April 29, 2009 - April 29, 2010

April 29, 2009:

April 29, 2010:

Last year, on this day, my little Jackson was the size of a poppyseed. I woke up on the morning of April 29, 2009 feeling hopeful. I was hopeful because that was the day I knew I was going to take a pregnancy test. I am so happy that it came out positive! Jackson lights up my life and makes every day worth waking up to.

Jackson will also be 4 months old tomorrow! Time has gotten away from me again ... this past month he has learned to talk louder (didn't think that was possible but he has proved us wrong). Whenever I have him on his back, he likes to grab hold of both sides of my face (in most cases, he grabs two hands full of hair) and looks in my eyes and just starts screaming at me. Happy screams, of course. It always cracks me up.

Jackson has also discovered his cute little feet. He reaches for them, looks at them and tries to bring them to his mouth. I can just let him lay on a blanket on the floor and he'll play with his feet forever.

I am hoping that his Dr. will give us the go-ahead to start some rice cereal and vegetables soon. This mama is getting ready to retire the her "milk-cow" life and move onto the wonderful world of bibs, spoons, oatmeal and spaghetti all over the walls and ceiling.

In the news of Davy and Nicholya: In May, I am starting an online college course at Grand Canyon University. I will be working on a dual major: Elementary Education and Special Education. I'm so excited to be working towards a real goal for myself and my family. I've always wanted to be a teacher, and now, for once, I feel like it's within reach. It should take me a while to get my Bachelor's degree, but when I'm finished, Jackson will be getting ready to go into school himself and we'll have the same "hours". I won't be the stay at home mom I wanted to be, but this way, I can be working only while my kids are in school.

Kids ... yes, I said kids. No, I'm not pregnant again. (Thank goodness) but Davy and I do plan on having more children. Just a little clarification for anyone wondering: No second baby anytime soon unless God changes our plans and we have a "surprise".

Davy is still working at Coca-Cola driving his giant truck all over Pocatello to deliver you good people the caffeine you think you so desperately need. (Don't worry, I need it too. Don't get between me and my Coke!) He injured his back at work a couple weeks ago so he's now on light duty. Which also means he's also getting light duty pay. I don't think he's really happy working there, so we'll see what happens when his contract is up this October.

That's about all for our little family. We're looking forward to next month: Mother's Day, my birthday and our anniversary all in one month, Go me!

3 Months!

Jackson turned three months old yesterday and I'm still wondering where all that time has gone...

The time has gone to Jackson learning how to smile and giggle for us. He loves to wake up and smile at his mama. And I, of course love to see every one of those smiles and hear every one of the giggles.
The time has gone to my baby boy exploring the world around him. Each day he grows and grows and I'm just so excited I get to see him do it.

The time has gone to him growing 4 inches and gaining over 4 pounds. What a big boy! And doesn't he look good in Daddy's tie?

The time has gone to Mama and Daddy
learning how to meet each and every one of our little boy's needs, and Oh does he need a lot!





The time has gone to our little boy learning how to "talk" to us in his sweet baby babble. His favorite word is "GOO" and he uses it often. He's also learned to blow bubbles with the copious amount of slobber that he accumulates during the day.

Our baby is growing up right before our eyes and we are bitter-sweetly loving every single second of it.

Happy Valentine's Day!

The past 6 weeks has been full of so many ups and downs. More ups than downs, however, so that's good. Davy and I are doing well - we're still adjusting to being parents and are having so much fun along the way. We've really come to understand our baby boy's wants and needs. If I don't know what's wrong, Davy can figure it out and the other way around. We're so thankful for each day that we have with Jackson and know that we are so blessed.

Here are some pictures from the last 6 weeks; the first 6 weeks of our little boy's life:

Going home from the hospital at 2 days old

First bath!

We quickly realized just how much he loves his bouncy chair.

He definitely prefers it to the swing.

Jackson and his second cousin, Penny. Little Penny was due 5 days before Jackson. Jackson came 8 days early and Penny came 10 days late! Can you believe the size difference? I have a big boy!

