Amy Holle

September 4, 2014

Boy, That Escalated Quickly!

…I mean, that really got out of hand fast! –Ron Burgundy

So goes Tyler’s birth story. I promise to be detailed without being graphic. (Mostly.)

Our unknown-gender-yet-to-be-named baby was due Monday, August 4th. No baby came on this day. We visited the doctor, who informed us we could schedule an induction later that week if we wished. I didn’t wish, but Eric was curious. We waited.

The next day, Tuesday, was the day teachers reported back to school. So, I went. And the next day! Wednesday I was feeling many things. Tired, not hungry, a little out of it, and trepidation regarding the now-scheduled induction for 5am on Thursday. I called the doctor to see if I could come in for a progress check and avoid the induction. We went in, and I was 4 cm. So, like any parents-to-be, we took that knowledge and went to happy hour. When we got home around 7:30, I was still feeling tired, not hungry, and a little out of it. With a stomach ache. We walked around the block. Eric made me ramen noodles (don’t judge him, it was my request). I watched Friends reruns.

At 9:30, convinced my issues were stemming from fear of the unwanted induction, Eric called the hospital to cancel. I kid you not, 5 minutes later, I had what I was certain was a contraction. Finally, my first one. Yeah! A few minutes later, another. Then a few more. At 10:30 they started to hurt. But the doctor is very clear that we shouldn’t call until the contractions are 1 minute long and 5 minutes apart, so being the rule-followers we are, we didn’t call. But Eric knew better, and he’s packing the car.

10:32. 10:38. Holy cow, we better call. 11:08, 11:13. We call, they say come in. 11:19, 11:24, 11:26. By now I’m on the floor, moaning/yelling/crying. This hurts WAY more than I anticipated. Eric is helping me with all the tricks we learned in birthing class. We make sure we have everything, say bye to Lilly, and get in the car.

The hospital is only 10 minutes away, but we managed to get pulled over going 60 in a 35. As the cop approaches the car, I give a good, loud moan (good timing). He immediately realizes I’m in labor and lets us go. We pull up to the emergency entrance, I collapse into a wheelchair, and off we go to the Center for Childbirth at Good Samaritan.

We are shown to our L&D room at 11:45 and meet our nurse, David. David, the 50-something male nurse, will be my most intimate healthcare provider on this momentous night. He checks me right away. Seven cm. I have another contraction and throw up from the pain. I ask for an epidural. Eric double checks with me because we were going to try to go without…nope, not going to happen. The anesthesiologist arrives two minutes later. It works right away, I don’t even feel the very next contraction. I have zero energy and I ask to go to sleep.

At 4:00am David checks on me. I’m 10 cm. But my water hasn’t broken. I ask to go back to sleep. David laughs and says he’ll come back soon. A little after 5:00am, David checks again. My water broke and I didn’t even know. It’s go time.

David coaches Eric and I on pushing. We practice and after only 4 practice pushes, David calls the doctor. Apparently I’m a very efficient pusher, and that epidural is amazing because I feel nothing except exhilaration. Dr. Burgess arrives, and I push 12 or so more times. I get an episiotomy (“sounds like raw chicken being cut with scissors,” says Eric) and one more push. IT’S A BOY we said, together. 8 lbs, 5.5 oz. 20 3/4″ long. 5:53am on 8/7/14.

Unbelievably amazing. Whoa. Wow. We have a SON! Eric cut the cord, and we both cried a lot. We didn’t name him right away. There was some negotiation for a couple of hours. Tyler Matthew Holle. It suits him.

Our scaly-handed, squished-nose bouncing baby boy!

He has Eric's huge feet. — He has Eric’s huge feet.

I was in labor for less than 9 hours and pushed for about 15 minutes. It was awesome. Really, it escalated quickly! We stayed in the hospital overnight and went home Friday afternoon when Tyler was 32 hours old. We love him.

July 30, 2014July 30, 2014

Chandler’s Nursery

We put off working on the nursery for awhile. It was for a lot of reasons, but mainly because I have the whole summer off, so there was no rush. My parents came out in July to help put the room together (don’t even ask about the Great Crown Moulding Debacle of 2014).

Eric and I wanted an outdoor/parks/map theme and decided on gray and green and yellow. This is the fruit of our labors, in pictures taken in poor lighting with my phone:

Heidi made these cute flags for our baby shower in Ohio!

I anticipate spending many nights in this deluxe glider recliner.

My mom made these based on a print we liked on Etsy!

When we take better photos, we’ll get the crown moulding in the shots!

