Bath Time!

Ben had his first bath tonight to get ready for the arrival of his grandpa! He didn't like it ONE bit though! For someone who was naked for 9 months, he sure doesn't like being naked now! But oh my his hair was so cute afterwards- it totally fuzzed up and stuck up straight. It's really hard not to think he's cute though. Even if he is my kid!

Meeting Grandpa Collier for the first time!

Feliz Cumpleanos

Well Friday was my birthday... one year away from being 30. Which, for right now (this might change) I am okay with. To celebrate- my mom, my sister, Ben and I went to Olive Garden for lunch. It was our first time taking Ben out- besides to the doctor. It was good and Ben did really well, except for at the end he started getting hungry and a little fussy. But we made it home and fed him and he was happy.Then my sweet husband came home from work with flowers and a happy birthday balloon, that made my day! We left Ben with his grandma and auntie and we went to eat yummy food at Cheesecake Factory (one of our favorites). After dinner, we went on a walk in a nature preserve area right near the restaurant. We saw deer, a bunny and an owl. It was really cool, and relaxing. Unfortunately it was getting dark and rainy and so we headed home. Plus I was starting to miss Ben and we had cheesecake for everyone to eat as well. It was a great birthday- I love my man for taking me out and making me feel special. He is SO good to me, and patient and loving and understanding and I love him more now than I ever thought was possible!There were some pretty severe storms that blew through that night and more Saturday, one of which was a tornado in downtown Atlanta. There was some pretty bad damage done and luckily only a few people hurt and no one killed in the downtown tornado.Yesterday's storms got sort of scary because a couple tornadoes (of which there were like 4 or 5) hit close to us. And my sister was down at school when this one blew through- I believe it dissipated though before it did any damage. We were watching this on the news. Let me tell you- hearing the tornado sirens is a pretty scary thing. I was scared for a minute when our county went under the warning. We were and are safe though, and no one we know was hurt or affected luckily.


Ben is doing so good. His cheeks are getting fatter and fatter each day. His little personality shows here and there, and I'm learning more and more what it's like to be a mommy and how to take care of him. I think it's pretty instinctual, but there is still a lot to learn! I'm sure that part will never end!
He went over to his Nana & Poppy's house (Ryan's parents) for the first time today. He got pretty upset at the end because he was SO hungry and I didn't have another extra bottle to feed him because he had eaten it already! But luckily when we started driving he chilled out and we made it home with out him crying much anymore. It's such a miracle and wonderful thing to look at him and love him so much and know that my man and I created him. That he's OURS and that I got to carry him. I am loving watching him change everyday!

A week in the life of Ben

Okay, it's kind of long but here is a little montage of Ben-dome from conception until now! This is also for family and friends who don't get meet him right away as well.

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

He's doing REALLY well by the way. He's a good baby. Doesn't like his diaper to be changed or his boy parts to get cold and cries bloody murder when this happens. But other than being hungry and that, he doesn't cry! (so far...)

Went to his first doc's appt yesterday and he's already 7 lbs! Mommy is tired, but that's to be expected. Speaking of tired, I'm going to bed! Hope you enjoy!

BEN IS HOME!!!!!

We have Ben at home now. They let him come home at 5 yesterday.

Ben Update

I guess I should let y'all know what's going on. Thank you SO much for the lovely comments on my sweet boy.
I was released from the hospital Wednesday (finally), but my little guy wasn't. I had a fever when Ben was delivered, and his breathing was a little fast so he had to go to the "transitional" nursery right after he was born to be monitored and to have some labs done. They finally brought him up to me about 4 hours after he was born, it was a LONG wait!
So then he had been having difficulties eating... which is fine, because he's new and needed to learn. But we had the lactation lady come in and help and we couldn't get him to latch on or if we did- he'd fall asleep. So I'd pump for 5 minutes before and then try and feed him and he still struggled. So we'd have to supplement him with a bottle. Tuesday night I was EXHAUSTED- the night before (which is the night I had him) I probably had only gotten three hours of sleep and after 11-12 hours of labor my little body couldn't function. So we decided to have the nurse take him to the nursery across the hall to feed him and hang out with him so we could get some sleep before we went home the next day. I'm glad we did because with in an hour of sending him in there- they noticed there was something wrong with his breathing which had been an issue right after he was born. So they sent him back down to the transition nursery. Which worried me to tears... he was there until about 9am the next morning and then was admitted to the NICU. He had three tests done and two out of three were fine- but the one that was a little elevated worried them, and he still wasn't eating very well or enough. Plus his breathing was pretty fast still. All of this on the day he was supposed to come home with us! Obviously that wasn't going to happen. Since then he's gotten so much better, he's out of NICU after only being there for a day. They were worried there for a second about his billirubin levels and they've gone down. His breathing problem subsided yesterday morning and the test that indicated infection was going down as well. He's been such a little trooper and I'm so proud of him and how much he's pulled through.
Yesterday my mom and I were able to go and see him for about 4 hours and spend some good time with him during two feedings. After I fed him the first time he stayed awake for about a 1/2 hour afterwards and let me just talk to him and sing and he never looked away. It was the most amazing feeling in the whole world. There was definitely a bonding moment there. I gave him a good pep talk and told him we needed him home... and that evening he started eating more than "required" and by the evening they had taken him off the strange table he'd been on for two days and put him in a regular bassinet and he looked just about ready to go home. They had even taken the feeding tubes out of him. Ryan and I went and held him for 2 hours last night and he was asleep the whole time. Couldn't get him to wake up! Anyway, we're hoping that he can come home today. I'm trying REALLY hard not to get my hopes up because this last week has kind of been a week of ups and downs and disappointments. But I just called and he was eating and the nurse said he did really well through the night. I am going to go get ready now and go see him before I have to take the special care CPR class before he can be released. I'll keep y'all posted. Prayers are needed! Thank you for them anyway!
Here are some pictures! I took some last night but can't find the cord to get them off the camera! AHH!

Benjamin Ryan

We've got Ben! Holy crap that labor was hard! When I get a chance I'll maybe describe what it was like, you know me- I'm honest about the pregnancy stuff, and that was not fun. Although COMPLETELY worth it when he made his first cry and I got to hold him! I was so delirious and out of it that I don't remember a lot of it except for the pain and the HOURS of labor (11 or 12) and then getting him out. I think Heavenly Father made it that way for me so that I wont really remember the next time!
He was born at 4:30pm March 3rd, 2008. He was 6 lbs 14 ozs and 19 1/2 inches long. I think he's a pretty cute little newborn, of course I am biased. He's got long eye lashes and is just a cutie. He's got a pretty full head of hair, believe it or not- it's even almost in a natural Mohawk! I am in love with my little man and feel so blessed to have such a beautiful little person to take care of that me and the man I love created together. I'm glad the pregnancy and birth are over- now we're on to a whole new way of life and new set of challenges!

I'm being induced tonight!!! Baby tomorrow! Not sure when... YAYAYAYAYAYAYAY!!!!

update...

still in the hospital. still don't know what's going on. what I do know is my blood pressure is fine and I had protien in my urine (which between the two deterimes preeclampsia) but it was a normal amount and nothing to worry about so I guess I don't have preeclampsia, the baby is just fine and every time I get monitored the nurses comment on how active a little person he is, when I talk to him his heart rate goes up- which makes me smile and love him even more and want to see him, not a fan of having this useless i.v. in my hand, and we're bored... and sick of being here and waiting and not really knowing what's going on. That's what we know. We also know that I'm getting an ultra sound today to determine whether or not I go home with or with out the baby- but don't know when that's happening...we were told sometime this morning and it's 10:30, but the nurse today said they probably wont be here until this afternoon. Which means... MORE WAITING. Okay, fine- we're making sure everything is okay and that everyone is okay.... but still. I'd have to say I'd rather be in MY bed. I miss my doggy. I miss my shower, which I haven't had since Friday morning. Yeah... so- I really don't have much of an update- the subject line lied to you. I still have NO idea whether or not we're going home with baby (but I'm leaning towards NO). I just wish since we were hear already and I'm already so freaking close to being 40 weeks that we could just do it- but they wont if everyone is healthy. whatever...

