Featuring the Feisals

Happy Valentine's Day

2012-02-14T08:13:00.003-06:00

LOVE this sweet little valentine!

Birthday Party Planning

2012-01-25T19:47:00.005-06:00

How is it possible that my sweet baby girl is about to be 2?!?!?!? We are in the middle of planning a super special party for this sweet girl! I have to give props to a vendor that i've been working with that has been FANTASTIC.

I have been working with The Trendy Butterfly on creating the perfect invitations and other paper goods for sweet Ellie's party! I came across their site on etsy and after reading the fantastic reviews I thought I'd give it a shot. I emailed the invite I was interested in, my ideas to change it up, etc and in LESS THAN 24 HOURS I had a proof in my inbox!!!! Everything that I have picked out has been that quick!

The Trendy Butterfly offers MUCH more than children's party invitations! Custom T-Shirts, Frames, Piggy Banks, Pillow Cases, Storage Stepstools AND fun things for us older girls too....Custom Cutting Boards, iPhone Cases, etc.

Once again I can say enough wonderful things about this vendor!!! I'm off to work with them on designing myself a new iPhone case :).

I've been working with a few others that I will post reviews of once my products are complete!

Bad Blogger

2012-01-15T22:23:00.001-06:00

I've been a terrible blogger lately and doubt I have any followers left!!! I have no excuses we've just been busy with life! A friend and I recently joined weight watchers so if anyone has any encouragement or recipes to share please do!!

Heres a sweet sneak peek from this weekends valentine session :). What a difference a year makes. My header pic is from valentines last year! I can't believe this girl is almost two!

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'twas the night before Christmas

2011-12-24T22:00:00.001-06:00

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Happy Halloween

2011-11-01T15:03:00.001-05:00

I have a ton of pictures on my camera I need to upload. However, this sweet girl cracks me up!!! Ms. Donna has dress up clothes at her house that the kids play in from time to time. Well of course they had to get them out on Halloween! Imagine Steven's surprise when he walked in to pick up Ellie and she looked like this....

She had been dressed like this since she got up from taking a nap! She had ZERO interest in taking this costume off. I was worried she was not going to willingly change into her sweet pig costume! Nothing a reese cup couldn't fix!

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Pumpkin Mini Session

2011-10-03T17:55:00.001-05:00

I love this girl SO much! Cheesy!

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Friday Night

2011-09-30T19:39:00.001-05:00

Dinner at Qdoba, sleepy time at Sam's, made better with some cookies!

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Shellac Manicure Day 7

2011-08-16T10:50:00.001-05:00

It's still hanging on!!!! The biggest change is new growth on my nails! I still don't have any chips!!!!

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Sunglasses

2011-08-10T13:57:00.001-05:00

This girl cracks me up!

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Shellac Manicure

2011-08-09T20:52:00.001-05:00

When I worked downtown I met the sweetest girl at the salon next door to my office! Come to find out she went to high school with Steven! We've stayed in touch on and off and after many years of being downtown she moved to the CUTEST new salon off of 50th and Western.....Cameo! When she told me she was moving she let me know they would be offering Shellac! I decided to take her up on the offer to come in!

We spent this evening catching up and doing my nails. These pictures definitely make the color look red but it is pink. I normally don't go with such a bright nail polish but I wanted something to match the current color on my toes! I'm anxious to see how it holds up. I will tell you day 1 I'm super impressed!!!!! Ill take more pics in a few days!

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New Camera Lens

2011-07-24T13:08:00.001-05:00

I'm definitely still learning my camera and don't spend the time I should shooting in manual. Our wonderful friend Melissa who has taken some family pictures for us over the past years was upgrading one if her lens so that means she had a great deal for me :). I am in LOVE. Hopefully this is just what I needed to make myself practice more!

Lately

2011-07-24T08:37:00.001-05:00

I really have no excuse for my lack of blogging! We've been busy with life! We took a trip to Scottsdale with great friends. I traveled to Kentucky where my company sponsored the Nationwide NASCAR Series. Check it out at www.SPEEDtoFEED.org! And of course hanging out with the sweet girl below! We spend LOTS of time with the pink kitchen.....we pretend to wash pots and pans, cook eggs, unpack and repack everything in it.....over and over and over!

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Mother's Day Photo Shoot

2011-05-22T11:30:00.004-05:00

Casey, Grammy Shannon, and the boys got Ellie this ADORABLE outfit for her birthday! I couldn't wait to have a photoshoot so I thought Mother's Day morning was the perfect time....apparently Ellie had other plans!

Ellie's Favorite Things

2011-05-02T10:58:00.001-05:00

Ellie has two things she is enjoying tremendously these days. Banging on the living room window to get the dogs attention and digging all my make-up items out and playing with them. She is changing daily and i am so blessed to be her mommy!

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Easter Bunny

2011-04-25T09:36:00.001-05:00

I haven't unloaded our Easter pics yet but we loved spending time with our sweet girl!

On Saturday after Kindermusik we had a yummy lunch at Saturn Grill and then headed to the mall to see the Easter Bunny. We knew this was a huge risk as Ellie was already past being due for a nap. So of course we get to the mall and the Easter Bunny is on a break!!! Before he could return from his break sweet girl was taking a nap in her stroller. So we cruised around the mall again and again and again!

When we finally got to the Easter Bunny we weren't quite sure how she would act! Well she LOVED him. The only time she got upset.....when we took her away from him!

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Kindermusik

2011-04-12T20:05:00.001-05:00

Last Saturday Ellie started Kindermusik. It just a short month class through the fitness center at Chesapeake. She didn't really know what to think the first 15 or so minutes but once she warmed up we had a good time. I'm excited to go back this Saturday!

We didn't get any pictures during class but here she is afterwards enjoying her pizza at UpperCrust.....not really interested in taking a picture!

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Fun Times

2011-04-07T15:27:00.001-05:00

Last Saturday I made the trek to Tulsa to see my sweet friend Casey!

We enjoyed a day with her two sweet boys. They were patient while we shopped at J. Spencer so we celebrated with Sonic and a nice play at the park!

That evening Casey and I enjoyed a HOT patio dinner at El Guapo and then we enjoyed the Kenny Chesney concert!

Even though I missed my sweet sweet girl it was FUN to spend some one on one time with my dear friend!

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Baker Troxler

2011-04-05T08:07:00.001-05:00

www.caringbridge.org/visit/bakertroxler

The above link was posted by a few bloggers that I follow then it was sent to me by a friend. God works in mysterious ways.

PLEASE PLEASE pray for this sweet family. They made a decision last weekend that no parent should ever be faced with making.

Baker was born at 35 weeks....the exact same as Ellie. Baker was born due to his mom having dangerously low amniotic fluid which caused decreased fetal movement.....the exact same as Ellie.
However, sweet Baker is not going to make.

I'm not going to get into the personal details you can follow their link if you choose to read more. Please love on your families and NEVER take one moment for granted!

Yes a 35 weeker is a 'late-term' preemie but regardless of that they are STILL a preemie and are brought into this world too soon. Yes there are some situations like Baker's and Ellie's that no matter what the outside world is better than the inside world regardless of consequences!

Please pray for the entire Troxler family!

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Another sneak peek

2011-04-03T14:51:00.001-05:00

Another sneak peek of my sweet baby girl!

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2011-03-27T16:01:00.001-05:00

Enjoying a Sunday breakfast at Panera!

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Sneak Peek Pictures

2011-03-26T16:40:00.001-05:00

Today we had Ellie's pictures taken with Miss Trish. Here's a little peek!

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Ellie is ONE!

2011-03-22T19:34:00.004-05:00

I can't believe our sweet little girl is one!! We celebrated with a trip to the zoo on her birthday. Her birthday was Wednesday....the day 18,000 people decided to attend the zoo. Despite the crowd we all had a good time! On Saturday we had a 'small' party with immediately family. I say 'small' because around here immediate family means 25 people. Ellie did surprisingly well and had a great time! Thank you to everyone that helped us celebrate!!!

Ellie's Invites

The Birthday Girl!

So proud of everyone singing to her!

With my parents

Steven's Parents

This year has flown by and we couldn't be more blessed to be Ellie's parents!

Make-up

2011-03-22T13:08:00.001-05:00

This sweet little girl will sit and play with a container of make-up all morning. Love her!

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Hello!!

2011-03-01T14:50:00.001-06:00

I'm sure I have very few followers left!!!! I could make lots of excuses for my lack of blogging but it doesn't really matter!!!

Life has been hectic and we are quickly approaching Ellie's first birthday...whoa!!! How'd that happen?!? Steven and I had a long discussion about her first party and we've decided to keep it small!!! With the JUST Ellie's grandparents, great-grandparents, aunts, and uncles our guest list is at 19 people....not including ourselves! We would love nothing more than to invite all of our HUGE extended family but we decided this was best at this point in her life!!! We will save the big extravagant parties for when she can remember them ;).

I promise to update more soon and with some sweet pictures of our growing girl!!!!

Here's the sweet thing opening valentines day gifts!!

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Location:N Meridian Ave,Oklahoma City,United States

May 7, 2011

2011-02-01T18:44:00.003-06:00

On May 7, 2011 we will be walking to celebrate our sweet girl and the journey she faced to come into this world. We are super excited to be a part of the March of Dimes - March for Babies walk. We have experienced first hand the complications that can arise from being born too soon.

We have started a team to walk with our sweet girl and to work towards the goal that one day all babies will be born healthy!

We would LOVE for you to join are team or help out in any way possible. You can join or donate to our team by visiting HERE. I have set a personal goal of $250 and we have also set a team goal $1500! PLEASE join us on this special day and honor our Ellie and all of the babies that were born TOO SOON!!!

Ellie getting a little help breathing right after she was born.

3 days old....patiently waiting to hold my sweet baby.

Thank you all!

with love,

2011-01-21T21:45:00.004-06:00

Can someone please tell me how the sweet thing below is 10 months old?!?!

I know I have lots to catch up on the blog. Ellie got very sick the Sunday before Christmas and it seems things have been a whirlwind ever since! Our poor girl had croup and the start of pneumonia...she VERY NARROWLY avoided spending her first Christmas in the hospital. After a strict regimen of two antibiotics, steroids, and breathing treatments every four hours she was on the mend and we got to enjoy Christmas as a family! I plan to sort through the millions of Christmas pictures this weekend and hopefully post some...of course only between all my 1st birthday party planning!

brand new!

first time to hold my sweet girl! I don't know that these have ever been posted. one of our fabulous nurses knew i was dying to get my hands on her. due to how sick ellie was i hadn't held her at all until she was over a week old. dad held her very little from the or to the regular nursery before she had to be admitted to the nicu. this was the night before she was extubated and was technically breaking the rules but we had a wonderful night nurse that called just after midnight that said she is awake get down here. i walked into the nicu and little did I know they had been preparing for our first holding session and i got to hold my sweet girl until 4 am when a new baby was arriving to the nicu and therefore i was kicked out! the next day she was extubated and everyone got to take their turn!!

FINALLY rooming in together 3 long weeks after ellie arrived in preparation for going home!

1st photo session with miss trish!

with love,

Prayers Please

2011-01-12T14:42:00.001-06:00

I would like to ask everyone to please keep the McCoy family in your prayers!!!!!

You can read more about their story at www.caringbridge.org/visit/mccoy.

As a background to save you from reading through 22 pages of journals. On December 5th Brian and Denae welcomed their twin girls into this world at 25 weeks 5 days. Ada Yvonne came weighing 1pound 8oz and let out a little yelp to let everyone know she is a fighter. Siena Grace came in at 13oz and let everyone know she's a fighter as well. Throughout the past few weeks Ada has been a ROCK for the McCoy's and has made progress by leaps and bounds!!! Siena on the other hand has had quite the struggle. However, once Siena finally got comfortable and to a stable level sweet Ada took a turn. Ada is back on the CPAP and some cultures are growing a staph infection that they don't know at this time is treatable with antibiotics!!!! We should know more this evening.

One of my sorority sister's works with Brian's sister and share their story with me. After reading we learned that Brian and Steven both work for the same company. Steven and I have been in communication with Brian and while he is being strong for his family they could use all the prayers we can give!

I didn't mean to type a book but we all know prematurity is close to my heart. Getting to know this family you will see what an amazing journey they've been on already but still need lifting up!

Thank you all!

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9 month proofs

2010-12-18T00:07:00.002-06:00

Ellie had her 9 month pictures on Tuesday. We took advantage to have some in her Christmas outfit as well!

www.sweetberryphotography.com
enter website, client proofing
password ellie9

LOVE the ones with her sweet little tooth!

She also had her 9 month check up today. She is off the charts in length at over 30 inches long and in the 50th percentile for weight at 19lbs 8oz. Big girl!

Ellie's Christmas Tree

2010-12-12T21:26:00.004-06:00

This is how picture taking goes at our house these days! Ellie will not look at you she chooses to play with her tree. Then she thinks what if I look and keep my arm back here. Next a little smile....but she is really only smiling because she has found the ornament. Finally she's got it! Then Mom and Dad give in and just turn her around.....someone sure knows how to get their way!

Big Day

2010-11-25T18:23:00.001-06:00

We all woke up from our afternoon nap and sweet Ellie has her first tooth poking through!! She's been quite the trooper especially considering some of the horror stories you here!

Steven has a nasty stomach bug so Ellie and I are camped out at my mom and dad's for the night.

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Happy Thanksgiving

2010-11-25T13:30:00.001-06:00

We are so thankful for this little turkey!

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My Very First Blogger Award!!!

2010-11-19T18:05:00.003-06:00

I got my very first blogger award from sweet Kindall at Some Kind of Wonderful!! Everyone should definitely go check out her adorable blog and follow her hilarious post!! I get sad when she doesn't post for a few days...step it up Kindall ;). I know Kindall in real life! She recently became a stay at home mommy to sweet Mason...he's adorable! Maybe Ellie and him could have a playdate soon....they share a pediatrician! Kindall used to work at the non-profit were Steven and I both volunteered for many years! Thanks Kindall for the sweet award!

