How time flies...

It is so hard to believe that Maddie is almost 2 weeks old! I now realize that once you have a child you realize how fast time goes! Derek went back to work this week. On his first day back I think he called us 6 times and video called 3 more times. It was definitly hard for him to leave us, ok leave Maddie not me lol!! Since Derek had work this week I tried really hard not to wake him at night when she was up. Of course, he still would wake up since Madelyn is still sleeping in our room. This week she still had to eat every 2-3 hours. Therefore, even if she was sleeping we had to wake her. Once we wake, feed and change her at night it is hard to get her to go back down. Many night this process takes an hour from start ot finish and before you know it it is time to get up again. Therefore, I have learned to go on exhaustion. I know everyone says sleep when she sleeps but that is much harder to be done. When she does sleep during the day it is so hard not to go put in another load of laundry, clean, check email, etc. Most days it is hard enough to get a shower in let alone a nap! No matter how tired I am it all is so worth it everytime I look at her and makes every 3am feeding worth it all! Many times Derek and I just stare at her and are so thankful for this amazing baby girl! Madelyn had another appointment with the peditrician this past friday. She weighed 9lbs 6oz...she gained 1lb and 2oz!!!!!! Needless to say she is eating just fine, lol!! The good news is since she is now over 9 lbs our peditrician said we no longer have to wake her at night, just let her wake us when she is hungry. This got us very excited however, the first night of this Maddie of course did not sleep more than 2 hours. She smiles all the time when she is sleeping. No clue what she is dreaming about. We posted a video that shows her doing this because it is one of our favorite things she is doing right now:) Today we also had a photographer come to take her newborn pictures. We are very excited to see them and hope we got some good ones. We will make sure to post the link once we get it!

Madelyn Marie White

Madelyn was born this past Monday June 18, 2012 at 2:51 p.m. She was born weighing 8 lbs 10 oz and was 21 inches long. Monday morning I woke up around 7:15 because I couldn't sleep. Derek had already left for work and I wanted to get a few things done before my doctors appointment at 10:30. I was very anxious for this appointment hoping they were going to be scheduling an induction! At 7:30 I went to the bathroom and as I stood up I noticed fluid was still coming. I stood in shock. I started thinking can I be peeing my pants, lol? I just had the vision of what you see in movies when your water breaks. I decided since I was going to the doctor to see what continued to happen. I really thought I was just getting my hopes up and it was probably nothing. As I took about 3 more steps even more started to come and just continued. At this point I was pretty sure my water had broke. I went and woke mom up and said I was calling the doctor. Even at this point I still couldn't let myself think this is it!! I called Derek and said "I think my water broke but waiting for the doctor to call back"

Then the contractions started. I had been having contractions for a few weeks now and kept asking will the contractions be different once labor starts. Well the answer is YES! I had 3 contractions that were 10 mins apart that were very painful. I called Derek two more times saying this is it, no need for the Dr. to call back I can't even get ready now because of contractions. After the first 3 contractions they changed to every 4-5 minutes apart. It seemed my labor was going quick. At this point my mom woke up my cousin Krystie who was also visiting and we started getting everything together and waited for Derek to get home. Derek of course flew home and even said he passed a cop who was going 65 and he was going over 80. Luckily, somehow he didn't get pulled over.

Once Derek got home we all headed to the hospital. When we got there I was at 4 cm dilated and my contractions were 2-3 minutes apart. The nurse said I could get the epidural right away since I was so far. I was very excited because at this point I was really struggling with pain. The only downfall was I had to have 2 IV's for fluid before I could have the epidural. So it took about an hour and half before finally the anesthesiologist came and I got the epidural. For about an hour the epidural made it SO much better!! Then the pressure started. My doctor came in to check it I had dilated anymore and she was shocked but excited that was already at 9 1/2 cm! I really was lucky how quick my labor was going! About 45 minutes later it was time for me to start pushing. I ended up pushing for about an hour. I honestly can remember saying during the labor "I can't do this" but now I can't even remember the pain. It really is true what everyone says, you forget all the pain once you have your baby in your hand!

They immediately handed her to me and it was the best feeling in the world! Derek and I were beyond excited to finally meet our little bundle. We were excited to have all of Derek's family there as well as Mom and Krystie. We called everyone in and finally got to share her name...Madelyn Marie. Of course the next question everyone asked was, "what color is her hair" The nurses all think it is auburn on the side, we just see brown. Of course we know it will change some so we will see! We stayed in the hospital until Wednesday morning and then we were able to bring Maddie home:)

Today we had our first appointment with the pediatrician. They were so excited with how well she is doing. When we left the hospital Wednesday she weighed 8lbs 1 oz so they hoped she would at least maintain this week as many women's milk takes a few days to come in. However, today she was 8lbs 4 oz! She was above what they wanted. We aren't really surprised as it seems Maddie is ALWAYS hungry. Many nights I am feeding her every hour! They said this will fade off after about two weeks. This is good because right now Derek and I are going on about 4 hours of sleep a night and have not been able to nap much during the day! This will be even harder once Derek goes back to work Monday as he will need more sleep to make it though the work day so I won't want him up all night!

