Day 10

Day 10. We've entered double digits. Last night Kate ate really well, with 2 to 3.5 hours between feedings. I think she looked a bit fatter this morning. I'm quite sure she's already back to her birth weight, and her arms and legs are getting a bit pudgy. She was quite lacking the usual baby fat because that usually accumulates in the last few weeks that she missed.

After a good night, she's eaten and slept pretty badly today. Mostly grazing, and no good stretches of sleep. I'm hoping that means she'll sleep well tonight, but we'll see if that happens. We seemed to have a busy day today, even though we didn't actually do much beyond picking up Karen's wallet. We have no plans for tomorrow, although we're thinking of going for a long-ish walk over to the grocery store.

Here I am, ten days post partum:


Hope helping me change Kate's diaper:


Yesterday, Kate had her second bath. She quite likes it.

Picture from day 8

Day 8

I know, I know, I've been slack about photos. We took some yesterday, and they didn't turn out very well.

We had a good day. Karen and Hope arrived really late last night. We went for two walks today (Westley is much happier) and Karen did some yard work and also made cookies. I had a great nap. Our plan for tomorrow is a quick errand at REI, and the farmer's market in the evening. We'll take the fancy stroller for it's maiden voyage on the walk to the market.

Pics tomorrow. Promise.

Apres Bath

Kate had her first bath at home today. She did get one at the birth center about 6 or 8 hours after her birth. At that time, she was a mess - meuconium, blood, poo. The whole gamut. Today it was much less messy. The first bath, she screamed through. Today she seemed to like it, and was very alert and quiet. She stayed alert for an hour afterwards, which means finally some pictures with her eyes open. I call it the 'apres bath montage':

Day 5

We had a great, lazy start to the day and didn't actually leave the bed/bedroom until after 1 pm. I'm hoping we'll do the same thing tomorrow. We did two excursions later in the day though, which was a bit too much for me. I think it was the heat, or just too late in the day, but when we got home from the dog park, I totally crashed and slept for awhile. I'll try to manage myself better tomorrow. We have a bit to do to get ready for Karen and Hope's arrival on Monday night, but I'll stretch it out over the two days.

Kate has been eating erratically. She sort of alternates good feedings with lazy feedings. She ate very frequently last night, which probably contributed to my energy meltdown this afternoon. She gets more alert during her waking times, and she's getting stronger by the day.

A summary of life right now

My day can be accurately described thusly:

feed kate, sleep, feed kate, eat, feed kate, shower, feed kate, sleep, feed kate, sleep. repeat.

And there is NOTHING else I'd rather be doing.

Day three

It was a good day. We did have an appointment, for the third day in a row. I'm looking forward to not having anywhere to go tomorrow. The appointment was a midwife check up for both of us. We're both doing well, as we already knew. They were happy to see the swelling on Kate's head has gotten a lot better. My tear is healing great, although my blood pressure was a bit high.

The highlight of the day was food delivery! Matt brought us food, as did a woman from the Austin Mamas list. We will have food through the weekend, which is totally brilliant.

Kate was eating well through most of the day, but started to slack off a bit early evening. I expect I'll be feeding her frequently tonight. Another exciting event was the start of cloth diapering. We were using disposbles the first few days until the meuconium ended. So, now it's cloth. I was a bit appalled at the number of dirty disposible diapers we moved into the garbage from the diaper pail today. And that was only a few days.

Some pictures from today:

Milk delivery!

But it doesn't come in glass bottles left on the front porch by a man in a white uniform. Instead, it comes in my boobs.

Day two

Day two. We saw the lactation consultant this morning, and she says that we're doing really well. My milk is already starting to come in, or at least there is more of whatever is there. There wasn't much sleep last night, but more than the first night. I did get a few good hours, although not all in a row. And I did manage to have a short nap today, which I foolishly didn't do yesterday.

We also saw the pediatrician, who said everything looks good. (Most post-natal care is from the midwives, but because she's early and she has some head swelling, they suggested an extra trip to the pedi.) Tomorrow is the three day check up for both of us at the midwives. And maybe on Friday we won't have any appointments. That would be great.

Here are some pictures from yesterday:

Introducing Kate

Kate Reyburn Henkelman was born yesterday evening at 6:43. A bit more than three weeks early, but still a healthy 7 lbs. She's doing well, and learning to breastfeed. I'm also doing well, and learning to breastfeed. A full birth story will follow, but for now, the important thing is pictures.

Damn

I had to go to Walmart today. I hate Walmart. I had to get something from them last spring for Primal Quest, and before that it had been years and years since I'd had to set foot in one. But it came down to that. Why, you may ask? Because Target failed me. And Babies R Us before that. Grrr.

I know you can get basic, cheap stuff (I was looking for a diaper pail and one of those back seat mirrors so we can see her in her rear facing car seat) but Target and BRU only had fancy, annoying ones when I know that there are simple ones somewhere out there. It came down to Walmart. It's a sad day.

(They did have what I was looking for though)

Week 36

Less than a month til due date. The weekly report on what is going on with Baby Texan is super boring now. It says things like - lungs are the only thing not fully developed, body fat is increasing (on her, not me. although, maybe me too), keeps growing, etc. etc. Super boring. It's the waiting game now. I'm not impatient yet, although I'm guessing I will as soon as that date on the calendar passes.

I did some 'nesting' today. That phrase drives me crazy. Cleaning and organizing while pregnant suddenly has the term attached to it. I do know that you often get a burst of energy just a day or two before labour starts, and that's what I consider nesting. At this point, it's just cleaning and organizing. I'm home, and there are things to do. Today I cleaned the kitchen and bathrooms, and organized the places that accumulate stuff. You know what I mean - the dumping grounds for things that don't have places to live. There are three of them, and they are all now clean. And I have a To Do pile for tomorrow. Thank you cards, airline credits, etc.

