4 months old!

Little Man – Owen is 4 months old today! This last month has been quite a busy month. He started to grab things with intention (including my hair), stands with assistance in his bouncer, he LOVES to lay on his side and so close to rolling over I can taste it. ☺ He is also very interested in his hands, which probably help his sore gums since he is cutting teeth! We have had lots of smiles this month along with a very special treat for mom! He giggled!!! I’ve been eagerly waiting this special moment and it happened just the other day when Brad was playing with Dakota. I’m not going to hide the fact that I teared up a little. It was so sweet to hear his little giggle and see the awesome beginning of a sense of humor. We have his 4 month doctors appointment at the end of the month where we will find out how much he weighs, how long he is and when we can start with some rice cereal or other ‘solid’ foods. I am hoping he weighs around 13lbs and will be average in length. He is kind of a short kid, which is surprising since both Brad and I are on the taller side. I suppose he is only 4 months old and has quite a bit of growing to do.

Mommy –I got a job!!! Our pastor somehow got into contact with this optometrist who has her practice inside Costco and discovered she needed part time help. I went in one afternoon, with Owen, and watched what happened, what I would be doing and then I had a quick interview. Then about a week later I was called by the office manager and asked to start the next day!!!! Yikes! It’s a great little office to work in. I am basically just a receptionist, but some day soon I will be confident enough to do the pre-testing, which includes glaucoma testing! Fun! This is just a part time job but I am perfectly fine with that because the 5-6 hours I’m away from Owen is hard enough. I can’t imagine being away from him for longer and more frequently. Brad had taken to his daddy duties very well. I’ve been able to pump enough for him to feed Owen through the day and he is getting a good routine down. ☺
Big news for Brad this month! He is officially done with school – atleast for now! At the end of September he should get his diploma in the mail! How exciting. I am so proud of him. He took a very full load of classes, over summer semester and ALL of them were online! He had his fair share of distractions and missed a few small assignments, but over all his GPA is just a few points shy of a 4.0!! He did so good that he will probably make it onto the Deans List! Here is to hoping that Owen get’s his fathers smarts!
We also learned this month that Uncle Tim (Brads middle brother) was hired on at Alaska Airlines! Congrats Tim! We are so proud of you!!
I am continuing leading the FRG for brads unit and it’s been fun to start from scratch. It’s currently myself and another female solider who is my liaison, but we have fun brainstorming once a month on different ways to raise money for the 411th HHD. Those of you who are on Facebook, and I know many of you are, please do me a favor and ‘like’ the 411th FRG. When I make it up to 30 ‘likes’ I am able to do more with the page and that means I can get more information out to the public about what’s going on with the unit. Next month they are standing up as a unit and becoming public, if you will. It is going to be a big deal, as there will be VIP’s there like the mayor of Billings and maybe even the Governor. Some high-ranking men will be there as well. I introduced myself to the Lieutenant Coronel, a full bird and a major. They were all very eager to see what I do with the FRG. Fingers crossed I don’t disappoint them.

These next few months should be pretty busy for us! Owen’s Godparents are expecting their little girl any day now! We are beyond excited to meet baby girl Diaz and I am sure she will make a debut on the blog next month! We also have the activation ceremony for brad’s unit in the middle of September along with traveling back to Seattle in October to celebrate Lucas’ first birthday. Before we know it, it’ll be Halloween and then Thanksgiving! Where does time go? Wherever it goes, it goes pretty quick!!

