How cute is my niece? My BIL and SIL seem to be doing really well. I am trying to come up with a great gift idea for them, something that will be really useful. But I know with each of my kids, whatever our lifesaver was changed. Owen loved the bouncy chair, Maddie loved the swing. We used the bottle warmer a lot with Owen, but only once with Maddie, diaper genie, not so much. Breast pump? a gift from the heavens.With so many people having babies lately, and the new one on its way in the next 2 months or so I have been thinking a lot about how different it is after the first. I loved Swistle's beginning of labor post. Even more than the labor I just remember thinking "this is NOT what I expected".
I had a nice little picture in my head of what things would be like after Owen was born. For some reason I didn't really get my mind set on the labor, I just assumed that part would all suck, and I would be lucky if I lived through it. It is helpful to have low expectations. But somehow I expected a nice rosy glow after he was born. Instead, I always felt like I was doing it wrong. Don't ask me what "it" was. There are two incidents at the hospital that really stick out in my mind .......
1) Shortly after Owen was born, I nursed him for the first time. I think it went ok, but a few hours later (2:00am) he was hungry again, and didn't seem to be latching on right. The nurse was there and she was very helpful and encouraging. We tried a variety of different holds, and positions. Felt like he was having a hard time getting a hold of my nipple, she suggested ..... rubbing ice on it so it would perk up and he could get it. So there I am, with the nurse and Bud looking on while I rub ice on myself. Hot. So not how I pictured motherhood.
2) I got really nauseous the second night in the hospital. I woke up in the middle of the night and started throwing up. Well because of the stress on the various parts of my girly parts every time I threw up I also would pee, luckily I was wearing the giant pad they give you. Bud was asleep the whole time, then Owen started crying in his bassinet and Bud was still sleeping! I started crying in the bathroom, because this wasn't what I envisioned.
I now find these stories hysterical. At the time everything seemed so important, I wanted to have this nice memory to look back on. I now appreciate that I have a lot of funny stories to tell people.
I am I the only one that felt this way? It seems everyone else had a handle on what they were doing.
5 comments:
I think the two things that stuck out with my first labor (with my Owen) were 1) the fact that I really wanted to try to do things drug-free & ended up begging for them--my husband made some comment & I nearly snapped his head off (now I can look back on it and laugh but at the time I felt horrible about things) and 2) when I woke up in a PUDDLE in the middle of the night...no one ever told me I would sweat out all that retained water. So sexy!
OMG CUTE NIECES EVERYWHERE!
I TOOOOOTALLY did not expect the maternity nurses to be asking me about the state/emissions of my bowels IN FRONT OF MY HUSBAND AND VISITORS.
Also, I had a c-section so I had a catheter, and the bag leaked all over the floor and OMG.
And later, I did not expect that I would have to (1) save my pee and (2) call a nurse to come inspect/measure it.
Really, the whole childbirth experience is pretty funny. Later.
I was shocked about everything YOU said and everything Melissa said and everything Swistle said. I was shocked and 2.75 babies later and 3.5 years later, I'm STILL shocked. Having my boy was the first time I was ever in the hospital and I ended up having a c-section so it was the first time I had surgery too. My husband and I had only been married for like 11 months and I remember thinking "I barely know this guy!" at one point. Hee. I am going in for my third here in nine (!) weeks and I do feel more ready, but I think it helps especially that I won't be going into labor.
Beautiful baby!
Melissa- I forgot about the sweating. I didn't have that with Maddie, I was so puffy for a week, when I walked I could feel the tops of my feet jiggle. eewwww
Swistle- I had my tonsils out shortly before I got married, then ended up in the hospital, so I had done the peeing in the "hat" as they called it.
Joanne- we must be due around the same time! My husband I were married 9 months when we had Owen.
She is gorgeous! And I'm dying laughing about the things everyone else said. BIG yes on the sweating out all the water. That drove me crazy.
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