Sunday, March 7, 2010
Mom's Mom
My mom is here. She was in the delivery room with me. She was here a week and a half before the birth. She has cleaned my house, made my meals, and helped with the kids. She takes amazing pictures and still has the energy to hang out with my friends and have a good time. She's amazing. When you become a mommy, you need your mommy. Mommy's are important. They take care of you. They are the best. I am lucky to have two mother's that care about me, help me and would drop it all and run to my side if I asked: my mother and Andy's mother. It's great having them here and I love every minute I get to spend just enjoying my own kids because of their help.
Saturday, March 6, 2010
All About Boobs
So for all you women out there who are about to embark on the journey of breastfeeding, I want to give you a couple of hints from my personal experience:
1. You WILL know when your milk comes in. It will tingle, burn or hurt. You will go into the shower a nice perfect 36 B and come out a HUGE and overwhelming 40 DD. It comes in all at once in what has been dubbed the "whoosh." You will walk around your house holding your torpedoes up and begging to go shopping for nursing bras. Your boobs will ache.
2. Buy a pump. Your little one will never eat all you have and your pump will never get you all the way dry. I do both. I pump and feed and pump and feed. This keeps my milk up, keeps me from getting achy and keeps me in a good supply of milk that I can use in emergencies.
3. While pumping, remember that gravity pulls the majority of your milk down into the bottom of the breast. Massage your breast from all sides towards the nipple and at the end, squeeze the milk up from the bottom. Start your pump off really softly so it isn't vacuuming you to death. Turn up the suction as you feel you can handle it. This will take weeks, not minutes. Don't feel bad if you are only doing about 4 or 5 minutes on each side and only getting about an ounce out of each side at first. Your milk will start off coming out kinda clear (skim milk) and then get more and more creamy as you come to the end (after a few minutes, you will have straight cream.) This is the fatty part that help brain development in your child. If you pump before you feed, leave this stuff so your kid is getting the best part. If you pump out after you feed the baby, you will have this stuff rising to the top. Don't worry, your milk isn't going bad, it's just not pasteurized. It separated. Just shake it up.
4. Even if you are pumping and breastfeeding, it's good to have at least a few packets of formula around. These come in handy when you can't take a little refriged bag of milk with you everywhere you go or if you run out of milk or if you are stuck between two huge business men on a long flight in coach. Just bring a bottle of already measured water, dump in the packet and shake and your kid gets a relatively healthy meal that will hold them until you can get somewhere to feed in private.
5. If your nipples start to get sore (they will hurt like hell at first - just be ready) some of the best things you can do is to pump and massage, let them air dry (don't wipe off the excess milk - it has healing properties), use an all natural nipple cream (I suggest Mommy's Bliss).
6. There will be toe curling pain when you first start out. The latch is important. There are different ways to hold your baby - across your body, under your arm, laying side by side... The best way to get started is to hold them across your body and hold their head in your hand and your breast in the hand on that side. Wait for your baby's mouth to be WIDE open and then quickly roll them onto the nipple, bottom lip first. Make sure that bottom lip is rolled out and their tongue gets almost out of their mouth. Don't let them chomp on your nipple. If it comes out of their mouth flat as a pancake, it's not in far enough. This is all going to be overwhelming and difficult to decipher at first and realize that it takes several weeks to get it so you aren't even looking, you are just sticking the kid on there and covering her up with a blanket and having a conversation with your pastor.
7. Thrush is a common cause of pain. Check with your doctor if your kid has white stuff in their mouth.
8. If you decide to give up on breastfeeding, don't feel bad, not every mommy can do it and not every baby is up for it either.
1. You WILL know when your milk comes in. It will tingle, burn or hurt. You will go into the shower a nice perfect 36 B and come out a HUGE and overwhelming 40 DD. It comes in all at once in what has been dubbed the "whoosh." You will walk around your house holding your torpedoes up and begging to go shopping for nursing bras. Your boobs will ache.
2. Buy a pump. Your little one will never eat all you have and your pump will never get you all the way dry. I do both. I pump and feed and pump and feed. This keeps my milk up, keeps me from getting achy and keeps me in a good supply of milk that I can use in emergencies.
