Friday, April 29, 2011
Bouncing Sweetness
This video is from Wednesday. Just a clip of my sweetness bouncing. And squeaking her head off. P.S. I just NOW figured out how to focus while taking videos with my SLR so no more out-of-focus videos from now on. Promise.
Playing Dress-up
Grandma Chris sent me these adorable pictures of Elle while I was at work yesterday. The highlight of my day! Dress-up time with Grandma!
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
My Baby Story
Part of me wishes that I began this blog right when I discovered that I was pregnant so I had documentation of all the excitement that occurred along the way. Finding out our sweet Elle was a girl, choosing her name, suddenly loving spicy food, wanting a baby bump SO bad, holding my baby bump at all hours of the day and night, creating her nursery, and more. Pregnancy, childbirth, and taking care of a newborn is such an incredible time that I wish I had more of it permanently captured. I guess I'll just have to work backwards. These posts are for me (and maybe Elle from the future) more than anything else.
In some ways, my labor and delivery story starts on Saturday, November 13th when I was 38 weeks along. After taking a shower, I sat down to floss my teeth and when I stood up, I had a gush of fluid run down my leg. I was pretty sure my membranes had ruptured but I wanted to be absolutely positive before acting on it. I knew that if it were the case, more should follow and labor would begin and so I decided to hold off. Nothing further happened and so I casually mentioned it to Casey the next morning and more or less brushed it off. It wasn't until a few days later when I was reading about it online that I learned that I could be putting the baby at risk for infection. I dwelled about it for a few days and finally decided to call my doctor 1 week later. I know, not an ideal situation but I didn't want to make something out of nothing. My OB told me that it did sound like my water had broke and to go to Labor & Delivery. We were at Target so we went home, we showered, quickly got our things together, and within an hour we were on our way to Cedar Sinai. I love how fast you get admitted if you are pregnant. No questions asked--you get set-up in a room immediately and looked at within minutes as if it were a routine doctor's appointment. Once there, I got looked at by a really tall, pregnant midwife who didn't see any evidence of amniotic fluid. We concluded that my membrane may have ruptured but it sometimes heals itself. The midwife asked if I wanted my membranes stripped so I said, sure, why not. While there, my OB called to check-up on me and he asked L&D to move my induction time from Monday night to Sunday night. As in the next day. Oh boy, did that make me anxious!
Casey really wanted Yogurtland (haha) after that so we went and got some yogurt and talked about what we should do for our last 2 days/1 night as a childless couple. I realized while packing my bags that I didn't have everything I wanted to bring to the hospital so we then ran some errands. If you're wondering, that means I wanted some nice lotion, warm and fuzzy socks, chapstick, and trash magazines. We then went to the Melting Pot for our last date. I told the waitress to make everything as spicy as possible and I had the gnarliest contractions on our way home. They would come and go and literally make me hold my breath. They were sporadic and ended as fast as they started.
We got brunch the next morning on Sunday, November 21st, at a French Cafe in Culver City that has great food but terrible service. I could not believe I was having my sweet baby the next day! I could barely think straight I was so worked up about it. I loved being pregnant. I didn't want it to end. I told Casey that I could carry Elle in my tummy for the rest of my life (assuming she didn't grow bigger). I knew I couldn't sleep that night. We were scheduled to return to Cedar Sinai at 4 AM to start my induction. We watched a terrible movie (Grownups) and hung around for a bit. We finally went to bed around midnight and I set my alarm to 2:00 AM. I knew it would be 2 days before I could shower again so I wanted to make sure I went in as clean as possible. Please excuse these pics from our delivery...we had just gotten the Sony Bloggie and we accidentally left the plastic protective film on the lens and hadn't quite figured out how to focus. Here I am that night right before we left...so 11/22/2010 at about 3:00 AM.
We left really early for Cedar Sinai and got there at about 3:30. It was quiet there so they admitted us right away. As soon as they hooked me up to the monitors, I saw that I was already having pretty strong contractions. They started the pitocin drip immediately and by 4:00 AM, my contractions were regular. I was checked at 4:30 AM and was dilated to 3 CM and 70% effaced. This baby was on her way! Here I am at 4:05 AM, already feeling the brunt of labor.
