Lessons From The Front Line

Here's a few things I've learned from my first 2 weeks of on the job training as a Mommy:

1. Always consider your baby boy's pee pee a loaded weapon. Protect yourself at all times. When you leave yourself vulnerable even for an instant, that's when your baby boy will inevitably squirt pee all over your clothes.
2. When you change your baby's diaper and you only see a hint of poop, you may want to delay swapping in a new diaper. Putting on a new diaper will no doubt cause him to immediately soil it. Instead, look away and give your baby a little privacy so that he can finish his business.
   
3. Babies go through A LOT of diapers and wipes. In Jalen's first 2 weeks, we already used up over 100 diapers. Of course you can slightly reduce your consumption of diapers by following lesson #2.
4. In general, newborn babies are pretty easy to keep happy. As long as you keep them fed, burped, changed they pretty much just sleep through the day and night. Just don't expect to be fed and rested yourself while you're tending to the baby's needs.
5. Babies grow fast. Jalen has already grown over 1.5 inches since birth and he is starting to outgrow some of his newborn clothes. Take a few minutes each day to enjoy your baby because he will never be this small again.

Erin and Jalen

Jalen had his first date with Katelyn. She is 5 days younger than Jalen. Look, they're holding hands!

Jennifer and Andy with Jalen

I had my first drink since the baby.

And first time eating sushi! Finally, yum!!

Being Mommy

Being a mom is no doubt a full time job and I'm learning so much everyday. I feed Jalen at least 8 times a day. Each feeding takes about 1 hour, that means I spend over 8 hours a day feeding, burping and changing the baby! Now that Jalen is getting enough milk, it's been a lot easier getting him to feed and sleep. The tough part is still not being able to sleep more than an hour and a half at a time. I try to take a couple of naps during the day so that I get at least 7 hours of sleep within a 24 hour period. The good thing is that I have Jalen on a 3 hour feeding schedule now so that after a feeding, I have a 2 hour window to do something for myself. Rick and I left the baby with my mom a couple of times to get some shopping done. It was definitely nice to get out of the house. Rick also put a TV in the nursery so that I have some entertainment during those late night feedings. I can't tell you what a difference the TV made. Not only that it made the feedings go by faster, I also felt connected to the adult world again because I could catch up on all the latest news and gossip. Yesterday, we went out for dinner for the first time since the baby was born and Jalen was such a good boy that he slept through the whole thing. Rick and I are planning to go out to eat by ourselves this weekend and leave the baby with my mom. I'll finally be able to have sushi and have a little bit of alcohol, yay! All these little steps are so important and things are getting a little easier each day. It's a lot of work taking care of Jalen but I also have to remind myself to not just rush through the feedings so that I can catch a nap or check email. I need to pause and take in his sweet little face before he grows up too quickly.

Jalen is 8 days old!

Jalen did not like his first bath.

Finally dry again,

and sleeping peacefully...

Bringing Home Baby

We brought baby Jalen home from the hospital on Wednesday afternoon. I was anxious to be home after being at the hospital for one night. So far, the biggest challenge has definitely been feeding him. The first few days were especially hard because he was very hungry from not getting enough milk. Our doctor told us we could supplement with a little bit of formula at each feeding so that he could be satisfied. He also became a little jaundiced after the first couple of days, which made it even more important for him to eat and poop regularly. We're trying our best to figure out a routine that works. Every day things are a little different. The nights are especially hard. We're trying to feed him every two hours. It takes about one hour to rouse him to eat, burp him, change his diapers then get him back to sleep. So that leaves just one hour until the next feeding! Getting sleep in small one hour windows definitely wears you out. It's a good thing that my parents are here to help out during the day. They can watch Jalen while I try to nap. Still, adjusting to waking up 2 or 3 times at night will take a little time.


We got so many beautiful flowers from our friends and family. Thank you!


Here's a picture of Jalen and a picture of Ricky as new borns. Can you see the resemblance?

