Labor Day
Labor Day is summer's last holiday.
It is a day to relax and enjoy the warm sun,
spend time with family
and friends,
munch on something tasty,
be silly
and have fun.
Hope you had a great day celebrating summer's end!
Newborn Cloth
We made the decision before Charlotte was born to use cloth diapers. I spent countless hours researching all the hundreds of options for diapers. Keeping in mind that we wanted several children and our diapers would be an investment I still tried to keep the cost to a minimum because let me tell you diapers can get expensive! Our decision was to go with mainly prefolds & covers with a few all in ones (AIO) mixed in. This was because prefolds will last a very long time, are inexpensive and have the added use as burp cloths and even rags later on. The only other thing I wanted was to try stick to natural fibers and stay away from microfiber. So our newborn stashed consisted of:
24 GMD newborn prefolds - These are consistently given high marks from reviewers on numerous different sites. I really loved the thickness and durability of these. They have been washed and dryed a ton of times already and they still look brand new!
12 GMD preemie prefolds - I actually purchased these to be used as inserts but we ended up using them as diapers for the first few weeks.
2 XS Thirsties Covers - Again these are well loved by reviewers especially for newborns. Turns out these are one of my favorites as well. I loved that they were on the thinner side and didn't seem to restrict Charlotte's movements.
2 Newborn Litewrap Covers - These are supposed to be a good long lasting cover and since they run a little on the large size would last for quite a while. I actually hated these and we think Charlotte did too. She cried every time we put them on her. It was a happy day in our house when she outgrew them. I also found the velcro tabs to never stay hooked to the laundry tabs while being washed which was a real pain.
1 Newborn Mommy's Touch Cover - I just fell in love with the look of these and wanted to try a snap cover. Absolutely the best cover we owned! In fact I just ordered 3 more in the infant to toddler size and had a hard time not ordering more. It fit great, felt great and looked absolutely adorable.
1 Newborn Bummis Super Whisper Wrap - Bummis in general is a well loved diapering brand and this cover is no exception. I however, found this cover to be just ok. It was never the first grabbed out of the drawer but it was definitely used before the litewraps.
Bumgenius XS AIO - I bought a few of these from the well loved bin at Cottonbabies. Chad had liked their ease of use and admittedly it sounded very appealing to me as well for being out and about. Best decision ever! I hated the idea that it was microfiber on the inside but in the end it worked very well for us. These diapers also fit long before any of the other diapers besides the preemie prefolds.
Wool Longies - I purchased the most adorable wool longies from another mommy to use as an overnight option. Oh my how I loved the soft squishy baby butt in the wool.
Despite all of my planning, researching and determination to use only natural fibers and the most inexpensive system my child had other plans. I have a very heavy wetter that is also extremely sensitive to moisture. Therefore, having put away all of our newborn stash and purchasing our baby stash we have decided to move to all microfiber since it wicks the moisture from Charlotte's sensitive behind.
Charlotte's Birth Story.
Over the past three months I have struggled to write my birth story. Not because of time, exhaustion or any other physical issue. Instead I couldn't emotionally handle the memory of my daughter's birthday and the idea of sharing those thoughts and feelings with anyone made my physically sick. My actual birth experience was, while a little scary at times, overall amazing. The trauma for me came before and after labor. I hope that by waiting to share my story until I was ready allows the positive experience to shine through.
I was 39 weeks and 4 days pregnant. Somehow, the office had lost my appointment and no longer had me down to come in that day. There was no problem though and I was fit in. Thankfully. After being checked and finding out that I had made no progress again for the 4th week in a row I chose to have my membranes stripped. Later that decision would haunt me (and at times it still does). My doctor chooses to do routine ultrasounds at every appointment. Again thankfully. As soon as the wand hit my belly I knew something was wrong. The screen looked way different and my doctors entire demeanor changed drastically. I casually commented that I didn’t understand how he could see anything hoping I would get a response as to what was going on. The response of “that is the problem, but at least I just found the heartbeat” was more than enough to make my stomach flip flop and my heart to drop. The ultrasound showed no measurable fluid. Not. A. Single. Drop. Dr S made a quick call to St. Luke’s telling them that we were on our way and we were told to get there ASAP because we were being induced and having a baby. Unfortunately, it was not an April fools joke but I was promised that we would do everything we could to accomplish the natural birth I so desperately wanted.
