Oh yeah, I had another baby ...

3 months ago … it's about time I finally blogged about it!  


Carter Stephen was born on August 1, 2014.  Here's how it went down … 

My entire pregnancy, I was mentally preparing myself to still be pregnant beyond my due date (August 8).  Landon was born 11 days after his due date, and those last few weeks took some mental toughness! So when I woke up around 7:00 in the morning on Friday August 1 and my water broke while I was getting out of bed, I was pretty surprised that it was go-time already! There was no "pop" or massive flooding of water, but there was no doubt in my mind that my water had broke. Unfortunately, I wasn't having regular contractions, so I knew I needed to try and get things moving along. (If your water breaks and you head right to the hospital, they'll basically put you on a 24-hour clock, and I wanted everything to be as intervention free as possible).  

I texted our doula to let her know what was going on and get some suggestions to get labor going. Then I took a shower, used some clary sage oil, went for a walk, and did some exercises to try and get baby in the right position. My mom came and picked up Landon in the late morning. At noon, I went to the chiropractor to get adjusted, then Justin and I stopped at Whole Foods to pick up some lunch. Pretty mellow, low key morning.

I laid down in bed when we got home. I knew that if things didn't pick up on their own by mid-afternoon, we would need to head to the hospital anyway, so I kept hoping and praying the contractions would get more painful. Around 2:00, contractions were getting stronger, and by 2:30 I was fairly sure things were now moving along. I was still getting things packed for the hospital, but had to take breaks during contractions and breathe deeply or get on my hands and knees. I quickly went from wishing things would get more painful ("that kinda hurt a little, maybe things are picking up") to wishing they were less painful ("oh yeah, $@&%, that's what labor feels like!"). Justin could tell things were progressing quickly and was anxious to get to the hospital. I couldn't get comfortable at this point, and after about 10 minutes of attempting to put my shoes on, Justin convinced me to just go with sandals and get in the car. We headed to the hospital a little before 4:00. 

Arriving fashionably in my sandals with socks, we were checked into the hospital at 4:30. I spent a few minutes in the bathroom putting the hospital gown on, then very quickly wanted it off … wearing any clothes was SO uncomfortable. Probably because we were meant to give birth naked, right??

The nurse checked me and I was dilated to 6 cm. I was laying on my side in bed trying to breathe and relax while lots of nurses were coming in and out… the contractions were very intense at this point but I heard some of what was going on (my doctor wasn't at the hospital, was on her way ... Baby's heart tones were low ... No doctor was at the hospital). The nurse checked me again and I was 8 cm. I started feeling like I needed to push (actually, my body just started pushing … it's basically an involuntary reflex). The nurses were telling me to try and breathe through it and not push because the doctor wasn't there yet. (FYI, trying to stop your body from pushing when it wants to push is impossible! I tried, then I threw up a little in my mouth, so that was fun). The next contraction, the nurse was again telling me not to push and I said "no, I'm pushing". The nurses then jumped into action realizing baby and I weren't going to wait for the doctor (plus it was best to get baby out asap because of the low heart rate). After just a couple pushes, Carter popped right out at 4:55 … just 25 minutes after we checked into the hospital! 

The cord was wrapped tightly around his neck (hence the low heart tones) so they rushed him to the warmer  He was perfect though so within about 10-15 minutes he was on my chest. My doctor arrived a few minutes after he was born. 










I was up and moving within an hour. It all happened so fast, there wasn't much time to get too exhausted, and I kept thinking it was weird how normal I felt almost immediately after. It was such a completely different experience than when Landon was born!











We had lots of visitors that night. Carter got to meet all of his grandparents, aunts and uncles, and of course big brother Landon.  Landon was not too stoked about the new addition to our family. We had been talking about the baby's looming arrival, and I wasn't sure how much he actually understood about what was going to happen.

When he came in the hospital room and saw me holding Baby Carter, it wasn't exactly the reaction we were hoping for (i.e. head in his hands crying … complete devastation). Landon has since warmed up to Baby Carter. After a couple weeks of him ignoring the tiny little human I had been holding 24/7, I was in the garage calling for Landon to come get in the car while Carter was in his carseat on the kitchen floor. Landon came to the door, then got a concerned look on his face and ran back in the kitchen. I walked in the house and found Landon holding the carseat handle … "Baby Carter?" He's still not a lovey-dovey big brother, but he at least gets concerned that Mommy is going to forget Baby Carter (which gives me a lot of confidence in what my toddler thinks of my parenting skills). I can't wait until they can interact more with each other and become little buddies.

