Six Things You Wish You'd Never Done

On to the next installment of this blogging exercise...

This one is hard. Generally, I try not to live with any regrets. But let's see what I can pull together.

Blog Activity, Day Five
Six Things You Wish You'd Never Done

I wish I would have never:

1. Quit playing an instrument. I played the piano when I was in elementary school, but it was forced on me by my mom (it's OK, Mom!) so it was "uncool" and I begged her to let me quit after a couple years of lessons. Instead, I picked up the flute in school and played in band until I was a sophomore in high school, at which point that became tremendously uncool and I quit that, too. I need to dig my flute out and see if I can even still play it... it's been so long. Even if I can play, though, I'm sure it's not well. So now, I regret that I can't play anything. I should've stuck with something!

2. Declined to study abroad in college. I didn't want to "miss out" on a semester at school, or an opportunity to work and earn money during summer vacation. Seriously, what an idiot. I so should've taken the opportunity to travel somewhere for a couple of months.

3. Gained weight between 8th and 11th grades. I felt so unattractive, and carrying around 30 lbs. of extra weight made an already difficult time of life even more challenging. My high school experience wasn't horrible by any means, but I think it would've been so much better if I felt better about myself. But who knows... the weight gain was the result of emotional over-eating and carelessness, so it's hard to say what came first--the chicken or the egg!

4. Lost touch with some friends over the years. I look back on my life and there are friends that I wish I was still friends with. So many great memories and it's sad that we aren't still "partners in crime," creating even more.

5. Been in such a hurry to finish college. I definitely ate up every moment of my college experience, but still, I was in a hurry to finish. I graduated in exactly four years, and I started my first job just a month after commencement. Given the current state of the economy and how much trouble college graduates are having, I feel lucky, but at the same time, I wish I could've relaxed and "lived" a little more.

6. Given up on my pregnancy journal. I'm so glad I kept up with the weekly blog posts once I started them, but I'm sad that I didn't keep up with the traditional, handwritten journal I started at the beginning of my pregnancy. I really want to be able to give Nora something some day, a journal that she can read and keep, and I'm upset that I don't have all of those entries in there as a start. Pregnant mommy FAIL.

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Nursery Reveal

I feel like there has been a significant amount of "build-up" regarding our nursery, since we've received questions about when we'd post pictures, and when we'd do the BIG REVEAL. I just hope that, now that it's here, you all aren't disappointed! Because while we love the way it turned out, I don't think it's anything out of a magazine like so many beautiful nurseries I've seen. Plus, our walls our still pretty bare--we need to add artwork, which will most likely be photos and such--but if I waited until that was all done, you guys would be waiting FOREVER for pics.

As you'll recall, we really wanted to do a gender-neutral nursery, but didn't want to go for the traditional green or yellow. For more insight into our inspiration, see my original nursery post.

So, without further ado... here are some pics of Miss Nora's nursery. Keep in mind that this was completely gender neutral until Nora arrived, at which point we added some hot pink accents. :)

View from the hallway
Wall color is Behr's "Surfer"

From the doorway.
Dresser is from JCPenney's Hartford collection.
We put a simple contoured changing pad on top to use it as a changing table, too.
The diaper pail is a simple step trash can from Target with a pail liner (since we're doing cloth diapers.)
White wall shelves are from Christmas Tree Shop.

Glider is from Babies R Us. It is the Shermag Chocolate Glider Combo.

My mom and I made this "book sling" using the instructions on this blog. It was a very easy project, and I love that it's a space-saving design. It also allows us to have access to several books from the chair, instead of having to get up to go to one of the book shelves.

Crib is also from JCPenney's Hartford Collection. (It comes in both a straight-back and curved-back style. This is obviously the straight-back.)

Bedding was DIY, made by my mom and me.
(OK, so if I'm being honest, it was pretty much 100% made by my mom. She rocks.)
We picked out the fabric and used a pattern we bought at Joann Fabrics to make the bumper and the crib skirt.
The sheet is just a plain yellow sheet from Babies R Us. Since we ended up with a girl, we also bought a hot pink crib sheet to switch things up every once in a while. :)

For her name on the wall, we purchased the wooden (white) letters at Michaels. Then I bought hot pink scrapbook paper that has a little bit of a textured design to it. I used Mod Podge to glue the paper to the letters, then used an Exacto knife to cut around the letters to make the paper fit exactly. Then I went over the top of the paper with another layer of Mod Podge to give the letters a more finished look.

