Judi and Jeff are cooking dinner. George and I are just hangin!

I took a few great pics of George today, but all on Judi's camera. You'll have to wait for me to get those from her - prolly tomorrow - before they make an appearance here. Stay tuned!

Last night was dreamy - literally. George couldn't wait until 10 pm to eat, so we fed him around 9:45. He ate and ate and ate - so much so that we decided not to top him off. I thought for sure we'd be awake around 1 am, especially since he ate early. But no, the little guy proved to be a champion again. While I did hear him squirming around 1:30 am, he didn't cry until just after 3 am. Yeah!! I got some solid zzzzz's and a few quick dreams. After the 3 am feeding, he woke up hungry again around 6 am. That was a bit odd, but he must be wise to our day. 6 am is the perfect start of our feeding schedule today.

We're heading to Judi's for brunch with the girls at 10, so eating again at 9 am is perfect!! Then I've got an appointment to get our taxes done at 1 pm, so eating at 12 will be perfect again. Yeah George!

No plans (socially) yet for this evening, but I predict something will creep up when I see all the girls this morning. This weekend, however, is HUGE!! Jeff has overnight duty tonight and tomorrow night Judi is having George for a sleepover!! I'm not sure if she knows what she's getting herself into, but we're thrilled she's ready to give it a go. I know she'll enjoy singing to him and having alone time. Will she enjoy the 3 am wake-up? ;)

But wait - what does this mean for me??? I get TWO nights in a row of eight hour sleep!! WoooHooooo!! PARTY PARTY!!

XOX
Mom

Liz and George before date night

Pic of the day. HA! Where is George? You can see his legs - with the cute moose on his feet. And you can see his arm too if you look close enough. He's napping in his bouncy seat.

George has been getting too much sun - even THROUGH the blinds/curtains, so I put this light blanket over the seat to shade him some more.

Last night was my first night out without George. He stayed home with JuJu while Jeff and I went to the Denver Nuggets game. We left the game with about 5 minutes on the clock so we could get home in time for the 10 pm feeding. The Nuggets won by 1 point. It was a closer game than we were expecting against the Atlanta Hawks, but we had fun. And we got a free umbrella. He heee.

Tonight we're leaving him with Judi again. Thursday night is date night. Judi has agreed to watch George every Thursday night. Last night was just a fluke. Tonight Jeff and I are headed to the 9th Door for tapas. It's Denver Restaurant Week and so it's a fixed menu and it looks great.

Until tonight, George and I are in our PJs. ;) Tomorrow we've got brunch with the girls and then a 1 pm appointment to get our taxes done. So, we'll enjoy today's laziness while we can.

XOX
Mom

Here's a pic of George waiting with me at the doctor's office today. We got a good report from my OB and I will go back and see her again in two weeks to make sure my incision is still healing nicely.

Three Weeks and Two Days

This morning I was exhausted. George was up at 1 am, 5 am, and then AGAIN at 7. I feel terrible when I do this, but after the 7 am feeding I put him back to bed and I climbed back in myself. My mom says don't feel bad - I need to do it for me and ultimately that's best for him. True enough. At 9:45 I woke up. PERFECT timing. I jumped in the shower and got dressed for the day and then went to get George for his 10 am feeding. It's a good thing I can get ready so quickly.

By the time we were fed and changed and got downstairs it was almost 11 am. Ahhhh - a late start to the day. I have a doctor's appointment today - with my OB to check my incision again. I also need to mail the birth announcements and pick up a few books I have on hold at the library. Don't be too impressed. I still don't have time for leisurely reading. They're breast feeding books - I need some FAQs on how to pump, what medications are safe to take, etc.

This morning I FINALLY assembled George's play place. April gave it to us in December. It's sooooo cute. George played in there for a bit until I put him down for a mini nap around noon. He'll be ready to eat again in about 20 minutes. Then we're off for our busy day.

