This past weekend had some ups and downs as a mom. Saturday was good because my baby was in a good mood, and we did a lot of playing. But then Sunday came, and he wasn’t having any of it. We think his molars are starting to break through so his little mouth has been really sore. We took Sunday as a teething day and just snuggled, which to me, is one of the best parts of motherhood…the snuggles!

As I was snuggling with him this weekend, I began to reminisce a bit about this time last year. This specific weekend last year, we were getting ready to go to the hospital for his delivery. Although I personally have no frame of reference, it wasn’t the easiest or quickest of deliveries!

On Saturday, one year ago, we were finishing the paint in his room. We had the furniture, although not put together yet. Lol! We were told not to worry about whether his nursery would be ready before his arrival because most babies don’t even sleep in their own room for the first year. And he hasn’t. At all. I remember we had picked a very light shade of gray; it’s so light it looks almost white. But we did it this way because all of his furniture is dark gray. We had actually finished painting the room the day before, but because the paint color was in different cans, it somehow showed up as two different colors on the walls. So, we took Saturday and repainted the whole room so in our eyes it would all match. We had been told by my doctor to check in at midnight, so we had all of Saturday to get ready. I hadn’t had any contractions or Braxton-Hicks; he was just patiently chilling in my cozy stomach, so it was a pleasant day. We packed our hospital bags, dropped our dog at our nephew’s house and headed to the hospital. It was exciting and scary all at the same time. I had gotten some cute “mom” socks to wear in the hospital so once we were settled in our room, I had my hubby take the picture for the social media update.

I was checked on every 3-4 hours once we were settled, so sleep was intermittent. Withholding the graphic speak, my doctor wanted to do some prep work on my body so the first day was mostly just waiting for things to occur. By10:15p on Sunday night, I was only dilated to a 1. Thanks to my social media post, most of my friends were anxiously awaiting my “welcome to the world baby boy” post, so they started texting when it never came. Early Monday morning things started to progress a little better. The doctor started the Pitocin, I got the epidural (I wasn’t about to let that window pass me by!!) and then the doctor broke my water about 6:15a that morning. After that, everything was on a roller coaster…I would progress more and then it would slow down, and I would progress more and then it would slow down. Finally, about 10:30p Monday night, I was 100% effaced and dilated to a 9-1/2. The doctor could feel his head but wanted him to drop a little more so I wouldn’t have to work so hard.

To pass the time, my husband and I started looking at famous people born on November 23 and 24. Not that we had any control over when he would actually arrive, it was fun to check and see who he would share his birthday with. Well, by the time they were ready for me to push, it was already November 24, so guess that would be his birthday. As a side note, I had had a sonogram the day before we reported to the hospital to check in and I had seen the size of his head. I told my husband I wasn’t looking forward to that part because his head had measured so big!

After pushing for 3-1/2 hours with hardly any progress, they determined his head wasn’t going to fit and it would be best to switch to a c-section. I was more than okay with that. I will say it’s amazing how quickly the doctors and nurses can have you ready for a c-section when time is of the essence! I had stopped pushing about 3:30 and baby boy was born at 4:01am. I was so excited he was finally here, but also so exhausted! I had been awake for more than 24 hours during that last day. And by the way, the crown of his head measured at 14” at birth!

So compared to this time last year, I would say the days were less eventful. Saturday was spent doing what most Americans do during the fall on the weekend…watch football. And hang Christmas lights! No last-minute preparations to do on the baby’s nursery this year. And to let you know, we almost have it fully decorated, even though he doesn’t sleep in there quite yet. Sunday was spent snuggling baby boy-almost toddler because of the next set of teeth trying to break their way through his gums. No laying around waiting for body parts to be ready for baby delivery. I’ll take the baby snuggles any day of the week! <heart>

The only preparations we’re doing now is getting everything ready for his first birthday! Although the labor and delivery were less than ideal, we wouldn’t trade the experience for anything if it still gives us YOU! We love you so much kiddo! And watching all your transformations over the past year, watching you grow into the cutest little human, watching you discover all the things and experiencing it with you, has been pure joy!

Happy Birthday Baby James!!