I can't believe Logan is almost 3 weeks old already! On one hand it seems like he was just born yesterday, but on the other I can't even remember my life before he was here! Everyday I look at him, I fall in love with him even more. Every little face (even the screaming ones) is just so cute and precious. He is such a good little baby. He hardly ever gets fussy (only when he's really tired after being awake for awhile), and he is usually content. I can't believe how big he is getting! I'm already having to put away his little preemie clothes that were the only things he fit in when we brought him home.
Nick went back to work yesterday. I was really dreading it because I wasn't sure how we were going to handle being at home, but it hasn't been bad at all! I do wish that we were out of this condo already though, it would be so much easier and nicer if I had my own space with him. I love Pat, but I am sure ready to be on our own! It'll be nice to be able to feed Logan and watch TV at the same time! All in due time I suppose.
On my agenda for this coming week: 1. Spend lots of time with my Mom and sister (Amanda) who are coming to visit from Colorado. I haven't seen them since January when Nick and I got married! 2. Catch up with some friends (Virginia, people from work) 3. Get everything straightened out to start school again in September.
I have no idea how I will leave Logan in September, but I really need to finish this last year of school. I am sick of always having "one year left". I want to be done already! Now it's even more important that I finish, that way Nick and I can have the life we want for our little man. I am sure I will be crying the first few days at school though! I left the house for a half hour tonight to go get some coffee, and it was awful! All I could think about was Logan and how he and Daddy were doing!! (He was asleep the whole time haha).
Well, I guess that's it for now. Dad and I are hopefully going for a walk tomorrow, if it's not raining anyway.
-Kristin
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Daily Life- July 26
Well, not much going on here today. Nick and I are going to get ready to take Logan for a walk downtown. It's a nice day-- not too hot and not too cold. Last night was a long night. Logan and I slept from about 8-11:30 (for me) and he woke up at 2:30. He got some food and a clean diaper, and then he wanted to play! He was all smiles and just wanted to sit and stare at Mommy. He was up until almost 5am! I let Nick sleep so Logan and I just sat and stared at each other for a few hours. He's very good at giving kisses. Needless to say, I'm pretty tired today, but I just love staring at his little face!
Hopefully tonight will be a little better. I am trying to get into the habit of doing the late night things with Logan so Nick can sleep for work. Hopefully by the time I go back to school, he'll have his days and nights straightened out! Or we will be hurting, that's for sure.
Well, that's about it today :)
-Kristin
Hopefully tonight will be a little better. I am trying to get into the habit of doing the late night things with Logan so Nick can sleep for work. Hopefully by the time I go back to school, he'll have his days and nights straightened out! Or we will be hurting, that's for sure.
Well, that's about it today :)
-Kristin
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Birth Story- Part 2
So, we were being wheeled up to the post-partum wing when I left off before!
We got up to the room about 9:00 pm. Our entire family was waiting outside in the hallway, and they had to stay there for another 45 minutes or so. I know they were getting ansy! We met the nurses that were going to take care of us that night. They had a lot of information for us to read, and a video to watch.
This time is a little hazy for me, I was on a lot of medication from the surgery. I remember the nurses making sure Logan was ok, taking his vitals and everything. They gave me more medicine too. I remember getting Methergine for bleeding, since I had hemorrhaged and they weren't sure how my uterus was going to handle the bleeding. I also got a shot of Nubain because something made me extremely itchy. I didn't have the shakes anymore, so that was a relief.
Finally, the family got to come in. They had waited 3 1/2 hours to meet the little guy and they were excited! Our parents came in first, then the siblings, and then the friends. Everyone was very happy to meet him. Only a couple people actually held him, but a million pictures were taken!
By 10:15, I was completely exhausted so everyone left. The nurses came back to hook my legs up to compression cuffs so I wouldn't get blood clots while I was confined to the bed. I couldn't get up out of bed or eat until 6am. I was starving!
They finally let me have some jello later that night thank goodness!
The first night went fairly well. Poor Nick was completely thrown into fatherhood, since I wasn't allowed out of bed. He had his first experience changing a diaper, with me trying to guide him from the bed. Boy was that funny!