Cube shelf from Target. White lamp/pink shade from Target.
Lava lamp left over from our former den. :)

Closet organization was one of the biggest challenges. The closet is really small, and we wanted to make sure to make the most of it.
We had trouble fitting the cube shelves into the closet, but we finally had success using two 3-cube shelves and stacking them on top of each other. Those are from Kmart. Fabric drawers are from Target.
The bins on the shelves up top are from Bed Bath and Beyond.

And no nursery post would be complete without a pic of the little one who inspired it all. :)

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I Broke My Ass

It was almost perfect.

I was thisclose to having an absolutely perfect labor, delivery, and postpartum experience.

*sigh*

It turns out that, on her way into this world, Miss Nora broke my ass. In other words, her little head--when it was coming down through my pelvis at lightning speed--fractured my tailbone.

I just have one word for it, really: Ouchie.

So now I am the weirdo carrying around a special ass pillow wherever I go. I just bought it today, and now I can't imagine trying to sit without it.

Without going into tremendous detail, my postpartum recovery has been pretty easy. Except for this tailbone business.

Following Nora's birth, my first complaint was about pain in my tailbone area. When the nurses made me lift my hips up off the bed to change the padding underneath me, or when I got up out of bed, I was struck by a lot of pain in my tailbone. I told them as much, and they said that a lot of pressure is put on the tailbone when you push a baby out, and because Nora came out so quickly, they said that I probably bruised it.

Throughout my time in the hospital, every time they asked me about my pain, I always mentioned the tailbone. I really didn't experience much discomfort where you'd think you'd have discomfort after a baby, despite suffering from a tear. (And no, I don't know the 'degree' of my tear. I don't know anything about it, except that I had stitches, and that it took a while for the doctors to do them. When I gently inquired about it, asking "Is it bad?" the doctor looked at me and simply said, "Um... she tore you." He didn't elaborate, and I took that to mean I DON'T WANT TO KNOW.)

The funny thing is that the entire time I was in the hospital, when the nurses would come in to do my vitals, they would always ask, "How would you rate your pain?" (on a scale of 1 to 10). The first few times they asked, I laughed so hard, because childbirth had just handed me the WORST pain I had ever felt in my life. To ask a woman to rate some simple soreness after THAT is just crazy.

Anyway, I never had an ice pack. I never needed Tucks pads. I barely used my peri bottle. I didn't have any trouble or pain from going to the bathroom. I was all good, except for the stinkin' tailbone pain.

Even so, things seemed to get better as I recovered in the hospital, and in the first few days we were home. But then the discomfort in my tailbone came back with a vengeance, so I called my doctor's office as Nora was about to turn 1 week old. I said that my tailbone pain was still pretty significant, and didn't seem to be getting better. The nurse said that a bruised coccyx can take some time to improve, told me to keep taking ibuprofen, and said that I should avoid sitting on it. Because yeah. THAT's easy to do. Especially when you have a newborn baby that needs to nurse every few hours. Ugh.

Then, last week, I started to feel a "clicking" when I'd sit down or shift my weight while sitting. Like I can feel the bone moving in there. Ewwww. It was then that I became convinced that my tailbone is officially fractured. The clicking is accompanied by some pretty intense pain shooting through the area. Ouch, ouch, ouch.

The continued pain (with no improvement) + clicking = broken tailbone. I was sort of hoping that my doctor would insist on an x-ray just so I could have photographic proof of my broken ass (I mean, come on... that's one for the baby book!), but alas, there is nothing that can really be done for a broken coccyx, so it's pretty pointless to x-ray.

I talked to my doctor's office again today and they recommended getting a coccyx pillow to help ease the pressure on the bone while I'm sitting. I had to make a special trip to a medical supply store to get one, but $15.50 later, I AM SO GLAD I DID.

My doctor said that I should expect my tailbone to be healed by the time of my postpartum appointment (six weeks after the birth, so a little less than four weeks from now). Thank goodness.

If, for some reason, it's not healed after six weeks, I will be referred to an orthopedic specialist.

FOR MY ASS.

Dude. Let's hope that's not necessary.

