Sawyer - 1 Week Old

This past week has kind of been a blur.

The hospital stay was pretty nice. I was really impressed with Hoag. I had two nurses who were wonderful and I was so thankful they were so nice and caring. The food people were a little annoying though! They kept bugging me for my menus when I just wanted to rest. The food wasn't bad though. I didn't realize how sore I would be and how hard it would be to move around afterwards though, so that was a shock.

Since I had gestational diabetes, they had to test Sawyer's sugar levels every few hours. They came in our room every few hours and pricked his heel. It made me so sad because he would do that silent scream, where he was crying so hard, barely any noise would escape and his face would turn bright red. He ended up having a few low scores, so we needed to stay an extra day for monitoring. Everything is fine though; it was just precautionary.

My hospital is big on breast feeding, which is great, because I planned on breast feeding. Sawyer decided to refuse my right side though. We had help from the lactation consultants and they ended up saying he just wasn't comfortable on that side, but to keep trying and eventually he would take it. Since we started feeding doing skin to skin, which is his bare skin against mine, he will only eat that way now. He will fuss until I have my belly exposed for his skin to touch me! Hopefully this changes as he gets better at eating.

Our last night at the hospital, Sawyer developed jaundice. This is pretty common in babies period, but more so with breast feeding and gestational diabetes babies. They had to take so much blood from him! We had to return to the hospital on Sunday for more blood work. His pediatrician ended up calling us that day and said he wanted Sawyer to do photo therapy for the jaundice which consisted of being on biliblankets all day. The biliblankets are these two paddle type things that strap around his body; one on his back and one on his belly. They glow a blueish color and give off a little heat, like a heating pad, because he has to be naked under them, except for the diaper. We call him our little glow worm! The lights cause him to have diarrhea, which is how the biliruebens come out, I guess. We had to go to the hospital for blood work each day to check his bilirueben levels and on Thursday, we went to the doctors who informed us that his levels had dropped, so we could stop the photo therapy on Friday! We absolutely love his pediatrician! He has been so friendly and very hands on, making personal calls to us and even on the weekend.

Sawyer has been a pretty good sleeper so far, at least in my opinion. He eats between 11pm and 12pm and then sleeps until about 4am or 5am and then sleeps again until about 7am. This isn't too bad for me, but Ian is having a hard time with it, because he has to wake up at 5am for work and if Sawyer wakes up earlier than that, Ian is up too early and has lost sleep.

We tried taking photos of Sawyer and he has been my hardest baby yet! I like to do them within a few days of birth, because the baby is still curled up and sleeps soundly enough to be moved around without waking up. Well, we got a late start because of he needed to be in the biliblanket and then he got a clogged tear duct and looked like he was in fight! Not pretty for pictures. When we finally tried, he cried because he was cold as soon as we got his clothes off. We ended up needing to use a portable heater to blow warm on him while he was naked! Then he peed all over himself and that would wake him up. When we would finally get him back to sleep, it would start all over until we lost the light and couldn't take pictures anymore. I am hoping he will cooperate soon, because I have so many ideas I want to try out, plus I want some neat photos of my baby!

Ian has been so awesome this week. I couldn't have asked for a better husband and father for Sawyer. He helps as much as he possibly can and hasn't complained once! He offers to change diapers and actually wants to. He is so sweet and talks to Sawyer whenever he is holding him. He always wants to feed Sawyer from a bottle too, so that he can do it. He has been the one to worry though, which is so cute! He is always worried about if the baby is breathing or what each cry means. He is going to be such a great dad and I can't wait to watch him grow as a dad!

Some cute things that I want to remember:

• Sawyer's loose skin all over his body - we call it puppy skin, because it is wrinkly and loose just like puppies!


• When he gets frustrated, he shows his top gum and throws a quick huffy puffy fit.


• He really likes the green hospital pacifier and throws a fit without it, but looses it quite often.


• Likes to have his hands up by face when he sleeps.


• Also grabs his face when he throws a fit, which has resulted in many scratches.


• He has a bald spot on his right temple area that has no hair; it may be a birth mark.


• He is a wiggle worm, just like when he was in my belly.


• He has milk breath and it is such a precious smell.


• And of course, his ultra soft skin and hair.

My Birth Story

Sawyer came two weeks early! My doctor was going to schedule an induction for the following week, because of my gestational diabetes and I was measuring large. She even thought I might have to have a c-section. I had also been dilated 2cm and 70% effaced for about 2 weeks before.

My water broke at 5:30pm while I was getting ready to leave work on Wednesday, August 12th. It was a huge gush and I looked like I peed my pants! I drove home and we called the doctor, who told us to come in when we were ready. We straightened the house and got all our stuff ready. My Motsy met us at the house, since she was just leaving work. Ian had dinner already made and I knew I wouldn't be able to eat, so we ate dinner as well; yummy fajita tacos! We got to the hospital about 7:30pm and my mom met us there at the entrance. Since my water was still gushing, I decided to use a wheel chair, so that I was less embarrassed about leaking fluid all over.

