Happy Halloween!!!

Paparazzi

Alice had her first photo shoot on Sunday. She really worked the camera and we hope to have some great pictures soon.

There was only one little mishap... During one set of pictures, Alice was on black fabric and was peacefully dreaming away when all of a sudden, she pooped all over the fabric. Thank goodness the photographer is a friend of ours and works with babies all the time. It was pretty funny though.

Two more of the charter members of the Alice Fan Club are visiting this week. John's parents are here all the way from Montana. We will try to post a little more this week but I wouldn't be surprised if we just don't get to it until next week. We are all just spending time looking at the girl.

Alice is thriving and continuing to be a fantastic eater. She is staying awake a little more everyday. She is really starting to look around and focus on things. Such an incredible thing to watch.

1st Stroller Ride

Mom and Dad took Alice for her first ride in the stroller. The weather is getting a bit cooler down here in Alabama. Perfect weather for us but as you can see from the picture, we were a little worried about keeping Alice warm. Once we got her all bundled up, I couldn't stop laughing at how funny she looked. The arms of the little suit she is in stood straight up. Do you think this was too much for 60 degrees and breezy? I am never sure what is too much and what is not enough.

Hope you get a good laugh at this....hey, don't they say that parents make all their mistakes with the first kid? Gonna keep this pic for the high school graduation book.

Saturday Morning Update

Everybody is doing better this morning. Colleen is feeling like herself. She must be better because she corrected my grammar twice this morning. Alice is also doing well. Her eye is looking better (she has a blocked tear duct resulting from delivery and it has been a little goopy) and the belly button stump looks loose and it might come off any minute.

I have been trying to get a picture of Alice every day for the first year. I do not know what I am going to do with all of them but I wanted to share the October 24th picture with you.

Have a great weekend.
John

Endometritis

It has been a very long and painful couple of days. I have been diagnosed with Endometritis (not endometriosis) which is an infection in the lining of the uterus. Doctors say that it is quite common and I have started antibiotics. I don't think I have ever been in so much pain in my life...well except for the 2 hours of no pain meds during labor and delivery. Yesterday was especially rough, shivering though the sweats, fever, horrid abdomen pain.

I am not a whole lot better today but I can tell the antibiotics are starting to work. The pain pills are great but making me groggy.

Alice is doing well. Nothing new to report right now with her. She is giving us the occasional smile but we are not convinced it is anything but gas. :)

Hopes dashed

Alice had another wonderful night of sleep....I put her down at 11:30 and she did not make a peep until 7a.m. WOW!!! But just when I started thinking I have the most wonderful baby and I am the luckiest new mom, my hopes were dashed. Alice had her first check up with the pediatrician today. I told him all about her awesome new sleeping habits and he said that it was not good. He told me that I have to start waking her up after 4 hours to eat so she will not get dehydrated. DAMN !!!


In the hospital, the nurses would bring her to me every 2-3 hours to nurse and I was told to make sure to continue that once I got home but I hate the idea of waking a peaceful baby to eat. It seems ridiculous. I thought the whole "feed on demand" idea was to do just that...and if she didn't demand, there would be no need to force feed. Also, how on earth do you actually nurse a baby who is adamantly not waking up? Anyone? No, seriously, any ideas or advice?


Other than that, the rest of the visit was all good. Alice's weight has increased to 8lbs 12oz. and she has grown 1/2 an inch! I can't remember if I blogged about the amount she is eating or not so...long story short...she is a hungry, hungry hippo. She usually nurses for about 40-55 minutes but then usually has 2 ounces of breast milk or formula (whatever I have on hand at the moment). I am trying to not give her formula very often but I only have so much of the other and I am not adverse to the formula. Whatever makes this little girl happy is ok for me.

Signing off for now...between the feedings (Alice and the adult dinner) this blog posting has taken me almost 2 hours to finish. Hope all is well with you.