I just posted a photo two days ago, so you're going to have to wait a few more days for another.

Nearly 36 weeks

The promised belly pic. I kept disagreeing when people said that my belly had grown a lot recently. But now that I see the picture, it's totally true. I now look like I'm nearing full term, which I am. I had a midwife appointment today, and the measurement confirmed the growth spurt. Today I was measuring a bit more than a week ahead. She also thought that the baby was starting to drop. Definitely heading towards the finish!

Graeme bought me this shirt the other day:

I love it.

Happy Birthday, Emily!

It's Emily's third birthday today. She is one of the coolest, funniest people I know and I wish I could see her more often. Have a great day, Emily! Eat a piece of cake for me!

Week 35

I really, really promise a belly shot this weekend. Really. I've been a total slacker, but the fact is that the belly is growing and should definitely be documented.

We have chosen a pediatrician, which seems like a big step. I don't even have a doctor, but Baby Texan does. We went to "Meet the Doctor night" at a local practice last night that came recommended by one of Graeme's colleagues. We got to ask some questions, see the place, and decide if it seemed like a good fit. It did, it's close by, and it came recommended. I suppose we could look around more, but we decided to go with them. That's one more thing off the list.

We have one last party/shower this weekend. We've had three now (yes, there are pictures to post. Yes, I"m a slacker). The party on Sunday night will be mountain bike people - mostly regular customers from the shop. It will be quite fun. And then I'll be able to go buy the last few things we need and I can become organized to an obsessive compulsive level.

5 more weeks to go! (give or take two). The fetal development is getting boring at this point, but for the sake of continuity, here's what's happening this week:

- The average baby weighs almost five and a half pounds now.
- Most babies born now will survive and without many long-term problems.
- Fat accumulations plumps up the arms and legs this week.
- Hearing is fully developed, so be sure to talk to your daughter.
- The baby is now taking up most of the uterus. Soon though, baby will move down and you'll be able to breathe easily again.
- She is 18.2 inches (46.2cm) long and weighs 5.3 pounds (2383gm).

Affirmations

I'm feeling very calm about the whole birth/labour thing. No, I don't know how to do it, but my body does, and I'm totally trusting it to do what it's supposed to do. It's very calming to just not worry about it. It will go the way it's supposed to go. I can't say that I'm so zen about what comes after that (especially breast feeding, but I know we'll figure that out too), but I think this is a good start.

My affirmation this week:
My body knows how to birth my baby.
My baby knows how to be born.

Week 34

I've had this post half written since Thursday, in anticipation of a belly shot. At some point, you just have to post, or else it will be time for the next week's update.

I'm feeling great and looking very pregnant. 4-8 weeks to go, but I'm not getting impatient at all. I know full well that she is less work inside than outside. I do see how the next few weeks are going to get increasingly uncomfortable though. My hips and lower back are starting to notice the extra weight, and it's a constant battle with the swelling in my ankles. I have figured out that hiking and swimming (one followed by the other) is a consistent remedy against the ankle loss. I'll have to go more frequently. The dog won't complain about that.

This week:
- Your baby acts completely like a newborn, with her eyes opened when awake and closed when sleeping. She may also be settling into more of a routine for sleeping & awake times.
- She has learned to blink.
- Antibodies from my blood are being tranferred to her. These immunities continue to build until birth. Then breastmilk will add even more protection against disease.
- Fingernails have reached the end of the fingertips now.
- She is 17.7 inches (45cm) long and weight is 4.7 pounds (2146 g).

Ankle update

Because I know you care.

After a one hour hike with a swim this morning, after lunch time, my leg swelling was totally gone. Now, hours later, there is a bit of swelling returning to my right foot (which seems to always be worse). I'm drinking heaps of water, but I think it's a constant battle. I'm glad to find out that I can make headway though.

The battle for ankles continue.

Telluride pictures

I finally downloaded the Telluride photos from the camera.

In town is the gondola station, which takes you up over the ski hill and down to Mountain Village, which is the resort. You can get off at the top, or continue to the village. The gondola is free and runs every day from 7 am til midnight. It may be the coolest public transportation ever.


On Tuesday, after finishing the Harry Potter book, I got a late start and headed up to the ski hill to do a hike. Graeme and I had hiked the day before (and hadn't taken the camera) and I'd felt good, so I decided to do something a little longer. Here is the view from the top of the ski hill, looking down at town:


My plan was to do a loop of a hiking/biking trail that went down the back side of the mountain. I would come out on a road, turn left and hit another trail to bring me back up to the top and the gondola. The trail was really nice, although the whole time I was wishing I could ride it instead, since it had great flow and was perfect mountain singletrack. I even saw two people riding it on Bike Friday folding bikes. I was sure if someone would ride it with a folding bike, I could ride it 7.5 months pregnant!

I came out to the road, and I did have a bit of a sore spot on my belly (which turned out to be the pulled muscle. Ooops. I guess riding wouldn't have been a good idea after all). I did feel ok though, and I was debating whether to do the intended loop, or head on a shorter way down to Mountain Village to get the gondola. Since I'd gotten a late start, I knew the afternoon thunderstorms would likely catch up to me. It had already sprinkled a bit. Looking at the sky, I decided the short loop was a wiser decision. Here is the sky as I reached the village. It started raining on the gondola ride back to Telluride.


On Wednesday, I sat on my ass all day because of the pulled muscle. Thursday, I convinced Graeme to play hooky for part of the day, and we hiked a very short (but steep) trail up to Cornet Falls. It was a perfect lunch time hike: