Getting Old...

WOW! Seriously, where has time gone?? It's Christmas time already, and while I'm finishing up the last items on my list and making sure I haven't forgotten anything to pack for our trip to Tucson for Christmas, I still can't help but FREAK OUT over how fast it's all come!

Christmas seemed so far away, and I just kept telling myself...Em, you can make it till Christmas...by then Wyatt will be almost 6 months old! Life will be so much easier! AND IT SO IS! I just love this little stinker and it takes every ounce of control that I have not to squeeze him till he farts every time that I pick him up! He cracks me up how he'll be suckin' on that tiny little thumb of his and if I come within one foot of him he grins from ear to ear and his tongue just quivers as it's trying to continue sucking :) Oh, and my gosh...he goes absolutely NUTS when he sees his dad!! If I even mention the word "dad" he starts pumping his legs and looking around just waiting for his dad to come and make him laugh!

The other night, he woke up crying because his blanket had somehow managed to all bunch up over his head and he couldn't figure out how to move it (I'm positive he's gonna have major clostraphobia when he gets older!). I ran up to his room and pulled the blanket from his face and picked him up to calm him down. Well, Steve followed me up and and soon as he saw him he began wiggling in my arms doing just about everything he could to crawl up and over me and into his daddy's arms! Steve went downstairs to make him a bottle to help calm him down and that kid kept looking over my shoulder just waiting for him to return. The two of them together makes me crazy happy!



I know it's terrible to film your kid crying...even more so when you are laughing at your kid who is crying! But before you pass judgment...try to watch this video without laughing! Go on! I dare ya!

See??!! It's SO HARD to take this kid seriously when he cries! He pokes his bottom lip out and I can't help but laugh cuz he's just so darn cute! Thank goodness he hasn't figured out how to really cry....he still cries with his mouth closed...it's like he's muffling his sorrow on our behalf. :0)

Anyways, back to the "Getting Old" thing. I'm downloading some music so we have some new tunes to listen to on our way to Tucson and I found this song called "One Time" by Justin Bieber. Ya'll, I swear this kid is only 12...ok, ok...maybe 12 and 1/2! I'm so used to following the artists of my time and even some of the newer ones that don't seem all that far off from my own age. But all the sudden, I'm lookin' around for Steve like he's gonna catch me listening to this "kid" and look at me like, "for real? I guess he's ok if borderline jail bait is your thing."

It's just weird to see how time passes and all the things that I once thought were "cool" are now considered "old school"! And to top all that...I just had to buy my first tube of arthritis cream! What the hail?? lol Not to mention the white, not silver, hairs that I've suddenly found. (Does that mean I'm not wise? I always heard the silver hairs meant you were wise...ah well...it figures) Guess I'll have to start dying my hair more frequently cuz these buggers seem to be growing faster than any other hairs on my head! What's next?? Hemorrhoid Cream and Adult Diapers??

Stop the Leaks!

So. I have a question for all you mommas out there. Well, at least the ones who have raised little boys ;)

Pretty much since I posted online that Wyatt began sleeping through the night...he decided to stop gracing us with a full nights sleep and go back to waking somewhere between 1 and 3 in the morning. I've asked Steve to have a talk with him and let him know that it's unacceptable and if he continues with this behavior, we may have to ground him. Steve doesn't think he'll take it to seriously, but I beg to differ ;)

Anyways...about 2 weeks or so ago he found his feet. It's honestly the greatest thing to watch him try over and over to bring his toes to his mouth. He's getting more flexible, but as for the moment, he can only stretch the tip of his sock to his mouth...which amuses him immensely!

EVERY time that I go to him in the middle of the night, he's got his feet in the air! And here lies the problem: I'm thinkin' he must be juicin' his diaper or something because for the life of me, I cannot figure out how he gets pee up the sides of his PJ's and all over the sheets. This part is not so cute!!

He's wearing size 3 diapers and they look HUGE on him. They go up past his belly button! But the size 2's barely contain him. How do you remedy this???

I'm getting so tired of changing his sheets! (We have even put a towel down and he just saturates it!) I don't know, maybe there's more force behind that hose than I'm aware of...but seriously, have any of you experienced this?

A Little Home Remedy

I was so worried that Wyatt was getting sick (and even more worried that I might give him whatever cold bug I'd caught). My sister, Kristie, gave me a little home remedy to try:

"Those suffering from common or sever colds should take one tablespoon room temperature honey with 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon powder 1 to 2x daily for three days. This process will clear the sinuses and alleviate most cough and sore throat symptoms.

Make a glass of lukewarm honey water with cinnamon powder to help boost your immune system during the cold season."


I'll be the first to say that I've never really "believed" in most home remedies...mostly because they rarely work for me (and yet I am always trying new ones...hmm). I have been doing the 2x daily routine for the past two days. I have some about 30 mins before I eat breakfast and about 30 mins before I go to bed. I feel AMAZING...I'm talking, so-amazing-I-could-kiss-a-honey-bee!

