Noah's 5 Month Update!

Well Noah has grown by leaps and bounds this month! He gained two pounds and grew an inch and a half! At his 5 month appointment he was 16 lb. 4 oz and 27 inches long!! He is in the 90th percentile for height and the 55 percentile for weight! Just like his daddy! I can't get over how long he is. His little personality has become a contagious joy to be around and he is always happy unless hungry or tired of  course. I love hearing his giggle when he wakes up in the morning :) His new discovery is that his feet can actually make it in to his mouth so that has been his new position when laying down and its ssssooo funny! Sometimes he growls at his feet like he is attacking them or something and then laughs at himself :). He loves loves loves being held which I am hoping isn't becoming a problem for my sister who is chasing around 2 other little ones while watching Noah. Being the only baby at our house he is spoiled in that regard, especially on the weekends, but he is quickly brought back to reality on Monday mornings haha! The best seat in the house now is his bouncing swing that hangs in the doorway so I am sure my sister will be taking full advantage of that thing! The joy on his face when he jumps in it is priceless!! The mirror is a great entertainer in our house as well as Noah will just stare at his reflection and talk to himself...love how his face lights up when he sees me come in to the mirror too (melts this momma's heart!)

It has been so much fun introducing new fruits and veggies to him! He has tried apples, pears, bananas, apricots, plums, yellow squash, and carrots. He isn't too much of a fan of carrots but all the other stuff he has gobbled right up! I mix some fruit in with the carrots though and he never knows haha! This week we are trying Butternut squash!! Bananas and plums are his all time favorite. This boy LOVES to eat!!

He has become so engaged with everything now a days and grabs anything he can get his hands on and straight in to his mouth! Unfortunately his favorite thing to grab is my hair! Ouch! Even if I have it up he still manages to get a hand full! He has mastered rolling from tummy to back and has almost gotten the rolling over from back to tummy so it won't be too long before he is rolling all over the place. Reading his Jesus storybook Bible with Daddy is one of his favorite things to do as he gets really excited when he sees all the bright pictures! He has also had some firsts this month which sadly I didn't get to be there for (wrecks my heart every time I miss the "firsts") but he had so much fun doing it! He went to the pool a couple times and got in the water for the first time! Hoping to be able to take him for my first time this weekend!

I have had some proud mommy moments this past week! I used to rock him to sleep every night because 1. I love it and 2. That's our little time together but this has developed some bad habits of wanting to be held throughout the night so I stopped rocking him to bed :(. Sad day for me but I am super proud of him because he has adjusted to the change very well. Now I feed him and lay him down awake and he puts himself to sleep in about 10 minutes after talking to himself for a bit hehe. I feel like he is growing up so so fast! I know he is only 5 months but when he started to put himself to sleep it gave me that inner feeling of what it will be like when he doesn't need me at all to put him to bed...I embrace every moment I can with him cause people are right when they say it happens in a blink of an eye! I love this little boy to no end and can't imagine life without him! He is one of my greatest gifts in life and I feel so blessed to be his momma!

Started off sitting up and watch how he slowly starts to sink down ;) such a wiggly little guy! I couldn't get him to sit still haha!

A little lower...

A little lower...

And....we're done! :)

At the pool with Laura the babysitter

At the pool with my sister Katie!

Worn out from his first time playing in the pool!

Reading time with Daddy!

Reading with his cousin David! They are buddies!

He sleeps now with his butt up in the air and his ankles crossed! The cutest part is watching him get situated when he does this!

Loves those feet!

 Chilling in his bouncy swing watching Praise Baby while mommy makes his baby food! (Ha! Don't judge that I am letting my 5 month old watch TV ;)- this is literally the first time I have let him do this!) 

Making homemade baby food!

4 Month Update & THE BEACH!!

So I am only two weeks late on this update! Not bad haha! We were out of town for Noah's 4 month birthday so I am just now catching up! This is going to be a combination of whats going on with him at 4 months as well as our beach trip!