***Next blog I hope to post more pictures. I have taken TONS on my phone and with the actual camera, but I need to better organize my shutterfly folders so I know what month to post! In the mean time, enjoy the few pictures I know are from this past month! ☺

Stereotypes

Stereotypes

I've never liked them. White. Black. Rich. Poor. City girl or hillbilly. They are never fair and usually lead to hurt feelings. Brad and I experienced a stereotype tonight with our dog Dakota. She is a black pitbull Labrador mix and quite possibly one of the sweetest dogs you could meet. She is intimidating with her breed and small but muscular size but she honestly wouldn't hurt a fly. We have had Dakota for just over a year now and she turns 2 in October so she is still very much a puppy at heart.
She tends to get out and run and when she is running, listening is the last thing on her mind. Brad took her on a car ride last night to the local red box station to get a movie and when they got back she jumped out of the truck and took off down the street. Brad casually walked in and said "Megan, guess what!? Our dog ran away again!" I stopped what I was doing and went out front to call her and brad went out back. She never goes far and usually comes home within 5 minutes - I'm pretty sure she likes being fed and sleeping on our bed. This time was different. It took less than 5 minutes but this time our neighbors two houses down were outside and decided to make our lives difficult. They were yelling and screaming at brad to get Dakota off their property or they were going to call the cops. The lady went as far as to ask her son to hand her a baseball bat so she could beat Dakota!! Yes, please do that. That won't make our dog attack you at all!! They were saying that Dakota charged at the little girl and that she as growling at her. We know our dog and how she reacts and Dakota doesn't charge. She does this thing in our yard hat we have dubbed the Dakota 500. She races around out yard full speed 3-4 times and then is exhausted after. All Dakota was doing when she left the truck was doing a Dakota 500 around the block.
Now Dakota had been cooped up all day because she has kennel cough and it's being treated, but for the time being she shouldn't be around other dogs. She is like any living creature;if you are kept inside all day, when you have the chance to get out and stretch your legs you are going to take the chance.
The stereotype that pit-bulls are means dogs frustrates me. Yes, she has an intimidating growl but what dog doesn't? Dakota only attacks you in kisses and puppy pounces. She has never bit or attacked anyone. She listens to us when it really matters and is a good dog. It frustrates me that people think that she is a mean dog. Don't judge a book by its cover.
Back to our neighbor. After we got Dakota calmed down and a leash on her, brad did the brave thing and brought Dakota back over to the neighbor so they could get to meet her and see that she is a nice dog. The lady wanted nothing to do with brad and told him to leave or she was calling the cops.
This part really bugs me. If the cops were called it would be a 'he said she said' sort of thing. She could say that this mean dog tried to attack her little girl and that's all it would take to get Dakota hauled away. This is where stereotypes come in. Dakota is labeled as a mean dog because of the people who choose to train pitbulls to fight and be aggressive. Pitbulls are incredibly loyal and obedient dogs. I have heard that poodles are actually more aggressive and hurt or kill more people than any other breed. Never would have thought that!
It's aggravating to think that these people who were yelling and screaming at us to get Dakota away from them can ruin our whole evening and rethink our dog. We would never put Owen or anyone else is danger.

3 months old!

Our little man – Owen is 3 months old as of two days ago and time has gone by so fast! I am sure I will say that every month, but it amazes me how fast he is growing up and turning into a little boy. He has become more interactive and is practicing focusing on shapes and faces. We put a hanging car seat toy above his changing table and it has a monkey with a banana and other teething rings hanging from it. I have dubbed this Zeus, so when we go and change his diaper we visit Zeus and hang out with him. Owen really enjoys batting at the objects and has now figured out he can grab them! How exciting! Our little guy is also cooing more and making some pretty sweet noises. I might be getting ahead of myself but I am pretty sure he giggled yesterday. Owen likes to suck on his hands and have some knuckle sandwiches and sticks his tongue out more. He is also smiling more often which always warms your heart when you see his gummy grin! ☺

Mom – I am slowly getting my pre-pregnancy body back but I still have 8 lbs to go. It’s proven to be hard to find time to work out with a little one. We’ve been going on walks after dinner, so that’s been helping but I need to focus more on my midsection. Since the last post, breast-feeding has improved dramatically and it’s not nearly as painful or frustrating.

