Apples to...Oranges?

I have always heard that every pregnancy is different, as is every baby. But while I "knew" it in my head, I did not necessarily believe it would be true for me. Not only that, I was (am!) slightly frustrated that things were not more similar. I was counting on "knowing" what I was doing this time. But no, this time, there were different curve balls thrown. There were few similarities at all!

Planned pregnancy?

• Ryleigh- Yes! I got off birth control, carefully avoiding pregnancy for three months to make sure all the hormones were out of my body. I charted my ovulation all three months, and "tried" on the third month. Sure enough after waiting in anticipation of a missed period, I tested pregnant two days before my expected period, and we were both very excited to become parents.
• Wesley- Umm, kind of....? I had just gotten off my birth control, and no, we were not super careful. I definitely did not follow my ovulation or my cycles. I realized after being five days late that we were pregnant. We knew we wanted another baby, he just came a little earlier than anticipated. Our initial feelings were of shock, then nerves, and then of course, excitement.

Morning sickness?

• Ryleigh- I felt good for about a week. From then on, it was miserable. Morning sickness showed up fast and furious and lasted well into the second trimester. I lived off saltines and ginger ale (and TCBY yogurt) and any funky smells sent me running to the toilet. My best friend was Dramamine, which would knock me out for half the day, allowing my stomach to calm down. Don't get me wrong though; the sickness was not just in the morning. It was miserable all around.
• Wesley- I did get sick, but it did not start until later in the first trimester (around week 8 or 9) and was not near as severe. There were a couple rough days, but in general, once I got it out, I was fine for the rest of the day. There were a few isolated sick days during the second trimester, but nothing compared to my first pregnancy.

Worst puking moment?

• Ryleigh- Gosh, there were a lot of puking moments. Our entire vacation in Mexico, running to the bathroom at work and then curling up in a ball under my desk wishing to die, out in public places...often. I think the worst was one day after feeling incredibly nauseous and knowing I needed to eat something, I had gone through Chick-fil-A and got a chicken sandwich. While eating and driving down the highway, I started puking while driving, barely making it into a bag. Fun, fun.
• Wesley- The funny thing about my puking with Wesley, was actually Ryleigh! She was often around, and began imitating me, pretending to puke into her own little potty. Awkward! This was especially funny when I puked on the airplane on our way to Minnesota for the wedding-- me puking in the airplane bag, and Ryleigh imitating "Mommy sick." I think Jesse wanted to crawl under the seat.

Tired?

• Ryleigh- Not that I can remember. I know I slept a lot in the beginning, but it was more because of the Dramamine that knocked me out to stop the puking.
• Wesley- YES! I'm not sure if it was because of the pregnancy, chasing my active two-year-old, the move, or all of the above, but there were days I literally could not lift myself off the couch to get into bed at night. I could fall asleep anytime, anywhere.

Cravings?

• Ryleigh- TCBY yogurt; either a chocolate parfait with strawberries or a chocolate shiver with Reese's. And yes, they knew me at the drive-thru window. Anything chocolate and sweet was tasty during my pregnancy with her.
• Wesley- I don't think I had "cravings" per se, but when I wanted a snack, I tended to head more towards salty things, like chips and dip or peanuts. Don't get me wrong, I still had my share of sweets, this is me we are talking about, just not quite as often.

Belly pop?

• Ryleigh- I filled out throughout my entire belly and hip area, starting around 16-weeks.
• Wesley- Though I had started to get a little chubby, the belly officially POPPED, straight out, around 23-weeks.

Weight gain?

• Ryleigh- Lost a lot at the beginning, due to sickness. It all caught up to me in the third trimester though, and I gained 26-lbs, right on target!
• Wesley- Lost a little in the beginning, but not much. Gained a good amount in the beginning of the third trimester but it slowed down towards the end. Total weight gain was around 13-lbs. (I attribute the lack of weight gain on a crazy summer, including the move, as well as the added exercise benefit of chasing a toddler day in and day out.)

