Carter John Battermann

Friday, January 29, 2010 at 7:54am via c-section our handsome little man, Carter John, arrived. He weighed in at 9 pounds 7 ounces and 21.5 inches long. Had he 'cooked' as long as his big brother he may have shared the same stats as Logan.

Carter does not have Logan's cheeks, but he does have about 3 times more hair than Logan! Carter has an amazing head of hair - it is stick straight, thick and already hangs over his ears and the back of his neck....he even has sideburns!

I will post more pictures later after I get them all organized....until then, here are a couple:

37.5 Week Carter Checkup

This morning we woke up and jumped into action to drive a half hour to meet with the doctor that will be the 'lead' surgeon for my c-section. I was told it was important for me to meet with her and the assisting surgeon before my c-section so they could answer any questions I had and explain things. Today I met with Dr. F and next Monday I will meet with Dr. A (I really tried to get Dr. C to do the c-section, but she was not available either day and I did not want to go a few more days if I didn't 'have' to.)

Well, the appointment was pretty uneventful. I learned that if you have a c-section scheduled they do not continually examine you to see how far dilated you are (which did bum me out...I'd like to know if I have progressed). I thought they still would just in case I went early (and boy do I pray that I do!!!!!). Otherwise, really what is the point of checking anybody if it doesn't matter. Whatever. I was hoping to see if I had in fact dilated more, but I guess I will never know...

She was having trouble with the computer playing nice with her - and that seemed to occupy her train of thought. I joked with her that if she felt like taking him early, then she could go right ahead - especially since he's already so big. Nope - they will not move my date. I simply mentioned that since my due date was moved 10 days at the beginning, I thought perhaps it was too many days to have moved it. Nope - apparently the 6 week ultrasounds are super accurate and if it had not shown me more than 5 days difference, they wouldn't have moved it. (So I wondered to myself why if they allow a 5 day variance couldn't they have just moved it 6 days....or why is it 'such' a big deal to not allow me to go any earlier for a c-section....I am sure she had the answer and I'm sure I know the answer, but really didn't care to hear it).

She said well he (pointing to my well-behaved child, Logan) was 10 pounds, are you really surprised that this baby is big. No, I am not. She said if we were to take him early, sure he'd be a more normal sized baby, but he may not be done 'cooking' developmentally and such. Yeah, yeah, I get it.

It seemed no matter what I 'joked' with her about or asked her she was very matter of fact and 'this is why'. Look, lady - I get the textbook reasons why. Just humor me okay? Dr. C would have been on the same wavelength as me. So I told her that I was feeling some groin pain and it was uncomfortable. Yep. Okay, thanks for any sympathy that you could have offered. Thankfully my mother-in-law was a baby nurse for 30+ years and told me that it was likely ligament pain and why I am feeling it more the 2nd time around.

So, the appointment was fine and she gave me all the textbook answers that I 'knew', but gave me zero warm fuzzies. I actually wanted to just cry - and you must know that between my 2 pregnancies, I have probably cried a handful of times...pregnancy does not make me emotional (frustration or hurting my feelings, does). I think it all started when they weren't even bothering with how far dilated I may or may not be (and honestly, it doesn't matter...if I 'knew' I was not dilated anymore or another cm it is not like Carter will actually come early...it is just fun to know and with a scheduled c-section I kind of feel robbed of that excitement).

She did not offer any thoughts as to how the c-section would go (and it is not like I am worried or nervous in any way, shape or form, but a mention besides, 'it will be me and somebody else; - yes Dr. A is what I told her). I did not ask questions because I was just kind of done - and honestly I don't know what questions I have.cx

Anyway, I am sure it will be just fine - she does c-sections every week and I do not question her ability at all. I just wish she hadn't been as flustered with her computer problems and could have concentrated a bit more on me and the reason I was there (and drove a half hour to see her instead of another doctor that is 5 minutes from my house). But whatever. John said that I should switch, but again, even if she wasn't the leading surgeon she'd still be the assisting surgeon on either the 28th or 29th - so no I couldn't switch. They said 39 weeks and I don't want to go over by a few days just for a doctor that will be just as qualified, with some warm fuzzies.

Whew....what a long post just to basically say that he is STILL in my belly and things are still scheduled for the 29th! But I needed to vent.