The next day was full of lots of visitors and lots of feeding the little piglet. He had his hearing test done that morning. It was a little early, so his left ear didn't pass. They said not to worry because they normally don't do it until at least 24 hours old. Since he was only about 15, there was plenty of time.
That night, he was circumcised by the OB, and he also got his first Hepatitis B vaccination shot. He was NOT a happy camper that night. We also found out that he absolutely hated the little bassinet that he was supposed to sleep in. Nick and I ended up taking shifts with him in our bed or sitting with him in the rocking chair. It was a long night.
I had gotten out of bed a couple of times during the day, but it was really hard. They wanted me to take a shower but I was really scared of the incision. Nick finally helped me in there while Martha and my friend Jeanene watched Logan for us. I definitely felt a lot better after the shower!
The next morning, we saw the on-call pediatrician. Logan had been super fussy all night, so we asked if he could have some baby Tylenol since he had just had surgery! The doctor okayed it. The next time the nurse came in, I asked about it and she said something to the effect of "Oh, he might not be hurting that much, let's just give it a little while because it makes him sleepy." Ok.. I might not have been a parent for more the 36 hours at that point, but I know when my baby is hurting! I had to call another THREE times for her to finally bring the medicine. Three hours after it had been prescribed. I was NOT a happy camper.
The other daytime nurse that was taking care of me wasn't much better. At one point, she came into the room to give me a pill. Nick was taking care of Logan, and I was trying to make it to the bathroom. I had gotten out of bed, and there was extreme pain from my incision. I was hunched over the end of the bed in pain when she came in. She handed me the pill and walked out. She didn't even ask if I was ok!
I did not like the daytime nurses at all. We had those same two ladies the whole time. I am thinking about writing to the hospital. It was ridiculous!
Wednesday night, Logan was tested for jaundice. His levels were a little high with the skin test they do, so he had to go for a blood draw. The blood draw revealed levels that were within the normal range, but still a little high.
That night, the nurses came to take Logan to the little nursery for a few hours so we could get some sleep. I had a really hard time with that. I felt extremely guilty for letting someone take my baby from me. I didn't feel like I was being a good mother. I finally calmed down and feel asleep.
Around 3am, they brought Logan back and woke me up. They said that he had lost too much weight. He was down to 6lbs8oz. They only like to see maybe a 10% loss of birthweight at the most. So they put me on a strict feeding plan. I had to feed him for at least 15 minutes on each side, and then pump with the breast pump and feed him that, and then feed him formula to fill him up! It took feedings from 20-30 minutes to close to an hour.
He pretty much stopped fussing once he had a full tummy. He was just one hungry kid!
In the morning, we saw the pediatrician and the on-call OB. They both okayed us to go home.
At about 2 pm, we were finally discharged from the hospital. Nick's parents were there to help us home.
-Kristin
We got up to the room about 9:00 pm. Our entire family was waiting outside in the hallway, and they had to stay there for another 45 minutes or so. I know they were getting ansy! We met the nurses that were going to take care of us that night. They had a lot of information for us to read, and a video to watch.
This time is a little hazy for me, I was on a lot of medication from the surgery. I remember the nurses making sure Logan was ok, taking his vitals and everything. They gave me more medicine too. I remember getting Methergine for bleeding, since I had hemorrhaged and they weren't sure how my uterus was going to handle the bleeding. I also got a shot of Nubain because something made me extremely itchy. I didn't have the shakes anymore, so that was a relief.
Finally, the family got to come in. They had waited 3 1/2 hours to meet the little guy and they were excited! Our parents came in first, then the siblings, and then the friends. Everyone was very happy to meet him. Only a couple people actually held him, but a million pictures were taken!
By 10:15, I was completely exhausted so everyone left. The nurses came back to hook my legs up to compression cuffs so I wouldn't get blood clots while I was confined to the bed. I couldn't get up out of bed or eat until 6am. I was starving!
They finally let me have some jello later that night thank goodness!
The first night went fairly well. Poor Nick was completely thrown into fatherhood, since I wasn't allowed out of bed. He had his first experience changing a diaper, with me trying to guide him from the bed. Boy was that funny!
