One month

Baby girl is one month old today! I cannot believe it has already been a whole month since since my baby was  born. I know this is silly, but it makes me sad that the time is going by so fast. She has already changed in so many ways.

Newborn picture!!

 One month old!

First ever bath!

 First bath at home 

(okay, so she wasn't a month old, but this picture is just so stinkin cute!)

Some of the changes I have noticed:

-She sleeps much better at night. Goes about 4 hours between feedings now!

-She will sometimes mimic our facial expressions (like sticking out her tongue)

-She coos and caas, and also smiles while she is awake

-She seems more content when she is awake. She used to cry and was fussy when she was awake

-She grabs things (hence the reason I cut my hair!)

-She sleeps in her own room during nap time now

-She doesn't always need me to rock her to sleep. She can fall asleep without being "put" to sleep.

-She's bigger!! No longer wearing newborn diapers (partly because we are out!), and some of her newborn clothes are getting a little tight. Not to mention that she weighed 9lbs at her last doctor appointment!

New "Mom" do

Well...I just went for it. I decided to just get it cut. It's actually not really what I wanted, but it'll do. And luckily for me, my hair grows fast. So soon it will be where I want it. For now though, it's out of Jaelyn's reach, and that's all that matters!! 

Much shorter than I anticipated. But...it's not bad.

Jaelyn waking up

Jaelyn pooping!!!

Falling back asleep after her massive diaper explosion.

Time for a Change

Well, I suppose my blog is no longer about my Life as a Pregnant Woman (or is it? dun dun dun!). I am now a new mom (with a baby that is waking up from her nap. So I'd  better hurry), and my blog must indicate that. So...title change.

And since change is in the air...I am considering a little change myself. I feel as though a haircut is in order. I don't know why I always feel like I need to cut my hair after a big life event (chopped it all off and dyed it red after I got married), but I do.

I've just discovered that it's nearly impossible to take a shower, let alone dry and straighten my hair everyday. So perhaps a shorter mom haircut is in order. And while I'm at it, I'm thinking about dying my hair back to it's normal color so that that is also less maintenance. Of course, Phil loves my long blonde hair (did I mention that he now wants me to go bleach blonde?!), and I still need to make my husband happy.
Perhaps we can compromise; he will blow dry and straighten my hair, and I will keep it long and (bleach) blonde.

I haven't made any decisions yet. But, I'm definitely leaning towards the shorter hair. Especially now that Jaelyn has taken to grabbing it and pulling it out. Perhaps I'll make a decision within the week.....

3 Weeks

It has been 3 weeks since I've given birth, and I must say, it's getting surprisingly easier. It's like, as soon as I hit the three week mark, I finally got the hang of it. We sort of have a routine now. Things aren't as unpredictable as they were in the very beginning. I'm actually starting to get to know my baby.
It's quite exciting. But more than that, it's comforting and encouraging.

I no longer feel overwhelmed and unhappy when Jaelyn has her fussy time in the evenings. I've begun a little routine that seems to tire her out and keeps me sane. She usually wakes up from her last nap when Phil is going to  bed- around 8pm. And then her and I just hang out, watching t.v., cuddling, walking round the living (I typically do the walking), etc. Sometimes I use her to exercise. Who knew how much exercise you could get carrying around a newborn!?!
Then around 10 pm I give her a bath (most evenings, not every), then I give her a little massage with some lotion, then jammie time. Finally she eats around 10:30 and usually falls asleep around 11pm or so.

It's a fun little routine that I'm beginning to enjoy and look forward to. And ya know what...tonight she didn't even have her really long crying spell that she ALWAYS has at night. So maybe she's getting the hang of things too, and feels more comfortable.

Okay, now I'm distracted by her. Sometimes I just have to stare at her! So I'm gonna go do that instead of writing any more :-)

I LOVE MY BABY!

Baby Blues

We have all heard about the infamous Baby Blues that people talk about. I was warned that it happens to over 50% of women, but in my mind I wasn't one that would be affected by this. Throughout my whole pregnancy I felt like I was on top of my emotions, and that I never got carried away with the hormonal surges that made me sad or angry or whatever (perhaps my husband has a different story to tell...). And so I believed that once I had the baby that I had been longing for, nothing would be different.

