Almost 4 Weeks!

So on Monday Mason will be 4 weeks old!  He is now too tall for newborn clothes and has moved on to 0-3 months!  It's a little sad.  He has his 1 month old doctors appoinment for May 5th. 

Mason is now awake more during the day.  Actually his schedule is not ideal for Mom & Dad but this is how it goes usually.  Awake from 10am-1pm then a little nap until 3:30, then time to eat then back to sleep till 10pm (we really try to keep him awake but he just won't do it!) and then awake for a few hours (while I am fighting to keep my eyes open) and then finally sleep and he wakes up usually twice in the middle of the night/early morning.  I know you can't get a newborn on a schedule but as soon as we can we are doing it.  I am trying to get him to stay awake more during the day so I can sleep at night.  Mason also had his first night away from Mom & Dad.  Last Friday we went to Tomah and I got to stay at my parents house and sleep while Mason went to Grandma Oswald's house with Dad.  Then Saturday night my Aunt, Uncle, and Grandma were visiting my parents and they wanted to visit longer with Mason so they kept him overnight in Tomah while Russel & I went back to Eau Claire to visit my cousins.  We got a solid 7 1/2 hours of sleep uninterrupted.  It was sad to be away from him but nice to get some sleep.

Here are some pictures of the little man.  They are just random but one is from his 2nd bath (the first one we did quickly so there was no time for pictures).  He is not the biggest fan of the bath yet.  And then the very last one is him today in his first 0-3 months outfit.

2 Weeks Old!

Mason is 2 weeks old and I feel like it has been the longest & shortest two weeks of my life!  His face changes every day and mostly he is a good baby.  But he is still a baby and doesn't let mommy & daddy get a whole lot of sleep.  At least not in a row.  The longest he has slept through the night is 5 hours and the least is 2 hours.  Sometimes in the middle of the night when he is done eating he thinks that it is time to be up and awake.  Lately I have been fortunate that when he is done eating I can set him back him back in his bed and he will "talk"/grunt for a few minutes and then fall back asleep.  He also likes his pacifier and as you can see by the picture below he is starting to hold it in.

Mason Scott Oswald

April 5, 2010
10:45 am
9 lbs 2 ozs
19 1/2 inches


So here are a few pictures of our new baby boy!  I will post more information about his actual birth and other things later but as I am sure you understand - I have little time.  Also for those of you who don't have facebook here is a photo album of him!


Before

After

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2229600&id=59507700&l=68802b8bec

Finished Nursery

It seems like it took forever but we are finally done with the baby's room.  Pictures are hung, bedding is here, all the clothes are washed, everything has a place.  I know it isn't going to stay this organized forever but it is nice to have it ready. 

Looking into the room from the hall way.  Ally was relaxing in there as well.

The glider and bookshelf.

Close up of the bookshelf.  Has all his books and toys.  Plus we have quite a few empty picture frames that need to filled!

The crib with the bedding quilt hung on the wall until he is old enough to use it.

We took the bumpers that came with the bedding and made them into wall hangings because we are using a mesh breathable bumper which is better for air flow in the crib.  Plus we needed more wall decor.  We have the two long sides above the two windows and the two short sides above the doorway and closet.

Then we have the closet and changing table.  (Changing table is stock full of diapers, wipes, blankets, and bibs.)  Then we have some decorations above it.  Just a picture of a whale and penguin (which go with the bedding) and then I found a print of the numbers 1-10 in German so I had to get it.

Then finally his open closet.  The dresser doesn't match the rest of the room and wouldn't really fit so we put it in the closet.  Then all of his clothes are hung up except onesies and pj's.  Plus we have lots and lots and LOTS of wipes stored in there (which will be nice not having to stock up for a while) and size 1 diapers.  Also hanging up is his diaper bag (that Russel picked out because he won't mind carrying that one) and his paw print robe that his Aunt Melissa got him for Christmas.  Now he just needs a pipe to go with it. :)

Actually we do have one more thing to do.  There are these big letters for about $5 at Kohl's and we bought two since we are undecided on his name.  Once we know for sure and we get home from the hospital we are going to hang the correct letter up over by the glider and window.  We checked it out with both letters and they both look good.

38 Weeks!

Since I won't make it past 39 weeks (unless he magically flips head down) this is my second to last belly picture.  I will probably take one more Sunday night or Monday morning.  I don't think I look bigger than my last picture but I feel it.  No big changes except sleeping is harder to do again and this time it is making my hips hurt instead of my back.  Oh well...it's almost over.  Then my lack of sleep won't be from my big belly but from the baby.

Baby Boy is Big & Breech

So March 17th, Russel and I had two doctors appointments.  The first was my 36 week appointment where the Maternity Counselor (a nurse) tested me for Group B Strep (which came back negative), blood taken (hematocrit - 37%, which is good), and went over my birth plan.  She asked questions about pain medication, when I want the baby bathed, if Russel will cut the cord, etc.  Then she felt/measured my belly, where she asked if I was having a contraction (which I wasn't) and then said my belly was measuring 39 weeks!  I am thinking she measures differently than my doctor because this past Friday I was only measuring 37 weeks (right on).  After that she sent us on our way to our next appointment with the ultrasound tech for our growth ultrasound.  Well the first big news was that he is breech!  Which essentially means he is upside down.  However he isn't 'normal' breech, he is 'frank' breech.  His head is right between my ribs, his back is on my left side, butt down, and his feet straight up on my right side.  The picture below is a little creepy (google image) but that is what he looks like. 

The tech said she could see him grab his ankles and he probably sucks on his toes.  She tried to get a good profile/face picture for us but he kept hiding behind his feet and hands.  We got a picture of his boy bits again, his face (the best one she could get), and then she printed a picture of his hair!  I was surpised that we could see a picture of that but it is pretty cute.  I will try to post the pictures later but I don't have a scanner and it would be a picture of a picture. 

Well afterwards the tech did all her measurements on the computer and his projected weight is 8 lbs!  Obviously this can't be exact but that is their estimate.  He is in the 90th percentile which a baby at that time is supposed to be int he 50th so he is quite the big baby.  The doctor said it could be from the Gestational Diabetes but also could be that he is just big. 

Well the news about him being breech meant a couple things.  He could turn around on his own (which isn't too likely because of the size and I was already 36 weeks 3 days along), they could try to turn him (it is called an external version), or schedule a c-section.  Well after a lot of thinking and family opinions and because of many personal, physical, and financial reasons we decided not to have the version done.  There is only a 50% chance it would work (and end up with a c-section anyways) and there was a lot of other factors which wouldn't make it work either.  We decided to go for the scheduled c-section and my doctor was very nice about it.  However he did say that the day of the surgery he will have a portable ultrasound machine and if he had happened to flip by then I would get sent home and wait for labor.  I am pretty sure if he flips I will know it though because I can feel his head on the top of my belly and he is such a big boy!

So...coming up on the blog, 2 more belly pictures (before the big day), pictures of our finished nursery (just need to hang things on the wall), and I will try to post the ultrasound pictures.

P.S. ...

We have narrowed down the baby's name from 3 to 2 and we are pretty sure we have a strong front runner.  But it is a secret which one! :)