Our Screaming Me-Me

I had to share at least one picture to show Gracie's personality.  Don't get me wrong, she's a great baby and rarely cries for no reason.  But she definitely lets us know when she is not getting what she wants...I love this picture!  So, who does she look like here?  ;-)

Grace's Baptism

Gracie was baptized on Sunday.  My cousin Tanya and Ryan's best friend Tommy are Grace's godparents.  It was a beautiful service and many of our friends and family members traveled in for the day to celebrate with us.  Thank you to all who helped make it such a special day.

The "Godfamilies"...

Tanya and her husband Nick 

Tommy, Amy, Little Tommy (and unborn baby Zadeh...yay!)

  

Pappy and his girl

The Rices

Daddy and Uncle Rob with Grace

Grace with Uncle Evan

Grandma Gibbens and Unkie Travie

We had a very busy week! Gracie met Grandma Gibbens and "Unkie Travie" (as Uncle Travis so lovingly referred to himself and will forever be referred to as such).   

Here are some new pictures...

Check out the adorable topical dress Grammie Gibbens found on her cruise for Gracie!  So cute!

Hard Work Does Pay Off

We've been anxiously waiting two weeks since her last doctor's appointment, to see if Gracie is gaining weight as she should.  At her last appointment, she was back to her birth weight.  She was supposed to gain an ounce a day (putting her at about 10 lbs, 1 oz).  We took her to the doctor today for her one month check-up and she weighs 11 lbs exactly!!!  We were shocked!  I almost cried I was so happy that all our hard work is paying off.  This may just work after all. It is strange that something that should be so natural is so exciting.  

I'm not sure if I mentioned why I'm so adamant that Gracie have only breast milk for as long as possible until her first birthday...sorry if I'm repeating myself.  But if I didn't already explain, it may seem a little strange that I'm making such a big deal about it.  I have terrible food allergies that have made me miserable (headaches, stomachaches, hives, asthma attacks, etc.) on a daily basis.  I've had to get used to it because I couldn't even tolerate allergy shots and I can't take medicines like benedril because I don't wake up.  All the most recent research says that exclusive breastfeeding leads to a significant reduction in the chances of developing food allergies and the research is also promising for other types of allergies.  So basically, I'm hoping Gracie won't have as many allergies as I do.    

In the Swing of Things

So much has improved over the past week in our new life with our baby girl!  Don't get me wrong, it is still extremely challenging, but almost manageable.  I'm still amazed at how I have absolutely no time for anything.  But I am really enjoying focusing all of my attention on getting to know this wonderful little person.

Breastfeeding is going much better, even though I found out on Thursday that I have mastitis (infection in the breast tissue) that's been there for about two weeks.  Antibiotics have worked wonders for not only our breastfeeding relationship, but also for my ability to function.  I thought I was just recovering from the birth and suffering from exhaustion, despite the fact that she was sleeping fairly well.  But on Friday morning after only one dose of antibiotics, I felt like a new person and realized that I was likely sick, not jst adjusting. I had energy, my two-week long headache was gone, and Grace's screaming when I tried to feed her suddenly got a little better (turns out, the milk was affected and it was a really gross texture for her, although it wouldn't hurt her. She was miserable when eating and I didn't know why).

Yesterday, at 3 1/2 weeks, she had her first bottle.  Yeah, that's the age that is recommended to introduce the bottle if all is going well.  While things still have room to improve, I thought she could handle switching between the two because she is latching well and most of the issues are on my side of the equation.  We are offering a bottle just once a day, a few times a week to get her used to it in case I'm not around for a feeding or two and of course for when I return to work.  I was right, she did so well and Ryan enjoyed being able to feed her. 

We've been slowly working toward independent sleeping as well.  She's been doing well in the middle of the night going back into her bassinett after each feeding, but the initial laying down was rough. She insisted that we walk her around the house and quietly lay her down once she was asleep. I finally realized that we were overstimulating her while trying to put her to sleep.  So the slow and painful transition finally paid off!  This evening, we completed the final piece of a routine we've been working on of a relaxing bath at 7:30pm (which we know she likes), then a bottle in the dark (which went well yesterday), a story and a song, and then straight to bed while she is still awake.  To our surprise, she did not fuss and was asleep within 10 minutes (no rocking, no bouncing, no singing, no walking around for 30 minutes).  Who knows how long it will last or if it will work again tomorrow, but she's been in bed for about an hour. In life with a new baby, that's a huge accomplishment...it means I get to sit down and post something on the blog and spend a little time with Ryan. Yay!

