Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Journey... Bringing home Aiden

Aiden was put on an IV of sucrose right when he was born because his blood sugar was really low (20). His doctor expected his sugar levels to regulate pretty quickly with the sucrose, but it did not. She believed something else must be wrong. Over Monday & Tuesday Aiden went through many tests, and finally on Tuesday afternoon the doctor confirmed there was something wrong. Both of his lungs were filled with pneumonia. What happened after this was a whirlwind. He had to be transferred to the nearest NICU, which was two hours away. I asked if we'd be driving him, and they said that no, a transport team would come and get him and he would go in the ambulance with them. I think this was when it really hit me. My baby was very sick.

They had to bring him to the nursery to be on oxygen while we waited for the transport team to get there. Dave and I took turns rocking Aiden in the nursery during those two hours. We packed up all of our stuff, and I got to be discharged early. I believe we went through an entire box of Kleenex during those couple hours. I couldn't stop crying. My baby was sick and there wasn't a thing I could do for him. When the transport team arrived and I saw the little tiny incubator on this huge gurney with all of these machines hooked up... That was even worse. We stayed there until they rolled him out of the nursery, then took off as fast as we could. We went home, threw a bunch of things in bags and drove two hours to go see our precious baby.

Initially they told us 7-10 days. We focused on the seven. Within a couple of days they said it would be ten days. Then fourteen. By this point we didn't really believe it, couldn't expect anything, and stopped looking at the calendar. We would be there as long as it took for Aiden to be healthy and ready to come home. It ended up being 16 days. Every day there felt just like the day before. We spent all day with Aiden, caring for him as much as we could. The first few days we couldn't even hold him. I can't even describe the feeling of standing next to your brand new baby, he's crying and agitated and you can't pick him up. Three days into his stay at the NICU we were finally able to hold him again. Needless to say, we held him as much as possible over the rest of our time there. 

Today Aiden is a healthy 2 month old baby. He's eating and growing and doing everything a 2 month old should do. We are thankful every day. 

Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Our Journey

I feel like the title to this blog post is appropriate in two different ways. First, the journey over three days to meeting our precious son Aiden. Second, the eighteen day journey to taking him home from the hospital.

I read the post previous to this one the other day and can hardly believe (still!) how things happened after that day. Yes, Dave was on his way home from Buffalo that day, but I had some problems the next morning while he was still on his way home. Luckily he was only about half an hour from home when I started realizing something was wrong. He drove into the driveway and I got into the car so he could bring me to the hospital to get checked. We got there & had to go upstairs to get monitored. After a couple hours and a few tests, the doctor came in and said I had to stay overnight to continue to be monitored. Dave & I looked at each other, pretty surprised. We expected to go home. The next morning again we were getting ready to go home when the doctor came in and said the baby had to be delivered. I looked at Dave and started bawling. This was not how I expected/hoped things would go!! At noon that day (September 29) I was induced. To make a long story short, after 31 hours of labor (& many, many tears), I had to have a c-section.

Aiden William was born at 7:44 pm on Sunday, September 30th. He was 7 pounds, 4 ounces & 19 inches. He is just amazing, and so precious!!

On to the second part of the journey... Tomorrow...

Thursday, September 27, 2012

On Hold

As of tomorrow, our travels will officially be on hold for a few months. Since we learned our baby is due in the middle of October, we made these plans for the fall, not knowing if they would work out or not. Well, Dave is on his way home right now, and it's not because I went into labor. :) Nope! It's because that's how we planned it. I shouldn't brag too much, because then something might happen.

I'm due in about 2.5 weeks. WEEKS. I see pictures of newborn babies now and get this nervous fluttering in my stomach because soon, God-willing, Dave and I will be the ones with the newborn baby. And we'll have to figure out how to be mom & dad. All you experts out there.... Any big tips for us? It's scary and exciting all wrapped up in one feeling.

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Today...

My heart & head are in Ann Arbor with some family members who have appointments
I'm looking forward to seeing them on Thursday when I get home for the weekend.

