he looks different now but this is a few hours old
i am trying to get some more pictures to put up! he looks a little different - still old man alien like but less swollen!
i wanted to say a few things: (shocker!)
1. thank you to everyone for the emails, phone calls, FOOD! (i am so hungry! aparantly you need 600 to 700 additional calories per day to breastfeed - score!), and plethora of other gifts! it's overwhelming and we love you all.
my mom and dad are here (my mom seriously rocks - she cleaned the bathtub so i could bathe and did some laundry/replaced sheets and cleaned our kitchen and gave me a foot rub! in exchange, she got a little lovin on naterade. haha.) (my mother-in-law also seriously rocks - among other things, she brought flowers and a baby boy wreath for the door - so cute - and more delicious food INCLUDING a large tupperwear of mashed potatoes. mmmm taters. we all know how i feel about them. karl says nater tot better like them as well.)
everyone has been awesome. we apologize if we haven't touched base with you. please forgive. we promise we aren't going anywhere and we want everyone to come love on nate patrick.
(warning: breast feeding paragraph to follow. please skim down if you can't handle!) to follow up on nate, the whole milk thing is going surprisingly well. he did get some latching practice about 10 minutes after birth (on the bathroom floor!) and has been a pretty good latcher ever since. the milk is here! woo hoo! (as of this morning! i was starting to stress a bit it would never "come in" as they say.) i was thinking we would have another week before nate arrived so i was really just starting to read all my breastfeeding books - but SO FAR (knock on wood?) things are pretty pleasant. it is simply amazing that babies just know to suck. AND it makes me THIRSTY. i can't stop drinking water while he is on there. and the colostrum that comes before the milk? yea, it's kind of shiny and sparkly like lip gloss. very pretty. and bizarre. and the milk is not at all what i thought it would look like (cows milk it is not), but nate seems not to mind. he CLEARLY prefers one side over the other so we are working on that. (and, somer clark-day, my breast friend IS, in fact, my best friend. i will take a picture of 'the breast friend' somer gave me. it is similar to a boppy - a glorified and sturdy pillow you wrap around your middle for extra support for you and baby. i am pretty sure i could not live without it.) the whole thing is pretty crazy, really. ALSO for the record, breast feeding gives you those post-birth CONTRACTIONS that shrink your uterus. (tee hee, uterus.) well, i am pretty sure you have to have these contractions any hoo but bf'ing makes them happen. like, right then. and they don't feel good! i promise. but everyone keeps telling me it is GREAT that i am having them. nice, right. (it's okay that i am sharing that, right? i never know who reads and/or how much information to put out there!)
some other follow up.... so far nate is pretty chill. he is still pretty young so he sleeps bunches (during the day of course! he is still figuring night v. day. and he was always WAY more active inside me during the evening/night time so that pretty much is holding true in real life.) and he definately has a set of lungs. (sweet.) the pedi checked him out and says, so far, he looks just dandy. she wants to take another look at him next week since he is so new.
and, finally, we have gotten a lot of questions about how non-freaked/calm we were about the whole situation. i promise we were freaked BUT i would like to say that i never felt ridiculously scared... mainly b/c well, there wasn't a WHOLE lot of time to, BUT MOSTLY b/c of all the preperation we had done. ESPECIALLY our birth classes. (and i swear i thought karl hated them but he retained a ridiculous amount of knowledge from them!) initially, when we found out we were pregnant, we looked into both home births and hospital births and did a lot of research about both. also, my prenatal care was phenomenal and i knew that i was ridiculously healthy and that the baby was healthy. i also knew that the baby was positioned correctly... ALL that being said, i'm sure there are plenty of other things that could have been wrong or distressed the baby.... and i would, of course, never EVER choose an unattended birth BUT, i must say... next time, if all parties are happy and healthy, that home birth option with a licensed midwife sounds pretty sweet! next time....hahahahahhahah. we will have plenty of time to think about that!
i wanted to say a few things: (shocker!)
1. thank you to everyone for the emails, phone calls, FOOD! (i am so hungry! aparantly you need 600 to 700 additional calories per day to breastfeed - score!), and plethora of other gifts! it's overwhelming and we love you all.
my mom and dad are here (my mom seriously rocks - she cleaned the bathtub so i could bathe and did some laundry/replaced sheets and cleaned our kitchen and gave me a foot rub! in exchange, she got a little lovin on naterade. haha.) (my mother-in-law also seriously rocks - among other things, she brought flowers and a baby boy wreath for the door - so cute - and more delicious food INCLUDING a large tupperwear of mashed potatoes. mmmm taters. we all know how i feel about them. karl says nater tot better like them as well.)
everyone has been awesome. we apologize if we haven't touched base with you. please forgive. we promise we aren't going anywhere and we want everyone to come love on nate patrick.
