October 31, 2007 (Venily 2 weeks, 4 days old)



I'm so bad at updating this now, Venily and I are so busy during the day- she's asleep on my lap right now so I thought I'd update before I tried to take a shower, lol!

Venily had so much fun trick-or-treating on Sunday and seeing all of her family at her Grandma and Grandpa's house! She just slept the WHOLE time, lol! On Monday she had her doctor's appointment and she is doing really well! She was 8 pounds and 9 ounces and 22 inches long!!! She's already starting to outgrow some of her clothes even though she couldn't fit into anything when we brought her home from the hospital. So, she has definitely gotten back to her birth weight and then some, so we know she is getting enough to eat, which is hard to tell when you're nursing. I'm still charting when I feed her and for how long and stuff like a neurotic mother, but it makes me feel better to do it! Her next appointment is her 2 month appointment in 6 weeks and she has to get shots! :( I'm not looking forward to that part.

Other than that, she is hitting all of her other milestones on time or ahead of schedule. LOL, I'm reading through all of my books and making sure she can do everything that she is supposed to be able to do! Having a teacher for a mom is probably going to get old for her after a while though.

October 27, 2007 (Venily 2 weeks old)

Venily is already 2 WEEKS OLD TODAY, I can't even believe how fast the time has gone!!! Her cord has completely fallen off and I'm really excited that I can finally give her a real bath now! I might do it tonight or maybe tomorrow when Jason is home and can help me. I have a feeling that she is going to hate it because she HATES even getting her diaper or clothes changed. She likes to be covered up at all times! I think I'm going to run the hot water in the bathroom for a while to get it all steamy and warm in there before I give her a bath so hopefully she'll like it more.

She's also getting good at holding up her head for short bits at a time. When she's awake, she LOVES to lay on my shoulder and look around at everything with her big, beautiful eyes. She looks so cute and curious, lol! Jason is convinced that she looks just like him, but I'm not too sure. I want to see newborn pics of Jason to compare her! She looks nothing like I did as a newborn though.

Tomorrow Venily is going trick-or-treating with Matthew and Kaitlyn and she's really excited about it! Cathy and her family got her a really cute pumpkin Halloween costume! I can't wait to see what she looks like in it!

Venily is still sleeping really good at night. She just moves around a little and makes little noises when she's hungry, which wakes me up. Then I usually change her (which she hates and usually cries the whole time) but as soon as I button her clothes back up she is happy, then I feed her and burp her and she falls right back to sleep for another 3 hours or so! Today we went grocery shopping for the first time together and that went well too. It's a bit more stressful, but she was only fussy for a little bit and slept the majority of the time. I definitely won't be shopping on a Saturday again if I can help it though.

Monday is Venily's 2 week doctor follow up visit! I can't wait to see how much she's grown!! I still haven't put up my pictures, but I will soon! Oh, and I got her announcements done. I'm not really impressed with them. Walmart screwed them up like they usually do with all of my pictures. I ordered 50 and the first 50 they did too light and so they did another 50 that are too dark. So, they gave me all of them. Oh well! I made an online announcement too that you can look at if you are interested:

http://www.birthvillage.com/?bID=1536&p=1020381021

I also submitted her info to the Kenosha News and The Journal Times so please keep a look out for her birth announcement in those two papers and let me know if you find them (I'm not sure if I get either of those papers)!


I wanted to get newborn pictures of Venily done, but seeing as she is already 2 weeks I don't think I'm going to. :( But, I will be getting her 1 month pictures taken in 2 weeks!

October 24, 2007 (Venily 1 week, 4 days old)

Venily is doing great! She is only 11 days old today, but she already looks so big and grown up! She's eating a lot- about every 2-3 hours and sleeps a lot too, I still have to wake her up sometimes during the day to eat. She's starting to stay awake for longer periods of time too and looks around at everything. We've been busy the last couple of days going places! She's already been to Target, Walgreens, Walmart, Yorkville school, Wheatland school, and all around Burlington. She's so good in her car seat and driving in the van- she just sleeps the whole time! Her eyes are starting to look darker gray and her umbilical cord is starting to fall off today too.

I'm good and trying to get sleep. Some nights I get more sleep than others. I think I try to get too much done during the day though and I really need to start taking naps during the day, but sometimes I'm so busy I completely forget to even eat too, which also doesn't help. But, I wouldn't trade it all for ANYTHING!!! Venily is sooooo precious! Her little face just melts my heart. Especially her little expressions- like when she doesn't want to eat and clamps her lips together and sticks out her bottom one, it's so fricken cute... or when she is looking up at you and concentrating and wrinkles up her forehead and slants her eyebrows, lol!! I love her so much! And Jason said that no matter what's gone wrong during his day, all he has to do is look at her little face and it makes him feel better! :)

I have more pictures to put up, but I don't know when I'll ever get to them, lol! I have more errands to run today around Burlington, I still need to eat lunch, and I have a lot to do around the house, plus I really should take a nap!

