More Pictures of Alyssa

Alyssa has been home for about a week now and fits into the family perfectly. The kids can't get enough of her.









William was getting jealous of all the pictures we were taking of Alyssa so he finally asked to have one taken. My photogenic little guy!

May Pictures of Alyssa

The First Month of My 365 Project

 

Alyssa Marilyn

Home from the Hospital

I seemed like we had just arrived to have Alyssa and they were letting us go home. The kids were so excited to see her come home. The very first thing they wanted to do was hold her. We had her in the car seat so she could sleep and this wasn't quite good enough for William. He wanted us to put her in the swing, put her in her bassinet, pick her up. I think it was a little boring for him to just watch her laying there doing nothing. Luckily, a few days have passed and he has gotten more used to her inactivity.

My Hospital Stay

It took three births but I finally got to stay in a somewhat decent room at the hospital. My previous visits were always in the smallest rooms. I would hear the nurse say over the phone in the recovery room, "You don't have a bigger room?" Especially, since I was going to have to stay so long following my c-sections.

It was so nice to have a little extra room. Of course as fate would have it, this was also our shortest stay at the hospital yet. :)

Alyssa's Birthday

May 22nd has finally arrived! I was feeling very nervous about my c-section even though I have had two previous experiences. It was 8am and I was sitting on the couch playing with Briana and William when my husband asked if I was ready to go. I actually hesitated for a moment because I knew all of the things I had ahead of me. I wanted to meet Alyssa and bring her home, everything else however, made me so nervous and a little scared.

When we arrived at the hospital we were given a number and asked to wait for the registration office. This was new for us. For Briana we entered through the emergency room because it was after hours for the hospital and for William we walked right in because it was so early. So we waited in the front area of the hospital and it felt more like a doctor's appointment than a preparation for surgery. By the time we were finished with the paperwork, the nursing staff had grown anxious for my arrival. They were concerned about having me ready in time for the surgery. So I had three nurses working on me at the same time which was actually a little overwhelming but at the same time I didn't have to wait around with nothing better to do but worry about my surgery. By the time they rolled me down to the OR, all I could do was panic about that darn epidural. In my head, it had grown to be this massive procedure that I was certain to flinch during and paralyze myself for life. I was so relieved to find that I had the same exact anesthesiologist I had for William's surgery. He was so calm and easy going that you feel as if you are strolling through the park with him instead of having a complex procedure done. At one point I had grown concerned because I was shivering so much. The nurse brought me down to the OR early and the room was freezing. All he said, was no problem I can work with that. In my opinion he is the best anthesialogist in the world!!

Once I had the epidural and was all set for the surgery, I could finally focus on the fact that Alyssa would be here shortly. Just like William she came out crying. The doctor came around to the side of the table so that I could see my beautiful girl for the first time. She was then taken to the counter to get cleaned and never stopped crying the whole time. Even the doctors commented about her strong lungs. She was again brought over to me only this time my husband was able to hold her. I was able to get a closer look at her cute little face. This only lasted for a few minutes and just like my previous experiences, Alyssa was wheeled out of the room along with daddy and half the operating staff leaving me with a few people to close me up and eventually take me to the recovery room.

A few minutes later a nurse actually called the OR and let me know that Alyssa weighed 7lbs and was 18 inches. I had to ask the nurse to make sure she actually said 7 lbs. Alyssa was my smallest baby and to me she felt as heavy as the other two. Briana was 8 lbs and William was 8 lbs 3.5 ounces.

I was finally rolled into the recovery room and was getting anxious to get to my room and see my family and my baby. However, I ended up spending 2 1/2 hours in the recovery room because my temperature was 93 degrees and they wouldn't let me go to my room until I reached a reasonable temperature. It was hard to just lie there under the warming blankets knowing my baby was out and ready to hold. I still had not held her at this point.