I did proceed to go to the mall at the Children's Place (to get a security tag removed from Carter's coming home outfit) and they were having an excellent sale, so I bought Logan and Carter some matching shirts for next fall/winter (since it was those types of shirts that were on sale). Here's to hoping I picked the right size for both of them! Eh, if they are a little big, who cares - they will still look super cute!

Growth Ultrasound

On Tuesday morning we had a growth ultrasound. The appointment was at 9am, a half hour away. I was told to empty my bladder at 7:30am and then proceed to drink 32 ounces of water and hold it. I almost 2nd guessed these instructions as when you are this far along I didn't think you needed water to help with the clarity of the ultrasound. I should've....

So I follow those ridiculous instructions and John, Logan and I headed to the appointment. What an uncomfortable ride!!!! ugh.... It took me a solid two minutes to get out of the car and come to a full standing position. You try riding for a half hour with an extremely full bladder and a huge child sitting on your bladder and then try to quickly stand without worrying about doing something embarrassing like peeing on the pavement! We got inside the pretty building, which of course, all pretty buildings have water fountains! Oh come on! Okay, we headed downstairs and while John and Logan admired the pretty fountains, I checked in...and waited about 5-10 additional minutes! I wanted to yell at somebody, but kept my cool and did not sit down...I would not have been able to get back up without peeing! Jon, the ultrasound tech comes to get us and we head back - naturally, the LAST room down a LONG hallway. He tells me to lay down on the table and I contemplated just how I was going to do this, again, without peeing! He asks if I have a full bladder and I said 'goodness, gracious, YES!'. Then he looked at the pure size of my belly and asked how far along I was. I told him 36.5 weeks. He quickly shoved me out the door and took me to the bathroom next door and said 'oh, I'm so sorry - you don't need a full bladder at this stage in your pregnancy for an ultrasound. I wanted to hug him, but instead bolted inside to pee. Oh My Gosh....SOOOOO much better!!!

I walked back into the room and told him that it would have made for a MUCH more comfortable morning. :) Okay, so we proceeded...my mind now on seeing my little guy and less on needing to pee.

Jon (the tech, not my hubby) furiously took measurements of all kinds. I asked if he was going to be able to share the results and he said absolutely yes at the end of all the measurement taking. John and Logan watched Carter on the screen (I couldn't see the screen at this time). I did request that he show me the screen when he was all done - he did and even snapped a couple pictures, which printed on real photo paper in 4X6 size...not like the normal, paper ones. Sweet!

The results were in......give or take 1 pound, Carter currently weighs 8 pounds 5 ounces!!!!! AHH! He is measuring at 38 weeks 2 days and I am only 36 weeks 5 days. (If you remember, at the very beginning of the pregnancy they moved my due date back 10 days...had they not done that like I said, he would actually be right on schedule).

I meet with the doctor next Monday morning and we will see if anything changes. Dr. C. previously made it sound that things would not change, it would just be good information to have in case I went early. Honestly, at this point I would love for him to come early as my stomach just feels so heavy.

So there you have it...another Big Battermann Boy is on his way!!!

Logan's in a Toddler Bed!!!

So, we did it. I know it is not super-common to transition a 14-month old to a toddler bed, but we did. On January 1st we decided to at least give it a try and it has gone surprisingly well. Many would say it was done very early, but since he was such a good sleeper we thought why not try it. Plus we've been having trouble figuring out what to do for a bedroom set for either son. Do we get another crib set? Do we get bunk beds? We decided that as we don't know what to do, we'd go for a cheaper option. We ordered Logan a cool race car bed and a dresser. We are soon moving him into the 3rd bedroom (current guestroom, previous office). So we are keeping the bookshelf in there, which is good since we will have more shelf space to store his books and other knick knack items. Both the bed and dresser should arrive before Carter, but we'll see. For now, we have removed the crib side and put on the toddler rails.

Logan has been in his toddler bed for 3 weeks now and it is still going well. The first problem we ran into is that he knows how to get out of the room. We have door handles, not knobs. While we have received advice that we could convert his to a knob, or turn the door locks inside out, or put a door-handle protector we are not ready to do that just yet - I kind of want to take steps to this transition.

