Update.

Hi everyone! Thank you for your interest! I received an overwhelming response for our new blog address so I'm moving to plan B. Once I have it up and running I'll post my e-mail address here and have you email me so I can import your addresses. I was far too unorganized and should have asked you to directly contact me via email instead of Facebook or by leaving a comment {I had no idea I had so many followers-you all came right out of the woodwork!} Anyways, I'm sorry for not responding to some of you personally but I thought this would be the most effective way.

Every single person who wrote me was so kind about my husband's job loss-it's so nice to have such a large support group and we truly appreciate it. Because of all the concern I thought it would be appropriate to update you all on our situation.

Jay was officially unemployed for 26 hours. Yes, that's right-he has a new job! Not more than 2 hours after he got the call that his school was closing, he got an interview the very next afternoon for another teaching position. He must have impressed them very much {how could he not, he's amazing!} because the interview lasted 10 minutes and they hired him on the spot. He stayed home and interviewed while the rest us drove up north for the weekend of the 4th, and he followed afterwards. I am so proud of my husband and how hard he works for our family. I am also thankful for our gracious, loving, and knowing Heavenly Father. We are so undeserving. Even in our moments of despair and doubt, he was weaving a perfect plan for us.

His new job is in Minneapolis, so we are blessed with the opportunity to carpool to work together. We've been toying with the idea of purchasing a bus pass and riding together to save on gas and commuting time. I'm so excited that we'll be able to drop off & pick up Lucy together, and just have more time together in general. Oh and did I mention his salary nearly doubled from his last job? Seriously, so blessed and so thankful. My head is still spinning and I'm not sure it's really kicked in yet. Supposedly he's supposed to be getting a severance package of pay for up to 6 months pay from his last job, but we're not sure if he will because they are filing bankruptcy. But we wouldn't complain if he was paid double for a few months :)

My Dad gifted us with his 2005 Nissan Ultima, so we're back in the game as far as vehicles go-and my Father-in-law took our Hyundai to a friends to get fixed and it's costing us a fraction of this cost that the dealership quoted us so that was a huge relief lifted off of us. Praise the Lord! Thank you to all of our generous family members who have lent us vehicles in the meantime. We are in good hands.

There is a lot more to update {Lucy's 6 month well baby check-up!} but I'm off to bed for now-and you better believe I've been having sweet dreams lately ;)

New.

I've been debating whether or not to change our blog address for more privacy for awhile now so I can blog about more personal issues, so if you're interested in having access to the new site send me an email and let me know. Or send me a message if we're Facebook friends. If you don't know my email and we aren't friends on Facebook...well, then you're a creep.

Just kidding. But for reals-this blog is a movin'.

p.s. I don't care if we've never met + you read my blog-I just feel better knowing who is reading it. So don't feel silly emailing me even if you stumbled across my blog by chance and want to continue reading :)

Remember this.

Lately Lucy has become very exploratory and interested in everything. She's just like a sponge-focusing and soaking in everything she can. My favorite thing she's learned is to reach out for me. She'll reach for me when someone is holding her and she always wants to touch mama and daddy's face.

One of my favorite moments of our day is when she first wakes up and my face is the first she focuses on. She gently reaches her little hands up to my face, tracing it with her fingers and studying my every inch. When she seems satisfied she'll gently pat my cheek with one hand. This will last for a minute or two and then she is flailing her arms and legs and wanting to play. But it's that minute or two of sleepiness before that I just love so much and I treasure that every morning. These are the moments that keep me going. I always want to remember this.

Bad things come in...?

Threes I hope? Where to even begin. Let's just say the past few weeks have been a little challenging around here. It all started about a month ago when our car was involved in a hit and run leaving it un-drivable. After a hefty car bill we were back in the game. Then this past week it broke down on the side of I-35 during one of the busiest times of the day-right before rush hour. The car overheated and smoke filled the cabin as we rushed out as fast as we could. I stood on the side of a busy interstate holding my baby girl for hours in 90 degree weather. After an expensive tow and an estimate from the dealership we were looking at a $5,000 fix. Without the necessary repairs the car would not be drivable, once again. We left for the Keys the next day, so we had to leave it at the dealership in the meantime. When we returned Jay's car died just as he was planning to leave and drive to the dealship to deal with my car, leaving us with no useable vehicles. Today we got a call that Jay's school is closing which means he is unemployed. So here we stand with no vehicles and down a job. I bet you think we're in panic mode, right?

Strangely I'm at peace with everything. At this point nothing surprises me and all I can do is laugh about it. I'm solely relying on God to provide for our family as he always does and I know he will. Patience isn't usually a strong suit of mine, but I'm certain it's why he puts me in situations such as this. I'm learning. I'm growing.

We were on our way to a family photo session when we got the call, and all I could think about during the shoot was how lucky I was. How lucky I am that my car broke down because it meant I had means of transportation to get me where I need to go. How lucky I am that Jay lost his job because it means a better opportunity waiting, and he will get to spend more time with Lucy while looking for another. How lucky I am that we go through trials like this so God can bring us closer as a family. And most of all how lucky I am to have the two of them to hold onto in times of need.

Please keep our little family in your prayers tonight. xoxo

Much to share!

So much has been going on that it's hard to put everything into words as each day is fun and thrilling with Lucy and I wish I could share every detail. My first Mother's day was spent as a family at my Mom's. Bunny and Papa came up to celebrate and we grilled steaks. My 26th birthday followed shortly and I've never felt so young. Lucy keeps me on my toes! Jay planned a special birthday for me and took the day off of work. While we had originally planned on spending it doing something very special (more to come on that!) we had to change our plans and he took me to downtown Stillwater for the day. It was the one day out of about 2 weeks that was actually warm and sunny and we had a great time just wandering around as a family. We started out with burgers and malts for lunch and then he patiently took me antiquing! That night my mom and sister made us a homemade scallop dinner and we had cake and gifts. It was more than I could have ever asked for. Here are some pictures from our day!

Lucy makes even the smallest of things special for us. She's such a joy in our lives. I'm not sure a night has passed since she's been born where Jay + I haven't been cuddled up in bed after she has gone to sleep and we've said that we are the luckiest people in the world and we love our little life we've created together. I think it's funny to think of the trivial things we based our life off of or the things we worried about or spent our time on pre-Lucy. Children certainly change your view on the world :)

She had a great 4 month check-up and we were thrilled when the doctor observed that she is very socially advanced for her age. She's in the 75% percentile for height but less than 50% for weight, she's such a tall + scrawny little peanut. We keep waiting for her to get her baby chub, which there is still plenty of time for...but she's perfect to us ;) She's babbling like crazy, wanting to stand on her feet, and laughing a lot. She does this adorable thing where she smiles so big she has to close her little eyes and we think it's the cutest. We love to see her happy! We also recently started her on rice cereal and it's pretty hysterical to see her face when we try and feed it to her....let's just say she's less than impressed. We'll get there.

We have a lot of fun planned {and a little surprise too!} for the week so I hope I can make it back to blog about that sometime this week before things get crazy and we leave for vacation.

Before I was a Mom.

My mama e-mailed this to me on Mother's Day, I'm not sure where it originates.

Before I was a Mom,
I never tripped over toys
or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not
my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.
Before I was a Mom,
I had never been puked on.
Pooped on.
Chewed on.
Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind
and my thoughts.
I slept all night.
Before I was a Mom,
I never held down a screaming child
so doctors could do tests.
Or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night
watching a baby sleep.
Before I was a Mom,
I never held a sleeping baby just because
I didn't want to put her down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces
when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small
could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.

I never knew how much I would love being a Mom.
Before I was a Mom,
I didn't know the feeling of
having my heart outside my body..
I didn't know how special it could feel
to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond
between a mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small
could make me feel so important and happy.
Before I was a Mom,
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night
every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth,
the joy,
the love,
the heartache,
the wonderment
or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much,
before I was a Mom.

Mama tips.

