Welcoming Chloe Madison

I know it's been over a week but it's been a wonderful and crazy week.  So while my little peanut is sleeping after feeding I figure I would blog my birth story.

For anyone who actually reads this will know that I was scheduled for inducement on Oct. 15th.  No one, including my doctor thought I would make it through the weekend since I was contracting regularly at my last appointment on Oct. 9.  Well I ended up contracting on and off all weekend but it never developed into anything.  I went about my daily routine even going to work all weekend.  I walked a lot hoping to get something going but at the end of the day was just disappointed that nothing was sending me to the hospital.

I honestly don't know how I got any sleep Monday night.  I was also contracting on and off all night getting my hopes up that I would go into labor on my own before having to start the inducement.  But 5am Tuesday morning rolled around and no labor.  I called the hospital to check what time I was suppose to come in and they told me by 7am.  So I got my husband up, we both showered, ate breakfast and got the babysitter over to the house to watch Alexis.  We got to the hospital just a little after seven.  We got all settled into the labor room and got everything set up.  Casey was actually thinking about going into work that morning for a meeting but when his boss heard of his plan to come in she squashed that idea.

It wasn't until sometime after 8am that I was actually started on pitocin to get things started.  I was on pitocin for probably an hour or so when my doctor came in before heading to the office and he broke my water.  By that time I was only about 3.5 cm dilated and I thought I was going to be in it for the long haul.    Well around 10 or 11am things go intense and a little scary.  Up until they my contractions were manageable.  They hurt but I was able to semi talk through them and I wasn't needing any kind of pain control.  But then the nurse thought my contraction monitor had moved because it was showing my contraction wasn't going back to what my baseline was.  She had me lay on my side to try and get the contraction to go away.  I wasn't really feeling it so that's why they thought it was my monitor.  Then I guess Chloe's heart rate started to drop.  Then I started feeling the contraction in my back, which let me tell you is not fun.  My nurse then asked me to flip to my other side but by that time I was in a decent amount of pain and wasn't going to be able to flip myself.  The nurse called for extra help to get me on my other side and by that time I am sure the monitors at the nurses station were going off because Chloe's heart rate was dropping because when she called for help to flip me to my other side about six nurse showed up.  Prior to flipping me on my right side, they but a heart monitor on my finger and put the oxygen mask on.  I saw the look on Casey's face and I could tell he was worried and felt helpless.  I didn't dare ask what was going on because if I knew the extent of the situation I probably would have freaked out and made the situation worse.  They had told me her heart rate had dropped to 80, and my husband later told me it really dipped as low as 60 but knew they weren't telling me so I wouldn't freak out.  During this whole ordeal my pain go almost unbearable so I started asking for some kind of pain medication.  I was unsure if I wanted to break down and get an epidural but I knew I wanted something.  I ended up having the CRNA come in and explain the epidural to me and I even signed the consent form in case I asked for it.  But I passed on the epidural at the time and ended up getting the IV pain medication fentynal  which helped take a little bit of the sting off.  By that time I had such bad back pain not too much would have helped.  I did get some heating pads that helped.  Once they got Chloe's heart beat stable I was able to get the IV drugs.  They checked me and I was only at 5cm.  I was kind of disappointed at my progress because I knew it could be hours before I was at ten.  But my contractions were getting more and more intense.  I wasn't able to talk through them and I started squeezing both Casey and the nurses hand to get through the pain.  After the fentynal wore off I had another intense and long contraction and so at that time I broke down and asked for the epidural.  They went to check with the CRNA because they were suppose to be prepping for c-section.  Well the nurse came back saying they had already gone into the operating room so I was going to have to wait for the epidural.  So I asked if it was possible to get another round of IV pain meds.  They called my doctor and he approved it.  My doctor is actually a big advocate of epidurals and told me when he broke my water I should get one and even kind of did an 'I told you so' after I delivered.  Well my second dose of IV meds did nothing but make my hands and my feet tingle.  My husband noted that I was no longer on the pitocin drip and hadn't been since the scare which meant I could probably take a bath if I wanted.  So after using the bathroom I decided to ask if I could take a bath.  They said they would have to check me and I had to promise that I would get out of the tub in time to deliver.  My doctor then came in to check me saying he wasn't going to jump in the tub with me to deliver Chloe.  Well he checked me and I was 8-9cm so taking a bath was out of the question and at that point so was getting an epidural.  He had plans to go back to his office but once he checked me and I kept telling him I was having strong urges to push he realized he wasn't going to make it back to the office.  After telling me multiple times not to push he checked me again, and I even told him I would kick him if he told me I couldn't push.  I was still only 9cm but he knew it would go fast so my doctor left to call the office and change into scrubs.  All the while they were setting up the room for delivery, they brought in the warmer, had an assistant come in and get everything ready.  By the time my doctor came back in I was screaming through contractions trying not to push.  He checked me and even though I wasn't quite 10cm he said I was close enough that we could work around the last little bit.  So on the next contraction I was able to push and her head was coming out.  Well her head only part way came out and had to sit there for the next contraction and that was so uncomfortable I was crying and asking for them just to pull her out but they couldn't so the next contraction I got her head and most of her body out.  Chloe came into the world at 1:24pm after 4 pushes.  She weighed 6 lbs 14 oz and 20 inches long.    Her face was all purple but thankfully it wasn't because she was not breathing.  Because she was really low the whole time and how fast I delivered her, she ended up having a cone shaped head and a bruised face.  But she passed all of her tests and was absolutely perfect.

