Back to Work :(

I haven’t been very good about my blog posts lately.  I was too busy soaking up all the precious time off that I had with my kiddos.  8 weeks have never flown by so quickly for me before.  I started back to work on Wednesday (I cried all the way there and the first couple time anyone asked about the baby).  Day 2 and 3 were a little bit better.  I have a lot of guilt about going back to work because I had four less weeks at home with Mitchell than I did with Evie.  Not only does Mitchell not get my full attention like Evie did, but he got shipped off to the baby sitter sooner too.  It’s not something that I’m happy about and I hope to someday make a change that allows me to be at home more.  I’m exploring my options, whether it’s working part-time or late at night while the kids are sleeping.  They are only babies for so long and I hate missing everything!

Maternity leave this time around was busy.  Once I recovered from having a baby, I really tried to make the most of my time off.  Evie still went to the sitter a few times a week in order to keep her on a schedule and give me time with Mitchell.  Mitchell and I spent a lot of time snuggling on those days.  When Evie was home, we had zoo trips and park adventures.  We went for walks, dug for worms, visited puppies at the pet store and enjoyed story time at the library.  We went to a festival and went to the mall to play, shop and share an Auntie Anne's pretzel and lemonade.  I took the kids to KY for a visit and Evie got to play in the fountains at The Banks and Sawyer Point while we were there.  She visited Pops and Kiki at work too.  This thrilled Evie to no end!  Who knew there were so many interesting things at T&W Printing and the airport!  We also got to visit with family and friends that we don’t see often.  I enjoyed this time with my family so much and I was very sad to see it end.

I'm so grateful for the time that I had with my babies and I wish it hadn't ended so soon.  Here are some pictures from our adventures.

Digging for worms

Having lunch with Kiki and watching the airplanes take off

Having fun at T&W Printing

Breakfast with Julie

It's Skyline time!

Enjoying some Jeni's Ice Cream

Ear Tubes

Evie has had quite a few ear infections in her short life.  She made it through her first year without getting any, but since then she has had eight double ear infections, five of which have been since February of this year.  We would get the infections cleared up only to have them return a few weeks later.  It has been frustrating for us as parents and painful for Evie.  A few weeks ago we had an appointment with an ENT.  He looked in Evie's ears and did a hearing test.  At the time of her appointment, she didn't have an infection, but she did have fluid in her ears that was affecting her hearing.  The doctor explained that antibiotics will clear up infections, but will not get rid of fluid.  He recommended tubes and after talking with him, we agreed.

We took Evie to have her tubes put in today.  The Ohio Surgery Center is only about ten minutes from our house which was nice.  Evie's surgery was scheduled for 7:30am, but we had to be there by 6:30.   She was excited because she got to wear her pajamas to the doctor.  She couldn't eat or drink before the procedure.  She asked for a drink and snack once and we distracted her and it was never an issue.  She got checked in and they gave her some medicine to relax her before they took her back.  I was a little nervous because I initially thought she'd have to have an IV, but we were informed that she'd only need gas to put her to sleep since she'd only be under for 15 minutes max.  That made me feel a lot better, only because I know my daughter and know she would have freaked out to have a IV and I really wanted to avoid that if at all possible.  Her nurse was awesome!  She showed Evie the gas mask and told her that she could pick the scent of the gas - Evie chose bubble gum.  Then she brought the gas mask back and let Evie smell it.  I'm not sure what they use to scent it, but Evie loved getting to play with the mask and smell the bubble gum.

When it came time from them to take her back, Evie started to get a little upset when Pat and I had to leave, but again, our nurse was awesome.  She scooped Evie up and said she'd carry her back (rather than having her rolled back on the bed) and even let her push the handicap button for the door.  Evie really liked that and didn't cry at all.  Can't say the same for me - I teared up when they took my baby back.  Even though it was only a simple procedure, it's still a little overwhelming to have your child taken from you and put under anesthesia.  We were told that they would bring us to her in recovery as soon as she woke up.  About 10 minutes later, the doctor came out and spoke with us and said that Evie did great!  15 minutes later, a nurse came to get us and said Evie was awake - and upset.  She was wailing when we got to her.  I held her, but she still cried.  The nurse said that was completely normal.  Anesthesia can make her feel loopy, dizzy and even have her seeing double.  It just takes a little while to wear off.  We sat and watched a cartoon and she drank some juice, but she still cried for the better part of an hour.  Once they saw that she was awake and keeping food and drink down, we were released.  Evie fell asleep as soon as we came home and has been napping since.  We are so happy that she did well and we hope this means no more ear infections!!

Picture Post

Our Princess

Our little man

1 month old!