I am 31 weeks + 1 day into this 9+ month journey.
I'm making lists for what I have & what I need before mid-October. I was pretty excited to find some really good deals on baby clothes yesterday, and it really got me thinking about what I still need.
I realized the first day of school is a mere 3 (THREE!!) weeks away!!! How did that happen? Yes, I realize that doesn't affect me this year, but still... Three weeks!

I rearranged a couple appointments in September & added one for October with Maria J. I want to be as in-line & "loose" as possible :)

I'm realizing I'm going to be very busy between now & mid-September. I have a list of things I want to get done in the last two weeks of September, too, so... think it's going to go by quickly?

Friday, August 10, 2012

Addicted

I'll admit it. I'm addicted. To nectarines, and to popcorn. No, not together! These are two things I rarely ate before, and now I don't go a day without either one.
 I realized yesterday that if I was going back to school this year, I'd be getting into school mode in probably a week, and spending hours & hours in my classroom in two weeks. Lesson plans, syllabi, organizing. Whew! It's nice knowing my summer isn't just about over. This year my summer lasts as long as the weather holds up. :) the last time I wasn't going to school in the fall was, oh, about  1987.

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

Diners, Drive-Ins, and..... Dives?

Living in different cities, Dave and I are always looking for somewhere really good to eat. We don't have a tv at home, but in the summers we do & often find ourselves watching the Food Network Channel. A good show is Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives. The host (Guy) travels around the US and goes to different restaurants that are locally known for their food, usually a few dishes. Today Dave and I went to one of the restaurants featured on the show and it was SO GOOD! It was our third venture to a restaurant from the show and we've yet to be disappointed. Just really good food!! And two of the places (including tonight's restaurant) were so out of the way, we never would've tried/found them without being "introduced" on the show. I highly recommend checking out the food network website and looking for a restaurant if you're traveling to a new area. YUM!! :)

Home!

We're headed home tomorrow!! It's just for a quick weekend, but I'm hoping for lots of  sun, swimming, and visiting. Also maybe some saunas and a bonfire or two.

See ya in a couple days?

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Weekend in New England


 Dave and I spent the weekend in New England, staying with Jim, Lynne, and Braedy. We didn't spend a whole lot of time at their house, but were out on adventures around the area. Here's a few photos from our Sunday at Hampton Beach, NH.



We had such a great time!! Thanks again Jim, Lynne, and Braedy!!

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Niagara Falls


A few weeks ago for Dave's birthday we went to Niagara Falls. We had both been there, on the Canadian side together a couple of years ago, and to the American side separately. We were walking around, taking in the falls and just enjoying the park when we realized neither of us had been on the Maid of the Mist. So we decided to check it out.

You might think wearing the blue ponchos is overdoing it, but let me tell you, it is NOT. I couldn't believe how misty/rainy/windy it was at the bottom of the horseshoe falls. The boat gets pretty close to the bottom, and it feels like you're in the middle of a pretty bad storm.




If you've never gone, check them out some time!





Looking forward...

I know I'm only 6 months along right now, and there's so much I need to appreciate about right now, but I have moments when I canNOT WAIT to meet our little one. Like earlier today I saw baby pictures on a photographer's Facebook page. I thought of that little baby, and how very soon I'll be taking photos of our baby. I can't believe that God-willing, in a few months, that'll be us - the proud parents of a precious new baby. Wow!

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Getting creative!

Yesterday I spent some time looking for birth announcement ideas. I found a few I like on Pinterest, and combined a couple different ones to come up with one I really like. I don't have any of my scrap booking stuff here, so that meant a trip to the local craft store to get everything I need. I started working on them today and I really like how they look. They aren't going to be very complete at this stage, of course, with no photo, name or other details. It's fun to work on them now when I have lots of free time, something I might lack in October.

Monday, July 16, 2012

This, that

** Laundry day today. Costs us $6 for one load. At least today I didn't also have to buy $2 detergent for one load.

 ** Toledo Mud Hens game tonight!

 ** We toured a WWII destroyer & submarine yesterday, and a post-WWII light destroyer. It was built in 1945 for the war, but then the war ended. The ships were huge, and it was a lot of walking around and many flights of steps. It was a hot & humid day and you can bet they didn't have AC! :) It kind of did me in for the day. There were so many cool things to see on the ships, from original rooms & signs to memorials and information about the ships and what they did. The submarine was cool too. I expected crowded and cramped, but to actually see it was something else. To think that sailors lived in there for days, weeks, months at a time - wow!! The submarine and destroyer had Japanese flags on them to show how many "kills" they had. So, so, so cool!!

