4 Months Old

Well I havent blogged in a while, but things are changing and changing around the Driskell home, at least with Allison. She has two TEETH. She started teething around 13 weeks although I didnt know that was for sure what was happening and then when we went to the doctor on November 5th she already had a tooth budding at the gums. Poor Allison as I didnt know what was happening but the doctor explained that all the symptoms that Allison was going through were all related to teething. She went through screaming fits (not bad though), diarrhea, not eating hardly at all for three or four days, drooling all the time, and her hands were always in here mouth. When she wouldnt eat I had to call the pediatrician and start watching her diapers as we were concerned she was going to get dehydrated. Bless her heart!!! So once we knew she was really teething I went and bought all that I could, I am such a sucker. Lets see I got her some small teething rings that you put in the fridge, nighttime oragel, tylenol at night, teething pacifier, teething tablets and teething strips. Right now she loves this teething bee, that was given to her in Wimberley. She always tries and bites peoples hands, if you give her anything she puts it straight into her mouth. Allison is also making so many noises really more recently within the last week or so where she will squeal or babble more rather than just coo. She still loves to bounce on things especially legs but she is loving the jumperroo. She still loves her acitivty mat, her rattle, pulling on mommies hair, her swing-although she is getting too big for it b/c it swings very slow b/c she weighs more, her bumbo chair, and now her exersaucer. She is still pretty little in that her legs barely touch the bottom but she still sits in it and tries to play with some of the toys on it. She is wearing between 3-6 months although in some dresses she still wears 0-3 months. THE NEW NEWS is that Allison is sleeping in her own room!! Yay, although I miss her especially in our bed sometimes, but things are so much better in that Allison is sleeping 7-8 hours most nights. She gets to sleep around 7-7:30 after her bath and bottle she is out. Sometimes she will wake up at 11 and sleep until 6 or 7 and others she will sleep from 7-330 and be hungry. I really dont mind getting up at that feeding b/c it honestly takes 10-15 minutes and she is out again until 8. We finally had to take her paci away as the doctor felt like she had developed a habit of it with trying to go to sleep and thus the reason she was getting up so many times per night b/c she truly didnt know how to fall asleep. So we did the cry it out method and we got a sound machine that plays rock a bye baby all night LONG, so on the monitor that is all we can hear all night :) THE cry it out method was terrible although it really only lasted two nights. The longest she cried was about 40 minutes, but it was the longest 40 minutes ever! I had to go take a shower b/c I kept wanting to go up there and comfort my sweet baby. But honestly it worked and it didnt take long before she herself was getting more sleep. I read Healthy Habits, Happy Child, and it was a great book with many good references. All the other sleep books I didnt care for, but this one was straightforward and explained things in great depth. We also had our first weekend away from our baby girl. The Driskells kept Ally all weekend long for Alaina and Brett's wedding. I thought it would have been a lot harder, but with being so busy and me already used to leaving her some during the day it wasnt as bad as I thought. Since then she has had another slumber party with Mama Mel over Thanksgiving while dad and all of us went to Bandera. Allison is drinking between 5-7 ounces at this time every 3-4 hours. She is growing so much and is such a joy and good baby. She honestly cries when she is hungry, overly tired, and if she is bored. But she never cries long and is easily comforted. She recognizes people, especially me and Will. Its so cool to see her and her smile just light up. She is such a precious gift in our lives.

Allison Statistics: Weight 13.49, 47%, Height 25.25 84.9%, Head 16 41%

16 Weeks Old

Allison is getting cuter and cuter by the day, at least I think so :) She is so active and is laughing all the time. She rolled over from her back to her stomach at 14 weeks and now will not quit rolling over. I can no longer put her on her back without her rolling over. She rolled over from her stomach to her back a while ago but for some reason she wont do it anymore. She gets upset when she is on her stomach for a while and will start crying. She is so animated right now too. She grabs at things and loves her activity mat. She has noticed she can make things move when she hits them. She also loves her hands and they are always in her mouth. She is drooling a lot which makes me wonder if she is starting to teethe.
I went back to work a couple of weeks ago. I cried and cried the day before and the day I went back to work. It was so many strange feelings all rolled into one. On one hand I truly miss her and am wondering what she is doing all the time. Its hard going from being with a baby every minute to being away from her for eight hours. I think also it was a chapter that ended that I didnt want to end. You think you have so much time and then its gone. So I think I cried for that reason too.I absolutely loved my maternity leave and truly got to spend such wonderful time with Allison. But after the second or third day I got more used to leaving her and getting back in the full swing of things. If I had gone back full time I truly dont know if I could have done it, so I am so thankful I am able to work part time for now. I am getting some time still with her.
We have been relatively busy or shall I say poor Will has been busy traveling almost every week. It has been hard without him at home espcially when I have to work. Allison was doing so well with her sleeping but right when I started back to work its like she changed and no longer really sleeps until 3 like we had it. She can only stay up until like 730 or so without crashing. So I usually do a dream feed at nine and then she gets me up at 1, 3, 5, but there is really no pattern. Sometimes its better than that and then others it can be worse. But I will say I can get her back down in 10 minutes or so or less if I dont feed her. We go to the doctor next week for her four month appointment so I hope I can ask her what she thinks and also about the cry it out. Although she does very well going to bed, I just dont know how to handle the mid-night times.
I took Allison to the pedi at 12 weeks because she developed a really bad rash, which turned out to be eczema. It was really bad so we have to put cortisone cream on her and cetaphil lotion every day. AND cannot wash her clothes in anything scented. Once I rewashed everything and put the cream on her she is much better although it still flares up.

