Doin the daycare thang

So, I needed to bring a little money into the household. Looking at our financial situation there was I few options I could pursue. I could try and go back to work full time. Meaning I would need to put Logan into full time day care, stressing about being away from him, worrying about getting him to take a bottle, being sad, and bringing home about $500-$800 a month after gas and daycare costs. Or I could only work on the weekends when Jeremy was home. Which still meant worrying about bottle feeding and having to pump on the job. Boo. And still looking to bring in just $400-$700 a month.

Or I could take the same route my mom took when my bro and I were babies and run a little daycare out of my own home! Ding Ding Ding. I put an ad on craigslist and talked to my sis about what's fair to charge for a home day care. I didn't get a lot of bites at first and the lady I met with initially just wanted a few sporadic days to be covered when she didn't have family to watch her daughter.

   But, the next momma I met with was a perfect fit! First time mom, just like me. And approaches childcare for her daughter the same way I would for Logan. She keeps using me more and more, and always tells me how much her and her daughter love me. It can be a little tiring watching two babies but, I feel so great that I am now bringing in a little money. Not only that I get to be home all day with my sweet little Logan. I get to nurse him and care for him and witness all his special silly moments. I am soooo happy. Being a mom.. a stay at home mom.. was what I was meant for.

Times they are a changin'

So, it's been almost 12 weeks since I've had to work... at a 'job'. Not that I haven't worked. I've been working at the hardest job I've ever had, as a stay at home mom. Too bad it doesn't pay the bills. We haven't been doing too bad thou. But, now we're falling behind. We're short on rent, short on the car payment, and medical bills just keep coming in.
  It wouldn't be too bad if Jeremy weren't getting garnished $400 a month for an old medical bill.

 We knew it was time to make some changes. Keren, Jeremy's pseudo mom, said she could maybe get him a job working with her company. Sure enough she set up the contacts and he now has a job as a roofer! It's going to be hard work. But, it comes with a significant pay raise. Unfortunately roofers don't really work much in the rain.
  So, I am no longer able to stay home all the time. I need to go back to my Reception job at Restaurant Depot on weekends when Jeremy will be home with Logan. **
   I'm not the kind of mom who can't wait to go back to work. I am not desperately seeking adult interaction. I'm not looking for a break. I love being a mom. I love being home with my son everyday. I love the fact that he has been nothing but breast fed since birth. I am going to miss him so very much when I am away from him all day. And although I will pump and he will still be able to have my milk when I'm away, it saddens me that he will have to drink from a bottle, which might affect our length of breastfeeding.

    Not only that but, now I found out that when I go back my wonderful boss will no longer be there. I have no idea what I am going to be going back into.

   So, yes times are defiantly changing and as usual we're rolling with the punches. Our motto has been for some time now, "We'll make it through we always do." and it's true.

**So, I had literally JUST written this blog and had it sitting on the computer waiting to be published when I get a call from Restaurant Depot. I am told that the weekend schedule I worked out with Bob is not being accepted and that I return full time M-F or not at all. So, who knows what's in store for me. But, for now I will take it as a sign that I am not meant to go back to work just yet.

A Boy and His Dog

Jab was so very excited when we brought his boy home! He gets up at night with him and he has to touch his nose to his body every morning as he wags his tail with excitement and looks toward me for approval. "Good Boy!" I say. Now that Logan is getting bigger he gets excited when he puts his baby boy hands on Jabs fur and he smiles his silly baby smile. I really can't wait to watch this relationship of dog and boy grow and blossom. I can see it now, Jab keeping watch over Logan as he crawls all around the house. I see him being kind and gentle when Logan is learning to walk and uses Jab to help get himself up or stop from falling down.

I can't wait

A Boy and His Dog

Edgar Guest

A boy and his dog make a glorious pair:

No better friendship is found anywhere,

For they talk and they walk and they run and they play,

And they have their deep secrets for many a day;

And that boy has a comrade who thinks and who feels,

Who walks down the road with a dog at his heels.