Our Life -
My parents and grandmother made a trip from Reno, NV over to Wyoming, up to Laurel and then back down to Laramie before driving back home. They spent a few days here in Laurel visiting with us and even spent the 4th of July with us. Laurel is known for their spectacular firework show so it was great that they had the chance to watch them with us. It was so nice to see my dad as a grandfather and watch them interact. Owen really likes his thumb and jiggling on my dads knees! I'm excited to watch that relationship grow into something fabulous!

A few weeks later we had the great opportunity to travel to Seattle for a wedding and to visit friends and family. Brad unfortunately had to stay back due to loads of homework so Owen and I had some quality time together. Our adventure there was kinda scary, as my tire on our Honda blew out as we were driving down I-90 at 80mph. We were between towns and cars and trucks were speeding by.

After I calmed down from my panic attack I called Brad and told him what happened and we evaluated the situation. I went out and looked at the tire and it was far worse than I had anticipated. As Brad and I were talking about what to do, a man in a pick up truck had stopped behind me and was walking towards me. I told Brad I would call him back. The nice man, whose name is Greg, helped me get the old tire off and put the spare tire on. Once the spare was on and he lowered the car, he realized that it didn’t have much air in it, so he hoisted the car back up and took it off. He then suggested that we drive back to Big Timber and fill the tire up at a gas station. So Owen and I got in the truck with him and met his son Billy who had his 6th birthday party coming up. We all drove to Big Timber, filled up the tire and went back to my car. Greg put the tire back on and then suggested that he follow me to Bozeman just to make sure the spare didn’t blow out on me. He also suggested that I don’t go over 50 mph, so the 45 miles we had to go till Bozeman took a LONG time. It wasn’t out of Greg’s way to follow me, as he lives just a few miles outside of Bozeman and they were on their way back from a hunting trip. I am so thankful for Greg and Billy for helping Owen and I out in our time of need. It would have been much longer and far more stressful had they not helped us out. Needless to say, we missed our 4:15 flight from Bozeman to Seattle, so Brad booked us a hotel and we would try again in the morning. It was a short night followed by a long day, but it was nice to arrive in Seattle and see family. My brother picked us up from the airport and he got to meet Owen for the first time. It was pretty neat watching Alan and Owen interact with each other. ☺ Alan had to work later that morning, so I made plans to have coffee with an old friend of mine, Jamie Balmelli (Farris). She enjoyed hanging out with Owen and I at the local Starbucks and we had a chance to catch up. After we went our separate ways, Owen and I drove down to Yelm where Brad’s parents and brother live to visit with them for a few days. We got to the house just in time for lunch and a nap! ☺ After I was rested, we had a nice dinner and visit with Ferol and Christine and Owen’s cousins, Esther, Jadon and Rahab.

We left Saturday afternoon in time to make it to a BBQ with my ‘other mother’ Judy.

Judy and Peter were the entire reason we came back to visit; they were FINALLY getting married. Sunday afternoon rolled around and it was time for all of the people who love Judy and Peter to witness the joyous union! The ceremony was held at a quaint little park in West Seattle with a reception after at Judy’s house. It was great to spend time with everyone and have all of my old friends meet our little guy.

I had every intention on leaving Monday early afternoon but a few things came up and we tried to leave Tuesday afternoon. The airlines had a different agenda because our luggage made it on the plane but Owen and I didn’t. This just meant we got to spend more time with my parents before we tried for the evening flight to Bozeman. We got on without a problem and even had the row to ourselves. Brad reserved another hotel for us and in the morning I went to get our tire fixed and we were on the road home! It’s always nice to come home to your very own house with your very own things, but this time I think it was even better! I had traveled by myself with our 3 month old and had so many hoops to jump through, but I did it! I am so proud of myself ☺
Brad will be finishing up school next month and now it’s crunch time to find a job. We have been going back and fourth with a few options and will have to weigh the pro’s and con’s and see where the road leads us.
In the mean time, we are enjoying the hot weather here in Laurel and our little baby boy!

