The holiday season sure has a whole new meaning to it this year now that we have Drew in our lives!
Mom, Mama, Drew and Jack
the adventures of 2 boys and their moms
Monday, November 29, 2010
Thanksgiving Card
Since we have a little man to show off this year, we decided to send out Thanksgiving Cards. Here is the card we made:
And the collage picture that we put on the inside:
Friday, November 26, 2010
{This Moment}
A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week.
A simple, special, extraordinary moment.
A moment I want to pause, savor and remember
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Monday, November 22, 2010
Thank You and Announcements
Being the crafty Moms that we like to be, we made our own Thank You cards and Birth Announcements to celebrate the birth of our baby! We had the announcements all made ahead of time and we just had to add the picture and stats on the inside.
Here is our Thank You:
our Birth Announcement:
We have also made Thanksgiving cards, but Little Man isn't cooperating for pics, so we'll save that one for a later post.
We are still so in love!!!
Here is our Thank You:
our Birth Announcement:
and the picture we used in the Birth Announcement:
We have also made Thanksgiving cards, but Little Man isn't cooperating for pics, so we'll save that one for a later post.
We are still so in love!!!
Friday, November 19, 2010
{This Moment}
A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week.
A simple, special, extraordinary moment.
A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Amazing....
According to our pediatrician, Drew is amazing - we have to agree!! We took him for his 2 week appt today and he is back up to his birth weight and then some. He also has already grown 1 1/4 inches. He weighed 6lb 13 oz. Our little man is growing so fast. We told him he needs to stop! He checked out perfectly and that is all we can ask for!
It truly has been an amazing (almost) 2 weeks with our little guy. We just can't get enough of him and we love being his Moms!
It truly has been an amazing (almost) 2 weeks with our little guy. We just can't get enough of him and we love being his Moms!
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Monday, November 15, 2010
400th Post
This is our 400th post!!! It is nice to finally be Mamas 400 posts after beginning our blog! It certainly makes the 4 years of TTC all worth it!
I took Drew to the Doctor's office who got us pregnant. I figured that they worked just about as hard as we did for this little man and they needed to see the fruits of their labor! They were all so happy that we stopped in and all took turns holding him and loving on him!
MJ had to go back to work today and it was a bummer. We both missed her lots and lots! My parents took this week off from work, so my Mom will come over for a few hours each day which is so nice!
We can't wait for next week - Thanksgiving will be so special this year! Having Drew brings a whole new meaning to being thankful!
I took Drew to the Doctor's office who got us pregnant. I figured that they worked just about as hard as we did for this little man and they needed to see the fruits of their labor! They were all so happy that we stopped in and all took turns holding him and loving on him!
MJ had to go back to work today and it was a bummer. We both missed her lots and lots! My parents took this week off from work, so my Mom will come over for a few hours each day which is so nice!
We can't wait for next week - Thanksgiving will be so special this year! Having Drew brings a whole new meaning to being thankful!
Sunday, November 14, 2010
First Week
We have survived our first week at home with our little man. We are so smitten with him and in many ways it seems like we have had him with us for more than just a week. We can't believe how much he changes each and every day. He is already growing and changing to quickly for our liking.
Breastfeeding got off to a rocky start, but thanks to a wonderful visiting nurse who came to the house on Tuesday, he is now feeding like a champ! It was great to have her come and spend time with us and give us some tips and tricks for feeding Drew. He is eating every three hours and I am pumping with every other feed as well to make sure my supply is good. In addition to feeding him, I have also been able to freeze 5 oz of milk a day.
MJ has to go back to work tomorrow and we are all very sad about that. Luckily she only has to work this week and Monday of next week and then she has the rest of Thanksgiving week off. She already told Drew that he couldn't do anything cute while she was gone and that he couldn't grow any more either. We will both be anxiously awaiting her return tomorrow afternoon.
Of course, we need to share a couple of pics as well:
Breastfeeding got off to a rocky start, but thanks to a wonderful visiting nurse who came to the house on Tuesday, he is now feeding like a champ! It was great to have her come and spend time with us and give us some tips and tricks for feeding Drew. He is eating every three hours and I am pumping with every other feed as well to make sure my supply is good. In addition to feeding him, I have also been able to freeze 5 oz of milk a day.
MJ has to go back to work tomorrow and we are all very sad about that. Luckily she only has to work this week and Monday of next week and then she has the rest of Thanksgiving week off. She already told Drew that he couldn't do anything cute while she was gone and that he couldn't grow any more either. We will both be anxiously awaiting her return tomorrow afternoon.