So, I'm passin' this little remedy on to those of you who could use a little help this cold and flu season. Seriously, what have you got to lose??! If you don't believe me, do a little research of your own...you'll be amazed to see what's out there! ;)

Advice

Wyatt had his shots yesterday and the entire night was spent trying to comfort him. I gave him multiple baths (which seemed to be the only thing that worked). I alternated a heating pad, ice pack and massage. We gave him Children's Tylenol....and then Steve had to make a middle of the night run for Children's Motrin instead. I even tried some homeopathic essential oils. We tried EVERYTHING.

The only position that he wanted to be held in was where he faced forward and no pressure was on his legs. But he couldn't fall asleep in that position so he just cried and cried all night!

He even started getting congested, so we put a humidifier in his room.

To make matters worse...I woke up with a scratchy throat and body aches! HELP!

So. I thought I'd start this post off with some random "why" questions that have been swimming in my mind the past couple of days.

Why do infant pants have actual pockets?? Everyday that I dress Wyatt, the same question pops in my head. What is my nearly 5 month old going to keep in these pockets of his? I suppose it could be rather handy for me as a mom...I mean, maybe I can store my chap-stick in his little cargo pocket and maybe my debit card in his back pocket (wait...nope, doesn't fit...hmmm).

Why do garbage trucks have little scented trees hanging from their review mirror?...BETTER YET, why do they have review mirrors??? It's not like they can see behind them through it (isn't that what the side mirrors are for?) and it's not like that little scented tree is gonna miraculously overpower the stench of maggot infested diapers (that's ones for you uncle Matt!!) and fish skins! If I were a trash collector, I think I'd use the ole Vicks Vapor Rub under the nostrils instead! I mean, it totally worked when I was working on cadavers...although, I'm sure that cadavers smell like a handful of flowers compared to the city dump.

There...I'm done! Ugh, I can finally cross that one off my list! List? That's right...since we decided to put my job hunting on the back burner for a couple more months, I now have this obsession with LISTS! I went out and bought myself a fancy dancy little notebook and I write all my daily tasks in for the week. I have this need to feel like I've accomplished something...it's not just good enough that I managed to clean some of my house...NO, I need to look like I've just tackled this insane list of duties so that when my husband asks what I did today I can just show him :)

Example:

Tuesday

• Get up
• Shower
• Feed Wyatt
• Play with Wyatt
• Read to Wyatt
• Put Wyatt down for a nap
• Feed myself
• Get ready
• Go to the bathroom (JUST KIDDING...I'm not that crazy! I don't have to schedule time for the toiley!)
• Wash dishes
• Start dishwasher
• Wipe off counter
• Wipe off island
• Wipe off table
• Wipe off sink
• Sweep Floor
• blah
• blah
• blah

See! So instead of saying, "Oh I cleaned the kitchen" (which any mom can tell you IS an accomplishment)...now I have a gagiant list of tasks that I feel accomplished for completing!! LOL No worries folks, I don't need your pity praise, I've got lists to do that for me!! ;)

So I suppose I should tell you what Wyatt's been up to...now that he's almost 5 months and all.
I swear I am so blessed to have such a mellow child! I don't know what I would have done if I was given a difficult child to raise as my first!

Wyatt and I went to Tucson the weekend before Thanksgiving so that we could visit Kevin, Patti and the kids. I was a little worried to do the whole plane thing again, but he did amazing! I ended up sitting at the very back of the plane next to two business men who I had just seen leaving the bar before we boarded the plane. The back three seats were the only ones left on the plane, and I promised them Wyatt was a good flier (thank goodness he kept his end of that promise!). He barely made a peep the entire flight, even with all the musical chairs we had to play with the two drunk business men who sprung a leak from all the beer they'd consumed.

He even did great the entire time that we were in Tucson! I was so happy about that because it made visiting so much more relaxing. We just had so much fun and his Grandma Patti just couldn't get enough of him! He was just giving those smiles to her like they were goin' outta style!

He did pretty darn good during Thanksgiving weekend too! That one was a bit tougher considering most of the activities carried over into what normally is his bedtime. He loves watching his noisy cousins playing (from the quiet safety of my lap of course...lol). It was wild to see just how big this kid is compared to one of his cousins who isn't much older than him. I suppose it's the giant head that really makes him looker bigger and older than he is (he can thank his mama's side of the family for that). Steve says that was the first thing the doc noticed about him when she was pullin' him from my tummy during the surgery....GIANT HEAD! He's just so darn cute though!

Wyatt is getting really talented! He's not so interested in rolling from his tummy to his back...I think it freaks him out a bit. I suppose it's the force of his giant head slamming to the carpet that does him in. BUT, he's oh so close to rolling from his back to his tummy....if only he'd figure out how to move his elbow out of his way, he'd totally have it down!

Also, the day after we got back from Tucson, he started sleeping through the night! YAY!!! He now goes down somewhere between 7:30 and 8:30 and sleeps until 8 the next morning...PLUS, he still naps like a champ during the day! I'm so happy he figured out how to do it...I was really worried it would take far longer than 4 1/2 months for him to accomplish.

