2 Months Old!

Big 2 month old girl! I can't believe it! (I will be saying that every day/week/month/year of her life by the way.....) I truly cannot call her a newborn any more! She is getting so big! (more about that further down the blog) She is a beautiful, wonderful, healthy girl and we love her so much! Motherhood is everything I dreamed of and oh so much more. I love every minute of every day, my life is so full of joy! It is amazing to see her grow and change every day. I am so over-the-top in love with my daughter, I can't even put it into words!

Yes, I am aware that I missed a blog for 8 weeks, but my computer was not functioning, due to packing and moving! More about that further down the blog as well. 8 weeks seems to have made a drastic change in Kalaya's personality! She is so alert and she finally likes to have independent play time! She loves looking at faces and smiles all the time! She has started playing on her gym and tummy time mat, she likes to sit in her swing watching her mobile, and she likes to listen to toys that play soft music. She likes her bouncer chair, especially because she can watch the bubbles and fish move on it. She has also started FALLING ASLEEP ON HER OWN!! It is incredible. She was on her gym the other day, playing away and the next thing I knew, she was totally out. She has finally started falling asleep in her swing and even in her car seat! For those of you who have been in the car with her, you will understand that this is a major accomplishment! (she used to scream to the point of frantic, sweaty mess, no matter what we did) She coos and babbles and likes to have conversations. She likes singing songs and reading stories too! I have some new pictures and will post more soon when we unpack the camera cord that connects to the computer.

What's that? Packing? Yes, we have officially moved to Washington, into a HOUSE! I love our house! It's a 3 bedroom, 2 bath, with a 2 car garage and a fenced in backyard for Pippy. It has a big kitchen that I love! However, I don't recommend moving with an 8 week old, unless you have a LOT of people to help you out. I was basically useless for packing and moving things. God bless my parents! My mom packed most of our apartment up and Dad ended up helping Nelson move everything from the truck into the house. Joel was also a huge help loading the U-Haul and driving it for Nelson, thanks! Again, I'll post more picture of that soon. The only thing I am FURIOUS about is that our couch does not fit in the house!!!!!! It is sitting in the garage right now, it doesn't fit through and of the doors into our house! We have this beautiful 6-month old couch just sitting under blankets in the garage! So frustrating!

So, about my BIG baby! She is 11 pounds, 13.5 oz!! Big girl!! Over 4 pounds gained in less than 2 months, wow! Even her doctor commented on how chubby her cheeks are and he sees babies every day! Apparently I produce cream, not milk. She is 23 3/4 inches long, which puts her in the 75th percentile for weight and height, nice and healthy! She also had to have her 2 month vaccinations, which was just AWFUL. She had 3 different shots, plus mouth drops. I requested to be nursing her, as I did when she had her shots right after she was born. I did not watch the actual giving of the shots, but Nelson did. He said the needles were really big and the nurse jabbed them in pretty hard. (it may be normal, but this was my first time!) I knew the instant she had the first shot because she threw her head back and SCREAMED. It wasn't even a cry. It was terrible, I immediately burst into tears. I've never heard her make that sound. It broke my heart. She made it for all three shots, each time. She cried for a minute and then snuggled up to nurse again and fell asleep. More traumatic for mom than baby!

7 Weeks

7 Weeks with some exciting events! Sunday was our first Father's Day and a very, very special day for Kalaya and Daddy; they were baptized together! It was a really special day with a lot of family and friends, more than we expected! She wore the dress that her mommy, uncle Colin and grandmother were baptized in! Kalaya was so calm and quiet throughout all of the service. She usually stays quiet, only if she is asleep! If she's awake, Mommy or Daddy usually has to walk around with her at the back of the church. But, on Sunday she was mostly awake and stayed calm the whole service, amazing! Here are some highlights:

Daddy getting baptized

Kalaya getting baptized

Pictures with the Godfathers (well, Joel is more like Nelson's Godbrother....)

Happy family!

