Memorial Day

Aidan had a fun Memorial Day weekend with lots of visitors! "Grampa" Mike and "Nanna" Diane came to town along with Aunt Kathleen and Uncle Jacob. Jacob was a little nervous about the whole baby scene so he steered clear, but everyone else (especially Nanna!) enjoyed cuddling with Aidan. Then Cookie and Great-Grandmother were in town on their way to North Carolina and the whole family ate dinner here last night. We can definitely tell that Aidan is getting bigger and bigger each day! He has already outgrown his newborn onesies and newborn-size diapers. He is starting to coo a little every now and then and we're still waiting for that smile...unfortunately the cute gassy smiles don't count!

One whole month!

Aidan is one month old!! It's hard to believe how much he has grown in the last few weeks. We are having so much fun with him...I think his first smile is just around the corner (we catch hints of it now and then). He still dislikes bathtime, but loves going on walks around the block with us in the evenings. We went to dinner tonight with our friends Tom and Mirna who had their daughter Ella just three weeks before Aidan was born. Ella had eyes for Aidan, but Aidan slept through everything! Hope everyone has a nice Memorial Day weekend :)

Our buddies

Here are a couple of Aidan's friends! The first picture is of Bryce McGrew, who is exactly two months older than Aidan. Bryce's parents Jodi and Ryan are friends of ours from Sunday School. The second picture is of Charlie Kelley, who is about eight months older than Aidan. His mom Renee was a co-worker of mine at UTD. That pic and the one of our family were taken at my co-worker Kellyn's wedding. Aidan didn't get to go to the ceremony, but he drove around with Daddy and then we all three went to the reception. Fun times!

Mother's Day

Things are great here at the Steward household. I had a fantastic Mother's Day...we took Aidan to church for the first time and he was a huge hit! Daniel's mom ("Cookie" to Aidan) was in town so we had a nice family lunch out that day. I attached a funny picture of Uncle Cody holding Aidan like the Heisman trophy. Then we had our first playdate today because my friend Courtney and her twins Blake and Cody came over. Aidan pretty much slept through the whole thing, but the other two boys seemed to have a good time at the park in our neighborhood. We are still trying to work out eating and sleeping schedules and I think he is about to hit his 3-week growth spurt. But it's fun to watch him grow more and more each day!

Two weeks old!

Hi everyone! I just wanted to post an update and let you all know that Aidan had his 2-week appointment today and is doing fantastic! He isn't the heartiest eater which worried me at first, but he weighed in today at just over 8 lbs. so the doctor said his feeding schedule seems to suit him just fine. Right now he is waking up during the night around 2 or 3, and then about 6 or 7. So he is nice enough to let us get little 4-hour blocks of sleep :) He has enjoyed spending time with Grammy in the morning while we sleep for another couple of hours, but since she is going home on Saturday we will need to readjust! But we are happy to do so because he is just the most pleasant and content baby ever. He got to meet his Uncle Jason this week as well as his great-grandparents (Gamma and "Great" Pa), Great Aunt Marsha, and Aunt Jenna. He is definitely the Main Attraction around here!

Life with Baby

Aidan will be a week old tomorrow! He is getting to be such a big boy. He looks like he is already trying to roll over on his own. He had his first bath Monday night and was NOT happy about it at all, but the one we gave him today was a little better. He is eating great, although Mommy is still getting used to breastfeeding. His pediatrician says his weight gain is good, and he seems to be filling his diapers with no problem! He loves snuggling on Daddy's chest, and also taking a snooze in his swing. Grammy (my mom) is on fire...she is cooking, running errands, doing laundry, and even takes Aidan for a while during the night to help Daniel and I get some sleep. We're all getting used to adjusting to Mr. Aidan's schedule, but we just love our sweet little boy!

Meet Aidan Steward!!!!

Our little boy is here!!!! James Aidan arrived on Thursday at 5:08 p.m., weighed 7 lbs. 11 oz., and was 20 1/2 inches long. He was a little stubborn, so I ended up having a C-section. He is so beautiful and we could not be prouder parents. We arrived home today and he's doing great. My parents are here with us...my dad will fly back to Florida tomorrow and my mom will stay for about a week. It is really nice to have them here to help out. Aidan has already met all five grandparents, five aunts and uncles, a great-grandmother, and several friends. Everyone is absolutely crazy about him! Here are a few pictures for you all to enjoy :)

Countdown...

I thought I'd post a quick update. I have been dilating by a centimeter each week and I'm now at a 4. I went to the doctor on Wednesday and she decided to strip my membranes (which was supposed to bring on labor within 48 hours) and...nothing's happened yet. I guess sometimes it works, but sometimes not. Aidan seems perfectly content in there for the time being! My mom even flew in from Florida yesterday morning thinking The Big Day was coming, but it looks like she'll be hanging out for a little while. She's been a great help to us and we're really glad she's here. She's been walking with me twice a day...I'm trying everything I can to get things moving! My next appointment is scheduled for Wednesday but I'm going to call on Monday to see if I can move it up. Since I've been continuing to dilate, she may want to induce me. Daniel and I are totally ready, totally packed...now it's all up to Aidan! We'll keep everyone posted. Here's the most recent (and hopefully the last) belly shot at 38 weeks!

