One year ago today: Part two

January 1, 2009 4:00 am: Happy New Y- OWWW!

Here we go again. Except this time its different. I'm not sure I can explain it but this time there is a sense of 'no more screwing around, lets get this baby outta here!' Chris resumed his duties of writing down the times of each of my contractions, reminding me to breathe and catering to my every whim. Over the next 11 hours the contractions progressed from 20 minutes apart and moderately uncomfortable to 5 minutes apart and 'Sweet Lord above why have you forsaken me.' I am not kidding. So at 3:oo pm we called the hospital to let labor and delivery know where we were at:

Me: "Yes hello, My name is Lara Flanagan and I am having strong contr- AAAAACKKKKKK, I'm *gasp* sorry, *moan* I'm ..."

Some nurse: "You're having a contraction right now? its ok, I'll wait.

Me: *groan* Thanks. *pant*

Me: "Ok its done. I'm having them about every 5 minutes."

Some nurse: "And they are strong enough to disrupt normal activity?"

Me: "Yes. Generally speaking, I am capable of having a phone conversation without sounding like a raving perverted lunatic."

Some nurse: OK well if your bag of waters is still intact and you're feeling like you can manage it I would recommend sitting it out at home for another hour or so. If your contractions progress to minutes a apart or your water breaks then come right in.

Me: "Great. Thanks so much for your help."



I return to the aptly named fetal position on the couch to await the next wave of contractions.

Side bar: In prepared childbirth class we were taught all sorts of positions that are conducive to the progression of labor, one of my favorites through out pregnancy was sitting on a large exercise ball. It was great in alleviating my lower back and sciatic pain and apparently was a great position for labor as it opened up the pelvic floor which, in turn, allowed for the baby to station into the birth canal. I tried sitting on that ball one time during a contraction. One time.
It was like riding a bicycle without a seat over grooved pavement. After that I didn't want that damn ball anywhere near me.

So I returned to the couch and endured the contractions, each one coming a little quicker and stronger than the one before. Just before 4pm I looked at Chris and said "That's it, I'm not waiting any longer." He started the truck, grabbed my bags, helped me into my coat and had me in the car and on the road in seconds flat. Anxious much?

We got to the hospital and at this point the contractions were only two minutes apart so standing at the counter waiting to be checked in was torture.

Before long I was shown to a room in triage. The nurse informed me that she would be back in a few minutes to check and see if I had earned a stay in the hospital. I quickly looked at Chris and said I had better be 4 centimeters because I WAS NOT GOING HOME. Its protocol for hospitals to send you home of you're not dilated enough. And protocol or not I was staying put.



After what felt like a lifetime and 700 more contractions the OB on call came in to check my progress. DING DING DING! Lucky contestant number two you have earned yourself an all inclusive two day three night stay! I was 8 centimeters. EIGHT CENTIMETERS! 8 centimeters is like finding out you won the lottery and you only have to share it with 5 other people. I was thrilled, you know, in spite of the devastating pain I was experiencing. So the next thing I know I'm gathering up my things and being wheeling into a delivery room. Chris made a few phone calls to let people know my status and within 12 minutes my sister Kim and niece Katie were there. Which is totally amazing seeing as they live 40 minutes from the hospital. At 6pm-ish the anesthesiologist arrived and Chris promptly stepped out of the room. He has a thing with needles and the last thing I needed was him passing out from witnessing the epidural.

By 6:30 I was feeling no pain. Now all I had to do was rest and wait.



Stay tuned for the conclusion...

One year ago today... Part One.

