First Week of Life

Introducing
Melody Amber McDaniel

I can't believe that today our daughter is exactly one week old! I have been meaning to send out details and post an update but being new parents have kept us busy. There is so much I want to write about, but I'm gonna try to keep things short and sweet for now. For those of you who haven't heard yet, we welcomed our baby girl Melody Amber McDaniel into the world Wednesday Dec 22nd at 2:47pm. She weighed 8 lbs 11oz and was 20 inches long. Delivery seemed to go pretty smoothly overall even with our scheduled induction. Ryan was incredible throughout the entire hospital stay and was a great encouragement and support for me. I couldn't have asked for a better delivery process...my doctor and nurses were wonderful as well. We had a full waiting room the day she was born since everyone couldn't wait to meet her. It was such a blessing to have family around to be apart of this special occasion for us! Since she was born Wednesday, I was able to leave the hospital Friday afternoon (Christmas Eve)...just in time to start settling in back home for the Christmas holiday. Although I was still in recovery from the whole labor process and not feeling 100%, we spent the day relaxing with our families and passing miss Melody around.

Melody has been an incredible sleeper and eater so far and we are still in amazement at this little miracle we created. We absolutely love everything about her...from her chubby cheeks to tiny fingers and toes to her adorable expressions and sounds. It seems like she has already changed in the few short days we've had her and we can't wait to for more defined features to come out. Her eyes are a soft greyish/blue color and her hair is already getting lighter from brown to dirty blonde. While most of her days are spent sleeping, nursing, and pooping...she has gradually become more alert in the past day or two. It has been exciting to see what expression or sound she might make next. We probably have a picture of every face she's made so far...between me, my mom, and mother-in-law we just can't help ourselves! I will probably start posting monthly pics through shutterfly so that people can stay up to date with her change and growth. We had her first pediatricians appointment on Monday and she checked out great! She’s in the 90^th percentile for weight and height…her first “A”! Now that family is gone Ryan and I have enjoyed spending time during the day just the three of us (well four counting Bentley)! We went on our first family walk today...Melody just slept the whole time of course and missed out taking in all the sights ;) I have really enjoyed having Ryan here during the day and will be sad to have him go back to work on Monday. But I'm thankful for the time we all have to hang out right now and know I will be able to establish a schedule with her soon enough. Since we have quite the photo collection, here are just a few favorites of her so far!

first few min outside the womb!

she is perfect!

how she likes to sleep after nursing! look at the size of those cheeks!

snuggle time with daddy :)

the best gift we could ever ask for

we love her so much!

So Close!!

Christmas party time

Ali is ready for Melody to be here too!Us with the Wallaces

Well despite the doctor's best guess, Melody has decided to wait to come into this world Christmas week!! I definitely had my hopes up of her coming early (especially now that I'm huge and uncomfortable) but she just won't budge. Even though there is always a possibility of going into labor in the next day or two, we have our induction set for this Tuesday night. Ryan and I will be checking into St. David's North Austin Medical Center at 6pm on the 21st (Melody's due date), hoping to be holding her in our arms by Wed Dec 22nd!! All this waiting and anticipation has been a bit overwhelming, so it's nice to know that there is finally an end in site. Assuming all goes well with labor and delivery, we can expect to be back home with our daughter by Christmas Eve...which means we will wake up Christmas morning with the most wonderful gift. I am so thrilled to have all our family in town to celebrate this birth with us. I have a feeling this will be our best Christmas yet!

Even though I've been feeling pretty uncomfortable lately, I've still been able to relax and spend some much needed time hanging out with friends. Here are a few last pregnancy pictures before Melody makes her debut :)

Amanda and Addi Reichle...i miss my nanny time!
It's a "Mommy and Me" Christmas

Laura Rugh's baby shower...
us showing off our baby girl bellies!

Me n Suz

Me w/Heather and baby Delaney...so thankful we're all back in Texas again!

Now we wait...

The McDaniel's are ready!

Now that i'm officially done working, we are anxiously awaiting baby Melody's soon arrival! My due date is the 21st of this month (#1 most frequently asked question) but I'm hoping she'll decide to grace us with her presence a little earlier than that! At my last doctors appointment my doctor said I was already dilated almost 2 inches and that if she had to bet I probably wouldn't make it another two weeks! However, I've learned from fellow moms that this could not necessarily mean much and I still have just a good of chance of going full all the way to 40 weeks. Either way I am thankful to know that Melody is measuring on track and is "in position" to deliver well. I will be going in Tuesday for my 38 Week check-up so hopefully she's made some progress since my last visit. Who knows, i might be going into labor this week...it's just a waiting game at this point!

