Bow Head!

Seriously, Mom...this bow is bigger than my head!!!

This one is much better!

I'm 2 weeks old...

Sleepy Bear!

Where's Carlee? I've put her in the swing twice. She likes it for about 10 minutes and then she isn't real sure about it after that.

The Letters

The Camera Loves Me!

Thank you Uncle Ron and Aunt Mary Cheyne for this great bag and wipe holder!!!

More Cuteness!

Carlee had her 2nd pediatrician's appointment today. She was released from the hospital weighing 4 lbs 10 oz. She now weighs 4 lbs 15 oz - we are 1 oz away from her birth weigh. Everything is going great and we are glad to be home after spending 8 weeks in the hospital. She is as cute as a little button and has already added lots of joy to our lives! She just sleeps and eats all day- who can complain about that!?!?!?

She's a Cutie!!

Carlee's first stroller ride around the cul-de-sac. She loves going on walks around the block.

After Carlee's first bath (at home). Just like her first bath at the hospital, she loves getting her hair washed. She is a little fussy during the rest of the bath, but the second you start washing her hair she immediately calms down and just enjoys it. She loves being pampered already - Craig better watch out!

The Stork has Landed!

One of Craig's fraternity brothers made this stork and he and his wife came and put it in our yard. Robey and Amy Canaday with the Cheyne family.

Cici is reading Carlee her first book, The Runaway Bunny. Carlee was awake the entire time and seemed to really be paying attention to grandma's every word.

Maddy was not forgotten. Our friend, Anna Broome, bought her this t-shirt to wear and show off that she is now a big sister. Anna also brought a gift for Molly ~ very large bone, her favorite!

Welcome Home!

Daddy Craig! Look how big his hands look compared to Carlee's little head.

Carlee unswaddled with Cici

Carlee in her boppy. This is the best thing ever!!!!

Going home...Carlee's first car ride!

Carlee Marie Cheyne!

Emily, Charlotte, Carlee and Susan

Staci, Susan, Carlee and Brynn

Chelsey and Carlee (Go Tech!)

Grandma Cici and Carlee

Uncle John (this pictures shows how small Carlee really is)

Happy Birthday Carlee!!!

Carlee Marie Cheyne was born on Monday, June 15th at 10:19am. She weighed 5 lbs and was 18 inches long. She is absolutely beautiful. We are both doing great. All your prayers have been answered - THANK YOU!!!! I will post more later, but it is feeding time!

35 week Baby Bump!

Charlotte comes to visit!

This post is a little out of order. Emily, Ross and Charlotte came to visit last Friday. It was great to see them! Charlotte, a little over a year old, was just walking all over the place. She is adorable! She loved baby Sadie! She also really liked flirting with Craig. It was so cute. I have truly enjoyed having all these precious little babies coming and visiting me while here at the hospital. It gets me excited about meeting little Miss Carlee and how much joy she is going to bring to our lives!

Craig's Birthday Party Pictures!

Are we getting close yet?

I had bleed #8 around 1:30am today, but it was just a "regular" bleed, not another big one. I was hoping that this bleed would encourage my doctor to go ahead and schedule a c-section, but no. I talked to her this morning and she said that she was going to wait until I had another big bleed, although she doesn't think it will be much longer. I will be 35 weeks tomorrow (I have been here 7 weeks!). This is a huge mile marker because babies start to develop their sucking ability at this point and usually don't need to be tube fed. That is a big bonus. Also, most babies born after 35 weeks don't even have to visit the NICU! The ultimate goal is to be able to bring Carlee home with us the same day that I am discharged. So I am going to continue laying here, waiting patiently for our little girl to be born.

I have to say Happy Birthday (yesterday) to my sweet husband! We celebrated last night with Cheesecake Factory for dinner, cake, candles, my horrible singing, and great company. Thanks Brynn and Chelsey for helping me throw him a little party! Craig's friend, Robey, also helped us celebrate, so Craig wasn't completely out numbered.

Today is my "little" (6 foot 6) brother, John's 19th birthday!!! Wish I could be there tonight to celebrate!! I know that he is going to be the best uncle to Carlee!

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!!!

Love, Susan

A Big One!

