Quote of the Day

There are just so many quotes from Allison that make us crack up. For example, last week when I said, "absolutely not" to something she was doing, she responded, "Absolutely yes, Mommy."

Today when I was fixing her hair she was trying to dig around in the bathroom drawer. The excessive movement was making it difficult to put her hair up. I told her to stop moving. She continued to mess around. I then told her she needed to listen. This gets us to the quote of the day: "I can't listen Mommy. I'm a little crazy. It's not Daddy's fault. It's not your fault. It's my fault."

Seriously, where does this kid come up with this stuff?

Christmas Fun

We had a wonderful Christmas this year. Allison really enjoyed talking about baby Jesus, Santa, and presents. On Christmas Eve we went to church for a candlelight service. It was so nice. Tyler and Aidan stayed home. It didn't make much sense to take a 2 1/2 week old. Allison enjoyed the music and holding a candle.

Teri Rayburn (Tyler's mother), me, Allison, & Sandra Miller (my mother)

We made cookies for Santa and sprinkled magic reindeer food in the backyard. (Austin has been fertilizing the yard with glitter thanks to the mix.) She had so many presents to open on Christmas morning also. It was actually somewhat ridiculous. Santa brought her a digital camera. It's so cute. It's made by Fisher Price, and it takes real pictures. The quality is the pits, but she doesn't care about that. You can see her taking a picture below and then a sample of her photography work.
You had no idea I was in the Blair Witch Project, did you?

Among some of her other big gifts were a couple of Brio train sets from my parents, an art table from Tyler's dad, and a Dance Cam from Renee and Denis. She loves it all. We didn't hook up the Dance Cam until today. She spent well over an hour dancing and watching herself. Too funny! Check it out.

Thank you so much to those of you that sent gifts. These two kids are beyond spoiled. Allison was very sweet about each gift though and said, "thank you" many times. You can see how Aidan spent most of the day. We really enjoyed Christmas Eve and Christmas day with my parents, Tyler's mother, and her friend Earl. Tyler made an amazing dinner. It was our first time to spend the holiday in our house, and it was really nice.

Aidan Update

Today Aidan had his two-week appointment a few days early. Last Friday his weight was at it's lowest, 5 lb 15 3/4 oz. Today he was back up to 6 lb 7 1/4 oz. He's not back to his birth weight, but the pediatrician is not concerned because he's been gaining over an ounce each day since last Friday. She said it was all normal and he looked great. He measured 19 inches.

We're still functioning on little sleep and plenty of coffee. Aidan nurses around every three hours. During the day he'll make it 3 1/2 hours at times, but at night he's closer to 2 or 2 1/2 hours. I'm trying to switch that around, but so far no luck. He also doesn't want to sleep in his bassinet at night. He pretty much only wants to sleep on me. You can imagine how well I sleep in that situation. It's all temporary though, and we'll survive. Tyler goes back to work tomorrow, and I'm pretty sure he's looking forward to it. :)

Pinkalicious

I don't know if you're familiar with the children's book "Pinkalicious", but ever since Christina gave it to Allison at the hospital it's the only thing we read. Before bed each night we have to read "Pinkalicious". In the book the little girl and her mother make pink cupcakes, and the girl eats so many she turns pink. So, of course, Allison wanted to make pink cupcakes.

Also, she made sure Aidan wasn't lonely during one of his many naps. What a great big sister!

The Princess

Despite my best efforts Allison is obsessed with princesses and everything associated with them. Don't get me wrong. I love girly, pretty things. I've just tried to avoid the "Diva" and "Princess" stuff. It's a losing battle.

When I originally decorated her nursery I put a mosquito net with large bow over her crib. It was beautiful but not practical once she could pull up and grab it. I put it in a closet and waited until she was old enough to not destroy it or hurt herself with it. Yesterday we put it back up over her full bed, and she thinks it is the best thing ever. Of course, she couldn't get in the bed without her tiara on.

Aidan is Here!

