6 Months Old!

Owen is now six months old! A whole half a year old.

I feel like I should know everything about this kid and how best to care for him, but both Joe and I are challenged every day.

At his doctor's appointment, he weighed in at 18 lbs 13 oz (almost 19 lbs) (75th %) and 28 inches long (90th %). We're in 6-9 month clothes, and still wearing a size 3 diaper for now...though maybe for not too much longer with his chunky thighs!

He is grabbing everything. He is grabbing spoons, cups, noses, tables, toys, toes -- you name it.

We also started real foods. So far we've done carrots, peas and a wee bit of avacado and banana. He does NOT seem to be a fan of peas. He also does not seem to b

e a fan of the high chair, but I hope that that will get better with time. He does love trying his sippy cup.

We're still not crawling or anything (as we are still not a fan of being on our tummy), but we love to lunge!

Nap time has become quite a trying experience for us all. Owen no longer likes to be rocked, but he doesn't quite know how to go to sleep on his own. So it's a lot of screaming and crying on both parties. Ugh.

However Owen is babbling and laughing, so when he isn't scream

ing, he's pretty darn cute.

Here's hoping for a super fun Christmas for all of us! We'

re road-tripping it to Houston, then back again for a second Christmas with the O'Brien clan!

Eating Like a Big Boy!

We are working on our eating of solid foods over here. We are still just munching on rice cereal mainly, waiting for our 6 month checkup next week to go for the gold, or green or orange...

Some days it goes well. Other days, well, he thinks you're trying to kill him. But he loves his spoon no mater what, and he's just so stinkin' cute! Enjoy!

Too darn!

Ryker says, "What about me guys?"

"Umm, Dad, you got any chips and hot sauce anywhere? This stuff is lame!"

"Load it up man!"

Time for clean up. "Man I hate this part!"

This Christmas

 

This image means a lot more to me this Christmas than I could have ever known before.

Wow, what Mary must have felt that 1st Christmas, how heavy her heart must have been for what she knew he would bare.

Merry Christmas, sweet baby Owen. I love you so dearly!

Guess Who's 5 Months?!

Did you guess?

It's not a hard question people.

Oh, come on! It's OWEN!

Little dude is still a stinker. Some days are fun, some days are hard, but he's our kiddo for keeps (no returns allowed, I hear!).

We're going to be starting some rice cereal this week/weekend, so we'll keep you posted on that. In other news, Owen has also started sitting up unassisted (for brief periods of time). He's still loving his jumper, making more eye contact and interacting with the world around him! He loves his fuzzy brother, Ryker...loves to watch him and pet him. He also gets his fair share of 'kisses' that I'm sure he just LOVES! =)

We also took our first solo road trip to see the Pate grandparents while Daddy was out of the country. Both mom and baby made it there alive, but we both could have done with out the hour-long crying bouts. Poor kiddo. But we did have a fun time visiting Grandma and Granddad! We'll be going again for Christmas, so we'll see how roadtrip #2 goes with Dad!

Keep it up Owen! You're doing great...just work on the crying/happiness thing for mommy, too!

Owen Discovers Jumping!

So our dear friends, the Pounds, loaned us a jumper for Mr. Owen. At first, he was afraid. He was not impressed...

A few tries later and he was IN LOVE! Check out the cutest little jumper on the planet right now!

4 Months!

Four Months? Really? That's all? No, wait? So soon?

It's so weird to think back on when Owen first arrived, and it seems so far away from where we are now, but also everything is still so new and scary.

At our doctor's appointment this last week, our stats are:
Weight - 17 lbs (80%)
Height - 27 in (98%)
Head - 43.81 cm (80%)

17 pounds! Sheesh! He is giant baby! We're also in size 3 diapers and 6 month clothing.

Let's see, some of his favorite things these days are "walking" and standing. He loves to stand up in our laps or on the ground. And sometimes, we can get him to walk between Joe and me, and he LOVES it! He loves when we stand him on something high too...he wants to be a big boy so bad.

