Carter’s Page
Carter’s 6 Month Stats
Carter has his 6 month well visit yesterday and I’m happy to report he is growing well and is quite healthy (despite a nasty little cold that seems to be lingering in both of my children)! He weighed in at 16 pounds, 12 ounces (36%) and is 26.5 inches (53%). He was a happy baby while visiting Dr. Gifford and even took his shots “like a man”, hardly crying at all. Dr. Gifford assured me that at 6 months, and at his size, he is capable of sleeping through the night so we are going to do some “sleep training” over April vacation which will hopefully result in John and I getting more sleep and will also allow us to finally move Carter into his crib in the room he will share with Lauren. I don’t mind feeding him once during the night if he is really hungry but, he’s been getting up 3 and 4 times a night (eating at least twice) since his first teeth starting coming in about 6 weeks ago and that has to stop!
Carter has also started eating some rice cereal. He’s still getting used to swallowing “solid” food and is only taking a few bites at a time but he is gradually increasing how much he is willing to eat so we are well on our way to three meals a day! We will try some veggies this weekend. I can’t wait to see his face as he tries new flavors. Oh, and on the eating front, we have some additional good news. Dr. Gifford has cleared me to try adding dairy products back into my diet! I was so excited I ordered a pizza on my way home last night! We’ll see how he reacts over the next few days. If he seems happy, we can assume he is processing the dairy just fine. If he seems fussy, I’ll bring him in for another test. If he is still not okay with the dairy, I’ll go off it again for 3 more months but…I think he’ll be just fine.
Other milestone achievements he’s reached recently: he loves playing with toys and passing them back and forth from hand to hand. Both bottom teeth have come in and the top two are very close. He “talks” a lot and laughs big belly laughs when you “zerbert” his belly or pretend to sneeze. He LOVES tummy time and is reaching so far for toys that he seems to be close to a “commando crawl”. He can also sit unsupported for just a few seconds before toppling over.
We are all enjoying him so much. It is especially nice to watch Lauren interact with him. She loves that he is more interactive and will bring him toys and say, “Carter Boy, do you want to play with me?” So cute!
Carter’s 4 Month Stats
Carter had his 4 month well baby visit yesterday. He weighed in at 14 pounds, 5 ounces (38%) and 25.5 inches long (78%). Dr. Gifford was amazed at how big he has gotten and said he looked very healthy. The jump to the 78% for height was a surprise and she and I both think maybe the nurse who measured him measured a bit long! I mean Johnny and I are both relatively short, it would be surprising for him to have grown so much in such a short period of time. Although, Lauren always measured long as a baby and he certainly has outgrown the length of most of his 3-6 month shirts and pants…so I guess it is possible. Maybe he’ll get lucky and grow taller than both of us. Dr. Gifford said as long as I’m pumping enough to keep up with what he needs at day care, we’re cleared to wait until 6 months to start solid foods. I’ve also been sentenced to 2 more months of eating a dairy free diet. Then she said I can slowly start working some dairy back in to see how he reacts.
He is reaching all his milestones, rolling from his belly to his back (and almost back to belly), sitting better with support, reaching for toys and putting everything in his mouth, etc. He is also sleeping great at night (thank God). He’s doing 8-10 hour stretches! He’s napping pretty well at home but at day care, because he is not swaddled, he is only taking a handful of cat naps. Dr. Gifford advised us to encourage his day care teachers to try a one week trial of swaddling for naps even though they really don’t like to swaddle at school, so he is getting the sleep he needs. We’ll see how that goes.
He was very chatty and happy throughout the appointment until the dreaded shots came. He wasn’t too jazzed about the taste of the one oral vaccine which made him turn a bit fussy. Then, when he was poked with 2 needles, he really started screaming! Very different from when he barely flinched at the needles at his 2 month visit. He then moved his leg when the nurse went to poke him with the third needle so she had to take it out and start over with a new needle. When she went to go get it though, she let me nurse him, which calmed him down right away. She allowed me to continue nursing him when she returned with the new needle and that poke went a bit better. He came off and cried for a second but went back on and was fine.
So overall, a very successful visit and a very happy and healthy little boy!
Carter’s Birth Story
Tuesday – 36 weeks 5 days – Went to see Dr. Beitle. Found out I was nearly 4 cm dilated and 50% effaced. I guess those Braxton Hicks Contractions were not all “practice” as they certainly seemed to be making changes! So excited that this baby could come any day now.
Tuesday - 37 weeks 5 days – Went to see Dr. Beitle again. Was now just over 4cm dilated but baby’s head was “very low”. A bit disappointed by small amount of progress but was told that I could go into the hospital on Saturday and could have my water broken if I wanted to. I wasn’t too keen on that idea as I wanted to go naturally (and I didn’t want an odd number birthday)! AND I wanted the baby to come before Curriculum Night on Thursday as I didn’t want to work a 14 hour day!
Wednesday-37 weeks 6 days-Was planning to let my principal know that my doctor didn’t think I should work a 14 hour day on Thursday. Wrote a nice letter to parents that my sub could distribute letting them know why I wasn’t there. My principal decided she reallywanted me to be at Curriculum Night and negotiated that I come in late Thursday and stay through the evening so that I wasn’t there for 14 hours! I was mad! I didn’t wanted to miss putting Lauren to bed on what I knew would be one of our last nights as a family of 3.
Had been having contractions every evening for weeks that would be inconsistent in frequency and length and that would disappear as soon as I went to bed so I really didn’t think anything of it when it started again after putting Lauren to bed. I decided to time them though as I was hoping they would be consistent enough to talk John into going to the hospital…even though I might just be sent home. I knew my mom was out at a dinner meeting and wouldn’t be home until 9:00 so I knew going to the hospital probably wasn’t going to happen unless it was absolutely necessary but I was grasping at straws at anything that might get me out of Curriculum Night!
