Conversations with Ryan

Here are a few quotes and conversations with Ryan from the past month and a half that I kept track of in my phone. This kid can be pretty funny sometimes, I just can't make this stuff up. Enjoy!

"What's that Mommy? (it's beef, honey) Oh beef, I like beef, it's delicious!" ( then at dinner of course-"I don't like beef!")

"Look Mommy, those Christmas lights are on, they're so beautiful!"

On the way to school noticing a particular 18-wheeler:

"Look Mommy! (look at what honey?) At that blue truck, you know that round thing like a Christmas tree? (do you mean a wreath?) yes, a wreath. You know it light up at night night time? (well, sweetie it does look like a wreath, but that is actually an extra tire he is carrying). Oh, I thought it was a wreath... It looked like a wreath. How silly, it is a tire Mommy. "

Ethan crying on the way home one night- Ryan: "Ethan, you no cry anymore, Santa won't bring you any presents on Christmas. He will bring you coal."

(After singing away in a manger a few times)

R- "Hay? Horses eat hay." (yes Jesus' mother laid him down on the hay bc there was no crib for him) "why?" (that was the only place he could sleep bc there was no bed for him) "but what will the horses eat?" (finally understood why he was worried- oh, there was still more hay for the horses to eat sweetie). "oh, okay" 

"Ethan I'm going to be right back K? You shake your rattle and have fun."

"Ethan, you love me? How, how much? You love me, Ethan? I know you love me."

"What is it Ethan, yes? Yes, uh huh!" 

(New barnyard bath book)

"I'm going to wash the aminals they are tinky tinky (stinky)"

"You read me Ethan's bunny book, Mommy? I really like it."

 

"Excuse me! I tooted (or burped)!" 

"You want to have a dance party? You know we can dance around the living room to my cd?"

Christmas 2012

We had a wonderful Christmas with four days back to back of family parties. We all got some wonderful gifts and are so thankful. We have especially loved having Mike at home with us since Dec 20th. he heads back to work January 2nd and we are all definitely going to miss him. 

Here are a few of Ryan's favorites gifts this year: 

Toy story Woody doll, Toy Story 2 movie, His spy set (with watch, binoculars, walkie talkies, and flashlight), Sesame Street digital camera, Lots of puzzles (we are doing all of them every day it seems), Sesame Street activity toy, Play Lawn mower, Large doodler with magnets, Thomas trains, Write and glow tent, Thomas tent, and all his books (and Ethan's). (Mom loves all the new clothes too!)

Ethan seems mostly fond of his clothing (Mom is anyways), new Sophie giraffe teether, and fish mirror- he has many other toys and books that have been put back for a later time. His rattle and links are fun toys currently. Ryan really enjoys Ethan's new large teddy bear which looks precious in E's room. 

I received a new iPad courtesy of my sweet husband, several pieces of my Arthur Court grapes pattern (which is a pewter set of serving pieces), a new coat, new black shoes, hurricane vases for our formal dining, pj's, the angel and stand to complete my Willow Tree nativity, Christmas ornaments and a new Point of Grace Christmas album. 

Mike received a Ruger 9mm (for home protection and target shooting down at the ranch), a folding ladder, iPhone 5 case, Apple TV, new TCU flag, Thomas Dean TCU dress shirt, Colonial and In n Out shirts, several gift cards and lots of black socks (it was the year of black socks-pretty funny)

We also received family gifts of a new mattress pad, two new pillows, bathroom towels and rugs. The boys received money for their college funds as well. 

We truly have enjoyed some fun times and yummy food with family the past few weeks and are so thankful for all our blessings this holiday season. We are especially thankful that God sent his Son, Jesus, the first and most perfect gift that we celebrate this season. Hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and enjoy a wonderful New Year as we ring in 2013!!

Ethan is 3 months old!

Our little cutie pie is now 3 months old! It is so hard for me to believe how quickly time seems to be flying by. Ethan is such a great baby. He is happy and snuggly and looks to have Dad's humor like Ryan already. He has the sweetest smile and a precious laugh. I already love him so much and can't imagine him not being a part of our family. He overall seems to be fairly laid back and can be put off some unlike his brother at this phase. He has slept through the night a handful of times, but isn't consistent and seems to change up his schedule weekly. We had the biggest changes to his sleeping schedule after I dealt with mastitis again this month.  An average night is going to bed around 7:30pm and sleeping 6-8hrs to his first feeding and then will nurse again in 3-4 hrs. He is usually up between 7:30-8am each morning regardless of feeding times. He typically naps around 10am for an hour, sometimes two, then either two more 1 hr naps throughout the afternoon or one 2-3hr nap starting around 1/1:30pm.

