THE RUCKER FAMILY

37 Weeks, say what?

2012-01-29T20:14:00.000-08:00

36 Weeks

37 Weeks

Ok, I know I have probably said this in every single blog post, but this time I REALLY REALLY mean it! I can't believe that I have made it to 37 weeks. I honestly never thought I would make it "full term"... I don't think anyone else thought I would either. The doctors allowed me to stop all my medications (my progesterone shot and contraction medication) at 36 weeks. They also allowed me to FINALLY get off of bedrest! That was like the most exciting day! I haven't been able to go places or do much for the past 17 weeks. SEVENTEEN! Do you know how long that is? Its a freakin long time! So even thought I am allowed to do more these days, I am trying not to over do it. These last couple weeks, I have definitely WAY PREGNANT! My hands, feet and face swell if I do too much. I'm so tired all the time that I basically just nap all day. I'm so hungry but my stomach is so squished that I physically can't eat that much. :-( I have to roll to get out of bed which at night, is like every 5 minutes to pee I swear! LOL! My stomach is getting huge! People finally think I look pregnant! Yay! It only took 37 weeks, I swear!

Mason is still breech. Last Monday, they tried to turn him manually. They did this procedure called a external cephalic version. The ultrasound you while the doctor pushes on the baby and tries to get him to flip. He tried 3 times, but no luck. I kinda had a feeling that he wasn't going to budge... and so did the doctor but I thought we would give it a shot to try and avoid a c-section. No such luck! And let me tell you, that procedure is the MOST PAINFUL thing I have ever had to do (while awake and not on pain medication) I actually screamed a couple times while he was doing it and cried. For the next 3 days, it felt like someone had beat me repeatedly in the stomach. Every time Mason moved, I cringed. Ugh. Never recommending that to anyone. So anyways, it looks like our little guy will be making his entrance into this world (if I make it that far) MONDAY, FEBRUARY 13TH AT 10:30AM by c-section. I picked that day because it is my best friend (in the whole world) Michelle Kerr's birthday! I joked with her a while ago that If I had a c-section I would make that the date, but I honestly never thought that it would really happen. She is like a sister to me, I am so excited that he will get to share that special day with her!

So the countdown begins....2 more weeks! Thats it! I am getting so excited to meet this little guy! I honestly have no idea what he will look like or how big he will be. Every ultrasound he is a stinker so I can't get a good face shot. His last ultrasound (a couple weeks ago) they estimated him to be 5 lbs 6 oz so it will be interesting to see how big he is at the u/s on Wed. Other than that, everything is going well. I am not too scared about having to have a c-section since I have had so many surgeries in the past... I am just hoping for a speedy recovery so I can finally let everyone return to their own lives and stop helping me out so much! I am just so excited... we are trying to finish up all the last minute baby things over these next 2 weeks. I kinda like that I have a set date..hopefully I can get everything done in time!!!!

Another Milestone Met

2012-01-06T08:34:00.001-08:00

So I have hit my final milestone I set for myself, 34 weeks! I honestly never thought this day would come (especially after my last trip to L&D) Looks like I will have to set another one for myself, next goal 37 weeks. That one sounds a little unrealistic but who knows, maybe it will happen!
34 Weeks

So since my last post, I ended up in the hospital once again. at 30/31 weeks, I just wasn't feeling right. I honestly couldn't tell you what it was. My contractions and pain seemed the same, I just felt drained. Like I had the flu. I ached all over and was extremely tired. I of course just brushed it off for days, until finally Jesse made me go to L&D to get checked out. I felt kinda stupid walking in there, not really having a reason why. So they hooked me up to the monitors and checked me. I about died when she told me I was dilated to 3 cm and 90% effaced. All those feelings I had when the told me I was dilated to a 6 with Braxton rushed back. I was in such shock and immediately began crying. I was definitely not expecting the news she had just given me. They started me on on Magnesium to stop the labor and did an ultrasound to check on the baby. He looked great, although he was still breech (head up) They measured him to get an estimate of how big he was. They said he was around 4 lbs 4 oz already! So they admitted me and put me on hospital bedrest The next couple days were pretty rough. The magnesium made me feel HORRIBLE, my contractions seemed worse, I couldn't sleep or get comfortable in the bed, and I was beyond emotional for so many reasons. I was scared that 1) the baby could be born 2) I was going to be stuck in the hospital the remainder of the pregnancy 3) I would miss Christmas with Braxton (and the rest of my family) I could not hold it together. Luckily, once they took me off the mag I seemed to do a lot better. They also switched me to a different contraction medication Procardia. It seems to help SOOOO much better! After 3 days of being there, and no change to my cervix again and a negative FFN test. They allowed me to go home and continue being on STRICT bedrest!
32 Weeks

I have definitely been following the doctors orders. I stay upstairs in bed and only get up to go to the bathroom or shower. Occasionally, I will go downstairs to spend some time with Braxton and Jesse. I swear I have never watched tv or been on the internet so much in my life! But it is beyond worth it to keep this baby in! Oh, and we finally picked the name and announced it on Christmas. MASON BRIGGS RUCKER! Braxton can't say the whole name but he does say "Mas" It is so cute! At my dr appt last week, the doctor said everything looked good. My contractions had been a lot better since they switched medications, I hadn't dilated anymore and they said that I could probably get off strict bedrest around 36-37 weeks! I am so excited!!!
33 Weeks

Although, I have been feeling better. I absolutely feel WAY pregnant. I swear I get bigger each day. I pee all the time.. sometimes every 15 min. I can't get comfortable sitting or sleeping. I have started getting headaches again and back aches. Nothing sounds good to eat and I'm nauseous all day (that is when I'm not throwing up) The past week my hands, feet, ankles and sometimes my face have been getting super swollen. I feel like I have every pregnancy symptom right now. The baby moves constantly. His kicks actually hurt and he somehow always manages to kick my bladder or my cervix. can we say painful? Oh, and he gets the hiccups... usually at bedtime and they last for hours. I feel like I can't breathe but thats probably because he is still breech and his head is like right there in my ribs! I am hoping that he decides to turn otherwise I might have to end up having a c-section. We will see. I have my next growth ultrasound next week to see how big he has gotten and if he has turned!

As hard as this has been and as uncomfortable as I am right now, I wouldn't have it any other way! I want my baby to cook inside me... not an incubator, again. Well, here's to hoping I make it another week!

Christmas Time

2011-12-18T18:32:00.000-08:00

Braxton and Sanata

He looks so scared. Poor Baby

This how Braxton likes to walk around these days... with a toothbrush and binky in his mouth at the same time!

My BIG Boy/ 30 Weeks

2011-11-21T19:30:00.000-08:00

It's official, Braxton is a big boy. At least that's how I think of him. I don't know if its the realization of this baby coming soon or what, but as of lately, I can't help but think of him as a big boy. He just seems so grown up to me. Every day he amazes me with the different things he knows and comprehends. Things and words that I didn't even teach him. I love that he is growing up and becoming a big boy. I honestly thought I would be sad about this day, but he's so fun to watch as he learns and grows. Braxton LOVES to read books (well, have them read to him) but he will point to all the pictures he knows and say what they are. Which is mostly all of them. His vocabulary is growing by the minute and I LOVE IT! Some of his favorite words to say (and pictures he points out) are:
Moon
Stars
grapes
snacks
MINE (yes he learned that one. Grr..)
Ghost
Strawberry
Nana (Banana)
Good Bye
Mama
Dada
Bubba (Thats what we call him)
Bees
Puppies
Boogies
Babies
Diapee (for diaper)
dark
Boobies (i don't know where he learned that one!)
etc...
Besides talking so much more, Braxton has also been sleeping through the night in his own crib. For those of you who know what we have been through the past 21 months, know how big of a deal this is! It has only been for the past 2 weeks but still! And of course he started once we bought his big boy furniture. Go figure! I have no idea what we will do when his brother is born. Braxton LOVES his baby brother! He will always come up to my belly and say "baby" He lifts my shirt and gives him hugs and kisses. It is so cute! I know that he is going to be the best big brother! I can't wait to see him them together! Braxton has already been practicing with his baby cousin Isla! He loves to play with her and even says her name! Its so cute! I love my big boy Braxton. Maybe its the new baby coming, but I feel so attached to him right now and I think he is the same way. I love to just snuggle with him! I can't wait until I am off of bedrest and can actually be a mom to him 100%. PS- I think we are going to be able to potty train him earlier than expected! Yay! He is so smart! Here are some pics of his "Big Boy" room so far. It obviously still needs to be decorated!

On a side note, I am almost 30 weeks pregnant! Can you believe it? I can't! Even though everyone keeps telling me I don't even look pregnant, I feel very LARGE AND IN CHARGE! Seriously, I don't think I have ever been this big. I'm super uncomfortable all the time, especially at night. Its hard to sleep. Everything seems to take more effort these days! lol! Most of all, I have been eating like crazy! Its like I am never full! Luckily, I haven't gained too much weight! I have also been having less contractions. Lets hope it stays that way! 10 more weeks of bed rest! Here are some pics of my bump!
27 WEEKS

29 WEEKS

23-26 Weeks

2011-11-14T20:31:00.000-08:00

26 Weeks

I just thought I would update about the pregnancy, since there has been a lot going on lately. So since my last post, my cervix had continued to shorten some but decided to stay around 2cm for the past 3 weeks. Which was such a relief. They had actually told me that I could be up doing a little more, as long as I felt ok. I was still having contractions on and off but actually felt pretty good over the past couple weeks for once. Which was good because we were able to spend time with Jesse's grandparents, take Braxton trick or treating for Halloween, attend Isla's baby blessing and do our family (my maternity) pictures.

Wednesday rolled around and I was having a lot of contractions that day, more than usual. I had kinda thought the same thing the couple days before too. It was almost 10:00 PM, so I decided to just go to the hospital instead of waiting around until the next day to get into my doctors office. Luckily, 1 of my doctors is at Banner Desert 24/7 as well as one of their neonatologists. I honestly thought this would be a quick trip. Check me, monitor me, ultrasound me and then send me home like they did 2 weeks ago when I went. But I should have known it would be something more. The ultrasound showed that my cervix had shortened from 2 cm to 1.3 cm. They also said it was already beginning to thin out. Luckily, I was not funneling(something your cervix does before it starts to dilate)and I hadn't started to dilate. They decided to admit me and keep me until Sunday to monitor me. They did an FFN swab, which came back negative. I guess if it comes back positive, it means you are most likely going to go into labor soon. Whew! What a relief. The gave me 2 doses of steroids for Baby Boy. It helps his lungs develop what they need quicker in order for him to breathe better if he was born early. I was hooked up to the TOCO machine 24/7, which monitors contractions. I was (and still am) having 4-7 contractions every hour, 24 hours a day. And when I am not contracting, my uterus is what they call "irritable" so if you were to look at my monitor it was all over the place! Its not fun! Basically I am in pain 24/7 on top of my regular pelvic/back pain I was already having. They monitored baby twice a day. The first day, his heart rate kept decelerating and wouldn't keep a baseline, so they did an ultrasound to make sure that my amniotic fluid was ok. Everything looked good. They said he was probably just being a stinker and moving around a lot. Every other time, his heart rate was perfect! They said he looked great on the ultrasound too. She estimated that he weighed around 2.3 lbs. (I should get a more accurate number over the next 2 weeks from my doctors office)So after 5 days of being in the hospital, being incredibly bored, and missing my boys, they checked my cervix again and decided to send me home. It had stayed at 1.3 cm. Yay! No more having to FaceTime with Jesse and Braxton! Even though it was super cute that Braxton would say "Mama Mama" when he wanted Jesse to FaceTime me and he would give the phone kisses.

SO I got to leave Sunday afternoon. I am now on STRICT bed rest for the next 6 weeks. I am only allowed to get up to go to the bathroom or shower and go to dr appointments. So basically, my mom watches Braxton at her house Monday-Wednesday during the days and then brings him home to our house to sleep at night. Then Thursday-Sunday, Jesse has to watch him 24/7. I love being home but it is so hard to not do anything and especially not be able to help with Braxton. I feel like such a bad mom and wife. But I really need to listen and stay down, because we DO NOT want to have this baby super early. My visiting teachers and neighbors have been so sweet to bring us meals and offer to babysitt! We are finally letting the ward help us out with meals and stuff too. Can you tell I HATE asking for help? But if its going to be like this the rest of my pregnancy (14 MORE WEEKS), I can't expect my mom to have to do everything for us on top of watching Braxton. I see my doctor every 1-2 weeks, I actually go tomorrow so hopefully everything will look ok again.

Pregnancy lately:

So I finally started showing around 22 weeks... and now I feel huge and like I can't get any bigger. Seriously, I don't think my skin can stretch anymore!

I hadn't gained any weight this pregnancy until the past 2 weeks and I've already put on 10 lbs! Gross!

Some cravings are: Sushi (Las Vegas Rolls) and Edammame, Soft serve vanilla ice cream cones, Ham & Cheese sandwiches w/ lots of Mayo (I hate Mayonnaise too!) Sonic ice and Sprite.

I am officially uncomfortable 24/7 especially at bed time. It is so annoying. Plus all the contractions make it hard to sleep.

Most of my clothes don't fit... Its like I'm too big for regular clothes but not big enough for maternity. I guess it doesn't matter since I will just be at home in bed in PJ's from now on too. ;-)

Luckily, my hands and feet haven't started to swell... but maybe thats because I am lying down most of the day.

Braxton knows there is a baby in my tummy. He will always come and lift my shirt up and say "Baby" He also gives baby hugs and kisses! Its so sweet! He is still a little confused because he will sometimes do it to Jesse too. LOL!

I can't sit in a car for longer than 10 min without getting contractions and putting Braxton in his crib has become the most difficult task. My belly would get caught on the side rail. Good thing I'm not allowed to put him to sleep anymore.

I have never watched so much TV or been on the internet so much in my life as I have the past 6 weeks. I am actually sick of it.
23 Weeks

BABY # 2

2011-10-05T21:42:00.000-07:00

So...since I found out that I was pregnant (almost 6 months ago) I have been slacking on my blogging. So here is my attempt to catch you up on what has been going on with us lately and the whole baby thing. I will try to make this short... telling the first part mainly in pictures.

May 20th- 22nd Jesse and I took a trip to Vegas to go see the GLEE concert and lets just say, what happened in Vegas, didn't stay in Vegas. A couple weeks after we got home, my doctor told me to take a pregnancy test before I came in to start my fertility tests and medicine. Little did I know that it was going to come out potitve. I believe I took 6 pregnancy tests, just to make sure. I guess I should have known with all the Dr Pepper and Sonic ice I had been craving. Not to mention, my new liking for hot dogs and easy mac. Gross

I wanted to surprise Jesse and tell him. So while I was giving Braxton a bath, I spelled this out with his bath letters (see below) I believe his first reaction was "Are you serious?" which was better than mine, "Crap."

The next week I had an appt with my ob who confirmed my pregnancy by blood test, but because my numbers were so low. I had to come in for weekly blood tests and ultrasounds. We finally saw baby at 6 weeks. It was the best feeling in the world. But now bring on the extreme fatigue, nauseousness, and throwing up. Little did I know that it would last the next 2 months (unlike with Braxton who I didn't get sick at all with)
6 WEEKS

My doctor continued to monitor me closely because of all the problems I seemed to be having, mainly all the pain and cramping I was having. Despite all the problems, everything looked fine with baby. He was growing just as he should. These couple months were difficult for us though... multiple trips to the ER, in constant pain, and my every other thought was if I was having a miscarriage or not. I'm happy to say I didn't have any complications, then.
8 WEEKS

When I was pregnant with Braxton, I heard about this "at home" gender test you could do as early as 10 weeks. It was right with Braxton, so I decided to do it again this time since I was dying to know what baby # 2 was. Sure enough I got a BOY result again! Supposedly they are like 90% accurate and so far they have been right for me both times!(You can find these tests at Walgreens/CVS Pharmacy is you are wanting to do one... they are just something fun to do and buy time until you have your gender ultrasound)
10 WEEKS

12 WEEKS

Because of all my pain (and my previous history of preterm labor), my doctor decided to transfer my care to a PPA, a strictly high-risk ob/gyn. They are suppose to be the best in the Valley. One of the first things they did was a detailed ultrasound to rule out different abnormalities. I'm happy to say that everything looked good. We also got to find out the gender early (at 13 weeks). It is... ANOTHER BOY! I was actually a lot more excited about this that I thought I was going to be. (although, I had a feeling it was a boy the whole time, so I had mentally prepared myself) Jesse, on the other hand, I think was a little more disappointed. He was hoping girl so we could be done having kids. Which he may still get his wish, but I will get into that later.
13 WEEKS

At my 15 week ultrasound, they were able to tell us it was a BOY for sure.Like I didn't already know that.
15 WEEKS

My doctors had been seeing me every 2 weeks to monitor my cervix and check the baby since I started going to them at 13 weeks. The day before my 19 week appointment, I felt like I started having contractions but I wasn't sure. Something just didn't feel right. I got in early to my doctors the next day who confirmed I was having contractions and told me my cervix had shortened a significant amount in the past 2 weeks. They sent me to the hospital to be checked out and I was then admitted for the next 4 days. The had initially talked about doing a cerclage (sew me shut) but wanted to put it off until my contractions stopped. While I was there they pumped me full of fluids, had me on strict bedrest, monitored my contractions and gave me all sorts of different medications to try and help. After 4 days, they sent me home and told me to take it easy. My contractions had stopped and they still didn't want to do the cerclage yet. Everything was perfect with the baby though. They did my detailed ultrasound at the hospital. Everything looked perfect and was measuring how it should. I couldn't have been more relieved. They now would be monitoring me weekly to make sure everything was ok.
19 WEEKS

I finally decided to take a picture of "my baby bump" even though I still didn't have much of one at this point and I still don't right now, although I am getting bigger each week now. My belly is measuring on track and the baby is actually measuring 1.5 weeks ahead. He is over 1 lb now. I can proudly say that I haven't gained any weight which is way different than my pregnancy with Braxton( I gained almost 20 lbs the first couple months but leveled off until I had him). I honestly don't know how I've been that lucky so far with all the junk food and take out I crave and eat and especially now that I am not allowed to do anything but lay around.
20 WEEKS

22 WEEKS
These past couple weeks (since the hospital) have been rough. It has been hard trying to "take it easy" with a 18 month old. Especially when Jesse is out of town Monday-Wednesday for work every week. I honestly don't know how I would do it without him or my mom. They are the ones taking care of him 24/7. I have had contractions on and off the past 3 weeks (on top of all of the pain I had already been having.) They get worse when I am up and doing stuff, so I try to not do much. My cervix has been getting shorter each week, and at my appointment yesterday they actually sent me over to the hospital to be monitored because they were so worried about it. I am now on strict bedrest. Which I am really trying to do because I do NOT want to have this baby early. I want to make it to at least 32 weeks at the earliest. I'm not sure what their plan is for me... there is still talk about a cerclage but I don't know if they want to do it if I keep having contractions on and off. I am just glad that everything looks good with the baby at each appointment. His heart rate is always good, he measures what he should, and he is definitely a very active baby! He moves constantly... maybe too much. He sits SUPER low, at every ultrasound they always say "he is so low, he is right on your cervix" my reply is, "I know, I can feel it" I told Jesse the other week he sits so low that it feels like if I were to jump up and down he would fall out already. I wonder if this has anything to do with whats going on with me. He definitely sits way different than Braxton did and maybe that's why I haven't been showing much. We were suppose to go to Texas last week to visit for Kellan's (my nephew) baby blessing. But because of all my problems, I am not allowed to travel.We are just happy that it is Matt and Beth's year for Christmas here so we can finally meet Kellan and get to visit with all of them.