Kalaya had an appointment this week at the hospital for an ultrasound. It was scheduled right after she was born, because she was a breech/c-section baby. Apparently being born this way can affect the development of a baby's hips, so they wanted to check to make sure her hips were growing properly. Everything looked great! She just laid their wiggling contentedly, while the technician used the wand on each hip.

We tried the longest car ride so far on Wednesday, all the way to Fort Lewis in Washington, which is over 2 hours! She slept all the way there and was happy in the Bijorn while we shopped and went around with Ma Ma, Pa Pa and Oma. However, the ride home did NOT go as well. She cried pretty much the whole way home! She was tired of the car seat. We tried stopping to nurse, but she wasn't interested. She was just FED UP. Oh well, we survived.

Another change in the Sigrah household, we are moving! Our lease is up and we are moving up to Vancouver. I am not crazy about living up in Washington, but it's still close and it will help out a lot. It's very close to Nelson's work, so I will be able to take him to work easily on days that I need a car. (we only have one!) Nelson will get home sooner, be able to leave later and, most important, won't have to go in traffic to commute!! Hooray! We decided to rent for another year, which was a tough decision, but we don't want to get stuck with a house in Vancouver. We found a house, for about the same price as our current 2 bed/1bath apartment. It's 3 bedrooms, 2 bath with a 2 car garage and a fenced in yard for Pippy. It's in a nice neighborhood and I'm so excited to finally be in a house!! Hooray!

I have pretty much given up on attempting to bottle feed Kalaya, at least for now. We were trying to force her and I don't feel like she was ready. I also don't see the need. We were supposed to go to see RENT this weekend, but decided not to go, since she won't take a bottle. She's also still not ready to be comforted by others, with the exception of Nelson. She still cries and cries for long periods of time if others, such as grandparents, try to hold her. I know it's frustrating for other people, but I am totally happy to comfort and hold her all the time. (though how I'm going to get my house packed up, I'm not sure.....) I am against letting babies "cry it out", especially since she is only 7 weeks old. Maybe if she still won't take a bottle or let anyone else hold her at 7 months, I'll be concerned, but I literally can't think of anything I have to go to that she can't go with me. Things like plays and movies just don't matter any more. : ) That includes the new Harry Potter. (can you believe how much motherhood has changed me??) Anyway, she'll let me know when she's ready and I'm not going to push her! Nursing is so convenient and easy, I'm in no hurry for any other plan!

6 Weeks

6 weeks old! Kalaya is coming more and more into her personality. She is settling much more into a routine, staying more asleep at night and is awake more during the day. She likes to play independently on a blanket, while looking at toys or a book. She likes toys that play soft music, but other than that, just looking.

Kalaya has started smiling! She has actually smiled since the day she was born, but this week she smiled as a reaction, exciting!! She seems to do it the most right after a diaper change, while on the changing table. She's getting bigger and bigger and often coos and gurgles.



Last Friday was our childbirth class reunion. It was fun to see the other 4 babies and sets of parents! It was good to compare stories with other new parents, but not good at the same time. It makes you compare your baby with others, which can be frustrating. There were 2 girl babies and 3 boys. The boys were calm and quiet the whole get-together and the girls were fussy, fussy! Kalaya is often not happy unless she's either rocking or someone is walking around with her and she often needs to stay on a warm body. Lately, the only warm body that can calm her is Mommy's! I am happy to do it, but get frustrated when other people won't just let me have her, because they are determined to calm her down. I am also getting tired of people telling me she is getting spoiled when I insist on being the one to calm her down. The reason is because otherwise she cries and cries, gets frantic and is then much harder to calm down. I am so grateful for people who want to help out, but it's just easier to let me do it! : ) Plus, you can't spoil a 6 week old!

