Eight months old

Bron and Crystal help celebrate my (Dad, Kevin, Old Guy, whatever you want to call me) 30th birthday


She jumps and jumps and jump and jumps .....and jumps and jumps and jumps... If you look close, you can see a couple teeth poking through the bottom gum.



Bron helps Dad bake a cake.

Laundry Day

If you want a still image of that video, here ya go:

6 month checkup

Bronnie's 7 month birthday is in two days so I'm a little late posting the 6 month checkup stats. She went to the doctor early August for shots and the usual fun stuff. Here's what the doc said:

Height: 2'2" (57th percentile for her age)
Weight: 15 lb 9 oz (39th percentile for her age)
Head Circumference: 17.52" (99th percentile for her age!!)

So she's a little taller than average and has a big head. Click here to see her 2 month stats. Her head's always been larger than average. I still say it's because she's so smart.

Here's Bronwyn eating her first real food: Avocado

Bronwyn photos

Our little mulitasker


Caught snoozing

Bronwyn eats a bowl of cereal

Bronnie started eating solid foods this month. We expected a little fuss but she took to eating her cereal like an old pro. She frequently tries to grab the spoon as if to say, "Gimme that spoon Dad, you're doing it all wrong."

Bronwyn sends an email

Here's little Bronwyn at the computer plugging away on another email. The girl's a workaholic.

Almost mobile

Bronnie works on her scoot

More Bronwyn

You can't tell from the concerned face in this picture, but Bronwyn is starting to enjoy tummy time a lot more. She'll lie on her belly for 10 or 15 minutes at a time playing with her toys. She especially likes playing with and slobbering on her musical turtle.

Lounging in the crib before heading into the office.

Dad, Bailey and Bronwyn veg out in the nursery on a Saturday morning

Bronwyn's First WNBA Game

Bronwyn attended her first professional basketball game this evening and oh what a game. The Seattle Storm took on the LA Sparks. After 40 minutes of fierce competition, the teams were tied and the game was sent into overtime. One overtime just wasn't enough. The game went into double overtime. Double overtime wasn't enough! The game went into TRIPLE overtime! Finally the Storm said enough fooling around and unleashed Sue Bird who sunk three three-pointers in the third overtime to lead Seattle on a 13-0 run. Final score: 98-87, Seattle!

After the game as we were walking to the car, little Bronwyn told me she wants to be Sue Bird when she grows up.

Sure it was an exciting game, but the best part was the noisemakers.

Little Bronnie had to take a power nap to take a break from all the action.

Pink and Bouncy

Bronnie loves her new bouncy chair. She looks like a little airplane pilot behind the controls in some kind of weird pink cockpit.

Bron Finds Her Feet

Bron Eats Her Dress

Overdue Updates

Where did this past month go? Bronwyn is four months old and loving life. Crystal and I on the other hand are walking zombies craving eight or nine hours of uninterrupted sleep.

My mother babysat on Thursday and discovered Bron was now rolling over. She put Bronwyn on her belly in the crib and she flipped right over to her back like it was nothing. Bron rolled over for my mom two more times to prove it wasn't a fluke. She also rolled over for Crystal and I when we arrived home to show off her new skills.

I believe cartwheels are next, right?



My two girls patiently waiting for me to leave work so we can head home for the day.



Bronwyn enjoys life at the office. I hear Crystal's co-workers think Bronnie is a great addition to the staff.

Spring Has Sprung! Bronwyn is 3 Months Old

Daddy and Bronnie under the cherry blossom tree.

Momma and Bronwyn sitting in the front yard. Check out momma's new glasses!

Bron loves her momma and will reach up and grab her momma's face/hair/mouth.

We think she is especially cute but are still uncertain who she looks like.

Winter has been banished and the flowers are blooming.

Bronwyn is three months old today! Her momma loves to give her kisses.

We're sprung on Miss B and took some pictures after work tonight to capture how she is growing-up right before our eyes. She is only now starting to fit into her 0-3 month clothing and many are still a little big on her. Newborn sizes are starting to get snug and she has even outgrown a couple outfits. Three months have flown by since she was born on January 31st.

Her parents are still sleep-deprived. That much is the same but other things have changed.

Bronwyn is smiling, loves baths, can grab her toys and has discovered her hands are perfect for putting in her mouth (as are her toys, blanket...etc.)

She loves to sleep next to her parents and slept through the night only once just to tease them.

She's goes with momma to work every day and gets a kick out of all her big people friends there.

