Life in the Fast Lane

Family Fun Day (and 16 weeks)

2011-10-20T11:17:00.000-05:00

First of all, Haylee was super excited to get her first haircut! She has been asking us for a long time to get it done. She loves to go with her Daddy when he gets his cut and I think she secretly thought if she got it cut she wouldn't have to wash it anymore. The kid would take 10 baths a day if we let her, but she hates washing her hair. (She doesn't like water getting in her eyes.) She did great!!

Here I am at 16 weeks, growing right along!

Wednesday Daddy was off from work so we had an awesome family day. We took Haylee to the pumpkin patch at our church for her annual pictures. We also picked out some pumpkins to take home.

Haylee wanted to paint her pumpkin so we decided that was a great idea. It was much easier and faster than carving!

Then, Haylee helped Mommy make pumpkin cookies. She loves to help bake!

After the cookies were done, we all snuggled on the couch and watched movies. It was a great day and we are so excited to have Daddy home with us more now!

14 Weeks (a week behind)

2011-10-09T21:02:00.000-05:00

Today marks 15 weeks! I am feeling good for the most part. The only "problem" I've really had is with my blood sugar level. It's only happened a couple times, usually in the morning, but if I don't eat a good breakfast my levels dip. Apparently a "good" breakfast is one meant for a trucker. I feel like I'm eating all the time, but the doctor said that two babies can use up a lot of calories without me even realizing it. I'm adjusting to it and try to always have snacks on hand. I go back to the doctor Oct. 25 so we are looking forward to that! I will post my 14 week pic from last week. Hope everyone had a great weekend!!

Hakuna Matata

2011-09-20T11:10:00.000-05:00

We made it to 12 weeks! I'm so excited to be almost done with the first trimester!

Brad is loving his new job. He happened to be off yesterday (Monday) so we took Haylee to see my favorite movie, Lion King. She loves watching it at home so I knew she would enjoy the theater. This was her first time at the movie theater and she did awesome! I was so proud of her. (The flash startled her every time I tried to take a picture so it's a little blurry.)

I went to the doctor today because my nauseau seems to be getting worse. She gave me some medicine to help so hopefully it works. She had a hard time picking up 2 hearbeats with the doppler so I got a "free" sonogram. The babies are snuggling right next to each other. She said "No wonder I was having a hard time...they are right on top of each other". Aww...sibling love already. :) They both looked great though. I go back for my regular appointment next Tuesday.

Looking Good!

2011-09-13T20:24:00.000-05:00

I don't have time for a big update right now, but we had a sonogram with the maternal-fetal doctor today and both babies look great!! They gave me a DVD to take home which was awesome because Brad got to see it. I don't think I can put it on here so if you want to see it stop on by, we'll pop some popcorn and watch the babies on their first home video! :)

September already?!

2011-09-06T20:48:00.000-05:00

Time sure does fly! I can't believe it's September already. I must say I'm super excited though. Fall is my FAVORITE!! I love the weather, colors, decorations, food, holidays, etc. I can't wait to put up my fall decorations and have all the windows open, while cooking and baking, friends over to watch football. I love it!! On with the real "news". :)

Brad finally got a new job!! I am so proud of him for keeping his chin up and his determination going. We are looking forward to saying GOOD-BYE to Wal-Mart. His new job is with Dr Pepper and he will be a vendor. He is very excited to be starting a new chapter. Haylee picked up balloons for her Daddy the day we found out the great news!

Other news, we made it to 10 weeks! As fas as we know everything is great. I switched over from the fertility clinic to my regular doctor so I'm "normal" now. Ok, maybe I will never be "normal" but it's good news. My doctor wants me to see the maternal fetal specialist as well since it's twins. I have an appointment with him Tuesday, September 13. I will have more of an update then!

Haylee is doing great! She started preschool last week at my childhood church, Trinity UMC. It's the same preschool I graduated from! She loves it and has so much fun playing with other children. She talks about her teachers and friends all the time. When I picked her up today she was so excited to tell me, "We got to play outside on the playground today!!" The weather was cool enough for them to make it outside for recess and she loved every minute!

She is so much fun to be around and truly a ray of sunshine. She makes us laugh all the time and comes up with the greatest stories! We just can't imagine our lives without her! Tonight before dinner she said "We have to pray first mommy". I said "You're right baby, go ahead". Here was her prayer: "Dear God, thank you for our food, thank you for going to church, thank you for daddy going to work, Amen." Thank you God for Haylee!!!

2011-08-16T10:58:00.000-05:00

We went back to the doctor this morning and both babies look great! We heard heartbeats again and the doctor said everything (and everyone) was measuring right on target. Our next appointment is Thursday, August 25!

Double Trouble

2011-08-09T13:20:00.000-05:00

We FINALLY made it to the sonogram day! When the nurse calls with the HCG level and says to come in 2 weeks for a sonogam, it feels like 2 years. When your lives are as busy as ours though, that 2 weeks can also seem to go very quickly. Fast or slow, we made it and got some great news! Both embryos that were transfered implanted so there's twins!! Each baby is in it's own sac and measuring right on target. We got to hear the heartbeats too. I go back next Tuesday to make sure everything continues to progress. Thanks again for all the prayers and feel free to keep them coming. :) We are beyond thrilled, but know that we still have a journey ahead of us.

I'm a day behind....

2011-07-27T12:21:00.000-05:00

I'm sorry I didn't post the results yesterday. Let's just say the day ended in a score of TUESDAY-1 CINDY-0. It wasn't a bad day really, just one of those days where an "I'm done!!" is absolutely necessary before dinner has even been made. I got great news at the doctor! My level went up to 364, more than double, which is awesome. Our next appt is Tuesday, August 9 for a sonogram!! Thank you for all the prayers and well wishes and feel free to keep them coming! :)

Results are in...

2011-07-24T12:35:00.000-05:00

The doctor's office called with the pregnancy test results and it was positive!! Anything over 20 is positive, over 100 is really good, and our HCG number is 133! I go back Tuesday for a repeat test to make sure that the number rises appropriately. Thanks so much for all the prayers!!!

Transfer #8

2011-07-18T17:52:00.004-05:00

The transfer on Friday went great. Both embryos survived the thawing process and expanded like we were hoping. The pictures on the left show them straight from the "freezer" and the right show them a couple hours later, right before transfer.

The transfer went smoothly and the embryos were released near the thickest part of the endometrial lining. Now we patiently wait until Sunday, July 24 for the pregnancy test!

Wow it's been awhile...

2011-07-13T09:38:00.005-05:00

I just realized it's been A LONG time since my last blog. I feel like our lives have been nothing short of CRAZY and super busy, but yet I don't have anything huge to report. I'll try to recap what's been going on and get caught up to present day. Here we go...

Brad - He is still at Wal-Mart but desperately trying to get out. He has an interview next week with another company, but I don't want to get into too many details yet. We have hope and a strong faith in the Lord and it's time we sit back and listen. Too many times we feel like God has let us down when things don't turn out how we want them to. I have been quickly reminded that it simply means it's not in HIS plan and we must patiently wait for Him to open the right doors. Medically, Brad is falling apart. (Not really, but I like to tease him.) He hasn't passed a kidney stone in a while (knock on wood), which is good considering x-rays show they are there. He has been having problems with back pain and numbness in his foot, however, and is now doing physical therapy. He just started a couple weeks ago so we are hoping it works and gives him some relief. Other than that, he's doing great!! :)

Me - I had a great year teaching Pre-K at an early childhood program! The children were wonderful and I enjoyed every minute with them. I have decided not to return next year. As most of you know, I have spent most of my "working years" babysitting and taking care of children. I have been asked by a couple people if I would be interested in doing it again and I really feel like it's the right thing. I've always enjoyed it and felt blessed to have the opportunity to be able to. I'm no longer going to let others labels and comments make up my mind. Some say that I'm wasting my degree. I disagree strongly! I may not need the degree to watch children but I will never regret graduating from college and learning all that I've learned. Even if I never "use" it, I will never regret having it! I've been praying A LOT for God to guide me in the right direction. After a long soul search, I was hit with an "aha!" moment that my role is still very important whether it be in the house or out. Those that are called to work out of their homes need a safe and loving environment for their children to go to. I want to be the place where they can bring their children and know that they are in great care while they go to work. As a mother I know how important that is. After making the decision, things are falling into place. I am happier than I've been in a long time and so excited for what's to come.

Haylee - I can't believe our baby girl is 2 already! It has been the best 2 years of our lives though. She brings so much joy and happiness to both of us. She did great in her first year of preschool and really enjoyed her teachers and friends. She is my social butterfly (hmm...wonder where she gets that) and has already been to numerous birthday parties and play dates. This summer she's enjoying the water, swim lessons, playing outside, and taking care of her babies. She has about 10 baby dolls and loves every one of them. She feeds them, rocks them, changes their diapers, reads to them, sings to them, sleeps with them, takes them for rides in their strollers...you name it, she does it. My parents are absolutely in love and spend a lot of time with her. They feel blessed to be retired and able to do so much. If I mention running errands they jump at the opportunity to "babysit". I, of course, don't disagree! I love my baby more than anything, but going grocery shopping kid-free is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! :) She can be summed up with her statement to me of "I'm not a drama queen...I'm a princess!". No, honey, I think you're both. :)

And now the big focus right now...
This Friday, July 15, 2011, we are going in for round #8 of IVF. The procedure is scheduled for 1:15 pm and the pregnancy test will be Sunday, July 24, 2011. Prayers welcome and I will keep everyone updated.

Quick Update

2010-10-21T21:45:00.002-05:00

Like I said in the last blog, we did our 7th round of IVF last week and today was the pregnancy test. Unfortunately, it came back negative. :( We were very sad to hear the news, but we feel so blessed to even have Haylee. We will probably try again at some point, but we are down to 4 embryos. God is good and it's all in his hands so we are trying to just have faith!!

Anyone Out There???

2010-10-09T15:34:00.002-05:00

Ok, I realize it's been 5 months since my last blog. I'm sorry!!!!!! Things have been so crazy around our household and our computer has had some issues (nothing new)!! I tried posting something a while back and spent A LOT of time writing and putting pictures on, only for it to completely mess up when I went to post it. I think that frustrated me for the last time and I needed a break. Since our computer crashed I don't have pictures to post right now, but I will try soon. I PROMISE!! For now, here's a quick update:

Brad is still working overnight at Wal-Mart but is currently looking for a new job.
I'm working two jobs right now, both of which I love. I'm teaching Pre-k (4's) 3 days a week and work afterschool care 5 days a week. Needless to say, I'm NEVER home.
Haylee is doing great!! She talks ALL THE TIME and is really enjoying school (Tues. and Thurs.) I'll try to post some pics and update in more detail soon.
The biggest news right now: We are getting ready for another round of in vitro. This will be round 7, but the first one since having Haylee. It is scheduled for 11:00 am on Tuesday, October 12. We have 6 frozen embryos left.

That's all for now. I'm frantically trying to get the house clean, laundry done, and catch up on lesson planning so I can try and relax as much as possible after the transfer. Hope everyone is having a great weekend and GO RANGERS!!!!!!!!!

And She's Off!!

2010-05-05T19:28:00.004-05:00

Haylee's finally walking!!! She just decided it was time I guess. Literally, she just got up and started walking across the living room!

(For those that aren't familiar with a fresh food feeder, that's what she's eating from in the pictures. It's a mesh thing that holds whatever you want without the child getting big pieces of it. In the pictures she has frozen strawberries and mangos in there. She LOVES to suck them dry!)

Princess Party

2010-05-01T08:16:00.012-05:00

Planning Haylee's first birthday party was so much fun!! Since her Grandpa Mac calls her Princess Haylee, we figured it was only appropriate to give her a princess party. Here's the invitation:

We had peanut butter and jelly and chicken salad sandwiches, potato chips and dip, and magic pretzel wands.

Next to the princess punch is the MAGNIFICENT castle cake!! We have a family friend that makes cakes and does an absolutely wonderful job. She made our wedding cake 5 1/2 years ago so it was neat to have her make Haylee's 1st b-day cake as well.

Here's the princess herself:

The pinata was a string pinata. The kids took turns pulling one string at a time. One of the strings eventually pulled the bottom out, allowing all the candy to fall. It was much safer for a one year old's party than swinging a bat!

She is one loved little girl, but we already knew that!!

I had so much fun planning the party and I think it turned out great!! Haylee is such a special little girl to so many people. I know I've set it several times before, but I'll say it again. We are truly blessed to have wonderful family and friends. Not a day goes by that I don't thank God for the miracle he gave us. Happy Birthday Princess Haylee!!!!!

Easter Fun

2010-04-07T12:53:00.008-05:00

Haylee's first Easter was a success! She went to a couple egg hunts, we dyed eggs and made sugar cookies, we went to Easter service at church, but the most exciting was....the Easter bunny came to our house!! Apparently when you get older, you don't always get visits from him. Now that we have Haylee though...he's back! We started off the Easter celebration with an egg hunt at our church. Here she is ready to go:
She didn't quite understand the whole concept, but she had fun! She would've been content playing with the first egg she picked up for a good 5 minutes I'm sure.
I also took her to the church I grew up at for their egg hunt. I didn't even bring her basket this time because we were really just going to visit.
The Easter bunny came and filled Haylee's eggs with animal crackers and fruit puffs. I'm sure it will be much more exciting when she can actually eat candy! :)
Her grandparents all got her wonderful presents as well. Here she is opening something at my parents' house. She figured out real fast all she had to do was shake it and the tissue paper eventually fell off. Smart girl!
I just thought this was a cute picture taken at the nursery I work at. She loves to point and say "Usstis"...of course she's saying "What's this?"...I mean she's a genius right?
Last but definitely not least, this is my favorite! I was cleaning out her closet and drawers to get rid of her clothes that no longer fit. I left for about 15 seconds and came back to this. Silly girl!!!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter!! Not only did we enjoy all the activities that go along with the holiday, but we also stopped to remember why we celebrate Easter. We are so thankful to have found a place in our "new" church already and look forward to all the great doors God is opening for our family.

Bargain Baby

2010-03-31T18:27:00.002-05:00

If you know me very well, you know that I am a HUGE bargain shopper. I very rarely pay full price for anything. I have a coupon or some way to get a discount for just about everything. Here's a couple of my latest bargains. The second picture was supposed to be much more impressive, and actually would have been, had a been able to finish out my "coupon shopping" last week. Between my duties as wife, mom, and working 3 part time jobs....I sometimes forget to breath. (The joke of losing your head if it wasn't attached is taken very seriously in this household because I would MOST DEF. lose mine...no joke!) Needless to say, I didn't have time to get to the last store but here it is anyway!

Bath and Body Works: Retail $31 plus tax......I paid $11.23 total

Collection of Target, CVS, and Wal-Mart: I didn't add up the original prices but I spent $3+$8+$7= $18 total

It may not look like a whole lot, but if you take into consideration what's in this picture I think $18 is pretty good!! (Diapers, light bulbs, band-aids(x2), cereal(x4), body wash(x2), deodorant(x3), a several other things.) You may also look at some items and wonder why I even got them at all. More than likely they were free (ex. baby shampoo, tuna(x2), Tide pouch, Renu...). I have a lot of fun bargain shopping and look forward to matching up coupons with ads each week!!

Haylee was actually a bargain baby. We used a buy one get one free coupon for the embryos and then went on half price day for the transfer. I don't mess around with bargains! (Early April Fool's Day joke...not to be taken seriously.)

Miss Model

2010-03-13T09:55:00.004-06:00

**I'm sorry - I guess my computer logs me in automatically so I forgot to give you guys a step. I've made the appropriate changes below. Sorry! **

Our ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL photographer just built a studio in her house. Haylee was one of the lucky ones to "model" for her so she could play with backgrounds and lighting. It gets a little more challenging to take pictures when they become so mobile, but Erin is so great with the babies regardless of age and/or mobility! Besides wanting to GO GO GO, Haylee did great! :) Here's access to the gallery if you're interested in viewing the pictures:
www.Capturesbyerin.com
Click on 'clients'
Log in with e-mail: bhodges_2@yahoo.com and password: hodges
Code is Haylee2
You can play the slideshow or click 'continue to gallery' to view each picture.

If you ever need pictures done, once again, I HIGHLY recommend Erin. www.CapturesbyErin.com

9 months old

2010-01-27T11:15:00.008-06:00

Here is what I started a couple weeks ago and am just now getting around to finishing! -

This past weekend Haylee turned 9 months old! She did great at her checkup yesterday.
30 1/4 in. long
24 lbs 4 oz
She is still above the 97 percentile in both height and weight, but her weight is now a little more "appropriate" (not sure if that's the right word but hopefully you get the point) for her height. She's growing great!

I'll leave you with a few pictures and some of her favorite things. If I try to do too much this won't get posted for another couple weeks, ha!
-She LOVES peas, carrots, green beans, sweet potatoes, apples, bananas, cheese, yogurt, cheerios, crackers, and biscuits. She will tolerate many other foods, but those are her favorite.
-She is crawling everywhere! She mastered the army crawl first, but she is now a pro at crawling on her knees. She spends almost every minute of every day pulling up on EVERYTHING. She will be walking before we know it!
-She says "mama", "dada", and "ooooohh" (that's her way of "uh oh") frequently. If you're lucky she might say "hi" and "bye bye" to you. She definitely has the wave down, but the words are only spoken at random.
-She cracks her self up! She loves to put on a show and make sure that everyone is watching her. Our little girl is quite a character!

Here she is with her Daddy after successfully taking his tootsie roll pop out of his mouth and putting it in her own.

The BEST way to ride in the grocery cart... Oh I'm brushing my teeth on bottom....cause I wouldn't want to say that I forgot 'em...(Barney anyone??)
I can't believe it's the middle of February already!! We are BUSY BUSY all the time, but I will try to update again soon. Hope everyone is enjoying 2010 so far!!

Still Feels a Little Like Christmas...Right??

2010-01-15T19:47:00.012-06:00

The world's worst blogger is back with a recap of Christmas! It seems to come and go so quick each year, but we still had a wonderful time this year. On Christmas Eve we went to church and then had Christmas with Brad's parents and sisters. It's sort of become a tradition to do it this way each year and I really like it. We usually have pizza (which is my FAVORITE) and open our presents to each other. Here's our little elf that night.

On Christmas morning, Brad and I usually get up and have our little Christmas together before heading over to my parent's house. This year we were beyond thrilled to have Haylee with us and to wake up and see that SANTA CAME!!! She really enjoyed opening her stocking and her presents.

After she opened all her presents we headed over to my parent's. We had a great time visiting with them before going to have yet another gathering with Brad's grandparents.

Haylee had a blast going through all the toys she received while they were still piled under the tree. I left them there for a few days until I had organized her room a little better to move all her new toys in. Between Santa and her grandparents I'd say she made out pretty well for her first Christmas!! :)

The day after Christmas we went to my mom's cousin's house to have Christmas with that side of the family. Haylee had a 5 month old boyfriend while we there and just couldn't get enough of him!

Shortly after this last picture was taken, Haylee put her hand on top of Carter's and proceeded to pull the poor innocent kid across the wood floor. She LOVES being around other kids and can definitely hold her own...not really sure if that's going to be a good thing or not.

All in all, we had a WONDERFUL Christmas. Having Haylee with us this year made us remember how exciting the holidays were when were younger. It's so fun to see everything though a child's eyes. We look forward to all that is to come!!

Hair Today...Gone Tomorrow

2009-12-17T09:54:00.004-06:00

I finally did it! When I decided to grow my hair back out I made the decision to grow it just to donate it. I realized a couple weeks ago that it was long enough to send to Locks of Love (their minimum is 10 inches). I told my hairdresser that I was ready but that I would just do it after the holidays. However, she got excited and talked me into doing it right away! So yesterday I went and cut off 12 inches of my hair and will be sending it to Locks of Love today.

Here's the new cut:

I absolutely love it!! I am beyond thrilled to be able to help someone who needs the hair more than I do.

Thanksgiving

2009-12-12T13:15:00.006-06:00

I know I'm behind on posts so I'll try to catch up a little bit in the next day or two. I remember last year when I was pregnant thinking about what it would be like during the next Thanksgiving when Haylee was actually here. I just can't believe that time actually came! We had a great time with family. On Thanksgiving day we went to Papa and Julia's house (Brad's grandparents) to spend the day with all the family. I love Brad's family so much and could not have asked for a better group of people to call my family. The day after Thanksgiving we went over to my parent's house to spend time with them. For those that don't know, my Mom fractured her hip and had pins put in right after Brad's surgery. Dealing with two hip patients at the same time is one reason I haven't had a chance to blog much! Some friends of my parents gave them a huge turkey dinner from a local cafe so we shared that with them. It was delicious - turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, rolls, corn bread, and cherry and apple pies. My parents have some amazing people in their lives that help so much, whether it's bringing over meals, providing transportation, or just giving them support. Needless to say we had a wonderful Thanksgiving with all of our family!! We have SO MUCH to be thankful for. God has blessed us all so much and continues to do so everyday. I thought it would be fun to compare Haylee and I last year....

to this year...

HIP HIP Hooray! (Or maybe not...)

2009-11-07T21:19:00.002-06:00

About a year ago Brad started to have pain in his hips. Although both hips were giving him some problems, the left one was significantly worse. Becoming a manager for Wal-Mart and being on his feet for 12 hours a day (on concrete floors) only made things worse. A few months ago he decided enough was enough and finally agreed to go to the doctor. We started at the family doctor who quickly sent us to an orthopedic. The orthopedic then sent him to a hip and knee specialist. One x-ray by this doctor was all it took for him to have an idea of exactly what was going on. Brad has what's called impingement. Basically his hip "ball and socket" are causing a pinching. Both areas had bone growth making them grind together instead of rotating smoothly. The options were pretty simple: either surgery to try and correct this or put it off and need a hip replacement in 2-5 years. We opted for surgery!

Brad went in Friday, November 6 for this surgery. It was our 5 year anniversary....and we spent it in the hospital. (Hippy Anniversary!!...ok, that's the last hip joke I have). We had to be at the hospital at 5:30 am. We waited until we were ready to walk out the door to get Haylee up and put her straight in her carseat. She went right back to sleep until we got to the hospital. When we arrived, however, she woke up and was her bright and cheery self. Here she is at 5:30 am wishing Daddy good luck.

Anyway, surgery went well and Brad did great! The doctor said he also had the beginning of arthritis in that hip, caused by the impingement. He is home now recovering and will be on crutches for at least a week or 2. He's on leave from work for 6 weeks and will hopefully be more mobile soon so he can enjoy the vacation! Haylee did absolutely wonderful the ENTIRE time we were at the hospital...and we were there ALLLLLLL day. I was so proud of her! Everyone at the hospital had fun with her. She smiles at everyone and she's started to wave too which makes everyone smile. We love our little girl! :) I'm so proud of Brad also and wishing him a speedy recovery!!

Trick or Treat

2009-11-03T21:35:00.007-06:00

On Saturday we put Haylee in her costume and took her over to see both sets of grandparents. She did great and didn't mess with her hat at all!