We went in for a well baby checkup on Tuesday. He now weighs 16lbs 10ozs and is 25.5 inches tall. He had to have 4 shots and one oral vaccine as well. I totally knew I was going to cry! I hate when he does his pain cry...it just reaches out and squeezes my heart so tight that I just can't help but cry myself. He did really really good though. I was worried considering we were in the waiting room for 2 hours which meant it was past his nap time and his feeding time...but I was saving both for after the shots. He didn't even need the bottle though. First thing he did was pop that thumb in his mouth! Forget binkies! This kid prefers the one that's attached to his hand!

The doc said that he's teething, which would totally explain why he's been sucking on any fabric or fingers he can get his hands on. He still won't use the teething rings or toys that we have for him.
The other day, I was shopping at Target and this kid totally filled his pants (I know ,I know...another poop story!). So I finished shopping and hurried home. As I went to pull his pants off, I realized that it had squished all the way down into his socks!! You know that video I posted earlier of the dad's gagging while changing their kids diapers...yeah, that was totally me at that moment! I was trying to roll his onsie so that I wouldn't get poop on his face or in his hair when I took it off. I guess the fabric of his onsie interested him and he just couldn't help but grab it and shove it in his mouth. THIS IS WHERE I TOTALLY GAGGED! I screamed and yanked the onsie from his head so fast, he had this stunned look on his face and then began to cry like I had just taken his woobie! And to save the rest of you from having to clean up vomit from your keyboard, I'll spare you what I had to clean off his lips...oh wait, that probably gave to much away...ooops!

The doctor said within the next few weeks, we should see the white of his gums where his bottom teeth will be trying to get through. It's just wild to me how quickly they really do grow! People always said that to me, but DUDE I saw a 2 week old in the waiting room and I honestly don't remember Wyatt being that SMALL! Now if only I could forget the horrible birthing experience...like everyone says that you do! ;)

:: Wyatt's First Halloween ::

We finally got around to taking a picture of Wyatt in his Halloween costume! This year was his first Halloween and he was such a happy baby the whole night! He had everyone just going nuts over how cute he was...how can you resist this face???!



Steve also took this picture for me so that we could have something to put in one of the vast amount of empty frames I have on my wall :) You'd think I'd have a million pictures all over the house with a husband as a photographer...but sadly, we just never get around to editing them or printing them!! Maybe we'll have more time now that Steve just changed careers :) I'm just so excited for him. He is really great at his new position and he works so hard to provide for our lil fam :) I just love him!!

Today, my boy is 4 MONTHS OLD! He has grown so much...I honestly can't believe it! Just the other day, I was browsing through some of his first pics and WOW...can you believe the difference?

3 Weeks Old



4 MONTHS OLD!!

Wyatt Laughing

First Plane Ride (continued)

I suppose I should mention how Wyatt's first (and second) plane ride went. This is a story of frustration, tears and mad skills. While it's quite apparent that this child has some serious issues with moving the green gunk outta his bowels, I don't really want to take credit or agree with Steve that Wyatt could possibly be born with my slow intestines. Mostly because my "slowness" wasn't something that I was born with, no, it's something that came into my life around the age of 5. Bear with me, I'll get to the plane ride story...this will all make sense shortly :)

I recall MY first plane ride when we were moving to New Hampshire. I believe that the plane ride went well for me...but that's not the point of this story. My story begins when we landed in New Hampshire and I innocently told my mother that I needed to go to the bathroom. I recall walking into the biggest bathroom I had ever seen...it seemed like an endless row of stalls. I quickly went into a stall to take care of business (this was about the time I imagine that the auto flushers came out). I don't know if the sensor thought I had stood up from the toilet or if it just picked a totally helpless 5 year old to scare the crap out of (no pun intended). Whilst in mid poopy, my toilet began to flush on it's own and I, faster than lightning, was under the stall door with my pants around my ankles and a fresh one caught between my cheeks. I was TeRrIfIeD!! Thus began my fear of all things toilet which obviously led to the "slowness".

Wyatt did great on the flight to Texas, it was the flight back that was, ummm, not so fun? He only pooped ONCE the 10+ days that I was gone, so my mom and I took him to a doctor to yet again see if there was something physically wrong with him. All we ended up with was an X-Ray (which clearly showed how backed up he was), a finger up his pooper (man that had to hurt) and the advise to give him apple juice or prune juice with his bottles until he cleaned himself out.

Well, the apple juice wasn't working, so after 2 days of that, I switched him to prune juice. He got about 3 oz the day that we flew home and while on the plane, he so happily decided to fill his diaper with the equivalent of his body weight in crap! AND, to make things worse, the airplane stall with the changing table was outta commission, so all that was left was the little, tiny, claustrophobic stall in the back of the plane. So off I went, carrying my stinky little guy (ya'll, his poop stank worse than any adult poop I've witnessed...and why wouldn't it? It had been marinating in his bowels for over a week!!) I opened the door to the bathroom and this is the part where the mad skills come in. I had to balance this little dude on the toilet lid (he's a big friggin' kid! And wiggly!) and change his diaper (all the while trying to not make the plane go down cuz his diaper was being sucked into the drain in the sink which from the sounds of it was pressurizing the cabin all by itself!).

