To my son on his 1st birthday

Dear Dylan,
I can not believe how quickly a year has passed. I feel like it was just yesterday that your daddy and I found out we were pregnant. I had wanted a baby for what seemed like forever and felt so blessed to finally experience the joys of being pregnant and the miracle of life. Was I scared? Absolutely. But only of the giving birth part...not about actually being pregnant. I pretty much loved every minute of it as you will see when reading week by week what my pregnancy was like with you.

I wondered every day what color eyes you would have, what color hair you would have, would you look like daddy, would you look like me, would you love me as much as I love you, would I be a good mother? Your daddy and I still to this day are completely blown away by the miracle of YOU! You lived for a full 9 months inside my belly and grew from the size of a sesame seed to the size of a small watermelon. Can you believe that? It is an absolute miracle that I can never truly explain. All I know is that I am so very blessed to have had a healthy, such wonderful son like you. You are by far the best thing that has happened to daddy and I. We love you more than I could ever put into words.

You have made me want to become the best mom I possibly can be. I was there the day you smiled for the first time, the first time you rolled over and the first time you giggled. I will always be there for you, no matter what. I am such a proud mommy. You have come so far and learned so much in your first year of life and I can't begin to tell you how excited I am to see what comes next or to hear you say "mommy" or to hear you tell me you love me. I PROMISE I will cry the first time you say "I love you mommy."

I love you my sweet baby Dylan. You are our little baby boy, our little "junior", our little "murph", our little blueberry.

With all my love,
Mommy

Little Blueberry's Arrival

Well hellooooo....so sorry it has taken me oh so long to write Dylan's arrival blog entry. I can't believe how much time you think you're going to have compared to how much time you ACTUALLY have for yourself to do things like email, cook, clean and write blog entries. However, little Murph is resting so peacefully next to me right now and I'm finally feeling like myself again and into a semi-routine here at home.

Well, Dylan finally arrived on Friday, February 6th at 9:38 PM. He weighed 8 lbs 9 oz and was 22 1/2 inches long! The delivery went well, but not as I had anticipated or wanted...(does it ever go how you want it to go)? What I mean by that is that I had figured I'd be at the hospital for the majority of my labor. NOPE...I was home with Aaron fighting through the bulk of my contractions on our own. Here's the story...we went into the hospital Friday morning at 2 am after me having started contractions Thursday morning at 2 am. The bad contractions didn't start until about 7 pm on Thursday night, but by 11 pm they were horrible and by 2 am on our way to the hospital I was crying during them. So we get to the hospital, they hook me up to the monitors and tell me that YES I am having contractions but they are not close enough together and I was yet dilated AT ALL. I couldn't believe it. They actually told me that they thought I was having false labor. How could that be I thought...I'm 3 days late, I'm crying during my contractions, can't talk during them and am barrelled over in pain???? So Aaron and I make our way back home. I honestly can't believe I survived the night. I was having contractions every 6 minutes or so, cried during every one of them while gripping onto either Aaron's hand or the bed post. It was torture. But the nurse told me not to call or go in until my contractions were 4 minutes apart and had been for 2 hours. YEAH RIGHT! by noon on Friday I thought I was going to have the baby at my house. The pain was now moving down my back and I couldn't stand, yet the nurse still thought I was having back labor. She actually had me go into the doctor's office vs. the hospital?? really? yes. When I got to the doctor's office the nurse said "maybe you really are in labor?" YOU THINK? I was so upset. The doctor checked me and I was finally dilated, 4 cm to be exact. I got down to the hospital about 3 pm, had the epidural about 5 pm when I was about 6 cm dilated and had my water broken by the doctor right after. Once I had the epidural it was smooth sailing until 9 cm came. I then started feeling the contractions quite a bit and baby's heart beat started dropping. I won't get into too much detail because everything went fine and Dylan is here and healthy but there were a few scares and the pushing portion was just not what I thought. I didn't think I'd have to push so hard and quickly, but I did because they needed to get Dylan out. The umbilical cord was around his neck which was making his heartbeat drop :( so sad. But all is good. He's here and he's perfect! My mom, sisters and Aaron were all in the room. Yes, I know...we're a close family! They witnessed the whole thing. Aaron was absolutely amazing and did so good. He didn't freak out or get grossed out by anything. I was shocked. Not to mention I was getting sick the entire time I was pushing and he still didn't get sick :) haha. Our time in the hospital was much needed and Aaron stayed with me the entire time.