Kalaya has finally started taking a pacifier, although she tends to only take it at night or from me. It has been a HUGE relief to me, because it soothes her much better than everything else we have tried. She had been using me as a pacifier, which was fine, but then she'd be too full and spit everything up. Plus, the pacifier helps her SLEEP LONGER!! Hooray! Nighttime has become much, much easier. If she wakes up in the night, it's to suck and then she falls back asleep. If she needs to eat, she lets me know, but she hasn't needed to. I finally feel like I'm getting enough sleep again, yay! Which is good, since Nelson is now back at work full time. She'll go as long as 6-8 hours at night without needing to nurse. Thurs she slept so well, I actually woe her up to feed her for the first time EVER. (I was so engorged, I had to) She ate and went right back to sleep. Hopefully we are starting a routine!

I had my 6 week appointment with our midwife and she said my incision has healed up great! I have been given the go to resume normal activities, so hopefully that will continue to go well! Kalaya's next appointment is coming up, her 2 month appointment. I'm interested to see how much she weighs! We've tried to do it ourselves, and we know she's some where around 10 pounds, big girl! She fits comfortably in 3 month clothes. Tomorrow is her baptism and we are excited for that event!

On a separate note, Colin is back in the states for good and Carrie will follow soon! They are scheduled to stay at Fort Hood until the end of the year. Thank you for all the prayers for their safe return! We're hoping they get up to Oregon in the next few weeks, but we'll see.

Cloth Wipes Recipe

Many people have asked me about how our cloth wipes work and how we make them. They are so simple and are so easy. Plus, they are so much easier with cloth diapers. Rather than using a disposable wipe and throwing it away, you just stick the cloth wipe in the cloth diaper and wash them all together! I started by cutting up some old wash cloths, and old socks and undershirts of Nelson's. The "formula" is made like this:

~Boil 2 cups of water
~Add 1 tbsp of baby oil
~Add 2 tbsp of liquid baby soap/wash
~Add 10 drops of lavender oil or tea tree oil (I get them in the natural food section at Fred Meyer. Kinda spendy, but they last a long time and you have to add this to make the wipes sanitize baby)
~Pour over wipes and let cool

It makes about 12-15 wipes. We store them in a wipe warmer from Target. On the go, we stick some in Tupperware. Once you use cloth wipes, you realize you're doing too much work with disposables, cloth clean so much better!!

5 weeks

5 weeks and going strong! Kalaya has had a fun week, meeting some new people! She went with me to school on Monday to meet my students from last fall, meet the Kindergartners from her Oma's class and to meet the staff I worked with. Everyone loved her!! We got so many comments on how beautiful she is and healthy, especially those big chubby cheeks! We don't have another appointment until she's 2 months, I want to know her exact weight! She is officially out of newborn clothes and is wearing 3 months already. I have to post a picture of her closet and dresser, it is INSANE how many outfits she has at this size. Hopefully, she won't outgrow this size before she gets to wear the outfits at least once!

Another very special thing that happened this week, Kalaya's GREAT grandparents arrived from Alabama, Ma Ma and Pa Pa. Those of you who were at the wedding are likely to remember Pa Pa and the man in the uniform that did the reading in the big southern voice. :) We spent a couple of days at my parent's house to spend some time with everyone. They flew out for the baptism, which is on the 21st. So exciting!!



My recovery is going well, although we had a bump in the road last weekend. For no apparent reason, my incision started hurting pretty badly and I was having trouble getting around. We stayed home from church and I took it really easy. I also called urgent care, but after talking to the nurse, we decided that I didn't need to rush in. I took it easy for another day and they called to see if I needed an appointment. I was feeling better on Monday, and haven't been in pain since. I'm still not doing too much activity. I'm eager for my 6-week appointment next Wed, and they will hopefully determine that I'm ready to be more active. I'm ready to start exercising again. I've gone on a few walks, but hopefully I can start going daily. I'd like to get the rest of my pregnancy weight taken care of. I have a little less than 10 lbs to go, although I can't decide where I've lost weight, other than belly. My pre-pregnancy pants are still not close to fitting. I've decided to invent a new like of clothing for the time after the baby is born. Pregnancy clothes have been way too big for a while, or they still make me look pregnant, which I don't want and my old clothes are too small. ARG. So, I end up wearing sweats and Nelson's t-shirts. Let me tell you, I'm quite attractive these days!

