Our First Christmas as a Family

The past three weeks have flown by! Colton has had a few outings (but not many at the advice of our pediatrician) and then this past week we celebrated our first Christmas as a family.

Our pediatrician advised us not to take Colton out in big crowds (malls, restaurants, etc) for the first 8 weeks because of cold/flu season and primarily because if he gets a fever in the first 8 weeks he will have to go through a battery of tests including a spinal tap and I'd never forgive myself if I put him through that just to run to the mall! We did manage to get ourselves together to visit The Babies Room and pick up an Ergo. It's a harness/tote that I can use to carry him on my chest around the house. It makes him feel safe and warm and allows me to get housework and other stuff done. He just loves it and so do I! We also had lunch with our friend Katie (who had her baby 12/24, more on that later) and visited Daddy at work. Another time we loaded up and tested out our new stroller when we attended the post partum lunch at the hospital. There were about 15 other moms and babies that were all under 16 weeks of age. I had a major bout of anxiety when we first arrived - funny how being around other moms and feeling like you have NO idea what you're doing can do that to you! It ended up being fine and I was able to get a lot questions answered and get some advice to help with sleeping and feeding. We'll attend every Tuesday while I'm home on maternity leave. Speaking of which, I will be home with Colton until I return to work on Monday, March 1.

Christmas was wonderful! My parents arrived on Thursday morning, Josh's arrived Thursday afternoon and my cousin Kelly came on Friday. While we couldn't do many of the traditions I've come to love at Christmas because Colton is so young, we were able to incorporate a few. The Sunday before we loaded up with our hot cocoa and drove around Gainesville to look at Christmas lights. We had a blast and of course Colton slept for most of it but it was such a treat to get out and feel like a normal family again :-) Christmas Eve morning we normally go out to breakfast but since restaurants are off limits we skipped that. We did however make a trip to the pediatrician. I noticed a bit of white stuff on Colton's tongue and at some point had read that thrush (yeast infection that develops during breastfeeding) caused white stuff on the tongue. I called the doctor and long story short they had us come in that morning. Of course we get there and it's just a little milk, boy did I feel silly. The pediatrician was so nice and said that a good portion of her job is spent reassuring new moms and dads and she didn't mind at all!

The rest of the holiday went much smoother. Caitlin and Mike came over Christmas Eve and we celebrated with them since Caitlin would be with Mike's family on Christmas Day. The next morning we woke up around 7 a.m. and started the coffee and Christmas music. I made an amazing breakfast casserole and mom made sweet rolls. We opened stockings firsts and then spent the next few hours opening presents and playing with Darby and Colton. For dinner Josh made an amazing roast beef. It really was some of the best meat we've ever hard! We had mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, creamed spinach and sweet potato casserole. It wasn't a traditional holiday dinner for us but it was amazing and may just be a new tradition!

Another exciting part of the holidays was the birth of our friends' baby, James Patrick Weitekamp! My friend Katie (she's been in several other posts) was pregnant and due two weeks after me. They had James on 12/24 and would you believe he was 8 lbs, 14 oz and 21 inches just like Colton! He was also born 2 days early, like Colton. Kind of scary!! Brad and Katie are home now with James and we're looking forward to visiting and spending more time with them. James was a surprise (well at least the fact that he was a boy, ha ha) so Colton has shared some of the newborn boy clothes he no longer fits into. He's so excited to have another good buddy, he now has Connor (photos below) and James!! The boys are all looking forward to next years tailgate, it's going to be a blast.

I hope that everyone had a wonderful holiday and that you all have a safe, healthy and happy start to the New Year! 2009 has brought Josh and I so many wonderful blessings and we thank God every day for all that he has provided for us. We hope for the best for each of you in 2010 and we are so thankful for your friendship.