Ahhh....sleep

The most amazing thing happened last night. Alice slept from 11:30 p.m. until 5:30 a.m.!!!! She ate a bit and was back to sleep from 8:00 a. m. until 11:30 a.m. Of course, I didn't take full advantage of it and go back to bed myself at 8 a.m. but I am hoping this will be repeating tonight because I am super tired now.

Grandma left this morning. Alice didn't seem as upset as Mommy was but we will be seeing her in Syracuse for Thanksgiving.

Good news from the pediatrician....we are allowed to set Alice's left arm free.

I foresee these blog postings to be on the short side for the next few weeks as we try to get everyone on a schedule. Bear with us. :)

Fatigue

Sorry we have been slacking on our blog post duties. The 2, 3, 4 and 5 a.m. feedings are starting to take a toll on Mommy and Daddy.

I will try to post tomorrow.

All is well with Alice. She is proving to be a world champion eater or should I say drinker...ah, well, she got that from her momma.

Alice Houdini

Since Alice's clavicle was fractured during delivery, the pediatrician has told us that we need to try to keep her arm sort of immobile for the next week or so. This has proven to be much easier said than done.

On recommendation of a hospital nurse, we started out by keeping Alice's left arm inside her onesie. That didn't really work well as you can see in the picture, she continually found a way to get her hand out. Next, we tried to pin her sleeve across her chest. That only caused holes in her pretty outfits because she was still moving her arm around quite a bit. Finally, we bought an ace bandage and secured her arm tightly to her chest. She did not seem to be bothered by the bandage but within 4 hours, she had managed to get her hand out the bottom of the bandage and was in the process of pushing the whole arm up and out of the sling.

So, we are back to keeping her arm inside her clothes. We are figuring that since her upper arm is staying somewhat in still, there is not much damage that she can really do. The bruising is almost gone and more importantly, she does not seem the least bit troubled or in pain from the fracture. For now she is amazing us with her magically appearing hand. :)

Alice 10-16-2008

We are home!

Dear all,

We came home yesterday! We had to wait for the little one because she had a little blood work done for her slight case of jaundice. Other than that, everybody is doing well. I am really surprised that she can lift her neck. She likes to lift her neck and look at you when she is burping.

The first night went well. The dogs were a little nervous all night but hopefully everyone will get in a routine. Alice decided that 1 am to 4 am was a good time to try out the lungs. Otherwise, she is sleeping well.

We had a weigh in this morning with the doctor. She is 7lbs 12 oz as of Wednesday morning. We lost a couple of ounces but that is normal.

John

How about some more pictures...

Some More Pictures from the Hospital

I'm a Mommy!!!

Hello from the hospital... still can't believe that I am officially a Mommy. Alice is absolutely wonderful and completely perfect. As you can read from John's previous posting, there were a few issue with the labor and delivery. The labor progressed a lot faster than the doctors expected so that was good but the epidural I got must have slipped out or something because all of a sudden I was in agony. To those women who have chosen to deliver "au natural", I have only one word to say....insane! So, after 2 hours of no meds, the anesthesiologist finally placed another epidural and I was good to go. After only and hour and a half of pushing, Alice was born. All told, the entire process took 14 1/2 hours. Not too bad for a first timer.

The one minor complication with Alice is that her clavicle was fractured during delivery, most likely because she was born sunny-side up. The doctors are not worried and said that it is relatively common with big babies. We have to keep her left arm on the inside of her onesies for a week or two but are assured that she will be fine. It does not seem to bother her too much but we are being extra gentle with her.

She is proving to be a very good sleeper but is not that interested nursing much yet. She is already really strong. If I lay her on my chest, she can pick her head up and look around all on her own. She is not spending much time in her crib between mommy, daddy and grandma....no one can bear to put her down.

Hope you enjoy the picture of our angel.

Sunday Night Update

Dear all,

Well, it is another unauthorized blog entry that hasn't been approved by Colleen. I love the picture and I wanted an excuse to post it.

Although we had some very minor complications for both Colleen and Alice, both are doing great tonight. I will leave the details for Colleen. When I left tonight, everybody was going to sleep for the night. It will be nice to get some sleep since being up since 2 am last night.

