Week One...

This one will be a list, since I am running on very little sleep today.

1. Veronica looks like an angry bird when she is displeased -- maybe it's the tufts of hair that stick up? It's super cute, and i have started calling her 'Birdy". Yep, Birdy and Button.
2. The first week postpartum is a crazy roller coaster ride. It wasn't as fraught as with Teddy (tongue tie, dehydration, jaundice) but we did run in to some problems (which - thank goodness - appear to have been resolved.
3. What problems? Well:

• V. had meconium-stained amniotic fluid, and had ingested some. She also had shoulder distocia (more on this when I do a post about the birth). So - it took a bit of time to get her out, and she was BLUE (Apgar of 3). She got rushed to the cart where they intubated 3 times and did a few chest compressions. As a result -- her ability to suck was a bit compromised for the first few days.
• When Jackie the midwife checked on her on Day 3 (my least fave postpartum day EVER) she, like Teddy, had dropped 11% (from 8lb15oz to 7lb14oz). UNLIKE Teddy, she'd been getting something, and was not dehydrated nor lethargic. But oh - did I ever cry.
• Jackie suggested that we finger feed so that we could correct her suck reflex. I had one lonely bag of breast milk left in the freezer, so we thawed it. She would nurse, then would take as much of the supplement as she wanted. She corrected her suck quickly, and reduced the amount of supplement she was taking.
• By the next day, she'd gained 3 ounces! So we stopped giving her a supplement and focused on breastfeeding only.
• This unfortunately coincided with 'my milk coming in' - wicked engorgement which was partially milk and partially tissue edema. I have had engorgement due to severe mastitis and this was WAAAY worse. Also - I had not idea what was milk supply and what was retained water, so had no idea if she was getting a sufficient amount. Also - I had a feeling that her latch was ok, but since Teddy never latched well (never effective, constant pain) I had nothing to compare it to.
• Armed with a bra full of cabbage, we plodded on, nursing whenever there was interest.
• Yesterday, Claudia the midwife came by...and discovered that with only breastfeeding, she'd gained 7 oz in two days!!
• Last night, she fed (good, consistent gulps) for an hour every 2 or 2.5 hours. I feel like I've been hit by a truck, but she is getting wrist rolls of fat and is a happy girl.

4. I am doing ok. Some physical stuff going on (my blood pressure is way high, so I am on beta blockers. Yep - my blood pressure went wonky AFTER giving birth.), but in general I am doing well. As is Dave.

5. Teddy is still a laugh riot. He gets a kick out of the baby so far. To be fair, she hasn't disrupted his life too much yet - he is still in day care this week (we weren't sure when I'd deliver, so arranged to have him go full time until Labour Day). We are taking advantage of that to get stuff squared away with Veronica (Dave is off on his firm's amazing parental leave). But he is very sweet with her, tyring to pet her and give her kisses. He calls her "Baby!!" and is very excited to see her.

6. Teddy is OBSESSED with the Journey medley in the final episode of Glee. It is literally the only TV he's ever seen (select musical numbers from Glee) and he LOVES it. Numerous times a day, he requests the "Na na na na" song and wants to hear it 'Again!" as soon as its over. He dances along and grins. He's hilarious - he true loves are the music of Glee (especially anything sung by Rachel) and anything with wheels. And compared to Veronica, he looks like he's 12 years old!

Ok...I should nap while she's napping. I will try to get more pictures up soon, as well as the birth story.

Introducing Veronica

There's a new face around these parts.

Veronica Floriana McLean was born at 8:46 a.m. on August 24th. She weighed in at a whopping 8 lb 15oz and measured 23 inches. Here she is being checked out by midwife Jackie.


Labour was...interesting. After my wacky labour with Teddy -- wherein contractions NEVER got closer together than 6 minutes -- I was a bit taken aback when I awoke to really intense contractions at 3 am. By 5 a.m., they were every 2 minutes. By the time my parents got here to watch Teddy and we got to the hospital at 7, I was 10 cm. It was crazy -- less than 6 hours from start to finish. And drug free once again!

