2 Weeks Old

Our little guy has been with us for two weeks now and it has gone so fast! I feel like I just got out of the hospital! Life with Matthew has been a dream. I couldn't have asked for a better baby. He has been eating every 2.5 to 3 hours, and has even given me some 4 4.5 hour stretches at night to sleep. Breast feeding is going extraordinarily well. I have to use a nipple shield since I don't have much to latch on to. I probably could try to nurse him without them, but it's going so well I hate to frustrate the little guy and myself. He had his first pediatrician appointment and gained back the whole pound he lost at the hospital plus 4 ounces. As of last Thursday he weighs 9lbs 10oz. We've affectionately been calling him "cheeks."

He is a very noisy sleeper and often cries and squeaks in his sleep. I have to look and make sure he is awake at feeding times because of his squawks in the morning, I don't want to get him up if he isn't really awake. He absolutely HATES having his diaper changed and cries bloody murder when it happens which is, what seems like, 8 million times a day! He is the poopiest child as well. I feel like every diaper I change is a poopy one. He had/has a bout of diaper rash that we are working on getting rid of.

My in-laws were here immediately after I got home from the hospital and were a God-send. It was wonderful having people I trusted watch out for my little guy while I slept and recovered from the c-section/birth in between feedings. Now this week my mom is here and I've been able to get out of the house and be independent. I went to my doctors appoint, motherhood maternity for nursing bras, Adam and I went to Sam's Club and Arby's for lunch, and even to the outlets for a quick stop at Gap and Carter's. I am surprised that it wasn't that hard for me to leave the little guy for awhile. It's nice because I knew he was sleeping and in good hands.

I'm looking forward to having all the visitors gone and time for me and Matthew to get in to a more solid schedule and of course watch all kinds of day-time tv and movies! Yay for maternity leave! No work for me until March.

Here are some pictures to enjoy from the last weeks home with our little buddy:

Dad and his human and dog children.

Matthew's first Christmas. 

First outing to the pediatrician.

Meeting Grandma for the first time.

Matthew James

He's here!!!!!!!!!!! Our baby boy, Matthew James!!

We got to the hospital on Sunday night for my induction. Checking in to the hospital was very easy and within an hour they had my cervidil placed and we just hung out around the labor and delivery room. Around 5:30 they placed my IV and started on with the pitocin. My contractions started and they weren't too bad. I didn't need pain meds at all and I was just laying and waiting to see when the contractions would start hurting. Around 9:30 I got up to go to the bathroom and as I was getting back into bed my water broke. It started as a little trickle, and when the next contraction came is ALL GUSHED OUT! It was such an odd feeling! I was excited though because that was the first "natural" thing my body did to contribute to labor. After that, WHOA, the contractions started coming. They ordered my epidural right when it broke, but I had about an hour to an hour an a half (time is all a blur!) of contractions right on top of each other. My body responded well to the pitocin so they were trying to be somewhat careful about how much they were giving me. After I got the epidural, I was in heaven! I felt pressure during the contractions, but otherwise I just read my nook and watched TV and talked with my hubs. I was hoping things would progress nicely from there on out, but I was stuck at 8cm for 5 hours, went to 9cm and stayed there for awhile, and finally the doctor told me we'll be doing a c-section because his head is too big to fit. So off we went to the surgery table! I wasn't scared or nervous, I just wanted to hear my baby cry - especially after 17 hours of labor!

Matthew James came out SCREAMING at 11:41 PM on December 17th. He is HUGE weighing in at 9 pounds 6 ounces, and 20 inches long. He was a very vocal little man from the start, but once he's in his swaddle with his chubby cheeks sticking out, he's super calm.

I was in the hospital for 3 days and spent lots of time learning how to nurse, and trying to sleep (which is nearly impossible when nurses are coming to check you every 2 hours). We got Matthew home and so far so good. Nursing has been going well, my milk came in yesterday, and he's been very full after feedings. He's also a quick eater so far. I am done nursing within 25 minutes. Hopefully that continues with him getting all that he needs. Recovery from the c-section hasn't been the best, but I'm making it. What's been the worst is that I developed a skin rash during the last week of pregnancy called PUPP. It's a somewhat rare rash that 1 in 150 women will get during pregnancy. Well, I didn't even know it was a rash until the last day I was in the hospital - none of my doctors said anything to me about it other than it looked like I had quite some stretch marks. Now that I am home, the rash has spread to every part of my body except my breasts and face. I feel like I have chicken pox all over me! If I don't get relief today I'm calling the dermatologist tomorrow to see if there is anything I can take to fix this, or to just alleviate the itching.

Now for some pictures!!!

 All swaddled up at the hospital.

 Dressed up to go home!

Sleeping peacefully in this swing.

Our little family of 3!

Due Date - 4

Well folks, I am officially 40 weeks and 4 days pregnant. This journey of pregnancy is coming to an end in the next 24 hours as I head to the hospital at 3:30 to be induced. I'm super excited, but I'm also very nervous. I like to be in control, and I know very few things will be in my control in the next hours and months to come. It is all about this little man and what he needs.

Looking back to when we started trying for a baby, and where we are now is totally crazy. It took us almost two years to get pregnant, and even then when we did get pregnant is was a true miracle. According to the fertility clinic, Baby Shu wasn't going to happen without medical intervention. We are so thankful for the answered prayers from all of our family and friends for this true blessing that is about to come in to our lives. Who knows, this might be the only Baby Shu we get to bring in to this world. God works in mysterious ways, and we couldn't be more excited for this gift he is giving us.

