18 Months

Brady is almost a year and a half old. These last few months he has really taken off. Walking is the biggest development! I know every parent is thrilled when their child walks. BUT, if you wait 16 almost 17 months to see them walk.. It's something extra special. The joy and relief! We knew he could/would walk.. but felt like we were going to wait forever to see it happen. I was in the kitchen cleaning up and peeked in at Brady in the living room. I saw him take a few steps and sit down. I didn't say anything because it seemed like he was doing intentionally while I was out of the room. I kept secretly watching and he kept walking! I finally let him know I saw and approved :) Then took videos. It was absolutely wonderful. Now he walks everywhere and rarely stops :)

His speech has really progressed as well. Brady says, what's that/what is it? Thank you. Sit, good girl (obviously directed at Sugar or Gugar as he says :) Ball, Spoons, chapstick, Mr. Bear, and lots more. He understands EVERYTHING! I ask him if he is ready for a bath and he very happily runs to the bathroom. Hungry? He takes off to the kitchen :) He brings me his sippy cup when he needs a refill.

His eating has been great lately too. He's not nearly as picky and always eats a good amount. Eric and I noticed the other day that he has a little belly. It's definitely smaller than most kids', but we're so happy to see it! Brady loves to sit in a chair, hold utensils (ALL the time not just at meals), he's really getting attached to his Lion so Mr. Bear's got competition! He will even make a 'roar' sound. He hugs us a lot now and loves to sit in our laps on the floor. He's all toddler!

We celebrated our Christmas just the three of us yesterday. We are super busy next weekend and then leave for St. Louis the next week so it just made sense even though it's early. Brady was loving every minute of it. He loved ripping the paper and especially the bows. The funny thing is, if you tell yourself it's Christmas, it really feels like Christmas. We got up and started the turkey. When Brady woke up, we let him see his presents, ate monkey bread for breakfast, then tore into gifts. I cooked while the boys played. Christmas music was on and it truly felt like Christmas day. A few times I thought about something I may need from the store and thought “Oh they're all closed” LOL. Oh wait it's just December 9^th! Haha. Brady is so lucky because he still gets to do Christmas with Eric's parents before we leave and then Christmas in St. Louis. We're driving this year and taking Gugar with us so wish us luck! ;)

No excuses..

When I feel awful, I will see a doctor much sooner next time..

The night I posted my last blog, I had horrible stomach pains after Eric and I ate dinner. It was the same pain I have had off and on for about 3 months. It would happen once, then weeks later, happen again. Even though it was excruciating pain, I tried to brush it off. It always came at night. Very inconvenient! Brady's sleeping, Eric and I were usually headed to bed, and I'd buckle over in pain. It would last anywhere from 30 min to 12 hours! The week of Halloween, it came and didn't leave. So, Friday night I finally let Eric take me to the ER.

After waiting for 6 hours... I finally got in and got morphine. Holy Moly! I needed it, and it certainly relieved my pain, but it was so strange! I kept saying, “It feels heavy, I feel heavy”. The doctors did blood work, urine work, an ultrasound, and a CT scan. I had gallstones. Lots of them. Fortunately, no kidney stones to go with it. Because my gallbladder was not infected, they sent me home with meds and gave me a surgeon's number. I was annoyed, but relieved to know what was wrong.

I called Monday and was able to get an appointment with the doctor for Tuesday. I had to go back and forth many times with Tricare. This was probably my first issue with them and I had to remind myself I'm thankful to have free health insurance. They gave me a really hard time about approving the referral and kept blaming my primary doctor for their mistakes. Not exactly what I wanted to deal with at the time! It was all resolved though and I saw the Surgeon. He confirmed I needed surgery and scheduled it for the next day. Woohoo!!

We were supposed to leave his office and go to the hospital to register for surgery. However, I felt so nauseous and sick that we went home so I could rest. Eric called the doctor to find out if I could get to the hospital early the next day to register instead. The surgeon asked to speak with me, but I was in the middle of another gallbladder attack. He told Eric to bring me to the hospital right away and they'd have a room ready for me. Morphine again!

I didn't see my doctor until the next morning to talk briefly before the surgery. He told me I'd have 3 or 4 small incisions, 1 on my belly button, one above, and 1 or 2 on my right side. He also had noticed that my bilirubin level was high. It's determined by blood tests and measures bile and liver function. Normal is .1 up to 1 and I had a 2.9. This meant more than likely, that some of my gallstones had made their way to my liver and were getting stuck moving from the liver to intestines. Grrreat!! He was going to try and flush them out during surgery, but if he couldn't I would have to have surgery again the next day.

That's exactly what happened. I ended up with 4 incisions from the gallbladder surgery. It was painful every time I moved and you can't really move any way without using your stomach. I just had to lay there and take the pain meds. Which unfortunately, I don't react well to. I became very constipated and couldn't even pee on my own. Bring on the stool softener and catheter (which later caused infection) :/ They even brought a specialist in for this. Talk about embarrassing. I met with a gastro doctor that night, and the next day had surgery again to remove two stones stuck in my bile ducts. I was put under anesthesia, rolled onto my belly (awesome for my incisions), and for over 2 hours, a camera and tools were down my throat through my stomach, liver, etc to remove the stones. He told Eric after, that it was much more difficult than expected and took over an hour longer than planned.

I was in a lot more pain after this one. My stomach hurt worse and I had a very sore throat on top of it. I could barely drink water and eat Jello. The day after the 2^nd surgery, I finally started to feel a little better. I could actually get up out of bed with help. Only to try and use the bathroom then right back to bed, but hey it was something. I was missing Brady like crazy! I've never spent more than a few hours away from him, so 3 days was torture. I thought of him constantly. What was he eating? Was he sleeping? Did he miss me? :(

Friday night I got to go home. Every little bump in the car was so painful! I was so happy to get in my own bed and hear my precious boy laughing and playing in the other room. He didn't react like I hoped when he saw me. He starred at me very confused. I knew I looked like hell and that really proved it. I slept most of the time until Sunday. I knew I definitely needed a shower. My back was itching out of this world and my hair was a nest.

Eric had helped me out of bed before, and I could only go a few steps before I was begging to lay back down. I couldn't stand up straight and I was clinging to him. Sunday, I was able to make it to the shower and stay up for a few minutes before needing desperately to lay down. Eric said, “You look yellow.” I told him I felt faint so that's probably why. After getting me back in bed, he said “You're eyes are yellow.” Then I got concerned. Jaundice? Brady had that as a newborn, but it really wasn't a big deal. Was this?? I started googling. Yikes!

Jaundice after gallbladder surgery, NOT GOOD! Everything said my doctor may have cut, clipped, poked, a bile duct on my liver and bile could be leaking into my abdomen. Surgery to fix it. I didn't know at the time, but Eric was in the other room googling jaundice. Yellow skin, yellow eyes, ITCHY SKIN, uh oh! I asked him to call my doctor, and the on call doctor said take her to the ER right now (yellow eyes is the worst apparently). Fantastic! The thought of another surgery brought me to tears, which was painful! We loaded up and went back to the ER. It was very painful and difficult to even sit up in a wheel chair. I begged Eric to ask if there was ANYWHERE I could lay down. At least we didn't have another 6 hour wait, only about 30 minutes.

I spent the night in the hospital. More morphine! Had more urine and blood work, an MRI, and a HIDA scan (an hour long). They started talking 3^rd surgery, but I made sure they knew I wasn't jumping on that bandwagon so easily. I wanted to know they were positive I needed it first. I honestly thought another surgery was too much for me to handle. I then waited all day to find out the results. My billiribben was up to a 4! The tests showed there was no leak though! Thank GOD. They believed I was passing another stone or two, and had a bad reaction to the 2^nd surgery. One of the tools they used, cut through tissue and burned it to seal at the same time. Those things combined, caused a lot of swelling and the stones caused blockage which led to jaundice. My billiribben was on it's way down, so they kept me another day and night to run the test again... down to 2.9. I was healing on my own without surgery. Praise God!!

The number kept going down, and I kept feeling better! I got to come home a week ago (from when I wrote this :), and it is truly amazing how quickly I've been healing. I'm finally able to pick Brady up and take care of him by myself again. Eric's parents, cousin Casey and her daughter Morgan, and my Mom were SO helpful! Our friends and family sent sweet messages, cards, and prayers. Brady was safe and sound at home while I went through most of this, and that's all I could ask for! Our second time in the ER, we heard a little girl in the next room screaming and crying. I was so thankful to be there for myself and not my baby! Put things into perspective for sure. And hey I lost 8 lbs ;)

Right after the second surgery. Very swollen! I didn't want to wake up so they put me on oxygen.

My flowers from Eric and his office :)

My bellybutton still looks crooked from how they cut it. But all the incisions are healed now

Back in the ER with jaundice. Eric said "this doesn't do it justice. You were much yellower"

Eric pushing Brady and I because walking around Wal Mart was impossible. But a girl needs eyeliner!

Ready for the ball :)

My favorite of our professional ball pics.

Take these plans and shove it!

Eric and I had been planning Brady's Halloween costume for weeks. We got practically giddy whenever we discussed how excited Brady would be to have people putting candy in his bucket. He absolutely LOVES putting things in a bucket/bag/box, taking them out, back in, back out.. And certainly loves when anyone joins him in this activity.

Yesterday, I spent the entire morning running around the house getting everything ready. Eric's parents were coming over to join us and also to celebrate Eric's birthday since it's the day after. We even had a playdate scheduled for today, so I had lots to do.

All the excitement was quickly replaced with saddness when my baby boy woke up from his nap with a fever :( He picked at his lunch earlier, but that's not completely unlike Brady. When he went down for his second nap, highly unlike Brady, I started to worry, but brushed it off. I tried to feed him dinner... then the vomit came.

Needless to say, we did not get dressed up. We did not trick or treat. And we did not celebrate Eric's birthday. I did cry twice.

It's hard to have such high hopes for a wonderful night/next day, then have to cancel everything AND see your baby sick. Brady woke up all night with tummy aches. It was pitiful.

Eric and I felt sorry for ourselves for a minute, then tried our best to make the most of our evening. Brady fell asleep, we drank wine, and watched Modern Family. Which always makes us laugh.

There are clearly people going through a harder time than this. Especially with Hurricane Sandy destroying the East Coast. When things like this happen, I always think of the quote, “When we make plans, God laughs” :) We're already looking forward to next year! Just not making any plans yet.

We'll be sure to share pictures of our little Texans player all geared up once he's feeling better :)

15 Months

Brady's 15 month checkup was this morning. The big guy is 33 ½ inches tall and 21 lbs 10 oz. The great news is, Dr. Haney is very pleased and no longer concerned about his weight. Whew! He's still long and lean, but looking chunky (for Brady). The REALLY great news is, Dr. Haney got Brady to WALK! :) 5 steps from her to me and completely by himself. Brady is much more aware of the fact that “we are at the doctor's office” and “they normally stick me”, so he got super sensitive once we were in the room. He wanted Mr. Bear, his thumb, me, and no one else touching him. He cried when the nurse and Dr. Haney checked him out, so when she took him he was upset and wanted me back bad enough to walk to me :) She said he's perfect and will walk once he has the confidence. She said his need to hold on is a 'security thing'. Makes sense.. stuffed animal obsessed, thumb sucker and all :)

I was nervous that once I got him home he'd be all comfortable again and only want to crawl, but I've already gotten him to do it twice by myself. I'm excited for Eric to get home so we can try some more and hopefully get a video. Brady's expression is the best. Half shock, half pride. And I'm busy screaming and clapping. I'm sure it's quite a sight!

We just got back from our family vacation in Florida. It was a WONDERFUL week. Eric needed the time off of work and away from the stress. He couldn't remember the last time he had a vacation. Literally! Brady did so well even though we were completely off schedule and out of our element. He was very go with the flow. It was a LOT of work, but worth it to see his cute little tush on the beach and splashing in the pool. He even called my Dad “Pawpaw” a few times. Eric got to deep sea fish and ride a wave runner. I got plenty of time laying out and a tattoo! We are already planning our next trip back :)

We are so thrilled that our friends Patti and Mike live so close to where we stay. We were able to spend a lot of time with them through the week <3

That's Love

After two seperate conversations with good friends, I was recently reminded just how lucky I am to have my husband. I am always well aware of what a terrific husband I have, but sometimes I get smacked with an overwhelming feeling of love and appreciation for all he does. I am blessed to be able to stay at home with Brady, worry free of how the bills will get paid. Eric works LONG, hard hours recruiting. Several days a week, he is gone before Brady wakes up and home after he's asleep. Several times a month his alarm rings at 3 am and then he works on weekends. Eric rarely complains about any of it and regularly tells me how great I am. Really? :)

We each know that we cannot do what the other does. Eric 'hits the streets' every day, talking to kids, their parents, teachers, etc. I would be beyond burnt out after a year and a half. I literally can't stand to think about going a day without seeing Brady. But Eric knows he would “lose his mind being trapped in the house all day”. Yes he actually used those words! Lol I'd love to see him take care of Brady all day, do some laundry, clean, find time to shower, and cook dinner. All by himself for a day! 

The truth is, we are the perfect team. He is strong where I am weak. I never doubt him or worry about anything. He is my biggest fan and always supports me. Hell, he did weight watchers and work out dvds with me to lose baby weight. That's love :) I know I have him by my side and that together we can get through anything. January will bring our 3^rd anniversary. We've already been through so much and only God and the USMC know what's still to come <3

 

AngelCare

Moms are always busy discussing the latest information about raising their babies. We have to worry about their safety, health, developments and the list goes on. What I don't hear much about is SIDS. I know it's a scary thing to talk about and when Brady was really young, I couldn't even say the words. I read up on it and followed the recommendations. When I see and hear about moms sleeping with their babies, putting them in a bassinet, or some form of a co sleeper, I get anxiety! Babies are safest on their backs, in their own crib, and with nothing else in the bed. SIDS is more likely to occur anywhere else. Here's my 2 cents. Everyone's got their 'thing'. This is mine :)

It's hard for most parents to imagine leaving their baby, especially a newborn, in the other room. But if you have a great monitor, you'll be fine. Do you want them in your room for them or for you? 

When I was pregnant, my aunt told me about the AngelCare Monitor. I immediately knew I had to have it. (Fortunately, she gave it to me at my shower :) This monitor is the KING of all monitors. I believe every parent should invest in one. Eric and I had such peace of mind when that monitor was on with Brady sleeping in his crib, which he has been doing since the day we brought him home from the hospital. In addition to the regular sound monitoring, this monitor detects and monitors the baby's motion, which includes breathing. A sensor pad (that's about 1 square foot in size and very thin) goes under the mattress and a cord runs out to the base. (Obviously you have to run the cord close to the crib and tie it off. It's nowhere that Brady could get to it) The monitor comes with very detailed and easy to follow instructions. It gives step by step set up and tells you how to test out the monitor to make sure it's working properly.

If no motion is detected, it instantly sounds a loud 'BEEP'. That's my warning. If for 20 seconds, there's still no motion, it then follows with an alarm like the dickens! A crazy loud 'BEEP BEEP BEEP' ing that will make your heart race! I always got up and started into his room at the first warning. Most of the time, the monitor 'picked him back up' as I say, and he was fine. No crazy alarm necessary. I would say from the time Brady was born until he was a year old, it alarmed like that two or three times a month on average. NOT counting the times we got him up from the crib and forgot to shut it off! You won't do that too many times though. Usually I went in there to find Brady had wiggled himself into the corner or had his blanket underneath him, making it hard to detect his motion. But a few times, I had no idea why it went off, but I was sure glad I had the monitor to tell me to go in there and rub his back or pick him up to make sure all was ok. I would've gotten up a thousand times to be sure of that. I don't think I would have slept at all had we not had this monitor.

The monitor has SEVERAL other features that make Eric and I wonder how anyone does without this blessing of a piece of technology. It has super powerful batteries that it came with that it automatically switches to if the power goes out. That's happened probably 3 or 4 times in a year while he was napping or at night. It comes with two receivers. We have one in our bedroom and one in the living room. They are wireless, display the temperature in his room, and you can tell just by looking at it if there's any sound or movement (helpful while vacuuming, etc.)

The kicker for me, was after I had recently seen a story on the news of a baby girl being kidnapped right of her crib at night. Brady was nearing a year old and I wondered if we should turn off the motion detecting, and only have the sound on. Which you can do when you're ready. I saw that story and thought, “Thank God for my AngelCare.” I would know before they made it to his changing table that he wasn't in his crib. Then like a truly paranoid mom, I thought, “What if they know how to turn it off?!” It hit me! I had wondered before why the base made a loud static sound when turned off. It sounds over the whole system. Duh. If someone turned it off, I would know. I immediately told Eric if he ever heard that sound at night, grab a weapon and run! Lol. The chances are slim, but let's face it. We live in a world where this happens.

