Melt my heart!

Selah has recently started sleeping through the night ( Praise God! ) So I have been actually waking up before her in the morning. This morning, I got up and went into the kitchen to make coffee and looked over as she was fidgeting around in her packnplay. When I walked by her bed, she looked up at me and followed me with her eyes. When I came back by, she looked straight at me and gave the biggest sweetest smile, it melted my heart. I don't know how I am ever going to be able to stop having babies. They are so precious and sweet!
Sophie right now is so hysterical. She cracks me up numerous times a day with the things she comes up with. Yesterday we made cards for Daddy and she kept calling it "arts and cracks" all day. Love it!
I love my kids and can't imagine life without them....

Sophie or Selah?

I had a little fun tonight finding similar pictures of sophie and selah. Can you tell who is who?

Family pictures!

Kellen Coldiron is a talented photographer among many other things. Check out a few of the pics he took of our family this weekend! Despite lots of wind and extreme cold, they turned out great... Will someone teach me to take great pictures like this????

http://kellenjacob.blogspot.com/2008/11/warren-family.html

Life after baby...

This is when Selah was still a tiny newborn size. She was 7 lbs when we brought her home from the hospital. At her one month checkup, she weighed 10 lbs 6 oz. At her 2 month visit, she weighed 12 lbs 12 oz. I cannot believe how fast she is growing. I guess all those feedings every 2 hours during the night were really doing something! Selah started smiling in her sleep in the hospital. Now she does it all the time and it melts my heart. Her Daddy is the best at getting her to smile.
Selah at about 1 week old. This is a picture that looks so much like Sophie.
This is Sophie at 3 months, but don't they look a lot alike?!?

Only 5 days after we brought Selah home from the hospital, we got to celebrate Sophie's birthday. We had to change our original plan of a birthday party at the park. But we still had a fun family birthday at our house. Sophie had a blast and got lots of dress ups and a doll house. I can't believe how big she is and how fast it has all gone by. Three short years ago I was bringing her home from the hospital.

I love this song

OK, so I am too busy to post much lately, but i found the lyrics to my new fave song online, so here they are....

The song should be playing right now. If not, it's on my playlist at the bottom of the page=)

BROOKE FRASER LYRICS

"Shadowfeet"

Walking, stumbling on these shadowfeet

toward home,

a land that i've never seen

I am changing: less and less asleep

made of different stuff than when i began

and i have sensed it all along

fast approaching is the day

[CHORUS]

when the world has fallen out from under me

I'll be found in you, still standing

when the sky rolls up and mountains fall on their knees

when time and space are through

I'll be found in you

Theres distraction buzzing in my head

saying in the shadows it's easier to stay

but I've heard rumours of true reality

whispers of a well-lit way

[CHORUS]

You make all things new

[CHORUS]

[CHORUS 2]

When the world has fallen out from under me

I'll be found in you, still standing

Every fear and accusation under my feet

when time and space are through

I'll be found in you

Selah Rose Birth Story

Ok, here goes...

I wrote a lot of this in the hospital and soon after I got home. It is not a literary masterpiece by any means. Lots of grammatical errors I am sure, but I don't have time to edit it too much and also, in it's rough form, it's kind of more pure I think. It's just what came to mind immediately when I remembered the experience. Enjoy, and sorry it is so long. You are getting 14 hours worth of material =) Also, to answer a few questions, I did not use any particular method like Bradley or hypnosis. I just read lots of birth stories, used my own experience and listened to my body as my coping techniques. And yes, if anyone is interested, I'd love to talk/help/coach although I am by no means an expert at all! I just had a goal, was committed and had a LOT of help! Thanks to everyone for all your sweet comments. I am flattered that anyone is interested in all this. I really wanted to do the birth story and slideshow for myself, but I am glad everyone has liked it. You are all so sweet.
Abby



