Changes

It is hard to believe our little angel is 3 weeks old today. Time is going by very quickly and she is changing every day. She is really starting to develop a personality and I love to see her daily changes. In the last week she has really started watching things more intently and lifting up her head to look around when she is on her belly. Her little cough makes my heart melt and when she yawns she makes this little squeeking noise that would make a stranger fall in love with her.

As you can see in the photos everyone is smitten with her (including Max). God has blessed us with the most beautiful and precious gift in the world and I cannot wait to see what He has in store for her.

We are having so much fun with Matney! She is such a good girl and makes me smile just to think about her. She is changing so quickly and making my heart hurt to think that she is already growing up. My baby has changed so much in the last 17 days that I am beginning to worry I will not remember all her milestones or what she looked like or acted like at birth. Thank goodness we have a digital camera to document every changing moment.

In the last 17 days we have celebrated 3 birthdays, 1 visit to church, 1 poop on Mommy and one on Daddy and several pees in the process of changing her diaper, first spring time BBQ on the back deck with Daddy, Nanny B, and Papa G, several visits from family and friends, our first outing with Aunt Abby (to Dollar General) and her first outing with just Matney and Mommy.

She likes to fall asleep while eating and in an attempt to wake her up, we will strip her down and change her diaper, only to have her immediatly dirty the new diaper. Thus, we have already been to Walmart for another case of diapers.

She has started a little scheme of crying out while she is trying to fall asleep and I think she knows that if she does it long enough, Mommy will pick her up and let her fall asleep in my arms. I keep telling myself I can't spoil her and my days are numbered as I eventually have to go back to work and won't get to hold her every day. She loves to fall asleep in my arms or on Daddy's chest and then sleep in her bouncy seat or swing, however, if you turn off the vibrator she seems to know it and immediatly opens her eyes (well, one eye as she opens it to peek at you then closes it as quickly as she opened it). When she is hungry she shows all the typical cues of hunger and Daddy thinks it is funny to let her root around on his face until she finds his nose. She taught him a lesson though in the middle of the night this past weekend when he was holding her without his shirt on and she chomped down on his boob!

We are looking forward to every moment with our beautiful little girl and cannot wait to see what God has in store for her.

Matney's First Week

Matney has had a fun filled first week of life. We have had two outings now to Nanny and Papa G's with a trip for Mommy to Wal-Mart on the same day and then a trip to Seymour yesterday to see Great Aunt Marilyn and Great Uncle Jack.

The past week has included the celebration of Papa G's 60th birthday with a yummy dinner made by Nanny and Auntie Ab. I wasn't much help as Matney had stayed up for 4 hours that afternoon and was so tired she was having a hard time falling asleep. That is she was having a hard time until Daddy walked in the door, picked her up and she was out like a light. Mommy is beginning to think Daddy has a make touch.

Matney has met a great deal of her family in the fast few days. Friday and Saturday we spent time with Great Uncle Brent, Jackie, and Tyler. She was able to meet two great-grandma's (GG Leota and GG Janie). Great Grandma Janie was smitten with Matney immediatly. Matney is named after Grandma Janie's grandmother whose last name was Matney. Satuday, Matney also met her Great Uncle Billy and Great Aunt Brenda. Yesterday as Nanny B and I made a trip to Seymour Matney was able to meet Aunt Linda, Aunt Rowen, and Pat and Steve. Everyone thought she was adorable and of course looked like her Daddy.

Daddy and I are enjoying the fact that we have a digital camera so we can document everything. So far, Matney is still being a little angel. She is only getting up twice at night and eating like a champ. She normally sleeps 3-4 hours at a time before she is fussing to eat. She loves the outdoors which makes me and Daddy very happy as we love to be outside. She can be fussing just a bit or a lot and the minute you step outside she stops and just stares at everything.

We also had our first sponge bath last week before Papa G's birthday party and lost the umbilical cord on Satuday so we now get to have a real bath. We are planning our first real bath for this evening when Daddy gets home so he can see how happy she is when she is being given a bath.

I am thanking God every day for this gift he has given me. I am not sure I remember what life was like before becoming a mother and I am happy to say, I wouldn't have it any other way.

Here are some shots of the first few days with Matney.

She doesn't seem to mind having her picture taken so we are going crazy with the camera. I don't have any pictures posted of her feet, but I will post some soon as they are super cute. We are enjoying every minute with her. She is going on a 2 hour stint of being awake after eating so we are hoping this means for even more sleep tonight.

Matney Paige Crawford

Miss Matney Paige Crawford entered the world on Saturday, April 3rd at 1:52 pm. She weighed 7 lbs 9 oz and was 22 inches long. She has really long toes and fingers and a beatiful complexion (yes we are a bit partial, but she really does).

