(This was written a couple of months ago and I decided to just post it and not update anything.)
It's been a while since I've done an update on just Owen! This boy is a non-stop chatter box at home. It's still hard for me to believe that 6 months ago he was barely talking. We have reached the fun "kids say the darndest things" stage and every conversation is quite entertaining. He tends to stutter a lot so it can take a while for his thoughts to get out. In the last couple of weeks the the "what..." questions has dominated his vocabulary. I hear a lot of "What they/that doing?" and "what was that?". It's great that he's wanting to learn things but so many questions can be exhausting when the answer is usually the same.
Some of the funny things I've heard are:
Oh no forgot!
Play air guitar....do do do do
How 'bout....
Uh...sure!
Owenowenowenowenowen
Mama...mama...mama...mama....(these last two used to happen from his bed all of the time)
Well, hi there!
Had a good nap/lunch/supper
FUN! (while signing fun)
Owen sleep like...10 hours/6 hours/6 minutes
So...what should we do?
There are a lot more but I forget to write them down. He is super funny.
He's also started trying to negotiate with us on things and sometimes I let him win and sometimes what mama says isn't going to change. I usually try to decide based on how he asks but still tell him that even though he asks politely he won't always get what he wants.
We're teaching him some chores like putting his dishes in the sink after he's done eating and I'll usually have him put some of his laundry away or help with the dishwasher. He's great about picking up his toys which is really nice. He even told me one day that he loved cleaning. Good thing kid because I've got plans for you! :)
Owen refuses to let anyone but me put him to bed which I don't usually mind. Pat did it the other night but he cried and I had to do some convincing.
He LOVES books and can't have enough read to him. I've had to start telling him that we can only read one book if he throws a fit before bed.
Owen is incredibly smart with letters. He's been able to recognize the entire alphabet (upper and lowercase) for several months now but he now knows what sound each letter makes! This is incredibly impressing to me. He's able to say his alphabet almost perfectly. He has to want to do it though otherwise he acts like he forgets letters.
Owen spends a lot of time lining up and parking his trucks and tractors so there are usually at least 15 of them strewn across the sofa during the day.
Owen LOVES music. I can't tell you how many times I've had to tell Owen that he can't use something for a drum. For a while it was Micah. He will use anything for a drumstick (usually my vacuum attachments) and likes counting off with his "sticks". His favorite song varies. Currently it is Man of Sorrows - Hillsong and Fix My Eyes - For King & Country. He'll break out his air guitar and rock out whenever these start and is learning the words quite quickly. He really enjoys music videos so this is probably where he picked up most of his moves. I've caught him with his hands raised when we play Man of Sorrows as well as in church. I pray that he soon understands who he is worshiping.
Tuesday, October 28, 2014
Micah - 5 & 6 months
Well, I totally blew it with Micah's 5 month update so I'll have to try and combine (remember) the last 2 months.
Micah loves to sit in his Bumbo seat and is getting really close to sitting independently. I do look forward to that milestone and somewhat hopes he follows Owen with being content to just sit on the floor. Owen didn't crawl until 10 months old and I would be perfectly happy if Micah followed suit. It's nice to just set them on the floor and know they'll be in the same spot when you come back. Don't get me wrong, I love seeing how each baby becomes mobile but I'm in no hurry.
Micah has figured out rolling over but really prefers to not do it. I don't put him on the floor too often just because Owen likes to lay on top of him and I worry he'll get stepped on or tripped over while Owen runs around.
Micah loves his brother, despite being bitten 3 times. Owen has bitten his forehead, his fingers and his nose hard enough to leave marks. I often see Owen lying on top of Micah and tell him to be gentle just to see Micah underneath with a big grin on his face. Owen can get Micah to laugh like no one else which is so fun to see. I also hear lots of "Don't touch that Micah!" "That's mine, Micah!" etc. so I'm sure I'll be breaking up many fights in my future as well.
I realize that my last post was mostly about how bad of a sleeper Micah is so I'll try to not say much about that other than it's about the same. 2.5-3 hour stretches. It's gotten terribly difficult to put him down at night and it will often involve 1+ hours of crying. It's been difficult but I keep reminding myself that it will pass. (In the couple of weeks between writing this and actually posting it things have improved somewhat. The last couple of nights he done 3.5-4 hour stretches although 2 nights ago he was awake for over an hour each time he woke up which was not so great.)
Micah has had a nasty cough for the last week or so and has all but completely lost his voice. It's super cute to hear him talk all raspy but heartbreaking to hear him try to cry. He ended up having an ear infection which didn't surprise me. Lingering coughs always became ear infections with Owen. Giving Micah the antibiotic was awful. He would gag and try to spit it out and threw up a few times. I tried it in a bottle once but he was having none of it from me so Pat tried the next day and it didn't go much better. I think Micah has had a total of 3 bottles so it could've been more that than anything else. He did get better about taking it but I was glad when it was over.
