1 Month

Ok, so it has been a while since I have updated...What can I say? My hands have been a little full of baby as of late! And I have been lazy.
At James' dr's appt. the other day he was 8 lbs 6 oz and 21 1/2". He has put on just over 2 lbs and an inch and a half in his 1 month of life. I'm already getting a little sad that he is growing way too fast. His little cheeks are getting a little chub on them and he is filling out his clothes much better. He's still a little peanut, though, and we can't get enough of him.
Here are some pics of our little James at 1 month:

With his big bro!From Dyl's perspective (not too bad!)

I can't wait until he can smile!! He just looks too darn serious!

So, there, Emily!
There's our little one month old. I will post some more tomorrow...I've had a lot of thoughts running through my head that I need to unleash! I've really missed you all the last few weeks that I haven't blogged.

Everyone needs a 2-year-old Cheerleader!

One of Dylan's favorite things to do lately is sit down with you and a book and he will point to things and say "what 'dis mama?" and after answering all his questions, he will say "good job!" very enthusiastically. And today Dyl and Danny were out cleaning the cars and Dylan accidentally let go of a plastic bag that got carried down the street by the breeze. He was very concerned about it, so Danny ran down the street to retrieve it. As soon as Danny got the bag, Dylan jumped up and down and cried "Yeah! He got it!" and there were high fives all around. Nothing like a two-year-old to make you feel good about yourself!

2 Weeks

We have survived our first two weeks! James had a Dr appt yesterday and he was 6 lbs 14 oz. so he is growing well and looks healthy all around. He is such a sweet little guy and we love him more and more each day. He is a little sleepy guy and spends most of his time sleeping and eating. I guess you could say he is a typical newborn!
He is sleeping pretty well at night, but I have been letting him sleep with me because I was so tired, so today we begin his "sleeping in the crib" training. This is one area that I have not mastered with my other 3 children (it took me 4 years to get my first two sleeping through the night-yes 4 years!!!) so any advice or suggestions are very welcome!
Here are some pics of our little guy at two weeks:One of our nieces, Monica, made this little hat for James...it's so cute! Thanks, Monica!He had a bubble bath this morning with too many bubbles! He kept getting them all over his face and sucking them up his nose. He's just so squirmy! Sorry James!

Just some pics!

I wish I had a great camera and a photographer to go with it! Here are some pics of James. I hesitate to put them up because he really is soooo much cuter than what they depict, but it's what we've got for the moment. So without further ado...He is just such a sweet little guy and I am falling more in love with him everyday especially when he looks up at me with his sweet little eyes.
He has stayed awake a little more the last few days and slept better the past two nights...I'm hoping this is the trend from here on out.
Danny has been a huge help and I am not looking forward to him returning to work on Monday...but I s'pose we'll survive. It just might not be pretty!

So much to post....

so little energy to do it!
There's so much that I want to write about being a new mom again, like the sleepless nights, the constant feedings, the kids fighting over who gets to hold him, diapers, diapers, diapers, watching this little guy sleep, stroking his soft head, kissing his soft cheeks, feeling soft breathe on my neck...it's all so exhausting and yummy at the same time. I'm just too tired. I also want to take some wonderful pictures, but I'm just so tired! I'm going to try to get some cute pics today, but don't hold me to it!
One thing I do need to clear up...contrary to popular belief, James Edward was not named after any vampires! We liked the name James and it is also after my sister, Jamie and Edward is my youngest brother's middle name. We love family names. Just wanted to make sure you all knew!
Cross your fingers that I can get some good pics today. I know they won't do this guy justice...he's just the cutest little thing, but I will do my best.

Presenting...

James Edward Thatcher

The kids came by to see our little James (I have to use the name so I can get used to it!)
Jesse and Grace adored him, but Dylan did not want much to do with him.They are going to be such good little helpers. How fun it will be to have a baby in the house again.

He's here...

but he doesn't have a name yet...will let you know as soon as we know!

Baby Boy Thatcher
January 30, 2009
2:39am
6lbs 5oz, 19"
Our runtiest one yet!

The pics aren't the best...Danny took them! I will get some cuter pics as soon as they bring him back from getting poked, prodded and cleaned. He's so sweet and tiny, we just love him!
So, here's the story. I woke up yesterday morning knowing that something wasn't quite right and sent Danny off to work letting him know not to be surprised if he had to come home early. I had irregular contractions all day and was trying to get some last minute things done, but by the early afternoon I just wasn't feeling good at all. I was feeling dizzy, had a headache and a low-grade fever...I didn't think that was normal, so I called my Dr. and he just said to keep hydrated, rest and come see him in the morning if I was still not feeling well. We didn't make it that far! I started having regular contractions around 6:45pm and so we decided to take the kids to a friends' house and head to the hospital.
When we got there they were really concerned about the baby because his heart rate was really high (190-210) and it was because I had a 101.8 degree temperature. They gave me lots of IV fluids and his heart rate stabilized and my fever came down (turns out I had an UTI, so they gave me some antibiotics as well.)
After much weeping and wailing, I finally got an epidural around midnight. It took the anesthesiologist a long time and a few tries to get it in and then it only killed my left side, so he had to take another long time to get it in and it was just the ticket! Life was so much better! It turns out that I have the hardest back that he has ever worked on. Yippee!...he said that I will likely be pretty bruised up today, but he didn't give me a wet tap like last time...phew!
With the epidural in place, I was a much happier camper...all of you that go without, my hat's off to you...I just couldn't do it!
At about 2:15am, I was complete and began to push and he was born 24 minutes later. I didn't remember how much work it was to push, I was really tired, I don't know how you gals push for much longer than 20 minutes!
Well, I am so glad that he is here with all his fingers, toes, etc and I am so glad to not be pregnant anymore!! Will post some more pictures later today.
I wish that I could sleep now, I've been up for nearly 24 hours, but I'm just not sleepy. Besides, who can sleep in a hospital anyway!
PS...the nurses and the Dr. were great and made it such a good experience. I deserve it after the last one!