3. While pumping, remember that gravity pulls the majority of your milk down into the bottom of the breast. Massage your breast from all sides towards the nipple and at the end, squeeze the milk up from the bottom. Start your pump off really softly so it isn't vacuuming you to death. Turn up the suction as you feel you can handle it. This will take weeks, not minutes. Don't feel bad if you are only doing about 4 or 5 minutes on each side and only getting about an ounce out of each side at first. Your milk will start off coming out kinda clear (skim milk) and then get more and more creamy as you come to the end (after a few minutes, you will have straight cream.) This is the fatty part that help brain development in your child. If you pump before you feed, leave this stuff so your kid is getting the best part. If you pump out after you feed the baby, you will have this stuff rising to the top. Don't worry, your milk isn't going bad, it's just not pasteurized. It separated. Just shake it up.
4. Even if you are pumping and breastfeeding, it's good to have at least a few packets of formula around. These come in handy when you can't take a little refriged bag of milk with you everywhere you go or if you run out of milk or if you are stuck between two huge business men on a long flight in coach. Just bring a bottle of already measured water, dump in the packet and shake and your kid gets a relatively healthy meal that will hold them until you can get somewhere to feed in private.
5. If your nipples start to get sore (they will hurt like hell at first - just be ready) some of the best things you can do is to pump and massage, let them air dry (don't wipe off the excess milk - it has healing properties), use an all natural nipple cream (I suggest Mommy's Bliss).
6. There will be toe curling pain when you first start out. The latch is important. There are different ways to hold your baby - across your body, under your arm, laying side by side... The best way to get started is to hold them across your body and hold their head in your hand and your breast in the hand on that side. Wait for your baby's mouth to be WIDE open and then quickly roll them onto the nipple, bottom lip first. Make sure that bottom lip is rolled out and their tongue gets almost out of their mouth. Don't let them chomp on your nipple. If it comes out of their mouth flat as a pancake, it's not in far enough. This is all going to be overwhelming and difficult to decipher at first and realize that it takes several weeks to get it so you aren't even looking, you are just sticking the kid on there and covering her up with a blanket and having a conversation with your pastor.
7. Thrush is a common cause of pain. Check with your doctor if your kid has white stuff in their mouth.
8. If you decide to give up on breastfeeding, don't feel bad, not every mommy can do it and not every baby is up for it either.
Friday, March 5, 2010
Breastfeeding
Well, we have started the Adams' Dairy again. Last night I went to be a nice 36 C and woke up a 38 DD. Woosh! Here was the milk. Cate was getting fussy every time she ate and then, after having a nice meal for the first time, she slept forever. Today she has been in a milk comma all day which is not good for a mommy who's boobs are getting to be hard as rocks as the minutes tick by. Therefore, I have broken out the pump (yucky...) and I am well on my way to having leather nipples. Went off the pain meds today and that basically made breastfeeding TORTURE again.
Abby has been facinated with the whole thing. She watches me feed the baby. Today she said, "Baby drinkin' milk." Yep, she gets it. She pulled up her shirt and fed her baby. It was so funny. She points up her shirt and says, "Abby's boobs." Well, kid, thank goodness you don't have boobs yet but yes, that is where they will be when they get here...
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Cate is Home
I am home with Cate. It is interesting to see how it all is going. I'm so weak from losing so much blood and tired from breast feeding at all hours. But seeing Abby with Cate makes it all worth it. Actually, when I got here, I felt this overwhelming need to spend time with Abby. After being with Cate for two days and not seeing Abby at all, I was really worried about Abby and how she was going to be when I got home. I fed Cate and handed her off to my mom to burp and comfort while I played with Abby as much as I was able. Problem: I am getting light headed and nauseous. It's hard not to panic everytime I feel weird after having a near death experience.
I am going to say something I never thought I would: I really had a good experience with this birth. I got to see the baby come out and I didn't think I would want to but I went ahead and got the mirror thinking that I just wouldn't look if I got to wierded out. I closed my eyes at the end because I was pushing and kinda freaking out but I actually saw the crowning and all that and I could feel her coming out. It was painful but kinda... awesome. I mean, I really never thought I would say that but the actual pushing the baby out part was crazy cool. I felt so accomplished.
I'm so much more tired than I thought I would be. I think I'm going to take a couple of days to not see very many people and just sleep and rest and stuff although its hard. I feel like if I'm in bed, I'm missing out on something out in the world. Crazy right? I'm like a 5 year old. Cate is amazing. Abby is amazing and I wish I could just give over my time to both of them.
