Two Weeks Old (and cute pictures)

I'm not planning on posting about Guard every week of his life, but I had some cute pictures I wanted to share and his two week old stats.
He is doing very well.  He has definitely woken up.  He is awake more now and likes to be held.  He isn't my fussiest baby, but he isn't the most content baby either.  His cranky time is between 7-10 pm.  Luckily, Greg is usually home to help hold Guard or get Enoch and Kate into bed.  We obviously aren't on a schedule yet, but he seems to go to bed around 10 pm, so if we can hold out for that long, we can get a few hours of sleep before he is awake again.
Silly little boy, he is convinced that if he is awake, he needs to be eating.  He is now up to 4 ounces every 2.5 - 3 hours.  It's all going somewhere.  At his two week old check he weighed 8 lbs. 10 ozs. (47%), measured 20.75 inches (55%) and his head circumference was 36.4 cm (35%).
He did great at his check up and didn't cry at all during his shots, PKU testing and circumcision.  I had to leave the room, but Greg stayed with him and said he did great!
I was really hoping that I would get a snuggly baby this time.  Guard snuggled for about a week and a half and then he was done.  He is constantly trying to get his head up and look around - burping him on your shoulder is work!  When he is on his tummy, his head is always moving - first to the left, then to the right and then looking straight ahead.  I can tell he already has that freaky Fowler strength.  He can get his knees up under him while on his tummy and the other day he rolled over from his tummy to his back.  I know that was a fluke, but I'm still impressed that he has the strength and control to do that.
I am getting a bit more picky about pictures of my kids.  I still like Target and might go there occasionally, but I really want some nice pictures, since we only do pictures once a year and I don't get school pictures.  My friend, Angela, recommended the place, Camera Shy, and I decided to try it out.  I am hooked!  I was so happy with how they turned out.  I'm not including his birth announcement picture, (you'll have to wait and get yours in the mail) but here are a few of my favorites.

 Geez!  He is so adorable!

One week old

We are having a lot of fun with our little Guard.  He is such a good baby (so far).  He just sleeps, eats and poops.  Often, I have to wake him up to feed him.  I love looking at him when he is sleeping, but I love seeing his eyes too.
His jaundice is clearing up well.  He has so much more color to him than our other babies that it is hard for me to see the jaundice.  I could see that his skin was a little orange, but I could really see it in his eyes.  Even that is clearing up, but slowly.
He is eating well.  He's actually a bit of a little piggy.  He eats about 3 - 3.5 ounces every 2 hours.  I think it must all be going to his cheeks!  I'm already down to pumping three times a day (pumping every two hours was not working - too much pain).  If he keeps up his eating we are going to have to supplement, but for now he is getting all breast milk.  And, Dad takes the nighttime feedings.  So far, it is working well.
It has been so fun to have a newborn in our home again - the little noises, the baby smell, the kids all wanting to say good-bye and good-night to Guard.  We all love to kiss his chubby cheeks.  It has been such a sweet time for our family.

 

And, yes, those are socks on his hands.  He has these fingernails that won't stop growing.  Greg is in charge of cutting the baby's fingernails at our house and he can't keep up with them - they grow so quickly.  A cute story about those socks:

My sister, Valerie, came over to see the baby (and pick up Kate to play at her house, and drop off dinner and clean my house!  She has been amazing!).  She was holding Guard and her little guy, McKay, was not happy about his mom paying attention to someone else.  He sat down on the couch next to Valerie and started looking at Guard.  He noticed he had socks on his hands.  He reached over and pulled the socks off his hands, yelled, "NO!" and threw the socks on he floor.  Valerie and I started laughing.   Occasionally Valerie puts socks on McKay's hands at night so he won't mess with his oxygen tubes and she says he hates them on his hands.  I thought it was great - one cousin watching out for another.

