Silly Boy

Oh, how we love our silly boy! Charlie is adjusting very well to being a big brother. He wants to know where the baby is all the time, and asks to hold him often. We are trying very hard to teach him how to be gentle with Jackson. He just does not understand yet and has definitely been a little rough with his brother. Nick and I are doing our best to let Charlie help us with Jackson and to spend one-on-one time with him so that he still knows he is special and that we love him.

Nick and I were talking about how much bigger and older Charlie seems since having Jackson. It is like he grew up over night to become the big brother. Of course, he is still our baby, too. But it is just amazing how much he has grown in two years. He was my bitty baby a minute ago, and now he seems like a giant next to Jackson. We are so proud of the little man that he has become, and we know that he is going to be the best big brother ever. We love you, Charlie!

Home Sweet Home

We got home from the hospital on Sunday afternoon. Jackson wore the same outfit that Charlie did the day we brought him home. It was such a yucky day, but all of the family came over despite the rain in order to meet Jackson. Charlie was the first one to meet his baby brother, and his reaction was just what I had hoped it would be. After hugs for Momma and Dadda, we walked Charlie into the family room where Jackson was waiting with a gift for his big bro. Charlie immediately said, "Baaaaby!", and began to pat his brother's head and look over him over from head to toe. He asked to hold the baby, and jumped right up onto the couch with his arms outstretched ready to hold Jackson. He looked like a pro holding his baby brother, and was upset when we had to share Jackson with Grandma and Grandpa. He quickly got over it when he realized that Jackson had brought him a new electric toothbrush for a gift. I told Nick that the boys first meeting was as if we had scripted it. Charlie loves his baby.

Shortly after my parents left, we got to introduce Jackson to Granddaddy, Oma, Auntie Vicki, Auntie Dani, Uncle Walker, and Cousin Rylee. He and Charlie got a lot of great gifts from everyone. Vicki, Dani, and Walker even brought us dinner which was nice not to have to think about on our first night home. It was great having all three cousins together and so much fun comparing five week old Rylee to newborn Jackson. It is unbelievable how much babies change in a matter of weeks. She seemed like a giant compared to Jackson, and she was almost a pound less than him at birth.

Our first night with Jackson was not a smooth as I would have liked. He decided it was a good time to eat every 2 hours, spit up for the first time in our bed, and pee through his diaper requiring a complete outfit change at 2:00 am. On top of all of that, my milk came in leaving me very uncomfortable. I am hoping that tonight is a little less eventful.

Welcome to the World, Jackson!

Jackson Edward Shaw

Friday, January 22, 2010

12:05 pm

7 pounds, 7 ounces

21 inches

Meet the newest member of the Shaw Family! Jackson is one day old, and he has already stolen our hearts. Nick and I are very much in love with him, and can't wait to show him off to everyone once we get home. We are all doing great. Jackson was checked out by the pediatrician today, who informed me that he is quite a healthy little boy. Jackson took immediately to nursing, which was one of my biggest concerns after having such a difficult time with Charlie. Nick and I are so grateful for his health and know how fortunate we are.

I am resting as much as I can and feel amazing compared to last time. My energy is still very low because it is hard to get a lot of sleep with nurses in and out of the room. I am sending Jackson to the nursery tonight so that I can get one final good night's sleep before we go home tomorrow.

As I mentioned in the last post, Jackson's birth was very different from Charlie's. This time around, we were able to schedule an induction so that we could arrange for Charlie's care and make the most of Nick's time off from work. The induction started on Thursday night. I was supposed to get a drug to help prepare my body for labor on Friday. Well, after being checked by my midwife, it was determined that I did not need the drug after all. This was a relief because it meant that I could just rest that night and we could get started first thing in the morning. Even with the help of Ambien, I only got about 3 hours of sleep. At 7:30 am Friday morning, my midwife broke my water and started me on Pitocin to begin contractions.

I started to really feel contractions around 8:30 am. I kept telling Nick that my goal was to start pushing by noon, but i really never believed that it would happen that fast. I wanted to wait on the epidural as long as i could because I did not want to slow my progress. My nurse told me that I just needed to give her about 5 minutes notice when I wanted to get it anyway. At 10:30 am I was starting to get pretty uncomfortable, but I felt like a wimp getting the epidural so early. Instead, i asked for a pain killer to be put in my IV. This was a mistake. Oh sure, I felt a little better for about 30 minutes, but the effects quickly wore off. At 11:00 am, my contractions started to really pick up and were about a minute apart. I sent Nick out to get the nurse because I was really in pain after about 20 minutes of back to back contractions. Turns out my nurse was on break. The nurse relieving her came in after i sent Nick out to the nurses' station a second time. I basically started begging her to make the pain stop. She turned down my Pitocin and started making the phone call to anesthesia. In a matter of minutes, I had the feeling that it was too late. There was no epidural waiting around the corner for me. Jackson was coming, and he was coming fast. The nurse called my midwife and my main nurse who rushed into the room just in time to help me start pushing.

I'd love to tell you that I was brave and took it all in stride. The fact is that I was terrified. I must have said, "I can't do this!" a hundred times. But, I did do it. Only a few pushes later I was holding Jackson. It was extremely intense, scary, and painful, but I am so grateful that it happened the way that it did. My recovery has been so much faster and easier because I did not get the epidural, and I am very thankful for that.

Nick was an amazing coach. I can only imagine what it must have been like for him in the last hour before I gave birth. Seeing someone you love in pain and wanting to help them is a terrible feeling. He was so encouraging and held me the entire time. I could not have done it without him.

Jackson's birth was definitely not what I had planned, but little in life ever is. Our son is here and he is healthy, precious, and ours forever. It does not get much better than that!

Jackson Edward Shaw

Jackson is here, and his entry into the world could not have been more different than Charlie's. Nick and I are still hanging out in labor and delivery, and Jackson is upstairs getting his first bath. I promise to post more later when things settle down. For now, here are the little man's first photos. Pretty darn cute, right?!?

Sweet Dreams, Jackson!

I hope Jackson has many peaceful nights in his new nursery. I love how it turned out. My favorite parts are the artwork above the crib and the blue and green canvases that I made over the changing table. I really like the fact that it is totally different than Charlie's nursery. I love Charlie's room, but I was in need of a change. This room fits the bill. Only a few more days before Jackson takes his first nap in that crib.

New Toy

My very sweet hubby surprised me this weekend with a gift. I am now the proud owner of a Toshiba Netbook with wireless internet. Nick knows how much I LOVE to play on the internet. Our desktop always makes it hard to get onto the computer because it means that I have to be away from everyone up in our office. My new computer is so tiny and perfect for checking e-mail, paying a bill, and of course blogging while still being a part of the family action. In fact, Nick and I are chatting and watching TV together as I write this post. I am so excited about my new toy and hope that it will enable me to keep the blog updated now that my hands will be full with Charlie and Jackson. The best part is that we will be able to bring it to the hospital and hopefully update everyone with pictures of sweet Jackson. Yeah!

Thank you, Nick Shaw! I love you and my gift!!!

It's Almost Time

It really has not hit me yet that we will be meeting our baby boy this Friday. I don't know why, because it feels like all we have been doing lately is getting ready for bringing home baby: decorating the nursery, washing baby clothes, setting up bouncy seats and car seats, packing for the hospital, revisiting my baby books, etc.

I keep trying to imagine what life will be like balancing the demands of a newborn and meeting the needs of a toddler. I know that I am not the first mom to manage this type of situation, but I am just worried about how this mom will be able to handle it all. I want to be able to spend time bonding with Jackson, but I don't want Charlie to feel that he is not getting enough of my attention.

Nick and I want to do everything that we can to make the transition as smooth as possible for our family. With that in mind, we have decided to use our stay in the hospital as a time to truly recover and get ready for the life with a newborn and a 22-month-old. We are asking our friends and family to give us time to get to know Jackson, rest, and recover during our two day stay at the hospital. We will be ready to see everyone once we are at home, but we really need to think about what is best for our little family. Nick and I feel that the best way to accomplish this is to not have visitors during our hospital stay. When Charlie was born, we left the hospital exhausted and with a baby that was not nursing. It was a rough start, but we did not have to worry about taking care of a toddler. This time around, we need to take Charlie into consideration. So, although it may not be a popular decision, we are asking those of you who love us most to give us some time. We love you all and are so grateful for your support. We can't wait to introduce you to Jackson and thank you for understanding our decision.

Family Fun

Charlie's Great-Uncle Keith came into town from Virginia this weekend to meet Cousin Rylee. We all headed over to Rylee's house to see Uncle Keith on Saturday night. We were joined by Auntie Vicki, Granddaddy, Oma, and Great-uncle Chris. It was so fun having everyone together, and we enjoyed a yummy pizza dinner. Rylee's house is really close to a famous pizza place called Pie in the Sky, and they are known for making HUGE pizzas. As you can see from the pictures, the pizza was more than enough to feed everyone. In fact, half of the pizza was left over after we were done munching.

Charlie had a blast playing with everyone and was such a good boy at his Auntie and Uncle's house. Nick and I enjoyed catching up with everyone, especially with Keith and Chris, who we don't get to see as often. It had been a couple of weeks since we had seen Rylee too, and boy has she grown. Her cheeks are so full, and she is much more alert. It's hard to believe she is already one month old. I am very curious to see how big she will be compared to Jackson.

The Boys' Bathroom

I had a lot of fun planning out and decorating the boys' new bathroom. I was inspired by a Pottery Barn Kids bathroom, but decided to try to do it myself for much cheaper. The shower curtain from PBK was about $50, and I found this similar one for half that price at Target. Once I had the shower curtain, I was able to match colors for towels and start making my artwork. I made four canvases, and the total for each one came out to be a little over $7 each. The letters that spell out BATH TIME cost me a little less than $10 to buy and spray paint blue. I love the way it all came together.

Where's Waldo?

Our morning was consumed by visits from heating and cooling engineers who were trying to help us fix our frigid house. In between visits, I attempted to pack my bags for the hospital and put some finishing touches on Jackson's nursery. Charlie was being my big helper, but at one point I turned around to find that he was no where in sight. I had a quick moment of panic and called out for him a few times. My calls were answers with intense giggling. I could tell that Charlie was in Jackson's nursery with me, but I seriously could not figure out where he was hiding. After a few moments I saw the Diaper Dekor box move. Charlie had crawled in and managed to pull his legs up so that he was entirely covered by the box. He was so tickled by the fact that I could not find him. Of course, he then wanted to play that game over and over again. What a nut!