Catch-up

Hey!  I've been so busy these last 2 weeks and have not had the chance to write.  Between finishing up school work and other daily trials and tribulations, I've been stressed to the max.  So the latest....

School-  My final exam for my summer class was Friday August 27, 2012.  I passed it and the class as well.  We are now on summer break and classes will resume August 15, 2012.  Am I excited?  NO!  Brandon and I have both decided to take on 4 classes this semester...not really sure what we were thinking but just say a prayer.  I am taking Business Math, Spreadsheet, Internet Basics, and Intro to Computers.  It all sounds very easy so I am hoping it will be easy.  Math is not my strongest subject so I am praying it will be nice to me this semester. 


Work-  Work is going great...something different every day.  We seem to have a black cloud over our heads right now with death, illnesses, surgeries, etc.  Kelly's granny passed away unexpectedly early Wednesday morning.  She was very close to Kelly so it's hard to see a friend hurt the way she is hurting because there is absolutely nothing you can do to help.  Jesse's mother in law fell Monday morning and broke her hip.  She had surgery Tuesday afternoon and is doing well now.  They put a rod from her hip socket down to her knee.  She will be at the hospital for a while so pray for her as well.  Ms. Vickie's husband had a stroke a week or so ago and is not doing well from that.  It seems like he takes one step forward and two steps back.  Ms. Pam, who I work closely with was on the verge of having a heart attack last night.  Her blood pressure shot up real high and they took her to Wayne Memorial Hospital and then this morning, they decided to go ahead and send her to Wake Med.  Pray very hard for all of these people, for as they are very close to me in some way.


Brayleigh-  I just want to repeat what I have said before....You never really experience love until you have had a child.  Every single day she makes me love her even more.  It could be the smallest thing that she does, my heart still melts.  Her new favorite thing to do is touch a body part and say "owww" like its hurting her.  She is a drama queen (like her mama ofcourse :))) ) and she is hilarious!  We are debating on putting her in dance this year.  Is 18 months old too young???  I think it is but I havent made my mind up yet.  Her vocabulary has once again blossomed....she says no, no, no...and loves to make animal noises now.  I am currently trying to teach her the primary colors like red, blue, green, yellow, orange.  It's a slow process!!
She had the worst diaper in her entire life last night.  It was so bad, it made her daddy sick.  I almost had to throw away the outfit she was wearing but I sucked it up and washed it in the sink.  YUCK!  It was in her hair and in between her toes.  YUCK YUCK YUCK!   Brayleigh is getting some indoor pictures this Saturday with Polka-Dotted Paisley Photography!  I cannot wait to show them to everyone!!!!


I started selling a product called Initials-Inc.  So far, I have got about 3 parties booked so I hope it will boom for me and I can make some extra cash.  I would love to get my money back that I spent on the kit and the only way to do it is turn in 4 parties by Sept 30.  Please pray that I will succeed in this small business of mine so we can move into a bigger house.  THANKS!

Happy 16 months to my sweet princess!

My dearest Brayleigh,

You are 16 months old!  My goodness, I feel like I blinked and you got this old...It is bittersweet.  Bitter part: You are not a baby anymore and you are very independent.  Sweet part: you are becoming your own person at such a young age and watching you develop is so amazing.  You are SO funny!  That's probably the thing I like about you most.  You are a comedian to no end.  I think you realize it too.  Your daddy and I are constantly laughing at you over the smallest things.  Grammy loves it too and is telling everyone about you and how funny you are. 

Some of the things you love to do......You love to eat ice with your PaPa.  You will climb on his lap and point to his styrofoam cup and say "iceeee."  It is yalls thing to do.  You dont really care for ice unless it comes from him and his cup.  You are a dancer!  Daddy will play music for you whether it be country, rock, or that ghetto rap...and you start breaking it down.  I have you on video on several different occasions and I cannot wait to show them to you when you get older.  It's the cutest thing!  You got a "ki-ki" which you love so much.  By the way, "ki-ki" is kitty kitty.  All you talk about when you get home from daycare or wake up from a nap, is kitty kitty!  Yall are so sweet together and he is very patient with you.  He will let you lay on him and rub him.  Some days he does run from you and it makes you very sad. 

