Snuggle Bug

Will can be such a little snuggle bug and it is just the best time! He often has some fussy time in the evening (which is very common after all the activity of the day) one way to calm him down for a nap is to put him on your chest on his belly. He doesn't get a lot of time to sleep on his belly and I think he likes the heartbeat sound... However when trying this tactic on mommy we often get confused and think it is dinner time again ;)

So off to daddy we go, doesn't look like he minds too much does it!

We also have another favorite time that unfortunately we might have to break him of eventually. After he eats at about 5-6 am he does not want to go back to bed, in his bed... so we often spend some time looking around and hanging out in OUR bed then go back to sleep in there, either in mommy or daddy's arms or on his boppy.... just something about our bed.

I don't want him to revert to hating his bed so I am going to try to stop this everyday occurrence eventually but for now I think we are all enjoying it. Sometimes I am so tired that when I wake up with him in my arms or next to me it is a pleasant surprise because I forget that he came in :)

Happy Halloween!!!

We did not end up doing anything for Halloween this year, it was chilly outside and on a Sunday so we had a relaxing day at home the four of us.

One month updates

William is ONE MONTH old today!
We had our first parents as teachers visit last week. PAT is a programs where they come to your house to check certain milestones, answer questions, and give you some educational tools to help your little one thrive.
I love our teacher, she is very sweet and couldn't get enough of our little guy. She said he is right on track with head movement and muscles, eye movement and focusing and she answered all of my many questions. We are loving the black and white photos she made for us and use them during tummy time. She also suggested using the boppy for tummy time which has been extremely helpful!

Today we had the one month well visit and the pediatrician. William is doing great! She said I can use some hydrocortizone for his nasty recent outbreak of baby acne and some olive oil for a little cradle cap he has developed.

ONE MONTH OLD
9 pounds 12 ounces 58%
22 1/2" tall 83% (whoa!)

I have started pumping and trying to establish somewhat of a supply but sometimes I am only pumping about an ounce at a time. His pedi is not worried about that since I am feeding him AND trying to pump it is probably the reason for the small amount. Saturday night Luke gave him his first bottle in the middle of the night and I got a full night of sleep! Have I mentioned how awesome Luke is being? I know things are going to be difficult when I go back to work and I don't even want to think about trying to take care of everything here after working all day but I am confidant we can do it, teamwork is key! :)

A Preview....

(we were so scared he was going to poop on us!)
Here is a lil preview from Mondays photo shot with Stephanie Cotta...We ended up doing two shoots, one with our photographer from our wedding at our house Saturday and one with Stephanie in her home studio. I think I might like the family ones from Whitney a little more but the alone ones of him from Stephanie, I cant wait to see the rest!

Special Memories (1 week)

So much has happened in this first week, I wanted to take just a second to remember a few things....

- The first night home from the hospital was a learning experience for all of us, where should you sleep, should we really wake you to eat, changing diapers, the list goes on and on... Daddy had an especially hard time, he did not want you sleeping in your crib, he wanted to keep an eye on you at all times (we bought a nice video monitor but that still was not good enough for daddy) after many attempts to make you comfy, bassinet, swing, in our arms, in boppy, I told Luke to just try your bed, a few minutes later I went in and found that daddy had stripped all the sheets off the guest bed and curled himself up on the floor of your nursery next to your crib.... we are not overprotective at all ;)

- When daddy went to change you the first night before bringing you to me to feed, I kept hearing him say ohhh Come ON will, and REALLY!??! When I asked what was going on (5 min later) he brought you into me in just a diaper.... You had kept pooping again and again and again while getting changed and then daddy got peed on.

- Mommy has gotten peed on three times in the first week, not TOO bad! The first trip out of the house was to the pediatrician Thursday, I was stressed to say the least. I had never been anywhere with him, so I packed the diaper bag, extra outfits, diapers, and I am still "healing" so things for me as well. We had you in a cute little outfit and were all ready to go, went to change you one last time before we left and of course you peed ALL over us, your outfit the wall everything! So much for being on time ;)

- Your first doctor visit went well, we met grandma afterwards and she got so worried when we hadn't called because we were a 1/2 hour late and she thought something might have been wrong... Nope Just took the doctor close to an hour to answer ALL of Mommy's questions, the Doctor nicely said at the end of the appt that she loved my list and organization, this of course made me happy I had found such a great and understanding doc.

