Thursday, September 25, 2008

Happy Birthdays!

Happy birthday to my mom and Cory's brother, Chase! Yay! Parker is 11 months old today too and Ms. Callie Dee will be 3 weeks old tomorrow! Whew..what a week to celebrate!

As for Cory, we are still waiting....

I wanted to share with you guys this awesome deal I found on moneysavingmom. It's for a ton of free picture prints on artscow.com

New members can get one photo book for $4.99 (with free shipping) when you use coupon code PB499.

Plus, use coupon code free10xbooks to get an additional 10 free 8x8 photo books from ArtsCow (you still have to pay shipping, but these might make a fairly inexpensive Christmas present for some on your list).

Also, use gift certificate FREE800 to get 800 free prints (again, you still have to pay shipping and you can only redeem 50 prints per month, but it might still be a good deal for some of you. To redeem the coupon code, login to ArtsCow.com, go to "Members Area", then to "Credit and Discount", and then enter the Gift Certificate and click "Validate".)

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Poor Daddy!

So where have I been?! Well, our poor Papa has his own little medical emergency. Here's what's going on...Cory has been complaining of back pain for a couple weeks. He was thinking he may have thrown it out somehow. Well, on Sunday he was in so much pain. He looked really upset and kept having to lay on the ground while helping me with housework. So, I finally said, "where exactly is your pain?" He pointed to his lower side. I said, "Umm that's not your back, that's your kidney!" I told him he should go to the ER to make sure he didn't have kidney stones or something more serious. Well anyone you knows Cory knows how stubborn he is...especially when it comes to doctors or his health (kinda ironic considering I'm a nurse!). Finally, he decided he should go. Turns out, it is a kindey stone about 1 cm big! That's way too big to pass on his own, so he is needing a procedure called lithotripsy. That's when they use shockwave therapy to break up the stone into smaller pieces so he can pass it on his own. Well, more bad news. The machine that they use to do the procedure is a traveling machine and is only here on certain days. They can't get Cory in until October 15th!!! So we are still debating what we should do...He certainly cannot wait over 3 weeks. Financially and physically, he really can't take it! So sorry to those of you I have not been returning phone calls or emails...I've been taking care of 2 babies under the age of 1 and a very sick husband. I will keep you all updated on the situation. Keep Cory in your prayers for some relief!

Sunday, September 21, 2008

Callie's 1st Dr. appt

Everything at Callie's first appointment went really well. She's up to 6 pounds, 1 oz. and 19 inches! That's awesome for 2 weeks! Everything was normal, she didn't have to get any shots this time...that's for the next appointment in 6 weeks. We are changing her formula though because her poopies are like water, which could mean she's lactose intolerant. So, we changed to a soy formula...just like her brother already! Callie is still sleeping about 4 hours at a time and yesterday even went 5! I know, we are so lucky! Things are still going really well. The only stressful time is when both the babies are crying for a bottle. I just prop Callie up in her boppy and have Parker in the other arm! Crazy!

As for Parker, he is finally getting his teeth! His top right came through about a week and a half ago and the bottom left cut through the other night. Looks like his other bottom tooth is going to come through real soon. Poor guy is getting them all at once. He's cruising along the furniture really well. His physical therapy appointment went great last week, and Parker has some new goals. Next appointment will be in 2 weeks again!

Friday, September 19, 2008

Parker is 10 months, 4 weeks!


Again, this is according to babycenter.com:

You may see your baby start to take more of an interest in other babies. For the most part, babies this age parallel play, staying happily engrossed in their own activities alongside one another, but without really interacting. This is normal -- focusing on their own abilities and needs is how babies develop. Over time, though, you'll notice your baby stealing glances at fellow babies and perhaps crawling over to try to use the same toy.

Your baby may now assert herself among her siblings and begin to engage in parallel play — contentedly playing alongside (but not with) another baby. Informal baby playdates can be a great way to encourage your little one to develop social skills. Just remember that babies this age are still too young to understand the idea of making friends.

Think of these playdates as helping your baby build a foundation for learning how to interact with others. And she may get new play ideas from these first buddies. A bonus: You'll have some help and support from the other babies' parents.