For probably the first 2 weeks, we sat in his room, either in the recliner or in front of his bed with our back turned until he fell asleep. We also purchased the twlight turtle which projects a bunch of stars (either green, blue, or amber) on the ceiling (not sure how much he really notices though as he almost always falls asleep on his stomach). We also brought his caterpillar back out (it was tucked away with other baby toys as this is a toy that attaches to an infant carseat). This caterpillar, while it plays cute short tunes about colors and numbers, it also plays 3.5 minutes of classical music (Bach, Mozart, etc.). Since we played this often as a baby, he seemed to recognize it right away and I was hoping it would provide comfort.

If he got out the first time we'd say 'back to bed' and he'd crawl back in. The rest of the times, we would just put him back or block him from getting out. Honestly for the most part, as long as he was being put to bed when he was truly tired, he wouldn't really get out and we could leave the room within 10 minutes. However, there were times we'd be in there for a half hour.

Let's hope it continues to go as well. Yay for such a big boy!!!

36.5 Week Carter Checkup

Today I met with Dr. J for my 36.5 week checkup. I measured 37 weeks. I told her that last week, I measured 39. She said that depending on how full my bladder is, if I had to go to the 'bathroom', how the baby is positioned...are all things that could affect measurement. So phew...I am not measuring that big! Granted, that pretty much all means nothing....as Logan measured right along schedule as well.

Carter's heartrate was 145 - still love the sound!

I don't think there is much else to report. I did not get examined this week.

My ultrasound is still scheduled for tomorrow morning...we are excited to see Carter one last time before we get to hold him in 2.5 weeks!!

I called to pre-register for the c-section and put all my other appointments and dates in the calendar/phone. I am trying to keep everything in check. This weekend I organized more of the upstairs - I think we will try to have Logan and Carter share a closet as I really just hang up dress clothes and sweatshirts/sweaters, since they are so bulky. We still have to buy a dresser and bed for Logan in his 'new' room. Hopefully we can do that this weekend as I have a guest bed FULL of baby clothes that are all ready to be washed. It is hard to believe that a tiny little person will be in those little clothes so soon.

I am excited as I am counting down the 2.5 weeks left (it has already flown by so much already)...but sometimes I still don't think it has hit me that after that 2.5 weeks I will have another son...another little person to care for....and start all over with figuring out sleeping, eating, general behaviors. Will he be similar to Logan? Will he be completely different? I am excited regardless to welcome this little guy into our home; he is so loved already.

35.5 Week Carter Checkup

Tuesday, I had my 35wk, 5 day checkup with Dr. C (who was one of two docs that delivered Logan...and my favorite doc).

As usual as soon as I walk in the door, the receptionist says I'm checked in and tells me to head to the back to provide my urine sample (to check for protein, which would be bad and other stuff I'm sure). On the way back Logan likes to stop and look in their breakroom and we walk by the doctor who is almost always on the computer charting or some other important stuff. The nurse weighs me (after I take off my shoes and jacket and anything else I can) and then we head into the room.

The nurse mentioned that they'd be testing me for Group B Strep since I'm '36 weeks'. I kind of though that if you had it once (which I did) then you always do...apparently not the case. Had I known this was going to happen I probably would have asked my friend to babysit as the only seating in the office (where I needed to sit Logan since I don't bring in the stroller anymore) has a clear shot of 'me being examined/tested'. Eeks...thankfully he is too young to be scarred. And thankfully he did really well. I gave him a book to look at and his juice and he was occupied and didn't misbehave at all (phew).

Dr. C came in the room and said so you are 35 weeks 5 days, but when I saw you walk down the hall, I thought you looked around 39 weeks. Um....thanks.?.?.?.? So she measured me and sure enough, I my belly/uterus is measuring 39 cm and I should be 36 cm to match the week # I am in. Oh. I get measured every week and they all mention a 'big baby', but they've never told me that I was truly measuring 'big'. With Logan, I measured a week or two big at the beginning of the pregnancy, but always measured right on target towards the end (which is part of their shock that he was 10 pounds).

So she said that we should do a growth ultrasound (even though we were already planning on it). So that is scheduled for next Tuesday. My next appointment is next Monday though, so I am really hoping that the ultrasound tech can tell me how big he is measuring and I don't have to wait for the following visit to hear how big he is. Dr. C. also mentioned that I should not go beyond 39 weeks since she is assuming that he is big. So she gave me the number of the c-section scheduler.

