The Girls are Doing Great

Tia still has a nasty cold with a horrible cough and a runny nose, but she seems in good spirits. She is sure talking so much and I LOVE how great her manners are. She always says please and thank you. She says bless you if you sneeze and is just so cute. She still has a ways to go, but I hope she does this for life - it is just a good habit! Lexi is doing good too. She is on her monitor and has had several great wet and poopy diapers. She slept better last night than most nights. She went 4 hours at a time from 12:00 to 4 which is awesome. I know Tia was sleeping 5 hours at a time by now, but Lexi is not the best sleeper. She moves all the time, grunts, and just seems to not get comfortable. She doesn't eat very well right now and I am hoping that changes. Before, she was eating 3.5 oz every 2.5 to 3 hours. But now, it seems like she eats 2 oz every 2 hours. I am sure it is because she can't breath out her nose very well right now. She'll get there. So I'm happy to report that the girls are still a bit sick, but seem to be getting better.

Lexi in the Hospital

So at a month old, Lexi was admitted to the hospital for having RSV. I was 32 having Tia when I had my first IV and here is little Lexi having an IV already. She did great though. She was one of 5 babies admitted and they said that Lexi did the best while the other ones were struggling. They only allowed one parent to stay so of course I stayed with Lexi. Chris came up as soon as he heard and we watched as they got Lexi all fixed up. St. Lukes is just such a great hospital and they definitely took care of Lexi for us. They did put oxygen tubes in her nose thinking they would need to give her some oxygen through the night to help her breath. However, her levels never dipped as they had thought so she never needed the oxygen while the other kids did. It was a long night for me, of course. Hard to get comfortable, but mainly just praying she would be okay. I know RSV is pretty common, but there is nothing like the look on the doctor's face that indicated it was a serious matter since she is only 1 month and she was born at 6 lbs 3 oz therefore her passageways are smaller than most. She had a ton of drainage from her nose. They used the normal aspirator but later took the wall suction and they got a ton of boogies out. She ate pretty good considering and in the morning Doc came in and was overjoyed with Lexi's condition. She said she was the best RSV baby she's had and that we could go home later today. We would have to go home with a heart/breathing monitor to make sure she does okay as she gets over this nasty virus. It detects her high heart rate of 220 or low heart rate of 80, as well as if she stops breathing for 20 seconds or more. The alarms on this monitor are piercing loud so we will make sure we hear it and it has fail safes so if Tia gets ahold of it, she can't change any settings or turn it off. RSV can cause babies younger than 3 months to stop breathing while sleeping so this will make sure she does well. It sends data to the doctor to watch. So Lexi is quite the fighter and still our miracle baby. I just wouldn't know what I'd do if anything happened to her!

Lexi's 1 Month Check-up

Lexi had her 1 month check up and the first half went great. She is 21 inches long (50%) , weighs 8 lbs 3 oz (25%), and her head is in the 45%. Doc said she looks great and is very happy with her weight gain. Then the appointment turned for the worse. As Doc was listening to Lexi's heart, she could hear fluid in her breathing. Doc looked up and gave me a wide eyed look. I knew there was something wrong at that moment. Doc said 'hold on, I'll be right back' and then walked out in a hurry. She came back with a nurse and some equipment and they started taking tests on Lexi. I wasn't sure what was going on but I knew it wasn't good. She finally explained that Lexi has RSV which is a respiratory virus. Most kids get it by the age of 3, but when newborns have it, it can sometimes be fatal. It inflames the passageways and the smaller the child, the worse it can be. I broke down mainly because I hated to see my little girl under distress. Doc said she could tell Lexi was struggling to breath. It broke my heart. I felt so bad because I knew Lexi as sick, but I just figured it was the common cold just as Tia had...I would have called the moment I thought she was sick last Friday, but knowing she had her 1 month appointment, I figured it was no urgency. I know most parents often are too worried about things and the doctor's usually calm us down but it is always something so common. So Doc said they needed to admit her ASAP.

Tia is a Great Big Sis

Tia is such a great big sis. She wants to help with Lexi as much as she can. She loves kissing her on the forehead...notice how she cradles her head - so sweet. She was watching me feed Lexi and I walked a way for a minute. I came back and noticed there was a little bit of milk dribble on Lexi's chin. I was going to wipe it and Tia said with her hand in the stop position to me 'no mommy' and then she proceeded to grab the bib and wipe Lexi's chin. It was so cute. Tia is constantly trying to give her toys, her binkie, blankets, and is always saying 'hi baby Lexi'. I hope they are great friends when they are old and that Tia will always look out for her little sister Lexi. I know they'll fight from time to time, but there's nothing better than being best friends with someone in your family! I'm so proud of Tia...she is growing into such an amazing young person.