Your baby now understands simple instructions, although you may still be ignored when you say "no." (To help the word carry a little more weight, use it sparingly, for setting important limits.)

Even though your baby may not always remember tomorrow what you've said today, it's not too soon to set certain boundaries and start teaching some important distinctions, like right from wrong and safe from unsafe.

Sunday, September 14, 2008

Lots of Pictures!!

Taking a ride


Such a good sleeper!



Parker in the hot tub



One week old



First airplane ride at Fred Meyer's

Friday, September 12, 2008

Growin' Babies!

Here's Parker's 10 month, 3 week update from that one website I posted from last time. Here's what it says about this week:

Your baby may "walk" while you're gripping his hands, and even hold out an arm or leg to help you dress him. At mealtimes, he may be able to drink from a cup on his own (though some children may not do this well for months or even another year or two) and hand-feed himself.

Once your baby's able to drink from a cup by himself, you may need to start ducking, because he's just as likely to toss it when he's finished as to set it down.

Your baby's ability to vocalize is improving, and he may say his first word any time now. When he does, repeat it softly and clearly so she can learn the correct pronunciation. (Bear in mind that many babies won't utter an intelligible peep for several more months, and that's normal, too.) First words don't always have precise definitions, by the way. "Dog" may mean anything with four legs, and "ba-ba" could signify bottle, teddy bear, bye-bye — or all three.


Ms. Callie is a week old today!! Yay! Things are going so good, I really can't believe it. I feel great and Callie is such a good baby!! She's sleeping 4-4.5 hour stretches still and eating about 2 oz. at a time. Her jaundice is looking better, I've been putting her under the window for sunlight. Parker is still adjusting some. He's been getting pretty clingy and follows me from room to room. I don't really mind though, he's so awesome!

The Carlson's brought us dinner last night and got to see Callie and we got to see David. They are such a sweet family! Parker loved the lasagna and I have hilarious pictures of him smothered in it. I'll try and post those later. Grandpa Stemp got to meet his granddaughter last night too. Grandma Stemp brought over lots of really cute clothes. Callie is in preemie sizes, which we didn't really expect so she doesn't have to many outfits for the time being. They grow so fast though, I'm sure she'll be in newborn before we know it!

Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Callie Has Arrived

So as many of you already know, Callie Dee Stemp was born September 5, 2008 at 1:45 p.m. at 36 weeks exactly. She weighed 5 pounds, 9 ounces and measured 17 3/4 inches.
Labor started about 8 p.m. The contractions were not very regular so I wasn't sure if it was real labor or not. They wer about 8-11 minutes apart, but the back pain was getting intolerable! Around 1:00 in the morning, I had my mom call the OB floor and ask the nurse if I should come in or not. She suggested taking a bath and rocking back and forth because it could be the position of the baby making my back hurt so bad. After trying that and still being in A LOT of pain, I decided to go in.
When I got there, my heart rate was very high and so was Callie's. It was over 200, which is not good for the baby. I had a temperature and some lower abdominal pain as well and so they decided to do some tests to see where the infection is, thinking it was probably a UTI. Turns out I had acute chorioamnionitis, an infection in the amniotic fluid. The Dr. that was on call that night was thinking I may need to have a C-Section due to the infection and having previously broke my tailbone while in labor with Parker. I was really scared to have any type of surgery. The Dr. was going off shift that morning, but said he would see what all the tests said and then go from there. When the next Dr. came in, he said it was up to me if I wanted to have the C-Section or not, and that the risks were about the same with both. I decided against the C-section.
Finally around 10:00, I got the epidural and they hung Pitocin and really got things going. At 1:45, Callie Dee arrived. I only had to push about 7 times for about 15 minutes. This labor experience was MUCH easier than Parker's and so far, the recovery has been a thousand times easier.
Callie was taken to the NICU for evaluation due to her high heart rate and fever. She also had a pretty bad rash all over her body. The Dr.'s decided she would need antibiotics through an IV for a couple days, but that she could stay in the room with me! The NICU nurses came and got her once a day and once during the night for a couple hours to give her the meds and then she got to come back. All her blood cultures and lab work came back normal. When we left the hospital, her rash was pretty much gone and she was weighing in around 5 pounds, 6 ounces. Not bad!!
Now she is at home with us and things are going great! The first night was a big adjustment for all of us and no one really slept. The past two nights have gone great with Callie sleeping 4-4.5 hours at a time! I laugh because I get up with Parker more than Callie!! She so beautiful though and was so worth any amount of bedrest, dr. visits, or medications.
Cory and I want to thank everyone who helped us out over the past few months, especially my parents who let us turn their home upside down by moving in while on bedrest. I seriously don't know what I would have done without them. I can't imagine how early I would have ended up having Callie if I didn't have their support! Also, Cory's grandma, Lucy, who helped us out during a really low time and helped with chores at home while I couldn't be there. All our family members have been so amazing and we really don't think this pregnancy would have been so successful if it weren't for them. We know how blessed we really are and can't believe God gave us even one more miracle.
I will try and keep updating with new Callie moments! Getting on the computer has been hard...so busy these days!