39 weeks – September 10, 2008 –
At 7:17 am I looked at the clock with a contraction, just to take note, and said a little prayer that this would be the start of something. They kept coming and when I went to the bathroom, I was bleeding a little. At 7:30 am I called Trey and told him I thought I might be in labor. He had been at the hospital since 6 am and I told him not to leave yet, but that I’d keep him posted. I called my mom and she said she’d come over and get Sophie. I told her I wanted to finish packing, go get a pedicure and clean the house some. I wasn’t hurting, just noticing the contractions and I felt funny. I don’t know how to explain it, but I just knew something was different and this was it.
At 8:30 am my mom got to our house. Sophie had just woken up. I was rushing around trying to clean up and get things ready. I still wasn’t hurting too much so I went for a walk for 40 minutes to get the contractions stronger. I was booking it around our neighborhood. I had so much energy! When I got back, I packed Sophie a bag and my mom took her home.
After my walk things seemed to get a little more intense, so at 9:30 I called Dr Straughn’s office and told them what was going on. I knew it was still early so we decided that I’d come by the office and get checked around 1pm.
Around 10:00 am I noticed that the baby wasn’t moving much and I started getting a little nervous. I decided to skip the pedicure, called Trey and told him to go ahead and come home. I was feeling more crampy, had an upset stomach and feeling some pressure with the contractions. I still wasn’t hurting. I was just feeling very excited and having a huge burst of energy. I just knew I had to be in labor.
By 11:00 am Trey had gotten home. We picked up the house a little, got our bags packed, loaded the car and went the office. We prayed in the car that everything would go quickly and smoothly and that we’d have a healthy baby and mommy at the end of the day.
We arrived at the office around 12:00 pm and I was contracting every 2 minutes in the waiting room. I had been too busy to actually time them all morning. Dr Straughn called me 3-4/50/-2. (I had been in the office the day earlier when she stripped my membranes and I was 1.5-2 cm). They put the baby on the monitor in the office because I hadn’t felt much movement much since the contractions started. Baby looked great so we talked to Dr Straughn. She felt like I was in early labor and would definitely deliver in the next 24 hours. So we decided to go ahead and go to L&D. I hoped to get things going with some pitocin if needed and hopefully I would deliver soon rather than in the middle of the night when Dr Straughn wasn’t there. I really wanted her to deliver me and she wasn’t on call. Also Courtney (nurse/friend) was working that day and she was going to be able to take care of me.
At 12:30 we arrived at Labor and Delivery. I was almost embarrassed to show up down there not really hurting much. I was still smiling and so happy that we were going to have the baby today. Everybody was excited that I was there. I went to room 11 with Trey and Courtney. She admitted me and started my iv.
At 1:19 pm Dr Straughn checked me and I was 4 cm/60/-2. We called our parents to tell them we were at the hospital but not to come yet. Since I hadn’t changed much and was contracting every 2 minutes but not hurting, we started pitocin. Courtney pretty much just let me tell her when to increase it. That way it wasn’t ever more than I could handle.
At 3:44 pm I was 4/70/-2. I was definitely feeling more with the contractions after we started the pitocin, but they were still very tolerable. I sat on the birthing ball and stood up some swaying back and forth. I was not in pain, just slightly uncomfortable and they felt like strong menstrual cramps really. We were talking laughing and having fun. I kept telling Courtney to increase the pitocin since I hadn’t changed much and was still handling everything without difficulty.
My mom brought Sophie up to the hospital around 5 pm. She looked so cute in her big sister shirt. I got a picture of her with me sitting on the birthing ball. She definitely knew what was going on and was excited to meet the baby.
At 4:38 pm Dr Straughn checked me and I was 4 cm /75/-2. She had to leave to get her kids but told me she’d come back around 6 or 6:30. Her husband was going to be able to keep her kids for a little while. We talked about options and I felt that since things weren’t going very quickly, I wanted her to break my water so she did.
