An Early Christmas Gift...

First, I set up my Christmas tree... a bit early, I know!



Next, I wished and wished and wished for some gifts to put beneath the tree...

OH LOOK, my wishes came true!

Our precious gift!

Brennan's One Month Check-Up!

Well, yesterday was Brennan's one month check-up and he is doing wonderful! He was born weighing 7lbs. 1oz, but has gained two whole pounds! At 9 lbs. 1oz. and 21 inches long, he's getting so big already!

We are trying something a little new because he is having trouble with some red blotchy rashes. Our doctor thinks he may be allergic to milk-based formula (he's still breast feeding, but we have been introducing formula for when I go back to work). So, we're supposed to switch to soy formula to try and clear up his skin.

Otherwise, Brennan is developmentally right on track. He holds his head up really well, stays alert for longer periods of time, recognizes voices and can follow movement with his eyes.

He is getting over his first cold... poor baby! Let's just say Mommy and Daddy had a few sleepless nights with a congested newborn!

We are looking forward to his first holiday with family and friends. We will be heading to the Twin Cities to have Thanksgiving with the Gray side of the family so everyone can meet Lil B.

Happy Holidays

from the Kunst Family!

A Morning in the Life of Lil B!

Step #1

First, I wake up at 4am to eat, make a mess of myself, and signal to Mom that I need a bath!

Step #2

Next, Mom washes me up, making sure to get the crusty milk from my neck folds and crusty poo from my thigh rolls!

Step #3

After my bath, I hang out for a bit wrapped up in my favorite lion towel.

Step #4

Now that I'm all clean, Mom dresses me in my new racoon long johns that my Grandma Gray got me. Aren't I precious???

Step #5

Last, but not least, I relax in my swing lounger and get ready for a nap. This way Mom will have time to take a shower... she really does smell like sour milk all the time!

Baby Faces!

The many faces of Brennan Adam Kunst...

Father and Son!

There is nothing more precious in all the world than a new daddy and his newborn son. Baby Brennan looks more and more like his dad everyday... check out these pics!

Brennan has arrived!

I can hardly believe it's true, but our baby boy has arrived and is absolutely perfect! I know it took me a while to post this, but it has been a hectic first two weeks of his life! Let me fill you in on all the details... starting back on Wednesday, October 22nd:

Well, on Wednesday morning, I had an appointment with my doctor to check my blood pressure (which had been rising slightly for the past few visits). The appointment revealed my elevated blood pressure, so she asked me to go over to the hospital for a non-stress test to see how the baby was doing and to monitor my blood pressure for a longer period of time. I spent about an hour and a half resting while being monitored before my doctor came back and told me I would have to be on bedrest for the remainder of my pregnancy. So... I went to work to clear out my things and let them know my leave was starting a week early and then headed home.

Now, while I was told to limit my activity to the "kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom", I figured resting on a La-Z-Boy in front of the TV was good enough. The hours ticked away one by one as I waited for time to pass and after six gruelling hours.... my water broke! So much for extended bedrest!

Adam got home about five minutes after my water had broken, so I met him on the front porch to let him know we'd need to head to the hospital pretty quick... let's just say surprise is an understatement for what Adam was feeling. We took our time getting ready to head to town and arrived at the Family Birth Center at around 10:30pm.

Once it had been verified that my water had in fact broken, they put me into my delivery room and told me to relax and get some sleep. At this point, my contractions had not started; however, a few hours later, that was a very different story. Throughout the night, my contractions got stronger as my hubby slept soundly on the rock hard hospital couch. By 7:00am, the nurses arrived and check to see if I was dialated (for the first time since arriving at the hospital). I was dialated to a 4, so they agreed to start the epidural process. They finished up with the epidural around 8:30 and another nurse checked my progress.

Much to her surprise, as well as ours, I was dialated to 9 1/2! Let's just say, everyone started moving a bit quicker at this point. Within another half hour I was pushing with the help of Adam and the nurse. My mom was also there to offer moral support (thank God!).

Brennan Adam Kunst arrived at 10:45am on Thursday, October 23rd, 2008. He was a healthy 7lbs. 1oz. and 20 inches long with a full head of dark brown hair. I held our bundle of joy for about 15 minutes before he was taken to get cleaned up and measured.

At this point, my doctor delivered a healthy placenta and left the room wishing us all the best of luck. The nurses began to clean up and began pushing on my stomach to finish th e birthing process. Unfortunately, all was not well at this point. I began to have incredible pain in my stomach region, much like the contractions I had had before delivery. When the pain would not subside, my nurses rushed to get my doctor back in the room. She believed that I had what was called an inverted uterus - basically, my uterus had been turned inside out. As this is a very rare condition, my doctor had never dealt with it before, so she called in another doctor to verify the inverted uterus. He had the nurses rush me to the OR to stop the excessive bleeding and to fix me up.

Because of this little complication, I was in the hospital until Sunday around noon. Since then Adam, Brennan, and I have been adjusting to life as a new family and loving every minute of it!

Whew, what a long story! Now check out the good stuff... the pictures of our little angel!

Baby Shower Madness!

Well, September has been the month for Baby Showers! On September 4th, we had a Fastenal School of Business night out celebrating Baby Brennan. Thanks to FSB, I was able to use a Shopko gift card to purchase a Jeep Jogging Stroller (not that I plan on jogging though). The nice air tires will come in handy on the gravel roads out here in the country.

On September 7th, Tiffany, Tara, and Kim threw us a baby shower for the Kunst/Koenig side of the family. It was held at our house in the afternoon and we had a wonderful turnout (even more than expected!). There were playdough babies and babyfood tasting (Warning: DO NOT TRY Mac & Cheese). The food tasted great and Brennan was spoiled beyond belief! Brennan received his very own homemade baseball bat from Umpy and his first John Deere apparel from Angie (which Adam claims he will wear "a lot"). He also received handmade blankets from his Grandma Kunst, Shelby, and Great-Grandma Muzzy.

September 13th brought the next shower, held at my aunt Colleen's house. Once again, the turnout was great and the spoiling continued as Brennan received diapers, clothes, toys, and a handmade quilt from Great-Grandma Gray. Colleen even painted him his very own Time Out chair, though we all know he'll be a perfect angel and never need it! Overall, it turned out to be a great time with lots of food, laughter, tears, and story telling. Good thing Adam was there to help haul it all home! Now he's all set, and we just have to wait for him to get here!

As Baby Shower Madness comes to a close, Adam and I both want to thank everyone for the love and support as our family makes a new addition!

I'll keep everyone posted as I get wider and his b-day gets nearer!