I thought I'd put together a quick post on things I've found really helpful as a mama since I know so many mama's to be {and also as a reminder for when baby #2 makes an appearance!} There are a few items that really came in handy after Lucy was born, but they are items you might not necessarily think of {I'm not going to list the obvious items like a crib, carseat, etc. because well, you people are smart ;)

-Bath sling. This thing is amazing. It's like a reclining lawn chair for babies....except for the bath. I like it because we don't have the storage for a big plastic baby tub, nor did I want one. This one fits in the kitchen sink, and also under the kitchen (or bathroom) sink for easy storage. You can get one for $7 instead of spending $30-40 on a baby tub.

-Waterproof pads from Target {they have little lambs on them}. These are super nice to have for diaper changes when you are out, and make it easy to change baby anywhere. I actually have a changing pad that came with my diaper bag but I still like to lay one of these on top of it so it doesn't get dirty. We also use these at home for quick changes on the bed, couch, etc. Lucy also likes to nurse side-lying so these are nice to lay under her. They are handy!-Wet bag. I got mine here in juicy jungle. It's basically a zipper sealed bag with a waterproof inside so you can throw dirty clothes, cloth diapers, baby bottles, etc. in it and it's washable. We keep ours in Lucy's diaper bag and use it often and it's a good way to be green rather than using disposable zip lock bags. I think we're going to order another one, and I'd recommend the large size. I thought this would also make a unique and fun shower gift.-Prefolds. I think I purchased chinese refolds {you can also buy indian refolds, the materials slightly differ but I've heard chinese last longer and are more absorbent}. These are typically used for cloth diapering, but we use them for burp cloths/feeding. They are nice because they are bigger and absorb a lot more than the skinny burp cloths you can buy at the store. Plus they are cheap. I got a pack of 50 for $12.
-Circo washcloths. I've found these are the softest washcloth for baby. I've tried other kinds and you can't beat these for the price. They are around $3 a pack at Target, but keep an eye on them-they go on sale often and I got them for $1 a pack. I always have some of these on hand, especially when feeding or bathing.
-Snap shirts. We call them Lucy's ninja shirts because she looks like a little ninja wearing them! These are nice because newborns hate having their clothes changed. They don't want to be naked and cold they want to be warm and snuggly! Well, at least for us-Lusy used to scream at diaper + clothing changes. The snap shirts are nice because they don't have to be pulled over the head and irritate your baby {and if there is a blowout they are easier to get on and off. Plus it keeps baby warm during the cold months. I would recommend the short sleeved ones even in the winter because under long sleeved jammies they can get bunched up underneath and baby can get too hot.
-Baby gowns. This one is similar to the ninja shirts. When baby is so small, they just want to be comfy, and while little people outfits look cute, they can be a hassle especially when baby doesn't like to be changed and can't sleep in little jeans and a cute sweater! I like these gowns because they gather at the bottom but don't have closures, so they make it really simple for frequent diaper changes. Also I'm not a big fan of zippered jammies. This is because the zipper only zips down one leg, leaving the opposite sort of hard to get out without waking baby for middle of the night changes. I like snap jammies because you can easily un-snap and change without having to wiggle their legs in and out.

-This nursing bra. I had the hardest time deciding what bra to purchase because most of the places available to me did not have the quality of bra I was hoping for, so I needed to order online. Once I started looking I realized there are a million options and I was really overwhelmed. But I can say invest in a few good nursing bras because you will live in them! This one is super comfy, has easy access, and it's cute! I have two of them. I would also invest in a few good nightgowns. I never used to wear them-but it's annoying to nurse in the night wearing a t-shirt. Snap nightgowns are really convenient, and I found them more comfortable then zippered nightgowns. I have tried a bunch but I found my favorite are from walmart. I got desperate after searching many places and not being satisfied with the options {I swear I need to open a maternity/mama clothing store!} But they had nice cotton breathable gowns with snaps all the way down for like $9 a piece, and with baby spit up/feedings you'll need a few for throughout the week.