So today we have just finished doing some final washing of clothes, cleaning of the house, and just spending time together ALONE. With the baby arriving, and both sets of parents visiting in the next two weeks, we are really trying to enjoy our "us" time. We've gone out to dinner way more than we should, slept late (which is 6:30 for us! haha), and lounged on the couch with our coffees. I forced myself to lay in bed until 7:30 today since I know it will be the last time in awhile that I'm not needed for a diaper change or feeding. I know that the changes that are about to happen will be a challenge, but bring it on, because we can't wait to meet our little boy!! I'm not sure when I'll post next, but a picture and NAME will definitely be the next blog entry!

Merry Early Christmas y'all!!

Effaced? Dilated?

None of the above. Baby Shu is staying put right where he is! I had my first internal exam today and there is absolutely nothing to report. I'm sealed shut! = ) The doctor did recommend walking, exercise, and sex...all three of those do not sound very fun, especially the last one! I will just wait for our little mister to decide when I go in to labor, but man am I anxious! I will say that I was surprised that the internal exam was as uncomfortable as it was, and if that is any indication of what labor will feel like, I'm a definite candidate for an epidural. I'm going to try to go as long as possible without one, because I am really freaked out about things going in to my back/spine, but I do not like pain.

The hubs and I have nothing planned this weekend, so we are going to enjoy lots of couch and puppy dog time. Our pooch has no clue what is coming when this babe arrives. She is SO SPOILED right now! However, I think she will do just fine once her brother gets here!

Have a great weekend!

Impatient

I'm 38 weeks and I am finding every reason to believe I'm going in to labor any second...even though baby Shu is safe and sound and not going anywhere! Every contraction, pressure, and ache in my back is a sign that it's time. However, my contractions aren't regular, and who knows the aches may be something! I go to the doctor on Friday and will have my first internal exam. I am excited to see if anything has been happening down there.

Sleeping is horrible, but I know this is only a glimpse of what life will be like when our little dude arrives. I can't believe, after years of trying to get pregnant, I am less than two weeks away from becoming a mom. This pregnancy has FLOWN by. I've enjoyed the majority of it, and it has only gotten frustrating the last few weeks as I get more uncomfortable and have to pee even more frequently!

I need to learn to be a little more patient, because God has a plan and this baby will come when he is fully cooked and ready to party outside of my uterus! = )

NURSERY!!!!!!!!!

Finally, here are some pictures of our little man's room. Adam is in to guitars so the guitar pictures say "born to rock." While we don't really have a theme, I guess it is guitars based on these pictures. I am not much of a decorator. I'm pretty simple and laid back, and I think his room reflects that. 

Changing table, with changing pad, and diapers ready to go! Newborn and size one, not sure which size we'll need. (I think he's going to be a big one!)

Crib and tall dresser. My friend made the quilt for us. I sent her pictures of the "born to rock" pictures, and that is what she came up with. I absolutely LOVE it!! = ) Tall dresser will eventually have some pictures and the baby monitor on it.

Here is a different view from across the room. You can see our diaper bag and all the breast feeding gear in the corner. Not sure what I'll need for nursing so I just have it all piled together over there ready to be used or ready to be returned.

My nursing/feeding station. There is an ottoman that goes with the chair, but it is downstairs in front of the couch while we have guests in town for the holiday.

And finally, a little picture my best friend crafted for us. = )

We have 2.5 weeks until our little rockstar arrives. I am super uncomfortable and all I really want to do is sleep. I am also dreading going back to work on Monday. Maybe this babe will come on Sunday night and answer my wishes so I won't have to go back to work until March! = ) I highly doubt it!

Time is ticking away!

We are down to 3 weeks and 1 day folks! I'll be 37 weeks on Wednesday. It is crazy how fast, yet how slow this pregnancy has gone. I feel like I've been pregnant forever, but it also feels like I saw that "PREGNANT" pop up on the pregnancy test. It has been an easy pregnancy and I have nothing to complain about (except that I can't get comfortable in bed and when I do I have to get up and pee, I'm getting some stretch marks, and oh yes I have to PEE all the time!!!).

So here is how I'm feeling about all of this baby stuff that is about to go down. I go from super excited, to anxious, to terrified, to elated, to worried, and back to excited. I don't know exactly what I'm anxious about or terrified about, but those feelings happen here and there. I don't think I'm going to hurt this little guy or anything, I just am afraid once I get him here I won't have a clue what to do despite all that I've read and learned from the other moms around me. I'm sure once it happens I'll be perfectly fine.

I am a little anxious/nervous about breast feeding. My plan is to breast feed as long as possible, but I may have an issue with that due to having flat nipples. I was reading a breast feeding book a couple of months ago and it said to do the "nipple test" to find out what kind of nipples you have. So I squeezed behind my nipple and instead of it going out farther it went flat. UH OH! I feel confident that I know enough about breast feeding and know what resources I have to be able to be successful, but I know it isn't going to be easy. I may end up having to pump exclusively - which is fine with me, I just want him to have breast milk for as long as possible. My sister in law gave me a tub of baby things and it happened to have an unopened package of nipple shields. I've been wearing the flat/inverted nipple shields for about an hour a day, and hopefully it helps out. I know if I stress about it, then it will be that much harder for me to nurse, so I am just going to go with the flow and let God and this little man lead the way.

Otherwise, I'm good to go. GET THIS BABY HERE!!! = ) My in-laws are coming in from Florida tomorrow afternoon and will be here until the following Monday morning. Luckily my mother-in-law and I get along perfectly, otherwise it would be a LONG visit! Before they arrive, I am spending the day with my friend for mani's and pedi's AND my house is getting cleaned by the cleaning lady...YESS!!!! That is my gift to myself as a pre-arrival gift for this baby and all the company that I will have in the next month and a half!

Hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving!!