About Time

Big Congrats to Jennifer and Chris who got engaged yesterday! Woohoo ....SO excited for you both!

Smile

Remember that little quirky smile I was telling you about a few posts ago...the one that's probably not really a smile but is awesome anyways. Well, I managed to capture it a few days ago....tell me this is NOT THE CUTEST!?!?!

Happy 1st Birthday!

to...OLIVIA!

Notice the bib she's wearing (santa claus) lol...my sister couldn't find another one...I thought it was pretty funny. Maybe I should have bought her a birthday bib instead of a raincoat.

Oh Baby

One week old and pretty in pink. Love those baby feet!
Daddy loves his baby girl!
Tired...Tired...and more Tired!
Getting weighed by the midwife on her home visit - Sarah is now 8 lbs 11oz and almost back to her birthweight.
Hands - Daddy, Mommy, and Baby!
Grandma's and Papa's 4 baby girls.
Bright-eyed (probably waiting to eat)
That's all for now...thanks for looking!

Myrna

Happy One Week Old

Week 1
It's been a week already since Sarah was born. It's been an unbelieveable week - trying and tiring but simply amazing and wonderful.

It took a couple of days after she was home for it to really sink in -- ok, this baby is OURS! The first realization:
Sarah was fussy and I started to sing to her - "hush little baby, don't say a word..." Well in the next line I've been used to singing "Auntie's gonna buy you a mockingbird..." I've sang it that way for almost 7 years now. I stopped myself...hmmm? That obviously doesn't fit anymore.
And then after our first rough night at home a part of me was thinking "It's okay, Tracey will be here to pick her up in the morning and then you can sleep. No big deal." And then, once again, the realization: "Myrna this baby is YOURS for keeps!"
And the third reminder came when Isabella (my middle niece) came to visit with my sister and her family and she didn't want to touch the baby or talk to the baby, she didn't like the baby...and she asked her mom if the baby was coming home with them. Tracey says, "No honey, this is not our baby. This is Auntie Myrna's baby. Sarah is staying at Auntie Myrna's house" and that seemed to make Isabella feel so much better.
Wow! Hit me kinda like a ton of bricks. This baby is really mine. Jamie and I are PARENTS, a family! You'd think that 9 months of pregnancy would have prepared me for that concept but not quite. Now that it's sunk in, I'm really lovin' it. We have a baby and she's so precious and absolutely lovely and we are truly blessed.

Breastfeeding - C'est Difficile!
When at the hospital they give you all kinds of nice little pamphlets and a booklet with all of the breastfeeding positions and the "dos and donts". There are diagrams of women with cute little perky breasts and the cute little baby with mouth agape approaching with calmness for the perfect latch.

But let us talk about MY reality:
Picture this - my boobs are frikkin ginormous. I spent my whole highschool life getting teased about small boobs and wishing for bigger ones. Now I understand the meaning of "be careful what you wish for" cause Boy! do I wish for those small boobs back? So here I am: Huge bowling balls on my chest. They are neither perky nor standing at attention and "waiting" for baby to approach like in the nice diagrams of those breastfeeding booklets, mine simply flop whichever way they so choose. And then there's the calm baby in the picture. MY baby, when hungry thus far, is a little savage with arms flailing and mouth, agape alright, but with quite an aggressive chomp! I'm sitting there holding baby in one achy arm in cradle position, holding my heavy boob with the other hand, trying to securely manuever the baby's head with one hand toward said boob, trying to avoid having my areola scratched to pieces with those razor-sharp little nails, trying to get the correct latch so that I can prevent my already cracked and bleeding nipples from getting even more cracked and bleeding, trying not to cry when the latch is successful but hurts like heck for the first few seconds, trying to reach for a pillow to put under the baby so my arm doesn't fall off...keep in mind I still have to hold the boob so it doesn't cover my baby's nose and smother her...and then finally we are all set for about 45 minutes of sucking like a cow hooked up to one of those milking machines. Phew!

And then when she's all done and I put her back down into her bassinette to sleep...she looks so peaceful and she gets a little restful "smile" on her face. I know they say it's not really a smile and simply more of a reflex or a muscle spasm thing or gas or something. But personally, here's what I think of that smile - I think God did it on purpose...for new mommy's who are tired and sore and maybe even a little frustrated...cause when I see that crooked little smile I could cry for the simplicity of its cuteness and for how much love I feel for her...

...and that in itself makes it all worthwhile!

My Baby Story

After watching numerous episodes to "prepare" myself, I now have my own story to share.

Introducing...

