Aaron Avery is Here!

I said 4 days when I made my last post, but Baby Smith decided to come two days later on April 9, 2011. This day was pretty special because it was Nanna's 65th birthday. I had decided that April 8th would be my last day of work, so that I could rest over the weekend. God had different plans. I was able to get everything done before maternity leave, which was a huge relief. Peggy would take over on Monday, Aprill 11th my due date. Here is a copy of the email that Sterling sent as went into labor. There were no last belly photos taken as I was in an intense amount of pain. I even forgot my cell phone at home. For those that know me, this is a huge deal. It was slightly annoying as everyone had to call Sterling. This was the most I had ever see him talk on the phone. The phone that I begged him to get when we got married. "It appears that we've transitioned from a Baby Smith Watch to a Baby Smith Warning. All should be on alert that Shannon has been officially admitted and epidural-ed into Medical City Hospital's L&D wing without a wink's sleep since yesterday. "Weird" feelings started between 9:30-9:45pm and contractions kicked off at 10:35pm. Unfortunately for me, the water never broke so I was never able to cuss-and-run like I'd hoped. It did take me by surprise, though, as I didn't really believe that our baby would actually share a birthday with my mom (4/9).

By 12:45am the contractions were coming more frequently (every 4-8 minutes), so Shannon took a shower and called the doctor. They said it sounded like labor and to come on in, so we grabbed a few loose items (other bags were in the car) and got out of there about 15 minutes later (after Shannon dried her hair, got dressed and had me make the bed). I tried to take Shannon's mind off what was going on, we looked for a McDonald's (for me) and took in the soothing sounds of November Rain.

Once here they got her into a room, hooked her up to a bunch of medical crap, informed her that she's 6cm dilated (the nurse's eyes got huge at this point... kinda cool) and started admitting us. The Epidural guy came about 10-15 minutes later. It's apparently time to sleep now - according to the nurses and doctor - but we'll let you all know how this thing shakes out. A rough estimate might be that we start pushing around 7am and deliver between 8-10am. Obviously this is not an exact science, but they said it's a decent ballpark.

I did not faint during the epidural and the greatest emotional swings I've experienced were the happy, anticipatory feeling between 10:30-11pm and the excitement when I realized that we have free ESPN in the L&D room. This feeling was closely followed by heartbreak when I realized that it's golf and baseball season.

Good night, friends.

sterling

I also wanted to add a few details he forgot. Friday night we were invited to an FC Dallas game by Sterling's dad and step-mom. They had two extra tickets, so we invited Adrienne and Jordan. We had a yummy last dinner at Rudy's BBQ before the game. Shockingly I have no photos.

He also forgot to mention that we drove through two McDonalds (for him) and there was nothing taking my mind off the pains of childbirth. I was pretty excited when we finally starting pushing. You can tell I was on drugs with that smile

Well, we had an amazingly healthy, sweet baby boy on April 9, 2011. (Nanna's Birthday) Forgive my swollen face from 3 hours of pushing our 8lb 14 oz. big baby, Aaron Avery Smith. Focus on his cute little yawn in our first family photo. Wanted to jot down some things I love about him. Cuddling. When I burped him on my chest, he rubs my arm. He grabs onto his ear while he is eating. He puts his fingers in his mouth when he is upset to calm himself down. He makes the cutest little squeaks. His sweet eyes remind me of my baby pictures as he darts them back and forth. I love his smiles while he sleeps. Seeing Sterling love on him seems so precious and natural. He loves sleeping while cuddled up in his Aden & Anasis blankets. More photos to come in the next post.

4 More Days!

We had a blast taking maternity photos when we were 36 weeks.

Thanks so much to Scott Booth and his incredible photography skills for such fun pictures.

http://lone-starphotography.com/blog/?p=1259

It is crazy to think that we have 4 days left of being pregnant.

(Or 11 depending on when Baby Smith decides to come.) It has been quite an exciting journey. We are very grateful that I have felt so great the whole time and the baby has been good to me. I am going to miss all the little and big kicks. That is by far the coolest and my favorite part of being pregnant. We have also felt so blessed and grateful for all the love and the support from family and friends. Baby Smith is already so loved and he/she is not even born yet!!! What a huge blessing! Sterling and I are so excited about raising our baby together in a family that exhibits love and receives love constantly.

Here are a few pictures of our neutral nursery. We still want to hang the baby's name above the bed and hang curtains. You can gather the overall look. Pretty simple, not too cluttered with a few special touches from us. The monkey in the shelf is wearing a small shirt that has a picture of the two of us. Next post will probably be the gender and name of our baby!!! .