Babywise

So I've heard wonderful things about this "Babywise" book. Everyone I've talked to that's done it has raved about the results and how their baby was sleeping through the night at record times. So I've read it and started the strategies to get Riley on a schedule and hopefully sleeping through the night by the time she's 8 weeks old (which seems like an eternity from our tiny little number of week 2~ mommy needs her beauty rest).

My problem with this book is letting Riley "cry it out". We' ve tried this twice and we've learned that letting her cry it out means she is not going to nap during that feed/wake/sleep cycle. I realize it's important to keep them on a schedule, but at what cost? She needs that nap, regardless of how she falls asleep.

So I've talked to a couple of friends about their strategies and theories. If you have a strategy of theory, please share, I'm all ears.

Proud daddy

Woody has been the cutest thing about Riley. I have never seen a daddy so proud of his little girl. The night she was born, he spent several hours taking pictures, downloading them onto the computer, sending emails of them, and creating slide shows of them. He asked the nurse how to swaddle. He is better than I am at it now. It's very possible that he has changed more diapers than I have. Not to worry, that will change when school starts back.

He is always right there with me when I am nursing, even though there isn't much he can do. But he's still there for moral support, something I have found to be very needed right now. I told him last night that I feel like we have our own secret club. Because only he and I know what we go through every night with our precious one. Her birth has brought us so close together, something I didn't know could be done since we are already like peas and carrots.

Riley Grace Woody

True to my form, I have been neglecting my blog... but for very good reason.

On December 17th at 9:37pm, Riley was born. She weighed 6 pounds and 15 ounces and was 19 1/2 inches long. As you can see, she is absolutely gorgeous. Her birth was rather fast, I went from 3 1/2 centimeters at 6:00pm to complete at 8:20. I was probably complete before that time, but I was only checked twice. Nice.

They didn't check me before giving me an epidural. Apparently I was complete when they administered it because it didn't take effect. Refund please. Oh well, hind sight is 20/20. So I pretty much feel like a mega rock star for delivering her the way I did. I only pushed for 22 minutes, thank God because that HURT.

Speaking of thanking God, we have sent up many thanks for Riley. When she was born, the umbilical cord was wrapped around her neck. Dr. Cole was very calm about it and took care of it immediately. I didn't think twice about it once she started crying, until the next day. Riley was having trouble regulating her body temp, which is the baby equivalent of a fever. And her white blood cell count was extremely high (50,000 when it should have been 10,000). They wanted to start an IV immediately and start administering antibiotics (did I spell that right?). Because of that, they took her to the NICU. Can you say scary? Not only am I a new mommy and afraid I've done something wrong, I'm also hyped up on hormones and everything else that comes along with giving birth, so I comprehended about 50% of what the nurses and doctors were telling me. Mom works at Arkansas Children's Hospital and I've heard some stories from that unit.

I tried to stay strong, then I thought, "What am I doing? I don't need to be strong right now. I'm the mommy. If anyone should be upset, it's me!!" So I let the flood gates open and started crying and praying. Then we started sending texts and emails asking for prayers. It was amazing how quickly I felt the prayers start working. All of a sudden, a wave of calm and peace fell over me. I knew God was in control and everything was going to be fine. I was still able to hold her and nurse her which brought me so much comfort, because seeing her in the little plastic box on her way up to NICU was the worst feeling I've ever experienced. Riley responded very quickly to the antibiotics and her white cell count dropped over half way in 24 hours. She was released from there in 48 hours and we were discharged the following day. Praise the Lord.

More posts to follow. Those might not be as long. :)

3 weeks and counting

It's official. I am uncomfortable and stretched to the limit. I have 3 weeks left, but I'm not sure she's going to wait that long. Everything is becoming difficult; sleeping, eating, moving, sitting. You know what I am talking about.

On another note, Woody and I had some pictures taken the day before Thanksgiving. If you get bored, or want to laugh at how swollen I am, check out this website. http://www.cinemikephoto.com/
What was I thinking, having pictures taken at this stage in the game?