Contractions were anywhere between 5 and 10 minutes, lasting anywhere from 45 seconds to a minute and a half. So, I was thinking they were still inconsistent and that they would stop as soon as we went to bed. Well, at approximately 9:30, I was just about to get up to get ready for bed when, low and behold, my water broke! I gave John a few tasks to complete before we headed out and I started making phone calls and sending a few last minute emails. Even though my labor with Lauren was fast for a first baby, and even though I knew second babies tend to come faster, I figured I had at least a few hours of labor ahead of me so I wasn’t in a HUGE rush.
I called Shannon, my assistant, to let her know I wouldn’t be in school the next day (and to giggle at how I seem to have gotten out of going to Curriculum Night!), than I called Dr. Beitle to let him know my water broke and that we would be heading into the hospital once my parents arrived to stay with Lauren. Then I called my principal to let her know I wouldn’t be at school the next day. THEN, I called my parents. I was still having contractions at the same rate as I had all night so I simply told Dad that we needed them to come over but “don’t rush”. That was probably my biggest mistake! After I made that phone call, I sent out 2 quick emails. By the time I finished sending those emails, I was noticing my contractions were starting to be more consistent at 5 minutes apart and a bit stronger BUT, still didn’t panic as most people have contractions 5 minutes apart for an hour before they are supposed to even leave for the hospital! My contractions had only been consistently 5 minutes apart for 15 minutes and my parents were already on their way! So I went upstairs to change. At this point, I also needed to use the bathroom every 30 seconds…weird…I found that sitting on the toilet while I barked orders at John and waited for my parents was the most comfortable place to sit and ride out my contractions…as they were now getting MUCH stronger.
By the time mom and dad arrived at 10:25, less than an our after my water broke, my contractions were already 4 minutes apart and very uncomfortable. We ran out the door and got in the car. I had John start timing my contractions in the car and the first 3 were 3 minutes apart! John was driving speedy quick! My next 2-3 contractions were about 2 minutes apart and lasting over a minute apiece! My next few contractions (as John was now doing 120 on 95!) were right on top of each other and I was starting to have the urge to push! John was afraid he was going to have to pull over and deliver this baby on the highway. I just wanted to get to the hospital…fast!
When we pulled up to the hospital I told John to just pull right up to the door. I tried to get out of the car but couldn’t as I was having a contraction so John went in to get a wheelchair (and a nurse)! A bunch of people and a wheelchair came and helped me out of the car. John had to move the car as they wheeled me in. As we went past the registration desk, they were asking my name. I managed to yell out my name (and even spelled Monteiro). They also wanted to know who my doctor was. I yelled out Dr. Beitle and that he knew I was coming in. They wheeled me right into Triage Room 5. There were at least 12 people in this tiny room. I had no idea who anyone was (nurse, doctor, student???) and I really didn’t care. Someone was yelling for a baby warmer. Someone moved me from the chair to the bed, someone pulled off my sneakers, someone else pulled off my pants. I begged someone to help my get my sweatshirt off because I was SO HOT. A woman got in my face and introduced herself as Dr. Somebody and said she was going to deliver my baby. I was still in denial that this was going to happen NOW. I still thought things would slow down, that Dr. Beitle would come, that I would get brought upstairs to labor and delivery, that I would have time to use my relaxation techniques from Hypnobirthing…it was very surreal.
Then I noticed John standing behind a bunch of people. I kind of felt bad for him as he was left a simple bystander. Then someone said, “I want you to push with your next contraction.” In my head I was screaming, “WHAT???” “I know I wanted to do this with no medication, but I don’t have my iPod….I haven’t had time to get into my relaxation meditation….I’m feeling pain!!!” But the next contraction came and everyone was telling my to push. Someone warned me that, “It is going to burn.” Well I tried….I did half a push and it hurt so bad I just stopped. I needed a few minutes to catch my breath. I couldn’t even lift my head off the bed.
When the next contraction came, I mustered up all my strength and bravery and pushed once as hard as I could. Let me say, although it hurt like hell, I managed to stay inside my head and relax enough to get through it, thanks Hypnobirthing! Even though I had no mirror this time, and even though my eyes were closed, in my head, I could see everything as my sense of feeling and my sense of sight seemed to be working as one. As I felt each body-part come out, I could see it in my mind…that was the head, one shoulder, the other, the body and legs….One push and my boy was here! Less than 5 minutes after getting to the hospital! And then instantly the pain stopped! John, unfortunately, didn’t get to cut the cord in all the commotion. And although someone was attempting to take the baby away to check him out, I insisted that they give him to me and they did. He was perfect. All covered in vernix and crying. His APGAR’s were 8 and 9.
Delivering the placenta with no medication was weird because I could feel it and it hurt a little. Massaging my uterus back down was a little painful too. But I was so thrilled that I gave birth with NO IV, NO medication…I am woman, hear me roar!
Less than a half hour later, we were brought up to labor and delivery where Dr. Beitle finally arrived! I teased him terribly because he missed it again! He fixed me up though (OUCH!) as there was a bit of tearing due to the fast delivery. Carter was then weighed and measured and checked out and footprints were done. I also got to feed him for the first time and he latched on like a champ! John finally had time to go to the car and get the camera so we finally could take our first few pictures.
A few hours later we finally got a room and moved to the postpartum floor. I was SO tired but we stayed up for a few more hours, staring at our son, and giggling at how it all went down, laughing about how he arrived in time to have an even number birthday….and I didn’t have to go to Curriculum Night! I think he’s going to be Mamma’s Boy!
