Bringing Home Baby

I could not wait to get out of the hospital! Besides the fact that someone (you know who you are!) accidentally pulled out my epidural on the 2nd day but no one realized it until they went to take it out and I therefore went 3 days without pain medication, it wasn't horrible, but I just wanted to be home. I was so excited to just be in my house and be a family. I was so excited to put her in the same dress that I came home from the hospital in. It was a perfect fit an she looked beautiful.

I on the other hand was having a little bit of a wardrobe malfunction. I planned on wearing home the same dress I entered the hospital wearing. I guess I forgot what happens when your milk comes in. Let's just say I should have changed my name to Pamela or Dolly on the spot. One of the nurses actually asked me if I had a breast augmentation. Apparently they were so large she could not fathom any other reason they would be that size! (32 G people...yes, that's what I said) The pain...oh the pain! Well, despite having to wear a sweater in the Houston heat just to shield any innocent by-standers from my ridiculously large bust, it was pretty uneventful.

We got home and for the most part made it all about Mac. He was not too thrilled to have a little sister based on his reaction to her in the hosptial so we wanted him to feel like he was still the star of the show.



We quickly learned that Mac truly had no interest in having a little sister around. He didn't want to hug her, kiss her, or even look at her. Fortunantly, as the weeks have passed, he has slowly come around. I'll admit, we jump started the process by bribing him with candy if he would just come near her, but it worked! Now he is so sweet to her. He loves to kiss her head and her feet. He gets diapers when it's time to change her and he always says "Mac help?" whenever we give her a bottle. Anytime she cries he will walk over to her with a very concerned face and say "Eggie, it's okay." He immediatly starts to look for her pacifier and will bring it to me so I can give it to her. He also likes to give her fist bumps and high fives...such a guy. But my favorite thing of all, is watching as he has become protective of his little sister. The first day I picked Mac up from school on my own after Ellie's birth, a few of the kids in his class were interested to see her. One of the teachers picked up his friend Freeman to catch a glimpse and Mac immediatly ran over to the stroller and yelled "No Freeman! My Eggie!" One of my sweet friends offered to watch Ellie once a week so that I can take Mac to the pool. When I dropped her off the other night Mac burst into tears and kept saying "Eggie come swim? Eggie go to pool?" But my favorite moment so far was today when I had to take her to the doctor (reflux is an ugly little monster). While we were in the waiting room he went up to everyone there and told them "That my Eggie." I honestly wish I could just stop time. Mac is at an age that I just adore. He makes up and sings little songs (even though I usually don't know what he's saying). He tells me how much he loves me, Daddy, Eggie, Heisman...oh, and Tow Mater. We can't forget Tow Mater! He wants to sit in my lap and read books which I love, and he is constantly making me laugh. Listening to him talk and sing is just so sweet and innocent. I wish it never had to change.
So, all in all, I think we've had a pretty smooth transition so far. I had forgotten how tiring a newborn can be, but I know it won't be long before I look back and realize that my baby is a toddler so I'm trying to soak up every moment while I can.
Here are a few pictures from Ellie's newborn shoot:

Introducing Miss Ellie Grace...Part 1

On July 1 at 10:01 A.M. we welcomed Ellie Grace Bethea into our family! She weighed 6lbs 10 oz, was 20.5 inches and is perfect as can be. Before the details become fuzzy, I want to get her birth story down in writing.

Eric and I got ready and headed to the hospital around 7:45 am. The nurses got us back to the preop room and we started getting ready to meet our baby girl.



My sweet friend (aka Aunt Ashley) joined us while we were filling out all the paper work and answering last minute questions. It was so nice to have her back there. It really took away some of the anxiety of all that was about to happen. The surgery was not scheduled until 10 A.M. so I was extremly surprised when my doctor came into the room around 9:20 A.M. and said he was ready to get started as soon as the OR was cleaned up from the last procedure. Around 9:30 A.M. I found myself walking down to the OR. I just assumed that everything would go just as it had the last time, but everything was different. First of all, not all epidurals are the same! With Mac, they stuck me once and I immediately felt numbness in my feet and it quickly worked its way up my body. This time I found myself in the typical position, hunched over and leaning on a nurse, as the anesthesiologist began. Suddenly, my right leg shot out in the air and it felt as though someone had just stabbed me in the thigh so the doctor had to adjust the positioning of the epidural. Once that was taken care of they had me lie back on the table and I really didn't feel anything. There were about 8 or 9 people in the room at that point and I suddenly became very aware that my gown had been pulled up over my stomach and I was out there for all the world to see. Honestly, it didn't really bother me all that much, but I still don't understand why they wouldn't put up a surgical drape before beginning all the prep work! I spent the next 10 minutes or so chit chatting with my doctor and wondering why I had not felt the epidural take effect. Apparently it had already worked; at least partially. A nurse started to prick my stomach with a needle to make sure I could not feel anything and my right side had not been affected by the medication. She told me not to worry; that they wouldn't start until it had taken affect. I nerviously giggled and said that I would definantly appreciate it if they could wait until it worked! After about 15 minutes of waiting, the surgical drape went up and the epidural had kicked in. Unfortunantly so had the nausea. Another side effect I had not experienced with Mac. Fortunately, that feeling was short lived and before I knew it, Eric was standing by my side. The next few minutes seemed to fly by. Instead of feeling extreme pressure on my lower stomach, I started to feel as though someone had their hands in my rib cage. It was a very strange sensation. There was minimal pressure, just a feeling that my rib cage might explode at any given moment. Suddenly I heard the doctor telling Eric to get the camera ready and there she was. Bloody, dirty, and the most beautiful little girl I had ever seen.

