Accomplished???

To me, YES!!!!!

Shaylor has a crazy work schedule, and Kysen and I have had to adjust. It was hard having him home for 2 weeks after Kysen was born and then him going back to work. Shaylor usually handled the late night feedings, etc. Well when he went back to work some nights it was just me. I know from previous posts I have told you how he worked over night. We have a little boy that is a night owl. I try to put him to bed at 9 and it doesn't work. On Wednesdays Shaylor works until at least 1 am. Most of the other nights during the week he is home and gives Kysen his last bottle usually around midnight then puts him to bed. Every time I try Kysen just cries and cries and cries. It gets so frustrating, but I guess I don't have the touch that Shaylor has. I must not swaddle him right, or give him the right kisses, or say the right thing, but only at night. During the day we have no problems and he goes right to sleep. Shaylor has come home many times to me crying because I don't know what else to deal and I feel like a failure as a mother since I can't even put my child to sleep. I am trying to do what they say in Baby Wise, but it's hard.

I am sure you keep asking yourself how do you feel accomplished? I have been dreading tonight all day. I didn't want Shaylor to go to work, and leave me tonight. My good friend Nicci came over to keep me company and she and her daughter played with Kysen to give me a little break. Well then they left and I didn't know what was going to happen. So, at 9:30 I gave Kysen his bottle, and then put him in his crib at 10:00. HE DIDN'T CRY!!!!!! He went right to sleep and has been for an hour and a half. To some of you this may not be a big deal, but to me it is HUGE!!!!!!!!!!!!! He may wake up any minute and I would be OK with that, knowing that I can get him to go back to sleep. What a great feeling!

Happy 1 Month Kysen Allin

One month...
-I just started drinking 3 1/2 to 4 ounces of formula every 3 hours.
- I am still in newborn diapers.
-I wear newborn shirts and 0-3 month pants. I am tall and skinny!
-I sleep between 7-8 hours a night.
-I don't like to go to bed before 11:30-12:00. If you put me down before that I will kick, scream, and throw a HUGE fit until someone comes and gets me.
-During the daytime all I want is my mommy, and at nighttime I want to be with my daddy.
-Cuddling is my favorite thing to do with anybody that will hold me.
-Some days I like tummy time, and some days I scream the whole time.
-I am a lot more alert, and love looking around.
-I got my first prescription of eye ointment because my tear ducts have still not developed.
-I just started sleeping in my crib and I love all the room I have!
-I am a growing boy and gained 1 1/2 pounds in 2 weeks. I now weigh 8 pounds 11 ounces.
-I think everyone is adjusting to having me around, because I sure do get a lot of love.

What's Been Going On???

Our last post talked about all of Kysen's firsts he had going on. He loved every moment of it. He was spoiled by lots of my old friends on Saturday. He was loved every moment of it and soaked it up. We did get to skype with my parents, and it was so neat to watch him. He just stared at the computer and it was like he was really listening to Nana and Pops. I think they enjoyed it too! Kysen has been taking one nap a day in his crib in the afternoon and he really likes it. I think it will be a smooth transition for him to go to his crib, but I am sure for me I will be a basketcase. I will probably be sleeping in there for awhile. He loves being outside in the evenings. Shaylor bought me new patio furniture so we have gone out a couple of times and he just looks and is so peaceful. The first evening we took him out, the dogs looked at him like um what are you doing out here, this is our domain. It was so funny, and before long they were being the protective dogs they are with him even outside. My sister, Ace, and Jason, Zio, will be here this weekend. They of course are bringing Taryn and I am so excited to see her! Ace has met Kysen but Zio and Taryn have not. Once they come then Kysen has been fortunate enough to meet his whole family. The best news is the last 3 nights Kysen has slept between 7-8 hours. I am hoping this is a new trend for him. It sure helps when waking up in the morning and feeling refreshed. We hope everyone is doing well too! Come visit us soon. We miss and love you all.

Pictures

Those pictures below are horrible and I could not figure out how to delete them so here they are in a better quality!

Firsts by Kysen

Lots of "firsts" are happening. Here they are:

-I went shopping at Target today with just me and Mommy.

-I wore overalls for the first time today.

-I am going to some one's house, which happens to be Aunt Roo's house, for the first time tonight. My mommy hopes I am on my best behavior.

-I took a nap in my crib today and LOVED it!