We started putting Micah in the nursery around 4.5 months which is quite a bit earlier than Owen. Micah didn't sleep during the service like Owen did and since he's so happy I didn't feel as bad about putting him in there. He's does great and I think I've only had to get him early a couple of times.
We are borrowing a Jumperoo from Pat's parents and Micah has started to enjoy that. He's just recently figured out how to bounce it so that's fun.
No obvious signs of any teeth yet but gallons of drool and lots of finger gnawing.
We started some solids this week. The rice cereal went better than the squash tonight. He seemed to really like the cereal (it was mixed with breastmilk so I'm sure it just tasted like what he's used to) but had a hard time keeping it in his mouth. The squash he just gagged and spit it out. He seems more interested in chewing his bib or the spoon but we'll keep trying! I'm not in a rush since he is clearly growing just fine and doesn't seem hungry after nursing. It also means that I have to start rinsing my cloth diapers :P
Micah loves to sit in his Bumbo seat and is getting really close to sitting independently. I do look forward to that milestone and somewhat hopes he follows Owen with being content to just sit on the floor. Owen didn't crawl until 10 months old and I would be perfectly happy if Micah followed suit. It's nice to just set them on the floor and know they'll be in the same spot when you come back. Don't get me wrong, I love seeing how each baby becomes mobile but I'm in no hurry.
Micah has figured out rolling over but really prefers to not do it. I don't put him on the floor too often just because Owen likes to lay on top of him and I worry he'll get stepped on or tripped over while Owen runs around.
Micah loves his brother, despite being bitten 3 times. Owen has bitten his forehead, his fingers and his nose hard enough to leave marks. I often see Owen lying on top of Micah and tell him to be gentle just to see Micah underneath with a big grin on his face. Owen can get Micah to laugh like no one else which is so fun to see. I also hear lots of "Don't touch that Micah!" "That's mine, Micah!" etc. so I'm sure I'll be breaking up many fights in my future as well.
I realize that my last post was mostly about how bad of a sleeper Micah is so I'll try to not say much about that other than it's about the same. 2.5-3 hour stretches. It's gotten terribly difficult to put him down at night and it will often involve 1+ hours of crying. It's been difficult but I keep reminding myself that it will pass. (In the couple of weeks between writing this and actually posting it things have improved somewhat. The last couple of nights he done 3.5-4 hour stretches although 2 nights ago he was awake for over an hour each time he woke up which was not so great.)
Micah has had a nasty cough for the last week or so and has all but completely lost his voice. It's super cute to hear him talk all raspy but heartbreaking to hear him try to cry. He ended up having an ear infection which didn't surprise me. Lingering coughs always became ear infections with Owen. Giving Micah the antibiotic was awful. He would gag and try to spit it out and threw up a few times. I tried it in a bottle once but he was having none of it from me so Pat tried the next day and it didn't go much better. I think Micah has had a total of 3 bottles so it could've been more that than anything else. He did get better about taking it but I was glad when it was over.
We started putting Micah in the nursery around 4.5 months which is quite a bit earlier than Owen. Micah didn't sleep during the service like Owen did and since he's so happy I didn't feel as bad about putting him in there. He's does great and I think I've only had to get him early a couple of times.
We are borrowing a Jumperoo from Pat's parents and Micah has started to enjoy that. He's just recently figured out how to bounce it so that's fun.
No obvious signs of any teeth yet but gallons of drool and lots of finger gnawing.
We started some solids this week. The rice cereal went better than the squash tonight. He seemed to really like the cereal (it was mixed with breastmilk so I'm sure it just tasted like what he's used to) but had a hard time keeping it in his mouth. The squash he just gagged and spit it out. He seems more interested in chewing his bib or the spoon but we'll keep trying! I'm not in a rush since he is clearly growing just fine and doesn't seem hungry after nursing. It also means that I have to start rinsing my cloth diapers :P
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| Oh these boys. |
Wednesday, August 13, 2014
Micah - 4 months
H: 25.1 inches (50%)
W: 16 lb 5 oz (75%)
HC: 16.8 inches/42.5cm (75%)
Micah is still the happiest baby I've come across which somewhat makes up for the fact that he's sleeping like crap. My wonderfully easy baby that was sleeping so well decided to throw it out the window right after my last post. He's gotten progressively worse and this is the most tired I've felt since he was born. I actually tried to nap today which I never do. I think I got 5-10 minutes in before Micah woke up. Part of the reason I don't try to nap is that it usually means a kid will wake up shortly after I lay down or the phone will ring or someone will knock on the door. In my mind I'd rather be tired than be woken up right as I'm falling asleep. Anyway, nobody wants to hear how tired I am and I'm not going to care a year from now. :) Pat was gone for a week at a conference and I decided I needed to get the boys to bed earlier if I was going to stay sane while he was gone. I started putting Micah to bed at 7:00 and have kept that up for a couple of weeks. I was trying to figure out when he was getting tired at night and go off of his cues but they weren't clear enough so I decided I just needed to choose what time I wanted him to go down and stick do it. I try to do the same routine as I did with Owen with a book and lotion and nursing but sometimes it's just swaddle and nursing and there's no time for anything else. I nurse him again around 10:30 when I go to bed because the first couple of nights he woke up an hour after I went to sleep and a "dream feed" give me an extra hour or 2. Micah's sleep stretches have gotten shorter and shorter - going for 3 hours, to 2 hours to ~1.5 hours last night. Being woken up that frequently makes for a tired and grumpy mama. At this point in time Owen is sleeping more hours than Micah is which is frustrating. Naps are not going particularly well either. He typically wakes up after 35 minutes and I've started letting him cry for a while before going in and he'll usually go back to sleep. We had a couple of days this week where he slept for 1.5 in the morning and another 1.5 - 2 hours in the afternoon. The problem I ran into was that he would wake up at 3:30-4 and then be ready for a nap at 5:30-6 which isn't ideal when you want to put him down at 7. He's so happy during the day so I at least have that.