I didn't know what to expect in terms of my emotions. When Mac was born I expected to bawl my eyes out, but I didn't. I just laid there and looked at him. This time I couldn't control the tears. Eric had already gone over to the warmer to be with Ellie and I just laid there with tears rolling down my face. Happy tears of course. I started to get a little concerned because after a few minutes I kept hearing the nurse saying "You need to get pink." Her lungs were obviously working because I could hear her crying, but it still made me a little uncomfortable. I tried to ask Eric is she was alright, but I felt like there was a heavy weight sitting on my chest and I could barely get out anything more than a whisper. From start to finish, the whole procedure took about 20 minutes. Once they had finished, the nurse brought my sweet girl over and laid her on my chest. And yes, I'm sure I will look back at those pictuers one day and realize that she was just as swollen and puffy as every other newborn, but to me, she was gorgeous.

After a few minutes, Eric and the nurse left to take her to the waiting room to meet our families as I was wheeled to the recovery room. I was so excited that policies at the hospital had changed because instead of Ellie spending 3-4 hours in the nursery, she would be able to join me in the recovery room. I was determined to successfully breastfeed this time and I felt it was very important to try and have her eat as soon as possible after delivery. Eric quickly came and joined me in the room and Ellie was supposed to be folling him shortly. After a few minutes I could see a baby in an incuabator right outside of my curtain. And much to my dismay I heard the nurse with her say "her parents are in curtain 3." They brought her right next to my bed and let me stick my hand in the incubator to touch her as they explained that she seemed to be having some labored breathing, most likely because she still had a little fluid in her lungs. I was crushed because now instead of spending what I felt like was important bonding time with my daughter and husband, she would be monitored in NICU for a minimum of 6 hours. I have to say, I held it together pretty well though. Eric went with Ellie to the NICU and I found myself alone. That's when the tears came. I called my sister to tell her what had happened and I'm not sure if she could even understand all the words that were coming out of my mouth at that point. I was never really worried about Ellie because I knew that this was a possible complication from a c-section, but I was so disappointed and frustrated. When my nurse came back to check on me I really got upset because I was told that I was not allowed to go and see her for at least 6 hours! So basically, unless she had to have an extended stay in NICU, it would be at least 5 PM before I could be able to see my baby.
I don't even know how long I was in recovery, but it seemed like a very short amount of time before I was taken to my room. That's when time stood still. It seemed as though I was nevery going to get to see her. Sitting in a hosptial bed knowing that she was just a wheel chair ride away was horrible. By the time 5 PM rolled around I could not wait to get on the phone ot find out where she was. We called the NICU nursery and they told us she was being transferred to the regular nursery to be checked in and that she would be in our room by 5:30 PM. That time came and went so I asked my nurse to call and see if she could get more information. To make a long story short, 3 nurseries were called and not one of them knew where Ellie was. I am sure that we just happened to call as she was in route to the regular nursery, but to hear that they can't find your child is not a good feeling. Finally, at 7 PM Ellie was brough to our room! I could not wait to finally hold her! A beautiful head of black hair, chubby cheeks, and oh how I love that double chin!






And much to my delight she is a pro at eating. I had such a difficult time with Mac, but she immediately latched on and has been eating like a little pig ever since.
So her first day on earth started out a little rocky (at least for me), but all in all I ended up with a beautiful, healthy little girl in my arms so I guess it really was a perfect day.

More to come...

And Baby Makes 4!

