1 month old

I can't believe today my little boy is 1 month old! Time is flying by and we're just trying to make as many memories as we can with Porter. He has already changed so much. He is now taking big boy baths (no more sponge baths), which he has grown to love. He is picking his head up when you hold him or he's on his tummy. He loves to watch lights and fans! He is smiling quite a bit (some intentional, some not). He is doing great with sleeping at night. He had 2 nights in a row of sleeping through the night, but we set him back a little by switching him from the pack and play in our room to his crib. His little noises and grunts are very cute, but were making it hard for mommy and daddy to get any sleep. Now he is going to bed around 10:00 and gets up once around 3:00 for about 30 minutes then sleeps until about 6:00. Pretty good for a 4 week old, so I won't complain! He has started taking a paci some during the day, but can't quite figure out how to keep it in his mouth (hilarious!). He has his 1-month check up at the pediatrician on Monday and we can't wait to find out how much he weighs. Here are some of our favorite moments from his 1st month...

Having storytime with mommy-

 So snuggly in his jammies-

Stretching after a nap on the couch-

Going for his first walk in the stroller-

Evenings are a bit fussy, this is a normal dinnertime around here (I know we'll laugh at this one day)-

Candid reaction to the first big boy bath-

Not so much of a morning person (though he really is a happy baby, I promise)-

Happy one month birthday Porter, mommy and daddy love you so much!!!



Playtime

Porter has started being awake a little more each day and is starting to love his toys! He feels like such a big boy already sitting up with the help of his Boppy...

2 Weeks Old

Porter, I can't believe you're already 2 weeks old! Mommy and Daddy love you so much! Here's what you look like at 2 weeks...

Not so happy about Mommy trying to show off his outfit :)

Stretch baby stretch

What a sweet face!

Visiting with Nonni, Auntie Em, Mommy, and Aunt Jesse

Growing like a weed...

Everyone told me that these first few weeks/months would fly by as we learned the ropes of parenting and taking care of our sweet boy. You were all so right! I can't believe my baby is already 11 days old. I know that sounds so small, but I feel like it's only been hours since I had him. He is already growing so much and beginning to do new things. Our first days in the hospital and at home I remember thinking that his newborn clothes were so big on him and that it would take him weeks to fill them out. Well, not so much! His little feet are already to the ends of them and I'm pretty sure we'll be moving up within a week or so. He is beginning to respond to familiar voices by opening his eyes and trying to find us. His little blue eyes are so sweet when he stares at me while he eats. I will savor those moments forever! He has started picking his head up when he is on his belly or we're holding him. His neck is pretty strong for such a little guy. He is turning into quite the daddy's boy and I think it's so sweet! He will wake up from the soundest sleep when Sean gets home from work. He looks so hard to try and find daddy when he hears him. I took him to the doctor today and he said it usually takes around 2 weeks for babies to get back up to their birth weight. Porter's birth weight was 7 lbs. 14 oz., so I expected him to be a little less than or right at that. At 11 days old, he is 8 lbs. 2.5 oz.! His jaundice is gone, except for his eyes. He is doing great and I could not be more thankful!

No one quite like a mom

Sean and I have been overly blessed throughout the past few weeks (especially this last one) to have such great help and support from our friends and family. We have had meals brought and many sweet visitors to love on our son. One of those sweet visitors has been my mom. As I have grown and been through many life changes within the last 5 years, I have learned just how valuable and priceless her love and advice is in my life. She always knows what to say and seems to have an answer for everything. She has been to our house several times over the last few weeks to clean for me, care for our dogs (which is saying a lot for a not-so-dog-friendly person), make meals, and love on Porter. Her tender heart and caring nature have brought a sense of calmness to our house and made our first week of being parents so much easier. We came home from the hospital on Monday to a clean house and candlelight lunch ready for us on the table. We have meals in our freezer to last quite a while. But even more important, my son has a Nonni that adores him and can't wait to make memories with him. I pray that I will be the same loving, caring, and nurturing mom for Porter as he grows up. Mom- I love you and can't express how truly thankful I am for who you are!

What an amazing daddy!

