Sawyer Rhea- One Month Old

Wow!  Is it really possible Sawyer can already be one month old.  It is so hard to believe.  I feel like the last month of my pregnancy lasted forever now here we are one month on the other side of it.  Crazy!  Sawyer has grown so much over the last month. 

At one month Sawyer:

• Eats about every three to three and a half hours
• Smiles, but usually when she is passing gas
• Stays awake several hours at a time during the day
• Seems to understand day and night
• Sleeps 4, 5, or 6 hours at night
• Usually wakes anywhere from 1:30-3:30 for her middle of the night feeding
• Wakes again between 6:30 and 7:30 for breakfast
• Goes back to sleep really well after her middle of the night feeding
• Loves to be able to see what is going on
• Recognizes my face and voice
• Loves to lay on her daddy and pass gas
• If she is satisfied from a feeding she enjoys sitting in her little lamb bouncer
• Will take formula as a supplement if need be
• Enjoys tummy time (only for about 10 min)
• Loves falling asleep to her lamb that makes a heartbeat noise at night
• Uses a soothie to help calm her down if she gets fussy
• Usually only gets fussy if she's hungry, wet, or has gas
• Loves to be cuddled and snuggled!

Sawyer Rhea- Mommy and Daddy love you more than anything!  We are cherishing every moment because you are growing and changing daily!  We love to just watch you grow!

A Positive Outlook

I know the last post was very truthful and some may even wonder why did you write that.  But, I just want to be able to clearly state the facts of how I feel and document this entire experience.  Including the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Before I talk about the positive outlook I must go back a day.  On Tuesday I had to go to the doctor for my 3-4 week appointment after my C section.  I went and everything was great.  The incision healed nicely and the doctor was very pleased.  She discussed with me getting the vaccination for the tetanus and the whooping cough.  The whooping cough is highly contagious for infants and can even lead to death.  So needless to say, I got my vaccination.  She also recommended that Spencer as well as Sawyer's grandparents get the vaccination; because adults can carry it (without knowing it) and pass it to infants.  Infants in turn have a very difficult time fighting it.  The shot itself did not hurt one bit and I am terrified of shots.  But of course, I am going to do whatever I need to do to protect her.  Well, Tuesday night my arm started hurting so I took a couple of Tylenol. I woke up around 1:30 AM shaking I was so cold.  I had the chills and could not get warm and my body ached all over as if I had the flu.  I woke Spencer up and made him go and find the thermometer.  He claims I didn't have a temp, but I am not so sure.  Anyway...I couldn't go back to sleep and then Sawyer woke up for her 2:30 feeding.  It was all I could do to nurse her.  However, I pulled through and I put her back down and she went right back to sleep.  Such a little angel!  Me on the other hand could not go back to sleep so I just lay awake tossing and turning trying to get warm.  Then, 5:30 rolls around and she is ready to eat again.  So I get up and go downstairs.  Might as well start the day.  I took more Tylenol and it kicks in and I finally begin to feel better, yet I am still exhausted from lack of sleep and feeling horrible the night before. 

So Spencer had gone on to work and apparently called his mom and told her I wasn't feeling well.  She and Grandmother rode down with Spencer's dad and watched Sawyer so I could get in an afternoon nap.  I began to feel a little better after some sleep. 

On to the more positive.....

Last night we gave Sawyer a bath with the sleepy time bath.  Love that stuff!!!!  Then I topped her off with a bottle I had previously pumped after one of her earlier feedings.  I then put her down and she slept a whole 5 hours.  I nursed her, put her back down and she slept until 6:15.  I felt so rested when I woke up at 6:15.  I felt as if I had actually gotten some sleep.  Thank you sweet Sawyer!!!!

I also decided today that I was going to finally attend one the breastfeeding support groups.  This was so helpful.  I have a much more positive outlook on how to be able to continue to breastfeed once I return to work.  Now it may not be 100% breastmilk, I may have to supplement with formula, but something is better than nothing.  The lactation nurse was so helpful and made me feel so much better.  Now, I can just inform Spencer, instead of him thinking he has a CLUE as to what he is talking about. 

I believe we are headed in the direction of getting on a schedule that will work for us!  We shall see, but at least today I am very POSITIVE about what is in store for the future. 

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly...

Everyone always says how hard parenting is, but I really don't think they put enough emphasis on how hard it really is.  It definitely has to be one of the hardest yet most rewarding jobs I have every had.  I have no idea how I am going to even attempt to go back to work. If anyone has any ideas on how I can make the same amount of money with benefits included and stay at home with Sawyer I would greatly appreciate it :)

Sawyer is growing like a weed.  I believe over the past week she has gone through a growth spurt.  She is now eating about 4oz at each feeding.  This has been slightly stressful for me.  We have had to supplement formula because I wasn't making enough for her just yet.  However, I believe we are now on the right track.  I do get slightly (very) frustrated because when I pump I really make the only amount she needs, and I would like to make more so that I can store some up for when I go back to work.  Not sure if this is going to happen or not though.  We shall see. 