He'll also follow you a lot more with his eyes, and might even carry on a conversation with you if you're really cool. He loves his toys. He's found his feet and it's soo funny when he's chomping on his toes. The boy has definitely started teething, so we'll see when he actually has them come in!

He'll give you a smile and maybe even a laugh almost any time and it's so great.
We're still working on sleeping during our naps and giving Mommy enough time to get SOMETHING done, but sleeping at night is doing good! Although!!! The doctor told us his head is getting a little too flat from sleeping on his back, so we've be trying his side and tummy...side - he wakes up from 20-30 mins later, tummy - not at ALL! Blarg.

So, that's where we are! Next month, I think we'll start rice cereal and whatever else comes our way!

(top photo thanks to Mr&Mrs Smith Photography!)

Pruny Toes

My baby has pruny toes. Why, you ask?

Was it because he was hanging out in the bath too long?

Taking a relaxing afternoon swim?

Jumping in puddles?

No, no and no.

This kiddo has been SUCKING on his toes. I am still amazed he can get his foot in his mouth, and that he's happy about it! =)

Goofy kid!

On a side note, GO RANGERS!, from your littlest sports fan!

This is Hard

This mommy thing is hard. This week, Owen and I are just not gelling. I feel like he gets mad just to get mad. He's screamed at me when I thought he was hungry and I couldn't calm him down for anything. This has happened several times. We take a break, and try again, but it doesn't seem enough or fast enough. But when we finally get to nap time, he sleeps?

When we're up and it's play time, I just don't know what to do anymore. I try to read to him. He could care less. I try tummy time. He hates it. We go for a walk, he starts to cry.

Is he teething? Is he hungry? Does he just not like life? I just don't know. And obviously he doesn't either.

Feeling a bit defeated and deflated.

Rocking to Sleep

A post or two ago, I mentioned O'Bear's singing when he tries to go to sleep. Here's a little (dark) video of a bit of what Owen does. Sometimes it sadder and slower, sometimes it's louder and scarier! But here you go...

Everybody's a Critic

So, Owen and I were jamming out to some of his songs on his swing, and I got this crazy idea.

Why don't I play him a few notes on my saxophone??

It's sitting in the top of his closet, I knew I had some unused reeds, so why not. Nevermind the fact I haven't played in a year or so, and sadly barely remember how.

BUT, I pulled it out, slapped it together, and started to play. However, instead of the cute little gasps and smiles I thought I would get, all I got was the saddest little pouty face followed by tears and screaming. (looking something like this)

COME ON! I'm not that bad.

ugh...at least the dog didn't howl and freak out like last time.

Owen Sings!?

So, funny thing has happened I guess starting last week or so when we try to put little dude down for a nap/sleep. He starts to 'sing.' He's being rocked, eyes closed and does this sad, mornful "waahh" as we sing to him too.

Sometimes this is interrupted by bouts of screaming (fun), but otherwise it's so cute and sad, I have to try not to laugh! I guess this is his way of trying to put himself to sleep!

He's also started standing on our lap, and has even taken a few phantom steps and tries to climb. Pretty fun!

Don't get me wrong, it's still hard, still a guessing game, but these little things just sear him onto our hearts more and more each day!

And for a treat, here's a few of our three-month pics we did at home. We also did some pics with our good friends Mr&Mrs Smith in Waco this past weekend we'll have to show you some time too!

Owen's Firsts - 4

Oh, dear! It's begun!

Today Owen turned over from his back to his tummy! The kid is going mobile!

This was after he was pushing and inching his way off the changing pad! Guess we'll have to keep our eyes on this little guy a little bit more! =)

I'm sure I'll be posting about his crawling and walking within the week, so stay tuned!

Also, a little fun fact about the kid lately, as you can see from the picture above. He loves his blankees! I likes to snuggle them up close and eat them! And he's soooo stinkin' cute when he does!

