My sweet baby

I love this boy boy!!

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2 Month Check-up

Evan had his two month visit with the pediatrician today and is doing very well. He's a chubby little guy, weighing in at almost 15lbs. Well, my mom says he's chubby, I say he's healthy!

He had to get four shots, but only cried right when the nurse gave them. He is such a content, happy little boy, he doesn't cry or fuss much at all.

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Happy Valentines Day!

It is a good thing that he is so darn cute because he does not sleep!!! Craig has captured some video of him talking and laughing, hopefully he will post it soon.


Oh. My. Gosh. You have no idea how crazy I am about this little boy. Look at him! He's an angel! Nine weeks old today.

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Smiling baby!

Evan has been interacting with us much more lately... smiling, cooing and even laughing! It is the cutest thing EVER.

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B&W Video w/ Evan Crying

Craig has been playing around in his video editing software... what do you think?

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First Bath

Ok, so I am a little behind posting images... these were taken just a day or two after we came home from the hospital. It was his first sponge bath and he was very unhappy!





He is now taking submerged baths in the tub, and he still gets pretty upset about the whole process. I'll have to take some pictures of that one of these days.

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Diagnosis

I'm sorry it has taken so long for me to post, but Craig and I are still trying to wrap our minds around the information we received from the Gastroenterologist.

We had a good visit with him and a pediatrician at Children's, they spent quite a bit of time examining Evan and talking with us. But here is the thing... they have a completely opposite opinion from our pediatricians. The GI doctor believes that some blood in the stool is usually a benign occurrence in infants, provided there aren't any other signs of illness. He indicated the experts have recently changed their thinking about protein allergies and believe that they are much less common than previously suspected.

This left us speechless.

Blood in the stool? Normal? Ok, so Evan is gaining weight and is otherwise healthy, but that doesn't mean that we wish to see him uncomfortable or with blood in his diaper. And what are parents to do when doctors have opposing viewpoints?

We determined that the bottom line is that we have to do what works for us. And currently, Evan seems much more comfortable and content on the Neocate. We also stopped using the Prevacid because we suspected it was bothering him more than it was helping.



In other news, Craig is leaving for his first business trip tomorrow since Evan was born. I'm sure we will manage, but he does so much that I am somewhat dreading his departure.

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I have had it

Evan is currently on the most hypoallergenic formula manufactured. He is also on Prevacid for his reflux. Yet he still seems to be having issues and isn't sleeping well. At this point, I feel like we (Craig, myself and his peditrician) have been guessing, or using trial and error to determine what is wrong.

My instinct tells me we are missing something. And one thing I learned with Ella was to trust my feelings, rather than being indecisive regarding a course of action. I waited too long to take any action with her and we were miserable for much longer than necessary.

All this being said, I called Children's Hospital this morning to make an appointment with a Pediatric Gastroenterologist. I was concerned because it typically takes weeks to get in with this particular specialist, but as luck would have it, they had a cancellation tomorrow. Actually, as many of you know, I don't believe in luck, I believe in God and prayer.

All of this may not be necessary, but I would rather know for sure that we are treating the proper issues.

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Formula

We headed back to the pediatrician's office today because Evan's GI issues seemed to be getting worse. He's been increasingly fussy and continues to have blood in his stool. Much to our dismay, they put him on Neocate formula. At $135 per case, Evan will be eating well even if the rest of us can't afford to eat. The pediatrician submitted the prescription to our insurance company, we are awaiting a response.

The type of protein used in Neocate makes it different from other infant formulas. Neocate is an amino acid-based formula in which the proteins are broken down into their simplest and purest form, making it easier for the body to process and digest. Additionally, because Neocate is hypoallergenic, it is less likely to cause an allergic response than other formulas consisting of more intact proteins (milk or soy).

We appreciate the support, please continue to pray for Evan's digestive system. In the unlikely event that he cannot tolerate this formula, he will be referred to a pediatric GI specialist.

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Poor Evan

A week ago we took Evan to the pediatrician because he was exhibiting signs of reflux (fighting the breast, arching his back, gurgling, etc). We were familiar with reflux because Ella had it when she was an infant. We started him on Prevacid to see if that would help.

After a week, his symptoms became worse and we also started to suspect a possible food intolerance or allergy. Again, we had experience with this because Ella had these problems as well.

So we took him back to the pediatrician yesterday and while we were there he pooped and it had blood and mucus in it. Blood in the stool is a sure sign of food allergies. It essentially means that his intestines have become so irritated that they are bleeding. My poor sweet baby must be in so much pain between his reflux and bleeding gut.

Of course this means that I have to stop nursing and put him on a hypoallergenic formula (we'll be using Alimentum, which is what worked wonders for Ella).

