The first 2 weeks

Seth was born two weeks ago and I am happy to say that we are all still alive! It has definitely been a big adjustment, but we are loving every moment of parenthood.

The first couple of days while we were still in the hospital were rough. We had way too many visitors in the hospital, which was quite stressful. Everyone wanted to come and see our perfect little baby, we completely understand that, but Seth was already having difficulty eating, and this only made it harder. When we have our next baby, we are seriously considering asking everyone to wait until we get home to come and visit.

We found out that Seth and I have two different blood types which meant he was more prone to developing jaundice. The doctors at the hospital decided to be proactive and start Seth on phototherapy the day after he was born. After a day of visitors, we had to put our baby in a little tanning bed all night. This made him miserable. He couldn’t be wrapped up, or snuggled, and he had to wear these little blinders over his eyes. The phototherapy and jaundice made him very sleepy. So sleepy that he refused to eat. He wouldn’t breastfeed and he refused a bottle.

So many visitors

Poor Seth under his phototherapy lights

Saturday was the day I was going to be discharged and we hoped Seth would be too. We took advantage of the phototherapy and kept Seth under the phototherapy lights all day. They were concerned about Seth’s weight loss, but they still let him come home with us. We had multiple doctor visits his first week to check on his Jaundice and weight, but everything is looking good now.

Stephen went back to work and Seth and I are doing well at home. I haven’t been brave enough to take him out much, but I am getting there. He is eating much better and we are trying to keep our visitors to a minimum; just a couple people each day. We are all much happier that way.
It is amazing to me how much he has changed already. I really do miss being pregnant, but I wouldn’t trade my sweet little guy for anything in the world. We are so deeply in love with him, he just melts our hearts.

He's Here!!!

I guess it all started early Tuesday morning. I started seeing (and feeling) some signs that Seth would be coming soon. I had a Doctor’s appointment that afternoon and I was dilated to 2.5cm. I continued having contractions all day Wednesday, but nothing that was consistent or timeable. We watched a movie on Wednesday (actually, Stephen watched it and I slept through most of it.)
I woke about around 1:30AM from my contractions. I stayed awake for several hours and timed them. I was starting to get excited that they were happening regularly and getting more and more intense. The contractions were lasting about 90 seconds and were happening every 10-11 minutes. I tried to sleep as much as possible, but that was not easy task. I think I got a total of 2 hours sleep that night.
When I woke up on Thursday morning, we both kind of knew that we were going to have a baby. I got up and took a shower and did my hair, while Stephen mowed the lawn and did a few last minute things around the house. Around 9:30AM my contractions picked up. They were now coming every 5-7 minutes and were lasting about a minute. I called Labor and Delivery while Stephen took a shower and they recommended that I come in. Once Stephen was ready, we had to stop by the post office to mail our taxes, got Stephen some lunch and headed to the hospital.
We got to Labor and Delivery at 11:30AM. We were taken to triage, where I was hooked up to the monitors and checked. I was dilated to 4.5cm so they were going to admit me. We had to hang out in triage for awhile while they prepared my room for me. At 1:30PM I was moved to my room. They started my IV and got me re-hooked up to all of the monitors. After about an hour the Doctor came in and said everything was looking good. My contractions were starting to come quicker and last longer.
I was checked again at 4:30PM and much to my disappointment I was only dilated to 5cm. After 4 hours (15 if you count when they started) of strong, painful contractions, I had only progressed half a centimeter. At this point the doctor was concerned that I was not moving fast enough. He wanted to start me on pitocin and break my water to help things along. It was at that point that I decided to get my epidural. The epidural was not as bad as I thought it would be, but it was hard to breathe through the contractions without moving.
Once I had my epidural (around 5PM), my Doctor broke my water and they started the pitocin. The epidural was wonderful; I think it really helped me to relax. An hour and a half later (6:35PM) the nurse came in to check me and I was dilated to 7 and almost completely effaced. What a relief we felt, knowing that I was finally making the progress I needed to. My contractions were coming pretty fast and furious by this point; luckily I couldn’t feel a thing! They decided to check me again at 7PM and I was dilated to 9cm. Seth was still pretty high, so we had a little bit of waiting to do.
At 8:25PM they said we had about 10 minutes left before we had to start pushing. It was at this point that all of our visitors left. It was really important to Stephen and I that we shared this special moment with only each other. At 8:40PM I started pushing. I pushed three times with each contraction. At 9:00 the nurse asked me stop and ran to get the doctor. I guess the doctor was in the middle of delivering another baby so I had to lay there for about 10 minutes and wait. The doctor arrived and I only had to push twice.
Seth Allen Moore was born on Thursday, April 15, 2010 at 9:17PM. He weighed in at 8 pounds, 11 ounces and is 22 inches long. He is absolutely perfect in every way. I cannot wait to see how wonderful life is going to be with him in it.

My last belly picture on our way to the hospital. 39 weeks 6 days

So tired of having my picture taken.
The cutest little man EVER! Daddy getting to hold Seth for the first time.
Our first family photo.