October 19, 2007 (Venily 6 days old)

Okay, I guess it's about time I updated this!


LABOR STORY:

So, I called Jason on Saturday the 13th and told him very calmly that I thought I was in labor, but I wasn't sure and that first time babies take like an average of 14 hours to get here so I told him not to rush home. I packed our bags and cleaned up around the house in case today was the day. I vaccuumed, did laundry, did the dishes and picked things up, lol, all while timing my contractions which were about 3-4 minutes apart. They were like menstral cramps though, nothing like the pain I see women in on most shows so I wasn't even sure I was really in labor! When Jason got home and saw the bags by the door and that I had already brought Xoey to my mom's, he was upset because he didn't realize how serious I was or he would have rushed home. I told him that we needed to go to the hospital right away because even if I wasn't in labor I was having a lot of bleeding and needed to go anyway. So.... off we went. I was timing the contractions in the car and they were 2-3 minutes apart and Jason started going faster and faster! I told him to slow down, lol, b/c I thought we'd get there and I'd be like 1 cm dilated and look like an idiot. All the while though the contractions were getting a bit stronger. I'd close my eyes through them and not talk and they'd last about 45 seconds and then I'd be fine and talking and laughing again. When we got to Labor and Delivery one of the first people we saw was Cathy! We were so happy that we came in on a day that she was working (she only works weekends) and she was really excited and we got to have her as our nurse!! I got put into a room right away and Cathy checked me and said "Wow, you are not going to believe this but you're 8 cm dilated already!" It was so crazy! I've seen enough Baby Stories and Birth Days to know that it was WAY too easy for me to already be at 8 cm. All of the other nurses couldn't believe it either. Then Cathy asked me if I wanted an epidural b/c if I didn't get it right then, it would be too late. I said yes and they gave me an I.V. (this one didn't hurt at all) and got the guy in there right away. The whole atmosphere in the room was so nice! The nurses were all talking and laughing and excited and I felt so at ease. The epidural wasn't too bad and about 20 minutes later my contractions had gotten a lot better, though I could still feel when I was having them. Cathy said that b/c I had gone so quickly the last two cm might take a while but when she checked me again a little bit later she said I was 9, almost 10cm and she broke my water by putting a heartrate monitor on the baby's head. A lot of people showed up to visit then. My mom, Rick, Lisa, Jacki, Jake & Kaitlyn, and Lauren. I started feeling uncomfortable during my contractions so Cathy checked me again and I was complete and she had me do a practice push to see if I needed my epidural turned off. I pushed and she said that the baby was coming quickly and that I was really good at pushing so she called my doctor and had me start pushing. Jacki said that she would videotape the birth for us- I was so excited but still in shock. I felt like I was in a dream b/c everything was moving so fast and nothing was as bad as I imagined it was going to be. The doctor came and after only 18 minutes of pushing (I don't know how some women push for hours, oh my gosh!), Venily was born! I didn't scream or anything I was just really focused and had my eyes closed the whole time, lol, though I did have to have a small episiotomy (which didn't hurt at the time and I was actually really thankful that it made it go faster, but it did make the next several days quite uncomfortable especially since I don't take pain medication). So, after being at the hospital for less than 2 hours, Venily was born at 4:28 p.m. and they put her on my chest as soon as she came out! I was overwhelmed with happiness and still in a dream-like state, not thinking that this could be real because it was so easy and I couldn't believe how gorgeous she was or that she had so much dark hair- I wasn't expecting that. All of the nurses kept telling me that I must have been meant to have children because of how easy it was for me! (But it runs in my family a lot of the women in my family have fast births, my dad was actually born in the car in the parking lot outside of the hospital!). Jason cut the cord- which he told me about later b/c I wasn't even paying attention- I think I had actually forgotten that he was in the room, lol, even though he never left my side the whole time. Then the nurses took her to the warming table to clean her up and weigh her and stuff while I got stitched up by my doctor. I watched the videotape right away b/c I was so interested and wanted to see what happened. It was crazy- I couldn't believe how big she was coming out, lol, but I was SOOO glad I had it taped b/c I would have completely missed it otherwise since I had my eyes closed. When the nurses were done with her, they wrapped her up and I got to hold her and then everyone else who had been waiting in the doorway and in the hallway came in and saw her.