More Pregnant moments

Last Friday as I was trying to leave school, I realized I couldn't find my keys. I never lose my keys. I pride myself in knowing where they are at all times. For example, I know that right now my keys are in my car in the garage. Anywho, I couldn't find them on Friday and I had a moment of panic. So I called Woody, who had already left school, to tell him he was probably going to have to come get me since I couldn't find my keys. So he turned around and headed back to get me. I thought I'd be considerate and meet him in the parking lot. I had to walk past my car (I did gaze in the car, mentally saying goodbye to it until I found my keys) and I noticed that the doors were unlocked. Then I got all excited because I thought maybe I left them in my car. So I check the backseat ~I had grabbed some potluck stuff from the backseat that morning~ but saw no keys. Then I opened up the drivers door and peered in. They were there, in the ignition. Seriously. I laughed with relief, and here comes Woody. Oops. He looked at me, shook his head, and silently turned the truck around to go home, again. So my hero didn't need to save me after all. Apparently I need to pay more attention when I'm getting out of the car in the mornings.

Oh, by the way, baby countdown is currently at 30 days. 1 month. 15 days of school. But who's counting?

Two peas in a pod

Not us, our daughters. We had the Smith's over a few nights ago for dinner and some hangin' out. Woody (the ultimate camera man at all times) snapped a couple of pictures of us in all of our glory. If we would have known the camera was making an appearance, we might have dressed nicer. But those comfy pants and a cozy T-shirt are hard to beat after a hard day's work.

Brooke was due yesterday and we are waiting for Millie's arrival. I can't wait to meet her. Brooke and Bryan are going to be the most fabulous parents. And with their genes, their little girl is going to be as sweet as the day is long. And I'm so excited about introducing Millie to Riley when her turn comes along (in 60 days, but who's counting?). I hope they are two peas in a pod. But for right now, the are two buns in the oven, just baking away.

Still kickin'

It's been so long since I've posted anything, mainly because we've been so busy. And when we aren't busy, I'm sleeping. Sleep is my new best friend. I try to spend as much time with sleep as possible lately. I heard a rumor that my new best friend is going to disappear in about 10 weeks, so I'm trying to stock up on quality time. I think I'm pretty lucky right now that sleep and I still get along. Riley does not interfere when I spend time in my unconscious, dream infested state. The only thing currently getting in the way is my bladder. I am on a very regimented schedule of a bathroom break at least once every hour in the middle of the night. Luckily, Sleep pulls me right back into its presence. I do truly love my friend and hope to spend lots of time with it before December 25th-ish.

And can I just say that the cankles have somewhat retreated?! My best educated guess is that the cooler weather is to get the credit here. Whatever the reason, I am most thankful. Why, this morning, I actually fit into my suede boots for church!!!! You would think this put me in an over the top happy mood, but my terrible hair day prevented that. Oh well, tomorrow is another day. I might even try to wear my comfy boots to school tomorrow, of course, I will pack the flip flops as a faithful back up. :)

Half way there...ish

Here is the possible midway point of the nursery. Mom and dad (or Nonna and Poppy as Riley will call them) came up this weekend and helped us get some more stuff done with the cute room. I didn't want to take too many pictures and give it all away, but you can definitely not miss the pink pink pink walls. I love them. I never thought I would love pink walls, but I cannot help myself.

The Nursery

Riley's nursery has been a process that includes the thoughts and ideas of my mom and the painting expertise of Woody and myself. Here are the before pictures...

I tried to take pictures of three of the four walls. The other wall consists of two french doors for the closet. I didn't think anyone would mind not seeing that.

We hope to get the nursery done in the next 3 weeks or so, so stay tuned for some fun stuff!!

Pregnant Moment

I've been told that the mind seems to dull a bit due to pregnancy. Granted, I'm not normally forgetful or a clutz, but things have changed. Example: Saturday night. We had grilled out with my parents and I cleaned the kitchen as normal. Sunday as I was cleaning the kitchen, I found the vegetables. These vegetables are the ones that were intended to go into the fridge right after dinner for an enjoyable side at lunch on Sunday. But I didn't find them in the fridge, they were in the cabinet with the plastic bowls, etc. Awesome.