We had some hiccups with delivery, and I will write about those in a bit. But we are all happy and healthy, and though we ended up having to stay in the hospital for 24 hours, we are home now!

But the important stuff -- the reason for her name! She is named for my Aunt Flo - my Mom's sister to whom I was very close and who died last year. Since childhood, I had dreamed of naming a daughter after Aunt Floriana and now I have! The name Veronica is a favourite and a family name on both sides (it's also the name of Dave's godmother). And it's a nod to her Aunt Beth, who is an amazing woman and whom we hope will one day literally have Veronica of her own (it's her favourite girls name, too).

My life - and how I'm shadowing Olive Esther Delmage Hawley

My Dad is into genealogy. I like it, too, but he's retired and has more time to devote to it. He really got into it when Teddy was born and seems to be back into it now that his first granddaughter will arrive any day. He's been inputting all sorts of stuff into ancestry.ca (which allows all sorts of cool cross-referencing with other trees) and is all excited to be sharing this information, first documented by my great, great Aunt Helen (my namesake, as I'm Sarah Helen) in the 1950s.

Anyway, I was playing around on the family tree and I noticed something kind of interesting. My major life events appear to be taking place exactly one hundred years after those of my great grandmother (Aunt Helen's sister, my Grandma's Mom).

Olive Esther Delmage was born in May of 1878; I was born in October of 1977. She married my grandfather, George Elmer Hawley, in Feb. 1904, while Dave and I were married in October of 2004. She had her first child, my great uncle Howard in 1908; if I hadn't miscarried before I had Teddy, I'd have had a baby in 2008 (as it was, Teddy was born in early 2009). I am having my 2nd child much earlier than she had hers, but still - I think it's kind of cool.

Today is the 59th anniversary of her death. I hope to be longer-lived than she was, as she died of leukemia in her 74th year. I guess we will see. I can't help but feel close to her, though. We have her old rocking chair in Teddy's room and I love to think of her, rocking her little boy the same way, one century ago.

Saturday Night Leftovers - 37 Week Edition

Before we get going, I must give credit to Jen for this idea.

1) I couldn't get my act in gear for a "7 Quick Takes" post on Friday, so I thought I would harness this unexpectedly quiet Saturday night for an update. I apologize in advance for the lack of a cohesive theme.

2) Why is it unexpectedly quiet? Because we are supposed to be eating dinner at my cousin Erin's wedding right now. :( Erin is my only cousin on my Dad's side of the family (she and I are both only children) and she is 6 years younger than me. Her wedding, however, is a four hour drive from here and I am just too uncomfortably pregnant to get there, celebrate, stay overnight, head to a brunch at my Aunt's house tomorrow (an hour in the other direction) while wrangling a toddler. I also didn't want to risk the situation that Arwen had with Camilla - heading out of town for a wedding and going into labour unexpectedly. I am sad to miss it, though. That said - her fiance Ashley is wonderful and they will soon be moving almost around the corner from my Nonna as Erin embarks on her PhD at the University that all our parents attended. We'll get to see them more often, so that's great.

So - Congratulations, Erin and Ashley! We cannot wait to see the photos and to hang out with you again in person. I hope that my parents and Nonna are behaving themselves!

3) Also about to start University at that same school (albeit her undergrad) is my next cousin on my Mom's side - Rachel. She just turned 18 and she got into one of the most competitive programs in the province (so proud of her). But man - she's going to University! I was 14 when she was born (Aunt Pat and Fred's first) and she was the first baby that I spent lots of time with. And now - she's 5 ft 11 and off to school. I FEEL OLD!

4) It is also my mother-in-law's birthday. Not a huge milestone, but a special day nonetheless. Happy Birthday, Nanny!

5) So - I am now officially at full term. HOORAY! I suspect that I won't be going into labour in the next day or two -- I am not yet in full on nesting mode. The baking soda, though in the bathroom, remains in the box and I have not yet stolen Dave's toothbrush to scrub grout. I do have insomnia and...other...issues, but that's just normal. And I really want to eat some ice cream! But baby is measuring exactly on for dates (just like her older brother). I wonder if she'll be on her due date like he was? Bets? It's Aug. 27th, for those of you keeping track at home.

