Happy Birthday Frances!

Happy Birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Frances, happy birthday to you! 

To Due Or Not To Due?

That is the question.

Courtney is due today. Now I know that only 5% of women actually go into labor on their due date, but Courtney is so tired and ready, that I hope she's part of that percentage. Little Rachael is being stubborn!

All, I can say is, Courtney...prastaglandins! It's guaranteed to work!

I Retract My Last Post!

So, Courtney thought that her water broke. She packed up, went to the hospital, Richie met her there...when in fact her water hadn't broken...it was excess fluid that had built up and leaked. Her actual due date is on Sunday...but my guess is that she won't have her until November 2.

A New Neice...or Nephew?

Courtney's water broke a little while ago, so soon Colin will have a little cousin! Hopefully the baby will be little Rachael...since that's what Court has been preparing for!

First Time To Meet Colin

Megan got to meet Colin for the first time during her visit home. Colin just loved being held by his Titi Megan! 

Megan's Coming

Megan's coming home for the weekend from college (Alabama). We are excited to see her. This is the first time that she will get to meet Colin!

Interesting...

I came across this and thought it was interesting.

Here is mine:

HowManyOfMe.com

There are: 32 people with my name in the U.S.A. How many have your name?

Here is Miguel's:

HowManyOfMe.com

There are: 6 people with my name in the U.S.A. How many have your name?

Funny thing, is that 3 of them are related to Miguel!

Here is Colin's:

HowManyOfMe.com

There are: 9 people with my name in the U.S.A. How many have your name?

I totally thought my Colin would be the only one!

New Pictures

I finally uploaded some new pictures of Colin that Whitney took today! They are cute! See them on my smugmug page. 

Colin

Colin is definitely developing his little personality. This morning he is all smiles for his mommy and papi. He hears our voice, and looks for us smiling! He's got an adorable dimple on his right cheek when he smiles. What a beautiful thing. I'm stalling on getting ready for church just so I can make this moment last. He's such a happy baby!

His reflux seems to be doing better. We've put him back on the Enfamil AR, and we are just adding karo syrup to each feeding to prevent the constipation. We've also switched to Dr. Browns bottles, and at first I didn't think that they helped, but they do. Now I just need to go out and buy more of them!

On a Side Note

Ok, this is serious...I need to know...

Danny & I are debating this topic, and I know I'm right!

Do the majority of men have skidmarks in their underwear? (YES!!!) I've started a poll, please vote!

Skidmark Poll

Update on Colin

First of all, thank you to everyone who prayed for Colin. I know prayer works!

Colin had his Barium swallow test today, and he does not have pyloric stenosis...thank God! But, and here is the but, his pyloric sphincter (the sphincter at the bottom of the stomache that empties into the small intestine) is spasming, and can get to the point where it won't open, and turns into pyloric stenosis. He definitely does have reflux, and the radiologist said that it can be due to the spasming. Colin is at risk for pyloric stenosis until he is about 10 weeks old. After which time, his chances of getting it decreases, and the spasms should be slowing down...which in turn will help his reflux problem.

I'd like to ask everyone to continue to keep Colin in your prayers, not only for the pyloric stenosis thing, but also for the reflux. It's not comfortable for him, and he's not sleeping as well as he would if he didn't have it. Thanks!

Completed Nursery

Okay, so I finally took some pictures of the completed nursery. It only took me like 2 months! So, for those of you who were asking for them, here you go!

Nursery 

Prayer for Colin

This morning at 10:30 is Colin's Upper GI Series test. I am very nervous, and would like to ask everyone to please keep Colin, and Miguel & I in your prayers this morning.

3 Nights in a Row!

Colin has slept over 5 hours straight for the past 3 nights! I am beginning to wonder if it's going to stick. Last night I actually woke him up after 5 hours...I know, I know...never wake a sleeping baby, don't know why I did it! Yay!

BTW - can anyone see the picture with the post below? I can't see it.

