Someone to Lean On

During this adventure, I have been amazed and blessed by the large amount of support and love that has been coming our way, and has continued into these first weeks of Aubrey's life.  Now, I have become a part of a new group at church that I'm so positive and happy about. 


In these first weeks, we have been receiving several meals through a ministry at our church.  My mother in law and I noticed that several of the meals were coming from new moms, just like me.  She then got the idea to get a group started that would bring together these new moms to talk about our experiences and to also have some devotional time with God a couple of times a month.  We had the first meeting this morning, and it was great!  We decided on some basics for the group and also decided on a daily devotional book that we could discuss at each meeting.  We are also making plans to get together for a cookout later this summer to get the dads involved as well.  It was so amazing to get to talk with these amazing ladies about our views on parenting and faith and to nurse our children and just have a great time in general.


I just can't wait to see where God takes this group and it's so great to meet and socialize with ladies that are right where I am in life that are there for me and are allowing me to be there for them.  I'm so excited!


On another note, Aubrey is 3 weeks old today!  She is already filling out quite a bit and she is just a wonderful, happy, mellow baby at this point.  I swear I have even gotten a few of those wonderful baby smiles that just make my heart almost burst with love for this amazing little girl.  Here's a 3 week birthday picture!  It was actually taken yesterday, but it's too cute not to post!

2 Weeks and Growing Like A Weed!

This week was a pretty big week for Aubrey and me.  I was finally able to be able to drive again and lift the car seat, so we were able to get out and about, which was a nice change of pace for me, maybe not so much the baby. 

Last Sunday, Joey’s dad’s parents came up from Sarasota to visit Aubrey.  It was so great to see them and for Aubrey to get to share some time with her great-grandparents.  We also went on our first church trip, which was very successful.  We know that our church family is as much in love with our little girl as we are.  We can’t wait to share her christening with them on June 12^th. 

On Tuesday, we had Baby Girl’s 2 week checkup, in which the goal was to be back at our birth weight of 7lbs 4oz.  Aubrey tipped the scales at 7lbs 7ozs, and she had grown ¼ of an inch!  It was so great to see that breastfeeding is successful so far, and that she’s thriving with what we have been doing. 

On Thursday, we went to hang out with Joey’s mom, Grandmommy Helen.  We helped out with some VBS projects and just got to hang out a little bit out of house.  Since Aubrey has been going through a little growth spurt, we spent more time nursing than actually helping.  Friday, we went and met Daddy for lunch and then went to Granny’s house to hang out with cousins Ashley and Mason.  That night, we went to a party in Aubrey’s honor at our friends’ house.  Alan and Meghan threw a wonderful party and we had a great time.  We are so lucky to have such wonderful friends and family, and we always have a great time together.

Here are a few pictures from our week:

10 Things Loving Fathers Do For Their Children

Totally stealing this from my dear friend Sarah's blog! Here's the link: http://www.allprodad.com/top10/parenting/10-things-loving-fathers-do-for-their-children.

1. Loving fathers… love their children’s mother: This is huge – possibly the most beneficial intervention dads can do on behalf of their children. Love your wife without reservation - you can’t do much more for your kids than that.
2. Love them unconditionally: Make sure that your children know you love them “no matter what.” Don’t confuse this with permissiveness - unconditional love does nothing to encourage the wrong kind of behavior. In fact, kids who are secure in their father’s love tend to act out less, not more.
3. Grow up: We’re talking about the dads here, not the kids! Children don’t want another buddy - they want a dad. They want someone who thinks things through, makes tough decisions and engages life with responsibility – someone they can count on.
4. Be there: “Quality time” is all well and good… but it has nothing on quantity time. Make the time. Everyone has the same 24 hours available. Make yours count.
5. Provide: Just do it.
   - A stable home
   - Love and affection
   - Material needs
   - Presence
6. Discipline: Children appreciate an even hand, balance, accountability and love-drenched discipline. It’s called consistency, and without clearly defined boundaries, it is very difficult to grow up.
7. Value education: Don’t just read to them – read with them. Don’t just fuss about grades – get involved with their homework. Don’t just talk about learning – be a hands-on advocate
8. Raise them to leave: The simple goal of being a family, of parenting our children, doesn’t look any more complicated than this: raise them well equipped to leave home and to establish faithful lives.
9. Teach them to take responsibility: Kids who learn how to duck responsibility and avoid cost will – sooner or later – fall flat on their faces. Loving fathers make sure their children know how to own up, clean up, and move forward.
10. Teach them to love this life: The best predictor of happiness in children is happiness in their parents. If we learn how to love this life, and then give that blessing to our kids, then they will be well prepared for satisfaction.