A Parents Greatest Loss

It saddens me that Lexi is only four weeks old and yet has attended a visitation for a lost child. I am still in shock that my coworker Dan lost his son Clay this week. One thing I have to say about Dan is that he is an awesome father who has dedicated his whole life to raising his son Clay. He attended every one of his baseball games and all of us at work could see that Dan was a dedicated and amazing father. Unfortunately, this week we lost Clay in a car accident. He was 18 years old and a freshman in college. He was driving on Olive at Creve Couer Mill Road in Chesterfield, a SUV with two men from California crossed the center line and struck Clay http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/chesterfield-crash-victim-was-vianney-grad-on-baseball-team-at/article_ced1bf54-5d65-11e1-b172-0019bb30f31a.html. Sadness just doesn't even describe how his parents must feel. Being a parent, I am just in such constant worry for my children as all parents are and I pray for my girls every day. So I wanted to attend Clay's visitation and had to take Lexi with me so I could attend. It was such a sad scene and hard to keep the tears down when seeing my coworkers and others with wet eyes. I think I am still in shock about the whole ordeal. Why such a young kid taken from us when he was doing nothing but minding his own business from my coworker who only had Clay and no other children. It was nice to see all of my coworkers, but just not the circumstances I wanted. Lexi did great and was asleep the entire time. Everyone was raving over her. Seeing Dan was hard for me and I just pray for him every day that he gets through this tragedy. I value our friendship as coworkers and told him I'm here for him if he ever needs an ear or a shoulder.

Cherish The Moments!

When things get tough when it comes to my babies, I chant these words: "Cherish the Moments...Cherish the Moments...Cherish the Moments" and it seems to get me through whatever is rough. Chris has also adapted this calming method and it seems to work wonders too. It really means that these hard moments should be cherished because our little ones grow so big so fast that these moments will become a blur soon. If we cherish the moments, even the bad ones - we'll get through it. it is so true because as we are getting into some rough patches with Lexi, Chris and I can both look back at out time with Tia and it seems almost like Deja Vu. The similar happenings are happening again with Lexi as they did with Tia. Except this time, we have a two year old Diva to also take care of so our patience is spread a little wider than usual. Lexi has been having a rough go this past week. We have been integrating her breast milk with some formula. My goal was to go four weeks with breast feeding via pumping and so I'm weening myself off the pumping and adjusting her onto formula. As we did last time, we just used the formula that we were given at the hospital which was the Similac Advance, which is the most like breast milk. I thought this was going to be great because Lexi seems to do just fine on breast milk. But I am just not cut out to do breastfeeding or pumping for that long. I do my best to withstand the pain for about a month and then I'm ready to rid that part of having a newborn. It seems that Lexi hates the Similac Advance and has become very colicky and fussy. She arches her back, squirms, and screams out in pain. She was already a pretty high maintenance baby in that she hates her swing, hates her bouncer, hates being put down in the bassinet or crib. She just wants to be held all the time. But now, with being so fussy, she isn't comfortable being held either. This is very wearing on me. It seems like nothing is making her happy but I know it is because she isn't comfortable or her tummy hurts. I've gone the past few nights with less than an hour at a time of sleep through the night and no sleep during the day. She has been super needy and I've been chanting "Cherish the Moments" here and there. What gives me solace is the fact that it brings back memories of Tia being this way too. We had to switch formulas a few times before we settled on the right one. In fact, I bought Similac Fussiness and Gas today, which is what Tia ended up liking, for Lexi to try. We are on bottle number two and she still seems fussy, but I know that it takes time for her little tummy to adjust to a new formula. She has had breast milk for the past 12 hours once we figured out that the Similac Advance wasn't working for her. So we'll see how she does. But remember, when you are having a hard time with our little one, just chant "Cherish the Moments"!

Lexi is a Cardinal's Fan

My Aunts

I'm from a small town called Jerseyville and growing up, I had my dad's two sisters who lived in the same town. It was sort of like having multiple moms. I left Jerseyville as soon as high school ended and went to college, then got a job right after, I moved to St. Louis. I see my Aunts on occasion, but it seems like only a few times a year. They made the trek to Arnold on Saturday to see Lexi. my Aunt Kina came all the way from Texas, Aunt Linda came from Jerseyville, and they brought my Granny Gulledge too. It was so nice to see them and talk. I always enjoy talking to them on the phone for some times long conversations, but it seems like we are all so busy the past few years with kids, life, work, etc. and we haven't had many conversations. So it was pretty nice - I know they had to leave, but I could have talked to them all night. Makes me want to make a trip to see them. My Granny Gulledge has seen Lexi three times in the past three weeks. Lexi doesn't even know how lucky she is to have one of her Great Grandma's hold her. I pray that Lexi gets to be old enough to know her. And for the record, my Granny is the best cook in the world!!! Anyway, I just had to write about them so Lexi knows how much they mean to me. Hope she gets to know her Great Aunts and Great Granny Gulledge well!

