The Martin's

9 months ago....

2011-06-22T08:59:00.002-06:00

Avery joined our little family and gee has it gone by fast! I think time starts going by faster with each kid you have! We have had a lot of exciting stuff happen around here...

We went on a fun family trip to FL in April to visit Ryan's extended family- we all had such a great time and it was awesome to see everyone. The boys absolutely loved the ocean! And Avery learned how to crawl while we were out there!

I survived a huge transition/re-aligning at work. It was a rocky 2 months, but I think things are finally settling out, not necessarily for the best, but settling nonetheless.

Carter turned 2 and had a big Mickey Mouse birthday party.

Avery's 1st tooth popped through on mine and Ryan's 3 year wedding anniversary. And the 2nd one came through just the other day.

We had hell come through our house about a month ago. Avery had RSV, Carter had Pink Eye, Ryan had Bronchitis and I was lucky enough to develop Walking Pneumonia. The worst 2 weeks ever. Good news is that we all recovered with some time and are HEALTHY!

I met one of our neighbors for the first time since moving in last May (That's right! We have been homeowners for a year!)...I'm thinking we will become good friends with them this summer. I have met the husband many times, but never the wife. They have a little guy that was born 3 weeks after Avery.

Carter got his first helmet and scooter. I am pretty sure he could ride that thing around ALL DAY. He has a blast!

I received a settlement from the car accident I was in last Aug. With that I was able to pay off all my debt-minus some students loans and a few medical bills that are out there from having Avery! Yippee!!

Yesterday we finally had Avery's skin tag removed. One thing that is always hard is holding your baby down to have something done to them. Just like when they have their vaccinations...my heart breaks every time. But it was a relatively painless procedure and it should heal quickly. He's a trooper.

So much has happened and I am sure that I am leaving out a ton. But we are happy to report that we are having fun and enjoying every moment of our busy crazy life. Hopefully it won't be another 6 months before I have time to share more!! :)

Too far behind!

2011-06-18T20:06:00.001-06:00

I'm not sure I'll ever catch up....The good thing is we have been keeping busy and having fun. More to come!

First week back at work

2011-01-02T14:03:00.004-07:00

Well last week was my first week back to work. Thank goodness it was a short and slow one! I felt so disoriented the first day. It was nothing like going back to work from being on maternity leave with Carter. Last time I went back to a new store, new people and a new position. This time it was relieving knowing I was going back to the same old thing. Still it felt so weird helping customers and being there. After the first couple days things started feeling normal again, especially with the help of one of my employees. We'll call that person "the trouble maker". Already I am having to "manage" (babysit) some of my team members. Lovely.

Carter and Avery went to daycare 2 days and Ryan was home with them the other two. Things went very very good. I am so glad Ryan was able to spend 2 days with them and really get a feel for what things are like at home with 2 kiddos. Sometimes it's not so easy and if you don't experience it it can be easy to not understand.

Next week is the first real week for us in a LONG time. Both Ryan and I will be at work full time all week and both boys will be at daycare all week full time. I am so happy to everyone back into a routine! I never knew how important routines were until we had Carter and I tell you what, without them we would die over here! Carter is so much easy and pleasant to be around when he is on a routine.

So that's basically what we've been up to lately. Avery is getting really big. He smiles all the time and is learning to laugh! Carter is doing great too. He loves Ab (Avery) so much and hugs and kisses him all the time.

Date Night and New Year's Resolutions

2010-12-07T09:38:00.000-07:00

Date night....What is that?! Since having kids date night has not existed with Ryan and I. Which has been WAY TO LONG! We might go out here or there (probably less than 5 times since Carter was born), but now we are to the point where we NEED date night. So I turned to other women with kids the same ages as mine for some advice. And what I found is GENIUS! Project 52 Date Night. A date night once a week with dear hubby. This doesn't mean that we go out to an extravagant dinner every single week or spend a ton of money (that we don't have), but instead commit to time together even if it's at home after the kiddos go to bed.

Here is the link that was passed along to me: http://www.simplymodernmom.com/2009/12/project-52-date-nights/

We probably can't jump into a night every week right now so we'll try every 2 weeks first. So with the new year starting up, this will definitely be on the new year's resolution list. My list is small, I like to keep it simple and realistic. So my resolutions are:

1. Project 26 Date Night
2. Pay off all debt! (I am so close!)
3. Stay healthy (Work out when I can and eat healthy. I am not putting a number on weight loss here, that never works. I just want to feel great.)

3 simple goals this year. With working full time, being a Mom, a wife, and housekeeper I would hate to overload myself. 2011 is going to be a great year and maybe a year where we can settle into life a little bit and take a break from getting married, have 2 babies and buying a house in 3 years! We've loved every second of it (OK...most of them anyway), but I know I would love to take it easy for a year. Maybe go on vacation and enjoy a beach somewhere! :)

Avery's 2 month check up

2010-12-07T09:26:00.002-07:00

Wow! 2 months already!

Avery's check up went really good. He is a big boy weighing in at 13.5 lbs! Which is in the 90th percentile. He is also a long baby 24", which is in the 75th percentile. This all explains why he is already fitting into 6 month clothes and even some 9 month! He got 4 vaccinations (3 shots and 1 oral), poor baby! We are going to be working harder at tummy time to strengthen his neck. Right now he absolutely hates it. I have to break it up into 3 or 4 mini sessions a day lasting only about 5 minutes each. We are also working on getting him on a schedule. Right now he eats and sleeps whenever, which doesn't work for me. He is really good at waking only once at night, but during the day he is a cat-napper. So we have started to do bath time, pajamas, and a feeding before bed time. The goal is that he catches on to this little routine and the rest of the day falls into place.

Everything else is going very well. Carter absolutely loves Avery and is a big helper. I can hardly wait until Avery is more aware and can interact with Carter. They are going to be best buds.

What have we been up to lately?

2010-11-19T08:41:00.003-07:00

Well the past (almost) 2 months have been crazy around here. All in a good way though. Avery is a great baby, he does the normal eat, poop, sleep routine. Lately he has become more aware of everything around him. He is staying awake for longer periods and has started smiling. I just love his gummy grin it makes my day every time I see him smile. He gets up once during the night to eat, which isn't too bad. Right now he is still sleeping in mine and Ryan's room, but this weekend we will be moving him to his room and crib. I hope it's a smooth transition, fingers crossed!

Carter and Avery are doing well together. Carter absolutely loves "baby" (Carter will only call him baby, not Avery) and tries to hug and kiss him ALL the time. We have to remind him often not to kiss him on the face, but only on the top of his head. Carter has kind of tried to pick Avery up, but acts like Avery is too heavy and doesn't bother actually picking him up....the thought of him picking Avery up just freaks me out! Carter is learning all kinds of words these days and has even started putting some phrases together. His most popular phrases are: baby eating, baby crying, mommy milk (my cup regardless of what's actually in it), more milk please, big truck, and bye-bye big truck. His newest phrase (and most annoying to me) is "I want that." He is so smart and catches on very quick.

My hope for the last month of my maternity leave from work is that we can all get back on some sort of routine. We have been all over the place trying to adjust to life with 2 kids. It's been awesome having the time off and being able to spend the holidays at home. It will definitely be hard to go back at the end of December. That's one things I am NOT looking forward to...so as much as I would love for it to be Thanksgiving and Christmas, they can both take their time getting here!

