All hail King Finn!

Its amazing how a tiny 8lb 2 oz human being can take control of every aspect of your life. We call him "King Finn" as he dictates when and where we go, how long we can stay, when we can eat, when we can sleep etc. For example, today I have not showered, brushed my teeth or left the house. King Finn decided he was not going to be put to bed last night no matter how many times mom fed him (with sore achy nipples) so we stayed awake from about 7am on the 28th til 2:30am on the 29th only to wake up again at 4:45am on the 29th. Then once he was up for good today (the 29th) he decided to eat and scream and soil his diaper every 15 to 30 minutes until saint Jacob was finally able to calm him and get him to sleep in his bouncy seat around 3:30pm (graciously, mom had been relieved around 2pm to go take a much needed nap). Now all I can hear is the peace and quiet and I'm not sure what to do............shower? eat? clean? rest more? put away laundry? or update my blog--guess you can figure out which one I decided to do. Next in line will be shower if King Finn will stay sleeping just a few minutes longer--fingers crossed. How do single moms do this? I have the most supportive husband in the world and I'm still struggling. Hopefully he will be calm and cooperative tonight--saint Jacob has gone to work for a few hours so I get to go it alone with his majesty.

I said "MORE MILK MAMA!!!!!"

Only 10 days we have known each other and Finn and I have already created our own little routine. We wake up between 6am and 9am depending on when Finn last ate, and eat breakfast. Finn eats first then I burp him, and put him in his vibrating music chair for some R & R. After that I eat breakfast--quickly--so I can get to pumping out his leftovers to add to the freezer full of breastmilk so Daddy can feed him in a few weeks. Then about every 1 to 3 hours Finn will scream out "MORE MILK MAMA!" so back to the breastfeeding chair we go for another 45 min to 1hr long chow session ;) In between these feedings we are averaging about 13 dirty diapers in a 24 hour period--how do I know this you wonder? Because we keep a log of his doo-doo diapers in the "Doo-Doo Diary." Whoever changes his diaper records the time he goes and if there is anything peculiar about the doo-doo the doctor might want to know. When hes not pooping, eating, sleeping or screaming he likes to play under his baby Einstein. His new favorite thing to do is look at the musical lights on one side of the Einstein then roll to the other side and stare at himself in the mirror. He is becoming more alert everyday. I make sure to take lots of video so we can show Daddy when he gets home from work.

8 days old

Today we had Finn's second doctor's appointment/weigh-in. Our little chunk is up to 7 pounds and 6 oz!!! What a champ!!! This time we prepared the diaper bag with 6 diapers in case he decided to chunk his diaper and start screaming again--but this time he surprised us by being so content and polite. The only time he cried was when the doctor made him lie on the cold table in his diaper so she could examine him =( If he could eat real food we would have rewarded him with a lollipop today--but a milkshake from mama's moo-moo factory is all he got ;)

An Atypical Saturday Night

What is usually a night of wine, games, or a movie turned to diapers, nursing, and searching for the right mobile and soothing sound machine. It started to dawn on me that most of our close friends live far away and may very seldom have the chance to see the new addition to our family. I am encouraging everyone to open a skype account if they dont already have one. What a great way to keep in touch and for us to show off our pride and joy. Hope to see y'all soon. -proudpapa.

Finn Zoolander ..... So hot right now.......

We let Finn play under his baby einstein toy today!! He loved it but was mostly fascinated with his reflection in the mirror!

Finn's First Dr. Appointment

Today we took Finn for his 5 day old doctor appointment. What an adventure for Mom & Dad. Jake and I headed out to take Finn to the doctor around 9am after about 3 hours total of sleep the night before. Once we were there Finn started freaking out so I had to haul-A to the nursing room and feed him since he seems to be an emotional eater and nursing him is the ONLY way we've found so far to keep him quiet. While I was nursing him he chunked his diaper--and just as the nurse was calling us back to see the doctor. Jake politely told them that we would be a few minutes. So we headed to the changing room, travel changer in tow, and attempted to change him. Naively we only brought 3 diapers which Finn showed us soon enough that 3 just wouldn't do. While we were cleaning him up he peed himself and so back to the diaper bag we go for a new diaper and a change of clothes. To frustrate matters worse, once we got to the smaller doctor waiting area, the nurse asked us to strip him down to just a diaper so he could be weighed--so Finn got mad and chunked his diaper again...............sigh.......
Once the doctor came in, Finn was on his best behavior. He was looking around and being so peaceful. The doctor was so impressed that Finn had already gained back to his birth weight! Jake and I were so proud of him and relieved that the constant nursing was working like a charm.

Everyone loves a good birth story................

