Three Weeks!

It's hard to believe that our precious baby boy is three weeks old today!

It's taking a little bit, but we're starting to get used to parenthood.  I think the adjustment has been harder for me than Rob, but I have to admit that I don't envy him for having to get up and go to work every weekday morning.  Yes, being home with Ty is hardwork, but at least I don't have to be up, moving and presentable at a certain time.

Speaking of hard work - boy is maternity leave hard work!  I knew it would be hard but I think it's physically impossible to explain how hard it is.  I know people try, but it's impossible to understand until you live it.   I love this little guy to death but he's more work than I was expecting.  As I said though, we're starting to get used to it.  Without a doubt the hardest part is breastfeeding.  I'm going to stick with it as long as possible though.  It may be hard but the health benefits to Ty are worth it in the end.  Everyone says that it takes awhile to get the hang of it, and thankfully I feel like we're close to that point!

Another thing to be thankful of - Ty is a good baby.  Yes, he fusses and yes, breastfeeding is harder than I expected, but overall he's a good baby.  He sleeps well and is content most of the time.  He's so alert that sometimes I feel bad that I can't play with him too much.  He's just still too little, but soon we get to start tummy time and I think he'll love it!

On the physical side - Ty is doing great.  We went to the doctor on Wednesday for his two-week check up and he's up to 7 lbs 9.6 ounces - nearly 1 pound bigger than his birth weight!  I'm sure at this point he's topped 7 lbs 10 oz.  His next appointment is in August though, and I'm not looking forward to that.  He starts getting his first shots :(

Mari and Wyatt are in town for a few more days and I'll share more next week about our time with them.  For now I'll leave you with one more cute picture.  It's an old one, but without a doubt my fave!

 

Welcome Tyler Frank Spinner

I know, I know... it's been a long time since I've blogged anything.  Truth be told, the last couple months of my pregnancy blogging just wasn't a priority.  Rightfully so!  Anyway, the real reason for this blog - Tyler!!





Tyler Frank Spinner was born at 12:45am on June 19, 2011.  I don't think I'll ever be able to top that Father's Day gift!  He was 6 pounds, 10 ounces and 19.5" long - just a bit smaller than I expected!  I guess those utlrasound estimates are purely just estimates!  Initially he was measuring in the 75th percentile, though I believe that's because his legs are LOOONG!  In actuality, he weighs in at the 10th percentile while his length is in the 65th percentile!

I must admit, I had a pretty enviable experience.  On Friday, June 17th I started having subtle contractions, but I wasn't sure if they were Braxton Hicks or legit contractions because they were so light.  Early on June 18th I started thinking they were legit, but they were spaced very far apart and not too intense yet.  However, later that afternoon they started getting more intense and though still very sporadic they were no longer hours apart like earlier in the day.  I anticipated going to the hospital in labor at some point on Sunday, but then the cotnractions started coming on fast and furious around 5:00 in the afternoon.  We started finishing up the hospital bag and taking care of a few things around the house, knowing that this baby would be here soon.

Then, at 9:00pm it all became real.  99% certain that my water broke I called the doctor and was told to go in to L&D to check it out.  At 9:45 we arrived at the hospital where they checked the leak, and sure enough my water broke.  After an internal check they also discovered that I was at 4cm dilated.  Thank God, because the contractions were every 3 minutes at that point and PAINFUL!

Around 11:40 I got my epidural and at midnight the nurse wanted to check my status before putting in a catheder.  Thank goodness she checked because I was fully dilated by this point.  She then decided to have me start the pushing process so that I was close to delivering once the doctor arrived.  Well, that was short lived as after one push the head was already crowning and she still hadn't called the doctor.  Thankfully he must live close.  Once he arrived and prepped I pushed 2 more times and then heard the most amazing sound in the entire world.  My precious baby boy was crying, and had a great set of lungs on him!!

Let me just tell you something about a quick labor - though amazing, the pushing part was hard as hell... My epidural had JUST gone in to effect, so I couldn't feel a thing!  I just had to listen to the nurse and Rob to know what to do.  Whatever I did worked though!



All of us are adjusting well to being home and hopefully soon developing a routine!

Just a quick update

Well, I just wanted to give a quick update... though a lot has happened I haven't been able to blog it due to not being able to log on to Wordpress for a few weeks.  Hence the lack of updates on my food blog too, though most of that is due to laziness and the preoccupation with the baby!

We should get to meet this little guy in about 5 weeks and we're so excited!  I can't wait to see what he looks like, learn his mannerisms and personality, etc.  Of course, I'm most anxious just to hold him in my arms and cuddle with him.

The room is relatively finished but we still have a few things we need to do (finish washing the clothes to put away in the correct spots, hang the curtains and make the name art to hang.)  Now that we've told his name we can get to work on the name art aspect, but again, it all goes back to the whole laziness thing!  I have everything we need though, it's just a matter of breaking out the saw and getting to work.  I can't wait to finish it though so I can share pictures because I know it'll be amazing!

Speaking of the room - here are a few quick pics of the bedding, in various stages:

Puma playing with the bag the bedding came in...