Cooper

During the summer, we dog-sat for our friends', Brien and Stephanie, when they went on vacation. Their dog's name is Cooper and he is a black cocker spaniel. Just the cutest thing. If I actually spent money to buy dogs, I would have bought a cocker spaniel. But instead, I like to inherit them. :) Anyway, Cooper spent most of his days staring out our back door. I would let him outside thinking that he needed to use the yard, if you know what I mean, but he would just sit on the deck. I imagine that he was watching out for squirrels, which we have plenty of.

Luckily, Cooper and Calli get along very well. She tries to play with him while he tries to mount her. While at first this was very disturbing to me, it got to be funny when she would just sit down out of boredom. Bruiser has no clue there is another dog in the house. He just wants to be loved on and lick human hands, legs, knees, feet, what ever he can get to.

Movements

I think my favorite part of pregnancy has been feeling all of the movements. It's So amazing to feel her moving around and to imagine what part of her is sticking out of my belly. She's big enough now that you can hear her heartbeat if you put your ear on my stomach. That is so stinkin' neat! That's something I cannot experience, but I get to experience everything else. It's like we have our own little world and our own little secrets about when she likes to move and when she likes to be still. She's also big enough now that you can see her movements through my shirt. That's fun to watch. I don't know if I'll ever be that mom who can know which body part is protruding to make my stomach form odd shapes. But I'm gonna try! Hopefully when I visit the dr again, he can instruct me on how to do that...

Camels and me

I have something in common with camels. No, it isn't my smell or spitting. We both hold lots o' water. Now, don't get me wrong, I have had a very easy pregnancy. I've never gotten sick, I feel good a vast majority of the time, and people keep telling me I am a cute pregnant woman (who am I to argue?) But I do hold lots of water. Luckily, I am not holding it in humps on my back, but in my legs, ankles, and feet.

I have been eating right (most of the time), and have been diligent about doing yoga at 5:20am on 4 mornings a week. I drink water like it's going to run out before sundown. So I shouldn't be gaining mega amounts of weight. Uh huh. I got on the scale for my weekly weigh-in. I've gained 5 pounds this week. And since my pre-pregnancy pants still fit, I know I'm not holding the extra lbs in my butt or hips. So where in the world am I hiding this weight? Well, of course the belly is holding some weight, but I just want to believe it's all this water and swelling in my lower legs.

I'm holding out hope that the cooler weather will help some of this water retention go away. If not, I guess I'll be that woman that brags she lost 25 pounds before leaving the hospital (because its all just water)...

The tailbone's connected to the...

Can someone please enlighten me as to why in the world my tailbone has been hurting me for the past week? Seriously. I'm sure it has something to do with my hips spreading or some pregnancy phenomenon like that. But man, that sucker hurts! Maybe I should stop sitting on the floor so much... This is probably a good idea anyway since it's getting a little tougher for me to get up off the floor. And I've got 15 weeks left, it's not gonna get any better from here. Ooooh! Maybe I should purchase one of those donut cushions to sit on!

Shower time!

My sweet friend Summer and I hosted a baby shower for another precious friend of ours, Brooke. Brooke is 8 weeks ahead of me, which is great so I can get all of the low down from her before it happens to me, or I can call her and ask for advice and clues to what my body is doing. But on a less selfish note, I am so excited for Brooke and Bryan. I know they are going to be such naturals at the parenting thing.

Summer and I made Brooke a diaper cake. I had always heard of these things, and people seemed to "awww" over them. And I thought, cute idea! At first I checked them out online. Riiiigghhhtt. Not for $150 (beginning prices). So Summer and I thought we'd try out our creative hand. It turns out, we aren't half bad! At least we were pretty happy about the way it turned out, especially since neither one of us had made one before. I think I should go into business doing this... But I don't think I could really charge people a Ben Franklin and a half.

