I'm a genius... I just figured out that I can avoid the whole going to the Calgary Consulate thing. I dunno why it took me this long to realize it though. haha. I'm smart.
So you schedule appointments online to report births of US citizens "abroad" and apply for their US passports and social security cards. Up until now I was just planning on scheduling it in Calgary a couple days after I got back from Montreal. But duh... I had an epiphany that I could just see if I could schedule the appointment in Montreal for the same day as my interview. Yeesh... I've sure been using my noggin...
I looked into it and there's an opening to schedule what I need for Warren that's two and a half hours after my interview. I have no idea how long my interview will last, and how long it'll take for me to get all my original documents back. I kinda need them in order to apply for Warren's stuff. Hopefully two and a half hours will be enough time for me to finish up my stuff in time to do Warren's stuff.
I'm just glad I shaved even more time off of this whole process. It's all happening so soon!!!
WOOT!!!
Friday, September 30, 2011
Monday, September 26, 2011
My Awesome Childhood
Recently I was watching TV with my mom and we were just flipping through channels. We found Jem on the kids TV station.
I sure hope you know what Jem is. Here's a reminder.
That show was one of the many that carried me through my childhood. My generation really did have the best entertainment ever. So I decided that it was necessary to compile a list of shows and movies that I loved as a kid so that I could share them with Warren as he grows. I'll teach him that even though the styles were whacked, and the graphics weren't the quality they are today, it's still quality TV. He's going to appreciate the 90's.
Funny story. I stayed at my uncle and aunts house for a couple of days last week, and my aunt and I were watching ALF. My 13 year old cousin came to see what we were watching, and after a few minutes he gave us the greatest "what the crap is this" look I've ever seen in my life. Clearly he hasn't been educated about the awesomeness that is the 90's. haha...
I put a post on Facebook asking my friends to suggest amazing shows and movies from the 90's so that I could start compiling this list for Warren's future. Here's a bit of what we came up with.
Yeah... I think that's a good start. There's plenty more on the list, but these are the ones I'm most excited about. haha! My kid is gonna be the most awesome kid ever!!!
I sure hope you know what Jem is. Here's a reminder.
That show was one of the many that carried me through my childhood. My generation really did have the best entertainment ever. So I decided that it was necessary to compile a list of shows and movies that I loved as a kid so that I could share them with Warren as he grows. I'll teach him that even though the styles were whacked, and the graphics weren't the quality they are today, it's still quality TV. He's going to appreciate the 90's.
Funny story. I stayed at my uncle and aunts house for a couple of days last week, and my aunt and I were watching ALF. My 13 year old cousin came to see what we were watching, and after a few minutes he gave us the greatest "what the crap is this" look I've ever seen in my life. Clearly he hasn't been educated about the awesomeness that is the 90's. haha...
I put a post on Facebook asking my friends to suggest amazing shows and movies from the 90's so that I could start compiling this list for Warren's future. Here's a bit of what we came up with.
Yeah... I think that's a good start. There's plenty more on the list, but these are the ones I'm most excited about. haha! My kid is gonna be the most awesome kid ever!!!
He Eats. Then He eats.
And oh yeah. He eats some more!!!
I was pretty proud of myself for getting Warren on a four hour sleeping schedule, but the last day or so he's been hungry way more often and more fussy than usual and I had no idea what that was all about. So thanks to the trusty internet, I found out that he's going through his first growth spurt.
I guess it makes sense. His cheeks are definitely chubbier, and he's no longer curling up into a little ball like he used to do all the time. He's starting to stretch out more, which I find entertaining because his little legs are still scrawny and way cute. He's also filling out his clothes better, even though he still only fits in newborn size clothes. Compared to when he was a week old when his onesies were still pretty loose, now they look like they're actually the right size. The clothes that are the 0-3 month size are still too big though. haha. But who knows. Maybe he'll be fitting into them soon. That kinda freaks me out though... I like him small and I don't want him to start growing THAT fast.. Yeesh... Some things I just can't stop though.