Matney has prooven to be a sweet little, cuddly, warm baby who eats, sleeps, and looks around to find anything that will catch her attention. She is very content to stare at your face for hours if she isn't sleeping. She enjoys rooting around when her daddy is holding her and attempting to suck on his nose.

For those of you who haven't heard the story of her arrival, I will explain below. If you have had a difficult delivery or a long delivery; you might want to skip this part as you will probably hold a grudge against Matney and I for a long time.

On Friday afternoon I left work early to go to my 40 week OB appointment. Mom went with me in case the doctor gave us any big news and as support for my peace of mind. My appointment was at 2:50. By 3:15 we were back in the car with news from the doctor that there were no signs on progression and a scheduled induction for April 9th. Mom and I were both disappointed and began the phone calls to all those wanting an update. I think Daddy was a bit disappointed as well when I called him with the news. Mom and I headed home amidst a spring downpour and went to pick up Brayden and Grayson for a sleep over at Nanny and Papa's. We decided to have dinner at our house as Brandon had been off on Friday and offered to make hamburgers. We all played for a few hours while we made dinner and I went in to a tizzy of straightening up the house, making brownies, and playing with the boys. By the time we ate dinner, I was slowing down a lot and didn't want much to eat. The boys and Mom and Dad left shortly after dinner and I headed to bed as my feet were so swollen I could barely walk. At 8:30 to 9 pm I started having what seemed a bit like stomach cramps and my belly would get so hard I could barely breathe. I thought I better time the frequency between these cramps/tightening sensations just in case they were contractions. Upon first measurement we were at 10-12 minutes apart and about 30 seconds in length. I tossed and turned all night, eventually moving to the couch so Brandon could sleep for a few hours. At 5:30 I called my mom to ask what contractions felt like and what I should do. As she had never really been in labor with Abby or I, she wasn't exactly sure either. We decided that as I was contractions every 6-10 minutes at this time that were about 1 minute in length we should probably go to the hospital, if only to be checked out.

When Brandon got up about 7:15 we decided to head to Springfield, but first he had to take a trailer back to town and get breakfast. I proceeded to fold laundry and do a few things around the house; grabbing on to the counter whenever a contraction hit and then continuing on with my task. We left for the hospital at 8:30 and walked in to triage at 9. They took us right to a room, had be changed, and checked my vitals and contractions. Brandon and I were both sure it was in my head and they would just send me home, but we wanted to check to make sure nothing was wrong with our little one. After the nurse completed the triage, she said we were 3-4 cm dialated and 90% effaced. She called the doctor who was on call and he advised to admit me. I was expecting to have to walk around or lay there for hours--not so. We were moved to a labor and delivery suite about 9:45 and hooked up to the IV and the machines. At 10:50, Dr. John Williams walked in and said he was going to break my water and wanted me started on my epidural immediatly--at this point, no one said anything about any progression past a 3-4. At around 11:30 family started arrival and was shuffled out of the room several times. One of the last times they were asked to leave, Mom stayed with me while the nurse examined me at approximately 12:30 or a little after. Mom simply said, "If you could guess, how soon do you think we will have a baby?" Nurse Angela responded with, "Oh, I would say by 3 pm.", she then continued the examine and laughed, looking back up at us and saying, "Well, I was wrong, I think we will have a baby within the next hour or so. She is fully dialated and ready to push." Due to my epidural I had no feeling which was great and thought how in the world will I know to push when I don't even feel a thing. The nurse remarked that she would help me through it and we would push a few times before the doctor walked in.

The family all came back in and said their goodbyes before delivery. Brandon and I prepared for the arrival within a short time and started pushing. After the first push or so, Nurse Angela said we had to stop as she could see Matney's head. I made some comment back to the nurse and we both got to laughing. She kept saying you have to stop laughing or she is going to come before Dr. Williams gets here. About 2 minutes later, Dr. Williams walked in and said to push. At that point, I said I don't think I need to push, it feels like she is just sliding out on her own. He confirmed she was and asked me to push just a little bit. I pushed hard 2 times and was in the middle of a breath when Brandon said, "Honey look, there she is." About the time I looked down the doctor put her on my chest and she started crying. Daddy and I were in awe the minute we saw her slimy little body. I think we were both shocked by how quickly it all went and how easy it was. The nurses and the doctor all kept commenting that we were some of the fastest they had had and were simply amazed.

So far, Matney has been a great little girl who only crys if she is hungry. She sleeps, eats, and wakes up on a perfect schedule. We are praying this continues but know there will be challenges and we are even excited to experience those. My mom is staying with us for a few days until we are all feeling better and have the hang up this Mommy/Daddy thing. We are very happy that our little girl has arrived and that the weather is so beautiful so that we can step outside for fresh air or a change of scenary. I will post pictures on the next posting as this one is so long.