The shower went so well, and the food was fabulous. :) I had to pull myself away from the cookies more than once. And Brooke got some super cool stuff too. It made me so excited to meet their daughter, only a few more weeks.

Yep, Still Got It

As I was driving to work one day last week (I know, I should have written then, but life has been busy), I heard a honk. Now, I drive through Bella Vista every morning. The drive to school should take me 15 minutes, but with morning traffic, takes more like 25. This is all due to traffic in BV. So we are all packed on that road like sardines, but to hear a honk is a little unusual. I look up and see 6 smiling faces. A truckload of construction workers waving at me. I actually laughed out loud. If only I could have stood up and showed them my belly. I did manage to put my left hand on the steering wheel to show off some bling. Then I passed them.

I hear another honk. What? Another group of construction workers. I assume they are from the same company as the two trucks looked the same. I laughed almost all the way to work after that. So I've still got it, at least in the face I guess!

Cankles

Funny. The day school started, my ankles decided to double in size. After that first Monday, I looked down and thought "who's ankles are these?" Then I realized they were mine, as which point I thought "It looks like someone crammed softballs into my ankles". Seriously, huge ankles. Officially cankles- no differentiation between the calves and ankles. They go down at night a lot, but they are still a bit swollen every morning. My left one is more swollen (my theory here is that is the side I sleep on, so it's less elevated all night long). And you KNOW it's just way too hot to be wearing support hose, although I do see that in my future.

But on a more fun note, I can feel Riley moving in there all the time. Today as I was teaching in 4th hour (last class of the day), I could feel some body part poking out of my belly. It was the size of my fist. I SO want to know what body parts are protruding when she does that. But it's just so fun to know how much she is moving and growing in there. It makes that second helping of everything I eat seem okay. (remind me of that when I can't fit into my maternity jeans)

Seriously?

Some people in this world have no filter between their brains and their mouths. I see this everyday at the junior high level, but we have to give them a break. Most of their parents have never told them about the filter and the ones who have just haven't quite mastered the skill yet. That's okay, that's what makes them children.

But once you reach the age of awareness (I'm guessing this is early adulthood, or maybe even before), your filter should always be in place, especially around pregnant women.

Take for instance, the cashier at Las Fajitas. My parents stopped in town on their way home from Denver and took me out to eat. As we are standing at the register waiting to pay, one of the girls asked me how far along I was. The secret villain inside me wanted to say "What do you mean?" But since I'm not that mean I told her I was 20 weeks. Then her counterpart, the one working the register, told me that all of her friends that have had babies were my size right before they delivered. Seriously? Why don't you just call me fat to my face? Oh wait, you did. How do you respond to that? My secret villain wanted to ask her if all of her friends were 14 when they had their babies, or if their babies were malnourished at birth. But since I'm not that mean, or that fast of a thinker, I just looked at her (probably with my mouth hanging wide open, catching flies). I guess these people don't realize how self conscious a pregnant woman is about her size. And if you are one of those people who isn't self conscious about it all, please tell me your secret.

I also love it when people tell you, "well, I only gained 12 pounds with my first, and 11 pounds with my second." in that snooty, I'm better than you sort of way. I want to say "KISS IT" since I surpassed those pounds back in the teen weeks of this pregnancy. Seriously, where is the filter? Should I write a letter to the editor? Should I write a column about this to every self respecting newspaper in the area - or in the region? Wait, maybe I should write a column in every gossip magazine, since my evil villain believes these people are just reading about celeb hook ups instead of the true news. Man, I am MEAN! But I would never say anything to a pregnant woman about her size!

Panel Pants

When my friend Jodie was pregnant, I admit that I made fun of her panel pants. Well, it wasn't her I was making fun of, it was the words "panel pants". It just rolls so easily off the tongue. Go ahead, say it three times, you'll catch on. Anyway, she warned me that I would love panel pants when I was pregnant and would want to wear them all the time after that. She was right. I only have one pair of panel pants, a pair of maternity jeans I won off of eBay. And let me tell you, they are so comfy I could almost sleep in them (if I was sleeping at all these days).