Here are the rules:

1. Thank and link back to who gave you the award!

2. Share seven things about yourself!
3. Pass it along to seven blogs you've recently discovered and enjoy!

4. Let the recipients know you've left them an award!

My 7 facts:

1. On March 16, 2010 my entire world was rocked when I became a mom to a premature baby girl!! She is a blessing in every way imaginable and I wouldn't change one second of our story!

2. I must drive the same day to work EVERY SINGLE DAY. I don't go the quickest route but it's typically the least traffic route. Even days i'm running late there are two other routes that would be a little quicker but I can't do it's like my car is on auto pilot.

3. I take preventative migraine medicine in the morning and at night. I must take this little bitty pill with a glass of ice tea....a FULL glass of ice tea. It typically gets poured, pill taken, and then the rest of the glass WASTED sitting right next to the sink....terrible I know.

4. One time when we had open house at preschool I had to draw a picture of what I wanted to be when I grew up. Most children drew things like a fireman, postman, doctor, dentist, etc. I colored a picture with different colored hair.....I wanted to be Cyndi Lauper. I'm sure my parents were proud.

5. I graduated college in 3 1/2 years.

6. Upon college graduation I accepted a job in Colorado Springs. I knew absolutely no one. I moved a few weeks after graduation....I made some life long friends and don't regret my decision one bit even though I am back in Oklahoma now!

7. Steven and I dated for 6 years before we were married.

Now my award goes to.....

Behymer Business. I know Daysha in real life....her sweet Lyndon was a preemie. We are neighbors and she welcomed us home and into loving arms when sweet Ellie was a preemie! She is also expecting baby #2 and we are praying everyday for a healthy full term pregnancy!

The Steen Style. I worked with Laura's husband AND she went to high school with my husband....such a small world! They are currently remodeling their home and I LOVE following their adventures!

Live.Love.Laugh. I only know Heather through the blog world. She commented and offered support during our journey with Ellie. Shortly after she announced her pregnancy. In August her world was rocked as she delivered sweet Brayden 3 months early. He got to come home right before Thanksgiving and is doing wonderful!

The Adventures of Mc & Max. Casey is my very best friend and I love following the boys on her blog!! We don't get to see each other too often with her living in Tulsa and us both having full schedules....maybe this award will encourage her to post!

Life With the Earles. Bobbie is one of my sorority sisters and I LOVE reading her blogging adventures...I rarely comment and I love how she always talks about her two readers....make that three I read you just don't know it!!

Footholds of a First Year Teacher Lindsey is 'family'. She is braving her first year teaching and after a challenging start is doing fabulously well as everyone knew that she would! Lindsey you make us all proud!!!

The Strope Situation My sweet Becky! Becky is my 'big sis' from the sorority house. She has three BEAUTIFUL children! I love keeping up with them all!

Ellie's Story

2010-11-17T18:53:00.003-06:00

In honor of Prematurity Awareness Day I will be sharing Ellie's journey. Some of it is posted in various post throughout the blog. I believe there is even a short birth story on here and one day I do hope to post a full birth story and how it came that we had a premature baby.

I will say this...there was no pre-e, no pre-term labor, nothing. Basically there was no warning....THANKFULLY there was a VERY vigilant doctor and nursing staff that insisted on non-stress test and bio-physical profiles even though the test had said I was NOT leaking amniotic fluid because the results of that bio-physical ultrasound showed MUCH different results in just 5 short days my fluid levels had went from a 12.34 (the high side of normal) to below a 2 (the very dangerous side of normal for baby and mom).

There were no decisions to be made I was delivering that day via c-section. Due to a condition Ellie had there wasn't even time to be monitored in the hospital for steroid shots to be administered to develop her lungs. We had been seeing a high risk doctor the entire pregnancy because Ellie had a 2 vessel umbilical cord they did not feel that this would present her with any problems but the doctor wanted to monitor her growth as it can cause intrauterine growth restriction during the third trimester. Ellie had no growth issues and there had been no fluid issues my entire pregnancy however due to this condition and the already fragile state of her umbilical cord the on call doctor (mine was out of town) felt it was best that we deliver immediately.

So March 16, 2010 at approximately 9:00 am I got the phone call that rocked my world. As she said we were having a birthday party and I was becoming a mom to a preemie. A preemie being born at 35 weeks that could be perfectly healthy and go home in 3 to 4 days or a preemie that could need a little help.

Ellie arrived at 5:13 pm. She weighed a healthy 5lbs 7oz and was 18inches long. She was crying and appeared VERY healthy. I spent a few minutes with her in the OR. Her proud daddy then took her to show her off and to the REGULAR nursery to get cleaned up! Ellie was doing great post delivery and right about bath time she started having breathing trouble. She was put on the CPAP carried down to my recovery room so I could see her precious face and then transported to the NICU were our roller coaster journey would begin.

Ellie did AMAZINGLY well her first night and was doing so great the next morning it looked like maybe that would be the end of our NICU journey but that wasn't to be. But by lunch time she was back on the CPAP. By late that evening the news begin to get pretty bad and she wasn't doing too well even with the CPAP. Come to find out her right lung had collapsed so it was time for a chest tube and to be intubated. Ellie spent one week on the vent which is a very short time compared to some but during that time it seemed like a lifetime and I was longing to hold that sweet little girl! Finally on the morning of March 23rd Ellie was off the vent and was time to get that little one in my arms for the VERY FIRST TIME!!!! She still spent another 2 weeks in the NICU.....learning to eat, talks of moves to bigger hospitals, getting brain scans to test for cerebral palsy, echos for murmurs, renal scans for kidney functions and countless other pokes, prodes and tests.

I know our NICU journey is one of many. I know it is short compared to lots. But, it's our story and on March 16 my world was forever changed. Not only was my precious baby girl brought into this world but she was brought into this world TOO soon. We experienced and saw too many scary things in that hospital! I don't want to change my journey but I don't want anyone else to have to experience it! I look forward to a day when all babies are born healthy.

Ellie Grace - 3 days old in her tanning bed

Stealing this quote below from Heather's blog everyone should go check out sweet Brayden and his story....the power of prayer is AMAZING!

"We can only appreciate the miracle of a sunrise if we have waited in the darkness"

Fight for Preemies

2010-11-14T07:40:00.001-06:00

Prematurity Awareness Month

2010-11-04T21:20:00.005-05:00

November is Prematurity Awareness Month. This cause is very near and dear to my heart since sweet Ellie joined our world. Awareness day is November 17 (the day after Ellie's 8 month birthday!). I have signed up on Bloggers Unite to blog about it that day and make people more aware this entire month.

These pictures are from some of Ellie's first few hours in the NICU when things were actually still looking up. The NICU is a roller coaster with MANY ups and downs. Throughout the month I will share some of our experiences and our story. While Ellie was only 5 weeks premature as the nurses would remind me when I would get frustrated towards the end when we were SO close to going home but not quite there yet Ellie started out her sweet little life VERY sick and she had a struggle!

While you are joining in this fight please feel free to join in prayer for some fellow friends some real life and some blogger friends...

Heather's son joined this world 12 weeks too soon! You can keep up with the latest on her blog. I don't want to jinx her but things are looking up!

Daysha's 1st born joined this world 7 weeks too soon and is now a healthy growing boy!!! But please keep her in your prayers as she embarks on the pregnancy journey for a 2nd time! We are praying for a healthy FULL term pregnancy!!!

And finally my sweet friend Casey's nephew recently joined this world 7 weeks too soon and he is tiny but doing well!

Trick or Treat

2010-11-01T21:26:00.005-05:00

Ellie liked her trick or treat back from Pottery Barn Kids! We figured she could use it in the future :)
We hope everyone had a wonderful Halloween! We sure did!

Berry Sweet

2010-11-01T21:10:00.005-05:00

Ellie did surprisingly well in her Halloween costume she didn't mind it at all. She did get a little warm but other than that she was as happy as could be! Dad even stayed home from the game to go trick or treating with us!

Steven says this pictures mean....she really wasn't unhappy. I think it's hilarious!

Happy Halloween

2010-10-30T21:39:00.001-05:00

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Mummy Munch

2010-10-24T14:12:00.001-05:00

Today I made Mummy Munch and it is super yummy!!! I got the recipe from the Picky Palate! This literally took about 5 minutes to throw together and makes a fun treat.

4 Cups Honey Nut Chex Cereal

16 oz package Vanilla Candy Melts

1 Cup Autumn Mix (candy corn, mini pumpkins, etc)

1 Cup Salted dry roasted peanuts

2 Cups mini pretzels

Place cereal, Autumn mix, peanuts and pretzels into a large bowl. Mix to combine. Melt vanilla candy melts according to package directions then pour into cereal mixture. Gently stir until well coated then pour onto wax paper or a silpat lined baking sheet to dry. Once dried, break into pieces and put into cute cupcake liners or little bags.

Here is my Mummy Munch while drying.

Here are my fall cupcake liners.

I’ll try and remember to post a picture of the finish product!

Also, if you don’t have silpat liners I HIGHLY suggest you check them out! LOVE these things. They can be found at many places and I couldn’t live without them when it comes to baking! They are great!

Duckie Bath

2010-10-21T20:33:00.000-05:00

We bought Ellie a new inflatable duckie bathtub. The picture below was her reaction when Steven first sat her down.....she wasn't quite sure about this new thing! However, like she does with most things she quickly loved it! I'm sure she will love the new bath toys that are waiting for Christmas!

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New Blog!!!

2010-10-14T19:23:00.003-05:00

Thanks to my sweet friend Nicole we finally have a new blog background!!! I was SO frustrated the other night because I could not recall how to update the background even though I knew I just needed to swap out the html code. Talk about making you crazy! Everyone should go check out Nicole's super fun blog! You can follow the link above or check out her super cute button on my sidebar!

Thank you so much Nicole I definitely owe you!!!! Tune in for more regular posting :)

Happy Fall!

2010-10-13T21:38:00.001-05:00

Our front door! As I'm sure you can see I apparently have some lights out!!!!! I have a light tester.....packed in my Christmas stuff. So I must go find a new one or deal with the burnt out lights until the Thanksgiving night when the Christmas stuff makes an appearance.

On a different note apparently it's been awhile since I changed my blogger background and I have no clue what to do now....can someone please help!!!!!

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6 month proofs

2010-10-09T07:03:00.002-05:00

Ellie was not too interested in having her picture taken this time around!

Thankfully Trish was able to capture some good ones! She said not to worry 3 and 6 months are always the hardest to entertain.....next time we will bring the circus. The biggest problem was we decided to shoot at the park and realized after arriving that there was a car show. So Ellie was more interested in checking out the woof woofs, people, cars and everything else she could find!

www.sweetberryphotography.com
enter site
client proofing
password egf6

Berry Berry Sweet

2010-10-04T09:55:00.000-05:00

Ellie had pictures taken in her Halloween costume. LOVE the way they turned out! For a sneak peek go to www.sweetberryphotography.comenter blog!

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6 month sneak peek

2010-09-18T17:43:00.001-05:00

We had Ellie's 6 month pictures this morning! She was more interested in checking out her surroundings, figuring out how to get out of the basket she was sitting in and looking at us like we were nuts rather than smiling! We had to work hard but we did manage to get some cute ones!

Go to sweetberryphotography .com and select enter blog!

I can't wait to see the rest!! We just love Trish and couldn't be more happy that we chose to purchase a 'baby plan' package.

Be on the lookout! In a few weeks we will be having a special Halloween session with Trish!

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Ellie and her sunglasses

2010-09-14T15:34:00.001-05:00

Hello!! I realize the last time I posted our sweet girl was 4 months old and she will be 6 months this week!!! Slow down! Where is the time going! I need to do her 5 and now 6 month post!!

In the meantime sweet Avery had her 9th birthday party! What fun is a swim party without some cute sunglasses. She LOVED them and they didn't seem to bother her one bit!

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Happy Girl

2010-07-22T21:32:00.004-05:00

We are so blessed to have such a happy baby girl!! That smile melts my heart!!

4 months already....

2010-07-22T21:09:00.005-05:00

I absolutely can't believe that our sweet little girl is 4 months old! Time flies when you are having fun! She has changed so much in the past few weeks it's unbelievable. Some of her favorite activities are 'talking', rolling over, chewing on her hands, drooling, and mirroring your facial expressions! She's developed quite the little personality. She's a great sleeper and still LOVES bath time and being in the water!

We had her 4 month check up and all was well. She weighs 13lbs 2oz and is 25 1/2 inches long! She is in the 90th percentile for length and head circumference and 40th percentile for weight all for her actual age not her adjusted age! He was impressed with everything developmentally. He did ask if we'd been feeding her lead in her bottles....she was 9lbs even at 2 months. I actually can't believe in her short four months of life she has gained over 8lbs and grown over 7inches! Growing girl! I am still pumping exclusively and she is getting breast milk only. And on the controversial subject of cereal in bottles she DOES get cereal in her bottles of course by the recommendation of our pediatrician. She's battled a little reflux but none of us felt it was quite bad enough to treat with meds so he suggested thickening her breast milk....it's worked great!

On another note I can only imagine what her monthly pictures are going to look like when she becomes even more mobile. As you can see the 4 month pictures were a fail! She was more interested in playing with her hands, eating her hands, grabbing her feet and scooting down in the chair far enough so she could roll over! Oh well we still think she's precious!

We love you so much ellie belly!

I can't believe 4 short months ago they brought this precious angel in for me to see on her way to the NICU. What a long 3 weeks but of course we wouldn't trade it for the world!!

mmmm these hands sure are good!

playing with these hands is so much more fun then looking at my mom

Oh well there is always next month!

Boomer Sooner!

