The Brothers Meet for the First Time!

Landon came to the hospital on Sunday morning (thanks Grandma Donna & Pops) to meet his baby brother. When he came into the room with Sean, he ran straight to me and said "where is he?" He then looked at me, my shirt, and blanket, confused. He tried to lift my shirt (I guess he thought the baby would still be in or on my belly)...it was adorable. I pointed to the bassinet and said "look in there". He got his first glimpse of baby bro and immediately said..."I want to hold him!"

After holding him for a minute or two (see video below), Landon got down off of the bed and said "let's go home now". He wanted all of us to go home right away. It broke my heart that we couldn't do just that...but, we were home just about 24hrs later, thank goodness :)

Welcome Cohen Michael!

On Saturday September 6th, our second son arrived, just 2 days after his expected due date of September 4th. The last 3 weeks have been busy and tiring, but awesome and special every step of the way. Like when Landon was born (blog post here), here's a set of updates & stories I wanted to be sure I recorded and shared.

40 weeks pregnant!

Us...just minutes after Cohen was born!

Cohen's first photo 

All dressed up, and ready to go home!

Cohen's Birth Story
Real contractions started on Saturday morning at 7:30am. I woke up feeling fine, having had a great night's sleep the night before. When I got out of the shower, I felt my first 'real' contraction, got goosebumps, and instantly knew that this was the real deal (after having many contractions on Thursday and Friday that didn't feel anything like this one). For the next 2 hours or so, they came every 10-12 minutes. I sat comfortably in the rocker in Cohen's nursery, wrapped in a blanket, with plenty of water to drink, and a heating pad on my lower back. For some reason, Campbell's Chicken & Rice soup sounded really good, so Sean went to Safeway to pick me up a can. I ate soup and half a peanut butter sandwich at the dining room table with Landon, breathing through my contractions as they came. 

By 2pm, they were about 6 minutes apart and starting to get more painful, and a lot more intense. Sean called the hospital, and they urged us to "come on in"...so, we did. 

After saying goodbye to Landon (and crying like a baby afterward), we drove to the hospital. We arrived at Stanford at 3pm, and found out I was 4cm. They admitted us at 3:45, I got my IV, put on my awesome hospital gown with moons and stars on it, and said "Yes" when our nurse, Mari, offered the epidural. Got my epidural by 4:30, and it was a good thing because the anesthesiologist was called into an emergency c-section when he was finishing me up. He joked that it could have been 2hrs or more before he would have been able to come back to me...whew! Lucky us. 

Dr. Parman arrived at 5pm. She checked me (5cm), broke my water, and said that our boy had a "full head of hair" just like his brother! 

At 6:25pm, I was sitting pretty, no longer in pain, and watching college football with Sean. They checked me at 7:30, and I was only 6cm (bummer, as I thought I would be further along). Less than 90mins later, my nurse checked me again based on how I was acting, how Cohen was reacting to the contractions, and to our surprise I was complete...10cm and ready to push! Only, I WASN'T ready to push, yet. The epidural was only working on my right side, so I was in a lot of pain, and I wasn't MENTALLY ready to push. I remember how long I had to push with Landon, and wanted a few moments to "gear up" and get ready for the work ahead. My nurse and doctor were happy to let me "labor down" because the baby was doing fine. So, for nearly an hour Sean and I talked and breathed, and prepped...getting ready for the big debut. (If it were up to Sean, I would have just pushed him out...but, I knew I needed a little time, and I'm so so glad I got it). 

I started pushing at 10pm, and Cohen was out at 10:50pm! 16hrs of labor (compared to 37 with Landon) and 50mins of pushing (compared to 3hrs with Landon).

Was Cohen born "sunny side up"?
Yep! To our surprise, little man made his debut into the world face up...which is pretty uncommon, and supposedly *much* more painful. Good thing my epidural did its job!

Seriously, 8lbs 13oz?

Yes. We all expected an 8lb baby, but as soon as they put him on my belly Dr. Parman said, "I don't know...you might have a "Niner" there". She was almost right...little (big) man weighed in at 8lbs 130z, over a pound bigger than Landon and just about the same length (21+ inches). 

Who delivered Cohen? 