At my parents house she helped herself to several dum dums. I stopped by the basket and told her to take one (joking of course) but sure enough she grabbed about 6 for her trick or treat bucket. I should have known since she ALREADY shares her daddy's love of suckers! After visiting for a bit, we headed over to see Brad's parents. We decided to walk around with cousin Jackson and let Haylee trick or treat a little bit too. She had a BLAST!!!
I think the highlight of her evening was when her Papa Dave gave her a sucker. We had to pry it from her hand when mean 'ol mom decided that was probably enough sugar since her tummy's still so "young". Here she is sucking away.
She also enjoyed taking a ride on Daddy's shoulders.
We all had a great night! Having a child puts so much fun back in the holidays that I really didn't know was missing before until now. I was more excited this Halloween than I have been in a while and I can't wait to see so much more through Haylee's eyes!!

Haylee's 6 Month Pictures

2009-10-31T12:49:00.001-05:00

6 Months Old!!

2009-10-27T13:21:00.005-05:00

One of the things you get tired of people telling you when you have a baby is how fast they grow up! I don't mean that in a bad way at all, it's just something you hear from almost everyone. I now know why...it's so true!! Our precious miracle is 6 months old already and so much fun!! She is the happiest baby and smiles all the time. She loves to sit and play with her toys, look at her books, and interact with other people. We had her 6 month doctor's appointment yesterday and she's definitely getting big! She weighs 22 lbs 8 oz and is 28 1/4" long. We are actually supposed to try and cut back her formula a little bit to stay on top of her weight. It's easier to do now that she enjoys eating "regular" food so much. She LOVES her veggies (esp. green beans, sweet potatoes, peas, and squash). Surprisingly, she's not too fond of fruit right now. She will eat some bananas but the rest of them she could pass on. I'm sure that will change over time.

We took her to the Fall Festival at our church this past Sunday and got some pictures at the pumpkin patch. She is obviously too young to really enjoy those events yet but she had a good time playing with the pumpkins and looking at the petting zoo animals. Here's some pictures we took.

My Dearest WW

2009-10-03T12:10:00.002-05:00

Dear Weight Watchers, I cannot begin to express how sorry I am for cheating on you. I was purposely unfaithful to you for an entire week. I thought that it would be worth it, but it wasn't! I know now that I need you in my life. I'm not the same without you! Please forgive me and take me back. I promise to stay true to you from now on.

Love,
Cindy

Big Girl

2009-09-15T19:21:00.008-05:00

Haylee is growing...growing...growing! My 4 1/2 month old is in 9 month clothes. I'm not sure who decides what is appropriate size/age matches though. It seems like they NEVER correspond with any child!! She is in the "greater than 97th percentile" group in both height and weight so I guess it's only expected. She turns herself in her crib while she's sleeping. We dress her in "warm" pajamas each night so that we don't have to worry about a blanket since she moves so much. The only problem now is that when she turns 180 degrees she gets stuck because she is head to toe sideways in the crib. Every once in a while we'll hear "uhhh.....uhhh...." in the middle of the night. It actually makes us laugh because we know she's stuck and just needs to be turned. She always goes right back to sleep. Haylee has always been a GREAT sleeper (just like her parents)! We lay her down like this:

And find her like this:
She's starting to show a real interest in table food. Since we started rice cereal, she usually eats about 5 bites before becoming very uninterested in the rest. However, yesterday she ate the entire bowl! Today when I put her in her chair and put the bib on she got a big smile and opened her mouth wide. I'm not sure what changed but she likes it now. We were eating lunch with Brad's parents the other day and she reached her hand in Papa Dave's chip bag. Brad's a big tootsie roll pop addict (like we buy them at Sam's kind of addict!!) and Haylee would really like to have one of her own.

Now if she could only figure out how to get the wrapper off....

4 months

2009-08-24T21:06:00.006-05:00

Haylee is 4 months old today! We went to the doctor this morning and she weighs 18 lbs 13 oz already and is 26 1/2 " long. She's definitely a healthy and growing baby! Last week we took her to the zoo and she really enjoyed looking around at everything.

She even knew the difference between the monkeys and the zebras and actually said "elephant". Ok so I'm kidding, but she definitely took in all the new sights. While we were in Houston we went to the zoo there, but she was much younger and successfully slept the entire time.

We gave her rice cereal for the first time yesterday just to see how she would react. I don't think she really knew what to do with it, but she had fun trying something new! I smelled it and it definitely doesn't smell tasty! She got a weird look on her face during each bite (almost like the bitter beer face), but she smiled after each swallow as well. She's probably thinking "geez mom...can't we just start with bananas instead of this sandy stuff??".
Oh yeah, we were having problems with our computer and a friend was working on it for about a week. I don't have an excuse for not blogging the other week. Therefore I only take half responsibility so it's no big deal, right?!? :)

I win the award...

2009-08-07T13:30:00.008-05:00

for worst blogger! Sorry it's been a while. I can't even blame it on having a baby because Haylee is so good! We have been really busy this summer though. We try to stay home during the day when Brad's at work because it's so darn HOT outside! Most days we end up having something to do, but Haylee just goes along. She's very easy going and flexible like us. It's great! We went to Minnesota a couple weeks ago to visit family. It was a very short trip, but we had a great time! Haylee did awesome! On the plane she either slept or smiled at everyone. Brad would hold her up and she would flash the biggest smile at the people behind us. I was so proud of her. It was really good to see everyone. Hopefully the trip will be longer next time though! Here she is at a park in Minnesota. (Not sure if that's a baby gang sign or what?!?)
My parents came to visit one day and brought her a cute ladybug balloon. Much to our surprise, she loves playing with it! Here's a video we took. (Ignore me talking in the background. I was on the phone while Brad was recording this.)

Here's the smartest baby ever reading her book.
Last, but DEFINITELY not least, Haylee got her first Texas Rangers hat. It's so cute and we even had her name put on it. We got it done at Lids in the mall. It's a little big on her now but I'm sure it will fit better soon!

Hope everyone is having a good summer! I promise to TRY and blog a little more often.

Almost 3 months old!

2009-07-22T21:37:00.005-05:00

Life is crazy but good! Haylee will be 3 months old on Friday. We are going to Minnesota this weekend to see family so Haylee will have her first plane ride. We are very excited to see everyone! I don't have much time tonight, but wanted to give a little update. Here's a few pictures until I have more time to write. This picture was on the morning of a girls day. I went to shave my legs before going for a pedicure while Brad fed Haylee a bottle. I came back 10 minutes later to this.
Haylee loves to sit up and look around. She wants to see everything! I went ahead and put her activity center together, even though it says 4+ months because I thought she would like it. Her feet don't touch the bottom and we have to sandwich her in with blankets, but she loves it!
Haylee was baptized on Sunday. She looked beautiful and did great! She had cute little booties too, but one fell off in the middle so we just took the other one off.
I'll try and update more later!

What to say...what to say

2009-07-11T14:21:00.006-05:00

It may come as a surprise to some of you that, for someone who talks all the time, I just can't seem to come up with things to blog about sometimes. I read so many blogs that are funny and creative and wish I could do that too. Oh well, for now I'll just continue to go on and on about our precious little girl. That's my job as her mom though, right?!
Haylee's personality continues to come out everyday and I love it! She's a lot like Brad and I in that she's pretty laid back. This summer has been busy, but she just kind of goes along with whatever we have going on. When we put her in her carseat we sometimes get that "where are we going now???" look, but it's very quickly followed by a smile. Our little girl LOVES to smile! I mentioned in another post that she will mimic you if you stick your tongue out at her. Cutest thing ever because she gets the biggest grin on her face right after she does it. I got the very end of it in this picture.

We went swimming again and the water was warmer this time. Haylee loved it! She played in her crab floaty for about 30 minutes. She also had fun swimming with her Aunt Jill.

This will come as NO surprise based on the size of her parents, but Haylee is getting big! She is now wearing 6 month clothes. I'm in the process of cleaning out her closet and drawers right now to get rid of what she's grown out of. It's a good thing she's growing fast though because her future husband is about 3 years older than her. Our friends have a little boy named Lane who just turned 4 and he loves "Princess Haylee". Why he started calling her that we're not sure, but it's too cute! He says he's going to marry Haylee, but we told him he has to ask Brad first. I don't think he's looking forward to that talk! Here he is showing her how to play with a little toy teapot.

We have a lot to look forward to at the end of this month. Haylee turns 3 months old and we'll probably get some more pictures done. Next weekend we are getting her baptised. Brad is taking another week of vacation. For three of those days we are going to Minnesota to see all of my mom's side of the family. I'm so excited to see everyone and to introduce them to Haylee!! I can't believe she's getting so big!

2 months

2009-06-24T20:40:00.005-05:00

Haylee is 2 months old today! We went to the doctor this morning and had it confirmed that our daughter is very healthy! She weighs 14 lbs 9 oz and is 24 in. long. They said she looked great though and that we were doing everything right. That's always good to hear. She had to have three shots, but she did very well. She cried while they were giving her the shots, but stopped very quickly afterward. We were so proud of her!!

We bought her first swimsuit and I think she likes it. :)

We took her to the pool last Friday and she slept most of the time we were there. We brought her in the water for a few minutes though just to see if she would like it. She did pretty well!

Everything else is going great! She's sleeping in her crib in her room now and has been doing very well. She is such a good and VERY happy baby. She smiles at us all the time and has started to mimic some of our facial expressions (i.e. sticking out her tongue..haha!). I could go on and on about her, but I'll leave you with a picture of her in one of her very favorite positions for now. Hope everyone is having a great summer!

Summer's Here

2009-06-09T14:18:00.006-05:00

We've been pretty busy the last week or so. We took our first trip with Haylee to Houston. She did GREAT!! She slept most of the time in the car and just hung out when we went places. We were able to see our friends Travis, Jana Kay and Jayden (who will be a year in July). It was so good to hang out with them and for Jayden and Haylee to meet. They will be best friends I'm sure. :) We went to the Houston zoo and had a really good time...until it started pouring! We got to see quite a few animals before the rain came so it was worth it.

We also went to an Astros game while we were there. Brad and I were both excited because we've never been to any other staduim besides the Ballpark in Arlington. One of my good friends from high school, Sara, was able to go to the game with us. We had a blast and Haylee did really good. She enjoys watching baseball with her daddy!

When we woke up yesterday Brad suggested going to a Ranger game. We got on-line and found half price tickets so decided we would go. Once again, Haylee did great! I was excited she got to wear her Ranger outfit too (and a little surprised since it's 3-6 months and she's only 6 weeks!).

It's been a great start to the summer and we're really excited to see what the rest of the next few (HOT) months have in store!

Say Cheese!

2009-05-29T11:12:00.006-05:00

Since Haylee has been smiling so much the past couple of days, we found it hard to believe that it wasn't "real". I remember learning that when babies are first born they have a reflexive smile with the social smile coming later. I couldn't remember when that happened, but several people told me they thought it was after several months. This morning Haylee gave us a huge smile while Brad was getting ready for work. I searched on-line and several websites said that the social smile can start around 5 weeks. So...we aren't crazy. She really is smiling at us!!!!

1 month

2009-05-27T18:59:00.007-05:00

I can't believe Haylee is a month old already! She has already brought so much joy to our lives. Her personality is coming out more and more each day and it's so much fun to be around her. In the mornings, she really enjoys playing on her mat.

They say that babies at this age don't have their social smile yet, but it sure looks like she has a good time to us! She also loves to make noises. When she's in a real good mood (usually while playing or right after a bath) she says "ahhhh" in a high pitch baby voice that we just think is the cutest thing ever. Of course, we're her parents so we think everything she does is cute. :) She's very much like me in that sometimes she likes to cuddle and be close to someone, but other times she just wants to be left alone. Here she is enjoying some lounge time by herself.

