ashleigh farrell

Breastfeeding, Formula, Pumping, bring it on!

I was dead set on breastfeeding my son, afterall, that’s the natural way to go, it’s free, it’s easy, that’s just what you do. When our little guy was born so tiny I opted to give him formula in the hospital until my milk came in since he couldn’t afford to be dropping any weight. We attempted to breastfeed every time that we gave him a bottle but neither of us really knew what we were doing. He was able to latch on a couple of times but would instantly fall asleep.

So now we’re home with our baby!

I can tell all new moms out there that having your baby home is wonderful but also a big adjustment just from the hospital. Now it’s time to figure out your daily routine, in your own home, with your own things. Add the constant visitors and you’ve got a recipe for exhaustion. You almost want to go into hiding until you’ve halfway “figured” things out but you can’t do that.

They don't call it labor for nothing!

We headed into the hospital at 7:00 pm to start the induction. First we were
settled into our room which I must say was like a luxury hotel suite, it was
HUGE! Talk about plush, there was a pull out sofa for dad to sleep on, zero
gravity recliners for other visitors, a flat screen tv with games,
educational videos and movies on demand, the free room service menu
including things like jumbo sea scallops, lamb top sirloin, and pork
medallions, I mean even the bathroom was plush complete with hair dryer, and

36 weeks: All coming to an end…

What a rollercoaster this experience has been. Aside from the normal ups and downs of pregnancy I feel like with all of the extra little issues we’ve had I haven’t been able to catch my breath in 9 months… I will breathe a huge sigh of relief when my precious son enters this world and I can finally look into his eyes and know that he is here and he is ok. And what a surreal feeling to look down and say, I did this, I made him, I grew him inside of me, I nourished him, sacrificed for him, and he’s here… after all of this, he is here.

35 Weeks: WHAT?? Induction. Soon. Let me go faint really quick!!

Week 33: Update to contractions and pre-term labor. now what??!

So after meeting with the doctor after our L&D experience we have some more
insight into what is going to happen these next few weeks. Basically, the
doctors are confident that based on my negative FFN test I have at least 2
weeks until there's a chance of delivering. After 2 weeks we will test again
and hopefully get another negative which will tell us we have ANOTHER 2
weeks putting me at 36 weeks pregnant. At this point (36 weeks) the doctors

Week 32: SLOOOWW Down Epiphany! My trip to Labor & Delivery

Week 31: What a week! Antibiotics, Home Renovations, Insomnia, and Sausages…

We decided to do some more “nesting” inspired things this week and put hardwood floors in the house. Then we decided to re-do the stair railings essentially building a new half wall. We got rid of the previous iron railing because I had visions of the little man sticking his head through on a daily basis and dropping toys and various items down the stairs.

Week 30: Pregnancy Survey!

How far along?
30 Weeks

Total Weight Gain? well it's hard to say what my starting point is but from my pre-pregnancy weight I am up 9 pounds I guess... wow :)

How big is baby? He was at 3 lbs. 9 oz yesterday which is the 40th percentile

Gender: BOY

Maternity Clothes? I wear mostly maternity pants and non-maternity tops except for a handful of things

 Week 29 Oh my aching joints & nausea back again?