Dump the stump

Today Enzo's umbilical cord stump fell off. Some friends have had to endure a smelly belly button with their kids, but we got a break. The nub was hanging on by a little bit of skin for the last few days, so its a relief that its gone before week three.

Hitting the Gym

Tim and Claire gave Enzo a playtime gym a few weeks ago. Enzo has only used it a few times but he built up his strength to where he can lift and turn his head. Of course he gets a bit red in the face, but that happens to me too when working out at the gym.

2 week checkup

Enzo is already passing tests like a star pupil. He is now above his birth weight and is two inches taller. Dr. D. says you are an energetic baby. Keep up the good work baby Enzo.

2 week birthday update

Over the last few days, Enzo has grown alot. He was weighed in today at 7lbs. 14 oz. Babies should return to their birthweight at 2 weeks. Enzo went beyond his birth weight and we are excited for him. Enzo is getting stronger (his legs kick alot when changing diapers) and his chest is getting fuller. Nurse Ann even had Enzo take a few steps.

Jessica and Dominic stopped by last night and commented on how Enzo's facial features are more pronounced and he has more facial features. Enzo has hit his first growth spurt without any performance enhancing formula.

DiaperMania

We loved the Pampers from the hospital that we took home. So we decided that we will continue with the same at home. Of course, the swaddlers at the hospital are not the same as the retail version.

It only became apparent when the retail version stuck to Enzo's backside and gave him a raspberry. He did not like that for sure. We had to make the same mistake again before realizing that the retail version of swaddlers are not so great. We tried some huggies too and it only seem to keep the raspberry going.

So I e-mail P&G over this issue of broken skin and unhappy newborns. P&G said the retail equivalent is swaddlers sensitive and referred my case to their internal product research group. In googling this issue, some babies bottoms stick to the mesh as a result of rich mommy's milk. Other pampers parents have just given up, but I am hanging in there based on the great results from our hospital stay.

Now of course we are measuring success on diaper containment fields not breaching any hazardous contents and keeping Enzo free of irritation. After trips to my local big box store the swaddlers sensitive is a hard to find species. As soon as it hits the shelves, its gone according to another parent looking for the same. So here is another dad tip...Babies R Us sells a 180 count box but only in size 1 (8-14lbs). Walmart sells a 34 count (usually buried in regular shelf) in size N (up to 10 lbs). So for now we are making to two store trips until Enzo hits size 1.

Abundance

We have been very humbled by the outpouring of support from Family and Friends. The adjustment period of getting to know little Enzo has often times placed us second, but our support network is promoting us to first by sending us care packages like the one Steve and Amy sent with adorable handmade cookies. Since Enzo does not have teeth, we helped him out on this one. Over the past few weeks, the support network has made us feel capable and instilled confidence in our parenting skills.

Everything from BBQ feast from Uncle Tim and dinner from Nana Luna have kept our stamina going for the late nights with Enzo.

Wellness Visit

Enzo passed with flying colors in his wellness exam. It turns out that babies lose weight from the time they were born. Enzo lost about 8% if his weight, but is gaining about an ounce a day. Nurse Ann showed us that Enzo has a built in walking reflex. AJ and I were sooo excited to see Enzo take a few assisted steps

Regulating Enzo's temperature

We're hoping we'll figure out how many clothes to put on Enzo in this heat. We keep taking his temp to be sure we're not overheating him. In one of our classes, they told us that we should dress him in one extra layer than what we would be wearing. When it's 100 degrees, I'd rather not have any clothes, so it makes it difficult to decide how to dress our baby!

Today, we had him in a t-shirt and a diaper and after lounging in his vibrating papasan (with a crotch strap/saddle-thing), I went to change him. I screamed for Jeff when I saw what looked like deflated testicles. Did I completely destroy our son's reproductive organ? It looked like they had gotten punctured and all the air had been let out of them. Laughing, Jeff said that it was because he was hot and his testicles were trying to escape the heat. Seriously, I have obviously not been around little boys -- or didn't pay close-enough attention in sex education to know this.

Just the three of us

During our hospital stay there were always nurses and staff checking in on us. We arrived home and had Nonna, Josie, and Claire stop by for a visit and Enzo was perfectly behaved. After they left, it was just us three.

