Baby's First Christmas

So I'll admit I had imagined that christmas with my first born would be this most precious moment in time and we'd wake up in the morning with the camera to catch my sweet one innocently sleeping in their crib and then mozy into our living room to find presents under the tree and a blanket of snow to cover the ground. The only thing that came true for me, however, was the snow.

First we started our christmas season off with a nasty virus that was thought to be R.S.V. (twice) and sent us to the Urgent Care center a week before Christmas. This resulted in breathing treatments every 4 hours for several days. With working fulltime and being a "still new" mom, it's needless to say that I barely had enough time to buy gifts for my loved ones. At this time I throw my hands up and have confidence in my friends and family that Sam will bring home everything he had on his little list.Christmas eve we had ventured to our neighbors for a little gathering with friends. I gave Sam his last bottle and he was alseep in his punkin seat by 8:30....... then up at 9. Smiling from ear to ear like he just couldn't stand to miss anything from the party. I proceed to take him downstairs where he laughed and giggled some more with daddy. We both decide to call it an early night so we could get some rest for the big day. I rocked him in our chair and he was back asleep by 9:45.... aaaand up at 10:30, but not for long. Then again at 12:30 when he proceeded to scream his head off for a solid hour. Dad and I went in his room in 15 minute increments to calm him and give him bink, we did give him a 3oz bottle in there but didn't fall back asleep until 1:30. I think to myself, "ah, finally.... at least I can sleep in tomorrow". then up at 3:30 and one more time for the grand finale at 7am! MERRY CHRISTMAS FOLKS!

So it didn't really go anything like what I had imagined in my head, however, we still enjoyed every second of it. Well except the part where we wake up numerous times a night of course. I dressed Sam up like Santa at least 4 times, and we trotted around town in his Santa hat for a month. We visited all our friends and all our family and proudly entered each gathering with our bouncing baby boy. He's full of smiles, and giggles now and is the most precious little gift that I have ever recieved. At the end of the day, baby boy still made out all right even w/ out getting a gift from mom and dad. I guess he has everyone fooled about being on this so called "nice list".

Boys Will Be Boys

Sam has now learned how to make (the politcally correct term would be..) rasberries. In our house we call these fart noises and he's obssessed. I remember the first little smile that I saw was following my fart noises, his first little giggle was the result of the fart noises and now that he can do it it is an all day and all night affair!
Ha-Lare-EE-Us!

Four Months Old!

I returned to the dreaded office back on October 15th, and sadly, this is the first chance I've had to upload pictures, videos, etc. I feel like so much has happened in the last month and a half, that I couldn't even cover in one blog entry l so I'm going with just the meat and potatoes.

Let's see......... in the first couple of weeks at Miss Val's Sam brought home his first cold, then the flu, and then another cold. He's been in pretty good spirits for the most part so it hasn't been too bad. However, we've had several nights of no sleep but as I type this blog the last two nights he has only gotten up one time. Thank God! Also in the past month, baby boy has found his hands and feet, learned to roll over, learned how to gurgle, started eating cereal, and was baptised! To most this probably doesn't sound as exciting as me, but these are all major milestones of a child's development. Rather than bore you with details of each of these little treasured moments, I've just posted some of the footage:

Gurgles

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KH26FzTsLlQ

Handsies

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8HXHoTcSwkQ

and then there's the feeties

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qf1fQpXSnxE

dinner

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s268iBCTlKQ

baptism

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QNueQoAi0-w

I've successfully got him to laugh out loud twice, but yet to capture than on film. Now we are approaching our first Thanksgiving together as a family. It was a year ago that we found out we were expecting this little bundle of joy! It has been even better than I expected. After four months, I still cry when he's sleeping in my arms out of sheer joy. He is just too sweet for words, and I feel more blessed than I could even explain.  Now on to sitting, crawling, and creating a plastic bubble for him to grow up in.

And The Award For The Most Annoying Pet Goes To............