Love always,

Jenny

Surviving Week One

Wow, what a week! We made it through and survived our first week at home with Colton. The first two days were great, we were running on adrenaline and the lack of sleep hadn't really hit us yet. It was Thursday when we finally started to slow down and it started to catch up with us! Colton is a great sleeper, but it's on his terms right now. He's still a little confused about day and night and he has a very hearty appetite so he eats every two hours. We actually had one day where he ate every hour on the hour for four hours (and those are 20 minute feedings). It's called cluster feeding and apparently it's when they're going through a growth spurt. I'm breastfeeding so unfortunately for me I'm the only one who can handle that part, at least for now. We're going to introduce a bottle and I'll start pumping milk in about two more weeks when we've got the breastfeeding well established. At that point things will get a little better because Josh will be able to take some of the feedings so we can alternate sleep. Right now he gets up with me for every single feeding and changing and I know it's killing him. He's already taken on so many things around the house as I recover from the birth. Speaking of, I'm doing much better but it's slow going. I lost quite a bit of blood so I've had to build back up my stamina on top of the just the physical exhaustion from all that my body went through. I made a trip to Lowe's with Josh last Friday and it about killed me so I've been taking it easy since then. Only quick trips to the drugstore or places nearby.

Last Thursday was Colton's pediatrician appointment. We had been referred to Dr. Kathy Sarantos by a friend of mine and trusting his judgement we went ahead and picked her. We had never even met her and although we'd heard great things we were very unsure. She doesn't take new patients anymore but because of my friend she accepted Colton. Let me just say that I am so incredibly thankful! She is wonderful and I am so glad that she's going to be Colton's pediatrician. At his first appointment Colton got the thorough check out. He's in great health, he regained almost all of his birth weight and was 8 lbs 11 oz. We go again next week for another check up and I'm curious to see how much weight he's put on with all this eating.

Here are a few photos from our first week. Josh's parents came back this weekend to help us out and visit. My mom arrives again tomorrow and will be here during the week. Both parents will be back for Colton's first Christmas and we're really looking forward to that.

Colton's First Week

Hope everyone is well!

Love,
Jenny

A Baby Story

Well hopefully by now everyone has heard the news that baby Colton Ray Highlander was born! He arrived at 2:55 p.m. on Sunday, December 6th. He was two days ahead of schedule which thankfully means he takes after his mommy in terms of punctuality.

I'll give you the quick rundown on his arrival. Friday was my last day at work and we had a pretty busy day launching a new web site. When I got home that night I was exhausted and just shortly after 6 p.m. I started noticing some contractions. Nothing horrible, but they were pretty consistent. They continued on through the night but never really got more than 6 to 8 minutes apart. I fell asleep about 4 a.m. and when I woke up they were gone. I decided to go about my day like normal. Josh ran me around town to do all of my errands including getting my hair done and grocery shopping. We had plans to attend our annual Christmas Party with our friends at Katie and Brad's place and I really didn't want to miss that. Contractions started back up during the day but were inconsistent so we packed up our stuff to go. We did decide to bring our hospital bags with us just in case! At the party we watched the Gator game and Josh timed my contractions throughout the game - they were consistently 3 minutes apart but I figured since I wasn't dying just yet I could tough it out to make it to the end of the party. The Gators didn't win this year (that's okay, 22 wins in a row and 2 football national championships in the last three years have made us more than proud!) but despite the loss we had a wonderful time with great friends. It's kind of funny to have labored in the company of my closest friends - I guess that's when you know you have surrounded yourself with wonderful people, when you feel that comfortable with them!!

After we got home from the game the contractions started coming more and more frequently and were getting much more difficult to handle. I still wasn't 2 minutes apart so Josh suggested I get up and walk around. That did the trick! We jumped in the car and off to the hospital we went. I was so nervous when we got there. I was petrified they were going to send me home but I was already 3 1/2 centimeters and 100% effaced so they admitted me and put us into a delivery room. We had such an amazing view of the pond with beautiful Christmas lights and holiday music. From about 12:30 a.m. until about 6 a.m. we just relaxed and rested and waited. The contractions were manageable at that point.

I'm going to summarize the next few hours to save everyone the details. For those that don't know, I was attempting to have a natural, medication free childbirth. By about 10 a.m. I had done very well but had stalled at about 5 centimeters. You can't push until 10 and those last 5 are the hardest to get through. We decided to have the midwife break my water. From that point on labor became the single hardest thing I have ever and probably will ever do in my life! It's certainly not for the faint of heart. I progressed very quickly at that point which can be good and bad. Good because it gets things over quick but bad because that means the pain is that much worse! I did end up asking (more like demanding) some medication but the only thing they would give me at that point was something to relax me between contractions. It wasn't an epidural and it did nothing for the pain... Sigh, I'm hurting just thinking about it! Josh was absolutely amazing though and he deserves a gold star and pat on the back, he was the only reason I made it through. There were many times I just wanted to give up (obviously not going to happen!) or throw things or hurt someone else ;-) Josh was always calm and he talked/rocked/held me through it all.

Finally, at 2:55 p.m. Colton arrived and they immediately put him into my arms. It was the most amazing feeling ever. Josh and I both cried and we both just stared in amazement at our gorgeous little boy! He is such a little miracle and gift from God. We feel so blessed to have been chosen to be his mommy and daddy!!

So that's our "baby story." I am including photos from the first few days of his life. Don't worry, nothing graphic included except you have to excuse my sweaty, icky photos, that was hard work!

Colton Highlander Arrives

Love,
Jenny

Giving Thanks

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend with our family. I wasn't able to travel this year so our parents both came to Gainesville and we had Thanksgiving at our house. Caitlin and Mike both had the day off from work so it was great to have everyone together. Josh fried up a turkey with our new turkey fryer (thanks Mom and Dad W!). Despite a little back and forth over how long it should take we ended up with a perfect turkey. It was probably one of the best we've ever had. We had all the usual sides - mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, cornbread stuffing, mustard greens, corn pudding and sweet potato casserole. I can't even list the desserts there were so many. It was a pregnant woman's dream! Sadly I couldn't enjoy as much as I could have in past years because there is very little room left in my belly for anything other than the baby!

On Saturday we all watched the Gator game. Josh and I were sad that we couldn't actually be there for Tebow's last game but there was no way I could have made it all day. Instead we watched from the comfort of home where I could put my feet up. It was a great game though. What an awesome four years it's been for the Gators. Up next is the SEC championship game against Alabama. It's a repeat of last year when we managed to pull out a win. We can only hope for the same this time around! For those that know me, I won't be doing much watching, more like hiding behind a pillow and waiting on the reaction from the crowd to know whether or not I should look. Regardless, we're so excited and proud of our Gators! Four national championships (2 football and 2 basketball) in the past four years isn't too shabby... In case I haven't said it before, it's great to be a Florida Gator (and even better to live in Gainesville where we're surrounded by people who agree!).

Okay, enough football. I'm sure most of you are wondering about the baby and what the status is there. Things are going well. I'm at 39 weeks now so only 7 days from my due date. He could arrive at any time within the next two or possibly even three weeks (yikes!). I'm definitely very uncomfortable and very big and so ready for him to just be here! The doctor says that's why pregnancy lasts 9 months, because by the time you get to month 9 you could care less about the pain of labor, you're just ready to not be pregnant. I couldn't agree more.

The nursery is just about finished. I decided to post some photos before it's done. We have some shelves to hang on the wall and some picture frames to put up but that's about it. We also have a monogram that goes above his crib but it has his name on it so we won't be putting that up until after he arrives. There really isn't a theme other than green and blue. We took a pottery barn crib skirt and just built everything else around that, adding things with a similar color scheme.

Things around our house are pretty calm and we're just finishing up final nesting projects. Josh is redoing my closet so I hope to move my stuff back in soon. After that's done it's just a waiting game. I finish work on Friday, December 4th and I won't return until March 1st. At that point the baby will go into daycare about 2 minutes from my office. It's a place called the Spencer House Montessori School and we're very excited about it.

I think that's really it for now. I may post once again or this might be the last time until he arrives! Please keep us and the baby in your prayers. We're hoping for as uncomplicated of a delivery as possible.

Love,

Jenny

Thanksgiving 09

PS - We receieved a wonderful early Christmas gift from Mom and Dad H, our new Canon Elph SD 780 which we love. All of the photos from this post were taken with the new camera, we can't wait to share videos with it as well! If you're looking for a new camera we highly recommend this one, only downfall is that it's TINY so if you've got big hands that could be an issue....

Week 37

I've had lots of people asking how I'm doing and what's new with the baby. I figured I would send out a quick update. This past Tuesday was my 37 week mark! Only 3 weeks to go until my due date! I've made it to the once a week visits with the midwife where we check the size of my belly, weight, blood pressure and position of the baby. Everything looked good this week. My belly measured exactly where it was supposed to, weight has steadied, blood pressure was higher than normal for me but still very low and baby is head down and in position (the most exciting news!). The midwife also got a feel for the size of the baby and said he was very healthy but thankfully not HUGE! I'm hopeful he'll end up around 8lbs although I was a 9lb baby myself, so we'll see. The doctor also reminded me over and over again that most first time moms go a week over their due date, if not more. At the practice I go to they won't induce until 42 weeks so at the very latest he may not arrive until December 22nd.

I have to admit that was the most disheartening news. Of course we want the baby to be healthy and we want my body to be ready for labor but let me just say that mentally... I'm there! We are so ready to meet our little boy and hold him and see him and have him join our family. The last month of pregnancy has been the hardest. I'm a lot more immobile, my ankles and now my legs are swollen and nothing seems to help and I very rarely get more than a few hours of sleep at night. The sleep thing won't be remedied by having the baby, but hopefully the other things will be :-)

Everything else is pretty much in place for his arrival. My hospital bag is packed, the bassinet is set up and ready to go in our room, the nursery is nearing completion and should be done this weekend. We still have a few other things on our list like finishing up some work on the closets, decorating for Christmas, steaming the carpets and cleaning out the car (yes, I'm in nesting mode, in case you're wondering). Both of our parents are coming into town for the Thanksgiving holiday this year so they will be helping us out with our list of to-dos and we're very grateful for that. I have 9 days left of work and then I'm done for 12 weeks! I've gone back and forth about working until he arrives but ultimately I decided the best thing for me was to finish up on the Friday before my due date and then use the time in between then and his birth to prepare the house and prepare myself mentally! Josh will take off the first week of his birth thanks to a generous 2 week paternity leave that his work offers. He'll have time over the holidays of course and then he'll take his second week when I return to work. I wonder if he's ready for a week alone with the baby??? Could be some interesting posts in the future! I'm kidding, he will be amazing. Josh is so ready to be a dad it's not even funny, I don't have a single worry about how he'll handle everything (let's just hope he can handle the baby AND me!).

Well that's the update for now. I'll post some more photos after Thanksgiving.

I hope everyone has a safe and happy Thanksgiving holiday. I am so thankful this year for all of the support and kindness our friends and family have shown to us during this exciting time. It means so much and we're so very grateful.

Love,
Jenny

Candy, Cankles and Camo!

What a great weekend! Saturday we celebrated the Gators beating Georgia and had a visit from my parents. They came up for the weekend to check on their condo and meet with a potential renter. Saturday night we handed out candy to all the trick or treaters - not as many as last year but still quite a few. After running out of candy last year I overstocked this time around and now I'll be eating Swedish Fish, Milk Duds, Kit Kats and Whoppers for the next few weeks, hope the baby boy likes candy!! After the trick or treaters we went to our friends' annual Halloween party. The McGills always host a great gathering every year and this year was no different! Josh borrowed some camo from my dad (and a rubberband shotgun) and went as a hunter and I borrowed a scarecrow costume and went as a pregnant scarecrow. The funny thing was that some guy at the party asked me if I was really pregnant or if it was part of the costume....I wasn't sure what to think about that one.

The duck hunter and his retriever...not sure how well that would go but they sure do look good pretending!

We're quite the pair. No creative couples costumes yet again, maybe next year.

I'm sure you were wondering about the "cankles" in the headline of this post. Well that is in reference to my ankles which have now morphed into my calves. It was the strangest thing. Last week I was moving along well with my pregnancy and enjoying the thought of only six more weeks to go (and 24 work days!) and then bam! Swollen ankles. I first noticed when I tried to slip on some flip flops and couldn't. I decided to go for my usual walk anyway, bad idea, and by the time I got back home my ankle bones were missing. It doesn't hurt at all but it just looks nasty. Josh's suggestion - "wear pants!" That works well when it's cool or cold outside but not when Florida is still experiencing a fall heat wave. I included a photo because I felt like all my friends just needed to share in this experience. And thankfully they have gone down dramatically since this photo, but they still fall under the cankle category.

(Yes, the left is much bigger than the right.
How annoying that they couldn't even be the same size!)

34 weeks and growing! Excuse the mess behind me, I'm working hard to get all of our baby stuff organized and out of the main living area of the house!

I had to include this picture of Darby and his daddy. They were just too adorable.

33 Weeks and a little Gator Football

We've had a great past few weeks. On the 11th my friends in Gainesville hosted a baby shower for me. It was a lot of fun and they did such a great job decorating and hosting. I'm so proud of my friends, they even had chaffing dishes for the food (that's when you know you've really grown up, when you host parties with chaffing dishes!!). Lots of my friends here in town and even a few from outside of Gainesville were able to attend. Josh's mom made the trip from Crestview as did Vicky Hayden and my friend Stephanie made the drive up from Tampa. Our baby boy got tons of wonderful gifts. It's such a blessing to have so many thoughtful friends. I really don't know how we would have done it without everyone. I was a little worried that we wouldn't have the means to get all the things we needed but amazingly we ended up with so much more. We are very very grateful.

(Much surprise and delight when I got my breast pump!!)

Gainesville Baby Shower

This past weekend my mom came up for the Gator game. It was Homecoming and my company gave me four of our President's Box seats. Josh, my mom and I went along with my friend Wendy who did our maternity photos. We had such a great time. Mom got to attend her first tailgate where she learned how to play washers and the difference between orange and Gator orange (we had to change her colors before we let her leave the house!). The box seats are always a blast. Being 8 months pregnant and not having to sit in the stands was wonderful. It didn't hurt either that we feasted on lots and lots of yummy food. Wish I could go in style to every game! As for how the Gators played, well let's just say it wasn't pretty but they got the win and kept me from going into early labor!

(Mom, Josh and I in the Presiden't Box of the Bull Gator Zone)

UF vs. Arkansas

Most recently I had my 33 week check-up. I'm on a schedule of visits every other week until I hit 36 weeks and then I go every week until he arrives. Hard believe we only have 7 more weeks to go! The biggest changes lately have been that the baby is starting to drop (a good thing!). It's taken some pressure off my lungs so I'm breathing a little easier. I really haven't had any heartburn (does that mean a bald baby??) but my belly is definitely getting bigger and harder to move around. I have had many, many nights of waking up at 4 or 5 a.m. and not being able to go back to sleep. I guess it's the baby's way of preparing me for what's to come.

(33 weeks and growing!)

The doctor said yesterday that the baby is head down (I could have told her that!) and he's in position...the minute I started to get excited she reminded me that he could change at any time, but still, I'm glad the little guy is starting to prep himself for the trip! His back is right across the middle of my belly and his feet are curled up and poking at my ribs. He gave me a really hard kick yesterday so I had gently move his little feet out of the way. My visit was pretty uneventful. Blood pressure and everything else are great so no worries there. I have occasional (and becoming more frequent) swelling in my ankles but again, nothing of major concern.

Here are a few quick photos of the nursery. It's still in progress and I hope to finish up quite a bit of it this weekend. We still need window treatments and wall decor but the furniture and paint are there which the a biggest part.

(Crib and new furniture)

(He has more clothes then Josh!)

(Working hard to assemble the crib from Nana and Papa Highlander)

Hope everyone is doing well!

Love,
Jenny and Josh

Maternity Photos

This past weekend we had our maternity photo session with a friend of ours who is trying to build her portfolio. We had a lot of fun and Wendy got some really great pics! I'll share the rest when we have them but until then there are a few up on her blog:

http://anwendy.blogspot.com/

Baby Shower Blessings

This is sort of a dual post. It's my 30-week update for everyone as well as a recap of my wonderful weekend of baby showers. First, I'll give you the update. Everything has been going extremely well, hopefully I'm not jinxing myself now! I'm officially at the 30-week point which means approximately 10 more weeks to go, or a little over two months. I really can't believe we're almost to the end. It has FLOWN by. The hardest part was definitely weeks 6-14 but after that point it was pretty much smooth sailing. I've certainly had my fair share of heartburn and sciatic nerve pain but that's really been it. Baby Boy Highlander is very active and Josh and I have actually been able to interact with him a little bit. He will stick his foot out and when we push back he'll give us a couple good kicks. He doesn't like when we cramp his style :-) My doctor says that my belly is growing perfectly according to the charts and my blood pressure has remained at a very healthy, very low rate. Starting October 7th we will be going to the doctor every two weeks and then when I hit 36 weeks we will go once every week until he arrives. All that said, I am certainly well aware that I have just entered into the hardest part of pregnancy. I already noticed that I am much more unsteady, short of breath and tired. My belly isn't so big that I'm uncomfortable but that might change in the very near future. I appreciate all the thoughts and well wishes from everyone. It's been such an amazing experience to be pregnant and I am so grateful to have been given this gift. I will never again underestimate what my body can do (heck, maybe I'll even attempt a marathon in the future just because now I know I can!).

So on to the showers....My first baby shower was held by two of my bosses (well, one is my current boss and one is my former boss) and they are certainly more than just bosses, they are great friends! Nancy and Wendy put together a lunch at a local Italian restaurant in downtown Alachua (Deneno's). They had balloons and a gorgeous, yummy cake (made by the same woman who made our wedding cake) and they invited some of the women (and one guy) that I work with to celebrate. There were about 15 of us and it was so wonderful. I'm sure most people I know have figured out that I love my job and the company I work for, obviously since we moved back from St. Thomas so I could rejoin the company! But this was certainly a reminder of why I love this place so much, everyone is so supportive and they are more like friends than coworkers which makes coming to work every day that much nicer. We received lots of wonderful gifts for our baby boy and I included some photos below.

RTI Baby Shower

My second shower was hosted by my mom and this one was in West Palm Beach. It was much closer for my family and a few of my friends so it allowed some people that can't make it to Gainesville to celebrate with us. My mom did a wonderful job of decorating and hosting the party. The food was great and we had plenty of laughs (most at my expense) as well. Again, we received so many wonderful gifts. We have lots of diapers and adorable boy outfits for all of his early stages, he got the cutest little camo boots and even a camo camping outfit to match and tons of the little things from our registry that we'll certainly be needing.

West Palm Beach Baby Shower

Also, while we were home our friends Harmony and Kyle Abney hosted a wonderful dinner at their place for us. Our other friends Karla and Mike made the trip over from Ft. Myers to be there. Harmony cooked up an amazing paella and tres leche cake that was to die for! We had so much fun watching the Gator game (of course until Tebow was injured) and just relaxing with two amazing couples.

Alright, this post is long enough so I'll save some for the next one. We have lots and lots coming up! We have our maternity photo shoot this weekend as well as my Gainesville baby shower next weekend.

Love you all and hope everyone is doing well.

Jenny, Josh and Darby (and baby boy Highlander)

Football Fun

This past weekend we had a house full of some of our favorite people. The Barrows drove up from Tampa with Jason Robbins who was visiting from Maryland (Jason was one of Josh's groomsmen). We also had the Doehnes drive down from Charlotte, NC with their 5 1/2 month old Connor. We spent Saturday tailgating for the Florida v. Tennessee game and had a blast. Josh and Jeff were able to get tickets to the game (no easy task!) so they enjoyed it in the stadium while Jamie, Connor and I watched it from the comfort of our couch at home. We had such a great time visiting with everyone. Here are a few photos.

Jeff and Josh getting ready to head to the stadium.

Jenny, Harmony and Jamie and the boys - Kyle and Connor

Josh and Connor just chillin at the tailgate

The Doehne Family

Connor was adorable, we told him that his future BFF was in my belly and he reached out to meet him.

Can't wait for these little guys to finally meet.

29 week mug shot