Weaning: The Beginning of the End (But not really)

The once dreaded, now desperately needed process has begun. Weaning, that is. As uncomfortable as nursing has been at times, I always looked past that to see the joy and comfort it brought my baby to "eat eat" with mommy. It was something that only I could give him. It wasn't all for his enjoyment either. I loved the snuggles, and how it was an instant boo boo soother when a kiss from mommy wasn't enough. Even in the aftermath of breaking his leg, he was calmed by it. It is an amazing gift from God, that is for sure. But the time has come, the walrus said, to talk of many things. Of shoes and ships an.....oh, sorry. I got carried away. That has nothing to do with this. In fact, what the heck does it have to do with.....anything?

Anyways, as I was saying. The time...has come. I want it. I need it! I can't take the weight of a 32 lb+, half body casted child resting on my 6 1/2 month pregnant belly anymore. And my nipples! Oh my poor nipples! They have been so sore for months now. I have to hold my breath and bite my lip every time he latches on. The water in the shower hurts them. I can feel them when I get a chill. With him nursing at least 3 times a day, they have had no relief from his 16 chompers. Not to mention the fact that I will be starting the nursing process all over again in less than 3 months.

I. Am. Ready.

Here is how it is going so far...

Sunday, September 12th, 2010. Aprox. 7:30am. I nurse Will for what will hopefully be the last time. He is clueless. We leave that morning for 2 nights/3 days, and we ship him off to grandma and papa's house.

Tuesday, September 14th. Aprox. 8pm. He never napped for grandma, and he is completely exhausted. He falls asleep almost instantly. He still has a binky. No nursing!

Wednesday, September 15th. Aprox. 6:45am. He wakes up too early. I can tell he is still sleepy. Typically I would nurse him back to sleep, but this time we just rocked. He wanted it, but didn't put up a fight when I said no. He goes back down until 7:30am. At which point he usually comes into bed with me and nurses for a good 20 minutes. This is the only part I will miss. The extra time in bed. He wants to nurse, but we watch videos of himself on my phone instead. He laughs.

2pm. We rock. He falls asleep, and goes down fine. No nursing.

I was planning on keeping this week long record of how the weaning was going, so I could have it to read for future reference. But he has been perfectly fine without it! Every once in awhile he will point and ask for it, but I say no and that's that.

So, I would say it has been a total success! No tears were shed. We still have snuggle time, and you know what? Even without nursing there is still that certain something that only I can give him.

Now, onto the next challenge.....

Getting him to sleep in his new big boy bed! I decided the other day that it would be best to get Will accustomed to a big boy bed before the baby comes in about 2 months. So, I looked up toddler beds on Craigs List, saw one I liked (for a decent price in a good location), e-mails were sent, and the bed was picked up the next day! I spent the day yesterday cleaning and organizing what will be both of the boys bedroom, and we will set it up tonight (somehow, someway we will make it fit)! I am thinking it might be a good idea to start him in it asap (at least for naps) while he is still in his cast, and can't climb out. Then maybe once his cast is off in about 2 weeks, he will be comfortable in it.

Is that wishful thinking? Perhaps. Time will tell. I'll keep you posted!

It's business, it's business time....

Ahh, we had a great 2 nights away at a stunning hotel in Connecticut. It was for a first ever business trip for Dean.

*He has recently joined a new buying group, in which he his able to get new appliances for his store. They have 2 business "conventions" a year, in which most all brands of appliances and electronics are there giving great deals, and wanting you to buy their stuff.*

The hotel it was held in is, supposedly, the 2nd biggest gaming casino hotel in the world (1st is in China). The place is enormous! I didn't even try to take a picture it with my phone camera. It wouldn't do it justice. It has a total of 3 huge hotels, all connected. We were staying in the newest one, the MGM Grand. There are restaurants galore, jewelery, Rolex, purse and clothing shops.....for when you win all that money playing slots. (Because, you know, you are bound to make money if you sit there all night long pressing that "Bet Again" button over and over again.)

Our meals were all provided at no cost to us, and let me tell you. I have never eaten so well in my life. The meals during the convention (on Monday) were all buffet style. Pastries, muffins, bagels, fruit for breakfast. Lunch had tossed salad, greek pasta salad, garlic potatoes, free-range oven roasted chicken with a butter sauce and artichokes, pork tenderloins, swordfish. Dinner was hor d'oeuvre style. They had so much to choose from that there was no way I could taste all of it, and will hardly remember all that there was. Yummy cheeses and crackers, oven fried chicken, lamb chops, stuffed potatoes, brie with a raspberry sauce and pecans wrapped in phyllo, crab dip, freshly carved roast beef, mashed potatoes, cooked veggies, shrimp and sushi....that is all I can think of right now. Desserts were all bite sized and fancy. Apple cheesecake, coconut cream pie, lemon meringue pie (my favorite one), chocolate mousse truffle, peach walnut caramel truffle, and a few more I cant remember.