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8C5QhbTqIW0

 

My First Halloween

Hey peop's. Haven't been keeping up with the blog as much as I would like, but to be expected with my return to work. I have NOT however, neglected my photography sessions with my sweet little pumpkin head. I had alot of fun playing dress up with him on our first little Halloween together, however, this that was not much different than any other day it's just the clothes were alot cuter. Sam went as a little froggy this year. It was the warmest thing I could find. We hung out at home and just handed out candy for the last time. Next year we are hitting the pavement for some serious door to door candy snatching.

We've also gone to get his 3 month pic's taken last week but I'm too lazy to get the cd to upload. Sorry will post at a later date. Sam is somewhere around 16 or 17 lbs now; I haven't weighed him for a few days. His next check up will be the end of this month. He's doing amazing though. Ever since my return to work he's turned on the smiles and has been such an amazing little dude. He's rolling over and smiling and talking up a storm. I have yet to get this boy to laugh and I've been working very hard it every day for over a month now. Sometimes he'll smile so big I think his head will explode but he just refuses to laugh. So I have videos and all that jazz too but need to upload those as well and just not doing it today, sorry to dissapoint.

Little man's baptism is tomorrow so I'll get those on the next blog. He spent the night and Geema Pam's last night so Brant and I could do a little R&R and get the house clean etc. This was the first full night's sleep i've had since he's been born and it was amazing. That little fart, however, scratched his face every where; perfect timing. It's so bad that I think people may question my parenting............Rats!

Pumpkin Patch and The Inevitable...... WORK

Hey folks,

Again I've been trying to find the time and the right mind frame to be in to sit and type some wonderfully humerous blog, however, I'm limited on both subjects. Trying to eat dinner, catch up on Modern Family, and type a new blog update so please excuse any spelling or grammar errors. From the top:

Two weeks ago we ventured out with my family to the ole' Pumpkin Patch. We tried a new site this year, Pumkins Galore in Foristell and was very pleased with the outcome. Once again I took several adorable pic's so I'm leaving the link for any viewers, and below are the highlights. Little Samuel slept through just about the whole entire day. I guess the children playing and sound of the Bluegrass tunes in the background were the perfect mixture of a sweet lullaby. J took his first pony ride which he loved and Ky and Chloe did all they could to squeeze in every activity before the end of the day.
http://www2.snapfish.com/snapfish/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=5785432013/a=91451742/

Sleepy baby

Grandma and Grandkids

Jamie, Sis, and fam

Then there was the dreaded return to work. Those closest to me know that I may have.....ok I totally had a mental breakdown that began Wednesday morning and continued through the Friday morning drop off. As I sat in the parking lot I wiped the tears from my face, took a deep breath, and begin the walk to our front entrance. I stepped into the lobby was hit with the familiar smell that often reminds me of my dentist office. Then turned the corner and was immediatly hit with the flourescent lighting that leads me to the cube farm where I spend a disturbing amount of my life. Still managing to hold myself together it took one look from my coworker (who I refer to as "work-mom") to turn on the waterworks. At this point I wasn't sure how I was going to manage. So after telling a few stories of how proud I am of my little boy I begin digging into my emails which seemed to quickly take my mind off the situation. The next thing I know it was 11:00 and almost time for lunch. I of course call "Miss Val" ( and continue to do so every day) to check on my little man. Once she assures me that he is doing well I can go on about my business and before you know it the work day is over. I chose to go back on a Friday which was probably the best decision I've made since Sam was born. Now that I have Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday under my belt I am confident that I have made the right choice in being a working mom. I never thought I'd say it, but I've learned I just do not fit the bill of a stay at home mommy. Some may think that's selfish and others selfless, all I know is that it works for me. So now the challenge will be to try and find the time to update blogs and capture every little moment of Sammy B but a few more weeks and I should have this down pat.

Operation: "Night Cap"

We're two days away from my return to work and sleep is still a major concern (or lack there of). So I turned my my trusty book "What To Expect The First Year". In the section on sleep it talks about putting your baby down for the night when they are ready and then waking them up when you turn in for the night for a light feeding or a "nightcap" to get them to sleep longer. It goes on about not jumping to wake them at their first whimper, shushing, and rubbing their backs to fall asleep, etc. So I choose this as my plan of attack. Last night was the second night and let me tell you, it is AWFUL and still not making a difference. If anything, it's gotten worse.