WEIGHT

8.8 born

8.2 1/2 when we left the hospital

8.2 at the first doc appt Everything looked absolutely perfect! :)

- Luke went to get out of the house for a bit Friday and came back with a very special gift for me, he got me some nice earrings with Will's birthstone (pink turling) Photo above: Just more proof that the hormones are on overload!

- Mommy and Daddy have eaten pizza for 4 of their past 7 dinners home.... I don't want to look at a pizza for a long time! Not that we are lazy; just the easiest thing to say when people ask what they can pick up for dinner or when people are over and we need to order something for everyone.

Visitors!

Leslie and Jim, make it back from Germany and stopped by before heading back to Arkansas to meet the newest addition to "the core" what some of my friends and I started calling ourselves.
Uncle Tim's first niece or nephew!

With Uncle Jim sporting his "uncle jimbo rocks" onesie

Ashley came in from KC to meet the lil fella.

Ross... expecting his first in February.

Great Grandma and Grandpa Nottke... Came as soon as they could, LOVE their great grandkids!

Love this one!

Aunt Crystal couldn't be more thrilled, I love it.

One of my good friends Jessie, just got married... when she saw Will her exact words were. "Craig and I definitely need one!" ha!

Snuggling with Grandma... I took a nap during this, then she cleaned my whole house! Good day.

Lauren and Josie, Lauren is due with #2 in April!

And Michelle is due with #1 in March! Babies!!!!!!!!!!!!

William turned one week old last night and ohh what a week it has been! He's met so many special people and made us laugh and cry much more than I would of thought...

Luke goes back to work tomorrow and we are going to hopefully have a little calmer of a week, not much sleep and people over every day/night really takes it out of ya!

Here is a look at some of his visitors!

His Story...

My favorite nurse Holly.

My chunky monkey of a baby boy!

Proud proud daddy....

Happy, Proud estatic Mommy!

First we had each other, then we had you... now we have everything!

I was 40 weeks and 6 days and scheduled to be induced Monday morning, the weekend was spent tying up some last minute things and getting ready for baby. Saturday evening our subdivision had a chili cook off, we decided to go and entered our favorite recipe, we didn't win but got a greater prize later that night...

Everyone joked that the spicy chili would put me into labor, well it might just have! I woke up as usual to pee around 4 am, then went down to lay on the couch and watch a little dvr while I tried to go back to sleep, went to pee again and noticed that I was a little wet, not a lot but I went up to check the bed, thinking my water might had broken... bed was dry, pj pants were dry just undies. I layed down and started to notice some pretty consistent pains about 8 9 10 minutes apart, these went on for about an hour and I decided it was time to call Labor and Delivery. I called and talked to the doctor on call; Dr. Walsh. She advised that it may have broken and without knowing I should probably come in and get checked out. I woke Luke and we both got ready. It was crazy packing last minute things not knowing if next time I would be back it would be with a baby!

I grabbed a banana and choked it down knowing that it might be might last time to eat for hours and hours.

Turned out my water had not broken and I was STILL only one cm, however I was "soft" but blood pressure was high. This was cause for concern so blood work needed to be done, before this Dr. Walsh came in and talked to us weighing some options so I didn't have to get pricked twice. If the blood work came back bad I would need to get induced right away, if it was good I had the option of going home and coming back in the morning for my scheduled induction. We decided to stay, what would be the point of going home and waiting around all day, we had already been there about 2 hours at this point. My iv was started, blood work taken, and we were on our way.

It all came back normal and everything was fine, we were just going to keep an eye one it, a while later Pitocen was administered and the contractions began to get stronger. They were 5 minutes then 4 then 3 then 2 minutes apart and strong!!! I breathed through them and tried the best I could. I could of gotten the epidural a lot sooner but in fears it would slow things down I waited as long as I could. About 2:30 pm I got the epidural and it was fabulous, it went very smooth and everything was great!!... Until about an hour later that is, the "other Dr. Walsh" (her daughter is a resident OB!) she broke my water and Will headed down lower, they put me on my left side and not a minute later she was back in, an oxygen mask was on my face and it was explained to me that his heart rate had drooped, could of been because he dropped or I switched sides but either way we needed to get it back up. Around the same time my epidural was not working very well at all, I had the mask on, was trying to deep breath through contractions with a stuffy nose, and the pain was getting worse and worse, they told me to press the epidural button but it did not help, finally about a 1/2 hour later the anisteologist came back in and gave me an extra dose of meds and all started to feel better, about another 1/2 hour later I was told I could take the oxygen off and baby and I were both doing fine.