One last shower

Our blog is working again, thanks to Aidan's wondeful, awesome, terrific Aunt Jenna!!! Anyway, things are going well and now we are just playing the waiting game. I went to the doctor last Friday and the sonogram showed Aidan was head-down just like we hoped he would be. He's also dropped and the doctor predicted he'd be here within 2 weeks (I was 80% effaced and 2-3 cm. dilated)! I'm trying to relax and get a bunch of things done before then. I had a shower this weekend thrown by my friends Leslie, Courtney, and Sarah and it was so much fun. Leslie has a one-year-old son, Courtney has twin 2 1/2-year-old sons, and Sarah is expecting twin boys this summer. So they definitely know how to throw a shower for someone who's expecting a boy! My family was in town so I had lots of help with finishing up the nursery and buying some last-minute baby stuff. I re-posted the updated nursery pics on a previous post below so you can scroll down to see how it looks now. It's hard to believe the amount of planning and preparing that goes into getting ready for a tiny baby. We are taking it one day at a time and enjoying every minute of it :)

Couples Shower

We had our second shower this weekend...it was a couples shower so Daniel and his friends got to join in on the fun! My best friend, mother-in-law, and two sisters-in-law were the hostesses and they came up with a cute cowboy theme. Aidan got more great stuff, including a red wagon and lots and lots of outfits! We had so much fun hanging out with our friends and family. In other pregnancy news, my ankles swelled up to Elephant Man size last week which was sort of funny...luckily they're not as bad anymore. Mr. Aidan, who's been doing cartwheels for months now, was in breech position at my doctor's visit last week. We are having a sonogram this Friday to see if he's moved or not. The doctor said there was still a chance he could move head-down before then, but who knows...he may decide to do things his own way :)

Work Shower

I had my first baby shower this weekend! My co-workers threw me one and it was so much fun. Aidan really raked in some SUPER-cute stuff!! We ate some delicious food and played some games, including one where everyone had to guess how much ribbon went around my huge stomach. My last day at work is April 4th and I am going to miss everyone so much :(

Aidan's room!

Here's what we've done on the nursery! Daniel's mom was in town earlier this week and she helped paint. The red plane on the dresser is a gift from my dad and we plan to hang it above the glider. We have an airplane lamp on the way, and there are still some things we want to put on the wall (my mom - Aidan's "Grammy" - is working on making some hanging letters to go above the crib) but we're very happy with how it looks so far. All we need now is our sweet baby boy!

UPDATE - here are the new pictures, with the wall hangings and all the decor!

Weekend with the Brookses

We just got back from spending the weekend in Austin with Marcus, Jenna, Katy, and Hannah. We had such fun and Katy is so excited about meeting her cousin Aidan (or "Gumbo" as she sometimes calls him, to reasons unknown to the rest of us). I've attached a cute picture of the girls and Daniel playing with the princess building block set we brought them as well as the latest belly pic! I'm off to do some laundry and watch the Oscars :)

Mac

Here's a cute picture of Aidan's "big brother" Mac. I know it's not very exciting since this is Aidan's page, but some of you have been bugging me to update the blog, but I don't have any new baby-related photos yet. The good news is that we now have most of our baby furniture (dresser/changing table combo, glider). Daniel will put it together on Thursday so I promise to take a picture of everything then, and maybe a picture of my growing belly. I haven't started painting or decorating the nursery. Any ideas or suggestions are welcome!! Aidan is moving like CRAZY and sleeping is getting a little harder. My legs are starting to hurt a little, and the right leg hurts in a completely different way than the left leg. Daniel and I start our childbirth classes tomorrow night, which we're excited about. Hope everyone is doing well!

Hungry Hungry Hippo

Here's the latest belly pic at 28 weeks! It feels like Aidan is breakdancing in there...he's rarely still for a long period of time. I'm experiencing some third trimester symptoms such as acid reflux and trouble sitting up right (the baby makes it hard to breathe) but nothing too annoying. I'm also eating like Mrs. Pac-Man. My favorites (and Aidan's) right now are pasta salad from La Madeleine and anything chocolate! Hope everyone has a Happy Valentine's Day :)

Our first post!

Hello friends and family! I thought I'd create a blog so that we could have one central place for all things Aidan (yes, we have decided on a name!). He hasn't made his grand appearance yet, but he's due on May 6th - I'm 27 weeks along - and we are so excited to meet him. I'll try to update this page as much as I can with pictures and pregnancy news. Here is my latest belly picture taken 3 weeks ago (I am A LOT bigger now..stay tuned for the next picture in a week), and our favorite sonogram picture of Aidan which was taken in early December. Isn't he cute??

Love,
Lauren & Daniel