Going Private!

So, I am going to do it! The best way to get me your email address is to message me on facebook! I also made my comments private if you want to leave it in here. Thanks everyone!

Jaycee is 9 months old!!

My little girl is growing up so fast! I can't believe it! Her personality is really shining through and what a happy, easy going but busy girl we have! I wish she was a bit more of a cuddler, but oh well!

Her biggest acheivement this last month is she is standing on her own! She has stood for up to 2 min! What a big girl!

She also loves to "help" mom with all the chores! Notice the quotation marks! I am so glad that she wants to be with me and try to do what I am doing but it can be challenging to get anything done!

So, I haven't had a chance to put up older pics, but I will finally give ya some this month! Enjoy the pics of our little cutie!!

Feeling Not Quite Up To Par!

So I have been sick for the last week and my house shows it! The dishes havn't been done, laundry has gotten as far as sorting, and we went on a trip last week to Junction for a funeral and the stuff still isn't put away! I am stressed about money(but who isn't), and today it all just came to a head! Part of it is that I didn't get much sleep last night cause Tom and Jaycee were both sick, and then I didn't think it was a good idea to take Jaycee to church today because she wasn't feeling well and it was cold and the wind was terrible and it was raining, and I am having a hard time sleeping tonight, and I am stressed that my house looks like it does and I was just feeling sorry for myself...still am if you want to know the truth, but I am doing better! My cousin helped me feel like I am a good person and I do try to look out for others. This is stuff I needed to hear tonight. Not to toot my own horn, but so that I felt a little human again, instead of a lump. I have set a goal to read the Book of Mormon in 90 days! There is a great website called readthescriptures.com that is helping me with my goal. Today I was doing extra reading cause I couldn't go to church and I was a little bit behind! I sure love the scripture and I love how at different times in your life they can say different things to you! I am so grateful for what they said to me today! It gave me strength and courage to go on, realizing that if I keep trying, the Lord will reward me in the end, which reward is greater than any monitary thing I could have right now! I still was having a hard time pulling myself out of my slump though and I was reading people's blogs, which isn't always condusive to feeling better about yourself because it always seems that everyone is doing so well and that they have nothing but a blissful life! I was reading what my friend Jayna wrote,(who I have not seen for FAR TOO LONG!) and it helped me to remember that everyone is human! Then I just couldn't let my dishes go any longer and at 1am I started doing them! It was nice and almost therapeutic to do them alone! Not saying I love doing dishes but I needed some me time! There is a sign over my sink that is a picture of Christ and says, "I never said it would be easy, I only said it would be worth it!" I gained a whole new appreciation for this tonight! Somebody in my Relief Society class said once that that saying was false because the Gospel makes things easy, and I have always felt kinda bad cause I thought I was not a good member of the church because things were still hard even though I was living the gospel! This added to my depressed state because I really do want to take upon myself the name of Christ and be a good member of the church and daughter of God! Tonight I realized though, that maybe that is how it is for that person, that is not how my life was laid out! The Gospel of Jesus Christ can make things more bearable, there is no doubt about that! I am hear to tell you though that I have been diligent about reading my scriptures and better about saying my prayers and more faithful about going to church, even if I have to go alone cause poor Tom has to work, and faithful about paying a full tithe and things are still not easy! I don't say any of that to make you think I think I am better than anyone, I am just telling people that I am feeling pretty good about the things I am doing to become closer to my Savior and life is still hard! But I cannot deny that I am happy! I have been born of goodly parents and my relationship with my family is as good as ever! I have come to realize how much my parents sacrificed for me so that I coul have thing and be taught correct principles. Even if it was just fighting us to get up for scripture study, or making sure that we knew what Christmas was really all about! The little things! I have the best inlaws and we get along so well! I am married to the most amazing man I know and on top of that am still madly in love with him after almost 4 years of marriage! In this day and age that is saying something!! I plan on being even more madly in love as the years go by for the rest of my life and throughout eternity! I have the blessing of the sealing power in my home and a worthy priesthood holder at my side as my constant companion and best friend! My heart has been completely stolen by a little 8 1/2 month old who is asleep in her room right now that I just want to go hold and hug and kiss and tell her how much I love her. It's funny cause earlier I was frustrated that she was being a huge Mama's girl, and now I would give anything to just cuddle her!! Why do I have to get so frustrated about those things and why don't I take advantage of them! She is a pretty independent little thing and the cuddle time I have is limited! I have AMAZING friends, some who I talk to every day, and some who I wish I kept in better contact with who are all very dear to my heart! I know this life, even though not easy is so worth it! All the joy I feel is what keeps me going! I may have my down days, but I know that I will have those times that bring me up again! I knew this would make me feel better! This hymn has just come to mind!
Count Your Blessings
"When upon life's billows you are tempest-tossed,
When you are discourage, thinking all is lost,
Count you many blessing; name them one by one.
And it will surprise you what the Lord has done."
This song embodies this post and what I was feeling at the beginning of typing to what I am feeling now!