We had a couple of tough evenings last week. She cried for a couple of hours straight on a few evenings and we couldn't figure out why! She wasn't hungry, wet, cold, hot, hurt, we burped her, rocked her, shushed her, we tried everything! When she would nurse, she would eat a small amount, scream and back off. Then, she'd get so over-the-top tired that she'd scream more and we couldn't calm her down. She won't take a pacifier, so that didn't help either. The only thing we could figure out was that she had gas and couldn't get it out. Our doula, Megan, showed us some massages we can do and positions to put her in to help her push it through. We've been doing them and it seems to be working!! The catch is not to let her get too over stimulated or too tired, which is hard to tell some family members that want to soothe her, but don't know how and she just gets more and more upset. And, for a couple of days there, I was the only one she's let comfort her, she'd even freak out on Nelson. Let's just say I was pretty tired for those days...

Kalaya is awake more of the day now. I feel like she kind of knows the difference between day and night. We are trying to teach her the difference. She still co-sleeps with us and doesn't cry at night really. I usually hear her starting to make sucking noises as she wakes up, nurse her and she usually goes right back to sleep. If she has to be changed, we try to turn on as few lights as possible and keep her on the bed. Otherwise she wakes up much more and has to be calmed down and put back to sleep, often while crying. We're learning! She still sleeps best on warm bodies, but sleeps okay at night. Nap time during the day is another story. I'm trying to figure out what makes her sleep for only 20 min versus an hour or more. Some days she takes great naps and others very short, unless she's on a person. We'll get there! She is focusing on objects so much and stays interested in play time longer. She likes to look at faces, books, mobiles and toys. She likes music and outside sounds, as well and singing and talking. She's SO close to smiling. Actually, she's been "smiling" since she was born, but we're waiting to see her smile on command. Grandpa, of course, SWEARS she smiled at home, but I saw it and it's the same one we see all the time. : )

4 Weeks/1 month!

Oh, how can my baby already be a month old tomorrow? The old cliche is true, time really does fly by when you've got a little one in the house! I can hardly stand it when I think about her already getting out of the "newborn" category. I noticed this week that she hardly ever makes her newborn cry she used to make and it made me sad! Plus, she has switched to screaming occasionally, which is more harsh on the ears.



Kalaya is growing rapidly!! I wish we had a baby scale at home so that we could check her weight more regularly. We haven't weighed her since her 2 week check-up, but I know she's over 9 pounds and Nelson swears she must be close to 10!! Her newborn clothes are getting smaller and smaller, especially with those bulky cloth diapers! The onesies aren't going to fit much longer and she's already outgrowing some of the jammies! She comfortably fits in the 0-3 month clothes and I've started washing and getting 3 month clothes ready to go, eek! Hopefully she stays in that size through the summer....she has a ridiculous amount of clothes for 3-6 months!!



Let's see, the most common questions we get about Kalaya: "How is she sleeping?" Truth be told, I haven't had more than a 3 hour stretch since she was born and even that is rare. Usually it's between 45 minutes to 2 hours. I really don't mind though. Even when I'm exhausted, I love holding her, nursing her, cuddling with her. I've wanted to be a mom for so long, it's all worth it to me! I know these days/times are precious and are going to be over too fast! Another question: "How much does she weigh?" See above for that answer. Next: "Is she sleeping through the night?" Ha! No. "Are you getting enough sleep?" For Nelson, yes. I enjoy when he wakes up from a 6 hour stretch of sleep to change a diaper and says, "Wow! She slept for a long time!" and finds out that she was up to nurse at least 2 times while he was sleeping. : ) I cannot express how much I really don't mind!