I just want to thank everyone for their thoughts and prayers, especially this past month. This pregnancy has been a really hard on us so far and things just keep getting harder. I never had the feeling that this baby would be early like I did with Braxton, but with the way things are going, there might be not be another option. I am hoping that I can make it past 24 weeks, which is like the magic number for babies. They have a better chance of survival each week after that and especially after 32 weeks. We meet with a neonatologist this Friday to discuss the baby. I will definitely keep everyone posted. I hoping to get more answers and a game plan at my appointment next week. Thanks again so much for everything!

15 MONTHS

2011-06-06T20:50:00.000-07:00

I can't believe tomorrow my little guy will be 15 months old! Where does time go? Seriously, it feels like just yesterday he was born! Looking at him now you would never know he is the same baby that is in all those hospital pictures. He has gotten so big! He is 26.5 lbs (75%tile) and over 34 in tall (above 95%tile) Which that explains why he looks so skinny to me now! He has thinned out so much! He flip flopped. He use to be heavier and shorter for his age and now he's taller and lighter! Braxton has such a littler personality these days! Its so fun to watch him become a little boy instead of a baby! He is generally happy most of the time and has the most contagious laugh! We do have to tell him "No No" a lot these days because he is getting into anything and everything! (He listens to Jesse... when I tell him no, he laughs...every time! Not a good sign) He learned to climb stairs... we didn't know he could until one day I was upstairs and all of a sudden I looked over and there he was. He had climbed the ENTIRE staircase all by himself! Yeah, we need to get a new gate for the bottom that he can open himself! So here are the top ten facts about Braxton:

1. He loves to play with anything and everything BUT his toys! He loves opening and closing cupboards, doors, the refrigerator and the dishwasher. He likes to push chairs and bar stools around the kitchen. His old favorite were door stoppers...they aren't as fun anymore since Jesse super glued the rubber tip on and now he can get them off. And yes, all of his toys just sit there.

2. He as ALL of his teeth but 2. So if you can't count that's 16 teeth including his molars!!!

3. He loves to eat! That is one thing we never had a problem with. Some of his favorite foods are hot dogs, mac and cheese, rice, yogurt, apples, cookies, ice cream and sonic ice. Yes, I sonic ice. He is definitely my kid!

4. Braxton loves WATER. He loves bath time and now that its summer, he loves POOL time even more! We try to play in our big pool or the kiddie pool once a day and we have planned to go to the beach pool once a week with the cousins! I honestly think I could put him under the water and it wouldn't bother him. I will try soon when I get up the courage. The best thing about Braxton loving the POOL, Mommy gets TAN!!!!

5. Braxton is crawling everywhere...he is super fast! We have been working with him on standing and walking for the past month or two. He can cruise around furniture really well and he pulls up on everything, he just can't walk on his own. I did catch him walking by himself with his push toy the other day so there is hope! I think he could do it, he's just lazy!

6. Braxton has some new tricks. He now waves, blows kisses, claps, hugs and gives kisses. Granted, he doesn't like to do them on command that often but sometimes he will. He likes to wave buh bye after you have already left the room! its so funny!

7. After months and months of horrible sleeping, we can gladly say that he basically sleeps through the night. He now goes to bed at 8 and wakes up around 5:45 or 6:00. Yes, that's a little early but hey, at least he's not waking up every hour like he use to. I just think its crazy that he takes his first nap when most people are waking up, at 9:00!

8. Braxton loves the puppies! He loves to steal their bones away and chew on them. Yes, I said he likes to chew on them...mainly when I'm not looking. Its so funny to see him with the puppies now that he's older. He can totally hold his own with them. When he doesn't want them around he sticks his one hand out and pushes them away. Its too cute! He also now loves to throw things out the doggie door. Usually its his toys, but today I found his binky, my phone and the remote. I gotta keep an eye on this kid at all times.

9.He is in a MAJOR "Mommy phase" right now. He follows me everywhere....even into the bathroom. If I leave the room he screams until I come back. I actually have to sneak out to leave. He seems to always be at my feet, crawling up my legs. I don't know when or why it started but I'm hoping it ends soon! Its cute that he always wants me...but at the same time its kinda getting old! Hopefully he turns into a Daddy's boy when I go to Texas for a week, either that or Jesse is going to have one LONG week.

10. He had his first "Poo explosion" today. Man, I totally would have rather dealt with this when he was a baby but no, it had to be when he's old and fights having his diaper changed. Lets just say, he got poop EVERYWHERE!!! It was all over him, his face (yes,his face, he just had to stick his hand down there when I changed his diaper. What a boy!), his clothes, the floor, and the bath tub. Oh, and ME! And yes, that happened 3 more times! Hopefully its under control now, but then again he's asleep in his crib and I won't know until he wakes up. Ugh.

So that's our little boy in a nutshell! I am so lucky to be the mom to this sweet little boy. I don't know what we would do without him. He is so stinkin cute. I actually get stopped everywhere I go by total strangers to tell me how cute he is! I love it! Each day with him just proves what a miracle he really is !I knew I was a true mom as I was walking around with his poop on me and it didn't phase me! Maybe I am ready for another one? Hmm...should we start trying? Or maybe we already are! ;-)

Braxton's 1st Birthday!

2011-05-30T21:45:00.000-07:00

For Braxton's 1st Birthday, we decided to throw him a "Pirate Party" and invite family and close friends over to our house. We ate pizza and hung out while all the kids played. It was nice to spend time with all of our family and friends! Braxton had a blast playing with all the other kids. He wasn't too fond of his birthday cake and he didn't know what to do with all the presents! Good thing he had Maxwell and Essa there to help him open them up!I know this is a little late but we just want to say thanks to everyone who came and spent this special day with us.
Braxton's Birthday Cake

Some of the decorations

Braxton and Easton = BFF's

Some of the Rucker Fam

Some of the Greenwald/Dickson fam

Asher in his pirate hat with JD

Kallie and Easton in their pirate hats!

Braxton opeing his presents with help from Maxwell and Essa

Mommy reading Braxton his birthday card

Madisen and Andrew

We tried to take a pic of the boys...Easton, Asher,and Braxton. Man, its hard trying to get those 3 to all look at the camera and sit still!

I love how they both tried to grab Asher's face in the picture! Too cute! They love Baby Asher

MARCH

2011-05-24T14:11:00.000-07:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!

Braxton and Mimi in their St.Patty's Day shirts!!

Braxton's first time to the zoo!

B and Aunt Kira! This was her first time meeting him ever! He loves his Aunt Kira now!

Braxton and Daddy at the Aquarium. He LOVED it! (way more than the zoo, too!)

Mommy and B up inside the aquarium.

With Kira and her kids visiting we decided to do a photo shoot at the park so we could get some pictures of all of them

The Twins- Sadie & Grace

Caleb & Emilee

Braxton climbed on a rock - JK MeeMa is hiding behind it holding him up!

Kira and her kids!

All the cousins!!!

FEBRUARY

2011-05-24T13:46:00.001-07:00

Braxton in his Valentine's Day shirt!

Braxton and his cousins, Madisen, Andrew and Emalie. They had fun at Mimi's house while Jesse and I went on a double date with Marshall and Aimee to Ruffino's. Yummy!

This was the first day Braxton got his glasses. He wanted to be just like his Daddy! Isn't he just so cute with them on? Well, I think he is! So many people ask us how they knew he needed glasses so this is what happened. Braxton's neurosurgeon wanted us to take hiim to the eye dr so they could look at the nerve in the back of the eye. If the pressure and fluid were bad enough it would be visible. When I took him the dr examined him and looked me and said, "Well I have some good news and bad news." He said, "Good news is I don't see anything wrong with the nerve, (which means the pressure and fluid werent bad enough to be seen. Which made it less likely that he would have hydrocephalus) Bad news is he is near-sides in one eye and far-sided in the other." Which meant, he had to get glasses...before he was even one! He does pretty good with his glasses..he usually doesn't mess with them or take them off. He only seems to do that when he's sitting in his highchair or if you adjust them. I think then he remembers they are there. I wouldn't have never guessed he needed glasses he didn't act like he couldn't see. Although, we know now that his head tilt (that you can see above in the pictures) went away as soon as he got his glasses. They think he was tilting his head to help him see. I'm so glad we did months and months of physical therapy to try and get rid of that tilt and all he needed was glasses!

(Most of) Our New House!!!

2011-02-01T19:42:00.000-08:00

Our house in Cortina

The kitchen..still wanting to stain the cabinets, add new hardware and decorate more!

Hallway

My little buffet table

Kitchen Table

Family Room.. still needs window treatments

Close up of couch

End table and my fav lamp EVER (can you believe I got it at TJ Max Home Goods)

Entertainment niche - Jesse built all the shelves!

Stairwell- still need to hang pictures up the wall

Powder room/downstairs guest bathroom

Here's a better picture of the colors

Hallway between bathroom and guest room

Guest bedroom downstairs

Another view of the guest bedroom

Dining room- still waiting on window treatments and seat cushions for the chairs!

Our new living room furiniture

Another view- still need to hang our pictures and add the finishing touches

Obviously need a frame for our beautiful Mark Mabry photograph...and decor for the table

Braxton's room

His crib and bedding... I am still in LOVE with all of it

Close up of the bedding! Thanks Barbara for making such cute bedding!

Changing table and hutch

My favorite little sign I got for his room for Jesse

The kids bathroom upstairs... still need to decorate it more

Jesse's "Cardinals" office. He painted it all by himself! Still need to finish hanging everything on the walls.

Our backyard... the dogs LOVE having room to run around and we can wait to add a playset

Our fav part of the house... THE POOL! (don't mind how dirty it looks right now) We can't wait to spend time out there in the summers and have pool parties!

More pictures to come soon....since there are still 3 rooms not pictured. The master bedroom, the upstairs guest bedroom and the playroom downstairs. The 2 bedrooms were dirty and the playroom isn't even decorated yet!(it was last on my to do list!) So once I pick up and get the playroom finish I will post pictures! We love our new house and can't wait to have everyone over to enjoy it with us!!!!

What Can I Say, I'm a Slacker!

2011-01-08T09:03:00.001-08:00

So to state the obvious... it's been a while since we last wrote a post. Our lives have been CRAZY busy over the past couple months. So I will do my best to catch you up on our lives lately.

October- definitely had its ups and downs. We moved into our new house(which use to be Matt & Beth's 1st house) out in Queen Creek. It is 2 stories with 5 bedrooms + playroom and 3 bathrooms. Our favorite part is the backyard(and the dogs like it too!) It has pool, which we can't wait to use in the summer, and a nice sized grass area for the kids to play. It is just big enough to put a swing set, eventually! We look forward to having family and friends over to enjoy this new house and backyard with us!!! Jesse has done an amazing job painting, fixing and organizing everything in the house and garage! I didn't know I married such a handy man until we lived in this house. He built the shelves for our family room. He also painted stripes in his "Cardinals" office and put up crown molding. It looks AWESOME! We will post pictures soon (which means as soon as the house is clean! lol) Towards the end of October, we got the sad news that Jesse's Granny had passed away. Granny was someone who was very special to Jesse. I remember him talking about her often before we were even married. She was such an amazing person. I was blessed to have known her the couple years that I did. We only wished that she could have met Braxton. We were lucky to be able to travel to Utah for her funeral. It seemed like a family reunion SOOOO many Ruckers were there. It was nice to be able to see all of them again and meet some of them I never have before! Despite the circumstances, I know Jesse had a great time being around all this family. We even got to see Kira!!! Even though it was nice to see everyone I couldn't help but be sad that we were missing Braxton's first Halloween. My parents took him to their ward's Trunk or Treat so he could go around and get candy!! Here are some pics of him in his Halloween costume. He was a skull, of course.

Braxton in his Halloween shirt

In his Halloween Costume

At Trunk or Treat with Mimi & Papa

Mimi pretending to feed him chocolate (I about died when they sent this pic)

November- was filled with lots of out of town guests and lots of runny noses!!! Braxton got sick for the very first time this month. It was so sad to hear him cry. He had basically lost his voice and you could tell that he didn't feel well. He had laryngitis, then Bronchitis and 2 ear infections. So 2 antibiotics, a million breathing treatments and a month later he finally seemed to get better. Of course while Braxton was sick, Jesse and I both got sick too. Man, it was one rough month for all of us! Despite us all being sick, we did have a pretty good month. Our good friends Tiffany and Jared came to visit and stayed with us for 10 whole days! It was so fun getting to catch up with them and see Brighton. (She's a month older than Braxton) And we found out they are expecting #2! We are soo excited for them and can't wait to meet the new baby! Matt and Beth and the boys came out to visit for Thanksgiving as well. It was so fun to have the whole family together again. This year we had Thanksgiving with my family (Yes, it has finally reached the point where we have to alternate families on holidays)I was so excited that it was Braxton's first Thanksgiving and what did he do, he slept through the whole meal (and so did Jesse!) I did let him try some real sweet potatoes. He loved them... probably cuz they are full of sugar! So while the whole family was in town, Madisen had her baptism. It was so special because Maddie is such a special girl. She is so smart and already knows so much about the church. She is going to be a great missionary. I just can't believe how grown up she is.

December-was filled with holiday cheer and multiple hospital trips. Come on, what would the holidays be with out trips to the ER and yes, they were all for me. So needless to say, we have had better months at our house. We did have some fun though. Jesse decorated the outside with lights and I put up the tree and stockings! Christmas day rolled around and we couldn't have been more excited for Braxton's first Christmas. We tried to have him open one of his presents but he just liked the paper. Go figure! We spent the morning with my family and the afternoon with Jesse's. We LOVE that we are able to spend Christmas at both sides of the family every year! It makes it so much more special. Braxton was definitely spoiled by EVERYONE! He got tons of toys and clothes! He had already gotten his big presents months early, a highchair and his new carseat. He got WAY too big for his infant one. Next came my birthday. I'm 26.. man, am I old. I spend the day in bed with my headache I'd had forever. But at least I wasnt in the hospital like I was Christmas night. (and would soon be the next day, and then 2 days after that)Jesse took me out to dinner at Brio. Yum! and my parents watched Braxton ALL night! So we rented a movie and got to sleep uninterrupted. yay! New Years rolled around and we spent it at home with Jake and Madi. It's so sad... the only one who didn't fall asleep before midnight was Jesse. But he woke us up in time for the countdown!

January
Not much has happened this month. So I will just end this post with Braxton's newest stats. He is now 10 months old. He weighs 24 lbs. He is 30 in tall. I can't believe how grown up he is! He definitely already has a personality. He is happy ALL of the time and he lights up the room with that smile of is! Jesse is constantly trying to get him to say "Da-Da" But so far he sticks to "dadadadadada" He is "talking" all the time, which I love. He even sings in the car with me! We are working with him in physical therapy on crawling and standing (and of course the main reason we are there... working on getting his head straight instead of tilted) This big boy NEVER stops eating. He eats all day long, I swear! He is eating more and more different foods each day and we are gradually working towards more and more "people food" He really is such a good little boy! We love him SO much!

Catching Up With The Ruckers

2010-09-13T18:24:00.000-07:00

Well it has been a while since I have taken the time to write on the blog. Things have just been a little crazy. I don't even know where to begin. So we have invaded my parents house. We have been living here for the past 6 or 7 weeks now. (I know my parents are probably SO ready to get rid of us) But don't worry that will happen soon. We are in the middle of moving into our new house and we decided it would just be easier to stay here during the move. Last Saturday, all the Rucker family and Josh came over to help us paint the new house. It turned out great! All the rooms are done, except the upstairs bathroom. I know I will end up painting some more later on, but for those 2 rooms (Jesse's office and the play room) we haven't decided what we want to do exactly. Jesse has turned into SUPER husband and started moving all the furniture over and get everything set up. He isn't letting me do anything because of my back. We don't want to make it worse. We are hoping to have everything moved by the end of the week and then thats when I will come to help put everything where its suppose to go. Jesse knows better than to decorate without me. hehe! I'm VERY picky. I can't wait until everything is all set up and we are completely moved in! The house is so nice. The dogs LOVE their new backyard and Jesse loves the pool!

As for other news, the epidural I talked about in the last post seemed to help somewhat for my endometriosis pain. Its been alot better this month. But my back had seriously started hurting so bad. I had never been in so much pain in my life. My back hurt my whole pregnancy and they thought he was sitting on my sciatic nerve. We all thought it would go away when I had him but it didn't and it continued to get worse. The pain specialist did an MRI on my back and pelvis. They found that I still had endometriosis. Which means when I had my surgery a month ago. My doctor must not have gotten all of it or it grew back very quickly. So that sucks. They also found that I have 2 bulged discs in my lower back. My L4 and L5. The plan for that, is 1 epidural tomorrow, 1 next Tuesday (to numb and help with the pain) and then they will begin doing decompressions to try and get those discs back into the right place and not as bulged. So I have my first one tomorrow, I am REALLY hoping that it helps. My back kills all the time and I can't stand for a long period of time. I am not suppose to lift anything at all which doesn't work out to well when you have a kid...especially a chunker of kid. So I guess we will see tomorrow if I get any relief. Lets hope this works.

