6 Months!

My sweet angel baby is 6 months old!

And boy is she a cutie...

She loves getting her picture taken, and is working on her model pose!

She is moving all over the place! Mainly rolling, scooting and attempting to crawl... she is almost there! Just has to get her hands coordinated with her legs!

She loves to explore when mommy's not looking!


She is eating lots of new foods! And has liked everything we have tried so far... her favorite so far is bananas :)
Even with food all over her face, she is just too dang cute for words!





I couldn't ask for a bigger blessing in my life! She is always so happy, and truly makes this momma sooooo proud!

6 months has passed since this little girl has changed my life... so much has happened and the time has gone by soooo fast! Way too fast. I miss my little snuggly newborn, but I am loving watching her grow and discover new things.

It is finally time to stop using her as an excuse to why I am overweight, so the challenge begins now! By her first birthday, I was to lose 30 lbs. I know it's going to be hard, but my health depends on it. I am at least 30 lbs overweight, which as you all know, can make things a little harder in the health department. My asthma is terrible, my joints kill all the time, and I just don't have the energy I used to. So, beginning today, the challenge begins.... This is soooo embarassing, but in order to make myself do it, I need to be accountable. So I'm making my weightloss public. Beginning today at 161.0. Let's see how low I can go!

Hope you all have a wonderful day!

xoxox

Brit

An Extraordinary Life...

Some people think that life as a mom is boring... you can't go out and leave whenever you want to, you don't sleep, your life revolves around feeding times and diaper changes, BUT what they don't know, is all the fun you have with the little life that you created. I mean, just LOOK at that little smile! Kaelyn is such a happy baby and is growing so fast. Kinda makes me want to have another one (obviously not right now), just because it is so fun to see their personalities develop and get to know them.


I often do a lot of little photo shoots with Kaelyn just to makes sure I have enough pictures of her when she gets older and wants to see what a little doll she was! The pic above is just one of the many that I have taken. Doesn't she just have the most gorgeous blue eyes? She got those from her daddy :)

3 MONTHS OLD!!! Man, how time flies!

Oh, she is just so beautiful!!

How can you not smile and love babies when they are as cute as this one?!?!

Kaelyn is getting so strong and is trying to sit and stand as much as possible! She rolled over for the first time a couple weeks ago! She seems so young for that, but I guess it's normal! We are definitely going to have to start baby proofing soon!

Kevin and I are doing well! Kevin decided to not do classes this semester, since he is already getting little sleep in between work and when I have to leave for work at 2:30. We are so grateful that we have the opportunity for one of us to always be with Kaelyn. I really didn't want her to be raised by anyone else (not that I don't love my family.... I'm just weird about it). I am loving my new job and am making a lot of awesome friends. I hope that it just keeps getting better and better, since I will be there til I have the chance to be a stay-at-home mom (fingers crossed). We are making extra payments on the car to hopefully get it paid off quicker (lesson learned: don't buy a BRAND-SPANKIN NEW CAR) so that I can stay home. AND since we can't even TALK about having another kid til the car is paid off, I'm extra anxious to get it all paid off! I don't want Kaelyn to be toooooo much older than her brother/sister.

That's pretty much all that's new here... just living the extraordinary life of a mother! There really is nothing better (although I hear being a Grandma is pretty cool too!) Hope you all have a great day!!

xoxoxo

Brit

Time Flies...

So much has changed in the last few months! I started a new job at Biomat, USA here in Orem, and LOVING it! I work with a lot of really cool people and the management is great and understanding with my schedule and my need to pump (most of them are guys and seem to get really uncomfortable when I ask, so now I basically just look at them and then go).

We moved into a new place just a couple miles away from our old apartment, and are liking it so much more! We really miss our old ward and friends, but continue to try and stay in touch as much as possible. Kinda nervous about going to our new ward... it tends to be a little more difficult to find a great ward out in Utah, but you gotta be optimistic! I think it will be more of a "family" ward vs. a newlywed/ one-or-two children type ward, which is fine... at least I hope!

Kevin and I celebrated our ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY just last weekend! I can't believe it has already been a year, and all the things we have accomplished together... the biggest one, making such a beautiful daughter, who we were able to bless on our anniversary! She is soooooo much fun and I couldn't ask for a better baby! Her little smile just melts my heart. She is getting big WAY too fast... loves to sit up, stand/bounce and she is trying to roll over! (Momma's not ready for that!) But we are loving watching her grow into such a beautiful girl. I just still can't believe she is two and a half months old! Time really does fly when you're having fun!!