We are very excited to be taking our fist vacation as a family this weekend. We are leaving on Sunday for the Houston area and we'll be there until Wednesday. We're really looking forward to relaxing and visiting with some good friends that live down there.

Newborn Pics

2009-05-19T16:42:00.003-05:00

If you're interested in seeing some of the newborn pictures taken of Haylee, here's how:
-Go to http://epcaptures.com/blog/
-Scroll down to the one titled No Worries...
-The 4 pictures that follow are her

The lady who took the pictures is awesome and does amazing work. If you or anyone you know needs pictures done, I HIGHLY recommend her!!!!

Mother's Day

2009-05-11T22:15:00.004-05:00

It still doesn't feel "real" to call myself a mother, but I feel blessed to be able to do so. Motherhood has been absolutely wonderful so far. Haylee is such a good baby! I had a great first Mother's Day. We went to lunch with Brad's family and hung out with them for a little while in the morning and early afternoon. Then we headed over to my parent's house for the evening and to have dinner. I realized that we hadn't taken a family picture yet, so we got one yesterday.

On Thursday we went for Haylee's 2 week appointment and they wanted her back up to birth weight. She did better than that, weighing in at 9 lbs 9 oz!! She's a good eater, just like her parents. :) She also had some newborn pictures done when she was 13 days old. They turned out really cute so I'll try to share those with you soon!

Life wtih baby

2009-05-05T12:38:00.004-05:00

Haylee is still doing great and so are we! She has been such a good baby so far. She sleeps well, eats well (she's made breastfeeding easy), and poops well (ha!). She enjoys her baths, which right now just consist of a washcloth and water. We can start using body wash when she's 2 weeks old.

Brad is really enjoying his two weeks off. I think Haylee likes him being home too. :)

She goes for her two week check up on Thursday so we're anxious to she how much she is growing.

Miracle Baby

2009-04-29T12:26:00.004-05:00

Our little miracle is 5 days old today and has done really well adjusting to life outside the womb. She has been such a wonderful baby so far!! We are enjoying every minute with her. She loves to sleep with her hands by her face.

She also loves to sleep with her Daddy.

Here she is having a little tummy time.

She's Here!!!!!

2009-04-26T19:05:00.006-05:00

Haylee Gail Hodges was born Friday, April 24, 2009! She weighed 8 lbs 8 oz and is 21 1/4" long. We're so glad she's finally here!

My water broke at about 1:45 pm on Friday. It wasn't a big gush, but more of a trickle so we weren't quite sure at first. We packed up the car and headed to the hospital anyway. They tested the fluid and confirmed that it was amniotic fluid so I was admitted.

They started me on pitocin pretty quickly, uping the dose every 15 minutes. By 6:00 I was ready for the epidural! Things progressed pretty quickly after that and I started pushing a little after 10:00. Haylee was born at 11:40.

The deliver went great and we were very blessed to not have any major problems. We stayed two nights in the hospital and were released the afternoon. It's great to be home!! We're so happy and can't wait to watch our little girl grow up (but not too fast of course). :)

No news really

2009-04-21T13:49:00.002-05:00

Not too much to report, but I said I would give the update. Nothing's changed much since last week. If I haven't had her by my next appointment on Monday then the doctor will start "helping" things along. I hope that she either decides to come by herself before then or that the next 6 days go VERY quickly!!

Still pregnant

2009-04-20T20:23:00.002-05:00

No news to report really...this little baby is very content where she is. My next doctor's appointment is tomorrow so we will see if there's been any progress since last week. Until then, here's a few things I've learned in the past week:

*I'm no longer allowed to call anyone. If I do, I hear a panicked "Hello" on the other end of the line. I must now send a text to my friends stating "I'm bored, call me". HOWEVER, if people haven't heard from us in a couple days they panic. There's no winning this situation I'm afraid.
*I'm no longer sleeping through the night due to frequent potty visits so I might as well have a cute little baby to take care of while I'm up. I've proved I'm ready!
*I seem to look "small" for being almost 39 weeks pregnant. A lady asked today how many more months I had and was completely shocked when I said "only 9 days". This is definitely not the first time to hear something like that (although I feel like a whale, ha!).
*Myth: Walking can induce labor. Reality: Walking leads to sore legs and tiredness.
*Myth: Spicy food can induce labor. Reality: Spicy food leads to unpleasant heartburn.

I guess that's about it for now. More tomorrow!

Getting Close

2009-04-15T16:25:00.004-05:00

While we were making breakfast this morning I noticed my right eye had sort of a blind spot. Eventually it went away, but I was left with a terrible headache. My appointment was supposed to be tomorrow, but I called to see if they happened to have any openings today. I figured if they had an opening we would take it, but if they didn't then I wasn't going to worry about it. They did have an available appointment so we took it. The doctor said she thought it was a migraine, probably due to hormonal changes since I don't usually get migraines. After the exam she said I was 80% effaced, dilated to a 1 1/2, and the baby has moved down even more. She said I have made significant change since last week, and added to the unusual migraine, she suspects that something will happen soon! We are definitely ready to meet our little girl, so anytime she wants to come is fine with us!! :)

Here's the latest addition to Haylee's large wardrobe, but one of our favorites! I'm trying to find a little red bow for her to wear with it, but the only ones I've found so far are pink or purple. I will keep looking!

My favorite part of the outfit is the backside:

So far....

2009-04-08T14:33:00.002-05:00

So far it's been a good day!

--We got to sleep in until 9:00 this morning.

--Brad went and got donuts for us...yum! :)

--37 week doctor appointment went well. We go back again next week.

--We picked up Brad's prescription for the bursitis in his hip. Hopefully this medicine works and we don't have to discuss surgery. I don't want him in pain ANYMORE!!

--My dad should be coming home tomorrow. He might be on oxygen for a little while, but at least he'll be home!!!!!

--Now we're relaxing until the Ranger game comes on.

(Oh and...I just had some ice cream. Maybe I should rethink my diet??? Nah, I'm thinking donuts and ice cream are too good to rethink.)

Go Rangers!!!!!

2009-04-06T14:34:00.004-05:00

(Note: I look so tired because I just woke up. Brad had just gotten off work so that's why he looks more alert.)

If you know us at all, then you know that we are HUGE Ranger fans. We consider ourselves true fans too because we stick by them every year through every game, even if they aren't doing too well. We've been looking forward to the season starting for a while now. Although we weren't able to get tickets to the game because of the uncertainty of Brad's work schedule, we are watching from home. We dressed up in our jerseys, made chips and queso, and are having our own little watching "party". It's a great afternoon at our house!! :)

We went to the hospital this morning to visit my Dad and he is doing better! He's still in ICU, but it's very possible that he will be moved to a regular room in the next day or two. His breathing problems caused a major setback in his recovery, but he is slowly getting better. He was sitting up talking today and it was so good to see him getting back to "normal". He is making a big effort to do what he needs to do in order to get better. Hopefully he will be able to go home at the end of this week if things keep progressing like they should. We're keeping our fingers crossed!

Spare a Prayer?

2009-04-03T12:46:00.002-05:00

Although my Dad's surgery went very well, he has had a little setback in recovery. He is having some breathing difficulties is still in ICU. They had removed the tube that was down his throat, but put him on an oxygen mask when he wasn't stabilizing enough. They decided this morning that they needed to put the tube back in his throat because the mask wasn't enough. They have also put a tube in his stomach to help with nutrition needs. I know he must be miserable with tubes everywhere, but I have been reassured that he is heavily sedated. I really hope he's not in any pain.

I actually haven't made it up to the hospital yet. Before his surgery, my Dad called and asked that I not come up during the surgery. He said he would feel better knowing I was home resting and that, due to all the medication, he wouldn't be very aware of his visitors anyway. I probably still would have gone, but to be honest I don't want to see my Dad like that. I really don't know if I could handle it. He was only supposed to be in ICU about 2 days so I planned to go as soon as he was moved to a regular room. Since he will be in the hospital much longer than expected now, I will probably go up there tomorrow.

If you have an extra prayer to spare, can you say one for my Dad? Thanks!

36 weeks

2009-04-01T14:15:00.003-05:00

As the doctor put it yesterday, we're in the home stretch now. Not too much longer!

Thank you to everyone who has sent good thoughts and prayers my Dad's way. His surgery went well. He's still in ICU but will hopefully we moved to a regular room in a day or two. I'll update when I know more.

Updates on Everyone

2009-03-25T18:24:00.002-05:00

Update on my Dad: Last week we noticed that our yard was looking pretty bad and really needed to be mowed. Some may remember, but last year we got in trouble with the city for our grass being too long. They gave us a warning and threatened us with a big fine should it ever happen again. I thought it was the most ridiculous thing EVER, but regardless of how stupid it is, we can't afford to take the chance and get in trouble again. Brad hurt his chest helping his dad with his fence and was really not looking forward to mowing. My dad, being the wonderful father that he is, offered to come do it for us. Since I'm obviously in no condition to do yardwork right now I took him up on his offer. My mom and I were inside the house when we realized the mower had been quiet for a few minutes. After going out to check on my dad, we found him on the garage floor. He had passed out and really didn't look good. After calling the paramedics, spending a few hours in the ER, and eventually being checked in to a different hospital for a couple days worth of tests, he is scheduled to have surgery on Tuesday for an aortic valve replacement. While it is scary to think of my dad going through this kind of surgery, I know that it is for the best and hope that it makes him feel better in the end.

Update on baby and me: Last Friday I went to the doctor for my routine visit. Everything looked good, but I'm still having contractions so they did another exam. My cervix was starting to shorten (I was about 50% effaced for those that understand the "terms") so I was told to get off my feet as much as possible. They also gave me some medicine to take when the contractions pick up, which is usually in the evening. I took the pills once before I decided that going through the contractions was much better than dealing with the jittery feeling that results from the medicine. I went back to the doctor today and they did an ultrasound to see how the baby was doing through all of this. She appears to be doing great! Haylee weighs 5 lbs 15 oz and is 19 inches long as of right now. The doctor said that I can pretty much do my "normal" activities now because after 35 weeks they won't really do anything to stop labor should it decide to start. At this point we are going to continue to take it day by day, but we are very optimistic with everything. The only big concern we have is that my dad will be having open heart surgery when I'm 36 weeks pregnant!! Hopefully Haylee will be patient and not try to come too early, but it's all in God's hands!

The Nursery is Done!

2009-03-24T14:19:00.006-05:00

We finally finished the nursery!

We had shower #3 on Sunday and, once again, we realized how truly blessed we are!! (I don't know if you can see them, but in the middle is Haylee's first pair of pink Converse shoes!)

We've actually had a lot going on lately, but I'll post more later. I go to the doctor tomorrow so I'll update after the appointment. Also, please keep my dad in your prayers. He's having tests done on his heart today and tomorrow and I'll give more details on that later as well.

34 weeks

2009-03-18T14:01:00.003-05:00

I'm very happy to have made it this far! Not too much longer and our little girl will be here. In some ways it seems to have gone by fast, but in other ways it feels like I've been pregnant forever. I'm still having contractions, but they haven't gotten any worse so we're just taking it day by day. I'm trying to stay off my feet and take it easy as much as I can. I'm so glad that everything is pretty much done so that I can relax. Brad has been wonderful in helping to do as much as he can, but he's still working nights. He was supposed to switch back to days last week, but that plan got postponed to the end of April. I was pretty bummed out because we were both ready for him to be home at night again, but I'm slowly getting over it. The good news is that if something does happen while he's at work, he won't be too far from the hospital. We're hoping that Haylee will wait at least 2 more weeks before trying to make her appearance. Even though I'm having some contractions already, she could wait until after her due date to come. I guess that's the fun part...not knowing what will happen or when! Here's the 34 week picture:

False Labor...what fun!

