Belly Series

Pictures of the belly growing from week 4 to week 38.  If you click on it it should get bigger.

One Month Old!

I can't believe our baby is already one month old!  She has gotten so big already too!  We went to the doctors on Wednesday to check her weight, and she gained 8 ounces in 7 days.  That was more than we ever expected, so I guess all the ice cream and shakes from Taffy's did the trick.  So as of Wednesday our little bruiser weighed in at 6 pounds 3 ounces.
This week we celebrated Shannon's birthday at Aunt Joannes house, and Regan was a highlight of the party again (along with Shannon's new dog Rosa).  There's no shortage of people that want to carry her around, and she enjoys it.  

She has also started to consistently sleep about 4 to 4.5 hours at a stretch at night.  Mom and Dad are very grateful for this, and hope that it continues.  Sleeping through the night looks like it may be in our near future.
We tried out our sling this week, because Regan has not been sleeping as much as she used to during the day.  It works out really well because she enjoys being on the move, and mommy can still get things done around the house.  It took a few tries to position it perfectly, but once we figured it out it was very comfortable for the both of us.
Lately Regan has been pulling the "binky" in and out of her mouth herself.  This picture shows her holding it tightly in her mouth.  
Daddy came home from his training early and got to spend the afternoon with us.  This is the position they are currently in as I write this.  Regan looks very comfortable, but daddy looks like he might want to get up.  However, it doesn't look like he's going anywhere anytime soon.

Week 3

Regan's third week was all about meeting new people and going new places.

We spent her first Easter and Grandma and Grandpa Gannon's house, and Grandma and Grandpa Kerl came for dinner along with the two Great Grandmas. She slept all through dinner, and then the rest of the clan came over during dessert. Six second cousins, 2 great aunts, 1 great uncle, 2 great-great aunts, and 1 great-great uncle. Everyone had to have their turn holding her, so we played "pass the baby".Mommy tried to take some cute Easter pictures of her posing in her Easter basket with her pink bunny... baby Regan was NOT having it; hence her miserable face in this picture:On Wednesday we went back to the pediatrician for a weight check. Regan weighed in at 5 pounds 11 ounces. So the good news was that she is back over her birth weight, the bad news is that she didn't gain as much weight as they would have liked. So mommy was promptly given the task of eating a bowl of ice cream every day, to try and fatten her up. We shall see if this proves to fatten mommy or Regan in the long run.

This week we started laying her on her activity mat so she can listen to the music and look at the toys. We also do "tummy-time" on it. It was popular with her for a few minutes, but Cosmo loved it! I even caught him playing by himself with the toys this morning.In addition to her trips to the doctor, we have started to go for walks around the neighborhood. It is nice to be able to visit Great-Great Aunt Kay, who is just around the corner. We spent about an hour there the other day visiting with the great aunts and uncle.

Here are a few pictures from this week:

Week 2

This week it seems that we have all be adjusting to life with Regan. Daddy had his last half day of work on Monday, so he was back to full time on Tuesday. We miss him a lot during the day, but thankfully Regan has remained her calm self during the day, and mommy is able to get a few things done around the house.
Sunday we also gave Regan her first bath on Sunday, because her umbilical cord fell off last week. She didn't seem to mind the water, and didn't cry at all while being bathed. She did have a very serious look of concern on her face though.

Afterwards I think she was happy to be all wrapped up in her warm towel. Hopefully she enjoys the bath enough to make it a welcome part of our routine. She smells so nice when she is all clean!

Also, this week mommy got sick of her socks falling off because her feet are so small, so I found a pattern for some little shoes online. They only took about an hour to make. She seems to like them, and they fit perfect! Hopefully this will solve our cold feet problem.

Sunday night Regan experienced her first Wrestlemania, and Jen, Andy, Erin and Colin came over to watch it too. On Tuesday Dr. G and baby Melanie stopped by to visit and Regan behaved well by sleeping the whole entire time.

Regan's First Week

We have all been adjusting very well to Regan's first week at home. She's a pretty happy baby, and sleeps most of the day, waking up about every 3 hours or so to eat. So far we have had only one "bad night" where she was fussy and didn't want to sleep, but other than that we have been very lucky. Mom and dad are still trying to get used to the idea of being up at 3 o'clock in the morning, but we are getting used to it. The cats on the other hand, and beat tired by the time morning comes around. They are not used to all this activity at night. They have both been very good with the baby so far, and watch her attentively. This morning she started crying and Pita came running to her side to see what the problem was... I have been calling her "Nanny Pita".

This week Tuesday was Regan's first trip to the Doctors office. She did really well in the car and didn't cry at all the whole time She gained one ounce since leaving the hospital on Friday, and they said she should reach her birthweight again in about two weeks. Everything else checked out really well, and we go back in a few weeks to weigh her again. Also, her umbilical cord stump fell off last night when I went to change her. Now she has the cutest little belly button!

Regan Has Arrived!

As many of you already know, Regan Jean Kerl arrived on Tuesday!

Regan Jean Kerl

Born March 24th, 2009

5 pounds, 10 ounces

18 inches

Baby and mom and dad are doing great!

More to come when we get home from the hospital!

The Last Day

Today is our last day as a family of two.  I made my last run to Target for a few things, then Kevin and I went to Tina's for a final dinner out.  These things won't happen again for a while, I have a feeling.

I've been feeling great all day, but now that I sit here typing this, mere hours away from our big event...the nerves are setting in.  I am so excited it's unbelieveable...BUT, I still have to undergo major surgury tomorrow, and that makes me uneasy and nervous.  I know that everything will be fine, and it's one of those things that I will forget all about once I am holding my beautiful baby in my arms.  

I will be bringing my laptop to the hospital and will hopefully be able to post a few pictures tomorrow or Wednesday.  Wish us luck!  Talk to everyone soon!

Week 38

This is the last full week of my pregnancy! This time next week we will be the proud parents of a baby girl! Time has just flown by so quickly now, and it seems like yesterday we were making our big announcement to the world.

This week we made our last trip to Babies R' Us to get the last few "essentials", though I'm sure there will be a few more trips for the things we will inevitably need. However, I think I will be sending Kevin on those trips, because I still can't stand the sight of that place!

I went to the Dr. today, Kevin had a meeting at work, so Kannan was the 3rd party in the room today. We just chatted about any questions I had about the surgery, and I got all of the paperwork for the hospital. Now all we have to do is wait for Tuesday to get here.

I'm really excited that we get to meet our baby, but I am so nervous about the surgery, and just becoming a mom. I know that there is nothing to be worried about, it's just the fact that all the dreaming about it is going to become "real" next week, and I just hope that I'm as prepared as I can be.

This week I decided that I need to finish a blanket that I had started making about a year or two ago... because otherwise it will never get done. So I guess I converted it into a baby play blanket... I just finished it this morning.

Next time I post will be Monday night!

Week 37 - Full Term!

"At week 37, your pregnancy is considered full term, meaning baby is likely to thrive after birth. Baby spends these last weeks in preparation for the outside world… meaning careful refinement of the blink, suck, inhale and exhale. Meconium, which you’ll probably find in the first diaper, is accumulating in the intestines. If (okay, as) you worry about giving birth, consider what it’s like for the little one. During the journey out of your womb, baby will produce more stress hormones than any other time in life. "

This weeks marks the baby being full term, which means that she could really make her appearance at any time now. We went to the Dr. on Thursday, and I gained 7 pounds in two weeks! The Dr. said it was probobly water weight and it's not a big deal to worry about such a big gain. Kannan was there working on her OB rotation for PA school, so it was fun to have her there too!

A little after the appt. they called me to officilly schedule the surgry for Tuesday March 24th at 9:30am. So we have to be at the hospital two hours before hand so that I can have some blood drawn and an IV catheter placed. I'm seeing a lot of needles in my future. One for the blood draw, one for the IV, a few for the spinal block, one for the actual spinal... and probobly a few more post-op. Fun, fun! But I know it will all be worth it in the end!

Only two more entries until the baby is here!

Week 36

Well, my freezer is officially full of all kinds of casseroles and other easy freezer meals. Kevin and I will not starve once the baby gets here. I even got a sign of good luck while I was cooking; double yolks!

This week we went over to Beth's for Derek's 5th birthday party. He patted my belly and told me that the baby was getting really big in there and that I'm starting to look like Santa. I think that it's great that he is even concerned about the baby at this point. He said that when the baby is born she is going to be very small and you have to be gentle with her, "like Jack". Jack is my in-laws little dog (see picture), who we tell Derek he has to be gentle with because he has "little bones". Too cute.
This weekend we had our all-day childbirth class, which we didn't really need to take, but I think we would of felt like bad parents if we didn't attend something. It was from 8am to 5pm.... ugh. We sat through videos, did "breathing exercises", and learned all about childcare. The truly interesting part was the tour of the delivery rooms, and recovery. We got to oogle at all of the babies in the nursery too! It really hit home, the fact that those people will be us in about two weeks!

Week 35

Well this week was my official last week of work. I have three weeks of maternity leave before the baby is born, and there is so much to do! Today I went to Wegmans and dropped about $200 on groceries to make a ton of freezer meals. I cooked for 4 hours straight today, and only got a few meals done.

I also got my completion coupon for Target in the mail today. So now I have to figure out what I need left on the registry and make an online order so that we can have everything here before the baby comes!

