Colton's Birth Story

Finally - the LAST belly picture!

So this is how it all went down:

My mom came and stayed with us a few days before the baby was born, and was there for about a week total which was wonderful! The day before I was induced I painted Colton's curtains which I don't recommend doing the day before having a baby when you're huge. We were scheduled for an induction on the 8th and the nurses said that they would call anytime between 2am and 10am most likely. We were all geared up for the 8th, and the day before I got a call from the hospital seeing if I would want to come in that day (so a day early). That threw me for a loop, and I think Ty and I were so nervous that we just figured to stick with the plan of the 8th.

The night before the big day Tyson and his dad gave me a wonderful blessing which really calmed me down because I was pretty nervous to add another kid and be a family of four. That night neither of us slept very well. I kept waking up about every hour after about 2am wondering when they would call. Finally around 7 they called us so we went in.

7:15 - hooked up to IV, started pitocin, and checked in at a 3 1/2 cm dilated and 80% effaced

7:45 - they broke my water and I was 4 1/2 cm dilated

8:30 - 5 1/2 cm dilated

8:45 - given epidural and 6 cm dilated - I was really nervous to get the epidural because the last time it was probably the most painful part of the whole labor. Luckily this time it wasn't very painful at all which I was relieved about.

10:15 - 8cm dilated 

11:30 - 9cm dilated - at this point I could feel the contractions as if the epidural had worn off so I pushed the button to get more juice... which didn't work. The nurses had me on my side and I was trying to breathe through them. Man it hurt! The anesthesiologist said he would give me a bigger dose if I wanted it, but the nurses said turning on the other side might work. I opted to wait on the more meds to see if turning would help, and it did which was strange. 

The baby's heart-rate then started to go down with each contraction so they thought the cord might be wrapped around his neck. At that point they had me on my back again to see if that would help and it didn't. His heart-rate dropped from about 180 to 90 so they called the Dr to come and he was there in about 3 minutes. 

While waiting for him they had me push a few times to see if he would come down a little further and he did so I stopped pushing. My mom and Tyson's mom were in the room at that point because we were all just socializing. When the Dr came in he got all prepped and ready to go so the nurses asked if I wanted them in the room or not, and at that point I told them I could care less who was in there. I asked our moms if they wanted to be in the room and they obviously were like, "Yeah!" so I told them to make themselves useful and grab the video camera and our nice camera. I then told them to stand up by my head so they're not seeing anything crazy. They were ecstatic. I think I remember one of the nurses saying, "...well of course if you ask a grandma if they want to be in the room they will always say yes."

11:50 - started pushing a couple times after the Dr came in and everyone was pretty much cheering me on. When the Dr saw what his heart rate was he immediately said, "Ok we have to get this baby out in two contractions." That kind of freaked me out. They put the oxygen mask on me and said it was for the baby to make sure he had enough oxygen. Tyson was such a supportive husband throughout the entire labor which I was very grateful for. 

11:57 - he was born! ...and they laid him on my chest. He screamed for a couple seconds until he heard our voices and grabbed hold of my fingers in his perfect little hands. It was the best feeling knowing that he was out and safe, and breathing perfectly. Tyson cut the cord while they cleaned him up, all the while my mom is snapping pictures and Tyson's mom is videotaping. 

8 pounds 13 ounces, 20 3/4 inches long

YAY I'm not pregnant anymore!!  

Jayde did not know what to think seeing me in the hospital room all hooked up to things. She wouldn't smile, and just kind of looked quizzically at the baby not knowing what to do.   

First sponge bath.

Proud dada

Jayde counting his fingers.

 First family pictures.

 Tyson's parents

 My parents

It was an amazing experience, and I'm so glad it went so well. The Dr thinks that the cord was just squished while I was pushing him out because he was so big. Tyson and I fell in love with him immediately! He was such a good nurser and just latched right on which I was grateful for. That night Tyson and I had him in the nursery so they could watch him and make sure he didn't choke on any fluids or anything. I'm always nervous those first couple nights that they will choke or stop breathing while I'm asleep. The nurses are always so nice when they bring him in to eat at night. Tyson was much more prepared this time and brought an extra pillow and blanket from home for when he slept on the chair/bed they had in the room.

