First family photo

Welcome to the World, Asher Jonathan!!!

WELCOME, ASHER JONATHAN GRAY!
We went into the hospital this morning for our scheduled c-section. I was super nervous and cried any time a nurse or a doctor would come in to talk about the surgery or explain what was going to happen. It took the nurse 3 times to get an IV in (in 3 different places)- the first 2 were UNBELIEVABLY painful and I cried. This is coming from someone with a high pain tolerance. The IV was the absolute worst part of the entire thing. The spinal was awesome! I didn't even feel it! And the surgery itself was just amazing, It is so incredibly cool to be awake during your own surgery. I felt pressure and tugging and I could feel exactly when Asher was born. He was born at 8:03am SCREAMING with a great set of lungs! Apgars were 9 and 9. They wrapped him in a blanket and put him right on my chest so I could say hello and give him lots of kisses :-) Then he went with daddy to get weighed and cleaned up (around 8:15). I was wheeled back to my room at 8:30 and Asher was brought to my room to nurse at 9. His birth was just an overall wonderful experience! We are both doing very well and he is already an amazing nurser! I can't believe I am the mommy of 2 little boys!!!

STATS:
Weight:9 lbs. 5 oz.
Height: 21 inches
Hair: LOTS of dark, brown hair
Eyes: Grayish blue eyes (which was surprising to us since Ryan was born with dark brown eyes).

At first, he didn't look anything like Ryan- but as the hours have gone by, we are beginning to see more of a resemblance. I know I shouldn't, but I can't help but to compare the two. I've been doing it all day long. Ryan is all I've ever known- so I'm guessing it's only natural to compare Asher to him??? Anyway- the two boys met each other this afternoon. Ryan didn't seem to care too much. He seemed a little concerned at first when he saw me in the hospital bed- but soon gave me a big smile. He was lifted up so I could give him a big hug and kiss. But, it was a little nerve-wracking for me to have Ryan there. He was very active (as usual) and was running around. I was just waiting for him to trip or pull on one of my many wires (IV, catheter, compression boots). Thankfully he did not. Ryan gave his brother a kiss and enjoyed pointing out his fingers, nose, mouth, and eyes.

Here are some photos of our new little love:

Predictions....

Well- we are now down to the wire. In about 12-13 hours we will be meeting our 2nd little man! I think I'm still in a bit of denial.....but I'm also SUPER nervous! I hope I can get some sleep tonight. We've been talking to Ryan about his "baby brother" for a while now- but I think he's too young to really get it. He would rather talk about cars or trucks, bikes, planes or vacuums!!! Oh well- he'll get it once the baby comes home and he realizes that he's staying :) Anyway - here is my prediction for our little guy's stats:

Weight: 8 lbs. 2 oz
Height: 20 inches
Time: 8:07am
He will have a moderate amount of dark brown hair and super dark brown eyes (Just like Ryan did).


Jon's prediction:

Weight: 8 lbs. 11 oz
Height: 21 inches
Time: 8:05am
He will have a moderate amount of dark brown hair and dark brown eyes.

Last Preggo Picture (39 weeks):

Obstructed view....

Well - on the positive side- I just finished my last day of work today!!! I won't go back to work until the end of June. I'm so glad not to have to deal with other people's children for a while. I know that probably sounds mean- but when you are this preggo- you shouldn't have to listen to the tantruming of any other child besides your own (and thankfully, Ryan is not big on tantruming!).

Anyway-back to the original reason for this post. I got pulled over today on my way home from work and I was given a ticket for "Obstructed View"- because of my GPS!!! Isn't that so ridiculous! I've never even heard of that before. But apparently it is a real offense (I looked it up when I got home). The cop told me I can't have anything on my windshield or on my dash. So where exactly am I supposed to put it then? And why do stores sell the GPS holders with the suction cups to stick on your windshield or the bean bag thing to go on your dash? Should I hold the GPS in my hands while trying to steer? Clearly that would be safer. There isn't even a fee printed for that particular offense on the ticket. I have to call a number on Monday to find out how much it is. The cop told me "You're lucky. It's a 0 point ticket". Yeah- thanks buddy- you did me a favor!

Ok- rant over. It is 80 something degrees out today and we are going to a BBQ later on. So I'm going to quit my whining and enjoy the rest of the day :)

38 week belly!

Only 6 days to go! Next Tuesday I will take my final belly photo- well maybe Wednesday morning just before the c-section.... I'm posting the belly pics from the last few weeks for comparison. Hmmm- I'm not seeing much of a difference. I look about the same amount of HUGE in all of them....

36 weeks


37 weeks


38 weeks

More sympathy please!

You know it's bad when you are getting ready for a doctor's appointment and your husband looks at you and asks, "When are you going to get dressed?", and your reply is, "I already am!". There is no need to get all dressed up for a doctor's appointment- plus if I were to wear jeans it would make me heavier LOL! To make matters worse, my mom stopped dead in her tracks and laughed at me this morning when she saw what I was wearing. She came over to watch Ryan while we went to our appointment.

So- if you see me today- just look the other way. None of my shirts fit anymore- my belly is hanging out of all of them. I feel like I look like a guy who you would see walking out of the trailer park with a beer can in one hand and scratching his huge beer belly, that is poking out under his shirt and hanging over the top of his jeans, with his other hand. I am very huge and very uncomfortable. And I just don't care about what others think I look like at this point. But I may just nominate myself for "What Not to Wear" shortly after this baby is born LOL!

