I started reading to Libby this week. It has been really fun. I hadn't tried it yet because I felt kind of silly and wasn't quite sure how to do it. But I started laying down on the floor next to her, holding the book in the air while I read. She has three board books with photos of babies, which she loves. I checked some books out of the library last night, and I was a little apprehensive because they are illustrated (not photos), but she loves them, too. She will lie and look very enthusiastically at the pictures while I read. She's a bookworm already!

Dare I have hope?

Well, Libby has slept at least eight hours straight the last two nights. Is this the beginning of a new normal? I hope! Now we just have to get naps figured out!

I'm taking Libby to get her picture taken today. She's going to wear the cute outfit Georgiann (the Kdg aide at my school) made for her, except the booties. My friends with kids say not to put shoes on her in photos so we can remember how small her feet were.

Sleep Turnaround

I just had to share, since Tuesday night was so rough, that Libby slept 8.5 hours last night. It was awesome, especially following a night that really gave me reason to doubt. I was a little worried to go check on her, because I didn't hear a peep, even through Todd getting ready. He was already gone for the day when she woke up.

Labor Continued

During my pregnancy, I frequented a message board for women due in September. A few experienced women there said they would pack when they went into labor so they'd have something to do. I'm glad I didn't listen to them! Once I was pretty sure I was in labor, I wasn't up to doing anything but laying in bed paying attention to the contractions! Todd got everything in the car, and we headed to the hospital.

I felt weird approaching the desk on the OB floor and saying "I'm in labor." But they got me into a room and checked out. I was 4 cm dilated, and they admitted me.

I can't give things in a timeline, because I was too out of it to pay attention--and that was with no drugs! But they got me hooked up to an IV and monitors. Libby was very active and they had trouble keeping track of her on the monitor. Todd kept massaging through every contraction (until I started pushing! What a guy!). I think he called both of our parents when I was admitted, and my parents started their drive. I wanted Mom to come down for the birth, and Dad came too.

Dr. Perry got there at some point and asked if I wanted an epidural. I said no and Todd backed me up. The only drugs I had was a shot of Lidocaine when I was being stitched up afterward.

My mom got there when I had about 30 minutes left of pushing. Libby was born at 1:57 am on August 30th, less than 8 hours after I went into labor, and just 6 hours after I was admitted. The doctor immediately put her on my belly, and it was just so exciting to meet her! She had a lot of dark hair, and she squeaked when she cried, which she still does when she gets really upset.

After they took her measurements and got her cleaned up, they gave her back to me. She was so soft! Just her little face was sticking out of the swaddling and hat. We tried breastfeeding and were somewhat successful. I felt like it took 4-6 weeks to get the hang of it, and 10-12 to be really comfortable and confident. I'm glad I stuck with it!

LOL!

Libby laughed out loud for the first time today! I was finished changing her, and I did "how big is Libby?", which she already likes. Then I tickled her armpits and ribs going "Digga-digga-digga!" What a cute giggle! I made Todd come upstairs right away, and she did it again.

Sour Sleep

Our rough day was followed by a rough night. Libby woke up at 2:00, two to three hours earlier than I have become accustomed to. She then woke up every hour until 7. I fed her at 3 and 7, but only gave her the pacifier the other times. Is realizing she's lost the paci waking her up? I hope this is short-lived! (as in, never happens again!)

Sweet Sleep

Today has been a rough sleep day. Libby has napped in 20-minute bits and has been kinda cranky. So when she fell asleep while eating about 45-60 minutes ago, I decided to just let her sleep in my arms so she'd get a good nap in. I'm getting very good at one-handed typing!

The bad news about sleep is that Libby has started wanting to sleep with a pacifier. This is bad because I'm worried she'll always wake up when it's not there. That happened last night after 1 hour of sleep. She did go back to sleep about 10-15 minutes later.

The good news is that Libby seems to be headed toward 6-hour sleeps before waking up. She slept until 5:15 this morning, which was actually almost 7 hours if you don't count her little wakeup at 11:30.

I want to start back-blogging, if you will, about the past three months. I guess it would be good to start with August 29th. T and I went to help some friends move. I got the easy assignment of sorting baby clothes. I had my first painful contractions during the day, including back pain. I didn't really think anything of it since my due date was 2 weeks away and I knew you could have sporadic contractions for days or weeks before labor.

That evening, T and I went grocery shopping. I know we checked out at 6:30 because I kept the receipt. When we got home, Todd started a frozen pizza and I decided to start timing my contractions. By 7:00, they were coming 5 minutes apart and I was in Labor Land, where everything is kind of hazy.

I wanted to try the Bradley method of natural childbbirth because it really seemed like a good match for me. So I laid on my side during the contractions and focused on relaxing. Todd rubbed my back during every contraction because it was very painful. After awhile, he packed the car because it seemed like it was time! At a little after 8 pm, the contractions had been 5 min apart for an hour, so we went to the hospital. I remember asking Todd to wait for one more contraction to be sure--I couldn't believe it was happening so fast.

To be continued...