Hyrum's {Birth} Story Part 1 - Labor

February 22, 2016

Normal day. Get up, get dressed, wake the girls up, get them ready for school, out the door, drop off the older three girls, etc. I took Adeline to my sister-in-law's house because I had my 40 week check up that morning. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I had come to terms with the fact that our Baby Jedi was way too comfy in my womb and was refusing to come out. Which was making me anxious, bitter, and sad.

At my appointment, I expressed my concerns with going over my due date since I had been measuring so big for the last six weeks or so. When the time came for me to be checked, my uterus was measuring large. A little too large for comfort, 44+ weeks. Dr. Miller felt it best to get an emergency ultrasound to check baby's weight, my placenta, the amniotic fluid, etc.

I was actually calm during this whole process. Perhaps because I prayed that whatever happened would be guided and directed by God? Probably. I called Charles and started walking through the hospital to the ultrasound area. I debated calling him in the first place... I thought, "I could just have the ultrasound, find out what the baby is, and NEVER tell anyone!"! But with my doctor's concern, I felt it best to have him there and to NOT find out baby's gender since I had a feeling we'd be meeting our Jedi sooner than I thought.

The ultrasound went well. We had the same lady that had been doing them so she didn't tell us baby's gender! She gave us a few photos of baby, but they didn't turn out the greatest since baby was in position for birth(yay!). As we were getting ready to leave, she mentioned waiting for a minute so she could call the doctor and see if he wanted me to go home. This is where I started to get a little worried, but I said a prayer that all would be well.

We were able to go home.

Around 1:00, Dr. Miller called me and told me that I had too much amniotic fluid and I would need to be induced the following morning. I was diagnosed with Polyhydramnios and we discussed what it meant and what could go wrong(prolapsed cord when water breaks, too rapid deflation of my uterus causing uterine rupture, etc.). There was nothing wrong with the baby or baby's size(which was noted to be on the smaller end of the scale...). We talked for a bit about my birth plan and how we could stick to it as closely as possible, but I had to be open to what was to come. The plan was to break my water first thing in the morning and see if my body would go into labor naturally before starting pitocin.

In a way, I was relieved after the call. I knew that Baby was going to come and I prayed that my water wouldn't break on it's own before I got to the hospital the next morning. I called Charles, my Mom, other family members, and messaged a few friends and my photographer about what was going on. I kept things very hush-hush since I was scared about what was going to happen. And I still had this kind of, "This baby is never coming out...", attitude. It wasn't pretty.

I spent the rest of the afternoon arranging babysitters, rides, packing the last of my bags, praying, preparing mentally, etc. We decided to take the girls out to eat at A&G's to tell them that their sibling was going to be born the next day! Caitlin figured it out before we even said anything, and the other girls were very excited! The bed-time routine was a little chaotic with all the excitement, and I had to teach Charles how to do the girls' hair since I wouldn't be there in the morning to do it myself, but everyone fell asleep really quickly!

February 23rd, 2016

I woke up around 4:00 a.m. and laid in bed saying prayers and reading scriptures on my phone. I searched Pinterest for labor and delivery scriptures. The scripture that stood out the most to me is found in Romans 8:18, "For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us."

I was scared about the pitocin and the pain that it would bring. I had pitocin with Caitlin's birth and it scarred me emotionally and mentally. And I was very uncomfortable. I had glossed over just how uncomfortable I was feeling in my pregnancy updates because I didn't want people to think that I was complaining too much or being ungrateful. But the truth is, I was very, very uncomfortable and swollen the last three weeks. My ankles, feet, arms, chest, neck, face, lips, stomach... everything was super swollen/bloated. I didn't even really recognize myself in the mirror some mornings. My heartburn was awful, my chest/ribs hurt constantly, I couldn't walk more than three feet without getting terribly winded, my boobs were being pushed to the sides because my belly was so high and swollen... it wasn't fun.

I got out of bed at 5:00 and started getting ready for the day. I took out my luggage and wrote a letter to the girls. I woke Charles up right before I left and headed to labor and delivery. The full moon was still in the sky and it was cool to look at on the drive over.

Once I got there, I was put on the monitors and had my IV placed. Jen, Baby Jedi's Godmother and my best friend, showed up shortly after. It was nice to have someone to talk to since I wasn't even having any contractions. My cervix was checked at I was at a three and Baby wasn't engaged. Baby was, literally, bobbing up and down like a cork. There was no pressure on my cervix which was causing no contractions. It wasn't safe for the doctor to break my water with Baby not engaged. We were scared about cord prolapse and decided to go ahead and start the pitocin to get a contraction pattern that would either break my water on it's own or allow baby to engage so that my doctor could do it. I was started on a very slow drip.

