Mami Update

Sydnei and I just before going home from the hospital, Wednesday, June 25th, 2008

I can hardly believe that Sydnei will be 2 weeks old tomorrow. In one sense it seems like these last two weeks have flown by and in another sense dragged on and on and on. I attribute the latter to the major sleep deprivation, recovery, and my first case of mastitis all in the first week! Ryan has been my constant support as we've weathered and endured the first two weeks together. He gets up with me, helps to change Sydnei's diaper, rock her, console her, and has helped to make me comfortable as I recover. Thank you sweetheart, I couldn't have done this without you. Love you.

Despite the mastitis infection, Sydnei is still getting the nourishment she needs and has already surpassed her birth weight. (they don't expect babies to be back to birth weight until their 2 week birthday) She reached 6lbs, 90z, by last Tuesday--6 days ahead of schedule! Tomorrow is Sydnei's 2-week check-up appointment and I'm so excited to see how much she has grown. I know she's got to be over 7lbs!!!

I'm finally starting to "normalize" in appearance and pain. (I even put on regular jeans for the first time on Friday!!!) The recovery process your body has to go through after delivering a baby is no piece of cake--those of you who have done it can easily agree. I became very swollen after delivering Sydnei and have finally shed most of the water weight--16lbs to be exact. As of yesterday, my feet no longer look like elephant feet, my face isn't really puffy anymore, and I'm feeling more "in my element."

One of my favorite things about Sydnei so far is when I hold her about 6-8 inches from my face, smile at her, and then stick my tongue out. Within less than a minute she will stick her tongue out at me!!! It is so dang cute and precious and we just sit there sticking our tongues out at each other. I love making this simple little connection with her. It takes time for newborns to make eye contact, smile spontaneously, and interact with you...these little moments are truly cherished.

Papi Holding his Precious Sydnei

Sydnei's Grand Entrance

It was a series of events that brought Sydnei into this world faster than anyone anticipated. Monday morning, June 23rd, I went to a Non-Stress Test appointment so that they could monitor the baby. I was there a little over an hour and every 5 minutes the nurse would come in and shake her head ever so slightly as she reviewed the monitor printout. I asked her at one point if the baby's heartbeat was going down each time I contracted and she said, "yes, and it's concerning." After a little more monitoring they decided to do a quick ultrasound to check the level of amniotic fluid, which was found to be lower than normal. A call to my doctor to report the results (since he was waiting for me to show up at my 40-week appointment in clinic) resulted in the decision to induce me. Dr. Wagar said, "it's time for that baby to come out." I, of course, happily agreed...not only because I was dying to deliver but because I didn't want Sydnei to be under distress longer than was necessary.

I picked up Ryan from his office elsewhere on campus and then headed to Labor and Delivery. It was about 12:30pm and going to be awhile before anything got going. Ry headed home to get my bag (everything else--the car seat and diaper bag were already in the car). In the meantime he left me his mac book pro, Layla, so that I could entertain myself.

Me and my favorite hippo, Hip-to-Be, my brother gave him to me when I was little and he has been my favorite ever since

Ryan hanging out in the delivery room

The Pitocin drip didn't get started until LATE afternoon and even then it was a SLOW drip. My body was already going into labor naturally without the extra help so they didn't deem it necessary to load me up with the pitocin. By the evening, I was content with an epidural and ready for showtime. The only problem was my body wasn't progressing. I looked at the resident doctor, Dr. Burlone at around 10:00pm and said, "if you just break my water, things will start happening...promise!"

.Drs. Burlone and Jensen, the Rock Star Delivery Docs

About 30 minutes or so later she came in and said, "okay, let's do it...we're breaking the water" and so they did. Dr. Jensen, the attending physician (and might I add a dream of a doctor), came in to check on things and estimated delivery sometime between 2-5am the 24th--my actual due date. While explaining the potential progress of things, I looked at him and said, "I NEED more epidural medication or I'm just going to PUSH this baby out NOW!!!!" He checked me again, and I had gone from a 4 to complete in less than 45 minutes. It actually startled me because I could feel her making her way through the birth canal. Two big pushes later and Sydnei came flying into the world...screaming with open arms--all 6lbs, 90zs of her!!! Needless to say, we were all relieved that she was finally here and have been in love ever since.

Sydnei Nicole Staley

Born, Monday, June 23, 2008 at 11:35pm
Weighed 6lbs, 90z, Measured 19 1/4 inches long
(note that at her weight check 4 days later they measured her and she was 21 inches long, we figure she wasn't totally stretched out when measured right after birth)

WE LOVE YOU, SYDNEI!!!