My contractions weren't getting stronger, so they started pitocin at about 9pm. My contractions slowly got stronger after that. My Motsy sat and watched the monitor screen and would tell me when I was getting a contraction. Eventually, they were getting worse and I had to stop talking because they hurt and she would tell me I was having a contraction and I was like 'no crap'. I had to ask for something for the pain, but I wasn't ready for the epidural yet. They gave me something and it made my head completely loopy feeling. I didn't like it and it didn't last long, because they kept upping the pitocin every half hour, so my contractions just kept getting worse. I eventually got the epidural at about 1am and I was dilated 5 cm and 90% effaced. Luckily, I was in so much pain from the contractions, I didn't feel the epidural at all. I had two contractions back to back and I all I remember was staring at Ian's face as he held my hands and it was over in about 5 minutes.

During the night, the baby's heart rate dropped a few times, so I was given oxygen. They also put in internal heart monitor into hi scalp to monitor it better. I slept off and on the rest of the morning, being interrupted by the blood pressure machine and my nurse checking me every hour. My mom and Motsy tried to get some sleep in the waiting room and Ian slept on the couch in my room.

I was ready to start pushing around 6am, but shift change was at 7am and my nurse didn't want to start me, plus I would have had the on call doctor. So, we waited for my doctor to come on at 7am, however, everyone lagged a bit and I didn't start actually pushing until about 8am. I was so numb from the epidural, I couldn't feel anything! I couldn't hold my own legs, because they were just dead weight and felt like tree stumps! Ian held one leg and my mom held the other. At one point, Ian put my leg down and kind of pushed it a little and it just fell over like a falling tree and I couldn't move it without help! I just pushed like I had been taught and heard to do and it worked, obviously. They never had to turn my epidural off. It was relatively easy and I watched the morning news in between contractions.

I was ready to start pushing around 6am, but shift change was at 7am and my nurse didn't want to start me, plus I would have had the on call doctor. So, we waited for my doctor to come on at 7am, however, everyone lagged a bit and I didn't start actually pushing until about 8am. I was so numb from the epidural, I couldn't feel anything! I couldn't hold my own legs, because they were just dead weight and felt like tree stumps! Ian held one leg and my mom held the other. At one point, Ian put my leg down and kind of pushed it a little and it just fell over like a falling tree and I couldn't move it without help! I just pushed like I had been taught and heard to do and it worked, obviously. They never had to turn my epidural off. It was relatively easy and I watched the morning news in between contractions.

When the nurse called for my doctor, my doctor lagged getting in there and I sat with the baby crowned for about a half an hour! The nurse kept saying don't do anything; don't even sneeze! The doctor came in and took one look and said I need to be cut towards the front to avoid a tear into my urethra. I also got a cut towards the back. Half a push later and he was out! They plopped him on my belly and I started crying. I wasn't sure what to do, so I just stared at him. Ian cut his cord, which took a couple of tries because it was slippery. My mom made a comment about how tiny he was and they took him to wipe him off and weigh him and all that. He only weighed 6 pounds 10.5 ounces! We couldn't believe how tiny he was after there was so much concern over him being large!

They gave him back to me and everyone left the room except Ian. He was laid naked on my bare skin and we tried breast feeding for the first time. He latched on right away. We spent about an hour just staring at our new baby in amazement! It was such an experience and thankfully not traumatic! We are so blessed and can't believe Sawyer is here!

Introducing...

Sawyer Watson Perreira

August 13th, 2009

9:41am

6lbs 10oz

20 inches

38 Weeks

I am 38 weeks now and for the past two weeks, I have been dilated 2cm and 70% effaced, but no signs of baby. We have been walking lots and I have been bouncing on the birthing ball, trying to get something started. The doctor said she didn't think I would make it to my due date, but since there is still no baby, she is going to schedule an induction for next week. I am hoping we can schedule it for Monday, so that I can clean the house and make sure everything is ready over the weekend.

I haven't been able to keep my blood sugar levels under control with my diet, so they put me on medicine to control it. I was very scared about taking the medicine, but at least it is not insulin! The doctor thinks that stress is causing my hormones to go crazy and therefore my levels are crazy too. Work has been extremely stressful lately, so it makes sense. My assistant at work, who was fully trained to help with my responsibilities while I am on maternity leave, up and quit without notice. So, now I have double the work and half the energy.

The baby gave us a scare a few weeks ago and we needed to go to the hospital to check on him. I was super busy at work all day and very stressed out, so I didn't notice until the end of my work day, that I hadn't felt the baby move all day. He is usually very very active, so I started to get worried. I drank some cold water and nothing. I drank some sugary lemonade and nothing. I ate dinner and nothing. So, we went down to labor and delivery and they hooked me up to monitors. Finally after about an hour and a half, he started moving! His heart rate was just fine the whole time, so they weren't that concerned. I took this as a sign to slow down!

