. . . and finally, the star of the show!

my love!

Happy Birthday to Zachary today!!! I can't imagine my life without him. He has brought so much joy and happiness into my life! I am so lucky to be able to grow old with him! His smile and laugh are contagious and they were one of the first things that I fell in love with 5 years ago. Thank you for being a better husband and father than I ever could have imagined!

I'm only a month behind in posting this but hey, I barely have time to eat...

Declan McLean Oswald arrived on August 11, 2009 at 9:26 P.M. He weighed 8 lbs 12 oz and was 21 inches long. When we left the hospital he had dropped down to 8 lbs 4 oz but at his 2 week appt he was weighing in at 9 lbs 3 oz and is now 22 inches. I'm sure by now he is close to 10 lbs since he is constantly eating. Anyway, I was induced and it was quite a long day since we arrived at the hospital at 4 AM. I didn't start "active labor" until 11 AM though. That was the time that the doctor broke my water and I luckily got the epidural before that even. I spent the day playing cards with Zach, listening to the first Harry Potter book on my ipod, talking to Becky on the phone, and hanging out with my parents. It took until 5 PM for me to dilate to a 5 but then once I did I dilated to a 10 pretty fast. I started pushing at 7:15 PM and after 2 exhausting hours he finally came out! The whole experience was amazing and I think I got really lucky with a fairly easy labor. Here's some pictures, since I'm sure that's what everyone wants to see!

Right after he came out. The nurse in the back was the best!

Zach's parents and Sara came out the day after he was born and stayed until August 20th. They were so much help and made the transition so much easier!

My parents came out on August 1st and had to leave the day after he was born. It was so nice to have them around the last week I was pregnant. I'm pretty sure I would have gone crazy being home waiting for this little guy to come if they hadn't been here!

Declan in his Memphis Tigers onesie getting ready to leave the hospital

First family photo

My favorite picture of my boys

More pictures to come...someday!

Yep, I'm still pregnant...

I went to the doctor yesterday where she told me that I was still only dilated to a 2 and had a 50/50 chance of having to have a c-section if they induced me on the 7th. After much thought and prayer, Zach and I decided to give him a little more time to come on his own. So, if I don't have him by Tuesday the 11th I will be induced that day at 4 AM. So, that's the update! Sorry if I haven't answered the phone when you call or replied to text messages. I'm running a little low on texts and minutes and would like to have plenty available for when he does come! :)