6) Teddy is a riot. We are still contending with throwing - gah - but we remain consistent with consequences for actions. It has been a bit of a challenge lately -- his daycare provider has been away and we've had grandparents and others helping out (as I am still supposed to be resting). The lack of consistency has had him testing limits more and more, but the timeouts/putting the thrown toy in "toy jail" appear to be working.

7) His language skills have TAKEN OFF lately. His comprehension is awesome, and he's now able to modulate his wants by using "Yeah!", "Ok" or "Nah" when we give him options. He dances all the time, and spends much of the day giggling. He is particularly attached to Dave right now, which is not a bad thing (considering the imminent arrival of little sister).

8) Also hilarious of late - how easily he goes down to sleep. If we suspect that he is tired before nap time or bed time, we ask him "Are you ready for bed" and almost invariably get an "ok" or "yeah". He has, on occasion, walked up the stairs himself and waited by his crib for us to put him in. It's so nice to have a better sense of what he wants!

9) I should get some pics of him up here, huh? I am such a slacker. I will work on that this week. That and the post of lactation, since he is almost finished the final bag of frozen breastmilk in the freezer. Not too shabby for the kid who never could latch, as he is approaching 19 months.

10) I am nervous about breastfeeding with baby #2. I mean, I have no doubt that I can lactate after doing so for 14 months with Teddy. And I am very hopeful that we won't have to deal with tongue-tie again, though we have better strategies if it crops up. But I am nervous about getting the mechanics right. However, there is no sense borrowing trouble (especially since we have contingency plans in place). As I learned with Teddy, you just cannot predict how things will go until you have a real infant who is trying to get a meal at Restaurant Mom. But if you're praying folk - I'd appreciate any you can spare.

11) As I mentioned above, Teddy's beloved babysitter has been away for 2.5 weeks. My inlaws came to help, then my parents took him for a week at their place (we went out several evenings to see him). This week has been a blend of me, Dave and my Mom/Nonna helping out. My parents, grandmother and inlaws have been so awesome - we appreciate your help so much! He is a busy little guy, and tiring him out is a tiring prospect. You have been amazing - thank you so much.

12) My husband is a total and utter pro-star. He does a tonne around the house and is amazing with Teddy, but he has gone above and beyond lately. He has never made me feel guilty about resting and is just generally awesome. I am so very lucky to have him as my partner; there's no one else I can imagine doing this with. I love you, Dave! I hope that you are enjoying "Inception".

13) Speaking of "Inception", it was actually filming on the WB set when we toured in while in LA back in October. We saw Leo's hybrid on set, and saw a bunch of extras in fancy duds milling around on the backlot. It was very hush hush, but it's neat to have heard about the movie all those months ago.

14) We finally saw Toy Story 3 (thanks, Mom and Nonna, for letting us sneak out while you all slept on Thursday night). Toy Story 2 is possibly my fave Disney movie (that or the Lion King) and I liked #3 almost as much. But oh - did I cry. I am not surprised at all, but did I ever cry. What a delightful movie.

15) I think that is enough minutae for the moment. I hope that all is well with all of you. Anyone who read to the end of this deserves kudos -- you rock!

Ending the radio silence

I am sitting here, drinking a cup of red raspberry leaf tea, reflecting on the fact that it has been 18 months since I last had a cup. Yes - Teddy is 18 months old today! It deserves an entry all to itself, this milestone, but I did want to note it. Another milestone is the fact that I am approaching 35 weeks in this pregnancy. CRAZY!

So - the radio silence. There was stuff going on and I didn't want to talk about it until it was officially sorted out. And now it has been, so I can share.

June was a busy month, as I channeled as much of the 'nesting' energy I had into getting stuff ready for Baby #2 - clothes washed and put away, etc. Plus - basic life stuff needed tending (working full time + toddler = lots to do!).

The Canada Day/Independence Day long weekend was awesome! We once again headed south to a wedding in Michigan - my dear friend Katie got married in Ann Arbor on the 4th (congratulations, Katie and Nathan!!), and it was a blast. We hung out with old friends, we shopped, we met Arwen and Bryan and Camilla and Blaise -- it was great. Arwen and Bryan are amazing hosts and the kids are delightful; we had such a wonderful visit with them! All in all - a magnificent time.

