Sam: 4 Months

My mom has spent the last 3 years living in Moscow, Russia where she became friends with another foreigner from Scotland.  The sweet woman learned that mom had a grand baby on the way and she took the time to hand knit this gorgeous baby blanket, sweater, booties (not pictured) and hat.  I wish the pictures could do them justice because the detail and quality is exquisite.  As a novice knitter myself, I am completely in awe of this woman's ability and the fact that she would put so much effort (and expense) on behalf of someone she would probably never meet. When I learn of people like Sandra, as she is called, I feel like an absolute slug.  Someday I hope to be as generous and selfless (and skilled) as my new Scottish friend. 

I ask you, how can that face not melt a momma's heart?  This little man is pure love. 

Some Esther-isms and the Zoo

The other day at the park we saw an older man playing a steel drum.  He sort of looked like this: 

...but a little less well kempt. Esther ran towards him, yelling "I want to go say hi to Jesus!"

I sat holding Sam, not quite sure whether to panic for her safety or laugh at how her little mind must have worked that one out. So I laughed and then had to explain that this man was not Jesus and that we should probably go visit the ducks instead.

 We had a first!  Esther held still long enough for me to double French braid her hair.  I think she looks like altogether too cute and much too grown up.   

  

Esther isn't jut looking grown-up....she is thinking she's grown up. Here is what grown-up Esther likes to do:

-She decides what to wear and there have been some fun concoctions. (Think plaid pleated skirt over jeans paired with a green polo under a pink floral blouse and rain boots.) I have mostly given in to this new development. On the few occasions when I intervene, like when Chris and I wrestled her into her Easter dress, it isn't pleasant.  Although, I do put my foot down when she asks to where her "swimmie" (swim suit) to bed.

-Esther can count to ten...although the number seven sneaks in a few extra times

-Help set the table by arranging the silverware and filling the cups with water.

-Take care of baby Sam: She's quick to alert me when she here's some passing gas that Sam needs a new diaper ("Sam, change you diaper").   She likes to tell me that he's crying "Mom, Sam cry!" to which I respond by asking her to help him be happy. (Such as smiling at him, rocking his chair, giving him a toy, etc.)  Later, when he was crying again, Esther knew just what to do.  She ran over to him and in her loudest voice, shouted "HAPPY!!"  Almost, sweetheart. Almost.

-She reads (ie. jabbers with intermittent key words) her favorite (insert: memorized) books which include: Go, Dogs. Go!, Bernstein Bears: Trouble with Money, and any number of the Beatrix Potter books, aka Bunny Rabbit. 

-She's attempting to toilet train herself and I think it's time I tried to help out.

In March, we met up with Angela one of my oldest childhood friends at the Zoo. She has two beautiful kids and is expecting her third. It was fun and a bit eerie to realize that our daughters are almost exactly the age we were when we first met.  How time flies. :)

  Seattle weather may be chilly, but it makes for fun zoo trips. The animals were quite active and we loved seeing them move around so much.  We especially loved the baby lion cub, baby wolf, and the Lemurs who got into a noisy fight at the Zoo.

Happy Birthday, Esther

Esther turned two.   

She is a very happy two-year old.

She's been singing "happy-birthday to you" almost every day since her birthday.

Esther-isms:

"Mamma nuggle?"  (snuggle)

Mom: Who loves daddy? 

Esther: (both hands raised) "I do!"

Esther: "Sam, I do?"

Mom: "Who loves Sam?"

Esther: (hands raised high) "I do!"

...this continues until we've named everyone in the family, plus a few cousins, aunts, and grandparents.

When we're eating something she wants: "I like" or "Daddy share-wih-you" (ie. share with you)

Anytime someone leaves the house: "Bye, bye! I love you! I miss you!"

"Mamma, change-you diaper, please?"

As we put on pajamas: "Bye, bye piggies." (toes) Bye, bye bee-bo." (belly button)

Every morning, pulling on my hand: "Mamma, I hungry! I want cheese. Gettup!"

"Mamma by you?" (sit by me)

"gwa-gwa" (grandma/grandpa)

"Sam chi-chi" (kisses)

Playing peek-a-boo under the blanket: "Where's she-sher?" (Esther)

"I cook dinner!" (as she puts her orange slices in the little frying pan on her play kitchen stove)

"daddy  horsie?" (ride on dad's back up the stairs on the way to bed)

My personal favorite: "Daddy chunker!" 

She was lucky to have her grandma visiting for her birthday. Grandmas are fun. They let little girls brush their hair for a very long time and push strollers around the table no less than thirty times.

Esther is my favorite little friend.  We have been almost inseparable for the last two years and I love her company.  She is fun, energetic, compassionate, happy, and full of love and life.  She brings us so much joy!  