Sam chooses to go to sleep between 7-8pm. I put him down, and wake him up at 10 when I got to bed. He doesn't even open his eyes but I can succesfully get him to take 3 ounces thinking this should buy be at least 2 more hours of sleep.
Day 1- up at 12:30. Shushed him to sleep within 2or3 minutes. Back up at 12:35, more shushing and asleep at 12:45. This lasted all the way until 2:30 am at which I woke up and gave him a bottle. Then up at 4:00am when I brought him in bed with me, then 6:30 and 8:30.

Day 2-On top of all this fun I am having major anxiety about my return to work and having trouble falling asleep. Lastnight it was 12am and I was still tossing and turning know that he would be up soon and getting angry with myself that I am loosing precious hours of sleep. Then at 12:15 he's up. Between the hours of 12:25 and 1:30 I went in his room 5 times to get him back to sleep but he would wake up each time. By 1:30, having not gone to sleep yet, I thought I may rip my hair out and decided to give him a bottle. Fed and back to sleep. Then up at 3:30 and I asked Brant to please get up with him so I could try to get some sleep. He fed and changed him and the little fart was still awake an hour later. Brant finally got him to sleep around 5am. Back up at 6 and I brought him into bed with me again and was able to sleep until 8:30 this morning. So I got about 5 hours of sleep collectively that was sprinkled among my night of fun!

Now the trouble is deciding whether or not I even attempt this again tonight or not. It's making us all miserable! We need help from a professional I think. He slept at my mom's house from 9pm to 4:30am and I still can't figure out how she did it. Where do people get these babies that are sleeping through the night at 8 weeks and why can't mine?????????????

"What If"

Hello peop's. So on a more serious note I was passed along this wonderful video and felt compelled to share this with my friends to support raising awareness of infertility. Brant and I were obviously blessed with our little boy finally, thanks to Dr. Ahlering and the staff at the Sher Insittute.  It was a very long road and challenging chapter in our lives. Brant was nothing but an excellent and supportive husband; along with many of my closest friends and family.

This video is just a quick bit on where women are during this struggle, and unfortunatly this battle is much more common then most think. I've personally spent 4 1/2 years of my life with this group and it's not easy. In opening up about our procedure I've learned just how many others are faced with the same challenge. So enough with the babbling and on with the show.


What IF? A Portrait of Infertility from Keiko Zoll on Vimeo.

10 Weeks

I'm beginning to actually to relate to Michael Jackson when he held his son over the balcony for the papparazzi to admire and take photos. I've never been so proud of something before in my entire life that I would like to share with the whole entire world. Why wouldn't every person on the face of this planet want to see him right? I've recorded him sleeping, pooping, farting, puking, screaming, bouncing, cooing; pretty much done every thing but recreate the movie Lion King and hold him up on top of a mountain for the whole kingdom to see. Michael sort of did the real world version of that. You sort of get caught up in their cuteness and loose touch of what an idiot you may look like or sound like. So maybe he wasn't really such a bad guy after all. He was just a very proud papa (who liked to have a lot of plastic surgery and wear makeup and talk like a female, and let little kids sleep in his bed, but that's a whole other topic).

Little Samsonite is doing well and getting bigger and changing every day. His sleeping on the other hand seems to be regressing in the opposite direction. Somehow we went to sleeping for a 5 or 6 hour block back to 4.5, then 4, and last night 3. What the hell happened! I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong but with work literally just around the corner we'll be spending the next week or so doing some serious homework on this subject and trying to get a handle on it.

I myself and having trouble sleeping with the anxiety of going back to work staring me in the face. I actually have dreams at night of finding another profession that would allow me to work and stay at home with "Tons of Fun". For now we're going to give it a whirl. Not much else to blog about now. Really I'm just very sleep deprived and do not feel like thinking of anything funny to write about.

