Baby and BabyDaddy!

Where I wanted/NEEDED to be last night

But wasn't. *sigh*

My 3 babies

Spent the morning in the ER.

They did another ultrasound on my legs. No clots found again thankfully. They did other tests that ruled out heart/kidney failure or any other thing that could cause swelling like this. They also say no infection. So basically my body is having a hard time getting rid of the excess fluid from prenancy and those pumped into me at the hospital for my c-section. The dr said to follow up with my OB this week and give it a week to 10 days. I have to go back in if I start running a fever or vomiting. I am not to stay lying around because that could end up causing clots. I'm supposed to take it easy but do my normal stuff. Just when I sit down my legs need to be elevated and to make sure I take my pain meds to manage that. Not that they help tremendously. I swear I've never had constant pain like this before. It sucks.

Oh and they stuck me 5 different times trying to get blood! I was NOT a happy camper.

I tell ya, it's been a hell of a week to say the least. I'm an emotional wreck. I've cried more in the last week than I have in years. I bawled like a baby every time they stuck me at the ER. Oh and my mom left today. Again with the water works.

Other than feeling sorry for myself I think I'm doing ok. I'm just tired of hurting. I just want to enjoy my new baby and the big kids. *sigh*

More pictures of Sam!!

Welcome Samantha Jane!

She was born on Monday, March 30 at 4:20pm. Weighing in at 7 lbs 15.5 oz and 20 1/4 inches long. I was only 36 weeks on Monday. It was quite the surprise to have her come then let me tell ya! I had gone to my first appointment for that week and even though I wasn't supposed to see the dr I asked if I could talk to her. I had been having some major pain in my legs for a little over a week and it had gotten to be unbearable. She looked at them and decided they needed to be checked for clots. After calling labor and delivery to see if they had a bed for me she sent me on over. I was a little freaked out to say the least. LOL This is 2 weeks earlier than planned. Michael was at home asleep with is phone on silent. My mom was still in Florida. The kids were in school. I was alone and freaking out trying to figure out who was going to get my kids from school and keep them until my mom could get here. I called mom and knew she was packing and on her way. I called my dad and arranged for him to get the kids from school. I was finally able to get ahold of Michael and tell him what was going on. I was still freaking out at this point!

I checked in at labor and delivery and they put me in a room. About an hour later they took me for the ultrasound on my legs to rule out blood clots. Lucky for me, Michael came in while they were wheeling me down the hallway. He went with me to get the ultrasound. There were no clots spotted. Thank goodness. My dr still wanted to go ahead and take the baby since I was in so much pain and with her getting bigger that wasn't going to get better, but worse. She scheduled my c-section for 4pm.

When we got back from the ultrasound my stepmom was in the room waiting. They began prepping me for surgery. Have I mentioned in the past that I absolutely HATE needles? Well now is the time I have to deal with them. They had to do an IV. I had a wonderful labor and delivery nurse though. She called anesthesia and they came to do the IV. He was fabulous! He numbed my hand first and my nurse distracted me while he put it in. I had to stop him at one point though. He kept telling me exactly what he was doing. I had to ask him to stop! LOL I really didn't want to know the play by play!

Around 3:50ish they wheeled me to the OR. Once in there they sat me on the side of the bed and did the spinal (no epidural this time and spinals are actually easier.....at least for me). My dr was in front of my distracting me and the same anesthesioligist did the spinal. Once again I had to ask him to stop with the play by play. LOL

They got me situated on the table and sent for Michael before starting the c-section. You know you have this big blue sheet in front of your face so you can't see what is going on, but I could see a reflection in a clock on the wall. Yes, I was watching. LOL The entire thing lasted all of about 25 minutes. Well until the baby was out anyway. Wheeled in the OR around 3:55 and she was out at 4:20. I, of course, had to stay for the sewing up part, but Michael and Sam headed down to the nursery.

I have to say that coming down off of the spinal was not that much fun. I was shaking uncontrolably. It felt really weird not to be in control of that. Heck it was weird not to be able to wiggle my toes. LOL

We had lots of visitors right after Sam was born. None of them got to see her though. She was in the transition nursery for a very long time. Her blood sugar was low and they needed to get her breathing regulated. Along with her temperature stable. I didn't get to see her either until way late. I was getting quite impatient if you want to know the truth.

They finally brought her to us around 12:30am. She's gorgeous with a head full of dark hair. It's not red, but she does have the temper of a redhead. Believe me! It doesn't take much for it to come out either. LOL

At first we had some nursing issues, but once my milk came in those were straightened out. She is nursing like a champ now.

We were supposed to come home on Thursday, but Sam ended up being jaundiced so had to go under the lights. They had her there for almost 24 hours only bringing her to me to nurse every 3 hours. It was a hard 24 hours for me. One thing about this pregnancy and birth is that I've been incredibly emotional. I definitely cried when they told me she couldn't come home. They did let me stay an extra night though so that helped. I'm not sure I could have left her there. We got to come home on Friday evening.