Being a Mom

Wow, our baby girl is almost three months old. I truly cannot believe so much time has gone by so quickly. I almost get teary eyed writing this as it seems like its going so fast and I am trying to savor every second. I am truly in love with our little girl and I am in love being a mother. Its truly the most special thing to be able to care and love something so dearly. She keeps rewarding me by giving me the cutest smile and small giggle every time I look at her. I can play games with her such as "bouncy baby" where she bounces and bounces off my legs with me helping her but I say over and over bouncy baby and she gets more and more excited. Its so sweet. We also still play Super baby where she is like a little superman. Yes corny but I love it b/c she loves it. We are still working on our schedule although she has done quite well at night. We have gotten 7 hours straight but its on average 5-6 at night so there is a usual 4am feeding although it only lasts truly 10 minutes and she goes right back to sleep for 3-4 hours and then we feed again around 7 and go back to sleep until 9. Usually at the 6 or 7am feeding I put her in bed with me. :) I am reading all sorts of sleeping books to see what I should be doing and for the most part we are doing what they say to do. Although I am a sucker for that pacifer, Allison truly loves her paci.Once I put it in her mouth when she is sleepy its like her eyes start rolling in the back of her head. Allison is not a napper, she is like clock work on a 40 minute nap schedule. She eats, we play, diaper change etc and after an hour with all of that she is ready for a nap. But then she sleeps for only 40 minutes and the rest of the time its me trying to get her back to sleep or we just hangout until the next feeding. Sometimes she wants to eat though 2 1/2 hours and she is truly hungry. SO who knows. ALLISON DID ROLL OVER last week. Only once and has not done it again. But we were doing tummy time (which we need to do more) and she had this burst of energy right when I put her on the mat and just rolled over. She is also smilling so much and cooing all the time. She half way giggles which most would count that as laughing but I am waiting for a full outlandish laugh. She halfway giggles at me and smiles at me so much that I am convinced I am hilarious. Who cares that she is only 2months old. My maternity leave is up this week :( I am truly in denial I still think and I start back to work on wednesday and then I work on Friday. Will is also been traveling the last three weeks and will travel the next two at least so that has been kindof hard. But I have been on maternity leave so we traveled to Wimberley/Austin last weekend and then I went to Houston and Crockett. It kindof broke up the week and mama mel helped me with Allison when she got off work. Allison is going to go to a lady on Wednesday and I pray that it works as good as I think it will. I am so nervous and sad although I think part time will be great and it truly is a great schedule. I just am not used to being away from her at all. I will truly miss her so much. Allisons reflux is still pretty bad, poor girl. you can tell when she is in pain. I got the medicine compounded (makes it in a liquid form) but she hates the taste that she keeps spitting it out. Jenny and Andrea both had their babies this month. They are adorable. I cant wait until we get them altogether. Life is truly so good and special right now. What a wonderful time in Will and I's life. I am truly cherising every moment.

Things to remember:

Maternity leave-traveling a lot with Will and being in Houston

Snuggling with Allison in my arms

Dream feeds (tried it three times, one time it got us to 6am but the other two she still woke up at 3)

Allison rolling over

Allison smiling, cooing, almost laughing completely

reflux still bad

2 1/2-3 hour schedule feed, play, nap, try to nap some more or hangout, play, feed again

dressing Allison in all of her clothes now that they fit

pumping, pumping, and more pumping... Allison not interested in breastfeeding except for in the middle of the night. She def prefers bottles so I have my hands free bra and pump away. I am still making about 3 1/2oz per breast for 10 minutes.

Allison is now drinking 4-5 oz per feeding- she did drink 6oz last week at one feed

Allison is now weighing 12 lbs or so. She has moved to size 2 diapers and is wearing in between 0-3 and 3-6. Her thighs have gotten so chubby as well as her cheeks. SOO CUTE.

9 weeks old- Smiles Smiles and more Smiles

Miss Allison is 9 weeks old. We have yet again been traveling. I came home from Houston on Thursday morning and Will was already home from his audit. It was great being with mom and fred and Allison enjoyed her grandparents. We had Allison's 2 month checkup and her following statistics were:

Heights: 23.5 inches long-92%

Weight: 10 lbs 5 oz- 45%

Head: 15 inches-39%

Statistics from previous appointments:

7/19/2010

Height: 20.75-66%

Weight: 7 lbs 5 oz-24%

Head: 14-38%

7/08/2010

Height: 20-64%

Weight: 6 lbs 12 oz-21%

Head: 13.25-18%

The doctor was soooooooo impressed by Allison and her strength. She said she was almost rolling over and she couldnt believe she was already showing signs of that. She said her head strength was really amazing as well. We ended up switching Allison to Prevacid twice a day (stronger than Zantac) and it has really helped. Feedings are so much better and she is doing great. She mainly only cries when she is hungry or overtired. She is such a good baby although she doesnt like to be alone. She constantly wants someone holding her or she wants to sleep by her mommy and daddy although she just wants to be by someone :) Doctor said we shouldnt let her cry it out until she is 4 months old. She got all her shots- they give her sugar water while giving her two shots at once. She cried for a solid 5 minutes loud but then calmed down and slept for about 2 hours. We thought she would have slept more but it didnt happen. I am happy that she didnt get any fever and didnt seem sore. She did great.

