PET Scan a No-Go

First of all, Milo did end up getting his tongue snipped. The Dr. was not certain it would make a difference because it wasn't sever, but he said it is so simple and painless that it may be worth doing in case it does help. And if it doesn't help, then we'll know for sure that was not the problem and we can move on. And sure enough... it was very simple and Milo doesn't seem to be in any discomfort or bothered at all by the procedure. We'll see if it helps.

So as soon as we walk in the door, I get a call from the hospital asking if I had any questions about my PET scan in the morning. So the lady on the phone mentions in passing that I won't be able to be around (in the same house) as any children for 12 hours after the scan. "Excuse me? I have an 11 week old!" "Oh did they not tell you that?" ... tears... "Um. NO!" So I immediately called Dr. Jones' office still crying. Long story short the PET scan has been cancelled. The nurse said they are not used to have young paitents and especially not young patients with young babies. So she is consulting with Dr. Jones to see how we should proceed. And they said its actually more like 12-24 hours that I should not be around children... as it can affect their development later in life. Seriously? I definitely don't want the PET scan now. I'm hoping Dr. Jones says we can just move on to the biopsy route. I'd rather they cut me open and still be able to be with my baby than fill with radioactive poison!! I'm definitely calling the hospital and informing them that no one thought to mention that tiny MAJOR detail.

Phew. What an afternoon it has been. And to think I have eaten 0 carbs all day for nothing... :) I'll post again when we find out what the next step will be.

The Icing on My Birthday Cake of a Trip.

I'm always at a loss on where to begin. First of all, let me say that this was one of the best birthdays EVER. We were only gone for one night, but it felt like we were on vacation for a few days! Milo totally dug camping. I'm not surprised since we already know he loves being outside. We camped at the D.H. Day Campground which is part of the Sleeping Bear Dune National Park. The camping is much more rustic. No showers and only outhouses for bathrooms. But they maintained the campsites nicely. I know our neighbors say us with a baby and thought... "OH great!" But I am proud to say that Milo barely made a peep. All three of us slept wonderfully. And who can beat $12/night accommodations.

We didn't swim, but we did put Milo's feet in Lake Michigan. Let's just say Milo is not ready for lake swimming. The moment the bottoms of his feet touched the water (which was pretty chilly) he screamed! I kind of felt bad, but we got a couple cute pictures of the moment. :) We also went to the scenic overlook of the big dune to watch the sun set. It was nice, although very windy which kind of blew the sand around. But again, we got some great pictures.

About two miles down the road from our campground was the town of Glen Arbor. It was a tiny but absolutely adorable little town. We even decided to skip the Drive In movie. We were just having such a great, relaxing time. We'll do that another time. We also took a few drives while Milo napped to look at all the beautiful houses and inns.

For dinner we cooked hot dogs and made smores. And Nathan even bought a little shortcake to put a birthday candle in for me! I started to make a wish... and for the past several years I had been wishing for either Nathan to be ready to have a baby or just to be able to get pregnant. This was the first year in a long time that my birthday wish was something non baby related... although still family oriented. Yeah... I know its just a fun wish, but still... I love the whole 'make a wish' thing.

Saturday was truly a GREAT day. The only thing that could have made it more perfect was to have the rest of my family with us.

Then today we had coffee and split a banana and nutella sandwich on fresh baked bread at a cute little cafe in Leland, MI. After we packed up our campsite we headed over to Traverse City. I knew there was a baby boutique and I wanted to check it out now that I actually have a baby. The moment I walked in I realized I was in Mommy Heaven. Seriously. Everything I loved was there. Cloth diapers, Sophie the Giraffe, Kate Quinn clothes.... and Mobys... Mobys in every color you could imagine!! Then I saw it... the ErgoBaby Carrier! I had been eyeing this thing up for a while. But I had never seen one in person... and they are pricey. It was a big buy for something I had never seen or tried. BUT I have heard so many great things about the ErgoBaby. In Milo went and I fell in love all over again... LOL. There was also a family in the store using theirs. The dad stopped to tell me about how much they love theirs and what a great investment it has been for them over the past few years. The mom said she has been wearing it for the past four years through two kids.

Now let me say that I still LOVE my Moby and am still a big believer in the Moby. But as Milo gets bigger I knew I'd wants something a bit more supportive. {I do think the Moby is better when they're little.}

Anyway... I used my birthday money to buy one!! I am now the very proud owner of a chocolate brown ErgoBaby Carrier. That was the icing on my birthday cake of a trip.

OK. I think that just about covers the trip. I'll get pictures up soon... I promise. {I have a few different places where I have been uploading pictures more frequently like Facebook, etc.} We got some good ones!