-This nursing shield. This is life-changing in the world of breastfeeding! Lucy had latch issues when my supply came in due to her low blood sugar issues after birth. She had to be fed from a bottle right away, so when my milk came in she had trouble latching {hospital bottles have pretty hard, rigid nipples} We were getting so frustrated until our wonderful lactation consultant brought us one of these babies. She latched on right away and nursed like a champ! Plus, it really helped protect and prevent some soreness. If we hadn't tried the shield I'm not sure where we'd be right now {and that makes me sad because I absolutely love breastfeeding, and would feel sad if someone had to forego it due to latch issues-so hopefully this will help someone out!}

I think that's it. The other thing I would suggest is getting a nice wallet to hold everything you need like this one. It's nice to be able to carry everything in one place and throw it in your diaper bag. Eventually I found that if I'm running somewhere quick I'll just throw a diaper and pacifier in my purse, but when the baby is born it's good to carry everything you might need at the drop of a hat, so this wallet is nice for when you need the whole she-bang diaper bag.

One last thing I would suggest is if you have a friend who is done having babies, ask them to lend some necessities. Things like bibs, socks & shoes you can never have enough of. Also bigger items like strollers & a baby bjorn are nice to borrow too because they are spendy. We are lucky to have access to all of these items from a friend for free and it's made a big difference for our pocketbook. We have barely purchased any necessities for Lucy {we haven't even purchased one box of diapers so far thanks to generous family & friends!} But friends always want to help and this is a good way if they are done with the items. Also don't be afraid to accept offers of help after the baby arrives. You'll treasure an hour away from the house to get some coffee or have a pedicure or just drive to target and listen to music. And never turn down an offer for a meal....it is sooooo helpful!

SO much fun.

We have so much fun planned in the next few weeks. This week we are planning on going to the Science Museum and zoo because we are able to get free tickets (thank you, health insurance!). They have an exhibit at the Science Museum called Discovery, and it's all about the development and different stages of an infant's life- perfect for us! Lucy will also attend her first Twins game on Thursday! We are hoping for a little sun.

Jenni is planning a dinner for me sometime next week and I can't wait to catch up with her. She's so sweet and secretly planned a spa day for my birthday...so the two of us will be relaxing all day at a spa in Afton and then the guys will be joining us for dinner. Sounds like the perfect birthday to me. I am lucky!

We also planned a fun little vacation together. Jay, Lucy and I will be traveling with Jenni and Adam to the Cape this fall. We went to Boston last year, but there just wasn't enough time to make it over to Cape Cod. So we rented a beach cottage and will be spending a week there. We've been looking forward to traveling as couples for a long time. So much fun to look forward to!

Lucy's first Easter.

Jay had Friday off and is off work for the next 10 days (Easter and spring break) so we headed down to Bunny + Papa's for a long weekend. We had a fun day of visiting, thrifting, and dying Easter eggs. Lucy got her first Easter basket and some special gifts from Mimi and Bunny/Papa. Here are some pictures from our weekend.

Our little Easter Bunny!

Diaper time!
She loves daddy time.

Happiness.

I was watching Oprah the other day and her show was on happiness. I was surprised when she polled the audience and the majority of them either didn't know what happiness was, or felt like they rarely could reach it. The main question out of the show was, what is happiness? A feeling? A state of mind?

I believe happiness is a choice. I think it's a path you consistently and consciously choose for yourself. And I've learned {self guided} myself into that belief in the past few years of my life.

Most of the people on the show explained they didn't know how to find it, and some weren't even sure what true happiness was. They were so many people seeking out material things, using money for happiness, or just searching for more, more, more in their life-whether it be tangible or non-tangible. I find that there are so many people like that description in my life that I find it to be true. There is a constant search for something greater in their life, and no matter what they have or what they receive it's never good enough, and deep down they are never truly happy with themselves. They just don't allow themselves happiness {while they may say they are happy, you can always tell otherwise}. I feel so sorry for those people that just cannot get to a state of content with their life. I know for some people it can be a constant battle. Why is it so easy for some and so hard for others?

I feel so blessed that the Lord has instilled a sense of peace in my life, and I am very content. I cherish the ability to be happy, because I know it is a gift. I choose every day to wake up and try to have a positive attitude and bring happiness to my husband and baby girl, and while it's not always easy, it is always rewarding. I feel guilty when I let myself slip into unhappiness, because I've been given so much and I have so much to be grateful for. And when I catch myself becoming indifferent or I begin searching, I remind myself that thankfully, I am not in charge, and there is a much greater plan for our little life {and when I doubt that, I just look down at the precious baby girl sleeping in my husband's arms and all doubts vanish} and that is the most comforting thing of all.

