Look who's in her Bumbo!

I'm such a big girl! Look at me in my Bumbo seat at 7 weeks old! I can hold my head up so well. Pretty soon I will do this sitting up thing all by myself!

Look at that face! I really am happy!

Daddy's spring break!

Gabe was on spring break this past week, so we were able to bring Maddie down to South Carolina for the first time! We had a great week and Maddie got to meet so many people! We spent Saturday-Tuesday with Colleen. She was just thrilled to finally meet her granddaughter! On Monday we strolled downtown Charleston-the weather was just beautiful, so it was nice to get outside! While we were there Maddie was also able to meet her cousins (my 1st cousins), Shawn and Lauren, our good friends Brian, Jess, and their little boy Jake, and Gabe's friend Vatsal. What a fun few days we had!













On Wednesday, we headed back to Simpsonville to spend the rest of the week at my mom's house. On Thursday, Omi and Pop-Pop came up and brought my cousins, Daniel and Summer. They just love Maddie and what great cousins they are to her. Daniel loved rubbing Maddie's head and he would just smile and talk to her. He also asked me "Does she have a brain yet??" The funny things kids say!!! Summer was such a big help, she even fed Maddie a bottle on her own. She tested the temperature on her wrist without anyone telling her to. I know she will be a good mommy one day!
On Friday my aunts Teresa and Denise came into town to meet Maddie! They were like little vultures when they came into the door! Maddie is just so lucky to be in such a wonderful family!! Maddie also met my friends, Anna and Jessica! The week went by too fast, but we had a great time and can't wait to move back to South Carolina this summer!!!

1 month old!

Time sure does fly when you have a baby. I have always been told this, but now I definitely know it is true! Maddie is 1 month old! We have been really busy this past week! My mom and Omi came for the weekend to spend some time with us. They just love Maddie so much! We also celebrated all our birthdays. Mine was on the 1st, my mom's on the 3rd, and Gabe's on the 4th. Then on Sunday, my SAA group (the support group for med school spouses) threw me a joint baby shower with another spouse who is expecting a baby girl soon! Madison got some really great gifts; we are just so blessed to have such a wonderful "family" here in Kentucky! Madison was a good girl and slept almost the entire time. On Tuesday she joined me for an SAA meeting (in which she slept through). Then on Wednesday, my great friend Tiffany, took me out for lunch for my birthday! Our little girls are only 2 weeks apart! We enjoyed wonderful mexican food, strawberry margaritas, and yummy cake! Maddie of course slept the whole time! On Thursday, I joined some other moms at McDonald's for a "playdate". What did Maddie do? Yep, SLEPT! After our playdate, I took her to Wal-Mart for the first time. What an adventure. It is much harder to push a shopping cart with a carrier attached to it! She was a good girl and let mommy get her shopping done. Then on Friday and Saturday night we took her out to eat with us. This little girl must love to go places, because she just chills out and sleeps. I hope this is always the case, because I would hate to not be able to go anywhere with her! We are now just enjoying the rest of the weekend with Daddy, because for the first time since she was born he has had to study almost every night. We went on a long walk today with Brady and enjoyed the sunshine. Tomorrow is supposed to be even nicer, so I can't wait! Here are few pictures from the week, including a little dress up session. I ordered all the hats and flowers from polkadotwholesale.com. What an awesome site and don't you think she looks so darn cute???

3 weeks old!

I can't believe my baby is already 3 weeks old! Madison is already changing so much. She is becoming much more alert and her little personality is really starting to emerge. She smiles constantly in her sleep and even seems to laugh out loud (after a really good meal). She is sleeping really well during the day; most of the time for 2 and 3 hours straight. She has her days and nights mixed up just a little bit. At 11:00 she is wide awake and this usually lasts until 3 am. I am hoping she will catch on soon. Thank goodness for Gabe-he has really stepped up and stays up with her sometimes so I can get some sleep. What a good Daddy he is! Here are a few recent pictures of her from this week.

