Two Things You May Not Want To Know

Since this is where I document the happenings in my life, you have the priviledge of being subjected to occasional stories that only close friends and family (most of you reading fall into the category anyway!) might otherwise hear.

Today's tidbits are both breast-related, so brace yourself...

1. I have officially experienced Mastitis AKA Breast Infection.  "Mastitis is an infection of the breast tissue that causes pain, swelling and redness of the breast.  Mastitis occurs when bacteria enter your breast through a break or crack in the skin of your nipple or through the opening to the milk ducts in your nipple. Bacteria from your skin's surface and baby's mouth enter the milk duct and can multiply — leading to pain, redness and swelling of the breast as infection progresses." -Mayo Clinic website

I first experienced tenderness/mild pain during the day Friday.  I just wrote it off, until the chills and fever kicked in on Friday night.  Jadie was out fishing for the night.  I called him home at 3:30 am so he'd be able to wake up Saturday morning and help me with the kiddos in case I wasn't feeling any better.  That was a good call.  I spent most of the day in bed with fever of 102-103, an unbearable headache and general body aches.  Not cool.  We called the OB and he called in a prescription for antibiotics.  Praise God for medical knowledge, because these drugs have done glorious things for my problems.  I'm not over it yet, but feeling 80% better.

If you intend to breast-feed, I encourage you to study up on mastitis prevention, because you will want to do everything that you can to avoid this if at all possible.

2.  Although I am modest and use a nursing cover in public, I am very open in my own home when it's just our family.  With that said, I was nursing last night when Caleb came over to kiss Sarah's head.  So precious and so frequent an event!  He studied my breast and pointed to my very obvious veins asking, "Mommy, is your milk GREEN?"  That was a fun conversation.  

About Me

1. Do you like blue cheese? EEEEEEWWWW. 
2. Have you ever smoked a cigarette? yes, thank you, Andrew Madding, for making me take a single puff which was followed by profuse coughing
3. Do you own a gun? Jadie has several rifles
4. What flavor do you add to your drink at Sonic? Nothing
5. Do you get nervous before doctor appointments? Only if I know there will be a needle involved
6. What do you think of hot dogs? Mysteriously yummy
7. Favorite Christmas Song? Mary Did You Know
8. What do you prefer to drink in the morning? cranberry juice or water
9. Can you do push ups? Let's investigate...I was able to puff my way through zero.  The starting position was exhausting.
10. What is your favorite movie? Steel Magnolias 
11. What's your favorite piece of jewelry? my wedding ring
12. Favorite hobby? couponing and generally being tedious
13. Do you work with people who idolize you? no
14. Do you have ADD? Everyday
15. What's one trait that you hate about yourself? Being overly critical of others
17. Name 3 thoughts at this moment: My boobs are tingly; My hoo-ha is sore; And I love my baby.  P.S.  Jadie said, "Wow.  You put that on your blog???"
18. Name 3 things you bought yesterday: Sweet Tea, Diapers, Doctor's Visit Copay
19. Name 3 drinks you regularly drink? Water, Tea, Dr Pepper
20. Current worry right now? daily headaches
21. Current hate right now? my extra 15 pounds
22. Favorite place to be? Home
23. How did you bring in the New Year? With Melanie and Chris, eating breakfast for dinner and hanging out in our PJs! Apparently, I had temporary amnesia.
24. Favorite vacation spot? I hope to visit every state in the US
27. What color shirt are you wearing? white
28. Do you like sleeping on satin sheets? No, they stick to the skin.  Yuck.
29. Can you whistle? yes, but my sister's attempts are more amusing.
30. Favorite color? Blue
31. Would you be a pirate? No, what kind kind of ridiculous question is this?
32. What songs do you sing in the shower? Praise songs
33. Favorite girl's name? Sarah, of course
34. Favorite boy's name? Caleb, of course 
35. What's in your pocket right now? Amazing.  There is actually something in my pocket.  Car Keys.
36. Last thing that made you laugh? Kristin demonstrating how she washes herself in the shower.
37. Best bed sheets as a child? Rainbow Heart Balloons.  Very 80s, that's for sure.
38. Worst injury you've ever had? The major rippage caused by delivering Caleb.
39. Do you love where you live? Yes.  Waco has grown on me.
40. How many TVs do you have in your house? 2. one in our living room, one in our bedroom.
41. Who is your loudest friend?  Kristin, although she is vehemently disagreeing.
42. How many dogs do you have? one; Dusty, Dusteroo, Dust Man, whichever your prefer 
43. Does someone have a crush on you? Jadie says that's why he married me
45. What is your favorite book? Haven't been reading lately, but I took some sound advice from How To Make Children Mind Without Losing Yours 
46. What is your favorite candy?  Peanut Butter M&MS
47. What is your favorite sports team? US Gymnastics Team from last summer's Olympics
48. What song do you want played at your funeral?  Give Me Jesus
49. What were you doing 12 AM last night? falling asleep
50. What was the first thing you thought of when you woke up this morning? is it time to nurse again?

