Sam and Wil
Archives
Blogroll
Papa was a Rolling Stone
It was the 3rd of September*……and our second son was born.
Wilson Leon Brunner was born after a relatively fast and easy labor around 4:15 pm. He’s 9 pounds 7 oz, 23 inches long. The midwives were joking that he already looks like a 2-month old. We don’t yet have any great pictures of the boy, but here’s something to tide you all over:
It's Wil!
We were able to have a really wonderful labor and delivery at the Brooklyn Birthing Center, attended by two really positive and fun midwives and our very helpful doula. We had a relaxing and homey recovery there for a little while, then spent the night back home in our own bed. Fortunately, Wil was tired out by his adventure and we got a couple nice blocks of sleep. Todd and I are both struggling with the reality of the sleep deprivation that is just beginning, but I know it will be easier when I’m more physically fit and can help out. Sam checked my belly this morning and has already asked me if I can run with him again!
We were able to throw together a pretty great day for Sam last minute and it didn’t seem like he was too traumatized by us being gone. First one of our friends took Sam and his buddy to meet some other friends at a gigantic portion of Brooklyn Bridge Park set up perfectly for toddlers–a slide area, a huge sandbox area and a splash park. They came home, we put Sam down for his nap, and our friends Chad, Mike and Christie hung out with Sam the rest of the day until we could make it home. Sam seemed to love the new adult attention and they built some great Lego vehicles.
Posted by Kate
* “Papa was a Rolling Stone” by The Temptations
Posted in Uncategorized
Not a hurricane after all
Irene passed through last night as a Tropical Storm. The rain and wind were still incredible, but not nearly the beating we expected….and certainly not the storm it could have been according to the news and the weather forecasts. There are some downed trees in the neighborhood and some of our friends discovered leaky roofs, but everything seems okay here. And still no hints that Squishy is on his way.
The Aftermath
Caught in the web of destruction
Posted by Kate
Hurricane?!
The earthquake was really nothing–I and all the people with me didn’t even notice it and there was really no serious damage done. It felt like the rumbling from the subways –some of you may remember this from the regular shaking in our last apartment.
But now……Hurricane Irene is set to hit New York. We live up on a hill (near the highest point in Brooklyn), and our windows are protected from the wind so we aren’t too worried about our apartment. Our building doesn’t even seem to have a problem with flooding in the basement. The problem for us could be downed trees and utility outages. We are well stocked with food, water and flashlights, as are our neighbors. The nearest hospital’s labor and delivery is only 10 blocks away and we have lots of help within a couple blocks in the event of labor during the storm (including 2 seasoned doulas and many caretakers for Sam). The “fight or flight” response tends to shut down labor in stressful situations so we’re banking on there being no action until after the weekend.
We’ll of course keep our friends and families posted when we can, but cell phone service is expected to be busy. If there IS a power outage, we’ll be trying to preserve the batteries on our electronics so please don’t expect any calls or emails until this blows over. The good news is, the forecast Monday is warm and sunny!
Posted by Kate
Posted in Uncategorized
Children’s School Birthday
Sam’s birthday was a while ago, but we were just given a few photos taken by his daycare teacher, Valeri. Here are some pictures showing Sam and his classmates celebrating his 3rd birthday (with cupcakes, of course):
Posted by Todd
Earthquakes and Horizontal Babies
Yesterday was an exciting day for us and not necessarily for good reasons. First, we survived Brooklyn’s first earthquake in 60 years. Kate, unfortunately, was walking at ground level and didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary. I was at my work desk and the first rumbles felt just like a subway passing underneath, a common experience except when you’re sitting on the 9th floor. It was only when the intensity of the shaking increased that my coworkers and I realized something strange was going on. We just figured something had gone horribly wrong with the construction in the neighborhood. It wasn’t until someone checked their Twitter account that we found out we’d just experienced an earthquake. Though it was over before we knew what it was and the worst damage we faced (thankfully) was a pen rolling to the floor, it was actually a bit exciting to experience something I’d previously only heard stories about.
Earthquake!
Our second bit of excitement involved Kate’s most recent trip to the midwife. A routine check of the baby’s position (which, in previous visits, had been head-down-and-ready-for-action) showed him horizontal (or transverse). This was very bad news. If Kate were to go into labor, not only would we have to give birth in a hospital instead of the birthing center, but the delivery would need to be via c-section. Adding to the good news was the fact that the delivery rooms at our preferred hospital had flooded that morning and they weren’t admitting patients. Kate was sent home with advice to do nothing that would encourage labor other than a few baby positioning exercises, and a prescription for an ultrasound to check the baby’s position the next morning. She spent the evening resting between bouts of supporting herself on all 4s (harder than it sounds when you’re pregnant). This afternoon we headed out to Staten Island hospital to get an ultrasound and meet with its resident Master of Baby Positioning. As it turns out, that meeting never happened as the ultrasound showed #2 son back in position and ready for birth!
