Welcome Isabella Betsy (Izzie B)!!!

We are pleased to welcome Isabella Betsy Trapuzzano to our family!  Most of you know we were scheduled to be induced on March 6, but somehow here we are with a two day old!  We are just as shocked as all of you probably were that she decided to come on her own.  This is her story ;)

We were all set to meet our daughter on March 6.  We were getting things together in our house and only had the bare minimum left to do with a week to go.  I had been to the doctor on Tuesday and had made only the slightest of changes from 1cm dilated to 1-2cm dilated.  Both I and the doctor were confident I would make it to induction, especially since Brady was a week late and still needed to be induced.  The next day, I started to have some signs that labor might happen in the next few days (I won't go into too much details for those who are very squeamish).  My mom had had a similar situation with my brother, Alex (the only one who wasn't induced), and she went into labor that night.  I was very nervous, because my parents were scheduled to drive in on Friday night.  Everyone said to lay low and relax just in case.  I spent the next few days in the house, doing laundry, and snuggling with Brady.

Friday night we had plans for Andy to drop off some painting supplies at the Reese's house, and they had offered to watch Brady so we could have a final date night before Izzie came.  We had made dinner reservations at Bahama Breeze for 7PM and were excited to have some alone time.  We got there and had to wait a bit as it was Friday night and the place was packed.  We got seated about 15 minutes later and I needed to use the restroom (not shocking since I was 9 months pregnant).  I was used to the normal discharge, but noticed my underwear had a little more wetness than normal.  I didn't think anything of it and went back to order my food.  We were eating our appetizer and I started to feel some more moisture, so I went back to the bathroom and saw that I had even more wetness.  I waited until I felt another small trickle of moisture before telling Andy I thought I might be leaking fluid (code for water breaking more slowly than one big gush).  He asked if we should just get the check and leave.  I figured that if it was, I wouldn't be eating for a long time, so I wanted to finish my dinner. 

By the time we left to get Brady, it was pretty apparent that we'd be going to the hospital even if it was just to get checked out.  I had called and they said to come in.  We headed back to our house, where luck would have it, my parents had just arrived.  I got out of the car and my pants were also wet.  We spent the next half an hour running around packing a few bags and getting the car seat installed (both things we'd had on the list to do this weekend).  By the time we got in the car at 9:30PM on Friday night, I was starting to feel mild cramping.  I pretty much knew that we weren't coming home without a baby.

We got to the hospital by 10PM and the got me into my room right away.  They took all my info and tested the fluid I was leaking which turned out to be amniotic fluid.  I was admitted at that point, and other than having a doctor check me (now at a 2-3cm dilated), they told me that they'd leave me alone unless I needed something.  The big joke was that we thought we'd be coming in to have her in the morning after a full night's rest.  Brady was induced during the middle of the night and Andy still remembers not getting any sleep.  I guess babies have their own plans.

I was having contractions on my own and by 3AM asked for my epidural.  With Brady, I was induced, so the contractions were much more intense and closer together, so I was able to hold out much longer.  Andy was shocked when I asked for it, as we were watching movies and I hadn't said anything.  They gave it to me right away and we decided to sleep for a bit.  I woke up at 5AM wanting to change which side I was lying on, and realized my legs were dead.  This didn't surprise me because they had been like that with Brady.  Andy came over to help turn me, but when he couldn't even lift them, we knew it was a little too much medicine.  They came in and turned it off completely and would turn it back on at a lower dose when I started to get some feeling back.  I didn't feel anything until 8AM.  They called in the nurse anesthetist and he turned it back on.  It didn't seem to be doing anything so they gave it a booster shot and that did the trick.  I was numb enough not to feel any pain, but could move my legs.

They checked me at 9AM and I was still a 2-3cm dilated and not having consistent contractions, so they were ready to start the Pitocin (drug used to intensify or start contractions).  By 11AM I was only at 4cm and they were saying the Pitocin had actually made the contractions farther apart instead of closer, so they would be turning it up gradually until it got where it needed to go.  They told me they'd only check me every few hours because my water had already broken and they didn't want to introduce any unneeded bacteria.  Since I was a second-time mom, they told me if I felt anything was happening to let them know and they would of course check me early.