3 Months

Happy 3 Months, Owen!

You are getting so big and sooo old. We just know everything about you; there are no surprises; and life is so simple and easy now!

Ha!

You are starting to sleep through the night better, although we usually still have to get up around 3 or 4 in the morning.

You are in size 2 diapers and have been for a while. We like to call you Chunk because you weigh in somewhere between 14.5 and 15 lbs, but you aren't fat, you're just filled out! You are wonderfully and beautifully made. (It's amazing how much more meaning that phrase has when you are a parent -- a little glimpse on how God must feel).

You smile and laugh and babble and it makes your parents hearts' so happy. You have the best smile ever. And you even have a smirk. How one has a smirk and knows what to smirk at at 3 months is just amazing to me!

You are not the biggest fan of hanging out on your tummy, but you still have amazing neck muscles...sometimes it looks like you are a submarine with a periscope! =)

I don't know how we got to 3 months already, but Buddy, you're pretty cool. You still drive your parents bonkers on how to best care for you when you are sad, but we wouldn't give you up for anything!

(3 month Teddy and Rexie pics coming soon!)

2 Months

We've made it to two months!

Mr. Owen is cooing, kicking and rolling over like a champ. We are wearing size 2 diapers. And most of our clothes are 3 months...some of those are even a bit tight!

We've slowly started attempting to sleep through the night. We've had a week of 7 hours a night, then we've gone back to waking up every 3-4 hours. So, we're working on it. And Mom and Dad are making it work.

At our appointment, parents and baby both got an A+ from Dr. Megan.

Owen's stats are:

Weight: 13 lbs 8 oz. (80%)

Height: 23 inches (60%)

Head Circ: 41.27 (75%)

Owen also received his first vaccines and took them like a champ. After a bit of crying, we pulled it together and even gave a little smile when getting buckled in our car seat.

Way to go Owen! Let's see what month three holds for us!

The Rest of the (Birth) Story

We had done it. We had our baby boy.

And with that, the adrenaline was still pumping. Joe was over photographing Owen and bringing the news to the expectant family in the waiting room.We had kicked everyone out, even my dear mommy, because I didn't want them to have to worry while labor was not going so well. I was cracking jokes with the nurses saying I earned me a Sonic drink for sure, so on and so forth.

Then, the bottom fell out. While my doctor was finishing up with me, I began to shake uncontrollably. I was told this was normal, but it didn't feel normal. I began to get freezing cold chills. I swear I asked them to turn up the temperature, but I don't think anyone heard me. I did not feel good.

As the nurses brought back Owen, Joe and family also came. While some Oooed and Aaahhed over our newest family member, my mom and dad and Joe came right over to me. You see, I matched my sheets. I was white as a ghost. I felt horrible. I had lost a lot of blood and fluid.

I was down for the count.

Usually they move you to a postpartum room after about an hour of delivery. I got special permission to camp out for several hours. So while my family continued to look after Owen, I continued to try to feel better. I was offered several times to take a blood transfusion, but decided we'd wing it and just stick with the extra fluids at this point. Around shift change that night, I was finally rolled down IN THE BED to my postpartum room. They do not do this, you either walk or take a wheel chair. See, told you I had issues.

That night, we had Owen room in with us. I was told not to get up under any circumstances, and I received a nifty "fall risk" hospital bracelet. Joe and I were a bundle of nerves. He got up every 2 hrs or so to change O'Bear's diapers and hand him to me to 'try' to feed. It was a long night, with my nurses coming in to check on me, Owen's nurse to check on him...all the while still feeling puny and Joe exhausted.

But we made it to the morning. A hearing test tech came down to escort Owen back to the nursery for his morning assessment by the nurses and to receive his hearing test. So we said so long to the little man, and waited for family to arrive.