It absolutely breaks my heart that he is in pain and I have to stop nursing. All I ever wanted to do was nurse my babies and neither one of them could tolerate the food I ate. It's a very sad time for me, but I'm pleased to know that we have identified the problem and are on our way to solving it.

Please say a prayer for Evan's poor little sensitive tummy, he is such a sweet little angel.

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First Video

Craig put this short clip together of us in the hospital.

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Evan's Birth

Here are the last few images of me with a pregnant belly... EVER!


They had just started the epidural, but the pain was still pretty bad.

I'm posting this because when the nurse gave me that orange popsicle, it made my day.

Mom was so excited when they announced that it was time to push. I, however, was feeling a little differently. I had gone from 2cm to 10cm in 30-40 minutes. And even though I had the epidural, it was UNBEARABLE.


At this point I was shaking uncontrollably. For anyone who thinks that having an epidural takes away all of the pain, think again. It certainly helps, but it is still the most unbelievable pain you will ever feel.

There he is!! Thankfully he arrived after only about 15 minutes of pushing, what a huge relief.







Ella meets her brother for the first time. She was so tickled.





Joanne was there to take pictures for us, I cannot thank her enough!

Uncle Mike loves babies.


Our family.

I can't even explain how happy I am that he is here and safe. We really weren't sure if we were going to be able to have another child, and now that we do, I am grateful beyond measure. God is great.

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Finally, a picture!

I'm sorry it has taken so long, but we are adjusting to life with a newborn. This was taken by my Mom moments after his birth.



I will be posting many more as soon as I get a chance, but this sweet little baby is attached to my breast most of the time. I really need to teach Craig my current workflow in Lightroom so he can manage the pictures.

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Evan Donald

Born 12/13 at 1:33pm, 6lbs 12oz.

Baby is wonderful and I am recovering. Hopefully Craig will be posting images soon.

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Baby!!

I will be induced this Thursday, thank goodness the end is almost here!!! Seriously, 40 weeks for a pregnancy is a little ridiculous, don't ya think? We were reading about tigers last night and their gestational period is 15 weeks. Not bad.

If you've carried a full term baby, then you know how miserable you can feel towards the end. EVERYTHING hurts and it's impossible to get comfortable. Everyone comments on how small I am, but I just don't think my body was built for pregnancy. I am at capacity!!

And I know what you old-timers are thinking... "it isn't that bad," as you roll your eyes. But seriously, if you had your last child more than 20 years ago, you memory has faded. Be honest.

We love visitors, both at the hospital and at home, but if your kids are sick, please don't bring them! I'm not a freak about germs, but 'tis the season for RSV.

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Bathroom

Last Saturday Craig and Ella painted the "kids" bathroom.





Whenever we embark on a home improvement project, I ask (ok, insist) that we leave a time capsule of sorts behind. So we painted our names and the date behind the mirror. I've hidden notes, pictures and other items throughout the house because I think it would be fascinating to discover these items in the future. I'm hoping that future owners will find our time capsules in 30, 40, 50 years.


I love this frog tissue holder, Target has the cutest things.

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34 Weeks

So here is what I'm dealing with. Can you imagine?


People see me and say... aww, you look so tired. I look tired because I AM TIRED. Sleeping has become very difficult, but you don't need to tell me I look tired because what I hear is, "you look terrible." Remember, pregnant women are very sensitive and sometimes a little hormonal.

Image courtesy www.babycenter.com. You can read more about what is happening at 34 weeks by clicking here.

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Baby Shower

My best friend Jody had a lovely shower for me this past Sunday, it was so exciting! Mom commissioned my designer friend Corrie to come up with something for my cake. They know that I'm not a Winnie the Pooh type person and I LOVED the design she came up with! Totally me.

Jody is the most wonderful friend EVER. We met in the summer of 1993 when I started working at ARCO Chemical in the summers. That happened to be the exact same time that I met Craig. It was a good year for me.

My girl is so sweet, and good at keeping a secret (even though I kinda knew something was going on). Anyway, she was so excited when I arrived... can you imagine a 5 year old with a secret? She wanted to burst!




Thank you to everyone for all of the gifts, Craig and I are very grateful!

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Travel System

A huge thanks to Craig's mom Carolyn for sending us the travel system for the baby! Ella insisted that we put it together the moment it arrived, even though I thought we should wait for Daddy.

Several people have been asking me lately what we need for the baby and the short answer is, everything!! It's been 5 years since we had a baby, and because we were having so many problems, we weren't sure if we were going to be able to have another. As a result, we gave away most of Ella's baby paraphernalia.

Anyway, if you didn't notice in the baby post at the top of the blog, we are registered at Target.

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Maternity Pictures

My good friend Joanne stopped over on Friday to take some maternity pictures. I'll be posting more on my wedding blog by the end of the week.

Here I am at 8 months and I am exhausted. I cannot imagine how this child can grow any bigger, I already can't breathe.

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