This website has all the info about the monitor.  

http://www.angelcare-monitor.com/United-States/en/products/angelcare-monitor-AC401-deluxe

The truth is, it's all in God's hands. But as parents we should still do everything we can to prevent harm. Some people may think something like this monitor is going overboard, but I think it's a gift. There's nothing better than knowing your baby is safe!

D DAY

It sure felt like D Day on Thursday when Brady weighed in at the doctors. I was just so nervous that his doctor would want to start him on some sort of supplement or fortify his milk. I don't even know if they do that for 1 year olds, but it would be my luck! Brady weighed 21 lbs 4 oz (still 32.5 in tall). Which is 10 oz up from where he was exactly 1 month ago. It isn't where he 'needs' to be, but it is getting him back on track to be there. I probably had my hopes set too high because at first I was disappointed with that weight. But how much weight (healthy weight) can a baby gain in one month? He only gained 4 oz from 9 months to 12, so 10 oz in one month is MUCH better! Dr. Haney was happy with the gain and that his appetite has been strong. She doesn't need to see him again until the normal 15 month check up. Yay!

About 2 weeks ago, ECI called us about setting up an appointment. They asked a bunch of questions, and based on his developments, they didn't need to see him yet. Since he did start pulling up to standing and walking holding onto the couches and tables (he's even started scaling the walls :). He's back on track. If he's not walking by 14 months, which is another 2 weeks from now, we will call them back and discuss again. Brady gets very content with what he's doing at the time, and doesn't worry about what's next for a while. When I hold his hands and he walks, I can tell he is BARELY using my support. I am sure he could stand on his own, but he just doesn't want to yet. If I let go, he sits down. Such a stinker! I know he will walk when he's good and ready.

Brady's 4^th molar is starting to come through. I'm glad they're all coming in quickly because I am ready for that crap to be O V E R. I think he's slept through the night once in the last 2 weeks. He just needs teething tablets and a little comfort to go right back to sleep, but Eric and I are beat! Eric has been so good about helping me and I'm going to give him a break this weekend. The teething pain seems to only torture us at night, so during the days Brady is as happy as ever. He laughs at everything! Which most of the time makes us laugh. Once in a while.. it's embarrassing. For instance, at Costco, Brady started laughing at a kid that was crying. The kid wasn't hurt, just mad he didn't get what he wanted. But OMG! We ducked down an isle so fast! Then at Kroger, Brady laughed at a rather large man wearing overalls with a long beard. I'll admit he was silly looking. After we make a get away, Eric and I get a good laugh too :)

Eric and I have both been doing so good with exercise. It makes such a difference. He's been going to the gym and I've been doing my Jillian DVDs. I think Eric was surprised just how difficult they are when he did some with me. They are only 25 min long, but even Eric was red and dripping sweat after. I have enough time during Brady's nap to exercise, shower, and clean up a bit around the house. Perfect! Any longer and I'd find a way out of it ;) We have so much motivation with all that we have coming up in the next few months. In September, Brady and I will be in St. Louis for a week. October is our Florida vacation and family pictures. The Marine Corps Ball is in November (I've already ordered my dress!) With birthdays and holidays, we have a very busy rest of the year! So blessed!

                Giving Sugar her birthday kiss :) Our sweet girl is 4 today!

Brady's 1 Year Appointment

I wanted to blog after Brady's 1 year check up on the 16^th, but I decided to wait until I had more information. The visit didn't go exactly as we would've liked, but what ever does?! I knew going in that Brady was probably a little thin. He's been thin-er since about 7 months, but after being sick the week of his birthday (diarrhea, vomiting, and LOW appetite), I was pretty sure he lost at least a pound. That's a lot for a baby! The nurse weighed Brady in at 20 lbs 10 oz. Only up 4 oz since he was 9 months. Even knowing he had been sick, that shocked me. For being 32.5 in long, he's pretty skinny. Babies generally triple their birth weight by 1 year. Brady was 8 lbs 5 oz at birth so he would need to be almost 25 lbs. Dr. Haney told us that based on Brady's growth his first year (using his weight at each appointment), he should be at least 23 lbs. I explained his being sick and picky eating habits. We go back August 16 to check on his weight gain. Brady has been drinking plenty of whole milk, and has had a stronger appetite lately, so I'm very hopeful he will catch up!

Now to the walking. He's not. Brady crawled later so I knew he'd walk later too. But he is 3 days shy of 13 months, and just now showing interest in really standing and moving around. At the time of his appointment, he wasn't doing that though. I told her all this, and this coupled with his low weight, concerned her. She said he is strong physically, but we needed to get him more interested now, so he wasn't late to walk (older than 15 months). She gave us a referral to Early Childhood Intervention, which is an organization run through the school district. They will come to our house to evaluate and work with him (It's been a slow process but we should have an appointment next week). 

When Dr. Haney said this, I felt like crying. It was hard to hear, to say the least. Eric and I have talked about it a lot since and are actually excited about it now. We know there is nothing “wrong” with Brady. He is smart and strong and develops every day. He just needs a stronger push than most babies and I need help with how to do it. I can tell he thinks about trying something new physically (like crawling, pulling up, walking) and it will take him a while to decide to actually do it. I can't complain about that really. Maybe he will always be so careful and I'll never have to worry about him getting hurt?! ;) My mom said I was the exact same way as a baby. And guess what? I'm not a retard! :) Sorry to put it so bluntly, but sometimes I think people need the reminder. 

