As Promised.... Cuteness

For some reason we amassed a very large collection of hats for Zander. Here are just a few that I've managed to get good pictures of.
1. Hospital Classic In Blue

2. The Football Hat

3. The Ewok

4. The Polar Bear

5. The Holly Jolly Christmas (Also Zander's 1 Week Old Picture)

Might have missed an update or two

As many of you are aware, Zander decided to come into our lives a little earlier than expected. After experiencing sporadic pains last weekend we were rest assured that Devin was just experiencing warm up contractions and had nothing more than that on our mind as we went in for her 34-35 week checkup. Much to everyone's surprise, the doctor's most of all, it seemed that Devin was dilated and there may not be much time to stop labor. No breaking of the water, no increasing contractions, no feeling that this was really happening at all. Just boom ! This is happening today.

They hurried us along downstairs to labor and delivery where we were placed in triage to get some fluids and medicine to stave off the delivery. After feeling fine during most of those 2 hours we were hopeful that we would be going home and Devin would just be on bed rest until it was time to really have the baby. But Zander had other plans. After 2 hours and recheck it was evident Zander's birthday would be Monday.

More than a million things raced through my mind as we made the short trip down the hall to a delivery room. Knowing the potential complications associated with pre-term delivery I was very close to falling apart. Would he be big enough, strong enough, far enough along to make it on his own? Would he be whisked away to the NICU for treatment I couldn't begin to imagine. It was too soon. When we were alone for the first time all we could do is cry, and pray, and pray some more. For his protection, for our guidance and serenity.

Visitors helped to pass the time between rechecks. I think if we had been left alone to worry we would have drove ourselves crazy. After just a few short hours, an epidural that only seemed to work in her right leg, and visits from the NICU staff to explain what would be happening once he came out it seemed it was "Go Time" as our friend Drew put it.

I won't trouble you with the graphic details of the next part of this story. I will just say that it went very well. And for being able to feel 95% of the pain because of a misplaced epidural Devin was amazing.

My heart raced as the doctors got their first look at our son. The words that followed were the most wonderful words I had ever heard. "This is a much bigger baby than we thought." As the doctor from the NICU examined him he told me that he looked fantastic and for being early they couldn't find a reason to send him to the NICU. I could feel my heart beating in my chest. I couldn't hide the fact that I was crying tears of joy for our miracle. Of course, being premature has it's complications. Feeding a baby thats just learning how to suck was the hardest part of the next 36 hours. (And the next few days at home for that matter) They had already informed us that our amazing Humana would force Devin to leave Wednesday morning because he had been born before midnight. We would be leaving with or without Zander. After an incredible team of nurses at Suburban spent hours with us and with him he hit all the milestones to come home at the same time that we did. It's amazing how things developed. So many things could have gone wrong at each different stage and he was here, healthy, and heading home... truly miraculous.

As I sit here now, in a sleepless night stupor, it's hard to believe we've already had him for an entire week. I guess when you fill your days with visitors, feedings, diaper changes, and an occasional insomnia induced coma time seems to fly by. Today we are taking him to the pediatrician for his 1 week check up. I'm just praying they don't want us to go back to the hospital. Praying that whatever we're doing for him seems to be the right thing. Wish us luck.

Warning! Blogs from this point on will have a cuteness factor of 10+. You've been warned.

October

Now nearing 28 weeks this pregnancy thing is really starting to sink in. Of course we have the normal new parent worries. "Will he like me? Will he sleep at night? Do we have everything ready in the nursery?" We probably have a few, not so usual, worries also. "Will he be switched at birth? Will wolves come and take him to be raised in the wild? Will a movie be made about his life involving priests and holy water?" You may laugh, but there are probably a million more scenarios that have come and gone through the ever paranoid brain of a soon to be father.

I'm reassured by my friends with older children that it only gets worse when they come out so some Xanax is probably in my not too distant future. Being prepared has always been my combatant to the anxiety and I think we are just about there. We have the nursery completed, the house safety proofed, and the major amenities purchased. Devin's baby shower is coming up in a few weeks and that should take care of most of the rest. Hopefully we can amass a collection of diapers to last us well into potty training. That would be nice. Now we just wait.... and wait some more.

We have managed to fill most of our free time with family and friends and adventures to the crazy expensive baby department at most stores. Time does really seem to be flying by as of late. Thursday will be the start of the coveted third trimester. It's still a little hard to believe. With the string of holidays and functions swiftly approaching, January will be here before we know it.

Yesterday, our good friends The Wheatley's took maternity pictures for us at Bernheim. They turned out fantastic. They run a photography business and do really awesome work. If you're interested in getting any type of pictures taken, or you want to look at ours, check out their FaceBook page and give them a like. It's Visual Flair Photography.

August / Sept. Happenings

Well there is certainly much to report since last we spoke. As of this writing we are officially over the half way point in the pregnancy. After some tense moments over the last couple weeks we got some pretty incredible news today. Everything appears to be right on track. The baby is developing on schedule and looks great on the ultrasound. We decided to find out what we're having and are pleased to report that we will be having a baby boy.

It's hard to describe how happy we are that we have made it to this point. After so much uncertainty we can now hopefully relax a bit and enjoy the rest of the wait. January isn't that far off after all. As warm as the weather has been the last couple of days, thinking about a brisk January day is quite nice. The name we have picked out for him is Zander Joseph. It makes me happy every time I say it. We've only known for a little over 12 hours and the child's wardrobe is filling out quickly thanks to the Little Treasures sale we went to today. This kids in trouble already.