I can't believe the time has come! Tomorrow we will be welcoming our baby girl! My pregnancy with Mac was relatively uneventful and without complications, but seemed to drag on at the end. We have truly been blessed again to have such a healthy pregnancy with Ellie as well. While the ride here has been much more uncomfortable,it has flown by in what seems like the blink of an eye. And honestly, I really should not complain. Basically, instead of having 9 months of complete joy and pain free bliss like we did with Mac, I got to experience the normal aches and pains that almost every other pregnant woman faces. Even though I am writing this with a grimmace on my face thanks to the heartburn and leg cramps that have me awake at 2 am, I really have no room to complain. I have had so many friends who have spent a good portion of their pregnancies stuck in a bed, thankful for each and every extra day that their little one remains inside of their bodies to grow. I will gladly take the sleepless nights and rib poking I have grown accustomed to. And lets be honest, we are all so excited to be done with a pregnancy, only to quickly realize that we miss the comforting feeling of our baby moving around and of course playing the game "Guess Which Body This Is." I know I've complained this time around, but I just want everyone to know that I am beyond grateful to get to experience this not once, but twice.
As the clock is literally winding down, I have such a mix of emotions running through my mind. Honestly, up until today, my biggest stressor was getting the house ready, having bags packed, and just having "stuff" done. Now that it's all taken care of (with about 32 hours to spare), I have shifted my full and complete attention to Mac. Don't get me wrong, I have spent many many hours thinking about how all this is going to affect him, but now it's all I'm thinking about. Obviously, lots of people have 2 or more kids, but it's a first for me. This past week I have seen a change in Mac's temperment. He obviously senses that something is happening. We talk to him about Ellie all the time and he is VERY excited that the time is approaching for him to receive his Big Brother train, but it's just going to be very different for him once she is actually here. All of this makes me a little sad. I love getting to spend each and every day with my sweet little guy and now there's just not going to be as much time to devote soley to him. Breastfeeding was not a success for me the last time and I am really hoping to be able to master it this time around which is just another huge block of time that will be taken away from time I could have with Mac. Mommy guilt has already begun to rear it's ugly headA little bit of guilt is already starting to set in and she's not even here yet! I know it will all work out and Mac will adapt to our new family dynamic, but in the mean time it may be a little bumpy. My goal through all of this, even though we will ahve people staying at the house for a few weeks, is to keep everything as normal as possible for him.

Now That's A Foot Rub!

The Short Story:

While getting a pedicure, the lady next to me seemed to be having a very erotic experience.

Got your interest?

So today I decided I would use my gift certificate at Trellis (the spa at the Houstonian) to get a pedicure and a massage. Now obviously, when you go to a spa at the Houstonian during the middle of the day you can pretty much expect to be the poorest person in the room (especially if you're paying with a gift card!). For my pedicure I was seated between 2 ladies in their mid fifties who apparently have standing weekly appointments to get their feet looking good. They started asking me about Ellie and giving me little bits of what I would call not so practical advice. For example, one of the women told me that I absolutely must hire professional help when Ellie comes because having 2 children without it is simply impossible. And that I shouldn't worry about my new FULL TIME employee being in the way because she would simply live in our guest house. The conversation went on from there and apparently not only will Mac and Ellie be attending Kinkaid, but once they turn 5 we should really consider taking at least 2 trips each year to Europe. I politely smiled and said that sounded like a fabulous idea. Of course, I forgot to ask them for their personal checks to put into our bank account before I left. I found the whole thing to be quite comical. Just to clarify, these women were not being snotty or rude at all...I honestly think they were just so wealthy that they could not even fathom someone not living that lifestyle. Again, I was rather amused by the whole thing. As our pedicures were coming to an end, the woman to my right (who at one point told me I was obviously "well bred" and came from "good stock") started my favorite portion of a pedicure. The foot rub. Apparently she likes that part too. At first I thought the woman was in pain. She began moaning and almost clawing at her chest. I swear for a second I thought she was having a heart attack! Next thing I know, her hips are thrust upward and she is writhing in the sat all the while making sounds that I will not even begin to describe. A few of my favorite phrases I took away with me were "Oh yes. Dear God yes," "Don't stop! Don't stop," and of course "That's it. That's the spot right there!" I immediately thought about the scene from "When Harry Met Sally." It took everything in my not to burst out into an absolute fit of laughter. I honestly could not believe this was happening 6 inches away from me! Apparently the women who work there are completely used to this because they didn't even look up from their work to see what was happening. To say the very least, it is an experience that I will not forget anytime soon. Actually, I will probably think about this woman every time I have a pedicure. As the public display of foot rubbing approval came to an end, the lady painting my toe nails put my ability to hold back my laughter to the test. She looked at me with a very serious face and said "I can't rub your feet like that because you're pregnant." I just smiled and said "I know." What I wanted to say was "I don't think anyone other than my husband should be rubbing my feet like that!!!!"
I will end this by saying:

To my uber wealthy, pedicure loving friend...thank you for possibly giving me one of the funniest, random, and all together memorable moments of my life! You will not be forgotten!