Of course, we need to share a couple of pics as well:
We can't believe we are lucky enough to be his Mom and Mama!!!
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Birth Story
Since our little man is sleeping with MJ at the moment, I'm going to try to get the birth story written down before I forget......
We went into the hospital on Thursday, Nov 4 to be induced. We arrived at about 8:30 in the morning and I was promptly hooked up to the NST machine to monitor the baby. After a 1/2 hour on the machine, they checked me and I was 1.5cm dilated and 60% effaced. So, they started me on a suppository to ripen my cervix which meant I had to be monitored for the next 2 hours. At this point, I had an hour "free" to wander the hospital, get some fresh air, etc. My mom came to see us and we had some lunch and got some fresh air.
Then began our next cycle - 1/2 hour of monitoring, bathroom break, suppository, 2 hours of monitoring and then an hour free. Of course, baby wouldn't cooperate with the monitor as usual, so it was more like 4 hours before we got a break. I started some slight contractions during this second round. During our break, we went to get some fresh air and did a few laps around the hospital to try and get things moving along.
My parents came to visit after dinner and we started our third round of monitoring and ripening. I started to have much more regular contractions at this point and they were lasting 40 - 50 seconds and about 2 minutes apart. We got our hour off around 10:30PM and went to do some more laps around the hospital. My contractions were strong enough at this point that I stopped to breathe through them each time I had one.
We headed back to the room and I was checked again. At this point, I was 3cm and 70% effaced. They told me that they could either break my water, start pitocin, or let me sleep for the evening. Since it was close to midnight, we decided to go ahead and try to get some sleep. They also started an IV and some antibiotics since I was group B strep positive. I am very thankful that we decided to get some sleep even if it wasn't the most restful.
Friday morning, the doc came in and checked me and I was 4cm and 90% effaced. She broke my water at that point. We had some breakfast while we waited for them to move us to a "real" room since we were now considered in active labor. At 10:30 we got ourselves all moved and they started pitocin at the slowest drip possible. My contractions got more regular and stronger at this point.
At about noon time my contractions started to get much worse and closer together. It wasn't long until the contractions began to come very strong and very close together. They were having trouble keeping the baby's heartbeat on the monitor so the doc same in to check me and put an internal monitor on. At this point she said I was 6cm. At this point the contractions were almost unbearable. I was completely in my own world and looking back, I am amazed at how my mind and body just went to another place as I labored.
After about 20 minutes of feeling like the contractions were going to kill me I remember saying to the nurse, "I think I just pushed a little." She told me to listen to my body and push if that was what I needed to do. Before I knew it, the doctor was there and I was pushing. I remember almost feeling relief during the pushing. To me it didn't hurt like the contractions had just before and I had a bit of a break between the contractions. After about 20 minutes and a half dozen or so pushes, the baby was crowning. The doctor told me to stop pushing and I remember trying to hold back when all of a sudden the baby literally came flying out. I heard everyone around the bed say "Whoa!" As he flew out of me and on to the bed. MJ said he literally flew out, flipped and bounced on the bed! We always joked that this baby was going to come out running! I heard choruses of "It's a BOY!" and couldn't believe that we had our baby boy!
He wasn't crying right away and I found out afterwards that he had the cord wrapped three times around his neck and also around his arm and elbow. MJ was able to cut the cord and then Drew was given to me. It was the most amazing feeling to finally have my son on my chest. He stayed there for over an hour when I finally gave him up to let the nurse weigh and measure him and do all of the newborn checks. I love that they gave us that uninterrupted time together before doing all of his measurements.
By 4:00, I was in the shower and having lunch. Drew checked out perfectly and had already had his first bath. We were already madly in love with our little man. I couldn't believe how quickly things progressed once I started to really be in labor. My mom was the same way and she warned me that I would be as well - she was right. My parents and MJ were all there for the delivery and I wouldn't have had it any other way!
We found out on Sunday from the midwife that Drew was in quite a bit of distress during labor. His heart rate was low and not recovering and it is a good thing that I delivered quickly. She said that it was a good thing that the doctor who delivered him was there. I'm glad I had no idea during the birth that he was having so much trouble. Despite this, he has checked out perfectly ever since - and of course, we think he is absolutely perfect!
What an amazing experience!