We also started fetal monitoring at the hospital twice a week. This is pretty common for women who have gestational diabetes, I guess. So, every Monday and Thursday we go to the hospital and sit in a room hooked up to monitors. It's pretty nice, actually. You sit in a recliner and stare out the window at the ocean! They monitor the baby's heart rate and my contractions. If I am not having contractions, they stimulate them! I also get an ultrasound to check my amniotic fluid levels. I have been a little low on fluid the past few times I have gone, but nothing dangerous. Last week, his heart rate dropped barely and my contractions wouldn't get close enough together to complete the test, so we had to sit there for about 4 hours! I was crying by the end, because I was so frustrated with everything that has been going on lately and I was worried about my baby, plus my hormones didn't help the situation. The baby is just fine though. I think the doctors freak you out sometimes, because you don't really understand what going on.

I am so ready to have this baby! I am getting pretty frustrated and very uncomfortable. I am super irritable and get upset if you just breathe wrong. I am not sleeping much at all, which is probably adding to my irritability. I am having contractions pretty much every day now and they are getting annoying. I have no energy, but am pushing myself to get things done. I actually can't wait to lay in a hospital bed!

Maternity Photos by Chris

Since we had such a hard time trying to take pictures of ourselves, we asked our good friend Chris to take some of us. He did such a great job! Little does he know, but he will have to take our family pictures for us from now on!

Maternity Photos

Ian and I tried to take some maternity photos ourselves. It turned out to be really hard. We set up a tripod for the ones of us together and used a remote, but it took some time to run back and back and forth to make sure settings, etc. were good. Needless to say, it was much more of a pain than we had anticipated.

Also, there were so many bugs everywhere! Nats were buzzing around and ants were crawling up my legs! I was also very nervous about walking through the tall grass with just flip flops on. I kept thinking snakes would come out and bite me! Luckily, I just had a few bug bites on my legs when we left!

Side note: my hair is growing at a astronomical rate lately and though I just had my hair done about 4 weeks prior to these being taken; I have some serious roots and hate it!

Family Heirloom

This bassinet has been in my family for years. It was a hand me down to my Motsy when she had my aunt and my mom. It was also used by my Motsy's sister for her two children. I used this same bassinet when I was born, as did my siblings and all my cousins. Now, Sawyer will be the third generation to use it! I think I am going to write each person's name and birthdate on the bottom that has used this, because I think it is close to 18 people!

My Motsy made the bedding for the bassinet. I absolutely love it! We found the fabric in LA and I had to have it. It is kind of a vintage circus pattern, with light yellow and cream stripes on the bottom and tiny red and blue polka dots on a cream background on the inside. We got the fabric before I knew if we were having a girl or a boy, so I thought it could work for either and it matched the colors of my room. We weren't going to use the hood originally, but the cream color of the bassinet matched the fabric and Ian really liked it, so we kept it that way.

The Nursery

We finally finished Sawyer's nursery! It seemed like it took forever to get all the pieces, but was worth it in the end. We love it. Ian and I look into this room multiple times during each day just wondering about our little one to come. We often end up in here together before we go to bed and just talk about how we can't wait for our little guy. I hope he likes his room as much as we do!

When we found out we were having a little boy, I was lost for ideas for a theme to his nursery. I couldn't find anything that matched our style and I didn't want the "bed in a bag" look with boats or animals. After finding some awesome circus fabric for the bassinet, I decided on a circus theme for the room as well. I looked online and couldn't find anything though. I wanted more of a vintage look and not so much clowns. I ended up finding some old circus posters that were my inspiration for everything, although the original posters didn't make it into the room.

My Motsy and I found the fabric for the bedding in LA. My Motsy sewed most of the bedding, but I did help! I hand painted the letters as well and Ian had a heck of a time hanging them in a straight line!

The three pictures are actually vintage circus posters that I framed. I also hand painted the shelves to match the letters. Ian added a few Star Wars touches and the guitars! Some of the books in the book case were actually mine from when I was little! They say my name and 1980 something inside. You can't tell, but there also vintage blocks on the shelf that spell out his name and have vintage circus pictures on them. They were handmade and are probably my favorite thing in the room!

I hand made the flag banner after seeing some really cute ones online. Mine didn't turn out so cute, but works, none the less. The hot air balloons are another favorite! We got them at the swap meet for a bargain, because the vendor decided to be a jerk, we got them for only about 10% of the original price! Ian also added little wooden cars, trains, planes, and boats to the top of the armiore. He picked them out at Michael's and before I knew it, he had placed them on top in a row. It was so sweet, I let him keep them there.

The sitting corner, where I am sure I will spend many nights. Good thing that chair is comfy and I can easily lay my head back into the cushion.