The next day was full of lots of visitors and lots of feeding the little piglet. He had his hearing test done that morning. It was a little early, so his left ear didn't pass. They said not to worry because they normally don't do it until at least 24 hours old. Since he was only about 15, there was plenty of time.
That night, he was circumcised by the OB, and he also got his first Hepatitis B vaccination shot. He was NOT a happy camper that night. We also found out that he absolutely hated the little bassinet that he was supposed to sleep in. Nick and I ended up taking shifts with him in our bed or sitting with him in the rocking chair. It was a long night.
I had gotten out of bed a couple of times during the day, but it was really hard. They wanted me to take a shower but I was really scared of the incision. Nick finally helped me in there while Martha and my friend Jeanene watched Logan for us. I definitely felt a lot better after the shower!
The next morning, we saw the on-call pediatrician. Logan had been super fussy all night, so we asked if he could have some baby Tylenol since he had just had surgery! The doctor okayed it. The next time the nurse came in, I asked about it and she said something to the effect of "Oh, he might not be hurting that much, let's just give it a little while because it makes him sleepy." Ok.. I might not have been a parent for more the 36 hours at that point, but I know when my baby is hurting! I had to call another THREE times for her to finally bring the medicine. Three hours after it had been prescribed. I was NOT a happy camper.
The other daytime nurse that was taking care of me wasn't much better. At one point, she came into the room to give me a pill. Nick was taking care of Logan, and I was trying to make it to the bathroom. I had gotten out of bed, and there was extreme pain from my incision. I was hunched over the end of the bed in pain when she came in. She handed me the pill and walked out. She didn't even ask if I was ok!
I did not like the daytime nurses at all. We had those same two ladies the whole time. I am thinking about writing to the hospital. It was ridiculous!
Wednesday night, Logan was tested for jaundice. His levels were a little high with the skin test they do, so he had to go for a blood draw. The blood draw revealed levels that were within the normal range, but still a little high.
That night, the nurses came to take Logan to the little nursery for a few hours so we could get some sleep. I had a really hard time with that. I felt extremely guilty for letting someone take my baby from me. I didn't feel like I was being a good mother. I finally calmed down and feel asleep.
Around 3am, they brought Logan back and woke me up. They said that he had lost too much weight. He was down to 6lbs8oz. They only like to see maybe a 10% loss of birthweight at the most. So they put me on a strict feeding plan. I had to feed him for at least 15 minutes on each side, and then pump with the breast pump and feed him that, and then feed him formula to fill him up! It took feedings from 20-30 minutes to close to an hour.
He pretty much stopped fussing once he had a full tummy. He was just one hungry kid!
In the morning, we saw the pediatrician and the on-call OB. They both okayed us to go home.
At about 2 pm, we were finally discharged from the hospital. Nick's parents were there to help us home.
-Kristin
Doctors Again
This poor little guy is always going to the doctor! Well, out of nine days of life, we were in the hospital for four and have been to the doctors (either for him or myself) for 3 more! Today we just went to see the pediatrician to check up on his jaundice levels and to check his weight. We went home last Thursday and he weighed 6lbs8oz. Today, he weighs 7lbs4oz! So he is almost back up to his birthweight, 5 days early! (They should be back up to their birthweight by week 2.)
He slept SO well last night! We were getting kind of scared when we (or rather I.. Daddy passed out) saw 3am. But as soon as he had a very full tummy, he went to sleep until 8 am!! We got a full 5 hours of sleep in a row. He is such a good sleeper.
Tomorrow, he gets to meet Great-Grandpa Don and Great-Grandma Dee (my family) for the first time! I haven't seen my grandparents in about a year or so, since they live in Nebraska. Mommy is excited!!
Guess that is it for today!
-Kristin
He slept SO well last night! We were getting kind of scared when we (or rather I.. Daddy passed out) saw 3am. But as soon as he had a very full tummy, he went to sleep until 8 am!! We got a full 5 hours of sleep in a row. He is such a good sleeper.
Tomorrow, he gets to meet Great-Grandpa Don and Great-Grandma Dee (my family) for the first time! I haven't seen my grandparents in about a year or so, since they live in Nebraska. Mommy is excited!!