No, Landon's not trying to hold his brother …
just trying to move Carter so he can sit there. 

My entire pregnancy seemed like it went by so quickly this time, and I cannot believe how the last (almost) 3 months flew by! This blog post has been on my to-do list since we got home from the hospital, but it seems like every time I get a few quiet minutes someone decides they are hungry, or poops their pants (we tackled potty training Landon when Carter turned a month old), or just wants to scream their head off for no apparent reason. Life is good :)

30 Weeks Down

I suppose an update is long overdue.  However, this pregnancy has been so similar to my first (and I did such a kick ass job on my blog that time around) that I haven't felt the urge to write.  I had my 30 week appointment a few days ago -- my weight was within a pound of what I weighed at 30 weeks with Landon (153.2 now, 154.0 with Landon), I'm measuring the same (30-31 cm, right on track), and the baby's heartbeat was even exactly the same as Landon's at 30 weeks (136 bpm).  (Keeping my fingers crossed that this baby will be like Landon after he/she is born too).

I'm doing pretty much everything the same with this pregnancy as with my first.  I have added an obsession with essential oils to my daily routine though.  In the fall, a friend of mine got into doTERRA essential oils, and I was a pretty easy sell to start using them too.  I've generated quite a collection of oils and slowly replaced lots of my cleaning products, beauty products, and items in our medicine cabinet with essential oils.  Most of doTERRA's oils are safe to use during pregnancy, and they can help with a lot of pregnancy related issues.  (If you want to join in the magic of essential oils, let me know (yes, I'm making a half-assed attempt at making money off of you) … but for real, oils are the shit).

Pregnancy has been uneventful, but life has been exciting.  About a month ago, CrossFit515 and my family got some local press (story and video).  A couple weeks later, we went to Chicago to watch Bobby, Jaime, and Kady compete individually at the North Central regional.  Landon had a good time …

He did make sure Uncle Bobby stayed hydrated before competing.  

I'm super proud of the CrossFit515 competitors!  Jaime finished 10th, Kady 11th, and Bobby 12th.    

And at the end of May, we went to Montana for my sister's wedding.  It was beautiful!  

 And Landon was looking like a badass.  Until he had a poop incident after dinner and needed a wardrobe change.  He was able to make the shark pants, beast mode bro-tank, and jacket look work though.  Complete with a pacifier of course … (yes, we need to kick that habit soon).  He turns 2 this week, and we've informed him that his life is about to change in many ways.      

67 days to go.  

  

20 week mark and IT'S A ….

… NOTHER BABY!

Kinda looks like a baby, anyway … 

We had our 20 week ultrasound last week, and everything is looking good.  No, we didn't find out whether Baby #2 is a boy or a girl.  I prefer not knowing until I meet him/her, and I feel like it's something I'm not supposed to know until the baby is born.  I'm still waiting to see if I feel some strong intuition one way or the other.  With Landon, by the time he was born, Justin and I were both sure we were having a boy.  We didn't even have a girl name picked out (well, I did, but Justin hadn't agreed to it.)  For the record, my guess right now is that this one is a girl, but I don't feel certain about it the way I did with Landon.  

"Hey, get the eff outta here."  -Baby #2 (left); Landon (right)

The ultrasound tech took some creepy 3D pictures.  The baby was shielding its face most of the time, which Landon did during his ultrasound too.  It's cool getting to see the baby, but I find myself feeling anxious during the process and don't really enjoy it.  I don't assume any medical test or procedure is completely safe and without risk, and apparently an ultrasound "expose[s] the fetus to a sound as loud as that made by a subway train coming into a station."  So it's a mix of emotions of "awww, baby's cute little hand is up by his/her face," and "ok, baby's trying to block out the noise with his/her hands -- let's stop sending deafening sounds into my uterus and leave the baby alone."  But we've opted out of genetic testing both pregnancies (avoiding an ultrasound at around 12 weeks), and my doctors' office only routinely does the one anatomy scan ultrasound at 20 weeks.  So hopefully all continues to go well (and this baby doesn't get quite as cozy in my belly as Landon did -- we had a second ultrasound at 9 days past his due date) and this is our only ultrasound.