Bed Rest

It's been YEARS since I've been in the hospital- for myself that is. And here I am. Sitting in the hospital. With a baby still in my stomach. And with a useless CAPPED OFF i.v. in my right hand, which is totally not comfortable.
I went to the doctor for my routine visit yesterday morning and as usual my blood pressure was high at first. So they decided to take it again... and it was high. So I had to lay on my side for a little while. Had my exam, which I'm only dilated to a 1 (no big deal), and she checked it again and it was still high. At one point I believe it was 160 over 100 and something. So they sent me to the hospital and here I am. It's 11:20am the next day and I'm still here. My blood pressure went down. At first when the doctor came to see me when I got here yesterday, we were "going to have this baby this weekend". And now, I'm pretty sure that's not happening. What I am doing now is a 24 hour urine analysis which I'll technically be done with at 2 o'clock, but then have to wait until they send it to the lab and get the results back.
In the midst of all the excitement of the doctor telling me that I was going to have the baby this weekend, my mom called my brother who was the kind one that got her ticket to come out here to notify him of the news and he switched the ticket to today. She's almost here! Things are little crazy and I'm not sure what's going on. Everyone is healthy though. That's all that matters.

Fun Baby Shower

Well, last night we had our Baby BBQ! It was a lot of fun and we had a really good turn out. People are so nice to us and we felt VERY loved. Not only by the gifts we got and all the people that showed up- but by Ashley, Lori and my mother in-law who put it all together and made it an awesome night. So thanks ladies, we REALLY love you and appreciate you!!!!!



We got a lot of fun stuff... the CUTEST little New Balance tennis shoes, more stuff to complete the nursery, a little bouncer, lots of cute clothes and even movie passes for mom and dad to take a night off!
(have I mentioned that my right pointer finger is STILL twitching? I mean, it's not everyday... but it's enough to drive me a little crazy!)

We've got Spring coming people!!! Do you know how happy this makes me?

(pictures taken on a beautiful 65 degree day in February!)

Also, my wonderful Ryan finished the dresser for the baby's room! Look at this before and after!

Gestational Diabetes Police

Okay... so do I have a little radar on me that lets people think that it's okay to be watching every little thing I put in my mouth? Do I have an advertisement on me that says "hey, if you think I'm not eating something I'm supposed to, would you stop me and question me?" I don't think I do... maybe it's the helplessness that I exude and the child like appearance I have as a 5 ft almost 29 year old PREGNANT woman??? Not sure. TWICE today people have questioned what I was eating. Coworkers at that- whom I really do love... really! But come on- I have gotten control over the Diabetes, I know what will spike my blood sugars and how much of it will as well. So, eating two Tootsie Rolls will not make my blood sugar go out of control. Brownies on the other hand, will- do I eat those? No, as much as I desire and crave them, I don't. I have a little guide for fast food restaurants that tell me what I can eat at them, and fancy that- I can have an 8 piece nugget from Chick-fil-a if I want!!! EVEN A SANDWICH! *gasp!* So, when I'm asked "Is that bag of Chick-Fil-a yours?" and heaven forbid I react to it or defend myself- I get the "Whoa!!! Watch out! She's pregnant...don't mess with her!" crap. Their excuse is, we're just watching out for you! Thank you, really but again, does something about me say that I'm incapable of watching out for myself? Do I seem like I’m an out of control eater? Does the fact the doctor told me to take my blood sugar screening down to ONCE a day mean anything? Okay. I'm done.
So, I want to go to our Ward Temple day this Saturday. What do you think? Safe? I mean, I know I'm still 3 weeks away- but he's dropped already. And I'm having a lot of tightening and cramping... what if I went into labor at the temple? Cool? I guess... more embarassing than anything I think. I have a doc's appt on Friday morning, hopefully we can see if there's anything to worry about (or get excited about). We also are having a baby shower that night thanks to our loverly Ashley and my mother in-law. It's going to be fun, all the boys are coming too and we're lovingly calling it a "Baby BBQ"! Cute huh!? So I hope we can make it until then. I think we will... even though I'd be okay if he decided to come TONIGHT. Sorry mom... I want you here, but I just want him out. :)
Okay, I'm going home now. Yay for traffic.

