Something I like.....

Casey thinks this is his toy.

Susie watching out for her baby.

George enjoying playtime.

It's really neat to see George start to notice things. I'm not really sure what all he can really see, but he has really taken an interest in his little play gym (I think that's what it's called.) I think he likes the bright colors. Everyday we take a little time and play in the play gym. He just stares and kicks his little legs. It definitely has his attention. I tried tummy time for the first time this week. George is not a fan, but he does work on pulling his head up which is the point I guess.

I have to say that when we got this little toy, I was a little nervous because I was sure my crazy hyper dogs would never let him lie on the floor and play in peace. I have been, however, super impressed with our dogs. It's like they know that we have to be careful with him. Susie watches him like a hawk, and if he cries, she immediately wants to lick him. Casey keeps his distance. If George is crying (which is alot these days), they both lie on the floor with this defeated look on their face like they don't know what to do. I tell them that often Mommy feels the same way. Needless to say, they have surprised me, and I am very proud of the way they act around George.

Here we grow!!

Sweet little guy!
the fam

George and Kate

a close up

Bailey's aunts Mary Ellen and Caroline with George, Bailey, and me

Susie is sulking here because the attention is all on the baby.

I took this picture because I just love mini khaki pants!! :)

After much screaming...we have a clean baby.

poor guy

At this point, we don't really love the bath so much (as you can see).

Today we took George for his two week checkup, and Bailey and I were shocked at how much he has grown! When he was born he weighed 6 lbs. 15 oz. and was 19 inches long. Today...only two weeks and a few days later, he weighs 8 lbs. 10 oz. and is 22 and 1/4 inches long. I knew those clothes were starting to fit better and that he was getting a double chin, but I couldn't believe he'd grown that much. As a new parent, I find myself always seoncd guessing myself about everything I do with him. It is so reassuring to know that even though I am unsure a lot of the time, I must be doing something right since he got a good report and has grown so much. We have to get our first round of shots next time, so I am sure that will be a whole different experience.

We had a busy weekend. The Menetre side of the family came all the way from Atlanta to see little George. Bailey's father, George Edgar Menetre III, died when Bailey was ten in a plane crash, and these are his siblings that came to see us. George is named after Bailey's dad. It was great to see Caroline and Mary Ellen, and we are so grateful for the time we got to spend with them because we don't get to see them very often. Kate Jameson and Tres Anderson also came over to visit George this weekend. It was so sweet of them to come by and see us.

George continues to look different all the time, so I am posting some new pictures of him from this past week and weekend.

He changes everyday!!

Cathy, Beth, Sara Beth, and Tiffany came to visit us and meet George. It was so great to see them, and I am so lucky to have such a great group of friends.
I had to take picture of this because I think this Life is Good outfit is so darn cute. It is one of the only outfits that fits him well.

George and his Aunt Sara Beth.

George with Uncle Jesse.

Even though he is only a week and a half old, he really has strong muscles in his neck. He holds his head up and looks around all the time. I think he is starting to look mor like Bailey here.

Stretched out on his dad.

George is changing every day it seems. His little face is filling out, and he looks less like an old man and more like a real baby. I don't really have anything to compare it to, but I think he is a really good baby. Right now he really just does a lot of eating and sleeping. He is on a pretty good little schedule eating every three hours. Sometimes he stays awake for a little while after he eats, but then he always takes a really good nap before his next feeding. He actually sleeps at night except for when it is time to eat. But then we wake up, feed, and he goes right back to sleep. You see in one of the pictures above where a group of my girlfriends came to visit. Well, they brought me some swaddle me sacks for George. These have probably been the reason he has been sleeping so soundly at night. George loves his hands and is always moving them around and putting them in his mouth. This is not really a problem unless he is trying to sleep, and sometimes he wakes himself up with his hands. The Swaddle Me sleep sack kind of restricts (I know it sounds mean) his hands and allows him to sleep soundly. It has been a lifesaver. Bailey's friend Mark Markow said it worked for his baby and suggested it to us. I believe he called it a baby straight jacket which is kind of what it looks like. So we are glad for his advice because it's working so far. Overall we are doing great, and Bailey and I are adjusting to being parents and having considerably less sleep.