Once moved into my new digs, my OB called and requested they scale down my Pitocin. My contractions were coming on too fast and strong and they wanted to make sure the baby had enough time to "descend" as she was still up too high to deliver. My progress went pretty slow after that. I had a ton of visitors and not much time to rest. One thing I regret and will keep in mind for next time! I wish I had just basked in my Epidural haze and taken a nap. After a couple of stressful visits, we decided enough was enough and I needed to sleep. I believe this was around 5:00 PM (Casey stopped taking notes at this point). The nurse checked me at 6:45 PM and I was still about 5 CM dilated. She had me lay on my side in a certain way to encourage the baby to drop more.
Well, that was the golden ticket. Within 30 minutes, I was shaking so hard and beyond-in-pain. I can't even describe it. I was able to control my Epidural dosage all along with the push of a button but it didn't seem to be working anymore so I asked the Anesthesiologists to come in to re-up it. This was at 7:15. It wasn't instant relief like last time and I continued to tremble but I didn't feel as bad. I kept telling my nurse that I felt like I had to poop and I was pretty sure I was going to poop right there. She said that it was probably just the pressure from the baby and promised me I wouldn't make a BM. I kept repeating myself and pleaded with her to check me again, even though she just did 45 minutes prior. She finally did at 7:30 and I was 9.5 CM dilated! Since I was as numb as possible, I had no urge to push so the nurse wanted to wait a little longer to let the baby descend all the way. I was finally ready to go at 8:30 PM or so and the nurse put a call into my OB. I was wondering how OB's make it to deliveries. Now I know. We practiced pushing while waiting for my OB and it was surprisingly really exerting. I don't know why but I never considered that. Before I began pushing with my OB, he asked me if I felt my contractions, which I did not. He asked me if I wanted to, which I did not. He said that it helps some women push. Ha. So I held onto my beyond-numb legs and worked my magic. Casey was able to see Elle's head and told me that she had a head full of dark hair. I didn't expect her to have hair, let alone dark hair. After 20 or so minutes of pushing, my OB told me that he needed to perform an episiotomy because the baby had a big head and if I'm okay with that. I somehow had enough sense to ask if he was going to use a topical anesthetic, which he had not planned to since he thought I was numb from my epidural. He did a test incision and sure enough, OW. So glad I asked! He did his thing mid-push and out came Elle. My precious baby Elle was born at 9:47 PM, weighing 7 lbs 9 oz and 20.5 inches long. What an overwhelming moment. I literally just broke down crying. Casey cut the umbilical cord and the blood splattered all over his face (haha). She had the sweetest cry I have ever heard. I rocked her on me and she immediately stopped crying until the nurse came over and rubbed her back so she would keep crying. Elle was the sweetest baby from the minute she was born. Her delivery was so special and it's an experience shared forever by my husband and I. Watching the videos that Casey took immediately after she was delivered always chokes me up. I could go on and on but I have to stop somewhere. We love her so much.
In some ways, my labor and delivery story starts on Saturday, November 13th when I was 38 weeks along. After taking a shower, I sat down to floss my teeth and when I stood up, I had a gush of fluid run down my leg. I was pretty sure my membranes had ruptured but I wanted to be absolutely positive before acting on it. I knew that if it were the case, more should follow and labor would begin and so I decided to hold off. Nothing further happened and so I casually mentioned it to Casey the next morning and more or less brushed it off. It wasn't until a few days later when I was reading about it online that I learned that I could be putting the baby at risk for infection. I dwelled about it for a few days and finally decided to call my doctor 1 week later. I know, not an ideal situation but I didn't want to make something out of nothing. My OB told me that it did sound like my water had broke and to go to Labor & Delivery. We were at Target so we went home, we showered, quickly got our things together, and within an hour we were on our way to Cedar Sinai. I love how fast you get admitted if you are pregnant. No questions asked--you get set-up in a room immediately and looked at within minutes as if it were a routine doctor's appointment. Once there, I got looked at by a really tall, pregnant midwife who didn't see any evidence of amniotic fluid. We concluded that my membrane may have ruptured but it sometimes heals itself. The midwife asked if I wanted my membranes stripped so I said, sure, why not. While there, my OB called to check-up on me and he asked L&D to move my induction time from Monday night to Sunday night. As in the next day. Oh boy, did that make me anxious!