7 months and on the move!

Jaycee's favorite thing this month is to pull herself up to everything and she started walking along the couch! She is still unsure of herself, but she is a little daredevil, so I expect her to try things as early as possible!! The same day she started walking along the couch she said "Dada" for the first time and then almost a week later actually said "Mama" like she was talking to me not like she was going mamamamamamamamama just to hear the sound of her voice! We had to put a big dinosaur toy in front of the dvd player and stuff in the living room and she is learning the meaning of no! I am so glad she's such a good girl and catches on fast cause disipline is not my favorite aspect of parenting, but I am firm with her and she really does know what no means! Just before her 8 month mark, she started standing on her own! Only for a couple of seconds, but she is not afraid to try new things! She is becoming more independent and can play in the living room for about 2 min while I am in the kitchen before coming to find me! She is my little buddy!

Our Jaycee Boo is 6 Whole Months!!

She is growing so much!

~She loves her See-n-say!
~She loves it when Mommy sings Primary songs, Itsy-Bitsy Spider and finally Patty Cake!
~She had meat for the first time and actually liked it!
~She started waving her arms around all over the place and inspecting her hands! It's so cute to watch her learn what she can do with this newly acquired human body!
~She reached for me the first time and I of course was in tears I was so excited!
~She got her first tooth! FINALLY!
~Because of this, she is not sleeping through the night like she had been!
~She learned to pull herself up to the furniture and she thinks she's so big!!

I can't believe she has been in our lives for a whole six months! It's incredible to me that we ever even lived without her! I am so grateful she is mine for eternity!!

5 months and a lot of firsts!

(Once again, pictures will come later!)

There were lots of first this month so I am just going to make a list!(Once again from the calendar!)

~Her first fourth of July was pretty uneventful! Daddy had to work and she slept right through the fireworks we did get to see!
~Jaycee went on her first camping trip! It was at Timid Springs up Beaver Mountain for the Ipson family reunion.
~Jaycee got to go to her first funeral! Her Grandpa Great Henrie passed away after having a stroke 4 days earlier while we were at the Ipson reunion.
~While we were in Las Vegas, she sat alone and grabbed Mama's face and gave her a kiss, without me asking for one! SOOOOOO CUTE! And at this emotional time it was so healing!
~First time being away from Daddy for more than just a day while he was at work! After my grandpa had his stroke, Tom had to go back to work, but I really felt like I wanted to be with my family when he passed away! I am so glad I was! What a spiritual experience! Jaycee had to stay with Mama and Daddy was not happy about this! Mama and Daddy both cried as Daddy pulled away and for a lot of the rest of the week! Mama missed Daddy terribly and wanted the comfort that only he could give at this very emotional time! Also she felt so bad that Daddy wasn't there to see his "Boo" everyday! Daddy cried cause he missed us and didn't want us to have to go through this alone! The reunion at Buckhorn was very sweet!
~She had eaten her first food last month, but this month she was learning all about more vegetables, and then started learning about fruit! She is very good at eating her veggies still even though she has tried the sweet!
~She went to the ER for the first time! She had a cough for about a week but one night when she was eating her food, she was gasping for air. It scared Tom and I really bad! We got to the ER and she didn't cough once, which frustrated me at first, but then I remembered Tom had given her a Priesthood blessing before we left the house and it made her all better! Boy are we grateful for the Priesthood and a Daddy who is worthy to give us blessings!!
~We went to the Henrie reunion for the first time at the Johnson Oak Ranch! It was a blast! We were so grateful to be together as a family, but we were sure missing our Grandpa!! Jaycee got to go on her first 4 wheeler ride!
~The day before she turned 6 months old she started crawling in the mother's room at church!
~She is still exploring her voice!
~She is scooting everywhere!

3 months and Mother's Day

Well, I am a little bummed, cause I was going to sit down and do a post about every month, which I still intend to do, but I wanted to put pics with each, but the only way to get a pic on this computer is to copy it from Facebook, which it is not letting me do right now, so I will have to come back and post the pics later, but I have waited far too long for this to make me quit! Yes I had to get out her baby calendar to remember all this stuff!