After a little over an hour, we were still missing our little guy. As we didn't know what all they did, we gave them a bit of time, but now, as first-time parents we were beginning to freak out. So, diligent daddy went to go check on our kiddo.

He returned without Owen.

Where was my baby?

Joe informed me that they were running some tests, including a chest x-ray because they believe he had ingested some fluid and was causing an infection and irregular breathing. My heart sank.

When he returned to check on him. They had taken him to the NICU. They had taken my baby away and we didn't even get to give him a kiss.

Thus began a very long week. Joe checked on Owen regularly. I was still very weak and couldn't quite make it yet. When I finally got to see my son, I cried.

Here was my tiny baby hooked up to an IV with a splint on his little arm to hold it in place. An oxygen tube in his nose. Tiny sunglasses velcroed to his head. Sensor wires all over his little chest and foot and swaddled in an incubator with bilirubin lights under and above.

I felt like I had failed my child. Not only did he have a slight infection due to fluid, he also had a very high bilirubin/jaundice levels, which can have very adverse effects if not regulated.

We visited by the hospital's lactation consultant, which I had a total melt down with. Because why did I need a lactation consultant, they stole my baby! (or so I felt.) She put me on a regimen of pumping because I didn't have Owen to stimulate my milk. Also, not good for the self esteem. Awesome Joe had the responsibility of running down any colostrum/milk I had to the NICU for Owen, since they were giving him formula in the meantime. Again, I felt like a failure. My 'breast milk only' baby was on formula, in the NICU and had been given a pacifier to boot.

Over the next few days, his levels increased, decreased and began to level out. We were called down about every 2.5 hrs to try and nurse, and the walk from one side of the building to the other was horrendous.

I had brought my cute pjs, robe and slippers. I was so prepared. But did I care, nope. I lived in that awesome hospital gown. I was barely able to put my slippers on. The best thing was when I finally was able to take a shower. I had never felt worse physically or mentally. (I never put on pants until we left!)

We learned that our little dude was getting better. They transitioned him out the the total-cover incubator to an open one. We lost several wires, the IV and the oxygen. Now we were just on one bili light (still wit the little sunglasses stuck to his head) and hoping for release.

We were informed Thursday evening that it looked like he could be released on Friday. We were sooo happy. So, we decided to spend the night hotel-style at the hospital, since I was officially released on Thursday. This was the best night so far. Since I was no longer under hospital care, we only had the NICU nurse's call to come nurse, not EVERYONE ELSE and their DOG waking us up too.

Friday arrived with an early wake-up call from Owen's pedi. She was ready to do his circumcision. Ugh, felt like a bad parent for putting this on our little dude, but we did, and he did great, not even much crying at all!

Owen's NICU doctor arrived shortly later and said he had passed and could go home. After waiting some more for the final sign-off we were finally able to take our little guy HOME.

We were so happy. Parents Oooed and Aaahhed over him again. But that night was the worst night I had ever had in my life. Owen cried and cried. He was always hungry. I was still so tired, exhausted and sore. I cried and cried and cried. If it weren't for Joe and my mom, I don't know what I would have done.

We had an early AM appointment with the pediatrician to check his bilirubin levels again. And it was so early and so nerve-wracking driving with a newborn! Eeekk! Our dear, sweet pedi asked how we were and I lost it. I was not good. Not good at all. My baby was still sick, my emotions were whack, my body beaten. God blessed us with good friends who referred us to their awesome friend, our pedi. She assured us and comforted us and wasn't offended by my crazy emotions.

Over the next week, Owen and I made a trip back to the hospital every day but one either for him or me. His levels were checked and rechecked. I was checked by my doctor who still wanted to give me a transfusion and wanted to make sure I wasn't having a breakdown. We were close, but did not go over the edge!

We also experienced nursing issues. He just wouldn't do it. I was so frustrated. So we gave bottles, again something every breastfeeding mother frowns upon. So we made an appointment with the lactation department (which was an act of congress for some dumb reason), and were able to work out our issues. I was so happy. It was still hard, but we were managing!