Dean had to spend most of the day on Monday doing his business. I joined him for breakfast and lunch, but was on my own for most of the day until dinner. Oh, I had high hopes the night before of getting down to the gym to get in a workout, but I decided it was best to lay around my room watching tv, and play....the slots. I probably would have gotten lost anyways trying to find the gym.

Anyways, back to....the slots. What an interesting experience that was! Oh, they had the black jack tables, 3 different poker game tables, a dice game and this spinning wheel too. As you can tell by my great knowledge of the world of gambling, I felt right at home. I was hardly brave enough, and way to frugal to do any of that stuff. So, I settled myself down at the 1 cent slots, put in my $5 dollar bill (only because it didn't take $1's), made my wager, pulled the lever pushed a button, crossed my fingers and put all my hope of making a profit in the hands of a machine designed to take my money.

I, personally, don't have anything against gambling. I've played many a hand of Texas Hold 'em in my day. I definitely see the danger of it though. So many people squander their money away at the slight chance of winning, and get lost in that unrealistic idea. The majority of the players on the slots were 50 - 60 yr old + women, most could be seen wearing a fanny pack, some smoking and all had depressing looks on their faces. They looked like they'd been sitting for hours. I don't think I ever saw someone get up from a machine. It was a sad sight to see. Dean and I, on the other hand, must have looked quite out of place. We wouldn't sit at one machine for more then 2 minutes, before getting up and moving to another. If we were losing too much on a certain machine ($1....) or if we won something, we would move. In the end, we lost $11 bucks. I figured that was $11 towards our entertainment. We could easily spend $20 on a movie for 2 hours of entertainment also.

All in all, it was a wonderful time. It was great to have some quality time away with my husband. These are some pictures of our room/view and my growing, achy, belly.

Pregnancy Diary: Week 28

I can't believe I am in my last trimester already! This pregnancy has flown by! I was feeling surprisingly well throughout the whole hospital ordeal, but the stressful crazyness of the past week has finally caught up to me. The past couple of days I have been dealing with some bad ligament pains. Due to (1) My belly growing and (2) The stress that carrying Will around has put on my body. I had it with my first pregnancy too. I played tennis when I was 5/6months, and paid for it later.

God is so good! We just found out this week that our insurance application was accepted! All of Will's hospital bills will be taken care of, and if we decide to go with a home birth it covers that also!

Dean has his first ever, all expenses paid, business trip this Sunday - Tuesday at the MGM Grand at Foxwoods Resort & Casino. We get to go pretend to be rich grown ups! We are very excited about it. I wasn't sure after Will broke his leg if I would still be able to go. But he has adjusted just fine, and I sure can use the break! He will be staying with my family, and be utterly and completely spoiled.

Here I am at 28 weeks. I really need to get some pics from a real camera. I am much bigger in real life. My cell camera makes me look a lot smaller. I swear! I've gained 20 lbs for goodness sake.



A Will update: He is doing just great! Naps have been a little iffy, but for the most part he is sleeping through the night. He is starting to move around on his own. He can flip one direction, from his tummy to back, then gets stuck, and is starting to pull himself forward. He is best described as a very whiny, opinionated, 32lb+ 6 month old.

He started off on his tummy, on the middle of the blanket.

His next doctors appointment is Oct. 4th, where we will see if the cast can be taken off entirely or at least part of it can be.

William and the Big, Red Cast.

Wow, what a week it has been! Definitely one for the books blog. For those of you still wondering what happened exactly, here is the story.

Monday was normal enough. Got to the YMCA for a workout while Will played in Childwatch. Went to Wegmans to do some grocery shopping, and then headed home for some lunch and naptime.

Will woke up from his nap at 5pm. As he always does, as soon as he got up he went straight to the fridge to get something to eat. I followed him, and let him get his peach out of the fridge. We started walking back to the living room. I was in front of him when I heard him fall. While trying to go up it, he had fallen back off of this step:

To give you an idea of the height of the step, that is a typical 12 oz glass bottle.

He started crying. I turned back to see him, and he was down on his side grabbing his right leg with both hands. I went over to him, thinking it was nothing a kiss from mommy wouldn't fix. I noticed that his right knee was red, and I assumed that that was what was hurting. I picked him up in cradle position, and kissed his knee. He wasn't calming down, so I continued to comfort him. I eventually carried him into the living room, and sat down on the couch to nurse him. After some crying and nursing he fell back asleep. Being as how he has just woken up from a decent nap, I knew something was off. Never did the thought that something was broken cross my mind. It was such a small fall!

