Checking up on you this morning

Your dad wakes you up every morning, changes your diaper, gets you dressed, loads you in your carseat and takes you to meet Aunt Maureen. By this time, I am long gone. Already wide awake, at work, counting every minute until I get to see you again.

I get extremely jealous of this time he has with you in the morning. Because in the morning you are all smiles and giggles and perfect cuteness. In fact, we fight over who gets to wake you up on the weekends. He usually lets me win.

 

This morning I emailed him at work to see how you were doing. And this is the conversation:

Mom: How was Porter this morning?

Dad: Good. Smiley. Happy. Cute. Beautiful. Watching my every move with curiosity. Ready for Christmas.......the list could go on forever.

Mom: Adorable.

 



 

 

We love you, buddy.

4 months old and rolling over

You are 4 months old today!

It seems like you have grown so much in the last two weeks.

It's like you are a completely different baby.

You are learning and moving so much every day.

 

We witnessed you roll over for the first time on Saturday, December 14th.

 

 

It was very exciting!!!!

 

You are also sitting up pretty good in your chair.

 

And you have found your feet, and you are absolutely obsessed. You grab them all the time. If you have shoes on you will grab your shoe laces and sometimes you just grab the bottom of your pants. It's adorable to watch you exploring and figuring things out.

 

Daddy took you to the doctor this morning.

You now weigh 14 lbs. and you are 25 in. long. 

We love you so much, Porter!

 

Thanksgiving and other stuff

We just spent a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend in Gulf Shores.

Over 30 people in one house and it was awesome. You were the tiniest one there so everyone loved on you and argued over who would hold you. Everyone was fascinated by your smiling faces and the cute noises you make. 

Your dad and I were even able to go to the movies to see The Hunger Games while Honey kept you for 3 hours. I was so anxious the whole time we were gone but of course you were well behaved. In fact, you slept the whole time.

We even bought you a new outfit while we were there. Look at that handsome guy!

Look at those handsome guys! And they're all mine :)

I went back to work a couple of weeks ago, and while I was very sad (I cried the whole night before) you are doing great at your Aunt Maureen's. 

You are now holding things really well and very interested in your hands. You will only let people hold you facing out. You think you're a little man and not a baby. It makes me sad sometimes that I can't hold you like a baby but you are already very independent and I am proud of that. You eat like a pig and are growing so much. We weighed you two nights ago at EE's and it read 17 lbs! But we will have a more accurate weight when we bring you to your 4-month check up next week. 

We love you little man!

Your momma is 28!

Happy birthday to me! I'm 28 years old and I have an 11-week old. Life couldn't get any better.

I was telling your dad the other day that this is the first birthday I've had where I didn't get PBD (post-birthday depression). Ha! I just feel like I've finally reached a point in my life where I feel completely fulfilled and content with all the blessings that I have.

And why wouldn't I when I get to wake up to that cute face every day.

And you are an awesome baby! You started sleeping through the night at 11 weeks! You won't fully understand how amazing that is until you have children of your own.

All the birthday presents I needed this year. 11.7.13

We had a great Halloween. As you can see we dressed you up as Superman. It was fitting considering everything you've already been through in your short time here on the earth. You are my little superman.

Some things about you...

You like to sit like a little man, facing out so you can see everything that's going on around you. You are very curious and very quiet just like your mom and dad. You are completely content with people watching.

You're beginning to respond to your toys. You really like your giraffe rattle that Maw Maw got for you. It makes you laugh a lot. And since you are already teething, you really enjoy the teething ring that Aunt Maureen gave to you. You have just recently started to not be as interested in your pacifier. You still take it sometimes but not a lot.

You like to hang out with your cousin Harrison :)

And your best friend Cullen.

Blessed.

Your daddy gave you your blessing on Sunday, October 27, 2013. It was a very special day and all the family attended church to be a part of it.

He gave a beautiful blessing where he talked a lot about you learning and growing. It reminded me a lot of a blessing I once received...I'll be sure to share it with you someday.

