Miss Paytons's Journal

You, my little girl were expected in this world on March 11, 2013. You were stubborn and didn't want to meet your loving family. Your Daddy was anxious every time I got up to go the bathroom at night, expecting me to get back into bed and say that my water broke. He didn't get much sleep the last few weeks and neither did I.

You were constantly in my right ribs, always poking them and giving me a lot of pain. We waited ever so patiently for your arrival. There was much anticipation from everyone, family, members at the gym, everyone in the community. We waited a long time for you. It was quite the journey in order for you to arrive. There was a lot of heartache and tears, but we trusted God that he would bless us with you, and he was ever so faithful.

You finally made your arrival at 11pm on March 21, 2013. It was a long day for mom and dad. We checked into the hospital at 7am and spent the day trying to get mommy's body to give you up. After mom got some pain medication, you didn't like it very much and your heart-rate dropped and would not stabilize again. The nurses called the doctor and we made the decision to do a C-section. You entered this world as a perfectly stubborn little girl, we all joked that you were a diva already. We heard your cry and said a prayer of thanks to God for giving us you.

The first hours of your life outside the womb were busy ones. A lot of people came to meet you that night. Both of your grandparents, Auntie Gina and Uncle Adam, and Auntie Laura. They were all very excited for you to arrive. Daddy and I were up till 3 in the morning, after everyone left Daddy crashed because he was sick with a cold and was exhausted from the excitement of the day. I ordered some food because I was so hungry, I hadn't eaten all day.

The next few days were busy with visitors and little sleep. We sent you to the nursery during the evening so we could get some sleep. The nurses would bring you in every 3 hours so I could feed you. There were so many people who came to visit you while we were in the hospital. Great-grandma B, Great Aunt Linda, Great Aunt Debbie and Nicholas, Cousin Noelle, Great Aunt Carol, Auntie Krystin, Uncle Eric with Caden and Ethan, Auntie Naomi and Zach, Anna, honorary Grandpa Dale, Kevin, Maria and Benjamin, Uncle Kyle, and Uncle Nathan. You were spoiled those first few days with everyone holding you.

We came home on the Monday after you were born. Uncle Adam met us with Rory at home so we had some help when we brought you home so she wouldn't go crazy on you. Mommy cried the whole way home. Daddy was worried about getting you home safe and sound. We settled in as a family and had some visitors come by and drop off food. You slept most of the time, Rory was trying to figure out what to do with you and who you were. We all went to bed early because we had a busy day planned for you on Tuesday.

Tuesday morning we left to go down to Children's Hospital in New Berlin because Dr. Goetz heard a heart murmur on Sunday night and wanted to get it checked out. After much worry, tears and tests you were given a clean bill of health. We were so happy I cried the whole way home. Daddy then had his own doctors appointment he had to go to. After he arrived home we had to run out for your follow up doctor appointment with Dr. Goetz, you were a champ and had gained all the weight you had lost since birth. Since we had such a busy day you had a melt down in the car on the way home and wouldn't stop crying until I fed you.

Wednesday we went to get some newborn photos of you. I will treasure them for the rest of my life. We also had pictures taken on Thursday, I will treasure all the pictures taken through this whole journey, especially the ones from the hospital. Friday we finally had a slow day. We spent the day on the couch as a family relaxing and watching you sleep. That same day you had your first blow-out diaper, you pooped through the outfit you were wearing. Saturday we also spent the day relaxing. That day brought lots of challenges, you threw up all over me and your blanket, which prompted me to change and do a load of laundry. Later that day I was changing you and you weren't quite done filling your diaper, just as I went to put on a new diaper you pooped all over mommy and then peed everywhere. We had to throw both blankets and a pillow back into the washer to get them cleaned again. You were quite the riot that day, we couldn't believe what was coming out of you, we couldn't stop laughing.

You are sleeping well at night, mostly in 4 hour stretches. You know your days from nights, and spend an hour awake after each feeding. You like to sleep on my chest and smile a lot. You do not like baths. We are adjusting to each others schedule, me more adjusting to you. You feed about one or two times a night. I am sleeping well in between feedings but they are not long in between feedings.

