Fun Facts (of life)

This post is a long time in the making.  What I mean is, a lot of thought has gone into it, and therefore there have been a lot of sleepless nights!  (This happens occasionally when I have something I want to blog but can't find the time/energy...I "write" it in my sleep.  Problem is, it is never as good as in my sleep!)  So I hope it doesn't disappoint!  It isn't supposed to be depressing, so don't get all bored with it just yet...I just want to be candid.  Generally, I put my best foot forward with my blog (after all, it is public)...but life isn't always rainbows and sunshine and overwhelming cuteness!

Many of you know the struggles we had at the end of my pregnancy with Keagan, and then after he was born.  I didn't blog about them until right at the very end because, as much of an open book as I seem, I am quite personal.  I spill my guts to people I am comfortable with and those I know care and/or won't judge me regarding the topic.  But what we went through with Keagan was tough.  Very tough.  And it frightens me to ever go back there.

Another struggle with which I haven't been very forthcoming is mine and Josh's struggle with infertility (yes, we both brought something to the table to help us not get pregnant). 

in·fer·til·i·ty (nfr-tl-t)
n.
1. Absent or diminished fertility.
2. The persistent inability to conceive a child.

Some of my reasons for not being candid with this are: 1) People who aren't like us won't understand our physical and emotional struggles.  2) I don't want friends who aren't like us to feel as if they can't celebrate their pregnancies and babies with us.  3) I didn't ever want to hear things like "Maybe it just isn't your time." or "God might have other plans" or "It'll happen eventually."  (these are painful things to hear when you are trying ineffectively to conceive a child)  The good thing is, it DID happen (obviously!) and we didn't have to wait as long as we expected (a year and a half of actual trying to conceive).  But when you are in an infertility hole, you never know when you are going to get out of it, or how.  We were lucky enough to find a doctor that, with the right combination of medicines and lotsa prayer on our part, got us pregnant. 

Fastforward...
In July I quit nursing Keagan.  I also went off birth control knowing it might take longer than we wanted to have another baby.  And we aren't gettin' any younger!  (read: we don't have a ton of time if we want our family to grow!)  Well much like before I learned that I do, indeed, have issues in the female department.  I just don't ovulate.  So I went back to my doctor's office this fall, talked with the nurse practitioner and decided to start back on some of the fertility medicine.  Mainly to get a normal cycle so when we were ready to seriously "try" for baby #2, we had a decent playing field!  We assumed it would take a few cycles to get "back on track" and then come 2012 we would begin the "fun" of trying to conceive Baby O #2.

But...

Yep...it only took one cycle of fertility meds and, unbeknownst to me when I went in for some bloodwork, I was pregnant!  We are very excited, I am a little nervous (it's gotta come out!), and Keagan has no clue! :) 

So, I guess the pregnancy posts resume!  This time around, I have felt just about like I did when first pregnant with Keagan: very nauseous, very nauseous, very nauseous, and a little tired.  The difference: I have an 18-month old to take care of!  Oh! How I wish we had family nearby!  Another difference?  I am already showing!  I will get a bump-pic up when I reach 12 weeks (at 10.5 now)...funny thing is right now I look like I did when I was 4-5 months pregnant with Keagan.  I am also starting out 5 pounds heavier (breastfeeding took all my baby weight off, but no one told me to quit eating when I quit breastfeeding! haha, so I put 5 lbs back on!). 

Some hopes for this pregnancy include (besides the normal "happy and healthy 9 months"):
FULL TERM BABY! :)
No growth restriction or need for steroid shots
VBAC (for those who aren't down with the birthing lingo: vaginal birth after c-section)
Nausea to go away at the same time I say good-bye to the first trimester

Here is how we told Josh's parents:

 Yes, my sweet boy does have a cut and black eye in these pictures.  All in a hard day of playing at school!

And finally, something to really tug at your heartstrings...it makes me cry (but I am hormonal and pregnant):
No one else will ever know,
the strength of my LOVE FOR YOU.
After all you're the only one who knows what
my HEART sounds like from the inside.