Right now I don't know how much he weighs. When I took him for his two week check up, he was 7 lbs 6 oz, but that was almost two weeks ago, so he's got to be at least 8 lbs by now. I might go find out soonish how much he weighs though. I have to stop by a Public Health Center to pick up my immunization record which they need for the immigration interview. Conveniently that's the place where they weigh babies too. I figure while I'm there I might as well get him weighed to satisfy my curiosity.
Thankfully this growth spurt only lasts a couple days. Feeding him twice as much for twice as long is... painful... Good thing he's so dang cute.
Here's a comparison so you can see his growth.
The onesies are the same brand an same size so you can totally see how two weeks ago they were super loose and now, not so much. haha.
Anyways.. Can I just state how satisfying it is when researching things to find the exact answers? Because when I was trying to figure out what was going on with Warren, what I was reading described EXACTLY what was going on. It was pretty awesome. I didn't even have to say that was mostly what was going on. Every single symptom or behavior that was described was exactly fitting for Warren. I was so satisfied. I hope as he continues to grow that I'll be able to keep finding such helpful information. (Hey. I can dream.)
I was pretty proud of myself for getting Warren on a four hour sleeping schedule, but the last day or so he's been hungry way more often and more fussy than usual and I had no idea what that was all about. So thanks to the trusty internet, I found out that he's going through his first growth spurt.
I guess it makes sense. His cheeks are definitely chubbier, and he's no longer curling up into a little ball like he used to do all the time. He's starting to stretch out more, which I find entertaining because his little legs are still scrawny and way cute. He's also filling out his clothes better, even though he still only fits in newborn size clothes. Compared to when he was a week old when his onesies were still pretty loose, now they look like they're actually the right size. The clothes that are the 0-3 month size are still too big though. haha. But who knows. Maybe he'll be fitting into them soon. That kinda freaks me out though... I like him small and I don't want him to start growing THAT fast.. Yeesh... Some things I just can't stop though.
Right now I don't know how much he weighs. When I took him for his two week check up, he was 7 lbs 6 oz, but that was almost two weeks ago, so he's got to be at least 8 lbs by now. I might go find out soonish how much he weighs though. I have to stop by a Public Health Center to pick up my immunization record which they need for the immigration interview. Conveniently that's the place where they weigh babies too. I figure while I'm there I might as well get him weighed to satisfy my curiosity.
Thankfully this growth spurt only lasts a couple days. Feeding him twice as much for twice as long is... painful... Good thing he's so dang cute.
Here's a comparison so you can see his growth.
 |
| One Week old |
 |
| Three Weeks old |
The onesies are the same brand an same size so you can totally see how two weeks ago they were super loose and now, not so much. haha.
Anyways.. Can I just state how satisfying it is when researching things to find the exact answers? Because when I was trying to figure out what was going on with Warren, what I was reading described EXACTLY what was going on. It was pretty awesome. I didn't even have to say that was mostly what was going on. Every single symptom or behavior that was described was exactly fitting for Warren. I was so satisfied. I hope as he continues to grow that I'll be able to keep finding such helpful information. (Hey. I can dream.)
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Progress
I've been checking my email like a mad woman this week because my interview for the green card was supposed to be scheduled this week. To my delight, the email finally came on Wednesday!! I have an interview scheduled for October 24th!!!!! WOOT!!!!! So that means that this whole process will come to a long awaited end and I can finally look forward to being with my husband PERMANENTLY.
It's still quite the process though. Not only do I have to go to Montreal (because it's the only Consulate that does Immigrant interviews), but I have to get a medical exam beforehand. I knew that was coming, but what I didn't know is that the medical exam can only be done by "authorized physicians". I thought that all physicians would be authorized to do a medical exam, but apparently they have physicians that are specifically authorized by the Consulate to do medical exams for immigrant purposes. Here's the kicker... THERE'S ONLY FOUR OF THEM IN ALL OF CANADA... There's one in Vancouver, one in Toronto and two in Montreal. So I called one of the ones in Montreal hoping that I could get the medical exam right before the interview and have the results in time so I wouldn't have to make more than one trip. Thankfully they were pretty accommodating, but it extends the trip to Montreal from only a couple days to a whole week.
The soonest they could get me in for the medical exam was Tuesday October 18. The results will be ready for me to pick up three days later on Friday, and then I have to wait through the weekend for my interview on Monday the 24th at 8:00 AM.