Baby Jalen's Arrival

Tuesday morning, I woke up around 4am feeling what I thought may be a contraction. It felt like indigestion and it was the first time I felt any type of early labour symptoms. So I got out of bed and pulled out my childbirth book and I was convinced that I was experiencing pre-labour symptoms. The cramps were not regular enough to feel like contractions but they were uncomfortable enough to keep me awake. So I went down stairs and walked around, trying to get through them. I didn't bother waking up Rick because I was sure that these were just very preliminary signs of labour and they were either going to go away or last for hours. About an hour later, I felt my first real strong contraction. I had to use my relaxation breathing to get through it. I thought, boy, that was kind of intense, do women really go through hours of such contractions before they even go to the hospital? I decided I didn't want to go through this alone anymore so I woke up Rick and told him that I was having some cramps. It took a while for him to realize what I meant and happily got out of bed to keep me company. He asked me if he should call into work and tell them he's not coming in but I said just wait and see. I had few more contractions and each one just as intense. They were coming every couple of minutes or so. I still didn't think I was in real labour because according to our baby class, early labour contractions can vary from every 3 minutes to every 12 minutes. But then the next few contractions were increasingly intense such that it took some serious breathing to get through them and I could feel my cervix opening up during these contractions. They were still coming what seemed like every 2 minutes. I decided it was time to call the doctor's office. I told the doctor that I started having contractions at 4 o'clock and now they're about a minute apart. She asked, 4 o'clock yesterday? I said no, 4 o'clock this morning. She told me to come into the hospital. I battled through a couple of more contractions and realized that my water broke. Now it's really on! I barked orders to Rick between contractions to grab our bags and load up the car. I was a little worried that once we started to head to the hospital that my contractions may slow down and they'd send me home. However, my contractions continue to come every couple of minutes and I got through them with a series of screaming, grunting, cursing and whining. All I could think about is making it to the hospital so that they could give me some drugs!

When we finally made it to triage, at around 6:45am, my water had broke completely. I was stilling having intense contractions every 2 minutes or so but I somehow managed to censor myself when I got to the hospital and kept my language to PG-13. When the nurse came to check me, I fully expected her to tell me that I was 5cm dilated and ready for my epidural! Well, was I ever wrong! She told me that I was fully dilated to 10cm! I said "WHAT?!" "Can I still have some drugs please??" They said at this point there's not much purpose to get an epidural, I was ready to start pushing the baby out. I begged for some drugs for my back which was absolutely killing me from the contractions. But they told me that any drugs that they gave me would make my baby very drowsy. So there I was, a mere 3 hours after my first contraction, 10cm dilated, wheeled into the birthing room, with no drugs, not even an IV. It took all I had to push for the next 40 minuts or so until finally, at 7:53am, our baby boy arrived. When he came out of me I broke into a sob of relief that the labour was finally over. When they told me it was a boy, I was not surprised at all because I had been so convinced that it was going to be a boy! When they handed the baby to me on my chest I was so happy but at the same time in shock. So much had happened and none of it like the way we had planned or expected. Who knew that it would only take 4 hours for me to deliver my first baby? And on top of that, with no drugs whatsoever?! That seems overly ambitious even for me! Nevertheless, this was how our baby boy Jalen decided to arrive into this world and we now have the most amazingly perfect child and an incredibly memorable story.

Our new little family. Jalen came in at 7lbs 12oz and 19.5 inches.

The proud papa and Uncle Joon.

Cousin Gracie and baby Jalen.

Let The Count Down Begin

Last Friday was my last day at work. It's been a bit challenging getting motivated and totally concentrate on work the past few weeks because I knew I would be leaving soon. Nevertheless, I made sure I still gave at least 90% so that I did a good job transitioning all my work to the appropriate people. My coworkers have been quite supportive and they've also been impressed that I'm still able to get work done so late into my pregnancy. Because I started my transition over a month ago I feel pretty good that nothing is going to drop through the cracks when I leave. Now that I've started my maternity leave, it feels a bit strange not having to think about work anymore. I wonder whether the next three months is going to go by really fast or really slow or both? I have a feeling that on one hand, it'll fly by as time always does but it'll probably also feel like an eternity because so many things would have happened.

