Record sleep for me!

Last night Reagan was super fussy again and fighting sleep for hours. She finally went down about 10:45 and I was asleep by 11pm. She slept until 3:30 which gave me 4.5 hrs, my longest stretch since she was born by an hour! Yeah! We were both back to sleep by 4am and slept until 7am; another good stretch.

Comparing sisters

I tried to find some pictures of the girls at similar ages and with similar expressions just for fun. They sure are two beauties!

Reagan 2 days

Katya 6 days

Reagan 5.5 weeks

Katya 5.5 weeks

Reagan 5.5 weeks

Katya 6 weeks

Pictures, pictures!

Mud monster!

Silly girl at the park

She loves water!

Too hot for clothes. We are using the Kirkland's trick of half swaddling; just swaddling her arms. Obviously in this pic she has wiggled free. We ordered another miracle blanket because one is not enough (those who know what this blanket is, knows what I mean:0))!


All of her pictures kind of look the same at this point. Have yet to capture a good smile.


By the way, it got up to 80 degrees in our house today! Way too hot for whimps like Craig and I.

Sleep and stuff

Reagan is 7 weeks old today and about the size Katya was at 3 months:0) She had one of her best nights of sleep a few days ago (woke only once) and then yesterday had her worst day by far. I met friends at a coffee shop in the morning and Reagan did not sleep in the Bijorn like I thought she would; she got overly tired and was SUPER fussy all day. Just as our favorite sleep book says, she is enjoying social company more and more (there for fights sleep) plus she won't sleep anywhere like she use to. She would not let me put her down pretty much all day and was up for 4-5hrs in the evening. That is WAY too long (she should be up no more than 2hrs and usually is not). The only reason she was up that long is that she was overly tired, therefor fighting sleep tooth and nail. Craig was fantastic with her and finally got her to sleep around 9pm. But she woke up shortly after, refusing to stay asleep unless held. I just wanted her to sleep to break the overly tired cycle so I let her sleep with me all night. She slept better than I thought she would, getting up twice to nurse.

Today I have stayed at home to nap her properly and it has made all the difference. I now realize that I need to commit to her naps for the next several weeks. Once her naps are well established it will be easier to get out of the house during her wake periods. But she really needs to be home and in her bed for naps. She is starting to go longer stretches, like 3.5- 4hrs (not always but more often then before), or at least she was before this overly tired incident. I expect that will continue if I keep her well rested.

It is hot, hot, hot out today! Not sure the actual temp but they were calling for a high of 86 this morning. It is 77 degrees in our house and pretty miserable. We are discussing what to do about AC this summer, either buying 2 window units (upstairs is important since we having napping babies and overheating is a bad SIDS risk) or getting central air. I called one place for a quote and their bottem range was higher than the 3,000$ upgrade to AC option we had when buying our house. He cited inflation as the cause, which could be true but not sure. I will call around and see what other companies say. They can't give us an acutal price unless they come to the house but I figure they can give us a ball park. It is suppose to stay in the 80s all week and I am dreading it. I have such a hard time with the heat but I am trying to stay well hydrated and positive since it is not even June. Long summer still ahead! Pictures to come.

Just for fun..

Here is a couple of short video clips: Katya playing with the hose...

Katya playing in the dirt and putting dirt on Levi.

More pictures!

I added another Kodak album; these are pictures my mom took while she was here last. There are some really good ones. Enjoy:0)

Katya, almost 22 months

It is probably because Reagan is so small (comparatively) that Katya seems to be so giant. She is talking up a storm and putting together more and more short sentences. The other day she was dipping her hands in the dogs outdoor water bowl and then "taking" water to Levi and saying "Here go" (Here you go). It was pretty funny. She would be happiest outside all day long. My plan is to get her out in the mornings when the weather is still cool and the parks are not packed. Yesterday we went out for 1.5 hrs which was great. Her favorite thing is still the swing ("Bing") and she talks about it all day long. She also really likes the water features at Mcoy and Columbia parks. Grandma D bought her some water shoes which are great for fountain play. She is also pretty happy playing in our backyard and we have her little pool out which she likes to walk around in. She is getting really good at tantrums and I get pretty frustrated with her at times. I know a lot of my frustration is just because I am so tired and of course she is just being a typical toddler.