John

The Muffin has Arrived

Alice Madelyn

Born October 12, 2008 1:32 pm
Length: 21.5 inches
Weight: 8 lbs 5 oz.

Everybody is doing great!

Sunday Morning 10 am Update

Well, we had a hot stove moment. The epidural failed this morning around 8:30 am and Colleen got to experience "labor without the drugs." A new one had to be installed back into her spine. Thank God the doctor got it in between contractions. She is now out like a light. She is already at 8 cm! The pushing is soon and the little one will be here!!

John

October 12th 6:00 am Update

Colleen usually likes to screen posting to the blog but is out cold. Thus, I am writing an unauthorized post.

Seeing that most of you will open up your email and see multiple emails and read them back to back, there is no sense of time. That has been the shortest 6 hours of my life since my last posting. Einstein said it best. Time is relative. If you are sitting by a pretty girl, time will fly by. However; if you touch a hot stove, time seems to crawl.

I am not going into the all the details but will cover highlights. Colleen was given a pill to "soften" the cervix at 11 pm. By 2 pm, she was going into labor. The medical staff was not expecting this to happen until the morning. After 2 hours of contractions, Colleen got an epidural (and all the associated medical stuff) at 4 am. So, the upcoming medical procedures are moving up so that means Alice will be here sooner than everybody thought. Everybody is doing really well and asleep for the time being.

John

October 12th

October 12th Midnight

Well, we are at the hospital and getting things started for the induction tomorrow morning. Colleen is doing well and even had some contractions. It seemed that the early labor started and we will push it along tomorrow. Alice is doing her typical thing with the doctor by sticking her butt out. Like her mother, she is uncooperative and stubborn. The nurse is still having a hard time with the fetal monitor because she keeps moving away. I am spending the night. Kath is here and enjoy the picture of the three.

I will try to keep the blog updated the best I can tomorrow but it will get busy quickly tomorrow.

I don't think we will get a lot of sleep tonight..........

John

Saturday Night

Well it is 6 pm and no Alice.

We thought things were moving forward this morning. Like Alice, she teased us and we are still waiting. Colleen is going to the hospital tonight and hopefully we will have Alice Sunday morning.

John

Saturday Morning Update

As of 9 am....

Sorry, I was lazy last night and did not post.

With that being said, we had a quiet night. This morning, we might be gearing up for the "big show". Colleen is having some beginning stages of labor so we might not need the induction after all.

Keep your fingers crossed.

John

National Angel Food Cake Day

Today is the day John was secretly wishing our angel would arrive....National Angel Food Cake Day. No luck so far but the day is young.

We are getting ready for the scheduled induction tomorrow. My nerves are starting to calm and are changing into excitement. She is almost here!

Can't wait to see her!

A Quiet Thursday

You guessed it....no baby today. We are having a lazy day and so I convinced John to work from home to keep me company. My mom is on a plane heading for Huntsville. Guess she will not have to take a cab to the hospital...we are available to pick her up :)

John and I went to the movies last night. "Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist" was pretty good. As you can imagine, the soundtrack was the best part of the movie.

We will probably not post tonight as we will be hanging with my mom. One of us will be sure to post tomorrow whether something happens or not.

Thanks for all the well wishes!!!!

Wednesday Night Update

Dear all,

No Alice yet as of Wednesday at 8:30pm. Nothing happening yet.

John

Wednesday Update

Dear all,

It is here. The official due date of Alice Bartos. As of 8:30 am, no baby yet. I am going to start posting updates twice day to keep everybody informed so please keep checking the blog.

Colleen is planning to walk a lot today.

John

Tuesday Night Update

Dear all,

One more day and the stork will have walked across the screen. Nine months can go so quickly and Colleen's belly can get so big.

Well, it is Tuesday night and the girls just went to bed. Everything is quiet and just hanging out with Layla. Colleen went to bed with some lower back pain so I am keeping my fingers crossed that my prediction is correct.