On May 31st I took Noah for his 4 month check up and he weighed 14 lb 4 oz and is 25 1/2 inches long! My tall boy :). He had to get four shots which broke this momma's heart because he always gives me the look of "how dare you let them do this to me!" After his appointment that day we were off to the beach in Ocean Isle Beach, NC with Aaron's family and I was ssssooo excited!! We made it to about 9 PM on the road and then Noah had the biggest meltdown of his life where he then proceeded to projectile vomit all over himself and the carseat as well as my car! It was a nightmare to say the least because we were stuck in construction traffic and Noah had to sit in that for 7 more hours but we made it and all was well in the world.

Noah has become quite the little ham! He is constantly babbling away with Aaron and I and always has something to say. He has started to mimic my facial expressions too when he looks at me which cracks me up! Every time he sees himself in the mirror he cracks up laughing. It is the funniest thing EVER!! He is such a happy baby and brings us so much joy. He is also VERY ticklish! Every time I change his clothes he laughs and laughs and laughs because it tickles his belly :) Rolling from tummy to back is a constant activity for him now but he has yet to master back to tummy. He doesn't really care to much to lay on the floor and play anymore because he always wants to be sitting up so he can see where all the action is. The bumbo has become the best seat in the house! His most favorite toy is Sophie the giraffe which we lost for about a week at Mimi's house but found it yesterday so yay!! Aaron and I have been reading Noah's "Jesus Story Bible" to him every night and its so neat to see how infatuated he is with all the pictures! He actually sits there and listens very intently to Aaron as he reads which is SO CUTE!!! It's amazing to watch their little minds at work even though he is only 4 months old!

While at the beach we introduced him to cereal and he absolutely LOVED it!! When I put the bib on him now he knows whats coming and shreaks in excitement! Sometimes he laughs hysterically if I put the spoon in his mouth and make smacking sounds with my lips! He laughs and spits his food all over the place because he can't hold it in from laughter. Warms my heart to see the joy on his face! My pediatrician suggested starting him on it since he was still getting up every 2-3 hours at night to eat. At the beach he slept like a CHAMP going 8-10 hours but once we came home its been a whole different story! Not so sure what's going on there but we will figure it out. I think the salt air helped with that a bit too :). Last night he was up 4 times (wasn't hungry just wanted to play)...hoping this changes soon. It does make it easier though when I go in to his room at 3:00 am and he shreaks with joy when he sees me and starts to babble and laugh :) Melts my heart every time even when I'm half asleep!

It was so nice to spend a whole week with Noah which made it EXTRA hard to come back to work. It was like coming back from maternity leave all over again in regards to my emotions. Our beach vacation didn't go as I would have hoped with a visit to the ER at 3:00 am because I had a severe allergic reaction and was covered in itchy hives making me have to stay inside for the second half the trip. There was also a tropical storm that made us leave early but I was super grateful for the 24/7 time I got to spend with Aaron and Noah. Noah loved the beach and the ocean and took such great naps on the beach! He was my cute little beach bum! It was so neat to think that this time last year when I was at the beach he was in my belly :) Can't wait until next year when he will be running around in the sand!

                                                            He's got his daddy's sweet smile!

The sticker is now moved to the blanket because he wants to take it off the pillow and eat it :)

PRAISE GOD he finally fell asleep on the car ride down! Just needed to hold Momma's hand to make it all better :)

He took the best naps in his beach pod! The ocean is the greatest sound machine ever!

Cutest Beach Bum there is! I love how his belly hangs out of his shirt!

Love those CHEEKS!!!

First time eating cereal :) We had to take his clothes off cause it was a messy fun process :)

My little PBK baby :) The sun was in his eyes a bit :)

Fingers of choice now!

Date night with my man at our favorite restaurant in Ocean Isle called Roberto's and Calabash Creamery! What a blessing to have Nana take care of Noah so we could have a night out just the two of us!