Moms put so much pressure on babies to be 'advanced' these days and expect other moms to be perfect. I mentioned Brady being later to do things to a mommy friend in my meetup group, and she told me her oldest son was the same way. Crawled at 10 months, walked at 15. I'd be willing to bet she wouldn't have told me that first, if I hadn't brought up Brady being that way. So many people think every baby walks at 9 months because that's what they hear. Then think it's so strange to hear of a baby not doing that. But think about it. Moms aren't running to facebook to announce “My baby is NOT walking yet!” Every mom is proud of their baby and should be! I'm just saying don't judge. We each have different babies and different experiences. I'm glad I get to share the hoops Brady makes me jump through :) Every baby gives their parents different challenges. If I find myself getting jealous of other babies moving so fast, I remind myself what a quiet, easy going newborn Brady was. Few parents get that! I will be elated when he walks, but for now I enjoy my little booger reaching his arms up for me to get him when he's stuck :)

Brady has 2 molars that just broke through for a total of 8 teeth!! He's all about kisses these days and we are LOVING it! He's really such a sweet, happy boy. 3 days after his doctor's appointment, he pulled himself all the way up on the coffee table and walked around it holding on. HUGE for him. It's like he could hear us talking about him and finally said, “Oh alright, I guess I'll do it.” :) 

Nothin but a Fairytale

Lately, I've had a lot on my mind about marriage. I've got a few friends and friends of friends going through hard times in their marriages, possibly facing divorce. Every marriage goes through highs and lows, but these are some of the lowest lows. Hearing about other husbands lying, cheating, never coming home (plenty of wives are guilty too) makes me incredibly grateful for my husband and the strength in our relationship. But it isn't just luck. We put a lot of hard work into our marriage and it surely isn't perfect. We've said hateful things to each other when we are low on patience, but we are quick to take them back and apologize. When we screw up, we learn from it.

I used to think 'our generation' would do better than our parents. I know plenty of happily married couples that seem to be doing their best to make it work. When we say 'I do', we are promising to stick it out through anything. Sounds simple, but promising to be with each other when you have no clue what hardships you may face in the future, isn't for sissies. Selfishness and immaturity are great ways to screw up a marriage. Certainly, some people marry the wrong person and aren't meant to last. I'm talking more about the people who get stuck always thinking the grass is greener somewhere else. Focusing on what we DO have and what IS good will only make things better.

When Eric and I got married, I never thought we would live in Houston. I had no idea what recruiting entailed or how hard it is raising babies away from my family. I put all my faith on the fact that I was marrying the right man, and whatever we faced, we would manage it together. After only 2 ½ years of marriage, we've faced quite a bit, and only God knows what else is yet to be thrown our way. I rely on the fact that the hard times don't last forever and sticking it out through a hard day, or a hard year, is worth it. Couples that celebrate their 25^th or 50^th wedding anniversary, don't do so looking back on nothing but a fairytale. When Eric and I clink our champagne glasses on April 10^th of any year, I will smile, laugh, and shed a tear. It's tough, but it's beautiful. And we earned it!

My Big 1 Year Old!

No one has asked us yet, “how old is he?' I'm waiting for it and know it'll be so weird to say “1”. His birthday party was perfect. Brady was in a great mood, napped when we needed him to so it stayed that way :), smashed his cake, and played with the other babies. It was HOT, but we did a good job keeping cool with the fans, tent, water, and kiddie pool. We are so thankful to have had our family and local friends there to celebrate. It's truly a celebration for Brady and us. As a family, we have come so far in a year. Really longer than that counting the time I was pregnant and we were preparing for him. It was bittersweet to say so long to having a 'baby' and bring on the toddler! I still call him my baby of course and told him I won't ever give that up! :)

He's finally getting over a tummy virus that he picked up at the party. He and two other kids ended up with diarrhea the next week :/ Brady was the only one that had vomiting as well. He never got a fever thank God, but his appetite was LOW to non existent. My skinny little boy doesn't need to lose an ounce, so it really broke my heart. He doesn't like pedialyte and now we are set WAY back on weaning from bottles and formula. After a few days, I could tell he was just sick of being sick. I always got like that as a kid, which my Mom reminded me of and which I do remember somewhat. He got really fussy after the 3^rd and 4^th day of being sick. I swear I saw him thinking, “Really Mom? When is this gonna go away?!” I realize this is the first time he's really been sick and for that I'm grateful!!

It was fabulous to have my family in town again. My Mom, sister, and brother-in-law hadn't been here since Brady was born and my Dad's visit was last November. I've been back to St. Louis since then, but it's different to have them here in our home with Brady in his environment. Brady is a great traveler, but he does get a little off his normal schedule. We went shopping, out to eat, and got everything ready for Brady's party. We definitely couldn't have had such a fun, smoothly running party without them. My Dad stayed for the whole week. He, Eric, Brady, and I went to the Houston Space Center and Grandpa watched Brady Thursday night for an hour so we could go get ice cream for a mini date night. I'm looking at plane tickets so Brady and I can hopefully make a trip to STL in September ish.

On Brady's actual birthday, he was still sick and it was a rainy day so we took it easy. We woke him up singing happy birthday, went for a walk, grocery shopped, and watched movies while we played. It was pretty perfect (minus him not feeling himself) since we had already had his party. Eric and I are now on a serious detox until my birthday! 23 days to go!! :)

Brady bear is 11 months!

And a week :)

Lots of changes in our household lately! Brady is pulling up on everything! I have to follow him around everywhere to make sure he doesn't fall. Really hating the tile in our house right about now. He doesn't know how to fall. I know that sounds weird, but we're working on it. He was falling like a straight board. Which obviously causes some injuries. I'm teaching him to fall on his bottom! He says bye bye now and waves. Claps his hands when I say, “clap your hands, Brady” or he sees someone else clapping. He plays peek a boo. I caught him playing by himself! Lol so funny! He's taking snacks (the little stars) by sticking his hand in the tub to get them out himself. Will only drink from the sippy cup by himself. I'm sure I could go on and on. But basically, my very dependent little guy is becoming much more independent. He gives me a little more attitude these days as well. He will grunt at me if he doesn't like something. Or he will throw his sippy cup. He's gotten a few slaps on the hand for that one. I see the transformation from baby to toddler happening before my eyes daily.

