Cooper is 7 weeks old!

It has been a long 7 weeks since Cooper was born! I would not classify him as an "easy baby," but we've certainly come a long way! We had some definite feeding challenges at first, but after 5 formula changes, we've settled on one that Cooper has taken to. He is now on a predictable feeding schedule and is only waking once or twice a night, so mommy is getting plenty of rest! Daddy is still afraid of the poopy diapers after a "never ending poo-poo" one fateful night! He had to be rescued from that diaper change because "it just kept coming!" Cooper is starting to smile, so that makes it very fun for us now to watch his personality come out. He loves staring at the fan and he loves to pump his right leg back and forth. He is always wiggling and we are certain that he thinks he has some place to go! I am thinking he'll be an early crawler!

Christmas

Cooper arrived exactly one week before Christmas, so we had a nice quiet dinner with both sides of the family. Dad and Gabe flew in Christmas eve and were very excited to meet Cooper! It was a little exhausting having a newborn and hosting Christmas dinner at the house, but it turned out to be a very nice day!

Cooper's Arrival

It's a boy!!

The big day

Cooper arrived Thursday, December 18, 2008 at 8:13 p.m.
I made an appointment to be induced on December 19th, but thankfully Cooper decided to come on his own! Grandma flew in from California Wednesday night, so we said that Cooper was waiting for her to get here to make his arrival!

I had a very smooth labor. I woke up Thursday morning having some contractions, but did not realize that is what I was feeling. After a few hours I could tell this was not just cramps! Jeff came home from work and we drove to the hospital about noon.

When I arrived at the hospital I was dilated to a 5! I immediately asked for my epidural and received it about an hour later. That drug is a God-send!

I labored all day and Cooper made his debut around 8:00pm. Mom and Jeff were my coaches while Michele and Grandma Billie were watching from the wings.







He came out looking absolutely perfect! No cone head or funny marks! My first thought is that he looked like his Uncle Ben, while others thought he looked like Uncle Gabe!