The other hard part is that he HATES to be alone. I can't leave the room for a minute without him getting upset. He's not too fond of his activity mat and is really only content with sitting in his bouncy seat watching me or being held. I've put him in the bumbo a few times which he likes for a few minutes but then gets tired. Maybe he'll grow up to be an extrovert...
Aside from the sleeping and not wanting to be alone he is a total joy. The nights are short and the days can be long at times but the joy that this little boy has is so great. I pray he keeps that happy spirit.
I'm getting more and more giggles out of him which is so fun. He rolled over for the first time last week. He went back to front which is opposite of Owen. He's only done it once or twice but he never really wants to lay on the floor so he doesn't get much time to practice. He always tries to pull himself up to a sitting position if he's leaning back so I wouldn't be too surprised if he sits earlier than Owen did. The doctor said he had great core strength so we'll see.
W: 16 lb 5 oz (75%)
HC: 16.8 inches/42.5cm (75%)
Micah is still the happiest baby I've come across which somewhat makes up for the fact that he's sleeping like crap. My wonderfully easy baby that was sleeping so well decided to throw it out the window right after my last post. He's gotten progressively worse and this is the most tired I've felt since he was born. I actually tried to nap today which I never do. I think I got 5-10 minutes in before Micah woke up. Part of the reason I don't try to nap is that it usually means a kid will wake up shortly after I lay down or the phone will ring or someone will knock on the door. In my mind I'd rather be tired than be woken up right as I'm falling asleep. Anyway, nobody wants to hear how tired I am and I'm not going to care a year from now. :) Pat was gone for a week at a conference and I decided I needed to get the boys to bed earlier if I was going to stay sane while he was gone. I started putting Micah to bed at 7:00 and have kept that up for a couple of weeks. I was trying to figure out when he was getting tired at night and go off of his cues but they weren't clear enough so I decided I just needed to choose what time I wanted him to go down and stick do it. I try to do the same routine as I did with Owen with a book and lotion and nursing but sometimes it's just swaddle and nursing and there's no time for anything else. I nurse him again around 10:30 when I go to bed because the first couple of nights he woke up an hour after I went to sleep and a "dream feed" give me an extra hour or 2. Micah's sleep stretches have gotten shorter and shorter - going for 3 hours, to 2 hours to ~1.5 hours last night. Being woken up that frequently makes for a tired and grumpy mama. At this point in time Owen is sleeping more hours than Micah is which is frustrating. Naps are not going particularly well either. He typically wakes up after 35 minutes and I've started letting him cry for a while before going in and he'll usually go back to sleep. We had a couple of days this week where he slept for 1.5 in the morning and another 1.5 - 2 hours in the afternoon. The problem I ran into was that he would wake up at 3:30-4 and then be ready for a nap at 5:30-6 which isn't ideal when you want to put him down at 7. He's so happy during the day so I at least have that.
The other hard part is that he HATES to be alone. I can't leave the room for a minute without him getting upset. He's not too fond of his activity mat and is really only content with sitting in his bouncy seat watching me or being held. I've put him in the bumbo a few times which he likes for a few minutes but then gets tired. Maybe he'll grow up to be an extrovert...
Aside from the sleeping and not wanting to be alone he is a total joy. The nights are short and the days can be long at times but the joy that this little boy has is so great. I pray he keeps that happy spirit.
I'm getting more and more giggles out of him which is so fun. He rolled over for the first time last week. He went back to front which is opposite of Owen. He's only done it once or twice but he never really wants to lay on the floor so he doesn't get much time to practice. He always tries to pull himself up to a sitting position if he's leaning back so I wouldn't be too surprised if he sits earlier than Owen did. The doctor said he had great core strength so we'll see.
