New Year!

Can you believe it, 2010 is just hours away. This year has been a whirlwind for me. I look back at where I was last year and how my life was. Robert had just gotten home from Afghanistan and we were spending time with our family in Arkansas. A lot has definitely happened this year. The biggest thing would definitely be Brycen. I didn't think that I would have a baby this year, but he has been the best thing. I also have graduated from college. (I am still waiting on a final grade, but I have no doubts that I passed!) Robert re-enlisted into the Marines. My big boy turned 2 and has become such a big kid!

It seems that the years just fly by faster and faster. Honestly, I am scared for the future. My life is such a joy right now, that I would love for it to go by in slow motion. But I know that that won't happen. Brycen is already almost 3 weeks old! Where did the time go?? Before I know it, we will be planning his first birthday. :(

I have been thinking a lot about my New Year's resolutions. I have 3 that I am dead set on acheiving...

#1 Weight Loss

Is this a cliche? I think this has just become the number one associated thing with the new year. I have already seen my fair share of commercials for the Wii Fit, Jillian Michael's workouts, etc. But its true. Last year I had made my goal weight. And then... I got pregnant. And of course, I gained 45+ pounds. I am not one of those (lucky) women that leaves the hospital having shed all of the baby weight. I have only lost about 15 pounds. Sooooo that means that I am doing my diet to try and lose the rest. Robert is dieting right now so that helps a lot. I just need to start an exercise routine. I am thinking about doing a weekly weigh-in to chart my diet. I will start this on Monday.

#2 Take more time

I wrote on my last blog how the days just fly by. I am trying my best to just soak up these moments. I catch myself just staring at Brycen, trying memorize his face and everything about him. Things that I took for granted with Thompson, I want to make right this time. I want to take more time for my family an doing things together. This will be a lot easier since we are moving to Oceanside-- there is just so much to do! I plan on lots of trips to the beach. I want the boys to feel that I spent as much time with them as I possibly could. I want them to look back on their childhood and be proud. I also want to take more time for my marriage. Robert and I don't have "date nights" and I want to change that. I need to make us a prority again. And its so easy to do, especially when you have children. One thing I heard that has stuck with me is that I need to make my husband one of my top priorities, because without him I wouldn't have my children.

#3 Church

This has been weighing on me for a while now. I have always attended church ever since I can remember. When Robert and I moved to 29 Palms we never attempted to find a church. I always said that we were going to try and go, but never did. I have been researching a few churches in Oceanside and can't wait to visit them. I want the boys to grow up with a church family. I need a church family for myself and for my marriage. I will be the first to admit that I have not put God first and I need to change that.

2010, I am ready!

Much needed update

I am going to try my best to keep up my posting. But let me tell ya... 2 kids are HARD!! It seems like I wake up (many, many times) and before I know it, it is time to go to sleep (yeah, right!) again.

My mom was out here visiting for 2 weeks and just left on Sunday. Having her around was such a big help. I know that Thompson enjoyed Nana's visit and attention.

Of course, Christmas was in full swing around our house as well. Thompson has officially learned to say "Open a present" and wanted to do so every hour for about a week. Our family sent many gifts for him to open so each day we opened a present (or 2, 3, or 4) so that way he wasn't completely overwhelmed on Christmas day. This worked out well except for the fact that he wanted to open them all the time! :)

Brycen update:

Yesterday we went for his two week checkup. They said he was doing great! He is back up to his birth weight and grew almost a whole inch! Wow! We are going back in a week to make sure that he continues gaining weight just because he is so small. They also did his circumcision yesterday as well. They normally do it when they are born, but he was so tiny that they wanted to wait until he was a little bigger. Everything is going great with that. It doesn't seem to bother him too much, but honestly he has been sleeping for most of the time. He is doing pretty good on his sleeping at night. We get up about 3 times or so to feed, but other than that it is going well. I will admit that there are times when I am dead tired and he is not wanting to sleep and I will let him come lay next to me. I am not a co-sleeper (not that there is anything wrong with it, it's just not for me) and Thompson did this when he was little as well. At about 3 months or so, Thompson slept in his own room. I hope to be able to do the same with Brycen, even though he does seem a little more "needy" than Thompson was. I just say that he is need of some TLC :)

Thompson has been battling an ear infection and sinus infection for about 2 weeks now. We went back to the doctor today for another round of antibiotics. Hopefully it will knock out what is left.