2009-03-14T13:57:00.003-05:00

I mentioned in the last post that I had been having some Braxton Hicks, but not enough to worry about. That changed on Thursday night. While Brad was getting ready for work I noticed that they were coming more frequently so I began counting them. When I reached 7 in one hour, as much as I didn't want to, I called the nurse just to be safe. I knew she had told me the last time that more than 6 in an hour were too many and I needed to call if that happened. I also knew it would make Brad feel better if I did before he had to leave for work. It was after hours so I had to use the emergency line. (Keep in mind I felt completely normal except for the light contractions which is why I felt so silly about calling.) The nurse told me to count and time each contraction for the next hour and then she would call me back. Brad went ahead and left because it was a very busy night at work and I sat down with my pad and paper. When she called back an hour later, I told her that I counted 10 contractions in one hour, averaging about 5 minutes apart. She said I needed to go to Labor and Delivery at the hospital to see what was going on since that was too many.

My parents were luckily not too far away at the time because they had just finished bowling. They came and took me to the hospital and I was checked into triage. They hooked up all the monitors and, sure enough, I had 5 contractions in the first 30 minutes. I was glad to hear this, NOT because I wanted to be having contractions, but because I had this tiny fear that I wasn't really having contractions at all and I just didn't know how to identify one. She checked to see if I was dilated and I was not, which was very good news. The nurse called the on call doctor and they decided to give me a shot to try to stop them. After receiving the shot, I had to stay on the monitors for an hour to make sure it worked. I only had one or two contractions after that so it was enough to satisfy everyone. After being there for over 2 hours, I was finally released to go home. The triage nurse gave me strict instructions on what to watch out for and when to come back if anything else happened. She also told me that, even though I kept calling them Braxton Hicks, they were still contractions and I had done the right thing by going in. This made me feel much better since I was hesitant about calling the nurse and going to the hospital in the first place. I'm always afraid of making a big deal out of nothing.

Anyways, I woke up Friday morning feeling crampy and having contractions once again. (I'll make this part short, promise.) I called the nurse again and she said to come in to see the doctor. After another exam, he said that I still wasn't dilated and my cervix wasn't thinning at all. This is good news and means that right now it's just false labor and nothing to worry about. We are going to keep an eye on it and I might have to be checked more often, but for right now everything is ok. The triage nurse and the doctor both said that Haylee is doing great and none of this seems to be bothering her. While we were in triage and I had the two monitors on my belly (one for contractions, one for her heartbeat), she kicked them both the entire time. I don't know if I've said it before, but she does not like things on my tummy. She will kick anything on there until it is moved. You could hear her kicking the heart monitor several times while were there. Crazy little girl! :)

Sorry that was so long, but that's been our excitement. Hopefully she will stay in and "cook" for at least another couple weeks!

Sympathy Pain??

2009-03-09T17:23:00.006-05:00

I've always heard that the closest a male can get to experiencing the pains of childbirth is by passing a kidney stone. If that's true, Brad can now tell me what to expect. Last week, Brad came home from work in severe pain. He took some extra strength tylenol and tried to sleep, but that did nothing. When the pain got unbearable I took him to the ER. The poor guy looked absolutely miserable and I felt so bad for him I was crying. In the 6 1/2 years we've been together, I have never seen him in that much pain (not even when he broke his nose or had the surgery to repair it)!! When we got to the ER, they admitted him quickly and began an IV drip with fluids and pain medicine. After doing a CT scan, they confirmed that he had passed a kidney stone. The good news was that, by the time they did the scan, it had already passed so the worst was over. Needless to say, he is feeling MUCH better now and NEVER wants to go through that again!

Other than that little adventure, everything else is pretty normal. Haylee's room is almost finished. (I'll post pictures when we get it completely done.) Her bag is packed for the hospital and the car seat is all ready to go. We are very ready to meet her and can't believe that her due date is next month already! Up until last week I could still do just about anything. I was able to keep up with all the house work and run errands with no problem. I started having Braxton Hicks about Wednesday, though, and was told I needed to start taking it easy. The nurse said that more than 6 in one hour were too many and I reached 5 several times. I think it's just my body's way of telling me to slow down a little bit. I came up with a few signs that one might be getting closer to the end of their pregnancy:

- The AC in your house and car need to be repaired because neither one is working right
- You need a new couch because it's no longer comfortable...in fact, it might be time to get a new bed too
- Walking up one little flight of stairs is much harder than it used it be, someone must have added some extra steps when you weren't looking
- Flip flop weather is the best news ever since it's become quite a challenge to bend over to put on socks and shoes
- Shaving your legs once a week is an optimistic goal
- Those little kicks and flutters that were so cute before start to feel like karate chops (ok, they are still awesome though no matter how strong they get)

The list could go on, but I'll stop there. Hope everyone has a great week!! :)

Shower #2

2009-03-02T10:38:00.005-06:00

On Sunday, my mom held a baby shower at her house. It was great to see everyone and I had such a good time. My mother in law brought the cake and it was adorable!! Cooper St. Bakery did a great job like always. Of course, a big thanks to the best mother in law ever for picking out such an awesome cake!!

Once again, I was amazed at how much love and support our little girl (that no one has even met yet) has! She is truly blessed with a great group of people in her life already, just like Brad and I have been all these years. I don't think she will have to wear the same outfit during her first 6 months! :)

Maybe it's my slight case of OCD, but I enjoy going through everything after the showers. I wash everything (clothes, towels, bibs, washcloths, blankets, etc.) before putting them in the appropriate place, disinfect toys, pacifiers, and bottles, and put everything else where it needs to go. It's fun (for me anyways) to get everything organized. I can't wait to pack her diaper bag for the hospital and install her carseat! :) Of course, more than that, I can't wait to bring her home so she can use all her wonderful new things!
Thank you to everyone who helped with this shower, especially my Mom for everything she did!!

Bragging Rights

2009-02-22T19:40:00.004-06:00

First, I have to brag about Brad. He has been working so hard and so much lately that sometimes I don't know how he does it. He is still working overnight (only for another month though!) and a typical shift has been 13-14 hours lately. He is on his feet the entire time, sometimes not even taking a break to eat. He worked so hard to become an assistant manager and he continues to do the best he can everyday. Being part of Wal-Mart management is not an easy task. When the store manager took the rest of the management team and their spouses out to dinner for the holidays, he made a speech to the spouses. He said that he was thankful for everyone's support and that being married to a manager was not easy and it took a lot of work. We need a suppport group! No, it's really not that bad in my opinion but I could see how some might struggle. I have always been very supportive of Brad and I knew from the beginning that this promotion would require much more time. I'm very thankful for all of Brad's support and hard work, especially since it's making it possible for me to only be working part time right now. All the hard work has finally paid off! Brad received his bonus and was able to buy something he has been wanting for a long time. We got a new 55" LCD TV. I'm so proud of him and he deserves his new "toy"!!

Second, I have to brag on myself a little bit. I finally received my actual diploma! I had this tiny fear that, even though I participated in the graduation ceremony, something was going to "come up" later. I thought that they might discover I was really missing a class or didn't meet all the requirements. Now that I have the paper I feel much better. I also received a letter in the mail stating that I made it on the Dean's List and placed in the top 15% of my class. Last semester was so hard with everything else that was going on, that there were SEVERAL times I thought I wouldn't be able to finish. I'm shocked that not only did I finish, but I ended up doing pretty well considering the circumstances. I now have a bachelor's degree and can tell my daughter when she gets older that she walked the stage with me on that very special day!

Enough about us. Hope everyone enjoys the last week of February! Congrats to Badi and Debbie on the birth of their ADORABLE little boy, Jacob!!

30 down, 10 to go!!!

2009-02-18T20:22:00.003-06:00

We've made it to week 30 which, of course, means only 10 to go. We're 3/4 of the way through this AMAZING journey. Wow! I still feel great and hope the weeks to come continue to go so smoothly. Brad and I are going to Lamaze this coming Sunday at the hospital so I can learn how to "hee hee hoo hoo" through the pain. I wonder if it will be like the movies where they make you act like you're actually in labor, legs in the air, etc. If so, I can just see Brad excusing himself to go to the restroom and then never coming back. Ha!

I LOVE the evenings when I can take a warm shower and then crawl in bed with whatever book I'm currently reading. Haylee likes to practice her gymnastics when we get in bed so it's also fun to feel her move so much. That being said, I'm off to shower and read!

Great song!!

2009-02-10T22:00:00.006-06:00

I heard this song the other day on the radio and it made me cry. The words say it all for how I feel about Brad coming into my life! This video is perfect too because it shows pictures from one of Brad's very favorite shows, Jag. I also LOVE Natalie Grant!! It's just perfect...listen to it! :) (I don't know why you can't just click on the link, but if you copy and paste it will take you to it.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkssX34-ff8

28 weeks

2009-02-04T18:11:00.005-06:00

Here's the updated nursery picture with the lighter green letters. I think it matches better now. We don't have the crib bedding yet so it looks a little bare. The teddy bear in the crib is a gift my Mom received for her retirement, intended just for Haylee.

We're 28 weeks today! :) Here's that picture:

Busy Weekend

2009-02-02T20:06:00.008-06:00

First, I have to say WAY TO GO to my Mom for her retirement on Friday, Jan. 30. She put in 30 years at UT Southwestern Medical Center in the department of Ophthalmology and it is time for her to relax and enjoy the next part of her life. Brad and I were able to make it to the breakfast her work gave her on Friday morning. It was a very special ceremony and "good-bye" for her. She even gave a little speech at the end. Way to go Mom!

On Sunday, I had my first baby shower. Four of my good friends spent a lot of time and effort on putting it together and I am so grateful for everything they did. These girls mean the world to me! (Amy, Lindsey, Me, Lauren M., and Lauren S.)

The shower was wonderful and Haylee got so many gifts! She is so loved already, it's amazing!! I had a blast going through all the gifts again after the shower, when I had more time to look at each and every thing.

I also changed the green color of the letters above the crib so that it matches a little bit better. I'll post an updated picture of that later.
Hope everyone has a great week!!

Gender Check Sonogram

2009-01-28T08:29:00.003-06:00

Well, we had the gender check sonogram done yesterday to reinforce the fact that even though I might be carrying a little low...it's still a girl! :) It was AWESOME to get to see her again. I was so giddy, like a child at Christmas. I know that by this point I should more relaxed about the whole thing, and I am for the most part, but I still get so excited to know that everything is ok. I just can't help worrying after everything we've been through. Luckily, she was awake and very active during the sonogram so we enjoyed every minute of it. She showed her "girl parts" immediately. Technically that is all we were there for, but the sonogram technician was nice enough to play around for a few minutes so we could see more of her. She opened and closed her mouth (which Brad says she was probably trying to eat just like her Mama is always doing..ha!), moved her feet whenever they were being messed with (also like me who has very ticklish feet), and then showed us the front of her face with her CHUBBY CHEEKS!!! My cheeks were frequently referred to as chipmunk cheeks when I was a baby and Brad says he was just a chubby baby so I guess she was doomed! We can't wait to see her in person!! Here's a picture of her profile and one of her hands:

Nursery Fun (updated)

2009-01-22T15:10:00.008-06:00

It probably would have made more sense if I showed you the crib bedding we picked out for her nursery. Now you can see why we picked the colors and the ladybugs. I think the green turned out a little too dark so I might try to change the shade a little bit. I guess I'll wait until we actually get the bedding to compare it.