Tonight JuJu is coming over to sit and play with George while Jeff and I go to a Denver Nuggets game. We've been out to lunch already, but this will be my longest time away from him - our first trip away where I'll miss a feeding. I'm ready for it, it's just a big moment I guess. Jeff and I agree that the very best gift we can ever give George will be a solid marriage, so we'll continue to have dates. JuJu is excited for date nights too - she's anxious to have some time alone with George so she can sing her heart out to him. ;)

XOX
Mom

So much to see and play with!

We got a lot done today. We ran errands all morning . . . Babies R Us, breast feeding store, post office and Target. I stopped and got lunch on the way home. Then mom and I addressed and stamped the birth announcements. They came today via UPS and are gorgeous. Look for yours to arrive soon! After that George and I went for a walk in the new fancy stroller.

Tonight we're having salmon and cesear salad. YUMMY! I may crash hard. I think I will go lay down for a few until Jeff gets home from work.

XOX
Mom

Otto stands guard on George and Bob.

Bob's maiden voyage. It's 70 degrees here today!

I sorta jinxed myself. The first wakeup was 1 am. I thought for sure I was in BIG trouble. That seemed too early. The feeding went as usual - no biggie there. I was back in bed before 2 am, but worried about how the rest of the night would go. I fumbled with the volume on the baby monitor and went to sleep.

I woke up at 6 to Jeff's alarm going off and realized I hadn't heard George yet. Was he sleeping? Awake? Did I turn OFF the volume last night? Who knows. It had been 5 hours though, so I went in to feed him anyway. It was a rough feeding. He peed all over himself and the changing table. So, after a clean-up session (always fun in the night/early morning) we had a fresh changing pad, a new diaper and a new outfit. THEN, he spit up all over himself again. Ugh! I put him back to "bed" (still the swing) while I pumped, got some breakfast, am writing here, and then a shower is soon to come.

I hope our last feeding session is not a sign of the day to come!

XOX
Mom

Well, I hate to jinx my evening, but I am gonna say it. Last night was ANOTHER success. Maybe we're on to something. George ate around 10 pm. The feeding cycle was over close to 10:30, so we went upstairs for a change and a swaddle. After that, we topped George off with a bottle and then tucked him in. It was prolly 10:45 or so when he went to bed. I was quick to follow. A bit after 3 am, I was woken up by the little guy. So that was still four solid hours for me AND our only nighttime feeding. Only getting up once in the night is HUGE!! I have fingers and toes crossed that we'll be just as successful this evening . . . and every evening from here on. ;)

Today was fairly low-key. George and I both stayed in bed until about 9 am (after a 6:30 am feeding). Then we got ready for the day and came downstairs. Judi came over around 11 and I didn't even put her to work! She just got to hold and love George. After the 1 pm feeding George and I went for a walk with Gwen and Mason. I was impressed that I was able to walk as far and as swiftly as I did. I wasn't fast at all, but I did pick up my pace since Saturday's walk. It was 65 degrees here today, so a GREAT day for a walk.

Jeff came home and cooked us a fresh hot dinner. That was nice. We've been feasting on leftovers for quite some time now. It was nice to have a freshly made meal. He then made our favorite break & bake peanut butter cookies too. YUMMY!!

Today George is three weeks old. Three weeks. We snuggled on the couch for a bit today and I just stared into his dark blue eyes. We won't be able to snuggle like that too much longer. He'll get bigger and then he'll grow up. I'll have to stop rubbing his cheeks and kissing his forehead. For now, I like to think about what he'll look like . . . what color his eyes will soon be . . . what color and thickness of hair he'll have . . . how long before he'll walk or talk or sleep through the night. There is so much in store for us all and I am anxiously awaiting every moment! In the meantime I will cherish what I have - the sweet innocent soft George.

XOX
Mom

Pic of the day . . . George chillin on his bear mat in between feedings.

George was equally nice to me last night. We topped him off with a small bottle at 11:30 pm and once again he slept until just after 4 am. Not too shabby. So I slept from about midnight until 4. I'm grateful and thankful for four solid hours of sleep. In fact I even recall having dreams for the first time since he was born. That's a good sign.