Tuesday, July 8, 2014
Micah - 3 months
Micah has become such a happy little guy! He is definitely a social smiler and will light up with eye contact from just about anyone. He's still quite vocal and has started smacking his lips a lot which has started waking me up at night. Silly boy. It's very rare for me to not know why he is crying. He is either hungry, tired, in need of a diaper change or just wants to be held.
He's sleeping great at night with a few rough nights every now and then. He typically goes down around 10:00 when I'm ready for bed and sleeps around 6 hours then wakes up at 6:30 then goes back down for a couple more hours. Last night I put him to bed at 9:00 but he only made it 3 1/2 hours but I'm going to try again! It's nice to have a little quiet time after both boys go to bed.
Micah is not as attached to a paci as Owen was but typically prefers it when falling asleep. He MUST be swaddled to fall asleep (unless he's in his car seat or if someone other than mom is holding him). If I catch him at the right stage of sleepiness he will light up as soon as I start wrapping him up and then want to smile and chat for a bit before going to sleep. He does pretty well falling asleep on his own but I do typically nurse him to sleep at night to make sure his tummy is full. It's not a huge deal if he wakes up after nursing and will usually just take a paci and go back to sleep. He's still sleeping in the Rock n Play in our bedroom at night and for his one big nap in the afternoon. His other naps are in the pack n play in the living room. I want him to get used to sleeping through noise and he seems to do okay. I think we're at around 4 naps right now. One long one and 3ish short ones. There have been a lot of days where I feel like I'm always putting him down for a nap which is a little exhausting even if he does go down easy.
Micah loves hanging out under his toy bar and making that little penguin swing. If he's not there he's in his bouncy chair or mama's arms
We're super close to getting a laugh out of Micah which is super exciting! Last not a got a little "ha ha" chuckle :)
He's sleeping great at night with a few rough nights every now and then. He typically goes down around 10:00 when I'm ready for bed and sleeps around 6 hours then wakes up at 6:30 then goes back down for a couple more hours. Last night I put him to bed at 9:00 but he only made it 3 1/2 hours but I'm going to try again! It's nice to have a little quiet time after both boys go to bed.
Micah is not as attached to a paci as Owen was but typically prefers it when falling asleep. He MUST be swaddled to fall asleep (unless he's in his car seat or if someone other than mom is holding him). If I catch him at the right stage of sleepiness he will light up as soon as I start wrapping him up and then want to smile and chat for a bit before going to sleep. He does pretty well falling asleep on his own but I do typically nurse him to sleep at night to make sure his tummy is full. It's not a huge deal if he wakes up after nursing and will usually just take a paci and go back to sleep. He's still sleeping in the Rock n Play in our bedroom at night and for his one big nap in the afternoon. His other naps are in the pack n play in the living room. I want him to get used to sleeping through noise and he seems to do okay. I think we're at around 4 naps right now. One long one and 3ish short ones. There have been a lot of days where I feel like I'm always putting him down for a nap which is a little exhausting even if he does go down easy.
Micah loves hanging out under his toy bar and making that little penguin swing. If he's not there he's in his bouncy chair or mama's arms
We're super close to getting a laugh out of Micah which is super exciting! Last not a got a little "ha ha" chuckle :)
Friday, June 13, 2014
2 Months
Writing blog posts has become increasingly difficult and I think I'll regret not keeping better track of my boys' growth and changes.
Micah is now 2 months old so I should probably say something about him here! He's been a much easier baby than Owen was which I'm so thankful for. He sleeps great at night and he's been taking one really good nap in the afternoon while Owen naps which is really nice. He loves to be held a lot which is the only "difficult" part but he's begun to enjoy the bouncy seat as long as Owen isn't trying to launch him out of it. He's been smiling a talking for a few weeks now and has become so much fun. He loves having his diaper changed and as soon lay him down and start undressing him he'll get a big smile on his face. I love it! Owen usually loves his brother which means I have to keep a close eye on him or he'll squeeze too hard or try to pick Micah up when he's crying. It's all very sweet but a little nerve wracking at times. I discovered yesterday that Owen can unbuckle Micah from his car seat so there's really no safe place for this child!
Micah has been sleeping between 4-6 hours for his first stretch at night and then 1.5 - 3 hours after that so I'm really only waking up once a night which is amazing. Even the first couple of weeks home he was doing a 3 hour stretch so I don't feel like I've been nearly as exhausted this time around even though I have a 2 year old to chase around. I've had a few days where walking up the stairs used every bit of energy I had but otherwise I've felt great. I think the fact that I was sleeping so well at the end of pregnancy helped as well. I was starting off exhausted. Micah was the noisiest baby I'd ever been around until the last couple of weeks. He would just grunt for so long (I'm talking an hour or more) before actually crying or filling his diaper. Our routine for the first several weeks were to go to bed at midnight, wake up around 3 then he'd start grunting at 6 which woke me up and I'd just lay there until he would start fussing. I was so glad when he started cooing so there was something else to listen to! We'll see if he continues to be a very vocal child.
