Things I Am Learning

~Liam is fussy
~a demand fed baby is more work than I ever could have imagined
~putting on make up and doing my hair is the one treat I do for myself each day and it feels good ~I can actually function on 3-4 hours of sleep
~not all babies like soothers...even dipped in gripe water
~VW Jettas do not have enough room for three children....we are car shopping
~post partum bodies should not be viewed in mirrors
~swollen legs and ankles don't just disappear after pregnancy....still waiting....
~I will not be able to respond to each of the 200+ emails I have received over the past 3 days...but thanks everyone

Some of you have asked for the 'birth story'. There isn't much to tell. We got to the hospital at 6:15 am. I was prepped for surgery and everything was on time. The spinal took a little longer for some reason and I have a nasty bruise on my back to show for it! The operation was smooth...Keith was with me most of the time. He only left to watch Liam get weighed and cleaned up. I felt very relaxed during surgery. The recovery room was good too....I think the nurses there gave me the best care of my whole hospital stay. I was very sad to find out that Keith and Liam could not be with me in recovery. I had been told otherwise but due to staff shortages it wasn't possible. After I got back to my room some nurse but morphine in my IV against what my chart said and I got very sick. Keith had 'words' with her and it was promptly removed but the gravol I was given to counteract the nausea made me super groggy for the rest of the afternoon. I had so many visitors that day and the next. I appreciated everyone coming so much! The nurse I had for that evening was not really in top form. She kept forgetting to change my IV and Keith kept having to run out to get her. We felt like since it was our third baby they sort of just left us alone. Nice in a way but I did need some basic care! The next day I felt amazing....so good! The doctor came in the late afternoon and said that since I was feeling good (and I think they needed the bed :)) that I could opt to go home that night instead of the morning. He didn't have to ask twice. We were out of there like a shot after dinner. So fast we forgot to get post op instructions for my incision and Liam's umbilical cord clamp removed. Luckily the health unit called on Sunday afternoon so we were able to ask all the questions we had forgotten about. She was very helpful.
So I am home...feeling quite well if I keep on top of my pain meds. I am nursing like crazy. Liam wants to eat and eat and eat some more. I do have milk though and am so grateful for that. I am drinking my special herbal tea and it seems to be doing what it's supposed to. I hope that once my milk supply is established I'll have Liam into a bit of a routine.

Thanksgiving for Miracles

Keith saved our baby's life last night.
Please read the email I sent out to my family this afternoon......

We went to bed. I fed Liam and Keith put him in his bassinette which was switched over to K's side of the bed for ease of access. The night before had been horrible with K having to get up and down out of bed a million times to get Liam for me. He was fussy and we finally put him down and settled down to sleep around 2 am. All of a sudden Liam started to choke on mucus. Now this happened at the hospital and it was while the nurse was bathing him so we learned how to deal with it. C-section babies can have extra mucus in their lungs they must bring up because it doesn't get squeezed out in the birth canal. So we held him on his tummy with his head to the side and patted his back really hard. But instead of the mucus coming out it went up his nose, his throat shut down and he couldn't breathe! His color changed and his arms were flailing in panic. Keith yelled at me to call 911 and at the fear in his voice I did just that. I was completely hyper ventilating on the phone with the operator and she was so calm. It was absolutely surreal. She dispatched both ambulance and fire rescue immediately. Keith worked on Liam and resorted to putting his mouth over Liam's nose and sucking out the mucus. This seemed to help to he could at least breathe but his breathing was laboured. I stayed on the line with the operator until the guys got to our house which seemed like 10 years. Keith worked on Liam, patting him and thumping his back etc.
I let in Fire Rescue and when they saw Keith (being that he's their co-worker) they were more than shocked. Keith was able to tell them in medical speak what the issue was but by then Liam was drastically improving and the panic was dying down. The ambulance arrived..actually they sent the Advanced Life Support Unit. You won't ever hear me say one bad thing about a paramedic EVER! These guys were incredible. They checked Liam out thoroughly and didn't make us feel dumb for calling them and were just so supportive. We decided against going to the hospital as his vitals were excellent by this time.
They all went home and I collapsed into hysterics. I never realized how much I loved this little baby! I would have gladly died for him.
Anyhow....it was rather difficult to sleep after that. We had adrenalin pumping through our veins. We took Liam to our bed and sleep for about an hour. We are rather scared to leave him alone now for even ONE second. We may just sleep in shifts tonight.....and until he's past this 'newborn' stage. Not sure when we can be assured the mucus is all up. We'll talk to the doctor about it on Friday at our appt.
Could you pray for us as a family? The boys didn't wake up but we told them about it in the morning and it really scared them. We could use a little peace of mind around here. Keith was at the fire hall today talking to the crews and his co-workers as they all saw the report this morning and were so worried about us. We're really relieved it all turned out okay.

