Week by Week - Vol I

I have really been trying to keep track of little things Carter does each week when he learns something new. I know I haven't remembered everything, but I want to document it all before I forget. I am also including his week by week pictures that I take. I am amazed at how fast he is growing. He has his 4 month appointment today. I can't wait to see how much he's grown, but I am not looking forward to him getting more shots.

Week 1

In the first week or bringing Carter home, I remember he was already crying tears. They absolutely broke my heart. The doctor did say he noticed that he cried out of the wrong side of his eyes. Who knew? He was crying out of the corner of his eyes on the outside instead of the inside. His tears would run down the side of his face instead of by his nose. Never really paid attention there was a right and wrong way for that. LOL One of my friends was sad that her baby didn’t have tears yet. I said trust me, you don’t want them because they will break your heart!!!

Week 2

In between week 2 and 3, I started Carter on formula. I messed up the breastfeeding thing and actually weaned myself down. So, he started on Enfamil formula. He spit up a ton! I constantly kept bibs on him, because he was always spitting up. We changed to Similac to try it out. He didn’t seem to do that bad on it. We still use it to this day.

Carter also had his first Easter when he was 2 weeks old. My grandma, his great-grandma, just love him in his little grown man outfit. She just couldn't get over it. She just squeezed him to pieces.





Week 3



Week 4

At week 4 is when I started noticing that he could focus. He would see something and start just starring at it. One of the big things he really liked was ceiling fans. It was mainly at other people’s houses though because ours are white and I think they blend in with the ceiling. Our friend’s have brown ones. Here he is starring at one.

Week 5

We started noticing he was grabbing things now. He’s had toys hanging on his car seat for a while by now, but he was finally starting to reach up and play with them. He has a plush frog that sings, and I later got a duck that vibrates balls around in its tummy. He LOVES the duck!

Week 6

My sweet boy started to smile. This time I could tell it wasn’t just gas. He has finally learned to smile at me if I’m being silly or just watching him. I love his sweet smile! He has my dimple too, so that makes it even sweeter.

Week 7

Following the smiles finally came some laughing. It is the super funny hysterical laughing, but he does giggle a little. It’s almost like what I call at work, my “fake laugh”. It’s kind of like huh huh. Haha It cracks me up.


Week 8

I’ve written down “tongue”. Hmm, it’s been so long that I can’t really remember what this means. I think he started sticking his tongue in and out of his mouth like he finally found it.

Week 9

He has started to hold a few things. I put a rattle in his hand and he would actually hold and shake it around, but he couldn’t do it for long. He would drop it after a few shakes. Progress.

Week 10

There must not have been anything I noticed here, because I don’t have anything written down for this week.


Week 11

He has started to pull on things like, um, my hair! When I go to lie him down, he will reach up really quickly and pull on something like he thinks I’m going to drop him. He usually gets a hold of my hair or my shirt. I guess he thinks I’m going to drop him. It’s really sweet though, because it makes me feel like I am his protector and he is grabbing me to save him. Aww. Lol


Week 12

We’ve started to stand him up. I’ve heard many myths about this making them bow-legged and so forth, but I verified with the doctor that this is not true. He loves to stand up. I guess he is so tired of lying on his back and starring at the ceiling. So, he loves to be standing up looking at stuff. The doctor said this was jus t fine. That was actually his way of telling us. He said, look up at the ceiling…as Kyle and I looked up…he said it’s boring and there’s nothing fun up there. Haha


Week 13

This week, I noticed he was starting to put things from his hand to his mouth. Yes, this included his hands, but he was starting to put his toys in his mouth too. I was so excited when he started doing this. I love watching him learn to do things for the first time.

Week 14


Week 15

I took Mr. Carter swimming for the first time. He actually liked it. I just knew he would freak out and I would be devastated that he hated the water. It has been so hot this summer, that it really felt like bath water. I bet that is why he didn’t mind so much. I bought a float based on the blue float picture on the front. I get home and take it out thinking ok, so I guess I got red. Well, when dad blew it up, it was not very much red at all. It was PINK AND PURPLE!! Oh geeze. Kyle will kill me. LOL So, I went later that day or the next and bought him a blue one and gave Reagan the pink one. I had to buy him little swimmer diapers and put his hat on. The doctor said not to put sun screen on him until he was 6 months old. I forget the reason, but ok. So, the float has a little shade over top. He stayed in the water like 45 minutes probably in his super cute little Gymboree swim trunks and surfer shirt. So cute!! He was pooped after swimming. I guess the heat and all wore him out.

I know this is a really weird thing to notice, but I noticed his snot for the first time. He cried and had snot running down. I was freaking out thinking he was sick, but I never really saw any more. I guess it was just from crying.

This week, he started to wake up during the night again. I was so confused and bummed. He had been sleeping through the night since 2 ½ months, so I was so confused why he was waking up now at 4 months. It just so happened I got my bump.com update for that week, and it said that around 4 months, babies go through a wakeful period. They start waking up at night. Some wondered if it wasn’t growth spurts or what. I would feed him a bottle and he would go back to sleep. Some people said don’t feed them, but I would rather do that than try to rock him or let him cry. It worked for me.

