One Month Old

It is kind of funny...I remember when my friends had babies, and they were on maternity leave...and I would check their blog page every day to see if there were any updates - and there never were. I would think to myself...what are they doing - and why do they not blog more...I NEED to know what is going on with their worlds...

well let me tell you - I now know why they were not blogging more.

I am not sure if it the exhaustion, or the randomness of the schedule, or wanting to spend every waking minute with my little love...but I have been totally slacking in the blogging department.

So...Lainey is now one month and one day old...it is so hard to believe that a month ago today, we were getting acclimated to the newest member of our family and very much ready to go home - it was a really long hospital stay.

She has changed so much in the past month - when I look back at pictures from the first few days of her life, and the first week she was home and compare them to the way she looks now...she is so much more alive...you can just see her personality coming to life.

She stays awake for longer periods of time now, and is entertained with little things (not physically little a that is totally not safe...but things that we take for granted because they are second nature to us) It is so fun to watch her grow and change and explore her little world - and to be along for the ride as he little world grows.

1 month old
(I know the date says 7.17 but I promise this was taken yesterday) 

Delainey's newborn pictures

Grandma is posting this link to help out the new mommy and daddy!  They are very busy with their new little angel.  Here is the link to Delainey's newborn pictures. I hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoyed watching Thatcher take the pictures.  I know you will agree with me that she is just precious!

http://thatcherdorn.com/Gallery/Delainey/index.html

Moby Wrap

I am such a huge fan of the Moby Wrap...

we were lucky enough to get a wonderful baby bjorn from my dear college friends for our shower...but I learned that you can't use that until the baby is a little older. With the impending trip to Cleveland (what was going to be only a few weeks into Lainey's life) I wanted to get something that we can use to cart Lainey through the airport and keep her safe and close - other than in the car seat/travel system.

I picked up a Moby Wrap from Babies R Us a few weeks ago, and put it to use this morning. My mom, Lainey, the puppas and I went for a walk - well sort of a walk as I made it up and down the street and then had to call it a day - small steps - and I pulled out the Moby Wrap to try it out. I tied it on, slipped Delainey in and off we went.

She was asleep in no time, and has yet to wake up - this was almost 40 minutes ago. And I have not taken the Moby Wrap off...she is still snuggled and swaddled on my chest - leaving both hands free to do other things - important for someone who is getting wrestles only a few days into my maternity leave.

Highly recommended to any moms that like to keep their babies close and snuggled - but also have the urge to do other things at the same time - Hello Multi-Tasking!!

Check out Lainey snuggled in our Moby Wrap.

Breast Feeding...4 days in

Well we have been home for a total of two nights at this point in time...and both of them have been very different. Not only from what we were used to prior to the arrival of Miss Delainey, but also different from each other.

She is less than a week old -  neither Mike nor I expect her to sleep through the night...and wow this child can eat. Pardon the bluntness of this statement, but I seriously think it is her mission to suck the nipples right off my boobs...she is feeding every 1.5 to 2 hours...and I am not sure how much more my tender, cracked and sore nipples can take.

But, I did want to post that breastfeeding is truly an amazing process. While it hurts today, and will probably hurt tomorrow...I know that this will pass and it will become even more enjoyable. The bond that you share with your child when you know that you are providing the sustenance that is keeps her belly full, nourishes her growth and helps to fight off infections...and that she turns to you for this.

It is not easy, it is taxing and time consuming and painful at times...it is so worth it. And this is from the girl that was not sure if she saw the true value of breast feeding because of all the sacrifices that come along with it. But I can share my story and my story only.

I have a lot of respect for women that make the choice to breast feed just as I understand and have a lot of respect for those women that feel breast feeding is simply not for them. It is honestly a personal choice and I can see the pros and cons of both choices.

I do feel bad for my husband, breast feeding is something that is beautiful and amazing, but something that only you can do...which tends to leave daddy out of the process. But we have made it a point to make sure that Mike has duties and responsibilities associated with Delainey's feedings as well - for example - he is on burping duty...and he is awesome at it. I have seen it several times, but the second you hand her over to daddy - and he touches her back, she lets out the biggest burp and you can see the relief on her face. He is also charged with making sure that she latches well - as someone who is just in the beginning stages of breast feeding - I have to make sure that she is latched correctly, in an effort to make sure my nipples can take this. He has been extremely helpful and supportive.

