Two weeks already?!

I can't believe it's been two weeks since our little Munchkin entered the world. It's been an absolute pleasure being his Mommy for the past two weeks. Time definitely flies though!
Here are a few pictures from Day 4, and then some from week two and even a few from today (the first day of week 3!). The family on Memorial Day

Hunter enjoying his outfit from Uncle Jeff and Aunt Holly
Mommy and Hunter - he's over 2 weeks old!
Hunter looking at us with his great big eyes. They're turning brown already, but we knew he'd have brown eyes so we're not all that surprised.
Daddy and son! SO CUTE!
Vicki, Tessa and Boo. Tessa is almost 7 months old already and has quite the fun personality. She laughs and smiles a lot and really seems to be a Daddy's girl (although she obviously loves her mommy too).

Hunter in the outfit from Eric and Kaew. The sunglasses seemed like a nice touch. Maybe he'll be a man of leisure when he gets older? This look suits him!
Sleepy man of leisure
Mommy and Hunter in his G-diaper
Hunter doing tummy time. He's not a big fan, but it strengthens his neck muscles.
Cute little wrinkly back!

This is the beginning of pictures from week 2. Look at that face! Does it get any cuter? We think not.
Lovebug position. Such a cuddly boy!
Mommy snuggling with her lovey-baby bear
Thor actually paying attention to Hunter.
Is this the beginning of a pout? Too bad he's sleeping!

Day 4 pictures

Hunter posing with some flowers from Rob Chan.
A nice close up of our beautiful boy
Daddy's foot and Hunter's foot
Look at those lips!

Ok, so I'll do my best to post more pictures. I haven't downloaded any of the random pictures I've taken on my camera, so you'll be getting more in the near future.

Being Hunter's parents has been fantastic. Having Vicki, Nate and Tessa over has also been great - it's wonderful for Hunter to spend some time with his cousin. We hope that they grow up to be good friends.

Thor isn't doing great. He's still on restriction from the dog park. We're taking him back to the vet (again) for them to run some more tests. Such sadness that little dog brings us....

1 week old!

Hunter is a week old! I cannot believe how quickly time goes. It seems like we look up and all of a sudden it's 8 pm and we haven't eaten. I'm lucky because Brian takes such good care of me! He's been cooking us dinner every night and making me lunch during the day. I don't know how single moms can do it - there's so much to be done and so little time to do it. It seems like our errands don't get done and the chores around the house are ignored with the promise that "we'll do it tomorrow." It isn't that we don't want to do it, it's just that we run out of time.

Hunter has been a very good baby and sleeps a lot. He's not a big crier and only cries when something is wrong. It tends to be when he's hungry or has gas, and that's easy enough to figure out and fix.

I'm posting some pictures from days 3 and 7 of life. Of course, there will be many, many more to come so please keep checking back. I can't believe how much cuter he's gotten in this week alone!

Oh, and tomorrow we go back to the pediatrician for a weight check. He had lost 10% of his body weight in the first 3 days, so they were a little bit concerned. With the amount that this boy eats I can't imagine that he hasn't gained weight back! He nurses between every 30 minutes and every 3 hours, depending on his mood. He tends to like to sleep in the late morning and is quite active late at night. One day we'll flip his schedule, but for now I'm just happy that he's eating so easily.

The puppies, by the way, are handling the whole transition beautifully. Although I have terrible guilt about not being able to give them the kind of attention they deserve, I do try to play with them any chance I get. This tends to be when other people are holding Hunter.

Ok, here are some pictures from days 3 and 7. We took more pictures today but have yet to upload them. Flowers from Rob Chan Flowers from Aunt Donna
Hunter's first outing Sleeping Lovebug
Future's so bright...gotta wear shades.

Daddy and son
Hunter and his cousin, Tessa.
Proud parents
Mommy and baby

Aunty Vicki

Our birth story...

As most of you know by now, Hunter Mason made his debut on Sunday, May 11. I had been asking him to come out by Mother's Day, and true to his easygoing nature, he did as he was asked. Here is our story...

Brian and I had a nice day together on Saturday. When we reflect on what we did, we wonder if we had some sort of subconscious idea that Hunter would be joining us very soon. We woke up at 4 am and went for donuts. When we got home at around 7 we took a 3 hour nap, so we woke up at 10 am. We then went on a walk without the dogs, ran some errands, laid in bed for awhile and spent the day enjoying each other. At night, Brian wanted us to have our last nice dinner out together, so we went to Fleming's steakhouse. After dinner we took the dogs on a short walk (2.5 miles) with the Baby Jogger, as we wanted them to get used to walking with the jogger. When we got home we played with the car seat, practicing taking it in and out of the car. We went to sleep the latest we had in a long time: 11:30.

