Sam's first photo shoot

When Miss Samantha was just 6 days old, our friend Don came over and took some baby "portraits" of our little girl. What an experience! This was Don's first time photographing a newborn and we are in awe of what he was able to capture. We will treasure these newborn pictures forever... and we have justifiably nicknamed him Don Geddes (long lost step-brother to Ann Geddes, reknowned children's photographer).

Here is a slide show of some of those priceless pictures...
(scroll your mouse over the pictures to pause the scrolling and see captions)

Pictures from Samantha's first week

This week has been crazy... we can't believe we're parents of a 10 day old!! We've had some questions about how we're doing, so we thought we'd answer them here.

When did we come home from the hospital?
Samantha was born on Tuesday, June 10th at 6:30 pm and we came home from the hospital around noon on Thursday, June 12th. Lisa was resisting such an "early" release because she was afraid to lose the 24/7 access to nurses. But they booted us out of there anyway!

How were the first couple of days?
We're not going to lie... the first couple of days were tough. Lisa was a hormonal wreck! Breastfeeding was very scary! And Lisa's Type-A personality was very confused and unsure about how to care for this new little bundle of joy. If Sean was scared at all, he didn't let on and was steady as a rock while we waited for Lisa's hormones to level out a bit! :-)

How are we doing now?
We are doing much better! As Lisa's hormones have settled down and as we've gotten to know our daughter a little more, we are really enjoying this time. She is SO beautiful and like all new parents, we just love staring at her and seeing all the goofy, lovely faces she makes.

How is Samantha doing?
We had our first pediatrician appt on Monday, June 16th. Samantha was 6 days old and was already 4 oz over her birth weight. This was really good news and a great sign that she is eating well. At this age, you also judge a baby's health by how much she's pooping and peeing and Sammy is EXCELLING in that department! :-) Thank goodness this method of grading health changes as we get older! :-)

Are nicknames ok for Samantha?
Yes, nicknames like Sammy and Sam are perfectly fine for our little girl. Although we know other nicknames will develop (like Munchkin, Precious, Sweet Pea, etc.) we'd prefer if you DIDN'T call her nicknames like Poophead, Dork, etc. :-)

Is Sean working during this time?
Yes, Sean is squeezing in work as much as he can. Although he is definitely taking time to spend with our little girl, Real Estate is an interesting business and at this time, it just isn't feasible for him to ignore clients for a large chunk of time. He is definitely changing diapers, taking some night duty with Sam, and spending quality time with his daughter, but he is also squeezing in work at the same time. I'm very proud of how he's handling the schedule so far!

Are we getting any help?
Sean's mom has been here since the 11th and just left today. This was a huge help (especially during those first few days) since we were able to concentrate on taking care of Samantha and trying to get rest... while laundry got "magically" washed, lunch got "magically" prepared, and dog hair got "magically" vacuumed. This week will be interesting as we try to adjust to the schedule without our fearless helper! Lisa's mom is arriving in a little over a week and we know we will definitely be ready for the reinforcements to show up! :-)

We have also been getting wonderful help from friends who have dropped dinner by and are continuing to do so this week while Lisa and Sean are "without a helper". I had no idea how wonderful and helpful that is and I now know what new parents will appreciate in the future. Obviously, we will need to start preparing our own food in the future (I don't suppose we can get people to bring us food until she leaves for college!), but during the first few weeks as brand new parents, it is a Godsend.

Hey... where are the pictures?
Okay, I won't keep you waiting any longer. Here are some of our favorite pictures from our first week with Samantha... You should be able to click on them to see them bigger.

Family Portrait

Getting some fresh air

Curling up with Daddy

Mixing Business with Babysitting

Sammy with Papa and Nana (Sean's parents)

Sammy with Nana

All clean after Samantha's first bath at home

Strapped in the swing

Ready for her first car ride (besides coming home from the hospital)

Hey Paparazzi... leave me alone!!

Samantha Burrito

Another Samantha Burrito

So tired!!!

Woe is me...

Welcome Samantha Ryan Shepard!!!

On June 10th, we proudly welcomed Samantha Ryan Shepard into this world. She was born at 6:29 pm, weighing 6 lbs 8 oz and she was 19 1/2 inches long... and immediately we knew she was the cutest baby we'd ever seen!

Our Labor Story
[You can skip this part if all you want to see are pictures! :-)]

The day was definitely different than we expected, but ended with her exciting arrival. When we had talked to the doctor prior to getting induced, we were under the impression that the first part of the day would be a little slow and boring (we even brought magazines and movies!), then when the water broke, the labor would probably progress quickly, with a long round of pushing since this is our first child.