His stats at his 2 month check up this week were:
H: 23 3/4 in (79%)
W: 12 lbs 9 oz (59%)
HC: 39.5 cm/15 1/2 in (63%)
He grew 3 inches and gained 5 lbs. Pack it on kiddo! You'll need it to protect yourself from you big brother :)
Micah is now 2 months old so I should probably say something about him here! He's been a much easier baby than Owen was which I'm so thankful for. He sleeps great at night and he's been taking one really good nap in the afternoon while Owen naps which is really nice. He loves to be held a lot which is the only "difficult" part but he's begun to enjoy the bouncy seat as long as Owen isn't trying to launch him out of it. He's been smiling a talking for a few weeks now and has become so much fun. He loves having his diaper changed and as soon lay him down and start undressing him he'll get a big smile on his face. I love it! Owen usually loves his brother which means I have to keep a close eye on him or he'll squeeze too hard or try to pick Micah up when he's crying. It's all very sweet but a little nerve wracking at times. I discovered yesterday that Owen can unbuckle Micah from his car seat so there's really no safe place for this child!
Micah has been sleeping between 4-6 hours for his first stretch at night and then 1.5 - 3 hours after that so I'm really only waking up once a night which is amazing. Even the first couple of weeks home he was doing a 3 hour stretch so I don't feel like I've been nearly as exhausted this time around even though I have a 2 year old to chase around. I've had a few days where walking up the stairs used every bit of energy I had but otherwise I've felt great. I think the fact that I was sleeping so well at the end of pregnancy helped as well. I was starting off exhausted. Micah was the noisiest baby I'd ever been around until the last couple of weeks. He would just grunt for so long (I'm talking an hour or more) before actually crying or filling his diaper. Our routine for the first several weeks were to go to bed at midnight, wake up around 3 then he'd start grunting at 6 which woke me up and I'd just lay there until he would start fussing. I was so glad when he started cooing so there was something else to listen to! We'll see if he continues to be a very vocal child.
His stats at his 2 month check up this week were:
H: 23 3/4 in (79%)
W: 12 lbs 9 oz (59%)
HC: 39.5 cm/15 1/2 in (63%)
He grew 3 inches and gained 5 lbs. Pack it on kiddo! You'll need it to protect yourself from you big brother :)
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| Micah with his new buddy, Zachary |
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| Love these little rolls! |
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| Not a fan of tummy time either |
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| Brothers! |
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| Owen helping with tummy time |
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| Stylin' the mohawk |
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| Meeting his first cousin, Zeke. He'll meet the other 6 in a few weeks! |
Tuesday, April 1, 2014
3rd Trimester
Almost done! There's lots of catching up to do in this post since I haven't updated in a long time. I've enjoyed reading old posts from when I was pregnant with Owen so it's kind of too bad that I wasn't as diligent this time around. Oh well...life happens and other things have become more important this time.
I'm feeling a lot better at this point of pregnancy than I did with Owen. I'm still sleeping really well and I still have ankles! I've had very little swelling this time around which is pretty amazing. My rings are just a little bit tight so I haven't been wearing them much for the last couple of weeks. I still can if I really want to but they are just a little uncomfortable. I've still had the same pelvic pain I did with Owen but it seems to come and go so I'm hoping it doesn't hang around after this baby is born like it did with Owen. I have had horrible lower back pain that feels like my vertebrae are grinding on each other but that comes and goes as well. There were a lot of days where it felt like my back was being popped every time I moved which is rather unpleasant. I bought a support belt this time which seems to help a lot. Not a miracle worker but it does help with some of the back pain and the heavy belly feeling.
I'm still having blood pressure issues but started on medication around 32-33 weeks and it seems to be keeping it under control. It makes me feel super lightheaded and tired when I take it in the morning so I just have to be careful about what I do during that time. Because of the hypertension I had to start doing NST's twice a week at 34 weeks which is a little bit of a pain but at the same time I get to lie in a bed listening to my babe's heartbeat for a half-hour and not feel like I should be doing something productive. All of those tests have been normal so far so I'm hoping to keep it that way. We have an induction scheduled for April 7 so unless I go before that on my own that will be baby day! It's nice knowing when the end will be here. As much as I'd love to go into labor on my own (which could still happen) having it scheduled is kind of convenient when you have another child that needs to be cared for. My parents are planning on coming down the day before the induction and staying for a few days so it's nice to know that Owen will be taken care of.
