I now hate February 14

On Monday the 14th, I noticed Bryson's cough wasn't getting any better, so I called the pediatrician and was told to come in. They did a nasal swab (yeah, the kid didn't like that so much) and told me they were going to test for RSV. Of course, this sent me into a slight panic, as I had heard all kings of bad things about RSV. The nurse called me about an hour later and told me he tested positive. Great. I was told to watch him for fevers or difficulty breathing and if either of those things occured, take him right to the hospital. Well. at midnight I got up to feed him and he felt hot so I took his tamp and sure enough, it was 101.1 (rectally, so fun). Mike and I immediately called my mom to come stay with Brody while we went to the ER. The ER doc called my ped (she was on call thank goodness) and was told to do a full sepsis (?) work up. This meant my poor 25 day old baby had to have blood drawn, a catheter inserted to get a urine sample, an IV inserted, a chest xray, and the cherry on top of the crap sundae, a spinal tap. Fortunately, we were sent out of the room for the worst stuff. I was okay with that, there was a nurse in there who had two young kids herself (one was a 3 month old) so she was very comforting to him. It took over an hour for them to get the IV in, they even called down a couple of OB nurses to help. When we finally got to see him again, he had bruises on both hands, his arms, 3 on his head, and his feet. They managed to get the IV in his right foot. Poor baby was just traumatized. Then we had to wait for some antibiotics to be given to him before we could leave in the ambulance for Sacred Heart in Spokane. Yep, doctor decided he needed to be in the hospital to be safe and there were no available beds in Moses Lake. We left for Spokane around 6 am and I managed to sleep in the ambulance for most of the hour+ ride. On the way there, Bryson's O2 levels dipped a bit so they gave him some oxygen. At Sacred Heart, we were in a romo in the ER for two hours while they readied a more permanent room for us. Apparently, the children's floor was pretty full. And I found out a lot of the babies there had RSV as well, so I felt a little better knowing how common this virus is.



Mike, Brody, and our neighbor came up to visit later in the day. My mom really wanted to come, but she had set up a Make-A-Wish training that evening and had to be there for it. Anyway, when they showed up, I was about to pass out from being so tired. Shelbi took Brody on an "exploration" of the hospital and Mike and I tried to nap for a bit. I probably slept for about an hour. They left for home around 5:30 and I spent the rest of the night feeding my little porker (whose appetite had decided to come back) and sleeping. It's amazing how rested you can feel after a few sporadic hours when you've been up for almost 24! At 8 that night, we got a roommate, a six month old who also had RSV. I swear, his mom looked about 16. I heard her tell the doctor she also had a 22 month old. I didn't pay a whole lot of attention to her, but I was aware of the dr telling her CPS would be in to talk with her.



On Wednesday morning, the doctor decided to see how the little guy would do without the oxygen. His sats were dipping a bit, buy stayed above 90 so we were told we most likely would be able to go home that evening.

Here are a couple pictures of my poor baby in his hospital bed:

3 weeks!

Seems crazy that my baby is already 3 weeks old. Actually, he is now 23 days old. He is growing like a weed. We took him to the doctor on Friday so she could look at his nasty butt rash and he weighed 10lb 5oz. He is gaining weight like crazy!

We also had Dr. L listent o Brody as he had been coughing for about 3 days. Luckily, his lungs sounded clear so it's most likely just crap dripping into his throat. We have two humidifiers going in the house and he seems better. The baby has also been coughing but he only did it once while in the drs office and it was while he was lying flat on the exam table so she seems to think it is probably reflux. Over the weekend, the coughing has gotten a bit worse, but it seems to really be bad right after he eats, so I don't know if it is reflux or whatever crap Mike and Brody have. Poor baby. It's making it hard for him to sleep during the day.

Speaking of sleep, Bryson seems to have finally figured out day and night! On Friday night, he actually slept from 10-4. It was awesome. I would like to thank the makers of the miracle blanket! Of course, once he was up at 4, he stayed up till 6, the little stinker. And last night he went to bed at 10 again and was up at 1:30 and then wouldn't go to sleep in his bed so he laid by me until about 3 and then I put him back in the blanket in his bassinet. He lasted till about 4:30 and then got fussy so I put him by me again and he slept till 6 ish. Mike took him into the living room then and I slept till 8:30. It was nice, but I can't wait for the day this little guy sleeps all night EVERY night!

rub-a-dub!

Bryson got his first real bath last night! I was so happy for a few reasons. Mostly, I was happy that nasty umbilical stump had fallen off (though I got a little teary thinking it was the last connection between the two of us, stupid hormones!). I was also excited because this means we get to start a bedtime routine!! I know he is too young right now for any real schedule to happen, but I learned with Brody a baby is never too young to get started on a good bedtime routine. Bath time was always a big part of Brody's routine, so I plan to make it part of Bryson's also. I just need to figure out how to do bedtime with two kids. Right now, it's not a real big deal since Mike is home in the evenings, but when he has to travel, I will have to do it all alone. Unless I can get my mom or neighbor to come over to help at bedtime the first couple of times...

