Maggie- 1 month old

On April 27th, Maggie turned 1 month old!

Here are some things Maggie is up to:
Little Miss M is super sweet and spends her time like any other infant: eat, sleep, eat, eat, poop, eat, sleep... She seems to be going through a growth spurt as she gained 2 pounds since birth and grew 1 inch!  So much for being concerned that she'll grow!  She's doing great with eating, which is actually something that is watched with preterm and preemie babies.  She's still low on the charts for "normal" infants, but doing well on the "premature baby" chart.  Yes, there are two charts I've learned.
She's still in newborn size clothes and diapers, but filling them out better each day.
She's having more awake time now and we love seeing her big blue eyes!  She especially loves seeing her big brother and is starting to follow him with her gaze. (Sometimes she can't help but look at him as he is no more than 2 inches from her face. Gosh he loves his Maggie!!)
Along with her daytime awake time comes more fussy time.  Oh well, I guess she is a normal kid!! Yet really, she only usually tends to cry when she's hungry or when she's "messed with" (diaper changes, bath, etc.).
Noisy?  I'd say so! Little Miss is pretty noisy, like her brother was.  We always know where she is in a room due to her little noises and grunts- even when we think she's sleeping.
Sleeping during the night has improved and she's been giving Mama 5 hour stretches! Yay!
She's a strong little girl and moves her head around a bit.  We've started small amounts of tummy time and she does a great job, and practices moving her head then, too.
She likes mat time now, too, as she loves moving her arms and legs.

Sweet Maggie Jane! Our family of 4.

On March 27, my water broke around 5am and then contractions started.  We were having a baby!! It was Easter Sunday- such an amazing blessing!!  The water breaking was just like with Asher- considered a “slow leak”.  I have to admit that my heart started pounding and I was very concerned since it was so early- I was 36 weeks/2 days.  My doctor felt that since she was past 36 weeks, there was no reason not to deliver her.  We were told to head straight to the hospital!  

Brandon and I then laughed at the fact that we didn’t have bags packed or really finished getting things ready for her.  At the same time I had a peace that it didn’t matter and all would work out.  Ironically we had watched “Happiest Baby on the Block” the night before. 

We got to the hospital, they put me in triage and we were on our way.  I had an “uneventful” C-section (as Dr. Carter said- his favorite kind).  Sweet Maggie arrived at 9:44am.  All said she looked great, yet tiny.  She came in at 5lbs. 8oz, 18.5 in.  She was pretty darn perfect!!

Oh, and the million dollar question on everyone's mind- YES, she is a redhead!  So adorable, yet B and I just laugh that we have 2 redheaded kids!!

The nurses then started talking about how she was “grunting.”  I’m told this is a sign of her trying to get fluid out of her lungs.  It happens with C-section babies, and also “pre-term” (she’s considered pre-term, not preemie).  I was able to hold her for a short time in the recovery room, but then was advised that she needed to go to the NICU.  My heart sank, but of course I wanted what was best for her.  They said if she was there, she would have constant monitoring.  She was there for a long 6 hours.  It was so hard being without her!  (B was able to go visit her at least.)  Yet, we got back good reports that she never needed assistance (oxygen, medicine) and the grunting ceased on its own.  We got her back on day 1 around 9:30pm. 

This all also made for antsy family members who were not able to meet/see her until day 2. We had my mom bring over Asher to meet her first.  She was able to shoot a video of their first interaction.  Ash said she was a “good baby.”  Later that day he started asking to hold her and even sang her a song.  He’s been very good with her.  So precious!  

Sweet Maggie Jane is an amazing baby and perfect addition to our family.  So excited to finally be a family of 4!!

36 Weeks

Little did I know this would be the last picture taken of me before our Maggie arrived just 2 days later!

Pre-Baby Getaway

Boy, did we time this right!!!
Brandon and I wanted to take advantage of his Spring Break time to get away for just a couple of days.  We also knew that it would be the last opportunity to do so before our sweet girl arrived.
So, we headed to San Diego, which I love.  (Plus, flying was not an option for me.)
We had such a great time!! And, I felt really good for those 2 days- not the norm for me.  We chose the Gaslamp Quarter because I think it's super cute.  Also great was a free hotel- thanks to all the traveling B has done lately.  We walked around, took our time, and enjoyed everything.  To top it off, we had one of the best dinner's we've ever had.  Brandon would say it was the best for him.  The Water Grill.  If you are ever in SD you should really check it out.  Everything we had was great!!  And you have to try the Chilean Sea Bass- to die for!
Such a great weekend!!

Big Boy and Baby Girl

As baby girl is on her way, we wanted to make sure that Asher had a very special big boy room.  We actually got everything set up the end of December.  I went with a transportation theme. He loves it!!
I'm also excited that I was able to use a solid wood armoire and nightstand that have been in my family since I was little.

We then turned Asher's old room into Maggie's nursery.  I really surprised myself when I found out I was having a girl and decided I wanted all things pink and frilly.  (I was very against "cutesy" baby stuff with Ash.)  We combined some old and new pieces and I really like how it turned out.  

32 Weeks

Getting closer!

28 Weeks

A bit late in posting but here's another belly shot!