blog challenged

So I was messing around with my blog and somehow messed it up! My family photo up top used to be in the middle and now it is on the side and making me very annoyed. I was messing with the design and the template. If anyone can be of assistance, let me know!

On another note, Thanksgiving was great. We spent it with Jordan's Dad and his wife with her family, if that made any sense!

And Christmas is coming up on us so fast I can't even believe. I still have a bit more Christmas shopping to do, of course last minute. I am grateful that around this time of year, I find more joy in finding the perfect gift for family and friends that it doesn't really matter what I get. I am pretty sure I have used all the Christmas money I have received this year on buying more gifts for others. In the back of my head I think of that winter coat that I need for my last year's one was actually from the year before and is definitely not warm. I don't know what I was thinking. And some new jeans would be nice. I didn't realize how pregnancy would affect the body. Where it is nice that I am loosing a lot of my weight pretty quickly, I don't have any jeans that fit. I would now describe my body type has weird and flubber-like and doesn't fit in any jeans that society has to offer. Bummer. I just lay around in my pajamas all day, hoping I don't have to go anywhere. When it really comes down to Christmas, I just love spending time with family. We are lucky to have all of Jordan's family living around us and some of mine too! 

It will be Kyra's first Christmas! Santa won't be bringing her too much stuff this year. She can roll around everywhere and grab her toys but she won't get the excitement of opening presents. She will just want to eat the paper. So Santa is getting her a couple of toys and waiting until next year to splurge.

My ultimate wish, one day, is to visit Ireland. I know this is random but I have been thinking about it more lately. I was in Bath and Body Works the other day and they have a new lotion called 'P.S. I Love You.' This made me then think of the movie which some of it takes place in Ireland! I started researching Ireland a few years back and became obsessed! I will make it there someday. . .

Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year to you all!

that time of year

Once again, I try to keep up on my blog but have been unsuccessful. I even have more time to do so since I am not working at the moment. But I do have a very demanding 4 month old that takes up most of my attention. I hardly ever set her down, which will kick me in the butt later I am sure.

This is my favorite time of year!

The Fall weather. No snow yet (thank you!). And all the holidays!!

My birthday kicks it off, which I just so happened to be turning 25 this year! I always wondered, back when I was younger, where my life would be when I turned 25. And I can say that I am very satisfied with where I am! My family is just beginning and I am excited for the future.

As I mentioned in my last post, Jordan and I had gotten engaged and have since been married! October 23rd! We planned a wedding in 6 weeks! It can be done! Jordan's Mom, Tena helped me tremendously with all the details. My Mom wasn't able to fly in until a few days before the wedding, but she helped me a ton over the phone and we were running last minute errands once she got in to town. My friend Sarah was so kind as to take our engagement photos and my bridals. Both sessions turned out perfectly! Most of my immediate family came in for it and it was great spending time with them! I have been waiting for this day for a long time. Jordan and I have been dating over 4 years. I love the feeling of being married and being able to call him 'husband!' Although it was as if we were already married before, it feels so much better now. We didn't get to go on a honeymoon. We just stayed the night at the Marriott in Park City so we could have a night away. It was hard being away from Kyra. I have never left that long. It gave me a little bit of anxiety, especially since I am still nursing her! But my Mom had offered to take her for the night so we could have a wedding night! I made sure over a few months before the wedding, to pump as much milk as I could squeeze in, between feedings. So I had plently of milk for my Mom to feed Kyra. Since she was in the NICU for the first few days of her life, Kyra was used to taking a bottle which was a blessing! And she doesn't do bad with formula if my Mom absolutely needed to use, but she didn't! We left our wedding in our attire. It was a neat feeling to roll up to the hotel in my wedding dress! It was pretty late by then so no one was really around to see me, dang it! We decided, the next day, that we should have stayed away for two nights. We got to the hotel around 11pm and had to check out at 10am. No time to really relax! We had a fireplace in our room and didn't even get to turn it on! We are trying to plan a 'real' honeymoon for the Spring!

Totally smashing it in his face!

More pics to come of the wedding soon! (When I don't have a screaming baby on my hip!)

Right after the hooplah of our wedding, it was Kyra's 1st Halloween! She is only 4 months old so Halloween wasn't a big deal this year. We didn't go trick or treating but I still got her a cute costume to wear! Some of her cousins came over for lunch and we got some pictures with them! Next year she will be able to walk!! Can't wait.

Now it's on to Thanksgiving! We aren't sure of our plans yet but we will be spending it with family! I have many things to be grateful for, #1 is family!

procrastination

I realize that it has almost been a full three months since I last posted. I kept thinking about posting but never got around to it. I will keep Kyra's birth story short and simple, because it was definitely not a smooth delivery.