We have read many things that say that the success of a mother's choice to breast feed is directly associated with the level of support that she gets from her husband. Well let me tell you, Mike has made it his mission to truly support me in whatever decision I make...and we are both happy that we have made this decision for our daughter.

Happy two days at home...

Delainey Grace Killion

So as many of you know...well those that have been following us on Facebook (gotta love technology) that we welcomed our beautiful little girl into the world on Thursday morning at 10:44 a.m.

She weighed 6 lbs 10 oz and was 20 inches long...and totally and completely perfect!

I am sure that in the very near future I will blog about some of the many emotions and feelings I felt and am feeling in conjunction with this amazing and wild ride into motherhood, but I can tell you one thing...I have never in my life fallen so hard for something so fast. I have heard from many mothers that it is a feeling unlike any other...and to be honest, I could not agree more.

I obviously love my husband...but I choose to love him. I chose to make him a part of my life and to love him and to spend the rest of my life with him...but this - little perfect amazing person...this is a love that I have never felt before. I cried when she was born, I could sit all day and just look at her and I felt helpless when she was getting blood drawn...for the first time in my life, I would have given anything to have it be me and not her.

So I introduce to you, the newest Killion!!! Miss Delainey Grace Killion - I can't wait to share more pictures, stories, and experiences with everyone we love...where ever you are!

Completion of 24 Hour Urine Collection Marathon

The urine collection is complete. Erin's blood pressure has been much lower than it was last night but it is still relatively high for what she usually measures in at. The collection process is officially complete now we are just waiting to hear back on the results. We should know something in the early morning. Erin is actually catching some zzzz's now and I hope that she is able to get a good amount of rest tonight especially if the results come back positive for pre-eclampsia and we have to induce tomorrow.

We will keep everyone updated as we get the information.

Love you all!

Update...

We wanted to post an update on what has been going on in the past 24 hours...

Mike and I had our weekly appointment yesterday at 3pm. We met at UNM and waited to be seen by our midwife. During our appointment, they checked my blood pressure and it came back higher than it has been at any of my other appointments. They checked it several times after that, and each time, it remained that high.

This apparently got us a one way ticket to OB Triage. We later learned the high blood pressure is a symptom of pre-eclampsia which is super dangerous for the mom and the baby...here is more information on pre-eclampsia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pre-eclampsia)

While we were at OB Triage, they hooked me up to a BP monitor that checked every five minutes. While I was sitting there, my blood pressure spiked so they admitted me to triage to check my vitals and monitor the baby. They took blood, checked my temperature and hooked me up to a fetal monitor. We sat in the OB Triage room for four hours, they did an ultra sound, checked my BP every 15 minutes and finally after what felt like forever, the doctor came in to explain the next step.

They explained that it may be pre-eclampsai and that they were going to admit me to the hospital to be monitored for the next 24 hours. I was going to have to do a pee test (they collect my urine for 24 hours and test it for proteins) and make a decision after that. If any other symptoms of pre-eclampsai appeared, they would induce me. If not - they would wait for my blood work, pee test results and make some decisions from there.

So now it is 3:30...i have not been home since 7am yesterday morning...and we have been at UNM for 24 hours now.

The OB doctor came in this afternoon to give us a little more information - basically they think it is pre-eclampsia but are not 100% sure. If it is not pre-eclampsia, then it is Gestational Hypertension...which is also not a good thing for moms to be, and will mean that we will be induced next week. From talking to the OB doctor today, we have learned two things. After 10pm tonight, they will test my pee and make some decisions tomorrow morning. If they determine it is pre-eclampsia, Delainey will make her grand entrance before the weekend. If they determine it is Hypertension, they will wait until I am 38 weeks...and then induce. We will be 38 weeks a week from tomorrow.

We are in the hospital until at least tomorrow mid day, and may be leaving with Miss Delainey...but at this point in time...we are just waiting to find out what the next steps are.

keep us in your thoughts and prayers...the doctor said that this is the most common complication for healthy women...that regardless of what you did or didn't do during your pregnancy, there is really nothing that you could have done to counter act this - it's just one of those things that is out of your control. If you are pregnant - do some research and pay attention to your signs and symptoms...most of the time, pre-eclampsia occurs pre-term which can put you and the baby at a greater risk - we are pretty lucky that we are 37 weeks and according to the ultra sound they did yesterday, Delainey is full grown and would just need to be monitored a little longer after she is born if they induce soon.

fingers crossed that we know something soon...we will do our best to keep you updated as we learn new information.