It's All About the Weekend Vol. 1

 I have always lived for the weekend in a sense. I can remember when I was in college I worked full-time and went to school at night. I daydreamed all week about that cocktail in my hand as I danced the night away with my friends.

As I journied through my twenties I lived for weekend adventures and trips. I'd drive to NYC or to visit cousins and friends. Mini road trips to concerts or new places to explore were common. I lived for these escapes.

These days there's a different reason why I live for the weekend. Sleep. When I was pregnant with Baby Bloob I was exhausted all of the time. Weekends were for napping.

 Now that my little bundle is here, I look forward to the weekend because R is home and we get to rest and spend time together as a family. We may be tired but it's nice to have a little bit of a schedule where it works.


This past weekend I celebrated my first Mother's Day. It was also baby bloobs due date. He blessed us 5 weeks early and I wouldn't change a second of it. It also came with cleaning and having company.

So even though I live for the weekends and even though I'm pretty tired, I loved celebrating a day for me with my hubs, little man, and my parents. I gave up my sleep to live in the moment.

I won't get these moments back, so moving forward I'm going to live for the weekends where I can live in the moments. Make memories in this new phase of life.

Tired. But so worth it.

Watch for those weekend moments every Monday here on the blog.

Namaste.


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Birth Story - Part 2

Today I am sharing part 2 of my birth story. If you missed part one, go read that first!

On Tuesday I took you through the first 2 days of my labor exprience. Today I want to take you through the rest. We left off on Sunday the 8th where I was full of pitocin, swollen, and no baby.



My parents had come to visit me on Sunday thinking little man would be making his appearance. Now just to fill you in, my parents live 2.5 hours away. They also have a 1 year old dog who is still pretty much puppy and can be quite a bit to handle. Because this labor was unexpected they had no plan for the dog.

On their way up to NY where I live they hit a pretty sizeable rock and had to turn around for the other car. This made their travels even more stressful on top of the dog situation. They would not be able to stay the night and driving another 2.5 hours home on an already stressful day isn't fun.

After my parents left, with promise from everyone that a baby would be born soon and when they came back on Monday they should get to meet their grandson, I was taken off of pitocin for the night so I could get some sleep. I was still not in active labor and was making no progress. I needed sleep.

Monday came and with no progress I was getting very upset. R left to go home for some things and to take care of our cats and I broke down in the bathroom.

My bathroom had an enormous whirlpool tub.


I cried because I was tired.

I cried because I felt like I was failing as a woman to bring my son into the world.

I cried because I felt like no one was listening to me.

I cried because no one could tell me when this would end or how it would end.

I cried because I didn't want to go back on pitocin.

R came back and I had to face him. There was no way to hide that I had been crying for a bit. He was immediately concerned and we discussed why I was upset. He said I needed to tell my midwife how I was feeling and to get an update on my options. I had no birth plan when I came into the hospital due to the surprise, but I will say I did not want a c-section if it was possible to avoid.

At this point I was open to the c-section. I was tired and scared and wanted to meet my little boy. My midwife came in before lunch time and she could see I was upset. I cried while talking to her. She understood my frustrations but felt we should avoid c-section just because it was the easier option.

Over the course of 5 days I had 4 IV's inserted. So many bruises.

I didn't feel like it was the easier option at this point. I was tired. I was emotional. I was on day 3 of no progress. I told her I did not want to be back on the pitocin. I was so swollen from it I could barely bend my legs. She suggested another option. It was a pill and it was known to bring on strong labor quickly. I agreed to try, but if it didn't work, I wanted the c-section.

My parents arrive early afternoon to no baby and an emotional daugher. They fully supported my decision to want a c-section if this method did not work. We were back to the waiting game.

My nurse gave this to me as motivation to get little man born.

The day went on with very little change. The pill could be taken every 4 hours. My midwife advised I should take 2 rounds of it and if no change back to pitocin. I agreed to the 2 rounds but no pitocin. It would of been after midnight when they would have to start it. They let me sleep instead. My parents headed back home again.