In the meantime, while I was on the table, she also checked his heartrate and it bounced around 125-130ish, which she said is normal (however I am noting that it is the lowest it has been so far). She had a hard time getting it because he kept moving away - so he was still very active. :) She also asked if I would like to be checked for dilation...sure, why not?!? I am already 1-1.5 cm dilated. I just checked my blog and it wasn't until week 39 that I was dilated 1-2 cm...so who knows. Granted, I didn't move much past that until I was induced, so I don't expect much, but I guess all those braxton hicks contractions I've been having have paid off. I am not effaced at all. She said she touched his head, but he retracted immediately.

So I think that pretty much sums it up. It was a very exciting appointment!

I did call and schedule the c-section. Jan. 28th is 39 weeks, but they were pretty booked, so our scheduled date (if Carter doesn't come on his own) is Jan. 29th at 7:30am. We are very excited! All of a sudden though...there is a deadline date...he will be here in 3.5 weeks!

My next stop was Babies R Us, where I did by my 'boys' a couple of matching outfits...can't wait to see them both in them.

We do still have quite a bit to do to prepare, but nothing that is earth-shattering. I do hope to accomplish a bit this weeked though. Exciting!!!

Mother of the Year award goes to....

LIKELY NOT ME!

Today, I was fixing Logan a sippy cup for lunch. I chose a straw sippy cup which he has mastered. I poured in the juice and mixed it with water. There are 2 straws to the sippy cup...a sturdy straw that goes in the bottom and a flexible straw that goes on the top, so the lid can close. Okay great. I couldn't find the sturdy straw...finally in a basket of random sippy cup lids, I found it.

I assembled the cup and thought, for some random reason, that I would test it out. I was curious how hard he had to suck through this valve-straw. This really is random for me as I really don't make it a habit to test out his sippy cups. So I sucked on the straw...nothing. I thought, man alive, this kid really has to work hard to get this juice! I tried a few more times. Okay, something MUST be wrong. I took it all apart. I couldn't figure it out. I then looked through each straw to see if something was clogged. Nothing in the flexible straw. But alas! The sturdy straw was a lot more sturdy than I anticipated as the sturdy straw was actually a hot glue gun stick!!!!! Go figure that it would be the same exact size and look. Oh man - egg on my face!

I then put the hot glue gun stick in the appropriate place (not in the sippy cup basket) and searched for the actual sturdy straw (which had fallen into the bottom of the dishwasher, hence why I couldn't initially see it). So I cleaned it off and re-assembled the cup and voila - it is really not that difficult to suck through his sippy cup.

What a random day for me to test his cup out! Imagine if I would have given it to him and he would've tried to use it and then got frustrated. I probably would have wondered what on earth he was whining about. Way to go Mother of the Year!

(in the meantime, I posted this on Facebook and some of my other Mom friends made me feel better by telling me their 'Mom Brain' stories!)

Christmas Morning

Logan woke up around 8am on Christmas morning. Knowing there were several gifts to open and we had to be to my parents house around 11am, we opted to get showered and ready before heading downstairs (we are lucky this year since he had no clue).

I had spent most of Christmas Eve searching for my camera charger, but hadn't found it so I had to take pictures and video somewhat sparingly. Luckily since it was bright outside, our iPhone could work (they don't take stellar pictures in the dark). I ran downstairs to catch Logan's reaction to what Santa left him (a tunnel and tent). He had a stunned look on his face and threw out a few 'oh wow's'. John set him down near the tunnel and he bent down to look inside...so cute! John put his head in the tent to try to coax Logan through. I sent one of Logan's trucks through to try to coax him to crawl through. He thought it was all neat to look at, but not so much to go in. He ended up going in the tent for a little bit, but still has yet to crawl through the tunnel.

We had Logan open up his stocking. He would take out a present, hand it to John. John would rip a little piece of paper and then Logan would open the rest. Every so often he'd say 'oh wow' or 'oooo'. It was very cute. He'd stop to play with a little truck or train, but we had to keep him moving. I'd say his favorite gift of the morning was the Learning Lawn Mower. He pushed that toy around with such pride - it was very cute. Logan helped hand John and I our gifts, then we finished getting ready and headed down to my parents. It was a great Christmas morning! I just know that it will get better each year as he and his sibling(s) grow and get older and understand what is going on. :)

35 Weeks

This picture was taken at 11:55pm on New Years Eve...so I tried my best to look peppy!