Sure it's slightly inconvenient to have to be gone for a whole week, but my mom and possibly my aunt are coming with me so it'll end up being a lot of fun. Especially having Warren around and being able to take him out on walks and stuff. The plane ride with him will be interesting though. haha. good thing he's a good sleeper, and not a loud crier.
After the interview, if they're satisfied, I'll get all the paperwork right there that'll allow me to go to the States right away. The only other thing that I have to do afterward is get Warren's US passport. I have to wait until after the interview to do that though. To get his passport I need to show them the original copy of my marriage certificate which I had to send to the Montreal Consulate a while ago. I'll get it back after the interview. So once I get back from Montreal, I have to take Warren to Calgary to the Consulate there to apply for his US passport. Yeah... They don't make this easy. Every Consulate does everything by appointment so I can't just get everything done for me and him in Montreal. I'll try though. If I end up taking Warren with me to the interview, I wonder if they'll just let me apply for it right there... But I highly doubt it, considering they like to do everything the long and difficult way. So I'm just anticipating having to go to Calgary. That's less of a big deal than Montreal though, so I'm not overly annoyed by having to drive the three hours. Warren will sleep the whole way anyway.
Once his passport comes, then it's home free!! I'll finally be able to go to Colorado and stay there and NEVER have to anticipate being separated from Ray for a long period of time EVER AGAIN. So by November, all of this will finally be over for good! A year and a half of all this craziness is almost over and our family will be whole again. Forever.
It's still quite the process though. Not only do I have to go to Montreal (because it's the only Consulate that does Immigrant interviews), but I have to get a medical exam beforehand. I knew that was coming, but what I didn't know is that the medical exam can only be done by "authorized physicians". I thought that all physicians would be authorized to do a medical exam, but apparently they have physicians that are specifically authorized by the Consulate to do medical exams for immigrant purposes. Here's the kicker... THERE'S ONLY FOUR OF THEM IN ALL OF CANADA... There's one in Vancouver, one in Toronto and two in Montreal. So I called one of the ones in Montreal hoping that I could get the medical exam right before the interview and have the results in time so I wouldn't have to make more than one trip. Thankfully they were pretty accommodating, but it extends the trip to Montreal from only a couple days to a whole week.
The soonest they could get me in for the medical exam was Tuesday October 18. The results will be ready for me to pick up three days later on Friday, and then I have to wait through the weekend for my interview on Monday the 24th at 8:00 AM.
Sure it's slightly inconvenient to have to be gone for a whole week, but my mom and possibly my aunt are coming with me so it'll end up being a lot of fun. Especially having Warren around and being able to take him out on walks and stuff. The plane ride with him will be interesting though. haha. good thing he's a good sleeper, and not a loud crier.
After the interview, if they're satisfied, I'll get all the paperwork right there that'll allow me to go to the States right away. The only other thing that I have to do afterward is get Warren's US passport. I have to wait until after the interview to do that though. To get his passport I need to show them the original copy of my marriage certificate which I had to send to the Montreal Consulate a while ago. I'll get it back after the interview. So once I get back from Montreal, I have to take Warren to Calgary to the Consulate there to apply for his US passport. Yeah... They don't make this easy. Every Consulate does everything by appointment so I can't just get everything done for me and him in Montreal. I'll try though. If I end up taking Warren with me to the interview, I wonder if they'll just let me apply for it right there... But I highly doubt it, considering they like to do everything the long and difficult way. So I'm just anticipating having to go to Calgary. That's less of a big deal than Montreal though, so I'm not overly annoyed by having to drive the three hours. Warren will sleep the whole way anyway.
Once his passport comes, then it's home free!! I'll finally be able to go to Colorado and stay there and NEVER have to anticipate being separated from Ray for a long period of time EVER AGAIN. So by November, all of this will finally be over for good! A year and a half of all this craziness is almost over and our family will be whole again. Forever.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
What A Year
I don't think I've ever had such an eventful year. I found out that I was pregnant the first week of the year, and that marked the beginning of a whole bunch of changes and new things for me to figure out and get used to.