Jaycee is getting bigger everyday! She is growing and changing so much! She is loving to watch the colors on TV and she is grabbing objects! She grabbed her toy keys before she was 2 months old, but is now grabbing all sorts of things! Mommy finally got her first smile on camera! It is adorable! Jaycee is now sleeping in her own room in her big girl crib! We took her to the park for the first time and she took to grass quite a bit better than I did when I was that age! She is holding her bottle on her own now, which freaks mommy out a bit cause she is just getting too big!! The big news for this month is that she rolled over on her own! She is getting so big and strong! I love my little girl so much!

A Mommy milestone this month was that I celebrated my first Mother's Day as a mother! It was awesome! Tom and Jaycee got me a stroller that I have been wanting and Tom got me a bracelet and some earings! We got to spend the night before at Nana Hughes' and go to church with her! It was definitely a day of contemplation! I couldn't believe how incredibly blessed I was! Tom and Jaycee are my whole world and I couldn't be happier!!

Gianna Jessen Abortion Survivor in Australia Part 2

Gianna Jessen Abortion Survivor in Australia Part 1

The Plan of Salvation

Wow, it always is way too long between posts! Well, we have had an interesting couple weeks! On July 8 we were so excited, getting ready to go to the Ipson reunion up Beaver Mountain to a place called Timid Springs. I was excited to go for a few reasons! I LOVE to camp and I was excited to share that love with Jaycee! I love camping food and was excited to make it! I also love Tom's family! My parents have always taught me that when you are sealed to your spouse, you are sealed to their family, so you better like the family! I have to tell you that I have 2 great families now! I felt in a funk though all day that Thursday but I thought it was just the stress of getting everything ready. We got to the camp and got to bed around 3 or 4 on Friday morning. The next morning I woke up and was still feeling weird, and still couldn't figure out why. Around noon our time Jaycee just started to cry and get really fussy. I was sad and a little embarrassed cause she is never like this and I wanted the family to see what a good baby she is! I am even more embarrassed about how prideful that is. Well, we thought maybe she had a tummy ache cause she got some formula she isn't used to the night before. So I tried to rub her belly to get the gas out. She didn't feel gassy, so I didn't know what was wrong! Our little family all decided to take a nap since we didn't get much sleep the night before. All of Tom's cousins went out shooting, something that he LOVES to do! He felt like he needed to stay with us though! I felt bad but it was so nice to lay next to him and just get some rest! Later that evening Tom wanted to show his cousin DJ something on his phone. So he turned it on and noticed that he had a voicemail but he couldn't check it cause there was no service. All of the sudden a text message from my brother came through. It said something like, "Grandpa Henrie has had a stroke and is not doing well. Call us when you get this!" I was walking across the camp toward Tom and he said, "Nat, your grandpa had a stroke!" I didn't need to hear anymore. For some reason I knew it was bad, and the reason for my funk all became clear! I kindof fell on the ground and started bawling! My cousin Bree all the sudden noticed what was going on and she ran over to me and asked what was going on, I blurted out something about my grandpa having a stroke and she tried to comfort me saying something like let's figure out what's going on and people recover from these all the time but something inside me told me that he wasn't going to get better. All I can remember is saying no, no! Tom came and just held me, and I told him, "We need to leave right now! We need to get to Vegas!" DJ let us use his truck to go get service to find out what was going on. I called my poor mom who had been trying to get a hold of me all afternoon! She said that 11:00 that morning (12:00 our time, right when Jaycee started getting fussy!) Grandma called and asked if my dad was there and that there was something wrong with grandpa. My parents got there and my dad knew he had a stroke and called 911. They had done the CT by the time my parents and grandma got to the hospital. The prognosis was not good! It was not a clot stroke that they can fix within 3 hrs, it was a hemorrhagic kind where he was bleeding and all they could do was do surgery to drain his head, but he would never walk or talk again! He would not have wanted that! So they decided to take him home on hospice. They said he had anywhere from 2 hrs to a week and he would pass away! At this point I was in shock! This couldn't be real! Linda let us take her car and Tom and his cousins packed it as fast as possible and we were on our way to Vegas at 10 pm. Good thing Tom could drive cause I was kindof a wreck! Thank goodness he took a nap instead of going shooting! We got there at about 1 am Vegas time. Grandpa wasn't responsive really, but he did squeeze mine and Jaycee's hands! That was a sweet experience! Most of the family got there by Saturday night. The next few days were a blur filled with both laughter and tears, but no sleep! There were many times we thought it was close and we would all gather reverently for the impending Spiritual event. The Spirit was truly strong in my grandparents house! The angels were close! On Tuesday my Aunt's family got there. They were the only ones left in the family that were planning on coming, to get there. My cousin's husband and 3 year old were truly missed. Well, Grandpa waited for Uncle Jeremy and the kids to get there and then passed peacefully with the whole family standing by! Once again, a very Spiritual experience! The funeral and burial were hard but good! All of the people who came showed just what a great man my Grandpa is! I am glad to call him mine! There has been so much support freom people I have never met as well as friends and family! I am so grateful for all your prayers andam grateful for all the little things people have done like Bree coming to the burial! I was sad that Tom had to come back home on Monday and wasn't able to be there for the funeral! I was so glad he could come be my support person and shoulder to cry on for the burial. He is my rock! Every time I think about Grandpa being gone, it still doesn't seem real, although I know it is. I am so grateful for his service throughout his life. When he died he was the first counselor in the Las Vegas Temple Presidency. Those days they spent there were long and hard but he and Grandma wanted to serve! I miss my Grandpa but am comforted in the knowledge that I will see him again! I am so grateful for the Plan that allows me to be with my family forever!