Sarah Lillian Hynes

Born Monday, Mar 5th @22:29 pm

Weight: 8lbs 13 oz

Length: 21-1/4 inches

I suppose it probably started last week when I was feeling really "off" but of course I had no idea when true labour might actually start. I woke up on Monday morning, shifted myself to a more comfortable position and *GUSH*. It was just a small gush (the same thing happened to me on saturday morning but with no further "leakage") but as I kept changing my pj's and going back to bed the same thing kept happening - more gushes of fluid. So I called my sister and Jamie and then I called my midwives. The midwives kept checking in throughout the morning for progress and were convinced it was most likely my water had broke (duh!). But at this point, I was only have mild cramping here and there and nothing I would really consider contractions. Jamie came home, lunchtime came and went with a call from midwife, Shirley, saying the hospital had "NO BEDS" Eeek! Are you kidding me? So she told me we should make our way to her office in Mississauga (close to the hospital) for her to do an exam and assess me. On the way to Mississauga, I really finally started to have timed contractions - anywhere from 4 -5 minutes and lasting 30 -45 seconds. My exam told Shirley I was about 2cm's dilated and about 50% effaced. Finally the hospital had a bed and we made our way down to Trillium in Mississauga. I honestly don't even know what time it was at this point - probably 2:30 or so, I wasn't really paying attention to the clock. We ended up still having to wait for my room, I was progressively getting harder and harder contractions, and I was literally soaked in amniotic fluid (quite embarassing in the labour and delivery waiting room with other people). Finally I was checked in and on my next check (3 hours after initial) I was almost 5cm's dilated and close to fully effaced. At this point this midwife was really surprised I was having such hard and long contractions (about 2 1/2 minutes apart lasting about 60 seconds, not much relief in between). And I honestly thought I was going to be one of those girls who could handle the pain and even though I was technically progressing quite well, I all but screamed for the epidural. Shirley said, "We can try something else - maybe some morphine first or we could try the whirlpool" and I'm like, "No, I NEED the epidural. I can't do this anymore" and lucky for me the anaesthesiologist (sp?) was on the floor with 2 people ahead of me. In about a half hour, I was hooked up to the drugs, started to lose feeling on one side but still having contractions that I could really feel on my right side so I had to get another little dose. Christa had arrived in between this to visit with lovely flowers from her and Jen (thanks girls!) and by the time she left at 8pm, I was almost fully dilated and soon ready to push. My sister and Erykah both arrived as well and I was so happy Tracey was there. I wasn't sure how I was going to feel about my family seeing me like that but I'm so thankful she was there to give her support and help me through the birth. And I was also SO scared about the epidural and hated the thought of losing all sensation to the point that I wouldn't be able to adequately push but I was so relieved when I could still fairly easily feel the pressure and tension of each contraction, pushed really well, and after 1 hour 48 minutes @10:29pm, Sarah was born! What a relief! Phew! And let me tell ya, good thing I had that epidural cause (not to gross you out) but I seriously tore and had stitches in 3 different areas. Shirley said she didn't even count the stitches cause she was too focused on getting me together again. Ugh! Will things ever be the same down there?!!

Since baby and I were both doing very well I was allowed to leave shortly after the birth. But Sarah, after inspection of the placenta, etc. (kinda funny sidenote - know how my uterus is heart-shaped?, my placenta/amniotic sac was also heart-shaped! Neat!) ...Anyways..., Sarah ended up having a 2-vessel cord (supposed to be 3) and we had to wait for a consult with the pediatrician to make sure everything was okay. I barely slept at all Monday night but Dr. Simone came in very early to give me the a-okay, all was well, and baby and I were free to go home. We left the hospital mid-afternoon on Tuesday and I was so relieved to be in my own house, my own bed. Jamie's been super helpful running up and down the stairs for me, fetching whatever I need, feeding me whatever I want. He's been taking great care of both of his babies. lol :)

The last 2 days have been quite challenging, especially with the breastfeeding. My milk hasn't come in yet and Sarah constantly wants to nurse because she isn't getting full enough. I'm tired and sore but I'm very happy. God has truly blessed us with this little miracle! With that I should say goodbye for now. Sarah is napping and I should be doing the same.

I'll post more pics soon.

SO MUCH to talk about

Yeah I know it's been forever. I'm not usually like this. I love blogging and I've tried to post but for some reason my computer at work hasn't been letting me sign-in to blogger lately. Weird. But now, I'm at home and guess what??!!! I'm FINALLY DONE WORK!! Technically speaking, I was supposed to be at work today but I decided against it. First of all, it was pretty stormy here yesterday - lots of snow and freezing rain. Normally it takes me about 40 minutes to get home - yesterday it was 2 HOURS! Yup, so the ladies in the office said their goodbyes to me yesterday when I was leaving and warned me not to come in if the weather was still questionable this morning. And to be quite honest, it was icey on our street first thing this morning but otherwise it's been a fairly okay day. So I'm sure I COULD have made it but...nah! I just can't believe I'm done work...DONE for a whole year. Don't think it's quite sunk in yet but I know I'm really looking forward to it. I do feel bad about not getting to say goodbye to everyone in our plant at work before I left so I think I'll take a trip in there next week when I have my next midwife appointment.



Speaking of work, on Wednesday we had our monthly potluck in the office and the ladies hosted me a wonderful BABY SHOWER! It was so much fun - what can I say? I love getting spoiled and opening presents. I got 4 (yes, FOUR) homemade blankets. One is a patchwork quilt and the other 3 are crocheted/knit and are all absolutely the most gorgeous creations ever. I love them all. I also got a cool playskool play center for when the baby is 3mths and older. I got diaper shirts, receiving blankets, sleepers, diapers, baby booties, "Love you Forever" book by Robert Munsch, and a hand-knit jacket and matching hat that's just so tiny and soft and cute, I can't wait to see the baby in it. Oh, and work also got a bunch of money from people who wanted to give me something (mostly the guys) and they put it into a gift card for us to use towards purchasing our stroller, the only item we had left to buy.



