When I was pregnant with London, I decided very early on that I was going to breastfeed. It has tons of added health benefits for both the mother and child. Not to mention it sure beats the heck out of expensive formula. Why wouldn't I do it? London was a CHAMP! He was the freaking Muhammad Ali of breastfeeding. The best of the very best. He latched right away and never had any problems. Which was awesome considering I had NO IDEA what the hell I was supposed to be doing. He refused to take a bottle, so it wasn't until he was 8 months when my milk started to dry up because he was sleeping 13 hours each night that he ever even tasted a drop of formula. I felt like super mom. I swore to all my friends how EASY breastfeeding was, and I will be honest I could not understand the women who stopped breastfeeding because it was too hard, or whatever "excuse" they had.

Yeah, um, Karma is a bitch.

Holden is was the freaking Celebrity Boxing of the breastfeeding world. TRAIN WRECK!! He wouldn't latch for the first 36 hours after he was born, and this time I actually knew what I was doing. I had a seriously crazy lactation consultant who I swear looked and sounded just like the old lady from the Poltergist movies.
She had me milking my own breast (by hand) into a spoon, so that we could suck it up into a syringe to feed him after he had gone 12 hours without latching.

Talk about a whole new level of comfort in your marriage. In less than 12 hours Mike witnessed me pushing a human out of my lady parts for the second time AND milking myself like I was an old timey farmer.
anyway...I'm starting to ramble.

For the first 3 weeks Holden was HORRIBLE at breastfeeding. He was a biter. Thank goodness he wasn't one of those babies that are born with teeth. I decided to keep going and endure the pain. The painful latch usually only lasts about a week, but as we entered week four I was still cursing every time. I was at a loss and can not tell you how many times I wanted to quit.

All of those free formula samples were sitting in the pantry just staring at me. At 3 weeks I had a phone conversation with a different lactation consultant and she told me it sounded like he has a small mouth and tongue. We tried the nipple shield, but yeah, that was a big old FALIURE! He wouldn't latch at all. So after a few hours of screaming I gave up and just endured the pain once again.

Luckily by the end of week 4 he had gotten much much better. It was like over night he magically figured it out. It's all smooth sailing now, but this time couldn't have been more different than the last.

A friend of mine posted this on her blog today and can I please just tell you how true it really is. I'm not posting this to prevent anyone from breastfeeding. I'm not going to bore you all with how important it is and why it is so awesome. Trust me you will get all of that in the hospital. But, I'm also not going to sit here and preach to you that you are a failure if you don't breastfeed. Just like almost everything else in life, it is NOT for everyone and it's completely your decision.

Things have been going really well over the last two weeks. Wow, I can hardly believe it has been two weeks already. Man, that sleep deprivation really makes time fly!


In this post I am going to list alot of stats that I'm sure none of you care about. It's mainly for me, so it will probably be boring or the rest of you. I love the fact that I can look back at posts from when London was little and see how Holden compares. :) I'll add a few cute pictures at the bottom for anyone who makes it through all of this. 


Over the first week we went to ALOT of Dr's appointments. Poor Baby Holden was jaundice and had to go back 5 times in the first 7 days of life to have blood drawn to check his Bilirubin levels checked. Poor guys his heals look like pin cushions. I felt so bad for him.


Fun fact for all of you, my husband thought we were talking about some guy named Billy Rubin every time I would talk about Holden's levels. HAHA!


Holden's levels stayed elevated for the first few days but never got high enough for him to have to sit under the special light or blanket. It was 10 (whatever the unit of measurement is I have no idea) on day 2, 14 the next day, and by day 6 it was 18. Thankfully by day 8 it was down to 14. 


See I told you this was going to be boring. Don't say I didn't warn you!


Thankfully the little guy has been steadily gaining weight. He started out at 7lbs 2oz at birth and was down to 6lbs10oz when we left the hospital. By day 8 though he had gained a fair amount and was weighing in at 7lbs 6 oz. His Dr was very impressed with this so apparently we are doing something right. 