Mr. Chatty

Mac has turned into quite the chatter box lately. My favorite way to end the day is to lay in bed with him and ask "What did you do today Mac." And from that question I get the following 15-20 minute response: "I sa ma da e oh kick da wa se ba Elmo. Sky. Sky. Sky!!!! No da eeech oh see da ba mach ou oh bird. Tweet, tweet, tweet, tweet!," etc, etc, etc. The entire time he has the most serious look on his face as he describes in great detail the events of his day. Car trips have become pretty funny too. He LOVES trucks (although he pronounces them with an "f" instead of a "tr" sometimes). Driving down the freeway consists of Mac finding a truck (he particularly loves the 18 wheelers) and saying "Hi my big (red, blue, yellow or whatever color it happens to be) truck." He waves his little arm as fast as he can and his face lights up. Then after 3 seconds of pure joy you hear "Bye my big (insert color here) truck!" Then sadness takes over and I have to promise him we will find another truck very soon. He has started to say "My" in front a lot of his statements too. Whenever we see a red car he gets so excited and says "My Daddy car!" And when Eric leaves the house Mac waves and says "Bye my Daddy." It's very sweet. But I think my favorite is when we are out in the backyard. Thanks to one of his Elmo videos, Mac is very aware of and excited about anything in the sky. He loves to show you the sun, the moon, the birds, and most of all the planes! I swear he can hear one a good 30 seconds before anyone else. We'll be playing and he will drop everything, look up and yell "Plane!" I never see one but I have quit telling him there is no plane because within a few seconds one magically appears. Then Mac raises both hands in the air and says "Hi" and waves to the plane until it is gone from sight.
One thing we really need to work on though is him saying "Go away!" Oddly enough, he picked that one up from watching Oscar the Grouch on Sesame Street. It started out being really funny. Mac would have a snack and you would ask for a bite. He would laugh and say "Go away." Well now he thinks it's hilarious to tell people to go away and he won't stop. He even says it when he's mad and actually wants to you go away. The problem is, it's so funny to hear his little high pitched voice give you a command that it's hard not to laugh at him.
In Ellie news, I will officially be 6 months on Sunday. I had my dr.'s appointment yesterday and everything is looking good. She is a lot more active than I remember Mac being and other than a few annoying pregnancy complaints we're moving along pretty smoothly. I bought a Joovy Caboose sit and stand stroller and decided to let Mac try it out. It took about 5 minutes for him to get the hang of it and we spent the next hour giving him rides around the house. We finally had to fold it up and put it away because Mac wouldn't leave it alone. I guess I made the right choice!




And I will go ahead and use this time to clarify...some people have asked if she will go by Ellie or Ellie Grace. It's Ellie...NOT Ellie Grace. I love Grace as a middle name, but it sounds a little bit too country to use them both. So, just to get it out there, her name is just Ellie =).
Here are a few pictures of Mac from St. Patty's Day. He got to enjoy a fun day with his BB, Uncle Kevo and cousin Sheldon! And yes, that is a beer mug St. Patty's Day necklace my 2 year old is wearing. He insisted on having his new favorite accessory for the day. Hopefully we can leave it behind for church on Sunday!

Where To Begin??

I can't believe I'm saying this, but I will be 6 months pregnant in one week! How did that happen already??? I feel like I should be doing something to get ready for this, but I don't even know where to start. There are so many things that have to happen for me to even really get started. First, we have to get the wall in Ellie's room fixed because someone (Eric Bethea) used double sided carpet tape to put up the letters for Mac's name and proceeded to rip off the sheet rock when taking them down. So before I can repaint (yes, I'm repainting) I have to have that fixed. I also have to finish cleaning out the closets in Ellie and Mac's rooms. This is a project that I started on back in January and have made little to no progress on. Ellie's room is a complete and total disaster at this point. All the baby stuff (cradle, swing, jumper, etc) has just been thrown in there. You can't even walk through the room and I find it VERY frustrating. And let's not forget the 10 boxes of Mac's baby clothes that I have no where to put so they are sitting out in the media room. I am really hoping that one of my pregnant friends has a boy so I can lend some clothes out! And the list goes on from there. The major obstacle I have run into with all of this is that my husband is a borderline hoarder! Then again, he thinks I'm completey wasteful so as you can imagine, we have butted heads a few times about all of this. Our attic is completely full, our closets are busting open, and every bed has storage containers crammed underneath. Some stuff just has to go. There's no way around it. Goodwill here I come! Basically, all of this clutter is just driving me crazy. It bothers me to the point that I wake up at night thinking about it...gotta get this stuff done.
But I have seen a small bit of light at the end of the tunnel...I got the fabric for Ellie's bedding! Like I said, it's not going to be a traditional girlie room, but I really like it and feel like with the right pictures/decor it will be very classy and elegant. The fabric on the left is for the sheets and the fabric on the right is for the bed skirt and a pillow or 2:
I am repainting the room a toupe"ish" color and will accent with browns and yellows...and maybe throw in a little green depending on what I find.

I'm glad to at least have that out of the way!
I really do need to get motivated. The plan for this evening is to finish at least one of the closets upstairs, but we'll see how that goes!