I've tried to give him his milk in a sippy cup just during the day, but he hates it. The boy loves his bottles, so I see that being a big challenge soon. He's eating so much better. A little less picky, but still picky. I basically have to let him feed himself and be patient. It's tough! And SO messy. I want a really clean house all of the time and it's just not happening. I've been trying to let it go.

I've lost 12 lbs total on weight watchers, but I've been stuck for a few weeks. At least I'm not gaining, but I really want to lose at least 5 more lbs. 10 would put me at my ww goal. I'm trying not to stress it though because I know it'll happen and I don't want it to drive me crazy. I realized the other day that I've been feeling a lot worse about my body lately. Worse than I did 10 or 20 lbs heavier! What's up with that!? I asked Eric, am I fat still or am I not fat anymore? I don't even know! Lol Worst question ever for the hubby I know, but I make him be honest with me. I'm asking for it, give it to me! I even ask for comparisons. Am I as fat as so in so? (can't name names ;) Pregnancy will really do a number on your body and I'm still adjusting mentally to “get it”. I've got to take a deep breath and relax! Eric always makes me feel good and tells me I'm hot so that's all that matters :) Eric is doing really good still too. He's only 7 lbs from his goal. We really want to be healthy and set a good example for Brady and our future babies.

We have gotten so much done lately for Brady's party and are crazy excited for my family to visit :) My mom, sister, and her husband get here 2 weeks from tomorrow! And my dad the day after that. Everything is done except last minute things like food. I even made a baseball wreath for the door :) And after searching forever for a cupcake stand (we ordered jumbo cupcakes so that made it more challenging), I made two with some stuff from Hobby Lobby. They turned out SO nice, were so easy, and not expensive at all! I used gorilla glue to glue a candle stick to a wooden plate that I painted white. That simple! And they look very nice and we can totally reuse them.

I'm working on getting some video of Brady doing his new things and finding my camera charger :/ but here are some pics from my phone :)

                                                So proud of himself :)

                                          See his leg through the letter :)

                                                Sleepy heads :)

                                           Cake stands!

Recipes!!

I have finally gotten around to trying out some weight watchers recipes lately. There are a few good ones I want to share. I tried two, a blueberry squares recipe and a pumpkin muffin recipe, that were just okay. If I figure out a way to make them better I will share, but for now these were the best!

First, a chicken chipotle sandwich: 6 points per sandwich

1 pound uncooked boneless skinless chicken breast, thinly sliced

1 tsp fresh lime juice

1/8 tsp table salt

1/8 tsp black pepper

2 Tbsp reduced-calorie mayonnaise

1 Tbsp canned chipotle pepper(s), finely chopped

1 cup mixed greens

8 slices reduced-calorie wheat bread, toasted

1 medium fresh tomato, sliced

Heat grill pan on high heat. Season chicken with lime juice, salt and pepper. Cook chicken in pan, turning once, until cooked through, about 5 minutes.

In a small cup, combine mayonnaise and chipotle peppers.

Divide greens among 4 slices of toast. Top each with 1/4 of tomato slices and chicken.

Spread each remaining piece of toast with about 2 teaspoons chipotle mayonnaise; place on sandwiches. Yields 1 sandwich per serving.

I used cubed chipotle peppers. They came in a small box by the cans. This way, I can just unwrap one cube at a time and break it up into the mayonnaise whenever I want. It's a little difficult to chop really spicy things by hand since I usually make our dinner while feeding Brady his :) I used bread that was 40 calories per slice and one point each. I made sweet potato fries (16 fries for 4 points) and the whole meal was 10 points! It was delish and SO FILLING! Go easy on ketchup, it's 1 point for 2 Tbs.

Next Chicken Bruschetta: 7 points per serving (makes 4 servings)

This is Teresa Giudice's recipe from her new book, Fabulicious: Fast & Fit. Love her book!

It has all the nutritional info in the back so it's WW friendly :)

                       There are 3 huge pieces of chicken under there :) 

3 ripe plum (Roma) tomatoes, seeded and cut into 1/2-inch dice
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1 medium celery rib, cut into 1/4-inch dice
1/4 cup dry white wine
2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for the pan
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 11/2 pounds)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Position a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat the oven to 450ºF. Lightly oil a 13 x 9-inch baking pan. Combine the tomatoes, onion, celery, wine, parsley, oil, garlic, and red pepper flakes in a medium bowl. Set aside while the oven is preheating.

Pound the chicken until it is 1/2-inch thick. Season with the salt and black pepper. (I put the chicken (one breast at a time) in a large plastic bag (zipper left just a tad open) and then smashed them with a small glass baking dish since I didn't have a meat pounder.

Arrange the chicken in the baking pan. Spoon equal amounts of the tomato mixture over each chicken breast half, then pour any left over liquid around the chicken. Bake until the tomato mixture is hot and chicken is cooked through. About 15 – 20 minutes.

I used half the parsley and added 1 Tbs Italian seasoning. I used Sutter Home Chardonnay wine. Next time, I will use a little less onion and possibly measure out some Parmesan cheese to sprinkle on top. It was delish and the portions are big!

Lastly, our favorite desert lately..

Chocolate Marshmallow Bark – YUM! And 4 pts per square (makes 12 squares)

8 oz bittersweet chocolate chips

2 tsp butter

3 cups mini marshmallows

Line a 9- X 9-inch pan with heavy-duty aluminum foil.

In a double boiler, melt chocolate and butter over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until thoroughly combined; remove from heat and stir in marshmallows.

Scrape chocolate mixture into prepared pan using a silicon spatula; smooth into a somewhat even layer. Refrigerate until chocolate sets, at least 1 hour; keep refrigerated until ready to eat.