I am going to say something I never thought I would: I really had a good experience with this birth. I got to see the baby come out and I didn't think I would want to but I went ahead and got the mirror thinking that I just wouldn't look if I got to wierded out. I closed my eyes at the end because I was pushing and kinda freaking out but I actually saw the crowning and all that and I could feel her coming out. It was painful but kinda... awesome. I mean, I really never thought I would say that but the actual pushing the baby out part was crazy cool. I felt so accomplished.
I'm so much more tired than I thought I would be. I think I'm going to take a couple of days to not see very many people and just sleep and rest and stuff although its hard. I feel like if I'm in bed, I'm missing out on something out in the world. Crazy right? I'm like a 5 year old. Cate is amazing. Abby is amazing and I wish I could just give over my time to both of them.
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Long Laborious Labor
Well, it's all over folks. After a little Oxytocin, 11 hours of waiting around and doing nothing but playing bejeweled on the ipod, I pushed out an 8 lb 2 oz. baby girl. She was perfect although cheesy... LOL. I started pushing and here comes the doctor who really believed that I had a while to go. She headed off to use the restroom and there came Cate's head. Someone yelled for the doctor and she came racing out of the bathroom pulling up her scrubs, but not fast enough. The entire OB ward knew that she had blue underwear. Then she yells to the nurse, "Barbara, hold her in there. I'm getting gloves. Oh, forget it..." Then she just caught the baby bare handed. I felt kinda bad but the chute was slippery and I had no control over how fast that kid was coming out. She is beautiful and I cried. My mom took pictures and posted them here. http://gammasusie.blogspot.com/
Then I sent Laura out to get me my favorite recovery meal: Arby's! When she got back I wolfed it down, fed the baby and then... it happened. I knew that dang Murphy's Law was waiting to kick my butt. I didn't tear from the delivery, she had come out so easy, this was way to easy. Something had to go wrong. I could feel the Arby's gurgling around in my stomach. I really was starting to get sick. I hate to throw up so I knew this was going to be bad. I said quietly to the nurse, "I'm going to puke." Then it all happened really fast. I couldn't breath. That was all I knew. I couldn't breath. I was raking in breath and no one was helping me. Where was a hand to hold? I was suffocating! There was a doctor there that wasn't my doctor and he was asking if I wanted to know what was going on down below. Apparently, they had pulled back the sheets and I was hemorrhaging. I actually said, "No, I don't CARE! I can't BREATH!" It's funny how when you can't breath, they put an oxygen mask OVER YOUR MOUTH AND NOSE and you feel like you can't breath even more. After what seemed like an eternity of not being able to get a breath, and some horrible pain coming from the nether region, I felt my chest begin to let up. I was breathing better but I was crying like crazy. They stuck me with needles that I couldn't see the need for, they pushed on my already tender stomach and basically made me crazy. Once I got my breath and my doctor (after getting a speeding ticket trying to get back to the hospital after being paged) got back and was standing next to my bed, the nurses pulled back the covers and I saw what happened. There was blood EVERYWHERE! I almost fainted just seeing them clean up and the concerned look on Dr. Happy's face made me worry. I was wiped out already but to see that there might be more after the not-being-able-to-breath incident made me want to cry all over again.
I finally got all cleaned up and Dr. Happy explained everything to me. I had clotted at the opening of the uterus and I wasn't bleeding out properly, therefore I was bleeding internally. That's not good for a uterus. You need to bleed out, not let it stay in. Usually we think of stopping the bleeding but that's not how it works with your uterus. It needs to bleed out and clamp down. So, I was building up and building up and the uterus didn't know what to do. It just kept bleeding and building up. Anyway, once they got the clot out of the way, all that blood came out and it was ALOT so I was way weak and they considered giving me a transfusion. They got me all cross checked and drew more blood to check my platelets. After 6 hours or so, they decided I didn't need blood - just rest. So I'm stuck in the hospital for a while but I have Cate to keep me company and her little gruntings are great conversation for me.
I know this blog was all about me and not much about Cate. She is perfection itself and when Abby came to see her today, she pronounced her Baby Cakes. Love it. Don't worry about me. I'm doing great. Cate was with Daddy through the whole scary experience and my mom was by my side for the whole thing. Mission Hospitals Dr.s and nurses did an amazing job and I'm very lucky to be in such a great place with my new baby who I LOVE! So, now if it would just stop snowing long enough for us to get home...
