Dads turn to speak...

So I thought I'd pop in here for a sec. and let everyone know that these 2 girlies mean the world to me and although I now have 2 times as much trouble walking and soon to be crawling around the house, I wouldn't want to have it any other way.

Wanted: A Job at Home for Mommy

So, I've been thinking... I really don't want to have to return to work. And it's not because I don't like work, because I honestly don't mind it and like talking to people :) However, I'm having a tougher and tougher time coming to grips with the fact that I'd not only have to pay for daycare for Alena, but, more importantly, that she would be spending 8 hours, 3 days a week with someone other than friends or family!

With that in mind, I've begun searching for some kind of gainful employment (not so easy in this economy) that would allow me to work from home. Eric said that if I can find a way to make the same amount of money that I was making at the Credit Union (or more), that he'd be fine with me staying at home! We simply cannot afford the loss in income for an extended period of time. I'd hate to quit at the CU after such a short period of time there, but I feel like they would understand. My views just became stronger after Alena's birth. Our goal was to have me stay at home after baby #2 (not any time soon!), anyway.

So, if anyone has any ideas for me, let me know! It is very important to me!

Transport Bill

Just an FYI... I checked the mail from yesterday and found the bill for having Alena transported from the hospital in Manitowoc to Green Bay... $3000! Unbelievable!! Thank the Lord for insurance!!

It definitely is a time in our lives that we don't really want to be reminded of. When I think back to when she was being prepped for transport, it brings tears to my eyes, not happy ones. I was so heartbroken to see my newborn baby, whom I had spent so few precious moments with, be poked, prodded, and whisked away by strangers! I would never wish that upon any new mother! The pics are of us saying goodbye just before they carted her off. Happily, that chapter in her life is now closed! She's home and mostly happy :)

Starting Babywise

A friend of mine suggested that we try to use the Babywise method to help Alena to get on a schedule and, hopefully, sleep through the night by 8 weeks. I think that we should have started this earlier than 2.5 weeks, but it's better late than never. Besides, she had a rough first week of life, so that basically doesn't count, right?

So, today I put her down for a nap (on my schedule, not hers), and she cried for about 15-20 minutes. I went in and picked her up for just a moment since she wasn't calming down and she fell asleep immediately!! YAY!! Our first step! It'll be hard for me to stick to a schedule since we're so laid back, but if it helps out the little girl, I'm all for it! Last night she even frustrated Daddy with all of her crying! She was super fussy and wouldn't stop crying not matter what we did! I was just happy that Daddy was around because normally I have to deal with that by myself. She ended up sleeping in the lazy boy with me. I don't want to make a habit of that!

Our First Post!

In response to at least one request, the Cerkas family has started a blog! Hopefully, this will help to keep all of our friends and family updated on the newest changes in our family!

The newest change happened on March 4, 2009 when Alena was born, officially making us a family! The birth was ok (as births go), but she had breathing problems immediately after she was born. She was whisked off to the nursery where she had a nurse watching over her for the next 24 hours. We didn't get much bonding time :(

The morning after she was born, her doctor decided that it was best for her to be transferred to the NICU at Aurora Baycare in Green Bay. A team of nurses came down to pick her up, and put her in an incubater "space capsule" after poking and proding her over and over! Luckily, Mommy was able to be discharged from the hospital within an hour of Alena leaving for GB!! So, we packed up quickly at home and drove to be with our new daughter.

We ended up staying at the hospital in a room in the hospital that was just like a hotel room, and very affordable!! Alena was on oxygen, IV fluids, and being monitored 24/7. The nurses would call our room every 3 hours or so for each time Alena seemed hungry, and we'd go to breastfeed. It was so hard to see this new baby hooked up to so many wires and knowing that what she needed more than anything was to go home for rest and recovery!

Eventually, she was weaned off of the oxygen before being allowed to go home on March 8! We had to hurry to get her out of the NICU because of an impending snowstorm (of course)! What a happy day for us all, even though Mommy cried!

The last week or so has been a challenge in and of itself! Alena doesn't really subscribe to any set schedule and sometimes wants to feed for 3 hours straight during the wee hours of the morning! Daddy went back to work Sunday night, but Grandma Hawkins came to stay that night to help Mommy out (and we thank the Lord that she did). Tonight will really be the test as we will have no visitors staying overnight and it will just be Mommy and Alena.

Anyway, that's a quick synapsis of the last 2 weeks. We'll be posting again soon and keeping everyone up to date :) It's naptime for now!