Heavyweight Champ!

I was asking myself "what is the meaning of this?" when Isaac went down nicely after both his 3 AM and 6 AM feedings. That usually does not happen! Holy moly. What a blessing! Especially since his first appointment with the pediatrician was at 8 AM. His restfulness afforded Chasen and I the chance to get ready in peace! And at the same time!

Clearly, Isaac is excited to be going to see the doctor. LOL

As you will recall (maybe) Isaac was born at 8 lbs 5 oz. We came home from the hospital at 8 lbs 3 oz. I believe normally the goal for the first visit is the original birth weight. Well our little eating champion weighed in at 8 lbs 11 oz! I was a proud mama. And the doc said he was "very healthy." :)

The only fear that arose was when he offered to cut off the belly button clip (which he said should have been done before we left the hospital). He pulled out a tool that resembled something one might use to cut a cigar. I thought "oh no!" But the next thing we knew, Isaac had a much more manageable belly button area. Now it'll be easier to clean. Soon enough the little scab/stump will fall off.

Here are some photos from this evening. Isaac and his Daddy were relaxing on the couch.

He's not sucking his thumb; he just likes to put his hand up there.

What did I ever do without this little guy?

His extra 8 ounces have plumped up his little arms to perfection!

Isaac's Second Stroll

Isaac is 11 days old already. Where has time gone?

It was an amazing 70 degrees today, yet a little windy. Since Isaac's first stroller outing it has been very cold (for here) so we have been exclusively indoors. So today was high time for stroll #2.

After Isaac's 3 PM feeding (and explosive changing -- ick) we headed out. I aimed to do a whole mile. To ensure that my husband didn't think I was overdoing it (and you folks, too, for that matter) I wore flip flops. So you KNOW we were walking slowly.

I wish the car seat reclined a bit more, but this is the only option on the stroller.

Our longest stretch. It was so nice to be out there! The flip-up storage compartment seen here is great for the camera.

All is well here. We have the first pediatrician's visit tomorrow morning. Not only is it our first true outing, but we have to be there at 8 AM. Eek! I'll just stay up after the 6 AM feeding.

Isaac's First Race Shirt

Upon learning through Chasen's Facebook updates that I was in labor on Valentine's Day and likely to deliver on the 15th, Petra said that she would be running a 30K in Isaac's honor that day. Wowee! AND she said she would send him the race shirt. Double cool! I couldn't wait.

As you can see, Isaac is dreaming of his first race shirt, all the way from England.

Here we are today. This was supposed to be my "Look how much smaller I look now!" photo. Not so much...

After my self-photo session, it was time for the mail to arrive. I (alone) went out to get it. Mr. Isaac had a package! All the way from Lincolnshire!

The contents, wrapped in Mommy's favorite colors.

WOW! Coolest race shirt ever! I love the double shirt look, yet I do not own a single one. AND a sweet note. AND a "cuddly" picked out by Petra's own son. Aww!

Close-up of front logo.

Back side.

Close-up of back. I love the whole "shire" concept. Way cool!

Thanks, Petra, for honoring Isaac's birth in this awesome way!

Isaac's First Bath Time

Having a little one around consumes most of one's time! (duh) We're having success with Isaac's 3-hour schedule (have I mentioned it? he eats on the 3's -- 3,6,9,12,3,6,9,12) but it makes every day the exact same. I'm told that's good for him.

Good news! My feet are almost 100% back to normal!

They actually look better than this now. Yay! I could actually wear a skirt and hold my head high!

This is just the cutest pillow ever. Thanks, Marianne. (isn't that an awesome spelling?)

Left Side Louie under another one of "Nana Jane's" handmade blankets. He's actually not sucking his thumb.

I was trying to tend to him AND photograph him. I wasn't all that successful.

So it was high time for Isaac's first sponge bath. He'll get a real one when his belly button is all healed. I set the scene in the kitchen:

Brown towel in case he decided to give us a little parting gift. He didn't.

Daddy gets him all prepared, i.e. naked.

Mommy washes his face while trying to keep him warm. My fingers still look awful chubby!

He looks so long! But we think he is a half inch less now that his head has morphed down to a regular shape (which happened shortly after birth, FYI).

I am ready for my soap, folks. Let's hurry up!

Oooooh! It is AWFUL to have a mommy and daddy that want me clean, I tell ya!

All done! Thanks, Elizabeth, for the awesome bath towel.

Anyone Need a Dose of Cute?

I have now been a mommy for five days. Or, more importantly, I should say five nights. LOL

Isaac likes to be under the blanket that "Nana Jane" made him.

This is my favorite. Definition of cuteness!

Our little burrito baby!

Snug as a bug in a rug (or, a baby in a swaddler)!

Tomorrow Isaac will get his first at-home sponge bath. He can't get a "real" bath until his belly button heals. He's getting there!

First Stroll

We survived night #1 of being official parents of a newborn at home! We took shifts so that we could each get long(er) stretches of sleep. This is our long term plan. We shall see!