It began like any other saturday night in Meridian. Jake and I had gone to walgreens to rent a 5th redbox movie for the week; I got accused by a walgreens cashier for stealing a diet sunkist; the usual. Jake and I were back at the house watching "Hot tub time machine" starring Chevy Chase when I started feeling what some girls would call painful menstrual cramps ( I have never experienced bad menstrual cramps so I just assumed these were it). I told Jake "I think these are contractions--we should time them b/c I know im having this baby tonight." I was pretty certain what I was feeling were contractions but I called a friend anyway to confirm. So around 11 Jake and I started seriously timing them--5 minutes apart. At this point I was in agony and desperately wanted to forget the natural birth plan and haul-A to the hospital for the epidural. However that wasn't happening. Jake wanted us to wait until the contractions were 3 minutes apart (ensuring that we wouldn't be sent home etc). So every 3 minutes I (with jakes coaching) breathed through contractions until I demanded that we head to the hospital. We arrived around 12:30 am. (We might have been there earlier but I could only walk between contractions so it took us a while to get to the OB floor). Once we arrived everything progressed as smoothly as it could go I guess. The nurses started an IV in me and asked if I wanted pain meds---it took all my determination to refuse it. The contractions were coming quicker and stronger and I could hardly stand it. Jake helped me breathe through each one while we paced around the room. Then I started screaming to the nurses that "I am having this baby NOW!" But no one was believing me! I yelled at them again to call Dr. Purdy. When they called him I was 4 cm dilated and when he arrived 30 minutes later I was 9 cm dilated and ready to push. All I can remember from this part is pressure and feeling like my butt was splitting in half. With every contraction I let out a horrifying loud scream until Jake pulled my attention back to him and helped me to breathe. Then 4 pushes later I felt this amazing release and I heard the most beautiful sound I'd ever heard--our healthy screaming son! Dr. Purdy placed him on my belly, while Jake cut the cord. As far as childbirths go, I couldn't have been more pleased. Now we are home with our precious miracle and we couldn't be happier!

2 Days Old

Just wanted y'all to see what our little Finn was like at 2 days old. This is him after a full meal complements of mom. Eyes wide open during the day so he can be up all night!!

39 Weeks--oh baby get the lead out

Ok baby--Time to get a move on! I had an appointment with Dr. Purdy yesterday and he said I'm still dilated 1cm, 80% effaced and in the +1 position. He is on call this weekend so it would be fabulous if Finn decided to make his appearance this weekend; otherwise, my next appointment is on Monday at 4pm where Dr. P said he would try "stripping my membranes" (manually removing the other 20% of effacement left to go) and see if that would stimulate labor. Apparently its very uncomfortable to have this done but it will really speed up the labor process--that and nipple stimulation--so he said I could try out my breast pump. Jake helped me hook it up last night and we just laughed at how awkward it is--I feel like a cow on a milk farm. But alas, the breast pump hasn't started any contractions yet. As Dr. Purdy (who is also a pilot) says, "I'm in a holding pattern." He and Jake snickered at the cleverly delivered pilot joke while I rolled my eyes, got dressed and prepared to continue to wait for our son to arrive.

38 weeks and 1 day

Time is moving along slower than I ever could have imagined. Less than two weeks til go time and we finally have Finn's room squared away. Jake spent alot of time organizing, moving furniture and making the room presentable while I was at work. Even our friend Derrick came over to do some heavy lifting. Now more waiting begins................ The RN's at work have told me to try drinking castor oil, jumping on a trampoline, walking, spicy food and from other people I've heard bran muffins, milk of magnesia, and then from my 70 year old doctor..sex. hmmmmmmmm ......i think Finn will come when hes ready and as of right now he seems cozy and content ;)

38 weeks preggers

No picture to post yet. At doctor appointment yesterday I found out that I am 1 centimeter dilated, 70-80% effaced (means=your cervix, if you were sucking on a life saver, and it was thinning out etc), and -1 station (means baby has dropped down farther into pelvis). However, Dr. P (or as the nurses call him, "papa" b/c he has been delivering babies for over 30 years) wants Finn to bake at least another week. He also said that I will make it to my due date, Sept. 15th or even Sept. 17th.

In other amusing news from yesterday, Jake came home from Pensacola so we went out to dinner for the two-for-one special at the Mexican restaurant up on North Hills st. As I was about to take my seat on the patio I unconsciously reached in by butt to dig out a wedgie and I heard two drunk girls sitting behind us bust into fits of laughter, "HAHAHAHAHA girl you is just like me, i just dig and get my wedgie too!" Ten years ago I might have been embarrassed to be called out like that in front of my date at a restaurant, but now, as big as I am, nothing much phases me. I just laughed with them and let Jake be embarrassed ;)

Time for work...........Next week I only work 3 days. Then the power walking can resume! Time to get this lazy baby making his way out!!! I want my normal shape back!!