Avery 2 weeks old

2010-10-15T13:55:00.005-06:00

Thank you Danielle for your great work! I love the pictures you took of Avery. They came out perfect!

Avery's arrival

2010-10-15T13:19:00.002-06:00

We welcomed Avery Jackson into the world on Sept. 26th. He decided that October just was not the month for him and to make his debut 1 week and 3 days early. We were all at home watching the Broncos game when I thought I felt my water leak or maybe I peed my pants! (Who knows when you're pregnant! Those kinds of things can happen!) I told Ryan about it and didn't think too much of it, until it happened again. Ryan said if it happened again maybe we should call the doctor. Of course right after that it happened again. So I started getting my bag ready and packing up a bag for Carter while Ryan called the doctor. Sure enough they sent us to Labor and Delivery at the hospital to get checked out. On the way to the hospital we dropped Carter and the dogs off with my Brother and Sister-In-Law. Once we got to the hospital they examined things and sure enough my water was leaking. I was not having consistent contractions which is not good once your water breaks. (They like for you to deliver the baby within 24 hours of your water breaking otherwise it can possibly lead to infection) The doctor ordered an ultrasound to ensure the baby was head down (even though the day before we had a ultrasound at our doctor appt and he was), once they determined that he was head down they decided to induce me with Pitocin to get the contractions going consistently. All of this happened around 6:00 p.m. I told the doctor that I would like to go without any medication for as long as possible, but the contractions started getting hard really fast.

Around 9:00 p.m. I asked for the epidural, I was about 4 cm dilated so I had a long way to go. The Anesthesiologist was available right away and came in to start the epidural. The first time he inserted it it hit a vein and caused the whole right side of my body to be very tingly. He said it would be less effective unless he re-did it! So he did it all over and things worked much better. About 9:30 p.m. I started feeling much better, only really feeling pressure not pain. Then around 10:00 I felt a lot of pressure and things just didn't feel right so I called the nurse. She examined things and sure enough I was at 9 cm and almost ready to push. She called the doctor and about 10:20 the doctor determined I was fully dilated and ready to have the baby. It took about 3 sets of pushes and Avery was born. In the process of Avery coming down the birth canal he got stuck for a moment. His arm was in front of his face and bruised it pretty badly. His eyes were purple and blue along with the bridge of his nose, his upper lip and his cheek bones.

We were discharged from the hospital on Tuesday the 28th. With all the bruising the doctors were very concerned with his Bilirubin levels (Jaundice). When bruises heal the blood cells are absorbed back into the body, in babies this can be difficult for their new little livers and kidneys to process and can cause very high levels of jaundice. In order to treat this the doctor ordered a UV bed for Avery to spend time in. We had the bed for 1 day and Avery's levels immediately started improving. He had his 2 week check up this past week and they tested his jaundice levels again and they were significantly lower than the first week of his life (6.9 compared to 16.6). He now weighs 8lbs. 15 oz. and is 22" tall which is also fantastic! I really can't believe that it has been almost 3 weeks since his arrival. I am enjoying my time off with him and Carter. I love that my time off is during the holidays...wish I never had to go back to work, but for now I will enjoy the time with my boys.

Carter is doing amazingly well with Avery. He still doesn't quite understand why Mommy spends so much time with the baby or how to be very gentle some times, but we are working on that. Carter loves giving him kisses and rubbing his head. Every morning he has to see the baby and give him kisses. He also tells the baby bye when he goes to daycare and "night night" when going to bed. They are going to be best friends, I just know it. :)

About 2 weeks to go....

2010-09-20T09:42:00.002-06:00

Reality check! About 2 weeks left and if this little guy is anything like Carter he may be here sooner than that! I have my fingers crossed that he at least makes it until October. We had a Dr. appointment a few days ago. She said everything looked really good. She did a quick ultrasound to make sure the baby is head down, which he is, and to check on his size. She estimated that he is about 8lbs! Ha! I REALLY don't think that is accurate and neither does she, so we will be re-checking his weight at my Dr. appointment this Friday. If he was 8lbs he would weigh half of what I have gained so far! That's a lot of baby! We are thinking he is closer to 7lbs, which is still pretty big considering he has 2 weeks to grow. If he is going to be large then she said we could discuss what we want to do in terms of inducing. So I guess we will see what happens Friday...if I make it until then! :)

Maternity Pictures

2010-09-20T09:25:00.011-06:00

About a month ago my Sister-In-Law, Danielle, was kind enough to take some maternity pictures for us. I love them and am very thankful she was able to get such great shots of us! Thank you again Danielle!

A month to go!!!

2010-09-01T16:27:00.003-06:00

Can you believe it? I know I sure can't!

About 1 month until we get to meet our newest little family member. I am SOOOO excited. What does he look like? Who does he look like? What will his personality be like? How much will he weigh? What day will he decide to come? So many questions and so much to look forward to. There is definitely still the scariest question of all that is always in the back of my mind....will Carter like him? I hope so. Poor little guy has no idea that his world his going to be turned upside down. There is going to be this baby that takes all of Mommy's time. How ever will I be able to satisfy both babies needs? No idea. We'll just take it one little step at a time.

I am feeling good these days. After my car accident/hospital stay things have been good. I am so glad that the accident wasn't very bad and the no one was hurt. The upside to me having to be monitored for 24 hours in the hospital was that I got an ultrasound and got to peek in on the little guy. They say he is measuring a week ahead and was weighing in at 5 1/2 lbs. On average he should gain about 1/2 lb. a week. So it looks like we will have another 7 3/4 lbs. baby! I also have not gained anymore weight, I am still 11 lbs. up from my pre-pregnancy weight. I have another appointment in a week and then they will be weekly until the baby is born. To be honest, I really don't like these appointments. It seems like more often than not I am sitting in a waiting room for 30 minutes before even being seen, then once the nurse takes me back to the exam room I have to wait another 15 minutes. So 45 minutes of waiting for a 5 minute appointment. It's always the same thing, weight, blood pressure (which is always amazingly good, that I am grateful for!), measure belly, listen to heartbeat, then I am out there. Since I have had such a good pregnancy you would think they would let me continue to only go in every 2 weeks.

Other than our same boring routine not too much has been happening at home. Carter had a 16 month check up. He weighs about 25 lbs and is about 34" tall. He is a little small in the weight department (24th percentile), but very tall for his age (90th percentile). He got a couple shots, which made him mad as heck. He is learning all kinds of stuff and has become quite the chatter box. You would never be able to tell because he shuts down when around other people. He tries very hard to say new words and even have conversation with you. It's pretty funny sometimes.

Lately we have noticed that he is showing signs of potty training (Perhaps? I don't want to jinx anything, but this may be the beginning). He will tell us pee or poop when he has a dirty diaper and he will sit on his potty. We haven't had any successful eliminations in the potty, but we try to talk about it and show him what to do. We aren't forcing anything, but it's a start.

Anyway, that's the update! I will be sure to post some maternity pictures that my sister-in-law, Danielle, took for us soon! :)

8 months pregnant

2010-08-09T11:40:00.004-06:00

Since posting monthly updates seems to be my thing lately...here we go...

I will be 32 weeks pregnant this week, which puts me at about 8 months. Only 2 more months before we get to meet our tiny man. We are excited, anxious and nervous. I, of course, have a million what ifs that run through my head daily. What if he comes early? What if he comes late? What if Carter doesn't like him? What if I go crazy trying to take care of 2 kids? I know in the end it will all be great. I just have to remind myself of that every once in a while.