3 months.

It's been far too long since I've posted, but man we've been busy! We are enjoying our little peanut so much and she makes every day so fun. She turned 3 months on Thursday and she is quickly growing. She smiles like crazy now and she's reaching out for her toys. We transitioned her to her crib last week and she's been doing awesome. Right now she is going to bed around 9 or 9:30 and sleeping until 6 am. Eventually once she can make it through longer periods we'll move her bedtime up earlier. It feels good to have somewhat of a routine established!Jay has been busy coaching and he is such a hard worker. I'm happy because I know he enjoys what he does and he is always so sweet and excited to come home and see his girls. He always tells us it's the highlight of his day. Can't get much better than that.

I'm enjoying every fleeting second with Lucy. She is an absolute joy and brings me so much happiness. Being a stay at home mommy is better than I ever thought it could be and I've already set a plan in place to not go back to work full time. I'm very lucky that I can do that and have the flexibilty with my job so I am thankful and feel very blessed. I've been able to work on some creative projects at home {which you all know I love} so I'll share those soon with pictures.

Just a quick update while I have a moment! xoxo

8 hours.

That's how much sleep I got last night. I pretty much feel like I could run the world. Lucy slept through the night! She slept from 11 pm to about 7:10 am. I couldn't believe it when I woke up to her babbling and looked at the clock. She didn't even wake up screaming. What a good little girl. Here is a pretty current picture of her sitting in her bumbo.

2 months.

Lucy's 2 month appointment was both great & heartbreaking. Great because she's excelled and reached all the necessary milestones, and heartbreaking because she had her first round of shots and she was a sad, miserable little girl. It was really hard to watch her that way. Our sweet little girl was so sad and cuddly all day and her little legs were really sore. Thank goodness Jay had the day off work and both he and my Mom went to the appointment with us. We had a little photo shoot that morning before her appointment because we knew she could potentially have a rough afternoon. I'm glad we did because I got some great shots of her and her precious little half smile!

We are so blessed that she is healthy and Praise God for that. We pray that she continues to thrive as she grows up.

Spring break.

The past two weeks have been crazy in this household. Week 1 was Aly's spring break and week 2 was my Mom's (she works at a school) so Lucy experienced a ton of new things and was such a good little girl as she was toted around town. She had her first & second road trip to Bunny's and also the mall! My Mom had the idea to take us shopping because there is a new 2 story forever 21 (my favorite) at one of our local malls, and she knew I hadn't had much time to shop for clothes since Lucy was born...and it had been 10 months since I could buy anything non-maternity. Holy moly we had so much fun! I think I tried on 100 things. I left the store with a whole new wardrobe which was really fun for me. They had so many cute styles for spring and I literally could have shopped all day in that one store. It was ginormous. Plus their clothes are super affordable which is really nice. Lucy just slept in her stroller and occasionally woke up to say hello and babble when she liked mama's outfit. She likes to have her opinion heard ;)

Shopping can be so refreshing when you actually find things you like, can't it? Especially as a new mama. It's so nice to feel like I look decent in something and it's not sweatpants or a t-shirt. I even found a new pair of jeans that I love, which is pretty much a miracle because I can never find the right length and %99.9 percent of all jeans are too short for me. I would say the day was a huge success.

Another miraculous thing happened this week: I was able to scrapbook! That has been pretty much impossible lately with taking care of my little bean, so I was really excited and I'm almost caught up on her scrapbook now. It was so nice to have people around to cuddle with her so I could get stuff done or go out with Jay here and there. I accidentally left my camera at Bunny's so I don't have pictures to share just yet, and we'll hopefully get that back soon.

This week should be super low key compared to the past two weeks and I am excited to just hang at home with Lucy. Here is a recent picture of her the morning of her 2 month appointment. She was such a happy and sweet little girl. I love this picture because you can tell she's still learning how to really smile, but she was so excited that mama was talking to her! Shortly after that we headed to the doctor. More on that later.

Lately.