Gracie is starting to show us her personality too. She is so pleasant, patient and funny (making faces and listening intently when we sing, making sounds as if she's trying to sing along).  She is also starting to react to our voices and make her own little sounds in general.  She really is the sweetest little thing, very busily growing and learning. We are so blessed!

Here are some newer pictures of her....  

...finding her thumb once in a while

I still can't quite catch a smile...almost!

Gracie "singing" Old MacDonald with me.

She loves the "E-I-E-I-Ooooo" part...this is her "O-face"

Pictures of Grace

Here are some new pictures of Grace...

First Protrait Session

Yesterday, I decided to attempt to take some real pictures of Gracie for her birth announcement. Portraits aren't my specialty, basically because I need to take a lot of time to set up each shot. Landscapes seem to be more patient with me than people, but I'm determined I can do this.

My initial attempts weren't so successful. But once I figured out how much light I needed and where to place it, I actually got some great shots, particularly since this is a homemade studio I've created. I'm not going to share the image I chose for her announcements just yet, but here are a few others...I didn't edit these yet, so I know there are a few distractions in the pictures that I need to crop out.

Back to Birth Weight!

Gracie had her two week check up this morning and she is back to her birth weight - 9lbs 3 oz. That is exactly where she is supposed to be by today, so we are on the right track with the breastfeeding. Yay!

From now on, she is supposed to gain 1 ounce each day. Her next check-up is in two weeks, so she should be almost 10 lbs. by then.

After all the struggle to make sure she is eating well, things are very slowly getting better and paying off. Whew!

An Update on Gracie

We know you're all here to see pictures of Gracie, so I'll post them first. If you'd like to know how our first week and a half has been going, keep reading...







We've come a long way in a week and a half. I think we're finally getting the hang of things. But I'm absolutely amazed at how little time we really have. Literally, I have about an hour or two in the entire 24 hours to do what I need or want to do. I've been choosing to eat and take a bath with my time. I'm hoping to get back to returning phone calls, checking email, blogging, and interacting with others over the next few weeks.

Ryan has really been amazing. We make a great team. I have no idea how anyone could do it alone. We've had many visitors, and are grateful for all the support. I'm so thankful for my dad who has been here for a week, cooking for us. He's leaving tomorrow, and I'm not sure how I'm going to remember to eat, sleep and bathe, but I know we can eventually learn to manage.

Grace and I continue to learn how to breastfeed. We were having many issues, so last Monday, we attended a support group and they suggested I contact a private lactation consultant. Kimberly, from the Northern Virginia Lactation Consultants, came to our house to work her magic. She was ultimately our savior. I honestly don't think I'd have made it another day trying to nurse Gracie. I still talk to Kimberly every other day to follow up and ask questions. Poor Grace was not getting enough to eat and had lost almost a pound in five days. We were on a strict schedule (aka: "the cure") for 48 hours that wore Ryan and I, as well as Gracie down, but it was worth every painful minute. I was to touch base with Kimberly on Wednesday afternoon to figure out what was next, but Grace had decided that afternoon that she was ready to wean herself from all the tools we'd been given. I was scared when she began to refuse these tools. I didn't think I could bear the pain to return, but I decided to follow her lead. To my surprise, she was right. We could do this without much pain.

Both the doctor and the lactation consultant had strongly suggested I wake her every two hours to eat. That also proved to be a painful experience. She just wanted to sleep, undisturbed. It took me an hour to wake her and another hour to eat because she kept falling asleep, and by that time it was almost time to wake her again. She was restless for those few days. So yesterday I explained it to the lactation consultant and she said as long as I'm getting in enough feedings, try letting her lead. That was at 5pm yesterday. Since then, we have a completely content and pleasant baby girl who woke for about an hour twice last night to eat. Compared to the screaming baby we had for the last week, I'm impressed. So anyone having a first baby, let me know if you plan to breastfeed because I have quickly built a repertoire of resources, tools and tricks. Of all the lessons I have learned this week...the most important for those who want to breastfeed is to get help as quickly as possible, even before you need it. And make sure whoever helps you is not just a nurse, but a lactation consultant. The nurses at the hospital tried to act as if they were specialists and I believed them. If I'd gotten help sooner, as I asked, this may have been much easier. It really is the most difficult thing I've ever done...and I have to say the pain anxiety caused by unsuccessful breastfeeding is worse than the general pain and anxiety of labor.