2010-07-14T19:31:00.004-05:00

Ellie got the cutest OU outfit from her friend Camden! The way our little baby is growing I knew it would be way too small come football season. So what better time to wear it then while watching OU in the college world series. Unfortunately she wasn't a fan of the outfit.....I hope that's not a sign!!! As disappointed as I would be I told Ellie from the beginning in the NICU if she would just get better she could do whatever she wanted....ha i'm sure I might pay for that some day!! I did however find her staring at the UCLA baseball players on tv during tummy time (no we don't let her watch tv regularly)!!!I can't believe my sweet little girl is going to be 4 months old on Friday!!!

Dancin' Shoes

2010-07-07T16:07:00.003-05:00

Ellie has more shoes than I do.....ok MAYBE that's a stretch! But for someone who rarely wears shoes she has quite a few. However, none of them are quite as cute as these little gold numbers! My best friend Casey and her mom Shannon....otherwise none as Aunt Casey and Grammy Shannon got Ellie these adorable shoes before she arrived! They also got an adorable shimmery top to match. The minute I saw them I just knew she needed the perfect jeans to match. The Gap didn't fail and we found these adorable dark washed straight legged jeans a few weeks ago. Yes I know it's hot outside and she will probably never wear them again but they were a must have for this photo shoot!

Ellie kicked and played in these shoes for hours!! I think she likes them :)

Dancing Queen

She was over it!!!

Thanks Aunt Casey & Grammy Shannon we LOVE them!!!

Sweetberry Photography

2010-06-28T17:10:00.002-05:00

When we booked Ellie's newborn package we also booked a Watch Me Grow package. This got us a session at 3 months, 6 months, 9 months and 1 year...as well as a few other perks! As always we couldn't be more pleased with Trish's work! Thought you might enjoy!! The link will be active until Friday!

http://www.sweetberryphotography.com/

Client Proofing
Password: eg3

ENJOY!

3 Months

2010-06-24T19:15:00.003-05:00

I can't believe our sweet little girl was three months old on June 16th! She is still such a happy and content baby! We went through a fussy spell that lasted about 2 weeks but after that she was back to her normal happy self! She still LOVES bath time, LOVES to smile and LOVES to 'talk'! We couldn't ask for a better baby!

Ellie Belly we love you!

Changes & Blessings

2010-06-04T22:25:00.005-05:00

What a terrible blogger I am!!!

If you've followed my blog for any length of time you know that awhile back I made a career change and I was so blessed to me following a new path and going to work for a non-profit that was doing things and had goals that made me SO excited! I am not going to talk bad about any on, anything, or any organization. I will leave it with some things happened during my time on maternity leave that were very hurtful and made me question lots of things. So much so that I was dreading going back to a place that I had previously loved but sick at the thought of not working with some of my clients should I not return. Well God took care of all of those feelings and 3 days before I was going to return I was laid off.

As much as I love being Ellie's mommy being a full time stay at home mommy just wasn't for me. I knew that God would take care of our family. With the help of a few friends I have found a new PART TIME position with an amazing non profit organization. I will be working Monday through Friday from 9am to 2pm as the Executive Assistant to the Vice President of Operations. I will be starting this coming up Monday and couldn't be more thrilled. He knows that I am a new mommy and made it very clear to me to that family ALWAYS comes first. There is a possibility that later down the road this could turn into a full time position. He said if that happens he never wants to see anyone there after 5 pm. He said I'm not going to lie and say sometimes I don't work from home but at 5 o'clock it is time to leave and be with family for awhile!

This opportunity came at a perfect time and answered all of our prayers. Now that's not to say it won't be a financial change for our family because it definitely will but like always God always provides and we know it's nothing that we can't handle and will be oh so worth it!

Now I have no doubt that it will be hard to leave that sweet smiling face every morning but knowing that I will return in a short 5 hours makes it so much easier!!!

We have a busy weekend plan and are anxious for Monday to get here but our going to enjoy my last weekend of maternity leave!

I'll leave you with this off centered picture from my mom's office of the happiest girl in the world! I could just eat those chubby cheeks....she's come so far!!!

2 months and other ramblings......

2010-05-16T16:00:00.007-05:00

Today our sweet little girl is two months old! It is also coincidentally our 1 year anniversary. We've spent the day at home hanging out as a family...we enjoyed sonic for breakfast, a walk in our new BOB Stroller (LOVE it), and are currently watching the storms. Later tonight we have a yummy dinner planned and then we will test out our year old wedding cake! Our original intentions were to have the top layer recreated. Our cake lady does this for an EXTREMELY reasonable price but needless to say we've been rather busy this year....maybe next year. Next weekend Steven's cousin is getting married. Since our pediatrician still recommends keeping Ellie out of large crowds she will not be attending with us :(. However, we will take that opportunity to enjoy a nice dinner out.

Tomorrow we will get the official stats on Miss Ellie but we know she's about 9lbs maybe just over and pushing 24 inches long if not already there. As you can imagine this creates quite the challenge finding clothes to fit our long skinny little girl!! We head to her 2 month well check. We've done some research and will be sticking with the recommended immunizations. We read various reports and couldn't really gather enough decision to have strong feelings either way so we will stick with what our pediatrician recommends.

What a difference a month makes....

Ellie your mommy and daddy love you so much and thank God for you every single day. We know you had a rough start in this little world but we are so thankful for how far you've come. At 2 months old you are holding your head up quite well, LOVE to smile but you are also very selective of who you share these smiles with, enjoying laying in the floor, eating anywhere between 3 and just over 4 ounces at every feeding, sometimes you like to snack during the day too, you still are eating only breast milk through a bottle, LOVE bath time, hate when it's time for your stinky vitamins, a great sleeper, EXTREMELY content and loved to be held but definitely let us know when you've had enough!

We couldn't be more than happy with Ellie's progress up to this point. The doctor continually reminds us that it's ok that she might be 4 to 5 weeks behind on all of her development milestones and that preemies typically catch up by the time they are 2. So far she's been pretty close to right on track with a full term baby! The doctor still has waking up/making sure Ellie eats every 3 hours. Sometimes I think she would be more than content to eat a larger amount at midnight and then not eat again until about 5 am. Where as now she currently eats between 11 and 12 then we wake her up to eat at 3 and then she wakes herself up between 5 and 6. Don't get me wrong there are some nights where she wakes up on her own to eat at 2 or 3!

We exchanged mother's day and anniversary gifts already. We typically try to stay away from doing this but we both got each other combined gifts this year. Since we were engaged I've had my eye on a necklace at the jewelers that designed my engagement ring and Steven and Ellie surprised me with it this year for Mother's Day and our anniversary. Steven has wanted a new blu-ray and surround sound for awhile so Ellie and I surprised him with that for our anniversary and an early father's day gift.

WOW that was a lot for one post...I guess that's what happens when you fall behind on your blogging!

New Friends!

2010-05-11T22:23:00.004-05:00

Last Thursday I had the opportunity to meet one of my blogger friends in real life! All though we have SO many acquaintances and were at OU at the same time there is a chance our paths have crossed prior to last Thursday! I don't quite remember how we found each others blogs but everyone should check out Nicole's wonderful blog HERE!

I joined Nicole at Junior Hospitality end of the year and 75th anniversary celebration! If you've never heard about Junior Hospitality you should check out their website and their blog (that of course Nicole blogs on:)). I was so honored to be Nicole's guest and learn about this amazing organization as well as meet a great group of women!!

I would be honored to one day consider myself a member of JH and everyone should definitely check out the amazing things they are doing in our community!!! Also, check out Nicole's blog and the great award she won at the banquet! It was great to finally meet her and I can see Nicole and I becoming great friends.

On another note our sweet little angel was 8 weeks old today and she is growing like crazy!! On Monday she has her 2 month well baby check and will also be getting her 2 month shots :(. Tomorrow our sweet friend Becky is having her baby at Deaconess so Thursday we plan to make a visit to her and the sweet nurses that were so good to us in the NICU!

Two Sweet Girls

2010-04-30T21:08:00.004-05:00

Our family friends youngest daughter is 8 and she is absolutely one of the sweetest things in the world! I was in college when Avery was born and I was pretty smitten! She was one of sweetest most content babies. I have LOVED getting to watch her grow into the sweet girl she is today! We have gone on family vacations to Florida, lake trips, Taylor Swift concert, she was in our wedding, long summer days swimming, pedicures......just to name a few of the things we've shared. She was so excited when we told her we were having a baby and even more excited when we found out it was a little girl. At Christmas this year she would watch my belly for as long as it took for Ellie to move. She told me things like when I got to big she would help me paint my toenails :). Last Saturday she came over and spent the day with us while her family was at her brother's track meet. She LOVED spending the day with Ellie and we LOVED having her she was such a big helper. She is the youngest of three with her siblings being 19 and 13....so being around a baby was new for her but you would have though she had 2 younger siblings! I can't wait for Ellie to grow up and have Avery in her life!

Funny Faces

Playing with Carson

Sweet girl

Taylor Swift!

4th Birthday

Opening Taylor Swift Tickets

Holding Ellie for the first time

Last Saturday...I LOVE this picture

Steven and I are both so thankful for so many sweet friends in our lives but we are extremely thankful for Avery and her family!

Newborn Pictures

2010-04-18T16:29:00.002-05:00

I thought I would share the link to Ellie's newborn pictures should anyone want to take a peak. We are in big trouble.....I want them all :)

www.sweetberryphotography.com

go to client proofing
password egf10

Things I never thought I would think about.....

2010-04-17T23:46:00.006-05:00

I came across this on preemie message board. It is so true how these things now apply to our life. We are so thankful and blessed by this sweet little girl. We knew our life would change but it has now changed in ways we never imagined! Having a baby prematurely has definitely shed some light on things and made us take everything from a different perspective.

The post was titled understanding preemie parents. I am so thankful our NICU stay was as 'short' as it was as I know it could have taken a much different path. I feel so blessed to be at home now where the highlights of my day are playing with my daughter, giving her a 'real' bath, playing dress up, feeding on our own schedule, etc versus the NICU where the highlights of our days were changing diapers that were finally poopy, learning that the diaper weighed enough so they could stop measuring them, only holding her for 20 minutes at a time and being forced to put her back to bed even though she was wide awake, etc.

Here is the article....

so, we may go a little nuts

about having a preemie...
losing our full term pregnancy and...
losing our "ideal delivery"...spending too many hours in the nicu...
not spending enough hours in the nicu...
leaving the hospital without our babies...
holding our babies for the first time...
all the acronyms you can imagine, and some you can't: C/S, IVH, PDA, NEC, ROP...
the privilege of changing diapers...
caring for our baby...
about germs in general...
the wonderment of a baby nipple feeding...
pumping all the time...
our babies' isolette linens matching...finding preemie clothes that make us feel like we have "real" babies...
having a baby shower- at all...
finding the perfect carseatstrollercribrockingchairnursingpillowfillintheblank...
taking our babies home...
not having a monitor to tell if they're ok...
not hearing beeping for the first time in months as we watch them sleep...hand sanitizer...
your "allergy cough"...
your runny nose...
about germs in general...
cigarette smoke...
anyone under 5 feet tall being within 5 feet...
strangers wanting to touch our sweet babies...
about germs in general...our babies gaining weight...
our babies' matching clothes...taking pictures...
the march of dimes...termie moms complaining...
doctors' appointments...
insurance bills...
showing the nicu we appreciate them...
reading everything we can...
message boards and blogs...
experiencing parenthood...
trying to connect with other people in our situation...
adjusted age...
developmental issues...
about germs in general...
future pregnancies...
future everything...

about cherishing every single moment.
and all of this is completely normal.
for friends and family, please just give preemie parents a crazypass. we deal with many things that termie parents can't imagine. we carry worry, guilt, doubt, fear and a sense of being overwhelmed with us almost every hour of every day.

1 month old

2010-04-16T18:27:00.002-05:00

Pictures to come!

I can't believe our sweet little angel is one month old today!!! It seems like just yesterday I got the phone call from the doctor saying she needed to come today!

We had a check-up with the peditrician today and all is well. She weighed in a 6lbs 8oz. She was 20 1/2 inches long. When we were discharged from the hospital just over a week ago she was 19 1/2 inches long. Such a long skinny girl!!

We will go back to the peditrician for the standard 2 month well baby visit where she will receive her immunizations. We discussed development milestones and he said not to worry if she seems a little behind on somethings due to her prematurity. He said that typically the delays average out by the time they are 2 years old and it is absolutely nothing to be concerned about. She passed her first hearing screening with flying colors but it is standard for NICU babies to have their hearing re-checked at 6 months and 1 year so we will get that scheduled as well.

He is also checking with our insurance on the RSV vaccination. She isn't technically in a 'high-risk' category but at the same time she is. Insurance will automatically cover for babies born at 35 weeks who are under 3 months of age. However, by the time RSV season rolls around she will be 9 months of age. He doesn't feel that they are absolutely necessary but he feels that they can't hurt so it's worth a shot to see if insurance will cover them. If insurance doesn't cover them they come with a hefty price tag of $1600/month and babies need them for the entire RSV season which last for 6 or 7 months depending where you live!!!!

Right now we are working on getting our days and nights straight. It can be frustrating but he encouraged us to remember that most of the things done in the NICU were done overnight. Her bath was typically at 9 pm or 12 am and all of her bloodwork was done at 3 am. So during all of those times in the NICU she was woken up and kept awake for some period of time. He says that over the next couple of weeks things should start to even out!

So overall we had a great appointment. I can't stress how much we love our peditrician and how happy we are with our decision to use him!

Home!

2010-04-13T19:18:00.005-05:00

We are all home and adjusting well....even our sweet Carson is home! Surprisingly he really isn't too interested in little miss he just leaves her alone and has been minding very well. It's pretty funny every time I put her down during the day he gets in his kennel and waits for me to shut the door. Someone must've told him to nap when the baby naps too! Steven went back to work today which was definitely strange after him being off for such a long time! My mom has taken the week off to spend time with us. We are SO thankful for lots of vacation time and both having a flexible boss!

