Happy Halloween!

I'm sure I will catch this blog up one day!  GEEZ!

Try to follow along, while I post a bazillion posts!

Halloween came the day after we got home from the hospital.  This was the #1 reason I pushed for my Dr. to induce me BEFORE Halloween because I wanted to be home for Caden!

She did not disappoint so we left Cameron with my Mom at the house and headed out the door with Caden to Canyon Creek Christian Academy's Trunk or Treat.

Here is our Alvin the Chipmunk with his little brother who is looking like he's about to fall! LOL

 

Caden is very much into doing the 'regular' picture and then begging to do a silly face one!  So here is the Silly Face picture!

Here is our attempt at getting a picture of Cam with the pumpkin.  Fail.

I was so freaking sore and hurting, but I was bound and determined to walk with him and Tim through the parking lot!  Here he is at one of the stops getting candy.  We did not take a lot of pictures because it was almost dark.  After we left here, we took him up and down our street trick or treating and he had a blast.  After that it was pain pill time for Mommy!

My Mom took these shots of Cameron sleeping at home.  (I think she took them, maybe I did, see above comment about me having a pain pill!)

Dallas Stars Game

We wanted to keep Caden's routine as normal as possible while I was in the hospital having Cameron, so my Mom stayed with me at Baylor and Tim went home each night to be with Caden.  Tim had an awesome idea which was to take Caden to his first Stars game the Saturday night we were in the hospital.  So the week before we went in, we got Caden a Stars jersey.

Below is a picture of Caden with his eyes closed waiting for his 'Surprise'.

Here is Daddy handing him his very own jersey as Caden is pointing to it telling me what it is!

Caden had to try it on right away so Daddy helped him.

I love my 2 guys! 

Thumbs up for the Stars game!

They both came by the hospital on the way to the game and I was so struck by how much they look alike.  The older Caden gets the more he looks like Daddy!  I think they look super handsome here!

 

Caden knows by watching hockey that there are often times fights so here they are 'fighting'!

 

Tim sent pictures to me throughout the game so I could keep up with how much fun Caden was having.

 Here are my 2 big guys enjoying the game!

 I love this picture of Caden looking down on the ice.

 

End of the game and the best part was the Stars won!

Our Birth Story

I cannot believe it has been almost a month since my last post!  Wow what an 'almost a month' it has been!  I wanted to document our birth story for Cameron and how it all happened from start to 'Welcome Cameron'!!!  

We checked in at Baylor at 6:00 a.m. on October 28th.  I was beyond ready as documented in my previous posts!  My Mom came into town as did my Dad so they were at our house and let Caden sleep in and then brought him to the hospital later on that morning.

We arrived and headed to Labor and Delivery.  De ja vu' from when we had our Cade Man!  Seemed like just yesterday!

Dr. Stevenson said she would arrive around 8 to break my water and we would go from there.  They started the IV and thankfully put it in the top of my hand rather than the side of my thumb as they did with Caden!  I still have these nerve 'zingers' that run up my arm if I hit my thumb just right!  

Dr. Stevenson broke my water, prior to my epidural, and she told me to ask for my epidural whenever I was ready for it.  She seriously had to still be in the Baylor parking lot leaving after breaking the water when I requested the epidural STAT!  I was in some serious pain and since there are no rewards or ribbons or Oprah appearances for women without an epidural and since I had one with Caden, it was go time for EPIDURAL!  The anesthesiologist arrived and had me lay on my side - with Caden I was sitting up leaning against Tim - so I laid on my left side and he started the epidural.  The pain seemed to ease off, but was still there just lingering on the surface.  I was all smiles ready to meet our Cameron when all of a sudden I felt like I had a knife in my side just below my ribs on the left side.  The nurse said, 'Yeah, I'm sure he has his little feet in your ribs.'  WRONG...I told her it did not feel like his feet in my ribs.  Then she said, 'Well you may still be feeling some contractions.'  WRONG...I told her it was not contractions but a constant pain.  I was in tears and literally hurting more than I have in my entire life!  They sent in another anesthesiologist who asked me to pinch my belly button.  I did and he asked if I felt it, and I did.  He told me I was not numb all the way and he added some more meds to the IV or epidural IV.  I'm not sure which as I was writhing in pain.  

Tim and Mom helped turn me to the other side hoping that would ease the pain.  It did nothing to help and I was starting to get worried.  Full on ugly cry was in effect and I was not a happy Mommy.  They sent the 2nd Dr. in 2 more times to add meds and finally the pain in my side started to go away.  The nurse checked me and realized the pain I felt was related to the fact that Cameron was CROWNING!  I knew it was go time when she asked Tim if he wanted to see the baby's head!  My Dr. was paged and she showed up just in time for me to push about 5 times and Cameron was here!

