Sawyer Goes to "School"

I don't know if it's a Southern thing or what but here in the South, we call Mother's Day Out, Preschool, etc. school. We have been discussing for a few months about Sawyer starting Mother's Day Out. The main reason we wanted to start now is to have him enrolled somewhere when Savannah comes and be used to going on a regular basis. However, Savannah is due in June and most places don't have a Summer program and they follow the same calendar that the School disrtict does where they are located. After a lot of research, we think we found the best place for him to start Mother's Day Out and they have been doing a Summer Camp every year for the past 5 years so I am praying they will continue this Summer. We will know for sure in a month but if they don't, I have another church lined up but it is 3 days a week and this one is 2.

I got really emotional after taking the tour because I felt guilty for sending him to school and I knew it was just the beginning of him growing up to be a "big boy". The first day came and both his teachers said that he had a great first day with only a few tears. I really didn't think he would cry but for just a few minutes after I left but I guess he wasn't used to being in that type setting for 4 hours. The next time he went, they said that he did great and he had no tears. They couldn't believe it was only his second day. We are in week 3 now and he still has his moments of being clingy when I drop him off but is so happy when I come to pick him up.

What have I been doing while he goes to MDO? Well the first week it worked out good because I had to go to the Doctor because I had pink eye (random) and the next time, I was at the car place for over an hour getting my brakes fixed. I even had to have a friend pick me up because it was taking so long. Both of which would have been difficult if I had Sawyer with me. I plan to schedule my OB visits and go to the gym on days he is at MDO so we will see how long that lasts ;). Overall, it has been the best decision and I am so proud of how he is doing. He is learning to share with others, listen to adults other than Keith and I, do fun crafts and most importantly, having fun. I hope that he can continue going here until he starts Kindergarten.

The first day he passed out on the short 10 mintute drive home. Worn out!

His first Report Card!

So proud to display his first piece of art on our fridge.

It's a GIRL!!!!

We found out on Monday, January 16th that we will be having a precious baby GIRL in June! We are on cloud 9 and are so thankful for this blessing. Keith and I were SO nervous all morning and it only got worse when we were in the waiting room for the ultrasound. It was like it was our first time or something! When we walked in to the room, the US tech asked us if we wanted to know the gender and we said yes. As soon as we saw the baby on the screen, we couldn't believe how much she had grown since 10 weeks. The first thing she did was to try and get an underneath shot to determine the gender. I immediately thought girl because I didn't see any boy parts and it turns out I was right! The tech was more than positive that it was a girl.
Keith squeezed my hand so hard and I started tearing up. We just couldn't believe it! I had a deep down feeling it was a girl but it was mainly based on how different my symptoms had been from my pregnancy with Sawyer. We got to see the four chambers in her heart, arms and legs, bladder and kidneys, brain, spine, and that she has a 3 vein cord. So far, everything is developing normally. When we met with our Doctor, she told us that I have an anterior placenta which means it is in the front of my uterus so I won't be feeling the really strong kicks until after 20 weeks. I have, however, been feeling her move everyday since the beginning of week 17 but it has been more wave like movements than pops. My heart still flutters every time I feel her. This is by far my favorite part of being pregnant.




Later that night we met both of our families for dinner to reveal the gender. We knew we wanted to trick them so Keith came up with the perfect idea. The way we told them with Sawyer was pulling out an Auburn football jersey. So, he came up with pulling out the same jersey only to make them think it was a boy. Then he said that it was Sawyer's and that the adorable polk a dot Auburn dress he pulled out next was this baby's. Their faces were priceless!!! They were so mad that we tricked them but of course got over it quickly when they realized that we are going to have a sweet baby girl in the family. It was such a great day filled with all kinds of emotions.

As for her name, it will be Savannah Marie Scott. This name has been in the works even before we decided to have children. Savannah, GA was were we spent our first wedding anniversary and it is one of our favorite places to visit. It was also going to be Sawyer's name if he would have been a girl. Marie is both mine and my Mom's middle name. And let's face it, how cute does Sawyer and Savannah sound together?? When we ask Sawyer to say Savannah he says, "Sha nay na". Its the cutest.thing.ever. 



Needed a good laugh!

In anticipation of the gender ultrasound on Monday, my mind has been back and forth of trying to guess what we are having. Sweet vs. Salty, High vs. Low, Heartbeart, etc. This however is NOT one of the ways I was guessing! Warning: It's vulgar but will make you pee in your pants its that funny!!!!

2nd Child Anxiety....Already?

Yes, already. I don't know why but it has been all fireflies and fairy tales about having another child until recently. You really do forget what it is like to have a newborn after a while and now it is all coming back. Now, I have to tread those waters with a 2 year old! Why am I freaking out now? I guess it is my body's way of preparing me for life with two and its also the pregnancy journey. The first weeks you are consumed with hearing the heartbeat, then its about the next appointment when you see how he/she has grown, etc. Well, I am at the point where I am anticipating feeling the baby move and finding out the gender and since I have a little time in between, I picked up something else to think/worry about. So I came across an article that made me smile because it was so true! It is about a new mother's journey through breastfeeding and it hit home because that is one of the things I'm worried about, imagine that. How the heck am I going to nurse a nb for lets say average 35-40 min every 2-3 hours, at all hours mind you, with a toddler who needs me too? Well I know the hard part won't last forever but I am not naive enough to think its a cake walk. Maybe I should listen to this quote, "Worrying is like sitting in a rocking chair, it won't get you anywhere." So true.