For the next 1 1/2 hrs I held him as he was in and out of sleeping, nursing and crying. I texted Dean that Will had hurt his knee (so I thought), that he was miserable, and asked if he could get home from work any sooner then the expected time of 7:30pm. I eventually lay Will down on the couch with his legs propped up on a pillow, put some ice on it, and put on a video for him. Dean was home by 7pm, examined his leg, and said that his right thigh looked swollen. Every time he touched it Will would cry out and started shaking. I called the pediatrician, told her what happened, and she said to go to the ER. So, off we went. They got us right into a room, and after being examined we waited to be sent to get x-rays. The results of those were that he had a spiral fracture in his right femur.

It was heartbreaking seeing him in so much pain. He was very tired, and kept drifting off to sleep, only to wake up screaming every time he moved slightly. They had to try both hands before getting in the IV. Sometime around 1am-2am they gave him some morphine, and got him in a temporary cast. It was 3:30am by the time we got in our room, and were able to get some sleep. After about 4 hours of interrupted sleep we were up for the day. We spent the day just waiting for his time to come for getting the cast on. They finally took him in by 1:50pm. He had to go under general anesthesia. I wasn't happy about that, but I felt at peace about it knowing it was for his own good. He was only in the OR for 30 minutes, and we were able to see him by 2:40pm.

During the "surgery", as they referred to it, he threw up a bit. A side effect of the anesthesia. They were worried that he may have inhaled some, but x-rays came out clear. They still wanted to keep him overnight though, just to make sure. We were not happy about that, but it was for the best. It took awhile for him to fully come off the anesthesia. He had a rough time for awhile that evening. His heart rate was pretty high. Rising up to 199 at one point. We got some Motrin in him, and he fell asleep by 10pm. We had no more issues with high heart rates after that. He was up by 4:30am, and didn't go back to sleep until 11am! God's grace was definitely upon me. After 2 nights straight of only getting a few hours of uncomfortable sleep, and being 6 months pregnant, I felt surprisingly well.

We got the go ahead to leave that day (Wednesday). Because of the largeness of his special spica cast he is not able to fit in a normal carseat. So, he had to be transported home in a Medicab van. I rode with him, and he seemed to really enjoy being somewhere other then a hospital bed. We are still on the search for a suitable way to transport him in the car. They do make special "spica" carseats, but they are hard to come by, and very expensive.

So, here we are. It is Saturday (although I started writing this 2 days ago). He seems to finally be adjusting to having to wear the cast. For the first couple days he seemed scared of it, and would freak out whenever we had to move him. His sleeping has been all over the place. The first night home was rough. Thursday he took a great nap, and was much better at night. Yesterday he took no nap at all, and then last night slept horribly. He was up every hour from 12:30am until he came in bed with me at 7:30am. Hoping for a good nap from him today. I can use some rest!

All in all, we are doing ok. Trying to stay focused on the positive. Since Will can't get around and make messes every 5 minutes, my house is staying pretty clean!

Pregnancy Diary: Week 24

Nothing very exciting has happened since I wrote last, so I suspect this will be a pretty boring post.....

I am feeling great! No complaints other than (then? than? I always forget) the whole peeing when I sneeze suddenly. Which is even more prevalent this time around. Oh, the glamorous life of pregnancy. I have gotten back into a workout routine (I use that word loosely). Getting to the gym at least a couple days a week, and taking walks whenever the heat permits. It feels wonderful. No heartburn to speak of so far....fingers crossed....which is something I had everyday (til the end) by this point with Will.

My eating preferences are pretty much the same as with my first. Lots of fresh fruit, salads, cheese and crackers, peanut butter and whatever sandwiches, milk. Simple, easy stuff. Only trouble with it, is that Will eats what I eat, and now that is all he wants to eat. Breads, crackers, cheese, and most of all...fruit. The kid is obsessed, I tell ya. I have plans to break him of it though. Evil, mean plans. We'll see how that goes.

The baby is moving around tons now. Almost always when I am going to bed or whenever I am nursing Will. Yes, still nursing. Even though my body stopped producing milk a few months ago, he still loves to go at it. I plan to have him weaned by the time he is two. Which will give me about a 1 1/2 month break from nursing. I also plan to have him potty trained by the time the baby comes. Lots of planning going on over here. I like to have things planned. It is easy to plan. It's the whole taking the initiative and actually doing something about it that is the hard part.