The rest of the afternoon and night went really well. I was able to breastfeed then pretty quickly after she was born which I had been looking forward to for a while and she latched on good. Jason was so happy that everything went so well and called a bunch of people to tell them I had the baby. He was so good with her and so excited and in awe of her, I can't even believe it. He has surprised me so much and I just love him so much more than I could have imagined. He has never shown ANY interest in babies before but he loves his little girl so much! He holds her and stares at her for long periods of time and talks about how beautiful she is and everything. And a couple of times I went to the bathroom while I was at the hospital and I'd come back out to the room and he'd be holding her in his arms, walking around with her and singing made up songs to her- it was just SOOO cute!!

The first night at the hospital she slept ALL night long too! I slept for a total of 45 minutes and that was only because the nurses took her away to take her blood and stuff. Otherwise I just stared at her and I wasn't even tired in the least bit. I tried waking her up every 30 minutes to eat and I would change her diaper and play with her and talk to her and stuff, but she just kept on sleeping, lol. I definitely regretted not sleeping the next day though! I was so tired and every time I'd be close to falling asleep, some one would come to visit us. The next night then was AWFUL! I was REALLY tired and Venily wouldn't eat any more. I could tell she was hungry, but she hadn't gotten the swing of breastfeeding yet. She stayed awake all night and cried a lot. :( Because I had gotten less than 2 hours of sleep in 48 hours it was really hard on me. Jason kept wanting me to call the nurse to take her to the nursery or supplement her with formula but I didn't want to seem like a failure. Eventually I spoke with a nurse though and she really helped me out. She helped me get her to eat and then took her for about 2 hours so I could sleep and things have been all uphill from there!!!


THE FIRST FEW DAYS HOME

Oh my gosh, Venily has been such a little angel ever since we have been home. She sleeps really well, has been nursing great (almost every hour the first day and now about every 2-4 hours and I usually have to wake her up to eat or she would just keep on sleeping), and hardly ever cries (only if she's cold while I'm changing her or if she needs something, though I usually figure out what she needs before she gets to the point of crying)! Jason stayed home with me for the first couple of days and I basically took care of Venily and he took care of me! The only bad thing was being sore from the episiotomy but that has almost completely gone away now- and I'm not even tired like I thought I would be. I sleep for a couple of hours every time I'm tired and that is working out really well.

We went for Venily's follow up appointment on Wednesday and she was at 7lbs which was a 6.5% weight loss so that is really good (there is only a problem if there is an over 10% decrease)- and with her eating so well, I'm sure she'll be putting on a lot of weight now. They also said she has really good coloring and isn't jaundice at all- she completely takes after her father on the skin color- I was really pale. She has another follow up appointment on October 29th and I can't wait to see how much she's changed until then.

Other than that Venily and I basically just hang out, sleep, and eat! And yesterday we went on our first family walk! If I'm feeling brave I might trying going to the store with her later today, but I'm not really sure about that yet!

Yesterday was also Venily's due date! I'm really glad I'm not still pregnant! And I'm so happy that I had such an easy pregnancy, labor and delivery, and now an easy baby! My final count for my pregnancy was a weight gain of 23 pounds and as of yesterday I've lost it all except for 4 pounds- and to be fair, I'm pretty sure my boobs weigh at least that much more now, lol! And no stretch marks- I was really worried about that for a while! Overall I could not have asked for anything better- we're been so blessed that everything has worked out just perfectly!!

Thanks again to everyone who has congratulated us, stopped by, and/or given us cards and gifts (and food!!)- we really appreciate it! I put up some of the pictures on here, but we have so many it's hard to put them all up on all the different sites that I try to keep updated, so I put all of her pictures up on photobucket. You can see them here:

http://s52.photobucket.com/albums/g30/jennifer_reyer/Venily%20Just%20Born/

October 15, 2007 (2 days old)

We're back from the hospital and everyone is doing great!! Venily is the sweetest, prettiest little baby girl you ever saw and the delivery couldn't have gone more perfect if we had planned it!! I will write the details and labor story and put up our pictures as soon as I get some time. Right now we are relaxing, catching up on sleep, and enjoying being a family! Thanks to everyone who visited us at the hospital and/or called and congratulated us! We are just so incredibly happy right now!