Week 16

Week 17

I saw him reach down and grab his foot for the first time. Once he found that thing, he loves it now. You will look up and he will have his sock pulled off or trying to stick it in his mouth. He grabs his foot and does his arm in and out – in and out. It cracks me up!

He began eating cereal the night of or after his 4 month checkup. The doc was ready to start him on solids. Yah!! I was so excited. He said to try cereal for a few days to get him used to the spoon and that it may take him a while. I was expecting to give him this by a bottle, since that is all I’ve ever heard. Nope. He actually wanted us to put it in a bowl and make it ketchup consistency. He said in bottles people tend to make it too thick. He loved the cereal. I would laugh so hard when he would eat it, because he would start diving towards the spoon like a pig! Haha I just knew he was going to shove it down his throat and gag.

This week, he also started noticing textures a lot. I would notice while he was sitting in my lap, he would scratch my jeans or khakis to feel the ridges. Then, he scratched Derek’s mesh jersey. He got to where he was scratching everything! I got hear him at night on the monitor scratching his mattress. He is so silly. Again, I love to see him discover new things. He gets so excited.


Week 18

He finally has started to giggle. It’s not a long length giggle, but I put him up on my chest and lay him back. I pull him forward and at the same time go “boo!” He just laughs!! It is the sweetest, most precious thing ever. I could sit all day and listen to him laugh.


Week 19

Carter had his first food!! Green Beans!! Gross!! Haha I don’t like those either! He made an awful face the first few bites, but he would always swallow. He ate the whole tub, surprisingly. Halfway through though, he was still making faces but would eat it. He had that for 3 days before I moved on. I think then he had peas, sweet potatoes, and squash. I forget what order already. Then, I tried all of the fruits – bananas, pears, peaches, and bananas. He likes everything except the green beans, and I’m not sure he likes the peaches really. I don’t know why…those are my favorite!

We have a roller!! The first time he probably really rolled over, none of us saw him. He was in the floor playing when Kyle went to the bathroom. He came back in there, and he was on his tummy. We weren’t sure if he rolled on his own or if he pulled over on the play gym. A few days later, I finally saw him roll himself over. Watch out now!!

I know this is really gross, but along with solid foods comes solid poo!!!!!!!! I know gross and TMI right? Oh well!! I laughed so hard the first time I saw it. I told Kyle – Carter had an actual turd!! LOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL! That word alone makes me laugh. Takes me back to when me and my sister used to argue over how it is spelled. I said turd and she said terd. When I type them, they both have red lines under them right now. So, I guess that is not even a real word, but you all know what I mean!! Hahaha Anyway, the next day, I talk to my dad. He said I’ve got a first for you to write down in your book. I said what? He said Carter had two little turds in his diaper today and I flushed them down the toilet! Hahahahahaha I said yeah, I noticed that last night, but the one I saw was smashed in his butt cheeks and never hit the diaper. LOL I kept smelling him and peeking from the side, but I never saw a thing. I decided to change him anyway, and there it was!! Smashed tater! Gross!!! Oh the things we talk about when we become a mom.

Also this week (he’s been a busy boy), I noticed he would almost reach towards you if someone else was holding him. He doesn’t fully do it, but almost!

Week 20

My baby is growing up. He slept on his tummy for the first time. Now that he can roll over, he thinks it’s the coolest thing. So, he now thinks he should sleep on his side or on his tummy. The only thing is that he can’t roll back over to his back. So, when he gets on his tummy, he can’t get back over. So here I am up at night going to flip the bacon when he wakes up and gets angry. He can’t crawl yet, so he gets frustrated when he can’t move. When he’s on his back, he is gone in no time. He can’t do that on his tummy yet.

I go to pick Carter up at mom’s house, and she says…Carter has learned something new today. I said what? She said he can scream now. I was thinking ok, he probably screams when he cries? No, he like SCREAMS! It is the funniest thing ever. It’s like a deep down throaty scream. Once he figured that out, he did it for 2 days straight! He would be eating and all of a sudden scream. It was a fun thing for him. He wasn’t mad or anything, he was just having fun!

He also has learned to make a B sound. He puts his lips together and goes B…B..Bwoh Bwoh. Not sure what he is trying to say if anything, but it’s cute.

He is learning all kinds of things with his mouth these days. Now, he has learned to fill his cheeks up and spit by blowing out on his lips. Yeah, so cute UNTIL he has a mouth full of baby food and gives you a squash shower. Not funny! He has actually gotten in trouble for that and gotten his first…spanking I guess you could say. I LIGHTLY smacked his arm and said No! He just looked at me. It got his attention though. It’s cute, but not so funny when his mouth is full of food. He will learn one day.


Week 21

The just not fair words have come out of his mouth….dada. This is not fair. Mama is with him and taking care of him majority of the time, and he has to go and say dada first!! The doctor warned us this would happen, because it is easier to say. The M sound is hard for them. He goes dadadadadada. I am convinced he thinks it’s cool and doesn’t really know he’s saying it. J It’s still so cute though, and I don’t mind because I am just so excited he’s saying something. He combined that with that scream one time and was like DAAAAADAAAAAAA!! HAHA I said we are almost home to see DADA!!!

