I figured I would start a combined journal for all three of them now since little Marissa is here. Plus, it will make it easier to keep updating one journal instead of trying to search and find all three.

I will post some pics and her birth story in a second.

Updates on the boys:

They are doing great! They love their little sister and they are already very protective of her. Things have been so crazy around here that time has gotten tight and I hate to admit it because I feel really bad, but we have had some acting up from Logan.

I feel really bad because I haven't really had that much one on one time with him since I got home from the hospital, that I think he is showing it by acting up. He will be good as gold and then all of a sudden he will turn into a miniature Tazmanian Devil. So, starting on Sunday when he wakes up, I am making a pact with him and myself that I will spend as much one on one time with him, Brandon and Marissa that I can. As well as spending time with all three of them together. I know it will be rough at first trying to find enough time in each day to get it all done, but I know I can do it.

We took Marissa on Friday to the pediatrician for her 2-3 day check up. She was 6lbs. 14oz. when she was born, when we got discharged she was 6lbs. 12oz. and then at her check up she was 6lbs. 8oz. We got sent back to the hospital from the pediatrician's office to get her bilirubin tested because she is a little jaundice. Her level was 10.9 so we didn't have to get admitted and her put under the bili light for a day.

Brandon and Logan are great! They are very healthy eaters. Logan has turned into a vegetarian all of a sudden. He won't eat any kind of meat, and we offer him meat all the time. He used to eat meat with no problems, now we have to more or less trick him to get him to eat some kind of meat. Brandon is a great eater. He doesn't have any problems with eating anything...which is good. So, we have been racking our brains trying to come up with ideas on how to get Logan to eat more meat. He has his 18 month check up on the 14th of May, and Marissa has her two week check up that day as well.

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Mindee:Wife to Tommy since 5/11/02

Here is the story of how Marissa came into this world!

I went into the hospital Monday night at 7pm for the induction like I was scheduled to do. We got up and in the room, and every thing was going great. Me, Tommy, Brandon and Logan hung out in the room for a little while. Tommy took the boys home at about 8:30pm to get them ready for bed and he told me not to have her until he got back there on Tuesday morning.

The doctor came in at 9:30pm and checked me. I was suppose to be given the cervidil pill to get things started. When she checked my at 9:30pm, I was already 3cm and 50% effaced. So, she said that I wouldn’t need the pill and took me and Marissa off the monitors for the night. She told me that I could get a shower in if I wanted to, and that she would be back in at 4am to start the pitocin and then at 6am to break my water.

The nurse came in at 4am to start the pitocin, which got under way around 4:30am. I somehow got a couple hours of sleep from the time I got out of the shower until the nurse came in to start the iv and pitocin. We played “catch me if you can” with Marissa on the monitors. She kept running away from it, so we had to keep chasing her to get the tracing. She finally held still and laid there. I think I caught a cat nap, next thing I know, the doctor is in the room ready to break my water. She broke my water at 6am, and noticed that is was stained slightly with meconium. So she told me that they wouldn’t make her cry right away when she was born so they could suction her out.

She came in probably about 7:45ish to check on me and to see how things were going. When she checked me before she broke my water (at 6am) I was 3cm still. While she was breaking my water, I went from 3cm to 4 ½cm. She said that that was the first time she had ever had that happen to her. I was then 70% effaced. When she checked me at 7:45, I was already at 6cm and about 80% effaced. So, things were moving quickly…..or so we thought. She went and called the anesthesiologist and to get them going on my epidural since I was having a tubal as well. (It makes it easier for when they do the tubal)

The anesthesiologist came up to the room, got every thing all set up to go and then got paged to the emergency room for a trauma. She came running back all out of breath about ten minutes later because the other anesthesiologist was taking care of it. She tried twice to put in my epidural and couldn’t get the catheter to thread either time. (I have a nice bruise from her trying to figure out the right spot where it goes) She then called the other anesthesiologist to come up and help her. It took him one time and he got it in and threaded. Boy, was I one happy girl!

I then went from 6cm to 8cm in probably about an hour or so. I was stuck at 8cm forever. Then I managed to make it to 9.……and then got stuck for a while. I finally made it to 10cm, and it seemed like it took forever to get things going! She was still up high a little bit, so it took some extra strong pushes on my part to bring her down. I got the “ring of fire” burning and knew that she would be born with the next push or two. So, after letting out some screams and a couple “I can’t do this, it hurts to much,” she finally poked her head out at 11:55am. They didn’t want her to cry at first until they got a chance to suction her out.

She had some meconium on the top of her head, and her face was a little blue. She had her cord wrapped around her neck once, so that finally gave us an answer as to why in certain positions her heart rate would keep dropping. They got her all suctioned out, and boy did she let you know that she was cold and in this world! She was 6lbs. 14 oz. when she was born and was 19 inches long. When they discharged us, she had only lost 2 ounces since she was born.

