Healing

So I'm in bed napping on my left side, in the same position I've been sleeping for months.  When I start to get stiff and ready to roll onto my right, out of habit, I reach my right hand across my mid-section to grab my watermelon of a belly and lift it over the top of me. 

But it's not there.  Nothing to grab but a soft postpartum pouch. 

I stop mid-roll and lay flat on my back and stretch my arms and legs in a way I haven't stretched for half a year.  Ah ceiling, it's so good to stare at you again!  Then I relax into a sprawl, like a Raggedy Ann doll on the floor, and drift back to sleep.   

I'm not pregnant anymore.

Sure it feels like I have twenty hemorrhoids and boobs full of rocks, but I can lay on my back again!! And on my stomach!!  Healing from a vaginal birth (and stage three tear) has been a walk in the park compared to the discomforts of my whole pregnancy.  And especially compared to recovering from my Cesarean two years ago, after which I couldn't even lay all the way down on a bed in any position for over a month.

It's been difficult to "take it easy" because... um... toddler, and because I feel pretty darn good.   Maybe I didn't realize how miserable I was until I wasn't. Or maybe you all knew how miserable I was because I complained so much...

Doing too much in the first week is catching up to me now and I'm needing to make myself relax, make sure I lay down more often and don't lift heavy things.   I'm looking forward to being back to one hundred percent, hopefully in a few weeks.

Anywhooo, that's an update on me and mine.

Josie weighed in at a whopping 8 lbs / 9 ounces today at her two-week well check... so she's doing pretty great too (that's birthweight + 1 lb / 5 ounces).

Some things for you preggos out there that you'll want to have ready at home for after baby comes:

• Colace or another OTC stool softener. 
• Cotton over-night maxi pads (I like Kotex because they use more cotton, I had issues with Always-brand after last birth)
• Witch Hazel (you can apply it directly to your pads and even freeze them)
• A squeeze/squirt bottle (your birth place should send you home with one)
• Epsom salt
• Coconut oil 
• Help lined up for things like laundry and cooking and dishes and errands (and your older kids if you have them). Whether it's hubby or family or friends, you'll need people in your corner who understand that resting and nursing and sleeping are the top priorities for mama right now.

Thanks for all the support on Top Baby Blogs!  You all are the best readers ever!