John

The little procrastinator

I thought I just might be going into labor last night. Contractions started around 6pm and were about 20-30 minutes apart until 9:30pm...when they stopped. DAMMIT! Needless to say, I was very disappointed to wake up this morning in my own bed.

Went to the doctor today for my weekly check up. Alice is still showing no interest in joining the rest of the world. After discussing options with the doctor, we agreed that if she does not come on her own, the induction process will be started on Saturday night. That means that Alice will be here no later than Sunday, October 12th.

As you can imagine, this is starting to take an emotional toll on me. I am exhausted in so many ways and now angst-ridden about the impending hospital visit.

I know that I had said that I was going to accept the offer from the doctor to be induced and I am not having second thoughts but I guess I didn't really think it would get to this point. I know, I know, there was no way I was going to complete this whole pregnancy and birth thing without going to the hospital but I was sort of OK with "when it happens, it will happen". Now that I am scheduled to report to the hospital, I am having issues. When I had my TMJ surgery last year, I had a number of really bad anxiety attacks in the hospital and I am afraid of that happening again, of course the fact that I know that, I am anticipating it and therefore initiating the vicious circle. Those breathing techniques they make you learn in childbirth class are for more than pain relief.

So, sorry Mom... she will be arriving on Thursday and will have to sit and look at us instead of the baby. I have to admit though that I am a wee bit relieved that she will be here to hold my hand. John has been a great support and will be an excellent cheerleader but sometimes a girl just needs her mommy. I hope I will be as strong for my little girl as my mom has been for me.

I will continue to keep you posted. We still have a few days for Alice to come on down on her own. I sure hope she uses this quiet time to listen to her mommy's requests.

NO BABY YET! Another Sunday Night Waiting.

Dear all,

I have started to greet everyone on the phone with the status of the baby. It is the first thing everybody wants to hear. If I call anyone, they think that I am calling that the Colleen is in labor. So, nothing is new here tonight. The status quo! Flash and I are sitting here waiting.

I have a theory. After having everything happened exactly when it was supposed to, I think she is going to be right on time. I want to go on record and say that she will be here on her due date on Wednesday. Yes, I know that first time babies usually come after the due date. If she is like her mother, it wouldn't surprise me if she comes Wednesday.

John

Climbing the walls

Ok, I am officially losing my mind. Not only is the little one not here, she is showing absolutely NO sign of even making an attempt to get here. I have been trying to be really good about not complaining during my pregnancy but unfortunately for those of you who have regular contact with me...the whining is about to start.

COME ON ALREADY - LET'S GET THIS SHOW ON THE ROAD!!!!

Last Date?!

John and I are going out on what I hope is our last date as a childless couple tonight. Just dinner and maybe a movie but with any hope it will be relaxing and a nice end to our current story. We are so looking forward to starting the next chapter. Keep your fingers crossed that something happens this weekend!!!

Tell us what you really think, Alice

Went to the doctor again. Today was my regularly scheduled appointment and even though I was just there on Tuesday, I was still pretty uncomfortable and I had not felt Alice move since Wednesday afternoon. It figures that she would start wiggling around as soon as I sat down in the waiting room.

I was in the exam room getting ready for the nurse to listen to Alice's heartbeat. We both looked at my belly and could not help but laugh. We could clearly see this little mound sticking out of the middle of my belly. That little mound was her butt. SHE WAS MOONING US!!! It was unmistakable. :) So apparently, Miss Alice thinks this whole birth thing is a cheap joke.

John said to me last night, "I'd like to talk to my daughter please." He proceeded to 'give her a good talking to' saying that she had been a very good girl by staying in and cooking for this long but now it was time for her to come out. The fact that she is not here tonight, is a testament that she is going to do her own thing.

I am eager to get through this weekend. The doctor on call from my practice is my least favorite but I don't think I will care if we get to the point of actually going to the hospital. Today was Sting's birthday as well as a girlfriend from work and the next couple of weeks are sprinkled with other friend's birthdays. Everyone is vying for "their" day as THE day. My sister-in-law and cousin share a birthday on October 5th. That is the day I am betting on for Alice.