He's HERE!

Wow! So much has happened in one week!

It all started with my last day of teaching last Thursday. I had planned to work up until Spring Break and then start my maternity leave, which I will take until mid-May. After wrapping things up at school and leaving some very sad little kiddos, I headed to the doctor for what was going to be my last visit. When I was talking with the doctor, I explained how I was finally done with work and now had begun my maternity leave. Fortunately, this first week of the leave is Spring Break so I don't have to use any sick or unpaid days. Needless to say, I wanted to make the most of this week and have my baby with me...rather than just sitting around waiting for him to come! Being that she is such an awesome doctor she said right away that she'd be fine with inducing labor. The idea sounded great, but reality had also set in that I was soon going to be a mommy. After some back-and-forth decision making, Tyler and I said we'd go ahead and set our induction for Friday morning. That gave me just one afternoon to finish getting everything ready at home and one night of good sleep before the big arrival!

Well, much to my surprise, God and little Caleb had other plans. After laying my head down and finally falling asleep (which is very hard to do when you're nervously waiting for the morning to come), my water broke! I woke up and instantly yelled downstairs to Tyler. After about a half hour of crazy emotions and running around getting stuff together, we headed to the hospital. We checked in at about 11:30 and the long night began. My contractions were not regular enough, so they began to give me pitocin, which speeds up the process and forces the body to have regular contractions. Unfortunately, pitocin is also very strong and makes for some intense contractions, so I was ready for the epidural as soon as they could give it. The epidural took quite awhile to kick in because the doctor had some issues with giving me just the right dosage. So, for about an hour out of the 7 hour labor process, I felt some relief. By a little after 5:00 I was ready to start pushing and at 5:57am little Caleb was here! He weighed in at 6 pounds 15 ounces and was 20 inches long.

By the time it was over, I was completely exhausted considering how little sleep I had gotten. I've never relied so much on adrenalin. Thankfully, my wonderful husband, mom, and sister gave me tons of support the whole night and were there to share in the joy of Caleb's arrival into the world. We all spent the first few hours just amazed at what an adorable and tiny miracle he was. My dad joined us a little while later and it was the best feeling to have my whole family together to celebrate such an awesome experience. By mid-morning, everyone left and it was the first time Tyler, Caleb, and myself were together as just our own, small family (minus our four-legged friend, who we missed a lot while at the hospital). There are no words to describe how cool that moment was!

Over the next few days, the stay at the hospital was amazing! The entire experience was great and we were so blessed to have such helpful and caring nurses. It was wonderful to just sit around, relax, and have other people help ease the transition into parenthood! We had several visitors stop by over the weekend and it was great to have their company. By Sunday, we were finally released from the hospital and were excited to head home. We spent Easter Sunday at home with my family and enjoyed the help we had from my mom, dad, and sister.

Since our arrival home, things have been getting better each day. Caleb is such a good baby and he is content 95% of the time. If he is fussy, it's pretty much because of the basic reasons: hunger, gas, or dirty diapers...so it isn't hard to calm him down. Feeding has been our biggest obstacle, but we're making progress day by day. I've wanted to throw in the towel several times with the whole breastfeeding process, but I know it's just something that takes time. Fortunately, Tyler and my mom are the most supportive and amazing people in the world. I couldn't have asked God for two better people to share these beginning ups and downs with. I love watching Tyler as a dad and seeing how much love he has for his little boy. It is also so cool to watch my mom as a grandma...something she has been waiting for patiently over the past few years. Grandpa Rob has seemed to slowly warm up to his new title. My dad isn't one to show much emotion, so I consider those moments quite special when he is holding Caleb and forming a special bond. It has also been awesome to see my sister take on a new role as Auntie Tracy (or T-T as she might end up being called). Although we have our share of disagreements and probably have one of the biggest love-hate relationships two sisters could ever have, this experience has brought a whole new meaning to our sisterhood. I just wish she could be closer and take a job up here rather than in Champaign. I don't want her to miss out on a single moment with her new little nephew.

That's about it for now! I know there will be plenty of blogs to come as we continue to experience new things with Caleb. I hope everyone reading this is doing well and enjoying the beginning signs of Spring. It will be so nice to finally have warmer weather and sunshine on a consistent basis!

Auntie Tracy

"Uncle" Dean Cousin Ben Daddy
Grandpa Rob