Breastfeeding is a little more difficult this time than it was with London. Holden is a really good eater, but something is just off. London was a natural so I'm not quite sure what to do to fix our little problem. Here it is almost 2 weeks since he was born and it still hurts to nurse him. He seems to be latching well, but I think he is biting me. I can promise we will not be making it to a my initial goal of 6 months if he keeps that up. My poor nipples are bruised and it's painful every time he nurses. Nothing unbearable, just not comfortable AT ALL. I still cuss every time he latches hahaha! Hopefully I can find a LLL meeting to attend soon, or possibly call the lactation consultant back and see if she has any suggestions. Something has got to give. 


Holden has established a pretty good schedule for himself. I've got my fingers crossed that he keeps it up. Right now, he sleeps most of the day, waking for about 30 mins here and there. Then around 6pm he wakes up for about two and a half hours. He is very content and just chills on the couch next to us in his boppy. About 8:30 is his bed time, so I nurse him and put him in bed..on his back. London was a tummy sleeper so I'm happy Holden seems to be content on his back or side. Through out the night he only wakes about every 4 hours, just long enough to eat and get his diaper changed. He is a really good baby (THUS FAR!! Quick, knock on wood!)


London is actually adjusting very well to being a big brother. He hasn't really been acting out YET,  however he doesn't really acknowledge him very much either. He asks about him alot but doesn't want to hold him or even help feed, diaper, bathe, or entertain him. He is however enjoying all of Holden's stuff. His swing and carseat make for some really fun times as far as London is concerned. :)  Right now he just sleeps alot, which I guess is pretty boring for a 2 year old. 


Oh the best part, London is obsessed with Holden's umbilical stump. It still has not fallen off yet, and it really bothers London that he has an "ouchie." I keep telling him that it doesn't hurt, but he doesn't believe me. So every time I change Holden's diaper, London runs over and says "Is it gone yet?" and then freaks out when I put alcohol on it. "Don't touch it Mommy!!" HAHA! It's actually pretty cute :)


Ok that is enough documenting for today. Here are a few pictures for those of you who actually read all of that!

This weekend we had our last bit of "before the baby fun". I have a feeling we are not going to be able to be this spontaneous after Holden gets here.


Then poor London fell on the corner of a table at Lori's and got this beauty on his face. The top is really bruised, but other wise it just looks like a big scratch. Goofy kid! Lori said he didn't even cry. I bet he wishes he had been wearing his helmet then. :)

"30 weeks! OMG, 30 weeks!" Yep, that is what my body is screaming right about now. Over the last few days my body has realized that we are officially in the home stretch of this pregnancy. WE HAVE AN ACTUAL COUNTDOWN PEOPLE!!!!


Fact: My baby will be born sometime in the next 10 weeks. Hopefully only 7 weeks from now though. If my preterm labor is as painful as it was with London the weeks leading up to his birth, I completely plan on serving a eviction notice at 37 weeks. 


Nesting has also hit full force. Last weekend, I NEEDED to wash all of the newborn clothes, including carseat, swing, and all other accessories. Oh how I love the smell of Dreft ! Yes I am well aware I could just use one of the free and clear detergents, but where is the fun in that?  Dreft makes everything SMELL like a baby is on the way :) 






I also FINALLY got Mike to clean out the guest room so we could convert it into baby Holden's room. I was a little crazy over the weekend. I'll admit it. But in my defense, I couldn't help it. I just HAD to get things done. Just to give you an idea of how crazy I was, here is my lovely husbands facebook status from Sunday night...


"Note to Man: When your pregnant wife asks you to clear out the guest room to make room for the new baby, DO IT. I cleaned it out but said I didn't feel like moving the guest bed. Wrong answer buddy,  WRONG answer. For a brief moment after giving her that answer I'm pretty sure her countenance turned into that of the little girl from The Ring. Needless to say, it got done. Mama / Ringu always wins."


Normally I would probably be hurt by his comparison but on that particular day, he probably wan't too far off. Hey at least he didn't compare me to the girl from The Exorcist right? It definitely could have been worse :)


Holden's room is up but not decorated or organized. I promise to post some pictures of that when I get it done. Given how strong this nesting urge is, it shouldn't be too long before I'm finished. 