Over the next few weeks, I struggled with physical pain, emotional issues and this new baby hanging around my house. I didn't know if I liked him. He cried ALL THE TIME. I was constantly feeding him ...40 mins ever 2 hours was like I was constantly chained to him. But thanks to help from my wonderful, loving husband, awesome mom and a devoted puppy that followed me no matter the hour, I was beginning to heal.

We definitely had a hard road up to this point, but every day, I learn to love this guy a little more. It is still the hardest, scariest, most constant thing I have ever had to do. Some days I still want to run away, but at least now I want to come back

Owen, you are a blessing. I am so glad you are here. I look forward to every day with you. You are the best!

Love,

Your mom

Moving and Cooing

Here's a little glimpse into the wake-hours of our little Owen.

He is a big fan of cooing over that oh-so-handsome kiddo in the mirror. We're also crazy busy kicking our legs and swinging our arms.

Owen rolled over again, twice. But by the time I tried to get it on video again, he decided he was done and started crying. So, we'll try again another day.

Owen's Firsts - 3

Tummy Time!

During our daily sessions of Tummy Time, Owen has officially turned from his tummy to his back this week -- several times in a row, mind you.

Yes, that's right, not only is he handsome, he is a mover! =)

Way to go Owie-bear!

One-Month Check-up

We had our one-month check-up yesterday. It wasn't as eventful weather-wise as our first trip, but prior to leaving we had a hectic feeding, peed on Owen and Mommy, had a diaper blow-out, dog didn't want to stay in the back yard.

One day we'll just hop in the car and make it down the road easy-peasy, right?

So, our stats!

Weight - 11 lbs 9 oz (75% percentile)

Length - 23 inches (80% percentile)

Head - 39.37 cm (60% percentile)

We are trying a baby heartburn medication to see if that will help us be a little happier after feedings. Dr. Megan says that he should grow out of it, but since he's been so unsettled, we'll give it a go. So far, Owen seems a bit more happy this morning after getting a dose last night and this morning, and we'll hope the trend continues with or without the medicine.

In addition we still have a bit of baby acne hanging around so we're trying some lotion and hydrocortisone to clear it up.

But overall we are doing good, getting big and growing strong! Way to go Owen!!

Documented!

I'm going to try and take a picture of Owen with a few of his stuffed animals each month to show his progress as he gets HUGE! He'll really hate this when he's 16, but he'll just have to deal!

Here's my favs from Month One!

A Month Ago...

A month ago today I became a mommy. Joe became a dad. Parents became grandparents. Sisters became aunts. And Ryker got the shaft, I mean, became a big brother.

Last month, on a Monday night at 8 p.m., Joe and I made the trek up to LCMC to have our little guy. We went in the night before to be induced. You see, our doctor told us our little guy was not so little, and in the best interest of his mommy, it might be a good idea to come in early. So we complied.

That day, my folks made it in, and I enjoyed a last meal with Mom, Dad and Holly at Johnny Carinos, because I had to stop eating at TWO P.M.! (we won't get into how evil I think that is.) So, Joe and I arrive at the hospital promptly at 8, because we're working on this on-time thing. Funny thing is, not everyone else was. They said, relax it'll be a minute, we've had some emergency cases come in. Well, 30 minutes later we're still waiting, so we go get Joe some Chic-fil-A. We arrive back, ummm, we're still not ready, but you can go wait in your room. Ummm, ok. So about an HOUR AND A HALF later, our nurse finally comes around to get this show started.

I was given a tiny little pill (that did not seem so tiny) to get things rolling along. I also opted for the Ambien sleep aid, as I knew they were going to be waking me up at all hours to check my progress and what-not. So before we drifted off to sleep, Joe also began a list of baby names. Nope, still didn't have one picked out! We got it fairly well narrowed down and figured we work on it some more the next day and decide when we saw him.

