New Car

So, if you recall I was in need of a new car and since I am headed back to work soon time was of the essence. I hadn't really had much time to look for a car with all the feeding, rocking and cleaning. So eventually Justin just asked me if I just wanted him to buy me a car. I said, " Yeah....pretty much. If you think it's good then just get it." So one day he calls and said that he found a good one and should he get it. I pretty much said yeah as long as it's not too much and is not to fancy.

Well.....it's a bit fancier then I am used to. It's a 2007 Nissan Sentra, just a litte bit older then my other car. It has about 78,000 miles on it and it's in very good condition. It has one of those keyless car things. It's called a fob I guess and it's just like a clicker and it just has to be within three feet to work in the car. It's pretty fancy. Justin was good and asked them at the dealership to clean it really well since one car he looked at smelt like animals really strong.

So far it's been a great car. It has really dark tinted windows in the back which make driving at night a little harder to see the lights but nice so my baby can fall asleep easier. It's so quiet as well. My car was slightly falling apart and quite noisy.

We used to joke how everybody in my family had a silver car, well we've all slowly been changing to white and I had to jump on the bandwagon. =)  I am just glad to have a safe car and everything taken care of....well kind of. 

Visitors

We had some fun visitors this past weekend. Justin's brother Jayson and his wife Neha came for the weekend to come and cuddle little Grace, and hang out with us too....I guess. =) It is always great fun to see them. They always make such yummy food and bring fun games to play. It never fails to surprise me how much Justin and Jayson are alike when they get together. I really wish at times that their dad was around because I am pretty sure all three of them would be doing the same things.

They had lots of good bonding time with Grace, Neha got her alseep and we had a successful time with Jayson. He was so cute and nervous about holding her  at first and she picked up on that but eventually they both relaxed and had fun with each other.

Whenever I attempt to do a family shot someone is always missing so we are missing Jourdan in this one. Funny side note we took the pictures on a timer and it took 5 in a row and Grace got progessively cranky. This one is almost crying. =) 

We also got some great exciting news while they were here. Grace is getting a Messenger cousin! Well a Butler cousin but on the Messenger side. Justin's sister, Jyana annouced that they were expecting a baby in October. She was tricky and had everyone looking at videos about where she works then added a fun one about her dog. At the end it had the ultrasound pic. Justin's mom started screaming, I was in the other room feeding Grace but when I heard that scream I knew what it was. =) We are so excited for them. Grace will get two cousins this year one on each side, lots of baby fun and love. P.s  Jyana I hope it's ok I shared. 

Yay for babies! Yay for visitors! We are getting more visitors next week my sister and her son are coming for a while. We love to spend time with family and miss them when they are gone. Here's hoping we see you soon!

One Month

Little Miss Grace has been with us for one month. Crazy how times flies and yet still seems to be going slow. We love her more and more each day as she grows. She is getting so much bigger at least heavier. She only has a few clothes that fit her now and they are getting tight not sure from her or the fact that I wash them so often.

She is just the best baby. We've had some fun projectile vomiting as of late, she doesn't like it when I eat spicy foods, or some vegetables. But she's eating like a champ. We made a trek up to Logan to visit my parents and she did awesome in the car. As long as she has a happpy tummy she'll fall asleep in no time and stay asleep. We've braved church two weeks in a row and she did great. Not sure how much she weighs but I am guessing 8lbs and a little bit. She does pretty good in the night she'll go between 4-6 hours depending on when we put her to bed.

We some fun nicknames for her like: baby doll, sweetheart, Gracie pie and other fun names.Here are some fun pictures to see how much bigger she's gotten. =) Still tiny just filling out in her cheeks and everywhere else.

This is how she likes to sleep with her arms out. Funny story. I layed her down for a nap and had her all wrapped up. Justin waited a few minutes to make sure that she stayed asleep. She fussed and fidgeted till she got her arms out then truely conked out. The only thing is that she moves her covers off in the night and has cold little hands when she wakes up.

 

In honor of her first month I did a little photo shoot and tried to figure out my camera. She did pretty good for a while. =) 

She is doing so well holding her head up, and getting so strong. 

Almost got a full smile. =)

We love her so much and are so blessed to have her in our lives. Even at 3 in the morning she's the cutest thing.

I am doing really well. I am really liking not being pregnant and being able to move around faster and to tie my own shoes. I have good energy most days but some days I just need a little nap. Justin is a great help and has been awesome at helping with Grace or dinner or whatever I ask of him. I have to go back to work in about 3 weeks and I am excited and yet dreading it. I sure do love being this little girls momma. It fills my heart with joy when she calms to my voice and when she smiles at me while eating or cuddling. I do enjoy each moment and keep her in my arms a little bit longer at times. It's a good thing they come in packages so easy to love.