Ellie is doing well she went to the pediatrician last Friday and weighed in at 6lbs 2oz. When she was discharged from the hospital on Tuesday she weighed 5lbs 14oz so a nice little gain. The pediatrician felt like everything checked out just great. When we were discharged the neonatologist had Ellie on 2 feedings of high calorie formula (Neosure). She would eat it but you could tell she wasn't too much of a fan! We talked to our pediatrician and since she was eating larger portions of breast milk and much smaller portions of the Neosure he felt that she wasn't really getting too much of a benefit from it so we got permission to stop! THANKFULLY....it was high in Iron and was not the best smelling stuff and you can only imagine what it did to her little tummy! We will have one more check this coming up Friday and then she won't go back until her 2 month check up! I also can't recommend our pediatrician highly enough as I know a few of you are expecting feel free to email me for his information!

We have lots of pictures to share but these are just a few that the sweet Melissa Wood took for at the hospital! Melissa LOVES newborn photography and sweet hospital sessions! She had offered to be there for Ellie's birth. Well seeing as how things happened so fast that just wasn't possible!!! So we waited until she was off all the 'equipment' in NICU and got their permission for Melissa to come up! However, by the time all of it was squared away and scheduled Ellie was released to room in with us!!!!! Here are just a few sneak peek pictures we can't wait to see the rest...THANK YOU Melissa for capturing these sweet moments! Melissa also took my maternity photos....I would share but I don't think anyone is interested in my bare belly

Of course we have ton more pictures to share but we will save those for another posts!! Speaking of pictures if anyone needs family photos, senior photos, anything I can't recommend these three people highly enough!!!

Our sweet friend Dia did our engagement pictures, my bridal portraits and our wedding!!! Maybe I should post some finally! She is adopting a sweet little girl set to arrive May 24th! I can't wait for sweet Ellie and Makenna to grow up together....book now before she gets busy. You can contact her through her blog and she will send you samples of her work:).

As I've said Melissa did my maternity and hospital photos. We took maternity pictures at Kaisers Ice Cream downtown and they were so much fun!!

We had newborn pictures taken by Trish at Sweetberry Photography! She is amazing to work with as well! We also have scheduled a watch me grow package with Trish which you can read more about on her website! We can't wait to take them!

Yes I know I think we will have plenty of pictures :) But I wanted to put the information out there for anyone who might be looking for a photographer for something!

The Shortest Post Ever

2010-04-06T10:27:00.001-05:00

WE ARE GOING HOME TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

MORE GOOD NEWS...

2010-03-28T11:32:00.002-05:00

Steven here...

I know, I know...I'm a terrible blogger. But, in my defense, it's been a little crazy and hectic.

Last Tuesday, Jamie decided it was time for me to go back to work; at least temporarily. She says it was because she wants me to save up some days off for when Miss Elliot comes home; I know better though...she just wants to hog that little bundle of joy all to herself!!! Or she's sick of seeing me 24/7!!! ;-) For those in Rio Linda (as the great El Rushbo says), I write that dripping in sarcasm; in fact, your monitor could probably use a wiping down. :-)

As the week progressed, Ellie kept making baby steps progress towards going home. Overnight Thursday night, Ellie got moved from her radiant heater bed to a "big girl" bed. In doing so, they moved us to a corner area with far more privacy and room to sit, feed, etc. She likes this new little home and is regulating her temperature well. In fact, they've had to quit swaddling her in 2 blankets due to an internal furnance apparently inherited from me. As you may know, I'd wear shorts in Antarctica if the wind wasn't blowing!

Friday saw me work the afternoon from the hospital as Jamie had a bit of a rough morning. Dr. Tolentino hadn't heard Ellie's murmur in several days but heard it Friday morning while making rounds. He noted that this was possibly due to the amount of fluid (Lipids and TPN) being "fed" through the PICC line. As you will recall, the PICC line starts at her left forearm, runs up a vein and outlets in her chest near her heart and lungs. Given the "outlet" location, the fluid being put in her body could be (was?) putting excess pressure on her heart and lungs.

Late Friday evening, Elliot received a single dose of lasix to get the exess TPN and Lipid fluid out of her system. BOY DID IT WORK. I have never seen a diaper so loaded! In fact, she soaked through her two swaddling blankets AND both her folded-in-fourths blankets that she was laying on. Suffice it to say the fluid issue was resolved!

Over the course of Saturday (the 27th), they finalized the weaning process from TPN and discontinued her lipids altogether. This was able to be done due to Ellie's ability to eat increasing content's of milk (albeit from a feeding tube).

In addition, we slowly kept backing her nasal cannula oxygen down to zero. By Saturday afternoon, Elliot was OFF OF OXYGEN!!!! Dr. Tolentino even mentioned that he was hopeful (not to be confused with thought, believed, certain, or any other more confident word/phrase) that Ellie would go home sometime in the middle of next week. In order to do that, she is going to have to eat 8 consecutive feedings by herself, without receiving any food through her tube.

We are so so close, but this last hurdle is pretty high. I've gotten her to eat 5cc out of a bottle on a couple of different occasions; Jamie has done the same as well as getting her to breastfeed a couple of times. But, nothing monumental; we WILL GET THERE! Right after she was born, Ellie did fine with a suck-swallow-breath test in the nursery before her downward turn during her bath. Difference between now and then, at least in my non-medical head, is that she's had LOTS of oral stimulation - feeding tube (which has since been moved) and a ventilator tube, not to mention oral swabs to clean her mouth and lips, bottles, a Soothie (pacifier), her fingers/thumbs/fists, etc. She is staring to figure out that when she wants food, she has to work for it to a certain degree; she's just lazy and likes getting a full belly while relaxing and taking a nap. After many morning runs to the donut shop and Chick-fil-a, I know EXACTLY where that comes from...her Momma! LOL

When I went in for her 9:00am feeding (we changed the schedule from 12-4-9 to 12-3-6-9 yesterday), Nurse Jamie couldn't wait and immediately asked me if I noticed anything different! I looked hard and fast, but not quick enough. Nurse Jamie uncovered Ellie's left arm to reveal a lack of a PICC line! NO MORE IV ANYTHING!!!

Another step closer to home!!!

What a great weekend and Sunday it has been. Not to mention, and I shamefully almost forgot, it's Palm Sunday. What a gift we have all received marked by this coming week and weekend.

Praise be to God.

FINALLY

2010-03-23T22:18:00.003-05:00

Steven here...

FINALLY!!!!

Daddy, Momma, and Baby Ellie

3 Generations

Grandma Janice, Momma, Baby Ellie

A sleepy Baby Ellie and Grandma Janice

Giddy and Baby Ellie

Grandma Janice, Papa Howard, and Baby Ellie

Well, it happened. BIG hurdle cleared today!!! Ellie's ET tube came out around 10:30am. HUGE RELIEF!!! Thanks be to God!!! Making it even better, she has not regressed (as I write). Praise be to God!!!

What this meant, you see above...we got to hold our baby girl for the first time (for most) and again for me (I got to hold her right after she was born and for about 10 minutes last Wednesday). How this all transpired is worth noting.

This morning, I slumbered awake late after a LATE night (it was even later for Jamie). As I pried one eye open, I realized that playing possum was a must. Jamie and the lactation specialist had no idea I had awoken and the last thing I wanted to do was make the situation weird. So I lay there, trying my hardest to look asleep and keep from "going postal" as the President gave undeserved accolades to Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, and a host of other baffoons (but I digress).

Then it happened, my iPhone rang. Fortunately the lactation specialist had departed and it was just Jamie and I in the room. Now it turned from awkward to Mission Impossible...get Janice's purse to her without Jamie (a) knowing or (b) asking what I am doing or (c) asking why I am doing it. Needless to say, I failed...sort of.

I told her to pretend she didn't know, that her mom wanted her purse and I had no idea why. I took Janice her purse (in the hall)...she was headed to her car to get Ellie's clothes; it was then that I knew...her ET tube had been taken out!!!

Upon reentering the room, Jamie began with her customary interrogation. I said the first thing that came to mind, which in hindsight sounds far worse than at the moment; "I don't know, she wanted her purse; I don't understand Elliott women...I just follow my instructions." I meant it with love and a grin; most of all, it worked...Jamie was still "in the dark" about the tube, it was still a surprise.

So Janice and I met up in the NICU and Ellie's nurse, Marissa, handed her right to me. I grinned a larger smile than I knew I had in me and held on tight!!! After about 15-20 minutes, Jamie came in. She saw me holding Ellie, knew something was up, but hadn't quite processed it all. Then it hit her; and her electric smile lit up the room!!!

After about 10 minutes, Janice reminded me to share (which I was about to do), so it was off to Momma's arms. Jamie = not so good at sharing...but, I suppose that's ok; afterall, she carried her, suffered through 5 bladder infections, 4 months of "morning" (translated ALL DAY) sickness slowed only by Pfinergrin (sp??), untold bouts of heartburn, trips to the bathroom, etc.

This also gave me a second to send out notice to a few, if not the email list; that detail escapes me now 12 hours later.

By 1:00, Jamie, Janice, and I had all taken at least one turn holding Ellie. That's when my dad (Giddy - pronounced Ju-id-dee - Arabic for Grandfather) arrived. He sent a proufoundly humble and excited email reply to my announcement that it was time to hold her. He simply replied "[m]ight her Giddy get some time today?" By 12:45 I texted him "Skip lunch!!! Come up here!!!" He laughed, giggled, held her, and got his index finger gripped with all Ellie had. He, like the rest of us, got a particularly good giggle out of Ellie's sneezing. For being a pint sized little girl, she's got a FEROCIOUS sneeze!!!!

My mom (Sitty - pronounced Sit-tee - Arabic for Grandmother) came up. She's not pictured because she had a coughing attack just as I was about to take pictures of her holding Ellie. Too bad for mom...her mug isn't on the internet...yet! Around the same time, Janice's mom, Great Grandma Nita, was here and stepped in for a peek at our pretty little girl. She was the only one today who showed any self restraint and said she would hold her a little later not wanting to pull on a wire and set off an alarm. She's right when she says there will be plenty of time to hold Ellie.

Against our wishes, we let our better judgment prevail and gave Ellie a break until Papa Howard made it to Deaconess from working at a car lot on the southside. He initially acted a little hesitant about holding Ellie; but we all saw right through it! That's been the singularly most present thought in his mind since September when we told them Jamie was pregnant. Honestly, he loves that little girl so much and has longed for her so long, I'm almost surprised we got her back! This little girl sure is loved!!!

It was a long day for her, but she soldiered right through it. She has a nasal cannula to boost her blood oxygen levels, but that is just fine by us. It won't be long before all of that is gone!

This evening, Jamie's best friend Casey and her mother Shannon (Grammy Shannon) came by to peek in on our little princess; they were also here just after her birth 1 week ago today. They are both salt of the earth people; words cannot express how much we love them and look forward to Casey's boys (McClain and Max) and Ellie playing together!

Just before Casey and Grammy Shannon (on a random note, Ellie is going to be SOOOOO confused as we have some many people close to us who are de facto Grandma/Grandpa or Auntie/Uncle) left, my cousin Sean arrived. We all chatted in the room. Just before 8:00, Sean said he was going to leave. It took 1 little try to get him to come see Ellie.

He is smitten. You see, Sean lived with us for a couple of months while he was house hunting and Jamie was pregnant. So, in a lot of ways, "Uncle" Sean went through this whole pregnancy with us. He has probably learned a whole lot more than most single guys ever think about knowing about pregnancy. He's just smitten with Ellie...and has promised to behave (as much as he can) when it comes to teaching her that filthy saying "Go Pokes!" It's okay though, we'll let her root for oSu...only for Sean (and his older brother whom I once lived with Chris (Critter - the nickname I gave him when I, apparently, couldn't say Christopher)) and only with the express understanding that she is a winner, she is Sooner Born and Sooner Bread, and when she dies, she'll be Sooner dead.

Well, this novel of a post has come to an end...I'm off to NICU to hold my little girl one more time before bed!

Goodnight and God Bless.

P.S. - while praying for Ellie and us tonight, please say a prayer for Chad, Caredy, and their son Noah. He's got a bugger of an ear infection and a nasty cold. Also, for Brandy, Scott, Cheyenne, and their twin babies Cam and Sophie who are battling croup and ear infections.

The Top of the Hill

2010-03-22T17:08:00.002-05:00

Steven here...

With each passing hour, even if I don't post, we work our way toward the top of the hill we are climbing. Now, that's not to say that we are going home with our little girl today, tomorrow, or even this week. In fact, it'll probably be closer to her 2 week birthday or later.

Disclaimer out of the way, we are darn close to being at the top of the hill! Still have a couple of climbs to go (with pooping, bottle feeding, and temperature regulation without the aid of a heater). But, if this was the Tour de France, the grueling mountain stages are coming to a close.

Ellie's vent has been worked down to 20 breaths per minute and 23% O2 over the course of today, well, really in the course of 18 hours. Her nurse today, Priscilla, told Ellie that her ET tube better be out when she returns to work tomorrow! I got cautiously excited about that statement. Then, while Ellie had a death grip on my pinky and she was sleeping, I heard Priscilla explaining to some nursing students (here on a shadow day) the process they typically go through to take a baby off of the ventilator. Long story short, backing down the reps and O2 slowly is the process. Translated, exactly what we have been doing (which we knew); it was just a function of when. That point is RAPIDLY (we think) approaching! Hopefully sometime tomorrow.

Once it is out, then we just have to pray it stays that way! But, there is a real possibility that she could need the vent back or some other assistance (CPAP or nasal cannula, etc.). I pray she never in her life needs any of this again, but any time off of that vent for her Momma (and me) to hold her is a sure blessing.