I was woken up several times through the night, but thanks to my handy dandy iPod and awesome drugs, it wasn't that big of a deal. At around 4:30 Tuesday morning, I had a weird feeling, called the nurse, and yep, my water broke. (Funny thing, my prego friend Lydia had gotten up around then and said a little prayer for us at about that exact time.) From there, the real fun began. I was given pitocin to help speed the process along. My ambien was nice during the night, as it did let me get some sleep, but then the pain began. It wasn't too unbearable at first, so I opted for the IV pain meds. BAD IDEA. Whatever that stuff was, it threw me for a loop. I was having conversations in my head between me and Joe. But the funny thing was, I wasn't that whacked out that I knew I was doing it, and kept commenting to Joe, "I didn't really say that to you, did I?"

Then, it started not getting so fun, so I did what any self-respecting woman would do and opted for the epidural. I figured moaning "I don't know what to do" and hitting my husband wasn't the best course for the rest of the day, so bring on the drugs. This amazingly helped a lot. The quick-talking anesthesiologist was super quick, and the smiles returned. We were progressing amazingly fast. Nurses and doctor were hedging their bets that we would deliver early afternoon. Joe called his parents at work and told them to hurry on down.

NOTE--When doctors and nurses get excited about your progress and start telling you how great everything is going and how fast it's going to go -- tell them to STOP TALKING.

You guessed it. Everything came to a halt. We hit nine centimeters and decided to camp out. Then the epidural decided to stop working and a horrible pain I have never known settled in my back and around my sides. The nice anesthesiologist came back to help, hit me with a second dose, and sadly it did NOTHING. I was then informed we were not making any progress still and that if we wanted to have this baby naturally, we'd have to PUSH PAST part of my cervix that didn't want to fully soften and excuse itself out of the way. ALL THIS while experiencing horrible pain, screaming my lovely mantra of "I DON"T KNOW WHAT TO DO," hitting Joe again and staring at the stupid bathroom door handle.

So, we pushed, and pushed and pushed. I was informed several times I wasn't pushing well enough or correctly. Well, excuse me! I'm doing the best I can!!!!! Then the whispering started. When doctors and nurses start to whisper and a whole troop of like 10 other nurses come in and start prepping stuff, you know either you or your kiddo might be in trouble. I did not want my baby to be in trouble, and I did not want a c-section at this point. I didn't even think I could make it through the pain to get to the point of having a c-section the pain was so intense.

So, Joe and I buckled down. I was going to get this kid out. I just remember they kept saying they could see his head, and I kept wondering why it was still taking so dang long! But it came down to a good last 3 or 4 pushes and this weirdest whoosh of a feeling happened and there was a baby.

A BABY! My Baby! Our baby!

Our Owen! I looked at our squishy red and white little guy and knew his name was Owen. Joe agreed, and I told him to choose his middle name, and he chose Daniel.

Owen Daniel O'Brien was born June 15, 2010 at 3:05 in the afternoon. He weighed 9 pounds and 4 ounces and was 20 inches long. He was here. We both were. And God is good.


(There's more to the story to be written, but this, I think you would agree, is the highlight. And can we say yahoo for adrenaline and a bad memory for helping me forget most of what really happened!)

Unfair

Riddle me this...

How is a two-week old baby who has only really seen the sun through windows more tan than I am? How is this fair? How does this help my self-esteem?

Also, along those same lines, are you born with freckles or do you acquire them? Joe and I have a pretty fair amount of freckles, but I've yet to find any on Mr. Owen. Just one of those random things.

Owen's Firsts - 2

Owen's 2-Week Doctor's Appointment

You would think something so benign would be uneventful, right? Well, not around here.

Of course we were still worried about Owen's biliruben levels, so Joe planned to meet us at home and we'd take our little family on up to Las Colinas MC for the 6th time since his discharge the Friday before.