-I have my first birthday party to go to this weekend. Happy 2nd Birthday Emma!

-At the party, I am going to get to meet a lot of Mommy's friends from college.

-I finally love bath time and fall asleep when my mommy is giving me a bath.

-I am going to have my first Skype session with Nana and Pops on Saturday, and maybe even Ace, Zio, and my cousin Taryn!

-My mom and dad are going to attempt taking me to church on Sunday.

As you can see, we are very busy! Kysen did so much better last night sleeping. Shaylor was home and took great care of him so I could catch up on some sleep. I was informed this moring that tonight Shaylor is sleeping and I have to get up with Kysen. I do owe Shaylor one because he is the one for the last 3 weeks that gets up with him every night, so this is the least I can do. We are looking forward to this weekend even though it is going to be a busy one, we are excited for everything we have going on. It should be lots of fun, I just hope Kysen is good.

Survival

We survived last night, barely. Kysen did not want to sleep for anything! I tried everything with him. He would finally calm down and fall asleep in my arms and just as I would put him down, he would start screaming and crying again. I knew he was fine because he had been fed, clean diaper, and no temp. I kept telling myself "Everyone says just let them cry it out, they will be ok." But as a mom that is really hard to do when it is your own child and you want to comfort them. Overall we got about an hour of sleep. When Shaylor got home at 6, he fed him and Kysen went right to sleep and slept until 10 this morning. I don't know if he was just missing his daddy since Shaylor has not been home at night since last Thursday or what was going on. All I know is I told Shaylor that he can never work over night again as long as we have a 3 week baby at home. Needless to say we have all been pretty tired today. Shaylor once again is closing tonight, but tomorrow he will be home at night. I am hoping that tonight and tomorrow go a lot smoother. Thanks for all of the support!!!!! We need it during this time.

Day 2

So we are surviving our second day of it just being me and Kysen. Yesterday we had a rough day, but made it through. I decided I was going to try to make dinner, what was I thinking with having a fussy baby? He wanted to be held all day. I would put him down and he would scream. I did make dinner and let him cry and scream. The funny thing is dinner was ready at 6:30 but was not eaten until 8:45 when Daddy finally got home. Today has been a great day! We even ventured out on a trip to Target. We need diapers, pacifiers, and formula! He did great, slept the whole time. Tonight instead of trying to make dinner, we are going to have leftovers or sandwiches. Kysen really enjoys play time/tummy time! He loves looking at the lights and himself. He is holding his head up so well, but he has been doing that since he was born. He is a really strong boy, and I am not just being biased. Shaylor will be home with us tomorrow during the day but will be working over night on Tuesday, so please say a prayer for us. Shaylor usually takes all of the night feedings which is usually only 2, at midnight or 1 and Kysen doesn't wake up until 6 or 7. I hope I can survive.

He's HERE!!!!

I have been so bad about blogging! I am going to try to do better because I know there are many friends and family that read this and want to keep up to date on our lives, and our new addition.

Kysen Allin Richards entered this world on March 16th. He weighed 6 pound 9 ounces and was 20 1/4 inches long. We had a very long and hard delivery. I was at an 8 for over 4 hours. Kysen became stressed and only liked one position and that was with me on all fours. As I am sure you can picture me on all fours with an epidural. It was exciting, let me tell you. At one point, they came in and prepped us for a c-section. My doctor came in and said we are going to try having this baby first. I am so thankful for someone like her. The scary part was I looked up and saw about 10 doctors and nurses standing around with so many different tools, this doesn't include my doctor and the 2 nurses that were helping me. My heart dropped though when I heard the roll call and NICU was a part of that. Luckily my doctor made it happen and we didn't have to have a c-section. When he came out he barely whimpered so of course I was so worried that something was wrong. Shaylor reassured me numerous times he was ok. They had to run a bunch of test before I could hold or see him, which took about 30 minutes. We later learned that our son had more of a whimper than a cry. Once he hit 2 weeks, he showed us his lungs.

God truly has blessed us with a miracle. Many of you that read our blog are the ones that said countless prayers for us. We cannot thank you enough for the love and support you have shown us. I cry every time I think about who God has put in our lives. It amazes me that there are people out there that read our blog and prayed for us. I hope our story can touch some lives and give people hope. I thought I would never be where we are today, but now I look back and thank God for the trial He gave us.