Weston - 4 Months

Now that the craziness of the holidays is pretty much over now, I can finally catch up on my monthly blogs on Weston. I can't believe how fast he is growing and how the time if flying by. Four months? Whoa. So much has changed since he was born.

 Growth & Development: At his 4 month appointment, he weighed 14 lbs. 5 oz. and was 25 inches long. He still remains to be within the 50th percentile in weight/length. He has a pretty good little head of hair now and has the cutest chubby cheeks. He's also got some good rolls going on his legs now. I love it! He developed some eczema on his skin which was unfortunate! His doctor prescribed some hydrocortisone cream, but since I didn't want to use that stuff much...I did some research and found that natural Vanicream works great on dry skin. (I highly recommend it! It has done wonders for his eczema and his skin is back to normal now....and I don't have to worry about it having any yucky ingredients or not being gentle enough for his sensitive skin. I feel so grateful to have a healthy baby. Oh, and he still is a pretty good sleeper for naps and night time...and is eating well!

Personality:  Wes continues to be one of the happiest babies I have ever seen. Such a sweet, happy spirit he has. He now can really get a good belly laugh going too, which is fun. His little personality is really shining through now. He is content and happy most of the time and usually only fusses if he needs food or sleep (or  is sick). He loves music and singing. His favorite songs are Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star...Jesus Loves Me...ABC's....and a little song I sing to him that I made up for him. ;-) He is one laid back baby...which is nice!

New Tricks: He is so good at grabbing at toys now. He learned to roll during his 4th month, so he loves to roll around to get to his toys. He can make a complete 360 degree turn by moving around and rolling. He currently rolls from tummy to back. He hasn't ventured to roll from back to tummy yet...but he does roll to his side a lot. He still loves to play on his playmat and now enjoys his baby Einstein activity jumper/gym. He also can sit up well in his Bumbo seat. He is really into standing and bouncing on people's laps. My arms get tired! He is quite verbal now and babbles/coos all the time. I love hearing his little voice and excited squeals! Weston also loves his baths...loves to kick those feet in the water. He really seems to know Ryan and I and gets a big smile on his face when he sees us. One of my favorite things is to see that big smile on his face when I come to get him from his crib after naptime. So sweet!

This last month, God has really been stretching me and teaching me through Weston. He has been continuing to teach me patience. Although Weston continues to be a very good, easy baby....he is still a baby and can go through weird phases that can throw him off his "norm" for a few days/weeks. That has been hard for me since I love to have our routine go as normal and am a perfectionist. I tend to want to fix things as soon as they go out of whack. God has been teaching me to let go and trust. I tend to want to have control and a baby is a good tool to teach me to let go of my illusion of control. So, I am learning, slowly but surely to go with the flow more and know Wes will come through these phases and get back to his normal. I am learning to relax and enjoy each phase, even if it's a hard one. I am learning to go to God first with my frustrations or worries and trust He knows best....after all, he made Weston! I sure am glad he made Weston and gave me and Ryan the wonderful and challenging job of being his parents. Such a huge blessing.

Weston: 0-3 Months

Weston has been such a joy! We really have been blessed with an easy, laid back baby. I am grateful! It kind of makes me wonder what our second what will be like...I'm not sure if we will get lucky with another easy one! ;-)

 1st Month: Our first month was a little rough in that I had to go back onto the hospital a week after Weston was born due to low potassium, high liver enzymes, urinary tract infection, possible uterine infection, and sludge in the gallbladder. Yikes! I stayed in the hospital for another week and returned home by the time Wes was 2 weeks old. I would send milk home to him, and my mother-in-law stayed home with him. My mom stayed with me at the hospital and Ryan would go between seeing Wes and me. We are so grateful for the HUGE help that both or our moms were during this time. We could NOT have done this without them. Their presence was not only a huge help, but also a great comfort in a hard and scary time with my health. Weston did great through it all. He went from breast-feeding to bottle and then back without a hitch. He was sleeping pretty good too. By 2 weeks old, he was doing 5 hour stretches at night....yay! Ryan was a huge help during the night feedings, even though he had work the next morning. I am grateful! By the end of the first month, Wes was making eye contact more consistently, which was fun to see that development.

 2nd Month: Wes continued to sleep like a champ and did well during most naps. His night stretches of sleep continued to increase more and more. We were feeling much more rested. Feeding and sleeping was going well. We started following a wake, play, sleep schedule once I figured out how often he needed to feed. Around 5 weeks, I noticed he would smile at his musical giraffe toy sometimes. By 6 weeks, he started smiling at us. After that he started smiling more and more. By the end of the 2nd month, he would even giggle some! He takes a paci when going to sleep for now. He loves his Wubbanub monkey pacifier. He loves to hold his monkey while sucking on his paci. Cutest thing ever!

 3rd Month: He is sleeping about 9 hours at night and still eats every 3 hours during the day. He loves playing on his playmat and can bat and grab at the toys now. His is obsessed with his hands and loves to suck on them and just look at them. He is SUCH a smiley, happy boy! Sometimes he will even stop to smile at me while feeding. He also is babbling and making lots of sounds now. I love it! He is so good about sleeping on the go and being so good while we take him out and about. He sure loves his daddy too. It's so fun now that we can for sure tell he really recognizes us.

 We are loving every moment with him and trying to soak it up as he is growing so fast! I've always heard it goes so fast...before you know it they are walking and talking. It's bittersweet for sure. I want time to stand still, yet I look forward to each new stage and development. God is already using this little guy to teach me patience, to go with the flow (and forget my schedule at times), & how to be unselfish. (To just name a few!)

- Katie                        

Weston's Birth Story

I am finally catching up on my personal blog! Yikes, it's been over three months. I guess I have had a lot going on with adjusting to life with a new baby and all ;-) I thought I would share Weston's birth story...hopefully I still remember everything! So here it goes.....

 I had been having impending labor signs for a few weeks before my due date. My doctor even said that my progress was really good for a first time mom. I tried to not get my hopes up, but wondered if Wes might come early...or at least on time. Good thing I didn't count on that because he was not early or on time! A couple days before I was 41 weeks, we went in for an extensive ultrasound to see how he was doing and discuss the possibility of induction. Wes was doing well and all looked good. They were estimating that he could be 8 1/2 lbs. Of course, they say it can be a pound off. My doctor would let me wait until 42 weeks if I wished since all was looking okay with Weston. However, we had to decide if there was really any benefit to waiting a little longer. Luckily, I have been blessed with an incredible doctor who fully supported our wishes to go natural and she was totally up for it if we wanted to wait longer. Dr. Speight went ahead and stripped the membranes to see if that would help encourage my body to start laboring. She said if we decided to induce, she could do it the following Tuesday night (1 day later) or the following Friday night. She told us to go home and think about it and give her a call in the morning if we decided to move forward with induction.

 Ryan and I prayed about it, discussed it, and felt a peace about moving forward with induction. I really didn't want to be induced, but felt like my body had tried to start labor a couple times already and then would stop after several hours. For us and our situation, we didn't feel any real advantage to waiting another week. We felt like we were supposed to move forward with induction, so I called my doctor and we were set to head to the hospital that next day (Tuesday night) for me to received the Cervidil to induce labor. Cervidil is a less invasive form of induction and it was our hope that it would be all we would need to get my labor going and that I wouldn't have to eventually get Pitocin. The Lord sure answered that prayer!

 The next night, we (my mom, dad, sister) were waiting on Ryan and his mom to get home in order to all go to the hospital. Ryan said he was going to go get a quick haircut on his way home. I initially thought he would have time for this and didn't think much of it. Well, we waited and waited and finally just had to tell Ryan and his mom to meet us there. Apparently the salon was packed and his haircut took forever! It was kind of a stressful drive on the way to the hospital, with a quick stop for dinner to go. We got to the hospital and Ryan was there...all was well (and yes, his hair did look good!). At 9:30pm, I was administered the Cervidil. I already was feeling pretty regular contractions (the stripping of the membranes could have started early labor for me already). They gave me an Ambien and said most people just sleep through the early labor...hoping I would sleep. That did not happen as my contractions were already getting more intense. By 2am, I was dilated to a 4, so the nurse said it was time to move me to labor and delivery. I am glad that the Cervidil was the only help we needed to get labor going and I was able to get my wish of a natural (drug-free) labor. At 6am, I was dilated to a 6. At first, I rocked in a rocking chair for a while and watched the Olympics while breathing through contractions. I then moved to the birthing ball and pretty much stayed there the rest of the time until I was ready to push. By 8:30-ish I was entering the transition stage of labor. This was the hardest for me, especially since my body had the urge to push the WHOLE time. Apparently, that isn't normal and the urge to push usually comes at the end of this stage. I was supposed to just breathe through those urges and try to not push. Sometimes that worked, sometimes my body just involuntarily did it. Ryan was amazing through it all and was so encouraging during this hard part. He quoted the scripture verses we had memorized for the labor. He made sure the worship music was playing in the background. He encouraged and praised me for my efforts. He was such a blessing. After about and hour of the transition stage, it was time to push. That was a relief for me since my body was wanting to do that! At 10:13am (Wednesday, August 1, 2012), Weston Dean Hembree was born. Phil Wickham's song "Beautiful" was playing when he was born. So special and fitting! He was 7lbs 11oz, 20.5 inches long. It all seemed so surreal and still feels like it was a dream.

The whole experience really was great! I feel blessed to have only had a 10 hour labor, knowing it can be much longer for first time moms. I feel blessed that the Lord allowed me to be calm and focused during the whole labor/delivery. It was only through relying on HIM that this was accomplished. I felt His comfort and strength helping me each moment. I will never forget the moment I saw Weston for the first time. He was worth the wait. Perfect. So handsome. Our son!

 (I should note that Ryan's Grandpa Bob passed away on the Friday after Weston's birth. He asked everyday if Weston had come yet. I think he was waiting to see his great-grandson before passing. Not only did he get to see a picture of Weston, he also got to see a picture of his other great-grandson who was born 2 hours apart from Weston. Lucas was born to my brother and sister-in-law in China on the same day. Lucas was one week early, Weston was one week late. How awesome that they share the same birthday!?!! I really feel that the Lord gave us peace about moving forward with induction because if we had waited much longer, Grandpa Bob most likely would never had seen a picture of Weston before his passing. I am grateful that he had that chance.)

- Katie

Weston's Nursery

It's official. Little Weston's nursery is complete! It feels good to have it done and know that it's ready for his arrival anytime now. I am really pleased with how it turned out. It was so fun designing and decorating his room! My friend Tara painted the dresser and mirror for me and also helped me decorate the rest of the room. She was so sweet to help me turn my vision into a reality. It would have taken me twice as long to buy all these furnishings/decor and put it all up, if it were not for her help. (By the way, Tara has now started her own interior design business....so if you are ever in need of such services...she is great!) Next, I look forward to taking pics of this nursery with a BABY in it!

34 Weeks

Can you tell that I am in my third trimester and feeling more tired and less motivated? Yes, that is why you are just now seeing pictures from my Tulsa baby shower (previous blog post) and pics of the belly at 34 weeks!                                                            

34 WEEKS

UPDATE: 

Baby: We had a doctor's appointment yesterday. Weston is doing great and is head down. Hopefully he is  planning on staying that way and getting ready to decide when he wants to make his big debut into the world!

Mom: I am doing good! I am now 36 weeks....only 1 more week until full term and possibly 4 more weeks if Weston comes around his actual due date.  Latest symptoms are shortness of breath, very frequent braxton hicks contractions (false contractions), constant bathroom breaks, and upset stomach off and on. It might not sound like much fun...but it's really not too bad (sometimes)...and all signs that labor is getting closer...which is exciting and makes it all worth it! Doc says that my body has started making a little progress in getting ready to start labor. She said my upset stomach can be a sign of impending labor. I am now up to weekly appointments since we are on the home stretch now! Hopefully I will have made more progress by next week at my next appointment. If not, Weston might take some more time to decide to join us. :-)


Dad: Ryan continues to be a BIG help and is so understanding when I am not feeling the best. He has been so sweet to help me get everything ready before Wes arrives. What a good husband and daddy!

Tulsa Baby Shower

Here are some pics from Weston's Tulsa baby shower....finally! The shower was hosted at my mom's house. All the hostesses did an AMAZING job. It was decorated beautifully...and had some of my favorite breakfast foods (potato casserole and banana slush punch to name a couple). A big thank you goes out to my mom, Sam, Ashley, Linda, Gwen, Brenda, & Diane for making it such a special shower.

                                           Ashley, Sam, and I          My mom, sister, and Nana   

                                      

                                                   Krissy, Hailey, Ashley, Lindsay, and I

                                              Me and Liz                    Me and Lindsay -- she surprised
                                                                                   me and came from Cali!!!!!

                                                Top: Jenny & Ande
                                                Bottom: Me and my mom-in-law (Karen)

Me and Hailey (who also traveled a long way to be there.)

Prayers for Baby Wes

I have been thinking about all the many things Ryan and I will be responsible for teaching Weston as he grows up. The most important will be to teach him about God, having relationship with Him, and what God's purpose for us is. Of course, there will come a point where we will have to let him choose if he truly wants to follow the Lord. You teach them the best you can, but ultimately have to surrender them to the Lord and know they have to be the one to make the choice. Thinking about that makes me feel a sort of helplessness at first, but then I am reminded that we are given one of the most powerful weapons....prayer.

 I bought these prayers cards for each week of the pregnancy awhile back. I have definitely not been as good about praying through them as I should be. But, I am feeling a new motivation as I know God is prompting me to pray more for our little guy. After all, it's one of the most important and beneficial things I can do for him as his mama. :-)

 Here are some prayers from the last few prayer cards:

 - Pray that he will allow God to move and direct him throughout his life. Pray that whenever God calls him, your child will move - no matter the cost. What an awesome thing to pray....that Weston will do whatever it takes to follow God, no matter the sacrifice.

  "Direct me in the path of your commands, for there I find delight." Psalm 119:35

 - Pray that your little one's eyes will always be looking for and following the Light of the World. Pray also that he will allow God's light to shine through him to be noticed by others. Weston is already called to know God and make him known to others....our primary purpose and calling in life.

  "When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, 'I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." John 8:12 


 "In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven." Matthew 5:16

 - Pray that his heart will remain sensitive to injustices, soft towards those in need, and caring to friends. Pray that when he does experience pain and heartache, that he will reach out to God as his true comforter. Notice that the second sentence says "when he does experience pain and heartache". It will happen.....he will have hard times despite my desire to protect him from anything bad in this world. BUT, what a loving God we have that uses these experiences to shape us to be more like him and promises to walk with us through the hard times. That might sound like a weird statement at first....to be thankful for the hard times. What...that's crazy talk?! However, the longer I live, I can look back at the hard times I have endured and feel grateful, b/c I see how God used them to teach me and make me more like Him. Without those, I would not be who I am. It has deepened my relationship with the Lord.  We are never alone. He is our true comforter. He gives a peace amidst the chaos that the world cannot give. It's true....I have experienced it first hand.

  "Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by grace gave us eternal comfort and good hope." 2 Thessalonians 2:16


AMEN! Feeling very grateful today as I am reminded of God's love for us.

Baby Boy Has a Name!

Yes, it's true....our little guy has a name now! Meet Weston Dean Hembree. His middle name, Dean, is a family name. It's so fun to be able to call him by name now!

 The last pic shows me at 30 weeks pregnant... standing in the nursery, which is almost complete! I love the way it's turning out and can't wait to get it all done. I will post pictures of the nursery once it's complete.

 It's strange to think we only have about 9 more weeks to go! This pregnancy has flown by. Weston is doing great and I have been feeling good! (My jaw (TMJ) is slowly improving, so that is nice.) I am really excited for my Tulsa baby shower next weekend!!! It will be fun to be back home to celebrate with all my family and friends in Tulsa. :-)

  

Dallas Baby Shower

Baby H had his first baby shower last Saturday in Dallas! My sweet friends Andrea, Melinda, and Cory hosted a wonderful brunch shower in his honor. We got some really great gifts from friends and family....this little one is so blessed! Here are some photos from the shower:

Cory & Andrea

Jordan

The shower hostesses (Andrea, Melinda, Cory) and I

My sister, Samantha and I

Opening all the wonderful gifts!

My sister, mom, and I

HERE'S A LITTLE UPDATE:

(Here we are at 28 Weeks!)

BABY: Still no name yet....we plan to make the final decision very soon! As of last Tuesday, he weighed 2.8 lbs. The doctor says he is just right on size....not too small or too big. He is doing great! He moves around quite a bit and responds when I touch my belly now. We had a doctor's appointment last Friday and had a great convo. with her about the birthing procedures at the hospital for natural births. I was very pleased with all the information she had to give us and all the options available at the hospital for those planning to birth their babies naturally. We definitely feel blessed to have her as my doctor....we are so lucky!

MAMA: I am doing good! My only big issue was some severe back pain, but my lovely chiropractor has done wonders on my back. (It was a result of pre-existing alignment problems, a growing belly, and doing too much while pregnant. Oops.) I also have been able to take advantage of the massage therapist at the chiropractor's office, which has been really nice! I recently have been having some TMJ jaw problems, so be praying that I regain full motion in my jaw soon. Besides that, I feel great and am enjoying getting the nursery put together. We are starting to fill his room, which is so exciting!

DADDY: Ryan has been busy working full time while studying for his third and final CFA test! (Not to mention, putting together baby furniture in his very little spare time.) His test is June 2nd. We would appreciate your prayers for him as he prepares in this final month. We are praying that he passes with flying colors and will be officially done with the CFA after an almost 5 year commitment to studying and testing! He works so hard and is so dedicated. I am proud of him!

26 Weeks

I have been a bad blogger lately. I am a bit behind... but better late than never, right?! Here are baby H, Ryan, and I at 26 weeks. My brother-in-law's sister, Erin, took our pictures when she was in town visiting her sister. She is a fellow photographer from Tulsa and we really enjoyed our session with her. Here's a little sampling of our photo session. Erin did a great job!