40 Weeks! Happy 1 Week Birthday Nolan Donald!

Nolan Donald Ireland arrived on Wednesday, 12/23/15! weighing 8lbs 6 oz and 20.25in long. Head circumference 14in. His hair and complexion are  much more fair than Lucas. He is absolutely perfect and such a content newborn thus far. Hopefully it stays that way! He pretty much just eats, sleeps and poops! He really only crys when he is being changed either with clothes or with diaper. Even when he is hungry he doesn't cry much just motions with his hands that he is ready to eat! He is also pretty good at nursing, latched on right away in the hospital without much of a problem!

He surprised Mom and Dad by arriving exactly 1 week early as his due date was 12/30/15.

Birth story: At around midnight on 12/23/15 I woke up with some cramping, that wasn't too painful,  which has been normal for me before in the last week or so, but this time I had a little more back pain with it. This continued for about 2 hours at about 5-10min apart, then finally the cramping subsided. I went back to sleep and woke up and felt the same cramping again, at this point I wasn't sure if I was going to go in for my last scheduled day of work. I finally decided I should probably call in sick and called our OB who said I should come in in the morning just to be evaluated just in case. Good thing Tim's brother's family was visiting from WA-- Lucas was able to stay at home with his cousins while we went in! We almost didn't even take our bags with because I figured they'd check me and send me home again to await my scheduled C-section date of 12/28 since my contractions weren't really consistent. When we arrived they hooked me up to the monitor-- baby was looking good, nice strong heart rate and my contractions still weren't super consistent but you could see when they did come they were relatively strong (they still felt like Braxton Hicks to me). The nurse decided to check my cervix and found I was in active labor ha! already dilated to 4-5cm and cervix was paper thin. The nurse and my OB were a little shocked that I had progressed that far at home without much pain. This is exactly what happened with Lucas except he was 3 days over his due date! At this point I almost decided to try for a VBAC due to my progression already and I went back and forth, but figured the same situation could happen with this one, dilate to 10cm just fine and then push forever with baby not being able descend. And I heard recovery was much easier if you didn't push and labor prior to having a c-section so I took that route! Let me tell you, this was 100x better and with our hospitals new c-section protocol it went so well! After my OB came in, she said lets do the c-section within the next half hour since I was already in active labor. They prepped me and got me all ready and then I rode in a wheelchair down the OR-- I can barely remember any of that with Lucas. It was actually a pretty relaxing experience, they had me choose the OR music and got to work, pretty soon after, they pulled down the curtain and I was able to watch them pull Nolan out! He came out crying with his arms up in the air! They checked his Apgar score quickly, which was an 8 and then later a 9. And then placed him right next to my cheek and I was able to hold him. He stopped crying immediately when I was holding him, it was amazing! After I was all sewn up I was taken back to my room with Nolan (with Lucas I had to recover in a separate room and I wasn't able to hold him right away) and the nurses  had Nolan and I have immediate skin-skin contact for 4-5 hours without washing him up. We stayed in hospital 12-23-12-26, almost decided to head out on 12-25 but decided one more good night of sleep would be amazing! We ended up having Applebees carried to go for Christmas eve dinner and at at the hospital cafeteria for Christmas day dinner!  We all thought that was pretty funny! Overall my recovery has gone so much quicker and I am so thankful to be feeling good so much sooner this round, especially with a crazy active 3 year old at home!


We had an interesting first week home with Nolan! Lucas developed croup on the second night Nolan was home and had a high fever, icky cough, and was quite lethargic, his fever was on and off 2 days! So for two days I had to stay in the basement with Nolan and be quarantined! Ha! This was tough on Lucas as all he wanted to do was hold his brother and have his Mommy to cuddle with him. Nolan and I had a lot of one on one bonding time!! Otherwise for Nolan he has been a pretty great baby for the first week, sleeping 2-3 hours at time, and nursing every 3 hours or so. We really don't have to bounce, rock, or walk him to calm him down too much yet. Seems like he could be a little easier than our first born! Who knows what will happen when the newborn phase is done though!

Here are a few photos of  our sweet Nolan's first week of life!

First meeting of Lucas and Nolan!

First day at home! Celebrating Christmas on 12/26!

Can't believe this little guy was in my belly 1 week ago!

Lucas can't get enough of his baby brother! Constantly wants to hold him, touch him, hug him and lay by him!