Thank the good Lord that it wasn't a packed flight! I ran outta diapers and this kid was still goin' like the energizer bunny! We walked off the plane, me ready to cry, him smiling at anyone who did a double take as we walked by. I'm sure they were all wondering what that awful smell was...surely it couldn't be coming from something so cute and smiley, right?

Ugh, I'm shuddering just rememberin' it all. So, here's a little vid I found on youtube to make poop a little bit funnier :) ENJOY!

*Note: Watch for the baby fart...it's my fav ;)

First Plane Ride

First Haircut

2 Months and 1 Week

Steve snapped some shots of our little Wy guy at the cabin a few weeks back. Here he is at 2 months and 1 week (he's now almost 3 1/2 months old!).

Totally Got My Trash Kicked!

This last weekend I went with a few family members down to Cypress California for my brother and my nephews birthday. It was a blast! My nephew is just adorable!! He's getting so big and man is he gonna be a lady killer when he grows up!

(I realize all these pics are blue...don't tell Steve!)

We also visited Sunset Beach on Saturday...B-E-A-utiful! The weather was just absolutely awesome!

Wyatt nearly slept the entire time we were there...must be something about the waves crashing on the shore and the gulls squakin' in the air that just lulls you right to sleep :)

I sat on the beach watching everyone play in the ocean. Steve (my bro) brought out some boogie boards and it was hilarious to watch my sisters try to ride them. I'm totally trying to break outta my chicken shell...so I begged my mom (who I totally thought was more chicken than I, but turns out that I am sooooo much more chicken than she....I'm not even worthy of the title "chicken"...that's how worse than chicken I am) to go out and ride the boogie board with me. I mean, how lame could I possibly look if there's two of us out there lookin' lame together?? You know, much like misery loves company...well, apparently chickens like each other too! She said she would if I would...so off to the shore we ran to convince my brother to show us how it's done.

First lesson...mother nature will always come a callin' if you go throwing yourself into cold water. I got up to my thighs in sea water before I instantly had to pee! It didn't make matters any better that I was laughing my head off trying to walk as the waves would crash against me and the current would quickly pull me in the opposite direction. I couldn't help but do the pee pee dance trying to control myself. My mom was yelling for me to just pee already...but all I could think about was that episode of Grey's Anatomy where that microscopic fish swims up that dudes urethra...no way was I gonna take a pee in the ocean!

I kinda sorta figured out how to jump the waves and then turn and push off with them so that you can ride them to shore. Well...I took off on this itty bitty wave (HELLO...I told you I was totally not worthy of the title "chicken") and needless to say it didn't take me very far, so I sat there floating in the water waiting for the next wave behind it to take me further into shore. DUMB IDEA! Before I knew what was happening, the wave completely submerged me, flipped my legs over my head as I sucked in a huge gulp of sea water and tried to navigate my way to the surface (in less than 3 feet of water). I finally stand up...but can't open my eyes yet cuz I'm scared the salt water will burn. With my arms out to my sides, I try to balance against the under current that is literally pushing me down....and once again, down I go! This time I'm fumbling/running sideways trying to catch my balance...meanwhile I totally got sand burn on my knees and elbows as well as a nice exfoliation treatment on my bum! (darn near had to steal Wyatt's diaper rash cream just to sooth the pain!) I'm sure those that witnessed this little flub were thinking I was drunk...yeah, that sounds better than the truth!

Self Soother

I could hear Wyatt on the monitor at 4 in the morning...so I stumbled outta bed and went down stairs to make him a bottle. When I came back up, there was nothing but silence...and this would be why...

Dilema

Honestly, I can't believe how time flies! I couldn't tell you how many people told me, WARNED ME, to enjoy every moment I can with my little baby because they grow so FAST! My little Wy guy is almost 3 months old! I can say that with astonishment AND a smile on my face because not even a month ago, I was barely staying above water!

I had this image in my head of what the moment I saw my baby for the first time would be like, and what he'd be like when I took him home. However, nowhere in those images did I imagine the crappy scenario that would unfold before me the day of his birth...or how I would be crying far more than my newborn would be. Everyone told me that it was normal...that the hormones make you feel like you are on an emotional roller coaster...except, this roller coaster never seemed to pull up...it was just in this never ending dive and I was holding my breath, making it through every day praying it would get better. It was interesting to me when my doc diagnosed me with PPD. That's one thing that wasn't really talked about by anyone I knew...until I started telling people that I was diagnosed with it and suddenly, more people than I ever thought possible were telling me of their experience with it! It was a scary darkness that I never want to visit again. I am so thankful for the love and support that I received from family and friends. I know I wouldn't be where I am right now without them!

I'm so happy that I can spend each day with this amazing little person! He has the most friggin' adorable personality! (I suppose I'm biased, but I think he's the cutest kid in the WHOLE world!!) I really am surprised at how quickly he is GrOwInG! During his last pediatrician appointment, (at 11 weeks) his doc said he's the size of a 4 - 5 month old! All of the sudden he doesn't fit in most of the 0-3 month old clothes. His onsies have this tight "off the shoulder" look...which is a pair of tights and a tutu shy of an identity complex!