Man, I can’t do anything these days without Carter trying to do it too. If I have something in my hand, he wants it too. He reaches at everything now. He wants what I have. I was sitting in the floor next to his play gym. Next thing I know, he has scrunched up to me on his back and was grabbing my newspaper out of my hands. He reaches out for my hair when I’m leaning over him or my necklaces. One morning I was cracking up at him and it probably was mean, but I had something he was reaching for and twirled it around over his head and he was swatting at it like a cat. It was so cute, but that was probably mean. LOL


Week 22

I finally moved my poor child up to a size 3 in diapers. I am such a bad mom. I still had him in 1-2’s. He could have been in size 3’s for a while by this time because the weight was 16 lbs. He was 17 lbs at his 4 month appt. LOL Mean mom!! I tried Huggies this time instead of Pampers, and I don’t like them as much. I think they smell funny when they get wet. Kyle doesn’t notice, but I do. I think we will be buying a new box really soon of some Pampers.

Week 23

My baby is REALLY growing up now. He is cutting his first tooth!!!!! Barbara noticed when she had him that he bit down on her finger, and it kind of hurt. She washed her hands and went exploring. She found a tooth coming through on the bottom left side, if you are looking at him. He would just gnaw on your finger when you put it in there. The next day, mom had him and she could tell her had a little fever. She gave him some baby Tylenol to break the fever and make him feel better. He was a little fussy. By the time I got there, his cheeks, knees, and wrists were red. Poor baby. I could tell he didn’t feel good. Mom had been using Baby Orajel during the day. I stopped and got some Hylands Teething Tablets from Wal-Mart on my way home. I heard people swear by those! They are tiny little tables that dissolve instantly under their tongues. I put them in his bottle that night hoping it would make him sleep better. I think that may be why the last few nights before he was so restless. He would toss and turn and I would be up all night turning him over or adjusting him in his bed. I thought it was because I had taken his bumpers out of the crib. He was starting to move around, and I didn’t want him to get tangled in them. Now though, he was moving around and knocking his head into the railing. I thought that was why he was waking up, but I bet it was from his teeth. He slept all night on his tummy after those tablets. The only bad thing about sleeping on his tummy is that he wets on his clothes. Not sure how to prevent that.

First Father's Day

What a busy weekend we had!! Carter met almost his entire family in one weekend.

Friday night - We had a cookout at my Uncle's house, because his kids (my cousins) were in town with their kids. They all wanted to meet Carter too. We enjoyed talking to everyone. We haven't seen them in forever, and they haven't really ever met Kyle. We left after only a couple of hours to get home and pick up some before Kyle's brother and sister-in-law stopped by. They live in Texas and were driving through from Virginia to stay the night with us and meet Carter. We just watched some movies and went to bed.

Saturday - Kyle's mom cooked us all breakfast. Since they were only there for a few hours, we all were up really early and eating breakfast by 7:45. Kyle went on in to work, and his brother left around 9. Carter and I took a little nap before getting up to get ready for his second birthday party. It was a one year old this time. Hudson is such a cutie. They live about 45 minutes away from us, so I was 45 minutes late. I slept in too long and left the house at the time the party was starting. Oh well. No one noticed. Then, Carter and I went to shop for a gift for Kyle's niece, which just so happens to be across from Gymboree, which just so happened to be having their semi-annual sale. What a coincidence! LOL I got a bunch of cute shirts and pants for Winter for Carter. He has plenty in his size right now, so I got him winter stuff. It is last seasons clothes, but I do not care. They are cute and normally so expensive for $6.99 and under. You can't beat that!! Then, we went to Heather and Derek's and hung out.





Sunday - We got up and got ready to head out by 10:30 to go to Birmingham to eat lunch with Kyle's granddaddy. We got there around 12:30. All of Kyle's aunts and cousins just loved Carter. He was a popular little boy that day. He was passed around like a hot potato. He was one hot potato though because it was so HOT outside and in the house. We had to strip him down, because he was getting so mad being hot. We left from there and stopped by to see DJ and his little girl that was born 5 days before Carter. She was so cute. She also was stripped down, because their air was out. It was like 97 too! So hot! We left Bham around 5:30 and drove straight to my dad's for dinner. By the time we got home, we were pooped out.



I've been trying to finish up reading Eclipse that I started on so long ago. I am finally finishing up the book. I probably have 200 pages left. I read the whole way down to Bham and the whole way back. I read while Carter is eating too. It helps pass the time.

Kyle had a good first Father's Day besides being really busy. I gave him his present early, since it was a fun gadget. I knew he would want to play with it before he opened it and left going out of town. He was so excited. I think that was the most excited I'd seen him over a gift almost ever. So happy Father's Day to my wonderful husband. He is a great dad and Carter has so much to learn from him. I think we make a great team. We have a great baby that is happy and so independent. We are doing a pretty good job so far on this new parent thing. He turned 14 weeks this Saturday.

"Sleep 'til you're hungry, eat 'til you're sleepy."