Although I did ask for the epidural my desire for a epidural free labor and delivery ended up coming true.  I honestly was like the rock star of the birthing center for doing it without and epidural especially once they learned that I didn't have an epidural with Alexis either.  It was a completely different experience this time around.  It was more intense and more painful but the end result was the same.  A wonderful, perfect and healthy little girl.

She is 10 days old now and we have settled into being a family of four very nicely.  I am doing the 'single mom' thing this weekend because Casey is at a conference in St. Louis but both girls have been amazing so I should be able to survived this weekend with little to no problems.

Here are some pictures of Chloe.  The first one shows how purple her face was from being bruised, then a family photo and one of Alexis and Chloe.

Here is to a wonderful life as a family of four.

Last Day

So my little girl has decided to be stubborn and hang out longer then her due date.  Yup, I am still pregnant and was due Oct. 10.  Well she is getting kicked out tomorrow no matter what.  So today is my last day being pregnant.  I am still hoping to go into labor on my own and avoid being induced but I am ready for whatever happens.

I am not sure of the whole inducement process so it will be interesting to see what happens and how my body handles it.  I am concerned that I won't be able to go pain med free like I want but we will see what happens.  Hopefully I am far enough along that they could break my water first and let my body do it's own thing before trying medication.

I know my doctor never expected me to last this long.  I had my last appointment on Wednesday, the day before my due date, and I was having contractions every about three minutes but they were not painful.  But because they were regular and I was dilated some he set the induction date thinking I wouldn't need it.  Looks like I will need it.

Here is my final picture of me pregnant:

Here is to a easy, fast and safe inducement.

Baby Shower

Over the weekend we had a baby shower.  It was more like a end of the season bbq but it was still fun, despite the fact that we had to do it inside because it was rainy and wet.  We had a lot of people come and despite us saying we didn't need anything, people brought gifts.

The biggest success was our onesie decorating station.  Everyone decorated more then one and I still have plain white ones left to use as under shirts and such.

Everyone is getting anxious to meet this little girl.  Got less then a week to go until my due date.  I have my last appointment set for Wednesday Oct. 9 and then i will get a non stress test and as the doctor said we will 'pick a birthday' if she doesn't show on her own.

Here are some pictures of the decorated onesies.

Here's to Chloe making her appearance soon.

38 weeks

I cannot believe it's been 38 weeks since I got pregnant.  To me this pregnancy has flown by.  Fast then it did when I was pregnant with Alexis.  Maybe because this time around I had more to occupy my time.  I will say I am starting to reach the point where I am getting tired of being pregnant.  This pregnancy has worn me out.  I do not sleep well, plus with working, babysitting and having a very energetic 4 year old, all my energy just gets sucked out.  But I wouldn't change any of it.

I still have a ton to do around the house.  The baby's room is almost all done.  My parents will be up this weekend and hopefully my mom will be bringing the curtains so we can get those hung.  Then just need to wash, sort and store all the clothes and the room should be complete except for things for the wall, which are all projects in the works right now.

Alexis is doing so good in preschool.  She loves going and has been making friends.  She loves coming home and telling me about her day.  She seems to be learning a lot and just having fun.  I am so glad it's going well because that puts my mind at ease that she is having a good time while she is there while I am at home trying to get stuff done.  I know she will need that time when the baby comes.

We are starting to get fall around here.  Still nice weather to go outside, but the leaves are starting to change which is always fun to watch.  Unfortunately the wind comes in with the fall and sometimes it's too windy to really go outside and play but we still try and get out when we can knowing soon enough it will be winter.

here is a picture of me from today exactly 38 weeks.  Count down is on to see when Chloe will decide to arrive.

here is to getting everything done in time!

All grown up

I cannot believe that my little girl has completed her first week of preschool.  I mean technically it was only two days instead of three but we both survived.  I expected that being extremely pregnant I would be weepy and not want her to go but I was actually looking forward to being able to go grocery shopping all by myself.

What made it even easier was that Alexis was excited to go to school.  One of her friends is in her class so she knew someone right off the bat.  We went to school a little before check in to take pictures.  It was nice that Casey was able to make it since drop off is over his lunch.

The three hours she spent at school flew by.  Between grocery shopping and actually taking time to make myself lunch before I knew it I had to go get Alexis from school.  Pick up was pretty easy, she ran and gave me a hug and then realized that she had to leave and then she decided she didn't want to leave.  I guess it's better that she enjoys school and can't wait to go and doesn't want to leave, then her not wanting to go and throwing a tantrum and crying a screaming.  It was so hot last week the schools kept letting out early because most of the schools do not have a/c so on Wednesday she didn't have school but had it on friday.  Another easy drop off and then at pick up she insisted that she was going to stay at school for the night.