Pinot hanging out in the crib after I put the bedding on to check it out (pre-washing)...

And of course, the bedding, uninterrupted by kittens!



We still have a few things left, but we're getting there.  Next on the list is to pick a pediatrician, get the car seat installed and buy the rest of what we need.  It's all planned though!

I also need to clean the house, but the couch is so much more appealing!

Nursery Sneak Peek

30 Weeks

Another milestone, at least in my book.  I am now 30 weeks pregnant, meaning this little guy will be here in roughly 10 weeks.  We're really chipping away at our lists too!  We've narrowed down some day-cares and I'm in the process of calling pediatricians to check that they are accepting new patients.  A good amount of what is left on the list we have to wait on anyway considering it's too early to check off (i.e. pack a hospital bag, wash baby clothes, etc.)  For the remainder of our time I guess I'll be nesting!  I really need to learn how to be a better homemaker though because I'm HORRIBLE at keeping the house clean and organized.  Too bad I don't think I'll be able to build a system in 10 weeks that will be habit after the baby comes.

Third Trimester

While there are several different ways to view trimester dates, I tend to be of the camp that the later date is the correct date!  Basically, that's what I did going in to the 2nd trimester because I was adamant to wait until then to spread our good news, so to me it just made sense to do so for the third trimester as well.   I am now officially in my 3rd trimester!  I'm either 1 week and a few days in to it or just starting it, but regardless - Rob and I are 2/3 of the way to meeting the Wee Baby Seamus, Little Dude, or whatever we want to call him until we share his real name after he's born!

I can't get over how quickly 28 weeks goes.  Twelve more weeks left - though a few people seem to think he'll grace us with his presence a little early.  As long as he stays in his little home until he's fully cooked (and not too much longer!) I'll be happy.

All in all though everything is going great.  I had a monthly check up last Wednesday and the doctor told me to keep doing whatever I'm doing because it's working!  As of then I've gained 4 pounds total (and per my scale that number is still accurate), my blood pressure is perfect, the babies heart beat is perfect, I haven't had any swelling and I passed my glucose testing with flying colors!  Thank goodness for the last one because I really didn't want to have to spend 3 hours at Quest on an empty stomach with a pint of pure sugar coursing through my blood stream!  One hour made me dizzy enough!

And lastly, for a little bit of fun... another quick nursery sneak peek...

It's a monkey climbing up the door frame!  Who wouldn't love that?!

I promise we'll share more pictures of the nursery soon, but we need to vacuum the floor something fierce to get rid of the Styrofoam!  Plus, I love little teasers!

Double Digits!!

As long as baby boy isn't late we're down to double digits until we get to meet the little guy!  I can't get over how fast time has flown by.  I am now officially in my 26th week with 98 days left.  Wow, 98 days left - only 14 more weeks!!  Check out my bump!  I probably should have wore a different top to take a picture that shows off the bump, rather than adds bulk to it.  Oh well!  PS - ignore the bathroom shots...

You can tell by the shot from the front that I'm carrying this baby full frontal!  Despite the tightness of clothes around the bump, you can't really tell I'm that pregnant from looking at me straight on.  I actually feel like my waist-line is more defined now that it was pre-pregnancy.  Let's see if that sticks postpartum :)

There is still a lot we need to do, but overall I think we're pretty much on top of it.  You would think I'm already nesting with all of my lists - but I would like to call it "pre-nesting".  I have great anticipations of traditional nesting, but right now I'm just listing out what I need/want to do and spending a good amount of time on the couch instead!  My excuse - those days are few and far between so I'm taking full advantage now!

The big things on our list are daycare and pediatrician.  I have some pretty solid lists going (pre-nesting, I tell ya!) so it's just a matter of buckling down and picking where we want to go, visiting a few places and then making that huge decision.

Operation Fun-Baby

This past weekend Rob and I actually checked off a daunting box on the good old checklist - painting the nursery!  To be honest, we were both a little shocked that we actually did it.  Obviously we were going to paint the room but Saturday was such a beautiful day - the perfect kind of day to make excuses and procrastinate.  And, we didn't!

I can't wait to share some sneak peeks at the nursery, but for now it's just a newly painted room without a crib, changing table, rocking chair and with carpets in need of a good cleaning - all coming soon!  However, I can say that this kid is going to have one awesome room!  On one end of the spectrum we went bold:

On the other end we went tame:



Between the two though we're happy with how it turned out and can't wait to start adding all of the fun elements we have planned!  Stay tuned for more!

Just had to share this

In the Meet Us page you may notice that I mention that one of Puma's favorite things is getting in to anything... here are some quick pictures we've snapped on our phones since President's Day:



Puma in our new entertainment center downstairs... She has only a few inches of room between the UVerse box and top of the cubbie, but she loves it!  (Hmmm... wonder what we were recording?)



It doesn't matter how big or small a box is, Puma will get in to it!  We almost always have a box right there, due to the massive amounts of online ordering we do, so she always knows where to look for boxes with which to play.  I wonder how things will go when the little one is playing with boxes himself?!  I don't imagine Puma will be too pleased.