Jaycee is 4 months old!

So, I am so behind on my blogging, and I was going to attempt to do posts on everything that has been going on, but it's too much! So lets just start again, with all the things that my little girl is up to now!!

She had her 4 month shots on the 9th and had her first 103 fever! She was miserable and mommy and daddy felt very helpless! She is doing much better now!
She weighs 12 lb 14 oz and is 25 3/4 inches long! She is tall and skinny!
She rolls from back to front just fine whenever she wants to, mostly to her right, but occasionally to the left! She has done front to back a few times, but not a lot!
She holds her head up like a pro.
She likes to grab and reach for things.
She loves to stand up on your lap!
She is enjoying tummy time much more now since we got a tummy time mat!
She definitely knows mommy and daddy!
She smiles all the time, but it is quite a chore to get her to smile for pictures!
She giggles if you act like you're eating her belly, and then kiss her cheeks. She has just started giggling while we sing Itsy, Bitsy, Spider; Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes; and I'm a little teapot!
She just today put her own binki in her mouth!
She sleeps in her own crib, in her own room!
She sleeps through the night!
She can put herself to sleep most of the time without crying!
She LOVES it when you hold onto both of her hands and say, "Sit up big!" She pulls herself up!
She loves to go to the park!
She is still a little unsure of the swimming pool!
She LOVES her baths every night!!

We are very proud of our little girl! She is the biggest joy! Even though Mommy gets tired, she never gets tired of taking care of her little Jaycee!!

Lots of New Posts!

I have had a minute to sit down and blog (yes, I know I should be studying!) so I wanted to post about all the things that have been going on in our lives! The first post is Move and a Blessing! Hope you enjoy!

Happy Easter!

Tom had to work the day of Easter, so the Easter Bunny made sure everything was ready for his lunch when he was able to come home. We talked to the Easter Bunny and let him know that Jaycee can't have candy, obviously, and we let him know that we weren't quite sure what he should bring her. He told us to leave it up to him, cause he knew just the things! Jaycee got a My First Book of Mormon, which she loves to read every night, and The Children's Songbook CD's, which she loves to listen to. We thought this was perfect because it would teach her more about our Savior, whom Easter was all about! This was also a very special Easter because we were able to listen to General Conference! I loved this Conference because it seemed as though EVERY talk was directed straight at me! It made me really feel of the Lord's love for me individually!

Jaycee is starting to learn to hold on to things! It is exciting as a parent to watch her learn and grow!

Jaycee gives very good kisses, although they are getting a bit slobbery! :-) The doctor told us she is teething, which Mom especially is not looking forward to!! (Ouch!)

Family Portraits

All of Jaycee's Family


The Jeffery and Linda Hughes Family

The Duane and Norma Henrie Family

The Tom and Natalie Hughes Family

Our sweet little Jaycee in her blessing dress



While all of our family was here for the move and Jaycee's blessing, I wanted to go get professional family pictures done. Hope you enjoy!