I arrived at the hospital at 2:30pm and the diagnosis was confirmed of no fluid by the floor OB. She did find a very small pocket of fluid around the cord that was too small to be measurable and a pocket of fluid in the baby’s bladder. By 3:40pm it had been determined that I was definitely staying, I had been checked (still at 2cm and baby hadn’t dropped at all), already had my first argument with the nurse because I was told I could wear my own clothes to labor in and then they made me wear a gown instead, a million questions had been answered and pitocin started. For the first few hours labor was easy and I spent the majority of my time on the birthing ball watching TV. The baby was tolerating the pitocin and contractions like a champ so far with a beautiful heartbeat
Around 7:00pm shift change happened (SO happy since we HATED my first nurse) and I was checked again. This time I was 4cm and at a 0 station. Huge progress for as easy as my labor had been so far. Since we had gone to the hospital so quickly Chad had left his car at work so my brother came to the hospital to get the keys and drive it home as well as bring the items we had already packed thinking that was the car we would be taking. While he was gone my labor quickly started to get pretty painful but I managed to get into my own groove and really start working with my contractions. Unfortunately, that groove started no longer working for me when the contractions became literally on top of each other and I ended up throwing up several times.
At around 8:30pm I decided to try the Jacuzzi hoping that the warm water and jets would help relax my muscles a little. It really helped for awhile. I had been freezing cold all day so the warm water did do the one thing I needed and allowed me to relax and stop shivering. However, eventually the heat worked against me and I started to feel too warm and wanted to get out. When I tried to stand up though, I became very light headed and thought I was going to pass out. My feet and hands had begun to go very numb as well. The nurse ended up needing to bring a wheelchair and assistance to get me out of the tub and into bed. The numbness continued to creep up my arms and legs till it was past my elbows and knees. Not feeling well I headed back to the bathroom and stayed sitting on the toilet for several contractions. Somehow I managed to get unhooked from the monitors between going from tub to toilet so my nurse needed me to go back to bed so the baby could be monitored. All the changes in positions made my next few contractions almost unbearable. I began throwing up again, the numbness continued to creep up my legs and arms, my face became numb and I began shaking so uncontrollably the nurses were helping me stay in the bed. I was also the coldest I had ever been.
At this point it was 10:00pm and I wanted to be checked hoping that I was hitting transition. Unfortunately, I had only made it to 5cm and was still at 0 station. The baby was still tolerating the contractions like a champ but I on the other hand was not. At that point I knew that I had reached my limit. I could not physically take any more and I asked for an epidural. At that point I felt like the biggest failure and I kept apologizing to Chad and chastising myself for not being able to continue on. By 10:30pm my epidural had been placed and I was beginning to feel it take effect. A few minutes before midnight I was actually enjoying a few quite calm moments with my hubby and brushing my teeth, which felt FANTASTIC! Then we both decided to try and take a nap. Chad managed to but I couldn’t fall asleep.
12:30am on April 2 I was checked again and found out that I was now 8cm and 0 station. Moments later my water broke on its own. 1:30am I asked to be checked again because I was feeling a whole lot of pressure and sure enough I was at 10cm with just a tiny lip and at a +2 station. Dr. S was called and he wanted me to try a few practice pushes. After 1 push it was apparent that this baby was ready to come out and I was told to avoid pushing at all costs. Finally my doctor arrived and 4 pushes later at 2:11am our beautiful Charlotte Faye was born weighing 6lbs 8oz and 19 1/4 inches. Daddy cut her umbilical cord and she was placed on my chest but quickly taken because she wasn’t breathing.
While they worked on her we discovered why there had been no amniotic fluid. I had a velamentous insertion. Besides the small part of cord that Chad cut the umbilical cord came out in thin strings and my placenta came out in itty bitty pieces. I was planning to tell a little more about this part but I have realized it is still not something I am ready to talk about except to say the info about it is scary.