I woke to sharp pains rising in my belly like a crescendo. It was 4 am. After a scant minute the pain subsided and I hefted my body back down into my nest of pillows and blanket tucking this one here and that one there making sure I had support where I needed it. Not perfect but it would do. Just as I was dozing off, it came again. A wave starting dull and low but quickly gaining intensity as it spread up and over my body. I glanced at the clock: 4:20. Seriously? Was this it? Was I really going to spend the last day of 2008 in labor? I began the process of rolling over, a 4 point turn that created a small earthquake in the bed bouncing slumbering husband perilously close to the edge of the bed. After more shuffling of blankets and pillows I compromised. Comfort was elusive. I laid there watching the clock, waiting. 4:34: here we go again. I nudged Chris, with a slight grunt of discomfort. He stirred but didn't wake. "honey" I said. "wake up, I'm having contractions" He rolled over and looked at me, blinking... I grimaced and waited for the pain to ease while he caressed my head. I held his hand and we dozed in the calm between. We had our own little unspoken communication going, I would squeeze his hand to indicate the pain was coming and he would remind me, by example, to breathe. This went on for a while until finally, at the tail end of one, I opened my eyes and asked "How long was that one?" "I'm not sure" he answered. Apparently this reply was not acceptable because I countered with "WELL, IF YOU CANT KEEP TRACK YOU HAD BETTER START WRITING THEM DOWN!"
To which he promptly jumped from the bed to retrieve paper and a pen. We documented the times as the contractions came and went about every ten minutes. I had just barely enough time to recover before another came knocking. We played time the contractions for a few hours and then at 11:53 am the last contraction of the day promptly ended. Wanting to keep everything progressing My nieces; Katie and Becky and I decided to walk the mall. Let gravity and motion do the work for me. So we hit The Streets at Southpoint and then I devoured dinner at The Cheesecake Factory. I was on high alert, every little nudge, cramp and hiccup gave pause. In these brief hesitations everyone went quiet and waited for my reaction. But nothing seemed to be happening in the labor department so we called it day and went home to ring in the new year with apple cider and a movie. A movie I didn't make it 2o minutes into before falling fast asleep.

Here's wishing you a New Year filled with blessings and joy.

Momentary pleasures.

December 18th 2009: Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

The winter storm warnings were scrolling the bottom of every local channel. Schools were already cancelled for the day and the first flake had yet to fly. The major roads had been sprayed with salt and the bread isle in the grocery store had been violently ransacked.

Around here just the threat of snow is enough to declare a state of emergency.

Although intermittent between 1:00pm and 5pm, the snow did fall and I was hopeful that it would continue through the late afternoon. Looking out the windows and staring into the sky I felt like a kid again hoping it would amount to enough for school to be cancelled. Today I would settle for just a full ground covering to share with my boys.



By 6pm the sky opened up and we couldn't resist going out to play in it.



Liam was a little unsure...

but that's OK, I was excited enough for the both of us..

It's fleeting, to be sure. By morning it will likely be gone but today, for a few short hours, joy fell from the sky and we were home again.

Oh Christmas Tree!

It is now safe to say the holidays are in full swing in our house! This past weekend Liam sat with Santa and made a special First Christmas wish. Together, we picked out the perfect tree which is now up and decorated. The lights outside are hung and the garland in the house smells fresh and festive... The only thing missing is the blanket of white outside our window.


By the way, this picture totally captures my excitement for the Christmas season, dontcha think?

Vogue

Liam has starting doing this thing.

And man, is it funny.


The first time he did it I thought it was just a fluke...

WHAT is the face all about? It kinda says: What the heck is going on here?

How did this happen? And how do I fix it?

But then, a few days later, he did it again and this time he was totally cool with it.






I mean, is he striking a pose or what?
Like: Ma look what I did! Its modern and flashy and all I need is a beaded clutch and I'm ready for a night on the town.

He's the Cheesiest

Liam & Macaroni n' Cheese: 1 Mommy: 0

Ticking away the moments...

I can hardly believe that Liam is 11 months old. Where has the time gone?

When we first brought him home everyone, I mean EVERYONE, told us: 'enjoy this time, it will go by so fast.' As first time parents filled with anxiety, we just nodded our heads and fumbled for the coffee pot. But honestly, no truer words have ever been spoken.

Yesterday morning I left Liam on the living room floor to play while I went into the kitchen for a minute. If you've been to our house you know that I didn't go far and my view of him was obstructed only momentarily. When I came back around the corner he was sitting on the couch. ON THE COUCH!?! Apparently he had managed to use his workbench as a step stool. And not only that, when he was finished sitting ON THE COUCH!?! he crawled over to the edge and began to climb, head first, down the workbench.
But then something happened and it wasn't what I was expecting. I expected him to slip head first off the couch onto the workbench and eventually land in a startled, wailing heap on the floor(OK, I would have caught him before he actually hit the floor...). What did happen was pretty cool to watch. Halfway onto the workbench the light bulb went on over his head and he realized, perhaps, this was not the best way. So he backed himself back onto the couch, turned around and decided to try getting down feet first. Which he did, successfully.

How did he learn that? Amazing.

Of course it only reminded me of how far we have come in such a short time. My sweet innocent little baby is fast becoming a toddler who tears through the house like a crawling, climbing tornado that gives us dirty looks when we tell him no.

And yet we have so far still to go.