Three Day Old Darling

In love....so in love! I can't believe I ever said I didn't want to have this baby!!! I'm an eejit.

Official Annoucement

Introducing

~Liam Michael Dyck~

September 26, 2008

8:33 am

7 lbs 6 oz

50 cm

This Is It!

In less than 12 hours I'm going to be meeting our new son!
I am a jumble of emotions right now. Mostly feeling quite unsettled, a little impatient, a lot tired, and nervous too!
There's no backing out now. It's time!
We dropped the kids off at my parent's tonight. I feel for them. They are excited but their lives are really going to change. Chad told me today at breakfast that it won't be the same because I'll be busy with the baby and won't be able to do stuff for him and Nathan anymore. I reassured him that I would be there for him just as before. He must have all sorts of thoughts running through his little mind. I think I'd better love him a little extra in the upcoming weeks!
The baby is squirming around as I type and I am not going to miss the jabs, kicks and punches. I am not one of those gals who really enjoys pregnancy. I am thankful though that my pregnancies are uncomplicated.
Well, I think I'd better try and get some sleep. We have to be at the hospital at 6:15 am. What the heck?! The surgery is scheduled for 8:00 am.
Thank-you to all of you who have let me know how much you care and for all your prayers and encouragement!
Next time I am on blogger it will be posting pictures of the new little man.

Our Evening

Okay so we didn't take ANY photos of our anniversary dinner. For shame!

We had a wonderful and leisurely dinner at the Bedford House tonight. I totally stepped out of my comfort zone and order a dish with lots of mushrooms. I admit I gave Keith about 2/3 of them but I ate quite a few and it was quite tasty! It was great to catch up and chat about all that is to come in the next few days.

Keith gave me this card. I love it! And I loved it last year too. Yes, he ended up buying the same card as last year and didn't even know it. The message bears repeating and he can give me this card every year if he likes!

Oh My!

Today has been a whirlwind!

I told Kori it felt like my wedding day or something at work. All the attention, hugs, smiles, and good wishes going on. It was crazy!

Everyone is so excited for me and my head is spinning. It feels really strange to now be off work for a whole year. No doubt, I'll adjust though :)

Pictures from left to right:

The start of the day.....having a 'cup' of popcorn!

Plant from my mom for our anniversary

Cookies from a co-worker....I also was treated to a lovely lasagna lunch with a tasty fresh green salad!

Flowers from my thoughtful husband

Apple tart which was really good

Kori and Vicki and myself at work

The flowers again

Major Events

1. It's my LAST day of work for ONE WHOLE YEAR!

2. It's our 14th wedding anniversary!

3. Our garage door broke this morning and Keith cannot get his vehicle out of the garage!

I'll post photos later. Just gonna try and get through the day first!!!!

My Handy-Man

I always have a list of 'to-do' for Keith. He loves it! (insert sarcasm)

In the past month or two our kitchen faucet has been acting obnoxious. It wouldn't swivel to the right side of the sink at all. It would just snap back. Keith tried to fix it and it was great for about a month and then it started up again. We decided that instead of paying a plumber to come and fix it we would just get a new faucet. I'm pretty sure they would have come out to the same price.

The old system....looked fine but was not working properly

We found a really nice European style faucet at Cdn Tire on sale last week which we bought. This afternoon when Keith attempted to install it he found that it wasn't the right mount for our sink. Whatever that means. Actually what it meant was that we had to return it and find something else! So we did.

