One Month

This post is about a week late, but I can't believe our baby boy is already one month old!  We've had a few hard night, but for the most part he is a happy and chill baby.  He has gotten a little spoiled and loves to be held and rocked all the time.  He loves to eat!  He nurses almost every 2 hours.  Sometimes he gives me a break and goes 3 hours, but sometimes he wants to eat every hour.  He has already gained about 3 pounds this month and the doctor feels like he is getting plenty and growing well!  At the doctor he weighed 9 lbs and 12 oz.  He is about 20 1/2 inches long.  He sleeps almost all day and is awake every now and then during the day.  When he is awake, he is very alert.  He looks around, follows voices and stares at you.  He smiles a lot, especially when he is sleeping.  He usually only cries when he is hungry or dirty, but has started to get more fussy in the evening.  He does amazing in the car and just sleeps.  He has also done well when I have taken him out to eat or shopping, but I always have someone with me to help too.  He loves moving in his stroller or in the car and starts to get fussy or make noise when you stop for too long.  He was sleeping in the bassinet of his pack and play next to our bed, but now sleeps in his swing or rocker.  I think he got use to being held and rocked and didn't like laying still anymore.   He also loved being swaddled at first and now seems to hate it.  He kept breaking out of the swaddle and loves to flail his hands and arms everywhere.  He 

enjoys his bath time most of the time.   His hair looks like is starting to turn more blonde; we will see if he is blonde like mommy or brown like daddy.  He has blue eyes like mommy and daddy.  He makes the cutest and funniest little faces and expressions!  We are so in love and can't imagine life without him now!  We love you so much Ellis Jack!

Some of my favorite photos from the past month:

This is one of my favorite things he does.  I just think it's so cute!

Our family of three

My friend Jackie took our pictures when Ellis was about a week old.  It was quite an experience trying to get those cute naked pics because he kept peeing and pooping everywhere.  He is such a boy!  Anyways I think they turned out really well and I love them!  These are some of my favorites!

We love you so much Ellis!  You have brought so much joy to our lives!

Delivery Day!

My last preggo photo!

(37 weeks and 3 days)

On the way to the doctor and hospital.

We went to the doctor on Thursday, May 14 for me to get an easy cath that would dilate me to a 4 so they could induce me the next morning.  Let's just say nothing about it was easy, it took them about 4 tries and an hour to get it, and Karson almost threw up afterwards.  

Then we went to the hospital and I ate my last meal for the next day and a half or so and we spent the night.   It was our last night as the two of us and we were anxious and excited, but managed to get 

some sleep.

The next morning, they started my Pitocin and then broke my water around 8:30 AM.  We didn't know how long things would take, but didn't know what a long day we were in for.  It took a while for contractions to start and at first they were so mild, I couldn't feel them.  They had to keep upping my Pitocin and finally around 4:00 PM I started to feel more painful contractions.  They gave me an epidural pretty soon after, which they later had to give me more because I could still feel things.  Anyways, after being in labor another 5 or 6 hours things started to get more intense and I was 

finally dilated enough to start pushing.  I pushed off and on for a 

while and the doctor realized his head was turned sideways and he was having trouble coming out.  FYI: by this point I was completely exhausted, tired of being hooked up to wires, about to have a panic attack and my back and neck were killing me from the terrible hospital bed.  Yes, I complained and cried, but no, I never yelled at anyone or said bad things.  At that point it was around 11:15 PM and my doctor decided that I would push for twenty 

minutes and if he wasn't born then I would probably have a c-section. 

So, twenty minutes later there is still not much progress and I'm completely exhausted and done.  It's close to midnight and we all want him to be born that day, after a long day, and 5-15-15 is a pretty cool birthday.  They rush me into surgery to do a c-section and he arrives at 11:57 PM!  He just barely made it on that day.  I'm  passed out from all the pain meds and have seen from pictures that I held him and even came to for a minute to talk, but I don't remember any of it.  The scary thing, that I later found out, was that he didn't even cry when he was born.  Karson said the nurses tried messing with him and the doctor looked at them with concern, but everything was fine, he just wouldn't cry.  Karson did great taking care of him at first, while I was out of it, especially since this was the first time for him to even hold a baby.  

Introducing:

Ellis Jack Swartz

5-15-15

11:57 PM

6 pounds 10 ounces

20 inches 

We ended up staying in the hospital for 4 nights because of the induction and c-section.  We had a few visitors and started to feel like we had a grip on this new patent thing before we left.  All of our nurses were great and it also helped to have my baby nurse sister there.  We were so happy when we finally got to leave though, it's so much nicer at home than in the hospital.  It was quite an experience, but we are truly blessed and Ellis is a perfect gift from God and worth all the struggles! 

Our family of three :)

Ready to leave