Apparently breastfeeding may not hurt as much as I thought it did. I woke up in the middle of the night a couple of nights ago to feed Isabella and when we were done I couldn't go back to sleep because I couldn't get warm. I was just laying in bed shivering. It finally occured to me that something wasn't right so Jeff got the thermometer...sure enough, I had a fever of 100.3. I woke up the next morning feeling worse and my temp had gone up to 102.5. We went back to see my doctor, who took one look at me and said, "You've got a rip-roaring case of mastitis!" So rip-roaring, apparently, that I had to take antibiotics every 4 hours the first day and every 6 hours for another 8 days. I found it reassuring that this pain is not normal breastfeeding pain, but rather a raging infection. Yippee.

Now for the good news--I've lost another 8 pounds since my appointment on Friday! That means I've lost a total of 37 pounds since April 4th :) I'm not going to say how much I have left to lose (as that would tell you all how much I gained), but I think I can do it once I have the greenlight to exercise again. Yippee!

1. Breastfeeding HURTS. I think that there is plenty of information printed about how great it is for the baby and even some about how great it is for the mom, i.e. her weight loss. Proponents of breastfeedings have to emphasize these benefits, as no one would do it if the first things they heard about included words such as: engorgement, cracked, or bloody. Okay, I'm sure that was too much information for some of you, but I feel like everyone needs to be properly informed of the risks of breastfeeding. Now, that being said, I'm glad that I'm attempting it and get really upset at the prospect of not being about to do it for some reason. I'm not sure what that means, but we're soldiering on.

2. Changing diapers requires strategery. At least with our dirty little poo monster! First, open the diaper and assess the current situation. Second, arm yourself with the first of potentially many wipes and go in for the strike. Third, wipe area swiftly and quickly remove your hand from the danger zone. An aside, do not, I repeat, DO NOT lean in for a closer look. At this point, you want to put the wipe to the side (yes I know the baby's strike area is not completely clean) and position the dirty diaper such that it will catch any leakage or projectiles. Now you can go back in with a clean wipe. Please be aware that you may need to repeat steps 2-end multiple times before you have the clean diaper in place.

3. Thank God for this motorized swing-thing. Do I really need to say anything else about it?? We need to make a trip to Costco to stock up on "D" batteries.

4. Laundry. Lots of laundry. Of course it's full of cute little baby things, so that makes it a little better :) One should never underestimate the need for burpy cloths, especially if breastfeeding. It might be that I'm, or rather we're, especially messy, but we can't do it without having milk EVERWHERE! I had to use a warm washcloth and wipe her head this morning because it had dried milk in it. However, the pediatrician said that it was also good for baby acne (which results from fluctuating hormone levels after birth) so essentially it's beneficial for babies to have breastmilk facials. Yeah for us!

5. It's hard to differentiate between smiles and pre-screaming grimaces. Sometimes I look at her and think, "look at her pretty smile! I can't wait until she's old enough to smile at me." Of course this immediately precedes loud, intense screaming. I don't mean fussing, or even crying. I mean screaming reminiscent of a wild animal whose leg is caught in a trap. Perhaps a wild animal whose leg is caught in a trap who sees a bigger, starving, wild animal approaching...licking it's chops.

6. It was easier when she was inside. I know, I know...all I wanted was to have her out in the world, but now I'm not so sure. Is it too late to change my mind? Okay, let me explain. When she was in there, I could take good care of her by taking good care of myself. But now it's so scary...I'm completely responsible for this little creature who can't tell me anything that she wants or needs. When she cries I feel like there is a really offensive-sounding alarm clock lodged at the base of my spine. I walk, I rock, I bounce, but nothing makes it stop until she stops crying. Things brings us back to our undying love and devotion to the inventor of the swingy-thing.

7. The love for your baby is like no other love. Of this there is no question. It takes you over immediately and is completely overwhelming. Everything in life takes on a different perspective. It's amazing and at the same time terrifying. I'm sure all parents will understand what I mean.

8. Daytime tv is not nearly as entertaining as it was when I was in college. I've gotten so used to reading the one or two-paragraph recaps of my soaps on http://www.abc.com/ that the one-hour version seems like overkill. Soaps are not terribly efficient. I say this knowing full well that I will watch them from 1-4 pm faithfully every day until the last day of May marks my return to the "real world."

Those are all of the lessons I can think of at the moment...I'm sure there are many more that I'm forgetting. In fact, I was thinking of them so fast when I started writing that I was forgetting them as soon as I thought of a new one!

And, as an apology for my tardiness in posting...a gratuitous baby Isabella picture. Or 3. :)

But we can already tell she's gifted :) Well, at least she's a girl who knows what she wants and isn't afraid to ask: food and sleep! Actually, despite entering the world with a scream, our baby is very calm and quiet. My favorite times are when I'm holding her and I look down to see her big blue eyes looking up at me. My least favorite times had to be last night during the night when I couldn't do anything to make her happy :( For the first time in her short life, Isabella just couldn't get comfortable enough to go to sleep. She would eat and fall asleep in my arms, but as soon as I put her in her bassinet, she would wake up and act hungry again. It was a vicious cycle. No matter how long I let her sleep in my arms, she was awake almost immediately when I put her down. We've tried to keep her awake off and on throughout the day today so she would (maybe) be tired (hopefully) tonight. right now she's sitting on her daddy's lap wide awake just taking everything in. She's a very good baby and we're still crazy in love with her :)

Tomorrow morning I go back to Dr. K to have my staples removed and Izzy goes to the pediatrician for the first time. We made the appointments back to back, which is very convenient since the offices are right down the hall from each other. This is the first time I go to Dr. K's office and won't be reporting back to everyone on my "lack of progress!" Of course, I could always get there and have him tell me that my staples are not ready to come out! Hahaha! That wouldn't bother me nearly as much as him telling me the baby isn't ready to come out!

Izzy took her first trip out of the house yesterday when we all packed up and went on our first post-baby trip to Babies R Us. We realized that we neglected to get Izzy any warm sleepers! I know it's hard to believe, with all the clothes in that girl's closet (and, as her daddy pointed out to me today, in all of her full drawers), there was only one sleeper. We feel like it gets pretty cool in our bedroom at night, especially next to the window, which is where her bassinet is currently located. So, after 4 hours of preparations, we finally got everyone packed into the car and headed out. Izzy slept all the way to the store...slept in the store...and slept all the way home. I think it was a successful trip! Oh, and after weeks of "playing" with them, the car seat and stroller worked out great!

Lastly, I invite everyone to read back through my posts about Izzy and her hiccups in my belly. Funnily enough, they haven't stopped! This girl gets the hiccups at least twice daily that shake her whole body. It's no wonder that I could feel them so well while she was cooking :)

Here are some more pictures of our beautiful baby girl.

Thanks again to everyone who has called, emailed, left comments, and come to see us. We have the most supportive friends and family and everyone has been just as excited as we are (well, almost as excited!).

And now, because I know this is really why everyone checks our blog...pictures...

Ater four days of fun and relaxation in the hospital, our family goes home tomorrow. While we are excited to sleep on our own bed, we sure will miss being waited on night and day by the amazing staff here at St. V. I cant wait until our next stay here!! That's right, I am saying there will be more bundles of joy.....with leslie's consent of course!

Leslie and Isabella are completely out right now....it's actually really cute. (and quiet!) Leslie will post more this week but I wanted to get a few more pics up asap. Thank you to all our family and friends that called and visited....we enjoyed spending this incredible experience with our loved ones.

Isabella Grace Gibson arrived today at 12:58 pm via c-section. She is 8 pounds 15 ounces (she likes her burritos!) and is 21 inches long. She's a big girl :) We think she's beautiful and wow--she's a screamer! I guess she gets it honest. Everyone is doing well but exhausted. We will be in the hospital until Tuesday. Here are some pics for you!

Know what that means? Tomorrow is Thursday...the last day we go without knowing something about when our baby will be born :) I don't have much to blog about today, much to my dismay. I say that because I know that I had something to blog about during the middle of the night. As most of you know, I wake up and get out of bed every 1.5-2 hours all night--usually to go to the bathroom or get something to drink. I know it seems counterproductive to get up for a drink, but sometimes I'm soooo thirsty I just get a little bit of milk or something. Anywho, each time I wake up throughout the night I'm wide awake, and it usually takes me a little while to get back to sleep. Last night was no exception. I went to sleep sometime around 11 pm last night and got up for my first bathroom/kitchen break at 12:30 am. At some point I went back to bed after one of my trips and started thinking about my blog while I was trying to go back to sleep. After each "rising" I went back to bed and thought about my blog. I have no idea what I was going to write about, but I can tell you one thing...It was FUNNY! I don't mean smile to yourself funny, I mean I was laying in bed thinking about it and giggling to myself. In whatever sleep stage I was in all those times, I am a witty, clever girl!! The world has no equal! Alas, since I can't actually remember anything that I was witty or clever about, you'll just have to trust me that I have it in me :)

Oh, another strange and annoying phenomenon having to do with my sleep. For the past 2 nights, every time I wake up I have a song running through my head...non-stop. Last night it was a Tim McGraw/Faith Hill duet. I can't remember what it was the night before that, but it was really annoying. Let's all hope that tonight is a witty and clever night without the soundtrack!