I am so happy she likes going to school and hope that continues as she gets older.  Here are some pictures of her first day.

Here is to a very good first year of school for my little girl who has grown up too fast.

All Painted

Earlier this week my mom came up to visit us and to help paint Chloe's room.  Once we figured out exactly what colors we wanted my mom got to painting.  She did most of the work and I mainly kept Alexis out of the room.  Although Alexis did help a little bit but that got to be difficult.  I am really happy with how it turned out.  Although we could have gone a shade lighter on the three walls but I think it will look fine once we get everything put in the room.

We still need curtains, which hopefully we can find a fabric soon.  I also have a couple ideas for wall hangings.  My mom will work on one and I will work on the other so they both can get done.  I will probably wait until Alexis starts school to work on projects that way I have time.

Here are the pictures of the completed paint job.

Here's to getting the rest of Chloe's room done!

Second Time Is a charm

In more ways then one.  I had my repeat glucose test today and thankfully the drink stayed down the whole time.  I am glad it stuck this time because I do not want to do that again, so hopefully I pass so I do not have to do the 3 hour test.

Downside to this second try is that the nurse had to stick me in both arms to get good blood flow.  Not the best, but thankfully she was able to get enough blood for all the tests they will run.  They check the glucose and my iron levels again.

I should know on Wednesday.  No news is good news.

Here's to not hearing anything on Wednesday.

28 weeks- 3rd Trimester

So I have officially reached my 3rd trimester.  This pregnancy has been flying by.  It has been a relatively uneventful pregnancy which is what I like.  The only big thing is today I was suppose to have my glucose test but the drink made me sick and I threw it up and so they couldn't do my blood draw because it wouldn't have had taken effect.  So I have to redo it again Monday afternoon.  Hoping that after both a breakfast and lunch in my stomach that I can hold down the drink.  My one big problem is having to drink it in five minutes so I try to chug it to finish it in time.  Hopefully this next time I can get it down rather quickly and with no problems.

I do not really have an update on the nursery because we actually still haven't started work on it.  We have picked up a bunch of color samples but still need to figure out which one will work the best.  My mom should be coming up in a week or so and then we will get down to business.

Chloe is all stocked up on clothes.  Between what we have saved from Alexis and from what we have purchased from people selling what they don't need anymore we have enough to probably put her in several outfits a day.  We will wash everything and probably pick and choose what we want and resell the rest.  Of course we will wait and see how big she is because who knows what size she will need to start with.  Alexis was a pint size little girl but has always followed the sizing of clothes pretty closely but all kids/babies are different.  We have also stocked up on diapers when people are selling extras they don't need.  We have yet to actually pay full price for diapers(except the left over size 5's we had from when we potty trained Alexis).  We have found that there are extreme couponer's in our area and they hold garage sales to sell off excess stock.  One of them has diapers and we are hoping to get to her next sale early enough to hopefully snag some good prices on diapers but I do know they probably go fast.

I don't have a picture from this week but I do have a side by side comparison from last week.  The one on the left is when i was just about 27 weeks with Alexis and the one on the right is just about 27 weeks with Chloe.

Here's to hopefully a successful glucose test on monday.

24 weeks

Well I have hit a milestone in this pregnancy.  Well one of many.  24 weeks marks when a baby is viable.  That means If the baby were to be born 24 weeks and beyond it's able to sustain life outside of the womb.  Not that I am super anxious to meet Chloe, she needs another 13-16 weeks before she makes her debut.  We went ahead and made a registry, most because you get a coupon for like a % off whatever is left on your registry.  We don't need much but we put a few items we need a second one of and just some basics that we may have gotten rid of after Alexis was too old for them.  It was kind of fun and even Alexis got into it, she wanted to use the scanner and scanned most of the items herself.

Not much else to report.  I have another ultrasound July 2nd to complete the measurements they couldn't get the first time.

Here is a bump picture:

Here is to a quick week and a half so I can see Chloe again.

We have a name

So after a few weeks of going back and forth on names, we have finally decided on a name for our new little girl.  The best part is if you ask Alexis she will tell you, if she isn't too shy, what her sisters name is.  Over the weekend Casey took her to an art fest and there was a vendor who was sell rocks with names etched into them and Casey got one for Alexis and Alexis insisted on getting one for her little sister.  I love that she is already thinking about her little sister and wanting to do and get stuff for her.

I also had my 23 week appointment today.  I go on odd weeks because I started at week 11.  I have finally gained some weight.  I am up five pounds since my ultrasound almost four weeks ago, which is pretty good.  They said i should gain between a half a pound to a pound a week.  I got to schedule my follow up ultrasound.  I got back in two weeks for another ultrasound to get the rest of the measurements they couldn't get before and to check my placenta placement.  I am excited to see her again.

This is how we announced her name on Facebook:

We are very excited to welcome Chloe Madison into our family come October.  Here is to a quick two weeks until my ultrasound and some more steady weight gain after not doing anything for nearly 20 weeks.