Guess that is it for today!
-Kristin
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
July 22- Daily Life
Today has been a fairly quiet day. Nick, Logan, and I slept until noon. Logan woke up every 3 hours or so for a feeding last night so that wasn't bad at all. It was nice just laying in bed with my two favorite guys. Logan has been more active today so far. We are trying to keep him awake as much as possible so that he will sleep longer at night. Not that he really needs it, but it'll be nice to have him awake more during the day.
Yesterday, we had two appointments we had to go to. At 1:30, we went to the OB and I had my staples removed. All 22 of them! It didn't hurt though, so that was good. I was thinking it might and was kind of nervous. I don't have to go back now until September for my six week check up!
After that, we had a lactation consultation. They didn't get a chance to see us before we left the hospital, so we had to schedule an outpatient visit. Everything went well! I fed Logan and they helped me learn a couple new positions to feed him in. We weighed him and he was 6 pounds 15 ounces!
He is a little eater! He loves to eat. He is waking up about every 3- 3 1/2 hours to nurse. It takes almost an hour to feed the little piglet! But the good news is that he is gaining tons of weight (about 2 oz a day at least!) Woohoo! He's going great :)
I will be back later to continue the birth story!
-Kristin
Yesterday, we had two appointments we had to go to. At 1:30, we went to the OB and I had my staples removed. All 22 of them! It didn't hurt though, so that was good. I was thinking it might and was kind of nervous. I don't have to go back now until September for my six week check up!
After that, we had a lactation consultation. They didn't get a chance to see us before we left the hospital, so we had to schedule an outpatient visit. Everything went well! I fed Logan and they helped me learn a couple new positions to feed him in. We weighed him and he was 6 pounds 15 ounces!
He is a little eater! He loves to eat. He is waking up about every 3- 3 1/2 hours to nurse. It takes almost an hour to feed the little piglet! But the good news is that he is gaining tons of weight (about 2 oz a day at least!) Woohoo! He's going great :)
I will be back later to continue the birth story!
-Kristin
Monday, July 21, 2008
Birth Story- Part 1
So, this story begins about two weeks before delivery. I had been having on and off contractions, or prodromal labor, for two weeks. I would get contractions at 2-3 minutes apart anywhere from 1-9 hours in length. Some would get stronger, and some would just be kind of annoying.
The week of July 7th, I had gone into the doctor on Monday. My blood pressure was a little high, so the doctor stripped my membranes and said that if I didn't go into labor on my own by Wednesday, to call and we'd schedule an induction by the end of the week. On Tuesday, I got worried, because I hadn't felt Logan move in a long time. So I went into the office for a non-stress test (NST). Logan looked great, and I wasn't having too many contractions. The doctor checked me again and I was at 2 cms dialated. She stripped my membranes again.
Nothing happened, so Wednesday I called and she had changed her mind about inducing by the end of the week. I was really disappointed, but scheduled an appointment for Monday morning. The rest of the weekend, I was trying everything I could think of to send myself into labor.
Monday morning rolls around, and I just have this weird feeling. Nick and I packed the last of the hospital bags, and put everything in the car just in case we would go straight to the hospital. I wouldn't get my hopes up, but thought it could be a real possibility.
Good thing we did.
When we got to the doctors office, my blood pressure was extremely high. 130/100. So the doctor and Nick and I decided that the best thing to do was go to labor and delivery and be induced. She didn't want to risk my blood pressure rising even higher. I begged her for an hour so I could go and get something to eat. I hadn't had anything yet that morning.
We had to be at labor and delivery at 11 am. We ran through McDonald's and then home really fast to grab the very last minute things. We called the family on the way.
We got to the hospital at 11, and got hooked up to the monitors and went through all the paperwork. They stuck me with an IV--twice, they couldn't get it the first time, ouch! At 12 pm, they started the Pitocin to get labor going. They checked me at that point and I was 2-3 cms dialated, and 80% effaced. At 1:35 pm, the doctor came in and broke my water. They also inserted an internal catheter to keep track of my contractions.