Back to the videos, here's a little clip of Sam's favorite lullaby. Post requested by Papa. This is an oldie but a goodie. A favorite shared by my bestie, Andi, and I since highschool; "Smile" by Jimmy Duranti:


 Baby Einstein Rocks!

I'll Have Another Round of Shots Please!

Not the kind we enjoyed in our twenties, but the kind that make me loose sleep at night just thinking about them. Sam and I went for our 2 month check up today and he's doing great and filling out just as expected. Official stats were 12lb, 15 oz (73%), 24" long (81%), and 40.25 head circumference (51%). So he still is a big dude, however, I think it is safe to say he did not inherit the big Rademeyer melon. He has a bit of eczema on his little cheeky but nothing major and other than that he's great right now. He's very strong for his age it seems. He can hold his head up well, and has been standing with all his weight on his two feet since about 6 weeks old. He's recently found his fat little hands and likes to put them in his mouth. The best of all is that he's found his tongue and loves to play a fun game of stick your tongue out at each other. He really thinks it's hilarious and I have to capture it on video soon b/c that is that highlight of every morning here. We also are spending time practicing holding his baba so he can feed himself like a big boy one day.

We had to get the dreaded vaccine shots today. Surprisingly he was a tough little guy and only cried for about 30 seconds. It honestly went much better than I had anticipated considering I was still awake lastnight at 12am just thinking about it. Anyone who knows me well, knows that I do not like to miss a minute of sleep and bedtime starts at 9pm here for mommy and daddy. Sam has also been doing really well with sleeping. He's officially in his crib and goes down every night now at 8:30 and now sleeps until 2:30 and then from about 3 to 6. It's wonderful. Napping during the day has still been a bit of a challenge but that is partially my own fault for not sticking to schedule and usually we're on the go. He will not fall asleep that way anymore b/c he's a nosey little buger.

We had a wonderful weekend with fabulous weather here in STL. Friday night was spent on our patio enjoying the usual Rademeyer bon-fire. I believe our new neighbors are beginning to think we're a bunch of pyromaniacs. Saturday we met Geema & Papa at Chandler Hill winery for lunch. Then Brant and I headed to Klondike park for a little stroll, and then off to our friends for a BBQ. Which was then followed up by a nice little visit from Grandma Denise on Suday afternoon. We're enjoying every second of this fall weather. Officially beginning the countdown until I go back to work on October 15th. I try not to think about the work part and just know that I have 3 more weeks to spend every second with my little man and get as much mommy and Sam time in as I possibly can.

Here's some recent photos. Tootles!

                                       Check out my new trick!

                                          Lunch with Geema Pam and Papa Dan

                                         Chandler Hill Winery view

                                         Klondike Park

                                          Let's Play!

8 Weeks Old, Oh My!

Mr. Sam was 8 weeks old this past Friday the 17th. Wa ha ha ha (that's me crying). He's getting sooooo big already. I mean really big. Accordning to my scale at home he's 13 lbs and to me looks like a 3 month old. I just can't believe it. He's smiling and cooing and smiling some more and I just love every second of it. Between that he's still crying and fussing and screaming but I think I may just be getting used to that now.

He's been doing better with sleeping at night too. A typical night for us is putting him to bed between 8:30 & 9:00 and he'll usually go for about a 5 hour stretch. A really good night he's up at 2am, 4:30, and then up for the day around 6:30 or 7. But those 5 hours are golden and get me through the day! I keep hearing from everyone..... Oh just put some cereal in his bottle and he'll sleep longer, but the pediatrician advises against that until 4 months. So Brant and I discussed it and we decided to give it a whirl with me going back to work in 4 weeks, and only added 1 tbsp to his night time feeding. Boy was that a HUGE mistake! That night he was up at 11:15, 1:30, 3:30, 4:30, 6:30, and then up for the day at 8:30. That is never coming back out of the pantry until he's old enough.

