Bringing Home Braelyn!

As the sun streams into my office and my house is calm, quiet, peaceful, serene...I'm at awe that there's a sleeping baby, my sleeping baby, snuggled up warmly next to me in her Snuggamonkey!

Total silence except little taps on the keyboard and the sweetest little coos coming from little Braelyn.

Mom is playing games on her iPad, Neal is resting in bed (don't worry, I was just there too, but could sleep no more), and the dogs are in their usual positions, sleeping soundly on the futon in my office. It's simply a perfect scenario at this moment.

Bringing home Braelyn was filled with a lot of excitement, some hesitation, and of course some fear. What will I do now if something 'strange' happens, like her poop is weird, she spits up, the latches don't get better and my tits don't make milk right, or oh goodness she just cries differently?  Am I REALLY the one responsible for her?  Where's my nurses?  Where's my doctor?  Holy S**T what did we do!?!

Thankfully, the first day has been a lot better than expected.

Proud parents getting ready to take baby girl home!

As we got her all dressed and ready at the hospital yesterday on September 3rd, Braelyn beautifully handled her heel prick test (tests for like 40+ different dissorders), the nurse made sure she was in her car seat right, and we were discharged.  Just like that...released into this world as new parents.  Filled with the knowledge from our classes, lactation consultants, and nurses discharge teachings, we were off.  Up until we had Braelyn, I maybe had only changed 3 diapers in my 26 years of life.  This is an WHOLE new experience for me.

As Neal drove his work truck, my mom took myself and our little girl home in our truck.  Braelyn was great in the car ride home as I sat next to her in the back seat taking pictures and stealing kisses as we went home.

Car ride home!

Upon arrival at home, Walden and Sasha, our four legged babies, greeted her so sweetly with wet puppy noses and an attempt at far too many kisses which we had to politely dodge.

This was Braelyn as she first met the dogs...pictures of her and the puppies to come, they are just all on my mom's camera!

Then she just snoozed on Neal's chest forever and ever.  This will likely be my most favorite scene to witness for many months to come.

My mom mowed the yard as Braelyn, Neal and I rested before taking some family photos.

This is me 3 days post partum.  As you can see in the second picture, I still have my belly, it's now just all soft and giggly.  I don't hate it, it's kinda cozy for Braelyn actually!  I am going to wear a BellyBandit to help shrink the stomach and uterus back down, but so far my doctor was very impressed with how much my uterus has already shrunk.  I'll be posting weekly about my post partum recovery as well as about the weekly growth of Braelyn, this is just a little glimpse as this post is more about bringing her home than about mine and her changes. :)

When the evening arrived, we had some delicious veggie filled lasagna my mother made [it's a true masterpiece, so good and yet somehow filled with tons of veggies to help me well umm go bathroom too ;) ]  Yep, everything is all different as my intestines make their way back to their original 'homes' before Brae took over.  So far, so good.  Going to the bathroom doesn't hurt like I thought it would, but I'm not 100% comfortable yet either.  And yes, maxi pads, ice packs, and witch hazel (Tucks) are a women's bestie after giving birth!

As we ate our home cooked delight, we watched a movie, White House Down, where I got to oogle at Channig Tatum and those man muscles as Braelyn slept cozy in her Snuggamonkey.  It was getting late and I was exhausted, very much ready for bed, but Braelyn was still sound asleep, so we decided to wake her up for a feeding since it had been a while from her last.  She only ate for 20 minutes and was thankfully ready for bed.  This was much easier for me than the 2 hour feeding we had earlier on day 2.

Little Girl as we watched our movie!  So stinking cute!

Through her first night at home, we fed for those 20 minutes around 9:45 pm, an hour around midnight, 20 more minutes around 2:30am, 25 minutes at 6am, and 30 minutes around 9am.  It wasn't so bad at all for the first two feedings, but at the 2:30 one, she spit up SO much of my golden milk, I thought I might cry.  She did it again just after our 9am feeding too.  I'm SO thankful my mom was here, because when I showed her the spit-up, mom said, "Oh that's nothing, you used to cover the entire rag."  My mom helped lift my fears that Braelyn was going to not have enough of my golden milk and told me our little girl looked just fine, no more jaundice than what we should expect.

I still can't believe we had stretches of 2-3 hours of sleep last night!  It was amazing!  I have her sleeping in the bassinet on the pack-in-play beside the bed in our master.  I swaddle her up, put a towel on one side to slightly position her on her side since that's what we've found she likes best, and then I put one more blanket on top to snug her in so she can't wiggle out.  I'm hoping this will work for a bit longer, but am sure she'll soon want to be put to bed another way.