We had an ultrasound earlier this week to check fluid levels and baby's size and everything looks great. Baby is measuring about 7lbs which the tech said can be off by a pound or so but sounds like he/she won't be tiny or huge which is good. It was really hard to see much with this ultrasound compared to the one at 20 weeks. Baby is so squished in there so you don't get a good view of much. She asked if we still wanted to to be surprised about gender and even though I really want to know we decided it was silly to find out now after waiting this long. She later told us that she probably wouldn't have been able to tell anyway due to the way baby's legs were twisted around.
It's strange to know that this is our last week as parents of one child and we are trying to make the most of it with Owen. Pat has a lot going on but he's been great about setting time aside so we can do some fun things as a family. I'm trying to use this final week to rest and although my house could use a good cleaning that may not happen.
I talked to my doctor yesterday about how this induction will differ from the one with Owen. I'm trying to decide if I want them to just break my water when I come in and wait to start pitocin or start the pitocin right away. I'm kind of torn between wanting labor to start as naturally as possible and wanting to just get it done. I started praying this morning that I would go into labor on my own this week. I realized that it's okay for me to ask for that with the understanding that I may not get my way. I just have a really strong desire to go into labor naturally and although I'm much more okay with being induced this time than I was with Owen that desire is still very strong.
We've settled on a girl name but if this baby is a boy we might be in trouble.
I've had some emotional moments in the last week as I think about this being the end of our family of 3. I'm so excited for this baby and to see Owen be a big brother and I know that having a sibling is a really great thing but there are times where I get sad about not being able to pour all of my attention into him. He's such a great little boy and has become so much fun! I'm also nervous about going through the newborn and baby stage again. I've gotten used to being able to communicate with Owen and so going back to the not knowing what is wrong stage is a little bit scary. I'm so excited to meet this baby though and get to know him/hers personality and see how we parent differently. I also feel a little more confident about being able to handle this newborn stage since I've experienced it before and have a little more of an idea of what to expect. The part where I lose confidence is when I think about how I react to Owen when I'm tired and know that I'm going to be even more exhausted when baby arrives and that scares me a little bit. I just don't want to be the mom that's freaking out all of the time.
I'll have to get Pat to take a belly picture before Monday. The first picture will also be the last! We did not do a good job of documenting this pregnancy. Sorry second child!
I'm feeling a lot better at this point of pregnancy than I did with Owen. I'm still sleeping really well and I still have ankles! I've had very little swelling this time around which is pretty amazing. My rings are just a little bit tight so I haven't been wearing them much for the last couple of weeks. I still can if I really want to but they are just a little uncomfortable. I've still had the same pelvic pain I did with Owen but it seems to come and go so I'm hoping it doesn't hang around after this baby is born like it did with Owen. I have had horrible lower back pain that feels like my vertebrae are grinding on each other but that comes and goes as well. There were a lot of days where it felt like my back was being popped every time I moved which is rather unpleasant. I bought a support belt this time which seems to help a lot. Not a miracle worker but it does help with some of the back pain and the heavy belly feeling.
I'm still having blood pressure issues but started on medication around 32-33 weeks and it seems to be keeping it under control. It makes me feel super lightheaded and tired when I take it in the morning so I just have to be careful about what I do during that time. Because of the hypertension I had to start doing NST's twice a week at 34 weeks which is a little bit of a pain but at the same time I get to lie in a bed listening to my babe's heartbeat for a half-hour and not feel like I should be doing something productive. All of those tests have been normal so far so I'm hoping to keep it that way. We have an induction scheduled for April 7 so unless I go before that on my own that will be baby day! It's nice knowing when the end will be here. As much as I'd love to go into labor on my own (which could still happen) having it scheduled is kind of convenient when you have another child that needs to be cared for. My parents are planning on coming down the day before the induction and staying for a few days so it's nice to know that Owen will be taken care of.
We had an ultrasound earlier this week to check fluid levels and baby's size and everything looks great. Baby is measuring about 7lbs which the tech said can be off by a pound or so but sounds like he/she won't be tiny or huge which is good. It was really hard to see much with this ultrasound compared to the one at 20 weeks. Baby is so squished in there so you don't get a good view of much. She asked if we still wanted to to be surprised about gender and even though I really want to know we decided it was silly to find out now after waiting this long. She later told us that she probably wouldn't have been able to tell anyway due to the way baby's legs were twisted around.
It's strange to know that this is our last week as parents of one child and we are trying to make the most of it with Owen. Pat has a lot going on but he's been great about setting time aside so we can do some fun things as a family. I'm trying to use this final week to rest and although my house could use a good cleaning that may not happen.
I talked to my doctor yesterday about how this induction will differ from the one with Owen. I'm trying to decide if I want them to just break my water when I come in and wait to start pitocin or start the pitocin right away. I'm kind of torn between wanting labor to start as naturally as possible and wanting to just get it done. I started praying this morning that I would go into labor on my own this week. I realized that it's okay for me to ask for that with the understanding that I may not get my way. I just have a really strong desire to go into labor naturally and although I'm much more okay with being induced this time than I was with Owen that desire is still very strong.
