Adjusting to Three

Hello Bloggisphere...I am still alive. Go figure. Life is fun and adorable, but also a little bit of crazy and "where has the time gone"! Seriously, I think I'm lost in a world between trying to sleep and trying to be ready. I'm not sure what's in between, but it sure is time consuming. The kids are awake before I am...whenever that may be. I usually wake up to the sound of "MORE, PLEASE!" Which sometimes comes out of Jared's mouth as "Ba Bo Bearsh," meaning "more bears please". I'll then crawl out of bed, trying not to sleep the co-sleeping Hailey up, and emerge from my black hole of lousy nights sleep and put on another episode of Care Bears. Somewhere between 10 and 3, if I'm lucky, I get ready and look less like a dead mommy.

In all of my messy houseness and not-ready-ness, I'm trying to soak up tiny Hailey. To be honest, I've found it more difficult to do so this time around. I'm trying to keep the house clean and epically failing, trying to entertain two older kids and making them feel loved and do it all while holding a newborn. It doesn't seem like a lot, but gosh....it takes time. I feel like she's been in our family forever and not just a mere 5 1/2 weeks. That she is still that young baffles me. I feel like I should be fitting into my dream jeans and the fact that I don't is a little (ok...more like VERY) depressing to me. Still working on getting my mind wrapped around the fact that 5 weeks ago I had a new baby. 

We have loved expanding our family! It's the most wonderful thing and with each one our family feels even more complete. I love how much Jared and Claire adore Hailey. They are always very concerned about making her happy when she is sad. 

Now, photo dump.

 Look at that curly hair. Just a couple weeks old

Easter Egg dying 

Her first Easter bunny. 

This kid is in love with his pillow. He literally takes it everywhere we go. Adorable, yet super annoying (to take it to the car every time).

Happy ONE MONTH old, Hailey!  

Claire loves to brush her hair.

Baha! 

Ok, so I saw this cute baby-on-books picture idea. This is the best I could get. She hated it too much. I even tried when she was sleeping and she wouldn't have any of it!

This is what waking up the baby looks like. 

I took this yesterday, May 5th. I love how chubby she's gotten since she got home from the hospital (from her fever admittance). 

Week Two with the Hailey Girl

This adorable little girl is pulling an interesting third child card so far. She's pretty opinionated, likes to be held and snuggled, almost refuses to sleep in her own bed, and kicks off her second week by going to the hospital. Although I do love most of these little characteristics of her 2 week old personality, the hospital stay could have been better by not existing. We live through crazy moments only to appreciate the truly good ones, right? 

We took Hailey to the ER at 4 am Thursday morning because she was running a fever. 100.4 to be exact....so....barely a fever. I was really worried about her on Wednesday night because she was ultra lethargic (hard to tell in a newborn since they always sleep forever). She wouldn't wake up to eat and even when she did eat, it was just barely. I didn't sleep all that night and kept taking her temperature. I called the 24 hour nurse who advised us to take her in, so in we took her. I knew we would have to when I took her temperature because newborns aren't supposed to get fevers.

Since Claire, Jared, and anyone who has visited our house in the last two weeks have gotten sick, I thought they'd just tell us that it was probably the same virus and send us home. I remind you that I had no sleep and was VERY tired and already a little paranoid. We then found out that she would get a little IV, blood work, and a "lumbar puncture". When we first got to the hospital they said that she may not have to get the lumbar puncture since she was right on the edge of a fever. If they kept taking her temp and it didn't go up at all, they may not do that. The doctor decided otherwise. I'll be honest, because she HAD to get a spinal tap, I immediately started sobbing and didn't really get over the whole trauma of it until it was over. It really was pretty horrible to watch my poor, new little girl in so much pain. So sad! 

After all the fluids were taken, we were then admitted to the hospital to keep her on antibiotics for 2 days until all of our cultures came back. The early results of everything looked good, so we were hopeful that it was just a virus (which her blood work was sort of indicating). We are very happy to not have meningitis or encephalitis, but grateful for early precautions that are taken just in case. 