The biggest new thing with Katya is that we have taken her binky's away for good. She wasn't even asking for it at night/nap time and so I thought it was silly to be giving it to her. She is doing really well so far. The morning bottle is going to be harder for her to give up I think. We will tackle that in another month or two.

She has been pretty clingy to me since the new baby arrived. She wants to be held more, usually when I am holding Reagan, but she does okay. She is very sweet with the baby and is very interested in her. My favorite is when Reagan cries Katya gets her big eyes (see picture above) and says "Uh oh, baby."

Reagan 6 weeks old

Reagan's eyes are more brown/grey now instead of blue/grey. They are so pretty and I love watching the color change. Our girl is 6 weeks old now. She still has an occational cough and congestion and is still getting eye drops but is doing well. She is now smiling at us (social smile) although not real often. She is pretty serious and it is such a treat to get a smile from her. Yesterday she did a huge, open mouth smile that was so cute. She is still up every 2-3hrs to nurse day and night. She often has one 4hr streach of sleep in a 24hr period but it is usually during the day or in the evening. She goes down for naps pretty good but it harder to put down in the evening/ night (wants to be held). She still has her fussy periods and screams for no good reason but she is not too bad. She is wake more and more during the day but usually only lasts about an hour. As you can imagine from her chub, she is a great eater and is fully into 3 month sizes. She is long as well as chubby. I finally gave her her first bath a few weeks ago and she liked it!

Pictures and video clip

My mastitis is finally starting to clear up. And none too soon as my mom left last night. It sure was awesome that she was able to help us out. More later.

Reagan..

developed pink eye last night in one eye. I took her in to her Pediatricians today and they gave her some antibiotic eye drops. It was actually already looking better this morning so that is good. She seems to have a touch of this cold we have all had. Sneezing, coughing and occasional congestion; but it is not real bad yet. The Doc checked her out and said it is just upper respiratory, not in her lungs. Hope that stays at bay and gets better. They weighed her of course and she is a whopping 12lbs 1oz!

I am feeling better. Still tired and having some pain but much better. I am so thankful to have my mom here. She has been taking Katya on long outings to the park. Katya is such a different kid then the last time my mom was here. It is so nice that mom gets to hang out with the "real" Katya.

Update...

So when I posted yesterday about my mastitis the full blown symptoms had yet to appear. Wow, I thought I was already achy and fatigued but I got SO much worse. It felt like I had been hit with a truck; fever (chills/sweats), horrible body aches, very weak. Taking pain medications did help some and reduced my fever a bit; thank goodness for pharmaceutics! When Craig got home we discussed either him taking today off work (and possibly Sat) or flying my mom up to help. We decided that having my mom here would be more helpful since I would have help for longer. She was willing to help out so we used our Alaska mileage points to get her ticket (best use of points EVER!). She hopped on a plane at 6am this morning and will be here soon. I feel so relieved that I am going to get some help while recovering. She is staying until Wed so I have lots of time to rest and get rid of this cold too. Reagan sleeps pretty well during the day so I am going to hole up in my room and sleep as much as I can.

More drama..

As if we did not have enough issues...we now have one more. I have a pretty bad case of mastitis. It is very painful and there is an abscess in my breast. The midwife is hoping that we caught it early enough to just be treated with oral antibiotics. If this does not work it will have to be drained and IV antibiotic are in order. I can hardly believe this is happening. But since I had it with Katya I am at an increase risk for developing the infection. It also causes flu like symptoms and I am very fatigued and achy. Rest is an important part of the treatment so Craig and I need to have a talk tonight about how that is going to happen. He has a lot of stuff going on at work right now and be new there he really does not want to take time off...but the alternative to me not getting better is a hospital stay which would force him to stay home.

My cold is getting better, thank goodness. I still have a bad cough and other symptoms but it is better. Craig continues to fight his cold; Katya has a lingering cough and occasional runny nose but is doing great; Reagan sounded a bit congested last night and this morning but is doing fine. Got to go deal with a tantrum...will post updates.

New pictures posted

I uploaded another Kodak photo album. Click the link named Reagan 2-4 weeks and enjoy!