Our baby boy is one month old!!  We can hardly believe it's already been a month.  Time is flying by.
Mitchell is getting so big.  He weighs 11lbs. 12oz. and is 22 inches long (he's gained 3lbs and 2 inches since birth!).  He's a big, healthy boy!  I need to get used to the comments about his size, but it bothers me sometimes.  It's gotten to the point where I will say "yes, I know he's big" when someone asks how old he is. It's like I feel the need to apologize for his size, which is ridiculous.  I just don't like people's comments, even if they don't mean anything by them.  He doesn't eat any more often than any other baby his age (about every 2-3 hours).  I don't supplement - he's strictly a breastfed baby.   He's a just big baby.  But we are big people!  Pat's tall and I have a lot of height on my side of the family.  I hope that Mitchell grows up to be as big and strong as the other men in his life are! 

Mitchell is doing wonderful at one month old. He's got excellent head control and loves it when we sit him up in our laps.  In fact, if he's crying and upset, sitting him up will usually calm him down.  He likes his swing, but he prefers to be held most of the time.  He's not crazy about laying down flat so most naps are in the swing or the rock-n-play where he is slightly inclined.  He also sleep very well in his car seat, which makes outings go fairly well right now. We've been to mall, the library, the park, the grocery store, the 4th of July fireworks, and he slept the entire time.  He's a pretty good sleeper at night most of the time too.  He will sometimes sleep in 5 hour stretches which of course I love!  Mitchell is a loud baby.  He grunts a lot and makes a lot of noise.  In fact, he usually doesn't wake me up at night by crying, but with his loud grunts.  He's not a huge cryer, but when he does, he WAILS.  He really only cries when he's hungry, needs a new diaper or really wants to be held.  He has a pacifier, but it seems like he could take it or leave it.  That's a big change from his sister the paci-lover!  He's a huge snuggler and he's starting to become more interested in the world around him.  He likes to watch the fan and his mobile.  He likes to stare at our faces and mimic us when we stick out our tongues at him.

rockin' sister's sunglasses

Evie shared her stickers

first bath

Mitchell's one month post wouldn't be complete without mentioning how Evie is doing with him.  Evie adores her little brother!  She is such a good helper.  She'll get us diapers, burp clothes and pacis.  She loves to turn on the music on his swing and she's quick to respond when he cries.  She has to give him a kiss every night before bed and says "I love you baby Mitchell".  She is still having a hard time sharing Mama and Daddy, but she's getting better.  She will tell us to "put the baby in his seat" when she wants us to read to her or play with her.  But she is learning to accept that sometimes Mama needs to feed the baby or change him before I can play with her.  Overall, Evie is an awesome big sister!!

Evie and Mitchell at one month old

4 weeks since Mitchell's birthday

It's been 4 weeks since my baby boy's birth and I still find myself not believing that he's actually here!  I think part of that has to do with how fast he came.  Sounds silly to say that since I was pregnant for 38 weeks, but I truly was not prepared for him to come on the day he was born.  I was scheduled to be induced on June 19th and I had it in my head that was the day he would be born.  I was induced with Evie and I'd be induced with this baby too.  I realized that he could come early, but I was really hoping that he wouldn't.  I'm a planner.  I like having some control over situations.  I wanted to be able to plan this - to know the day, to have my own doctor, to give my parents some warning so that they had time to get here, to have time to clean the house, stock the cabinets and put clean sheets on the bed.  And I really wanted to have time to dote on Evie as my only child for just a little bit longer. If I've learned anything from Mitchell's birth, it's that no matter how much I might like being in control, some things are just not up to me.