Coming Home

I have to admit, I really enjoyed my time in the hospital.  People are always asking what you need, they bring you food that you didn't have to cook (and I could order what I wanted from a menu), they keep things clean, they watch your baby while you take naps, and, best of all, you have time to hold and enjoy your new, little, tiny, adorable baby.
The two days went quickly, but by then, I was ready to go home.  I left the hospital on Mother's Day.  It was a great day.  I got some quiet time in the morning, a special gift from the hospital, a special lunch and then time with my family at home.
The family came to pick us up about 2pm.  I had packed up, gone over paperwork with the nurses and was ready to go when Greg and the kids got there.  It is always a bit nerve-wracking to take a newborn home, but we were ready to be home.

I got him dressed in his coming home outfit (sorry, Greg - I know by now that boys wear clothes and girls wear outfits).  I thought he looked so cute.  It was the first time we had put him in clothes and not a onesie from the hospital.

The kids were excited to put Guard in his car seat; more excited than Guard was.  Doesn't he look so tiny in that huge car seat?

When we left the hospital we were sent home with a lab order to take him in the next day for a billirubin test.  Why do all of our kids have jaundice?  (We had to have him tested two days and then his levels were coming down enough that the doctor wasn't worried.  He did look a bit orange for a few days.)
It was wonderful and a bit weird to have him home.  We spent some time as a family and then went to Greg's parents to visit and wish his mom a Happy Mother's Day. 
He has been such a good baby so far and mostly sleeps, so I can't complain.  But it is all still an adjustment.

The Name

When I was growing up, I would love to imagine names for my future children.  Turns out, that when the baby is actually coming, picking a name is a lot harder than you think.
Greg and I had an extremely difficult time with this baby's name.  We started making name lists when I was about seven months along.  We have quite different styles, so nothing we had was matching up.  I have a tendency to lean toward Scandinavian and Germanic names  and Greg is still (after four kids) pushing to name the baby after a character in a fantasy novel.  We were having a difficult time.
Before I was even pregnant, I mentioned the name, Guard, to Greg (I had heard it during a TV interview quite a few years back and had always liked it).  Greg paused and said, "That's not a name, it's a noun....and a verb!"  Just think about it, I told him.
While we were making out lists, Greg mentioned Guard and we put it on with other names.  Our lists changed weekly.  We added names we heard from friends, names we found on-line, ancestor names.  We also crossed off many names.
When we left for the hospital we still had a list of about ten names.  We told ourselves that we would wait and see what he looked like when he was born, but really, we were just putting off choosing a name.
Minutes after he was born, I thought of him as Guard.  It just fit him.  Greg said he had the same thoughts.
We didn't officially name him until he was a day and a half old.  It was just torture for the kids.  They all had their favorite names and were a bit disappointed that we didn't pick their 'name'.  Gavin wanted to name him Daniel, Enoch wanted to name him Rex and Kate wanted to name him Duncan.  All good choices, but he was Guard.
When we told our nurse what we had finally chosen, she said, "That's a great name.  I knew a Guard in high school."  So, we know there are a few out there, but not too many.

We decided not to get crazy with the spelling to avoid confusion.  So much for that!  When we tell people what his name is they always ask us to repeat it and then ask us how to spell it.  Oh well.
I like the feeling behind the name Guard.  To me I think of strong, steady, determined, honest - all things I hope for him.  His middle name is Randall after my maiden name.
We love our Guard Randall Fowler!  Even when he is upset.

He's Here!

Guard Randall Fowler

8 lbs. 3 ozs.

20.5 inches

Meeting the new brother

Greg and I were so excited for the kids to meet their new brother.
Grandma and Grandpa Fowler were watching Gavin, Enoch and Kate.  Greg called them after we were settled and they were more than happy to bring them down to the hospital (after dinner at IHOP).
Gavin was thrilled with his little brother.  Gavin loves newborns - holding them, feeding them, talking to them.  He was also impatient to meet his brother, so this was an exciting day for him.

Enoch was also excited to meet his brother.  He was more interested in what and how babies work than his actual baby.  What a fun novelty and science experiment the baby was to Enoch.  He asked a lot of questions and was particularly interested in the baby's umbilical cord.