He may go where he will and his dog will be there,

May revel in mud and his dog will not care;

Faithful he'll stay for the slightest command

And bark with delight at the touch of his hand;

Oh, he owns a treasure which nobody steals,

Who walks down the road with a dog at his heels.

No other can lure him away from his side;

He's proof against riches and station and pride;

Fine dress does not charm him, and flattery's breath

Is lost on the dog, for he's faithful to death;

He sees the great soul which the body conceals--

Oh, it's great to be young with a dog at your heels!

Logans 2nd....and FINAL cast

After spending one week in his cast to better position his foot, it was to be removed before his next appointment. This removal was to be done at home. I was nervous about it, but as you can see in the picture here I had a worse time then he did. I breastfed him right before the removal so, he was pretty passed out when it started. The cast was made of fiberglass and easily peeled off. The difference before being casted and after the 1st cast was crazy. His foot looked almost totally normal. It did stink a little and there were some sore spots where the skin was folded.
  He didn't start to get upset until I had to remove the layer closest to his skin and the cotton that was in between the cast and his skin.

I just knew we would have good news at our second appointment.
We were told that this would most likely be his last cast!

We decided since this would be the last cast we would decorate it for him. Daddy wrote Weapon X on there and I drew a heart with 'Mom' in it like a tattoo. Ahmama also wrote, "Ahmama loves you" on his cast.

After his 2nd cast was removed and we went in for his next appointment we were indeed told that he would, at this point, need NO FURTHER TREATMENT! They asked us to return at 6-12 months and again at 2-3 years. We sure did get lucky. I started crying in the doctors office and he said "awww, are you okay?" "Tears of joy" Jeremy said, "She's crying tears of joy." and I was.

Logans 1st Orthopedic Appointment for his Clubfeet

Logan was born 7.14.2010 and his first Orthopedic appointment with Dr. Mosca at Seattle Childrens Hospital was 7.26.2010. We had already been educated on clubfoot and were told that he would have about 9 sets of casts, one a week. Then he would have his Achilles tendon severed and have a 3 week cast. After that would be a set of bar and shoe braces to keep the feet turned out. He would wear these for 23 hours a day for 3 months. Following the 3 months of braces he would need to wear them at night until the age of 4.

    We showed up at Logan's first appointment prepared of what his future treatment would consist of. We meant to get there early so we would have time to let Logan nurse and get him good and milk drunk before his appointment. However we weren't counting on the main route to the hospital being shut down. We made it in just enough time to check in.

    In our cranky mans true nature he was crying and fussing up a little storm as Dr. Mosca was checking out his feetsies. He said very hopefully, "This is one of the mildest cases of clubfoot I've ever seen!". Jeremy and I had known just from looking at his feet that it really wasn't bad but, hearing it from the expert was so exciting! Dr. Mosca went on to say that his right foot was a 1 out 6 on the clubfoot scale, and that his left was only a .5 out of 6!

   

He went on to cast Logan's right leg. Logan put up quite a fight. I mentioned to Dr. Mosca I meant to get there early enough to breastfeed him. He suggested after he was done casting the right foot that I should nurse him and that'd he'd come back and cast the left leg.

    When he returned he was manipulating Logan's left foot.

        "Boy, I am sure glad you nursed!" He said.

         "..This left foot isn't even clubbed at all. He was just tense. But, now that he's relaxed I see that this foot won't even need a cast."

We couldn't believe our ears! NO cast?? He went on to say that the right foot would probably only need one more cast! I asked, "and then the Achilles tendon cut?"

 "Oh Noooooo. No, no, no.." replied Dr. Mosca "..cases this mild don't need the tenotomy."

ven though our baby boy put up quite the fuss with his first cast, a cast that went from toes to groin. We were very proud of him and I couldn't help but well up with tears seeing only one cast and hearing his treatment was going to much quicker than anticipated!