They had some issues with my placenta, etc, and it seemed forever before we were able to have Mom, Dad, Pat and Caden come in to meet Cameron!

Tim went to get Caden and he brought him in to meet his baby brother.  It was such a precious moment that I will not soon forget.  Caden walked in and I thought he would cry with happiness.  He said, 'Baby Cameron!'  so quietly and he walked up and crawled up in the bed with me to meet his new brother.

The first thing we noticed about Cameron was his big blue eyes.  Yes, I know all babies are born with blue eyes, but we knew from experience with Caden that this baby had BLUE eyes that would stay. Caden was born with brown/gray eyes and we all know he has those handsome brown eyes now.  Cameron's eyes were and are, a dark blue just like his Daddy's.  I was beyond thrilled to have a blue-eyed baby boy!

Most of our family says that he looks 'just like Caden did', I however think they could not look more different.  I guess it is just a Mommy thing.  The important thing was that he was here and I realized when I looked at him for the first time that I did have room in my heart to love another child.  

He tested positive for Coombs which is explained HERE.  I have 0+ blood type and he has A+ and that created a problem.  His sugar levels were off as well because of my gestational diabetes.  His numbers had to be 51 or better 3 times in a row as tested by pricking his heels.  If he did not have a number higher than 51, 3X in a row, they had to start the testing over again.  Let me tell you, he was a trooper, all the heel pricks were getting to Mommy, believe me!  After a night of feeding him every hour and a half to try and get his sugar levels back to normal, he finally tested correctly 3X in a row.  He also had jaundice which was being monitored as well.  I was so happy when all of that was behind us.

We were so happy to finally come home.  Daddy stayed home during my hospital stay so that he could hang out with Caden and keep his routine as normal as possible.  Mom stayed with me at the hospital which was nice.  My friend Kat who is a post-partem nurse was able to be my nurse while I was in the hospital which was very nice!

I will be updating the 'After Our Birth Story' story in the next few days.  There is always the 'rest of the story'!  Right now we are enjoying our Cameron and preparing the house for Christmas!

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday

I forgot one thing...

Yesterday Caden and I were at Walmart and we were in line checking out.  I was holding my purse in front of my stomach and started to feel water running down my leg!  I wanted to shout it to the rooftops that my water was breaking!  I was so freaking excited, it was right up there with Christmas morning happiness.  Until, Caden walked in front of me and said, 'Mommy something dripped on my head.'  Do the math people, he's much taller than my crotch, so I knew that something was not quite right.  Upon further checking, I discovered that his thermos of water had opened in my purse and was leaking down my legs.  Bummer.

Still Pregnant :|

I was 37 weeks pregnant this past Friday.  On Thursday I went for my now weekly visit with my Dr. and she 'stripped my membranes'.  I'm not going to go into the gory details, don't want any guys reading on here and fainting, so for the not so faint of heart and all the women that care and don't know what that is, click here.  Clearly I am the exception to the rule.  Every friend I have on Face Book has gone into labor THAT night after the stripping or within 48 hrs.  Well, yeah, not me, of course not me, the miserable, ready to meet this baby pregnant lady.  It has been 4 days and nothing.  

My bags are packed for the hospital, we have had our carpets cleaned, house cleaned (thank you so much Pat for coming over and tag-teaming the cleaning with Tim), installed a new door into our media room, tiled our sun room, put trim down around the baseboards of the sun room, I've had my hair done, nails done, pedicure, picked out our large pumpkins, decorated them with Caden.  I HAVE NOTHING LEFT TO DO BUT HAVE THIS BABY.

So after the stripping of the membranes which is a load of crap in my opinion, I read where drinking raspberry LEAF tea, not just fruity, girly raspberry tea, will help induce labor.  Caden and I went to Sprouts and bought the tea that oh by the way has nothing to do with raspberries except that it has a picture of one on the front.  I have never drank urine, but I'm pretty sure I now know what it would taste like if I were on a deserted island and had no source of clean water and that was my only choice.  I put Splenda in it and drank it and was convinced that drinking it must induce VOMITING AND NOT LABOR.  I didn't vomit, but I could have.  Yet, I drank it!  Cups full of it.  I now lovingly refer to it as Sweet Pee.  That's what I drank and do you think that did anything?  Hellz no it didn't.  

Some suggested sex, I hurt too much for that, and others encouraged walking.  I'll be trying that today.