While we were in the hospital that next day Jayde came down with a 24 hour flu big and threw up all over Tyson's parents car which was a bummer! Tyson took her to the Dr and gave her some pills that would help. The Dr said to keep her away from the baby as much as possible and pretty much quarantine him in my room. We decided to have her sleep at Tyson's parents house down here while she got better. It was blessing to have our parents there to watch Jayde and help out with all of this.

Jello for breakfast to help the upset tummy.

Playing at Nana & Papas house.

That next day I had some time just me and Colt in the hospital room while Tyson was taking Jayde to her swim lesson, and our running a few other errands. It was so calm and peaceful in the room, and I loved just having one-on-one time with the little guy. He is so precious, and I feel like I wasn't in this 'fog' like when we had Jayde, and I could really enjoy him in his newborn stage because nothing was new or unknown.

We didn't expect to bring Colt home without Jayde there which was pretty sad and completely unplanned. We wished she was there when we brought him home, but she still was very good when her grandparents brought her over the next day. Both of us had to be on Clorox Wipe duty cleaning and washing everything she touched and making sure she didn't go near the baby. Luckily Colt didn't get what she had, and us not letting her touch him those first few days didn't make her dislike him because now she loves to give him hugs and kisses.

progressing....

Today I had a Dr appointment and I am dilated to a 3 and 80% effaced. I am technically not due for another 2 1/2 weeks so we will see if this little boy decides he wants to come early! My guess is I will have him sometime in the middle of that first week of June. Last week I was at a 2 and 50% effaced so at least I'm progressing really well.

We moved all of Jayde's old furniture into the nursery and her new furniture into her room so she will have a little while to adjust to it. It is actually Tyson's sister's old bedroom set when she was living at home (and also was his mom's old set when she was growing up). It is nice that we don't have to buy her any new furniture this time around! Both the rooms are really looking adorable, and I can't wait to get them finished and post pictures.

The nursery is coming along really well. I still need to paint stripes on his curtains, frame a couple things and get them on the walls, and get some cube bins that match (they are currently pink). In Jayde's room I just have to put the rain gutter bookshelves on the wall now that I know which corner they are going into.

We've done a bunch of other last minute things like putting his car-seat in the car, making his binkie holder, setting up his pack-n-play in our room, packing my hospital bag, and buying the last minute things like diapers etc that we still needed. Now we just need to wait for him to make his grand appearance which will hopefully be soon!

36 weeks - {May 15}

 It's crazy to think that I'm considered full-term and if I started going into labor they wouldn't try to prevent it! At my 36 week appointment the Dr said I'm already 2 cm along and 50% effaced. The baby is head-down and ready to go. I'm measuring a week early and am scheduled to be induced on Friday, June 8th which is most convenient for Tyson because he wouldn't have to miss any work.... ya that's how we roll. My due date is the 12th so at least he will be a little early.

I feel like my pictures from 26 - 32 weeks I look about the same, but 36 weeks I'm way huger (if that's even a word). I honestly don't know how my belly can stretch even more than it has... but it continues to grow (and so do my never-ending stretch marks).

I'm super nervous to see how big he is, and how long the labor lasts. Hopefully it will be fast, but not too fast that I won't have time to get an epidural (which just happened to my friend down the street).

My Dr also said he doesn't think I'll even make it to the 8th which totally freaks me out because I still feel like I have so much to do. I then reminded him that he thought Jayde would also be early, but I was induced with her 2 days late and she was 8lb 10oz. He then chuckled and said, "Well that just goes to show how good of a guesser I am huh?!" haha

We are working on buying the last-minute items needed for this little guy, and packing my hospital bag. Jayde's room is slowly transforming into a big girl room as we move the nursery items into Colton's room next door. I am constantly being kicked in the bladder, and don't breathe well after I eat or while laying down, but it is all worth it!

We are super excited to meet this little boy and see who he looks like! I keep reminding Tyson that we will have a son in a few weeks and how crazy that is. Jayde is going to be such a wonderful older sister and we are excited to see how she does with him. At least for her sake when the baby comes out he won't be mobile and able to grab at her toys... that would make it a much more interesting transition from 1 to 2 kids!

Jayde giving Squishy kisses

Oh, and I still fit a few of my pre-pregnancy pants which I'm super thrilled about! This time around I won't have nearly as much to lose after I have the baby which will be very nice. 