I started gathering Mr. Owen's things and got a call from Joe. The truck was dead. It was raining, and Daddy Joe was not a happy camper. Knowing he could do nothing to prevent the situation, I said no worries and would get our little boy there.

I proceeded to get the pupster outside when I noticed that the world was preparing to end!!! The sky was black, thunder was rolling in and bolts of lightening could be seen in the distance. WHAT!!!

This was the first time I have driven in like three weeks, with MY BABY, IN A STORM, and I have to leave my fuzz-butt puppy outside. THEN, I would have to go rescue my husband.

HOLD IT TOGETHER!!

I was totally nervous driving, but we made it right as the first big drops were beginning to fall. We rushed in, signed in and sat down.

Then the power goes out. WHAT???

However, it was just a flicker, but really, my nerves did not need this.

We then got to see our awesome pedi, Dr. Conoley. Said Owen was looking good, she wasn't worried about his levels as much any more, just to keep an eye on them. Little dude was back up to 9 lbs 2 oz, almost his birth weight and had grown 3/4 of an inch! We are in the 50% for everything right now. And I couldn't be happier with my 'average joe' after a bit of a scary start!

We then decided to nurse at the dr's office since it was still monsooning and little dude was screaming bloody murder. By the time we were done, almost all the lights were off in the office and the nurse had kinda forgotten us. We had to have the doors unlocked to leave. Wouldn't that have been neat!

So, (big deep breath), we made it. Our first official check-up was a success. Joe got a jump from work, made it home to rescue the pupster and all was well.

Now all I ask is that this is not a theme for this child. I am not a fan of the dramatic in real life. Next time, let's just saunter out into the sunshine for a wonderful check-up and get an ice cream on the way home! =)

Owen's Firsts - 1

Today, Owen lost his umbilical cord. Hooray O'Bear!!

Today, we almost all tossed our cookies as a result.

You see, we didn't know quite where or when it fell off. We knew it had to be somewhere. And, as I was sunning my poor, sweet boy in the window, Ryker was a little too interested in something else.

Today, Ryker found the umbilical cord. He started a-licking, I started a-gagging! However, in quick diplomatic fashion, I scooped it up off the floor before it could go anywhere else, threw it away and died laughing.

Oh, to have a baby and a RykerDog. What craziness we have to look forward to.

On Owen's 8th day, we're still working on feeding between son and mama, waiting on better news for his jaundice and still trying to find the balance between sanity, sleep and love. My mom has been an awesome help. Joe has been a great hubby. Ryker has been an great big brother (besides the above weirdness). And our family and friends have showered us with prayer and encouragement.

Owen, we may not be there yet, but I think we are off to a good start!

Welcome Owen Daniel

Owen Daniel O'Brien made it into the world

Tuesday, June 15th, 2010 at 3:05 p.m.

He was a whopping 9 lbs 4 oz, 20 inches long and a head the size of a coconut! (well actually 14.75")

Mommy had a rough, but natural delivery and Mr. Owen came out a beautiful little baby!

Owen then had a bit of a rough go with some fluid intake and high jaundice levels which landed him a stay in the NICU for 3 nights. We got to come home with Owen on Friday!

We are unfortunately still monitoring his levels at this point and praying for continued healing of the little dude.

Other than that, he is gorgeous, loves to sleep, not too keen on eating (unless from a bottle), hates to have his arms pinned, loves to squirm and toot. Today, Owen is a week old, and really it's hard to believe we've had the little guy for that long. We are still working out the scary kinks on this parenthood thing, but we're wishing, hoping and praying and getting on thanks to an awesome hubby, grandparents, aunts, uncles and friends!

Oh, and we really weren't holding out on the name! Joe and I were still making lists on the Monday night of our induction.

D-Day!

That's right folks. We're there. We have it in our sights! We have a plan of action.

WE HAVE A DAY!!!

Tuesday, June 15th, to be precise!

We will be going in Monday night to prepare for the arrival of our little dude sometime Tuesday!