The food you like to eat....GREEN BEANS!  Really?  What normal child loves green beans?  No one.  But I am so thankful you do baby.  It is the cutest thing when you eat one bean at a time out of the can.  You love chicken, hotdogs, salad, fruit, bananas, cheerios, cereal bars, grits, and mostly any vegetable. 

The food you hate to eat....pizza sauce, anything italian, mashed potatoes, and sometimes french fries.


YOU LOVE RANCH DRESSING!  You are def. your mama's child, that's for sure! 


You weigh close to 28lbs and you are 34inches tall.  You are wearing majority 18-24month clothes and some 2Ts.  Your cute fat foot has grown into a size 5 for sandals and crocs and size 6 for tenna shoes.   Your hair is a light brown and very curly.  I guess you got that from your grandparents on both sides because your dad and I have stick straight hair.  Your eyes are a light hazel and green and so sweet.  You have a mouth full of SHARP teeth that you love to brush everynight after your bath.  I have to hold you down to brush them in the morning...not sure what the difference is?? 


Brayleigh, you are such a sweet joy to everyone you come in contact with.  Thank you for all you do for us and most importantly, thank you for being you.  I love you with everything I have in me to love you and so does your daddy.  You are the apple of his eye!  (mine too, ofcourse)  I love you baby girl, more than yesterday and not as much as tomorrow!

Love,
Mommy
 

You eating ranch dressing at East Coast Wings

Your dad has taught you to lick things off the plate, cute but not something to do later on in life...like when you are on a date with your boyfriend when you are 30.

Your crazy but lovable and sweet self!

You and your "ki-ki" looking out the window on a day it was raining

NO A/C

Yep, our AC went out sometime yesterday.  Im not sure if it was because of all the crazy storms we have been having or if it had just had it, but it died completely.  The only good thing about the AC going out yesterday was that the bad weather we got, cool everything off tremendously.  Between the air that was coming out of the vents and the wind outside, it was not too bad.  Don't get me wrong though, it was not good either.  A lot of sweating was going on and we had an ill and cranky toddler.  The temperature in the house was only 78degrees but we are AC spoiled and keep ours around 69/70degrees. 

I got a text from Brandon this morning telling me that the AC was fixed, so HALLELUJAH!

Who knew a thyroid could be such a nuisance???

I have never wanted to have surgery more....let's put it that way.  I want my thyroid OUT!  About 15 months ago, at my 6 week post partum check-up, my thyroid was enlarged.  I was having trouble forming sentences, swallowing, had a lot of fatigue, and other symptoms of an enlarged thyroid.  Lisa, my midwife, was concerned but we checked my thyroid levels and everything was normal so we let it go for a year.  May 7th of this year, I went back to my midwife for my annual physical and once again, my thyroid was severely enlarged.  This time, she did not let it go.  I was referred to a specialist within a few days.  His name was Dr. Mark Warren in the endocrinology department at Physician's East in Greenville, NC.  Dr. Warren was very nice and checked everything out.  He was initially concerned by how big my thyroid felt during my swallow test so he did a quick ultrasound on me to see if there were any nodules growing.  Thank goodness there were no nodules, just a big fat thyroid.  I was put on Synthroid 50 mcg for 4 weeks and move up to 75 mcg after wards and have been on 75 mcg ever since. 

Okay, let's fast forward.....