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Two Weeks

Nora is already two weeks old!

It's funny for us to think about how, a little more than two weeks ago, we didn't have her yet. It's true that once they're here, you have a hard time remembering what life was like before.

Our first week with Michael back at work went well. It was hard having him leave the first day or two, but now we're developing a bit of a routine. I'll admit to feeling a little bit lonely sometimes, but generally, the days go by so fast. I don't really know how, since at the end of the day, I never feel like I've accomplished much, but somehow, living from feeding to feeding and trying to squeeze in a shower, a load of laundry, or a little computer time in between makes the day fly by.

After we spent Monday and Tuesday at home all day long, I couldn't take it anymore so we've been trying to get out of the house on a fairly regular basis, too. I've been taking the baby on a few errands every couple of days so I don't go stir crazy. And while the errands make me feel more productive, they make the days go by even FASTER.

It's really hard to find the time to blog. I also have newborn photos I want and need to edit, but I haven't even transferred them off of my camera yet. :( I'm going to try to set aside an hour or so every day this week to make a bit of progress on that front. I want to get birth announcements out!

A little update on Nora...

Nora has been a champion eater AND sleeper. I'm afraid to say these things out loud, but (knock on wood) she's been a really good baby.

We took her to the pediatrician for her two-week check-up on Friday, and she is up to 6 lbs., 13 oz. She gained exactly nine ounces in nine days, which the doctor says couldn't be more perfect. She's between the 10th and 20th percentiles for everything, so she's a peanut all around. :)

She still sleeps a lot, but has been having longer periods of awake time the last several days. I love when she is awake and content (fed, clean, dry, warm). She just stares, and will listen to songs, stories, or study our faces. It's so cute. Other than that, she doesn't really *do* much, so our lives aren't very "exciting." But even so, life couldn't be better. I love every minute with my girl.

Some photos from the last week or so...

First walk! (We've been on several others since then, too. I think she loves the fresh air.)

"Mommy, PLEASE! No more pictures!"

Funny sleep position

Soothing herself with her index finger. Sweet angel.



I've cut her nails like four times in the last two weeks. They grow SO FAST. She manages to scratch herself sometimes, but I feel bad having those little mittens on her all the time, too.

Her loooooong fingers

And looooooong toes

Wide awake one morning this past week. I love these little nightgowns, they make middle of the night diaper changes very easy.

Another walk. I love the Pooh hat.

Reading a bedtime story with Daddy

The onesie says "If you think I'm pretty, you should see my mommy." Love how she makes *this* face when I try to take a photo of it. HA! :)

Yesterday, we took Nora on her first trip to the apple orchard. She rode the wagon...

...and helped Mommy select the perfect apples from the trees.

All while staying cozy in the Moby wrap.

Appropriate onesie, right? :)

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Seven Things That Cross Your Mind A Lot

I'm determined to finish this blogging exercise, even if it takes me forever.

Blog Activity, Day Four
Seven Things That Cross Your Mind A Lot

1. I can't believe I have a daughter. I'm a parent. Whoa.

2. What should we have for dinner?

3. I need a vacation. Where should we go to next?

4. What do people see in The Real Housewives, The Kardashians, Paris Hilton, Kate Gosselin, [fill in the blank with other reality stars]? I don't get why these people are famous.

5. I wish there were more hours in the day. And that I had endless energy to go along with that. There is so much I could get done.

6. Why can't laundry do itself?

7. I wish exercise was more fun.

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Mini Me

From the day she was born, it's been clear that Nora is our child. The resemblance is uncanny. Except she's not a mini me... she's a mini him.

Ask almost anyone and they'll say that Nora looks just like her daddy.

The funny thing is that people tell me this, and they say it apologetically. Like I'm going to be upset that my child looks like her father. Um, I chose to have a baby with this man, people. He's my husband. Clearly it's not something to be angry over?

When Nora was born, I wasn't immediately struck by her resemblance to Michael. I was pretty sure she had his nose, and my mouth. Before bed that first night in the hospital, I was lying there, staring at her every feature, and I laughed so hard when I got to her toes, because... they are totally Michael's toes.

But then someone commented on the blog birth announcement, saying she looked just like her daddy, and I thought, "Really?" It wasn't that I disagreed, it was just that I was surprised that someone could see it so clearly and so quickly.