His umbilical cord fell off on Day 6! So we gave Nolan his first bath-- not a huge fan of bath time yet!

38.5 Weeks!

Start of Lucas's date night!

Picked out his baby brother a toy car, and wrapped it too!

movie pick: The Good Dinosaur

Enjoying some ice cream!

First year ever he loves Santa! Makes me happy!  Met him first at Mom's work Kids Christmas party!

Meeting Santa's Reindeer in Mankato MN

What would you like for Christmas? a Horn!!

So proud that he sat on Santas lap!

How far along? 38.5 Weeks!
Total weight gain/loss: 25#
Maternity clothes? I wear the same 4 dress pants to work every week! The last ones to fit!
Stretch marks? still none!
Sleep: sleeping has gone down a bit, waking up 2-3x/night to use the bathroom, plus now getting pretty uncomfortable lying on both sides, my hips just start to ache likey crazy towards the middle of the night!And sometimes I will wake up with a little numbness/tingling into my calves! Ugh! 
Best moment this week: hearing that my belly is now measuring at 36 weeks since 2 weeks ago it was at 33 weeks! He is growing good! Heart beat at my 38 week check was 140 once more! Blood pressure still low, weight gain on track! In the last 2 weeks was having a date night all for Lucas before his baby brother comes, he got to pick a store, go and find a baby toy for his brother, then he picked his first movie theater movie (which he did awesome at, but was a little scared at some points!) and we had popcorn and pop (he never has pop!) and then we went out for dinner and he asked for ice cream for dessert! It was such a fun time having some one on one time with Mommy and Daddy before it starts to get crazy around here! Having my parents hear to help out when Tim was gone for 6 days! Helped a ton and we did all our Christmas baking with Lucas, And one more to add to the list, Tim is now home full time until Feb 5th! YAY! We are now able to enjoy some fun Christmas events as a family before Baby boy makes his appearance! 

Have you told family and friends: Yes! Announced in our Christmas card to those who don't know that we are having another little boy!
Miss Anything? being able to stand and walk for prolonged periods of time without braxton hicks or my fun new onset of right sciatic pain. fun stuff! 
Movement: His movement has gone down a little bit, especially at night, he is sleeping a lot through the night, sometimes I get worried and poke him a bit to make him move! But chocolate always gets him moving! My belly shifts around like crazy, almost like he is doing big rolls in their, instead of punches and kicks now! 
Food cravings: grapefruit! I have been having one every morning!
Anything making you queasy or sick:  nothing
Have you started to show yet:  measuring at 36 weeks
Gender prediction: allll boy
Labor Signs: a TON! ugh! I was wondering when all this fun stuff would start happening. Lots of Braxton Hicks (I think) some days, especially after long work days or if I am on my feet a ton. And those days I will have rough nights. A few nights I had pretty consistent contractions for about 1.5 hours which would happen every 15 min (things are getting real!) At least my parents were down when Tim had his long trip during this bit of pre labor! and more recently, I had about a 2 hour stretch where they were coming every 10 min and felt pretty crampy down in my lower pelvis) By drinking more water though and rest, and then walking a little bit, I am able to help them subside.  Sometimes I almost feel like I have to do kegels constantly otherwise the pressure is insane! Tim actually had his last trip removed due to some of my symptoms! I almost thought this one was going to be early due to all of my new symptoms! He has also decided to settle on my R pelvis (just like Lucas) so now I am having the whole right leg giving out symptom that was horrible with Lucas towards the end. I have two days left at work, we will see if I can make it!!!! 
Belly Button in or out? out and odd!!
Wedding rings on or off? Still On still and surprisingly no swelling still! maybe because its winter! Might have to think of taking them off though soon enough!
Happy or Moody most of the time:Happy!! Happy to finally having my husband home for good so I no longer have the fear of possibly delivering a baby without him! Makes me feel so much better and I can relax a bit! Also happy baby boy is growing just fine!!!! 

Looking forward to: Finally meeting this little one! I am so excited to see what he looks like and what his little newborn personality is like! Celebrating Christmas with Tim's brothers family a few days early, then having a quiet Christmas with just Lucas, Tim and I in Hutchinson, and hopefully avoiding a Christmas birth! :) even though I hear its supposed to be a full moon….   