2 months

Life has been a little busy (no idea why!), so I apologize for the delay in the blog posts! Hopefully I can get on top of the posts and keep everyone updated on Owen’s progress and what’s going on in our life! ☺

Our little man –He is 2 months old today and we can’t believe it. He is growing up too fast. At his two month appointment he weighed 11 lbs, 7 oz and was almost 23 inches long. Holy Smokes! We still have yet to see him roll over on purpose, but he is grabbing on to shirts and is quite fond of the necklace I wear. Owen is becoming more alert and can tell when it’s not mom that’s holding him. He still doesn’t like his diaper changes, but our wipe warmer has helped a little. I’ve really enjoyed putting him in little man outfits and showing him off, however it frustrates me when people call him a little girl. He has found his tongue and it warms my heart to watch Owen and Brad stick their tongues out at each other. Very sweet.

Mom - On a more personal note, I’ve come to discover that the pregnancy part was easy but this motherhood part isn’t as easy as I thought it would be. Pregnancy asked a lot from my body, but providing food for a little one is hard work. Breast-feeding is very time consuming and harder than I thought it was going to be. I’ve had some issues with milk production and latching, but I think we’ve gotten it down now, two months later! The sleep depravation is getting better as well; Owen sleeps from about midnight to 5, sometimes-even 6am. After he eats, we go right back to bed and sleep until about 10 before we get up and start our day. Needless to say we aren’t really morning people. ☺ We’ve gotten into a nice routine of eating, naps and playtime. Now if I could just get the rest of life down.

Our life – Brad has recently joined a new unit and is no longer with the 592nd. They still drill at the same hall and drill on the same weekends, just with different people. With all of that said, I am the leader of the 411th FRG (family readiness group). When they asked me to be the leader, they said “Thank you for accepting . . . now we have a family picnic that we scheduled for this month’s drill. On top that, it’s supposed to be for both the 592nd and the 411th. So there you go – plan!” If it were a picnic just for just Brad’s unit, it would be easier to plan and far less stressful as there are only about 50 soldiers compared to the 130 in the 592nd. Planning a picnic just for soldiers would be super easy too, but being a family picnic and all, you figure each soldier might bring one or two extra mouths to feed. That’s a good 300-350 people to feed. I spent all of Friday night and Saturday figuring out how many people were going to attend, and getting everything ready. It was a huge task to accomplish with a young kiddo, but I did it! The picnic happened, people were fed, and everyone had a great time. ☺ It was the one and only time I am going to plan a joint event for both units. Now I am strictly a 411th FRG lady.
Brad is in his final semester of school, which is very exciting. After August 9th, he will have a bachelors of science and liberal studies (with an emphasis in communication) and we can move on with our life. He has been eager to finish school for a few years now, but things have gotten in the way. He had every intention of finishing school by 2010, but then he got his orders to deploy and wound up having to postpone it for several years. I am so proud of him for not giving up and having the commitment to finish. We aren’t sure what we are going to do after he graduates, but we are talking about going active duty - More about that later.
Brads oldest brother Greg and his family spent our first father’s day with us and it was wonderful to have them here. We spent time at the big park down the street and had some tasty BBQ chicken to celebrate Brad (and Greg) being a father.
Next to come visit is Brads middle brother Tim and his small family next weekend. It’s so nice to have people out to visit us and to see our share our new home.
After Tim and Kaley are here, my parents and grandmother will be out our way for a few days and will be spending the 4th of July with us. My father hasn’t met Owen yet, so I am excited to get pictures of my dad in his new role as a grandpa! ☺ I am also really eager to let my grandma hold her great grandson and make some fun memories.
Lots to look forward to and I’ll be sure to keep everyone posted through more blog posts!!

3 weeks old!

