Jackson, week 2

Here are some pictures from dinner at my parent's house last night. Yes, he's in two different outfits. He had his first projectile vomiting experience. It was terrific!

We've almost survived two weeks now. Very little sleep has been had, but we are so in love with this baby that it doesn't seem to matter! He has had a couple 3-hour stretches of sleep this week, which is just heavenly. I wake up and think, "You are still breathing, right?" But he does wake up and we have a nice long nursing time while watching middle-of-the-night television. It's a blast. It makes you wonder who else is actually awake at that hour.
Jackson and I took a field trip to school today. It was a staff planning day, so we didn't have to deal with middle schooler germs quite yet. It was fun to see everyone. And kind of fun to think that I don't have to go back for five more weeks. :)
Here's my favorite thing about my son. He laughs in his sleep. He must have some awesome dreams. Sometimes he just smiles and looks absolutely adorable. But sometimes he actually giggles! It's so cute.
Dan's favorite thing about Jackson is his ears. Overheard just a few minutes ago: "I could just eat them up!" Careful, dear.
I guess that's it for now. Here's to a night with more sleep time than awake time!

Our little man!

This is Jackson very soon after delivery. He looks a little roughed up. I guess he didn't expect to be pushed out in 25 minutes. Sorry buddy!

Proud grandparents!

Some mommy time before leaving the hospital.

Now that's a content look!

Some down time with daddy.

Blogworld, meet Jackson

Here is our little guy! This was a rare "eyes open" moment. He's also showing off one of the benefits of being born at 9 1/2 pounds--he can already hold up his own head. What a guy! We have yet to get any of our pictures onto the computer (my dad took this one), but now that I know how to do this, there will be many more coming.
We've made it almost a week! I haven't gotten more than two hours of sleep at a time all week, but he's SO worth it. :)

Welcome, baby

I don't have the time (or more than one free hand, for that matter) to write much right now, but I have to let you all know that Jackson has indeed arrived. All 9 pounds, 8 ounces, 22 1/2 inches of him! He's a nice big boy. :)
Jackson entered the world at 1:36 on Sunday morning, after roughly 20 hours of labor. We are ecstatic and blessed and SO in love with this little guy. We have many pictures to post, so stay tuned!

Due

Dear little one,

Well, we have successfully made it to your due date. I have to tell you that way back when we first learned that you would be joining our family, March 15th felt like years away.

The good news came with a little blue line on a home pregnancy test. Your dad and I were ecstatic! We couldn't believe it. So much that I took two more tests over the course of the week. I got through a couple of weeks without feeling too icky. Unfortunately, I counted my blessings too early and ended up feeling pretty pukey for over a month. Luckily it was summer and I could just stay in bed if I wanted to. :)

In August, we took you to the Boundary Waters. Actually, we took you into the waters quite literally. But I think you liked it. In October, we had an ultrasound that showed us you were a boy. We were so excited to know! So were your grandparents--they enjoy referring to you by name.

The holidays were fun. We loved thinking about how things would be next year with you around. You'll surely be the center of our attention! Around Christmas, you really started to move and groove. Dad even got to feel you kick. Feeling (and watching) you move is one of my favorite things. And soon I'll get to see it in real life!

Once the new year arrived, your coming seemed very close and very real. We registered for baby gifts, finished your room, and packed our bags for the hospital. Better safe (and early) than sorry! We had many showers in your honor (and there are more to come once you're here!) and people blessed us with lots of gifts.

And now we are here. March 15th. We are very anxious to meet you! We're sure you are already a pretty cool kid. There are so many people out here who are anxious for your arrival and already love you. Maddie and Ruby will be sad that all of this fun baby stuff isn't for them. Maybe you can share. :)

We are thanking God for bringing you into our lives and we pray that he will bless you. See you soon!

Love,
Mom

What a bunch of crap

I really don't have the time or energy to write much right now, but I just want to make it clear that I think it's ridiculous that Anoka-Hennepin did not cancel school today.

That's all.

Oscar review!

Okay, I'm almost a week late on this one.

The Academy Awards were great. I was pleasantly surprised with John Stewart as the host. There were plenty of lovely dresses to admire. And Crash winning best picture? The highlight of my evening! Seriously, it's the only one in the category that deserved it, but I just figured that Brokeback would walk away with it (not because of the quality of the movie, but because of the controversy--luckily it only got three awards).

"In other news," I'm still pregnant. :) 39 weeks and 2 days to be exact. And although I'm still not dilating, as of today I am effacing. Very exciting stuff, people! Encouragement that I will not be pregnant forever! But even if I'm pregnant for another 2 or 3 weeks, I think I'll be fine. Other than heartburn and swollen ankles, I'm not terribly uncomfortable. Yet...

Keep the due date guesses coming!

Movies and babies

Or, lack thereof.

I was hoping to have two more Oscar movie reviews for you this weekend, as the awards are tomorrow night. I had planned to see "Good Night and Good Luck" and "Transamerica." But, I don't think I will. I had an insane week, and I'm just too worn out to make it work. I'll see them eventually, and probably when they come out on DVD. (New parents have advised me to get in all the movie theater time I can now, because once baby comes, that won't happen anymore).

I went to the doctor yesterday. I hadn't had an internal exam for a few weeks, so I was anxious to see if anything was progressing. Nope. Basically, we shouldn't expect to meet our little boy until after his due date. But who knows. She also said as soon as he decides to drop, everything could change rather quickly. I am dealing with some swelling in my legs and hands, which is causing neuropathy in my right hand. I guess the swelling constricts some nerves around my wrist, and my hand always feels like it's falling asleep. I'm getting used to it, but it's annoying. Other than that, I'm not terribly uncomfortable, and I really don't mind being pregnant for however long I need to be. Except that we want to see this kid! I want to feel his little feet--and not through the walls of my uterus! So, here's a new game (now that the Christmas light fiasco is over). Guess Jackson's birthday! Official due date is March 15th. Let's see who can get the closest to his actual arrival date. Let the guessing begin. (You should know that I don't plan to be induced unless medically necessary).

Well, I'm off to take down our Christmas lights. Gotta take advantage of a sunny, somewhat-above-freezing day in March!