Little Miss Grace

Soon after Grace was born my sister in law Cali came and took some pictures of her. It was quite the event, first she wouldn't fall asleep or hold still. Then we had a major blowout, but after a while she finally conked and we were able to finish up quick. She is pretty cute but I am biased. I love that she got a dimple shot. Most people don't believe me when I say she has dimples but she does. =) They are beautiful and I love them. Thanks again Cali, you are the best!

RIP Lucy

So......on the 22nd of February I did something I have never done before. I got in a car accident. I was going to meet my grandma for lunch, which ironically I worry that she'll get us in an accident with her driving. I was on Antelope Dr., a road I take every day for work and to get anywhere. I was right by the hospital and I didn't see that the car in front of me had braked. I was going about 40 miles per hour and knew I was going to hit him. I braked really hard but then crash ! I opened my eyes to find that the air bags had gone off. They smelt terrible I tried to open my door and couldn't so I rolled down the window. I just sat there for a while my body was in shock a little bit. I just thought....I have no idea what to do now. 

So I got my phone and called Justin. The other guy got out of his car to see me and all I could say was...."I'm pregnant, I'm sorry I don't know what to do." He called the police and they got there quick. A fire fighter guy who was driving by stopped and helped me out of the car so I wouldn't smell the fumes as much. Once they all saw my belly the police men were very concerned. They were so nice and I pretty much just sat there while they talked with the other guy and got my information. I felt ok my face hurt a little from the airbags and the top of my stomach hurt. I didn't feel like anything had happened to the baby but I was very anxious to get everything checked out. 

Once we got all the paperwork done with the police the other guy drove away. He thankfully had minimal damage to his car. My car is another story. It had to be towed away and is.....totaled. 

Looks awful huh? I felt bad because it was my fault and that my car was still so young it had a little over 83,000 miles. So then we went over to the hospital to get checked out. First I went to the E.R. then Labor and Delivery then they said, "No go get cleared in the E.R. before coming up here." So by then I am shaken up and just can't stop the tears from coming. I had felt her move a little bit and that was a huge relief. Before I went back down to the E.R. a super sweet L&D nurse came and wanted to check for the baby's heart rate. It was there and strong, a little high but understandable so. That was also a huge relief and I was able to relax a bit while getting checked out.

So I went down to the E.R. and got cleared. I still felt fine just mostly shaken up. So then I was up in L&D for a while. They hooked me all up and I laid there being reassured by the constant thump thump of my baby's heart beat. Everything checked out ok. I wasn't bleeding or leaking. I was doing some crazy  contractions but I couldn't really feel them.

My Dr. came and said "Everything looks ok." He asked if I wanted to be induced that day, which I replied. " No way." He wanted me to come back and get another blood check and to be monitored for a little bit the next day. Everything looked good the next day. I was doing better but still nervous to be in a car and I kept seeing the guys bumper in my view.

So, now we get to buy me a new car. Thank goodness for insurance for our cars and life insurance. My Lucy is gone the way of the Dodo bird. =( She was a good car and helped me get home when I wanted to, visit people when I wanted to and to be able to help when needed.

We apologize for not telling family sooner. I called my mom and told her and that was hard enough. We didn't want to worry anybody extra especially with the baby coming soon. So now that little Grace is here and I am ok we can't really hide the fact that we need a new car now. So if you know of anybody selling a car let us know.

As far as accidents go it was pretty good. Only the two of us were in it, the other guy was totally fine. I was fine. Insurance is awesome. The policemen were really nice and understanding. The only downside...my car is gone. But we are ok and so very grateful for how blessed we were.

Grace's Arrival

This is the story of Grace Elizabeth Messenger's grand entrance into the world. We apologize for length and if it is to graphic for you. =) 

It all started on the the 26th of February I was getting ready for work after taking a nap and all the sudden I felt like I had wet myself. Since my muscles haven't been the strongest down there I didn't think much of it. Went to work got going on stuff to do and every so often I would just feel awful. I kept leaking and finally figured out that it wasn't pee and was probably my water leaking. I didn't freak out because it was a small leak and nothing else was going on.

About 2 I think I realized that I was having contractions. They were about 30-40 minutes apart and not too bad. So I texted Justin at work and my mom saying I think something is happening. I continued at work. It was really hard to be happy and polite because I felt weird but I continued on. It actually was a busy day at work and went by really fast. At about 6:00pm my contractions started to get worse. I would get super nauseous after with hot flashes, then cold chills. In between them I was so tired. They started getting closer together and stronger. They were about 5 minutes apart. Thank goodness we were slow that night otherwise I may have delivered there. Then was about the time that I thought about going home. At 7:30, everyone was looking at me and making sure I was ok. So then I went home. 

