10 weeks postpartum :)

Tomorrow Maia will be 10 weeks old!!!  Time is going by fast!
At her appointment on Monday, June 3rd, she was 10 lbs. 2 oz and 22 1/2 inches long.  Our little girl is growing up :)   She has moved from NB to size 1 diapers and is slowly outgrowing her NB size clothes and fitting more of her 0-3 and 3 mth old clothes.    
Thanks to all of you who gifted us with clothing, bath supplies, and diapers, we have not had to buy diapers (or anything else) yet!     We also are trying pocket cloth diapers and rotating through those as well.   They are working out well-an extra step but we are saving money and she hasn't really had a rash yet.   
My last post was at 3 weeks postpartum.   Since then Maia has learned/done so many small little things, such as: 

• smiling-this is sometimes just an indicator that she's about to dirty a diaper :) LOL
• "oh no" face
• holding her neck and head in place, almost all the time
• grabbing for items
• holding her weight on her legs, when she is supported by us :)
• beginnings of trying to "say" something-she'll sound like she's trying to talk to you i.e. "ah, ah, ahhhh"
• has only spit up 3 times total in her life :)
• got her first round of shots, other than the one she got in the hospital.
• met all 6 grandparents and all her aunts and all but 1 uncle.
  

Breast feeding is going much better and we are getting better at trying to get her to lay down shortly after she's done if she goes to sleep.  She was getting in the habit of wanting to stay asleep next to me, which was land-locking me on the couch.   She has been sleeping in her pack and play crib more often and for longer periods of time.   Until we finish installing her monitor in her room, she'll be trying out this crib and then moving to the real one in her room.   It's as much of a weaning process for her as it is for us.  We waited so long for her to be here and we love to snuggle with her, so it's hard to have her go lay in her crib by herself but we know it's the best in the end.

We also took her to her first restuarants this past week, Marie Callendar's with my family and the Golden Corral when Josh's mother came to visit.   She did fairly well at both places.  Luckily places like the Golden Corral are noisy by nature so a little crying isn't ruining the atmosphere of the restaurant too much.  Due to the lack of pumped milk we have saved and the complexity of trying to nurse in the "football" hold position in public, we've also supplemented with some formula when necessary.   She seems to like it okay, and will use it when necessary.   

Those of you who have seen Josh these past 10 weeks have probably noticed somewhat of a transformation in his attitude :)   Maia has brought out the best in him and he's been such a good daddy: he reads to her, will carry her for long periods of time if she's fussy, is always talking and playing with her-I've heard decibel levels of his voice I've never heard before.  She's melted his heart and it's a joy to watch how much he loves her.   She loves him too :)   His voice alone can calm her down.  Even in the car through the speakers when he's not physically there! :)

She's been getting so big and seems to change so fast.   I'm glad I work in a position where I can be with her all this summer :)   I took Maia to work the last day of school and she was a big hit with the TONS of students who came by to visit her while I was cleaning out my classroom.   I think it freaked her out to see so many faces at once :)

I am excited for the upcoming months and spending time with her :)   I am so thankful for my little family.   

There are far too many pictures of her to post on here, please check out the Maia album on my facebook for a majority of the pictures we've taken of her :) 

3 weeks Postpartum Life at home with Maia :)

Today Maia is 3 weeks old!  These past 3 weeks have FLOWN by! 

So, back on April 1st, we headed out to Kaiser for my c-section and Maia's arrival! 

I am so incredibly nervous and scared in this picture.  Prior to my c section I had never had any surgeries, broken bones, stitches, etc.  I still have my wisdom teeth!  So needless to say, thinking about the whole day was a bit overwhelming.   I also pulled a muscle in my back about 10 minutes prior to this picture, which is still bothering me even today.   
When we got to the hospital, of course all the stork parking spots were taken, as were any spots even close to the front, so Josh dropped me off at the entrance where I was greeted by my sister in law AnJi, and inside by the rest of Josh's immediate family, including my nephews.  It was great to have so much support before we headed up to labor and delivery and we had a quick prayer before heading up.  
The walk down the 3rd floor hallway to L & D was so nerve wracking and I made Josh hold my hand the whole way down.  We went in and had to fill out some paperwork and then we were sent to triage to get my I.V., get prepped for surgery, and to check my vitals and Maia's fetal movement.   **As a tip for you ladies who like to get your nails done**I had my nails done with my mother in law 3 days before and the lightweight heart rate monitor they usually put on your finger was not able to penetrate through the nail polish!  They tried my toe as well which only worked slightly better.   Fortunately the higher powered ones worked fine in all the other rooms.  