Accomplishments for Ethan this month included rolling over from his tummy to his back (Dec 13), laughing (week before Thanksgiving), and grasping his rattle and other toys on his bouncer. He is really aware of the people around him and follows us around the room. He has great neck/head control and has started to enjoy tummy time a little more as well as pulling up to a sitting position and even standing some. He is especially fond of his big brother and is already finding him amusing and will smile or laugh when he sees him. I am thinking these two boys will be best buds as time progresses. I am a little nervous that Ethan's laughing at Ryan may prompt some unwanted behaviors though. Ryan is going to LOVE all the attention Ethan gives him, I can tell already.


Regarding sizes, Ethan is wearing 3-6 month clothing and 6 months in his sleepers. He is finishing out our last bag of size 1 diapers and then we are switching to our size 2's. On Dec 18th he had an outpatient surgery at USMD FW where they performed his circumcision with a small correction. He did great and is currently still recovering with some fussiness, but overall is doing good. During pre-op they took his measurements and he was 15 lbs with his clothes and diaper on and 25.25inches long! Our sweet boy is growing fast and is sure to be tall like brother and his Daddy! I am trying to soak in each moment with our sweet boy, but I also look forward to watching him grow and change each month. What a blessing Ethan is to us. Thank you, Lord!

Ethan's Birth Story

Here goes attempt #2 of Ethan's delivery and birth story. The first one I wrote out over a 2.5hr nap one afternoon and as I was proof reading, and maybe had one sentence left to write, the computer froze and deleted all my work. Major bummer. I am likely going to be a little less thorough this time around, so I am not up all night typing, but we all know I am not exactly one of "few words" so we will see how that goes. As always, this will come with all the details so if you don't want to know, just don't read any further!

In starting, you have to know a little about how I feel regarding induction and natural childbirth so you can truly understand how I was feeling. I am not in favor of induction in general and think it is widely overused for the convenience and benefit of the Mom and or doctor. I do however believe there are appropriate times for its use as in previous C-sections obviously don't want to go too long, or Moms a week past their due date, or other complications know regarding Mom or baby. That being said, when I was told at 38 weeks that my baby was roughly 8lbs, I can't exactly express my anxiety and reservations upon making it to my due date (Sept 12th) and him not having chosen to arrive yet. At my 40 week visit I was 3 cm dilated and 60% effaced. My Dr told me that while I didn't have to pick an induction date, he didn't feel very comfortable allowing me to go more than a week past my due date (so 9-19, our nephew's bday). So, I was asked to pick a date and honestly was praying he would just opt to come on his own before that. So, with some hesitation, I picked September 14th fully believing that Ethan would show up before then on his own and knowing that I simply could not bear going through another weekend wondering "is this the day/night?". I had feelings of relief that there was an end in sight, but also guilt that I was not being patient waiting on the Lord's timing and blessings for us, but yet praying all the while that I would go into labor on my own before I had to check in. Mike and I both prayed A LOT that last week and especially the last 24hrs.

Well, after trying every "trick in the book" to jump start labor the last 48 hrs before induction, it was quite surreal to drive up to Methodist Mansfield Medical Center and unload the car with our belongings at 6am and not be in any pain. (Quite a different experience from last time) We actually ran into our pediatrician, Dr Wallace waiting on the elevators to go up to the 2nd floor. We were in a room and being checked in within just a few minutes of arrival. I was assigned to room 8 in labor and delivery and my nurse came in about 6:45am and her name was Theresa. She was very nice and energetic and just who I needed to start the day. She got me hooked up to the wireless monitors since I planned to walk around and be up during labor and not just flat on my back. I was not found however, of her IV skills. That was the sole thing that gave me pain from about 7:30am until around 4:30/5pm when contractions were really serious. Even the week after delivery my wrist hurt so bad around the bone where the IV had been.