***UPDATE***

While typing this update, my dad came by. Took a break and we went to visit Ellie. Feisty little turd had pulled the tape on her ET tube loose (From shaking her head and sucking on it). So we had to wait while the nurses repositioned everything. While in there, the Dr. called to check the results of her 5:00 blood gas test. Upon hearing Priscilla read the results, he instructed her to lower the breaths per minute from 20 to 10. When Priscilla came to lower the respirations, she told us all of this and that no blood gas test was ordered for tonight. Further, the Dr. would be in tonight or tomorrow and, in all likelihood, (in my best medical professional-sounding voice) extabate the tube!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Say a prayer...and believe it will be so!

Until later...God bless...

Bundled Up and Moving

2010-03-22T08:58:00.004-05:00

Steven here...

Last night, Jamie and I went to tell our sweet angel good night. While resting her head on the top of the wall of Ellie's bed and holding her precious daughter, Jamie dozed off. Just as she left the NICU, Lisa (Ellie's nurse last night) decided that Ellie had been just irritble enough already though we could bump up the midnight "touch time".

We didn't have a poopy diaper, but that was ok. Lisa checked Ellie's stomach contents and her 8:00pm feeding hadn't digested yet so it was just a matter of waiting. Lisa mentioned that she would swaddle Ellie, as she likes being bundled up. In addition, it would keep Ellie's hands from grabbing her ET tube (intubation) and her feeding tube.

Just before I left the NICU, Lisa mentioned that Ellie was doing so good she might adjust her vent to 25 breaths per minute and 25% O2 around 2:00am. She thought Ellie was ready for this and it was yet another step in the right direction.

At her 4:00 "touch time", Ellie had a LOADED DIAPER. Yet another pleasure that just seems so odd.

Jamie and Janice took a peek early this morning before Janice headed to the office; she'll be back around noon or so. I woke up upon their return and heard the joyous news. Lisa had in fact adjusted the vent as planned and Ellie was responding famously. Another step in the right direction!!!!

The moving part of the title is that we are ending our stay at Hotel Deaconess today. They have not booted us out, nor have they mentioned anything about us leaving. We just feel it is the right thing to do. And, we are at peace with it. Mostly because Janice's boss, Ricky, is loaning us his 5th wheel trailer and we will be staying just behind the hospital in the RV parking. It should be A LOT more comfortable than a delivery bed with a mattress that is more like a stiff pool floating device, a roll away bed that is so springy a large man might sag to the ground, and a pullout couch that is more like a piece of ply wood with a 1/2" of worn out foam matting. Not to say I am ungrateful for our accommodations, but, our body's are pretty worn out and need a little more support. So, HUGE HUGE HUGE thanks to Ricky!!!

And, just in case you read this, Ricky, Jamie would really like it if you let her Carson (our Corgi) come stay with her in the trailer! Just kidding...she does miss her Carson Bug though.

All in all, another great start to a gift of a day.

This is the day the Lord has made, we will rejoyce and be glad in it!

Answered Prayers

2010-03-21T16:29:00.010-05:00

Steven here...

I know, I know. The updates were coming fast and furious; but we reached a point where no news was good news (the night before last and over the course of yesterday).

Yesterday there were few changes really. Not so today!!!

Early this morning, Jamie and Janice went to see Ellie and even saw her Dr. He noted that everything looked good and that he thought the chest tube would come out today. He also noted that her "tanning bed" would be discontinued.

When I went in for "touch time" - translated as poke, prod, test, adjust, and diaper change - I changed her diaper. This is one of the oddest things in my life I've ever gotten excited about...but, here goes - after 4 days IT WAS POOPY!!!!!!!!!!

No one was genuinely concerned, etc. but she was about to earn herself a stimulating massage or suppository(sp???). NO NEED! It was a full diaper.

As I sat there staring at our little miracle, I notice her nurse (the FABULOUS Angela) gathering some medical trinkets and tools. The thought immediately hit me, thank God Jamie isn't in here. It was time.

So, I "assited" on my first medical procedure today. I held Ellie's legs and her right arm as Angela worked to remove the tape holding her chest tube in place. Once that was done, I held my breath and baby. Angela pulled and it was over.

THE CHEST TUBE CAME OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And Ellie is LOVING it!!! She's awake and alert. We got to talk to her, tickle her feet (just a bit), kiss her, and put lotion on her dry and chapped little skin, hands, legs, and feet!

While writing this post, Jamie made a quick trip to the NICU. Upon her return I learned that Ellie was doing so good and her 4:00pm blood gas results were so good that they turned the vent breaths per minute down from 40 to 35 and her oxygen down from 30% to 28%!!! Another answered prayer and blessing!!!

Ellie is well on her way...we have to remain patient though.

God is good!!!

Spring Snow and Scare

2010-03-20T11:02:00.003-05:00

Steven here...

Well...the morning started out just like the weather man here in OKC. It looked like it was going to be something of a bad news day (or a giant winter storm that was going to cripple the city and state causing the Lt. Gov. to declare a state of emergency in advance).

Then the Dr. came in, had another chest xray done, took a good look, etc. (decided to sniff the dirt like Bill Paxton in Twister or Gary England in the "olden days" as opposed to rely on computer models). What he found brought relief and smiles to my, Jamie, and Janice's face...he ventilator tube had worked its way down too far and was giving Miss Ellie some fits (or a little dusting of snow in lieu of 14"). I'm sure part of this is because clearly has a fun time sucking on the tubes. Maybe that's a bad thing - I don't know as I wasn't smart enough for med school (like my cousin JK and his fiance Katie (who is about to start PA school), or even his sister Regina who is a labor and delivery RN) - BUT this father chooses to believe that it is a good sign, an indication that she knows that when something is in her mouth it is there to suck on and swallow...so maybe learning to eat won't be so tough. But, we'll figure that out when we get there.

So, bad news, like the crippling snow storm, has been averted for now. It was actually a nothing. That said, I'll take the prediction of 14" of crippling snow and shutting the city down for a week (or whatever) over the fear and anxiety of the human mind leading us to think there was a setback in store today. Maybe there will be, I don't know; but I'm going to stay positive. Afterall, this little girl is feisty!!! She was reaching up trying to help the Dr. move/adjust the vent tube!

It'll be another good day...God's too good to us all to not be!

I Wear My Sunglasses at Night

2010-03-19T23:15:00.005-05:00

Steven here...

I know, I know...it's been a while since an update. BUT...that's a good thing. Though the updates today were few, the work that went into them, and how much it took out of Ellie, were actually pretty intense. And she perservered like the finest of soldiers!

Mid-evening, we got an unofficial word from Jay (who performed her EKG) that her PDA defect (that allowed blood to bypass re-oxygenation in the lungs) appeared to have closed itself off!!! We all believe Jay and think the cardiologist will say the say. Her PFO heart defect (the other source of her murmur - I think I mis-abbreviated it earlier) is still present, but could possibly resolve itself as well. My impression from Dr. Tolentino was that is was a concern, yes, but a somewhat lesser one than the PDA.

Ellie enjoys her tanning bed! It's making her better (preventative maintenance for some jaundice)...and she's getting a "tan"! Now, it'll be really hard to make her understand in later years how I could justify this tanning bed exposure, but will be SOOOOO opposed to her laying in a tanning bed "because".

The insertion of the PICC line takes (a) a lot of sedation and (b) a lot of energy out of a little bitty girl. As such, it's not surprising that Ellie's O2 level had to be bumped up to 40%. That's ok for a couple of reasons: (1) it helps calm her down a little bit and rest easier and (2) late this evening her arterial blood gas report showed her O2 was a little low. It's a little step back on a big step forward day; well, really it was like a little hesitation in the step forward to make sure her footing was sure. When I saw her about 30 mins ago, her O2 level was back down to 38% and they planned to leave it put over night. At the same time they bumped her O2 up, they increased her breaths per minute (BPM) from 35 back to 40; this was short lived as they felt good enough about things to lower her BPM back to 35 around 7:30 or so.

So, she's resting quite comfortably and all is well. For tonight, no news is good news as we look to wean her O2 boost back down.

UPDATE 2:30PM March 19, 2010

2010-03-19T14:42:00.002-05:00

Praise report!!!

PICC line insertion went smoothly!!!! Dr. Tolentino believes it is in a good location and no issues face us. Reconfirmed the collapsed lung is no longer collapsed and looks to be in good shape!

Ellie's O2 is still somewhere between 28-30% and the breaths per minute has been dialed down from 40 to 35.

Another blessing sent our way; thanks be to God!!!

GOOD NEWS UPDATE

2010-03-19T11:52:00.000-05:00

Steven (for Jamie)

Today has been a good and blessed day so far!!!

This morning we awoke to the fairly rough realization that we were scheduled to go home without our precious angel. In fact, it was hitting Jamie really, really hard. Not a surprise; it's tough enough as a father, but I am not sure that I, or any guy, can really ever understand the emotions or, some form of, guilt that go into growing/delivering a baby that isn't just "perfectly normal". But, it wasn't long before the good came along to wash away the bad!

Ellie has been doing good (the same) overnight. They moved her ventilator down to 40 breaths per minute late last night. At that time, her O2 was set at 25% (just 4% over plain air we all breathe). Her nurse, Lisa, was under some instruction from Dr. Tolentino to see what she could take and have much Ellie was ready to step forward. The lowered her ventilator O2 all the way to 20%; which she didn't like too much. So we went back up to 28%, but that's just fine!

While lying around awaiting our impending "doom", Jamie (Ellie's nurse today) came into Jamie's room and said "Why don't you guys just stay here over the weekend?!?" Jamie L. had a BIG grin on her face when asking this; and Momma Jamie LIT UP...BIGTIME!!! So, that's good news number 1. We don't have to fight "the great blizzard of Spring" to come be with our angel. Not that a little snow would have stopped me!!! So, while officially discharge, the wonderful, truly wonderful, people here at Deaconess have made room for us right by the NICU - 232.

Now for an even better note!

Ellie has being doing SO SO SO GOOD that they removed her (unsightly) umbilical IV. They said from the beginning that it didn't go just where they had hoped so it wasn't of much use and that was ok. They also told me that it didn't hurt in anyway because they are no nerve ending in the umbilical cord. Of course, thinking of how sensitive belly buttons are, I just thought it looked like it hurt so, Daddy was plenty happy it was gone!

Tthe best note (so far...as we believe and pray God has more in store today)!

ELLIE's CHEST TUBE HAS BEEN TURNED OFF OF SUCTION AND SET ONLY TO WATER SEAL!!!!!!!!!!!!! This means everything is holding and working just like it is supposed to and her little lung is staying inflated well enough that soon she won't need the tube!!!

So much for a short update!!! But, I don't really care...I'm still over the moon with that little girl (and her Momma too)!

While typing this, Dr. Tolentino's nurse practitioner Julie came in. They are bringing Ellie a "tanning bed" to thwart any jaundice that kind of looks like it is starting. Gonna do another EKG later to double check Ellie's heart murmur. They just want to monitor her duct to make sure the opening is staying small; if not, they will administer some medication to close it. All is a-ok.

2010-03-19T07:14:00.000-05:00

My favorite time of day....visiting with my sweet girl!!!

Not the best picture but making sure Miss Ellie can suck and swallow with no problems and she can!!! If you read her Daddy's update emails you'll learn this is before she started having breathing problems. You can see all her little light blond peach fuzz hair. It sure doesn't look like there is much but there is it's just SO SO light!

My last belly picture with my mom. Please disregard the terrible face puffiness....it had needless to say been a long day! I am amazed by how quickly my belly has disappeared. It by no means looks the same but even the doctor yesterday said holy cow did you really just have a baby. Hopefully one day it will look the same again. However, I would do it all over again for my sweet angel!

As she grows stronger and we have better pictures to share I will definitely do so. We do have some but it's hard for us to see her the way she is so we know not many people want to see that! It's 'hands on' time so i'm off to visit my baby and change her diaper......who would've ever thought that would be your favorite part of the day but we will take all we can!

Ellie Grace Feisal

2010-03-19T06:33:00.001-05:00

Ellie Grace Feisal entered this world March 16, 2010 at 5:13 pm weighing 5lbs 7oz and measuring 18 inches long. Of course in her Mommy and Daddy's eyes she is absolutely perfect. Below is her story.

As I posted previously on Tuesday March 9 I had a doctors appointment and learned that I was already dilating. My doctor was not overly concerned but she wanted me to watch for any cramping, pressure, contractions, etc. If any of these things happened I had strict instructions on what to do immediately and if they didn't subside I was to head to labor and delivery.

On Wednesday March 10/Thursday March 11 I started having some pain. It was late evening and the cramping was back and worse than ever. I wouldn't say I was having time able contractions but I was having pretty severe cramping and back pain. I followed all my doctors orders and nothing would subside so I called Labor and Delivery after reviewing my file and doctors notes they told me to come immediately. We get here and get hooked up to the monitor and miss priss is just kicking away and doing exactly what she was supposed to. She did have a couple of heart rate drops so to be on the safe side the nurse ordered a biophysical profile and sent us down to get an ultrasound. We had the ultrasound and came back to wait on the report. The report was perfect our sweet girl scored an 8 out of an 8 so we were getting discharged. The monitor picked up VERY VERY slight contractions that were not regular at all!! They felt the cramping and pain was mainly due to her position.

We made it through the rest of the week and weekend without any problems and spent some time preparing Ellie's nursery.