Cut into 12 pieces and serve. Yields 1 piece per serving.

Use Ghirardelli chocolate and don't mix the marshmallows in too much or they will melt. We are obsessed with this one. So good!

  You can see the difference between the 2 pics - melted marshmallows the first time, but it still tasted great! This piece looks small in the picture, but they are decent size.

I have several more recipes I'm going to try this week. Stuffed mushrooms, Asparagus soup, Skinny spaghetti, and turkey meatballs! I'll share more soon.

Brady's Birth

Brady is almost a year and I don't think I've written the full birth story anywhere so here goes :)

My last doctor's appointment was the morning of June 28. I saw Dr. Doan, who was a partner in the same office as my doctor, Dr. Friedman, who was going on vacation in a few days for the 4th of July. She convinced Dr. Friedman to schedule an induction since I was 2 cm dilated, 50% effaced, and my due date was that Saturday. Dr. Friedman loved to tell me each visit that “this isn't a small baby”, so I was very happy to get him out! I would go into the hospital the next night to get the induction started, and actually get pitocin the morning of the 30^th.

Just as planned, I went into Christus Saint Catherine (a nice small hospital in Katy) on Wednesday, June 29 at 8 pm. I can truly say I wasn't nervous at all, just ready. I spent that day making sure everything was ready and packed while I waited for Eric to get off work. Eric was SO nervous, but incredibly supportive. Everyone made a point to tell me their awful induction stories and the horror stories they'd heard from so-in-so, but I knew my doctors had waited until my body was ready. They had first mention an induction weeks before but waited, and I was only 2 days from my due date of July 2^nd. At the time, I didn't care what I faced as far as pain and long labor, I just wanted my baby born!

The hospital was busy, but got us in a room and checked in that night. As soon as I was hooked up to all the machines, the nurse said, “You're already having contractions.” I was surprised at first, but then it made sense. I had been in pain. Lol! But I had also been preparing myself to be in pain, so I really thought it was nothing. I'm usually a total wimp. So for 9 months, I'd been talking myself into being tougher. I guess it worked! Around 10 pm, I got cervidil inserted overnight to “get my cervix more ready for the induction”. It's basically a flat, rectangle tampon that sits on the cervix. I immediately felt cramps, but nothing too bad. Like a bad menstrual cramp, basically. I was able to get some sleep that night and Eric slept on a big couch. At one point, I rolled to my right side, the nurses came in and made me move, because Brady's heartbeat had slowed down. I was freaked, but glad I was hooked up and they could monitor that. I still had incredible fear of something happening to him right at the end.

The morning of the 30^th, I was just slightly more dilated and more effaced. At 10 am, I got the pitocin. Holy smokes! Induction contractions are unrelenting! Someone text me to ask how far apart my contractions were. I thought.. what? There's no time in between AT ALL!? They got pretty bad and by noon, I asked for the epidural. My nurses (I had 2 at this point and they were phenomenal!) made Eric leave while I got the epidural. I didn't like that one bit. I got cold, and nervous, and was shaking while the anesthesiologist got ready. He didn't announce what he was doing and obviously I couldn't see. The nurse had to tell him to please let me know what was coming. I was beyond annoyed, but he was really the only person I encountered up until then with poor bedside manner, so I just tried to stay calm. Throughout my pregnancy, I said “Oh yeah, I'll get the epidural” like it was no big deal. In the moment, it's a lot different! I had expected that Eric would be by my side, but the nurses were great and I felt immediate relief. Mostly on my right side at first, then all over, then I couldn't even move from the waist down.

For the next few hours, I just relaxed and hung out with Eric. By 3 pm, I started to feel pain again and told my nurse. It was bad and right in the middle of my lower abdomen. She was going to check the epidural, but decided to check me first, and sure enough it was time to push. I didn't feel the 'have to poop' pressure like most women. I said, “Shut up!” when she told me it was time and everything felt very surreal. The moment was really here!? I did have to wait 15 min for Dr. Friedman to get there from his office. It felt like forever! The nurses said I could start pushing before he got there if I 'needed' to, but I didn't like the sound of that and waited for him to get there. The pressure was so bad though. Eric started to say something and I yelled, “Just shut up!” I didn't want to hear anything during the pain. Then he actually complained about me squeezing his hand to hard. Who does that!? Lol.

When the doctor got there, 10 different people came in the room and started setting up. I wasn't really prepared for all the 'witnesses'. Oh well, legs up and let's get this baby out! Lol Dr. Friedman came in and put his ipod behind me on a counter. It was loud and blasting Garth Brooks. Are you kidding me!? My child may be born in Texas but NOT to Friends in Low Places. Okay!? I had my nurse shut that thing off.

We got ready to push and Eric automatically got tears in his eyes. The husbands don't have the same mental and physical preparation as the pregnant wives. I was SO ready and I think he was scared! He stayed strong and held my right hand and leg and one of my nurses held the left. The monitor for contractions had stopped working, so I just had to push when I felt them. 10 seconds never felt so long!! Eric counted with the nurses and I thought it was going in slow motion! Probably didn't help that I was so out of shape and that I couldn't feel how hard I was pushing. Brady crowned very quickly and I think that's the only time Eric 'looked'. He started crying and saying “I can see him! I can see him!” Dr. Friedman said “He's bald like you” to Eric. I had to have an episiotomy and then Brady was suctioned out. I pushed him far, very quickly, but then he was stuck.

The whole thing lasted less than 30 min and Brady was born at 3:43 pm. 8 lbs 5.4 oz. And 21 inches long. As soon as I heard his cry, I sobbed. I felt such relief and all my anxiety left me. I didn't realize until that moment just how worried I had been that something awful might happen to him before or during delivery.