This was not part of my birth plan, but I had to think about things from the overall point of view. I didn't want a c-section, so I opted for pitocin to help baby engage. I had to be attached to the monitors, which was fine, but we were having a lot of trouble getting my contractions to register since my stomach was so swollen. It was irritating, but we finally found a spot on my belly that worked. Charles came in after he and Adeline got some breakfast an after he dropped her off at his sister's house. My Mom followed shortly after!

My friend, Taycey, showed up in the late morning since she had to go into work for a bit that morning. She started taking photos at that point. {All of my official labor and delivery photos in this post were taken by Taycey Post Photography!} I was checked again with no change in dilation or effacement. I was getting frustrated at this point and watching the number on the pitocin drip creep upwards as I had no change in my cervix.

It was very difficult to stay positive because I was so afraid of the pitocin. It was working by noon. I had a few painful contractions and I had established a contraction pattern, but there was still NO CHANGE in my cervix.

I started feeling some of the side effects: shaking, aches and pains, feeling jittery/anxious, etc. I also had so much pressure in my vagina from having so much fluid that it was hard to be in the bed. TMI warning, but it felt like I was sitting on sausages(sorry... not sure how else to describe how swollen it was down there...). I opted to go on walk instead of just sitting on the labor ball and standing next to the bed. The labor ball put pressure on my vagina and helped with the pain and discomfort, but I needed to move. I was pretty bored and I felt bad for everyone in the room with me. Nothing was happening...

All of the photos in this collage were taken my Jen, in the red coat!
She was pretty excited about the labor selfie on the left!

These photos were also taken by Jen.
The top two were while I was being monitored between contractions.
Bottom left, Charles taking a labor selfie with me.
Bottom right, holding hands while having my cervix checked.

I walked for about two hours, being monitored on the labor ball or bed for 20 minutes each hour. I was checked again and progressed to 4 cm, but Baby wasn't engaged yet. I wanted to just go home at this point... I was feeling pretty defeated. My pitocin was upped every half hour after that. Things got a little more intense, but I couldn't really feel much moving around and sitting on the ball. My contractions were every 2 minutes.

My doctor came in and we discussed how slowly things were going and talked about why he still couldn't break my water safely yet. Even though I was finally dilating, Baby wasn't engaged. We decided to keep on the pitocin, increasing every half hour, until Baby engaged or my water broke naturally. I told him that once my water broke or was broken, things would go fast! He said, "Slow and steady wins the race!", and then I said, "It'll be a sprint finish, though!".

My photographer had to leave to pick up her kids. And since things weren't happening, we weren't worried that she'd miss anything. We'd just keep her updated and play the waiting game.

Shortly after 4:15, I was checked again and noticed right away that Baby was FINALLY engaged. My nurse told me not to move because she was going to get Dr. Miller to break my water! I told Jen to tell Taycey and for her to get back as soon as possible! (Vivian was born 45 minutes after my water was broken! I knew it would be fast once my water was broken!)

The actual process of him breaking my water took about 10 minutes because of the angle I was in. I wasn't suppose to lay back because baby would disengage. Dr. Miller kept checking and rechecking to make sure that the cord wouldn't prolapse around baby's head. It was painful, yes. I was breathing heavy, but not because of the pain. All of my fears about having something go wrong were right at my doorstep. I prayed through each breath.

Then I felt the gush... and it was a LOT of fluid. It was like Lake Amniotic in there! Dr. Miller kept his hand in there initially to make sure the cord didn't come out, and then once everything was all good, he removed his hand and the nurse started pushing on my upper belly to get all the extra fluid out. It sounded like someone was dumping buckets of water onto the floor.

After all was said and done, I felt my belly and noticed that I could breathe again. My ribs didn't hurt. My sides no longer hurt. My boobs were resting normal. And I could see how baby was laying in my belly! It was incredible! I felt SO much better! I didn't realize just how much pressure was in my belly until after all the fluid was out!

I was too scared to get out of the bed yet since I was scared of how strong the pitocin would make my contractions feel. The first one came, and it wasn't terrible. Then another, not so bad. Then another, not so bad. I realized at that point that I needed to pee pretty bad, so I decided to go to the bathroom and that being up would help dilate me. The nurse told me that the only thing she would want from me if I were to get up would be that if she told me to sit or get back in the bed, that I would do it without question. I agreed. I sat for one more contraction, which was a bit more painful. I stood up and had another contraction. This one hurt more than the last four. I needed to lean forward, so I shouted for Charles to come over and help me through.