A Thought for Mother's Day

It's hard to believe a year went by so fast. Looking back to last year the weekend of Mother's Day my heart reflects on what I was feeling and thinking that day. I look back on my post Mother's Day Thoughts... and I clearly remember it was a day filled with lots of mixed emotions and a church service I will never forget as Pastor Chad reflected on Mary mother of Jesus and what she must have gone through when losing her son.  I sit here now holding my son and can only thank God for His Grace, love, and provision of allowing me to be Noah's mother. Noah is a gift to me and a testimony of God's grace in my life. I can't help but feel burdened and heavy hearted for those women who are experiencing the same pain I felt last year after losing my first baby just 2 months prior to Mother's Day. Although I have my son now I was a mother before Noah came in to my life but never got to experience the earthly relationship with that precious little one. As I fully embrace what I have been given now with so much gratitude and joy, I will always look forward to the day when I will meet that little one in heaven :). My cup is overflowing this year and I am forever thankful.

Mother's Day is a day to celebrate Moms for their sacrificial love, guidance, teaching, etc. they give to their children each day, but it should also be a day to love and encourage those women who have lost, are struggling with infertility, trying to adopt but are having problems, etc. I know last year my dear friend Katie Rulketter did just that for me and it was one of the most touching things anyone has ever done for me. Yes, be joyous and celebrate your motherhood on this day as you fully deserve it for all you do for your children but remember and pray for those who may not get to do the same and love and encourage those you know who have lost those they love or are deeply longing for a little one to call them mom.

Thank you Katie R. for reminding me last year and today of what the beautiful gospel looks like! :) I love you sweet friend and praise God for your precious little one who was so graciously given to you in your times of trial. Your compassionate heart  serves as a gracious reminder for everyone else to always put others needs and emotions first and I am grateful for that! Happy Mother's Day!

Hebrews 11:1- "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see."

Noah's 3 Month Update!

Time is just FLYING by!! I rarely have time to get on my computer so I am writing this at 3:30 in the morning as I feed him haha! Multi-tasking has become an art of mine! Noah is 3 months old as of May 1st and has really become quite the little ham! :) He is constantly giggling and trust me I will make a fool of myself to hear that precious sound come out of him because it just makes my day! He weighed 12 pounds 14 ounces at his appointment but I am sure he is 13 pounds now :). He is 24 1/2 inches long! I think he is going to be tall like his daddy.

His little personality has just blossomed and there is rarely a time when he isn't smiling. He loves to play peek-a-boo and be sung to and thinks that whistling is the funniest thing ever. Any time you sing to him he smiles from ear to ear. He is such a happy baby and so so good! He has gotten to the point now where he always likes to be sitting up so he can see all the action around him. He is always so curious and doesn't want to miss anything! He will talk your ear off if you get him going which is so cute! I love his little cooing voice he has and he will sometimes scream with joy if he gets really excited! Mornings are the best because when I go in to wake him up he is smiling from ear to ear! It's a great way to start my work day :)!

A new game we have started playing is having him lay on my legs and then I say "are you ready" and he lifts his head up and pushes himself up on his feet while I hold his hands. It amazes me how strong he is for a 3 month old and how great his neck control is whenever he is sitting or standing up! I don't even have to support his head anymore because he holds it as stiff as a board! The dr. said he has motor skills of a 4 month old :) so I was a pretty proud momma! :) He also likes having something in his mouth ALL the time so I gave him Sophie the giraffe last week and he LOVED it! Mainly he has his hands in his mouth 24/7 and is trying to master his entire fist fitting in there! He has been working on that for days ;). He just discovered his feet but has yet to try and fit those in his mouth.

His sleeping patterns have been so back and forth lately. There is absolutely no consistency right now but its okay. He used to cry in the middle of the night when he was hungry but now when he wakes up he just lays there and talks to himself for 10 minutes or so. I have tried letting him go back to sleep on his own but after 10 minutes of talking and then realizing I am not coming he starts to cry. It's pretty cute though to hear him talking on the monitor :). Usually he only wakes up once in the middle of the night but right now I think he may be going through a growth spurt. I have tried the paci, letting him lay there for a while, rocking him back to sleep, etc. etc. etc. but I truly think he just wants to eat because these past couple of days it has been every 2-3 hours throughout the night which isn't normal! After feeding him though he goes right back to bed so its never an issue of being up for hours trying to get him back to sleep. I know everyone has their method and who knows if I am doing any of the right things haha but he is growing and is healthy so thats all I care about! He is so good about going to bed though! I usually lay him down awake every night around 8:15 and he just puts himself to sleep. I couldn't ask for a better baby and I am truly blessed by how good he is :)! I absolutely love being his mommy so lack of sleep doesn't bother me because its just precious moments I get with him at night :). We have also stopped swaddling him completely because those little legs of his get going and he busts out of it every time! I thought the transition may be a little difficult for him to go from being completely swaddled to nothing at all but he hasn't seemed to mind it one bit!