Kate so wanted to hold the baby, but she was also a bit apprehensive.  She looked and looked for quite awhile before she asked to hold him.  She kept whispering, "He is so little."  It melted by heart when she gave him a small kiss on his head.

It was a wonderful time for our family to all be together.  It was amazing, sweet and humorous to see the kid's reactions to the baby.  It was great!

Guard's Birth Story

What a test in patience!  I was so anxious and excited to meet our new little guy, but he had different plans.
At my 38 week check-up, I was dilated to .5.  At my 39 week check I was measuring at a two.  Of course, my doctor said, "I think it will be sometime this week."  Shouldn't have gotten my hopes up.  I was so focused on getting to May without delivering, that once May was here, I just assumed the baby knew that he was welcome to come any time.
Didn't happen that week.  At my 40 week check I was dilated to, still, a two.  I didn't cry in the doctor's office, but I was glaring daggers at Dr. Saunders.  I asked him to strip my membranes and he told me he had done that last week.  I couldn't believe it; that had worked with all my other kids.  At that point, I asked Dr. Saunders to schedule an induction.  This was a Tuesday - the soonest I could get in was Friday.  Fine.  Of course, I'll have the baby on my own before Friday.
I was still delusional.  Friday morning I'm still pregnant.  By their instructions, I called the hospital at 8am to see if they were ready for me.  "Not yet, " they told me; call back at 9am.  Wait, wait, wait.  At 8:45, the hospital called us and asked if we could come now.  Um, YES.  The boys were already at school, we asked our neighbor to check on Coal in a few hours, we loaded up the car and dropped Kate off at Grandpa and Grandma Fowlers.
As much as I had whined about being 41 weeks pregnant, I was apprehensive, nervous, okay scared, while we were driving to the hospital.  I felt like everything would be and go okay, but I was still worried.  I tried to act like everything was fine, but Greg knew how I felt.  He reached over, took my hand and said a prayer with me.  I felt at peace after that.
We pulled into the Women's Center at Timpanogos Regional Hospital in Orem, at about 9:30am.  Greg carried in our bags, I carried in my pillow (I hate hospital pillows).  We checked in and our nurse, Deb, took us right back to our room.  She gave me a gown to change into and told me she would be back shortly to start my IV.  It was real now and everything was moving quickly.

The IV wasn't as bad as it could have been.  I only had to be poked twice.  They started me on Pitocen and now it was just a waiting game.  Dr. Saunders came to check on me at about 11am and broke my water.  After that, the contractions really picked up.  I waited about 45 minutes before I got my epidural.  I feel like I have to experience some sort of labor to deserve an epidural.  That went well and I felt a lot better after that.  I told Greg if he wanted to grab some lunch in the cafeteria, now would be the time.  He told me he would be quick, and he was, but still a lot happened while he was gone.
My contractions were coming pretty hard and fast by now.  I was praying that the baby would be able to weather them okay.  With my other babies, once the contractions start coming hard and consistent, the baby's heart rate always drops and has a hard time recovering.  I was obsessively listening to the baby's heart beat and could tell that it was dropping rapidly.  About the time I was ready to call the nurse, she came in and explained what was happening.  I knew what was happening and was panicked.  I rolled over onto my side, put on the oxygen, closed my eyes and starting praying earnestly.