And then...things started to get a bit strange. The heat and humidity started really taking a toll on me - massive swelling, horrible nausea, headaches, terrible fatigue. My blood pressure had been fluctuating over the past month, and I am iron deficient, so my midwives were a bit concerned (I have pica - all I want to do is eat ice. I am not kidding). I spent several days just relaxing, but I was getting Braxton-Hicks contractions every single time I moved and I just felt terrible. My midwives suggested that I limit work, and I did. But every single time I went in I felt like I had been hit by a truck and I spent all day with faux contractions, serious pelvic pressure and brutal low back pain.

The worst came overnight on Sunday the 11th - barely any sleep due to contstant B-H contractions and what were starting to feel like actual, very light contractions (I was 33 weeks at this point). I paged the midwives and they told me to head to the hospital for monitoring. Happily - I was not in pre-term labour. But they were concerned because all this was happening after I'd spent the weekend taking it easy. Not wanting to risk it, they told me to discontinue work.

And so - I did. I went in last Thursday to hand in my pass and Blackberry (and the team threw me a shower that they pulled together in 1.5 days!). I am on sick leave until I officially start my maternity leave in August, and I continue to take it easy. I am not on bedrest, thankfully, but I have found that anything more that 1 outing per day (like a family trip to Costco, for example) really takes it out of me.

I am not really sure the reason for this -- summer pregnancy? Or maybe my body is just telling me to chill (I try to cram too much into my days, I think, and it was taking a toll). I am so grateful that I have the ability to take this time to rest and to keep this kid cooking as long as possible.

So - that is the big news from here. Since I am off -- maybe I will blog a bit more? Stranger things have been known to happen, right?

Seven Quick Takes – My Poor, Neglected Blog Addition

1. I cannot believe that I didn’t post at all in May. Well – I can, actually. The trip, plus illness that we are just crawling out from under, has thrown us for a loop. I have been sick since EASTER. Yep – Easter Sunday I came down with a cold, and it has been one cold after another since then. Teddy and Dave have been sick for this same time period, too. BLAH! We are (fingers crossed) all on the mend, but it does make for early bedtimes and no time for blogging.

2. The trip was FANTASTIC. The ship itself was amazing – almost brand new – and we had a wonderful time. And one of my girlfriends works onboard! During our fall trip, we were gobsmacked to find out that my friend Shannon (from Georgetown, fellow Guelph student leader) happened to be running the youth program aboard. She and her husband have worked on ships on and off years, but I hadn’t heard that they’d gone back after a break as they live in Australia now. She, in turn, didn’t know we’d had a baby (she doesn’t check Facebook while working onboard). We showed up at the youth area open house and she nearly keeled over! And we quickly discovered that she’d also be running to program onboard THIS cruise. Anyway, we hung out with her (and her awesome husband) and her staff (who LOVED Teddy) and it was wonderful. Lots more on the trip to come, promise!

3. Work has been kicking my butt. My regular job has some tight, tight deadlines and we have a very small team (like 3 worker bees). In addition to that, I’ve been pulled onto a high-profile special project on a subject near and dear to my heart…with an every CRAZIER deadline. My manager agreed to let me participate (she really had no choice) but it is a struggle to carve out time for both. And it is exhausting. It is also hard to believe that I only have 10 weeks until I head off on maternity leave!

4. Speaking of maternity leave, pregnancy 2 keeps chugging along. I am at 28 weeks today! And has the 2nd trimester ever been a joy compared to #1. I am starting to get a bit more uncomfortable, and I am nervous about being pregnant during the summer heat, but I am still excited.

