Crying

Leyton is a big crier. This may be totally normal, but I haven't been around babies too much so it's hard for me to tell. He has days where he eats and falls asleep and stays pretty quiet. Then there are days where all he wants to do is cry, or suck on a boob. He's an eating champion and while I know that every cry doesn't mean he wants to eat I can tell you that most of the time that is exactly what it means. There are a few things that can get Leyton to stop crying in an instant. The boob is the first one. Any loud equipment helps a ton. This would include a lawn mower, a blower, an edger, a vacuum. All things you would think would wake him up and yet make him go instantly silent. I can't tell you how vacuumed our floor is going to be by his teen years!

From the heavens!

Turns out Leyton is a daytime crier. I guess this is better than a night time crier, but seriously I was hoping for that baby that got described as "mellow." Ha! Don't we all wish for that. Once he gets crying the only thing that stops him so far is the boob. Or a bottle, but a boob works much better. Aren't men all the same?! Also, he's pretty quiet on walks so I've been taking him daily and going as far as I can.

Today the heavens opened up and a device so wonderful that it was definitely hand crafted by God himself arrived at our house. It's called a swing. I got a swing that goes with my car seat and while I like it....it has never been enough to settle Leyton or keep him sleeping. Our friends Tom and Kellie came by and said they had a swing we could borrow. It's seriously the best thing ever. Leyton has been asleep in it for an hour now. I positioned it by the window because he likes looking outside and oh is he ever so content in the swing. I could kiss Tom and Kellie.

If you are pregnant...get yourself a NICE swing! It will be the answer to all your prayers.

First Bling!

Yesterday in the mail I got the sweetest little gift from Rain! She made a cute little bracelet/anklet for Leyton. It has his name on it and a little horseshoe charm for good luck. He was more than happy to wear it for the photo...just had a hard time keeping his giant feet still! Thanks Rain!

Thank you Jesus!

I seriously had issues with how huge my feet got at the end of my pregnancy. Remember that last pic I posted? Disgusting! Well, guess what? After delivery IT GOT WORSE! Seriously, you read that right. My legs were virtually the same size from my feet to my mid thigh. They were gigantic, they were sore, they looked terrible. I asked the OB if there was something wrong with me. He blamed the drugs and said it would get worse before it got better. I got home, and it got worse! I seriously thought I would never be the same again. Then yesterday I woke up...and it was gone. Like magic in the night I got my old legs, ankles and feet back. I swear this means I probably lost another 2 pounds, but who cares...I just wanted my feet.

Breast Feeding

Man is it tough! You women out there that have an easy time with this have no idea how lucky you are. After we got home from the hospital Leyton was on the formula since my milk hadn't come in. I pumped diligently every day to try to get it to come in and oh what a pain in the ass that is. Every two hours for 20 minutes on top of all the other shit I have to do?! Seriously that formula can was looking better and better everyday. I kept pumping though. Yesterday I decided to try and get Leyton to latch on and you know what? He did. I only gave him one formula bottle and the rest was direct from the cow....the cow being me of course.

Today we went to a lactation consultant in the morning to see how much he was getting in a feeding and to make sure we were on track. Leyton has put weight back on, and was deemed a good eater and latcher. He got enough in the feeding this morning but the real question is whether or not my milk is producing enough during the day. By late this evening and the hunger cries that ensued it became clear that mom doesn't have enough milk yet. Leyton has been feeding every two hours but I think many of those times the well was dry. So, he got a formula bottle a bit ago and now is out like a light. Ugh, it's so frustrating.

For now I'm going to keep with the breast and just give a formula feeding when he seems really frustrated and hungry. I'm hoping this cow will increase in production because as they say "supply is demand" or some b.s. like that. I'm taking herbs, I'm drinking Guinness and damn it...my nipples are sore. There I said it! If I have to throw in the towel and switch to formula I'm not going to beat myself up. It just would be nice if this all worked out!!

The other baby.....

I have to say that the other baby in our house has been a TROUPER. While Whisky is a little weirded out at times by all the crying he has taken to the new addition like a champ. He absolutely LOVES to lick his feet and gets face swipes in whenever he can. He comes immediately if Leyton is crying and oh how he likes to stand guard during diaper changes.

Just like mom!

Leyton is by far his daddy's baby. He looks so much like him. We finally found a little something extra that is me through and through.
He sleeps with his mouth open...or "catching flies" as his daddy likes to say.