This is the park where Esther and I like to visit.  In the summer we swim in the little lake and in the winter we still like to come say hi to the ducks and throw rocks in the water. We took these pictures on Sam's due date...6 days later he came and things changed.  It's not just the two of us anymore.  Even though we love him to pieces, it's been a tearful transition.  Esther has cried about it too, although she doesn't realize that's why she's crying.  She just knows that now when she asks "Momma hoe-jew" (hold you), that mom is holding Sam instead. 

Esther's Favorites:

washing hands

pushing babies in the "gillow" (stroller)

animals (she can pull  up the animal app on the iPad and find the video of the lions and the "gorla")

cosmetics (ask me about whats happened to our tub of hair pomade, children's mentholatum chest rub (that looks like hair pomade), lip balm, liquid soap, hand sanitizer, and my makeup)

babies: Lammie, Piggy, and bear

reading books with mom or "reading" books by herself

"cull-ee"  (coloring)

doing tricks while saying "mamma watch!"

chocolate, nuts, "chee-bread" (bread with cheese), raisins, "dnk" (drink of water)

singing songs like "You Are My Sunshine" (which we finally caught on camera!)

Esther, you are a joy.  Your smile radiates happiness and your love for people is so pure.  I love that twinkle in your eye when you know you're being a tease. Your mom and dad stay up late laughing at the funny things you did that day and talking of how much we love having you in our lives.  It's a privilege to be your mother and watch you grow.   

Welcoming Baby Sam

Samuel Christopher Crittenden

January 31, 2013

3:47 am

9 lbs 7 oz

21.5 inches

This kid has massive hands.

Love that neck roll

He has a permanent little wrinkle from furrowing his brows.  So serious. 

So glad I caught this expression. Priceless!

Sam's Birth Story:

We have been excited to meet our little man for a very long time.  We've also been a bit anxious about his birth because Sam has a Congenital Pulmonary Airway Malformation (CPAM) that we've been monitoring for the last 6 month.  Basically part of his lower right lung did not develop properly and there is some cystic tissue that can (but thankfully not in our case) threaten the baby's heart in utero, and cause breathing problems at birth and will likely require surgery at some point.  In Sam's case, the cystic area is about medium sized and while doctors didn't anticipate breathing problems at birth, there was still a risk.  This is why we transferred my prenatal care from the midwives to the hospital with NICU facilities.

This anxiety about his lungs combined with information from his ultra sounds that he was measuring quite large with an extra large head, I was a bit nervous about his birth.   For his sake,  I wanted him to come when he was ready, and for my sake, I wanted him to come before he got any bigger.   So, despite having a mostly great pregnancy and feeling well, I became desperate to have the baby asap but without medical intervention that would interrupt the natural flow of labor and birth.  I sort of felt trapped and, as Chris and my mom can attest, I went a little bit nuts.

So, after an uneventful January 25th (Sam's due date), my body seemed ready to have the baby but there were no sings of labor.  Feeling skeptical that I would ever go into labor myself (I went a week and a half over with Esther and needed a little help to get things going) it was time to implement project get-Lizzy-into-labor.   Here is how it went.  Warning: this story is probably much longer with more details than anyone cares to know.  However, this blog's primary purpose is not for entertainment but to keep a record for my own family.   So there you have it.  Skim at your leisure.

Saturday, January 26th:

 Take castor oil, feel a bit queezy but not too bad. Walk for hours and have 6 hours of regular contractions that gradually taper off.  False alarm.

Monday, January 28th

Zumba class with my mom.  So fun!  Feeling great but no baby.

Tuesday, January 29th

 Learn from my doctor that I'm dilated to 4 cm. Almost half way there, hooray!  Doctor strips the membrane.  My mom and I go to lunch and the fabric store and wonder if labor will start.  Braxton Hicks contractions feel much stronger.  I take it as a good sign.

Wednesday, January 30th

Wide awake at 3am.  Take some more castor oil and make myself quite sick but get no results.  Go to the gym for 1.5 hours doing 40 minutes of cardio (stairs, walk uphill, speed walk), plus some squats and stretching.  I notice I'm getting some odd looks. Maybe it's the frantic gleam in my eye as I push myself to keep going, desperate to have this baby.

Still not in labor.  

Have lunch: soup sprinkled with cayenne pepper because spicy foods are supposed to help.  Go for a short hike with mom and Esther.  Do some shoveling in the field behind our house (apparently that always worked for my grandmother). Come home exhausted and depressed.  Have a short cry and a nap on the couch. I've given up hope that my body will ever go into labor on its own.

