After eating his first meal

Baby is here!!

Posted by Jen Landes~ We welcomed Chase Ellis Whittemore into this world on May 2nd at 3:07am! He weighed 7 pounds 10.6 ounces, and was 19 1/2 inches. He is so beautiful! It was an amazing moment. Jill was so strong, courageous, and beautiful throughout. Jodi and Tim were so excited to see and finally hold their new little guy. It is Jodi's birthday too, and she said, "Jill just gave me the best present in the whole world. I don't ever need another birthday present ever." We got proof on tape in case Tim needs it later. :)

Jill was able to get her first epidural, and so she was very comfortable. After a very long day and night, Chase decided to get into the right position and make his exit fairly quickly. The Dr. checked her saying she was complete, and with two pushes he was out. Jill and baby are both doing great. Tim fed him his first bottle, and when I left Jodi and Jill were admiring his cute little fingers and toes. We all thanked God for such an amazing gift and blessing to us all, and for taking care of everyone involved along the way.

This Is It!

Yes, Jill has dialated to 3 centimeters. Though there isn't a room in the inn, they aren't sending her home. We have Jill's sitter, Rachel, coming to our hotel room in an hour and Tim is running me to the hospital in the meantime. We will have a baby by morning. I can't believe it is real and I get to meet my son. I'll keep in touch . . .

Still Waiting

Jill spoke with her doctor who said they were going to call her several times today, but they kept having women in labor coming in and there hasn't been room. Jill packed her hospital bags and headed to Seattle today to do some serious walking. We figured if she was contracting, maybe they would admit her . . .

Well, she is. She just called me and is 10 minutes from the hospital. Her contractions are irregular, but getting to be more painful. The doctor said to go into triage and if she has not dialated to more than one centimeter (where she has been for the last two weeks) then they will send her home for the night and we will be first on the waiting list tomorrow. We have been first on the list since mid-morning today and thought for sure we'd have a baby by now.

Our family has been in our hotel room for 24 hours and we were getting a little stir crazy, so we headed to the mall for a short visit. We got the most adorable outfits for our little boy, including a precious gown for him to wear home with his initials embroidered on the front.

So, back to Jill. She will call me in the next 45 minutes to an hour and I'll know then whether I'm heading straight to the hospital or sleeping in our hotel room tonight. I will add a post the minute she calls me. It's always interesting with things in life like this that you don't have control over.

May 1st Update

It's 2 p.m. now and we haven't been called. Jill is next on the waiting list for induction and we have heard that they are swamped at the hospital. Her doctor's office called and said they are doing everything they can to get us in this afternoon. The kids can't stop talking about how they can't wait to meet their brother today. We're hoping it is today, but if it isn't, tomorrow is a great day to meet him, too. We're just happy to be in the home stretch. :-)

May 1st!

It's 7:15 a.m. and today is the day we are waiting to be called in for induction. I only slept a couple of hours last night . . . had a lot on my mind and anxiously awaiting my son. I prayed for the delivery- for him to make it through perfectly and for Jill as she sacrificially gives birth to our son. Speaking of prayer, today is the National Day of Prayer that was designated 52 years ago by Congress. I think it would be pretty neat to have a baby today. Jill thinks we have a great chance of being called in this morning, so we're gearing up and waiting. I guess that's what we've done for a while. We'll do our best to post updates throughout the day. Thanks so much for caring about our families. Love, Jodi

Looks Like It Will Be Thursday!

Jill writes-

After a day spent yesterday walking through Snohomish, weeding the yard, and walking up & down my long driveway feeling like labor is nowhere in sight, we are preparing for an induction on Thursday. I am staying active and out of the house as much as possible to avoid going stir-crazy waiting. I went to the mall today with Jen & Lori and met my mom to shop at Costco Home, while Jodi stayed back and worked in the office....I felt a little guilty for not doing the same, but my attention is just not anywhere but trying to get ready for the delivery! I have mentally checked out for now (from my business, I mean) until the baby comes. :)

Ben said everyone at school keeps asking him if I have had the baby yet. He told Jodi tonight that he is getting tired of having to say "not yet" and he wants to be able to say yes finally. I think we all do!

Tomorrow night we are all planning one last dinner together and a movie. We have Rachel coming to watch the kids and we are going to have sushi and see "Baby Mama". For those of you who aren't familiar with it, it stars Tina Fey and Amy Poehler from Saturday Night Live. Amy is a surrogate for Tina and it's supposed to be very funny. Quite appropriate for the evening before delivery, right?

As for the picture below....Jodi & I went back and forth about whether or not to post it. Sometimes when the baby is in certain positions and I have a contraction, it will make my belly into the wierdest shapes. So last night we got a picture of it...a big ball on top, and totally flat in front. It's so bizarre! I guess all modesty goes out the window since you all are part of this! :)