it's a PADS halloween!

there's nothing better than dogs dressed up for halloween :-) i love that we've been able to get out-and-about with gabe...it's nice to socialize with ppl other than our immediate family members. plus, it's great exposure for our son...he's a future PADS-volunteer-in-training!

(cowgirl, icon!) (hotdog, pixel)

(eeyore...aka maisie) lobster link

firsts!

boy is it hard to find time to blog nowadays! between feedings, poopings, awake-time, and naps, there's just no time for me anymore! i'm so pleased though that we've been getting out-and-about over the past 2 weeks, and we've even had lots of visitors come see us :-)

(yup, definitely has my lips!)

last weekend, we had thanksgiving at my aunt's house, and gabe got to meet my cousin's 2 girls...17-month old bethany thought it was fun to poke gabe in the eyes :P it's great to have lots of ppl around because then chris and i get a break from soothing gabe.

this past weekend, we took gabe to anthony & alice's wedding. it was great that he was welcome to attend...i remember for my own wedding i didn't want any kids/babies around :P fortunately we were sitting at a back-corner table, so we could make discreet exits as required :-) i had hoped to only feed him once at the reception, but he was a bit thrown off schedule so i had to feed him twice. it was our first "public" feeding using the hooter-hider and without "my brest friend", so it was definitely a bit awkward (thank goodness chris was around to assist!), but i think we did ok. gabe and i even had mother-son dance time! in hindsight, the dancing was a bit too much for me...i got overexcited and the next day my belly was aching :P

forget diamonds...

...breast pumps are a girls best friend :-) i have to say, thank god for my breast pump! gabe's a healthy eater, but sometimes i just need a break from his vicious latch. i've thrown out quite a bit of pumped milk out, and gabe's spat up quite a bit from the bottle, but tonight we had success! chris fed our son a 3 oz. bottle without any spillage! this bodes well for me...we're gearing up for nov. 21 when i have the NKOTB concert and won't be able to feed for at least 3 hours.

gabe's first girlfriend, cassie!

my grandma w/her 17th great-grandchild!

meet gabriel!

here he is!




gabriel takashi was born on saturday, october 4, 2008 at 3:04 a.m. to make a long story short, the induction didn't go well last week, so a c-section was the final outcome for baby's arrival.


we've had several rough nights over the past week which has put our patience to the test. there's been a couple times we've wanted to throw the towel in and ask for a baby refund, but when gabe stares back with his beautiful brown eyes that seem to say "what'd i do?", you just melt again and all is well.


what we've done this week:

• home visits with our midwives and doula
• a rushed trip to ER on tuesday to check his bilirubin levels - gabe's entire body turned a concerning shade of yellow, so we had to do some rush bloodwork. not to worry, in less than 48 hours he perked up, the yellow's fading, and he gained 4 ounces!
• visited both grandparents houses - definitely not running on time for anything now...between coordinating feeding and diaper changes, i need to stop looking at the clock. we'll be there when we can :-)
• and now gabe is determined to break my spirit. the past 3 nights have been horrific. from 2 a.m. to 5:30 a.m. i'm on mommy duty while our little boy is confused between day and night. chris gets dad duty from 5:30 to 7:30 a.m. if anyone's up at that time, give us a shout :-) haha!
• gabe had his first bottle feeding this morning. breastfeeding hasn't been very fun, so i have a bottle on standby for chris' dad duty. at least i can sleep for a couple hours :P

all i can say is thank goodness for my parents! they've been fantastic, helping out everyday. since i'm recovering from surgery still, i can't really do much. i think that's the most frustrating part right now...i can't carry gabe for too long because of the extra pressure he puts on me, and i can't bounce him to sleep either. even little things like picking stuff up from the floor are impossible :P i'm hoping things improve over the next couple of weeks!

d-day

yup, that's right....it's delivery day!!! i'm at 41 weeks, and my midwife has agreed to induce me :-) totally not the way i had thought things would turn out, but whose birth plan goes according to plan anyways?

hopefully the induction goes well and baby and i respond well to the treatment. i'm feeling anxious knowing that by the end of this weekend chris and i will be parents to a little baby.

see you on the other side :-)

i love your hair!

today i had a great moment. i was at brentwood mall, just sitting on a bench waiting to meet someone, and this lady sits down next to me and says "i love your hair! who does it?" her lovely comment couldn't have come at a better time! i was having some bad hair moments over the past 2 days...maintaining short hair is a pain in the arse...i had a cut 5 weeks ago, and i feel desperate for another cut already :P

anyways, i told her who my stylist was and gave her the info for the salon. she just kept staring at my hair, as if mesmerized :-) i think she actually might follow through...i'll have to check w/my stylist when i see her next!

definitely an uplifting moment for me...it temporarily took my mind off my stubborn child :-) but alas...as europhoric as the moment was, it didn't release any oxytocin...i'm still pregnant.