My last Dr.s appt went really good. So far I am up 11lbs. I gained 5 in two weeks! I try not to let the weight gain bother me....after all...I am having a baby! It's the one time in your life when it's a good thing to gain weight, right? Next appt. is this Friday. I am sure I'll have gained another 5lbs. (Oh well) Nothing has changed so the appt. should go good. We don't get another ultra sound until around 37 weeks. The Dr. will then check to make sure the baby is head down. With Carter we had a few ultra sounds the last half of the pregnancy, but with the new Dr. we are seeing they do things a little different. If there is no medical reason for it, then you don't get one. Bummer! I want to check in on him and see how he is doing!

Last Saturday my Sister-In-Law, Sarah, threw me a baby shower. It was definitely nice to have a little celebration for the baby. It was very small, but she cooked enough yummy food to feed 50 people! :) It was all delicious. The new baby received several handmade things. Aunt Danielle made him a very cute taggie blanket, a friend, Stephanie, made him the most adorable hat and Aunt Sarah made some awesome burp clothes. He also got a few new outfits and other baby necessities.

We started painting the nursery this weekend. We are just about done, only another coat along the border, then I can put the final decorations up. I have all his clothes washed and ready to go. And his furniture is assembled and ready. There really isn't much more we need except him!

In other news...Carter is doing great. He is learning new words everyday like ouwie (as in when you get hurt), hamburger, all kinds of animal noises, and banana (he actually says nananana). He loves to point(or should I say poke)out eyes and noses. Recently every time he sees me in a picture he yells out "Mommy!". He goes crazy over balloons and Elmo. We are also teaching him what a baby is, so now every time he sees one (even on T.V.,in a magazine or on a box) he points and says "Baby". He is definitely becoming more of a little person all the time. We love that kiddo. :)

7 months pregnant!

2010-07-15T12:06:00.002-06:00

Yep, that's right folks.....7 months! I just hit the 28 week mark today which puts me in the third trimester. So far the pregnancy has been uneventful, which is a really good thing. I am having a textbook pregnancy and I don't think it could really be going any better. Today I had a doctor appointment. At this one they test for Gestational Diabetes and Anemia. They test your glucose levels by having you drink a really sugary drink and then they draw your blood for testing an hour later. Mine was orange flavored, same as with Carter, and it was very gross, same as last time. I got to choose from a few different kinds, but tropical punch and cola didn't sound very appealing. Hopefully the results come in tomorrow and everything looks good. The doctor also said I am measuring perfect, my belly that is, and I have gained 5 pounds so far. Now we start seeing the doctor every 2 weeks for the next 2 months.

In other news, Carter is becoming a funny little character. He is very smart too, he tries to say all kinds of words. He mostly just gets the number of syllables out, but he tries really hard to get the right sounds of the word too. He also is very good at pointing out his nose, mouth, tongue, teeth, eyes, hair, toes, fingers, and ears. He is doing well with his new in home daycare, I do think he misses all the interaction with the kids he used to be around. It would be typical to have 5-10 toddlers in the same room at his old daycare, so he would have a lot of kids his age. I guess it's just something he has to adjust to.

We hope everyone is enjoying these lazy dog days of summer! Take advantage of the nice hot weather while you can! :)

6 months pregnant

2010-06-19T13:22:00.005-06:00

I had a reality check the other day. I am 6 months pregnant and baby #2 will be here in 3.5 months! REALLY?! How is it possible that time has gone by so fast? I have definitely not been as worried this time around about having everything ready for his arrival. Maybe it's because we have most of what we need for him and don't need to buy much? Well, the reality check changed that and made me start thinking about getting it all out and fresh for him. So to start, I ordered his furniture yesterday and I am so excited for it to arrive!

Here is a picture of the crib. We decided to go with an oak finish instead of a dark cherry finish like most of our other house furniture.

I haven't decided what we are going to do about bedding yet. Since bedding sets are so useless, I was thinking of just getting a few sets of sheets. I am thinking of going with a turtles and snails theme for his room. I can't wait to start decorating! :)

I had my 24 week doctor appointment Friday and things are going well. His heart sounds good and I am measuring average. The baby is about 1.5 pounds and about 12 inches long! I have gained 2 pounds so far and the doctor seemed to be a little concerned about it. I am not all that concerned though, especially with the appetite I have had lately. I could eat ALL day long, seriously ALL day. I eat a meal and then 10 minutes later I feel like I could eat a whole other one! I thought I would have gained 10 pounds in the last month, but nope, only 2. I feel really good these days. Not nearly as tired as when I was pregnant with Carter which is weird because I am so busy chasing him around. But no complaints here, I'll take all the energy I can get! The slow, tired, achy third trimester is right around the corner and I am hoping it doesn't hit me too hard! :)

Here is a 24 week belly picture.

What's new over here....

2010-06-19T12:51:00.004-06:00

Things over at the Martin House have been very busy lately. The house is coming along great. I actually think we might be to the point where we can start decorating and maybe even paint a little bit, just to add some color. The garden is growing really well and we are SLOWLY getting rid of some of the weeds in the yard. The dog's also love the yard, so much in fact, that they dig holes all over, eat the red wood chips and dig up the grass seed we just laid. But that's another story...

On another note, Carter has been having fun in his swim class. Last week we introduced dunking under water. He did very well! It was a little surprising for him, but in general he doesn't mind at all. I think we might have a water baby on our hands.

Last week we also changed his daycare. He has been at La Petite since he was 3 months old and we really liked it, but with the new baby coming it is too costly to have them both there (try $2100 a month, that's almost double our mortgage!). So Sarah, my Sister-In-Law, recommended someone who does in home daycare. So far it has worked out very well, but you can tell it is a huge adjustment for Carter. He has never known anything but La Petite, so it has been stressful. He does fine all day while he is there, but it's the dropping him off part that is hard. It doesn't help that he is going through an extremely clingy, to ONLY Mommy, stage. (I really don't mind, if I could spend all day holding, carrying and hugging him I would. But with my pregnant aches it has proven to be a little difficult lately.) I am sure that after another week or two it will be part of his routine and he will be more comfortable with it. At least that's what I hope for. Maybe he is just really sad to have left his daycare girl friends. He was having lots of fun kissing all the girls in his toddler class. :) He is so lovable.

The things a Mom goes through....

2010-06-05T20:04:00.004-06:00

So I had to share with someone! It's a little graphic...sorry!

So this evening was very eventful at our house. I went to change Carter's diaper. I took it off and was letting him "air dry" for a min (Basically he was walking around naked). While he was drying he wanted to throw the diaper in the trash. So I walk over and open the trash for him to throw it away. I walk away back into the living room, thinking he was following me. I turn around and he is squatting next to the trash peeing and grunting. I run over to stop him, yeah right, he stands up to run away and a piece of poop falls out of his butt. His foot steps in the pee puddle and he slips and smacks his head into the ground. I MUST be a horrible Mom. As if all that wasn't bad enough I pick him up and carry him to the sink so I can wipe him off, turn around and Aston, the dog, is eating the poop! LOL! I didn't know what to do or think. All I could do was laugh. Oh gee...the things a Mom goes through. :)

It's a.....BOY!