Boy was I wrong. Being hormonal and overwhelmed in the days and weeks after giving birth is normal. But I certainly haven't been feeling very normal. I feel like an absolute mess. And I have felt like a failure at times. Even though I was warned about the Baby Blues, nothing could have prepared me for how much I would cry. I know that it is all due to a mixture of hormones, exhaustion, and recovering from birth. But whatever the reasons, it sure is tough getting through these first few weeks.

And while it is still difficult at times (like when she only sleeps for about 10-15 minutes at a time during the night), I know that this stage will pass eventually and she will grow up faster than I want or imagine. So...while it is hard to function on little to no sleep, I'm trying to cherish every moment. Even the ones that make me feel insane.
And when my baby is crying inconsolably, which makes me cry inconsolably, I can look at  her tiny frame and thank God for such and incredible blessing because I know that someday she will be all grown up and I will miss even these moments.

Also, I have a great support system in my husband. What a wonderful husband and father he is! He knows when I'm at my breaking point, ready to sob at the next cry our baby lets out. And so he will take her and let me have a relaxing bubble bath, or whatever it is that I need. It's so amazing to have a supportive partner in all of this.

Yes, I did have the baby

It has been almost 2 weeks since Jaelyn made her debut. It's been a crazy time trying to figure out a newborn, and also trying to figure out how to survive on sleep deprivation. So, the blog has been on hold until I found some time to just sit and think.

And with only getting about an hour of sleep last night, I'm not sure why I decided right now would be the opportune time to write up a little post. Jaelyn is finally asleep, and I think that I should be joining her. Hopefully she doesn't wake up as soon as I lay down. That seems to be our routine lately.

Anyway...the information you have all been waiting for:

Jaelyn Elizabeth Kemp was born on May 29, 2012 at 11:01 pm. She was an extremely healthy baby, weighing 7lbs 9.5oz (not the 8+ lbs the doctor guesstimated) and 21.5 inches long.

The whole labor and delivery thing was not at all what I expected it to be. Hearing countless horror stories from other women, I just knew that I was going to have a terrible delivery. And so I expected the very worst. 

How wrong I was! I was totally surprised by how easy it all seemed.

We were scheduled for an induction at 8am on Tuesday. I really didn't want to be induced, but...and let's just be honest here, I really didn't want to be pregnant any longer either. I was just so ready to meet my baby. And see my toes again.

By 9:30 they had started me on petocin and broken my water. How totally uncomfortable! Water leaking out of you all day is just not fun. I held off on getting an epidural for several reasons. One, I didn't want a giant needle in my back. It totally freaks me out. Two, I didn't want to have to get a catheter. That also really freaks me out. And three, it costs SO MUCH! I was trying to take the less expensive route and just endure. 

Well the enduring was going quite well. I was having contractions, but they were definitely bearable. But around the afternoon/early evening the doctor said that I really wasn't making great progress. And if I did get the epidural, it would make me relax, which could help the baby move down more and all that doctor lingo jargon stuff.

Eventually I just agreed to it. And boy was it a great decision!! I felt great! And I felt no pain until about 9:30 pm. I was certain that the epidural was wearing off, and I continued to push the button frantically, hoping to get some more juice in my system. Of course, it doesn't work like that. But when you're in pain, you don't think very rationally.

And apparently things were progressing quite rapidly. The nurse checked me around 10pm, and said I was at 8cm. Phil was trying to tell me jokes to get my mind off of the pain. But all he really ever got out was "A priest walked into a bar". Over and over again, a priest walked into a bar. Nothing else every happened. It was a bit amusing to see him getting nervous about all that was about to happen. Around 10:30 I called the nurse and told her I was feeling more pressure (And here I thought the epidural would help me NOT feel the pain. Pish posh!). She checked me again and said it was time to push.  Everyone was told to go to the waiting room, and they anticipated being there several more hours.

The nurse said the doctor would be there in about 10-15 minutes. She strolled in as everything was getting underway and delivered my baby at 11:01pm. I pushed for approximately 20-30 minutes.

And here are some pictures to prove that the whole thing really did happen: