Happy Thanksgiving!

Well, it's been too long, folks! So much has happened in the past month….

On December 4th, I was Two Months Old!  And, for the record, I've learned a few new things.. I've started to smile socially…the day before Thanksgiving mom took me to her school and lots of people made big smiles when they met me and guess what?  I smiled right back! Sometimes you have to convince me to smile but I'm getting pretty good at smiling at you if you smile at me..

Lets see..I'm also getting better at keeping my head up when I'm on my tummy - and I can roll over to my side when I'm on my belly too..  This month I started to not mind sitting on people's laps and looking out ~ for the longest I really just wanted to be held over people's shoulders (I still like that too), but, my repertoire is expanding..







On Thankgiving I saw lots of family…met my cousins (Etta + Harry) for the first time!  (Not to mention my Aunt Cara, Uncle Jay, Great Aunt Jean, and a whole bunch of other new folks).

me and cousin etta!

me and harry...

we'll be best buds

aunt jean and her grand nephews

 In Massachusetts I saw Bubbie again and Aunt M introduced me to her dog…it was a blast. Mom and dad were a little nervous traveling with me - we spent a whole week away from home - but they had nothing to worry about, cause I did great.  (In case you're wondering, that means I wasn't too fussy at all, actually pretty happy most of the time, I slept well at night  (which still means 1 night time feeding), and, wait for it - I Slept The Whole Ride Up to Massachusetts from NJ!  There and Back!) Mom and dad can relax a bit about traveling with me now I think.

aunt M loves to dance w me

I got my first immunization shots last week - and it wasn't so nice.  The shots were real quick (my Dr is Great), but I was feeling pretty sick for the next day and a half..little fever, throwing up - it wasn't pretty and I worried a few folks…but I am on the other side of it and don't have to go through it all again until I'm 4 months, thank god.  It did mean we had to post-pone my blessing ceremony, but I'm glad I didn't have to travel while not feeling so hot and I know everyone's looking forward to coming together even more now..

They tell me Christmas is on it's way - it's Advent now - and as this is my first Christmas,  I have a lot to learn.  Mom and dad went to get a tree yesterday but I slept right through it.  But I loved watching them decorate - especially the lights (I love staring at light).  Right now, I'm sitting under the tree, staring at the tree lights…it's like a giant mobile - so much to take in!

More soon.

one month old!

So November 4th was Louis' 1 month birthday - and he's doing great.  Yesterday we took him to Dr. Cao, our fabulous pediatrician, and found out that Louis has gained a few pounds this month…weighing in at 11.3 pounds (2 lbs more than he did at birth).  He's in the 85th percentile of his age/weight group…he's a big boy…which is good news because it means he's doing well on just breast milk.

A few firsts this week:
Daddy taught Louie to use a pacifier! (Louie's growing up and has been able to be comforted by others besides mama this past week or so, which is exciting for us all!!)  He doesn't take the pacifier from me yet, (infants get confused when the source of their milk offers something different than usual),  but when Mike comforts him in the evenings and 'wears' him down to sleep, it is a big help (though not a fully formed habit as of yet).  We'll have to use this papa-teaching technique later this week or next when we introduce a bottle…

First Pacifier - thanks daddy

Louie also had his first bath!  And he took to it like a pro: no crying.  He seemed quite chill through it all..maybe a true mama's boy in this respect (I love baths soooo much).

And today, the little man has slept for 4+ hours three days in a row! We are falling into a bit of a schedule as he is naturally not asking to be fed until 3 hrs after the previous feeding.  About 11pm he has his last big nursing of the day and is in bed by 11:30/12…sleeping til 4:00am or a bit after.  Then he rises once more at 7am and then he and I cuddle in bed until 9am or so.  So we are getting much more rest as of late, which is awesome.

Louie's also starting to make some cute 'oohs' and 'ahhs', squeaks and squeals…

family portraits

week three in the world..hi everyone!

Two Weeks Old!

On Friday, October 18th, I celebrated TWO whole weeks in this world!  A stunning thing, really.  And already I'm nursing well, gaining lots of weight,  (the dr said I had to gain 7 oz last week but I gained 13!), and sometimes sleeping at night for as long as 4.5 hrs. (ok, that happened once, but mom and dad tell me if I did it once, I can do it again…so will let you know if it ever becomes a habit!)

