Enjoy this slide show! If you have trouble getting it to play or want full screen images you can visit the site directly at this link.

Enjoy this short video of Ada waking up from a nap!
It is about 1 minute long and loading time will vary based on your internet connection. Cheers!

welcoming

Adalynne Banigan Mertz

born 5:07 am on October 27th, 2008
7 pounds 8.1 ounces
19.75 inches long

Ada made a rush entrance early this morning. After 41 weeks in utero she wanted to get out in a hurry! Kara was in labor for just under three hours and as we arrived at the hospital she was fully dilated. Twenty seven minutes later, we were holding our beautiful healthy daughter in our arms. Both Ada and Kara are healthy and happy and are tired from the intense start to the day. We appreciate all of your support and well wishes and will post more pictures over the next several days! We feel blessed to have had such a positive birth experience and to finish with a healthy mom and a miraculous child.

Week 41

Ummm- remarkably little to report from the home front. We are waiting! We are keeping busy by cooking, walking the dog, and catching up on our Netflix queue! We have been able to go out for dinner several times this week and enjoyed a few last lazy mornings together. The baby is still active and Kara is still feeling well!

Get out and Vote!
Thanks for everyone who voted in our last poll about the gender of the baby. It was fun to watch the daily totals change and the lead switch hands… we will have to wait and see if the wisdom of the masses comes to be!

We have posted a new poll about when the baby will come. We know that the baby will be born *sometime* during the upcoming week and here is your chance to cast your ballot. What better way to get ready for a presidential election than some practice voting! Enjoy!

Mid-week Check In:

Things are good here. The baby is still inside Kara… for the moment! We visited the midwives today and the baby is very low and there are lots of signs that Kara’s body is moving forward towards labor. That being said, we have an acupuncture (shown to effectively induce labor) appointment for tomorrow afternoon and another appointment with the midwives on Monday that will include fetal monitoring and an ultrasound.

We are ready and excited. Kara is a total rock star as she continues to work full time and has taking up walking Cappy on a 5 mile loop every afternoon! We hope this posting finds you enjoying the fall as much as we are!

Week 40

Well, week 40 is finally here! Tuesday’s full moon came and went without event! Even though we have been counting down the weeks and more recently the days, our official “due date” has snuck up on us!

This week’s midwife appointment went well. The baby’s heartbeat was again between 130 and 150 and it is still head down and in “good position”! Our midwife palpated my belly and showed us exactly where the baby’s back, butt, and feet were. Even though the baby is moving around a lot, they are small movements involving mostly kicks, punches, and hiccups.

We are feeling super excited and raring to go and can’t wait to share the exciting news with everyone!

Week 39

We had an appointment with the midwives last Monday and they confirmed that the baby is in good position and has “dropped!” Though there is no specific time line associated with this change in position it is another indicator that the process is moving forward… very exciting! It was a busy week at school as the campus hosted its annual Parent’s Weekend complete with sports games, parent / teacher conferences, and even mini-classes for the parents!

Kara continues to feel well (though a bit more tired) and feels blessed to have had such a healthy active pregnancy. We have enjoyed the fall weather with long walks around the reservoir, visits to the dog park, and time outside. It is hard to believe that we are just seven days away from the due date!

a picture of the tree outside our apartment

Hi there... we are taking a shot at adding a slideshow to the blog (pics from my birthday).



Try following this link if the sideshow doesn't automatically load and play in the posting! enjoy!

Week 38

Oh my gosh, Kara is big! In what I consider a very ironic moment today, Kara caught a profile view of herself in the mirror and remarked, “My belly really has gotten big, hasn’t it?”

We continue with the weekly appointments and everything continues to be normal and on schedule- which is good. In the last few weeks K’s appetite has grown to keep pace with the baby’s needs. It has been startling to watch her portion size outgrow mine(!) but she continues to remain svelte and trim with only her belly growing!

We made our final baby preparations over this last weekend and have rounded out the baby room with “the details.” We are now fully stocked with a baby thermometer, assorted rash creams, and a night light! We are both super-excited and happy!