This past week we went to back to houston because Will had another audit in houston. BUT we got to celebrate our 2 year anniversary while Mama Mel babysat Allison all night long. We went to Brennans on the Bayou - nice steakhouse and stayed downtown at the Hilton. We had a lot of fun and it was a perfect 2 year anniversary. The rest of the week we stayed at the Candelwood suites- it was good at first b/c we had a living room, bedroom, kitchen, etc.. but after 3 days we were all ready to leave. WE all shared a double bed one night-will, me, allison, and bailey. Allison has done so well. She has literally traveled most of her life already -haha, she has been to Crockett twice, Houston twice, Longview twice, and Wimberly twice. This past weekend we were back in Wimberly. Allison got in the river for the first time. She had her leopard bikini on and actually did great. She ended up falling asleep in my lap.

IT has been so much fun these past couple of weeks. They say babies "wake up" after the 6th or 7th week and she really has. Its so fun in that she can interact with you more and smile. She has done a half giggle if there is such but its defiitely some type of laugh. She loves it when you make noises with her when you do the bicycle with her legs. She is pretty happy in the morning. She still loves baths and I have just begun reading to her at night. We started with Goodnight Moon. She still loves the car and it puts her to sleep. She has a mirror where she sits that plays songs and she has really started to interact with it. I love being a mother and I am so comfortable with her. It is truly a blessing and I just cant wait to see how she is going to look and act in these next couple of months.. I looked back at just two months ago and she has changed so much. Our routine at night is usually a last feed around 1030-1130 and then she will wake up to eat either at 3 or sleep until 530 or so. Then we will go back to sleep and she will wake me up around 730 to eat and then we try to go back to sleep until about 930. She has slept about 3-4 nights per week where she will sleep for 5-6 hours straight. During the day we are trying to incorporate more tummy time. Although she doesnt really like it, so we do it more on my stomach. She has great head control and loves to kick and jump off my belly. I usually lift her up high when she starts jumping. She smiles a lot when we play like this on the bed.

Things to remember:

Smiling (started around 7 weeks)-- it truly melts your heart when you see your child smile at you and interact with you

Eating- she still eats every 2 1/2-3 hours about 3oz although this past weekend she has been eating around 4oz

Pumping in the car :)

Bicycle- Allison loves this especially when Sherry does it

Lamb-sleeps with the sounds it makes every night. She also sleeps on the inclined sleep positioner in her bassinett, pack n play, and in our bed.

We dont swaddle her at all- she kicks all blankets off -- she is pretty hot natured

Still goes through about 10-12 diapers per day

This week we will be here at home-thank goodness but then next we are traveling back to Houston for Will's audit. Will post more soon.

7 Weeks Old

We have been pretty busy. We have had another trip to Crockett and now Houston. Allison has been doing very well. She has slept 2 nights now for 7 hours straight. Her routine normally is waking up about once per night usually around 3 or 4 and then goes pretty much back to bed. Which is pretty wonderful. When at home, she usually goes to sleep in her bassinett at night but if she is pretty fussy I will put her in bed with us. She has been going through some phases where I at first thought she had colic, but now I know it was acid reflux. Last Friday I called the doctor and told her some of the symptoms, fussiness while feeding, arching her back, screaming in pain etc etc and they called her in some zantac. It actually has helped, poor baby, I feel bad it took me a while to call the doctor so that she could get some relief. Its so strange but I can see some of her behaviors like she did in the womb, such as being very active for an entire day and night and then sleeping a lot the next couple of days. Although its a little different now, she does go through days where she is so awake and then completely drained. She has so far hit all of her milestones, the biggest and most rewarding I will say is when you see her smile. At first she would smile usuallly when she had finished eating but now she will smile (sometimes) when you play with her. She has grown so much and I cant wait to go to the doctor this Friday to see how long she is. I have weighed her and she is 11 lbs 5 oz, but not sure what the doctors scale will say. She has to get her first set of immunizations which I am excited about so I dont feel like she is so vulnerable and I can feel more comfortable getting her out and about. Granted she goes many places now, but I am still careful. Being a mother has truly changed and blessed my life. I cant believe she is ours, I am still in disbelief.
Things to remember:
Zantac medicine
Mylicone Drops (we use these daily, as Allison is quite gassy)
Lamb that makes white noise sound (she sleeps with this for every nap and nighttime)
Head control-- She is getting better and better about holding her head up
She doesnt like socks, blankets on her legs-always kicking them off
Hot natured
Smiling- she has started smiling at things in her enviroment
Loves to look at fans
Her trying to nurse on Will's nose :)