I got admitted to the hospital the night before I was to be induced, June 30th. They were giving me Cervidil over night to help me dilate, because I wasn't dilating at all at that point. When the nurse checked me the next morning, the Cervidil hadn't worked at all. Doctor Ferguson then decided to insert a little balloon that pulled down on my cervix to make me dilate. Let me tell you, that freakin' hurt! It made my contractions so bad, that I then got my epidural at 2 cm! Right after the epidural the balloon fell out, which was then supposed to have dilated me to a 5. Within the next couple of hours, I went to a 7 1/2 and then to a 9! The nurses started prepping the room for the baby! I was so nervous! Right after the room was prepped, the day nurses went off shift and the night ones came on. When one of the night nurses checked my dilation, she told me that I was only at a 4!! Uh? A 4? It didn't make sense. They called the doctor in and he said I was only at a 6 1/2. My goodness. Nobody knew what they were doing around there, besides my doctor who was wonderful. By that time, once Dr. Ferguson was there, he noticed that Kyra's heart rate was dropping a little with my contractions. So he gave me the option to go ahead and do a C-Section right then. I took it! I wanted that baby out of me!! I had Kyra at 6:45 pm on July 1st and she weighed 7lbs. 15oz.

It doesn't stop there. She wasn't breathing when she came out. The Brigham City Hospital is not equipped with a NICU, so Kyra was life-flighted down to Ogden Regional. By the time I came out of surgery, I got to see Kyra for a second before she was wheeled off to the helicopter. It was a crazy night. I was so drugged up that I didn't even understand what the on-call pediatrician was telling me, that they were taking my baby away because she wasn't breathing.

Recovering from a C-Section is not easy. I couldn't walk the whole next day! I got discharged from the hospital three days later. Luckily, the same day as Kyra did in Ogden. Over the last three months, I have been getting used to having an adorable little girl attached to me at all times! I love her so much. :)

In other news, JORDAN AND I ARE GETTING MARRIED! Finally. It has been a long time coming, but we are officially tying the knot on October 23rd! I can't even explain how excited I am. He and I have been together for 4 years. Needless to say, I have been waiting for this to happen for a LONG time! :)

Gettin' ready to leave for the hospital!

In his scrubs, ready for my surgery!

Touching my baby for the first time!

Kyra and her Daddy!

still waiting

Being in my last month of pregnancy, I have graduated from going to the doc every two weeks to going every week. 7 days could be just the right amount of time I need to get some dilation or it could be the longest week ever and I don't dilate at all.

Well, I am more the second part. After the last two appointments I have had no change. I went from 0 cm to 1/2 cm. And am pretty much staying at the 1/2. I went into the hospital last Friday with contractions. They hooked me up to all the good stuff and checked me but I wasn't dilated anymore then the 1/2 cm. The nurse let me contract for about two hours and then came back to check me, in which I hadn't progressed any. So the dreaded words, "we are sending you home."

The chance that I would be coming back anytime later that day, to have this baby, were slim to none. We went home and walked. And walked. I walked so much my feet have doubled in size now. My contractions were still coming but started to taper out Saturday morning. One thing is clear, this baby does not want to come out yet.

My due date is the 27th. So I technically still have a week to go. For all of you who have been pregnant should understand how I feel, but I DO NOT want to hear anything like these (especially from the male species):

'the baby will come when she is ready' (duh. I can't reach in there and grab her out whenever I want!)

'your due date is just a guesstimate, you could still be weeks off' (next time you can carry the extra 60 pounds that I have and we'll call it good)

'you still haven't had that baby yet?' (obviously not, or I wouldn't look like a huge whale still)

I am in no mood for this waiting game anymore. Ha. So I am holing myself up in my apartment so I don't have to go out and get the awful stares and annoying comments. Maybe something exciting will happen this week, probably not, or maybe the doc will take pity on me and induce me next Monday instead of letting me go till 41 WEEKS AH!
We shall see...

On a less annoyed note, Jordan and I celebrated FOUR years of being together last Wednesday!

my baby shower

Jordan's Mom and sister, Jessica threw me a baby shower last Saturday. The weather was finally perfect and we were able to have it outside! The food was amazing and the decorations were darling.

Jordan and I had maternity pictures taken recently, and his sister had some printed out and put them in frames to put on the tables.




Jordan's Grandma Ellen and Grandpa Roland came all the way from Salt Lake to spend some time with me! They contributed a lot to the car seat/stroller duo we got for Baby Kyra!



I definitely ate my share of pineapple! I read that it might help trigger labor, haha, hey! I am trying anything and everything I can. :)




Jessica made some cute magnets as favors. There was an array of flowers and butterflies. So cute. And easy to make!



I am pretty sure that I consumed half of the cup cakes on the stand! They had flavored frosting and decorated with fresh flowers!




We probably have everything we are going to need for now! Once Baby Kyra gets here, I am sure we will figure out the rest.

Last week at my doctor appointment, my doctor said that she is in position and it could be anytime now. I wasn't dilated at all then.

I have another appointment today, so hopefully some more good news!!

the final countdown

I am obviously not very good at keeping up with this blog. I think I feel that I never really have anything interesting to write about, but then again interesting things are always happening.