Lucky Me!

I recently entered a contest on the blog Jbreezy Baby to win a $50 CSN gift card. I had never heard of CSN before but have learned it is the meca of everything! I decided to use my credit to purchase some items for the baby. One is this clock which I have been wanting to buy FOREVER! I also got a Cloud B Giraffe on the go. Leyton loooooves this. It makes a variety of noises but just a couple moments of the "white noise" and he is out!

Thanks Jbreezy for hosting this great giveaway!

We're Home!

And we're home!! After 5 long days in the hospital the Ball Family is now a party of three and so happy to have Leyton Maxwell Ball with us. As you know I was scheduled to be induced on Wednesday night the 12th since Leyton was thought to be a "big" baby. Bill and I arrived at the hospital at 10:00pm and shortly there after I was given doses of Misoprostol to try and get the labor to start. This actually worked a bit and things got a little closer during the exams and contractions picked up. I wasn't in much discomfort and actually got to enjoy some of this time in the hospital.

By 1pm on Thursday it was pretty clear that the progress had stopped and it would now be necessary to get more aggressive and so the Pitocin began. They start off at 1 and increase by 1-2 each time just depending on how things are going. When the Pitocin started I was 3cm dialated and about 40% effaced. The pit started and I spent a ton of time walking up and down halls, not feeling too bad. Then the dosage crept up to 6 and I started to feel as if I was going to need some pain assistance. I was never against the epidural during my delivery but I really wanted to know what the pain was like and I don't regret getting a taste of it. I kept holding on and then the pit was turned up to 7 and my water was broken by the doctors. I knew at that point I was done. It was about 9pm at this point. I got the epidural and immediately all discomfort went away. The pit was continuously increased until at 3am and at a pitocin level of 14 it was determined that I was not moving forward. I was stuck at 5cm and 50% effaced. Clearly this baby could not get out on it's own.

My sister quickly arrived to be in the delivery room with us and we were wheeled away to surgery. I was scared more than I have ever been in my life and Bill was right there with me. I knew that I would be kept awake and would not "feel" the surgery because the pain element wouldn't be there...but that I would feel alot of of what they were doing. This was the weirdest experience of my life. In addition I couldn't keep my body from trembling from the medication. Within 15 minutes they dropped the curtain enough so I could see....my new baby boy! I am crying just writing that! I felt it was a boy from the beginning and really wanted a boy. It was funny because in the moment that I knew he was out I had this fleeting thought that they were going to tell me it was a girl. I have never loved anything more than I loved that little critter the moment I saw him. He is his dad in every since. We're pretty certain that he will have the "Ball Jaw" and is blessed with his dad's good looks and skin tone. He also lucked out and got my full lips! He weighed 9lbs 6.8ozs and measured 20.7 inches long, although a follow up doctor's appointment today revealed he is 22.5" long!.

We've spent the last couple days recovering and getting to know our son. We had quite a horrible (to be honest) experience with most of the after care nurses at Sutter so these last few days have not been the funnest. Luckily, we got everything worked out and now are home to take care of our kiddo on our own. He's now eating happily, formula for the most part which is part of the struggle. While I wanted to breast feed it was clear that it wasn't working out as I didn't have enough of anything in me to keep this big baby boy happy. He became a BEAST to deal with and cried all the time, hungry beyond belief. He stopped breastfeeding entirely, pissed off because he wasn't getting anything. All the nurses wanted to do was shove him on my breast. Finally a nurse realized that this child lost over 12% of his body weight in a very short time and we may need to do something else. So for now he gets formula and what little I can pump out. Hopefully my milk will come in soon and we can ween him off the formula but overall I can't complain about the wonderful child I have. He is on the baby schedule and pretty much eats, sleeps and cries. The diapers haven't hit us much yet because he was so starved at first it all hasn't hit his system. I know this will soon change!

I've uploaded pictures that we have taken and friends have taken.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/pillworm/sets/72157624082907756/

There are some in there from the delivery but I don't think any are too graphic to turn your stomach. My sister took the shots of Leyton coming out but was on the "Birthday Party" side of the curtain as we liked to call it. The business/surgery side was too scary!

So happy to officially introduce Leyton to the blogging world!

Overdue!

