The Making of: Ian

One of my friends posted a comment on Facebook the other day questioning why people spend time blogging when they could be out living their lives.  And someone commenting on her post even went so far as to say that people who blog are "spectators in their own lives."  Ouch!

Well, I can't speak for anyone else, but I know exactly why I blog (well, why I have started to blog again).  Other than the fact that there isn't much "out living your life" when you're the parent of two kids under two.  But, I don't blog for you, reader (sorry!  I still appreciate that you're reading!), and really, I don't do it for me.  I blog because I want my kids to know what their life was like before they could remember it.  Who doesn't love to flip through their parents' picture albums and see what they looked like when they were little?  I think it's cool to take it even a step further and do a little play-by-play of their first years for them.  So they can look back in 20 years and roll their eyes at how ridiculous it was to worry about X or write about Y.  Future Joe and Future Ian (and Future Other Babies), I hope you enjoy.

Anyway, this one's for you, Ian.  Here's my pregnancy with you, in a nutshell.  (Joe, go back a few posts and you'll see yours.)

Month 1: November

John and I wanted to have our first two kids really close together, but we had to wait for a few things.  First, we wanted to buy a house.  Check.  Second, we wanted to get a little more established in our jobs.  Check.  Third -- here comes the TMI part -- I needed to get a colonoscopy before I got pregnant again.  Most of you probably know that my dad passed away of colon cancer in June of this year.  Most of you probably don't know that my mom was diagnosed with colon cancer when she was in her early thirties (I was 4.  Matt was 5.) - reality check, right?  Anyway, she's fine now and has been for many years.  But I decided not to take any chances.  If colon cancer is in your family, doctors recommend your first colonoscopy when you are a decade younger than the age when your first parent was diagnosed.  All went well with the test, so preggers I got.

(Sidenote: My colon doctor lady turned out to have dated someone who worked at my firm.  So she knew just about EVERYONE in my office.  Cool.)

Month 2: December

Merry Christmas!  Feeling fine and, other than tiredness, very un-pregnant.











Month 3: January

Joe's first birthday!  Still feeling great.  Ian, I felt you move toward the end of this month.  Since this was about two or three months before I felt Joe move, this was my first inkling that you would be a more...shall we say, active child than Joe.  You're only 10 weeks old right now, but so far my first inkling has been proven correct.



Month 4: February

Already getting bigger (woohoo, second baby).  Fun girls' trip this month to Denver to visit one of my best friends (Jen) for my other best friend's (Meghan) bachelorette party.  Jen made some awesome german chocolate cupcakes and I provided the non-alcoholic libations. Yummy yum yum.







Month 5: March 

Easter time!  We figured out the kinks in our Easter plans (read: we figured out that it's probably not a great idea to get to the egg hunt site 2 minutes before the hunt is schedule to begin), so you should be much more successful at egg hunting than your brother was.  See?  Second child blessings.  Count them.


Month 6: April
6 months second pregnancy = 9 months first pregnancy.  I was just about done carrying you around 24/7 by now.  Thank goodness I wasn't a teetotaler while you were in there - a glass of wine can solve lots and lots of problems.  You'll understand when you're older.  Also, something you'll understand when you become a parent yourself: neither me nor John can remember for the life of us what we did for my birthday this month.  You kiddos take over our brains.  And our sanity.

Month 7: May
Still pregnant, still huge, but now my adorable, sweet infant Joe has turned into adorable, willful toddler Joe.  Yikes.  Hard to chase around a toddler when your chase is more like a waddle (there was no waddling with Joe.  Woohoo second baby.) -- thank goodness for grandparents!

Speaking of grandparents, your Papa Joe celebrated his 60th birthday this month.  He took your dad to Pebble Beach for a few days to play some serious golf.  Hopefully you and your brother (and any Future Other Babies who are interested) will get to go on a reunion trip for his 70th or 75th birthday!

Month 8: June

Two very momentous things happened this month, within days of each other.  First, your Aunt Kris and Uncle Mike tied the knot.  Actually, my dad (your Gampi) tied the knot for them!  They'd been together for as long as I can remember, but they made it official on June 4, 2011.   Congrats you two. 

You and I are the whale in green in this Lavalley family picture:

The other momentous thing is that my dad (your Gampi) passed away on June 8.  No space for maudlin thoughts here, but know this, sweet Ian: your Gampi already loved you with all of his heart, and would have spoiled you rotten.  


Month 9: July 
What more is there to say?  I was completely hugely pregnant.  You were big.  I was tired.  Joe was rambunctious.  I'm tired just remembering it.  And - no pictures this of me month.  Hopefully you understand; I was as big as a house.  But here's your brother, on his last night as an only child!




Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Thank goodness for inductions.  I had been having contractions for weeks at this point (real contractions, not those fake ones.  they hurt.  feel bad for me.).  Here comes more TMI - by the day you were induced, I had been dilated to 4cm for more than two weeks.  Think about that please.  I walked around, went to work, and tried to be civil to people for two weeks.  While I was dilated.  To 4cm.

But my lovely doctor was willing to induce a week before your due date (you were due July 20).  Your Gammi was concerned about you being born on the 13th, since a bunch of your birthdays would fall on Friday the 13th, and she wanted me to push the induction to the 14th.  I, on the other hand, was significantly more concerned about having you out of my stomach.  I told Gammi that if she wanted to wait until the 14th to induce, she could carry you around that extra day.  So, if you have had some sort of 13th-related bad luck issues your whole life, my sincere apologies.


So here's what happened on your first day in this world.  Danielle, Joe's Nana (and yours for awhile!), came over Tuesday night and hung out with us while we got our last bags packed.  She stayed overnight to watch Joe in the morning, cause Dad and I had to leave for the hospital at about 5:30am.  We got to Baylor in Dallas at about 6:00am, and the drugs started doing their thing around 7:00am.  Dad and I chatted, watched some women's World Cup soccer (semifinals - we won!), and around 11:30am I sent Dad to get some lunch for himself.  Around 11:32am, the doctor came in and said I was ready to start pushing.  With no Dad, no Gammi - no one but me and you!  Fortunately, my doctor wasn't at the hospital yet, so we had enough time to at least get Dad in there.  So, push once, push twice, and out you came.  Second baby, WOOHOO!  You had a small little head, but huge gangly feet.  Is that still true?

Ian Jerome Kane, born July 13, 2011, at 13:10.  Dad and I exchanged a knowing look about that birth time - ask us about it some day.  Let's just say we thought it was fantastic karma.