Vegas

Well we just got back from the SEMA show (special equipment manufacturers association) in Vegas. It was a whirl-wind trip... we left Tuesday at 6am and returned Wednesday at 10pm! Totally worth it though, we had a great time!

James was fantastic on the plane trip to Vegas. He was a dream child!

On the trip back to Seattle, we were the parents sitting awkwardly in the back with a SCREAMING child that would not be comforted! Looking back now, it's a little humorous - everyone has it happen to them at some point- at the time, however, I wanted to cry and jump out of the plane!


SEMA was fun. Infants aren't allowed since it's a business show so could only see the outside booths, but it was fun to walk around and see the "rides".

Mike and Carol came to the show also (Mike is John's engineer). They come to Vegas *alot*, so they were great tour guides!

This was a Jeep that had some of John's stuff in it - not MY taste for jeeps - but did I mention it had John's stuff!! =)

And their sign! (Benchmark-Designs!!)

Tuesday night we went out to see the sights... the Fountains of Bellagio was by far our favorite part of the night! Absolutely incredible!

James slept like this pretty much the entire 2 days! Mama's back was a wee bit tired!

The pretend Eiffel Tower! See Becca, I was *almost* there too!

John and James next to the Bellagio water.

This is the only picture we got of the 3 of us... on the shuttle back to the airport! IN VEGAS, and this is the only picture we get! How not-well-thoughtout was that!

The trip was a ton of fun! John had a very successful business trip, I learned alot about traveling with a baby, and we got to see a tad bit of the sights as well! Two days was plenty for us... we decided, if we go again, it would only be for another show or business deal, and we would know exactly what we wanted to see now that we've been there!

Dr. visit 10.28.09

I had to take Mr. James to the doctor yesterday because he's been pretty congested, but he has new stats:

At 5 weeks: 9lbs, 8oz. 22" long. 15.5" head circumfrence.

(again, this is mostly so I don't forget!) =)

Behind the Scenes

"The making of the 1 month photo"

Some more pictures for Aunt Becca :)

And Angus, keeping a watchful eye on his new buddy....

1 Month!

I forgot to post this last week... but our little man turned one month last Thursday, October 22!

James is getting really good at holding up his head and he is very interested in the world around him! He is still trying to find his fingers to suck on and even at one month he's mesmerized by the TV (don't worry, I run interference!) and the fireplace! We're seeing more of his personality week to week and even though his smiles are probably unconcious - they absolutley melt us! John and I can't believe how much he's changed our lives - for the better! Love you munchkin!

Do these creep anyone else out? Every time I see the commercial, I can't help but think of "The Office" where Darryl tells Michael about his gang's "fluffy fingers" to resolve conflicts! Hmm...

10/7/09

Thank you SO much, Joan D. for these AMAZING pictures!!

What a lovely fountain!

Hey, speaking of... I need a new system! I've been peed on 4 times since yesterday afternoon! It is NO fault of our little boy, I just have VERY poor timing! Mama's learning.... :)

James' Room

This is the semi-finished nursery... I was wanting to paint some brown on the walls (stripe, "vine", circles, who knows!) and I have pictures/shelves/etc to hang on the walls as well. Someday I'll be motivated to finish! =)

So, we have a kid... !!!!!!!!!

Yay!! We are beyond happy and grateful to be parents of the best little munchkin EVER! I figured I better post details of "delivery day" mostly for myself before I forget what all happened! I apologize in advance for the length and detail, but like I said, this is mostly so I don't forget! =)

Monday morning, Sept 21, we got called in to be induced around 8:30am. There was no real emergency - my due date was the Friday before (18th), and my doctor was on call that Monday, so we decided to just go for it on Monday when he would be there!

We got to the hospital around 9:30, and by 11am, I was all set up with IVs, monitors, and pitocin. I pretty much started feeling contractions right away, but they weren't bad at all until around 3-4. My parents, sisters-Tonia & Teirsa, and John's brothers-Reed & Matt all stopped by somewhere around there! (I'm sorry, I probably wasn't very pleasant!) But it was great to have the company!

Around 5pm, they checked me and I was only dilated to 2 =(.

Around 6:30, I started feeling pretty woozy! Got sick..... (and just for you Sooz, totally made it to the bathroom, lol!)

At 7pm, I decided to get an epidural. The contractions weren't totally unmanageable, but between Tonia, Teirsa, & my doctor, they convinced me that if I was going to get one anyway, I might as well do it now - then he could also break my water and hopefully get things moving!

HEAVEN!!! Getting the epidural wasn't awful. I did get the shivers and couldn't stop shaking, but I more felt bad for John - who watched the whole procedure and had to hold my squeezing hand for quite a while! Did I mention HEAVEN!!! That epidural was absolutely fantastic! Every time I felt "a little more than I wanted to", I had a little "magic button" that I could push and "magically" get more numb!

