Brady Patrick McFadden

Thursday, May 8, 2008

Smiley face - 7 weeks

Mommy has been dying for me to smile ever since she read that babies smile as early as 4 weeks. I finally did it!! On May 3rd I smiled for the first time! I was shopping with Mommy and her cousins, Jan and Eva, and I gave Jan the biggest gummiest grin ever! Mommy practically cried! Later that day I smiled just for her - she definitely cried then...(chicks are so sappy!) Mommy has yet to capture my grin for the camera but she did get a video...enjoy!

6 weeks

The first 5-6 weeks of my life proved quite a challenge for Mommy. Adjusting to motherhood and getting to know me has been an amazing, yet difficult, experience. After all we went through the first few weeks Mommy and Daddy learned that I had reflux AND colic. I cried a lot and I seemed to be in terrible pain :( Talk about heart wrenching! Mommy could barely stand to see me like that!

Daddy's a fantastic cuddler, walker, and storyteller and can handle all the crying way better than Mommy. Mommy is getting used to the crying now as I'm a bit more predictable - usually very fussy from 4 to 8 pm, but much better if I'm outside or on a walk.

Mommy loves to take me on walks around our very hilly neighborhood. She's hoping it gets her butt back in shape but I just love being outside! ;) Sometimes I don't like to be in my stroller so I make Mommy carry me in the Baby Bjorn - what's an extra 11+ pounds when you're exercising anyway, right?

Tuesday, January 8, 2008

19-20 weeks

November 8, 2007: Mommy is 20.5 weeks pregnant with me. Wow are we growing! She hasn't had time to take any pictures lately but she'll update you soon. We can definitely see a difference. Mommy has gained 13 pounds so far so if she can keep this pace she won't get too fat. Mommy is still feeling good, a few headaches each week, but generally very good. Mommy and Daddy have been taking advantage of the beautiful weather by taking day trips to Sausalito, Half Moon Bay, and Sonoma County. They love that stuff!

October 25, 2007: Mommy is 19 weeks pregnant with me. I'm getting really big so that means she's getting big too. She feels great though and can't wait to meet me. Only 5 more months...
Now Daddy and Mommy can start talking about names for me. Daddy didn't want to talk about it until he knew if I was a boy or a girl. Mommy already had a girl name picked out - sorry mom! It's back to the drawing board!
Nana, Papa Joe, Grammy, and Papa Larry can't wait to meet me too. I'm so lucky to have such a wonderful family already. Did you know I have 3 cousins already? Gavin, Aiden and Zack and I are going to be great pals.

29 Weeks

January 8, 2008: Mommy is 29 weeks pregnant with me (that's more than 7 mos!). She's getting so big and so am I. People sometimes say that she looks like she might be due any day now - how rude to say such a thing to an emotional, pregnant woman! I am moving all the time and from the outside, Mommy says I look like an alien. I like to kick Mommy in the ribs and stick my booty out - she and Daddy can see it several times a day. I'm head down (well, sort of) and my body is lying diagonal across Mommy's belly. Mommy hopes I can keep my head down so the doctor's don't have to do any fancy maneuvers to get me in the right position.

Poppa Joe painted the nursery over Christmas and Daddy is working on staining my new changing table/dresser. We have all the furniture for the nursery now (thanks to our very generous family members!) so Mommy is anxious to set it up. Mommy is obsessed with my arrival so she thinks and talks about me constantly! She has experienced some severe back pain and more headaches so her doctor put her on a reduced work schedule. Since reducing her hours she feels much better. She also had a couple of weeks off around the holidays so that has helped. Mommy and Daddy still haven't decided on my name yet but they said the poll you participated in definitely helped narrow it down. Keep your fingers crossed that the next 10.5 weeks go well for me in here! I can't wait to meet you!

Monday, November 12, 2007

21 Weeks

Mommy is now 21 weeks prego and definitely feeling it! The party planning has begun and she and Daddy are in the final stages of deciding on the nursery decor. Thank goodness - they can finally start the work on it! There's a lot to be done - my room has been the play/junk/exercise room since they moved in so it's about time they cleaned it up! We can't wait to see everyone at Thanksgiving in Southern California.