We got word from your pediatrician that you are a carrier for cystic fibrosis and we needed to go down to Children's for a sweat test. We were blindsided by this news because we had no idea that at least one of us was a carrier. It was a full day for us. we went down there early, you cried through the whole test until I could hold you. You tested just above the normal, which tells us you will most likely have problems with respiratory infections, but you are healthy. Because you tested just above normal we had to run back down there to draw your blood so they could run a full genetic screening on you to make sure there was nothing else wrong, those tests came back negative. We are blessed with a healthy little girl! I wake up everyday amazed knowing you are mine and we don't have to give you back to someone. We are so lucky, and love you very much!

Easter 2013

We are Fa-mily

Grandma and Grandpa with their 26th great grandchild

 

It is amazing at what happens in one year. I was looking at a picture from last Easter, it is Scott, Rory and I. Now this year it is Scott, Payton, and I. Times are definitely changing for the good. I wake up every day counting my blessings. 

She Has Finally Arrived!

Payton's stats

Absolutely Perfect

Finally Going Home!

She finally arrived after being in the hospital for 16 hours. She was quite the little diva, but after some coaxing and cutting by the doctor she made her arrival! We are so blessed to be part of this little one's life. We praise God for her every day we wake up!

Grandpa's Birthday

 

We made a trip out to Baraboo to celebrate Scott's grandpa's birthday. It was a great day spent with family before Miss Payton arrived.

Miss Payton's Nursery

 

She has spent a total of one nap in this room since we have been home. Good thing we worked so hard to get it ready in time for her!



Week 41

How Far Along: 41+ weeks

Total Weight Gain: Almost 40lbs.

Gender: Girl!

Movement: She is being a little dramatic I think. I feel her movement all the time becuase I think she is getting too big and doesn't have enough room, so I am feeling EVERYTHING.

 

Food Craving: Ice Cream, Cranberry juice and sprite.

Favorite moments: Ok I know I have said in previous posts that the nusery is done, truly done! The curtains are up, the monitor is set up and ready to go, car seat is installed, everything is washed, bags are packed (Scott's, Mine, Baby Girls, and Rory's), now it is just a waiting game.

 

Sleep: According to Scott I am a very loud snorer. So he wakes me up to tell me I am snoring which makes me very self conscious, so I drift in and out of sleep the rest of the night, either waking myself up by snoring or making sure my head is positioned just right so I don't snore. Very difficult to get any type of sleep around here.

What I am looking forward to: Finally getting her out of me. I have been off of work for a week and am runningn out of things to do. I have cleaned the house, walked miles, been to the dog park, baked cookies, put together 2 1000 piece puzzles, watched numerous amount of Bones episodes, walked some more, bounced on an exercise ball, made delicious dinner every night, washed all the laundry ran the dishwasher a bagillion times, picked out the birth announcements, made appointments, and countless other things. Any other suggestions to keep my mind off of what is to come? If she doesn't come by Thursday March 21st we will be induced in the morning and hopefully have a baby by the afternoon!

My Birthday!

Scott was a wonderful husband and made me breakfast in bed to start the day. It was a wonderful mix of eggs, hashbrowns, toast and cereal. We then spent the day doing absolutely nothing. I laid on the couch, read a magazine, and slept a little. Later that night we went to dinner with Scott's parents, Laura, and my Dad. It was a great weekend being lazy.

Benjamin's Birthday

Our Godson turned one in February and we were priviledged to attend his birthday party. We love him so very much and he is such a blessing in our lives. We are blessed to have such great friends in Kevin and Maria. He is the cutest one year old we know!

Week 38

How Far Along: 38 weeks

Total Weight Gain: Somewhere around 30+ lbs. or so.

Gender: Girl!

Movement: ALL. THE. TIME. She is constantly moving and reminding me that she is still there and running out of room FAST. She has been more active these past few weeks than I can ever remember. She gets the hiccups at least twice a day. You can see my belly move when she has the hiccups, on my left side I can feel limbs of some sort poking out, and I can feel her but on my right side when she moves. This is the craziest thing in the world, so weird.

Food Craving: Sweets. Since the showers in February I have consumed at least 3.5 boxes of thin mints just to myself. I know I should be ashamed but they are sooo good and I cannot say no to them. The bad thing is, I would have done the same thing even if I wasn't pregnant...