38 weeks

* How far along?: 38 weeks 2 days (Happy Easter!!).
* Total weight gain: +28
* How big is baby?: Probably close to 7 pounds.
* Maternity clothes?: My belly is starting to stick out so far that some of my maternity shirts are too short and some of my pants are digging into my belly. If I don't leave the house, I stick to jammies ;)
* Stretch marks?: Yes. They have been under my belly button since 30 weeks and they are starting to circle around my belly button now.
* Sleep?: I am not sleeping so great anymore. I still get a good amount of sleep, but I seem to wake up from 4-6 every morning then go back to sleep. Weird.
* Best moment this week?:Spending time with my family for Easter. I also finished my last load of baby laundry. The room is ready, we just need a baby to put in it!
* Movement?: Less and less. His movements are slow rolls now, not so many kicks and punches.
* Food cravings?: Nothing lately, but I still eat a lot of cereal.
* Labor signs?: Just braxton hicks. About 4 an hour.
* Belly button in or out?: I don't think it is going to pop out, but it is more shallow than it used to be..
*Sex? It's a Boy!!! ***Seth Allen***
* What I miss: Sleep and wearing high heels.
* What I'm looking forward to: Meeting my sweet baby boy.
* Milestone: I am now "full term" so I am just patiently waiting for Seth to arrive.

36 weeks

* How far along?: 36 weeks 4 days.
* Total weight gain: +27

* How big is baby?: Around 6-6.5 pounds(approximately the size of a watermelon...yikes!).

* Maternity clothes?: Everything. Even some of my maternity jeans are starting to dig into my belly so I have started wearing more dresses.

* Stretch marks?: Unfortunately yes. A group of them under my belly button. I am starting to see them spread around the sides of my belly button too. Oh well, I guess that's what I have to do to make room for little one.

* Sleep?: Less and less. If I can get comfortable, I sleep really well, but I have been getting up at least 3 times per night. My feet fall asleep if I lay on my back and my hips hurt if I lay on my sides

* Best moment this week?:Being off work. I am feeling much better being off my feet.

* Movement?: All the time now. He is quite the night owl and likes to jump around when I am trying to sleep. He also dances around when I am hungry. He doesn't like to move when people want to feel him though.

* Food cravings?: Still cereal with ice cold milk and the occassional sweet tooth.

* Labor signs?: Just braxton hicks. About 4 an hour.

* Belly button in or out?: Still in, but it is really starting to look funny. I am starting to think it is not going to pop out.
*Sex? It's a Boy!!! ***Seth Allen***

* What I miss: Sleep and wearing high heels.

* What I'm looking forward to: Meeting my sweet baby boy.
* Milestone: Every week seems like a milestone.

34 weeks

* How far along?: 34 weeks.
* Total weight gain: +25
* How big is baby?: Around 5 pounds now.
* Maternity clothes?: Everything. I also enjoy sweat pants and pajamas after work.
* Stretch marks?: Unfortunately yes. A group of them under my belly button. At least for now, I can't see them unless I am looking in the mirror. Luckily I haven't gotten any new ones since 30 weeks.
* Sleep?: Less and less. If I can get comfortable, I sleep really well, but I have been getting up at least 3 times per night.
* Best moment this week?:Finishing our birthing classes and turning in all of my pre registration papers at the hospital.
* Movement?: All the time now. He is quite the night owl and likes to jump around when I am trying to sleep. He also dances around when I am hungry. He doesn't like to move when people want to feel him though.
* Food cravings?: Still cereal with ice cold milk and the occassional sweet tooth.
* Labor signs?: Just braxton hicks. About 4 an hour.
* Belly button in or out?: Still in, but it is really starting to look funny.

*Sex? It's a Boy!!! ***Seth Allen***
* What I miss: Sleep and wearing high heels.
* What I'm looking forward to: Meeting my sweet baby boy.

* Milestone: Every week seems like a milestone.

Maternity Pictures

On February 16th, Stephen and I met with our friend Hannah from Hannah Sons Photography to have some maternity pictures taken. The weather was absolutely perfect and Prospect Park in Redlands ended up being the perfect venue. Here are some of our favorites:

Our first trip to Labor and Delivery

Well, I am only 32 weeks, but Seth decided to give us a little scare. On Saturday, I was picking up the house and had a few Braxton Hicks contractions. I have been feeling BH contractions since 27 weeks or so, so I wasn't too concerned. At our birthing class we were told that more than 4 in an hour is something to be concerned about. I had 3 in a span of 20 minutes so I drank a big bottle of water and sat down for a little bit.
Stephen and I needed to run a few errands. I noticed that the contractions were coming every 4-5 minutes. This had me a little worried because Braxton Hicks shouldn't be timeable. I timed them for a half hour and they were very consistent so I called Labor and Delivery. The nurse was very nice and told me to monitor them at home, drink tons of water, and call back in an hour if they hadn't slowed down.Between 12:15 and 1:45 I had 20 contractions. I called Labor and Delivery again and they recommended that I come in for observation and a few tests.
Stephen was such a trouper, I could tell he was nervous and scared, but he stayed positive and kept telling me everything would be fine. I got all checked in and changed into my gown. The nurse I talked to on the phone was the nurse that took care of me. She hooked me up some monitors and did a few tests and sent them to the lab.
She came back every 20 minutes to check on me and Seth. Seth looked great, his heartbeat was strong and he was moving a lot. Everything was good with me, except for the contractions.I was not dialted and all of the tests that they ran came back good. They gave me a shot of Tributaline to stop te contractions and watched me for another hour. Things slowed down so they let me go home to rest. I have been doing just that, and I have an appointment with my regular OB tomorrow. We will have to wait and see what he has to say about all of this.I will definitely keep you posted!