Tommy went and got the boys and brought them up in the early evening after I had gotten my tubal done. Good thing he did, because I didn’t want them to see me laying in the bed and shaking like a tree in a storm. First, from the epidural and then the change in hormones. Then from the surgery and being in the OR.

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Mindee:Wife to Tommy since 5/11/02

now time for some pictures of my three babies!

Mommy & Marissa:



Daddy & his pride and joys:



My three babies:

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Mindee:Wife to Tommy since 5/11/02

OMG, such cuties!! I don't think I've seen any recent pics of your whole family....Brandon looks so much like Tommy, and Logan looks just like you!

Marissa is absolutely beautiful & looks SO teeny next to those big brothers of hers!

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Great thread title!

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Katy
Are we SURE there are actually a whole 24 hours in a day? It sure seems like there are less than that.

Jana~ That reminds me.....the next time we get a chance, we should get someone to snap a shot of us all together. Brandon is definitely Tommy's twin all the way. Logan has been my mini-me since he was born.

Kate~ Thanks! I was trying to come up with something cute, and I came up with that a couple months ago and it stuck.

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Mindee:Wife to Tommy since 5/11/02

Hello everyone!

We are trucking along, and things are going great! Tomorrow, Monday, will be the true test. Tommy goes back to work, so it will be me and the three little ones at home. I already had a talk with both Brandon and Logan. I told them that since daddy was going back to work, we were going to get back to our normal routine. Meaning that daddy will be at work, so it will be them and mommy and Marissa during the day while daddy is at work. Tommy reinforced that they had to behave for me. He also asked Brandon if he was going to me mommy’s big helper, to which Brandon said he would.

Fast forward to a couple hours later and I swear I had a couple heart attacks! I was getting a diaper to change Marissa and I turn around because I heard him making kissing noises. I turn around and he is sitting on the arm of the couch and holding her in his arms! Yes, I did say holding her! So, we had to explain to him that he couldn’t do that and that he could hurt her. Then we told him that only mommy and daddy can pick her up, and that if he wants to hold her then all he has to do is ask. To which, he then went on to ask every five minutes, but since we were about to eat dinner I told him that he could hold her later.

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Mindee:Wife to Tommy since 5/11/02

They are all PRECIOUS! OMG they're just too cute together!

Pretty scary about Brandon holding Marissa! I'm glad she's all right and he learned (safely) that he doesn't need to pick her up .

Wishing you lots of luck today! Hoping it goes by smoothly and quickly!

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such a great title for this journal!! what a cute bunch you have there. wishing you lots of luck today on your own with the three kiddos. I'm sure you'll be fine. It will probably take some adjustment, but you can do it!! Congratulations again.

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thanks ladies! it has been really an adjustment getting used to having three instead of two. I have to take the boys into the bath room with me or Marissa into the kitchen with me while I make them lunch. Other wise Brandon will pick her up and hold her.

Marissa has been taking more breastfeedings now. When she was born I was able to feed her before going back to have my tubes tied. When I came out from getting them tied, I was so knocked out from being tired and the "relaxing" medicine they gave me that Tommy tells me I was asleep for some time. They ended up giving her a bottle while I was sleeping the epidural and the "relaxing" medicine off. She didn't take much of it, but she at least took some of it. She then took to the breast feedings again when I was more awake and able to hold her without shaking like a tree in a hurricane!

She then decided that she wasn't going to latch on properly so she made my nipples crack and scab to the point where she couldn't get that much out of them. So, we supplemented with some formula, all the while still trying her with the breast. Finally I got her to latch on properly and they now don't hurt when she feeds. In the past 24 hours she had two bottle feedings at 3am and 7am on Monday, all the rest were breast feedings. She did take an ounce here and there, but you could tell that she wasn't enjoying it.

Since this is the longest that any of them have ever stayed with breast feeding. I have been trying to figure out how I know she is getting enough, and even if I am producing enough milk for her. She will take to the breast, eat from the left side, then from the right, then back to the left, and then back to the right side. Usually after this she is ready to be burped and ready to fall asleep. In a time frame, it usually takes about an hour for the whole eating process to go through. She will eat like that, then usually two hours later she will be ready to go again. Her poop (not trying to be gross or anything) but looks like a jar of mustard with some seeds or cottage cheese in it, which if I remember correctly means she is getting enough. I am working very hard on getting the proper amount of glasses of water in a day. I feel like when I sit down to eat something, I swear you would think that I am pregnant still because I can eat as much as I did then.

So my main question, well basically, the only question, is after every thing that you read, does that sound to you like she is getting enough? And is it okay to give her the two bottles at night? I am trying to avoid giving her the bottles of formula because I want to not get her confused, but she knows the difference between the boob and the bottle.

As for the big brothers, well, things are going someone well. Things are going to be tight and crazy around here. Brandon dumped dish soap all over the laptop keyboard, so Tommy had to go out and get an external keyboard in order for us to be able to get online. There are other spots on our plate that are HUGELY occupied, but hopefully something good will come out of the situations! So, keep us in your thoughts and prayers during this time.

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Mindee:Wife to Tommy since 5/11/02