Um, crazy. When we first started talking about this with our doctor two weeks ago, I about had a heart attack when we left. I couldn't stop thinking of all the things we needed to do and hadn't gotten and would NEVER be able to do again...

But now, oh, I am sooo ready (well, in some ways). We are nervous and excited, but mostly pretty good with the whole thing. I can obsess about all the little things, or just relax and let God do what He's going to do. And so far, that sounds like the best plan.

So, Monday the parents are arriving, Ryker gets to go visit his puppy pals at the vet for a few days, I get to eat a last meal, and at 8 p.m., we go in to have our lives altered forever! EEEKK!

Please say a little prayer for our family, the doctors and nurses that will be looking after O'Baby and for things to go as smoothly as they can. If you are available to visit, just give Joe a call, but I'm sure we'd love to see you!

I think that's about it. Little dude, we are excited to meet you and I hope you will enjoy your new family. We already love you so much, we can't wait to hold you and tell you in person.

Alrighty, off to remind myself not to panic and perhaps finish packing my bag and maybe, just maybe, put the car seat in! =)

37 & 38 Weeks

Big things! And I do mean really big things!

Doctor appointments have gone well. No major concerns or bad things to report.

On the home front, man, I am so done. It is just hard. Hard to wake up. Hard to get up. Hard to get motivation. Hard to maintain energy. If this doesn't end soon, I do believe the dog will ask for a new family! =)

However, I do believe we've procured all the necessary baby gear - stroller, car seat (still needs to be installed), glider, crib, pack-n-play, diapers. So, we'll just see where that gets us. These poor neglected kids these days.

Big news coming soon to a computer near you, so I'll keep you posted! Until then, you'll just have to sit and wonder (if you don't already know, and if you do, don't spoil the fun!)

36 Weeks

Yesterday, I hit the 36 mark in my pregnancy with O'Baby. Oh, this is a very welcome milestone. We are in the home stretch. We are to weekly visits. We are that much closer to meeting our little boy and finding out who this guy is that keeps bumping around in my tummy!

The doctor's visit went well. Seems we're getting a bit more intrusive in our visits. Neat. Alas, no progress as far as his approaching arrival. I didn't have any thought that there would -- that would just be way to easy.

As far as how I'm doing, I've hit the wall. I am done. I've had some lovely back/sciatic pain, and it is kicking my butt and my self-esteem. So, we press on towards the goal and pray that we'll be ready!

O'Baby we'll check back in with you next week and see where you stand, sit, lay...oh, you know!

Yea! for the Nursery!

This Saturday we worked hard. We worked hard to have a room that someone would actually want to hang out in. Specifically, a very small someone set to arrive one month from today!

With the generous help of so many and the sweat and mobility of Joe and his mom, we got the baby's room up to snuff this afternoon --- and I LOVE IT!

It's so friendly, peaceful and not overdone (in my opinion at least!).

Here's a few pics of what we've done today...

This is right inside the door, a fun scripture and eventually O'Baby's foot or handprint.
Looking through the door along the nearest wall. The fun polka dot lamp makes me smile and the dinosaur bank was mine when I was little!
The awesome dresser and nifty swing. Eventually, we'll get a rocker or glider to go here sometime soon.
Going to make some fun tie-backs for the curtains and perhaps add some color blocks to the bottom.
Love the crib bedding! We're planning on putting O'Baby's name or initials somehow in the middle of the two pictures.
So, that's about it! I love it! It makes me happy and I hope it makes O'Baby happy too! So, anytime you're ready little dude, so are we! Love you!

O'Baby Shower!

Last weekend, I had the blessing of celebrating our upcoming little guy with our wonderful friends and family! We had a lovely shower hosted by my sister, sister-in-law and awesome cousin! (Thanks girls!)

We truly are so thankful for all the wonderful people in our lives and how they are already supporting our son, even before he's here! Here's a few fun shots from the shower!