The Big Reveal (2)

I was planning on posting the nursery pictures before Sawyer arrived, but he decided to come a little early. So, welcome to Sawyer's revamped crib.

Before:

Unfortunately, I don't have any before pictures. But use your imagination and envision a drab off-white room with 4 door openings and a large desk/bookshelf.

After:

Kyle and I LOVE it!!! It turned out perfectly. Every time we walk through the room we love it even more.

1 Week

This is a bit belated, but here's our little guy at 1 week. He weighed 5 lb. 15 oz.

Our Lightening Bug

Due to Sawyer's elevated bilirubin levels he was diagnosed with jaundice and had to wear a bili blanket for 2 days to correct his levels. It was kind of sad to see him attached to a machine, but we are thankful that this device resolved the problem quickly. His glowing back reminded us of a lightening bug :)

Meeting the Family

Warning: Picture Overload!

Daddy & Sawyer

Mommy & Sawyer

Grandpa Shank & Sawyer

Sawyer checking out Tache

Sawyer with Papa

Debra & Sawyer

1st family picture

Uncle Jake & Aunt Audi meet Sawyer

Grandpa Rush w/ Sawyer

Grandma & Grandpa Rush loving on Sawyer

Another family picture

Grandma Rush & Sawyer

Grandma & Grandpa Schenk with Sawyer

Grandma Schenk and Grandma Rush doting on the new little guy

The Birth Story

On his official due date I thought it would be fitting to share the birth story.

Warning: this is a really wordy post, but for my memories sake I needed to write it down.

On the morning of Wednesday, January 13th I awoke at 5:00 am because of a backache. In my sleepy stupor I realized that my back hurt, then it would go away, then it would return over and over for about an hour. However, I was too sleepy to actually time anything and I wasn't convinced they were contractions (throughout my 9 months of pregnancy I never experienced a contraction, so I was unsure of what it actually felt like). At 6:00 am I roused Kyle and told him I might be experiencing contractions. He got out the timer and we realized that whatever was making my lower back hurt was occurring every 8 minutes. We decided we would wait until the doctor's office opened at 8:00 am to call and check before heading to the hospital. In my complete denial I got ready for work fully expecting to go to the doctor with false labor and have to return to work.

By 8:00 am the contractions were 6 minutes apart and the doctor instructed me to head to the hospital immediately. I still was not convinced I was in labor, but the back ache was increasing in intensity so we put the bag in the car and headed to the hospital. After the 30 minute drive to the hospital my contractions were 4 minutes apart.

We entered the hospital at 9:00 am and were immediately admitted. We were taken straight to labor and delivery and within minutes I was wearing a hospital gown, fetal monitor, and contraction monitor. At this point, I started to realize that I was indeed in labor. I think I needed to see the contractions on the monitor to realize what was happening. When I arrived at the hospital I was 6 cm dilated. I breathed through the contractions in bed for awhile. Then Kyle and I walked the halls. During the walk the contractions really started to pick up and when we got back to the room I was 8 cm dilated. The contractions were starting to increase in intensity, with very little rest time. At this point I started to shiver and feel nauseous. I decided if I wanted to have some energy following the birth I better get the epidural before it was too late. The anesthesiologist administered the epidural, the doctor broke my water, and within 15 minutes it was time to push.

Thirty minutes later at 1:48 pm Sawyer Maddox entered the world weighing in at 6 lb. 7.5 oz. and 18.5 inches long. Dad cut the umbilical cord and rushed around trying to take pictures of our new little guy. When he was all cleaned up Kyle prayed over him and then I fed him for the first time. After that everything is a whirlwind as the visitors came by the droves.

I was extremely fortunate to have a quick and uneventful labor and delivery experience. And the best part is after all that work we got to take him home with us :)

Our Little Guy

Sorry I don't really have words to post, but I'm guessing you don't really want to hear from me anyway :) Here are some pictures from his first few days (in no particular order, because that would take too much energy).

Getting ready to go home from the hospital.

All bundled up for his 1st car seat ride

1st nap @ home

Sawyer's eyes (will they be blue or brown?)

1st bath @ home (in the kitchen)

1st of many naps with Dad (Aren't my two boys precious?)

Swimming in his first real outfit

Just born...welcome to the world Sawyer!

Introducing...

Sawyer Maddox

Birth Date: January 13, 2010

Weight: 6 pounds 7.5 ounces

Length:18.5 inches

He's Been Waiting

Kyle has been waiting 9 months for this moment...


He insisted on taking of picture. He covets this new found "talent" of mine. In fact, I would never set a cup there, but he insists on setting his cup there :) He better enjoy the "convenience" now, because it's going away in a few short weeks. Why are boys so weird?


And don't worry, I'm not sad or mad in the photo he just caught me off guard.

A Rite of Passage

We've surpassed yet another milestone on this journey to parenthood. The carseat is safely and securely installed. It's official, we're ready to roll. LG can come at any time...

Mini Extreme Makeover

The day after Christmas we recruited several family members to transform our extra bedroom into a suitable nursery for LG. Their help was tremendous. We completed the entire nursery in under 4 hours. That would have taken me and Kyle the whole week to accomplish. Thanks Randy, Mom, Papa, Tache, Wendy, & Adam! It is such a huge blessing to have everything in place and ready to go for LG.

Here's some pictures of the action:

Mom, Wendy, and Tache organizing all the clothes for the appropriate drawers.

Randy painting

Kyle painting

Papa and Kyle putting the crib together. It took all four men, but they figured it out pretty quickly.

Sorry, you will have to wait for the big reveal (we still have a few more things to hang on the wall).

Christmas Crafts

Now that Christmas is over I can reveal a few more projects.

For co-workers and car pool people I "baked" pretzel turtles. The recipe is from Our Best Bites. The best part is they are super easy to make and by just drizzling a little chocolate on them they can appear gourmet. With my husband's help "squishing" we were all done in under an hour, now that's my kind of baking.

All the ingredients

The turtles cooling

Wrap them up in a cute box for a polished finished product.

For my nephew, Noah, I made a "1" onesie for his upcoming first birthday and a fabric ball. The ball pattern is free from Grand Revival Design and can be found by clicking here.

For my niece, Gracie, I made a bow holder. I think it turned out perfect. I was trying to match her bedroom colors (hopefully I succeeded).