Allisons First Trip to Wimberly

Well last weekend we went to the river with Allison. We loaded up ALL OF OUR STUFF which consisted of pack n' play, pumping bag, milk bag, will's bag, my bag, allison's bag, and 2 other bags filled with all the other baby stuff we might need. John and Emily met us on Thursday around 6pm and we all rode down to Wimberly together. It was a good trip although we had to stop at Whataburger and feed Allison. I actually had to pump in the parking lot- man have things changed... haha, but we made it work. We got to Wimberly around 11pm- fed Allison and tried to get her down. I went to bed around 130 and Allison was up from 3am-6am... Needless to say I was exhausted Friday but excited to be at the river. We got up had coffee and enjoyed the day. I had my first beer in 10 months!! It was weird, I felt like I was doing something wrong. We hung outside for a couple of hours with dad, natalie, wyatt, john, emily, will and I. Sandra and Stan came down and met Allison. We then loaded up and all went to Salt Lick. Allison slept the entire time, she did great!! Then we got home, I took a small nap with Allison and the rest of crew floated the river for what was supposed to be one hour according to dad, but it ended up being 3 hours and they had to paddle/walk the entire time. HAHA, I keep laughing out loud about the scenario, they were so pissed when they got off the river. We ended up just hanging out that night and ate pizza. We got up the next day went to the big house on the hill, had coffee and listened to music. Got in the river that afternoon, and had a bbq that evening. It was perfect weather, and Sherry helped me out so much with Allison. I am forever thankful :) We headed back on Sunday pretty early and are now trying to get back into a routine...

The first weeks at home

We have been very busy, not to mention that we have already made three out of town trips. I know most people are not suprised as people say we never sit still, but at least for now Allison loves car rides so we are able to do it. The first week home was interesting as I was going through so much anxiety. Not sure if it was no sleep, scared that I was doing everything wrong, out of whack hormones, but I will say I was quite anxious. We went to the peditrician on that Thursday the 8th and Allison had gained all her weight back plus three ounces. The first night home was interesting, we ended up bringing the swing into the room and putting her in it as we hadnt gotten any sleep. She slept good in it and I was scared that our baby was going to have to live in that swing for her first year of life. I believe the second night we put her in bed with us on the sleep positioner. It worked for an hour or so.... although the doc said she wanted her to learn to sleep in her bassinett and fall asleep on her own. We are definitely still working on that, but will say the swing has stayed in the living room. Miss Allison is 4 weeks old!! Crazy that this time has already gone by. At this 1 month mark, Allison is definitely not on a schedule, some days she is really active in that she wont go to sleep so mommy thinks she is always hungry. And other days she sleeps during the day and will eat 2 1/2- 3 hours. I will say at night Allison does pretty good. Knock on wood, but it seems like she will go down and sleep the entire 2.5-3 hours and then go back down relatively easy. She has started gazing back at people and she will grab on to your clothes or will's chest hair :) She has so much better head control, she can lift her head up for a couple of minutes if she is on her tummy. She also can control her head for a little while if she is sitting on your lap. She is definitely a grunter, my nickname for her is my little goat, not sure if its gas or just her finding her voice. She makes all sorts of noises lately. She doesnt seem to like being swaddled, so we dont do it at night. Of course I wonder if we should and maybe she could sleep longer. Who knows?!?! She has had 3 nights where she slept 5 hours straight, although I had to wake her to eat. I didnt want to wake her but I knew she wasnt at her 10 pound mark and she isnt supposed to go longer than 6 hours until she is 10 pounds. All the rules!!!! The third week was good in that the second week was hard for me so anything was better. I wasnt as hormonal, not really anxious, got used to Allison, and probably more confident in myself to know what to do if she was upset. The second week Iwas anxious, she was sporadic in eating, I was still getting used to breastfeeding, and we made our first car trip. HOW I did it I dont know, but Allison did well in the car. I cant believe this child is 1 month old and she has made 3 trips, Longview, Crockett, and Wimberly. Go Allison.

Things to Remember:
Gripe Water- we use it often as it seems like Allison gets in pain from gas or what not
Mylicon drops- again gas drops- seems to help
Pumping/Breastfeeding every 2.5-3 hours often 2-2.5 hours
Grunting noises
Sweet smiles after feedings-not on purpose but you can tell she is content
Grabbing onto shirts
Head control, she can lift her head for many minutes especially if she is on your chest. Although she is still our "bobble head" she is gaining much more strength as she can sit on your lap without her head falling over.

And then there were three plus a yorkie :)

