The almost 6 month update.

So yeah, we're really bad about getting regular updates posted, but for those who have waited patiently- here's another one. Carter will be 6 months old 1 week from today. It's amazing how quickly the time has flown by. It just doesn't seem like he should be half way to a year yet. Of course sometimes I feel like I already have a 1 yr old on my hands.

He has started to do some crawling- although he's by no means an expert yet. But he can get where he's going given enough time. He'll also walk across the room if you hold him by the hands. I don't think he'll take off on that by himself for a little while though. He can't keep his balance very well, because when he wants something, he just lunges for it- he's not big on staying in one place.

The biggest development is that I have started doing elimination communication with him. What that means is that after naps and feedings and periodically throughout the day, I take him to the potty. He picked up on it right away and after just a couple days we cut our diaper usage in half! It hasn't quite been 2 weeks yet, but he knows what to do now when I take him in to the bathroom and he doesn't really care for having a wet diaper anymore. I have some training pants coming in next week, so at that point we'll only use diapers at night and when we're traveling, or if we leave him with a babysitter (which includes Ryan- he's still learning :P ).

Other than that he's just growing like a weed. We've managed to keep him in 9 month clothes for the last few months and he fills them out pretty well, but we're starting to use some 12 month clothes too. Still hasn't dropped off the 90% curve for his height and it shows. He's tall just like his daddy. That's also his favorite word- daddy. He's been saying it now for almost a month and still no signs of him saying mommy or mama. :(

He still eats like a Herman- not really anything so far that he won't eat. He's just getting used to textures though, which he didn't much care for at first, but he likes putting little dissolving finger foods in his mouth now and chewing them.

Clearly our lives revolve around the baby, but I guess I could mention the adults of the family too. Ryan's been doing really well with his second job. For those who don't know about it, he's a financial advisor in a company called Primerica. It's a part time thing right now, but he'd love to be able to go full time. He helps family's through life insurance, investments, and debt management. The company doesn't advertise, it's all done through referals, so if you know someone who could use his help just let him know (although right now he's only licensed in TN).

As for me, life as a stay-at-home mom is going pretty well. For the many who keep asking, no, I haven't done any painting recently. Aside from just being busy with a child that refuses to stay in one spot, I in general don't think it's a good idea to use my lead based oil paints while taking care of said child. So the only chance I get to do stuff like that is when Ryan's around, but he's out most evenings. And now with football season kicking off, Sundays are taken too. :P But I have been able to get some drawing done, purely for fun though. I've had a few free-lance jobs come my way over the past several months which helps bring in some funds and keeps me from going completely insane by having some interaction with the outside world. I guess the biggest news for me is that I just cut off all my hair and am now sporting a short pixie cut. I love not having to worry about doing my hair now and Carter now has a much harder time pulling it, so it was an all around great change. Plus it looks cute :)

Anyway, that's the life of the Hermans as of late. Just enjoying life. Oh and one more big exciting announcement- Carter's going to have a new cousin! A big congratulations goes out Amy who just found out she's pregnant again! We can't wait- we're very excited about having another niece or nephew.

Love to everyone and we'll try to have another posting up sometime in the next couple months- it could be sooner, but I'm not gonna set the bar too high. ;)

Carter update

Well, Carter is now 4 1/2 months old and is doing unbelievable things. We went for his 4 month check-up this past week and he is almost 27" and just a few ounces shy of 17lbs. So he's still in the 95% for height and 75% for weight. He can already sit up unsupported and stand up if he has something to hold or lean on. He's also getting really close to crawling- he can get up on his knees and toes, but he hasn't quite figured out how to go forward yet. Although he can get where he wants to go by rolling, pivoting, and scooting. (let me re-state that he's only 4 1/2 months old!- he's gonna be a handful!) His Dr. got to witness all this and said those are the things she would have told me to look for him to start doing closer to 6mo or later!

He is also drinking out of a sippy cup now all by himself- he knew what to do as soon as I handed it to him. He can't really hold up a bottle well, cause we don't usually give him one, but since the cup has handles he can hold onto it easily. This past week he started holding his arms out when he wants to be picked up- it made my heart skip a beat the first time he did it. It's a wonderful feeling seeing him able to express what he wants.

The most recent development is that he got his first teeth in today- and yes I said teeth. The first one broke through this morning and to our surprise, the second one poked through this evening (the two front bottom ones). Nursing could possibly get really interesting now, but so far he's behaving.

So my boy is growing up fast, but he's so much fun. He's still the happiest baby. He loves to laugh, and he smiles at everyone. I feel so blessed to have such a wonderful family.

Carter's growing!

Where to start? Carter is now 3 1/2 months old and is doing great. He's now 26.5" and around 15lbs. (We don't have a scale that measures oz. so we just guestimate). That puts him in the 95% for height and 75% for weight, which is what he was last visit to the doctor, so that's good. Needless to say, he's a big boy (he's wearing 9mo clothing already!). We've met a couple other babies at church that look noticably smaller than him, only to find out they're a month older.