At 1PM it was time to be checked again and I was only at 4-5cm.  I was starting to get a little worried because they don't like women to labor more than 24 hours after their waters have broken as the risk of infection increases.  I asked what the plan was and they said they would continue to increase the Pitocin and I still wasn't having consistently strong and spaced contractions, so they wouldn't worry unless I was having strong contractions and no dilating.  They also reassured me that it was a good sign that I'd already had a baby the natural way and they were reluctant to perform a c-section at any point (unless absolutely necessary) due to my bleeding disorder.  We had been texting my parents throughout the day and at this point felt like we wouldn't be seeing them until Sunday because even if we did have the baby on Saturday, it was likely to be late.

Around 2PM I started feeling some pressure, so I called the nurses to check me.  I was already at 9cm!  They scrambled out to call the doctor who lives 15 minutes from the hospital.  25 min later, I was buzzing them again because I knew it was time to have a baby.  Just as I hit the buzzer, the door opened and the doctor and all the nurses came rushing in.  In four contractions and ten minutes of pushing, Izzie B was born!  It was such a different experience and feeling than when Brady was born.  They put her right on my chest instead of taking her away.  They encouraged me to breastfeed while she was against my skin and they'd clean her and weigh her later.

Because of my bleeding disorder, they were prepared ahead of time to hang an IV of a medicine to replace the factor that I'm missing which helps people clot.  They did that and a few other measures to make sure that I didn't have any extreme hemorrhaging like I did after Brady was born.  Things went much better than we could have hoped for and things were under control quite quickly.  I was hardly paying attention as I was overjoyed at the little girl laying on my chest. 

Almost immediately after birth on Saturday, March 2, 2013 at 2:54PM.  The doctor could tell while I was pushing that she had her daddy and grandma's strawberry blonde hair and we were both so happy, especially since her middle name is for Andy's mom.  If you can't tell, I'm crying because I was just so relieved and happy to have her in our lives after thinking about her for so long.

Izzie was very feisty and refused to turn her head to look at Andy for a picture.  She did however lift her head right up and has continued to do so every since.  She's very strong.

After an hour of her being on my chest, they took her to the other end of the room to bathe her, measure her, and weigh her.

Getting her bath and not at all happy about it.

30 minutes before she was born, Andy and I decided to take guesses on how much she'd weigh.  She was born a week shy of her due date and a whole two weeks earlier than Brady (born at 8lbs 5oz), so I guessed she'd weigh 7lbs 8oz.  Andy guessed 7lbs 3oz.  We played with Price is Right rules, so the closest without going over.  I won as she weighed in at 7lbs 14oz.

She measured at 21 inches, only a half inch shy of where her big brother was at birth.

Daddy getting to hold her for the first time after she was all clean.  So different from last time, where he got to hold Brady long before I did.

Holding my baby girl.

All dressed and warm in her pj's.

Snuggle time.

Amazingly, I was up and showered before my parents brought Brady to visit around 6PM, only 3 hours after delivery.  I was still bedridden with Brady almost 24 hours later.

Brady's reaction to his baby sister.  He brought her "puppy blankie."

My kids ;)

Nana with her first granddaughter.

The first night went really well.  Izzie continued to latch (although there was no milk yet) and slept in four hour stretches, only waking once to spit up some mucous and get her diaper changed.

My parents brought Brady back on Sunday morning before my dad headed back to Pittsburgh.  My mom plans to stay several weeks to help out with adjusting to life with two kids.

Brady getting ready to give his baby sister a kiss goodbye.

Around 4PM my doctor came in to check on me and said as long as Izzie passed her newborn tests (which she did), we could leave whenever we wanted.  We talked about it and decided to go home that night because we'd probably sleep better at home and be a lot more comfortable.  So only 27 hours after delivery, we walked through the garage door to surprise my mom and Brady who were very happy we were all home and healthy.  Now begins our life with two kids.

P.S. - It took us a while to place who Izzie B looked like in those first few hours.  Initially we couldn't tell, but at some point during the evening I looked at her and almost saw an exact image of Andy's newborn pic from the hospital when he was born.  Her having red hair didn't automatically mean she'd look like him (as many people assume he looks like his mom because they have the same hair, when in truth his older brother looks like their mom).  There are times when I look at her in a certain way and see Brady too, so we are excited to see how she grows and changes.