Afterwards, I went to the bathroom and had a mild contraction during, PRAYING that baby wouldn't come out while I was on the pot. Spoilers: Baby didn't! I walked back to the bed and felt a strong contraction coming. I got Charles over by me and breathed through two back-to-back contractions.

Immediately afterwards, I felt the shaky-out-of-control-but-in-control feeling and knew it was time. I told the nurse and I sat on the bed. It was just me, Charles, my Mom, Jen, and the nurse in the room. She checked me, but didn't say what I was dilated to. And then she left the room.

"Why did she just leave?", I said as I felt a contraction coming on, the urge to push, and Baby's head coming out...

To be continued...

DAM to DAM 2013 Race Recap

I set my sights and goals on running the Dam to Dam a year ago. I have a friend, Willy, who lost weight, trained, and ran the 20K last year with an impressive time! Seeing him do all of those things gave me hope that I could, too! And this past weekend, I did!

I thought that I would be super nervous for this run! But as it turns out, I wasn't! I thought that I would be a ball of nerves, on the edge, and freaking out. But I kept my cool! I got a little nervous in the hotel and right before the bus ride to the dam, but that was it!

Friday afternoon, Charles took me to Jen's house to wait for Shelly. We carpooled with her for the ride up. We talked about how we got into running, our goals, and more. It was nice to hear about her experiences at other races and know what to expect going into the Dam to Dam.

We got to packet pick-up around 7:00 p.m. I picked up my packet first, then picked up Desiree's. The racing bibs were awesome! It had my name on the front with the distance I was registered for. It had my timing chip attached to the back of it. This was the first year that this event used this method. I was also told to go get my event shirt. I was very  happy with the tech shirt I was given! It's neon pink with the DAMtoDAM log on it! I also got a pair of Brooks running socks! Call me crazy, but I love me some good running socks!

On the way to the hotel, we passed HuHot and I mentioned that I had never eaten there before. Jen said that we HAD TO GO there for supper! I was a little nervous because I've been told to not have any new food the day before a race, but I really didn't want to pass it up! We dropped our bags off in the hotel room, picked up Jen's husband, and headed to HuHot for supper!

It. Was. Amazing! A totally new experience for me! I stuck to foods that I know I can handle and didn't go too crazy with my food! I totally got my carb load on! Delicious food! I kept telling Jen that I was going to have my husband come up the next day so that I could enjoy the food all over again! It was that good!

We got back to the hotel room, watched some YouTube videos, and went to bed. The alarm was set for 4:00 a.m. I was worried that I wouldn't get enough sleep, but I ended up sleeping fantastically! I only woke up twice to check the clock, then fell right back to sleep! When the alarm went off at 4, I got right up and got ready! I started getting a little nervous then, but I think I was more worried about the food I had the night before. I was hoping that it wouldn't go right through me. I felt fine, but I still worried. Jen was worried that it would storm before we finished the race, but I had a feeling that we'd be fine!

Desiree called Jen and told her that she was outside the hotel and ready to take us to the bus loading place. We got everything packed and headed out to the car. We got on a bus pretty quickly and started the trip towards the dam! It was the first time since High School that I was on a bus! I sure didn't miss it! Desiree and I sat next to each other and talked about our plans for the run and where we wanted to meet up afterwards.

I kept thinking, "This drive is so long! That means that it's going to be forever to run back!" I kept my mind off of that thought and enjoyed looking at all of the gorgeous houses along the route. We were dropped off at the dam and waited until we found Shelly to head towards the port-a-potties. It was chilly, but bearable. We had to leave our gear bags near the bus drop-off before we were able to head towards the dam. When Shelly found us, we decided to drop off the bag and head to the potties.

I saw a lot of friends on the way there! Joe, Willy, Karen, Cassie, Emily, and Sara! I talked to some of them, wished them "good luck", then headed towards the short line to the potties. I was blessed that the HuHot food was nice on my system! I don't have any before-race horror stories to tell! Once everyone had gone, we headed to the start on the dam!

We got a photo of our group with the finish line in the background! It's the "big" building between me and Jen in the photo below!

Des, Shelly, me, and Jen

I kept thanking God that the weather was so gorgeous! There was hardly any wind, the sun was shining, and it was just perfect for running! After we snapped the photo, we headed towards the pace signs. I told the ladies that I wanted to keep my miles under 10:00 so that I could finish in under 2 hours. I realized then that I was going to be on my own! I hugged each of my friends and went to stand between the 9:00 and 10:00. I said a silent prayer that I would find someone to run with. I really enjoyed training with Des, but I hated the thought of not having anyone to talk to. I don't listen to music when I run.