The baby's room

So we actually haven't started to do any work on the baby's room we do have plans for it.  We found a crib set that we love, and that my mom my surprised us with and we are using that as the basis for the room.  With Alexis we didn't really have a theme for her room, we didn't even have a crib set.  We never found one that we liked.  We had her room painted purple and when we moved we painted her new room purple.  This time around we are going, I guess you could say non traditional in the paint color we are going for in the new room.

We are hoping to find or have the store match the blue in the crib set so we can use it on the walls.  I know blue isn't traditional for girls, but it's a really nice baby blue/aqua color that I think will go really nicely in the room plus we will have pastel color accents, most pink accents so it will still be a girly room just blue walls.

My great aunt is doing a cross stitch piece for the room.  She made one for me and my sisters and then made one for Alexis.  She includes the baby's name, and all the stats of the birth.  I love what she does for us and it's just a special way to commemorate the birth.  The colors in the one she picked out will go nicely in the room.  And then I am doing to do a Pinterest inspired piece for the initials.  For Alexis we just have traditional hanging letters in her initials.  This time we will be doing buttons and frames in the letters.  Hoping it turns out as good as I think it will in my mind.

Since my mom got us the crib set I know have something to use to compare for paint colors.  I cannot wait to finish removing the moose and tree wallpaper that the previous owners had put up in the room.

Here are the 'before' pictures.

Here's to starting work on the baby's room.

Big Sister Love

So yesterday after I finished getting ready for work, Alexis came up to me and gave me a hug and said, 'I love you baby sister' to my belly.  My heart completely melted.  Then I asked if she wanted to give her baby sister a kiss and she did.  We got her to do it again for a picture.  It's kind of blurry because you have to be fast in getting a picture like that because Alexis will not hold a pose like kissing for long.  She is so excited and ready to teach her sister everything.

Here's to Alexis having many more moments like this and continuing the affection once her sister has arrived.

It's a....

Girl!

So last week I had my very first ultrasound and we were able to find out what we are having.  Not only are we having a little girl, she is very stubborn to say the least.  It took two pass overs the private area to see what you need to see to tell boy or girl.  Also it took 40 minutes to get all the measurements and even then the tech couldn't get a good look at everything so I will go back in about 8 weeks to have another ultrasound done.  They figure once the baby develops more they will get a better look at what they couldn't get a good look at before.

Let me tell you that Alexis' reaction to hearing that she was going to have a little sister was epic.  I wish I had had the video camera or at least my phone recording it because it was priceless.  From the beginning she has told me that she wants a sister and that with no doubt in her voice that the baby is a girl.  She wouldn't even entertain the thought that it could be a boy, she was certain it was a girl.  So I don't know if she just really wanted a sister or she had some kind of 'kid sense'.  I had no feeling either way this time.  Some people assumed boy because I was having a different pregnancy then I had with Alexis but I knew that different pregnancy doesn't mean opposite sex.  Casey knew it was a girl, I think he figures he will only have girls.  I joke that maybe we can try for a boy, but he said no and I think it's partly because he doesn't want three girls.  We are happy to complete our family with this little girl.

We have no names picked out yet as of now.  I have a baby name book I borrowed from a friend and we have started to throw names in the hat but nothing has made us go 'THAT'S IT'.  We have time and I am confident we will have a name picked out before she is born.  If you ask Alexis her little sisters name should be 'scooter'.  She is going to be an amazing big sister and will love her little sister to death.

Here is the picture I used to announce on Facebook.  We are looking forward to finding a name, picking out a room color, and doing some baby shopping.

Here's to a continued healthy pregnancy!

17 weeks- onion

Well I am going strong in my second trimester.  Starting to doubt I will get this surge of energy that usually comes with second trimester.  I probably would have it if this was my first child, but I am on my second and have a three and a half year old that always wants to be doing something.  I am also babysitting the most adorable 2 month old which keeps me on my toes but it's also really good practice for when the new baby arrives.

So besides when they ask me how I am feeling, people seem to like to know how this pregnancy is comparing to my last one.  Let me tell you it's very different.  I never really got sick with Alexis.  I had my moments but nothing like the first trimester with this one.  Thankfully the sickness has passed.  The other thing that is different is my dreams.  I have had very weird dreams this time around.  My dreams usually stem from the last thing I have watched on TV so if it's been something intense my dreams can get pretty weird.  I know Casey doesn't like when I have weird dreams because I am all over the bed.  Last night was my first real baby dream.  We have our first ultrasound in a week and a half and last night I had a dream about the ultrasound.  I don't believe in dreams being premonitions.  Especially this dream because I know there is no way that this is the way the ultrasound will happen.  Although when the tech told us the sex he said girl.  Now that part could possibly be true.  Granted there is a 50/50 chance of the sex of the baby part of the dream is true.  I am excited about the ultrasound.  With Alexis they did a dating ultrasound very early in my pregnancy so I got to see her more then once so it was fun to compare how much she grew and changed between ultrasounds which was about 10 weeks apart.  Now with this one, I have heard the heartbeat twice but haven't been able to see anything so it will be fun to see him/her actually looking like a baby when I first get a peek.  I am excited to see how Alexis reacts to seeing the baby on the screen.  I am unsure if she will understand what is going on , but she was impressed when she heard the baby's heartbeat at my last appointment.  I know she will be thrilled to find out if it's a boy or a girl.  She really wants a sister so if it's a girl she will probably be really excited.