This morning George had his second "bath," except this time we tried the shower. George LOVED it. I got everything ready and then got in the shower myself. Jeff got him undressed and then handed him off to me. He was totally happy in there. I think being up against me helped keep him warm. I quickly lathered him up and then we went under the water to rinse a few times. He loved it. I passed him back to Jeff for drying off and dressing him. It was quicker than "baths" we've attempted before and easier. We'll keep going this route for a while I think.

George didn't eat so great at 10 am. Maybe the stress of the shower exhausted him. He slept straight through 10 am and couldn't be stirred. Matt and Sam stopped by to visit at 11. We gave him a few ounces in a bottle while they were here, cause he started looking hungry and getting fussy. Now who knows when he'll eat again. Oh well. Life isn't always perfectly scheduled anymore I guess.

Jeff had a good idea yesterday . . . we've decided to take one picture a day (minimum) of George for his entire first year of life. It'll be fun to flip through them later and see how he slowly changed in his first year. What's funny is we decided yesterday to do this and we didn't take a pic yesterday. Ooops. ;) I need to go back and see which days we've got from the first few weeks as well.

Tomorrow George is THREE weeks old. Crazy - it's going so fast.

This afternoon we may venture to the mall to pick up a few things. Otherwise I think it'll be a lazy Sunday afternoon.

XOX
Mom

We had a GREAT night last night. Of course we did though . . . it was finally Jeff's turn for a night feeding. So, of course George went easy on him. Actually, I'm glad he did. Now maybe Jeff will take more and more night feedings. ;) We all went to bed around 11:30 pm. George slept until 4:30 am. Not too shabby. We ALL got FIVE HOURS of sleep!! NICE!!

I took the 7 am feeding and the cycle begins again. I let Jeff sleep. Just now - 9:30 am - I hear him moving around a bit up there. I thought he should get the chance to catch up a bit. It's about time for another feeding. It just doesn't stop.

XOX
Mom

George bouncing in his chair last night.

Just realized I shouldn't be eating broccoli anything. Poor George. No wonder he's so uncomfortable!

exhaustion . . . more of the same from yesterday. george woke up a few times in the night. i need sleep. i'm volunteering jeff for one middle of the night feeding tonight. he doesn't know it yet. i started pumping milk this week though. george gets one bottle each day. right now i've got 5 ounces in the fridge. that's plenty for jeff and george to have a 2 or 4 am bonding session over a bottle.

judi's here, making broccoli soup for lunch - yummy! i am trying to be better about eating. i really don't understand how people don't lose the baby weight. between all this activity there's very little time for food around here. i am VERY close to being in my regular clothes. more exciting news for today . . . i am FINALLY wearing my wedding ring again. YEAH!!

this morning we went BACK to the pediatrician's office for another blood test to check George's jaundice levels. we'll hear tonight - again - how that's looking. i will let you know.

XOX
mom

Pic of the day . . . George in his super cute outfit from Debbie, Brian, Sean, Shannon and Sarah. Thanks guys. We LOVE this one.

I am exhausted. It was a long day that really started in the middle of last night. George had a really good feeding at 10 pm last night so I thought the odds were good that I would have a few hours of solid sleep. We weren't so lucky. By the time the feeding cycle is all done, I was in bed a little after 11 pm. George first woke up around 1 am. So, TWO HOURS for me. UGH! Around 2 am I was back in bed. Then around 4 am he was up again. Yeah, that's just TWO HOURS again for me. I was hoping for a three or four hour block in there.

Then the whole day seemed to be a constant nonstop of feeding, pumping, an errand to run, a visitor to see, a breastfeeding support group to attend, a trip to JuJu's house, more feedings, and dinner with a friend. I have 10 minutes before the last feeding of the day and then we start the nighttime cycle all over again.