I am still having the same leg issues as before she was born though. They are swollen and very very sore. I even ended up at the ER today, but that is a different post! LOL

Here are some pics of my baby girl!

They definitely enjoyed Mardi Gras!!

Both kids aquired lots of beads!



Even Georgia got some beads!

Why Women Are Crabby

Yes, I'm crabby right about now!


We started to 'bud' in our blouses at 9 or 10 years old only to find that anything that came in contact with those tender, blooming buds hurt so bad it brought us to tears. So came the ridiculously uncomfortable training bra contraption that the boys in school would snap until we had calluses on our backs.

Next, we get our periods in our early to mid-teens (or sooner). Along with those budding boobs, we bloated, we cramped, we got the hormone crankies, had to wear little mattresses between our legs or insert tubular, packed cotton rods in places we didn't even know we had.

Our next little rite of passage was having sex for the first time which was about as much fun as having a ramrod pushed up your uterus through your nostrils (IF he did it right and didn't end up with his little cart before his horse), leaving us to wonder what all the fuss was about.

Then it was off to Motherhood where we learned to live on dry crackers and water for a few months so we didn't spend the entire day leaning over Brother John . Of course, amazing creatures that we are (and we are), we learned to live with the growing little angels inside us steadily kicking our innards night and day making us wonder if we were preparing to have Rosemary's Baby.

Our once flat bellies looked like we swallowed a whole watermelon and we pee'd our pants every time we sneezed. When the big moment arrived, the dam in our blessed Nether Regions invariably burst right in the middle of the mall and we had to waddle, with our big cartoon feet, moaning in pain all the way to the ER.

Then it was huff and puff and beg to die while theOBsays, 'Please stop screaming, Mrs. Hearmeroar. Calm down and push. Just one mo re good push' (more like 10), warranting a strong, well-deserved impulse to punch the %$#*@*#!* hubby and doctor square in the nose for making us cram a wiggling, mushroom-headed 10 pound bowling ball through a keyhole.

After that, it was time to raise those angels only to find that when all that 'cute' wears off, the beautiful little darlings morphed into walking, jabbering, wet, gooey, snot-blowing, life-sucking little poop machines.

Then come their 'Teen Years.' Need I say more?

When the kids are almost grown, we women hit our voracious sexual prime in our early 40's - while hubby had his somewhere around his 18th birthday.

So we progress into the grand finale: 'Menopause', the Grandmother of all womanhood. It's either take HRT and chance cancer in those now seasoned 'buds' or the aforementioned Nether Regions, or, sweat like a hog in July, wash your sheets and pillowcases daily and bite the head off anything that moves.

Now, you ask WHY women seem to be more spiteful than men, when men get off so easy, INCLUDING the icing on life's cake: Being able to pee in the woods without soaking their socks...

So, while I love being a woman, 'Womanhood' would make the Great Gandhi a tad crabby. You think women are the 'weaker sex'? Yeah right. Bite me.

Yeah, about this?

The whole pelvic joints loosening thing? Yeah that happened way before now. It pops when I walk and it hurts! LOL

Just sayin'!

It just keeps popping into my head

I can't stop it. I really love my teaching job, but lately a change in careers desire keeps popping up. I'm thinking I want to be a labor and delivery nurse. Sound crazy? Yes it does. It means more school so more money in loans. Plus where in the world would I find the time? I'm about to have 3 kids and I work full time! I know it's nuts to even think about it, but the thought just keeps popping in my head. I'll probably never do anything about it though. *sigh*

Here are some of those maternity shots I was telling you about!

I have to say that they turned out much better than I thought they would. We all know that I hate being the subject of pictures, but I find myself really drawn to these. Must be the big ol' belly. LOL Lisa and I were both incredibly tired at this point in the trip though. We had spent the entire day traveling from Jersey back to Boston. We'd been home probably an hour when these were taken.

Thank you Lisa!! You made the big preggo woman look good! ;-)

Been awhile, huh?

Yes I realize I only wrote 2 new posts in February. Sorry. LOL I've just not been in the mood to write. A lot has gone on though. I took a fabulous trip to New Jersey. My friend Lisa and I went to see Jon Bon Jovi in a fan club only event. Talk about an amazing night! There were about 1500 people and Jon played for over 2 hours. He played mostly songs that we've never heard live. We, of course, knew them because we have bootlegged copies on our mp3 players. He played maybe 3-4 of the "popular" songs. We were loving it to be sure!! We were in Jersey long enough to make the rounds on the "Must See" sights for Jovi fans. From JBJ's childhood home all the way to Asbury Park. We took lots of pictures. Lisa is going to send me a disk with the pictures and I'll post those as soon as I get them. As for New Jersey itself? Well let's just say that what you see on tv or in the movies is pretty accurate. It's really not a pretty place to visit. There is a lot of trash all over the roads and its very industrial. My biggest complaint though is that you can't turn left. No, I'm not kidding. You can't turn left. They have concrete barriers blocking you and even at traffic lights you have signs that say no left turn. In order to get to someplace on the left you have to go about 5 miles out of your way to do it. It was very frustrating. We had a GPS (thank God!) and we still ended up getting lost on more than one occasion. Even in the "hood."