First I had to get used to throwing up all the time... Then I had to get used to feeling all the hiccups and the kicks. Then figuring out how to sleep with a big belly in the way. Then trying to figure out what I could actually eat. Thankfully the throwing up every day eventually stopped as long as I remembered to take my medication. Being pregnant was definitely an adventure. Now I have an adorable little son to show for it. All the women were right. All the inconveniences of pregnancy and the difficulties I had really were worth it.
I thought it would be kinda cool to show the progression of changes throughout the year. I took periodic pictures to keep track of how big I was getting. It's interesting to look back on, and it totally blows my mind that my body did all that. Heavenly Father really knew what he was doing when He made all of us. Pregnancy and childbirth is nothing short of a miracle.
It still hasn't sunk in that he's a part of me. I almost feel like a babysitter still. haha. But I'm sure once he starts getting bigger and we can see resemblances between him and Ray and I, it'll be easier to believe that he's mine and that I grew him. haha. I love being a mom though. Even if my mind can't wrap itself around being a mom, it's still pretty awesome. I'll think I'll keep the little guy.
First I had to get used to throwing up all the time... Then I had to get used to feeling all the hiccups and the kicks. Then figuring out how to sleep with a big belly in the way. Then trying to figure out what I could actually eat. Thankfully the throwing up every day eventually stopped as long as I remembered to take my medication. Being pregnant was definitely an adventure. Now I have an adorable little son to show for it. All the women were right. All the inconveniences of pregnancy and the difficulties I had really were worth it.
I thought it would be kinda cool to show the progression of changes throughout the year. I took periodic pictures to keep track of how big I was getting. It's interesting to look back on, and it totally blows my mind that my body did all that. Heavenly Father really knew what he was doing when He made all of us. Pregnancy and childbirth is nothing short of a miracle.
 |
| March 13 - 13 Weeks |
 |
| March 26 - 15 Weeks |
 |
| April 12 - 18 Weeks |
 |
| April 16 - 19 Weeks |
 |
| May 1 - 22 Weeks |
 |
| May 23 - 25 Weeks |
 |
| July 1 - 31 Weeks |
 |
| August 2 - 36 Weeks |
 |
| September 13 - Two weeks old |
It still hasn't sunk in that he's a part of me. I almost feel like a babysitter still. haha. But I'm sure once he starts getting bigger and we can see resemblances between him and Ray and I, it'll be easier to believe that he's mine and that I grew him. haha. I love being a mom though. Even if my mind can't wrap itself around being a mom, it's still pretty awesome. I'll think I'll keep the little guy.
Monday, September 12, 2011
My Family (because I have one now!)
Life with a kid is pretty sweet. I'm definitely getting less sleep, but I'm slowing figuring out how I can remedy that. For example, I've learned how to feed him lying down. haha. It's fantastic for the middle of the night feeds. Another thing I've learned is just how many diapers babies go through. I haven't quite figured out the perfect timing for when it's best to change him. I tend to change his diaper and 10 minutes later he's pooped. It's kind of ridiculous. But I guess that's just how it goes. I gave him a soother for the first time two days ago and that's been a lifesaver. Warren no longer cries during diaper changes and it helps him fall asleep faster. He loved the thing right from the start. He didn't have any issues with it. Yay!!!
Yesterday was a pretty crappy day though. Not because of Warren. He's a really good baby. But yesterday I had to say goodbye to Ray... We've said goodbye a lot before, but this time seemed to be the hardest. That's prolly due to the fact that we have Warren, and the thought of taking care of him by myself seems overwhelming, especially at night time. Also, we have no idea how long it'll be until we get to see each other again. All the other times before, we've known when we'd see each other again. So because of those two things, this is kind of a lot rough on me...
The thing that keeps me going though, is how positive Ray is. He's constantly reminding me that Heavenly Father is in control, so because of that, things will work out the best way possible. I definitely need to be reminded of that often, and Ray does a good job. Another good thing is that all the paperwork is submitted, and now we're just waiting to find out when my interview will be. They do all the scheduling for interviews during the second week of the month, which is this week. So hopefully I'll find out when I have to make the trek over to Montreal by the end of the week. After the interview, if they're satisfied, I get all the green card stuff right there and I'll be able to go to Colorado as soon as possible. Woot!! So things really are progressing, and we're actually at the final stretch. And getting Warren's paperwork is simple since he's already entitled to US citizenship. I just have to fill out a form that gets him a US passport and social security card.