Well... Samantha had slightly different plans. Sean and I showed up at the hospital at midnight to get my dose of Cirvidil. In laymen's terms, this was done to get my body in a favorable state for labor (there's no point kicking the contractions into gear if there's no way the baby can get out!). We planned on resting until the afternoon, when my doc would show up, give me Pitocin, break my water, and kickstart us into labor. Sean and I went to sleep and got as much rest as we could.
I woke up around 7:30 am with some pretty significant contractions... but I wasn't sure that's what they were because they weren't going away at all. I'd always thought you have a contraction for about 60 seconds and then you wait around 5 minutes for the next one to come. But mine were just coming one after the other... so I called the nurse to confirm that that was the pain I was feeling. Sure enough, we were having progressive contractions about 1-2 minutes apart. So much for those magazines, card games and movies!!! Although we will never know for sure, the doctors hypothesize that I was probably going to go into labor in the next 1-2 days on my own... which is why the Cirvidil did the job of kicking us into labor.

Sean helped me walk around, sit on an exercise ball, and just breath through my contractions for a couple of hours. Then the nausea hit! About every 3 contractions, the nausea would take over and I'd get sick. What fun!!! The contractions progressed for a few more hours and around noon, we ordered the epidural. Best move I've ever made!!!

It took the doc 3 tries to get the epidural in, but I gotta tell you that I really didn't care at that point. The "pain" of the epidural was like a raindrop compared to a bucket of water. The funniest part about the whole epidural process was that the doctor STARTED SPEAKING IN AN ENGLISH ACCENT during the third try... I guess he thought that voice would be more calming and soothing??? If Sean wasn't there to confirm his new accent, I'd assume I was just delirious, but Sean agrees that he did do a Madonna impression during that third attempt!

From about 12:30 or 1:00 to about 4:00, I just slept, still feeling the contractions, but no pain. Feeling contractions without feeling much pain is a very weird concept to me, but it was perfect!! My doctor showed up around 4:30 and I was dilated about 7 centimeters. At this rate, it looked like we might start pushing around 10:00 pm. Doc was going to head home and then come back as I progressed. Well, she checked on me again around 5:45 pm and I was dilated to 10 centimeters, thus canceling her dinner plans! :-)

So now it was time to push. All feeling disappeared from my hands. Even though it had taken 9 months to get here, I was so nervous and I didn't know if I was ready for what was coming! Our doctor headed to her office across the street to get some work done while the Delivery nurse started the pushing process with Sean and me. Yeah, that sounds weird, but since this was my first child, the doctors usually let the nurse take the first hour or two of pushing, and they show up for the last part.

About 10 minutes into pushing (about 4 contractions), the nurse abruptly told me to stop pushing. WHAT? But there's still a baby in there... what do you mean stop pushing? She said "I see the head. The baby's coming. I've never caught a baby before and I don't plan on starting now". So they paged the doc and we waited through contractions for 5-10 minutes while we waited for the doc to get there.

Our doctor came running into the room, jumped into her scrubs, threw some gloves and glasses on, and the pushing resumed. About 4 contractions later, Samantha showed up in all her glory. I will never forget the first time I laid my eyes on that precious face... our daughter was here!!!


PICTURES
So... since this is what you're really here for, let me post some of Samantha's first pictures. Please don't look at her mom... she didn't quite have a chance to get freshened up before the cameras started clicking! :-)

Lisa during early labor trying to work through the contractions. Nice outfit!!!

Nice hairdo!!! A little Flintstones hairstyle to get it out of the way for pushing.

You tell us, Samantha!!!

We both earned a good rest, right!? :-)

Our precious bundle

In this corner, weighing in at 6 lbs 8 oz...

Working with two laptops to try to get an email out to people...
Not something we recommend after a long day of watching your wife go through labor!

This is about 10 hours after Sammy was born...
Lisa was doing more research on how to become Baby Wise!! :-)

Affectionately termed "Our Little Troll Doll"
Give her some green pigtails, and you have to admit there is a resemblance!

Getting ready to go home from the hospital.
Samantha is wearing the hat her 8 year old cousin, Channing, made for her.

Much love from the new and improved Shepard family...
Sean, Lisa, Samantha (and of course, Charlie and Sadie)

4 days and counting...

That's right... we are scheduled to induce on Tuesday, June 10th... which means Squishee will join us on either June 10th or 11th (depending on how much torture she decides to put Lisa through!) :)

So how are we feeling? Excited. Nervous. A little scared. But probably, more than anything, we just can't get it to sink in that Squishee is going to be in our arms in just a few short days. In fact, the very next post to this blog will be AFTER she is born. Unbelievable!

We're saying lots of prayers that Lisa goes into labor naturally before Tuesday, simply because that may decrease the chance of us ending up needing a c-section. But either way, our prayers are for a safe delivery and healthy baby, no matter how she enters this world!!