Casey really wanted Yogurtland (haha) after that so we went and got some yogurt and talked about what we should do for our last 2 days/1 night as a childless couple. I realized while packing my bags that I didn't have everything I wanted to bring to the hospital so we then ran some errands. If you're wondering, that means I wanted some nice lotion, warm and fuzzy socks, chapstick, and trash magazines. We then went to the Melting Pot for our last date. I told the waitress to make everything as spicy as possible and I had the gnarliest contractions on our way home. They would come and go and literally make me hold my breath. They were sporadic and ended as fast as they started.
We got brunch the next morning on Sunday, November 21st, at a French Cafe in Culver City that has great food but terrible service. I could not believe I was having my sweet baby the next day! I could barely think straight I was so worked up about it. I loved being pregnant. I didn't want it to end. I told Casey that I could carry Elle in my tummy for the rest of my life (assuming she didn't grow bigger). I knew I couldn't sleep that night. We were scheduled to return to Cedar Sinai at 4 AM to start my induction. We watched a terrible movie (Grownups) and hung around for a bit. We finally went to bed around midnight and I set my alarm to 2:00 AM. I knew it would be 2 days before I could shower again so I wanted to make sure I went in as clean as possible. Please excuse these pics from our delivery...we had just gotten the Sony Bloggie and we accidentally left the plastic protective film on the lens and hadn't quite figured out how to focus. Here I am that night right before we left...so 11/22/2010 at about 3:00 AM.
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| Last belly shot |
We left really early for Cedar Sinai and got there at about 3:30. It was quiet there so they admitted us right away. As soon as they hooked me up to the monitors, I saw that I was already having pretty strong contractions. They started the pitocin drip immediately and by 4:00 AM, my contractions were regular. I was checked at 4:30 AM and was dilated to 3 CM and 70% effaced. This baby was on her way! Here I am at 4:05 AM, already feeling the brunt of labor.
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| Yup, this hurts. |
I was uncomfortable, tired, and I had to pee. I got really frustrated with trying to take off the monitors and scoot my huge pregnant self to the bathroom with the IV drip. I cried. This was not going to be fun. That was the extent of the "expected nastiness" you hear about pregnant women in labor toward their spouses. I then decided to try to sleep through it because I knew relaxing helps you progress and I was not going to get anywhere with that attitude. That and I got 2 hours of sleep the night before. Casey and I had finally fallen asleep when the door burst open at 6:30 AM. Huge surprise--it was my mom and dad. I had asked them not to come until I was on my way to delivery but I guess they (read: my mom) couldn't help themselves. They hung out in our tiny room for a little bit before making a Starbucks run. Lucky Casey got a big coffee and pastry. I was definitely jealous. I knew that was probably the end of my sleep attempt. The nurses came in at 7:30 AM and after deciding that my body was handling the pitocin well, increased my dose.
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| Trash magazines came in handy |
I quickly became really uncomfortable as my contractions increased in strength and frequency and asked the nurse about the epidural. She told me they typically advise waiting until you are 4 CM so I decided to give it a shot. I was checked again except this time the nurse told me that I was "closed" (as in, not dilated). She quickly got another nurse to do a confirmation check and she had the same impression. I was confused. I was pissed. How was I 1 CM dilated on Saturday, 3 that morning, and suddenly closed? I knew something was wrong with their assessment. By 11:30, I didn't want to wait anymore. I requested my beloved Epidural. The nurses agreed and decided that once I get my epidural, they'll place a Foley bulb in me to help me open up more. I did NOT want this. I was under the impression that it would take Anesthesia maybe an hour before they got to me. Nope, within 5 minutes, I was being propped up on my bed. It's kind of awkward. They raise the bed like 4 feet in the air and you sit on the side leaning forward as much as you can. As I was doing this, the door burst open once again. My parents walked in on me getting my epidural! Kind of embarrassing. I was told it would take about 15 minutes to kick in but I felt instant relief. In fact, I felt like I was on drugs. Everything was really funny after that....see?