Kalaya went to Daddy's work this week and to Grandpa's! Everyone, of course, loved her and said how beautiful she is, which of course we knew! Nelson's office is almost all women, so they were of course gushing over her. Her grandpa (my dad) works out at the airport and everyone that walked by stopped to look at her and comment! This is where I have to say a pet peeve I have. Actually, two. #1 Who decided it's okay for people to just take a baby? They kind of ask, but as they ask, they're reaching for the baby and taking her. What is that about?? I don't even pet someone's dog without asking!!! This is not a paranoid first-time mama thing. That would be if I didn't let anyone hold her. I do. I just don't like when people, usually friends of family members I don't know, just expect to take her! Maybe other mothers know what I'm talking about. #2 The comment, "You look tired!" Gee, thanks. That is a nice way of saying, "You look like crap!" Obviously I am tired people and I know I don't look my best. There is no need to remind me, I'm well aware!! People have even gone so far as to comment about the dark circles under my eyes. Sigh....not bitter, just surprised that people think I want to hear that!

Kalaya is getting more alert every day! She's staying awake longer to look at toys, listen to songs, music and stories, has started holding toys (with guidance), and sit in her bouncer or swing. She loves being in the Bijorn and walking around. She seems to enjoy bath time too, as long as the water is plenty warm and doesn't cool off! She likes her massage after bath too. She stretches and makes some cooing noises and moves her body all around! Her personality is coming out more and more. We love it! We continue trying to introduce a bottle and pacifiers, but she still isn't interested, which is fine. We'll keep trying. We have tickets to see Rent at the end of this month, so that's the goal!

I continue to heal well. I'm still achy at the incision site and am not up for going for long walks at all. I miss walking my dog, especially with all this beautiful spring weather! I still have 2 weeks more until that magic 6 week mark and then we'll see what my midwife says. The incision looks fine, it just hurts, especially if something bumps up against it. I'd like to be able to take walks, do pilates and yoga. I've lost about 25 pounds already, of the 35 I gained (thank you breastfeeding!), but I'd like to lose an additional 15-20. (optomistic, I know) I've really been eating nothing but healthy and would like to add excercise back into my life!

One last thing, this is the best song ever to describe how Nelson and I feel right now! I can't listen to it without crying!!!

Darius Rucker, It Won't Be Like This For Long

He didn't have to wake up
He'd been up all night
Layin’ there in bed listenin’
To his new born baby cry
He makes a pot of coffee
He splashes water on his face
His wife gives him a kiss and says
It gonna be OK

It won’t be like this for long
One day soon we'll look back laughin’
At the week we brought her home
This phase is gonna fly by
So baby just hold on
‘Cause it won't be like this for long

Four years later ‘bout 4:30
She's crawling in their bed
And when he drops her off at preschool
She's clinging to his leg
The teacher peels her off of him
He says what can I do
She says now don't you worry
This’ll only last a week or two

It won’t be like this for long
One day soon you'll drop her off
And she won’t even know you're gone
This phase is gonna fly by
If you can just hold on
It won’t be like this for long

Some day soon she'll be a teenager
And at times he'll think she hates him
Then he'll walk her down the aisle
And he'll raise her veil
But right now she's up and cryin’
And the truth is that he don't mind
As he kisses her good night
And she says her prayers

He lays down there beside her
‘Til her eyes are finally closed
And just watchin’ her it breaks his heart
Cause he already knows

It won’t be like this for long
One day soon that little girl is gonna be
All grown up and gone
Yeah, this phase is gonna fly by
So, he's tryin’ to hold on

‘Cause it won’t be like this for long

It won’t be like this for long

3 Weeks Old

Well, Kalaya is 3 weeks old and growing fast! We continue to fall more in love with her every day and are enjoying every aspect of being parents! She is getting more alert and is focusing on more things. She has started watching things like toys and her mobile above her swing. She focuses on faces so well and stays awake for longer periods of time. She is starting to fit into 0-3 month clothes, especially because she is officially a cloth diaper baby now and they make her bum bigger! Our cloth wipes are working great and so far the diapers are working too! We're going to continue disposable at night, due to a tip from other friends whose baby developed a rash from cloth diapers at night. Maybe this will change in the future, but we don't want this to happen yet!