2010-05-25T11:59:00.004-06:00

We are very excited to announce we will have another baby BOY join our family in October! Hurray for team blue! We had our 20 week appointment and anatomy ultrasound. They look at the baby's heart, head, facial features and all kinds of other stuff to make sure he is growing properly. He was measuring 11 oz. which is perfect. Everything looked great and I am doing well. I actually haven't gained any weight, which I am not sure how that's possibly with the amount of chocolate bars and milk shakes I have been consuming, but from here on out I should gain about a pound a week. When I was pregnant with Carter I gained about 33 lbs. total so I have a ways to go!

In other news, we are getting settled into out new home very nicely. We are ALMOST completely unpacked! Woo hoo! We also have the yard looking half way decent and...drum roll please....we got our garden going!! Yes! I am so excited to watch my little tiny plants grow. We planted herbs, peppers, tomatoes (thank you Chris for the tomato plants!), squash, onion, cantaloupe and strawberries. I am a little concerned about the strawberry plants getting eaten by birds and squirrels, but we'll see how it goes. I saw one squirrel checking out the garden the other day...I just know he's going to be trouble!

One last thing I must add....Happy 2nd Birthday Aston Poop! His birthday was Sunday. :) He still is cute, but was such a cute puppy.

Happy Dance!

2010-05-13T13:42:00.001-06:00

Happy dance *singing and dancing* la la la!

WE CLOSED ON OUR HOUSE!!!! Woo hoo!! I am so excited I just had to share with someone! Finally a house to call our own! This is a huge milestone for us. I always thought we would have a house before growing our family, but it didn't work out that way. The down payment is what has always held us back. We were looking at buying a house when we found out we were pregnant with Carter, but the timing and money just wasn't right. Since the government extended the new home buyers tax credit last year we knew we had to take advantage! It seems as though buying a house is a lot harder than you think. There is so much that goes into it. First you have to find the *perfect* house, then comes the long, stressed out, agony filled 30 day closing. Lock in an interest rate, get the inspection, get the seller to fix up the little (or big) issues, get the appraisal....it's hell. But now that's it all behind us it was so worth it!

Our new home has 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. The kitchen and all bathrooms are remodeled. New appliances, including washer and dryer make it that much more perfect. It has a nice sized backyard, not too big and not too small. The dogs are going to love it! It is near Quincy Reservoir and in Cherry Creek School District. I am not sure if we will be in this house by the time that Carter starts school, but it's nice to know that he would be in Cherry Creek Schools if we are.

Here's a picture of our beauty....many, many more pictures to come!

Randomness

2010-05-05T12:21:00.003-06:00

So this past weekend I made pancakes. The 1 question I must ask is, why is it so hard for me to make pancakes?! It frustrates me to no end! I can never get them to come out in nice little circles and I can never get them to cook properly. They either come out burned on the outside and not cook completely on the inside or cooked on the inside and barley on the outside. I think a griddle might help out my dilemma....but seriously it can't be that hard! Can it?

In other randomness, on Friday I had a customer ask for the first time if I was expecting. Oh man could that have gone really wrong for the lady who asked me. Sometimes the sarcastic side of me wants to come out in those situations and say "No, I am not expecting." Just so I can see her reaction. But of course I did not say that. She had a million questions for me. "Is it your first?" "How old is your other child?" "Is it a boy or girl?" "When are you due?" "Will your 1 year old be out of diapers when this one arrives?" GEE! I felt like I was being interrogated! When I was pregnant with Carter I got a lot of questions, but not nearly this many. I guess people are just really curious. Now that I am wearing maternity shirts I am sure I'll get a lot of questions.

16 weeks prego

2010-04-22T15:36:00.005-06:00

Hard to believe we are already this far along. Things have been going really well though. This pregnancy has been a mirror image of my pregnancy with Carter. I did have about 2 weeks of random nausea, which I didn't have with Carter, but other than that it's the exact same. I hope that it stays this way because that pregnancy was AWESOME and I loved every minute of it.

We had our monthly doctor appt. Friday and things are going well. I am measuring perfectly and the baby's heart sounds great. They did some blood work to test for genetic disorders. It's the second half of the testing they do for that sort of thing. The first half came back all in normal range, which is always good news. Next appt. is in about a month and if baby cooperates we will find out if Carter will have a brother or sister! :)

Lately I have had a really hard time with clothing. I am in between sizes right now and that is the most annoying thing! I swear I have maybe 2 outfits that fit me right now and...well...I can't really wear the same 2 outfits to work every week! I am either looking like a stuffed sausage in my non-maternity clothes or I am swimming in the giant maternity clothes I have. It's a losing battle every single morning when I am getting ready for work. I guess only time will fix this one....

In other news, I signed Carter up for swim lessons! I am so excited to get him in the water. We signed up for a 5 week class that is 30 minutes every Saturday morning. If we like it we might sign him up for the next round in July. It's at Utah Pool and the best part is that it was only $20! Can't beat that! I tried....other places cost about $75! Looks like I'll have to get a maternity swim suit so I can get in the water with him. Not really looking forward to that...

Anyway, stay tuned for more updates. :)

What!? My little baby is 1? Who said that could happen?

2010-04-19T13:03:00.008-06:00

Surely not me! Why can't they just stay little forever?

Well the time came...and went. Carter turned 1 on April 2nd. We had a great get together with our friends and family. It was a little crazy and I wasn't able to visit with everyone as long as I wanted, but it was so nice that we were all able to share Carter's special day with him. He got A TON of clothes and toys! So a BIG THANK YOU to everyone!! He loves all the toys he got and looks so handsome in his new outfits. :)

Here are some pictures from the party.

12 weeks pregnant!

2010-03-28T12:04:00.006-06:00

We had our 12 week baby appointment on Friday and things look great! Baby has a healthy heart beat (158) and is measuring perfect (about 3 inches long). I lost 1 pound since our last visit 4 weeks ago, but that is normal in the first trimester. From here on out they expect I'll start gaining more weight slowly and by the end gain around 25 lbs. They did the 1st half of a genetic screening test. During the ultra sound they measure the spinal fluid behind the baby's neck. Using that measurement and some blood work from me they can tell the baby's chances of any genetic disorders like Down's Syndrome, trisomy 13 and 18. Next appt. is in a month and in about 2 months we should be able to tell the sex! I would love to have another little boy, but we will be happy no matter what. As long as he/she is healthy.

I must say that the little bit of nausea I did have is definitely disappearing. Next week I enter the second trimester and that typically means more energy, no more nausea and in general feeling much better. Time seems to be cruising right along.

Planning time!

2010-03-10T16:28:00.003-07:00

Who would have thought that planning a 1 year old birthday party would involve so much! I LOVE it! I am a planner so things like this make me happy. :) I am slowly getting everything checked off the list. Club House is reserved, invitations are mailed, some party decorations ordered, and birthday present bought. Now all we have left is to pick up a few more decorations, party goodies, and order the cake! I have no idea what kind of cake to get, but I want it to taste awesome and look great. A few friends recommended Child's Bakery....so I think I'll start there. I really hope our little man has a great time. Can't wait! It's only a few weeks away.

Carter's post-op appt and our adventure to Texas

2010-03-03T12:30:00.003-07:00

Last Friday we had Carter's post-op appointment. They looked at the tubes in his ears and said that they looked great. The placement was good and the healing was good. On average they will fall out on their own in about a year. Until then we will go back every 6 months to have them checked out. They also performed a hearing test, they put him in a sound proof room that has speakers in the corners which different noises at different volumes come out. Depending on how he reacts determines how well his hearing is. He responded very well to the different sounds and his ear drums responded well to vibrations. His hearing is now in the normal range for his age, which is great news! Now fingers crossed that he doesn't get anymore ear infections. Though, with the tubes in place an ear infection would be much easier to treat. We have special ear drops that can be put in his ears and will drain directly into the ear drum area to cure the infection rather than taking oral antibiotics, which can take a big toll on the digestive system.