You are now two months old and getting bigger by the second. You smile a lot and make the cutest cooing sounds. Everything you do is cute...even your cute little frown.

We love you, Porter Jonathan. And we are so happy you have joined our eternal family!

It's true what they say

You become a total freak after having a child.

I went running the other day and left you at home with your sweet and caring Maw Maw. While I was running, all I could think about was how someone would kidnap you and her while I was gone. Or that alzheimer's would all the sudden manifest itself in her and she would leave you at home by yourself or take you somewhere.

None of the above happened. I returned home and she was cooing and cuddling with you.

I just wanted to warn you for when you become a parent one day.

And don't even get me started on what a freak your dad has become since we came home from the hospital. We are under quarantine here at the Turfitt household. I'm not allowed to take you anywhere and no one but family is allowed to come over.

Needless to say, I'm about to lose it!

I wash my hands about 30 times a day (seriously), not to mention the anti-bacterial that's being lathered on in between.

He says it will be lifted on Sunday when you take your last dose of antibiotic. We'll see...

Celebrating your first month of life with a bang...and an ouch

On Saturday, September 21, you became very sick. We knew something was wrong because you are a very good baby and usually very easily soothed, but that evening you became really fussy and nothing we did made you feel better. We checked your temperature and it was high but we didn't think much of it. But as we kept checking it throughout the evening it was getting higher and higher. We decided to take you to the emergency room and that turned out to be a very good move.

I cried all the way there because you seemed so exhausted and your breathing seemed strained. By the time we got there, your temp was 103! We were so scared. They ran all kinds of tests (even a spinal tap) and discovered that you had some type of bacterial infection in your blood. By 4 a.m. we were put in a room in the pediatric unit.

We were informed that we had to stay there at least until Tuesday when the culture results came back. The next few days were very emotional for your dad and me. It was so scary not knowing what was wrong with you and of course we were worried that it could be something very serious. 

They conducted an ultrasound Tuesday morning and discovered that your kidneys are two different sizes. The doctor ensured us that this was not uncommon but could be the cause of a bladder infection that could explain everything. But she also told us that since you had a bacterial infection at such a young age that we would be in the hospital for 7-10 days. We were scared that if it was a bladder infection that this would be something you would have to deal with the rest of your life. However, the results came back negative for a bladder infection, which led the doctors to think it was salmonella.

Salmonella!? How the heck could you have gotten that!? Well, it's actually very easy to contract. All it would take is for someone to touch the germ then touch your face and you ingest it through your mouth. 

On Wednesday, we found out that it was definitely salmonella, which actually turned out to be good news because it is very common and very treatable and you were already reacting well to the antibiotics. Plus, the doc told us if your blood results came back well in the morning we could go home.

We did a lot of praying over those couple of days. Especially, prayers of thanks after we were informed many times by the on call doctor that if we had waited just 12 more hours you could have died. So scary! It was an emotional roller coaster, but on Thursday we were told that your blood count looked great and you looked great so they gave us the okay to go home. 

And you gave us the okay too :)

Your dad was so worried about you. I don't think I have ever seen him so stressed and scared.

But you were such a trooper. You acted as though you couldn't even tell you had an IV in your arm and you were still giving us sweet smiles. We are so grateful that everything turned out okay and that you are still with us. We can't imagine our life without you. We love you, Porter!

The days following...

The day after your birth was a very cozy one. It rained all day and we had many visitors.

Mimi & Porter

Cousin Lauryn & Porter

It was actually very nice and comforting being at the hospital. We slept as much as we could, but both your dad and I practically jumped out of bed each time you made a sound. The pediatrician said you looked excellent and you only had a little jaundice. The on-call OBGYN said we were both doing great and gave us discharge permission Saturday night but we decided to wait until the morning.

I'll never forget you started screaming crying as the nurse wheeled me to the elevator. You had actual tears streaming down your face and I didn't know why. It broke my heart and I started crying too. The ride home was very solemn. I couldn't believe we were taking you home to raise you...it's very overwhelming.