Early last week, my throat started swelling again.  I went almost 2 whole months with no swelling and everything was good.  I have been having trouble swallowing and difficulty breathing so I knew something was wrong.  I called the nurse last Wednesday and asked her what I needed to do and she told me to come in there immediately and get lab work done so I came Thursday morning first thing and had some blood drawn.  My TSH levels dropped from 1.35 to .03 which put me into hyperactive functions.  Was that the reason why my thyroid swelled??  Not sure but we adjusted the medicine back down to 50mcg.  The weekend passes by and Monday morning, the left side of my throat is swelling even bigger so I call the Dr again.  This time, everyone including myself is concerned because it's a rapid swell and the swallowing is a bigger issue now.  He is completely booked up so he sends me over to urgent care where they can see me quicker and Dr. Warren can still look at all the notes and what not since it's in the same network.  Physician's East is huge might I add.....so if you are ever looking for a doctor to go to, start out with a Physician's East doctor because in the end, you will be covered by all corners.  The urgent care Dr did not like what he felt in my neck immediately and wanted to rule out all possible harmful things so he sent me to the Radiology department and I had a CT done.  Nothing new was growing in my neck, just a big fat thyroid.  Ugh!  Im sick of this big fat thyroid by the way....if I havent told you that before.   So I have to continue on my medicine and check back with my Dr if nothing changes in a few weeks.

Here is a comparison of a normal thyroid and an enlarged....mine may actually be bigger than what it looks like in this picture.

Here's a funny story about what my daughter did to me last night..........


Last night around 9pm, I put Brayleigh to bed like I normally do.  We are on the same routine and a very strict schedule so nothing was out of the ordinary.  About 20 mins later, I heard a crunching sound and shortly after a choking sound over the monitor.  I immediately got up out of bed and ran to her room to check on her.  She was lying still with her eyes closed so I assumed she was sound asleep.  I stayed there for probably another few seconds watching her and she started moving some.  I leaned over in her crib and got near her face to see her better because it was dark, and low and behold that strumpet's eyes opened at the same time and started grinning from ear to ear.  SHE PUNKED ME!  How does a 16 month old punk their parents??  Brayleigh somehow snuck her cheerio cup into her crib and had a late night snack without my permission.  I am not sure when she put the cheerios in the crib but I never saw them.  I am still laughing at her today.....I think I have my hands full!!!!

Kara and Tyler's Wedding!

So a few weeks ago, my best friend from high school got married at the beach and we had such a good time.  The wedding was held at her mom and stepdad's house and the scenery couldn't have been more beautiful.  Despite the 110 degree temperature's we were facing, everything ran smoothly and no one fell out because of the heat.  Kara and Tyler have been dating for 3 plus years and they have a handsome little boy named Harrison.  He is probably the cutest red head I've ever seen!  Kara's bridesmaids wore a very pretty blue and her honorary bridesmaids wore canary yellow.  I felt honored to be one of her honorary bridesmaids :)   Kara looked so pretty and she was probably one of the most laid back bride I have ever come across.  I kept laughing the whole time telling her "how in the world are you this calm?"  Bridezilla was not her name that day.  If all brides could be like her, I would attend more weddings!  ;) 

Here is a picture of me and the bride...

Recap from the weekend

I promised to do better with my blogging so Im back to recap the weekend.  Why do weekends go by SO fast and a work week drags SO slow!?!?!?  Overall, this weekend has been good.  It was an "on the go" type of weekend that's for sure.  I decided to take off early Friday afternoon and we went out to eat at San Juan for supper.  It's a local mexican restaurant and it muy delicioso!  Haha, sorry had to use some of my spanish skills.  We have 3 mexican restaurants in town and it's by far that best in my opinion.  So, Brandon took his two girls out for the night....ran into a few people we knew including some of his coworkers and my ex coworker Tammy!  Sure do miss that gal!!  Brayleigh did very well and ate her whole plate of chicken tenders.  Big girl!   My dad came up Saturday to visit.  He lives in South Carolina so I do not see him much.  We had a good time together as usual and Brayleigh loved seeing her granddaddy.  My dad took us out to eat at Applebee's...once again, very tasty!  It was a short time seeing him but very glad he came up!   Brayleigh got a cat by the way.  I will post pictures later.  This guy is not your ordinary cat, it's like a mountain lion or something.  Im pretty sure he weighs close to 30lbs and he is very fluffy!  His previous owner called him Puff.  I can see why, haha.  Brayleigh loves to chase him around the house and says "kitty kitty".  I love it, they are so sweet!  My very good friend Kayla who is from Wilmington also came to town this weekend.  She is in nursing school at UNC-Wilmington and works as a nursing assistant at New Hanover Hospital.  Im so proud of her and love that girl some kinda good! 