Maternity clothes?

• Ryleigh- Started wearing the "balloon" shirts around 16-weeks, shopped only at the maternity stores, and bought a lot of new pants, shirts, and skirts. I was working in the office more, but in general I liked buying the maternity clothes, because I wanted everyone to know I was pregnant. Looking back, they were completely unflattering, and often made me look huge! Not to mention they were just ugly in general.
• Wesley- I avoided as long as I could. I ended up buying a pair of jeans for every day wear and wore a lot of t-shirts. I did have to buy a few real maternity clothes for the wedding festivities, but other than that, I avoided at all costs. I even had a few regular pants and shorts that were not maternity, that if I pushed them low enough, I could wear throughout the entire pregnancy.

Heartburn/ Acid reflex?

• Ryleigh- YES. Tums sat by my bed every night and were used all the time.
• Wesley- YES. Tums sat by my bed every night and were used all the time. One of the few things that was the same. And if the old wives' tale is true, the indication of heart burn and reflex did in fact signal a lot of hair for both my babies. They both came out with a head full of hair.

Baby in the womb?

• Ryleigh- Active ALL. THE. TIME. Strong kicks. Often got the hiccups. That girl has been active from day one!
• Wesley- Definite patterns of actions. Strong kicks. Responded to music in the car and big sister's shrieks and laughter. Hiccups all the time! For the record, both of my babies still get the hiccups easily and often.

Baby preparation?

• Ryleigh- All I thought about the entire pregnancy was the baby. I read all the books. We registered for baby products and had several baby showers. We had more than enough "stuff" for her, and did not have to hardly buy anything ourselves. We talked about her all the time. The nursery, though it went through several changes, was still ready to go months before she arrived.
• Wesley- The pregnancy kind of took a back seat to the rest of life, including caring for Ryleigh, moving, working, and everything else! We did not need many of the big things we needed for Ryleigh (furniture, baby gear, car seats, etc), but needed all new clothes, decor, etc. Because of the move, we did not even start setting up the nursery or deciding what to do in there until a couple of months before he was due, and it was not finished until a few weeks before his birth.

Daddy's feelings and involvement?

• Ryleigh- Very excited right off the bat, though he had to find out the sex to "prepare himself, in case the baby was a girl." Sure enough, she was! I had still planned on going pretty neutral with everything, but oddly, he insisted some things go girly. Jesse loved sitting next to me on the couch at night and keeping his hand on my belly. He often asked about the baby and came with me to a lot of my doctor's visits, never missing an ultrasound. Nervous about the delivery and bringing her home, and super gentle handling her.
• Wesley- Shocked right off the bat, but much more open to the idea than I was at first. He was calm throughout the entire pregnancy and did not make as big a fuss about feeling movements. He was very excited about "getting a boy" and would often make comments about "the boy." Because of his early move, he did not get to go to many doctor's appointments, and actually had to miss one of the ultrasounds. During the actual labor and delivery, he was much more laid back, knowing what to expect, and has also not been so nervous handling Wesley.

Early signs of labor?

• Ryleigh- No cervical change until the 39-week. I had a few hours throughout the week of intense, non-stop cramping, but no contractions coming and going.
• Wesley- Pains very low in my pelvis, and already dilated and effaced at my 33-week appointment.

Due date?

• Ryleigh- My original due date was May 25. The doctor stripped my membranes two days before I was due, and Ryleigh arrived on May 24, 2007, one day before her due date.
• Wesley- My original due date was October 6. My body went into spontaneous labor and my water broke on its own, September 20, and Wesley arrived on September 21, 2009, sixteen days (about 2.5 weeks) before his due date.

Labor experience?

