Ephraim Meets Asher

Ephraim had been very excited to meet baby Asher, but because Asher was in the NICU, he didn't get to meet him right away.  When he found out his name was Asher, he had a hard time coming to terms with the fact that his name wasn't cuckoo or zizzer zazzer zuzz. 

When Saturday came and Asher was ready to go home, Ephraim came to the hospital with Grandma to finally meet baby Asher. He was so sweet.  The very first thing he did when he saw him was sing him the "abc song" ( his favorite song ) in the softest sweetest little voice.

He always was very soft when he touched him and loved to tickle him. He was sad at first that Asher couldn't talk or laugh or "play on his legs" but he quickly came to terms with it and was very excited any time Asher would make "baby sounds" or look at him.  He wanted to know where he was when he woke up in the morning. 

He is a sweet big brother.

Asher's Birth Story

In the nights leading up to Asher's birth I was beginning to think he may never come.  I was hoping for a VBAC but the doctors would only let me go as far as March 5 before a scheduled c-section.  I had them strip my membranes a couple days before my due date but that didn't start anything at all. My due date came and went on Saturday with no sign of any baby other than the few contractions I would get every  evening for awhile.  

As Monday (March 2nd) came I decided I would try something to get labor started, so after Ephraim went to bed I got out my breast pump to try and get things going.  I didn't really expect much to happen, because I had tried something similar with Ephraim and it hadn't helped.  I was so surprised when immediately I began to have contractions 3-4 minutes apart and they kept going with the same consistency.  I still couldn't believe that this could be it so I wandered around and got some last minute stuff ready, and kept timing the contractions.  Midnight rolled around with little change in the contractions, so we decided to head in.  

I was so worried the contractions were going to stop the whole time, but they stayed steady. Once we arrived they took me to labor and delivery.  I was thinned out and almost 4 cm so they admitted me.  At the mention of a VBAC everyone seemed a little more on edge and double checking their protocols.  I tried to get some sleep, but between contractions and not being able move due to monitors it was pretty much impossible.  

Once morning came Dr. Shimer came to check me and break my water.  He mentioned that he was confident I could do this and said I was four cm but that the baby was low. Shortly afterwards the shift changed (7 am) so I met my new nurses and Dr. Derrick came in to check on me.  She said that I was 5-6 cm and that she wanted to put me on a little pitocin.  By now the contractions were getting really  intense, and that, combined with the fact that I had to stay laying on my side to be monitored and found it really hard to relax through contractions that way and that they were going to give me pitocin convinced me that I should get an epidural.  They gave me the epidural and I felt soooo relaxed.  It was the most comfortable I had been in months. 

They came in to attach internal monitors and start me on the lowest drip of pitocin.  Things really got moving after that.  Before I knew it they came in and told  me it was time to push. I could hardly believe that this was actually happening because I had been mentally preparing for a c-section. Pushing after receiving an epidural was a very strange experience because I couldnt feel anything. They turned down the epidural so that I would be able to feel a bit more pressure and that helped.  

The baby was trying to come out Sunnyside up and turned a bit but was still coming out kind of sideways, so I kept pushing and he slowly made his way out.  The nurse told me that he looked like he was blond.  After his head made its way through they called in some extra  nurses in case his shoulder got stuck, but then after an hour and a half of pushing he just popped out.  

It was the most surreal experience as they laid him on my chest and he started to cry.  I couldn't believe he was actually here!  It was amazing to be so present for the experience and to have Stephen right by my side and able to cut the cord and hold him and everything right away.  I was so happy to be there with my little family.  

The nurses took guesses as to how big they thought he would be.  They said 8-9 pounds and everyone was shocked to see the scale say he was 9 lbs 3.6 oz.  He was also 22.5 inches long!  A giant baby!  No one (especially Dr. Derrick, who had been very sceptical that I would be able to progress and have a vbac in the first place.) Could believe that I had done it.  The whole experience was so wonderful!  I couldn't believe my baby was here and that I had actually pushed him out myself.

