She's finally here! After a long long wait, our sweet Lyla Jane finally made her entrance into the world. She was born Monday morning April 16th at 4:13am. She weighed in at 7 lbs 10 oz and was 20 inches long. We are so happy to have her in our family and we adore her to pieces!!
Stacie was so sweet to come by and take pictures when Lyla was only a few hours old. I can't wait to show you more and to share my birth story.
Saw these today and I want them all!! The swing (has an MP3 player docking station) and bouncer with the elephants are from a new collection at Target by who else but Dwell Studio. LOVE THEM. (some of you may also love their new high chair- I do!) And I saw the diaper bag on the Skip Hop website. Good thing it's tax refund season!! (even though we already have a swing that we LOVE... I COULD use the bouncer and REALLY NEED the diaper bag)
*Okay, I just finished writing this post and am warning you that it is LONG. You gotta do what you gotta do for memories' sake.
Landen has been taken away by the nurses, Adam has gone home with Joselyn and all my visitors have left for the day. So since I have a little time, I thought it would be a good time to write about Landen's birth.
We were scheduled for a c-section due to complications which occured during Joselyn's birth and because of the c-section which followed with her. Our actual due date was Christmas eve, so I'm glad we got it over with a day early. I actually don't know if I could have taken being pregnant one more day! On Tuesday night, the night before the Surgery, we took Joselyn over to my in-laws where she would stay the night. Driving away that night was hard for me- it was Joselyn's first sleep over and I got really emotional thinking about that and the upcoming events. I wasn't TOO nervous about the surgery- my Doctor did great last time and I healed very fast.
(me the morning of the surgery- the picture is very small because I don't want any of you to see the details of my tired face- just the big belly)
Wednesday morning I woke up at 2:30am. I couldn't go back to sleep after that... too excited and anxious. Of course I played on the computer all morning! Finally 4:00 came around, the time I had set my alarm for, and I started to get ready. We got to the hospital at 5:30am where we were admitted and I was prepped for the C-section. It was an easy smooth process.
The surgery started almost right on time- at 7:45. They gave me my epidural which was not a big deal at all and laid me down on the surgery table. Adam was brought in and before I knew it they had started the surgery - I didn't even know it! I had to ask them if they were already cutting me open! They were all so relaxed, laughing and talking to us as the surgery took place. Not 10 minutes later, Landen was brought out and shown to me for split second before they took him to a nearby warmer where they washed him off. I got to watch the whole thing this time while they finished the surgery and it was great! Adam also took a video of it all. You see, I couldn't remember holding Joselyn for the first time- how sad is that? As soon as he was cleaned off, they brought Landen over to me in a blanket so I could get a better look.
I was overjoyed. He was so cute and perfect in every way! He had reddish hair too which was a big surprise!
Adam took him to get measured and washed while I was taken to the recovery room. Then I was able to enjoy more cuddling with Landen. What a sweet guy he is.
Born at 8:10am, 8 lbs. 10 oz., 20 1/2 inches long. Very muscular little guy who looks exactly like Adam's baby pictures... red hair and all!
That day went by really fast as I tried to get some rest and get used to feeding Landen. I had a few visitors as well.
Adam and I decided to try and keep Joselyn's schedule as close to normal as possible... dealing with me being gone and then a new baby in the house was going to be hard enough so he took her home for her naps. Adam was sad he didn't get to spend much time with us that day... but before bedtime he brought Joselyn by to meet her brother for the first time.
She was very intrigued by the baby mommy kept holding. At this point I still had my IV in and my legs were still a little tingly, so I was bed-ridden. She didn't understand why I wouldn't get out of bed and play with her and it broke my heart. Thank goodness there were plenty of people there to entertain her and she did pretty good.
It wasn't long before everyone left and it was just me and Landen. I just stared at him taking him in- it amazed me how I could love him so much already. He decided to be really sweet and open his eyes for me- dark blue grayish. He was very alert and we just stared into each others eyes for a while. I can already tell he is going to be yet another lovable character in my life. Such a sweet addition to what I already have.
A few things we've already noticed about Landen:
-He likes to take his time and eat- unlike Joselyn who was always in a rush
-He loves sucking on his fingers
-He hates diaper changes and getting dressed
-Other than that he is a calm little guy so far that likes to be cuddled
Our first night was wonderful. I felt good knowing Joselyn had cooperated with Adam and had gone right down to sleep. I also felt good knowing that both Adam and I would get the rest we would need to prepare us for the days to come. Landen came in to be fed only twice during the time I was asleep and I am on a Temperpedic bed which is quite comfortable despite the pain I feel every time I move. He also slept a good 5 hour stretch from 3-8am... which I know may not last, but it gave me time to do a few things before he woke up... like WALK FOR THE FIRST TIME since my surgery.