32 Weeks - {April 16}

At 32 weeks I pretty much felt the same as before... belly getting huge... craving sweets like crazy... and moving slower than before. Sleeping is pretty much a joke. It seems like it takes about 5 minutes to roll over and slide out of bed so Tyson has been going to Jayde's aid if she wakes up in the middle of the night which luckily is rare. It takes me forever it seems to fall asleep also which is a bummer!

The nasty glucose test is over with and my levels look great from what the nurses say which is good. I seriously think I would waste away if I couldn't have carbs or sugar. At least with this pregnancy I've been good at making sure I don't eat too much, which has helped me not gain as much extra unnecessary weight like I gained with Jayde. I think so far my weight gain is around 20lbs and last pregnancy at this point I had gained about 35lbs.

So here's a conversation I had with doctor Astle this last appointment:

Doctor: "...soo you're measuring in at about 34 weeks, so 2 weeks ahead of schedule."

Me: "so basically you're telling me that I'm going to be bigger for longer, right?"

Doctor: "well, ya... if you put it that way."

Me: "awesome."

28 Weeks {March 16} - LAST trimester!

Well I am officially in my LAST trimester which is kind of freaky because I feel like I still have so much to do to get ready for this baby! I swear the days are moving faster and faster as I'm starting to move slower and slower.

I generally feel great but I can't walk as fast as I used to. I've been trying to keep up on my work-outs which have become very scarce lately which is ok since Jayde keeps me moving! At this same point in Jayde's pregnancy I weighed 12 lbs more than I do now which I'm proud about.

I keep thinking that my belly can't get any bigger, but this little boy just keeps on growing! I wonder how big he will be. Jayde was 2 days over and was 8lb 10oz so I'm hoping he won't be any larger than that. I'm shooting to have him 2 days over as well which will make him June 14th. I figure that will be easy to remember since it will be a month after Jayde's.

Heartburn is a normal occurrence nowadays especially when I eat anything with tomato sauce. I think the grapefruit cups I've been eating lately have been another culprit which is a bummer. Sleeping is tough, especially when I have to get up a couple times a night to go to the bathroom. If I wake up anytime before 6 it's almost impossible for me to fall back asleep which I'm completely not used to.

Tyson and I still can't decide between the names Colton or Corbin so we'll see what we end up with since we really like both of those. I thought it was hard choosing a girl name! We keep asking Jayde which one she likes better - and she can't even pronounce either of them so that isn't working haha.

It's funny because there are 3 other girls who live next to us who are also pregnant...
we're all due within a month of each other...
AND we're all having boys.

Let's just say it will be a high-energy street in a couple years that's for sure!

24 Weeks - {Feb 22}

Yes my mirror is very dirty... but that's ok. 

The pregnancy is still going very well - no sickness at all lately.

Although I can still fit all my non-maternity clothes, my belly is getting huge! 

...much bigger than when pregnant with Jayde.

This little boy is CONSTANTLY kicking me... 

ALL. DAY. LONG.

(and I'm nervous for my ribs in a couple months!)

It's fun when Tyson feels him kicking around.

Now we just need to decide on what to name him.

We can't decide between two, 

and I'm trying to get Tyson to agree on a 3rd that he really doesn't like heh. 

We'll see how that goes!

I've been working out more lately because it was getting to the point where I would stand up and couldn't walk because of all the pressure "down there".

And it hurt like heck that's for sure!

I think the working out has been really helping lately and I've loved my prenatal pilates!

I have a million things still on my to-do list before this baby comes,

so hopefully I'll get my butt in gear and finish some projects soon!

20 Weeks {Jan 25} - halfway done!

At my half-way mark I'm definitely showing more than with Jayde's pregnancy. I'm past all the nausea and headaches I was getting before which is great. I weigh less this time around than at this stage with Jayde's which is nice because I can still fit my pre-pregnancy clothes even though my belly is bigger.

I REALLY wanted to wait to find out the baby's sex but Tyson was adamant to find out before the delivery date so I complied. 

I was about 90% sure it was going to be a boy because of how sick I felt, and Tyson (plus most of the family) thought it was going to be a girl. During our ultrasound we found out that baby Squishy is a:

BOY!!!

And by looking at the ultrasound pictures there is definitely no chance it is a girl... that's for sure! He was moving and kicking around the whole ultrasound and it was cool seeing him and watching his little hands and feet.