First family photo...Don't know I was looking so annoyed! LOL!


Parker meeting Callie. He thinks she's pretty cute!


Me and Callie Dee


Papa and his new baby girl



Making her debut!

Thursday, September 4, 2008

Appointment Yesterday, Appointment Tomorrow!

Appointment yesterday went real well. I got a gift bag from APW since I made it to 36 weeks. My sister was with me and we were both laughing because neither one of us had got that far in our pregnancies before! Anways, still measuring at 3 cm. And this is crazy- the other cervix is dilating too at 2.5 cm! We were all laughing about that one since really I'm 5.5 cms total! So the amniotic fluid level was even lower at this ultrasound, down from 8.1 to 6.5. I guess the normal range is 8-22, and although I'm not in the "normal" range anymore, the Dr. said it's really not that bad. They still want to check on it before the weekend starts, so I have to go in AGAIN tomorrow to check the fluid level and have a non stress test. The baby can become stressed if the level gets too low so that's the reason for the NST. Callie was measing in at 5 pounds, 9 ounces, but the tech told me that it's really not very accurate because the head measurment she got was so poor due to her position (She's very very low!) I guess that's the one they really go by for weight, so it's probably wrong. I told her I didn't mind, that anywhere in the 5 pound range was awesome to me!! My weight was back down a couple pounds, so that was nice!
On another note, Parker got to play with most of his cousins yesterday! He got to see cousin Brady and David in the morning and then cousin Sebastian in the afternoon. He was pooped! We are going to Great Grandma Stemps this afternoon too for some fun.
Cory has picked up some shifts with Mechanical Insulators again and had to be at work at 5:30 this morning!! Poor guy! I just keep looking at the clock thinking how he's been at work for two hours all ready, and I'm just getting up for the day.
Melissa's house hunt continues...check out her blog for an update on that.
Nothing else really new! I'll update tomorrow!

Tuesday, September 2, 2008

10 months, 2 weeks....

I get these weekly updates from babycenter.com about different things Parker might be doing. I don't take it too seriously, as we all know, each baby is so different. But I thought I might start to post each one. Here's what it says:

At this age, your baby can sit confidently and may even walk while holding onto furniture, possibly letting go momentarily and standing without support. She'll take steps when held in a walking position and may attempt to scoop up a toy while she's standing, too.

Those magical first steps toward independence — and lots more exercise for you! — are just around the corner, if they haven't arrived already. Most babies take their first steps sometime around 12 months, but some start much earlier. If yours isn't walking yet, don't worry — it's still early. Some babies wait until they're 18 months old to make that move.


Also, Parker waved "Bye-Bye" to Cory last night! It was awesome!!

Parker In The Paper

Parker made it in the Tri-Cities Herald today! It's in the KidsZone page on the back of the Lifestyle section. So check it out and he'll be signing autographs at a later time. Lol! I tried to link it, but I couldn't find it on the TCH website. Oh well! Anyways, he's pretty cute!