Emme 1 Month

June 24, 2016

STATS
Weight: 10.5 lbs
Length: 22 inches (head to heel)
Clothes: 3mo, 3-6mo

EAT
The first week of breastfeeding was ROUGH.  The first day started off good and I had high hopes, but then we had some bad latches and she massacred me.  I pumped around the clock for 5 days just to try to heal before even attempting to nurse her again.  (and it hurt like hell when I tried with a nipple shield).  Finally after hiring an in-home lactation consultant, things began to get smoother.  Thank god.  I seriously doubted myself as a mom for the first week and sobbed that I was a failure because I couldn't even feed my kid.  It was bad.  But it has since gotten so much better and she is gaining weight like a champ.

SLEEP
This little peanut still sleeps a ton.  Emme sleeps about 3-4 hour chunks at night and about 3 hour chunks during the day. She is awake for about 2 hours in the morning and usually that same amount around dinner time.  She sleeps wherever during the day, but in her crib at night.

PLAY
There's not much "play" as of yet.  But Charlee LOVES to be with her all the time.  She gets her pacifiers, toys, blankets, etc. 
We're trying to up our tummy time game.  It is hard to remember to do with when we are on Charlee's schedule. Poor Emme is just lugged around in the car seat or put in the Beco carrier to be carted around everywhere.

OUTINGS
Our outings have pretty much been to wherever Charlee needs to go or whatever errands need to get done.  We have been to Target A LOT. 
We go for lots of walks together and to the park with Charlee (or the "park" in our backyard).

LETTER TO EMME

Dear Emme,

You are such a sweet girl.  Although you drive me insane when you are cranky and screaming in my face, you are usually a pretty good baby.

You love to be held and snuggle.  I usually have you in the Beco or ring sling, so you are used to always being on someone. I love snuggling with you though.  I am getting good at doing things with one hand while holding you: reading books to Charlee, cooking dinner, eating, vacuuming, etc.

You are not a fan of the car if it's not moving.  There have been a few drives that you scream the entire time.  You seem to know when we are going to the doctor and have screamed every time.

You are pretty much carted around everywhere, but thankfully you like the baby carrier.  That is probably why you prefer to be held upright instead of cradled because you are always on my chest in a carrier.

I love our snuggles together.  And even though we are always running around on Charlee's schedule, I enjoy our afternoons together when she is napping and you and I get to sit on the couch and snuggle.

Love you, little bug!

Love,
mommy

Birth Story: Emelia Jane

The last month of Emme's pregnancy was not all that great for me. Even though looking back I miss that big belly and feeling her move, I was in so much pain and just not in a good head space.
Around 37 weeks, I had a breakdown.  Sobbing, couldn't get out of bed, breakdown.  My OB decided it would be a good idea to have an end date with this pregnancy.  So my induction date was set for May 23rd. 

The week leading up to the induction, I was having second thoughts because I just didn't think she would be ready to come out and I was worried about the consequences of forcing myself to go into labor.  However, I was so uncomfortable and in so much pain that I could barely walk and I need to be done.

I called the hospital at 6am on Monday, May 23, to see when to go in.  I was told to call back at 11am because there was no room.  We spent the morning at home playing with Charlee.  Around 11, I called back and still no room and was told to call back at 2pm. So we walked to the park to play with Charlee.  While Charlee was napping, we got the call to head to the hospital by 3:30pm.  After saying goodbye to our little big girl, we headed to Meriter.

The drive was much calmer than it was when I was in labor with Charlee.  We got to relax and talk as we drove, instead of rushing.  I was a big ball of stress because I didn't know what was going to happen or how fast it would go.  We got checked in and then sat in our room until 5pm when we got to start the pitocin.  It took 3 nurses and 4 tries to get the IV in.  So that was fun.

Needless to say, my body didn't really respond to pitocin.  We watched tv and chatted while I felt nothing.  The nurse kept asking if I was feeling the contractions, but I felt absolutely nothing.  So we kicked it up a notch.  Shortly after doing that, Emme's heart rate began to increase, so the pitocin was dropped down again.  And we sat.  I bounced on a ball for a bit because my pelvis hurt so much.  I walked back and forth to the little kitchen down the hall to get crackers since I couldn't eat much of anything while in labor. 

At 8pm, nothing was happening and I was still sitting at 2cm dilated and 50% effaced.  Dr. Cardwell suggested trying to insert a balloon to get me dilated further.  He tried 3 times and it only dilated me to 3cm and hurt like hell.  After that, I was able to get an early epidural.  That was an adventure too.  The anesthesiologist had to try 3 times to get the epidural placed. It. Was. Awful. My epidural had to be placed higher, so I had to be very careful about how I was laying so it didn't get up to my chest and make it hard to breathe.

By 1am, I was still at 3cm and 70% effaced.  Dr. Cardwell came in and broke my water to hopefully move things along.  Within an hour, things were picking up. I started feeling a lot more pressure in my pelvis.  With each contraction, it felt like she was coming out. At 2:20am, I told the nurse that it was starting to hurt more.  She said that they usually check the cervix every two hours, so she could either check me then or wait until 3am.  I told her I would wait until 3am.  As soon as she left, the pain got worse and my contractions picked up.  The nurse came back 10 minutes later and I told her that the pressure was a lot more intense.  She checked me and said it was time to push.  Dr. Cardwell was called back in and said that she would be born in about 10 minutes.  I started pushing through one contraction as Dr. Cardwell was getting suited up and he told me to stop as her head was crowning.  One more contraction and she was out!  5 minutes and 5 pushes through 2 contractions was all it took.

At 2:47am on Tuesday, May 24th, our sweet little Emme was born at 8lbs 2oz and 21.5" long.

Charlee came to visit later that morning and was so excited to meet her baby sister!

(maybe even more excited that Emme got her some big sister presents :) )