This week is going to be crazy for me. Tomorrow I am not supposed to eat any carbs. That is not an easy feat. Then I can only drink water after 9 p.m. I will have one more day to pump. Milo also has a doctor's appointment to get a second opinion on the tongue tie. I'm not sure if we will keep that appointment, because Milo sticks his tongue out all the time and finally keep a pacifier in. So I guess maybe he isn't tongue tied. Tuesday is my PET scan. Then its pump and dump for 48 hours. I don't know how soon I'll get the results, but its bound to be a crazy week. Plus... I'll still have a final week of all days with Anya.

Ok. I really need to get to bed now. I'll update as things progress.

My Birthday Post

Since we will be up North tomorrow on my birthday... I will be making my birthday post today {while Milo naps in his new swing!}

The theme of this birthday post is not me. It is my mom. After giving birth to my son... I have a new appreciation for birthdays. Yes. It is a celebration of another year in one person's life... but its also kind of a day where our mom's deserve a thank you. So to my wonderful mother... Thank you. 25 years ago.... my mom labored for hours... that is after surviving a very hot D.C. summer while 9 months pregnant. Thank you for all that you went through to bring me into this world. Thank you for being THE BEST mom to me for the past 25 years. Thank you for always being supportive and for always telling me you love me. Thank you for shaping me into the woman I am today. And thank you for getting me that awesome pink bike for my 8th (just a guess) birthday.

Every year, month, and day... I see myself turning more and more into my mother. And I hope that over the next 25 years... I continue to grow more and more like her. Thank-You-For-My-Birth-Day Mom!

***And thank you to my Daddy too... while he didn't labor... he also had a major hand in the past 25 years of my life!

I love you Mom and Dad!

PET Scan

OK... so the next step with the lung issue is to do a PET scan. It involves injecting radioactive dye through my body. Sounds like fun, huh? The scan is on Tuesday the 31st. Before then, I have to pump enough milk for 48 hours. How much is that? I have no idea. My friend Linda let me borrow her electric pump. I bought new parts today and have pumped 1 1/2 ounces. Hopefully tomorrow's pumping will be more productive. But even if I get enough milk pumped... Will Milo take a bottle now? He hasn't had one since he was just a few weeks old. Will he prefer the bottle and reject me? And how in the world are we going to get him to sleep???? I go in and lay with him and nurse him for about an hour before he is out. Half of that nursing is acting as his pacifier. A real pacifier won't do it. And during the night... he'll fuss for a minute... I'll give him a quick nurse and he goes back out. Sometimes he'll nurse for about 30 seconds. How am I going to manage two nights bottle feeding this baby who is very into nursing. I have a feeling those are going to be two looooong nights. But I really don't have a choice.

Speaking of sleeping... have I told you about Milo's bedtime playlist?? We want to expose Milo to a very wide variety of music... real music, not baby music. So his playlist includes everything from Elvis, Michael Buble, Feist, Avett Brothers to Norah Jones, Jewel, and Alison Krauss... and everything in between. And during the day we listen to all kinds of music. A good bit of classical, jazz, country, old stuff, new stuff... pretty much everything but classic rock and rap. :) But that probably just means he'll grow up to like classic rock and rap.

Where to begin?

Milo, Anya, and I all survived our first three days together. I definitely have a new appreciation for mothers with multiple children. But in all honesty... its not bad. Sure there have been a time or two where Milo had to fuss a bit while I tended to Anya and vice versa. Mark was actually home two of those days with an eye injury {Anya poked him in the eye on Sunday and did some pretty good damage} which was kind of nice since he would pitch in here and there with Anya. But all in all... things are going very well. Thank goodness for the Moby!! Oh and apparently Milo likes Dora. He just about bent himself backwards trying to watch Dora. He is his father's son!! {Not that Nathan likes Dora... just TV in general!}

Also this week we took Milo to his first Great Lake Loons baseball game! We had SOOO much fun. We dressed Milo up in little baseball pants and a little red hat... that both belonged to Nathan as a baby. He looked adorable! And he left the hat on the entire game. It really was a nice evening with our little family.

This weekend, I think we are going to take our first (tent) camping trip for my birthday. We are going to the Traverse City area. We plan to spent a little morning time on the beach, some day time strolling around town, then going to a drive in movie. It should be a lot of fun!! Oh and birthday smores!! Yum.

I've got to get Milo to bed now... but I'll blog more tomorrow!