The nursery is coming together and it has been a lot of fun working on it so far. Brad and I finally found time to work on the letters to go above the crib. We painted the letters ourselves, but the ladybugs were already like that when we bought them. I had this idea in my head, but wasn't quite sure how it would actually turn out. I have to say that I'm really happy with the results! (I sometimes have ideas that don't quite turn out as good as they sound, ha!)

We also replaced the ceiling fan in her room. For those who don't know, the fan that was in there before came with the house. We always meant to replace it because I've always hated it, but we never got around to it. The fan was a small child's fan with a red base and six blades consisting of the colors red, blue, orange, green, purple and yellow. We replaced it with a simple white one and I'm much happier now. :) We have people that drive through our neighborhood on trash days and pick up anything that they think they can use somehow. Seriously, we set things out all the time (ex. broken chairs) that won't last an hour on the curb. We set the fan out last night, trash was REALLY late today, and they STILL did not take that fan. That's how horrible it was!

Everything else is going great! I still feel really good and am enjoying every minute of being pregnant. We only have about 3 more months!

(26 weeks - Brad graciously left my dirty hair and no make up face out of the picture so as not to scare anyone...ha!)

24 weeks

2009-01-07T18:21:00.003-06:00

We've made it to 24 weeks. Not too much to report since the last post so I'll just leave you with the picture.

Happy New Year!!!

2009-01-01T20:24:00.004-06:00

Christmas came and went so quickly, just like it seems to do every year. No matter how fast it seems to have gone by, it was still wonderful!! We had about 4 different gatherings and enjoyed every one of them. It's always good to see family and (of course the food is always great)! Here's the 22 week pictures, taken on Christmas morning. (I'm not sure if the camera was crooked or if I was, ha!)

Everything else is going good. I feel great and am still leading a fairly normal life. The nursery is coming together slowly. We have all the furniture in there and she already has a few clothes in her drawers and closet. :) I haven't taken pictures though because we don't have decor in there yet, it's just simply the furniture. For those that haven't seen me in person and can't tell in the pictures, I'm carrying really low. I see nothing wrong with it and DO NOT believe that the sex of the baby has any influence on the way you carry, but other people are not so sure. I have had about 5 people tell me in the last week or so that the way I'm carrying might indicate a boy. I've heard all the stories about how the doctor told "so and so" they were having a girl, but they ended up with a boy. A lady at the grocery store actually stopped me and said "A boy??". I said "No, they tell me it's a girl". I wanted to say to her "Why does the position of my uterus make you think this baby has a penis???". Ok, so maybe it's a good thing I didn't say that, but seriously! Just to set the records straight we are going to have a gender check sonogram at about 28 weeks. If everyone is right, then we would rather know ahead of time and not after we have a pink nursery full of pink clothes!

Happy New Year and may 2009 bring happiness and joy to everyone!!!!!

Finally!!!

2008-12-13T15:55:00.006-06:00

I thought the day would never come...but it did. I finally graduated!! I had family and friends there to support me and it felt really good to know that I finally made it. The ceremony really wasn't too bad, it only took a little over an hour. Afterwards, we went to Brad's parents house for cake and drinks. It was so nice of his parents to do that for me. I have the greatest in-laws ever!! Here's my 20 week picture, taken right before we left for graduation.

Here's Brad and me right after the ceremony.

Tis the Season to be Jolly :)

2008-12-08T13:30:00.002-06:00

Some things we're looking forward to:
1. Wednesday will officially mark 20 weeks in our pregnancy which means we're about half way! Not a day goes by that we don't feel exceptionally blessed and thank God for this miracle baby. (I know I say that a lot, but for those that know our history know that it truly is a miracle!) She's moving a lot more each day and it is such a wonderful feeling. :)
2. I'm FINALLY graduating from UTA on Friday. My bachelor's degree will be in Interdisciplinary Studies and, when the time is right, I will become certified to teach. I can't wait to walk across that stage, knowing that I finally did it!
3. Brad is finally getting a few days off this week. He has been working almost 80 hour weeks and that's not easy! He was scheduled to have 3 days off, but because of my graduation he is getting 4 off. One of those days he is painting the nursery, but the rest of the time will be spent doing something more enjoyable. (Hopefully he can feel Haylee moving since she always does when he's at work.)
4. Of course, we also can't wait for Christmas. Only 2 1/2 more weeks! Last Christmas was a rough one for us because we miscarried on the day, so we are really looking forward to this one being much better. We got all of our decorations up so we're definitely in the Christmas spirit now! (Brad was forced to a long time ago since Wal Mart starts playing Christmas music about 13 months too early!)

We hope everyone else is ready for the holidays! As the kids I babysit informed me this morning, only 17 more days!

Thanksgiving

2008-11-28T06:44:00.003-06:00

Thanksgiving was yesterday and I have so much to be thankful for this year. I have a wonderful husband who is so supportive in every way and I could not have made it this far without him. Our miracle baby is growing more everyday and we have so many people praying for us (it is truly amazing)!! Graduation is in two weeks and I honestly thought this day would never come. It's been a rough journey, but I've almost made it! Brad and I truly have such a great family and group of friends that we feel blessed everyday to have everyone in our lives. Although we did not get to have a big Thanksgiving dinner this year, we were still able to enjoy the true meaning of the day. Brad is working hard right now since this is a very busy time of year for the retail business. I know the long hours and consecutive days are not fun AT ALL, but with the economy like it is we can only be thankful he has such a good job. I'm scrambling to finish my (neverending) paper and to be finished with this semester. Needless to say, we spent Thanksgiving working and studying. We did get to spend a few hours with Brad's family and had a really good time. (Go Cowboys!!) Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!!!!!!!

Sugar and spice and everything nice....

2008-11-18T17:43:00.002-06:00

...that's what little GIRLS are made of! We went to the doctor today and found out we're having a girl! She is measuring right on target (well actually about 10 days ahead of schedule). Brad and I were both big babies when we were born so the nurse said the likelihood of her being big also was pretty good. She weighs 8 oz. and is measuring about 7 inches long. Our miracle baby is growing everyday and we couldn't be happier!!
Yes, we've already decided on a name. Her name is Haylee Gail Hodges and she is named after her grandmothers. (My mom's middle name is Lee and Brad's mom's middle name is Gail.)

Happy Birthday Brad!!

2008-11-17T14:44:00.006-06:00

Brad's 27th birthday is on Wednesday so we had a little get together last night during the Cowboy game. We ordered pizza and had cake and ice cream. (I was in heaven, haha!) I got his cake from Cooper St. Bakery and they did such a great job!

We also bought a new firebowl for outside so we decided to put that to good use. We sat around talking and roasting marshmallows. It was so much fun!

We are VERY excited that the Cowboys won too. What a great night all around! Happy Birthday to the best husband in the world!!! :)

Growing!

2008-11-12T21:40:00.007-06:00

14 weeks:

16 weeks:
I talked to a good friend today who hasn't seen me since the pregnancy and she said "Well at 16 weeks you must be starting to show." Umm....yep, just a little. Haha!!

Quick Update

2008-11-06T09:43:00.004-06:00

On Monday I had my cardiology appointment to find out the results of my echocardiogram. For those that don't know, about 2 years ago I was diagnosed with mild cardiomyopathy. Basically the doctor said that my heart was a little weaker then normal. I toned down my workouts to a more comfortable level and continued to eat healthier. Well we got great news on Monday. Not only did the cardiologist think that my heart would hold up just fine through the pregnancy, he also said that he no longer sees any cardiomyopathy and that my heart looks very normal. Hooray!!! I could not be happier with those results! (Being diagnosed with heart disease, whether it be mild or severe, at the age of 23 is very scary!!)

On Tuesday we had our first appointment with my regular OB during the pregnancy. I have transferred back to her for a few reasons. It is cheaper to see her than the maternal fetal doctor, it only takes 10 min. to get to her office as opposed to 30 min. to get to the other one, and we will now be delivering at Arlington Memorial (which is also closer to home). We did not have a sonogram at this appointment but are scheduled for one in 2 weeks. At this appt. the doctor measured my stomach and found the heartbeat. She was very satisfied with those things and didn't feel it necessary to do a sonogram that day. If they baby is cooperative in 2 weeks we MIGHT be able to find out the sex. Keep your fingers crossed. :)

Busy but Fun!

2008-10-27T11:19:00.007-05:00

The past week was very busy but also very fun! On Sat., Oct. 18, our good friend Mike flew in from Florida to stay with us for the week. Sat., Oct. 25, our other good friend Shane got married and both Brad and Mike were groomsmen. Brad took the week off from work so he could relax and enjoy the time with Mike. We had a really good time watching football, going to Sundance Square, just hanging out, and getting ready for the wedding. This picture is from our dinner at Daddy Jack's in Fort Worth.

One of our favorite events of the whole week was getting to meet Josh Hamilton of the Texas Rangers. He was at Barnes and Noble signing his new book. Josh is one of our favorite players and a true inspiration to many. He is an outstanding baseball player who made some "bad decisions" for a few years before turning his life around. His book is about that difficult journey and his amazing outcome. We can all learn a little from him!

The week ended with Shane and Amanda's wedding. It was a beautiful wedding and we wish them the very best! Here's a picture of the three amigos (Mike, Shane, Brad).

One healthy baby and two angels watching over

2008-10-17T17:08:00.007-05:00

We got some "mixed" news at the doctor today. First, our twins did not make it. They are measuring about 8 weeks and no longer have heartbeats. That was definitely not what we were hoping to hear. The doctor was always a little more concerned about them and the risks were higher because they were identical and shared everything, including the placenta. The up side is that the other baby is doing great. He/she is the appropriate size and everything looks exactly like it should so far. It was neat to see him/her move around during the sonogram, what an active baby! The doctor said he must have woken him/her up. In some of the pictures it looks like the baby is sucking his/her thumb....very cute! We were devastated to hear about the twins, but we're thrilled to know that the other baby looks so good. This baby is truly a miracle and we have to stay strong for him/her!

(Sorry the picture is hard to see. Ours is much clearer but I can't seem to get it that clear on here.)

12 Week Update

2008-10-15T12:48:00.007-05:00

We feel truly blessed to have made it to 12 weeks. I have to admit it's been a lot of fun so far. All the "bad" side effects that accompany pregnancy are so worth it. I can't say I have a single complaint. Brad and I are really enjoying the protruding belly. We think it gets bigger everyday, which is awesome because it means our babies are growing! Overall, I feel pretty good. I'll have a lot more updates after the appointments we have coming up.

Friday, Oct. 17 - Maternal Fetal Doctor
Monday, Oct. 20 - Cardiologist
Tuesday, Oct. 21 - Dietitian

For now I will leave you with the 12 week belly shot and promise to give a better update after Friday's appointment.

My New Mommy Mobile

2008-10-01T20:10:00.007-05:00

The search for a bigger car didn't take very long. We went to Carmax because we've been really pleased with them in the past. At first we were going to trade Brad's truck in and keep my Explorer. The truck market right now is HORRIBLE though and we would have been way too top heavy. They offered us more than Kelly Blue Book value for the Explorer though so that's what we traded in instead. It was sad to see the Explorer go because I loved it, but I'm adjusting to the new one pretty well. We ended up finding a great deal with a 2007 Ford Expedition. It has plenty of room for all three babies PLUS the triple stroller.

I will also leave you with my 10 week "bump". This is what happens when you miss Pilates for 2 months. J/k!! I was not going to put it up because I think I look fat and not pregnant at this point, but since several people have told me I HAVE TO I guess I will. If you think I look fat too, lie and tell me you don't. Haha! Thanks!