Sunday March 14 I was having what I would call really severe pelvic pressure. I've had lots of pressure come and go throughout my pregnancy and I've been told pressure is SOMEWHAT normal and I would probably have more due to her breech position. My pressure typically subsides with rest so that's what I did! Monday morning the pressure hurt worse than ever. I headed into work with plans to call my doctors office as soon as they opened....I REALLY REALLY wanted to avoid a trip to Labor and Delivery. I knew Monday was my doctors surgery day but I planned to talk to the nurse.....little did I know my doctor was on vacation but I would obviously learn that later. The nurse of course sent me immediately to Labor and Delivery to be monitored. I was not pleased but knew that I needed to do what was best for Ellie and myself. We got to Labor and Delivery, heartbeat was strong, contractions were MINIMAL and very irregular, I still wasn't dilated past a one but she was really positioned deep in my pelvis so they once again thought that was the problem. They ordered another biophysical profile just to make sure there were no major changes from a few days before. The Sonographer stated everything looked good to her but she would send the final report to the nurses so they could determine the next step. She stated that my fluid looked lower than before but fluid was so subjective and good be anything. I knew from the previous biophysical profile my fluid was just over 11. The nurse came in about 20 minutes later and said A+ she scored an 8 out of an 8 I let the doctors office know that and they said to release you. I was thrilled with this news and knew that I could deal through the pain I was having and headed back to work!!!

Tuesday morning March 16 is when everything went crazy!!! I got a phone call from my doctors partner. She introduced herself and stated my doctor was out of town. Panic was already setting in because I didn't know why she would even be calling me. She let me know that she was very upset with the nurses and herself for accepting a verbal report of the biophysical profile from Monday. THANKFULLY my nurse at the doctors office reported it to her first thing that morning when it had came in....that was definitely God looking out for us! The doctor said had she gotten the report on Monday I would had never left the hospital and would have already had a baby. My amniotic fluid level was down to 3.24. They did not know the reason for the drop as I had been checked and I was NOT leaking amniotic fluid. Due to a number of reasons she felt that it was better at this point and time to have an outside baby immediately instead of an inside baby. My world was changed from that point forward. I was told to stop eating and drinking, get squared away at work, get my bags and get to the hospital quickly.

From that point on things were a whirlwind even after arriving at the hospital. Finally at around 4 pm they started the admission process and got me hooked up to the monitors. The nurse immediately asked me if I was ok and what I was feeling because it turns out I was having VERY regular and VERY strong contractions. I didn't feel any different then I had the past week when I was having pain. Around this time Ellie's heart rate begin to drop. They rushed a team of nurses in so they could complete my paperwork, insert a catheter, get my blood to the lab and begin my iv. Everything was moving so quickly I could feel myself starting to panic and could tell it was getting to Steven as well who is normally calm and collective. By 4:50 pm they were wheeling me to the OR and by 5:13 pm we had our sweet angel in this world.

If you read below you can see how our world changed from that point forward. We had discussed with the doctor what could happen with Ellie arriving early but we agreed with the doctor that those complications were worth the risk rather than keeping her in utero.

I am taking things one minute at a time. That's all I can do at this point. I know we are so very blessed and we could have had a very different outcome and even though we are looking at a long road ALL of the doctors are confident and I trust that we are in good hands! I struggle with blaming myself and my body that I couldn't keep our sweet angel where she needed to be for at least a few more weeks but I know that I was taking care of myself and doing all that I could but God had other plans!

I know all of these posts are lengthy but we really wanted somewhere to document everything, share our thoughts and ask for prayers for those willing to pray!'

We love you all and our so appreciative of the love and support we have received over the past few days.

She's here......

2010-03-19T05:58:00.000-05:00

I am working on a post as to what happened and why it all happened so quickly. In the meantime I will post some emails from her proud daddy letting everyone know what is going on.....forewarning these may be lengthy updates.

Subject: It's official...I'M A DADDY
Well, she couldn’t wait any longer to grace us with her presence. Mom and baby Ellie are doing great. Jamie is resting comfortably (who wouldn’t be on morphine)

Elliot (“Ellie”) Grace Feisal arrived earlier this evening at 5:13PM weighing in at 5lbs 7oz and “standing” 18 inches tall (long); pretty darn good for being 35 weeks and 1 day, not the typical 37-40 weeks. Her Momma sure did a good job, she’s BEAUTIFUL. And I don’t say that lightly; I’m not really a fan of newborns as a rule. Am I biased? DAMN RIGHT! But, she really is pretty!

She’s got quite a lot of fuzzy BLOND BLOND BLOND hair; I mean toe head blond (as did both Jamie and I until we were both about 7 years old). Not tons on top, but about a half inch or so just about all over. She’s got a pretty, clear complexion. The only “blemish” is either a bruise or a birthmark on her right side just in the crease of her hip/pelvis; let’s put it this way, it’ll be the “date quiz” when she’s old enough and comes home…I’ll simply ask the lad if he found her birthmark, he says yes…it’s trouble!

I would attach some pictures here, but somehow (hello frantic!) left the data cable for the camera at home. Hopefully I can get one up here tomorrow.

We’ll be going home late Thursday or sometime Friday.

Now begin the updates on our little angels health/situation. Not that I expect anyone to read through all these updates but we are directing family and friends here for further updates and I would like to have everything in one place. However, if you feel compelled to read and add us to your prayer list they are greatly appreciated!!!!!

Subject: Baby Ellie News
Rather than send the mass email, thought I would send this group an fairly comprehensive and chronological update. No need to share all the details with the whole free world, or so says Momma.

All was well post-delivery, Ellie was checking out a-ok including her little initial suck/swallow/breathe test to see how she would do with a bottle. As we began giving her a bath ~7:00pm, her color began to fade very slowly. It became more pronounced once the nurse picked her up and placed her chest down in the palm of her hand to wash her back. This continued to the point that she (Ellie) was getting lethargic and cyanotic when washing her hair.

As soon as the bath was over, we put her on Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (known as CPAP to those of the snoring and sleep apnea persuasion). Did this for 15 minutes with an oxygen “enrichment” of 35% (so 14% over air). After 15 minutes of back to breathing on her own, her oxygen levels weren’t staying above 90 without the CPAP assistance, so she was taken to NICU. Jamie got to spend maybe a total of 7 minutes with Ellie on the day of her birth (5 in the OR with me holding her where Jamie’s hand could reach her and 2 seeing her in Jamie’s room on the way to NICU.

Ellie did fantastic over the course of the first night being weaned off oxygen-CPAP at 4:30 and off CPAP altogether by 7:30am on 03/17/2010. All was looking way, way up…to the point I started thinking there was an outside chance she’d go home with us on Friday. It wasn’t to be; and that’s ok.

By 11:30, she was back on CPAP and 30% O2 as her oxygen level just wouldn’t stay up and she began working harder and harder to breathe. By 6:00pm yesterday, they had bumped here CPAP O2 level to 45% and it slowly crawled it’s way to 100% by sometime after 7:00pm. That said, we did get the good news that her kidneys were properly functioning (not a concern of mine but a common issue for premise). Around 3:30, Jamie got to hold her for a little bit while they changed bedding prior to performing an EKG to check her heart murmur.

Over the 7:00 hour, they were doing more blood gas tests and messing with Ellie quite a lot, so we let her rest and recuperate. We also found out sometime in the late afternoon that she has a small heart murmur, which is very common; she has both a PDA and PFA murmur, both of which are normal and fix themselves with time and/or antibiotics (rarely require surgery). This, especially the PDA, contributes to her low oxygen level in her blood as the duct has not completely shut and that allow blood to bypass re-oxygenation in the lungs. That will heal with time.

I called NICU to check on her around 9:00, hoping to get good news and go spend some time with her. It wasn’t good news, but it wasn’t terrible.

It was during this call we learned that Ellie’s CPAP O2 had been increased to 100% and that she was really laboring pretty hard to breathe. At that time, Dr. Cho decided Ellie needed more help than CPAP was providing; all the hard work was making her TIRED and making her work harder to breath. As such, they intubated her and began giving her surfactant, the liquid that keep the little lung sacks expanded when we exhale. Herr’s were collapsing all the way down making her have to really breath hard to get them opened for air. With the intubation, they backed her O2 “enrichment” down to 50% and down to 40% (at 9:15).

They also ordered a 3rd round of chest x-rays; the x-ray revealed that my little angel’s right lung had collapsed due to a leaking lung. We found this out at about 11:00pm. Dr. Cho initially thought that she would need a chest tube but was able to withdraw 43cc of air from her chest cavity and by 11:30, her lung had already begun to rein late. Between 11:30, when I kissed her goodnight, and 1:00 (when I called to check on her) they backed her O2 down to 35% where it remains. She slept GREAT throughout the night (compliments of the sedation) which is exactly what she needed and was supposed to do.

So…all is well; but it will be a bit of a process. The law of averages says that she will be home before her due date of Apr 19, but I think/hope/pray before then. She’s a tough and feisty little thing. Send an extra prayer for her if you would!

Sorry for the Homeric email; but I had to fit in 40+ hours of updates for y’all!

Subject:Baby Ellie news #2
for some, an update; for others a massive run of updates. working from my air card so pics will have to follow as soon as I can get to a better internet connection to upload them to an email.

after the chest tube, they bumped Ellie's O2 level up to 50% and increased the vent from 50 to 60 (which means the machine was doing more breathing for her).

Bless her pretty little heart, she looks like a cyborg or something. wires running all over the place, tubes all over...it's almost unfathomable to think that she's actually doing much better than she was, despite the steps backward.

I spent 20 minutes with her from 1:50 to 2:10-ish, when they kicked me out to do a blood gas test. I'll head back in shortly. While I was in there, they moved her O2 down from 40% (it was moved down from 50% between 11 and 1:45) to 35% and ultimately 32% just before i left.

I had my hand on her and was doing some praying; if you don't believe in God or the power of prayer, my event (if you had experienced this one event) would unequivocally change your mind. As my hand is on her and I'm praying, just when I'm getting REALLY choked up, tears squeezing their way out of my closed eyes trying like mad to drip down my bowed face...she brought her little foot over and touched my hand (I almost can't type this; and you guys know I can talk/type). Jamie had a real emotional afternoon and when I was praying for Jamie, Ellie touched my hand again with her foot. God calming me down using little sedated Ellie.

Another of the most special of moments, she was just waking up from sedation following the insertion of her chest tube. She got just one blinky blue eye open and I leaned in. Just then I leaned in just a bit and, I know physiologically she can't focus, but she took a good long look at me and relaxed back into sleep when I said "Daddy loves you!" She's doing REALLY good...all things considered.

All this sounds terrible, but it's all expected and moving in an ok direction. To date, she's maintaining weight, color (no jaundice), heart is good (despite the murmur), liver and kidneys all working fine.

Subject:Baby Ellie news #3
Ellie’s oxygen on the intubation has been weaned all the way down 25%!!!! PRAISE JESUS!!! Moving in the right direction! Also, moved the breaths per minute from 60 down to 50, so she is DEFINITELY getting STRONGER!!!

Praise be to God!

Subject:Baby Ellie news #4
Quick update on Miss Ellie.Vent is down to assisting on only 40 breaths per minute (was 60 early today and 50 earlier this evening). She's doing the other 20-30 breaths per minute all on her own and a yowman's work on the 40 assisted. Also, her O2 level has been bumped all the way down to 26%. So praise report all the way around; thanks be to God!!!Her lung is staying good and inflated so the chest tube may come out sometime late friday or over the weekend if things stay good!I'm off to tuck her in!

Like I stated I am sorry all these updates our jumbled into one post. I will work on a 'birth story' post here shortly! I will also try to post some pictures of our precious angel. Let's just say it's been a long few days. I know that things could be MUCH worse and that we are VERY VERY VERY blessed that things are going as they are but it's still been a rough few days! The nurses keep reminding me I HAVE to take care of myself and I am definitely trying. Last night I did get a solid 3 1/2 hours of sleep which I know isn't much and isn't good for me but at this point i'll take what I can. Rumor has it we will be discharged later today but I don't expect to see the doctor until around lunch time. It will be very hard to go home without our sweet baby...I know I can look over in the corner at the 8 vases of flowers and plants and the growing stack of gifts in the hospital room and know that we are all loved and being prayed for constantly!

4 weeks.......

2010-03-12T17:48:00.000-06:00

4 weeks from today if things stay the way they are currently headed we will be holding our sweet bundle of joy! HOLY COW!

Baby Things

2010-03-11T11:03:00.000-06:00

Sweet little wall letters! We had these painted to match her bedding. They are now hung on the wall so I will try to get a better picture soon!

I couldn't resist this swimsuit!

Still no pictures......

2010-03-09T19:40:00.000-06:00

I haven't unloaded any pics. After all the belly pictures and my shower this weekend I am scared to unload the pictures and see how many are still on my camera.

On another note I did have a doctors appointment. It was pretty eventful to say the least. On Sunday night I had some pretty bad cramping but I thought I was just starting to get dehydrated. Once I finally got some sleep I felt pretty good when I woke up. Last night I had the same cramping but it was much more dull. So I mentioned it to the doctor today. She agreed that everything I described sounded like dehydration but she wanted to do an internal exam just to be sure. WARNING....maybe TMI ahead for some my cervix is still long so it is not thinning out however I am dilated to a 1. She is not overly concerned because as we all know dilation isn't a sure sign of anything. However, the cramping coming 2 nights in a row concerns her somewhat. So I left the doctor with strict instructions on what to do if the cramping returns....even if I don't think it's anything! She is letting me continue work at this time and we will just see where things go. Our sweet little girl is still breech. We will still have an ultrasound on March 23 to see if she has flipped. If she does not flip I will have a scheduled c-section on April 12 which will be 39 weeks. However, if my body decides to go into labor prior to 39 weeks and after 37 weeks she will do a c-section. The goal is to keep her put for the next 3 weeks then after that the goal is April 12.

I am trying to take it easy but learning that she could come as early as 3 weeks away has put my brain into overload mode of what needs to be done!!!!

Steven is out of town which the doctor was not happy to hear. In his defense after Sunday nights episode he tried to stay home and I assured him I was fine to just go to DC. He will be home late tonight and she said unless he wants to miss something she suggest he stays put.