Milo Goes to the County Fair

Yesterday Milo made his third trip to the County Fair this week. But... all the other trips were short and he was asleep. He slept for the first 45 minutes or hour, but woke up in time to see some animals. He actually looked at the horses, making eye contact. So we'll call the trip to the fair a success! And while I did go nuts over the baby animals... they just weren't as cute this year... maybe because nothing in life is cuter than your own baby! Oh and Nathan and I shared an absolutely amazing dessert. It was vanilla ice cream between two of the most delicious, hot fresh waffles! It was SOOOO good.

Lung Nodule Con't

So this evening I got a call from Dr. Jones... I think that's the first time I've had a personal phone call from a doctor. And it kind of scared me at first. But... Dr. Jones was super friendly. He said he'd like to go ahead and do a PET scan. Anything bad should 'light up' on the scan. He also indicated he's not too worried at this point.

Lung Nodules

This morning I had my appointment to go over the lung issues.

Let me back up just a second and explain... During IVF, I ended up in the ER after the egg retrieval. While they were trying to figure out what was going on they did a CT scan among other tests. On the CT scan (in Sept) they noticed a nodule. So the ER doctor said I may want to follow up on that with my family doctor. Of course IVF was successful so we had to wait until after Milo was born to do a follow up scan. The follow up scan was done a few weeks ago... so almost a year between the two scans.

Then if you'll remember they messed up my appointment time and said they'd at least review things and call if I needed to come in sooner than a month down the road... which they did end up calling.

Back to this morning... The nodule that was seen back in Sept is small and has not grown which is the good news. The not so good news is that in the time between the two scans, four new nodules have sprung up that are relatively large. We went over my history... smoking? asbestos exposure? bad drinking water? mold? live on a farm? There's not really any indication of lung cancer. Nodules can sometimes form from pneumonia which I have not had, although I have had mono twice. But... that does not explain the four new nodules that have formed over the past year.

The NP I saw said there's no need to worry at this point, however we do need to figure out what's going on. So she will be consulting with the doctor today to determine what the next step will be. They may do a PET scan and/or a biopsy. Or he may just say let's just watch it. But based on the new growth... we'll likely be doing further tests.

As I mentioned before, my fear is another cancer that has spread to the lungs. But... we'll wait and worry when there's something specific to worry about.

Things I Couldn't Live Without

I've been wanting to do this post for a while... Things I Couldn't Live Without (or things I've loved having or used a ton.) And of course this is baby related... for the first 9 weeks.

#1. Aden and Anais blankets- I know I have mentioned these before, but they are just THE perfect weight for summertime... and I use them for all kinds of things like swaddling, covering Milo in the swing, over the car seat to block sun, etc. I also love the two Aden and Anais burp cloths I have.

#2. Video Monitor- I know parents made it without video monitors for years, but I LOVE ours. Its just so great being able to see Milo. If he starts to cry I can see if his eyes are open or closed... if they're closed he'll likely fall asleep on his own. And since babies breathing changes while they sleep (which is distracting because every time it changes I think he's waking up) so this way I can turn the sound down, but still see him. It just gives me extra piece of mind when he's not by my side.

#3. Swing- You may remember Milo slept in his swing for the first five weeks of his life. And while he is no longer sleeping during the night in his swing, he still naps in it during the day. (He's actually napping right now.) Our friends let us borrow their swing which is what we used for those first weeks. Then on our trip Nathan's grandma bought us a swing of our own.

#4. Moby Wrap- But I think you already knew how I feel about the Moby!

#5. Exercise Ball- I used this things before conceiving and having Milo... but we have used the heck out of this things since he was born. It was great when he wanted to be held and moving... it allowed is to still sit down while keeping him moving. I still use it when he's in the swing and I have to hold the pacifier in his mouth for him while he falls asleep.

#6. Bamboo Cloth Wipes- I bought these with the intention of doing cloth wipes, but instead I have used them as wash cloths. They are soooo super soft... great for bath time or just wipe downs before bedtime. And I used them for myself when I had to wash my nipples before each feeding... they were nice and gentle on my 'wounds.' They haven't washed up as nicely as I would have liked... they're starting to fray... but I don't care... I still love them. And I may still end up using them as cloth wipes at some point. Disposable wipes are just easier at this point.

#7. BumGenius- Of course I have loved my cloth diapers.

#8. Lansinoh and Newman's Nipple Ointmet- The Lansinoh Lanolin was a must have, and when it got a bit more severe the Newman's was an absolute essential. I also found the Lansinoh brand nursing pads to be the best too. You'd be shocked at how much those things hold. I don't know how many times I've told Nathan to feel how heavy it was after a long night of leaking! I've never had to worry about leaking in public with those things.