My OB, after doing the membrane stripping on Thursday told me that the timing would be perfect because she was not on call this past weekend and that she predicted I'd likely go into labor on Monday or Tuesday, that being TODAY or tomorrow.  Nothing yet, but I'm not holding my breath.

I was disappointed to learn that while Googling 'HOW TO SAFELY BREAK YOUR WATER AT HOME' that there were no such articles.  REALLY?!?  I bet you can Google how to make Meth and get a recipe worthy of Rachel Ray's attention, but nothing on how to break your own water?  COME ON MAN!

If I seem bitter...I AM.  I'm so ready to meet this little guy and get on with the baby thing and stop hurting and oh yeah, learn what it is like to actually SLEEP AGAIN, that I think I'm going a little crazy.  Tim, don't say a word!

Anyway, that's where I am today.

Check back for more ranting, if LORD IN HEAVEN FORBID I'M PREGNANT AGAIN TOMORROW!

Pumpkin Patch with Caden's Class

On Friday, Tim and I were able to go with Caden's class to the Pumpkin Patch in Richardson.  This was Caden's first bus ride on a 'school' bus!  He was so excited.  Tim and I remember when he was much younger how he would love seeing a school bus!  Here he is departing off the big boy bus!

Getting ready to line up.  My how he looks grown up here!

Daddy snapped a photo of us walking up to the entrance.

First up, feeding the goats!

 

We were not sure how he'd react to feeding the goats, he was clearly surprised at first, but warmed up to them.  Personally I think goats are nasty.  I mean they eat ANYTHING. 

  

Even Mommy and Daddy were given feed for the goats, which I gladly gave to Caden.  No goat feeding for me...Yuck!

Another quick picture of a very pregnant Mommy and my Cade Man.

Daddy and Caden with the infamous 'O' face!

So ready to have this baby!

Class picture!

Here he is sitting on the bench waiting for the hayride to start.  Thank you Jamie for telling me not to ride it.  The last thing I would want is to deliver a baby at a pumpkin patch!  That ride looked bumpy!

Cade Man with his 'girlfriend' McKenna.

Posing with some pumpkins.

My 2 Favorite Guys!

 Checking out some horses.

Reminded me of my childhood growing up around horses.  So sad that Caden won't have that experience.

My little pumpkin among the pumpkins.

I think he picked a winner!

Doing his best Michael Jordan 'tongue' pose while playing on the hay.

Daddy jumped on the bus to get a quick picture before they left to go back to school.

We had such a great time and I was so glad I was able to go.  I was worried when they set the date that I would be home with a new baby or in the hospital!

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday

Visit with GiGi and Poppa

GiGi and Poppa came up on Thursday night to take Caden back with them Friday morning to spend Poppa's 60th Birthday weekend with them.  Mom sent me pictures all weekend which we loved so we could see what all he was up to!  Here are the pictures that she sent and I'm sure they are out of order, but I'll comment for each!

This was the morning after Dad's party on Friday night.  I am told that he fell asleep on the way home from the party so GiGi just left him in his top from the party and his underwear.  I had to do this last week when I got home from my hair appointment.  He was asleep on the couch in his clothes so I took off his shorts and just put him to bed.  He's a creature of habit and was quizzing me and then this past weekend, GiGi about why he didn't have pants on!

Anyway, here he is with his sword they got him and his breakfast!

Swinging on what he calls 'GiGi and Poppa's Playground'!

Here he is at church Sunday.  They had Homecoming services and I'm told he was 'amening' all the way through church!

Love his blue lips in this one!

Look at that blue tongue!

Brushing all the sugar bugs out!

Coming or going home, not sure which!

This was coming back home to Dallas!  Watching the movie Babe, he told GiGi he wanted a baby pig!

Here he is practicing for Cameron's arrival!

This was at Kari and Scott's house, the night of Dad's party.  Looks like Lane is leading them in some stretches!

Here he is at church Saturday night eating cake balls!  GiGi even brought 3 home for us to have!  They were delicious!

This was Friday morning when GiGi took Caden grocery shopping with her.  He was such a big helper!

Playing a game before they left.

GiGi took Caden to Lane's baseball game Saturday and he had a wonderful time.  He was hanging out with Bella and Mom said they were like a little old couple, just chatting away!

How cute is this???

Posing with cousin Lane!

This is the day that GiGi picked Bella up from Kari while she was doing some stuff for Lane's school.  Caden was so happy to see her!

I'm told Bella was pretending to be me!

Poppa and his grandbabies!

Thanks GiGi and Poppa for having so much fun with him!  We are glad he finally stopped crying after you all left Sunday night.  He was sad to see you all go and he keeps saying he wants Cameron to come RIGHT NOW because he knows that's the next time you all will be here!  We love you all!