Our precious little man is 3 weeks old today and it feels like we brought him home ( for good ) just a few days ago! On Monday, May 6th, he had yet another doctors appointment to check his weight gain and we have made GREAT progress! As of Monday, we are only 3 small ounces shy of his birth weight of 8lbs, 6oz! Thank goodness for that weight gain! I was getting a little worried that we would never put any meat on this kids bones, but we did it!
We also had a pretty cool first on Monday, as Owen rolled over during tummy time! He rolled over without fussing twice before I decided to film it and then of course he was fussy the third time. I’m not sure if a 3 week old is supposed to roll over, or even hold his head up, but he is doing both! What a smart little guy!

It’s been cool taking quick pictures of Brad and Owen having father son bonding. Dakota continues to keep a watchful eye out for her baby boy and keep him safe. We gave Owen his first ‘at home’ bath last night and Dakota was very concerned about her screaming baby to the point that she was shaking! It was pretty hilarious.

I’m starting to feel human again after the process of giving birth. I knew there would be recovery, but I didn’t know it would take nearly as long and be as uncomfortable as it was. It’s nice to feel human. Imagine that! ☺ I’m getting used to getting up every 3-4 hours to feed Owen, which takes a toll on being somewhat human through the day. Not really sure how I will get by once my mom leaves to go back home on the 13th. She has been waking up as I finish feeding Owen in the morning and watching him while I take my morning nap.

It’s been a pretty amazing 3 weeks. Our little boy is growing up so fast!

Owen Bradley Ireland

Brad and I would like to introduce our son, Owen Bradley Ireland. He arrived in our arms at 3pm on the dot on Wednesday April 17th, 2013. It was sort of a whirlwind of a day, as my water broke early Wednesday morning and Brad and I rushed to the hospital.



I had my 36.4 week appointment on Monday and my doctor checked me and told me I was 3cm dilated and 50% effaced, on my way to labor but she didn't think it would happen any time soon. I went on with life, worked both Monday and Tuesday nights with no problems. Tuesday night's sleep was coming and going and I was up and down to the bathroom. Finally around 5am I had noticed that something was unusual about the shear amount of times I was going to the bathroom. I eventually woke Brad up around 6 and told him what was going on. I got up from being in bed and I felt like I pee'd my pants. Brad got in the shower and I paced in the bathroom while he showered. Then the contractions started coming. They were bareable at first but then they got more intense. We decided, after texting my sister in law kaley and my friend debbie, that it was time to pack a quick bag and drive into town to go to the hospital.
I had suggested to Brad before we left for the hospital, to grab the base and car seat just incase we have our 3rd family member join us today. He said, that he didn’t think we would be at the hospital for too long or he could always come back to the house and get it.
The ride to the hospital was the longest ride into town I’ve ever had. The contractions kept coming and I tried my best to breath through them. We made it to the family birth center, got checked in and went to triage to get all set up. It was then that I was checked again to see how dilated I was and much to our surprise, I was 7 cm dilated and they told us we were having a baby today!! Ready. Set. We are parents! My contractions kept coming and with even more intensity so I was eager to get an epidural as soon as I could. Brad shared with me later that it was a good thing I didn’t see how big the needle was because it would have really freaked me out. He also shared with me that watching me get the epidural was one of the hardest parts of Wednesday for him. It was difficult to work through the contractions and stay still so the anesthesiologist could properly stick me and not screw things up.