I think that sums up the main things. I used some other things a lot too like the Boppy pillow, but in all honesty... a pillow works too. And I have so many other blankets that I also use a lot of (love the waffle material blankets, too.) And while Milo is still adjusting to his car seat and stroller... I'm super happy with my choice in those as well.

And one other thing I anticipate using a lot is Alice.com- Online grocery shopping. I don't think I'll be buying much food from alice.com, but things like paper towels, laundry detergent, soap, etc. I will be using this site a lot. The shipping is free (min. purchase of six items) and they display the price/unit on each item so you can make sure you are getting the best deal. I definitely recommend checking it out. And while we are still not sure whether or not we will be getting flu shots and Milo can't get a flu shot anyway until he is at least six months old... it will save many trips out in public during prime cold and flu season. While I was pregnant and did not get the flu shots... I tried to go to the store as little as often and would avoid the store during peak hours. This will definitely cut back on exposure to those germs from shopping trips. In fact, I am expecting my first order to arrive today.

And finally...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!

So last night I made a DELICIOUS dinner. Pan seared cod with some sauteed veggies over lightly buttered garlic noodles. In keeping in line with our diet, I only made two small portions of the noodles so that we wouldn't be tempted to eat more than a serving. And the veggies were just cooked up with a little but of olive oil. I found the seasoning at a small grocery store near our house called Jacks. It has all kinds of great ingredients like orange peel and peppermint. YUM! And I cooked the cod perfectly.

Changing gears slightly to Milo's food... I don't know if he wasn't eating much or if I was over producing, but I ended up with about 3-4 oz. of milk to freeze this morning! I'm starting to build a modest little stash of frozen milk which will be super handy if we need some in a pinch (like if Nathan is at home with Milo.)

2 Month Check Up

Today Milo had his 2 Month Checkup with his pediatrician. Here is the progress of his growth:

Birth June | 15 2010:
Weight 8lb. 9oz.
Length 20 in.
Head 13 1/2 in.

One Month | July 16 2010:
Weight 11 lb. 1 oz.
Length 22 1/4 in.
Head 14 1/2 in.

Two Month | August 17 2010:
Weight 13 lb. 9 oz.
Length 24 in.
Head 15 1/2 in.

Milo is in the 90th percentile for both length and weight... but that's no surprise to us. We know he's a big boy! Milo checked out just fine. He's perfectly healthy. He'll get his first vaccination in another month... so today was still a pretty easy appointment. Our pediatrician did say he should be sleeping about 20 hours in a 24 hour period. Nathan and I both laughed at that. This kid does NOT sleep 20 hours a day. Milo sleeps much more like 14-15 hours a day. But that seems to be enough for him. He sleeps when he needs to... and if he isn't tired... I can't make him sleep.

As far as the tongue tie issue, she didn't seem to think he was. But I'm still going to get a second opinion from a doctor who is the doctor if tongue tie is suspected. I don't think it is severe, but I really think it is the source of our breast feeding troubles. If this doctor confirms our pediatricians thoughts, then I'll accept it. There is a reason we are still having breast feeding issues (clamping) and I am going do my best to figure out why and how to fix it.

Aside from that... all is well with our baby boy. Although he is still being called a girl all the time. I swear I dress him in boys clothes and colors. We just tell ourselves its because he's just so pretty. :)

Thank you for your suggestions on the pacifiers. I have several different kinds... I'm waiting to see which one he takes to before I stock up. He really likes the NUK but can't keep it in. I don't think I have any of the Avent... I'll have to pick one up.

Last night Milo slept from 7:30pm-9:00am. Of course he woke up for feedings, but that was the length of his night time sleeping. He had been going down between 9-10, but he absolutely passed out at 7:30 in my arms. I held him thinking he would wake up in 20-30 minutes. He didn't. Finally at 9:00 I laid him in his bed... and he was out for the count. I didn't even have his night time diaper on or even his pjs. I did at least have a clean onsie on him. Tonight it took a bit more work to get him down. And by work I mean nursing. He had been going 2-3 hours between feedings, finally. But within the past 48 hours he's been back to every hour or hour and a half! This kid is wearing me out... so tonight he nursed on both sides three times over the course of probably an hour. Usually after I feed him on both sides he'll take his pacifier and fall asleep... not tonight. He wanted the real deal. I just hope he sleeps another 7 hours tonight so I can have a break from nursing. It wouldn't be so bad if he wasn't clamping and cutting off the circulation each time. But he is now resting peacefully.