I am getting better at the pumping thing - I think. Tonight George had an entire feeding with a bottle - just over 4 ounces. Geez, that boy can eat! He ate all I had stored up, so then we started from scratch again. The breastfeeding group today was interesting. I think it's mostly for people who are having trouble getting their little guys to eat at all. They weighed the babes - George was 8 pounds, 2 ounces (with a clean diaper). Then we all fed our kiddos and they weighed them again to see how much they ate. George got about 1.5 ounces at that feeding - not too great. Oh well.

OK - I am sooooo tired. Gonna go get ready for the 10 pm feeding so I can hopefully CRASH soon after. Wishing for more than three hours in one stretch tonight please!!

XOX
Mom

Today was fairly busy. We started our day with a trip to the neighborhood coffee shop to meet Kristine and catch up. She's been out of town for the past week and it's great to have her back. After coffee, I met Judi at the house where she helped me with a few feedings and we ate lunch together. Then we all headed to my doctor's office for a check on how I'm healing.

My doctor says things are going GREAT! My incision is 90% better than last week. It's looking good. She says in 7 - 10 days I should be looking really good. I got the OK to drive and to carry George in his car seat. I also got the OK to start walking around and exercising lightly. I'm not ready to jog yet, or to do any crunches, but we're getting closer. All the girls at the office, including my doc, LOVED on George. He's perfect!

This evening our nanny popped in to meet George. They were very cute together. We'll prolly use her for some babysitting between now and her start date (April 27). We want them to know and love one another.

My proud accomplishment of the day . . . I have two 2-oz bottles pumped and waiting in the fridge! So, that's coming along nicely. I will go to the breast feeding support group tomorrow though just for some encouragement.

OK - see below for the cute picture of the day. My little man is sooooo adorable! I swear this picture wasn't staged. After a ride in the car to the doctors today this was the result!

XOX
Mom

I am stealing a few moments while George rests in his pack-n-play. He's due to eat in about 40 minutes. I am wondering if he'll wait that long. Seems like all day today he's been HUNGRY and can't wait the three hours I'd like him to. Not sure if this is a growth spurt or has something to do with my attempts to start pumping & storing milk. I don't want to be pumping away what he NEEDS to be eating, ya know? At the last feeding we finally gave him what I'd been pumping all day - a whole 2 oz - to try to fill him up. Hopefully that worked and we can wait until 10 pm to eat again. That will help ensure a better night's sleep for us all! ;)

Soooooo . . . today I went back to the hospital and picked up a hospital grade breast pump. I am all about whatever is most efficient. While there I also picked up some lab results for George to give to our pediatrician. That was my big outing for today. Tomorrow is coffee with Kristine in the morning and a doctor's appointment (for me) in the afternoon. Thursday I think I will attend a breast feeding support group at the hospital to help me figure out the pumping thing. Thursday night is dinner with Kristine. Friday is back to the pediatrician's office for another jaundice test.

George's jaundice levels are still decreasing, but not as quickly as we'd like. On Monday he tested at 14.9. We're testing again Friday morning and then prolly again weekly until it's all better.

I am about to jinx myself, but I am getting better with the sleeping thing - or lack thereof. I'm not sure if I am adjusting or if I'm just getting used to it. I'm ready for George to have a sleepover with JuJu (after we can pump enough to give her a few bottles), but part of me now worries about getting 8 hours of sleep - will that throw me? ;) Sad, but a real concern.

Today I figured out my baby carrier. George got a ride for a little while this evening while we waited for Jeff to get home from work. That was fun. I took the self portrait above to remember his first "ride" in the Ergo Baby.

Well, time to line up the supplies and get ready for another long evening. Wish us luck!

XOX
Mom

Today George is two weeks old. We went to see the pediatrician for our two week check-up. Dr. Noah says he’s growing great. He weighed 7 pounds, 12.5 ounces (25%). He was 20 inches long (50%) and his head was 14.25 cm (25%). If he’s gonna be disproportionate, I’d like it to be in height! ;) Dr. Noah says I gotta start pumping & giving George one bottle a day. This will be GREAT for me anyway so Judi can watch him or so Jeff can take a nighttime feeding. ;) We gotta start adding a liquid multivitamin supplement to that bottle each day. This is mostly to get him some Vitamin D.

