Okay, I'm a bit strange because we saved the placenta from this birth (only because I was doing a home birth)... I had read about how in certain cultures a tree was planted with the placenta to celebrate the baby's birth.  I decided that was a fun idea, so when my brother was here, he helped plant an orange tree for Finley, with the placenta.  I won't post any pictures of the placenta so as to not gross anyone out (though it was frozen so not too exciting)... but Brie helped me take some pictures of Finley with his new tree.  You can see how much he loves being held by his sister.  :)

 

 

 

Before yesterday, Brie was curiuos about the worms in the compost but was afraid to hold them.  Then, yesterday she decided she "loved" them and wanted to hold them.  So, she dug in the compost and found some worm friends...

 

       

    

Yesterday was my first day back to work.  For a while I will be working every Sunday and THursday, so that we can avoid putting Finley into daycare.  JOsh seems to think we should keep him out until he's walking - that might be a bit of a tall order, considering it involves me working one day every weekend or two days every other weekend.  We'll see.  Work went suprisingly well - the nice thing about working on the weekend is that it's much slower than during the week.  And, I think they were nice when assigning me patients, since it was my first day back.  I had time to pump in the morning, Josh brought the kids in so I coudl nurse at lunch, and then I pumped again in the afternoon.  And even though my feet and back hurt a lot at the end of the day, I did have a surprising amount of sitting time.  Who knows what Thursday will be like.  I was asking someone at work yesterday how I could keep the easy assignments - they were nice to me when I was pregnant and now because I'm newly back - maybe I need to get sick or something so they will continue to give me good patients.  :)

So I'm walking down the upstairs hall to come downstairs to get ice water before attempting to go to bed... when it hits me.  I have two children, sleeping in their own rooms next to one another, in my house where I live with my husband, dog, and cat.  How perfectly suburbia of me.  What's really strange is that I vividly remember the house I lived in as a child, with my room next to my brother's, when he was maybe 5 years old.  Which would have made me about 11.  Maybe younger,  Meaning it was about 20 years ago.  How strange our minds are.  I can't believe I have two kids down the hall. 

I hate to do it, but it's time to start getting into a routine with the little one.  He'll be 6 weeks old on Monday, and I have to go back to work on Sunday (only two days a week, but it's more than not at all!).  So, I thought that the sleeping in our bed and doing whatever he wants all day and night might not work much longer.  He was up pretty well during the day yesterday, so I decided to try for the first time last night.  Figured when I'm headed back to work it won't really work to have him in our bed.  My getting up and getting ready in the morning would likely bother him and thus, Josh.  And, it went surprisingly well!  He didn't go to bed until 11 (I cuddled with him while we watched TV until 10), but then he only cried for about 5 minutes.  Then, he woke up at 3 and then again at 6:15.  Went back to sleep easily both times.  Whew!  I hope we can keep it up.  He was suprisingly happy and bright-eyed this morning and we just finished doing some tummy time and playing.  It's so nice when they start smiling at you and paying attention to what's going on around them.  Yesterday at the zoo he spent a lot of time just looking around.  Brie never really did that - it's nice having a calm baby.  At least for now... who knows how he will be when he starts moving around more!  Anyway, cross your fingers that he will maintain his good sleep routine and going back to work won't be too stressful for mom!

Who wants to sleep at night when you can sleep like this during the day?

 

Check out this very interesting (and quite long) article on breastfeeding from the New Yorker.

I went to the doctor's office today to have a meeting with the lactation consultant (which I highly recommend for new moms, wish I would have done it with Brie!), and they weighed Finley.  Anyone want to guess how much he now weighs at 3 weeks?  11 lb, 12 oz!!!!  Sheesh.

This is what was used on me to induce with Brianna.  I know it's unsafe, NOW, too bad I didn't know that before.  I got a link to this info sheet from the FDA through a home birth list I'm on.

 

 

Patient Information Sheet
Misoprostol (marketed as Cytotec)

This is a summary of the most important information about misoprostol. For details, talk to your healthcare professional.

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FDA ALERT: – Risks of Use in Labor and Delivery

This Patient Information Sheet is for pregnant women who may receive misoprostol to soften their cervix or induce contractions to begin labor. Misoprostol is sometimes used to decrease blood loss after delivery of a baby. These uses are not approved by the FDA. No company has sent the FDA scientific proof that misoprostol is safe and effective for these uses.

There can be rare but serious serious side effects, including a torn uterus (womb), when misoprostol is used for labor and delivery. A torn uterus may result in severe bleeding, having the uterus removed (hysterectomy), and death of the mother or baby. These side effects are more likely in women who have had previous uterine surgery, a previous Cesarean delivery (C-section), or several previous births.

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What Is Misoprostol?

• Misoprostol is a drug approved by the FDA to decrease the chance of getting stomach ulcers caused by taking certain arthritis or pain medicines.

• Misoprostol also has effects on the womb and cervix.

Who Should Not Take Misoprostol for Labor and Delivery?

• Pregnant women who have had a previous C-section or removal of fibroid tumors in the wall of the uterus should not receive misoprostol for softening the cervix or inducing contractions to begin labor.

How is Misoprostol Used?

• Misoprostol comes as a tablet. Sometimes the tablets are split, and you will be given only a piece of a tablet. You may be asked to take misoprostol by mouth, or it may be placed in your vagina or rectum.

Is There Anything Else I Need To Know?

• There are other drugs to soften the cervix or induce labor or contractions that are approved by the FDA. There also can be similar serious side effects from these drugs. You may need to have your cervix softened or contractions induced for your health or your baby’s health. Talk to your doctor about all your options and what is best for you.
  

Baby Finley is about 2 1/2 weeks old and I have been meaning to post an update for a while.  At his one-week checkup, he weighed in at a hefty 9 lb, 13 oz, and the doctor said everything looked great.  He was healing up fine from the circumcision and his belly button was healed.  She said "I don't think I really need to see you at 2 weeks..." clearly she has confidence in our parenting skills and my ability to fatten up our baby on breastmilk.  :)  So, we don't have to go back until 1 month.  In the meantime, Finn has also gone to the hospital for his hearing screen (no problems there) and has been sitting around the house fattening up.  He has also been lucky enough to do lots of fun stuff with us, like going to Tucson for Christmas, going out to eat, going to Target, grocery shopping, etc.  How different having a second.  With Brie it seems like we just hung around the house for a while, but when you already have one, it's kind of difficult to just sit on your bottom for weeks on end.  Brie needs LOTS of attention...