Carter's getting really mobile. He rolled over belly to back at 2 months and back to belly at 3 months. He now goes over and over to get where he's going. He also started to try scooting as soon as he got from back to belly. He doesn't go far, but he definitely has the right motions to go forward.

We also started him on solid food this past week. We swore we were gonna wait until he was at least 4mos, because that's what's recommended, but age aside, he displayed every sign that he was ready. We started with bananas, because they say breastfed babies take to that easier than rice cereal, because of the sweetness. He took to it like he'd been doing it all along. No weird 'what did you just put in my mouth?' faces or anything. He just loves food- there's no doubt he's a Herman!

All in all, he's a very happy baby. He doesn't cry unless he's hungry or tired, and he loves to just laugh and 'talk'. What's more, he started sleeping through the night when he was 7 wks old (8hr stretches!). We are so blessed to have such a good baby. Be sure to keep checking the gallery. We have been posting more pictures, even when we don't post new blogs. Love to all!

One month update

Ok, so Ryan lied, he never got around to that update he mentioned. Carter is now 1 day shy of being 6 weeks old. He had his 1 month check-up yesterday and he is now 23 1/2 inches long and 11lbs 11oz (that's 2" and 2 1/2lbs since he was born). That puts him in the 95th percentile for his height and 90th percentile for his weight. That's all I really have time to write right now. Continue to check the gallery regularly, because we add pictures a lot more often than we write blog posts.

Short Carter update

Tomorrow marks Carter's third full week of life and things are going well. I started work again on this past Monday, which means Mindy is now staying at home during the day by herself taking care of Carter. I plan on writing a longer update this weekend so keep an eye out for that.
Also, we just uploaded 18 new pictures to the Gallery.

Short Carter update

Tomorrow marks Carter's third full week of life and things are going well. I started work again on this past Monday, which means Mindy is now staying at home during the day by herself taking care of Carter. I plan on writing a longer update this weekend so keep an eye out for that.
Also, we just uploaded 18 new pictures to the Gallery.

A Baby Story (Part 3 of 3)

It was a little over two hours later, around 1:30 am, when Mindy was finally out of the OR and brought into the recovery room. She was given a blood transfusion for the blood that she lost. We stayed in the recovery room until 4 AM at which point we were finally moved back to the labor and delivery room with Carter where we attempted to feed him for the first time. We were both very happy that he started to breastfeed with relative ease.

Mindy has no memory of the events from right after Carter was born to the first feeding around 4 am and even then her memory is very vague. In fact the whole morning’s events are very limited. That afternoon however, the drugs that she had been given during the c-section where mostly worn off and we were together as a family, enjoying each others’ company. That evening we finally moved to the Mother Baby unit in the hospital and Mindy even made the walk with very little assistance. Mindy was very happy to be able to start eating again.

On Saturday several family members and friends stopped by to visit, then Sunday morning we were discharged from the hospital. At that time Carter had started to develop a slight case of jaundice and we were told to take him to his pediatrician the next day, but overall he was very healthy. On Monday at the pediatrician, we were told to keep an eye on his color and if it worsened then we should go back in, but it appears to be clearing up. Mindy continues to improve on a daily basis and is doing very well for only a week after the c-section.

We continue to thank God for the successful delivery of our son and pray that he continues to be healthy. We ask that you keep us in your prayers as we continue to grow as a new family together.

A Baby Story (Part 1 of 3)

Okay so where to begin? Wednesday evening we made our way to Parkridge East Hospital to begin the induction. We arrived shortly after 8 pm and completed the necessary paper work for admissions. Around 9 pm we checked into our room for the next two days. The room itself was fairly nice; one of the larger labor and delivery rooms they had. They have some very small rooms and we were thankful for the extra space.

They started prepping Mindy for the process, drawing blood, starting the fluid IV drip, etc. Cervidil was scheduled to begin sometime from 9-10 but was delayed significantly. Before the nurses came back they had two busses and three wheelchairs come in for delivery and then a couple hours later around midnight had three more, so it wasn’t started until right before 1:30 Thursday morning. At that point we were finally able to get some sleep for the long day ahead.

Tuesday morning around 8:30 the Pitocin was administered to start the contractions. Two hours later Mindy was right at 4 cm and our Midwife, Amy Miller Anderson, decided to break the water. Because contractions intensify once the water is broken, Mindy decided it was time for the epidural to be administered. It took a while for the anesthesiologist to arrive in the room and by that point Mindy was very grateful for the relief. The afternoon progressed uneventfully except it appeared around 3 o’clock that she had dropped off the normal dilation curve which was a little bit of a concern. But when the Amy rechecked at 6 pm and she had reached 9 cm! Amy said she would go change and would be back to begin the pushing process. At 6:45 pm it began.