He's getting soooo much better at going down for naps and bed at night too (thank goodness!) I purchased this SnuggleMe (a.k.a. baby straight jacket) from Babies R Us, cuz he's such an escape artist! If you don't wrap the kid up tight, his spaz hands wake him up! He's at the low end of the size chart for the SnuggleMe, so it's a wee big on him. The first night I used it, he slept 5.5 hours! The funny part is, I can't give the SnuggleMe all the credit...apparently the kid LOVES to have his face covered! This is how we found him the first night we used it...



He seems to like to have a fan blowing on him too. So I took the front part of his bumper and moved it out of the way so that the air could pass from the floor fan, through the crib bars to him, but not be blowing directly on him. He sleeps on a slightly elevated wedge (as seen in the picture above). Well, one night he was having the hardest time going to sleep, so I attempted to give him a bath. He was NOT HAVING IT, so I put a diaper on him and wrapped him up in the blanket without any other clothes on. Somehow, during the night, he wiggled his way out of the blankets...kicked them to the foot of the crib, dug his heals into the mattress and pushed his way to the head of the crib...directly in front of the fan....in nothing but his diaper...and there he slept, content as can be...sucking his thumb! :) OH YEAH, he sucks his thumb now...which I think is completely adorable! (yes, I understand it can jack up his teeth or be a hard habit to break...but whatever folks...HE'S SO DARN CUTE DOING IT!!) I tell ya, he's one talented little escape artist!


And now on to my "dilema". As you all know, our little guy went through a double hernia surgery. You are also very well aware of the horrible experience that we had with the circumcision that was performed at that time. Well...it only gets worse...(WARNING: graphic descriptions below)

The doctor that performed the surgery is a children's surgeon. He was gracious enough to squeeze us in two days from the initial consultation so that the surgery could be performed under my employers health plan, as the new health plan that we obtained to replace my employee plan has a $2,500 deductible...OUCH! That on top of all the other fees would have KILLED us financially.

Originally, when Wyatt's pediatrician examined him, she said that she would wait until Wyatt was at least 6 months of age to have the circumcision completed as he didn't have enough foreskin to easily remove. A month later, when she realized that he needed hernia surgery, she recommended that the surgeon perform the circumcision at the same time, which the surgeon did.

Well, after the ordeal with the plastibell procedure, I didn't think that the end result looked right. There was slight jagged scaring where the plastibell had been torn away from the penis by his diaper...and not only that, it didn't look like enough foreskin had been removed. Also, the foreskin that remained cannot be retracted to show the "mushroom" part of the head of the penis

During his 11 week appointment with the pediatrician, I asked if it looked right to her. She attempted to pull the remaining foreskin back but realized, as I had, that the head of the penis could not be seen. She told us that he would need to be circumcised again...AGAIN!!! After all that!!! She recommended that we wait until he is 6 months and at that time she would refer us to a urologist to complete the procedure.

Well, you see...Steve and I, we aren't made of money...shocking, no??! Wyatt's medical bill tallied up to 15 grand. Of that, we are responsible for about 2 grand. That, plus the hits that we took from my hospital stay, and the ER visit shortly thereafter took a pretty significant hit to our savings. The savings that was to get us through this tough economical time while we chose for me to stay at home and raise our child. So you can understand why we are worried about how we are going to pay for a urologist to finish the job that the gracious surgeon should have done the first time around.

I don't know what to do from here. I'm sooo grateful that the surgeon fit us in and did what he could to help us keep costs low...BUT, I'm frustrated that he didn't make any kind of mention that maybe the procedure wasn't enough...that there was a possibility that he couldn't remove enough foreskin and the procedure would need to be repeated. At no point during the consultation or even after the surgery did he tell us that we might be doing this again, or that Wyatt wasn't developed enough to have the procedure performed successfully in the first place. Instead, he told me during the consultation that it was "No problem", he could easily perform the circumcision while he was at the hernia repair. Even after the surgery, when he came to give the results to Steve and I in the waiting room, he said, "Everything went wonderfully".

Part of me wants to go back to the surgeon and show him the results. See what he has to say. But I don't know what we are going to do if he offers to do it again, but for a fee. It's one of those things that I feel should have been done right the first time...and should be reconciled. However, I know that even if he waives his fees...we have the possibility of additional fees from the hospital and/or anesthesiologist (if one is used again).

Reality is, since 2005, only about 56% of infant males have been circumcised. Yes, circumcision has been proven to significantly reduce the risk of HIV acquisition (which I'd hope wouldn't be an issue for Wyatt) and that some believe that circumcision should be performed for hygiene reasons (however, I think any man can be taught good hygiene). So a bigger part of me doesn't want to put him through this again. At 6 months, if he is developed enough and all looks well, I don't really feel that he should have to endure the process yet again. There's just no garuntee that the end result will look the way it's supposed to.

I guess this is one of those wait and see kind of cases...I just wish things could have been easier for him. Seems like nothing thus far has gone as easily as first anticipated. Great part is, he's growing so well and is such a sweet and joyful little guy. I'd give him the world if I could and as his mother, I will strive to do all that I can to protect him.