So Jodie, I stand corrected. You were right. Panel Pants are definitely comfortable. But I still get a kick out of saying the words. I think I may need to go buy some panel pants for my professional dress at school. Then I can tell everyone that listens that I am wearing panel pants. (and Jodie, I'll even put you on my "friends" links, if you tell me how). :)

It's a....

BABY GIRL!!!!!

We found out yesterday around 2ish, but had lots to do before our friends, the Fleers, came over last night to watch the finale of "So You Think You Can Dance". I'm sorry if I didn't call you. I only got about half way through my phone book before my battery went dead.

We are SO excited to be having a baby girl. Now that I can refer to her as "her" instead of "it", it's so much more real. And to see her little body rolling around inside me was AMAZING. I tried my best to keep my calm and just soak it all in, but a couple of tears found their way out of my eyes.

Her name is Riley Grace Woody, is that not the cutest name ever?! I can't wait to meet her. We didn't get a good look at her profile, and you know that straight-on face always looks like an alien. But her legs! She is going to be a soccer player. She has some long legs, which she is currently using to kick me any time she is awake. The technician that did the ultrasound commented on how much she is moving. I am going to go ahead and give Woody the credit for that. I think she is getting his energy levels.

And now, I must shop for pinks.

Nesting

It has begun. This nesting phase I've heard so much about. I started with some random things in the kitchen, then I cleaned out all of the clothes that don't fit in my closet. I officially have 3 tops that fit. That should be fun next week when school starts. What a GREAT reason to do some shopping.

Last week I went through one of our two extra bedroom closets. Then I made Woody go through and throw out his old stuff. Unlike most couples (I presume), he is the packrat and I'm the one who wants to throw everything away. Now, we haven't even started with the closet in the nursery. I am secretly afraid of that closet. It is full of things we need to keep. I really hate to say we've already grown out of this house, but we have definitely grown out of our closets.

Now, to have a garage sale or to give it all to charity, that is the question.

Week 19

I have really enjoyed every week of this pregnancy. No sickness, no nausea, just a little tired. Well, during the 1st trimester I was a lot tired. There was always a severe possibility of me falling asleep at my desk while my students were reading. But I digress.

The Nest Baby is a website that gives the size of the baby each week. It started out the size of a poppy seed. This week, week 19, it is the size of a mango. I used the think that pregnancies lasted for such a long time. Until I saw a special about how elephants' gestation period is over 520 days. No, really, I thought it was a long time until I thought about how a human body with all of it's intricacies is created within 38 weeks. That is mind boggling to me. No wonder I've been tired. :)

I have been feeling it move more and more often. Usually it's when I sit down after cleaning, doing yoga, or some kind of activity. So fun. I can't wait to feel it kick. I also can't wait to stop calling it "it". One week and counting.

More side effects

I didn't realize pregnancy has SO many side effects. You could essentially blame it all (any ailment known to mankind) on pregnancy, but I've really tried not to. Except for this. Now, you all know my allergy trouble. It never seems to end. Just before I got pregnant, I started using Claritin and it worked famously. I was loving life. Then my doctor said its okay to use "as needed". So does that mean everyday? Because, believe it or not, my allergies have actually gotten WORSE! I am constantly stopped up. When I talk to people on the phone, I get lots of "are you okay?" "Have you been crying?" "Are you sick?" That's because I have such sweet friends... and I can no longer breathe through my nose.

I feel so sorry for Woody, who has to listen to my constant sneezing (which makes me wonder if all of that sneezing is squeezing the baby too much), nose blowing, etc. I hate to even eat in front of him as I'm sure it looks similar to a pig in a trough since I have to eat with my mouth open so I can breathe.

This is my second order of business at my next appointment (next Thursday), right after the ultrasound and finding out the gender of this baby. I"m very excited to start calling it he or she instead of it.

Supermodel? nah.