At 5:00 I was feeling the contractions more in my lower abdomen after my water was broken and wanted to get up again but only if the baby’s head had come down. Courtney checked me again and I was 4/70/0. So I felt ok getting up especially since we were able to keep the baby on the monitor even when I was standing or on the birthing ball. At this point I was only slightly more uncomfortable.
Dr straughn was back at 6:25 and I was 5/75/0. She said the head was way down. I was still talking through contractions even though I continued to get a little bit more uncomfortable. I tried not to be disappointed that things were moving slowly. I knew that we were about to turn the corner and things would start moving a lot faster. I just wanted to turn the corner soon! The whole day I tried to do whatever hurt the most as far as positions because I figured the more it hurt the more effective it was. The baby’s heartbeat looked great this whole time and stayed about 135 and was very reactive. We listened to my labor playlist on itunes and really were having fun.
Around 6:45 I forced Trey and Courtney to go eat some dinner since the Warrens had just brought food up to the hospital. At this point I was not able to talk through contractions, but was laughing and smiling in between them. Andrea (friend), Allison(sister in law) and Elaine(my sister) were in the room visiting with me. I would just say “hold on” when I started a contraction and breathe through it, then start talking again when it went away. Dr Straughn came in at 7:05 and I was 6/80/0. She felt like it wouldn’t be too much longer. Yea! By this time I was on 32 mu/min of pitocin which is a pretty good bit. Over the next hour, it was definitely getting more intense. I was alternating sitting on the bed sideways or sitting on the birthing ball. Courtney was stroking my arms and upper back while Trey put pressure on my lower back. I was still able to talk in between contractions, I just didn’t feel as smiley. They were reminding me to breathe and relax with contractions which helped so much. You wouldn’t think that would be so hard to remember. But your first instinct is to tense up.
At 7:55 pm Dr Straughn came in to check me and it about killed me to lie flat on my back. But I was 7/100/+1. Yea! I knew we were close and was so glad of it. I tried to stand up for a few contractions but it was too hard so I went back to the birthing ball.
Daphney the nurse/photographer had been in for a while taking pictures and suggested that I lie on my side with a rolled up towel under my stomach around 8:16 pm. She said that for some reason this was a great position at this point in labor to help get you complete (10 cm). So I got on my left side and Daphney was rubbing my forehead talking to me. Courtney was rubbing my arms and back. Trey was still putting pressure and rubbing my lower back. I quickly became much more uncomfortable and was really having trouble staying relaxed. Daphney told me to keep my eyes open which helped a lot. I tried to focus on something on the wall and told my body to relax with the contractions. When the contractions went away, I could totally relax and it felt so good. From about 6 cm on, in between contractions it felt like my body released something to help me relax. It was like a natural drug that made me feel sort of dreamy when the contraction started to go away. At this point, that dreamy feeling got even stronger. It was the best feeling ever when the contraction started going away. That is why I think this is totally doable, because you just do one contraction at a time.
At 8:27 pm I was nauseated and feeling tons of pressure. I knew I was in transition and started moaning a little which I couldn’t really help. I asked Courtney to turn down the pitocin because there seemed to be no break between contractions. I remember thinking, “it’s too late for me to get an epidural.” I think I even said aloud, “This is when you want the epidural.” It was the only brief moment when I started wondering why I had wanted to do this. However, the thought went through my mind and left just as quickly because I knew I was about to have to push a baby out. My whole body was tingling like it was asleep which was weird, but it was almost like a natural pain killer.