When You Say Nothing At All

My sweet "baby" boy is now 18 months old (well, we are actually working toward 19 months...but who is counting?).  At his latest check-up we learned that Keagan is a little bit behind in his speech.  Well, I say we "learned" but really, it was confirmed.  Keagan has been behind in everything since he was born, yet he has always managed to play a good game of catch-up (he was born a month early, but I tend to think that's "not that much").  He sat at nearly 7 months old, crawled at almost 10 months, and began walking well into his 15th month.  Our (wonderful) pediatrician is very milestone-oriented and has always questioned his motor development.  I, too, am overly concerned with milestones (I can't help it--part of my education and career).  Pair me and Dr. Tara together and sweet Keagan doesn't stand a chance!  BUT on the upside, I feel like if there were a true delay it would be caught.  For instance, at his 9-month appointment when he still wasn't crawling, she had an X-ray done of his hips (something that was supposed to be done at 6 weeks b/c he was born breech, but wasn't per his first pediatrician).  Luckily the X-ray showed nothing to be concerned with, and I was told to just work with Keagan on more tummy time and weight-bearing.  Can Do! 

So fast-forward 9 months to his 18 month appointment.  Keagan is doing great with his motor development (finally, no concerns from his physical therapist-mommy!), and his social development is off the charts...this kid has a ton of personality and is very appropriate in his behaviors in different circumstances.  Some things Dr. Tara was looking for:  does he problem-solve? Yes.  does he point to familiar objects in a book?  Sure does.  does he know where his body parts are?  Absolutely...Keagan, show Dr. Tara your belly button.  is he talking like other kids his age? Well, um. No.  how many words does he say? Well, um. Maybe 4? But he doesn't even say Mommy. 

We discussed his speech for a bit then it was decided that a First Steps evaluation would probably be good to see if Keagan needs speech therapy.  A very nice lady from First Steps called me a couple weeks later and told me all that would happen: she'd send a questionnaire and we would then have a phone interview to discuss the answers, she would then plot them on a grid that was age-adjusted for his pre-maturity at birth.  We went through the whole thing, and it was decided that Keagan didn't need speech therapy!  He was actually right on target for his adjusted age and would probably catch up quickly.  This is something we figured from the get-go, but figured we'd go with the speech therapy if that's what was necessary because it couldn't hurt.  But it is so nice to know that we don't have to go there!

Funny thing is, since this all took place just a few short weeks ago, Keagan now has an arsenal of words:
please (pa-weeeeese...and is extra sweet and drawn-out if he really wants something)
thank you (daank-ooh)
tractor (tracor)
truck
duck
dog
basketball (bas-ba-baa)
Cats! (Cas! with a fist pump.  as in Goooooo Cats!)
blue berries (ba-baarr)
Bubble Guppies (bubble guppy, sometimes just bub.  this is a show on nick jr. that he LOVES and asks for constantly)
dada
Oscar (he loves to call to Oscar when we let him out to go potty...funny)
cheese (much like please)
uh-oh (sounds like uh-oh)

And JUST TONIGHT, he said "mama" for the first time!  And said it and said it and said it.  It brought tears to my eyes.  I've been waiting to hear my name for 18 months.  I swear, it's the second best sound I have ever heard (first was his meow-cry when he was first born).

Keagan also makes a lot of sound effects:  he roars, makes truck sounds, helicopter and airplane sounds (with hand gestures to show that his hand is flying!), blows (as in bubbles, dandelions, hot food).  And he communicates a lot with sign-language.

All-in-all, I am beginning to think he might just be a little bit like his daddy:  a man of few words! :)   But it is so wonderful to see his rapid progression from 4 words three weeks ago to an ever-expanding vocabulary today.  And best of all, to hear him call me by my "new" name tonight.  I feel like I have just been given an award!!

Getting some snuggle-time in (rare!) during an episode of Bubble Guppies.

A little Chicken Fried

A cold beer on a friday night.

Pair of jeans that fit just right.

And Zac Brown Band on!

Last Thursday night, Josh and I had a date!  We went to Nashville to see our favorite music group:  Zac Brown Band.  I am in love with their music.  Have been since their first single "Chicken Fried" came out.  They are played on country music stations but really have a lot of different sounds.  Of course, they are country, but they have some reggae and grassroots influence in some of their songs.  And their music is just real and fun.  And the band sounds great in person, better than on their CDs and radio!  To say we had a blast is an understatement.  I am still tapping my toes to their music in my head!!  We had excellent seats but my pics only turned out so-so...hard to get good pics with concert lighting.  Never heard of their music?  Go.Listen.Now.  They are fantastic!!  And to top it all off, they are good people and are involved in charities and founding a camp for children with developmental disabilities.  Zac Brown is a father to four little girls and is the 11th of 12 children himself.  Not that you cared about this tidbit, but I found it very interesting and just rounded out why I love his music.  To me there is nothing better than a celebrity figure who is a real human being and who uses his status to do good works.