 When Greg came back, he was a bit surprised to see what was going on.  He also  knew what was happening, but it didn't expect it to happen so soon.  He pulled a chair over to the bed and held my hand.  He turned down the volume on the baby monitor because he knew I was going crazy every time the heart rate slowed down.  He kept me updated by looking at the monitor (which I couldn't see).  He would always tell me that the baby's heart rate was still in an acceptable zone (I'm still not sure if he was telling me the truth or just making me feel better).
At 1pm, they turned off the Petocin to give the baby a chance to recover.  My contractions completely stopped for about 20 minutes and then started back up on their own.
At about 2pm, I started to feel nauseous.  This was surprising to me because that usually happens when I am ready to deliver.  Our nurse brought me a little bag in case I got sick and she checked to see how far along I was.  She, Greg and I were all surprised that I was dilated to a 9.  She called Dr. Saunders and started wheeling in carts to get ready for the delivery.  I couldn't believe I was ready to deliver; my labors are usually slower than this.  I wasn't complaining because I knew the baby needed to be born, but I was shocked at how fast it went (total labor and delivery time was 4 hours).
They prepped me for delivery and was just finishing up when Dr. Saunders arrived.  The nurse told me I could start pushing if I wanted to with the next contraction.  Dr. Saunders was still putting on his gloves when I gave my first push.  He looked over and said, "Whoa, wait for me to get ready, there's his head!"  Two more pushes and he was out at 2:44 pm.   He cried and screamed and I was so relieved.  He had the cord wrapped around his neck twice and around his body once, but it didn't effect him.  They let me hold for a few minutes before they took him to clean him up and take his vitals.
When he was born, the nurses all said what a big baby he was.  They were guessing he weighed about 8 lbs. 10 ozs.  I couldn't believe he was so big!  Turns out, he weighed 8 lbs, 3 ozs and was 20.5 inches long.  He was by far our biggest baby, but he still seemed so small when I held him.

 His little hands and feet were so wrinkled and pruny and he hardly had any varnix on him.  He had been in the tub too long and was definitely ready to be born.  He Apgar score was 8,9. The only problem was his temperature.  He had a hard time warming up and getting his temperature back to normal after he was born.  I tried holding him close to me, but it was still dropping.  They put him back in his bed and turned on the warming lamps.  I think he rather liked that and he seemed to calm down.

(You can see in these pictures how long they left his umbilical cord.  His nurse shorten it later that night.)
After his temperature came up, they gave him his first bath.  At Timpanogos Hospital, they bathe the babies right in the delivery room so the moms can be involved.  That was really neat.  I've never seen any of my other babies have their first baths because I was stuck in bed recovering from delivery and an epidural.

 He didn't really enjoy his bath, except for when they washed his hair.  Speaking of hair, he has some!  All of our other babies were bald as bowling balls, but he has some right along the base of his head.  We call it his Grandpa hair.  It is dark brown, but we will see if he keeps it and what color it ends up being.  Back to his bath - he calmed right down when they rinsed his hair in warm water.  Funny little guy!

 After his bath, his temperature dropped again, so back under the warming lamps.  I can't believe how big he looks, but still so small at the same time.  I adore those chubby cheeks!

After he warmed up again, they moved us to our room.  They wheeled me down in my bed and Greg wheeled the baby down in his bed.  Greg was talking to the baby the whole time and the nurses thought that was so cute.  I'm not sure what they were saying to each other, but it calmed him down after such a traumatic few hours.
The nurses helped get us settled and then left us as I was feeding him.  I'm getting teary remembering how amazing it was to be there with Greg and the baby, just quiet and the three of us.  We waited and prayed for this little guy for quite a while.  To finally have him here, safe and healthy, was almost overwhelming.  Isn't it wonderful how you can fall in love so quickly and completely?
We are overwhelmed with love for our new son.  He is incredible.  How blessed we feel to have him in our family.

Scattered Thoughts

1.  Gavin was ordained a Teacher in the Aaronic Priesthood on Sunday.  It was a great day.  Grandma and Grandpa Fowler came to his ordination.  Greg gave him a wonderful blessing.  He reminded Gavin he was a mountain of faith and that his faith would continue to grow.  That he would have the desire and knowledge to move closer to his goals of serving a mission and getting married in the Temple.  That he would continue to be a good example to his friends, family and all those around him.  And that he would serve faithfully in his Priesthood assignments.  It was very powerful.  Our family is so blessed to have two worthy Priesthood holders in our home.