I pulled out the first time, over protective mother hat today. We were at the Farmers Market, Milo in the Moby facing outwards. A lady stepped in front of me and started touching Milo... his face and his hands! I think I have been pretty good about not freaking out about people holding him (when its someone I know.) But this lady just stepped in front of me and started touching my baby. Now I know she was nice and maybe just not aware that not everyone wants a stranger putting their hands all over their baby. But I did NOT like that. I tried to separate us as quickly as possibly without coming off as a jerk. For the first time, I used my natural hand cleaner on Milo's hands when we got to the car.

Milo is getting close to rolling over on the floor from his back to his tummy. He just gets so mad and frustrated so quickly. The bed definitely made it easier the first time around. I also took the blankets that I had for padding out of his crib. He's just too close to rolling at this point. And his Moro reflex is really almost gone which is why I had the blankets in his crib in the first place.

Our diet is going well. We made it a week. And this morning I put on a pair of capri pants that I was not able to button a couple weeks ago. I imagine its a combination of the diet and my body still easing back to 'normal.'

Baby's awake.

13-7

We had a full day today. Milo and I went for a nice walk with our friends Marcia and James for about an hour and a half this morning. It was pretty muggy out and I ended up drenched with sweat. We started out in the stroller, made it about 15 min then Milo was done. So in the Moby he went... and he napped for probably an hour. After that our friends Kendra and Sadie came over. It was nice getting to talk with Kendra. Kendra has become a very good friend. We were pregnant together and our babies are just ten weeks apart in age. Its nice having another mom that is like minded to bounce ideas off of. I always enjoy the time we spend together. And I have a feeling Milo and Sadie are going to be good friends. After we ate a little bite, we went to new mom's group. Again, we had a nice time. Its another great place to bounce things around and hear what every else is doing with their babies... schedules, no schedules, teething, growth spurts, etc. And we always get to weigh our babes. Today Milo weighed 13 lb 7 oz. He's a growing boy for sure.

Milo slept last night from about 10-4:30! That's six and a half hours straight. I'll take it. :) Hopefully we'll get another nice stretch like that tonight. I just wish Milo would be able to keep his pacifier in. We literally have to hold it in for him. Sometimes if he gets it just right he can keep it in for maybe 15 or 20 seconds. I'm hoping if he is in fact tongue tied and they snip it... it'll help with his pacifier difficulties. He really loves it and it would be GREAT if he could keep it in. It would sure make car rides, nap time, and bed time much more pleasant for all of us. Today in the car I ended up with my arm reaching back over his car seat with my finger in his mouth to calm him down.

Hmm. Not much else is new. My days are truly heavenly... spending time staring at my baby's face... there's nothing else I'd rather be doing. Well... maybe staring at my baby's face, with my husband, while at the beach (when I say beach, I mean an North East beach... not a lake beach... sorry Michiganders, but your beaches just don't do it for us.) That would be nice.

Tongue Tie

We have been questioning whether or not Milo is tongue tied for a while now. (Tongue tie is when the tongue strap thing under the tongue goes to the end... it is also called anchored tongue.) Milo seemed to stick his tongue out, but we have never been able to get a good look under the tongue. So we just kind of said, its probably fine. Well we have recently started to noticed that when he does stick his tongue out there is a bit of a dent in the middle... kind of like a snake. Hmm. Maybe Milo is tongue tied. So I started to look into it a bit and I read something very interesting...

"When a tongue tie is causing problems with breastfeeding, the baby often does not open his mouth widely, thus not latching on to the breast at the correct angle. Instead he may latch onto the nipple, and ‘gum' or chew it, causing severe pain and eventually, nipple damage. There can be cracking, distortion, blanching or bleeding from the nipple, sometimes followed by infection or mastitis." -http://www.tonguetie.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=10&Itemid=10

While nursing has gotten better since my nipples are now almost healed from the original wounds, he is still clamping causing the blanching. My nipples still are white on the ends from the cut off of circulation and you can still see a crease from the clamping. And I do still get very sore when the circulation does return. That's why I was kind of fearful that he is teething. If he is doing that with his gums... what will happen when he gets teeth?!

Milo goes in for his 8 week appointment next week and I'm going to talk to our pediatrician about it. My understanding is there are different degrees of tongue tie. My guess is that if Milo is in fact tongue tied it is more just a bit too tight since he can stick his tongue out. The most common solution is to snip it. I know it sounds awful. But they say it is simple, causes very little pain, and very quickly solves the breastfeeding problems. I would hate for Milo to have to go through that. But if he is tongue tied and we don't I may not be able to continue breastfeeding when he gets teeth. In our book, the benefits of breastfeeding are more important and while the snipping may cause short term discomfort... he will be so much more greatly benefitted in the long run. But... that is all speculation right now. We'll see what our pediatrician has to say about it.