Here I am in all my hot, pregnant glory. Yes, I really went out into public looking like this *GASP*. Don't be jealous- I will give fashion tips to all who inquire...

OMG- we are THOSE people!!!

So we went for a family walk (dog included) today because the weather was BEAUTIFUL!!! Shortly after we started our walk I asked Jon if he remembered to bring a plastic bag to pick up after Foxy. He said he hadn't because Foxy had been outside almost all day and we were only going for a relatively short walk anyway. So- I didn't really care because she doesn't usually do #2 on walks anyway. Then about halfway into our walk we stopped briefly to take a sip of water and to admire a house that was for sale. We start walking again but Foxy wouldn't budge. I look at her to see what the problem is and OF COURSE she is pooping right in front of this house (that, if you remember, is FOR SALE!). She didn't do her business on the main bit of their lawn- but it was on the grassy part on the other side of the sidewalk- which is still owned by (and the responsibility of) the home owner. I looked at Jon and asked what we should do. Well, there really wasn't anything we could do- we didn't have a plastic bag. So we kind of looked the other way and walked really fast- hoping the owners weren't watching us out their window. Now- you may be asking "Did you ever go back and pick it up?" - and my answer to that is "No, no we did not". Therefore- we have become THOSE people.....the people that others curse out for not cleaning up after their dog. Please forgive us- it was a one time occurrence and will (hopefully) never happen again! But if those owners have a dog- I welcome them to bring their dog to our lawn to return the favor....

37 week belly

I don't think there has been much change since last week. The belly looks about the same- HUGE! Jon says he has a feeling I will be going into labor in the next 5 days- I pretty much just laughed at him! I don't think this kid has any intention of making an early appearance- just like his brother. Anyway - here is my belly pic. I'm posting last week's photo again for comparison :)

36 Weeks


37 Weeks

Getting nostalgic....

With the birth of this baby just looming around the corner, I find myself getting very emotional that Ryan will no longer be my only baby- Damn hormones! And just in case I don't cry enough as it is- I have to torture myself by repeatedly watching things like this:


And while we're on the topic of videos that make me cry- this one also gets me every time (despite the freaking cheesy music)!

Braxton Hicks, etc.

Seriously? I must be the only preggo lady in the world who has no clue whether or not she is having Braxton Hicks contractions. I had no clue with Ryan and I have no clue this time around either. Yet- it is a favorite question for others to ask, "Are you getting a lot of Braxton Hicks?". Um.......maybe? There are times when my belly gets super hard- I'm guessing that's it? It just feels like the baby is pushing out from all sides.... I guess it's really not a big deal for me- because it doesn't mean that my body is getting ready to do anything. That was evident after 32 hours of labor with Ryan and absolutely NO change in my body what-so-ever.

It is strange for me to be from a family of women who are champions at giving birth. By champions- I mean they have all pushed out multiple children weighing between 7 and 11 lbs with NO PAIN MEDS!!! Hmmm....maybe by "champions", I really mean "crazy". So it never crossed my mind that I would end up with a c-section. And although I've never experienced a vaginal delivery- I think I got a pretty good deal with the c-section. I honestly have no desire to push anything out of my whoo-ha. I would take stitches in my belly rather than down below ANY DAY!!! I must say that the hardest part about having a c-section was dealing with others who have never experienced one. They all give you a sad look as if you missed out on a "real" birth experience. I'm sorry- but being awake during your own surgery is pretty amazing. I could still feel Ryan being born, they still laid him on my chest for me to hold, and I was completely pain free after 4-5 days. I don't think that just because you squeezed a watermelon through a straw makes you any more of a mother or that you had a "better" delivery. I don't remember anyone handing out ribbons to those who were the best at giving birth. Anyway- this wasn't supposed to turn into a rant :)

I am proud to say that I will be the recipient of another c-section in just 15 short days.....

Egg Dying Fun!

So who had the crazy idea to allow their 20 month old to dye eggs. Surely it wasn't me! I would never want my child to make a complete mess of the table (despite the newspaper) and the microfiber chair! It was actually a lot of fun and, most importantly, Ryan had a blast.

The Before:










Admiring his work:


When the eggs were all done....


The finished masterpiece.....note how every egg is cracked

36 weeks

I have been horrible with taking belly photos during this pregnancy. I'm going to try my best to take one every week from now until the little guy is here. A few people have said they thought I was bigger when I was preggo with Ryan. Here is a comparison to prove how much more of a whale I am this time around :)

36 weeks with Ryan (before the swelling completely took over):


36 weeks with Baby #2 (by the way, my belly is actually measuring 41 weeks- OMG!!!):

The Easter Bunny

The joys of torturing your child for a photo. This is classic- every parent needs a photo like this. It seriously makes me smile every time I look at it....is that mean?

ZZZZZZZZZZ

I don't want to jinx it..............but after almost 2 months of waking practically every night- our little man is now sleeping 12-13 hours straight once again. On top of that he is taking 3 (sometimes close to 4) hour naps! I've been taking naps at the same time- it's been fabulous! There are sooo many things that need to get done before this baby arrives- but my naps have been taking priority. Speaking of sleep- I should really be getting to bed right now!