2.  On our way to Grandma and Grandpa's home on Sunday, Enoch said, "Wouldn't it be funny if after I died someone wrapped me all up in duct tape except a small slit and then pumped me up with helium.  Then I would float!"  Hmmm...wouldn't that be funny? 

3.  Coal is in love with tennis balls.  You throw a ball in her direction and she will catch it without a single bounce.  Although she gets a bit confused when you throw two balls, she can't figure out how to get both in her mouth.  We are now working on her dropping the ball at our feet.  She wants to play catch, but she doesn't want to give up her ball.

4.  I'm still pregnant.  I have tried so many things to get labor going, but this baby has made himself comfortable and isn't budging.  I go for multiple walks a day, which has only succeeded in making me hurt more.  I even tried eating spicy food tonight (which I don't like at all).  Didn't do a thing except give me such bad heartburn that it made my eyes water.  I did enjoy Enoch's fortune cookie message:  You discover treasures where others see nothing unusual. 
Well, maybe something will happen tonight. 
Maybe.

More Sewing for Cheesy

I have sewn more for this baby than all my other kids put together.  I think it's because I just sew more in general now, but I'm also blaming it on Pinterest!  You would think I was having a winter baby with all the quilts I've made, but summer can still be cold for babies with all the air conditioning.
I had some leftover fabric from a quilt I made a few years ago for a friend's baby.  The colors matched the baby's room and so I decided to make a quilt for his crib when he moves into his room.  I wasn't sure on yardage, so I just started sewing and decided to go with what I had.  I couldn't believe that it turned out exactly the right size without me having to buy more fabric.  I did piece the binding to stretch the fabric, but I think it turned out very cute.  The only fabric I had left was a small pile of scraps from squaring up the fabric.  I love it when that happens!  I did buy some soft, fuzzy white fabric for the backing and machine quilted it on my machine.

When I saw this fabric, I fell in love with the color and the whales.  It just made me smile (and it was so soft).  I decided to go simple and just leave it a whole piece and put some flannel backing on it.  I didn't want to cut it too much because minky is so messy!  I found some flannel I loved too and the quilt went together very quickly because I just tacked it on my machine every four inches. It wasn't until I was binding it while sitting on my orange couch that I realized it was the same colors as my new family room.  I must really like these colors!

And because I found some matching flannel that I really like and had leftover backing flannel, I made some (nine) burp cloths.

And how cute is this?  A gift from my good friend, Carrie.  I can't wait to get his picture taken with the hat and blanket.

My sister, Michelle, is making a car seat cover for Cheesy and it was so fun to pick out the fabric together.  I fell in love with the fabric and when I saw this idea on Pinterest, I knew I had to make it.

What are the ties for, you ask?

Brilliant!  Now the baby can't kick off the blanket, but you still have the option of untying it and using it as a blanket.
And because I had leftover fabric - more burp cloths.  Greg asked how much I thought this baby was going to spit up.  You never know.

 I took this quilt over to Greg's parents one Sunday afternoon to bind it while visiting.  Greg's mom started to laugh and said she was so glad I picked out that fabric.  I didn't understand until she brought out her quilt to the baby (she makes one for each grandchild).  It was the same line of fabric!  I love it and think the airplanes are so fun.

As you can see, I've been trying to keep busy.  I am very busy, but I'm trying to keep my mind off the fact that yes, yesterday was my due date and I am still very much pregnant.  Sigh, oh well.  I wake up every morning and can't believe I still haven't had this baby yet.  I've had plenty of contractions, long stretches of intense contractions, but then they stop.  Grrr!  I've tried a bunch of things to start my labor, but nothing is working.  Yesterday, I spent the morning running errands and pushing around a loaded cart at Costco.  I got some strange looks and a few panicked ones, but still nothing.  I spend the afternoon cleaning the house and weeding outside, but still nothing.  I'm trying a long walk this morning.

 I'm hanging in there.  I have only cried about it once.  I keep telling myself that he will come when he is ready or on Tuesday when I have my next doctor's appointment!