Rolly-Polly

Milo totally rolled over this morning from his tummy to his back. We were just hanging out in the bed and I rolled him over on his tummy. About 20 seconds later, he rolled onto his back. Now I realize being on a softer surface may have made it a bit easier, but I was still super proud!

So what!

Oh I remembered something else I wanted to mention. While talking to Dr. Shamma he asked me a few things, but one thing he said stuck in my head. He asked about my delivery. I told him I ended up with a c-section. I kind of said it with maybe a bit of disappointment, he immediately responded... so what! That's one of the the things I really liked about Dr. Shamma. He so simply puts things in perspective. I had to have a c-section. So what. I still ended up with a perfect, beautiful, healthy baby boy. Who cares how he got here. You hear and read so much about lethargic babies after drugs were used and how c section babies are this and that. Milo came out alert and healthy. He seemed to have no negative effects of a c section. I'm glad I labored naturally for as long as I did. It showed me that I could handle natural labor... it was empowering. And I know I did everything I could before going to a c section. But 'the books' have you so worried and concerned... but when it comes down to it if you end up with a healthy baby, so what.

IVF, Lung

This morning, Nathan, Milo, and I finally made it to see Dr. Shamma, our IVF doctor, in Saginaw. All of our nurses were so excited to meet Milo. They just gushed over how cute he was. Dr. Shamma was with a patient, but they said he'd love to meet him, so we sat down and waited a couple minutes. He came out just thrilled to see us. Nathan was holding Milo and he looked at Dr. Shamma and smiled. Dr. Shamma then asked if he could hold him. {Would you believe I forgot my camera?! I was so upset.} Milo kept looking up at him smiling; it was so sweet. Dr. Shamma said Milo recognized his voice and his face from behind the microscope. And he told Milo he saw him when he was just a tiny embryo. It was just SO sweet. Then out of no where, Milo squealed. Dr. Shamma practically threw up back into my arms. It was pretty funny.

Being back in that office was so special. Nathan and I really have fond memories of our IVF experience. We loved the morning drives down to Saginaw. It was just an experience that drew us closer to one another. We really needed each other for support during that time. Going back with Milo brought us full circle. And seeing Dr. Shamma's reaction to Milo was also very special. Dr. Shamma is not just a doctor or scientist. Today proved that he is a man that truly cares about the work he does.

_

As I have done with our cat, Milo has had quite a few nicknames in his eight weeks of life. See what I do is start with one nickname, then that nickname gets a nickname, then so on and so forth. Here's the progression of Milo's nicknames: Boo Boo to Boobers to Boo Boo Bear to Boo Bear to Bear to Boo-Beary (like Blueberry.) I don't know how or why... but its just what happens.

-

I have come to a Mommy conclusion... I think Milo may be a sensitive kid. I'm trying to figure out the irritability issues we've been having. Obviously I can't know for sure whether he is teething or have some other discomfort. But I've noticed that he'll just kind of squeal out of no where and for no apparent reason. Is he just feeling the discomfort at that moment? Why does it come and go in such short spurts? My conclusion is that I think his squeals may be an over reaction when he's tired. Nathan is sensitive and I get cranky when I'm tired... so I think he may be demonstrating a combination of those to traits. The squeals definitely sound to me like discomfort and pain squeals, so I think there may be something causing it... but it seems to be escalated when he's tired. And I guess that makes perfect sense. I guess that wasn't a very profound thing... he just seems to be a big dramatic about it at times.

-

Nathan and I are officially on a diet together. This may be the first time we have actually dieted together since high school. We have completely enabled each other in the past. So we are finally getting together to support each other towards a healthier lifestyle. We are not too terribly self-disciplined... I think that is one of our biggest problems. I just don't want Milo to ever know us as anything but healthy. I want him to grow up to be healthy with healthy habits. But I know we cannot expect that for him if we, ourselves, do not show him. Wish us luck!

-

I was supposed to have my appointment with the specialist about the nodule on my lung this week. Nathan, Milo, and I showed up at my scheduled appointment time only to be told my appointment was a few hours earlier. I had the paper work from the office that showed my appointment time. Apparently they changed my appointment time but never called to tell me. I wasn't thrilled. The next appointment time was in a month which we scheduled. But they said that they'd go ahead and review the two CT scans, pulmonary function test, and other information about me. If they felt like there was a reason to see me sooner, they'd call and let me know. Well today they called and said they'd like me to come in next week on Thursday. Hmm. While I wasn't looking forward to waiting a month... I wasn't real excited to hear they felt there was a need for me to come in sooner.