We went into the hospital on Thursday, Nov 4 to be induced. We arrived at about 8:30 in the morning and I was promptly hooked up to the NST machine to monitor the baby. After a 1/2 hour on the machine, they checked me and I was 1.5cm dilated and 60% effaced. So, they started me on a suppository to ripen my cervix which meant I had to be monitored for the next 2 hours. At this point, I had an hour "free" to wander the hospital, get some fresh air, etc. My mom came to see us and we had some lunch and got some fresh air.
Then began our next cycle - 1/2 hour of monitoring, bathroom break, suppository, 2 hours of monitoring and then an hour free. Of course, baby wouldn't cooperate with the monitor as usual, so it was more like 4 hours before we got a break. I started some slight contractions during this second round. During our break, we went to get some fresh air and did a few laps around the hospital to try and get things moving along.
My parents came to visit after dinner and we started our third round of monitoring and ripening. I started to have much more regular contractions at this point and they were lasting 40 - 50 seconds and about 2 minutes apart. We got our hour off around 10:30PM and went to do some more laps around the hospital. My contractions were strong enough at this point that I stopped to breathe through them each time I had one.
We headed back to the room and I was checked again. At this point, I was 3cm and 70% effaced. They told me that they could either break my water, start pitocin, or let me sleep for the evening. Since it was close to midnight, we decided to go ahead and try to get some sleep. They also started an IV and some antibiotics since I was group B strep positive. I am very thankful that we decided to get some sleep even if it wasn't the most restful.
Friday morning, the doc came in and checked me and I was 4cm and 90% effaced. She broke my water at that point. We had some breakfast while we waited for them to move us to a "real" room since we were now considered in active labor. At 10:30 we got ourselves all moved and they started pitocin at the slowest drip possible. My contractions got more regular and stronger at this point.
At about noon time my contractions started to get much worse and closer together. It wasn't long until the contractions began to come very strong and very close together. They were having trouble keeping the baby's heartbeat on the monitor so the doc same in to check me and put an internal monitor on. At this point she said I was 6cm. At this point the contractions were almost unbearable. I was completely in my own world and looking back, I am amazed at how my mind and body just went to another place as I labored.
After about 20 minutes of feeling like the contractions were going to kill me I remember saying to the nurse, "I think I just pushed a little." She told me to listen to my body and push if that was what I needed to do. Before I knew it, the doctor was there and I was pushing. I remember almost feeling relief during the pushing. To me it didn't hurt like the contractions had just before and I had a bit of a break between the contractions. After about 20 minutes and a half dozen or so pushes, the baby was crowning. The doctor told me to stop pushing and I remember trying to hold back when all of a sudden the baby literally came flying out. I heard everyone around the bed say "Whoa!" As he flew out of me and on to the bed. MJ said he literally flew out, flipped and bounced on the bed! We always joked that this baby was going to come out running! I heard choruses of "It's a BOY!" and couldn't believe that we had our baby boy!
He wasn't crying right away and I found out afterwards that he had the cord wrapped three times around his neck and also around his arm and elbow. MJ was able to cut the cord and then Drew was given to me. It was the most amazing feeling to finally have my son on my chest. He stayed there for over an hour when I finally gave him up to let the nurse weigh and measure him and do all of the newborn checks. I love that they gave us that uninterrupted time together before doing all of his measurements.
By 4:00, I was in the shower and having lunch. Drew checked out perfectly and had already had his first bath. We were already madly in love with our little man. I couldn't believe how quickly things progressed once I started to really be in labor. My mom was the same way and she warned me that I would be as well - she was right. My parents and MJ were all there for the delivery and I wouldn't have had it any other way!
We found out on Sunday from the midwife that Drew was in quite a bit of distress during labor. His heart rate was low and not recovering and it is a good thing that I delivered quickly. She said that it was a good thing that the doctor who delivered him was there. I'm glad I had no idea during the birth that he was having so much trouble. Despite this, he has checked out perfectly ever since - and of course, we think he is absolutely perfect!
What an amazing experience!
Friday, November 12, 2010
{This Moment}
A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week.
A simple, special, extraordinary moment.
A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
What We've Learned...
four days as moms, we've already learned so much
1. Your world changes instantly when your child is born.
2. Your house is quickly taken over with everything baby - we've lost a counter in the kitchen already as it is filled with pumping parts.
3. You now live in 3 hour cycles.
4. There is instantly more laundry to do.
5. Breastfeeding is harder than it looks.
6. Forget EVERYTHING you read in the books and trust your gut - do what your mom instincts tell you are right for your child.
7. You had better make your morning cup of coffee in a travel mug so that it stays warm because it might be hours until you get to actually drink it.