My prayers were answered! I met a lady named Nikki! I made a comment on her shorts! Sounds funny, but they were black and yellow. I said, "Those look like Hawkeye shorts!" She turned and said, "Oh! They are!" Then showed me the Hawkeye logo on the other leg of her shorts! We started talking a bit about our pace, if we'd ran the race before, where we're from, etc.

Then it was go time! It took us about 5 minutes to get to the start line, I started my Garmin, jogged a bit to warm up, and kept a nice pace with my new friend!

Mile 1 - 9:25 It felt good to see all the people! It was wall-to-wall packed! (Photo here) It was nice to have Nikki there to keep me on pace. We did a lot of weaving in and out of people. I made a few comments on how gorgeous the scenery was around us! The breeze was perfect and there were a ton of people on bikes cheering us on! My Garmin chirped "Mile 1" about 0.04 before I actually crossed the DAM's "MILE 1" sign.

Mile 2 - 9:09 Getting kind of fast! It was hard to go any slower because the crowd was pushing us along. It was a "stay with the pack or get eaten alive" kind of deal! Nikki and I managed to weave in and out with plenty of time to talk in between weaves. She told me that we needed to slow down a bit because we were going too fast! We saw the first water station and she mentioned wanted to get some water, but she wanted to wait until the next one.

Mile 3 - 9:21 That's better for pace! We weren't weaving as much now. We were finally able to get comfortable with our pace and talk. We talked about how we met our husband's, how many kids we have, and more! It was awesome to have her there to talk to for the next few miles!

Mile 4 - 9:35
Mile 5 - 9:41 Nikki got a drink at the water station and mentioned that if I lose her, to keep going and pushing to reach my goal of finishing under 2 hours. She kept with me for a little bit more, then I lost her. I said another prayer that I would be able to be fine without someone to talk to. I was blessed because there were some awesome water stations, fan signs, and hilarious runners!

Mile 6 - 9:17 The first hill came in this mile! It was right near the end of the mile. I was hoping that there wouldn't be any people walking in my way along the hill. I had to do some weaving, but managed to make it to the top without slowing down! It was cool to cross over I-80! There were a ton of cars, trucks, and semi's that blasted their horns! I ate my packet of SportBeans.

Mile 7 - 9:19 I realized here that I was getting closer to downtown as I reached the 10K point! Half way! I got excited, but the hills were still coming! As I was heading up a hill, there was a man on the side of the road (photo here) ringing two cowbells like crazy! I shouted, "MORE COWBELL!" Then a runner behind me shouted, "YEAH! MORE COWBELL!" Then the guy with the cowbell shouted, "I GOT A FEVER!"

And all I had in my head was the image of Will Ferrell with his cowbell:

Then the runner guy behind me started yelling, "MORE HILLS! JUST KIDDING! LESS HILLS!" It was great to get my mind off of the run and focus on laughing!

Mile 8 - 9:17 Finally in residential Des Moines! There was a lot of runner support along the route here! It helped! There were some hilarious signs! "Worst. Parade. Ever!", "Good job random runner!", "Don't walk now! There are people watching!", "You think you're TIRED?! My arms are KILLING ME!", and more! There was a yard that was totally decked out with breast cancer awareness stuff! It was awesome!

Mile 9 - 9:05 There was a man sitting in his yard with his garden hose turned on and spraying a mist into the street. I ran through it! Sweet relief! It was HOT! I was sweating like crazy and it was awesome to run through the cool water! I want to take to thank the woman handing out sponges soaked with water during this mile, as well! I didn't grab one, but there were so many people thanking her!

Mile 10 - 9:20 I prepared myself for the hill that was during mile 10. It looked scary, but it wasn't too bad! I started realizing here that I was getting very tired. I thought of my friends behind me and it kept me going. I wanted to finish and be able to cheer them on as they finished. I said a few prayers during this mile that my body would remain strong and bring me to the finish line!

Mile 11 - 9:16 I can see the building near the finish! It's much bigger than it was when we first started! It was a wonderful sight! The route took us past some bars and restaurants and smelling the food was almost torture! My stomach started gurgling! In a good way! I really wanted some french toast!

Mile 12 - 8:55 I kicked it into a higher gear here! I was battling the negative thoughts in my mind saying, "It's okay if you don't get under 2 hours! Go ahead and walk!" Then, something happened! I turned into a mad woman! I started weaving in and out of people along the trail. It was super narrow right before the final bridge to cross. I ended up having to run in the dried mud to get around people. I kept shouting, "EXCUSE ME!" I'm sure some people thought I was rude, but I just wanted to get the thing DONE! I crossed the bridge and knew I had a little over a mile left and started going faster!