Once I had the epidural and it took effect, I was feeling much better and didn’t have to concentrate so much on breathing through the pain. We waited for a birth suite to be available for a few hours while we also waited for further dilation. Once we moved into the birth suite, we got settled and I got checked again and we discovered that I was 8cm dilated. Well on our way to meeting our son. About an hour later I was checked again and I was 9 1/2 but I needed to be 10 to start pushing. The doctor came in and said good job, you can start pushing and then the doctor left again. I pushed with our nurse, Mina, and Brad for about a half hour when the doctor came in again to check my progress. I pushed with the doctor for about 10 minutes and she thought that I might need a C-section. Owen’s head was turned in the birth canal and I was running a fever, which caused his blood pressure to drop significantly. At that point, the epidural was turned off so I could start feeling the contractions and push through them. I pushed him into the birth canal where he was facing towards my right, slightly stuck and the doctor didn’t think I could give birth naturally and when she said “If we don’t make any sort of progress and we can’t get him, you will need a C-section!” I made up my mind real quick that I wasn’t going to have a C-section so she got the vacuum out and we tried that several times. I pushed really good. We tried with two really good contractions to get him out with the vacuum and on the 3rd attempt, she pulled Owen out and he was stuck. At that point, I was awarded with an episiotomy to help get him out and one push later, we had a son!! Owen was born with a slight cone head because of the vacuum, which also caused some red blood cells to hemorrhage in the back of his head. This will come into play later in his already short life.
They cleaned Owen off a little and handed him to me to put on my chest. After a quick minute of looking at how perfect he is, Brad cut the cord and helped the staff clean him off. Owen was weighed and measured and he was a perfect 8 pounds, 6 ounces and 18 ½ inches long. The NICU staff was in the room as well because technically he was a premature birth. The next day I would have been considered full term at 37 weeks. We had the biggest premie ever!
Brad and I were ecstatic to tell family and friends that our son had entered the world and was perfect!

Over the next few hours Brad’s parents showed up, as they were still planning to come out and spend a few days with us before Owen decided to make his debut 3 weeks early. My mother was on her way and showed up late Wednesday night.
We didn’t get much sleep on Wednesday night between feedings and the night nurse coming to check on us. Brad got a few solid hours and I was only able to get maybe 45 minutes that night. Thursday morning was a whirlwind of visitors and doctors coming in. A newborn photographer came in and got some great shots of Owen. At 24 hours of age Owen went through a series of blood tests to make sure everything was okay with him. The results told us that his bilirubin levels were elevated and they thought that because he had to be suctioned out, that didn’t help the cause. Everyone has levels of Bilirubin, but newborns can’t properly break down the red blood cells and it often causes Jaundice. Thursday night, after 24 hours of life, Owen had to sleep under some ultraviolet lights to help get rid of his high bilirubin levels. Friday morning they took a blood test to see where his levels were and they were low enough for us to take him home!
We were able to spend one night at home and get a routine started. We had a follow up appointment the next morning to make sure his levels didn’t go up over night and to check his weight as well. We received bad news that afternoon that Owen’s levels had sky rocketed and we needed to get back to the family birth center so he could spend another night having phototherapy. So back to the hospital we went to spend the night under ultraviolet lights.
Owen spent his Saturday night under the lights and had a blood test in the morning to check his levels. We didn’t receive good news on Sunday morning, as his levels had only decreased from 17 to 14 and the doctors wanted his levels to be below 11 to go home. So we had earned ourselves another night in the hospital, and owen under the lights. I had a hard time dealing with this news, as I just wanted to take my baby boy home and start a good routine with him. We had no other choice so we just had to think positive and make sure he stayed under the lights. On top of having to lay under the lights, Owen had also lost a significant amount of weight since he was born on Wednesday. Owen’s birth weight was eight pounds, six ounces and at his appointment on Saturday he weighed seven pounds, two ounces. Every newborn loses weight, but he had lost too much for comfort. With that said, Sunday was spent dedicated to plumping up our little boy with breast milk and supplementing with formula, much to our dismay. We were discharged from the hospital a second time on Monday afternoon and were able to come home! Oh what a relief. We had a follow up appointment with our pediatrician on Wednesday to check his weight and his bilirubin level again, to make sure he didn’t rebound. Wednesday he had only gained an ounce, which is still a gain but we need him to gain more!
I think it will be a constant struggle, at least for the next few weeks, for Owen to gain weight and get a good handle on life!
In the mean time, we are enjoying our little boy, even through the sleepless nights and poopy diapers. Seeing him smile (or have a gas pain) has made it all worth it.
It’s hard to believe how much we love this little person . . . .