A few minutes later at 8:32 pm I started to yell because I was feeling even more pressure. Courtney told me I was 9.5 cm and to push if I needed to. I think I screamed as they called the desk to tell them to page Dr. Straughn for delivery. Everybody started running around getting the room ready. I knew it wouldn’t be long. I couldn’t believe I was really doing this. I started pushing involuntarily and let everybody know. They told me to keep pushing and I remember being scared to. I pushed a little and it didn’t feel that good at first. The room was ready, Dr. Straughn was there, and when I started really pushing as hard as I could, it felt so much better. I couldn’t really feel the contractions anymore, I just knew when I needed to push. It was amazing how my body just knew what to do. I asked them if I was crowning. They said I was and I don’t remember this really hurting, it was just tons and tons of pressure and I was thinking, ”I have got to push this baby out, so I am going to push as hard as I possibly can.” I looked down in between contractions and saw the head crowning. I have seen this a thousand times when I was the nurse and not the patient, but I have to say it was pretty cool to see your own baby’s head crowning. I don’t remember any pain at this point just a little burning sensation. I know I was screaming during the delivery some, but I don’t remember the pain, just the adrenaline! After the next push I looked down and saw her head was out! Oh my gosh, that was so amazing. She had a loose cord around her neck and they unwrapped it easily, then her body flew out without me pushing I think. Dr. Straughn held her up and they moved the umbilical cord…. “It’s a girl, oh my gosh,” I couldn’t believe it was a girl. The whole pregnancy I had been so sure I was having a boy, but there she was so perfect and tiny. They put her up on my chest and Trey cut the umbilical cord. She was so cute and I immediately knew she was much smaller than Sophie. I couldn’t believe that Sophie had a little sister. Her face was so pretty and not swollen at all. Her head was round and perfect. I put her on my chest skin to skin and was just in total shock. I remember saying something like, “that wasn’t bad at all” which I wonder if everyone was laughing at me because two minutes before I was screaming. It really wasn’t bad and the feeling I had after she came out made it all totally worth it. I felt amazing and was so incredibly proud that I actually did it!
After I was all cleaned up, I sat up and she immediately latched on and started nursing. She was so alert right after delivery and kept looking around everywhere. She was so beautiful. Trey went and got Sophie and brought her in. She came in and I asked her if she knew what we had. She said,”It’s a girl!” even though trey hadn’t told her yet. I guess she just knew. She kept saying, “Aww, she is soooo cute.” Sophie was so excited and wanted to hold her immediately even though I was feeding her. We let Sophie get up in the bed with me and hold her then trey went to get our family. As they walked in, Sophie yelled, “it’s a girl” again. I think everybody was surprised! Then they all got a chance to hold her and we all watched as she got her first bath. We told them we were pretty sure her name was Selah Rose, but we hadn’t decided for sure. After that I got up and walked to the bathroom with almost no trouble at all and went upstairs in a wheelchair. I still felt amazing. Sophie and my mom stayed and went up to our room with us to get us settled. Sophie did not want to leave at all. But it was 11pm, so Trey walked them to the car and she went home with mom. She loved Selah and did not want to leave her. She just wanted to hold her. When Trey came back, he was so tired, but I couldn’t stop thinking about everything and replaying everything in my mind. My adrenaline was still going. I fed Selah a few more times and then sent her to the nursery at 2am and I slept for 2 hours. Boy was I tired the next day, but it was all worth it. It was the most amazing thing I think I’ve ever done. Having Sophie was different because she was my first so it was amazing just because I’d never done it before. I had an epidural though and was induced, so it was just a totally different experience. I felt so much better after this delivery and totally plan on doing it again. I had prayed so much that I would have a good experience and that God would give me the strength to have the baby naturally. Looking back, it was perfect and I wouldn’t change a thing about it. God is so faithful. He put this desire in my heart over a year ago for some reason and He stuck with me to the end and allowed me to have this amazing spiritual experience that I will never forget. I wish everyone could have as good of an experience as I did. I know that many times in labor things don’t go as we want and we have to change plans. I feel so blessed that I was able to have my labor and delivery of Selah exactly the way I had envisioned and prayed for it to be. Now I feel like I can be an encourager to others who have the desire to do it this way. I know it is not for everyone, but I would say to anyone, if you feel like God has given you the desire, then go for it and He will be with you every step of the way.