I was so excited when my temperature finally reached 96.9 degrees because I was finally taken to my room. Alyssa was brought in instantly and I finally got to hold my little girl for the first time. Of course it was love at first sight, she is so adorable. Our nights at the hospital were not too bad and we both managed to get enough sleep. Alan loved the nursing staff this time around because he was offered coffee and water. We actually had a nurse get real snippy with him about the fold away bed during William's birth. So, this experience was far better for him. For me, it seemed that they were pushing me out the door from the time I entered my room until I finally did leave Saturday afternoon. They actually wanted to give me solid food that night for dinner, only six hours after my surgery. Since the ice chips were making me nauseous they decided to do the liquid tray instead. The next morning they had me get out of bed, then they offered more solid foods, every step just seemed so rushed to me especially compared to my previous visits. On Saturday, they asked if I was ready to go home and I ended up saying yes because I did want to sleep in my own bed and the kids were ready to have Alyssa home. I would say, looking back, it was a day too early because I was still so sore. I could barely walk and even though I was sleeping in my own bed I was too sore to enjoy it.

Each day since, I have felt better and Alyssa is starting to adjust to her surroundings. Although, she seems to sleep more calmly during the day even with kids yelling and dogs barking than she does at night. Overall, she is a good baby and we are starting to get into a livable routine.

Red Lobster

Our life has just been hectic lately that we just recently ended up at the Red Lobster for a Mother's Day dinner. Originally to be eaten kid-free but it was just easier for us to take them. So, we ended our meal and Briana asked to go see the lobsters again before we left. So, while Alan finished settling the check, I walked Briana over to the lobster tank. It was fairly slow in the restaurant at this point so, the host gets one of the lobsters out for Briana to touch. By now, William is walking around the corner with daddy. He is not expecting a lobster to be out of the tank. He takes one look and takes off screaming toward daddy. But then he gets a second thought or gets more brave all of a sudden and comes back around the corner. He starts to yell at the man with the lobster. "Put him back! Put him back, right now!" At this point Briana has already touched the lobster and William was not going to touch the thing at all so, the employee decides to put the lobster back in the tank. Now that William knows they can get out, he makes sure to keep a good distance between himself and the tank. And of course on the car ride home he couldn't stop talking about the man with the lobster and how he told the man to "put him back!"

Our Children's Names

It took us so long to finally decide on Alyssa's name but now that we have, I really like it. I spent a little time looking up name meanings and so I just wanted to write it down for future reference. Especially, since I will be getting rid of all my baby name books! :)

Briana - (Celtic) Strong
William - (German) Constant Protector
Alyssa - (Hebrew) Happiness

Briana can not wait . . .

for her baby sister to be born. For the last few months we have been so busy on the weekends. Camping, Disneyland, San Diego Zoo, Visiting family among other things. Lately, we have slowed down or should I say that I have slowed way down and begged my husband to do the same. So a few Sundays ago I asked Briana what she wanted to do that day. Her reply, "Mom, I really want to go to the hospital and get baby sister." I told Briana that baby sister wasn't ready to come out yet. Her reply, "But I really want her to come out now!" So we decided to make some rings out of construction paper in order to count down to Alyssa's arrival. I let Briana choose the colors for the rings and help me put it together. Everyday, we remove one ring and count to see how many are left. I don't know if it has made her more patient but it has been a fun project for the two of us!! I hope her excitement about the new baby remains after we bring the baby home . . . .

The Month of May

To sum up the month so far . . . . getting ready for baby. At least we now have a name, Alyssa Marilyn. We had the most difficult time agreeing on something we both liked. As of right now I have about 10 days until my scheduled C-section and everyday leading up to her birth is filled with some sort of activity or errand that needs to be completed. Having done this twice before, I know life gets crazy after bringing home a new baby. My big plan for the first two weeks that I'm home is to care for Alyssa and nap . . . that's it!! No cooking, cleaning or chasing after Briana and William. Daddy is going to have to step up and he has already agreed to take the time off from work. :)

I will be recovering from my third c-section. This is not something I am really looking forward to, but at this point I can not have a baby any other way. I'm hoping for a speedy recovery because once my husband returns to work it will be me running after three small children. So, I think I'll need all the energy I can get. At this point I am finished with being pregnant. I want to get to the hospital so that I can meet my new little girl and start the recovery process. I'm hoping that the adjustment from 2 to 3 will be relatively painless . . . . that remains to be seen.

Maternity Pics

Well, it took me three pregnancies to finally get some maternity picture taken. This is definitely my last pregnancy. So, I figured I had better get some done no matter how nervous I felt. I don't like getting photos done of myself....ever for any reason. However, one day I'm going to want to look back and see how big I was. :) I had these pictures taken about two and a half weeks before my due date so it will give me a good idea of my final size just before Alyssa was born.