Kaelyn wore the same dress I wore when I was blessed 23 years ago!

That smile is irresistable!

Happy Anniversary babe!

She's the light of my life <3

The Day My Life Changed Forever...

I know I say this every time I actually update this thing, but it really has been forever! Three weeks ago today, we had our beautiful baby girl :) People have been asking me for the birth story, sooooo here it goes (timeline may be a little off...):

May 27th, 10:00 am: To my disappointment, we were heading to the doctor's office for our final check before Kaelyn was to be born. I had hoped that she was going to be early, but, she is my daughter... and STUBBORN. I had a feeling that I hadn't made any progress from the previous weeks (1cm dilated and 70% effaced), and I was right. Dr. Savage then offered to strip my membranes (separate the amniotic sac from the uterine wall) to try to get labor going, and of course I was all for it!

12:00 pm: Labor begins. It wasn't too bad at this point, but I knew that these weren't just Braxton Hicks.

Around 8pm: Contractions were 2-3 mins apart and strong. It was hard to breathe through some of them. Kevin decided it was time to go to the hospital. I was terrified that they were going to tell me it was false labor and send me home, so I didn't want to go, but we did anyways. We got to Utah Valley Regional Medical Center, and they got us all registered and took us to our room. Monitors were applied to see how far apart the contractions were, which were actually 2-3 mins apart. The nursing staff told us they would monitor me for about an hour to see if I was in active labor and progressing (still at 1 cm at this point). Contractions were getting stronger, but I still refused pain medication. I was determined to have this baby naturally!

May 28th around midnight (I think): NO PROGRESS AT ALL. I was still at 1cm... so the doctor decided to send us home. They offered a shot of morphine and phenergan to help me sleep since I was so uncomfortable, and with hesitation, I decided to take it. I barely remember the ride home... reason why I hate pain meds. I'm super sensitive and I feel like I don't have control. I passed out when we got home, but that didn't last long!

ALL MORNING LONG: I kept track of my contractions and they had slowed to 5-6 mins apart. But HOLY HANNAH were they painful! I tried all my relaxation techniques, which helped quite a bit, but I was getting super tired.

1:00pm: Kevin's mom and sister, Sara and Ashley, came over to help with the house and with labor, and by this time, I was in tears. I was so exhausted and it felt like my pelvis was breaking every time a contraction hit. Kevin wanted to go to the hospital again... and I agreed, praying they wouldn't send us home again. We got to the hospital, and all the monitors were placed back on my huge belly. The nurse checked my cervix... still a freaking ONE. I was ticked.

4:00pm: I still hadn't progressed but Dr. Savage decided to admit me. One of her fellow docs came and broke my water to see if that would make things progress any more. I was full on crying at this point. My contractions made me want to jump out of bed... it literally felt like someone was taking a bat to my pelvis. I had been in labor for 28 HOURS with no progress... so I said, "Screw it... GIVE ME THE DRUGS"! Had I been progressing, I would have stuck to my plan for a natural birth, but my hopes were shot and I was too tired to care. The one thing that I absolutely HATED about the epidural, was the uncontrollable "shivers" that I got from it. I wasn't cold, but I was shivering something fierce. Very obnoxious!!!

Sometime in the evening: Dr. Savage wanted to start a pitocin drip to get things going. I really hoped that this would be the thing that got this baby out!

Around 9pm: Things started to move!!! I got to 3cm :) I had developed a fever, so they started me on an antibiotic. Kaelyn's heart rate was starting to decelerate, so they put me on oxygen to get her heart rate back up... which thankfully worked.

May 29th around 2am: 6 cm!!!

3am: 8cm!

4am: 9 and a half!! I was getting ready to have this baby! The nurse got the delivery cart ready and said that I only had a little lip of cervix left to dilate. She said she'd come back in an hour and we'd most likely be able to start pushing. I was BEYOND excited! I had Kevin call my dad so that he could be there for when princess finally came into the world!

5am: A different nurse came in to check my cervix, and I was ready for her to say it was time to get started! Then, the most disappointing thing came out of her mouth... "Looks like you are at about a 5". WHAT?!?!?! HOW THE HECK DID I GO BACKWARDS?!?! I instantly started to bawl. I couldn't do it anymore! I wanted her out!!! Dr. Savage came in to check my cervix, and I was indeed at a 5. She wasn't sure how that happened... It had never happened to her before. She started talking about a c-section... the one thing that I absolutely didn't want. I had seen a couple performed during medic school and it is not a friendly procedure! But, I was so tired and I wanted to hold my baby so badly that I said OK.