The last 0.54 - 4:15 (7:51 pace) As soon as I came onto Grand Avenue, I knew it was the home stretch! I gave it my all! I'm sure I looked crazy to the people who were watching! I'm interested to see the photos of me finishing! I'm sure I look insane, but I wanted to finish! I had to pee! I was weaving in and out of people all over again! I started passing people and getting a lot of support from the spectators! "Go pink! Way to finish!" "Get it girl!" "Great job pink!" I figured by then that I was "pink" because of my tank top! Although I'm sure my face was somewhere between pink and red! As soon as I saw the "400 METERS" sign, I started going even faster! Then I saw the "200 METERS" sign. I started to cry. I looked forward towards the glorious "FINISH" line and threw my hands into the air as I crossed the finish line! The clock said "2:00:56". I thought, wait a second? I know I finished in under two hours! Then I remembered the 5 minute walk/jog to the start line.

I stopped my Garmin and it told me that I had finished with a time of 1:55:55! I DID IT! I finished in under two hours! I was overwhelmed with tears. I was trying to catch my breath. I started walking wobbling back and forth. I kept my head up and noticed the medals that were being handed out. I got my medal, put it around my neck, then started sobbing like a fool. I thought I was going to pee my pants, but that went away pretty quickly.

I got a Powerade Zero, got my photo taken, stretched in the grass, then headed to the finish line to watch my friends cross the finish line.

I was only able to watch Desiree cross the finish line. I started shouting at her like a crazy person and crying at the same time! I was so happy that I got to watch my training buddy cross the finish line! I walked back to the photo place to have a photo taken with her! We got some after-race fuel which consisted of bananas, oranges, apples, and chocolate milk. Then we found Jen and Shelly and snapped a photo of the four of us with our medals!

Jen, Shelly, me, and Des

I was ready for a nap by then! I was excited to go home and show my medal to Charles and the girls! I was also excited to upload the data from my Garmin and see what my official chip time was! The results were posted an hour and a half later than they told us, but that was alright by me! The anticipation about killed me, but I was very pleased once I found my name!

My splits from my Garmin:

My Garmin had me going a little more than a 20K, but I still finished under two hours and I am so, so pleased with that!

Overall, I am so, so happy I did this! I kept saying afterwards, "I can't believe we just did that!" I looked up at the big building and realized that the finish line was past that building! Holy crap! We finished it! The race was amazing! The weather was just perfect! The rain clouds started rolling in after I crossed the finish line, but it didn't start raining until after the event was over!

I realized when I got home that one year ago, I was 51 pounds heavier and completely out of shape. And in a year's time, I was able to lose that weight slowly, keep it off, and be race-ready! I trusted my training and enjoyed my first official DAM to DAM!

I will be back every year to run it! I am looking forward to next year's race already! But first, I am running my first half marathon THIS WEEKEND! Yep! 13.1 miles a week after a 20K!

I'm crazy!

But you already knew that!

Thanksgiving/Christmas Catch-Up

How is it possible that I just now realized that I haven't done a family update in a while?! Since Halloween... Sheesh... I'm on the ball! AND I haven't posted about Thanksgiving OR Christmas yet! Yep! I'm a slacker! I've posted small updates, but nothing big. SOOOOOO, family update time!

We spent the first half of November soaking up what was left of the fall weather before it started getting colder. There were so many gorgeous days! The girls and I were invited to the park by their friend Claire. It was just warm enough for jackets for the older girls and a sleeper and hat for Vivian!

The same day, later on in the evening, Vivian started walking for the first time! We had been trying and trying to get her to walk on her own, but she just wouldn't budge! She'd push around toys and hold our hands, but she would never just do it. That day, she decided it was time! And the best part, Charles was home for it!

A few days later, after Vivian's weight was finally enough, she moved up from her backwards-facing car seat to a toddler seat! I don't know who was more excited about it! All three girls giggled like crazy when we were driving around!

This brings us into early December! The church hosted a Primary Activity and Caitlin was invited to attend! They had all the kids make a gingerbread man or woman ornament, sing Christmas carols, and then finished with a HUGE Gingerbread house kit! It was so hard for Caitlin to be patient enough for the frosting to set up, but she did so fantastic! She was super meticulous about the decorations! She pointed to where she wanted me to put the frosting, and she applied the candy! Caitlin got mad if I tried to help! When I brought the gingerbread house home, Charles asked me if she decorated it on her own because it looked like something that I would do! I took it as a compliment!