At our first pediatrician's appointment, the doctor approached Nora to examine her and stopped short in her tracks and said, "Oh my!" She took a step back and looked at us, and before saying anything further, inquired, "Who do you think she looks like?" I said, "Everyone keeps telling us she looks like him!" and I motioned to Michael. The doctor said, "YES! EXACTLY like him." :)

I think it's adorable, really. And the more time I spent studying little Nora's features, the more I started to see it. I still think she has my mouth, but that might be just about it... at least for now. I'm curious to see how she develops as she grows.

Last week, I suddenly had a memory of a photo of Michael as a baby, one we had used in our photo slideshow for our rehearsal dinner more than two years ago. In my head, I could see him and, well... he looked just like Nora. Or, rather, Nora looked just like him in the picture. On Saturday, I pulled out the DVD slideshow to take a look, and show my in-laws as well.

I was so, so right. See for yourself:

Nora, 2010

Michael, 1981

Even the fingers are the same. And the hair. I swear, if I didn't know any better, someone could present me with that photo of Michael and I'd think it was my baby girl.

This puts a whole 'nother spin on "Daddy's Little Girl." And I love it. :)

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Spaghetti & Meatballs

A few weeks ago, when I prepped a bunch of meals for freezing, one of the things I made was spaghetti and meatballs. Well, more accurately, I made meatballs and sauce.

When we do pasta night at our house, we typically go with pasta and marinara sauce (out of a jar. I KNOW). If we do spice things up and add meat to the dish, we generally choose to make meat sauce, since it's quick and so tasty.

My husband has been begging for homemade meatballs for months, so when it came time to plan for frozen meals, I finally added them to the list. I had bookmarked a recipe at Annie's Eats a long, long time ago, so I went back to that. It was relatively simple, so we bought enough ingredients to double the recipe--to make one batch for eating right away, and another for freezing to eat after the baby was born.

The end results are meatballs that are tender and flavorful, and a great, traditional sauce. The great thing about sauce recipes is that you can adapt them to your tastes. Add whatever spices you like, add more or less, and make it into what you want it to be. For us, we added a bunch of crushed red pepper because we like a little spice.

If you're looking for a basic spaghetti and meatballs recipe to become a dinner "staple," this could be it. Give it a whirl.

Spaghetti and Meatballs
(Source: Annie's Eats)

Ingredients:
For the sauce:
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 (28 oz.) can tomato puree
- 1 (28 oz.) can tomato sauce
- 2 tsp. dried parsley
- 1 tsp. dried basil
- 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
- 2 tsp. salt
- 2 tbsp. sugar
- 1/2 cup of water (or more)

For the meatballs:
- 1/2 cup bread crumbs, divided
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 1 tsp. dried parsley
- 1/2 cup grated Romano cheese
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1/4 tsp. garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 1 lb. ground beef, pork and veal mixture (or 1 lb. ground sirloin)

For serving:
- Freshly cooked spaghetti
- Shredded Parmesan cheese
- Minced fresh basil

Directions:
1. To make the sauce, heat the olive oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion to the pot and saute until tender, 5-8 minutes. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, stirring, about 1 minute. Add the tomato puree, tomato sauce, parsley, basil, oregano, salt and sugar. Add water to thin the sauce out to your desired consistency (I would estimate that I add about 1/2 cup). Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to a simmer. Let simmer for at least 2 hours.

2. To make the meatballs, in a medium mixing bowl combine 1/4 cup of the bread crumbs with the milk. Let the bread crumbs soak for 10 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients to the bowl and mix thoroughly. Form the mixture into meatballs (I usually get about 20-25 out of one batch). Add the meatballs to the simmering sauce about 45 minutes before the sauce will be finished cooking. Cover and let simmer until the meatballs are cooked through, 35-45 minutes.

3. Transfer freshly cooked pasta to serving dishes. Top each serving with sauce and meatballs. Garnish with shredded Parmesan and fresh basil, if desired.

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What's in a name?

We kept our baby name choices a secret throughout my entire pregnancy, even though we were pretty much 100% settled on them from the very beginning. We never even opened a baby name book, as we had a boy's name and a girl's name already in mind from conversations we had before I even got pregnant.

