a surprise this baby was but I really thought that by now I'd think of this as "normal."

9. His Name- it was made me laugh and shake my head sometimes with how people react to the name we picked out for our little guy. The funny thing is that I really don't care if they like it or not. It just feels like his name, I haven't thought for even a second that Dax just isn't going to work for him. Of course he isn't here yet so maybe when we get a good look at him it won't seem right but I can't imagine any other name for him. My mom suggested that we spell is name with an extra "x" at the end but after discussing it with Dustin we decided against it... I shouldn't say we discussed it, really the conversation went like this: Me: "I'm not sure about the extra 'x' I've already written it so many times with 1 'x'" Dustin: "We're not doing the extra 'x'" Case closed. :)

10. I really was not prepared for the generosity of others. We have so many wonderful friends and family members that have offered to let us borrow things or have their baby items that won't be needed anymore or have offered advice on what you REALLY need when you have a baby and what really isn't necessary. We are truly blessed! Have I mentioned all the fun new baby clothes and items we have received? Thank you just isn't enough to express how grateful we are to our friends and family!

11.Heart burn... oh the heartburn! I'm pretty sure that everything I put into my mouth gives me heartburn with the exception of chocolate milk. Plain milk probably wouldn't either but I can't stand the stuff, haha!

12. I LOVE feeling Dax move. Sometimes I will poke at or push (lightly) on different areas of my belly to feel him move around. The other cute thing is if Kyleigh is sitting on my lap he will kick at her. He also has a tendancy to move when Dustin starts talking, I think this is so wonderful because to me it's him saying, That's my Dad, I know him! :)

13. Not feeling like I have to be skinny for the first time in my life, the rounder the better! Enough said. :)

14. Dustin and I created a life, how awesome is that?!?! We created a little boy who will join us in roughly 6 weeks!! (he will be getting a memo in about 3 weeks reminding him of his due date)

I think that rounds out my little list here. :) I know it's completely random but... well... that's my mind these days!

Holy Cow I'm 33 weeks pregnant!

Okay seriously people, I am 33 weeks pregnant today! When I found out I was pregnant people said it would go by fast but I really didn't think it would go by this fast. On the other hand 7 weeks still feels like a long ways away. I have another ultrasound on Monday and I am PRAYING that we will have answers at my Friday Dr's appointment about whether I'll be having a C-section or not. It's really starting to wear on me not knowing what to expect. I'll write more on Monday after my appointment.... I probably won't know anything then but maybe I'll have a new ultrasound picture to show off. :)