Jackson, right before his blessing. Daddy did such a good job of giving him his blessing.

What a special day that was.

I'm feeling extra loving and thankful this weekend as it is Valentine's Day on Sunday. I don't really love V-day, but to me, this year, it's just a day to remember to be so thankful for family. I never knew that I could love someone so much until I gave birth to my son. I am so in love with him and my husband.

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

Labor and Delivery

Meet Jackson Alvin David Crockett, born December 30, 2009 at 5:18 p.m. Weighing in at 8 pounds 1 ounce and measuring 20 inches long.

I'm excited to finally share my labor and delivery experience. It was such a long, hard process so I feel like I need to write this down to remember how my son came into this world.



Tuesday, December 29th at around 5:30 p.m. Jackson was much more active in the womb than usual, it was a constant, almost painful pushing and kicking. I got up from my chair to get some more water and started to "pee my pants" I couldn't stop the gushing so I knew that my water was breaking. I told Davy and we started packing for the hospital. I was excited to know that my body wanted to go into labor and I think Jackson's activity just before that helped my water break, our little guy was ready to come into the world! It was so exhilarating knowing that we were going to meet our little boy within 24 hours.



We arrived at the hospital around 6:30 p.m. where they tested my fluid and discovered that my water had indeed broken. They checked my cervix only to discover that I was still 75% effaced and only dilated to a 1. Because I wasn't having much progression, at around 7 p.m. they started me on an IV of pitocin to get my body kicked into gear. The contractions were coming, they were uncomfortable but certainly not too painful. I was far too excited to go to sleep so we just sat there, waiting for the nurse to check my cervix again. At around 3 a.m. they checked my cervix again and I'd slowly dilated to a 3.



I labored all night, getting little sleep in between contractions. They were painful and I definitely had to breathe through them. By 10 a.m. Wednesday, I thought for sure that I'd progressed because of the pain of the contractions. The nurse checked my cervix and gave us the bad news that I was still dilated to a 3, so she sent the doctor in to discuss options with us. He told us that I needed to progress soon or else I'd be forced to have a c-section.

I had surgery on my back in 2001 and needed to take my x-rays in for the anesthesiologist to decide if I could have an epidural for pain. The nurse anesthetist looked over my x-rays and decided that they would not be able to give me an epidural because of the scar tissue in my lower back, which could lead to some serious complications. I wasn't exactly set on the idea of an epidural, so I wasn't too heartbroken by this news.



While my doctor was in the room, he noted how much pain I was in and called for an anesthesiologist to give us a second opinion on the epidural. She came into the room and told us the exact same thing the first anesthesiologist told us. I was upset because the pain was getting harder to breathe through and I was losing energy and confidence quickly. The nurse offered me a narcotic pain reliever called Nubain that could be administered through my IV. We were hoping that the pain reliever would relax my body just enough so that my body would progress quickly to get our baby out. I immediately felt the effects of the Nubain and slipped into a deep sleep.



I awoke around 12 p.m. to some really horrible contractions. The nurse checked my cervix again and discovered that I'd progressed to a 6! It was such a relief to hear that this process might be over soon and I could finally meet my son. Because of my progress, the doctor decided to let me continue laboring instead of going immediately into a c-section. They were having problems with their monitering equipment. They were no longer doing a good job of monitering my contractions and the baby's heartbeat. This is essential information so the doctor had to insert an IUTC device to measure my contractions from the inside. He also had to insert an electrode into Jackson's head that was the best way of knowing his heartbeat. The insertion of the IUTC was worse than any pain that I've ever had in my entire life. I'd been so strong up until that point that I just screamed and screamed until it was over.