I had the nurse of my dreams come in right after I got my epidural. I think she was Romanian and her name was Irina. She was like Borat in nurse form. She inserted a catheter and she almost died when she saw what came out! I had been holding onto almost a liter of urine. I had told myself I'd go after my epidural but Irina did the dirty work for me. She was SO funny. Or maybe I was just really drugged from my epidural. Either way, good times were had by all in the room. My water broke (on it's own, thankfully) at 1:00 PM and my uber tall nurse midwife came in to confirm and insert my Foley bulb. She was also confused by the rumors that I wasn't dilated at all and took another look. Nope, those nurses were wrong--I was now at 4 CM and the Foley Bulb was not needed. Woohoo! Better yet, I was finally upgraded to the "Active Labor" room. It was a beautiful day and we had a view of the Hollywood sign.
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| Our Room View |
Here is a shot of me (and Elle) in our new room. I am swollen beyond belief. I am on hour 12 of being pumped full of fluids.
Once moved into my new digs, my OB called and requested they scale down my Pitocin. My contractions were coming on too fast and strong and they wanted to make sure the baby had enough time to "descend" as she was still up too high to deliver. My progress went pretty slow after that. I had a ton of visitors and not much time to rest. One thing I regret and will keep in mind for next time! I wish I had just basked in my Epidural haze and taken a nap. After a couple of stressful visits, we decided enough was enough and I needed to sleep. I believe this was around 5:00 PM (Casey stopped taking notes at this point). The nurse checked me at 6:45 PM and I was still about 5 CM dilated. She had me lay on my side in a certain way to encourage the baby to drop more.
Well, that was the golden ticket. Within 30 minutes, I was shaking so hard and beyond-in-pain. I can't even describe it. I was able to control my Epidural dosage all along with the push of a button but it didn't seem to be working anymore so I asked the Anesthesiologists to come in to re-up it. This was at 7:15. It wasn't instant relief like last time and I continued to tremble but I didn't feel as bad. I kept telling my nurse that I felt like I had to poop and I was pretty sure I was going to poop right there. She said that it was probably just the pressure from the baby and promised me I wouldn't make a BM. I kept repeating myself and pleaded with her to check me again, even though she just did 45 minutes prior. She finally did at 7:30 and I was 9.5 CM dilated! Since I was as numb as possible, I had no urge to push so the nurse wanted to wait a little longer to let the baby descend all the way. I was finally ready to go at 8:30 PM or so and the nurse put a call into my OB. I was wondering how OB's make it to deliveries. Now I know. We practiced pushing while waiting for my OB and it was surprisingly really exerting. I don't know why but I never considered that. Before I began pushing with my OB, he asked me if I felt my contractions, which I did not. He asked me if I wanted to, which I did not. He said that it helps some women push. Ha. So I held onto my beyond-numb legs and worked my magic. Casey was able to see Elle's head and told me that she had a head full of dark hair. I didn't expect her to have hair, let alone dark hair. After 20 or so minutes of pushing, my OB told me that he needed to perform an episiotomy because the baby had a big head and if I'm okay with that. I somehow had enough sense to ask if he was going to use a topical anesthetic, which he had not planned to since he thought I was numb from my epidural. He did a test incision and sure enough, OW. So glad I asked! He did his thing mid-push and out came Elle. My precious baby Elle was born at 9:47 PM, weighing 7 lbs 9 oz and 20.5 inches long. What an overwhelming moment. I literally just broke down crying. Casey cut the umbilical cord and the blood splattered all over his face (haha). She had the sweetest cry I have ever heard. I rocked her on me and she immediately stopped crying until the nurse came over and rubbed her back so she would keep crying. Elle was the sweetest baby from the minute she was born. Her delivery was so special and it's an experience shared forever by my husband and I. Watching the videos that Casey took immediately after she was delivered always chokes me up. I could go on and on but I have to stop somewhere. We love her so much.