On Darryl's birthday celebration in Vegas I made cupcakes to announce to the family what we were having during dinner. Pink would be girl and blue would be boy (obviously). They all bit into their cupcake at the same time and found out that we were having a boy! It was a fun way of telling people, and most of them were shocked when they found out. We are super excited to add a little boy to our family, and now we're just trying to decide on a name and figure out what this kid's nursery is going to look like!

Squishy moves! {12.20}

I felt the baby move today which is so fun! I was able to feel Jayde's kicking at 15 weeks also, and it just makes the pregnancy feel much more real.

The nausea has gone which is a blessing, and I haven't gained much weight yet which I'm also proud of. I was in good shape when I got pregnant, and am hoping to continue working out throughout the pregnancy so I don't gain too much. My goal is only gain around 35 lbs so we'll see how that goes. I just don't want to have too much to lose after I have the baby because after having Jayde I had to lose about 22 lbs which wasn't bad...

I can't wait until Tyson can feel our little squishy move. It's fun when he can be involved in that way. At this point I don't have many pregnancy symptoms except being starving all day! I'm almost positive it is a boy at this point and Tyson thinks it's going to be a girl so we'll see who is right soon.

first pictures of baby #2 {our little squishy}

I had our first ultrasound at about 12 weeks into the pregnancy. Tyson was going to come to it and we waited in their waiting room for over an hour before he had to go back to work which was sad, but at least I was able to see the baby and hear it's little heartbeat.

It's amazing how different the pregnancy is this time around. I got sick during the first trimester and felt nauseous all day for about a month which I was not used to. With Jayde I pretty much knew right off that we were pregnant and was SUPER tired those first few weeks but never got any morning sickness. With "Squishy" (baby #2) - I didn't think we got pregnant on the first shot because I wasn't tired at all and felt great - but I was!

I was also getting bad headaches daily so I had to take medicine that was ok while pregnant to help them go away. At one point I had a migraine (I've only ever had 1 before and they're horrible). It was bad enough to make me loose my lunch and sleep all day, and I'm glad that phase is over.

It is a bummer being sick while pregnant, but it reminded me how grateful we were to be able to have another addition to our family!

Oh, and when I thought I was pregnant and took the pregnancy test - Tyson's grandparents were staying with us for about a week during the Senior Games. I stuck the test in the bathroom and while Jayde was taking a bath Tyson was looking for her milk or something. I told him it was probably in the bathroom so he looked, saw the test and asked if I took a pregnancy test. I told him yes and smiled (did he really think I would put an old test on there? Gross.). He said, "You're pregnant?!". "Yup!". Then guess what he did?!

He rolled his eyes!!! WHAT THE?! I did not expect that. He assured that he was very excited and that we're obviously super fertile so we need to really watch out when we aren't trying to have kids haha. We are both thrilled, and it was fun having just us know about it as our little secret.

We keep telling Jayde that mama has a baby in her belly and I'm not sure she completely understands, but I'm sure she will be a great big sister!

Christmas Card with a hidden message

It's pretty funny announcing on a Christmas Card - you can tell who actually reads them and who doesn't! We showed this to Tyson's family after Thanksgiving and it was fun seeing their reactions.

We're due in June with baby #2!

Fashionably Late

Due Date: May 11th
Today's Date: May 12th

Yes everyone - our daughter is officially past-due, but we're just categorizing her being 'fashionably late'. Better late than never though right?

The doctor said he would induce me this Friday (the 14th) if I don't have her by then. I'm REALLY hoping that she comes before because I don't want to have to be induced. So far there aren't any consistent contractions to be heard of so it looks like Friday it will be. At least there is an end in sight. I've been really lucky to have a great pregnancy with very few symptoms. Hopefully that means the labor will go well! We're crossing our fingers to that. As of late I think she's dropped. I haven't been gaining much weight this last month, and I'm still at 3cm and 75% effaced (as of last Thurs).

All our bags are packed and ready to go. Her little clothes and linens are washed and awaiting her arrival. My car has been detailed and her car seat is sitting there ready to be used, practically saying, "put a baby in me already!"