Then I sent Laura out to get me my favorite recovery meal: Arby's! When she got back I wolfed it down, fed the baby and then... it happened. I knew that dang Murphy's Law was waiting to kick my butt. I didn't tear from the delivery, she had come out so easy, this was way to easy. Something had to go wrong. I could feel the Arby's gurgling around in my stomach. I really was starting to get sick. I hate to throw up so I knew this was going to be bad. I said quietly to the nurse, "I'm going to puke." Then it all happened really fast. I couldn't breath. That was all I knew. I couldn't breath. I was raking in breath and no one was helping me. Where was a hand to hold? I was suffocating! There was a doctor there that wasn't my doctor and he was asking if I wanted to know what was going on down below. Apparently, they had pulled back the sheets and I was hemorrhaging. I actually said, "No, I don't CARE! I can't BREATH!" It's funny how when you can't breath, they put an oxygen mask OVER YOUR MOUTH AND NOSE and you feel like you can't breath even more. After what seemed like an eternity of not being able to get a breath, and some horrible pain coming from the nether region, I felt my chest begin to let up. I was breathing better but I was crying like crazy. They stuck me with needles that I couldn't see the need for, they pushed on my already tender stomach and basically made me crazy. Once I got my breath and my doctor (after getting a speeding ticket trying to get back to the hospital after being paged) got back and was standing next to my bed, the nurses pulled back the covers and I saw what happened. There was blood EVERYWHERE! I almost fainted just seeing them clean up and the concerned look on Dr. Happy's face made me worry. I was wiped out already but to see that there might be more after the not-being-able-to-breath incident made me want to cry all over again.
I finally got all cleaned up and Dr. Happy explained everything to me. I had clotted at the opening of the uterus and I wasn't bleeding out properly, therefore I was bleeding internally. That's not good for a uterus. You need to bleed out, not let it stay in. Usually we think of stopping the bleeding but that's not how it works with your uterus. It needs to bleed out and clamp down. So, I was building up and building up and the uterus didn't know what to do. It just kept bleeding and building up. Anyway, once they got the clot out of the way, all that blood came out and it was ALOT so I was way weak and they considered giving me a transfusion. They got me all cross checked and drew more blood to check my platelets. After 6 hours or so, they decided I didn't need blood - just rest. So I'm stuck in the hospital for a while but I have Cate to keep me company and her little gruntings are great conversation for me.
I know this blog was all about me and not much about Cate. She is perfection itself and when Abby came to see her today, she pronounced her Baby Cakes. Love it. Don't worry about me. I'm doing great. Cate was with Daddy through the whole scary experience and my mom was by my side for the whole thing. Mission Hospitals Dr.s and nurses did an amazing job and I'm very lucky to be in such a great place with my new baby who I LOVE! So, now if it would just stop snowing long enough for us to get home...
Monday, March 1, 2010
Blow by Blow #1
Willing to bet I will not be blogging through this whole thing but I am still not on the pitocen so... here goes.
Came in at 6. No one at the desk. Had to get some random guy off the elevator to let us in. Next, get into the room. Get set up. It's now around 7:30 and we have gone through 2 nurses. Next, nurse who was with me the last time is back. Love her. She says the same words she did last time... "I'm great at this." Meaning the IV. She missed... again. Poor lady. I did try to warn her.
Called in the IV team. First REALLY funny thing that happened, the IV specialist was a Ken doll. His teeth were one big mass of white and he looked like he worked out. Maybe 2% body fat. Hilarious. About to start pit... will update when I can. Check out my mom's blog for a more up to date time laps.
Came in at 6. No one at the desk. Had to get some random guy off the elevator to let us in. Next, get into the room. Get set up. It's now around 7:30 and we have gone through 2 nurses. Next, nurse who was with me the last time is back. Love her. She says the same words she did last time... "I'm great at this." Meaning the IV. She missed... again. Poor lady. I did try to warn her.
Called in the IV team. First REALLY funny thing that happened, the IV specialist was a Ken doll. His teeth were one big mass of white and he looked like he worked out. Maybe 2% body fat. Hilarious. About to start pit... will update when I can. Check out my mom's blog for a more up to date time laps.
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