2/22/08

Vest


Just in time before spring I finished his sweater, I mean sweater vest. I didn't have time to make the sleeves, or the patience. By the time the sleeves would have been done, he would have either outgrown it or it would be too warm to wear. Anyway, the vest works just fine. Next on the project list is a collage I want to make for his first birthday. I have this dream that I will make him some sort of artwork for every birthday. I hope I will stick to it.

2/16/08

It's a good day

It's Saturday. Sun is streaming through the windows. Marc and Jia welcomed a baby boy yesterday (congratulations!), another friend for Miles. I bought beautiful deep pink tulips this morning. Miles is sitting next to me babbeling and loving his zwieback. We are about to go for a long walk. I just got two magazines in the mail (Domino & Cookie). I am going to a party tonight. Tomorrow we go to DC to visit friends and hopefully the new baby. Life is good.

2/15/08

exciting & frightening



I got a new job. I gave notice. It's official (even more so now that I am writing about it). I will be the director of a non-profit contemporary art gallery: 1708 Gallery. It felt like the hardest decision I have ever had to make. I have been pretty nervous about the last few weeks. Part of making the decision though was a no brainer:
a. It's a major step forward in my career.
b. It's something I have always wanted to do.
c. It's why I am in this field.
d. It's why I went to graduate school and took out a $20,000 student loan which I will be paying back the rest of my life.
e. It's extremely exciting.
f. It pays more.
g. I'll be in charge.

Some of what has made this decision difficult:

a. I have a good & secure job now.
b. The economy is unstable which will make my new job more difficult and this move risky.
c. I am comfortable where I am now. I know what to expect and it's not too demanding for also being a mama. I feel like I can manage both well.
d. I have got our routine down for our family and it's working, why mess with it?
e. I am scared that my new job and it's responsibilities will make me less available at home, more stressed, and therefore unhappy.
f. I am worried about feeling torn between the demands of the job and the demands of home.
g. I am worried that I will suck at this new job. I don't know if I am ready for this responsibility? and do I really want this? am I the right person for the job?

etc...the list goes on and on. There are plenty or reasons why I am anxious about this change. Ultimately what I am most worried about is the adverse effects it could have on my family, mostly that I won't see them enough which will make me unhappy. This is probably exactly what every other working mama deals with. It's really tough because you don't want to neglect your family while advancing your career.
I decided to go for it. The only way to find out what it will be like is to give it a try. Now it's wait and see. The truth is I am very excited and honored to have this opportunity. I have a good gut feeling about it too. I was hoping that I would do something like this at one point in my life, I certainly didn't expect it to happen now though. When I applied for the position, I never thought I would get this far. I figured it would be good experience to go through the interviewing process. I am not desperate for a job and I was completely comfortable and candid during the interviews (there were three of them). When I told them that I had a 10 month old son at home and that I can't have a job that will consume my life, I expected them to toss my resume in the trash. They didn't. I guess that is a good sign too.

I have been struggeling with the timing of this. Is this the right time? Maybe I should wait a couple of more years before taking on such a responsibility. I had to get used to the idea that a change like this will never get easier. Miles will always need me, no matter if he is 10 months or 10 years old. In fact, life will only become more complicated as time goes on (more kids!). I also realized that my current job will not prepare me any more for this kind of position. In fact, I am stagnating where I am now and probably loosing skills. This new position will definitly be a good investment for my career. It will be a true challenge professionally and personally. It will test my stamina, creativity, skills, patience, and character. It will determine what I am made of and if I am cut out for this. Scary, right?

Frank has been completely supportive in this decision. If it wouldn't be for him, I probably would have pulled out of it already. I am thankful for the support.

I start March 17th. If postings will soon be lighter, you know why.

2/8/08

The Business of Being Born

Last weekend I saw the documentary "The Business of Being Born," an informative, inspiring and upsetting film. It describes how medical intervention during labor partially explains the increasing rate of c-sections and how hospitals (and insurance companies) encourage the use of induction and pain relief medication in order to get women in and out of the hospital as fast as possible. The film also included shocking statistics about the current maternity care system including that the United States infant mortality rate is the second highest among industrialized countries. This is one of these films that everyone needs to see.