Funny story. When we were in Rome last December, the camera never left Woody's hands. Since I was normally the closest person to Woody, I ended up in a lot of pictures by myself, many of which have since been destroyed as they were in no way decent or nice looking pictures of me. Believe it or not, this picture was not posed for. I was walking out of the camera view when Woody, as is customary of his picture taking, said my name, then snapped the picture. You know how that works, I'm sure you all have at least one person in your family that does this. I have been blessed with two, Woody and his mother. I think he got it from her, I think I'm gonna need to have a little talk with those two. I hate it he does this, it is super annoying. My mouth is usually hanging wide open like a fly trap as I'm in the middle of saying, "What now?" But this time, by some crazy swing in the universe, I ended up looking like a supermodel, even if I say so myself! So I thought, why not put that one on the blog?!

By the way, that amazingly beautiful building behind me would be the Vatican. It was Christmas Eve and we had just left the Vatican to scoot down to see the castle (can't remember the name for the life of me), then we enjoyed a lovely Italian dinner.

Just call me Sashsquatch

I was not prepared for the increased amount of hair growth during pregnancy. I mean, who knew that every pore of my body would start producing hair? Well, apparently everyone who has been pregnant. Not only do I have new hairs popping up, for example, on my chinny chin chin, but the hair that was there won't stop growing!! My legs get a 5 o'clock shadow. Now that's attractive. And the hair on my arms? I didn't think it was supposed to get that long. And let's not even get started on the under arm region. I imagine by week 25, I'm going to have to start getting full body waxes.

Dream a little Dream

I have read (and heard) that pregnancy brings on some strange dreams. I have not been immune to these crazy dreams. It seems like I wake up at least once a week in a cold sweat resulting from some outrageous dream. Last night, I dreamed I had the baby, but it was only 5 inches long ~that's its current size. Not only was it too little to cuddle with, but I kept loosing it! Oh my goodness! I woke up feeling like the worst mother ever!

This dream occurred after I had the annual first day of school nightmare. I had these all the way through school, and they have continued in my teaching career. In the dreams, I'm usually painfully unprepared for the first day, then I forget all of the tricks I have up my sleeve. On the more stressful years, I am naked during this time and have all of the adminstrators observing my pitiful attempt at teaching. Luckily this time, I was just unprepared and I couldn't get the kids to stop talking. So in relation to other years, this wasn't too bad. But to dream that I'm a terrible teacher, followed by a terrible mother?! I hope tonight's dreams are a lot sweeter.

New 'Do

It's hot outside. It's hot inside. My hair (which has grown exponentially as a result of the pregnancy) has become a tangled mess of insulation. It's always in my way. It takes FOREVER to dry. Combing it out has become a 10 minute process complete with tears (who would have known that I need to buy Johnson's No More Tears Detangling spray before the baby is even born?). It had to go. 5 inches of it. Gone. It went from below my bra strap to my shoulders (the curls get curlier when cut). If I would have gone for 5 more inches, I could have donated it to Locks of Love, but I prefer not to look like a washed up Shirley Temple. Luckily, this drastic move worked out for the best. I am not as hot as I was ~ make no mistake, I am still a human incubator warming the growing bun in my oven~ and Woody is pleased with the new 'do. Next stop on the mommy train: maternity tops as nothing I have fits anymore.

Yeah Blogging... Again!

I used to love blogging. It was like a creative outlet for all of my daily activities, which usually focused on either students or dogs. Fortunately, that is all about to change. With the extremely exciting news of my being a human incubator, I've decided to start blogging again.

At this point, I am only 16 weeks. It's summer time and I have lots of extra time on my hands. So don't get used to me blogging everyday, because you know that will probably end when school starts again... Hey, I'm just being realistic.

For now, I have chosen this lovely shade of non gender specific green. This will change in 3 weeks and 2 days when we find out the sex of the baby. Yes, we are finding out the sex. Don't try to talk us out of it. I look at this several different ways, one is that there are going to be enough surprises on that lovely day. And another thing, it's going to be a surprise at 20 weeks just like it would be a surprise at term. And you know how much of a planner I am. I must plan, decorate, name, etc.