Tyler Addison's arrival

He's here, he's here! Tyler Addison arrived on 7/3 at 1:35 pm. He weighs 6.0 lbs. and was 19 inches long. He seems so tiny, but he's absolutely perfect and most importantly healthy.

We arrived at the hospital at 8 am and got to meet the birthmother right away. This is the part I was the most nervous about, but she was great and made the conversation very easy. A little later in the day we got to meet the birthfather as well. I can sum the day up as a very, very special and an emotional one. My favorite part was being there during delivery. We had been in and out of her room throughout the morning and then at about 1:25, the nurse popped her head in and told us she was pushing. And then she said that the birthmother said it would be okay if I came in. I jumped up and followed the nurse into the room where the pushing was already happening. Two more pushes and he was here. Beautiful baby Tyler was here.

He's been with Dan and I ever since. We're up every three hours, but surprising not exhausted - yet.

Tomorrow is the big day. Birthmother is scheduled to sign papers in the early afternoon and if all goes well ... we leave the hospital with Tyler. And he's ours. So, we'll know shortly for sure. In the meantime, we're loving every minutes of parenthood. He's been such a good baby so far. And in my mind, he'll forever be this content and perfect.

More updates to come ...
-Jodi

July 3rd - baby day!

We have a date! Small change ... no c-section, but the birthmother is being induced on Friday, July 3 at 5:30 a.m. And we get to be there for the delivery! So, we'll arrive at the hospital for 5:30 a.m. tomorrow and then we'll wait until she's ready for us to come into her room. This will be the first time we meet her. I think I'm most nervous for that moment. I've played the scene in my head a million times, but tomorrow it moves to reality.

So, we're just relaxing today. It's a HOT one - 97 degrees! We'll have more pictures and info to share tomorrow.
-Jodi

Big Day Tomorrow

As most of you know (because I have been shouting it from the rooftops) it's time for us to meet our baby boy. We got the call Tuesday morning to head to Florida. So, we packed the car to the brim - no joke. We left Tuesday night and made it to our destination Wednesday night. Long, long drive. Lots of great scenery, lots of road construction, lots of little naps, lots of laughing, lots of bugs on the windshield, and lots of talking about what it will be like to be parents. But we are here and waiting. Dan's parents arrived about 30 minutes before we did.

Baby will be here by the 4th of July. I'm still pinching myself. We'll keep everyone updated as much as possible with this blog and Facebook.

Be back soon! Good night. -Jodi

Holding Pattern

We are officially in a holding pattern. Just circling, waiting for the call. It's "next week" and we haven't heard any updates. In fact, the adoption lawyer didn't hear from the birthmother last week. We're not sure what day her appointment was, but hopefully we'll hear soon. For the time being it is business as usual.

I thought maybe, just maybe, baby Tyler would come today and he'd be able to share his birthday with his Grandpa Paynter. No such luck. There are four family birthdays in July, so we'll see how that goes.

We took the weekend and got registered for gifts. Lots of options, but we've also gotten lots of advice from friends and family, which helped. We also went to the Brewer game, cleaned the house, did a bunch of yardwork, went to church, visited my grandpa and had a date night. Saw The Hangover at the movies. Entertaining movie and I even laughed out loud a few times. Full weekend, but very productive.

Until the phone call ...
-Jodi

Tyler is almost here!

The latest update we have is to plan for next week. How's that for pinning it down? Actually, we're relieved that we have a little more time to pack things up. As well as Tyler having a little more time for development and growth. The birthmom's blood pressure came back down last week, so they are giving him a little more time in the womb.

So, it looks like Tyler Addison will be joining the world the week of June 29th!
-Jodi

Moving in Fast Forward

Tyler is coming! We received a call on Tuesday and the takeaway was that Tyler will be here sooner rather than later. We're excited he's coming, but the circumstances surrounding the early delivery are the tough part. As we mentioned before, the birthmother has skin cancer and needs to have treatments that they can't start while she's pregnant. Then on Tuesday at her doctor appointment they became concerned about preeclampsia. She goes back in tomorrow and then we'll find out what day they are going to do a scheduled c-section.

So, we've pushed things into high gear so we're ready to go. We're excited and nervous, but most of all ... I can't believe it's finally happening. I am going to be a MOM and Dan is going to be a DAD.

I'll update tomorrow when we know the day Tyler is entering the world.
-Jodi

Back to Back Updates!

Dan here with a quick update. Yesterday night, we had some friends' families over and grilled up some hamburgers and hot dogs. We had five little ones over and playing on the living room floor. It was nice to see the kids eating, playing and having fun and their parents. Some stories were read, some cars were raced, and everyone had a good time. I did note that one of the fathers looked plum tuckered out by nights end, but it may have been due to playing volleyball in the crummy weather earlier in the day.

Today, we went to visit little baby Leo for the first time. He's only a week old and his parents are first timers just as we will be. As I held him, I couldn't help but think about what it will be like to hold our baby boy for the first time. Hopefully, we'll find out sometime in the next six weeks. The crib is complete, the furniture's setup, and even the stuffed animals are in place. After putting together Tyler's room, it somehow seems more real to me. I'm so excited and can't wait to meet him.

But while we're excited and preparing to become parents, the birthmother is dealing with a nerve racking situation. My heart and prayers go out to her and her family. Please keep her and Tyler in your thoughts and prayers. I know I will.

Lastly, I'd like to thank everyone who's given us hand me downs, baby advice, and support in general. We really appreciate it!

May God smile on you and your family today...

Dan