Thursday, October 25, 2007

19 weeks

My birth

Mommy went into labor at exactly 6 am on St. Patrick's Day. Daddy wasn't sure it was real but after a few hours it was pretty clear. We first went to the hospital after about 6 hours but Mommy was only 2 cm dilated so they sent her walking...Auntie Mimi came down to help with my labor so she, Mommy and Daddy went to get some food. They decided to go home for a little while until things progressed further.

Around 5 pm things were pretty intense and we started to get ready to go to the hospital. Mommy started throwing up though (a sign of transition) and we knew we HAD to get to the hospital ASAP. Of course it was rush hour traffic so it took a little while.

By the time we got into triage Mommy was having very intense contractions and it was too hard for her to sit still for monitoring....which irritated the nurse just a bit. It was hard for her to relax through the contractions because the nurse made her lay on her back (the worst position possible). She kept throwing up but finally made it to the labor and delivery room.

Mommy really wanted to labor in the water but the nurse insisted on additional monitoring and inserting an IV before she would let Mommy in the tub. The IV line took forever (and multiple pokes) to get put in. Believe it or not, Mommy thought the needle poking felt really good compared to the contractions (even when the nurse was digging around in her arm for 30 minutes!) Mommy got so frustrated and worked up that she couldn't relax and she begged for medication.

The anesthesiologist came over an hour later and by that point Mommy was already 9 1/2 cm. But she had her mind set on some relief and couldn't see the light at the end of the tunnel so she took the drugs. She started to feel better immediately and was able to calm down enough to focus on her breathing. The epidural didn't work on both sides so she still had very intense contractions and by the time she started pushing it had mostly worn off.

Mommy pushed for 2 1/2 hours before I joined the world. Mommy's labor was 22 1/2 hours long! Mommy, Daddy and Auntie Mimi were so excited to see me! I was really blue though and didn't cry at first. Everyone was really scared but after a little bit of oxygen I started wailing. What a welcome sound that was!

Daddy and Auntie Mimi were so supportive throughout labor - Mommy couldn't have done it without them. The nurses and midwives were great too (with the exception of a few). We are all very happy that I'm finally here!!

After birth...

After I was born the doctors told Mommy and Daddy that I was Coombs positive which means that my blood isn't compatible with Mommy's blood and they got mixed together in my body. This made me more prone to jaundice, weight loss, and other issues but by the second day I was doing okay so they let us go home.

Right before we left the lactation consultant discovered that I am tongue-tied, which was making breastfeeding a little bit painful for Mommy. They referred me to a special doctor that could fix it.

We had to go see the doctor on Thursday and have more blood work done to see if my bilirubin count was getting worse. Unfortunately it was, and I lost too much weight so they admitted me to the hospital. I got to hang out in this blue incubator all day with shades on. It was so warm in there!! Mommy and Daddy were worried but figured this was pretty normal and we'd be home soon.

Being Coombs positive aggravated things though, as did the breastfeeding issues, and I kept losing weight and got dehydrated. The doctors became worried and made Mommy supplement breastfeeding with formula. She didn't want to risk using a bottle because she wants to breastfeed and that can cause problems, so they are feeding me with a syringe and tube in addition to breastfeeding and pumping. Feedings are taking a really long time now so it's a bit overwhelming for Mommy and Daddy.

We stayed overnight in the hospital again and after I produced a few really wet diapers, gained 3 ounces, and my bilirubin count went down, the doctors said I could finally go home on Friday night.

Nana came in on Wednesday from Las Vegas and has been helping Mommy and Daddy ever since. She has been incredibly helpful by cooking, cleaning, and taking care of all of us. Since sometimes it takes three people just to get me fed, we wouldn't be able to do it without her.

We are very, very glad to be home and thrilled that everything is okay now. We are settling into a routine and trying to keep our heads above water. We'll post pictures soon!