We haven't really been doing anything too exciting on the home front other than spending time together. We're patiently awaiting this Fall season to take over, however, yesterday was 92 and today is supposed to be even warmer. Sam and I did hit the trail yesterday for a little morning jog which was nice. It wasn't too hot yet and it was very peaceful. Sam did a little off-roading in his stroller to check out his first creek. Can't wait to go back with Daddy!

Watch Me Grow!

So I've been wanting to post these videos for about a week now however, there is a new tool I discovered (Microsoft Movie Maker) that I was hoping to learn and be able to edit them. Unfortunately, with the constant fussing, poopie diapers, and never ending laundry I haven't found the time yet. So I'll spare you some time and tell you that on the first one you can just fast forward to about 1:20 into it.

Sam's Squeak

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6DRw1YRSlPY

Tummy Time!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8xyqb39Qjs

I promise I will soon get this down pat so these will be much more enjoyable to watch :)

Smiley Pie

Oh my gosh you guys, I feel like so much has been going on that I can't even possibly blog about everything we've been up to. In a nut shell got home from the lake and Brant still had like 5 more days of vacation to hang with us. We spent one day at home catching up on the housework, went and got family pictures done that are soo ador. Went to the sucky Cardinal game and sat behind the Cincinatti Red's #1 Superfan who ruined it for us. 2nd time away from my son in 7 weeks and he stayed with Aunt Kizzie. Went swimming and Pam and Dan's. Sam was overall pretty good the whole time (except for Aunt Kiz) and then Brant went back to work. Wed awful (slept 9.5 hours all day). Thursday awful. Then today came along and I don't know if the planets were all in aligment or what happened but my son was PERFECT!

He's starting to smile at me and interact with his toys and things around him more and he's just so much fun to be with. He fell asleep on his own too which is a first. I got out his jump n go b/c he's always kicking his feet and it was awesome. I've taken entirely way to many pictures and videos to even post them all but here's a few. This is probably my lamest blog too but I need to get back to making birth annoucements for my son that's almost 2 months old. Woops!

Sam's trip to the grocery store that ended terribly
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ytQHOJdk96Y

Jump N Go Time!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBGnfkQiK0w

Sam's late night partying with Mommy! Think he may have had a few too many bottles. :)

Tootles!
D

My Hips Won't Lie

Pre-pregnancy weight was 130lbs. At 6 1/2 weeks postpartum I'm back down to 135. How is that I only have 5 lbs to lose and still can't button my pants. Oh little Sammy Boy you are worth every extra inch!

Latest Fall Fashion in my closet is using hair rubber bands to keep pants on. I'm hoping everyone will pick up on this b/c it looks good.

Big Ole' Fat Baby!

Sam's check up was today with Dr. Blythe. I just love her. He had to get his first shot which actually wasn't too bad. However, I was warned twice that our next visit are two "big" shots and one my cause a fever as a side effect. Soooooo not looking forward to that.

Anyways, my Big Ole Fat Baby weighed in a 11lb 1.5oz which puts him at 68% on weight, and was 65% for height, and 62% for head circumference so he's a big healthy little meatball. Everyone always says how tiny he is but I've been thinking he looks like a 3 month old!
8 lbs baby, and 3 lbs of cheekies:

First Trip to the Lake

I remember my last trip to the lake.........packing took all of 10 minutes to throw some crap in a bag and go. Once, we actually threw our things in a trash bag in a spur of the moment decision to go when we had just moved out of our house. We decided to go on a Friday evening, and were on the road in a hour.

This particular road trip took about 2 days of planning and an entire day of packing for this new mom. The Envoy was packed from floor to ceiling with the pack n play, stroller, boppy, bouncy, monitor, bottles, clothes and all other equioment for this little 11 lb person. Then my best little friend decided he did not want to take a nap and be held all day. So I busted out the baby back pak and carried him around like Micheal Keeton from the movie "Mr. Mom". I've learned that this little device is becoming one of my fav's. So far it's been my only solution to cleaning the house.