At 2 am I woke up and had a wet feeling in my pants. Assuming it was more of my mucous plug I didn't think anything of it. When I went to the restroom however, I knew something was different. I walked into the bedroom and told Brian that I thought my water had broken. Thor had been in the pool the night before and jumped on our bed, so Brian suggested that the bed was still wet from the puppy. I flipped on the light and saw a puddle where I was laying...my water had broken. While I had previously felt very confident and excited about birth, I became scared and cried. I then called our doula, Elizabeth, and told her what was happening.

I was in early labor, beginning from 2 cm, as my exam had suggested on Thursday. The contractions were mild and I was able to take a shower and relax a little bit. I then called Elizabeth at around 4 and asked her to come over, but to take her time. She got to our house at around 5, Brian went out to get some pads (for my flowing broken water) and Elizabeth tried to get me to relax. I quickly progressed to active labor. When Brian got back at 6:15 I told them that we needed to go to the hospital. We left at 6:30 and arrived at the hospital at 7 am. I was 5 cm dilated when admitted. This picture was JUST before we left for the hospital. I'm on the ground because I just finished having a contraction.
They admitted us to the labor and delivery room and we settled in, not that I noticed this because I was in my own little world. At 8:30 I had progressed so there was no cervix left (>10 cm)- it was time to push. After that much pain I was afraid to push and refused to do so for a good 10 minutes. When i finally decided to push, I had him out within 45 minutes. He was born at 9:25, weighing 6 lbs 5 ounces and he was 20 inches long.

He didn't cry when he came out, a sign of things to come. The nurses tapped his bottom and he cried for about 15 seconds before quieting again. His APGAR s were 8, 9 - he lost points for color because he was a little bit oxygen deprived before being born.

Overall labor was an incredible experience. Because I had no pain medications I was very present in the entire process. I was able to feel my baby be born, which wasn't nearly as bad as it could have been (or I feared it would be). I got 1 stitch - that's it! Our team- the doctor, nurses and Elizabeth - were just perfect. They fit our birth plan and were very flexible and encouraging of me. I couldn't have done it without them and without Brian.

This picture is of Brian supporting me after a particularly rough contraction. Oh my gosh! He's here!!! Immediately after his birth.
We have a baby!!A new Daddy admiring his beautiful son.

Me and my baby

My sweet boy sleeping on my chest (the pink is my robe)

Hunter Mason at 2 days old after his first bath

Me and my perfect son

Hunter was ready to go home from the hospital!! Isn't he so tiny?!
Life at home has been incredible. I've never been as happy as I am now. Our little family is amazing...the days pass so quickly but they are full of happiness. Hunter is a good sleeper and he rarely cries. Our biggest difficulty is nursing, which is common. He often falls asleep while nursing. His most awake time tends to be between 11 pm- 3 am. Of course, this is my most tired time, but I'm trying to take naps to account for this. He and Brian are both sleeping now (at 3;30 am) while I type this.

Thor and Nala came home from camp today and are really interested in him. Thor sits at my feet, or within a few feet of me but keeps his distance. Nala, on the other hand, is constantly trying to lick the baby and breathe on him. I don't really like this and Brian is working with her on this behavior.

Ok, ok, I'm off to bed. I have to wake up at 5:30 to nurse! Feel free to leave your comments.

A beautiful weekend

My brother and Holly were in town on Friday night and then we had brunch with them on Sunday. Jeff's 5 year college reunion was on Saturday so they spent the day there. It was GREAT to see them! I can't believe that the next time we all get together there will be 5 of us!!

On Saturday, Vicki, Nate and Tessa came over for a photo shoot. Tessa was all dressed up in an adorably girly pink dress. She was in such a good mood, she smiled the entire time. What an adorable baby!

She even enjoyed lounging in the jacuzzi briefly. And look what a lady! She crossed her legs. Vicki took some pictures of me and Brian out by the pool. I am definitely ready to not be pregnant anymore! I think my tummy is growing exponentially these last few weeks. It seems like I just keep getting SO much bigger. Hopefully it's the baby gaining weight because he was measuring a little bit small. Our Dr. didn't check last week to see if I was any more dilated, but we're hoping he checks this week as I will be 38 weeks on Wednesday.

This is probably my favorite picture....even if it is a little risque ;-P
The puppies enjoyed the day out by the pool too. Nala was seeking some respite from the sun in Thor's shadow.
So Thor went and hid in the waterfall (good thing Daddy turned off that waterfall of we'd have a VERY wet dog!).

No. In answer to your questions I have not had the baby. I promise to let people know when he is born. I PROMISE!! Now, everyone get to hoping that it's sometime in the next week. I'm doing everything I can to prepare him to come out and join this fabulous world! Seeing as I am 37 weeks pregnant....He's FULL TERM!