Favorite moments: The nursery is DONE! Scott hung up the light we got for her room, with wiring help from dad. I painted the letters for her name and hung them up. I did the final shopping trip to get some little things that we still needed. The sheet is on the crib, changing cover on the changing pad, diapers and wipes stocked, clothes are washed, car seat installed, my bag is packed (along with her stuff), Scott still needs to pack his but that is a little easier than mine, diaper bag is almost stuffed with things. The only thing left to do is hang the curtains aunt Theresa made. I will get pictures up when she arrives because her name is up.

Sleep: Very sporadic. I have to consciously make myself go to the bathroom in the middle of the night so I can move in the morning. I toss and turn every two hours or so, either because I am too warm or my hips are hurting because of the pressure on them. I figured out how to get rid of the back pain while sleeping so it is a but night besides the tossing and turning.

What I am looking forward to: Meeting our sweet precious girl. Scott holding her for the first time. I am a little nervous for the labor and delivery but I try not to think about it, because I am almost to the point of wanting her out of me because I am so uncomfortable. It is starting to be very tiring to do everything here at work. I want to take a nap all the time.

Grandma B Birthday

She turned 89 on the 22nd.

We headed up to Sheboygan on Sunday to celebrate Grandma B's birthday. Kevin and I beat Scott and his aunt Linda in cribbage, and ate some delicious food. It was a great time to get out of the house and socialize with family.

SNOW!!!

Our shed

 With all the beauty around us I had to have some fun and snap some pictures!

Pregnant snow-woman and Rory

Who says you can't have fun while being huge! I was very inspired this last Sunday when it was absolutely beautiful outside. I had to do something while playing Frisbee with Rory. I will have to get more snow pictures from this last snow. We got around 9-12 inches. It comes up to Rory's chest and she is loving it. Scott is not loving it so much because it is heavy and very hard to shovel. But he is being a trooper and keeping it at bay for now. Anyone have a snow blower they know for sale?

Baby Party

Seeing who could drink a bottle of beer the fastest

 The following weekend we went down to the Chicago area to spend some time with Eric, Carol, Caden, and Ethan before we headed to a baby party for Scott's cousin Josh and his wife. They are due in May with a baby girl as well. We spent Saturday in out pajamas until noon and then off to the party.

Corinne and I

After some good times playing games we went off to the casino to have a little fun! We ended up leaving soon after we arrived because the betting limits on the black jack tables were way too high for us. We drove the whole way back home late and night to have a nice relaxing day Sunday. Laura was watching Rory so we lounged around before heading out to do some errands. It was a nice relaxing weekend before Baby Girl comes.

Baby Showers

Nancy, Me, and Gina

Grandma B and I

The first weekend in February my family threw me a baby shower on Saturday and Gina and Nancy threw me a baby shower on Sunday. It was a very busy weekend with the two showers and then having friends over for the Super Bowl. At the showers the guests decorated onesies for her monthly pictures when she decides to show her beautiful face! It was great fun spending time with both sides of the family and comparing notes and getting tips from everyone. Baby Girl is very blessed by the loving families she is being brought into. Thank you to all who blessed her with gifts. She is going to be one stylish little girl!

Week 34

How Far Along: 34 weeks

Total Weight Gain: I will get the official weight on Friday when I see the doctor again.

Gender: Girl!

Movement: All the time. Yesterday in Church she was trying to break out or something. She was moving her hand on the left side of my stomach, mom could even see, and kicking everywhere during worship. I guess she liked the song selection yesterday. She really liked moms oven fried chicken, we celebrated Scott's birthday with dad, mom, and Laura. She was in a food comatose after that, we had to take a nap!

Food Craving: Nothing this week, oh wait I wanted lettuce soup on the way to church yesterday. I always think about it when I pass Saukville Meats. It is so delicious!

Favorite moments: Getting letters for her name to hang above the crib, and teasing family members about it. But we are staying firm and not telling anyone, at least I am. Scott really wants to tell people but I am keeping him to secrecy. I am fully in maternity tops, and my rings are not fitting. I almost could not get them off when I wanted to put lotion on.

Sleep: NONE. I woke up every hour last night. I guess I did sleep Saturday night, Scott said I was snoring and he let me go because I was finally sleeping. He knows how hard it has been to catch some shut eye. Although my tossing and turning disrupts his sleep so he doesn't sleep well either. It is a no win situation.

What I am looking forward to: The two baby showers I have coming up this weekend! I am so thankful for the women who are putting it on for me! I really appreciate it!

