Germfest 2009

Wow. This super virus is insane. We are all (besides Koen) sweating, shaking, coughing, tired etc. Gary had to take Kai to the emergency room at 10pm last night because he had a temp of 103F and wasn't drinking anything etc. They were really good to him there, talking in 2 year old language for him (ex. looking for bananas in his ears etc). They doubled the recommended dose of tylenol and advil. I have heard so many warnings against giving too much so I always give the exact amount. Apparently when you are a 2 year old that weighs 35lbs, you need more:) Fortunately they were back after 1.5 hours. Kai is not himself. He just says he's so tired all day. We tried to go for a walk yesterday and after 5 steps he said he was too tired. That is not our energetic boy. All he had to eat yesterday and today was a popsicle and an applesauce. Gary was able to come home at noon today to take care of Koen (who may be in a growth spurt eating every 2 hours throughout the night and day...TIRING) so that i could nap for 1/2 hour.
Watching Treehouse all day long...

All this guy does is snuggle and sleep and eat and poop. I'm not used to such a cuddle bug! I'm really praying that he does not get sick because this virus is nasty. Tomorrow we are going to the doctor for his first check up...hopefully all looks well!! Well, time to get back into the recliner. I cannot wait to have a healthy household.

Sick

Gary was sweating all night and has been coughing up a storm with cold #2 in 2 weeks. He still went to work today. I am still trying to get over cold #2. Kai is currently lying on the couch with a cough which he's had for 10 days AND a fever of 101F. Koen appears to be getting by okay which is our priority. I have no idea how he's making it through this germfest of a house with us coughing on him all day and night. I'm sick of us being sick. I need summer. My poor little boy. When he said he didn't want any food for breakfast, I knew right away something was wrong. I'm not trying to be a complainy pants, just letting you know what the Chapman household is looking like right now...not pretty.

The Latest

There are no pictures in this post because the idea of taking pictures, uploading and then posting them is just too much for today:) Gary is sick now. Great. Usually he will do a diaper change in the night but I `gave' him the night off. He has a very busy week with bball pretty much every night. I don't know when he'll have a chance to rest up and get better. At least Kai and Koen are pretty much okay...phew!





Yesterday we went to church. It was our first real outing as a family! Kai was wonderful in Sunday school and Koen napped quietly in my arms and then drank the bottle that I had pumped for him. Our pastor (my bro-in-law) had us go to the front to pray for Koen and our family. It was def. a discussion when Kai was born because I grew up with infant baptism and Gary did not. It's not that I wanted the baptism, I just wanted something more official. Something where the congregation and family let their commitment be made known that they would keep us accountable and help us keep our child `on track'. Something where we would publicly profess our desire to raise our son in a Christian home and do our best to model Christ. Regardless, I guess whether it is publicly said or not, we know we do have support of those around us and we know what our intentions are.





I am feeling quite well. Tired though. Koen has been having forceful projectile vomiting at about 9pm the past two nights. The whole feed comes up. So gross. Then he is up for about 3 hours with extremely painful gas. He sort of settles when lying on me but I'm too scared to go to sleep with him on me because I don't trust myself asleep! I have given up dairy starting today to see if that makes a difference. It did for Kai. I can't believe the amount of gas and poop coming out of this kid, there is no way we are starting cloth diapers with him until it settles down. Seriously, over 10 poops/day. Gross. Let's also say that I'm pumping for half of the feeds for comforts sake. He is still not very alert which is kind of strange but we will see the doctor on Thursday and hopefully all is well.



(a baby announcement I made yesterday...not sure if I love it but not sure if I have energy to work on it more!)

I'm writing this post because I didn't want the post below it to show up right when you opened up this blog. If you are queasy, don't look!!!

C-section pictures

Just warning you....some of you may not want to look:) Once the head was out, Gary was allowed to take pictures. I just thought they were kinda cool. To anyone who thinks that a C-section is the easy way out...it is not. Also, recovering from a planned C-section is WAY better than going through labour and ending with an emergency one!

















(I def. felt how wide his shoulder/abdomen were during this part!)




















(It's a boy!! Then they wrapped him up and laid him on me for a few minutes))





(crying...)

Pics of Baby Koen

Today my sisters Jackie and Trisha took Kai swimming. Apparently he LOVED it and he came back saying he was a dolphin. He also may have put up a bit of a fuss when leaving because he was having too much fun....While he was gone, Gary and I took some pictures of Koen. Usually one of us takes pics and the other manages the lights. This time, one of us was always in the picture and Koen was a little fussy so I was a little flustered. I think we will take more when he is a few week older so we can see his big blue eyes:) Check out GC Photography for some of those pics. I will post on of my favs here.