Here is the article from Pregnant Chicken:

So as you may or may not have read in my first birth story, my son was handed to me just minutes after being born and I was asked if I wanted to try breastfeeding. Okay, (and to quote Bon Jovi) I'll give it a shot. Well, what do you know, it kind of worked! He knew exactly what to do just like the baby that instantly started nursing on an oblivious Brooke Shields in Blue Lagoon. What was I so worried about?


When I was pregnant, birth didn't scare me, breastfeeding did. My logic was one way or another they were going to get this baby out of me and I would only have to endure anything horrible for a short period of time, whereas, I was expected to breastfeed for a MINIMUM of three months. The thought terrified me and grossed me out all at once – I consider the word "suckle" one of the most disgusting words in the English language.


After having a good sleep and the drugs started to wear off, my son started to cry. Okay, no problem. Blue Lagoon! Although, it wasn't Blue Lagoon. This time it kind of hurt and as soon as he was finished he started crying again. Now, I suppose all women are wired to react when their child cries so they don't let them starve in a sock drawer somewhere but I can't express the surge of panic I had when he started to cry. It was like chewing tin foil with metal fillings. So I tried the other side, then back again. Now it was really starting to hurt. A nurse came in and asked me if I needed help and I said, as casually as I could "yes, please" and she proceeded to show me her version of the perfect way to latch a baby. In the two days I was in the hospital, five nurses showed me five different ways to breastfeed properly.


By the time I left the hospital I had five different versions of how to breastfeed, a tube system to attach to my breast to supplement feed formula because my milk hadn't come in and nipples that felt like a cheese grater had been used on them. I was warned not to use a bottle because my son would get nipple confusion and not to use the tube system for too long because he'll get used to that too. Then I was given a nice "Bye, bye now! Good luck."


Once I got home, I got a call from Public Health who automatically checks in when you come home with a baby to see if you're about to drink Drano. I told her about my breastfeeding troubles so she offered to come over the next day to help me out. She ended up showing me yet another way to feed him then proceeded to ask me a variety of questions including whether or not I was I afraid of being hurt by my husband who had at some point fallen asleep while sitting upright on the couch holding the baby beside me. Then she left. It still didn't get any better.


Finally on the third day my milk came in. I couldn't believe it. My body was actually producing food. It was like dispensing jelly beans out of my elbow. I was still in severe pain but at least my son wasn't crying constantly. So I decided to call Public Health again and see if they could tell me what was wrong with my latch. After all, everything I read said breastfeeding should never hurt. So the woman on the phone told me "No, it shouldn't hurt but you should expect an exquisite pain." Pardon? Exquisite pain? Is that like delicious death? No, I would just classify this as "pain pain". Not only was she useless, I now pictured this 50-something sadomasochistic nurse in a gimp outfit undoing her zipper-mouth to take calls from us frightened new mothers.


Finally, I went to see a lactation consultant at the hospital. I wasn't too keen on this as I had heard horror stories from friends about these breastfeeding nazis that essentially tell you to stop being such a damn baby and feed your child as nature intended so it doesn't die then slap a "breast is best" sticker on your head and send you home. I think I actually wore pajama pants to the appointment as this was day six of my living hell and I was looking like a worn out bowling alley whore.


She came in weighed my son and told me he was gaining weight then asked me to show me how I fed him. I whipped out my boob because, at that point, she was the only one in the free world who hadn't seen my tits. (On a side note, I think it's so unfair that when you're the most embarrassed about nursing it's when you're the least experienced at it so you have to strip down to your torso, use two hands and a pillow just to do it.) Anyhoo, she took a look and said "You're doing a great job. Your latch is perfect, you just need to get used to it. It's never easy in the beginning." Well, I felt like I just got a gold star sticker on my boob. I can't tell you the relief I felt to know that I was actually doing it correctly and that I just needed to get my boobs broken in. It took about 3 or 4 more days after that and the toe curling pain that went along with him first latching subsided and I ended up nursing him until he was around 16-months old. 16 MONTHS. Crazy non?!


The whole point of this post isn't to scare you. I'm just so pissed that most breastfeeding material kind of fails to mention the bumpy start that a lot of women have. It's a great way to feed your kid. Hey, I did it with both my kids but I don't think it's always a Blue Lagoon experience for everyone and women should be given the support they need if they are trying to get through those dark days to get to their very own Blue Lagoon even if it's just a Turquoise Puddle.


What do you think? Do you know if there is great post-natal support where you live? Let me know because I know this varies significantly depending on where you are. What are you going to do, bottle, boob or both?


MAJOR props to this woman who bf for 16 months! Thats awesome!