Being A Mom

Being a mom is about the best thing in this world! (Besides being married to my sweet hubby!) I just can't believe how much I love being a mom to my Libby. As I think back to exactly 3 weeks ago today when she was born, I just can't believe how much our lives have changed for the better. Our Libby is such a joy to us and the reason why we do what we do anymore. I can't believe how much I love this little girl, and it grows and grows everyday I spend with her.

Libby is 3 weeks old today and so I thought I would just jot down a few things about her and what she does, mainly so I can remember it all.

*Libby rarely cries. She only cries when she is hungry (this is when she gets the most mad...just like her daddy!) or when she is naked and has all her clothes off. Although we have started to giver her bathes and she seems to like to be in the water, just hates the in between parts of getting her undressed and then getting her dressed afterwards. Libby doesn't have a fussy time ever, she is such a content and GOOD BABY!!

*She makes the funniest expressions on her face all the time and is constantly smiling or frowning in her sleep and when she is awake. I love to just sit and and watch so I don't miss anything. I am lucky that I get to do this all day for a few weeks while I am home from work. For example, I took these pictures all within about 2 minutes of each other the other day. She is usually wide awake for a good amount of time during the day. (I have yet to get a picture of her smiling, but I try...and one day I'll be successful. She has the cutest smile EVER!)

*If you can't tell already, she has still a ton of dark hair. She hasn't lost it from birth and we think it is so darn cute. I especially love it when it sticks straight up so I never comb it down. She also has the biggest eyes and she is always looking around with them.

*Libby sleeps really good. For the most part during the night she usually wakes up every 3-4 hours to eat and then usually falls asleep after that...not immediately...but soon enough. During the day she wakes up anywhere between 8-9 am and then is usually awake until about noon. She then sleeps for the better part of the afternoon (of course waking up to eat) and then will be wide awake at about 6 or 7 pm until she goes to bed at about 9:30-10:00. I think she gets her sleeping habits from me, definitely not from her dad. This is dad and Libs last night at about 6:30...wide awake as can be.

*Libby hates to be all tucked in and wrapped up. She loves to stretch out her legs (which she did a lot in my tummy too!) and loves to have her hands out of the blankets when she sleeps. If she is wrapped up too tight, she usually throws a little fit until we undo her a little and then she is content.

*Libby makes tons of noises when she sleeps and is the noisiest eater. She usually wakes her daddy up during the night when she is eating because she is so loud. But Libby is the worst to burp. I usually have to burp her anywhere from 20-45 minutes and during the middle of the night, this gets a little frustrating. Especially because by the time I feed her and burp her, she is up and not ready to go down again. But I still wouldn't change it for the world, especially at 2 am.

*Libby is so tall that I had to put away the newborn sleepers and now she wears the 0-3 month sleepers. Such a sad day. It was so funny.... when Libs would fully stretch out, the shoulders of the sleepers would fall off her shoulders because they were stretched to their limit. Such a sad day to realize my baby is growing already. They are so big on her, but the length is great so she wears them.

And last but not least.....

*Libby is STUBBORN STUBBORN STUBBORN. She has such a fun personality but she is already stubborn Just a few examples....if she doesn't like something she'll let you know. If she doesn't want her binky in her mouth she'll let you know. If she doesn't want to be held a certain way she'll let you know. She gets her stubbornness from both her mom and dad...poor little girl didn't have a chance.

And last but not least here are her stats for her 2 week appointment. I know I am a week late in posting these, but such is the life of a new mom trying to get used to everything! :)

Libby's birth stats:

Weight: 7 lbs 14 oz

Height: 20.5 inches

Libby's 2 week stats:

Weight: 8 lbs 6 oz (50% category)

Height: 21.5 inches (80% category...she's a tall one...definitely my side of the family!)

Being a mom is the best thing EVER!

Pink Monkey

This is for my niece Hailey Bailey. Hailey loves monkeys right now and she has a pink monkey shirt and so I had to snag this picture of Libby in her pink monkey shirt. Hailey also had my mom make Libby a pink monkey burp cloth so she gave it to me as a surprise. Too cute!

Happy Halloween

Here is our little Halloween Kitty-Kat. If you can't read Libby's shirt - it says: "Daddy's under my spell". Too cute....and so true.

Just a cute family picture. (Libby was pretty hungry, hence the semi-cry going on.)

Hope you all had a Happy Halloween! We sure did with our little one here to be with us.

Libby Lynn Cherry

So I finally have some time to post about our little Libby and how she came and was born. This is our story. Sorry, don't feel bad if you just skip this part and head to the cute pictures at the bottom, but for memory, I want to make sure I have this story written down.

Last Wednesday, October 20th, I went in to get a routine check-up. My doctor was out of town and so the other doctor said because I was dilated only 1/2 cm still, I would probably make it to my Oct 25th appt with my doctor to set up an induction date. We came home and that night I really started feeling bad bad cramps starting at about 11:00 and they continued through the night every 15 minutes. Needless to say I did not get any sleep. I woke Jedd up at about 2:00 and we decided that they were contractions and I was in labor. We woke the next morning (Thursday) and made the decision for both of us to go to work and see how the day went. The contractions stayed consistent throughout the day and by about 4:00 that night, they were still 15 minutes apart. Jedd got home from work at 6:30 and they finally had gotten quicker and were now 6 minutes apart. I kind of just laid around timing contractions and trying to survive. Later that night we took a walk and I got in the bath tub and by the time I got out at 11:30, the contractions had gotten so close together that they were about 2-3 minutes apart and that was when we decided to head to the hospital. We were admitted at midnight into the hospital and by the time I was checked at 1:30 am I was already dilated to a 3. So I got my epidural at 2:30 and they checked me again at 3:30 am I was dilated to a 6. We thought we had better call our parents because things were going quick. Parents came and we slept as best as we could, me having contractions and both of us anxious as could be. Well we were quite wrong thinking things would move quickly. I was checked every few hours and at about 12:00 pm, I was close to dilated to a 10 but she had not moved down enough to start pushing. I stayed dilated to a 10 for about 2 hours before they decided for me to start pushing and that was when the real fun began. :) Libby did not want to come out and was stuck behind my pelvic bone and it was horribly painful. I pushed for one hour and three minutes, but who was counting right?? We were seconds from having to do an immediate c-section, but our doctor was able to help Libby out and she was born at 3:13 pm on Friday October 22, 2010. She weighed 7 pounds 14 ounces and measured 20.5 inches long. What an amazing experience to know that this little baby came out of me and she was now in the world. I remember just bawling for about 15 minutes after giving birth, just so overwhelmed with emotions and love for this little baby already. Jedd and I could not control our emotions, we felt just so close to heaven at that instant. What a little angel we have as part of our family.

And for the fun part... pictures. How can I just choose a few so sorry for the overload!!

Libby so upset she actually had to come out of her mommy.

Daddy putting the first diaper on his baby.

Daddy holding Libby for the first time. I love this picture, she was just wide eyed the whole time and you can tell she knows her daddy already.

Mommy holding baby for the first time. Ignore the horrible look going on, 40 hours of labor and an hour of pushing, I was exhausted!

The first Cherry family picture.

Had to take this picture. The nurses were in love with her hair and every so often she came in with different bows and fresh clean hair.

This little Libby was known in the nursery by all the nurses because of her dark long hair. They would come in and bring her to us and say they really don't need to check our wrist bands they knew she belonged to us, but they did anyway. We wonder where she got this hair, and we love it!

Finally going home on Sunday. You can't tell but Libby is wearing a little onsie that has cherries on it. So fitting!

This is usually how our baby sleeps. We think she was like this in my belly, legs crossed, leaning on her right side. Too funny.

Just a cute picture I couldn't resist.