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A Baby Story (Part 2 of 3)

Before it began Amy (the midwife) said that 2 -3 hours was the longest they recommend pushing to lower the stress on both mother and baby. At first things seemed to be going well and that Carter would be born vaginally. As we progressed into the second hour the apparent progress had slowed but enough progress had been made to hope that it would still be successful. However, the further into the hour we went the more apparent it was becoming his downward movement had stopped. As we approached the third hour we started to discuss the next options.

Amy left at the beginning of the third hour to call the doctor to prepare for a possible cesarean section which gave Mindy a chance to rest. It turns out that Doctor Sabrina Collins was already headed to downtown Chattanooga to perform a c-section at Erlanger. About 30 minutes later Amy re-enter and Mindy decided to continue to push until the doctor made her way back to our hospital on the chance that he would become unstuck.

At the end of the third hour it was very apparent that he was not going to be born without help. Once Dr. Collins arrived the only option left on the table was a c-section and so the preparations began. They took her back into the delivery operating room while I waited in the hallway until they gave me the all clear to enter. Once in the room with her we were both waiting anxiously for him to be born. As the procedure progressed Mindy could definitely fell the pressure and a dull ache and so they started to administer additional sedatives.

Once Carter was born, at 11:07 pm, we heard “he’s a big boy” from the nurses and doctors in the room. Once they had him cleaned he weighted in at large 9 lbs 3 oz. They showed him to both Mindy and I and at that point Mindy’s memory of the night’s events are hazy at best as they put Mindy under deep sedation. They gave Carter to me to hold and for a few minutes we were all three together for the first time as a family. I then walked Carter to the nursery for his first exam.

After taking a few pictures of Carter, the concern then turned to Mindy and her recovery. It was taking longer than expected for her to emerge from the OR. It was then explained that they were having difficulty stopping the uterus from bleeding further and that she had lost around double the normal amount of blood during the procedure.

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Carter is born!!!

On Thursday, March 15 at 11:07 pm, Carter James Herman entered this world and our lives. He weighted 9 lbs 3 oz and was 21 1/2 inches long. This being the end of his fourth day of life, it seems so far that he is doing quite well. The biggest concern at this point is he has a slightly elevated level of jaundice, but so far nothing that is a concern. We just have to watch it carefully and make sure he eats regularly and gets some sunlight during the day.

We have uploaded pictures in the gallery from the first few days and, as time permits, over the next few days will fill you in on how the delivery went.

Labor?

Wednesday morning Mindy started having mild, but consistent contractions. This lasted until Thursday evening with a few that where irregular. But it wasn't to be, this morning they had subsided and gone back to being very irregular. Regardless we did visit the doctor today instead of waiting until our Monday appointment. At this point things haven't progressed and our midwife doesn't expect anything for at least a few more days, but also said thing can obviously change at any point.

So we continue to wait.

Photo's

The pregnancy is going well. Last Thursday we were at 37 weeks and there isn't much else to do but wait at this time. We are both getting anxious as we know that the beginning of labor could begin at anytime. I attended some meetings in Dalton, GA (about 40 minutes away) this weekend and while I wasn't that far away I knew that I could be making a rushed trip back up to Chattanooga. But as you can guess nothing so far.

We have upload new pictures to the Carter album in the gallery that you can check out. They include updated weekly photo, nursery, and some B&W photos that I took with our new Rebel XT. Enjoy.

From Carter James ...

Carter Update

Since we found out we are expecting a boy we've been busy getting things ready in our spare time. Originally we had setup the house with one guest room and used the other bedroom as an office. We have since moved the office and guest room together, cleaned out the former guest room, and have begun setting up the nursery.

We are most greatful for the gifts we have gotten from our friends and family. Without them we would have a very difficult time coming up with everything we would need to fill his room. Clothes, furniture, blankets, bottles, etc, the items one needs to have a home for a baby is almost overwhelming. We thank everyone that has given not just to us new parents but to every expecting family.

Speaking of furniture we are using the same crib that I used as a baby. It was also used by my older sister, Amy; and Amy used it for her son, Tristin until around December when they bought him a toddler bed (he is now 2 years old). The glider should be here next week and then the room will be competed, well mostly, we have a few remaining items we will be buying to fill his room, but nothing that is a "oh you have to have this with a baby."

Mindy has been working from home, helping format a dissertation for Vinita Sauder, a VP at Southern. This has kept her fairly busy since the beginning of the year. This project has mostly come to an end though which means she is probably done working until after Carter is born. She has also kept busy getting Carter's things in order, she has washed most of his clothes and has put things away quite nicely in his room. We have hung a few things on his walls but have a couple more items we want to add. It is safe to say his room is coming along nicely. After the baby shower last week however, there are now a few more things to take care of but it will get done.

Oh yeah, almost forgot we can now bring him home from the hospital. On Monday we bought his car seat and stroller. And don't forget to check out the gallery again there are a few new pictures and videos.
That's about it for now, we are having a SuperBowl party here tomorrow night with some friends so we will be busy tomorrow morning getting ready, we are going to grill pizza's. Yummy!