2 months...into 2 under 2!

Baby E turned 2 months on the 4th of this month.

They have been 2 quite...interesting months! We have shared some exciting moments as E hits some milestones, as well as some disappointments, tears, changes, sleep deprivation and some hard times as parents to 2 under 2. But, all in all, I wouldn't change this time for anything in the world!

I am a firm believer in that things happen for a reason and that our circumstances and experiences make us who we are. Even when change makes me afraid before it happens, I am truly grateful for all of the changes I have undergone in my life, especially since I got married. My views of the world have definitely changed over the years.

As for baby E, by 2 months he is already an avid roller from belly to back (cannot leave him alone for even 1sec!), he smiles frequently, he focuses on objects, pushes up from the floor and can hit toys hanging above him! It feels like he is growing up way too fast. Maybe is the fact that he has been wearing 3 month clothes since about 5 weeks old!!

On the other hand, Eli will be 22 months in a few days and she has been talking up a storm.  Around the time baby E was born, she had quite a few words, but nowhere near as to where she is now.  She is starting to put phrases and sentences together, such as "donde está bobo?" (where is paci?), can identify at least 7 body parts and knows at least 7 signs. Sometimes I feel like I don't have a baby anymore.  However, we still need to work on her skills with utensils, social skills and the oh-so-dreaded potty training. 

Can't wait to see what else is in store with these two! :)

Lent {Cuaresma} - time for reflection

This year, Lent started on February 13th with Ash Wednesday, which seemed kind of early. Anyway, being a practicing Catholic I have always kept the no meat on Friday rule during lent, but this year I decided that I wanted to do more.

With that in mind, I decided to give something up as means of reflection and preparation for Holy Week and Easter Sunday. So I chose to give up chocolate, and for those that know me, they know that I truly LOVE chocolate! But that is the point of giving/sacrificing something up.

What are you giving up for Lent, if anything? Or maybe, will you be doing something during Lent that you don't normally do?

I saw this on Facebook and might give it a try. Is something different for the 40 days of Lent to help you get closer to God during this time.  The first day was "Pequeña Renuncia" (Giving something up that you have no use for).  Want to follow this? If you do, let me know how it goes!

Cuaresmario 2013 from Lee Bernal

 

Two under Two!

One thing is for people to tell you that "having two under two is hard", and another is to live it! And let me tell you it has been hard as it is an adjustment phase for everyone in the family.

So far, we are one month and one week into having two under two and it is now that it seems to be getting better. However, something they didn't tell me (and to which I thought I was prepared) was how hard my daughter would take it. Eli is normally a very happy and easy going girl, but the weeks after E's arrival she was unrecognizable to the point of bringing me to tears a few times. Of course, the baby blues didn't help either.  She started displaying a very odd behavior where she would scream or cry (more like screeching) at the top of her lungs until I would (could) pay attention to her.  As much as I love both my babies, the most I longed everyday was naptime and then bedtime.

And the first time I was to be alone with the two of them, I cried a lot during the night before because I thought I wouldn't be able to handle it. I managed, but I was so excited when Egy came home from work as it meant that help had arrived. In all seriousness, those first two-three weeks were like a test of my patience and how good of a mom I was.  I cried many times and I am really thankful for having an amazing husband who understood me and cared for me when I needed it most. A really good support system makes all the difference in the world.

On the other hand, now that the baby blues seem to have left (and my hormones normalized a little) along with the fact that Eli's behavior has changed and she is back to normal, I can honestly say that I truly enjoy and love the time I spend with my two kids! It just takes time and adjustment which is completely normal in a situation like this. I know this is time that, if I don't use wisely, it is never coming back. They do grow up really fast!  The new thing is watching Eli kissing E or when she tries to caress him by saying "suave" [softly], which melts my heart.

Now I wonder what's to come next in this adventure of two under two!!


-themomthelawyerthehousewife 

Our baby boy's birth story!

I have to start by saying that I can sit and write this birth story due to the fact that both babies and my husband (as it's a holiday and he is home) are ALL asleep!! Wow, it sure is peaceful. Something that has lacked in our household during the past two weeks. So, let's start at the beginning.

My original due date was January 16th, but after the preterm labor scare at just 28 weeks, we all knew I would most likely not make it that far. When I was discharged at 29 weeks on strict bed rest, I was already dilated to 2cm so I did my best to keep up with the doctor's orders so that our son would stay put longer. With that and taking procardia twice a day, we made it until 35 weeks with no change. At 35 weeks, I was told to stop the procardia which landed me at labor and delivery with contractions. The on call doctor was not too happy about that and gave me procardia for one more week and to go home on bed rest again. At 36 weeks, if I went into labor, they would not stop that time.

As the days went by, I kept having contractions -although they didn't really stop since I first had them at 28 weeks. At 36 weeks, I went back to work for two more weeks, during which I kept having contractions; some really painful, sometimes consistent and sometimes exhausting. We made it through Christmas Eve and Christmas Day and even the New Year's celebration. However, on New Year's I was almost 38 weeks and was feeling more and more contractions. By that time, I was at 3cm when checked. When I went for my 38 weeks chekup on Thursday, January 3rd, the doctor told me I was already at 4cm and almost 100% effaced so she would give me the papers to go to the hospital the next day. As this was my second and I kept contracting at home, she and I agreed that it would be best to be at the hospital than have an unplanned home/car birth.

The next morning, my husband and I were up bright and early and got to the hospital at 6:30 a.m. I was put on the monitor and the doctor came around 9:00 a.m. to check up on me and broke my water to try and get labor going and contractions close together. However, since that didn't do the trick, around 1:00 p.m., I was started on pitocin. I really wanted to avoid the pitocin since with our daughter, it took a long time for it to start working even though I was also at 4cm when started and ended up with the most awful back labor. This time, I really wanted to try it all natural, without an epidural.

Relaxing with my mom while the intense labor started.

As it was 2 days before Three Kings Day (Día de Reyes), hospital personnel brought parrandas and the three Kings to patients, along with gifts for the mommas to be and the little ones!

 After the pitocin started, everything that happened afterwards went by so fast, I barely remember timing or how fast they were coming. All I know is that after the first contraction post-pitocin, they kept coming strong -very strong- and close together. I remember trying to breathe through them with the help of my mom and my husband, but they kept getting stronger. Also I remember that it was different from my daughter's labor; this time, it felt like really strong and long menstrual cramps that made me cringe and hold my breath. Then it got to the point where I felt the need to push during one contraction, after which my mom rushed out to get the doctor. It was about 2:30-2:40 p.m. and I was already at 8cm. At that point I knew I just had to hold on a little longer and I would have our son in my arms without the need for an epidural. The doctor said that she would come back in half an hour as I was progressing so fast or sooner if I felt the need to push again.

With every contraction, I would feel them getting stronger and more painful, with pain radiating down my legs making it harder for me to breathe through them. Around 15 minutes later, I had 2 really painful contractions in which I felt the baby coming down and the very intense need to push. My mom called the doctor again and when she checked me, said I was ready to start pushing. They started prepping everything up but I screamed that I had to push. At 3:00 p.m. the pushing starting and it was the most intense pain I have ever felt. Now I know why they say that crowning feels like a burning sensation!! During pushing I did not full blown scream, but grunted with each push and when I felt the head. The pain and the sensation to push was so strong that I knew I just had to get through it and focused on pushing. Six minutes later, at 3:06 p.m., our son came into the world! It was the best feeling in the world and I was so proud of having made it without an epidural.

Our son is 17 days old today! And to think that my due date was on January 16th!