out and about

miles and i ventured out to take the dogs for a walk around the block today. robin got it on tape so we could post a new video here.

photo smorgasbord

miles is a great baby!! he is eating well and has even let us get four straight hours of sleep each night...this boy takes after his daddy for sure :) we have survived the first bath at home (he hated it), the first sprinkler action all over the changing table, our first venture out of the house (only 30 minutes behind schedule), and the encounter with tinker and tessie. so far...so good! we are smitten with his every little move and we are both head over heels in love with this little baby boy. thanks again for all of the well wishes...we truly appreciate the support. miles is changing so much every day and we (of course) are capturing as much as we can on film! thought you all would enjoy some new photos!

my going home outfit

waiting for dad to get the car seat ready

my first dose of milk...yummy!

sleeping in on monday morning

my first bath

family photo

multi-tasking daddy!

full tummy = SO sleepy

taking it all in...happy baby!!

we're breaking out

on Sunday the family is getting out of the hospital and we can finally take Miles home with us to show him his nursery and introduce him to Tinker and Tessie.
whether you haven't met Miles yet or already have and can't get enough of him, you're more than welcome to call us to come by to visit.
a word of caution, however: the Med City Marathon starts at 7am and there will be a water station set up on the sidewalk right outside our front door. i'm not sure how long the race lasts, but there may still be higher than normal foot/car traffic on our street for part of the day.

EDIT 12:30PM: we made it home and Miles loves it here, especially since we're getting to watch the Twins game together on the couch.

thank you

I snagged the computer from kyle this evening while he snuggled with miles! we wanted to thank everyone for all the well wishes. we are so blessed to have such supportive family and friends. miles is doing great. he is a good sleeper and eater...usually excels more at the latter! we are enjoying every moment and can't believe that he's already changing and he's not even 2 days old. these first days are speeding by and we are trying our best to take everything in and enjoy it all. don't worry...we have documented a lot through pictures and videos!

meet Miles Edward Kroening

***see video update below***
Robin and i would like to introduce everyone to Miles Edward Kroening.

for those of you keeping stats at home, he was finally born at 12:57am on Thursday, May 22nd. he's 22" long and weighs a whopping 9lbs 8oz.
now for the rest of the details. after our last update at 10pm we had two doctors consult with each other and determined that Miles wasn't going to be making the traditional descent because his head was turned to the side, not facing downward as is necessary. they decided that a cesarian section birth was going to be the best method to finally bring him into the world. this meant that after Robin pushed like a champ for almost 2 1/2 hours (she got some rave reviews from the med staff) she was wheeled out and prepped for the procedure around midnight. two hours later the whole family was resting comfortably while Miles tried for his first meal.
we're planning on getting some rest until mid-morning today and then taking calls to see if visitors are up for introductions. we don't know what room we'll be moving to shortly but a call to my cell phone should get you the necessary info. enjoy these pictures below or come take some of your own.




EDIT 3:45PM: from video taken early this afternoon and here for everyone to see, the animated adventures of Miles:

baby mama drama

i had decided yesterday that, even though it didn't look like the baby was coming until the scheduled induction on Thursday morning, i would take the day off to spend with Robin and get everything prepared.

well, at 8am we got a phone call from one of the nurses in Labor & Delivery to ask if we were still planning on coming in for the induction... today. they had written on their schedules 5/21 but had written on our appointment card 5/22. anyway, they asked us if we'd rather come in today, so Robin flew out of bed as fast as a pregnant woman can fly and Grandma Nancy and

Aunt Nykkole whisked us to the hospital by 9:30.

right now Robin has gotten her IV hooked up and they've decided which induction procedure to use, we're just waiting for them to get the big show started.

this is the future papa signing off for now but i'll be providing updates when i can.

EDIT 1:00PM: one picture was taken at about 9:15am before we left the house. the other was taken around 10:45am, waiting for the drugs that speed up the labor to kick in.

EDIT 4:00PM: the nurses have Robin using a birthing ball (a fancy exercise ball) to relieve some of the pressure on her back. she was given Pitocin at about 3:15 with the plan to increase the dosage every 20 minutes. things are moving along steadily.

