introducing RYAN.

ryan m. griffeth



Born on February 18, 2010 at 2:37pm
9 pounds 7 ounces
22 inches long



Let me start by saying that we absolutely adore our little baby boy. He’s been so good so far. And I have to say going on round two with a newborn is much easier than the first go-around! I think it also helps that Ryan is a little more laid back than his big bro. Which means his mom is a little more laid back, too.



Here’s the long story of the arrival of Ryan . . .

7:00am: My mom arrives at my house to wait for Nate to wake up. She is taking care of him while we’re at the hospital.

7:30am: Wes and I check in to St. Rose Hospital where I get hooked up to all of the machines to start the induction.

8:30am: Pain is starting to come but I’m not dilating and he’s still really far up there.

10am: Broke my water to try to get labor going a little faster.

10:30am: Contractions are coming . . . still far apart but they are painful.

11:00am: Contractions are getting closer together and are killing me but I’m still at a 3.

Noon: Epidural man is called – can’t take the pain anymore.

12:30pm – my hero walks in to the room with a big needle for my back. The epidural started to kick in but I was still feeling contractions so he came in and gave me more medicine and then life was good. Real good. By now I had made it to a 6.

1:15pm – I was feeling great, relaxing in my bed trying to get a little rest.

2:00pm – My nurse, Tiffany came in and asked if I was feeling any pressure down there. I told her no so she checked me and his head was literally ready to come out! Doctor Miller was called & I was told not to push.

2:15pm – Sam arrives just in time to witness the delivery.

2:20pm – Dr. Miller came in & got ready to delivery Nate. {at this point, the only pressure I was feeling was really high in my belly. He was positioned really funny in my belly – it looked like a big tumor!}

2:37pm – I pushed twice and he slithered on out!











I was a little hesitant to be induced but after pushing out a 9+ pound baby I was glad the doc recommended it. Since Sam is in nursing school – I provided her with a nursing experience and had her come in the room with us for Ryan’s delivery. It was fun to have her there!

As Ryan came out, my first thought was that he looks nothing like Nate other than they both have their dad’s “butt chin”. Then I immediately realized how big he was as he was kicking Dr. Miller. She commented that she’d never been kicked quite like that by a baby – and then called him a toddler due to his size. We were all shocked he didn’t weigh over 10 pounds. It’s amazing how big of a difference a few pounds makes on a newborn. Ryan doesn’t feel nearly as fragile & newborn-like as Nate did!



Because Ryan weighed a decent amount, he had to pass 3 blood sugar tests in the first 4 hours of his life. The nurses told me the best way for him to ensure a pass is to feed him. So he had his first feeding right after he was born and that’s when we discovered that our little boy LOVES to eat! He ate for a full 30 minutes on his first feeding. What a nice surprise that was for me. I’m not used to a newborn who likes to eat. Ryan latched right on and it was great. It definitely took a lot of the stress out of having a newborn. With all that eating came a lot of poop!

The first 24 hours of Ryan’s life were fabulous. Wes and I were able to enjoy our little dude and each other for a full day and it was kinda nice to sit and enjoy each other after the craziness we’ve had in the last few weeks. Plus we knew the “just hanging out with our baby” would end as soon as we got home to a crazy 2.5 year old. Plus, he pretty much slept for the first day of his life which was nice. We had an occasional cry but he was a very content baby!





How am I doing? Well, when you push out a 9 pound 7 ounce baby in 2 pushes, it’s bound to cause some damage down there so I’ll be dealing with that for a while. But Nate did the same thing to me so at least I was prepared this time. And holy cow – your uterus really contracts after delivering a second baby. Every time I feed Ryan it feels like I’m back in labor! But none of that seems to matter too much when I get to sit and cuddle with my little man.

Nate had a great time with my parent’s while we were at the hospital. Thanks to Kiley & Ali/Tripp for helping them out, too! We are very grateful for you all – we didn’t worry about Nate at all while we were gone.

A few hospital visitors . . . {Sam, how do I not have a picture of you?}





Leaving the hospital . . .




Nate’s reaction to baby Ryan coming soon . . .