So overall, things are going very well. Definitely a complete adjustment, but each week gets better and better. He is growing so quickly and every day seems to change or do something new. Aaron and I are doing great! Aaron really adores Dylan and loves being a daddy. Herbie is also loving having a little brother. Surprisingly, Herbie is really good with him and always wants to cuddle with Dylan. Probably because he's oh so snuggly and warm. Dylan is now 6 weeks old! I promise not to wait so long before I write again. YES...I hope to write every month and keep you all posted on what new things Dylan is doing and will also post a new picture every month. Those of you not close by I'm sure will appreciate that!

Love to you all, Ali, Aaron, Dylan and Herbie

40 Weeks +1

Ok...I figured I'd write now and let you all know how today's appointment went vs. making you wait until Friday. I can't believe I forgot to ask the doctor how big my belly was measuring, but I did. I had way too much other stuff on my mind. Like why the heck I am still not dilated at all? Anyways, so all the usual stuff was fine (sugar, blood pressure, etc) and I gained 1/2 lb this week (probably the 1/2 lb that the baby gained). My doctor doesn't feel the need to let me go any later than next Wednesday if I haven't gone into labor by then. So...unless I go into labor on my own, Tuesday they'll do another ultrasound at 3 pm to ensure this baby isn't measuring too large. She thinks at that point he'll be about 10 lbs, assuming the ultrasound is accurate (plus or minus a little). Unless he's measuring astronomically large (which is anything larger than 10) she will let me go natural and only opt for a c-section if there are complications during labor or the baby just isn't making his way down. She likes to give everyone the chance to have a natural delivery whenever possible...which is fine by me, but I have to tell you all that I'm scared...scared to deliver that big of a baby naturally. Then Aaron and I will go back to the hospital Tuesday evening to have my cervix "ripened." Sorry everyone. I know that is a lot of information. What that means is that because my cervix is showing very little signs of being ready, they need to help get it ready through medications before actually inducing me on Wednesday morning. If they were to induce me on Wednesday morning without having "ripened" my cervix it would make for a very long and intense labor. Does all that make sense? Probably not...it didn't really to me. I just figure the doctor knows what she's talking about. Am I sad, scared, excited, happy, anxious? Yes, all of the above. I of course want to go on my own, which I still may. Maybe my original guess of 2/8 REALLY will come true!

Week 40

Well, I've made it to week 40, but our official due date is Tuesday the 3rd. I really hope I'm not writing another blog entry next Friday with the title Week 41 - yikes! I just want to meet the little guy and see who/what he looks like. Our doctors appt was on Wednesday this week and went well. Blood pressure and sugar are good, no weight gain this week, but my belly gained another 2 cm....now measuring 43 cm (3 cm large). I still am not dilated at all (although I know that can mean absolutely nothing) - boooo and the doctor was actually very nervous about the baby's size. She was actually throwing out numbers like 10-11 lbs. WHAT? So she decided to have an ultrasound done to get a better idea of the baby's weight...baby Katz is weighing in at a hefty 8 lbs 15 oz already. I know that estimate can be off, so I'm hoping they over estimated there. PLUS, he's still not here yet, so he's continuing to grow. Anyways, we'll see what she says on Wednesday if we still haven't gone into labor. Another bit of exciting news...today was my last day in the office for awhile. I'll work from home until he arrives, but it'll be nice knowing that I don't have to rush in the morning to get to work the week I'm due and can relax with my feet up doing work. So what else can I tell you??? What do you all want to know? How about you all just pray for me that I don't have to deliver a 10 lb baby :) ha. Until next week...will it be another mom picture? or will it be a baby picture?