This week Lucy is 2 months old! She is just a precious little blessing in our life and we love her more every day. I enjoy being home with her so much and she is getting more animated and her personality is shaping as the days quickly pass. She can now confidently hold her head up on her tummy and she is already starting to scoot with her legs. She loves to be in a seated position so she can look around at her little world and rarely does she like to lay down. Despite that fact, she is a huge cuddle bug. She loves to snuggle with mama and daddy and she is such a sweetheart. She rarely makes a peep and we are so lucky she is still an easy baby. She's only getting up once per night to feed around 4-5 am, so she's almost made it through the night. I'm so proud of my little girl! She just started smiling this past week and it is so rewarding to see her face light up when we talk to her. I can't wait for her to start giggling. She has started to babble a lot more and we love to hear her little voice! Jay and I have been lucky to get out for dates nights quite often. At the end of February he took me to see my favorite artist, David Gray in concert. It was so much fun and we really enjoyed a nice dinner together at Zelo's downtown and then a night of live music. He was phenomenal.

We also had our precious Lucy girl baptized on Sunday March 6th at our Church. It was the sweetest little private service for our family and the pastor did a great job. Lucy didn't make a peep and was a perfect little girl as daddy held her through the service. She even liked the water part! She wore the handmade gown that Bunny made for me when I was a baby, and Aly wore it too, so that was special for us. We had a nice luncheon afterwards and catered Famous Daves.

Her bible cake!

Last week was my sister's spring break so we planned Lucy's baptism that weekend because she is one of her Godmother's and we really wanted her there. Aly and Tyler stayed with us most of the week and we had so much fun with them.

Dear Lucy,

I love how your little hand barely wraps around my pinky finger.

I love when you squeak like a little bird

when you want mama to pick you up.

I love when you reach out to touch my face with your little hands.

I love when I lay you next to me on the bed and you wiggle

until you are as close to me as you can get.

I love when I inch away and you do it again.

I love the way you smell like a fresh little flower,

and the curl forming at the top of your hairline.

I love when you turn your head to find daddy's voice whenever he speaks.

I love when you lean towards me when other people are holding you.

I love the way you sometimes won't sleep in your bassinet,

but as soon as you lay with me you fall asleep.

I love watching you suck your little thumb.

I love you so much!

Life is good.

Things are going well in our little home of three. We've been soaking up every minute we can with our precious baby girl. On Thursday she was a month old! She's growing so much and so fast already. On Valentines Day we were lucky enough to have my Mom babysit her so Jay and I could get out for a date! That morning we had a delivery of beautiful flowers from Daddy and I was so excited all day because I had no idea what we were doing. He took me out for a nice dinner at Pier 500-I would highly recommend this yummy place! He was thoughtful enough to make early reservations at 5:00 so we could get home and watch the bachelor and just relax. It was a great evening. My two Valentines!

We've been lucky enough to get out a few times already alone together and we cherish that time together. I don't know what we'd do without family around, we have so much help! It's so nice for people to swing by with a home cooked meal or a box of diapers, or just an extra hand so we can get out for an hour or two or run errands. I don't know how the mama's do it that don't have family nearby, they are my heros!

Lucy is more active and alert everyday. We've been having fun together during the days and when she's not feeding or sleeping, we take a lot of pictures! This newborn stage is just so precious and fleeting and I know I only have a few more weeks to capture it. She's already almost outgrown her newborn clothes and diapers! I've also been trying to get started/catch up to date on her scrapbook. Here is her one month picture.

I've decided to take her picture each month (she is laying on a piece of fabric, and I photoshopped the printing onto her onesie). When she's a year old we plan on framing all twelve photos for a fun memory of her first year. I plan on getting a few other yards of fabric to utilize, and we may end up making a blanket with the fabric when we are finished with the project. It's a fun and low cost way to document her new little life.

Now the three of us are cuddled together in bed watching movies and actually enjoying a snowstorm for the first time this winter! We've never been happier to be snowed in ;) Life is good {great}.

Life with Lucy.