First Visit To Grandpa Hughes

Jaycee and Grandpa Hughes' Headstone

Jaycee, Auntie Melinda, Me and Tom with Jeff's headstone

Jaycee with Nana and Grandpa Hughes

The whole family!

As many of you know, Tom's dad passed away when he was 14! I have never had the pleasure of meeting this great man, but I look forward to that someday! I do feel like I know him though and that is a great comfort to me! I believe very strongly that Jaycee still remembers her Grandpa and other family members who have passed away! It was neat, especially for Tom, to take Jaycee out to the cemetary where her Grandpa is buried. We were able to do this the same Sunday that Jaycee was blessed because it happened to be Jeff's birthday! That day will always be special for 2 reasons now! I think it is neat that she was able to be blessed on his birthday!

Move and a Blessing!

Jaycee and Grandpa and Grandma Henrie

Our family

4 Generations

Jaycee and her cousin Danielle

So, March 26-27 we moved into a new apartment! Our other apartment was home, but it was time to move on! I am doing a class to do Medical Transcription from home so I can be with Jaycee more and still be bringing in money. They apt we moved to is setup in a way that I can have my office in the main area of the house so it's not in a back bedroom. We like the new place and are excited to be part of the ward! They seem really nice!

March 28 Jaycee was blessed! Her daddy did the blessing and did an amazing job! There were so many family members and friends there to support us and we really appreciate it! Our parents and siblings helped us do a luncheon after at Auntie Melinda's apt clubhouse and it was so nice! Lots of people brought salads that were so yummy! It was truly a great day!!

Always listen to the promptings of the Holy Ghost!

So I have to say how grateful I am for a husband who is so close to the Spirit and listens when the Holy Ghost speaks to him!

Last night we were out doing errands after dark and I had to mail a couple of my assignments to my school! I like putting it into a mailbox rather than just send it out from my house, so that I know when it will go out! Tom doesn't think that makes much sence but he puts up with my OCD anyways! Well, our post office is stupid and you have to get out of the car and go inside to mail your letters instead of putting it in that blue box because there is no outside blue box! So I told Tom to pull in the parking lot with the car lights shining in the building so he could watch me while I was in there. I got out and got to the first set of automatic doors and they opened and Tom started honking the horn. I was kindof upset cause I thought he was just trying to scare me! I looked back at him and he was waving frantically at me and hurried and rolled down the window and was like, "I have a really bad feeling, get in the car right now!! I am taking them in!" My heart started racing! I was like what is going on? Tom went inside and kept looking to the south in the building. When he got back in the car I asked him what he was looking at. There was a guy just hanging out in the dark in there just around the corner from the door so I couldn't see him as I was getting ready to go in! I don't know why this guy was there, and don't really know if anything bad would have happened, but it was all just a little too freaky!! I was so grateful that Tom had a feeling that I shouldn't go in there and told me to get back in the car! I am so grateful that He was worthy to hear the voice of the Holy Ghost and was close enough to listen!!

I love my hubby so much! He is my whole world!! Thank you baby for protecting me! I am also grateful to the Lord for warning my husband that something was not right!

Just as a side note, Jaycee's personallity is really coming out! She is smiling when we talk to her and I think she knows who Tom and I are!! I love my little girl and don't know what I would do about her!!

My Smart Sexy Hubby!

So, Tom has been telling me for a while that he needs to go to the eye doctor, but we have both been putting it off due to the expense issue! Well, yesterday we passed a doctor that took walk in's so we went in. He got his eyes checked and did need glasses. His perscription isn't terrible, but it did help to get the glasses. He can see street signs better and see products on the shelf at his store better! He doesn't need to use them all the time, but he does like to wear them most of the time!! We got him some really nice looking frames, and it didn't take any time at all for me to get used to him wearing them! I think he looks hot!! (But of course I think that all the time...so this is nothing new!) So what do ya think?

One Month Already!! I don't know if I am ready for that!!

Three days old

One month old
Jaycee is one month old today!! How can she be that old already? This little girl has brought so much love and joy to our little home and family! The Lord has truly blessed us with a special spirit! She is amazing!
She is 9 lbs today. So she's gained about a pound and a half since birth.
She is more alert and awake during the day.
She is getting more chubby and eating really well.
She is recognizing mom and dad's voices.
She has met lots of people in her extended family and is happy to be held by anyone.
She is sleeping 4-7 hours a night. (The good news is when she does wake up, she eats and goes right back to sleep.)
She can control her neck muscles really well, and can hold her head up by herself most of the time.
Her legs are very strong.
These are just a few of her landmarks! We already don't really remember life without her, and definitely don't know what we would do without her! She is the best thing that has ever happened to us!
Mommy and Daddy love you Jaycee!!