(warning: breast feeding paragraph to follow. please skim down if you can't handle!) to follow up on nate, the whole milk thing is going surprisingly well. he did get some latching practice about 10 minutes after birth (on the bathroom floor!) and has been a pretty good latcher ever since. the milk is here! woo hoo! (as of this morning! i was starting to stress a bit it would never "come in" as they say.) i was thinking we would have another week before nate arrived so i was really just starting to read all my breastfeeding books - but SO FAR (knock on wood?) things are pretty pleasant. it is simply amazing that babies just know to suck. AND it makes me THIRSTY. i can't stop drinking water while he is on there. and the colostrum that comes before the milk? yea, it's kind of shiny and sparkly like lip gloss. very pretty. and bizarre. and the milk is not at all what i thought it would look like (cows milk it is not), but nate seems not to mind. he CLEARLY prefers one side over the other so we are working on that. (and, somer clark-day, my breast friend IS, in fact, my best friend. i will take a picture of 'the breast friend' somer gave me. it is similar to a boppy - a glorified and sturdy pillow you wrap around your middle for extra support for you and baby. i am pretty sure i could not live without it.) the whole thing is pretty crazy, really. ALSO for the record, breast feeding gives you those post-birth CONTRACTIONS that shrink your uterus. (tee hee, uterus.) well, i am pretty sure you have to have these contractions any hoo but bf'ing makes them happen. like, right then. and they don't feel good! i promise. but everyone keeps telling me it is GREAT that i am having them. nice, right. (it's okay that i am sharing that, right? i never know who reads and/or how much information to put out there!)
some other follow up.... so far nate is pretty chill. he is still pretty young so he sleeps bunches (during the day of course! he is still figuring night v. day. and he was always WAY more active inside me during the evening/night time so that pretty much is holding true in real life.) and he definately has a set of lungs. (sweet.) the pedi checked him out and says, so far, he looks just dandy. she wants to take another look at him next week since he is so new.
and, finally, we have gotten a lot of questions about how non-freaked/calm we were about the whole situation. i promise we were freaked BUT i would like to say that i never felt ridiculously scared... mainly b/c well, there wasn't a WHOLE lot of time to, BUT MOSTLY b/c of all the preperation we had done. ESPECIALLY our birth classes. (and i swear i thought karl hated them but he retained a ridiculous amount of knowledge from them!) initially, when we found out we were pregnant, we looked into both home births and hospital births and did a lot of research about both. also, my prenatal care was phenomenal and i knew that i was ridiculously healthy and that the baby was healthy. i also knew that the baby was positioned correctly... ALL that being said, i'm sure there are plenty of other things that could have been wrong or distressed the baby.... and i would, of course, never EVER choose an unattended birth BUT, i must say... next time, if all parties are happy and healthy, that home birth option with a licensed midwife sounds pretty sweet! next time....hahahahahhahah. we will have plenty of time to think about that!
11 comments:
you guys are FANTASTIC! and i am so glad to know you! Master Nate is just adorable!!!!
Congrats and Enjoy, Enjoy, Enjoy!!!
yeah yeah YEAH!! i am SO insanely happy for all of you. i'm in dallas now, but HAD to check in...so glad you love the breast friend! :)
Yeah for the milk coming in. We love you guys and little nate who is absolutly the most adorable baby i have ever seen!!!
I love it that you guys have already come up with some pretty rockin' nicknames for the little guy. ;) I'm quite sure that won't stop.
I'm so glad that things are going so well. I couldn't be happier for you guys. Was the pediatrician helpful (and also amazed at you guys)?
yay for nate!!! he is so tiny and perfect!!!
Congrats guys. What an exciting story. Kat, I knew you could do it! Karl, you have many talents and now one more to add to the list-baby catcher. Nate is beautiful. Love the baby and get some sleep!
Liza
Food and water... I remember the days. You've inspired me to write about the beginning of my bf days. I was looking back, thinking I had, but really I did not. I tell people, I write about it on other blogs, but I don't have my "story" written yet. Anyway... in the early days, I was drinking water in 1.5 liter bottles (we were in Germany after all), and I'd drink two or more per day! Ridiculous!
Yeah, I remember that thirst, too. There's nothing like it. :) (Total stranger here, friend of a friend of a friend, but what an amazing story, and congrats. He's absolutely beautiful.)
I used that very same breastfriend. Awwww....your milk is probably yellowish now? It'll turn more white like cow milk later...mine did. Yes, I was hungrier bf-ing than preggo.
Congrats on everything. You guys rock. He is precious
You know I love my Nate – I think they are the sweetest. Your Nate looks a bit like mine did when he was a newborn too. Talk to you soon. I need to see you and the baby for your photo session i want to give you and Karl.
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