Thursday, February 28, 2008
Fun with Grandmas
Noah has enjoyed being spoiled by his grandmas for the past several days. JenMommy (Eric's mom) came and stayed a week and Gigi (Tyra's mom) flew in to Knoxville from Florida last night and will stay until next Wednesday. It's been so nice to have them at our house to help with the middle of the night diaper changings, cooking meals, cleaning, you name it! Tyra says it's like having a "personal assistant." It's been really great to know that Tyra's had help around the house with Noah since I started back at work, and I'm sure Noah doesn't mind the frequent rocking and singing from his JenMommy and Gigi!
Monday, February 25, 2008
A Great Weekend
The basketball VOLS beat Memphis on Saturday to become the #1 team in the nation. Noah slept through the entire game, which was a big accomplsihment with all the yelling I was doing. Here are a few pictures we took this weekend:
Playing with Gabi
Getting Sleepy!
Dreaming of Football
Friday, February 22, 2008
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Two-Week Doctor Visit
Noah went in for his two-week old pediatrician visit this morning. They say by two weeks, babies should be back to their birth weight. Noah weighed 9 lbs, 9 oz at birth and 9 lbs, 1 oz when we left the hospital, so we were curious as to what the scales would read today. He's been eating great and pooping and peeing a lot, so we had a pretty good idea that he was getting enough milk. Turns out, we were right, as he weighed in at 10 lbs, 6 oz today. Everything checked out great, which is a great praise and answer to prayers. I'm back at work now, so Tyra and JenMommy (my mom) accompanied Noah on the visit to Dr. Shults' office. After the visit, Noah celebrated his accomplishments with a delicious meal of breastmilk. Yay Noah!
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Noah and his Hiccups
Hope you enjoy this video of Noah trying to get rid of his hiccups. (Video shot on 2/17/08)
Friday, February 15, 2008
Thursday, February 14, 2008
One week old
Today (Valentine's Day) is Noah's 1 week old birthday. He's had a great week and Tyra, Gabi, and I have loved bonding with him this week. It's been such a blessing being able to be at home all week, and I don't go back to work until Feb. 20. We learn more about him each day and he's sleeping and eating (and peeing and pooping) very good! We've had some ymmuy meals brought to us by friends and neighbors, and tonight we're going to get take-out from Macaroni Grill (thanks for the gift cards Mom!) for our Valentine's Day dinner at home.
Noah is becoming more alert each day and it is so neat when he looks at us (sometimes with a gassy grin on his face). He loves for us to sing to him and I think I've written about 57 new songs with made up words about him. It seems to calm him down when he gets fussy. Here are some pictures from this week:
Cousin Malachi and Gabi
Noah is becoming more alert each day and it is so neat when he looks at us (sometimes with a gassy grin on his face). He loves for us to sing to him and I think I've written about 57 new songs with made up words about him. It seems to calm him down when he gets fussy. Here are some pictures from this week:
Noah watching the Vols beat Arkansas (Feb. 13)
Noah with Connor, Shawn, Melissa, and Houston McKay
Noah napping with Uncle Charles
Napping with Aunt Amy
Cousin Malachi and Gabi
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Noah's First Day at Home
We came home on Saturday (Feb. 9), and so far it's been great. There's no way to prepare for how much attention that a newborn requires, but I think we're doing pretty good so far. We're getting decent amounts of sleep, but not much, which is to be expected. Noah is eating great and I've (Eric) already changed 3 dirty (poop, not pee!) diapers all by myself...which are the 1st 3 that I've ever changed in my life. Gabi (our dog) was so funny when we brought Noah home. She sniffed him and was so curious about every sound he made. She really enjoys lying with Tyra as she nurses Noah. I think she thinks she's being a good helper!
Also, thanks to EVERYONE who has called, emailed, and posted comments on the blog. I promise we will respond personally soon! We are so blessed to have the best friends and family. Please continue to keep us in your prayers.
Anyway, enjoy the pictures:
Ready to go home:
In my carseat!
Meeting my big sister Gabi:
My first nap in my bouncer seat! I loved it!
