Knock on wood...

But I think the thrush is finally GONE!!!!!!

It only took 13 weeks, three different anti-fungals, and a bottle of gentian violet.  The anti-fungal medications worked for me, but did nothing for C's mouth.  Finally, my lactation consultant suggested and C's doctor approved us to use gentian violet.  That stuff is messy, but it seems to have worked!!!!!

Five Reasons Not to Hate Your Post-Baby Body

Miss C has been keeping me quite busy these days, which doesn't leave much time to blog, but I am loving every minute of it.  I am just trying to enjoy every second that I have left of my maternity leave... which is ending entirely too soon on February 7th.  **TEARS**

Anyway, I read this blog post today and thought I would share:  Five Reasons Not to Hate Your Post-Baby Body.  I must admit I am pretty happy with mine most of the time, but this article still made me smile.  :-)  Definitely some good points to keep in mind!

Postpartum Advice

Baby C is two weeks old today, I absolutely cannot believe it! They grow up so fast. lol

In honor of this milestone, I thought I'd share a few of the things I've learned as I recover from her birth and as DH and I adjust to being new parents. I swear this isn't a smug-new-mom post, just things other new moms had told me (that I'm so glad I listened to), or things I had to learn myself the hard way.  I know at least a few of you readers are about to have babies yourself, so maybe this advice will be helpful to you too. :-) 

1) Stock up on pads, witch hazel pads (Tucks), and Dermoplast before going into labor. It was so nice having these available when we got home from the hospital and not having to worry about immediately running out to buy them!

2) Use the Dermoplast and witch hazel pads every time you go to the bathroom. The nurse at the hospital showed me how to use the Dermoplast, then line my sanitary pad with the witch hazel pads, and it was SO nice. Just a suggestion. ;-)

3) Take as many pairs of the mesh granny panties from the hospital as you can. I even asked the nurse to bring me another pack because I loved them so much. And its nice that when they get bloody you can just throw them away, instead of ruining your own undies. ;-) I also recommend stealing as many of the crotch ice packs as you can, they were wonderful as well!

4) Fill the prescription they give you for stool softeners and TAKE THEM! Even if you don't take the narcotic pain killers, you will need the stool softeners.  Trust me.

5) Breastfeeding is hard and it HURTS, but it gets better. I was lucky that C figured it out right away, but it was still excruciatingly painful in the beginning, even when doing everything correctly. I also found it very mentally difficult at times, due to the anticipation of how much it would hurt when C latches on but knowing that I have to just suck it up and do it. Thankfully at two weeks it is finally starting to hurt less and is really only painful in the initial 5-10 seconds after she latches. I've been told it gets easier so I am hoping that is the case!  Also, I would ask to see a lactation consultant before leaving the hospital, just to make sure you are both doing it right (or to get any problems ironed out if you aren't).

6) Buy lanolin and use it liberally (if breastfeeding).  This goes along with #5, but I cannot imagine attempting to breastfeed without using lanolin.  A friend suggested requesting it at the hospital and using it from the beginning, and I am so so thankful that I did.  My hospital actually gave me the Medela kind which I used while there, but I had purchased Lansinoh which I began using at home and found that I preferred it over the Medela.  The Lansinoh is a thicker texture than the Medela, which I have heard some women think makes it difficult to apply, but its not that bad and I found it to be more protective of my sore, sore nipples.

7)  Take LOTS of pictures of your sweet new baby!  They grow and change so much, so quickly, and you don't want to miss a thing!  :-)

I think that's it for my list of advice... if any other moms want to weigh in or add things that worked for you too, feel free!

Postpartum Must-Haves

I saw this on Lil Sugar today and thought it looked like a pretty good list of items to have on hand post-delivery.  Might be worth checking out!  :-)

http://www.lilsugar.com/Items-Have-Hand-After-Giving-Birth-19312613

If any of you ladies who are already mommas to outside babies have anything to add, or if any of these things were a waste of money, I'd love to hear it!

Hilarious video

I was randomly looking at stuff on the internet, one thing led to another (you know how that goes!), and I landed on this video rant about baby names. HILARIOUS! I encourage you all to check it out. ;-)

Pants party!

I know, I know, so much about pants lately! But I am so excited I just had to share... I BOUGHT A PAIR OF PANTS!!! AND THEY ARE LONG ENOUGH! Hooray!

At the suggestion of another Bumpie (and after an "I'm so frustrated I'm going to cry" post on PgAL), I went back to Motherhood Maternity to look for their "long" dress pants. They had one pair in the store, in my size, in long. And, despite being labeled as a 34 inch inseam, they FIT!!! I seriously still can't believe it, but I am so relieved! With my next paycheck I plan to buy some more. haha I'm so excited!

So, if any of you readers out there find yourself too tall for maternity pants, try the longs at Motherhood Maternity! And they also have "petites" for all you shorties, *cough* Christina *cough* ;-)

WHOO HOO!!!!

Take that, "just relax"-ers!

A new report (via Stirrup Queens) confirms what we have known all along:

"All [the research] is saying is, whatever stress you are experiencing is not going to impact whether you get pregnant on that particular cycle." 

 See the full report here.

"What I Want You to Know: Infertility"

Kristen at "Rage Against the Minivan" posted an awesome guest post, "What I Want You to Know: Infertility".  Although the writer struggles with infertility, her post touches on many of my feelings about TTC in general and I'm sure most of my fellow TTCAL readers can relate as well.  Enjoy!