Anyways... Here's some pictures of my adorable little man. Ray took most of the pictures, and Monie and her boyfriend came over to take our family pictures. I'm quite pleased with them. It was awesome that we got to take family pictures before Ray left. We have a pretty good looking family. haha.
Yesterday was a pretty crappy day though. Not because of Warren. He's a really good baby. But yesterday I had to say goodbye to Ray... We've said goodbye a lot before, but this time seemed to be the hardest. That's prolly due to the fact that we have Warren, and the thought of taking care of him by myself seems overwhelming, especially at night time. Also, we have no idea how long it'll be until we get to see each other again. All the other times before, we've known when we'd see each other again. So because of those two things, this is kind of a lot rough on me...
The thing that keeps me going though, is how positive Ray is. He's constantly reminding me that Heavenly Father is in control, so because of that, things will work out the best way possible. I definitely need to be reminded of that often, and Ray does a good job. Another good thing is that all the paperwork is submitted, and now we're just waiting to find out when my interview will be. They do all the scheduling for interviews during the second week of the month, which is this week. So hopefully I'll find out when I have to make the trek over to Montreal by the end of the week. After the interview, if they're satisfied, I get all the green card stuff right there and I'll be able to go to Colorado as soon as possible. Woot!! So things really are progressing, and we're actually at the final stretch. And getting Warren's paperwork is simple since he's already entitled to US citizenship. I just have to fill out a form that gets him a US passport and social security card.
Anyways... Here's some pictures of my adorable little man. Ray took most of the pictures, and Monie and her boyfriend came over to take our family pictures. I'm quite pleased with them. It was awesome that we got to take family pictures before Ray left. We have a pretty good looking family. haha.
 |
| Hehe... He was sneezing. |
 |
| Babies make awesome faces. |
 |
| My favorite! |
Monday, September 5, 2011
He's Here! I'm a Mom!!!
Introducing Warren Joseph Whitcomb. He was born on Wednesday, August 31 at 6:34 AM and he weighed 6lbs 15oz. Pretty much he's the cutest thing ever.
So I think it's pretty clear that Ray and I made a really REALLY cute baby.
Here's the labor and delivery story. I put all the pictures first so that if you didn't wanna know the details, you wouldn't have to read through them. haha.
Since I was getting induced, I had to wait for the hospital to call me. It was excruciating having to wait for that phone call. The doctor put in the request to have me induced on Monday but she told me that they might not call me until the day or two after because it all depends on how busy they are in the labor and delivery unit. By the time Monday evening rolled around, I was miserable because I just wanted to get the show on the road and I was super frustrated that it wasn't gonna happen that day. Tuesday I was even MORE frustrated because noon came by and I STILL hadn't heard anything from them. I decided though that if I didn't get a call by 3:00 that day, that I'd call them and ask them what was up. Waiting for things is not my strong point. Thankfully though, they called me at 2:00 and told me to come in as soon as I could to start the induction.
HOORAY!!!!!!!
I called to Ray who was upstairs that it was time to go, and all I heard was frantic shuffling as he raced downstairs with the hugest grin on his face. haha! We got to the hospital and after waiting around for a while, I was put in a bed and attached to monitors. By then my excitement turned to nervousness, and Ray's nervousness turned to excitement. haha. When the doctor checked me before starting the induction, she said I was already 1cm dilated and the baby's head was really low so that meant I had a really good head start. She put the medicated stuff in me to start the induction and then I had to sit there for a two hours to continue being monitored.
I actually started having contractions while I was still there at around 4:30. I noticed them, but they weren't painful at all so I doubted whether or not they really were contractions or not. haha. But the nurse said they were, so that was good. I was finally going into labor!