Sofía Meets Sydnei

Stormy and I wanted Sofía to be the first family member to meet Sydnei. It was very important for us that they establish a relationship upfront—although Sofía clearly knows that she's the big sister, and refers to Sydnei as "her bebé." When Sofía walked in the room, Sydeni had a little gift waiting for her: a pink pony with sparkling hooves (right up Sofía's ally). Coincidentally, Sofía, with the help of her Mama Thompson, had a pink teddy bear to give to Sydnei. It was a very sweet moment watching these two meet for the first time; Sofía was so overwhelmed with joy to see her little sister, and, of course, had many questions, like, "Mom, how did Sydnei come out of your tummy?" Yeah, try explaining that to a four-year-old girl. Oh, yeah, and, "Mami, what color are her eyes? Are they blue like mine?" And to top it off with "Mami, can I pet her?"

Welcome to The World, Sydnei!

Sydnei Nicole Staley arrived into this world fast at 11:35PM on Monday, June 23, 2008. She weighed 6 lbs. 9 oz. and measured 19 1/4 inches long. Mother and baby are doing well, and we're all so happy to finally have little Sydnei with us; she's a little angel! Below are some pictures of the great event:

Mom and Sydnei for the first time.

Enjoying the warmth!

Little Sydnei enjoying being in mom's arms.

Sydnei sucking on her fist.

Coming to you LIVE from...

...Labor and Delivery at Oregon Health & Sciences University to let you know that Sydnei is on her way. I'm in labor and weathering contractions that are about 3 minutes apart lasting a little over a minute each time. 

I had a NST appointment this morning where they monitored Sydnei for over an hour.  Her heart rate was dipping each time I contracted every 6 minutes plus my BP was elevated.  They did an ultrasound and found my fluid was low so the decision was made to induce. Fortunately, my body is already in the labor process so I won't need a whole lot of the Pitocin hormone to get things going!

We'll keep you posted!

No baby yet...

....I just have to say that I'm SO DYING to have this baby! I'm huge, uncomfortable, and completely sleep deprived. (not like the sleep deprivation will improve anytime soon after birth) anyway, all typical complaints of a woman as pregnant as I am. :D I was thinking that if I posted saying that I was still pregnant, Sydnei, would suddenly decide to come into the world to prove me wrong! We shall see...Happy 'huge' thoughts!

p.s. We're now secretly hoping that Sydnei decides to arrive in about 33 hours--after 12:01am on Sunday, June 22nd, it would be her Grandpa Staley's 50th birthday...now that would be special.

Sydnei Nicole Staley

Parents take great pride in naming their children; it’s the second question most commonly asked only to “what are you having?” and it’s not any different for us. We’re thrilled to be having a baby girl—honestly, Sofía is very enthusiastic, since she can’t stop saying how she and her new bebé are going to play hide-and-seek—and nothing is more important to us than naming this little one. Thoughts that always cross the mind are the typical ones: do you name her after mami (for cryin’ out loud she carried her for nine months); do you name her after papi (he’s the one that had to watch mommy throw up a lot, you know); or do you name her after a beloved relative, such as Bertha (bless your heart grandma) or Looney (Ryan voted for that one, of course)? We do it all in the name of tradition, right? Well, actually, we spent a lot of time pondering over the name for our second child. And once we found out it was a girl, we knew in our hearts what her name would be.

Ryan and I always wanted to choose names for our children that would provide meaning to their lives in years to come, and promote an increased sense of self and special identity in this world.

Sydnei Olivia Michau

Sydnei
Ten years ago, one of the most important individuals came into my life: Sydnei Olivia Michau. She didn’t know then how she’d affect my life forever. My friendship with Sydnei was instant and quickly blossomed. Over the next ten years, Sydnei’s patience, love, support, and sense of humor proved to be paramount to my own life and success. She’s a life-long friend, which I firmly believe one rarely finds in this life.

We chose to name our second daughter after Sydnei because it will represent someone who is a bright light for many, faithful, full of love and strength, and generous. Thank you, Sydnei, for being an inspiration to us.

Stormy Nicole Staley

Nicole
She who carried her for nine months wins: her middle name is Nicole after her mami. The nine-month thing really has nothing do with why Sydnei received the middle name “Nicole,” so we’ll clarify that right here. Nicole comes from Greek origin, and its meaning is "victorious people," and Ryan thought that was important, of course, as do I.

Nicole is sweet, determined, and ambitious. Those are characteristics that Ryan has always used to describe me. We chose the middle name, Nicole, for these very same qualities.

Sydnei Nicole Staley…

We can’t wait for you to join our family and watch you grow. We look forward to the day we hold you in our arms for the very first time.

Love,
Mami y Papi

IT'S A GIRL!!!!

