sweet potato

the word: potatoes
how Jack says it: po-day-do

Potatoes are his favourite food of the moment. Actually his favourite THING right now. He eats mashed potatoes every day for lunch, as long as they are made by Dido or Grammie. He sing songs about potatoes (it I never hear the Wiggles sing Hot Potato again it will be too soon). He even plays with potatoes. A pot, lid, spoon, and a handful of baby potatoes can entertain a 1 1/2 year old for approximately the same length of time it takes to cook a meal.

birdies

I've decided to start writing in Jack's blog again. He's already a year and a half (20 months to be exact), and I'm finding that I have a small amount of time to spare (very small, but time none the less). He's starting to talk so much these days that I want to keep track of everything he says. Every day there's a new word or two. He mimics everything we says, and it sticks. It's just amazing.

The word: birds
How Jack says it: bou-dies

Birdies was one of Jack's original words. He loves watching about them, pointing at them in books, and looking for them when he hears them sing. Almost every car ride these days I hear 'mama, mama, a bou-die!'

A little ditty about Jack....

Here are the short and long versions of the birth story.

The short story:
Sunday January 3rd – was having mild contractions about 11-30 minutes apart all day
Monday January 4th – starting having stronger contractions during the day
9pm – contractions were 4 minutes apart, called the midwife
11pm – midwife arrived and I was 4-5cm dilated
Tuesday January 5th – tried to nap until the morning
7am – midwife broke my water and we found out he was breech, drove to the hospital in rush hour traffic
7:45am – arrived at hospital and waited to be assessed, admitted, and prepped for surgery
10:04am – Jack was born and let out a great scream!


The long story:
Sunday January 3rd
midnight – started having constant cramp like feelings
3am – started having mild contractions, felt like cramps, that were spaced out about every 15 minutes. Took some tylenol and gravol and slept til about 9am
11am – went for my massage appointment, the contractions slowed down to every 20 minutes or so
Spent the rest of the day trying to distract myself on the computer, doing a puzzle, and taking down the Christmas tree decorations (had to stop every so often to rest during a contraction).
Jeremy and Kier started to install the hardwood floor!

Monday January 4th
overnight – took tylenol and gravol again so I could sleep, contractions were about 11 minutes apart. In the early morning they were getting painful enough that I was waking up to moan.
Spent the day working, and stretching when I had a contraction. I was still trying to find stretches to move the baby into an anterior position – since we thought he was posterior.
We debated going to our chiropractic appointment, but decided against it since I didn't think it was a good idea for me to drive.
4pm – Mom called to see if everything was ok. I told her I was having some contractions, but I thought they would go away.
In the evening Kier came over to help Jeremy continue to work on the hardwood.
Contractions were still spaced out every 8 minutes or so, but were getting more intense. So I decided to use the TENS machine – this helped a lot, and I was able to distract myself by cooking some pasta sauce (not an easy task in a kitchen that had been torn apart!). Asked Jeremy to start timing my contractions.
9pm – I was getting tired of standing so I went to have a bath.
10pm - Since there is a clock right beside the tub, I noticed that my contractions were about 5 minutes apart. They weren't getting any more comfortable, so I asked Jeremy to call the midwife. Mom called while Jeremy was on the phone with the midwife, so we told her to come over. Dad came to pick up Addy.
11pm – Suzanne was at another birth, so her backup Jessica came over. She checked me and I was already 4-5cm dilated, which made me happy to know I wasn't imagining the whole thing!
Once my mom and Jessica started to cheer me on, contractions seemed easier and more manageable. It was great having someone tell me I was doing a good job, and to give me suggestions on how to make myself more comfortable.