Right after the appointment we made our way to Texas......and about 9 1/2 hours later we arrived! It was a very long drive there and back, but Carter did surprisingly well. He now officially hates his car seat though. We made a few stops along the way to get gas, food and stretch our legs. Our mission was to visit family (on my Dad's side), my Great Grandpa, his wife and a bunch of cousins. It was really great to see everyone, I believe the last time that we saw some of this family had to be a good 10 plus years ago.

I am very grateful that my Grandpa was able to meet Carter. Everyday we went to his house to visit and he would light up when he saw Carter. He can only speak a few words because of the strokes he has had in the past few years, but you could tell exactly what he was thinking and feeling when Carter was around. Carter laughed and played with him, ate Cheerios from his hand and "uched" (touched) his nose. I don't think many people can say they have meet their Great Great Grandpa and even though Carter won't remember it I know I will and we have many pictures to cherish. Saying goodbye was really hard, knowing that it may be the last time we see him made it very emotional. I hope that it won't be the last, but no one knows what tomorrow holds. El Paso is such a dirty old little place :) I can't say I miss it much but I definitely miss the people we left behind.

We're PREGNANT!

2010-02-09T09:39:00.004-07:00

Yep, you read that correctly. We are expecting baby #2! We are feeling a lot of different emotions right now, excited, nervous, nervous, excited. We are very thankful for the little miracle though.

We had our first appointment today and the baby looks really good, it is measuring the size of a Kidney Bean! We are due the first week of October, October 6th to be exact. In general I have been feeling pretty good, I have the usual tired, no appetite but hungry and a little nauseous. Thank God they make medication for the nausea! It's very hard to work customer service when you feel at any moment you may just puke all over the place! Sorry to be so graphic, but that's what I have felt like! :) Lucky for everyone it hasn't happened yet. :)

Next appointment is in a month, we'll have another ultrasound and a Down's Syndrome screening.

Carter's Surgery

2010-02-09T09:19:00.002-07:00

Yesterday was Carter's surgery to get tubes put in his ears to help drain the fluid built up behind the ear drum. He has had about 6 ear infections in the past 6 months and sometimes that was in both ears. The most effective treatment to help prevent this from happening again and from disabling his hearing his to get tubes. So we checked into the hospital at 7 am, we got taken to the back waiting area where they took all Carter's stats and we changed him into his little hospital gown. While we waited, we met the Anesthesiologist and Nurse that were going to help in his surgery. The Anesthesiologist explained that the general anesthesia they use for this procedure is a gas. They didn't have to use any sort of I.V., which was awesome. They were all very nice people and made us feel very comfortable about the procedure. (This is one reason why I absolutely love Sky Ridge Hospital. We have always had great experiences there and everyone that helps us is so nice.) At about 8:40 am the Doctor came into our little waiting room and gave us an overview of what was going to happen next. Before we knew it, the Nurse came in a swiped up Carter and took him away. He was pretty calm and didn't cry. We went back to the front waiting room and patiently waited with my Mom, Nana. It was about 30 minutes and the Anesthesiologist and Doctor came out to tell us that everything had gone great. The Doctor said there was a lot of fluid and gunk behind his ear drum that they sucked out, so it was definitely a good thing we did the procedure. He took me back with him to be with Carter when he woke up. When I got back there he was crying, but mostly because he was disoriented from waking up from the anesthesia. After about 10 minutes of getting him to calm down Ryan came back and we were able to feed him a bottle. We were in recovery for about 40 minutes while Carter slowly woke up. After that we were discharged and headed straight home. He was sleepy for most of the day, but we tried to keep him on his normal schedule as much as possible. For the most part he was his normal crazy baby self. Crawling around, eating well, taking naps, it was like it never even happened.

We go back at the end of the month for his follow up. I think they will also do a hearing test too. I am glad we went through with everything and hope it helps my little man. :) We can already tell that he is more aware of noises around him. I can only imagine that he feels so much better without his world sounding like it is under water.

6 months since our last post?

2010-01-27T14:28:00.006-07:00

Really?! Half a year? I can't believe that time has gone so fast!

So much has happened that I don't even know where to start. Carter is almost 10 months old. His last check up went really well. He weighs about 22.5 lbs and is about 30" tall! It's crazy to think that in a couple months he will be turning 1. At his check up they also noticed he has ANOTHER ear infection. So the pediatrician recommended an ENT specialist to us. We had an appointment yesterday and the ENT wants Carter to get tubes put in his ear to drain fluid and pressure. This will help decrease the amount of fluid that accumulates in his ears and cause less ear infections to develop. Both Ryan and I agree that he needs the procedure and he is scheduled to have it in about a week. The fluid in his ears is also causing some hearing loss and in the long run could cause speech development issues if not taken care of. We are relieved that this will help Carter and relieve him of the pain of ear infections. Other than that, he is crawling ALL OVER the house. He loves the door stoppers attached to the bottom of doors. He just hits them over and over while they make their "boing" noise. We removed most of them, but for some reason he always finds the ones we haven't taken off! He also likes to pull himself up on the couch, chairs or coffee table and walk around them while holding on. My prediction is that he will be walking by his birthday.

Carter has also found amusement in many random things like zippers and the "shwsh" noise that I made once while pretending to slice an imaginary sword through the air. He finds the two pretty hysterical and laughs so hard when hearing them. Last week I also bought some bubbles from Target and both Carter and the dogs LOVE them. Carter waves his arms in the air frantically at them while the dogs jump up and eat them. I think next time I go shopping I need to pick up a bigger bottle of bubbles and a bigger wand. Such a cheap fun thing!

As far as work goes... I just crossed the 6 month mark in my new position! All of my team members still consider me the "new boss". I have definitely have had some challenges in the past few weeks, but it has only made me a stronger manager. I only hope that the next 6 months go as well as the first.

Ryan's work is about the same. Busy with budgets, meetings, conference calls and the usual. His boss and boss's boss recognize Ryan's great work and have recommended him for a double promotion to HR. Unfortunately at this time, his company (like many companies) is not giving out too many promotions. So we will have to wait a little while to see where it takes him. It's still good to know and hear that the work he does is appreciated. His neck is pretty much completely healed. He has an achy day here or there, but nothing that causes severe pain.

We are still trying to plan a summer vacation. We were talking about a road trip to see Ryan's Dad or maybe a camping trip (I wouldn't mind heading up to Yellow Stone). Considering we didn't travel last, I think a summer vacation is well deserved! But, I guess we'll see what happens.

I'll try to blog again after Carter's surgery to keep everyone up to date! Until then...here is a quote I found and love. I put it in a book I made Ryan for Christmas about Carter's life thus far.

"A boy is a magical creature you can lock him out of your workshop, but you can't lock him out of your heart. You can get him out of your study, but you can't get him out of your mind. Might as well give up he is your captor, your jailer, your boss and your master a freckled-faced, pint-sized, cat-chasing bundle of noise. But when you come home at night with only the shattered pieces of your hopes and dreams, he can mend them like new with two magic words Hi, Dad!"