We've settled on a girl name but if this baby is a boy we might be in trouble.
I've had some emotional moments in the last week as I think about this being the end of our family of 3. I'm so excited for this baby and to see Owen be a big brother and I know that having a sibling is a really great thing but there are times where I get sad about not being able to pour all of my attention into him. He's such a great little boy and has become so much fun! I'm also nervous about going through the newborn and baby stage again. I've gotten used to being able to communicate with Owen and so going back to the not knowing what is wrong stage is a little bit scary. I'm so excited to meet this baby though and get to know him/hers personality and see how we parent differently. I also feel a little more confident about being able to handle this newborn stage since I've experienced it before and have a little more of an idea of what to expect. The part where I lose confidence is when I think about how I react to Owen when I'm tired and know that I'm going to be even more exhausted when baby arrives and that scares me a little bit. I just don't want to be the mom that's freaking out all of the time.
I'll have to get Pat to take a belly picture before Monday. The first picture will also be the last! We did not do a good job of documenting this pregnancy. Sorry second child!
Wednesday, March 19, 2014
2 years old!
Owen's birthday was over a month ago so I should probably get an update in here!
We had a little party with some close friends of ours on Owen's birthday which was fun. Owen had fun putting sprinkles on his cake and blowing out the candles. He brought up his cake, and what color his candles were and who was here and where they sat for a couple of weeks after. It was fun to do something small and he enjoyed it.
We had a doctors appointment the day after Owen's birthday and he was 33 lbs (95th percentile) and 36 inches (75th percentile). This explains why carrying him around is so difficult and why I'm avoiding it as much as possible. Owen did really well and just took everything in. He didn't have to get any vaccines which helped. The doctor checked his reflexes and he talked about that the rest of the day!
Owen has begun talking a lot more in the last couple of months and will at least attempt any word you ask him. He's still somewhat difficult to understand but is surprisingly patient when we can't figure out what he's saying. Often times he'll end up laughing at our attempts! He's just recently started putting 2+ words together which has been fun to observe. There's usually a pause in between each word which is cute. The first words he put together were hot sauce which came out sounding like "hot-a sauce-a". He will often add "uh" or "e" sound after a word and frequently stutters when trying to get words out. I think his brain is just moving faster than his mouth can handle and that's what causes the stuttering.
Owen knows most of the alphabet but needs a little prompting at times. He seems to do best if I repeat each letter after he says it. He's able to recognize all of the uppercase letters and quite a few lowercase as well. He loves pointing letters out whenever he can but rarely reads them from left to right. He either reads from right to left or pulls them out at random. He's also able to recognize the alphabet in sign language and tries to make the signs but doesn't have the dexterity in his hands yet. I love watching him try though! Owen can usually spell his name but doesn't really differentiate it between other words. Anytime he hears us ask "what's that spell?" he says "OWEN!" We're trying to figure out if he recognizes the word Iowa but it sounds very similar to Owen when he says it so it's hard to tell. Owen is also able to count to 10 but this is less predictable as he will often skip a number (which number varies) and he just gets excited and either counts 10 or doesn't take all of the items into account. It's fun to watch though.
He's also very good with colors and knows orange, red, green, blue, yellow, white, purple, pink and usually black and gray. Shapes we haven't done much with so that will probably be next on the list. I know that those usually come before letters but he loves letters so much that I just went with it.
Owen still loves playing with his trucks and tractors but has started playing with puzzles and balls more. He got to play with some play-doh the other day and had a good time using the cookie cutters. Owen also has a love for Jayhawk basketball. I should say that it's a love of talking about Jayhawk basketball rather than watching it. He'll watch a game for about 2 minutes and then he's done watching and just wants to run back and forth between the kitchen and living room or pretend he's dribbling a ball. If you tell him what time it is he will say either "jay jay bah bah" or "8 o' clock jay jay bah bah" and if you ask him what time it is you get the same response. He loves to "shoot" balls through a hoop or have his stuffed animals do it. He has started pretending more and likes to gives his animals drinks and food or put them down for naps or make mommy give them hugs because they are sad. He also likes to have pretend food. He's very affectionate with his stuffed animals so I'm hoping that the hugs and kisses will carryover when baby arrives.
It's finally starting to warm up some here so we've been able to spend a little more time outside which Owen gets extremely excited about. The first day that was over 20 degrees he escaped out the garage door while I was unloading groceries and just stood there yelling "OUTSIDE! OUTSIDE!" like he'd never been outside before. I can honestly say that I have never been so excited for spring as I have been this year. Having a toddler during the one of the meanest winters is difficult for sure.