I am excited to start finding a name and figuring out what color we will paint the bedroom.  I have been waiting to get my hands on that bedroom since we moved in.  The previous owners painted every room of the house except the third bedroom.  They did put a wallpaper boarder up that i couldn't wait to get down.  I got most of it down just need to finish getting the wallpaper off and paint it.

I haven't taken too many belly pictures but I did take one last week at 16 weeks 2 days.  It's just of the belly and not my face because it was looking awkward.

April Showers

I am sure everyone has heard the expression 'April showers bring May flowers'.  Well in good ol' Grand Forks, ND our April showers are SNOW showers.  We got at least six inches and it's still snowing but not so hard.  It's the thick wet packing snow.  Already took Alexis outside to play.

Lemon-14 weeks

I am now successfully into the 2nd trimester.  Thankfully my symptoms have started to lighten up.  I am still tired, but then again I have started babysitting an 8 week old on top of caring for my 3.5 year old.  It's nice getting 'practice' having two kids.  Most of my nausea has subsided.  Hoping my appetite will increase now that I don't feel sick anymore.  No real cravings yet and no other aversions expect for taco salad.

I have another appointment next Wednesday the 17th.  Just a basic routine one, and hopefully during that one we will discuss when I can have my 20 week ultrasound done.  I am excited to find out boy or girl.  I know a lot of people have various reasons to either wait until delivery or find out at an ultrasound.  I have a few reasons for wanting to find out.  If we have another girl I will know I just have to wash and reorganize all of the clothes from Alexis, and if we have a boy then I will know I have to try and sell our girl clothes and buy boy clothes.  Thankfully all of our big stuff is gender neutral because we knew that we would want another child and best to not buy gender specific big stuff so it would save us money.  Plus finding out the gender will help us pick out a name, I would rather focus on one name then trying to make two different lists.  And lastly I would rather get the room painted before hand then trying to squeeze in painting with a newborn.  Plus I think everyone else is excited to find out what we are having.  My dad has asked several times if my appointment is the one I find out boy or girl.

Not much else going on.  Still waiting for spring to arrive, just took a look outside and there is actually snow falling.  I am tired of this weather.  Here is to spring finally showing up.

'Safe' Zone

Well I have passed the twelve week mark with my pregnancy.  Hitting the twelve week mark is considered a milestone and your chance of miscarriage decreases greatly.  Now nothing is guaranteed and I am not completely in the 'clear' until I give birth to a healthy and happy little baby.  Technically I still haven't made it to the second trimester, when you use the 40 week timeline second trimester doesn't start until 13 weeks and like 3 days so I am inching ever so close.

I am excited for my second trimester to get here.  Usually in the second trimester the nausea subsides, and you get energy back.  I am looking forward to getting my energy back and thankfully my nausea has already started to decrease.  I have come across one food aversion so far.  Taco Salad.  I have had it for dinner twice and both times the outcome later in the evening was not pretty.  Of course now that we have had it, my husband keeps wanting it but I am not going to be wanting to eat it for the duration.  I really need my energy back and fast because starting tomorrow I am going to be babysitting an 8 week old.  It will be nice practice for both me and Alexis to have a baby around, I just don't want to be tired all the time, but that's something I will have to get use to.

In other news, I have officially registered Alexis for preschool for this fall.  It's kind of bittersweet.  I cannot believe she is old enough to start school, but then it will be good for the both of us.  She will be going three days a week for three hours a day in the afternoon.  It will be nice for me so I can get stuff done around the house and then once the baby is born I will get some one on one time with the baby.  I am kind of sad that my little girl has grown up so fast.  I look at her and wonder where the last 3.5 years went.  I am excited to have another baby so I can experience all the first over again with a new little one.