Tonight we gave Gracie her first bath. She absolutely loved it and cried only when we took her out of the tub. We are now trying to put her to bed in her bassinet, prior to us going to bed. So far, the bedtime thing is going okay, but not great. She did lay awake and quiet for a good while, so we'll keep trying.

Welcome to the World, Grace Éibhleann Gibbens

We are very excited and proud to announce the birth of our daughter, Grace Éibhleann. Gracie was born on Wednesday, August 20, 2008 at 5:22am (her due date...so she should be punctual like her mommy). She weighed 9 lbs, 3 oz (exactly what her daddy weighed) and is 20 1/2 in long. Éibhleann, pronounced "AYV-lan," is a Gaelic name that means beautiful. Those are some high expectations to live up to (grace and beauty) but we think she'll do just fine :-)

I found out at my doctor appointment on Monday morning that if I wanted to attempt a natural birth (and avoid a c-section), I was to be induced as soon as possible because she was measuring on the larger side of the spectrum. So we checked in at Fairfax Hospital on Monday night at 8:00pm for prep stuff (details omitted) for a 9:00am induction. I did end up opting for an epidural eight hours into labor, after pitocin proved to live up to it's reputation and was a little too much for me to handle.

(details omitted)

After 17 hours of labor and 3 hours of pushing, the epidural was no longer active anyway. Gracie was finally born with a little help from a great doctor and nurses, a wonderfully patient and kind coach (Ryan), and a friendly "vacuum."

Gracie, mommy and daddy are still very tired and trying to spend much of their energy getting to know one another. But all things considered, we feel like we're doing extraordinarily well. We got home at 7:30pm tonight (Thursday). We're anxiously awaiting a good night's sleep and some much needed family time tomorrow. As you can see...we're turning in for the night, but will have much more to share on a more regular basis.

Here are some more pictures of Gracie's first 48 hours or so:

Welcome Gracie!

Great Grandma Rice was Gracie's first visitor! "Hi Gammie!"

(Great Uncle Todd and GGR drove from PA in the middle of the night to meet Gracie)

Comfy girl

"Aunt" Connie (above) and "Aunt" Sandi (below) were Gracie's second visitors.
...come on, you know you love explaining
how those "aunts" and "uncles" are not really related :-)

Nothing like a little cuddle with daddy

Gracie's first car ride...going home

My co-worker, Teresa, met us at home this evening,

greeting us with pizza and yummy welcome home presents,

but I forgot to get he picture with Grace, so next time.

Daddy and Gracie, and their favorite past time so far
(I almost can't watch, they're so sweet together -
it brings on all those post-pardum hormones)

Ok...but this is ridiculous!

I just had to post this for the record....

It really is only 5:30am.

Anyone who knows me, even a little bit, knows that I'm not a morning person. Not in the last 28 (and exactly 1/2) years, have I ever voluntarily got out of bed and felt like doing anything. However, it has not been uncommon for me to wake up several times in the night for the past month or two. But this morning is a little different.

As I laid awake for the last hour, I tried to go back to sleep, entertain myself with a movie that was half over, and even woke Ryan and asked him to rub my back. But the longer I laid there, the more compelling my urge to get up and do something. I thought of finishing the wash, putting the few dishes we left in the sink into the dishwasher, dusting, running the vacuum, watering the freaking garden (which I don't even do - Ryan does). Oh, and my stomach is growling like never before. It sounds like I haven't eaten in three days.

The weird thing is, my dad keeps telling me that the day before I was born, my mom cleaned the entire house, even scrubbed the walls. I can't help but wonder what time she started this cleaning spree. Well, I don't scrub walls...I barely have the energy to dust most weeks. But suddenly this morning, I probably would. So I can't help but wonder why all this energy and random desire to clean or complete something? Am I preparing for something? If so...great...but can I have a warning so I can try to take a nap first?

UPDATE: 7:35pm - By the time Ryan woke up this morning, I had finished the laundry, and was nearly finished cleaning the basement and the main floor. We had some breakfast and went to the Farmer's Market. Then, I was pooped! I took a nap all afternoon and feel great again. I need to dust and clean the bathroom upstairs and then I'm not sure what is left to do this weekend but have a baby...

Whoa, Baby!

We went to have Grace measured via an ultrasound today. As I mentioned in my previous post, the doctor is afraid that the reason she has not "dropped" is because she may be too large, and therefore too large to be born naturally. I doubted this theory, but asked what "too large" meant at our appointment on Wednesday. He said 4500g was too large. I'm fairly sure I've translated that to 9 lbs and 9 oz.

