Family of Three

Mallory Grace Heath arrived on July 13, 2009 weighing in at 7 pounds and 14 ounces, 21 inches long. I won't lie, labor was AWFUL! It was by far the hardest thing i've ever done in my entire life and much more difficult than I had expected. My water broke at 4:45 am on the 13th, but contractions never started on their own so I had to be given pitocin to make them start. When they started they were strong and I had to get my epidural around 12:30. I was shaking, sweating and feeling like I was going to throw up before I got it. Fifteen minutes later, I felt like a new person and that lasted until about 7:00 and I started to feel the pain again on my left side. My nurses said that happened sometimes when the epidural would be more effective on one side than the other. I wasn't feeling anything on my right side, but EVERYTHING down my left side. I was back to the feelings of being hot and nauseated. Finally around 9:00, I was fully dilated and able to push. After two and a half hours of pushing, Mallory arrived at 11:31 pm. It is true when people say that you forget the pain. I didn't think it was possible at the time of delivery but everyday that goes by it does seem less and less traumatic, ha :)

Two and half weeks later, we are adjusting nicely. Breastfeeding gets a little easier everyday and today I can say it has actually been enjoyable. I guess I am getting used to very little sleep and holding a baby 24/7! She eats about every two to two and a half hours and is now starting to sleep in between feedings at night which is wonderful. For at least the first week, she had her days and nights confused big time and still does from time to time but at least we have more good nights now than bad. She is a very good baby and so far has never cried when we were not able to console her. Patrick and I are so blessed to have a healthy baby and we thank God for her everyday!

P.S. I would post more pics, but my internet SUCKS and it takes a really, really long time to upload them, so sorry!!

POOR BLOG!!

Yes, I am the worst blogger in history. I can't believe it has been almost 2 months since I have posted! I would list out all the excuses I have for not posting in so long, but I am sure you all know them and you all know that I am miserable with absolutely no creative energy right now. I am still alive though and Mallory has yet to make her entrance. I have accomplished getting the nursery mostly organized this weekend and I will TRY to get some pictures up soon. The car seat is in the car, bags are packed and we are hoping for a baby any day now...the sooner, the happier mommy will be! I am off to bed now...maybe it won't be so long till the next time.

Poor Riley

Sunday afternoon I walked outside to find Riley looking like this. Luckily, we have a vet that lives about a mile from us so Patrick took him up to her house and they concluded that he had been bit by a snake. The whole right side of his face was swollen including his eye and everything was drooping down. The vet gave him a shot and some Benadryl and poor Riley was out of it the rest of the day. The swelling has gone down a little each day and he acts like his normal self again now. Patrick and I were trying to figure out what was swollen more...my ankles or Riley's face, ha!

Productive Saturday

For once, I had a really productive Saturday! I started cleaning the house at 8 am like a mad woman to try and get it finished before Trish got here around lunch. Her house is always immaculate and mine has been lacking cleaning attention because we have been so busy lately so I had a short amount of time to get it together. I got almost the entire house done and her and Kyle came about 11. She put my wall decal on and painted the dots around it. She is so creative and talented and she did a perfect job! I am thrilled with the results.

Afterwards, I went grocery shopping, made two strawberry pies and then we went out to dinner with Nikki and Keith at the Olive Garden. The perfect ending to a productive day!!

Rest in Peace Grandma and Grandaddy

I am sure everyone that reads my blog knows that I have lost both of my paternal grandparents in the last 3 months. My Grandma passed away in January and then my Grandaddy passed away last Sunday. They were married for over 70 years and were an incredible part of my life. I do believe that they helped to make me the person I am today because I spent so much time with them growing up and they were such a positive influence on my childhood. While they will be greatly missed, I am extremely blessed that I was able to have them in my life for 28 years and I know that Mallory will have grandparents just as good to her as mine were to me. Without a doubt, my Grandma and Grandaddy are in heaven now, together again - as they should be.

My new infatuation...

