almost 2 weeks

has it really been almost 2 weeks?  there is something decidedly unfair about how slowly the last 2 weeks of pregnancy go and how quickly the first 2 weeks of baby's life go.  very unfair.  but on the other side of pregnancy, you don't really care or think too much about those final days... so it all works out in the end i suppose.  

we are making the adjustment (so far anyway) to having 2 girls and are even remembering how to do that whole newborn part.  beth is such a good baby.  my only wish is that she would stay awake longer than 5 minutes at a time to eat.  she definitely inherited her father's narcoleptic tendencies.  but i can't complain when this little lady offers me 4 hours of sleep at a stretch during the night.  just like big sister did.   what good babies i have!  (remember my so far disclaimer).

kate is seeming to love having a baby sister.  anytime beth makes a noise, grunt, or sneeze, kate yells out, "mama!  i hear my baby sister!"  she is very excited about having baby beth here and loves to hold her, kiss her, and give beth her little baby doll.  kate's favorite thing about her baby sister is seeing her eyes open.  i think it makes her day.  it's quite a rare sight these days, so i'm sure the novelty will wear off once beth spends more time awake during the day.

the girls

so here's a quick rundown of how little beth arrived.  it should be a quick story because it didn't take more than 2 hours from the moment i checked in until we had her in our arms.  

we got to the hospital at 6:15am, i got monitored and prepped, and we were in the OR by 7:30.  i got my spinal block, which worked incredibly fast (a shot in the back just like an epidural - by the time i unrolled my back and started to swing my legs around on the bed, i realized i couldn't move my legs... a little bit of heaven right there).  obviously i wasn't in any kind of pain, but being numb made me all warm and sleepy - it was dreamy.  so we had to wait a few minutes for my doctor to arrive, but by 7:45 things were underway.  several minutes in, i could feel pain.  ouch.  not like crazy, i feel you cutting my flesh kind of pain, but way more sensation than what i should have been feeling (and definitely not the "pressure" you feel with a c-section).  the worst part was that i figured if i can feel this, how much worse is it going to get?  once they moved from the area they were working on (with said pain) it subsided and i didn't feel anything else.  i also had a mini panic/anxiety attack for a few minutes and was incredibly hot, so much so that mr. anesthesiology had to fan my face with his neon yellow clipboard.  but it was a bit helpful, and then the hot flash/attack went as quickly as it came.  

at 8:03am i heard the magical sound of my tiny baby screaming - it brought instant tears to my eyes and a whole lot of gratitude to my heart that she was healthy and here.  i find it interesting that, even though she came via surgery and not the birth canal, i could still instantly feel the moment she left my body.  not because i could feel pressure or tugging when they pulled her out, but i could feel from one moment to the next that she was inside and a part of me, and then she was gone.  for me, there is something slightly bittersweet about giving birth (and i felt this way with kate, too).  that baby is inside you and with you always, all the time.  they are your little buddy or your pal or your partner.  and then they are on their own.  but having them here always trumps that little sentiment pretty quickly :)    

love those wrinkly legs!

 

this is the outfit i made for little beth to wear coming home from the hospital.  we looked a few times for something special she could wear home, but never found anything very cute.  i guessed she would be fairly close to kate's size (based on my size) and anything preemie was for boys (maybe there are more tiny girls born?  probably)  so i found a shirt online and tried my best to copy it - it worked out pretty well.  i was worried the pants would be way too small (seriously, after washing them they looked like doll pants) but they were a perfect fit!  she'll be grown out of it in no time :)

i love her juicy lips

and not to leave kate out - here's one last shot of her playing with woody and jessie.  she adores these two.  it's very cute.  here's the latest thing i can share about miss kate.  her new thing lately is to tell us "and mama, don't talk to me!"  for awhile, i would just say, "okay!" with as much attitude as she was dishing.  my mom quickly observed that whenever she would say this to any of us, it really translated to "mama, i'm going to do something naughty that i know you don't want me to do, so don't pay attention to me right now and don't tell me not to do it."  for example, she was getting into my mom's toiletry bag and pulled out her brush, but not before saying "mama, don't talk to me."  i realized she was going back to the bag to see what else she could find and didn't want me to stop her.  what a crazy kid - she's too cute :)