New Year Project: 365 Days of Love Notes

With this year quickly coming to an end I can't help but think how much has changed in our lives. I am so happy and blessed to be where we are today. I often try to keep a few goals for myself to achieve through the new year, but in one aspect of my life I haven't set any goals and that is with my spiritual life. I feel that there's always room to grow your spiritual life but I just never created a goal there. I recently came across this blog entry from A story of a Rose. She had a wonderful project idea that I want to take part in. That is doing 365 of Love Notes.

In her blog she talks about how it's easy to fall into the complaining mode when you are carrying on with the daily grind (who isn't guilty of that). But instead she wanted to try to focus on all of the blessings and find little things everyday based on the word that she has picked for the year. For example it could be presence as she did, joy, peace, love, patience, gratitude, anything you choose. You pick whatever works for you and keep that in mind each day. In her words,  "I want to find the joy, beauty, and blessings of each day to remember God’s love and grace. These, are going to be my little love notes from God." I think this is a beautiful project idea and I want to take on this challenge. If you want to read more about this project and what she has done, you can find her blog here. I'm excited for this, and I hope that it inspires you to do the same.

Sold My Car

After 11 years with my 2003 Corolla, I finally sold it. We wanted to sell it while it still had some value left that way we could use the money towards a new car. Josh laughs at me on how attached I was to this car. It took a lot of convincing for me to finally say yes. I told him, it's like peeling off a ban-daid. "Okay! Just do it!" I said it just like that in a pained voice, and my eyes closed. LoL!

There was never going to be a good time to do it. No time like the present right? I couldn't argue and say, when the car dies we'll get a new one. If you've done your research you know Toyota's last forever. I guess I had that attachment because it was my very first car I bought on my own and paid off. I got that car my senior year in high school and it got me through college and more. She was barely broken in when we sold her at 120,503 miles to be exact. The people who bought her were a very deserving young couple who had another Corolla too. They were adding my car to their fleet, so it made me feel a little better about it. I was able to get very close to my asking price. Did I mention it sold in 4 hours? Yes, 4 hours!! It was a very good car and I will miss it. 

So long to the BEST CAR EVER!

Ugly Sweater Party was a success

Yesterday we finally had our cousins Ugly Sweater Party. Every so often I like to get together with all of my first cousins. We are lucky in that way that we all still live relatively close. It's nice to catch up with each other and just have some plain old fun without the parents. There was lot's of laughing and rowdyness which we do best.

That's one thing I cherish the most about my cousins, that we can all be silly and laugh at ourselves afterwards with no judgement. I had such a nice time visiting that I even forgot to take a group picture of everyone who came. But believe me, we were a full house! I did do a little DIY project and set up a photo booth. That was a lot of fun that I think everyone enjoyed. I'm so glad that we are able to do things like this around the holidays. It makes for great memories!

I even was able to get Josh to join in some of the photo fun. (even though he refused to wear an ugly sweater)

Ugly Sweater Banner

Josh and I decided that we would go ahead and host a Christmas Party for the cousins again. A couple of years ago we made it a Hot Cocoa theme. This year we thought we would try the Ugly Sweater theme. I thought it would be a lot of fun and started thinking of the fun stuff we could do. Of course any good party has fun details. It's what makes it more special. I came across this idea on Pinterest for a Ugly Sweater Banner. (http://blog.silhouetteamerica.com/2014/12/ugly-holiday-sweater-clothesline-banner) I thought the idea was brilliant and got started on my version right away. It was really very simple and thought I would share with you all how I made my version.

You will Need

- Sweater templates
- Card stock holiday paper
- Scissors
- Glue (Elmers Glue or Glue Stick)
- Mini clothes line clips
- Some kind of string to hang them on. (Twine, Ribbon, or Yarn)
- Any other details you want to add to the sweaters (pom pom's, glitter, stickers, etc.)

• First find a template of a Sweater. I found mine on Microsoft Word. Cut out the perimeter of the sweater. 
• Next trace the inner part of the sweater to make what looks like a vest. Then cut that out to use as a templete too. So now you should have two templates. 
• Once that is done you can use various holiday card stock craft paper to make your sweaters. Simply trace your sweater templates and have get creative making them ugly. 

 I chose to add different embellishments like a snowflake, gingerbread men, snowmen, a star and candy canes and stockings. Hopefully these will inspire you if you are thinking of making an Ugly Sweater Banner of your own.

Slouchy Beanie for Toddler

Last year I came across the cutest photo on Pinterest. It was a pattern for a slouchy beanie that I thought was so adorable. I loved the originality of this hat and immediately knew I wanted to make this one day. Of course my problem was that I don't have a little girl of my own. But I do have a little cousin who I thought this would be perfect for. Since I had a little extra time on my hands I got to work. I wanted to make this hat before Christmas so that she could wear it during the Christmas season if she wanted. Below is the image I found that inspired me. Isn't this little girl a doll? I was so excited to finish this project and wrap it up for an early Christmas gift. I just hope that it fits my little cousin good and it keeps her nice and warm this winter.