Dr. Daum came in right at 8am and had agreed to go ahead and break my water and then wait on my body to let labor start on its own. Unfortunately, time would tell that it took a little longer that I had anticipated. When I checked in I was 4cm and 60% effaced and -2 station and I remember him noting that I was having some regular contractions already, but I told him this had been the state of things for the past week plus, so my body just likes to slowly ease in for awhile before hard labor I suppose. Anyways, after he broke my water he went back to the office (in the medical building adjoining the hospital) to see his patients. I stayed sitting up in bed for probably a half hour to allow for some major gushing (seriously crazy stuff). Then Mike and I started walking the halls. We walked, we used the birthing ball, I squatted, etc but we were off to a slow start with things. Mom, Dad, Nanny, Poppy, Lauren, Naomi, and Ryan came up to the hospital around 10:00am just to check on me and in case things would happen quickly, but we sent them home around lunchtime to eat and let the kiddos nap. At around 12:30 I believe (it's been 2 months now people so my brain is fuzzy), Dr. Daum came in and I was only 5 cm and still about 60% effaced, but luckily a 0 station so baby was moving down which was the goal my nurse had given me. I was a little down that there had not been more change in dilation, but the nurse explained that we needed the baby's head to move down and press on the cervix to really effect the dilation. So, it was slow but steady progress. Back to walking and various positions we went... Somewhere around 4-4:30pm contractions really started picking up in intensity where I was actually noticing a difference and occasionally having to stop speaking to concentrate on them. Mom and Nanny came by at some point around then and I remember telling Mom they were significant, but didn't seem hard enough just yet. By 5:30pm Dr. Daum came back to check on me and reported that I was still only 5 cm (which honestly shocked him and ME!), my cervix was luckily almost completely effaced I think he had said about 90%, but it was not the news I wanted to hear. He reassured me that he lived close by and could be back to the hospital in minutes and headed home. He encouraged me that even though I was feeling the pain of the contractions that the most important thing for me to do right then was to find the positions that caused me to have the most contractions. (Let me tell you that is easier said than done.) It is quite challenging mentally to tell yourself to move in a way that causes you the most pain basically speaking. So, I got up again with the intention of walking around, but with a stop to pee first. It was truly the longest walk to the bathroom ever as it caused 3 contractions just on the way to the bathroom and by the time I had finished and was headed back I was feeling nauseous and was sick once. I stayed upright for the next half hour and it was around that time that I remember thinking there was no way that I could keep going medicine free and really started second guessing my decision. With those thoughts that I couldn't do it anymore, 7pm brought a nurse change of shift. We then met Laura, who I have to say was an amazing nurse and just what I needed for that last hour. She was reassuring and confident and she and Mike helped me get on my hands and knees and she showed him a way to press on my hips which was really very helpful to handle the pain I was feeling. By 7:30-7:40 I was starting to feel pressure and notified Laura who checked and found that I was completely dilated. What a relief!! She called in the team to set up the room for delivery and they paged Dr. Daum. It all happened so fast and I'm pretty sure the Dr was in my room by 7:45pm. I remember looking at the clock in front of me and thinking oh my goodness this baby could be here by 8pm!
Mike and Laura were taking turns fanning me with a clipboard, Mike was giving me ice chips after every contraction and I think I was breathing as deeply as I could to try to relax. I have to pause and say, I can't speak highly enough of my delivery team including my husband. They were truly awesome and I know I never could have done it without them. So about 5 minutes until 8pm Dr. Daum told me that whenever I felt the urge that I could push with the next contraction. After the first contraction I remember Dr Daum encouraging me that he could see the head and that "It didn't look like he had much hair". About two contractions and pushes later Ethan's head emerged and the Dr suctioned the nose and mouth and one last push and he was here! He arrived at 8:13pm and after only 3-4pushes. (Such an improvement over the 2 hrs of pushing with my first labor).

My first thoughts when Ethan arrived were that of relief that he was finally in my arms and I thought he was so handsome and didn't look like Ryan to me as I had anticipated him to. (later looking at pictures I changed my mind, they resemble one another very closely) I also thought that he seemed slimy and had more vernix than I remember Ryan having at birth. They laid him right on my chest and Ethan cried right away and spread his arms out the way he does now when he is startled or seems to think he is falling. I talked to him and kissed him and it was just a wonderful few moments. Dr Daum let Mike cut the umbilical cord after the blood had pulsed out and it seemed much skinnier than Ryan's cord as well. The nurse took him away to measure him and do her charting, but I could see him across the room while Dr. Daum delivered the afterbirth and thankfully I had no tears this time, so no stitches! Hooray! This truly made a world of difference with my recovery which was such night and day difference from the first time. The nurse also changed out my gown and ordered food in for me since I hadn't eaten since dinner the night before (and I was starving!). Then Ethan's nurse brought him back to me about about 5-10 minutes later and he nursed for the first time for maybe 15 minutes and really seemed to latch fairly easily. He didn't nurse for long and we decided to allow family back to see him before it got too late for Ryan to be up. He got to meet his brother around 9pm and was the proudest big brother I think there ever was. He was so excited to hold him and touch him all over and it was so wonderful to see them together. I think I will always remember that moment. I almost cried it was so cute.