Mother's Day and Reagan 1 mo old

First off, happy mother's day to all the moms out there! Here is a short, silly list of a few of the things motherhood has taught me:

* Always have 2 diapers handy when changing a newborn. Sometimes you need 3 or 4.
* 2 year olds have very good memories but have very selective hearing.
* Toddlers are often "2 yr olds" way before they turn 2.
* Patients is the absolute best tool a parent can have.
* It is best not to over analyze things; from breastfeeding to sleep habits...
* But it's important to be informed and make decisions for the health of your child.
* Adult time is super important; that being said, early bed times (for the kids) are super important.

I can't believe Reagan is already 1 month old! It has been pretty hard with Katya's broken leg, our colds, Craig starting a new job and Craig not having 'real' time off (having to work at the lab during Reagan's first week and working 4 shifts a week at Widmer). But we are getting through it all like we always do. I am enjoying those precious quite moments with Reagan and I love staring at her sweet little face. Here are a few things about our little one.

* She is still wearing 0-3mo sizes but also fitting into some 3 month stuff (especially length wise). Such a big girl!
* Her chubby cheeks are rivalling mine at her age. My parents use to call them my Nixon jowls
* Her eyes are still pretty dark, slate grayish. We still think they will turn brown.
* She does not like having a dirty/wet diaper (Katya never seemed to care).
* Not yet doing a social smile but lots of little "gas" smiles, usually while she is nursing.
* She does pretty good with tummy time for a few minutes before getting mad.

She reminds me of baby Katya in many ways yet is distinctly her own. What a joy our girls are. We are so very blessed to have them:0)

Trying a video clip

Turning 30

I had planned on writing a profound post about my thoughts on turning 30 but instead I am sick and haven't the energy. I know you are all so disappointed:0)

I took Katya to the Dr. yesterday. Not only does she have a cold (cough, runny nose) but conjunctivitis (pink eye) in both eyes and ear infections in both ears (one worse than the other). My illnesses consists of a cough and a horrible sore throat. I am SUPER worried that Reagan is going to get sick. I am doing my best keeping her away from Katya but when you have two little ones to watch all day it is nearly impossible. Katya is started on antibiotics which is good if the illness is bacterial. If it is viral, of course, antibiotics don't work and we just let the illness run its course.

Please say a prayer that Reagan stays healthy and that I get through my days with out too much crying:0) Craig works Sat, Sun, Mon and Tues at the Gausthus so I will have very little help over the next few days.

On the bright side, Katya is walking as of yesterday! She is stiff but doing well. Love to all, Brenda

Pictures of my girls

Going for a walk

Tummy time

Reagan 3 weeks old

Look at those cheeks!

Before

and after

Cast off!!

Katya got her cast off today. She did about how I expected; lots of crying but we got through it okay. They did another X-ray and the bone looks great. She has yet to walk on the leg; I am sure it is sore and feels strange without the cast. It will be interesting to see how fast she progresses with it. I did not expect to go from her running around in her cast to not walking at all! She got a bath after her nap, that was fun and much needed:0)

My neighbor watched Reagan while Katy and I were at the ortho appointment. She slept the whole time, just as I had hoped. I will post pictures soon.

Birth Story

Cute picture of Reagan (11 days old) and Baba Dennis.

I wanted to just have a link to Reagan's birth story because it is so long but I was not sure how to do that. So when you get a little time..here it is!

It is hard to know just were to begin Reagan’s birth story because of all the weeks of early contractions. I am not going to discredit all the hard work I did before active labor actually started! I woke up Thursday (April 9th) morning feeling cranky and tired even though I slept decent. My abdomen was actually sore from contracting all night but all those contractions were nothing new.

I laid down for an hour ( 4:30pm) before Craig got home from work during which my contractions became more regular, coming every 6-10mins. They did not increase in intensity but they continued through the evening; I ignored them the best I could since this is what I had been experiencing most days for quite some time. I enjoyed a nice dinner with Sharon, Craig and Katya; went to Holy Thursday church service; and watched Survior. I was in bed at 10:45pm when I felt and heard two “pops” that seemed to come from the right side of my abdomen. Immediately I got a strong contraction. I thought about how some people have described a pop when their water broke but I did not have any fluid leak at this time. Another strong contraction quickly followed so I got up and went downstairs. I timed two contractions that were 5 minutes apart. With the next contraction got a small gush of fluid and I was pretty sure this meant my water did break. I went upstairs, woke Craig and changed. Contractions continued to be strong and quite frequent and it became increasingly obvious that my water did indeed break.