It's going on 2PM and she's been sleeping most of the morning with a few shorter feedings and then she just falls back asleep.  It's about time for me to go check her diaper, which will wake her back up, feed her, and hopefully she'll stay awake a little bit so I can play with my cutie some.

I want to thank all of our friends and family for their thoughts, prayers, and kind words during this transition Neal and I are making into parenthood.  We truly appreciate all of the support we've been given and I hope to keep you up to date on Braelyn as she grows with our family!

39 Weeks Pregnant, Almost There!

Tomorrow is Braelyn's due date & the start of week 40!  We'll see if she arrives, but I'm not going to put all my eggs in that basket since Neal and I are never on time for anything...oops!

I do hope Braelyn wants to come by the end of this week so I can no longer be pregnant...I am getting pretty sore and tired. 

How far along: 39

Gender: She’s a girl

Weight gained: 29.6 lbs

Inches gained: 11.5 around largest part of belly

Working Out: Lots of walking!

Clothing Choices:  Anything that’s comfortable, be it my husband’s gym shorts and t-shirts or a long dress

Belly button: No denying it’s an outty.

Sleep: I’m always tired.

Best moment this week: Knowing that by Friday, whether she’s here or not, I’m done with work for a while.  I would like her to be here because I’m only taking 4-6 weeks off and don’t really want to ‘waste’ a week just being pregnant.

Hardest moment this week:  Stressing she won’t come until after my mom is out of town.  Mom gets here on Saturday (she’s due tomorrow so that’s 3 days after her due date) and then mom leaves the following Saturday, which would be 10 days post her due date.

What I’m missing: Sleep

Movement: She still moves a good bit.

Cravings:  Fruit and milk, mostly fruit!

Queasy or sick: Nope.

Looking forward to: Being able to see what our little girl looks like!  Will she have hair on her head, what characteristics from each of us will she have, will she be big or little, tall or shorter?

Strange Dreams: I had a real scary one about giving birth in our bed and Neal not believing that I was in labor so he wouldn’t come help, and she came out feet first and was about the size of my hands put together…really small…and wouldn’t cry much.  I mean I have felt her feet, I know she’s larger than that, but it was still scary!

Week 39 Workouts

• Wednesday - 1.5 mile dog walk
• Thursday - 2 mile dog walk
• Saturday - 2 mile walk on the treadmill at the gym + and arm band workout
• Sunday - 1 mile family walk
• Monday - just under a mile dog walk

38 Weeks Pregnant! Come Out Come Out Wherever You Are!

OH baby girl, I am SOOO ready to meet you!  Your 'due date' is officially 8 days away!  Tomorrow starts week 39, which is a week a LOT of babies apparently are born!  I know most babies don't come on their actual date, but I am just praying, praying, praying you come just a little before that date, on that date or very shortly thereafter!  I know our 'due date' is right on too since we do Natural Family Planning and I know the date of conception ;) soooo you can't fool me little girl...I know it's about time!

By the time I go to bed at night, I seriously feel my stomach weights 50 lbs.  I feel like it's just going to fall off the rest of my body when I roll over in bed.  All day long, I think about how much I want to go to sleep.  It's very difficult to focus on tasks sometimes when all I can think about is Sleep OR Food!

I know the longer she brews in there, the better, but man oh man do I want to hold her in my arms rather than in my belly!

How far along: 38

Gender: She’s a girl

Weight gained: 28.7 lbs

Inches gained: About 11

Working Out:  I did alright this past week.  I am not disappointed :)

Clothing Choices:  I splurged last minute on 3 more dresses, including the one I'm wearing in this photo.  They are all maxi dresses and were $15 - $20 at Marshalls.  None of them are maternity dresses, they are all just nice soft, stretchy, jersey fabric.  I'm excited to wear them post pregnancy as well!  I may return one I haven't worn yet, but so far...this decision was a happy one on my part!

Belly button: Outty!

Sleep: What is sleep?

Best moment this week:  Neal coming home today and asking "When's our baby going to get here?!"  It seems he's just as anxious as I am!

Hardest moment this week:  Working + Lively Happenings + finding time for myself, the dogs, Neal, cooking...I'm seriously just so tired, I'm not able to do it all.  I'm actually going ahead and putting Lively Happenings on vacation mode tomorrow morning through mid September.  I wish I could do LH, but I kinda have to choose my 'real' job over LH at the moment since it's the one that brings in the bacon.

