happy birthday, Odego

WELL!  a lot has happened since Fathers' Day.

*****

i know a good handful of current mommies-to-be and the real life story you're about to read is just one of bajillions. moms, i just want to encourage you to learn from my journey, but don't let it make you even the slightest bit apprehensive about your own.  your L & D story will have its own twists and turns too...or not!  even with the longest, most detailed birth plan ever, we just never know how these things will play out...

*****

at 2 cms dilated, we finally got our hospital tour done on thursday, June 12th, my expected due date.

we asked questions, made jokes, reminisced about Chiso's birth, talked and walked around, met a few L & D nurses (who are all awesome and heaven-sent), and made a family date out of it with big brother Chiso.

i was convinced Odego would make his way into this world on Fathers' Day (wishful thinking on Sonny's behalf ), so i finished packing our bags (for the last time) that night and started prepping to celebrate the weekend in the hospital.

happy Fathers' Day, Papa!!! sunday morning came and there were still no surefire signs of labor to be found whatsoever though. before we headed to church, Chiso, Dego, and i presented Sonny with a few gifts at home, unlike i planned.  then, we dined at Fish City Grill, per Sonny's request, and met up with my parents before heading home to finally relax.

9pm sunday night, i began spotting.

i won't say the spotting and excess fluid was surprising at all as we had been trying a few natural remedies to get this thing going, but the unexpected sight of blood always makes me do a double-take.

could this be it? would Sonny really get the best Fathers' Day gift ever? we still had 3 hours left according to him. i was having super light contractions and some spotting, but i was still smiling.  and taking pics. lol. the on-call Dr. told us not to play with amniotic fluid, so we were told to head to the hospital to be checked. i know the front desk nurses had to be like 'ummm, clearly she is not in labor.' LOL.

soooo we did the walk of shame right on home 3 hours later.

definitely not in labor yet.

papsmears are nightmares for me, so just being checked for dilation was enough to rev up my light contractions to the next level  from that point forward. monday morning, Dr. A told me to come straight to her office after the previous night's fiasco, so we did. i finally began to keep record and contracted 3 random times during the 15 minute drive to her office.  i was still at 2 cms according to her, and she wrapped up my appointment by presenting us with an option to mull over for the next couple of hours.  i could come in to be induced at 530am the following day, tuesday the 17th, or, we could just keep waiting...  she then explained that she would be out of the office on thursday and friday. THAT little nugget of info helped me make my decision right then and there. Dr. A. was out having her twins at the time Chiso was born and i was not missing her  again this round, nope. Sonny was ready to meet Odego on Fathers' Day so he was all for option 1. we prayed about it and agreed to go for it.  that same night, the contractions were even stronger, but bearable enough for me to take a walk to the park with Chiso. during 1 hour, i counted about 6 or 7 contractions.

once home, i loaded up most of our things in the car and because i was required to fast from food and liquid after midnight, i cooked and ate my last meal around 10pm. i also baked every fillet of tilapia in the freezer per Sonny's request as he is prepping for a Musclemiania competition at the end of this month.  couldn't leave him out in the cold!  afterwards, i did my best to lay down and get some rest with Chiso, but that didn't really happen. i got in the bed around 1, but each contraction woke me up. Sonny started his timer and laid his phone down right next to me. every time a contraction hit, i'd press the 'lap' button to record the time between each of them.  by 4am, i was up pacing and breathing through each contraction.  of course to me they FELT like they were coming 2-3 minutes apart, but it was more like every 5-10.  this boy was definitely on his way.

  so we headed out to the hospital,

(now that looks more like a labor-face)

valated the car, signed in, and waited a few moments for our room.

Sonny knew i would want these pics later... so he snapped away while i contracted away and did his best to keep Chiso busy.

  however, Chiso was generally concerned for his mama and every time i got up, he got up and paced with me. it wasn't funny at the time but he kept asking, 'mama happy? mama happy now?'

last #usies as a family of 3.

the staff directed us to our room and i immediately changed into my gown, used the restroom, stood up to my feet, look down, and 'watched' my water break!  no induction needed. and it wasn't a ginormous tidal wave like the movies either :D

i waddled out of the restroom and immediately called out to alert Sonny when i should have been telling my nurse, nurse Judy. i mean we were in the hospital and all.  force of habit!  thank God for L& D nurses. He provided us with a fabulous one. she encouraged me, told me i was strong, kept me informed, and did her job like she was born to do it.  i laid down on the bed to be checked: 4-5 cms! i was ELATED to be halfway there and also to know i'd be kissing Odego's sweet face sooner than later.

so about those contractions!  well, they got stronger as expected after my water broke and i labored to about 6-7 cms or so before calling for an epidural around 9am.  in less than 15 minutes the anesthesiologist was literally behind me and ready to go.