All along my biggest fear has been losing my baby at full term during delivery specifically due to a cord accident. Early on I had read a blog of a woman that lost her baby due to a scary cord accident and it became something I got stuck on. Knowing how easily my fear could have become a reality has really shaken me up. We were so lucky to leave the experience with a healthy baby in our arms. We so desperately wanted our baby and tried for so long I hope she always knows that she truly is a miracle and our greatest gift.
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The Difference Of A Couple Weeks
Two weeks ago today at exactly this time we were on our way home from our weekly doctor appointment with orders to pick up our bags and go straight to the hospital. Our little girl was on her way. After laboring on pitocin for 11 hours we joyfully welcomed our beautiful little girl Charlotte Faye into the world.
She has already touched our hearts in ways we could not previously comprehend and for reasons unimaginable. Her birth has changed the way I see my husband, my life and the world around me. Life is good despite being constantly deliriously tired.
Guest Room: before and after
>> Friday, March 5, 2010 –
house renovation
Renovation 1.0 is finally over and I am so excited to start sharing the pics! We did a few small things this past summer but the intense nonstop work happened from the last week of December to the last week of February. The following photos are of our guest room. No room in the house is decorated yet so the after pictures will look very bare. We chose to get the construction done and then to start looking for pieces of furniture that suited the rooms.
Before: The room started out with very bright blue walls, a not so cute airplane boarder, lots of cracks in the walls, no trim and just in need of a good freshening up. It was also a very dark room partly due to the dark walls but also because of it's location in the house. The old ceiling fan was more of an accent light as well and really did nothing to help.
After: We took down the border, fixed all the cracks, painted the walls a gray white, cut off the windowsill, added trim around the window, added crown molding, painted all the trim bright white and added a new ceiling fan. 
We chose to go with white walls to brighten the space and bring in as much light as possible. So far the queen bed, desk and lamp that are in there now will be staying. We have fabric picked out for curtains, pillowcases, duvet cover and accent pillows. I just need to get down to my sewing machine and get them taken care of. I am hoping to find a queen size bedframe on craigslist I can refurbish and add to the room as well as a chair of some sort to go with the desk. Finally we need so decorations for the wall and this room will be finished completely.
Showered
This past Saturday friends and family threw me a baby shower that was out of this world. It was pink, girly and the absolute perfect way to celebrate the little lady that will be joining our family very shortly. It had a Sugar and Spice theme and was actually held at my own home to make me more comfortable.
The details:
Wreath that greeted guests as they came in.
Food table all set up with lots of goodies. The food tended to follow the theme of sugar and spice.
Clothes line set up over the gift table with little outfits and goodies. Her first swimsuit is on that line as well! Love that!
My cakes were cheesecake from Hank's Cheesecake. This is actually what we had for our wedding as well which made it even more special. I LOVE cheesecake! MMMMMM.
These candles were given out as favors to all the guests. The label on the front has a cute word graph with words such as Sugar, Spice, baby girl, our last name etc. On the back is a poem that reads: When baby S arrives to meet her mother and father, celebrate the day and light this candle in her honor.
After seeing all the decorations, enjoying mingling with my guests and playing a couple of games it was time to move on to presents. Monkey got so many cute little outfits, onesies, toys and accessories. 
She also received a very special present. A beautiful quilt made by my aunt. It will be a gift that is treasured by me for a very long time to come and hopefully when she is old and grown it will be a gift that she is excited to take with her. A tag will be made after she is born with her name, birthdate etc on it to personalize it even more.
Lily joined the celebration too. Matching the rest of the decorations in her pink sundress and beaded necklace. She is going to be such a great big sister!
Finally daddy-to-be showing his face upstairs and looking ever so excited to be surrounded by a house full of women. He was thrilled however about helping eat the leftover food of course.
I can't thank my mom, sister, mother-in-law, sister-in-law and best friend enough for throwing me such a wonderful shower. They really put a lot of thought and effort into all of the plans. A special thank you to all of my guests as well for helping us welcome and prepare for our new little addition.
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