Is it over yet?

So, I won’t lie. It's hard to make it to all three meetings of church at this point. I do fine at the beginning and then by the end of sacrament meeting my legs are tingly and my feet are more swollen then they started out being, even if we sit on the "soft seats" I still get a sore back, it's hard to breath with this little guy getting so big and putting pressure on my internal organs, I have to switch positions I'm sitting in about 1,000 times, have to get up to go potty at least once... I wont bore you with the either "been there, done that" facts or scare you too much if you haven't had the opportunity to be pregnant yet. But all in all, sitting anywhere (including work) for long periods of time is incredibly uncomfortable. Well, let's be honest life in general is incredibly uncomfortable at this point! Anyway, so we made it through our first meeting yesterday and then left to go home after that. I was feeling nauseous and just couldn't make it anymore. We went home and ate and took a quick nap and then got ourselves dressed again and went to the Single's Ward sacrament meeting. Our friend Jennifer who is going on her mission (THIS WEDNESDAY! YIKES!) was speaking and we wanted to listen to her and give her one last goodbye hug. Her talk was wonderful, she spoke on love in our homes- whether or not that means with roommates or in married family environment. She read the words to the Hymn Love at Home and asked at the end what we all thought of when we heard those lyrics. I whispered to Ryan "my mom singing it to us when we were fighting with each other or not getting along!” Anyway, I thought that was funny... but after Jennifer spoke, wow I think I must've had a panic attack or an anxiety attack... probably the later, because I felt like so enclosed all of a sudden! It was too stuffy in the chapel, my feet were hot and swollen, I couldn't get comfortable and I felt like everyone was too close to me, there was a girl scratching her brother's back in front of us for what seemed to be like two hours and I could hear her nails on the fabric and it kept making the same noise over and over and I almost just had to leave!!!!! It was HORRIBLE! Talk about senses being on overload! I made it through though- and everything was fine. My point is this, I'm done with this whole being pregnant thing. Even though I've got 3 weeks and 5 days left and 3 weeks and like 2 days before my mom comes- I'M DONE. This is hard work! I know on the outside it doesn't seem like it, but it is! And I KNOW it's worth it and that's why I want to see him so bad! I'm sick of getting "the look", you know that look? Like "ahhh, you must be so uncomfortable..." and just doing anything is an energy sucker these days. I would like to just have my body back. I'd like to put on my socks again with no problems, and put on pants with out figuring out how I'm going to get the second leg in.

Wow, I'm a complainer. Sorry. Anyway... I guess I'm having a "day", one filled with hormones and when I'm as tired as I feel right now I tend to be a little more dramatic and emotional than normal days.

On the other hand, I still crack up every time I watch that belly button video. If you haven't watched it yet, you just gotta. It's the post before this one. I was laughing and coughing and that's why it was doing what it was! Good times.

Oh solo meo!

Went to the doc today and had my ultrasound. Or is it ultra sound... either way, Ben's good. He's in the 51st percentile which means he's right on target. He's 6lbs and 2oz and has a big head still... but his head size is only 2 weeks ahead of where I'm at... so hopefully it wont get TOO much bigger. I'm afraid though, he'll have a Collier noggin. Big feet and a big head, sounds like I might be giving birth to a hobbit! Ha, ha! Everything else is good though. Here's a pict of my (almost) 36 week belly.