Kalaya's belly button has completely healed, so we have taken some baths. So far she is not thrilled with it, but we'll keep trying! She had a visit this week from her great-aunt Patti from Wyoming, which was special. She also went to Salem for the first time to visit her paternal grandparents and other family members for a Memorial Day BBQ. She attended her first softball game and did great at everything! Big week!

My recovery continues to go well. I am still sore at my incision, but am off all pain killers. I have taken some walks, but have ended up sore afterwards, so I'm really trying to still take it easy. I'm hoping to feel better soon, poor Pippy is feeling neglected from not getting to take our walks anymore! Nursing is still going great, now we're attempting to introduce a bottle as well. So far, Kalaya is furious about it, but we'll keep trying. She has taken the Soothie a couple of times, so there's hope. It's not a HUGE priority for us, just more for convenience, since I won't be having to go back to work or anything. I just may want to go to the movies or something some day. Plus, I know Nelson would like to be able to feed her once in a while. Her sleeping habits are getting fairly regular, still waking to feed everything 3 hours, but we had one night where she slept for 5 hours and one where she slept for 7!! We've had a few tough crying times where she was so over-the-top exhausted that it took a long time of screaming to get her to sleep, but all in all, a very happy, pleasant baby!

2 weeks old

Today was Kalaya's 2 week appointment. Despite the fact that she cried almost the whole time (she was hungry!), everything went great! She has already gained a whole pound since her last appointment! She is 8 lbs, 4 oz and is now 21 inches long. She is in the 75th percentile for length and 55th percentile for height. Doctor says she looks great and must be a good eater, which we knew! She's now big enough to fit in the Bijorn and her cloth diapers, which we will start soon. (we're waiting for her belly button to completely heal, which it almost has) She still fits comfortably in Newborn sizes, but I'm starting to try some 0-3 month outfits, most of which have still been too big. I'm not in a hurry. She also had to have some lab work done, which meant a poke in the foot to draw some blood. She screamed the entire time, and I got choked up. Nelson was the one that held her down, I don't think I could have done that. However, the lab attendant said that we were, "The best parents he'd ever had" when doing lab work with a newborn. I guess he has a lot of people who really break down and can't handle it! I just kept telling her, "This is to make sure you're healthy, it's to help you!", although I think I was saying it more to myself than to her! The doctor also prescribed some vitamin drops for her, since apparently breast milk needs vitamin D supplemented. All in all, excellent appointment!

We've started to adjust to her eating and sleeping routine. She continues to sleep best on a body, but will also sleep well on her positioner, bouncer or, most recently, her swing. We continue to co-sleep, with her between us on her positioner, so she stays in place and on her back. I look at my nights as a 12 hour stretch and my days as the same. We spend about 12 hours in bed, waking to eat every 3 hours or so, then dressed and around the house the other 12 hours of the day, usually eating every 2-3 hours (although I often nap with her at least one time during the day). She is getting more alert and focused when she's awake. She likes having some tummy time and holds her head up longer and longer. Her eyes are focusing on more objects as well. She enjoys being read to, sung to, riding in the car, looking at faces, feeling breezes on her face, swinging and snuggling. She is a pretty easy going baby and only cries when she's hungry or getting really tired. She has pretty much stopped crying during time on the changing table, unless she is also tired or hungry. I am starting to try pumping, for comfort reasons, and also because the doctor said she should be ready to go ahead and try a bottle, as well as pacifiers. We have tried the soothies a few times, but so far she's not too interested. We just want to be able to use them when she's overly tired. She nurses for comfort when she's tired, but isn't hungry and has ended up spitting up, due to being over fed. We're still experimenting!

We had newborn pictures taken of her yesterday. A woman that friends of ours recommended came out to the house to do it, so we didn't have to go somewhere, which was really nice. We should have a link to the pictures in the next few days. Kalaya was not crazy about getting the pictures done, but we think we got some cute pictures.

