He's here...

I had an appointment (39 weeks) on Monday morning. The doctor checked me out and said I was 3cm and 50% effaced. She told me to go home and walk, and I could either go into labor that night or it might take a few days. Either way, we'd induce on Thursday.

I got home and hit the pavement. About five minutes into the walk the contractions started. I timed them, and towards the end of the walk they were consistently 4 minutes apart. You are to call the doctor and head to the hospital when they are 5 minutes apart for 1 hour. To say I was getting my hopes up is an understatement.

When I got home, the contractions subsided. Stephen and I decided to run some last minute errands, and we of course parked far away so I could walk further!! Once we got home, the contractions started arriving regularly again at 5 minutes apart. I jumped in the shower and got ready, called the doctor once we hit the hour mark and we packed up for the hospital.

Stephen's parents were on their way in, and ironically arrived when we were about to head out. Stephen and I headed to Chick-fil-A to make sure I'd eaten (it was about 6:30pm) and then headed into the hospital. Once we arrived and were in the L&D room, the nurse checked me and found that I hadn't really changed since my morning appointment. I was disappointed, and to make matters worse the nurse said if I didn't change in the next hour they were going to send me home with an Ambien to get some rest. My contractions weren't regular at this point, so I was really nervous.

The nurse came in an hour later and I'd progressed to a 4. She was admitting me. I was ecstatic. I was able to get up and walk around at that point, hoping to move labor along. It was at this point that the labor moved to my back. It was excruciating. I held on as long as I could, and at 6cm I decided to get the epidural (around midnight). It.Changed.My.Life.

My parents arrived soon after, and when the nurse checked me she realized I'd progressed at double the rate she expected and I was now at an 8. She called the doctor in and decided that since my contractions weren't regular (they never were) she wanted to give me pitocin to make sure I kept progressing. Well, I did, and before the doctor could get back in the room I was ready to push. After ten minutes of pushing, he arrived. Full head of hair and a hearty scream. We cried, kissed, loved on our son and became a family!

Now...onto what you came here for :)

Proud Daddy

Proud Mommy

Innocent Little Man

Love this picture, and love him!

He may not be happy, but we were overwhelmed with joy!

So wrinkly!

Full head of brown hair!

Loves being swaddled...

but only if his right hand is free :)

Headed home!

Big yawn after his first night of little sleep

Sweet toes

So tired!

Posed in his moses basket

Loves his hand!!

We're so blessed to have him in our lives. God formed him perfectly, and we couldn't be happier and more lucky to have been chosen to be his parents. He's a cutie!

38 weeks and a little stir crazy...

Well, I'm full term. I'm ready. He needs to get here.

Blessed with a completely healthy pregnancy and a little boy who loves to stay warm and bundled in my belly? Absolutely! Impatient? Yes!

Last weeks' appointment I was told I was 1cm dilated and doing well. At today's appointment she decided to skip the cervical exam since I haven't (to my knowledge) had any contractions. BOOOO!!!

Tonight's agenda...a long walk and spicy food :)

Knox's Houston Shower

Some very special friends threw Knox and I an incredible shower in Houston recently. It was located at the St. Regis hotel, and I'm not sure it could have been any more perfect!

The invitations were done by Hayley Hardcastle, and they set the tone for the entire day! She made place cards, guest list paper, and even a beautiful painted canvas for his nursery! Check out her website...you won't be disappointed!

The gorgeous centerpieces matched the invitations perfectly! I brought one home and placed it on my dining room table to savor it a little bit longer!!

The moms and the preggo :)

The beautiful hostesses (L-R, Cindy, preggo, Emily and Kathy)

The Dotson ladies: My Sister-in-Law Kelly and Mother-in-Law Glenda

My sister, Hayley and my mom, Jan

The cake was absolutely delicious, and of course matched the invitations and cookies perfectly!

We sipped Mommy's Mocktails and ice-cold water out of glass bottles!

Loved the added detail of the wire "preggo"

And another adorable detail...our napkins were folded and pinned like cloth diapers! So cute!!

A cute sis shot!

The tables were set perfectly! Loved the orange accent bows!

"For this child I have prayed..." 1 Samuel 1:27

Knox's parents in their prime :)

His bedding was "wrapped" in this adorable monogrammed sack, great for toys and football equipment down the road!!

We lunched on this incredible salad and then had a fantastic chicken and vegetable pasta!

Glenda with her amazing friends and hostesses! Thank you ladies!! It was a shower to remember, and we're definitely grateful!!

The Bears!!

Stephen and I have been following the Bears Basketball team as they play in the NCAA tournament, and have loved the fact that they're dominating!! Last week our friends Michael & Sarah (and DEAN!!!) called and offered to share some tickets with us...on the 7th row! For the Elite 8 game! Seriously?!? Amazing...

We watched BU roll over St. Mary's and packed our bags! We had dinner with the adorable Feigleson fam last night and we're headed to the game tonight, where we'll have a blast rooting Baylor on to the Final 4!

**Update: We lost, but had a great time anyway!

Knox's room so far...

We still have a ways to go...but here's his room so far!!

Knox's first shower!