EDIT 5:00PM: it was agreed upon to have Robin's water broken, which happened at 4:45. Pitocin continues to drip through her IV and contractions have gotten stronger and more frequent. so, after being here for 7 1/2 hours, we might be getting somewhere. Robin is staying strong and making me really proud.

EDIT 6:30PM: there will be no heroes made here today. Robin decided at 5:30 to start an epideral and finally has it in place and working now. she's still doing great and everything is advancing normally. if you're wondering about me (i know all of you are), Aunt Beth and Uncle Seth delivered Arby's to quell the growling in my stomach.

EDIT 8:15PM: with Robin's most recent checkup the experts have determined she's 8cm dilated and nearly 100% effaced. the drugs have been quite effective. also, Clayt, Robin says thanks for the advice and encouragement. classic.

EDIT 9:15PM: the most recent checkup reveals Robin is 9 1/2cm dilated. we're currently full speed toward delivery, so stay tuned.

EDIT 10:00PM: doctors deemed Robin fully dilated at 9:35 and Robin's been doing some effective pushing since then.

baby says hi...

...well sort of. we spent last night from 9-11pm in labor and delivery wondering if baby k was going to finally make his/her debut...alas...no show. so I went to my scheduled doctor appointment for the non-stress test and an ultrasound. baby looks GREAT! he/she is very comfortable and I'm still only dilated to 1 cm. looks like we'll be waiting for the induction on thursday morning to find out what this baby is. in the meantime...here are a couple of head shots of the baby. his/her first modeling gig! ha...they are both of the face - the one labeled LIPS is basically of the nose and mouth and in the one labeled FACE you can see the eyes, nose, and mouth. hope these will tide you all over until we get a real picture in a couple of days! we are VERY anxious to meet this little one.

41 weeks!

here's a shot taken around 7pm Sunday night. Robin has never wanted to have a baby more in her whole life. we're both anxiously awaiting the time when we can head to the hospital and finally experience the delivery, but we still don't know for sure when that will be. we have a scheduled induction date of this Thursday, May 22nd in case the baby decides not to make his/her decent by then.
i will be going in to work on Monday morning, but Robin has decided to end her school year early and stay home until the baby comes, as she's can't really stay comfortable and agile at the same time anymore. i'll still be providing frequent updates here so everyone can know how the three of us are doing.

UPDATE: 5/19/2008 11:45PM - STILL no baby

due date excitement is lacking

today is the due date for the baby to arrive, but we're not finding any progress on the subject of baby delivery. when the time comes, however, we will be providing any newsworthy information here, so keep an eye out for an email letting you know to check in on the website.

UPDATE: 5/13/2008 1:25PM - STILL no baby

UPDATE: 5/14/2008 8:00AM - STILL no baby

UPDATE: 5/14/2008 9:30PM - STILL no baby

UPDATE: 5/15/2008 7:45AM - STILL no baby

UPDATE: 5/15/2008 4:15PM - STILL no baby

UPDATE: 5/16/2008 9:30AM - STILL no baby

UPDATE: 5/16/2008 10:15PM - STILL no baby

UPDATE: 5/17/2008 4:15PM - STILL no baby

UPDATE: 5/17/2008 11:00PM - STILL no baby

UPDATE: 5/18/2008 10:00AM - STILL no baby

UPDATE: 5/18/2008 5:00PM - STILL no baby

"yes, we'll hold"

the baby currently has us on hold. we're just waiting around at this point to see if Sunday will indeed be the day that the baby decides to make its move.
we wanted to give an update on Robin since it's been a couple of weeks. she's looking as great as ever, even through her discomfort. she's decided to share with you a shot from "preggo-cam" so everyone can see what the view of her swollen feet look like. she's eagerly looking forward to the swelling going away once the baby arrives.
i'm also including a couple pictures of the nursery since it's now completed. thanks again to Uncle Seth and Aunt Beth for help with the paint, Grandpa Mike and Grandma Nancy for the crib, and Shevik's for the bureaus.
enjoy the pictures, and don't forget to vote in the poll if you haven't already - time is running out!