Also, thanks to EVERYONE who has called, emailed, and posted comments on the blog. I promise we will respond personally soon! We are so blessed to have the best friends and family. Please continue to keep us in your prayers.
Anyway, enjoy the pictures:
Ready to go home:
In my carseat!
Meeting my big sister Gabi:
My first nap in my bouncer seat! I loved it!
Birth Story
I'm finally getting a chance to post again. These past few days have been incredible, and it's amazing how much you learn! Here are a few details about Noah's birth:
- We got to the hospital at 6:00 a.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 6 for Tyra to be induced. At that point she was 40 weeks and 5 days along.
- After about 10-11 hours on the pitocin drip, Tyra still hadn't dilated, so her doctor's recommendation was to turn off the drip for the night, which allowed her to be able to eat and get a full night's sleep.
- They started the drip again at 5 am on Thursday morning, and by 7 am, she had dilated 1 cm. and the doctor broke her water. From there, things really started to pick up!
- Every few hours, they checked her...4 cm dilated, then 8 cm, then by 2:00 p.m. or so, she was 10 cm dilated and ready to start pushing. The time was finally here.
- Our delivery nurse was great and Tyra did an incredible job. For 1 hour, she pushed through each contraction, and by 3:11 p.m., our son made his first cry!
Several nurses throughout our stay commented that on Wednesday, no one thought that she'd be able to give birth without a c-section, just because she hadn't progressed much at all after a full day's worth of pitocin. When Noah was born, he scored an 8 and 9 on his APGAR and came out healthy (and almost as big!) as a horse. The doctor commented once before he was born, "Noah's got a big head," but both Tyra and I and the doctor and nurses were amazed when it was announced that Noah came out weighing 9 lbs, 9 ozs! Tyra's official weight gain overall was 32 lbs, so we were all surprised that Noah was such a big boy.
He is so strong and loves to move his legs and arms. In the hospital, he was such a great baby, only uttering soft coos and wimpers, but only really crying when he was beign changed or getting cold.
Anyway, that's the Cliff's Notes version of Noah's arrival. So much has happened since then, that I feel like it happened a long time ago.
- We got to the hospital at 6:00 a.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 6 for Tyra to be induced. At that point she was 40 weeks and 5 days along.
- After about 10-11 hours on the pitocin drip, Tyra still hadn't dilated, so her doctor's recommendation was to turn off the drip for the night, which allowed her to be able to eat and get a full night's sleep.
- They started the drip again at 5 am on Thursday morning, and by 7 am, she had dilated 1 cm. and the doctor broke her water. From there, things really started to pick up!
- Every few hours, they checked her...4 cm dilated, then 8 cm, then by 2:00 p.m. or so, she was 10 cm dilated and ready to start pushing. The time was finally here.
- Our delivery nurse was great and Tyra did an incredible job. For 1 hour, she pushed through each contraction, and by 3:11 p.m., our son made his first cry!
Several nurses throughout our stay commented that on Wednesday, no one thought that she'd be able to give birth without a c-section, just because she hadn't progressed much at all after a full day's worth of pitocin. When Noah was born, he scored an 8 and 9 on his APGAR and came out healthy (and almost as big!) as a horse. The doctor commented once before he was born, "Noah's got a big head," but both Tyra and I and the doctor and nurses were amazed when it was announced that Noah came out weighing 9 lbs, 9 ozs! Tyra's official weight gain overall was 32 lbs, so we were all surprised that Noah was such a big boy.
He is so strong and loves to move his legs and arms. In the hospital, he was such a great baby, only uttering soft coos and wimpers, but only really crying when he was beign changed or getting cold.
Anyway, that's the Cliff's Notes version of Noah's arrival. So much has happened since then, that I feel like it happened a long time ago.
Thursday, February 7, 2008
Our son is here!