The first person dog you met was Scout. She will always be known as your first pet. She was a birthday present to your dad just a couple months after we got married. She was 4 years old when we brought you home. Everyone asks us how she acts around you. She doesn't pay you much attention but she doesn't like when people come over and don't give her attention because they are oohing and ahing over you. Before you were born she wouldn't even come in the nursery...it was like she knew something fishy was going on. And she already steals all of your stuffed animals.

We had lots more visitors in the next few days.

Aunt Lauren & Porter

Maw Maw & Porter

EE & Porter

Honey & Porter 

Uncle Brehm, Aunt Jenny & Porter

Uncle Janssen & Porter

The first two weeks were hectic and exhausting. Everyone told us that we would be missing out on sleep but that was definitely an understatement. There were times when I would be so tired that I would just lay there and cry as your dad rocked you to sleep.

You are a great baby though. You are very independent. I can just leave you in your swing and you just sit there and look all around. I can tell that you are very inquisitive and I'm pretty sure that you get that from me. I can just sit there in silence and people watch for hours. You only cry when you are hungry. You don't even let us know when you need a diaper change...we have to check it all the time. You are a very sound sleeper.  When you sleep you sleep hard just like your dad. The dog barking like crazy doesn't even bother you. When you are awake you are very alert. You love to look around and examine people up and down. Everyone comments about how alert you are. You are very strong, already lifting your head and your hands have a very strong grasp.

Your first smile happened on September 1, 2013.

Your first bath.

We're crazy about you!

Porter's Prompt Arrival

It was Thursday, August 22, and I just sat down to a relaxing evening at home with your dad after working a full day and attending a committee meeting that evening. We were sitting on the sofa watching TV when I felt a trickle of water. I rushed to the bathroom and more came out. I was in denial at first, and your dad was trying to convince me that indeed my water had broken. I decided to wait and see what happened and more water just kept flowing so we called our doula Bianca.

She told us to get plenty of rest and call her in the morning. Your dad gave me a beautiful blessing that assured both of us that everything would go well with your delivery. I couldn't believe that you were going to come on your due date. I was so sure that you were going to be late.

Your dad finished packing our hospital bags and we went to sleep at about 10 p.m. I awoke at 2 a.m. feeling some regular contractions but they weren't painful. I let your dad sleep while I counted the contractions for the next 2 hours. I decided to go back to bed at 4 a.m. because I knew this was really about to happen and I would need all the rest I could get.

At 5 a.m., I woke up with the first strong contraction, and it felt like from then on they only got longer and stronger. Bianca arrived at about 9 a.m. and we labored at home for the next 5 hours. Those hours were very intense, but your dad stayed by my side every minute. He kept reassuring me that I was doing a great job and that you would be here soon and all the pain would be over.

I had planned to be active in labor...walking around, sitting on the birthing ball, leaning on something. But all of that went out the door because all I wanted to do was sit and recline. It was the most comfortable position for me. I did get in the bathtub twice but it felt like more of a hassle than anything. The things that I remember most from the experience is being extremely thirsty and feeling tremendous relief between contractions. It was also helping me during contractions to take deep breaths and count them. Most of them lasted about 10 breaths so I would know when I was halfway and almost done with the contraction.

They say that there is a transition stage in labor that indicates when you are getting closer. That time came at about 2 p.m. I started to get really frazzled and aggravated that we weren't at the hospital already. All I could think about was how there was no way I would make it to the hospital with as much pain as I was in. I didn't want to move from the couch, and I was sure that I would have to deliver you right there in our living room.

Bianca tried to check me to see how dilated I was but she couldn't tell because your head was in the way. But she said that it was time for us to decide if we were ready to go to the hospital. Absolutely! Your dad started to load everything in the car while I was trying to get dressed through the contractions. Looking back now I know I must have looked a hot mess with my pink nightie, black and white polka dot pajama pants and slippers.