We had a wonderful easter.  Alexis had so much fun dying easter eggs, she woke up the morning we dyed the eggs begging to get started before we were even out of bed.  The town has an easter thing they do every year.  This year that made it over two days which was nice.  On Good Friday, at the university's football stadium(indoors) they had all sorts of inflatables set up and some other activities so we took Alexis for a couples hours during the day and then Casey took her again after dinner.  She loves bouncing on inflatables, and there were not that many people there on Friday so she practically had the place to herself.  She had to try all the inflatables at least once and then would go back to her favorites over and over again.  We did splurge and pay for her to do the bungee bounce they had set up.  It wasn't bungee jumping.  She was harnessed in and it was connected to bungee cords and she would jump in an inflated trampoline.  Once she got the hang of bouncing with the harness on she had so much fun doing it.  I have a feeling it might a thing she does every year.  On Saturday they had their annual egg scramble.  Thankfully this year they put it in a separate room from the inflatables.  It was a bigger space then in the past.  Basically all they do is have thousands of eggs just laying on the floor and when they say go the kids run out and collect as many as they can.  Because of the popularity of it we ended up getting there at least 20 minutes early to find a spot and waited.  She had so much fun collecting eggs, we actually did two different scrambles.  She did the one for the 2-3 year olds and then after realizing it was too crowded where the inflatables she wanted to do another scramble so we got her into the 4-6 year olds.  Thankfully they don't check ages.  The second one she didn't as many eggs  but that one wasn't so much about getting many eggs as it was to having fun.  Easter morning Alexis woke up early, thankfully came into our room first(as opposed to last year when she went straight downstairs and found all the eggs before we woke up).  Once she was awake all she wanted to do was go downstairs and see if the Easter Bunny had left anything and hid eggs.  Thankfully we got her ready and we all made it to church before she went egg finding crazy.  She just loves finding eggs around and we usually keep the plastic eggs out for several days because she will hid them over and over again and we will take turns 'finding' them.

Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday.  Here is to continuing to get more energy throughout this pregnancy and to the spring that is finally arriving in Grand Forks.

Two Down, One to go

As I pay the bills we have this morning I realize we have successfully paid off balances on two credit cards and have one remaining to pay off.  We are not so much worried about this last one because it still has another year of interest free on it, but we will most certainly be paying it off well before the year mark hits.  It's just so wonderful to know that we were able to go to from almost being dependent on the use of a credit card to using cash or out debit card(which is the same as cash).  Let me tell you it wasn't completely easy.  We had to start making grocery lists and not just deciding what we wanted in the store.  Price comparing may seem like it is too time consuming but if you have several different stores in your area that offer the same products, price comparing can save you a lot of money.  Basically you go where the best sales are.  Coupons are good too.  We are not extreme about cutting coupons  but we will search out coupons for the items we tend to purchase quite a lot and that helps especially when we find a good sale.  Matching a coupon with the best sale will save you the most amount of money.  So we get the Sunday paper every week and look through the coupons and all the ads and find out where the best deals are for the items we need.

So far it's been working out great.  We have used my weekly paycheck to pay for the day to day items and depending on if it's time for us to put gas in our cars we may have enough to fill up one car.  We never fill up the cars in the same week and we never let our tanks get to empty.  Our local grocery store has gas coupons but it's only for so many gallons.  So we usually try to fill up when we reach that point so we are maximizing our savings.  Sometimes you have to let it go for a little bit longer but we never run our tanks all the way down before filling up.

With a second one on the way, saving money has become more important then every and we seem to be doing a good job about it.  I know it will become harder as we have to start buying diapers and formula and other baby needs but if we keep to a budget and strict shopping lists all of that stuff will work in nicely to what we are already doing.

We decided to stop using our credit card when we purchased our new truck which was right before Christmas and since then only one purchase has been put on the card and it was for a work trip for my husband so he got reimbursed for it so we were able to pay it off fully and right away with the reimbursement.

Here's too a successful first almost 1/3 of the year without using the credit card and going even further without swiping it.

Announcement

So if anyone actually reads this:

Due Date is Oct. 10, 2013

We are very excited to finally be adding a second child to our wonderful family.  So far this pregnancy has been different then my first one.  A lot more tired and a lot more nausea.  Hopefully once I am out of the first trimester it all goes away.  I am currently 9 weeks along.  Two more weeks until my first appointment, which I know will be both a wonderful appointment because I should be able to hear the heartbeat but it will also be a long appointment as most first appointments are and I am not looking forward to having blood drawn but it's all part of the process.

Enough!

I know it's been a long time since I posted anything, but life has been pretty busy.

I just have to say I am sick and tired of winter and snow.  We got another snow storm last night and I can probably say with confidence that the snow is probably up to my knees.  I am just glad Alexis isn't asking to so outside because we could probably lose her in one of the snow drifts.  There is now way to get out of our sliding glass door.  Thankfully where we live they do snow removal so our sidewalk and drive is clear.

I just want it to be spring time.  I want the snow to melt and be able to take Alexis to the park every day and not have to bundle her up in boots, snow pants, coat, hat, and gloves.

With all this snow we will probably have a flood this year which thankfully we live far enough away from the river we won't be effected but it will cut us off from the other half of town.  Oh well, it happens I guess.

Here's to finally warming up and the snow finally melting.

8 weeks!

I know it's been a while since I updated.  Mostly because not much has been going on.  Happy to report that we have made it 8 weeks without using our credit card!  This is a big accomplishment for us.  We are getting a decent size tax refund back which will help pay off our remaining credit cards that have been zero percent interest.  Once everything is paid off our goal is to save money and then hopefully when we have more then enough we will buy a new furnace.