July 26, 2014July 26, 2014

We Said We Wouldn’t, But We Did: Maternity Photo Shoot

I resisted the melodramatic urge to take professional maternity photos for many, many months. Why would I want these, later in my life? But as the weeks crept by and summer heated up, our hair got blonder and our skin got tanner. If there was ever a decent time to nab some cute bump photos, the time was now. Strangely/luckily, we know several professional photographers, many of whom dabble in the baby business. But Tara Harmon Low has been a friend of mine since I was twelve (she’s my pal Shannon’s older sister) and she lives conveniently down the road. Tara has a new baby herself so she’s definitely in the baby zone. At the last minute, Tara agreed to a quick session with us in Louisville. I wanted two things (besides Chandler, and for that matter, Eric) in the photos: Sweet Cow ice cream and Lilly.

Here are (just) 24 of our favorites, appearing in a slideshow format.

July 25, 2014

Quinoa: Glitter of the Kitchen

Why? No, not because Quinoa is flashy. Or the name of a Career Tribute. But because every time I cook with this wondergrain, it gets everywhere. Just as you find glitter two days later stuck to the back of your knee, I find uncooked quinoa under the coffeepot. Cooked quinoa glued to the tea towel. I’m a clean-as-you-go cook. No messy piles in the kitchen of dirty dishes and open bags of food for me. So how does this happen?! How does this tiny grain with its itty bitty blond curls take over our kitchen?

I needed to use up some corn on the cob, so I added it to the quinoa along with a can of black beans, a couple of sad garden tomatoes, wilted cilantro, and a small container of lime juice I squeezed recently for Nojitos. Also goat cheese, which should have been queso fresco, as if I had that just chilling in the cheese drawer. YUM.

Oh and Mom, those carrots you can see on the plate are the ones you left here. Grilled up great with goat cheese and dill!

July 24, 2014

The 12 Days of Waiting

Twelve days until Chandler is due. That is, of course, provided we make it until our due date. I thought I would have blogged so much more about being pregnant, but as it turned out, I didn’t have a whole lot to report. I feel spectacular, and Chandler is healthy. I don’t think anyone wants to read post after post about yoga, hiking, traveling, and eating donuts…right? As big of a deal as it was for us to [finally] get pregnant, pregnancy has been a breeze.

Not that I haven’t had my moments. Pre-pregnancy, Eric has known me to be laughing about something, and then it turns to tears, and back to laughing, and I’m not really ever sure why. Except when this happened a few weeks ago, I did know exactly why I couldn’t stop laugh-crying. Because I was so upset that once the baby came out I couldn’t put it back in. This struck me as so absurd/terrifying that I was stuck in a practically eternal loop of laughing and crying.

I think because getting pregnant was our focus for so long, it took me quite some time to accept actually being pregnant. I managed to hide it at work until almost 16 weeks. And because I never felt anything, sick or otherwise, I just had trouble physically feeling pregnant. I didn’t really start to embrace the whole situation until probably our 22-week ultrasound. So, I didn’t really start thinking about actually having the baby until…now?

Yes, we went to a birthing class. And a breastfeeding class. And took a tour. But tonight, we went to what Good Samaritan calls Labor Lab. We got an extensive rundown of positioning, the bathtub, the crazy bed with the birthing handlebar. And it occurred to me, tonight, OMIGOSH I will be back in here, in labor, very, very soon! I know it’s bizarre, but for the first time I really thought about what that will be like for us. Which room will be ours? What will I be wearing? Can I eat? Am I going to have a laugh-crying fit from the certain impending torturous pain?

Will I miss being pregnant? Yes, definitely. I’ll admit it, I love strangers stopping to talk to me and grocery store checkout people asking if I need help out to the car. I love having a completely different wardrobe comprised entirely of stretchy waistbands and dresses. I love, love, love feeling Chandler move. (The term “kick” is underrated. This child already has my freakish limb strength and Eric’s disturbing level of stamina.)

So now I have 12 days to get used to the idea of labor and delivery. While we were on the L&D floor, we saw a new family leaving to go home together. Mom being pushed in a wheelchair, and Dad pushing baby in a stroller. I peeked at the baby–so tiny, so new! I’ve held a thousand babies. I’ve changed newborn diapers. And still, my only thought was, OMIGOSH they send the baby home with us?!?!?! I guess I should start thinking about that, too…

July 21, 2014September 13, 2015

Dog Days

I’m 38 weeks pregnant and it’s a stagnant 96 degrees outside. So, yes, I’m sitting on the floor of our half-finished nursery at 1:24 pm eating ~~from~~ a quart of Sweet Cow cookies and cream.