I did some reading today about lung cancer. Let me first say, I'm not worried yet. There is no sense in worrying until I have something concrete to worry about. And I highly doubt I have lung cancer. Lung cancer as the primary cancer takes a long time to develop and usually takes some kind of environmental factor. From what I understand, the likelihood of me having lung cancer is almost nonexistent. However. I did read that lung cancer can develop as a secondary cancer. There could be cancer elsewhere that essentially spread to the lung. That is my only concern at this point. Nathan got mad at me for reading about this, but its just the way I process that kind of stuff.

Now we'll most likely go to the appointment, have another test or something, and they'll say, 'oh you're fine, but its better to be safe than sorry.' And we agree. We want to pursue this to make sure and not wait five or ten years down the road to discover something serious that could have been treated or prevented. But in the meantime... please just say a prayer that we get the 'its better to be safe than sorry' line next Thursday.

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The last thing I want to blog about today is kind of getting back to IVF. I always thought I wanted to have four or five kids. Ha. Funny, right?! I think in my mind I thought the more kids I'd have the more of a mom I'd be. But after having Milo... we are completely at a loss. Do we want any more kids? IF we do want another one or two should we have them close together or wait a few years in between. I know its probably too early to decide that. And I LOVE being a mom. It is truly more amazing and wonderful than I imagined. So its not like I don't want anymore because its too hard or stressful or anything like that. We just feel so happy and complete with Milo. The thought of having a little family is kind of nice. And having to do IVF means we have to make a clear decision. We can't just say let's just let three months go by and "see what happens." I loved being pregnant and I love this little baby stage. And I know I would always miss that. I never thought I'd consider just having one... I don't know. Like I said, I know we have lots and lots of time to think about that and decide. We are young, and my eggs will stay 24 years old. But... its just something that I've been thinking a good bit about lately. I don't know.


Look at that... I blogged about all that I wanted to blog about and the baby boy is still sleeping! Laundry... here I come!

Here are some pictures from our recent road trip to WV and KY. This is just the first batch... there are more to come.


Milo and his Great Grandma Balasko, Daddy, Grandpap, and Grandma Morgan.

Milo and his Uncle Adam.

Milo meeting the WVU Mountaineer at Coopers Rock.



Milo and his 'honorary' Aunt Caroline.

Nathan made a comment about how surprised he was that I've been so open about the co sleeping since I previously was not a fan. But that is life. That is how you grow. You experience life and sometimes find that you change your mind about things. This is one of those times. The past seven weeks with Milo have made me change my thoughts on a lot of things. Yes, I did change my mind about the co sleeping, and I'm not afraid to admit it. I'm just glad we found a good, safe way to do it.

I'm now starting to think Milo may be teething. That's not to say his first tooth will show up immediately but I definitely think things are starting to move around in his sweet little mouth. He's hasn't been sleeping terribly great and he has been pretty irritable today. He even fussed in the Moby today at the mall... that has NEVER happened. And he has been gnawing on his hand like crazy. I know some drooling and chewing on the hands is normal, but Milo is definitely not himself. He wasn't even happy being naked on the changing table which is a sure sign something is bothering him. And it even seems to be different then when he has had tummy troubles in the past. I don't know if it is gas, teething, or a growth spurt, but all I know is I hope it is not teething. I told my mom that my nipples are finally starting to heal... I'm not ready to deal with Milo nursing with teeth since he's still clamping! Ouch. I'll definitely be mentioning this at Milo's next appointment on the 17th.

Yesterday we went to our friend (one of the photographers at the paper) Thomas' place for brats. We had a nice time and I think the guys enjoyed seeing Milo (Thomas enjoyed making Milo dance to James Brown.) It ended up being a beautiful, cool evening. So this morning we turned off the air and opened the windows. It was great to have some fresh air. It did get warm in the house this afternoon, but now it is just so pleasant. I'm thinking we may try keeping the windows open tonight. If it does get too cool... I'll just have Nathan get up and close them.

Baby's awake... that's all for now.

Bedroom

Here is a picture of our current bedroom setup. We are very happy with it and it works for us. I knew I liked some of the concepts of "Attachment Parenting," but now that Milo is here... I'm starting to find we are very much "attached" parents.

***And as previously stated... I assure you it is safe. Any gaps have been filled... so it is just as safe as if he were sleeping in the crib normally. Oh and yes I do have a couple blankets down on his bed to make it softer. If I don't the poor kid is throwing his arms up (Moro/startle reflex) every twenty seconds. The Moro reflex is starting to go away, and once it does, then I'll take the extra blankets out. But for now its necessary.

With Milo pushing eight weeks... here is a general update on things.

