One Week Old!

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Today Brody is 1 week old! It is actually my due date as well!

I wrote about all the things Brody is up to in my last post so I won't re-write it all. I am looking forward to his pediatrician appointment on Thursday. I'm anxious to see what he weighs now!

Tomorrow I have my first post op appointment. Normally I wouldn't have one until 6 weeks but they want to see me back this week too. I'm sure everything is fine though!

Anyway, I just wanted to jump on here and share a quick pic of my big man!

Home!

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So I'm a little behind on blogging! We came home from the hospital on Friday!

Basically, what ended up being the problem was that Brody was taking longer to transition. Most babies take 4-6 hours to make the switch and realize they are outside of the womb but it just took Brody longer. Apparently, this is fairly common with c-section babies especially if you didn't go into labor on your own (scheduled c-section).

Brody is doing fantastic now. It's very weird to have a baby who is a good eater...Brody loves to eat, doesn't miss a meal and even takes extra bottles sometimes. It's also very weird to pour a bottle and then feed the baby without having to add thickener and wait and then rush the feeding before it turns into concrete!

He's also a good sleeper as long as he is being held. We will start working on this eventually but for now, as long as we all are getting sleep, that's what matters!

Brayden loves his little brother - I mean LOVES. Every morning when he gets up he asks for "Baby Brobee" and wants to give him kisses and hugs and pats. It's really sweet.

I'm having a much harder time recovering from this c-section than from my last one. I had to have internal staples, external staples and steri strips. I had a ton of leftover scar tissue and would have ended up being knocked out anyway from what I was told. I had scar tissue in my spine as well.

Thanks for all the prayers and well wishes!

A Reason to be Thankful

Guess who got released from the NICU today?

The same little boy got to meet his older brother for the first time today too!

Brody spent all day (with the exception of this morning when he was being transferred from the neonatologists care to a pediatricians care) with us in my room. Brayden was with my parents but they brought him up and we all spent the evening together!

If all goes well we will be able to leave TOMORROW!!!!! Thank you all for your prayers and I hope you've had a great Thanksgiving!

Meet Brody

Thank you so much for all the comments, tweets, emails and text messages! We really appreciate your support and prayers!

I didn't have any good closeups loaded last night to share with you but I do today. So here is Brody! I think in this picture he looks so much like Brayden.

Speaking of Brayden, here he is asking me where Brody went:
I was able to get up this morning - they wouldn't allow me out of bed yesterday - so I took a shower and headed to see Brody. We found out that during the night there were a few emergency NICU patients admitted so because Brody was improving so rapidly, they sent him to the main nursery. He is still a NICU patient and under the care of the neonatologists, but they felt that he was stable and therefore was the best choice to move.

I got to hold him a lot this morning. I think he liked it:
And the paparazzi watched from the window:
So now to answer a few questions. I'm going to do this in bullet point form because I'm still drugged up and I think it will come out making more sense this way!

- We think my spinal failed because of the amount of scar tissue left over in my spine from my last c-section. With Brayden, they had a horrible time administering the spinal, and I quit counting after 25 sticks. The anesthesiologist was there when I woke up from the general and this was her theory.

- Yes, they did test to see if the spinal was working. It was about 3 minutes into the surgery when I started to regain feeling. I saw my doctor this morning and she said she had to remove a substantial amount of scar tissue from my other c section in order to even get to Brody.

- Will Brody have to go to ACH? No. At least not unless something drastically changes.

- How is he doing today? Much better. They are weaning him off oxygen today, and we are hoping that he will be fully off of it by 7pm central time. If you have a moment to say a sentence prayer for him we would appreciate it! They also did find a heart murmur today but at this point they don't think it is bad enough to be a cause for concern.

Something else happened today that was great for Brody but that will be another post because I'm about to fall asleep and Blogger won't let me upload the pics!

Thank you all so much for your prayers!!! Tomorrow I might have an idea of when he and I will be released!

Brody's Birthday

Today was the big day - Brody's birthday! We left the house at 7am to head out for my scheduled c-section. Here is my 39 week belly shot.

Things didn't go quite as planned. Once I was in the OR and they began cutting I felt everything. My spinal failed. They immediately had to knock me out which also meant that Chris had to leave the OR. The last thing I remember was screaming because I was in so much physical pain and crying because Chris had to leave.

