Happy 2 Weeks!

Oh September 28th, I NEVER thought I'd see you!

Today was my due date, and our little Ms turned 2 weeks old yesterday!

Crazy how fast time goes by!

Monday Layla had her 2 week check up & Dane got caught up in court so I had to take both kids by myself. I was incredibly nervous, it was my first time going anywhere alone with Landon and Layla. But I survived!! It was not near as scary as I thought it would be!

Layla weighed in at 8lbs 1.5oz and was 19 1/2 inches long!

Growing like a weed!!

We have been pretty much cooped up in the house for the most part since Layla was born. She still isn't on a set feeding schedule, seems like some days she eats every 4 hours, and other days she eats every hour. I've been nervous to leave the house in case we are in the middle of something and I don't have anywhere to nurse her. Then I think about Adrien & her nursing at Grant's Farm and remember anything is possible! lol

Landon is still doing great with Layla. or as he calls her "Lala". He hasn't been listening lately, but I'm pretty sure it was just as bad before Layla was born! He still loves holding her, for about 20 seconds, loves giving her kisses and is very protective of her. He doesn't let anyone hold her

without them knowing he is watching them. it's cute! :)

ps. I don't think my kids look anything alike!! lol

The past 2 weeks have gone a lot better than expected.

I'm not as nervous to get out of the house anymore and plan on taking advantage of the last few nice days we have coming up this week.

With 2 amazing babies, I have nothing in the world to complain about!! <3

Here is our Creative Bent sneek peek!

Can't wait to see the rest of the pictures!! Hopefully SOON!!!!! :)

BOOTS!

If anyone has a coupon for famous footwear they are not using, please send it my way.

I absolutely L.O.V.E these boots. But could never spent $80 on them for myself.

$60 maybe. MAYBE!!

Ah, LOVE!

Oh, and if you go out and buy these after reading this post, I might cry. just sayin'

:)

Confession Friday!

I confess Layla and I ventured out for the first time yesterday! Landon got to hang out all day with Paw Paw & Honey, so I took full advantage of it!

(Honey is Dane's step mom. No idea why Landon calls her Honey, but it has just stuck. too cute!! lol)

(yes Cassie.... Landon was NOT with me yesterday. lol) and 5 minutes into our shopping adventure at Target, Layla poops her pants. lovely!

I confess I was soo bummed I missed taking Landon to his first concert. Well Toy Story on Ice. But from what I hear, he was soo good and had a lot of fun!

I confess my daughter peed 5 times on 5 different blankets while getting her pictures taken last night. Sorry Anna for the extra load of laundry!!!

But we sure did get some cute pictures!!! :)

I confess there is something about having a clean diaper on that makes Layla poop. I swear 30 seconds after she gets a new diaper on she shits. ahhh.

I confess I'm nervous for the burpee challenge! Fear I'm going to die, or pee myself. But Dane says he is going to do it with me, so I can't cheat!

I confess when I tell Landon to do something, he tells me "in a minute" ugh. NO, NOW! stink!

I confess I cut and colored my sisters hair this week. I now know why people take maternity leave. holy stomach pain..I'm glad I don't work full time as a stylist anymore!

I confess I had my first drink last night. and it sucked! Ugh! After pictures, Dane, Layla and I went to Applebee's and they had margaritas on special, so I had one. Should have paid more for the perfect margarita. huge disappointment. I'm sooo ready for a margarita from Tequilas!!!!!!!

I confess I am expecting my stomach to go back down like yesterday. but I continue to eat incredibly unhealthy. I really need to get control of this!!! Looking up WW meetings as we speak!

Happy Fall Everyone!

Hope you have a great weekend!!!!!!!

HAPPY 1 WEEK update

Well, it looks like I survived the first week of being a mother of 2.

But trust me, I can't take half the credit. Dane has been home all week and has been such a HUGE help. I haven't cooked or done dishes ALL WEEK LONG. I could have gotten use to that.. but today was back to work for him. Boo! lol

Secretly, I'm kind of excited though... because 1. He had to shave his scruffy face lol and 2. because I love playing the role of mommy and wife, and with him home he was more of the wife than I was!

