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!

35/35

I haven't been able to blog in so long because of the craziness of moving into our new house and lack of a power cord for the home computer. We closed on our house November 5th and have slowly begun unpacking everything. Not a day goes by that I don't have to go out to the garage or down to the basement to search through boxes for something I need.

We're working really hard on Jackson's room and this weekend I'm hoping to get it fully ready for him although he won't be sleeping in there for a few months. We're going with a jungle theme and I'll post pictures as soon as it gets finished.

We set up our Christmas tree on Monday and our house looks so much more cheerful with it up. I love Christmas time.

Here's an update on baby Jackson and my progress. 35 weeks down and only 35 days to go. I can't believe it:

How far along? 35 weeks

Total weight gain/loss? 14 pounds gained so far.

Stretch marks? They just keep crawling up my expanding belly. I've just noticed a weird one right above my belly button too!

Sleep: Except for the occasional heart burn and acid reflux, I sleep wonderfully.

Best moment this week: Feeling Jackson's movements get even bigger - I didn't think it was possible, but he's proven me wrong.


Movement: He likes his butt to hang out near my right sided ribs, feet and knees in the middle to left side of my belly and his head and hands down in my pelvis. He has moments of crazy activity that just make me laugh. I can also find his little feet and tickle them as he moves them up and down my left side.


Food cravings: Mexican food. Yum yum yum.


Gender: He's still a BOY!


Labor Signs: Still some Braxton Hicks contractions but no real signs of labor, which is alright because he's not full term for another 2 weeks.


Belly Button in or out? It is now officially even with the rest of my belly and sometimes threatens to pop out. If Jackson sits in a certain position or puts his knee up against it, it becomes an outie.

What I miss: Not much. I love being pregnant, and have had a great time with it so far.


What I am looking forward to: Christmas and holding my baby, seeing his little body that I've been feeling move inside of me for so long.


Weekly Wisdom: Tums are a pregnant woman's best friend. Drink lots of water because I have NO sympathy for pregnant women that end up in the ER because of dehydration. It's not hard to drink water - juice and milk work great too.


Milestones: This is my 35/35. 35 weeks down and 35 days to go. What a great milestone!