On the CrossFit front, 14.3 went pretty well for me.  I got 7 deadlifts at 205#.  Deadlifts and box jumps are a couple of movements a lot of pregnant crossfitters probably steer clear of.  I know crossfitmom.com is cautious about heavy deadlifting once you're in the second trimester.  I'm certainly avoiding anything close to my max (310#), but I didn't have a problem with the weights in this workout, and I tried to stay focused on not letting my lower back do the work.  As for box jumps, I actually didn't realize that step-ups were allowed.  Justin doesn't like me doing box jumps, but I'm still comfortable rebounding with 20".  I did a workout with 24" box jumps today though and reset every jump. Maybe step-ups would have been the way to go, but they just seem kinda lame.  (So there's your solid argument for why to do box jumps instead of step-ups while pregnant.)

  

As for 14.4, I got the very common score of 180, finishing the cleans at an unimpressive 13:43.  I hate rowing, always.  Toes to bar are usually good for me, but my grip was gone after my first couple sets.  And a big belly doesn't make toes to bar easier (shocker).   I didn't have any hope of getting a muscle up -- I'm pretty sure I did my last muscle up for awhile a few weeks ago :(  (On the plus side, I get to look forward to the great feeling of getting muscle ups back after the baby is born.  It's like getting your first muscle up all over again.)

One more Open workout to go.  Burpees and thrusters, anyone?  Not too stoked that they saved the burpees for workout #5 -- my belly got in the way a lot less 5 weeks ago.  But Bobby informed me before 14.4 that I'm not going to qualify for Regionals this year anyway … he's probably right.  He's got a good shot at making it though.

#BobbyNoyce

Landon's also been training his butt off.

"Uncle Bobby ain't got shit on me!"

Working so hard, sometimes he can't even stay awake to refuel with his bacon and coconut water.

http://youtu.be/-6U88EhGALk

Open Workout 14.2 - 18 weeks pregnant

Another week down, three more to go.  I was happy to see chest-to-bar show up in one of the early workouts (because I'm only going to get bigger and heavier over the next few weeks).  I wouldn't say that chest-to-bar pull-ups are one of my (non-pregnant) strengths, but while training for Regionals and the Games last year, I got to where I was ok -- maybe even "decent" -- at butterfly chest-to-bar.  Add 15 prego pounds, and butterfly chest-to-bar pull-ups are no longer happening.  I can still kip them, and that's what I did ...

I'm a little ashamed to admit this, but this video is of the second time I did 14.2.  That's right.  I did 14.2 on Friday, then I re-did it on Sunday.  "But you're pregnant! Why would you re-do an Open workout? You shouldn't be pushing yourself that hard."  I went into this workout thinking I could get into the round of 14s, and I fell only four reps short on my first attempt.  I had a minute to do my second set of 12 pull-ups, and I wasn't that gassed -- I just couldn't string many pull-ups together (because I'm HEAVY).  I knew that if I used a shorter pull-up bar and did mostly singles for my last 12, I could unlock the next level.  (It's like Mario -- if the flagpole is in sight and a koopa kills you, you're not not going to try the level again, amiright?!)  So I did.  I got 84 reps on my first attempt and 115 reps on my second.  Success.  Was it necessary for me to re-do the workout?  Of course not.  Was it pointless?  Maybe.

Turns out, after viewing my game tape and comparing it to some of the videos of top scores I've seen posted on the internets, I need to re-think my squat depth standard.  I seem to be squatting way too low.  Maybe below parallel goes from a requirement to a suggestion once you've competed as an individual at the Games multiple times?  Obviously, I'm not trying to go to Regionals this year, and the difference between myself and the top athletes is a lot more than a couple inches per squat.  However, for there to be any legitimacy to the "sport of fitness," the standards need to be upheld at every level, particularly by the CrossFit "celebrities" who the masses are looking up to.  Why would box owners hold their athletes to a higher standard than someone HQ paid $2,014 for getting the top score?  I think every year during the Open I have moments where I realize the entire process is dangerously close to being a big joke.  Then I remind myself I should only worry about myself … and blog about my complaints to my many readers.