That's about it on the updating.

Ok, there is no particular order to this... just a lot of pictures!

I thought he looked so cute in these pictures

The boys' stockings

Christmas morning

Brycen enjoying the festivities

This is basically what I get to see. He LOVES sleeping on his momma. And of course, how can I say no? :)

This is about the best photo we got on Christmas. Brycen was not wanting his picture made.

Thompson playing with his toys in his new Razorback gear.

My Christmas gift from Robert! I LOVE them!

Brycen's birth announcement

Busy, Busy!

With two little ones, who would think I would be busy?

Thankfully, Robert and my mom have been such a big help! We did manage to get some great pictures yesterday!

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!

Brycen Matthew is here!

Well, I have been asap for a couple of days. Good reason though, our baby boy is here!

Thursday, I was supposed to have my doctors appointment at 2pm. As I was in the bathroom getting ready, my water broke! So I call the doctor and they said to go on and head up to Labor & Delivery to get checked out.

But not before we could get pictures, of course!

I get to L&D around 2:30pm and sure enough my water had broken. (On a side note...I really now believe that it had broke the night before. See my previous post! :)) They check me and I am 4cm dilated. I wasn't having any contractions, so it was pretty much just like Thompson's labor. Water broke and no contractions...

At about 4ish they get me into a room and get me all hooked up. They started my IV and finally around 5:30, they started me on pitocin. At 6:45 I received my epidural.

I still wasn't in a rythmatic contraction pattern, so they kept raising the pitocin dosage. They checked me again at around 7 and I was still at a 4. And at 9 I was still at a 4. I was pretty disappointed, but knew that as soon as my labor became "active", then it would really start. I started to finally get into a pattern and they checked me again at 10:30 and I was finally at a 5! YAY! Progress! But, with all of the pitocin and my body starting to do its thing, I was having contractions that were only about 2 minutes apart. Brycen wasn't recovering too well from all of them so I had to be put on an oxygen mask. Definitely made me nervous, but I knew that they were watching him. At midnight they checked me again and I was 6! I figured that if I kept progressing, then hopefully by 3 or so I would soon have my baby boy.

Boy was I wrong!

At about 12:30am I started feeling some pressure. Like last time, I thought the epidural was wearing off. The pressure was coming during my contractions, but by 12:45 it was constant throughout. Robert was so great. He just stood beside me reminding me that I needed to breathe. We got the nurse and she came in and checked me and sure enough I was 10cm dilated and at a +2 station. It was go time. She ran and got the doctor and the other people and at 1am we started to push.

Brycen Matthew Riedel was born at 1:08am. He weighed in at 6lbs 8ozs and was 20.2 inches long. He wasn't our 8+ lbs baby we were expecting, but he is absolutely perfect!

Daddy is proud to hold his baby boy

Momma got her turn

The next day Thompson came to meet his baby brother. This was probably the most proudest moment of my life. I will never forget the feeling of seeing both of my sons together.

We are so in love with this little boy. He has the prettiest face and the skinniest little legs! We couldn't ask for anything more.

We are so stunned by the resemblence of Thompson and Brycen. Here are some pictures of Thompson (on the left) and Brycen (on the right).

We made it home yesterday evening and we are doing great! Brycen is such a content baby. I was nervous (still am) that he was going to be the complete opposite of Thompson, who was the best baby!

Another great thing, you know how I have been in homework mode for the past few days? Well I finished my LAST class Thursday at noon. An hour and half later, my water broke! Is this child not the best?! He knew that his momma was on a deadline. So sweet! I take my final on Tuesday and as long as I pass, then I GRADUATE!!! Life could not be any better!

Today is a great day! My mom is on her way to spend 2 weeks with us! Robert and Thompson left this morning to go pick her up from the airport and they should be home any minute! I can't wait!!