So off we go to the lake for our first family vacation with cousins Melissa and Ryan. After a long day of packing and crying I was ready for bed upon arrival. Saturday was wonderful though and we spent our time shopping, swimming, eating, and enjoying some much deserved vino! Sam did very well with his napping and we all had a great time. Brant and I decided to stay two extra days. 
So far we're really enjoying Daddy's week of vaction.

Four Weeks

Time is flying by just as everyone said. I can't believe four weeks has past already. We're still trying to get a grip on this whole parenting bit. Week 2 and 3 in our house seemed to go south for whatever reason. Sam was a bit of a fussy baby when he came home from the hospital but as we were settling in he progressively was getting worse. We had 3 or 4 nights where he was actually screaming for 2 or more hours in the evenings which are symptoms of cholic. If he wasn't eating or sleeping he was fussing or crying. He was not taking naps during the day either unless I put him in the car. Since it was recently 100+ degrees here in STL walks were not an option. So I told Brant that he may have to take a second job to support our shopping habit since our son would only fall asleep in the car. The problem here was that since I had to leave to get him to sleep I was not getting any sleep. This then led to a few emotional break downs on my part.

I've been with newborn babies that have had these screaming fits and was familiar with the feelings of frustration and stress. What was new to me, is that when it's your own child, there was a new feeling of helplessness and failure that I couldn't please my baby. Hearing him scream and knowing how unhappy he was, along with the sleep deprivation brought me to tears a few times now. So I finally contacted our pediatrition to get her opinion. She agreed that it was either the breastmilk, formula, or acid reflux. So we decided to put him only on Similac Sensitive Stomach and wow what a difference it has made.

Sam is now taking naps during the day and lastnight he went 5 hours between feedings. Of those 5 hours he slept for 4. I woke up at 1:30 this morning, wiped the eye boogies from my face and looked at the clock and started to do the happy dance. We are FINALLY moving in the right direction. Brant and I have been able to enjoy some time together in the evenings because even though he's not sleeping, he's just relaxed and hanging out with us....... and not screaming. It really is a fabulous thing.

In the last couple of weeks I've also had my first night out away from him. My friend Beth turned 30 so we decided to leave Sam with Grandma and leave my house-bubble for a few hours. I think I called my mom 4 times in 3 hours to check on him and have never been so excited to be home by 9:30 on a Friday night. But I did it! Haven't left him since then. Sam also had the pleasure of going to his cousin Kylie's soccer game but it was so hot out that I had a hard time enjoying that too. I made grandma hold the umbrella over us, took his clothes off, and was blowing on him trying to keep him cool. I think I may have cought about 10 minutes of her entire game. We also took I trip to Diagraph finally to meet my coworkers. He was a big hit of course and slept like a champ the whole time. Aside from that we spend most of our time in the house staring at each other.

It's funny to think how much my life has changed since he's arrived. He's become like a drug to me and I'm completely addicted to this little guy. Someone asked me what I've been up to aside from the baby and I had to laugh. I honestly don't think there is a minute that goes by in a day that I'm not taking care of him, staring at him, or just thinking about him.

"The Best Things Come To Those Who Wait"

Welcome Baby Sam

He's finally here. Samuel Brayden Rademeyer was born Friday, July 23rd at 8:02am. Weighed in at 8lb 3oz, and was 20 1/4 inches long. 39 weeks in the womb, 12 hours of labor, 2 of those pushing, and it was worth every minute. He is the most beautiful baby I've ever seen of course. Sorry for the delayed post, but we've been adjusting to our new lives and it was a bit chaotic this past week with the lack of sleep.

He's already starting to get on a schedule of eating every 3 hours, but starting last night it's already becoming 4 hours which is fabulous. I've taken so many pictures of him already and have too many to even post on here so I'm just attaching my link to snapfish and you can log in and view them all here:
http://www2.snapfish.com/snapfish/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=5290843013/a=91451742/


I would like to thank all our friends and family who have been so much help and coming to visit us recently, as well as all the flowers we've recieved. It's such a great feeling to know how loved we all really are. You all mean so much to us. I will try to do better from here on out with the postings now that we're feeling better.

