Shot time!

All done with my shots!!
What did they just do to me?
Whew! That was rough!

Yep, that's right. Little Ron had his first round of shots. Actually, he did have a Hep. B shot when we were in the hospital but neither of us saw it, thank goodness! I was a bit nervous taking him because I wasn't sure how he would react, but he did very well! The nurse gave him his first shot in his left leg. He was calm before the shot and then as soon as she poked him he let out a wail. Then, she stuck him again real quick with the second shot. After about thirty seconds, he was done crying and I was trying to get revved up for the last one. So, the nurse wiped off his leg with alcohol while I was holding his hands and stuck him again. He cried hard again this time (I saw tears :( ) and then stopped again after thirty seconds. After she was all done, I picked him up and told him what a good job he did and we went on our merry little way! Soon after, I went and bought him some baby Tylenol before taking him to grandma's house. The next two days he slept constantly and even almost through the night. He only woke up once Thursday and Friday nights! The doctor also said that he weighed 11 pounds 0.4 ounces, was 21 3/4 inches tall and his head circumference was in the 25th percentile. His height and weight was in the 5th percentile which was no surprise to Ron and I. We're definitely not the tallest in our families!









This past weekend was also Ron and I's first anniversary as a married couple. We left the little one at home with my sisters and took a trip! It was definitely a nice getaway but we looked forward to coming home too! Everywhere we went we saw a baby that reminded us of Little Ron. We kept taking out our pictures and looking at them. In fact, we kept playing the game, "Who am I?" but we kept using the same person, Little Ron. Sounds like fun, huh?? As I was telling a friend that life is different. We now have someone to come home to and we love it. When we woke up Sunday morning, we tried to rush so that we could get back home to see and play with him. A lot different from a year ago!





Next week, Little Ron leaves his grandmas' houses and will start daycare. I am a little nervous but excited. I want to see how he acts around other little babies! If he's anything like his dad, he'll be the hit of the daycare!

Summer is just beginning!

Fun in the sun!
I love my kisses!

Doesn't he look so much older?

" Wait 'til they get a load of me!"

The last month has been a blur!! Little Ron is getting bigger every minute! I finally went back to work part-time last week and full-time this week. It wasn't too hard to leave "Little Man" (one of our nicknames) with his dad last Monday and it wasn't too hard today. I just don't want to miss him do anything new! "Scar" (another nickname for him since he likes to scratch his face) has had a couple of episodes of thrush the past few weeks. I took him to the doctor and they painted his mouth purple (see pics above). Luckily it hasn't affected his feeding at all. He's still a healthy baby boy!

Other than that, things have been pretty quiet on the homefront. We are all trying to get used to a routine at bedtime which includes Ron Jr. getting to bed a bit earlier than his usual midnight time. Little Ron has been sleeping with us since he's been home. Dad's a bit scared because he's such a deep sleeper but hasn't managed to roll on top of him yet :) Luckily, Mom's a light sleeper and can sense when Ron Jr. is going to put his arm on top of Ron III and snatches it before it hits him! He's been sleeping for about 4 hours at a time during the night and then up every couple of hours. These past couple of nights he's been recording a 5 hour slumber period which makes me really happy! Soon we will try to transition him to the bassinet and/or crib. He has taken a few naps in his crib and on the couch.

Thanks to Oma and Opa, Mom and Dad were afforded a night out on the town! We went to a friend's wedding a few weekends ago. Little Ron was so good that Oma didn't want to leave him. One of our friend's, Gena, is getting married in August so we'll be leaving him again! Hopefully he's just as good too!



We also have taken Little Ron in the pool. First at Fairview (a public pool) and then to Ron's parents. Although he did cry a bit, he had a bit of fun too! Pretty soon he'll be a pool rat just like his dad!



That's about it for now! We are looking forward to the coming year and hopefully get the chance to plan a vacation far away! We want to visit in Holland next year so that we can see Ron Jr.'s Oma and the rest of the family.

Some fun (and not so fun) pics!

Our happy little guy!
His crying face!!
So content.....
Daddy put me in the dryer!

Well, little Ron is now four weeks old and still growing!! He sleeps about 4 hours in the night, wakes up and is up for about an hour or so and then finally goes back to sleep! However, when Dad leaves for "work" he is up at 6:45 a.m. almost on the dot, therefore, Mom does not get much sleep! We've been going on walks in the park in the late afternoon and sometimes I take him on a walk to the Post Office or local gas station (what fun!!). Little Ron is definitely getting heavier but I am not sure how much he weighs! Dad wants to take him to the pool this weekend so we'll see how that goes! That's it for now! Stay tuned!

Hello everyone! I've finally put up some more pics from his first week of life (scroll down). Ron III is now three weeks old as of Monday. He's changed a bit but it's hard for me to see just because I am with him everyday! I am adjusting to being at home. Some days it is quite boring but Ron and I have had our little excursions. I am not adjusting to his time schedule though. During the week, I pretty much am on night duty since Ron has to wake up early for "work." On the weekends, I get a bit of time off but not too much since I am nursing. Lil' Man (as Ron Jr. calls him) is staying up a bit more in the day and is starting to focus on things, like me. I actually saw a bit of tears today!

We had a great Memorial Day weekend. My youngest sister graduated from high school and my middle sister was in town from Louisiana and finally got to see and hold Ron III. Even though Ron Jr. had to work on Saturday, he still managed to have some fun as he had Friday and Monday off.

As for other news, Ron III has a daycare! Since he can't go until July 23rd and I am going back to work before that, Ron's mom is going to watch him during the day. That will definitely help out a bit! Well, folks, that's all for now. Keep checking back in as I will be sure to post pics as they become available especially now that I know our family in Holland keeps checking us out! Hope you're having a great day :)

Random pics

Pictures from his first (sponge) bath

The long story...