Look at those eyes!

This little girl is all smiles already and so wide awake and alert. Sometimes we don't think she is a newborn and only 5 days old.

Libby and daddy having together time after Jedd got off work.

Well that's it! I'm sure I'll post more pictures soon. Now that this little girl is here, the camera is permanently out and ready to snag a picture at any moment.

We love out little Libby Lynn!

She is here!!

Our little Libby Lynn Cherry is here! She was born Friday October 22, at 3:13 pm. She weighs 7 lbs 14 oz and is 20.5 inches long. Both mom and baby are doing great. More pictures to come. For now, here is our little angel. She has a head full of dark hair and we are already wrapped around her little finger.

39 Weeks and No Baby Yet

I know it has been a while since I have posted. I just can't bring myself to actually post on my own blog. Who knows why, but I am trying to get a few more posts in before this little baby gets here. So I am about 39 weeks pregnant and just went into the doctor's office yesterday. Everyone keeps asking me if I have been feeling contractions and my answer was always yes, I think I am. Well after talking to my doctor and realizing that I am only 1/2 cm dilated (which I was 2 weeks ago and nothing has changed in the last 14 days!!) I have come to find out that what I "thought" were contractions are actually 100% FAKE Braxton Hicks contractions and I am not even close to delivering this baby any time soon. How mean of mother nature to play such awful tricks on pregnant mommies to be. With this being my first, I wasn't exactly sure what I was feeling, but thought that it had to be some kind of contraction, but I guess it is my body preparing for the fun things ahead. So I have one more appointment with my doctor next week and then if I don't have my baby by the 25th, I go in to see my doctor that day and set up an induction date. My doctor says that if he had to guess, that he would for sure see me in his office on the 25th and we'll go from there, so that is what Jedd and I are planning. I always had in the back of my mind that this little one would be here over UEA weekend, no real reason why, just a hunch, but doesn't' look like that is going to happen. So we sit and wait until she decides that she wants to make her grand appearance. My bags are now packed, clothes are all washed, things are all ready so if she does surprise us, we are ready.

And of course a picture of me at 39 weeks. I don't know who in their right mind actually takes pictures of themselves this late in pregnancy (including myself!), but for journaling purposes, I thought I had better post it. And for some reason the camera caught me with totally glazed eyes so ignore the weird look on my face.

All in all, we want Libby to come when she is ready and can not be more excited to see and meet her when she gets here! So for now, we are anxious and waiting.

Too cute!

Just a few things I couldn't resist posting on my blog. I had a few baby showers this past month of September and got some great stuff! I can't wait to use things that I got. But one of the best things was my sisters, mom and sister-in-law went in and got me a stroller/car seat combo. It matches the exact fabric the swing my mother-in-law bought us for little Libby. My sisters wanted to see it all put together so here are some pictures. I just am in LOVE LOVE LOVE with this car seat and stroller, and I can't stop looking at it! :) Thanks guys, you are the best.

Here's the car seat:

The ADORABLE stroller:

And here is a playpen I got. I thought I would take a picture just to show that Libby's things are taking up every extra space we have in our house. It is so fun to look around and think that she'll be here in just a few short weeks!

Last but certainly not least: here is a picture of our sweet princess. 2 weeks ago (35 weeks) when I went in for my dr's appt, the doctor was having a hard time getting a picture of Libby's face. (This has been the case since day 1 with this little girl.....so stubborn like her daddy! Ok we all know she is stubborn just like her mom.) So my doctor decided to start pushing and pushing on my belly to maybe make her move her hands out of the way and maybe get a glance of her face. And this is the snapshot he got of our little sweetie.

And if you are thinking is that what I think it is? YEP you got it. That is our little Libby Lynn flipping us off. We were laughing so hard, it isn't everyday that you get a picture like this. Maybe down the road we'll use it as black mail.

I just can't wait to see how this little sweetie turns out and what kind of personality she has.

