IT'S A BOY!

Danny and I are still amazed that we now have a girl...and a boy!  We are so thankful to have two healthy, beautiful kids.  I can still hear Danny's words, "It's a boy!"  I wish we had it on video.  

Colin Vincent Schuerman was born on May 23rd at 5:10 pm.  He weighed 6 pounds, 8 ounces and was 20 inches long.  He's a tall, skinny boy!  As much as I thought we were having a boy, I was convinced it was another girl since the pregnancy was so similar to when I was pregnant with Cadence.  One thing I did notice with my second pregnancy was that Colin beat me up!  People have joked that if your baby is rough on you during pregnancy that it is a boy.  It seemed that for the last few months, whenever he would move, it would take my breath away.  He also felt like he was sitting so much lower.  My pelvis felt like it was going to snap in two at times. 

Here is our last "week" shot.  It was taken the Wednesday before our Thursday induction.  39 weeks!

My doctor agreed to a social induction.  I always knew that I didn't want to go past my due date (which was May 29).  Then we thought it would be perfect timing to have the baby on Memorial Day weekend.  Then we found out that my doctor was going to be going on vacation that weekend.  I never thought I would schedule an induction around my doctor's schedule, but we did!  I was progressing well and I was past 39 weeks, so everything was in good shape to schedule an induction.  Rhonda and Vince could also help us out and watch Cadence for us while we were in the hospital, so everything was working out perfectly!  There were many times when I didn't think we'd make it that far.  At 35 weeks, we were in the hospital because I was sick and was having contractions.  Thankfully we were able to get them to stop!

Here we are at something like 5:30 in the morning.  We had to be at the hospital at 4:45 in the morning!  The only good things about being there that early were no traffic and our appointment didn't get bumped.

After enough time had passed for the antibiotics to get into my system, they started the pitocin.  My contractions slowly got stronger.  When they got to the point of discomfort, like I had with Cadence, I asked for an epidural.  At that point it was sometime after noon.  Honestly, I was most nervous about the epidural.  It was such a strange experience with Cadence not knowing what to expect.  This time I knew what to expect.  With Cadence, I felt like a lightning bolt got shot down my side.  It was so painful!  I was dreading that happening again.  When Hank, the anesthesiologist, arrived to administer the epidural, I almost started to cry.  My Mom told me that he would do a great job, but I was still scared.  Even though he wasn't supposed to be there, they let Danny stay in the room.  I almost squeezed his hand off.  My nurse, Heather, was a great support too.  The epidural this time was painless.  I was so relieved!  I wanted to give Hank a huge hug!

Vince and Rhonda waited in the waiting room with Cadence.  They brought Cadence by to visit before I started to push.  She was so excited.  She kept imitating how I was going to have to push!  Isn't her shirt so cute?!  It was a gift from my co-worker and friend, Sara!

Last picture as a family of three!

A co-worker of my mom's, Katie, decorated a crib just for Colin.  You'll see a repeated elephant theme throughout this post for Cadence :)  Katie, you did a great job!  It got a lot of compliments!

Around 2 pm, another doctor came to break my water since my doctor had some appointments at her office.  Things moved pretty quickly after that.  It was pretty nerve wracking at times though.  Every time I would have a contraction, the baby's heart rate would drop low.  Around 4:45 or so, I began to push.  Everyone was saying that I was doing a great job and that they could see the tip of the head.  I did not believe them since I pushed for an eternity with Cadence.  I eventually had my mom lower the mirror on the ceiling so I could see what was going on.  I needed some encouragement.  It's so odd pushing as hard as you can when you can't feel a single thing past your belly button!  I couldn't believe that the baby was right there!  About 8-10 contractions later, we had a baby!  I saw the baby's head come out, but looked away so Danny could surprise me and tell me what we had.  Like I said, I was astonished when the words came out of his mouth.  Even though I would've been completely happy for Cadence to have a sister, I love the fact that we have a boy and a girl! It was so emotional.  I'm pretty sure the "ugly cry" was in full effect.

I LOVE this picture.

Our terrific doctor, Dr. Jenkins.  She stays so calm and makes you feel like everything is under control.  When Colin was born, we learned that the cord was wrapped around his neck.  I am beyond thankful that he arrived safe and soundly!  I'm also so glad that we didn't wait until my due date.  As much as he would move while I was pregnant, I would hate to know what could've happened.

The proud Big Sister

Colin gave Cadence an elephant necklace with a "C" on it and a pearl (her birthstone).

Cadence liked our nurse too.

So handsome!  Already "fist pumping"!

Rhonda and Vince now have a grandson!

And so do my mom and dad!

 

Ready to go home!

Introducing Scarlet to Colin.  She's such a good dog - she did great!

Cadence is, how do I say this - obsessed with Colin.  She is like a mini-Mommy.  She loves to hold him, runs to his side when he cries, and makes sure he's covered up when he's sleeping.  She is so precious with him.  I can't wait to watch their relationship develop in the years to come.

Burping her baby doll.  She's going to be a great mommy one day.

Guess she wanted to make sure he had plenty of toys to play with.

The first bath experience was not a great one for Colin.  He didn't mind getting his hair washed.  Actually seemed to enjoy it.

He absolutely hated the rest!

He's not dependent on the pacifier like Cadence was, but he will take it when he's upset (when I can't immediately feed him or during a diaper change).  I'll have to try to get some audio of his squeals and whimpers when he's upset.  It's actually kind of cute.

Danny tried to get a shot of his feet.  They are so long and skinny!  Total opposite of Cadence's feet!

My dear friend, Erica came to visit us!

I could eat him up!

One week old. 

It's a challenge with a newborn and a toddler to keep everything balanced.  It's difficult to find the time to take care of Colin without taking time away from Cadence.  We try to make sure that we still have special time with Cadence.  The other day she got to play outside with her water table.

Our family is now complete!