She's occasionally fussy, especially when she's hungry and momma's in the bathtub trying to take a break (right).

She continues to communicate effectively and lets us know when she wants to eat, how she likes to be held (upright, thank you very much), and when she is sick of playing with her toys. But most of the time she's her laid-back self.

She finally doesn't mind diaper changes and will give us a big old grin when we change her clothes.

She talks up a storm, babbles to anyone who will babble back- nothing delights her more than having a conversation.

She really digs it when mom does her song and dance routine- she's not very discerning in her tastes yet when it comes to momma's singing.

She'd like to be in perpetual bounce-jiggle-pat-the-back motion which wears her momma out sometimes.

She scrunches her eyebrows when she is thinking, which is almost constantly as she is quite the thinker.

She really-really-really loves baths, so much it is worth mentioning a second time. When she is especially fussy, it is her parent's secret weapon to turn her from cranky-girl into happy-girl. Her momma suspects the house will need the addition of a second bathtub before much longer because if B likes baths as much as her momma does (and this appears to be the case)... there's going to be a run on the bathtub.

Miss B: Fabulicious in Green

Seriously one of Mama's favorite outfits and one of the very few Mama has actually bought for Bronwyn. Isn't she sweet?

Grandma's arms are full

Grams (Kevin's Mom) holding two of her three grandchildren. A 9 week old Bronwyn is in pink. A 10 week old Cole is in blue.

Kevin's sister gave birth to Cole 5 days before Crystal gave birth to Bronwyn. It'll be fun to watch them age together. Cole is already a big kid and Bronnie's a little dainty. You can't see the difference in the picture but you sure feel it when you're holding the two of them. ChaCha (the grandpa name of Kevin's Dad) jokes that Cole's hands are big enough to palm a basketball.

More Photos

Bronwyn admiring her Dad's artwork


Bronnie loves when people repeat what she says. It cracks her up...well....almost. She's not laughing out loud yet but I can see it in her eyes. She'll be giggling soon. I think Bronnie is going to have a great sense of humor.


Lounging in the car seat after the ride home from work.

Video: Post-Commute Stretches

Bronnie loves her car seat. It's a sure way to get her to sleep but we don't take advantage of this during her fussy times of the day. We've been good and only used the car seat for car trips. Sometimes after a drive, we'll leave her in the seat until she wakes up because she's hungry. If we're lucky, Bronnie will be comfortable long enough after the drive home from work for Crystal and I to make and eat dinner together.

Here's Bronnie waking up after a long nap. I think the dogs might've woken her up this time rather than hunger.

She's Two Months Old

Bronnie had her two-month doctor's appointment this week. She's two months old? When did that happen?

She got her shots and a clean bill of health. Bronnie's a little sweetheart and has already forgiven me for those shots. (I told her it was Mom's idea). Here are the latest stats:

She Weights 9 lbs 15 oz (26th percentile for her age)
She is 22" tall (35th percentile for her age)
Her head is 15.55" around (70th percentile for her age)

She has a big head to hold that big brain.

Bronwyn asleep in Dad's arms before heading to work.


Bronwyn drying off after an unscheduled but somewhat necessary bath. (Why does my dining room look so crooked in the background?)

Home Alone with Dad

Crystal went back to work this week leaving Bron all alone with me. So far it’s been a great week and I’ve enjoyed every second. Bronwyn and I have played in the play area, read several chapters of Winnie-the-Pooh, and taken many naps together. Bronwyn even got a bath on Tuesday and enjoyed it.

I’m pretty stinking proud of myself for that last one. I gave her a bath by myself and she didn’t cry, whimper or give any indications of misery. Way to go Dad!

It’s only Wednesday and I have already been able to witness two firsts this week.

The first was Bronwyn actually playing in the play area (see video below). Prior to Monday, her adventures in the play area consisted of a few quick glances at her surroundings before crying for somebody to pick her up out of the brightly colored jungle. I love watching her kick to make the cellophane beneath crinkle and swat at the butterflies and caterpillars hanging above. I even caught her gripping one of the rings with her thumb in the small thumb hole and fingers around the ring. She’s a smart cookie!

The second first was today. Bronwyn now watches the animals on her mobile circle above her head. Previously if she was awake in the chair, she would look everywhere but up. Check her out:

If you look closely at this photo, you may notice Bronwyn’s clothes are on backwards. I didn’t catch this until Grams (Grandma Patti) stopped by for a visit and corrected things.