Tuesday morning I woke up to contractions. I was FINALLY in active labor and had dilated to 8 cm when checked. My contractions took off right away and I was having strong ones by 6am. It got bad fast. I was in tears when each came on. I was put in the tub to help, but it didn't make a difference. I was in agony.

My midwife ordered my epidural with warning I may have to wait as it was shift change and there were 3 scheduled c-secections that took priority. A miracle happened because the anesthesiologist was still around and came right away to take care of me. He warned it would have to be quick as he had an appointment to get to.

That man was a God send. He got me taken care of quick and painless. I fought through a contraction or 2 when he was working on it, but once it was in it was much, much better.

I was still only at 8 cm so we had to wait to push, but things were finally looking up. My parents arrived for the 3rd day in a row hoping a baby would be born. Today was going to be the day no matter what. If I didn't dilate I was having a c-section.

My nurses came in to do vitals around 1pm and I had a fever. I wanted to scream and cry all at the same time. I could not start to push until the fever was down. I was hooked up to antibiotics which would take around 2 hours before I would know if I could push.

Everyone in the room was beyond frustrated at this point. How much longer could they hold off this delivery?

My antibiotics finished and my fever was down. I was checked again and I was at 10 cm! It was go time before anything else could put this on hold. Everyone cleared out but R, my nurses and my midwife. Let the pushing begin.

This is where it gets even more emotional for me. I am already tearing up thinking about this.

I was pushing and pushing and everything was going good. The baby was moving and we were making progress. Then I started having breathing issues. I was put on oxygen and I was so frustrated I didn't want the mask on. They forced me to keep it on and I was getting more and more tired.

The baby was stuck under my pelvic bone and I was much too tired to be able push him through. A decision had to be made. After 2.5 hours of pushing my midwife had to consult the surgeon on call. He came in and attempted to help get me to relax and get he baby out. No progress.

He told me that this baby needed to come out and he could offer forcep delivery. I didn't even have to think twice and I said yes! Please!

Let me tell you, when you agree to forceps in a time where forceps aren't used much, the room suddenly gets quite busy. My poor parents were in the waiting room right outside of my room. They probably thought I was dying with the amount of people and equipment that rolled into the room. I looked around and I swear there were at least 20 people around me.

The doctor and his crew. The midwife and my nurses. The neonatal crew. People who have never witnessed a forcep delivery. It was insane.

Within minutes of everything being set up, I was pushing and my son was born at 6:14pm. I cried.

I cried for relief.

I cried when I heard my son cry.

I cried because I had given birth without a c-section.

I was not able to see Ben immediately. They wisked him away to the NICU.

1 hour old. Poor kid had so much bruising from the forceps.

I laid there feeling completely wrecked and fullfilled all at the same time. I had some repairs that needed taken care of and then everyone was gone. For a brief moment I was alone. I laid there trembling. Every inch of my body shook.

R came back in. He needed a moment of his own and had stepped out. He asked if I wanted to see my parents. I honestly didn't know how I felt at that moment. The stress  and tiredness over the past 4 days had caught up to me. I was completly drained.

R let me know they had taken Ben to evaluate him and put him on oxygen. I didn't get much but a glimpse of him when he came out. They told me he was doing good and he was a good size for 35 weeks. 6lbs 2oz. My giant preemie.

It took about an hour to recover before they took me to my post partum room. They alerted me that Ben's glucose levels were low and he'd have to nurse immediately. My parents had seen Ben through the window of the NICU but did not get the opportunity to hold him. He came in and they immediately put him skin to skin and we tried to nurse.

We got him stabilized and it was late. My parents had to head home and I needed sleep. R stayed for a bit and I heard him talking to the baby while I dozed off. I heard him say he was afraid he was going to lose us both during delivery. I had a brief reaction but fell asleep.

The next morning I had a parade of people in and out to check me and Ben. His neonatal doctor said he was doing great other than glucose. Both of us were hooked up to IVs which made it hard to move around. When it quieted down I finally got to ask what had happended in delivery that had him scared.

