Friday, October 30, 2009

Newborn's conversation with God

Grab your kleenex box mommies... this ones a tear jerker... or maybe just to me, as I seem to be overly emotional lately!

A baby asked God, "They tell me you are sending me to earth tomorrow,
but how am I going to live there being so small and helpless?"

God said, "Your angel will be waiting for you and will take care of you."

The child further inquired, "But tell me, here in heaven I don't have
to do anything but sing and smile to be happy.."

God said, "Your angel will sing for you and will also smile for you.
And you will feel your angel's love and be very happy."

Again the small child asked, "And how am I going to be able to understand
when people talk to me if I don't know the language?"

God said, "Your angel will tell you the most beautiful and sweet words
you will ever hear, and with much patience and care, your angel will
teach you how to speak."

"And what am I going to do when I want to talk to you?"

God said, "Your angel will place your hands together and will teach
you how to pray."

"Who will protect me?"

God said, "Your angel will defend you even if it means risking its life."

"But I will always be sad because I will not see you anymore."

God said, "Your angel will always talk to you about Me and will teach
you the way to come back to Me, even though I will always be next to you."

At that moment there was much peace in Heaven, but voices from Earth
could be heard and the child hurriedly asked, "God, if I am to leave
now, please tell me my angel's name."

God said, You will simply call her, " Mom ."

Thursday, October 29, 2009

25 Weeks


How far along: 25 weeks, Only 15 to go!
Total weight gain/loss: 5lbs i think
Maternity clothes: not yet!
Stretch marks: just the beginning of one... it's actually a former stretch mark that is getting some color back to it :(
Sleep: yes, I'm sleeping, but not well most nights!
Best moment last week: Bobby getting to feel her kick again and watching my belly do a little bouncy dance!
Movement: strong as ever, still mostly very low, but every once in a while, I get a little nudge about 3 inches below my belly button.
Food cravings: Nothing
Gender: GIRL!
Labor Signs: None yet... which is a very good thing!
Belly Button in or out: Innie...but getting flatter
What I miss: wine... I'll be completely honest on this one... I miss having a glass of wine to un-stress!
What I am looking forward to: Our next ultrasound on November 5th. Can't wait to see her again!
Milestones: We made it to 24 weeks, which was V-Day!

Friday, October 23, 2009

24 week bump!

So, here's the 24 week bump! I can't believe that I'm going to get bigger, I feel like a cow already!

Yesterday I chatted with my girlfriend Jennifer. We went to Concordia together and we cheerleaders together, well, that's actually how we met... GO BULLDOGS!

She was one of the first people I called when I found out I was pregnant. She and her husband Cliff had been trying for quite a while, so, she knew what Bobby and I were going through when it was taking us a while to get pg again after we lost Taylor. I wanted to tell her in person right away, before she heard it through the grapevine.

She called me back the next morning to tell me that she had just gotten a positive test too! So, our due dates are only a few days apart and we're both having girls! She's lucky enough to be able to know her babies exact birthday though, as they're having a scheduled c-section.

She lives in Atlanta, so we haven't seen each other since spring of 2000, but, we're already planning a Nashville (halfway point) get together so our little girls can get to be friends from the time their tiny! I can't wait!

It's so great to be able to talk to her. I have several friends who are pregnant right now, but not with their firsts. It's so fun to be able to both be shocked and amazed at the little kicks that we're feeling right now, and know that our babies are pretty much the exact same size!

Love you Jen! Can't wait to meet Sophia!

Thursday, October 22, 2009

24 Weeks= V-Day!!!

Weeks 21-24 (Month 5): Papaya



Watch what you say -- baby is now able to hear outside noise from down in the womb. Studies show that baby finds gentle music and your own voice most soothing. Nipples are starting to sprout, and that little face is fully formed. And, baby's starting to settle into sleep cycles, snoozing about 12 to 14 hours a day. It shouldn't be hard to figure out when -- just pay attention to those kicks as they start and stop.