She's here!

Woo Hoo! Our little Jaycee was born February 9, 2010 at 10:07 pm. She weighed 7 lbs 9 oz and was 21 inches long. She was 3 days past her due date and Mommy and Daddy were getting VERY anxious, not to mention Grandparents and Aunts and Uncles. Here's the story. It's a little long, so I wouldn't be offended if you didn't want to read it!
At 3:00 am my water broke, but we weren't exactly sure that's what was going on. It didn't happen like all the books said it would so we were a bit confused. We later learned that it was a high tear and they actually had to break my water again later that day cause there was still a pocket of water that was under her head that was preventing me from dialating more and preventing her from coming down like she should. Well, we got to the hospital at about 5:30 am and they tested me and my water had definitely broke and we were there to stay...finally!! We called both of our parents and they moved me to a delivery room. They started me in pitocin because the contractions I had been having were just not strong enough and they immediately gave me my epidural. I was surprised that they offered it so quick, and I thought about just putting it off until I was in more pain, but then I decided that 16 weeks of contractions was enough, and I went for it! I was completely calm until the anesthesiologist got me to sign the consent. I got really nervous then. Tom acutally said he had never seen me that scared before! The anesthesiologist had me lay on my side and gave the lidocaine. That was painful, but then when he started putting the catheter in the pressure was worse. (Thank goodness for the lidocaine!) The hard thing too, was that I was still getting over the strep throat and had to cough, but I knew that I couldn't. Tom was so great! He just held me and had me look in his eyes and I am happy to say that I made it through! The rest of the day went pretty good! I was dialated to a one until about 1:00 pm. They broke my water again around 11:00 am, so it took a while, even with the pit to get things going! I was totally comfortable though, so I didn't mind. I was just glad to not be sent home! My mom got there around 3:00 pm and I was dialated to about a 5 at 5:00pm. At some point they rushed in and put me on oxygen and made me lay down on my side. Aparently her heart didn't like the fact that I was sitting up, so we did that and everything looked great again. Within the next couple of hours I increased to 7 cm. The nurse said I was doing good, about 1 cm per hour. Then about 30 min later I was feeling pressure and they checked me again. The doctor said, "You don't have a cervix." I actually looked at him and said, " Where did it go?" Not my best moment! He had to remind me that it meant I was fully dialated! We were so excited! We were about to meet our little girl! He said she was still high, so we needed to let the contractions work a little more to bring her down. He needed to go check on another patient and said I could probably start pushing in about 45 min. It was actually a good thing that he gave us this time, cause it kinda hit Tom and I like a ton of bricks that we were almost parents! We were both pretty emotional! Tom suggested that we say family prayer. (I love what a Spiritual giant my hubby is!) My mom said the prayer and it was beautiful! We were all 4 bawling at this point, Tom, I, my mom and Tom's mom. I didn't quite make it 45 min before I was feeling like I needed to push. Tom and I had decided ahead of time that we wanted to be the only ones in the room when we had her(along with the staff). So our mom's went out into the waiting room. Tom was absolutly the best coach EVER! He kept kissing me and telling me I was doing a good job! He would help me push even if the nurse had to step out of the room. Tom vowed he would not watch her come out though cause he thought that was gross. The nurse was like, "Oh, my gosh! She has dark hair!" That was it! He had to see this hair! He kept telling me that he couldn't believe how much dark hair she had! I was so excited to see this! About an hour and 15 min into pushing my epidural started to run out and wear off! I really wanted them to dose me again, but I didn't want to pay for another bag, but the biggest reason is when they dosed me that afternoon the numbness went up to my armpits and I couldn't cough, which was really hard, cause I was still getting over this strep! Tom's mom kept having to pat my back to I could keep coughing! I was so grateful she was there!! Plus I didn't want to be all numb for hours after I had her! So for the next 45 min the pain just kept getting worse, and I was getting really tired! The nurse finally at almost 10:00 pm said would you like me to go get the doctor to see if he could help! I told her I don't care if they had to use the vacuum to get her out or whatever, I was getting way too tired! Dr. Barton came in and we didn't need the vacuum. He gave me a small episiotomy, only 2 stitches worth. It was all kindof a blur and all of the sudden she was here. Tom said she came out and Dr. Barton moved her around just a bit and her eyes opened right up! They put her on my belly and of course Tom and I were immediately crying! It was such a spiritual experience! Tom was able to cut her cord which was also pretty special! They took her over into the warmer and Tom got to go watch them do their assessments and give her the vitamin K shot and put that stuff in her eyes. In the mean time, I was over in my own little world bleeding way too much! I was watching her be cleaned off and weighed and I could feel myself falling asleep! Dr. Barton was getting a little concerned, I could tell! He was massaging my uterus from the outside and the inside to try to get it to clamp down. They gave me 3 meds, I think, to help me to stop bleeding. In the midst of all this one thing I could never forget is how Tom thought she was so cute! You see, he doesn't think newborns are cute! I told him that Jaycee was going to come out as a newborn, and was probably not going to be that cute either. He said if she wasn't cute, he would tell me! Well, while they cleaned her off, he came over and gave me a kiss and said, "Babe, she's absolutely gorgeous!!" He was in love!! While they were trying to get my bleeding stopped I remember saying, " I want my baby!" They gave her to me and I tried to breastfeed immediately. She latched right on, but I didn't remember much after that! Tom went out and got our mom's but I don't remember them coming in! My mom was really concerned that I would drop Jaycee, which was a valid concern. She was also really nervous because she hemorrhaged really bad when I was born too! I don't remember them taking her away from me! Well, they got things under control and I woke up a little more! They had me move over to the stretcher to take me up to maternity. They put her in my arms and we were off! We got upstairs and they took her into the nursery to do her assessments there. Tom got to go with her. They brought her back and bathed her right in the room! I fed her and we were all exhausted! At about 2:00 to 2:30 am my mom went back to my house, Tom's went back to hers and we sent Jaycee to the nursery because I didn't feel like I could take very good care of her because of how tired I was and how much blood I had lost! I was up about every hour trying to go to the bathroom, and by 6 ish I couldn't handle it anymore and wanted her back! So they brought her back to me! I was feeling much better at this point! All in all, it was a great experience, and yes, I will do it again! She is absolutely gorgeous and we love her very much! We thank the Lord all day every day for this beautiful addition to our family!!