When I woke up I immediately was asking if Brody was okay and at that point they thought he was. By the time I was taken to my room I found out that he wasn't okay. He was having trouble breathing and was grunting. This was devastating - the signs of PPHN, what Brayden had and spent 5 weeks in Arkansas Children's for.

A little while later we found out they were taking him in to the NICU. Again, we were totally devastated. His neonatologist came in to talk to us. Apparently Brody does NOT have PPHN (praise God). Instead, his lungs are continuing to produce liquid instead of draining it out and being dry which was causing him difficult with breathing and low oxygen numbers.

During the time that they figured this out and decided to send him to the NICU in the hospital we are at, he did begin improving. The doctors decided to let him make a pit stop by my room so that I could hold him! I was so excited - I didn't get to hold Brayden until he was 9 days old!

(Brody: 6lb 13oz, 19" born at 10:33am)

Brayden was at home taking a nap, but they would not have allowed him in my room while Brody was there anyway because they don't want to compromise Brody's health at this time.

So currently, Brody is in the NICU but has made huge improvements including his lungs clearing up by 75%. I am really drugged up so I hope this all makes sense. Thank you all so much for your prayers. I will update again tomorrow, hopefully with great news!

And the winner is....

Thanks to everyone who entered the Artistic Designs giveaway!

I just drew the lucky winner and it is....

Rebecca! (Rsiewert)

Congratulations Rebecca! Leave me your email address (or email it to me) and I will get you in contact with Crystal!

Winner of the $100 gift card!

The winner has been chosen! Just hop on over to the giveaway page!!!

You still have time to enter this great giveaway for the Christmas Card template from Artistic Designs!

2 Great Giveaways!

Don't forget to enter for the $100 Visa Gift card over on my giveaway page! I'm drawing a winner TONIGHT!!!

And for another great giveaway, check out the post below!

Christmas Card Template GIVEAWAY!

Giveaway time!!

Crystal over at Artistic Designs by CC asked if I'd like to do a giveaway for her Christmas card templates! They really are some of the cutest cards I've ever seen so I'm really excited about this! She also does all sorts of other cards and takes custom orders!

Entering is SO easy.

For 1 entry, just visit her site and let me know what design you would like if you win!

For another entry, follow her blog here.

For an additional entry you can follow my blog.

Last but not least for 3 entries, blog or tweet about this giveaway (don't forget to leave me the link!)

The winner will receive one customized Christmas card template. The design does not have to be the one chosen in your entry. We can create a fun, customized greeting card just for you! Offer is good for file only templates (single sided). The template is e-mailed to you and you can get as many cards printed as you would like.

OR

You can choose to get $14.00 off one set of 25 front and back pearl or linen finish greeting cards. (Please note that you will still be required to pay for shipping on these cards).

This giveaway ends on Friday, so be sure to enter now!

38 Weeks!!

Only a few days left to enter my $100 Visa Gift Card giveaway! Click the "Giveaway/Review" page above to enter!

How Far Along: 38 Weeks

Size of baby: 6.8lbs,19.5 inches and the size of a leek.

Weight Gain: 22lbs

Maternity Clothes: I am still able to wear a combo of maternity and regular clothes which is realllllly crazy. The two shirts I have on in this pic are not maternity.

Gender: BOY! (Brody)

Movement: Pretty often but he's really running out of room to do too much.

What I miss: Sleep and being cold.

Sleep: I get up about 5 times per night.

Symptoms: I'm always way too hot and usually very exhausted.

Yesterday was my last regular appointment! I have to go in for some pre op stuff before delivery. My doctor decided to do a NST (non stress test) for several reasons. For being a non stress test it really stressed me out! I really didn't know what it meant - but all they did was hook me up to the fetal monitors, and give me a "jeopardy buzzer" and every time he moved I had to click the buzzer. Super easy. I sort think they forgot about me though because they were only supposed to leave me on it for 15 minutes and it was close to 40 before they unhooked me! Anyway, all was well and fine and they let me go home.

I'm having a few issues with my back, mainly because with this pregnancy I've gained practically all the weight in my stomach. With Brayden I gained weight EVERYWHERE and a lot more of it! The pressure from pulling my back muscles forward is causing some contractions and other things. When my doctor was feeling my muscles she said it felt like a wooden plank! Haha!