Love you all!
Brant, Dawn, & Sam

Here's a sneek peak of our precious little son:

The Final Countdooooown!

38 weeks today! ...... and feeling pretty awful, but we're almost there. I will admit that I am hoping this will be my last pregnany blog and then next entry will be the joyous news of Sam's arrival. Two Dr appointments ago I went for the weekly check up and was surprised to hear that I was dilated 1 cm and 80% effaced. Doesn't sound like much but I still had just over 3 weeks left and knew I needed to keep this bun in the oven just a bit longer. So it was just nice to hear we were moving in the right direction. Then I went this past Tue and learned that I was still at that same stupid cm and 80% effaced, but I still know that technically I have 2 weeks left so I just need to deal with it.

I've recently moved to sleeping on the couch. Those luxuries I've previously enjoyed such as the 2" memory foam mattress and beachwood cotton sheets, now cause more back pain and hot flashes and I've grown to hate them. So that along with the acid reflux and fact that I can no longer bend over have made things a bit difficult in these last few weeks. I also believe this little boy has yet to "drop" so I feel confident that I have at least another week left. Below is my most recent big baby belly shot (hoping to be the last) and I will be praying daily that we GET THIS SHOW ON THE ROAD ALREADY!  until next time........

36 weeks, 4 days

Hello again! So we're just a few days away from being considered "full term" (37w). Yeah for us! I have never in my life been so excited to turn a calender month!  We are 24 for days from our due date as of today. Sometimes I still have a hard time believing that this is really happening. The last couple of weeks have been very busy again. This weekend of course was 4th of July. We had little Jonathan's 2nd bday party w/ the fam on Saturday. He got a new nerf gun and was so excited all he could do was scream when his dad finally shot the first bullet. Made my day!

Then we had the annual Rademeyer pool party on the 4th which was also combined with our last baby shower w/ the Rademeyer fam. I unfortunately do not have any pic's to post as I didn't have my camera, but will share if I have any come across my email. We recieved more adorable little clothes and the last final touches to bring home this little guy like his toys, bottles, camcorder and car seat. From here we are packed and ready for the hospital and let me tell you..... "we are sooooooo ready". I haven't been to the doc for almost 2 weeks; go again on the 7th so I don't have anything new to update on the baby really. He's still moving around like a busy little bee. I can tell now how much bigger he's gotten though b/c there is much discomfort with every little kick and squirm. I am hoping that Thursday will bring wonderful news that I am even dilated 1cm, however, he's still sitting so high that I don't believe I'll be that lucky.  Not much else to report, so with that I will leave you with the most recent sweet belly shot. I don't know how this child could possibly continue to grow, but he seems to be making more space:

34 Down and Hopefully Less Than 6 To Go!

So like many other pregnant women, I too would not be upset if this little boy was ready to go in like 4 or 5 weeks. I know 6 weeks doesn't sound like much to most, but at this time it seems like an eternity The heat index today was at 101 degrees. Disgusting! On the bright side, we've had another very busy 4 weeks with all baby on the mind and in my life which as been wonderful. I haven't received pic's from others so I'll post what I have, but to start off with we had a wonderful baby shower thrown by my lovely mom and sis for my sides of the family and friends. Everyone was so generous and we received so many awesome things. Shower number two that brought out the ugly cry. My sister, hub, and their three children, Kylie, Chloe, and Jonathan gave us a recordable book of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. Each of them read a page for little Sam and it was the sweetest thing I've ever seen. My aunt also gave me a copy of a poem titled A Newborn's Conversation with God. I was told to read it out loud and I barely made it through the first sentence. Just to see the excitement in everyones' eyes for Brant and I after we've waited for this for so long is sometimes overwhelming for a pregnant girl and the hormones tend to kick in. Below is a shot of the fam:

Following that, our neighbors invited us over for a fantastic BBQ in honor of the little man as well. The Falk's, Lewis's, and Bradlo's each brought a dish and all went in on a gift for us as well. We ate two of the best pork tenderloins I've ever had ever, and many other sides and deserts. Yummy! Great times were had with great company. We are so fortunate to be surrounded by such awesome people and I don't think I ever want to move.