36 weeks . . . 9 months pregnant

How far along are you – 36 weeks!! Officially 9 months pregnant
Total weight gain – Too much! 20-25lbs. I hear from people “oh, its all baby . . . you’ll lose it real quick!” But it doesn’t change how scary the number on the scale is.
Maternity Clothes – all the time
Stretch Marks – They are still there, but now they really itch. ☹ It’s an itch that I just can’t scratch because it’s doesn’t satisfy.
Sleep – I actually slept pretty good this week. I am making an effort to sleep on my left side to help with the swelling of my left foot and the carpal tunnel in my hands. It might be a mind over matter sort of thing, but it seems to be helping a little.
Best moment this week – Working my last midnight shift at work. I no longer have to stay up till midnight and fall asleep around 1am. I can now come home at 8:30 and Brad and I can be in bed after the 10pm news. Also, there is another couple in Brad’s unit who are done having children, so they gave us some of their boy clothes that they didn’t want! An entire box full of shoes and coats and tons of 3-6 and 6-9 month tops and pants! Our little guy is going to be one good lookin’ fella!
Miss anything – Clothes that fit the way they are supposed to, wearing tennis shoes and the ease of getting up from chairs or couches.
Movement – He has been dancing around the last few days. He has been kicking so hard that it makes me move.
Food Cravings – Sweets. I made the big mistake of purchasing a big bag (Costco size) of peanut M&M’s a few weeks ago. . . they are almost gone.
Anything make you queasy or sick – Again, I have been pretty lucky to not be sick during this pregnancy.
Gender – Boy
Labor signs – The other night at work I had some sharp, shooting pains that didn’t last too long but still concerned me. I also had some minor cramping but that went away as well. I called my nurse the next morning and she said it was normal, as it was just my ligaments in my pelvis stretching, getting ready for his big entrance!
Symptoms – A big belly! ☺ Edema in my hands and feet, anxiousness, lack of energy and a sense of being overwhelmed.
Belly Button in or out – Out.
Wedding ring on or off – I put my wedding band on last week for our date we had, and I can’t seem to get it off. ☹
Happy or moody –Definitely moody yesterday, but I would like to think the rest of the week was half and half.
Looking forward to – Brad’s parents coming out on the 17th, then Tim and Kaley and Lucas are going to be here. After they leave, a short week or so after my mother arrives and then it’s baby time!! I also have my last two-week appointment on the 15th, and then I am scheduled to see my OB every week till baby boy is here!

Brad’s parents are coming to visit us for a few days this coming week and it’s always nice to see them. This will be the last time we get to spend time with them without a child to take care of. It’s sort of a strange thought because for 8 years now, it’s always been just Brad and Megan. Now we are going to have Brad and Megan and _ _ _ _. Soon after Don and Ferol leave, Tim and kaley and their bundle of joy will be out for the weekend. It will be so nice to see them, as they intended to come out for the baby shower but life got in the way and couldn’t make it. They leave on the 21st, and 8 days later, my mother flies out to Billings to spend 3 weeks with us and be here for the birth of her first grandchild. I am excited, anxious and scared all at the time to see what happens in the next month. My due date is less than a month away and I feel like we still have tons to finish. We need a dresser to put all of the clothes and blankets we have for him, we need more than one fitted sheet for our mini crib, I need to pack my hospital bag just in case he wants to make his debut early. Those are just a few of my worries. I am excited to meet this little guy that has been bruising my insides for weeks now. I’m eager to see what he looks like and what kind of personality he will have. As crazy as this sounds, I think I am ready for all of those late night feedings and learning how to be a parent. I can’t wait to see Brad’s face when we meet our son and have this life changing experience with him.
I’m anxious about all of the family coming out and people wanting to spend time with Brad and I. It’s going to be wonderful to have the support of friends and family. However, the control freak inside of me will want to entertain, cook, and clean the house while they are here. I will need to constantly remind myself that my priority is to take care of this new addition we have, as friends and family can fend for themselves! ☺
This is a new journey and I will learn so many things about myself, even Brad for that matter, over the next few months.