On a fun note, we are posting some pictures below of a "photo shoot" we did. Our friend, Don, took a ton of pictures of us and this prego belly... and I'm posting some of our favorites (including some goofy ones!). Wouldn't you just know it that the day we did the pictures was the day my very first stretch marks showed up. Told you Squishee was going to be ornery! =) Anyway... here are some of our favorites (you should be able to click on the images to see them larger)...

Lisa Wins!!!!

Every pregnant girl needs a Maalox break now and then

Just some healthy belly laughs!

Isn't he such a supportive husband?

Squishee due a little earlier...

No fun pics to go with this post, but I did want to let you know that we're looking at a "revised" birthdate for Squishee. When we went to the doc this Tuesday, we saw that Squishee's growth is slowing down and that the amniotic fluid was starting to go away (these are two of the common risks associated with the blood pressure medication I take). At that time, our doctor told us that if today's appointment showed similar decreases in fluid (no, we were NOT at Oil Can Henry's...), then we could be looking at inducing next Tuesday!!

As exciting as that was, it definitely sent Sean and I into a bit of a tizzy! Oh sure... I have a few things on my "To Do" list that I want to accomplish before Squishee's arrival, but the big concern of ours is the house that we bought earlier in the year to fix up and sell. We aren't done remodeling it yet!!! So Sean made some phone calls and some wonderful friends have lent us some elbow grease in helping out with the house. Even in two days, their help has made a huge difference. THANK YOU!!!

Today's checkup revealed even more good news! The amniotic fluid level is back up a bit, which means we won't be inducing next Tuesday (6/3). We know that Squishee can decide to make her debut whenever she's good and ready, but we're back to looking at 6/10 as the probable date for inducing. We'll be at 39 weeks at that point and Sean and I are getting really excited.

More info (and some really fun pics!) to come in future posts... but I wanted to get this one out there since I told some of you to check back here after today's appointment!

37 week checkup

It has been a long time since I gave an update on little Squishee, so here are some details you might be interested in:

• As you can tell by the "pea pod" calendar at the top of your screen, we are 1 day shy of 37 weeks. Babies are considered "full term" any time between 37 weeks and 40 weeks, so the doc says we're all systems go if Squishee decides to make her big entrance. On the other hand, Sean and I still have quite a few things we want to get done before she shows up, so we're praying that she stays comfy for a couple more weeks!
  
• I am feeling great for being 37 weeks along... way better than I expected. I still have a decent amount of energy, I'm sleeping very well, and I'm still loving all the movements and kicks that are coming from our active little girl. Oh sure... there are some pains and strains here and there... but overall, I'm still loving this miraculous time.
  
• We are seeing the doc a couple times a week now. During these visits, we monitor Squishee via ultrasound or by doing a Non Stress Test using a fetal monitor. Every visit, Squishee (and I) have been getting A+ grades from our doctor, so we pray that continues to be the case for the rest of this pregnancy. So far, my blood pressure has been great (actually lower than normal), my amniotic fluid levels are excellent, and all the other signs point to a very healthy pregnancy. What a blessing!!!
  
• June 17th is the latest date that Squishee will join us. This is because the doctor doesn't want me to go much past our due date. Even if the blood pressure threat never rears its ugly head during the next few weeks, our doctor wants to induce when we reach 40 weeks. Reason? She doesn't want to push our luck and give the blood pressure a chance to create an emergency where there doesn't need to be one. There is something relieving about knowing I'm not going to go 2 weeks late like some women do on their first pregnancy, and it has also allowed us to have a little more info when scheduling family visits, etc. The craziest part about knowing the latest due date is the fact that we know our Orange Juice in the fridge has a later "due date" than our baby... so surreal!!!
  
• No, our hospital bags aren't packed yet... but that is on the agenda for tonight! I did spend all day yesterday washing clothes, bedding, blankets, etc. for little Squishee... so we are ALMOST ready for her to come home!
  
• Seems only fair to include some pics in this blog post, so here are some recent snapshots.
  

These are my dear friends, Julie and Stacey, who threw a baby shower for me in early May.

It was such a special day and I was thrilled to see so many wonderful friends. Although it's tough to "catch up" with so many loved ones at the same time, it meant so much to see all these amazing women in my life.

Even though Sean hasn't attended any baby showers, we both are SO thankful for the love and support we have experienced as we anticipate Squishee's arrival. We always knew we had special families, friends, and coworkers, and we are so excited to introduce Squishee to all of you!!!

So this is the fun part, right??

As we head into the home stretch of this amazing pregnancy, I have experienced some incredible words of inspiring encouragement and sage wisdom. As true as that may be, I think the words of DIScouragement and idiocy are FAR more interesting. So here are some examples of things I've heard over the last couple weeks... I hope you get a kick out of them:

• "Wow... you haven't had that baby yet?"
  Actually, yes, I did. But I think the maternity belly looks SO good on me, I decided to shove a watermelon up my shirt and pretend I was still pregnant.
  