By the way, I feel sooooo good! I seriously sleep 2 hour chunks at a time and get about 6 hours a night. This is sooooo different than last time and I'm just so happy about it! At night, Koen fusses for maybe 5 minutes after a feed, we swaddle him up, and fast asleep he goes. I cannot wait for nicer weather and a little more strength so I can take the kiddos for a walk in the double stroller.

One Week Old

Koen (pronouced Ko-en) is one week old today! Some students misunderstood his name and thought that we had named him `colon' because we are science teachers:)

He is still quite an easy baby. He sleeps for about 16 hours in a 24 hour period and the one hour he is up in each 3 hour cycle, he is just pigging out (about 4-5 oz per feed now!), farting...the usual. He hasn't been too alert yet but his most alert time is about 10pm. He naps in his car seat in the living room (where I hang out) and he sleeps in the bassinet beside our bed. I wonder if he's just super dozy because he was born early or if this is what he will really be like!!!

I'm feeling better. I went for a walk to the mailbox yesterday. Okay, so it was only 3 blocks, but i was just testing myself out. This morning Maria came by and we took the kids to the park. I pushed Koen in the stroller and it was no problem. There is no way I could manage Kai though by myself. Maria pointed out that he is quite a handful. I'm not sure if that's a boy thing or just a Kai thing. My cold is 50% gone, my engorgement is 50% gone, so I am feeling good. I feel so much LESS tired this time around. It could be that it's just been one week and the `fun' is just around the corner, OR, maybe an easy baby + toddler= easier than 1 fussy baby.

(Niece Ani brave enough to hold Koen)

I am slightly nervous about basketball over the next 2.5 months. I find the 5-7 pm hours a little challenging by myself but yesterday went okay so we will see. I CANNOT wait until bball is done. I'm so happy that Gary has an awesome assistant coach that is freeing Gary up to miss a couple games from the tourney this weekend. That means he will be home for dinner tonight!!!

We might try to take some studio pics of Koen this weekend but at this rate, they'll all be sleeping ones:) I don't think there is any way we can get a decent picture of Kai and Koen together, although, a few jellybeans might get us something that will do.

I think the hardest part is not being able to be active enough with Kai. He needs to get rid of a lot of excess energy, and right now, I cannot chase after him. Fortunately, family members have been taking him for about an hour a day to run off some steam!

Kai said that he was a truck too. Not sure how that works. Kai has been fighting a cold which fortunately makes him sleepy and want to go to bed. Is that mean? I'm sad that he's sick but I'm glad he WANTS to go to bed again:) Kai has adapted well. He is def. NOT gentle with the baby so I cannot leave Koen alone. He does not appear jealous at all and gets upset if my dad jokes about taking Koen home with him. So far....so good!

Well, 1-2pm is my nap time so I better use my time wisely while I can!

First Few Days At Home

This probably isn't interesting but I realized last time that I did not document anything on how I was feeling/recovering etc and I wish I did so looking back I could see how it was different or the same...

(Kai and Koen interacting at home the first time)


Good:
-Koen is a FABULOUS baby. He only cries for a minute when being changed and usually lets me know he's hungry by sucking his hand before he even cries. I know this doesn't always last but already, such an easier transition than last time!!!! He has already surpassed his birth weight. I have bonded to him immediately and it makes me feel a little guilty that it took so long with Kai but I think a lot of it had to do with Kai's birth and temperament. He is such a snuggler and goes down without a fuss...please let this continue!!!
-We are now adapted to our 3 hour schedule. Phew. Last time we used the E.A.S.Y method from Baby Whisperer and I hope to do it again (Eat, Awake, Sleep, You time). Right now he takes anywhere from 15 minutes to one hour to eat and then we keep him up for about 10 more and then off to sleep! Last night I slept 2 hours in a row which was the longest stretch so far. I think I slept 5-6 hours in total...not bad!!
-Kai always says hi to baby Koen (that's what he calls him, `Baby Koen') and asks him funny questions. He isn't too interested in him which is fine with me. We had one incident the first day when i said he can only touch Koen's hands. I turned around for one second and then Kai announced he was pulling off Koen's finger. Uh oh.
-Having Gary here has been AWESOME. He goes back to work tomorrow. I have really just been focusing on myself and on Koen. Gary has been doing everything; taking care of Kai, diapers, laundry, food, cleaning. Love it. I've got different family members coming on Thursday and Friday during lunch and Kai's bedtime to help out a bit. We'll see how it goes!!!
-I have way more abdominal strength after C-section than I did last time. I'm hoping that means my recovery goes faster but I am taking it super easy. I forget how long it takes for the belly to go down to normal size. I currently look about 4 months pregnant and am wearing Gary's clothes for comfort...I think last time it was about 6 weeks before I was my `normal' self.


