2 Weeks Old

Bennett is now a whole two weeks old and with each day more and more of his personality comes out. He made it back up to his birth weight at his last doctors appointment.
He has become quite the vocalist. Most of the time he is making some sort of noise, even in his sleep. He coo's, he grunts, he whimpers. I think he just likes to hear himself. Despite all the noises he makes, which we are getting very good at sleeping through, he doesn't cry very much, which we are very happy about! It is fun to watch him change everyday...

Tanning Beds Already?!?!

After only a few days home, Bennett decided that he liked the hospital better so he celebrated his one week birthday in the hospital under the tanning lights. He was readmitted for jaundice and spent almost 24 hours chilling under the lights. The good news--he came out a much less "yellow" child. Also, since he left the hospital for the second time he a whole lot less lethargic and actually eats now. At his low point he was down to 5lbs and 10 oz! We are hoping at his doctors appointment this week that he has broken 6lbs again. All in all I think he had a wonderful time in his warm tanning bed, but lets hope his love of hospitals has been satisfied. (Sleeping in the hospital is not so easy for those of us older than a week!)

Introducing...

Kevin and I welcomed into our family Bennett Paul last Thursday at 7:47pm. He is 21 inches long and weighed 6lbs 7 oz.

We left for the hospital on Wednesday night, fully expecting to return home in an hour with a diagnosis of false labor. (I had had a few rounds of it before but these were stronger and closer together so we thought we would get it checked out). They admitted me with contraction 1.5-3 minutes apart--I didn't realize they were that close!

We spent the night with steady contractions and the next morning my doctor stopped by to visit and asked that they put me on pitocin to speed things along. Despite the close contractions, she thought I would have a long labor--at that point we were already at 12 hours. A few hours late they broke my water and by dinner time that evening Bennett was ready to come. After pushing for an hour and a half Bennett arrived with the cord around his neck, but perked up just fine after it was removed.

He has blond hair and his eye color is still that baby grey, so who knows! So far (knock on wood) he seems like a good baby. He has a hard time eating but everyday is getting better and better. We are really happy to have him home and embark on this adventure.

What They Don't Tell You

Now having been pregnant for almost 40 weeks I have discovered a few things about pregnancy--the things they don't tell you about pregnancy before it happens to you. Here are some of the things I have learned:

• Nose bleeds are common in pregnancy and come without notice
• Your feet swelling isn't just unattractive-it hurts
• Your belly button can pop long before the turkey is done
• There are a million and one wives tales people will use to predict what you are having
• Seeing spots for an hour is fine as long as your blood pressure is low (despite the fact is causes massive headaches)
• Being pregnant does not make weight gain any easier
• False labor doesn't feel so false
• Everyone has an opinion about how you are carrying-big, small, high, low, etc
• Your hair and skin might just be better than ever
• The itchy belly does not cease and there is no satisfying that itch
• Bending over isn't just hard-it actually hurts
• Most prenatal doctors appointments are pointless-they are meant really just to waste an hour plus of your time
• You can crave things you aren't allowed to eat while pregnant (sushi, I miss you!)
• Aversions are worse than cravings (keep chicken far far away from me)

This is not a complete list by any means, and I realize there are many ailments I have not had to suffer in pregnancy. With a week and a half till I am due I do not have much longer to learn more, so feel free to let me know what things I have missed out on this time, so that I am a little more prepared for next time!

(I think this picture looks like I stuck a ball under my shirt and am sneaking out of the store with it...since my belly dropped I look like I am stealing a ball all the time!)