36 Weeks!

How far along? 36 weeks! 
Total weight gain/loss: same as last weigh in at 34 weeks, 23#
Maternity clothes? maternity shirts are getting a little tight!!!
Stretch marks? hopefully I get lucky again with none!
Sleep: sleeping pretty good, except now waking up 2-3x to go pee (baby dropped!)
Best moment this week: having a nice thanksgiving in Hutchinson with my parents, Tim and Lucas. Nice to have extra help around the house and with Lucas. Nice and relaxing! and going black Friday shopping with my mom even though I felt like I needed to sit every so often! Was able to get most of my Christmas shopping done and with the help of my mom, presents are pretty much wrapped    Again, Hearing baby boys heart beat again at my 36 week check, still measuring at 33 weeks (which I think is odd and a little scary since I always measured right on track with Lucas, but my OB is not concerned because baby dropped and supposedly some women's measurements even go backwards once baby drops), heart beat 143bpm.

Have you told family and friends: Yes! possibly narrowed name down to 3 now! We might have to see him before we choose the name!
Miss Anything?  my energy level, I would love to take Lucas to do a ton Christmas activities  but I just don't have the energy! and I feel like to no fail, I am dropping things constantly, just because I have a harder time bending forward! Also, Lucas was having some severe constipation and due to this was having issues with wet toots which he couldn't help, ALL THE TIME, constantly changing underwear really took a toll on me (but I joke, its God's way of preparing me to change a million diapers again!) 
Movement: Lots and Lots of movement still. Rolling and rocking around, he is quite the mover. I can really feel all this little guys movement on the outside. And since his head is down low, getting lots of fun pelvic pressure whenever he moves!
Food cravings: not much!! still surprising I don't really enjoy a salad like I used to
Anything making you queasy or sick:  nothing
Have you started to show yet:  I feel like I am getting bigger and bigger, but now much lower,  I can feel the ribs below my chest now
Gender prediction: allll boy
Labor Signs: Starting to finally have labor signs, I think! REally not much braxton hicks, but shortness of breath some days where I have to rest after being up moving after 30-60min, pelvic pressure has now started, and sometimes sharp pains are felt where I feel like I need to sit immediately (possibly round ligament pain??) or scar tissue from my prior C-section I think! They are relieved with rest! But my OB checked me at my cervix is still pretty high up there without any dilation, but baby's head is super low down (which is what Lucas was as well!). Also, we are now at weekly appointments, I am hoping to see my measurements increase at next session, otherwise this makes me a little nervous!
Belly Button in or out? out and odd!!
Wedding rings on or off? On still and surprisingly no swelling still! maybe because its winter!
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy to meet this little one (coming up fast!) and I feel like we will be able to enjoy this little one much more with less fear :) when he gets here since we have been through this now and know for the most part what to expect, but still seems like I have so much to do, deep cleaning (which now I become short of breath, ugh so it takes longer), finishing touches on baby's nursery, packing hospital bags, and all the little odds and ends that need to get done! It is hard to get things done since Tim has been working a ton so he can be off from 12/20/15-2/5/16! (yahoo!) He will leave on a Friday and might not get back til Wednesday, only to leave again on Friday! and Thursdays are my long days at work, where I might not get home til 6 or so. Our schedules just do not match up! 

Looking forward to: Gingerbread and sugar cooking baking/decorating this week when Tim comes home! Grandma Wendy coming down to help and do some Christmasy things with Lucas and me next weekend but Tim is gone for another 5 day trip (kind of scary!). I feel bad for Lucas since I have been less active and energetic with all the fun holiday things going on (good thing he likes to paint and color), I haven't felt like doing a ton! Maybe do some Christmas baking with him and Grandma! And of course meeting this little one in about 3 weeks!!! 

Maternity Pics!