I phoned the nurse midwife on call and filled her in. She asked several questions and then said that she thought we should start heading towards the hospital. I told her that I wanted to labor at home as long as possible but I had the feeling I would not last long at home since things felt like they were progressing quickly. I also told her about the pressure I felt on my bum, which made her a bit nervous about letting me stay home. She said to come in when contractions were 2-3 mins apart. Immediately after hanging up we started timing contractions and they were 2-3 mins apart. Craig called the midwife back and told her we were heading in. I wondered if we were going too early but the contractions were so close together and quite strong. I had so much adrenaline flowing that I was able to talk through them but just barely. We left for the hospital about 11:30pm.

When we got to L & D they checked me right into a room and the midwife checked my cervix. I was 5-6cm dilated, 100% effaced and Reagan’s head was at a +1 station, which is quite low. The midwife left to do paper work to get me admitted but kept getting interrupted because I was progressing so quickly. The contractions were tough but only about 30seconds long and it was so different then when I was in labor with Katya. Between contractions the pain was very tolerable and I was able to rest. I was able to talk and tell Craig what I needed, like a drink of water or to be distracted (distraction was a really good coping mechanism for me; the staff felt bad having to ask me some questions to admit me but I did not mind because it distracted me). As things progressed my talking between contractions became just grunts and one word commands. When the nurse had to monitor the baby’s heartbeat she just held the Doppler to my belly and I was able to move around in the bed however I wanted. I was never strapped to a monitor and I had no IV. I labored on my hands and knees in the bed pretty much the whole time. I got up a few times but did not like being on my feet. I supported my upper body on a birthing ball between contractions to rest and pushed the ball away when contracting.

When I hit 8cm so quickly after getting there the midwife gave me 3 options in regards to the water birth. The tub had to be blown up in the room which is loud and would take about 40mins. My options were 1) forget the water birth 2) let them set up the tub while I labored in the room or 3) go to the Jacuzzi tub room to labor while they set up the tub and return to the tub for babies birth (they do not deliver in the tub room). It was really hard to make a decision like this when I was in hard active labor. Since I was in a groove and handling labor well were I was I told her to forget the water birth. I knew I did not want to do option number 3 because that required too much walking. In retrospect I wish I would have had them set up the tub. The midwife said afterwards that she thought it would have been disruptive to me and she thought I made a good decision. I am not sure that setting up the tub would have bothered me and I will never know if I would have liked laboring and pushing in the tub.

Of course the transition phase and pushing was really, really hard. Craig can attest to there being a lot of ‘primal’ screams, as he put it. The midwife was really good at calming me down when I was freaking out from the pain. It is hard to know how long I pushed for because we were not really watching the clock and because the midwife let me push when and if I felt like it. It was very different from an MD who when you hit 10 cm has you push a certain way, with each contraction. The staff kept telling me that my baby would be here really soon and I kept thinking that it could not possibly be soon enough! Reagan was in a very good position for delivery, although she did have a little hand up by her face. Her shoulders were difficult to deliver but after a last big effort my daughter arrived and was placed on my stomach; it was 2:01am. They covered her with blankets and a little hat to keep her warm and I snuggled with her while Craig cried for both of us:0)

3 week update

Just as our pediatrician warned, Reagan has gotten much more fussy this week. Last night was the worst yet; she was up every hour for no good reason, just being cranky. She did not want to settle down that evening too and did a good amount of screaming. Those who have met her can attest to how LOUD she cries. Craig let me go to bed at 9pm, he got her down at 11 and I got up with her at midnight and through the rest of the night. Of course he woke up several times because her cry is SO loud. This morning she has been fussy too but we got her to stay down for about an hour and a half. She fussed and cried a lot during that time but never for very long and by leaving her she fell back to sleep.

Katya's mood has improved quite a bit as our household has returned more to normal. We are so excited for her to get her cast off this Wed! Craig starts his new job tomorrow! Please pray for an easy transition for him. Love, B