A Happy Home is Filled with Love and Laughter

32 weeks and positive for Group B Strep :(

Beej & Chris

Just got back from the doctors office and feeling kind of down. Apparently I tested positive for Group B Strep so I will need to get an antibiotic at least 4 hours before giving birth and then every 4 hours until I have the baby. It may not seem like a big deal to some, but BJ and I had just talked about our "dream birth" after our Lamaze class this last Tuesday and had decided to stay at home as long as possible before going into the hospital. After finding out I am positive for Group B Strep I have so many concerns and worries.
- It obviously varies with each person and each pregnancy, but your second birth tends to be about 1/2 as long as your first. Since my labor with Kaylee was 10 1/2 hours long that would mean this labor could be in the 5 hour range which doesn't give me very long at all before I need to be hooked up to an IV getting my antibiotic. (My OB said they could run the antibiotic in about 1/2 hour but sometimes the Penicillin burns so going slower is better).
- At our Lamaze class they told us that since my water broke with my first pregnancy that I have a 50% chance of my water breaking again with this pregnancy. If my water breaks we will just go straight in and get the antibiotic asap. But if my water doesn't break I am just concerned about when to go into the hospital. Before finding out I was positive for Group B Strep as I stated above, we planned on staying home for a while. Now- I don't know when to go in. With Kaylee even after my water broke, it took a good hour 1/2 before contractions even started and then another little bit before it was consistent and somewhat painful. Not to mention I have been feeling braxton hicks contractions a ton with this pregnancy and some of it is pretty uncomfortable. So how will I know when to go in? How long is my labor going to be? Oh- I wish I knew those questions because then I could just stay home until I absolutely had to go in!
The reasons why I want to stay home for a while before going to the hospital is....
- I am so much more comfortable in my own home.
- I can eat and drink and take a bath whenever I want
- If I come into the hospital dilated to a 7 and doing good with my Lamaze techniques then the nurses will see how well I am doing and not continue to question me or push for an epidural.
- I am worried about being able to move around and deal with the pain while being hooked up to an IV for fluids and for my antibiotic.
- Walking around the hospital and having the nurses look at me as I pass their desk a million times or saying things like, "keep it up- you are doing good" or "you are going around again?" is just distracting and makes me want to stay in my room. I know they mean well but I am just a worrier and I will just be worried how distracting I am to them or how annoying it must be to them to have us walk by them over and over again (this is how I felt as I walked around at Lakeview while laboring with Kaylee).

Then there is the chance that I will develop thrush from the antibiotics causing pain as I try to breastfeed. I am planning on taking a probiotic or at least some yogurt a few days before my due date to help prevent that but who really knows when I will have this baby.

Ugh I am just frustrated. Here is to hoping my water breaks at home again and that my nurses are understanding, and that I get there in time to get my antibiotic but don't feel restricted with my IV.

Just because...

Beej & Chris

I love my curious Kaylee girl

I was setting up the bassinet/co-sleeper with the help of Kaylee of course. She decided it would be fun to try it out herself.

"You can't see me mom!"

After she played in her "secret hiding place" she decided to put her dolls in the bassinet to sleep. I know it will be an adjustment, but I am really excited for Kaylee to meet her little baby brother and to see how much of a helper she will be.

Kaylee and Mommy Time

Beej & Chris

Last Friday Kaylee was being super duper whiny and it was driving me crazy. I can handle the screaming and crying but the whining is just too much for me. I decided it was a good day to get out of the house and use our passes to the Discovery Gateway in Salt Lake.

Kaylee and I had soo much fun! I really enjoy going out and playing with Kaylee all on my own. It is just fun to have quality time together- just the two of us. Plus we can go whenever we want and leave whenever we want.

Kaylee is definitely a social butterfly and makes friends wherever she goes. She was even sharing the baby dolls with this little boy (I'm sure his mom was pretty excited about that).

The best part about this age is that when I say it is time to go, Kaylee just waved her hand and said "bye bye" and we left without a single tear. I know this will change soon, so I am enjoying it while I can.

We stopped at Wendy's on the way home and then set up a blanket in the front room for a picnic. Kaylee enjoyed the fries but refused to even try a bite of the frosty. ha ha-silly girl.

The day that started out with frustration and me losing my patience, ended up being such a fun day I will always remember. I love spending time with my Kaylee girl!!! How great is it to be a mom?!

Playdate with Kaylee's best friend Brinlee

Beej & Chris

A few weeks ago while I was watching Brinlee (my friend Challae's daughter) we decided to go over to the park across the street from my house and had a blast!

They did pretty good at sharing the stroller. But when I put Kaylee in front she would just lay on Brinlee and squish her, so we kept Brinlee in front. :)

The video below shows how much these girls loved the swing. They would just talk and talk to each other and smile and giggle.

These girls were at the park and really loved playing with Kaylee and Brinlee. At first though they kept jumping on top of this table saying "she's going to get us!" and Kaylee would run and chase them.

Kaylee going down the slide all by herself- what a big girl!

The girls tried to carry Kaylee and the girl in blue said, "Dont worry, I got her bum!" ha ha

This was our attempt at having Kaylee in front before she started to squish Brinlee

Kaylee's first pigtails

Beej & Chris

Last Sunday with BJ's help we were able to get Kaylee's hair into two small pigtails. I LOVE them!!!