• Ryleigh-After the doctor stripped my membranes in the afternoon, I began to have contractions throughout the evening. The contractions continued to get stronger and closer together, and we finally went to the hospital in the middle of the night. I got sick during labor, received an epidural, the doctor had to break my water, and I only pushed about 15 minutes. There was a slight scare when her heartbeat dropped, and they realized the cord was stuck somewhere; though her right clavicle was broken during the delivery, everything else was smooth sailing. Total length of labor, from the time contractions started in the afternoon of the 23rd, to her birth on the morning of the 24th: about 16 hours. To read all the details, remember this post.
• Wesley- My water broke while sitting on the couch at home, though no contractions came during the entire trip to Houston and even after settling in at the hospital. Finally, pitocin was ordered and the contractions picked up. Two epidurals and a few hours later, after only pushing through a few contractions, Wesley made his grand debut. Total length of labor, from the time my water broke to his birth at 1:03am: a little over 7 hours (only 2 hours with contractions). To read all the details, see this post.

Baby size?

• Ryleigh- 7 lb 4 oz, 20.25 in
• Wesley- 6 lb 9 oz, 19,5 in (at Wesley's 2-week check up, on his actual due date, he weighed exactly 7 lb...still smaller than Ryleigh was when she was born)

Length of hospital stay?

• Ryleigh- We checked in around 1:00 am the morning of Thursday, May 24th, and were released mid-morning on Saturday the 26th. (~56 hours total)
• Wesley- We checked in around 7:30 pm on Sunday, Sept 20, and were released at noon on Tuesday, the 22nd. (~36 hours total)

Mommy's recovery?

• Ryleigh- I was pretty sore for a couple days, walking very slowly and was all-around hesitant to do much of anything for awhile. I had an episiotomy, and was very nervous about doing anything that could hurt the site. I was very gentle with my body for quite awhile.
• Wesley- Some soreness, but not too bad. The worst pain came from sitting on our new kitchen chairs that aren't quite broken in yet- ha! This time I tore on my own, though it was a small tear. I was not as scared of hurting myself, and allowed myself to get back to normal activity much sooner.

First major meltdown?

• Ryleigh- Mom and Julie came over, Julie had a cute new outfit for Ryleigh, and while we were in her nursery changing her into the new outfit, I just lost it. I "didn't know what I was doing, was tired, etc." It was at that moment I realized it was okay to let other people help me. :) Right, Mom?
• Wesley- Mom had come to help from the beginning this time, and on our first real outing (lunch at Chick-fil-A), I suddenly got emotional and cried right there at the table. For some reason, his birth seemed somewhat anti-climatic, like no one cared (though I know they did), and I was very emotional about whether or not people cared about him as much as I did. For the record, hormones and lack of sleep do crazy things to the sanity of the mind.

Baby temperaments?

• Ryleigh- Agitated and irritable. Ryleigh needed more attention right from the start, and would often cry and cry for no reason. I turned into the human pacifier because often the only way I knew to get her to stop crying was to feed her. She was never one for cuddling, and to this day, the only time she stops long enough to sit still and cuddle is when she is sick. That girl is always on the move!
• Wesley- Laid back and quiet for the first few weeks. Seriously, we never heard a peep out of him; and even when we did, it was more of a grunt than a cry. He fooled us though, because a few weeks later, he found his lungs and let us know very quickly that his little tummy gave him grief, with both reflex and vomiting after feedings, and gas and constipation a few hours after feeding. He is still a cuddler though, curling up on my chest and tucking his head up under my chin. Hopefully once we get his tummy under control, he will be a laid back baby once again.

WHEW! Well there you have it. I don't know if all the differences are due to the opposite sex (girl verses boy), or whether personality plays such a big role, or pregnancies and babies really are so different. I guess if we ever decide to have a third one, he/she will provide more insight. For now, I'm just happy that both my babies are healthy, happy little ones. And though there are days when I wish I did know what to expect, I'm thankful for a little variety as well.

On a side note, I don't really want to compare these two forever or deal with sibling rivalry, but it is hard to not compare! It happens automatically, thinking about milestones and wondering how much #2 will be like #1. I just have to be careful when they get older to not voice those comparisons to them!! Ryleigh does not need any additional reason to feel competitive...!!