• "You're due in 3 weeks? Just so you know, it hurts."
  You don't say! I had heard it was super pleasant and you just slept through the whole thing. Wow... thanks for letting me know that so I could prepare. By the way... did I mention that this brilliant information came from a MAN! So he must know!!!
  
• "You may feel good now, but you are going to be miserable soon. You're just going to be hating life until that baby comes out."
  Wow... you didn't do very well on the cheerleading squad, did you? Surprisingly, I have heard many versions of this uplifting sentiment. Although I reserve the right to start complaining at any time, the "misery" hasn't begun yet, so it's weird to have to convince people that you aren't depressed and "hating life."
  
• "Wow... you are huge!"
  Wow... you are ugly! Thank goodness I'll lose this belly when the baby comes out... too bad you'll always have that face! (No... I have not said that to anyone, but it doesn't mean I haven't wanted to.) :-)
  
• "Wow... you're really showing. When I was pregnant, I didn't show until I was about 8 months along."
  If you don't show until you're 8 months pregnant, that means you either wear clothes that are WAY too baggy... or you had way too much weight for that baby to hide under.

I hope you can see why I think these statements and questions were humorous. If you can't, then you were probably the one who said it to me! :-)

Is flying a cure for breech babies?

Well, we have no idea when it happened, but we had an ultrasound today and learned that Squishee has taken a dive and is now head down instead of breech! We are really excited! Sure enough, if it hadn't been for the need for ultrasounds to monitor Squishee's growth, we probably would have never known she was breech for a while anyway. So it was much ado about nothing! But we are so thankful that Squishee cooperated!!!

Speaking of growth ultrasounds, Squishee is doing really well. She's growing just fine and is currently in the 40th percentile for growth, which is totally normal and acceptable. The technicican predicts that she is about 4.5 lbs right now... and the ultrasound confirmed that she is pretty active (as if I needed an ultrasound to confirm that!).

Over the past weekend, Sean and I were in Boise for a friend's wedding. We're going to spread rumors that the flying is what caused Squishee to flip around and then maybe we can get speaking engagements on Oprah and free tickets on the airlines! :)

Here are some pics from our brief weekend in Boise

Sean and Lisa before heading off to the wedding

My 6 beautiful friends from High School
(Amy, Joy, Jaime, Katie - the bride, Caroline, Lisa and Carin)

Lisa and her mom

Watch Squishee grow in a slideshow...

Wish I'd thought of this sooner, but rather than doing a post every time we take another picture of Squishee growing in my belly, we've gone ahead and put a slide show to the right showing the progression. And to think there was a time when people couldn't tell Lisa was pregnant! HA!

After Squishee is born, not only will we burn the infamous pink pajamas and black tank top that you've seen so much of, but we promise to update the slideshow with pictures that are 1000 times cuter than Lisa's growing tummy!

SOME HINTS for viewing the slideshow:
- If you click on the scrolling images, then you can use the buttons in the bottom left to slow down, speed up, or pause the scrolling
- If you hover your mouse over one of the pictures that is scrolling by, it should pause it and tell you the caption for that picture. In this case, it will tell you what week that picture is from
- If you want to see all the pictures in this slideshow at once, you can click on the slide show or on the "View All Images" button. This may not be that exciting right now, but it will be more fun as we have more and more pictures up there for you to see!

Pics at 31 weeks... Yes, you see my belly!

It has come to my attention that a few of you out there are a little "ooged" out by seeing my bare belly. For the squeamish of you (wussies), I am doing you this little favor and posting a picture of my big ol' belly with a shirt covering it. Beware... if you scroll down too far, you WILL see pics that include my belly button! :-)

And now for the bare belly pic. Folks... there's no denying it. Lisa is pregnant. And Squishee is ready to declare it to the world by expanding that belly of her mom's! I guess we knew this was going to happen, right?

To answer your next question: Yes, Sean is afraid. Very afraid! :-)

More fun with family and friends in Portland

In mid-April, we were blessed with a beautiful spring day that ACTUALLY included sunshine. On this gorgeous day, we were lucky enough to get even more family and friends together at our house in Portland. Dad and Mom Shepard and our family friend, Robbie, flew up to gather together and join in another pre-celebration of Squishee's coming arrival. This little munchkin of ours sure has some wonderful family and friends to meet when she shows up!!!

Lisa with Sean's Dad (Bruce) and Sean's cousins
(Sarah, Shannon & Stacey)

Lisa & Sean with Grandma Shepard

Robbie and Mom Shepard relaxing out on the back deck.
(Notice Grandma Shepard's new "bling" around her neck!)