I’ll be honest. I’m not excelling at the whole baby clothing thing. On Monday, I had Bron all dressed up for a few hours before realizing that purple pants look terrible when paired with a green shirt. I’m starting to get the feeling that I won’t be the one dressing Bronnie for her first day of school.

Sorry Bron, clothes aren’t your Dad’s strong suit (hey that's almost a pun!).

The Angry Onion

One of my jobs as a new dad was to wake Bronwyn up when she fell asleep during a feeding. I hated this job because waking up a peacefully sleeping baby made me feel like the biggest turd in the world. The trick was doing a diaper change - necessary or not. For the first few weeks, Bronnie hated diaper changes so this never failed to cause her to wake up screaming mad. If I dared console Bronnie after a diaper change but before her feeding was over, Crystal would give me a dirty look and sometimes call me a dirty name to go with that look.

Nowadays, Bronnie doesn't mind diaper changes so much. She's accepted them as a very frequent part of life. When she did mind, every diaper change made me feel like that butt-hole farmer in Burger King's Angry Onion commercial with Bronnie playing the role of the innocent onion.

I'm posting the commercial here in case Bronwyn reads this in 15 years and wants to know why Mom has always been her favorite parent. It's because your old man got his parenting techniques from this guy

Happy St. Patrick’s Day

Bronwyn has enough green in her wardrobe to make it through a month of St. Patrick’s Days without getting pinched.


Normally we only share the happy or subdued photos of Bronnie. I made an exception for this worry-face. She’s cute even when she’s upset.


Bronnie practicing her sign language. Here's her “No.” We’ll work on making that a “No thank you.” (I should probably divulge that there was no context to the "No" and therefor this was probably not an intentional sign. The same disclosure applies to those of you I have bragged to that Bronwyn was now saying words like "Cow" and "How" and "Wow." Really she was just crying in a funny way.)

Video: Play Time

Green House is Cooking Up a Storm

The last couple of weeks have been a return to normalcy after returning from Bronwyn's 10 days at the hospital during her illness.

A big part of that has involved cooking more meals. Last week I made slow roasted lemon-thyme-garlic chicken. I didn't pay enough attention to the word "slow" when reading the recipe and neglected to notice the 4 hour roasting time. We ended up eating it at 11pm. It was worth it though!

I also made Kevin's favorite "Birthday Dinner" blue cheese chicken. He could have it every week and be happy. I prefer to cook it occasionally myself, just to preserve the special occassion-ness of it.

I attempted to re-create The Matador's garlic prawns without much success.

This weekend was spent doing some serious cooking. Here's a run-down on some of the things Kevin and I banged out in the kitchen.

Honey-Ginger-Garlic glazed chicken wings, garnished with cilantro.
These were particularly outstanding. The night before I purchased 5 pounds of wings for our favorite buffalo wing recipe. We quickly realized five pounds was far too much for one dinner and decided to save half of the uncooked wings to experiment with a new recipe the next night. I'm so glad we did! I cannot wait to make these again.

Homemade Gnocchi with Gorgonzola Sauce.
Oh. My. Gaw. Incredible, Just like what we had in Rome. We made a huge batch, cooked off half and froze the rest. This was a time-consuming, multiple-step involved process but it was very easy technique-wise and had a huge payoff (plus it's cheap). Who knew the humble russet potato could produce such spectacular results. I'm looking forward to cooking off the frozen batch and making it again and again.

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting.
Not a bad effort. The cake is complex, rich and dark tasting. Not too cloyingly sweet, something I appreciate. But like many cakes made from scratch, a bit on the dry side. The frosting needs work. I'd double it next time and find another recipe.

Blueberry-Lavender Chutney Crostinis.
This was provided at my baby shower and was a big hit. The recipe is Kathy Casey's and can be found online on her website www.kathycasey.com

Kevin and I followed the recipe somewhat, substituting cream cheese for the goat cheese (I'd try the goat cheese in the future). We also mixed it up a little and made half of it with just the chutney and melted blue cheese on top. Keivn and I preferred the latter.

*I bought the Blueberry Lavender chutney at Metropolitan Market in Tacoma (by Dish D'Lish, a Kathy Casey product).

Bacon wrapped, blue cheese and walnut stuffed dates.
Kevin didn't dig these. But I did. It's exactly what it sounds like. Kevin took issue with the texture of the dates and I admit they're a bit gooey-mushy. But my! They sure taste mighty fine.