I've been working on the baby's room, and found this cool frame at DI for just $3. Bought some acrylic paint to match the pink in her nursery and voila - a hair bow holder! It's not sitting on her wall with her other decorations that I need to post about. I'll have to do a nursery post after she comes when it's all finished.
And here's the car-seat cover I made in a sewing class down here. It was fun to do (and not too stressful). I love having a person there showing you how to do things so you can ask questions as you go along. I think the fabric combination I chose looks good - it turned out cute. Now we just need to put a baby in it to complete the package!
We will post some pictures after she arrives for you viewing pleasure (which will hopefully be before Friday). I think I'll take a break from the computer now and walk some stairs because no other labor inducing tips people have given us have seemed to work yet - I think it's all a scam ;0)

just last April

It's amazing to me that just last April Tyson and I were still living in Washington, DC. He was finishing up his last year of Law School, and we were getting ready to move to Salt Lake for him to start studying for the bar. He was officially going to be an attorney.

Just last April we were walking around the monuments and seeing the Cherry Blossoms for the last time for awhile which was kind of sad for us to reflect about.

We were spending tons of time with all of our friends who became our family away from family...
having girls nights,
superbowl parties,
going to New York,
eating wings at our local sports bars,
singing karaoke,
celebrating girls birthdays whose husbands were studying for finals,
and having spontaneous dance parties in people's small apartments.

Now we are living in our own home in St George getting ready for our baby to bless our lives shortly... very shortly!

If you told me just last April that the following April - I would be over 9 months pregnant with my doctor telling me I'm already 3cm dilated and 75% effaced... with a baby girl... I would have been ecstatic but wouldn't have completely believed you. There's no way Tyson would have been on board with the idea so quickly, but he was, and we were ready.

Now that she's just days away I keep comparing our lives to just last April when things were just the two of us and we were living the 'student' life. It got to the point where I felt like something was missing when it was just the two of us, and knew we were ready to start our own little family.

Even if it would consist of:
A long pregnancy with labor to follow, poopy diapers, waking up in the middle of the night for feedings, gaining lots of weight while being an incubator to a little person I didn't even know, heartburn... lots of heartburn, no sleep, and a cute crying baby that we may or may not know how to raise perfectly.

I am so excited to have this baby soon and start many new adventures with her and my husband. Tyson will be an excellent father, and I've been so lucky to have him by my side during my whole pregnancy because he always takes such good care of me and knows what I need even when I don't.

He will be completely wrapped around her cute (hopefully chubby) little finger, and we are so excited to see who she looks like. So I'm trying to enjoy these last few days of having a little person kick around my belly (and bladder), buying the last few things for our little arrival, packing my bag for the hospital, and trying to sleep even though in my head all I can think about is 3cm dilated and 75% effaced... already!

3 weeks and counting

I'm in the single digits when it comes to number of weeks left, and can't believe I only have 3 more as of April 20th! Let's just say I'm scared to death, excited, very happy, nervous, thrilled, and also freaking out a little. It makes me want to shout for joy, cry, and throw up all at the same time... but that might be also from the crazy hormones.

I keep wishing there was a way to be emotionally prepared for having a baby, but there isn't which doesn't make it any easier because I wish I was more prepared. All I hear from people is how much it will change your life and how it will never be the same again, which makes me feel like I should be even more prepared but can't...

It's a vicious cycle.

I'm sure at this point Tyson has gotten used to the crying spells every other night for no reason over the dumbest things. These are my crying spells mind you - not his haha. We've realized very quickly that it's just the hormones, and he will just hug me until I stop which works wonders. After I get myself under control we both just laugh because it makes no sense at all, and in reality is pretty hilarious. Could you imagine if all the women in the world had 'pregnancy hormones' their whole lives?! We would all be a blubbery mess!

I just know that our lives are going to change drastically... VERY soon and I'm so nervous, but as my mom says,

"Well you can't go back now, so you may as well just enjoy it!"

So I'm trying to enjoy the huge belly, no sleep, constant bathroom breaks and braxton hicks contractions. I'm also enjoying the pampering from the hubby, and all the stares from strangers as I walk (well hobble) through stores.

I'm definitely in the 'nesting' stage... putting everything together, unpacking the last tidbits, washing all the baby things, cleaning, and doing all the last-minute crafts that have been sitting there. It's like I physically can't make myself sit and relax if I have things that still need to be done which is strange but understandable because I feel like my list is very long and constantly just getting longer. I think Tyson gets a kick out of it. He'll have to post soon about his thoughts on the subject.

