The Last Six Weeks

Oriana is now 6 weeks old! How did that happen already?

The time has flown by, looking back. The first few weeks were rough at night, with Ori's schedule all messed up. She had her days and nights switched and was having some gas issues that made her very uncomfortable.
Nursing started out a little bit challenging, with her fussing and crying when I tried to feed her, but that has changed for the most part. Sometimes during the night feeding(s) she can get pretty frustrated, but all in all things are going well in the feeding department. She is gaining weight and her gas issues are better. She is known for spitting up quite a bit, so we both spent 6 weeks on maternity constantly smelling like spit up, but what can you do? If I changed clothes and changed her every time she spit up, I'd be doing laundry 24/7! 

2 days old - Owen said, "She looks like a zebra!" the first time she wore this. Now he will argue that she's a tiger, because the stripes are brown. : )

1 week - She LOVES to swing, and apparently has LOTS of pink!

Daddy bought her a monkey when he went to MN for work. He bought Owen a Vikings one just like this when he was a baby, too. : )

1.5 weeks - Valentine's Day kisses

2.5 weeks - Enjoying her new vibrating rocking chair

3 weeks - She looks ready to punch me!

4 weeks - Their first bath together.

Getting to know her Great Grandma Kuehl

She really enjoys baths.

4.5 weeks - Thinking hard!

5 weeks - Enjoying our last week of snuggling before going back to work!

Checking herself out in the mirror.

Now, at 6 weeks, things are going much smoother (knock on wood!). She's sleeping much better for me at night, which is awesome because I'm back at work, and she is starting to be more alert during the day. I'm still waiting for her to give me a real, genuine smile. We've gotten lots of gas smiles, and I've gotten a couple of pictures where it looks like she's smiling, but they aren't the real, "I'm so happy!" types of smiles. They're mostly just fluke facial expressions at the time of the picture.

6 weeks - Passed out after eating

Let's go to daycare! Her first day.

She seems to be doing just fine at daycare. I made sure Owen knew ahead of time that Ori was going to be going with him, but apparently I must have given him the impression that it was just going to be that first day, because when I picked them up the second day, Moe (our new daycare lady) told me that Owen said, "Why is she here today? She needs to go back home!"

Owen is a really good big brother. He's still doing a great job at bringing me things when I ask, and if she's crying, sometimes he will sing the ABCs to her. He'll give her kisses on her head and little hugs. Sometimes he will try putting the pacifier back in her mouth. That's really cute to me for some reason. I'm so excited to see them really start to interact. I know he's going to be a goofball for her when she starts smiling and laughing. He's always a goofball!

Owen and Ryan being goofballs!

She's Finally Here!

Warning: This is a long, fairly detailed description of labor and delivery. Some parts may be considered Too Much Information! : ) I like being able to go back and read my posts months and years later, so I sometimes put in more details than some would think necessary. I promise not to be too gross.

Oriana Marilynn Burke finally made her way into the world at 11:43 am on February 4, 2013 when I was 41 weeks and 1 day pregnant. I was scheduled to be induced that morning at 7 am, but luckily she changed those plans. I really wanted to have the experience of going into labor on my own, and my baby girl gave me that! She waited until the last minute, but that's ok! : )

The night before "my induction", my mom came to town so that she could stay with Owen while we were at the hospital, and we are lucky she did! The night before was also the Super Bowl, and Ryan went to a friend's house to watch the game and eat yummy party food. Owen, my mom and I went out to eat and then headed home to relax. I was excited for the next day, but also a little anxious that when I called the hospital the next morning, they were going to tell me they were full and couldn't take me. I was ready to have this baby!

I didn't sleep that great that night (not that that was a change). I was tossing and turning and thinking about the next day. I also had a dream that I was at the hospital and Angelina Jolie was my nurse. She was about to give me medicine to start my induction when I woke up to a gush. I looked at Ryan, who was awake, but didn't say anything and just ran to the bathroom. My water had broken! Luckily, it wasn't a whole lot and I didn't have a mess to clean. I went and told Ryan and my mom what happened. It was about 4:40 in the morning. Ryan started getting dressed and mentioned he had been up since about 1:00 because he didn't feel well. GREAT. I'm about to have a baby and my hubby is sick! My mom asked if I was having any pain or contractions. I wasn't, so we decided to wait a while before going in. That way Ryan could try to sleep some more, and I wouldn't have to be in the hospital any longer than necessary. Ryan went back to bed, but had to get up a few minutes later because he was sick.