Tuesday January 5th
Suzanne and her student arrived and I was about 6cm dilated. Contractions were about 3 minutes apart. It was most comfortable for me to stand and lean over during contractions, since I was having a lot of pressure in the front and down my legs.
2am – I was getting tired of standing so much, so Suzanne suggested I rest with Jeremy. We dozed on and off until 6am. I would hold his hand really tight when I had a contraction. The pressure was so strong, that I felt like I had to pee all the time, so I was making frequent trips to the bathroom. I didn't realize it, but my contractions had slowed down a lot during this time.
6am – Suzanne asked if I'd like to have my water broken, to see if we can speed things up
7am – Suzanne broke my water, at this point she was able to feel for the baby, and discovered he was breech.
7:10am – we left for the hospital, Jeremy had to drive through rush hour traffic on the 417 to get to the Montfort!
7:50am – we arrived at the Montfort and headed straight to labour and delivery
8am – 9:30am – a lot of chaos (at least it seemed that way from my point of view) as we had to wait for the attending physician to arrive in order to perform an ultrasound. During this time I was being admitted, having blood taken, monitors strapped on, and an IV inserted.
Once the doctor arrived he did a quick (only a few seconds!) ultrasound to confirm the baby was breech. This meant a c-section. The rest was a blur as I was prepped for surgery and having some pretty intense contractions. Being stressed, in a hospital, and forced to stay in uncomfortable positions made me give up completely on my calm breathing and moaning to get through the contractions – all I felt was the pain and was getting pretty nervous.
Once I got to the operating room I was given a spinal and placed on the operating table. All I can remember is not being able to see anything and shaking quite a bit. The anesthesiologist was helpful in making me feel comfortable.
Jeremy was able to be by my head as they performed the surgery, and was able to stand up to see what was going on.
10:04am – Jack was born! He let out a good scream, which made me feel reassured, and I started to cry.
Our midwife had to make a shift change, so Maxine took over the care of Jack.
Jeremy was able to hold him by my head, as they finished the surgery.

He was 7lb 8oz and 20.25” long.

The hardest part was that I had to wait over an hour in the recovery room before I could go see Jack. During this time Maxine was doing all the routine checks and exams. Jeremy got to hold Jack skin to skin.
We were able to leave the hospital on Thursday January 7th. The recovery from the c-section has been rough and unexpected. But things are getting better everyday, and I can't wait to have my full strength back.

welcome

our little langer is finally here!

Jack Tristan Langdon was born on Tuesday January 5th at 10:04am. He weighed 7lb 8oz and was 20.25 inches long.
He surprised us all by being 6 days early, and presenting breech.
In a few weeks I'll post the full birth story. Right now we're all just spending lots of time getting to know each other.

merry christmas!

Feeling: Tired at times, since it's been so busy the last week. Christmas eve I went out for lunch with my mom and sister, in the evening Jeremy and I went to church with his parents then back to their place. On Christmas day we went to my parents' place for lunch, then to his parents' place in the evening. On the 27th we went to Lisa and Geoff's place for lunch and to celebrate my dad's birthday. On the 28th my mom hosted a baby shower for me!
Movement?: Last week my midwife was concerned that he's not head-down, since I'm measuring 3 weeks behind. But this week I'm measuring 36 weeks, and she could definitely tell the difference between his head and butt - I think he's starting to chunk out!
Cravings: Ice cream cake....
Wishing for: Another 2 days - I can't believe it's going to be January in 2 days!
Movies: no movies, spent my free time with the puzzle Jeremy got me for Christmas
Current Project: trying not to have too many projects right now, and enjoy the calm before the storm... easier said then done since we're putting the final touches on the nursery and getting all the home birth stuff gathered. We've got the tub and tens machine, and the midwife dropped off all the drugs and fluids we'll need.

At 38 weeks pregnant, only two more weeks (or plus two more, max) before your baby makes his appearance. Your little one isn't so little anymore — weighing in at close to seven pounds and hitting the height charts at the 21-inch mark (or less).

As you prepare (best you can) for baby's ETA, he is also getting ready, big time. Vernix and lanugo continue to shed from your baby's body into the amniotic fluid. Your baby's lungs continue to mature as more and more surfactant is secreted.

Here are just a few of the amazing photos Melissa took of me a few weeks back...