Slideshow of Selah's birth!

Ok, haven't actually written the birth story yet, but here is the slideshow of pictures that were taken. I cry every time I watch it and remember the details. Having a baby is such a spiritual experience and I hope I can remember her birth forever. Hope you all enjoy!
A couple things....
1. You'll want to turn down the music from my blog before you play the slideshow. Just scroll down to the bottom of my page and you can pause it or turn the volume down.
2. If you are thinking about natural childbirth, note that I really don't look like I am in that much pain in most of the pictures, because I wasn't. It was not that bad. If I can do it, anybody can do it!
3. The song I have playing with it was my inspiration/theme song for this experience. I love Rita Springer and the words to the song are amazing.

Let me know what you think!
Abby

Coming soon...

Baby pics and birth story of Selah Rose Warren. I can't wait to write the birth story just because it was so amazing. I know a lot of people won't care, but if any of you are interested in natural childbirth, you might like it. I had an amazing experience and plan on definitely doing it again. I can honestly say that it was one of the most amazing things i have ever done and totally gave me a sense of empowerment/accomplishment. Not that giving birth in general doesn't do that for women, but it was just a goal I had and actually being able to achieve it was great. I've also got to write it all down soon or I know i'll forget a lot of the details! Hopefully i can get it up this week sometime.

Big week at the Warrens'

Today is Sophie's first day of BALLET! I may be more excited than her, although she is really pumped about her "ballet costume." I only wish they had a one way mirror or window sothat we could watch them. I am gonna have to sneak up there sometime and peek in this year.
Sophie's birthday is also in 1 week. My little baby is going to be 3 years old! Also, she's not going to be the baby anymore, she is going to be a big sister (Please Lord, let it be this week). So naturally we are running around like crazy doing last minute things like cleaning house, working on the nursery, haircuts and new shoes... I think I am going to try to cram as much of my "to do list" in as I can before the baby. Somehow, I know running errands will never be the same with two kids in car seats. We have jokingly said we need to get a harness for sophie so I can tie her to the stroller/buggy. I don't think I could bring myself to do this. I did see the funniest "kid leash" that looked like a purse. Somehow you are supposed to trick your little girl into thinking she is just wearing a purse. Nevermind that strap in the back that mommy is dragging you around by. I think Sophie is a little too smart for that. Somehow I don't think we could convince her it was "fun." She'll just have to behave herself really well, because I also don't relish the thought of pushing a ginormous double stroller around.
Well, off to start my busy day... Think labor and baby thoughts for me!

To induce or not to induce...

That is the question. Should I even be thinking about this now? Well, probably not, but when you work in labor and delivery and watch everyone get induced at 39 weeks, it's bound to be at the back of your mind. I also feel like my body is blissfully unaware that I am due in 11 days and is not doing anything to gear up for labor. My patient last week went into labor on her own and she was due after me! I was thinking "Hey, no fair! I am more pregnant than you are, and here you having your baby today."
I will be 38 weeks and 4 days tomorrow, which is when I was induced with Sophie. I had a lovely labor and delivery, so why wouldn't I just want to do that again? I can't really give you a black and white answer other than that I just want to experience going into labor on my own. Throughout this pregnancy I have had a desire to experience the whole process of laboring and delivering naturally. I can't tell you exactly why, but I really feel that God put that desire in my heart. Why did I not desire it last time? I have no idea, but I was definitely begging for that induction and would've been appalled to be still pregnant at 40 weeks.
I will say one thing though, it is much easier to say that you don't want to be induced earlier in your pregnancy as opposed to 39 weeks. I think our culture revolves around planning for the future so much that it is hard to not want to "plan" your birth. You start thinking about things like, when is my doctor on call, when can my husband be off work, will my family be in town, who will take my other child.... No wonder induction is so desirable to so many people.
Right now, I am praying for faith, patience and believing that I will go into labor on my own!

Isaiah 26:3 "You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in YOU. Trust in the Lord forever."

Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart."

John 14:27 "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."

38 weeks and no baby...

Not that I am surprised. I never expected the baby to come on his/her own this early. I really feel like this little one is gonna ride out the whole 40 weeks and come the week of my dute date. It's funny, people keep saying, "Oh, I think the baby will come this week." I however, have no such feeling. I think that this baby is perfectly content to stay right where he/she is. The good thing is that I am feeling very patient and not anxious at all right now, but I think patience will take on a totally new meaning the day after my due date. I have seen too many 41 week c/sections to feel great about waiting that long. One thing helping with my patience is that the baby was only estimated to weigh 6 lbs 9 oz last week on an ultrasound. I had one because I am measuring small, imagine that, me with the 9 lb first baby. Who would've thought. Needless to say, it's comforting to know that this baby is probably not going to be bigger than sophie.

I am staying busy though and I actually have 4 more days to work, the last of which I will be 39 weeks and 2 days. After that I am throwing in the towel on work and focusing on Sophie's birthday. I really hope that these two will have their own birthday, but if not, then I guess a baby would be a pretty good birthday present for a three year old little girl who is obsessed with dolls and babies!