And a REALLY funny video of my very animated preggo belly button! You can tell we were all very amused and thanks to Delinda for drawing the eyes and nose...that made it even funnier! (I know, it's somewhat disturbing... but you'll laugh I promise!)

Also, pray that I don't get sick. Both Ryan and Delinda are sick and I REALLY don't want it... that last nastiness I had put me out of commission and I can't afford that again!

(oh and is anyone else having issues with spell check on this thing lately?)

5 weeks and counting...

Went to the doc today for my check up. I'm 35 weeks tomorrow; we got behind on weeks again. But I'm starting to go every week now anyway so it doesn’t really matter. It was a GREAT visit.

1. My blood sugar levels look so good that he's allowing me to check my blood sugar ONE time a day as opposed to four times a day! YAY! I'm SO happy about that one. I still have to watch what I eat and stuff, but it looks like I've got the hang of it and that's a good thing.
   
2. I only gained like 2-3 lbs (that's happy for me).
   
3. My blood pressure although still on the high side was A LOT lower than it normally is for the second time in a row. He wasn't as excited about it as I was, but that's okay.
   
4. Instead of having to wait another two weeks to see my little guy in an ultrasound, he wants me to come in next week. I think it's because I measured 40 inches, which I guess is bigger than I should be for 35 weeks? He didn't specify.
   
5. His little heartbeat sounded great, it's starting to get slower each time I hear it. I guess because he's getting bigger and bigger!

So it was a good one, I left feeling good about things. And I left feeling better about that visit then I really ever have. He actually talked to me and answered my questions and wasn't in a hurry to bust out of the room.

Last night Ryan and I went to a potential pediatricians office to take Ben to where they had a class on what to expect the first year and to take a tour and meet a couple of their doctors. It was pretty cool! I was having some Braxton Hicks again and was having a hard time paying attention- but overall we liked it. I don't know if I'm ready to commit to them yet. We got free stuff though and that's always nice. :) One of the ladies that was there is a week ahead of me and her baby was already over 7 lbs! Yikes!
Delinda is here! She's been here a week now and it's been fun. It's so good to have family close by. I do wish I was closer to mine often, especially right now because everyone seems to be going through something. My poor little 3 year old niece has been in the hospital with Rotavirus and her poor daddy has been sick for a couple months and had to have his gallbladder out yesterday! My parents have a lot going on also and could always use some help.

Anyway, that's the update for now. Happy it's the weekend finally, and happy I get to have my hair done tomorrow and maybe a finished dresser? Hint, hint, nudge, nudge Ryan...

I don't get it...

I wanted to register to vote yesterday, although I realized later that since I have a GA driver's license I'm already registered- I found this document online. And it cracked me up. You see above that it's a two page document that obviously you'd want to print out as a two-sided page. There's the mailing label on it already... says postage paid... GREAT! But then in small print towards the top left it says...
Hmmmmmmm...what to do?! Obviously this was NOT really meant to be scanned and printed out for people to use. It looks like there is a place where there was an adhesive already in place or something. It just confused me for a minute and made me laugh!!! Like I'm going to send a document that requires my DOB and SSN and not seal it or fold it... too bad it has a paid postage label on it...

belly shots...

Okay, so I haven't been exactly "thrilled" with the way my stomach has looked during my pregnancy... but I thought I'd post a pic for you to see. It's REALLY starting to stick out, especially with in the past couple of weeks- I'll put the pictures side by side so you can see how much he's grown! It also feels like it just kind of happened over night too! People are really starting to figure it out now, and well- the way I walk or should I say WADDLE lately is another give away!

I kind of look mad in the second picture but I just wasn't ready.