Update

2010-02-11T09:56:00.000-06:00

The doctors appointment went well!! I didn't get to see that + on my chart but I have gained back everything I lost in the first trimester so starting in 2 weeks I will start seeing that + sign next to the number I've gained for that visit. This may seem so silly but I have had SO many people give me a hard time and question my weight gain throughout this pregnancy I am excited to finally see that. However, my doctor assures me she isn't concerned with my progress as everything is right on track.

She does feel the baby is still in the breech position. I feel this as well due to where I am feeling most of her movements. We will still have the ultrasound in 2 weeks to determine exactly whether she is or not. We discussed what would happen should she not turn. There are a few different scenarios and we discussed the pros and cons of each. As of right now we will see what happens. I am completely at peace with everything we discussed and I 100% trust my doctor and know she will do what is best for me and the baby!

Based off the last ultrasound she feels that we are looking at around a 7lb baby maybe a little smaller or bigger. She said she can't really see my body handling much more than a 7 1/2 lb baby but she isn't worried because she doesn't anticipate our little one getting that big.

Our house is slowly starting to fill up with baby things and we are slowly getting them organized. Hopefully Steven gets good news at the doctor today and he will start painting the nursery this weekend!!

We are also CLOSER to having a name for our sweet little angel. Once we have a final decision I will definitely share with everyone!

Another boring post with no pictures! I promise I will post something exciting soon!

Bad Blogger

2010-02-09T08:17:00.001-06:00

I've been terrible at posting and I really don't have any good excuses. I had a fun food post planned but my camera died in the middle of the cooking process. I was too stubborn to just go get the point and shoot camera out of the closet to continue taking pictures so what's a food post without pictures....BORING!!

On the baby front I really can't believe I only have 10 weeks (give or take) of pregnancy left!!! Holy cow where has time gone!!!!! I have a doctor's appointment this afternoon. I am guessing by the way I've been STARVING last week that I will finally jump ahead of my pre-pregnancy weight and get a positive weight gain on my charts! For those that don't know I lost quite a bit of weight during the first trimester due to morning sickness. Then I went a few months with no weight gain at all. The doctor has not been concerned because everything has been measuring fine. At my last appointment two weeks ago I was nearing my pre-pregnancy weight so I will be surprised if I don't jump over it at my appointment today. We shall see. However, if it's a large number I will blame it on the fact that my appointment was after lunch.....it's only logical right?!? In two more weeks we will have another ultrasound to see if the baby has flipped. As of right now I believe she is still hanging out in a breech position and I know there is plenty of time for her to make her move!

Steven goes to the doctor on Thursday and will HOPEFULLY get off of crutches! Fingers crossed!!! At this point it's no so much the crutches I would just like him to get released to start driving.

I do have a funny pregnancy story......our sweet friends that welcomed their bundle of joy on New Years Eve gave us their doppler to borrow for the remainder of my pregnancy. Well I shouldn't say their as she borrowed it from the clinic she currently works for.....the clinic has asked for it back so we will see how long I get to keep it. The first night we got home we thought we would test it out. Our sweet dog, Carson, was laying next to the bed sleeping away. As soon as he heard the doppler sounds he FREAKED out. He took off running around the house like a mad man and barking like crazy. When he ran back into the bedroom he was trying to get on the bed...due to his short legs he sometimes needs some help. When we got him calmed down and on the bed I found her heart beat again. He slowly walked over, placed his head on my belly and put it right next to where her heart was beating. Sweet little guy. He isn't going to know what hit him in the next few months :). I will say the bigger I've gotten the more attached he's gotten. He has never been a snuggler but that all changed about 2 months ago. For the longest time I thought it was my imagination but Steven started commenting and family and friends started commenting on how funny it was. If he isn't busy playing he is at my feet regardless of what I am doing....if I lay down he lays down touching me, if I sit on the couch he lays on top of my feet, etc.

WOW this was a LONG RANDOM post! I will post some new belly pictures soon!!

Still a sweet little girl.....

2010-01-27T08:37:00.000-06:00

Yesterday we got to have another ultrasound! She has just made her little self at home and was reclined with her head just under my right ribs, her little bottom bouncing on my bladder, and her feet just under my left ribs. So she is technically still in a breech position. The doctor realizes that there is plenty of time for her to flip head down but lucky for us since she was in this position we will get to see her again via ultrasound in 4 weeks!!!

All of her measurements were great and her current estimated weight is just under 3lbs which is just a little above average for this point!

So now we anxiously await 4 more weeks to get a peek at that sweet face! If her position has changed the doctor is hoping she won't be so 'smooshed' and we can get a better shot of her face!

Such a sweet little profile!!

She constantly had her hands in front of her face! I think she was trying to hide from us!

Precious baby foot!

Face

Face and hands

She is definitely still a little girl!!!

Now if Steven can just get off crutches and get her room painted we will be set!

Belly Pictures and other pregnancy ramblings

2010-01-19T15:46:00.000-06:00

Well I think it's safe to say I officially look pregnant to the outside world.

I get more and more comments from strangers everyday. For the most part they are sweet and encouraging....unlike a co-worker that asks me AT LEAST once a week how far along I am, why am I not bigger, is my doctor concerned, etc. Seriously this lady every week at one point ask howfar along I am and some form of other question stating that I am not big enough for being that far along!!!! Now I don't expect her to remember every detail of my pregnancy but can you really not remember from week to week what I said the last week!!!!! My doctor finds this quite amazing since all my measurements have been right on track or a week ahead!

I've learned during pregnancy you are going to get all kinds of unwanted comments so after the third week of these questions I've decided to pretty much ignore her!

A week from today we have another ultrasound!!! I am so excited I am just hoping this week will fly by! I also have to take my glucose screening test and schedule my upcoming appointments for every two weeks!! I can't believe it's already time for 2 week appointments and I'm in my third trimester!

Our nursery bedding has arrived and I am SO happy with my choice! Our chair has also arrived but we haven't gone to pick it up yet. Now if Steven can just get healed and get started painting we will have our nursery put together in no time.

I was much better this time with my picture taking skills. All though I did miss a few weeks from my update below.

25 weeks....I think maybe I'd just woken up from a nap so please excuse the hair!

26 weeks. This was after a FULL day of sleeping. I had a migraine which thankfully I hadn't had since being pregnant. However, since I can't take my migraine meds they made me go to labor and delivery to be monitored until it was under control. Mind you the migraine hit hard about 2:30 am! So to say it was a long night is an understatement. Since Steven is unable to drive they wouldn't release me from the hospital so my poor mom got a phone call around 5 am to come pick us up! Of course Steven's truck was at the hospital with us so my dad had to come to so we could get his vehicle home!!! We finally got home at almost 8 am and I don't think I've ever slept so good!

ALMOST 27 weeks

I'm definitely starting to see a change from week to week now!!

Babies, Babies, Babies

2010-01-04T15:23:00.001-06:00

This past week we found out two of our friends are expecting! I can't believe all the friends/acquaintances that I know having babies!!! We are so excited for all of them!!

Our sweet friends Caredy and Chad welcomed their precious bundle of joy to this world on December 31st!!! Meet baby Noah Patrick!!He is such a sweet little angel!

On a different note....Steven and I are slowly adjusting to his life of not being able to do hardly anything. He is back at work today! I'm trying to plan for a husband sitter so I can go to Tulsa for my sweet friend McClain's 2nd birthday party :)! You would think a short day trip isn't that big of a deal but I would hate to leave my husband in the house unable to get his own food or drink if he were to get hungry/thirsty!!!! At least he is able to help himself to the restroom!

My week....

2009-12-30T17:32:00.000-06:00

So my week has been filled with the following things taking over my home....
Steven had knee surgery on Tuesday. It was supposed to take approximately 45 minutes and he was supposed to walk out of the surgery center. Well when the doctor didn't come out from surgery after about 1 1/2 hours I knew something was right. 2 hours later the doctor returned and said it was really nasty and there was much more damage than the MRI showed. He said Steven's knee was like that of a 70 year old woman and whatever he was doing he needed to stop :) So we left the hospital approximately 6 hours later and needless to say Steven did not walk...as a matter of fact he is on crutches for the next 6 weeks at a minimum!! We also left with all the machines you see above....and insurance doesn't pay for any of them :(!! So we've had a fun week of adjustments but we are getting there slowly! It's just going to be a LONG 6 weeks!!!

Belly Pictures!

2009-12-24T18:55:00.000-06:00

So I'm terrible and didn't keep good track of these so I don't know remember exactly when they all were taken.....oops. I promise I'm getting better about it!

I believe this one was around 15 weeks

This one was taken around 18 weeks

This one was around 20 weeks

I promise in the two pictures where my undergarments look terrible I was wearing a jacket over those shirts but the jacket didn't show much of a belly!

I have some more recent ones I will try to post soon!

Decisions!!!

2009-12-21T14:52:00.000-06:00

A few weeks ago I posted about baby bedding! I kept going back to something I originally liked before I even knew what we were having. You can find that bedding here! It's completely not something I would think to typically pick out but I LOVED something about it! Every time I looked at something else I went back to that bedding. That was until this weekend!!! The chair that we want to get for the nursery is on sale until the end of the month. So yesterday we went to check out the chair and see exactly which style we wanted and want color/fabric we were going to get! We knew we were going to go with something a little more neutral in the chair color because I didn't want a room that threw up pink!! Well as we are walking around something catches my eye.....bedding. I am in LOVE with it!!!! However, i've done this before and go back to the pottery barn bedding. Something is different about this bedding. I don't know what it is that's different but something and it makes me LOVE it! Of course my mom and Steven have told me to get whatever I want they like both (some help!!!). Here is yesterday's bedding!!!!

Now I realize that I have some time before having to order bedding but the problem is I would order different chairs for these sets so while I have time I really don't!!!! I have to make a decision by next week. What if I order my chair and then change my mind!

Someone please help my pregnant brain!!!!!!

Now we would get the chair below regardless of the bedding set but we would get two different colors. If we had the first bedding set we would get a VERY VERY light Khaki colored chair and with the second set we would get a VERY deep chocolate brown chair.

Now if it makes any difference our furniture is wood color...not quite as dark as the furniture in the 2nd set but definitely not light either. We would obviously paint the room different for each set as well!

HELP!

Sweet Baby!

2009-12-01T13:48:00.000-06:00

It's a girl!!

2009-12-01T13:26:00.001-06:00

We found out almost a month ago that we are expecting a sweet healthy baby girl!! The ultrasound tech didn't have my husband fully convinced that she was sure it was a girl. Today at my doctors appointment they did a quick ultrasound to see if we could get a better view and it is definitely still a little girl and she was still sucking her thumb! The great name debate has begun and we are struggling but we know one day it will hit us! We will get to have a 4d ultrasound at the physician's office at 28 weeks so we are definitely looking forward to that time!

I've been looking for pictures of our nursery furniture online but haven't been able to find any so I will try to take pictures soon! I've started looking at bedding and I keep going back to the same set from Pottery Barn Kids and it just went on sale....maybe that's a sign :). What is funny is it's normally not something I would pick out but I loved it before we ever knew that it was a girl!

We have bought some cute little outfits and the travel system we wanted! The car seat hasn't come in yet but we did get the stroller....we were able to get a great deal on both pieces and are excited with our choices!

We are so excited for the upcoming holiday season and can't wait to share our last Christmas without kids with our family and friends! It does make me really anxious for next year as well!

Weekend

2009-10-30T08:25:00.000-05:00

I am so glad it's finally time for the weekend!!! I am even more thankful that I get off at 3:00 on Friday.....all though I've heard this is the last week for that until next summer!! :( We will see what happens! However, I did learn that I am off on Friday the 13th for Veteran's Day! How exciting! It's funny the things that can excite you when you become a grown up!

I don't feel like we've done much this week but I feel that we have been very busy....don't you just hate that?!?!? I have had a busy week at work and I know Steven and I had stuff going on every evening but I still don't feel like I accomplished much!

Wednesday afternoon I took my OB's advice and headed to my family physician to have a flu test done....YUCK! I was pretty sure I didn't have the flu and she was as well but I've been fighting a cold for about two weeks so she just wanted to make sure. Turns out the flu test was negative!!! He did say if my symptoms don't get better he wants to run another one in a week. I am not happy about it but I will be taking their advice and staying home to rest all weekend! Which means no OU football game....I am NOT happy!! But, I do know I need to listen to them so that is what I will be doing!!

November 3rd is the start of OU Basketball season and I can't wait!! As much as I LOVE college football I also LOVE college basketball!!!! My sweet friend Casey and I even had season tickets and college.....I think we might have been the only students that attended on a regular basis! When Steven and I first started dating we bought season tickets every year. Last year Steven was so busy with work that we decide to not renew our season tickets....I was heartbroken! We still made it to a lot of games but it just wasn't the same! This year my sweet husband surprised me with an early Christmas present...SEASON TICKETS!! I can't wait!

Last night I went to meet the FABULOUS Pioneer Woman!!! Let me tell you she is just as wonderful in person as she is on her blog! So much fun!

We also bought nursery furniture this week! YES I know it is early but we came across a deal we couldn't resist!!!! We knew if we waited we would regret it later! So exciting....once November 10 gets here then we can really start planning the nursery but I am such a planner it is nice to have one thing crossed off the list!

If anyone makes it through this entire rambling post I'll be impressed! Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend and enjoys the time change!!!

Sweet Chloe

2009-10-25T21:06:00.001-05:00

Our dear friends have been in China for the past week anxiously waiting to meet their sweet daughter!!! They've been sending us updates while they've been gone and we knew to expect pictures and video of their Chloe meeting by Monday morning! Well much to my surprise I logged in this evening to see if they had any touristy updates before the big day tomorrow and they had already shared the video of their first meeting!!