Over the next few hours, Ryan slept while my mom and I watched tv. My contractions started not too long after my water broke, but weren't bad. At 6:00, I called in like I was supposed to for my induction and at 6:30 I woke up Ryan to see how he was feeling. Not good. I told him my mom offered to take me to the hospital and he could stay in bed and come later, but would have to take care of Owen when he got up. So a few minutes later, my mom and I were on our way to the hospital.  The contractions were steadily getting more intense, but I wasn't really timing them because I figured there wasn't much point. My water had broken, so I was definitely in labor. By the time I finally got to my room, I could barely walk or talk through the contractions. And my water kept gushing out with almost every contraction.

My nurse didn't know yet that my water had broken, so she asked why my baby was being so stubborn that I had to be induced. I told her there was a change in plans! She got me settled in my room, asked me a bunch of questions and then said the midwife would be in soon to check me and see how things were going. When the midwife, Sandy, got there, she was happy to see on the monitors that I was contracting regularly. She checked me and I was at 4 centimeters and said she thought I'd have a lunchtime baby. She knew I wanted an epidural, but they needed to start an IV and check my platelet count before they could do that, so she put in the order for all of that so I could get it as soon as possible.  The nurse got all of that going and then told me the anesthesiologist was in a C-section right now and it would probably be another 30 minutes or so. By this time, I can't talk through the contractions and they seem to last a really long time. The nurse asked if I wanted some drugs to take the edge off while I wait, but that it would probably make me a little loopy. I said no. And then she came back about half an hour later and said it was still going to be at least 25 more minutes, and she had called the on call anesthesiologist and he was at home which was 20 mins away. Did I want some drugs now? YES! She only gave me half a dose (at my request because I didn't want  to be out of it) but it did help for a while. It was about that time that I called Ryan to see when or IF he was coming, and that it probably wasn't going to be too much longer and I'd be ready to push. He said he was coming and he and Owen would get ready and leave.

When the anesthesiologist finally got there, my drugs had worn off a little bit and I was in a lot of pain again. Thankfully, everything went well with the epidural and after that was in place and I was comfortable, the nurse checked me and I was at 8 cm, and Ryan and Owen had arrived. It was not our plan for Owen to be at the hospital at all until after she was born and I was off monitors and IVs, because I didn't want him to get scared, but I guess plans change. We all hung out in the room for awhile and when Owen got restless, my mom took him for a walk around the hospital. While they were gone, I started feeling pressure, like she was ready to come out, so I called for the nurse. And yes, she was ready! I was at 10 cm and her head was "right there".

Since Ryan wasn't feeling well, I told him that if he wasn't able to stay in the room, that was fine, but he said he was fine. Luckily, there were two nurses and the midwife there, so he didn't have to do anything but stay by my head and be there for me. I don't know how long I pushed, but it was longer than with Owen. I had some scar tissue from Owen's delivery that wouldn't stretch like normal tissue, so it was making things more difficult. My midwife ended up having to cut that tissue a little bit, and soon after, Oriana was born! The nurses, midwife and Ryan were surprised at how big she was and started making guesses at how much she weighed. I really couldn't tell that she was any bigger than a "normal" baby, but she ended up being 9 lbs 5.6 ounces! Then I was surprised! She was also pretty long, at 22 inches, so she really wasn't too chubby. I have a friend that had her baby just the week before, and her baby was 9 lbs 2 oz, and when I saw a picture of her, she was a CHUBBY baby and I remember thinking, 'Poor girl, having to push that big baby out!' And then I go and have a baby even a bit bigger! Thank God for epidurals! Although I don't know if my friend had one or not. I just know I am thankful for them!


Now for some pictures.

Fresh from my belly : )

Big girl!

There was a little bruising on her face because she was stuck for a while before my midwife made the decision to do a small episiotemy. 

Meeting big brother Owen

Owen wasn't too sure about her for a while, which I kind of expected. But we had gotten a gift for Oriana to give to her big brother, a Jake and the Neverland Pirates treasure chest, and after he got that he was a bit more comfortable. He didn't want to hold or touch her until a few days later, though. : )

My dad arrived not long after she was born.

Nana and her new granddaughter

Since everything went really well with my delivery and Oriana was given a clean bill of health, we were able to go home the next day, which was really awesome. Hospitals are boring and since Ryan was sick, he left a few hours after she was born and didn't come back until the next day when it was time to leave. It must have been something he ate or a quick 24 hour bug, because he was fine the day AFTER she was born.