The secrecy drove a lot of people crazy and sometimes we got questions as to why we were doing it that way. The thing is, we just REALLY wanted the surprise--with both the baby's sex AND the name reveal. It was also nice that we never got any unwanted "feedback" about our choices since we didn't share them to begin with. (Although, now that it's been revealed, we've been overwhelmed by the positive reactions we've received!)

Now that Nora is here, we've gotten a lot of questions about her name. Why we chose it, what it means, and most of all... what was the boy name choice?

And, well, I can't help with that last question. :) We had so much fun keeping the names secret from everyone that we've decided that we'll likely do the same thing next time, too. And that means we won't be revealing our boy name choice, just in case we want to use it for a potential future baby boy. Sorry, people.

But for Nora...

We don't really know where Nora came from. We're not sure where we heard it, or when we first discussed it. It's just a name that we discovered at some point and decided that we both really liked it. We knew that when it came time to name our kids, we didn't want anything super popular, but we also didn't want anything completely unique or obscure. We like nice, "normal" names.

Depending on your source, Nora means "honor" or "light."

Our choice of Grace for a middle name has a bit more of a story behind it. When I got pregnant, we were already decided on the first names, but we weren't sure what we were going to do for the middle names. One thing we did know was that we wanted to use family names. We discussed several different options over the first several months of pregnancy.

I really wanted to honor my great-grandmother, who died in 2002 at the age of 96. She was greatly loved and respected and we all cherished her as a member of our family. There was so much to love about her, as she had the best personality. It's actually really fitting that I'm telling you all about her today, as September 20 was her birthday.

My great-grandmother's name was Madeline.

As much as I love the name Madeline, it didn't seem to fit quite right (Nora Madeline), plus it seemed a bit long for a middle name--especially when put with our last name. One day, I was thinking about my great-grandma and remembered the stories about her nickname--Gracie.

My great-grandfather (whom I never met, as he died before I was born) always called his wife Gracie. Back in the 1950s, there was a show called "Burns and Allen" that starred George Burns and Gracie Allen. Apparently, my great-grandparents loved this show. On it, Gracie Allen played a really ditzy character--and to tease her for her own (sometimes) ditzy nature, my great-grandfather dubbed my great-grandmother "Gracie." And it stuck.

And so I came up with the possibility of using Grace as the middle name for Nora. I asked Michael if he liked Nora Grace, and as it turned out, he loved it.

Next thing we knew, our little Nora Grace was born. And although it may not be as obvious a connection as using her real name, our daughter's middle name was chosen in recognition of the matriarch of my family, one whom we miss very much.

Happy Birthday, Grandma. I hope you are looking down at Nora with a smile. I know you are part of the group of angels who sent her to us, and for that, I thank you so, so much. I love you.

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Heather Drive Baby Pool - WINNER!

In all, 167 people entered the Heather Drive Baby Pool. Thank you to everyone who participated; it was really fun to see the guesses pour in and added to the excitement while we anticipated the arrival of our baby.

The results were mathematically calculated by ExpectNet. The most important aspect of the guessing was the baby's sex--if you were wrong about that, you had no chance of winning! Then the other elements were taken into consideration as well, and everyone was given points for their guesses based on how close or far off they were. The object of the game was to actually get the LEAST amount of points.

Without further ado, the winner of the Heather Drive Baby Pool is...

CHRISTIE FROM TENNESSEE!! :)

To refresh your memories, Nora was born at 3:29 a.m. on 9/11/10, weighed 6 lbs., 10 oz., and was 20 inches long.

Christie correctly guessed that we were having a girl, and also guessed the correct birth date. She was also pretty darn close on the baby's weight and length. Way to go, Christie!

If you'd like to see how you ranked, you can check out the Heather Drive Baby Pool page to see all results.

Christie is the winner of a vintage apron of her choice from Etsy seller Terrace Hill, and the Martha Stewart Cupcakes book.

Congrats to Christie, and thanks again to all of you for playing!

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Due Date

Today is my due date. I would be 40 weeks pregnant today, but instead, I woke up snuggling my 1-week-old baby girl this morning.

Because I gave birth to Nora right at my 39-week mark, I never took a "39 week" pregnancy photo. My last pregnancy photo was at 38 weeks. Still, I thought it would be fun to document the due date by taking a photo, just as I have every week since January.