Still Kickin'

Just checking in. Ha! I am still here as you can tell. I am just dropping in real quick before I finish my last day of homework. Wow! I am so glad I can say that.

I have a funny story to tell, really embarrassing on my part, but still very funny. I go to the bathroom around 20 times a day. Not. Kidding. I get up at least 3 times a night. Well last night I jump out of bed! I just knew that water had broke! I felt this huge gush and my underwear were soaked, so I ran and got on the toilet. I sat there and sat there and nothing else happened. So I figured that if my water had truly broken, when I got up and walked around I would start leaking. So I did. I walked around the house and nothing else came out. I decieded to try a few squats and the same thing, nothing came out. Hmmmm...

So needless to say I really, REALLY peed on myself last night. It was a first for sure! Lol.

I go to the dr. today at 2. I don't know what to expect today. I am hoping for progress, but now I am to the point of where Brycen needs to stay put for the next 3 days until his Nana can get out here. So??? I guess we will just see! :) I'll be back later for an update on that!

39 Weeks!

We have made it to 39 weeks! Thompson came exactly 1 week early, but I have a feeling that his little brother has decided that he is just going to stay in there! Why not? He has a warm, cozy place to sleep, an all-you-can-eat buffet, and nobody bothering him. Doesn't sound too bad to me. :)

Your baby's waiting to greet the world! He continues to build a layer of fat to help control his body temperature after birth, but it's likely he already measures about 20 inches and weighs a bit over 7 pounds, a mini watermelon. (Boys tend to be slightly heavier than girls.) The outer layers of his skin are sloughing off as new skin forms underneath.

I don't think I like anything being compared to a watermelon! And the 7 lbs baby they describe in their summary is probably my 8.5 lbs of joy! I think that part is what gets scarier and scarier every day-- knowing that the longer he is in there, the bigger he is getting! Eesh!

Nothing too much is going on here. We had the best rain yesterday! It maybe rains 2 days out of the year here and I just enjoyed opening the blinds and watching it. Very calming.

Thompson has been doing great. Definitely still a 2 year old and definitely still a boy! We are trying to break him of him telling us "No!" That doesn't go over too well with his daddy or I. Also, I think I have found out that he would much prefer cookies, ice cream, and chocolate shakes over anything anymore. He asks for all of them around 20 times a day. Not kidding. Poor kid. So deprived. Don't worry Nana and Papa-- we are not starving him, and most of the time he does get one of those treats a day (or 2 if his momma wants another excuse to have another!).

So, I am going to be sitting here. Waiting. Praying. Hoping. Wishing. Pleading. And maybe some begging. :)

EVICTION NOTICE!!!

I found this and thought it was so cute!

I am issuing 7 day notice for EVICTION.

Tenant will have 7 days in which he can either gather his belongings and promptly vacate the premises, or wait until the final day.

After which, he will be physically removed from the property.

He's being evicted due to breech of contract and destruction of property. Expansions only to the FRONT of the house, within reasonable limits, were discussed. Not only have these limits been exceeded, but additions to the back of the house were also made!

Remodeling and gutting of the home was never approved, nor was changing the initial layout and base structure.

And due to property damage, there are now leaks in both the upper AND lower levels of the home.

On top of which, the landlord has received numerous complaints about nightly disturbances.

After 7 days from this day that he doesn’t comply with the notice will result in immediate and forceful removal at my discretion.

Love,
Mommy

Think I am just about there...

You know... to that point where I am starting to say, "Is he EVER coming out???", "I'm going to be pregnant forever!!!", "Why oh why will he just not come??!!".

Yep. I am there.

I am not too miserable, just really REALLY anxious. I want to meet him! I want to bring him home to his big brother. I want to see his precious face. And I know that I have just a few days left, but seriously... I have every pre-labor sign possible and still NOTHING!!

I go to bed each night thinking "Ok, this could be the night." Nope.

I clean the kitchen for the fifth time of the day in hopes that I won't have to dirty it up for a few days.