Noah has settled in well to the routine of going to my sister's house every day and to the babysitter's house on Friday. His little cousins just LOVE him to no end and on Fridays they just don't really understand or get why Noah isn't at their house. It's so cute! I am truly blessed by my childcare situation and couldn't have asked for anything better! Everyone tells me being a full time working mom will get easier each day...still waiting for that to be true but I am blessed to have a great job and wonderful family so I can't complain. I absolutely embrace every moment of my weekends and time at night with Noah and it has made the time I do have with him so much more special! I try not to have an envious heart towards stay at home moms and try to focus on the positive. I am happy for mommy's that get to stay home with their little ones and hope one day that will be a reality for me but right now it isn't and thats okay because the Lord knows what I need :)!

I used to put the number on his shirt but he wanted to eat it so for now on it will go on the pillow :) sorry these pics are so blurry!

 Love that little smirk!

 Total Aaron face!!

 First time in the Bumbo seat! He absolutely LOVES it!

 Leslie getting some snuggles :) I can't WAIT to snuggle her little Hadley due in August!!

His first outing to the zoo with Laura...he slept the entire time!

He loves his Sophie :)

He has really big hands! Ha!

Couldn't make it through dinner...sleepy boy!



Noah's 2 Month Update!

I know I know I am almost two weeks late on this post! I was getting ready to go back to work last week so I wanted to spend as little time as possible on other things and just focus on my time with Noah, hence the late update! It's so hard to believe 2 months has already gone by as of April 1st!!  I fall more and more in love with this little boy every day and can't believe The Lord blessed me with something so beautiful! Aaron and I could just sit there and stare at him for hours :)!!

Noah has really started developing such a cute personality. He loves to lay on the floor and have conversations with us and is really becoming more aware of his surroundings. When I sing songs to him he laughs so much! Him and Aaron have really bonded which is so special to watch. Noah is all smiles all the time and is even starting to do a little giggle which melts my heart every time!! Whenever I leave the room he looks for me and when I come back in he gets the biggest smile on his face :) Being back at work I worry that he will be looking for me when I am not around and think I left for good but I know that's my vain imagination and he is perfectly fine.

His sleeping schedule is "slowly" improving. He is getting closer to going every three hours during the day and average of every four to five hours during the night. A lot of my friends have babies already sleeping through the night but what can I say my boy loves to eat! I am thinking that he will begin to space his feedings out more now though since I am not with him during the day and he is getting a bottle. We will see!

At his two month appointment he weighed 11 pounds 5 ounces and was 23 1/2 inches long! I am going to have a tall boy! He definitely takes after his daddy in that area.

I am back at work now and miss him like CRAZY!!! I know that I don't have to worry about him at all though because he is in the BEST hands and I couldn't be more grateful!! My sister Lauren is watching him Monday-Thursday and our family friend Laura Sears who actually babysat me growing up is watching him on Fridays. They are both Super Mom literally and my situation couldn't be any better since I have to work and can't stay home with my little man. As much as I want to be home with him 24/7 I am grateful for the situation I have and will cherish the nights and weekends I get with my little man so much more! My heart goes out to all working mommas because its so hard to not be with your babies. Praise God I have a wonderful job though with wonderful people who make it a lot easier :).

I opened his window blinds so he was starring hard at something haha!

 "Stop taking pics of me mom!"

 Such a happy boy all the time!

 Easter!

Noah is 1 month!