OH MY GOSH, I cannot describe the emotions, experience, and life transformation that has happened within the last couple of weeks. Miss Allison Nicole Driskell made her debut on July 4th, 2010. I am so excited she came on the fourth, at first I didnt want her to have that birthday but now I am so glad she does. So the plan was for us to be admitted to the hospital on Monday evening to start the induction process and I would be induced on July 6th, 2010. So on Saturday night we had people over to the house to cook fajitas and go watch fireworks. I even made an apple pie from scratch and went to the grocery store etc. I was having contractions but they were irregular so I didnt think too much about it. We went and watched fireworks with the Brynes and the Vinsons until about 1145 at night. We got home and I just couldnt sleep so I was watching tv until about 145 when I felt a pop in my belly and felt a gush of fluid coming out. It was the strangest feeling ever and I immediately knew that my water had broken. Will was still up celebrating the fourth of July as he wasnt going to celebrate any of the other days so that he felt good for the events we thought were coming up that monday and tuesday. So when my water broke I called out to Will and we called the doctor. Dr. Harms was not on call so we were told to go to labor and delivery. We hopped in the car while grabbing my bag that I had mainly packed but we hadnt packed anything else like the car seat etc. haha, I remember yelling to Will grab the car seat.... I was sooooo scared b/c I thought I had two more days to get ready. We got to the hospital around 230 and were admitted into a labor room. I had already called mom, natalie, and dad and they were on their way. They also had celebrated the night before :) Will called Jim and Sabrina and his parents. I also called Lynne. Once admitted my contractions were irregular and causing Allison's heart beat to go really low. They firgured out that when I was on my back while I was having a contraction it was causing Allison's to be in distress. It was sooo scary as I didnt know what was going on. They immediately put me on oxygen and started the pitocin. They came in an did an epidural, which hurt but was okay. They put in a catheter and had everything ready in case I needed to have a csection since Allison wasnt at first handling all the contractions. I was so scared and just didnt know how I was going to make it through the entire process. I prayed and prayed and was defintely given strength to get through it all. Lynne and Jody got to the hospital around 6am and then mom and natalie got there about 7am. The Driskells got there around 8 and dad and Sherry got there around 1030am. The doctor thought it was going to take me 8 or more hours to get to 10cm but around 930 the nurse realized I was at a 7 and we were going to get ready for delivery. Although they had to come in and put another epidural as the first one didnt take on my left side. I will say contractions hurt like crazy but I have had cramps that bad before. I am just glad the other epidural took before I had to start pushing. I started pushing around 1030 and she was born at 11:08am. WHAT an amazing experience... when she came out they put her immediadetly on my stomach, I remember thinking oh my gosh its really a baby, :) not that I didnt think it would be but it was so serreal I couldnt believe she had actually come from inside me. Will and I both cried as we couldnt believe this experience had just happened. They cleaned her off and handed her to Will and I. We immediately tried nursing and she did wonderful. We then had everyone come in and meet Allison. When I first saw mom and natalie we all started crying as we were all in disbelief that all of this had just happened and little Allison was in our lives. After we introduced Allison to everyone they took her to the nursery to get her vitals and weight. She weighed 6lbs 9oz and was 19inches long. They then took me to our room and I recovered from labor. Will and I still hadnt slept from the night before but with so much going on we just pushed through. Everyone was so tired that mom and natalie left and went to frisco to nap around 4pm. So did dad and sherry. The driskells came back up to the hospital and we all hung out until about 7pm. We had Allison in the room most of the evening but then tried to get some sleep so the nursery would bring her in when it was time to nurse. That evening/morning is when it truly became more real that she was indeed ours. What an experience. We discharged from the hospital on Tuesday July 6th, Will was so ready to leave that he had everything in the car ready to go at like 9 that morning. Of course I had to meet with the lactation consultant again and go over nursing one more time as I was so anxious. This is truly an event in our lives that we will never forget. The first moment you see her is so serreal you think you are dreaming. Birth of a child is truly a miracle. She is a precious little girl and is loved by many already.

I will post later about the last 2 weeks as these are more new experiences for Will and I. :)

Almost Here

Well these last few weeks have flown by, I stopped working this past monday so I have had all week to get things ready and hang out. Last Tuesday June 22nd, we did our NST test and another sonogram. They stated everything looked great with Allison. The doctor didnt seem nearly as worried but still told me to get my 10 kicks per hour in one day. And wouldnt you know baby Allison was pretty active on our appointment day :). But again we went through the next couple of days barely getting our kicks/movements. I was definitely still re-assured when dr.harmes said we were looking good. They think she was about 6lbs 10 oz on Tuesday the 22nd, so by now she maybe be another pound bigger. She was gaining about a pound a week. Me on the other hand stopped gaining weight so far, dont want to rejoice just yet. But I was about the same at the doc, so I am about 20 pounds heavier. Anywho, I cant tell you how excited I am to be able to see and hold Allison. Although I will admit I am completely nervous as I dont know what to expect and I keep thinking bad thoughts like something bad might happen between then. But I am praying and thinking positively just waiting to get to Tuesday. :) I am so excited I just cant believe its almost here. We are being admitted on Monday night so they can begin the induction process. I am only dilated to 1 1/2 at this point but am having many contractions. Each time I go into a contraction I keep thinking maybe I will start having them every five minutes and she will be here sooner. I would love to go into labor now so I can meet her and start this journey. This week has been nice to be off work, I got a lot of errands done and took some stuff back to the baby store. I also got my hair done as well as manicure and pedicure. I have also managed to have naps and go out to eat a lot. :) I cant believe I will get to hold her and meet her in about five days. WOW!!! how exciting.

Oh Allison Allison

We went to the doctor yesterday. We had a sonogram and everthing looked good. She is weighing 5lbs 10 oz at this time. Its hard to see what your looking at on the sonogram I guess b/c she has gotten big. I have defintely grown a lot but feeling good. Baby Allison wasnt moving too much on the sonogram and when Dr.Harms asked me about her activity she was concerned regarding her decrease in fetal activity at different times. Its so strange b/c she will be so active for like 4 days and then she goes through a "quiet phase" where I dont hear much from her. I defintely feel some movement but I dont get as much acitivty as I do on the other days. I have always written it off as though she is more tired and usually right when I get worried enough to call the doc she starts moving more. But when talking with Dr.Harms she seemed very alarmed that I might not be getting enough movements. She stressed how I have to get 10 kicks in one hour each day and if I dont that I need to call her. She wants to do another non stress test and sonogram for next weeks appointment. It stresses me out as I am not worried that maybe I should have been calling a long time ago and I havent. Or maybe I have been negligent. I will say Allison has been crazy active since yesterday and today. She hasnt really stopped all day nor last night. I think sometimes she wears herself out and then goes to sleep for a little while. Who knows, I pray that everything is fine and she is okay. The doctor said everything looks good, but now I am just worried. I am just going to make sure I get my 10 kicks in an hour and if not then I will call the doc. I have started having contractions and the doc says I have dilated a small amount. I still need to do some things for instance pack my hospital bag and Allison's. We also need to finish the nursery and get the closet organized as well as figure out where to keep diaper warmer and other items. I have this weekend where I want to get everything done. I cant believe we have less than 3 weeks left until she could be here. We will induce labor on July 6th unless she comes before. I cant wait for this journey to begin I cant wait to see her and what she looks like. I am nervous though too as I have no idea what to expect. I just cant believe its all about to happen. HOW exciting. My last day of work is next friday june 25th. I am trying to get everything done so that the week before she is due I can relax and enjoy our last week before our baby is finally here. :)