I'll keep you posted on any news. Feel free to leave me encouraging thoughts, especially if you are one of those who had to ride it out until her due date and beyond. I am excited to see what plans God has for this delivery!
Love you all,
Abby

This week at CVS

Dove skin vitalizer(Regular $12.49) on sale $9.99 (get $3 ecb back)
Neo to go spray $5.99 (J&J - spend $10 get $5 ECB back)
JJ first aid kit $7.99 (towards J&J $5 ECB)
sunlight dish soap $0.35 - got 3 of them (in clearance buggy at front of store) value $6 total?
Flu relief daytime $1.12 (clearance) value $5.99
Cold and cough $1.15 (clearance) value $5.99
Neutrogena visibly even moisturizer $3.50 (clearance) value $24.00

TOTAL VALUE OF ITEMS - $68.45

coupons used:
$.50 off neosporin
$1 off J&J first aid product
$3.50 off skin vitalizer
$8 in ECB

TOTAL SPENT $19.84
What I got back - $8 in ECB

My first two weeks getting CVS deals...

OK,my first trip I don't have a picture of but here's what I got...

2 pks Orbitz gum $3

3pks mechanical pencils $1

Colgate toothpaste $2.99

Peanut butter M&Ms $3.49

Reese's PB cups $3.49

Subtotal $14

1 CVS coupon -$3.00

Total spent $11

Total saved $12.56 - almost everything was on sale already

What I got back - $7 in ECB

$5 ECB if you spent $10 on candy and $2 ECB from the toothbrush

Trip #2 items- reg price of items
Advil Childrens $6.49
Advil Infants $6.49

Scott TP $11.99

Subtotal $ 24.97

Scott coupon - 1.00

ECB - 2.00

ECB -5.00

TP on sale -5.50 (price marked wrong but they gave it to me anyway)

sale on advil -.70

sale on advil -.70

Total spent $11.07 with tax

What I got back $ 11.58 in ECB so essentially the trip paid for itself in ECB!

Trip #3

Huggies supreme jumbo ct 11.49 (working towards $5 ECB after $25 spent on baby stuff)

JJ head to toe body wash 4.29 (towards $5 ECB)
Desitin Ointment 4.99

Dry idea deodorant 3.29

Dry idea deodorant 3.29

Total of reg price items $27.35 before tax

Coupons used

deodorant was bogo - 3.29

dry idea coupon -0.75

dry idea coupon -o.75

huggies coupon -1.00

desitin coupon -1.00 this one was an instant coupon attached to JJ head to toe

CVS coupon -2.00 $2 off $10 purchase

ECB -11.58

Total spent on items $1.99!!!!!!!!!

Total saved $26.17

Trip #4

2 oxyclean face wash 5.99 each (buy 2 get $3 ECB back)

Total spent11.98

oxy coupon -1.00

oxy coupon - 1.00

Total after coupons $9.98 and I got $3 ECB back

Trip #5 items
Huggies supreme 11.49
Desitin Ointment 4.99
CVS toothbrush 1.99
Subtotal 18.47
coupons
huggies coupon - 1.00
desitin coupon -1.00
free cvs tbrush -1.99
cvs coupon -2.00
ECB -3.00
diapers on sale -2.50
desitin on sale -2.00
Grand total spent $5.79
Total saved $13.49





Trip #6 - this trip I got a bunch of stuff off their clearance table that was priced at least 75%off
2 pacifiers $0.54
2 CVS cold/cough $1.15 each
CVS flu relief $1.15
shower gel $1.24
vicks cough supp. rub $1.25
Vicks vaporub $1.40
Vicks multi symptom liq $1.50
Vicks expectorant liquid $1.50
coupons used -$2.00 ($2 off $10 purchase)
Grand total with tax $9.87!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Actual value of items $45.02!!!


I know all this medicine will get used up this winter on little colds and coughs
Got back $3 in ECB not sure for what, but who cares

After all these trips, I still have $8 in ECB to spend! Yippee I love CVS. Trey thinks I am crazy for going to the drug store this many times in about 1 1/2 weeks, but it takes a little while to get the hang of all this.