I'm not really sure why I am making that face. Brody had so much fun "helping", I had to keep him from dripping water right into Bryson's eyes a few times!

He seemed to really enjoy kicking back and relaxing in the tub. Which was a huge relief! I was worried I wouoldn't get lucky twice with kids that like the bath!

We have a picture of dad and Brody like this after the first bath so we had to do it again!

Dad thought it would be funny to spike his hair after his bath!

Bryson and his bear

I decided to steal an idea from a friend and pose Bryson next to this stuffed bear each month to see how much he grows! Since I only decided to do it this morning, we'll call this one the newborn shot even though the little guy is already 18 days old!

I am feeling a lot better today. I am not sure if the baby blues are planning to go away on their own this time or not. In any case, I see my doctor this afternoon and I can talk to her. MMaybe we'll wait a couple weeks to try meds again and see what happens. My only fear is that Mike will be leaving to travel for work in a few weeks and I want to be sure I can handle it okay. He promised he wouldn't leave until things settled down a bit here and that his first trip away will be a short one.

Bryson slept pretty good last night. He seems to be sleeping for 3-4 hour stretches at a time at night. Now, I just need to get him to sleep peacefully in his bassinet. All in good time, I guess. I am also impatiently waiting for his nasty umbilical stump to fall off so I can give him a real bath. The thing is just hanging there (which totally grosses out Brody, lol!). Poor baby has a diaper rash that won't go away. Seriously, it looks like someone burned the skin off his butt. He screams when I have to change him and I feel like an ass. The doctor prescribed some butt paste and I am doing everything I can (wiping with baby cloths instead of wipes, letting his butt air out a lot during the day, changing him often). I called and talked to the nurse yesterday and told her I didn't think it was getting any better. She told me I could try a baking soda bath once he could take a bath. If it's not better by Friday, I am taking him back in.

Brody is such an awesome big brother. I am so glad he plays so well by himself and enjoys watching his movies because right now I am a total slacker mom. I can't wait till I feel like myself again and the weather gets nicer so I can play with him and not feel so guilty. And once again, I am SO glad my husband is around right now to hang out with him in the evenings and on the weekends.

Day 1 alone

So Mike went back to work today. I have only cried maybe twice. Yay me! I can't wait to see my doctor tomorrow and get some help. I really don't want to look back on this time and remember being sad and cramky. I want to remember enjoying these days with my new baby. And poor Brody must think his mom is losing it. I can't control the crying so there have been a few times he's witnessed it, no matter how hard I try to keep it hidden from him. I also feel a little short tempered with him which could partly be from the lack of sleep. In any case, I'll be getting some help tomorrow and hopefully I'll start feeling like myself again soon (a tired version of myself, but still...).

Here are some recent pictures of the little men in my life:

Bryson napping in the swing (he seems to be able to sleep ANYWHERE other than his bassinet)

Tummy time with big brother!

Brody LOVES to hold his baby!

Bryson at 1 week old. That little outfit is already too small!

The first couple weeks

I really really hate the first couple postpartum weeks. I have such a bad case of the baby blues. And this rotten, gloomy weather is doing very little to help. Tomorrow Mike goes back to work and I start crying pretty much anytime I think of him being gone (yep, here come the tears). With Brody, he was able to be home with me for over two months, which was SO nice. He is such a lifesaver right now! He takes Brody with him all day and then at night he'll help so much with the baby, no matter how tired he is. Now I am going to have to do all the night time stuff myself 4 nights a week. Yuck. I have an appointment with my doctor on Tuesday and I really hope I can get some help with this weepiness and sadness. I waited 3 months to get help after Brody was born and I don't want to do that again. I want to enjoy my kids and stop wistfully thinking about my life before the baby was here (that makes me feel SOOO guilty!).

I need to stop being such a whiner and get the camera out. I have about a bazillion pictured of Brody as a baby and have taken hardly any with Bryson so far. I'll get on that and start posting some soon!

Bryson Vincent Fleurkens

I guess now that a week has passed, it's time to sit down and write about baby Bryson's birth.

I was scheduled to have my c/section on Wendesday, the 19th. Unfortunately I got really sick on Tuesday and ended up going to the hospital that night to get checked out. I was extremely dehydrated and was given 3 bags of IV fluids. I was also told I needed to stay overnight to be monitored. The nurses were told I might still have the c/s in the morning so at midnight they took away all my water, juice, and snacks. That sucked. In the morning, I was prepped as if going into sugery. Finally, my OB and the pediatrician talked with each other and decided the best thing for the baby was to keep him inside for a couple more days. So I was rescheduled for Friday the 21st.