The First Week Home…Missing Daddy Already

This week was the first week that we had Aubrey home and the first week that I was finally doing this motherhood thing on my own, and I was terrified.  Luckily, both Aubrey and I survived and although I am more tired than normal, I am managing to be somewhat alert most of the time.  We had two doctors’ appointments and managed to go to the grocery store and my favorite Chinese restaurant.

We knew a few weeks ago that this week Joey would have to go out of town.  Since Aubrey took her time getting here, Joey didn’t get to spend a ton of time with our baby girl before a 3 day trip to Pennsylvania.  Luckily my mom volunteered to come and stay with me at night and was able to stay with me and work from home on Thursday.  It was a great comfort to have someone with me during the night feedings, even if she was just sleeping in the other room.  It was also nice to have someone to take over one morning feeding so I could get a little more sleep. 

As far as the doctors’ appointments, on Monday we had our first check-up with Dr. Burroughs, who checked Aubrey over when she was in the special care nursery.  We got to ask a few questions that we had about any reasons that we would need to bring her in, when to take her out, when to use lotions, etc.  She had gained 3ozs , which was right on target, and we needed to come back Friday to an additional weight check.  The goal is to get back to her birth weight of 7lbs 4ozs by two weeks.  On Friday, we saw Dr. Brannon, who will be her regular pediatrician.  We just went over a few basics and found that Aubrey had gained 4 more pounds, only 2 more ounces to go until we hit birth weight!  I’m so glad that breastfeeding is working out and really helping her to thrive.  We have her 2 week appointment on Tuesday to find out the results.

On Friday (today), Joey came home, and he has been holding her since she walked in the door.  Since he got home I have only gotten her for a feeding.  It’s so great to know that I’m married to a man who loves his family and especially loves his baby girl.  I’m so content right now!

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A Big Thank You!

I just wanted to take a few minutes to let everyone know how grateful we all are for your thoughts, prayers, food, gifts, company and love.  We are so fortunate to have the most amazing family and friends in our lives.  Aubrey is such a lucky little girl to have such a loving and amazing group of people that support her no matter what.  We love you all!

Aubrey's Birth Story

Warning:  I tried to keep as many gross details out of this as possible, but as it's a birth story, some TMI might have snuck in, you have been warned.

Our plan from the beginning was to have a natural, un-medicated birth.  While it didn’t end up playing out exactly like we expected, I wouldn’t have changed a thing.  We were able to avoid a C-section, which was one of my main goals, and I am very pleased with how everything has turned out.  My doctor is amazing and was so great in respecting our wishes and doing the best she could to help us achieve the birth experience that we wanted.  We are now at home and recovering and I can’t believe how great I feel and how well our baby girl is doing. 

Aubrey’s due date of May 2 came and went, and after a discussion with the doctor we determined that unless she decided to come before May 11, we would be scheduling an induction at 9pm on that Tuesday due to me being gestational diabetic.  I was only 1cm dilated as of Monday the 9^th, so induction was looking likely.  In a final Hail Mary play to avoid induction, I had my membranes stripped in the morning and went to an acupuncture appointment that afternoon.   Well, something must have worked, because around 9:30 on Monday night I began having fairly strong contractions.  They started fairly far apart and were manageable, so we laid down and tried to get a little rest.  That didn’t last long and things became fairly intense fairly quickly.  At about 1:00am we called the doctor to give her a head’s up that contractions were 7-8 minutes apart.  I got into the shower and soaked in the tub for a little bit, which spaced things out and gave me a little relief.  At about 3:00, the contractions had been 5 minutes about for about an hour, so we decided to go ahead and get into the car and make the 20 minute drive to the hospital. 