Welcome Madison Brooke McCoy

I had my 38 week doctor appointment on February 2. I went in to have a growth ultrasound to see how big the baby was at this point. The ultrasound tech estimated Madison to be weighing 10 lbs! I immediately started crying, because I thought this meant I would have to have a c-section. After calming down and discussing our options with our doctor, I decided to get induced the next morning and try to delivery this baby on my own (and really hope that the ultrasound was wrong).

For the rest of the day I ran around the house like I was a chicken with my head cut off. I cooked 3 meals to freeze, cleaned the bathroom, and did a few loads of laundry. To say the least, I was exhausted, but I felt too anxious to sit still. My mom and sister arrived at midnight so they could be here for Madison's debut the next day! Gabe and I got hardly any sleep at all. All I could think about was this is our last night just the 2 of us for the rest of our lives. Exciting, but scary all at the same time!

On February 3, I went to the hospital in order to get induced. They started me on pitocin at 7:30 and the doctor broke my water at 8:00 (I don't think I have laughed that hard in months...it was so weird). It didn't take long for my contractions to start and boy did they start to hurt. The nurse came in and checked me at about 10:00 and she said I was 3 cm. She said I could have my epidural if I wanted and I immediately said "YES NOW". After the epidural, life was good again. At noon I was 5 cm and then at 3:00 I was 8 cm. Everything happened so quick. By 3:40 I was starting to push. I had Gabe and my mom by my side. I didn't think I wanted my mom in there, but I'm so glad she was. What an amazing experience for her to see her first grandchild being born! I couldn't feel a thing (THANK THE LORD). At 4:00 the doctor finally arrived and after only a couple more pushes, Madison Brooke entered the world at 4:04 p.m.!!






She came out perfect and with a good set of lungs! I just remember saying "she doesn't look 10 lbs" and I was right. Little Maddie weighed in at 8 lbs 5 oz and 20 1/2 inches long. I'm so happy with my decision to get induced and not schedule a c-section. I wanted to experience child-birth and really it was so worth it.

Maddie is now 2 weeks old and already changing so much. Gabe is such a wonderful daddy and tries to be as hands on as he can. With his school schedule and study routine, it has been hard, but we will make it work. Being parents is challenging and sleep does suffer quite a bit, but it is all worth it when you look at your child's face. What a blessing she is!

Just a side note: Madison weighed the same that my dad did when he was born, she was born on the 3rd of the month (my dad's birthday is July 3), and she was born at 4:04 (my dad's favorite number was 4). I know that my dad was with me that day and continues to be with us each and every day. I wish he was here to hold his grandbaby, he would be so proud and so in love with her. I think this is probably the hardest part about being a new parent...I want my dad here with me and my family to share this wonderful little person with. But he is with us and that is one thing that gives me comfort.

Happy New Year!!

I'm 34 weeks along...about 6 weeks to go! I'm getting very anxious and really ready to meet this baby! We have everything ready in her room...we just need her to make it complete. Gabe has been a trooper in putting everything together; baby things are complicated! We have the pack-n-play, swing, and bouncer all ready to go!

Gabe had 3 weeks off for Christmas break, which was so nice! We stayed in Kentucky for a few extra days because we had our 4-D Ultrasound. It was the most amazing thing to be able to see our baby's face. Gabe says she looks nothing like him, but we will see when she is born! She is a chunker though...the ultrasound tech measured Madison to already weigh over 5 lbs and be in the 88th %tile!



Right after the doctor's appointment we headed home to South Carolina! We spent a week with Gabe's mom and celebrated Christmas a little early on the 22nd with her. On the 23rd we headed to my mom's and spent a week with her. My omi & pop-pop were there all week, which was so nice. We had a nice Christmas, but of course it was so incredibly hard without my dad there. We are looking forward to 2010 when Madison is here and how much fun Christmas will be then!!

We came back "home" to Kentucky on the 3oth for another doctor's appointment and then spent New Year's Eve with our Pikeville family. Happy 2010!!

Here are a few pictures from Christmas...

Our last Christmas without Madison!

Our family is about to get bigger!
Omi, Nat, and Pop-PopBrady wearing the hat Omi made for Madison

Me, Mom, and Nat

With Omi & Pop-Pop