The cookies in the above photo are some of the cookies that the girls and I made during a snow day! Rosalie and Caitlin had SO much fun using the cookie cutters, watching me put them in the oven and taking them out, and then decorating them! It was a fun mess! And the girls got sprinkle happy!

For Christmas Eve, I wanted to start a tradition of watching Christmas movies and drinking hot chocolate with marshmallows, followed by opening one present early! Of all the movies we own, the girls decided on watching Mickey's Christmas! I prepared their hot warm chocolate with marshmallows, but gave Vivian a cup full of M&M's mixed with marshmallows!

Charles and I enjoyed our HUGE mugs of hot chocolate on the couch! Half-way through the movie, the girls came over and cuddled with us on the couch! All five of us were snuggled together in a Christmas-Eve cocoon! The girls opened one present afterwards, which was a baby doll for each girl! They took their babies to bed, and soon after, Santa set out all the presents and the girls' stockings!

Each girl technically didn't get a stocking, but I want to make them ones for next year! Santa decided to set out some goodies for the girls on the coffee table! Caitlin got a Barbie cup, a horse shirt, a Strawberry Shortcake figurine, a package of four Ring Pops, and a snowman baggie full of Hershey's kisses! Rosalie got a Cars cup, a striped dress, a My Little Pony figurine, a package of four Ring Pops, and a Santa bag full of Hershey's kisses! Vivian got a Beauty and the Beast cup, a flower shirt, a My Little Pony figurine, four dum-dum suckers, and a snowman baggie full of Hershey's kisses!

It was the first thing the girls noticed on Christmas morning!

Vivian was the last one to wake up, so as soon as she rummaged through her goodies, we sat the girls down to take a picture and let them rip into their presents!

It was hard to keep up with each girl opening presents! Caitlin and Rosalie went SO fast while Vivian took her time! There were squeals of excitement and shouts for joy as the girls opened their presents!

After all the craziness was over, we picked up all the wrapping paper and assembled the bigger toys! Then our house was silent for a few hours while the girls played with their new toys!

I want to take a moment to thank the generous family that adopted our family and gave our girls a Christmas this year! We were nominated and chosen. It was wonderful news for Charles and I. We don't like talking about our financial issues publicly, but there were some people who knew that our entire Christmas fund was spent fixing our family car after Thanksgiving. It had died on me twice while driving, and then stopped working all together. We spent every single penny of our Christmas fund and then some. It had both Charles and I in a non-Christmas mood. We had no idea what we were going to do... we know that Christmas isn't about the presents, but we didn't even have enough to buy the girls any presents. It was hard on us.

I ended up crying about it in Walmart. I sucked up my feelings and continued my grocery shopping when I ran into a friend while shopping. She asked me what was wrong, and I passed on telling her exactly what was up. But she knew I wasn't being 100% honest. I finally broke down to her... later that night, she surprised me with gifts for the girls. I was overwhelmed by her kindness!

And then when the gifts from the adopt a family were dropped off, it was unexpected and completely overwhelming, once again. Our prayers were answered! I cried a lot. And when I told Charles, he cried, too. It was a wonderful Christmas blessing. We will pay it forward one day to another family in need!

We went to Charles' parent's house Christmas afternoon to open more presents and eat Christmas lunch! I forgot my camera (Yep... I'm awesome!) so I don't have any photos of the girls opening those presents, but they got lots of new toys and clothes!

This brings us to New Year's! *Happy New Years!* We stayed home that night and invited a friend over to toast some sparkling grape juice to the new year! I ended up falling asleep a few different times before midnight, but Charles made sure to wake me up for my toast!

I took some photos of the girls to celebrate the New Year!

Charles turned 29 on the 8th! We had made a Darth Vader rice-krispie cake for the family birthday party, but on the day of his birthday, I had the girls help me make a cake for their Daddy! They did so good helping me mix everything together and then decorate the baked cake! They even did a fantastic job of devouring the cake!

The girls are now playing more together now that Vivian is a little older! This is a wonderful thing, until they all start crying and fighting! But for those moments when they all play together nicely, I am such a proud Mama! I always end up crying... in a good way!

We had a great visit from our new Parent Educator in January. I was hoping the girls would do well with the new woman. She brought A LOT of play food with a chef set and a shopping cart. She had the girls won over in a matter of seconds! The girls played for the entire hour and shared the chef's clothes!

One of the gifts that Charles got for Christmas from our friends Mike and Karmen is a Darth Vader throw blanket. I cannot even tell you how many blankets are in my house! But the one that the girls want to play with and cover up with, is the Darth Vader blanket! (Caitlin calls it the "Darth Mater" blanket! Love her!) I noticed that they started playing with it immediately, but I thought it would get old fast... I was wrong! They have used it as a magic carpet, a fort, a superhero cape, and more! I have had to wash it numerous times already because the girls spill their snacks and juice on it almost daily! They are their Father's daughters!

