1 Month Old!!!

We had our one month appointment and Hendrix is now 10lbs 14 oz and 23" long. Everything looks as it should according to the doctor. He is getting bigger everyday it seems. He is definitely not the same baby we brought home from the hospital. Today he was on his back on his play mat and he reached up and gripped one of the hanging rings and he repeated himself at least five times. It was such an awesome experience to watch him discover his hand and how to use it. He is such a natural fit into the pattern of our lives that we have really been able to enjoy every moment of this. He is a much quieter baby than I thought we would be blessed with, but his two month milestones include more chatter, so I'm sure we have that to look forward to this month.

Mr. Personality!!!

Today Daddy had to work in Lacrosse, so Hendrix spent a couple hours this afternoon with Poppa Dawson while I grocery shopped (I'm still too neurotic about the flu to take him to the grocery store... and I was thankful I didn't when the lady next to me in the dairy case started coughing and sneezing all over me... ugh...) and then the two of us spent the rest of the afternoon and evening together. His umbilical cord came off on Wednesday afternoon so he can take baths now which he LOVES! He hates being cold, so you have to keep pouring water over his body but when you do he is so happy. That is really the only time Hendrix is fussy... when he is cold. Especially if my hands are cold... he does not like that! He has been all smiles tonight and even let out a belly laugh too! So funny!! He gets especially happy when he poops himself... he seems to find that so funny! His personality is definitely beginning to show. Such a calm relaxed baby and full of smiles. Trimaine and I couldn't be happier that we have such a great baby boy. We are starting to get used to the suprise shower we get when we change him that is so unique to baby boys... usually having to shield ourselves as well as Hendrix with the clean diaper we are about to use, so we have gone through way more diapers in the last ten days than I thought we would. I really underestimated how many diapers and wipes we go through. I have been home from the hospital for one week and we have gone through 3 cartons of wipes already. Our sleeping / eating schedule was every three hours for the first 5 days we were home and since he is in the bassinet right next to the bed, I can hear him wake up so I don't need to set any alarm to get up and feed him. His last feeding was at 3am yesterday morning and next thing I know, I woke up and it was 10am!! He slept for 7 hours straight!! And in order to wake him up, I needed to completely undress him and as soon as he felt that cold, he definitely was awake!! For going 7 hours between meals, he sure was hungry! He ate 5 ounces, which is a ridiculously large amount for a newborn and which I learned was too much to eat in one sitting as he threw up about 2 ounces all over the both of us as we sat on the couch. I felt bad for making him sick... but I'm learning what works with him and what doesn't... and 5 ounces is definitely too much for his newborn belly. We have an appointment with a lactation consultant at St. Joseph's Hospital tomorrow to get a pre/post weight check to see how much he is getting from each feeding, which I am really interested to find out about. Time for his 1am feeding!!

Happy Birthday Hendrix!

Hendrix Eligio Dawson was born on October 20th, 2009 at 11:18am by schedule C-Section at St. Joseph's Hospital in Milwaukee. He weighed in at 9lb 10.6oz and measured 22 3/4 inches long. The C-Section was not as bad as I had expected. The first spinal anesthetic they used didn't work, and unfortunately that was the shot that had the morphine in it that was supposed to provide pain relief for the first 24 hours. The second spinal anesthetic they gave me worked great, and my whole lower body became numb. But because they gave me two doses, my blood pressure dropped and my entire body began trembling, so they gave me a medication to stop the shaking, and in turn I became extremely relaxed and drowsy. Trimaine was brought into the room just as the surgery began and he sat by my head and held my hand. To my surprise, he asked the anesthesiologist if he could watch the surgery and when he got the okay, he stood up staying by my side, and watched the entire procedure. Within ten minutes, the anesthesiologist held a mirror up over my chest and said "Here is your baby!" and I watched them deliver Hendrix. They took Hendrix off to a side of the room I couldn't see and washed him up, then gave him to Trimaine who brought him over to me and the three of us sat there together as they stitched me up. He swallowed some fluid as he was being pulled out, so we sat in recovery for a couple hours until he coughed up the fluid and was okay to be released to our hospital room where we would stay for the next four days.

The night before!!

We celebrated our last night of non-parenthood by going to dinner at P.F. Changs.. and now we're home, full and too tired to do anything! I've been waiting for this "nesting" thing to kick in, but nothing yet. Maybe thats something you experience with natural childbirth... I'm not sure. Trimaine knows what needs to be done before I come home from the hospital, so I'm worry-free right now. We have a growing pile of belongings by the door to take with us tomorrow... video camera, digital camera, laptop, clothes for the baby, the car seat, all sorts of things. They estimated I'll be going home on Friday so for the next four days at least St. Joseph's Labor and Delivery ward will be my home so I plan on making it as comfortable for Hendrix and myself as possible. I had a 2-hour pre-op appointment at the hospital this afternoon where they went over every possible detail of the C-Section and I met with the anesthesiologist to discuss pain options. We are going with a spinal anesthetic instead of an epidural since it is a planned C-Section. I would rather them get it over with in one poke as opposed to having an epidural catheter in my back through the whole process and then having to remove it. They answered all my questions and I signed plenty of consent forms and had some blood drawn and was on my way. I haven't napped all day so that I can be tired this evening and hopefully sleep through the night so tomorrow will come already. I am really excited actually, as is Trimaine. I'm nervous for the whole surgical process, but knowing that it will end with my baby boy in my arms makes it all worthwhile!!

Baby Hendrix is coming!!

On Friday, October 16th, Trimaine and I had an appointment at the Prenatal Assessment Center at St. Joseph's hospital in Milwaukee to get a final ultrasound to find out how big Hendrix is at 39 weeks and even though we had a feeling he was on the larger side, boy were we in for a surprise! After about an hour long ultrasound they gave us three different estimated weights... 10lb 4oz; 10lb 9oz; and 10lb 11oz!!! They said Hendrix has a full head of hair and even gave us a 3D image to take home. Immediately following the ultrasound, we had an appointment with our Obstetrician, Dr. Candice Lovell, to come up with a game plan for the birth. She let us know that in about a week, Hendrix would have gained another half pound, so we were going to have to decide that day if we wanted to risk a natural labor or schedule a C-Section. I was initally opposed to a C-Section. I wanted a quick recovery and a C-Section doesn't allow for that unfortunately. Also, there is something to be said for going through the birthing process naturally, without such an extreme medical intervention like surgery. We weighed out the pro's and con's though, and found out that one of the risks to a natural birth with such a large baby was that he could possibly not fit. Dr. Lovell informed us of the risks associated with that problem and that one of the solutions was a procedure involving breaking the baby's shoulders or collarbone in order to fit him through the birth canal. At that point, we knew what we wanted to do. We scheduled a C-Section for Tuesday, October 20th, 2009 at 11am!!

Welcome!

Welcome to our Blogspot!
Trimaine and I hope to have the time to update this webpage with pictures and stories of Baby Hendrix as much as possible, especially for all our family and friends that are out of state! Thanks for visiting!
Elizabeth & Trimaine