It's only Tuesday

I decided to actually keep a log of what Madeleine does all day in order to start developing a schedule. 

Sunday night sucked complete ass. She hardly slept for more than an hour at a time and was continually fussy even while I was nursing her. Last night was fantastic. She woke up twice and both times Matt got up to change her diaper. Even though he has to wake up early and go to bed early, he still helps me in the middle of the night. Boy, I'm lucky. And Madeleine is lucky, too. 

My schedule is still pretty scattered. One thing is for sure, I always have coffee at least once a day. My infatuation with coffee is where my blog's namesake comes from. I don't actually drink more than 2 cups of coffee a day... but who knows if I'll get to that point once my baby is a toddler.

I don't like to think about the thousands of dollars I've spent on coffee in the past several years (sadly, that's all too possible). A few years ago we invested in an espresso machine and grinder in order for me to stop spending so damn much money at coffee stands and Starbucks. Now that it's a major pain in the ass to pack up the baby just to get to a drive through, I'm even more appreciative of our purchase. Not to mention we're incredibly broke until Matt's paychecks start rolling in. 

We spent about $600 on the coffee gear from Macy's. Pricey stuff, but so worth it! 

Iced Caramel Sauce Americano:

My method is to pour two shots directly into a metal steaming pitcher with two good sized spoonfuls of caramel sauce. I stir the shots as they pour so the caramel mixes really well. Then I pour it over ice. I typically add more ice since I don't like to use water in my americanos. Then I add half and half. It's really just to taste. I like my coffee pretty f-in strong.

You just need:

8oz glass (this sweet mason jar with a handle is from Pottery Barn)

handful of ice cubes and maybe more

2 shots of espresso (there's 4 in this picture)

about 2 tbsp of caramel sauce (Matt made our caramel sauce...Like I said...I'm lucky!)

dash of half and half

She's here!

Madeleine Victoria was born on July 18th weighing 7lbs and 5oz and was 20.75 inches long.

We had planned to have a natural water birth with her at a local birthing center, but that didn't quite work out the way we wanted.

I started having labor signs a few days before early labor really started becoming more consistent. On July 17th, active labor started around 6:30pm and we headed over to the birth center after contacting the midwife. After 14 hours of natural labor, our midwife suggested I transfer to the hospital for an epidural. They hadn't seen any progress for four hours even after breaking my water and I didn't have any sleep the night before labor started anyway.

Luckily the hospital was only a 5 minute drive from the birth center, but the two contractions I had in the car were brutal. Dealing with contractions without being able to move around was terrible! I knew I was going to have a rough time while waiting for the doctor to order an epidural. It took about 45 minutes from when I got to my room.... I had the wonderful pleasure of experiencing a strong contraction while the anesthesiologist put the needle in my spine. But hey, I did it!

The plan with the epidural was that me and my uterus were going to get some rest and then it would wear off and I could try laboring naturally again. The doctor figured we should see just how strong my contractions are and where the baby was positioned because that would really make or break our plan to go back to doing it au naturel. Lo and behold, my contractions were not at all efficient enough to bring the baby further down despite how difficult they were!

We ended up trying pitocin for another 10 hours but the baby just wouldn't budge. Apparently her face was titled at an angle and she was just stuck there. Her hand was probably up by her face, too. At 9:43pm she was born via c-section.

Despite my plan of delivering her in water failed miserably, I was not at all disappointed with the way things turned out. The staff at the hospital did a marvelous job of letting me try everything before actually having to get a c-section. The surgeon even volunteered the information that I would be a fantastic VBAC candidate and that particular hospital allows them. I've also heard that hospital allows birth pools to be set up there. It'll be awhile before a new baby arrives, but I'm so glad to know that I'm already supported in my next plan to try delivering naturally!