FAQ's

2008-09-24T11:53:00.003-05:00

1. Wow...triplets....how are you going to handle three??
---First of all, I must admit that Brad and I are already getting tired of people saying "it's going to be hard". We NEVER once said it would be easy. We know that some days are going to be long and busy (and it might be necessary to end them with a glass of wine). We also know that it is going to be the best challenge we've ever accepted and we can't wait for the experience (and we probably won't be able to afford any wine!!). We want these babies more than anything in the world and have no problem giving up some sleep and sanity to raise them. We accept the challenge with open arms!!
2. Should I start buying you diapers now?
--Haha, all we have to say is that if you want to contribute to the diaper fund we will not stop you. I read somewhere that a family of triplets goes through like 900 diapers a month. That requires each baby to go through 10 diapers each day which really just depends on the baby. Regardless of how many each wears daily, it will still be a lot. Since we know they are going to be the smartest babies ever, maybe they will potty train when they're one. ;-)
3. Do you know the sexes yet? Do you want to know?
--It's too early to know what they are right now. Several people asked us when we were only 7 and 8 weeks along. Most of the people that ask have had kids of their own and Brad keeps wanting to ask them if they found out this early. I know that some people just ask questions and don't really stop to think about the timeline. We do want to know what they are when the time comes. I think we still have about 2 months though.
4. Are you going to stay in the same house?
--As much as we need a bigger house now, we just won't be able to afford it with me not working. We were actually looking at houses before I found out I was pregnant, but we were going to wait until I got a teaching job to move. Without that income it would just be better to stay put for a while. We have a very affordable house payment though so we really can't complain.

These are just a few questions that we get asked very frequently. It's so funny to see people's reactions when they find out. Most of our friends and family know what a journey it has been for us and are beyond thrilled when they hear the news. We couldn't be more excited either and can't wait to see what else God has in store for us!

High Risk Doctor's Visit

2008-09-19T19:39:00.003-05:00

I had my first appointment with the high risk doctor today. Brad was in between his 12-hour shifts so he was home sleeping. I said I didn't mind going by myself. Since I ended up being there for 2 1/2 hours I'm glad he didn't give up his sleep. First, the nurse did a sonogram and I heard all three heartbeats again. Everyone is doing great so far! The doctor came in after that and went over all the complications that could arise with triplets (and also with the identical twins since they share a placenta). I like that he was honest and didn't try to sugar coat anything. He simply told me everything that we will be watching out for in the next several months. He gave me a prescription for extra folic acid and iron to take along with my prenatal vitamins.
We then went on to talk about my diet and gave me some surprising information. He wants me consuming 3500 calories each day!! I will be working with a dietitian to try and achieve this in the healthiest way possible. This is going to take some work for me because, as most of you know, I lost about 70 lbs two years ago and have worked really hard since then to keep it off. I would guess that right now I consume about 1500 calories a day, maybe 2000 on my "bad days". I will do whatever it takes to make these babies healthy and strong though!! The dietitian should be calling to set up an appointment soon. I took the first step tonight and stopped at Taco Bell on the way home from work. I know that's not extremely healthy but I've been craving a bean burrito for three days now. I finally convinced myself it was ok to give in...as long as it was just one.
Now here's the hard part....he wants to see me back in 4 weeks. We've been really spoiled by having a sonogram every week and now we have to wait 4 weeks?! I don't know if we can wait that long!! Just kidding..we'll be ok.

Oh yes - the doctor said that one of the easiest ways to add extra calories was to drink a 6-pack a day. He said this provided a good source of carbs and calories, but for some reason most pregnant women decided against it. Hmm.....

Our three little miracles!!!

2008-09-11T14:16:00.006-05:00

We had another sonogram this morning to make sure everything was progressing normally. These pictures are actually backwards, but there's a picture of each of them. Baby C is on top, followed by Baby B and then Baby A. (Yes, that is what they are being called until we name them - even by the doctors.) A and B are the identical twins. The doctor said they are about 1/3 of an inch long and we could tell they were bigger just from 6 days ago. We heard all three heartbeats today too which was so incredible!! So as far as we can tell everyone is doing great!

I'm really trying to work through the morning sickness, which only seems to be getting worse. I got "sick sick" for the first time today and it was not very fun. I couldn't even hold down saltines so I knew it was going to be a rough day. They gave me a new prescription to try so hopefully that will work. I have my first appointment with the high risk doctor next Friday and I'm looking forward to that. Our official due date now is April 29, but with triplets I'll probably be at least a month early. We pray they stay in as long as they can though!

Three's Not a Crowd!!

2008-09-05T09:15:00.003-05:00

Wow is about all I can say! We got some incredible news at our sonogram this morning. We're having triplets!! There is a set of identicle twins in one sac and then one baby in the other sac. We are beyond ecstatic! We were able to see the heart beats of all three of them which was so amazing. Our approximate due date is April 30, 2009. Usually the doctor says to come back in a couple weeks but since there's 3 of them she wants me back next Friday. We got several pictures of each, but since they're so small I think it's too hard to put them on the computer right now. Hopefully we'll get better ones next week to put up.

Also, we'll start the sign up list in a few months for helpers. Haha!!!!

The City of Arlington needs something better to do!!

2008-09-02T15:27:00.003-05:00

I was walking by the front door a few minutes ago when I noticed something taped to the glass. I opened the door to take it off, thinking it was some advertisement. Boy was I wrong! It is a notice from the City of Arlington that we need to mow our lawn. I will admit that it looks bad right now, but since when do they issue notices for that?!?! It says that we have 7 days to correct this violation and that it is the only violation we are allowed to receive for the next 12 months. I think this is completely ridiculous! Brad is not going to be happy when he wakes up and sees it. I will admit that this is something I "nag" him about. I like the yard to be kept up with, but I help as much as I can. Obviously I can't right now though so it's just up to him. We actually just had a discussion a couple nights ago about him helping out a little more. I tend to do everything around the house just because that's how I am. Since I can't do too much right now, I explained to him that I need a little help. It frustrates me to no end to not be able to do something myself. I'm already anxious because I've spent the last 2 days in bed being so sick that I haven't been able to do anything! (Thankfully the doctor is going to give me some medicine so I can make it to work and school the rest of this week.) However, I can't do anything about the yard no matter how much I want to. I guess I'm doing a little nagging now and I apologize for that. I'm not trying to pick on anyone, I'm simply frustrated with the situation. I think the City of Arlington needs to find something better to do with their time! Seriously.

The Countdown to Friday is on.....

2008-09-01T17:40:00.004-05:00

First of all, I have to say I'm sorry I haven't written anything in over a week. The truth is I haven't had too much to write about, but since there has been some concern when I don't write anything (sorry Mom!!) I thought I could at least come up with something. We are very anxious for Friday to get here (for the sonogram) and so happy that we have made it this far. I WAS feeling pretty good, but that all changed this weekend. I started feeling sick here and there, but today was by far the worst. I have literally spent the ENTIRE DAY laying down, doing NOTHING. If you know me at all, then you know that I am always doing something! Today, however, I have done absolutely nothing except try not to get sick. It is getting a little better as the day goes on though. Other than that, the headaches, frequent trips to the bathroom, and the complete lack of energy, everything's going great! :) I must admit that I really don't mind any of it...it's so worth it in my mind!!! There's not too much else to report right now. We're staying busy with work (and for me school). Friday will be here before we know it!

Hope everyone had a GREAT Labor Day weekend!!!

Updates

2008-08-22T11:50:00.005-05:00

We had a repeat pregnancy test today, which is standard, just to make sure the HCG level continued to rise appropriately. It went up to 808 which is great! We have our first sonogram scheduled for Friday, Sept. 5. We are very optimistic that it will work this time. I am really taking it easy and plan to especially take care around the time I usually miscarry. We're determined that it won't happen this time. This baby is here to stay! :)

On another note, my mom was able to get into a neurologist already and they are about 90% sure that she has Parkinson's. Her brain scans came back normal, but I guess the scan won't always show what they're looking for in the early stages. When the doctor did other tests on her in the office, however, she showed many sure signs of Parkinson's. The good news is that they don't expect her symptoms to get any worse for at least 5 years. It could be another 20 years before anything major changes. She will be participating in a study for a new drug, which will also give her opportunity to have more testing done. The news is very good for right now! My dad is already joking with her that if her hand tremor gets any worse he's going to get her a guitar to play. That's my Dad for ya!!

Good News!!

2008-08-20T11:34:00.002-05:00

The doctor's office just called with good news! They test the HCG level and want to see at least 20, but anything over 100 is really good. My level was 266! We are so excited! It's still very early though and we just need to keep praying that everything continues to progress normally. Thanks so much for all the thoughts and prayers!!

Tomorrow...

2008-08-19T11:35:00.004-05:00

Tomorrow is a big day, not only for us and finding out if we're pregnant or not, but also for my mom. She has been having some "concerns" lately and finally talked with her doctor yesterday. The doctor is worried that these symptoms might be the beginning of Parkinson's. Her MRI is scheduled for tomorrow and pending the results she will make an appointment with a neurologist. Please keep my mom in your prayers tomorrow while she undergoes the testing. After beating cancer many years ago, I know that she can get through anything. She's a fighter!

Embryo Transfer

2008-08-11T19:19:00.008-05:00

Today was the embryo transfer and everything went as planned. The top picture shows the 2 embryos that we used. The left images are still frozen, the right are after they were thawed and began the expansion process. The picture underneath is harder to see, but the uterus is approximately in the middle. The "dot" in the center of the uterus is the embryos right after they were released. Now we just keep our fingers crossed and wait (as patiently as possible) until the pregnancy test next Wednesday!!

--(Sorry the pictures aren't very clear. We don't have a scanner so I took pictures of our print outs.)

All Set for Monday!!

2008-08-07T12:05:00.002-05:00

We went to the doctor today and everything looks good. The nurse that made my calendar messed up one of the medications. She had put the progesterone start day as yesterday when it was supposed to be today. I went ahead and started it yesterday even though I had a feeling I should call and double check. We've been through this enough times that I should have called. It doesn't hurt anything, it just means that the transfer will be Monday. It has to be on the 6th day of progesterone. We don't mind doing it a day early! Brad is on vacation next week so it works out perfectly. I am off from school and only work on Friday so I'll have plenty of time to rest. Thanks so much for all the thoughts and prayers!!! We couldn't do this without our WONDERFUL family and friends.
Here's the new dates:
Transfer- Monday, August 11
Preg. Test- Wednesdy, August 20

IVF update

2008-07-23T12:06:00.002-05:00

Ok, we finally get to post something regarding one of the main reasons we started this page. We are truly blessed to have so many people that care about us and continue to be actively involved in our lives. While we don't mind making 20 phone calls after every doctors visit to keep everyone updated, this is much easier! As most of you know, we have been doing fertility for 3 years now. We have done in vitro 5 times, 3 resulting in miscarriage and the other 2 simply not taking. We are now beginning the sixth try and I have to say we have mixed feelings. I have never wanted to do something so bad while at the same NOT wanted to do it just as much. It is a very emotional journey, but I know we will get through it. I have no doubt in my mind that we have a strong enough relationship to deal with whatever life throws at us. We've proved that many times already! To start with, here are the scheduled dates for the major "events". Sometimes they change depending on the body's readiness and response to medicine, but usually only by a day or so.
Embryo Transfer - Tuesday, August 12
Pregnancy Test - Thursday, August 21
Of course, we are really hoping for a good outcome and we will keep everyone updated as the information changes.

Everyone think "baby thoughts"!! :)

The Weekend

2008-07-21T19:32:00.005-05:00

This past Saturday Brad's cousin Crystal got married. We went to Boyd, TX (about 45 min. away) for the beautiful event. The wedding took place at a church there and then the reception followed at Crystal's parent's house. They own quite a bit of land so they set up a covered area for the food and cake and there was a live band. We had a blast! The cake was delicious (which is the only reason I go to weddings!!...haha J/K!!!), Crystal looked absolutely beautiful, and it was fun to hang out with the family. The top picture is the newlyweds (obviously), then it's Brad and me with his parents and sisters, and then just us girls. I married into the best family ever!! :)

My husband says I'm clumsy...all I can say is "OUCH!!!"