What I’m missing: My body being able to move like it used to without being so sore!

Movement: She has a very solid foot or elbow or hand pressed against my right side a lot of the day...but it's kinda fun to massage it and feel her move :)

Cravings:  Milk!

Queasy or sick: Not feeling too bad, just sleepy!

Looking forward to: Braelyn’s arrival!!! Can you please come tomorrow!?

Strange Dreams: I had a wild one about a sea lion.  I STOLE him!  I wasn't supposed to have him, but I wanted him, so I took a baby sea lion!

Workouts Week 38

• Wednesday - Easy doggy walk
• Friday - Easy doggy walk
• Sunday - Gym time with the hubby! I walked 2 miles on the treadmill and did leg day
• Monday - Knocked Up Fitness Yoga Fit Workout (find it here!)

Braelyn's Mountain / Woodland Themed Nursery

There are locations all of us visit that hold special places in our hearts.  For some, it may be grandma's house, the little ocean town your family went to nearly every summer, perhaps it's a park you played at as a child or even with your own children.  For me, the mountains hold a special place in my heart.  My particular mountains are those found out in Wyoming, the Grand Tetons. 

When I think of these beautiful mountains, with their rough and pointy peaks which seem to pop out of the land with power and authority, I am humbled.  God was at work in these mountains.  He was at work in my heart when I lived near these mountains.  They are forever special.

When I thought about how I wanted to decorate our little one's room, I knew I wanted to bring some of what inspires me the most to our little bundle.  I hope she grows up with a curious spirit that allows her to explore the great outdoors.

For my inspiration on Braelyn's Mountain / Woodland Themed Nursery, check out this post.

And now for what I've been dying to share with you, Braelyn's nursery / our guest room!!!

Every single piece of art that's hanging on the wall is either in a stud, or anchor, some even both!  Neal took extra care in making sure things were sturdy.  

Want Digs Like Braelyn?  Here's Where to Go!

• The dresser and crib are from Ikea.  I changed the dresser by putting white wall vinyl on the drawers and getting knobs from Hobby Lobby that I spray painted gold!
• The pillows on the bed are from Hobby Lobby, except the front long pillow, I made that, see how in this post.
• The curtains, chevron blanket on the bed, both rugs (faux sheep skin and striped), are from Home Goods/TJ Maxx.
• Above her dresser, the wolf head is from Home Goods.  The two frames are from Hobby Lobby.  The art in them is from Etsy, you can still find the gold fox print (and other great prints) from Mint Peony Designs and the moose head is also from Etsy, White Faux Taxidermy.
• To the left of the dresser are black and gold antlers found at Hobby Lobby.  They are holding my Planet Wise Wet/Dry bag (for cloth diapering).  I also got a similar bag in "Oh My Deer", both from Amazon.
• On top of her dresser is the Summer Infant Contour Changing Pad from Target (yes, still waiting on the cover to arrive!), the Squirrel is a stuffed animal from a local children's store in downtown Newburgh, IN that Neal and I picked up after our first ultrasound, and the little fox moccisans are from Starry Knight Designs on Etsy, which we picked up during our vacation in Montana at a baby store in downtown Whitefish!
• The glider is the Babyletto Madison Glider in Ecru, you can find it on Amazon.  To me, it's the perfect size for our small space.  There wasn't a lot of room since we had a queen size bed to work around!
• The pillow sitting on the chair, "Oh Baby It's a Wild World", is from Cut4You on Etsy.
• The book, "Do Princesses Wear Hiking Boots" (a gift from my in-laws to Braelyn when we went to Montana this summer) sits on a custom made table, I took a $9 table from Michaels, spray painted it gold, and screwed a slab of wood across the top.
• To the right of the chair, peeking out behind the curtain is a cute little bear Neal and I picked up at a craft show in Whitefish, MT on vacation this summer.
• Above the chair is a bear head, another White Faux Taxidermy design that I mounted on a round wooden piece I purchased at Michael's and painted gold and black.  To the left of that is a very special note from my father and his girlfriend Kim along with a token she kept with her while serving in Iraq.
• Beside the guest bed is a custom art work I made "The Mountains Are Calling and I Must Go", which is my favorite saying.  I used an old cabinet door we salvaged from Neal's parent's house when they were remodeling.  Underneath the art work is a banner I made from tying ribbons together that I purchase for less than $8 at Hobby Lobby.
• Braelyn's crib skirt and crib sheets were made by me.  You can get the fabric for the foxes here and for the arrows, here.  If you don't want to make them, the arrows are normally available on a few different people's Etsy websites in crib skirt, fitted sheet, changing pad covers etc.
• Above Braelyn's crib is a photo of Neal and myself printed on wood.  Our photographer was Scott Wilson out of Kalispell, MT.  The print was done by PhotoBarn.
• The mobile was custom made by myself and my wonderful friend, Hope.  She is an artist and helped me by designing/cutting all of the animals out.  I sewed and stuffed them.  Her and my brother got the tree branch.  My dad's girlfriend, Kim and I strung all of the animals and the chain.  My father and husband found the stud in the ceiling (Neal even put all his weight on it) and hung it very securely in the same fashion he had hung a 100lb kickboxing bag in our garage.  This was a family affair piece!