Transverse Baby
Needless to say, we’re hoping the final remaining days until Squishy is born pass with much less drama!
Posted by Todd
Super pregnant
Somehow it seems like I’m much larger than other women I know that are pregnant. My belly measures the right size and I have gained an okay amount of weight, but somehow the shape and position of my belly makes it seem bigger. I’m definitely ready for this baby to come!
Kate with Squishy at 37 weeks
For the brave, we also updated the bare belly shot under About Todd and Kate.
Posted by Kate
Posted in Uncategorized
Looking back
Todd and I have been reminiscing and looking back at pictures and videos of Sam to try and remember what this new baby will be like. We’ve also been using them as a tool to prepare Sam for the newborn phase. Last night we stumbled upon a video of us talking to Sam at dinner and trying to decipher what he’s saying and it still cracks us up. He’s so patient as we try and figure out what he’s saying!
Click here for post of Sam chatting at dinner at about 19 months old.
The funniest part, one that didn’t come through in the post at the time, is that this is one is a series of six separate videos from this same meal, totaling about 20 minutes of footage. The topics vary, as conversations can with a child, but each is equally hilarious.
Sam still talks nonstop when he’s in the right mood. I took him to my midwife appointment yesterday and he was chatting with the nurse for at least 5 minutes before I finally told her she might be in for a long day if she let’s the conversation go on. He’s started to enact situations with his toys when he plays alone, too, but we have yet to get those fabulous conversations on video. Now that we are done with our apartment renovations and are hunkering down waiting for this baby, we’ll have more time to post about our lives again….if anyone is still reading.
Posted by Kate
Posted in Uncategorized
Almost done!
It often seems like everyone likes the pregnant lady. Strangers start up conversations all the time, and I have more people hold the elevator and offer me seats. Unfortunately, it’s been a very hot summer in New York and I’ve found that as it’s gotten brutally hot for everyone, people are a lot less likely to give up seats on the subway. Several times, another passenger who is standing is incensed enough to talk loudly enough about it to embarrass someone into giving me a seat.
I now haven’t ridden the subway for 2 weeks……a couple weeks ago I had “false labor”, but it sure felt like the real thing. After about 8 hours of discomfort that I wasn’t sure was anything, I finally realized I was feeling worse and it turned to obvious contractions so I ended up in the hospital with an IV (this is most often caused by dehydration). It was actually a very pleasant hospital–the triage “bed” was seriously uncomfortable but the doctors and nurses kept me informed brought me juice and a lunch left over from a patient that was discharged. The problem was that I was too early to deliver at the birthing center and really didn’t want to deliver a “preemie”. So 2 liters or fluids and about 24 hours of nearly constant laying down and the contractions slowed quite a bit. For about a week after that, I couldn’t stand or walk for very long or I’d get more contractions, sometimes pretty close together. I’m not prescribed bedrest (especially now that I’m at 37 weeks and considered full-term labor) but I am generally taking it easy. I work from home a couple days a week and drive a lot more than I used to. It would be nice if Squishy came early, but even if he doesn’t, at least I know we’re in the home stretch!
This false labor was quite a wake up call. We didn’t have ANY clothes washed for the baby, no diapers, no bag packed for labor/recovery, Sam was not yet moved to his big bed (more on that in another post–Sam now has his own room!), we had only tentatively lined up our plan for babysitters while I’m away, and we had only basic conversations with Sam about how we might have to rush out when Squishy is ready to be born. Now we are ready! …..except we’re still changing our minds about Squishy’s post-birth name, but I’m okay waiting until after we get a chance to see him. That’s how we picked Samson Thomas from our “short list” of names, too.
Posted by Kate
Posted in Uncategorized
Brunners in Wisconsin
In June we decided to try and squeeze in one more trip to Wisconsin before the new babe arrives (and to take advantage of our built-in family babysitters so that Kate and I could get a night to ourselves). As usual, it seemed like too short of a trip, but we managed to see just about everyone on our list.
Kate and I had one night to ourselves which we spent out to dinner at Roots, catching a movie at The Downer theater, staying in a room at the Knickerbocker, walking the lake front, and getting breakfast at Beans and Barley.
You can see photos from our trip by clicking the picture below:
Brunners in Wisconsin
Posted by Todd
