A little Mommy Talk

June 25: What was your favorite baby item that you could not live without?



I'll answer in the form of a picture. For me, my baby item that was non-negotiable (meaning if it broke I better get a new one now was...



The ironic part was that our original swing did break, and we did go get a new one. Then 32 days later, Em was put in the brace making the swing both unreturnable AND useless since she could't be in it with the brace.


It was worth the extra sleep for those 32 days though!

A Little Mommy Talk

June 18: How were your first few weeks at home? Sleeping, eating habits? Any baby blues/post-partum issues?

The first few weeks at home were hard. I really had *no idea* what I was doing. Thankfully, Keith, who was equally as unprepared, helped me so much in those first few weeks. He let me sleep more than he slept a lot of the time (and he was working 9+ hours a day), he sent me to bed whenever I looked like I needed it, he picked up all those little things at the pharmacy that I never imagined he would. (Such as Lanolin, pads, hemmeroid cream, all the embarrassing stuff).

For the first week, Em slept for 45 minutes at a time. We were in non-sleeping baby hell. My milk didn't come in till Day 7 post-partum, and even when it did come in, the supply was nada (I can officially say this for certain since I had milk after Maddie's stillbirth and it was AMPLE. I NEVER had that with Em. So, Day 7 post-partum, we supplemented with formula. It was a good day LOL. Em slepts for 2 hour stretches once she figured we weren't trying to starve her on purpose. lol.

She was a good eater, and once the formula was added to the routine, she consistantly gained weight. She had reflux, which was the only eating related issue, but that passed by 6 months pp.

Surprisingly, I had no pp depression. Even with my long history of depression, I didn't get it. I am thankful for that.

A Little Mommy Talk

Today's question:

What was it like going home from the hospital for you? Did your baby have any medical issues?

Emerson was born at 7:39 PM on Feb 20, 2006. She spent her first night in the Special Care nursery as she was grunting (common with C-Section babies). Other than the grunting, she had low blood sugar and a slight heart murmur. Overall, I felt like we won the baby lottery.

Home was the hard part. The first week SUCKED and I had no clue what I was doing and yet they sent this baby home with me. I was in a lot of pain from the C-section and I was really emotional. However, by week 2, I was feeling much better, physically and mentally.

(If anyone from my baby board is reading this, a collective sigh was probably made when they realized I was about to babble about Hip Dysplasia AGAIN. LOL I would talk about it often when Em was in the brace. To the point of boredom for them...well, they never said so, but really, how exciting ARE my kids' hips?)

At 7 weeks of age (2 days shy of her 2 month birthday), Em was diagnosed with Hip Dysplasia. She was firstborn, breech, and female. Three of the main risk factors for Hip Dysplasia. Now, personally, I never heard of this in humans before my daughter was diagnosed. I honestly thought it was a canine disease as I had only heard of dogs getting it. How foolish I was.

Thankfully, the Pediatrician looking after Em in the hospital insists on an ultrasound at birth for all female breech births. Her first ultrasound was inconclusive, and we had to go back for another a few weeks later. I am SO thankful for his persistance, as early intervention is critical for treating Hip Dysplasia.

Em was fitted with a Pavlik Harness 2 days shy of her second month birthday. You can see the Harness in the pics below:

The harness kept her legs abducted, opened wide, and bent. Her legs couldn't straighten in the harness. It was to be worn 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, with 1 hour a week being free for baths. (Meaning bathing her once a week which SUCKED as she had reflux and would get pretty smelly! lol). It also prevented her from using any 'fun stuff', like her swing, and later on, the Jumperoo and Exercauser. She did still fit in the bouncey seat.

The first few days were the worst as Em got used to the harness and not being able to 'stretch'. (She would often try to stretch, realize she couldn't, then she would start crying). By Day 3, she was a pro and was handling it much better than I was.

I hated the harness. I despised that it put a barrier between my daughter and I. My little baby girl could only be in certain positions, and breastfeeding was a nightmare, I had just gotten used to one way and I had to relearn new positions. She wasn't my floppy lil baby anymore - the brace kept her rigid. I was mad that I couldn't put her in all the cute clothes I had for her, and I was mad that my baby had to go through this. Looking back, and ESPECIALLY going through everything with Maddie, I laugh at this now. How silly I was. It was a brace. My baby was still there, she was breathing and for the most part pretty content with it. But at the time, it seemed like such a big deal.