Big Brother is on so I have to go!!!!  PS. it's my favorite tv show.  Will blog more later!

Pictures from L-R:  My dad and Miss Brayleigh Layne.  Kayla and Brayleigh.   New kitty kitty named Puff.   Brayleigh in her pink water! 

Brayleigh's first trip to the aquarium and beach!

Let's start with the pictures....



It looks like these girls were perfect and sweet, minded their moms, walked slowly, never screamed or threw tantrums huh?  Well, let's just say that these pictures portray something totally different.  The little girl in the pictures with Brayleigh is Paisley Howard.  My very good friend Brittany and I decided to take our daughters on their first beach and aquarium trip.  Paisley is 20 months old, so she is alot more calm than Brayleigh due to the 5 month difference between them.  I didnt see Brittany leaning over scooping up her child before everyone else in the aquarium trampled over her as much as I had too.  Brayleigh hates being confined in anything so the stroller was out of the picture for the most part.  She wanted to run through the whole place by herself.  I did more running, falling and laughing than anything else...and by the end of the trip, I was drenched with sweat!!  I always said that I would NEVER get one of those leashes that you see parents pulling their child with, but after that experience...I will not attempt anything like that again WITHOUT some kind of restraint for my wild and crazy child.  Now, onto the beach trip........

Bottom line, Brayleigh is not scared of water.  She loves any type of water whether it's the bathtub, river, pool, ocean, sink faucet...she absolutely loves water.  Maybe part fish, not sure???  As soon as she saw the ocean, she went nuts and started running to the water.  Not the body of water I wanted her to love the most considering it's the most dangerous of them all.  She kept trying to go in by herself and I would end up pulling her arms pure out of socket so needless to say, it was a DISASTER!  Oh, not to mention....she ate so much sand that it tore her belly up.  How do you keep a child from eating sand especially when your surrounded by it?  I'll answer that for you...YOU CANT!    So, by the end of the day...we had tired babies and we were tired mommies!   Will we do that again?  Nope, not until they are older and can help carry stuff.  My mom always said "you pack up your life to go to the beach only to stay for 1 hour"...................Let's just say, Mothers always know best!

I promise to do better......

Once again, time has gotten the best of me and I forgot ALL about this blog of mine. So very sorry blog world!


Everything is wonderful on the homefront.  Job is great, this semester is slowly coming to an end, and the family is doing excellent.  I should have about 3 more semesters to go and then I will have an Associate's Degree in Office Administration.  Hallelujah!  Yes, it has only taken me 5 years to get a measley ol' 2 year degree.  Ahhhh!

An update on the baby diva....Miss Brayleigh is 15 1/2 months old.  She is SO MUCH fun right now and has so much spunk in her.  We took her to her LAST well check appt until she goes to Kindegarden!  Yayy!  No more shots for the baby.  I'm sure she will be excited about that.  Brayleigh weighed 26.5lbs and was 32.5in long.  She is growing perfectly normal and way too fast for Mommy!

 

This child is part fish, as you can see.  She loves the water so much and would stay outside in it all day long if you let her.  Worst part about it though, she has no fear of it.  Yes, you probably think that is a good thing but right now, it is not!  She wants to swim and do everything on her own.  She doesn't get that she can easily drown by not being able to swim.  Most of our pool visits end with lots of tears because I wont let go of her and she hates when I hold on to her. 



Brayleigh's vocabulary has boomed tremendously!  I love it....just ready for her to have a conversation with me. 


Her words:  Baby, Bubbles, Bobby, Daddy, Mommy, Beans, Ball, Dog, Book, Nana (banana), Fish, Peas, and more.


Will blog about her aquarium and first beach trip next!!

Have I ever mentioned how exhausted I am and how I wish there was like 5-6 more hours in each day to get everything I need to get done??  Well if I havent, I DO!!!  I feel like I can't accomplish anything these days. 

My daily schedule consists of this:

Work 8-5
Lunch break 12-1 (which I try and run errands if at all possible)
Rush to get the baby before the day care closes
Come home to cook,clean,etc. (no, i dont do much cooking)
Play time, bath time, and bed time for Brayleigh all before 8:00
MOMMY TIME after 8 normally.