Late this afternoon Chasen suggested that we take Isaac out for a stroll. The weather was gorgeous, so why not?

All buckled into the stroller.

Off we go!

We went for a whole quarter mile. It was nice! Isaac only got a bit fussy; we actually think he was too hot.

My swelling has gone WAY down, I am happy to report. Still a ways to go, but that's OK.

Lil baby hands!

Isaac's Second Day

We had a lovely first night. Know why? Because we decided to be smart (of selfish, depending on how you look at it) and let Isaac sleep in the nursery with the very capable nurses. Considering that we got zero sleep the night before (labor night) we thought it wise to "catch up" a bit before we go home tomorrow. We both slept well, yet are still very tired. Go figure -- a night of hard labor wears one (and a coach!) out. And my arms are very sore, presumably from having to grasp the "birthing bed" as I pushed with all my might.

I was able to shower today. And Isaac was circumcised. I think I got the better deal! :)

Beautiful flowers from Lisa.

New pajamas on my clean body. Isaac ate well a few hours post-procedure.

I want to hold my own bottle, mommy! OK, not really.

Safety bracelet rubs a bit -- oh well, better safe than sorry! P.S. Daddy, clean your nails.

Put em up, put em up!

Have I mentioned lately just how IN LOVE I am?

I went to "new mom's class" today. It was right after my shower, and I was feeling great. I must say... I appeared to be doing far better than the other moms. I almost felt kind of guilty, somehow. I hope I continue to feel so great!

Isaac Is Here!

Oh what a Valentine's Day we had! I made Chasen a nice picnic lunch (which we ate on the back patio, because I was far too pregnant to even think of sitting on the ground - it would have taken a crane to get me back up). Then we went to a movie. Afterwards I took my traditional nap. When I woke, long story short, my water broke! It was 5:25 PM. Boy did I feel like a rock star because apparently only 15-25% of women's water breaks on its own. I thought "Oh good - smooth sailing, here we come!" (famous last words)

So after calling the hospital and getting showered (which was a waste of good water, come to find out), we left for Memphis (like a 25 minute commute from home to our hospital).

Off I go, baby book in hand! (for footprints, people!) Lisa had come to get Maggie-dog the house guest.

I got checked in, and was assessed in a small exam room. My water had indeed broken.

Here I am, before getting the IV (yuck!) Still looking OK and feeling OK (pain 5 on a scale of 1-10 when contractions would hit)

Then we went to the birthing room.

Contractions were now at about an 8 of 10, because I was actually dilating fairly rapidly (again, naively thinking I am a rock star). Here I am pre-epidural. Chasen HAD to rub my lower back at every contraction.

Getting the epidural certainly made me wince. Not fun! But soooooo worth it. I honestly do not know how women give birth without drugs. Kudos to them!

It was probably 10 PM by now. At 12:45 the doc-on-call (not MY doc, but at least the head of the practice) told the nurses to give me pitocin. Fine, whatever. Let's get the show on the road! I thought it'd just be any minute now. Wrong!

It still took from 12:45 to 6:30 AM for me to go from 3 cm dilated to 10 cm. I tried to rest, but I was just too excited/anxious. The magical epidural kept me pain-free until right before 10 cm.

This is where it gets ugly. Real ugly! Right before 10 cm is when the sort of "rectal pressure" starts, apparently. It was just awful. But you know what was worse? Pushing. Oh. My. Lord. So help me, Isaac will be an only child like me! I had to push for 45 minutes, which they all said was waaaay fast for a first-time mom, but it was AWFUL. TERRIBLE. NIGHTMARISH. Do you know why? Two reasons: First, Isaac was "sunny side up," meaning his face was up, and aparently most babies are born facing the floor. That makes for a wide angle. Second, since he was so "head down" for so long, he little head literally morphed into a cone head! It was tiny on top and then HUGE in comparison farther down (in fact, it was the same circumference as his little chest!) So Isaac just didn't want to come out easily. I was secretly wishing to be whisked away for a C-section at this point, but he was already on his way out. It was sooooo tough. I really doubted my ability to get it done. Where'd the rock star go?

But guess what happened at 7:15 AM on February 15, 2009?

There's my boy! All 8 pounds, 5 ounces of him! 20 1/2 inches long. And that's at 8 days early!

As Isaac was whisked away for testing, etc. I just DIED. I was wiped.

See his tiny crown and seemingly huge head? It is already more normal looking as a I type this.

Our big, healthy boy. Chasen even cut the cord.

As I said, I all but passed out after that. I couldn't hold him for the next 30 minutes because I was just too weak.

All cleaned up! Where are my clothes?

First feeding. He ate like a champ! (just like his mama)

Me and my new love, Isaac Roy.

After an awful lot of poking and prodding, we were prepped to go to our "real" room.

Aunt Lisa has already been to see him. And she tried to set up our first stroller outing!

After his second diaper of the day.

I'm in love; what more can I say?