Truly Blessed

Wow, What an amazing few last weeks Will and I have had. We had our couples baby shower hosted by Natalie Dunbar, Jenny Amalfi, Andrea Doornbos, Emily Ziegler, Lynne Flippen, Tiffany Strickland, Sabrina Driskell, Melody Zuker, Amy Adkins, and Amanda Burnett. It was at Matts Rancho Martinez in Lakewood. We had a great turn out with great food, beautiful flowers, great company, and so many great gifts for little miss Allison. The nursery is almost complete, we are waiting on the beautiful rocking chair the Driskells bought for us that we ordered from Pottery Barn (procrastination on my part). We got all of the big items we needed from our shower and now that everything is coming together it makes me feel great and less anxious. We are truly blessed by all of our friends and family who came to support Will and I. Its also so wonderful to see how giving everybody is to shower us with so many gifts, truly makes you humble. Its so weird, that I always feel guilty after showers because I want everyone to know how truly thankful I am for how generous everyone is and truly makes me feel blessed and loved. Today we had our work baby shower. AGAIN, what amazing people. They went all out, beautiful flowers, beautiful cake, SOOO much fun, SOOOO many gifts, balloons, pink everything. Everybody was so generous and Allison got so much stuff, so many cute outfits, tons of diapers, and lots of other stuff. Will even got 2 a&m onesies. We got so much stuff, now its time to organize and make it all have a home in Allison's room. I cannot get over how thankful I am and appreciative of everbodys generosity and support they showed us. We also got our bedding from Chrisine, its gorgeous. She also made us bedding for the bassinett they gave us for Allison to sleep in when she gets home from the hospital. ITS all so wonderful.
I am getting much bigger by the day. We saw Dr.harms this past Tuesday. She said everything is looking great. I am measuring 34 weeks and we went ahead and decided to schedule our induction date for July 6, unless Allison decides she wants to make her debut earlier. Who knows!! I feel good. Little tired, and my feet/hands have started swelling some. Mainly at night when I have been real active and on my feet most of the day. Other than that, doing very well. No new cravings or symptoms. Allison has been kicking a lot granted a week ago she gave me a scare because she goes from being really active for like 3 or 4 days then you notice a big difference for like 2 days where she isnt active much. It scared me so I went in and got a sonogram and a Non-stress test. The doctor that saw me (wasnt Dr.Harms) felt like everything looked good, babys heartbeat would go up when she kicked and there was a lot of variability for her beats. She did notice that she was small at this time --
4 pounds 5 oz, but Dr.Harms felt like she was fine. We go in for our next appt June 15 for our sonogram and beginning of our weekly appointments where we see if I am dilating. I doubt I am but who knows. Everything looks good so far from this point forward.
I cant really describe the emotions I am feeling. Its very serreal- its like I can tell now where the baby is as I can see different parts of her body protruding through my stomach ( I know so strange)... but then at the same time I cant picture what we are about to go through. Makes me very nervous yet sooo excited at the same time. I cant wait to be a mom but at the same time I cant picture that I am actually about to have a baby girl. VERY crazy.. but so amazing at the same time.. What a wonderful time in Will and I's lives with everything new and changing. I cant wait to see Will as a daddy, I know he will be so caring and loving towards our little girl. I think it will truly be amazing.

Braxton Hicks and more

Well its been another busy 2 weeks, we are getting ready for our baby shower this weekend. YAY! I cant believe its this weekend. I am so excited. We are having a couples shower at Matts Martinez in LakeWood with all of our friends and family. We also have been getting our house together. Today we got all carpets cleaned and yesterday our new housekeeper, Maria, came and cleaned. I walked in the house and was like well this is what a clean house is supposed to be like :) oops, defintely havent been a good cleaner. Oh well!!! Last week, we got the kitchen repainted as well as the bathroom. We also got all the other stuff fixed around the house. It makes me feel good to finally get this all done. I guess you would say I am nesting. All painting is finished on the nursery and Will built the crib. It looks wonderful and he didnt even get that frustrated where he needed a beer :) We are putting the dresser together tomorrow. I also got to see all the bedding and things Christine (my sister-in-law) has made for Allison. It is absolutely great and adorable. She is very talented and I am so excited. She made her bumper, bed skirt, sheet, blanket, window curtains, pillows, and lamp shade. She is also making her bedding for the bassinett they are giving to us. She also gave us a lot of Maegans (niece) clothes from when she was a baby. They are adorable. I will say we are so thankful for both Tommy and Christine's generosity.
As for the braxton hicks I believe that is what they are, it feels like my stomach starts tightening and gets very hard. But then at other times I cant tell if its braxton hicks or the baby just pushing on me for a long period of time, like she is stretching. I can definitely tell she is bigger as it truly feels like an alien is in my belly. I also can tell what hiccups feel like. At first I thought it was just tiny tiny kicks over and over. But after talking to Christine she stated no that is hiccups. haha.... Allison is also very active at night. Everytime I wake up at like 3in the morning, she is just kicking like crazy. I think we have a night owl on our hands. Right now I am on antibiotics for a sinus infection and cough. Dont feel that great and very tired. I think its just a mixture of all sorts of stuff, but hoping to get a lot of rest this week so I can feel great to see everyone. I am very blessed to have such wonderful friends and family.