At around 3 p.m. the contractions seemed like they were one on top of the other and I could get no relief. The breathing exercises I'd been practicing thus far were harder to concentrate on and more intense. My doctor came in to check my cervix to find out I was dilated to a 9. My body was ready to push and kept trying on it's own everytime I had a contraction. I had to fight off the urge to just let my body push because my cervix wan't ready yet. I did that for about an hour and had lost so much strength that I just finally gave in. We discovered that Jackson was sunny-side up and not in a favorabe station for vaginal delivery. I tried to push, but nothing was coming from it. The doctor checked my cervix again to find out that it had begun swelling and there was just no way I was going to give birth vaginally.

I signed some forms to go into the operating room for a c-section and off we went. Davy and my mom were extremely worried and anxious, but we all realized that this was the only way to have a healthy baby.

I awoke in recovery to hear that I had a sweet little 8 pound 1 ounce baby boy that was 20 inches long. All I could do was smile and be thankful that I'd woken up from the anesthesia to finally meet my son. I thanked Heavenly Father for helping me through everything and the chance to raise my little boy.

I waited and woke up some more in the recovery room for about an hour when I was finally wheeled up to my room. Seeing and holding my son for the first time was the best feeling in the world. He is so perfect in every way and I'm so thankful that I have the chance to love him and be his mommy.

Merry Christmas - 38 weeks pregnant

Davy and I had a wonderful 2nd Christmas together. We spent Christmas Eve with my family eating delicious food and enjoying the company. Christmas day was also full of family and friends and laughter. I love the holidays.

We invested in a new digital camera for Christmas so that we'll have pictures of our baby boy and hopefully get some pictures of our home since it's finally clean from most of the packing. Here's a picture of me on Christmas morning, 38 weeks pregnant:Jackson's crib is finally at our house! Now we just need time to get it put together. We also bought all of the materials so that Davy can start working on shelves in Jackson's closet for the millions of clothes that this little boy already has. I also took time this weekend to wash the car seat cover and get the car seat ready for him to come home in, now we just need the baby :] .

We were hoping to have our baby boy by now but it looks like he's really comfortable in the womb so we're not going to bother him too much. There is only 10 days until his due date, however, so we're hoping to meet him before then. We remind him often that he can come out anytime now and I think he's listening. I've had horrible pelvis pain the last few days and have felt his head engaging and getting further down. He's still so active, there's just so much less room for him that now I notice every single movement and I know I'll miss it.

This year has been so great for Davy and me. We've had so many blessings come our way and I'm just so thankful that we're moving on to what promises to be an even better year.

38 Week Update

Well ... I did not have such a great day at the Dr.'s office. My original appointment time was at 9:15 this morning. I got all the way to their office only to find out my Dr. was doing a C-section and would not be back until 10:30. I was offered an appointment on a different day and I refused to be seen any other day than today, so they changed the appointment time to 11 this morning. I had to wait for almost an hour before they got me into the room and another 15 minutes of waiting for the Dr. once I was back in the room. No big deal, just a lot of boredom and time wasted that I could have done without.

She checked me and I'm 75% effaced and still dilated to a one. That means I only have 25% more to go before things will start to move along quicker. My doctor doesn't think I'll make it past next week to my due date. GREAT NEWS. Then she tells me that she's out of town all of next week. I'll be stuck with the "doctor on call". A freaking stranger will be delivering my baby if I do happen to deliver next week, which my doctor thinks is likely.

Am I mistaken in the fact that the Dr. you choose at the beginning of your pregnancy is the one that you want to deliver your baby? Needless to say, I'm disappointed in my doctor. I have been upset all day, but have slowly come to terms with this news. I just want my baby to be healthy and as long as I have a doctor to deliver him, I am happy.

So - we expect Jackson to arrive sometime next week, if not sooner. He may surprise us and come late, but I think he wants out - haha. If you're reading this: Send me some labor dust!

37 week Update

I went to the Dr. this morning for my first internal and 37 week appointment. I had high blood pressure but no protein in my urine so I'm still doing okay. I'm also up 2 more pounds which is perfect!
I am dilated to a one and my cervix is thinning. I'm also measuring over 38 weeks so I hope that means we'll be meeting our little boy soon. It's good to know that my body is getting ready for labor and I'm looking forward to next week's appointment and for more progress!