I posted some new pictures of Colin in the "1 Month to 2 Months" folder in smugmug. He's so adorable! 

Colin slept!

Or better yet...I slept! For the first time, last night Colin slept for 5 1/2 hours straight! I know that's not great, but considering he was only going 3 hours, 5 1/2 is wonderful! I'm not sure what to attribute it to. We've changed so many things in the past few days. He's on yet again another formula...Enfamil Gentlease. That didn't work by itself, so now we are mixing that with the Enfamil AR. We've also gone to feeding him every 4 hours instead of every 3. He's now getting 5 oz. instead of 4 oz. We've also given in, and he's sleeping in his swing. Miguel moved it to his room last night. I didn't really want to do that, but he actually slept better...and longer. Praise God! Now if we could only get the spitting up issue to end...he did really good last night, but this morning is just terrible. I fed him at 7:00, and he's been spitting up lots since then.

Family Worship

We started a Friday night family worship this past Friday. We opened Sabbath, ate dinner, had a brief bible study/worship, prayer time, dessert, and fellowship. It turned out nicer than I expected! I am hoping to continue it each week, and maybe make it a family tradition.

World of Warcraft Video

Ok, so I laughed through the whole thing and had to watch it over and over!

1 Month Checkup

I took Colin to his 1 month checkup appointment today. The doctor said that he is developing wonderfully, and his growth is great. He weighs 9 lbs. 5 oz. (which is 50-75% percentile), and is 21 inches long (also 50-75% percentile). He does have reflux (poor baby), so the doctor started him on some medicine that should help with the burning but won't help the spitting up. The formula that we had him on to stop him from spitting up so much was causing him constipation, so we had to switch formulas...again. I've already noticed that he's back to spitting up more, but at least it doesn't seem to be burning as much as before.

First Smile

Ok, so this isn't a picture of Colin's first smile, but he is so pimp! I popped his collar, and gave him a faux hawk just like his Papi!

Now about that first smile...My little Colin smiled at me for the first time yesterday! At first I thought is was just gas like all of the other times, but then he smiled at me again when I was talking to him. Still thought is was gas. Later on in the day he smiled at me a third time, and this time I knew he was smiling at me. We met grammy for lunch, and he gave her a big smile too. Later when papi got home, Colin was cranky, and wasn't in the mood for anymroe smiling, but papi got a little smile too! Yay! My little boy is gaining his personality! 

Happy Birthday Casey!

Casey, I hope that you have a wonderful birthday. May God give you another blessed year! 

How Time Flies

I can't believe that my precious little baby will be 1 month old tomorrow. I am sad & happy. He's growing so fast. I have to take pictures almost every day to capture his changes. Today is the last day that I posted pictures to the "Birth to 1 Month" folder on smugmug. Check out the pics, b/c tomorrow will start a new folder! 

New Name

So I'm sick of "Kristen's Korner". Blah is what it is. I need a new name. Any suggestions?

New Pictures

I uploaded a few more pictires to the "Birth to 1 Month" folder on smugmug. Only a few more days before I have to start a "1 Month to 2 Months" foler. I can't believe how fast the time is going! 

My First Attempt at Photoshop Elements

I've had photoshop elements for a while now, but I think that it intimidates me. After seeing the prices for birth announcements that I liked, I decided that I wanted to try to make Colin's birth announcement. So, 4 1/2 hours later, here you have it...my first attempt at phtoshop elements! 

Happy 20th Birthday Whitney!

We are glad to have you as part of the family. Have a great 2oth birthday! 

Happy Birthday Mom!

Happy 40th (haha) birthday mom! I love you! 

A Good Night's Sleep!

I guess as good as it's going to get...at least for a while! Colin stayed awake for a good portion of the day yesterday. I gave him his last feeding at 11:00 last night. poor baby didn't want to go to sleep until 12:30...but that's ok, because he let me sleep until 3:45 this morning. I fed him, and put him back to sleep and he let me sleep until 7:15. I'm liking not waking up every 2 hours!