We just love this little girl already and she's not even here!

The nursery

As promised, here are a few pictures of Libby's nursery. It is about done, just a few things left to fill it with. But so far, this is what we have.

Look how talented my mom is. She made all the quilts and the bumper pads in the crib. I still need to buy a curtain rod so she can finish the curtains.

And my mom made all of those receiving blankets and burp clothes on the second shelf of my changing table. (Of course we have to have a few touches of the Chicago Bears and Chicago Cubs things in the room. I didn't get a good picture, but in the crib is our Cubs blanket and on the changing table is the Bears pillow. I am in the process of trying to get a few Chicago Cubs things hung on the wall. I'll take pictures when I get those done.)

Here is our swing we got from Jedd's mom. Too cute! Our stroller and car seat match.

And here I am at 35 weeks. Just 5 weeks left! Or if you want to think of it in days, just 35 days! It is coming quick. We are slowly but surely getting ready. My list of things left to get is getting smaller and smaller. But shockingly enough Libby's wardrobe is getting bigger and bigger. I swear, having a Carter's store so close to us is not a good thing.

First Day of School....

....mine that is! Yes school has come around again and I am back at it. Although, this year I am only a part time teacher working every other day. It is wonderful! Yesterday was my first "off day" and it was so great. I felt like I should have been at school considering I didn't officially take the day off. But I really think I am going to enjoy this! Every single year I try and take a first day of school picture, and of course this year was no different. Although, I seem to have put on a little weight from last year. I didn't think I have gained so much weight in other areas besides my belly (like my face, WOW!), but it sure looks that way from these pictures. YIKES! Oh well, I guess that's what mom's do for their babies, whether we have a choice or not.And this is a picture of me at 32 weeks...aka 8 months! Just 8 weeks left. Can you believe it? We are in single week digits. It is coming so fast I ask myself daily "am I ready for this?" Physically? YES! Emotionally, maybe not so much. Thank goodness I have an amazing and supportive husband that is all gung-ho about the whole thing and thinks we will do great. I make him tell me that frequently to hopefully make myself believe it. Hasn't happened yet, but maybe one day.

(Pictures of almost done nursery to come.)

2 Wonderful Years

This weekend Jedd and I celebrated our 2 year anniversary. I just can't believe it has been that long. So many things have happened in the last 2 years that it is crazy, but we have so much enjoyed our lives being together as a family.

August 1st, 2008......We just got married and I was finally so glad to be done with wedding planning. We were living in our 2-bedroom apartment and getting used to married life. We were so excited to finally start our lives together. Jedd and I had met, got engaged and were married all within a matter of 8 months.

August 1st, 2009...... We were living in Jedd's parents' house (and a storage shed where most of our belongings were stored) while our home was being finished. This was an exciting time, but so very stressful with all the "house" stuff. We were able to move into our house in October.

August 1st, 2010.....We are living in our house and have finally settled in. We love having our own place to call 'ours'. Things have changed, especially with the expected arrival of our little girl in October, making our family count 3 instead of 2. We have grown together over the past 2 years and have really learned a lot about our selves and each other. It has been so fun just being the two of us, being able to come and go as we please, not worrying about a whole lot. But we are looking forward with much excitement to have our little Libby with us in 3 months.

These last couple years have been so great. I really am one of the lucky ones to find my prince who loves me and treats me like a Queen. Jedd has been nothing but amazing to me and I can't wait to see what the next years bring. So sweetie, thanks to the last couple years and here's to many MANY more! I love you more than anything!!

Oh ya and one more picture to post.....this is me at 7 months pregnant. 3 more to go! We are right on track for October 20th/21st. Libby is weighing in at 2 1/2 pounds and is growing perfectly and healthy. (Which means that I am growing...but maybe not so perfectly. Ha ha.) The ultrasound pictures we got last week from our dr. appt show that she is getting some chubby cheeks already. It is so fun to see how she changes month to month.