Here are a few pictures of Maddie's first few days! We will try and take some videos and more pictures to update soon! It is a little harder to blog these days but know everyone wants updates:)
Daddy so excited to finally meet his daughter:)

Big smile!

Right after Maddie's first bath!


On our way to the Dr for the first time!


Kangaroo Care after Maddie was born!

So much for June 11th.....

As we are now 2 days past my due date it is safe to say we have a stubborn baby girl who is way to cozy! I however am not so cozy! Maybe it is me being anxious knowing that we could have her at anytime and we are beyond ready to meet her or maybe it is the lack of sleep I get these days with this large stomach but it seems I have finally hit that stage were I am miserable and ready to not be pregnant anymore!


Today I went to the Dr. before the Dr. walked into my room I heard her say to the nurse outside the door "she was 3 cm last week and still pregnant this week!" of course when she walked in she was like we never thought you would go past 40 weeks and laughed. I think this baby is going to fall out before I go into labor, lol! I was still 3 cm and she did a membrane strip to hopefully help start labor! KEEP YOUR FINGERS CROSSED! Otherwise if nothing happens between now and Monday I will go back for another appointment. On Monday, they will do an ultra sound to see how the fluid is and a stress test for the baby. As of Monday I will be 41 weeks and I can schedule an induction. You are not able to actually schedule the induction until you are 41 weeks. The Dr. thought if I scheduled it Monday they would probably be able to get me in by Wednesday. I can't imagine another week but at least it is nice know that in a week we will definitely have our baby :)


Tomorrow, Mom and Krystie fly in. Though they are both about as anxious as Derek and I to have this baby so they get more time with her I am very thankful to have them here for a nice distraction. We will keep everyone posted if anything changes and hopefully that is sooner than later :)

It's almost June :)

It is so hard to believe at the end of this week it will be June. Though we are so ready to meet our baby girl it is hard to believe how fast this month came since we found out we were pregnant last fall. This past weekend Derek and I spent a lot of time relaxing and enjoying what may be one of our last weekends to ourselves.
Today I went for my weekly check-up at the doctor. Tuesday I had some of the worst contractions I have had and really thought this might be it. However, today I woke up and they seemed back to normal like they have been. Therefore, I was anxious to go to the Dr. and see if there was any change. Sadly, I was told no change still 2cm dilated. Of course the Dr. reminded me most women in the their first pregnancy go 40 weeks and a large percentage don't dilate at all until labor. Therefore, even though I have sat at 2cm it is really good my body has started preparing for labor and hopefully will make things easier. I did ask the Dr. what would happen after June 11th (hopefully we don't have to find out) and I was told that at exactly 41 weeks they can induce me. Therefore, if nothing has happened on June 18th I will be induced. The Dr. doesn't seem to think I will go that long but then again we thought she was coming early and haven't changed so only time will tell. Looks like she will decide when she is ready to come. I have my next appointment next Wednesday afternoon. On the way out the Dr. said maybe we won't see you next week. I am hoping this is a good luck sign, haha! Here are a few pictures Derek took this past weekend. The one with the bow is fun to look at compared to the day we found out we were having a girl. Safe to say I have grown a bit :)

The Waiting Game

This past week we went to our weekly doctors appointment. I had been having a lot more contractions and we were very excited to find out I was 2cm dilated and 80% effaced. The Dr. said I am now considered full term and that everyone is different but it looks like I am getting ready and we need to be ready at anytime for her to arrive. He said since my previous appointment I went from 10% effaced to 80% which was a fast move. Of course this made Derek and I very excited and now are very ready for her to be here. However, we also could sit at 2cm for the next 3 weeks, hopefully not! So let the waiting game begin....



We did a lot of work around the house and yard knowing that once it is time things will be a little more hectic! Below is a a picture of Derek's favorite weekend project. He put a firepit into the backyard. It looks really nice and will be nice to have to relax by! We will let you all know if there are any big changes or the update from this weeks doctors appointment!

Last baby thing was to get the carseat installed:)

4 weeks to go...

