Mason's Belly Photos

This is a little late, but as we did with Hunter, I wanted to post pictures of Mason's 40 weeks of growth within the womb.

Of course, we didn't quite get a picture each week, but we did our best!

A Mother's Day Surprise

After Hunter's bath this evening, Ryan dried him off and then sent him into his room naked to me for a diaper and pajamas. Hunter seemed to have other plans and ran back into the bathroom where he peed in his potty seat... granted, the potty seat was on the floor and not on top of the toilet at the time...but it is a start! We are VERY proud of him!

First Mother's Day with Two!

What a spectacular Mother's Day to have both of my sons with me...Mason's arrival couldn't have been more perfectly timed! We had a pretty leisurely day, as I am still in the midst of recovery, but it was sweet nonetheless. Hunter made some adorable gifts for me at Day Care and Mason is eating extremely well and starting to sleep better at night, which is a gift in and of itself!

Pat, Hanns, and Scott were also able to come over for a visit and snuggle with Mason and Hunter. As usual Hunter was very excited to see and play with them, and Mason seemed content to snooze the time away in their arms.

Another very special Mother's Day treat was to have my own mother here with us. She came to stay with us the night before Mason's arrival and has been such a huge help with entertaining and caring for Hunter. In addition, my house has never looked better, she has cleaned and also done all the weeding in my flower beds as well as bought and potted some new flowers for me on Mother's Day. She's cooked a ton of food so we all have loads of good things to grab out of the fridge whenever we are hungry! It is amazing all the wonderful things she has done for me over the years and continues to do for me and my family. I strive to be half the mother to my boys that she has been to me.

WELCOME MASON!!!

At 9 a.m. on May 4th we went to the hospital for our induction. Upon admission they exammed Felicia and she was 3 cms dilated and 50% effaced. They started the pitocin at 10:30 and contractions got underway at 11:15. We sat around playing cards through most of it, but they eventually became a bit more painful and were coming every 2-3 mins. Just before 2 p.m. the doctor stated that she was going to break the water and this would intensify the contractions quite a bit and get things moving along a bit more. At that point, Felicia opted for her epidural. So at 2 p.m. she got her epidural and the water was broken at 2:15. We watched a movie and let the medicine do its thing. At 4:30 p.m., Felicia was 4 cms dilated and 90% effaced upon examination, and at 6 p.m. she was 10 cms dilated but Mason's head was not yet dropped into position. Felicia was told to sit up a bit more to let gravity help him along. At 6:45 p.m. Felicia was feeling a lot of pressure during her contractions and was asked to start pushing. With the first push Mason's head crowned and the doctor exclaimed "WAIT, don't push, I wasn't ready for that!" She and the nurse quickly broke down the table and got everything ready. Felicia pushed 2 more times and at 6:53 p.m. we welcomed the arrival of Mason Alexander Vandrey!! He weighed 8 lbs 5 ozs and was 21 inches long.

The next day he was introduced to his big brother. It went wonderfully, Hunter immediately wanted up on the bed to sit with Mason and Mommy. After checking Mason out thoroughly he exclaimed "Hold, hold!" with his arms out. While holding Mason, he gave him some kisses on his forehead. It was a truly beautiful moment!

Officially late...

Mason's due date was yesterday (April 30th), so today Hunter has been trying a few big brother tricks to get him out!

Last Weekend as a Family of 3

As we countdown the days to Mason's arrival, we spent the weekend running around with Hunter. We played a little in our backyard on Friday. (Note: Hunter loves playing string with Jack, but NOT when the string is attached to his pants! We thought it was hilarious though!)

On Saturday, we took Hunter to the playground in the morning, then spent the afternoon at Sherwood Gardens enjoying the beautiful tulips and picnicking outside, then to the Cheesecake Factory for dinner.

On Sunday, Pop was in town and stopped by for a visit and we played a little more out back though the weather was not as nice.

It was a great weekend but we are all anxiously awaiting the arrival of our new little guy to make our family complete! Should be any day now...

Easter 2011

What a lovely Easter Sunday! Mom-mom, Opa, MiMi, Uncle Scott, Pop-Pop and Granny J joined us for a big breakfast. Hunter loved having all the visitors and was our little entertainer, as usual. His grandparents spoiled him with lots of toys and treats in his baskets...no surprise there. This was the first Easter that Hunter could participate in an egg hunt, but unfortunately due to all the rain we have been getting the ground was still saturated in the morning, so we hid eggs around the house instead. His little face brightened each time he discovered a new egg and he just loved opening them to get all of the goodies out.

After his busy morning, Hunter was absolutely pooped and took a nice long nap. When he woke, he got his 3rd and final Easter basket from mom and dad. Then we all went outside to enjoy the gorgeous day and Hunter played with his neighborhood friends.

Hard to imagine that next year we are going to have 2 little ones hunting for eggs...we are so very blessed in life!

Canines

Hunter's top and bottom canine teeth on the left side have just started coming in and it looks like the two on his right side are not far behind!

It has made for a bit of fussiness lately, lots of chewing on his cup straws, and fingers constantly in his mouth. Can't wait until they break all the way through so our baby is a bit more comfortable!

The CIRCUS!!

The Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus came to Baltimore and we couldn't resist taking Hunter! Admittedly, he is a little young, but he seemed to enjoy most of the sites. He LOVED the elephants and motorcycles that drove together in a sphere the best. He also got to enjoy his first taste of cotton candy - boy did his eyes light up when he had his first bite!

After about 3 hours Hunter started to run out of steam (and so were Mom and Dad) so we headed out about 30 minutes early. At that point, we had already seen all the big events and enjoyed spending the evening together!

A Surprise Shower and Birthday Dinner!

What a wonderful weekend! Mom-mom came to visit and I planned a wonderful suprise birthday dinner for her which included cooking my first crown roast with homemade stuffing and a layered carrot cake. We went out for a quick shopping trip and when we got back, my friend and neighbor Sofia asked me to come over real quick. When I walked through the door, it was my turn to be surprised, I was greeted by a gathering of friends, neighbors, and family!

Sofia had planned a baby shower for me and I was so completely unaware. It was so very sweet and generous for Sofia to have such a wonderful gathering in my honor! I had a wonderful time enjoying good food and conversation with everyone!