-Alan Marshall Beck

Life with a 4 month old and adjusting to my new store

2009-07-24T13:26:00.005-06:00

So obviously my personal goal of posting more often is not achievable! :) I feel like there aren't even enough hours in the day for me to hardly see my family let alone post blogs, clean my house, do laundry or get my car it's oil change (it's at least 4 months past due!). A typical week day for us is....We get up around 7am, Ryan, Carter and I get ready, we eat breakfast, take the dogs out and feed the dogs. We are out the door by 8am, one of us drops Carter off at daycare. We both work until about 5-5:30pm and whoever gets off firsts picks up little man. We get home around 6pm, take the dogs out, make dinner, get everything ready for the next morning (wash bottles and get clothes set out), start bath time for Carter, feed him and put him to bed by 8:30-9pm. Then we get ready for bed and it's usually lights out by 10pm (I know...we are lame!). So yeah...anyway....

Carter is 16 weeks old! Or should I say Bubby? Somehow everyone seems to have adopted the nickname Bubby, which Ryan came up with. It has stuck with him pretty well. Sometimes we will call him Bubby, Bubbalicious or Bub-a-bub. We have a check up scheduled for him along with more vaccinations in about a week. He is feeling much better these days. Last week Carter, Ryan and myself were sick. It was a nasty sore throat with lots of congestion. Carter ended up getting an ear infection and is on antibiotics now. Poor little man.

He has learned a few new tricks. He is learning to roll over, but his arm gets stuck under him so he doesn't quite roll over all the way. Today we reached a milestone, he is wearing a 6-9 months outfit. The shorts are a little big, but the shirt fits perfectly. I also noticed today that he is starting to grab his feet and holds on to them while thrusting his legs up. Silly Goose.

I am slowly adjusting to my new store and new team members. I had a surprise audit yesterday with my bosses boss and district auditor. The store actually did pretty well, just have to "tighten" some things up. After they were finished they pulled me aside to tell me that the team members have nothing but good things to say about me and that they are really happy with the transition so far. YAY!! That makes me very happy! :) Here is a picture of my office, I took it with my iPhone so it's not the best. It's a good sized office, but very plain. I am thinking of ordering a "motivational" picture or two to spice things up.

Well I guess I should stop abusing my "privileges" and get back to work....

3 months old, back to work and adjusting to a new schedule....

2009-07-06T09:48:00.002-06:00

Little man is 3 months old now! Holly cow! A lot has happened in the past few weeks. I sadly went back to work on June 30th. Wow is it weird, but good at the same time. I am not very good at adjusting to things so going back to work to a new store, new position, new people, and leaving my baby has proven to be a little difficult.....ok A LOT difficult! I am trying to act and be my normal self, but it has been a challenge. I just keep telling myself that I am doing it for Carter and that makes it worth every minute I have to be away from him. So now I am a working Mom. In all actuality though....being back has been good. I am sure I will have many more challenges in my new position, but I can't complain about the pay increase that comes along with it. That in itself will help us out a lot.

Carter is getting so big....I know I say that all the time, but seriously I can't believe how fast he grows! He is in 6 month clothes now because he is so long. He weighs close to 15-16 lbs. He smiles ALL the time and the other day had his first REAL laugh! It was so cute! Of course we couldn't catch it on video. He is also discovering his legs and feet, he sucks on his hands like crazy and occasionally positions one of his fingers or thumbs to be sucked on. It's pretty cute! He hasn't rolled over YET, but is getting very close. He loves sitting up, but still needs a good amount of support or he will fall over. I know I am getting very excited for Carter to start trying out real food. He is only a couple months away from it. I love all kinds of food and just can't wait for him to be able to test them all out and discover all kinds of new tastes. :)

The dogs are feeling slightly neglected these days. It is hard to get out of the house with Carter and 2 dogs with 90 degree weather. The dogs don't care about it being so hot, but Carter does. So we have spent a lot of time inside. Plus the mosquitos have been absolutely horrible this year! Every time I go outside I get bitten at least 3 times! Ah! I hate them! I know it will get easier once Carter gets a older too.

Ryan is doing well, but is still having some neck muscle issues. He is going to physical therapy for it and we are hoping for a good recovery soon. It may take a little bit more time though :( .

That's about it for now....I will update again soon. I have made it a personal goal to update the blog more often. It seems like I only get around to it once a month!

11 weeks old!

2009-06-18T15:21:00.005-06:00

Well well...I can't say I have much time to do much of ANYTHING lately. Which is why I haven't updated this blog in a while. People that update everyday...please tell me how you do it! Carter is definitely a full time job and I can't even imagine what things will be like when both Ryan and I are working full time and then coming home to a full time baby.

So Carter is 11 weeks today! Wow...I am amazed at how big he already is. He had his 2 month check up a few weeks ago and weighs about 13 lbs and is almost 25" long. He got 3 shots and didn't hardly cry at all. He sleeps maybe a 3-4 hour stretch, if we are lucky, BUT we are working on that. He is learning how to sit, in fact he really doesn't like laying down. He would rather be up looking around at everything. I only have about a week and a half left before going back to work, but until then Carter and I try to do lots of things through out the day. I read books to him, he plays on his playmat, we listen to a lot of music while dancing and singing, and we like to take the dogs to the park and walk around. Allee and Aston are adjusting very well. They both love to give kisses to Carter and I help Carter pet them. They h

ave it coming to them once Carter starts to get mobile. :)

On a different note Ryan and I celebrated our 1 year wedding anniversary on June 7th. I can't believe it has been a year already and a very full year at that. We spent the day with Carter, hanging out at home which was special for us. Maybe next year we can have a trip planned back to Hawaii....that's the plan...well...at least it's my plan. :) I love that place and hope to take Carter there. In the mean time we love summer in Colorado and are enjoying the weather!

2 Months Old ALREADY! Where did the time go?

2009-06-01T09:20:00.008-06:00

I can't even believe 2 months have already gone by since bringing Carter home. He has definitely stolen our hearts and makes our life so much more complete. He changes literally every single day, there is always something new he has learned. He LOVES the mornings, each morning we come downstairs and he lays on his changing pad while we get breakfast going and he talks non stop (we always say he is telling us stories). He can hold his head up much better now, but it still a little bit of a bobble head. He is learning how to grab toys that hang from his play mat. And the past couple days he has actually kind of started laughing. It is only a half laugh and it happens very rarely, but it's so awesome when it does happen. We are hoping to get out and take some 2 month photos of Carter this weekend, maybe even get a few family shots.

Unfortunately by Carter being 2 months old now, that means I only have 1 month left of maternity leave from work. I am a little bummed out about it. I wish I could just stay home with my little Goose and if we were in a little bit better of a place financially I would...BUT some good news is while on maternity leave I applied for a promotion at work and GOT IT! So when I go back to work I will be at the Highland's Ranch FedEx Office as the Store Manager. This is a great opportunity for me and the family and I am anxious, nervous and excited about it.

New toy!

2009-05-19T14:28:00.006-06:00

With Carter getting more and more active everyday it seems like it is getting harder to entertain him. We don't really have many toys for him, not that he could really play with anything at this point, so we decided to go out shopping. We found a really cool play mat/tummy time mat. It's perfect because tummy time was getting a little boring without much to look at. We also got a cute jiggling froggy toy to hang on his carseat. As soon as we got home we put together the play mat and tested it out...turns out he loves it! He was smiling at the toys and talking while watching the lights it has. Definitely a good buy!

Happy 1 Month Birthday Baby Boy!