What does MOMMY TIME consists of?...School work majority of the time.  
I have such a tight schedule that if I slip up some where, I fail in something.  SO STRESSFUL right?
I try and live through a calendar along with thousands of sticky notes and yes, I plan to make plans.  I get picked on so bad for doing that...but it just comes natural.  My mom did it, her mom did it, her mom's mom did it.  Yeah you get it haha



Update on the homefront since I havent blogged in FOREVER.
Brayleigh is almost 13months old.  We had her birthday party last month and it was a huge blowout.  So many people came to celebrate her first birthday and it was so sweet!  WE MADE IT.  We made it one whole year.  I've always heard the first year was the hardest...so if that is true, whewww glad that's over.   I do not miss Brayleigh being a very small baby but I am sad that she is growing up so fast.  Here are some pictures of her party!

Paisley, Brayleigh, and Thomas

Brayleigh smashing her cake 

Our birthday princess! 

Bestfriends forever! Brayleigh and Paisley :) 

Bray opening up some presents!

Needless to say, she had a great time and got lots of presents!  She got dvd's, books, clothes, toys, and a few sentimental items.  Spoiled rotten little girl!



New blog!!

Hey everyone!

Im starting this blog over but keeping my old posts.  I finally found a cute template and Im learning how to make my blog unique and adorable!  Hope you all love the name :)  I found it pretty fitting.  My life revolves around my baby girl but every now and then, a woman needs time to herself and during that time...it's always good to have a drink to unwind and RELAX! 

Bray's first day at the pool!

We took Brayleigh to Tranter's Creek Campground where Brandon's parents camp at...and Brayleigh had such a good time in the pool.  Ofcourse, every "first" moment scares me but she did a great job and absolutely loved the water.  I think she looked at it like..ohhh big bathtub!!  She was wearing her cute 2 peice bikini her Aunt Rachel got her and I know Im biased but my goodness my baby was adorable.  We didnt stay too long though because she didn't enjoy the big wet diaper that she was sporting around. 

                         Her first time in the pool!

                         Princess in her cute bikini :)

My baby girl and I :)

I just realized I have not blogged in forever....I am so SORRY!

There is so much to update every one on.....I will start by saying Miss Brayleigh Layne is growing up SO fast and getting quite the personality.  She turned 3 months old on Saturday June 25th.  I cannot believe how fast time is flying!!  It's almost heartbreaking :(  Before I know it, she'll be talking back to me and running away from me. 

I've been absolutely crazy busy these past couple of months with finishing up school work, work, being a mommy and part time Daddy because of his crazy hours, and maintaining some what of a clean house.  I will tell anyone out there who reads this and is not a parent...being a mommy is the HARDEST but most rewarding job in the world.  I never wanted children but God blessed me with my princess and I dont even remember life before her.  She is my number one and everything revolves around her!

Brayleigh went to her 2 month appt on May 26th and she weighed 12 lbs and 3oz and was 23 inches long.  She is in the 90th percentile all the way around...yes, we got a BIG BABY GIRL! :)  She did excellent with her shots and didnt have any type of reaction or fever afterwards.  I was sooo proud of her.  My goal when I got back to work was to have her on a strict routine so Mommy and baby could both sleep through the night.  Every day, she gets her bath at 7:30, has her night time bottle, and I rock her to sleep afterwards.  I think my favorite part of the day is rocking her to sleep.  It's such a sweet bonding time between us :)  Brayleigh has been sleeping pretty good for the most part...I am thankful she only wakes up once a night and that is normally around 1 or 2.  I couldn't ask for anything better! 

This sweet girl LOVES to smile at anything and everything!!

Posing for the camera!                   

                                                                                                                       Holding that head up good!

Wow...I haven't blogged in 10 days!  Sorry :(

Being a mother is a FULL TIME job in itself.  Fixing bottles, feeding her, washing bottles, changing diapers, tummy time, rocking time, giving her all the love in the world takes up your day.  I was just telling a good friend of mine who is also a mommy that the hours in the day go by SO fast now.  Everytime I look at the clock, it's another hour passed.  Crazy!