After that, my doctor broke my water.

At 9pm, I was 4 1/2 - 5cm. At 11pm, same.

At 1:30am, nothing had changed. At that point, we decided that I was having very strong contractions that should have been working, but nothing was happening. We decided a c-section would be the best thing for James.

By 2, I was in the OR - and FREEZING! I've never had any sort of surgery, so this was a whole new experience! Poor John, I was shaking again, sick again, and come to find out, I wasn't nearly as numb as I should have been so I could feel... ALOT. I think I may have done some permanent damage to John's hand in those few minutes!

Our little James Ryan Carruthers was officially born at 2:28am, Tuesday, Sept 22. He was 7lb, 6oz, and 19 3/4" long...


... with ALOT of hair! My mom says I had that much hair and that exact color - so hopefully his will grow out of being red too! ;-)



John and James look great! I, on the other hand, just got cut open - that's my excuse!



Our stay at the hospital was great! It was an awesome few days to be totally by ourselves and get to hang out with our new little man without all the distractions of "life"! The nurses and staff were absolutely awesome too!

This is how he slept alot of the time in the hospital - I still just want to eat him up!


I was able to get all the IVs and junk taken out Tuesday night. Such a freeing feeling! We had lots of visitors and it was really fun to see everyone!

I love when James' eyes are open - such a little man!

This was also how he slept most of the time in the hospital.... Also my view from the bed =). You can't beat that!

We left the hospital around 7pm Thursday night. It was good to get home, but also strange to be back to the real world! This is James in his coming home outfit from Grandma Carruthers. I actually took 3 or 4 different outfits (thinking he would be a 9 pounder like John & I), but this was the only one that fit!

Looking back, I think for ME, I had the best labor/delivery ever. The day was planned, but I didn't know how the day would progress. I got to feel painful contractions, but was never overwhelmed by the pain. I had a c-section, but I never had to push! Then because of the surgery, we were able to spend a few extra days relaxing in the hospital and enjoying our new little James!

John and I keep looking at eachother wondering how we got such a great son! I can't believe he's finally here!

Update:

Nothing to update on. Amy is napping and seems reasonably comfortable. Expect progress in the morning.

Thanks,

John

Vomit, epidural, now feeling better, you know the drill......

Probably still hours out.

Providence medical staff are great btw.

At the hospital

So, this is John, and will probably be the only time you'll catch me blogging online. Regardless, we're at the hospital and Amy is doing well. ETA is later tonight. Thanks for the prayers, comments, etc.

Just for Keri...

I really want to get this for Kenley!

Due Date - 9/18/09

Well, today SHOULD have been baby day, but I am very content to wait a few more days!

I had my last Dr. appointment this morning and nothing has changed since Monday! Still 1c dialated and 60-70% effaced. I just barely make the cut to be induced on Monday, but since it's not a "medically necessary" induction, there is still a SMALL chance I'll have to wait til later in the week.

Since I'm a "go-with-the-flow-planner", I really like the idea of knowing exactly when to show up at the hospital (planning) and then letting the rest be a surprise (go-with-the-flow)!

This weekend, I'm going to find the "perfect" balance of keeping very active, relaxing, and hanging out with my man! So far today, I've done lots of yard/garden/dog work... so I think it's about relaxing time!

Happy Anniversary...

... to Brian and Keri! We love you guys!

I love that the only picture I have of you together is Christmas. Ha!

9/16/09

Happy Retirement to me!!

{ I know, I know. It's not true retirement, it's just getting a different (more difficult and rewarding) job. But I'm SO pumped to be done for now with BOA! Yay! }

Baby Man's New Wardrobe...

9/14/09

Sorry these are quite boring posts!

Another doctor's appointment this morning... I guess now I'm 60-70% effaced and still 1c dilated. I go in again on Friday to be checked and I guess if I don't have the baby by then, I can basically be induced anytime we want! I'm kind of relieved to hear he'll probably be late - I work until Wednesday, so a few days at home would be nice before he decides to show up!

Thanks for every one's concern and prayers!

9/9/09

This would be a cool birthday, huh? Maybe I'll get 9/19/09??

Sorry this is kinda boring, but I wanted to keep everyone "up to date"! I had another Dr. appointment this morning and everything still looks good. I am still 1 centimeter dilated and 50% effaced. (I had to wikipedia it when I got home, but it sounds like a good thing!)

I think the whole nesting thing has kicked in too. Suddenly, all the windows, baseboards, and cupboards need to be washed even though I haven't noticed the dirt in 2 years! My mom was making fun of me for washing and folding all the baby clothes too... I thought that's just what you're supposed to do!

Anyway, just wanted to keep everyone up to date! I still work until the 16th, so the time is going very quickly! We're super excited for this little guy to make his grand appearance! (Ok, I'm not so excited for the "grand appearance" part, more excited for the coming home, being a family part!) ;-)