So, that is pretty much all that is going on here these days. Here I am at 24 weeks. I swear I look a lot bigger in real life.

Pregnancy Diary: Week 20 - Vacation Edition!

Oh man, where to start! It has been 5 weeks since I last wrote in my "diary", and life has been very busy. I will try to remember it all with this pregnancy brain of mine (which I will talk more about later)!

June 26th my older brother married his beautiful bride, Anna! It was a wonderful ceremony and awesome reception.

~The 4 Amigos and their ladies~

We were able to go to Sea Breeze a couple times this summer, and Will had a blast! He had no reservations going on all the kiddie rides. At the end of every ride, he would make a confused look and put his hands in the air as to say "Uh, what's going on here?"

We have also had fun at the beach, graduations parties, boat rides and hanging out at a lake house, and 4th of July festivities.

I had my 19 week ultrasound, and found out we are expecting another boy! Everything looked great. He measured perfectly, to the day! We have a first name, but no middle yet. Once we have decided on that, we will absolutely share it!



Last, but not least, we just got home from a great week long vacation to Myrtle Beach, SC! A very gracious long time friend of the family opened up his beautiful home to us and my whole family. We had a great time! We (as in we, I mean mostly Dean) drove through the night, there and back. Will did ok, considering. We had safe travels, and made great time even when the GPS would poop out on us, leaving us lost in D.C. for awhile at 4am. The weather was lovely. A few showers here and there, but nothing that threw a wrench into our plans. There was always a nice breeze which made the heat bearable. We managed to not get burned, but still got some nice color. Our days were lazy. We spent them at the beautiful (private community) pool, at the beach playing in the oceans waves, or just hanging out at home playing Pictionary, Chinese Checkers and Euchre. Dean was able to get in some golf, and went out jet skiing with my little sis, Camryn.



Dean and I were able to go out on a date night together. We went to the Market Commons, had a great dinner at Gordon Biersch Brewery, walked around a bit window shopping, and I finally got to go into Anthropologie. I pretty much died and went to wish-I was-rich-heaven. We stopped at Dairy Queen for a quick ice cream cone, and then we went back to the pool for a relaxing night swim. It was a wonderful night!



We had a couple nights just spent at home having yummy cookouts and playing cornhole. We went to Broadway at the Beach one afternoon, and had a couples date night at Barefoot Landing where we had dinner at Wild Wings Cafe. I completely stuffed myself with the most delicious wings.

As fun as it was, we are glad to be back home. We still have so many more fun things planned for the summer; another wedding, annual family party, and Family Camp!

As for the pregnancy, I am feeling pretty well. I get a bit lightheaded sometimes, and just have to take it easy. The heat has been tough. I almost passed out in the checkout line at Goodwill...again. I actually did pass out there when I was pregnant with Will. I was able to sit down in time, this time around. I am feeling the baby move around some, which is always fun. My Braxton Hicks have started already. A few weeks earlier then with my first. My hormones seem to have settled a bit, and I haven't had any over emotional outburst for awhile now. I have had quite the pregnancy brain though, resulting in some moments where I just have to laugh at myself. Here are the ones I have remembered:

~ I pulled into the gas station, and for the life of me I couldn't remember what side my gas tank was on...in the same car I have been driving for almost 4 years now. I sat there for a good 30 seconds before remembering, and that is a long time in gas station time.

~ I was in line at Wegmans, behind another woman. You know how it goes. As the conveyor belt opens up, you fill it with your groceries. Oh, but not me. I'm just standing there, yawning, waiting patiently, taking candy bars out of Will hands, and not putting one thing on there. The other lady leaves, the cashier says "Hi." I say "Hi." A couple seconds go by before "Oh my goodness! I am so sorry." Doih.

~ I was pulled over for having a brake light out. The State Trooper ask for my license. I give him my HSBC Debit card. Enough said.

~ One night, a couple days before we left for vacation (which I clearly needed) I was going over in my head what I needed to do the next day. Public Market, bank, doctors, Wegmans, etc. etc. It was a busy day. The next morning, I even made a list of what I needed to do....blah blah, BANK, blah, blah blah, etc. etc. So, Public Market, check! Doctors, check! I pull into the bank, start to pull up to the ATM, and I stop. I think "what did I need to do at the bank?" No one was behind me so I just sit there. Eyes squinted, forehead wrinkled, thinking. "Withdrawal? No, I did that a few days ago. Deposit? Nope, no checks." Turns out there was absolutely nothing I needed to do at the bank.

~Also, I stubbed my toe at least 10 times within a 2 week period.

20 Weeks