I have washed my hair so many times in the past few days because I don't want to report to the hospital with greasy hair going on.

Our bags have been sitting by the front door since Thursday night and frankly, I am tired of telling Thompson to stay out of them!

I am anxious to show Thompson that there was a REAL baby inside my tummy-- I think he is about to the point of calling me a liar.

All of these things, so little I know. But come on!

My mom comes in on Sunday and I would LOVE for her to be here for his arrival, but I think I might lose my mind between here and then. But so far, it looks like it is going her way!

Oh yeah, another thing... I really do not want a 9+ lbs baby. Call me crazy, but that terrifies me to death!! Yes, many people have bigger babies everyday, but it's just not my cup of tea.

So... dear, Brycen-- I am about to serve you with an eviction notice. Hopefully things won't have to get hasty, but your momma is ready to see you!

Christmas 20 Questions

Christmas 20 Questions
1. Eggnog or hot chocolate? Hot Chocolate most definitely, but only the homemade stuff!
2. Does Santa wrap presents or just set them under the tree? Santa's will be unwrapped. That is the way he left them for me growing up and I think Thompson and Brycen will love it too.
3. Colored lights or white? Only white.
4. Do you hang mistletoe? No
5. When do you decorate for Christmas? Right after Thanksgiving dinner
6. What is your favorite holiday dish, excluding dessert? Hmmm... probably broccoli/rice/cheese casserole or cranberry fluff!
7. Favorite holiday memory as a child? Definitely Christmas morning. Waking up extra early to go through our stockings to see what Santa had brought.
8. When and how, did you learn the truth about Santa? To be honest, I really do not remember. 10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree? This year it is with bright colored ornaments. I am still looking for a topper. Next year I am thinking golds and reds.
11. Snow. Love it or hate it? Love it as long as I don't have to get out in it.
12. Can you ice skate? Not so much.
13. Do you remember your favorite gift? Not one in particular. I always loved getting clothes and whatever was in my stocking.
14. What is the most important thing about the holidays to you? Spending time with my family and remembering why we celebrate the season!
15. What is your favorite holiday dessert? Here lately it is cheesecake-- my new fave tradition. But, I always love red velvet cake.
16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? Christmas morning and all of the get togethers
17. What tops your tree? :( Nothing right now.
18. Which do you prefer, giving or receiving? I love giving, but I am not going to lie... I love opening presents as well! :)
19. What is your favorite Christmas song? Oh Holy Night
20. Candy canes. Yuck or yum? Yuck!

Still Here, Still Here

Don't worry, nothing has happened! :) The first day I had quite a few contractions, but they eventually subsided. I have felt great and that is what matters. Like I have said before, I am not to that point yet. I have 1.5 weeks left and now it is more so just anxiousness.

I am not going to lie, I was getting really excited thinking that he might be here so soon! Who wouldn't?! But, he will make his grand entrance when he is ready.

So, until then I am just enjoying my time. I will check back tomorrow!

Really?!

I just home from the doctors! I am a little nervous and a little excited! She guessed that Brycen was atleast around 8lbs right now! Can we say big boy?? If I delivered on my due date she thinks he would be around a 9.5lbs baby. Whoa!

She then checked me and said I was around 2-3cm dilated and 75% effaced. We decided to go ahead and strip my membranes. (If you don't know what that is, I will spare you the gritty details) She told me that it would help labor if my body is ready. But, she said that I did great. She told me that she doesn't have a crystal ball, but expects to see me within 48 hours.

What?! Really?!

So now it is time for panic mode... sorta. I am finishing up homework and getting the house ready. Just in case.

:)

Waiting...and 38 weeks!

So, I am now waiting on my password for my U of A account to be reset. Once that happens, I am going to be in full homework mode for atleast 2 days! Not kidding. So while I am at it, I better go ahead and post that we will hit our 38 week mark tomorrow!!!

Here is what Brycen is up to this week!

How your baby's growing:Your baby has really plumped up. He weighs about 6.8 pounds and he's over 19 1/2 inches long (like a leek). He has a firm grasp, which you'll soon be able to test when you hold his hand for the first time! His organs have matured and are ready for life outside the womb.