Monday, April 25, 2011
Easter
Yesterday was Easter Sunday. Here are just a few pics while Elle does her rolling thing behind me. More to come later!
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| Rare shot of Elle and her mama |
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| My honey with our bunny |
Friday, April 22, 2011
5 Months!
Happy 5 months to my darling peanut! We are going on long walk on the beach in Santa Monica to celebrate. Casey is then meeting us at the Paper Source to buy Elle her Easter card :) Exciting day! Elle's daddy was interviewed on Fox Business News this morning about Easter retail.
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| Recently found my feet |
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| So flexible! |
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| And... I'm off! |
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Growing
Elle is at such a fabulous age. She's easier to carry around now because she's able to support her head. She smiles all the time, laughs when I eat her face, and has just picked up squeaking. I've read in Parenting magazines that moms are happiest when their babies are 6 months old and I can totally see why. Elle will be 5 months Friday. Where has the time gone!? Her dexterity has improved a ton and she grabs onto everything in her reach (and subsequently shoves it into her mouth, or tries to). She won't stay on her back if she's on a stable surface (aka, not the bed) and she'll roll right onto her tummy, squirm and do a 360, shrieking all the way. It's too funny. I see crawling in our future. I seriously can't wait to start feeding her solids at 6 months. I'm thinking about making my own baby food with organic fruits and vegetables. Feeding her is going to be SO cute. Our baby highchair has been sitting out in our kitchen waiting for Elle since...August, I believe. We are ready for you, Miss Elle!
I brought Elle into work today to show her around. She was just under 3 months last time I brought her in. She was squeaking her adorable little head off and generally being the well-mannered baby that she is. Love my girl.
Monday, April 18, 2011
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
My Little Squeaker
Nothing really happens in this video...Elle is just really squeaky and I thought it was cute :)
Impromptu Photoshoot
Last night was the first night that Elle slept without her arms swaddled in. She had been resisting her swaddle these past few days and breaking out her little hands to chew on them. She had always had difficulty sleeping without her swaddle in the past but I was eager to give it a shot since she is getting a little old for it. She slept the first part of the night with her sweet little hands balled up on her face and the remainder of the night with them tightly at her side, as if she were still swaddled. I can't believe it took her this long to not "need" it anymore but I guess each baby is at his or her own pace!
We had an impromptu photoshoot this morning. I figured it was as good of a time as any (e.g., it's never a good time). Here are some adorable shots...
We had an impromptu photoshoot this morning. I figured it was as good of a time as any (e.g., it's never a good time). Here are some adorable shots...
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| Chiquita Banana! |
Monday, April 11, 2011
Only My Mom...
I received something on our front porch today.
With this note:
Yeah, Geez Mom. Thanks a lot for having a heart attack on my birthday. Don't ever do it again! In fact, don't ever do it again -period-.
Beautiful Elle
Our sweet Elle is looking more and more beautiful everyday.
These first couple photos are from April 1st. Then there was a lag in picture-taking until today...
These first couple photos are from April 1st. Then there was a lag in picture-taking until today...
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| Got my Sakura Bloom sling! |
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| Smiling for mommy |
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| What's up with the one red cheek? |
When It Rains, It Pours
These past two weeks have been really eventful...and for the most part, not in a good way.
Two weeks ago from today, I got hit by some piece of construction material on the 405 freeway. I was driving in the carpool lane with Elle and it flew from a truck in the far right lane. Not entirely sure what it was...it was about as big as a window and left a pretty big dent. My car is currently in the shop being repaired for it. It was so terrifying to think about after it had happened. If it had hit my car anywhere but where it had, the damage would have been so much more devastating. If it hit higher, it would have shattered the window right on my poor sweet baby. If it hit lower, it would have jammed into my tire and who knows what would have happened. If it hit a little more to the left, it would have gone through my windshield. Ugh, it makes me sick to think about. Silver lining: a previous ding will be repaired. Not-so-silver lining: short $350 I wouldn't have been had I not been driving at that time.