Naturally this film reminded me of Miles' birth. I give my pregnancy experience a 10, on a 1-10 scale (10 being the highest). Everything checked out perfect at the dortor's office. You were developing and growing like you should, you were in perfect position at 40 weeks, and you arrived on your due date. I read the books, did my research, and decided that I would be open to pain relief during labor. I didn't write a birth plan. I am a big picture person, not that concerned about the details. My plan was to get you out. I had no clue what to expect so how could I decide that I didn't want an epidural? I tend to be a trustworthy person. I tend to believe that everything will be fine. Maybe that's why I skipped the chapter about c-sections in the book. I never, never expected to have a c-section.

My water broke arund 5 am on April 14, 2007. I didn't experience any contractions at this point. I called the doctor who recommended that I go ahead and come to the hospital since I was already 50% effaced and 4 cm dilated. Another part that I seemed to have missed in the books is that once the water breaks, it doesn't stop! Thankfully it was still dark outside when I walked to the car with a couple of towels wrapped around me like a huge diaper. We were quickly taken care of at the hospital. I was all hooked up to the monitors by 6:30am. The monitor showed that I had contractions, but I couldn't feel them at that point (maybe the 50 pounds I gained protected me!?). After about 45 minutes the contractions very closer together and I was starting to feel them. At that point, I also started to loose blood via large blood clots. The doctor and nurse gave each other a concerned look. A couple of minutes later, another blood clot and more concerned looks. After four blood clots, the doctor explained that if we continue to let labor progress naturally, the chance that I will continue to loose blood is too high and that she would be concerned that we might have to do an emergency c-section with a blood transfusion. Therefore, she recommended that we do a regular, non-emergency c-section. I started crying. What? How did this happen? Everything was perfect until now, why is this happening? This was not part of my plan. I quickly understood though that it was too risky to continue labor and to continue loosing blood. I was given the epidural and rolled into surgery. My arms were pinned down, big blue curtain was drawn in front of my eyes, and the nurse was putting several IV's into my wrist. 15 minutes later I heard you cry. Tears streamed down my face like a waterfall. I heard you but couldn't see you. Finally, what seemed like an enternity, Frank brought you over to my side. My arms were still pinned down to the table and I couldn't reach for you. Frank held your face next to mine, cheek to cheek. This is when the doctor put my guts back where it belonged and glued me back together all while chatting about shoes and shopping. Hell, they just made $16,000 in 20 minutes. They can't spend their money faster than they make it.

It seemed like an eternity before I got to hold you. Breastfeeding was luckily not difficult for us and we bonded immediatly. I healed up normally and didnt have complications from the surgery. It took a while to be able to move around again, but it wasn't bad.

In my case, a c-section was the best thing for my situation and I am glad that I was in the hands of doctors and in a hospital. It wasn't the way I imagined, but it was the way it was meant to be. Not only were you born with a large head (!) but they also noticed that one of my ovaries was double in size during the surgery. Two months after you were born we took an ultrasound and a cat scan to find out that I had a huge cyst in my right ovary. Thankfully it was benign, but we had to get it out quickly before it got bigger and ruptured, which would have been very painful. A couple of weeks later, I was back in the hospital under the knive. Due to the large size of the cyst, they reopened my previous c-section to get it out.

So little Miles, you knew that it was best to be born this way to prevent for this cyst to rupture which could have had all kinds of consequences. I thank you for that.

Next time around, I will try to have a natural birth. They call it a VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean). I will prepare a birth plan and insist on my right to experience birth the way it was meant to be. I will also know that whatever happens happens, and that this next little person will have their own birth plan.

2/3/08

Cheerful


The newest thing in your diet are teething biscuits and cheerios. You absolutely love them. The biscuit is much easier to handle for you, it's big and easy to hold on to. It also makes a huge and crusty mess. You hate to be cleaned up afterwards, but it's still worth watching you enjoy it so much, esepcially now that you have almost 4 teeth. The top two are already visible, but still small (bottom two are all the way out).


The cheerios blow your mind. We put a pile in front of you and you try with much focus to pick one up and put it in your mouth. Most of them fall on the floor (bella loves that part) but if you get one into you mouth you get this look of wonder. It's very entertaining and interesting to watch you do this. It rquires your fine motor skills, which at this point are just starting to develop. So this is hard work for you. It would be fun to watch you sit in a pile of cheerios, like an indoor sandbox full of cheerios...hmmm, maybe not such a bad idea.