Third Trimester - Izzie B

For those of you who haven't been on Facebook in the last 24 hours, Izzie B decided she couldn't wait for induction this Wednesday and decided she wanted to be born yesterday! A post with her birth story and pictures of her will be coming in the next few days as we settle in.  The most important thing is that both mom and baby are healthy and hope to be home Monday.  Since she wasn't supposed to come until Wednesday, I hadn't planned on writing about the third trimester until Tuesday with a final 39 week belly shot.  Now that she's here, I have no choice but to do without a most recent belly pic and will talk about the third trimester now, before moving on to her birth story.

The third trimester can be the longest trimester as it starts as 27 weeks and if you go overdue, you can make it to 42 weeks.  But on the other hand it can be the shortest if you have your baby early.  Most find it to be the most uncomfortable trimester with the added aches and pains that come with carrying an ever growing heavier baby.  During this trimester the baby puts on the most weight, growing from the size of a cauliflower (16.5 inches head to toe and 2.5lbs) to the size of a watermelon (ranging from 18-22 inches head to toe and between 6-9lbs) at birth.  Towards the last few months, babies are gaining on average half a pound per week. Most women grow the most impatient in the final trimester as they're so ready to meet their babies!

I can say that the third trimester has been fairly easy for me this pregnancy.  I had a much smaller belly than I did with Brady and Izzie never had the chance to drop, so she wasn't constantly in my pelvis.  I had little to no trouble sleeping at night (with the occasional bathroom run) and no back pain.  The third trimester also brought around several personal triumphs on my part.  The biggest one has been when it comes to weight gain.  I ended this pregnancy up only 32.5lbs, when I gained a total of 52lbs with Brady.  I'm thrilled things were much more under control this time and that I'll be able to get to pre-pregnancy weight so much sooner than with Brady (which took a full 16 months).  Another triumph, which is related to the lower weight gain is that a pair of maternity pajama pants that I had bought around 30 weeks with Brady that never fit, I was able to wear to the end this pregnancy and I still had tons of room in them.  I was able to keep my wedding bands on much longer this time.  With Brady, all of my rings were too tight by 29 weeks and it took a full nine months after he was born to get them back on.  I always felt like people would think I was an unwed mother when I'd take him out.  This time my wedding band lasted until 35 weeks, my engagement ring made it to 37 weeks, and my "place holder" engagement ring (the one Andy proposed with while we waited for mine to come in) made it all the way to delivery.  You're not supposed to wear any jewelry to the hospital in case you need emergency surgery, so I didn't even realize I still had the ring on when we got there.  The final triumph was that I walked away with ZERO new stretch marks!  I still have plenty from my teen years of being overweight and from Brady's pregnancy, but adding no new ones, is amazing.

28 weeks (right before Christmas)

32 weeks

34 weeks

36 weeks

The reason there are pics for 32, 34, and 36 weeks (instead of just doing every four weeks like before) is because I can only fit three per page in Izzie's scrapbook and each page covers a trimester.  In her scrapbook, I had intended to have 28, 34, and 39 weeks, but that won't work now.  I took the 32 and 36 because those are when you start a new month of pregnancy.  Above is the progression (from left to right) of 28 weeks, 32 weeks, and 36 weeks.  There is some growth you can see, but I was still so small at the end that I would get dirty looks when parking in expectant mother spots.

 

I've really enjoyed comparing the belly pics around the same gestational age between Brady and Izzie.  It's amazing how different they were, but I do have to take into account that they are different genders and I gained 20lbs more with Brady.  Above is Brady at 33 weeks (on the left) and Izzie B at 34 weeks (on the right).  It's crazy how much bigger I was with Brady.  I still wonder where I was hiding Izzie.

This one is both kids at 36 weeks (Brady on the left and Izzie on the right).  You can see the first signs of stretch marks with Brady and then with Izzie you can see those (and the ones that developed in the five weeks after that before he was born) faded.

The final compilation of all the belly pics that were taken over the entire pregnancy.  I can't believe it's over, but I couldn't be more overjoyed with my new baby girl.