And, this is what Rob came home to yesterday - Puma playing in the bathroom vanity.  There have been numerous times we've come home to one of the drawers open, but never the cabinet and a drawer.

Eventually we'll remember to take a picture of her on top of the chest pulling Rob's socks out!  She's since moved on from my dresser, for which I'm grateful as she would pull out underwear and necklaces!  The amazing thing though is that she can actually open the drawers.  They're not light!

We're registered!

Well, not completely.   So much is only available online and I'll update that sporadically as well as next weekend by myself in-store.  But, with that aside - we've started our registries.

Registering for baby stuff is quite an experience, let me tell you!  When registering for wedding gifts I felt like a grown-up, and registering for baby stuff made me feel like a full-fledged adult.   I thought that creating a wedding registry was overwhelming, but nothing compares to creating a baby registry.  Not only do you have to consider function, aesthetics (sometimes that's impossible as some stuff is pure baby), but most importantly you have to consider safety.  Thank goodness I'd be researching the big-ticket items in advance.

I will say though that the worst part about registering for baby items is that so much is only available online - especially the patterns we liked.  We really wanted to register for the exact items we were looking at... just because it's the same model you never know if a different pattern will work as well, or how that pattern will actually look if you buy it online.

If you're interested in taking a look...

Amazon

Babies R Us

Target

It's a Boy!!

Considering this has taken me a few days to update, most of our friends and family know that we're having a baby boy.  We couldn't be more excited!



I can now say that based on mothers intuition and old wives tales we've been thinking it was a boy all along.  I've been one of the lucky few women to not have morning sickness or any of the other symptoms that are supposed to be synonymous with a baby girl.  Thank you for that dear son of mine!  Plus, I've been gravitating to little boy clothes this whole time - such as this onesie that we picked up right away to share the news of our baby boy!



I have bought a few other things because I just want to stock up - but I admit that I need to slow down!  He was weighing in at 15oz. at 21 weeks, which is on the larger side, per my books.  I didn't ask what percentile he's in, but I'll check with the doctor in a few weeks when I go in for my monthly exam.  However, if he is a big boy, he may be up a size in clothing and out of newborn clothes within a few weeks.

I don't know what the proportions of body apendages should be at this point, but is it just me or does he look to have long legs?  He may have some Tellatin in him after all!!  And, like Rob said - with my height and his athletic ability we could have a future athlete in the making!  Or, as the tech said - if he's a big boy it looks like we may have a hockey player in the family.  I don't think our families will have any problem teaching this little guy all he needs to know about hockey!

We have movement!

Yes, ladies and gentlemen - baby Spinner is in motion!  A few days ago I felt what I was really certain was the baby and I've been recognizing lighter movement of the same capacity the last two days.   Apparently all this baby needed to kick start the activity was a few tacos!

The most accurate way I can describe what I initially felt that made me realize it was the baby was just a little more than subtle thud, where it felt almost as though the baby fell down a step or two in there.  Believe me - I know what it feels like to fall down a step or two - hopefully this baby won't have mommy's coordination!

Ever since that fateful night I've been noticing more subtle, yet similar sensations so I believe it's safe to assume that it's the baby!  At least that's what I'm going to do.  If so - this baby is pretty active in the afternoons, which would explain why the doctor had to keep moving the probe to listen to the heartbeat last week since the baby wouldn't stop moving.  Is this kid a swimmer or a soccer player, or what?!

While it's an amazing sensation - it'll be even better when Rob can feel it by just placing his hand on my belly.  That's what I'm really waiting for!!  Well, and seeing the baby next week.  I love how with Sara and Marty's baby you can see the profile so well and already can tell she has Sara's nose; even though I'm not planning to get a 3-D ultrasound I just can't wait to see the baby's profile now that it is larger than an apple seed.

Welcome to our new blog!

As you know, Baby Spinner is due June 27, 2011 and Rob and I couldn't be more excited!  Personally, I am a little nervous too, but at the end of the day I know we'll be great parents so I'm not fretting over my nerves too much.  Rob, however, is just ecstatic and not at all nervous (unless he's hiding it from me).

To chronicle our road to parenthood I decided to put together a family blog to share the goings on with friends and family.  Right now there isn't much to share, but eventually we'll have plenty of fun pictures and videos once the baby comes.



For now we have this ultra sound that I'm more than happy to share.  Can you see the baby in there?!  Maybe, maybe not - that would be because I haven't had an ultra sound since I was about 7 weeks along in the pregnancy.  Considering I am now 20 weeks and 1 day this was taken quite a while ago.  Good news though - we have our anatomy scan scheduled for next week and I can't wait!  Most importantly I want to hear that our baby is healthy but I also want to see that it's happy and hopefully be able to stop saying "it" and "he or she".  Crossing my fingers over here!!

And, one last picture for you...



That's me at 20 weeks - definitely showing!  Please ignore the stupid look on my face.  Puma decided to start "talking" to me at the same moment Rob hit the shutter release on my phone.  I dare you not to laugh when she starts meowing in those situations - you can totally tell what she's wondering!