I'm now 4 days past my due date. Everyone that voted on when I would have the baby has officially lost. No one picked past May 9th! I'd say let's have another contest and vote for how long the labor will take, but then the winner that picks 50+ hours will probably end up being killed by me rather than getting some free Netflix love.

Being late is frustrating, although I'm sure being really early is too. You know that this "due date" they have created is such a rough estimate, but you put so much attention into it for 9 months that it's hard not to hope it's true. There is a small light at the end of the tunnel knowing that I will have a baby this week, but I had so hoped it would happen on its own. I guess I'm just too comfy inside!

This weekend I ran quite a few errands and had more people ask me "When are you due?" than have asked during the entire pregnancy. This is probably because I am HUGE now. You think you can't get any bigger but that is not the case. When I would tell everyone I was late they were so shocked that I was out and about, put together and walking around. It was nice to hear those things and made me feel strong. Little did they know I'm curled up on the sofa in between on these outings. I've gotten alot more uncomfortable at night in the last couple days. Most of the time I feel as if I've been hit by a car. EVERY joint hurts.....even my jaw. Thankfully this is only at night and doesn't last all through the day.

I've been asked if I will post on here when I'm having the baby and I hope to do so! If not here, at least a twitter update. I don't have much to post right now so the blog will be a bit quiet, but I hope you stick around. If you've gone through this past 9 months I figure you are a lifer anyway! I actually asked at the hospital if they had wireless and must admit that the look I got from other pregger ladies on the tour was funny. I felt I should announce that I wasn't planning on live feeding the birth on Youtube or anything! We'll keep all posts from the waist up...or maybe even neck up.

I thought it wasn't fair that no one got the date right so I'm doing the Netflix drawing anyway. It was so much fun that everyone voted! Using the random number generator, based on 17 total votes...the winner of the two month Netflix membership is Judy Ensign who guessed a boy on May 8th. Sorry I couldn't get the baby out Judy, hope you enjoy some fun movies at least!

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day Mom! Can't wait till you get here next month and we can celebrate together as Mothers. I really hope I will have the baby by then.

40 Weeks

When pregnant women tell you towards the end of their pregnancy that things slow down and days feel like years...THEY ARE NOT LYING! I've made it to 40 weeks. Each time I woke up last night to roll over I kept trying to convince myself that I was having a contraction, but it was all in my head. The baby is now the size of a pumpkin. A freaking pumpkin?! Know why it's a pumpkin? I think it's because it's going to stay in there until October! My babystrology says 0 days, Baby Center is sending me Newborn updates now instead of weekly updates...something is not matching up here.

How far along: 40 Weeks

Total weight gain/loss: 16lbs, I gained nothing last week.

Stretch marks: The stretch marks that I have are bigger, but you can't really see them. The skin didn't discolor but when you rub the belly you can feel them there. My belly is sooooo itchy as well and my belly button is tender.

Sleep: Oh, you mean that stuff I'm saving up right now for a rainy day/crying child? Yeah right.

Movement: Yesterday the baby wasn't moving much at all until the evening. Someone told me that right before the baby comes the movement slows down, I got all excited. Then I ate dinner and the romper room began.

Food cravings: At this point I'm just eating out of boredom. There is nothing I really want.

Frustrations: We had a whole blog post about this already this week so I'll spare you the diatribe again.

What I miss: My coworkers. It's nice not having to get ready to go to the office and working from home...but it's also very lonely. I miss you guys.

Weekly Wisdom: Send an eviction notice two weeks in advance. I apparently forgot about that.

Milestones: Getting out of bed everyday.

Great gift!

My niece had her bday a couple weeks ago and since it was coinciding with her grandpa's 80th I wanted to make sure that she didn't get ignored. I wanted to give her a little something as well. On a recent trip to Sam's Club of all places I found this great book.The inside is filled with this great illustrations to get you started and then you fill in the blanks. It's like the Mad Libs of Doodle books. I seriously wanted to buy one for all my nieces and nephews including one for myself. There is a whole series of these and I'm pretty certain at one point there will be one in my house!

Sleepy Rant

Yep, you read that right. This is going to be one of those rant posts. They haven't happened too often but right now I'm pent up and you are my audience. Today I woke up on the wrong side of the bed and have entered frustration. I'm tired and sore and cranky.