Brayleigh is now 3 weeks old and she has changed SO much in 3 weeks.  At her 2 week check up, she weighed 8lbs 7oz so she gained a pound!  Yay!  Everything else looked great with her too, so I was def. pleased.  We've found out that she absolutely HATES sleeping on her back and will not tolerate it one bit.  She loves her swing, bumzee pillow, and mommy/daddy's chest!  She loves sleeping on her tummy even though she's not suppose to. 

Next week, we have to find a daycare/babysitter and Im so upset about it.  I wish I had the luxury of staying home and being with her every waking moment.  Leaving her is going to be so tough, I just hope and pray I can handle it.

Will post more later!

Tummy time!  She's picking her head up great and almost rolling over too! :)

Today's been a good day because Mommy got some rest last night.  When Mommy get's sleep, everyone has a good day.  I didn't really understand the concept of "no sleep" with a newborn, but now I do.  Being a mom is the HARDEST job I've ever had to take on, but it's so rewarding.  When my little girl looks at me straight in my eyes and makes the cutest faces at me, my heart melts to peices. 

Today Aunt Brittany and sweet Paisley came over to visit!  Always love seeing my sweet Paisley girl.  She's growing up so quick and getting SO big.  Brittany took pictures of Brayleigh while she was here.  They turned out so cute!  Photography is one of Brittany's many talents and she does such a great job.  I'm so blessed to have friends who take pictures :) 

This basket is actually an Easter basket my mom gave me so I am passing it on to my baby girl!  I can't wait until she's older and can go on Easter egg hunts with her cousins and friends :)  The picture with the police hat is for her Daddy.  She is already a Daddy's girl and looks identical to him!  He is a police officer for the City of Kinston so ofcourse I had to correlate the hat with her newborn pictures!

Adjusting to my new life

Life as I knew, has CHANGED.

It's no longer about me or Brandon, it's ALL about Brayleigh Layne.  Which Im okay with, because she's my everything.  My friends who are moms already use to tell me that you'll never love something as much as you love your child and I completely agree.  It's been 10 days since she's been born and it feels like a lifetime already.  The days fly by so fast now.  Between feedings, diaper changes, baths, cleaning bottles, pumping, and everyday house chores...there is NO time for anything else.  I couldn't imagine having another child and having a newborn.  To you moms out there that do, I look up to ya! 

Here's some updated pictures of our Princess :)

The birth of my baby girl!

My last blog to everyone was Thursday a week ago and I was updating you from my doctor appointment and explaining how miserable I was and ready to have this baby.  Well........SHE'S FINALLY HERE!

About 1am on Friday morning, I woke up in pain in my lower abdomen like I was about to start my period.  I had been feeling this pain for a while so I didn't expect it to be anything other than gas or Braxton Hicks contractions.  I got up and drank some water and walk around and I noticed that the pain started coming and going and I could actually time the contractions out.  At 1:15 they were getting a little stronger so I waited to call the Dr.  I finally called at 1:30 with contractions coming 6 minutes apart.  They weren't extremely painful but I knew that this was it.  I woke Brandon up and told him to get ready, I called my mama and his parents and we all headed to the hospital.  I remember telling Brandon to speed up because they started coming every 4 minutes crossing the King St. bridge and we still had a long ways to drive.  He drove about 85mph down Hwy 11 and had to stop for gas too, but we finally made it to the hospital.  I checked in, and went straight to a room and when I was hooked up to the monitors, they were indeed real contractions and I was 4cm dilated and completely effaced.  4cm dilated is a long ways away from 10cm so in my mind I knew this would take a while.  I breathed through contractions for the next 4 hours and about 7:00, Dr Taft walks in and checks me.  I was 5 cm dilated and he then broke my water.  He explained to me about the medications I could get and told me to think hard because these contractions would get more intense the further we got into labor.  I kept saying I didn't want the epidural, because I didnt like to feel numb and my anxiety would take over.  The nurse and my mom were trying to talk me into it because they knew how intense things were about to become.  Around 8:00, I kept feeling like I had to push because there was so much pressure down there and I told the nurse that.  She said "no, don't push, it's probably just a little pressure."  I kept trying to tell her "NO, I have to push, somethings down there."  At this time, she had just given me a dose of Nubane and Phenagrin (sp?) and I was OUT OF IT.  My mom said I wasn't too loopy but I don't even remember the last part of labor and delivery.  The nurse finally checked me and she was like amazed, I was 8cm at 8:30.  I dilated 3 cm in one hour.  She called the midwife in and they said it wouldn't be long from them.  I was so doped up, Brandon said they had to delay me pushing an hour because of the medicine.  Finally, it was time to push and that sweet baby came out in 30 mins of me pushing.  I remember one thing about delivery, the midwife looked at me when her shoulders came out and asked me if I wanted to pull her out.  I was a little confused but I remembered an episode of Keeping Up With The Kardashians and Kourtney Kardashian pulled her baby out during delivery.  I reached down there and grabbed her by her arms and pulled her out and put her on my chest.  It was amazing to say the least.  I always said I didn't want to touch the "after birth" but at that time, I didn't care at all.  She was out of me, breathing and kicking and squirming.  Life as I knew it, had then changed!  She's my life and I have never experience love this strong.  It's absolutely crazy to me how one little 7lb baby can steal your heart like she did mine.  I am so thankful for her and Im blessed to have a baby that's healthy as well. 