I am definitely feeling all of that almost 7 pound baby. This week I feel like he has tripled in size! I still can't breathe and Robert has to make his lovely comments about it... especially when I am eating. No, honey... I cannot stop breathing while I chew; I am sorry this annoys you! Get over it!!! :)

Do you think I am to that point yet?? I think I am getting there. ha!

Thompson is sitting in his room watching his Nemo movie and I just love hearing him laugh at different parts of the movie. I can't believe how big he has gotten and how much he understands!

I think that that is one thing I am definitely going to try and do more with Brycen-- cherish all of those little moments. With Thompson, as a new mom, I often felt so overwhelmed. I have so many memories with him, but I really want to just focus on them while they are happening. I know that it will be so hectic with two boys, but I really want to just spend that time with him. I want him to have that special bond like Thompson and I have. They grow up so fast and before you know it, they are 2!

Most of my days right now are spent wondering what Brycen will look like. I want my boys to resemble each other (mainly because I thought Thompson was about the cutest baby ever!) and I often look at Thompson's baby pictures to remind myself of how precious he was.

This was the day he was born

He was about 3 days old here

And about 3 weeks old here

So beautiful! I can't wait to meet his little brother!

Weekend wrap up

Well today is Sunday. Usually I spend the day finishing homework that is due, watching tv, and trying to catch up on some housework. Well, I guess my day will be filled with all of those except the homework part. Thanks to the good ol' U of A, I am locked out of EVERYTHING!!! Apparently if you don't change your password in time, they will do this. So on Monday I need to call up there to plead with them to change it. (You are supposed to go there in person, but seeing how I am 1500+ miles away... that isn't going to be happening!) So after a mini meltdown yesterday, all is as well as can be.

We stayed home yesterday and watched football. I don't mind college ball-- love it better than NFL. Well last night we watched the Hogs/LSU game. Pitiful. Simply pitiful. I love the Hogs don't get me wrong, but did we not learn ANYTHING from the Florida game?? Huh? Is it that hard to see that our kicker cannot do his job?? He has ONE job!!! ARGH!!! Luckily, he is a senior and we won't have to worry about him next year. Ok, rant over. But it really was pitiful...

I am up and the boys are still sleeping. I joked that to my mom earlier that the kids were still asleep. Ha! Robert stayed up entirely WAY too late last night so I know that he won't be worth anything today. Is that bad to say? Oh well if it is. He knows it, I know it. Moving on...

Not much new on the baby news. I have a dr's appt on Thursday and like I have said before, there is a full moon on the 2nd. I don't know if I am ready for a baby then, but it will be neat to see if there is any connection. I have always said somewhere around the 9th of December. And when I was pregnant with Thompson, I always said the 29th of Sept-- he was born on the 30th. Well yesterday my mom informed me that my dad is predicting the 10th. So... if my prediction goes the same as last time, Brycen would be born on the 10th! I love the guessing game of this whole thing, but with my personality I definitely am a planner and would love to know! I have been having some more BH contractions, which is great! My doctor said that I need to have more to prepare my body for the real thing. I don't remember any with Thompson, so it is different.

Well, I am off to make my weekend favorite-- biscuits and chocolate gravy!!! Good thing too, I hear a certain little boy stirring in his room!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

I love it! Christmas is one of my absolute favorite times of year. I know I have talked about this before, but there really is not a feeling comparable to the ones you feel around the holidays. I think of Christmas trees, lights, hot apple cider, and of course Christmas music and I am instantly in the perfect mood.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving yesterday. A few of Robert's single buddies came over and had dinner with us. You could tell that it had been a while since they had a home-cooked meal. While I was giving out leftovers, I asked one of the boys how much food he wanted. His reply, "As much as you will give me." Ha! It really warmed my heart to be able to give something so simple as food and just make their day. It definitely made mine!