Breastfeeding is also one of the hardest jobs I have had.  I am not going to lie, it hurts and I don't always enjoy it as everyone says you should.  I am not sure how I can bond with my sweet baby when she hurts me.  Therefore, during the day I try to pump and only nurse at night.  This can make things quite complicated when Spencer wants us to go somewhere.  Hopefully, soon my body will catch up and I can make a little extra.  I am not so sure Daddy completely understands all that is involved with a newborn and breastfeeding. Don't get me wrong he is very supportive, but it is still hard to make him understand everything I am going through. 

I know Sawyer is almost four weeks old, but my Type A personality is ready for Little Miss to be on a schedule.  I know that will take time, but I am so afraid we won't be on one by the time I return to work.  I am also already worrying how in the world I am going to get her ready, fed, and myself ready, and all packed up and ready to leave by 6:30 AM.  I am wondering if I should even go to bed!

Then, on top of all that, I would like to try and continue to breastfeed her, so I need to work out things with work.  But, then going back to work is stressful enough, and stress reduces your milk supply, so how in the world am I going to make it work?  If you have suggestions please feel free to share :)

Spencer thinks it is all a piece of cake, but I am not so sure he understands that my teaching job can be quite stressful at times and I don't always have time during the day to really even go to bathroom, how am I going to pump for her?  Yes, he is supportive, but teaching is complicated!

On top of all this, Spencer had a job to do out of town last week so he loaded up and left early that morning so he could get started before it got so hot.  I was left to feed, pack, load the car, and Sawyer up by myself.  Needless to say this job was completely exhausting, and yet again, I still do not believe Spencer understands, or rather anyone right now (expect other Moms) how tiring and exhausting Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday were.  We were completely out of our element.  I believe this may have had something to do with making my milk supply low. 

With all this venting I have done, I must end on a brighter note.  Apparently, I am producing enough for her because she is growing like I weed, I am just not making any extra right now to freeze for later use.  When I weighed her the other day she was well over 9lbs.  Yay for Baby Sawyer! 

I had fun taking pictures of her and her new headband.  We did have professional pictures made so hopefully those will be ready soon :)

A Growing Girl...

I know it has been a few days since I have blogged, but when Sawyer is asleep I find myself either wanting to nap with her or try to accomplish other tasks around the house.  Life with a newborn is definitely a challenge, but oh so worth it! 

Sawyer went back to the doctor last Wednesday for her two week checkup.  She now weighs 8lbs 4oz, which is one ounce from her birth weight and is 21 inches long (she was 20.5 at birth).  She is growing like a weed.  It made me feel good that she had gained almost all of her weight back since I am breastfeeding.  That means she is getting what she needs from me.  We are not supplementing with any formula right now.  She is strictly on breastmilk.

Currently Sawyer eats about every three hours during the day and about every 3-4 hours at night.  We are usually able to put her down around 10:00 and she will sleep until about 1:30 sometimes 2:00.  She will then wake back up at either 5 or 6 to eat again.  This is the time I should be getting up with her and getting ready, but I am still so sleepy that I usually just go back to sleep with her and we wake up around 8:45.  I must say she has done a pretty good job at putting herself on a schedule.  I am just hoping we are able to somewhat stick to this schedule once I return to work.  But, life with a newborn is ever changing, so we must just go with the flow :)

Sawyer does not like to be swaddled at all.  She doesn't mind having a blanket wrapped around her from her chest down, but you cannot confine her arms.  She loves to stretch!  She is a very content baby.  She usually on fusses when she is hungry or needs her diaper changed.  She is very good about letting us know when she is hungry.  She does great with the hunger cues. 

Sawyer Rhea continued....

As you remember we did not know the sex of our baby until she was born.  Well, because of the c section Spencer would have been the one to show her off in the window and I just didn't want him to get all of the glory since I had been the one to carry her around for 9+ months.  So we both had decided we would wait until they were rolling me upstairs to tell them. 

Now keep in mind when you have a c section they have to keep you in recovery for like an hour to an hour and a half.  So by the time we were able to tell our family whether or not we had a daughter or son, it was almost two hours after I delivered.  They were going crazy to say the least.  They were questioning nurses in the hallway and even cornered my doctor who had to go a different route just to try and avoid them. 

Dr. Stradtman trying to avoid our families.

Here we come!  Recovery is over.  We are now headed to postpartum (our room for the next three days).  The gender is about to be revealed!