Today marks our 24 week mark! That = Viability Day! For those that don't know, V-Day is the mark when IF (and we're hoping I don't) I were to go into labor any time between now and 40 weeks, not only will the dr.s try their hardest to keep our LO alive, they've got a really good shot! I guess the survival rate of 24 week babies is incredibly high, as long as there are no other complications. So, very excited for today!

Kaygan has been quite the active little girl lately. I'm feeling things that are totally bizzaro to me! She's still sitting very low, and still doesn't seem to want to kick when Bobby tries to feel her. Like I keep telling him, she loves him and doesn't want to kick him... but what does that say for me!

Sunday, October 18, 2009

Happy Anniversary to Us!


I can't believe it's been a year already! We've had a very busy, tense, stressful year, but, I think it's made us a closer couple!


Our wedded year started with fun honeymoon on a Carnival Cruise. Unfortunately, Bobby got a fever blister on day #2... how fun was that for us... we couldn't even kiss on our honeymoon! So much for romance!

We found out 6 weeks later that we were 4 weeks pregnant! 9 weeks of miserable all day morning sickness followed, only to end in the loss of our first baby. We miss our Taylor baby bunches. It's crazy to thing that at this time, we should have a 2 month old baby! It took about a month for our loss and all follow up appointments to be completed and we were give the ok to try again.

In May we went to Nebraska to visit Bobby's parents for Mother's Day. Very fun... as always!

Finally... June 3rd we got our second chance to start our family. I was sick from week 4 till week 16!

June was a very busy work month for me! 5 weddings in 6 weeks! Crazy!

The first week in July, Bobby sent me to my last family reunion without a baby. He said I needed to go to this one since it would be my final chance to really relax and not stress about work or baby or anything else. I had a great time, but really wish Bobby could have gone with me!

On September 11, we found out that we were having a little girl! We are so anxious for Kaygan to be here and in our arms... come on February! A few minor concerns and a very wiggly baby means that we'll have another ultrasound in November to try to get some better measurements and make sure that the 'concerns' have resolved themselves.

In early October we lost my Grandma Thole. It was sad but she was ready, which made it somewhat easier to deal with.

And here we are today! We did try our cake today. I was pretty skeptical that it would taste good... Bobby was REALLY skeptical. We took off the frosting, because that tasted a little off, but the cake itself was great!

We have an incredibly busy few months coming up as well. Bobby and I plan to make a trip to Nebraska to visit his parents before Kaygan is born. We are anxiously awaiting the birth of our great nephew. Christmas shopping needs to be done. Thanksgiving planned, and nursery set up and decorating need to be started and finished! November and December are usually very busy times for me at the studio as well, with everyone wanting to do last minute sessions for portrait gifts and Christmas Cards!


Candy Countdown!




I got this idea from a fellow SAL gal, but she used M&M's for her container. I don't LOVE those, and I wanted to be able to see a bigger dent in my countdown! So, 116 pieces of candy in these jars (total) and 116 days till my due date! I have to be honest, if these aren't completely gone when Kaygan arrives, I won't be too sad, as long as there's not too many left in there!

Friday, October 16, 2009

This was God's Plan

Even though Bobby and I were ready to be pregnant again soon after we lost Taylor, God knows what he's doing! Tonight I shot a wedding, not even a full wedding, just the formal pictures of the couple before hand. It was physically tough! My belly isn't even THAT big and I was having issues bending and squatting! If we'd gotten pregnant any earlier than we did, I'd have an even bigger belly and this really would have been challenging. AND, I'd have been at this stage in June when I was swamped with weddings!

Even though it wasn't my plan, God seems to have this all worked out!

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

120 days to go!!!

Well, we hopefully have 120 days or less till little Kaygan arrives! I've decided to copy on of my friends ideas and fill a big jar with 120 pieces of candy. I get to eat one a day! That should help with my countdown!