Week 39

As promised here are a couple pictures of the baby's room thus far. We still have more to do, like put things on the walls, paint the toy box, book rack and side table that my dad built for us, but for now it's looking good. Cute huh! Our appt went well this week. Still not really much to report. My cervix is still closed, I'm 50% effaced, I gained 1 lb this week, blood pressure and sugar level is good and my belly is now measuring 2 cm large. Basically she said I should be measuring 39 cm (because I'm 39 weeks) but I'm measuring 41 cm. They don't get concerned unless it's mor or less than 2 cm, so we'll see where we are next week. As far as Aaron and I are concerned, we're both doing good. Keeping busy and trying to get more and more crossed off the "to do" list before baby gets here but of course resting as much as possible. I wish I could sleep more and be more comfortable when sleeping, but I've come to the realization that that's just not going to happen. But it's all worth it. I have to tell you, sometimes I honestly forget I'm pregnant and will look down at my still growing belly and think "holy crap...I could go into labor any second." It's a very very surreal feeling. I'm still feeling so many different feelings...I'm scared, I'm excited, I'm nervous, I'm anxious, but mostly I honestly just can't wait to see what/who he looks like. I know his features will change everyday for quite awhile but I really am just so excited to see him. Yeah!!! Oh, and I have to congratulate my girlfriend Liz and her husband Kevin. They had their baby (a girl - it was a surprise) on 1/18 and she is absolutely adorable. She was the last of my 3 girlfriends that were pregnant along with me to have her baby...it really is MY turn now! ahhhhhhhh. Let's see if I make it to a week 40 post :)

Week 38

Well, just a little over two weeks to go till my due date. However, if my initial prediction is accurate we'll have our little baby Katz on 2/8. Or maybe even later...maybe a Valentines Day baby? The doctor seems to think we're in it for the long haul though. My cervix is still completely closed :( but the baby is still in position. Who knows...I could go into labor tonight or 3 weeks from now. We'll let baby Katz call the shots on this one! The doctor also seems to think this little guy isn't going to be so little. She's predicting that he's mid 7's right now and that by the time I actually have him he'll be about 9 lbs. OUCH!!! Again...we shall see. I did gain 2.5 lbs this week though and I swear he's going to rip through my skin if he takes up anymore room in there. My sugar and blood pressure were great and my belly is measuring actually 1 cm large. She laughed at the shape of my belly today. She can't believe how "all belly" I am and laughed at the fact that when I laid down to have her measure me he must have pushed his back straight out because my belly looked like the cone heads :) haha. Anyways, I'm of course excited to meet baby Katz, but nervous at the same time and more anxious than anything. I sooooo badly want to see what he looks like, but want to throw up when I think about what my body is going to go through to meet him. ahhhhhh! Every woman must go through this at some point right? I know it'll all be ok, but WOW...what a thing to think about. Next appt is Thursday. We'll see what she says then.

Week 37

Wow, is the countdown on or what? 3 weeks remaining, or so we hope...I think :) However this past week I've definitely starting feeling him move his way down, or he was today at least. I tell ya, I think he was head butting me down there. Funny, but uncomfortable. And his little feet keep getting lodged into my ribs. I know it's good that I can feel him moving in there but it really is very uncomfortable lately...especially when sleeping. I can only lay on my left side and am barely getting any sleep at all. I know that's what I need to get used to, but I was really hoping for some sleep these last few weeks. We had our 37 week appt this week. Nothing new. Blood pressure, weight and baby's heartbeat are still looking great and NOPE, no dilation yet. I must say...these last few weeks are like nothing I've experienced before. I can't seem to think of much else besides the baby. What is he going to weigh? What and who is he going to look like? Is he going to have a lot of hair or none at all? We are both SO excited (obviously), but at the same time I'm having a lot of anxiety about the labor and delivery part of this whole thing. I know it's normal, but hopefully some of that anxiety will turn into pure excitement over the next few weeks. Our next appt is Friday of next week, we'll see if there's any progression, however if given the choice I may opt not to have the internal check done. NOT so comfortable. Sorry...again, that may have been a little too much information :) If you look close enough at my belly there appears to be a shadow on my left side...I honestly think that was the baby pushing on my side. Not to mention if you look close enough you can see the bright blue veins I have running all over my belly. It's crazy! Well...enjoy and we'll write again next week.