"40 Weeks" = 1 Week Postpartum

It is so amazing to look at Nora and know that just a week ago, she was curled up inside of me. She still spends a lot of her time with her feet and legs folded up in a way that looks totally uncomfortable, and it's funny to think that those little legs, knees, and feet were poking me in the sides for so long. I look at the way she clasps her hands together and wonder if she did that when she was in the womb. I listen to her hiccups and remember what it was like to feel them from the inside.

And now she is here, and she is beautiful, and I cannot imagine life without her. I am happier than I have ever been. I love her so much it makes me cry. I can't believe a week has already passed, and it actually breaks my heart to think about how fast she will grow. I know that every stage of babyhood/childhood has something to love about it, and I look forward to that--but it is so hard to know that she will never again be this small. It makes me ache. (I'm thinking this is an effect of my out-of-whack hormones, yes?)

OK, with tears in my eyes, I have to talk about something else before I start bawling!

One week after my lightning labor and delivery experience, I am feeling pretty good in terms of recovery. I am still suffering from some pretty annoying tailbone pain, but I'm hopeful that will be improving soon. Everything else seems to be going exceptionally well. I've never had much pain where my stitches are, in fact I never even needed an ice pack in the hospital. As with everything else regarding this pregnancy, I just can't complain!

At my last doctor's appointment on Thursday 9/9, I had gained a total of 26 lbs. Once we were home from the hospital, I weighed myself when I woke up on Tuesday morning, and I was down 14 lbs. When I weighed myself again on Thursday, I was down 19 lbs. I'm pretty happy with my 1-week-postpartum body, but things definitely have a way to go. I tried on my pre-pregnancy jeans the other day, and they actually buttoned--but were a bit too tight to wear comfortably. I'm in a really awkward stage right now, because I am too small for maternity clothes, but my pre-pregnancy pants just don't fit yet. This first week, I've been able to get away with wearing all "comfy clothes," but I do have the itch to wear REAL clothes again. So perhaps I will have to bust out the Bella Band again so I can wear my pre-pregnancy pants.

In other news, I can wear my wedding rings again! After I showered on Tuesday morning, I decided to fish them out of my drawer and see if they fit. Sure enough, they slid right back on my finger. Yay! It took me a few days to actually get used to wearing them again. I'd been without them since 33 weeks.

Not to get all emotional again, but Michael has to go back to work on Monday and I'm already dreading it. It has been so great to be home together as a family. And again, it's another stage of this experience that is coming to an end already. And here I go, about to cry again... HORMONES ARE THE DEVIL.

Nora is doing beautifully--eating well, still sleeping a lot. I love when she spends a good bit of time with her eyes open. I just stare into those blue (I think?) eyes and talk to her. We are all getting about as much sleep as can be expected at this point. I would definitely welcome some longer stretches of sleep at night, but I also don't really mind having the time with her in the middle of the night. You'd think that when you spend a good portion of the night awake, the days would seem so long--but as we progress through the day and night, living from feeding to feeding, the time just flies. Instead of being grateful to be able to fall into bed at the end of every day, I'm actually always a little sad for it to come to a close. Hormones. AGAIN.

With that, I'll leave you with some photos from the last few days. LOVE.

Aunt Melissa and Uncle Andy came to meet Nora today. Aunt Melissa was pretty smitten! :)

All cleaned up to go to a wedding

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A New Life

The last five days have been both a whirlwind and an eternity. I can't believe Nora is already nearing the one-week mark, but I also can't believe that it was ONLY five days ago that I pushed her out into the world. It seems like she's been in our lives forever, and I already can't imagine not having her with us.

So how do we sum up the last five days? Well, there's a lot to say, so excuse me while I babble on and show you about 500 pictures of our baby girl. Since I'm so behind, this is going to be the LONGEST POST EVER. I apologize in advance if I bore the crap out of you. But LOOK! Pretty pictures! (Hopefully that makes up for it?)

Mama and Nora, shortly after delivery

Following Nora's birth, I was put on an IV drip of Pitocin to stimulate contractions in my uterus so that it would begin to return to its normal size. Because the hospital was so busy, we were able to hang out in our delivery room for quite a while before being transferred to the room where I would spend the remainder of my recovery days. But when I was moved, I had to do something they almost never have to do at the hospital--I had to share a room! I was wheeled into someone else's room and had to share it with her for about three hours, at which time she was discharged and I was left with a private room (thank goodness!).