Bad:
-my cold has been so bad. Coughing was the hardest thing to do. I have to stop whatever I'm doing, lean over, put a pillow over my incision and attempt to cough with minimal abdominal muscles. This means if I'm feeding or sleeping I have to quickly leap up and take care of it. I even went to the clinic yesterday but she said it was just some virus and I have to wait it out. Last night I took some cough and cold medicine and it knocked me out. Hopefully its okay to take, it did wonders for me and I'm going to keep taking it at night. I think that I'm feeling a bit better today and the coughing doesn't hurt as much.
-engorgement. I'm at a level considered `severely engorged'. I'm on day 4. It is painful and its even difficult to breath with the weight on my chest. I'm not exagerating. It's difficult for feeding (at night, I just pump and then feed him after Koen and I just got way too frustrated trying to make it work. Through this I've found that Koen is drinking 3-4 ounces per feed..wowzers, that's a lot for a 5 day old!). I have done all I can but there is so much controversy over whether to pump out excess, just pump a little to make it easier to feed etc. Every person and resource tells me something different. I just know that this stage will pass, although last time, i think it only lasted 3 days. I think I have enough in me to feed about 6 babies:)

***

I'm curious to see how it goes on my own. I'm not sure how I will work a shower into the equation...as for the house, I haven't cared about the mess so far. Yay.
***

Kai's prayer at lunch today: Dear God, thank you for the eggs, thank you for eyes, thank you for ears. Amen
***
Finally, I think we are done. I think our family feels complete. I know I can't make any decisions right now but I'm pretty certain. People wondered if I was sad that I didn't have a girl. I wasn't at all. I'm so thankful that I wasn't sad. I really enjoy having a boy and now I get to have two! Gary is super pumped as well:)

Koen Jacob Daniel Chapman

*warning: one graphic picture half way down!!*

Koen (dutch spelling of Cohen which seems to have confused a lot of people? Means brave/daring...I just like the sound of it)

Jacob (my dad's name)

Daniel (Gary's dad's name)

9lbs 7oz, 20 inches, 10:30am, January 2nd

January 2nd, we went in for our scheduled C-section.

We were bumped a bit as it was the first day after a holiday but finally at 9am, they started wheeling me down to the OR. I had a fabulous team in there that made sure I was super comfortable. I actually really enjoyed the surgery as I asked lots of questions and even got to see the exceptionally large placenta and cord (no pics, sorry!). Gary was able to get some shots of Koen's head and body coming out of my abdomen and he said I should post one so don't say I didn't warn you:)

(they first grabbed him out under his ear so that is why it looks all crinkly)

When they pulled him out and I heard him cry (10:30am), I totally started crying. Then, the doctor announced it was a boy! I kept crying (for happiness, don't worry!). They let me hold him for a long time and then Gary went with him upstairs to the nursery.

I started getting nauseous but the anesthesiologist quickly pumped me up on some drugs and I felt great (ish). I was in recovery for one hour. I could wiggle my toes after 30 minutes but because they had given me nausea meds, I had to wait a bit longer. Sure enough, as soon as they were wheeling me upstairs I felt super nauseous again so we had to take our time. If I took more meds, I would've had to wait another 30 minutes. By the way, vomitting with an incision like that=no fun!!!

I had guessed that if we had a boy, he would be 9 lbs 2oz, well, he was 9 lbs 7oz. When they pulled him out I felt so light! I could tell he had a huge midsection. He is a whole 2 inches shorter than Kai was but has chubbier legs:) When I got back up to the maternity ward, it was a bit stressful as his blood sugar levels were so low. They had warned us before hand that if it was low they would like to supplement with formula and I gave the okay on that. What a fiasco that first 24 hours would be. Every 2 hours or so, I would feed him for 20 minutes and then Gary would give him a bottle of formula (he drank soooooo much...a 30-40mL bottle no problem at each feed). He was not latching on to me very well because I think he was confused between the two sources of food but our nurse was quite adamant. We also have realized since then that he is slightly tongue tied. Each nurse that came in over that 24 hours had different advice and I think I got quite mad at one. If one more person tried to man handle me, I would've lost it! He pooped 6 times that first day and has continued to do well in that department:) So, first night, I got 2 hours sleep. Oh ya, before each feed, they would prick his heel to measure his blood sugar. He must've been pricked about 8 times. Finally at 5am, on the second morning, he passed the blood sugar test and we weaned him off the formula!