In the last two months I have been absent, I have:

♥ Gone back to work: crazy I know. I am just towards the end of my pregnancy and I decided to go back to work now? Well, it was more like needed to go back to work so Jordan and I could move out of his Mom's house before this baby comes! I had a job the first couple months of pregnancy, and then we moved to Jord's Mom's house. I half-heartedly looked for a job and then really just gave up trying. I didn't really want to work. But the more pregnant I got, it became apparent that I needed to get some kind of a job, to contribute an income to our savings for Baby Kyra. I got my old job back in Logan, where I had worked for about 8 months last year before moving to Salt Lake.

♥ MOVED to Logan: after working for a couple of weeks, Jord and I were able to afford a small apartment by the university. We packed up our stuff and moved from Garland to Logan. Summer rent is pretty cheap in Logan so we chose the perfect time to move out! We practically have the whole summer's rent paid off already and it is only June!

♥ Now in my last month of pregnancy: WOOHOO! I am usually not too much of a complainer, but I definitely have kicked it up a few notches these last few weeks. My feet are swollen, Baby Kyra is bigger now and I can feel her every kick, still not sleeping well, and I am so heavy that walking is a pain! On the brighter side of things, I have another baby shower coming up this Saturday. And I cannot even express how EXCITED I am for Baby Kyra to get here! I thought I was impatient before, but nothing compares to these last few weeks. Even though the doctor gives you a due date, babies will come whenever they feel. I wonder everyday if I will go into labor at anytime or if I will have to be induced. I want the excitement of my water breaking and us jumping in the car and racing to the hospital. But it would be nice to be induced, and know ahead of time, what day she will be here so we can be prepared. However it happens, I hope it is SOON!




35 weeks. She is going to be a BIG baby!




We ♥ her already!




Boy + Girl = Baby

It Is A Girl!

We found about two months ago that we are having a GIRL! She is what we were hoping for, but of course we would have been just as excited if it had been a boy. It didn't take us very long to decide on a name. We didn't have to do too much back and forth, we agreed pretty quick. Her name will be...

Kyra Ireland Bartholomew!

Jordan came up with Kyra...and it is pronounced ki-rah. I was hoping to name her Ireland the whole time but settled for it as a middle name. Both of those names don't really come from anywhere, we just loved them!

My due date at first was June 27th but at my last appointment they pushed me back to July 7th. But she will get here when she gets here! I am in my third trimester now. Time has been going by pretty fast up until now. It seems to have slowed down now that I have my last three months. This pregnancy has been pretty easy for me so I can't complain. I am just so excited for Baby Kyra to get here! She kicks me all the time and I love being able to feel it!

I am currently not working so I do a lot of sitting around the house. Jordan and I are still living at his mom's house. We hope to be moving out soon to our own apartment. I am excited to get baby girl's room ready! I have been obsessed with buying baby clothes. I mostly look for shoes, which I think are the cutest thing because they are so small!

Here are some light purple new born shoes that I got! So tiny!


...and this cute little hat with ears!

My friend Caiti is throwing me a baby shower this weekend. My mom just happens to be flying into town this week too! I am excited to see her!

25 weeks and counting!

Goodbyes

Jordan's Grandpa passed away last Wednesday night. His viewing was on Friday night and the funeral on Saturday. Jordan was very close with his Grandpa. It was a sad day but happy because he is reuniting with his wife that died several years ago. I never know what to say when an event like this takes place. I am usually an emotional person but being pregnant has intensified my emotions. Needless to say, all I could really do was cry.

Here we are at the viewing. You can't see my belly to well, but this is the 15 weeks belly. Thank goodness black is slimming!

Mickell, Cierra, and I. These are Jordan's sisters-in-law. Look how much taller I am!!

Jordan with his nephew, Payton.

My next doctor's appointment is on Monday! We will be finding out if we are having a boy or a girl!! I am way excited! Any bets....?

2010, a new beginning!

It has literally been 7 months since I last posted anything. Chalk it up to moving around, not having internet access, and pure laziness.


I'll give you the quick update:

Moved from Logan, UT to Salt Lake City, UT in April.


Got a job working at a cafe, story of my life.


Moved out of my house in October and moved to West Jordan, UT for a minute.


Found out I was 6 weeks pregnant in the beginning of November.


Jordan got his job back in Logan, UT.


Moved to Tremonton, UT mid-November to live with Jordan's Mom.


Now pregnant, job-less, and loving it!!


Jordan and I will be finding out the sex of the baby at the end of January! We are excited for that. It's like a milestone in pregnancy. Almost to the half way mark.


Christmas was great! I got a new digital camera to document my growing belly! I will try and post the ultrasounds as soon as I figure out how to do that.

Here I am at 14 weeks. The downward angle is better!

New Years was awesome! Hung out with family and played games. Drank way too much sparkling cider and almost fell asleep before the countdown!


2010 will bring amazing and new adventures, and I am look forward to it all!


Back to regular posting! (hopefully)