He's finally here!!!

Finally, our first post after Garrison's birth! It's been a crazy and incredible past few days and I'm finally getting reacquainted with the outside world again. I actually have been attempting to finish this post for 3 days now...much harder to blog one handed!

So where to begin?! Well, I guess I'll just fill ya in from the start. I actually went into labor last Thursday while running errands. At first I thought they were more Braxton Hicks contractions (which I was having on a very regular basis) but they were a little more painful and happening quite often that afternoon. So when I got home I started timing them and they were 3 minutes apart! I still didn't really think I was in labor but went ahead and called my doctor that evening to let him know. He said that since I wasn't in much pain and was already scheduled for a C-section the next morning I should just stay at home and try to get some sleep. Well, with in an hour the pain started to increase and by 10 o'clock the contractions were 2 1/2 minutes apart. I called him again and he said to come on into the hospital. Well, I of course had to get showered, do my hair and makeup FIRST and then head over :) So Bryan and I got to the hospital at midnight with all our luggage...looked like we were goin' on vacation! But in our defense we were going to be there 4 nights! So I went to triage and got "checked in." They were asking all kinds of questions which were really hard to answer because my brain was preoccupied by the PAIN! But they finally got us in a room got me hooked up to an IV. I tried to sleep but was going to the bathroom literally every 20-30 minutes and with the contractions it was just impossible!

So family started showing up the next morning at 7 (the section was supposed to start at 7:30 but actually didn't happen until 9) and we all just hung out in the room until my doctors were finally ready for me. You'd think they had other patients besides me or somethin'!

So I got the epidural and the surgery started and our little man was born at 9:30 on the dot! He started crying immediately which made me start crying and it was just so beautiful. The doctor held him up over the sheet and then Bryan went off with the nurse and our new son to get all cleaned up while I was being put back together.

I finally got to hold him about 30 minutes later and was wheeled off to recovery with Bryan by my side. My labor and delivery nurse, Tish , (who was freakin' awesome by the way!!) put him on the boob immediately and he just started sucking away. It was so incredible! Then was the task of FINALLY picking out a name for our child. You'd think after 9 months we would have made a decision, but no. Bryan said the name Garrison (a name I had suggested a few days ealier) and it just felt right. So there was our new little family. We were and are just so happy. Here are some pics of Garrison's birthday and the days afterward. I wish I had done a better job of taking pics of him with all his visitors, but I guess I was preoccupied! And lacking sleep!

Here we are leaving the hospital...And here's Garrison him when we got home...Well, that's it for now! Garrison is here!!!

Friday is the big day!!!

Well, the C-section is set for Friday morning at 7:30 and we are soooo excited!!!! It's just overwhelming to think that we are going to meet our son in 3 short days. Wow. I get tears in my eyes just thinking about it. Clearly I'm going to be EMOTIONAL on Friday. I mean I can't help but cry every time I see a birth on TLC's Baby Story...of course I'm gonna be cryin' at my own child's birth!! It's seriously so amazing and truly a miracle. I am overwhelmed with gratitude for this incredible blessing.

Yesterday was a big day because it was my last day at work for 12 weeks!!! And even though I am so thrilled to not have to work for almost 3 months, I was a little sad leaving yesterday. I guess these pregnancy hormones are really getting to me! :) Change is just difficult, ya know? Especially when I have several changes going on at the same time...but all for a great reason! It was really nice to not set an alarm this morning. And I think it will be great to catch up on sleep before the big day because Lord knows I won't be getting a full night sleep for a while after that!

So my mom and I had a pre-baby girls day out today. It was so much fun! She came over and checked out the finished nursery, then we went to eat at a cute sandwich place called Picnic off Bissonnet, and finished our outing with a relaxing mani/pedi. Maybe I could get used to this no working thing :)

My mom also brought over a baby book for us and it's too cute. I'm just hoping I'll be dedicated enough to start and finish it! Actually, I'll be happy if I just complete some of it...I'm so not the scapbooking type. We'll see!

Okay, well that's it for now. Not sure if there will be any updates until the BIG update, but you just never know. Only 2 more full days until our son is here...OMG!!!

Doctor Appointment Update!

Bryan and I went to the doctor today and well...no dilation or effacement. I'm a little disappointed but I guess that's just the way it goes! Babies come when they're ready! The doctor did talk to us about some options for the deliver. He got the full report from the last ultrasound and let us know that our boy's abdominal circumference is in the 95th percentile which typically means that the shoulders will be equally as large. SOOO...the kid may be a little difficult to deliver naturally. The doctor is worried about shoulder dystocia. Here's a diagram of the possible situation...

So, our doctor is suggesting that we take the next few days to think about having a c-section. And I'm really okay with it. The idea of possibly hurting the baby (and myself!) does not sound appealing at all. So at this point we are definetly leaning in that direction. And if that's the case, we'll be heading to the hospital next Thursday for the surgery...oh boy!!! We'll go back a week from today to see the doc again and make the final decision. I'll keep ya updated!

More showers!

Well I've had a couple more showers and now we are REALLY set! Seriously, I can't believe how much stuff we have now. We are so grateful for all our generous friends!!! Lots of love to you all!!!

Here's some pics from the shower at my friend, Wanda's, house...

Terri (one of the hostesses) and I!

Beverly, Donna, Alycia, and I

Pregnant bellies! Lindsey had her son, Goeffrey Marshall, a few days after this pic was taken!

Me, Leslie, and sweet Danielle

Here's Wanda playing the tricky cotton ball game!

Baby D...D is for Dang BIG!