Milk Screen

I think one of the neatest inventions for nursing moms is called Milk Screen. After 10 months of being alcohol free, pushing a watermelon out of 'you know where', and having lots of sleepless nights for the first few weeks of my baby's life - a glass of wine at some point is essential. But of course with the worries about my little baby, we don't want to jeopardize any chance that a glass of wine could affect her in any harmful way. However, because of Milk Screen, I am able to have a glass or two of wine from time to time. Milk Screen tests your breast milk to make sure it is alcohol free. You can get them online, at Target, some Wal-greens, and some Wal-Marts. Trust me, if you are a mom getting ready to have a baby and want to plan a drink those first few weeks while breast feeding, these strips are awesome. I was able to have a glass a wine about a week from Lexi's birth - it tasted so yummy. OR if you are a great friend and want a cool gift for a soon to be mom. Get a basket, put a bottle of wine, a box of Milk Screen, a couple glasses (get the best glasses for a $1 at Dollar Tree), and a note telling her how much she deserves a hour to celebrate over a glass of wine...trust me - it will be the best gift she'll get!

Poop Power

Our Lexi may be little but the girl has some major pooping abilities. She poops almost every feeding and sometimes she soaks her diaper and clothes. Last night while changing her she was still pooping when Chris went to change her and she shot poop all over her clothes, the new diaper, on Chris, on the changing table, and somehow all over the wall. Chris was not too happy but I couldn't stop giggling... Aren't these the times that we just need to laugh at? Lol

Baby Acne

Lexi is getting some baby acne. I remember Tia had it for a month or so. They say it could be my hormones passing through to her via my breastmilk. I hope it doesn't linger too long. She's beautiful regardless but I guess for a few weeks she'll gave a bit of baby acne.

Family Weekend

This weekend it turned out to be a family weekend. My mom is moving to Thailand on Monday, February 13th and so she wanted to have everyone over to see her one last time. She will be back in April for a bit because her husband Ray hasn't completed his final work contract. Once he is done with that, they will 'retire' in Thailand. When she comes back in April, she'll be with Ray in Ohio. My little sister Sam made her way in on Friday and then again on Sunday as she was passing through to visit a 'friend' at the University of Illinois. On Saturday, my brother Bobby, his wife Dolor, and their girls Juliean and Janelle came to stay the night. My older sister Nan came by as well. Ironically, my step-mom is also from Thailand and she came back in from a flight a couple days ago and hadn't met Lexi yet and wanted to come down on Saturday too. So my dad, step-mom, and Grandma Billie came in on Saturday too. My car had some problems so Chris's dad came by for a while to see if they can get it fixed. So we had a big family weekend. Tia just loved having everyone here. She thrived around her cousins and just followed them around and had so much fun playing with them. It was so nice to see Juliean, Janelle, and Tia all playing. It was so sweet! Tia was so sweet all weekend too. She was hugging on everyone and giving them kisses. She was communicating and just seemed so mature. Lexi had a blast being held by everyone. Chris and I were actually able to get out for a few hours on Saturday night. Since Dolor was there, we had a babysitter and so Chris and I got out to hang out with some friends for a V-Day get-together. It was a nice time. Sunday everyone started heading back home and this morning, my mom and Ray took off. She should be in Thailand by this time tomorrow. It was nice seeing everyone!

Getting into a Routine

Lexi is two weeks old today. We have gotten into a pretty good routine. Last week she was on the bili bed and it was extremely hard to get into any sort of routine, but as of a week ago, she was off the bili bed. I start pumping last Friday because for me it is less painful than actually breast feeding. Also, I like to know how much Lexi is eating and it was hard to tell before. I do believe in demand feeding and if she is hungry then I feed her, but I do like to get into some sort of a schedule. I do a three hour schedule for feeding Lexi. It is typically a 6am, 9am, 12pm, 3pm, 6pm, 9 or 10pm, 12pm or 1pm...now this changes daily right now, but it stays pretty close. If I feel Lexi is hungry and it hasn't been 3 hours, then I feed her so sometimes she eats 2.5 hours apart and sometimes 3.5 hour apart. But it is nice to know that she is getting plenty of food. Lexi is a great eater so I'm sure you can understand why I went to bottle feeding! I do pump every few hours and make sure there is a great supply of food for Lexi. I hold Lexi a lot, but I also let her sleep when she wants too. I've actually found at least a few hours per day to get stuff done whether it is checking work email, writing in my blog, sending out announcements, working on projects, etc. The days seem to run together right now and actually it feels like the days are going by so fast. It is very nice to get into a routine though and I can't wait until I'm cleared to work out because I want to get back in shape sooner than later. I remember when I had Tia on maternity leave it took me quite a long time to get into a routine because it was my first baby and I wasn't sure what to expect. This time, I've remembered all of the tips/tricks and am ahead of the curve, which is nice. I love holding Lexi and watching her cute little expressions. I'm definitely enjoying maternity leave with Lexi.

