Yep, I love him

When I was pregnant with Wyatt I wondered how in the world my heart would find room to love another little boy with the intensity that I loved Logan & Jack with. I wondered if I could want to hold, cuddle, kiss & coo over another little one.

Well now he's here.

And I love him.

love him

LOVE him!

He is my most precious treasure and despite our surprise at God's timing, Wyatt was meant for us.  I feel like he's been part of our family forever. I feel so blessed by him.

Happy Fathers Day

 Happy Fathers Day

to a Daddy who is

fun,

 joyful,

 tender,

and adored.

Logan, Jack, Wyatt & I are so lucky to have you in our lives.

You are our hero.

We love you.

Wyatt Nathanial Cunningham

Wednesday June 15, 2011 at 9:39pm

We welcomed

Wyatt Nathanial Cunningham

into our family

Weighing 8 pounds, 14 ounces

and measuring 20 & a half inches long

he is our perfect treasure!

40 Weeks + 2 Days = 23 Days Old

(Jack & Logan)

 If I had given birth to Wyatt at 37 weeks, as I did Logan & Jack, he would be 23 days (or a little over 3 weeks) old at this point.  This is what the boys looked like on their 23rd day here on earth.  Makes me wish this little man would make his debut already so I could squish him up properly!!!

I have been having contractions since about 2am this morning, but just when I think things are heating up, they will fade out and I'll be down to just three or four contractions an hour.  They are pretty strong contractions, they take my breath away, but at such random intervals, they aren't leading to active labor just yet.

Mr. Wyatt seems content to make his arrival on his schedule.  Tomorrow I have an early morning appointment with my awesome certified nurse midwife (CNM) and I am anxious to see if I am dilated at all, and what (if anything) she wants me to do to encourage this little brother to come out & meet his family.

Meanwhile, I am weary of pregnancy now and quite sassy to those around me... Sincere apologies... I'm so tired, though, and my back is really done carrying around the 25 pounds I've gained. I'm really  not sure how my mom did it- my little sister was THIRTEEN days late. Can you imagine?

Random stranger: "When are you due?"

My mom: "Two weeks ago."

Ha!

I would lose my mind!

I am hopeful that my next post will be from the laptop in one of the birthing suites at Southwest (our local hospital) announcing that I have finally laid eyes on my third son.  If nothing else, though, I will be sure to let you know what my CNM says at my appointment tomorrow!

40 Weeks

 (Please pardon my self-portraits!)

 Today marks 40 Weeks exactly in this, my second pregnancy.  And while I am not always comfortable, I am plugging along pretty well.  I can still tag along with the boys at the park, put on my own shoes (with minimal grunting) and vacuum the living room.  This is in marked contrast with my first pregnancy!

From what I can tell, nothing is going on in terms of labor starting.

I really have no idea when little brother is going to make his debut.

But we are all ready to meet him!!!

Identical

I am currently working on Wyatt's baby journal/album doing the family tree & pregnancy pages.  It's the same book I had for the boys, so I am using theirs as a guide for what I include. I adore this baby book and recommend it to anyone having a baby or going to a baby shower. It was only $12 at Walmart online and has tons of pockets, with places for pictures & memorabilia.

While looking through the twins' books, I came across this picture of them at 4 months in their Halloween costumes. I could not believe how identical they looked.

It seems to me that they go through phases of looking alike followed by phases of looking nothing like each other.  At 4 months Logan had finally caught up to Jack in both the weight &  height categories (something he has never done since) and I think that is part of why they suddenly looked so identical.

But I feel like it's happening again now, and Jack has at least four pounds and an inch on Logan.  But both my mom & Josh have mentioned to me how similar the boys look lately. I've noticed as well.  And it makes for a lot of wrong-name-yelling and confusion when we're out & about and they aren't right in front of me.

(And for those of you wondering... there's still nothing going on in the labor department.  Wyatt seems content to stay put.  I promise to keep you posted, though!)

Whiny

Nope, not the kids...

Me.

I'm whiny.

And I guess since I am just two days shy of 40 weeks pregnant,

suffering from a sinus infection,

not sleeping,

with an aching back,

and a set of three-year-olds to chase around-

I'm entitled.

I woke up at 3:30am this morning,

and never really fell back asleep.

Logan was up at 5:30am

and Jack was up at 6:30am.

I am super hungry all the time, but can't truly eat enough to feel full because Wyatt is taking up the space my stomach used to occupy. I can't bend over because coming back up is always iffy, and I think falling down at this point would be a bad idea.  Getting off the couch or out of bed to pee is growing tiresome and more difficult as each day passes.  And I am so emotional. I could cry or fly into a violent rage at any given moment.

Last night it was more of a crying kind of night. I lay in bed (by myself, since Josh has taken to sleeping on the couch thanks to my "epic" snoring) trying to shut my mind off, but I couldn't stop thinking that in less than two months, I am going to be falling asleep in that big bed alone every night.  And I am not going to get to touch, hug or smell my husband for weeks and weeks on end.  I am going to have to find within me the strength to raise our three young sons by myself when that is never what we planned.  This is not what we intended.

I am attempting to strike a balance between enjoying our time together and preparing myself mentally for what is to come.  Some days it is more difficult than others. 

Today is more of a rage day.  I told Jack if he spilled my water bottle (they love to drink out of it and leave chunks of whatever they are eating behind) I would have to put him outside.  Not sure where that came from.  And if I have to hear any more bumping music from the thugs in this ever-living neighborhood, I am going to lose my very mind.

So there you have it.

"Rational Shelly" (insert sarcastic tone here) feeling a bit sorry for herself on this gray Friday afternoon.

I am going to try & drown my sorrows in some ice cream.

Perhaps it will help.

June through the years

 {2008}

{2009}

{2010} 

{2011}

Pleased to Announce...

 {No, Wyatt has not been born... Sorry if that's what you were hoping for!}

Josh has started a blog so you can all follow his personal journey 

from Washington to Marshall, Alaska.

www.joshuainmarshallak.blogspot.com

Please feel free to follow his blog & witness this adventure!

~Shelly

Pregnancy Update

Today I am 39 and a half weeks pregnant.

{Saturday June 12th will mark 40 weeks.}

I saw a new practitioner today, a certified nurse midwife (CNM), since my regular doctor is on vacation the next two weeks.  I super love this CNM, I've seen her a handful of times before, and she was great today.

She checked my cervix and said there is no change. Everything is still high and tight.  She is guessing that Wyatt weighs roughly eight pounds right now, and she doesn't seem concerned that he wants to keep cooking.

I made a follow up appointment with her for next Wednesday (June 15th) and at that point we will begin discussing whether or not I want to be induced, and what type of intervention would be best considering my past c-section.  Likely we would start by scraping my membranes, or breaking my water.  I am going to try (at least as long as I can) to avoid any medicinal interventions because I read that the contractions caused by medicinal interventions are more severe than those naturally made by the body and therefore lead to more uterine ruptures in women with previous c-section scars.

I am perfectly content to cook Wyatt another week. Sure, my back hurts and I don't sleep, but with my recently diagnosed sinus infection, a few days to rest up & start feeling better would do me some good. 

Also, it gives me more time to continue nesting (my house has NEVER been so organized!!!) and continue reading up on (& practicing) the pain management techniques suggested in my birthing book.

So cook away, my son, cook away!