Carter is finally sleeping through the night! YAH!!!!! He started this one night, but then he wouldn't the next few. I think it is finally getting consistent. Sometimes on the weekends, if we are out, he gets a little thrown out of his routine. He may wake up once in the middle of the night, but man is this pretty awesome. He just turned 3 months old Sunday June 13th. Those sleepless nights of getting up every two hours seems like such a faint memory by now. I am not complaining! I love my little man, but I sure don't want to see him every two hours of the night. I really think moving him into his own crib by himself has also really helped. He doesn't hear me move, and I don't hear him. I have a video monitor, which by the way is totally awesome, that I can see him perfect and hear him perfect. Sometimes he snores so loud that I have to turn it down to sleep. He is so funny. He starts fighting sleep around 7 or so at night. Sometimes he takes a brief nap, but he is up and ready to eat his final dinner around 8:30-9. Then, he is out until about 6:30. By this time, I am almost done getting ready, and it is almost time for Kyle to get up. So, Kyle feeds him when he wakes up. He is such a happy morning baby for the most part. You peek over his crib and its like he's surprised to see you. He just smiles so big like he's saying Mommy I love you and thank you for coming to get me. He is SO SWEET! He just smiles and "talks" while I'm changing him. I am so glad he's a morning baby. He usually takes a pretty good nap in the afternoon. Man I wish I could. Can we just bring mats to work and sleep in our cubicle like you do when you are in Kindergarten? Wouldn't that be nice. Carter changes more and more every day. He is growing up so fast already. Daily, I hear how much he looks like Kyle. Man I hope he doesn't act just like him!! LOL I can't handle two Kyle's. LOL

Week 12 & Carter's First Birthday Party...No not his...yet

Carter was 12 weeks old on Saturday. He had a busy day. We had a sweet little girl's 2 year old birthday party to go to at 11 that day. It was Carter's first birthday appearance. He slept almost the whole time. LOL He's such a party pooper.



He was so good Friday night. He slept through the night again! I was so excited. We went out to eat Friday night. He fell asleep at either the restaurant or H&D's house. I took him home and changed him into his sleepy with his sleepy lotion. When I put him down in his crib, he was back out and slept until 6 am. I am so proud of him!! I started getting ready around 8 am that morning. He would not let me get ready for nothing. I was still barely done by 11, when it normally only takes me an hour to an hour and a half to get ready. I had to keep stopping to try to settle him down or pick him up for a while. I asked him how I was supposed to pick out his outfit when I couldn't put him down. We finally got him situated. I chose a cute plaid shorts outfit that had a hat to match, since I knew it was mainly an outside water party. I took his little swimsuit, but I knew he was too young to get in. When we first got there, he was smiling and talking to the little girl's great grandma and grandma. They just loved him. I got him out, put on his hat, and took him outside. It was so hot! I dipped his little feet in the water, but he didn't like that. I think that was the first he'd felt of cold water. He wasn't sure about that. He likes his bath and wants that warm water! He got fussy, so we went back in to feed him. He ate and passed out! He slept for a little while and got back up. He ended up falling back asleep and slept a good 3 hours or more. When he got up, we fed him again and the little stinker pooped up his back. He ruined his totally cute little outfit. Good thing I've learned to pack extras. Little miss Ava just loved baby Carter. She even wanted him to come in her room when she was taking a nap. LOL I'd say he had a pretty good day...of sleeping!

New Title...

CAUTION! EXTREMELY LONG POST COMING UP!

Weeeeeeelllll......do you think it is about time for this update. Holy moly! You don't understand how I tell myself every night that I have got to get on an update my blog. I just never have the time. I am trying to make time. Hopefully, I won't leave out too many important details. I hope I have not forgotten them over this long period of time. First off, I need a new title. It's not just Kylissa anymore. Mr. Carter has finally arrived into the world of Kylissa and has made our life even more important than we ever could have dreamed. Maybe I should call it Kylisser? LOL Any ideas on a new bloggy name? I will have to update the header pictures too. Maybe I can do that before he turns one! ha ha!

I won! I won! I won the guessing game. I was the closest without going over. Remember when we went for our first ultrasound, it estimated he was due on March 14th, but she did not update the EDD. So, that is where my guess came from. We welcomed Carter Jace H. into this world on March 13th, 2010 at 3:59 PM. He weight 7 lbs 6 oz and was 20 inches long. Here was my guess: March 14th, 7 lbs 8 oz, 7:37 am, and 19 inches long. I was a little off on the time, but I was dang close on everything else.

I am trying to go in order of my last blog before I actually tell you about the special day. I finished the elephant pictures before he was born, but I just hung them not long ago. Of course an idea from HGTV was to arrange them on the floor before you hang them up. So, that is what I did. I am having a hard time with them on the wall because my dresser is not centered due to space constrictions. So, I centered the pictures on the wall, but they are not centered over the dresser...driving me nuts!! I think i hung them too high too.