I added some excitement to the mix late last night when I had bleed #7 and it was a Big One. It wasn't "the bleed," but it was pretty close. I even called Craig at 11:15pm and told him to be on standby, which I really try not to call and worry him if I don't have to, but this one warranted a phone call. I even got a trip to Labor and Delivery, but after a good hour or so, the bleeding slowed down to a minimum and eventually stopped. They put me on an IV and kept me over at L&D until this morning to monitor Carlee's heartbeat and my contractions (I had some, but they weren't real strong). The best part of the whole situation was that I got an early sono (typically I have to wait until Wed) and the doctor even took Carlee's measurements again and she is now around 5 lbs 1 oz and looks great!!! After the sono, I got moved back to my antepartum room and it was really nice to be back in my "own" bed. I was exhausted, as I didn't sleep at all while in L&D. I got a few hours of sleep later this morning and really took it easy this afternoon. I plan on going to bed real early tonight and catch up on my sleep.

The goal at this point is to make it past the weekend when I will be 35 weeks. The doctors feel that Carlee is getting to be a healthy weight to deliver, especially if we can make it one more week. If I do have another bleed of this same size, they will more than likely have to go ahead and deliver, because of the amount of blood loss. My blood count was obviously down today and I need a several days to try and build it back up. I am already going to lose more blood than normal in the delivery room, due to the placenta situation, so I need to keep as much of it now, especially to avoid having a blood transfusion.

Well that is my excitement for the day and hopefully, for a while. I want to say a big Congratulations to Matt & Sarah Johnson ~ the proud parents of Madeline Ada. She was born on June 6th and is adorable!!!!

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend and a great start to the week!

Love, Susan

A visit from Marley!

Marley came to visit me this morning with grandma, KK - our very dear family friends. Marley's parents are on vacation right now in Maui (I'm jealous), so she is getting some extra special spoiling time from her grandparents. She even signed my baby book with an outline of her little handprint. I know Carlee was disappointed that she wasn't able to meet Marley just yet, but she will soon enough!

Chunky Monkey!!!

I ended up getting my sono this afternoon and Miss Carlee weighs 4 lbs 12 oz!!!!! Yippppeeee!! What great news! I feel confident that if she were to arrive into this world today, she would be one healthy baby. Another week or two would be great, but I'm feeling very relieved. The goal now is keeping me from getting too antsy. Knowing that we will get to meet our little girl within the next 3 weeks is the most exciting feeling. We have truly been uplifted through all your thoughts and prayers. Thank you!!!

With much love, Susan

And the streak ends...

Well I almost made it 3 weeks without a bleed, but all good things must come to an end and mine did last night or actually very early this morning. It only seems fitting that bleed #6 came during my 6th week here at the hospital. Luckily, it stopped quickly and I only had a few very small and sporatic contractions. And of course Carlee looked fabulous, as always! I was hoping to get a sonogram today because of the bleed, but my high risk pregnancy doctor, who does the sonograms, is out today and tomorrow, due to a family emergency. So as excited as I was to get Carlee's measurements tomorrow, it is going to have to wait until he gets back on Thursday. I will update everyone then! Other than that, it has been a great day. I got some beautiful flowers from my friend Chelsi, her husband and their precious little girl Brierley. It was such a nice surprise!! And tonight, my girlfriends are coming to my room to celebrate Courtney's birthday and eat pizza. I can't wait!! That's a pretty good day if you ask me!!! Well NCIS is about to start, so I better run (or really continue laying in bed).

Love, Susan

Baby Sadie and Needlepoint

The hospital has a CPR kit and I thought it would be a good idea to get one since I haven't had CPR lessons since high school. The kit came with a blow up baby, which I decided to name Sadie. My friend, Chelsey (who is an RN and worked in the Labor & Delivery and NICU unit for several years), taught me how to performance CPR and what to do when a baby was choking. Very good things to know. Afterwards, we decided to play dress up. We put a newborn outfit on Baby Sadie and then topped it off with an adorable headband and bow. She looks much better with clothes on.

I finished the Princess needlepoint project this weekend. It looks really good. Mom took both of them home with her so she could get them framed. They definitely helped pass the time up here and I was glad to get them completed before Carlee arrives.

I also want to say Happy Birthday to my friend Courtney!!!! We are celebrating her birthday tomorrow evening in my hospital room. Probably not what she had in mind, but I appreciate being included in the birthday dinner ritual.

I have a sonogram on Wednesday and we will get Carlee's measurements!!! The doctors are also going to start coming up with a plan. I will keep you posted! Currently, I am 33 weeks and 2 days! What an accomplishment! We are just making great progress!!!

I hope everyone has a wonderful week.

Love, Susan