After this things moved fast I went to 4 cm, then to 6, My dad was driving back from Tulsa and Luke's mom driving back from Kansas... we tried to keep everyone informed and as Luke went to meet my mom and dad in the parking lot I got checked again.... I was at 10! 10!!!!! I thought my nurse was joking around, seriously, I was just at 4 not that long ago! She told me baby was still at a zero station and he had to be at +2 or +3 to push, so we would labor down for an hour to get him down, this basically meant I sit and do nothing for an hour, which worked well, I got to say hi to my parents, Luke's mom, and my sister before they were kicked out because it was time to push!

I loved my delivery nurse, Holly, she was so great, taught me how to push and exactly what to do, I listed very well and did exactly what she wanted, I wanted this to go as quick as possible! After about 4 trial pushes she wanted me to stop because his head was coming and we needed the doctor! Luke got to see his head and I was so excited at this point! We had two nice girl nurses, Dr. Walsh (same one I talked to on the phone at 4 am) and a boy resident, when he came in I told him he was not doing ANY thing to me, he asked Luke and I if he should leave.... we said no I just told him I didn't know him. ha!

After about 2-3 pushes my son was born and put in my arms... Life as I knew it was complete and I the reason I was put on this earth had just been born...........William was finally here. Luke cut the cord!

PUSH!

My dad, William, holding William.

My mom and dad got there, I was so excited to see my family!

In the morning, pre epidural, ready to have my baby boy.

Full day one

Our family ready to go home
My mom and her friend Michelle

My son, my cleavage and I. ;)

The sweetest thing I have ever done.

Hello there! I just got on here to upload some pictures and it seems Blogger is having an issue :( UGH! But since I had a minute I thought I would update and say that we had a good first day at home, last night was rough, William eats from me every 2 1/2 to 3 hours you time from the time you start feeding, feeding usually takes about 50 minutes and after that he was up and alert for a while not wanting to lay down, not crying or mad just not ready to go back to bed, so when he finally fell asleep we only had about an hour until we had to get up again... We are going to try taking turns after feedings with him tonight so we can get a little more sleep. Today went good though, we got up and got at it, feed, I ate, then I showered, might of been the best shower of my entire life, seriously!

Luke's mom came over and brought lunch, William was sleeping but I also got to take a nap, daddy went to the store, and then when he got back it was his turn for a nap!

Tonight two of my girlfriends are coming over, I am really excited to see them.

William had his first bath today, which he did not enjoy too much but makes us feel good knowing he is clean.

All is well. :)

Update...

I'm still here... got hit with a bad bad cold Tuesday and just now starting to feel better! Guess it came at just the right time, I cannot imagine of being in labor exhausted and pushing with the way I was feeling. I was due on Monday and today is officially our last Friday pre baby, and last weekend if he doesn't come. The calling starts Monday at 6 am to see if I can come in to start labor (going to have to get induced with pitocen) Hopefully not too many ladies go au natural and take all the bed spots! Hoping for an early call, but all we can do is wait and see.

I cant believe in three short days I will be holding my dear son, I have felt him move in me, and dreamt of him for so long I cannot wait to meet him face to face!

Of course I don't like to keep things boring so yesterday I decided to drench my iphone in water on the kitchen counter and not notice it for hours later... fun stuff. Since they do not insure them and my plan is through my work I could not just go buy another one... and so the search began, did find some on craigslist but opted for going through lovely ol facebook and found a couple from some people we know on there, Luke is out picking a phone up for me from a friend I had in high school, then he is going to pick up zias, ahhhhhh sweet zias, has been my favorite restaurant since I was itty bitty, Love their crispy tomato appetizer and baked spaghetti, boring but ohh so good. I am thinking of this as the "last meal"
If lil Will stays put Saturday evening we are going to our subdivisions chili cook off and I think Luke is going to partake in the competition, and Sunday evening we are probably going to stay close to the home base and prep and relax for the events of the next day!
In a way it is nice, I can pack my last minute things myself, coordinate sitters for Boomer, make sure house is perfect, and just mentally prepare. On the other hand it is a little difficult watching.... the.... clock.... ;)

Depending on how Monday (or before) goes we are going to try to update the blog/facebook a couple times with what is going on, and then when I am feeling up to it I will post a pic or two, or have my lovely sister do some posting for me.