At this point I was a little less nervous, until I found out that I was going to the operating room to get the epideral by myself and Josh wouldn't be in there until the surgery was ready to start.   I think going through the local anesthesia for the epideral would have been better if I was in active labor where you are so happy for relief, but I went in not in labor and not in any pain (other than the pulled muscle) and had to keep getting shot after shot until I couldn't feel them anymore :(   I can handle a lot, but after the multiple shots in the back near my spine (that felt like bee stings), all I could do was grip the pillow they had me hug.  After that though, the rest of the surgery was easy peasy lemon squeezy :).   While the I.V. and shots were unpleasant and somewhat painful, it was still much less pain than I anticipated.   I will say that our AWESOME doctor took her lunch break and came to the operating room to help with the surgery.  She was comfort  and a familiar face when I was feeling nervous. 

After I was laid down and all ready for the surgery to begin, Josh was allowed back in and he stayed by my side for the short couple of minutes it took to get her out.   He was then needed by Maia to help with her.  

I cannot even explain how unbelievably happy I was to hear that first cry after months of worrying about her safe arrival into to the world.  Josh immediately took a picture of her since I wasn't able to see her right away. 

Our little girl came out 8 lb 3 oz and was 20.67 inches long.  

Josh was able to hold her hand right away, as you can see in the picture above, and hold her whole body shortly after that picture so he could bring her to my face and show me her for the 1st time. 

  After I was all stitched and stapled up, I was taken to the recovery room where I got to hold her for the first time and breast feed for the first time.  She had the rest of her vitals checked and then we headed over to the recovery side where we were greeted by the rest of our immediate families so they could meet Maia.  

For anyone who's giving birth at Kaiser-don't over-pack :)  I totally over-planned and had packed so much stuff that Kaiser provides for you and I never used most of the stuff I brought.  We had such a good experience with Kaiser :) Great nurses (very caring), private room, big bathroom, need help at 3am-they're there :), decent meals

  I was very happy with our time there from check in to check out.   We even got a celebration lunch before we left :) 

Maia continuously passed all her newborn tests to be able to leave the hospital :).  I was up walking around the maternity corridor by the first evening with just a little uncomfortable pain.   By the last evening I was doing laps with Maia.   Our only complaint about the hospital stay was the "couch" they have for the father/significant other.  It was SO uncomfortable Josh probably left the hospital in more pain than me and less sleep than all of us :(  We were so happy to be on our way home :) 

In the days after we left the hospital, I was in some pain, finding it difficult to even walk down the hallway to the bathroom.   Josh has been an AWESOME husband and father.  In the hospital and at home when I couldn't get up, walk, shower, etc.  he was there to not only help me do so much but also for Maia.  He changed every diaper the first week and a half, he got up with her to walk around until she went back to sleep, etc.   The first week she was alive he probably didn't get more than 10 hours of sleep total.   He was there for us both :)   For those of you who have seen him since she was born, he has also had a very lovey-dovey part of his personality emerge when he interacts with Maia that I've never seen before :)  It is very cute to see :)   

Maia did start out pretty strong with the breastfeeding.  Around day 4, when the secondary milk came in, she had a little trouble but I think we have it down now.  Her only problem is that she wants to eat ALL the time! Finding down time for myself sometimes doesn't happen, including sleep :-/.   However, I am so in love with her that I don't mind too much :) 

She is 3 weeks old now and she's a little bit bigger, has "happy eyes" when you talk to her :), and she's discovered her tongue.  3 weeks post partum and I've lost 34 pounds since I was pregnant and I'm just a couple of pounds away from my pre-pregnancy weight. :) I've still got a  long way to go to get to my "goal" weight but I'm doing well so far!