They let me go home after being monitored to let the medication really start to work. Things were starting to get mildly painful by the time I got home, but I didn't wanna just sit around and wait, and Ray wanted to get out and do something because I'm pretty sure he was super antsy and staying home would have made his head explode. haha. We ended up going out for dinner, which was interesting because my contractions were getting more uncomfortable... But I made it through dinner alright. When we got home, it was getting harder for me to smile through contractions and deal with them like they were nothing... They weren't nothing anymore. I was timing them and they were coming between 3 -6 minutes apart, so I called the hospital to see what we should do and they told me to just wait it out for a couple more hours and if they got more consistant then we should go in.
I waited for an hour and a half, and by then the contractions were consistently 3 minutes apart, and I was telling Ray that we should keep waiting, but he was insisting that we go to the hospital. Looking back on it, it was kinda funny... Me in tons of pain saying I'm okay and we can wait longer, and him telling me over and over that we should go. haha. My mom came in to check on me and when Ray told her about how close my contractions were, she was like THEN YOU SHOULD GO TO THE HOSPITAL!!!!! haha! So we went. Mom drove Ray and I there so we wouldn't have to deal with parking. Much appreciated.
We got up to the labor and delivery unit and I remember one of the nurses saying "Yep. That's the real deal. She's not smiling anymore!" haha... I sure wasn't. Contractions suck...
They put me in a room and checked me again, and by this time it was 10:00 PM and I was 4cm dilated. YAY!!! I was in the hospital for the long haul. I was attached to an IV and I asked for laughing gas, which at that point was amazing. It helped me a lot. My nurse was amazing. She'd been working at the hospital for 18 years so she knew what was going on and she was also really compassionate. I really appreciated her a lot. After a while, she told me that it would help things move along if I walked around, which I didn't really wanna do, but I did anyways. As soon as we got out of the room, I suddenly got nauseous and ended up throwing up on the floor.. Woops... But that got all cleaned up, and the nurse told me to keep walking, so I did. Ray was a great help to me with that. Then my IV started leaking... So we went back to the room and the nurse fixed it up.
I wanted to try the shower to see if that could help me. By this time, contractions were getting really strong and I was NOT happy. I spent a little bit of time in the shower, but I told my nurse that I was ready for the epidural. She told me that as soon as I got out of the tub, she'd make it happen. I got out of the tub pronto. Well... As fast as I could go considering I was in labor...
Getting the epidural was scary, but again, Ray was a huge help. He and the nurse together were really good at keeping me calm. Luckily, I didn't have a contraction when the needle was in my back, which was my biggest fear with the whole thing. As soon as it started working, I was so happy. haha. It was a huge relief. I was finally able to get some rest. Ray put on some soft church music, and that really helped keep the environment calm. All the nurses and the doctors that came in commented on how nice and calm it was in our room. It was kind of awesome. haha.
I got my epidural topped up a couple times, and by 4:00 AM I was fully dilated, but not feeling the urge to push. My nurse let Ray and sleep for another hour or so, and by then I was ready to push. I pushed for an hour or so, but the nurse was saying that the baby wasn't moving down anymore. I'd push, and he'd just go back to where he was when I was done. That and the baby's heart rate would drop with every push and not going back up fast enough. At one point there were like 4 doctors and a couple residents and nurses all staring at the heart rate monitor looking all concerned, which made me really nervous... Then they told me that if the heart rate didn't improve they'd have to do a c-section. Then I got REALLY nervous. Thankfully it didn't come to that.
So the doctor came in after an hour of pushing, and after watching what was happening for a while, she realized that the baby's head was stuck on my pelvic bone and wasn't going anywhere without any help. That meant she had to use forceps... Kinda scary. Again, the situation was made more scary by the fact that they told me if it didn't work, a c-section was the only option. So they called the epidural man in and got him to REALLY freeze me just in case it were to come to that.
The forceps felt like I was getting all my insides ripped out... NOT A PLEASANT EXPERIENCE!!!!! But he was out in really fast after that. I think I pushed twice. The doctor said that all she did was un-wedge his head and I did the rest. I was in such shock from the whole forceps experience that I wasn't really able to take in the whole moment of birth. I didn't even realize Ray cut the cord at all. But I watched the nurses clean off the baby and Ray take some pictures, and all of the sudden he was in my arms. It was crazy. I was in such a daze...