Dr. Mary Parman, the same doctor who was on call and delivered Landon 3 years ago! She, and our nurse Mari were fantastic: patient & understanding when they needed to be, and all-business and focused when they needed to be. Dr. Parman, Mari, Sean, and I were a great team! 

How did you choose his name? 

While on vacation in Mexico, I was poolside near a Canadian family with a small baby boy. His name was Cohen...and he was a doll!. I immediately liked the name. After doing a little research I learned that it is a very common Jewish last name, and growing in popularity as a first name in Canada, but still not very popular in the US. When I shared it with Sean, he immediately liked it. So, we sat on in a for a few months before deciding (for sure) that his name would be Cohen. Michael is middle name, which is the same as Sean's. 


Is it true that minutes after Cohen was born, Stacy said "I would do it again...like tomorrow!"?
Yes...to which Sean replied, "let's talk again a little later!" No joke...I felt great after Cohen was born. Exhausted certainly, but great! Like I was invincible, in control, and so overwhelmingly happy that I would do it again. So, I suppose we'll wait and see!

Me and my boys (Cohen is under Landon somewhere)

Seriously, it is like Cohen is Landon's long lost twin...just 3 years late!

Big open eyes

Landon, bed head, and baby brother

Little Brother is finally "out of Mommy's belly and living at our home" -Landon

This little one LOVES to snuggle.

...and, did I mention he has DIMPLES for days. Can't wait for his first smile!

Labor Day Weekend 2014

The weekend before Cohen made his debut, Sean and I tried to pack in as much 'only child' fun for Landon we could! Landon's school is closed every year on the Thursday and Friday before Labor Day weekend, making for a very long weekend with our little one. Last year, we went to Tahoe with the Iversons (super fun). This year, given I was 39 weeks pregnant, we needed to stay a little closer to home, so did daily adventures with our first born!

On Thursday, Landon and I were joined by Carlene & Ainsley, and Trish & Ella at Bumble in Los Altos. It is the CUTEST brunch spot, that is THE MOST family friendly restaurant I've ever been to! The food is delicious, fresh, and healthy, there is a big outdoor sandbox, a huge fish tank, and an on-site daycare/preschool/classroom, should you choose to have an "adults only" meal. Seriously, every downtown needs one (or FOUR) of these places!

Afterwards, I promised to take Landon to the Red Racer Hobby Shop (if he was a good boy at brunch). He loves this place, and got to race the cars (all by himself), learning all about the track, the different cars, and how to use the controllers.

On Friday, Sean took off work early and we took Landon miniature golfing for the first time! He loved it, and played all 18 holes! Whenever I would try to call it "putt putt" or "mini golf" Landon would correct me by saying, "It is just 'GOLF' Mama, it is not 'MINI GOLF'!" I guess to him, there's nothing miniature about 20 foot dragons, and windmills that are 5x his size! After putt-putt, I enjoyed an Icee (yum) and Landon & Dada enjoyed a tour around the arcade. He loved playing air hockey and riding the motorcycle.

On Saturday, Landon had his first scheduled playdate with a friend from school, Miles. His parents invited Landon over for a morning of fun, and Sean and I enjoyed a quiet morning, a nice breakfast, and a little shopping (bonus)! We owe Doug & Jeanie a playdate this Fall, for sure!

On Sunday, we went to our favorite beach, Capitola. We go at "toddler hour" which means we leave our house before 8:30am, get there by 9am, have NO trouble parking super close, and enjoy the first foggy hour on the beach without the crowds. As the fog burns off, and the large crowds start to form, we are usually ready to pack it up, grab a bite to eat, then head home! We beat the traffic both ays...I love "toddler time" :)

On Monday, we hit up Happy Hollow and to our surprise, we have a scared-ee cat on our hands now! He didn't want to ride the roller coaster (which he did enthusiastically as a newly 2 year old), nor the cars, nor the carousel! Sean and I were surprised, but I guess it is a common phase...here's hoping it doesn't last long! (Let's just say I'm glad we went to Disneyland when we did...as it would have been a MAJOR bummer if he were too "scared" to ride any rides there).

All that action over Labor Day Weekend, and no labor for this Mama! That's okay...Cohen took his time, and gave me my FULL four weeks off of work before he made his arrival on Saturday September 6th. Thanks for that buddy. Mama enjoyed her time off, and we all enjoyed our last weekend as a family of 3. More about *that* labor day coming soon...