Two Week Check Up

Nolan had his official two week check up with the doctor this morning. He is now 8 pounds, 8 ounces and 21 inches long. Growing right along, he falls within the 50th percentile with all his measurements. Crazy that he's already so different than Mallory who was always in the 80-90th percentiles. Wouldn't be surprised if Mallory ends up being a little bigger than her brother as they grow, though I'm sure there will come a day when Nolan surpasses her.

I am still captivated with this little man and sometimes find myself amazed at how well he's doing. He is just as easygoing as he was in the beginning, a trait that I hope never goes away. He's doing great at night and usually goes three hours in between feedings. I've even managed to get him on the same daytime nap pattern as Mallory so I can take advantage of catch up sleep should I need it. At first he was sleeping so much that I almost thought something might be wrong with him and I remember sometimes staring at him to make sure he was breathing. I was used to how Mallory never slept that I figured that's how it was supposed to be. He is definitely a momma's boy but that's not surprising because even Mallory was that way with me in the beginning. He'll tend to get a little more fidgety with others than me, and then as soon as he's back in my arms he'll calm down. He loves to be held so my arms are getting a nice daily workout. I've also resorted to using the sling and carrier a lot around the house just so I can have both of my hands free. Though I am pretty good at doing things one-handed and even using my toes if I have to; it's a talent that I'm sure all moms possess.

As far as my recovery goes, I'm doing well. My incision site is still pretty sore but that doesn't totally surprised me considering I know that I have pushed the limits since coming home from the hospital. I just can't help myself as I have a hard time just sitting on my butt when there are things that need to be done and taken care of, and I know that I'm capable of doing most things on my own. I have been pretty good about not lifting and picking up heavy things, including Mallory which is hard because I don't want her to feel left out. But she's been really good at understanding that I have an owie on my tummy that prevents me from doing so. Other than the soreness I feel great. I get outside with the kiddos quite a lot to get some walking in. I'm already feeling antsy about wanting to run again but until the soreness is gone I won't push it; I don't need to regress at this point. For now I'm satisfying my running desire by looking into upcoming half marathons to pick as a goal and I'm sure I'll squeeze in some smaller races as well.

Stoller Predicament & Two Weeks

I'm currently on the hunt for a double stroller - preferably another BOB brand as I absolutely love the single that I have. I don't seem to be having much luck using our local Craigslist; either my reply emails to the ads aren't making it to the seller or the seller just decides to never respond back to me. If more ads would actually list a phone number as opposed to a generic reply email address, I think I would have more luck. And yes I understand the hesitation with listing your phone number online, but good grief it's not helping my case. All I know is that I keep hitting my refresh button on the computer multiple times a day just hoping I can see the listing as soon as it's posted and be the first one to contact a seller. For some reason I thought I could wait until after Nolan was born to worry about looking for a double stroller and now I'm regretting that decision; these strollers seem to be in high demand.

Yesterday morning - in between the unexpected-yet-welcoming rain showers - I went for a power walk. My only dilemma - besides trying to figure out when the rain was going to stop long enough to go - was how to walk with both kids because I only have a single stroller at the moment. Luckily Jody was off of work for the holiday so it made only taking one kid with me easier, but man was Mallory disappointed when she realized that she wasn't the one coming with me. So I promised her that I would make it my mission to find us a double stroller so both her and Nolan could start coming with me. Especially for when I start running again, which will likely be soon considering I'm feeling really good and recovering nicely.

In other news, baby Nolan is two weeks old today. Went by super quick. I remember not feeling like the beginning of Mallory's life went by quick at all, but that was because she was just a hard baby. Nolan has his moments of being fussy and wanting to be held too much but it's nothing in comparison. Plus I'm more used to what comes with having a newborn so my patience and tolerance is now much better. So far I'd have to argue that getting used to one kid was way more difficult than getting used to having two. My biggest issue thus far is just figuring out how not to be even more late than I used to be before - and never in my life did I think I'd be the person who would justify being tardy. But hey, it's only been two weeks since becoming a mom of two so I still have lots to learn. Besides, having a newborn is the best excuse to be delayed because I still find myself just wanting to sit and stare at my little man.

Some Fresh Air

We've been hitting up the parks around town the past few days to get out of the house, both for Mallory's sake and to get baby Nolan used to being outside since this family loves to be outdoors.

Nolan's Story

It's crazy how quickly time has gone by since Nolan was born. Little man is almost two weeks old and I've been meaning to write about his arrival now since my post last week, but obviously other things have been keeping me from doing so. The most apparent reason is because I now have a newborn who requires my attention all of the time. But there are others too; like trying to catch up on the lack of sleep that I get during the night, washing the endless dirty bottles and pee-soiled laundry, attempting to keep the house somewhat orderly, and just getting used to two kids versus one. I know that it's still very early and I'll start learning new shortcuts and ways to make things easier as I go so I'm fine with knowing certain things will just have to wait until I can find the time.