2008-07-13T21:21:00.003-05:00

This morning Brad sent me a text message saying that he would really like it if I met him for lunch. Since he started at the new store, we don't get to have lunch together very often because it's about 20-25 minutes away. Of course I was thrilled to be able to go meet him. We had a great lunch at Wendy's and I decided to splurge a little knowing that I would go work out afterwards. I was feeling a little lazy though and thought I would do a pilates video at home first, then head to the gym for some cardio. I changed clothes, but left my shoes off for the pilates. As I was moving the coffee table in our living room, so that I could have more room, I managed to pull the table over my big toe...taking off part of the toenail. At first I thought I just stubbed it pretty bad, but one look down was all it took to realize I was wrong. The intense pain hit shortly after, only confirming that I had ONCE AGAIN managed to hurt myself. Needless to say I called my parents to tell them what I had done and they graciously came right over to help me clean it up and get it properly bandaged. I did take a picture to send to Brad since he was working, but I didn't think it was necessary to post it here. It's not a pretty picture, trust me! The whole point of this really is that...I AM CLUMSY. I am constantly hurting myself. I always have bruises on my legs I can't explain because I don't think twice when I run into things anymore. Sheesh...when will I learn to be more careful???

4th of July Weekend

2008-07-07T17:02:00.003-05:00

I must start out by saying that I feel so lucky to have such awesome friends. Brad had to work all weekend so he wasn't able to do much, but I hung out with our friends and had a really good time. On Friday I went with some of our friends to watch and set off fireworks in Red Oak. That was fun (even though their kiddos did NOT like the loud noises). I was scared to death of fireworks when I was younger so I could completely relate...especially when they are right in front of you. It can be a little scary for the little ones. Saturday we hung out almost all day. For dinner we cooked steaks, corn on the cob and asparagus. Oh my goodness, it all turned out delicious! Matt also cooked his special shrimp and they were great too! We had such a blast. After dinner, I learned how to shoot a BB gun. I actually did pretty good considering it was my first time. Then we decided to take some goofy pictures with shotguns (unloaded of course). Yes, we are easily amused!

The Summer Goes So Quickly....

2008-07-04T15:34:00.004-05:00

We have been so busy lately, but at the same time it seems like we haven't really done much. We did get to slip away to San Antonio a couple weekends ago to meet up with my cousin Sonja. She is from North Dakota and was visiting some family in Victoria, TX. They had to go to San Antonio for work so she went along with them. Brad just happened to have the weekend off so we drove down there. We had a blast, but didn't take many pictures. It was great to see Sonja AND to just relax for a few days. That's the only big thing we've done. Between Brad's work and my summer school, we don't have time for much more.

Brad is really enjoying his job, but he works hard! We just found out that, starting in a couple weeks, he will have to work overnight for the next 6 months. It won't be too bad though and there's always been the possibility of it happening so we were somewhat prepared.

We finally were able to go back to the doctor.....after waiting 3 months for all the bloodwork results to come back!! Everything came back normal, which is good, so we are set to try again. We keep joking around saying, "Who's up for Round 6?!?!" I guess we have to be! Please keep us in your prayers as we attempt the in vitro...ONCE AGAIN!

I guess that's the all the big stuff for now. Oh yes...can't forget...Congrats to Travis and Jana Kay on the birth of their new little girl, Jayden! We can't wait to meet her!!! :-)

Birthday Fun!

2008-06-08T12:46:00.004-05:00

Well things have definitely been busy lately, but a lot of fun!! We had a cook out for my birthday last night and it was a blast! Since Brad had to work late, our friend Matthew graciously took up the job as "grillmaster". He did a wonderful job I must say. The burgers were awesome! Lauren helped me get everything else ready and I could not have done it without her. I seriously have such a great family and group of friends. I could not have asked for a better way to turn a quarter of a century!! Our good friend Mike came in from Florida yesterday as well. He's staying with us until Friday so we have a lot of fun things planned this week. I was the only one who knew he was coming so that was a fun surprise for everyone else. We went up to Brad's work before the party to surprise him. It definitely caught him off guard, but he was thrilled. They have been playing video games ALL DAY so far. Haha!! Now I'm off to try to get the guys to play my new Wii with me instead of their X-box war games. This could take some bribing. :)

Backyard...or Zoo??

2008-05-23T18:58:00.006-05:00

For some reason our backyard has turned into a place for the animals. We have had a bird feeder outside for a long time now, but it used to be hanging right outside the kitchen window. One day when it was REALLY windy I took it down and set it on the patio table so it would stop tapping against the glass. Before I did this, I never once saw a bird eat from it. Ever since it's been on the table, we've had visitors! There are 2 cardinals (a male and female) that come several times a day now. I'm starting to feel like they're ours. It's become "their" feeded almost and I think it's really cool. I see them everyday eating and interacting and it's really neat. In the past week or two we've also had 2 bunnies hopping through the grass. I finally got a picture of one of them today. Whenever I see them I throw some baby carrots out there, but I never actually witness them eating them. Today, however, I got to watch one of the rabbits nibbling away at the carrots. Bunnies are soooooo cute!! It's so much fun to see the animals come back and visit us!

Ok, so maybe I should mention the other visitor we had today. I was watching one of the bunnies and trying to figure out what he was staring out. I finally spotted the slithering SNAKE gliding through the grass right next the fence! I hope he goes away and NEVER comes back!

Changes

2008-05-18T09:25:00.004-05:00

Ok, so I decided last week that I was going to get serious about losing these last 5-10 lbs. Actually I HAD lost them, I just gained them back. (Dang it!) So this past week I tried to get back to making better choices and making it to the gym a little more often. It obviously didn't work out too well because I GAINED almost a pound. That leaves me no choice but to start counting my points again and being very strict about it. I'm really going to put forth an effort this week so I'll let you know how it goes. Next weigh-in is next Sunday!! :)

Also, Brad has been an assistant manager for 1 week now and it's going great! His hours are different so we're getting used to that, but they're definitely not bad hours. Nothing bad has happened at his store yet (haha!) and hopefully it will stay that way. His last week in training was food school and he got to make donuts and a cake on the last day. This is a picture of the cake he made. He's the best hubby ever...and the cake was delicious!! (Maybe that's why I gained a pound!!) Oh well :)

Good Looking Couple ;)

2008-05-09T10:52:00.004-05:00

Spring semester is over..woo hoo!!! The last few weeks have been a little stressful and I finally feel like I can relax a little. I have so many projects around the house I want to do (or should I say NEED to do) and I can finally start on some of them. I don't really get a break from school, however, since I'm doing Maymester, Summer I, and Summer II, but it defnitely won't be as intense as this past semester. Knowing that I will graduate in 7 months makes it much easier to push myself.

Ok, on to something a little more exciting. Brad and I finally got pictures done together for the first time since the wedding. Can you believe that was 3 1/2 years ago?? A lady that I babysit for is starting her own photography business. We went to the Botanic Gardens and stayed mainly in the Rose Garden area. The pictures turned out great! We were so happy with them that we ordered probably too many and now have pictures of ourselves all over our house. :-) To see all of the pictures that were taking, go to epcaptures.com, click on Portraits, then Clients, and the password is bradcindy. They won't stay up forever, but at least for another week or so. If anyone needs or wants pictures done, I HIGHLY recommend Erin. She is awesome!!

It's May already?!?!

2008-05-02T10:39:00.002-05:00

Wow, I can't believe it's May already. I guess time really does fly because we sure are having fun! We slept in our new king size bed last night. It was awesome! We have been wanting one for a long time and are so excited to finally have it. We saved the $50 delivery charge by picking it up and putting it together ourselves. I actually drove the truck home with everything loaded in the back of it!! Brad met me up there on his way home from work to drive it, but I felt like I could handle it so he just followed me home. I did a good job if I do say so myself! :-) Once we got home we unloaded it and put it together without any problems. It was definitely worth saving the money!

As for the MRI - the results came back and everything looked great! I'm so glad that it looked ok, but that still leaves the question of what is causing the pain. Oh well...maybe it is just scar tissue flaring up. We may never know. I talked to the fertility clinic today and we still have 8 frozen embryos. As soon as the bloodwork results are in, we will talk with the doctor and find out what the next step is. I never IN MY WILDEST DREAMS thought I would be dealing with all of this, especially at this age!!

Busy, Busy!!

2008-04-29T10:16:00.004-05:00

This past weekend was Lauren M.'s baby shower that Lauren S. and I did. It went great! We were really impressed with how everything turned out since we tried not to spend a lot of money. The food turned out great and the games were a lot of fun. We can't wait to meet Baby Lola! She is going to be the best dressed little girl in the state of Texas! :-)

On a more serious note, I've been having more pain on my right side in the abdominal/pelvic area. I had an MRI done yesterday and am waiting for the results. I also talked to the fertility clinic today and we're just waiting for one more test to come back (from the bloodwork). Once it's all in, we will schedule a consult with our doctor to talk about the next step.

Re-committing to a healthier ME!!!!!!!!!

2008-04-24T08:32:00.002-05:00

I've "slipped" off of my healthier ways lately and I've decided it's time to get back on track! So this morning I got up super early for the 5:30 total toning class at the Y. Yes, every part of me wanted to hit snooze this morning and convince myself I was way too tired. HOWEVER, I got up and went and I feel great! The class was an hour of...obviously by the name...total body toning. I'm so glad I went and I know the rest of my day is going to better because I did. I'm going to keep going to the gym and try to eat a little better...summer IS just around the corner. The thought of bathing suit shopping terrifies me...haha! Woohoo...here's to a better me!!

This Week

2008-04-18T11:02:00.003-05:00

This week has been super busy! With the semester coming to an end, every teacher begins to "freak out" and decide that we must start cramming. Needless to say, school is a little stressful right now. If a break was coming things might look ok, but I won't really get a break until I'm done. Since that is only 9 months away (and will be the END), I just keep pushing. I'm so close to graduating!

On another note, that was quite a storm last night. It didn't last very long, but the hail was pretty strong. I decided that it would be so cool to put some in the freezer. I filled up a bowl, ran in the room to show Brad just how cool it was, and he says "Why in the world do we need to save that??" Ok...so maybe he had a point. I now have hail in our freezer and have no clue what to do with it. It seemed like such a good idea at the time.

Anyhow, it's Friday and I couldn't be happier!! Although this week was crazy, I had a WONDERFUL time getting to see Jana Kay. I feel so blessed to have such a wonderful friend like her. (Hope you have a safe trip home JK!!!)

I'm procrastinating...

2008-04-11T11:20:00.003-05:00

So I'm supposed to be writing a paper and I can come up with about 100 things I'd rather be doing instead. I figured I would take the opportunity to do this! It's Friday and I'm really excited. This weekend is going to be awesome! Tonight I'm doing some more baby shower planning for Lauren and baby Lola. Tomorrow Brad and I are doing the yard (if you've seen it you know that this is big news!!) and then I'm going out with my sister-in-law and her friends for her b-day. Sunday afternoon we're having a big party for her with the family. Jana Kay is coming into town this weekend too and I can't wait to see her!! Alright...I guess I better get back to work on this never ending paper.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!!

I figured it out!

2008-04-08T11:47:00.006-05:00

I think I'm starting to figure this out a little bit...slowly but surely! I finally figured out how to add my friends' pages to my links. Woo hoo! Maybe later today I will actually write something interesting. :)