Before we left I was asking myself why I decided to put myself through this pain and was reminded that it was the best thing for you. I told your dad that I wanted the epidural...I just couldn't take it anymore, but he reassured me that I was doing a great job.

Everyone said the drive to the hospital would be the worst but it really wasn't that bad. There was one time when your dad slammed on the brakes for a red light and I felt like you were just going to be thrown out of me but other than that it was a pretty smooth ride.

When we arrived, your dad ran in to get someone to help me and he left me with them while he went to park the car. I was terrified because I felt very alone all of a sudden, but as soon as the nurse wheeled me around I saw Bianca and felt immediate relief. She held my hand all the way to the labor and delivery floor. When we got there, they started asking me all these questions and made me sign all these papers. Ridiculous! Hello, I'm in intense labor people! I remember they asked me what my due date was and when I replied with "Today," everyone chuckled a bit.

When we toured the hospital months ago, I remember the rooms being so large and spacious. But they wheeled me into this tiny room that was soooo hot. They put a gown on me and put me in the bed. Everything was a whirlwind of senses and emotions. It sounds weird but I never even had the thought to mention pain meds or an epidural because I was just so concentrated on the pain itself.

Your dad arrived just before the nurse checked me. She said I was 5-6 cm, and I said "That's it!?" Bianca reassured me that that was a very good number...over halfway there. I was still feeling disappointed. Dr. Daigle came in about 30 minutes later and said that the nurse changed her mind and thought I was more like 7 cm. She checked me again and said that I had progressed to 8 cm and if I gave her a couple of strong pushes she was sure she could get me to 10 cm, which she did.

When she claimed "Alright, it's time to push," I was so relieved. I couldn't wait for you to be in our arms, and I couldn't wait for the pain to be over with. Little did I know that the pain was about to get 10 times worse and you would take a lot longer to arrive than we thought.

At the beginning of each contraction, I felt a strong urge to push and then I was directed to push two more times after that. Each time, everyone in the room was cheering me on and saying that I was so close. So each time I pushed I thought for sure you were going to come out. But you didn't. At one point, when everyone was saying "You're almost there," I yelled at them "Y'all keep saying that!" I felt like it was never going to end and I was starting to feel hopeless.

Each time I felt another contraction begin, I was sure that I wouldn't be able to push again because I was so completely exhausted. Your dad was on my right side and Bianca was on my left. Your dad kept whispering to me that I was doing such a good job and that he was so proud of me.

I have no idea how I made it through the next hour and 15 minutes pushing 3 times every other minute but somehow I did. Towards the end, your dad and Bianca started to lift my butt off the bed as I pulled my legs back and I could tell that you were making more progress descending. They asked me if I wanted a mirror so I could see you but I told them no because I didn't even have my glasses on so really I couldn't see anything. A couple pushes later they asked if I wanted to reach down and touch your head and I did. Everyone in the room was oohing and awing about how much hair you had. Your dad said at one point the doctor was actually styling it and that helped to relax him.

After I felt your head and knew how close you were, I felt a renewed strength and a couple pushes later your head was out and then the rest of your body. It was amazing relief as they placed you on my chest and your dad and I looked you over. But then the pain wasn't over as I began to get a cramp in my foot. I begged Bianca to massage it. I wanted to concentrate on you but the cramp was all I could think about. Thankfully it eventually went away.

The staff knew that we didn't want you whisked away and poked and prodded at so they looked you over as you laid on me. You were so incredibly alert, and I couldn't believe that I could finally stare into your big almond shaped eyes.

They weighed and measured you, and after about 30 minutes Bianca left and the staff slowly trickled out and there your parents were all alone with you for the first time. We were in shock and just overcome with joy. I'll never forget what your dad said to me that made me cry for the first time throughout the entire ordeal. One day I will tell you.

Porter Jonathan Turfitt

8.23.2013

7 lbs. 20 in.