We feel like we're slightly starting to figure out a routine and that we've adjusted to waking up every few hours. Nelson will go back to work half time on Tuesday and then full time in mid-June. We're grateful he has time at home and have enjoyed the special time the 3 of us have had getting to know each other as a family. We are totally in love with our little girl and can't believe 2 weeks have already flown by!

Week 1 (slightly late, almost to 2 weeks!)

(I put her back in the belly cast and she still fits! 1 week old)

Well, the first 1/2 of the first week of Kalaya's life was, of course, spent at the hospital. Everything went really well and I started recovering quickly. We stayed until Saturday afternoon. (4 days) We considered staying another day, only because it was so convenient to have food on demand and any help we needed. However, by the time Saturday came around, we were ready to go home. My pain levels weren't too bad. There was one time the nurses let me sleep instead of waking me up for my meds; BIG MISTAKE! I was in a lot of pain and didn't realize it until I had started getting up to try walking and ended up crying and in a LOT of pain. The nurses didn't seem to realize that it was higher pain than when my meds were working and tried to get me to keep going and OUCH. Other than that, my pain was managed very well. All of the nurses were great! They were so helpful and friendly. Kalaya got to stay in the room with us the whole time other than once each every evening when she was weighed. She dropped a few ounces (I think she was at 6 lbs 11 oz at her lowest), but we expected that. She did GREAT with nursing and as a result, my milk came in after only 2 days. And, luckily for Nelson, the muconium (sp?) poops went away quickly as a result! She slept pretty well at the hospital too, we co-slept with her. I loved waking up and having her next to me in my bed. The nurses were very supportive of her sleeping with me, it made nursing easier and kept her really warm! We had some visitors in the hospital, but not too many, which was perfect. We got a lot of time just the 3 of us, which was what we wanted.

Kalaya came home on Saturday, May 9th. My parents met us at our apartment, along with Pippy. We had sent home a blanket with them, from the hospital, so Pippy could smell Kalaya, but she apparently wasn't too interested. She sniffed Kalaya and didn't react much, but at least she wasn't mad! She acted a little worried about Kalaya's cries the first day, but after that has done great! She likes to give Kalaya kisses.

Being at home has been a special time for all of us. My recovery gets better every day and I feel more active as time goes on. We went for our 2 day Mommy/Baby check-up on Monday and Kalaya had already gained back her lost ounces and a little more! (7 lbs, 4 1/2 oz) The nurse said she must be eating well and to keep it up! She raved about how well she and I were doing. (Nelson too of course!) She acted really surprised that my milk had fully come in and that Kalaya's digestive system was on track already. Kalaya tested slightly jaundice, but the number was low enough that there's nothing extra we need to do. All in all, healthy baby, healthy mama!

As far as sleep goes, she's doing alright. She sleeps longer if she's on one of us, like we did in the hospital. We continue to co-sleep with the 3 of us in our bed and wouldn't have it any other way! It's wonderful to wake up to her little noises in the night, no matter how tired we are. Nelson has been great about changing diapers, doing laundry, cleaning and preparing food, as it is still hard for me to move around and get up and down. Kalaya eats often and therefore needs to be changed often, which means she is healthy! She only really cries when she's hungry or getting changed, there's not much guessing with her. We can sometimes get 3 hours at a time of sleep, so we're trying to take everyone's advice and sleep when she sleeps. We've had some visitors, but haven't been overwhelmed, which is good. She is wearing only Newborn size clothes, everything else I've tried is too big! We are thankful everything is going well and glad to be home together as a family!