I always knew Sean would make a great daddy, but I never knew just how great. I have completely fallen in love with this man all over again. Seeing him love and care for our son has shown me a side of him I have never seen before. He is so gentle and sweet with Porter. He has mastered changing diapers, changing outfits and rocking a crying baby. He read Porter's first story to him- "Good Night Gorilla". It melted my heart! He comes home with the biggest smile on his face so ready to spend time with me and Porter. I feel so blessed and thank God every time I see Sean with Porter for a husband that loves our son the way he does. He sets such an excellent example for Porter of a hard-working man that loves his wife in a way that honors the Lord. I am so glad that Porter will grow up with a daddy that loves him so sweetly and cherishes every minute with him. I love you Sean Mitchell and am so thankful to share my life with you!

Happy Birthday Porter Graham Mitchell!

So it has taken me a while to get some time to write about the big day, but here goes...

We had hoped that Porter would take the initiative to come out a little earlier on his own before having to be induced, but he was obviously nice and comfy in there. We went to the hospital on Friday (February 25th) at 7:00 am and began the induction. It started off slow with some bloodwork, an IV, and a Pitocin drip. Things went slow at first and contractions were very mild for the first 4 or 5 hours. At 2:00 I had progressed from 3 cm to 4/5 cm and the dr. broke my water. Things got a little crazy from there. I started feeling much stronger contractions right away but was able to walk and manage the pain for about 3 hours. At around 5:00 pm I had not progressed past the 4/5 cm and was feeling an intense (understatement!) amount of pain. I opted for the epidural and have no regrets about that. I had so much fear and anxiety about having an epidural because I have a huge fear of needles. However, I had felt so much pain and was so exhausted by that point that I actually fell asleep during the process of getting the epidural. From there, things were instantly calmer and I was able to rest for an hour or so. I had one 'hot spot' the entire time that never got fully numb, but was relatively pain free other than that. From 6:00-11:00 pm things were still pretty calm and it was just basically a waiting game at that point. However, at around 11:00 I started getting a fever that was climbing pretty rapidly. The dr was concerned that I could have started getting an infection from having my water broken. They were going to give me one hour to see how far I progressed and whether my temperature continued to rise. If there was no progression and a higher temperature, then a c-section would be my only option because we couldn't risk Porter getting an infection also. I prayed so hard for that next hour that the Lord would intervene and I would progress and the temperature would lower. There seemed to be an overwhelming sense of peace over the next 45 minutes until the dr came in. He came and checked and my temperature had lowered to a normal range and I had progressed to 9 cm- I was ready to push!! By that time I had been 24 hours with no food and no sleep but somehow knew I had to have enough energy to push. We again prayed that somehow I would get some energy from somewhere to go though this final stage of getting Porter out. I started pushing a little before midnight and let's just say movies don't quite convey the intensity of this process! It's amazingly energizing yet exhausting all at the same time. At first Porter started coming down quickly and it looked like I might only push for a little while. However, he hit a hurdle and got stuck. I tried to push past it, but he just wouldn't come any further. After 3 hours of pushing the dr came in again and said he would try the vacuum to see if he could get Porter past the point he was stuck at. However,  he said that since I had pushed so long and Porter had been in the birth canal for 3 hours already we couldn't wait very long to get him out. Again, a c-section was up in the air. God is good and after the vacuum and 2 more pushes we finally got to meet our baby!!! It was 3:06 am on Saturday morning and we experienced the biggest miracle of our lives together. Meet Porter Graham Mitchell...

It's amazing how you instantly fall in love with someone you've never even met. The bond I felt instantly with my baby boy was indescribable. We have prayed for this baby in my belly for 39 weeks and have seen pictures of his little face and prepared our home for him. However, nothing prepared us for the overwhelming emotions we would experience holding this sweet baby for the first time. So many blessings and miracles had happened up to this point and I take none of them for granted. Porter was 7 lbs. 14 oz. and 21.5 inches long. He was perfect in every way (ok maybe I'm a little bit of a proud mommy!). He had a touch of jaundice, but not enough to need to treat it. Amazingly, his blood sugar was in a healthy range at 4 different checks which indicated that my gestational diabetes had not affected him. Our family was at the hospital and was able to meet Porter right away. Let's just say this little boy is quite loved! Our lives have changed forever on February 26, 2011 and I could not feel more blessed. This little angel has already brought so much joy and happiness to our lives and our home. Our family of 3 feels perfect and I could not ask for more!