Sleeping right now sucks, and yet it's all my body wants. When my head hits the pillow I'm out, like drugged out of my mind into the deepest slumber possible. It doesn't feel like good sleep, it feels like drugged sleep. I wake up an hour later to turn over because at this point my hip hurts so bad it's radiating down my leg. It takes up to what feels like 2-3 minutes to roll over. Then I'm right back into drugged sleep. This wake up every one to two hours continues through the night. Sometimes it is just to roll over and other times getting up to pee is involved. I never feel rested, I feel beat up, drugged and sore. Oh, throw in the fact that my throat and nasal passage hurts terribly from the snoring that I don't even know is happening and it makes for one happy woman.

Then I start thinking about sleep after the baby comes. I start thinking about the people that keep saying, "Get all the sleep you can now, cause when the baby comes...blah blah blah." I'm sorry if you are one of them...but right now I want to punch those people in the face. I feel like I would trade sporadic sleep that doesn't hurt for what I'm getting now. I'm frustrated and grumpy because I'm in pain. I know I'm going to be tired when the baby comes, I get it. Problem is I'm tired now so it's not like if I "get all the sleep I can now" I'm going to be able to bank it for later.

I had a doctor's appointment yesterday and there has been absolutely no progress. So, here is what the schedule looks like:

Due date: May 6th
Next Dr.'s Appoint (if baby doesn't come): May 11th
Probable induction date: May 12-13

This lets more flood gates of opinions open up. You don't believe in induction and think the baby should just come out whenever it's ready? That is super awesome of you and I'm so glad that worked for you. There are others that wouldn't agree because that's NOT what worked for them. Point of fact is, we're all different. I know women have been doing this forever....I know our bodies are "made" for this. I also believe that while our bodies are made for this some are made for it better than others. How is mine made? I have no f'ing clue because I've never done this before. While I appreciate the encouragement, I decided at the beginning to not set a specific birth plan. I decided that my birth plan was to come home at some point with a baby, cause that's really what the whole point of this is right? Do I hope that it happens on it's own? Yes. Do I hope that I can do it without drugs? Yes. Am I going to cry myself to sleep at night if I have to be induced or if I end up with a c-section because it somehow makes me less of a woman. No.

Right now what I know is that I've spent the last 9 months putting 100% faith in my doctor. She is someone I like, she is someone I trust, she is someone that I admire. While I'm not going to follow her blindly off a cliff, I am going to continue to put my trust in that what she is recommending is valid. I'm going to take those opinions she has, think about them, talk to my hubby about them and make a decision about what I want to happen that is RIGHT FOR ME.

So, there is my big ranting bitchy pregnant woman post. Like I said before, I woke up on the wrong side of the bed and while sometimes they are super helpful...there comes a time when all of the opinions can drive you up the wall. This is the first time around for me and I won't have any solid opinions on it till it's all said and done with. One thing I will remember though is those opinions and beliefs are based on my experience alone, and everyone is different.

Stepping down off soap box now before I fall and hurt myself even more.

As you can tell.....

no baby came this weekend! All of the symptoms that I had last week have disappeared, except for the need to do stuff...that is still very present. I did manage to get alot done on the to do list so I'm feeling better about that. I'm also working from home starting this week and I can't tell you how thankful my feet are. I also can't tell you how happy my dog is, he literally ran laps around the dining room table while I sat at the desk. It's nice to feel loved!

As you can tell the belly is bigger and it definitely has dropped. It's now hanging over pants quite a bit vs just sticking straight out. My wrists and feet are really hoping that it happens this week so please say your prayers for me.

Just in case....

you forgot about the old swelling of the feet....I thought I'd share what they look like now. Yep, those are them. I can't tell you how hard it is to show you that picture. While I don't have a foot fetish, I like nice feet. I've always taken pride in trying to make my feet look nice and now I am disgusted by them. I'd rather show you bare belly shots than feet shots. At this point the swelling doesn't get much better than this. I'm realizing that choosing the lavender shade of polish during my pedicure yesterday may have been a big mistake seeing how it just looks like my toenails are bruised from being suffocated by all that extra flesh. You should also know that they hurt like hell. They feel bruised on the top. It's really a terrible side effect and I am trying to be extremely hopeful that this one is one that goes away fast. Right now I can only wear ONE pair of flip flops or my slippers...that's it. I was thinking of maybe getting some Crocs cause they seem roomy. Anyone else have any recommendations or remedies??