Him and my nurse explained my vitals had dropped to a scary level. They could not do a c-section at my levels and the baby needed to come out. If the doctor on call hadn't been trained in using forceps one or both of us could of died if they attempted c-section. (Lots of emotions typing those words)

Thats a big realization to swallow. I was told because of a steroid shot I received when I was admitted, it caused fluid on my lungs which is what caused the breathing issues. I was also told that I was lucky the doctor who was on call was there as he was the only one in the area who did forcep delivery.

I also started to bleed out. I was literally on the cusp of every issue related to danger during my 4 days of labor and delivery.

I think I was in shock with all of this new information. I continued on doing what I needed to do. Ben had been taken off the monitors and was just on glucose in an IV by end of day Wednesday. I was discharged on Thursday. Both my doctor and midwide discharged me. They still didn't know who's patient I was at this point.

I was doing great they said considering what I had been through. I was im the hospital 5 days at that point, but I wasn't actually going home.

Ben was jaundice and had to stay. He was in light therapy and I settled in to stay a few more days. I left the hospital briedly to go home for a few hours and to compose myself. I was sore and emotional, but it was nice to go home.

My cool little dude in his glasses


Ben was discharged on Saturday the 14th. We were so happy to take our little bundle home. So much love filled me. All of the staff were amazing as we got to know a lot of them with our extended stay. We had to follow up with the pediatrician on Monday to check jaundice levels but that was all we needed to do, or so we thought.



Ben's jaundice levels had spiked and he landed back in the hospital Monday afternoon. We only had to stay 1 night. R stayed with the baby and I got to go home for the night to get a full nights rest. I cried.

I cried because it was my first time alone in a quiet place in over a week.

I cried because my poor baby was in the hospital again.

I cried because people can be bullies and I had to deal with one when my 6 day old was in the hospital.

When we finally went home on Tuesday night and we were officially able to stay home I was relieved.

Labor and delivery can be tough. We all have different stories to tell on how it went. At the end of the day we are all strong resilient women who brought a new life into the world.

I applaud you if you made it through this whole thing. I apoligize on how long it ended up being. I will do a one month follow up post so this doesn't have to be longer than it already is.

Thank you again for taking the time to read my story. I hope if you are expecting it helps you to know that things sometimes don't go as planned. If you had a similiar story or can relate I also hope it helps you know you aren't alone.

I'd love to hear your stories. You can email them to me if you don't feel comfortable putting them here.

Namaste all <3

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Happy 4th Birthday The Trish List

Somewhere between sleep deprivation and not blogging as much, I completely forgot The Trish List is celebrating a birthday! The month on May brings on 4 years of blogging!



I want to thank everyone who has been supportive of not just this blog, but of me. The blogging community is one of the best places to meet amazing people in my opinion.

I know I have been on the fence on whether I was going to continue blogging moving forward or even keep this space around. After lots of time and careful thought, I have decided to revamp this space and continue on. I love this space. There were a few reasons I didn't want to keep this, but I am no longer being held prisoner to those things.

What better day to let you all know that I'm staying than on my blogs 4th birthday!

I hope you all have a wonderful day and have a cupcake (or 5, who's counting?) in honor of The Trish List!





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Birth Story - Part 1

You guys.. Baby bloob is 4 weeks old today! How in the world did that happen? I sure as heck don't know. He is currently grunting in his stroller while trying to nap. Or at least that is what I am hoping is going to happen.

Little man at 4 weeks!
I figured today would be a good day to tell you a little about my little guy and go into the birth story. I am going to break this up into 2 parts because it will get a little lengthy.

If you were following along with this blog prior to this post, you will know that he his actual due day was May 13th, which is this coming weekend and Mother's Day.

When I found out I was due on Mother's Day, I knew it was a sign. I was meant to have this little guy. It was not easy and like many sweet ladies I know, getting pregnant is not the easiest tast. I was 34 when he was conceieved and that put me into the "old" category because I would be 35 when he was born.

I had a pretty text book pregnancy. He was growing and on track and I had no issues. As I got closer to my due date, my stomach was enormous. I got the usual questions... "Are you sure you aren't having twins?" and "When are you due? Are you sure?"