They took him and cleaned him up while I got stitched up.  Stephen and I mused over some names as he was given to me and he began to nurse.  The poor little buddy had a scratched and bruised head from his sideways trip out. 

After he had nursed for awhile they took him to bathe him and do some tests.  When they brought him back they told us his blood sugar was really low. We nursed more and supplemented formula but his blood sugar continued to decrease so they admitted him to the NICU so he could have an IV.  Although none of the nurses seemed concerned and said this was a common problem with big babies, I was overwhelmed and I worried about his recovery, and whether or not I would be able to breastfeed.  I felt better after we got to see him in the NICU and come up with a plan. We would go every three hours so I could nurse, then we would supplement with formula.

 

After a little trial and error we got a rhythm and were breastfeeding and then supplementing with sensitive formula (since he spit up the regular formula a lot). Every three hours before his feeding they would test his blood sugar and if it was above 60 they would turn down his IV sugar a notch.  He steadily improved and only had a handful of times when his blood sugar wasn't high enough to turn the IV down and he always was ready by the next feeding.

So little baby Asher was in the NICU from Tuesday afternoon until Friday afternoon.  During this time there was a lot of snow, we finally settled on a name, and were discharged but allowed to board at the hospital.  

It was a little rough, especially being away from Ephraim for so long.  Luckily, Grandma Ison was here to watch him and keep his routine.  She was a lifesaver! Friday afternoon Asher was upgraded from NICU to regular nursery and Saturday we finally got to go home.   

It was so surreal to think he was ours!  He was already such a sweet mellow little baby. Looking back it's hard to imagine it going any better! The labor wasn't long and I got my VBAC.  The recovery from a VBAC was so much easier.  Asher was big and  after his short stay in the NICU, healthy.  Even the NICU stay was a bit of a blessing because we were able to avoid some bad weather in the hospital and Ephraim was able to overcome his cold that he had gotten the day before I went into labor.  We were so blessed!

Asher Don Steven Beckman

Born March 3, 2015 at 11:49 am

9 lbs 4 oz, 22.5 inches

2 Years Old

My very precious little man is two years old!  What the heck?  Time flies when you're having fun, I guess. He is 36.5 inches tall.

He sure is a fun little man.  He is busy busy busy and always looking for mischief.  If he's not supposed to be doing it then that is what he wants to do, but he knows how to be sneaky.  He tries to make sure to get in as much trouble as possible whenever I turn my back.

Ephraim's biggest obsession is automobiles.  Trucks, cars, fire engines, and police cars make his day and he makes sure to point them all out.  In fact, just a couple days ago we were at the airport and Ephraim was in heaven.  He spent the whole time looking out the windows and yelling "plane!" and "truck!"  repeatedly whenever he saw one.  He made the people around smile with his enthusiasm. He also loves tractors, airplanes, and trains.  He likes to go to the park and the library, and loves swimming with mommy.  He got a new puddle-jumper life jacket for his birthday and even though he was a little nervous when he first put it on, he quickly realized he could float and bravely jumped and splashed around in the water. He will climb up just about anything with no fear, but is scared of going down slides and loud noises.  When he gets scared or hurt he always runs over and insists on a "cuddole" and I am more than happy to oblige.

Ephraim's favorite movies are Finding Nemo, Cars, Wreck-It Ralph, and The Lego Movie.  His favorite song is 'Let It Go,' from Frozen, and he always does a little jig when it comes on.

Ephraim is really good at colors.  He knows red, orange, yellow, blue, pink, brown, white, black, and silver.  He calls purple "pink" most of the time, but he is working on it.  He is a chatter box and almost never stops talking.  He knows so many words and is getting much easier to understand.  He's started using words to make phrases as well, but he still won't say his name.