8. You learn quickly how to do everything one handed.
9. There is nothing better in the whole wide world than staring at this face!
1. Your world changes instantly when your child is born.
2. Your house is quickly taken over with everything baby - we've lost a counter in the kitchen already as it is filled with pumping parts.
3. You now live in 3 hour cycles.
4. There is instantly more laundry to do.
5. Breastfeeding is harder than it looks.
6. Forget EVERYTHING you read in the books and trust your gut - do what your mom instincts tell you are right for your child.
7. You had better make your morning cup of coffee in a travel mug so that it stays warm because it might be hours until you get to actually drink it.
8. You learn quickly how to do everything one handed.
9. There is nothing better in the whole wide world than staring at this face!
Some of you have asked about his hair and yes, it is an awesome strawberry blonde!
Monday, November 8, 2010
Saturday, November 6, 2010
Perfect!!!!
Not that we are biased or anything, but Drew is absolutely perfect in every single way! He got a clean bill of health from the Peds this AM and is doing a great job learning to breastfeed. We are over the moon in love!!
Friday, November 5, 2010
Welcome to the World!
Welcome DREW RICHARD our beautiful son born at 1:01 PM TODAY. He is 6 lb 12 oz and 20 1/2 inches long. He is absolutely perfect and we are madly in love. We'll post the birth story and pics once we get home. We are at the hospital until Sunday. Thanks for all of the well wishes.
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Hospital
Well, we are at the hospital. Got here about 8:30 and they monitored me for a half hour. Baby looked great. I am 1 1/2 cm dialated and 60% effaced. They gave me the first round of meds and now we wait and wait and wait. We'll update when we can.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
The Plan
It is hard to believe we are getting to the point of it being just hours instead of days until we meet Cupid! The plan is that we will call the Birth Center at 6:30 in the morning just to make sure there wasn't an influx of women in labor that arrived overnight. As long as all is well, we will head to the hospital and the fun will begin!
MJ was approved today to take the rest of this week and all of next week off, so she is working this afternoon to get her sub plans done. It's times like this that being a teacher is a pain- you can't just take the day off - you have to leave plans which are a huge amount of work. The nice thing is that once she leaves today, she will be home for the next 11 days. That will be so nice!!! Technically, according to our teachers' contract, she is only "allowed" 3 family sick days, and next Wed and Fri are days we are not allowed to take off because they are before and after a holiday (Veteran's Day) but we have an awesome Superintendant who is great about granting leave above and beyond.
I believe that I have started some early labor today. I have had terrible lower back pain that just keeps getting worse and I have also started to lose my mucous plug. I am excited that my body is starting to do things on its own so maybe the induction tomorrow won't take too long.
That's the plan from here!
MJ was approved today to take the rest of this week and all of next week off, so she is working this afternoon to get her sub plans done. It's times like this that being a teacher is a pain- you can't just take the day off - you have to leave plans which are a huge amount of work. The nice thing is that once she leaves today, she will be home for the next 11 days. That will be so nice!!! Technically, according to our teachers' contract, she is only "allowed" 3 family sick days, and next Wed and Fri are days we are not allowed to take off because they are before and after a holiday (Veteran's Day) but we have an awesome Superintendant who is great about granting leave above and beyond.
I believe that I have started some early labor today. I have had terrible lower back pain that just keeps getting worse and I have also started to lose my mucous plug. I am excited that my body is starting to do things on its own so maybe the induction tomorrow won't take too long.
That's the plan from here!
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
We Can't Wait
As I think about meeting our baby this week, I think about the things we can't wait for!
We can't wait to find out if Cupid is a boy or a girl.
We can't wait to finally hold our baby in our arms.
We can't wait to find out if Cupid will be as active on the outside from 8 - 10 at night as s/he has been in my belly.
We can't wait to bring our baby home.
We can't wait to sniff that newborn smell.
But most of all, we just can't wait to be mommies!!!
We can't wait to find out if Cupid is a boy or a girl.
We can't wait to finally hold our baby in our arms.
We can't wait to find out if Cupid will be as active on the outside from 8 - 10 at night as s/he has been in my belly.
We can't wait to bring our baby home.
We can't wait to sniff that newborn smell.
But most of all, we just can't wait to be mommies!!!
Monday, November 1, 2010
Thirty Nine and One
Today we are thirty nine weeks and one day. I went to the OB this morning and baby is still fine. However, before problems arise we are going to induce on Thursday if Cupid is not here before then. So, by weeks end, we will get to meet our baby!!! We are so very excited and can't wait. We'll keep you posted on the details as they unfold.
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