Sorry it as been a few weeks for us to post. It seems the past few weeks have been very busy. Derek and I still can't believe we are down to the last month and soon we will be getting to meet our baby girl!! It is safe to say we are both very ready to meet her but also very anxious and nervous for the labor. During past two weekends we finished the nursery and washed some of her clothes, towels, blankets, bedding, etc. I didn't know a load of baby clothes could get you so excited. They are so small and made us realize how excited we are for her to be here.
Last weekend mom got to come for the weekend which was so nice. I guess you could say I have entered the "nesting" phase but I am pretty sure my personality is always nesting! Therefore, this trip wasn't the normal vacation trip for mom filled with shopping, going out to eat and relaxing. Instead we re-organized all of the kitchen, cleaned around the house and did lots of organizing in the baby's room. Needless to say if you put mom and I together you get one clean house:) I was very thankful to have her here to help! It was also nice because last weekend we were so lucky to have two amazing baby showers that she was able to come to as well.
On Saturday we had a beautiful shower with all our Charlotte friends. Ashley, Dana and Marne hosted an amazing shower and was absolutely perfect!! Derek's family was also able to come down which was nice to have them there as well. We got a lot of really nice things and are so thankful for all our friends and family who came. Here is a picture with my beautiful hostesses.

On Sunday, my amazing old co-workers from school hosted a shower for us. It was so nice to get to see them all and catch up. I really do miss working and seeing all of them! They all were so kind and generous. Baby W sure is a loved little girl and so lucky to have so much support around. Of course her closet really shows how loved she is. I think Derek has finally come to terms that this little girl is going to be a princess and he better start saving his pennies.
This week we had our last class of the child and labor classes at the hospital. This week we have our interviews with a few pediatrician's that we have been recommended. This is the last big thing we needed to decide. Our next Dr's appt is Wednesday and we now have been switched to weekly visits until she comes. I have been having lots of the braxton hicks contractions. Though they are not fun it is a good sign my body is getting ready. I always heard the end is when the baby really grows but I really can't imagine getting much larger.  Though knock on wood, I have not had any swelling yet! Here are a few pictures of the room. We got the book slings hung on the wall for her books. We also have her name decal to go above her crib but can't hang that tell she gets here to keep it a secret of course:)

Thanks to Natalia, we were sent fun gifts to prepare for the baby's arrival. This is Derek testing out his new gear, lol :)

Baby Shower:)

This past weekend Derek and I flew home to spend a couple days in Iowa. As always the trip went so fast but it was so nice to get to spend time with family and friends! It is always so hard to leave as we don't get to all get together often enough:( Our trip as always involved Derek getting as many of his favorite Iowa food stops in. That included 3 trips to Hungry Hobo!!!
While home we had our first baby shower hosted by Aunt Sue, Kerra and Elly. I can't even begin to say how wonderful it was. The 3 of them worked so hard and gave the perfect shower. It was so nice to have all our family and friends from Iowa together to support the upcoming arrival of our baby girl. As always we were overwhelmed by the generosity in the amazing gifts we got. We are so thankful for everything and realize how lucky we are!
Our flight home wasn't the smoothest. Due to all the storms we got stuck in Chicago and had to spend the night and fly out in the morning. Of course all I was worried about was praying our luggage all made it as they were stuffed with all our new gifts:) Luckily, everything was in Charlotte when we finally arrived. I think I had just as much fun getting everything back out in the nursery and organ zing all the new gifts in the room. I walked into the nursery at least 3 times yesterday and just stared. It is looking even more complete and becoming more real that in less than 8 weeks we will be meeting our little girl.
I posted pictures from this past weekend in Iowa and the shower but also wanted to end with a story that we found so funny we had to share. A few weekends ago I went to see a movie with my friend Marne and her two girls; Lily and Gracie (the flower girls from our wedding). While out with them I was showing Marne the 3D pictures from our last ultra sound. Lily (who is 5) asked to see them as well. That night Marne said Lily came up to her very concerned and said "Mommy I don't think baby Olivia (not the babies name but what Lily calls her) looks very comfy in RaRa's (what she calls me) stomach. I don't understand why she doesn't just stretch out her arms into RaRa's throat so she has more room" Marne then told Lily she is cramped but very cozy. Lily then said "Well how will baby Olivia get out of RaRa's stomach" Marne responded "The doctor will get the baby out of her stomach. Lily's responed "hm, I am going to have to go with RaRa to the doctor to see this" LOL!!!


My wonderful hosts:)

Mom and I at the shower!

Love him so much!

Uncle D getting some sugar for his wake up call

Having so much fun unpacking all our new goodies:)

All Baby W's new clothes! She will sure be stylish