That evening my mom sends Chris and me out the door for a little date.  We go out for one of our favorite treats: frozen yogurt with fresh raspberries.  It's nice being out with just Chris and after 7 pm! Thanks mom.  Come home and watch a movie.

During the movie I notice the contractions are somewhat regular.  I don't say anything because this has happened before.  After the movie we stay up talking and I ask Chris to time the contractions: around 8 minutes apart.  It's late but I feel I should stay up and walk or do stairs to keep the contractions coming. Chris gives some excellent advice - go to bed.  If it's the real thing it will keep going.  I'm exhausted and acknowledge that he is right. 

Thursday, January 31

During my sleep, I find I'm waking up from contractions, but that's nothing new, so after they pass I roll over and fall back asleep.  Around 1:30 or 2:00 am I start to realize that the contractions are seeming quite close.  I determine to time how far apart they are but, thanks to all the physical exertion of the day, I can't manage to stay awake long enough for even two consecutive contractions.  

Things change quickly when, at 2:50 am, I wake up to an exceptionally strong contraction.  I'm not drowsy anymore.  On my way back to bed from a trip to the bathroom another one hits.  It's only 2:53.  Time to go!

I wake Chris and tell him we we need to go to the hospital.  He seems hesitant to rush off too soon but I insist.  Contractions are coming quickly.  We dress, say goodbye to my mom (who gives me a tight squeeze and I can't help but notice that pained but excited expression as she knows what's coming) and Esther (who is looking very confused at all the commotion) and get in the car.  It's 3:00am.

I don't care to remember the drive to the hospital other than it was raining, Chris drove as quickly as was safe while I clutched his leg tighter and tighter as the labor progressed. I try to stay calm with my ipod playing soothing music but intermittently I keep urging him to hurry and even told him to run a red light!  

We arrive at the hospital around 3:30.  I am not really on speaking terms at this point so Chris tracks down a nurse and says something about his wife is having a baby.  I sign some paper verifying who I am.  I tell them, trying to be calm but firm, that my contractions are 2 minutes apart and that I tend to go fast.  (At this point I have no idea that my words will be so true).

I'm wheeled into a birthing room, still listening to music (I highly recommend a playlist of your favorite songs from General Conference.  It did wonders for me.)  We get to the room and I need to visit the bathroom.  Between contractions Chris helps me to change into a hospital gown and get on the bed.  The nurse attaches the fetal monitor to my belly and asks to check me to see how my body has progressed.  At that moment my body transitions and starts bearing down.  I tell the nurse as much and she hurries off to find the doctor.  My body pushes a few times and I know it's close.  I can't believe this is all happening so fast.  Things are intense and the nurses are moving quickly. Chris is with me the whole time, rubbing my back to help relax my body and soothe my spirit.  Then, in 1 push I felt the baby's head descend into the birth canal and my water broke.  After a 2nd push his head crowned and stayed put, and in a 3rd and final push, our little Sam was born.  

It was euphoric.  He was here safely, without forceps or c-section, and he was breathing.  Chris and I couldn't stop looking at each other, wondering if this had really happened.  We were still in shock that Sam was already here.  After all, we had not been awake for even a full hour. After so much waiting, anticipating, and praying for this moment, it came and went and we barely had time to hang on.

I felt amazing, or I did until the soreness and the after-birth contractions set in.  Yes, it had been a very intense experience and not exactly comfortable, but because it was so short and I was well rested, it was manageable.  I had energy. I felt strong and powerful, and knew that God was with me and helping me deliver our son.  At Esther's birth, where I was too weak and exhausted to even lift her, I had to feel much of the joy and awe of birth through Chris until I had recovered.  This time we experienced it together.  We felt God's love, we felt love for each other, love for Sam, and we couldn't wait for Esther to arrive so our family would be together as we are meant to be.  

When Esther first met Sam she only spoke in whispers. It was darling.

 She was very curious about his little body and making sure all his parts were accounted for.

We're all looking like we just rolled out of bed...but happy. 

Sam's first few moments of life.

Love that first shower & change of clothes after the baby is born.  Pretty sure Sam is still pre-bath in these pictures, poor kid.

Could that face be any cuter? I think not. 

It was a nice hospital and we had great doctors and nurses...but I was very happy to leave. 

Meeting our Dyer cousins! 

We were amazed at how grown up little miss Cora seemed when compared to a newborn.

Couldn't have made it through the week without my wonderful mother.  It was such a relief knowing Esther was in good hands during our 2 1/2 days at the hospital.  She kept the house clean, fed us yummy food, took Esther birthday shopping, did sewing projects with me, and left us feeling   rested and ready to go.  So thankful for all her service and can't wait for her and my dad to move back to the U.S. this summer!