I had a pretty busy day today. I kind of thought that once I was off work I would relax and lay around some, but that hasn't really happened. I got up with Jeff about 7:30 am and made his breakfast and a bagel for me. I stayed in bed awake until around 8:30 and then got up, got a shower, did some laundry and set out for the BMV to get a new driver's license. I've been to get a new social security card with "Leslie Gibson" on it, but hadn't had a chance to go to the BMV. The BMV's of today are really a pleasant experience compared to the past. I remember growing up that whenever we had to go to the BMV for anything that Dad would get up early in the morning so he was there when it opened. Now, you can actually go online and make an appointment! Who woulda thunk it?!? Unfortunately there were no appointments open for today, but it didn't matter, I walked in and 5 minutes later was sitting at the counter with a nice lady who was diligently working on renewing my license with my new name. 15 minutes and a hideous picture later, I am officially Leslie Gibson. This probably doesn't sound like a big deal, but I was having all kinds of worry that I would get to the hospital to deliver Izzy and wouldn't be able to give them sufficient ID. (I realize that this is irrational since I could just take my social security card with me, but bear with me please!) So now that I don't have that to worry about anymore I can move on to more important things...like worrying about the epidural, or other such unpleasant things.

After the BMV, I stopped and got myself some chicken mcnuggets--yumm. I vacuumed the upstairs, worked on more laundry, cleaned "my room" in the basement, cleaned the kitchen, and then vacuumed/cleaned out my car. I've officially overdone it and everything hurts when I get up off the couch :) Jeff is hoping, of course, that this will induce labor....ha! That's okay though...1 more day until we know something. Don't worry, as soon as we know something, you'll all know something too :)

So, everyone....STOP WATCHING! Quick! Avert your eyes! :) I know, I know, easier said than done. As most of you know, we had a doctor's appointment this afternoon. While we waited for the doctor, my belly got hooked up to two "sensors" (one for the baby's heartbeat and one for contractions) that were connected to a monitor that printed out the feedback and the nurse gave me a button to push whenever I felt the baby move. This is what's called a fetal non-stress test. The point is to track the baby's heartbeat and how it reacts to the baby's own movements. If the baby is healthy and getting enough oxygen then the heart rate increases when the baby moves. If there is a problem with the baby's oxygen, the heart rate stays the same even when the baby moves.

I was worried at first that Izzy would not cooperate and would instead nap through the test. I shouldn't have worried--let's be honest, it wouldn't be my baby if it didn't like to put on a show, right? She performed better than I could have expected. She started with a few kicks and "pushes" and accelerated to full-out acrobatics in my belly. At one point during her flawless performance, she moved so much that her heart rate jumped significantly and the sensor actually "lost" her for a second! That's my girl!

Dr. K came in and looked at the printout and declared that our little wonder "passed" the non-stress test. I'm sorry to report that this was the high point of the appointment. Dr. K did a quick exam and confirmed what I suspected (and blogged about) last week: my cervix is a dud. It's not doing anything...I'm not dilated and I'm not effaced. In fact, the baby is still at negative-whatever station--whatever station that means that she hasn't decided to step up to the plate quite yet. She's not even on deck. She's still in the dugout.

Alas, here's where we are as of today: We have another appointment Friday morning at 8 am, during which we'll do another non-stress test. We will also schedule an induction for next week sometime. So...at some point next week, we will have a baby born...one way or the other. As you can imagine, Jeff and I were pretty disappointed that there was no progress, but at the same time, we're very happy to know that our baby is doing well in there. She's just not ready to come out yet, that's all.

I finished the baby blanket last night. Like I said, I'm horrible about finishing any crafty project if it's not for someone. It doesn't hurt that I need something to keep my hands busy and my mind occupied right now. But now that I've finished the cross-stitch and the blanket, I've moved on to my trusty Age of Empires III computer game :) From one end of the pendulum swing to the other--pretty pink crochet to raising and fighting armies. Whatever keeps me busy, right?

So everyone, I know it's hard to wait...trust me, Jeff and I both are having a terrible time waiting...but we'll know something definitive on Friday, so stay patient with us (ha!) and stay tuned for an update on Friday...

Aside: Go David Cook! Rocker can even sing Dolly!