Today I'm including some updated pictures of the baby's room. It still needs some work, like a shelf above the mirror and we still need to order the glider. This week we have to install the car seats in both cars, and hopefully go shopping at Target to get our 10%off.

So much to do! So little time!

Ladies and Gentleman we have a birthdate!

So we went to the doctor today and set a date for the c-section.  I gained a pound since the last time I was there three weeks ago.  The Dr. measured my belly, and I was measuring small.  He thought this was because the baby might still be breech, so he got us in for an ultrasound to see the baby's position and measure the fluid around the baby.

Much to everyone surprise, baby Regan is head down!  She was moving around quite a bit, but we got some measurements that put her at about 4lbs 10oz.  The ultrasound tech said that she would likely be a little less than 7 pounds.  

The doctor said that everything looked good, and that March 24th would be out surgery date, unless I go into labor before then.  Here is a picture of her cute chubby face from today:

Week 34

This week in our baby bump picture I didn't chop off my face so that I could show off my new "mommy" haircut. On Thursday I lost about 7 inches of hair, and I love it!

The belly is ever-expanding, and baby Regan spends a lot of her time kicking mommy in places that cause pain, such as major organs. I am fairly certain that she is still breech, but we may find out for sure on Wednesday at the Dr's.

This week is also my last week at work, and while I will miss everyone there dearly while I am gone, I am very excited to have some time to rest at home, and get things done that need getting done. The nursery is coming together now, after we organized all of our gifts from the shower. Kevin and I made a trip to Babies R' Us on Friday to use some coupons we had on things we still needed.

Babies R' Us is about the most frustrating place on the planet. Everyone who works there is "strange" in their own special way, you need a hieroglyphics decoder to read the registry print out, and obviously nearly everyone shopping there is either largely pregnant or toting a small child, so you think they should make the isles slightly wider than the normal store!

We were looking for the mobile for the crib, and the sheet said that it was in the store but... Location: Unknown
What? You have it, but you can't tell me where to find it...?

Searching for something in this place makes me want to give up and cry... but we persevered and managed to get everything we came for. A trip to Target followed on Saturday to pick up a few more things and some inevitable essentials like diapers and wipes.

I think we are officially at the point where if she decided to come today, we would be OK. I have her bag packed for the hospital, and put as many things as I can live without in a bag for myself, so I am feeling prepared. I think I will spend the next four weeks cleaning the house, making some small final preparations, and resting. I can't wait!

Week 33 and Baby Shower

This week was so much fun in anticipation of the baby shower on Sunday. Mom and I worked on the favors and the prizes for the games on Wednesday, and everything came together very well!

Willie was in charge of making the cake, and I told her she could do whatever she wanted with the design... boy did she wow us all...

Isn't that amazing!!! Do those letters above the baby look familiar? That's because they are just like the ones hanging on her orange bedroom wall!
We received so many great gifts from everyone, and we are truly blessed to have so many caring friends and family. I'm so happy that so many people are excited about our new addition!
More pictures to come!

New Produce

Week 33 makes me officially 8 months along and I get a New Produce!
"Baby’s senses are continuing to improve -- when light peeks in through your (extremely) stretched belly, those tiny eyelids and irises blink and dilate. And, baby can now recognize and react to simple songs… time to start practicing your lullabies! Growth (at least inside your womb) is starting to slow, and you may notice baby descend into your pelvis at the end of this month. "

Week 32

This week has been another relatively uneventful one for us. We are getting the preparation finished for the shower this weekend, getting baskets and favors ready. We went out to Kevin's parents on Sunday morning and went through some baby clothes that they had from Derek. Also, Kevin's mom got a great deal on a cute lamp that we will use in the baby's room.

Work went well this week... I am not as sore as I was last week, but I am finding that things are becoming increasingly harder to do. My official last day of work is Friday, February 27th... let the countdown commence.

As far as I can tell, the baby is still breech... she has been very active this week, kicking and shaking around. She makes my whole belly giggle, and you can watch it move from across the room.

Next update I will post pictures from the shower!

Week 31... a little late

Finally updating for week 31. Nothing too exciting to report this week. We went to the Doctor today, and I have gained 22 pounds so far. Baby is measuring right on track... my belly is 31.5cm (ideally it's 1cm for every week).

We talked about a c-section today. The baby is still breech, but he told me that we have until 36 weeks for her to flip. We may still do a c-section because of my pelvic issues and tail-bone stuff... but that will be decided at the 37 week appointment. He did tell us if we do have surgery it will either be March 23rd or 24th... so those are potential birthdates!

The baby shower is two weeks from this past Sunday! I am so excited because I think once we have all of our "baby stuff" I will start feeling better prepared. Right now I really want to start "nesting" but we are severely lacking important things like... the stroller, crib mattress, etc...

More updates to come!