Our furnace has been giving us a problem for almost a year now.  But it's not one of those things you have just have the money laying around for.  The fun part is now I have to call all sorts of companies and get quotes.  I am going to call all the ones in the phone book that say they give free estimates.  I am sure as heck not going to pay someone to come out just to tell me how many thousands of dollars a new furnace is going to cost.  The last time we had the furnace repair guy out he did say he was able to do something to it to make it run more efficiently which was nice and hopefully will hopefully save us money on our electric bill.  I mean in the dead of winter in Grand Forks, ND there isn't much you can do about keeping your heater from kicking on every other minute especially when without windchill the temperature can get as low as -30.  Thankfully it looks like we have left the below zero temps behind and the temps will start making there way to higher numbers.

Not much else going on.  Just working, which thankfully I have been able to get more hours thanks to people needed shifts covered and calling off.  With spring fast approaching I should see an increase of hours because more and more people will start shopping again.

Here's to a quick arrival of spring(no matter what the groundhog says!)

5 weeks

Five weeks could mean a lot of things to a lot of people.  To our family at the moment it means we have gone five weeks without using our credit card.  For us that is an amazing accomplishment.  It also means that we have had our new truck for five weeks.  At the end of last week I wrote the check and sent it out to pay off our one credit card that had interest on it.  It was a good feeling to be able to pay the balance off in full.  It's been a three year struggle with it but now we are determined to not travel down that road again.  Our biggest challenge will be navigating a credit card free household when we have a second child.  But with some discipline I am sure we can do it.  So far we have been able to get everything we need for day to day living using my paycheck.  Even though my hours have been cut at work we are determined to use my paycheck for groceries and every day expenses.  It's all about figuring out what we need as opposed to what we want and doing smart shopping.  Looking for deals, coupons and price comparing.   So far we have done pretty well with that.  We have a stock of things and honestly our pantry looks like we are preparing for the end of the world.  I have a ton of canned tomatoes I got during a sale, also a ton of spaghetti noodles.  Ok well I guess that's not how you prepare for the end of the world, but for me that's how you have more then enough stuff to make spaghetti for a while.  The only thing I need to buy for spaghetti is the meat because I now have enough of the other stuff to make like four or five batches, which we go through spaghetti at a decent rate.

We also have a stock of soda, toilet paper and dish soap.  It's an odd combination of things to have a stock of but it's what was on sale and honestly you can never have too much toilet paper because you never know when you are on your last roll and the dish soap doesn't go bad and there have been times i have opened up a bottle and rinsed it out to get enough soap to do the dishes because I didn't have a new container.  The goal is to make the stuff we have plenty of last as long as possible that way we aren't buying new every week or so.    We also just need to keep our eyes out for good deals and good coupons on the things we use.  We are not going to be extreme couponers who buy things that we don't necessarily use just because we can get it at a low cost or no cost.  It's all about smart shopping.

So here is to smart shopping and another 5 weeks of not using the credit card.

Happy Birthday to my Love

So today my wonderful husband celebrates his 30th birthday.  Unfortunately falling on a Tuesday limited what we could do to celebrate.  Although the day was full of a lot of good things.  First good thing was that the birthday cake I made turned out great.  Usually, for some reason unknown to me, when I make round cakes they always fall apart when I take them out of the pan.  This time I baked it and when I got the cakes out of the pan they came out easy and didn't fall apart and help up the whole day even after frosting it.  Score one for me.  I usually feel bad when the cake is falling apart before you can even cut into it.  Glad it came out ok.

Second good thing of the day is we finally got the check we have been waiting for from the sale of Casey's old truck!  This means that we get to pay off bills.  Our credit card debt will decrease by a lot.  Since the money didn't come in time to pay one bill by the end of the month we will only have one card paid off instead of two like we wanted.  But the second card we were hoping to pay off is interest free so we don't mind having to wait another month to pay it off.

I wish I could have thrown Casey a birthday party or at least surprised him with an amazing present but got to do what you can.  I was able to get the night off work so just being able to have dinner as a family was celebrating enough for us.  Also having Alexis constantly telling him happy birthday put a smile on his face.

Here is to a great year for my wonderful husband.  Happy Birthday.

Times that try men's souls

We all go through tough times in our life and it's how we come out at the other end that is important.  The road may be rough and full of bumps but if you come out at the other end with a good result the journey becomes less important.

We are constantly looking at the light at the end of the tunnel.  Unfortunately the light we have been looking for seems to have stayed in the distance a little longer then we were actually wanting it to.  In a previous blog I mentioned that we had bought a new truck and with the money from the sale of our old one we will be paying off some credit card debt.  Well we were given a time frame in which we would expect the money.  With the end of that time frame almost here Casey called to check on the status only to be told it will take up to two weeks longer now.  GRRRRR, we kind of needed that money now.  Waiting two more weeks isn't going to make us go broke up it does mean we have to wait until next month to pay off at least one credit card which we were hoping to get rid of this month.  Thankfully the card in question is currently under an interest free promotion so having to wait one more month to pay it off won't add any more money to the card.  We just hope that by the time it comes to pay the other card we want to pay off we will have the money we need for it.  It's just one of those things that is out of our control and we are stuck in limbo until everything goes through.  We had a feeling the time frame would be extended when we had to go back to the dealership and resign all of our paper work because they had to transfer our loan to a different bank.  They had told us it wouldn't effect the amount of time it would take to get the money they owe us, but obviously it has.  I guess there isn't much we can do about it but it's still a little frustrating when it comes to the budget.