I also had professional maternity pictures taken while I was up north. I will be posting some of those shortly.

Sam is growing nicely. I had a doctor appointment yesterday. She is measuring right on target and the doctor thinks that I won't have a 10 lb baby this time. LOL Not that it really matters with a c-section, but you know. LOL My next appointment is on the 16th and that starts my twice a week appointments. I can't believe that we are at that point already. Then again time seems to be crawling by. LOL I have made it to the "I'm completely miserable" stage. A little earlier this time than with Joshua or Ari. I guess it's pretty usual with the 3rd. I really don't know how people have more than 3. My body would just shut down I think. LOL

I can't remember if I mentioned it before but we've set a date for Sam to make her appearance. We will head to the hospital on April 14 for my c-section. Unless, of course, Sam decides she wants to come earlier.

Less than 2 weeks!!!!!

I'm so excited!! In less than 2 weeks I will be on a plane headed to Boston. When I land in Boston my friend Lisa is picking me up and we are driving to New Jersey. We will be there for a few days. Why, you ask? Well because Jon Bon Jovi is gonna be there! We are going to a fan club only concert featuring him and his friends. Yes, I'm going to New Jersey in February while 7+ months pregnant just to see the man. Yes, I realize I'm obsessed. What do you want me to do? Give out promotional pens announcing my obsession? LOL I freely admit it. It's going to be so much fun!!! I. CANNOT. WAIT!!!!

This song makes me cry every single time

Happy Birthday Baby Girl!!!

My baby turned 4 years old today. She is definitely our little princess. When asked what she wanted to wear today she promptly decided on her pretty black and white dress. We had a little family only party today. Arianna had a blast. She did get a little shy when we were singing the birthday song to her though. It was too cute.









Happy Birthday baby girl! I love you!!

I want a house!

I really really want a house. I've been looking at houses online for days now. I've looked in Mt. Juliet, Boston, and Fernandina Beach. I don't care where at this point. *sigh* I just want to hire moving services and go. I want a yard. I want to paint the walls. I want to decorate something that is MINE. I want more space. I want a playroom for the kids. I'm tired of apartment living. It's almost becoming an obsession these days. I can't seem to stay off of the real estate websites and lusting over houses. *sigh*

Ok, I seriously laughed by butt off!!

Generations!

Hmm, I've always wondered this myself.
Now I know.

- The Silent generation, people born before 1946.

- The Baby Boomers, people born between 1946

and 1959.

- Generation X, people born between 1960 and

1979.

- Generation Y, people born between 1980 and

1995.

Why do we call the last one generation Y? I did not know, but a cartoonist explains it eloquently below...Learned something new today!

Ok, I just couldn't resist.

I've made an executive decision on meals in this house!

I've decided that from now on I am going to cook what I want to cook. Good well balanced healthy meals (for the most part). And if the kids don't want to eat what I cook that is just too bad. They can go hungry or eat a peanut butter sandwich. I will keep their favorites on the menu, but they won't be the only ones being satisfied with what is served at dinner. Heck, Ari is not eating her favorite thing in the whole world anymore anyway.

I've thrown in some stuff they can help with in hopes that it will encourage them to eat. Tonight we had "make your own pizza" night. I gave them english muffins and they put the sauce (complete with pureed sweet potatoes and mushrooms), cheese, and pepperoni on it themselves. Joshua ate both of his so at least he got some of the good stuff. Ari just ate the pepperoni which wasn't much of a surprise. She also ate a banana. I'm happy with it considering there are nights when she eats less than that even when I make her favorite.

Tomorrow night is fruit and yogurt parfaits with waffles. I will cut up strawberries, bananas, and give them raisins to put in their yogurt. I'll give them cute little parfait cups so they can layer their parfaits. Both of them are excited about tomorrow. LOL

Don't worry, I've got veggies on the menu later in the week. LOL Plus I add pureed veggies to whatever I can....pizza sauce, spaghetti sauce, even taco meat has some pureed veggies mixed in. I'm going to try to get them to eat corn on the cob too. They both used to love it, but now neither will eat it. I have no idea what happened there. *sigh*

Oh and no more snacking between lunch and dinner. That way they are hungry and more likely to eat. I've also cut out snacks after dinner so if they don't eat they are going to learn that they can't just go get a snack later. Bad mom? Maybe, but I've got to do something to get these kids eating better meals.

I am also putting away the sippy cups. Now if they want something to drink they have to drink it at the table in a regular cup. I am so tired of finding sippy cups with milk in them days later. It's gross. I will let them have a sippy cup of water by their beds at night, but that's it.

Now I just need to stick to these changes. It's not going to be easy but I am determined!!

I've said that my motto for 2009 is "A Year of Change" and these are my first major changes for the family. So, wish me luck!

Jon Bon Jovi's performance from today's inaugural event.