22 Months!

Every once in awhile I do a post on what Brayden is up to. I really want to do one now, since Brody will be here soon!

Brayden, today you are 22 months old!

What are you up to?

- You LOVE to talk. I mean, LOVE. You also love to sing. You said a 9 word sentence (okay, so it was song lyrics but it counts).

- You can (and often do) say "Jesus Loves Me." It melts our hearts.

- Your current favorite toy is "MossyBuster" aka your GIANT golden retriever that you carry everywhere, closely followed by Minnie Mouse which is your cat (my mom's cat is named Minnie Mouse and therefore he thinks all cats are called Minnie Mouse).

- You can put on your own shoes, most of the time on the correct feet. You can put your shirt on but half of the time it's backwards.

- You wear a size 4 diaper, a size 6 shoe and 18-24 month clothes.

- The only show you watch is Yo Gabba Gabba and you LOVE it.

- You know that Mommy has a Brody in her belly, but you also think that you and Daddy have Brody's in your bellies.

- You wave hi to Brody's room every morning and say "Hi Baby!"

- You call the hogs - and you used to say "Woooo Meat Soup!" but now it's clear that you are saying "Woooo Pig Sooie!"

- You love apple juice.

- Everything we own apparently belongs to Daddy, because you call everything Daddy's _____. Examples: Daddy's truck, Daddy's house, Daddy's tree (Christmas tree), Daddy's phone...

- You are a fashion guy - you ask for certain things and like to tell me what you want to wear.

- You are very healthy. I just took you in for an ear infection which you rarely get, and your pediatrician commented on how impressed he is with your health, especially for having a compromised immune system.

- You are the sweetest, snuggliest, most beautiful little man and Mommy and Daddy love you SO MUCH!

Winner!

I just drew the random winner for the Girls Night Out tickets! If you didn't win, my friend Melissa is also doing a drawing for tickets and her's ends on Monday, so you still have time to enter!

So, the winner is...

#6, Jenna B!

Jenna, send me an email with your address and I'll have the tickets sent to you!

Congratulations Jenna!!

QUICK Giveaway for NWA Girls!

Not Local? Just click on my Giveaway page to enter another great giveaway for a $100 Visa Gift Card!

Hey Local Girls!

Want to win a pair of tickets to NWA Girls Night Out?

Want to go hang out with friends, listen to live Christmas music, sip on hot chocolate, and enjoy a CANDY BUFFET?!

Oh, and if you are one of the first 500 to enter the building, how about an awesome swag bag?!

While you're there, you can shop around the booths of lots of local Etsy type merchants and do a little Christmas shopping!

Just leave me a comment to enter to win! I'll draw a winner on Friday! And for more information, just click here!

37 Weeks! FULL TERM!!!

How Far Along: 37 Weeks - FULL TERM!

Size of baby: 6 1/3lbs,19 inches and the size of a Swiss chard.

Weight Gain: 21lbs

Maternity Clothes: I am still able to wear a combo of maternity and regular clothes which is realllllly crazy.

Gender: BOY! (Brody)

Movement: Pretty often but he's really running out of room to do too much.

What I miss: Sleep and being cold.

Sleep: I get up about 5 times per night.

Symptoms: I'm always way too hot and usually very exhausted. Only 2 weeks left!

I had a doctor appointment today and my doctor is estimating that Brody is around 6lbs right now (I don't put too much stock in estimates seeing as Brayden was supposed to be a 10lb baby and was 7.1!!!).

What do you think Brody will weigh?

Deals and Steals: I share, You share.

So I haven't blogged much about my Walgreens trips or other bargain hunting I've done lately. A big reason why is that I'm just too tired to go hunt down the great deals out there!

But I will share some with you all that I've come across lately!

At Toys R Us Chutes and Ladders and Candy Land are on sale for $3 each - a $2 rebate making them just $1 each!

There's also a new Old Navy coupon code for 20% off : OnSave20

For Huggies users, there are new printables at print.coupons.com. Also, there is a $2 coupon in the November Walgreens booklet.

Also for Huggies users, if you enter points into Enjoy The Ride, there is a new code out! BJRGHJHZNFSJPGB

Vista Print has a bunch of products for FREE - all you have to pay is shipping. I did this and ordered a address stamp and just paid $4! Just click here.