First day home

What a good big brother! - 3 days old -

So far things are going pretty good. Her days and nights are mixed around, but that's pretty normal. I'm feeling pretty good - I can tell a difference between recovery with Owen and with Oriana. Much easier this time around, since I had fewer stitches. I also know that getting out of the house and walking around help the body and the mind. When Owen was born it was so miserably cold outside that I never wanted to leave the house, which can make for a sad, hormonal momma!

My mom got to stay with us for the week, too, which was a big help. The worst part was that Ryan had to work Friday and Saturday nights and then had to go out of town Sunday through Tuesday for work, and my mom went back on Saturday, so I was a "single mom" for a few days right off the bat. I was pretty nervous about being the only one, but things went really well while Ryan was gone. Owen is a really good helper, always eager to get diapers or wipes for me (or even find the remote for me!).

Owen will be going to daycare three times a week while I'm off work so he can have time with his friends and it gives me a bit of a break. I have a hard time getting him to nap anymore, so on days when he is home, I don't get to sleep when Ori sleeps.

Ryan's family will be coming to town this weekend to meet Ori. Owen's excited because he knows he will get to swim at the hotel with his cousins. He LOVES to swim!

Ok, now time for a nap...



Read about the day Owen was born here.

Non Stress Test

Well, I'm still pregnant! 40 weeks and 3 days. So at my weekly appointment with my midwife, they hooked me up to a monitor for a non stress test (NST), which they do for all patients who are overdue. It's a twenty minute test that monitors baby's heart rate and my contractions. Basically, they want to see that her heart rate goes up and down with activity and that it isn't dipping too low. My midwife walked in the door in the middle of it and could tell from across the room that she is doing fine in there! She passed with flying colors and the midwife says that's a really good indication that baby is healthy and safe.

That being said, she did set up my induction date for February 4th - this Monday. At that time I will be 41 weeks and 1 day. She said they set inductions for overdue patients at around 41 weeks because it is possible that they won't be able to fit me in that day and we'd have to reschedule, and they really don't want you to go past 42 weeks. So this gives us some leeway. So Monday morning I am supposed to call the hospital at 6 am to see if they still have room for me that day, and if so, I'm to be at the hospital at 7 am. Depending on how dilated I am, and I opted out of checking that today, there are different ways to go about inducing labor. If I'm 3cm or more, they will most likely start right up with Pitocin, but if I'm not at 3 cm, they use a gel that is supposed to dilate me. Or, if I'm dilated enough and baby's head has dropped enough, they could break my water for me and see if that got things going. Which with Owen, the doctor breaking my water is what finally got things REALLY moving, even though I had been getting the Pitocin for a few hours.

BUT, I'm hoping to avoid all of that and go into labor on my own. The weather sucks today - lots of snowing and blowing and travel is NOT advised - so tomorrow would be better. : ) I didn't even go into work this morning and only went this afternoon because my doctor's office is close to work and I was NOT going to miss my appointment! : ) I made it just fine, just took my time.

I don't think there's much of a chance that she will come yet today, but if she wants to be a January baby, she better get her butt in gear! Just the rest of today and tomorrow left! Otherwise, Little Miss will be a February baby.

40 weeks

My due date was yesterday, January 27, 2013. Today, on a foggy, icy Monday morning, I had to get my butt out of bed and go to work. Ugh. Not what I was expecting! I was so sure last Friday that it was my last day, and struggled to make it to 5:00 because I had worked like a mad women to get ahead, so now I have nothing of importance to do. Ugh.

The last few weeks have gone by pretty slow. At 36 weeks, I started seeing the midwives that are at the clinic I go to, since my doctor moved to Texas. There are 3 at the clinic, and they all rotate patients. That week, she checked me for Group B Strep (I came out negative) and then checked my cervix. 1 cm dilated. Stomach measured fine and heart beat was good.

Owen's New Year's kiss to his sister : )

Week 37, I went back and met with another midwife. Baby must have been laying funny, because she said I was measuring about 34 weeks. She ordered an ultrasound just to double check everything. Better to be safe than sorry. So a few days later I went to the hospital for the ultrasound. Everything measured on schedule and was told the baby was probably about 7 lbs 7 oz (+ or - a whole pound!). No good pictures out of it, because she was laying face down, but we did get confirmation that she is a girl! : )


Week 38 - Nothing new to report, just went over the ultrasound with the midwife, she measured baby and listened to her heart. Everything normal.