2009-05-01T16:57:00.002-06:00

So here we are one month into parenthood and are we exhausted! Everyone tells you that you aren't going to get any sleep and that you will have to wake up every 2-3 hours during the night to take care of your baby, but you don't listen. You think oh I'll be fine or that it won't happen to you. Well surprise! Sleeping even 4 hours straight is a miracle and so refreshing! But it rarely happens these days. Nevertheless, we are doing quite well and are enjoying our new little bundle of joy. Carter is awesome and is changing so much every day. He is awake more often now and is learning how to track with his eyes. He will follow objects back and forth and stare for long periods of time. He is also imitating a lot lately. If you make faces at him he will try to make the same face back. Our favorite right now is sticking our tongues out at each other. He weighs somewhere in the 9 lb range and has officially outgrown all of his newborn clothes. He has also graduated to size 1 diapers....no more really tiny cute newborn diapers. :(

We are also learning how to venture out of the house with Carter. It can be challenging at times, but it is so nice to get out. We met Ryan for lunch with some of his co-workers yesterday which was yummy, Carter slept the whole time. Next week we are going to try and get out a little more. Maybe make a trip to the bank, visit some cousins and visit Nana (Pam's Mom) at her work to show Carter off to her co-workers. It should be a fun busy week.

Nothing exciting to report

2009-04-23T11:45:00.003-06:00

Well here we are...another week has gone by and it's already Monday again. Carter is getting so big! He is probably close to 9 pounds now and I can't believe this week he will be a month old! The time is going by way too fast! Last week was Ryan's first full week back to work and slowing we are falling into a routine. Being home with him by myself all day is a lot different than I thought. I thought it would be much harder, but he is a really great baby. He only fusses if he needs something and he never cries just because. He is also starting to figure out his days and nights. He wakes up about twice in the middle of the night to eat and be changed, but lately goes right back to sleep with no problems. In fact, last night Ryan and I were able to get two good three hour stretches of sleep, which was AWESOME! :)

We are getting a little more comfortable taking Carter out and about with us. Over the weekend we went on our first grocery shopping trip with him. He did a really good, just slept most of the time, in fact we were about to make it to Target also. Yesterday we decided to get out and do a bit more shopping, this time we went to the Castle Rock Outlets. I wanted to check out some of the kids clothes stores. We were able to find A LOT of really cute stuff and it was all on sale. So we picked up some 3 month outfits for him. He is about 1 week away from not fitting into any newborn stuff anymore. (Baby clothes are weird, some brands he fits into 3 month already and others he fits in newborn.) We also picked up the cutest pair of sunglasses for him and a matching sun hat. Hopefully the weather starts cooperating more so that we can use them! Some hot summer days would be great right now! We are really anxious for our pool to open up so we can take him swimming. That will be the next shopping trip...baby swim gear. :)

Happy 2 week birthday Carter!!

2009-04-16T18:47:00.003-06:00

So I am a few days late, but it's been about 2 weeks and still doesn't seem real.

Carter had his 2 week doctor check up and he looks great! He weighs 8 pounds now which means he has gotten back to his birth weight and then gained 4 ounces. He had to get a little prick in his foot and screamed his head off...that wasn't fun. Poor little guy! He goes back in about 6 weeks for his 2 month check up, which will include some vaccinations. Other than that things around the house have been good. Allee and Aston are adjusting more and more to our little man. They both do great with him. Allee is a lot more curious than Aston, she has to investigate every noise that comes out of Carter. Aston occasionally checks in on him and gives him a good lick. Ryan went back to work on Thursday. Of course that was the day Carter decided to test me out. He was a little frumpy in the morning, but then sleep most of the afternoon (lucky him getting some sleep, I have forgotten what good sleep feels like). We hope to get a lot more photos to share with everyone soon!

We survived the first week home!

2009-04-11T12:25:00.003-06:00

Somehow, amazingly enough, we survived the first week home. I can't believe that time has gone by so fast. We have adjusted pretty well and actually seem to be falling into a schedule. We are learning all Carter's cries, noises and needs. Ryan and I work really well as a parent team and are getting very quick at making sure Carter has everything he needs. Today we reached another mile stone, Carter's belly button cord fell off. It was a pretty gross little thing and I am actually relieved and glad it's gone.

Today we are taking Carter on his first mall trip. It will be nice to get out of the house and walk around a bit. I will make sure not to become one of the crazy people at the mall with a stroller. :) I am sure Carter will sleep the whole time and not even care about where he is, but it will be good for us.

Scary Diapers

2009-04-10T17:20:00.007-06:00

Leading up to Carter being born one of the things I was most worried about was having to change nasty little diapers. I've tried to avoid dirty diapers my whole life. So a few hours after he was born he got his first checkup from a pediatrician when I was informed that he had taken care of business for his first time and it was daddy's responsibility to clean it up. I think it took me about 20 wipes to clean the whole mess, but I got the job done. I've learned that changing diapers isn't that bad at all, but the actual act of him going potty is what I should be worried about.

In the hospital I was doing the majority of diaper duty, and it was fine. Actually it was sort of funny that in the few changes Pam did she managed to be peed on, twice. Ha! I knew I'd get mine at some point, but until then it was just funny. Carter likes to veg out in my lap, with his back running between my legs and his butt firmly pushing into to stomach. He also likes to work himself up and push out the most explosive poop I've ever encountered. Put the two things together and I have a happy baby sitting in my lap, he takes a deep breath, and BOOM, explosion right into my stomach (he was wearing a diaper) that scared me so much I nearly jumped off the couch. I think it was that same night that I was feeding and changing him at around 3 a.m. that I got peed on. It wasn't just being peed on, I got it straight in the face. Nothing like being half asleep, hoping to just take care of him and get back to bed, and then getting piss all in your face...and on the comforter...and on my pillow...and all over everything he was wearing. Nice!

But none of this even compares to the fountain of poop we, especially Pam, experienced earlier today. We took Carter downtown to Pam's work to show him off to her co-workers. For about 3 hours, from when he last relieved himself and ate until we got back home, he was cool and calm. Then we heard the pooping. We've learned to give him about 15 minutes to finish off the task or we'll just end up having to change him a few times in a matter of minutes. So we wait and then Pam moves in for the change. As soon as the diaper comes off I hear a scream from Pam...run into the room to find he had just pooped all over the changing table, and partially on Pam. We have a good laugh, shrug it off, and Pam continues the job. I got back to the kitchen and another scream from Pam...run back in the room and she was holding her hands in a blocker pattern to shield herself from the pee stream he was aiming at her. Another good laugh and I got back to what I was doing. As soon as I get back to the kitchen, another scream...I run back in the room just in time to witness a fountain of poop streaming across the room. Poop is everywhere! On Pam's hands, because she threw up a blocker to try to minimize the damage, on her pants, on the changing pad, on the table, on the floor. I have to say this was VERY funny to me, and even to Pam, but at the same time the most disgusting thing we've seen in out lives...I'm seriously, before having a baby I doubt many people can say they've been pooped on...projectile pooped that is. But now we're both scared of changing him because you never really know what to expect.

So, as long as it's in the diaper and he's finished his business, I don't mind at all, but if there's any chance there's more to come I feel like I need a rain suit and protective face shield before I go in to take care of business. I think we'll be flipping a coin for the next few days to see who has to be brave and enter the danger zone. I guess it isn't actually scary diapers, it's scary bathroom behavior. But it's all worth it for this precious little face.

Party in my crib at 3 a.m.

