Jonah Paul Shellaway... born at 2:54am on September 30th, 2013
You're here! You're here, and life is fuller and more wonderful than we ever imagined. I have been so completely overwhelmed with love from the first moment I held you. You are just the sweetest, cuddliest, sleepiest little guy and I can't imagine a more perfect addition to our family.
It's time for your old mom to get a little sappy on you... We're so close to meeting you and I want you to know what a privilege it has been to be on this journey with you. That's really the whole reason for doing these photos and letters every week - so you can someday see how blessed I felt to be pregnant with you. That no matter how uncomfortable I've gotten, and though some weeks the last thing I want to do is lug out my tripod and take a self portrait, I know that someday you'll be able to look back through this series and see how much I loved you - from the very beginning - and how very lucky I have always felt to be your mama.
Today is my and your dad's 4th wedding anniversary! Every year I take a photo in my wedding dress, and this year it was quite a feat to get it on (and even harder to get it off!) With only 2 weeks to go, the last thing I wanted to do was squeeze into my wedding dress, but tradition is tradition and it ended up being a rather hilarious endeavor. I'm very happy to be typing this in my far more comfortable pajamas, and even happier to be another week closer to meeting you.
You made it to full term! Yay! Your dad and I celebrated by going to the Phillies vs. Nats game for what was one of our last date nights for the foreseeable future. You come from a very long line of Phillies fans, and we hope you love them as much as we do. By the time you're old enough to care, they might actually be good again. We can only hope.
I had my baby shower this past weekend, and while I didn't think I wanted a shower this time around, I'm so glad your Nana and Titi insisted. You deserve to be spoiled, too, and it was wonderful getting together with family and close friends to celebrate your pending arrival. Only a few more weeks and I'll get to put you in all your cute new outfits!
Only 6 more weeks to go! Your birth is feeling ever more imminent, and I'm officially in big time birth-prep mode... It's hard to be fully prepared for what I know will be one of the hardest, yet most beautiful, days of my life - but I'm trying. I'm re-reading my favorite birth stories, drinking lots of red raspberry leaf tea, listening to my hypnobirthing tracks, working out, doing lots of inversions and ligament releases, and basically doing everything I possibly can to ensure our birth journey together is safe and gentle (and hopefully much much faster than your sister's birth). As I spend time each day getting ready for your birth, I feel the bond between us growing that much stronger and I know it will all be so worth it.
We're finally getting started on your nursery! We moved all the furniture in from your sister's room and now I get to work on the fun stuff - like your very special name quilt. I have lots of other stuff I want to get done, too, so I better get moving. You'll be here before we know it!
My first session with parents-to-be, Ashley and Scott, included their sweet pup, Dax, but this session was all about the two of them. So we headed into downtown Frederick this past Saturday, whose historic charm was the perfect backdrop for this sweet couple...
They are so stinkin' cute together, which made my job crazy easy. And look at Ashley's gorgeous bump! Only a few weeks away from delivery and she could not be more beautiful.
Congrats, Ashley and Scott! And thank you so much for letting me be a small part of this journey with you.
I've got to be about the luckiest mama in the whole world... you know why? Because somehow I ended up having you, your sister, and your dad as my family. I'll be honest, I felt lost for a long time when I was younger - and then I met your dad and knew I was home. And then your sister came along, and now you, and my heart is more full than I ever thought possible. If I wish one thing for you in your life it's that you find people who make you as happy as you all have made me.
You are getting so big! My belly better start stretching out more because you're running out of room in there. Your movements are getting stronger by the day and your feet have found a new home in my ribcage. But as uncomfortable as I'm getting, it just means we're that much closer to meeting you.
We're in the home stretch now! I'm officially in my 3rd Trimester and can't believe how close we're getting to your arrival! The bigger my belly gets, the more protective Rocco gets of me. Hopefully you'll like our crazy pup as much as your sister does.
We were back at the cabin this weekend for the 4th of July, and as usual we had a great time. It was HOT so I was just a wee bit uncomfortable, but your dad made sure I stayed cool and drank lots of water. I think you were just as excited as I was to get back to our bed on Sunday night because you kicked so much I could barely fall asleep! :)
This week's photo was taken by Kristy Dooley Photography.
I had the most wonderful time in Raleigh this weekend with my girlfriends. We met in an online photography class last Fall, and it was so nice to finally meet in person... it felt more like a reunion than the first time we were meeting! They were sweet enough to take some maternity photos for me and I couldn't be happier with how they turned out. The photos are so special to me, not just because they so beautifully document part of my pregnancy journey with you, but also because they're taken by people who are so dear to my heart.
It is my sincere hope for you that you find something you're truly passionate about, and that you're lucky enough to find a group of friends that share that passion.
Your big sister is getting SO excited to meet you! She loves giving my belly kisses and hugs and saying, "I love you, baby!" And you always seem to start kicking whenever you hear her voice. I'm sure you guys will drive each other crazy from time to time, but I have a feeling you're also going to have a lot of fun together.
I got to see you again this week! You're growing right on track and cute as a button. It's fun to compare how different your ultrasound photos are from Emma's. She looks a lot like me, but I think you're going to look just like your dad.
Oof... your mama has been BUSY this week! Lots of late nights and little time with your dad make me pretty grumpy, so I'm hoping things slow down soon. If nothing else, I keep reminding myself that in four short months I'll get to spend my days with you and your insane cuteness and my work stresses will be far behind me.
We just got back from a long weekend at the cabin, and while I'm completely exhausted, I can't stop thinking about how great it's going to be to take you there as you're growing up. It's basically little kid paradise and between fishing and swimming and getting to sleep outside, I really hope you'll love it there as much as the rest of us do.
Now that we know you're a boy, I've been in full-on nursery planning mode. While I didn't have everything planned out before we left the doctor's office last week, I did have it planned out a few hours later. I'm so excited to get started on everything, especially your special name quilt. Now if only we could decide on a name... :)
My son... My son... I just keep saying it over and over again. I've felt this whole time like you were a boy, but now that we know for sure it feels so real and wonderful. It will be a whole new experience for us to have a boy, and your dad is very excited that he'll no longer be outnumbered by the girls. More than anything we're just so happy that you're healthy and growing right on track. 20 weeks down, 20 more to go!
At long last... I've finally compiled my maternity series photos into a slideshow! I'm also planning to make the photos into a photo book at some point. Looking back at all the photos, I'm so glad I decided to do this project. There were many weeks where I sooo didn't feel like being photographed, and there were more bad hair days than I would have liked, but I'm really happy to have this so I can eventually show Emma how much I truly loved being pregnant with her. Thanks for sharing this journey with me! :-)