Nesting Projects

My mom told me the other day that I'd better have this baby soon because my nesting instincts were costing a lot of money!  No kidding!
After Christmas, I made a list of everything I'd like done around the house before the baby came.  When I showed Greg, I could see the apprehension and panic in his eyes, but we both agreed to work hard on the list and get done what we could.  Would you believe that we finished about 85% of that two-page list?  And most of it was Greg.  He worked so hard and was so patient with me and really deserves a huge, ginormous thank you.  Thanks, honey!
Aside from new carpet and all that went along with that, a new living room, a new room for Coal and a bunch of little projects here and there, Greg has kept very busy.  Here are a few pictures of what we have done.  A new family room and kitchen:

 

 

 

 This was Greg's favorite and most frustrating project.  We both love how the abacus turned out, but it was more of a project than we thought it would be when we started.  The frame doesn't have pictures yet, but hopefully soon.  They hang on the entry wall.  I don't love the "Fowler" about it, but I don't know what to put there yet.

I can't believe we got so much done!  Greg worked so hard and our house looks amazing.  We still have some things on 'the list', but they can wait (redoing our bathroom and the laundry room).  We really feel like we need to spend some time out in the front yard, so that is next up.  It just never stops, does it?

Greg's Birthday

Just as with Gavin's birthday, Greg's birthday was very low-key because I was expecting to be busy having a baby.  And normally that wouldn't be a big deal, especially to Greg, but this year Greg turned 40.  It still wasn't a big deal to Greg, but I felt so bad that I couldn't make a bigger deal out of it.
When I asked him what he wanted, he said he didn't know.  A few days later he came home from work and said not to worry about getting him a present because he got new tires on his car at lunch.  Really?  New tires for your birthday present?  When I tried to argue with him, he said I was getting him a baby for his birthday and nothing could top that - no argument from me.
I still wanted to get him something.  He has mentioned a hydration pack for a few months, so I picked one up at Recreation Outlet.  He seemed happy with it.

I'm so happy the guys at work gave him a hard time about turning 40 (somebody needed to).  They took him to lunch and gave him a hilarious card with balloons and prune juice.  He really does work with a great group of guys.

 I don't know how to put into words what Greg means to me.  He is really the most incredible husband.  He is good - really good - you know, deep down good.  He is a simple person, who I have yet to figure out.  He knows what he believes in, he knows what is right and he lives that way - with no hesitation and no excuses.
Happy Birthday, Greg!  I love you!

Gavin's Birthday

I owe Gavin an apology.  His birthday was a total bust this year.  I wasn't sure where I was going be on May 1, so I didn't make any big plans.  Well, it turns out I was at home, feeling miserable, but still at home.  Gavin could have had a great birthday, but it was quite boring.
Maybe not completely boring.  He was able to attend a really fun church activity.  Our ward has a missionary activity every year where the kids are called on missions, go to someone's home for dinner (authentic to that mission) and then the young men or young women give a missionary message to the family.  We have signed up in years past to host and fix an English meal, but, again not knowing where we would be, we didn't this year.  Gavin was excited to go.  He was called to Australia and visited the Dixon's home.  They ate hamburgers for dinner and had a great time.

When he got home we had brownies and chocolate dipped strawberries for his birthday treat.  He opened his presents before he left for the activity.  He received a Dominion game and a bunch of money for Jamboree.  It seemed a bit lacking to me, but that is what he asked for.  I have to admire his maturity to ask for money for his birthday that he will save.

 

 

We also measured Gavin.  Wow!  He is getting tall. He's passed me up and is almost equal with Greg.  We call him our 'freak of nature', because we are baffled as to where he is getting his height.  He does have tall great-grandfathers, so that must be it.  He is now at about 5 feet, 8 inches.

Gavin is such a wonderful young man.  Every day he amazes me with his integrity, motivation, humor, kindness, service and devotion to family and God.  Gavin is an example to me and all those around him.  We are so blessed to have him in our family.