Adventures of the Kastenbaby

Hi,
It has been a while since I've written anything... I guess I was welcomed into the life of having a newborn in the house :) Well, I thought I would share with you how our life has been transformed over the last month. Things have been so different around here since August 7th when we brought Cody into the world.

We spent two nights in the hospital before Tim and I drove (the most cautiously we've ever driven) home with the babe. Maggie had been staying with Uncle Jon for the days, and came to join us later in the afternoon. What a welcome sight our own bed was. WOW. we appreciated everything the hospital was able to offer us help-wise with the Codeman, but we appreciate having our own space back even more. We had family and friends visiting us intermittently from the day we came home until this past weekend. Moms, dads, friends, sisters, brothers... lots of people in Cody's life to love him to near-death :) But, lots of hands to hold him and help out, too! It has been such a blessing to feel loved and cared for by so many. Even if we have to use a cute little baby boy to pawn this loving out of some, haha. We love seeing our brothers and sisters pick up the reins and take over with aunt and uncle roles... so GREAT!

I am finally now feeling recovered physically from all the trauma that is giving birth naturally, but can't wait to do it all again with another kid someday. and another, and another... and... It all has gone so well. Praise the Lord for His hand in it all.

We've begun to feel weary and dreary as this little guy keeps us (me) up so many weird hours of the days and nights. But hey, I have someone who loves me and needs me now more than I imagined. And that is a great feeling. It is so hard to see Cody crying, or hear his grunts as he trys to work *something* out of his system... He seems to be having a real hard time passing gas/poop/air bubbles through his system. But I came to find out that baby's don't have fully developed intestines (or something within the tract) until almost 2 months or so. That makes more sense as to why it can be so difficult for the tyke. I think I can tell the difference between his rabbit-in-distress (I need something) cry, and his I'm-content-other-than-this-terrible-discomfort-I'm-having, so he needs to be repositioned, cry. To Tim it's pretty much all noise in the night, but I can sleep through the latter. Phew.

I haven't ever watched so many TV episodes in sequence in my life--well, minus the time Sara and I watched the entire first and second season or something of LOST in one weekend--thanks to Alicia's Netflix :) THANKS ALICIA! I've watched a lot of Parks and Rec Seasons 1 & 2, 30 Rock Season 1 so far. I've picked up a few random movies from the library. I'll have to see what the verdict is on those. I feel like there is so much to do around this little apartment. The few moments I have when I am not holding or nursing Cody, I have been trying to do the more important items: Showering, eating, taking care of the dog, watering my two survived plants, and resting. Sometimes I just want to debrief and get on here or facebook, or look through photos I've captured in the last weeks too. Anyway, I am now one of "those moms" who complain about not being able to get anything done while they are "doing nothing" all day :) it's beautifully difficult.

I have had Cody out in the ErgoBaby front pack for a few walks with Maggie. But, Maggie is this whole other story. She's been bad and rebellious because we haven't been able to give her as much attention. She has gotten into chocolate candies, opened the toaster oven (HOW?!), eaten the roll of paper towels into shreds, ripped off my box of chalk, eaten my Arbonne $8 chapstick, and taken a can of cream soda out of the box in the laundry room into the living room (WHY?!). She's been naughty, but kind of due to our lack of attention. Sorry girl. Well, then she made me cry last week when I thought she was dying!!!

Short story long: she came to stand by me inside and looked like she was going to puke, so I rushed her outside. Only, she didn't rush, she came at a sloth's pace with crossed eyes. She dropped a little poop when she basically fainted while standing at the top of the stairs outside, and refused to go down (she felt incapable). I convinced her to take them slow, and she meandered very weirdly to the little island of grass in our parking lot: where she then attempted to pee, but fell over and closed her eyes. I thought she was legitimately dying when she wouldn't respond to me for about ten minutes. I called Tim right away and told him something was seriously wrong and he left work right away. I couldn't move her dead-weight body, and she wasn't even lifting her head. She just lay there mostly dead but still breathing. Finally Carol (sweet neighbor lady who actually was too old and weak to help much) helped me lift her into the van. I drove her and a crying Cody to the Vet, where Tim met us a minute later.

He hadn't seen anything like it. Checked her pulse, weak in the back legs. Checked her heart rate, Fast: 136. Checked her blood platelets (?), Normal, xRayed her chest: spot on lungs that looks like Pneumonia but in wrong spot so a mystery, also her heart was small. Checked her for Heartworm, Negative. Checked for a Thyroid problem, No. She was dehydrated, and weak. Anyway, $$$ later, we left the Vet with his recommendation to see a Cardiac Vet if/when this happens again. He is quite certain she has a heart condition, but he doesn't specialize in that, so we'd have to go to the Cardiac guy (very expensive). We came home, and after about 3 hours Maggie was walking around normal and being a tired but normal Maggie. We think she may have had a Stroke. :( GOSH, freak me out!!!

Now, Tim is hunting for a few days, and I feel like I am mad at Maggie for being a bad dog when I leave the house. Then I feel bad for her because she may be in recovery from a stinking stroke. I'm figuring out the balance slowly. Cody doesn't care much.

Phew.... So, that is a little of what my days have been like :)

Tonight is hanging out with Erica :) YOGURTLAND may be on the agenda!

Love,
Cody's McMama

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