Mom

About 10 months ago we found out we were pregnant and after all of the excitement calmed down and I calculated the approximate due date I realized that my parents would be on a boat in the middle of the Amazon River. I couldn't believe the bad timing! I was due June 27th and they flew to Lima, Peru on June 28th. Needless to say they weren't too happy with the timing either! As the time grew closer for our baby to arrive my mom started praying that he would come a little early so that she could see him before their trip. Although it seems my mom's prayers are always answered, I really thought I would be going over my due date. I called my mom the morning I started feeling labor pains and after the doctor confirmed we were having a baby that day she immediately booked a ticket to fly into Austin that night. Having her walk into the hospital room that night was so special for me. 

I had no idea how much I wanted her there until she had actually arrived. She was such a great support during my recovery from the surgery and the scary incident with Leo. I can't picture that experience without her! I am so grateful she was able to be there. I love you Mom!

photo shoot

One of my good friends here in Austin is trying to develop her photography portfolio and offered to take some newborn pictures of Leo. I love the way they turned out! Thanks Diana!

Leo Cruz

 Baby Leo Cruz is here and we are so in love with him. Here is how he came into this world:

I went in for my 39 week doctor appointment and I had not dilated at all, so I was thinking I would definitely be going over my due date. Early the next morning at 12:18 AM I woke up with the really bad low back pain that would not go away no matter what I did. It woke me up every hour until Chance's alarm went off in the morning. As he was leaving for work I told him that I was going to call my doctor if the pain didn't subside. Well I made it to about 10:30 AM and then I called his work and told him to come home because I needed a ride to the office. The doctor took one look at me and told me my water had broken and that we were having a baby that day. I had no idea my water had broken because I was expecting it to be a huge gush of fluid or something, but it wasn't that way for me. We walked next door to the hospital and as soon as I got into the hospital bed the contractions hit me so hard I thought my back was being broken in half. I received an epidural about an hour and half later and oh what a blessing that was in my life. I was progressing well on my own and so the nurses and doctor left for a bit and it was just Chance and me in the room. A short while later a nurse came in looking frantic and started having me turn and move in all different positions because the baby's heart rate was dropping to unhealthy levels. They tried everything and then called the doctor who was quickly in the room telling us that a c-section would need to be done. I was so overwhelmed at how rapidly everything had changed and I think this is when my emotions boarded the roller coaster that they would be riding all week. The c-section went well and the moment I saw our baby I knew everything would be ok because he was here safely.

On the day of our discharge Leo was circumcised and then on his way to our room had a 'blue spell' where he stopped breathing. The neonatologist thought it would be best to keep Leo in the NICU for 72 hours to make sure it didn't happen again. I was able to 'nest' in the hospital, meaning I could stay in one of their rooms so that I could feed him without being a patient. It worked out well and 72 hours later we were on our way home. I still can't believe I am a mom to this cute boy.

38 weeks

38 weeks down, hopefully only 2 more to go! My doctor appointments are pretty uneventful, so this baby will probably be going full term or beyond, but of course no one really knows. We are getting so excited to meet our little boy and we feel that we are as 'ready' as new parents can be, which probably translates into totally clueless. Oh well. I get that Christmas Eve feeling a lot these days, you know the one where you are so excited for the day to arrive that you just start smiling? I can't believe the day is so close!

Mom

I love my mom! She came for a visit this past week and we had the best time. We showed her around Austin and just enjoyed having her stay with us. She was also here for my baby shower, which was so special for me. I'm still waiting for some shower pictures, so that will be a future post! We had fun going out to eat, touring the capital, going to ballet under the stars in the park, and getting ready for baby boy to arrive. Come back soon Mom!

Me, Mom, and Penny at the baby shower

Wow... I look very pregnant. 

Treat table at my shower :) Delicious!

35 weeks

Wow, only 5 more weeks to go! I went in for an ultrasound today to check his growth and they said he is on target, weighing about 6 pounds right now. It was so fun to see him again, I can't wait to hold him in my arms!

Other happenings in our life:
-Chance is in his second to last semester of school and is loving his internship here.
-I am teaching swim lessons and absolutely loving my weightless self in the water!
-Chance is getting over a nasty strep infection, but luckily baby and I have stayed healthy.
-We have met the most wonderful people here in Austin and everyone has been so nice to us!
-My mom is coming up a week from today for my baby shower and I can't wait!

Sea World!

32 weeks... only 8 more to go!

As Chance and I were looking at the calendar we realized that we only had a few free weekends left before our baby comes, so we decided to treat ourselves to a little mini vacation as Chance called it. Ever since Chance found out San Antonio had a Sea World, he has been dying to go. I never knew how much he loved it - as in as soon as we bought our tickets he became distracted with Sea World day dreams and couldn't sleep at night. I love that I continue to learn new things about the man I love!

I loved the beluga whales! So cute!

We went to all of the shows and exhibits and we loved every minute. My favorite were the killer whale show and Sea Lion Tonight show. I also loved going to the dolphin cove where you can touch the dolphins as they swim by you. I think I probably could have stayed there all afternoon.

Orcas are so beautiful!

This video clip is from the Sea Lion Tonight show where this GIANT walrus started doing situps. It was a hilarious sight to see!

We had a perfect day, just what we both needed.