So I Failed Miserably

Yup, I did. I failed miserably at breastfeeding. It's all I wanted to do. I was all prepared for it. At least, I thought I was. It started ogg wrong in the hospital when Colin wasn't latching properly and blistered my nipples. He blistered them so bad that I had to stop breastfeeding and start pumping b/c it hurt so bad. Well, since i had to do that I wasn't emptying my breasts of the milk fully, so I became engorged. Very painful, might I add. I waited too long to get help for the engorgment, so my milk supply went down. By the time that I wasn't engorged anymore, I was ready to try breastfeeding again, but now my problem was the milk supply. Colin went back to the breast, again making my nipples sore, so back to pumping, and back to the milk supply issue. After an engorgement, sore nipples x3, and 3 visits with a lacatation consultant and a couple hundred dollars later...I still failed miserably at breastfeeding. Am I depressed? You bet. Do I feel like an ass? Sure do. I mean, this is supposed to be the most natural thing to do...and I can't. Little Colin boy is now on formula. The mention of breastfeeding or breasts, or breastmilk, or pumps or anything of that nature still brings tears to my eyes. I think I've cried over this more than I should have, but it really bothers me that I can't do it.

9/11/01 - Where Were You?

So 5 years ago today was the day. Need I say more? I know that everyone knows where they were and what they were doing that morning.

I was in New York, about 40 miles north of Manhatthan. I was heading to class, A&P I to be exact. My professor was running late for class, which we all thought was odd, b/c she was always on time. Next thing I knew she came running into class sobbing and saying that a plane crashed into the World Trade Center and that she had a bad feeling about it. The second plane hadn't crashed yet. Miguel called my cell phone a few minutes later, but I didn't answer b/c I was in class. Someone came to my classroom a few minutes later and talked to the professor in private. She came back into the class saying taht the school was in lockdown b/c a second plane crashed into the tower, and people weren't sure what was going on. They moved us to another classroom with a bunch of other students. They finally let some of us go home after they asked us where we lived. A lot of students at my college lived in NYC. I only lived a 5 minute drive from the college, so they let me leave. I called Miguel on my way home, where he filled me in on what was happening. We both spent the rest of the dat with the news station on. We were worried about my mom b/c she was working in a hospital across the bridge, and very close to Manhattan. I tried calling her, but since her hospital was put on disaster watch, the phone lines were flooded, and I wasn't able to talk to her until much much later.

So, where were you?

New Pics

I posted some new pictures of Colin on smugmug today. I'm going to break down the pics by month for the first year, just because babies change so much in the first year of life. The new album is "Birth to 1 Month." I'm just going to add photos to that folder throughout the month. Make sure to check them out often!

Colin's 2 Week Report Card

Colin had is 2 week check up today. Everything went great. The doctor was pleased with his progress so far. Colin now weighs 7 lbs. 5 oz. (25th percentile). He's almost back up to his birth weight! He is 20 inches long (50th percentile).
We took him over for his second newborn screen, where they pricked his heal for blood. Boy was he a trooper! He wimpered when they first pricked him, but didn't make a peep after that.
BTW - isn't that just the cutest picture? 

2 Weeks Old

I can't believe that Colin is already 2 weeks old! The time is flying by. We have our 2 week appointment today, and I will update later to say how it went!

Prayers for Nanny

Nanny had her surgery today. It was to remove the hernia that she had sitting on top of her belly that restricted her breathing. It was a pretty intricate surgery. She had to have her cardiologist and her pulmonologist agree that it was okay for her to go ahead with the surgery before the surgeon would perform it. I was really scared that she wouldn't make it out of the surgery since during the last surgery she had, she had a heart attack on the table, and almost didn't make it out. With lots of prayers, Nanny made it out okay. I spoke to her tonight, and she is in incredible pain, but recovering. Please keep my Nanny in your prayers for a speedy recovery so she can come back to Texas and meet her great-grandson!

Congratulations Sean & Emily!