Happy Birthday Granny!

Here are two of my favorite people in this world:  Granny and PawPaw!

Happy 78th Birthday, Granny!  

You age beautifully...I hope I inherit that trait from you!

Sarah's Two Week Appointment

Here's our Little Miss at 2 weeks:

Here are the stats:

• 6lbs, 14 oz/20 oz gained (12th percentile)
  
• 19.5 in long/1 inch growth (15th percentile)
• 13.5 in head circumference/1.5 inch growth (23rd percentile)
  
• 2 hours, 10 minutes at the doctor's office (next year's appointment will be scheduled after school starts so we don't have to contend with kids needing school shots and sports physicals)

Praise the LORD for:

• Good milk supply for nursing!
  
• Better sleep at night!
  
• Friends who brought dinner Sarah's first week!
  
• Melanie and Gail who have taken Caleb out of the house for some fun time!
  

Praying for:

• My blood pressure, currently running about 120/80 (already much improved)
• Sarah's continued health and weight gain
  
• Caleb's strong-willed attitude

For the Shorties

Here's a very useful post from "Crap I've Made."  She links us to instructions for hemming your jeans to make the hem look just as it did when you bought them.

Hemming Jeans Like a Pro

Golden Nuggets from an Email

I don't usually forward emails, but this one had some really good things to say.  Most of these are things I need to do as opposed to things I already do.

1. Pray
2. Go to bed on time.
3. Get up on time so you can start the day unrushed.
4. Say No to projects that won't fit into your time schedule, or that will compromise your mental health. 
5. Delegate tasks to capable others.
6. Simplify and unclutter your life.
7. Less is more. (Although one is often not enough, two are often too many.)
8. Allow extra time to do things and to get to places.
9. Pace yourself. Spread out big changes and difficult projects over time; don't lump the hard things all together.
10. Take one day at a time.
11. Separate worries from concerns . If a situation is a concern, find out what God would have you do and let go of the anxiety . If you can't do anything about a situation, forget it.
12. Live within your budget.
13. Have backups; an extra car key in your wallet, an extra house key buried in the garden, etc.
14. K.M.S. (Keep Mouth Shut).
15. Do something for the Kid in You everyday.
16. Carry a Bible with you to read while waiting in line.
17. Get enough rest.
18. Eat right.
19 Get organized so everything has its place.  HAHA!  Can I convince my husband of this?
20. Every night before bed, think of one thing you're grateful for that you've never been grateful for before.

21. Write down thoughts and inspirations.
22. Every day, find time to be alone.
23. Having problems? Talk to God on the spot. Try to nip small problems in the bud.
24. Make friends with Godly people.
25. Keep a folder of favorite scriptures on hand.
26. Remember that the shortest bridge between despair and hope is often a good 'Thank you Jesus .'
27. Laugh.
28. Laugh some more!
29. Take your work seriously, but not yourself at all.
30. Develop a forgiving attitude (most people are doing the best they can).
31. Be kind to unkind people (they probably need it the most).
32. Talk less; listen more.
33. Slow down.

Beautiful Sarah

Still at the hospital

At home in the big brown chair

Sleeping in the bassinet

Close up

Sarah's Birth Story

Hopefully I remember the details well enough to tell a coherent "story" for you all.  But first, some pictures!

Here I am, fairly swollen and ready to go the day before giving birth.

Caleb checks out his baby sister.

Caleb is so proud to hold little Sarah.  He wants so badly to pick her up.

Let's assume I'm swollen.  

As of today, I'm down almost 20 pounds, so let's hope at least 10 of them came from my thighs :-)

At 5lbs 10oz, Sarah was so tiny that she required lots of extra support at discharge time.

Now, for the scoop.  

