3 Little Monkeys...

Mason, Landon , and my Mason

That's what she said...

Check out this outfit Laura gave Mason. It was definitely one of Robby's favorites!

My guys...

The Real Deal (Actual Labor)

Here is the story or what I remember of it... (continued from previous labor post)

Monday morning Robby and I went walking around the block and my contractions completely died. I was pretty tired, overly anxious, disappointed, and nervous about the induction to be scheduled on Wednesday.

We got back to the house and did yard work all day. Robby mowed and I cleaned up the flower beds. I tried to catch a quick nap, but it wasn't happening.

That evening the contractions started up again. They were stronger in intensity. Laying down during a contraction was pretty rough, so I stayed on the exercise ball during and tried to lay down to sleep in between. They were pretty sporadic and ranged from 2-15 minutes apart. We were instructed to head to L&D once my water broke or my contractions were consistently 5 minutes apart, so we stayed home. I was getting pretty uncomfortable and tired, but I could talk and walk through them. I still felt really strong physically and mentally.

Tuesday afternoon we headed to our final Dr appt at 41 weeks. We were scheduled for a growth ultrasound where we were told Mason was a whopping 8 lbs 14 oz. The ultrasound tech knew I was in active labor and was helping me breath through them on the table. After we got the huge baby news we headed over to talk with the Dr. She checked me and said I was 4-5 cm and needed to go directly to L&D. I asked if I could walk the mall (directly across the street and connected by a crosswalk) for awhile to keep things moving. She said no, haha.

We did as told and drove right over. Here is our last picture of the two of us. I was working through a contraction and Robby thought it was great! It truly was!

Okay, we are here. Where is the baby?

We got settled and I labored and labored. The AMAZING nurses let me walk the halls until I requested and epidural 12 hrs later. I tried to hold out for as long as I could and I did. I couldn't hold my eyes open anymore. My body was spent. My water broke immediately after and I got pretty excited.

12 hours later my Dr requested a C-section. We were both exhausted and pretty devastated. I almost feel guilty typing that now, but those were our emotions. I felt like I had tried so hard and did everything I could to get my body there. Why was my body stopping now? We both held each other, cried, and then Robby told me we had to get it together. We were about to meet our son. About 30 minutes later that's just what we did and it was the most beautiful moment in the world. Time stopped and nothing else mattered. Robby counted fingers and toes, we listened to a beautiful little cry, and Robby snapped pictures and showed them to me as they were checking him out. It turns out the cord was wrapped around little boy's neck and it was preventing him from coming out. Thank god for wonderful doctors, nurses, and my husband.

Our beautiful little boy. 8 lbs 2.5 oz and 21 1/2 inches.

That's our story and it's a pretty perfect one.

Decision Made

I am not going to stop blogging or make my blog private. I have too much to share and have been inspired by some pretty precious blogs lately, including my sis-in-law. My kid is too cute (every mom says it and thinks/knows it's true) to keep from family and friends near and far. I have also made the decision to stay home! I am so excited and proud to be a stay at home momma. I can't wait to see my baby's smiling face every morning when I wake up. I'm not sure if this will allow more or less time for blogging, but I am sure we will find a good routine soon.

Until then, I thought I would share a few pictures from the past few weeks.

My baby is turning into a little boy, or at least it feels like it. He is getting so strong and doing lots of little boy things. He loves tummy time and turns his head to find you or his crazy dogs. He has rolled several times, but hasn't made it a habit.

He is turning into quite the thumb sucker. It's pretty adorable except when he accidentally shuts off air to his nostrils at the same time (with his pointer finger), then he's just gasping for air;)

Sorry Mason. Your dad made me post this picture. He had a 'little' potty in the tub.

And, here is Mason in front of his future elementary school! They just broke ground and he's pretty excited about it.

Stay tuned, we have lots of fun adventures coming up!

Oh Mason, Oh Maple

Here is our little tot after doing tummy time ... maybe I shouldn't have done it so soon after nursing.

"Mom, that was not a good idea."

I called for backup and Robby told me to wait while he got a picture;)

Later that night while playing Guesstures with Jaime and Maria, I decided to let the pups back in the house. Haribo ran in like a crazy dog (totally normal) and Maple ran in with something in her mouth (also totally normal). She usually does this and hopes you will go back outside to fetch with her. But, this didn't look like one of her toys. That was because it was a mouse. Sick! She hunted a mouse and brought it into our house. Not cool, Maple.

I'll leave you with a few more pictures of Mason.

Daddy makes the funniest noises

Working hard with Dad

Pool Fun

I'm still deciding on how I feel about blogging now that little is here. I feel pretty protective and don't want to share too much. I send lots of pictures to family and a few friends and really want to keep this 'digital scrapbook' going, but I am having a hard time finding time and comfort in how much to share.

Until I figure out what I am going to do, here are a few pictures of Mason's first trip to the pool! He loved it as we figured he would. Bath time is the best time around our house. We tried the small tub in the sink deal, but had a pretty mad baby. Lesson learned. Now we all hop in the tub! Mason loves to kick, giggle, stretch, and smile at his goofy parents all while cleaning those stinky milk rolls.

Mason Robert - 4 weeks

Happy 4 week birthday baby boy!

I have been soaking up (and learning!) every second of the past 4 weeks. Our sweet son was born on 3/2/11 weighing in at 8 lbs 2.5oz and measuring 21 1/5 inches. It was not the delivery I had imagined, but that was my first mistake of parenthood - nothing goes as planned :)

Mason and I have been studying each other the past few weeks and are catching on quickly. He is being so patient with us as we learn all of his traits and needs.

I will post the details of my labor and delivery in another post, but if you have not seen some pictures of our beautiful son... here he is! I love this sweet little guy.

Welcome home Mason! (3 days old)

Mason's favorite place to be, in his daddy's arms

Survived our first bath at home!

Loving his new swing

Stay tuned for more Mason Madness to come...