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The adventures of Squishy and Bean

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Monthly Newsletter: Liam, Month 3

7/21/2010 /

Dear Liam,

It’s hard to believe you have now had an entire trimester on the outside.  You have grown so much!  Already you are over 14 pounds and almost 2 feet tall.  You also have the most adorable chubby thighs and a belly I love to kiss!

3-months

You are just starting to get your giggle and you sound like Caleb when you laugh out loud.  I can’t wait to watch the two of you play.  Caleb tries so hard to make you smile and laugh now.

dance party

You are really wanting to move now.  You roll from your tummy to your back and your back to your side.  If I offer a little support you can get from your side to your tummy.  You wiggle and pivot and can get yourself completely off your blanket or parallel positions from where you originally started.

You love to chat!  You are constantly making vocalizations, gooing, mmming and I swear when you are mad you yell: mommommomm!  You also love to suck in your bottom lip and imitate us chewing.

bottom lip

You are reaching and trying to grab at things. I have lost a lot of hair to your little fists.  When you get a hold of your toys they go straight into your mouth.  You drool as much as you spit-up now, and always have a recieving blanket with you.  Because of this, I think you are going to be a blanket boy.  You love to snuggle a blanket next to your face.

sleep

Sleep is still a challenge… but I know one day you will be too big for me to hold and snuggle, so for now I am dealing with it, and am glad that you tolerate my daily cup of coffee.  Regardless of my tiredness, I love you little Liam Bean!

smile

Love,
Momma
XO XO XO

Monthly Newsletter: Liam, Month 2

7/18/2010 /

(Originally written June 21, 2010)

Dear Liam,

It’s hard to believe you have been with us for two months.  It feels like you have always been part of our family.  You are definitely working hard to keep up with your brother.  You now weigh about 13lbs and you are almost 23 inches long. 

2 months old

This morning you rolled over from tummy to back three times – the last time I even got on video!  You love to play on the floor, and enjoy your tummy time.  You have amazing neck strength and can lift your head so very high!

tummy time

This month you have also discovered your hands.  You love to suck on your fists and play with your fingers.  You are reaching for things and grabbing at toys.  You are such an active little guy. 

hands

You smile at everyone now.  I love when you wake up with a smile on your face.  You are such a social little person!  One of the favourite games we play is dance party.  You and I join Caleb in his bedroom and we dance to music.  You love to watch your brother and you kick your legs and grin.  Bathtime also makes you smile.  You love your bath now, and cry when we take you out.  You also started having a few baths with your brother.  You both love this.

brothers

Thanks for making me smile so much little one!  I love you.

Love,
Mama
xo xo

Monthly (…yearly) Newsletter: Caleb, Month 60 (5 years)

7/13/2010 /

Originally written on June 3, 2010…

Dear Caleb,

You are five!  FIVE!  I can’t believe my little squishy is now almost in Kindergarten.  You have grown up so fast before my eyes.  You are Mr. Independent, Mr. Bossy, Mr. Attitude, Mr. Big Brother, Mr. Caring!  And I love you for all of it.

FIVE

Yes you are now a big brother, and you fill the role well.  You love kissing, hugging and talking to your brother.  I especially love hearing the conversations you have with him.  In the car you explain to him why I stop at red lights, and tell him the directions to preschool.  When you are playing you explain to him the proper way to build your Lego City.

Caleb & Liam

Oh yes, the Lego.  Lego has taken over your life.  You love Lego – and you are good at building with it.  I admit I hate the fact that it is everywhere and stepping on it hurts.  But it is so wonderful to watch you play and use your imagination.  You set up scenarios and have lots of little scenes that you act out.  Of course you are still being spoiled by your grandparents and aunts and uncles, so you own every Lego set there is.

Lego truck

You are so independent now.  You can (mostly) dress yourself, get yourself snacks, do up and undo your seat belt, and ride a bike with training wheels.  Your speech is incredible.  Although you still have some grammatical errors, for the most part, people understand you.  When I think of how far you have come in your journey with Apraxia I want to cry.  You could be the poster child for CASLPA.  You are also so much more willing to challenge yourself physically.  The treatment blocks you spent in the PT gym have given you the confidence to try and try again.  This has been such a big change since last year.  You tackle the playgrounds now and you win!

Caleb Speech therapy1
Playground

This year you made so many good friends, especially at preschool.  It will be sad to say goodbye, especially to your teacher Susan, who has cared for you since you were two and a half and still in diapers.  You have become so social and such a great role model in your class.  They have set you up well for kindergarten.

Preschool teachers

I love your zest for life.  I love how much you want to be with your family and friends.  You are quirky and still a stickler for routine (which your dad and I sometimes hate).  You are still picky with foods, but are willing to try new things.  You are you… my darling first baby.  I hope you keep being yourself.  I love you.