Photo found on Ravelry.com (http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/frieda-slouchy-crochet-hat)

I later was doing some more browsing and found this pattern that looked very close to the part done in red. This one is called the Divine Hat. This pattern was free and is actually for an adult. You can find it here. Because I was making mine for a toddler I had to modify the pattern slightly.

Hat
I followed Lines 1-7 just as the pattern says and continued to repeat line 7 all the rest of the way until I had a total of 18 rows all together. This allowed for the slouch.

Brim
For the length of the brim you want to start 3 lines away from your starting point. (Note: This "starting point" will now be the bottom of your hat. It will be at the neck of the person wearing it.) Here is a visual to help you understand what I did here.

Start on the left and go in front of the hat and you will end on the right. The part in between the Start and End will not have anything because it is the base of the hat worn by the neck.

For the stitches on the brim I did something a little different. I kind of just made this part up to give me the look I was going for. I'm sure there's some type of proper name for this stitch, but I couldn't find it.
I started off by doing a slip stitching along the edge of the hat just three lines away from my "starting point". When I came back around I started to do what would be a Half Double Crochet, but once you have 3 loops on your hook I just pulled the 3rd loop all the way through the other two loops on the hook instead of doing another yarn over again. I did this in ever single hole back and forth until I had a total of 5 rows.

Braids
I cut 30 pcs of yarn about 22 inches long. I put 15 on each side and looped them through a hole on the edge. Fix them so that they are about 15 inches on each side. Then braid them and tie them off with another piece of string. I trimmeded up the edges so that they are mostly even.

Pom Pom
There are several ways you can make a Pom Pom so I wont try to explain that. Just do whatever method you like beset and tie it onto your hat. Or you can leave it without it. Since my hat was for a toddler I thought she would like a Pom Pom.

My finished hat looked like this. Not too far off from the original picture I was working towards.

Here's how it should look on. Sorry no creepy manikin heads in this house to display it on, so my paper towel holder will have to do. LoL!

Finishing touches. I added a "Handmade for you with Love by Blandina" tag

Crochet Christmas Elf Hat

Some time during the summer I came across some ideas on Pinterest for baby elf hats. I thought they were adorable and would make a wonderful photo prop. You could buy these on Zulily or on Etsy, but why buy one when you can make one yourself for half the cost?

I did some research and found several patterns. There was one that I liked best, but it was only for a toddler to adult size. This is the link to the blog spot I used: http://two-little-cs.blogspot.com/2014/11/elf-hat-crochet-pattern.html. I followed most of the pattern, but I modified it slightly and stopped at 50 rounds so that it would fit Lorenzo's head. He's 9 months now, so that would give you an idea if you are thinking of making one for your little one.

I just finished it up this weekend and it turned out great. I did have to look up a YouTube video to help me with the "magic circle" part, but other than that it was so easy. Here is the link I used in case you need the visual too https://youtu.be/59fTgXD1vjg. I had so much fun making this and it really got me into the Christmas spirit already. I just wish I knew more little ones to make one for.

This is Lorenzo wearing his elf hat

Sophie's Back Home

Today I brought home our Sophie's remains. I can't help, but feel a sense of relief that she's back home with us. I don't know how to explain it, but there was this aching pain in my heart when I said goodbye and then they took our Sophie away. The thing that surprised us most about this whole experience is the amount of time that it takes to get your dogs remains back from the crematorium. It was exactly four weeks. I understand that these things take time, but in my opinion it prolonged the closure. So you can understand why we feel a little relieved. We're happy to have her back home.

Missing our Sophie

I found this poem a couple of days ago. It is so sweet and touching.  I miss our Sophie so much! I knew I would have a broken heart when this day came, but I never knew I would shed this many tears. We spent most of our day yesterday out of the house trying to stay busy. Things are just not the same around here.

Golden Eyes

In Loving Memory.

When golden eyes no longer glow,
and we both know it's time to go,

Don't look at me with eyes so sad,
but think of better times we had,

When sunlight did upon us shine,
and happy days were yours and mine,

And through the grass we both did run,
and on our backs we felt the sun,

Think not of this dark final hour,
think not of when our lives turned sour,

Think not of hopelessness and pain,
but think of joy and laugh again,

For in that final act of love,
you released me to heaven above,

Where finally from pain I'm free,
where one day you will join with me,

Where together again we will rejoice,
and you and I as with one voice,

Will in perfect harmony sing,
of the joy and pain that love can bring,

And remember me just as I will,
always think of you until,

At last again I see your face,
grieve not, I am in a better place.

By Carol Walker

~ Rest in Peace Sophie ~

Goodbye Sweet Sophie

Yesterday we had to make the hardest decision. We said our final goodbye to our sweet Sophie. Although she spent 10 years with us, she lived a good 12 years and 5 months to be exact. That's long full life for a Golden Retriever.