George looked a little yellow, so they tested his jaundice level again while they were doing the required 2-week genetic screening stuff anyway. He also coincidentally lost his cord stump while we were at the doc’s today, so that was good.

We asked other questions about dry skin, the shape of his head, feeding suggestions, sleeping suggestions, etc. Dr. Noah set us at ease about all our concerns. He thought the little man was doing fantastic. I told him I was over my weepy stage too. He said he loves seeing people at 2 weeks, cause that's just when households start to settle down. ;) I feel EXACTLY that way.

Dr. Noah says I should still feed George every 3 hours during the day, but at night we can go up to 6 hours at a time now if George will have it. I had to wake him once last night, so perhaps he'll let me catch a few more zzzz's. That would be nice. And now I'll feel a little more comfortable letting him sleep a little longer.

All in all, a great visit.

XOX
Mom

Today was fairly busy in our world. We got up casually. Jeff and I were actually awake before George. When we all got moving, we decided George needed a little sponge bath. He did so well. Jeff and I both helped get the little man clean. I got the wet duty (holding George) while Jeff got the scrubbing duty. It was cute. We didn't take pictures because it wasn't really a BATH and Jeff and I were NOT decent, knowing we'd end up wet and "dirty."

After bath time we lounged around the house a little until the mid-day feeding. Then we went to Target for a few items, including a new baby monitor. We just weren't too happy with the range and the static coming from our super fancy video monitor. So we went with a Graco audio only model that has a 2000 foot range. It's charging now, so we'll see how that works out.

After Target we went to JuJu's house. It was George's first visit there. He tested out her rocking/swivel chair and her pack-n-play. They're both ready for their first sleep over. I think I am too - we just need to work out some feeding logistics first.

We came home from JuJu's and had some friends stop by (with food). That was nice. Then we went to Mason's house for dinner. This is George's very first friend - his future nanny sharing buddy - his first visitor in the hospital! We love Mason. ;) Dinner and play time there was very fun.

Now it's off to bed for mommy while dad enjoys some quality time.

XOX
Mom

George just went to his first restaurant. He was perfect! We had brunch with JuJu, grandma and Papa. The big Keggs are heading home today. It'll be sad to see them go. They've been such a big help. I wonder how long they'll be able to stay away. ;) Little George is soooooo sweet. I would have to rush back. OK - I am biased.

Next week JuJu is on board as my helper. It's nice to have someone help with dinner, cleaning, laundry, driving us around, etc. I'm suddenly high maintenance. While all of the help is great, I'm looking forward to getting some of my independence back. I go to my doctor again on Wednesday. Maybe she'll set me free a little.

We have a busy week ahead. Monday is a pediatricians appointment. Tuesday is some much needed errand running. Wednesday I go back to my doctor to check my incision again. Thursday we're taking George to Children's Hospital for a hip ultrasound. Friday we get the day off. Ohhh - the ultrasound - yeah, they do this as a routine procedure for all breech babies. There's nothing saying he'll have an issue - no clicking or popping was detected - but they do this just to be safe.

I am now reading Babywise, trying to figure out how to get George on a schedule and on a clear path to sleeping through the night. They say MAYBE around 8 weeks or so. That's still 5 more weeks of waking up at nights. It's brutal!

Ohhhh - I think maybe my hormones are starting to get back to normal. I didn't have the night sweats last night and I didn't cry at all yesterday. ;) I don't mind a good cry every now and then - over a chick flick, a sweet baby face George and thinking about his life/his future, if I stub my toe, etc. But I don't want to cry for no apparent reason!! I'd like to get that under control ASAP, so hopefully we're heading in the right direction.

Well, it's about time for a feeding and then off to the airport.