Bonnie

Feeling: Pretty good, considering people keep telling me it looks like I have a basketball in my belly. My left eyelid has been twitching for over a week, which is really annoying.
Movement?: He's been in the same position for weeks now - with his legs on my left. I'm still trying to get him to turn so he's facing in. I sit forward all the time, and a few weeks ago I replaced my office chair with the exercise ball. Also my chiropractor has tried a technique to get him to move - but he still won't budge.
Cravings: Tea and Christmas food
Wishing for: Another 10 days of baby hanging out in my belly. After January 1st he's free to make his debut whenever he'd like!
Movies: more Christmas movies... Rudolf, Miracle on 34th street, and A Christmas Carol
Current Project: keeping my eye on 2 puppies. We're fostering a guide dog puppy for 9 days while her owners are on vacation. Her name is Bonnie and she's a 4.5 month old goldendoodle. Addy and Bonnie love wresting in the living room, but hitting the Christmas tree makes a big mess.
Weight: down 1 pound, I have no idea how that happened with all the cookies I've been eating! So up 25 pounds in total.

With just three more weeks to go and at about six and a half pounds (though weight and height vary from fetus to fetus), your baby is doing just fine. You can expect weight gain to be about half an ounce per day. (Boys, though, are likely to be heavier at birth than girls) Since your little one is considered full-term at 37 weeks pregnant, if your baby was to leave the wet nest this week, he or she would likely thrive. That's because Mother Nature and you have done such a fine job.

So what's keeping your little one busy while waiting it out until D-day? Practice, practice, practice. Your baby is simulating breathing by inhaling and exhaling amniotic fluid, sucking on his or her thumb, blinking, and pivoting from side to side. Here's an interesting fact: Your baby's head (which, by the way, is still growing) will, at birth, be the same size circumference as his or her hips, abdomen, and shoulders. And guess what's making an impression (literally) these days on those shoulders and hips: fat — causing little dimples in those cute elbows and knees, shoulders and hip, and creases and folds in the neck and wrists.

Logging all the vitamins I've been taking, so I can remember them for later:

Multivitamin: I've been taking New Chapter Organics Prenatal, but just discovered Thorne Prenatal - which is much more affordable.

Iron: Starting taking Floridex liquid when I found out I have low iron stores (third trimester).

Super DHA liquid (Genestra): was taking this even before pregnancy, since it's good for brain development.

Folid Acid + B12 (Genestra): was taking this before pregnancy til the end of second trimester.

Biotone EFA (Genestra): good for skin elasticity and maintaining hormonal balance - great for acne too. I started taking them around week 26, but wish I had started earlier.

AFA-Gen (Genestra): good for boosting immune system and helping with fatigue - taking during month 9, and first few months of breastfeeding.

Probiotics: started taking around week 26, hopefully helps prevent Strep B.

happy bday addy

Addy turned 1 year old on the weekend. She's such a good pup.

Feeling: Starting to feel ginormous. The midwife said that the baby has 'engaged' so now it feels like I've got a baseball in my pelvis.
Movement?: Not as many big movements anymore, but he still squiggles around all the time.
Cravings: Pineapple and anything home baked.... cookies, brownies, cake...
Wishing for: Looks like I got my wish for a white Christmas! There was a big storm last week, which was nice because it meant Jeremy got to stay home for the day.
Movies: more Christmas movies... Charlie Brown, Garfield, It's a Wonderful Life
Current Project: wrapping up all my projects at work so I can hand them off before I leave. We've got most of the Christmas shopping and wrapping done, just some baking left to do. We assembled the dresser to use as a change table in the baby's room - now we just need to add accents like art and curtains.

Your baby's skull isn't the only soft structure in his or her little body. Most of your baby's bones and cartilage are quite soft as well (they'll harden over the first few years of life). At 36 weeks pregnant, the skull bones are also not fused together yet so that the head can easily maneuver through the birth canal.

He is now about six pounds in weight and measures slightly more than 20 inches in length. Growth will experience a slowdown now, both so your baby will be able to fit the narrow passageway to the outside and also so he or she can store up all the energy needed for delivery.

By now, many of your baby's systems are pretty mature, at least in baby terms — and just about ready for life on the outside. Blood circulation, for instance, has been perfected and your baby's immune system has matured enough to protect him or her from infections outside the womb. Other systems, however, still need a few finishing touches. Once such notable example: digestion — which actually won't be fully mature until sometime after birth. Why's that? Inside his or her little gestational cocoon, your baby has relied on the umbilical cord for nutrition, meaning that the digestive system — though developed — hasn't been operational. So your baby will take the first year or two to bring that system up to speed.