2 days before Mitchell's birth - 38 weeks

Tuesday, June 10th started out as just a normal day for me.  I got up for work and got ready.  In retrospect, I probably should have known something was up that morning.  I wasn't feeling great and ended up having to sit down while I put on my makeup and fixed my hair.  I chalked it up just being so pregnant and thought the baby was dropping or had shifted position.  I got to work and went about my day.  I was uncomfortable and having what I thought at the time were Braxton Hicks contractions.  Having been induced the first time around, I didn't know what going into labor would feel like.  If you've read Pat's post, you know that I was texting him throughout the day, but that my mind wasn't really on my contractions, but on all of the stuff I wanted to get done.  I had no idea that I was in labor and I honestly had plans to get a pedicure that night and clean the carpets.  I was really uncomfortable sitting at my desk and got up frequently to walk around.  I did try timing the contractions just in case they were the real thing.  For awhile, they were coming every ten minutes or so, but then they would taper off, further fueling my belief that it wasn't real labor.  From everything I'd read, true labor contractions would come at regular intervals and would increase in intensity, but from my perspective, this wasn't happening.  The contractions were getting kind of painful though.  I remember having to lean over and hold onto something during one of them.  I emailed Pat a grocery list right before I left work for the day and headed out to pick up Evie.  When I got into my car, I decided that maybe I should call my doctor.  I didn't think I was in labor, but I was worried that something was wrong.  I was really irritated when the doctor's office called back and the nurse told me to go to Labor and Delivery at OSU.  I had been hoping that I could just go to my doctor's office five minutes from our house.  I didn't feel like going all the way to hospital, only to be monitored for awhile and sent home.  I called Pat and asked him to see if his mom could come over and watch Evie., then picked up Evie from the sitter's house and headed home to pack a bag.  I called my mom and told her what was going on.  I was pretty upset and remember crying and telling her that I didn't have time for this.  I wanted to see Evie after being away from her all day, I had too much to do around the house, I didn't think I needed to go to the hospital, and I really wasn't ready for this baby.  She, of course, told me that I was being ridiculous, I was ready, none of the 'chores' mattered and everything would be fine.  Pat got home and helped me pick up the house a little.  Yes I was that worried about having a clean house.  It seems so silly now!  After Rita arrived, we headed to the hospital.  I had a few contractions on our way there and one particularly painful one in the parking garage.  But I still didn't believe it was labor.  We rode the elevator up to the 6th floor and a Labor & Delivery nurse happened to ride up with us.  She said I looked pretty uncomfortable and asked me where my bag was.  I told her that I'd left it in the car as I doubted I'd be staying.  We got checked in and I changed into a gown.  I got hooked up to some monitors that measured contractions and made sure the baby was okay.  After about ten minutes, the nurse came back in and said that I was contracting about every 2-3 minutes.  She did a quick exam and said that I was 6 cm and she could feel the amniotic sac.  It was then that I realized that this was it... I really was in labor.  I called my family to let them know and tried not to panic.  I was moved to a room, got an IV and was hooked up to more monitors.  Now that I knew I was in labor, the contractions seemed more painful.  I really had to breathe and concentrate to get through them and they seemed to be coming one on top of another.  My nurse was so awesome and gave me some tips to get through the pain.  She told me to think of a song lyric and recite it in my head.  The first thing that came to mind was 'Let it go' from Frozen, which made me laugh.  Evie has us all singing that song!!  If you've read my previous posts, you know that getting an epidural was never a sure thing.  Keeping that in mind, I read a lot of things about natural childbirth, watched some videos and did my best to prepare for the very real possibility of not getting one.  One of the books that I read was really helpful - Ina May Gastin's A Guide to Childbirth.  It reminded me to not be afraid and try not to be tense because it would make the contractions worse.  Such simple advice really helped me to stay calm.  The nurse asked me if I wanted a epidural and I assured her that I did if  I was able to get one.  I knew the the chances were slim. Most anesthesiologists want your platelet counts at around 100, but some will do the epidurals if your numbers are at least 80.  My platelets were at 78 the week before.  They took a quick blood sample and the results came back at 82 - the anesthesiologist said she's do the epidural!  When I had Evie, I had my epidural placed before I'd felt any contractions.  This time around, the contractions were close together and painful so it was a bit more difficult for me to remain still.   It took two tries, but the epidural was placed and about 20 minutes later I was enjoying the sweet relief from the pain.  At this point I met the doctor that would deliver the baby, Dr. Bartholomew.  I was nervous to have a doctor that I'd never met, but she instantly put me at ease.  She was such a calm and gentle influence and I knew I would be fine.  She checked me and I was already at 8 cm.  She broke my water and said it would be long now.  20 minutes later, I was ready to push.  I was kind of upset that it was all happening so fast.  I really wanted my mom to be there, but I knew that she wasn't going to make it.  This baby was ready to be born.  About 5 pushes later, Mitchell Joesph Marker was born.  8lbs.  12oz.  20 in. long.  Perfect!

 I had waited 9 months to know what were were having and the words "it's a boy!" were music to my ears!  I can't even describe the happiness I felt when I held him in my arms for the first time.  It was just amazing.  He started crying almost immediately and then, when I stroked his tiny face with my finger and talked to him, he stopped crying and just stared at me.  Even now, thinking about those first moments with my son makes me tear up. 

Shortly after Mitchell was born, my mom made it to the hospital.  She walked into my room expecting me to be in labor and was in a little bit of shock when she saw me holding a baby!  Tim and Katharine arrive a little bit later, and then my dad.  Everyone was so happy to meet and hold Mitchell.  As for me, I was in a state a disbelief awhile.  I just couldn't believe that what started out as a normal Tuesday ended with a beautiful, healthy baby boy in my arms!

 Rita came to the hospital the next day to meet Mitchell and my mom brought Evie to the hospital so that she could see her new little brother for the first time.  Evie was much more at ease with everything that I expected and she loved getting to see and hold her brother for the first time.
I'll never forget the day our son was born. He's such a sweet, snugglely little baby and we love him more and more every day!