Baby Pictures

Here's what the last few days have looked like. I thought I'd be camera crazy but really I've just enjoyed having him in my arms or taking a nap. The four of us are loving him so much.

The girls like to sing "Jesus Loves Me" to him when he starts fussing a little. About the only thing they can do for him is his pacifier, so they do that often. Neither one of them ever took to it, but it doesn't look like he's going to have much of a choice. Easier to suck on it than have it jammed in your face 15 times.

Avery wakes up every morning like its Christmas. She has a Hold Aiden sign-up sheet but most of the times are already blocked off with her name. Amanda is happy to have me holding her when I can and seems to be off her game just a little, but with more time that passes, both girls are adjusting to the new normal around here.

Last night Aiden was not awake except to eat and he had a four-hour stretch and most of the night was spent in his cradle, not in bed with me. Not that I mind the in-bed-with-me part, but I'm trying to think long term here.

We think he's just great and are enjoying this newness time.

Birth Day

Caution! Birth story...may be more than you want to know...feel free to skip down to the pictures...

Shaun and I talk about expectations often. So much of what we get out of life is based on our expectations. I made a very crucial mistake in expecting my third labor to be easier than the two that preceded. Avery was 21 hours of labor with 3 hours of pushing, Amanda was 7 hours of labor with 20 minutes of pushing. So I expected that Aiden would fall in the 5-hour range with 5 minutes of pushing. Not so.

I felt the very first contractions about 2:00 pm on Sunday but they were not strong, regular or frequent. We left the picnic we were at with Shaun's family about 5:00 and shortly after we got home I started to realize this was "it". We called the doctor just to give them advance notice that we'd be in and he encouraged us to come sooner rather than later because this was my third child.

My mom came to stay with the girls and we took the two-minute drive to the hospital. That was a little after 8:00 pm. We were greeted by the nurse who had been with us for both Avery and Amanda and we were thrilled that she would be helping again. She got us settled in and I was 4 cm. Not great, but that's what I was with Amanda when I arrived and she was born 3 hours later.

Almost from the beginning my contractions were never more than 3 minutes apart, most of the time much closer than that. My "team" consisted of Shaun and my sister Amy. For most of the time all they could do was sit, because I don't like to be touched or talked to in labor, but towards the end their presence proved invaluable. Shaun was there with a strong hand and eyes that poured strength into me and Amy was in my ear encouraging me to stay on top of the pain, something I would have forgotten to do without that reminder.

Apparently another woman and I gave birth within minutes of each other, so we saw very little of our nurse and even less of the doctor, making me even more thankful to have Shaun and Amy's steady presence.

With many intense moments in between, I was able to start pushing about 5:30 am. I had little left after having been awake for 24 hours and the baby's head was turned sideways, just as Avery's had been so pushing was harder than it should have been. The doctor came rushing in just after the head was out. This was intense and I only know what happened in this span of time because Shaun relayed the events to me later. But...Aiden arrived safely at 6:58 am and we were both so happy to see our baby boy. I was too relieved to cry but Shaun was overcome.

This is our very dear nurse, Darlene, who was right by our side with the delivery of Avery and Amanda and the start of Aiden. She gave them hospital bracelets that say "big sister to Aiden" and they are still wearing them with pride.

Shaun says he remembers when his younger siblings were born his dad came out and announced that the baby had 10 fingers and 10 toes. At the time, Shaun thought to himself of course they do, but we've learned that that is not something that can be assumed or taken for granted.

Aiden is healthy and strong, just as Shaun prayed for with the girls each night. Truly God is gracious and our hearts are so very full.

Sweetness

I have lots of pictures to share and I will work on getting a post or two up, but for now here's a quick little video of Aiden live and in action....a rare moment of him in his seat, by himself, not being held.

Baby Aiden is Here!

Our baby is here! Aiden Samuel came into the world on Monday at 6:58 am. After an intense night for all involved, he arrived safely. He and I are doing great, especially now 24 hours later.

He weighs 8lbs 10oz and is 20.5 in long. He was my biggest baby by one pound, and I have to say, that one pound makes a huge difference! As promised from the pictures on the ultrasound, he was born with a head of hair and its very dark.

We are all madly in love and it feels so incredibly natural to have him in our family. The girls are just super excited to have him home. Avery's new agenda in life is to have as much contact with her baby brother as possible, preferably holding him by herself. Amanda loves him and likes to check in, but so far life has gone on for her. There are still heels to clomp around in and paint to paint pictures with.

Nearly all of our large family came to the hospital to get a peek, including two of Aiden's cousins. Is this one of the most darling pictures?? This is Levi, Rocco and Aiden, ages 2 months, 6 weeks and 1/2 day. We're just missing cousin Trey who is 4.5 months. I have a feeling we'll have some pretty funny pictures of these guys in the coming years.

Thank you all for your prayers and love. God has been gracious to us..we are so blessed and so thankful.

Good Report!

The girls, my mom and I went for my ultrasound today and we got the good news that his head is down!! Thank the Lord!

He looks great and all the fluid levels are good. The only “problem” is that he measures at about 7lbs 11oz today, which is the 88th percentile. I understand those measurements are very loose, but even if he's close to that, in three weeks he will be large. My mom had two babies over 9 pounds and so far I've taken after her with easy pregnancies and deliveries, so I'm praying that will continue. Thankfully I will be pushing out my third and not my first!

Isn't this picture amazing? The tech couldn't get over how much hair he has...see it?? Like my mom said, if he was a girl (which they confirmed he is not) I'd be able to put bows in right from the start. In another picture his cheeks look very chubby.


I'm feeling so thankful for the good report we got today. Thank you all for your prayers...God is good!

It's a Boy!

We are "those" people who have to find out the gender at ultrasound time. We need to plan, prepare, work on only one set of names...we just need to know! And today we found out we are having a BOY!

He is healthy in every way and weighs a whopping 7 ounces! We feel incredibly blessed!