But rest assured, my hard-ass judge (Bobby Noyce) let me know that, pregnant or not, he wasn't going to let me get away with any shit.  He's pretty good at CrossFit too …

 

Another Pregnant CrossFit Open -- 14.1 at 17 Weeks

Yep, I'm doing the Open while pregnant (again).  Bring on the criticism.  I've participated in the Open since 2011.  Here are my Open finish stats:

• 2011, 27th in the North Central Region; competed on CrossFit 515's team at Regionals. 
• 2012, 6-7 months pregnant, 218th in the North Central Region.  
• 2013, 32nd in the North Central Region; competed on CrossFit 515's team at Regionals and the Games.

I'm not as far along in this pregnancy as I was in 2012, and while I don't consider myself to be "competing" in the Open, I'm still excited to see how I stack up.  (After this year, I plan to have at least a couple years of pregnancy-free crossfitting.)

Here I am taking on 14.1 at 17 weeks pregnant:

I finished 6 rounds + 19 double unders (289 reps).  In 2011, my best score was 303 reps (due to website issues, we had two weeks to do 11.1, and I did it 3 times.  Pretty amateurish … the website malfunction and the three-peat.)  In 2011, I remember this workout absolutely crushing me -- as this workout should.  If you are pretty good at double unders, this is a total gut check of a workout.  But while pregnant, I stay within my comfort zone, and I don't allow myself to go to that scary place where you're not sure if your body can keep pushing.  So for me, this workout wasn't that bad, and even though I was 14 reps shy of my 2011 score, I'm going to go ahead and declare myself more fit now at 17 weeks pregnant than I was in 2011.  

It's cool to see many other pregnant women participating in the Open, and I'm glad CrossFit continues to shed a positive light on the issue.  I wish I could ignore the comments, but I'm usually tempted to see what the trolls of the interwebz have to say.  A few days ago, Jason Khalipa posted a picture on Instagram of his (very pregnant) wife doing 14.1.  Most comments were positive and encouraging, but I couldn't believe the comments some people would make on someone else's Instagram picture.  I guess that's the downfall to being a CrossFit celebrity … or married to one.  One certain douchebag, @BodyShopStudio, had a lot of particularly ignorant comments on the subject.  One of my favorites:  "'doc can I continue to exercise?' Vs 'doc can I compete in the crossfit open n do snatches n double unders' come on bro!  It's not about crossfit yet again it's about going to extremes in your last trimester."  Then he says "it's just hard to argue with people who r uneducated on the matter."  Well, I can agree with him there.  By the way, Jason's wife posted a score of 70 reps (1 round + 30 double unders and 5 snatches) -- hardly "extreme."

I'll just take comfort in the fact that I'm not so famous that random jackasses comment on my social media posts … maybe someday.

156 days to go!

Here we go again ...

Well, 2013 was a busy year.  I trained my butt off, finished the 2013 Open in 32nd place in the North Central Region ...

Competed at the North Central Regional for Team CrossFit 515 (we placed 3rd)...

Bobby and I, winning workout 6 (video link)

And competed at the 2013 CrossFit Games with Team CrossFit 515 ... 

We placed 24th at the Games.  Of course, Landon was there to cheer us on every step of the way. 

2013 Open

Going Beast Mode at North Central Regional

Coaches can take the free banana too, right?

Heading to the Games 2012 / 2013

After the 2013 Games was over, I didn't really know what to do with my training.  I was used to training HARD five days a week, twice a day at least three of those days.  I also wrapped up a job where I was able to work from home three days a week (which helped accommodate the training schedule tremendously) and started my first real lawyer job in a law firm with more demanding hours.  One pretty quick training session at 5:30 a.m. on the weekdays is about all my schedule can handle these days.

I was still getting better and stronger, but a 2014 CrossFit 515 Games-level team was looking unlikely, and I started thinking about setting my sights on qualifying for Regionals and competing individually in 2014.  Then we found out on Thanksgiving that another little one will be joining our family in August 2014 ... so I guess I'll be being pregnant instead.

So far at just over 12 weeks, I haven't really changed anything about working out, though I have skipped a couple 5:30 a.m. days for a little extra sleep.  I'm excited to have my blog as a resource to myself to remember how things went last time around, but to the extent I feel like I have anything new and interesting to say this pregnancy, I'll try and keep the blog posts coming ... for all my fans.

193 days to go :)