We came home with another faucet and Keith (with his gimpy neck) spent a great deal of time under the sink this evening installing it. He told me that he now knows why plumbers charge so much money. It was hard work! I'm happy to say it's all installed and working perfectly! Oh the joys of home ownership....there is ALWAYS something to be done!

What I really like about this new faucet is the goose-neck style. I can easily fit my large water jug under it to fill up and my huge stock pot. It's the little things.

Thankful

Today I am especially thankful for my mom and Oma who have so generously provided us with a box of home canning. Peaches, pears, apricots and applesauce!

It's almost too pretty to eat.

I'm so looking forward to sleeping in tomorrow. And I do use that term loosely. Sleeping in to me simply means waking up without the aid of an alarm clock. It could be 7 am or it could be 9 am....it's always a surprise. It seems like it's been a long week and I am weary.

Our appointment with the anethetist went very well today. I really liked him and feel like I will be in good hands during the surgery. Nathan was at a friend's house for the afternoon/evening so we took Chad out for sushi. It was SO good. Chad is such an adventurous eater. We knew he already liked the rolls and tempura but tonight he also enjoyed miso soup, tofu and sunamono salad. It's fun to take him out!

Ramblings

Today was my one day off this week so I set myself a list of 'to-do' and got busy. I have accomplished quite a bit and am now taking a rest....doing what I like to do!
I've had two visitors this morning who both brought me a load of things for the baby. I have been very blessed with friends who have lent me clothes, toys and baby equipment. This baby will have all it needs for his first year of life as far as equipment goes! We are completely set for newborn clothes....I hope he can even wear all of them. Thank you to those of you have brought over all these wonderful things!
This afternoon I am making two casseroles to put into the freezer for those post partum days when making dinner will seem like an impossible task. So far a broccoli lasanga has been made and will work on the deluxe macaroni and cheese after the boys are home from school. I hope to get a couple of more dishes made next week as well.
Yesterday I had my pre-admission clinic at the hospital. That appointment definitely made things seem very close and VERY real. Yikes! Also made me remember all the unpleasant aspects of surgery. Oh well.....I survived the other two and I shall survive this one as well!
Tomorrow I have an appointment again at the hospital but this time with the anethetist. He wants to meet me just because of the whole rheumatic fever/heart murmur issue. I also want to confirm with him about my post surgery meds because I get nauseous VERY easily and am keen to have him give me meds that will not cause me to puke the rest of the day as they did with Nathan and Chad. Unpleasant to say the least.
A quick update on the cat....she is on death's door yet is hanging on with all ten claws to this life. She didn't eat or drink for 4 days but as of yesterday I was able to get her to eat a few teaspoons of plain yogurt and lick an ice cube several times a day. I feel for the poor creature. We also have been able to get her to take a few tiny bites of wet cat food that we douse with extra water for hydration. Man.....the timing on this issue is all wrong. If she is going to get better I hope she makes a really strong comeback before next Friday!

Another Success

Everything I have baked so far from the 'Mennonite Girls Can Cook' website has been a complete success. How's that for an endorsement?

Tonight I attempted Lovella's Apple Bars. Delightful!


My boys all gave it a big thumbs up!

Cats & Cravings

Here's a picture of my sick kitty cat. Bailey is home....very very thin and not too active these days. She is taking her medication well and hopefully it will kick in and do something for her. I almost feel like the diagnosis cost so much we should keep her around a while.....she's all of a sudden a bit more valuable! I hope none of you think I'm a cold hearted person...I do like animals! I just don't like this one in particular. She shred my couch to pieces about 11 years ago and ever since I've really had issues with her! Talk about holding a grudge, hey? (Those are my dreadful peel and stick lino tiles in my laundry room that irk me everytime I look at them. We really hope to get a new floor down there in the near future!)

Sometimes when I have a craving and that particular thing is not available I will try to eat other things. This never works. It just leaves me with a stronger craving for the particular item. In this case it was a slush....been wanting one for days. After school today we swung by the Circle K and pick up slushies. The boys were BEYOND ecstatic as they very rarely (as in maybe twice a year) get to have this sugar loaded treat. Yum....I had root beer and the craving has been satisfied.