Landon has adjusted AMAZING! (knock on wood) He has been buddies with daddy all week, so today should be the true test on how he is adjusting to being a big brother. He hasn't had 1 meltdown! He loves holding her and giving her kisses. He won't call her Layla, to him she is "my baby" it's cute! :)

Layla is a great baby. So far, it has been so easy. Too easy! Hopefully it stays like this. Granted she sleeps and eats 80% of the day right now, but when she is awake she is so content and just looking around. She smiles ALL THE TIME. I don't remember Landon smiling all the time this early, I really should check his baby book!

She isn't a fan of walks yet. which is a biiiig problem. We love to go on walks around our neighborhood! Yesterday was our first attempt and we made it maybe halfway around and she was pissed. So she was carried the rest of the way..and she fell right asleep. go figure!

Dad started out extremely nervous around her but has come a long way in just one week! I think he forgot how little they are. He has gotten very use to slinging and flinging Landon around everywhere. He is such a great daddy, I count my blessing everyday that he is the dad I wish I had growing up!

Mom is doing great.. A little tired, still very sore, with little back ache still. damn epidural! I have a clogged milk duct, which is extremely PAINFUL. I am fighting through the pain the best I can without stopping breastfeeding. I'm hoping that it will soon fix itself. Otherwise I am going to be visiting the lactation consultant very soon!!!!

I feel like all I do is feed Layla and change diapers.

On day 3 I tried on my favorite pair of pre-Layla jeans (yes, I never got back into the jeans I wore before Landon. boo!) and they were no where near buttoning.. and I tried them on last night and they buttoned!!!!!!! Could I walk, talk, or breathe in them?? HELL NO. But it's a start!!!!! I am determined to get into my pre-Landon jeans. Wishful thinking :)

I'm going to be completely honest, there were many nights Dane and I laid in bed and talked about how things would be once Layla was here.. I said on many different occasions, I just don't know how I could love another person as much as I love Landon. It just didn't seem possible. Boy, was I wrong and worried for no reason! I never knew it was possible to love so much!!!!

I still feel as if I'm floating on cloud 9 & I'm not ready to come back down!!!!

Layla's Birth Story

On Monday September 12th me and the boys headed to the doctors office for my weekly check up! Since I had gone from 0 to 2cm & 50% the week before, I was so excited to see how far I had progressed. We made a little progress, was now at 3cm and still 50% thinned. I was excited!
We left the doctors office and headed to chick-fillet. ( which is what I think helped move things along! Spicy chicken sandwich!!!!! lol ) After doing a little shopping, we headed home. Around 7pm my contractions started to become a little regular. They were about 8 minutes apart. 10 o clock rolled around and they were still at 8 minutes apart, but nothing too painful. At 11 I decided to give the doctor a call since they hadn't stopped yet, just to see what he thought. He said to come on in, and they would see what was going on. So we got everything together, and headed out. And of course stopped at McDonald's for a cheeseburger just in case I was admitted, I knew it would be awhile before I would get to eat again! lol
Saying goodbye to Landon as we dropped him off at Nana's was by far our hardest good bye yet. I didn't know for sure, but there was a chance the next time I would see him, he wouldn't be my only baby anymore.
We arrived at the hospital a little before 1am. My contractions got to be about 4 minutes apart on the way to the hospital, but still weren't too painful yet. ( I swear it was Dane's driving!!!! lol)
They hooked me up to the monitor to check my contractions and checked me. My contractions were back to 6-8 minutes apart and I was almost 5cm and 70% thinned. They were shocked since I had just been checked 12 hours prior to that. but they told me IF doctor Snowden decided to keep me, there was nothing they could give me to help me along since my original due date was on the 28th and I was still technically 37 weeks and 6 days. Doctor Snowden suggested I walk for a hour and see if I progress any and we would go from there. So me, Dane, my mom, sister Brandi & sister Amber head off for our walk. There is only so far you can walk in a hospital before your standing at a elevator for 5 minutes stopped, so we headed outside. The weather was great so we circled the entire hospital. About 45 minutes later we head back up to the floor where we run into the nurse and she said she had been looking for me to tell me Doctor Snowden has said to go ahead and admit me.