I am blessed. I know this. I feel AWESOME. I can eat, sleep, exercise, socialize. Two weeks ago I measured at almost 2 cm, and I’m still there. Nary a contraction. Chandler is as active as mama (and papa), kicking and squirming and hiccuping all day and night. I want this week, or maybe the next two, to go on forever. Every day, I am aware of how easy life is right now. I can hike, go to yoga, go shopping, make phone calls, even work. Eric can go for a 28 mile trail run on a Sunday. (Not kidding, see below.)

Eric and Matt Trappe on on the Buchanan/Pawnee Pass loop.

Things are going to change. For the best, ever. We know that. But for now, Eric really enjoys getting up at 3:30am to go to the mountains instead of to feed a baby. And I really enjoy doing whatever I want whenever I feel like it. But I think Chandler knows that. The three of us are going to make the most of these next, last couple of weeks. Selfish? Maybe. Sane? I think so!

July 5, 2014

Angus, Three Ways

Sometimes you buy a 3-pound package of ground angus because it’s on Manager’s Special. Sometimes you freeze it. Sometimes you defrost it and eat it three nights in a row because it’s summer and the grill is your best friend. After the meat brick finally thawed, I cut it into twelve equal lumps to make us two sliders each for three nights. Combined with the random produce in our refrigerator, this is what we came up with:

goat cheese, arugula, red onion, and golden beets — goat cheese, arugula, red onion, golden beets, and stone ground mustard.

avocado, tomato, lime, cilantro, white cheddar, and a sample packet of green chile from the boulder bolder — avocado, tomato, cilantro, white cheddar, and a sample packet of green chile from the bolder boulder 10k in may, plus a side of grilled asparagus with lime.

"something light" at eric's request. goat cheese and a side of grilled zucchini. — “something light” at eric’s request. goat cheese, dijon mustard, and a side of grilled zucchini.

I am obsessed with golden beets. If they are not in your rotation, try them. OMG. Goat cheese makes them even tastier. Favorite side dish of the summer, hands down. I like grilling sliders over full-size burgers; somehow I’m less likely to overcook them. I put the thumbprint on top just like Bobby, Guy, and Martha all say to do, and it totally works to keep juices in and hockey pucks out.

June 19, 2014

Putting on the LB(D)s

I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this yet, but I have an incredible maternity wardrobe. I am so, so fortunate to be able to borrow from Katie and accept donations from lots of other women who are done-and-I-don’t-want-these-back. Partially due to the magic of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, and partially due to elastic waistbands, most of the clothing I’ve been able to wear as if it were made just for me. Jeans? 10 pairs. Shirts? 20. Dresses? 15, at least. There’s actually cute stuff hanging in my closet that I didn’t even get a chance to wear before I outgrew it/the seasons changed. Here are a few of the adorable little black dresses (LBDs) I’ve been able to rock this spring. (These photos are all at least a month old.)

#3 anytime...i LOVE this dress — #3 anytime…i LOVE this dress

For me, maternity clothes are fun. They are a colorful reminder of Chandler’s growth and movement. I am grateful to my wardrobe donors and look forward to sharing the wealth someday!

June 18, 2014

Summer Paleo Eats

Stephanie Taylor, I take your Italian Bake and raise you the Italian Grill.

Chicken and Veggies just grillin'... — chicken and veggies just grillin’…

...smothered in red sauce, mozz, parm, & fresh basil. — …smothered in red sauce, mozz, parm, & fresh basil.

Steph introduced us not only to Paleo, but also the Italian Bake–very similar to this set-up, except in the oven. The first time she made this delicious dinner for us, I was having a pregnant moment and ate sour cream and onion chips instead. I know I missed out, but it was just one of those days. Anyhow, we just happened to have all of these ingredients on hand, so there was dinner!

June 4, 2014

What the Kale?

The last few weeks have been crazy with the end of the school year and the beginning of summer, i.e. Cookout Season. I can’t even remember the last time I really made dinner, what with constantly meeting up with friends and being out of town. When we are home, we throw something on the grill. I must have had some kind of dinner aspirations last week, however, because there was a lovely, leafy bunch of kale in my refrigerator eyeing me every time I opened the door to refill my water (tanning in the backyard is quite dehydrating.) So, we threw the cheddar brats on the grill and I wondered what to do with nature’s superfood giving me the stinkeye from behind the fridge door.

I poked around and found half an onion, 6 mushrooms, half of a lemon, and an open Manager’s Special package of bacon (which means it’s the organic center cut good stuff we ~~don’t usually~~ absolutely never spend money on!) I sauteed the onions and mushrooms, tossed in the kale to wilt, doused it all in fresh lemon juice and salt & pepper, and crumbled some hot, crunchy bacon on top. Incredibly tasty. And satisfying, knowing that apparently kale is so good for you it can singlehandedly stop fracking, cure melanoma, and save baby seals.