This past weekend we had Knox's first shower! My sister-in-law Kelly, Aunt Jeanette and cousin Jolene threw me an amazing shower to spoil the little guy! Most of my sweet friends were able to join in the fun as I opened the most adorable clothes and fun accessories!

My mother-in-law made this ADORABLE diaper cake! One of the pacifiers said "Mute Button!" Love it!

We had an amazing spread of fruit, sandwiches, cakeballs, and the best part...Neiman's chicken broth! It was awesome!!!

Kelly made some great blue punch...I'd never seen blue punch, but it was yummy!!

They even had cute take-away gifts for all the guests! It really was so wonderful, albeit surreal to be preparing and spoiling my soon-to-be son! I'm going to have to get used to saying that! We had a great time, lots of ooohs and ahhhs, and plenty of laughs along the way! Thanks everyone for joining in the fun! I'm so thankful for each of you!

30 weeks and SNOW...

I know I promised a picture last time...I'm mean! But I promise at the bottom of this post you'll get what you've been waiting for, flattering or not :)

Things have been nuts around here lately! We had record breaking snow a week and a half ago...8 inches at our house! It was insane! It was nice to build a snowman for the first time and to see the neighborhood in a blanket of snow. It was not nice, however, to lose power for more than 18 hours. We survived, though, in our little cocoon near the fire all night! The pups loved it!

Last weekend we headed to Houston to see a friend get married. We loved having a weekend away, and of course seeing all of Stephen's high school friends we don't see often. It was fun, but with a few long nights we both ended up with colds the next week. Stephen got over his quickly, but of course the preggo holds on to hers for weeks!!

These next few weeks will be just as busy as the last, but that just brings us closer to our little man! We can't wait!!!

26 weeks!!

I can't believe it's been 26 weeks, yet at the same time I feel like it's been a year since I told Stephen that morning we were pregnant! Anyone who knows me is WELL aware that I'm not exactly the most patient person. My yoga instructor said that technically you are "full-term" at 37 weeks, so that's just 11 weeks away...AHHHH!! We.Can't.Wait!! These next few months are going to kill me :)

I promise I'll take a belly pic soon, though I hate these! I always feel so silly taking a picture of how BIG I am and posting them for the world to see, but I realize that is all you readers want...so I'll oblige. Just know I hate them, k? Until then...here's some things the little man is doing in utero:

-Kicking like crazy. Really, he's just beating the beat (for all you Jersey Shore fanatics)! It feels like he's rapid fire kicking most evenings!!

-Swishing around in there. It most resembles a water bed motion, freaky and a little cool at the same time.

-Dancing on my bladder. Since the sonogram revealed just how much he likes to jump off my bladder, he's decided to keep it consistent. We'll just say he's like his dad and loves a set routine!

-Disliking cold things. My mom made a comment that when she was pregnant with my oldest brother, Andy, she would place her cold glass on her stomach and he would try and kick it off. We tried this with Knox and within a few seconds he was in hot pursuit of the offending glass. It's pretty cool to watch. This also goes for Stephen's cold hands...loves his Dad's voice, but hates his cold hands!!

Hope this gives you a little insight into little K-dub's world...until you can meet him face-to-face!

Kissing Cousins??

Avery and Knox got a little cozy at dinner the other night :)

Merry Christmas...

Stephen and I travelled to Katy, TX on Wednesday afternoon to spend Christmas with his family. Thankfully, our drive was relatively "eventless," and we arrived in a little over 4 hours. We've been eating, drinking and playing games ever since...so much fun! And very relaxing!

This evening we'll head to see "It's Complicated." Seeing a movie on Christmas Day is a Dotson tradition, and I love it. This year, we're going to Alamo Drafthouse, so we'll be able to have an appetizer or two while watching the movie (if we're even hungry after turkey and the fixings!).

Here's a pic of the "kids" before heading to Christmas Eve Mass...please excuse the dots--we'll clean the camera later :) For those of you requesting a bump, this is as close as your getting until I feel brave enough :) Knox is peeking out, though!!

Wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas and Joyous New Year!

Love,

The Dotson Family

It's a...

HEALTHY BOY!

We're so excited. I was sure it was a boy, I've known since I found out I was pregnant. Not sure why I felt so strongly about it, I just knew. Stephen was iffy as to the gender, but eventually chose girl as his contender. As we watched the sonogram screen, holding our breaths waiting for his cute profile, he waved. How perfect is God's creation, and sense of humor. We continued to watch as he did jumps off of my bladder and twirled as we tried to see him head on...he's a stubborn one! We're a wee bit apprehensive yet EXTREMELY excited to start this journey!

Please keep praying for us, for the sweet yet-to-be-named Dotson, and for a safe pregnancy!

Happy Holidays!!

D-Day

Today's the day! We find out if we're having a boy or a girl...I can't WAIT :) We'll update of course, so stay tuned!!

Chasing Squirrels

It's fall around here, and that means more time outside running around in the leaves. Not for me, particularly, but for the dogs.

This also means more time chasing squirrels! Gracie and Bella LOVE to chase squirrels...and this picture captures their typical reaction. Please click on the picture to enlarge, you need to see Bella up close!!

So happy with this fall weather, hopefully it stays!!