XOX
Mom

New pics of George are up today. Click on the link on the right to see the latest shots of the little man.

Tonight's been a tad rough. I think we finally figured out how to get the little guy calm and happy. He's asleep in my left arm as I type with my right hand.

So, keeping it short.

Ohhh - I went to my doc today because my incision was bothering me. I have a large hematoma that's bleeding through my stitches. Ugh. Ick. They say it's just gonna bleed for a few weeks. Nice!! But it's better than opening me back up.

XOX
Mom

No pictures today. The printer is still down at the photo studio. Hopefully we'll be able to get them tomorrow. They're sooooo cute.

George and I had a pretty good night last night. He fed at 10 pm, 2 am, and 6 am. So, only one middle of the night feeding. Not too bad. Today was a PJ day . . . we had no where to go. So, we stayed in our comfy clothes all day.

George got his first manicure today thanks to Grandma. She filed down his nails after he inflicted a fairly sizable scratch to his sweet kissable nose. Kegg was compliant (inside joke). He didn't flinch once while she carefully filed each mini nail.

I worked a lot on George's baby book today. It's looking good. So many milestones every week, month, year, you gotta keep up with that thing before you forget when each event happened. This week I want the grandmas to write something in there. Then this weekend I need Jeff to complete a few sections. It's looking good though.

JuJu is making dinner tonight. Grandma is working on dessert - a generous Jackie speciality - mint chocolate chip ice cream pie. YUMMY!! I'm looking forward to that.

XOX
Mom

We got some good news this evening. George's jaundice levels finally started the downward trend! No more heel pricks (at $20 a piece). No jaundice lights for us! Yeah!! In other good news - at the doctor's office this morning, Jackie and I were THRILLED to see that George had gained 2 ounces since YESTERDAY! He's now back to his birth weight - 7 pounds, 6 ounces. You go George!

After the pediatrician's this morning, we headed for our first non-doctor outing . . . we went to the mall. Those who know me are SHOCKED. I am not a mall kinda girl. But, we went with purpose, like all my mall visits. Into the entrance closest to my destination. A mission to accomplish. And OUT! This once met all those requirements but was a long haul. Actually, with a kid now, I can see the appeal to mall walking. It's warm, good people & window watching, etc.

Anyway - the point. We went to have George's first pictures taken. I went to always remember him this sweet and little. So we went to Picture People in the Park Meadows Mall. They did an amazing job and took a ton of pictures. Normally you leave with your pictures, but their printer was down. Mom's gotta go there tomorrow to pick up our order. Thanks Mom. So tomorrow hopefully I will be able to share the GORGEOUS results of my mall efforts. Stay tuned.

Gotta go . . . George WANTS me. ;)

XOX
Mom

I did get a few naps in yesterday. That was good for my emotional status as well as my mental status. I stopped taking pain medication yesterday. I'm not trying to be a super hero. I just don't notice the difference when I'm off them, so why bother? Also, I think the meds make me more emotional about silly things and I need to be right-minded again.

Today George is one week old. Amazing. We went to the pediatrician this morning to have his jaundice level checked again. He's grazing the border of jaundice levels. They took some more blood. I hope his numbers are improving and it's the last time they have to do that. It's hard to watch them intentionally cause him pain, even if it's for his own good. The Kegg grandparents are here taking care of George and me through all this. Grandma Kegg held little George's hand while they pricked his foot. She's a tough cookie. It's so hard watching them do that!

The GREAT news at the doctors this morning . . . George has gained a good amount of weight. Since Friday he's gained 4 ounces. So now he's 7 pounds, 4 ounces. What I know is you want to be back to birth weight by 2 weeks. George has 7 days to gain 2 ounces and he just demonstrated that's not a problem for him.

My healing took a set back this morning. Nothing terrible, but I am going to try a little harder today to take it easy. After the next feeding I'll take a nap. And, I will work harder to not go up and down the stairs several times a day. It's hard to keep me down, especially when I am feeling better!

