The 'After Christmas'

Ok, I know I only posted 2 days ago, but I was so rushed...a little one doesn't give a mother much time. So I figure if I blog a bit more often, but not as much as before, its still just as good right?

We've had a nice quiet day at home. I got out for a walk in the am with all 3 kids, Bryan in the sling, and the 2 girls walking. My neighbor Cheryl joined us, and it was lovely to chat about the Christmas celebrations we both enjoyed, and about family we'd seen. We went for a walk that by myself I can do it 20 minutes....but with Grace walking, took us about an hour! But I figured, we were all getting fresh air, had nowhere to go, and the girls had fun stopping to put mitt prints in the snow, and dig up sticks.
The girls are busy enjoying their gifts. Gracey go new pots and pans and dishes for the play kitchen. She has been very busy 'cooking' up stews and coffee. Only, strangely enough, those stews contain her much beloved Tigger and Piglet:).
Angelina has been busy painting with a new paint set, and refusing to let Grace use her new 'cell phone'. Girls will be girls! She received lots of princess things for Christmas. Socks, shirts, books, hair do dads, and the like. She puts on the items, and says things like, " I'm a beautiful princess!" She is our very girly girl.
Bryan is enjoying wearing some new clothes that Santa brought! LOL! And other than that doing alot of sleeping. He has a bit of a cold, and is being a bit of a monkey at night. With his snorting, grunting, and raspy nose breathing, he's doing a great job of keeping mommy up to worry! Not really to much, but with him being a new born I do worry a bit. On the flip side, he is getting stronger! When I prop him up against my hand to 'sit' he has been working very hard to hold is head up. He can do it now for short periods, and he turns his head back and forth to look around. A bit wobbly, but its coming. He also tries to lift his head up when he's on his tummy, but I know this is much harder for them to do and it will be awhile before he has great success at it.

That's all the news we have for now. Post again soon with some pics!!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas Everyone

From the littlest one!

Here is Gracey, breastfeeding 2 babies at one time!

Ok, one is Winnie the Pooh, but is all the same to her!

Here is Angelina, King...No, Queen of the Castle!

And here is all our wee ones, enjoying a bath Christmas morning!

Merry Christmas everyone! And it has been a wonderful Christmas season, and day for us. Christmas with a new born, just makes the season and day that much more wonderful!

First of all Bryan is growing and doing well. Sylvia came last week Thursday and he weighed in at 9lb5oz. So he is gaining just under an ounce a day, which is perfectly normal. He is beginning to follow objects with his eyes, and he looks for voices as they move around the room. He's been busy looking at the lamp in the living room, and I noticed today he had a bit of a flat spot on one side of his head at the back. But that is quickly fixed by just turning him the other way so he has to turn his head to look at it. Funny really, the things you forget with babies. He is out growing his newborn clothes and moved up to 3-6 month stuff. He is still in the newborn fitted cloth diapers I had purchased for him. But he may get another week out of them if I am lucky!
And Gracey and her babies. LOL! She has taken to nursing her dolls at turn. Sometimes when I am, sometimes just because. In that picture I just happen to catch her nursing 2 dolls, which has become quit a habit. From Santa she received some Winnie the Pooh figures. Small hand held ones. And what do you suppose she was doing? Nursing Tigger on one side, and Piglet on the other. Oh, she makes us laugh!
Angelina has enjoyed the snow we received the last week or so! She is busy climbing and sliding, and having snowball fights. I admit, I was one that taught her that game! We had an open house for my daycare parents the other day, and she enjoyed seeing and playing with her friends again. And in the end of the evening she sent them all home with Christmas play dough and some fun cookie cutters!
As Christmas Day comes to a close I am thoughtful and thankful. I thank God for my healthy family. 2 growing, happy girls, and a new baby boy. I have a husband that loves me and our children. We have a home to call our own, and we are in a country that is save. We have extended family around us to call on in time of need, and celebrate in times of joy.
I am thoughtful as to what the future holds. But I can't change it. I can only wait for time to takes its course, and enjoy each new day as it comes.