Around 6:30am: The nursing staff, anesthesiologist, and my doc wheeled me to the OR. The anesthesiologist dosed me with a higher concentration of meds to get me reallllly numb before the c-section... and the shivers returned. This time was even worse! I absolutely couldn't stand it! The oxygen was still on the whole night, and I was dying of thirst, but I obviously couldn't have anything to drink. They moved me over to the table, put the curtains up, and said that they were getting ready to begin. I was freaking out inside but I didn't want anyone to know it. Then I saw Kevin sitting on a stool next to me... I started to feel better knowing he was there. The doctor poked me to make sure I couldn't feel anything... nope. WHEW. About 5 or so mins later (not sure on the time span... I was kinda out of it), my doc said "ok Brittany, a lot of pressure here".... OH MY GOSH... HERE IT COMES. I knew that they were going to just rip my muscles apart to expose my uterus. I started to feel nauseated... especially since I could smell my flesh burning as they cauterized it. Not a smell that I ever got used to. My doc then told me that in a couple mins, I would be able to see my baby! Then I hear Dr. Savage say, "Whoa, BIG baby"! And then I heard the most beautiful sound in the world... my daughter's cry. I instantly started crying. I couldn't believe she was finally here! They brought her around the curtain so I could see her for a second, and then took her to get her vitals and stats. Kevin went with her which made me feel better, even though I could hear her all the way down the hall. She had a LOUD cry! The nurse came back around the curtain and said, "Are you ready? 9 lbs 10 oz and 20 inches long"! HOLY COW!! No wonder she wasn't coming out the normal way. Her head was stuck against my pelvis... which is probably why it hurt so freaking bad with every contraction.

I found this out later, but there were two other moms in surgery the same time as me. One was hemorrhaging and the other mom coded on the table. The nurses were running in and out of the OR where my dad was standing.... needless to say he was freaking out thinking that one of them was me. Thank heavens it wasn't.

As they stitched me up, all I could think about was how Kaelyn was doing, and getting a drink of water. I was dying! My arms had started to cramp up from the "shivers" so I asked if there was something he could give me to make them stop. Not sure what he gave me, but I don't remember leaving the OR. Next thing I know, I'm waking up to a nurse giving me water and juice. I was so excited! I looked around and panicked a little... where was Kaelyn?!? They said she was with Kevin in the nursery, and they were getting ready to take me to the Mother-Baby room. Kaelyn would meet me in there.

I will never forget holding my baby girl for the first time... she was perfect in every way. I couldn't be happier. I looked over her whole body, making sure she was all there. I checked her fingers to see if she had my pinky, even though I knew it wasn't something genetic. She really was perfect. The rest of the day was a blur... the med that the anesthesiologist gave me to calm the shivers hadn't worn off completely, and I was exhausted from 42 hours of labor (although I guess they could never really say when I was in "active" labor since I wouldn't progress on my own). My world had completely changed, and I couldn't have been happier.

Life as a new mom is quite the adventure... it is hard, tiring, trying, but AMAZING. I couldn't ask for a bigger miracle or blessing to be in my life. Well, now that I have finished my novel on her birth, I am making it a goal to update this more regularly with pics and milestones that this angel reaches.

Oh, and Happy Father's Day to my wonderful husband... I couldn't have done all this without him! Love you babe :)

xoxox

Britt

GUESS WHAT....

Well, once again, I suck at updating this thing haha BUT... on December 21st, we found out... drumroll please... IT'S A GIRL!!! We are more than excited to bring this sweet little angel into the world and love her more and more each day :)

Below is the progress of the belly so far!

16 weeks!

17 weeks!

18 weeks!

19 weeks!

20 weeks!

21 weeks!

AND the latest... 22 weeks!!

Will hopefully updated a lot sooner so there aren't as many pics, but it's fun to see the big differences between weeks! Only 18 more weeks to go!

xoxox Brit

16 WEEKS!

Well, we've made it this far! It seems like time is going by SOOOO fast. I swear I just found out we were pregnant like 2 weeks ago, but it's been 11 weeks! I'm finally not sick anymore and I'm starting to get my energy back which is awesome! My house might actually get cleaned sometime soon :) I'm finally getting a little bump, not much, but it's something! Hopefully a few more weeks and it will be popping out a lot more so I don't feel like I've just gained a ton of weight.

Kevin has been dealing with my sudden emotional sensitivity really well so far! I seem to cry really easily and can't really deal with people being mad at me (which I used to just blow it off). If I feel like he's mad at me, even if he hasn't done anything to show me he is, I get really upset and cry. Ridiculous, right? Thank heavens he has been so understanding and doesn't get frustrated with me!