This is the light cruiser, with the (black) submarine next to it. The destoyer is hidden by the cruiser.


 ** Dave and I are heading east this weekend to see Jim, Lynne, and Braedy. Can't wait!!

Third Trimester!

Today marks the start of my third trimester. Three (or three and a half) months to go!!

Things that are part of my everyday life these days, at 6 months pregnant: Lots and lots of movement and kicks :), Tums, lots of trips to the bathroom, finding loose-fitting shirts, up all night & sleeping in, naps, lots of fruit, chocolate Frosties from Wendy's, an inflamed nerve on my right side, nightly leg massages with a muscle relaxing gelee.

Also lots of thinking and wondering about what he/she will look like, how our world will change, and how we'll be as parents. Dave thinks he has it figured out, so maybe I'll have to learn from him ;)

Friday, July 13, 2012

The weather

Its kind of funny. When Dave and I were home last week, lots of people asked about the weather here. We said it is pretty much the same as at home. A couple of times this week I've checked the weather at home, and it's always within a degree of here. Today we're both 83 degrees. Maybe that's not too big a deal, but last year we were in Kentucky for the summer and it was always 15 to 20 degrees hotter there than home. There are similarities in the areas, most notably the proximity to Great Lakes. That probably is the biggest factor.

Dave and I are thinking about switching hotels. This one is pretty nice, kind of old but it was remodeled in 2009. We generally like the location. It's close to Starbucks, Target, Chipotle, and a grocery store. I was getting out at least once during the day, but I came really close to getting hit by a car on my way to Target the other day. I was in the cross-walk, waited for the signal, and got about halfway across when I saw this silver car bearing down on me. She was speeding up pretty good too. Her window was open so I yelled/screamed and she swerved out of the way, yelling out the window at me. I was shaking pretty bad after that so I stopped at Starbucks to get my favorite (relatively pregnancy-friendly) drink, Green Tea Lemonade. It helped, at least a little bit. Anyway, I'm pretty reluctant to venture across the busy, 5 lane street again.

We found a much nicer long-term stay hotel a couple miles from here, but it's not in the best location. There's a couple of things within walking distance so it's okay. It looks like the food is much better over there too, so maybe we'd actually eat more of it. We cook all of our own food here, even when they serve dinner in the dining room. What should we do?

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Summer plans

I don't have a whole lot going on this summer. I think if I was home for the summer that would not be true. So instead of getting things done, I have lots of time to relax, sleep in, try new recipes, look at house plans, and do other fun, non-stressful things. I know sleeping in isn't going to last very long once it's fall, so I have to take advantage. I didn't imagine it would already be so uncomfortable sleeping, so not having an alarm to wake up to in the morning is so nice. Even when I don't sleep well, I can usually get enough sleep. Or at least take a nap.

By the way, if anyone feels like taking a trip this summer, come visit us!!

Monday, July 9, 2012

Definitely my longest break

All year I didn't have Internet at home, so that's my excuse for taking 11 months off. Jumping back into things, there's a few big things going on with us. In February we found out we have a little miracle on the way :) I'm due in the middle of October so I'm trying to mentally prepare to go until the end of October. I'm learning all about being pregnant as I experience the symptoms I expected, and those I never knew about. We're getting pretty excited for what's ahead, and also trying to soak up our last few months relaxing before he or she enters our world and changes everything forever.


We also started building our house this spring. It was a big project for Dave, and we know we have a LONG ways to go still!! We are planning on building it over the next few years, and it feels good to have it started.

 I'm taking this summer off from classes. The last couple summers have just been too hectic and stressful with the classes, and I figured this would be my last chance to really, truly relax.

Happy Monday!! (I like this day of the week WAY more this time of year than I do during those other 9 months.)