My mom and dad are really tired, but seem to be happy.  They're getting more comfortable taking me places…so far I've been to the dr.'s office, the grocery store, our neighborhood park, a local book store, and up and down Court Street a lot. I like my car seat and riding in the back seat with mom next to me.

Mom's been alone with me all day only twice, so this is a big week for us, since we are on our own all week!  She's hoping to take a walk with me each day by herself, keep the house clean, take some naps while I sleep and maybe work in some piano practice, sewing and baking on her more ambitious days. Plus, of course nurse me every few hours, keep my behind warm and dry and hold me a lot (I still like to hear her heartbeat as often as possible).   I think I set us up for a good start to this 3rd week of life at home in Bklyn: last night I had three 3+ hour stretches of sleep  and gave mom (and dad) some good rest.

on my two-week birthday

walk in Sunset Park, passed out after nursing, hugging daddy

birth

Thursday midnight I started feeling strong pains.  Mike had returned from his Thursday night soccer a little later than usual because some of the Irish lads had taken him out for a pre-fatherhood celebration (though he was on a 2 drink max with the prospect of having to coach me through labor on the horizon).  We set off to sleep, but I soon rose, in much pain.  Silly me, I thought it was extreme gastrointestinal pain, and didn't imagine that active labor had begun. This despite the fact that I was 4 days past my due date of September 30th.   For the next 4 hours I dealt with it on my own, between pains researching 'extreme gas while pregnant'.  None of my yoga moves were helping relieve the pressure and pain like they usually did when Louie would get into an uncomfortable position, and I was convinced something was very wrong.

At four AM I woke Michael.  "We might have to go to the hospital",  I told Mike.  "I think there's a problem."  When he got the full story, he convinced me to let him time the pains, even though I was fairly certain it was not labor.  Sure enough, contractions were in full swing, ranging from 3-5 min apart, lasting 45-60 seconds.  Still though, none of my yoga moves helped me deal with the pain, they only made it worse.  We labored for 4 more hours at home and at 8AM I was convinced we should get to the hospital and see if something was wrong or if I was in labor, and how far along I was.  We called a car service and took a slow ride to the hospital, 4 blocks away.  As we walked into the delivery wing, I was still partially convinced they would tell me I had bad gas.

But they confirmed my active labor, though let us know that baby hadn't 'dropped' and I was 3cm dilated.  They gave us the option of walking around hospital and seeing how things progressed or getting a room then.  We went for the room, so we could walk and labor in privacy -- and also because there was no guarantee that a delivery room would be available exactly when we wanted it if we walked around.  (A lot of hospitals in Brooklyn are closing and our hospital -- Maimonides -- was bearing the brunt of extra patients).

Once admitted, we labored for another 4 hours, but baby was still at as high a station as he could be and I was only 4cm.  It was at this point that I decided to take the epidural so I could rest and let my body continue with the contractions -- hoping that in a few hours it would be time to push.  No such luck.  Though the epidural allowed me to rest (thank god, as I'd been awake for 30 hrs straight, in active labor for 12), baby did not drop and contractions did not get stronger.  They gave me pitocin to augment contractions, and that did strengthen things - but still did not help enough to get baby low enough to start to push or further along delivery.  After several hours of this we had to begin the conversation about a possible C-section.  We decided to give it a few more hours, but little louie was putzing along, not that eager to give up his cozy spot inside.  At this point we decided to go ahead with a c-section, for various health reasons that would be complicated the longer delivery took..so far it had been 20 hours of active labor, about 10 since waters had broken.

C-section surgery was crazy and wild - I was alert the whole time, Mike by my side.  Though I was in no pain, it was a lot to stay calm through…but about 20 minutes into surgery Mike and I heard a loud baby's wail and the surgeons and nurses cheered, said 'Get that kid a lunchbox, he's ready for Kindergarten!'.  Mike and I, amazed, tired and overjoyed -- smiled, kissed, cried and began to relax.     He was born.

he's (finally) here!

A few years ago Michael and I started thinking it would be lovely to add a third, (well fourth if you count Lupe the cat), to our family.  In our conversations we imagined having a 'bun in the oven', a phrase that eventually morphed into 'piccolo pane'..our own little bread, baking away.

Well, a couple years later, our little Louis was born.

On Friday night, October 4, 2013,  the little man's arrival forever changed our lives…and so the adventure begins.  We hope to capture a part of that adventure here, to share with friends and family far and near.

Louis Edmund Piscitello

10. 4.13

9lbs 3oz

20in