Well, I need to go wake London up from his nap or he is never going to bed tonight. Before I go here is a quick belly picture for all of you. 

So today was London's first day of school. He goes to a church preschool program on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursdays from 9am-12pm. He is only gone for 3 short hours but can I just tell you that IT IS GLORIOUS!! Does that make me a bad mom? If it does I am completely willing to accept that.

Those brief hours that he is gone gives me time to get some things done around the house. Time to update my blog, catch up on blog designs, and sleep clean the house and it actually stay clean for longer that .2 seconds, grocery shop without having to sing or dance around the store for toddler entertainment purposes (I still do it but at least I can choose the song now) , and *gasp* take a shower without a certain peeping tom reminding me that I missed a spot every few seconds. So yes, at the risk of sounding like a bad mother, I will again rejoice and say... IT IS GLORIOUS!!!

Here are a few pictures of my little man on his first day of school. Be prepared, the cuteness is blinding. :)

Wow, I am seriously horrible with my blog right now. I just feel like no one wants to hear me whining about heartburn, body aches, and my stomach stretching. I swear I'm not an ungrateful pregnant woman, but yikes pregnancy is different this time.

(It was 8 in the morning when I took this picture, no make up, but I did put this dress and earrings on just to take the picture. I figured yoga pants and a chocolate stained t-shirt might be too real for todays photo. )

No I didn't eat a few too many snickers (well actually I did, but that's a whole different post), I am actually 28 weeks pregnant after my second IVF cycle. (YAY!! Third Trimester!!!) We are expecting a baby boy on November 9, 2011 who we are going to name Holden Alexander. I've already experienced a fair amount of preterm labor,including a brief stay in labor and delivery at 24 weeks, so we are all expecting this little man to make his appearance a little early. Hopefully not before 37 weeks though. I am currently on P17 shots, Procardia, and modified bedrest. That little cocktail seems to be doing the trick and everything has been pretty uneventful for the last month or so.

Thankfully I have been moved up to "modified bed rest" because bed rest was almost impossible while chasing around a certain 2 1/2 year old. This is love of my life, product of my first IVF, and the reason I have an abundance of grey hair at 30.

I updated a few days ago how fun this stage of pregnancy is. Well, the joke is definitely on me.

For the last few days I have been in soooooo much pain. My back is killing me and so is my ummm...pelvis. Just moving my legs hurts so badly. I'm only 18 weeks. Is this a stage or is going to be this way for the rest of my pregnancy? This is how I felt towards the end of my pregnancy with London, you know when I was 30+ weeks and the countdown to my baby was in full swing. I hated it then but I knew the end was in sight.

This time I'm not even close to the 3rd trimester. There is no countdown to my baby yet. Well there is but I can't even bare to look at it (152 days left if you must know).

I do have a few factors that could be contributing to my overall soreness. The other day I spent about 30 mins pulling weeds out of my flower beds. Yep, it took 30 mins to do it, and trust me it could have used another 30 mins. I was bending over and standing up, so maybe that is why my back is so sore. I can't imagine being sore for 3 days because of that though. My umm...pelvis is the worst right now though. It hurts just to roll over in bed at night.

Ugh, I guess I will just have to toughen up and hope it goes away soon. Tylenol might just be my new best friend.

On a side note, London got a haircut. The lady got it ALOT shorter than usual (Mike really likes to keep it long so you can see his curls). He looks like such a big boy now. It makes me smile and want to cry all at the same time.

I can't find the wire to hook up my camera right now, so here are a few cell phone pictures of his new do.

My poor little guy is sick again. :( First he had the stomach flu which was horrible but only a week after getting over that, he has another bug.  The past few days he has been running a 103-104 degree fever anytime he is not on tylenol. He didn't really have any other symptoms but I decided to take him Dr since his fever was so high. Diagnosis: just a normal run of the mill virus. Since his throat was red they did a Strep test, which as you can imagine pretty much sucked for a 2 year old.

