Life with Lucy is great! She's almost three months old now and has gotten so big. Thanks for sticking with this blog!
Friday, May 4, 2012
App
Life with Lucy is great! She's almost three months old now and has gotten so big. Thanks for sticking with this blog!
Saturday, March 24, 2012
New Moves
I love being Lucy's mommy. It's demanding, yes, but it's so fulfilling and rewarding that it more than makes up for the stress.
It is hard to try and function one- or no-handed much of the time. Here are some of the new moves I've acquired.
It is hard to try and function one- or no-handed much of the time. Here are some of the new moves I've acquired.
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Birth
Our Orb is finally here!
I was planning on writing a journal about my labor experience, but it seems like I've been lucky if I can just respond to a few emails in the last week and a half, so I figured this would be far more succinct (and entertaining).
Lucy Marie Martin, born February 10 at 7:42 pm; 6 pounds, 6 ounces.
I read a lot during my pregnancy about women feeling cheated out of their "ideal birth" if they had to have a cesarean or feeling like they weren't strong enough if they decided to get an epidural. I have not felt either of these things. I had hoped to go as unmedicated as I could, and I did that. Sometimes being strong enough means actually giving in to what you're trying to avoid (wish someone had told me that when I was trying to summit Dean Skyline back in '08). After twelve hours of labor with little Lucy not descending and me not dilating any more, it started to get silly to continue the way I was-- because I had to be induced, I was already confined to my IV, so I couldn't walk around like I had wanted to to try to make labor progress. And once I got the epidural, I was exclusively in bed. We could have continued as we were all night and still not have progressed any further. The cesarean itself was wildly surreal and scary amidst all the lights and drugs, but Lucy was born healthy and robust, and that's what matters.
When they started me on Pitocin, Will remarked, "Can you imagine what this would have been like 100 years ago?" Having had contractions just start ramping up, I replied "Um, yes" quite vehemently. But he was right-- they induced me because my water had already broken but my contractions had stalled out. I got the epidural because I could barely relax enough in between contractions for them to check my dilation. And I had the cesarean because Lucy couldn't descend past my tailbone. These things wouldn't have been possible just a few decades ago (or at least would have been riskier or more painful), and both Lucy and I could have been in trouble. While I am no more of a fan of heavy drugs or surgery than I was before, I am grateful to the nurses and doctors who helped guide us to make informed and logical decisions.
So, what becomes of this blog? I started it because I had no shortage of comic material centered around this new life-changing thing. I daresay I will continue to be blessed with comic material, though I may be a little short on time (I drew this post's comic while nursing Lucy in my lap). I'll still be posting as life allows.
Thanks for following us through to the birth of our beautiful healthy daughter Lucy!
I was planning on writing a journal about my labor experience, but it seems like I've been lucky if I can just respond to a few emails in the last week and a half, so I figured this would be far more succinct (and entertaining).
I read a lot during my pregnancy about women feeling cheated out of their "ideal birth" if they had to have a cesarean or feeling like they weren't strong enough if they decided to get an epidural. I have not felt either of these things. I had hoped to go as unmedicated as I could, and I did that. Sometimes being strong enough means actually giving in to what you're trying to avoid (wish someone had told me that when I was trying to summit Dean Skyline back in '08). After twelve hours of labor with little Lucy not descending and me not dilating any more, it started to get silly to continue the way I was-- because I had to be induced, I was already confined to my IV, so I couldn't walk around like I had wanted to to try to make labor progress. And once I got the epidural, I was exclusively in bed. We could have continued as we were all night and still not have progressed any further. The cesarean itself was wildly surreal and scary amidst all the lights and drugs, but Lucy was born healthy and robust, and that's what matters.
When they started me on Pitocin, Will remarked, "Can you imagine what this would have been like 100 years ago?" Having had contractions just start ramping up, I replied "Um, yes" quite vehemently. But he was right-- they induced me because my water had already broken but my contractions had stalled out. I got the epidural because I could barely relax enough in between contractions for them to check my dilation. And I had the cesarean because Lucy couldn't descend past my tailbone. These things wouldn't have been possible just a few decades ago (or at least would have been riskier or more painful), and both Lucy and I could have been in trouble. While I am no more of a fan of heavy drugs or surgery than I was before, I am grateful to the nurses and doctors who helped guide us to make informed and logical decisions.
So, what becomes of this blog? I started it because I had no shortage of comic material centered around this new life-changing thing. I daresay I will continue to be blessed with comic material, though I may be a little short on time (I drew this post's comic while nursing Lucy in my lap). I'll still be posting as life allows.
Thanks for following us through to the birth of our beautiful healthy daughter Lucy!
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Work
Being pregnant is hard. Some parts of it are nice, and some parts of it are fun. I am actively trying to enjoy as much of it as I can, because there are few things I hate more than getting to the other side of an experience and realizing I wasted most of it being unhappy about it. But the fact remains that I weigh more than I ever have in my life, the skin of my stomach resembles Craters of the Moon National Park, and I have a hiccuping energy vacuum encroaching on most of my internal organs. All these factors and more can combine to make the simplest dang tasks seem like the most difficult and daunting feats in the whole world.
That being said, I walked across campus, made dinner, and drew a comic today!
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Hospital
Boy, I had big plans for posting comics over Christmas break, but it seemed like when I wasn't with family, baby-prepping, or working on my thesis I was too physically tired to pick up my tablet and pen. We are in the home stretch now--- at the end of this week I'm officially full-term, so even though our due date is February 8, it could almost be any day.
ANY. DAY.
Luckily we've got an arsenal of wonderful people around us to help, including my brother:
...when he remembers, that is.
ANY. DAY.
Luckily we've got an arsenal of wonderful people around us to help, including my brother:
Monday, December 19, 2011
Spells
Apologies again for the long wait between posts. I started this comic two weeks and about four pounds ago, but it being the end of the semester, I didn't have time to finish it until now.
Lots of new things happening since the last post! I've graduated to wearing Will's t-shirts, the Orb frequently has hiccups, and I'm being introduced to the less pleasant third-trimester goodies---stretch marks, swelling, and trouble sleeping. But, having a nice husband, a happy dog, a close-by family, and a pretty Christmas tree help offset these things.
Lots of new things happening since the last post! I've graduated to wearing Will's t-shirts, the Orb frequently has hiccups, and I'm being introduced to the less pleasant third-trimester goodies---stretch marks, swelling, and trouble sleeping. But, having a nice husband, a happy dog, a close-by family, and a pretty Christmas tree help offset these things.
Thursday, December 1, 2011
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