Now I just need to pack my bag and hopefully not get sick and throw up all day like I did yesterday. Isn't that phase supposed to be over? I guess I never really did get sick in the beginning, but being 9 months pregnant and not able to keep anything down isn't a pretty sight. Anyways I'm kind of just venting now, but I thought I'd put a picture up of my current pregnant state. Enjoy!

Five Guys and a Birthing Class

So this being the first pregnancy and all, Laura thought it might be a good idea for the two of us to do a birthing class before the baby came. I had no clue what to expect with a "birthing" class.....I had always imagined them to be the classes where you learn how to breathe and other tips like that. This was nothing like that.

The first half of the day was not that useful. It may have been good for Laura, but did not do much for me. Most the morning was about how the woman's body changes with a pregnancy and what other body changes to expect. This was not useful to me for three reasons: 1) Laura is already so late in her pregnancy that the body changes have already occurred, 2) my body is not undergoing any changes (even though I may look pregnant and have some pregnancy-weight to lose), and 3) there is nothing I can do to help Laura with her changing body. Sadly, there were some points during the morning that I kept thinking about the great golf weather outside (don't worry, I didn't leave and go golfing)

The class began to improve right around lunch. First off, Laura and I ran a quick errand and bought us a new grill for the house. That started to make my day. Then, Laura told me she was craving a juicy burger. I love those kinds of pregnancy cravings. So, as a sacrifice for the love of my wife, we went to 5 Guys (I am so glad my wife has great taste and likes 5 Guys over In-N-Out). Sure can't beat a bacon-burger and cajun fries for lunch.

After being rejuvenated by my AMAZING burger and fries, we went back to class. I was hoping it would improve and would not disappoint. Luckily, it did not. The second half of the class was more about during birth and post-pregnancy. These were areas I could actually be of some help and the instructor gave some great tips to the husbands. I hope I can live up to expectations -- even though I am not too excited about changing diapers.

The thing I was looking forward to most was the hospital tour. The delivery rooms are actually pretty nice. However, the recovery rooms leave much to be desired. Oh well, I guess you are not there that long. In all reality, I could be anywhere with my baby and wife and be completely happy.

All in all, it was a useful class. It did start to make me nervous because it confirmed that the due-date is just around the corner. Oh well, all we can do is take it all in stride and do our best. Oh ya, the class would have been better without the graphic pics and movies -- I am sure the point can get across without those.

More Showers

I was very lucky to have two other showers in Salt Lake for baby Jayde. She got some wonderful things, and I feel very blessed to know such amazing people who are very talented! We got lots of fun and cute baby blankets. I also had my crib bedding made by one of the ladies there, and it turned out fabulous! I'll have to post a picture of her room/crib put together soon. It turned out perfect.

It was fun to see everyone, and very strange to think that was the last time we would be in Salt Lake without having the baby in tow.

We're so excited for her to come soon (3 more weeks), and I've just been buying all of the last minute things for her arrival!

Showered

March 13th = Ladybug BabyShower

Thrown by my best friends from High School - Kristina & Tia
Adorable invites were made
and many games were played.
Fruit was smothered in chocolate
and the oh-so-cute Diaper Cake was displayed in it's full glory.

It was a blast, and I am so grateful to have such wonderful friends.
You guys are awesome, thanks again so much!

{Hand-made invites that were absolutely adorable!}

{The spread}

{The amazing party planners}

{Cutest diaper cake ever}

{Me & Teri}

{Me with the rest of the girls}

It snowed a lot during the day, and this is what we came home to that night in Salt Lake, crazy huh?! I think it should be against the weather laws to have it snow in March! I should write someone... because that's just not right... I'm so glad Tyson and I live in St. George!

30 week Dr Checkup

Met with the Dr this week, and it's the last week where I go a month before meeting with him again. From here on out it is every 2 weeks which is cool/annoying/scary in my opinion.

Dr. Astle, "so you're measuring at 34... well probably around 33 weeks."

Me, "What's that supposed to mean? Am I having her early?!"

Dr. Astle, "Well we will meet with you in 2 weeks and if you're still measuring far in advance like this, then we will do an ultrasound to see how big the baby is."