Nursery in progress...

Ryan and I have enjoyed the holiday season so far and are looking forward to spending Christmas in Austin again this year with all our friends and family. We enjoyed a relaxing Thanksgiving day at my aunt's house w/my mom's side of the family. Ryan's parents also came into town and cooked up some wonderful Thanksgiving grub for Ryan and I to enjoy this past week. We haven't quite put up any decorations yet but should have a few things out in the next few days or so. I've been a little preoccupied with baby items and getting the nursery ready/organized :) There's a few more final touches that need to be made, but most of her things are washed and ready for use! I've included a few pictures in the last month. Is it just me or is my belly really started to pop out there?!!

Thanksgiving

Bentley's protective nature is already kicking in!

37 Week Belly

34 Weeks

Well, I am just one day shy of the 34 week mark and can't believe miss Melody will be here in about six more weeks! Each day as she grows a little bit more I find myself in awe that we created this little baby that is about to be apart of our lives. Reality sets in as a few of my friends have had their babies and I realize that I'm not too far behind. I've been watching all sorts of Baby shows on TLC which has helped me get into the mindset that I too will be delivering and taking home our little baby girl. This past weekend Ryan and I took a tour of the hospital and were really impressed with the rooms. I'm delivering at St. Davids North off of Parmer/Mopac and feel like we will have a nice comfortable set-up. However, as we toured the entire women's center and various delivery rooms I still had a hard time believing that I would be lying on one of those beds giving birth myself! I guess it's not gonna feel real until the time comes and we are actually at the hospital surrounded my doctors and nurses telling us "it's time".

So until Melody arrives, Ryan and I plan on really making the most of our "free" time because I know things will be very different come the end of December. I have gradually cut down my work load and plan on being completely done seeing clients and hosting at the Melting Pot by the end of this month. I will continue to nanny into the first week or so of December assuming things are still on track in my pregnancy. So far things have been progressing well, so we'll just take each week as it comes. We still have a lot of work to do around the house to get ready for Melody's arrival, but I'm sure we'll be able to finish setting the nursery up this next month. I actually have one more shower to look forward to this weekend in Houston and then we will have a good feel for whatever else we may need to purchase. Ryan and I have been so thankful for all the gifts and thoughtfulness of friends and family to make preparation much easier on us! We are constantly amazed that we have so many people surrounding us in love and support.

The pictures are from over the past few weeks of maternity shots that my mom was able to take for us as well as a few from my Austin shower!

30 Weeks

Well I hit 30 weeks today and so far everything is right on track! Melody should be about 3 lbs. now and 17 inches long. According to my doctor she is developing right on schedule with a nice steady heartbeat. She is definitely moving around and kicking all the time, making me not want to remove my hand from on top of my tummy! Ryan enjoys teasing me about how often I "obsess" about her movement, but it is quite the experience and i love getting to feel her move. I can't believe that I'll be able to really touch and hold her in just 10 more weeks. I try to imagine what she might look like and how big she'll be. It will be interesting to see how I hold up physically because it seems like there's no way I could possibly get any bigger! But she's growing about a lb./week so she's gotta have room to grow somehow. These next 2 1/2months are definitely gonna be a little stressful trying to figure out the nursery, registry items, finances, etc, but Ryan and I continue to trust in God's direction and provision for this next phase of our lives. We don't have all the answers but hope to savor this time together as we prepare for Melody's arrival. I think it is easy to get caught up and overwhelmed with all the details and the "right" things to buy or to add to my registry. Yes we need to be prepared and still have plenty of things to do, but in a few short months she'll be here and we can only hope to show and give her as much love and care as we know how. We appreciate all the love and support we've received from family and friends and are thankful for all the encouragement along the way :)