12 Days to Go!

Nathan and Chad bought this little bunny for their new brother. They are very excited to bring it to the hospital for the new baby!

PS. I am feeling much better today. Amazing what a full night's sleep with NO bathroom breaks can do for a person.

PG-13 Rant ( language may offend some readers)

My Effing Cat

(disclaimer: I am irrational, emotional and prone to extreme mood shifts)

Oh I am so mad today....SO mad.
I hope that by ranting in this email I'll feel better. Somehow I think not.
As most of you know, Bailey has been ill since winter. She has lost half of her body weight, been puking and had chronic diarrhoea.
FINALLY we broke down to take her to the vet because we figured if she was deathly ill then we would put her down. One does get sick of cleaning up her messes (Keith).
So Keith took her in yesterday to have an assessment. The vet found a mass in her intestines and told K to leave her overnight so they could do some blood work etc. Okay.
Keith explained that if she had a chronic condition we would just put her down.....no heroics here on a 12 year old cat please. We just are not the type of people that will shell out medication on a daily basis to prolong an animal's life who already OLD.
So Keith got a call to pick up the cat today. Turns out she has hyperthyroidism. Who the hell knew cats could get that? For Pete's sake. And if we give her a pill twice a day for the rest of her life she will make a complete turn around and be the cat she used to be. Super. Keith was sent home with a bottle of pills and a bill so FREAKING huge that I cannot bring myself to EVER disclose the amount. It makes me absolutely SICK how much we were charged to find this out. I am royally upset with the vet at his service. He did not explain that this would be expensive. He made it sound like simple bloodwork. He did not tell us they would be charging massive amounts for misc items like.....catheter or IV etc. Let me tell you.....my blood pressure is THROUGH the roof over this.
ANYHOW...after a HEATED discussion, Keith and I have decided that since we have the pills she will get them but once the bottle is gone we are NOT buying anymore. We'll let her get ill again and then put her down. It seems wrong to me to let her improve to only euthanize her but we simply are not prepared with all that is going on in our life with a new baby to shove pills down a cat's throat twice a day for possibly the next 5-10 years. Nope.
Anyhow....I've vented. I don't feel better. And I am very turned off to owning a pet ever again! They are TOO expensive!

16 days to go

This is the same bassinette Keith and his siblings used. Nate and Chad used it as well and it will do just fine for the final child in our family!

Shawna

I got a surprise message on my facebook page a few weeks ago. My highschool friend Shawna was in town and wanted to get together for a quick visit.

She and her family moved to Alberta eons ago so I rarely get to see her. I don't think she likes the computer as much as I do because we don't really email back and forth. Getting to see her was a real treat.

She looks exactly the same as she did in high school and is as funny as ever. Her hubby and kids showed up at the park as well. Hard to believe she already has a daughter in the 9th grade!

I know Shawna doesn't read my blog but it was great to see you, old friend!!!!!!

The Wall

For those of you who have been pregnant, do you remember nearing the end of the nine months and feeling like you simply cannot and do not want to go on?

Yes, I have hit THAT wall.

I could use some prayers of encouragement. I have great support from Keith but he is a man and truly cannot empathize with how I am feeling.

I am pre-mourning the loss of my freedom. I am seeing so much around me that needs to be done before Sept 26th and don't have the energy to accomplish. I am feeling a bit neglected by certain people I had hoped to depend on. My heartburn is incredibly painful and my stomach muscles burn from being stretched beyond reason. Oh I could go on but this is getting ugly.

This sound like a pathetic pity party but it's my reality at the moment.

I sure hope I am in a better frame of mind soon!

Back to Regular Broadcasting

So now that I've gotten that off my chest I thought I'd post some yumminess.

I made this recipe off of (you guess it!) the Mennonite Girls Can Cook blog. These are easy and very yummy. Nathan and Chad LOVE them and told me then remind them of the churros they ate in Disneyland.

Cinnamon Twists.....it makes lots which is handy for school lunch boxes! Just be sure no one in your child's class has a cinnamon allergy. LOL!!!!!!!!

Also, my official last day of work has been decided. Sept 24th is THE DAY! Very exciting! That gives me ONE day to organize myself and apply for EI benefits. Talk about last minute. I feel good enough to work to the end and would rather have time off after the baby is born than before.