Following that we had another marvelous shower hosted by the lovely Kizzie, Marcy, and Pamela Rademeyer with the Gowert family. Another super hot day, but Joel and Marcy were kind enough to have us all at their home and we were again showered with so many awesome gifts: car seat, baby gate, pack n play, travel bed, clothes, toys, blankets, and so many of those little baby essentials. I don't have a group shot but did capture the little cake bandits:

So I've been very busy growing a little baby, and washing tiny clothes and putting together baby items, putting away baby items, and overall obsessing of how I can make everything perfect before we're headed off to the hospital. I took a little video of his little nursery for those who wanted a sneak peek:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BDs60FL7_rI

So onto that little bundle of joy...... our last appointment was two weeks ago and we had another ultrasound. I've been measuring ahead of schedule, but by his measurements in the US he's pretty much right on target. Right at 5 lbs at that time which the nurse advised was around 53rd percentile. His little heart rate is right on target and my blood pressure was 110/70 so everything is perfect, perfect, perfect! Except for the fact that my doctor would not push my due date up. We go again this Tuesday and I'll just try again.

And last but not least are the latest belly phots. All though still huge, it doesn't really seem that I've grown too much over the last few weeks. I'm certain, however, that Sam is getting much stronger just by his movements. Those cute little kicks have grown into huge jabs and looks like he's doing the wave across my belly. Please excuse the sweet shorts below. No they are not maternity, yes they're way too tight, but again, it was 100 degress outside today and I offiicially no longer care. Enjoy!:)

32 weeks:

34 weeks:

30w4days

We are 30 weeks and 4 days today and officially have graduated to bi-monthly dr visits. Yeah! Yet another sign that we're getting closer. We've had a very baby filled past couple of weeks including birthing class, and my first baby shower with my girlies. Thanks to them we brought home many wonderful gifts for the little man such as his stroller, crib mattress, swing, walker, and lots of cute little outfits and other neccesities. It's quite unbelievable how much "stuff' these babies come with. Below are a couple of shots of the fun:

I also had my check up appointment today with my awesome Dr. He rocks! Sam's heart rate is perfect as well as my blood pressure. I still do not have any swelling or stretchmarks, however, he said today that my uterus is now measuring at 35 weeks! No wonder why I look and feel like I am as big as a house. I told Dr. Kuebel that I've been getting that alot lately but it doesn't sound as nice as the way he put it. I hear things more like, "do you have a name picked out for your twin baby, or do you think you're really going to make it to July 30th, or just a simple "whoa" which pretty much says it all.

All of the wonderful little aches and pains have set in and we're not getting much sleep. So naps are my new favorite thing too. We're headed back to the doc June 9th to have an ultrasound done so he can measure the actual size of baby Sam. He told me that it could be that he's just positioned a lot higher than usual. I don't have high hopes for that being the case. And here's the latest belly shot to see for yourself :O) That's all for now. Stay tuned........

3rd Trimester!

28 weeks down, and I'm already in my 3rd trimester! Yeeee-ha! 12 weeks to go til due date, July 30th. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. I had my glucose test done at my last check up (last week) and those counts as well as my iron and others that I can't even remember all came back perfectly normal. Doc says my uterus is still measuring 1-2 weeks ahead of schedule but still assures me that I will not be delivering a gigantic baby. Considering I was 9lb10oz and Brant was around 9lbs, and one of his brothers was just about 10 lbs I think a big fat baby is just inevitable. Sorry uterus. 
Anywho, I've taken some belly photos here and there and thought I'd share since this is everyone's opportunity to watch me get fat. Speaking of fat, I just finished my chocoloate Entemann's donut dunked in milk afternoon snackie. Mmmmmm. Official weight gain to date is about 26 pounds and shouldn't be over 25, and less than 3lbs of that is baby Sam oopsies. Tootles.

29 weeks

17 weeks

11 weeks

4 weeks