As for Braxton, he is now a little over 6 MONTHS OLD. I can't believe that he's 1/2 a year old. Man, does time fly.
His current stats:
Weight: 18 Lbs. 3 Oz.
Length: 26.5 In.
Head Size: 47.5 cm.
So Braxton sleeps ALL the time. I mean I swear he is barely awake. He will only stay up for maybe 1 1/2 hours and then he will go back to sleep. Its kinda hard to get him on a schedule when all he does is sleep. But even though he sleeps all day... he still sleeps through the whole night.(Now remember, even though he's the size of a regular 6 month old... he still does things by his corrected age which is 3 1/2 months old) He can now hold his head up by himself and he is loving tummy time more and more. He rolled over for the first time August 30th. He "talks" all the time and loves to laugh. He has 2 different laughs. His real laugh and a fake cough like laugh. Its so funny. He smiles all the time especially for GiGi (My Gram) Every time she comes into the house he just laughs and smiles and talks to her. He could be in the middle of screaming and he would stop just for her. He loves his Grandma GiGi. He has begun drooling... all the time, ALOT! So now he has to wear bibs constantly. I don't think he is getting teeth just yet, but I wouldn't be surprised if it happened soon. Overall, Braxton is such a good baby. He gets cuter and cuter by the day! Andrew (my 6 yr old nephew) was over one day and he goes "Why is Braxton so cute?" and I said, "What do you mean?" and he goes "Why is Braxton so cute? He is so much cuter than all the other babies." Is that not the cutest thing ever??? I think he is starting to look a little different, maybe a little more like me! Yay! Some of Braxton's favorite things to do right now are: laugh, talk and smile at his "ceiling friends", chew on EVERYTHING, play with toys, watch TV (he LOVES tv...wonder who he gets that from), kick magazines and rip out the pages, tummy time, rolling over, taking baths, laying on his changing table and his new thing... sucking his thumb (yeah, not too happy about that one)
Braxton sleeps with his eyes open. Its kinda creepy actually, they're not even rolled back into his head so if you looked at him you would think he's awake. When he does wake up, he wakes up immediately and his eyes get so wide open he looks like a deer in the headlights. He is such a morning person. He never cries when he wakes up, around 6 I will just hear him moving in his bed and I look over and his eyes are wide open and he will give you a BIG smile! I'm kinda glad he's like that. It makes him too cute to get mad that you are being awakened early :-)

New Car...well actually, cars!!!!

2010-08-22T08:43:00.000-07:00

So we caved in and decided to get a new car for me even though we had just bought one a year ago. Last year, we decided to get a small SUV because we knew we would be having kids soon (little did we know I would get pregnant the next month) We loved having the Equinox. It was the perfect size for me and everything, only problem it didn't have rear air. But the air was awesome you could feel it all the way in the trunk. But when we got Braxton home we quickly realized not only is his carseat rear facing but it sits up high and completely blocks the air from going back there. The poor kid would sweat every time we had to go somewhere in the heat here. So I didn't even go to look at the cars but Jesse came home with the one I really wanted, a new white Chevy Traverse. I love it! I'm still getting use to it because its a little bigger than my old car. but its perfect. It has 2 rows so we can fit our 6 kids in there. HAHA JUST KIDDING ( Jesse will kill me when he reads that) But there will be more room for the kids. Jesse (the haggler that he is) convinced them to give us a 2011 for the same price as a 2010, throw in an extended warranty for free and give us the auto start for free, which is your best friend if you live in Arizona.

Then a couple days later Jesse started considering trading in his truck for something else. Because he drives so far to work (basically to the airport everyday) and he will be driving even further once we move to Queen Creek next month, he thought why not get something with better gas mileage. So he began looking at cars, he first came home with a Chevy Malibu, which we both liked but it wasn't so roomy for the tall and bigger guys. So I said, why don't you get a Hyundai Sonata like Matt (my older brother) did. He's 6'8 and a big guy, so if he can fit in it and still have room then its a nice sized car. Only problem, Dave works at the Chapman Chevy dealership...We didn't think we would be able to get one, but then Jesse found out Chapman has a Hyundai dealership too. So Jesse traded in his truck and got a 2011 black Hyundai Sonata. Its a 4 door car with a HUGE trunk. He convinced them to basically throw in the navigation for super cheap. I told him he could keep his truck, I know how much he loved having a truck, but he says he wanted to to this and he wanted me to have the car I really wanted. Don't I have the best husband ever!

So yes, we both got new cars but actually our payments are going to be about the same as they were before if not cheaper, our insurance will go down and we will save SO MUCH money on gas. So much has been going on with us, but its mainly all good. New cars, we will be moving into our new house next month, Jesse's job is going great, I finally started going back to work more and plan to work my original schedule, I have started selling really cute hats that I order from this company in LA. I am still in the process of starting by custom baby accessory business. I can't wait to start doing that. For once, it seems like everything is going good for us, for once (knock on wood) Everything except my health. Ugh. That surgery I had 3 weeks ago did NOTHING. I am still in so much pain. I finally went to see a pain management doctor, who put me on some different medications to try and she is going to do a nerve block (kinda like an epidural but they don't go in as far)She said it will hopefully help with my back pain and she said with a lot of people it also helps with endometriosis pain and intersticial cystitis pain. This is basically my last option and I am PRAYING that it works. I have this procedure done this coming Thursday and I guess the put you under with the twilight sleep which isn't as strong as general anesthesia. So thats about it for us. Braxton is doing AWESOME! He's getting bigger and cuter by the day. I will write my blog post about him next!!!

5 MONTHS OLD

2010-08-06T20:40:00.000-07:00

Braxton will be 5 months old tomorrow. 5 MONTHS can you believe it? Last time he was was measured was almost 2 weeks ago.
His stats:
16.3 lbs (50%tile for a 5 mo old)
25 in (25%tile )
45 cm head (above 95%tile)
He is off the charts for his corrected age of 2 1/2 months with all those stats
He is a completely different baby these days. He totally has a personality and he is in to EVERYTHING! He smiles ALL the time. He laughs constantly. He loves toys and kicking and chewing anything he can get his hands on. He likes looking at himself in the mirror and he already LOVES tv. (Gee, I wonder who he gets that from) It's crazy how quickly they grow up. We are working on getting him to lift that big noggin of his that's our big goal right now. (which they did the ultrasound on and everything is normal, they were a little concerned because of the size and the rate it was growing. I tried to tell them that me and Jesse have big heads) His stomach issues seem to be so much better since we started adding the rice cereal and upped his zantac. He sleeps from about 10:30pm-6:30am every night and then eats every 3-4 hrs during the day. He usually takes a long nap in the early morning and late afternoon but he does still sleep some between every feed. We are also working on getting him out of his carseat which seems to be the only place he us use to sleeping. He does like lying on his back more so when we go home (I'll explain that in a min) we will try making him sleep in his pack n play or crib. He learned to love the carseat because of his reflux.

So for the past week we have been living at my parent's house. I had surgery unexpectedly last friday, well it was unexpected, just a little sooner than I had imagined. I had my 4th laparoscopy for my endometriosis. My dr went in and lasered all my endometriosis out, cut out all my scar tissue he found and did a D&C because I had alot of internal bleeding. They are hopping this well help with all the problems and pain I have been having lately until we can get pregnant again. Looks like we will be having another kid a little sooner than we had planned but I'm hoping this helps with my pain until then. Ugh. Its been horrible. We have been staying here because I am not suppose lift Braxton for 2 weeks. I was doing ok for a couple days but now I am in pain again. So B has gotten A LOT of bonding time with Mimi and Papa especially Mimi. I don't know what I would have done with out her this week. She has basically taken care of him 24/7 and is going to have to help out a little longer than we expected. Looks like we will be staying here through the weekend for sure and maybe next week. I feel so bad for our dogs they have been neglected for like the past month. Jesse of course is doing well. Just working away and doing great at his job then comes home to take care of me and B. I don't know what I would do with out him. He is such an amazing husband! Anyways that's about it lately.

Braxton's Blessing

2010-08-06T20:37:00.000-07:00

The Rucker Family - Jesse, Braxton & Mallory

Braxton in his blessing outfit

Marci & Asher (still in belly due Jan 14th) Kallie & Easton Me & Braxton = BFF's

So Sunday July 25th, 2010, we were finally able to bless Braxton. Jesse gave him such a special blessing. I had tears in my eyes the whole time, but they were tears of joy. We blessed him in my parents ward because we feel more at home in that ward. (The bishop of that ward was the bishop who married us) It was so nice to have all our family and friends there to support us.. especially because it was at 8 AM!!!! So thanks to all of you guys that came! We also had a little get together at my parents house with Krispy Creme donuts and Debbie's homemade cinnamon rolls... so yummy! It was nice being able to catch up with family... especially all of Jesse's extended family side since we don't get to seem them as often. I just can't get over what a special day this was. It meant so much to me and Jesse that we were finally able to bless him. It has been difficult with him in the hospital so long and then he wasn't suppose to go out in public for a long time... we have been wanting to do this forever. So thanks again to all of those family and friends who came to support us.

Newport Beach 2010

2010-08-06T19:49:00.000-07:00

Braxton ready in his beach gear

Check out his new kicks for the beach

The Rucker Family at Newport Beach

B all bundled up at the beach.... it was REALLY cold!

What I do best.... Facebook/texting

B wearing Emma's crown. I just had to see what it would look like on him (he doesn't look too happy and neither wad Daddy)

Jesse and I after Dinner at PF Changs! Mmmmm

B on the car ride home... he did so well in the car both there and back!

So our Newport Beach trip was definitely a little different this year for a couple reasons. 1. We stayed in a different house and little further down than we normally do (Probably because we decided at the LAST minute to go to Newport this year, we were suppose to go to Utah). 2. We went in July instead of the end of June, so for once we weren't there on Jesse's Birthday. (We were there on Emma's instead) 3. This was our first vacation with a baby. We quickly learned that vacations with babies aren't really vacations at all. It's your normal life just in a different state. Don't get me wrong, it was still nice to get away to California for a week and get out of the heat, but it just wasn't the same. I think we made it to the beach a total of 2 or 3 times partly because of him and partly because of the cold weather, so I didn't get the tan I was hoping for. Boo. We did still got to hit up our fav restaurants, the outlets, my fav nail place, Irvine Spectrum, and all our fav places.

This year the OC Swap Meet was closed, but we still met with "The Baby Guy" and got some stuff for Braxton. We also talked to him about selling his products here in AZ and I think we are going ahead with it. I am trying to get everything ready and waiting on the fabric swatches. I already have a business license and company name "Posh Baby", I am just trying to work out all the details. I am really excited about this. I hope it does well... and if it doesn't, oh well. We still have our other jobs. I just thought it would be fun to do from home. Plus his stuff is SO cute! So we would be selling: infant/toddler carseat covers, highchair covers, shopping cart covers, lovies/blankets, hooded towels, 3-hr bags, travel changing pads, diaper/wipe travel cases, toddler/infant bibs ALL OF WHICH ARE CUSTOM!!! So once I get everything up and going I will let you know. So spread the word! If you have friends with babies or you have babies. They are also great baby shower/birthday presents.

Lastly, the first day we got there I was able to drive to LA with Braxton to go and meet up with two of my best friends, Dominique and Tara and their daughters, Everleigh and Aubree, that I hadn't seen since middle school over 10 years ago. It was so much fun catching with each other. Its crazy how much has changed, we're old and have kids now! Crazy! It was also fun cuz I got to meet Dom's fiance, who is an actor. His name is Cam Gigadet but you might know him as James from Twilight or The OC, etc... It's neat to be able to say I met a famous person! Here is a picture of us girls: Me, Dominique, Tara

4 Month Check-Up

2010-07-14T23:02:00.000-07:00

Well first off, Jesse is FINALLY home! I got to pick him up from the airport on Friday! I have never been so glad to see anyone in my life! So the whole 2 weeks he was gone we kept bragging about how good of a baby B was... yeah, he came home to devil child! I think it was him just getting readjusted to our house and Jesse. He is back to normal now.

Anyways so Braxton had his 4 month Check up today. His stats are:
Weight: 15 lbs 5 oz (which is like over a lb from last week)
Length: 24 in
Head size: 43 cm (which is a cm bigger than last week)

Our pediatrician couldn't be more happy with Braxton. She says he is doing everything a "normal" 4 month old should be doing and technically his corrected age is a little over a month. He now coos, smiles, laughs, rolls over. He plays with toys, watches tv, the fan, lights and he even follows me with his eyes. He is OFF the growth charts for his "corrected age" and he is actually in the normal range for his "actual age" except I think his head size is a little higher. That was her only concern because his head is growing so rapidly and is so big (but is actually in proportion to his weight and length) I tried to tell her he comes from big heads on both sides of the family!!! But she is still going to keep an eye on it. They are thinking of switching how we thicken his formula so he gets a better consistency and doesn't get the extra calories of the rice cereal. It seriously takes me both arms to lift him in his carseat now. How sad is that! He gets his monitor downloaded at the end of the month and then it should be GONE FOREVER! yay! He will also be working with a physical therapist (because he was a preemie they have this early intervention program that comes to your house to evaluate and work with your child... its pretty neat) We met with them once and they are just having us do neck stretches with him since he tends to lay his head to one side and they don't want it to end up flat and have to wear a helmet to correct it.

Other news, we leave for Cali on Friday. I am excited and nervous at the same time. I have never traveled with a baby. I have no clue what it is going to be like. Is it even going to feel like vacation??? And 6 hrs in a car??? I pray he does well. At least he loves car rides. Maybe he will sleep the WHOLE way there. Ya, right! Anyways well I will post pics from Cali! Oh and his baby blessing is Sunday, July 25th,2010 at 8:00 AM. It is at the Page Ward which meets in the building off Guadalupe in between Higley and Recker. We will also be doing a little gathering with food at my parents house directly after! Call if you have questions 480-235-2227 or 602-284-7483

The Scorpion Queen

2010-07-05T23:28:00.000-07:00

So I decided Saturday that I was going to take Braxton to church for the first time on Sunday to my parent's ward (since I am still staying with them) But after he slept in longer than normal (he's usually my alarm clock these days) I got him ready and partially fed... but 8:00 rolled around and he still wasn't done eating and I hadn't even gotten dressed let alone done my hair or make up. I just thought I would post a pic of him in his church outfit. He looks so cute!

So everyone is at church and I walk out of my "old" room and there is a scorpion in the hallway. I freaked. I mean I like get panic attacks, hyperventilate FREAK OUT. So let me give you a little background on me with bugs (of any kind)

1. When I lived on my own for the first time in Texas. I saw a spider... or maybe it was even a cricket. I was so scared I didn't know what to do, so I called my Dad ( who yes was living 3 states away in AZ) and asked him what I should do. His reply " I don't know, kill it with something" He goes there is nothing I can do about it. It took all I had to kill it.
2. At Junky Trunk, there was a huge cockroach in the backroom. I once again started freaking out and having a panic attack at the thought of getting close to it to kill it. So what do I do, put a trash can over it. Call Jesse and make him come all the way to the store to kill it. (keep in mind... this was only a couple months ago)
3. I was about to start some laundry and out of the corner of my eye I could see this huge black thing kinda floating right next to me, I knew it was a black widow (we get those at our house) I slammed the washer shut. Shut the laundry room door and prayed it was still in there until Jesse got home. Luckily it was, but even those scare him.
4. Any and ALL bugs inside or outside are killed my Jesse. I will NOT touch them and he is NOT allowed to kill them with anything belonging to me. Like my shoes, flip flops, notebooks etc... if he does, he gets yelled at.

So now you know the background... So there's a scorpion in the hallway about an inch long. I don't know what to do so I grab a plastic cup to cover it up with. The I just in vision in my head my parents cats batting at the cup and the scorpion going free. So then I grab my dad's sandal.. but then I keep thinking some how I will miss and it will get me. So I grab the kids stepping stool and smashed it wish it. picked up made sure it was smashed, left it there with a sticky note that said "Scorpion" I later found out it was still alive when my dad went to throw it away.

So hours later at 11:00 pm, Braxton is screaming cuz he's hungry. I get up to make him a bottle open my door and immediately feel a sharp pinch or stab to my foot. I thought I stepped on a nail or tack... so I look down, nothing there. I'm in so much pain so I look at my foot thinking it must be stuck in it, nothing there. I look directly in front of me and there is ANOTHER FREAKIN SCORPION! Same size and everything.( I bet it was out to get me for killing his friend.) I had never been in so much intense pain in my life. I couldn't even walk. I made it back to the bed grabbed my cell phone and called my parents (who were in their room across the house) I was beyond in pain I just kept grabbing on to my foot. It must have stung me either on the bottom or side of my pinky toe. I think my hysterical crying scared Braxton cuz he actually stopped crying. I took some benadryl just in case I was allergic and I happened to have some pain medicine anyways so took one of those and put a bag of frozen peas on it. My mom fed B for me so I could calm down. But my whole foot was tingling and numb, by 1:00am that sensation had gone all the way up to my mid thigh. I got scared so my parents called poison control. I guess they said that's normal. It can travel anywhere in your body through your blood stream. Even to the other side, your face, etc. anywhere. They said the initial pain should go away in a couple hours but the numbness and tingling could last a couple weeks. Sure enough I woke up this morning with it still numb and tingling. Its now only about up to my mid calf, so hopefully it keeps getting better. Its hard to walk though. It feels like I am stepping on pins and needles. So I try to stay off it, but that's hard with a baby. Luckily, my parents have been helping me. I now turn the lights on and look wherever I walk and wear flip flops constantly. I don't want to get stung again. I'm just glad we don't have scorpions at our house, but we do have black widows. I don't know which is worse. At least we have only found 1 black widow inside. My parents get scorpions all the time because of their citrus trees in the back yard. Ugh, and I guess the new house we are moving too gets some scorpions but not this bad.

Basically the moral of the story, go to church and maybe you won't get stung by a scorpion.

WE HAVE OUR OLD BABY BACK

2010-07-01T14:24:00.001-07:00

So since seeing the GI doctor Friday. I feel like we have our old Braxton back. He doesn't really spit up anymore (except the time I forgot to put the rice cereal in his formula.... oops) He is not really fussy, its great! It seems like he has a schedule at night now. His really awake time is from 6-10pm and then he sleeps from 10:30-6am He is done that since Friday. Then he scarfs down 6 oz and most of the time goes back to sleep around 7:30 for another couple hours. Its great. Now I just need to get him on a schedule during the day. Have certain awake times and certain nap times. That's my next goal.

The Early Intervention people came to evaluate him yesterday. They are a state run program that come to your house and monitor his developmental skills. They said he was doing great. His only problem he loves his head to the left. That's how he lays, sleeps, sits in his car seat. If you try to move him to the other side he doesn't like it. I guess this isn't good cuz then their muscles get tight on the other side and there heads can become misshaped and if that happens he would have to wear one of those helmets to shape his head. So they gave us exercises to work with him. They also said we need to get him out of the habit of sleeping in his carseat. That is my goal when Jesse comes back cuz it is going to be hell. Although, his stomach has been better so he doesn't mind lying flat as much.

He saw his Apnea Mgmt doctor today. They weighed him... now keep in mind this doctor is at the same office as his GI doctor that he went to on Friday. They use the same exact scale. He know weighs 14 lbs. That means he gained 9 oz in less than a week. Holy Cow! Anyways well the GOOD NEWS s is he DIDN'T HAVE ONE SINGLE EPISODE the whole month of June! BAD NEWS because his more serious episode was at the end of May, they want to keep him on it 4 more weeks just to be safe. So looks like B will be hitting the beach wires and all. Hopefully, July will go just as good as June and then he will be machine free! Yay! Finally!!! As nice as it is going to be, its kinda scary at the same time. Since the day he was born he has NEVER once been without a monitor. So it will be a little nerve racking to know an alarm isn't going to sound if he stops breathing or his heart rate drops. But I guess if the rest of the normal world can do it, so can we.