Ephraim is a mommy's boy.  He always wants his mommy, but he gets super excited when he sees his daddy or any of his papas, or grammas.  He is curious about other kids, but gets a little shy around them. He looooves church and gets so excited for "sursery." He bolts for the door as soon as sacrament is over.  He loves to tell daddy about his day when he gets home.

 

Ephraim is a happy little boy.  He loves life and we love him.  It's hard to imagine what we did before we had a little man to chase around all the time.  He certainly keeps us busy, and wears me out every day.

We love you Ephraim!  Happy Birthday!

More Birthday Pictures Here

18 Months

I haven't been very good at keeping up with my blog lately, so I thought I would take the time to blog about Ephraim being 18 months old (since he is 19 months now).

Ephraim is about the cutest toddler ever.  At every age I just keep thinking there is no way he could possibly be any cuter, and then he somehow proves me wrong.  At his 18 month checkup he weighed 29 lbs 5 oz (>80 %ile), was 34.25 inches long (>90 %ile), and had a head circumference of 20.5 inches (>95 %ile).  He is (as usual) our very big boy.  His hair is getting pretty long as well, but I can't bring myself to cut it yet.

Ephraim is on the go.  He is always walking, running, dancing, and climbing.  He loves to go for walks in the stroller, because he gets to get out and play at the park at the end. He loves to explore, and is very curious.  He loves rocks, birds, deer, and dogs.

Ephraim is becoming quite the chatterbox.  He loves using the words he knows and repeats them incessantly until he gets the reaction he wants from you.  He has a lot of one syllable words, and is working on a few two-syllable words.   He has started using "please" in conjunction with other words (milk please, etc.). He repeats sounds that you make.  He learns new words everyday, and I love hearing his little voice.  Some of my favorites are the way he says "choo choo," "bahpa," "lolo" (Elmo and Nemo), and "bye bye."  I also love that he says "brrrr" every time we go out when it's cold.

"cacs" (socks) is another one of his favorite words

Ephraim is obsessed with cars, trucks, and trains now.  He also loves animals, and his favorite is the horse.  Whenever he sees a horse (in a toy or book) he whinnies very loudly.  He loves to watch Blues Clues, and loves to read books about Mickey Mouse and Elmo.  In fact, he loves almost any book.  I'm so glad our little man is such a book worm.

Ephraim's biggest obsession is drawing.  If he sees any type of writing utensil (especially crayons), he will scream "baw, baw" until he gets to draw, and if he doesn't get to draw you are likely to have a very sad Ephraim on your hands.  He is very focused on his coloring, and switches crayons frequently.  He also loves to go out on our patio and color on everything with sidewalk chalk.

Ephraim is a pretty good eater, although what he is in the mood to eat changes daily.  In fact, lately he won't eat bananas!  Crazy baby.  One thing is for sure though, this baby loooves milk and using utensils to eat.  He especially loves using his own fork.

Ephraim likes to tell himself "no" before he does something naughty, and if you tell him "no" he always has to find something to pick up and throw on the ground to express his frustration.  It's hard not to laugh at his cute little expressions of displeasure, because he's such a good natured boy.

What do you mean, "no cookies for breakfast?"

Ephraim is super independent, and can entertain himself very well.  Ephraim is very free with his kisses, high-fives, and fist bumps. He will stay with any babysitter, and loooooves nursery at church, but he still loves his mama and dada, and is always very excited to see them when they return.  In fact, whenever we meet someone new he always makes sure that they know who his mama is.  It melts my heart.

He is not fearless however.  He has developed some interesting fears.  He is afraid of any toy that vibrates or moves.  He has a train that is motorized that terrorizes him, and a butterfly that vibrates that makes him whimper whenever he sees it.  If he hears the ice machine or the upstairs neighbors he always looks around to make sure everything is okay.

This picture is of sicky baby cuddles :-( but I get similar cuddles when Ephraim is scared.

Ephraim is a mimic-er, and likes to try anything that he sees those around him do.  It's true that having children makes you think twice about the example you are setting!  We are so lucky to have this little man in our lives!