Sweet moments...

Maria and Josephine spend a lot of time fighting like two cats with their tails tied together nowadays, so I am loving that they are at least sweet to their new baby brother (give it a couple of years, and I'm sure the story will change...). I sing to Edward a lot, and Josephine, who loves singing, has gotten into it lately, too. I caught her this morning doing just that, and ran to get the video camera to capture it. These moments are the best, the moments when I am so glad that I am home with my children!

Adventures in cloth diapering...part II

A number of months back I blogged about possibly trying out some newer fancier cloth diapers. I was a bit hesitant because of the cost, but when I figured out how much I was spending in disposables for nighttime use (my cloth ones never kept dry all night), I realized that I might as well splurge and get some of the Grobaby cloth diapers I have been drooling over for months

Here is Edward modeling a pair of them:

Anyhow, so I have to admit that I still wasn't thrilled about the idea of using cloth diapers on the go (running errands, traveling, etc.), no matter how absorbant they are. There is just something about carrying around poopy diapers that isn't too appealing...

But, I also don't like the idea of piling up nasty disposables in the landfills that NEVER biodegrade just for my convenience sake, but again, the poopy diaper thing - ewww...

Well, I have seen a lot on facebook lately about these Bio Soakers made by Grobaby (click here to see the website and more info). I didn't pay much attention to them - I had already already bought my diapers, so whatever. Well, come to find out, they are these inserts that go right in your Grobaby cover that you can use, toss like a disposable, and they are BIODEGRADEABLE!! Sweet! All of the convenience of a disposable, but environmentally friendly.

Here is a picture of what the inserts look like:


And here is how they go inside the regular Grobaby shell that you use for your cloth diapers. There are little adhesive strips that stick them right to the shell (see the purple square in the drawing below):

They look like an everyday disposable, but, again, they are biodegradeable, and are also way more gentle on babies' butts since they are hypo-allergenic, fragrance free, dye free, plastic free and chlorine free.

Now, I have to tell you, by posting this info (which I am happy to share regardless) I am entering a chance to get an intro package of biosoakers (50 soakers and a Grobaby shell to use them in) for free. Shameless? Maybe, but I do love these diapers, and I would tell anyone who asked me - giveaway or not. And besides, who doesn't like freebies? :)

It's a...BOY?!!

Well, the all-girl trend in the DeGaetano family has been broken. On Thursday, October 8th, at 5:01pm, I gave birth to our very first baby boy!!

Edward William DeGaetano

8 pounds

19 1/2 inches long

Yes, that's right - my runt-sized self gave birth to an 8-pound baby, and I have the sore pelvis to prove it. :)

Here's me looking oh-so-hot right after he was born. I pushed so hard to get him out that I broke capillaries all over my face, neck, and shoulders. It's funny how you forget how painful labor and delivery is - well is it fresh in my mind now - excellent birth control, I would say. :)

Oh, if you could have seen Lou's face when he gave the official "It's a boy!" announcement. His eyes were as big as saucers, and he had this adorable grin on his face, just so full of joy, as if he was a kid going to Disneyworld for the first time!

I have a son! Oh, how weird is that!! Coming from all girls, the whole "boy" thing is still kind of surreal to me, but in an amazing, kind of wonderful way...

My Dad has a grandson!! He stays pretty demure about this things on the outside, but I know he is sooooo excited to have little boy in the family.


I know a lot of women can't wait to get home from the hospital, but I actually love my time there - lots of quiet time to bond with my newest angel...

...and speaking of angels - I just love this sweeet little face :)

All wrapped up - so far, he still loves to be swaddled (my girls hated it once they were a few days old)

Maria in all her glory - our little mama has a baby brother to pamper!

Josephine has this "Aha! I now have someone that I can push around hehehe..." look on her face.

Two sisters and a brother - I wonder which he will like to do more - go hunting with Daddy or having his nails painted by his sisters...

They are so in love with this guy - he will never lack for attention!

The "going-home" picture. We tried to get one with everyone looking happy (Josephine, Josephine), but you know how that goes...

And for those of you who want the labor story, here's the deal. At 3am on Thursday, I thought my water broke, but I wasn't sure. I had the tiniest trickle, and let's face it, at 9 months pregnant, it could have been my water or just lovely pregnancy incontinence, so I just decided to wait it out. I went back to bed and "slept" (do you ever really sleep when you are that pregnant?!) the rest of the night.

The following morning was business as usual - getting breakfast, getting Maria off to school, etc. I was having contractions, but very mild ones, and not with any particular regularity. I went about my day, doing things around the house, spending time wth Josephine. I had hints all day that I was in labor, but I guess I was in denial. I skipped my workout (which I NEVER do, and this should have been a huge hint to me that I was in labor), because I just didn't feel right. I skipped playgroup (which I also don't do) for the same reason. All day I had no appetite (another symptom of labor), but I still didn't think I was in labor. The contractions had some kick to them, but weren't regular enough for me to justify the nuisance of going to the hospital and all that.

I set Josephine up with a sing-a-long video and laid down to take a nap at about 2pm. No contractions the whole time. Them I woke up and started to get ready to get Maria and WHAMMO!!! Contractions 2 minutes apart and seriously intense. I went and got Maria, shuffling to and from her school while breathing through contractions, and went home. I don't know where my brain was, but I still did not call Lou (I think the pain was stopping my brain from functioning - haha). I got the girls a snack, helped Maria with her homework, having to work a bit more to concentrate through contractions. Right about the time that Maria said "Mommy, can you stop breathing like that, please? It's really distracting", reality hit me and I realized that HELLO - I was in LABOR!!!

I called my Mom to come get the girls, called Lou to come get me, and got the girls' bag packed. It only took them 5 mintues to get here, but the contractions became way worse in that time. I could barely walk, and couldn't talk through them at all. Lou drove like a maniac the whole way to the hospital, running multiple red lights and cursing the traffic backed up on 81 south (it was at a complete standstill) while I huffed and puffed my way through killer contractions paired with some AWFUL back labor. By the time I got to the hospital, I was at 9cm and in that phase of labor where the pain is so bad you think you might start climbing the walls. Within a short time of our arrival, I was at 10cm and ready to push - big time. My doctor wasn't there yet (stuck in the same traffic that we were), but the urge to push was completely overwhelming, and much to the resident's dismay (who kept saying "not yet, you can't push yet, you have to wait"), I started. The doctor came in moments later, and after about 30 minutes or so of intense pushing (hence the broken capillaries all over me, and other such side effects that I will spare you the details of...), our baby boy came into the world. There was a bit of a scary moment in there - when his head came out, the umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck, and Lou said that after it was cut, he turned purple, but he pinked up pretty quickly after that, and all was well.

So anyhow, there you have it. It's a good thing that I didn't put off calling Lou any longer, and that he ran all those red lights, or I probably would have ended up having our baby in my husband's truck. :)

We're all doing well here. The girls are overjoyed to have a baby in the house, and Lou is so thrilled to have a son - he is one proud papa, and it's the cutest thing! We feel so blessed that after everything that my body went through with the molar pregnancy, that we have been able to make another baby - it seems like such a miracle to me. :)