Kai came to visit several times. He was interested in Koen for about 30 seconds (He said `Hi baby Koen') and then went wild in the hospital room. He is not yet home and I'm kinda savouring the last few hours of quietness! Everything is kind of a blur but family visited, my milk came in like crazy (grrrr....thought engorgement wasn't supposed to happen the second time around), my cold was my largest concern as coughing was causing great pain with my incision. Last night was crazy again as I only slept 3 hours due to my cold and attempting to pump/feed/take care milk issues. He was eating every 1-2 hours. My recovery from the C-section itself is going well and I have to remind myself to take it easy as I feel too good in some ways (I say that now but 2 days ago I was in a lot of pain).

So far, Koen is much more relaxed than Kai was (woohoo!!!!!! Please let this continue!!!). He will stop crying immediately if he is held and I'm praying this will continue. I feel more emotionally stable this time around and Gary and I can't stop staring at him and announcing how cute he is! Hard to say who he looks like but I see some of Kai and myself in him. He's got the Dekens dimples...woohoo! He really hasn't opened his eyes much yet but he did take a few glances at me when feeding at night. He takes much longer to feed but I think he is still figuring it all out. Well, better rest up before our wild toddler comes home!!!

I miss Kai

We left Kai 2 hours ago and I think that might be the hardest part. He will be at gramma's til Monday. I know he'll have fun but I miss him already. I'm off to bed now...I can't believe what will be happening in 12 hours from now! I feel like how I felt the night before we got married, a mix of excitement and the unbelievable feeling of how your life will change forever. Praying for a good C-section experience and a healthy baby!!! Okay.....bedtime!!!

Twas the day before baby...

Wow. I feel so strange. Hopefully tomorrow at this time, I will be feeding my baby!!! Today, we are taking it super easy which means I'm wearing sweats and reading a book and Gary is watching football.

KAI

I think we have prepared him. We watched his first year video and talked about how he was a baby and what it was like when he was a baby. We've read the `Big Brother' book and we've got all the baby stuff out for him to use with his stuffed animals. Tonight we will drop him off at gramma's and I feel sad about that. I have been away from him for 3 nights before (when I was on a school trip to Bamfield last year) and I know he will visit us in the hospital, but still...I'll miss him.

Kai getting ready to play playdough in my old apron...I worked at Purdy's through highschool. Yum.

Kai eating breakfast in front of the tv with his new tray. He is a word/letter maniac. He knows all the capital letters, 1/3 of the lower case, and wants to know what every word starts with. If he guesses, he gets it right about 50% of the time when I make the sound of the first letter. He loves audience participation...he will ask `Mommy, what letters/colours do you see?' when watching the credits. If we are singing a song, he makes sure that everyone gets involved. He makes us laugh a whole lot. He loves it when we tell stories `Once upon a time' style. He has done a few himself which are very cute. I still can't believe he is our little boy:)

I realized afterwards that my eyes are closed but whatever...this is how Kai and I have snuggled and read together these past few months. Next time, baby will be on the outside of my shirt:) I think he really understands what will be happening tomorrow and I'm not really sure what he will do when he first sees that baby but guaranteed it will be documented!

ME

Oh man, do I look tired or what? Well, its not going to get any better! I feel ready for tomorrow. I'm not nervous. I'm interested in how it will be different than last time. I hope I get a good nights sleep and that everything goes as scheduled tomorrow. My back/hips/everything are really starting to hurt so if I had to go to my due date I would've been ridiculously useless this next week. I'm sooooooooooooooooo glad that Gary was on holidays this past 1.5 weeks as it would've been way more tiring with Kai by myself. We've tried (pretty unsuccesfully) to declutter our house to make room for baby stuff. I've realized I have no winter clothes for a baby boy or girl 0-3 months besides sleepers so I'll have to get on that as soon as we find out what it is! The only thing I'm sad about is that due to the C-section, my abdominal muscles will be useless for 4-6 weeks. I know that any delivery requires recovery, but ya. Also, it will be strange to be breastfeeding again. I think it is absolutely amazing but I do get excited for the day when I have my body back to myself.

GARY

Gary is just ready for me not to be pregnant anymore. I'm not sure what that means entirely...At this point in life, he would just like to have two kids. This is a strange feeling for me because, will this be the last day in my entire life that I will ever be pregnant? That is a strange thought. I would like to have 3 kids so we will see.....:) I've been reading `Babyproofing your marriage' and its nothing earth shattering but it is an easy read and I wish I had read it before we had Kai because we had a LOT of the issues talked about. Good refresher anyway!

TOMORROW

I will not be able to blog until Monday so Gary or my sister may just post a little update tomorrow letting you all know the details. It's so strange in this day of blogging and facebook...word gets out there fast! Thanks for following us on our journey to being parents of 2 kiddos!!!