Nate, Amy, Carter, & Olivia News

Carter Singing “Real Gone”

Sun, 8 Mar 2009 15:46:53 -0700

Carter has a favorite song and is it Sheryl Crow singing the theme song from the movie Cars called “Real Gone”. He will ask for it to be played the second we get in the car and then again and again over and over until he has had his fill (which could be the whole car trip). Recently he started to sing it so I got him to listen him to it on the headphones while I secretly recorded him. When he is mouthing it he is doing it because that is what I am doing. Here is a link to the video

Some new changes to the Gallery

Sat, 24 Jan 2009 19:16:01 -0800

We put some new pictures and videos up! Finally, I know! There is a new Disneyland gallery, some new videos, and a whole bunch of new photos in “Carter Cuteness”. Enjoy!

Trip to Oregon

Sun, 29 Jun 2008 22:47:20 -0700

We just got back from our trip to Oregon. We visited all the families and then went camping along the beautiful Metolius river near Sisters. We were so happy to see everyone and will have to do it again soon. There is nothing like camping in Oregon. Check out the web gallery

Carter Painting Himself

Sun, 8 Jun 2008 22:52:07 -0700

Check out this hilarious video of Carter painting himself. This is almost a daily occurrence around here. He loves it!

Daddy Had a Track Day

Thu, 5 Jun 2008 23:03:07 -0700

I went through a set of brakes :( but man did I have fun. Check out the video to see me do a lap

Carter's Birth Story

Mon, 30 Jan 2006 19:59:59 -0800

It is Thursday and we had decided to wait on breaking the water bag until Friday but in the meantime we wanted to continue to do what we could. So we went for another long walk around 5:00 pm. Almost as soon as we left Amy's contractions started happening on a very regular basis. By the time we got home, 2 hours later, we called Diane (our midwife) who came over and told us we were officially in labor.

Diane said we would probably have Carter abut the same time the following day so we settled down into the night expecting things to mainly continue as they were. Instead Amy's contractions quickly became much stronger (meaning active labor) and when we called Diane she immediately came right back. We all prepared to have a baby by breakfast

Amy spent a lot of time in the shower and I spent a lot of time pushing on her tailbone. I think I could do it professionally now. Around 4 am we got into the tub. Amy says that the contractions were unbearable out of the tub and that once she got into the tub it was much better (though probably still completely unbearable if it was me). We worked through transition in the tub and then around 6 am she started pushing.

I guess 2 hours spent pushing is considered a long time. After 2 hours of Amy pushing, Carter still wasn't anywhere near crowning. Diane said that the only thing keeping us from going to the hospital was 2 things. One, his heart rate never dipped even for a second. They would check it after every push and it was always perfect. The other reason was that each time Diane was about to suggest going to the hospital Amy was able to move him forward just a bit more.

At 8 am it was decided that maybe a change of scenery would help. We moved onto a birth stool to see if gravity would help. It didn't. 20 minutes later we were in bed and almost immediately we saw lots of progress. It seemed that we had found the place Carter would be born. Within 20 mins or so he was crowning and the excitement built. I don't know where Amy got the energy for each push but somehow even after 3 hours of pushing she found energy for the next one. Not once did she say she couldn't do it and I will forever admire her for it. At 9:38 am Carter's head came out and he tried to take a few breaths.

I guess that babies take their first breaths when they are all the way out because the birth canal squeezes everything out of their lungs. He still had stuf fin his mouth and lungs and when he breathed in he started to choke. Diane told Amy that Carter needed to come out right then and that she need to push non-stop. Diane worked on Carter to help and as soon as the shoulders cleared he flew out and pooped all over her.

Within seconds he was laying on Amy and it was wonderful. They cleared his mouth and nose he began crying. A few minutes later he was nursing. I never realized how quickly you could love someone so much. It was such a wonderful thing having Carter at our house. It was as relaxing an environment as is possible for Amy and Carter came out undrugged and very alert. He was completely ours immediately. Diane made everything better than we had ever imagined.

Welcome Carter

Fri, 27 Jan 2006 18:48:44 -0800

Carter is finally here after such a long wait and boy was he ever worth it. It took us a long time to post this because we just had the craziest 24 hours we ever will experience. Carter and Amy are very healthy after 3.5 hours of pushing! He is 8 lbs, 21 inches and was born at 9:40 AM this morning PST. We cannot wait until all of you get a chance to meet him. He is so precious. More news, pictures, and videos will come in the immediate future. Thank you for all your love and support. Nate, Amy, and Carter Thelen

WE ARE IN LABOR!

Thu, 26 Jan 2006 21:51:02 -0800

Finally, we are in labor! After a 2 hour walk with consistent contractions, Nate called Diane and gave her the latest information. She just left 10 minutes ago and confirmed that I am laboring. I am 90% effaced and just about 5cm dilated. I feel so blessed to have come so far with so little pain! My contractions are getting stronger and closer together. Diane says that we could have him as soon as 6-7 hours, but more likely sometime tomorrow evening. I agree seeing as how long it's taken Carter to get where he is now. Nate and I are thrilled and can't wait to meet our son. Thank you to everyone for keeping us in your thoughts and prayers.

Change of plans

Thu, 26 Jan 2006 14:16:54 -0800

Nate and I have decided to wait until tomorrow (or maybe later) to break my water. Carter has moved into a more favorable position; however, breaking my water puts us on a time clock and a commitment to give birth, whether that be vaginally or by c-section. As all of you know having a home birth is very important to both Nate and I, but having a healthy baby is even more so, which is why we don't want to intervene until necessary. Our doctor gave us the go ahead to wait until tomorrow. We are checking to make sure there are no medical complications that would preclude us from waiting possibly until Monday. The fact that Carter has dropped some more is also a good sign. No further dilation or effacement as of today, but I seem to be having more contractions that I can actually feel. Keep us in your thoughts and prayers. Much love to you all!

It will start today for sure

Thu, 26 Jan 2006 09:04:51 -0800

The accupuncture went well last night, things do seem to be progressing (albeit very slowly). We have made a decision to break Amy's water this morning. Part of us says that since he is doing well in there and Amy's placenta is going strong, maybe we should just leave him be. The doctor we went and saw (who is very much trusted by our midwife) thinks that even so, we should induce on Saturday. Neither of use think that much is going to change in the next 24 hours. So... We will let you guys know when active labor starts!