Week 38 and 1/2

Just kidding!

So I think Jaycee has a sick sense of humor all ready! Wednesday morning I was woken up by contractions at 2 am, but knew I had to go to work, cause I was the only nurse in our admit department! I couldn't sleep through them the rest of the night, so I got no rest. The contractions continued throughout the day and I had to leave work early! I got home and laid down for a while and was able to get a couple more hours of sleep. At about 6:30 pm I started to have regular contractions that were every 5 min apart and increasing in intensity. At about 8:30 they started getting closer and were continuing to increase in intensity. By about 9:00 they were every 3 min and still increasing! They continued at every 3 min and by 3:30 am I was having a lot of pain. Then they started to lessen in both intensity and they weren't as close together! They calmed down so much that I was actually able to get an hour of sleep before they woke me up again! I have continued to have contractions all day, but they are at random times, still increasing in intensity, but not regular at all! I had a MD appt today and I was only dialated to a 1 cm. He was planning on stripping my membranes today, but was unable to cause my cervix was still too closed! So we wait! Jaycee's Daddy and I were getting pretty excited last night thinking that our sweet little girl was for sure going to be joining us by today at least, and so were her grandparents, but the Lord has other plans! I am trying to be SO patient! It's hard, but I think I am doing better! Tom gave me an absolutely AMAZING blessing last night! We were both bawling by the end and there were some pretty amazing promises about our little girl! She is truly loved where she is now, and I can guarantee you she is already loved by us here!! We can't wait to meet her, but we want things to happen the right way! Please pray for us that this can happen soon and we can have our little girl here in our arms!

14 days left!