Baby Countdown!

I am in total countdown mode with this pregnancy now. I am 34 weeks and 1 day! Yippee! We are getting so excited to meet our new little bundle. And no, we still don't know what the sex of the baby is. I think it is funny the looks you get when you tell people you don't know if you are having a boy or girl. Most people give you this crazy look and say something like, " What, can you not find out yet?" With a quick glance down to my ever growing belly, I laugh and say, "Oh, we just decided to let it be a surprise." I do have to say that lately, I have been getting more positive reactions from older women who never knew what they were having. It's nice to hear a few people tell you how much fun it will be in that moment of surprise and joy. I can't say that I haven't had my moments of weakness. I definitely begged trey around 30 weeks to come with me to an ultrasound so we could find out. Of course he said, "No way, we've waited this long, we are not finding out now." I am so glad he didn't let me do it. I will say, they only negative thing has been not being able to do the nursery ahead of time. I am such a planner and love decorating anyway. I also didn't want to do a totally gender neutral nursery, so that has been frustrating at times, but I still think it'll be worth it.
It's wierd, this pregnancy has been similar to my pregnancy with Sophie, yet so different. Because of my job, I have a totally different mindset about childbirth, a different doctor, a different hospital, and it's a surprise. With Sophie, I was pretty much planning my induction at the moment of conception. I ended up being induced at 38.5 weeks and had all internal monitoring, epidural, episiotomy. . . and I still felt like it was a great delivery. For some reason I have had a huge desire to have an unmedicated delivery this time. I also don't want to be induced, but that is easy to say at 34 weeks. We'll see how I feel at 39 weeks when that induction is sounding so good! After having such a big baby the first time (9 lbs) I have no desire to find out just how big of a baby I can deliver if you know what I mean. Especially since I want to try to do it without drugs! (BTW, I am totally not knocking all the medical interventions we have available. So it you are pregnant and going to have an induction etc... I say go for it. You should do what you feel led to do with your baby and your body.) I really hope that this delivery goes how I want it to, but ultimately I have really had to let go and realize that no matter what, I am not in control and God is!
I am sure I'll be blogging about the delivery afterwards, so stay tuned. I have been addicted to reading people's birth stores lately, so it'll be fun to write my own.

God is so good!

Do you ever have one of those weeks that you want to say, "God, what are you doing to me?" Well, I have had a week like that. It seems to have been one thing after the other. I am exhausted from work and my seemingly endless "to do" list. To top it off, I was rudely awoken this morning (at 5 am) by our smoke detector beeping every minute. Of course Trey slept right through it, so I drug my pregnant self out of bed. I climbed on top of sophie's booster seat that is strapped to a chair and started trying to take it apart. I don't know what I did, but the thing quit beeping finally. Well, of course I get back in bed and can't sleep! Great. So I get up and get online and check my email. Then I decide to have a quiet time since I have a little peace and quiet. I started reading my one year bible and all these other verses are popping out at me, feeding me. I am listening to a playlist I made last night of praise/worship music. All of the sudden I am overwhelmed with God's presence and love. Do you ever have those moments where you feel so surrounded by Him and loved it brings you to tears. Well, I am pregnant and very emotional, so that may be where the tears came from, but I deeply needed to feel His presence. It seems like God lets us go through hard days and watches us fall, but He is always there to pick us up like a loving Daddy! It is so worth it to be reminded of exactly how much our Heavenly Father loves us and cares about even the small things in our lives! I am so blessed and cannot imagine going through one minute of this life without His love. God is amazing!

"And if the world caves in around me, to You I still hold on....Jesus, because of You I'm free!" Free - Hillsong

Beach Drama 2008

Family Beach Trips are always full of ups and downs. This year was no different. . . . .



Let's start with the basic components of this trip:
1. Great-grandparents in their 70s that don't like sun/sand. Check!

2. Father in law who just had knee surgery and no elevator. Check!

3. 5 hour car trip with a 2 year old and a pregnant woman. Check!