Well, it's time to get back to staring at George. I can't stop myself!

XOX
Mom

Our first week with George

I can't believe it's almost been a week already! Our time at the hospital went fast. Jeff and I were anxious to get home with our newest addition. Judi came to the hospital on Tuesday and Wednesday to spend some more time with George and help keep me company while Jeff popped in and out.

George had a stressful week of course. Between being born, being circumcised, having several blood tests, a brain ultrasound (precautionary - everything was fine), and meeting us for the first time, you KNOW he was traumatized. Despite all that, we loved watching him sleep. He would go into deep REM often and smile and smile while he was sleeping. We kept wondering what he was dreaming about that would make him so happy. You have to love the sweetness of that!

Thursday around 2 pm we were discharged. It was 70 degrees in Denver on Thursday - gorgeous. I was anxious to step outside for a few minutes. We came home and introduced George to Otto. Otto is a little confused and a lot jealous, but he gave George some kisses and welcomed him into our pack. A large stork announcing George's arrival was in our front yard. The Nunnally grandparents sent the stork our way. Soooooo cute! We spent most of Thursday on the phone. Thursday night Judi brought over sushi & champagne for our first dinner at home. WONDERFUL!

Thursday night . . . our first night at home attempting to sleep. I was just too nervous. George is already picking up his head, doing baby push-ups and rolling from side to side. This is worrisome to his new mommy, particularly when we're talking about sleeping in his crib. I couldn't stand it. I was awake all night watching him. PARANOID!!

Friday Jeff and I took George to his first pediatrician appointment. That went pretty well. We were a little disappointed that our first appointment wasn't with our selected doctor, but that's just because of the timing of things. George has gained an ounce since we left the hospital. That he's already on the upward climb is a GREAT sign. It means the nursing is going well - yeah!! They were still a little concerned about his jaundice numbers, so they took more blood from his sweet little heel so they could test again. Jeff and I also asked our whole list of questions related to feeding, sleeping, etc. Later Friday afternoon the pediatrician called to let us know the jaundice numbers were still trending upward. The numbers weren't bad, but weren't headed in the right direction. We're to go to Rose Hospital tomorrow to have the levels tested again.

Friday afternoon Judi came back over to help some more with George. I got scolded for not sleeping enough. Mom is ALWAYS right. I guess I can say that now. ;) I didn't sleep at ALL our first night home. I would soon pay for it. After dinner Friday night and a frustrating day of trying to get George to eat, I LOST it. I was crying uncontrollably for no real reason at all. It was sad, pathetic even. Logically I knew we were doing everything right. Oh well - it is bound to happen given the emotions, stress, hormones, lack of sleep, etc.

Friday night the sleeping went a little better - at least for me. Per the doctors instructions I tried to feed George every three to four hours. I was able to get back in bed in between feedings. If he was fussy in between that, Jeff went to check on him. At one point we moved him to a swing to sleep. That worked REALLY well.

Saturday morning we headed to Rose for more blood work on George. It was quick and the lab tech was very nice and good at her job. That always helps. After we got home, we had a friend stop by to met George. She brought a box of diapers - always a GREAT gift. I fed George and then very soon afterwards the Kegg grandparents arrived. Yeah - reinforcements!! They were excited to meet George - their namesake - and we were THRILLED to have the help for a week.

Saturday afternoon we had another visitor. Judi came back over as well. We all enjoyed dinner together and then I took a really nice nap while George was entertained. Saturday night the feedings went little better still. We kept the little guy mostly in the swing since that worked so well. The difference on Saturday night was that I woke up on my own and went to feed George before he had a chance to get upset. It's easier to function in the middle of the night when you CHOOSE to wake up, rather than your sleep being interrupted. That's very true.

That brings us to today. I am hoping it's a lazy day at home sprinkled with a nap or two. We'll figure it out soon enough.