By the time we got to the hospital, contractions were 2-3 minutes apart.  They checked me and I was 3 cm.  Only 3 cm!  I at that moment seriously started contemplating some sort of assistance to help with the pain.  I was exhausted and just didn’t know how much more I could take.  I got into a room and managed to labor a few more hours before getting some Nubain to help me rest in between contractions.  That helped somewhat, so I kept going.  At around 10:00am, they checked me again and I made it to a 5cm.  Things were unfortunately not moving along as much as I would like and the pain was very intense, so I made the decision to go ahead and get an epidural.  This was against what we had gone over in the Bradley classes, but Joey and I had made the decision that an epidural might be necessary based on what my dilation was and how I was feeling.  Also, my contractions had slowed down and the doctor, after using a solution to get the baby moving again, decided that we needed some Pitocin to get contractions going again.  Since Pitocin contractions are so intense, an epidural was really the best option.  Well, it took an hour to get everything settled and the epidural put in, and at 11am, I was actually back to myself and able to rest.  I stayed at a 5cm for a few more hours and eventually the epidural started to wear off on my right side and the pain once again became difficult to breathe through.  I had been able to slightly feel my legs with the first epidural, but after they re-dosed me, I wasn’t able to feel my legs at all, which was not cool. 

Finally around 7pm, things were really starting to progress, and I was almost complete.  My epidural started wearing off again, but this time I didn’t want to be re-dosed.  The doctor had suggested letting the meds wear off so I could be more effective at pushing.  Then, right before 8:00pm, I was ready to go.  My family in the waiting room said that they knew that something was going on when they saw the doctor running to the elevator!

I ended up pushing for about 15 minutes, and at 8:12pm, Aubrey came into the world at 7lbs 4oz and 20.5 inches in length.  Apparently she had the cord around her neck rather tightly, and the doctor had to cut it off.  The doctor was calm the entire time, so we didn’t really know that anything was wrong.  Aubrey didn’t cry at first, but after a few seconds we heard her and immediately everything was right in the world.  They had to take her to the special care nursery where they hooked her up to the CPAP and an IV.  We got to see her about an hour later.  She was off the CPAP by 4am that morning and by the next morning was working on breastfeeding.  Luckily, she didn’t need any additional antibiotics or anything, and less than 48 hours later, she was in our room.  It was tough not getting to spend time with her for those first hours, but we have been making up for lost time and she is doing great.  We got to go home on Friday the 13^th, and we have gotten settled in. 

So, even though medication was involved, and there were some complications, we have no regrets about how Aubrey came into the world.  That is not to say that I would not like to try for a natural birth next time around, but we are happy with how everything turned out.  I am really enjoying being a mom so far and can’t wait to see what God has in store for our little family.

Hurry Up and Wait...

So here we are 4 days past my due date and no baby in sight.  Since I was 10 days late and so was Joey, this isn’t really a surprise, but kind of an annoying reality.  We had an appointment yesterday, and Aubrey passed the stress test and ultrasound with flying colors, which prompted the doctor to say that she thought that Aubrey was happy where she was and was not going to join us in the immediate future.  With that being said, we went ahead and set an eviction date at 41.5 weeks.   This was way longer than I expected to be able to go due to my gestational diabetes, which I’m grateful for. 

With overdue babies, at a certain point the risks of keeping the baby in outweigh the benefits, so we’re mentally ready and ok with taking some action if need be.  We’re 100% sure of the conception date thanks to charting, so we feel ok with going ahead and making the eviction decision, even though it might involve some medical interventions that we aren’t exactly crazy about.   

That being said, we are still hoping that she changes her mind and wants to go ahead and meet us before she is forced to.  Maybe setting something in stone will move things along.  In the meantime I will just keep walking and sending some exit vibes her way the best that I can, and hoping that there is at least some additional progress made so that her entry into the world is as little medically controlled as possible.  Regardless, there should be an announcement sometime next week!

Stick a Fork in Me, I’m 40 weeks!

So as I write this, I am sitting on an exercise ball after walking and drinking some pregnancy tea.  It looks like Aubrey wants to be fashionably late.  She did well on her NST Monday, and on Thursday we are going to decide on a final date for induction, which will hopefully not be until next Monday, doctor permitting of course.  I am hoping that she comes on her own before we have to resort to any other measures.  A lot of my days now consist of having my feet up and avoiding too much strenuous activity.

Well, other than that, there’s not much to report, by this time next week, Aubrey will be here!  I just can’t believe time has flown by so fast!  Here’s the 40 week update:

It's hard to say for sure how big your baby will be, but the average newborn weighs about 7 1/2 pounds (a small pumpkin) and is about 20 inches long. Her skull bones are not yet fused, which allows them to overlap a bit if it's a snug fit through the birth canal during labor. This so-called "molding" is the reason your baby's noggin may look a little conehead-ish after birth. Rest assured — it's normal and temporary.