4. A condo that ended up being 3/4 mile away from the beach. Check!

It all worked out in the end and we had a great time. We did end up having to leave our original condo in Blue Mountain Beach and drive to Gulf Shores. But, my parents graciously let us stay in their new condo which was actually on the beach. We were a little tight, but isn't that what family trips are about? And, after driving back and forth, we were ecstatic to be able to see the ocean and sand at all from our condo. Thanks mom and dad!





Here is Sophie when we were in Blue Mountain. She is preparing for that first day at the beach. I promise she had a bathing suit on. She has all the necessary items for enjoying a day at the beach. Pink sunglasses, pink hat and a dora towel. What else does a 2 year old need?



I love these pictures of Trey and Sophie. The second one reminds me of Forrest Gump when he and his son both tilt their heads to one side.

Sophie loved playing with all her toys and building sand castles. She did however feel the need to rinse the sand off her hands very frequently! She let us braid her hair almost every day, which I loved!

On the way down to go crabbing!

Sophie thought this was the greatest thing ever to get to put her bathing suit on at night and go down to the beach! She was a little scared of the crabs, but she loved having running around with her net and flashlight. Then we went swimming in the pool, which she was probably even more excited about. Having kids at the beach, although not as relaxing, is very fun. You get to relive your own childhood a litle bit!

All in all, it was a great trip. I sure learned a lot of lessons when booking a condo. Never ever let someone tell you "oh yes, it's within walking distance." Ask them how many steps it is to the beach! Apparently 0.8 miles is "walking distance" to some people. I can't wait to go again next year with our new baby! Wow, two kids at the beach, that will be busy!

Can I just enjoy getting fat for 9 months without being weighed all the time?!?

When you are pregnant and seeing your OB at very frequent intervals, as a form of torture, they like to make you stand on a scale in an office full of people and weigh you in all your clothing every single time you come for a visit. Then, your dr comes into the room and the first thing they look at is how much weight you've gained. My feedback this week was, "Well, we've had a little weight jump this month, but that's ok, because you didn't gain as much last month." Next thing you know, they'll be measuring your hips and thighs every week!
Because it seems that I am gaining weight exponentially at this point in my pregnancy I have come up with many ways of justifying my weight gain to make myself feel better....
-My favorite one is remembering that I had a 9 pound baby at 38 weeks, so when they tell you "your baby weighs 2 pounds this week" I am like, "Whatever! My baby probably weighs 3 or 3 1/2 pounds!"
- "Oh, well this appointment was in the afternoon, and I just ate lunch."
- "I think I am just well hydrated today."
-"I have heavier clothes on this time than I did last time, that's at least 5 lbs right?"
Anyway, to add to my distress I have two weddings that I am in within the first 3 months of giving birth! I am also about to go to the beach for the week with my precious (and skinny) sister in law, and my little sister Elaine (also precious and skinny) is 17 weeks pregnant with her totally flat stomach and I am sure she hasn't gained a pound!
So, if you too have had the weight gain woes with your pregnancy, never fear, I am right there with ya! Just trying to get through the last few months without weighing more than my husband.=)

***disclaimor***This is just a vent and I promise I will continue to eat a healthy diet and I know it'll all be worth it in the end. I am just hoping we don't approach 10 pounds with this baby!

New to this

Ok, so I am new to the blog thing. But sort of like facebook, once everyone you know is doing it you cave in... After looking at some of the other wonderfully creative and colorful blogs I realized that mine is probably going to be much more simple. Maybe I'll improve over time though.

I thought I'd start out by explaining the picture I posted. First of all, I picked it because it's probably the most recent family photo we have that's actually made it off our camera's memory card- sad. But also because Trey and I live in scrubs most of the time and I think Sophie believes that everyone in the world works in a hospital. (Her grandmother, aunt, great-aunt, and grandfather also work in hospitals)

She says she is going to be a doctor when she "gets bigger" which we will hopefully be able to talk her out of =). She plays with Trey's stethoscope and talks about going to the doctor a lot (I think we might have a little hypochondriac on our hands). If she doesn't want to do something she says, "I don't feel beter. I need to go to the doctor." So we always remind her about shots and she quickly changes her mind. I wish I had something more interesting to write about now, but this is our life!