Smiling Simon

For the past two weeks, Simon has been a smiling fool. His first official smile came when he was six weeks old – Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2009. We were making dinner and I was holding him while Kevin talked to him and he rewarded us with a huge smile. While he’s smiley in the late morning, he’s most smiley before bed and during the middle of the night, of course.

He’s doing well – smiling, cooing and eating like a horse. At his one-month appointment, he weighed 10 pounds, putting him only 1 ½ pounds less than big brother at the same point. Early on, he was sleeping through feedings – and losing weight – so our doctor told us to make sure he was eating every three hours, even if we had to wake him, to get his weight up. Well, his weight IS up, which is great, but now he expects to eat every three hours! And, when he is hungry, he is damn near impossible to deal with! At this point, he eats five ounces at most of his feedings (he’ll cut back to four ounces overnight and at other random times). And, speaking of overnight, he’s not sleeping through the night just yet. He slept midnight to 6 a.m. last week and, this past Sunday night, I wonder if he would have slept through the night if I didn’t wake him (I didn’t want to waste the bottle – I suck, I know, but formula is expensive). I hope this will come soon, though, because Harmon was sleeping through the night at seven weeks and then we moved him to his crib at eight weeks. We got spoiled. But, as long as this is sort of under control by the time I return to work, I’ll be happy. His two-month appointment is this coming Monday so I’ll have more to share then!

38 months

Harmon at 38 months can be summed up by three things (in no particular order):

1. Polar Express
2. Madagascar
3. LeapFrog ClickStart computer

He loves these things so much and STRONGLY lobbies to work them into each day. While he still plays with his cars and trains and still really loves his books, the three things listed above are his current loves. All else is well. He’s as smart as can be (sometimes maybe a little TOO smart for his own good), is relatively well behaved, is totally into his brother and still gives us big hugs and kisses whenever we ask. What a great kid!

Simon’s birth story

After having Harmon, we often talked about missing out on the surprise water-breaking incident and the subsequent frantic drive to the hospital. With Simon, we finally got some drama. Simon was due Dec. 13 and I had a repeat c-section scheduled for Dec. 5. On Nov. 19, I had my pre-op appointment to review all the surgery stuff and we were all set. On Nov. 25, I had my final check-up and all was well – or so we thought.

It was a normal Tuesday so Kevin picked up Harmon from school and me from work and we all headed home. We started dinner and, after Harmon had a successful trip to the potty, he came to me for help pulling up his underwear. As I kneeled down to help him, I felt a small gush. I ran to the bathroom and then felt a HUGE gush. At that point, I was pretty sure my water had broken so I called Kevin, who was in the basement. He didn’t respond so I had Harmon (who was by my side the entire time) call him too. Kevin thought we were just screwing around so it took him forever to come upstairs! When he finally emerged, I told him what had happened and he grabbed the phone so we could call the hospital. The nurses at the birth center assured me we had time so, instead of taking Harmon with us to the hospital, we planned on waiting for my parents to get to town to take care of him. As I coordinated with my parents, Simon – who was crazy in the womb – decided to stop moving and it freaked us out. So, I called the nurses again and they suggested I lay on my left side for 10 minutes and, if I didn’t feel any movement, to get to the hospital ASAP. I felt a few small movements but wasn’t completely comfortable with them so we decided to meet my parents en route and then we headed to the hospital. With most of my water now gone, I looked considerably smaller and Simon had dropped a ton. I could barely walk because it felt like he was going to fall out! When we arrived at the hospital, all the nurses were waiting for us (it was a slow night) so I got in my gown and they quickly hooked me up to the fetal monitor. After the panic about Simon, it was the BEST sound to hear his little heartbeat!

After getting my vitals and talking to all the nurses, doctors, and anesthesiologists, I was wheeled to the c-section prep/recovery area. Kevin and I hung out here for a while – the anesthesiologist couldn’t start my spinal block until 10:30 p.m. – so we watched some TV and I called and texted with my Mom and sister, Stacey (who was now en route from Chicago). The biggest task while I was waiting was getting my IV up and running. I have small, rolling veins and it’s ALWAYS a challenge – this time was no exception. After two failed attempts on my left side, the nurse sent for reinforcements. The new nurse then was successful with her first attempt on the right side (thank God). At 10:15 p.m., I was wheeled to the OR to get ready for the spinal block but another Mom-to-be took cuts and I had to wait until she was stabilized. We FINALLY got on with it and the anesthesiologist did an almost painless spinal block ( the IV hurt more). Within seconds, I felt that familiar warm sensation and then I began to go numb. After MANY tests to make sure I was good and numb (and some meds to fight the nausea), the doctors were ready to cut.