We have Sawyer Rhea!  Apparently it took about 10 seconds for it to register with everyone that Sawyer Rhea was our girl name we had picked out.  We didn't quite get the response we were hoping for.  I remember my dad saying, "It's a boy!" before I ever said anything.  Once they realized it was a girl, we had already rounded the corner as you can see in the picture.  I guess I should have said "It's a girl!!" But I was too drugged to care.  Don't get me wrong everyone is ecstatic about having a girl, it just didn't register with them right away!

Our room for the next three days!

to be continued...

Sawyer Rhea Roden has Arrived!

As of my last post we were scheduled to go back to the doctor Wednesday (July 14) afternoon.  I was not looking forward to this appointment.  The doctor was going to check me again and if I had not progressed she was going to send me down to labor and delivery and insert a balloon catheter to help speed up my progression so I could be induced on Thursday morning.  I truly did not want this procedure to happen.  So I said my prayers really hard and told Spencer that he better say his too.

Tuesday night we went and had dinner at La Fiesta since this would most likely be our last dinner our for a while.  Plus I didn't feel like cooking and I LOVE La Fiesta.  We came home and hung out then went to sleep.  Well, Spencer went to sleep.  I on the other hand could not sleep because I was nervous about the doctors appointment the next day and the baby was moving so much I just could not get comfortable.  I was also praying very hard to God to just let my water break on its on.  So around 1:45 AM  I woke up startled and something felt very different. I got up and went to the restroom. I then stood up and felt a trickle down my leg.  I yelled for Spencer to wake up because I thought my water had broken.  He was comatose. He finally woke up and I called the doctor and she told me to come on in.  I jumped in the shower and by this time I began to feel a gush.  My water had definitely broken.  Spencer put our things in the car and off we went to the hospital.  We arrived around 2:45 and the nurse did her test to make sure my water had broken and indeed it had.  Praise the Lord!  My prayers had been answered.  They hooked me to fluids and pitocin and my contractions begin to increase.  I got an epidural and some nice pain medication and settled in.  When we arrived at the hospital I was 2.5 cm dilated.  We were on track to having this baby.  Around 7:00 they check me again and I was 5 cm dilated.  We made calls to our parents about this time.  We didn't call when we left for the hospital because we knew it might still be a little while.  Around nine o'clock my parents, Katie, and April arrived.  We were visiting in the labor and delivery room.  Then around 9:45 they checked me again and I was 9.5 cm dilated.  Everyone came back in and got there things and the nurse begin to set up the room because I was soon about to begin pushing. 

I began pushing around 10:15.  Everything was going pretty well.  We were really thinking the baby would be here around 11:00.  Well, 11:00 came and went and I was still pushing.  The doctor came in around 11:45 and I overheard her whispering or rather talking in a quiet voice with the nurse.  The baby's heart rate had also began to increase.  It was now in the 180's and even went to 205.  Spencer had been watching the monitor the whole time and he knew something was up.  We tried pushing a little more, but she could just not make it over the pubic bone.  I spiked a fever and the baby's heartrate was not decreasing so the Dr. informed us it was best to do a C section.  At this point the tears began to flow. I have never been in the hospital before nor have I ever had any major surgery and this was the last thing I wanted.  However, I knew the Dr. had our best interest at heart and knew what she was doing.  Next thing I knew there were a flood of nurses, doctors, and anesthesiologists prepping me for surgery.  This literally took like 10 min then they wheel me down the hall to the OR. Spencer had to wait like 10 min before he could join me.  Once he arrived in the OR I felt much better and knew it would only be a matter of minutes before we would meet our baby. 

Next thing I know I hear the doctor's say we have a girl.  I was sort of in shock yet felt like I knew all along it was a little girl.  It was love at first sight. 

There is more to this story to it will be continued...

Check out the photos:

Yay!  My water broke so we are leaving the house at 2:30 to go to the hospital.

 

Spencer dressed for the OR!

Waiting....

It's a girl!  Sawyer Rhea Roden's first picture!

We Have a Plan...

We went pack to the doctor today.  They did an ultrasound to make sure I still had plenty of fluid for LBR, which I do.  She also did another exam and decided that I would be induced on Thursday morning.  However, she wants me to come back to see her on Wednesday afternoon for another exam to see if my cervix has made anymore progress.  If it hasn't then I will be be sent downstairs and they will insert a balloon to help with the induction process. 

This is definitely not the route I wanted to go, but I am not sure I have any other choice.  The last thing we wanted was to be induced, but LBR seems to be pretty stubborn and may not come without a little help. 

There is still a chance LBR could come on his/her own, but it isn't looking like it.  I am saying my prayers that he/she does, because I am not really looking forward to any of this, however one thing is for sure, LBR will be at some point on Thursday, if not before then.