Dear New Mom [with Newborn Photos by Alana Rasbach]

Dear New Mom,
Being a mom is the most important job in the world. But, I'm sure you know that. The weight of the world is on your shoulders and you're probably overwhelmed thinking about the years, even hours, ahead of you. You're tired, a new kind of tired that you've never experienced before.You just gave birth, one of the hardest things you will ever do in your life, and then this thing, this tiny person, needs you to feed it constantly. You probably haven't left the house, showered or changed out of your pajamas and that is okay. You may be longing for a "thank you" or a smile from this little one you selflessly give yourself to every minute of every day. Hold fast to the promise that those smiles are coming. These days are few and you have years ahead of sloppy kisses and crocodile tears.

Your baby adores you. You are doing a great job.

All photos in this post were taken by the amazing Alana Rasbach. If you are in the Nashville area and interested in birth or newborn photos you MUST contact her. She is so sweet and sooo talented.

JORD Wood Watches + My 1st Postpartum Outfit (that isn't yoga pants!)

shoes and waterfall cardigan: thrifted. T-shirt: Target. jeans: Gap flares. pashmina: gift. watch: JORD. earrings: H+M, bracelets and rings: gifts. 

Cool Watches

I didnt wear a watch for many years because I always had a cell phone on me. Can you relate? You dont see watches very often. But just when we all thought cell phones couldn't get any smaller or thinner, they started making them bigger. I've got a big ol' cell phone so it's never in my pocket. Therefore, watches are back! Watches can be beautiful accessories. I only have two watches: one silver (a cheapy from Target) and one gold (a nice present from my husband). I wear a watch every time I shoot or coordinate a wedding. It's a must. So, not only do my watches need to be functional for, you know, telling time, they need to be beautiful because I'm often wearing mine with a dress.

So, when I heard about Jord Wood Watches I was ecstatic! That's not just something I want, that's something I need! There are tons of style options from light wood, zebra wood and dark wood, rose gold, black or green faces, a little added bling, square watches....big watches... I could go on. The entire collection is beautiful. It was hard to choose but I decided that, with fall just around the corner and most of my wardrobe being black and neutral that the Ely in Dark Sandalwood was the watch for me! I cannot wait to pair it with jeans and sweaters.

Go check them out! Christmas is just around the corner.

A Baby named Ronan

We went through a ton of names. There were always two that were top contenders: Jonas and Ronan. Unfortunately they don't go together. Ronan Jonas Read. Jonas Ronan Read. They're kind of the same name, 5 letters with O-N-A in the middle.

We've liked 'Jonas' for years but for some reason it kept coming in second place to Ronan. I found the name Ronan on a baby name app. We wanted a name that would honor Dan's dad, Ronn but we couldn't name a baby Ronald! (Sorry to all you Ronald's out there.) Ronan is a Celtic/Irish name that means Oath. Liam's name is Irish, too. It started to grow on us over the months. We know it's an uncommon name and that he will very likely be mistaken for "Rowan" and "Roman" but if that's an issue, he can go by "Ro" or "Ezra". 

Now for a middle name. We wanted something biblical. We liked David, Amos, Micah, Levi, etc etc etc. Then one day, about a week before he arrived, I thought of Ezra. It means "helper". Dan's parents took a 2 week trip to South Africa so we thought we'd better tell Papa his grandson's name  before he left. Dan told him the middle name would be Amos, David or Ezra and Papa said, "Oh! I like Ezra!" so it was a front runner. Dan loved it, too. We still hadn't officially settled on a name when Ronan was born so while he was laying on my chest and Dan was texting everyone that "Ronan TBD Read" was born, we decided we'd better decide! Let's go with Ezra. Ronan Ezra. You have a name.

Birth Story

We had a baby! I thought he might never arrive. After my due date, I was ready. We were totally ready. The bags were packed. But Baby Brother stayed inside for another 8 days. Those 8 days are a blur. We tried to have fun; we worked out at the YMCA, walked around the neighborhood, went out for ice cream, stocked up on food. We waited. We rested.

On Friday, October 9th I started to feel some contractions. Finally! The weather was nasty but I wanted a brisk walk to see if that helped things move along so we went to Opry Mills mall. We walked and we made plans for our friend Cassie to stay the night with Liam. Around 8:30pm, my contractions got stronger and were 4 - 7 minutes apart. They didnt last more than 30 sec but, being first timers, we decided to check in at the hospital at 10:30pm. To my dismay, I was only 3cm dilated. I threw up a few times (so glad someone warned me about that) and they made me walk for an hour. We wandered lonely, quiet halls, breathing through the pain and hoping for some change. I was still only 3. Walked another hour, still only 3. So we were sent home. Exhausted and defeated, we got home at 2:30am and sent our babysitter home. Dan crashed in the guest bed and I labored alone in our bed, the shower and the bathtub until the sun came up. By the time Dan and Liam were awake, I couldn't talk or walk during contractions. THAT'S when I was ready.  Mr. Bobby came to get Liam (and showed him the time of his life!) and we headed back to Triage.