38 weeks

           

 Owen found these helmets in his room. His is my old motorcycle helmet, and the other is a Vikings helmet, which he said Oriana could have. So this is them wearing their helmets.

Week 39 - Same thing. My iron and blood platelets have been low again this pregnancy, but not quite as bad as last time. I've been to the lab I don't even know how many times for a complete blood count, and everything stays about the same. So the midwife told me when I come in for labor, they will do another one then, because the anesthesiologist won't do an epidural if my platelets are below 100. They have been hovering around 140, so I'll probably be in the clear. She measured baby, listened to her heart (both looked good), and then checked my cervix again. Still 1 cm and baby is high. I could've told her that! I think she's kicking my heart sometimes!!

: ) I may miss my built-in table soon!

So she had me schedule an appointment for this week. It's on Wednesday. If I'm still pregnant on Wednesday, they will hook me up to monitors for a non stress test, just to get a good reading on how she's doing in there. If she seems stressed in any way, they will send me to the hospital to be induced right away. If she's doing ok in there, they will still schedule an induction, but I'm guessing it will be for Thursday or Friday or whenever they can get me in! So it's possible I'll be having a February baby. As long as she's healthy, I don't care when she comes out! And when I found out I was pregnant and before I had gone to the doctor, I thought my due date would be early February, anyway. I think I'm just anxious because I'm caught up at work and it's a little slow right now anyway, so it would be the perfect time to be done! : ) Plus, I don't want to be induced. I'd rather go naturally. They say induced labors are harder and I'd like to have the experience of going naturally, since Owen was induced. So I'm keeping my fingers crossed!

Dr. Owen

 A few weeks ago, Owen and I were talking about Oriana coming out. He said, "But she doesn't have no door to come out!" So I assured him that the doctor would help get her out. He said, "Do you want me to get my screwdriver?" Not sure what he thought he was going to do with that to get her out, but I told him we better let the doctor take care of it. So on Saturday, I asked him again if he was ready for Oriana to come out and he went and got his doctor kit and and told me he would get her out for me! He's so cute!

Christmas

Christmas went so fast this year! Luckily, we were able to celebrate it with everyone. First, we went to Muscatine for Ryan's family Christmas and stayed in a hotel so the kids could swim. Ryan's mom, step-dad, sister and her family, uncle and his family, and grandma and step-grandpa came over and we swam, had snacks, opened presents and then went to Applebee's for late night appetizers and drinks. It was fun and Owen got spoiled! Two race tracks for his Hot Wheels, clothes, a game for his Smart Cycle, a pirate ship and a John Deere tractor and trailer that he can get on and drive! We even let him drive it down the hallway of the hotel. (And thankfully, by now I think he's forgotten about it. We took it to my parent's house for the winter so it wouldn't be tempting him, and he hasn't talked about it in a while!) Unfortunately, I didn't take a single picture!

The next day we met my Mom in Manchester so she could take Owen and I back to Elkader. Christmas Eve fell on a Monday, and Ryan had to be back in Cedar Falls to work, but I didn't. So we went to my parent's house and Ryan came Monday afternoon after work. That night we went to my Grandma's for supper and a game of cards.

Christmas Eve was kind of a lazy day. It flurried most of the day, so my dad had to work, but Mom, Owen and I made it to church in Strawberry Point, where we met my brother and his family coming in from Omaha. And then it was back to my parent's for a delicious meal of prime rib and hamballs. YUM! Ryan had made it to town by then, too, and after supper it was time for PRESENTS! Thankfully, my brother and sister in law are picture taking fiends, and they were nice enough to share these with us:

Books!

Car transporter - but he doesn't know what it is yet.

His face when he realizes it's a car transporter. SO CUTE!

These are the glasses from his doctor kit : )

Sharing his AquaDoodle mat with Annaliese

He got so much more than what's in these pictures, including a Nerf gun. We also brought a few Nerf guns we had at home, bought my dad a Nerf gun for part of his gift, and my brother got Nerf guns for Ian, Annaliese, himself and his wife. So after presents there was a huge Nerf war going on in the basement. It was really funny to see, and actually the adults got more into it than the kids did.