The consultation went well and the doc said he'd schedule our little man for surgery that same week for an inguinal hernia repair and the big "C". He told us that we couldn't feed him after midnight and that he could have pedialite up until 2am (his surgery was scheduled for 5:45am).

It should be a crime to ask new parents to be anywhere that EARLY in the morning! Steve and I were zombies the entire night taking turns getting some shut eye and waking Wyatt for his final feeding. He generally eats every 3 hours (except for the few and far between times when he forgets who he is and slumbers a whopping 4 hours). So needless to say it was nerve wracking...we looked at Wyatt like he was a ticking time bomb. We knew that at any moment he'd realize we were starving him and allowing someone to cut him open, and nip a piece of his lil wee wee off.

Miraculously, he did really REALLY well. He calmly sucked his soothie while Steve and I took turns cuddling and rocking him (we were stunned to find that since his last checkup, AND THE 6+HRS OF NO FOOD...cuz we all know surgeries never start on time...he gained another 1/2 LB! Yep, our little 2 month old is the size of a near 4 month old!! And ooowee is he heavy!!).

The surgery lasted about an hour and they then called us back to be with him while he was coming out of anesthisia. The moment I saw him, I swear my heart broke into a million pieces. I've never heard him cry like that. I held him like a little china doll, so careful not to bump or move him. All the tubes and monitors hooked up to him were a little intimidating and it made my efforts of consoling him ineffective. They ended up giving him a double dose of Demerol which knocked him out for a few hours.

I know they say that it hurts you more than it hurts them. How am I to believe that when every time I shift his body as I'm holding him, he screams? He ended up having TWO inguinal hernias that both needed to be repaired (He can thank his daddy's side of the family for that! Steve, his father and I believe his grandfather, all had hernia surgery as infants) and while the doc was at it, he gave him the big "C". Due to his age, we had to stay in the hospital with him for 23 hours of observation. Three days after surgery and he was back to his cooing and farting self...albeit, a much less farting and more pooping self....lots and LOTS of pooping..I guess having your intestines put back where they belong really helps! He was a total champ!!

UNTIL...

I've never seen a circumcision done with a Plastibell and from what I've read, it's pretty old school as the procedure takes longer to complete and longer to heal. I found a video online (which I'll spare you of...it was pretty darn grusome).

Wikipedia says:
The Plastibell Circumcision Device is a clear plastic ring with handle designed for male neonatal circumcision that has a deep groove running circumferentially.

he adhesions between glans and foreskin are divided with a probe. Then the foreskin is cut longitudinally to allow it to be retracted and the glans (the head of penis) to be exposed. The Plastibell comes in 6 sizes. The appropriate one is chosen and applied to the head. The ring is then covered over by the foreskin. A ligature is tied firmly around the foreskin, crushing the skin against the groove in the Plastibell. Then the excess skin protruding beyond the ring is trimmed off. Finally, the handle is broken off at the end of the procedure. The entire procedure takes five to ten minutes, depending on the experience and skill of the surgeon.

The ring falls off in 3 to 7 days leaving a circumferential wound that will heal over the following week. Typically, the glans will appear red or yellow until it has cornified.

WARNING...GRAPHIC IMAGE

Shown below: Two incisions where the inguinal hernias where repaired and the Plastibell is around his wee

Yes, I just posted my sons family jewels on the internet...I warned you!!

I dare say that if, IF, we have any more boys, I will do whatever I can to avoid this procedure. Why? Well, last night I got up with Wyatt to feed. I did the usual ritual, changed his diaper, fed him his bottle, then proceeded to burp him. He tends to get a bit fussy when he can't get a burp out, so I usually stand and bounce while I pat his back. Well, apparently his diaper shifted when I did this and the ointment that was protecting it wasn't as thick due to the shift. The dry part of the diaper ripped the Plastibell almost completely off and Wyatt screamed so hard that his entire body turned purple!! I laid him down to check his diaper (it had been a week since the surgery and circumcision) and found the Plastibell dangling by about a 1/4" of skin...STILL CONNECTED! His poor little wee was bleeding and I was completely beside myself.

We called the surgeon and he advised that we should soak him in a bath and put another diaper on...that it would fall off by the end of the following day. Well, it's almost 9 pm and that piece of skin is hanging on for dear life!! Wyatt is now totally gun shy of diaper changes...seriously don't blame him.

Proud Daddy

Wyatt's 7 week checkup...

We took Wyatt in for his 6 week checkup (yes I know, he's actually 7 weeks) and man has our little guy grown! He was 7lb 6oz and 19" long when he was born and by his 2 week checkup he was 8lb 4oz and 21" long...and at his 6 week check up he weighed in at a whopping 12LBS and 23" LONG!!

We noticed a week or so ago that he had a puffy area above his lil wee wee and were sad to find out that he has to have hernia surgery soon :( The doc noticed what she thought was a heart murmur so she wanted to have that checked out prior to the surgery taking place. We went in for an EKG and an Echo today and it seems that all is well. He does have a slight heart murmur, but should grow out of that. He goes back again in 3 months to check on the progress. We are trying to get a consultation setup for his hernia surgery tomorrow morning. I have a flight scheduled for tomorrow evening with Wyatt...so if the verdict is that he needs it ASAP, then our trip will be postponed a bit.