Kalaya's Birth Story

I was scheduled for my cesarean birth at 6:00am on Wednesday, May 6th, 2009. Nelson and I went out to dinner at Red Lobster the night before, which is one of our favorite places. We celebrated that we were about to become parents! I had a hard time sleeping Tuesday night and only got a couple of hours. We got up at 4:45, showered, finished last minute packing and left for the hospital. We arrived right around 6 and checked in. Megan, our doula was there to greet us. My mom arrived shortly after we checked in. We were admitted to a room and Nelson, Mom and Megan went with us. Nelson scrubbed up and mom was given scrubs to stand by, just incase baby and Nelson had to leave me after delivery. The procedure was explained to us and we met with the anesthesiologist, who was very kind and comforting. We also got the nurse I had requested ahead of time, Julie!! I was so happy when she walked in, I started crying. She has just wonderful, positive energy and I knew she would help us to have the birth experience we desired. We checked baby's position one more time on the ultrasound and sure enough, she was still head up. At that point, I didn't care, I was so ready to have her be born and meet her, I couldn't wait! We went over my birth plan and we were told that everything about it could be done, which we were so grateful for!! We filled out paperwork, shaved me, and Julie got my IV started. We were basically waiting for Dr. Coranado to come by and give us the go that she was ready to get started. I started feeling really anxious, so Julie prayed with us and I cried a little. Then Nelson and I read baby her "in utero" Dr. Seuss book one last time and took some final pictures with my belly:




Then, it was time to get started! I walked down to the recovery room, peed one last time (I knew I was NOT going to miss having to go to the bathroom every 5 minutes!!!) and was walked into the operating room. Nelson had to wait until after I was prepped, so I went in with only the doctor's and nurses, which I hadn't realized would happen. I started getting really freaked out, especially when I sat down on the operating table, but the nurses were so kind and the anethesiologist was so nice and reassuring. He administered the spinal, which wasn't painful, just weird. He gave me a shot to numb me before the spinal, which hurt quite a bit, but was over quickly. My body responded fast and well to the meds and they laid me down and started getting everything ready. During this time the anesthesiologist was right by my side, saying so many positive things and telling me how well I was doing. The drape went up and Nelson came in. After that, I was ready! Everything happened REALLY fast after that. I didn't feel any pain, but I was aware of everything going on behind the drape and they let us know everything that was happening. The next thing I knew, they said they were going to cut open my uterus, push on my tummy and she'd be here! They said, "Yup, she is a breech baby, I see her buttocks!!" and the next thing we knew, we heard a big beautiful strong cry and Kalaya had arrived! They brought her around the drape to show her to me and then took her to the warmer. She looked so big and round and red to me and so beautiful! Nelson and I were crying and just so happy. She kept crying and it was so strong! They also told us that my uterus was healthy and that I would likely be able to have a VBAC in the future. Kalaya knew what she was doing staying breech; the cord was wrapped around her neck twice and turning would have made for a harder delivery, with a cesarean likely anyway. Nelson went over to see her, take pictures and cut the cord:














She was swaddled, given a hat and went right over to me. I was able to touch her and kiss her and have her up on my shoulder the whole time they were finishing up. They weighed her, 7 lbs, 3 oz. Then I was wheeled into recovery, where Nelson was able to have her skin-to-skin, until my body had calmed a bit (I was really shaking) and until I was hooked up to everything:




























Then, I was able to hold her skin to skin and she immediately latched on and started to nurse like a champ! She had tried to nurse on Nelson, unsuccessfully! She nursed for a good long time and then had her exam with the nurse. Her Apgar score was a 9 and she was 20 1/2 inches long. She had her first pee on the scale and then Nelson got to help give her a bath:

I got to continue to hold her and spend time with her, while eating ice chips and while the feeling started returning to my toes. We were all taken to our room and then all of our family came to visit. Our time in the hospital was great, I recovered very quickly and was able to go home on Saturday, as hoped. I had some very minor complications with pain meds and then needed some extra help with nursing, but other than that (and pain from my incision) everything was wonderful! Nelson got lots of practice changing diapers. He did an amazing job with me during my recovery and with Kalaya. He is already a fantastic father and I have fallen in love with him all over again. You start to learn the true meaning of romance when your husband has to help you do everything, most of which are very personal. Kalaya is beautiful, healthy and wonderful and I wouldn't change anything about our experience. We are so, so happy and honestly don't know how life was before she arrived! Thank you to all of our visitors, friends and family who came to see us in the hospital! We love you!