I got his Bumbo chair today. He looks so cute in it! He's still a little to young to use it... he can't hold his head up the entire time sitting in it but he's getting close!

Jesse has now been gone for 5 WHOLE DAYS! I'm dying. Even though I am staying at my parents and they are helping me out, I still miss him SOOOOO much. I don't know how people have their husbands travel all the time. Like how did my Mom survive when my dad was traveling every other week basically. I couldn't do it. 1 more week until he is home. I can't wait. I send him pictures of Braxton every day and have him talk to him. We both just miss him so much and can't wait for him to come home but we know this is a great opportunity for him. So please let this week go by fast... then we will head to Cali in 2 weeks and get to spend some r&r as a family!!!!

So Much Going On.....

2010-06-26T22:20:00.000-07:00

Let's see where should I begin... I guess in order and in case you don't want to read all of it. Here are Braxton's new stats
13 lbs 7 oz; 23.5 inches and his head is 43 cm.

So the past month or so Braxton has been the devil.... that's what we call him, our little devil. He has been so fussy, not sleeping at all, in pain, you name it. There were a couple days where I didn't even think I would survive it. No seriously, I mean I had mental breakdowns (and not just my normal ones hehe)But we made it through it.

Father's Day rolled around and we spent it down at the Rucker's so we could also celebrate Jesse's B-day. For father's day I got Jesse the Logitech Harmony Remote that he wanted. (everyone in my family has one... and we just bought one for his day for his birthday) It controls EVERYTHING! Its amazing. We love it! I can't believe we both got to celebrate our first Father's Day and Mother's Day this year. That's so crazy to me. We're getting old (ok I am getting old)

Next, I had my appointment with that new specialist in endometriosis. I really really liked him. I think I am going to keep going to him until its time to get prego again then I will have him recommend someone. He gave me all my different options. The best being just to have a hysterectomy and then I would have NO PAIN AT ALL... but that also means, I would have no more kids either. So not going down that route yet. I am going to try a couple different medicines while they give me meds to help with the pain. If those don't work my last options are surgery (again) or lupron (again). I actually prefer the surgery over the lupron. So hopefully something will start working and quick. My pain is getting worse day by day. I am beginning to not be able to handle it.

Then it was Jesse's Birthday. We actually went out the saturday before to celebrate because his b-day was on a week day. My parents babysat while we went to go see Robin Hood... such a good movie (from what I saw, I fell asleep. Not because it was bad but I was SO tired from the night before with B) Then we went to Texas Roadhouse for dinner! Yumm. So on his actual birthday. I got him 2 cute shirts from Tilly's to hold him over until his real present gets here (its actually from me, my parents, his parents) He decided he wanted a really nice pair of eye glasses and found on good deal on these really cute Versace frames. We are just waiting for them to arrive.

I got Braxton in to see my sis-law's gastrointerologist that she loves. They were able to fit him in Friday. He didn't think anything was seriously wrong. So they upped his dosage of Zantac and now we give it to him 3 times a day. He's on the same formula but now we add rice cereal to make it thicker. It seems to be working. He was like a completely different baby this weekend. He slept for like EVER and was totally chill most of the time. It was awesome Umm the dr did call back because he was worried... a month ago his head was 38 cm and this time it was 43 cm. Which I guess is alot to grow in one month. They said either person could have measured it wrong or it could just be him catching up from being preemie, but he's having my pediatrician check on it. I guess I should have mentioned that both his father and I have HUGE noggins!

So today Jesse left for Ohio for 2 WHOLE weeks... I already miss him. And I already felt like I was going crazy without his help! I am staying at my parents house while he's gone 1. Because I get scared sleeping at my house by myself, especially with a baby now 2. My mom already babysits him while I work anyways this will just make it easier 3. They said they would help me out more so I could catch up on some rest. Which I definitely need! It hasn't even been 24 hours and I hate not having Jesse here. This is totally gonna suck. Then he informed me that they are going to be sending him to Cleveland more often, yay (not). Oh well I am happy and excited for him and his promotion. But HURRY HOME!

So thats about it... oh yeah, my best friend Marci just found out she is 12 weeks pregnant! She was basically the only one out of our group who wasn't prego when we all were. So I am SOOOOOO excited (and so is she) We both think it is going to be a girl but she finds out for sure at the end of July!!!!

Braxton's Photoshoot- 3 Months

2010-06-13T14:28:00.000-07:00

Photos by Lisa Marie Potter
www.potterazzi.net
www.potterazzi.blogspot.com

Thanks Aimee, for giving us such a wonderful gift! Your friend did such an amazing job and we LOVE LOVE LOVE the photos!!!!

3 Months

2010-06-09T18:21:00.000-07:00

I feel like I have been blogging too much... so for those of you who read these and get bored. I'm sorry.

Braxton is 3 months old ... or 2 weeks(corrected) He now weighs 12 lbs 2 oz, 22 in long and his head is 41 cm. They just switched his formula to a hypoallergenic one in hopes to help alleviate his stomach pains. It seems to be working, only problem now its seems to be going RIGHT through him, if you know what I mean. So hopefully they can figure out which formula will be best for him. I feel so bad when his tummy hurts and there is nothing I can do to help it. His sleeping has been off lately... probably due to the fact he was in pain all the time. We are hoping he will get back on schedule soon and out of his carseat. That's like the only place he will sleep. Weird I know. We want to switch him into the cradle that Jesse's Dad made for us. It is amazing. I can't believe he did it all by hand. It is perfect.

Last Saturday we had our first pictures of Braxton taken. It was Aimee's gift to us. She had her friend Lisa Marie do them. Although, he cried and was fussy the first hour of the shoot, I think we got some really good pictures. I hope they are super cute. It was a little harder to do some of the "newborn" poses cuz he's so much older now. But once he finally calmed down, he let us put him in whatever positions and outfits we wanted. I can't wait to see what they look like. As soon as we get them we will post them.

So thats about it lately. I found a new doctor who specializes in endometriosis. I go to see him on the 22nd. I have been in so much pain lately, I can't stand it. It is so hard to take a care of a baby and be in that much pain 24/7. All I do is cry at night. I am really hoping that he will be able to help me out in some way. Last night was Glee's season finale. I really think I am going to go into a deep depression the next couple months until it starts back up again. Well, at least my fav show will be coming back on. Jesse's ended for good. No more 24. And yes, he still wants to name one of our kids Jack Bauer. Although, I can't say much cuz I want to name one Finn! hehe! Anyways well thats all... be checking back for the post of Braxton's baby pics!!!! Love you all

Our Lives in a Nutshell

2010-05-29T22:13:00.000-07:00

So here is a little update on everyone....

JESSE
Jesse finished this semester in school with good grades! He is debating whether to take some online classes this summer or just start back up again next fall. He continues to work for Dish1Up selling/dealing with Direct TV, Hughes Net, etc. He was just recently promoted...twice. Instead of doing sales he is now in management. He is the training supervisor which means he trains all the new employees. With this job, he only has to work Monday-Friday and he will be getting an even better raise than the first one he received. Yay! They are actually sending him to Cleveland, OH June 27th-July 9th for training. Its exciting for him to go but at the same time I don't know what I am going to do with him gone.... probably go sleep at my parents! ha! Luckily, his older sister Kira and her family live in Ohio so he is going to try and meet up with them since we don't get to see them very often! I am so proud of my husband. He has been doing so well with school, work and helping me out at home! I truly have the best husband. *Side Note: Jesse has lost 25 lbs in the past couple weeks and continues to loose more!!!*

MALLORY
So my life hasn't been too exciting. I finally went back to work last week, even though I was suppose to go back like 2 weeks before but since Braxton wasn't sleeping to well. It didn't happen. So I work m/w/f at the office while my mom watching B and then I do the rest of my work from home. I love being a mom and I love having Braxton at home, but it has definitely been a little more work than I thought and a LOT LESS SLEEP! I am finally starting to feel back to normal and more rested. I must say I get a little bored and lonely being at home, but hopefully that changes when its easier to get him out of the house. I'm in pain all the time, but I think its my endometriosis so there isn't much you can do. Hopefully it gets better. Oh well. My goal for this month is to start going to the gym, taking B for walks and tanning! *Side Note: I have lost 25 lbs and I am shooting to loose 15 more to get to my ideal weight I haven't weighed, umm EVER!*

BRAXTON
He is almost 3 months old... yet his due date was just 5 days ago. Crazy. He now weighs about 10.5 lbs and is roughly 22 in. long. Man, is he getting big! He can already fit into some 3-6 mo clothes. For the past week or so, he hasn't been sleeping that well and been a little more fussy. We think its because his tummy hurts :-( They put him on Zantac and we have been giving him gas medicine as well. It seems to be helping some what but we are beginning to wonder if he is allergic to his formula. (Me, my bro and all his kids are allergic to it, so its a possibility) Other than that, he is doing fantastic and getting cuter and cuter by the day! The dr said he needs to be on his apnea machine 1 more month. They typically don't take babies younger than 43 weeks off of it. So hopefully next month it will be GONE! It seems like he can see things better and things farther away. He is smiling a lot more. It is adorable. You get to see those dimples he has (which we have no clue who he got them from) We are hoping to have some little pictures taken of him in the next 2 weeks! And then in a couple months, we are going to do some family pictures. Hopefully when we are all skinny! hehe!

All in all, things have been going really really well for us. We seriously feel blessed! We are still working on getting church our #1 priority so we can FINALLY go to the temple. We are also trying to figure out when we are going to bless Braxton, probably sometime soon so my brother Matt and his family can attend since they are moving to Texas in July :-( We will keep everyone posted on when the blessing is. We also just found out that we WILL be going to Newport Beach again this summer like we do every year. I am so BEYOND excited! I can't wait to take B on his first trip.... I just hope he lets me have some time to relax on the beach and get my tan on! Also if everything goes as planned, we are still planning on moving sometime after August! We couldn't be more excited...except for the fact we both hate packing and moving stuff and then there is the stress of decorating. Ugh! But anyways that's basically out lives in a nutshell! Nothing too exciting! We love you all!

HOLY GLEEK!

2010-05-20T20:52:00.000-07:00

So for those of you who don't know, I am OBSESSED with the TV show Glee and have been since day 1. I made Jesse start watching it with me and luckily he likes it almost as much as I do. When I found out that Phoenix was going to be 1 of their 4 stops on the tour, I knew I just HAD to go! My dad surprised me with tickets the second they went on sale. Originally, I had thought I would be going to the concert a million years pregnant since it was so close to my due date but luckily that didn't happen! So this past Saturday night was the concert and our first time leaving Braxton at home :-( The concert was seriously AMAZING, besides the fact we were squeezed next to the LARGEST lesbian couple EVER but whatever! It was probably one of the best concerts I have ever been too and Jesse agreed. The whole cast was there minus Mr. Schuester, Sue Sylvester and Jesse St. James. They sang all their hits from the show. (Yes, I have ALL the songs memorized... plus it has been the only music playing in my car for the past year. I'm surprised Braxton didn't come out of the womb singing Glee songs!) I think Brittany was the funniest part of the show. She has such classic one liners. I'm not sure what my favorite song was... Maybe Don't Stop Believin' and Somebody to Love. The Lady GaGa song "Bad Romance" was pretty funny to watch! All the girls and Kurt were dressed in crazy Lady Gaga outfits. Kurt looked hilarious in his silver platforms! Anyways, so the concert was soooo good. After it was over, I just knew I had to go again. Jesse thought I was crazy but I convinced my mom to go with me! It was just as good the second time, if not better! We just happened to get floor seats which if that wasn't good enough... I realized from seeing the show the night before that the cast comes down the aisles right where we were sitting and I just happened to have an aisle seat. So I got high fived by Finn, Puck, Kurt and the rest of the guys from the show. That seriously made my day! I text Jesse as soon as it happened... he just made fun of me! I kinda felt like I shouldn't wash that hand or something...but I'm not that much of a stalker/fan! My mom enjoyed the show as much as I did! I am so glad that she decided (was forced) to go with me! I seriously hope that they do a concert again because it was that much fun! So for those of you who don't know... Glee is on Tuesdays at 8:00! Watch it, you'll love it!

2 Month Check-Up

2010-05-13T21:48:00.000-07:00

Braxton is a little over 2 months old. He now weighs 9 lbs and is 20 1/2 in long.He is already on the growth chart for height, weight and head size. He got his shots today (4 of them) but he took them like a man! While at the dr's office he decided to show off and lift his head and roll over for the dr. She kept calling him an over achiever. LOL. We both began to wonder if he was really the age they said he was! He hasn't had any episodes on his apnea machine so we are hoping that he won't have to be on it much longer. So overall, he is doing great and has no health concerns.

Motherhood and Mother's Day

2010-05-10T21:58:00.001-07:00

So 2 weeks ago (tomorrow) we were FINALLY able to take Braxton home from the hospital. It has definitely been more "real" having him home with us. Everything has been going better than I could have imagined, maybe that's because he was already kinda on a schedule or maybe he's just a good baby!!! He sleeps for 4 hrs, then wakes up to to eat and have his diaper changed then goes back to sleep. The nights haven't been too rough. Jesse has been working and finishing up school, so I have been doing the nights solo. It's the days that are tough for me. I just get so bored at home all day by myself. I have been having my mom come over during the day to help me (but really I just have her come over to hang out with me and keep my company) The weekends have been nice with Jesse home all day. He totally takes care of Braxton so I can take a nap or get some stuff done around the house. Tomorrow will be my first day back to work in 2 weeks. My mom has offered to watch Braxton while I work a couple days a week. So, we will see how that goes. I'm kinda sad to leave him all day long.

Since being home, Braxton hasn't had any health issues. His monitor hasn't gone off once, which is such a relief. He has been eating ALOT and growing like crazy. According to the scale the nurse brought over today (he gets checked at home 2 times a week)he weighs 8 lbs 10 oz. We will see if that is correct when we go to the pediatrician this week. All I have to say is if he had actually been born on his due date... he would have been HUGE! I swear part of me wonders if he is older than we think... he can already pick his own head up and almost roll over! But anyways, he is getting cuter and cuter everyday and everyone who sees him says he looks just like his daddy (and he totally does) I will post new pictures as soon as I take some!

This past weekend was Mother's Day. This was my first year actually getting to celebrate this holiday. It kinda made me feel old! Jesse was so sweet. He took care of B all morning so I could sleep. He also got me flowers and my fav cookies (Which I'm kinda mad about cuz I ate so many and gained back 2 lbs I'd lost) My real present he gave to me early, it was a new laptop since mine was on its last life. I still can't believe I'm a mom. Sometimes it still doesn't feel real, but now I can't imagine my life without Braxton in it! Thanks to everyone for the Happy Mother's Day wishes. I hope all you Moms had a wonderful day!!

BRAXTON'S ROOM (so far)

2010-05-03T00:04:00.000-07:00

So Braxton's room is almost done... here are some pics of what is done so far. We didn't paint in this house but we will in the next. And I am still missing some little accessories here and there. The only thing really missing is the rest of the bedding (bumper, blanket, pillow, etc) Which should be done shortly.

Welcome Home Braxton

2010-04-27T18:39:00.001-07:00

So Braxton finally got discharged from the hospital today after being in the NICU for 7 weeks. He made such tremendous progress over the past 7 weeks that he didn't have to stay as long as they thought he would. He was sent home on an apnea machine because of his little "episode" he had last Friday (when he was originally suppose to come home) They don't think that he will really have any more since that was kinda a one time thing, but they just wanted to take precautions just in case. So we're not sure how long he will need to stay on it. Hopefully, not long cuz that thing is FREAKIN loud!!! Having him home has been great... besides the fact he peed on me already, the dogs keep trying to lick him and I have to lug that machine from room to room but other than that, we couldn't be happier to finally have our little one with us. My mom was here to help me with him today and she even let me take a nap since I got no sleep last night being at the hospital. I have a feeling it is going to be an interesting first couple weeks trying to adjust to this whole new lifestyle, but it's worth it. Once again, we just want to thank everyone who kept us in your prayers. I know that is part of the reason he is doing so well.

Braxton McKay
Born: 3/7/10
Weight: 3 lbs 3 oz
Length: 16 1/4 in.

Released from Hospital : 4/27/10
Weight: 6 lbs 14 oz.
Length: 19 in

Oh, one of my best friends Kallie finally had her baby today, Easton Henry Brown. He is so cute! Yay! Braxton has a little friend now!!!

Month Summary

2010-04-18T22:55:00.000-07:00

So here's a little summary of the past month or so, or weeks, or I don't know I have lost all track of time these days!

Jesse held Braxton for the very first time. It was the most special momment for me. I loved seeing Braxton with his daddy! I can't wait for both of my boys to be at home with me 24/7! I love them more than words can describe!

My best friend,Michelle,came to visit and brought her son Colt (I forgot to take a pic with him, I'm retarded) She was suppose to be coming for the shower, but oops Braxton was already here! Michelle is like my other half. So I couldn't wait for her to meet my little one and I couldn't wait to meet hers. Colt is Braxton's "Wingman" and we know they are going to be BFF's!! He is such a good baby! (Seriously, I'm not just saying that!), although he did teach Braxton how to flip people off. haha! JK. Michelle got me hooked on Young and the Restless... and she is obsessed with her Faith Newman toy for Colt, long story.. see Michelle's blog for explanation. Hopefully, her whole little family will be able to come out here when we go through the temple... Hopefully sometime soon!

Braxton loves his Auntie Buchelle!!!

Braxton got his oxygen off and feeding tube out. He looks so cute now that he is wire free!

He is taking all his feeds by bottle! He now eats a little over 1.5oz, well he's suppose to. He does so well at night but only takes 3/4 during the day most times. (I'm hoping thats not a sign that he has his days/nights mixed up!!!) But he is doing so well. We have both gotten to feed him!

My other best friend Tiffany came to visit this month as well, with her husband Jared, and new baby Brighton! We love when they come to stay at "Hotel Rucker"! Brighton is soooooo stinkin cute and she too, is such a GOOD baby! I like to say that Brighton is Braxton's little girlfriend. I think they could be the next power couple! It has been so much fun having Tif here. It really makes me sad that my bestest girl friends live in other states.(Tif, I'm still working on getting Jesse to move to GA, but I don't know if it will happen.)

So here is the latest pic of Braxton (and Me) He is now 6 lbs and 19 in long! He is doing so good that they think he will come home either this week or next! I can't believe it is almost time for him to come home. I am so excited and nervous! So we are going to be crazy busy this week getting everything ready! I will most likely have a breakdown like everyday trying to get his room all put together. So, I appologize in advance to anyone who might suffer my craziness! But seriously, we can't wait to be with our little one all the time.
Oh, and a little note we are working on going to the temple!!!!