Noah turned 1 month on March 1st!! It's so hard to believe a month has already gone by!! I feel like I had Noah just last week! I am so in love with this little boy and never thought I would be so attached to someone the way I am with him. It's been so neat to watch his development as these weeks have gone by. He is such a strong boy! He is holding his head up very well when on his tummy and he pushes himself up very well with his arms too! He is starting to make great eye contact and recognizes my voice immediately. He has definitely become a momma's boy and I absolutely love that!! His favorite place to be these days is in the Moby Wrap attached to me :). His daddy has the special touch too and always makes him happy when he starts fussing.

Overall, Noah only fusses and cries when he is hungry or has painful gas but he is pretty content the rest of the time. He is such a good baby and we feel so blessed to have such a love bug who likes to snuggle all the time :). We aren't on an exact schedule yet but I think we are working towards one. During the day he eats every 2-2 1/2 hours and at night he goes about every 4 hours so I can't complain :). At first he was eating like every hour to hour and a half. That lasted about a week and I wasn't sure if I had the endurance to do that but it's gotten better.

Being that it is winter time we haven't really gotten out of the house except to go to the dr. or to the grandparent's houses. We have just been snuggling alot at home and I have been soaking up every minute with him. My mother in law did come over one night and watch him so I could run to Target for 30 minutes and in that short amount of time gone I missed him so much! haha I'm in trouble huh? I just don't like being away from him...you can go ahead and be praying for me for when I have to go back to work!!

We go for his 1 month check up on Wednesday so I can't wait to see how much he has grown! I will definitely update on that later!!

He isn't so sure what to think about this photo session :)

That's better :)

Bath time has become more enjoyable for him each time we do it! The first time he screamed bloody murder but now I think he likes it!

His favorite part about bath time is being snuggled up in a towel and a warm blanket with mommy!

I could eat him up! His little face is so precious!!!

He already has such cute little personality :)

Noah's Birth Story!

Well its been 13 days since my sweet angel has been born but there has been absolutely no time to blog since having him home. I have been soaking up every moment with him and just embracing the time I get to be home. He is sound asleep right now so I thought I would update. This may be a long post but its mainly for me to remember each moment of the special day he came in to the world. I hope you enjoy his birth story as much as I enjoy telling it!

Sweet Noah was due on January 26th but my Dr. would not let me go past 41 weeks. Since he decided he wanted to stay in my belly as long as possible I ended up being induced on February 1st. It couldn't have been more perfect though because I really wanted Dr. Dutton to be the one who delivered Noah and by being induced that Friday I was guaranteed to have her. It's so awesome how everything played out because I was very anxious about who would be delivering Noah and the whole process behind it but going in to the day I had such a peace and everything worked out perfectly. So here is the story...

On February 1st Aaron and I woke up and got ready for the day. It was so weird waking up and getting ready knowing I was going to have our baby today. When you think about labor you think it would be a moment like "oh my gosh my water broke we have to get to the hospital as soon as possible" or having lots of crazy contractions and stuff like that. My morning was different. I was able to take a shower, put on makeup, take some pictures and enjoy a moment with my husband just the two of us before we left the house as a family of two about to become three. Not your typical going in to labor story but I loved it! I called the hospital at 10:00 am to see if they had a bed available and they did so we immediately got in the car! We were so excited!! My Dr. had me come in late morning because she wasn't on call until 4:00 pm so she wanted to guarantee that she would be there when I delivered.

When we arrived at the hospital it felt so funny getting checked in because I wasn't in labor. It was the strangest feeling! It was also fun for me too because I work at Baptist East so I know some of the employees up in Labor and Delivery. They were all really excited I was there which made it so much fun! That morning they had quite a few patients come through but for the majority of the time I was there it was just me and one other girl on the floor so we got lots of care from many different nurses which was nice! I think some were trying to pass the time until more patients came in but we appreciated all the attention.