Now that work is off my mind, I'm officially in baby watch mode. My due date is May 17th but the baby can come any day. Myra gave birth a week ago 8 days ahead of her due date. Aaron and Jenny had their baby right on their due date just this week. It seems like there's a baby born every week now, can next week be my turn? I don't feel too nervous about the upcoming delivery because I am anxious to be not pregnant anymore. Although the delivery is a big scary unknown, I just tell myself that it'll only be a day or two which is nothing compared to my 9 months of pregnancy or the rest of my life as a parent. I haven't started having any contractions yet but my doctor tells me that my body is progressing nicely to prepare for labour. The baby's head is down which means that he or she is also getting ready to come out. The question is when?

The 9th Month!!

It's hard to believe that our little one is scheduled to arrive in about a month! To be honest, physically I'm ready to have the baby now! The last month of pregnancy has been a bit more difficult. Sleeping has become challenging and uncomfortable. I normally sleep on my back but at this stage of the pregnancy I have to sleep on my side so that I get better circulation. I have no problems falling asleep but I always wake up with aches in my neck and shoulders. I get up a couple of times in the middle of the night to switch sides and go to the bathroom. Sometimes my legs cramp up really bad in the morning and I have to use my labour breathing to get through it! My legs and feet swell up throughout the day from water retention. Not only that I have a hard time fitting into most of my shoes, I have trouble walking when my feet are swollen and stiff. I try to put my feet up during the day if I get a chance so that they don't get so puffy and unrecognizable by the evening. Of course then there's the additional weight. Because I retain so much water, my weight can fluctuate 4lbs between morning and evening. I've gained over 40lbs since the start of my pregnancy and I've kind of stopped keeping track. Carrying all that extra weight has certainly slowed me down when I walk. Although Rick did notice that my calves have gotten more muscular from supporting the additional weight!

Despite the physical discomfort, I'm still not quite ready for the baby to arrive yet. Over the last few weeks Rick and I have been spending every weekend getting things ready for the baby. We painted the baby's room and got a crib, changing table and glider. I know that the baby doesn't really need much at first but getting the room ready helps us mentally prepare for the baby's arrival. We just finished our childbirth and newborn classes a couple of weeks ago. The course was 2 hours each week for 7 weeks. Although most of the information in the class could have been found in most pregnancy books, Rick and I found the class useful because it highlighted certain things that we should be thinking about. I have a much better idea now what kind of birth I'd ideally like and I'm going to included my wishes in a birth plan. The instructor showed us a birth video every class so that not only would we know what it looks like for babies to be born we would no longer be shocked by it. Being with a roomful of expectant first time parents and going through the course made me feel a lot less nervous about the upcoming delivery. I'm planning to work up until my due date as long as the baby doesn't arrive before that. I've already started working on a transition plan to hand over my responsibilities to my coworkers. Starting the transition at work has really eased my anxiety because for a while I was having panic attacks about the baby arriving early and me leaving work dangling behind. Deep down, I know I will never be truly, 100% mentally ready for the baby to arrive. The physical discomforts that I'm feeling now is probably nothing compared to the challenges that I'm going to face when the baby is here. At the same time, I'm getting more and more excited about finally meeting the baby. I can't wait to finding out whether we're having a boy and a girl and I can't wait to see what the baby looks like.

Baby Shower Part II

Over Easter weekend, Rick's sister Betsy and Rick's mom Eileen threw me a baby shower in Seattle. The guests included relatives from Rick's family and our Seattle friends. 2007 is turning out to be a big baby boom year, so 4 of the girls at the shower are pregnant: Myra is expecting a boy in May, Trish is expecting her 2nd little girl in July, Arleen is expecting a boy in August and of course me in May. Rick and I actually know about 5 other couples who are also expecting babies in 2007. People have been saying that there must be something in the water in Seattle!

Betsy and Rick's mom went all out for the baby shower. We had lots of yummy food and Betsy made a ton of adorable customized chocolate favours. Taylor and her cousin Michelle organized the shower games. My favourite one was where you had to guess a baby related word by asking only yes and no questions. I received a ton of wonderful presents from everyone. My friend Ivy who lives in New York was so thoughtful as to send a gift to Betsy's house to surprise me. I really enjoyed the shower because it was just such a nice occasion for everyone to get together, catch up, eat and relax.


Presents!!

Pregnant, not fat.