Cade is here!

We're so happy that our baby has finally arrived. He was born on the 13th at 5:09 am. My water broke the night before at about 7:00. I didn't really know what to do... I told Russell, "Uh, I think that my water just broke." Russ said, "You think? Or did you just pee your pants?" I knew that wasn't what happened, so we decided we should go to the hospital. I hadn't started having contractions or anything and wasn't in pain yet, so we took our time finishing a few last minute things... laundry, packing our bags, etc. We went to the hospital and checked in at about 8:30 pm. We both had big smiles on our faces when we walked up to the counter. The nurse looked at me and said, "You're in labor??" (I guess people usually aren't smiling at this stage). I told her that I ruptured, but still no contractions. We got set up in our room and started calling our families to tell them the news. I got my epidural about an hour after we got to the hospital, so I think that I only ended up feeling about three contractions. Labor was a breeze! We were both able to sleep a little bit that night, and we were able to really soak in everything that was happening.

During labor, Cade's heart rate dropped a few times and gave us a scare, but other than that, everything went perfectly. When Cade was born, the nurse said, "Wow, I think that he's a 10!" (She was talking about his Apgar score). The doctor said, "I know, no one will believe us though, so we better give him a 9-10. So we've been joking that even the doctors agree that our baby is perfect.

I can't even describe with words how I've felt since the moment they laid him on my chest. I can't believe that I can love this little bundle so much when I just met him. Russell and I feel so blessed. We both just sit and stare at him and smile... everytime he makes a movement we get so excited... "Look! He just opened his eyes!" or "Look! He just put his fist in his mouth!" He's our entire world now.

Being a mom is a million times better than I could have ever imagined it would be. Here are some pictures from Cade's first week of life.

Our first family picture.

Cade was a little high on his billiruben levels, so he spent some time under the lights. He looked so cute! We went back to the doctor yesterday and his levels are fine now.

Headed home!

I love this picture. Russell is such a good dad. Cade and I are so lucky to have him.