Woohoo! We were staying!! They check me again and I was almost 6cm and still at 70%. I got into my room around 3am and attempted to get some sleep. Snowden came in around 8am to check me. I was a solid 6cm and still at 70% so he decided to go ahead and break my water. And the real contractions then began! They were stronger, but stayed about 5 minutes apart. I lasted about a hour before I decided to get the epidural. Let me tell you, that was probably the worst thing I have ever experienced. With all the horror stories about epidurals, I think everyone goes in terrified to get it. He poked and dug around in my back 7 times. Took over 45 minutes before the other anesthesiologist decided to take over and got it on one try. Trying to sit still for 8 contractions was incredibly difficult and painful. But within 15 minutes, the medicine had started working and I was able to get some rest.

1pm rolls around and the nurse checks me and tells me that we are at 9cm and 90%, but Layla is still pretty high. So once we reached 10cm we will "labor down" which is basically to just wait it out. Even though I would be 10cm I still wouldn't be ready to push. About 15 minutes later I was feeling tons of pressure with every contraction. She told me that she would check me again shortly, but if baby was ready to come-- I would feel the pressure constantly. I think it was next contraction that felt like If I didn't push against the contraction, I was going to explode!!!!!! That was by far the most pressure I have ever felt in my entire life. I started to wonder what getting poked in the back 7 times was for because there was no way there was medicine helping what I was feeling!!!!! It had worked for the contraction pain I was having in my stomach, and that was it!!
The nurse sat on my bed and told me to try a couple practice pushes, since it took me 2 1/2 hours to push out Landon, They didn't want to call the doctor out of his office yet unless it was for sure time. I start to push with my next contraction and she makes me stop and tells me not to push again. She calls the other nurses and doctor right away. Felt like they were all in the room within 2 minutes and we were ready to go! I push through two more contractions and
Ms. Layla was born at 2:06pm.

Weighing 7 pounds 11 ounces

21 inches long!
Our awesome team. I couldn't have asked for a better nurse and of course, Doctor Snowden, the best doctor in the entire world!!!!!

While we got moved up to a room, Layla was taken to the nursery for a bath and to get checked out. Her blood sugar was low, so they had to give her a bottle of formula. This upset me because they didn't ask if it was ok to give her formula since I was nursing, and they also didn't offer me to give her her first bottle. I know it was necessary to get the blood sugar up, may have been hormone overload, but I cried. And since my milk wasn't in yet, there was nothing I could do but to supplement her after each time of nursing. She had to be checked every 3 hours, and it had even dropped to a level where she had to be seen by the NICU nurse. They gave her once more chance to be fed by mommy and supplemented, and if she got 3 positive results back, she would not be admitted to the NICU. I was incredibly stressed out, and felt whatever she needed from me I was failing at giving her. But luckily the formula was able to give her what I couldn't and brought her levels up to a safe level and the NICU was quickly put out of the picture. WAY out of the picture!!! I was SO relieved!

How is big brother Landon doing??

He has adjusted so well!!! At first he didn't have much interest in her. Pretty much just ignored her. Then he realized how much mommy and daddy love her and were giving her so much attention, he wanted to be next to her at all times. He is always asking to hold her, and give her kisses. Everytime a nursey would come near her, he would tell them "no no!!" Already protective of his little sister! so cute!!!

getting his first good look at her.

First hug!

First nap together!

First kiss!

wrap it up!

First off I'd like to give the middle finger to all you brats who clicked whoa on all my post. i swear I'll figure out how to take that off...eventually! :)

anyways.

This weekend went by waaay too fast!

Although I am off on Mondays and Dane happened to be off today too, so technically it's still our weekend!

Friday night we had a relaxing family night out. We went to dinner at TGI Fridays (because I found a $5 off coupon online Friday at work). Before we finished dinner, Landon was getting a little antsy to go outside to Dad's truck (still the coolest guy on the block) so Dane told Landon if he sat like a big boy, he could drive the truck home. Landon was good for probably 20 minutes longer. We honestly didn't expect him to actually understand what we were saying. Boy were we wrong. We get out to the truck to leave, and Landon doesn't understand why he can't drive. Literally threw the biggest fit for 20 minutes. It was so sad. We definitely learned our lesson. No joking with Landon that he can drive us anymore!!!!!!