Well, sorta.

A few days ago I started Lupron. Oh so terrible, horrible, no good Lupron.

I took my first shot at 4pm on January 27th. Exactly 57 minutes later I wanted to crack my head open with a screw driver just to relieve the pain. I remember having headaches last time I took Lupron, but wow-o-wow this is ridiculous. Thankfully the pain has gotten better with each passing day, but it's still not completely gone.

Yesterday was my last day of stupid Birth Control pills. The final result was that I gained 5 lbs over the last 8 weeks. SUCK!! Oh well, I'll just add it on to my pregnancy weight (HOPEFULLY).

Since I'm in the boring suppression part of IVF, I will post about something beside just infertility.

LONDON  STARTED SCHOOL TODAY!

Yes, I know my little man is not even two yet (t-minus 27 days), but we decided Mommy really needs some quite time London really needs some socialization. So we enrolled him in a local church's preschool program. He only goes Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9am-12pm. But in just those few hours this morning I managed to get so much stuff done. I even managed to go to the bathroom by myself. I know, I know... GASP!! I wiped by myself without someone watching and asking questions. It was GLORIOUS!!!!

 London was so excited to go to "school". I'll admit that I had been really talking it up for the last few days. This morning he actually cried at the door with his backpack on when I told him it was too early to leave for school. He was dying to see his "friends" that he had yet to actually meet.

Once it was time to drop him off he was a real trooper. He didn't want to walk away from me but when his teacher distracted him with a shinny car, I ran. A friend of mine dropped her kids off about 5 minutes later and peaked in his room on her way out. She quickly reported that he was doing JUST fine and not crying at all. When I picked him up at noon his teachers said he did fabulously. I'm so proud of that little man. I have a feeling that Thursday is going to be a bit harder since he now knows what is going on this time when Mommy tries to run.

OK, so it's not really Christmas time yet, but it is mid-November. That's close enough right? I love Thanksgiving and all, but for me it's mainly just about food and company. I have never been one to decorate for Thanksgiving. No random turkey figurines placed around this house (which by the way, I think is a very odd way to decorate for a day in which we kill, cook, and eat turkey. But I digress.)  Nothing changes around here until Black Friday. No, I don't rush out and go shopping, I decorate. While I love decorating, I don't get all Martha Stewart crazy about it. I'm a very lazy simple girl. I break out all the Christmas knick knacks that have been stored in one large tupperware box for the last 9 months (did I mention that I am also very lazy about taking the decorations down? ) I hang the stockings and prepare the mantle to display all of the Christmas cards we will receive. And...that's it. It usually takes about an hour. Quick, simple, and to the point.

This year things will be a little different. I have a ....TODDLER. Everything in his path can and will be destroyed. I can see my cute monogrammed stockings being ripped down from the fireplace, dragged out back, and used as muddy train parking. How am I even supposed to put up a Christmas tree this year? If I know my son he will use his fork and spoon to some how chop it up to use as firewood. That is of course after he pulls all the ornaments off and turns them into some sort of make shift tool he can use to pry the child safely locks off his bedroom door nob. He's a crafty little guy, never underestimate a 21 month old.

There are alot of things I am looking forward to this year though. London is old enough to actually enjoy opening presents. I can't wait to see his face when he sees all his new toys. He is so animated (I can't imagine where he gets that from.) He still won't understand the anticipation of "Santa is coming" but that's ok, there is always next year. I'm going to try to get him excited about Christmas by doing what any good Mother does, I'm going to BRIBE HIM!!

He is obsessed with trains right now so I got this super cute advent calendar for him. It's about 2 feet long and 6 inches tall. He is going to break it LOVE IT!

 I'll put a little treat in each day for him to open. Maybe an M&M or his absolute favorite...a Dum Dum pop (AKA: "Pop Pop") Hopefully he will catch on and get excited about opening the little doors each night. Hummm, now that I think about it this seems a little like "Pavlov's Dog". Oh well, it worked for Pavlov right?

P.S. I have a new giveaway up...Go check it out. You can't win if you don't enter :)