Well, it wasn't but a few hours after I posted that I made it to full term that contractions started. I thought it was another false alarm, but it wasn't. Aidan Keehn McAfee was born via c-section at 4:18 PM on Sunday, December 7th. He weighed 6 lbs 12 oz and was 18 inches long. I was only in active labor for a few hours waiting for my doctor to make it back from the other hospital. The surgery was quick, and fortunately my recovery has been so much easier this time around. Aidan and I were discharged today. He's doing so well. He has lost some weight, but that is normal. He was either in the normal nursery or with me in the hospital room the entire time. Below are some pictures from the past few days. Allison absolutely loves "baby Aidan". She constantly wants to hold and kiss him. It is the sweetest thing! We'll enjoy that as long as it lasts before the jealousy kicks in. :) Thank you to all of you that said and did such wonderful things for us through the nine week of bedrest. Without our parents helping this would have been much more difficult. We are very fortunate that they were so willing to come and stay. I'll keep the pictures coming.

Full Term!

Today I'm 37 weeks, which means Aidan is now considered full term! He would no longer be a premie. I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow morning, so we'll find out how the pregnancy is progressing. I've had a few contractions this morning, but nothing too serious or out of the ordinary. Tyler and I are both just so excited he's made it this far. We really didn't believe it would happen. Yea!

36 Weeks

Today was rather eventful, unfortunately. I had a doctor's appointment at 10:10 this morning. I found out that I'm dilated 1 cm, which is ok, and the ultrasound looked good. Aidan weighs around 6 lbs 10 oz now. The unfortunate part is that while I was waiting for the ultrasound I had four contractions. My doctor had me go straight to the hospital, and I sat on monitors until 3:30 this afternoon. After an IV and some meds the contractions stopped. I'm now home and doing fine. This little guy sure does like to scare us. This was my third trip to the hospital. I think we might have our hands full when he arrives!

Thanksgiving

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving. There was quite a crew at our house, and everything that was cooked was delicious. My parents, my brother and his girlfriend, Tyler's father and stepmother, Tyler's brother and neice, and two family friends, the Nervie's, all joined us and pitched in on the preparation. On Thanksgiving day Ryan, Ross, Corryn, Allison, and Papa Jerry went to the park. The girls loved it.

Papa Jerry, Corryn, and Allison going down the slide

Uncle Ryan and Allison swinging

Allison really enjoyed having her cousin Corryn here to play with. This was the first year that she was old enough to really "play" with her, so Corryn had a great time too. They were constantly playing with the dollhouse, jumping on the mini-trampoline, and swinging in the backyard. It was very cute.

Corryn and Allison before bedtime after a fun-filled Thanksgiving day

35 Weeks

I am now 35 weeks and 2 days! My doctor's appointment yesterday went well. We had another ultrasound, and Aidan now weighs 6 lbs 2 oz. Everything looked really good, and there are no signs of labor any time soon. Of course, there usually aren't. Allison's just snuck up on us in the middle of the night. After all of this, watch Aidan make it to his scheduled c-section on December 19th. :) That would be great!

Enjoy the Show!

I've mentioned before that Allison loves to perform. This morning after breakfast she decided to entertain us with a little ballet and a song. I was lucky enough to catch it on video for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy!

They must have practiced stage exits in ballet class.

Cute Picture

I should have included this picture a few weeks ago. I just think it's so cute. It's from the trip to the zoo.

This week Papa Jerry is here helping out. Allison had her Thanksgiving Feast today at mother's day out, and was very excited to tell me about it when she came home. Papa Jerry went as her guest. Last week we had Papa Fred here, and over the weekend Omie joined in the fun. The revolving McAfee front door just keeps on spinning. We are very lucky to have so much help. I have really been able to stay still. It is a difficult situation for all of us, but it's worth it. I just really hope I don't go into labor on Thanksgiving day. Tyler is really looking forward to cooking, and there will be 13 people here!

34 Week Appointment

Today was my 34 week appointment. They say no news is good news, and that's where we are. There are no changes, and things seem to be progressing well. This is a short entry, but I have to say I'm really glad I have nothing to report! The constant sitting around seems to be helping. I'm also becoming a pro at scarf knitting.