At home with George

Uncle Luke with his "practice" baby.

Ashley and Baby George

Aunt Reedie and Uncle Ryan were sweet to come see us!

Aunt Candice came to visit.

After our first bath


Right after our first bath...not so happy with me.



He grabbed this on his own as we put him into the bouncy seat. He loves his bouncy seat by the way.

Right before we took him home.

This is my favorite picture of him on his way home from the hospital.

Uncle Jack

Sweet Harper came to see him.

George coming home for the first time.

Now that we made it through the first night with the little guy, with much help from my mom I might add, I have a little time while he naps to blog a little bit about this little man and how he got here.

Bailey and I went to the hospital at 6am Thursday morning after not getting much sleep the night before. We were really excited, and I was a little nervous when we got there. We had already done a pre check in, so I expected to get going soon after we got there. However, this was not the case. We waited for over an hour in the waiting room because our rooms were not ready. This would have made me even more nervous, but there was a couple who was also waiting for their room to open up that we knew from childbirth class in the waiting room too. We sat and talked to them, and it helped our nerves to get to hang out and talk with them for a while. At about 7:30 am they called us back and things got going quickly. Little did we know that was the only thing all day that would go quickly.

They gave me this medicine by mouth to soften my cervix because by this point I had still made no progress toward

labor. This was not bad at first at all. We watched DVD's and I read my book. I was thinking at this point that this was not going to be that bad. Probably around 1:00, I started to feel some contractions, and about an hour later, I felt them enough to get some pain medicine. This is where I kind of lose track of time. I don't really know how much longer I waited, but they gave me another one of those pills by mouth after a while which only increased the contractions. The pain medicine helped, but it was by no means an epidural. Somewhere in here they broke my water, which by the way was probably one of the most painful things I have ever experienced in my entire life. Dr. Webb finally ordered an epidural for me because I was dialated enough at about 9:30 pm. It took the nurse anethesist about 30 minutes to get to my room, and needlesss to say he was not on my good list when he finally got there. The epidural worked a little at first but I had what they called "hot spots" that still felt every contraction. He redosed my epidural about an hour later, and I finally felt numb at about 2:30 am. Everyone kind of started to rest after that. I don't know what time it was but at some point, the nurse rushed in in the middle of the night to give me oxygen because George's heart rate had dropped. This kind of freaked me out, and I started to realize more and more that this was just not working at all, and I was going probably going to have to have a section. At some point after this I got really nauseous and sick and Dr. Webb came in to check me. It was probably 7am when I begged him with tears in my eyes to please give me a c-section. I didn't think I was physically able to push at this point. He finally agreed this was best, and by 8:45, George was here. We have been fine ever since. It was definitely a long day but well worth it to finally see his face. I have added some new pictures. He is so much fun and sweet, and I am so glad he's finally here.

George Hays Menetre

What a big yawn.
My mom and dad...so excited!!

Proud daddy!

Right after he brought him out.

This is Cathy posting for the Menetre family and I am so happy to announce that George is here! After 27 hours of labor and a C-section, George arrived into the world at 8:45 am. He weighs 6 lbs 15 ounces and is 19 inches long. He looks just like Gracie and is the sweetest little thing. Mom and Dad are also doing good and are thrilled to have their little son to hold.

This is a picture of Hal with the little guy.

(Now this is Gracie posting!!) Thanks Cathy so much for posting for me while we were in the hospital. I am sorry guys...but I am gonna find some better pics for you now that I am home. That picture of me was just plain scary. I thought I would post less of swollen mommy and way more of cute baby!! Thanks for all the texts, calls, support, visits, and prayers. Bailey and I could not make it without all of our great friends and family.

When I am not so exhausted, I will post more pics and tell the long story about how this little guy got here.

No News Yet!!

Well, we went to the doctor for my last weekly visit today, and I have made absolutely no progress. I was a little frustrated, and the doctor told me I might be in for a long day on Thursday. He says it's pretty normal for first time moms, so I guess I am not that worried about it. We check in Thursday morning at 6:00 am to start the induction process. Bailey will be keeping people posted via text message and phone calls. Yall say a prayer, and if it is a long day that is okay because I know the result will be totally worth it. I guess my next post will be pictures of the little guy!