I've had this nagging thought in my head that I haven't made a blog post in a very long time. This was confirmed when I tried to log in to Blogger and was one password try away from locking myself out of my account...last post September 22nd. Very sad indeed. I apologize! Life has been going insanely fast. In the past two months Zack was gone for a bit over a month (which I'm ashamed to say seemed like a whole lot longer than 30 plus days) and of course we had our Caraline.
Our experience with the birth of Caraline earned me yet another patch on my imaginary Navy Spouse jacket. I can wear that patch and say that I (with the help of great friends) delivered my child without my husband. And it was amazing and wonderful! And not nearly as traumatizing as it may seem. Having Zack with me to see her birth would have been wonderful but I'm going to admit to you that in someways it was easier. And just maybe the "old fashioned" belief that the husband should pace in the waiting room just might have had something going for it. With me in the hospital I had my neighbor, Ashly, who has one child and my friend Heather, who is anxiously waiting for the right time to start their family. And having two women with me to help me, calm me, and encourage me was a smidgen different than having my anxious, annoyed ( I don't handle IV drugs well...causing me to run my mouth without remembering the apparent not so nice things that came out of it!) husband. Now don't get me wrong Zack was a great help when I was in labor with Noah but having two women was just different. They were both attentive, focused, considerate, amazing...should I go on? Women are just women! They can provide the support and encouragement that sometimes men just don't realize is needed. And in all fairness this being my second delivery that mirrored my first so closely it would have been a completely different experience delivering Caraline with Zack there compared to when we had Noah. And this go around I didn't have IV drugs! God willing we will have more children and my ideal plan is for Zack to be at each of their births...but it wouldn't be the end of the world if I deliver another child without him. It made me smile to see all of your comments and posts on facebook. And I appreciate all those that said that I was a strong woman or words of similar meaning...but you would be surprised how much you can do when you are faced with a situation that you must handle on your own. Tucking my tail between my legs and having a mental breakdown wasn't an option. You have to put on your big girl panties and buck up! That fact is one of the reasons why I enjoy being a Navy wife. Those experiences mold you and help you become a better person.
We can't hardly believe that she is already almost a month old. She is growing like crazy and starting to be more alert. She sleeps through most of the day and I don't remember Noah sleeping that much...although I'm sure that he did. It's amazing how much your forget about those newborn months...just maybe it's your bodies way of coping. Letting your forget about the reality so that you are more likely to bring another child into the world! We can't help but see the differences in Noah and Caraline as newborns and I'll mention a few. With Noah I could feed him and put him back in his bed. He would just be content and then fall asleep on his own. Caraline enjoys being cuddled and wants loads of attention! Noah hardly cried...just when he needed something. Caraline has a fussy time of night(not overly fussy though)...and she will be content one second and screaming another. I told Zack that it's because she's a woman...she's changes her mind very often! Noah will pat her back and give her kisses....and the next minute he's trying to smack her! We can't leave the two of them in the same room or near one another without immediate supervision. She is one tough little girl.
Noah is growing out of yet another size of shoes! We're almost into size 8s for him now. He still gets a bit jealous of Caraline at time especially when I am nursing her. But he worries all the time about the baby...and reminds me when we leave the house or the car about the baby. I guess he thinks that I might forget her! He also is growing so fast...making me wish that little boys could just stay little forever. He can test my patience for sure but what a joy he is! The comment about forgetting her in the car reminded me of when we first had Noah and I thought what a pain it was to go anywhere with him...to get him in and out of the car. After a while it became the new normal and didn't bother me at all...and now with two kids I'm back where I started again...what a pain it is! Especially here where the shopping carts don't allow for her to sit in her infant carrier on top or in the bottom of the cart. So I have to put her in the Baby Bjorn all the time. And Japan is not stroller friendly!
Caraline into the ER with the germs and flu bug. I was able to call my friend, Heather, to watch while I took Noah into the ER. I had called ahead and they told me that they were pretty busy so I knew that Heather was going to have to bring her to me to nurse. Noah had an outer ear infection...first one of those for us and by the time the doctor came into to see him the timer had gone off on Caraline's tummy. I was nursing her while the doctor was looking at his ear. And then it was home for all of us. It's so complicated when he's gone or at work and this situations arise! And Zack didn't get home until after 9 that night. Wives can only count on wives here. We don't have family and let's face it...the husbands can't be counted on. It creates an amazing environment and I'll be sad to have to go back to a U.S. base! Zack will check into the ship this coming week and we'll learn what day he will be given for his duty day. We are hoping that he doesn't have Thanksgiving or black Friday. We got a flyer in the mail for the NEX deals on Friday and have made our mental lists for Christmas shopping steals! We will probably be celebrating Thanksgiving with a few friends and maybe a few of Zack's shipmates. That is all for now...Caraline is in her fussy time of night!
