One Month Old

Logan turned one month old on Monday. I can't believe how fast one month has gone by. Logan has been such a joy to have. He is such a sweatheart and growing up fast. I wanted to reflect on some of Logan's favorite things in his first month of life.

1. He loves to sit on your chest. My favorite time is at night when I will put Logan is some fleece pj's, put him on my chest and cuddle with him.


2. He loves is Bundle Me and being rocked in his carrier.


3. He loves is Tri Vi Sol vitamins he gets every morning. Our pediatrician warned us that he probably wouldn't like this vitamin supplament, but Logan seems to love it. He will suck it right out of the dropper. He also loves when Cayman licks his face after he has had his vitamin to make sure he got it all.


4. He loves his papasan bouncer. He especially loves the music it plays and often wakes up when the music turns off.


5. He loves to look around. He is getting stronger each day and able to hold his head up more and more.

Logan has been a joy. I don't think anyone can prepare you for all the emotions you go through being a mom. I have days of complete joy, frustration and sleep deprivation. I am still trying to figure out how to be a mom and how to get out of the house in a timely fashion. Nevertheless as my time to go back to work approaches I am sad to think of leaving my Logan with anyone else. I have greatly enjoyed the time bonding with my child and becoming a mother. So happy one month birthday Logan and thanks for all the joy you have brought to my life!

Off the Hook

Our pediatrician asked us to come in on Friday the 10th in order to weigh Logan again. If you remember at our 2 week appointment Logan still wasn't at his birth weight. He was gaining about a half an once a day at 2 weeks. Therefore, our pediatrician wanted us to bring him back in in another 2 weeks to make sure he was continuing to gain weight. So Logan and I went in on the very snow day to weigh him. I was nervous to see what the scale said but I was confident he had gained weight. When we put him on the scale he weighed 7lbs 3oz!!! So he gained 10 ounces since our last appointment or about .75oz a day. Our pediatrician then told me that I was "off the hook" and feeding my child enough.


I am glad that he is gaining weight. He eats very well now and I think we are starting to get the hang of breastfeeding. He only weights 5oz more than when he was born, but seems to be getting bigger and stronger to me.


Here are some more recent pictures of Logan.

Two Good Nights

Logan has slept for 6-7 hours the last two nights. I consider myself very lucky. We usually fall asleep together downstairs because I usually stay up to 11 and then think he should be waking up in an hour for his next feeding but then he never does. I feel guilty every time I wake up feeling like I should have fed him earlier or worrying that something might be wrong with him. He seems just happy though!! He then eats about every 3 to 4 hours during the day. Nevertheless, just wanted to post that I am grateful for the sleep I have gotten the past two nights. I realize it may not last long.

Late Happy Holidays

Ben created this birth announcement for our little boy. I think they turned out so nice. I am very lucky to have such a talented husband who helps me capture all these moments.

So happy late holidays everyone!!! We hope your holidays were as wonderful as ours.

Logan is Two Weeks Old

Can you believe it? Logan is now two weeks old. I apologize I haven't posted more pics or updates. Taking care of my son and the holidays have consumed more time than I could ever imagine. We have had so much fun having Logan with us for the holidays. We couldn't have asked he come at a better time, except for perhaps when my parents were in town.


We took him in to the pediatrician on Friday and overall he is a healthy boy. He now weighs 6 pounds 9 ounces. Therefore, he still isn't back to his full birth weight quite yet. Our pediatrician wasn't too concerned as the last time we had Logan in he weighed 6 pounds 3 ounces. He calculated that he has gained a half an ounce a day since that appointment so that is good. He said the text book guidlines say they should gain a half an ounce to one and a half onces a day. Logan is gaining the minimum which he said was good. He wants us to bring him back in in two weeks to just weigh him to track his growth. He wasn't very worried about it and reassured me that I was feeding him plenty and being a good mother--something that is nice to hear.


Logan is doing well with eating. We have our good days and our not so good days, but overall he is eating and happy. He will sleep for about 5 hours during the night which is very nice. During the day he sleeps for about 4 hours at a time. I think I am very lucky to get such long stretches of sleep. You hear of some babies that eat every two hours and I count myself lucky.


Ben and I just bought a rocking chair at Shopko this weekend to put in his room. It isn't the fanciest chair, but it rocks, glides, swivels and reclines. More importantly it was only $90. I had been looking at some Dutailer rockers that were $500 that had the same features so I think I got a steal of a deal. I love sitting in this chair when feeding Logan as it gives me something to do instead of just sitting.


Here are some newer pictures of Logan over the past few weeks. We have way more than this but these are some of my favorites.

Logan Henry Ellis, The Untold Story

I've always heard that being a parent means that your life is crazy and joyful all in one. Melissa and I have come to understand that meaning and ran with it. I'm sure many other people can identify with what we've been through.

It all started on Thursday the 13th. We had our routine weekly appointment with our OBGYN. We sat in the check-up room for a little bit longer than what we were use to. Surprisingly we found out why, my wife had a high protein count in her urine. So our doctor, Rosemary Lesser was nervous that she might have pregnancy-induced hypertension (PIH) also called toxemia or preeclampsia. The only cure for this condition is having the baby. Wide eyed and shocked we walked over to labor and delivery for further tests and worrying about not having anything ready to have a baby today. They hooked Melissa up to machines for his heart rate, took blood samples and we waited for 2 and half hours. The tests came back and everything looked okay. So they sent us home with a 24 hours urine collection bin and told us to bring it back tomorrow so they can see if the protein levels increase or if it is just a fluke.

Friday the 14th: Dr. Lesser worried about Melissa and called her in the morning to see how she was doing. Melissa felt fine but the Dr. wanted her to come up to her office for another blood pressure test after we dropped of the 24 hr urine test at the hospital lab. This time we came more prepared with our and Jr.'s bags, just incase. I mainly wanted the camera. They had her pee in a cup again and hooked her up to the same machines as the day before. This time things had became worse, her blood pressure was higher and she still had the same high count of protein in her urine. Five words were then said that changed our lives, "you need to be induced." At this exact moment Melissa's parents and sister were taking off from the SLC airport on their way to Jeff Walton's graduation in Colorado.

With every emotion imaginable we made our way back to labor and delivery and

got checked in to have our baby. It was a very strange feeling having Missy walk into her delivery room, not in pain, not screaming for drugs but more shocked holding my hand and smiling. We entered the delivery room at 3 p.m. Around 3:30 Dr. Lesser came in a broke her water and simply said, "you're not leaving now". They had to hook Melissa up with a whole bunch of medicine through and IV. Melissa did wonderfully with her contractions.

She was dilated to a 4 by the time they gave her epidural. In her own words, "I love modern medicine". While calming Melissa, I was also talking to Melissa's family who were trying to find a flight back for her Mom so she could be there for Melissa when Logan was born. However, five hours after Melissa was induced Logan Henry Ellis was born and her mother was in mid air when he was born.

Logan was born at 9:12 P.M. on Dec 14th 2007. This was the first time mother and son saw each other. I had just cut the cord before this was taken.

He weighed 6 lbs 13 oz and 19.5" long. I was the first person able to hold little Logan minutes after he was born. At this moment I couldn't help but notice how much he looked like his mother, but in a manly way.

Mom getting to hold her boy for the first time. Don't they both look beautiful.

Here an hour after his birth Logan is in the nursery for his first bath and mug shot while Melissa is being rolled into her recovery room. He loved those hot lamps. His temperature was a little lower than normal so they had him under the lamps for a few extra minutes. Plus chicks dig tans.

He loves his right hand in front of his face. I had to trim his nails to stop him from scratching himself cause that hand is there too much.

Our first picture together as a family. Logan was only 3 hours old. We couldn't sleep very much that night. Grandma Cairns took this picture after her crazy flight. Her plane landed here in Utah little over an hour after he was born.

I love this picture of mother and son. Logan already has great neck muscles and loves to lay on peoples chest more than any other position. Without fail he will look at you when he is on your chest.

It took us two days to finally decide on Logan's official name. We were asked by every nurse. For the longest time we couldn't decide between Logan or Andrew. So the nurses thought they would help us out by giving us their favorite. We had some great nurses.

Finally, two days later Grandpa Cairns and Melissa's sister Rachel were able to make it to Utah. While they were in Colorado for Rachel's husband Jeff's graduation, Grandpa bought this hat for his grandson.

The Ellis family getting ready to leave the hospital to go home all together. We were very lucky to have everyone healthy that day.

Paradise our cat has never seen a newborn before. So when we brought Logan home she was so curious as to what he was. Right after this picture Logan made a small coo noise Paradise ran for the hills.

To finish up the story I wanted to mention one experience that scared me. The next morning after Logan was born. Melissa was looking good from the toxemia and was taken off medication and monitors. The Dr. said she could take a shower and boy she was eager. I was in there helping her making sure she was okay. After the shower she began to feel light headed and quickly sat down on the toilet. Two seconds after she sat down her body went limp and her head fell forward. When you have toxemia one of the worst things that can occur is you can have a seizure. When she collapsed on me I thought she might be having one. She shook a little and was making haunting noises. While holding her up I hit the emergency button they had in the bathroom yelling at a microphone for help. The nurses and a doctor came running in. At this same time as the Dr. and nurses came running in my mother-in-law was outside. She saw the red light on top of our door go off and the commotion of people running in and out of our room. She was scared. Luckily my wife only fainted from the hot water and combination of toxemia, and giving birth. She is fine today but she gave me the biggest scare in my life, yet I've never loved her more.

"Henry" 37 Week Update

Ben and I had our 37 week appointment this morning. Everything went well and "Henry" appears to be doing well and growing great. He is about 6 pounds now our doctor thinks which is amazing to me. I definitely am starting to feel that weight. Our doctor still thinks our due date will be around the 31st of December, but reminded us that she doesn't know for sure when he will come and that he could come at anytime. At the appointment we learned that I am slowly progressing and am dialted to just a one which is normal for a first time pregnancy our doctor said. In addition, we tested negative for Group B Strep which is an infection that can cause the baby to get sick during delivery. So we won't have to worry about that.

Ben has finished his semester of school so he is ready to take care of me as things get more uncomfortable. Ben and I have everything set up at home awaiting "Henry's" arrival. We have our bags packed ready for the time when he comes. As all of you know Ben and I are hoping that "Henry" isn't born on Christmas Eve or Christmas, but we will be happy as long as he comes healthy. That is a quick update on mom, dad and baby. We will keep you posted on any new developments but until then enjoy the holiday season!!!