On a different money note, we have made a major accomplishment when it comes to our credit cards.  We have successfully not used any of our credit cards in three and a half weeks.  We had made the decision when we purchased the new truck to remove the credit card from our wallets and only spend the money we have in our wallet and bank account.  We have successful been able to do our grocery shopping and get everything we need for day to day life just using the money we have.  My paycheck basically pays for our every day needs and then of course we are able to make our dollar go further with price comparing, sales and using coupons.  We are hoping to only use credit cards in an emergency and only if we know we will be able to pay the balance in full.

I just hope with all this struggle and the sacrifices we have had to make, that it all be worth it in the end.  Here is to getting out of credit card debt and being able to save money so we can do the things that we want.

Holiday Blues

Now that the holiday's are over I have time to finally update about our Christmas.  It's kind of sad that the holidays are over.  This was the first year that Alexis really got into the whole thing.  Last year she loved seeing the tree but didn't completely understand the concept of Santa, but this year she knew Santa was going to bring her presents and started asking for things in October.  Well actually she only had one request for Santa.  She wanted an elephant to hang on the bottom of the tree.  Elephants are her favorite animals so it didn't surprise me that she requested and elephant of some kind.  Just happy that it was for a real one, although I am sure that one is coming.

Unfortunately she is still scared to sit on Santa's lap but hopefully another year and that will change and she will sit on his lap and tell him what she wants for Christmas.  The biggest change this year was her excitement to leave Santa cookies and then wake up in the morning to notice that he ate them all.  We were concerned about her waking up before us and diving right into the gifts before we got downstairs and went to church.  This past Easter she woke up early and went downstairs and found all the eggs the  Easter bunny hid and then came up stairs to declare she found them all.  Thankfully she stayed in bed until I went and got her and we were able to get to church on time and everything.

Alexis, as usual got spoiled by everyone including Santa.  She loves each of her gifts and has been having fun dividing her attention between all of her new toys.  She got a Leap Pad from one set of grandparents and a lot of games to go with it.  She ran through brand new batteries the first day because she couldn't stop playing it it.  Time to invest in some rechargeable batteries.  My best friend, whom we call Aunt, got her a camera.  A nice kid proof one that won't break if she drops it.  She has taken a lot of pictures with it.  Her favorite thing is taking pictures of all of her new toys.  She got a lot of puzzles for Christmas so every time she puts one together she insists on taking a picture of it.  I love watching her enjoy all of her gifts.

Here are some pictures of the morning.  Here is to all the wonderful Christmas memories made.

Welcome to the New Year

Like every year I think people have high expectations at the start of a brand new year.  This year I am definitely no exception.  In my mind I have so many things I want to have accomplished by the end of 2013.  I usually do not officially make resolutions at the beginning of the year, but I just have goals in the back of my mind that I want to accomplish.  So here are some of my goals for 2013.

1. Keep the house in a clean state:  Not that our house is always a total mess, it is also not always clean.  Granted with a three year old it's hard to always keep the toys put away.  I just want to try and constantly keep the carpet vacuumed, the bathrooms looking nice and the kitchen organized.  I have even set up a schedule for myself on the calendar.  One room every day and then once all the rooms are done then you are ready to start over again, that way when it comes time to do the major cleaning it's won't be such an all consuming kind of thing.

2. Save money:  This one is probably on a lot of people's list of things to accomplish this year and really for every year for that matter.  The end of 2012 brought a huge financial decision to this family.  We made the decision to sell Casey's old truck and buy a brand new one.  The nice thing about selling Casey's old truck is that we owned it free and clear and have been able to get more then 50% of what they offered us in cash.  That money will be used to pay off some outstanding credit debt.  We decided that paying off credit card debt was a financial hurdle that we haven't been able to over come.  Yes, we will have two car payments but with two credit cards at zero balance we will actually be able to save money this way.  We will also be looking to use more coupons.  I am not looking to do anything extreme just find ways to save more every shopping trip.  Thanks to CVS I have a feeling I will be able to accomplish this goal.  If you live near a CVS I highly recommend you get their extra care card and start earning rewards.

3.  Create a stronger family:  Don't get me wrong we have a strong family but there are times when it feels like we spend more time individually then we do as a family.  I know me having a part time job in the evenings and weekends really makes it difficult to have a lot of family time, but we just need to know how to utilize the time we do get to have together.  Also part of creating a stronger family is that I hope we can add to the family.  I believe we are at the stage where adding a second child would be fruitful.  Alexis is a good age and I believe she would make a wonderful and very helpful older sister.  Also with the financial goals we have we should be able to afford it.  Although can anyone every truly afford a baby(maybe rich people).  I cannot wait to really start making the Weaver family strong and wonderful.  We already are but in every family there is always room to grow and I love watching my family grow.

So here is to a wonderful 2013 and all that it brings.