Brady the Gymnast

Brady has been rambunctious since day 1 and we're always looking for activities where he can burn off some of that energy.  He went to Gymboree classes from 3-23 months and that was all about developing gross motor skills.  We had tried a gymnastics class when he was about 18 months, but he was still at the point where following directions wasn't his strong suit and I decided it was best if we waited a while before trying again.  After we got home from Germany, I was itching to get him back into activities.  He was getting to the upper age limit at Gymboree, so I decided gymnastics was worth a second try.  I signed him up for an 8 week class, meeting once a week for 45 minutes each session.

The first week was really rough.  He saw all of the equipment and other kids and wanted to go wild.  It was so stressful, I was starting to regret signing him up at all.  The second class went better, but then the third was just like the first again.  By the fourth class, he was listening again, but I had to be very clear that if he started to act out, I would take him out of the room until he was ready to listen again.  There were still a few times when we'd have to sit down and wait a few minutes before resuming the exercises again.

He was in a class with two and three year olds and they were doing all the things that gymnast do.  They did a stretching section at the beginning, then we did 15 minutes at different areas.  Sometimes it was floor work, beam, bars, and even vault (not with a real vault, but with a spring board onto a foam pad).  He was eager to do headstands and could easily hold up his body weight.  He was amazingly good at bars and could get his body all the way over.

His age level required parent participation and it was very physically taxing on me, especially being pregnant.  There were many times where I needed to sit down for fear of passing out in the warm gym.  He was doing very well by the end of the first session, so I decided to sign him up for the second fall session that would take us all the way to Christmas.  Andy had taken off the day before Christmas break, so he was able to come with us to Brady's last class.  At the last class of the session, it's ribbon day, and they get to do some fun things in addition to their normal circuit.

Climbing up the rock wall (not a normal activity).  He was eager and quick to get to the top.  Some kids were too scared to even try.

Over the top to slide down the other side.

He is holding himself on the bar, while walking up the wall, then he gets his feet over so he does a complete flip over the bar.

Holding himself up on the parallel bars.

One of the special activities was getting to play in the foam pit.  This is where gymnasts practice dismounts and vaults before trying to land them on a harder surface.

Since it was ribbon week, the kids got to walk up to the podium at the end, get their stickers and ribbons for completing the class.

He was a little too excited about the candy cane to look at the camera with his ribbon.  He really loved the classes and every now and then will start saying "nastics" and doing some of his moves.  Just the other day, he said to me, "Mommy go in the car, drive to nastics." He hasn't been to a class in over two months and still thinks about it.  This center doesn't do child only classes until 4 years old, but I know there's a center in Farmington Hills (where we used to live in MI) that does them at 3, so I might sign him up there in the fall.

Happy 3rd Birthday Brady!!!

I can't believe my baby boy is 3!  It's really scary to see how fast three years have gone and how soon he'll be too big to give me a kiss and a hug any time I want.  Everyone thought we were crazy for having him young and so soon after we got married (he was due 2 days after our 9 month wedding anniversary), but we wouldn't have it any other way.  Both our kids were planned and wanted, and having him with us through all this moving made things easier for me.  I had a buddy no matter where we were and he filled my days (and still does).  

We had his party over the weekend, and his actual birthday was this past Tuesday.  Until this year, his birthday had always fallen on a weekend, so this was the first year it was just me and him for the majority of the day.  I decided a few weeks ago that we'd go to Chuck E Cheese to play in the morning, then we'd go out to eat for dinner that night as a family (which we've done on every one of his birthdays and will continue to do).  We ended up going to Bob Evans, where he ordered a hamburger, fruit, and a cookie for dessert.  Overall, he had a pretty good day.

Playing at Chuck E Cheese.

He had his 3 year check up at the doctor yesterday and he was excited because he's been playing with a doctor kit I got him for the last six months.  He is also a fan of the show, Doc McStuffins, on Disney Junior.  Every night for the last week, he'd talk about all the body parts the doctor would check and he was very good during the whole exam.  I was interested in seeing his height and weight as he can still fit into some of his 24 months pants, but outgrows his shirts with his long torso.  These are his stats compared to last year.