Brayleigh Layne Turner

7lbs 15oz 19inches

March 25, 2011

Today has been quite a day for me and I don't mean anything good by that statement.  They say that women who are 9 months pregnant will have BAD days, GOOD days, and days in between.  Today, was considered a BAD day!  This morning, my day started out normal like it always does and I felt fine for the most part.  It turned into a bad day when I walked out of the house, locked the door and got to my car and realized my key chain was sitting on my dresser in my bedroom.  UGH!  I called Brandon and ofcourse he was already at work and he had to leave, I was crying and basicly a huge mess.  My intentions today were to go to work and once I got off, go get spare keys made.  BUT ofcourse, my plans never pan out properly.  As I was driving to work, I had a pain that I have never felt before come over me and it consumed my whole abdomen area.  I was driving so it was all I could do to focus on the road to get to where I could pull over.  Finally after 30 seconds or more, the pain eased off and the baby moved.  Im not quite sure if I lost my mind at that time or if she shifted and landed on a nerve, but my fingers on my left hand went completely numb.  One at a time, I lost the feeling in each finger.  It was so weird.  I immediately called my mom because I knew she has pinched nerves and her fingers go numb some too and she told me to walk and see if the feeling would come back.  I parked my car and walked into work and went straight to the nurses station.  I explained to the nurse what happened and she said that she could has sat on or kicked a nerves and that would cause that to happen.  Once I finally got my feeling back in my hand and fingers, my lip started tingling on the left side.  I freaked out!  I just knew at that time something was wrong.  Well it immediately went away and didn't come back.  I sat down there a little while longer resting and making sure nothing else strange would happen and finally walked upstairs to my desk.  I may have answered 2 or 3 calls andstarted feeling even worse.  My nerves were working on me as well so that surely didn't help the situation but when I got my things together and made the decision to go home, my left eye got blurry at that time and I felt so weak.  Okay what in the world is going on with my left side?  Many thoughts were racing through my head and I went right back to the nurse.  She told me to keep my eyes shut and just take deep breaths.  I did so and got my blood pressure checked.  It was a little high probably due to me freaking out though.  FInally, I decided to call the doctor and go home and lay down.  A nurse eventually called me back and said I needed to come on in.  I got there around 1:30 and Dr. Taft saw me this time.  He knew at this point, I had absolutely HAD it with being pregnant.  We ran some tests and I took a non-stress test and the baby looked great and ofcourse, NO contractions when I needed some to show up.  Haha :)~  But Im glad everything looked good.  All I've prayed for this whole time was a safe and healthy delivery with a healthy baby to hold at the end.  We go back Monday for an ultrasound and another non-stress test and then talk to the Dr about an induction time for Wednesday morning. 