The remainder of that week was pretty uneventful except for the fact that I was really busy and pretty stressed out at work. It is -so difficult- working only two days a week in office. There's too much to do but I'm trying my best to make it work. That Friday-Monday, Casey, Elle, and I went on a ski trip to Tellride, CO with Casey's family. It was a fun trip and I regret not taking any pictures! I still haven't found a good balance with taking pictures and deciding when it's appropriate to lug my DSLR around. I think I need a smaller case for it.
A bunch of us caught the stomach flu as soon as we got back from our trip. My father-in-law went down on the airplane down and Casey followed suit late that night. I felt pretty nauseated that Tuesday morning but had planned to put in a long day at work to get a report wrapped up. I was basically a walking zombie I felt so terrible. I left a little early and both Casey and I were in bed, both sick at the same time, for the first time. I was so sad that I was too sick to take care of my sweet baby. Elle felt SO heavy to me and even carrying her was a struggle. We were really lucky that we had my mother-in-law over to watch Elle while we were down for the count. Thank you, Christine! I still felt pretty awful come Thursday but I was up against a deadline at work so I spent the entire day in front of the computer at home. Silver lining? I lost about 4 lbs and am finally within sight of my pre-baby weight. 7 lbs to go! Buhbye size 6! Never liked you anyways!
This past Saturday was my 25th Birthday. I received the most devastating news that morning--my poor mother had suffered a minor heart attack the night before. I don't want to write too much about it, but I'm really thankful that she is doing well right now. I wish more than anything that I could be there for her to take care of her. She needs to learn how to relax, to eat the best foods for her body, and to enjoy life more. Haven't come up with a silver lining for that one yet.
Two weeks ago from today, I got hit by some piece of construction material on the 405 freeway. I was driving in the carpool lane with Elle and it flew from a truck in the far right lane. Not entirely sure what it was...it was about as big as a window and left a pretty big dent. My car is currently in the shop being repaired for it. It was so terrifying to think about after it had happened. If it had hit my car anywhere but where it had, the damage would have been so much more devastating. If it hit higher, it would have shattered the window right on my poor sweet baby. If it hit lower, it would have jammed into my tire and who knows what would have happened. If it hit a little more to the left, it would have gone through my windshield. Ugh, it makes me sick to think about. Silver lining: a previous ding will be repaired. Not-so-silver lining: short $350 I wouldn't have been had I not been driving at that time.
The remainder of that week was pretty uneventful except for the fact that I was really busy and pretty stressed out at work. It is -so difficult- working only two days a week in office. There's too much to do but I'm trying my best to make it work. That Friday-Monday, Casey, Elle, and I went on a ski trip to Tellride, CO with Casey's family. It was a fun trip and I regret not taking any pictures! I still haven't found a good balance with taking pictures and deciding when it's appropriate to lug my DSLR around. I think I need a smaller case for it.
A bunch of us caught the stomach flu as soon as we got back from our trip. My father-in-law went down on the airplane down and Casey followed suit late that night. I felt pretty nauseated that Tuesday morning but had planned to put in a long day at work to get a report wrapped up. I was basically a walking zombie I felt so terrible. I left a little early and both Casey and I were in bed, both sick at the same time, for the first time. I was so sad that I was too sick to take care of my sweet baby. Elle felt SO heavy to me and even carrying her was a struggle. We were really lucky that we had my mother-in-law over to watch Elle while we were down for the count. Thank you, Christine! I still felt pretty awful come Thursday but I was up against a deadline at work so I spent the entire day in front of the computer at home. Silver lining? I lost about 4 lbs and am finally within sight of my pre-baby weight. 7 lbs to go! Buhbye size 6! Never liked you anyways!
This past Saturday was my 25th Birthday. I received the most devastating news that morning--my poor mother had suffered a minor heart attack the night before. I don't want to write too much about it, but I'm really thankful that she is doing well right now. I wish more than anything that I could be there for her to take care of her. She needs to learn how to relax, to eat the best foods for her body, and to enjoy life more. Haven't come up with a silver lining for that one yet.
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