2009-04-09T09:27:00.003-06:00

I think the title says it all. Sarah bought us a bib when we were in Maui for the wedding that says "Party at my crib, 3AM Maui, Hawaii" because she had a feeling we'd be getting pregnant while down there. Well, it didn't happen in Hawaii but sure did shortly after we got back. I'd like to thank Sarah for this bib because Carter does his best to get a party going every day at 3 a.m.. Through the day he's really happy, hungry, or sleepy. At night he's also pretty content. But when we wake him up at 3 a.m. to eat it's on! He'll wake up and eat and then refuses to go back to sleep. He flails his arms and legs and tests out the vocal chords. I think it's his way of singing and dancing. Get a couple of drinks in this kid and he's a regular party animal. We'd enjoy this during the day, but half asleep in the middle of the night it's not so cool. So again Sarah, thanks for jinxing us with the 3 a.m. party bib :). We'll be sure to get you something for your little one on the way that has a similar unpleasant quote that is funny to everyone except the parents. Obviously I'm just kidding, it's just funny how the bib even got the exact time right. We think we have found a solution though, at least a temporary one...a binky. We didn't want to us a binky to start a bad habit that may be hard to shake, but it works wonders to calm him down during the fussy times. It's got him through two rough patches in the middle of the night and through a horrible bath (he hates being naked so naked with a wet towel is the most horrible experience he's been through). After a few minutes of sucking he calms down and spits it out. So a binky is now our friend, yay!

Settling in

2009-04-06T18:30:00.005-06:00

So it's been a couple days at home now and I have to say things seem to be going great. Carter is amazing. Not really fussy at all, except for when he's being changed. Waking up multiple times in the middle isn't so bad...he doesn't wake us up, we have to work to wake him up! We're getting a decent amount of sleep so far, which was much needed. He's a really quite baby, only really makes noise when he's half naked in the middle of a diaper change. He's becoming more and more alert and both of us enjoy just watching him as he explores everything around him with his big blue eyes.

He had his first doctor appointment this morning and he's doing great. Everything is as it's supposed to be and our little man is thriving. Are doctor was really nice, Danielle has experience with him in the past, but we just happened to be set up with him through my standard physician. I look forward to see how he's doing at his next appt. in about 10 days. We also took Carter for his first shopping trip after the appointment. We went to Babies'R'Us for a few things we realized we hadn't prepared ourselves for. Back at home we took advantage of the nice day and went for a walk around the neighborhood...broke in the stroller. The dogs were a bit scared of the stroller at first, but they got over it. Carter just slept the whole time, his favorite thing to do, and Pam got worn pretty quickly. Tomorrow's warm weather should be nice because I think everyone will enjoy being out in the sun.

So there hasn't been anything really eventful to report, just learning, adjusting, and taking advantage of the full on time we have to devote to Carter. I have a good amount of time before I have to go back to work, but I'm already thinking about how much I'll miss just sitting around the house with him. Pam will be here for a long time after I have to go back to work, which is great. I just wish I could do the same. We are both completely amazed at how happy this little man makes us and are so excited over every little thing he does. I can't help but think of all the exciting things we'll go through with him as he grows up, but right now I'm completely content with a beautiful little baby sitting in my lap, looking around or sleeping, and knowing that I'm responsible for him. He means everything to us already and we couldn't be happier.

Carter Ryan Martin has arrived!!

2009-04-04T18:38:00.005-06:00

What we thought would be our last doctor appointment on the 1st turned out to be quite a bit more. We'd thought that maybe Pam's water had broken but our doctor wasn't quite convinced. She sent us to the hospital for monitoring to verify. Well, within a couple minutes at the hospital it was confirmed broken and we were told that Pam wouldn't be leaving pregnant. About 10 hours later Carter entered this world. At 4:31AM our 7lb 12oz 20.5" little man made his grand entrance. Pam did great! She wanted to go all natural, but with her water being broken there was an urgency to get him out so she was induced which inevitably led to a epidural (before she made the call to have the epidural, after 3 hours of heavy contractions, she kept saying how she felt like she was dying). Oh well. There was about 45 minutes of pushing and Carter probably would have been here around 4:10 or so if we didn't have to wait for the doctor to show up...20 minutes of no pushing allowed. Pam said the no pushing was much worse than the pushing.

Once settled into our room with him there was a sense of relief for everyone. Pam was glad it was all over, Carter was happy to be out, and I was shocked I was finally a dad and glad to be out of the delivery room. He was really quite and easy going for the first 24 hours, I guess they all sort of are. But at the 24 hour mark, 4AM the next morning when we were finally trying to get some sleep, he started to test out this vocal cords and boy is he loud.

It's only been a little more than 2 days, but I think we're sort of starting to understand what we got ourselves into. I'm sure there's a ton more we'll learn/figure out, but we're getting the basics. I can't believe I'm sitting at home on the couch and there's a little tiny baby sitting in a bouncy chair and occasionally making little noises just a few feet away, and he's mine. Crazy, but awesome.

Obviously there are a ton of little side stories about me having to change his first diaper, the first diaper I've every changed and WOW was it a messy one, family visits, his little boy procedure (traumatic for any man to watch), breast feeding, lack of sleep, the car ride home and everything else, but really the only thing that needs to be said is we couldn't be happier and look forward to the great joy he will bring to our lives. World, meet Carter, Carter, welcome.

(Side note: I just read this to Pam and she started crying...ahhhh)

Any day now!

2009-03-29T09:27:00.003-06:00

We had another baby appointment and it went very well. I have progressed a little more and things are moving right along. The doctor expects that the baby will come before his due date...I really hope so! We are so excited to meet him and waiting even another week seems like a life time. We have one more baby appointment this upcoming Friday, if we make it to Friday. Since the doctor has given us the choice of an induction we might consider it. If I don't go into labor by April 8th we are going to ask to schedule the induction on that day. I really don't want to be induced, but that might just be the road we have to take. The doctor thinks that the baby is on the larger size, probably 8 to 8.5 lbs. She doesn't want me to go past my due date because she doesn't want to run into any complications based on his size. So I guess we will see what happens between now and then! I am trying to really enjoy these last few weeks. I will definitely miss being pregnant with him, but I am equally as excited to meet him. I have been pretty tired but I try to rest as much as possible. I am still working full time, most days aren't too bad, but it can definitely drain me out. We will keep everyone updated if anything happens!

Carter is full term! About 3 weeks to go!

2009-03-18T16:06:00.007-06:00

We had another baby appointment today and things went really well. Still about the same as last week. I am definitely to the point where I hope he comes soon. I am so tired lately and have absolutely no energy. Being on my feet all day at work has made it tough too. The doctor actually told us that we could be induced a week early if we wanted because she thinks that the baby will be big, about 8 + pounds. Though having him a week early sounds really good I definitely want to avoid being induced if possible. Our next appointment is next Friday and I really hope there is a little more progress. We are very anxious and ready for him to come already! :)

Maternity Photos

2009-03-15T18:50:00.004-06:00

So Ryan and I finally decided to take a few maternity photos today. I have wanted to do this for a while but either haven't had the time or the energy. We are hoping to go to another park next weekend a take a few more.

It's so crazy to think that this little baby is going to be here in about 3 weeks. Ahh!! I can't even imagine what things will be like once he is here. Until that day, I am still working full time. Working has been getting tough these past few weeks, but soon I will be able to spend 12 weeks with my little one. I wish it was longer, 12 weeks just doesn't seem like it will be long enough.