We find out in 9 DAYS what we are having! I swear I'm going to die from the anticipation! I've had a lot of dreams of a girl and dad did too. I've been taking a poll, and most people are saying "girl", but we will find out! It's so exciting yet nerve racking at the same time... I just want it to be healthy! I'm really making it a goal to take pics every week from now on, just to have to remember always! Sooooooo.... there's the 16 week pic!

xoxox

Britt

GUESS WHAT!!!!!

Ok, so most people know this already, but I thought that I should probably write things down and keep a journal of my experiences just to make sure I remember everything! So, here's the story :)

On September 28th, I went to work feeling like CRAP. I had a bowl of cereal with milk that was a couple of days expired and I thought that I had gotten food poisoning. I went home and went straight to bed, thinking it would be gone the next day. Two days had passed, and I realized I had missed my period AGAIN. The month before, Aunt Flow also didn't come, but blood tests showed that there was no baby. Well, needless to say, with the throwing up and missed period, I had the thought to go grab a couple tests at the dollar store. Those two were POSITIVE. So, being completely surprised, I thought that there might be something wrong with those tests........ so I went to the grocery store and got the more expensive ones. ALL POSITIVE!!! I couldn't stop smiling :)

I went to pick Kevin up from work, which at this time he already knew (he wouldn't let me keep it a surprise til I picked him up) and he was so happy! We immediately decided that we were going to tell our families, but only immediate family for now. I was so paranoid that I was going to miscarry that I didn't want to share the news until I knew for sure that the baby was ok. So we scheduled a time and Skyped with Kevin's family in Denver which was pretty fun! Then we made the treck to North Salt Lake to tell my dad. Now, here's the interesting part! The morning of that day (sept. 30th) my dad texted me telling me he had a dream about me the night before. I was about 4 or 5 years old and swimming in a pool. I was swimming toward some junk in the water and was about to get some in my mouth when he pulled me out. He said he just remembered feeling an overwhelming love for me (or who he thought was me). He told me this dream before I found out I was pregnant! So, when we told him the news, his face was priceless! He was excited, but you could tell he was thinking about something. The little girl in his dream looked slightly different than I did when I was little, but he figured it was just his dream. Maybe it was his little granddaughter telling him she was coming??!?! We'll find out!

That following Monday, I had already had an appointment with my doctor to get my thyroid checked. They did some blood work and everything came back normal. The nausea and hair loss that I was experiencing was most likely due to the pregnancy. Since I was too early in the pregnancy to start any prenatal appointments, we scheduled an official appointment to start the process. On Oct. 28th, Kevin and I sat in the exam room, quiet and nervous. We both knew they were going to try to hear the heartbeat, and all I could think about was "what if it's not beating"? I was completely and totally terrified. Dr. Savage came in and immediately said "well. looks like you're pregnant! Congrats!" I smiled nervously and said thanks, trying to hide my fear of what was coming next. She said that the date of my last period would put put me at about 13 weeks and 5 days. And so I told her the whole experience with the missed period and negative blood test. She decided to have an ultrasound that following Tuesday to do a size and date ultrasound. Then, came the moment I was so excited for, yet dreading. She got the doppler out, put the INCREDIBLY cold jelly on my stomach and started looking for the heart beat. I heard a loud heart beat, nope. That one's mine. Then, I heard the most beautiful sound in the world....my baby's heart beat :) I was relieved and immediately started crying. It really was in there! It wasn't just a parasite that was making me sick! (I had already lost 3 lbs by this point). We were then taken into another room to get some blood work done, and then we left to schedule the ultrasound. I couldn't wait!

November 2nd was a very exciting day! We were lucky and got to have an early ultrasound and didn't have to wait til I was 20 weeks to see our baby :) As if the heartbeat wasn't convincing enough, seeing that little bean moved its' arms and legs was the COOLEST thing in the whole world! The tech measured the little embryo and sized me at 10 weeks and 3 days, giving me a due date of May 28th! Ahhhhhhh, so awesome :) We left the office with pics of our little one, and I couldn't stop looking at them. We made our next appt for the 22nd of November, which was this last Monday. Everything looked great! We made it through the first trimester and the heartbeat was still strong.... GOOD JOB BABY! Next appointment will be on Dec. 21st to find out if we're having a boy or a girl! And best part is, Ashley (my twin) will be here for it! 25 days to go....and I think I might go crazy with the anticipation haha!

Well, that's the news! And the looooooong story that comes with it :) here are some pics! Have a great day everyone!

xoxoxox,

Britt