It really was a wonderful labor and God was showing us his blessings in every way even though we in some ways took "initiative" for the birth on our own. I am thankful that both of us stayed healthy and had no complications and even more grateful for the quick recovery time afterwards. I would highly recommend Dr. Daum to anyone in the Mansfield area looking for an OB/GYN. I could not have asked for a better experience than I had with him. He is truly a caring and knowledgeable physician who was always listening to my wishes and made it a great experience. I also had great nurses and staff at Methodist Mansfield Medical Center and even the food was great! So that about sums it up. We are so thankful that Ethan is here!

Ethan is 2 months old

 

 

Our happy, littlest guy is now 2 months old. It is hard to believe the next monthly post will be almost Christmas and he will be 3 months. Where does the time go? In order to attempt to keep doing these posts I am going to have to try to learn to be brief and just state some facts, I'll give it a try.

Starting with the stats, our pediatrician does them by percentile groups (10, 25, 50, 75, 90, 95, 97) and shows them to me on a curve. However, now with Ethan, they also give exact percentages on a printout so I will list those. I did find it interesting that Ethan and Ryan are the same length at this age yet Ryan was considered 95th% and Ethan 90th% on the growth curve.

Stats as of November 15th:

24.5 inches long (93%), 12lb 15oz (79%), head circumference 39.5cms (38%)

Ethan is still a great sleeper, but has had a handful of times we have actually had to rock him or walk him to sleep. Seems to have happened when he was up for too long and is overly tired so he fights sleep. Other than that he is great about laying down awake and putting himself to sleep without a fuss. (Hooray!) General night time schedule is bedtime 7:30/8pm, feeding 5.5-7hrs later, then again 3.5-4hrs after that. If his second feeding is around 7am then he is generally awake then, but if it is 5-5:45 he goes back to bed until 7:30-8:30. Before the time change he was sleeping until 9/9:30, but has moved up about an hr since then. During the day he naps first about 2 hrs after waking up for the day until his next feeding, then usually a cat nap around lunchtime and another 2-3hr nap around 1:30/2pm. From about 4:30pm he is up until bedtime typically. We did give up on swaddling this month because he really does love his hands up by his face and sometimes sucks on his knuckles to soothe himself. I do still wrap him up waist down or put him in a zippered sleep sack and he seems to like it. Ethan, like his brother, is really no good with paci's (he can't seem to hold them in), but if you hold one in for him while he is fussy it typically does help at least for a little while so I suppose it can be useful. We have Nuk, Avent, and Playtex paci's that we received originally for Ryan and he doesn't favor any, so I don't really care to try any others out. He either likes it or he doesn't.

Ethan eats every 3-4hrs during the day, but typically a 2-2.5hr feeding seems to happen right around bedtime. He is a great eater (obviously as he is gaining weight great) and also a good sleeper. Overall, he seems to be such a happy baby and loves his family (and we LOVE him!)

He is wearing size 1 diapers (pampers continue to be our favorite!) and he still wears 3mo clothing (though a few are starting to get snug). Just this week I have been boxing up most of the 0-3mo items that don't fit and he has started to wear a few 3-6mo outfits. I have a feeling the 6mo sleepers will be prevalent in the next week or two so they just went in the wash. He doesn't often wear shoes, but size 1 is still big- he seems to have smaller feet than his brother did.

Ethan is smiling and "talking" to us often when he is awake, he has great head control already and lifts up well at tummy time. He only puts up with tummy time for about 10 min though and then he is through. He tracks people with his head and eyes all around the room now, but especially voices of Mom, Dad, Ryan, and Nana. He tolerates the car seat a little better now and bouncer, but truly prefers to stretch out and kick on a blanket (or his changing table) instead. I have been braver letting him lay on the floor now on a blanket with big brother around as he is learning to be more careful/gentle, but I still keep a close eye on him. Ryan loves and hugs on his brother so much, but still doesn't seem to understand that he could actually smother him or hurt him giving hugs and kisses. The past few weeks Ethan has learned to hold onto a rattle (though he doesn't have much control really). He seems delighted that he can make it make noise and especially loves a guitar rattle that Ryan often plays the music on for him (thanks Fitzgeralds). He does okay in the swing, but mostly just to watch the mobile go around and around and see his cute little face in the mirror which he smiles so big at. About 15 min in the swing and he is typically done, so I think in the next month we will likely be done with it right in time to give back to its owners who are expecting another baby in late January. :)