Someone told me that some women gain weight during pregnancy and some gain weight during nursing. I didn't gain much weight during my pregnancy and it came off almost instantly after the baby was born. Not that it matters in the bigger scheme of things, but I was pleased all my pre-pregnancy clothes fit within five days post birth. I'm starting to suspect I might belong in the second category of women who gain during nursing. Nursing definitely increases my appetite and my desire to cook has conicided with my stay-at-home maternity leave, giving me ample opportunity and time to explore my culinary forays.

Nila Wafers.
Okay. Lest you think I'm making fancy-pancy dinners each and every day of the week... the reality is I had a colossal binge that lasted 7-10 days and revolved almost entirely around Nila Wafers and Vanilla Pudding. It was bizarre. Some days I ate an entire box of Nila Wafers and 4-5 puddings. Did you know that Safeway sells Nila Wafers for almost five bucks? Did you also know that Target sells the same Nila Wafers for 2.79? Well this is something I now know. My box-a-day Nila Wafer habit was quickly becoming expensive. Thank goodness for Target.

When it began, the first couple of days, I could delude myself with "you don't have time to eat/cook. Just shove those wafers in your mouth and get back to the business of taking-care-of-baby." But it quickly escalated into a "very bad habit" and by the time the weekend rolled around... I was still shoving those Nila Wafers down my mouth like they were going out of style. Kevin became concerned and attempted to intervene a time or two.

Somehow I weaned myself from them and am relieved/embarrassed/proud to say I have kicked the Nila Wafer habit.

The vanilla pudding is another matter.

A Few Of My Favorite Things...

Some things I can’t live without…

My Moby Wrap
Best. Invention. Ever. I love it. Mom gets to have her hands free. She loves it. Bron gets to be next to Mom. Both of us are happy campers.
Big Blankets
We got a ton of blankets as gifts and thank gaw. Because we use them all the time. Bronwyn is quickly comforted by swaddling her in aforementioned blankets.

Breast Pump
I would have gone crazy without a pump. Sometimes Bron doesn't feed every 2 hours but I'm ready to express milk. The pump has been a life saver and a comfort measure for me. Plus it has given me freedom early on to leave the house and let Kevin bottle feed her. It's especially handy during those 3 am feedings when Kevin can help out and feed her.

Organic Wool Nipple Pads
Never thought I'd type nipple pads in a blog anywhere but such is motherhood. It reduces you to talking about things like nipples and poopy diapers (just wait, I'll get around to it). But the ones I bought at Best Loved Baby in Tacoma are the best! They're so soft and the natural lanolin in them essentially means they're self-cleaning since lanolin is akin to soap.

Video Monitor
This is definitely one of the perks technology has to offer. It's hand-held and portable so I can keep an eye on Bronwyn from anywhere in the house. It's nice when she's asleep in her crib/cradle/etc and I want to go to the bathroom or get ready for the day.

The Backseat Mirror
Super handy for when I drive and want to see Miss B in the backseat. Is she asleep? Is she choking on her spit up? Is she looking at herself in the mirror again (yes she is)

Last Week of Maternity Leave

Tomorrow begins my last week at home with Bronwyn. I know it will go back fast. I'm trying to focus on the many positives and count my many-many blessings. But I have to admit, I'm not ready to go back just yet.

It's hard to know where the time has gone and now my 6 weeks of maternity leave is nearly over.

I've spent hours holding Little Miss B each day... and before I know it, it's time to start another day. She has been an amazing addition to my life and I often have no words for it. It is everything I expected it to be (motherhood) and so very much more. There aren't many aspects of my life and my life experiences that render me speechless. There are just no words adequate enough to explain how I feel about Bronwyn and being her mother.

But I adore watching Bronwyn grow and change. Something new happens every day! She's growing right before my eyes, literally.

Today she discovered mirrors. Daddy held her up in front of the bathroom mirror. We put a play mirror in her crib and in the car. She stared and stared! Of course we think she's gorgeous. I think she's starting to realize that about herself too. Mirror Mirror on the Wall indeed.

Bronwyn Bear & Mom

Crystal's Kangaroo Pouch

Crystal and Bronwyn loooooove the Moby wrap. It allows Crystal two free hands and I think it reminds Bronnie of the womb.

