Lovin' My Boy!

We took Case to his first baseball game at Nationals Stadium the other night. The Mariners are in town, but sadly they've lost both their games so far. We still had fun though! Casey is such a chill little guy. He sat through 7 innings of the baseball game and didn't let out a single cry. He fell asleep on Aaron at about 8 p.m. and stayed that way until we got home at 10:30 and I fed him.

At this point, he gets up to eat 2-3 times a night. Sometimes he'll go as much as 4 hours before wanting to eat again, but this is still a rare occurance. I know it'll get better as he gets older! For the most part i've been feeling pretty good even with the lack of sleep. I'm starting to adjust to the demands! But I will say that today i'm painfully tired.

He continues to eat like a champ! I am so fortunate that he latched great from the day he was born and my milk supply came in full when he was just 3 days old. Nursing was tough at first - and still has its challenges - I finally broke down and starting using a shield, but then I couldn't get him to latch without it! So I went to see the amazing lactation specialist at his pediatricians office and of course, he latched right away while she was watching. Little stinker! She said it happens all the time. I laughed and said he was a show-off. So now i'm able to nurse him without the shield (or with it if necessary) which is great! All of that to say, I've realized that you have to just stick it out with nursing even when it down right hurts and you really just want to quit and start giving the kid a bottle! I'm hoping I can nurse him full-time for 6 months and then quit completely after 12 months. That's my goal!

Case's weight gain is great, too! When we left the hospital, he was 5 lbs, 12 oz and then at 3 days old he was back up almost to his birth weight (6.5). At his 2 week appointment he was 6.14 and then on Tuesday of this week (just 4 days later) he was already at 7.3! My little champ! It's hard to believe I already have a 3 WEEK OLD! These 3 weeks have flown by it seems. It truly is amazing how quickly a baby changes, so i'm soaking up every single second! I am SO grateful that i'm able to stay home full time and watch him as he grows. I don't take it for granted at all! I'm sitting here as I type listening to him make little noises (and fill his pants...HAHA!) and I can hardly put to words how much I love him.

Baby Casey is here!

Casey Lowell Meredith (after my dad) 6 lbs, 5 oz and 19 inches of perfect love!

I'm so excited to make this post because we've been waiting! Baby Casey arrived on Friday, 3 June at exactly 11:45 a.m. On Thursday night, I was feeling funny so I went to bed around 10 p.m. I told Aaron I was frustrated because I felt like I needed to pee every 10 minutes - I was feeling so much pressure! I got up out of bed after I had only been laying down for about 15 minutes and I felt something trickling down my leg. I quickly realized that my water was leaking. I yelled out to Aaron, "Babe, I think i'm in labor! It's happening!" Within a few minutes I was feeling strong contractions about 7 minutes apart. I called the doctor on call and he said to go ahead and come into the hospital because they needed to give me antibiotics (for being GBS positive - no big deal though). Aaron wanted to stop by his office to see if he could pick up his work computer since he obviously wouldn't be going into work the next day. By the time we got to his office just a few miles away, I was in a lot of intense pain and I said, "My contractions feel really close....is it all supposed to happen this fast?" Contractions had gone from 7 minutes to about 5 minutes apart in less than a half hour. They got so strong that about 10 minutes from the hospital I made Aaron pull to the side of the road to let me pee. I could NOT hold it! And yes, I really did pee right along a side-walk....and an elementary school. Such a fine moment.

Once at the hospital, they checked me into my room and had me put a gown on. That's when my water completely broke. Once that happened, things really picked up even more. Within the next half hour or so, my contractions were about 2 minutes apart. After having zero relief for a bit, I opted for an epidural and do not feel bad about it. In fact, Aaron and I were both able to sleep for a few hours that night. So at midnight I was 4 centimeters, by 3 a.m. I was around 5, by 7 a.m. I was at 8 and by 9 a.m. I was a full 10! My mom had hopped a red eye flight from Seattle and got to the hospital right around 9. By 10 a.m. I was feeling enough pressure to start pushing. I had the most incredible nurse named Kim who made the experience so wonderful! Aaron and my mom were a huge help too. And to top it off, my most favorite OB happened to be on call (I had prayed for this!) So after only 1.5 hours of pushing, our sweet baby Case was out and in my arms! It was such an incredible experience! I could hardly believe I was holding him and seeing his face. By far the best moment of my life! It's almost surreal to Aaron and I that this little person is part of us. And only about 12 hours of labor, start to finish- I think that was the Lord's mercy on me for having such a rough pregnancy!


Now we are home getting used to our new life! So far, Case is a great sleeper and eater. My milk supply came in after only 3 days. Nursing is one of the most challenging things I've ever done, but i'm so thankful that my body is cooperating so that I can do it. I really enjoy our mommy/baby time and we're getting better at it with each new day. My mom has been such a HUGE help. Aaron has been able to work since she's here and we honestly don't know what we'd do without her!


Aaron is the most incredible daddy and is loving his new son. They're so cute together when they cuddle. I'm already seeing a new, even softer side of my beloved husband. It's so wonderful!! We couldn't be happier. We thank God for blessing us the way he has!

39 Weeks....Whew!

Alright, so no picture this week, just an update! I saw my OB today and we've made more progress since last week. I'm 2 cm dialated and almost completely thinned out now (I was 90 percent effaced with less than 1/2 cm dialation last week). Dr. Anderson asked me about my contractions. My response was, "Hmmm....what contractions??" I say this because all I've really had is a ton of pressure downstairs and lots of painful menstrual-like cramping. She was surprised at my response because she said she could feel his head and in her words, "If this kid drops anymore, he'll fall right out!" Wow, wouldn't it be nice if labor could be that easy! Ahhh, now I have this Beach Boys song stuck in my head. Boy, I sure get distracted easily.

Anyway, I think this stage is rather frustrating because 2 cm could mean a lot, or very little. I could stay this way for another week....or TWO! Yikes. I've decided that this little guy is very much like his daddy - super chill with the patience of a SAINT. No joke. Aaron's amazing like that. I, on the other hand, don't even pray for patience because God sits up there on His Throne of Glory laughing at me (i'm sure.)

Well, I think i'll go take a long walk in this 90 degree, humid weather in hopes of dehydrating myself and starting contraction. Ok, JOKING about the dehydration part, but I admit i'm kinda curious about contractions so I hope they start. Yes, I will be retracting that statement once they're in full swing. And yes, I'll probably hit someone in the face. Hopefully you won't be the one in my way! ;)