It is with joyful hearts that we welcome Noah Allan Haag into this world. Many more details on the past few days will follow (hopefully tomorrow). Noah was born at Baptist West Hospital in Knoxville at 3:11 p.m. today (Feb.7), weighing 9 lbs., 9 ozs. and measuring 21 3/4 inches long. He is doing outstanding, and he looks just like his Mommy! Tyra was amazing and there are no words that can describe her strength, effort, and perserverance of getting through these past two days. As I type this, my beuatiful wife and handsome son are sleeping peacefully in our hospital room, and all praise and glory is to GOD for this amazing blessing. I hope to post more pictures soon, but here are a few for now. THANK YOU to everyone who have continued to lift us up in thought and prayer over these past 41 weeks. We have the most wonderful family and friends, and we can't wait until Noah gets to meet you ALL!
Thursday, January 31, 2008
The "day" is only 7 hours away!
As I type this, I can't believe that Noah's due date is a mere 7 hours away. I can't believe that after 40 weeks of wondering when this day would get here, well...here it is!
Tyra heads back to the doctor in the morning for her weekly check-up, but we both think that Noah will be content to arrive sometime AFTER tomorrow. In the meantime, I'm trying not to get too anxious, which is tough since they've been saying "any day now" for weeks. I'm now thinking that Noah will show Daddy who's boss by arriving during one of the following events:
Feb. 2 during the Tennessee vs. Mississippi State basketball game
Feb. 3 during the Super Bowl
Feb. 5 during the Tennessee vs. Florida basketball game
Tyra heads back to the doctor in the morning for her weekly check-up, but we both think that Noah will be content to arrive sometime AFTER tomorrow. In the meantime, I'm trying not to get too anxious, which is tough since they've been saying "any day now" for weeks. I'm now thinking that Noah will show Daddy who's boss by arriving during one of the following events:
Feb. 2 during the Tennessee vs. Mississippi State basketball game
Feb. 3 during the Super Bowl
Feb. 5 during the Tennessee vs. Florida basketball game
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Thursday, January 24, 2008
New Curtains Rock!
We bought new curtains for our bedroom last weekend. Before, we just had some white valance type swag curtain that came with the house, along with the wooden blinds. Needless to say it didn't keep much light out, and I thought it would help Tyra to take daytime cat-naps during maternity leave if our room was darker. So, we went the "beyond" section of Bed, Bath, and Beyond and bought some nice brown curtains with the black-out liner. MUY BIEN!!! I'm still puzzled as to why it took us so long to make the leap of updating our curtains, because now, it's pitch black in our room, or close-enough anyway.
Speaking of Bed, Bath, and Beyond, does anyone wonder why they (and their fierce rival Linen's and Things) keep printing out all these 20% off coupons and sending them out in newspapers and mass mailings EVERY OTHER DAY? You'd think they'd just save the printing/advertising costs and just let everyone have 20% off one item of their purchase. Everytime we go into one of those stores, we're carrying a portfolio of 35-40 coupons that vary in size between a post-it note and a dinner menu "just in case" we see something we like/want/need/don't need/will never use. Inevitably, 99% of the time, we buy nothing, and the stack of coupons goes back in the coupon drawer when we get home...and that stack doubles in number (at least) by the next time we trek to the store. So, my point is, do we, the consumer, really need to hold on and treasure these 20% off coupons? Can't they just do us all a favor and just give us the dang discount at the register, sans coupon!?
I'm not even going to get into the internal dilemma we go through in the check-out line on whether or not it's more beneficial to use the "20% Off" coupon or the "Take $5 off one purchase" coupon.
And now for your PinPoint Weather Report:
It snowed today in Knoxville...nice, big flakes...and even started sticking to the ground, but it's cleared up now and back to being just bloody COLD!
Oh, and one more thing:
The Pack 'N Play and I made up. No hard feelings. It's now set-up downstairs and ready to be packed and/or played (napped) in. This time, it only took me about 5 minutes to set up.