I'll keep you all posted on his progress! In the meantime, enjoy a few pics...



Here's our little man all hooked up to the EKG machine. He did great through all of them! Can't believe how much he's grown from the pictures below!



I kick myself for even posting this one...but I just couldn't help but laugh at myself! I remember being sad that Jim and Anne's friends, Ron and Kathy, weren't able to make it to the hospital to see Wyatt...Anne informed me that they did! And this picture totally explains WHY I don't remember their visit....DUDE, COULD I BE ANYMORE STONED??!! (Don't worry, I know it looks like my head shrunk and my body exploded...but i'm looking much better these days...I mean, anything would be an improvement from this! lol)



Here is my mom with Wyatt...




And here's Wyatt mimicking mommy's "stoned" expression :)

Have I mentioned the farting????? This kid is constantly grunting one out while asleep, awake...doesn't matter. No amount of burping has helped prevent it. We've even tried gas drops, and homeopathic drops and tablets...nadda! How long should this stage last???

Oh my goodness, can I just say that I thought this raising a baby thing would be so much easier than it actually is! I've had to bid farewell to sleep...eating on a regular schedule...and all other household chores.

We try really hard to have him in bed by midnight so that he only wakes one other time during the night. I go to sleep at 9ish and Steve feeds and puts him to bed. This way, I can usually get a good 5 hours of sleep before he wakes to be fed, changed and burped again. Too bad Wyatt hasn't agreed to our routine...he likes to throw a wrench in the mix every chance he gets!

I honestly can't wait until he's sleeping through the night (for the most part)....and kinda wish I could skip to the toddler stage. Although it's so fun to watch him grow and cuddle with him, it's hard when he's awake and just staring at you, blank faced, expressionless. Or when he cries and you've tried everything possible to calm him, with no success. My sister says that the day they smile at you melts your heart....I'm so looking forward to that!

Until then, please pray for us! We need all the help we can get!

PART II

Being home from the hospital was tough and I depended on my mom and Steven so much to help me through. On my 3rd day home, I ran a fever and had chills and body aches. The doctor thought that it may have been a reaction to the pain medication in combination with the hormones that are involved in a let down. It lasted for several hours and then went away, but only after leaving me with a fever blister that occupied almost my entire bottom lip.

The next night, the fever was back with a vengeance. I'd had a migraine headache all day and around the same time as the night before, I ran a fever of 105.3, had chills, body aches and couldn't stop the shaking. I called the doctor again and she informed me to rush to the emergency room as soon as possible.

Once there, they ran some blood cultures, a urine test, an ultrasound (to make sure nothing was left behind from the c-section) and a chest X-ray (to rule out mastitis). Come to find out, I had a UTI from the catheter that was given to me during labor. I was prescribed an antibiotic and was sent home.

The next night, the same signs began to show up again. I had a lower temperature, so I figured it was my body fighting off the UTI. The next morning, the ER called and said that my blood cultures came back positive. I had a blood infection and needed to get to my doctor as soon as possible.

I'm finally over all the infections and am still trying to heal from the incision. Getting up from the ground and sitting up from a lying position are still very difficult, but the incision looks great! Hormones are still up and down...I get overwhelmed very easy and the simplest thing seems to bring me to tears, but I've been told that will soon end.

I love watching Wyatt grow. We just attended his 2 week checkup and he already grew 2 inches and gained a pound and a half! His little cheeks are so chubby now :) He's such a little lip magnet, you can't help but kiss him! He makes these adorable little squeaking sounds when he eats and if he gets impatient for food, he snorts when he crys!

Here's a picture of Wyatt's first bath:

Wyatt's Nursery:

Such a peaceful sleeper...

PART I

THIS IS TOTALLY GONNA BE A LONG ONE!

Here's Steve and I...before life as we knew it changed for the better. It really is so hard to put into words just how amazing it is to finally meet this little person who was a product of your making. Even harder to fully understand how from the moment you lay eyes on your child, this insane amount of love overwhelms you and threatens to take a wreaking ball to the dam that's holding your emotions in check. Even now, as I write this post, my eyes are spilling over with tears of joy (and a few tears of holy crap, I'm a mom, we are parents....please give us the strength to give this child all he needs and bless that he won't cut down the neighbors tree or run his bike through the garage wall)

Steve and Ken spent almost an entire day snapping pics of me and the belly so that I have something to look at months from now (as I'm struggling to not look pregnant) and remember those 9 months of pregnancy. He's still got a few hours of photo shop to complete on them, removing about 15-20 lbs from my face, neck, arms, and left pinky toe. (Hey, they are my pics, I can choose to remember pregnancy in any delusional manner I see fit). Even though they will be late, I'll post a few to the blog whenever they are done. It's kinda the downside of being married to a photographer. He's amazingly gifted, but I can't even tell you how many empty frames we have around the house. We get the pictures taken, but never get around to having them edited or printed :)