While I was strapped down and shaking like a leaf, Kevin stayed with me behind the big blue curtain. The anesthesiologist was wonderful – always checking in with me, talking Kevin and me through the surgery and keeping us updated on the progress. In what seemed like a much faster time than with Harmon, I heard the anesthesiologist tell Kevin “here he comes” and – at 11:32 p.m. – I heard a ton of crying! The doctors lifted Simon over the curtain for me to see before they whisked him away to make sure all was well. After he was checked out, Kevin was able to snatch him up and then the anesthesiologist was kind enough to take our first photo! Now that Simon was out, I swear it took 100 years for the doctors to put me back together and we FINALLY got to recovery around 1 a.m. Even at this late hour, it was no surprise that my Mom and sister were waiting in the lobby very excited to meet Simon!

While Kevin was able to grab some sleep in the hospital, I was pretty much up all night. The next morning, I finally was able to eat and Jell-O never tasted so good! My parents and my sister visited later in the day AND brought Harmon to see me. I missed him so much and it was very emotional for me to see him, especially now that he no longer was the only child. While Simon and I had visitors, Kevin went home to shower, make some baby calls and post some baby news to the web. He returned in time for dinner – I was craving McDonald’s fries and he obliged – and then we spent the rest of the night just hanging out with our new baby boy. On Thursday, we were told we could go home if we wanted to so we took our time getting ready, had lunch and then headed home.

It was a quick stay – almost two days – but an eventful one to say the least. I am thankful for the great care Simon and I received at U-M. I had great doctors and, most importantly, wonderful nurses (what they do is SO underrated). Thanksgiving 2008 will always be a special one!

Mom and Dad?

Sometime over the last month or so, Harmon started calling us “Mom” and “Dad” instead of “Mommy” and “Daddy.” It makes him sound SO grown up and it’s so odd to hear, especially since I still call my Mom “Mommy!” He’ll say things like “Where are we going, Mom and Dad?” or “I had a good day at school, Mom and Dad!” Almost any statement or question contains a reference to “Mom” and “Dad.” He’s growing up fast enough but his language makes him seem so much older!

Making up for Novembers past

In the past, November has been a rough month for my side of the family. Both of my Dad’s parents died during November as did my Mom’s mother. I also was nearly a goner after getting t-boned by a Detroit city bus just before Thanksgiving in 1996. In the past few years, Kevin and I have tried to make up for all the past November pain. We were married Dec. 2, 2000 (almost November) and then Harmon was born Nov. 12, 2005. Then, this year, Simon arrived Nov. 25. I figure my family needs one more late fall event to ATTEMPT to balance things out!

The best laid plans …

My original due date was Dec. 13 but in late August we scheduled my c-section for Dec. 5. And, for months, our lives revolved around this date. As we got closer to the big day, Simon didn’t appear to be making a break for it so we felt pretty confident he would stay inside until he was surgically removed! Because of this, we made a lot of plans the last week or so before surgery.

On Wednesday, Nov. 26, we planned a day at Twelve Oaks Mall for Christmas shopping and a visit to Santa – along with a haircut – for Harmon. Thursday, for Thanksgiving, we planned on going to my Uncle Max’s house for dinner. On Friday, we typically stay at home and decorate for Christmas so that was the plan again this year. Saturday, Kevin and I had haircuts scheduled at our old salon near my parents’ house up in Waterford and then we actually were going to do something for our anniversary – dinner at P.F. Chang’s followed by a movie, Four Christmases.

The following week, I had planned to work only Monday and Tuesday before taking vacation days Wednesday and Thursday. And, on that Thursday, we planned on keeping Harmon home from school so we could do something special with him – The Polar Express in 3D at the Henry Ford IMAX Theater – before he became a big brother.

In addition to our plans, both my parents had cleared their work schedules for the Dec. 5 date so they could take care of Harmon. And, my sister, Stacey, had planned to be in town from Chicago for Simon’s arrival. Of course, all those plans were shot to hell when Simon decided to arrive early! And, we’ve not actually “planned” much since. Such is life with a newborn!