Till then, take care friends and wish us luck on this next amazing journey and experience!

40 week {last} bump pics

These were taken Saturday so just about 40 weeks and final bump pics, unless we are feeling good enough to do the last ones in the hospital!
Trying to push him out!

veiny yes, but so far have still lucked out on the stretch marks!

My little love....

William, your cousin Bennett loves you so much and cant wait to meet you! When we were visiting with Bennett the other night Crystal wanted to get a couple pics while the belly is still around, it was so funny right as I lifted my shirt Bennett was amazed and kept looking and touching the belly! She posted HERE, I look up to my sister so much, I always have. She is such a great mommy, goes above and beyond to make sure Bennett is always happy, healthy, learning, and laughing... Crystal sorry in advance for the endless phone calls and emails you will receive from me asking questions!

I became blogger buddies with some girls who were due around my due date, and 3 of them just had their babies, there dropping like flies!
Congrats to all, love seeing the pics and hearing the stories!!!!

Just the two of us...

Luke and I have been dating since my freshman and his Junior year of college, around May 2003. Since then we have had too many up's and down's to count, lots of fun times shared, lots of different addresses and different occupations, but shared one thing, a strong love for each other.
Soon it will not be "just the two of us" anymore, we wont just pack up and leave for a weekend, we wont decide late in the afternoon to go to a Cards game because I had extra tickets at work, and I am thinking that second...achemm third glass of wine, just because... maybe be a thing of the past.
BUT, words cannot even begin to express how excited and thrilled we are for it to be the THREE of us! I have wanted to by a mommy ever since I can remember. When I was little if I wasn't found playing house with my baby dolls something was wrong. Here is a little look back on some memories before we start this next amazing chapter of our lives.
I love you Luke. I fell in love with you, then you made me the happiest girl on earth when you asked me to be your wife. I will never forget our wedding day and how incredibly happy we both were. Now you gave me the greatest gift I could ask for, to be a mommy, here's to the next chapter.

This is as far back as I can go on my shutterfly account, yes Luke and I dated PRE digital camera days.... makes me feel old! 2006 Cards play off game before we won the world series!
2007 Joey and Lindsey wedding at the Lake, They just welcomed their first son Burke into the world. Okay, so this must be right after the 4 wheeler accident where I broke my arm/shoulder, I can tell by the boney neck and short hair.

2007 (i think) Luke left for 5 months and went on a fishing tour with Berkly promoting products, I flew in to see him ONCE for my birthday, it was a long five months!

Before he left I threw him a little good bye party at Helen Fitzgeralds.

New Years 2007 (i think) at D. Dooleys

2006, man, on one hand I miss the days of going out all the time on the other I don't... here we are at Broadway Oyster bar a popular hangout for us.

Okay, I know I know, it wasn't exactly ever just the two of us ;)

Parasailing 2007 Mexico: day after he POPPED the question

He couldnt get the words out and I couldnt get the word Yes out...

We are both huge cry babies, William is doomed.

2007 engagement pictures, Union Station

Engagement Pictures, Happy Family of 3, Forest Park

September 2007 awesome couples shower my girlfriends threw for us. Such a fun day!

Fall 2008 Pumpkin picking at Eckarts, Fall has always been a favorite time of ours and we cant wait to share this with William.

Fall 2008 Halloween Party

Table Number Picture taking for the big day.

April 2008 Our amazing wedding

Will he ever be able to lift me like this again?

On our honeymoon, a cruise to St Maarten, St Thomas, and San Juan Purtio Rico

Welcoming Bennett my nephew into the world minutes after he was born. February 2009

Valentines day 2009 Taste of Soulard

Mexico November 2009, Last trip before we were "trying" Cant wait to go back and take William!Cardinals Game April 2010 my birthday.

August 2010 Anxiously awaiting our little miracle.