First Photo Shoot

Shanna, my sister-in-law, had a photo shoot with Mary Beth while she was visiting this week. Click here to view the photos and other pictures from her second week of life.

First Smile

Mary Beth smiled when she was 14 days old and we were fortunate enough to be in the middle of taking pictures with her so we caught it on camera. She has been smiling in her sleep since she was born but this was her first one when she was awake and looking at us. We love her smile!

We have made it through two plus weeks

It seems like much more than two and a half weeks since we left Northside Hospital with our new daughter. We have learned so much and everyday gets better. Mary Beth is such a sweet baby and she loves to sleep. We still have to wake her up to eat and she is eating every three hours during the day and four hours (sometimes five) at night. We wonder how long she would sleep if we didn't wake her up to eat and are tempted to test this at night. It seems that she is a night owl as her most awake time is from about 7pm to 12am or later. She definitely gets this from me but since I have been married to Dan, I have gotten used to going to bed much earlier so the late nights have been a challenge. My mom has been in town this week to help us and it has been wonderful. Last night Dan and I went out to dinner for the first time since MB was born and it was nice to have some time to catch up. We went to the pediatrician this past Tuesday when she was two weeks old for a weight check. She gained 7 ounces in 7 days and they were very excited about her weight increase. She weighs 8 pounds 2 ounces and has passed her birth weight. We will have cute fat rolls on her in no time!

Here are some things that we have learned so far about Mary Beth:
She loves to be naked and cries when we put clothes on her
She doesn't like to have her diaper changed
She didn't like the sponge bath but is a fan of the real bath
She likes riding in the car
She is a night owl
There is a good chance she will pee on you when you take off her diaper (she is getting a little better at this)
She makes the best faces while she is sleeping
If you wake her up, you better be ready to feed her
She has the best smile
She gets sweeter and more beautiful everyday

She's here!

Mary Elizabeth Milam was born on June 30th at 11:31am and she weighed 8.0 pounds and was 20 inches long. We went into the hospital on Monday night, June 29th and she was born the next morning. The delivery went really well and was fast. We figured that she just needed a little encouragement to come out because once we started the induction, she arrived shortly thereafter and we were very thankful. I had a few problems after the delivery with my hemoglobin level dropping and they kept me in the delivery room until that night to keep an eye on things. Fortunately, I am feeling much better but it will take two months to restore my hemoglobin level. We were sent home last Thursday and my mom was with us until Monday and Dan's mom is here through tomorrow and then my sister Carrie will be here through Friday. We have been very glad to have the extra help since I am not very mobile yet. Mary Beth is a wonderful baby and she sleeps most of the day. We went to the pediatrician yesterday and everything looks great. You can click here for more pictures of her.

Sleeping

Hanging out with Daddy

Here is a timeline of the labor for those interested:

7:00pm - checked into the hospital

9:30pm - moved into the labor and delivery room

10:15pm - started Cervadil

12:00am - started having some contractions

2:00am - contractions became more intense

4:00am - removed the Cervadil and was dilated 3-4cm

6:00am - asked for the epidural since contractions were 30 seconds apart and very painful

6:00am - 8:00am - took a nap (the epidural was amazing)

10:00am - started pitocin

10:30am - felt the urge to push, was dilated to 10cm

10:30am - 11:00am - was told not to push as my doctor had not arrived
11:00am - started pushing with nurse

11:15am - told to stop pushing to wait on doctor

11:25am - doctor arrived

11:31am - Mary Beth was born

Stubborn or Laid Back?

We still do not have a baby and we are trying to determine if that means that she is really laid back or if she is stubborn. Hopefully she is laid back! It's been a tough week but there is an end in sight. Our doctor will induce me on Tuesday morning if she does not arrive by then. That will make her 12 days late and he is not comfortable letting us go longer than Tuesday without an induction. We had an appointment yesterday and she looks great which was good news. He thinks she is around 8 pounds 4 ounces. We are very anxious and hope that Mary Beth will arrive this weekend. We know she will be worth the wait! Here is a picture of me at nine plus months pregnant. Hopefully we will have great news to share with you soon!

Nine plus months pregnant - June 26th, 8 days overdue

The day we have waited for but something is missing...

June 18th is our much awaited due date but the day has come and will soon pass and there are no signs of a baby being born today. I went to the doctor yesterday and nothing has really changed in the last three weeks. The doctor wants to induce labor if she does not arrive before Monday, June 29th. We really hope that she will be born before that date as that would make her 11 days overdue! We are very anxious and ready to meet our daughter so please pray that we will have a baby sooner rather than later! The anticipation is too much! :-) My last day of work was on Tuesday so it has been nice to focus on doing some things around the house and to try to get as much sleep as I can. Please feel free to send any advice on how to get this little girl motivated to come out!

Two weeks and counting

Our bags are packed, we're ready to go (well, we're not completely packed but close enough).....but no baby yet. I went to the doctor and I am dialted 1cm so only 9 more to go. That's progress people! We will be sure to post pictures and updates after she arrives for those checking in on the blog.

Dan and I are trying to do as many things as we can before Mary Beth is born so we are going out to eat, trying to get some sleep, watching movies and spending as much time together as we can. There were other things on our list of things to do but I'm too slow and tired (not to mention cranky) to do too most things these days. Although I'm sure we will miss it being just the two of us, we can hardly wait to meet this baby girl that we have been talking about and praying for, it's going to be fun!