Bobby finally felt her last night again for the second time. Only once, but it was still a good little kick from her! We've figured out that she tends to sleep all day long and maybe wake up once in the afternoon. She wakes up in the evening around 7-8 and is moving and kicking around for a couple of hours. She also wakes up with us at 5am and kicks around for a while then too! She must be awake more during the night, but I guess I sleep too soundly to be able to feel her!

From what I can tell, she's head down (let's hope she stays that way!). The only reason I say that is I get lots of little bumps on my bladder, but the stronger bumps tend to be up by my belly button. So, I guess she's using my bladder as a punching bag and my belly button as a soccer ball!

We get to see her again on November 5th, so we'll see how she's sitting then and if I'm right or not!

Monday, October 12, 2009

She's Shy!!!

Well, Kaygan has now graced just ONE other person with the opportunity to feel her kick. I of course feel her all the time, and even know how to get her to kick if I feel like it's been too long since I've felt her. Bobby has felt her the one time as well, but as I've posted before, she seems to want to cuddle with his warm hand instead of kick at it!

Yesterday, Aunt Kayla got to feel her. We tried for a while, but Kaygan wasn't participating at all. So, we gave up and started looking at some pics from our trip to MN earlier this summer. Well, Kaygan got to kickin. I've JUST started to be able to feel her while I'm standing, usually it's only when I'm sitting or laying down. So, I really didn't figure anyone else would be able to feel her. Well, I pushed Kayla's fingers in right where she was kicking. She kicked a time or two and Kayla didn't feel it. Then, on the third one she must have put all her effort into it, because not only was it one of the hardest kicks I've ever felt, Kayla got a good strong feeling on her fingers too!

Kayla has got some pretty big eyes as it is, but they got huge when she felt those kicks! She started jumping around and squeeling! It was so cute! Of course, now Bobby's jealous because he's only gotten to feel her once and now someone else has felt her as much as he has. But, he's still excited for Kayla's sake I think!

Saturday, October 10, 2009

22 Weeks! Go Huskers!

22 weeks down!!! Yay!!! I've really been feeling Kaygan kicking around in there. She had a few quiet still days after the East Perry Fair... too much junkie fair food I guess! Now I've figured out how to make her squirm and kick, so if I ever get nervous, I just use my pants waistband to squish her a bit and she fights back!

Bobby has only been able to feel her once. First of all, he doesn't have much patience to wait it out for her to kick again, but the biggest problem, is she likes it too much to have his hand or arm cuddle her! She can be going crazy and as soon as Bobby puts his hand on my tummy, she not only stops while his hand is there, she stops completely! He must be putting her to sleep with his big warm hands!



A few weeks ago, Bobby's parents sent Kaygan a Husker onesie. So, we wore it with pride for the Husker/Mizzou game... and we won! Go Huskers!



I feel old!


Here's a pic from my 10 year class reunion. Not too many showed up from our class of 200+ people. I know some more showed up after we left. We had to leave early because all of the cigarette smoke was making me sick. It never used to bother me... I was a bartender for crying out loud! But, since Kaygan's been around, I just can't stomach it!

Room Theme

Will be Ladybugs... hence the new blog theme! I'm not a fan of Pink, so we're going to do Ladybugs and purple.

We also are probably doing dark wood for the crib and other furniture in her room. I got a bookshelf from my Aunt Mietz's auction for a dollar, and Bobby, my Mom and I stained and finished it. I love the way it looks!

And she shall be called...

Kaygan Elizabeth!

Yes, we made it up! We are wanting to 'tribute' our heritage with our kids names. So, Kay is my mom's middle name and Elizabeth is Bobby's mom's middle name.

We had huge 'discussions' about how to spell Kaygan, but this seemed to be the easiest for other people to comprehend how to pronounce it. I kinda feel sorry for Bobby's parents. They'll now have a Kaygan for a granddaughter and a Kaden and Kailey for great grand kids. It's a tongue twister!