It was 9:00am on Saturday, October 10th. I was 5cm dilated and was sent straight to a delivery room. We diffused essential oils and put on music and thought we'd be meeting our son soon. I wasn't checked very often but my contractions were strong so I was sure things were progressing. I labored on the ball, in the tub and leaning against the wall. Dan pushed on my back through each one. Baby was still a little high, not resting my cervix yet. So we did everything we could to get him in position. The on call doctor checked me around 2pm and I was incredibly disappointed to find out that I was only 5cm after 17 hours of contractions. Tense, high strung and in "I can't do this anymore"stage so we were offered two options: an epidural to calm me down, relax, and let my body take over or to break my water. We had an hour to decide and we tried all kinds of natural methods to progress labor and nothing worked. Still at 5cm. So we made the very difficult decision to get an epidural. Got that at about 5pm and once it kicked in, my contractions got stronger! Then the doctor broke my water. Things were progressing and I was at 7cm very quickly. The rest is a bit of a blur. I sat in a few different positions to see if contractions would get closer together and baby would move (he was sideways, not totally wrong but we wanted him face down and lower.) Dan had said he didn't want to watch but as it turns out, he was very interested. So, we asked for the mirror so I could watch.

My sister's wedding was happening in Portland! Just about everyone we know on the west coast was there. We sent as many updates as we could but I was fully dilated right before she was walking down the aisle. I had no idea how long pushing would take. I finally got in push position at 9:30pm. 

As I started to push I heard beeping. My epidural had run out! I was too numb to feel the pushing and I hated it so I told them not to refill it. I had set out for a natural birth after all. I pushed until 10:30 and he started to crown. That's when about 5 nurses come in. Baby's heartrate dropped so I put on an oxygen mask. I had a cheering section and I got my second wind. It took another few pushes and he arrived, huge, slimy and purple. They gave him a quick wipe and he was on my chest. 

Our son.

 So overjoyed. So in love.

A Week Overdue

Tomorrow I'll be 41 weeks pregnant. I know that I could go into labor tonight. If you asked me how I feel right now (5:17pm CST on Thursday, October 8th, 2015) I would tell you that I feel tired, hopeful, expectant, and like I might never feel a contraction.

I knew I'd be overdue. I decided to prepare myself for it after witnessing countless friends get discouraged when their due dates passed them by. Just because I "planned" for it doesn't make it any easier. 

I've been pregnant since mid-January. Pretty much all year. I'm thinking about Christmas as a family of four and it is mind-boggling to think that I've been carrying this baby around since shortly after last Christmas. My body hurts. My pregnancy-induced carpal tunnel is worse than ever. We had an ultrasound on Monday (40 weeks, 3 days) and Baby Brother was fast asleep. He's in the right position and he may (or may not) be an estimated 9 lbs 5 ounces. That's a big, fat boy in there! I had my membranes swept but haven't had any contractions. We've tried all the induction methods and I'm convinced they're all a bunch of old wives tales. So, I've decided to wait patiently. But, it doesn't make it any easier.

These beautiful photos were taken today by Blair, who's taught me that there's no such thing as a late babies and that baby bumps are beautiful.

Little [possibly huge] boy, I cant wait to hold you!

#bebereadno2

Due Date

photo by Liam :)

We made it to our due date - and beyond! We had THE BEST DAY. Yesterday was our friends', Teddy and Caitlin's, long awaited nuptials. They've been engaged for a year and a half and they were some of our first friends to get the news about baby. Of course their first question was, "When are you due?!" and the answer, "Your wedding day!" was followed by laughter and promises that we wouldn't miss it for the world. Although I'd love to be holding our little boy right now, I'm so glad we were able to be there. Unfortunately, I cant say the same thing about my sister's wedding in Portland, OR next week. We were going to get tickets if brother arrived a week early but, alas, he has not. The real irony would be if he arrived on their wedding day; a clear, "No, you were not meant to be here" sign from above. Because I'm really bummed we can't make it.

Liam didn't join us at the wedding yesterday but was really impressed by our clothing. He told us over and over how "pretty" we looked! So, before we left him with his baby sitter, we promised that he could get dressed up and we'd take him out to dinner when we got back. Afterall, a due date seems like something to celebrate! 

After the beautiful ceremony, brunch, dancing and dessert, we headed home and dressed our boy up in his finest clothes. It was raining so we decided to drive [5 blocks!] and yet, somehow, we got front row Broadway parking on a Friday night. We got a window seat at Merchants and ordered the deviled eggs and burgers all around! Liam loves Broadway and was in the best mood. He charmed the servers and was on his best behavior. It truly was the best day.

So now, we wait. We're ready for baby brother at any moment. The bags are packed and all plans are pending. I've been walking and exercising and getting as much sleep as possible. I cannot believe how big the bump has gotten and I fear that the boy is getting bigger by the second. Our induction is scheduled for October 12, now just 9 days away. We're hoping for a natural birth so I'm having my membranes swept on Monday. From what I've heard, that should do the trick! 10/5/15 would be a pretty cool birthday. Just sayin....