Saturday morning Dane was gone out the door to play in the Jeremy Chambers golf tournament before we even woke up. Landon and I cleaned the house up and packed our bags for the evening and headed to the Fairgrounds in Belleville for the kids consignment sale. Lets just say I had planned on getting there when it opened at 8, but the lack of motivation I have lately, we didn't leave the house until 10. Once we got there everything was picked over and the line was ridiculous and I refused to stand in line for a hour for 2 things that I had picked out that cost under $10. So off to Target we went. Then we met Dane after he was finished playing golf and headed to the in-laws. Making a almost 4 hour trip when your 38 weeks pregnant was a little scary. I had 12 contractions on the way there but nothing to to painful so we kept going!

Saturday evening we attended a surprise party for Dane's dad for his 60th birthday. He said all he wanted was to spend the weekend with Landon, but because his work schedule was so busy, there was no way he could make the trip to St Louis.

So we surprised him along with 70 of his closest friends & family It was a great party!! I learned a lot about my father in law that night thanks to a couple of his friends who put on a trivia game.. somethings I could have gone without knowing, but it was funny to see him so embarrassed!!!!
It was a great party! His wife Debbie & Dane's uncle Brian and aunt Kari did a great job planning it! And I got to see my long lost friend Holli. I swear her and I are so much alike its freaky! and Landon and her son Quinn instantly clicked and played their little butts off until they were both just exhausted!! They sure are two peas in a pod!!!!

Sunday we stopped by Nana B's house (Dane's mom) for Landon to visit and Landon had a blast. We hit golf balls, rode the golf carts around the course and had lunch. Nana is a amazing cook! Landon had an entire plate of her lasagna! We headed home that afternoon, and of course stopped at the outlet mall in Tuscola. Gosh, I just LOVE the Carter's store!!

I can't tell you how excited I was to be home and in my bed though Sunday night. We were all in bed and asleep by 8:30.

Today since we were both off work, I called my doctors office and had my appointment moved to today so Dane wouldn't have to leave work a few hours early tomorrow and as soon as we get there doctor Snowden tells me he has to hurry me out because he has to head upstairs to deliver a baby. Seriously, just gives me chills. I would love his job. lol

But we got good news that I progressed more. I am now at 3cm and 50% effaced. moving right along.. could be ANY day now. Layla is definitely head down according to doc, so she's locked in and ready to go! Now we just sit and wait! The woman who schedules inductions called me today to confirm my appointment. Thursday the 22nd they will be calling me. I am the 2nd on the list to be called in, and they start calling at 5am.. so could be pretty early! eeekkk! but lets hope before then! I'm still shooting for the 15th!!!!!!!! :)

Hope everyone had a great weekend!!!!!!

Confession Friday

Friday!! Friday!! Friday!!!!
Although I woke up with a head cold today, I'm trying my best to stay positive. I just keep telling myself It could be worse!!! much worse!

On with the confessions...

I confess I'm not wearing my wedding ring today. Yep, 9 months pregnant and back on the market. I kid, I kid. When I forget to take my ring off at night, my fingers swell BAD and it left me a nice blister today. ouch!

I confess I want a tamagotchi! Remember those?!?!?
Although I would probably forget to feed it, and it would die!

I confess I'm looking for volunteers to watch Landon on the 22nd. Okay, I wouldn't just pawn my kid off on anyone.. that's why I'm having trouble finding someone who is able to watch him while I'm in labor.I really want need my mom there with me, but if worse comes to worse, she will watch him for us. I'm stressed.

I confess I went through my fall/Halloween decorations yesterday and I only found like 3 things in the entire tote that I really care to put out this year. Either my stuff is really outdated, or I am just looking for an excuse to shop. Either way, I'm getting new decor!


I confess someone(or 2 people) took the time to click "WHOA" on all of my blog posts from the last week. Yes, I know that some of my posts do deserve a Whoa, because I am pretty spaced out there... But on Landon's birth story??? If you don't like what I post, don't read my blog. You're probably not welcome here anyways! just sayin..

I confess the layout of my blog absolutely drives me nuts. with my header I had to resize everything, and it doesn't look right. someone please help.

I confess I don't know what I'm going to do once Layla is here. We have 3 laptops at home that are out of service. How am I going to keep up with my blog. Not like I blog that much now, but still............... Cassie, I might be using you for your computer. :)

I confess the season finale to my favorite show (Rookie Blue) was last night. and I cried like a baby at the end. Not sure if it was because it's over til next summer, or because it was just that good. probably both.

