One Year Anniversary

This past year has been without a doubt the best year of our lives.  One year ago on March 10, Daniel and I got married in extremely wet and cold conditions.  When I say wet that is truly an understatement.  It rained like it was never going to rain again.  I thought we were going to need to build an ark to survive it.  Needless to say it was the most unforgettable yet most beautiful day I could have ever imagined.

We spent the day without our sweet Alex (thanks mom and dad for keeping him!)  We went and had lunch in town at Hofbrau, then went wine tasting in Fredericksburg, and ended the day with dinner at Wildfish.  

At Grape Creek where my honey proposed to me on July 23, 2011.

After 10+ months of not drinking I indulged in a adult beverage.  Holy cow.  You can imagine how I felt after consuming this but dang was it good.

Here's to many more years of love, happiness, and laughter!  

WAAAHHHHH!!!!!

For all the "parents-to-be" I thought I would just give you a preview of what life REALLY looks like with an infant on a daily basis.

I post a lot of cute, fun, and sweet pictures of our little man because he is cute, fun, and sweet.  I'm a proud momma and I love showing him off.  However, let's be real for a minute.  Babies cry.  Babies cry A LOT.  It is how they communicate and they aren't always happy all the time.  We see this.  Daily.

Alex cries when he is hungry, has a doozie of a diaper, wants to suck on something, is overly tired, or just simply bored.  If someone ever tells you that they have the best baby and their baby never cries they are LYING TO YOU.

I look at this picture and I laugh because even though clearly he isn't happy here he is still so freaking adorable.

So with all that said embrace the crying.  It is normal.  It means your baby is healthy.  It DOES NOT mean they don't like you.

That is all =)

All smiles!

You officially started smiling back at us on Sunday, March 2, just shy of 5 weeks.  Melts.  My.  Heart.  We will smile at you and you love to smile back.  I love knowing you know our voices and faces and it gives you joy to see and hear mommy and daddy.  I can't wait to start hearing your giggles to go along with that infectious grin.

1 month checkup

Alex had his 1 month checkup yesterday.  Here are some updated stats:

Weight:  10 lbs!
Length:  20 3/4 in.

He got his 2nd Hepatitis B shot and a heel prick to check his bilirubin levels.  He has had some yellowing in his eyes since birth so the doctor just wanted to rule out liver problems.  His results showed that his levels are perfectly normal and healthy and some babies who are breastfed have yellowing in their eyes and that is exactly what it is.  Thank goodness!  We don't have to stop breastfeeding and it should just go away on it's own with time.

When they pricked his heel he squealed but quickly calmed down.  His shot on the other hand...HOLY COW!  He turned the brightest shade of red and couldn't even get his cry out for about 5 seconds he was so upset.  When he did cry it was as if the world was ending.  WOWZA!  It seriously broke my heart to see him so upset but somehow I kept it together.  Somehow.  He did get a super cute Tweety bandaid at the end of his appointment.  I joked with Daniel that if he were old enough we would be taking him to get ice cream after that appointment.  Someday =)

His next appointment I am already dreading.  At 2 months they get 4 different shots.  4 shots.  In one appointment.   Momma is going to need a bottle of wine after that appointment!

1 month old already?!

I seriously cannot believe how fast our little man is growing.  One month?  ALREADY?!  Time needs to seriously slow the heck down.  Here is what our sweet baby is up to at a month old:

Weight:  Last appointment he was 7 lbs 13 oz.  I guarantee he is over 8 lbs by now.  We will get an official weight next week.
Length:  Last appointment he was 19 3/4 in.      
Size he is wearing:  Still in newborn clothes although they are starting to finally get a little snug.  I never imagined he would be wearing newborn clothes this long as well as newborn diapers.  He is literally swimming in 0-3 month clothes.
Development:  Our little man can hold his head up like a champ and has insane neck control.  He is far from being a bobble head.  He cries when he is hungry and wants to be held but coos and sighs a lot when he is content.  He is also looking in our eyes now and smiles quite a bit.    
Funny things he does:  He makes the craziest faces.  One minute he will be smiling and the next sticking his tongue out at you like he is disgusted by your presence.
Daily activities:  Diaper change, eat, sleep, and repeat.  We have started tummy time and he likes it for about 5-10 minutes and then is over it.
Sleeping:  During the day he naps after eating and having his diaper changed.  He usually sleeps between 2-3 hours and at night it is closer to 3 hours and sometimes a little more (although it is very rare).  He also has started staying awake for 2-3 hours at a time a couple times a day.
Eating:  He drinks breast milk from a bottle.  Breastfeeding was extremely difficult for the both of us so pumping has been a lifesaver.  I have never been so happy with my choice.  He takes 3.5-4 oz at each feeding and loves, I mean LOVES to eat.  He will grunt and sigh when he is eating.  When you take the bottle away to let him burp he gets very fussy.
Things he loves:  Snuggling on mom or dad's chest, his rock and play sleeper, swaddling blankets as long as his hands are kept free, and eating.
Things he hates:  Diaper changes, bath time, and when we don't warm his bottle up fast enough.
How Mom and Dad are doing:  I feel 100% normal now after my c-section.  The first two weeks were very rough but I am feeling great now.  We both have finally got used to the crazy sleep schedule (although still in a zombie like state some of the day).  I have been off for a month now and still have 3 weeks left (which makes me extremely sad).  Dan has been working very hard but we are so blessed he works from home and we get to see him as much as we want.

Rub a dub dub!

I am not sure why but I have been seriously looking forward to giving Alex his first bath.  We have been able to give him sponge baths, but have just recently been able to give him a real bath in his WAY cute whale tub, since his umbilical cord has fallen off.  I am in love with his bath tub and all his hooded towels.  Also baby wash smells heavenly.

These were taken when we could just give him a sponge bath.  I am in love with all things ducky when it comes to baths.  So cute.

There were times he liked it...

And times he definitely didn't!

Post bath.  All wrapped up and toasty.

Seriously.  How precious is this kid?!

Our sweet blessing =)

 Alexander Duane Barnes was born on January 29, 2013 at 12:58 p.m.  He weighed a perfect 7 lbs and measured 18.5 inches long.

The birth of our son was planned because he was breech.  We had a scheduled C-Section so we don't have any crazy stories about how my water broke at the grocery store or how I was in labor for 24 hours.  We just woke up on Tuesday, got our things ready, said goodbye to our dogs, and went to the hospital.

The thought of a C-Section scared the crap out of me.  Even though it is a routine procedure it still made me very nervous.  I wasn't just having a baby.  I was being cut open as well AND you are awake while they do it.  However, all I wanted was a healthy baby and if this is how God wanted Alex to come into the world than so be it.

We arrived at the hospital, got situated in our labor and delivery room and then started waiting.  The only two things that kept me calm was Daniel by my side and the sound of Alexander's heartbeat on the fetal monitor.  I couldn't believe in just a matter of hours we were going to meet our son.

Once we arrived in the operating room I really started to freak out.  Daniel had to get suited up and wait outside until they were done prepping me which I really didn't like.  I wanted him in there the whole time holding my hand.  Surprisingly enough the epidural was not bad at all.  It was the numbing shot they give before the epidural that totally sucks!  It feels like someone has set your back on fire.  However the anesthesiologist was amazing.  He walked me through everything he did and was constantly checking on me.  He could tell I was nervous and kept talking to me to keep me calm.   Once the shots set in I was numb from the chest down which was really odd.  They quickly set the blue curtain up and Daniel was allowed to come in and sit down before they started.

Things moved really fast from there.  Before I knew it the doctors asked Daniel if he had a camera and if he wanted to stand up and watch.  I started hearing doctors say "one foot is out", "there is the other foot", and "we have another arm".  I felt a lot of tugging, pulling, and pressure inside my abdomen.  It is weird to feel so much but not feel pain at all.  Then I heard Daniel tell me they had him all the way out.  About a minute later they brought him around curtain to show him to me before they cleaned him up and then I heard him start to cry.  It was the most beautiful sound I had ever heard.

They cleaned him up quickly, swaddled him and brought him to me.  I couldn't stop crying.  He was perfect.  A perfect little angel.

We spent Tuesday-Friday in the hospital and got to go home Friday afternoon.  We have since been spending a lot of time snuggling as a family of three and staring at our sweet baby.  We can't believe he is really ours and are in constant awe of what a blessing he is to us and our families.