Lucy is such a good little girl, she even allowed me some time to re-vamp our blog the other day! Adjusting to her schedule has been easier than we expected and while taking care of her takes a lot of time, it's a lot easier than we thought it would be. When she's not napping during the day she is very alert and content just looking around her new little world. She loves to be sung to and it is just so precious to hold her in front of you and watch her little eyes scan your face, taking in all the details and memorizing what you look like. We can't wait until she starts to smile! Here are a few pictures I took of little bean.

Our days pass quickly and by the time we know it, Daddy is home! It's so rewarding to spend days at home with Lucy and take care of her. We've had a ton of visitors and still more to come. One of my mom's friends has come over twice to clean our house for us and we are so thankful! I just haven't had time or gotten our routine to the point where I can get enough time to clean the whole house, so that has been so nice. Jenni came over today and spent the day with us and that was really fun, she loves her Godmama!

We met with our pastor on Saturday and planned her baptism for March and we are so excited. So we've started planning the event and the luncheon to follow and we can't wait to share her special day with our family. We're looking for my baptism outfit which Bunny made for me, because I'd love for her to wear it. We also got her birth announcements ordered and are anxiously awaiting their arrival!

Tonight is movie night and it's time to go snuggle with my little family :) xxoo

Lucy's birth story.

I had a very long and tiring labor. We headed to the hospital on the 18th, but Lucy wasn't born until the 20th. I labored for 3 days, and although it was an emotional and stressful few days, I wouldn't change a thing!

On Tuesday, January 18th Jay and I were laying in bed watching the movie Inception when my water broke around 9:15 pm. Even though it was obviously coming, we were shocked! We both looked at each other thinking, "what do we do now??!" I was planning on laboring at home as much as I could before heading to the hospital, but things weren't panning out like we thought they would. Instead of my contractions picking up, they sort of stalled out. I had been having them for weeks prior, so I was surprised that they were not progressing. I could tell Jay was nervous, because he was scurrying around the house trying to keep busy, but would come check on me every few minutes to see how I was feeling. I was actually very calm. We cleaned up Lucy's nursery, picked up around the house, made some food for the hospital, and changed our sheets. We sat on the edge of our bed together and prayed for Lucy, and then finally we reluctantly headed to the hospital to meet my Mom around midnight.

I was checked for progress a few hours after being admitted (they wouldn't let me leave since my water had broken) and I was disappointed to hear I was only dilated to 1 cm. 2 weeks prior at my doctor appointment I was already at 1 cm, and although I was progressing in other ways (her head was engaged and I was 50% effaced) I still felt disappointed. Right away they wanted to start pitocin to speed things up, but we declined. I really wanted to experience a natural labor and not have to medicate myself and potentially harm Lucy. So we continued laboring naturally. I labored through the night Tuesday with no sleep, and all day Wednesday. By Wednesday night they were concerned that it had been 24 hours since my water broke and they were pushing the pitocin again. At that point I hadn't slept in 2 days and had not had much to eat. My doctor said we needed to do something to get things going soon if I wasn't progressing on my own. She offered to give me the night to rest and hopefully progress naturally, or else Thursday morning we would need to intervene for the health of Lucy. We agreed, and we prayed that my body would cooperate through the night.

So I labored through the night Wednesday and contractions became stronger and closer together. By 5 am they checked me and I was only dilated to 2.5 cm. I was devastated! I was 90% effaced but was just not progressing quickly enough on my own. I was handling contractions great and labor was not as bad as I expected, but it wasn't quick enough and they were worried about the risk of infection since my water had broken 3 days prior. I had labored for 2.5 days on my own and was just not progressing enough. So Thursday morning I ran out of options-I had to get pitocin to move things along. Once I started the pitocin labor was complete hell! It was so painful and the contractions were so strong and so close together, and I could feel Lucy squirming around in my belly and I knew she was uncomfortable, it was awful. I labored through 4 hours of pitocin contractions until I thought I was going to die, and I finally got an epidural around 9am. After the epidural life was amazing! I could not feel anything and I progressed very quickly. By 1pm I was 10 cm and started pushing at 1:30, and she was born at 3:03 pm. My mom, sister, and Jay were all there in the delivery room helping me push and encouraging me. It was the most amazing thing I'd ever experienced, and so different than I thought it would be. I was very quiet and calm through the entire experience. I could not wait to meet my baby.