Even thou in the pictures Logan's left foot still looks a little twisted in, the Dr ensured us that once he begins to walk he will flatten it out on his own.

After Birth

When the relief of hearing that first cry sunk in I sure wanted to hold my baby boy. But, other than the cord being wrapped around his neck there was meconium in his lungs. They kept listening for them to clear up. The next thing I knew there were a stream of firemen coming in my room! I heard the midwife fill them in. I asked if I could hold him. They told me I could but, the next thing I knew he was off in an ambulance with daddy.

I had to stay at the birthing center to be checked out and my heart ached so bad to hold my baby boy in my arms. Jeremy told me later that on the hospital ride the firemen were telling him "Don't worry man... we have kids... we're gonna save your son.. don't worry. We got him..".

After being stitched up (don't even get me started on that! Ouch!) and given a shot for hemorrhaging I FINALLY got to go to the hospital. I couldn't stop crying thinking about how badly I wanted to see him...my SON!

The moment I held him in my arms...I knew, he was the most beautiful baby I'd ever seen. And I knew, I would do anything for him. I opened up his blanket to peak at his clubfeet. I couldn't believe what I saw, "These don't look bad at all!" I said looking around the room for confirmation. Everyone said they same thing, "..yea, they look way better than I expected..". It was an unbelievable relief.

The hospital wanted to keep him overnight. But, then his protein in his blood count was 41 normal for a newborn is 0-3. So, there was definitely a problem with infection. We ended up having to stay at the hospital for 7 days! The one positive in that was I got a lot of advice from the nurses and the lactation consultant really helped Logan I get going strong on breastfeeding.

My little man was sure a talk of the nurses. They said he was one of the loudest/crankiest babies they'd ever seen. I told them they'd be cranky too if someone was poking them, and pumping antibiotics into their system every 4-6 hours! Towards the end Logan was being such a champ with the meds. Some of the pediatricians really got me upset, saying I needed to be giving him formula. But, guess what? Never did. Nope. All my baby ever had was momma's milk. His infection improved and although he had a bit of juandice it wasn't considered bad.

Finally we got to strap our baby boy into his car seat and bring him home!

We're a Family Now!

On Wednesday July 14th I had a scheduled 39 week check up with my midwife.

Jeremy went off to work and I stayed home waiting for my braxton hicks contractions, that had been going on for 2 days, to turn into something more. Work could see Jeremy was a nervous wreck and sent him home. We went walking to get things going. I tried to move my appointment up but, they were pretty booked.

Finally 5:30 pm we show up to the midwife with my mom in tow. She checked me and I was 3cm dialted. So, she manipulated my cervix a bit and sent me home saying I would be back in the middle of the night. She left me with these instructions:

Sleep, Eat, Drink Water, Soak in the tub.

Well, my contractions grew much stronger and that car ride back was intense. When we got home I wanted to follow only one instruction, sleep. But, my contractions grew stronger when I laid down. I asked Jeremy to run a bath and the next thing I knew my water broke!

Back to the midwife we went. Baby was posterior which caused some very painful contractions with hardly any break between them. They got me in the tub and before I knew it I felt the urge to push! They checked me again thinking it couldn't be. But, sure enouogh I was fully dialated and the head was already coming down. Babies heartrate dropped dangerously low. I had to get out of the tub and have my baby "on land". My midwife didn't make it in time for my birth. But, the backup midwife was on hand and telling me to push push push even when I wasn't even having a contraction!

Finally I pushed my baby out! I asked what it was...but, they couldn't even tell me because what it was, was in danger. There was no sweet baby first cry. The cord was double wrapped around it's neck and it wasn't breathing. Finally they told me I had a boy. So, that I could encourage him to breath. "C'mon Logan, breathe for mommy baby boy. C'mon baby boy....pllllleaaase?" It was the hardest 4 minutes of my entire life! But, finally I heard the sweetest sound.. my babies first cry.

Our baby Logan James Betts is here!!!