finally... peace, ice chips,

and electronics for the boys as we waited.

around 12:15pm, i randomly started to feel moderate cramping again.  i was told if i needed more meds to push a Jeopardy like button connected to my IV and placed on the bed right next to me.  i was reeeeally hoping i wouldn't have to even use that thing, but because the pain kept getting stronger, everybody in the room could tell when each contraction hit cause the button made an electronic dinging noise when pressed. unfortunately, no matter how many times i hit that button the pain didn't let up and only increased. a 2nd anesthesiologist came in and 'added' more meds... but i felt no difference.  eventually, the nurse checked me again- 9cms! it was music to my ears but the thought of laboring through those contractions until i hit the big 10 discouraged me.  how much longer?!?! my dad held my hand and prayed over me through each painful wave.. something i will never, ever forget.  watching your child suffer is no easy task. i understand now.

alright, 10cms, FINALLY!  Dr. A appears out of nowhere again, instantly calms the room, puts on her cape & gloves, and nurse Judy prepares me for delivery. my dad takes Chiso and heads to the waiting area, and my mom and Sonny take their places on either side of me.  let's GO. with each contraction came a strong urge to push... and i must admit that since my lower body was no longer numb from the epidural, i had total control of my pelvic muscles, floor, and core.  because the epi was in full swing during my 1st delivery, i pushed with everything i had and it felt like absolutely nothing was happening. less than 8 minutes and 5 or 6 pushes later, my mom was crying and overjoyed with emotion, Sonny was cutting the umbilical cord, and Dego's warm body was laying on my chest.

in an instant...all the pain was gone and completely forgotten.  by me anyway. my dad? not so much!  Odego was worth it all. i couldn't help but think of the women who birthed babies with no medication whatsoever. past, present, whether it was their choice, and those who had no choice at all. amazing.

Chiso could barely contain his excitement!  it was finally time to meet his little brother after all this waiting!  heck, he talked to Dego more than i did while he was in my tummy.  i can't wait to show both boys this picture when they are older.

 i'd also like to note that Odego weighed in at 7 lbs & 9 oz, but i carried smaller vs my first pregnancy (Chiso was 6 lbs 11 oz).  i was also in better shape and made way better food choices this round. take note, moms! that's just another reason comparing bumps is really silly and never a fair baby weight predictor.

 FOOD. after fasting since midnight, nurse Judy read my mind and put the menu and the room phone right next to me. i LOVE her.  that was my post-delivery lunch: grilled chicken burger with sweet potato fries, a side salad, and vegetable soup. yall know when i get hungry i get scatterbrained and just want everything. i read the 3 page menu 50 bajillion times before Sonny was like, 'Leah we will be here til thursday, PICK SOMETHING.'

i don't go there often, but i hear hospital food has changed!  i ordered eggs, oatmeal, and fruit for every breakfast, and either grilled chicken or tilapia for lunch and/or dinner.  i made sure to have veggies and a salad with every meal, but i wanted fries so i ordered those sometimes too.

Dr. A approved me to get up and move around, so i threw on my Nikes and did just that wednesday morning after breakfast. just a few slow laps around the postpartum wing, that's it.  later that night, Sonny pushed Odego in his nursey cart and walked with me.

heading home the next day!  but not before ordering lunch one last time, haha.

i missed that fresh new baby smell, skin, and newborn cry... to finally hold and kiss the face of someone you already love so deeply after months of waiting is... indescribable! a blessing. a miracle.

 but with that comes the smell and sting of Dermoplast spray, recovering down there, sitting down super slowly,  swollen, engorged breasts & nipples so sore the brush of a t-shirt or bra feels like hell's fire, nocturnal newborn schedules and feedings, i.e.,  good ol'  MOTHERHOOD!

hello, round two!        thank you, Father, for expanding our home by two more feet, and thank you for reading.

le

*waving*

hello? is this thing on :shock:

hi there. *jumps over the bush* i have a lot of explaining to do concerning my blog whereabouts.  for now, i just wanted to come 'back' with a lil' shout out to my amazing hubby-face. i am so HONORED and PROUD to be his wife and teammate for life! he is the epitome of a #1 fan for real and God has blessed him to be an outstanding husband and father. God reminds me often as to why we were made for each other.  i thank you for ALL you do for our family, Sonny!

hope your father's day weekend was spent honoring and remembering true fathers everywhere.

 i can't get over how much my itty, bitty BABY has grown, my goodness.  to watch him do for himself 90 percent of the time these days gives me such a proud, bittersweet feeling.  i'm sure mothers everywhere can relate.

we headed to celebrate with our parents on Sunday afternoon.

so, originally, i had an AWESOME restaurant picked out for dinner...but i remembered one very crucial thing as we were on the way.