Caleb and Mom

Love you always,
Mom

XO XO XO XO XO

Monthly Newsletter: Liam, Month One

7/13/2010 /

Originally written May 21, 2010…

Dear Liam,

You are now one month old.  It’s so hard to believe that only a month ago we were anxiously awaiting you and trying everything to get you to come out of your cozy spot in my belly.  It feels as though you have always been with us, and yet it feels like the days have flown by.

one month old

It has been a challenging first month for you.  We realized that you were suffering from Gastrointestinal Reflux and it was causing you a lot of pain.  You were two weeks old when we started you on medication and it has made a world of difference.  You no longer scream in pain and your face is more relaxed.  I’m so sorry you had to suffer and that I couldn’t make you instantly better.  I have eliminated dairy and chocolate from my diet and that seems to help with your spitting up.

You have the most beautiful smile.  I admit I am jealous that Daddy was the recipient of your first real smiles, but now you give them to me freely.  You also like to smile at your big brother Caleb and all his antics.  You like to watch him and are content to lie on the floor next to him as he plays and tells about how all his toys work.  The two of you love having a dance party in his room.  I crank up the tunes and Caleb dances around and dances his stuffed animals for you, and you wave your arms and kick your feet.

Smiles for Dad
Brotherly advice

Our new family of four is starting to get into a routine now, and we are so glad you have joined us.  Daddy, Caleb and I love you so very much (as evident by all the kisses you constantly get).  I’m tired, but so very happy.

Squishy & Bean

Love,
Mama
xo

Liam’s Birth Story

7/13/2010 /

Liam’s birth story (as I remember it):
On Tuesday April 20th I had an appointment with my midwife Deb at 10am. She did a stretch and sweep and said that I was about 3cm – but she could stretch me to 4 cm. We got home and contractions started at around 11:30am. I ignored them because of all the prelabor I’d had. Adam took Caleb to preschool and then continued to work from home. At 2:30 I realized I still had contractions – they were about 8 minutes apart and getting a little stronger. I was still in denial that things were actually starting. At 4pm we decided to call and give the midwife a head’s up – contractions were now 6-7 minutes apart and about 1 minute long. We also called our doula Sarah and she came over. Between 4:30 – 7pm my contractions progressed to 5 minutes apart and about 1 minute long. We went for a walk, had dinner and I laboured in the comfort of my bedroom. Around 7 I lay down in a new position and got a bit of rest. Contractions slowed for about an hour. By 10pm I was having contractions around 4 and a half minutes apart – and then by 10:30 they got really intense, so we paged the midwife, Luba, who told us to meet her at the hospital. We checked into labour and delivery just after 11pm. They hooked me up to the monitors, and I continued to labour as I had at home. (Although they were intense, the contractions were bearable and I felt in total control the whole time – way better than my first labour). At around 12 midnight I was checked and was about 5cm – but baby had moved positions and was now starting to go posterior. So my water was broken and I was put on my side to try to get him to move back to a good position. Half an hour later I started bearing down and wanting to push. When my Luba checked I was fully dilated and ready to push! No transition phase – just 5 to 10 in about 30 minutes! It took 30 minutes to learn to push effectively, and then for another 2 hours I gave it my all. I remember a nurse telling me she could see long dark hair. His heart rate kept dropping then coming back up, and my midwife was concerned about his position, so she called up the on-call OB, Dr. Denny. The OB tried twice to turn him, but his head was in an awkward position. HIs heart rate was still dipping – so although she gave me an extra half hour to try, we were told that a c-section may be best because he wasn’t progressing down, he was starting to get stressed and my pelvis just didn’t seem big enough. So I got wheeled into the OR – and tried not to push (that was the hardest part). They gave me a spinal – which was the first medication I’d had – and Liam was born at 4:23am on Wednesday April 21. I found out later that his heart rate had dropped as low as 60 a few times, and also they said with the size of my pelvis and the size of the baby, it really was impossible to push him out. But he came out healthy! And although I wanted a VBAC, I feel like I almost got it – and feel no regret in having to have a c-section in the end. And I’m pretty happy that labour for the most part, went how I wanted it – and I was able to labour at home and stay med free for all of it until the section.

Liam's birth

Letter to Liam

7/4/2010 /

(This was originally written after Liam was born… )

Dear Liam,

Welcome to the world little one.  It was quite the journey we had together, but well worth it.  All the kicks and bumps, all the body aches and pains, all the labour… every minute of it was worth it to see your beautiful face.  Daddy and I are so happy to have you in our lives.  I love watching how alert you are and how much you stare at us, recognizing our voices.  Your big brother Caleb is so excited to have you here.  He tells everyone about his new baby brother.  I was so surprised when the nurse weighed you and you were 9 pounds!  No wonder my belly was so big.  You certainly surprised us.  You also kept us waiting an extra 8 days!  I now think of it as the extra days when you wanted to keep me to yourself and enjoy some last cuddles.  I can’t wait to watch you grow and see your personality emerge.  Already I can tell you are a social and alert little one.  It won’t be long at all before you are running around with your brother.  I love you, my precious little baby boy.

Liam - 4 days old

Love,
Mama
xo

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