Monday, October 15, 2007 5:30 PM

We’re home! Current mood: accomplished Venily is finally here and she is just perfect! She was born on Saturday, October 13th at 4:28 p.m. and weighed 7 lbs 8 oz and was 20 in long! And her labor was like a dream come true! I wasn't even sure that I was in labor when we finally decided to go to the hospital. I was bleeding and having contractions about 3-4 min apart, but nothing too bad like they make it seem on the movies. We went to the hospital and when I was checked, I was already 8 centimeters!!! Crazy! I had an epidural immediately b/c otherwise I wouldn't have been able to get one. Then less than 2 hours after we got to the hospital, she was born! Only 18 minutes of pushing and I never screamed or yelled or anything, it was a lot easier than I thought it was going to be! And now Venily is here and she is so sweet and so pretty. I haven't gotten much sleep and I did have to have an episiotomy, but other than that I don't even feel like I've given birth! I'm breastfeeding and that's going well, though a little painful at times. We're just so happy to have her and be home and start our family- it's an absolute dream come true! I will probably write a more detailed story on her baby home page site when I get some more time, but it's a lot of work taking care of a newborn, as you can imagine! I've also put up some of the pics we have of her, but we have tons and tons more and I'll try to put them up somewhere when I get the time!

October 13, 2007 (39 weeks, 2 days pregnant/ The day Venily is born!)

Well, this might be it!! I've been having really strong braxton hicks contractions the last two days but they didn't hurt at all. Now today I'm having regular painful contractions 3-4 minutes apart and have had lots of bleeding this morning. I'm going to try to stay at home as absolutely long as I can just to be sure, but all of our bags are packed and right next to the door in case we need to go! If anything we might just go to Kenosha and walk around so we're close to the hospital. My sister brought my laptop home so I might bring that with me and update while I'm there, but it doesn't always work, so we'll see! Wish us luck and a safe and happy, uncomplicated delivery and baby!!! I can't wait to finally see her!!!!!!

October 11, 2007 (39 weeks pregnant)

I'm 39 weeks today!!!! Wow, I'm really hoping I don't make it to 40, even though I'm still feeling pretty good and still doing almost everything I normally do!! I was born 5 days early and Jason was born on his due date, so there is really no telling when little miss Venily is going to make her appearance! I've been asking her to come this weekend so hopefully she listens. I hate not knowing exactly when she's going to come, it's driving me crazy. Every night before I go to bed I walk around my house and clean and put things away and get everything ready in case I go into labor during the night, lol. Last night I spent an hour doing dishes, straightening up my kitchen, and cleaning the bathroom while Jason was in bed! I just want to be ready and I know the one time I'm not is probably the time she's going to come.

So, keep your cell phones on you because we really are close now. Wow, 39 WEEKS, the time has flown by. But it also seems like I've been pregnant forever seeing as we conceived in January- that seems like so long ago!

October 9, 2007 (38 weeks, 5 days pregnant w/ Venily)

I'm STILL pregnant, lol, but there are only 9 days left now until Venily's due date, so the end is finally in sight. I'm getting so excited, but I don't think the reality has set in yet that I'm finally going to be getting the baby that I've wanted for so long! I still can't believe it!! I had another doctor's appointment yesterday and when I was done the doctor said "See you next Monday if I don't see you sooner" so that was really exciting to hear! Other than that, everything is still looking good. I'm not dilated :( but I'm thinned out even more and my cervix is getting soft. It's just a matter of waiting now.

Oh, and isn't this picture so cool?? It's a woman at 36 weeks pregnant and as of today I'm 38 weeks, 5 days, so she's even bigger- it's so CRAZY!

October 3, 2007 (37 weeks, 6 days pregnant w/Venily)

We're FINALLY in October with only 15 days left until Venily's due date!!! My appointment on Monday went well. I'm negative for Group B and even though I'm not dialated yet like I had hoped, I'm thinned out and her head is down low, so that is good. My doctor thinks that she's a good size, but won't be too big. He's thinking like 7 1/2 pounds at birth. I think I can handle that! He also said that most women deliver 3-4 days before or after their due date, but we'll probably have a better idea after my next appt. I wanted to have her this weekend, lol, but maybe next? Jason's got a lot of work going on now, so I guess that's for the best, but I want her out soon! Some nights I can hardly sleep at all. The doctor said he'd consider inducing me a couple of days after my due date, but I'm really hoping not to have to be induced.

Also, I got a new van!! I'm really happy with it too- it's perfect for us! We've been looking at getting a new van but last week I blew both of the brake lines out of my other van while backing out of my driveway and hit the neighbor's garbage cans! Jason fixed it, but decided I needed a newer, safer vehicle ASAP. My new van drives so nice and will be really easy to get Venily in and out of. Jason already wants to get her car seat installed and ready for her just in case!