I had a really awesome stay in the hospital. Honestly, it was all due to my nurses--I loved every single one of them. Well, with the exception of my discharge nurse. She sucked. Thankfully, by that time, we were on our way out, so it didn't much matter.

On Saturday, because Nora was born so early in the morning, I actually got several hours with her all on my own before we had anyone else come up to the hospital. That was really nice. Of course, my mom was there when she was born, and my in-laws stopped up shortly after, but everyone headed back home to go back to sleep and let me get some rest. I never did sleep (although exhausted, I think I was running on excitement and adrenaline), but it was still nice to have some quiet time.

My dad had left Virginia around 2:30 a.m., and he arrived at the hospital around 10:30. He was very happy to get his hands on his first granddaughter! :)

Throughout the afternoon, we had several visitors, including proud aunties Marie and Kara, and big cousin, Hunter.

Unfortunately, Uncle Trevor was away at drill for the National Guard, and Uncle Tyler had to work all day. But in the evening, Tyler and my dad came back up so he could meet Nora.

After that, everyone headed home, including Michael so he could get some rest (and tend to Tessa at home). I sent the baby to the nursery so I could get some sleep as well. I was surprised when I woke up to go to the restroom and saw that I had been sleeping for five hours without them bringing Nora in. Sure enough, a few minutes later the nurse wheeled her into the room saying she was hungry.

The nurse got me settled into feeding the baby, and as I sat there, I suddenly began to shake uncontrollably. It started with a chill that ran up my spine and quickly turned into teeth chattering. I pressed my call button and the nurse came in, whisked the baby back to the nursery, then came back to try to relieve my chills. She loaded me up with about six regular blankets, plus two heated blankets, heat packs, and turned the thermostat up. Still, I was shaking violently, which was tremendously uncomfortable. The nurse also repeatedly took my temperature, and soon enough, I was spiking a 102-degree fever. :( My chills finally subsided, and I was seen by a doctor who started me on IV antibiotics to treat an infection she suspected was beginning in my uterus. So that was some unexpected excitement in the middle of the night on Saturday/Sunday.

Throughout the rest of my hospital stay, I never did experience any other symptoms of infection, but I had to be on 24 hours of the IV antibiotics. Not a big deal, but it sucked to have the IV line back in my hand, since I had been so glad when they took it out on Saturday afternoon (after the Pitocin and fluids were done).

On Sunday, we had several more visitors including family and friends. Aunt Cristina drove home from college to meet her new niece...

...and a large group from Michael's side of the family came as well.

At 1:00, the Bills game started, and we hosted my family (both brothers, Kara, Marie, Hunter, and my dad) in the room for a good portion of the game.

My dad hit the road to return to Virginia at around 3:00 p.m. It was too short of a stay, but he'll be back in a few weeks for Tyler and Marie's wedding, so we'll get to see him again soon.

Sunday evening was quiet. Michael and I got to enjoy some family time with Nora, which was nice. I also trimmed the little bugger's nails for the first time, since she had been clawing me with her daggers.

On Monday morning, I was told that I was going to be discharged since my fever/infection had not reared its ugly head again.

We had a relaxing morning in our room, and we got Nora dressed in clothes for the first time ever. I loved her little going home outfit! A few weeks ago, we went shopping and bought a little boy's outfit and a little girl's outfit for going home.

The TIGHTS. Oh my gosh, they put me over the edge. Too cute.

We were held up a bit by a few different things, none of which were helped by my shitty nurse, but we finally left the hospital around 2:30 p.m.

Ready to go!

Baby Nora slept the whole way home, and seemed to like the car. I sat in the back seat with her, of course. :)

Once home, things kind of changed for the worst, to be honest. First, Tessa was so freaked out by Nora that it was completely overwhelming for Michael and I. She wanted to be all over the baby, was whining incessantly, and generally being a pain in the ass. We knew to expect this, but still--things had been so much easier in the hospital!

My emotions hit me full force. I had been so excited to come home, and once we were here, all I wanted to do was go back. It sounds funny, but I was sad that the hospital part was over. I would think about my wonderful nurses and cry because I knew I would never see them again. All I can say is that hormones are evil bitches.