Speaking of Bed, Bath, and Beyond, does anyone wonder why they (and their fierce rival Linen's and Things) keep printing out all these 20% off coupons and sending them out in newspapers and mass mailings EVERY OTHER DAY? You'd think they'd just save the printing/advertising costs and just let everyone have 20% off one item of their purchase. Everytime we go into one of those stores, we're carrying a portfolio of 35-40 coupons that vary in size between a post-it note and a dinner menu "just in case" we see something we like/want/need/don't need/will never use. Inevitably, 99% of the time, we buy nothing, and the stack of coupons goes back in the coupon drawer when we get home...and that stack doubles in number (at least) by the next time we trek to the store. So, my point is, do we, the consumer, really need to hold on and treasure these 20% off coupons? Can't they just do us all a favor and just give us the dang discount at the register, sans coupon!?
I'm not even going to get into the internal dilemma we go through in the check-out line on whether or not it's more beneficial to use the "20% Off" coupon or the "Take $5 off one purchase" coupon.
And now for your PinPoint Weather Report:
It snowed today in Knoxville...nice, big flakes...and even started sticking to the ground, but it's cleared up now and back to being just bloody COLD!
Oh, and one more thing:
The Pack 'N Play and I made up. No hard feelings. It's now set-up downstairs and ready to be packed and/or played (napped) in. This time, it only took me about 5 minutes to set up.
Amazing Love
I came across this bible verse this afternoon, and was reminded again, of how deep the Father's love is for us. And how amazing it is that even before Noah has taken his first breath on this earth, his Heavenly Father has already carved our son's lifelong path. I wonder with awe: who he will become and what he we be? But no matter what, there will never be a time when God has not already gone ahead and made the path clear for Noah, and all of us. Praise God, from whom all blessings flow!
"I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be." - Psalm 139: 14,16
"I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be." - Psalm 139: 14,16
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
And down the stretch we come...
We've been packed and ready to go anytime now, but as of today, we're only 9 days away from Noah's due date. Who knows when he'll arrive, but we're ready to go. Thank goodness Tyra didn't go into labor yesterday morning! The roads in Knoxville were extremely icy!
We'll keep the blog updated, so stay tuned.
On a side note, after a several of our friends have had baby girls in the past year, it now looks as if the fellas are making a comeback, as we now have 4 couple friends who are expecting baby boys in the coming months. Congrats to the Leas, Munozs, McGowans, and Joneses.
We'll keep the blog updated, so stay tuned.
On a side note, after a several of our friends have had baby girls in the past year, it now looks as if the fellas are making a comeback, as we now have 4 couple friends who are expecting baby boys in the coming months. Congrats to the Leas, Munozs, McGowans, and Joneses.
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Top 5 Things Noah's excited about
With his eviction from Tyra's belly coming within a matter of 20 or so days, Noah wanted me to let everyone know what he's most excited about doing when he gets here...
#5)Watching my first Super Bowl on February 3
#4)Peeing on Mom and Dad during diaper changes...that'll show 'em!
#3)The exciting new season of LOST
#2)Tennessee Basketball and the Vols' run to the Final Four
#1)In my best Homer Simpson voice: Mmmmm.....breastfeeding!
#5)Watching my first Super Bowl on February 3
#4)Peeing on Mom and Dad during diaper changes...that'll show 'em!
#3)The exciting new season of LOST
#2)Tennessee Basketball and the Vols' run to the Final Four
#1)In my best Homer Simpson voice: Mmmmm.....breastfeeding!
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
A Happy New Year
After a fun, relaxing, and productive Christmas and New Year, we find ourselves in 2008 and awaiting Noah's arrival. We had a great time with family in Hendersonville for 5 nights during Christmas. Tyra started to experience several Braxton-Hicks contractions while we were away, and it was neat to hear her explain what it felt like. These "practice" contractions make it all the more REAL that the big day is coming so soon!
We came back to Knoxville on Dec. 27 and have been getting a lot done. We have visited two pediatrician's offices who have been (very) highly reccomended. We loved them both, and they're both very close to our house, which is good. On Dec. 28, Tyra had her 35 week doctor appointment/ultrasound. Noah and Tyra are doing great. He is head-down, which is great, and we loved being able to see him again on the monitor. The ultrasound tech. estimated that right now (or on Dec. 28), he weighs 6.3 lbs, give or take a pound. So, he's going to be nice and chubby! And, in the ultrasound, he had a hairful or hair that you could clearly see floating around. I'm so proud of Tyra and how great she's done in this pregnancy. She's never (OK...very RARELY) complained or been cranky and has really enjoyed the whole thing.