Miguel & I are so happy for you two! We can't wait to meet your new bundle of joy...in 9 months! Another playmate for Colin!

Happy Birthday Miguel!

Honey, I wish you the very best 27th birthday! You got the greatest gift of all for your birthday this year...your very first child. I love you so mcuh! Thanks for being the best husband in the world! 

First Time in His Bouncy Seat

He's so cute! This was his first time in his bouncy seat. He really like it at first, but now I'm not so sure. 

And We're Home

We got home from the hospital today. I'm kind of nervous about the upcoming weeks as a new parent. This is Colin in his going home outfit. 

And His Name Is...

Colin Román Pacheco! Our precious baby boy was born today at 10:00 AM. He weighs 7 lbs. 6 oz. and is 19 1/2 inches long.
My labor was pretty good. My water broke last night at 10:00 PM. I only had to push for 45 minutes.
All in all I feel great right now. I've just finished taking a shower, and feel so much lighter!
Isn't he beautiful? 

Happy Birthday Sean!

Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday dear Sean....Happy birthday to you!

We hope that you have an awesome birthday! 

Officially on Maternity Leave

Today is my first official day that I am on maternity leave. I know, I know, I was only working 1 day a week before, but now I'm not working any...for a little while anyway. I'm very excited about that. Now that I have started, Baby P needs to make his appearance!

Yesterday was my last day at work, and let me tell you, had it not been...I probably would have left early. For teh past 3 months or so, whoever is charge nurse has been really easy on me (which is why I have been able to work so long). SHe's let me work triage or fast track, where i get to sit down most, if not all, of the day. Well, yesterday, I had to work the main ER, including taking a trauma room. I ran my butt off all day. We were very short-staffed to begin with (down 3 nurses), and we didn't even have enough coverage for lunch...but believe me, I found some time to eat! By the end of the shift, my ankles were so swollen that you couldn't even see my ankle bone, and my back was KILLING me...mid & lower pain. I barely sat down all day. Then, after my back started hurting, I had to drive an hour home...which ended up being more like 1 1/2 hours because of traffic on 35. I feel like I left there with a bang.

I've mostly been resting today, but my back is still hurting. I've cleaned the kitchen, and really want to get the rest of the house clean, but decided that I will work on things slowly.

Again I ask for labor prayers. Both Miguel & I are ready...and I'm just sick of waiting.

So I Haven't Updated In a Few Days...

Here's why & what's been going on...

First, on Wednesday, I went walking the mall with Casey. I left the house around 10:00, and got home around 2:30 at which point, I realized that I hadn't felt the baby move at all since before i left the house. I was a little nervous, so I tried waking him up, but with no luck. I ended up calling my doctor's office where they told me to eat some candy and call them back in 30 minutes. I did so, in fact, I enjoyed a snickers bar! I waited the 30 minutes, and only felt 1 or 2 little movements. Very unlike the little guy. It just didn't feel right to me. I called the doctor back, and they wanted me to come in to monitor me. I did so, and Miguel met me over there. He was nervous as well. I felt really silly because as soon as they hooked me up to the TOCO monitor (it monitors baby's heart rate & contractions), he started moving. They decided to watch me for a while. Turns out that I was having contractions the entire time, but wasn't feeling any of them! I was excited about that. I had a sono done after the monitoring just for peace of mind for the doctor and us, and everything is great!

Thursday was uneventful, but I think that I lost my mucus plug, or at least part of it, that night. Sorry, TMI for some of you!

Friday night was not very fun for me. I started "cramping" (and I put cramping in "", b/c that's what it felt like to me, though I'm not sure if they were contractions of not). The "cramps" were coming and going for a little over an hour, but they never intensified, so I tried to go to sleep. I finally did, but I don't sleep well anymore. I woke up at around 5:30 with the "cramping" again. It didn't last too long. Pretty sure those were Braxton-Hicks contractions.