She wore the harness for 8 weeks full-time. Then, after her hips were deemed 'fixed', she was weaned from the harness, only wearing it at night for 4 more weeks. 12 weeks in total. It seemed so long at the time, and so short now. Her orthopedic surgeon laughed so hard when I told him the story of the first day of weaning her from the harness. About 3 hours of freedom and Em started screaming. NOTHING would make her happy. So, in desperation, I put the harness back on her and SHE STOPPED CRYING. My child was finally free, and she wanted to be bound up again! He said he was going to tell all the newly diagnosed patients parents that story. lol

I am always so thankful that it only took that time in the harness to cure her Dysplasia. Many families, who might not have gotten diagnosed as early as Em, or just have a more stubborn case, go through much more than we did including multiple surgeries and spica casts. The Pavlik Harness is 95 percent effective if treatment is started and finished by the time the baby is 6 months old. Em was 2 days shy of 2 months when it was put on, and she was 5 months when it was taken off. She was a bit delayed in some physical milestones, but she was bound up for 3 months! She is now hitting her physical milestones at an absolutely normal time!

I'm still thinking we won the baby lottery. :-) How thankful I am for that.

Mommy Talk

What was your favorite maternity "could not do without" items?

1. Gold Bond Medicated Anti-Itch Cream (for the Puppp's I got at 22 weeks)

2. A partner who always rubbed my back whenever I whined long enough.

3. Stretch Pants (I think others refer to them as leggings - I just know I lived in them).

4. Tums (for the heartburn I got at 32 weeks till delivery lol)

That's really it. Outside of the heartburn, back pain and Puppp's itching, I had a trouble-free pregnancy with Emmy. I honestly felt like I normally did - outside of the aforementioned troubles and the fact my belly would move on its own! lol

A Little Mommy Talk

A Little Mommy Talk for Monday, May 14th, 2007



Did you find out the sex of your baby? Why or why not? honest...did you have what you were hoping for?(if you want, you can include ultrasound photos :))





Em's Ultrasound Photo:

In Em's pregnancy, I tried EVERY SINGLE TIME to find out the sex. By the end of my pregnancy, I had 6 opportunities and not ONCE did Emmy show the goods. So, I got to be surprised in the delivery room as I had my C-Section.

I was absolutely delighted to have my little girl. I had wanted a girl, and here she was. I still remember after asking the sex, (the Dr's didn't announce it) and hearing it was a girl, I looked at Keith and said, "We have a little girl. I have a daughter."


I was shocked as I sincerely thought she was a boy. During one ultrasound, the tech said that the baby had it's hand covering the genitals. I figured...boys and their toys! hahaha




Madison's Pregnancy:

I didn't find out with Maddie as the ultrasound that I would have had a chance to see it was also the ultrasound that told me my water had possibly broken early. With all the chaos and confusion, I never even asked for them to try to tell me. It was obvious that there was something wrong from the get-go.



So, I had two surprise genders at delivery (not by choice lol). I think, if I do have a third, I would try to keep it a surprise (on purpose this time! lol) The guessing is so much fun in retrospect, although it was driving me batty with Emmy! lol

A Little Mommy Talk

A Little Mommy Talk Question for May 8th:
How much weight did you gain (w/ picture...are you brave enough:) )
and what did you like MOST about pregnancy?
What did you like the LEAST?

Emerson's Pregnancy: (July 2005-Feb 2006)

Excuse the stretch marks! They were there looooong before I got pregnant. This picture is the last belly shot I took - it was at 35 weeks (2 weeks before delivery).

How much weight did you gain (w/ picture...are you brave enough:) 22 pounds. However, I was significantly overweight to start with! lol

What did you like MOST about pregnancy? I LOVED feeling her move. I have many videos of Emmy moving around in my belly. It used to freak Keith out something fierce! *Think Alien movies lol. I also LOVED feeling free to show my belly off. As a fat woman, I always tried to hide my fat - I embraced my belly while pregnant.

What did you like the LEAST? At 22 weeks, I got PUPPPS, which you can actually see in the picture somewhat (red bumps above the stretch marks). It lasted until delivery at 37 weeks. It was seriously itchy and annoying.

Madison's Pregnancy: (November 2006 - March 2007)

How much weight did you gain? No pictures this time - sorry! lol Even though Maddie's pregnancy was only 1/2 as long as Emerson's, I gained the same if not more weight due to my blood pressure issues. One week I gained 11 lbs! ONE WEEK!

What did you like the MOST about pregnancy: The positive pregnancy test. Seeing Maddie on the u/s at 12 weeks. Feeling the tip-taps and flutters of early movement. Strangely, I also love the fact that I gave birth to her vaginally. Even though she was stillborn, it was such a different birth experience from Emerson's C-Section. In a way, I found it more empowering that my body went through it - if that makes sense! (I'm not dissing C-sections, I actually had planned to have a second C-Section if Maddie had been a term birth).

What did you like least about pregnancy: Leaving L&D ward after Maddie's birth without a baby. Nothing else comes close to that pain for me.