I don't know if it's my hormones or what, because I've never been a big fan of hair bows but these little hats and bows for infants are about the cutest thing I have ever seen. Just looking at pictures of these precious little girls with their hair bows makes me melt and I am so excited that I can't hardly stand it. I have spent much time on an amazing website (http://www.etsy.com/) where such things can be found and I'm working on picking Mallory out the perfect hair bows. Of course, don't be surprised if you never see her in one because like I said this could be just a phase with me, ha.

I am home today because I've had a little stomach bug the past two days. I'm feeling much better this afternoon thankfully. I've come to realize now that I'm in my third trimester that it is very much like the first. Every little pain, cramp, or twinge that I feel has me worrying that something wrong is happening with the baby. Except now my main concern is contractions and will I know when they start...crazy, I know. Everyone says I will know without a doubt but I think I'm already have some Braxton Hicks contractions. They are painless and normal from what I've read but I'm still going to talk to my doctor about it on Monday since I still have 12 and a half weeks to go.

Lastly, the past week and a half has been horrible for our community. We've had 3 tragedies occur and I ask that everyone pray for the families of Allen Pearson, John Alphin and Kathi Johnson. Please ask that God be with them during this difficult time.

Love to you all,

Ashley

Dreams of shopping

This morning I was in the middle of a wonderful dream where I was shopping for Mallory and finding the cutest clothes on sale, when her kicks woke me up. I grabbed Patrick's hand and put it on my stomach so he could feel too. Then I explained to him that Mallory was kicking out of excitement because we were shopping for her in my dream, haha! His reply, "Not two shopoholics now!"

The two outfits below I found at WalMart for $4 each last Saturday. I couldn't resist, they are so cute!!

The Hills

Here I am living large at 25 and a half weeks. Thank you Ashley for taking this picture!

The title of this post is The Hills because the new season starts tonight! Yes, I know how lame I am for watching it and loving it so much but it's my guilty pleasure. I am sad it's the last season but there are a few spinoffs going on so that eases the pain a little, haha. Of course, I always have to DVR my shows that come on at 10:00 or later because it's past my bedtime but I will watch it the minute I get home from work tomorrow!

One and a half weeks from third trimester!

How far along?: 25 weeks 2days

Total weight gain: Uhhh...my least favorite question of all questions, but people love to ask this!! Even people that I don't know that well, go figure. 25 pounds :(

How much does baby weigh?: A week ago she weighed 1 pound 8 oz

Maternity clothes?: Ohhh yes. I found a brand that I love...Motherhood Maternity. Very comfy and affordable!!

Stretch marks?: None yet! I am hoping I inherited my mother's elasticity since she has none :)

Sleep?: I sleep great for the most part, but I HATE getting up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom and that's an every night thing now. I better get used to it!!

Best moment this week?: Actually seeing my stomach move.

Movement?: Lots, she is very active most days.

Food cravings?: Sweets like cake and brownies.

Labor signs?: None so far, thank goodness

Belly button in or out?: Still in but it's getter smaller and smaller, like the hole is shrinking. Patrick thinks I am crazy but it FREAKS me out...

What I miss: being 25 pounds lighter

What I'm looking forward to: Finishing the nursery and having only baby stuff in the room.

Milestone: the baby could live outside the womb if she were to be born now...but we want her to keep cooking for a while longer :)

Just for fun - hope it's not true!

I took a birth prediction quiz online just for fun. Here are the answers to the questions they asked:

Green is your favorite color.
You have three ring(s) on your fingers.
The weather outside now is fair.
Do you prefer the scent of pine or lavender? - Lavender.
The last animal you saw was a dog.
Your favorite type of movie is comedy.
pop music makes baby the most active.
Do you like broccoli? yes.
Your most consistent craving is? chocolate.
Do you paint your fingernails or toenails? yes.
You are one of three.

And here are the results:

The day you deliver, outside will be hazy. Your baby will arrive in the early morning. After a labor lasting approximately 40 hours, your child, a girl, will be born. Your baby will weigh about 5 pounds, 8 ounces, and will be 16 inches long. This child will have dark hazel eyes and fluffy red hair.

40 hour labor!!! And fluffy red hair?? Glad this was just for fun!