We were right!!!! Our second child, due June 24th, is a baby girl. We enjoyed over an hour long ultrasound today as we got to see all of her different baby parts and learn that she is growing right on target. The heart, the brain, the kidney's, and the lung's are all developing beautifully! She currently measures 8 inches long, just right at 20 weeks gestation. It was such a relief to me, especially because I've been having nightmares that there were problems. Now, my mind is at ease and we're SO EXCITED for our new baby girl. Sofia will get to have the "baby princess" she's been asking for and talking about non-stop! Thanks to everyone for the all of your kind thoughts and prayers. Please enjoy some of the very first pics of our little one.

p.s. A name has already been selected and will be announced very soon!

The proof that it's a girl. The ultrasound technician even double-checked and said, "no doubt, that's some girly material!"

Here is her profile; we were lucky to get this picture as she was moving around like crazy.

The very first body part we saw on the screen was the spine. Pretty sweet, huh?!?!

...and here are her cute baby feet. So precious.

Are we having a girl or a boy?

Stay tuned as we have our ultrasound on Monday, Febraury 4, 2008! Only 7 1/2 more days to go!

We truly believe we are having a girl. It just feels right. We knew we were having a girl before Sofia was ever conceived and it's the same feeling with this one! Sofia is also convinced it's a girl--she loves the idea of a baby princess to play with. :) That said, we could all be wrong...In the end we're happy with either.

Take a moment and cast your vote for what you think we're having. It'll be interesting to see the consensus!

Coming up for air....

Perhaps that sounds a wee bit dramatic for some of you but nevertheless and notwithstanding that's basically what I'm doing here. I've been relatively MIA online for a few weeks. The month of November proved to be extremely painful as you all know and today I felt somewhat coherent enough to type a post.

So, yes, I'm as sick as I was with Sofia. And, yes, I'm on the "vomiting-my-guts-out-weight-loss plan." For those of you who recall my 30-by-30 goal--I put it on hold until the end of the pregnancy. That said, I've still actually managed to achieve 56.7% of that goal. Yes, I've lost 17 pounds in the last month averaging 4.5 pounds per week. My b-day is six days away, so we'll see what the number actually is on December 9th.

Ryan is unceasingly supportive (thanks a million, sweetheart). He's picked up where I haven't been able to and we're getting through this. Last week on one particular day my body was so dehydrated and wasted that I literally slept 16 hours. When I finally woke up and vomited some more I managed to get some fruit in me. Later that evening Ryan and Sofia were headed to the gym and encouraged me to go with them. This way I could get my mind and blood pumping so I agreed. I took it really easy but it definitely helped. I was able to do that two other days last week and it proved to be as good for my mind as well as for my body. We're going to go again tonight. :)

Clearly, this is one of my life battles, but I know why we decided have another baby, and I know this part won't last forever. I'm feeling more and more connected to the little one inside of me and continue to do everything I can to "keep my eye on the prize" --sorry for the cheesy-ness there. It's up and down for me; I try to keep in mind how happy our family will be to welcome the new little one into our lives.

Not Your Ordinary Morning Sickness...

As most of you know, during the first trimester most women experience the ever so common morning sickness, which consists of nausea and vomiting. Most pregnant women feel as though they’re going to vomit everything they ingest, or feel as though most odors nauseate them to the point of vomiting. Yet, there is a small percentage of pregnant women (about 0.3% to 2%) who become afflicted with a condition called “Hyperemesis Gravidarum,” which differs from ordinary morning sickness in that those afflicted become extremely dehydrated and continue to loose weight. Three symptoms confirm extensive vomiting: ketosis, weight loss, and dehydration. “Hyperemesis gravidarum is uncontrollable vomiting during pregnancy that results in dehydration and ketosis.”

A women must receive IV infusion of water, glucose, and electrolytes to correct the dehydration. As far as the nausea and vomiting go, well, medication is the best bet. Stormy’s drug of choice is “ ondansetron (Zofran).” The major downside to this medication is the cost — I’ll spare you the price as some of you may feel sick to your stomach, and since this post is about vomiting and all, we don’t want any of that, now do we. Zofran is often administered to cancer patients for similar symptoms of nausea and vomiting.

Stormy’s mom, Carolyn, has always said that Stormy was “special.” Given that only 0.3% to 2% of pregnant women develop this extreme condition, I’d say that’s pretty special —although the experience in of itself isn’t special by any means. Still, it’s a fifty-fifty chance that a pregnant women will develop this condition if she developed during a previous pregnancy. As many of you know, Stormy experienced what some would call a horrific pregnancy the first go around. All the same, and as special as she is, hyperemesis gravidarum is back. Still, Stormy and I were discussing on the way home from the infusion clinic yesterday about the differences in this pregnancy to that of Sofía’s, and Stormy made the comment that the one major difference is that, even though she’s vomiting and dehydrated, she can look at Sofía and smile and feel a little bit better. Sofía has adopted a practice that is quite endearing; she sings “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star” whenever mommy isn’t feeling well.