Last but not least of course, is Swagbucks. I just mentioned it the other day but it sounds like many of you hadn't heard of it before. It's great! I've been cashing my points in for Starbucks gift cards but I'm thinking about using my points for e-cards for Amazon and pairing those with their 30% off diaper deal! If you want to join in the fun, click here.

I know there are plenty more out there but I think my family would like to eat dinner so I've got to go...but share YOUR deals in the comments section!

Makin' a list...checking it twice

I like lists.

I like organized, color coded lists.

I like lists that really are spreadsheets.

They make me happy.

But my "Must have completed before Brody arrives" list is stressing me out. Big time. Especially because every time I go to cross something off of it we add a few more things.

Example?

Today we went to the grocery store. Obviously I needed groceries but I also needed a few more things that were Brody related like a seat protector to put in my car underneath the car seat base so it doesn't tear the seat up. Stuff like that. And then we saw these sparkly sticks that I wanted to get last year for our tree but I waited to long and everyone was sold out. So I loaded up.

We get home and unload the car, put B down for his nap and Chris says he's off to the attic to bring the tree down. Okay, great, I can cross "Get the tree out of the attic and set up" off my list.

A few minutes later he walks into the room and says "Please don't cry." Uh-oh. I should add that he said that because I cried no less than 3 times in the middle of Wal-Mart over some really dumb things, like wrapping paper. It's just that kind of day.

Apparently, we'd both forgotten that we threw our tree out last year. It was falling apart and it was really too small for our ceiling height so we tossed it. Opps.

So now I get to add "Go buy another Christmas tree" to the list.

I have a feeling that 2 1/2 weeks is just not going to be enough time to get everything done!

If you like that...try this!

Only a few days left to enter my $100 Visa Gift Card giveaway! Click the "Giveaway/Review" page above to enter!

It's pretty common knowledge now that I have a slight addiction to Starbucks Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate. I talk about it a lot on twitter and several of you have told me you've gone out to try it! Tell me what you thought!

Coincidentally I haven't been paying for too many of these. I've mentioned Swagbucks several times before and through just using it as my search engine I've received (and used!) $20 in Starbucks gift cards and am about to get another one! If you don't have an account, just click here and check it out.

Back to the point of this post. When I find something I reallllly like, I like to share it with others. My Dad actually found this - and he shared it with me and now I'm sharing it with you!

If you like SCHC (salted caramel hot chocolate) then you will LOVE this. Lindt has a new Sea Salt Dark Chocolate bar out. It is sooooo good! As I tend to do, I mentioned this on twitter too...and I think everyone who has tried it really liked it! So go out and enjoy!

Wordless Wednesday

36 Weeks!!

How Far Along: 36 Weeks

Size of baby: 6lbs,18.5 inches and the size of a crenshaw melon (whatever that is).

Weight Gain: 20lbs

Maternity Clothes: I am still able to wear a combo of maternity and regular clothes which is realllllly crazy.

Gender: BOY! (Brody)

Movement: Pretty often but he's really running out of room to do too much.

What I miss: Sleep and being cold.

Sleep: I get up about 5 times per night.

Symptoms: I'm always way too hot and usually very exhausted. Only 3 weeks left!

Last night I was almost positive that Brody broke one of my ribs. It hurt SO bad and Chris almost took me to the hospital! I decided to wait it out and we think somehow I just strained a ligament or a muscle around my ribs. He really enjoys wedging his foot up there and pushing out and it realllllly hurts! Also, I've been on the iron pills for a week now and I'm really noticing a difference! I'm still tired but not completely and utterly exhausted 24/7 which is so nice!

6 more days until I'm considered full term; not that I foresee going early! I'm sure he will stay in until my c-section!

Happy Halloween from Brobee!

I'm a little late with this but I just now uploaded my pictures!

This year Brayden was Brobee from Yo Gabba Gabba! We went and stayed out at my families cabin this weekend and so we ended up not trick or treating. We were going to go to an event at church but we ended up just staying at the cabin.

So we faux trick or treated! We took B outside and let him knock and then Grammy would answer the door and give him candy!

Can you spy our golden Buster trying to sneak into the house?

Family pic - this was pretty late and we were all tired!
It was a nice and relaxing Halloween! I hope yours was great too!