Yep, I feel very Pregnant

Our friends and family are really helping us get ready for Melody with baby showers!! My sister threw my first shower for me up in Dallas this past weekend and I had such a great time hanging out with my close girlfriends. Alecia really went all out with the decorating and fun games, and I already got some wonderful items to start filling up the nursery :) Melody received some of her first embroidered burp clothes, diaper bag, and bloomers, which I can't wait to use. The more I see and use her name and feel her kick it continues to feel more real that she'll be here in a few months. I'll be having a few more showers in the next month or two and can't wait to see what other cute baby items Melody will receive. We'll definitely be set for diapers after Ryan's guy diaper shower this weekend! I love explaining this to people because usually new mommies get all the showers and the guys miss out on all the "fun" ;) But a few of Ryan's friends have started having diaper showers as an excuse to get together over food, drinks, and football. My dad asked if Ryan would have to actually wear a diaper to his shower...and after thinking it over I think it should be a must! Here's a few pics of me and my girls from my first shower:So I love when people ask me how I feel...because even though I've had incredibly "easy" pregnancy so far I'm really starting to feel pregnant (in the not-so-cute I have a belly way!). I've been wearing these awesome self-adhesive icy hot patches on my lower back to help minimize the throbbing pain I feel on a daily basis. And I'm not even into my third trimester yet, oh boy. I've had lower back issues for quite some time, so the extra weight distributed unevenly in the front is not making things any easier. Switching to hostess at the Melting Pot has helped a little bit, but becoming a nanny three days a week for baby Addi is another load altogether! I have absolutely loved my new part-time work, taking care of the Reichle's 14 week old baby girl, but just need to be careful about all the picking up and holding I'm doing! In just a few days I have already learned so much about becoming a mommy and can't wait to see what will come next. Taking care of her during the day has allowed me to invision what routines might be like when Melody gets here. Sometimes while I'm holding Addi, Melody will kick and I wonder if she can feel it! I'm so thankful for this head-start in motherhood because I still have so much to learn about before she gets here.

Now that I'm at 26 weeks, Ryan and I are really starting to get things together for Melody...from painting the nursery to buying/setting up baby furniture to baby showers! We finished painting the nursery this past week and it looks great! The colors came out a little lighter (and a little pinker!) than I thought, but once the nursery is all set up I think it will compliment everything well. Here's a few before and after pics and I'll put more up as things come together.

Baby Registry, 24 Weeks

It feels like so much has happened this past week! I finally went out and started to register for baby items...and am completely overwhelmed with all the planning! My good friend Heather was amazing enough to help me register at Babies R Us (she is an incredible mom to 2 year old Brooks with baby girl Laney on the way). After 3 1/2hrs I finally had to stop and will need to go back for a few more items. I've also created an additional registry at BuyBuyBaby after scoping it out online and preferring some of the larger items they sold. It's kind of ridiculous how many things are recommended for new babies; from a swing, to stroller, to bouncer, to bumbo...and the list goes on and on. I'm still running across things that I've missed. I mean, where are we really going to put all this stuff!! My dreams almost every night this past week or two have reflected the underlying stress I feel about picking out baby items. I just have to trust that we will somehow manage to get all we need and know I'll have plenty of support and advice from family and fellow moms! In the meantime, I will continue to plan and update my registries as best I can :) Here is Heather and I with our little girl outfits at Babies R Us!

So I am coming to the end of my 24 weeks and can't believe how fast this pregnancy is progressing. My belly has really started to show for sure, to the point where people that come into my work are asking me how far along I am. Which is a great feeling because I have felt pregnant for so long! For a quick update, my job situation has changed slightly in the past few weeks. I have switched from waiting tables at the Melting Pot to becoming a host for the remainder of my pregnancy. Working long hours and standing on my feet all night was really starting to take a toll on my body, so hosting is a much better fit! In addition to hosting I will continue to counsel around 4-6 clients/week. What I'm really excited about, though, is the nanny-ing I am starting this next week for some friends of ours at church! Keven and Amanda Reichle have a beautiful 13 week old daughter named Addison that I have the pleasure of hanging out with 3 days a week while Amanda transitions back into work. I am so excited to help them out and to get a few months practice in with her before Melody gets here! I feel so blessed to have this time to really experience what it will be like being a mother as I prepare for one of my own.

Baby Kicks

So I am now at 23 weeks, and can feel Melody kicking more and more each day! I was up in Dallas this past weekend where a few others got to feel her kick for the first time as well, including my mom and sis. It was so special for them to be able to feel her because it definitely makes this pregnancy seem more real. Ryan has been able to feel her kick a few times, but I'm excited for him to actually see her moving across my belly. I want him to be able feel every single movement, but I have to remember that it's a little different for me! I generally feel her anytime I'm laying down, especially right as I fall asleep. During the day her movements are more sporadic, so it'll be interesting to see if she starts to have any specific patterns. Right now I like to think she's having a little dance party when I'm trying to sleep at night :)

Here are some pictures of me in the last week or two...my belly is really starting to grow!!