Over the next few hours, resourcefulness and resilience were put to the test. During a swaddling session, Enzo's diaper leaked onto our bed and he was fussy. I used the little green machine to take out the stain only to leave a bigger stain. Lots of scrubbing and fabreeze took care of the rest.

During Enzo's changing session, he wet himself, operator error - I forgot to cover his bits so the clothes and diaper that we just put on him had to come off. I didn't know what drawer his clothes were in so the search was on. At the end, we just changed him into some of the clothes worn earlier in the day. Over night, Enzo soiled 3 swaddling blankets, 2 pants, 3 shirts, 1 bed sheet. When we finally put Enzo to bed, we used a book light to illuminate his bassinet so we could check on him. We learned a lot and will prepare for tonight better than we did last night.

We feel the love

Being home and feeling supported and loved by so many friends and family has truly been a blessing. Looking at our son, taking in this whole new world has put a lot into perspective. Today, we received a gorgeous plant from my wonderful colleagues at USC Annenberg. Thank you!

We are home

Today was Enzo's first day home. The homecoming was awesome. Auntie Josie and Nonna setup decorations for Enzo. Enzo was just in awe...and we had to reassure him that he really lives here. Enzo lounged in his pappasan chair and had lots of nap time in his pack 'n play (which coordinates to our living room decor nicely) - thank you mommy.

Little Prince

Enzo was visited by his 2nd cousin Dominic today. Dominic brought Enzo a stuffed doll. The doll has a bib that says "Little Prince". Of course "The Prince" is another of Enzo's namesakes...the famous soccer player Enzo Francescoli. I gave some folks a sneak peek at the name prior to his birthday from clues off the wikipedia entry below
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enzo_Francescoli

Happy mothers day

Enzo was born on 5/10- Mothers Day in Mexico and as luck would have it, the Mothers Day card I bought said "For a Special Mother to Be" I had to cross out a few key words, but the meaning was still conveyed. Enzo has a very special mother. Enzo and I gave his mom a mother and baby pendent. It was given with great honor for all the mothers who have come before AJ.

Final stats

Labor started 6pm on Thursday 5/8
Birth- 3:29am on Saturday 5/10
Total labor hours -33.5 hours
Number of wash cloths used- 80
Number of nurse shift changes during our labor- 3
Number of hours slept during labor -9 for J - 5.5 hours for AJ

Having Enzo come into our lives- Priceless

5/10/08 3:29am

Baby Enzo Mateo Luna was born today. He is 7 lbs 11oz. and 19 inches. The Luna family is doing well.

Danger - This will be a cesarian birth

So, although nothing has gone according to our birthing preferences, the news that AJ's kidneys are starting to shut down caused us to okay the Cesarean. In order to keep mother and baby doing well... we're heading into the OR.

Hour 21 update

AJ has had some really good progress over the last few hours. Pitocin drip is back on and we are probably within 2-6 hours of delivery. Guppy is nicely moving down.

Hour 15 of labor

AJ still looks great at hour 15 of labor.

In progress

We got to the hospital around 7:30 am. Things have been a bit slow, but AJ is feeling better after getting her epidural around 2:15 pm. AJ will qualify for Mother's Day for sure.

We are in labor

At 4:15 am today we began our active labor. For reals.

Are these contractions?

So tonight we started to time AJ's "weird feelings" and they were about 25 minutes apart lasting about 30-45 seconds each. Are these contractions? We're going to sleep to see what transpires over night...

This is only a test- If this was the real thing I would know what to do.

So the last post was before we received test results showing that AJ may have had high protein in her lab sample. High protein with high blood pressure can be signs for preeclampsia. Since the Doctor's office lab was closed, we were sent over to the hospital's labor and delivery ward for monitoring and testing. Of course the talk of inducing labor made me think that I was not prepared and it tested my mettle. The hospital monitoring and test results showed that we were not in any danger so we were able to leave several hours later. Thankfully, our doula Brenda met us at the hospital and brought welcoming assurance and accompanied us home. Mom and baby are fine and I have a few more things now on my list to bring to the hospital when its no longer a test- but the real thing.

Last Day At Work

Today was AJ's last day in the office. She will be missed by her student workers and colleagues until she is back from maternity leave. We made it to the doctor's office in 45 minutes from downtown after a jammed packed day at the office. It's true that traffic causes stress... AJ's blood pressure was elevated when checked at the doctor's office but as you can see... She has a big smile.