Well, she is measuring an average of 9 lbs, 4 oz! These things can be wrong by a pound in either direction. However, they said they are pretty sure she really is between 9 and 9 1/2 lbs. Some of her measurements were what the average baby that weighs over 10 lbs or is over 42 weeks shows. She has a normal amount of amniotic fluid and the placenta looks to be functioning as it should be right now. So she's likely to continue to grow as an average baby would until she is ready to join us. The doctor who discussed the measurements with us told us that at this point, babies typically gain a pound each week. Holy crap!

I'll do my best this weekend to try anything and everything to encourage her to come the natural way, but I have a feeling the doctor will have some other plans to suggest to us by Monday morning.

Any suggestions? Please?

Update - No Progress!

We went to our 39 week check-up today and there's still no progress. We scheduled an ultrasound for Friday afternoon and a non-stress test for Monday morning to make sure all is going well.

The doctor is afraid that since she hasn't dropped at all, she may be too big. So, that's what we're looking for. The magic number is "4500g" or 9 lbs. 9 oz. If she is measuring/weighing around 4500g, then we will have to discuss some "other options" (aka: c-section). As you may have guessed by the tone of this post, I'm dreading that talk. But I had some time to think about it, and I know that whatever they have to do to make sure she's healthy, I just have to do it.

On a positive note, I am having some preparatory signs that things are progressing...it just hasn't done anything for me yet. I just keep hoping and praying...and walking!

What a Great Weekend!

For the majority of last week, I was looking forward to having a baby this weekend. However, as the weekend approached I realized that may not happen. So Ryan and I made the best of a gorgeous weekend. We watched the Opening Ceremonies of the Olympics on Friday evening. I taped the ceremony so that Gracie could see a little of what was happening when she was born, since I'm pretty sure she will be born sometime during the 17 days of these Olympics.

Yesterday, we went to the Reston Farmer's Market to find some fresh fruits and veggies for the week. Then we quite literally walked across the street to the Asian Festival. It was a lot of walking, but it was really fun walking around in the crowded park, looking at the vendor booths (kind of like Canal St. in NYC, but without the haggling), and choosing from the many food vendors to have lunch (so many familiar Thai choices was quite surprising). We listened to/watched some Indian music/dance while we ate and stopped at the Singha (beer) area for Ryan before heading out. For the remainder of the day and evening we hung out, watched the Olympics and took cat naps....my favorite!

Today we set out in search of a mini-golf course and a place to have a picnic. We found Algonkian Regional Park had both, so we headed there. Unfortunately, the mini-golf course was too much in the sun for my liking right now, and they didn't have any grills (who has picnic areas with no grills?) So we decided to try one of Reston's pools (we brought our suits just in case we decided to stop) that claimed to have grills. We found North Village Pool and they did have grills, but not at the pool. So we followed the directions of the lifeguard up around the corner to the cutest little pavilion and picnic area I've ever seen. It was great. There were no people (except a few who were riding bikes or passing by). It was one of the nicest lunches I've had in a long time. We must have stayed for two or three hours, just hanging out and talking. We had prepared some Bratswurts, accompanying veggies (peppers and onions), and corn on the cob for our picnic. Of course we also had some of the fresh fruits and veggies (watermelon, cucumbers and hummus) we bought yesterday. Mmm-mmm-mmm! What a yummy lunch/dinner. Now we're settling in for more Olympic fun tonight.

"Grace's Spaces"

After many long months of hard work remodeling Gracie's room and creating her furniture, everything is finally finished (with the exception of a few accessories I didn't have enough hanging hardware to put up and the safety stuff, like outlet covers and baby gates which we have a couple of months to get to).

Much thanks goes out again to Robert and Jelani for helping Ryan to complete this project.

Thank you Dad, for building Gracie her furniture, based on my vague descriptions. It is absolutely perfect! We will cherish it always, and Gracie will be so proud to have these pieces handmade by her "Daideo."

And last but certainly not least, thank you Ryan, for putting up with all my mood swings and for helping to make all of my dreams come true! And this tedious construction project is just one of the many ways you continue to amaze me! You really are going to be the best dad! I can't wait to share it all with you!

This is Grace's space in our living room.
(I know it needs a rug, but I can't find one I like yet)

This area will change over time, as she needs new stuff to do.