After the Dr appt, my mom and I went to Ross and she got a couple of things and then went to Michael's so she could buy paint.  Michael's is right beside Five Guys so we decided to eat there.  It was good food, but not as good as what I've heard people say.  Paying 4$ for a cheeseburger is RIDICULOUS when it didn't taste any better than a Wendy's burger in my opinion.  I love spending time like that with my mom.  She's an amazing woman and she's been here for me through everything.  I love her with all of my heart :)

I love Wednesday and Thursday nights...It's my TV show night.  American Idol is on right now and I really love watching the talent this season.  It's absolutely AMAZING!  This week they are doing Motown songs and so far, it's been awesome to watch.  My favorite singer for the guys is between Casey Abrams and Jacob Lusk and for the girls, it's between Lauren Alaina and Pia.  They are all great singers so the competition this year is going to be tough to choose from.

We went to the Dr today for their 40 week check-up.  Baby Brayleigh is measuring great, and she's dropped even lower.  The Dr could even feel her head in my pelvis when he checked me so that means she's RIGHT there.  If she doesn't decide to come on her own before Wednesday, I am scheduled to be induced Wednesday morning.  Looks like she'll have a birthday of March 30th, 2011.  I'm saying a prayer she decides to come before though.  My birth plan didn't consist of induction so I hope I get to follow my birth plan.  Speaking of birth plan, in case anyone wants to know what mine is....I did not want any drugs what so ever.  I haven't signed up for an epidural and I told the doctor's I didn't want any medicine IF I could help it.  Now, during the time of active labor, if I need medicine I will ask but I'm hoping I can tough it out!  I walked alot today as well..close to 2 miles and let me tell you, I am WORE SLAM OUT now.  I feel like I have gone to the gym and worked out for the first time in months and I know for sure I will not be able to walk in the morning!

We are suppose to have bad storms tonight..I am hoping I will get a good night's sleep.  I love a night-time storm as long as it's not going to bring a tornado or anything dangerous.  I am hoping Brandon will be home some what early tonight from work so I can enjoy the storm and snuggle with my best friend.  I haven't wrote about him lately but I will say that I have been completely HAPPY with my life and our relationship.  He's a wonderful boyfriend, support system, and most importantly..he's my best friend.  People say the "spark" is suppose to dwindle out over time and I can say that when he walks into the room, my worlds lights up.  I love him so much and he's going to be an awesome Daddy :)  I hope and pray we get to hold our sweet baby soon and everything goes well during labor and delivery!

 

I am completely exhausted...that's all I can really say right now.  Being 40 weeks pregnant is tough on a woman especially when you have to continue your everyday life activities.  By the end of the day, my ankles and calves are swollen and so sore.  The only time I want my body parts to be sore is if its because of the gym and me exercising!  In this case, it's definitely not. 

I did manage to get by the hospital to see my friend Emmie who is an ultrasound tech there.  She scanned Brayleigh to make sure that all is well with her, and it was.  I feel a little better about carrying her this long because she's measuring 40 weeks today.  At least she's not completely matured and hopefully not in any danger so seeing that made me feel better.  I saw her sweet chubby cheeks and my heart melted.  I cannot wait to see her in person and I cannot wait to kiss those precious cheeks either!  The ultrasound showed her weighing 8lbs and 6oz as of today.  I have a feeling it may be a little off because I just don't see myself being that big.  I guess we'll see soon enough :) 

Our next appt is tomorrow morning at 9.  I am pretty positive that I will be sent back home and told to come back next week.  As long as the baby is not in stress, we can continue on this journey.  WHAT ABOUT ME THOUGH?  What about the stress that I feel and that I'm under??  ;)  All I can pray for is a safe and healthy delivery of the baby and myself. 

I heard seen alot of people's statuses lately saying they are praying for families...I will keep those families in my prayers as well.  A friend of mine lost a good friend of hers last night and my heart goes out to her family and friends.  I am all too familiar with losing loved ones and I can only pray that God keeps them close by during this time.  It's something we will never understand and actually are meant to not understand but he does have a plan for everyone.  If He brings you to it, He'll bring you through it!