We combined Lucas's 3 year photos with our family/maternity photos! Worked out pretty well even though I wasn't as far as long as I probably should have been. With Lucas we took them around 34 weeks, and in these ones I am 31 or so weeks. Love how they turned out! I am saving our favorite photo for our Christmas card this year! :) 

34 Weeks!

Lucas getting ready for his trip to WA

How far along? 34 weeks! and clearly not the best photos of me! ugh must be the lighting or something in our basement! 
Total weight gain/loss: 22-23# - can't believe it!
Maternity clothes? still all the time! 
Stretch marks? still none! 
Sleep: getting a little more challenging some nights-- waking up multiple times to change positions, and usually 1x/night to go pee! :)
Best moment this week:  Spending time getting things further ready in the nursery-- having all weekend to relax and organize a bit all by myself (since Tim took Lucas to WA for the weekend), digging out all the bottles, buying baby boys coming home from the hospital outfit. Hearing baby boys heart beat again-- that never gets old! measuring at 33 weeks, heart beat 145bpm. Oh and getting to see our cute family/maternity photos! Turned out great!
Have you told family and friends: Yes! possibly narrowed name down to 4 now! We might have to see him before we choose the name!
Miss Anything?  bending down to tie my shoes easily, missing having fun holiday coffee drinks, a peppermint mocha sounds so good! especially when I am not getting a full nights sleep any longer!
Movement: Lots and Lots of movement after eating chocolate,  and from 8-9PM, then he gets pretty quiet at night-- sometimes I will wake up the in middle of the night wondering why he hasn't moved all night-- I even poke him a little bit, then he starts to move! Hopefully this is a good sing?! I also am experiencing a lot more baby hiccups with this one!
Food cravings: nothing to special! lots of cereal still - Cracklin Oat Bran! and oddly enough, eggs!
Anything making you queasy or sick:  still not a big avocado or spinach fan, which I ate all the time before I became pregnant
Have you started to show yet:  Yes, my little basketball is turning into quite the large basketball!
Gender prediction: allll boy
Labor Signs: None! which is also different, with Lucas I had pelvic pressure and braxton hicks by this time. This baby is nice and comfy! 
Belly Button in or out? out and odd!!
Wedding rings on or off? On still no swelling!
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy and a now I can say maybe a little moody I have noticed, wondering if I am starting to lose my patience a bit faster with Lucas and hoping its just the hormones! But he is also starting to not want to nap as much, great timing!! And also trying to wrapp presents with a toddler, clearly impossible.  The holidays always are so much fun, but I have always been a little stressed trying to get everything done, and now having a baby right around Christmas makes me feel a little more stressed! 

Looking forward to: thanksgiving in Hutchinson - my parents are coming down to help celebrate. And hopefully having all my Christmas shopping done so I can relax for my last month of pregnancy! That would be nice!

32 Weeks!

Waiting for the doctor for eat tubes!

Lucas thought I had a halloween costume on!

I want to hug the baby!

How far along? 32 Weeks!
Total weight gain/loss: 20# on track for what I gained with Lucas!
Maternity clothes? love all my maternity pants but starting to get sick of my same shirts! plus my shirts are starting to get a little tight!
Stretch marks? still none! using my belly butters religously!
Sleep: not too bad actually, but if Lucas wakes up then usually I am up using the bathroom because of that, if he sleeps through the night, I can usually get through the whole night without getting up now!
Best moment this week:  Having my 32 week check-- everything looking great, measuring at 32 weeks and heart rate 140bpm. Having a fun halloween in Grand Forks! Also Lucas getting through having tubes put in his ears like a champ! I am always a little worried for even simple surgeries but everything went well! And then Lucas really showing a big interest in the baby-- he even said Mama, I want to hug the baby!!! And he includes the baby when he is playing with little people!
Have you told family and friends: Yes! possibly narrowed down the names to 5! :)
Miss Anything?  being more active-- its been so nice out side, 60 degrees in November! So spending time outside with Lucas is great, but I am just tired so much quicker and am hesitant to take long walks!
Movement: last few days baby boy has been pretty mellow, but now today he picked it up again! lots of big rolling motions
Food cravings: mcdonalds southwest chicken salad, chicken, chocolate, eating a little more healthy now!
Anything making you queasy or sick:  weirdly avocado
Have you started to show yet:  Yes! feeling very large these days! and I feel like I need to tape down my belly button ugh!
Gender prediction: allll boy
Labor Signs: Braxton hicks only seem to come on my long busy days when I am on my feet a whole bunch, but otherwise really don't have them that much! 
Belly Button in or out? out and odd!!
Wedding rings on or off? On still no swelling!
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy but again starting to feel a little anxious about being a mom to two and having to share my time -- Lucas is going to have a tough time adjusting! He is so used to having all of our attention!

Looking forward to: meeting this little one in less than 7 weeks! and the holidays that are quickly approaching!