Late Night Conversations

Sleep deprivation causes me to periodically confuse the real world with a dream world. If I don’t have an opportunity to regularly fall into a deep sleep, I’ll often wake up before the part of my brain that knows what is real and what isn’t wakes up. I don’t know that I’d call it talking in my sleep because I’m cognizant and am able to remember my ramblings and thought processes.

I have several memories of waking up in the middle of the night during my “stint” at Ft. Benning trying to figure out where the hell I was. Basic Training is not a good place for catching up on one’s sleep. Luckily these episodes didn’t turn into a blatantly obvious state of sleep-walking. The Army frowns on sleep-walking.

Little Bronnie’s middle-of-the-night feedings have brought on the same confusing half-asleep episodes in me as the drill sergeants who stomped up and down the barracks at 2am yelling and streaming together obscenities that really didn’t need to be streamed together to be effectively vulgar.

Last night’s conversation is a good example of how I function when I’m between worlds. I woke up poor Crystal about a half hour after I fed Bronwyn a bottle of milk at 3am.

Me: Was that last bottle of milk from the Pennsylvania DOT?

Crystal: What?

Me: Was that last bottle of milk from the Pennsylvania DOT?

Crystal: DOT?

Me: Yeah, the Department of Transportation

Crystal: Huh?

Me (frustrated she’s not answering my question): That last bottle of milk….

Crystal: ….yeah?

Me (pointing to Bronwyn); …the one I gave her 30 minutes ago…

Crystal: …okay…?

Me: Did it come from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation?

Crystal (pausing a few seconds pass to consider the question): KEVIN, WHAT THE F--- ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!

Me: (thinking that tone is really unnecessary for such a simple question): What state did the milk come from?

Crystal: What state?

Me: Yes! State! What STATE did the last bottle of milk come from? What state?!

Crystal: ...Washington?

Me: …Washington? That doesn’t make any sense.

Crystal: No it doesn’t. Go to sleep, Kevin

At this point Crystal figures out I’m not 100% in the game and I start to doubt that Crystal is as dumb as she sounds right now. When we get to this stage of the discussions, I usually roll over to go back to sleep and hope Crystal forgets I ever started this ridiculous conversation by morning.

In my defense, I’ve been involved in a consuming project at work that focuses on State Department of Transportations across the country.

In Crystal’s defense, before last night we’ve never discussed getting Bronwyn’s food supply from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation nor do I suspect the PADOT is in the business of supplying bottles of breast milk for infants in the Tacoma, Washington area

I’m looking forward to getting my nights of deep sleep back to avoid these awkward conversations.

Overdue updates

I can’t believe it’s been almost three weeks since we last updated the blog. We have excuses, really!

Aside from the obvious, “we have a new baby in the house,” we also spent 10 days at Mary Bridges Children’s Hospital as Little Bronwyn fought her way through both pneumonia and bronchulitus. The poor kid wasn’t even two weeks old when she made her first trip to the E.R. She’s much better now, but that was a rough time for the new family.

I have returned to work after my 3 week hiatus to celebrate the birth of my daughter and to watch anxiously as said daughter struggled to breathe. Crystal has taken on the temporary role of stay-at-home Mom for a few more weeks before her and Little Bronwyn go back to work. Her employer has a generous policy regarding mothers and their infants in the workplace.

Crystal has done a great job during her first week at home alone with Bron. I know it’s an exhausting task but didn’t really understand until I had my first home-alone session with Bronwyn. Crystal visited some friends on Saturday, leaving the two of us alone for 6 hours.

Bron and I got along marvelously but by the time 6 hours was up I was exhausted and somehow the house was a disaster. Clothes and burp rags littered every room, dishes and milk bottles filled the sink, kitchen cupboards and drawers were wide open with their contents very askew…you get the picture. I realized that simple household tasks are performed much differently when you have a crying baby in your arms.

More updates to come, though probably not every day. One of the tasks made very difficult by a crying baby is sitting on a computer to update the world.

Thanks all for the support and words of encouragement during Bronwyn’s recovery.


Here's Bron's enough-with-that-dang-camera face

Hospital Pictures

Little Bronwyn in Dad's arms



Bronwyn and all her equipment

Bronwyn slept in the cradle on the right. Crystal and I slept in the fold our chair on the left. I don't think any of us were very comfortable.

Bronwyn on one of her last days at the hospital. She kept ripping the oxygen tubes out of her nose but by this time she was breathing well enough to not need it. The nurses finally gave up on trying to put it back on her face. Like mother like daughter. It reminded us of Crystal in labor when she kept ripping the monitors off her belly much to the nurse's annoyance.