King B Update!!!

2010-04-10T21:29:00.000-07:00

So it has been a little while since we have updated the blog so I thought I would take a few minutes to keep people posted of what's been going on. Braxton is doing great. He is just advancing so fast that no one can even believe. He has finally moved to the CCN where he has his own little room that we can spend the night in. It has a tv for us and a little fridge to put stuff in as well. It's kind of like a little hotel room in the hospital for the parents. We will find out tomorrow how tall he is but he has gained over a pound in the last week. So last we posted he was 4 lbs 5 oz, he is now 5 lbs 5.7 oz. So he is getting bigger by the day. He has been gaining on average from 2-3 oz per day. Which is what the nurses want to see. So all we are really waiting for now is for him to consistently take his feedings fully from the bottle on a consistent basis. His feedings are now at 45 CC's, and on average we would say he takes between 8-10 CC's for each feeding. Some feedings he takes more and some he takes less. The most he has taken from one feeding I believe was 22 or 25 CC's. But he still has a ways to come for taking his full bottle feeds. So as soon as he does that we will be able to bring the king home. That's really all I have for an update, but if there are things you all would like to know just let us know in a post and we'll be sure to update you all. The only things we can't update but once a week on Sunday's is his length. So every Sunday we will update his length. As for now, he is doing great and we expect to bring him home in about 2-3 weeks. So we look forward to that day! Thank you all again for the love and support and the many prayers you have all said on behalf of Braxton. We do hope you continue to pray for him cause we know how much he loves it and also have seen how strong the power of prayer truly is.

BABY SHOWER & B UPDATE

2010-03-29T20:58:00.000-07:00

This is the diaper cake I made for the shower. I love making them. They are so much fun and a cute center piece.

Here is a pic of the food table... we had soooo much yummy food. Too bad I didn't get to eat any of it!

This is me opening presents. We got SOOOO much cute stuff! .

Here is a pic of just some of the guests who came.

Just some of the decorations we had up.

This is the hooded towel that Auntie Beth(my sis in law) made for Braxton! Is is so cute! I love it! I can't wait to have him use it!

So the baby shower was a great success, despite the fact that I had to move up the date and plan everything for it right away. Everything turned out perfectly though and just the way I had imagined, except for the fact Braxton was already here. He must take after his Mommy. I actually got to attend my baby shower since I was born a month early!. We got so much stuff for B, we almost have everything we need now already here! We are still waiting for the furniture to arrive and for the bedding to be finished. Then we can finally put his room all together and get ready for when he comes home! I was kinda sad that I didn't get to do the game when you have people guess his birth date and weight/height. So we decided to have people guess the date and weight when he comes home! So if you want in on this, just post a comment with your guess! Anyways, So thanks to everyone that came and especially to those that helped get everything ready! It was so much fun catching up with all our friends and family we don't get to see all the time.

BRAXTON UPDATE:
1. As of today, he weighs 4 Lbs. 5 Oz. and is 17 1/2 inches long! He keeps getting bigger and bigger by the day!
2. When we had the meeting with his whole team, the Dr said that he will probably get to go him in 4 weeks. She also said that she has no serious concerns about him.
3.Last Saturday, they took him of the CPAP and put him on nasal prongs ( like what old people wear.) His oxygen level is at 25% and they are slowly weening him down to 21% (what we breathe).
4.They started feeding him by bottle. He can only eat about 10-15 cc by bottle then they have to tube feed him the rest. But it is so amazing how well he is doing with it. The amt he takes by bottle keeps going up. I actually got to feed him twice! BEST day ever!
5.He gets to wear little outfits now! He looks so cute in them.
6.He pooped while I was changing his diaper, TWICE! I started to gag the first time it happened. At least I haven't gotten peed on yet!
7 He's looking better and better each day! I think because he is filling out more and more. All I know for sure though, is he looks just like his daddy!

Like Father, Like Son

2010-03-21T22:52:00.000-07:00

Yep, our baby Braxton is already a die hard SUNS fan just like his Daddy!

So since Braxton is in the hospital and we dont get to dress him or decorate a room for him, we decided we would do a little something to make him feel more at home. The hospitals provide these blankets that go on the incubators, so when they are sleeping the lights from the room don't bother them. They are of course, well, UGLY! (no offense) So we had our good family-friend Sameera sew a Phoenix Suns one for B. I wasnt too fond of this fabric either, but I know how much Jesse likes the Suns and he cant wait to watch the games with B. I think we are going to have her make another one, so we can switch them out. I'm thinking this next one will have a skull print on it. The nurses loved that we made him one! Now, hopefully it wont get lost at the hospital!

A Little Update

2010-03-21T15:56:00.000-07:00

Here's a little update... Braxton is still doing really well. In the past week they have put him back on the phototherapy just to take him off again a couple days later. His breathing had improved so they tried taking him off the CPAP but yesterday they decided to put him back on it since he was using so much energy to breathe. Hopefully he wont have to be on it much longer. I love being able to see his little face. I just stare at him trying to figure out who he looks like more. I still cant figure it out!!! His feedings are now 13 mL every 3 hours and he now weighs 3lbs. 10oz. I have gotten to hold him almost every day this past week. I love being able to spend time with him. I cant wait to take him and be with him 24/7. We have a meeting this week with his team of drs, nurses, aids,social workers etc... EVERYONE. We will go over what has happened, what will happen, goals for him etc. It will be nice to go over all of this with everyone there at the same time. Maybe then we will have a better idea of long it will be until he comes home.

On a side note, we registered last weekend for my baby shower. We had to move up the date since our little guy decided to come early. We have already gotten our baby monitor, car seat and stroller. I love my carseat/stroller. I cant wait for my carseat cover to get here (if it ever comes... thats a whole other story. Im so annoyed!!!) . Its freakin so cute!!! Now this week we get to stress about getting ready for the shower... I hope it will all come together by next weekend! We'll see! We will post more after we have the meeting with his team later on this week! Thanks again to everyone for keeping us in your thoughts and prayers!

1 Week Old and Some BIG Milestones

2010-03-14T21:41:00.000-07:00

So I will make this quick since we have been posting so much. I can't believe that Braxton is 1 week old already. Wow, does time fly. When we showed up to the hospital today, the nurse told us that Braxton was a bad boy and pulled out his breathing tube again :-(... but then went on to say that the decided to not put it back in. I couldn't believe it. They switched him to the c-pap instead. So NO MORE ventalator. Just oxygen being given to him through his nose. (like shown in the picture) She also informed us that they removed his UAC (the line that measured his blood pressure through his bellybutton). This meant that we could actually hold him sometime soon. I was so excited... and so excited that he was doing so well. I couldn't believe how much he improved in one night!

I, too, hit some milestones of my own. I changed his diaper (by myself) for the VERY first time today. I have to admit, I was a little nervous. I kept asking the nurse if I was doing it right. She probably thought I was retarded. I also got to feed him, well it was my milk and I got to give it to him through his feeding tube, so technically I was feeding him. Then the BEST thing of all, I GOT TO HOLD HIM FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME(since the hospital). It was amazing... It was the best feeling in the world. It felt completely right. I seriously never knew that I could love someone so much. I didn't want to put him down. It kills me everytime we have to leave the hospital and say goodbye and today was even harder... he began to cry when I put him back in the incubator. Luckily, he had his pacifier. Yep,thats right. He already has a binkie... its so small. Its crazy that he already knows how to suck on it and the nurses say he loves it. I can't believe all that happened today. Wow, so much to take in!

No More Cyclopse!

2010-03-14T09:34:00.000-07:00

So just a little update on our little buddy Braxton. Everyday he is improving and when I say that, he has been doing great since day one, but has shown great improvements everyday. The most recent update is that he had the I.V. taken out of his hand which is nice cause it was huge and covered about half of his arm, but they took that out and had a pick line put in so its a lot easier for them to do is blood tests. They just do blood tests every four hours to check the oxygen levels in his blood and those have been coming back great. With that they are slowly weening him off the ventilator oxygen to where he will be breathing just as we do. The main purpose still for the ventilator is to just keep his lungs open though. With all the blood tests they've done since hes been in the NICU, they had to do two blood transfusions which they say are completely normal for NICU babies just because of the amount of blood they take for testing. So no worries there. A funny side note is that when we called to check in on him last night, the nurse said they weighed him again and she goes, I think there is something wrong with the scale because he went from 2 lbs 14 oz to 3 lbs 4 oz. But they told us his weight was gonna fluctuate over the next few days because of the blood being put into him. Aside from that, everything really looks good. Saturday afternoon we were able to give him his first blessing for health and strength. My dad and Mals dad did the blessing and it was very touching. We all just stayed around his little bed for a few minutes til the nurse kicked some of us out, lol. We can only have 4 people at bedside if its me and mal and one set of our parents. Otherwise, its only me and mal and one visitor. But overall it was a great day and hes been doing fantastic over the past few days. So we just ask that everyone please keep our little one in your prayers and we will greatly greatly appreciate it. Many more updates to come! And as far as the title of the post, we do warn you that Cyclopse will return sometime soon, lol! (but its perfectly normal)

Our Little Cyclopse

2010-03-10T20:43:00.000-08:00

Yes, thats right, I am referring to our baby as Cyclopse. I happen to think its a cute little nick name for him since he looks just like Cyclopse from X-Men because of the "shades" they have on him. If you are wondering why he is wearing shades and why it looks like he is in tanning bed, No, he's not fake baking... he is having his phototherapy sessions. He will be under one of these lights for at least the next week because he is a little jaundice. They say that is completely normal for preemie babies because of their liver.

As for his over all health, they say he is doing great. He's really healthy and not sick.. which really suprised all of the doctors. Everyday we go in and they tell us he has improved, even though he was doing good the day before. They did another eco-cardiogram today to make sure everything was working correctly in his heart because the amount of oxygen in his blood should have been a little higher. Once again, everything looked good. They say his lungs just need to develop more which will happen over time. They began feeding him today. They started with formula and then added my milk to it. They will feed him every 3 hours into his feeding tube. Tomorrow they will take out his hand IV and give him a pic-line instead. We are still waiting for his line in his bellybutton to be removed so we can hold him. Hopefully, only a couple more days before they do that and then we can start the skin to skin contact.

I got to help take his temperature and change his diaper (and yes, he totally peed on the nurse while we were doing this!!!)She says he pees alot... he must get that from me! Its really hard to watch him get his diaper changed though. It stresses him out alot and you can tell he is upset and crying but because of the ventilator you don't hear him. I cry everytime he cries. Its really crazy how much he responds to us though. If hes upset or stressed and his heart rate is high... touching him and talking to him lowers his rate and settles him. It actually makes me feel useful. So thats about it for now, we will keep everyone posted on whats going on with Braxton!

28 Weeks and Impatient

2010-03-08T20:00:00.000-08:00

So most of you know by now that we had our beautiful baby boy, Braxton McKay Rucker, on March 7th, 2010 at 1:59 PM. He weighed 3 lbs 3 oz and was 16 1/4 in long! He was born 1 day shy of 11 weeks early. Here's the story of what happened that day....

I woke up at 7:30 AM with some pressure and cramping in my lower abdomen. I didn't really think anything of it at first. I thought maybe he was in a weird position or maybe I ate something weird or perhaps it was just Braxton Hicks contractions (hmmm.. how fitting!) I decided to not wake Jesse and go downstairs since it hurt to much to lay down. After about 30 min, I realized man, these things are just not getting better and the more often I looked at the clock, the more I realized that they just seemed to be happenening every 5 min ON THE DOT! I, of course, just still didn't think anything of it. I mean, I was only 28 weeks, thats way to early for serious contractions, right? (WRONG!) By 9:30 Jesse had come downstairs and asked me why I was awake so early. I told him I had been having pains every 5 minutes but I was going to wait until my mom got out of church at 11:00 to ask her opinion. Jesse kept telling me I should call the doctor or just go to the hospital but I didn't want to be one of those annoying patients since I had just had to call him the month before when I went to the hospital the last time. I started getting ready for church... that was interesting I could barely stand everytime I had a contraction but I was determined to do my hair and shave my legs. 11:30 rolled around and I finally called my mom. I told her I was having what I thought were contractions 5 minutes apart for the past 4 hrs. Her words were to call my dr. I did. Dr. Mikel told me to go to ob/triage. I considered packing a bag incase I was in labor, but nah, most likely they were just gonna send me home, right?

Jesse and I left for the hospital and told my parents we would call them once we knew what was going on. ALL of my family was going to be in a baby blessing that started at 12:00PM. So we arrived at the hospital 10 min later. They began hooking me up to monitors and getting my health history and the nurse said she was going to check me to see if I was dialating, etc. She did and said man, the baby is really really low, then she said and you are dialated to a 5 or 6. I looked at her and said are you kidding me? She wasn't. I looked straight at Jesse and began crying..out of fear, happiness, shock, etc... I told him to call my parents. I think he tried every single extended family member and NO ONE would answer cuz they were all in church. They hooked me up to meds to try to stop the contractions and called my doctor, who just happened to be at the hospital already. He came to check on me not 5 min later and I was already dialated to an 8-9. Now I really started freaking out. I mean I was totally not ready for this. I wasn't due for another 12 WEEKS! I was so scared. Jesse was scared. He got a hold of my parents who rushed down to see us. He then called all his family etc. Everything was happening so quickly... hooking me up to things, giving me medicines, asking me if I had questions. Umm hello, I was in so much shock I couldn't even think of any questions. Everything was a question.

They wanted to transfer me to Banner Desert to deliver because they deal with high risk pregnancies and preemie babies. But they didn't have time. There just happened to be one of the states best neo-natal specialists with his team at the hospital seeing someone.(how cool is that, its like everything was happening for a reason) He came down to talk to me and they were there the whole time to be ready to take care of Braxton. I started panicking... I had been having horrible contractions but now the thought of actual labor pains, all I wanted was an epideral and I thought it was too late to have one. I wasn't even going to ask. Luckily Jesse did. They wheeled me to the delivery room, rolled me on my side and started giving me an epideral. I serioulsy thought Jesse would have passed out since he hates needles. But he did great and held my hand. By the time they rolled me back over and got me settled it was time to start pushing. I had no clue what I was doing... I didn't even have time to sign up for childbirth classes. But Dr. Mikel and Jesse helped coach me through it. In between pushes, we talked about Keeping Up With the Kardashians and other random stuff. Kinda random,but it kept me calm. I probably pushed for only 10-15 minutes and only tried to give up twice (Jesse wouldn't let me) and then he was here! Seriously, did I really just give birth to a little boy. It all felt like a dream and I was going to wake up any minute. But this was REAL!

Tears of happiness and fear swept over Jesse and me. The neo-natal team began working on Braxton. They were trying to get a tube down his throat to help him breathe just in case. I heard him make a couple noises which made me feel somewhat better. They actually let me hold Braxton for a minute. (I guess normally they don't let you cuz the rush them back to the NICU unit)I was so happy, scared, excited, worried and most of all in COMPLETE SHOCK! To sum it up, contractions weren't horrible, labor wasn't bad, and I basically feel completely fine. A little sore and tired, but I can't really complain. I am just glad to be home with my husband and know that my baby is in the best place he can be right now.

Braxton was transfered to Banner Desert Sam last night by air vac, where he will stay for the next 8 weeks or so. They say everything looks good. His vitals are good and he was actually a better weight and length for his age. He has a tube to help him breathe (even though he is breathing on his own, its just to make things easier for him) They also are giving him fluids and he will soon start taking milk, slowly. He was a little swollen because he wasn't urinating but I guess that changed tonight. The nurses say he keeps peeing through his diapers and they have to keep changing the sheets. That little stinker! But its a good thing. He also ripped his breathing tube out... but the good thing he was breathing on his own and it means he's trying to fight it. Its so hard being away from him. All I do is cry when I am there because I can't hold him yet and its so hard seeing him all covered in wires with iv's and in an incubator. But its for his own good. I know he is in great hands. We just keep praying that he will get healthy and strong quickly so that he can come home to us... even though we are completely unprepared and have NOTHING! At least we have all the time he is in the hospital to get his room decked out and get him all the gear he needs! We love Braxton so much and can't wait to bring him home. We want to thank everyone who has visited us, called us and prayed for us. It means the world. We love you all and can't wait for you all to meet our Baby Braxton.

3 Down, 3 to Go...

2010-02-16T16:54:00.000-08:00

3 down, 3 to go, and then its MY turn to have a baby. It seems as if all of my friends/family and I got pregnant at the same time. Crazy huh! So CONGRATS to all my friends who have already welcomed their little ones into this world.

Michelle & Pete
Welcomed their little boy Colt Crosby Kerr, January 1st, 2010 (NEW YEARS BABY) at 3:35 AM. He weighed 6 lbs. 2 oz and was 18 inches long. He was the first baby born in Collin County!!! I am dying to meet him in April when Michelle comes to visit!

Brittani & Joe
Welcomed their little girl, Reagan Jade Aeppli, Februrary 5th, 2010 at 9:45 PM. She weighed 7 lbs 9 oz and was 20.5 inches long. I got to hold her last night... she is precious!

Tiffany & Jared
Welcomed their little girl, Brighton Oliva Jambor, February 16th, 2010 at 2:08 PM. She weighed 6 lbs 12 oz and was 19 inches long. She is georgous! Can't wait to meet her in April when they visit!

So next on the list is Tyson and Lindsey(She's due in March) then Kallie and Blake (She's due April) and then Cody and Beth (Also do in April)and then FINALLY ME...due MAY 18th/24th-ish. I have to say after seeing everyones pictures and actually holding a little baby last night, I am getting super excited to meet our little one. I seriously cannot wait!!! 96 more days... I know that seems like alot but when you start out at 280 days its nice to finally get down to the double digits!!!

25 weeks (well almost)

2010-02-06T16:51:00.000-08:00

A Trip to the ER and then some...

2010-02-03T19:39:00.000-08:00

So Sunday I began having HORRIBLE stomach pains, and I mean HORRIBLE. I couldn't stand, walk, move, lie down with out being in extreme pain this was then followed by vomitting and some other not fun stomach issues. After 7 hours, I finally called my dr who reseponded with "This is going to be a long night for you" He told me I should go to the OB triage and then head over to the ER. He had a suspiscion that something could be wrong with my gallbladder (Thanks to my Gastric Bypass and being pregnant) So I walked down stairs with my purse and a sweatshirt and told Jesse we would be heading to the hospital. As soon as I got there, they took me right back and got me all hooked up to the fetal monitors to make sure everything was ok with the baby and I wasn't having contractions. It took them like 10 min to find the heartbeat...Jesse started to get scared but I could tell the baby just kept moving ALL over the place and was being a little stinker. Luckily, everything looked fine with the baby so they wheeled me over to the ER.