At this point, they realized the I was having one very long contraction with minor peaks. It was constantly a 4 or 5 on the pain scale, with no break whatsoever. The doctor turned off the Pitocin, and gave me a half dose of Terbutaline to try and get the contractions into a better labor pattern. At this point, I was in a lot of pain.
I held out until about 4 pm and I just couldn't take it anymore. I wasn't getting any sort of break from the contractions. At 4:15 pm, they gave me a shot of Phentenol through my IV. It took the edge away from the contractions for about 15 minutes. At 4:30, they gave me an epidural. I was finally feeling good.
Everyone came into the room that was waiting, and we just sat around for about 45 minutes or so. At about 5:15, the doctor came back in to check on my progress. I was still 2-3cms. At that point, she looked at me and said "I hate doing c-sections, but I don't think there is any other way." I just started crying. It was completely how I didn't want my labor to go. I wanted all the normal things!
She wanted to get me in right then, but I refused to go until I could see Dad again. Of course, since we had thought that it was just going to be a long night with induction, Dad had run home really fast. As soon as I got ahold of him and he got back, we went into surgery.
They wheeled me in first, while Nick changed into scrubs. They would call him after I was all set up and ready to go.
In the OR:
The anesthesiologist was extremely nice. He could obviously tell I was really freaked out about the whole thing. It actually took all of me not to sit there bawling my eyes out. He was making conversation with me, asking about the baby and trying to keep me from thinking about going into surgery!
There was a time when I thought I'd have to go under general anesthesia. They were just giving me a higher dose of medicine through my epidural, and my right side wasn't numbing as well as my left side was. He had to do the test a couple of times to make sure that it would be ok.
After I'm numb, they do another test where they pinch you with pliers or something around your tummy. Of course, I couldn't feel it. Then I realized from the pulling sensations that they had already opened me up! Nick wasn't even in the room yet! At this point, I gave in trying to hide my emotions. I started freaking out. The anesthesiologist asked when they were going to call Nick in.
When Nick came in the room, since they had already started, he got an eyeful of my insides! Luckily he made it in just in time. He came in at 6:12, and Logan was born at 6:14 pm. They finally yanked him out, he was wrapped up and compacted in there, and put him on the table. When they finally pulled him out, I heard the doctor say that he was a little stinker and would never have come out on his own.
They put him on a table right by me and started cleaning him up. Nick went over to him as they measured him, 20 inches, weighed him, 7 pounds 5 ounces, and then he cut the umbilical cord.
I was just sitting there bawling, not believing he was actually there! All of the sudden, I heard the doctor say something about me bleeding and it not stopping. They moved Nick and Logan to the recovery room at that point, while they sewed me up.
At 7:10 pm, they rolled me into the recovery room where I met Logan for the first time. I was able to breastfeed him right away. In the recovery room, I had the worst case of the shakes that ended up lasting about 2 hours.
At 9:00pm, they moved us up to the post-partum wing.
I'll post the hospital/recovery story tomorrow.
-Kristin
The week of July 7th, I had gone into the doctor on Monday. My blood pressure was a little high, so the doctor stripped my membranes and said that if I didn't go into labor on my own by Wednesday, to call and we'd schedule an induction by the end of the week. On Tuesday, I got worried, because I hadn't felt Logan move in a long time. So I went into the office for a non-stress test (NST). Logan looked great, and I wasn't having too many contractions. The doctor checked me again and I was at 2 cms dialated. She stripped my membranes again.
Nothing happened, so Wednesday I called and she had changed her mind about inducing by the end of the week. I was really disappointed, but scheduled an appointment for Monday morning. The rest of the weekend, I was trying everything I could think of to send myself into labor.
Monday morning rolls around, and I just have this weird feeling. Nick and I packed the last of the hospital bags, and put everything in the car just in case we would go straight to the hospital. I wouldn't get my hopes up, but thought it could be a real possibility.
Good thing we did.
When we got to the doctors office, my blood pressure was extremely high. 130/100. So the doctor and Nick and I decided that the best thing to do was go to labor and delivery and be induced. She didn't want to risk my blood pressure rising even higher. I begged her for an hour so I could go and get something to eat. I hadn't had anything yet that morning.