I've been crazy fortunate to have my mom here for the last month. The week before I was due, we shopped till my Michelin man feet could handle no more. She totally pampered me with foot rubs, shared my addiction for Grey's Anatomy (thank you Netflix), fixed all my meals, cleaned the house and visited with me till wee hours in the morning. She even helped me make cookies for the nurses so that I could bribe them into overlooking my chicken nerves and sweetening them up with sugar :)

July 4th, the day we were "scheduled" to deliver, I walked into the hospital in all my swollen glory. The nurse took me to my room and attempted to begin an IV, but after two attempts of fishing around in my hand and arm, decided to bring in a different nurse to give it a shot. Then began the Pitocin drip. I'd heard horror stories about Pitocin. That is doesn't ease you into labor, but rather hits you like a pissed off billy goat. Luckily, it did no such thing and took its sweet time easing me into contractions.

The doc came in after about 3 hours of labor, checked me (only dilated to a 2 but 80% effaced) and decided to break my water. I nearly kicked her off my bed! There is just something so wrong about someone shoving their hand into you and then knitting your cervix a hat with a crochet hook....or so it felt. Her hope was that breaking my water would help me dilate.

Labor seemed to be progressing great. I was totally amazed at my ability to handle the pain. I thought for sure I'd be begging for an epidural at the first hint of pain, but I made it for several hours before the pain got to the point that it made me cry....then I was begging! They gave me a shot of Stadol to take the edge off until the anesthesiologist could get there. That stuff worked great...but man did I feel HIGH! Steve and my mom were laughing at my comments of how the ceiling tiles looked like faces!

Then the anesthesiologist arrived and administered the epidural...didn't hurt as bad as I thought that it would in comparison to the pain I was feeling. I actually had some time to rest and visit with family for a bit. Then the pain began to be stronger than the epidural and HOLY MOLY I wanted to die! They gave me a boost to tide me over, but it only lasted an hour before a surge of pain hit me again.

I ended up having the epidural removed and reinserted. But, my body did not react well to the dosage and I began convulsing. It felt like how you get the intense shakes when you are really cold. I tried controlling it but the more I tried, the more my muscles began to ache. It got so bad that I gave my self motion sickness from all the shaking and my mom and Steve tried with all their might to hold me up as I dry heaved what little stomach acid was in me.

The shaking continued for several hours. But, my labor was not progressing. Each time they increased the Pitocin drip, Wyatt's heart rate would drop. If they lowered the drip, his heart rate would return to normal, but my labor wouldn't progress. After about 12 hours, I had only dilated to a 3. They didn't want to risk infection, so I was prepped for a C-section. They gave me a shot of something that was to reduce the nausea and then asked me to drink a shot of stomach bile....yep, that's exactly what it tasted like! I think that stayed down for about 20 seconds before I yelled...I'M GONNA PUKE! I CAN'T KEEP IT DOWN! I was totally freaked out that I was going to drown in my own puke so I projectile vomited almost across the whole room! They told me to turn my head and vomit in this little pink bucket...but I doubt much of it made it to the bucket the poor nurse was holding.

Here's me, getting wheeled in for surgery....PERTY! lol I remember the anesthesiologist telling me that I would be shaking through the whole surgery....which made me beg to be put under. The doctor told me it was for the best if I wasn't put under and to try to relax. I remember the pressure of the incision, but the kicker was when she went to pull the head out. It felt like a sumo wrestler was sitting on my chest. All of the sudden, breathing became difficult and I began to panic. I guess that I began to move around so the doctor gave the go ahead to the anesthesiologist to give me something to make me relax....and the rest is a bit hazy from there.

Then little Wyatt James Bell arrived at 2:53am on July 5th, 2009. He had his umbilical cord wrapped around his shoulder, chest and legs, so that explained why I was not progressing properly. There would be no way that he could have been born vaginally, as he would have ripped the placenta out with him...so we were blessed that he arrived healthy and safe. He weighed 7lbs 8oz and was 19 inches. There was a moment when I remember seeing just the eyes of my baby, and the nurse asking if I would like to kiss him.

The next thing I remember, I woke up in triage sweating bullets and another nurse telling me that I need to nurse my baby...all the while I was completely unable to keep my eyes open. I made it through the transition to my recovery room and spent the next couple of days hobbling to and from the restroom, attempting multiple times to breast feed my baby - with no luck, and ITCHING. OH THE ITCHING! I'd never heard that another side effect of an epidural is ITCHING. I took a cold wash cloth and would rub my face with it anytime that it itched (which was ALL THE TIME) and by the next morning, I'd rubbed it raw! I had major chapped face!

Wyatt was slightly jaundice, so he was placed on the billy blanket for a day and a half. He looked like a little glow worm! He didn't like it much, and was glad when he didn't have to wear it any longer. :)

By day 2, the doctor came to remove my bandage (more like rip the flesh from my abdomen) and put me on an antibiotic drip to cover any infections that may occur.

By day 3, the munchkin and me were approved to go home! We were SO ready to go home. Not that sleep was anywhere in my immediate future, but the thought of a hot shower sounded so wonderful!

Part 2 to come...