Today I ventured out into the great unknown, otherwise known as Black Friday. Duh duh dun. Really wasn't all that bad, surprisingly. I went to Wal-Mart in Yucca Valley and was there at 4:30am! I was prepared to wait outside in the 35* weather but apparently they had been open all night! You couldn't get the door busters til 5, but it was nice to be able to go ahead and get a head start. I racked up on a microwave, printer, HDMI cable cord, crock pot, rubbermaid storage, picture frames, 4 pairs of pjs for Thompson, and Christmas lights! I was proud! I then headed back to hit the sales at the PX (Military dept. store) and was surprised that it was practically empty! I did get some $.69 Hallmark wrapping paper and a cute sweatshirt. I was home by 7 and hit the bed! I slept til noon! So did Robert and Thompson. We were up late last night-- Robert playing video games with a friend and I...

Putting up our Christmas tree! It is our first ever and I am so proud. I am not quite finished. I need a topper and some pretty ribbon to put on the tree. But so far, it looks good in my opinion.

Thompson loving the tree!

Like the gate? Robert said that I had to get one if I wanted to put the tree up! I don't blame him. It would definitely get really old telling Thompson to leave the tree alone 5 million times a day! :)

37 Weeks-- FULL TERM!!!

Yes, that is correct! As of yesterday, we are full term! Brycen is just growing and growing and will be joining us soon! It is so exciting to think about.

Here is what the little guy is up to this week:

Congratulations — your baby is full term! This means that if your baby arrives now, his lungs should be fully mature and ready to adjust to life outside the womb, even though your due date is still three weeks away.Your baby weighs 6 1/3 pounds and measures a bit over 19 inches, head to heel (like a stalk of Swiss chard). Many babies have a full head of hair at birth, with locks from 1/2 inch to 1 1/2 inches long. But don't be surprised if your baby's hair isn't the same color as yours. Dark-haired couples are sometimes thrown for a loop when their children come out as blonds or redheads, and fair-haired couples have been surprised by Elvis look-alikes. And then, of course, some babies sport only peach fuzz.

Don't you just love the depicted picture of what a pregnancy body looks like??? Because I can guarantee that my body looks NOTHING like that! lol.

I can't believe that he will be here any day now. There is a full moon around the 2nd (I believe) and I am always anxious to see if that really works. I have my next appt on the 3rd, so we will see how everything goes!

As much as I am ready to have the baby, I am also just enjoying the time. I know that as soon as he gets here my life will be crazy!! Chances are, this will be my last pregnancy (according to the husband) so I am also a little bit sad for that as well.

Today, I am putting up my Christmas tree as well as cooking for Thanksgiving. It looks like it will be just the 3 of us, which is perfect! We will really get to celebrate together, as a family, and really just enjoy our last holiday as a family of three.

We went to Oceanside on Saturday to be there for Jeremy's homecoming. Haili, his daughter, was definitely glad to see her daddy! Here she is with her sign she made for him.

Thompson was sure proud to see his Uncle Jeremy as well!

While we were there, we went and ate at Red Lobster. Our waitress let the kids touch one of the lobsters from their tank. It was too funny. Both of them were scared to death! And for the rest of the day Thompson kept saying "No, no fishy! No, No!" He was so afraid it would bite him.

One of the best parts of the trip... Sonic. They just opened one down the road in Vista and it was perfect. We went twice! :) Thompson got his "Chocolate Shake". And he would repeat that over and over til it came. Then Thompson would say "It's good!"

Robert enjoying his shake!

And I enjoyed a nice, big Cherry Vanilla Coke! I probably broke through the caffeine levels on that one! Oops! :)

Yesterday, we stopped by Target on our way home and finished some Christmas shopping. Thompson definitely racked up and Robert and I didn't do too shabby as well. We got some new video games for our Wii and PS3. Speaking of Wii, mine will be here on Saturday! So excited to try it out. We played Mario Kart this weekend and Robert and I had a blast! We will definitely be getting that one.

Oh, and just because I am odd-- I always find things like this neat! Robert rolled over 22,222 on his truck and I just had to get a picture!

Have a safe and Happy Thanksgiving! We will be here stuffing ourselves silly! :)