I am sure it does not help that I am already an emotional mess and that I hold a very special place in my heart for adoption but I was REALLY a mess after watching their video! I watched it multiple times. I had not shared with Steven that it was posted and he came in the bedroom to find me crying.....I am pretty sure he thinks I've lost my mind!

Hopefully I will have pictures soon to share with everyone. She is absolutely adorable, perfectly healthy, and adjusting very well. I can't wait for them to arrive home so I can meet their new bundle of joy!! They will arrive back to Oklahoma the same day we find out the sex of the baby so we will all have lots of celebrating to do!! They have been waiting 4 long years for this day and I could not be more thrilled. I know they will be wonderful parents.

Chloe actually shares the same birthday as Steven so Christmas Eve this year will be extra special...not only will it be Chloe's first Christmas experience but also her first birthday. I hate to say it but I think Steven's birthday might be overshadowed this year!

Big News!!!

2009-10-20T12:50:00.000-05:00

I shared some big news with my boss today so I finally feel like it's ok to share with the blog world....Even though many of you that know me in real life already know my news :) So I guess I'm just throwing this out there for the few followers that I have right now!!

We found at a few months ago that we are expecting!!! The further along I get the more excited I get not that I wasn't ecstatic for such a blessing at first I definitely was but I was definitely surprised that it happened so quickly!!!

My first few months were rough to say the least even though I know it will all be worth it in the end!! The doctor I was going to no longer delivers so I had to find a new doctor so I wasn't able to confirm at the doctors office until I was almost 9 weeks! To say I LOVE my new doctor and her nurse wouldn't even be accurate. I know we have a long ways to go but I love them more after every appointment!!!!

I would like to say that I am feeling better and things are looking up but I would hate to jinx myself :) They do seem to slowly be turning around! I am approximately 14 weeks! On Monday I will start prenatal yoga and one of my friends/acquaintances is actually in the class as well!!! My next appointment is November 10th! I will go in that morning with the doctor at 10:15 and then will have the BIG ultrasound at 1:30 that afternoon! We can't wait to find out what we are having....I always thought I would want to be surprised and I did the first few weeks I was pregnant but since then I have been so ready to know the gender!

So that is my big news and I PROMISE I will be a better blogger and I PROMISE they won't all be pregnancy related!

Terrible Blogger!!!

2009-09-18T14:06:00.000-05:00

So I think it's official that I have been a terrible blogger the past month! We have just been so busy and always seem to be this time of year! My 2nd favorite time of year seems to finally be here....FALL (my 1st favorite is Christmas;)).

The new job is going wonderful and I am really enjoying it! There is a huge learning curve but it's nothing I can't handle. I am still taking my state test to become certified to teach and I actually have my final test tomorrow morning! We get off work every Friday at 3:00 pm and today I can't wait to go home, plug in my Scentsy pumpkin roll, and curl up to study for tomorrow morning!!

I think later this evening we are going to go to my high school's homecoming football game!!!! How exciting! I haven't been back since my freshman year of college when I went to give up my homecoming crown...ha such fun memories! I did have to twist Steven's arm to agree to go but I finally got him talked into it!

Hope everyone is enjoying this wonderful time!

Masters Family

2009-08-04T20:14:00.000-05:00

Today I got to see my sweet friend Casey! Her husband and youngest son also joined us for lunch and a quick campus corner shopping spree. Today was "Meet the Sooners" day in Norman. Unfortunately McClain had went home with his Grammy! With Casey living in Tulsa it's not often that we get to meet up for lunch and shopping so it was an extra special treat. I am so thankful to have such a wonderful friend! Here are some pictures of her sweet boys from our last trip to Tulsa!

I love this one...McClain was checking out his little brother!

Today.....

2009-08-03T22:19:00.000-05:00

Today was a big day.....I gave my two weeks' notice. My life is taking a different path and I am walking away from something and a career where I have been completely comfortable for the past 5 years of my life. I have ALWAYS said that my dream job would be teaching children OR taking all my volunteer work and doing it full time. One of those dreams came to fruition over the past few months.

Starting on Monday August 17 I will be going to work for the Oklahoma League for the Blind. They have government contracts that they hold and train and assist the visually impaired to work on these projects full time. I will be taking over this role. My job will entail many different details and I know it is going to be challenging and rewarding all at the same time! I am so unbelievably excited about this opportunity and I know it was the right decision.

My current employer was very gracious in offering me to take some time off before starting my new gig! So Wednesday will be last day. I will definitely miss the guys I work with but am thankful for the time off and excited about my new opportunity!

I know everything is God's timing and this couldn't have come at a better time for me! I can't wait!

2009-07-29T12:22:00.000-05:00

I got this idea from Live.Love.Laugh, such a great idea!

Copy/ Paste it to your blog and lets see your survey answers too.

1) How did you and the hubby meet?

Steven and I actually went to college together and I even lived with his cousin in the dorms. However, we ran into each other at a bar after we were both finished with school. Steven was actually about to start Law School and I had been out of college for two years! All my friends thought it was crazy that I was dating someone that was about to start the ups and downs of law school but 5 years later here we are!!! I guess you could say we met in a bar since we hadn't spent much time together prior to that night :)

2) If you could do any job in the world, what would it be?

Many will think I am crazy for saying this but my dream job would be a teacher in an 'inner-city school'. I believe all children are special beings and deserve the chance to learn. However, I believe that children in the types of situations you see at these schools need even more love and guidance in their life!

3) What are your and your hubby's dreams for the future?

Steven actually has very lofty career goals and I have no doubt that he will be able to obtain them. In the time that he has been in his current role he has had two promotions and now actually has a new soon to be (hopefully :)) attorney reporting to him! He was at his job full-time a short 6 months before he had an intern reporting to him. So in these times we are EXTREMELY thankful for his opportunities!

We know that eventually we would like to add to our family! Steven and I are both very passionate about children and we would not only like to be able to have the opportunity to have biological children but we are also very passionate about adoption. We know when the time comes that God will lead us down the path that is right for us!

Right now we are just enjoying life and following the path God has for us!

4) Why did you start blogging?

We have some wonderful friends that are actually on a journey to adopt from China. I was introduced to the blogging world through them and shortly became hooked! I enjoy the glimpse of life into others and love learning about people!

5) Who do you look up to?

My parents got married at the age of 17 and 18! Everyone's first question is were they having a baby.....the answer is no!!! They knew that they wanted to be together and chose to take a leap of faith. They are still happily married today and have been for 31 years!

Weekend!!

2009-07-24T14:08:00.000-05:00

This week has been crazy to say the least! The weekend will be just as crazy with lots of busy plans! We have dinner tonight for our friends Chad's birthday at Shogun which is should be yummy and lots of fun! Tomorrow we will be leaving for Tulsa, with our new camera in tow to see our sweet friends The Masters'. I can't wait to love on my two favorite little boys McClain and Max! On Sunday we have a birthday party to attend on our way back to town. So needless to say the weekend will be crazy but should be lots of fun!

What's a post without a picture!!! This is Steven and I with our friend Chad who will be celebrating his 38th birthday tomorrow!!!

Max Travis Masters

2009-07-19T18:09:00.000-05:00

This weekend I headed to Tulsa! One of my best friends and the matron of honor from our wedding was set to give birth on Saturday to her 2nd son! When I left Yukon the latest update I had was that he would probably make his appearance around lunch. I was doing all I could to make it there on time and when I arrived Casey had not progressed much at all. I like to think Max was waiting on his Aunt Jamie to be there :). After a smooth labor and delivery Max joined the world at 3:07 pm. He was 8 lbs 15 oz and 18 3/4 inches long with a head full of black hair....MUCH different than Big Brother McClain! He is absolutely perfect!! Mom and baby are both doing great! We will be making another trip up on Saturday to visit.....I don't know if I can wait that long!!

McClain waiting for Max to arrive.
He was more interested in his toys than having his picture taken.
McClain's reaction to the news his little brother was here.
Daddy with his new baby boy!
Not quite sure he wants to be here yet!
Thumb sucker!
Hanging out with momma!

Terrible Blogger

2009-07-14T15:49:00.001-05:00

So, I'm officially a terrible blogger! Things have been hectic to say the least!!! After our successful trip to Arkansas I spent the weekend in Tulsa with my dear friend Casey! I spent some time helping her prepare for her upcoming arrival, Max! We are patiently waiting for him to get here....any day now! If she hasn't had Max by Saturday morning she is schedule for an induction.....needless to say I'll be heading back to Tulsa this weekend! I can't wait to spend time with her and her sweet family!

We Survived!

2009-06-24T20:28:00.000-05:00

Steven and I successfully made it to Arkansas for the family reunion! It was definitely a long trip!!! We were unable to leave until after work on Friday so we didn't get to the resort until about 12:30 am. Needless to say we were exhausted and definitely not ready to make the drive home come Sunday morning. It was extremely hot but we had a fun time catching up with family and seeing relatives we don't get to see too often!

The Feisals

While we were gone Carson stayed with my mom and dad. He always has an absolute blast at their house. They live on 40 acres and have fun horses, cats, and various wildlife for him to spend his time chasing. Carson has ALWAYS hated the water. He wouldn't get close to the water at the lake and he absolutely hates getting a bath. It seems with all the heat we have been having he decided the water might not be too bad while at my parents house.

(I can't figure out why this picture is so small :()

Needless to say we will definitely be purchasing a puppy pool for our backyard. Last night we were visiting some friends and hanging out at their pool and he decided to take a dip. He quickly panicked when he realized he couldn't touch the bottom and swam to the side!

This weekend I will be heading to Tulsa! My friend Casey who was actually the Matron of Honor in our wedding is expecting Baby #2 aka Max sometime around July 27th. We are so anxious for his arrival!! McClain turned one this past January and absolutely stole my heart.....and Steven's :)! It will be great to spend time with Mc and his momma before he becomes a big brother and she becomes a mom of two!

Sweet McClain the day he came home from the hospital!

Taking a snooze last summer in the car!
Learning to crawl!
This summer at the Zoo with his family!

I am very excited about this weekend and patiently awaiting Max's arrival! Mc I know you will be a GREAT big brother!

Bachelorette Party Fun!!!

2009-06-24T20:19:00.000-05:00

Back in April we celebrated one of my last nights out as a single lady so I thought I would share some pictures!Bridesmaids!

Getting ready to open gifts!

We enjoyed a yummy dinner at 1492!

Then it was off to Nonna's!

We then headed to Brix where we happened to run into Mark Clayton!

It was so great to be able to spend some time with my favorite ladies before the big day! We all had a blast and some of my bestest friends were able to travel in from out of town to help me celebrate!

Family Reunion Weekend!

2009-06-18T16:05:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow at 5 pm we will be heading to Heber Springs, Arkansas where we will be spending the weekend at The Red Apple Inn....it looks SO adorable online! We can't wait it should be a fun weekend spending time and catching up with family!

We've both had a busy week at work so we are looking forward to relaxing! However, we are not looking forward to the 5 1/2 hour drive!!!

The high school reunion was an absolute blast and it was so great to see old friends and catch up on their world! Steven's high school reunion is in a few more weeks and he still hasn't decide whether he wants to go or not :). We will see what he decides my decision was a no-brainer!

Hello Weekend!

2009-06-12T10:57:00.000-05:00

This weekend is the first of many busy weekends to come! Tonight we are having dinner with great friends at Toby Keith's in Bricktown. Hopefully the weather will cooperate for us to enjoy the patio!!! Tomorrow morning is the beginning of a day full of festivities for my 10 year high school reunion....gasp. I feel so old! We start with a picnic and lots of games for everyone with kiddos then end the evening at the Coca-Cola Events Center!

When we graduated in 1999 we were the largest class to ever graduate from Yukon. I have been on the reunion planning committee and I am surprised at the lack of people attending this years event. Regardless, it should be great to catch up with old friends and see what everyone is up to these days!

As I said this is just the start of a few busy weekends! Next weekend we are off to Arkansas for a Feisal Family Reunion, Tulsa for one of my best friends baby shower, lake trip for 4th of July! I love summertime and all the activities it brings!!!!

Featuring the Feisals

Happy Valentine's Day

Birthday Party Planning

Bad Blogger

'twas the night before Christmas

Happy Halloween

Pumpkin Mini Session

Friday Night

Shellac Manicure Day 7

Sunglasses

Shellac Manicure

New Camera Lens

Lately

Mother's Day Photo Shoot

Ellie's Favorite Things

Easter Bunny

Kindermusik

Fun Times

Baker Troxler

Another sneak peek

Sneak Peek Pictures

Ellie is ONE!

Make-up

Hello!!

May 7, 2011

Prayers Please

9 month proofs

Ellie's Christmas Tree

Big Day

Happy Thanksgiving

My Very First Blogger Award!!!

Ellie's Story

Fight for Preemies

Prematurity Awareness Month

Trick or Treat

Berry Sweet

Happy Halloween

Mummy Munch

Duckie Bath

New Blog!!!

Happy Fall!

6 month proofs

Berry Berry Sweet

6 month sneak peek

Ellie and her sunglasses

Happy Girl

4 months already....

Boomer Sooner!

Dancin' Shoes

Sweetberry Photography

3 Months

Changes & Blessings

2 months and other ramblings......

New Friends!

Two Sweet Girls

Newborn Pictures

Things I never thought I would think about.....

1 month old

Home!

The Shortest Post Ever

MORE GOOD NEWS...

***FINALLY***

The Top of the Hill

Bundled Up and Moving

Answered Prayers

Spring Snow and Scare

I Wear My Sunglasses at Night

***UPDATE 2:30PM March 19, 2010***

***GOOD NEWS UPDATE***

Ellie Grace Feisal

She's here......

4 weeks.......

Baby Things

Still no pictures......

Update

Bad Blogger

Still a sweet little girl.....

Belly Pictures and other pregnancy ramblings

Babies, Babies, Babies

My week....

FINALLY

UPDATE 2:30PM March 19, 2010

GOOD NEWS UPDATE