Here's me at 20 weeks!

It's a....

Well, we'd had a few minor issues that our dr. wanted to take a better look at, so we had an U/S at 18weeks 1 day. The U/S Tech wasn't planning on doing our whole gender and measurement scan that day, but she decied that we were far enough along to go ahead and do it. I was so excited! I just kept quiet, because I knew that Ashley (the U/S tech) was doing measurements and concentrating on everything. She'd tell us there's the head, here's an arm etc. After about 5 minutes, Bib just couldn't stand it anymore and asked her if she could tell if it was a boy or girl yet. Ashley said she'd been checking, but LO kept it's legs crossed, so she couldn't see anything.

I immediately said "oh, if the legs are crossed it must be a girl". Bobby was certain we'd be having a girl, and I was positive we were having a boy. So, Ashley just kept going and after another 5 minutes Bobby again asked if she could tell. She just kinda smirked (she knew about our difference of opinions) and said, "Yeah, it's a girl".


My response? "What!!!??? Are you sure? Are you serious? Really, it's a girl?" and many more comments such as these. She just smiled and showed us the 'goods' as proof it was a girl. I wasn't convinced, because it looked so blurry to me. She checked the other things she needed to check and I asked her again if it was 'really a girl' and how sure was she? She said we'd look again, but she was 95% sure, and that's the highest percent of sure she'll ever say! So, looks like it's a girl and I have to admit that Bobby's 'daddy instincts' were better than my 'mommy instincts'.

I think she looks like Skelator in this one!


There's her little profile. While we were looking at this view we saw her put her hand in her mouth and then we could see her little jaw going up and down. She was sucking her thumb! It was soooo cool!

So, we called Bobby's parents right away and told them. Bobby's mom was so cute and squeely and his dad said "I like girls". It was so cute. We put them on speaker so we could both hear what they had to say. Then we went out for supper to celebrate... and give Bobby even more time to tease me about his being right.

We were planning on holding out with my family until my parents and sisters were all together. We had it all planned out on how we were going to tell. Well, my parents and their friends were the only ones there, and we had to wait a while for my sisters to get there. My parents and their friends tricked us aka Bobby into telling. They just kept kept asking questions about the U/S. Eventually, Bobby slipped and said "we saw her hand go into her mouth..." He didn't even realize he'd done it at first, but after 2-3 seconds of everyone staring at him he caught on and put his head down and just couldn't believe that HE was the one who slipped up! So, then they all knew!
We told Becky as soon as she got there, and had to wait till the next day to tell Kayla. They both had similar reactions... screaming!

Whew...

So, it's been a while since my last post! Let's just say that morning sickness aka ALL day sickness kept me from doing anything extra on my computer for a few months. Finally, at 16 weeks I started to feel better, but had alot of catching up to do on photography stuff before I could do something fun like blog!

So, Here's what's been going on!

After we found out about our LO (Little One) I started to get sick almost right away. It was all day long, just like our first pregnancy. But, thankfully, this time, I went for the Zofran right away. It never completely took it away, but it took the edge off. Good thing too, since I had a bunch of weddings in June and July!

We were just over 7 weeks when we had our first U/S (ultra sound). At that U/S I had a pretty good idea of just how far along we were, but, our LO was actually ahead of schedule. Our EDD (estimated due date) was moved up to Feb. 11. Here's our first pic of LO!
Just after the U/S, I went to our Family Reunion in Cantrall IL. It was a great week. Bib said I was to go and just relax, because it would be my last reunion where I didn't have to chase a LO the whole time! So, I went, I relaxed and had a great time! It was so fun to show off the U/S pic of our LO.

While at Family Reunion, my cousin's little girl Hayden decided that our baby's name was Carfie. That's the name she gives all of her dollies so no one was surprised! So, Carfie has been our LO's nickname ever since!