And on saying that, I am going to end the day with an evening spent with Goran, in my new Christmas PJ's!

Merry Christmas, from my family to yours, hope you had a wonderful day!

His Belly Botton Fell Off!

Reading stories and nursing!

My darling son, sleeping the afternoon away!

The girls catching a few minutes with the baby brother...and as you can see Grace slowly warming up.

Yeah to the gross smell belly button. It fell off and Bryan is left with a nice innie belly button like the rest of us! And he is fitting in with our family very well. He does what most babies do. He eats, and sleeps, and poos. He has fit in with a our daily routine nicely. Going from 2-3 has been a breeze! Maybe because I've done daycare, and I am use to the juggling act. Maybe because I am just that much more relaxed. I don't really know why, its just been easier. I remember I was terrified of being alone with the 2 girls after I had Grace, but I had none of those feelings of anxiety this time. So for me, this had been a very nice transition to a family of 5. I think Angelina would agree with me. She luvs to hold Bryan, and kiss him. She will go to him when he is crying and try to sooth him. She tells me often, "I luv having a baby brother, Mommy." Now Grace I am sure feels much different. She has had the hardest time adjusting to Bryan. She wants to sit on my lap when I have him. She wants to nurse when I am nursing him. And any time I say, "Just a minute," she dissolves into tears. But it is coming. As the days have gone by, she is a bit more patient while I am nursing, and will even look at him now. Sometimes I will catch her standing by his chair, and she'll touch his hand, or lean over and look right into his face. She is checking him out. Still deciding if he's ok or not. I know in the end, it will be ok with her. So right now I just watch and smile, knowing she is slowly falling in love with him as well. And Goran has been great. He has been helping me, making sure I have what I need, and taking care of the household chores. This has been wonderful as I am able to focus my energy into taking care of Bryan, spending time with the girls and getting my rest. And he luvs having a son.

Well I think that's it for now. I don't have a whole lot of time, but I will try to post again soon.

My Son is Here!

I started to write a post on Monday about how bummed I was, but something stopped me. I decided to get somethings done instead. Grocery shopping and some baking was on my list. But once I got to the grocery store I was 'crampy', differently than I had been the past week or so. Not really really painful, but different. So I finished my shopping and went home. I gave the girls some lunch, and put them down for a nap. Still the same sort of thing, so I thought I should lay down and see if it goes away. It didn't. I slept on and off but the 'cramps' kept waking me up. I got up at 3:00pm and got the girls up. I messaged my mom on the computer and told her something strange was going on. I had been timing my contractions on and off during the day, but there was no real pattern to them yet. I timed them again. 3-5 minutes apart, and they were lasting longer...45 secs min. but often longer. I had a few loose stools. I knew that was a good sign. I put a movie on for Angelina, and started doing things in the room. I hooked up the hose, moved the bed around, put down a plastic sheet, set up some candles, and all in between 'cramps'. During my 'cramps' I would sit on my ball and rock around. I kept going to the bathroom looking for some 'show'. I kept thinking, "If I have that, then I know this is the real thing." But every time I went I was disappointed. My mom called at 3:45pm. We decided she would call again in about 1/2 hour and see. But I told her I would feel better if she was here. She could watch the kids and I could concentrate. And the roads were not to good, so I didn't want her rushing. If it turned out to be nothing, then at least we would have a good night together. I had called Goran just after 3:00, and told him I thought 'maybe'. He had an interview at 4:00 which I told him to go to, and then come home. "If I need you sooner I'll call you," I had told him. I called Sylvia to give her a 'heads up' that maybe something was happening. We discussed what was happening, and she said it looked good, but it could slow down and stop. I told her, "I just wanted to warn you because the roads aren't to good." I told her I would call back when I was sure. I called Kristyn and Cheryl to give them a heads up. "Maybe," I said, telling them to I would call back when I was sure.