Hello everyone! Ron the III's mom here! It's been a rough week but well worth it! Our baby boy is finally here! I will tell you more of the story in case you wanted to know. The whole 28 hours of it!

My contractions started around 7:00 a.m. but Ron and I weren't sure that they were real. They were about 12 minutes apart so I was waiting for them to get closer but they didn't. In fact, they stopped around 1:15 p.m. I was upset because I thought it was possibly time but it wasn't. So, Ron and I decided to go to the store and get some groceries. We then went to Ron's parents' house for a few and then came back home. I finally planted my flowers in the back to make my tropical paradise. Ron noticed that I was upset and was trying to cheer me up. Once I was content with it not happening that day, my contractions picked up again! This time it was the real thing! I still didn't know it was real but everything was pointing in the right direction. I was having the Braxton Hicks contractions as well as cramping in the abdomen area and they were coming about every 10 minutes. Ron and I decided to take a walk for a bit to get things going again, maybe even faster this time. We walked for almost a half hour and I had to stop a few times. Although I was excited, the pain kept coming and I was wanting it to be over. When we got back to the house, I decided to try to get a few things done because we weren't sure if this would be the night. I finished packing my bag and doing a few things around the house. I think Ron definitely had the "nesting" instinct going on because he had been cleaning the whole day! I kept asking Ron if I should call the doctor because I wasn't sure what to do. Finally, around 10 p.m., I called the on-call doctor and explained everything. She told me that I should head to the hospital and get checked out because she wasn't for sure. I told Ron this and he said that we could go if I wanted and said he was going to take a shower. Little did I know that he was just playing with me....

Almost three hours later, we finally made it out of the house. Ron had taken his shower, packed his bag, checked his e-mail and cleaned a bit more. He also made me take a shower as he thought it would help. I fell for all of this even though I was in pain. We went to the Emergency Room, they put me in a wheelchair (thank goodness!) and got right up to the 3rd floor. As soon as we were in the triage room, the nurse asked me if it was my first child and I replied, "Yes." She then saw the smile on my face and said that I probably wasn't that far along. I then started getting a little perturbed while changing into the standard gown and tight girdle thing. I turned in my urine specimen and then laid down for the results. The nurse checked me and told us that I was actually 5 centimeters. I looked at Ron and saw the smile on his face. We knew it was time then!

They transported me to my room and I got my first IV. The nurse asked if I wanted the epidural and I responded with an emphatic "Yes!" They had to check my platelet count first and then they would page the anesthesiologist. The nurse came back in my room a few minutes later and said that everything was fine and the doctor was on his way. Unfortunately, Ron couldn't give me my anesthesia but there were plenty of times during those contractions where I wanted him to. Finally, the doctor came and I was prepped. It was really helpful having Ron there because he explained everything to me and helped to keep me relaxed. I felt totally comfortable because he was there. Once the doctor finished, I laid down and rested for awhile.

Off and on, the nurses would come back in to check me. I was at 6 cm before I went to sleep around 2 a.m. Between the hours of 2 and 6 a.m., I guess the baby had some late decels according to the nurse (if you want more info., you will need to talk to Ron!). They had me change sides, sped up my IV to get more fluids, and lastly, had me put on an oxygen mask. The oxygen mask worked as the baby's heartbeat stayed the same after a contraction. From what I understand, after I had a contraction, the baby's heartbeat would decelerate but they weren't sure what. Thank goodness we were able to find the solution. Otherwise, I might have had a c-section which I didn't want. When I woke up for good around 6 a.m., I was 9 cm. The nurses had a shift change then and the next one came to check. She said that I was 9 cm. as the last one had but that part of my cervix was totally effaced so she was waiting for that. My regular doctor was scheduled to be in around 7 a.m. so we were also waiting for her too. My water still had not broken and it looked like she was going to have to do it. Unfortunately, my doctor had two cases once she came in so I was waiting for her to come in to break my water. This didn't happen until about 8:30 a.m. Luckily, I had the epidural so I wasn't in pain for that 2 1/2 hours while I was waiting. Once she broke it, the nurse had me push a couple of times but noticed that it would be easier if I let my body push the baby's head rather than me do the work. She wanted me to save what energy I had left for the big pushes ahead.

Finally, around 9:50 a.m., I was given the OK sign and we started. I pushed until around 11 a.m. which was when she finally called the doctor to tell her to come up. Since my regular doctor was busy in surgery, her partner came up and helped to deliver the baby. I think I pushed a total of 2 times before the baby was out! That was the easiest part for sure!! Unfortunately, I did have an episiotomy and now also have to recover from that. I really don't know if I needed one, but I think that doctor usually does it to all her patients :(

The rest of the story is history! Ron has some of it on tape (I wouldn't let him tape the real graphic parts though!). He got to cut the cord and then went over to the baby warmer and saw him get measured and the first time he opened his eyes. It was really neat that Ron taped it since I wasn't able to see.

SO, there's the story. It was a lot longer than anticipated but totally worth it. I must give a shoutout to my husband Ron though. He was incredibly strong through the whole process. I could NOT have done it without him. He was so supportive and was there at my every need. And now, after little Ron was born, is an amazing dad. I must admit that I was very nervous being someone's mother, but seeing Ron and how comfortable and great he is with him, helps me to be more confident. I know I make fun of him most of the time about what he does and does not do :) but I could not imagine having a child with anyone else. I don't think I changed a single diaper on Sunday! We have almost been married a year now and already have a child. I hope little Ron knows how much we already love him. If not, he will soon! I think I might cry now as I'm writing!

Well, that's it for now. I will get more pics up soon!