Last night, we finished hanging some picture frames in Noah's room and have begun getting some essentials ready to take to the hospital. Hopefully we'll have our bag packed soon.
Happy New Year to everyone!
Monday, December 10, 2007
Laundry Day and Pack 'n Play(??)
Laundry News
This weekend, we got around to doing Noah's laundry. Of course, all of these baby clothes, linens, booties, hats, etc...have to be washed in the fragrance/dye free detergent. It's nice to have all of his things put away in his drawers now. We even have his bed semi-made. For the past week or so, we've had his clothes, etc...separeated into whites/colors piles on his bedroom floor. Gabi especially enjoyed rummaging through them and smelling the outfits. We hung his letters ("NOAH") above the changing table and hope to start putting more things on the walls soon.
Pack 'N Play??
Many of Noah's play toys have been very easy to assemble. We had no problems putting together his crib, swing, or stroller. So the pack 'n play would be a cinch right?? After about 45 minutes of finagling and several moments of anger in which I (Eric) was ready to beat the whole pack n' play to a pulp, we finally got it assembled. Once we got it all together we thought, "OK, that wasn't all that bad," even though there's no way one person could quickly "pack" or "unpack" the thing and have it set-up for their child to "play" in it.
Which begs the question...how much playing can a child actually do in this thing? It's about 3feet x 2feet of plasticy feeling fabric surrounded by prison-like mesh walls. The only thing resembling fun is the (non-moving) mobile which features 3 small teddy bears that hang there with funny looking grins on their faces. Sounds fun to me! It's also too big (I guess they're all the same size) to move it from room to room because it won't fit through the door frame. But I digress...!
After we got it all set-up, we had the pleasure of taking it apart (very easy) and cramming it back in the storage bag (not so easy!). After much pushing and pulling and cramming and bending, we finally got it stuffed back in the bag, which now sits in Noah's closet looking like it's got 52 squirrels trying to poke their way out of the sides.
I'm sure we'll use it a lot downstairs for Noah's naps during the day and taking it to Grandma's and on trips, but this thing seems way too hard to pack and/or play with any regularity.
This weekend, we got around to doing Noah's laundry. Of course, all of these baby clothes, linens, booties, hats, etc...have to be washed in the fragrance/dye free detergent. It's nice to have all of his things put away in his drawers now. We even have his bed semi-made. For the past week or so, we've had his clothes, etc...separeated into whites/colors piles on his bedroom floor. Gabi especially enjoyed rummaging through them and smelling the outfits. We hung his letters ("NOAH") above the changing table and hope to start putting more things on the walls soon.
Pack 'N Play??
Many of Noah's play toys have been very easy to assemble. We had no problems putting together his crib, swing, or stroller. So the pack 'n play would be a cinch right?? After about 45 minutes of finagling and several moments of anger in which I (Eric) was ready to beat the whole pack n' play to a pulp, we finally got it assembled. Once we got it all together we thought, "OK, that wasn't all that bad," even though there's no way one person could quickly "pack" or "unpack" the thing and have it set-up for their child to "play" in it.
Which begs the question...how much playing can a child actually do in this thing? It's about 3feet x 2feet of plasticy feeling fabric surrounded by prison-like mesh walls. The only thing resembling fun is the (non-moving) mobile which features 3 small teddy bears that hang there with funny looking grins on their faces. Sounds fun to me! It's also too big (I guess they're all the same size) to move it from room to room because it won't fit through the door frame. But I digress...!
After we got it all set-up, we had the pleasure of taking it apart (very easy) and cramming it back in the storage bag (not so easy!). After much pushing and pulling and cramming and bending, we finally got it stuffed back in the bag, which now sits in Noah's closet looking like it's got 52 squirrels trying to poke their way out of the sides.
I'm sure we'll use it a lot downstairs for Noah's naps during the day and taking it to Grandma's and on trips, but this thing seems way too hard to pack and/or play with any regularity.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
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