This brings us to Valentine's Day and now! The girls enjoyed their 14 days of healthy Valentines! Very much, even! They keep asking for the same snacks each day now! Which makes me SO happy!

The rest of this month is going to be spent planning Caitlin's fourth birthday party! She has decided on a Tinkerbell party! Or rather, a Disney Fairies party! It is her latest obsession! She's liked the movies for a while, but as of lately, I have to wash her Tinkerbell jammies daily so that she can wear them to bed each night! She cracks me up!

I love my life!

October Already? Update time!

Where has August and September gone? We have had an amazing few months! But I guess time flies when you're having fun!

Most of August had the weather being either super hot or really rainy, so we have spent most of our time inside. My girls love to read and have me read to them. I have spent countless hours on my couch reading book after book to my girls. There are some books that I don't even need to read anymore because I can tell it from memory! With Vivian becoming more mobile, she's discovered books. Although she can't read and won't hold still for me to read one to her, she sure loves to find our tiny books and flip through the pages!

One of the things I have always wanted to do was raise children who appreciate books! I think I'm doing a great job so far!

Charles and I found out the day after our anniversary (8/12/12) that his great aunt had passed away. We went to her visitation and brought our girls to meet Charles' extended family. They were so sweet and just loved getting to meet a bunch of new people! We got so many nice compliments on our beautiful daughters! I took a photo of each girl before we left, and looking like this, it was hard to not just swoon over my girls!

On August 18th, Jamie and I ran our last run for the Couch to 5K running plan! It was a bittersweet morning, but we finished our 30 minute run without stopping and did it with smiles on our faces! By the time I got back home, I had to start getting ready for Karmen's surprise birthday party! We had to leave around 1:30 to make it to the church to set up before she got there. It was a wonderful moment when she came into the room and was genuinely surprised! She almost passed out! There were a ton of people who showed up! We traveled home, then Charles and I went to Karmen's house to watch The Hunger Games to wrap up Karmen's birthday party!

I have had some difficulty with Caitlin and not wanting to take a nap in the afternoons. I have tried putting her in her bed and leaving the room hoping she'd fall asleep, only to find that she won't go to sleep and ends up waking Rosalie too early. I got frustrated with that because I would have two crabby kiddos instead of one. I had no choice than to keep Caitlin up. But by the end of the day, she was beyond fussy and cranky.

An idea came one day to have her take "rest" time on the couch. She could color, read books, or watch a movie as long as she was laying on the couch and being quiet. And it worked! Some days, she'll stay up, but the other days are ending up like this:

I know she needs her naps! She feels so much better on the days she falls asleep on the couch! Even if it is only for 30 minutes, she gets her rest! This makes me very happy! I'm able to get some quiet time to relax, clean, or craft!

We had a week of cooler weather, so it was a great opportunity to get the girls outside without worrying if they'd get overheated in a short amount of time! I actually had to pull out the girls' fall/winter clothes! While doing this, the girls noticed a pattern in their clothes. They came up to me carrying every shirt that had Dora on the front! It was followed by, "It's time to get dressed with Dora, Mommy!" So I dressed the girls up in Dora clothes and got some photos of them playing on the porch one morning!

The vest that Vivian is wearing actually goes with the outfit that Rosalie was wearing, but she decided to share with Vivian! It was so cute watching her put the vest on Vivian! Caitlin helped!

Vivian got hold of some crayons from Caitlin's color box one evening. Charles and I didn't realize it at first because we were helping the other two color. It wasn't until Vivian climbed up the side of the couch and I reached for her that I realized Vivian had been into the crayons! I saw purple all over my pants and the couch cushion... not to mention, all over Miss Vivian!

Vivi has been very independent lately! She wants to do everything herself.  Everything. And she will scream and fight if you try to help her do anything.

Welcome September! I went shopping for some clothes for Vivian and stumbled upon some awesome deals for used Halloween costumes for the girls! The rectory was having a costume sale, all costumes were $1! Caitlin will be SpiderGirl, Rosalie will be a Princess, and Vivian will be a ducky!

The next day, September 2nd, we traveled to Red Oak for my Mom's surprise birthday party at my Aunt's house! We showed up early to help with the food and to spend some time with our family before my Mom showed up!

My Mom really had no idea that we had planned it all behind her back! She thought that maybe we were having a party for her baby brother, but no! It was for her! We all hid in the garage and waited for her to come inside so that we could yell, "SURPRISE!", and then sing Happy Birthday!