I also ordered the initial and Carter's name for the wall behind his crib. I also still haven't put up the circles I ordered either, but I haven't decided if I'm going to put those up or not. I've also purchased two shelves from Target to put pictures on of my maternity pictures and Carter's newborn pictures. I finally hung the brown curtains I got too not that long ago. I am getting there a little at a time. I think I am waiting for someone to help me do it all, but yet I haven't asked anyone for help. ha ha **As I am writing this blog days at a time, I have now pretty much finished his room. I don't know what to do with the one small wall by my glider, but something doesn't have to be on every wall. His room is my favorite in the house by far!**

My sweet sister-in-law got a really cute poem for Kyle for when Carter was born. It's called My Daddy's Hands and is written like it's from Carter. It is signed Love Carter at the bottom. So sweet!!! So, I changed out the frame it came in to match it with the one that I put the picture of Kyle's hands on my belly. I thought...Daddy's Hands...and his hands on my pregnant belly while Carter was in there. So, I thought it kind of went together. Awww! Here is how the poem reads:

MY DADDY'S HAND

Daddy, Take my hand in yours and you will plainly see,
How very much I need you now to love and care for me.
As my little hand grows,
I will need you even more,
Everything I do in life,
I have never done before.
Teach me to be kind and loving, sharing and forgiving,
Show me through your acts of love the pure joy of living.
The years will pass by quickly and one day I will be grown,
I will pass what you have taught me onto children of my own.
Hold me always in your thoughts and remember when we are apart,
The special love between a child and a daddy's heart.
Love Carter

Thursday, March 11th, I met Kristen, Heather, and our sweet friend Amy for dinner. Amy was about to move to Florida for work. We were wishing her goodbye. They talked me into go to Surin, which is food I normally wouldn't eat. I managed to find something on the menu that was really good...chicken and fried rice. You didn't think I would actually venture out very far, did you? While at dinner, I was in a lot of discomfort. I wouldn't necessarily call it pain, but kind of. I almost would have sworn I was having contractions. It hurt in the bend of my legs. It was bothering me so bad, that I took a Tylenol. I would sweat at times and had a hard time focusing on being social with the girls. I remained very quiet through most of dinner. I was going to see my good friend Angie after dinner. She is one of the girls that was due a couple of days before me. She had Jaxon Wade on Tuesday, March 9th. I kept telling everyone when we went to visit her, I thought I was just going to check in myself. I felt much better Friday morning. It must have been a false alarm.

Speaking of friends that were pregnant with me, my good friend Brandi had her sweet little girl Jaci Elisabeth at the end of February. We were due the same day. Brandi and Angie both were in preterm labor for a few months and were on very strict bed rest. I was so lucky that I didn't have any problems. Jaci and Jaxon both arrived beautiful, healthy babies. Brandi and I met for lunch during our time off, and Carter had his very first date. They both slept right through it. LOL Also, our good friend D and his fiance had their baby in February as well. Landon is such a cutie!!

So, here's the story. March 12th, Friday, at work, I was so swollen and tired. I think I had the biggest feeling that I wasn't going to be back that Monday. I guess you just know. I even finished passing out my last thank you cards and brought my desk calendar home with me all that week. We had eaten Newk's late that day for lunch. I ate my whole grilled chicken club with chips and a yummy brownie. I was stuffed! Every Friday night, we had a ritual of eating out with H&D. I told them that I wanted a "last supper" at my favorite place to eat - Connor's. I said just not tonight because I am not hungry...maybe next weekend. I told them I don't mind going out to eat, but I am not hungry - so yall pick. Here are what my feet were looking like...notice the flip flop imprint and cankles. Gross!! I made Heather take my 38 week picture. I normally only took them monthly, but I was getting huge and close to my due date, so I said I would start taking them weekly. Please also see below. Wow at that HUGE belly!


They wanted Mikato's Japanese Restaurant. I was like OMG. I love Japanese, but I was so full that there was no way I could eat it. I said I will just go with yall though. Kyle said, you could always just try to eat it. Of course, I got in there and smelled it and said ok...I will eat, but yall are going to make me pop this baby out right here. Little did I know how true that almost was. So, we ate our super yummy meal - salad w/ ginger dressing, filet w/ fried rice, and soup. I was so stuffed. Kyle and Derek kept drinking Saki as they were celebrating Kyle's last couple of weeks pre-daddyhood. They were a little on the tipsy side. Glad I was a DD for 9 months! LOL We get back to H&D's and I plop on their love seat like a dead bloated fish all swollen and fat. I believe I fell asleep on the couch while Kyle and Derek hung out in the garage. We didn't get home until about 1 am. And the story begins....