30 weeks & 1st Lamaze Class

Beej & Chris

Don't you love my mad picture taking skills :)

Ever heard the saying "when you are pregnant you just have this glow about you". Looks like I captured that "glow" he he

10 weeks left! W...H....A......T?!? I have got lots to do still!!!! Bj and I went to our first lamaze class last night while Papa Bruce and Grandma Sherry watched Kaylee. I was a little nervous to go to the class because I had been having symptoms of a kidney infection that was then causing me to have contractions and a lot of pain. But I figured this is the perfect- I can use the skills they teach in Lamaze to deal with the pain :) The class was amazing and I am really excited for the next 5 classes. The past few days have been super stressful and emotional. I have cried a lot! But when we got finished with the class I was soo calm and slept better last night than I have for a long time. Today as I did a few visits for work- I was just in the most mellow and calm mood. I wasn't rushing as I drove around. I just took my time and relaxed without a worry in my mind. It was soo nice. In the class we talked about nutrition, the positive and negative parts of being pregnant, and then the instructor turned out the lights and had us all lay on the ground and went through "progressive relaxation". As we were relaxing she would have us think of our brain and how it sends messages to our bodies and our heart and then she stopped and talked about our heart and had us make a list of things we were grateful for today. I thought of Kaylee giving me kisses and hugs when I was crying earlier and then when she was pointing to a picture of me on the fridge and kept saying "Mama...Mama". We then thought about our "dream" birth, pictured a special place, and then our couch "BJ" would do what is called "touch relax". He would touch different muscles on shoulder, arm etc.. and just tell me to relax. We laughed the first time because she said "Coaches- in your big voice, say...Relax". lol Big boy voice. I actually was able to really relax in the class which is surprising because there was like 10 couples there so a lot to be distracted with and I was still feeling the cramps and pain from earlier, but I really could visualize going through this birth and having BJ just being there and coaching me through it all. Whenever I would lose focus I would think of Kaylee. I know this may sounds weird to some people, but I really liked this class. I think it will be beneficial for more than the birth of this baby boy, but just helping with stress and pain in daily life.

Secrets of Success

This is BJ writing (yes, it is a miracle!) At my work, each employee has the opportunity to do a presentation called "Secrets of Success" where we can talk about things that have helped us find or be successful. You can talk about whatever you want really, and there is no set format. Along with the presentation, they have us do a write up on what we presented. I figured this would be a great place to post that write up.

While all of our endeavors in life may not be successful, we can find “secrets of success” in everything that we do. Looking over the many experiences of my life, I’ve had so many opportunities to succeed and many teachers of success. I would like to share just a small number of the experiences and observations from my life that have taught me about success.

One of my passions in life is sports. I enjoy participating in and being a fan of sports. During high school, I joined the football team. I was by no means a gifted football player, and had to compete with some very talented players in order to play on the team. However, as I gave everything I had, my talent increased and I became a starter on the team over players who were far more gifted than me, but who didn’t put in the work to succeed. I also learned the secret (or lesson) of hard work from the University of Utah football team in 2008-2009 when they beat Alabama in the Sugar Bowl. From these and many other sporting experiences, I’ve learned that hard work helps people be successful.

From the time that I was 8 years old, I’ve had the opportunity to be involved in Scouting in some manner. There are so many opportunities to succeed and secrets to be learned. One thing that I’ve learned from Scouting is that we must accomplish something in order to succeed. The main purpose of the Scouting program is to help boys succeed at a time in their lives when they don’t otherwise see many successes. While it may be obvious that we must accomplish something to succeed, it is one of my secrets of success.

As a developer, I spend a fair amount of time with my computer and it has helped to make me successful in my career and life. One of the many ways that it has helped me is by helping me to stay organized and simplify the things of my life. In order to succeed, we need to simplify.

Most who present on their secrets of success would agree that family has a large role in their success. I am no different. The many lessons of my family could easily fill up this page with successes I’ve learned from them. However, there are three that have been more influential than any others. First, I have a twin brother who I have always competed with. That competition has pushed me to be the very best me and I would not be the person I am today, or yesterday, without someone to push myself.

When I was 5 years old, my parents were divorced and I moved away with my Dad. Many have seen the devastation that comes from broken homes, but I’ve learned from this that sometimes our greatest failures can lead to some of our greatest successes. My dad was remarried and I learned to accept 5 new siblings and a new step mom. I learned to communicate with and care for a Mom who lived at a distance from me. Never in my life have I succeeded at something as difficult as allowing a group of people to become my family.

Although a failure lead to a great success, it can’t build lasting success. My family has also taught me how important happiness is to success. When I accomplish anything in life, I think of my wife and daughter and how the happiness they bring to me push me forward to all my great successes.

Speaking of my wife brings me memories of how much I love dancing. I always have, and probably always will. I am by no means a great dancer, but a passionate dancer. My wife and I met country swing dancing and it taught me how important passion is to your success in whatever you do.

Finally, many of my great secrets of success I learned from the Italian people. I was able to serve my mission there between 2004 and 2006. My time away from things I was familiar with taught me that as we appreciate the things we have, we learn how to better use them. Most importantly, the Italians taught me that in order to succeed we need to remember our past successes. Although Italy is a great nation, much of its current success is based on its history, and the great things that have happened before.

From Scouting to Italy and everywhere in between that my life has taken me, I have learned there are principles of success in all that we do. What a wonderful opportunity that I have had to succeed and I will continue to seek for and implement additional secrets of success as they come my way.