At home Justin was in a slight panic getting things ready since I had been keeping him informed. I was so happy to be home. I didn't know what I wanted to do or what I wanted Justin to do. I sat in my rocker and continued to have contractions. I was still so tired so I just closed my eyes and concentrated on breathing through the contractions then tried to sleep in between them. I was aware of what was going on but had no energy or desire to respond. When the contractions got really hard I had Justin squeeze my legs and that helped so much. Justin was so good at doing whatever needed to be done. We had a neighbor come over and give me a blessing really quick. 

After a while they started coming 2-3 minutes apart and lasting about a minute. It was around 11:30 that we made it to the hospital. We let my mom know and she started on her way to the hospital. We got all checked in and up in Labor and Delivery and I was at an 8. I was thinking in my head before going to the hospital that I could be an 8. The power of thought. They asked me if I wanted an epidural and when I realized how far I was I declined thinking hey if I made it this far, how much worse could it get. It was painful but not unbearable. By then I was doing a low moan during contractions which I had read helps open everything up. 

They were trying to get an IV in me to help with the baby and for precautions. I was a really hard stick, they had to try like 7 times. I am already a hard poke and then I hadn't eaten or drank much that day. So they finally got the IV and some fluid going and boom my Dr was there. I don't really know all that was going on because I was just focused inside and working through the contractions. 

The Dr and nurses were a little concerned about the baby because she kept doing some crazy dips during contractions so they thought that the cord had gone around her neck. They mentioned the possibility of a c-section, then I said a little prayer that everything goes well. By then my mom was there and I think her and Justin also said some prayers that that wouldn't happen. After a while I couldn't help it I had to push. During a contraction my stomach would just push- almost like the feeling of throwing up, you can't stop it from happening. 

I was then complete and they said ," If you want to push let's get going." They got me all ready and then I started pushing. This was probably one of the harder things because it was hard to know how much success my pushing actually did. My Dr. was awesome and said " You take your time and push when you feel ready." About this time my contractions slowed down so I had longer in between pushes. 

After 45 minutes of pushing she was well on her way. After her head came out she just slipped out and no problems with the cord. She took a while but then cried and cried for a while. She was amazing! They gave her to me for a minute and then went to check her out. I got finished with everything. I had tore a little bit and so my Dr. stitched me up. But it really went amazing. So on Feb 27th at 1:47 am. little Miss Grace Elizabeth Messenger came to us. 

After working on the mom/baby unit I knew what they were talking about and knew that everything was ok. By then I finally opened my eyes and could interact with everyone. I felt awesome! Tired but also very awake and energized. My mom asked if running a marathon hurt more then having a baby and I think the marathon was worse for pain. In running the pain doesn't ever stop but you get breaks with contractions. 

So there you go, I feel so extremely blessed to have such a great labor. I was very happy that she came on her own even though it was a bit of a surprise.

She's so perfect and petite. 

Weighing 7lbs 4oz. and measuring 20.5 in long. She is long but skinny.

We are both doing great! I still feel awesome, not very much pain and I am able to walk around and do whatever. I get a little tired quicker but not bad. Baby Grace is doing great. She is pooping and peeing and eating much better. We struggled with breastfeeding for a while but now we are doing good. She only gets up about twice in the night. Once around 1 or 2 then around 5 or 6. She pretty much sleeps or just looks around at you. Very content and we couldn't ask for anything more.

She is absolutely perfect and we love her to pieces.

Mile 23

39 weeks today!

I  am doing pretty good. I am just about ready for this baby to come out. The other day my sister-in-law was chatting with me and we were saying how I was at mile 23. Mile 23 in a marathon is one of the hardest times. You are almost done, and yet still have 3 more miles to go. Your body has had just about enough and usually by then everything is telling you to stop running. But when you make those last 3.2 miles you feel amazing and the pain slowly goes away. =) 

Things are getting a little more uncomfortable. The heat is really killing me especially at work, I am glad that it's cooler outside or I might be more miserable. She is much lower now and putting more and more pressure on my bladder and everything else down there. I have found my appetite. I don't realize I am hungry till I start eating and then I am starved. 

 

9 months has gone by quickly but also slow. I am so grateful that this pregnancy has been so great. No complications, minor aches and pains and overall pretty awesome. There is a lady I work with who is also pregnant and she is always getting sick and feeling awful. But she does have short labors. So maybe I'll get stuck with days of labor. That's ok I'll take it. 

Here's hoping something happens soon!