Ethan got his two month shots at this appointment, which were very sad for him (and Mom), but we know they are so important to keep him healthy as well as other kids around us, so we made it through! Luckily, our office does the 5 injections due at 2 months as one oral medicine, and two shots one in each leg. One shot is a combination of 3, so I'm very thankful for that! Ethan was fussy for about 2 days after his shots every time he would stretch out his legs he seemed to cry, so I believe his poor legs hurt, but no other side effects. I did give him infant Tylenol for the first time and about 3 doses over 48hrs.

Summing it all up, we are just so thankful for our sweet baby boy and feel so blessed to have him added to our lives. As we enter into this week of "Thanksgiving" we have so much to be thankful for- our health, family, friends, and even material possessions. God continues to graciously pour out his blessings on our family and for that we are truly THANKFUL! Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

 

Psalm 100: 1-5

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.
² Worship the Lord with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
³ Know that the Lord is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

⁴ Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.
⁵ For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.



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Ethan is 1 month old

 

It is hard to believe that a month has already passed. Our baby boy is now one month old! Is it possible that he has slept through the first month? Just kidding, but he truly is such a great sleeper. Ethan is typically up in the mornings from either 6:30-8:30am or about 8:30-10:30am after one of his feedings then will go back to sleep and be up again in the evening typically around dinner time 6pm until 8-8:30pm when he will nurse and go to bed for the night. At night (starting around 3 wks old) it is typical for him to go 4.5-5hrs after being put to bed before nursing again then following that with 3-3.5 hr feeding. A few nights ago he actually switched and did 3 hrs first and then 5 hrs after which I was hoping would stick around, but has not yet repeated at this point. He wakes to feed 2.5-3.5hrs during the day then is back to sleep. Usually his first feeding after being awake from the night is shorter, but throughout the day 3hrs is very normal.

Ethan is not a huge fan of his car seat. In general, if he is sleeping he is okay with it, but he is often startled awake or gets a burp in his tummy or something and will go crazy until you pick him up and take him out of his car seat. This is obviously not ideal. This past week I tried swaddling down his arms after he was strapped in which has seemed to help a great deal unless he is simply hungry then it's best to just get him somewhere that I can feed him to make him happy.

At 2 weeks Ethan was 9lb 5.5oz and 22 inches long. At Ethan's 5 wk appointment he weighed 11lb 4oz!! Wow! He is certainly a growing boy. Exactly 3 lbs gained in the first 5 weeks of his life. He was also 22 & 3/4 inches long. (Gained over 2 inches) Ethan was wearing newborn diapers until 4 weeks old when we ran out and he now wears size 1 which fit great. He also wore NB clothing until then, but now I have put NB outfits and onesies away and he is wearing 0-3 and 3 month clothing (mostly Carters brand it seems).

Ethan smiled at me for the first time on my birthday, October 3rd. It was so sweet. Since then he has chosen to smile at many people especially in the evenings. He is a happy guy! At 3 weeks old he started noticing his mobile on his swing for the first time as it went around. It was so cute to watch him as he looked so fascinated by it. He also enjoys swinging at the animals on his bouncer and probably has the most fun laying flat on his activity center hitting the animals and kicking his feet. He is also very happy just to lay on a blanket on the floor and kick.

From the start Ethan recognized Ryan's voice which was so cute. He turns toward him whenever he is in the room and now will smile at him also as if to say "I'm so glad you're here too!" It is absolutely precious. While in the delivery room about an hour after he was born when Ryan came to meet him it was obvious that he knew Ryan's voice and would turn to him then which was so neat.

I'm not quite as good about giving him "tummy time" as I was with Ryan other than laying him on my chest. I am trying to be better about it at least once or twice a day. He is great at lifting his head while on someone, but on the floor he lifts it a little for a few minutes maybe then seems to not be interested and would rather just lay there sometimes sucking on his arm or hand. I'm sure he will master this in time. One morning while giving him tummy time he was lifting his head high and rolled tummy to back 3 or 4 times. So strong! He has not yet repeated it though.

There's my little Ethan update. I am really not good about blogging anymore, but trying to get better. Enjoy a few 1 month photos. Thanks to my bestie Melissa for the cute monthly stickers!

~Emily