Baby Shower

Today was Aidan's baby shower. My friends from MPJH threw me a wonderful shower and gave Aidan such cute gifts. I'm so fortunate to have such wonderful friends. Allison was the official gift opener. She had a great time. Here's my mother, Allison and I at the shower.We've officially made it to 34 weeks!!! This is a great milestone. Premies born now have a great chance of being just as healthy as full-term babies. Maybe we'll get lucky, and he'll make it to full-term.

Dr. Appt. Today

Today was my 33 week doctor's appointment. I was somewhat worried going into it because over the weekend I felt like the baby had "dropped". Well, he has moved down, but it wasn't his head. It was his bottom. He's in breech position, which isn't a big deal since I am having a c-section anyway. I also had an ultrasound. He is measuring 34 weeks 6 days, even though he is really only 33 weeks 1 day. That's really good in case he makes an early appearance. He currently weighs 5 lbs 5 oz. My doctor decided to give me another round of steroid shots today and tomorrow to help his lungs in the event of a premature birth. Fortunately any contractions I have had have not caused dilation.

Statue of Liberty

Last night Allison was performing for us, as usual, in a tutu and flower headband. Tyler saw the potential for a funny photo and added the "torch" and book.

32 1/2 Weeks

Today I've had a few more contractions than on most days. It might be because Thursday is the only day of the week that Allison is home all day without an activity to go to. I end up getting up more than I should. I am still on brethine every six hours to stop the contractions. My doctor tried progesterone injections as well, but I had a horrible allergic reaction at the injection site. Let's just say I couldn't sit without leaning to the left for over a week. Once she had a look at the reaction she said we weren't doing the shots anymore. As long as I'm not having more than four contractions in an hour I should be fine. I did read that premies born after 32 weeks have very few health problems. That was reassuring. 34 weeks is even better because then the chances of learning and behavioral delays is lessened. Of course, full term is 37 weeks which is ideal. Allison was born at 35 weeks and 5 days. I would love for Aidan to make it past that, so I am thinking positive thoughts.


I do have to say that Allison has been such a trooper through it all. We've been at this bedrest thing for over a month now, and she really has accepted that I cannot do as much for her as before. She's had a few moments of wanting Mommy to take care of this or that, but overall she's been great for Daddy or whichever grandparent is in charge. She's picking up her toys, putting her clothes in her laundry basket, bringing me the comb and band to do her hair, etc. I think she loves the idea of helping. Let's hope this continues when Aidan arrives!


Here's a picture from her ballet class. It is her favorite thing to do each week. They get to do ballet, tap, and a little tumbling. Too cute.

PGA - Here he comes!

Tyler had his best round of golf ever on Sunday. He scored an 82. He had one birdie, seven pars, nine bogies, and one double bogie. He played at Gleannloch Pines Golf Course. The picture below isn't from Sunday, but it's pretty.

Halloween!

For Halloween Allison was a butterfly. We went to my friend Christina's neighborhood to trick-or-treat since our neighbors are not very interested in the holiday. She had a great time dressing up, getting her make-up on, and visting houses with Daddy. We talked about it all week, and when she woke up the next morning she said, "Mommy, I go to Halloween again?"

Bed Rest for Aidan

Since my 28th week of pregnancy I have been on "modified bed rest" due to contractions. We have had so much help though. Papa Jerry came and helped for a week. He took Allison to mother's day out, ballet class, and even the zoo. She loved having him here and is ready for the next visit.Then Omie came up for the weekend and took Allison to a birthday party at Cypress Gymnastics Academy. She loved jumping on the trampolines and climbing. Omie said she was the most active one there. Shocker!

The following week Papa Fred came. Again, he spoiled her with a ton of attention and even sang her a fun song before ballet. Click on the play button below to watch the video.

I am now half way through my 32nd week. Tyler is working from home this week and next with a few hours in the office while Allison is in mother's day out. We're getting used to it, but it has definitely been an adjustment. I am such a busy body, and it is very hard for me to sit still and ask others to wait on me. It just really goes against my nature. Any time I'm feeling the itch to do something I pick up my pregnancy book and read the risks of pre-term labor for the baby. We want to keep Aidan cooking as long as possible! I see my doctor every Monday, and so far things are going well.

Aidan at 18 Weeks