I felt confident this time... I had done it before- walked after a c-section. I cried it hurt so bad. Not this time! It was 100 times easier! It wasn't bad at all. I had prepared myelf for the worst and I did ok. I walked around the room and got a few things ready for the day just in time to give Landen his morning feeding. We spent more quality time together that morning, met with the pediatrician and my doctor. Things were looking good! I decided that since I was taking it all pretty well that I would go off my pain meds. Besides one time where I suddenly got the chills, I felt fine. I just tried hard not to over do it too much. I got Landen dressed up in his cute monkey outfit and just enjoyed his sweetness all day. Adam dropped Joselyn off at his parents and came to join us for about 5 hours. He was a little sad that he hadn't been able to spend much time with Landen, so I let them have some bonding time.
I was missing Joselyn pretty bad so Adam went and got her and brought her to spend some time with us before taking her back home to go to bed. She seemed to do a lot better with Landen this time. She wanted to share her beloved blanket with him and even wanted to get close to "pet" his head of hair. His piercing cries seemed to startle her a bit, but that didn't keep her from being sweet and cheerful. I think their relationship has a bright outlook! It will be interesting to see how it all unfolds!
Landen has had many admirers wanting to meet him and the past few days have seen a lot of visitors and gifts. Thanks to everyone who came to visit and brought us gifts! I'll put up an album soon with more pictures!
Tomorrow is my last full day of being pregnant! (hopefully for at LEAST a year) This being the case, the Noe family has been working hard making last minute preparations for the arrival of our baby boy. Adam has pretty much overhauled the house and I feel like it is finally clean enough for a newborn. I'm so blessed to have such a great husband... he's put up with a LOT this pregnancy. Bad mood swings, crazy emotions, a dirty house, and a wife who lays around in her lounge clothes all day with no make-up. I'm SO going to work hard to look good for him when this baby is born! As for now, I've been working on some easy stuff- laundry and FINALLY packing my hospital bag. I guess I put that off because I had a feeling I wouldn't be going into labor early. It sure was fun putting Landen's little outfits in my suitcase! Teeny little clothes are so much fun... and it will be MORE fun when he's actually in them! My sister Chelsea got him this cute little monkey outfit from Gymboree... and my mom got him the blanket to match. He will look OH so cute in that little monkey hat!
I also have to pack up a bag for Joselyn. She will be staying at Adam's parents while I'm in the hospital. It will be her first sleepover! Adam and I are a little nervous. We don't know how she is going to take all of this, but I feel comfort in knowing she's in the good hands of people she loves very much- and they love her too! It's going to be interesting to see how she handles this new addition to our family. We can't help but feel she knows there is a change coming. She has been acting really different. A little clingy at times, a little distant at times, and definitely a little more defiant. And at the same time, she seems to be preparing herself to be a big sister... bringing her babies and stuffed animals to me with her blanket wanting me to swaddle them. Then she carries them around, pats them on the back and says "awww....." She feeds them her bottle and tries to give them a pacifier. So motherly for a 13 month old, no?
This whole pregnancy has been a blur... it's gone by so much faster than Joselyn's. I didn't do a pregnancy book, and I didn't obsess over his developments. But this excitement I feel knowing it's SO CLOSE is the same.
I'll probably do one last small update tomorrow and then the next time you read my blog you'll be looking at pictures of the newest addition to the Noe Family!
Long before I had children... actually, long before I was even MARRIED, my obsession with Martha Stewart started. I started getting the Martha Stewart Living magazines, the Martha Stewart Wedding magazines, and yes, the Martha Stewart Kids and Martha Stewart Baby magazines. I LOVED the Kids and Baby issues. They had so many sweet ideas and were just beautiful to look at! Unfortunately, they have discontinued Martha Stewart Baby and more recently Martha Stewart Kids. I never had a chance to get them all, and so was really sad that I had missed out on such great issues... especially the baby ones, because there were only about 5 or 6 issues that ever came out. I'll even admit to searching for them on e-bay!!
Well... as I was reading through all my favorite blogs tonight, I came across something that made me SOOO excited on the Tangled and True blog!!! I don't know why I didn't think of this before, but there is a number you can call to order the back issues of ALL her magazines! So you know what I did... I called the number to see if they had some Martha Stewart Baby left! I know, I know... I am so obsessive. But guess what? They have them! Now I just need to save up some money so I can order the issues I don't have... (they are about $4.50-4.75 each)
If you are as obsessive as I am, here is the number to call: 1-800-274-6800