Me, "Ya because there's no way I want to deliver a 12 lb baby!"

He agrees with me, so I'm glad about that. I keep thinking it would be great if she was developing quickly and I could have her early but I don't want to count on it. With my luck it's just the way I'm carrying her, and she'll be a week late heh. I wouldn't mind doing another ultrasound either just to have peace of mind that she's still baking well in there, and to have more cute pics of her.

Symptom: Quicker-than-I'd-like Weight Gain
Well my glucose test came back ok so I don't have diabetes. It needed to be somewhere under 130 and mine was 92. I guess I just need to keep eating healthy, staying away from lots of sugars which I've been doing well with lately, and working out. Maybe the fact that I'm measuring 3 weeks ahead has something to do with that. I'm just excited to have the baby so I can start really working out and getting my former curvy and not-so-round shape back :)

Symptom: Throwing up breakfast two mornings in a row
Ya so this happened right after eating breakfast. Dr didn't know why but said to just eat smaller meals he thinks which I did the morning I met with him and still almost threw it up. Doesn't really make sense that it was just those two mornings, and I ate completely different breakfasts at different times of the morning. At least it hasn't happened the few days afterward.

Symptom: Chest tightening up for about 20 seconds (about 10x per day, mostly at night)
When my chest / airways tighten up it feels very strange. It's not enough that I can't breathe or anything, just a tightening feeling. Dr wasn't really sure why it's doing that, but said to take Mylanta when it happens to see if it makes it go away. If it does then it's just my esophagus (which shouldn't be an issue), if not then it might be my lungs. Who knows... I've never heard of anyone having this before and neither had he so we'll see what happens I guess.

Symptom: Waking up from deep sleep because I'm STARVING
End up getting out of bed, drinking glass of milk and eating some crackers to hold me over until breakfast - then trying to go back to sleep. Took me about an hour to fall asleep again last night. Can't wait for that to be over. It's so weird to have your growling stomach be the cause of me waking up from a deep sleep.

Symptom: Daily hiccups by the little kid
Poor baby keeps getting them. It's a daily occasion now and I think Tyson gets a kick out of feeling her little hiccups. It's really cute except for the fact that she kicks around a LOT more when she has them which kills the belly. I don't think she likes them, but what baby likes the hiccups I guess...

28 Weeks - the last trimester

It's the final stretch...the LAST trimester!

As you can see my stomach has pretty much exploded to your full-on pregnancy belly which happened in a two week time frame which was very strange.

Here are some of my evaluations of my current state:

Sleeping is getting more difficult, especially when I Finally get to sleep just to wake up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom... then I have to try to fall back asleep after re-adjusting the belly multiple times.

Tying shoes is pretty much a joke and I'm pretty sure it's very comical watching me try to do so. Let's just say Tyson has had a few little chuckles at my expense... until he gets a glare from my direction, and ends up tying my shoe for me. I'm sure it's just out of pity (but I don't mind).

From what Tyson says - I have a little bit of a pregnancy waddle which I highly disagree on, but yet I'm not the one watching myself walk from behind so my viewpoint is probably at a little disadvantage.

Gaining weight faster than I'd like, so the doctor says I should cut down on the sugars. No more buying fruit snacks in bulk from Costco, and now that the chocolate stock is completely gone (because of me) at least that won't be a temptation anymore. Now we just need to make sure and not buy any more of the stuff. It's hard to not 'snack' when you work from home all day! I'm taking a glucose test the next Dr. visit to make sure everything is fine. I just can't wait to have this baby so I can start running again without having the belly tighten up like a vice when I work out. I guess at least my pregnancy jeans I've bought that 3rd month still fit just fine.

I hope it's not possible to die from frequent heartburn, because if so I really need to watch out for that! It's a daily occurrence and Tums are officially my best friend at this point. I don't go anywhere without a zip-loc bag with those little chalky suckers tucked safely in my purse. Let's just say we have a Love/Hate relationship.

Those fish-oil supplements are nasty, especially a few hours after taking them when you burp and it tastes like fish. Makes me want to gag just thinking about it! But hey - at least the baby is getting the vitamins she needs. Hopefully it will make her brain more developed and smarter in school, supposedly that's what they say so I guess it's worth it.