On Thursday night, I got barely any sleep at all. I was so nervous. I had to be at the hospital at the unholy hour of 5:30 so at 4 a.m. I got up and showered and tried to calm down. My mom showed up at the house to stay with Brody till he woke up and we were off to have a baby! The nurses were so great about calming me down and getting me all prepped for surgery. I was taken to the OR right on time. After taking some vitals, they were ready to administer the spinal. This was the moment I had been dreading for MONTHS. But I am happy to report it was not as bad as I thought it would be. A small pinch, some pressure and I was numb! My upper body however, would not stop shaking. I am not sure if it was nerves or the icy cold OR, but it was driving me crazy! Mike came in and sat holding my hand. Apparently, that spinal worked better than I thought, becase I wasn't even aware the doctor had started until I felt the enormous pressure of them pulling at the baby. Within about ten minutes of starting, we heard that beautiful first cry (or should I say scream? the kid was not happy). I peeked around the curtain and saw my sweet baby boy getting cleaned up. Then I asked for the morphine. :) The anesthesiologist told me as soon as the baby was taken to the nursery, he'd give me some. So they wrapped up baby Bryson and Mike brought him over to me so I could look at him and touch him. We got a couple of pictures taken and then Mike, the nurse, and the baby left for the nursery, I was drugged up and spent the next 30 minutes being put back together. I spent about 45 minutes in recovery and it wasn't nearly as bad as it was when I had Brody. I wasn't shaking uncontrollably and I wasn't dying of thirst. As they wheeled my to my room, Brody appeared and handed me a Nutra Grain bar, which I thought was very sweet. I got to see my baby pretty quickly which was nice after having to wait 7 hours to see Brody when he was born. I spent the rest of the day chilling out and getting moved into a new, bigger room. My three day hospital stay was relaxing and uneventful. Mike came home each night to stay with Brody. I didn't mind until the last night, when I think the hormones started to kick in. Then I felt kind of lonely.

Since we've been home, Mike has been awesome. I don't do anything really except take care of myself and the baby. I am a little scared when I think that Mike has to go back to work in week. I am sure I'll be fine, but still, it's going to be an adjustment. Here are some pictures of Bryson's birth day:

Getting ready to head to the OR.

Not happy about things (and is that not the most adorable head of hair you've ever seen?)

This face is just priceless!

Getting kisses from big brother

Brody helping feed his new baby

OH! He weighed 8lb 10oz and was 20 1/4 inches long. He's my tiny baby!

3 More Days!

Wow, I cannot believe that in 3 days (well, less actually since the surgery is scheduled for 7:30), I will have a new baby boy! I swear, it feels like just yesterday that second little pink line showed up on the stick! I am so excited to meet my new little guy but also so nervouse for the actual c/section. I hope it's as quick and pain free as possible! Brody is very impatient to meet "his" baby. He thinks that the doctor is going to take him out of my tummy every time I have an appointment. It'll be nice to tell him on Wednesday that she really IS taking the baby out!

Here is a picture of Baby Bryson(?) from back at 28 weeks:

Brody is doing great. He is FINALLY peeing in the potty and can go teh whole day wearing underwear with no accidents. However, he refuses to poop on the toilet and asks us to put a diaper on him in the evening so he can do his business. He will "try" to sit on the potty if we beg hard enough. Usually that means 2-3 minutes sitting there talking to me or Mike. Then he jumps up and needs his diaper. I guess I'll take what I can get right now. Hopefully he'll get the hang of it soon, I really want to sign him up for pre-school in the fall, he wants to go so badly. I also worry about his speech. He is very hard to understand. He gave up his binky back in November so I know that isn't the problem anymore. I figure I'll give him a couple more months and then talk to his pediatrician.

Yesterday the poor kid was pukiey sick for the 2nd time ever. He only threw up twice but that was plenty for me. The second time, I had to make Mike come back fromt eh new house to help me clean up. Getting down on my hands and knees to clean puke off the floor is not easy right now. Anyway, by 7:30 last night, you would never even know Brody had felt bad. He was running all over the place and playing with his toys and the dogs. I let him stay up about an hour and a half later than usual since he had spent the whole day resting and dozing off and on.

Here is Brody a couple months ago playing outside (I need to get better at taking pics, I am really slacking lately!)

The house is coming along really well, although it looks lilke now we won't be moving in till mid-March. We'll be crowded for a while, but it will be worth it when we finally get moved in. The only problem is Mike's mom and dad are going to be here March 10th to visit and we have no idea where they will sleep. Our little two bedroom will already be crowded with the four of us who live here! I guess we'll figure something out. I don't feel right asking them to postpone the trip again (they were going to come in Feb.) when their new grandson is here. I need to get some pictures of the house on here, since I decided to delete the house blog (never updated it). Here are a couple of Brody playing in the basement a few months ago.

As of right now, all the rooms have been framed in, the electricity has been roughed in, the roof is done, and they are working on the siding. I know there is lots more that has been done, but that's the stuff that stands out in my mind!