I confess I'm going to be approximately 4 hours away from my doctor this weekend.. I'm a little nervous. pray for me. lol
but being 4 hours away means stopping in Tuscola at the outlet mall.
Eeeek. Excited!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hope everyone has a great weekend. Enjoy this amazing weather, even the rain. my yard needs it!!!

Happy Birthday to my father in law, Craig Luke! :)

Bump!

How Far Along: 38 weeks!! Yep, I got to skip 37 weeks!

Total Weight Gain/Loss: +20lbs

Maternity Clothes: hate them. sick of them. they suck.

Sleep: about 2 hours. seems like I get my best sleep from 5-6:30 and Dane's alarm goes off. I want to cry every morning! baha Oh, and I get up to pee at least 4 times a night now. fun fun

What I miss: being able to breathe.

Cravings: Beer. lol

Symptoms: I feel as big as I look! I am miserable!!!!

Best Moment this week: Having the doctor tell me I went from 0cm to 2cm dilated in 1 week. Also that I'm measuring a week ahead of schedule, exactly what I was with Landon at 38 weeks--so he moved my due date up a week and said to expect a baby the same size as Landon! We'll see how right he is!
New due date/Induction date is set for September 22nd!!! Woohoo!!!! But Momma won't mind if you come a little early Lay!!

get out of jail free card

Ok, So I'm curious..

Do you have a "top celebrity list"?
you know, if you were to ever meet that celebrity, you had a get out of jail free card?? haha. sounds silly, but I do!
Well, I'm actually not 100% sure if my hubby agrees to this rule. lol
but anyways, I'll go ahead and share my list with you.
And if you ever happen to run into any of these people on the list, please call me. like asap.

1. Ben Bass
aka Sam Swarek from Rookie Blue.
Would saying that I am madly in love with him be a little too over the top? no, good. I didn't think so either.
2.Mark Wahlberg
yum. He has been my #1 for a loooong time. but he has recently been moved to #2. Sorry, Mark! 3. Gerard Butler
Ok, let me add that he might be moved to the #2 slot before this blog post is over. Especially after looking at more pictures of him. so sexy!!!
and how can you watch the movie PS. I love you, and not fall in love with him!

And there ya have it!
There is my top 3 celebrity list!
I could probably list a top 10, but with my level of hormones right now, I'd better stop! haha!!
Do we share the same list??
No?
Well I want to know who is on your list!!!!

Confession Friday!

Good Morning Everyone!
I'm just going to jump right in with the confessions today.. I don't think there is much to confess about this week, so we'll see how this goes!

I confess I laid in the bathtub half asleep at 5am thinking about what to confess about today (sad, right) .. and I kept drawling a blank.

I confess I had the honor of meeting Ryan Seacrest last night. He flew into my work for the first round auditions of American Idol this weekend. Super nice guy, granted he was 2 hours late. But he gave me some fresh cut watermelon from LA and it was delicious, so I can't complain!

I confess I am ecstatic that it's September. Although it is 100+ degrees, something about knowing I'm going to have a baby THIS MONTH is super fantastic!!!

I confess that I'm waiting to see at least one person with fall decorations out.. I am so ready to decorate, go apple and pumpkin picking, and mums.. oh how I just love mums!!! I don't want to be the crazy neighbor who decorates way too soon.. is there such thing?? I just love fall!!!

I confess that I'm sad that after Layla is here and it's time for me to go back to work, that I can't stop at McDonald's for my morning coffee and sausage mcmuffin. I better enjoy the next 3 while I can!!!

I confess that some girls will go out of their way to make sure you feel left out. For a moment last weekend I thought I was caught up in the movie Mean Girls!

I confess I can't wait to see Henry this weekend. I can't wait to smell him. hahaha babies just smell so good!! when they are clean of course ;)

I confess I was added to the Online Yard Sale on facebook... and it frustrates me more than anything. I just keep waiting and waiting for someone to post something I really want. I get 750 updates a day of people posting things for sale--and there isn't anything yet that I've got to make a offer on!!

I confess I have the biggest celebrity crush. like seriously, huge. but I think when I get time, I'm going to do an entire blog post on that, I'm curious to know who yours is too!!

Okay, I'm rambling.
Hope everyone has a great 3 day weekend. for me it's a 4 day weekend.
I love working part time!!!!

Later :)

for Layla's room....

cute?

or

too over the top?

OR


Opinions Please! :)