At about 3 am, I get up to go potty, which is nothing unusual as a 9 month pregnant lady. I have been pretty lucky with this one that I don't think I got up more than twice to pee in the middle of the night. So, I pottied and headed back for the bed. Remember my new totally cool platform bed and mattress. Well, it is really tall. I have to really try to get up there because it is so high....especially with 30 lbs of baby in front of me. So, I climb up on the bed and I hear a small popping noise and GUSH!!! My lap fills up with "stuff". The way I sat on my bed was with my left leg making like a number 4. So, I guess I made it puddle. My t-shirt was wet half way up to my boobs!! I realized what just happened and jumped back up to run back to the potty dripping this "stuff" all onto Serenity and her bed and across the bathroom floor. LOL It wouldn't stop coming! I made it to the potty and more just kept coming out. You can imagine the thoughts running through my head. "Oh my god, the baby is coming!" "This is my last night of being home with just the two of us!" "Am I ready for this?" "Do we have everything ready?" "What do I do now?!" haha I wait until I think it has stopped coming out before I try to wake Kyle up. I walk back over to the bed and tap him. He looks at me...remember, he had a few drinks and had just gone to bed 2 hours ago. I say, "Hey - I think my water just broke." He says ok and kind of rolls back over and starts snoring again. I said KYLE! He said what? I say...I think my water just broke and point to my soaking wet t-shirt. He was like OH! Ok! He kinds of sits up trying to get woken up good. Finally, I was like KYLE! You have to get up and start packing my stuff in the car. I got in the shower to wash off. I felt like I just peed 5 gallons on myself...not fun. Plus, I knew the next few hours would be all gross and I wanted to be a little freshened up. I am blow drying my hair and Kyle pokes his head in the bathroom. He says baby? I said yeah? What do I do now? I said I don't know! LOL I felt so clueless still. I wasn't really having contractions that bad yet. I started to feel kind of like cramping. By the time I was finishing up getting ready though, they were getting stronger. They were about 10 minutes apart. Off we head to the hospital (that is about 30 minutes away) making phone calls as we go.

I called Heather first to tell her because I had just left her house a couple of hours ago and we just talked about not making it much longer. Derek later told me when I left that night he was thinking it would be that weekend. I called mom and dad and had to let the phone ring and ring. I think they finally answered or called me back. I'm sure they knew what was up when it was 4 am and the phone was ringing. Kyle got Barbara on the phone right away. Then, I called my sister. I called Kristen too and had to call her back to back. I was hoping the ringing would wake her up. She said normally she leaves her on vibrate and it was in the kitchen that night. She actually woke up to the phone vibrating on the table and went to get it. I was so glad everyone was able to wake up to the phone call. I had contacted everyone that wanted to be there. Heather and Kristen got up there right away, so did mom and dad. Rachel was a little bit later, but she was still there really early. She thought she would wait a while, but I started progressing pretty fast, so she head up there as soon as she heard about that.

When I got there, I had to change into my gown. Of course, as soon as I tried to potty, I had to poo. LOL Sorry I am going to be graphic here! Spilling all the beans. I was kind of excited though because that meant I hopefully wouldn't poo on the table. LOL And I wouldn't need an enema. Yuck. I came out bare butt and all and climbed into what would be my bed for 12 hours! The nurses come in to get my info and "check me". Boy was that pleasant....please put your feet together and pull them towards you with your knees apart. Wow. I was shy before, but it is hard to be after all that. You might as well say....SPREAD EM! Ok, enough with that. So, they put something in there to try to get a sample of the "water" that I said broke. They took two swabs to put under the microscope to see if my water really broke. They came back with a big fat NO. I said excuse me? They were like its ok. Sometimes people think their water broke when they really pee on themselves. I said no lady! My water broke. I just peed and there is no way that was pee. There was so much it soaked my shirt and kept coming out uncontrollably. She insisted I was wrong that it was something called a fore bag or fore sack? I can't remember what she called it. I was like omg, then I don't want to see how much it is when my water actually breaks. This bia tells me to walk the halls around the nurses station until my water breaks. I am like lady...I don't feel like moving, much less walk!! Kyle walked with me around the station as I stopped every few minutes to have a contraction. I would have to freeze because I couldn't move. I finally was fed up with walking and laid back down. While lying there, all of a sudden, a little more fluid comes out. It wasn't a lot though, so I could have easily been convinced that this time I really peed on myself. I tell the nurse...ok I just either peed on myself or my water just broke...even though it already broke. ha ha She checks me again and says yep it broke that time! Finally!!! GIVE ME THE DRUGS! LOL It was about 8 am before they finally gave me the epidural, even though I was already at 4 when I got to the hospital. I guess they wanted to make sure my water broke and that I wasn't going home. Nope, this home girl is checked in!

I had a nurse named Rosa I believe was her name. She was so nice and super helpful. I didn't take birthing classes and kind of started regretting that by the time I was in there. She was so helpful and talked me through everything. I liked her way better than the previous girl before the shift changed. She was the one who tried to tell me I peed on myself. I didn't like her! ha ha I began to dilate just like normal...about a cm every hour. One hour I actually did 2. That is why Rachel came up there so fast. My friends and family were all hanging out in the room with me until it was times to be checked. Finally, they had everyone but Kyle leave so that I could try to rest. It would be a long day. Have you ever tried to sleep between contractions? I did somehow. Kyle was snoring on the couch next to me. I dilated just fine until I reached 9. I stalled out. Carter changed his mind I guess...said he was not ready to come out yet! LOL My doctor was there by that time and kept saying maybe we can have this baby and go get some lunch. I said alright then! **SIDE NOTE: Oh yeah...forgot to mention...my doctor was not on call that weekend. All that searching around from friends to find a woman doctor and it comes down to the day that I get a man! Good thing my cousin worked for him and really liked him. He was funny and did really good.**