Video: Bronwyn on Oxygen

Here is poor Little Bron hooked up several monitors, an oxygen tube and an IV. When she first arrived at the Emergency Room, the nurses strapped her to an oxygen mask that was bigger than her face. She looked so helpless. That same night, the doctors in the E.R. gave her a spinal tap, two sets of chest x-rays and took her temperature a few times in ways I'm sure she's happy to forget.

Birth Story

Here it is! The story of Bronwyn's Birth...

My Water: Did it Break or Didn't it?

For about two weeks: January 17th to January 31 I had symptoms of fluid leaking. Especially at night when I would get up for one of my many bathroom breaks, I would feel a small gush of fluid. I chalked it up to incontinence except that it honestly didn't feel like I peed myself. You'd know the difference right? Overactive bladder versus fluid leaking?

After a week, I called the doctor on Friday late afternoon on January 23 to explain my symptoms. I beat myself up that I didn't call sooner. But I really didn't want to go in, get tested and be told I was peeing myself. And of course, they ordered me in for tests to make sure my amniotic fluid was intact/hadn't ruptured (in other words, to make sure my water didn't break).

So after work, I picked up Kevin and we made a mad dash to NW Hospital. The tests were negative and they sent us home. I had been peeing myself after all. Find me a rock- I wanted to crawl under it smile.

The Checkup the Next Day:

Thursday, January 29 I had my checkup with the doctor. I mentioned my symptoms and she was aware I had gone to the hospital for tests. She showed me a roll of skinny yellow fabric-like tape. It was to detect the external presence of amniotic fluid. If present, the strip would change from yellow to gray-blue. She tore me off a small strip and said to use it, for my "peace of mind," the next time I suspected I was leaking fluid.

The visit also included another final ultrasound and my first physical exam since the beginning of the pregnancy- everything was looking great. The baby's head was quite low and in position (not breech- whew!), and all the measurements appeared to be on track for 37 weeks. Plus we were now officially "full-term" at which point the baby could come any time. We left the office and the doctor mentioned to us "I think it's going to be soon, I have a feeling..."

That afternoon, back at the office, I finished part 1 of 2 of a report a few days early. Unusual for me. I sent an email to my boss stipulating the "plan" while I was gone and asked for her feedback and revisions. I also completed, signed and printed out my time sheet and left it on my desk. I'm usually late with my time sheet, not early. There was a small voice at the back of my head "Might as well. Just in case." I was betting on early the following week.

That Evening at Home:

At home that evening, I felt the urge to clean but then realized I had better take a bath and finish the parenting book I had started earlier in the week: Mothering Without A Map. I spent a couple hours reading in the tub and assuaged my guilt with the reminder that our hospital bags had been packed, the house was clean, there really wasn't much nesting to do.

We had plans for the upcoming weekend. I was to spend the night at my folks Fri/Sat while Kevin put on a final coat of paint in our bedroom. He also had a long list of other projects he wanted to accomplish before the baby came. I planned to work on the bird mobile at my Mom's and the window seat cushion for the nursery. We were close to the finish line- 3 weeks left.

Is it Yellow or is it Blue?

Thursday night I woke up around 1:30 am/2 am and felt the same sensation- a small gush of fluid leaking as I walked to the bathroom. In my fog, I remembered to use the strip and stared at it. It became a darker yellow... so I left it on the counter and waddled back to bed.

Around 5:30 am I woke up again for another trip to the bathroom. And on a whim, I looked over at the strip I used earlier and the tip of it was faintly blue. What the heck?! So I tore the blue tip off and tested again. Bailey, the dog, came into the bathroom , sat at my feet and stared at me while I stared at the strip . Was it blue? Was it gray? Did it just get darker? Bailey- what do you think? For 10 minutes I sat there and stared and debated the merits of dark yellow versus gray-blue. You'd think the two colors would be starkly different. They're not.

I got up, waddled back to the bedroom and flipped on the light, asking Kevin "Is it blue or yellow?" He threw the covers over his head in clear protest. I pulled them back down and shoved the strip in front of his eyes, 'I'm serious, is it blue or yellow?" Then he proceeded to stare at it, pondering yellow vs blue for the next ten minutes. Then we decided to call the on-call number- it was most definitely on the blue-gray side of the color spectrum than on the yellow side.

The nurse paged the doctor who then called us back. Yes, we want you to go in. Yes, now. No, not after 5pm. No don't go to work first. Come straight here.