XOX
Mom

The Story of George's Birthday

We were headed into a doctor's appointment Monday knowing very well that we'd likely deliver George that day. So, Jeff went to work Monday morning to tie up some loose ends. I spent the morning doing some work around the house, trying to straighten up and get ready for our week away and our return with little George.

Per doctor's orders, I had been on bed rest all week due to elevated blood pressure. My "work" on Monday morning was sure to get those numbers back up there so we'd have a good excuse to meet George.

Jeff got home from work around 11 am. We had packed our hospital bags over the weekend, so we loaded the car and headed out. The doctor had already advised me of some pre-surgery instructions just in case. For example, I didn't take my blood thinner that morning and I also had a very early, very light lunch - just one egg on one slice of toast.

At the doctors office we waited a little while to be seen. Once in the room, my blood pressure indeed proved to be high. I was 150 over 90, which is enough to cause concern. They sent us to the hospital for observation and our doctor said she'd likely see us later that afternoon for our delivery.

Upon arrival at Saint Joseph hospital we were admitted into an observation room. The labor & delivery area was fairly busy, so we couldn't even check into a room. They monitored my blood pressure and did some lab work. After about an hour or two of waiting & watching, we got the news that we were indeed going to have a baby! We made a few phone calls. Jeff went to move the car to a more permanent lot and bring up our bags. This was happening!

Around 5 pm our doctor arrived and we got into an operating room. Jeff put on scrubs and grabbed our camera. He was so cute. I will spare you the details here, but the important details - I got a spinal block. They got it started. At 5:38 pm Denver time, George Vincent Kegg popped out! He had been breech the whole time and we knew that. What we didn't know was that he was wedged up in between my ribs, so it took some maneuvering to get him out.

They cleaned him up, gave him a little supplemental oxygen to get the color they wanted out of him, and then they passed him to Jeff. The nice thing about that hospital and our staff - we had George the rest of the time! They didn't whisk him away for anything. Jeff carried George into the recovery room across the hall. In that room they gave George his first bath, weighed George, and we started nursing. It was a beautiful beautiful thing.

Judi (JuJu) was waiting outside recovery, so she got to come in and meet George right away. I think she likes him. ;) We called the other grandparents and some family and just spent the time staring at George and taking some pictures. He has very light hair, very light eyelashes and very light eyebrows. His eyes - when he decided to show them - appeared to be a very dark blue.

After about an hour or two in recovery we moved into our more permanent room for the week, in the Mother Baby Unit at Saint Joseph's - room 201. We got to our room around 8:30 pm on Monday night. George spent the first night in our room with us. After having nothing to eat most of the day, I got some apple juice around 10 pm I think. It was delicious! George was very quiet - clearly the boy had been through a lot. Jeff and I didn't sleep great that night. We jumped every time George squeaked or moved. There was no crying though.

He is amazing. He is perfect. He is worth the very long and stressful wait. He is our first child, our son. He is gorgeous. He is very kissable. He is a dream come true. He is all I could have hoped for.

Welcome to the world George.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

XOX
Mom

Introducing George Vincent Kegg

George arrived Monday. Here are all his stats . . .

Monday, February 2 2009
5:38 pm Mountain Time

Exempla Saint Joseph Hospital
Denver, Colorado

Seven Pounds, Six Ounces
18.5 Inches Long

George's hair is still questionable. Some say blonde and some say strawberry blonde. Either way, it's very light, very fine and very straight and spiky.

George's eyes are very dark blue.

Jeff and I were the only family in the operating room (George was delivered via c-section). JuJu was waiting outside of recovery and joined us very shortly after George's birth.

Happy Groundhog's Day! I've been up since about 3:30 this morning. Just couldn't sleep. Today COULD be a very big day. We head to the doctor's office just before noon and then we'll know whether or not today will be George's birthday! It could be a very life changing day for Jeff and me.

Or . . . we could come back home for another week of bed rest. We'll have to see what my blood pressure looks like when we get to the doctor's office today. Stay tuned for more!

XOX
Liz