And that was my 2nd baby shower - I already had a "regular" baby shower at home hosted by my sister with all my friends and family. That was on February 18th and once again, I got super-spoiled. There were 32 of us in my little house in total (including quite a few kids, of course). And here's what I got:

From my momma and dad - change table

Granny - diaper bag

Jamie's parents - 3 in 1 car seat

Jamie's sister, Vanessa - this really cool bath toy holder thingy from Boon that I've never seen before but totally love love love.

My sister - scrapbook and swaddle blanket (cause I like swaddle babies...like peas in a pod)

Christa Jen and Steph - bumper pad and ruffle for the crib

Joann - sleeper set with teddy bear on the bum and matching blanket

Vicki - Mortimer the Moose by Lamaze he he, love him...also sleeper, lotions, scrapbook stuff and most importantly, an easter cream egg for mommy-t0-be.

Aunt Rowelle, Cavelle, Vicky #2, and Nanny Perkins - bunch of diaper shirts, monitor, safety first kit, blanket, sleeper, etc.

Aunt Valerie - sleepers and a nice throw blanket with the bedtime prayer embroidered in it.

Aunt Dianne - gift card (awesome!) and my uncle John insisted on sending along a gift of these "bugs" that dangle from the infant carrier/car seat and make little noises and stuff. Very cute :)

Cousin Michelle - Dream glow pooh, scrapbook, little swimmers, booties, bunny and blanket set, 1st year calendar, etc.

Cousin Wendy - Lamb mobile for the crib and other misc items.

Bobbi-Lynn - the sweetest most fluffy infant winnie the pooh bathrobe you ever did see!!! with bibs, diaper shirts, etc.

My little cousin Tyler - he's 10 and so thoughtful - wanted to give the baby one of his own turtle toys...and also a rattle and a sippy cup and a homemade card.

Erykah, Bella and Olivia - baby hat and mittens and a homemade card (I just love kids homemade cards!)

Korie - a gazillion little things - cups and bowls, powder, plugin covers, tide pens, bottle brushes, bottle nipples, etc etc

Kim - this really awesome towel/blanket she made. It's hard to picture without actually seeing it but it's a big bath sheet that you put around your neck to keep your hands free and your clothes dry for when you're bathing the baby. So neat.

Monica - Lullaby player for the crib

Vanessa Goosney - a laundry basket filled to the brim with every little item imagineable.

Marianne - scrapbook stuff, wipes and change pad.

Vicky #3 - pj set, diaper shirt, picture frame, blanket.

Kayla - sleepers, bottle, baby book, lotions, pacifiers, Pooh shirt and hat.

Jen #2 - safety kit, froggie toy, bunny blanket, crib sheet.

Wow! That's a lot...will post pics later of the shower too.



And now that I'm at home...

There's a part of me (the part of me that's waddling and uncomfortable and constantly having braxton hicks) that's anxious for the baby to arrive. Although I have to say it drives me nuts when women keep saying "I just want this baby out!" like they're all angry about being pregnant. Honestly, there was a lady at one of the doctors appointments I was at during our 28th week who I was talking to and kept saying she just wanted it to be overwith. And I just felt like saying "You know what? You really need to think about what you're saying! There's a reason why a pregnancy is 38 - 42 weeks and if you DID have your baby now you'd be eating your words because who knows if he/she would survive or what problems they might have." But anyways, I bit my tongue and thanked God for a healthy happy pregnancy.
And on the other hand, there's a part of me that really would love to stay pregnant. I think I'll really miss being pregnant and I think I may need this next couple of weeks to relax and enjoy some alone time before the "big day".
And then there's the realization that this baby really doesn't give a crap about what I think and will simply arrive whenever he/she is ready to meet the world. SO nervous about that part!

So now I'm thinking that I really want to keep myself on somewhat of a schedule even before the baby arrives. I feel like I need to keep going like being at home is now my "job" including getting up at a decent time, eating regularly scheduled meals, actually getting dressed instead of staying in pj's, having a list of chores to do...I really don't like the idea of sitting around and watching tv all day and then feeling like i've done nothing at the end of the day. Any suggestions for keeping motivated cause it really would be so easy to become a couch potato?

Ah, my kitty cat is dreaming. He's curled up on the pillow like a person and keeps twitching and making little noises in his sleep. He he :) Not sure if you can actually see him against the white duvet...
















And last but certainly not least...

HAPPY 30th BIRTHDAY TO MY WONDERFULLY AMAZING HUBBY!!! (who likes to make sure I remember he's amazing by telling me constantly about how much "stuff" he deserves on his one special day). He he...who am I to disagree? Have a great day babe! (Hope you liked your cake - chocolate made from scratch!)