Two weeks ago, at my July 28 appointment, Dr. Rister scheduled me for an induction.  That day I was dilated to 4 cm, but had not been experiencing labor pains, only uterus contractions that felt like mild pressure. At my August 4th appointment, I was still measuring 4 cm and I still had not had any labor pains, but was getting nervous about the possibility of going into labor on my own.  I was mostly nervous because Jadie was still working during the day and I didn't want to be at home alone with Caleb when the moment came.  I offset this fear by convincing Kristin to spend time with me nearly every day.

We walked through the doors of the Women's and Children's Center at Hillcrest Hospital at 6am on Friday the 7th.  The paperwork and arm bracelets took about 10 minutes and then we were off to the Labor & Delivery Room that had been prepared for us.  The first hour in the L& D room was spent signing more paperwork, answering 100 questions, checking my vitals (which revealed even higher blood pressure) and getting the IV in.   

I was set up and ready to get the pitocin flowing around 7:15 am.  Emily, my nurse, started me on the lowest dose of pitocin since Dr. Rister would be in surgery from 7:40 am to 8:30 am.  At 7:25 am Dr. Rister came in to break my water and check dilation.  At that point, I was dilated to 5 cm.  He said he thought we'd have a baby before lunch.

The nurse and I discussed when to get the epidural.  I was 90% sure I wanted it, but was unsure of how soon to get it since I didn't know how long the labor would last and I didn't want the medication to wear off before the worst part was over.  I decided to wait until after Dr. Rister's surgery (the anesthesiologist would be in the surgery and unavailable during that time).  It took about 20 minutes for me to begin to feel any contractions at all, but by 8 am, I was asking for alternate pain control options.  I knew I only had to wait 20 more minutes for the anesthesiologist, but I was feeling what I thought were intolerable contractions.  I kept telling Emily (the nurse) that I must be a wimp to think my contractions were unbearable only 30 minutes into my induction.  Jadie was my hero, getting right in my face to help me breathe and stay calm.

At about 8:15 am, I began to feel panicky because I was pretty sure I felt the pressure of Sarah beginning to push her way out of the birth canal.  I felt my body beginning to push without being able to control myself.  I was quickly losing any shred of calm I had left.  Emily said she'd check my dilation (she seemed to be trying to appease me, to calm me down).  She seemed surprised as she told us that I was already dilated to 9 cm.  She left the room for a few minutes.

When Emily returned with a second nurse, I was frantic.  I told her I was pretty sure that the baby was already crowning.  I had unknowingly already began spreading my legs and holding one of them in the air.  Again, she seemed to have trouble believing me.  The other nurse took a peek and said, "I can see some hair!"  She told me to stop pushing the baby out.  I told her that I wasn't able to control myself, my body was doing the involuntarily.  Seriously, I had lost control.  She told me to pant like a dog, which I thought was dumb, but it actually worked and I was able to stop pushing for a few moments.  Dr. Rister came in quickly (apparently leaving his surgery a little early) and was shocked to see Sarah's head crowning.  Once he had on his gear, I stopped panting and my body kicked in again and her head was out in no time.  Dr. Rister also told me to stop pushing (which wasn't going to happen), that he could finish delivering Sarah on his own.  I still kept pushing and she was out at 8:21 am!  

That was some seriously crazy 56 minute labor.  I still cannot believe it.  Both Emily and Dr. Rister said that they had never had an induction lead to delivery in under an hour.  Whew.  It was traumatic, but it was over before I knew what had hit me.  Not having the epidural was excruciating, but I actually have memory of the delivery this time.  With the epidural and then the blood pressure medicine I had with Caleb's delivery, I can hardly remember a thing.  This time everything was so different.

Hopefully I didn't leave out anything important, but if I did I correct it later since the main reason for recording this is for my own personal reflection and future reading.  Thanks for joining me in my journey!

She's Here!

I'll post the labor and delivery story and pictures later, when I don't have a massive BP headache and a baby at the breast.  

For now, here are the stats:

• Sarah Kate Freeman
  
• August 7, 2009
• 8:21 am
• 6lbs, 2 oz at birth
  
• 5lbs, 10 oz at time of discharge
  
• 18.5 in long
  
• 12 in head circumference
  
• dark brown/black hair
  
• 56 minute labor
  
• all-natural delivery, no c-section, no drugs, whew!
  

Praying for:

• My blood pressure, currently running about 150/105
  
• Good milk supply for nursing
  
• Sarah's health and weight gain
  
• Sleep :-)