Throughout the whole thing Ray was SUPER interested. He watched everything and thought it was all so fascinating. haha. Fair enough. Now that I'm starting to heal up, I feel more up to asking him details about how things went. He can give me some pretty graphic details that I just didn't wanna know about when they were happening. haha. Now it seems a lot less traumatic to hear about. I'll spare you those details though. His biggest thing was that there was A LOT of blood. More than he realized was possible, and was so confused at how unconcerned everyone was about it. haha. He thought people should be freaking out, but nobody even acted like it mattered, so he was confused and still concerned even though everyone else wasn't. haha.
We decided shortly after he was born to name him Warren Joseph. Ray chose the first name and I chose the middle name. I thought that was fair. Then Ray called my mom and dad to tell them the news and mom was there right away. She was ecstatic. It was pretty funny.
The rest of the day, my whole family had come to visit and so had my best friends. It was a really good experience.
I'd say that in general, the whole thing went really well. I don't have any major complaints about anything. I'm glad to be home though, and getting to know my little man is the best ever. I love being a mom. It's the best ever.
 |
| This is how you get mom to smile really big. GRANDBABY!!!!! |
 |
| My kid already has paparazzi after him!!! |
 |
| But really... Can you blame them?? He's freaking adorable. |
 |
| Warren is gawking at his giant 5 week old cousin. |
 |
| My little yoga master |
So I think it's pretty clear that Ray and I made a really REALLY cute baby.
Here's the labor and delivery story. I put all the pictures first so that if you didn't wanna know the details, you wouldn't have to read through them. haha.
Since I was getting induced, I had to wait for the hospital to call me. It was excruciating having to wait for that phone call. The doctor put in the request to have me induced on Monday but she told me that they might not call me until the day or two after because it all depends on how busy they are in the labor and delivery unit. By the time Monday evening rolled around, I was miserable because I just wanted to get the show on the road and I was super frustrated that it wasn't gonna happen that day. Tuesday I was even MORE frustrated because noon came by and I STILL hadn't heard anything from them. I decided though that if I didn't get a call by 3:00 that day, that I'd call them and ask them what was up. Waiting for things is not my strong point. Thankfully though, they called me at 2:00 and told me to come in as soon as I could to start the induction.
HOORAY!!!!!!!
I called to Ray who was upstairs that it was time to go, and all I heard was frantic shuffling as he raced downstairs with the hugest grin on his face. haha! We got to the hospital and after waiting around for a while, I was put in a bed and attached to monitors. By then my excitement turned to nervousness, and Ray's nervousness turned to excitement. haha. When the doctor checked me before starting the induction, she said I was already 1cm dilated and the baby's head was really low so that meant I had a really good head start. She put the medicated stuff in me to start the induction and then I had to sit there for a two hours to continue being monitored.
I actually started having contractions while I was still there at around 4:30. I noticed them, but they weren't painful at all so I doubted whether or not they really were contractions or not. haha. But the nurse said they were, so that was good. I was finally going into labor!
They let me go home after being monitored to let the medication really start to work. Things were starting to get mildly painful by the time I got home, but I didn't wanna just sit around and wait, and Ray wanted to get out and do something because I'm pretty sure he was super antsy and staying home would have made his head explode. haha. We ended up going out for dinner, which was interesting because my contractions were getting more uncomfortable... But I made it through dinner alright. When we got home, it was getting harder for me to smile through contractions and deal with them like they were nothing... They weren't nothing anymore. I was timing them and they were coming between 3 -6 minutes apart, so I called the hospital to see what we should do and they told me to just wait it out for a couple more hours and if they got more consistant then we should go in.
I waited for an hour and a half, and by then the contractions were consistently 3 minutes apart, and I was telling Ray that we should keep waiting, but he was insisting that we go to the hospital. Looking back on it, it was kinda funny... Me in tons of pain saying I'm okay and we can wait longer, and him telling me over and over that we should go. haha. My mom came in to check on me and when Ray told her about how close my contractions were, she was like THEN YOU SHOULD GO TO THE HOSPITAL!!!!! haha! So we went. Mom drove Ray and I there so we wouldn't have to deal with parking. Much appreciated.