Eric stood next to Brady and his nurse, while she cleaned him up and weighed him. She gave him to me and I cried some more! It was truly a magnificent moment. He looked like me, his eyes were open, and we just stared at each other. I fell in love instantly. I held him, kissed him, and told him I loved him for the first time. Brady Dean Weisinger had my heart!

His nurse said she had to take him to make sure he was getting enough oxygen because he was breathing heavily. That scared me, so I loved on him and kissed him for a minute and then handed him right back. I got cleaned up and taken care of while we waited on Brady. The nurse came back to tell us that he was breathing fine (he was born 'in stress' (as if any babies are not!?) and had pooped on his way out), but he did have low blood sugar (go figure since I hadn't eaten anything since noon the day before! Doctors orders). So they were giving him formula and I couldn't breastfeed yet. We didn't get to see him again until almost 8 that night. It took 24 hours to get his blood sugar back up and staying up. I yelled at one nurse in the middle of the night for pricking his foot. I could hear him crying so hard and I said, “How many times are you going to poke him!?” I must have scared her, because she immediately left and Eric said she only poked him once but she was squeezing the sh** out of his heel to get blood. I hated it! But I do feel bad for yelling at her.

I started to feel better, but then got worse. The episiotomy was painful but the hemorrhoids were something evil!! Somehow, the nurse I had that Friday missed it and I didn't know that was why my as* felt on fire until I was home. I knew I was pushing pretty hard!! I couldn't get up or sit up without serious pain! Poor Eric was taking care of me and Brady for the first week. He had blood shot eyes and was SO exhausted. He was the best husband and Daddy we could have.

We took Brady home on Saturday, July 2^nd. My due date!! Eric and I panicked getting him into the car seat. Lol Like new parents would! And I said, “Be careful!” about 100 times while driving home. There were balloons and a sign at our house courtesy of Eric's parents. It was so exciting to have Brady home and in his room! My family came to visit the next week. 

I think I had the best pregnancy and delivery I could have hoped for. (Minus outrageous weight gain and moving at 33 weeks!) But even so, God blessed us with a healthy, handsome, strong baby boy and reliving all of this has me excited for the next baby! Brady will be 1 year old next month. We've come a long way in a year and I am blessed to be his Momma!

Go Cardinals!!!!

I was so happy that they won the game on Sunday. Eric, Brady, and I went to the game with the Fletchers and had a blast. The Astros creamed us Friday and Saturday so I was nervous. I didn't want to hear a bunch of crap wearing a Cards shirt. Well, after 4 home runs, no one said a word! 8-2 :) We saw a guy wearing a shirt that read "Marry a Cards fan, Live happily ever after" Story of Eric's life :) Brady did SO good at the game. He was awake and happy until the 9^th inning. After 3 hours he passed out on Daddy. I think it's safe to say he loves baseball as much as we do! Good thing, because his birthday is allllll baseball. We have gotten the decorations, invitations are going out tomorrow, and the cupcakes are ordered. SO exciting!!! My Mom, Dad, sister, and her husband are ALL able to make it down for the party. I cried when I heard they could all make it. I can't imagine celebrating Brady's birthday without any of my family.

My dad is working on building his toy chest for him. I'm really excited about this since my Dad is a top notch carpenter. It makes me want to redo his room already for a big boy. Lol But we'll wait on that. Brady is doing great with everything. He loves to walk around holding my hands and turning on and off the light switches. He dives for them when we walk by! He's 10 flippin months old. NEXT MONTH he will be 1. Truly unbelievable. Until... I think about where we were a year ago.. staying with my in-laws, looking for a house, and almost 9 months pregnant! Not to mention I was as big as a HOUSE! Yeahhh then it feels like a year! :) We've come a long way. I think we're really getting the hang of recruiting. Eric's new boss is great! His days are a little shorter now. On average 8-8. Sad that that's better, right?? Well it is! I've also lost 10 lbs on Weight Watchers in 5 weeks. My goal is only 12 lbs away. I'm hoping to get there by Brady's birthday! Lol But, that goal is 17 lbs under prepregnancy so I've got no complaints! Even when I think I'm being 'bad' on WW, I still loose weight. It really changes the way you think about what you eat. Thank goodness for Lauren sharing her success with me and now I have 5 friends and family doing it since I started. Very helpful! I got my hair cut pretty short and I love it. Been feeling pretty good lately :) Eric has lost 9 lbs and says that people notice all time. So he's doing great too.

I've been stripping my diapers today. Brady's diapers that is ;) I have only done this once before and didn't do it full out. I took our clean diapers and rinsed them about 6 times in the washer to get rid of buildup (Desitin and detergent). Then added a TINY bit (½ tsp probably) of Dawn Original dish soap and washed them with that. I have an HE washer and dryer so I was VERY nervous to try it and Eric really didn't want me to, buuuut the diapers did have a little funk to them. So I couldn't help myself. My child is still a big pooper! Yesterday, he pooped 4 times before noon. They were all solid. He gets it from Eric LOL :) With all that pooing, I'm surprised I've made it this long without stripping them. It's probably because I still use liners. Anyways, I'm going to dry them in the sun to get rid of any stains and hopefully they will be like new!

Our tenant in NC signed a new 1 yr lease. Talk about a huge relief! It's stressful wondering and waiting to find out. Other than that one mishap of being late in November, she's been a good tenant. Shit happens, so I try to be understanding and move on. I have been feeling very grateful lately. There are so many stresses in life, especially one in the military and on awful recruiting duty. But it's always what we make of it. I'm thankful my husband is home every night and most weekends. Plenty of our friends can't say that right now. My husband is so good to me. I know I'm not always easy to handle, but he does a great job ;) We have a beautiful home, healthy baby, and no BIG worries. God is good!! And I don't want to forget it!