One Month Old 11/26/13

I can't believe that Timothy is one month old already! The time has seriously flown by and I feel like he has been with me forever! I have decided to write him monthly letters about what is going on in our lives so that I can keep track of everything!

Dear Timothy,

The first few nights at home were challenging because you were cluster feeding from around 9-1, and I was simply exhausted. Thankfully, Auntie Lisa took you a couple of times for a little while so that I could get some sleep. Since then, the cluster feeding has toned down but night time is still challenging. Little man, you are not a fan of sleeping on your back and want to instead sleep on me, which I have given in to so that I can get some sleep! Typically at night you sleep for 1-2 1/2 hour stretches, so my sleep has really suffered but because I am able to rest during the day it hasn't been too terrible. Either way, it's been so worth it to snuggle with you!

We have had a ton of visitors, and many wonderful dinners from people. You have been able meet many of Mama and Daddy's friends and a lot of family as well. You are really good with people and love to be held.

We have ventured to your pediatrician two times, and you have done well both times! The first time you had gained an ounce since the hospital at 4 days old so you were 6lb,11 oz. They also did a heel prick to draw blood for a jaundice test which thankfully you did not have. You did scream bloody murder during that time and made Mama sweat like crazy - hormones! Your second appt at 2 weeks old went well also. You are a very healthy boy and gained back your birth weight plus some and weighed 7lbs, 14 oz. Since then, according to the scale Mimi got for you, you are up to 9lbs, 1 oz. Little man, you are an eating champ! 

On that note, feeding is going well and you eat every 1-4 hours (usually around 2). You are only fussy when you are hungry or gassy. This whole nursing thing is a lot easier than I thought it would be, although it has moments in then middle of the night that are challenging. I have even fed you in public several times now, in restaurants and in shopping parking lots!

We have gone out to get frozen yogurt, dinner 4 times, church, and shopping. We are very fortunate that you are a good little one and as long as you are fed and changed you are as happy as can be to go out. 

Auntie Lisa has been staying with us and has been an incredible help! She basically does everything around the house so I can just focus on you. I hurt my back with the pup one day, as well as from giving birth so I have been a little less mobile than usual (going to a wonderful chiropractor that has helped!) I don't know how we would have gotten through this first month without her! Thank you Auntie Lisa! And of course the rest of our family and friends that have helped out so much as well!

In the first month you have also:

Started tummy time 

Your umbilical cord fell off

Have had 3 sponge baths and one tub bath

Have had several poop and pee blowouts, but the two best were the projectile poop that shot 5ish feet across the room!

You can hold your neck up for long stretches

You are really strong!

Have had your nails cut several times because they grow so fast 

Turn your head when you hear noises

Recognizes my voice

Follows close objects with your eyes 

"Smile"occasionally in your sleep

Don't love getting changed

Make the sweetest and funniest noises and faces - my favorite noise sounds like a horse neighing and my favorite face is your Cheerio face.

Took a couple trail walks in the BOB

I'm so incredibly in love with you, little man. You have brought so much joy in the short time you have been with us. We miss your Dad so much, and I know that will continue to but I see him in you every single time I look at you, which is amazing. 

I love you always and forever,

Mama

Tim, you would be so thrilled to hang out with your son! He's such a love and makes me laugh. I wish you were here to hold him and be a family with us, but I know you are still with us in whatever way you can be and I know you love him and me. I can't wait until we all get to be together again, but in the meantime I will do my best, with God's grace, to raise him to be a Godly man that loves the outdoors and is kind and good and a great friend - just like you are babe! Thank you for giving me this gift before you left to do greater things in heaven. I love you!

One Month Stats

One Month Photo Shoot

McKinley wanted to participate

Mama/Little Man Snuggles

Timothy Reeves Jr.'s Birth Story

Birth Story

On Friday evening 10/25, when I was 39 weeks, I decided to clean the whole house top to bottom since I was having a friend over the next day. My stomach started to hurt a little bit, but I chalked it up to something I ate or overexertion. After having some dessert and relaxing, I finally got settled in for bed around midnight.

At 2:30 in the morning I was woken up by some strong cramps, that I was still thinking may have been from something I ate (denial much?) After about 1 1/2 hrs of noticing that the pains were consistently about 10 minutes apart, I decided that I was probably having contractions. After having a brief meltdown that this might really be happening and how much I really wanted Tim to be there with me, I called Nora at about 4 to tell her I might be in labor. I then called the midwives and they told me to try and get some sleep and to call when the contractions were between 3-5 minutes apart and lasting for a minute. I did my best to sleep but was excited/nervous so I really couldn't. At around 6:30, I called Nora again and we decided the birth team would come meet at my house. I took a shower and got dressed and waited. Lisa arrived first, being called from work - then Sarah Kate and Nora. After forcing down a bacon, egg and cheese and an apple, we decided that perhaps going for a walk would help. It was a gorgeous fall day, and that sounded like a nice thing to do. We walked a mile total, stopping for many contractions along the way. On the walk, the contractions intensified and got closer together. After arriving back at home, we tried to have a snack and watch some television but the contractions started to get much more difficult to get through and we started discussing going to the hospital. After getting all of my stuff in the car and trying to eat a little snack, I said goodbye to McKinley and climbed in the front seat with a garbage pail and a blanket. Other than some tough contractions, the car ride was uneventful and we immediately headed to Labor and Delivery. I was brought into a room and got dressed in the outfit I was planning to labor in. The nurse hooked me up to the heart rate and contraction monitors and asked me what felt like a million admission questions which are awfully hard to answer when you are in pain. After that Kathy, the midwife, arrived to check how far along I was. I was at 4cm and I think it was around 1pm. I have to say I was hoping I was farther along but was still feeling pretty good. 