I felt like I had pushed for 5 minutes and then she was born. They placed her on my chest and she looked up at her mama with her beautiful tiny little eyes and we just stared at each other. She didn't cry. She was perfect. She reached out and grabbed my finger and held on for dear life. I looked at Jay and we cried like babies. I just kept saying she is so beautiful, and he kissed me and told me she looked just like her mama.

When she was born the cord was wrapped around her neck twice, so the doctor had to cut it before she was out-pushing her into the traumatic birth category. Jay was later able to cut the cord shorter, but we weren't able to let it stop pulsing like we had hoped. Because of this and the length of time that passed after my water had broken, her blood sugar levels were very low and she had to be closely monitored, having blood drawn every 3 hours after she was born. My milk had not come in yet so she had to be supplemented with high caloric formula to raise her blood sugar level. I was not happy that we had to give her formula-but the positive side was that it gave Jay the chance to feed and bond with her, which I loved watching. We opted to feed her through an SNS tube, which means a small tube is taped to our finger and she sucks from our finger, rather than a bottle. We didn't want her introduced to a bottle until she was successfully breastfeeding. I know Jay really enjoyed those first few feedings of her life. It was a precious sight.

After a few days my milk came in and we were (thankfully) able to stop supplementing with formula, and she is doing great now. She dropped to 7lbs. on day two, but at her 2 week checkup yesterday she was a plump 8lbs. 4 oz! It was an emotional roller coaster, and I absolutely could not have done it without Jay. He was by my side every step of the way, and I'm sure he saw and heard things he never thought he would be able to handle and he was amazing. We have become closer than I ever thought we could be and we just appreciate each other so much. He was so loving and caring and attentive to my needs and he was the best support system I could have asked for. He was my first line of defense when something was not happening as I wanted, and he was my advocate for what I needed and hoped for. We also had an awesome doula who we loved.


Although labor did not go how we had originally hoped, Lucy is here safe and sound and that is all that matters! A few days after she was born, Jay surprised me and my Grandma (who was staying with us) with massages! So we were able to get out and have some relaxing alone time. He also watched Lucy so I could go get my hair done and have some me time. It was awesome. Jay is the best hands on daddy in the world. He takes the initiative with Lucy and just loves being with her. I love that he is comfortable feeding, changing and taking care of her on his own. Life is good at home and we are adjusting to Lucy's schedule really well. She's a really easy going baby and we are very lucky, she is like her daddy in that way. We just love her so much! Here is one of the first pictures taken of her after she was born.

Two weeks old.

I have a few precious spare minutes while my baby girl cuddles with Grandma, and Daddy is sleeping so I don't know what to do with myself! Free time is few and far between these days, and that is perfectly fine with me. Although I don't have much time, I think it's important for me to document this time in our life as often as I can because it is fleeting and so precious.

When I look at the tiny being in my arms I often wonder how I could be so lucky. How could I be part of something so perfect? This precious little baby knit together with intention is a part of me. I was part of an absolute miracle. She is so tiny and such a blessing to us.

Tomorrow she will be two weeks old and I can already see change in her. She's growing like crazy! We're beginning to create her birth announcements and plan her baptism. We have so much to look forward to, and so many memories to look back on. Last night was our first night alone with Lucy, and today my first day on my own with her. Everything went great, she's such a good baby. We've been so spoiled because Bunny stayed with us the first week we were home, and my mom has been staying with us since she left. It's so nice to have the extra hands and not have to worry about cooking, cleaning, etc. Plus we've been getting lots of sleep!

I need to sit down and write up her birth story but I haven't had time yet because it was a long few days :) My mama is staying with us tonight so I hope I can find some time tomorrow to do that.

At two weeks old Lucy is:

-Sleeping until I wake her at night to feed, and sleeping most of the day!

-Only cries when she is not fed on time! She's such a low key baby.

-Holds her head up and looks around, responding to voices and noises.

-Loves being sung to.

-Will put herself to sleep.

-Is a loud sleeper. She likes to sigh and grunt :)

-Loves to cuddle on my chest.

-Sucks her thumb.

-Loves her hands by her face.

-Is starting to like her bath.