We had a little scare

Yesterday as I was getting off work, Mama text me and told me they had decided to put my Grandaddy in the hospital because he was having problems breathing. So I decide to go by and visit him to see how he is doing. I was there for several hours and he seemed to get better the longer I was there. He told me that he didn't want me to leave until Daddy got there, which was fine because I was enjoying our visit. After about the 100th nurse came in, I decided to step outside the room for a few minutes and when I stood up from the chair I had been sitting in for a while, I noticed my pants were all wet. So I get a little freaked out of course and go to the bathroom to find my whole crotch area wet...it's even gone through my jeans! I know I haven't peed on myself so I'm feeling very confused at this point. I call my mom and she (who has had 3 kids) has never experienced anything like this and suggests that I call my doctor. It's after hours so I have to leave a message for the doctor to call me back. When he called me back, I explained what had happened and he wants to know if it's still going on or has it stopped. At this point, I have no idea because I am still in the same wet clothes and once they are wet, they're wet. He advises I get home as soon as possible to monitor the leakage and come in first thing in the morning. In other words...he was scared my water had broke.
Thankfully, my parents showed up shortly after to be with Grandaddy and I was able to get home and change clothes but I was a nervous wreck all night. I kept waking up and checking my underwear all night to be sure no more leakage had occurred. On a positive note, in the middle of the night Mallory decided to get the hiccups and I love to feel her hiccuping inside my stomach :) As usual, as soon as I wake Patrick up to tell him to feel my stomach...she stops :(
I had my doctor's appointment at 10:30 this morning and the first thing they do is check the baby's heart rate. It was 148 this morning and all was well. The doctor then took some swabs to look at under the microscope to check for amniotic fluid and I had an ultrasound to check my levels of fluid. We are so thankful that all turned out to be well. My doctor says he is 97% certain that the leakage was not premature rupture of membranes and apparently Mallory just decided to kick my bladder. Embarrassing, yes, but I am so very thankful she is still ok and in my belly to stay a while longer. The biggest concern I have now is, if this sort of thing is already happening at 5 and a half months, what is month 8 and 9 going to be like?? We will just have to deal with that when it gets here!
They cancelled my appointment for Tuesday so my one hour glucose test has been delayed until April 20th. Yay! I will post the ultrasound pictures this weekend probably. Mallory was moving around so much the tech had a hard time. She had her foot in her hand, playing with her toes...so cute! Well I have rambled on long enough...we are so very thankful that we have a healthy baby and that is the most important thing in the world right now.

Baby kicks

So baby Mallory loves to move around a lot now and Patrick has had the pleasure of feeling her kick two times now I think. The thing is, as soon as you put your hand on my stomach all movement stops, which is why he hasn't felt her move more. I am not sure if it's just our timing or coincidence. I am thinking it's because she is going to be as stubborn as her Daddy :)

Patrick and I survived all the birthday's the past two weeks. We had a great time celebrating with everyone and spending time with you all. I will have to say that I think my biggest craving during this whole pregnancy has been sweets and cake, so all the birthday cakes have been thoroughly enjoyed!

We get to have another ultrasound on Tuesday, the 31st along with the one hour glucose test, which I am a little concerned that I am going to fail. Don't ask me why, I just am. I will be sure to post the new ultrasound pictures though, so stay tuned!

Until next time,
Ashley

Also, 22 and a half week bump!

I am definitely pregnant "all over"! My face has gotten huge as well as everything else!
PS. Let's try a better angle next time A. Manning :)

Surprise!!!

After a really bad day yesterday (constant back pain and some kind of irritation going on in my left eye) I came home and thankfully Patrick was cooking dinner. He had a shrimp stew going and it was the perfect weather for it so I was happy about that. I changed my clothes, relaxed on the couch and started catching up on Y&R. After being home 30 minutes or so, Patrick asked if I could still smell the paint fumes from yesterday and Saturday and I said no. I then decided to go look at the painted, empty room to make sure it had all dried and when I opened the bedroom door... all the furniture was set up!! I had no idea that Patrick had been up to this all day! It is very hard for him to find time away from work to do these things so I wasn't getting my hopes up that we would get the furniture anytime this week. He was not able to work due to the rain, but I also never asked about him getting the furniture because I did not want it to get wet, but it all worked out! We still have a lot of work to do to the nursery and we are going to do some more painting but at least we have the basics now. Special thanks to Uncle Allen for his help yesterday!!