So when people ask how much longer, I say two weeks, but when I saw the little countdown thing on our blog just barely and it said 14 days, I kinda got butterflies! It seems so close! Jaycee's mommy and daddy are definitely ready for her to join us! I feel very ready, and maybe this is my downfall! I know there are things that I am sure I have forgotten and things that I have not thought about, but I feel like I have done everything I want to do before she is born. My house may not be perfect, but I feel really good about everything! I was talking to Tom today and he is really excited for her to be here too! I love hearing that! Just to think that this little person that we have created because we love each other will be here shortly it so amazing to me! It makes me so grateful to a loving Heavenly Father for allowing life to continue on this way! For us to be able to have our own children is such a great gift, and she's not even here! Now don't get me wrong, I am not going into this blind. I know that being a parent is NOT going to be easy!! There are probably going to be lots of tears on all 3 of our parts along this journey, but I have an amazing partner to share all this with, and I wouldn't want to do it with anyone else!! As I have sat and pondered about this upcoming change in our lives, it absolutely amazes me how much I love her already! I haven't even seen her, and I am in love! I can't imagine the intense things I am going to be feeling when I do finally see her!! I have dreamed about what her personality is going to be like, and I hope she is a lot like her daddy! There are so many reasons I have fallen in love with him and I hope she takes on those good qualities! I have dreamed also of what Tom's face is going to look like when he sees her for the first time and when he holds her for the first time! I know that I can't even fathom how I will feel and how great it will be! I am so excited about the Spirit that will be in the room! I am pretty sure Tom's dad and some other loved ones who have passed on will be close by and I hope Tom can feel his dad so strong! What an amazing time in our lives!! I can't wait for her to be here! I am trying to be patient, and praying for patience every second of every day!!

I had an amazing baby shower today with people from work! It was so much fun and I am so grateful to the people who threw it and all the people who came! Jaycee got so many great things! She is one spoiled little girl!! I am so grateful for how giving people have been toward us! We have been truly blessed!!

37 Weeks = Full Term and Mommy is READY!!

So we are excited that we have made it to 37 weeks and are officially full term! That means Jaycee can come at any time!! I know she won't come until the time is right, so I am praying for patience! All of you out there that think I am horrible for wanting her to come NOW, please don't judge! I am still very sick, and having lots of pain and contractions, that seem to be going nowhere, I am not getting any sleep(which I do realize won't change), feeling lots of pressure, and am working up until she's born! I am tired, exhausted, and sore, and probably a little ornery! I know that all you mom's out there felt the same way, and when you were to this point, you wanted to be done too!! I do realize that the more time she spends in there, the more she gets to grow and the better it could be, but believe me, I have done my homework and she would grow up just as healthy if she came now! I am praying for patience, and the Lord has blessed me! I am better than I was! I have been given many blessings that she will come when she is supposed to and she will be healthy! So, just so you all know, we are looking forward to Jaycee arriving! Mommy and Daddy are both very excited, as are Grandparents and Aunts and Uncles! We'll update all when the big day arrives!!

Christmas and New Years

I know how late this post seems, but I tried to do it right after Christmas, but blogger was being stupid and I lost patience. So I let it go and figured we just wouldn't have a Christmas post. I can't sleep though, so I thought I might as well try again! We really did have a great Christmas. We got to go to Las Vegas and be with my family! It was Kyle's first Christmas since his mission and Jane's first Christmas in our family! That was a lot of fun! Last year my Grandma Thompson decided that she would go to one child's house every year for Christmas. She is starting with the oldest and working her way to the youngest. She went to Uncle Fenton's last year and my family's turn was this year! It was so much fun to have her there and be all together! On Christmas Eve we had a really fancy steak dinner that my parents made...it was so yummy! We sang songs and read the Christmas story! The Spirit was so strong! We all went to bed and woke up Christmas morning to lots of good presents! It was great and we feel very blessed! Then we spent the rest of the weekend just being together! We got to go shoot Tom and Kyle's new guns on Saturday, which was a lot of fun!! Then we went to Macayo's for my birthday dinner! Yummy!! Sunday morning we got up bright and early cause our flight left at 6:15 am to come back home! I was so grateful we got to go!! Linda picked us up from the airport and we went to her house and slept!! Then we had our Christmas with her and Melinda! That was fun too and we got even more great stuff!

Our New Years was not so great! I ended up in Labor and Delivery with bad contractions, that we attribute to working to much and too long of hours! New Years Eve I was there for 14 hours and I was doing X-ray procedures a lot of the day! I had to wear those lead aprons, but I have to wear double since I am pregnant! New Years Day started in the X-ray room as well, wearing the lead! By the time I got to the ICU at about 8:30 that night to do another procedure, I think my body was saying, absolutely not!! You are done! No more! You need to rest! I started contracting, which was nothing new, but what was new, was I was laying down and drinking lots of water, and the contractions wouldn't quit. I was a little nervous cause I was only 34 weeks, almost 35. So Tom met me, and I had to call another nurse to take my call! My doctor said no more call, so that was the end of that! I calmed down more and more once I got to Labor and Delivery, and was able to go home a few hours later!

All in all though, our holiday's were good! Hope your's were just as good! Once again, sorry about the late post!!