the NBA finals were on at 7!  so i had to make a game time decision while en route and drove straight to the Houston Texans Grille  so that Sonny could enjoy himself his way on his day.

and what do ya know, Sonny's brother and lady, Kara, were there enjoying the game as well!  i definitely didn't plan that but it worked out perfectly.  they ordered those 'bigger than the state of Texas' nachos up there and i almost knocked my water-glass over scrambling for my phone to take a pic.  what can i say, food excites me!  they are monstrous in person and they threw in the towel early on them!  Sonny stuck with salmon, rice, and veggies,  since he is training, and i ordered a baja grilled shrimp salad with romaine, black beans, roasted corn, red bell pepper, cotija cheese, dressing on the side.  i ordered the 'healthiest' thing i could find on the menu for Chiso, which were those fried sweet potato tots.  they were DELISH but were way too sweet from the added sugars.

cheese pizza wasn't on the menu but i asked and they made one for Chiso. love that! #score

 Wally World had these ginormous red bell peppers for just 44 cents each this weekend.  couldn't pass it up so i got a few and made the recipe you're about to read right now:

 red pepper crock pot sirloin

the stuff:

• 1 lb lean sirloin
• 1 large chopped red bell pepper
• 1/2 chopped yellow onion
• 3 stalks chopped green onion
• 4 tbsp liquid aminos
• 1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
• 1 tsp pecan, hickory, or mesquite liquid smoke
• 2-3 tbsp of your favorite low-no sodium seasoning
• 2 tbsp chopped cilantro (optional)

do this:

add half of the veggies to your crock pot, then lay sirloin on top.  add the rest of the veggies on top of the meat.  dump all seasonings, liquids, and herbs on top of meat.  set crock pot on the lowest setting and cook the sirloin for 6 hours, or 4 hours on high.  it will be moist, juicy, and FORK TENDER BABY!

*i didn't measure the ingredients the first time honestly and it turned out great.  but if you find comfort in following a recipe, i estimated as best i could!  feel free to do your own thing with it, as you should *

then you can have something like my meal 5 from tonoooight:

boom. pow. ta-dow.

well that was REFRESHING!  taking a break from life, even your passions, is a great thing.  i have so much crazy energy right now from this small post alone, whew!   my flame has been rekindled and i typed this whole post at what seems like 554 wmp!!!!  now if i could just get back to doing this every day....... 

one day at a time though.

tell me something. ask me something.  just say HAI!

email - le@fitfoodiele.com

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Vine - coming SOON and i'm so dang excited about it!

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go buy a crock pot,

le

epic dad's day

Happy Father's Day to all fathers- earthly and the one and only heavenly!

since i am currently in competition mode, for once we didn't go out to eat to celebrate:(  it's crazy cause that's normally the very thing we do.  celebrations call for EATING in our house.  couldn't even do fro-yo :evil:  all in due time though.  we spent QT with our families and each other:

my two loves... big Nnamdi and little Nnamdi.

 i didn't make Sonny suffer completely- we went to my parents house to visit my folks and my mom cooked a nice T-bone steak meal for my dad.  for the first time ever, i could only smell and look but not touch or eat:

talk. about. torture.  mac n cheese is at the TOP of the list of foods i can't wait to eat again.

one of Sonny's gifts was a heart rate monitor watch- a black and gold Polar FT7!

just what he wanted! do you wear one when you workout?

 

if not, consider it.  there are soooo many makes and models, but a basic one is all you'll ever need, IMO.  i did check out some reviews first.  how they enhance your workouts:

• accurate calorie counter- who doesn't want to know this info??  don't trust that elliptical or treadmill number :-|
• ensure you are at an appropriate intensity level.  if your heart rate gets too high your activity can become counter productive;  too low and you're not pushing hard enough to gain any substantial health benefits.
• find and monitor your target heart rate (50-85% of your maximum HR).  you can find this number *roughly* by subtracting your age from 220.
• your watch will tell you which zones you are in so that you can burn optimal fat, carbohydrates, or sugar.

1. fat burning 50-60% ideal for endurance and weight loss; the body uses stored fat as fuel.
2. endurance 60-70% ideal for endurance and weight loss; the body uses stored fat as fuel.
3. aerobic 70-80% cardiovascular and muscular strength and endurance; burns fats and carbs in this zone.
4. anaerobic 80-90% enhances lung capacity; muscles become tired and breathing becomes heavy. working hard and burning sugar.
5. V02 Max 90-100% helps enhance speed in athletes; can only exercise in this zone for a short period of time as the muscles go quickly into oxygen debt.

• prevent overtraining - maximize the efficiency of your training while minimizing the opportunity for injury.
• provides feedback on your improvements over time.

he can't wait to put it to use!  me neither cause i WILL be borrowing it.

le