39 weeks pregnant April 1st belly shot

3 weeks postpartum April 22nd belly shot

Thank you to those of you who have dropped food by, and who have come to see us.   We welcome visitors, however please let us know you are coming ahead of time, in case we are trying to catch a couple of zzz's when she is napping or to make sure we're home :) Please wait to visit if you are sick and no small children visiting her until she is one month old (after May 1st).   

We love our little girl!

Month 8 (Week 32-36)

I didn't realize it had been so long since I updated this blog.   Work and school have gotten so busy that I don't have time for much else aside from getting ready for Maia :)   Maia continues to get bigger and bigger.   Shortly after my last post, we went back to Womb with a View and we were able to get some good shots of her face: 

Maia at 32 weeks

Meanwhile, My belly continues to get bigger and bigger, leaving me not much room to move and I constantly have her head in my ribcage which makes it hard to breath.

Week 33

Week 34

Week 35

Week 36

We have been spending every spare moment trying to get ready for her arrival.   In addition to regular appointments, I also have to go to Kaiser twice a week for a fetal scan to make sure the amniotic fluid levels are okay and that her heart rate and movement counts are okay.   I also have had the preterm labor team from Santa Clara calling in once a week to check on me as well.   However being at 36 weeks today, I am officially discharged from that service because she is considered full term :) 

Josh has been busy nesting in his own way, putting things together, cleaning stuff out, etc.   

Our 2nd and 3rd showers were this month as well.  I don't have any pictures from the 3rd one that my work gave me, but I will add some pictures from the 2nd shower when I get them :)   We were showered with so much love and good times with friends and family.  Thank you Heather and Becky for hosting!  

Physically I have reached the very uncomfortable portion of the pregnancy as we head into the final weeks.   I have had a couple of bad back episodes, I cannot sleep very well and not in bed at all.   During Braxton Hicks contractions you can literally see her head trying to push out the front of my belly.   Painful but I'm handling it :)   The worst part so far is the swollen feet.  The tops of my feet are so swollen they feel like that first day after a really bad sunburn.  I can't fit into ANY of my regular shoes, including flip flops.   I went to buy a bigger pair to tide me over.   I usually wear a 7 1/2-8 but had to get  9-9.5!!! OMG!  Below is a picture I took of my feet last summer at Morro Bay. The other picture is what the same feet look like about a week ago completely swollen :(

We also got a couple nice gifts from Josh's aunt Laurie and my friend Kathi "Roo"

Kathi's gifts

We have also been working on her room and our hospital bags:

Her room about 3 weeks ago

Our hospital bag

Her carseat and hospital bag/diaper bag

Josh spent quite awhile adding all these decals, added the video monitor, installed a dimmer switch, etc.  We still have some cleaning up to do, but her room is pretty much done :)   Notice the monkey standing on the lion's head, placed by Josh.   

After our last appointment our doctor told us what I already knew...she is still in the breech position.  She has been there since late January.  They were hoping she'd flip eventually.   She's been going back and forth between breech and transverse over the past couple of weeks.    I believe that the shape of my uterus (heart shaped, sort of) has a narrow bottom and will not allow her to easily flip to head down.   The dr. said they could try to move her manually later on, but that it would be risky and probably not work with the uterus shape.   So that left us with planning out our c-section.   While I was hoping for a regular birth, it is nice to know that I will not have to go through labor (or very little if she comes earlier and we have to go in for an emergency c-section) and that family that lives far away can plan to be there.   Unfortunately the only date during week 39, when our dr. wanted me to to have it, was April 1st!   We tried for the 2nd (sorry Toby :)), but the first was the only date open.   So Maia will be born on 4/1/13, unless she comes early.  Many friends have mentioned that they think I have "dropped" and I do feel more pressure and uncomfortable.   I will start my maternity leave on March 25th, so hopefully she can hold out until then.    

So she will be here 3 weeks from today, or less! :)   I have began to ponder about whether those of you who read this will want me to continue after she is born since this blog was about the journey to get to the birth of our child.   I can continue into her development I suppose.    

We'll keep you updated on everything that is going on :)   

Thanks for checking in on us!!!