Scott's Birthday

Scott's Birthday

 Scott and I celebrated his birthday with a little cupcake and taking Rory to agility training. I cleaned the house, which desperately needed it, and made him tacos for dinner. I didn't get him anything because his big present for graduation, Christmas and his birthday was an XBOX 360. Which he has spent every possible moment playing Skyrim and has recently added Call of Duty to his collection. He absolutely loves it!

One of Rory's runs during agility. She is getting really good at everything!

Laura's B-day

Laura is finally 20!

Since we live so close to mom and dad, we try to keep the tradition alive of getting together for people's birthdays even though not everyone can make it. The Sunday afternoon was filled with Chinese, strawberry shortcake, lots of laughs, and a puzzle. The men fell asleep watching the football game after lunch.

KC's Wedding

The Bride and I after we got our hair did

Both Scott and I had the privileged to be a part of Brandon and KC's wedding the first weekend in January. It was cold but a lot of fun, the ceremony was in Port and the reception was at Lakefront Brewery, with plenty of dancing and fun had by all. Scott got to dance with his daughter for the first time. The food was delicious, and I would recommend it to anyone getting married soon! Unfortunately this is the only picture I have of the day, boo. We are so blessed to have friends that live close by and are willing to hang out with us! 

Christmas!

Brooke

 All in all we had a quiet Christmas this year. Christmas Eve we spent it at Adam and Gina's house in Mequon with Scott's family. Very nice relaxing weekend. Christmas day we were over at Mom and Dad's house finally getting some much needed bonding time with the whole family (minus Sara, Gerardo, Katy and Elena) they were truly missed. We ate breakfast traditionally made by the boys, opened presents, watched a movie, and talked. A lot of fun! 

Caden and Brooke

The following weekend we hung out with the Feyereisen family on Saturday catching up with family, comparing my baby bump and Aunt Debbie's baby bump. Sunday we were in Oconomowoc with the Grady family. Scott went sledding, I wasn't allowed to go, took in he Packer game and ate a lot of good food. We didn't have a lot of traveling to do this year which made it more stress free and easier to enjoy!

Scott's Graduation

Scott and Program Director

 I am way behind on our lives on here. Scott graduated from his Specialist in Blood Banking program at BloodCenter of Wisconsin in December. I am so proud of him! He has put a lot of work into his studies but it has finally paid off. He is halfway done with is Masters program and just needs 18 more credits to complete the Masters program.

Rory and Scott hard at work for our first fire!

We also had our first fire that same weekend. I finally convinced Scott that we needed to have one. It didn't last very long because our wood wasn't split but we had one none the less and look forward to having more in the future!

30, 31, 32, and 33 Weeks

32 weeks

How Far Along: 33 weeks only 7 or less more to go.

Total Weight Gain: It is upwards of 25 to 30lbs now that I am reaching the last few weeks.

Gender: Girl!

Movement: She moves a lot. A lot is an understatement. She is about 4.5lbs according to our last ultrasound this last Tuesday and she has these grand movements that take my breath away and scare Scott because I gasp at the sudden movement.

Food Craving: Just sweet things every now and then. We got sour gummy worms at Aldi today because she wanted them.

Favorite moments: WE HAVE A NAME!!! It is so much fun giving hints to people and not revealing it. I found fabric for the curtains for her room, we have a cubby hole unit set up, a rug, and fan and light in one for her room. Krystin gave us clothes this weekend that baby girl can wear. She also let me borrow her maternity clothes. I also went shopping for some clothes of my own so I don't look like a homeless person at work. I actually went out and bought some real maternity pants that don't look like mom jeans. Scott even liked them! We celebrated Scott's birthday, and are slowly getting her room ready.

Sleep: I don't sleep much from around 2 or 3am till the alarm goes off at 6am. My upper back just aches around that time. So in order to get some rest at least I put on my bathrobe, prop myself up with the many pillows that I sleep with and fall back to sleep while sitting up. Once my back starts to feel better again the I lay propped up for till the alarm goes off. So all in all not so much fun in the sleeping world. Although I did nap this weekend and it was glorious!

What I am looking forward to: Getting her room all put together and my vision coming together. My wonderful family is hosting two showers for me in 2 weeks. I know they are all working really hard to make it perfect and I am so grateful for them. I feel so blessed! Having a drink to myself!