A few pics of Nora in her crib at home...

To add to my stress, Nora suddenly decided to stop eating. I had a little trouble getting her to latch on Monday morning (around 10 a.m.) while we were still in the hospital. She had been doing really well prior to that, so I didn't think much of it, and a nurse was able to help me get her fed. Before we left the hospital, I called the lactation consultant to have her come help me, as she had told me beforehand that she could show me how to get Nora on the breast in a less painful way (I was SUPER sore on the right side). Well, even with the LC's help, we couldn't get her to wake enough to feed. The LC said that she just wasn't hungry and to try again when we got home.

And well, I tried. And tried again. And again. And again.

Every time I put Nora into the feeding position and tried to get her to latch, she would scream bloody murder. And when I'd take her away, she'd settle right down and go back to sleep. I didn't worry too much at first, but by 8 p.m., it had been 10 HOURS since my little one had eaten and I knew something wasn't right. I was extremely frustrated that my daughter suddenly "did not want me" and I called the pediatrician's after hours line.

The pedi on call suggested trying to cup feed Nora some formula to "take the edge off" her hunger. She said that Nora was likely OVER-hungry at this point, and because my milk hadn't come in yet, she had grown frustrated and didn't want to put the effort into nursing to get so little food. So we cup fed her formula, and I was able to get her to latch for a while. We thought everything was looking up.

But as the night (and middle of the night) wore on, she became increasingly agitated with breastfeeding and all we could do was give her the cup. My milk did end up coming in the middle of the night--the pedi had also suggested trying to pump, and I was suddenly able to get a really good amount pumped. Still, Nora wouldn't take the breast--only the breast milk from the cup.

The pediatrician's office called first thing on Tuesday morning to see how the overnight had gone, and when I said it had been pretty terrible, they told me they wanted us to come in later that morning.

At the doctor's office, Nora was weighed. At birth, she was 6 lbs., 10 oz. At discharge from the hospital, she was 6 lbs., 1 oz. On Tuesday, she was 5 lbs., 15 oz.

Our appointment was with the nurse practitioner, and she was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G. She watched as I tried to feed Nora and saw how Nora was reacting. She went and got a couple bottles of formula, had me feed a little bit to Nora, and then asked me to try breastfeeding again. She showed me a different way to get her latched so she would likely get more milk, and therefore be more satisfied. Sure enough, the little one latched right on.

The nurse practitioner told us to keep cup feeding her to take the edge off at the beginning of the feeding, then see how she'd do with the new way to latch. She said they wanted us to come back the next day (Wednesday) to see how things were going and see the pediatrician.

Well, guess what? We got home and never had to go back to cup feeding. Nora suddenly decided to become a breastfeeding champion again, and we've been doing well ever since.

When we went back to the pediatrician yesterday, Nora's weight was up to 6 lbs., 4 oz. Little one gained FIVE OUNCES in just 24 hours!! The pediatrician actually laughed because it was such an awesome gain. The pedi was able to give us some extra reassurance that everything was normal and we were doing fine.

Also, Tessa has been making huge strides. She is SO MUCH BETTER now than she was when we first got home. I was honestly freaking out inside on that first day, thinking there was no way she was ever going to adjust, but I was wrong. She is doing beautifully, and although she still has her moments (mostly when Nora is crying), she is gentle and totally fine around the baby. In fact, check out this photo of the four of us snuggling in bed yesterday morning...

It's such a relief.

The sleep deprivation has been a little bit of a challenge, but it's actually way better than I expected it to be. I guess I can handle living with less sleep than I thought I could. We'll see how it goes over the next few weeks, though, as I know it has only been a few days at this point.

We've also been able to get out of the house, which is nice. We've run a few errands each day, and this morning, we actually went out to breakfast.

All in all, we're doing really well at home now. We love this little girl so much that it hurts. It's incredible how you can develop a bond like that in such a short period of time. I just want to hold, snuggle, hug and kiss her all of the time. I love my life.

OK, I'll finally shut up now, and leave you with a few more photos of our little one. We couldn't be more proud. :)

P.S. For those who have been asking... nursery reveal will be coming (hopefully) very soon. Also, I'll be posting about the winner of the Heather Drive Baby Pool! Stay tuned. :)

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