Reflections on the Week

Well, my little guy is now 1 week old. It's crazy to think that a week has passed already. Some of you may have heard that you had a bit of a rough start here. Jared was admitted to the hospital for 2 days this week. He is fine now and all the tests came back negative, but it was definitely a scary experience. My poor heart felt so heavy during that time, especially as they tried to get an IV started (they poked him about 20 times before they got one in). Because of all that I think that I'm even more appreciative of our time at home. He is such a great baby. At night he's been sleeping for at least 3 hours, but sometimes 4! He's also feeding great and spending more time active and awake. He is quite the sleeper though. I guess he takes after me. We've also noticed that he's quite the strong man. In the hospital he was fighting off the nurses. It took 3 of them to hold him down to give him the IV. He also likes to hold his head up when he resting on my chest or shoulder.
Jon's mom has been staying with us and she's been such a great help. I've been able to rest and spend time with Jared without worrying about stuff around the house. I don't know what I'd do without the help. My mom was here too, but she spent most of her time here with us in the hospital, so I'm sure she'll be back to spend some good quality grandma time with the little guy.
We gave Jared his first sponge bath on Wednesday. He didn't like it one bit. He did enjoy his time with Daddy beforehand though. Isn't he such a cute little man?
All in all, life is good.

Jared Has Arrived!

Our little man has arrived and it was quite the ordeal to get him here. For those of you are not interested in hearing about the birth (Mark) skip ahead below under the bold headline and you'll miss all the details. =) For those of you that are here it goes:
I woke up on Tuesday (4/21/09) at about 2am with contractions that were pretty strong and about 6-7 minutes apart. Since I couldn't go back to bed I headed to the living room and watched some tv while Jon slept and I waited for the contractions to get closer together and stronger. I called in to work telling them that I wouldn't be in sometime around 8 or so and then after 9 I gave my midwife a call. She encouraged me to continue laboring at home and call her later to check in. Jon and I sat around for most of the day waiting for something to happen. Late in the afternoon I spoke to the midwife again and she asked me to come to the office to be checked. Bad news...only slightly more dilated than the day before. Oh well, back home again we went. As the night progressed the contractions got stronger and some were pretty close together, but they were definitely irregular. The midwife told me to go the hospital and get checked. By this time I was feeling pretty miserable. We headed to the hospital about 10pm (I think) and they hooked me up to a monitor and started watching my contractions. They also had me walk around for about a half hour to see if that would help anything. By the time I laid down again my contractions were strong, but weren't doing much of anything. I spoke to my midwife and she gave me 3 options. The first was that I could go home and take some Tylenol PM, soak in a hot bath, and sleep until things started progressing more. The second was that I could stay in the hospital and they would hook me up to an IV and give me meds to help me sleep. The final step was that we could try to augment labor (breaking my water, pitocin, etc.) Well, Jon and I talked about it and I really wanted to go home and try to sleep. Back to the house we headed. Jon dropped me off while he went to pick up the Tylenol PM. I laid in the bath for a bit, but it was doing nothing for me. I took the Tylenol PM, but my contractions just got worse. They would often come one right after the other with maybe 15 seconds break in between. They were also lasting for like 2 minutes. I tried to lay down, but the contractions hurt so much that I couldn't. So, I walked around the house for awhile. Jon put in a movie to try to distract me and continued to try to make me eat (poor guy was trying all day, but I just couldn't eat much of anything). Sometime around 2 or 3am I decided that I couldn't take it anymore and I needed to go back to the hospital. We arrived and they hooked me up to the monitors again and told me that my little guy was sleeping and they needed him more active before they could give me the medicine. So I worked real hard to drink cranberry juice and sprite to perk up the little guy. After at least an hour, but maybe closer to 2 they have me some kind of medicine that starts with a "s" or a "c" to help me sleep. My midwife explained that I would probably still feel the strong contractions, but that the medication should help me get some rest. It worked wonders. I only slept about 3 or 4 hours, but it felt like much more. My midwife came to check on me in the morning and there had been some progress, but definitely not much. We once again discussed options and my midwife explained that my labor so far had been very unusual. She explained that the contractions I was having were not effectively moving me along and that they were stronger than they should be at this point and closer together. After Jon and I discussed the options with the midwife we decided to have them break my bag of waters. At this point, we finally called the family members and let them know what was going on. I was checked a few hours later and I was at 5 cm so I was half way there (yep, 31 hours and only at 5 cm). After awhile the contractions started getting much stronger again and closer together. I was worried that my labor was going back to how it was previously. A few hours later I called my midwife to talk to her and explain that I was trying to relax through the contractions, but I felt the urge to push on some of them. She had a nurse check me and the nurse explained that I was about ready to push. The midwife made her way over and everyone got the room ready for delivery. I ended up pushing for 1 and a half to 2 hours and we decided about half way through to use a small bit of pitocin to regulate my contractions because they were becoming irregular again. Our little man was finally born 36 hours after labor started, but he was face up! The little stinker didn't turn the right way to come out, but he sure came out screaming his little head off. So, I didn't end up with an epidural, but I did need a little help along the way.
After the Birth Info (Otherwise Known as the Non-Gross Stuff):
Jon was super cute when Jared was born. Some dads cry, not this guy he laughed. He was such a trooper through the whole thing. He was getting very frustrated by my unusual labor and seeing me in pain so I know he was glad that it was all over. So, little Jared was born on 4/22/09 (Earth Day) at 2:19pm weighing 8 lbs 1 oz and measuring 20.5 inches. Good thing he didn't wait any longer to join us, he might have gotten too big. =)
He was and is absolutely perfect. I got to hold him as much as I wanted before the nurse got him all cleaned up and Jon got to hold him too. It was a great moment.
We had lots of visitors after that and came home the next day. My labor was not quite what I had anticipated, but what is? =)