So after tons of blood tests and ultrasounds, they concluded my gallbladder, pancreas and liver looked good but my white count was up, my blood count was severly down, my blood pressure was really low and my heart rate was really high. I finally sent Jesse home after they told me they would be admitting me, he had been asleep on the floor in the ER. The poor guy had to wake up for school in a couple hours and go to work. So to make this story short...or semi short..I was in the hospital another 3(which I wasn't allowed to eat or drink until tues!!) days... having lots of blood tests done,antibiotics, and seeing a million different dr's and nurses. They sent me home wednesday not really knowing anything and said if it happens again come back. They couldn't really run the tests they wanted cuz of the baby. But it was still SO frustrating! I did feel somewhat better and my infection was gone. They gave me medicine for nausea and potassium(it got low) My ob/gyn now says I might have to see a high risk pregnancy dr because my anemia is SO severe (thanks gastric bypass!) The only good thing one of the drs who had been overlooking me is a bariatric surgeon and chief of surgery. He wants me to continue seeing him so he can monitor my gastric bypass and all my levels that do with that (something I haven't had done in the past 7 years since my dr "retired" right after my surgery)

Anyways I am so glad to be out and SOOOOO glad that nothing was wrong with the baby. Thanks to everyone who kept me in the prayers and visted me at the hospital. I really really appreciate it! I especially want to thank Jesse for everything he does for me, especially this past week. He is the best husband anyone could ask for.

AND THE BABY'S NAME IS....

2010-01-25T21:27:00.000-08:00

DUNH DUNH DUNH...

BRAXTON McKAY RUCKER

I finally got the "ok" from Jesse to post the baby's name. But he wants me to warn you, if you take this name... you will be cut off from our lives!!! It only took months of debating and shooting down eachother's names to FINALLY decide on a name. Seriously, we could NOT agree on a boy name if our lives depended on it. Actually, we couldn't agree on on any names... we had decided on a girl name, but then of course found out we were having a boy. Go figure! This was the first name we actually agreed on and for someone reason it just felt right. So this is it, Braxton McKay. Unless for some odd reason when he is born... it just doesn't fit, but I doubt that (b/c then our kid would be nameless!!!) Hope you guys like it.... and if you don't, TOO BAD!!!!

A GLIMPSE INTO THE NURSERY

2010-01-23T19:44:00.000-08:00

This is basically what the bedding we are going to have made will look like(oviously minus the name Sawyer embroidered on it) We might switch the plain white minky on the ends to another coordinating black/white print fabric. Not shown in the picture, is the cute pillow and blanket that go in the crib. We are also going to do a window treatment and pillow/blanket to sit on the rocker.

This picture shows the changing table and hutch that we just ordered today.

This is the crib we ordered but obviously we got it in the matching black! The furniture should arrive the end of March!!! I can't believe I have to wait that long to really be able to do stuff in the room. Ahh! The only thing left to order now is the rocker/recliner.I haven't decided which I think I would like more... a rocker/glider or a recliner???

As for other decorating ideas.... We already got cute block letters to spell out his name on one of the walls. I think I am just going to paint them black. We got a cute chandelier (thanks to Jesse's parents) for Christmas that I want to hang in a corner above the rocker/recliner. I don't think we are going to paint in this house... even though I really want to. It would just be a waste of time and money since we will be moving soon but we'll see what REALLY ends up happening as we start getting the room together. Thats about all I have in my head right now. As soon as we get the furniture set up and the bedding in place it will be easier for me to decorate the rest of the room. I am so excited to be able to start doing all of this... it just sucks I still kinda have to wait until the furniture arrives and the bedding is made. At least we still have a MILLION other things we need to be doing and buying to keep us busy!!!

21 Weeks and Showing

2010-01-12T16:32:00.000-08:00

So it finally happened.... I am officially showing. Why was I wanting to look prego again??? I really don't know. I feel like I am getting bigger by the minute and I hate it! Uhh!!! Oh well! To end on a better note, I think we finally agreed on the furniture and bedding we are doing for the baby's room. I thought that day would never come! Now we can start working on getting the nursery done. It just sucks that we are going to do all this work and then have to do it all over again when we move next December. Don't worry, we're not moving out of state just a couple miles south of where we are now!

Pregnancy Thus Far

2010-01-05T20:04:00.001-08:00

So since I am half way done with my pregnancy,I thought I might journal how its been going.

Morning Sickness: I have been one of the lucky ones this pregnancy...I was only sick for maybe 3 weeks (weeks 8-10) and I didn't even really throw up. I just felt nauseous at night and ALL food sounded gross to me. Actually, ALL food sounded gross for about the first 3 months. I actually lost weight instead of gaining.

Fatigue: I haven't had too much fatigue until lately and thats partly because I have been sick and for the past couple months I have been working two jobs.I actually have felt better through pregnancy than I have the past couple years. Weird, I know.

Moodiness: I think I have been pretty good over the past 5 months I have been prego. I am sure that Jesse will tell you differently but I don't think it has been too bad. Random things tend to bug me more easily and I can cry at anything, I mean ANYTHING. ie: songs, tv shows, movies, books, commercials, magazines, EVERYTHING!

Food Cravings: The only constant craving has been ice, SONIC ICE, that is. I eat it all day/night long. (Jesse hates it b/c he constantly has to listen to me "chomp") I also seem to like meats and cheese ALOT more. All my other cravings only last for a couple weeks and then I want something new. Those have included: hot & sour soup, Paradise Bakery cesar salad, pizza, flavor blasted goldfish, sparkeling cider.

Food Aversions: Mexican food, cake, candy and for some reason I really don't like water but I force myself to drink it.

Other Symptoms: The only other things I have really noticed are I get horrible headaches on and off and I pee 47230487230742038 times a day. Sorry if thats TMI but I can't help it. Its actually gotten to the point where I get mad cuz I always have to go. Too bad I still have 20 weeks left of that :-(

Showing/Not Showing: So according to everyone I DON'T look pregnant, at least I haven't the past 20 weeks. Everyone looks at me like I am crazy when I tell them I am pregnant and how far along I am. I get the "You're so lucky" blah blah blah but because I'm not showing is still doesn't seem real. I think I have started to show more this week, so we will see what happens. No maternity clothes just yet!

I think the coolest thing that has happened lately is I can feel the baby move, mostly at night. I think the best way to describe it is like "popcorn popping". I haven't felt any distinct kicks or jabs yet...hopefully that happens soon so Jesse can feel too. Sometimes I think I am just making it up in my head but its been 3 weeks of that now so I am pretty sure its the baby! So I am excited to see what the next 20 weeks will be like. I can't believe it has gone by so fast. We still have so much to do!!!

Most Amazing Work

2010-01-03T21:28:00.001-08:00

Another Testament Of Christ

Many of you will remember the fabulous pictures that Mark Mabry took and put up in the Mesa Temple called Reflections Of Christ, well he did another photo shoot that is just amazing. It brings tears of joy and happiness to you every time you watch the video. To just imaging what it must have been like to walk where the savior walked and been able to just witness the many miracles the Savior performed while here on this earth. I hope you all enjoy the video as much as I do, and please feel free to post it on your blog so that all the world can see this amazing work!

Christmas Time

2009-12-28T19:58:00.000-08:00

So this Christmas Eve we went over to my parents house for our annual Christmas Eve traditions. We always have the whole family there ( and this year the Dickson's and all the cousins were there too) and we read from the scriptures about the birth of Christ. The kids dress up and act out the nativity story as we read it. (and some adults get forced to be in it as well.. ) Now this is always put on with no rehersal so its a little interesting to see how it turns out. This year's nativity seemed to have a biker wiseman, a mexican wiseman, actually I think there were 4 wiseman this year and it looks like Joseph was tad bit too old for Mary!!! But it turned out just wonderful, and its nice to be reminded of the true meaning of Christmas. To end the night we always have hot chocolate and krispy kremes. Mmmm... Yes, we are also one of those families that get to open one special present every Christmas Eve...can you guess what it is?? Pajamas... even baby got his first pair!! So cute! It was so much fun getting to spend time with all our cousins especially the ones who live in other states!!!

Christmas morning is spent at my parents house. We always open presents with all the family and then have a big brunch. Its so much fun getting to see all the little kids open their presents! This year I got Jesse tickets to the Suns/Cavs game (we went the Monday before Christmas) and Jesse got me the diaper bag I wanted! A super cute Petunia Picklebottom bag... yes, that means I have 2 diaper bags already!! What can I say, a girl likes her bags! Our big present from my parents was video camera so we can capture every little moment of our little one!!! After brunch, we headed down to Maricopa to spend the rest of the day with the Rucker Family! We got to spend time visiting and playing Wii. ( I, of course, watch while they played!!!) Jesse's parents suprised us (well me cuz Jesse knew) by getting us the chandelier for the baby's room. I was so excited. We both can't wait to start decorating the nursery now!!! I can't believe that next year at Christmas we will have a little baby boy to celebrate it with us! Its so crazy to think about!

So its official... I'm getting old. I can't believe I am 25, seriously, these years are going by so fast!!! My birthday was kind of a 2 day event... I got a mani/pedi with my mom on Saturday then Jesse and I went to dinner at Baci, a REALLY good italian restaraunt in Queen Creek. Sunday we had both families, the Greenwald's and the Ruckers, over to my parents for a big birthday dinner! I couldn't have asked for a better birthday!!!

Oh, and this is me at 19 weeks pregnant. I actually have a baby bump now...its small but its there! I was beginning to wonder if there really was a little guy in there or if I just made it up. I can't believe I am almost half way done. Its feels like yesterday that I just found out.

Well we hope that everyone had a Merry Christmas and have a Happy New Year!!!

IT'S A BOY

2009-12-21T21:33:00.000-08:00

Baby Rucker

It's definately a BOY

His leg and foot

His hand

His first outfit and toy. We found out right before we went to the Suns game!!!

So after the big disappointment last Thursday, we finally got to find out what we were having today! We couldn't be happier to say WE ARE HAVING A BOY!!! We had both been thinking that was going to be the outcome... to tell you the truth we would have been completely shocked if it was a girl. I have been referring to it as a "he" since the first day we found out we were prego. So I guess we were right, and so was EVERYONE else that thought that too. (I don't think I had one person tell me they thought it was a girl)

The ultrasound went great. It was a level II because of some of my medical conditions, so it was pretty thorough. The tech explained everything she was doing and measuring. They said everything looked perfect and health. My expected due date is now May 18th. After our appt, we headed to the Suns vs Cavs game, despite me being sick for the past week and feeling terrible. (The tickets were my Christmas present to Jesse!) It was a blast even though they lost. We bought our son his first little out fit and toy! We couldn't pass up getting our boy some Suns gear!!!

Better Luck Next Time....

2009-12-17T18:50:00.000-08:00

So we went to the ultrasound today....but we didn't get to find out what we are having. The baby's legs were crossed, the cord was going between the legs and the placenta was covering where she needed to see and the baby would not budge. Stuborn little thing! (It must take after me!) So at first the lady was saying it was a girl and then she thought boy. She couldn't give us a for sure answer so we left knowing there was a 50% chance of a boy and 50% chance of girl. Umm... hello, we already knew that. Needless to say, we were both pretty bummed and pissed off. Luckily, we have to have an ultrasound Monday anyways, so hopefully the baby will be a little more cooperative. We really really want to know before Christmas.

BOY or GIRL??

2009-12-14T19:18:00.000-08:00

So we find out this Thursday what we will be having!!! We are both so excited! We thought it wasn't going to happen this week, but there was no stopping us. We were determined to find out! Of course Jesse is hoping for a boy and as for me, I would be really excited for either. Anyone have any guesses now? I will definately post on here as soon as we find out Thursday!

2009-12-06T20:15:00.000-08:00

Here are a couple of the ultrasound pictures that Dr.Gebert did while I was visiting Michelle in Texas.

13 weeks 3D ultrasound

Here is a profile shot

Here I am at 16 weeks.... trying to convince myself that maybe you can see a baby bump if you squint....I know I will regret ever being sad about not looking prego when I am HUGE later on. :-)

A Little Dull

2009-12-06T08:15:00.000-08:00

It's kinda weird with how little has gone on in our lives recently. For one, we're expecting our first child in May and there just isn't much to really blog about. Second, with Christmas coming up there still isn't much to blog about except the fact we are both so excited for this time of season. The colder weather, gloomy skies that actually kinda make it feel a little Christmasy, the holiday music on the radios, and most of all, the PRESENTS!!! HAHA! And last, we're both just still working and I'll start school again on January 20 at the beginning of the upcoming decade, lol. I'm still working for Direct TV and Mallory is still working at Junky Trunk and also helping her brother a couple hours a day at his office. Which has been nice getting the extra money so we can buy gifts for people this year, lol. But I guess the most recent thing that has happened was Mallory went to Texas for a week for her best friend Michelle's baby shower. They are having their second child and we just love them. As much as I missed my beautiful wife while she was gone, I did love watching my sports games all day, lol. She'll let me watch some while she's here but I got to watch it all day, lol. We'll have some pictures to post up soon of the next ultrasound we are having done on the 17, which should be THE ULTRASOUND. That's the one where we hopefully find out we are having a boy. Lol, well as a guy I hope it's a boy and of course Mallory wants to dress up a cute girl. But in the end, we both just want a really happy and healthy baby. So either a boy or a girl will definitely be the best blessing in our lives. So until then that's really all that has been going on around here.

BABY RUCKER

2009-10-31T18:54:00.001-07:00

6 WEEKS

8 WEEKS

Any guesses on what you guys think it will be? Hopefully we will find out before Christmas!

BABY ON THE WAY....

2009-10-02T12:05:00.000-07:00

So here's just a little update: Jesse and I have been trying to get pregnant for the past 6 months with no luck. I began seeing a fertility specialist at the end of July and had some tests run the beginning of August. The results were not what we had hoped for. They told me that because of my medical problems and the things they had found it would make it harder for me to get pregnant. I would most likely have to do different procedures in order to get pregnant. So as September came around we were trying to figure out which option would be best and most affordable. Just a week before I was suppose to go back in... I kept having this random feeling to take a pregnancy test. I kept putting it off because I didn't want to read another "negative" result. After finding out a couple MORE of my close friends were pregnant I decided to just take it... to my suprise it said "pregnant" I ran downstairs and asked Jesse if I misread the test (even though it was a digital one and its kinda hard to misread) He about died... I still couldn't believe it... I took 4 more tests out of shock..and had a blood test done. I was in fact pregnant. We just had our first ultrasound done this week. I am 6 weeks 5 days pregnant. Which means I will be due May 24th, 2010. We got to see the teeny tiny baby and hear its heartbeat. It was the most amazing thing ever! Granted, the baby is about the size of a grain of rice and in the picture it doesn't really look like anything. I still can't believe it. The cool part is, I get to be pregnant the same time as all my best friends. Michelle is due in Jan, Tiffany and Brittani are due in Feb, Kallie is due in April and Me in May. Not to mention the rest of my good friends who are all pregnant right now too. CRAZY huh! We are both SOOOOO excited now ( we were too scared to be excited at first because of my medical problems) Seriously we can't wait to meet our little one! Jesse is of course hoping that it is a boy and as for me, I really don't care. I am just so excited to have a baby. We should find out what we are having before Christmas. I don't know if we can wait that long!!!
More to come later....

Look What I Found....

2009-09-08T11:40:00.000-07:00

***This exact desk but black***

So this weekend Jesse and I decided to FINALLY take a trip up to our cabin.(Jesse had only been asking to go up there since I met him... almost 2 years ago. Haha) My parents were already up there for the holiday weekend, so Jesse and I decided to meet them up there Friday after work. We left at 6 and after 2 hrs of driving and 45 min of sitting in traffic we finally made it there. Even though it was raining part of the time, it was still nice to "get away" for the weekend. We just hung out, ate and watched tv all weekend long. Saturday on our way into Payson for Dinner and a movie we stopped at this super cute antique store called Moose Mountain in Pine.( Debbie - you would love this store, along with ALL the others there!!!)They happened to be selling some furniture out front..this super cute black desk (it is the exact desk pictured, just black) I had been wanting a differnt color desk. I asked the lady how much thinking maybe if I was lucky it would be around $100... to my suprise she said $40... can you believe that... 40 FREAKIN DOLLARS for a desk. Granted it was a little banged up and my mom did drop the drawer but for $40 it was in GREAT condiditon. So we bought it and loaded it up into the truck. And Jesse says I can't be cheap...Pshh! Now the good part... so after we got home Jesse was moving the desk upstairs and noticed where the desk was originally from.,BALLARD DESIGNS. One of my fav decorating stores. Its like Pottery Barn but cuter and more expensive. So I was like "Sweet" and then decided to check it out onlineto see how much it was and if they still had it. To my suprise they did, so I stole the picture to put on the blog so everyone could see my amazing deal I got. Ok so have any guesses on how much the desk cost on their website???? $100... $300....$400... NOPE, $700!!! Can you believe that... I just scored a $700 desk for $40 Pretty sweet, huh? So all in all, the past weekend was a blast.Relaxing with my hubby and parents. Watching movies and eating good food! Mmm, Macky's Grill. Can't wait to go back for that. So if anyone is down for going to the cabin with us... just lets us know! Its lots of fun. Who knows maybe next time we will even do some of the outdoor stuff! haha!

Check It Out!

2009-08-25T09:49:00.000-07:00

So be sure to check out our other blog were doing to see if it'll work. It's right under our playlist of songs for our blog and its Mals Home Business/Hobby. It doesn't currently have everything on that she's making so just keep checking back every few days to see if new things are on there. Thanks!

Brody's 1st Birthday

2009-08-18T20:08:00.001-07:00

So this past weekend we celebrated Brody's 1st Birthday at Matt and Beth's house. We were so excited that they were having the little family party at their house since we hadn't seen it since they moved in (a year ago). And, I must say, Jesse and I are sooooo in love with it! We wish we could have their house! They did an AWESOME job with the decorating and their backyard is AMAZING! Beth made this huge dinner that was just like being at Costa Vida/ Cafe Rio. It was soooo good. If you love mexican food or Costa Vida or Cafe Rio Salads you have to get the recipie. So after dinner Brody opened presents with some help from his big brother Colby and then we had cake. The picture above is Brody eating his massive piece of cake. He was so cute! He just totally dug in while everyone was watching his every move. I can't believe he is 1 already. Man, the nieces and nephews sure do grow up fast!

American Idols Live Tour

2009-07-27T20:00:00.000-07:00

The Top Ten

#1 Kris Allen

#2 Adam Lambert (My favorite!!!)