I weighed him at our new mom's group and he weighed about 13lbs. That's about a 2 lb. weight gain since his four week appointment. So he's definitely a growing boy.

Nursing has finally started to get better. Milo is still doing the clamping and I'm still sore at times, but its all just very mild. My wounds from the first week are really looking great. I definitely feel like we have things under control. I'm glad I had such a great support system to encourage me and give me the resources I needed.

We also finally found a sleeping arrangement that works for us. I mentioned how on our trip, I became a fan of co sleeping. Well... our bed is still small and my husband is still a sound sleeper. There was truly no way to keep both of my boys in bed. My friend Kendra made a great suggestion. We ended doing a side car kind of a thing with the crib. Our crib is convertible so you can take one side off so its almost like a day bed. So we did that and then pushed our bed up to the edge of the crib. And don't worry, we made sure the gap between the two mattresses was filled so there is no possible way he can fall through or get stuck. We tried the new sleeping arrangement for the first time last night and loved it. I don't love the side lying nursing position, so I still picked him up and sat up to nurse him, but he went right back to sleep. I really just love having him safely within an arm's reach, but still getting used to sleeping in his crib.

We are still loving our Moby... went grocery shopping with it today. Of course Milo is used to his car seat and is starting to do much better in his stroller. We are also enjoying his new swing.

I guess that's about it for now.

Seven States and 1500 Miles

Our journey across the country has come to an end. Well... maybe it wasn't a journey across the country but it was a journey that took us over 1500 miles covering seven states; Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Indiana. Seven states before Milo was seven weeks... not too bad. Milo definitely did way better than I could have hoped for.

He has had several firsts on this trip... first church service, first hotel stay, first babysitter, and he met tons of people... including a great grandma, uncles, aunts, cousins, friends, old neighbors, etc. We wrote down in our calendar what we did each day, so we can be sure to get it all down in his baby book/first year calendar.

Over the course of this trip, I feel like we definitely learned a lot about Milo. He is definitely laid back and flexible. I'd also say he is very social. He was having some tummy discomfort during our cook out with friends in BG, but most other days he was very happy no matter what we were doing. I think almost every night he had a different sleeping situation. That was totally my fault, but he seemed to do well.

My favorite sleeping arrangement was co-sleeping. I have never been a co-sleeping fan. I always said, if it works for you, great. But I never had any interest in trying it. My biggest concern was safety, followed by having a physical barrier between mom and dad. However, after co-sleeping a couple nights in BG... I totally became a fan. I loved being snuggled in next time him all night. Nursing was super easy... and he seemed to sleep pretty well. I know co-sleeping has been and is still being done in many cultures across the world. It definitely makes sense. Now that we are back home, I'm going to try very hard to resist the urge to bring him to bed... or at least wait until after 5 am to bring him to bed with me. I want him to be an independent sleeper. So we'll see what tonight holds. But I definitely understand why people co-sleep.

I have been saying for a while how people always think Milo is older than he is. And this trip continued to bring on those comments. People would ask how old, expecting me to say something closer to three months and would be surprised when I'd say 6 weeks. I don't know if its the hair, or the fact that I actually carry him in my arms and not just in the carrier. But he is definitely a big, strong boy for his age. In fact, at my parents church we met a couple with a little boy who was just a few days younger than Milo, and he seemed like such a feeble little infant, cute but not near as alert as Milo. And he was called a girl about four or so times while on our trip. The only thing we can figure is he is just so pretty! LOL! Maybe its the hair. Or maybe its the way we dress him. I don't know, but it certainly doesn't bother us.

The last thing I'll cover in this post is what I learned about packing. Don't pack so much! I think I did pretty good for a first timer taking a six week old on such a big road trip. But maybe next time, I'll leave the Boppys at home instead of taking three! I definitely won't take the swing or the changing pad. Nathan's grandma actually bought us the swing after I had a bit of a freak out one evening about where he'd sleep. But its great because we needed our own for home anyway since we were just borrowing the swing from our friends. I wouldn't take the infant seat because there was usually someone around anxious to hold him. I also had a 'secondary' diaper bag for things I may not need, but may want to have just in case. I didn't end up touching that bag once. And even my hand pump didn't get used. I hand expressed twice to leave a bottle for Milo when I left him with Nathan, then with my parents. But as I said, it was a learning experience. I'm just glad we didn't try to take the cat! Oh and I did a perfect job guessing how many diapers to take since we were doing disposable for the trip. We came home with only three diapers to spare! {I'm definitely glad to have his little hiney back in the cloth diapers.}

We sure had a great trip and were happy to introduce Milo to his family. But I'm glad to be home to get back to normal. We just wish our normal was closer to our family.