After answering the thousand questions they ask you when they admit you they started my Pitocin at around 11:30. It turns out I was already 4 cm dilated  and 90% effaced when I came in so almost half the work was already done which was nice! At around 2:30 I was 5 cm. When they saw I was 5 cm and 90% effaced they called the dr. to let her know and she decided that when she came in at 4:00 she was going to break my water. I have learned from other friends that its always good to get your epidural BEFORE they break your water. My contractions were not unbearable at all but I knew that once my water was broken they would intensify so around 3:30 I went ahead and got my epidural so that I would have that working before she broke my water. I never really experienced hard labor contractions so I can't really relate to that when people say you "know" you are in labor when your contractions get worse. I was really excited to see my dr. when she came in too because it made it seem so much more real that this was all actually happening.

After Dr. Dutton broke my water my contractions got closer together and more intense but it really wasn't that bad! When my water was broken it turns out that there was some meconium meaning Noah had a bowel movement in my stomach. For that reason they had to have a neonatologist come in when he was born just to make sure it didn't get into his lungs. After my water broke I went from 5 cm to 8 cm in one hour so I was SUPER excited about that! At this point Aaron and I were just relaxing enjoying the time together! Both sets of our parents were in and out visiting which was nice. It was a very low key day and very peaceful. When 8:00 pm rolled around I was 10 cm 100% effaced!! You can imagine how excited I was when I heard that!! Well...it turns out Noah was at a -1 station so the dr. wanted him to labor down for a bit on his own. You technically can't start pushing until you are at a -2 station. Well our parents and ourselves got all excited thinking this baby would be here in the next hour but that didn't happen haha!

It turns out Noah was positioned sideways so they ended up flipping me over on each side every thirty minutes to try and get him to turn. He wasn't budging! Around 9:00 pm I finally got the go ahead that I could start pushing!!! I did most of my pushing at the beginning with my nurse but since Dr. Dutton only had one other patient on the floor at that time she came in early and I got to push for about 45 minutes with her which was nice because usually the dr. doesn't come in until the very end. About an hour in to pushing Noah's heart rate dropped so they gave me oxygen and it came right back up. That unnerved me a little but Dr. Dutton handled it perfectly and he was fine :). Total, I was in labor for about 11 hours and I pushed for an hour and twenty minutes! Talk about EXHAUSTING!!! It was so worth every minute though and I would do it all over again! When Noah came out he wasn't crying so I freaked out for a moment but they cleared out his mouth and nose and he starting shrieking! It was the best sound I have ever heard!! I of course started bawling! I had been waiting to hear that sound for so long that it overwhelmed me with so much joy to know my baby was here and safe!

Since there was meconium I didn't get him right away because the neonatologist had to check him first. He had meconium in his mouth and nose (gross!) but none of it got in to his lungs! Praise the Lord! The dr. said his lungs sounded awesome and he got an APGAR score of 8 & 9 which is GREAT!  He weighed exactly 8 lbs and was 21 1/2 inches long! As I was laying there waiting to hold my baby in my arms I just thanked God for that healthy scream coming out of him and for a positive report from the neonatologist. Aaron got to hold him first and seeing him in Aaron's arms just melted my heart completely and I couldn't stop crying!

My time came when they placed him in my arms and I couldn't believe that time had FINALLY come! I can't even begin to describe or explain the emotions I was feeling at that moment. It was so special! One of my lifelong dreams had come true! I was a mommy! I know before Noah was even born that I was already a mommy X2 but to have that physical evidence in your arms is an indescribable feeling! Aaron and I were so overcome with joy we both couldn't  stop crying! This was by far one of the best days of our lives!! I seriously couldn't have asked for a greater labor experience and we give God all the glory for this sweet and most precious blessing!!

My last picture at home pregnant with Noah!

Aaron was so amazing the entire day and was such a great support!

Hanging out in the rocking chair before getting my epideral since I would be in the bed for the rest of the time.

Got my epideral and ready to get this show on the road!

The grandparents waiting patiently!

He doesn't quite know what to think of this world

Best sound ever!

Love at first sight!

Holding my boy for the first time!

My heart is full!

Dr. Dutton is AMAZING :) So blessed to have her as my dr!

Our first family photo!