Big Boy Bed and Relapse

We are successfully on night two of this sleeping arrangement:

And would you believe me if I told you he fell asleep no problem, without getting out of bed or screaming both times so far?

He didn't love the idea of taking a nap in his big boy bed today. By that I mean he didn't have a nap  which is probably why he collapsed into his bed this evening without a fight. But hey, baby toddler steps.

As for the crib occupant, here he is pretending to be asleep -- his favorite trick at 2:00 in the morning.

The whole time he's eating he acts like he's completely exhausted and makes me believe he'll fall right back to sleep once he's full. After eating, he appears to be in mid REM cycle, so I assume it safe to lay him down. I go get a drink and go to the bathroom to stall before hopping back into bed to make sure he's really asleep. Only when I'm under the covers and starting to drift back to sleep, Carson starts to whimper. Blast.

So I go in and see him lying there with his eyes wide awake just wanting someone to play with him. And lucky for me, I'm that someone at 2:30-4:30 in the morning. The little rascal. Maybe his new crib will help him doze off a little faster? Here's to hoping.

Despite Eli's surprisingly smooth transition into his big boy bed, he has reverted back to baby mode in another aspect:

His absolute most favorite game is to steal Carson's binky, sprint to his favorite hiding spot, and then emerge like this:

We've had to invest in a few more binkies since Eli's become Mr. Stealth and we're having to run those suckers through the dishwasher like crazy. Aye yi yi.

Carson's First Week

I feel the need to blog even though I should be sleeping. I'm sure I'll regret this decision in an hour when Carson starts crying right as I finally decide to lie down for the night. But I'll sacrifice my sleep and sanity for the sake of saving memories of my little night owl's first couple weeks of life.

Here's his first bath. I kind of don't believe sponge baths are effective so I kind of don't really bathe my children until their umbilical cord falls off. It's a good thing Carson's fell off last night because he's smelling a little too strongly in his neck creases of spoiled spit up.

We've been venturing out in our backyard every once in a while.

I attempted a photo-shoot with Carson only to discover I'm not the photographer I wish I was.

I have a whole new respect for people who can successfully pose a newborn.

And I haven't forgotten about my firstborn by the way. Jeff's just been his main caregiver since I can't pick him up -- which has actually been the hardest part about my child-birthing recovery. Eli has been Jeff's right-hand man for the past two weeks and it's the cutest thing I've ever seen.

And it looks like Eli's got a little right-hand (or left-hand?) man of his own.

Brotherly Love

Do you know what the cutest thing ever was? The morning after we brought Carson home from the hospital, Eli's first sentence of the day was, "See Carson, Daddy!" We were shocked at how well Carson was received.

Eli's been so nice to his new brother. He hasn't even swung an arm at him yet.

Sure, he helped Carson catch some air in his bouncer, and yeah he's shaken the pack 'n play a few too many times, but I don't think his brotherly intentions have ever been malicious.

And sure he's been a crazy man since we brought the new baby home -- refusing to eat, throwing unprovoked tantrums, saying "No way!" to every question we ask him, seeking out items around the house he knows he's not supposed to have.

But we have to give him credit for lasting all the way to Carson's one week birthday before having a toddler meltdown and screaming "All done baby!" after I brought Carson downstairs this morning.

I'm sure one day they'll be the best of friends...

Hospital Visitors

Jeff has been doing a great job around the house so I have time to rest and blog. In fact, he just exclaimed, "Oh! The laundry!! How do you do what you do?!?" It's nice to have him get a little taste of motherhood.

Anyway, here's a slew of pictures from the hospital. We debated having Eli come see Carson at the hospital, but I'm glad we did. I sure missed him while I was confined to my hospital bed. Here he is seeing Carson for the first time...or purposely diverting his eyes from the baby in denial? 

Once he acknowledged his new brother, he sprinted around the room, touching Carson with each lap.

My sister dropped by to keep us company one evening as we were dying of boredom.

My mom doesn't even look worn out from her day of babysitting my little hooligan.

Shortly after Eli came into the hospital room, we had him sit next to me as we said, "Eli, do you want to see baby brother?" Eli then said "No. No. No." the whole time he was there.

The proud new grandparents and noble babysitters.

Eli warming up to Carson.

It was freezing in our room but luckily the hospital gave us that adorable blanket to take home!

The hospital also provides a "romantic candlelight dinner" (minus the candles) for all the new parents. We chose to have our "dinner" at lunch time. Our hamburgers and french fries served over a tablecloth was quite a treat. Mostly we had fun making fun of the gross food and the interesting amenity.

Another interesting amenity that I really did love was the free haircut provided by a local hair school. I had gotten a very choppy mall haircut a few weeks ago so it was nice to have them even things out a bit for me. Plus it made me feel dolled up for my hot date.