Last Year:                                               This Year:

34.5 inches (65th percentile)                 38 inches (65th percentile)
26lbs 8oz (35th percentile)                    34lbs (75th percentile)

They had written on the paper they gave me that his weight was in the 90th percentile, which didn't seem quite right.  He's a skinny little guy, although he does have a lot of muscle.  When I got home, I checked a growth chart and it only put him at the 75th percentile, which seemed much more likely.  Still, he gained 7.5lbs in a year, which is a lot for him.  I can remember fretting about his weight since he was 9 months old and went from a steady 50th percentile to 10th to 35th percentile depending on the visit for the next year or so.  He's still a healthy eater (loving his fruits and veggies) and is extremely active, so we are glad he's growing!

Brady has done more in his three short years than most people have done in their entire lifetimes.  He's lived in three different states and two different countries on two separate continents.  He's traveled to some of the largest cities in Europe.  One of the coolest things is that he's been in a different location for each of his birthdays.  He was born in Pittsburgh, turned 1 in South Carolina, turned 2 in Germany, and turned 3 in Michigan.  Unfortunately, he will also turn 4 and 5 in Michigan (as far as we know), so the streak will end.  We do have something amazing already planned for his 6th birthday as all the schools in our county take a mid-winter break for the whole week during his birthday every year.  This was his last birthday as our only child and even though Izzie's birthday will be only two weeks after his, we will always do separate celebrations and parties as each child deserves their own special day, regardless of when their siblings were born (because really, they have no control over that).
 

I love looking back at birthdays in the past for a comparison.  Although we didn't have a party or any family near for his first birthday, he still ended up with four cakes!

A look at his cakes for every birthday.  It's fun to see how much he's grown in between each set.

Brady's Up Themed 3rd Birthday Party

All year I have been trying to think about what theme Brady's 3rd birthday party should be.  He is still head over heels in love with Disney Cars, but that was his theme for his 2nd birthday.  Initially, my plan was to take him to the store and browse the cake book until he found one he liked and then go with that.  My mom had seen an Up cake on Pinterest and suggested that.  Brady instantly fell in love with the idea as he also loves that movie.  He has been talking about his Up party since Christmas.  We decided to schedule the party the weekend before Brady's actual birthday (which is tomorrow) as we only have a couple weeks from that point until Izzie B arrives.
 

The only idea on Pinterest was the cake, so I had to come up with some on my own.  Above is the Pin the House on the Balloons game that I made.  I figured it would be hit or miss with the crowd we had (a couple 4 year olds, a few almost 3 year olds, and an almost 2 year old).  Brady and one of the 4 year olds were the only ones who agreed to wear the blindfold, but everyone got their house up there.

This is the cake.  We had ordered the cupcakes, made the gingerbread house, then I assembled them and painted the balloon strings, etc.

I thought it would be fun to keep with the balloon theme when it came to the treat bags as well.  I got a balloon chocolate mold that worked with pretzel sticks and made them earlier in the week.  The treat bags had other miscellaneous items and each one had a helium balloon tied to it for the kids to take home.

Brady's present from us was so large that we had to wrap and leave it in the empty living room.  We wrapped it on Thursday night, so we were lucky that he understood he had to wait for his party to open it and left it alone.

This is the first year Brady has had a real birthday party with kids and family.  His first birthday, only Andy's uncle, Buks, made the trek to South Carolina to surprise us.  His second birthday, we were in Germany, and had the downstairs neighbor and Andy's co-worker, Dennis, over for cake and presents.  This year, we not only had kids to invite, but my parents and Buks were able to make the four hour drive to spend the weekend with us and enjoy the party. They were a big help in the party prep on Saturday morning as well and I don't know if we'd have been ready when guests arrived if they hadn't been there.

As for other party guests, we had our friends the Reeses come.  Brady loves playing with Sam and Ainsley, so he was very excited when they arrived.  We had met a few neighbors during a block party in the fall, and one of them has a set of identical girl twins Brady's age, and an older daughter around Ainsley's age.  We were excited when they accepted the invite as Brady loves playing with new kids, and we looked forward to getting to know them better.

The kids played in the family room for a while, we had lunch, then we headed downstairs to take a crack at the pinata.  It became obvious very quickly that the kids weren't even going to make a dent in it.  We let each one have two turns, then pulled the strings to let all the candy out.

The frenzy once the candy was out.