We got our crib and changing table thanks to my brother! They were in 3 HUGE boxes all in jumbled up and mixed around. And Ryan the smart man he is put both the crib and changing table together with no directions and a million parts to put together. He figured it out... had to take it apart sometimes, but for not having ANYTHING to go by- he did it and with in an hour mind you! And it's so beautiful!

Now we just need to finish painting the dresser and we'll have a completed room!

Last night we went to a friends for dinner and on the way home I started having cramping and my tummy was tightening and my back was also cramping- not fun. It was for 20 or more minutes and so I had to call the doc to see if it was something to worry about. Yeah, this is another reason why I'm not a fan of that group of doctors... it took him an HOUR to call back! Luckily, it stopped by the time we got home and I got into bed. He just advised to take Tylenol and Benadryl (or Tylenol PM) and rest. He said if it wasn't better in the morning to keep resting. But that I needed to watch it again and if happened 8 times in one hour then I needed to call back or go in. So far, I'm okay... gonna try and make it into work today. I'm just having that guilt battle with in me- I feel bad for missing work (again) but then again I know I need to take care of my body and baby. I AM 34 weeks and getting along here in the latter part of my pregnancy and I expect things like this are going to keep happening. It's just a tough decision to make sometimes.

You know you can't fool me, I've been loving you too long...

Good ol' Air Supply. Hmm, what to write about. I know, ME? At a loss for words? Impossible right? Well, I'm sure I can find something to B.S. about... I know Ryan wants to post about the traffic on our beloved 400 freeway and how RETARDED people are on it. He's even got video, so look forward to that.
I guess I just needed to post something a little cheery since my last one of Pres. Hinckley. Not that I'm disregarding it or that I feel any different than I did when I wrote it. I just need to lighten things up a little more.
I forgot to mention that I went to the doc last week and everything went well and looked good. After following my diet pretty well my blood sugar levels all looked fine and she didn't feel like we needed meds or anything else. She said if they continue to stay level that I could start just checking it twice a day instead of 4 times a day! That would be nice. I also DON'T have a docs appt this week for the first time in forever. I've been having them like every week lately, but starting in two or three weeks I will again! We're getting closer! Eek!
The boy is getting more and more active, well I can just feel him outside my tummy more now. I can now feel his little feet when he's pushing up at the top of my uterus (that sounded weird and maybe TMI, sorry). It's fun to push on his little foot and him react to it. He'll move it away or sometimes push back several times in a row! I definitely feel a very strong bond lately with him. I mean, not that I haven't before- but now that he reacts its a different kind. Ryan loves to feel him now too because his movements are BIG and you can REALLY feel what he's doing in there. He also has the hiccups daily... which, I have to admit is cute for a second- but becomes a little annoying because it feels like this constant twitch until he's done. The cute part about it though is that you can feel him having them if you put your hand on my tummy. My boss got to feel him hiccuping yesterday, I think that was the first time he's ever felt a baby in someone's tummy before too. He thought it was pretty cool. We've got my parents plane tickets as well for the arrival of their little grandson! I'm so happy they get to be here for it all!
Delinda will be here tomorrow night! Wu-hoo! I'm pretty excited. OH and the crib and changing table from my brother will be will be delivered too! I decided to take a personal day tomorrow and rest. My little pregnant body really needs it.
Today- a coworker asked me and another coworker across from me if we wanted coffee. I was like "uh...did you realize you're asking a pregnant Mormon lady if she wants coffee??". It was amusing.

My Heart is Sad

My sister and mom just called to tell me that President Hinckley, President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints has passed away tonight. I, like many others, loved him a lot. I didn't know him personally, but felt like I did just like I'm sure a lot of others did. And I expected that this would happen soon because of his age and his failing health, not to mention how much he missed his dear sweet Marjorie who he has been reunited with. I don't know what else to say... other than I'm glad in my life time that he was the prophet I was so privileged to shake hands with, and that for half of my life he's been a significant source of inspiration and motivation and guidance to me. He will be DEARLY missed. And even among so much change in the Church and the world, I still have a testimony and know that all will be well.