2 years!!

Happy Anniversary to my wonderful husband. I can't believe it has already been 2 years!  We received the most beautiful blessing this year and I am so thankful for my husband and my new little bundle of joy!  Can't wait to see what is in store for us in the next year!

First Anniversary Trip to Vegas

Love you Michael!

Happy Easter!

We had such a fun weekend with lots of activities!

On Friday, Michael and I went out on our first date since Patrick was born! My sweet husband made reservations for my birthday at Flemings which is where we first met and got engaged. It seemed fitting that we should toast to our new little addition there too! It was delicious and so much fun!

On Saturday night I officially became a Catholic. I was confirmed and had my first communion at the Easter Vigil. You have to pick a patron saint for your confirmation and I picked Saint Anne, who is the Patron Saint of mothers. It was a long ceremony, but very beautiful! Megan and Ryan babysat Patrick for us and that night he had his longest stretch of sleep! He slept from 1-5:30 which was so wonderful!

Below are a few pictures after the ceremony

Can you tell we are both sleep deprived?

Mulloy Family

Me and Dad

Today we had brunch at the Mulloy's for Easter since Patrick still can't go out in public yet. Brunch was so good and the weather was so nice that we were able to sit on the patio! The Youngs gave us a sweet little gown with a bunny on it which was perfect for Easter. Patrick looks so cute in it :)

Hanging outside after brunch

Great Grandma Mulloy and Patrick

Matthew made an easter egg especially for Patrick

The Easter basket Michael put together for Patrick. This was Michael's easter basket growing up and now it has been passed down to Patrick. I think he likes the football :)

Family Easter pic

Worn out after a long day!

Hope everyone had a wonderful Easter!

Patrick- 2 week update

Patrick had his 2 week doctor appointment today and he now weighs 7 pounds, 1 ounce and is 20 inches long. The doctor said that the best case scenario is for Patrick to gain a 1/2 an ounce to 1 ounce per day since his last appointment. Patrick has gained exactly 1 ounce a day since the last appointment! We refer to him as our little piglet, since he likes to eat so much :) He is 15-20% in weight, 25% in height and 15-20% in head circumference. So he is very proportional, but still on the small side. I have no doubt he will catch up soon!

As far as sleeping goes, Patrick is definitely a night owl and barely sleeps at night. The doctor thinks he is having some stomach issues and asked me to cut out all dairy and if that doesn't work to also cut out all caffeine too. Yikes!!! I feel sorry for Michael since that will definitely make me a nightmare to live with!

Patrick also has 2 bumps on his head from his birth. The bump on the left side of his head has been getting smaller, but the bump on the right has gotten bigger since his birth. The doctor looked at it today and had some concerns. He scheduled Patrick to have an ultrasound of his brain/head at Vanderbilt Children's Hospital on Wednesday. He said it is just a precaution since Patrick is a happy baby and is eating well. I'm trying not to stress over it since the doctor said its just a precaution, but its still scary to have your 3 week old have an ultrasound of his brain :(

Patrick is also starting to be more alert and awake for longer periods of time. He still has lots of hair and it seems to be getting lighter, which I love. He had his first bottle last night and gulped it down and wanted more. I'm not sure why I was concerned about him taking a bottle, maybe it is because I had heard some stories about children not taking bottles. I'm pretty sure my little guy is so hungry he will eat out of any bottle!

I just realized that I have barely taken any pictures of Patrick this week! I guess I have been so sleep deprived I have forgotten. Patrick had his first cookout outside this weekend since it was such beautiful weather and unfortunately I forgot to get a picture. Below are a couple of pictures of him sleeping, since that's really the only time I can actually get a picture of him. So peaceful...

It cracks me up how much he looks like Michael when he sleeps!

I also got out for the first time since having Patrick to go to Megan's bachelorette party!

We are saying prayers that everything looks good with Patrick's ultrasound!!!

Patrick's Newborn Pictures

Zach Goodyear took Patrick's newborn photos and they turned out really good! Patrick has blocked tear ducts which mean that his eyes constantly water. One of his eyes was swollen shut for half of the pictures but Zach did such a good job that you can't even tell! I posted a few cute ones below and the link to all of the pictures. http://zachgoodyear.blogspot.com/

This picture reminds me of Michael :)

Smiling for the camera

Soo Tiny!

First family picture

Patrick's First Dr. Appointment

We had our first doctor's appointment today and it went really well! I was anxious about Patrick's weight since he was born 15 days early and he was a little small. When we left the hospital he was down to 6 pounds, 1 ounce. The doctor told us he expected him to be in the upper 5 pounds at our first doctor's appointment. However, when we went today he was back up to 6 pounds, 4 ounces. The doctor was really pleased about his weight gain. After a few days of no sleep and worry over whether he was getting enough food, it was really nice to hear a compliment from the doctor about how well Patrick and I were doing with feeding! Everything else looked healthy with Patrick too. Yay!