Dubby shook the pinata to get any remaining candy out.

We let the kids play in the basement for a while and then came upstairs to sing and eat cake.  Brady had only seen the Pinterest idea for the cake, so he was excited to see his cake.  He even started singing happy birthday to himself as soon as he saw it.

Brady lost interest in the cupcake due to his taking a nice bite out of the candle first.  He spit it out, but thought the icing on his cupcake was also wax and wanted nothing to do with it.  It was cute that all the girls wanted pink cupcakes and fortunately, there were enough for all of them.

He didn't mind the ice cream though ;)

Next it was time for presents.  The chair he's sitting in is an amazing recliner that Buks got him that matches our family room furniture in color and fabric.  He also got him a work bench.  He scoffed at our Bosch tool bench and said Brady needs to learn the English system of measurement and not metric.

Brady opened the presents from Sam and Ainsley first.  Sam got him a really cool homemade cape with Batman on one side and Superman on the other.  Ainsley got him a Play Doh farm.

Brady was really good about the kids wanting to help him open the presents they had gotten him.  He was just so excited to open them all that he wasn't screaming that they were helping.

Other family members had either mailed gifts or sent them with my parents and Buks so Brady could open them at his party.  He's holding a Sonic the Hedgehog car from our Mimi.

Mimi also got him some clothes, but he wasn't as interested in those as the car.  I know we have video of me at his age opening gifts with clothes, throwing them over my shoulder, and saying, "Oh, clothes."

Uncle Pat and Aunt Leecie sent him a really great Alphabet Pops learning toy that helps kids learn upper and lower case of the same letter.  Aunt Leecie is also a teacher, so she's always good at getting some great educational toys.

They also got him some activity mats that have games on them.  That will be a lot of fun in the basement.

Aunt Lanie and Ava got him a Duplo car and also some Disney Cars App Mates that go on the iPad.  There was also a Ninja Turtle figurine in the bag.  It was funny because I was the first kid at preschool to have a Ninja Turtle and Aunt Lanie was the one who had given it to me.

Nana and Dubby brought some little toys to go along with their large gift.  You can see the Woody race car above, but they also gave him a four pack of Little Wheelies for his track, and a Thomas the Train steam boat for the bathtub.

This is the large gift from my parents.  It was so large that when Andy went to pick it up at the toy store with my van, they couldn't get it in inside the box.  They had to take all the pieces out.  The pieces have been in our basement, but we had to move them before the party.  The plan was to lightly assemble it (it needs screws to be really assembled and once it's together, we don't have a door large enough to get it outside) in the living room and let Brady open it.  My dad and Andy pulled all the pieces up on Friday night and there was no way to assemble it without the screws.  They covered the pieces up with a sheet and the plan was to assemble it outside during Brady's nap the next day after the party.  It snowed (of course) and that plan went out the window.  They decided to put it together one of the weekends my dad is up here in March, either dropping off or picking up my mom who will be staying with us to help with Brady and Izzie once she arrives.

It's a little blurry, but this is the gift Brady got from Andy's dad and stepmom.

The grand finale was the gift from us.  This is something we've had planned since he was a baby and we always knew this would be for his third birthday.

He didn't quite grasp the concept that it was motorized and not like his normal push cars as it's still in the box.  We won't be assembling it until the weather turns warmer and he can actually use it outside.  All the other kids were excited and can't wait for warmer weather so Brady can give them rides.  If you haven't noticed the theme yet, Brady got a lot of outdoor toys.  Our house is quickly filling with toys and now we need things that will take up space outside instead of inside.

To prove, we've had the Power Wheels in our minds for a long time, this is Brady in the "show room" at Toys R Us at 6 months old, checking out his future ride.

We had a great time and were so grateful that so many friends and family could make it to Brady's party.  My parents and Buks remarked several times that evening and the next day about how it was such a well behaved group of kids and they all played well together.  We were thoroughly exhausted that night though.  It was a lot of work, but well worth it!  Next year, Brady will have preschool friends, so we will likely do it at a venue outside of the house (and this time I already know the theme), so our next in house birthday party will be Izzie's 1st birthday!  It seems like forever away since she's not even born, but the last three years with Brady have flown by, so I'm sure it'll be here before we know it.