The cute sign above was a gift from Aunt Megan :) We love it and thank you!! She also bought Mallory the tag blanket that is on the back of the rocking chair. She is spoiling Mallory already!

The precious little onsie hanging on the dresser says "Does this diaper make my butt look big?" That was a gift from my friend Trish, who is also going to help with the more creative, finishing touches on the nursery. We are ready anytime now Trish!

Sorry it has been so long since I have updated the blog, things have been extremely busy! Four of my closest friends have birthdays all within 11 days and we are right in the middle of them now. Happy Birthday to Megan, Leigh, Nikki and Ashley! I hope you all have wonderful birthdays and many many more, I love you all!

My baby has a bed!

I finally decided on a crib and dressing table on Saturday. We didn't get the chest of drawers in the picture above, just the crib, dressing table and a chair. It is actually darker in person than in the picture and the crib converts to a toddler bed and a full size bed. I am in love with it and cannot wait to get the room painted and everything set up. We found the furniture at H Stadiems in Kinston and I also registered there...fyi :) They have the cutest baby clothes and a large selection. Believe it or not, but I have yet to buy my baby girl any clothes or shoes. If you all know me well...I know you are surprised!

I plan on starting to paint the nursery this weekend so I will be sure to post pictures of the progress we make.

18 Weeks and 2 Days

Yikes!!! That bump has grown! My coworker just took this picture of me this morning in the office. Big difference from two weeks ago, huh?

This is what I came home to yesterday...

Yes, this is my beautiful baby bedding from Pottery Barn that was delivered yesterday and I pull up in my driveway and it looks like this all scattered around the back yard! Of course, I call Patrick in hysterics crying because I can't believe the UPS man has left it where our dogs can get to the package! My first baby purchase ruined! *tear*

Anyway, Patrick was so sweet about the whole situation. After disciplining the two suspects, he came in and told me it was only a material item and could be replaced and it isn't something the baby needs right now so that did make me feel a little better. But still...it was my pottery barn kids baby bedding!!!! GRRRRR!

Lesson learned: Do not have packages delivered to my house anymore. Use work address for delivery!

It's a girl!!

This is a between the legs shot to determine boy or girl. The two dots above the "I'm a girl!!" are her feet. What is underneath is her little butt.

Apparently, she likes looking at her hand! She may have been trying to suck her thumb, but she never put it in her mouth. We could see her moving her mouth though like she wanted to - truly amazing!!

Full body profile of the baby with the heart rate on the bottom of the screen. The heart rate yesterday was 137 which we were told was very normal for this stage.

A close up view of the baby's face. Isn't she cute already?

"Big" Ultrasound tomorrow!

Well we go for the "big" ultrasound tomorrow where they are going to determine the gender for sure of our baby and check all the organs. I'm really excited about it but a little nervous at the same time, because most of all, I just want the baby to be healthy. My mom is going with me instead of Patrick because he went to the last two ultrasounds and my mom has never seen one done. When my brothers and I were born, they only did ultrasounds if they thought there may be problems. I know she will be amazed when she sees how far technology has come. I will definitely post the new ultrasound pictures and let everyone know boy or girl as soon as possible! Next on the agenda is starting on the nursery :)

Love to you all,
Ashley

16 week bump

Baby Heath at 15 weeks

Here are some of the ultrasound pictures from last week. The top picture is a full body profile with the heart rate at the bottom. The bottom picture is the baby attempting to suck his or her thumb. That's my favorite :)

Hello!

Hi everyone! We have decided to create a blog to keep you all updated on our growing family. It is a work in progress and I am still learning all about this so it may take a while but I am giving it a try :)
A quick update on the baby: Tomorrow will be 16 weeks! Time is going by so much faster now than it was during 1st trimester. I don't worry nearly as much as I did early on because I feel like I am past the risk of miscarriage and all my appointments and ultrasounds have looked great so far. As of last Tuesday, our ultrasound looked like we were having a baby girl. We have another ultrasound on next Tuesday, Feb. 3 where they are going to check again to make sure. 16 weeks down...24 more to go!