Lexi's Newborn Pictures

Noisy Sleeper

One thing I have to say about Lexi is that she is a noisy sleeper. I don't remember Tia making much of a peep when she was sleeping, but Lexi on the other hand is constantly moving, grunting, and trying to get her arms free. This does not surprise me as she was very active in my belly. We used to say Tia was active, but Lexi was probably quadruple the activity. This was the reason why the umbilical cord was so long and ultimately wrapped around her neck twice and body twice. The more active the baby, the longer the cord gets to give them more slack. Right now, we have a portable crib that we have in the middle of our King bed between us. This way I can feed her and watch her sleep these first couple weeks of life. We have the big crib ready to go, but right now I just want to make sure she is okay so I am watching her intently while she sleeps. But the girl is so active and is constantly grunting like she is uncomfortable. She sort of reminds me of me. I have a hard time sleeping and it is hard to get comfortable. I have to sleep with a fan to drown out noise and if I hear any annoying sounds - I can't sleep. I blame growing up in a silent house. When it was bed time there wasn't a sound in the house to wake any of us up. I had a hard time getting through college with some rowdy roommates and later with other loud distractions, but the fan is my savior! I hope Lexi becomes a more comfortable sleeper so she gets some good zzzz's. She is so sweet to watch though - she just looks so cute all swaddled and dainty.

Lexi Adriana Norris

Off the Bili Bed

We went to the doctor today to see how Lexi's jaundice is doing. It has been a very hard week for me. One thing I'm usually good at is rolling with the punches and I rarely breakdown emotionally. However, I do know that your body goes through some intense hormonal changes the weeks after giving birth and some times it is okay to breakdown a bit. With Lexi being on the bili bed, I had a hard few days mainly because she hated it and I hated that I couldn't hold her. When Tia was on the bili bed her first week of life, it seemed like a blur when I look back, but now that we are going through it again with Lexi - it just seems more sereal. Breastfeeding Lexi became an every hour occurrence because it was the only way to get her to go to sleep long enough to carefully place her on the bili bed. Only a portion of the time it worked, which means some times I had to rock her forever and then try it again. I think over the 3+ day period I was either breastfeeding Lexi, watching her sleep to make sure she was still alive, or trying to rock her to bed. I didn't get much sleep and I also had Tia to tend to as well. My mom has been staying with me and I love having her here because she is moving to Thailand in a week permanently so I cherish the time with her. However, it can be hard to have an audience when I'm getting back to parenting a newborn again. She suggests a lot of advice and as much as I know she is trying to help, I have cultivated my own way of doing things when I had Tia that I stick to. So with all that was going on with the jaundice, no sleep, hormonal changes, many parts of my body in constant pain, and some unsolicited advice - I broke down for the first time earlier yesterday. I got away to the shower and had a good, short cry. I felt better afterwards and actually was back to normal pretty quick. Then Chris and I went to the doctor's office today and just talking to the doctor about Lexi having jaundice brought up my emotional side again. The doctor must have sensed it because she asked me if I was okay and when I said a quiet yes, she said 'are you sure' and at that moment I just broke down. I was so embarrassed, but I just couldn't hold back the tears. Even taking Lexi to get her blood drawn was tough and as we walked out of the hospital, I just broke down. Poor Chris wasn't sure what to think. He wanted to know if it was him and of course it wasn't. It was just a mixture of weird emotions. No, it isn't postpartum, it is just my hormones running through. Chris was there for me and when we got home it seemed like within the hour, the doctor called to let us know that we no longer needed the bill bed. I was so happy, but my emotions were still running heavy. Then all of a sudden, I snapped out of it and cherished having my little Lexi all better, my mom staying with us, and Chris home from work to take care of me. Then I was able to hold my little Lexi all I wanted and rid the bili bed. Chris was great and put Lexi on the bili bed for a while longer after I went to nap since we still had it. I finally got a few hours of sleep and felt great. I was just so relived Lexi's jaundice was on it's way out. Emotions are good to get out of my system and I am glad I had my two good cries and hopefully that will be all the tears I shed. From here on out, only happy tears, not overwhelming feeling tears.