Headed to my first dr. appointment

Worn out after my dr. appointment

Otherwise, everything has been going really well at home! I'm pretty exhausted, but I think that just comes with it :) Michael has been so much help and has provided so much support this week! He has been changing the majority of the diapers and soothes Patrick after feedings. Whenever Patrick is a little upset he loves to lie on Michael's stomach! He has just been such a great dad so far! I have had so much fun hanging out with our new family this week!

Loving my swing

Bailey has been so mothering and likes to check on Patrick when he gets fussy

Hanging out in my boppy

Patrick's First Day at Home

We were being released from the hospital on Monday and heard that there would be really bad storms in the afternoon. We were hoping that we could check out early, but Patrick had to have his little boy's surgery around lunch so we weren't able to leave until late afternoon. We were a little worried about the storms, but thought that we lived so close to the hospital that it wouldn't be a problem. As soon as we are about to be released an announcement comes over the loud speaker that the hospital is under a code grey lockdown. Patrick had all of his security and identification tags cut off of him in preparation to go home. This is important because they do not allow you to see a child that you do not have the same number and name on your wristband as the baby. The baby nurse for the day, who we were not fond of anyway, is terrified of tornadoes and freaks out. She starts running with Patrick's cart and rams his cart into the side of the wall and then keeps running to the nursery on the other wing of the hospital. Michael and I realize that he doesn't have any identification on him and Michael starts running after them. We end up sitting in the nursery with every other new parent with no air conditioning for about 30 minutes. It was not pleasant!

Picture with Dad before being strapped into the carrier to go home

Ready to go home

Turk and Bailey checking out Patrick

We were finally able to check out and take Patrick home and we were so excited! However, when we drive up our driveway we notice that our mailbox is completely torn down from the storm, there are branches and debris everywhere and we have no power. Neither Michael parent's nor my parent's have power either. Being new parents, Michael and I are pretty concerned about caring for a newborn in the dark! We decide we are going to try and wait a few hours in the dark and if the power isn't back on we will go to a hotel. Our prayers were answered and within a few hours the power was back on! We were so lucky because we had heard that West Meade, Hillwood, Bellevue and Belle Meade were all without power. Since my parents and Michael's parents still did not have power they all came over for pizza and to dote on Patrick. It will be a great memory of both of our families being here the night we brought Patrick home! Michael's mom and sister ended up staying with us that night (which was a big help!) because they didn't get power back for 48 hours. My parents power was out through the night as well. I guess someone up there was watching out for us!

Baby Shower!

We had a baby shower scheduled for April 3rd. Since Patrick and I were still in the hospital, Michael went on our behalf. I was so sad to miss it. Michael's aunt Diane and my aunt Mary hosted. It looked beautiful from all of the pictures!

Michael opening a few gifts:

Can you tell how excited he is? haha

Michael and Megan

Afterwards a few family and friends came by to see Patrick. Thanks Diane and Mary for hosting a baby shower for Patrick!

Patrick Gallagher Mulloy

We welcomed Patrick Gallagher Mulloy into the world on Saturday April 2, 2011 at 4:13 p.m, 15 days earlier than his due date. He weighed 6 pounds, 6 ounces, was 18 inches long, and is perfectly healthy (two 9's on the Apgar test)! Michael and I could not feel more blessed! We are just so in love with him already!

First picture with dad

and mom

First family picture

I wanted to post a few things about his birth so we would remember. I started getting severe back pain on Thursday night that lasted all day Friday. I called the emergency room at 4 am on Saturday morning to ask them about my symptoms and they told me it was normal towards the end to be feeling a lot of pain and that labor could still be a couple weeks away. So, I went back to bed and woke up around 7:30am in even more pain. I tried to just lay there for 30 minutes and see if it would fade a little before getting up. After trying every position and not getting any more comfortable I went upstairs and told Michael that it was time to go to the hospital. Michael had just called my dad to go for a walk so my dad came over and we asked him if he would take the dogs while we headed to the hospital. I took my time getting ready, ate a bowl of cereal and watched a few minutes of t.v. while Michael kind of stared at me impatiently wondering what I was doing. I had always imagined myself freaking out, but I was surprisingly calm. My contractions were pretty close together when we got to the hospital. As we were checking in the nurse gave us a little speech about it being our first child so we probably came too early (15 days before my due date) and they would monitor me for an hour and send me home. My blood pressure was the highest it has ever been and after the nurse noticed that my contractions were only 3 minutes apart she immediately sent me to labor and delivery. By this point, I was in so much pain that my body was going into shock and causing me to violently shake and throw up. They sent for the epidural immediately and I couldn't have been more relieved. The epidural was probably the best decision I have ever made in my life. Michael and I were able to watch a funny movie (Grown Ups) until it was time for the actual delivery and there was no pain at all. I pushed for about 15 minutes. Patrick scared us a little when he decided to make a turn, but everything turned out perfectly! My labor was so fast and so easy and I was so thankful for that! Michael thinks it was God's way of making up for such a tough pregnancy :)

A few visitors on my first day

We are still in shock that this beautiful little boy is ours and couldn't be more thankful for him. We love you so much Patrick and we look forward to sharing our life with you!