We have most of the baby furniture which is exciting. Now we just need the house to be finished so we can set everything up, or I guess so Tyson can set it up. Hopefully his temper will keep in check while he's putting the crib together. (He doesn't do too well with putting together furniture, but he will learn... patience honey... patience is a virtue).

Let's just say it's very strange to tell people I'm in my last trimester. Most times when I think about it I just get freaked out, but I think as it comes closer (and my belly gets bigger and more uncomfortable) I get more and more excited for our little bundle of joy to join us into our crazy little family.

24 Weeks - and officially showing

Well my little baby bump started showing at around week 24. Maternity jeans are definitely making their entrance daily now! It's cute to see Tyson's reaction as my belly starts looking more and more pregnant. I'm just glad I'm not in the 'fat' stage anymore. Jayde gets lots of talking to by her dad when he gets home from work, and he loves feeling her kicking around. She is getting VERY strong and it's fun sitting there and watching my stomach twitch as she moves around all day which is still strange!

We went to a mattress store the other day and the salesperson asked when I was due. That was a first! I guess I'm officially looking pregnant and not just chubby which I guess is a good thing. What's funny is Tyson keeps thanking me for being such a good incubator.
You're welcome honey!

What's in a name?

You never really realize how difficult it is going to be to pick your children's names when you find out you're pregnant. I mean, this stays with them forever so it's something we couldn't just take lightly!

The first few years of our marriage Tyson was dead set on Chaz for our first boy and I'm so glad he got over that! I was less than thrilled with that name for our first-born son, so when he found a name he liked better I had a sigh of relief because that gave me some room to stick a few other boy options in his head.

Ever since we were married if I heard a name I liked I would write it down on a sticky in my wallet so it wouldn't be lost in the shuffle. When we found out we were pregnant I quickly pulled out that sticky with my list of names, and re-wrote them down in my computer. I scowered the internet reading through thousands of girl and boy names, hastily writing down the names I loved. When I was happy with the 51 girl names and 70 boy names, I read through them to the husband.

Most he laughed at.

Some he had a weird reason why he didn't like them.
A few of were names of girls he had dated.
Others he had no reason why he didn't like it, but that he just didn't.

...

What the?! He didn't like the names I liked. I didn't expect that to happen. Some of the names I absolutely loved he didn't like at all. How in the world does that even happen? Of course I didn't expect him to just roll over and let me pick the baby's name, but for him to really not like the names I loved was blasphemous in my mind! I come to the conclusion that he's not putting the names in the right context so I tell him to think of different situations we could use their name.

...

And he still doesn't like some of the names I loved.

I refuse to take them off the list because that would mean defeat, so I keep them on so he can mull them over.
I think in my head that the husband may just be too opinionated.
We decided to wait a few weeks to cool off and look at them again.

Since we were positive that we were going to have a boy we narrowed those down first to about 23 options, and figured we'd better glance through the girl names to also narrow those down in case our parental instincts were off and we indeed were having a girl... which we were.

So... the boys names were set aside and we focused on the list for girls, narrowed those down to 7 and took another break. We ran them by some family members to get their opinions and ended up with 3 that we both loved. After a few weeks of mulling those over in our head Tyson told me the name he liked the most (which was a name I wrote down early in our marriage which I also loved). So unless she comes out and we decide to change, her name is going to be:

Jayde Brielle Horrocks

If you think the name is cute, let us know!
If you think the name is hideous then you can chose to not name your own baby that, and keep your comments to yourself because we love it (hee hee).

When I thought about naming our girl after a gemstone, I wondered if the meaning even matters. So I looked up the meaning of our names to see what those were.

• Tyson: "Son of Dye", or "Firebrand"
• Laura: "Crown of Laurel"
  

Ya...I think being named after a pretty gemstone is just as good as being named after a leaf (in my case). We're going to stick with Jayde.

Here are some pictures of baby Jayde at our ultrasound we had on January 7th. The Dr. told us all her organs and everything looked wonderful. According to her measurements we are now due May 11th instead of 12th so we were happy about that. It was fun seeing our little munchkin kicking around all over the screen, and it was easy to get some good leg shots but not so easy to get good profile shots. She's got very long legs and feet! According to Tyson - she will be the first female All-State Running Back. By how hard she is already able to kick me, she will probably end up being a very good soccer player! Let's just say I'm nervous for my ribs in the upcoming months.