Lunch came and went and still no Carter. Since I was stalled at 9 for so long, they decided to give me petocin to try to speed it up a little. This dang epidural was not at all what I expected. I thought I would be numb from the waist down. Heck no...I felt almost everything! I could still feel and move my legs. I thought I wouldn't be able to. When I asked my nurse, she said they don't want you to be completely numb or you won't be able to push very good. Makes sense, but that is not what I was expecting. Too late to turn back now! LOL I was still feeling the contractions pretty strong. They finally gave me some relief with some nubane. Ahhhh! Much better! It definitely took the edge off. I was laughing at myself because I am usually the one who is anti-any drugs...even really Tylenol or whatever. Well, when it came time, I was like yes! Nubane!! haha I thought I deserved it after all of that. I felt it just wash over my body and I just smiled. I felt so goofy. I think Kyle thought it was funny. Finally some relief! Actually I can't remember what part came first...my really bad pains or the nubane. Either way, at some point, my contractions would make me feel like my bladder was about to explode and that I had to pee soooooooo bad, but I had a catheter in. What's the deal? It got to the point where I wanted to try to push because it felt like I needed to empty my bladder. Rosa said it was because he was turned face up. I guess maybe this put a different kind of pressure on me than if he was faced down? This was so uncomfortable. After lots of complaining, I finally got another break. The anesthesiologist came back in and put something else in my IV. I don't really know or remember the name of this medicine, but it was the best ever!! This time, I could not feel A THING! Yes! Finally! I could relax and sleep if I wanted. No more uncomfortable bladder or unwanted pushing going on. My friends would be talking to me and see the monitor spike with a huge contraction. They would watch my face, and I would be just talking away. They didn't want to bring my attention to it for fear that I would feel it then if I noticed. They snuck and took a picture for me. If you've never seen one of these monitors before, when the line goes up to the top, that means you are having a contraction. Look at the bottom one. Normally, it spikes up and down. This one went straight across for a looooong time.
They came and checked me at one point and determined he was face up. They sent a lady in that said she was really good at turning babies. In her whole dang arm goes as she's trying to turn Carter over. That was pretty painful!! As Kyle snores on the couch by me....thanks babe for the support! LOL He finally woke up and I gave him this look like this hurts!! I think then he came over to hold my hand.

The doctor came in to check on me probably around 10-11. He kept saying, "Maybe we can pop this baby out and go have some lunch." I said ok, sounds great!! Well, lunch passed. Then, he would say, "Well, maybe we can go have dinner?" Ain't that about the truth!!

Finally, at around 2:45, they let me start pushing. We would wait until a contraction came to puuuuuuuuuushhhhhhhhhh, stop, deep breath, puuuuuuuuuussssshhhhhhhh, stop, deep breath, puuuuuuuuushhhhhh. I did this three times per each contraction for an hour and fifteen minutes. I couldn't really feel them at first and couldn't really tell if I was pushing very good or not. That second dose of happy medicine made me pretty numb. It eventually started to wear off to where I could feel the pressure of the contraction coming and myself pushing. It is hard when you can't feel your stomach area to know if you are pushing. I felt more like I was just holding my breath. They said I really was pushing though. I had to learn to push, take a deep breath while still keeping my stomach tight, and push again. Otherwise, I was probably sucking him in and out. LOL. The doctor could see his head and said oh I think this is going to be an 8 pound or more baby. Boy isn't that what you want to hear. Finally, after about an hour or so, I could feel little man's body between my hips. I could really feel him down there. I guess it was when he was almost out. I knew I really had to push then. I would sqeeze in an extra push here and there. All the meantime, I have Kristen popping ice in my mouth coaching me along. Come on Melissa you can do just push girl! I see his head!!! LOL Kyle had to push my up on my bag every time I pulled forward to push. He was just as worn out as I was. AT LAAAAAAAAAAAST, an hour and fifteen LOOOOOOOONNNGG minutes later...Mr. Carter Jace was born at 3:59 PM. He was 7 lbs 6 oz and 20 inches long. He was SO long!

I couldn't see over my my own legs and blanket when the doctor pulled him out, but I watched the video later. He was holding him like a football upside down just tossing him back and forth. I was thinking my poor baby!! He started to cry almost immediately. It was the sweetest thing I have ever heard in my entire life. It almost brought everyone to tears. I'm not going to lie that some happy tears run streaming on my face. They cleaned him a little and wrapped him up to lay on my chest. It was so sweet. He instantly calmed down and was like sighing almost. He loved his mommy since minute one! I was already so in love!


They took him over to the table to clean him off, give him a shot, warm him up, and weigh/measure him. He had like 7 cc's of fluid in his lungs that they had to stick a tube down his throat to get out. I'm glad I didn't see that in person, or I probably would have cried. I saw this all on video later. I was busy getting sewed back up! LOL I coud actually feel it a little too and was not happy. Apparently, when he saw the big ol head, he didn't think he would come out easily. He went ahead and cut me so that I wouldn't tear I guess. I had no idea he was doing that, but its probably a good thing or I probably would have felt it. I felt way more than I ever expected to. I just laid my head to the side and watched as they beat on my baby to warm him up and get the fluid out. Finally, they brought him back over to me.

