Vaan's First Holiday

Labor Day, 9/3/12, was Vaan's first official holiday.  It was a perfect day: Dad was off, aunt Erica, Uncle Sean, Grandpa Jim, and Grandma & Gandpa Stu came to visit, and we were able to make dinner on the grill.  Labor Day has always symbolized the end of summer as school started, fall sports began, and Dad's (Grandpa Jim's) pool closed.  Summer has always been anticipated and fall has always been welcomed with new, exciting adventues and events.  I have to say, this summer, was probably the most anticipated summer of my life with the birth of Vaan.  It was on my mind each and every day since the beginning of last October.  July 5th, 2012 was above and beyond all of it's anticiaption and hype; it was the most amazing day of our lives as we wecolmed the new addition to our family.  As we pass my "end of summer mark", I am excited for fall, as I have always been, but for new reasons.  Each day Vaan grows and amazes us with the "newness" of what he can do.  I am thankful for each and every day I have with him and even though I hate how the days get shorter, I can not wait for long days of playing, giggling, and growing.  Happy Fall!  Stay tuned for Vaan's 2 month mark...!

Showered With Love

Thanks to Aunt Kelly and cousin Lizzy, Justin, Vaan, and I were showered with great company and gifts last Sunday.  We are so blessed to have such great family.  It was extra special that we got to take our sweet baby to our baby shower!  Justin and I found it to be a great way to introduce Vaan to family and friends that haven't met him yet, and who doesn't like to hold a baby?!  While I did have to hold back from letting my inner obsessive and worry-filled anxiety come out as he was passed from person to person, we all had a great time!  Thank you so much Kelly and Lizzy for taking the time to make this shower so special and make us feel so loved!

A Month Later

One month has already come and gone since the birth of Vaan.  It is crazy how time flies.  The days seem to blur together because we spend countless hours playing, laughing, and just staring at the most amazing gift life has to give.  Vaan is by far the best thing that has come to Justin and I as a married couple!

Justin has recently returned to work and we have had to adjust back to the daily grind.  As much as Justin loves his job, it was still hard for him (and me!) to go.  Now that Justin has been back for a little over a week, we are all becoming accustom to our new "daily life".  While we don't have much of a routine set yet, our activities throughout the day are pretty regular!  They go a little something like this: wake up, eat, sleep, play, eat, sleep play, eat sleep play, eat, sleep play, bath, eat, bed!  In order to make this more accurate, we would need to add countless hours on the changing table to our day!  Regardless, we love our new life! 

We feel so blessed to be such a happy and healthy family.  While it seems impossible somedays to even open my computer, I hope to be able to post more frequently about our love, life, and new advetnures as a family. 

Here are a few pictures of our precious Vaan in the first month of his life.  It was hard to choose out of the 500 + pictures Justin and I have of him, but I wanted to give just a glimpse of the wonderful family we have and the love there is for Vaan. 

Mom & Dad LOVE you!

                                        

  

                                            



Vaan Justin

Our peanut finally arrived!  Vaan Justin was born July 5th, 2012, at 11:27pm.  He weighed 7lbs 15oz and was 21.5 inches long.  Mom and Dad could not be happier or more blessed to have this little one in our lives.  Vaan, we love you more than words can say.  You came into this world with quite the fight, but regardless, we are extremely happy you are not only here but healthy!  Here is your birth story...

The doctors expected your arrival on June 23rd.  A week went by and you were still in Mom's tummy.  Dr. King thought it would be a good idea for you to come into the world on Monday July 2nd but Mom and Dad wanted to give you a little more time.  After seeing the doctor for a non-stess test that week, we all decided if you weren't here by Thursday July 5th, we would encourage you to come with medical intervention!  Mom, Dad, and Aunt Erica went to the hospital at 6:00am that Thursday morning.  We were all emotional, feeling happy and excited yet nervous and scared all at once.  They started and IV of pitocin and we waited for contractions to start.  Not long after, labor had started!  The pictocin continued to be inceased and Dr. King broke Mom's water, leading to several strong contractions.  Contractions continued to get stronger and longer, at some points there were 3 and 4 contractions on top of each other.  Mom tried to stay really strong for you, but after 12 hours, Mom gave in and got an epidural.  After this, your heart rate dropped and Mom's blood pressure dropped.  After some medication and oxygen, your heart rate came back up.  It didn't take very long, but it was a scary few minutes for Mom and Dad.  The nurse tried to keep the pitocin lower, but not enough progress was being made.  Your heart rate went up and stayed up in the 150s-160s.  Then, you pooped!  Pooping in the womb is some serious business.  Dr. King was worried you would swallow some of it and not be able to breathe when you came out.  So, a c-section was necessary.  Around 10:30 that night we made this decision and Mom and Dad prepped for surgery.  We all made it through the surgery just fine and you were born at 11:27pm.  Mom and Dad had tears rolling down their cheeks when we heard you cry for the first time knowing your lungs were working!  Your Dad watched your first few seconds of life outside of the womb.  He looked at your Mom and said, "he has a lot of dark hair!!".  Dad got to hold you right away and brought you over to Mom.  The three of us were together immediately and we knew from that point on there would be no separating this family.  We love you so much and are so proud of you!!

Here are a few pictures of baby Vaan!  More pictures and stories soon to follow :)

 

 

"Will We Always Call Him Peanut?" - Aunt Roselle

No peanut, you will not always be named the shape you started as in mommy's tummy; however, that is what we will call you until you decide you are ready to come into this world!  Your Dad and I did not have any idea how hard it would be to give you a name that you will carry with you for the rest of your life.  We have had many great ideas, including Scoop, Fred, and Juice (just kidding), but I think we have found just the right one.  Now, your Dad & I just have to agree on how to spell it.  We hope that you embrace your name and are able to incorporate your own personality into it's history.  We can't wait to meet you, name you, and share your name with the rest of the world - there are lots of friends and family anxious to hear that we will not take you home as "Baby Boy" Stubbendick.

Pregnancy has been a wild ride of ups and downs and anxiously awaiting June.  It is hard to believe it is JUNE and we are approximately 3 weeks away from meeting our baby boy.  Thanks to our dear friend, Chelsea, we have some amazing pictures that will allow us to look back at this incredible time and SMILE!   Below are a few of the pictures - THANK YOU CHELSEA!! :)