What is your favorite part of her room?  I'm sure I'll move things and change it up, and it'll never be this clean again, but for the time being, It'll remain my favorite room in the house.  I can't wait to have Braelyn here so she can check it out herself!

37 Weeks Pregnant - Full Term Momma!

Hello FULL TERM!!! The Dr. I go to says 37 weeks is full term! Yay!  Tomorrow I'll be 38 weeks, which is where even more Dr's consider full term.  I'm ready when you are, Braelyn, just try not to arrive August 14th so your mommy & daddy can still celebrate their anniversary!

On Thursday, we'll have been married 4 years! That's pretty exciting to me!  I am really glad Neal and I were able to spend a few years just the two of us.  Though, it's going to be so awesome to have a little girl to bring on even more memories.

It really is amazing to me how much more love I already think I feel for Neal as we've gone through this pregnancy.  I can only imagine this will multiply exponentially as we go through parenting together.  Sure, not all of pregnancy has been easy on us, I'm positive parenting will be even harder, but these experiences have really brought a deeper bond.  It could be the dependency I have on Neal, the way he cares about Braelyn already, his thoughtfulness on my feelings, or simply just growing older.  No matter what, this love I have for this man is for sure only going to grow the first time I see him hold our daughter.

How far along: 37

Gender: She’s a girl

Weight gained: 27.4 lbs

Inches gained: About 11

Working Out:  Not great, not terrible. It’s harder to find the energy now. I want to work out before work, but I normally haven’t slept well enough to be able to last all day if I do both.

Clothing Choices:  I hate nearly all my clothes at this moment. I’m wearing pregnancy jeans and stretchy or flowy tops when I go out of the house because I only have about 2 skirts and fit and one pair of shorts that sort of fit.

Belly button: Outty!

Sleep: Yep, sleep sucks. My body’s getting ready for very little of it…survival of the fittest…

Best moment this week:  Neal bringing me home the book “So That’s What They’re For” about breastfeeding.  I can’t believe he checked it out from the library for me! Ha! I’m sure the librarian was amused.  Oh, and it was SUPER exciting to get our glider in and finish up her room! It’s all ready to go and so is her spot in our room.  We put up her pack n play as well as snug-a-monkey rocker next to the bed.  This moved Walden onto Neal’s side of the bed, which may be why Neal isn’t sleeping as well as Walden is a SUPER annoying sleeper. That dog snores and has puppy dreams all night. (and all day…he lays next to me in the office…he just loves me!)

Hardest moment this week:  Just feeling bad about being tired.  I don’t like waking Neal up, I try to be quiet and just leave the room, but he wakes up too.  I feel bad about it because he has to drive so much for his job, and then I get scared.

What I’m missing: The same thing I think I’ll be missing for many many months to come…a good night’s sleep.

Movement: She still moves a lot.

Cravings:  Milk, cereal, mozzarella sticks.

Queasy or sick: More indigestion that what I’ve had lately.  She’s just taking up so much space I suppose.

Looking forward to: Braelyn’s arrival! It’s really nice to be able to think she’ll be here in days or weeks at most!

Strange Dreams: I cannot remember my dreams, probably because I don’t sleep long enough to have any!

Workouts Week 37

• Wednesday - Total Body and Flexibility from Knocked Up Fitness
• Thursday - Cardio and Pelvic Floor exercises from Knocked Up Fitness
• Sunday - 1.5 mil dog walk
• Tuesday - Yoga at home & a dog walk because they are just too cute!