#3 Danny Gokey

#4 Allison Iraheta

#5 Matt Giraud

#6 Anoop Desai

#7 Lil' Rounds

#8 Scott Macintyre

#9 Megan Joy

#10 Michael Sarver

So as soon as Season 8 ended on American Idol, I knew that I was going to have to get tickets to see the concert this year. You better believe that I was on my computer at 9:59 to be the first one to get tickets at 10:00. We got floor seats...only a couple rows back. Jesse wasn't too happy cuz he thought we would be standing most of the concert but luckily we didn't have too. Now just so you know, I have already managed to drag Jesse to the American Idol concert last year and yes, he had to go with me this year too!!! I think he secretly liked this year's concert...minus Adam Lambert (who of course was the only one I was really there to see) The concert was actually really really good. They all sounded so much better than they did on the show. Matt was actually one of the best performers of the night. I would definately go see him concert. Adam was also AMAZING. He really knows how to put on a show. And his voice, I could listen to him sing all day long...sing, not scream! Kris was just Kris... very mellow. You could definately tell that Arizona was an "Adam Lambert" state... the croud seemed to go CRAZY for him...all the little girls, older women and gay guys. It was great. and yes we all "knew" that Adam was gay when we watched the show, but let me just tell you that now that he is "out of the closet" he is definately more flamboyant! All in all it was a good concert and we had a great time. I am glad I got to spend it with my hubby.

Our next events: Seeing Phantom and Grease here in AZ!

UPDATE

2009-07-13T10:45:00.000-07:00

So last Saturday Jesse and I went out looking for a new car. We wanted to trade my Honda Civic in to get something a litter bigger so that Jesse could fit better and be more comfotable in the car I drive. Plus, we wanted a car that would be easier to fit carseats in and get kids in and out of better(No, we are not prego yet but we have decided that we are going to start trying soon). So of course we decided to go looking at the dealership where Dave, our brother-in-law, works. We didn't think we would find one so soon but we actually found a car that we both liked. Dave got us a smokin' deal on a 2009 Chevy Equinox.(and we really really appreciate him doing that) It is white with a tannish/greyish interior. Of course I am a brat and wasn't sure if I liked the interior, but it has grown on me the past couple days. I love driving our new car. It has so much room and its so clean and shiney. The only thing wrong with it right now is that the windows aren't tinted. But don't you worry, I already made Jesse make a call to get that done. Arizona is WAY W?AY W?AY too hot to not have tinted windows. I literally can feel the sun burning my skin as I drive, and no I am not being dramatic. So we are really excited about our new car... of course we are the outcast of the family with our GMC Sierra and Chevy Equinox. All of my family seems to drive Nissan. Matt's family has a Nissan Altima and Armada. Marshall's family has a Nissan Armada, Titan and 350z and my dad has a Nissan Altima.. I guess my mom is an outcast too. Ha. So that was our excitement for the weekend.

Not much else is new... Jesse is looking for a new job that will treat him better, have better pay and work with his school schedule. (Sears said they would...but now they aren't going to) I am also looking for another part time job to make some extra money. I am also in the prcoess of getting my business liscense so I can sell my diaper wipe cases to boutiques and online. I actually already has one boutiqe want to sell them. We are also hoping that the people that are renting the other house that my dad owns decide to move when their lease is up. We have decided that we would love to move into that house. It is bigger, nicer and has a pool. It would be great for kids. Plus it has a big back yard where the dogs could run around. So anyways thats all folks!

California 2009!!!

2009-07-07T16:34:00.000-07:00

So we've been home for about a week and a half now and are just now getting these pictures put up. It's just amazing how long it takes sometimes to get back to the normal life when you return from a full week of vacationing and laying on the beach all day doing nothing. So we went to Newport Beach, CA for our week at the beach with Mallory's family. Every summer her parents rent a beach house right on the beach for a fun family trip where we all just get to spend lots of time together and just hang out. We spend a lot of the time on the beach and playing in the cold water (which I never go out farther than I can touch cause everyone knows of my fears of sharks, stupid movies and animal planet). Then we go to all these family favorite restaurants that are over there for dinners together. Two of the favorites are a little Italian place called Mamma Di's and a Mexican joint called El Ranchito. Just some of the best food ever. Mallory's favorite part of CA though, which I'm sure everyone can guess, is the shopping. We actually ended up going to the swap meet twice which was good cause everything is just so cheap there. She ended up getting a new luggage set that she found online that was 120 but at the swap meet I got the guys to give it to us for 70. She gets emberrassed from my haggling that I do cause I refuse to pay full price for anything, haha. Then she wanted to find a laptop bag cause I told her we could get her one, and it was perfect cause we ended up finding a perfect match to her new luggage set at another stand in the swap meet. So she was happy she got a whole new complete luggage set. She also found some clothes at the swap meet that were real cheap too. I think I've finally taught her all there is to know about bargain shopping and finding the best deal out there. Not much really for guys to buy there but some electronic stuff but it wasn't really cheaper than you would find at best buy or something like that so I didn't get anything except a cover for my iPhone to protect it. It just so happens that we were there over my birthday so I got plenty of nice gifts for my birthday and had the best birthday breakfast that morning. Newport doughnuts. There are no better doughnuts than the ones we get at the beach. They even beat krispy kremes. We went out that night to Claim Jumper to eat where I was treated to a steak and lobster tail dinner which was mighty delicious. Then we went to see Transformers 2 the next morning with my brother and his wife who are doing some sales in Rancho Cucamunga for the summer and we loved it. It wasn't as good as the first one (which not many sequals are), but it was still pretty good. We also saw The Proposal while we were over there which was very funny and also just happened to see it the same night I proposed to her last year when we were at the beach house. Aside from that it was just alot of hanging out with family and going shopping and hanging out on the beach. But I'm sure I missed some things that Mallory will post in the next post on our blog. We look forward to going next year and hate waiting a whole year to take another week long fun vacation.

Puppy Cuts!

2009-05-26T14:55:00.000-07:00

Well this isn't really something that happened in the last few days but we had the puppies groomed a while ago. Since we're both to scared to cut their nails, we always just wait til we take them to get their hair cut and just have them do it, haha! Anyways, the other day after we had taken them to get them cut I was laying downstairs on the couch and they both came to lay with me and they ended up falling asleep on me. I just happened to have my phone in my pocket and was able to take a picture and when I had taken the picture I then noticed and just thought it was cute that Bella always takes one of her front legs and wraps it around her little sister Maya to try and keep her warm, lol! They of course now have much longer hair and are in need for a trip to the groomer to have their hair cut again.

MY NEW HOBBY

2009-05-19T19:30:00.000-07:00

So I have decided to start making crafts again in my spare time. Since so many of my friends are pregnant and I will be needing gifts, I decided to kill two birds with one stone and make baby things. So this week it was wipe case covers. These are just some that I have made so far but I am going to be doing lots of different colors with differnt buckles in the middle. I have round ones, square ones, hearts, fluer di lis's.etc... I am also going to do different designs with different patterns and fabrics.

I have also decided that I am going to attempt to make bling binkies (binkies with rhinestone designs), binky holders (the clips that attach the binky on to the baby's shirt), burp clothes with cute designs and patterns.. of course for that one I will have to learn how to sew... Yeah, I doubt that is going to happen, but we'll see. Jesse came home and saw all wipe case covers I had made today and he was like "These actually look good." Pshh..Like I was going to make something ugly. Anyways... well I will keep you posted on all of my new crafts. If you like any of these and you want one...justt me know.

SUMMER IS HERE...

2009-05-14T20:53:00.000-07:00

So Summer is definately here, at least it feels like it. I was on my way home from the doctor's office (yes, I am always at the doctor!!!)wednesday and decided to stop by my parents and to my suprise both of my sisters-in-law and their kids were over to go swimming. So I decided to stay for a bit and lay out by the pool to chat while the kids swam. Of course I didn't have a swimsuit but luckily I had a tank top on and I borrowed a pair of shorts from my mom. I have to say I did get some sun that day and I realized why I like to tan at the tanning salon. Arizona is FREAKIN HOT! I was only laying there for about 10 minutes and I thought I was going to DIE!!! So no more outside for me...looks like I'm gonna stick to the tanning beds until I'm on the beach in Cali this summer! I did have fun watching the kids though. Maddie can swim all the way to the deep end now and Andrew has gotten so much better too. I can't believe how old they are and all the things they can do now. Colby was shooting baskets and man, I can tell he is going to be one good basketball player just like his dad!!! Ema is just like her Auntie Mally... she just likes to float on raft or lay out on a chair! I swear she is my long lost child! I think Brody was the only kid who didn't seem to have too much fun in the water. Beth tried to stick him in this floaty thing but he just started screaming when he was put in the water... I guess he doesn't like baths either. Lol! So all in all it was a good day, I was just sad that Jesse couldn't be there to spend it with me!!! Maybe next time!

Playing with the Kids!!!

2009-05-03T11:57:00.000-07:00

So last week Jesse and I met my Mom at San Tan Village so we could hang out with Andrew and Ema, whom she was babysitting. We watched them as they played on the playground... well Andrew played on it while Ema sat next to me and my mom like she always does! We love spending time with Andrew and Ema, its just too bad that Maddie is in school all day. So we don't see her as much. :-( After the playing, we got pretzels( their favorite and mine) and headed home. Sometimes I really love that I only work part time and Jesse isn't in school all the time. That way we can have relaxing days spending time with eachother and family!!!

EWW...GROSS!!

2009-05-01T14:19:00.001-07:00

So here is what my hand looks like after they removed the bandages. Gross,huh! It stillhurts pretty bad and Ihave to ice it all time. At least now, it is just in a splint and in 10 days I get the stiches taken out. Hopefully, it won't hurt too much and my scares will heal quickly

SURGERY ON A SATURDAY

2009-04-25T20:54:00.000-07:00

So we woke up super early this morning to be to my surgery by 6AM...I was having my right wrist and fingers operated on. They were going in to cut out all this extra tissue that was causing this huge lump and pain in my wrist and trigger finger in 3 of my fingers. The surgery went well and only lasted about 30 min. I still cant feel or move my fingers but my wrist is KILLING me. I am on pain meds but I am still in a lot of pain and I can't use my right hand which really really sucks luckily I don't have to work until Wednesday! At least I have Jesse at home taking care of me... he even tried to help my fix my hair before the picture...hope it semi looks ok since hes going to have to be doing that for a couple days plus helping me get dressed, but on my makeup, fix my food etc..

PS I had to type this whole post with one hand... not so fun!!!

EASTER SUNDAY

2009-04-12T20:48:00.001-07:00

So we started our Easter Sunday out by accidentally matching our church clothes (though Jesse will tell you otherwise) and heading off to Marshall and Aimee's ward. After staying for all of church.Yep thats right,I stayed for all 3 hours. We headed home to get ready for our next activity. Since it was Marissa's birthday today we went to meet her, Dave, and the girls at the park. It was so much fun to see them go on their Easter egg hunt and then fly kites and play.Our time with them was cut short, since we are the only family without kids... we got stuck getting everything ready for the dinner and egg hunt. It was nice that this year we got to do Easter with everyone...the Rucker's and the Greenwald's. For once we didn't have to go to two places on a holiday. It was nice to all be together... we had tons of people over. We did an Easter egg hunt for the kids and ate a huge big dinner. Overall it was a wonderful day spent with family and friends. This was a great first Easter for me and Jesse.

RASCAL FLATTS

2009-04-02T19:06:00.000-07:00

So I know the concert was a while ago, but I have just been lazy to put the pictures up. So me and Jesse went to the Rascal Flatts concert on March 12th. I have been dying to see them in concert for forever now. Everytime they were here I lived in Texas and everytime they were in Texas I lived here! So I was so stoked that I was finally in the right state at the right time to see them this year. They are my favorite country band and Jesse loves them too! So despite the fact it was cold (and I had stolen Jesse's sweatshirt)the 4 girls next to us some how multiplied into 8, everyone was spilling beer on us and the girl behind me kept tapping my chair (and offbeat I might add) the concert was amazing! They are so good live. He seriously has an amazing voice and the bass player was so funny! I am so glad that I finally got to see them live and I got to go with my hubby!
Oh PS for anyone who cares... Jessica Simpson opened. She actually did better than I thought. She has a really good voice but she makes weird faces when she sings and she kept tripping over cords and almost falling on her butt!

Some of my obsessions right now....

2009-03-09T15:28:00.000-07:00

MESA FROZEN YOGURT... the best frozen yogurt on the face off the earth. Seriously, I could eat it everynight and for about a month I did. If you ever decide to go there try the tart peach (or any of the tart flavors) it is the best! So YUMMY! (and its only 80 calories per 4 oz)

Oh how I love HSM 3...it actually is a really good movie, that is if you like musicals! Jesse keeps getting mad because I watch it over and over again. And if I'm not watching it I am listening to it on my ipod! I totally have a crush on Zac Efron... he is an amazing dancer and has the best voice!

I know I have a biased opinion, but I love the store I work at... seriously we have the cutest stuff ever and its all for a good price! If you haven't been in, you definately need to come check it out!

So right now I am obsessed with Adam Lambert on Americal Idol... I seriously love that show and right now he's my fav. Yes, I am one of those people who vote over and over again cuz I want him to stay in! I'm a dork

Little Update!

2009-03-03T09:55:00.000-08:00

Well there hasn't really been much going on in our lives lately. Just been alot of hanging out with friends and family I guess. This past week Mallory's cousins Courtney and Jon came to town so we spent a little bit of time with them. We played some card games for a couple of hours one night and then Saturday we did an adult night where all the married couples went out to dinner while grandmas and grandpas got to watch their grandkids. We went to Carabbas and I've had a few people tell me about this new chicken dish called Chickey Brian. So I thought on my way there that I might try that instead of the Chicken Marsala which I have gotten every time I have gone there but when it came down to it, I chickened out and went with the best dish ever, the chicken marsala. And it tasted better than ever with the sauteed onions on it accompanied by the garlic mashed potatos. The only other real new thing going on is I have decided to go on an adventure away from Microsoft Computers to Mac. So i sold my old laptop that I've been having reoccuring problems with and decided to by a mac book and I honestly couldn't be happier. I love the mac so far. Everything seems easier to use and just so much more fun with doing stuff with photos and videos. My first video project is my high school volleyball games. So I'll be sure to let you all know how that goes. But we love you all and our thoughts and prayers are with you!

VALENTINE'S DAY 2009

2009-02-17T20:29:00.000-08:00

So our first Valentine's Day as a couple we spent it in Texas. Which was nice to be away, just too bad I was in pain and recovering from surgery. We still had a nice day though...we spent the day going to lunch at Rudy's (which Jesse had been dying to try since he hears not only his dad rave about it but my family also)and then window shopping at the mall. I found this really cute bracelet at coach that I loved. So later that night we ordered in some amazing Chinese food and just hungo out with Michelle and Pete. They told us they were going to look at guns but came back to supirse us with our Valentine's gifts. They both got us a single rose... Michelle's was pink (of course) and mine red. Michelle got her Snuggie she wanted and Jesse suprised me with my Hannah Montana singing card that I wanted...in it was a gift card to Coach to buy the bracelet he heard me talking about. I have the best husband ever! Although, the bracelet is on backorder till March 30th I am still determined to get it.... thats how cute it is! So overall we had a great first Valentine's Day as a couple...minus the pain! Seriously, I really do have the best husband ever. Not only did he suprise me with my gift, he took care of me the whole weekend! I love him more than anything!

MICHELLE'S 25TH BIRTHDAY

2009-02-17T20:04:00.000-08:00

So we just happened to be in Texas on Michelle's birthday weekend... we went out Friday Feb. 13th for her birthday dinner to Babe's Chicken. (Which was Jesse's fav meal) We ordered food and I secretely told them it was Michelle's b-day. So at the end of the dinner the made her dress like a chicken and flap her wings while we all sang happy birthday to her. Lets just say she wasn't too happy about that! We went back to her parents house to celebrate with Sprinkles cupcakes that Pete had brought with him. I have been dying to try them and for some reason I thought they were just in LA but they have one in Dallas and actually one in Scottsdale... but they were super yummy! I got Michelle some cute clothes from my store for her b-day... hope she liked them. I am so glad that we got to spend Michelle's birthday with her. It has been way too long! Love you Michelle!

Surgery Over!

2009-02-12T13:36:00.000-08:00

So as you have noticed in the photos below she was all happy and perky, but obviously worried cause she's having surgery, but happy that the pain would be gone for a few years before it comes back. The best doctor on earth came out and finally let me know that everything went well. He did find the endometriosis in her and scraped it out and said that she should be feeling a whole lot better. So here are some of the post surgery photos that are always the funny ones cause the person is so out of it. So do enjoy but remember to pray for her to feel better and have a speedy recovery.

Texas!

2009-02-12T10:58:00.000-08:00

Well so far the trip to Texas has been pretty fun. We got in on Wednesday around noon and went to our great friends Michelles parents house to stay. For those who don't know we came to Texas so that Mallory could have surgery to have her endometriosis removed cause she's been in some great amounts of pain because of it. The reason we came here was because her friend Michelles dad is the doctor that did the operation last time and hes an amazing doctor and person. We're so lucky to have had him squeeze her into his busy schedule. I'm just waiting in the waiting area in the hospitle as she is getting operated on now. So I'll be sure to write more up tomorrow as to how the surgery went and post some pretty pictures of my beautiful wife!

Superbowl Sunday!

2009-02-01T21:17:00.001-08:00

Well so as everyone most likely knew, tonight was the Pittsburgh Steelers against the amazing Arizona Cardinals. We went down to my parents house to watch the game and had a big party with lots of yummy food. We had pizza, taquitos, wings, cheese sticks, and so much more. The game was great to watch however very frustrating at times to see the Cardinals make so many stupid mistakes and help out the Steelers in every way possible. It was the end of the second quarter and the Cardinals tip a Steelers pass leading to an interception and great field position for the chance to take the lead trailing 10-7. Unfortunately Warner throws a dumb and rushed pass to the middle of the field leading to a Steelers interception and then returning it 100 yards to score a touch down and go up 17-7 at the half. The Cards came out fired up however and scored a touch down in the 4th to be trailing 20-14. Then they force the Steelers into a safety making it 20-16 and we get the ball off of a drop kick. Then the amazing Fitzgerald catches a pass and run 70 yards to the end zone putting the Cards up 23-20 with 2 minutes left. Now for the bad news. For some reason instead of the Cards defensive coach calling a defense to secure the win, he tried to be a big hero and blitz's with 4 players every play allowing the Steelers to go 70 yards in 2 minutes scoring the winning touchdown winning 27-23. WHAT A FREAKING BUMMER! Totally ruining every Arizonians spirit. But life is life and we look forward to the next season to hopefully end the horrible drought of no Superbowl championship for the Arizona Cardinals. So not much left to write being in a dampered mood so until next time, we love you all.

Valentines Pictures

2009-01-25T20:13:00.001-08:00

So we had dinner at my parents house and my mom just HAD to have the kids in matching clothes to take a Valentine's Day picture this year. So what did I do, bought myself a cute Valentine's shirt and made Jesse match so we could take a picture too. I think they turned out cute. Maddie actually let me straighten her hair and Andrew had some help from Jesse. I somehow managed to make Ema cry 3 times while trying to do her hair...falling off the chair... her touching the curling iron... and accidentally getting hairspray in her eye. Man, my kids have no hope.