September 6th, Vivian turned 11 months old! It has flown by! She is growing so fast! She is petite compared to her sisters when they were that age, she is unique! She has a fantastic personality and is always happy and clapping her hands! When I was trying to take her 11 Month photo, she would not hold still or leave her yellow flower alone! I took about 50 photos and only one turned out good! So I decided to put a fun one and the good one next to each other! Happy 11 Months, Vivian Rane!

September 13th, we took the girls to a Parents as Teachers fun night! The theme was ducks. The girls read some stories about ducks, made some paper crafts, and had a puppet show. We put our names in a box for a chance to win one of the puppet boxes and ended up winning the biggest one! I snapped some photos of the girls playing with it the next morning! They were just tickled that we won it and got to take it home! Vivian didn't really like going inside, so she sat outside of the box and read some books!

September 14th, we took the girls over to Mike and Karmen's house for a soup pot-luck before the hot air balloons had a fun flight that evening. Mike and Karmen live a few houses down from the football field where the balloons drop the sandbag onto the target. So once we saw some balloons in the air, we took the girls over and watched the balloons come really close and fly away! We had an amazing time!

You can see the balloons in the pictures, but they are very small in the sky! In the third photo, Caitlin is pretending that the hot air balloon is on her finger!

Watching a balloon land on the football field!

September 15th, I got to represent the YMCA in the Balloon Days parade that morning by doing Zumba! If you have been following my weight-loss journey, I did the same thing in the fourth of July parade. I was 20 lbs heavier then. This time was SO much easier!

Charles took the girls to the depot to watch the parade! He said that Caitlin sat on the curb and didn't want to do anything while Rosalie was running around picking up candy and waving at people in the parade! Vivian chilled in the stroller next to Daddy.

Mike and Karmen came over for lunch and chilled with us for the rest of the day! Karmen and I watched some movies while Charles and Mike went Frisbee golfing. When the sun was almost down, we took the girls over to the airport to watch the night glow. The balloons line up and do a count down. Once it's time, they all make the balloons glow at the same time. This year wasn't as good as the past years, but we got a few good photos of the balloons lighting up! Caitlin was in awe as she watched! Rosalie kept saying, "Hot. Air. Balloon. FIRE!" Vivian just chilled in the backseat of the car!

September 18th, our Parent Educator, Retta, came over to spend some time with Caitlin and Rosalie! She told me before she came over that she wanted to finger paint with the girls. It was hard keeping it a surprise, but the girls were so excited when Retta and I told them what we were doing for her visit! The girls got right into it and were pros! This was both of their first time finger painting! They also got to watercolor paint! It wasn't as fun as painting with their fingers, but they both loved being able to use a paint brush! They both created masterpieces!

With the cooler weather coming more frequently, I had to switch Vivian's clothes over from her summer attire to her fall/winter attire. Most of the clothes she has that are meant for this season. She is also moving up a size in her clothes. We are finally in 12 month clothes. So when I was switching over her clothes, I had a moment of sadness when I realized that she wouldn't fit some of the 6-9 month winter clothes that her older sisters got to wear, and some that were new to Vivian. Since it was a cool day, I put Vivian in most of the outfits I wanted her to have at least one photo while wearing! She was a trooper and loved playing dress up!

She's posed similar in the middle and last photos because she was trying to pull the rosette hairband off of her head from behind! :) Strike a pose!

This brings us to the end of September!

September 28th, Homecoming parade! I took the girls over to T's house for the Homecoming parade done by the High School/Middle School. We came over a little early so that the kids could play and get the wiggles out of their systems. By the time it was time for the parade, everyone had their own lawn chair that was lined up on the side of the road!

There was lots of candy being thrown and both girls picked it up this time! Caitlin held her hands over her ears most of the time because of the "loud firetrucks". Rosalie took time to wave to each person in the parade and say, "HIIIII!!! HIIIIII!!!" She had the Queen candidates laughing pretty hard and saying, "Oh! She's so cute!" Rosie was LOVING the attention! By the end of the parade, the moment we had been waiting for was coming down the road! My nephew, Austin, was riding on a truck representing his football team! I didn't get a close-up shot of him on the truck because by the time the girls realized that he was on the truck, I had to hold them still because they wanted to run to him! It was super cute! They were so proud of Austin!

Welcome October!

This month is packed with stuff for our family! I am going to to try and stay updated on here! Especially since Vivian turns ONE this month! Her party is planned and I've been working on her party decorations and pinata! There is also the Color Run, other birthday parties, a wedding, Halloween, and more! I'll keep y'all updated as best as I can!