But it will work for a while...

All is Well!

I had my weekly check-up today, and there's no progress just yet. The doctor did an ultrasound because I was concerned that Gracie had turned herself around and was head up. But thankfully what I'm feeling is just her getting really big in there. Her head is down...but not very low yet. So we're anticipating it being a few more days at the very least (most likely longer than that).

Here's a belly picture Ryan took today: 38 weeks and 1 day

Whoa...can you find the right triangle? :-)

Grandma and Grandpa Anderson Visit

Ryan's Grandma and Grandpa Anderson came to visit for the weekend. I don't think we'd seen them since last Thanksgiving, which was much too long ago.

On Friday evening, we had dinner and talked about anything and everything for ours that night.

Saturday we all got up early and started the day with a big breakfast. In the early afternoon, went out for a little shopping at Walmart and had lunch at Panera (Grandma and Grandpa's first experience at Panera...they enjoyed it). When we got home, we all took a cat nap before going to our neighborhood block party for a little while. We ended the evening playing Pinochle. It was my first time...now I want more visitors so we can play again! I still like Spades a little better, but Pinochle was great!

Today, we made homemade waffles before seeing Grandma and Grandpa on their way back home to Virginia Beach.

It was a lovely, relaxing visit. We hope to visit with them more frequently in the near future!

Great to see you Grandma and Grandpa!

Take a Guess!

Following are the results from ExpectNet.com poll we conducted throughout the pregnancy. If you haven't guessed, what are you waiting for...the big day is almost here?


Let's see who comes the closest to guessing correctly (organized by date/time):


Tommy: Jul 31, 3:00 am, 7 lbs 0 ozs, 20 in
Erin: Aug 6, 10:45 am, 8 lbs 10 ozs, 20 in
Ryan: Aug 10, 10:00 am, 7 lbs 12 ozs, 21 in
Mikie: Aug 12, 7:37am, 8 lbs 8 ozs, 18 in
Paige: Aug 12, 9:37 am, 7 lbs 10 ozs, 21 in
Kristy: Aug 12, 10:24 am, 7 lbs 6 ozs, 18 in
Carolyn: Aug 14, 9:00 am, 6 lbs 14 ozs, 19 in
Erika: Aug 15, 4:37 pm, 9 lbs 3 ozs, 16 in
Rachel: Aug 16, 10:17 pm, 9 lbs 3 ozs, 18 in
Lizzy: Aug 17, 6:30 am, 6 lbs 5 ozs, 19 in
Maureen: Aug 17, 7:21 am, 7 lbs 13 ozs, 19 in
Shira: Aug 17, 7:52 am, 8 lbs 4 ozs, 19 in
Amy Z.: Aug 17, 3:00 pm, 8 lbs 0 ozs, 20 in
Lynn: Aug 18, 12:18 am, 7 lbs 0 ozs, 20 in
Christian: Aug 18, 7:25 pm, 8 lbs 5 ozs, 19 in
George: Aug 19, 6:15 am, 7 lbs 10 ozs, 18 in
Leah: Aug 19, 1:14 pm, 7 lbs 7 ozs, 18 in
Becca: Aug 20, 7:15 am, 8 lbs 9 ozs, 19 in
Lara: Aug 22, 12:23 am, 7 lbs 0 ozs, 20 in
Sarah: Aug 22, 3:30 am, 8 lbs 3 ozs, 17 in
Tara: Aug 22, 5:20 am, 8 lbs 13 ozs, 20 in
Donna: Aug 23, 12:43 am, 8 lbs 9 ozs, 21 in
Barb D: Aug 23, 4:24 am, 7 lbs 13 ozs, 21 in
Debbi: Aug 23, 12:00 pm, 8 lbs 12 ozs, 18 in
Katie: Aug 25, 7:09 am, 8 lbs 6 ozs, 21 in
Todd: Aug 26, 2:46 am, 9 lbs 4 ozs, 22 in
CJ: Aug 28, 12:28 am, 7 lbs 0 ozs, 20 in
Gustaf: Aug 29, 3:20 pm, 6 lbs 8 ozs, 20 in
Barbara: Aug 30, 12:10 am, 7 lbs 0 ozs, 20 in

Back to the Technology Age

We haven't had cable or Internet access for over a week. Comcast finally came out to see what the issue may be, and apparently Verizon cut our cable line (and only ours somehow) when they installed Fios for one of our neighbors.

So we're back online and have lots to share!