Nolan's arrival was pretty easy thanks to my scheduled c-section. We checked into the hospital at 6pm and took care of all the admitting paperwork, then they hooked me up to all the monitors until we were ready to go to the OR. As I figured would happen, they were running a bit behind and my 8:30pm surgery time got pushed. Then when we were in the OR and I was getting prepped for my spinal block, there was an emergency that caused everyone to pause on me and tend to her. Yes I was bummed that I had to wait even longer but I also understood and actually felt sympathy for the mom; she was only 24 weeks along with twins. Once the dust settled and we were ready to roll with my surgery, everything happened quickly. My anesthesiologist was great - he had his iPad set to John Mayer on Pandora and told me to let him know as soon as I started to feel any sign of getting sick. I had gotten sick with Mallory so I told him that was one of my concerns going in. Sure enough, I had a moment when my blood pressure dropped low and he came to my rescue with some medicine. Other than that, the surgery went smoothly and Nolan was healthy as can be. In true boy fashion he peed as soon as he was out and then again on the table when they were cleaning him off, even managing to hit himself in the face.

The recovery area was probably the least enjoyable part, mainly because it took FOREVER. I seriously felt like the nurses that were tending to me were in no hurry whatsoever, and at times almost seemed a little unprepared with either supplies or the steps to take to get us up to our room. I was so tired and all I wanted was to be by ourselves with our new little boy. By the time we got wheeled upstairs and into my room it was 2:30am. The nurse that took over in my room was great and tried her hardest to make herself as sparse as possible so we could enjoy being on cloud nine with Nolan. And even though she told me I wasn't supposed to let him sleep with me in the bed, that's exactly where he was for the rest of the night. I just couldn't help myself. As tired as I was, all I wanted to do was stay awake and stare at him.

The rest of the hospital stay was pretty standard. I could have gone home on day two but I opted to stay an extra day. Checking out didn't go as quickly as we were hoping for so that was a bit frustrating though I know it was because Labor & Delivery had gotten inundated; one doctor told me there were 30 women in active labor with only 24 rooms available. Sucks to be those six who were told they'd have to wait. Once we were home from the hospital it was business as usual trying to get everything settled and back to normal. Mallory did and is doing well adjusting to being a big sister and no longer the only child. She definitely has her moments of jealousy and her attitude has regressed a little, but nothing that we didn't see coming. Nolan is fitting into our family very nicely and we can already tell he's a much more relaxed baby then Mal was - thank God. His demeanor is answered prayers for sure. We are elated for his arrival and are having fun getting used to this adorable little boy.

Father and son

Little peanut

Loves holding her brother

At the park

First trip to the doctor

Sleepy baby

Kisses

Welcome Baby Nolan!

I'll go into more detail later but wanted to get a few pictures up on the blog of our sweet new addition. Nolan James arrived via c-section on Tuesday, August 20 at 10:06pm. He weighed 7 pounds, 7 ounces - the exact same weight Mallory was - and is 19 5/8 inches long. We are over the moon in love with this little man and can't wait to get him home.

Meeting each other for the first time

39 Weeks - Last Belly Update

My last Nolan-belly update before he arrives tomorrow night. I went and finished up my blood work this morning in preparation for my c-section. We check into the hospital tomorrow evening at 6pm with a delivery time around 8:30pm. Obviously I would have preferred an earlier time, but the doctor that's delivering me only works nights. I'm also thinking that having it scheduled later might mean I'll get good sleep considering right after babies are born is usually when they sleep the most; I remember that's how it was with Mallory at least.

Nothing new to report for this week's update other than that I am completely ready to go. Hospital bag is packed - with the exception of my make up bag that I'll throw in when I'm done with it. I finished deep cleaning the house yesterday so that should hold me over for a bit. All errands and shopping have been ran, though I feel like we could already take another trip to the grocery store. Seriously, how does the food disappear so quickly?

When I woke up this morning my hips and legs were pretty sore from the pressure of this big belly. Perfect timing that I had an appointment this afternoon for a massage on my legs/feet, arms/hands. It was a very relaxing 30 minutes that of course went by way too quickly. Massages are one of those things that are never long enough. My puffy feet are thanking me for making the appointment and now I'm just trying to relax with my feet up as much as I can.

Though we don't have Nolan arriving until late tomorrow, I know that the day will still go by quickly. We're getting together with family for a nice big brunch as it will be my last meal that I'm allowed to have until after my surgery. I think fasting for eight hours will be the toughest part to the day, especially since that includes water too. I'll definitely need to remind myself constantly not to eat or drink. I'll be taking my laptop with me to the hospital in hopes that I can post pictures and blog while I'm there, but I'm not totally sure if I'll have internet access yet so we'll have to see. No matter what though, I'll post pictures of our little boy as soon as I'm able, so stay tuned!

Last Weekend as a Family of Three

We had a fun weekend for our last time as a family of three, making the most of spoiling monster with as much attention as possible. Lots of outside playtime - even with the smoky, hot weather - because that's her favorite place to be and once Nolan arrives, we won't be able to get out and about as much at first. Taking Leo to the dog park, shopping and errands around town, bike rides through the neighborhood, ice cream treats, feeding the duckies, playing at the park in the sand, walks along the tree-lined bike trails, splashing at the water park with friends; we took full advantage of our time together. Jody and I even got to squeeze in one more date thanks to Nama and Poppa. An enjoyable weekend had by all.

Maternity Photos with Nolan

I received the photos back from our maternity session with Katie of Platinum Photography a little while ago though I've been a bit of a slacker when it comes to sharing them on the blog. And I figure I should probably do so before baby Nolan comes and I have little to no time to even think about my blog. So without further ado, here are just some - and by some I mean a lot - of my favorites: