First Bath

Bath time is not much fun yet!

Nathan has the hiccups

Nate met lots of family and friends in his first 2 1/2 weeks!

Aaron Loretta
My Dad

Shannon

Steve

Betsy
Dave's dad
My mom and Dave's mom

Update from Kelly

Paul, Hunter, Judy, and little Nate

What a whirlwind the past week has been. We finally made it home from the hospital after 5 long days. Although my delivery was really tough, I felt like the care and help I received at the hospital was top notch. It was excellent having such wonderful postpartum care from the nurses, pediatricians, and doctors. Being home has been great and stressful at the same time. Coming home Sunday night was overwhelming... It was amazing to think that we had this little baby all to ourselves. We were fortunate that our friend Kevin came by to drop off dinner because we didn't think about much that night besides our little Nate and how are lives have suddenly grown to include this little guy. Yesterday was a little rough because I had a major reality check as to how much less I can handle while taking care of Nathan. I barely had time or energy to take a shower. I kept trying to sneak in loads of laundry and chores but I had to remind myself that I also needed to continue recovering from my surgery and that I needed to rest. I feel a little more encouraged today that I can handle my new life but I will sure miss having Dave's help when he goes back to work. I don't know what I would have done without Dave there to help me through the last 6 days. We feel blessed to have this this little child in our lives and it will only be a matter of time when everything will feel more natural. -Kelly

Nathan (1-3 hours old)

Nathan all dressed up...about 1 hour old

Now swaddled in his blanket.

Yes, Dave is as tired as he looks!

Nathan's first few minutes

Above is little Nathan just a few minutes after his Cesarean Birth, I took the video in the actual operating room while Kelly was still being stitched up (sorry, the above video could take several minutes to load, so be patient). Nathan just got finished with quick wipe down and some aspiration for his stomach and nasal cavities and I got to cut the cord a little further down to the clamp and then I took this video. You can hear the nurse in the background say "eight and nine", she explained to me later that those are his Apgar scores...he scored quite well...all of the screaming and wriggling means he is a healthy baby. After that he went to the balance to be weighed and measured...

...9 pounds 8.4 ounces. and 20.5 inches long...as you can see on the scale. That's why Kelly was so miserable over the past few weeks!

Baby has Arrived!!! (by Dave)

Great News! After much anticipation I am thrilled to anounce the Birth of Nathan Robert Kindrachuk, our healty baby boy! I just snuck out of the hospital for a few minutes to share news of the event. Our son was born last night at 9:26 pm at over 9 1/2 lbs and 20.5" long. Mom and baby are doing well! I plan to post pictures tomorrow or sunday at the latest.

Sorry to get everyone's hopes up about a Father's Day baby! Looks like the doctor was a little off because my progress (dilation/ effacement) slowed down. Although I am 6 days past my due date, it's still normal for a 1st time mom to be a little late. Cross your fingers it will be soon!

Feeling good today compared to the last two days. Dave's starting to have the "nesting" urge and Sadie's following me around. Maybe they know something I don't.

The doctor told me today he's not making any Father's Day plans, hmmmm.....

Due Date

Nope, no Bebe yet! Thanks for all of the phone calls and e-mails from everyone checking in.... I really appreciate it!!!
It's so difficult waiting. I am all nested out at home and ready!

Learn'n about dad stuff

Dave absorbed in a "dad" book at Pottery Barn Kids while modeling our new diaper bag. I think he read the whole entire book while sitting in the kid's chair.

Baby likes it in there!

Doc thinks end of next week. Hmm, maybe a father's day present for Dave (hope I don't have to wait that much longer though). Baby's doing well. He was active today (although a little squished by now). My official due date is this Weds. and typically 1st time moms are not early. Just a little longer!

Ready...

Just some stats:
Day of the week more babies are born (14% higher chance).... TUESDAY
least likely.... WEEKENDS

39/ 40 weeks. What the baby looks like

It's a beach day :-)

Dog days of summer

Sadie enjoying a beautiful SoCal day at Cardiff beach.

39 weeks

Lots of waiting and wondering when the b-day will be..... Dr. said today I probably won't be delivering this week. I have mixed feelings about this.... excited to move on with life, meet the baby, get my energy back, etc. But on the other hand, there will be a whole new set of challenges....lack of sleep, not being able to do as much out of the house,etc. However, I look forward to finding new meaning and direction in life and learning a new kind of love.

Hang'n out at the Cardiff campsite (39 weeks)

38 Weeks!

Almost There (37 weeks)!

Dave and I have been getting ready for the baby to come in the next few weeks. We are getting excited and a little nervous. We have heard how difficult it is the first month after the baby comes home so we are trying to get as much sleep as possible. I have been having fun cooking up a storm and freezing everything so we don't have to cook as much. We got our crib yesterday and I washed all of the baby clothes and blankets already. I'm realizing how easy it is to lose baby socks in the laundry.....they are so minature!

I am excited to be done being pregnant. It is getting really difficult to walk, sit, sleep, and pretty much everything. The baby has "dropped" so it is putting a lot more pressure on my back and pelvis. But at least I have more room below my ribs and I am not getting heartburn anymore! I have also developed a little case of carpal tunnel syndrome from water retention. All I can do right now is eat less salt and drink more water so I retain less and the carpal tunnel will go away soon after delivery. Even though I have some swelling, my blood pressure is great so there are no signs leading to the development of preclamsia (which is common nearing the end of pregnancy).

Dave and I have narrowed the baby name down to two choices. We just hope the baby doesn't come out a GIRL after all of the thought we put into deciding on these two names! It may take meeting the baby to make the final decision!

Hopefully soon we will have happy news to share with everyone!!!! We can't wait for you to meet the baby!

Dave's play-doh baby

Finally...a picture of me and the baby belly

April Update (33 weeks pregnant)

Dave and I just had our 1st Anniversary over the weekend. It was a nice weekend. We cannot believe how much has changed in one year and that we will be having a baby in less than 2 months! It has been a little stressful going through so many life changes in one year but I think Dave and I have grown and learned a lot about each other through the process.

The pregnancy is going well. We (me especially) cannot wait to be done with this stage of the pregnancy and to meet our little guy! I had a doctor's appointment last week and the doctor said that the baby is already in head down position which will make delivery much easier. The baby's heartbeat was strong at the appointment. My blood pressure, iron levels, and other lab tests have tested very normal. My belly measures about 33 weeks now which makes my due date around June 5-11. In a few weeks the baby should move lower in preparation for delivery and hopefully I will be able to have more room to breath and digest food! I feel the baby constantly especially about an hour after I eat. I now know which of his body parts are moving where. His elbows are hitting my elbows, his feet are kicking my ribs and I can feel his hands in my lower abdomen. He especially likes to move at night when I am trying to sleep! This is getting me used to sleeping less! Dave and I have started taking childbirth preparation classes. It is fun to see all of the pregnant bellies in class and to meet other couples going through the same thing.

7 mos. pregnant

I went to the doctor a few days ago. Everything is right on track. Very healthy. The baby's heart rate was 149BPM when they took it the other day. It was funny because he kept kicking the monitor as she was taking the reading.
I am starting to feel the baby move around more and more everyday. He loves to kick my right elbow when it's resting at my side. He also gets hiccups every once in a while. Dave can feel these too!
As for me, I am feeling good although starting to feel more exhausted than normal. I am a little tired of being pregnant. I miss being as active as I was before and being able to wear normal clothes! I joined a baby boot camp class so I could continue to get good exercise and also to meet other new moms. This has been great for me and it will be something I can continue to do with the baby.

Western Caribbean Cruise

Mom and Dad took Dave and I on a cruise to the Western Caribbean. It was great for Dave and I to get away for one last vacation before the baby is born. The highlights were tubing down a Jamaican river through a tropical forest, swimming with the stingrays off Grand Cayman, and floating down a Mayan River south of Playa Del Carmen in Mexico. I have to admit, Jason, Dave, and I got hooked on Blackjack and had a blast playing at the casino. It was fun spending time with Mom, Dad, Jason, Jan and Pat, Grandma, and Aunt Janet, Lexi, and Logan. We were busy every second of the trip!!! I am still trying to catch up on sleep!