Christmas day was hosted by my parent's, so my mom's side and dad's side both came over. Lots of people and lots of yummy food. I told Ryan I should've made a sign that says

I'm due January 27th.
It's a girl.
Her name is going to be Oriana.

and wear it around my neck. I got asked the same questions a million times. And a few times, I got blank stares when I told them what her name is. No, it's not common name. That's what I like about it. But it's not like I'm going crazy and naming her Blu Ivy or something like I'm a famous person! ; ) But anyway, Ryan and I had to work the next day, so we headed back to Cedar Falls that afternoon. Luckily, my mom had the rest of the week off, because we didn't have any daycare for the rest of the week. So Owen got to stay at Nana and Boppa's and be spoiled for a few more days. Here are some pictures of him playing in the snow with Ian:

And finally, since we were not at home on Christmas night, Owen missed out on Santa coming to our house. So on Saturday night when he finally got home, he got to open his presents from Santa.

Mike the monster (from Monsters Inc) was in his stocking.

Obligatory socks and underwear in his stocking! Plus lots of treats!

He got Toy Story 2, The Incredibles, Wall-E, and UP.

Monkey shirt with googly eyes and pants.

Batman backrest. I got a new one for Christmas, too!

Tool bench. He said, "Hey! Boppa has one of those!"

After all the birthday presents and Christmas presents Owen got those few weeks, we had some MAJOR toy overflow! So we packed up some old toys and went to Goodwill, plus we just got a new toy organizer from my parents. There are even a few toys we haven't even taken out of the boxes yet! TOY OVERLOAD!! And next year will be worse...

Owen's Birthday Party

This year for Owen's birthday, we combined parties with two of his cousins. His cousin Jaxon's birthday is November 26 and his cousin Lexi's birthday is November 27 (same as mine!). With their birthday's always close to Thanksgiving, and Owen's the week before Christmas, we decided to have a joint birthday party for the three of them in between. So the week before Owen's birthday, we went to the Play Station in Cedar Rapids and then spent the night at the Long Branch Hotel to swim and party! The kids had a blast! The Play Station is an indoor jungle gym, basically, with slides, ball pits, tubes and games. Owen's favorite was the ball pit.

Ryan got in to play, too!

Balls!

He made Nana get in, too!

He LOVES to swim!

Quick break

Jump!

Owen, Jaxon and Lexi (who wasn't feeling well, poor girl) ready for some presents!

Toy Story from Mommy and Daddy

A dragon (later named Blanket Elmo George) from Aundrea, Mike, Bri and Lexi

Koosh gun from Dustin and Tiffany - I think this gun is lots of fun, by the way!

Smart Cycle from Grandma Angie and Grandpa Dan

He also got some Hot Wheels cars and a Hot Wheel's suitcase to store them from Jason and Carrie, and my Mom made him a Dr. Seuss quilt for his BIG BOY bed!

New sheets and quilt from Nana and Boppa

We made the switch to his big boy bed somewhere around the end of November/beginning of December. We also switched bedrooms, since we only have two bedrooms, and ours was huge. This way, the kiddos are together in one big room that's also big enough for them to have quite a bit of floor space for playing. Our room is a bit cramped, having a king size bed (that I will NEVER give up!). So all that fits in there is the bed, a dresser, the bassinet and a small table. And it's tight, but it works, and after Ori's too big for the bassinet, it will be better. We don't need a lot of room - the kids do!

Anyway, the switch to the big boy bed went pretty well. I knew it was going to impossible for me to force him to stay in bed after reading nighttime stories (and was a battle I didn't want to fight in my third trimester), so the rule is that he has to stay in his room, but he can play until he's ready for bed. He has a night light, and we have a light in the hall on, so he can see, but it's not too much light. It's working out ok. He always finds reasons to come out of his room, but we just tell him to turn around and he's normally pretty good about it. He's always been a good sleeper, and normally sleeps through the night just fine. He even will get up in the middle of the night, go to the bathroom on his own, and then go back to bed without a word. I know he's done this because I have insomnia, and heard him one night. And he always forgets to turn off the bathroom light, so if I get up in the night and the light is on, I know he's been up! : ) There have been a few times he's woken up in the middle of the night and will come to our room, but I lead him back to his bed, tuck him in, scratch his back (and his head and belly - I must do all three!) and then I go back to bed and he falls asleep!

I am a little worried about how nighttime will go once Oriana's in the room with him, but I guess that's a bridge I'll cross when we come to it. He plays quietly, so I'm hoping it won't be an issue, but I guess we'll see. And hopefully he sleeps soundly enough that her waking up in the night won't be too much of an issue for him. We aren't the first family to have kids share a room, so I'm sure it will work out!