Messy messy bedroom.. oops. One of the last photos I took before baby was  born.

I was surprised I was all belly. I didn't put on any other weight that was noticeable. A total of 27 pounds. I was impressed. Towards the end of my pregnancy I joked that he could come early because I was so big.

Fast forward to April 7th, the day of my baby shower. I was getting ready to go on the 2 hour drive to Pennslyvania which is where the shower was being hosted, when I noticed some extra fluid after using the bathroom. I told R that I thought my water broke. He thought maybe it was just that we were getting close to my due date and that is all that was happening.

I called my mother and she had mentioned maybe it was just the mucus plug, which didn't necessarily mean I was going to have a baby anytime soon. We all agreed it was probably that and we proceeded to travel to my shower. I would just monitor the situation and call my doctor if anything changed.

I had a wonderful time at my shower visiting friends and family. I felt more antsy than usual but was also at that stage where I was pretty uncomfortable no matter what position I was in. I walked around a lot and everyone joked that I was going to make the baby come by doing that.

My shower was robot themed. We also did the nursery in Robots. It is not actually done yet due to little mister coming so early. We are working on it. Will post photos when we have it done. Also.. Baby bloob took the whole, welcome tiny human literally that day...

The shower ended with no unexpected guests, and we headed back home. On the drive I felt a little crampy, so I made the decision to call the doctor when I got home. I was told to head to the hospital to be evaluated so I packed a small bag and hopped in the shower " just in case". We got to the hospital at around 8pm and had a few tests run. While waiting me and R joked that little man wanted to come to his party so bad he got a little routy but now that he missed the party this was just a false alarm.

The nurse came back in with the results, and as she put it, little man REALLY wanted to wear his new clothes, because I was in labor. Say what?!

I was admitted at 8:35pm under the care of one of the doctors on call. Because at the time I was considered 34 weeks 6 days, I was not able to be cared for by a midwife. This would become super confusing as the days went on. More info on that later on.

I was told because my water had broke at 10am that morning, I should expect to have a baby by morning. I was also told to expect a 4 pounder.

Fast forward to midnight. I was not making any progress so I was hooked up to Pitocin to try to get things going. I was on a drip through the night. Because I didn't have a baby by midnight I was now transferred back to the midwives who I was seeing throughout my pregnancy. One of my midwives came in the next morning to check progress. Zero progress had been made.

It was also noted that even though I had amniotic fluid trickling down, not all of my waters had been broken. Let me tell you ladies, no one ever mentions how uncomfortable checking dilation and then breaking your water can be. I was not expecting that kind of discomfort.

But to soothe the discomfort I was told, now we should see a baby anytime now!

So here I was hours later, water broken, pumped full of Pitocin and no sign of a baby coming. My feet and legs were swollen, I was tired and I had no idea what was going to happen next. All I kept getting told was, the baby is fine and so are you. So now all we do it wait...

My poor, poor feet and legs.. they were just so swollen. I thought I was going to pop!
I am going to stop there. That covers 2 days of my labor. Come back on Thursday to read the rest of the story. Part 2 is more emotional for me so I need to cut this up. Not only for length but because I need to keep myself from bawling all over the place. You know, hormones, trauma, etc..

See you back here Thursday, where you may or may not cry with me.

Have a great Tuesday!

Oh Baby!

You guys, I have no idea what I'm doing these days. And to be completely honest, I'm okay with that.

So a few updates.

I had a baby! Baby bloob.. okay, okay.. his name is Benjamin.. decided on his baby shower day that he wanted to be out playing with all of his new stuff. I gave birth after 3 days in labor on April 10th at 6:14pm.



Little dude was 5 weeks early and weighed 6lbs 2oz. My giant preemie. We had a few trips into the incubator for light therapy, but he's home and hungry as ever. Birth story to come.

Also.. I love him to death! OMG!

Next up:

I started a second blog. Not 100% sure what I plan to do with both blogs at this time. I thought I would just phase out this page, but I kind of can't. I'm more attached than I thought. Bare with me as I figure it out.

Things all seem different now that I'm a mom. Let's see how this goes..

Happy Monday!



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