We had to be at labor and delivery at 11 am. We ran through McDonald's and then home really fast to grab the very last minute things. We called the family on the way.
We got to the hospital at 11, and got hooked up to the monitors and went through all the paperwork. They stuck me with an IV--twice, they couldn't get it the first time, ouch! At 12 pm, they started the Pitocin to get labor going. They checked me at that point and I was 2-3 cms dialated, and 80% effaced. At 1:35 pm, the doctor came in and broke my water. They also inserted an internal catheter to keep track of my contractions.
At this point, they realized the I was having one very long contraction with minor peaks. It was constantly a 4 or 5 on the pain scale, with no break whatsoever. The doctor turned off the Pitocin, and gave me a half dose of Terbutaline to try and get the contractions into a better labor pattern. At this point, I was in a lot of pain.
I held out until about 4 pm and I just couldn't take it anymore. I wasn't getting any sort of break from the contractions. At 4:15 pm, they gave me a shot of Phentenol through my IV. It took the edge away from the contractions for about 15 minutes. At 4:30, they gave me an epidural. I was finally feeling good.
Everyone came into the room that was waiting, and we just sat around for about 45 minutes or so. At about 5:15, the doctor came back in to check on my progress. I was still 2-3cms. At that point, she looked at me and said "I hate doing c-sections, but I don't think there is any other way." I just started crying. It was completely how I didn't want my labor to go. I wanted all the normal things!
She wanted to get me in right then, but I refused to go until I could see Dad again. Of course, since we had thought that it was just going to be a long night with induction, Dad had run home really fast. As soon as I got ahold of him and he got back, we went into surgery.
They wheeled me in first, while Nick changed into scrubs. They would call him after I was all set up and ready to go.
In the OR:
The anesthesiologist was extremely nice. He could obviously tell I was really freaked out about the whole thing. It actually took all of me not to sit there bawling my eyes out. He was making conversation with me, asking about the baby and trying to keep me from thinking about going into surgery!
There was a time when I thought I'd have to go under general anesthesia. They were just giving me a higher dose of medicine through my epidural, and my right side wasn't numbing as well as my left side was. He had to do the test a couple of times to make sure that it would be ok.
After I'm numb, they do another test where they pinch you with pliers or something around your tummy. Of course, I couldn't feel it. Then I realized from the pulling sensations that they had already opened me up! Nick wasn't even in the room yet! At this point, I gave in trying to hide my emotions. I started freaking out. The anesthesiologist asked when they were going to call Nick in.
When Nick came in the room, since they had already started, he got an eyeful of my insides! Luckily he made it in just in time. He came in at 6:12, and Logan was born at 6:14 pm. They finally yanked him out, he was wrapped up and compacted in there, and put him on the table. When they finally pulled him out, I heard the doctor say that he was a little stinker and would never have come out on his own.
They put him on a table right by me and started cleaning him up. Nick went over to him as they measured him, 20 inches, weighed him, 7 pounds 5 ounces, and then he cut the umbilical cord.
I was just sitting there bawling, not believing he was actually there! All of the sudden, I heard the doctor say something about me bleeding and it not stopping. They moved Nick and Logan to the recovery room at that point, while they sewed me up.
At 7:10 pm, they rolled me into the recovery room where I met Logan for the first time. I was able to breastfeed him right away. In the recovery room, I had the worst case of the shakes that ended up lasting about 2 hours.
At 9:00pm, they moved us up to the post-partum wing.
I'll post the hospital/recovery story tomorrow.
-Kristin
Sunday, July 20, 2008
First Blog!
Nick and I have decided to keep a blog so everyone can keep up with Logan! We will both be updating, so check back frequently! I will get pictures and his birth story up soon. Let us know if you start a blog so we can add you to this one! :)
For now, here is the link to our Snapfish account with a million pictures on it! Join the group and add your own photos too!
http://loganmichaelkeogh.snapfish.com/snapfish
Enjoy!
-Kristin
For now, here is the link to our Snapfish account with a million pictures on it! Join the group and add your own photos too!
http://loganmichaelkeogh.snapfish.com/snapfish
Enjoy!
-Kristin
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