for a split second I thought we had a newborn again....

So our little bundle of joy is ill...sadly.  You would never know by day that she is congested but by night you definitely can tell.  We've called our pediatrician 3 times about it and all we can really do is giver her saline drops and a decongestant.  She's so miserable...which means we're both very miserable.  But, I have to hand it to her, she's a trooper.  She doesn't have a fever, she is still eating, and still acts normal during the day.  Last night was really rough, we put her to bed at her normal time like we do every night and she slept till about 10:30ish and then she was coughing, sneezing, oh the sounds coming from her poor little nose...made us both so helpless and sad.  So, out goes my husband to any open pharmacy to find something to help her.  I however stayed at home, rocked her back to sleep and then the googling started and the pediatrician calling...etc.  I have to say sometimes I love our pediatrician and well sometimes I hate our pediatrician.  But, I know they would do the same that we've been doing if we did bring her in...it just sucks, I hate seeing her so miserable and not being to sleep good (cause she's a great sleeper).  So, daddy comes back, we give her a little more decongestant and we put her back to sleep....3 hours later, same thing, for a split second I thought we had a newborn again.  At 4 in the morning we were commenting on how we didn't miss this part about having a baby.  So, for now our little bundle of joy is in her swing sleeping somewhat soundly (as much as you can when you nose is stuffed up) and I just hope and pray she gets over this really soon...heck I'll take her sickness for 2 months if it means she can sleep again...through the night.

She's a trooper though, we took her out to a bark for life event, thinking its nice out and maybe the fresh air would help and she smiled and slept the whole time!!

almost 5 months.....wow

Its so hard for us to believe that Bella is almost 5 months.  I never thought 4 months ago that we would be sleeping through night....ever again!  I have to say the last 5 months have been wonderful.  She makes me a better person through and through, and I cannot believe that she is mine!  We are truly blessed with such a happy beautiful baby girl!  We love you so much my dear!

4 months....time goes by so fast!

Its hard for me to believe that Bella is already 4 months old.  It seems just like yesterday that we were bringing her home, scared out of our minds, thinking...okay now we're in charge of another human being...what do we do now?  Its been a wonderful 4 months, she is worth all the sleepless nights, all the spit up rags we wash, all the nights that I miss one of my shows I use to watch, and definitely all the weekends that we use to go out.  We love her more than words can express and cannot believe that this time last year we were pregnant and didn't even know it.

We are very truly blessed....our sweet girl Bella we love you SO much!!

determined to stay positive

A lot has happened since my last post.  First I was told on my birthday via voice mail that my mom was undergoing breast cancer surgery.  I must admit I didn't believe it since the night before I talked to her on the phone and she was in good spirits and it didn't seem like anything was wrong.  I have to say that I was and still am a little upset that they knew about all this way before Christmas and that they waited till the day of to tell any of us.  Secondly, being told that Bella's head has grown too quickly and that there might be some sort of problem.  So off to Children's Hospital we go to get an ultra sound done on her head, thankfully nothing was wrong, she just has a big head, which is perfectly fine with me.

Now onto my mom...its been a very difficult road for her after the surgery.  While she was recovering from her breast surgery, she got a really bad infection in her knee.  So, back into the OR she went where they drained her knee and started her on some heavy antibiotics.  Once she finally got checked out of the hospital, she was told that they did not get all the cancer in her arm and that she had a cancer spot on her spine.  Now, she is taking medication to stop the spread of this cancer while not being able to walk cause of her knee.  And yesterday she was told that once this infection clears up in her knee that she will have to have a total knee replacement.  It just seems like the hits just keep coming...I know she isn't the only person that has ever gone through this and I know that we're not the only family dealing with all of this but it doesn't make it any easier on any of us.  I just got back from visiting with her on Wednesday, it had to be one of the hardest visits I've ever had with them.  I'm not use to seeing my mom in a wheel chair and barely being able to move around.  I think what made me the most sad was seeing her with Bella.  She just wanted to love on her and hold her and it was hard for her to do that, cause these days Bella is very active. It was very hard for me to leave them on Tuesday to drive back up to Ohio.  I know we still have a very long road ahead of us....but I am determined to stay positive.

advice...hug your mom today...I love you mom!!  

A year to remember and be thankful for...

Happy New Year!!

A LOT has happened this past year...2 of our wonderful friends got married in Puerto Rico, we found out while still living in Hungary that we were pregnant, 2 other of our wonderful friends got engaged, we moved from Hungary to Dayton, Ohio, my sister and her family moved to Hawaii shortly after we got back to the states, we found out we were having a girl, 2 other of our wonderful friends found out that they were having a baby, my brother got deployed for the 3rd time and last but not least we had our beautiful baby girl.

We are truly thankful for everything good or bad that has happened in 2010.  And as the New Year is winding up we are looking forward to so many new things....friends getting married, friends having babies, my husband's master degree graduation, moving yet again to a new location, my brother coming home at the end of the year, and the growth of our daughter.

I hope you all have a very blessed and wonderful New Year!!

the never-ending grunting...

I knew when we 1st started trying to get pregnant that having a baby is no picnic, wait...I knew way before then but you know what I mean.  So far Bella has been wonderful, yeah the middle of the night feedings aren't easy but its been manageable.  She rarely ever cries, only if she needs something.  But, lately at 4 in the morning after we've fed her, she starts this grunting sound and it lasts for the next couple hours until her next feeding.  I know that newborns make weird noises but the problem is we need that couple hours of sleep in the morning, it makes a HUGE difference in how our day goes.  Last night was no exception except, I gave Todd C. the night off since he has 2 finals today (yes I know its Saturday but c'mon this is the Air Force we're talking about and well they don't care).  He usually helps at night by changing the diaper and what not.  I have to say last night was horrible, I was exhausted, she was exhausted and well neither one of us wanted to deal with the other (she's 5 weeks going on 16).  What I'm trying to say is, her grunting is killing me, literally.  I don't know if this is ever going to pass, I hope this is just a newborn thing.  Yes, I am thankful that she's healthy and thriving but gosh if I could ask for 1 thing for Christmas, it would be that the grunting go away forever.

30 Days with a baby

Bella is now a month old....1 whole month!  The last 30 days have been wonderful, hard, interesting, exhausting, and well a HUGE learning experience for all of us (including the dogs).  But, I would do it all over again if I had to.  I never thought in a million years that I would love someone as much as I love her...especially so quickly.  Todd and I were talking last night on how weird it is that she's here with us and how over a month ago she was in my belly and how strange it is to finally put a face with all the kicking and hiccuping and moving and also how she was a night person in the womb and is still a night person (just like us).  I've been taking pictures of her everyday and to see the changes is amazing.  And it makes me a little sad to know how quickly she's going to grow up but right now I'll live in the present.

Happy 1 month my baby girl...daddy and I love you so very much!!