Suddenly at about 4:10, I just knew. Or maybe I just 'accepted' that this was it. The contractions were 3 minutes apart now, and 50+sec each. I started to call everyone and tell them, "Yes its time, come when you can." I called my mom first, then Sylvia, then Cheryl. I knew Kristyn was on a time line with work so decided to wait to call her. I was still working on my ball, and the girls were just there in the room with me. The pool was filling up, and Goran came home around 4:45pm. We talked a bit while I worked through the contractions, but he seemed to realize this was it, and got work with me. He was busy getting me water, helping the kids, and rubbing my back during contractions. He actually got the kids bathing suites on, and they played in the pool for a bit! My mom came next, and she got the kids dressed and took them upstairs for super. I called Kristyn and l told her to come when she could. Sylvia came at about 6:00pm. She did a quick vag. examine and told me I was 7 cm. Yeah! 3 cms to go. I knew I was in transition. Contractions were longer and more intense and I was shaking. I began to feel like maybe I couldn't do it. Cheryl came. Katie, the second midwife came. Kristyn came. Goran was still with me 100%. He was rubbing my back during contractions, and I was humming, moaning low tonnes. I read that helped to relax and open the cervix. Between contractions Goran would get in front of me and tell me to relax against him. He was awesome. Supporting me the way I needed, just when I needed it. Its hard for me to ask for help, and he knows that. He just took charge and did what I needed.

I had been on the ball for along time, and I knew my labor was stalling abit. I was tired. Sometimes a contractions would 'get' me before I could get a good handle on it, and I would cry out in pain, and fear. My body needed a new position. The midwives were suggesting things, and Goran was too. But it hurt, and I knew getting up would hurt more. The ball was 'flexible support' for my perineum. Goran suggested the shower, and the tub. The midwives suggested having a few contractions on the toilet. I was passing dirty looks around to each of them. Didn't they understand, moving hurt! But I knew it was time for a change. I knew the more it hurt, the sooner my baby would be here. I finally agreed and jumped in the tub. I was right. It hurt, more. Different. The midwives suggested breaking my water. Maybe that would speed things up. I really wanted them to break on their own. I had gone into labor on my own (finally!) and I really wanted my body to do the rest on its own too. I moved around in the water. I moaned and groaned, and leaned on Goran through contractions. I was contemplating what the midwives were saying about my water when suddenly I felt something...pressure, urge to push, and then something bulging just inside me. It was the bag of water. I asked if I could break it myself and they said, yes if I could, to go ahead. I managed to pinch and tear it with my finger nails, and slpush, more water was in the tub! I reached inside of me and could feel my baby's head. He was almost here. I worked through a few more contractions, trying to focus, but it was hard, it hurt so bad. Finally during a contraction I felt the urge, and began to push. " Good, Kathryn," Katie told me. "Listen to your body." Oh, it felt good to do 'something', but burned at the same time. With the next contraction the urge to push came sooner, so I pushed for longer. I could feel my baby's head crowning. I knew with the next contraction the baby would be here. The next one came and I pushed with all I had in me. I felt his head 'pop' out of me, and knew the shoulders had to come. I pushed for those shoulders, and I felt him slither out of me. I could here the excitement in the room. The midwives were talking fast, and my mom and Cheryl were cheering. I had been leaning on my knees on Goran, so I had to lift up my leg, to take my baby in my arms.

" ITS A BOY!" I cried out. I leaned back in the tub. His cord was short so I had to be careful not to to pull to hard. I looked at Goran, "Its a boy, a son!" I told him. He was crying before I even had him in my arms. They put a hat on his head, and I gathered him to my breast with a blanket. I was instructed to keep him in the water to keep him warm. It was 7:46pm.

We've named him Bryan Alexander. He weighed 8lb15oz. He is beautiful. He is strong.