38 Weeks

Well, what an interesting and busy week we've had here at the Boggs house. Sunday Luke and Jill came to visit before they headed off to Wheaton. Then on Monday I had an appointment with my midwife and it sounds as if things are moving right along. I was a little bit dilated, but nothing to get excited about. My midwife is very happy with my progress though. She reminded me that just because I'm a little dilated now doesn't mean that things are going to happen quickly. Then Monday night I had dinner with Emily and Kelsey. I miss those girls. =) Brad also spent the night on Monday (I told you it was a busy week). Tuesday my parents came up for their birthday dinners and then they spent the night. Jon and I had fun taking them to the Key Wester which is a Key West themed restaurant out here. They didn't get to go to Florida this year because they didn't want to be too far away in case Limer decided to arrive, so we did what we could to give them a little taste of Florida. After Tuesday we didn't have any more visitors, but were still plenty busy.
I finally got my bag packed, except for those last minute items. It's sitting on the floor in the living room ready to go whenever it's needed. =) It's so crazy to think that Little Limer could be here soon. I also finished buying all the last minute things that we need for his arrival (at least I think I got it all). I also spent the week at work getting everything organized in all of my files so that I could hand them off to the other coordinators. It felt really good to get all of that done and be at a point where someone could easily take care of the few things that I have left if I go into labor and don't come in the next day. Now, I'll spend my time at work helping everyone else with their work. =)
Besides that, I've been having some contractions on and off throughout the week. Friday night I had at least an hour and a half of consistent contractions about 6 minutes apart. They definitely didn't hurt, but were a little uncomfortable. I was able to go to sleep though and I slept through the night except for the occasional waking to go to the bathroom. So no real outward progress, he's still in there. The contractions continue, but not consistent although they do seem to be getting stronger. We'll see on Monday at my appointment if there's been any progress. I'm wondering when the little guy will make his debut. Jon and I are getting anxious to meet him!

Officially Full Term

Well, here I am, full term. It's so crazy to think about. I feel so totally unprepared. My bag is not yet packed for the hospital, but I did manage to make a list of things that need to go in the bag. =) Normally I am so organized and on top of things, but I think the fact that I have no idea when Limer is going to come is throwing me off. Plus, I've convinced myself that he's going to come late so that I'm not too frustrated when he does. I realized this week though that if I'm prepared for him to come late then he'll probably come early, so I need to get in gear.
I'm also feeling really overwhelmed at work. I'm planning on working right up until I go into labor, but I don't want to leave things unfinished for the people who are going to get my files. Unfortunately, it looks like I probably won't be able to get everything finished. At this point I just need to make sure that everything is together in case I don't come in the next day. Here's hoping I'm able to get enough done that I don't make too many people angry. =)
I had an appointment with my midwife this week, but there's no real news. She was at a delivery so the nurse did everything for the appointment and said that they would wait to start doing internal checks until next week. So, we'll see if I made any progress. I have been having some contractions, but nothing painful. In fact, most of the time I feel a little different and then have to feel my belly in order to see if it's hard or not. I've also had some pressure, so we'll see if anything is happening or not.
I just can't believe that Limer could be here any day now. I know some people feel like their pregnancy lasts forever, but it seems like the time has just flown by for me. I finally got all of the baby clothes washed and organized. The older clothes are put away in a tote for later use. Our little guy has almost 2 whole drawers full of clothes that are for 0-3 months. It's absolutely crazy! Jon and I spent one evening putting together our new dresser/changing table. Yay for baby furniture! I also spent more time prepping the cloth diapers. Our pocket diapers are easy, just wash and put away. The prefolds need to be washed several times though before they reach their full absorbancy. I'm still working on that.
So, this week I'm going to try to get more organized here at home and at work so that I'm ready whenever the little guy is. My bag will be packed and ready to go. =)

36 Weeks and the Shower

Wow! I'm now 36 weeks and have about a month or so left. Our little guy is going to be here soon. =) I'm still doing well, but I have noticed that I'm getting tired a little more quickly than before.
I had my baby shower this weekend and I am totally overwhelmed by the generosity of my friends and family. Our Little Limer has so much stuff already. What a spoiled little boy! Both moms put in a ton of work and were sick the week of, but it turned out absolutely wonderful. It was so great to see all the family and friends that could make it. I haven't seen so many of them in such a long time. So, Saturday was spent at the shower and then recovering (or trying to). Even though I've been more tired, I've also noticed that I have a harder time taking a nap or when I have the opportunity I just don't fall asleep. I also went through all the presents again when I got to my parents' house because I had some great little helpers at the shower that wanted to plow through the presents. I had to make sure that they didn't take off with anything and I felt like I didn't really get to look at all the great stuff I got.
Sunday was Krystle's bridal shower, so more time with friends. I was feeling pretty worn out though, so I wasn't quite the life of the party that I'd like to be. Oh well! I can't do it all. Then I drove home in the rain, sleet, and snow! Can you believe that it snowed in April? I hope that it's done for the spring. I don't want Little Limer coming home in the snow. =(
So, I had a great week and felt blessed by all the generosity and love that was shared with me. Thank you so much for everyone that was able to make it this weekend. Now, Jon and I just need to get the dresser/changing table put together so all the clothes and other stuff can be put away. Yay! Limer is joining our family soon! =)