I then decided I wanted to labor in the tub, which was an awesome idea. Before getting in, they made me use the bathroom and I lost my mucous plug. I then went in the tub and ended up being in there for an hour or so. It was pretty funny though, because I needed to be on my knees during a contraction, half my body was almost always out of the water and the bubbles needed to be turned off because the hot air was making me nauseous. At this point during every contraction I needed to squeeze someone's hands and have someone putting intense pressure on my lower back. SK took over the back for the majority of tub time. Donna, my doula, also used a shower head to put water on my back the whole time. I often was resting very heavily/dozing in between contractions. Throughout the tub time and all the other positions that followed, Kathy was able to use a fetal heart rate monitor to check and see how the baby was doing, and every time the heartbeat was nice and strong (although I barely recall hearing it, I just remember people telling me to listen to it)

After a long time, I was getting too cold in the tub so I decided to get out. They wanted me to use the restroom at that time and I had several fast and intense contractions while in there. That was one of my least favorite labor positions but it did help progress things - Kathy checked me right after and I was between 7-8cm . This was really good for me, because I had bargained with myself in the tub about getting an epidural and I told myself that if the next time I was checked I am farther than a 7 I won't get one, but if I'm only a 6 it would still be an option. It wasn't an option.

Donna then suggested I try the birth ball (essentially a yoga ball) which I really liked. I stayed there for awhile before they made me use the restroom again, and again those contractions were terrible - and when I got out my midwife wanted me to try a few contractions standing up next to the bed and squatting during them - let me just say for the record that this was NOT FUN! The wonderful thing about Kathy was that every time I had a super intense/really long/really hard contraction she was so encouraging and said how awesome that one was because it was helping things move along faster.

After a few standing contractions I went back on the birthing ball and while I was there I felt some liquid start to trickle and said that I thought my water was breaking. They had me get on the bed to check me again and while there I had what I think were the worst contractions of the day - but I was 9 cm, almost 10. There was just a little bit left! While I was being checked my water broke in full force. Kathy had me wait through about 6 more contractions before giving me the go ahead to push because she wanted to make sure the cervix was totally out of the way. 

Finally, Kathy told me I could try pushing with the next contraction. After the first try she explained to me exactly how I needed to push and after that I think I was good to go! I got about 2-3 pushes per contraction. I pushed for about 25 minutes total. Pushing, while incredibly intense, did not hurt quite as much as contractions did for me. I was really out of it between pushes and got really emotional. I wanted to give up, but knew I couldn't - I used to get like this when hiking big mountains with Tim, we would always be almost there and I would be DONE. Tim was always so encouraging, and my birth team was amazing during my labor! 

At one point I felt and heard a pop and when I asked Kathy what it was, she told me I popped my coxxyx bone. 

All through my pushing Kathy was laughing because the baby was really moving and wiggling themselves into position - she said she had never seen anything like it. Finally, the little one started crowning and it got majorly intense then! I was really focused and pushing with everything I had and I heard Kathy yell "Jessica! Stop pushing!" And she made me focus on her and she told me to push just a little, and only when she told me to. She saved me from having much worse tearing. All of a sudden, the head came out, and then the rest of the body, and then the baby was on me and everyone was asking if it was a boy or a girl! I was so overwhelmed with emotions just seeing this precious baby, and then I looked and saw that we had a boy and I just melted. The room was in tears of joy and happiness. After waiting a bit, I cut my own cord and the little man got to snuggle closer and was eating like a champ in no time. I was given a couple of stitches for a few 1st degree tears which were not bad at all.

Timothy Reeves Hine Jr. was born at 7:48 PM on October 26th, 2013 (6 days early from my due date, but only one day from my original due date).

He weighed 7lbs, 1oz  and was 19 inches long. 

One of the very first things we did was listen to Daddy's voice on the elephant. It was a wonderful and difficult thing for me to do, but so so special for Timothy. I know Tim would be so incredibly proud of his little man. He's simply perfect, a little warrior prince for sure.

The family and friends in the waiting room were told with a video message from me. Mimi and Papa, Grammy and Grandpa, Uncle Alex, and Uncle Chris and Aunt Nikki were all there.

Timothy had a bath because his temperature was a little high (probably from ring on his furnace of a mom) and then after getting him cleaned up, me cleaned up and a little food, we were taken to a post partum room where he got to meet everyone.