Carson being adorable and newborny.

Jeff brought Eli in the next morning before dropping him off at my mom's house. He seemed more receptive to his new brother for that visit.

In the evening he was bouncing off the walls again.

Before long it was time for the going home outfit.

Happy to be home. And wishing I'd put on some mascara.

My mom finished her exhausting babysitting adventure by whipping us up some delicious homemade chicken noodle soup for dinner and then she was freed of her responsibilities.

And Eli's been surprisingly nice to his new brother.

Carson's Debut

Jeff took Eli out on a morning adventure and Carson's taking the nap of his life so I've found myself wanting to take advantage of the moment by writing down Carson's birth story.

After a month of believing I was going to go into labor, I began to be discouraged on Sunday that my due date was hours away and I was having a day free of any signs of labor. The week before, I timed my contractions every night as I was going to bed and they were usually 7-10 minutes apart but on Sunday night I was feeling the best I'd felt all month. I went to bed confident I'd make it to my doctor's appointment the next day to further discuss an induction.

At 3:15 Monday morning I was woken up by a tiny gush of water. While I walked around the house a little bit, my suspicions were confirmed that my water broke the exact same way it did with Eli.

I called my Mom at 3:30 to let her know the good news. I told her she didn't need to hurry because I wasn't really in pain yet. I got a few things packed and ready for my mom and then I went to wake up Jeff.

Jeff drowsily listened to me ramble as I paced around the house waiting for my mom to arrive. Every once in a while I had to stop walking for a contraction, but they weren't too bad. While we were waiting, Jeff and I made predictions of how dilated I'd be when I got to the hospital. When Jeff guessed I'd be a five I was sure he'd be way off. I was hardly feeling a thing, there was no way I was already a five. I laughed at him and told him the most I'd be was a four.

My mom finally showed up at 4:45 showered and ready for her day of babysitting. She snapped a few pictures of us and then sent us on our way.

As we were leaving, my mom said, "You know, Sarah, if I were you I'd stay at home for a few hours before going to the hospital. I always liked laboring at home more than laboring at the hospital." To which I said, "Mom, I can get an epidural as soon as I get to the hospital. I don't want to feel any more contractions than I have to." And off we went.

We got to the hospital around 5:00. We checked in with the front desk and then they wheeled me up to labor and delivery. I got out of the wheelchair and the nurses looked at the chair and said, "Yeah. I'd say it looks like your water broke." I'm pretty sure I left a trail from our car all the way up to labor and delivery.

I was having contractions every 3-5 minutes but they weren't too bad. After I was all settled in my gown and tucked in bed, the nurse came in to check me. The nurse's mood quickly changed from being lighthearted and friendly to serious and slightly frantic. I asked her how dilated I was and she said, "You're about a seven and a half. Were you planning on an epidural?"

Cue hyperventilation.

My whole body began shaking immediately as my worst fears were coming true -- I'd gone to the hospital too late and I'd have to deliver naturally. Another nurse came in the room to let my nurse know the anesthesiologist wasn't at the hospital yet which may have just stopped my breathing all together.

The nurse was trying to give me an IV amid my hyperventilation as I chanted, "I can't have this baby without an epidural!" The nurse politely said, "Well, you may have to. But you'll do just fine. Now if you would just breath, it would really help me get this IV in." I continued to be uncooperative.

I couldn't stop shaking as I tried to think of a possible way she could have misread my dilation measurements. Surely I couldn't really already be a seven and a half. The contractions were only a couple steps above uncomfortable. I've seen A Baby Story. This was not what they portrayed a seven and a half to feel like without pain medicine.

My frantic thoughts were interrupted by the anesthesiologist walking in the door. Hallelujah. My hyperventilation then kicked into overdrive as I prepared to have a gigantic needle shoved in my back. I made a scene and after apologizing for being a nut case afterwards, the doctor implied I was one of the most dramatic patients he's given an epidural to. But hey, you would be, too if you were a seven and on the verge of unexpectedly delivering a baby without pain medicine.

The epidural set in and life was good again. Jeff and I watched an episode of Arrested Development as the nurse wheeled in all the delivery tools. Carson's heart rate started dropping with each contraction, so they were eager to get him out.

I started pushing at 8:20 and Carson was born twenty minutes later with the cord around his neck. We were so relieved to hear Carson cry right away. After Carson was born, my doctor kept talking about how long he was. He didn't look super long to me, but several nurses also commented on his length.

As the nurses got Carson cleaned off and looking especially handsome, I patted myself on the back for a five and a half hour labor. Not too shabby. Then I gave a sigh of relief that we made it to the hospital in time so that our little Carson wasn't literally our son born in a car.

We're so glad Carson has come to our family. It's fun to have a newborn in the house again and we love him already.