We got up to the labor and delivery unit and I remember one of the nurses saying "Yep. That's the real deal. She's not smiling anymore!" haha... I sure wasn't. Contractions suck...
They put me in a room and checked me again, and by this time it was 10:00 PM and I was 4cm dilated. YAY!!! I was in the hospital for the long haul. I was attached to an IV and I asked for laughing gas, which at that point was amazing. It helped me a lot. My nurse was amazing. She'd been working at the hospital for 18 years so she knew what was going on and she was also really compassionate. I really appreciated her a lot. After a while, she told me that it would help things move along if I walked around, which I didn't really wanna do, but I did anyways. As soon as we got out of the room, I suddenly got nauseous and ended up throwing up on the floor.. Woops... But that got all cleaned up, and the nurse told me to keep walking, so I did. Ray was a great help to me with that. Then my IV started leaking... So we went back to the room and the nurse fixed it up.
I wanted to try the shower to see if that could help me. By this time, contractions were getting really strong and I was NOT happy. I spent a little bit of time in the shower, but I told my nurse that I was ready for the epidural. She told me that as soon as I got out of the tub, she'd make it happen. I got out of the tub pronto. Well... As fast as I could go considering I was in labor...
Getting the epidural was scary, but again, Ray was a huge help. He and the nurse together were really good at keeping me calm. Luckily, I didn't have a contraction when the needle was in my back, which was my biggest fear with the whole thing. As soon as it started working, I was so happy. haha. It was a huge relief. I was finally able to get some rest. Ray put on some soft church music, and that really helped keep the environment calm. All the nurses and the doctors that came in commented on how nice and calm it was in our room. It was kind of awesome. haha.
I got my epidural topped up a couple times, and by 4:00 AM I was fully dilated, but not feeling the urge to push. My nurse let Ray and sleep for another hour or so, and by then I was ready to push. I pushed for an hour or so, but the nurse was saying that the baby wasn't moving down anymore. I'd push, and he'd just go back to where he was when I was done. That and the baby's heart rate would drop with every push and not going back up fast enough. At one point there were like 4 doctors and a couple residents and nurses all staring at the heart rate monitor looking all concerned, which made me really nervous... Then they told me that if the heart rate didn't improve they'd have to do a c-section. Then I got REALLY nervous. Thankfully it didn't come to that.
So the doctor came in after an hour of pushing, and after watching what was happening for a while, she realized that the baby's head was stuck on my pelvic bone and wasn't going anywhere without any help. That meant she had to use forceps... Kinda scary. Again, the situation was made more scary by the fact that they told me if it didn't work, a c-section was the only option. So they called the epidural man in and got him to REALLY freeze me just in case it were to come to that.
The forceps felt like I was getting all my insides ripped out... NOT A PLEASANT EXPERIENCE!!!!! But he was out in really fast after that. I think I pushed twice. The doctor said that all she did was un-wedge his head and I did the rest. I was in such shock from the whole forceps experience that I wasn't really able to take in the whole moment of birth. I didn't even realize Ray cut the cord at all. But I watched the nurses clean off the baby and Ray take some pictures, and all of the sudden he was in my arms. It was crazy. I was in such a daze...
Throughout the whole thing Ray was SUPER interested. He watched everything and thought it was all so fascinating. haha. Fair enough. Now that I'm starting to heal up, I feel more up to asking him details about how things went. He can give me some pretty graphic details that I just didn't wanna know about when they were happening. haha. Now it seems a lot less traumatic to hear about. I'll spare you those details though. His biggest thing was that there was A LOT of blood. More than he realized was possible, and was so confused at how unconcerned everyone was about it. haha. He thought people should be freaking out, but nobody even acted like it mattered, so he was confused and still concerned even though everyone else wasn't. haha.
We decided shortly after he was born to name him Warren Joseph. Ray chose the first name and I chose the middle name. I thought that was fair. Then Ray called my mom and dad to tell them the news and mom was there right away. She was ecstatic. It was pretty funny.
The rest of the day, my whole family had come to visit and so had my best friends. It was a really good experience.
I'd say that in general, the whole thing went really well. I don't have any major complaints about anything. I'm glad to be home though, and getting to know my little man is the best ever. I love being a mom. It's the best ever.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)