"But you're so YOUNG!!!"

I get told this ALL the time when people find out we are TTC.  Then when I tell people about our loss, I get this statement's cousin, the "Its ok, you'll have lots of babies because you have lots of time! You're so young!" Now, as we are starting to tell people about our adoption plans, we have already had one person ask why... you guessed it... because we are so young!

Ok, for the record.  Yes we are in our mid-20s and creeping closer to 30 every day.  I realize to many people, this still is quite young to want a family.  But its not like I'm 16 and in high school trying to get knocked up.  DH and I are both college graduates with advanced degrees, and DH is in the process of obtaining another.  I have a professional job and we own our own home.  I think that should count for something.  (Not that we have to defend our choices to anyone!)

Whew, sorry I got a little fired up there.  I was reading Katie's post about ageists on From IF to When, and it got me thinking about how infuriating it is when people say these things.  If you have ever been in a similar boat, you really should take the time to read Katie's post.  She says everything I think about the issue, only more eloquently than I ever could.

Public service announcement

DO NOT EVER Google "mucus".  Just don't do it.  No really, you will seriously regret it and never be the same if you do.

I just posted a glossary of TTC terms (on the right-hand side of my blog), and was using Google to spell-check and make sure I spelled "mucus" correctly.  Wow.  I am really, really regretting that decision right now.

You're welcome.


(And if you do Google it anyway, don't say I didn't warn you!)

What Not to Say...

I am reblogging this from http://lossotomayors.blogspot.com/.  I have seen this list before, but it is definitely still applicable.  And although I don't necessarily feel that all of these statements apply to me, it is a good list and I would like to pass it along -- in the hopes that it might help someone who knows someone suffering from a loss, or someone who may be suffering themselves.

What We Wish You Knew About Pregnancy Loss:  

A letter from women to their friends and family 
by Elizabeth Soutter Schwarzer 

I assert no copyright for the material. Please use it as you see fit to help women who have endured this terrible grief. Thank you.

When women experience the loss of a child, one of the first things they discover they have in common is a list of things they wish no one had ever said to them.   The lists tend to be remarkably similar.  The comments are rarely malicious - just misguided attempts to soothe.

This list was compiled as a way of helping other people understand pregnancy loss.  While generated by mothers for mothers, it may also apply similarly to the fathers who have endured this loss. 

When trying to help a woman who has lost a baby, the best rule of thumb is a matter of manners:  don't offer your personal opinion of her life, her choices, her prospects for children.  No woman is looking to poll her acquaintances for their opinions on why it happened or how she should cope. 

• Don't say, "Thank God you lost the baby before you really loved it."  I loved my son or daughter. Whether I lost the baby after two weeks of pregnancy or just after birth, I loved him or her. 

• Don't say, "Isn't it time you got over this and moved on?"  It's not something I enjoy, being grief-stricken.  I wish it had never happened.  But it did and it's a part of me forever.  The grief will ease on its own timeline, not mine -- or yours. 

• Don't say, "Now you have an angel watching over you."  I didn't want her to be my angel.  I wanted her to bury me in my old age. 

• Don't say, "I understand how you feel."  Unless you've lost a child, you really don't understand how I feel.  And even if you have lost a child, everyone experiences grief differently. 

• Don't tell me horror stories of your neighbor or cousin or mother who had it worse.  The last thing I need to hear right now is that it is possible to have this happen six times, or that I could carry until two days before my due-date and labor 20 hours for a dead baby.  These stories frighten and horrify me and leave me up at night weeping in despair.  Even if they have a happy ending, do not share these stories with me. 

• Don't pretend it didn't happen and don't change the subject when I bring it up.  If I say, "Before the baby died..." or "when I was pregnant..." don't get scared.  If I'm talking about it, it means I want to.  Let me.  Pretending it didn't happen will only make me feel utterly alone. 

• Don't say, "It's not your fault."  It may not have been my fault, but it was my responsibility and I failed.  The fact that I never stood a chance of succeeding only makes me feel worse.  This tiny little being depended upon me to bring him safely into the world and I couldn't do it.  I was supposed to care for him for a lifetime, but I couldn't even give him a childhood.  I am so angry at my body you just can't imagine. 

• Don't say, "Well, you weren't too sure about this baby, anyway."  I already feel so guilty about ever having complained about morning sickness, or a child I wasn't prepared for, or another mouth to feed that we couldn't afford.  I already fear that this baby died because I didn't take the vitamins, or drank too much coffee, or had alcohol in the first few weeks when I didn't know I was pregnant.  I hate myself for any minute that I had reservations about this baby.  Being unsure of my pregnancy isn't the same as wanting my child to die -- I never would have chosen for this to happen. 

• Do say, "I am so sorry."  That's enough.  You don't need to be eloquent.  Say it and mean it and it will matter. 

• Do say, "You're going to be wonderful parents some day," or "You're wonderful parents and that baby was lucky to have you."  We both need to hear that. 

• Do say, "I have lighted a candle for your baby," or "I have said a prayer for your baby."

• Do send flowers or a kind note -- every one I receive makes me feel as though my baby was loved.  Don't resent it if I don't respond.

• Don't call more than once and don't be angry if the machine is on and I don't return your call.  If we're close friends and I am not responding to your attempts to help me, please don't resent that, either.  Help me by not needing anything from me for a while.