Irritations

1. My outlook express is acting up. There are items in my sent box and inbox that simply will not delete! Have any of you experienced this? If so, can you help me? I've done a virus scan, re-booted, and tried the online support for Microsoft. No solutions yet.....

2. Nathan has a peer in his class that is allergic to FISH! So in addition to not being able to have peanut butter in his sandwiches, now he can't have tuna. I am super annoyed as that leaves the deli meat option which isn't healthy to eat everyday. What's left? Cheese? Jam? He won't eat egg salad unfortunately :( Sigh.....it just sucks.

Holiday Re-Cap

We spent five days last week at our family property in Oroville. I took a lot of photos, as did my Dad but I'll only post a few highlights. Seems I take the same sort of pictures each year anyhow!

We had a good time. The weather gave us a bit of everything. We had a cloudy day, a smoking hot day, and a few very windy days. No rain though and for that I am thankful! I love the desert air.....my skin dries up, my hair straightens beautifully and one can take a lovely deep breath of clean air. No wonder my grandparents are still going at full speed at their age. They just don't stop! The garden was yielding wonderful peppers while we were there. The orchard was full of plums, peaches, nectarines, grapes and apricots. It's quite a feast and our tummies didn't quite know what hit them! We love our annual trip to Oroville.

This was funny! I fell into the water trying to get into the canoe. My centre of gravity is all wrong and I shouldn't have even attempted it!!!!!!!

Traditional First Day Pose

Here are the kids. You know the drill......slick down the hair, fix the collar, wash the face....SNAP. Mom takes a few pictures and it's another school year.

Nathan was a bit nervous because he has a new teacher to the school and his best friend is not in his class this year. When I picked him up from the bus he had a mega-watt smile and said he had an awesome day. Hmmm....didn't I tell him that yesterday? It's Nate last year of elementary school and with that comes many special priveledges. They get to sit in real chairs at assembly instead of the floor, sign up to be lunch monitors, ring the bell for dismal, recess and lunch etc. He's excited about all these things. They have already planned his grad trip! Next weekend they are going hiking and kayaking at Deep Cove. Very fun!

Chad was pretty excited about grade 2. His teacher is lovely and he's got lots of friends in his class. All he said was that recess seemed way too short. Sounds like it's going to be a good year for both kids!

Yeah for September!

There goes August....happy September 1st!

Wow, another page on the calendar flipped over. This is THE month for us. Back in January it seemed like a LONG ways off and now we are very close to holding this new baby.

Last Wednesdsay morning we had an appointment to see my OB-GYN before we left on our holiday. As we walked into her office we thought it looked a little bare. The receptionist told us that we were her very FIRST patients to have an appointment at her new Abbotsford practice! Not to be confused with her first patients ever....she does come from Women's Hospital in Vancouver. It was interesting being the first. I was made to fill in a very detailed health questionairre. There were all sort of questions about my 'reproductive' health and general questions as well. After filling in all the gritty details I got to the last page and had such a good laugh that I was entirely relaxed by the time I met Dr Goswami. The question was 'Have you had sexual intercourse'? ROFLMAO! Is THAT what happened? I looked down at my enormous belly and was tempted to tick 'no'....just for fun :)

Anyhow, I am easily amused. Dr G. is a most wonderful lady. She is about my age and very very nice. I am SO happy to be in her care for the caesarean. She answered all my questions to my satisfaction and took lots of time with me. She told me that she thinks this a 'good sized baby'. Oi! She also was really good about checking out my heart murmur as I have been told from some doctors I still have one and some doctors that I do not. It gets rather confusing. She listened intently and told me that yes I still a faint murmur and therefore must go on penicillin before surgery. Better safe than sorry I say!

She let us decide between having the baby on Sept 22nd or 26th. Our anniversary is the 24th so we chose the 26th so we could at least celebrate that before the big event! So that will be our baby's birthday as far as we know. I could go into labour before and mess up the schedule but I doubt it!

If any of my blogger friends would like to come and visit in the hospital you are VERY welcome. There are no set visiting hours at the new hospital so just come on up!