The next two days were LOOOOONNNNNGGGGG. The antibiotics turned her diapers into hot lava that burned her so badly that we've gone through a worlds supply of diapers and desitin, not to mention a whole day without diapers and pooping into towels just trying to spare her cheeks a little pain. The worst diarrhea I've ever seen. I'd just hold her while she cried, sing to her, and sob myself into her tiny little cheeks. 

I was so grateful on Thursday night when she decided to wake up and start looking and acting normally. Before her eyes were glazed over and her arms were like limp noodles, so to see her alert made my heart a little happy and relieved. 

By Friday she was acting normally and much more alert when she was awake that I was hopeful to go home at the 36 hour mark instead of staying until Saturday for the cultures to run the full 48 hours. Our nurse, Andrea, was amazing and 100% on our side of getting discharged. Nothing was growing yet in the cultures so we were all thinking we'd be ok to go home. She pushed for it all day and we did end up going home Friday night, thank goodness! Hospital chairs are the worst in the nation and my postpartum rump was aching for a squishy chair!

She had to be held constantly while in the hospital of course, not to mention the sleeping. We were both so exhausted after the whole ordeal that we've been sleeping every spare minute since. 

Thank you for the prayers and calls! We are doing well and so happy to be home. I'm convinced that having children is wonderful and terrifying. I'm so incredibly grateful that she's ok and that it turned out to really be nothing. 

Happy two weeks old, Hailey! Let's not get sick again!!!!

Hailey's First Week

This little girl has adjusted very well at home. She is the sweetest little person and the siblings LOVE her! Huge relief. Claire was so violently opposed to having Jared take attention away from her that I was nervous this time around as well. However, Claire loves it when her eyes are opened and she loves to hold her and help get her things. Jared likes to hold her and give her kisses when I ask him to. Other than that, Claire is finally better from being sick, but is still pretty whiney. Jared is having a little mommy withdrawals and needs LOTS of snuggles and tickles to reaffirm his place as the mommy's little boy. 

At her 5 day appointment she weighed 7 lbs 6.5 oz...up from the 7 lbs 3 oz when we left the hospital, so we're glad about that. I was super worried about her bilirubin levels, but doctor said she looked great. She didn't sleep very well in the hospital at all, but since we got home it's hard to wake her up. She's had a couple of nights where we have a late night date, just her and me. Last night I passed out on the closet floor while she looked around. She is a pretty great eater and lets me know very quickly when she's hungry or dirty. She is SUPER hard to burp, much to my dismay. I hate burping. She still loves to snuggle and will calm down when she hears my voice. What can I say, I love to be so loved. :) She's a sweetheart and we love her quite a lot.  

Here are some pictures from the week. Jared has learned to love the camera and will say "CHEEESE" the second the camera is pulled out. He wants to smile a big cheeser and look at himself right after. 

 Hailey was looking pretty jaundiced, so she got to have a sunbath in our room the other day.

 Cutest newborn pajamas ever

We love having Grandma visiting and helping us out with everything! 

Hailey turned a week old yesterday and we celebrated by getting out of the house. The kids NEEDED some good outside play time. They haven't been sleeping very well or very long, so we needed to get some of that energy out! It was a beautiful day and the sun did wonders for their sleeping. 

Even though I sat almost the entire time, I was totally wiped out after and have had some pretty horrible back pain this time around. It's very strange to complain mostly about your back after a baby, but I think I pushed so hard that I must have strained it pretty badly. After t almost 3 days on a heating pad, I'm feeling a little better.  :) It was nice to get out of the house.  

And today. I think she is so incredibly beautiful and the epitome of perfection. So sweet and cute!  

Love little baby ears. :) 

She's a natural poser. 

Bored? Nothing that sidewalk chalk can't take care of. She colored every inch inside that little triangle. We now have blue sidewalk chalk dust footprints all over our hallway. :) 

Jared doesn't need chalk I guess. He was more content with smiling and collecting rocks.