My 24th Birthday Pictures

2009-01-25T20:08:00.001-08:00

I know that we already did a post about this but my dad finally found the pictures from that night so here they are....

Once again!!!

2009-01-20T14:22:00.000-08:00

Well so once again some more of the pave diamonds have fallen out of Mallorys ring so we had to take it in to Kay for the 4th time now to have them send it out and get it fixed. So this time I went in with just a little bit of attitude cause we wanted to just get our money back that we spent on the ring so that we could go get a different ring from another store cuase we weren't happy with the service of Kay. Unfortunately Kay doesn't really care about the problem we keep having cause they say we aren't able to do anything about it but it will continue to get fixed for free if we need it done. After a little bit of talking with them the store manager finally said he would see if we could get a credit for the amount we spent towards another ring but the bad side to that is in order to get the credit you have to double the amount spent. Now think logically, who in their right mind would double the amount they spent at a jeweler who doesn't care about customers problems. Not me, so I started talking to the lady about that and she started to water up and just about cry so I just said forget it, and we left the ring to be fixed and now we are calling the corporate office to get things figured out. So having just got another ring their for her birthday from her parents, it to is pave, we are going to return that ring while we can still get our money back and go to a different store to purchase a ring with better quality and better customer service. So that was our fun deal this past week along with also as you already saw, going to Mikaylas State Cheer Competition and seeing her join her brother Jesse (ME) as a State Champion. The last thing on my mind is the Cardinals crazy win on Sunday. WOOHOO!!! Cardinals are playing for the Superbowl two weeks from now so you all better say your prayers and root on the Cardinals!!!

JUST ANOTHER WEEKEND....

2009-01-18T00:39:00.000-08:00

So today was an interesting day, we both got up super early and dragged ourselves out of bed to drive all the way to Prescott to see Mikayla perform in the State Cheerleading Competition. So the drive up there... I fell asleep like usual and woke up to find Jesse pulled over on the side of the road. I first thought something happened to the car, then I realized he got pulled over. Oops! Going 12 over... talk to Jesse and he will justify it. Good thing I wasn't driving like we planned, my license would have been gone for a 1 YEAR!

So while I and the rest of Jesse's family watched the rest of the squads Jesse played on his phone and occasionally looked up to make fun of the cheerleaders. (Typical guy!) Mikayla's squad did great... seriously so much better than the rest of the squads. Better stunts, better dance, better transitions... all over better! Although, it was still kind of a shock they took first. SO CONGRATS TO MIKAYLA ON WINNING STATE!!! We are so proud of you!!! The funniest part is that when they announced the runner up they said it kind of weird so you kinda didn't know who was second and who was first so it took the girls of Maricopa Cheer to catch on that one, classic... but when they did, I hadn't seen a more excited squad to win!

Luckily the drive home, Jesse didn't get pulled over... at least I don't think. I was asleep again! We stopped and got PF Changs (My fav) and scored a free dessert. Hung out with my parents and nephews and then came home to relax. (And find that the dogs had gotten into the magazines and ate them!) Well its almost 2 in the morning, so I better get to bed!

Note: the entire time I was writing this, Maya kept jumping from the couch to the ottoman over and over. Sometimes I wonder if these dogs aren't all there! :-)

2009!!!

2009-01-02T08:58:00.000-08:00

We want to wish everyone a Happy New Year and hope they have some good resolutions set for the beginning of a new year. New Years eve we spent at home with some family. We had Jake and Madi and Josh and Rebecka come over to play some games. Well we all played games cause Mallory didn't feel to good so she was the score keeper. Then after a little while of not wanting to be score keeper anymore cuase her head was starting to hurt, she went and just sat on the couch and watced some TV. The Dick Clarks New Years show from NYC was on and so was Phantom Of The Opera so she went back and forth between that. We started out playing the Wii cause for christmas we got this new game for it called Wii Fit, which I'm sure alot of you have heard of. You do various fitness activities such as yoga, strength straining, aerobics, and balance games. So of course just having fun we did the games. First we had to get everyone set up on it and run some tests so the Wii could determine their Wii Fit age. I was the oldest, being 38, Josh was 37, Jake was 35 I think, Mallory was 35, Madi was 31, and Rebecka beat us all being the most fit for her age and she came in perfect at 20. Then some played the balance game of ski jumping, like they do in the olympics where they see how far they can jump, and as soon as I get the camera back from my wife I'm gonna put a video of Jake and Madi doing it cause it was freaking hilarious. Then we all kinda settled down and played some card games and just had fun. The strike of 12 was coming on so we all sat in front of the TV to watch the ball drop and kiss our spouses at the New Year. After that we played another game and then everyone left. The two games we mainly played that are great family fun games are Swat and Discombobulation. They are both card games and very fun. Then for New Years day we got together with my family cause we always go see a movie in the afternoon and then do a big dinner together. So we went and saw Valkyrie which was a great movie, and went to my parents in Maricopa for a steak and shrimp dinner. Then we all just visited and came home and got alot of sleep. That was our New Years holiday so we hope you all had a great one like us and we love you all!

Birthday Gone!

2008-12-29T20:35:00.000-08:00

So Saturday night the 27 was Mallorys birthday and we had quite a fun day. We planned a fun day together that is. We both got up in the morning and went to get massages at Massage Envy and that was great. We both liked who did the massages for us cause they both did a great job. We both got deep tissue massages and found that we had quite a few knots in our backs and neck. So they worked them out in what I thought was kind of painful, lol. But afterwards it felt so much better. Then we came home and did just a little bit of cleaning and then got ready for a fun night out. We went to her parents so that she could open her birthday presents and got a little bit of money and a ring that she loves that has black and white diamonds (if you ever wanna buy her a present, anything black and white will do just perfect). So after that I made reservations at a little Thai place in Oldtown Scottsdale called Malee's Thai Bistro. The food was amazing. Quite spicy obviously being Thai food. After the good meal we went to see a movie her parents reccomended called Slumdog Millionaire. It was a really good movie. We reccomend it to anyone who wants to see a great movie. However to my wife's disappointment, she thought it was based on a true story but came to find out it was just based off a book. Then after that we came home and just layed in bed and fell asleep watching tv. That was our fun day together. Love you all!

Well Christmas Is Over!

2008-12-26T11:25:00.000-08:00

Well now that christmas is over I'm not sure whether to be excited or sad. Such a great time of the year cuase you are always with family and everyone is just in such great and happy moods. But at the same time it's nice that it's over cause it's also the most stressful time of the year. It took me forever to find a present to get Mallory but after about 10 different stores I finally found this picture frame with two 8x10 spots so we could put a picture of the Savior in one and the Family Proclamation in the other. She's wanted that up for a while now and also a picture of the temple so I got her a new bigger picture of the temple as well. And the last thing I got her was these cute brown and teal signs with cute sayings on them that she could put up in our guest bedroom since her colors she chose to do in there were brown and teal. As for our Christmas day we spent the morning at her parents place opening present with her family where we both got lots of gifts that we love so much. I got some sweaters and clothes and lots of tools since we always have to borrow her dads. I think he got sick of us borrowing and returning a few weeks later, lol. My last gift was my favorite though, a spray in bed liner for our truck we got after we got married. Mallory got some clothes as well and another black purse that she loves. Some new shoes and a few other things as well. As a gift from her parents to us they got us the Hoover FloorMate cuase no matter how hard we mop our floors with our swiffer it just doesn't seem to do the job. Probably the price for having tile floors. After we were done with the gifts we packed up the car and heading down to my parents where we had a lovely meal and stuffed our faces full. Spend some time with the family down there and opened a few gifts. After the visit with my parents we went to go see Yes Man together, the new Jim Carey movie, and it was so funny. We reccomend everyone go see it. Then we came home and put things away and ended our christmas day. We are so greatful for everyone and the gifts we received and the wonderful christmas day we had. We love you all!

The Puppies New Look!

2008-12-22T20:41:00.000-08:00

Well we went and got the puppies their first heair cuts the other day and thought we would put some pictures up of how they look now. It is significantly shorter and Jesse thinks they are as cute as can be and I on the other hand think Maya looks cuter but I loved Bella with her thick coat. The good thing about the hair cuts is it has helped big time in helping Bella get rid of the ring worm. After a week of the hair being cut, her ringworm has gone from gross to practically gone that it's amazing. These are our cute little puppies that Jesse bought me and I couldn't be happier with them. The best news of all, they are FINALLY potty trained. It really help when Jesse and his Dad and Jake layed the grass out back cause they love going out there and going potty. So thank you all!

The Nativity...Greenwald Style!

2008-12-21T22:54:00.000-08:00

So it looks like christmas came a little early... we did our christmas eve tradition a couple days early. Everyone came over for dinner and a show... little did they know they would be a part of it. So this is how it went staring:

Madisen as Joseph
Colby as the Wiseman
Andrew as the Sheperd
Bath as the Virgin Mary
Emalie as the Sheep
and a random baby doll as Baby Jesus.

The show was great and we all sang Christmas songs...Colby kind of sang his own random song, but it still turned out great. We all opend our Christmas Eve PJ's and got our yearly ournament. This was Jesse's first year of experiencing the Greenwald Christmas tradition...I don' think he was too excited about the pajamas... and yes we all match and wear them Christmas morning. Don't worry I am sure we will post some pictures of that. So besides watching everyone dress up, and seeing Jesse experience the Greenwald traditons, my highlight of the night was when my mom asked my Great Aunt Marie if we could use her cane for the shepard.... I about died laughing. Anyways well thats all for now! We love you all!

Mesa Temple Lights

2008-12-20T11:21:00.000-08:00

So last night we decided to have a fun night out and go walk around the Mesa Temple grounds to see all the lights and go through the visitors center. It was interesting and really pretty. The interesting part because in the visitors center they had a world nativity scene exhibit. It was cool to see all the different kinds of culteres and how they display the nativity scene. I think my favorite was the one that Alaska does cause its pretty cool. Mallory's favorite was the wooden hand carved display from Israel. The lights were very cool too cause we saw some lights that we had never seen before and we want to go buy them, lol. But here are just a few pictures that we took in front of the relection pond of us and we went with Jake and Madi so we took a picture of the four of us.

JUST A LITTLE UPDATE....

2008-12-11T19:53:00.000-08:00

So alot has changed since we have been married. First off, the puppies are big now( well Bella is 5.12 and Maya is 5.1, but thats big for them) They are turning out to be two expensive investments. Bella some how got ringworm and we have been treating that for like a month and now Maya has it. I guess it takes months to go completely away, uhh what a pain! We (Well Jesse) laid down grass in our side yard which made potty training so much easier! They are doing great now and love going through the doggy door! Although the carpet is still going to need to be replaced, they were worth it.

As for me and Jesse, alot has changed with us too. I got fired from my job the end of October, oops... but it was from me missing to much being sick all the time. Which I am doing alot better, I haven't been sick in a while (Cross your fingers) and a couple weeks after that Jesse got laid off from his job at Henry Brown. They got laid off about half of the employees. So we were a little stressed for a while but I got a job working at this super cute clothing boutique called Junky Trunk off Val Vista and Southern, I work part time so next semester I am going to go to school full time. Jesse is selling alarms with his brother Jake, and doing really well at it. He too is going to go to school next semester. So we will both be working part time and going to school full time at MCC. Hopefully I can finish up soon so we can start having kids! Well thats all thats new with us, I can't wait for the holidays and my birthday (Dec. 27th) I love this time of year! Love you all!

Honeymoon Photos!

2008-12-07T15:18:00.000-08:00

Well after many tries of trying to get all of our honeymoon pictures up, we have finally gotten them up here. First I dropped my laptop and broke it and had to get it fixed and then we uploaded all the photos on Mallorys laptop and then it shut off and we lost the slideshow we created and this literally happened about 5 times. So finally after doing it right after church we got blessed and were able to get the photos up. So enjoy the pictures and feel free to leave your comments. We reccomend that anyone who hasn't gone to NYC to save up the money and take a trip, because it was the most wonderful time we have had in our lives.

CHRISTMAS TIME IS HERE... AT LEAST I THINK IT IS...

2008-11-16T20:58:00.001-08:00

Ok so now that I don't have a job and I have all the time in the world... I decided that I would put up the Christmas tree... I know Thanksgiving hasn't even passed, but I am obsessed with Christmas. Jesse and I have already loaded are Ipods with Christmas music and thats all we listen to. I am so glad that I married a man who appreciates Christmas as much as I do and lets me decorate for Christmas in the middle of November. I just hope he stays that way after I make him put the lights up... he might not be too happy after that! Anyways well I hope everyone likes my tree... I love decorating so I tried to make it match with my house and still like super cute! Let me know if you like it...

Next project putting up the Christmas lights... we'll see how that goes and if there is any injuries or fighting. Hw!

TWO NEW ADDITIONS TO THE RUCKER FAMILY

2008-10-13T10:41:00.000-07:00

So Jesse finally broke down and let me get the puppy I have always wanted.... I think its because I kept telling him I wanted a baby after attending our new ward and seeing all the young couples with kids. So we decided to go look at these Morkie puppies... I picked the one I wanted, but we decided that we would get her a friend, so we ended up coming home with two Morkies. One is six weeks old and her name is Bella (My choice) and the other is 7 weeks old and we named her Maya (Jesse's choice) They are the cutest things ever, but they keep going to the bathroom all over the house, since they are not potty trained yet. That is what we are working on with them. They whined all night and kept Jesse awake, he took care of them all night while I just slept through the noise. Oops! So we will keep you posted on how potty training is going and if we are going to be getting any sleep at night, I guess this is kind of like having a baby.

WEDDING PICTURES FINALLY UP...

2008-10-08T16:12:00.001-07:00

So the wedding pictures are finally up on the website, so go check them out and let me know what you think!

www.pictage.com/558805 and you have to sign in to look at them!

Love you all

UPDATE COMING SOON...

2008-10-06T13:47:00.000-07:00

So we will hopefully be getting the pictures back from the photographer this week and then we will post them for ya'll to see. We will also update about our honeymoon to New York City! The wedding was fabulous and the honeymoon was amazing! We can't wait to share pictures with everyone! Love you all

WEDDING

2008-09-15T10:00:00.001-07:00

Myspace Countdowns at WishAFriend.com

TWILIGHT: THE MOVIE

2008-09-04T10:32:00.000-07:00

So I am so stoked that TWILIGHT the movie is going to be released a month earlier on NOVEMBER 21, 2008. I can't wait to see it. I think I have watched the trailer like a thousand times hoping each time that maybe it will last a little longer. I'm a dork I know. I have been slacking, I still have the 4th book to read. Things have been to crazy with work and planning the wedding that I decided I will try to read it once the wedding is done! (Jesse won't be too happy about that, he doesn't like it when I read because I get too into the book and don't pay attention to him) Although he hates when I read and probably despises these books, he has already promised me he would go see the movie with me. I just hope he's ready to be surrounded by teenage girls (and most likely their mom's too) So if you haven't read the books, get on it! They are fabulous!

GIRLS NIGHT OUT!

2008-08-27T20:37:00.000-07:00

So last night was our girls night out. Kallie, Brittany, Marci, Michelle, Aimee, and I all went out for sushi at RA and ended up chatting for hours. So when I showed up, Marci and Brittany had me wear a feather boa and a veil with devil horns. I thought it was super cute, even though everyone kept looking at me! We ordered lots of sushi and caught up on girl talk for the next couple hours. (I was so excited to eat sushi since I rarely get to go because Jesse refuses to try it.) Marci and Brittany got me some fun gifts that I will be able to use on our wedding night. Last night was so the most fun I have had in a while. I was so excited that Michelle got to spend it with me. Finally my TX best friend and my AZ best friends together at once.

Bridal Shower

2008-08-27T20:28:00.000-07:00

So August 23rd, 2008 was my bridal shower. Kallie and my mom put together the cutest bridal shower. I absolutely loved it, it couldn't have been more perfect. I just wanted to say thanks to everyone who came, especially my best friend Michelle who flew all the way out here from Texas. Also, thanks to everyone who brought food and helped. We ended up getting alot of great presents for the house that I can't wait to use and I even got some lingerie! We are planning on setting up the rest of the house this weekend. I am so excited!

Girls Night!

2008-08-18T15:47:00.000-07:00

So I am a little late to post this, but last Wednesday I had some of my girlfriends (Brittany, Kallie, Marci, and Ashley) come over to help me put all the invitations together. It was a good thing the Olympics were on so while we caught up on girl talk, Jesse was entertained by the TV. The invitations turned out great and we had a blast catching up! So thanks to my girls who came and helped! You guys are the best!

A New Addition to Greenwald Family

2008-08-18T08:59:00.000-07:00

Well it looks as if Colby finally gets to be a Big Brother, Beth gave birth to a beautiful baby boy on August 16th around 10 PM. They have decided to name him Brody Austin Greenwald. Beth and the baby are doing fine and are expected to come home from the hospital today, Monday. Colby couldn't be more excited to be a big brother. He was announcing it to everyone last night at family dinner. So, Congratulations Greenwald family on your new addition!

Us!

2008-08-16T15:58:00.001-07:00

Well this is just a little quick posting of three pictures for everyone to see cause I said I'd put them up. These are the pictures of the wall I painted a while ago in the bedroom and also the entertainment unit we got from Ashley Furniture with the new TV as well. And the last picture is obviously just the house that we live in!

Engagement Photos

2008-08-07T20:52:00.000-07:00

Fun Time!

2008-08-07T19:52:00.001-07:00

Ok, so the last week has been quite the interesting one. Saturday, Mallory went in to get her extensions put in by her friend Kallie so that we could go down to Maricopa to get our engagement photos taken. Everything went well and she looked more beautiful than ever. So we pick up my sister Marissa who is taking the photos of us and start to head down there and everything is going as planned. As were driving right into Maricopa Mallory starts to have some pain in her sides and just gets a little quiet. So as were driving up to my parents I hear her on the phone talking to her mom saying how much pain she is in and I start to hear her sound as if she is crying so I get worried. So we go upstairs cause she says everything is fine and we get into our first outfit to go get pictures taken and she is in more pain than ever and can't barely move and get the energy to get pictures taken. So I take her to the urgent care center there and they run some tests, and we come to find out shes got kidney stones. So that put a hold on the pictures being taken. So I spend the weekend watching her in case she needs to go somewhere but everything went fine with the meds they gave her. So we wait a few days and on Tuesday Mallory decides to try and get the photos taken again so she gets her hair done again and we head down to Maricopa again. Everything was perfect this time. No kidney stone attacks and we both looked very cute in the photos. We ran a little short on time but still got plenty of cool pictures taken. Above is a little slide show that was put together and feel free to leave comments on the photos so we know which ones are better to help us choose which one to put in the announcement. That's been our progress on the wedding stuff thus far and we'll be sure to keep you updated.