So I got the subject line from my sister in law, Missy when I told her how big our baby is...estimated at 7 lbs. 13 oz!!! We went last Friday to the hospital for our final ultrasound and were surprised to find that our little man was so big! We thought he was going to be larger than normal but just not that big. And OF COURSE that makes me a little MORE nervous about the delivery! But I just keep telling myself that God is going to help me through it and that women have been doing this labor thing for a long time :)

So the due date has been pushed up...YAY!!! The docs said that if I don't have him by the 17th, they'll induce me between the 18th and 22nd. So we will be meeting him SOON! :):):)

Well here's the latest pic our our little man!!! You can see his face with his little hands kind of clasped by the right of his chin. Isn't he just precious?? Look at those cheeks! I mean, I know we're partial, but seriously...he's freakin' cute.

At the appt. last Friday I was hoping to be somewhat dilated, but that was just not the case. I go back on Monday, the 11th, so hopefully some things will be a little different. I'll keep you updated. We're in the home stretch!

I've also had a couple more showers and am feeling TOTALLY spoiled. I really have some amazing friends. Bryan and I had a couple's shower hosted by Lisa, Krisztina, Erika, and Tori. Here's a pic of me and ladies...

It was so much fun! The decorations were adorable and the food was fabulous! Here's a pic of Bryan and I with the cake...

Our little man got all kinds of good stuff...he is going to look too cute in his new outfits! I also got an awesome laminated, blue corduroy diaper bag...super cute and easy to clean! Erika got us our MUCH needed crib matress as well. Baby D will be so much more comfortable now! :) Little by little we are definetly more and more prepared!

Last weekend I had a shower hosted by Wanda, Teri, Liz, and Belinda. Baby D got all kinds of bath stuff, lots of diapers, a pack 'n play, and some much needed gift certificates! Wanda made one of her super cute (and super delicious!) cakes. I don't have pics yet, but I'll definetly post when I do.

So, that's the update for now. More to come next week after our appt. on Monday!

Baby Shower time!

Well, we had our 1st baby shower this weekend and it was AWESOME! Bryan's family threw it and we had a great time. We got lots of great stuff for Baby D...our car seat, a video monitor, lots of blankets, a stroller, bath time supplies, some ADORABLE baby flip flops, the list could go on! We feel much more prepared to bring a child into this world now!!! It's just amazing to me how much stuff one little person requires. Thank God someone invented baby showers!

I also went to the doctor last Friday and apparently I'm a really boring/easy patient because the doctor spent about 30 seconds with me! Things are just chugging along with everything being very normal. I go in a week and 1/2 for the hospital ultrasound to see how big our little man is and then back to the doctor on May 1st. I'll definetly update after that!

So I'm seriously running out of room for my uterus to grow anymore. The top of it is hitting right under my bra and it is SO irritating. It stings and itches like all the time on the left side. Oh, the joys of pregnancy :)

Some good news is that I still have not gotten stretch marks. YAY!!! They run in my family, so I was sure I was going to end up with lots. But, I have been using this lotion from Origins, Precipitation Extra, that my friend Lisa highly suggested. And apparently it's working! Thank you Lisa!!! I know I shouldn't jinx myself though because I have a couple friends that got stretch marks in the final days of their pregnancy. Yikes! I guess I'll just have to wait and see.

Well, I guess that's it. Just getting more and more excited as the count down continues!

In the home stretch!

As the days go by Bryan and I are getting more and more EXCITED!!! I just can't believe we will meet our little boy next month! YAY! I have a feeling that the next few weeks are just going to fly by. Since my last post, we went to an all day childbirth preparation class at the hospital I'll be delivering at (Memorial Hermann in the Med Center). It was very informative and got us even more excited for the big day. Now I feel a little more ready to go into this whole labor thing. I know now more than ever that I DEFINETLY want an epidural! We saw videos of au natural child birth and the epidural way and I personally think it's a no brainer. In the class of 9 couples I, however, was the only 1 planning on getting one. I don't know what those other ladies were thinking! And Bryan is VERY grateful I'm getting one as well...he knows I'll be cranky enough with the less intense contractions :)

I've also been contacting other child care options but I think we're gonna stick with the Y by our house. We both felt comfortable with it and it's within our budget. So I feel good that that big decision is settled because it was kinda stressin' me out trying to find the "perfect" place. And we all know where the "perfect" place would be...with me! But that's just not gonna happen yet, so we have to settle for 2nd best.

Well, we went to the doctor on Friday and everything is going great with the pregnancy. Our doctor even gave us an ultrasound (after we kind of begged...what?...we just miss seeing our baby!) It was kind of hard to figure out what everything was b/c the little guy is so scwunched up in there. What I was most interested in seeing was what position he was in. I just never know what I'm feeling...it's it a butt, a knee, a shoulder? I was so excited to learn that he was head down, in launch position. I'm hoping he stays in that way! Bryan, on the other hand, was most interested in finding the part that makes our boy a boy. So the doctor was searching and searching and...finally! The testicles! He even took a picture for Bryan to keep. Good Lord! It was seriously like being in a room with a couple of 12 year old boys...they just loving checking out their "stuff."

The next ultrasound will be in 4 weeks. We'll go back to the hospital and they'll do measurements and figure out how big he is. And since he was measuring large at the last hospital ultrasound, I'm hoping they tell me he's big enough to induce a little early. We'll see!!! I just think it would be great to have him in mid-May...but that's not really my decision :)

I also found out about a month ago that I'm anemic from the pregnancy. I've been taking a perscription iron supplemement that has really helped a lot but I still get super run down sometimes. That's probably just being pregnant though. It's all worth it!

Well, that's all the updates I can think of. More to come!