30 Weeks-

We are almost in the second month of our third trimester, CRAZY as I cant believe we are getting so close.

Well I have definitely not kept up with the blog, but to my defense my computer crashed and I havent had access to a computer at night. With the said we have been really busy. First there was Easter which we spent at the Driskells. It was a lot of fun as the entire family was there. Its always so fun to be with all the kids during a holiday. We went out to the farm and went fishing and hung out in Crockett.

So many things happening, we have been busy mainly with wedding stuff for Emily and Lynne. Lynne had her bachelorette party in Ft.Worth at the StockYards. We went to eat on Friday night to a fun place downtown and then the girls went over to the White Elephant Saloon afterwards until the bar closed. I will admit that Allison and I were headed over there to celebrate Lynne's weekend, but the bar was entirely too smoky, so I sent my pregnant self home. I have to realize that now that Im noticeably pregnant its probably not a good idea to be in a bar as you get many different looks :) Saturday we went to a brunch over at Laura's and then walked around the stockyards until the lingerie shower at the hotel. We then went to Joe T Garcia's for dinner. It was great to see everyone. We have also been back and forth to Longview for different engagement parties etc. Its been great to see everyone.

Last weekend was Emily and John's wedding in North Carolina. It was so much fun. We got into NC on Thursday, Will was already there on an audit for work so he picked Natalie, Lynne, Jody, and I up at the airport. We spent the night in Raleigh then drove to Pinehurst Friday. We had a bridal luncheon that we threw for Emily before her big day. We then hung out and got ready for the wedding rehearsal. It was a jam packed weekend but so much fun. Especially to hang out with everyone as we all stayed together in these houses. I also got to see both Andrea and Jenny who are both pregnant with me. Jenny is 20 weeks, and Andrea is 17 weeks. Jenny found out a couple weeks ago that she is having a little boy. Andrea's doctor predicted she will be having a girl but she doesnt know yet for sure. Its so fun as we all talk together via email about all of pregnancy questions and/or stories.

As for me I have been feeling good. I have been getting more and more tired after work then I was during the second trimester. I have defintely gained more belly and its quite obvious that I am pregnant. We have now moved to seeing the doctor every 2 weeks. I went to the doctor last week and everything looked good, the baby's heart rate sounded good still ranging from 135-145. I am measuring about 30cm which is good as it corresponds with the week we are at. Next week, Will and I are going to do the 4d sonogram, I am very excited as we havent seen her in a while and the doc said we wont get another sonogram until 36 weeks. I am sleeping well which is good as I hear horror stories about trying to get comfortable etc. I have to remember that we still have a good 8 weeks so I dont want to celebrate yet. Allison has been kicking a lot, although there will be days she is completely opposite and I barely hear from her. But at times you can look at my stomach and different bursts (feet,arms whatever) are popping up and down on my belly. Will painted the nursery a couple of weeks ago (I tried to help but the fumes were quite potent so I stopped. We still have to go over the baseboards with white. We painted the nursery green and pink around the top part of the ceiling. Christine (sister-in-law) is making the bedding and she says it will be done towards the end of may. Next step is Will/Jim setting up the crib. Then I will have to get shelves and letters to put on the walls. Hopefully it will all come together.

We are headed to Houston tomorrow to celebrate Mothers day with Mom and Fred. Natalie and her boyfriend and Jampa are going to be there as well.

24 Weeks

Well we have been pretty busy since the last post although we have finally been in town for the last two weeks. We are 24 weeks today, I still cant believe how fast this has gone by so far. I have been feeling great. I am finally starting to show. Little Allison has been kicking like crazy. You can see her kick at times, but its very cool to feel her kick so much. She mainly kicks after meals and at night when I am getting into bed. So far its not keeping me up as we all know how much I love to sleep. Yesterday I woke up around 5am and she was kicking me in my side. It feels like a big thump over and over :) Still very sereal as you think maybe that was just something going on in your belly. Last weekend Sara McCarroll went with me to Babys R Us, I owe her big time as she helped me register for stuff I have no idea about. It was so sweet because we spent almost 3 hours in there with her cute little girl Kynleigh. Kynleigh did awesome and just hung out the entire time, very impressive. Wills brother,Tommy and his family came in on Tuesday March 16 for their spring break b/c Jack had a baseball tournament. They stayed with us last week, which was fun! We cooked and hung out with them as well as Will's other brother Jim and his family. Then my mom came in on Friday and we shopped literally until we dropped as most would say if the shopenator is with you :) She is great because she helps you think of great ideas and will help you get what you need done. We registered at buy buy baby and then looked for baby bedding. Will and I have so much to do as we havent done anything with the nursery. I have found the bedding but I need to order it. We also have to order the crib and furniture. I feel like I am running out of time, which I know we still have a little less than 4 months but I can feel myself getting anxious. Maybe that is the nesting stage coming up. Problem is that the next month we are out of town almost every weekend with weddig showers, bachelorette parties, easter etc. But I love being busy and getting to see all my friends. I still havent gone maternity clothes shopping, but with all the stuff coming up I think I will need to or at least figure out what I can wear with my belly band. At this point in my pregnancy, not too much has changed except for my growing belly. I still eat about the same although I will say I eat what I want. We go to the doctor next week for a check up and I will do the gestational diabetes screening where you drink this sugary drink, so that should be interesting rather than the typical appointment where you weigh in, pee in a cup, and get your blood pressure checked. Will finally felt the baby kick 2 weekends ago!! He was very excited... He had tried many times before but didnt have the patience when she wouldnt do it on cue but finally he felt her kick. Very Sweet!!!