5. As of last Friday, we are the proud owners of a minivan. Yep – living the dream. Our beloved Protegé5 was approaching 7, and we knew that we couldn’t fit 2 carseats in the back and still have room for anyone to sit comfortably in the front. And before you say it (Jorge), crossovers, etc. were not for us. We wanted a car in which at least 6 people – adults included – could sit comfortably and one that could grow with our family over the next few years, as more kids come along (if we are so blessed). Also – for what you get in terms of power, options and sheer ability to transport people, minivans are a great value. We’d been researching the purchase for a while and had test driven pretty much every minivan on the market. We narrowed our choice down, and ultimately went with the Grand Caravan. We got an amazing deal – with research and negotiation we got it for 2% above their invoice cost. Plus – there are crazy rebates (like $7k worth) and 0% financing (we could have paid cash, but I’d rather have my money work for me, thanks). We got one with a swanky entertainment system and nice options, and we are very happy. Plus, the extended warranty Chrysler offers is a steal – it covers everything other than brakes, tires, wiper blades and headlights – for 5-7 years. Oil changes, filters, all other maintenance will be covered, and roadside assistance, too. I will take it!

6. Teddy continues to be a joy. He is a busy, busy kid – his toddler run is a treat to behold, and he just loves to tackle stairs. He is 16.5 months and he continues to love people – waving at everyone unprompted, making friends wherever he goes. His vocabulary isn’t terribly large, but I have no worries about his comprehension. He has no trouble following requests like: “Please bring Mommy your blue ball/green truck” or most others, for that matter. He is also a bit of a mimic. When my Mom tells him not to touch, she unconsciously waves her finger. Within minutes, he was waving his back saying “Don’ such!” as he avoided touching things. He has also referred to my Dad as both Bampa (preferred) and Granpoop, and my Mom as “Irma”. One of his first sentences was “Dat Bampa” when he spotted my Dad from afar.

7. I have so many posts that I want to write. Perhaps I should make a list here about the topics so I will have some sort of record? It will make me more accountable. Topics include:
- our trip
- a request for advice on being sibling/having siblings/parenting siblings
- a record of my lactation journey with Teddy (aka expressing breast milk for my non-latching, tongue-tied baby…for 14 months.) The milk stores in the freezer are almost gone, but he’s nearly 17 months now!
- other topics about which you might be curious?

I hope that you all have a wonderful weekend!

Hello from rainy Fort Lauderdale!

I am updating my woefully neglected blog from a hotel room in Fort Lauderdale. We flew in yesterday in anticipation of our next adventure -- a Transatlantic cruise. It's actually one of the few ways that ANYONE is getting to Europe right now! But we are super excited. Teddy is just old enough to do this one (you have to be over a year old, and they reposition east during April and May) and I am not quite TOO pregnant (you cannot cruise during your 24th week or beyond; I will be 23w4d when we disembark). I suspect that this will be our last trip to the EU for a while, what with a new little one en route. And this time? It appears to be a GIRL!

Teddy has been an absolute trooper so far. He was so happy and friendly during the travel here and through his encounters with people in restaurants and malls. He adores my parents (did I mention that we are travelling with them? Those of you who know me IRL are in no way surprised, I am sure!) and is so thrilled to be spending days and days with them. We are all fighting cold (boo) and the weather here has been really rainy, but that's no big deal. Vacation! Woot!

So, we flew down yesterday afternoon and got our minivan. We did VERY little last night. After a quick dinner, my Dad and Dave met up with some of my Dad's co-moderators (on a watch forum) for drinks. Today, we hit a local parish, puttered around Ft Lauderdale, then headed to a nearby outlet mall. We did some shopping, but I have been spoiled by the selection and prices of the stores in VT so I didn't get as much as I thought. We headed back to the hotel during a torrential downpour. We eventually headed out for dinner on Las Olas Blvd., then drove back here. BOTH times we puttered along the shore, we spotted no end of crazies. There was one dude who absolutely made Dave's day, but I will leave the story to him.

So - crossing the Atlantic starting tomorrow. Teddy has now seen 2 oceans and visited 7 states. He will hit countries 3, 4, 5 and 6 (Portugal, Spain, France and Italy) en route. We will be onboard a BRAND NEW SHIP (it is only a couple months old) for 14 nights, then we will spend a few days in Rome.

I will do my best to update from aboard the Equinox (one of the perks of the loyalty club level we've just achieved is a bunch of free internet minutes). We have six days at sea before we hit the Azores, so I may not have too much to say, but I will do my best!