Owen got to move up to the 2 year old classroom at church this month and he loves it. We were having so much trouble with him crying when we dropped him off in the nursery but now that he's in a this new class he just walks right in without looking back. I think he enjoys the toys in there more and one of his teachers we've known for a while and they love each other.
It's been so fun to see him grow and learn so much in these last few months and there are still days I look at him and think "when did he get so big??" I've had several people tell me that once this baby comes he's going to seem so much bigger so I'm trying to prepare myself for that.
Owen is usually a pretty easy going and obedient kid although we have our 2 year old moments of course. He still sleeps great unless he's overtired and is usually pretty happy.
I'm sure I'll think of some things to add to this post but the little guy is awake now and looking for some attention!
We had a little party with some close friends of ours on Owen's birthday which was fun. Owen had fun putting sprinkles on his cake and blowing out the candles. He brought up his cake, and what color his candles were and who was here and where they sat for a couple of weeks after. It was fun to do something small and he enjoyed it.
We had a doctors appointment the day after Owen's birthday and he was 33 lbs (95th percentile) and 36 inches (75th percentile). This explains why carrying him around is so difficult and why I'm avoiding it as much as possible. Owen did really well and just took everything in. He didn't have to get any vaccines which helped. The doctor checked his reflexes and he talked about that the rest of the day!
Owen has begun talking a lot more in the last couple of months and will at least attempt any word you ask him. He's still somewhat difficult to understand but is surprisingly patient when we can't figure out what he's saying. Often times he'll end up laughing at our attempts! He's just recently started putting 2+ words together which has been fun to observe. There's usually a pause in between each word which is cute. The first words he put together were hot sauce which came out sounding like "hot-a sauce-a". He will often add "uh" or "e" sound after a word and frequently stutters when trying to get words out. I think his brain is just moving faster than his mouth can handle and that's what causes the stuttering.
Owen knows most of the alphabet but needs a little prompting at times. He seems to do best if I repeat each letter after he says it. He's able to recognize all of the uppercase letters and quite a few lowercase as well. He loves pointing letters out whenever he can but rarely reads them from left to right. He either reads from right to left or pulls them out at random. He's also able to recognize the alphabet in sign language and tries to make the signs but doesn't have the dexterity in his hands yet. I love watching him try though! Owen can usually spell his name but doesn't really differentiate it between other words. Anytime he hears us ask "what's that spell?" he says "OWEN!" We're trying to figure out if he recognizes the word Iowa but it sounds very similar to Owen when he says it so it's hard to tell. Owen is also able to count to 10 but this is less predictable as he will often skip a number (which number varies) and he just gets excited and either counts 10 or doesn't take all of the items into account. It's fun to watch though.
He's also very good with colors and knows orange, red, green, blue, yellow, white, purple, pink and usually black and gray. Shapes we haven't done much with so that will probably be next on the list. I know that those usually come before letters but he loves letters so much that I just went with it.
Owen still loves playing with his trucks and tractors but has started playing with puzzles and balls more. He got to play with some play-doh the other day and had a good time using the cookie cutters. Owen also has a love for Jayhawk basketball. I should say that it's a love of talking about Jayhawk basketball rather than watching it. He'll watch a game for about 2 minutes and then he's done watching and just wants to run back and forth between the kitchen and living room or pretend he's dribbling a ball. If you tell him what time it is he will say either "jay jay bah bah" or "8 o' clock jay jay bah bah" and if you ask him what time it is you get the same response. He loves to "shoot" balls through a hoop or have his stuffed animals do it. He has started pretending more and likes to gives his animals drinks and food or put them down for naps or make mommy give them hugs because they are sad. He also likes to have pretend food. He's very affectionate with his stuffed animals so I'm hoping that the hugs and kisses will carryover when baby arrives.
It's finally starting to warm up some here so we've been able to spend a little more time outside which Owen gets extremely excited about. The first day that was over 20 degrees he escaped out the garage door while I was unloading groceries and just stood there yelling "OUTSIDE! OUTSIDE!" like he'd never been outside before. I can honestly say that I have never been so excited for spring as I have been this year. Having a toddler during the one of the meanest winters is difficult for sure.
Owen got to move up to the 2 year old classroom at church this month and he loves it. We were having so much trouble with him crying when we dropped him off in the nursery but now that he's in a this new class he just walks right in without looking back. I think he enjoys the toys in there more and one of his teachers we've known for a while and they love each other.
It's been so fun to see him grow and learn so much in these last few months and there are still days I look at him and think "when did he get so big??" I've had several people tell me that once this baby comes he's going to seem so much bigger so I'm trying to prepare myself for that.
Owen is usually a pretty easy going and obedient kid although we have our 2 year old moments of course. He still sleeps great unless he's overtired and is usually pretty happy.
I'm sure I'll think of some things to add to this post but the little guy is awake now and looking for some attention!
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