22 Weeks

Well I meant to post last week as I am trying to post weekly from here on out but of course I have failed on that attempt. Oh well, back at it again. Last week we were in Crockett for Wills grandmothers funeral. Granny had been living at the nursing home for a couple of years now and around December started declining. We were actually in Crockett the weekend before last (feb 26-28) and we were at the nursing home when she passed February 28th. It was a very sad moment yet how thankful we were to have seen her that Saturday before and also to be with the Driskells and Uncle Bill when it happened. We left sunday night, Will and Jim went to Crockett on Monday, and Sabrina and I came on Tuesday early afternoon for the visitation. Will and I were talking about the fact that within these six months, we have lost both of our grandmothers during this pregnancy. Very sad as we would have loved them to meet Allison. Though we are thankful they both knew we were pregnant. Mama was so excited!!!! As for me, I am definitely showing more, although people are still shocked I am sixth months pregnant. They say Allison will be small. I am also carrying her pretty low. I have felt her kick everyday, and can always tell when she is moving. Everytime I try to get Will to feel her kick, it seems like she knows and quits kicking :)....Right now she is kicking but its still like a little flick. This past weekend Will and I traveled to Houston for Blane Webbs wedding so we got to stay at my moms house. Friday night we met up with Jenny and Patrick (they are pregnant 12 weeks :) ) YAY!!, Ned and Sara, and mom and Fred and ate at a restaurant in Houston. It was good to see everyone and got to talk to Jen some about her pregnancy and everything. Saturday, mom and I went shopping for ms.Allison, it was soooo fun. I hadnt bought anything yet, so this was a lot of fun to pick out some cute dresses. Mama Mel got Allison the cutest yellow dress from Baby Gap. She got some cute outfits, still very sereal they are for the baby inside me, as I still feel like I just have a big beer gut. No other symptoms, still feeling pretty good. My back is acting all weird, not sure if its pregnancy related, but it feels out of whack, like it needs to be popped. Everytime I try nothing budges, but when I walk I hear it pop back and forth. Obviously something is up, so I am going keep watching it and see if there are some type of stretches or something I need to do. Other than that I feel great. OH other great news, Andrea Mann now Andrea Doornbos is pregnant as well (they are nine weeks), All of our babies will be within 3 months of each other. HOW Exciting.... cant wait for the new chapters to begin.

My first blog

So I have decided to start blogging online. I want to record the second half of my pregnancy (at this point we are 20 weeks) and the new firsts we will encounter as a family. So far my pregnancy has been pretty good, I was one of the lucky women so far that didnt experience morning sickness. WHICH is shocking as I have always been so sensitive to different birth controls which I have been told mimic hormones in pregnancy that cause most women to be sick. At the beginning of my pregnancy I did have to wake up and eat immediately such as crackers by my bed. I was pretty tired most of the first trimester (suprise suprise) but the worst of it was mainly between weeks 6-9. My appetite hasnt increased that much from when I wasnt pregnant but I wouldnt say I am eating and/or watching what I eat as much as I did. So far I have gained 4 pounds, but I have heard how quickly you put on weight throughout the rest of the pregnancy especially in the last of your second and third trimester. We have had five sonograms so far which I have heard is quite spoiling as your only supposed to get three :). The coolest sonogram was probably the sonogram at 13 weeks (we did the down syndrome screening) because the baby was in the perfect position and moving like crazy. It was absolutely the coolest thing to see, although you dont believe that is actually in your belly. At that appointment, the doctor told us he thought we were having a little boy. We then went to our obgyn and she said he is almost always right. So for the majority of the pregnancy thus far we thought we were having a little boy. Then at 18 weeks we went back to the doctor to finish our testing and we were supposed to find out the gender, but our little darling decided she wouldnt show her front side
(she had learned from her mama how to be a lady :) ) so we weren't able to find out we are having a GIRL until last thursday before we went out of town to Hot Spring, Arkansas. She still wasnt cooperating but she did uncross her legs enough to show the doctor a confirmation. YAY, a little girl, I am sooo excited. Her name will be Allison Nicole Driskell. The same initials as her mama!!! I think Will is coming around to the idea as he was pretty shocked it wasnt a boy, but I can tell that he is excited to have a little daddys girl :).... I am just now starting to show some but am still fitting into all my clothes although snug. I think it will be time to get a belly band in the next week or so.... Oh joy! I do feel little ally move around- feels like a heart beat in my stomach and flutters. It is usually after a meal that she starts to move. I think I have felt her kick but I havent felt it completely confirmed. I cant wait until I feel her kick so that Will can feel her move as well. He so wants to feel her kick but at this point he just hears from me when she is moving. SO EXCITING and strange at the same time. What an experience!!!