Needless to say that now my back is really aching me. I've gotten some more of the "cramps" today, but not as bad as last night. I really just wish that real labor would take over soon!

I'm having a church baby shower this evening, so I must head over to it now. Please pray labor prayers for me!

The Process is Beginning!

I saw my doctor today, and she checked my cervix. I am 1 cm dilated, 75% effaced, but still at -2 station. I am very excited that it's coming to an end and that baby Pacheco will soon be here. My doctor estimated that baby Pacheco weighs between 5 1/2 - 6 pounds as of right now. He is head down which is a good thing! I'll update again next week after my appointment.

Finally starting to contract...

I was reading posts at babycenter , and almost all of the women that are due the same week as me have been having regular Braxton-Hicks contractions. I was nervous because I hadn't had any (that I knew of) yet. But then yesterday afternoon, all of a sudden I realized that I was having one! I was so excited! Then, and hour later, I had another one! Yay for contractions! Now I just wish that the real ones would hurry up and come so I can push this baby out!

Happy Birthday Román!

We hope that you have a very blessed day! Happy birthday! 

Happy Birthday Gracie!

Two years old already! I can't believe how fast time flies! Happy Birthday! 

New Pictures

Hey everyone. Just wanted to let you know that I've posted new pictures of my two baby showers. You can see them at my smugmug site.

My Baby Shower

My mom threw a baby shower for me this past Saturday. There were so many people there, and it was HOT! I had so much fun! I think that I opened gifts for 3 1/2 hours, and we received just about everything that we need for little baby Pacheco to come! Thank you to everyone. This just shows how loved and blessed we are. The cake was amazing! Such a pretty design...and it tasted oh so good! After the "main" part of the shower we moved the party outside to the backyard and many of us went swimming (including me, b/c it was so hot out!). Thank you to everyone who helped my mom plan & organize, set-up, clean-up & help out! Thank you to everyone who came, you helped make my day special! 

Happy Anniversary Joel & Valerie!

We hope that you enjoy your anniversary together. May God continue to bless your marriage! 

My Baby Book Shower

Lisa & Casey planned a baby book shower for me this past Thursday night at Olive Garden. It was a girls night out...probably my last for a little while! I had so much fun! We ate yummy food, and I was showered with books to jump start baby Pacheco's library! Each book that I received was special to the giver. Thanks again to those who attended. You really made the evening special for me! 

Pampered Krissy

Today I went and had a pregnancy massage, spa pedicure, had my eyebrows waxed, and got a haircut. I feel like a brand new me! The massage was sooo wonderful! I actually got to lay on my belly...for the first time in 9 months, and it felt great! Baby boy Pacheco was moving around the whole time, but other than that, I didn't even feel pregnant...it was quite odd! The pedicure was great too! They massaged my feet & legs and I got hot towels wrapped around them, not to mention that my toes look fabulous now. After that I endured some pain to get my eyebrows looking good, and on to get my hair cut. My hair finally has some shape again, and doesn't just lay on my face. Later on tonight a couple girlfriends are throwing a book shower at Olive Garden for me...can this day get any better?

Yes it can actually...if my hubby were here enjoying it with me! :) A huge thank you to Miguel for being thoughtful enough to purchase a day at the spa for me. It was a perfect gift, and I truly needed it! Thank you!

I've Got a Case of...

The Can't Sleeps! It's terrible. My eyes flew wide open at around 3:00 this morning and I could not get myself to fall back to sleep. I'm tired, but my eyes won't close! So now I've been awake for almost 2 hours and have been trying to find quiet things to do so I won't wake my soundly sleeping husband!

New Pictures

Whitney came over today and took some more pregnancy pictures of me. I've posted some on my smugmug site if you are interested in looking at them! 

35 Weeks

Today I am officially 35 weeks pregnant! Only 5 more to go...6 at the most, but hopefully baby Pacheco will be a good little boy and decide to come a little earlier than 5 weeks! I should have some more pregnancy pictures for everyone soon, as Whitney & I are taking some today!