I told someone they could go out and let everyone know. I was just expecting my mom, dad, Heather & Derek, and mother-in-law to come in...my sister and Kristen were already in the room with me. My sister videoed the whole thing. Man I underestimated my great friends. My room flooded with people. I was so surprised. Ten minutes after popping out this baby, I have a crowded room of everyone wanting to see my perfect little angel. I was in heaven. It was such a great feeling to have just brought another life into this world, shared it with my wonderful husband and best friends and family, and everyone to have been there to see us. It was truly amazing. I had never been so thirsty in my life after all of that and only getting ice chips all day. Kristen did a great job at keeping them coming though. She actually almost choked me a few times. LOL

Everyone left so that we could finish up. They loaded me into a wheelchair and wheeled Carter and I off to the nursery so that he could get checked out. My room phone rang and they were calling for Kyle to come down to the nursery to give Carter his first bath. I think he was a little nervous. I sent mom and dad to take pictures since I wasn't allowed to go down there just yet. The nurses came in and did a few other things like unhook most of the IVs finally. Man I was tired of those things. They came in and did a local catheter or whatever it was they called it. I think they were afraid I coudln't get myself to the bathroom for a while. Uhh..saying bathroom just makes me remember how horrible those trips were. They asked that I ring them when I had to go to the bathroom. I didn't understand why until the first time. They helped me out of bed and walked with me to the bathroom. All of a sudden I feel this gush and I can tell I am dripping on the floor. I was like omg I am getting stuff all over the floor. I was kind of thinking maybe I was peeing, but I turned around to find a trail of blood. I think I almost passed out. I can handle blood usually, but knowing its my own, dark, red blood all over the floor...kind of makes you a little queezy. Man do you have these super sexy, mesh, grandma draws to wear too! They were awesome! Accessorized with a super sized maxi pad. Man was I so sexy. Plus, I had to wear this pack of ice too down there. You would never think a pack of ice between your legs could ever feel so wonderful. It was like my own personal cold water bottle or something. LOL I would just lay down and the cold water would rock front to back, and I would just about fall asleep. Man this delivery stuff was rough! LOL I would do it all over again in a heartbeat though. The bathroom trips though were a good 15 minutes long each time. Kyle would holler and check on me every once in a while to make sure I didn't fall in I guess. I would say I'm fine...it just takes me a minute. One, I am waddling and trying to sit softly from being so sore, I did have a cut and stitches in not a nice place, had to change out this wonderful pad everytime, and two not to mention that I had a personal squirting water bottle. I had to put warm water in it to squirt "down there" because I wasn't allowed to wipe. Man that warm water felt so good too. It is just crazy the things you go through. I had a backflash too on the second or third day when I was waiting on the water to warm and I feel this fluid coming out again that I couldn't control. After a few seconds, I realized I was peeing on myself again. Thank goodness for the big momma pads, or I would have wet pants. Geeze! They didn't tell me I wouldn't be able to control my bladder for a few days.




Carter had his pictures taken and passed all of his tests - hearing, and all that. He was a little bit jaundice, so they kept an eye on that. We got to go home on Monday. Kyle had just installed the car seat while I was in the hospital. On the way home, I told Kyle aww you actually drive like me now. When he saw break lights, he would stop instead of running up on everyone. It was definitely different when you had such a tiny baby to drive home. Kyle talked to his friend that asked what was the scariest thing so far, and he said the drive home from the hospital. Mom, dad, and Barbara all came over when we got home because mom cooked us my favorite lasagna. Yummy!

My breast milk came in probably the second day I was home. Wow...those suckers were big!! LOL I did really good with producing, or so I thought. I guess I didn't do my homework or listen like I was supposed to. I would only pump when they were really tight and sore. I was supposed to pump every 2 hours as if he was eating. Well, I stopped producing because of that. I was so mad at myself. I already felt like a failed mother. I am all about all natural kind of stuff. I really hated to go straight to formula after only 2 weeks. I didn't have a choice though. I ruined the milk. I made it go away. I guess the bright side of that is that I didn't have to go through any pain of them swelling and hurting to even wear clothes. I was actually weaning myself down without knowing it, so that never happened to me. I wasnt' sure how I would feel about pumping at work anyway, but I probably would have tried it. I wanted the very best for Carter and still can't believe I messed that up. Boy did he grow after he was on that Similac though. I remember he made the worst face ever the first time he ate formula instead of my milk. I felt so bad.




I was and still am amazed and thankful for all of the people that came out of the woodworks when I had Carter. I had multiple friends and family that came to visit us in the hospital bringing foood. I have several friends plan times to come by the house to bring me food. I ate really good there for a while. I am so blessed to have such great friends in my life. They definitely made those first couple of weeks a lot easier. The pain and all the messy stuff only really lasted about a week before I didn't feel bad. There is definitely a lot that goes on that people never tell you about. I was hoping that maybe I could shed some insight if any of you have never had one before. Now you know what to expect. I would do it over in a heartbeat. I have a great, happy, healthy baby boy that I love more than anything.