Oh. My. Gaw.

We then proceeded to email our respective workplaces and then jumped out of bed like bats out of hell. Dogs out to go potty. Feed them. Take showers. Where's my shoes? Clothes. Don't forget the car seat. Grab more clean clothes from the laundry basket "just in case." Pager chargers!!!

But at the same time, we both expected to go into work an hour late. We've had false alarms before and didn't seriously consider we'd come home with a baby. We were going through the motions without any serious conviction that the next time we'd come home would be with a baby.

Well maybe I did have a slight suspicion because I made the bed. I never make the bed. And I wanted to come home to a made bed. What the heck?

The Hospital:

We arrived at the hospital in 45 minutes, there was absolutely zero traffic on the freeway. They hooked me up to the non-stress-test machine and used the same yellow tape to test for external presence of fluid "It's blue." Well wow- that's why they go to nursing school so they can proclaim in less than a second what took me and Kevin 20 minutes to figure out. Yes it was blue. Then the internal exam took place and they sent off the specimens to the lab.

And pending the results, they'd call the doctor back and "go from there..." based on what the doctor wanted to do next.

You're Not Leaving Until You Have A Baby:

Still, Kevin and I had no idea what was in store. The tests came back- I was definitely leaking fluid and my water had broken. The doctor said "we're staying."

Now this is where it hit home. "You're not going back to work you're staying until you have a baby, probably within the next 24 hours"

(!!!!)

Now let me be clear. I was NOT in labor. I was barely dilated, only 1 cm. I had zero contractions. In fact they needed to induce labor. Since they didn't know how long my water had been leaking, the risk of infection was increasing by the hour since the water is what protects the baby and it was now fully exposed. Add on to the fact I had been taking baths morning and night... well time was of the essence. The benefits of waiting for me to naturally go into labor were far outweighed by the risks of infection.

At noon they induced me. And I felt nothing. For hours. This is labor? Well sheesh that's not so bad. The worst part was the penicillin antibiotics which stung so badly I gasped in pain. I complained to the nurse that it was taking so long and I wasn't in any pain and wasn't I supposed to be feeling SOMETHING? "Careful what you wish for." She smiled knowingly.

5pm-7pm The Going Gets Tough:

At 5pm the doctor came in and since I hadn't progressed she asked if she could break the rest of my water. They theorized that my leak was a very small leak at the top of my uterus- as small as a pinprick, and there was still a good deal of water left.

By this time we had a good number of folks- our little fan club if you will. His Mom and stepdad. My folks. Later my sister joined around 9pm.

We kicked them out of the room and the doctor broke my water.

Oh My Gaw. Contraction City! "How long before I can go into the tub?"

"20 minutes"

TWENTY MINUTES?! Oh. My Gaw. Owwww. Pain. Levels. Increased. (Careful what you wish for indeed.)

The Rest of the Countdown:

I stayed in the bathtub until around 7pm. The warm water was definitely helpful but midway through I hit my first wall and begged for an epidural. Now. The nurse came in and explained that I could have an epidural but I'd have to be confined to the bed.

Next! No way. The last thing I wanted was to be confined to the bed, immobile. I was already on continuous monitoring which was bad enough.

The nurse explained my other options for pain medication and I took a pain medication by IV. But it would only last 1-2 hours and I could only have a total of 2 doses.

It took the edge off but didn't greatly reduce the pain. It did reduce my panic and from that point on I was able to get through the rest of the birth without any further medication or an epidural.

8:30 pm

Another exam
5 cm!
90% effaced
-1 station (which i still don't know what that means but apparently maps the progress of the baby down the birth canal)

9:35pm

7 cm!
Things are moving along now.

9:55pm

Here's where I get cranky.
I ordered people to stop touching me. To stop talking to me. That if they needed to say something, they had two seconds before I'd close my eyes again so it had better be quick and important. At this point I also ripped off the monitoring devices from my stomach. I apologized to the nurse. She said she'd keep putting it back on. I told her I'd keep ripping it off and I was so sorry.

There was one classic moment where a relief nurse came in to give my nurse her break. The relief nurse told Kevin and the interpreter "Tell her... contractions are like moving furniture. The more friends you have, the easier it is." Oh. My. Gaw. She wanted to tell me THAT?!

10:10 pm
8cm

10:35pm
9 1/2 cm

I WANT TO PUSH!!! But it's not allowed. Garrrh.

