Brothers

There has been talk of if the boys look alike a lot or a little. Everyday I see more of Jace's features in Sean. So I pulled some pictures to compare. The ones of Sean were taken at 14 days and the ones of Jace were taken at 19 days.





So far the biggest difference I see is their nose. Sean has a button tip nose, while Jace's is more broad. I think they have the same lips and their head shapes vary slightly. What do you think?

Family jewels

Ben had a ring custom made for me for Christmas and I absolutely LOVE it! So I had to share it:)

From left to right it's November for Ben, September for me, October for Jace, and December for Sean.

Update: 2 weeks old

Sorry for not updating sooner. But we have been very busy getting to know Sean and spending time with Ben. Sadly, Ben left on Christmas Eve. Hopefully he will return for another visit in April. We had a great time being a family again and really wish it hadn't ended so soon.

Sean had his first Christmas today. He is 2 weeks old. So far he is a great baby. He doesn't cry unless he is hungry or getting his diaper changed. He still sleeps a lot and sometimes that makes eating a little difficult as he doesn't want to wake up! He had his check-up on 12/21 and weighed 7lbs 7oz. He only lost 4 oz since leaving the hospital. He was a bit jaundiced, but it is resolving itself and he looks better every day. He likes his baths and doesn't fuss.

Jace is starting to warm up to him more. He started asking to hold him today which is a big step. And he will help retrieve Sean's pacifier if he loses it. He took a picture of Sean to school last week and showed off his new brother.

I am doing good given the situation. Ben was a huge help while he was here, so it is an adjustment to doing all this on my own. I am healing good and able to get around a lot better. I hope to start excersing soon. And of course lack of sleep isn't fun either.

Here are a few pictures I took of the boys:

My boys


After his first bath


Sean's first Christmas




Matching PJ's


Merry Christmas from our Family to yours!

Birth Story

Ben and I arrived at Ireland Community Hospital in Fort Knox, KY around 5:45am for my scheduled c-section. After unpacking and getting changed into my gown, I was then hooked up to monitors for about an hour while we waited for Surgery to come get me. In the mean time we filled out paperwork and listened to Sean's heart beating on the monitor. He was pretty active the whole time.

At 7:00am the Surgery department came for me and the nerves started to kick in. I was just anxious about what was going to happen. I didn't have time to think about it last time as everything was rushed with Jace and I was so drugged. Ben was whisked off to get changed and I was taken to pre-op for my IV and yummy stuff to drink. After the nurse talked to me with Ben by my side, my emotions just ran rapid. I teared up at everything. After one last kiss, it was off to the OR. They made some adjustments to the table and then it was time for the spinal. I jumped with the pokes, but overall it wasn't too bad. Soon the warm, heavy sensation started down my legs. After a few minutes I became very flushed and requested a cool wash cloth, while they were prompt to give me one, it was hot. My anesthesia person was awesome. Every time I felt sick he was quick to adjust my medicine.

Soon everything was set up and Ben was brought in. I heard them announce the first incision being made at 7:59am. Ben and I could smell my skin burning from being cauterized. I didn't feel any pain, just pressure and some touching on my upper abdomen. The pressure when they pushed Sean out was the worse. Ben wasn't allowed to watch like he was with Jace, but he kept reassuring me that I was doing great and that he loved me. After a long 14 minutes, Sean was born at 8:13am. Ben got to see him being delivered. When I heard those cries I just lost it. I couldn't believe I had just had another baby. Dr. Williams said he was a chomper as he was biting on her fingers with good force. I just said "Oh my poor nipples!" He came out fighting and screamed the whole time he was being checked out. I could partially see him if I strained my neck. Ben brought him over for me to see before they left for the nursery. He didn't look like his brother.

It took them another 45 minutes to sew me back up. Dr. Williams said I had quite a bit of scar tissue on my bladder, but she was able to take care of it. And she made my "crooked smile" from my last c-section a little straighter too! I did have a moment where I got pretty close to throwing up. The Dr did something to adjust my blood pressure when they tilted the table slightly and it threw my body off. But after about 5 minutes I was able to relax again. After they removed the blue curtain I could see the reflection of my incision in the light above. It was weird to see but not really feel it. I was then taken to recovery for about 45 minutes. I was told there that my heart had been skipping a few beats while in surgery. But they were pretty sure it was from the anesthesia as I haven't ever had that problem before that I was aware of.

After a bumpy ride back to my room, I finally got to meet our new son. Daddy was sitting in the corner holding him while they waited patiently for my return. After the nurses were down with me, we decided it was time to decide on a name for him. But I was soon given a nice shot of Demerol and was totally out of it. So we had to hold off. I don't know what time we decided, but it was a couple of hours later. The rest of my stay was pretty uneventful. It seemed like someone was in my room every hour, so it was hard to rest. Jace and my parents came to see us at 6:00pm. Jace was a little curious, but stuck with Ben for the most part. He didn't want to hold him or anything. It wasn't until the next night that he held him briefly. We left the hospital 12/13 in the afternoon.

Sean Olen was born 12/11/07 at 8:13am weighing 7lbs 6ozs and 18.5" long. His agar scores were 8 and 9.

Here is my last belly shot at 38 weeks 2 days:

Meet Sean Olen

First, thank you to everyone for the wonderful emails. I'll respond as soon as I can.

I'll post a full birth story later. It isn't very exciting since I had a scheduled c-section.

Sean Olen was born 12/11/07 at 8:13am. He was 7lbs 6oz 18.5". Ben and I finally agreed on a name. Sean was on both our "lists" and it just seemed to fit him. Olen was my grandfather's middle name. He passed away in May and we wanted to honor him.

My milk has come in and breastfeeding is going really well. Our first night home went very well. Only 1 melt down so far with Jace. He isn't too interested in baby brother just yet. He just wants to play with Daddy which is expected.

Here are a few more pictures. Look back here for updates soon.

Few minutes old


Close-up


Meeting Big Brother


Milk drunk


Best Daddy ever


Coming home