Just what I needed

Today was mama's turn at the doctor's office and though this usually isn't a fun event, I have actually been anxiously awaiting to find out my latest hemoglobin level and of course, I suppose, every first mom's biggest worry- to hear if my stitches are in fact normal.

The good news... my hemoglobin is 12! We havn't seen that number since before the pregnancy. Guess my latest pale pasty look is due only to lack of sunshine. I'm craving a beach day!

It was quite an experience to walk into the doctor's private sitting area with a baby slung over my shoulder, rather than with my big obvious belly. I sat and chatted with my sweet doctor for a few moments and was surprisingly very much encouraged- by a German man, go figure. He talked about how badly I tore, how my uterus wouldn't contract after the delivery, how much blood I had lost and so on. I was almost in tears when he gave me the compliment that I must have really wanted to breast-feed badly and must have worked really hard at it, because other women going through such a complicated recovery would have been too sick and tired to feed the baby. I had never thought twice about it, I just did it every time Bo brought her to me in bed. I was really encouraged by this. His exact words to describe my delivery were, "extraordinary" and "very troublesome." Remember he was not the actual doctor who delivered Katy Jo, he was however, my Ob Gyn through the whole pregnancy. He had received a fax from the hospital stating the details of my delivery. I am so thankful for his words of encouragement, today that was just what I needed.

To ease your mind, my stitches are normal- just a very big tear, and I should be feeling all the way better in two months. It was also an emotional moment when he asked if I had help at home. These past few days Bo has spent most of his time cleaning/painting our old apartment. I have quickly learned to be very proficient with doing things around the house with one hand and Katy Jo in the other arm. Last night was the first night I made dinner (we have been blessed by lots of meals brought over from friends) tried to pack and breast-feed almost simultaneously. ha! So... it was a good feeling to be able to answer that we are soon headed to the states where we will have help.

Here is my Katy Jo sleeping before we headed to our appointment this morning.