10:50pm
Anterior Lip (cervix)

11:20 pm
Fully effaced
10 cm

11:30 pm
Started pushing
Yes! This was perhaps the hardest part of the labor physically but it brought the most relief. It felt so GOOD to be able to push. Painful to be sure, but productive.

12:30 am
+1 station

Somewhere in the fog of time between 12:30 am and the birth:
Ring of Fire! Oh. My. Gaaaaw.

2:05am
Birth

Total pushing time: 2.5 hours

But honestly it didn't feel like 2.5 hours. It was over so quickly and yet each push felt like an eternity. It's hard to explain how that contradiction of terms actually reconciles but I was so focused on each push that time ceased to exist. And my head definitely went "elsewhere." I was so present and yet so very far away at the same time.

In retrosepct- pain management, pushing and temperment:

With the exception of my freakout in the tub, I was able to use different pain management techniques. Breathing predominantly. I used the the tub. The birthing ball. The rocking chair. The toilet.

The interpreter on call was amazing and we really lucked out. She was also a birth doula and this was her 37th birth. In the beginning I didn't use her doula skills but it wasn't long before I quickly reverted my decision and I am so grateful. I would never have another birth without a doula present. It literally made the difference for me to be able to get through the birth without further medication or an epidural. That and my fear of needles/being confined also prevented me from seriously considering an epidural again.

For pushing I tried on my side and back but it wasn't very productive. The birth bar with a sheet wrapped around it so I could pull myself up worked out great for me. I must have done 400 long push ups that way. My arms and neck the next two days were wrecked from fatigued muscles. They're not kidding when they say labor is a marathon- you are literally getting a workout. I swear that in my post birth pictures my arms actually look skinnier.

Towards the very end, those final few dozen pushes, I envisioned the baby as a girl. And it got me through it- wanting to see my baby girl. Up to that point, I had no real sense if I was having a boy or girl.

The nurse also gave me a great visual which aided me with my final pushing "Envision pushing the baby up-and-out." Tres bien! Very useful.

When she was born, the ironic thing is I no longer cared if we were having a boy or girl. I told them not to tell me, that I didn't care and I just wanted my baby in my arms. It took a few (short) minutes before Kevin and I asked.

Kevin was amazing and incredibly supportive. He gave me water and chap stick on command. He helped out with pain management techniques, especially in the beginning and middle. At the end I didn't let anyone help me- I just did my own thing (breathing, going into "the zone"), with my eyes screwed tightly shut. I couldn't have done it without him there.

He also forgave me for my transgressions "No. Not like that. How many times do I have to tell you..."

Apparently I was articulate, although I hope I wasn't too mean. I tried so hard to communicate effectively...


Overall I had an immensely positive experience. NW Hospital and the nurses were fantastic. I'd go back there in a heartbeat. The interpreter/doula was an absolute blessing. Kevin was a trooper and made me so proud. The birth, while unexpected and not as we planned, was ultimately a healthy one and I have no regrets with anything that happened. In fact, I'm quite pleased with how it went.

Days 8, 9 and 10

Day 10: Bronwyn's first bath at home.


Day 10: Bronwyn cozied up nice and warm after her first bath at home.


Day 9: Little Bron swaddled up in the blanket Grandma Patti made


Day 8: Mom and Little Bron snuggle in the dark.


Day 8: More snuggles in the dark

Day 7: Our little sweet pea

Momma Writes:

Wow- it's hard to believe a week has gone by already... we're relishing our time at home with little Bronwyn. She is the perfect baby and has made the transition very easy for us. She eats, sleeps, pees, poops and does it all over again with a minimum of fuss. We spend our days and nights observing her and talking about her.

We're tired to be sure, but adjusting to parenthood rather well.

Some pictures from today and earlier this week...

Day3: She loves to have her hands near her face to self-soothe.


Day 7: Notice her bellybutton? Her umbilical stump fell off today! Go Team Green!


Day 1: Grandma, Uncle and Pop-Pop at the hospital visiting Bronwyn in the evening.

Day 7: Early in the wee hours of the morning on Mom's lap, falling asleep after a feeding. Which she does every. single. time. (She also falls asleep halfway through and needs waking to finish).

Day 6: In Daddy's arms in the nursery.

Day 6: Taking a nap in the morning while Mom gets ready for the day.

Day 6: Bronwyn grasping her hands.

Day 3: Bronwyn fast asleep after a feeding.

Momma signing off here... until next time.