In the excitement of all the baby news I almost forgot to report that my paramedic school is finally drawing to a close. I finished up my hospital and field ride time last week so now I just have to go take my national tests at the end of the month.
The timing on it couldn't be more perfect. Needless to say, it's been an exciting time around our household and we're looking forward to the next few months. Thank you for waiting so patiently for updates. Now that school is finished I might actually have a bit more free time to take up the sport of blogging again.

Because I know you want to see them here are a couple pictures of the ultrasound today.

July

Well, the idea of frequent updates seemed doable at first. I realize every 2 months is frankly not frequent so for that, sorry! Anyway, we've maintained a very busy schedule of work, school, and Dr.'s appointments the last couple of months and things are going very well. Paramedic school will be wrapping up in the next month or so which is definitely a big relief. As for baby news, there's not too much news to report. Other than that everything is going well. Devin is feeling much better now solidly into the 2nd trimester. These middle of the road Dr.'s appointments don't give us much to talk about. We won't have another ultrasound until 20 weeks. That will be September 2nd and surely we will finally find out what we are having at that appointment. Bets have been placed and team girl seems to be in the lead. But I'm not so sure. In the mean time the baby's room has underwent a dramatic transformation from empty room to crowded living quarters. I will post pictures later today of the work we've done so far. We'll have to wait until September to get the details going but we're pretty happy with the way it's turning out. More updates to come... eventually. Stay tuned.

-Joseph

And now for something completely different.

If you're reading this tonight I imagine I peaked your interest on FaceBook so instead of beating around the bush I will come out and say it. Devin is pregnant. Yes, it's true. No, I'm not kidding. How? I will attempt to answer below if you are able to continue reading. If that's enough information for you, please feel free to stop here. Thank you for reading. If not, continue on.

A few weeks ago I took Devin to the hospital suspecting she was in the middle of an ectopic pregnancy. Having experienced that before we had prepared ourselves for the eventual outcome. The emergency room agreed and recommended that we proceed with a medicinal procedure to solve the ectopic and prevent any harm to Devin. Again, that is a road we had been down before. Somehow, I suppose by the nature of it being midnight the doctors decided to take another look the following morning and decide what to do. After a very long night staring at the ceiling in Suburban Hospital the next test looked worse than before and emergency surgery was recommended.

It's hard to describe the thoughts that swirled around the next few hours. I can tell you that there was a healthy dose of praying involved. The rest is really a blur. During surgery the Dr. came out to speak to me only minutes after the surgery had began. What I expected her to say and what she said were two very different things. Basically, what they thought they saw, they didn't now. What they didn't see before they don't know about, and if you're confused now, imagine how I felt on 2 hours of sleep. There was no ectopic. Everything looks good. We're going to end the surgery and wait this thing out.

Another night of sleeplessness led to an early visit from the Dr. who said looking very astonished herself, that she is still pregnant according to blood work and you can go home. We won't be able to tell you anything more for a few days. Confused, and incredibly worried we were sent on our merry way home. The yard sale benefiting our adoption was 2 days later. So if you came, I apologize for being forced to lie. We simply didn't have any answers ourselves. We appreciate all the support whether it was donating items, or coming to shop. It was a hard day. We raised a good deal of money and we will be making a donation of part of our earnings to Kosair's art department. We just feel like we need to pay it forward so to speak for the gift we were given.

The following Monday we went in for another appointment where they were able to tell us that yes, she was still pregnant and they were able to show us evidence. Still though, the doctor's didn't give us a whole lot of hope saying that because of the surgery and other things going on they just didn't know what would happen. Again, we were sent home without much. More hope than before, but still confusion. Today, almost 3 weeks later we went back to the doctor and were able to hear the miraculous sound of a heartbeat. It's safe to say that I've never been happier in my life. The doctor gave everything a good bill of health, drew blood, told us they still didn't quite understand how this happened, congratulated us, and that was that.

We have spent quite a bit of time discussing when we thought we should tell people. To be honest, we had wanted to wait. Since she was hospitalized and I was shady in my answers to several questions there was a lot of suspicion and it was determined that it was going to get out before we got around to telling anyone. That would have been a disaster. So here we are, telling the world. A couple of you had already figured it out and I appreciate you keeping it to yourselves and off FaceBook. It really means a lot to us. As it looks, January 19th is our expected due date. Begin praying now for sunshine and fifty degree weather instead of the mess of the last few winters.

The amount of events that had to happen the way they did, in the order they did, and without causing harm to anyone involved is truly nothing short of a personal miracle. Thank you all for the support you have given us through everything, the infertility, the adoption process, and now this. We will definitely be needing the support now more than ever. It's almost time to start the next chapter. Thank you for reading. Good night.

I have realized that blogging falls to the bottom of the priority list when I get busy. That might explain why there have been no updates for the last two months. Life has indeed been very busy. Paramedic class is in full swing and I'm doing every thing I can to stay on top of the workload. I spent several days preparing to have our taxes filed and avoid being audited. The hard work paid off and we managed to come out on top by $1.07. That money is going straight into the bank. With that stressor behind me I believe my ulcer can return to it's normal semi-nuisance status. And that's really all I've been up to. I know it doesn't seem like a lot but I can promise you it feels like I've been busy. Maybe it's that I've been lazy. I'll admit to that too.