Our girl's pain had became constant and she was suffering. Even with all the medication we gave her to the max it wasn't helping. Her health declined rather quickly. It started with her no longer having the strength to get up on her own. Soon she struggled with the two steps we have to go outside. Next she stopped eating her own food. Then at last we had to carry her outside to go potty. Even that became a struggle because she had a hard time doing her business. Our sweet girl no longer seemed happy and we made the decision to put her to rest.

Sophie's final week consisted of a nice long walk around our neighborhood in a new red wagon. We made sure we walked the whole pack one last time. Gina our poodle and Andy our Yorkie all followed her in the wagon. She always loved her walks in her younger days. She also got a good grooming from me at home, something she always liked. We gave her fresh sliced apples for a treat everyday. This was a once in a while treat for her before. She had real people food in her final days, mostly because that's all she would eat. She got extra petting and loves from the whole family.

A short time ago Josh had a friend who went through the same thing and they opted to put their dog down at home. Josh always thought that would be the way he wanted Sophie to go. To our surprise our long time Vet told us she did do house calls. We agreed that this what we wanted for our Sophie. Like any dog she never liked going to the Vet much. So we surely didn't want her final moments to be fearful or nervous. Instead we wanted her to be in the comfort of those closest to her in the home that she knows. Many might say that they don't want that memory in their home, I know I didn't at first. But Josh helped me thing of it from a different perspective. Ultimately we were thinking of Sophie. For us humans we'll remember that sadness for a while, but with time I know it will get better. We at least know that Sophie's final moments with us was somewhere she knows and loves.

When the moment arrived Josh and I sat on the floor with her and pet her in all her favorite places. We told her what a good girl she was and that we love her lot's. I gave her one last good pet under her chin and she rested her head on my lap. That was our final goodbye to our first furbaby and long time faithful companion. We miss her so much already. Things just won't be the same around here. Our house is a little more empty, but she will forever be in our hearts. 

Sophie

May 5, 2003 - October 9, 2015

Crochet Baby Blanket

While I was pregnant with Lorenzo I started this baby blanket project. I was so excited because for the first time I would be making a blanket for my own baby. In the past I tried to crochet baby blankets for my cousin's first born babies and a few close friends. But somewhere down the line with school and a demanding job I just couldn't keep up. Instead I was limited to smaller projects.

It wasn't until now I wanted to start with blankets again. Although this time I didn't want to make the same plain blanket. I wanted to try my hand at something a little more advanced. I started my project, but became far too busy with work that I put my crochet needle down for a little while. The next thing I knew Lorenzo was here and my blanket was still not done. I was determined that my little one have his blanket. I finished it up just in time for his 6 Months photos. Or as I liked to think if it, his 1/2 Birthday.

I have to admit that I've always had a hard time reading crochet patterns. So I sometimes look to YouTube videos since I am more of a visual learner. To make this Zig Zag blanket I used a great tutorial posted by Happy Ganchillo. The tutorial was all in Spanish, but she did crochet at a good pace so that I could follow along. Below is how the blanket turned out. I would say Lorenzo likes it too, don't you?

If you want to use the same tutorial this is the one I used.
https://youtu.be/dmJPwzrB1bg
She has a ton of other helpful tutorials and ideas for crochet projects. She is now my first stop when I'm looking for a new project. Here is the link to her blog if you are interested http://www.happyganchillo.es/.

I am on a Mission - Project #1

It's no secret that I am of the Catholic faith. Now that I have a child of my own I feel that it's really important that they too have God in their life. It wasn't until I was eight, that I was introduced into the Catholic church. My mom started by taking me and my cousins to Mass every Sunday. She put me in Catechism (which is like Sunday School) and it opened a whole new world for me. Like any child I was curious and had a thirst to learn more. I had an awesome Catechism teacher who helped me a lot. I never forgot Ms. Benita. She was so nice and patient and made learning about the Catholic church fun. My only hope is that I can pass on that excitement and love for the Catholic church to Lorenzo.

The other day I started looking for ways to keep Lorenzo quiet while we are in the pew at church. Right now it's easy because he's mostly sleeping. But I know soon enough it will be hard for him to stay quiet. So I started off by looking for quiet books, which led me to a couple of blogs. One of them was Story of a Rose http://storyofarose.com/2014/01/20/crafternoon-mass-bag/ She had this cute idea of putting together a Mass Bag. To some this might be strange, but you have to understand that Catholics believe that children should be a part of the Mass. They are not seperated from the parents during services, instead we attend and praise together. Catechism for children is generally taught after Mass. This blog I came across was so inspirational that I couldn't help, but want to take her lead and make one for us.

Just as the heading reads, I am on a mission. Project #1 (because it's an easy one), putting Holy Cards on a ring. I also found this idea on a Blog through Pinterest. There's a very thorough tutorial, but honestly it doesn't take much thinking at all. It gives your little one something religious to hold and look at, and you can read them the prayers on the back too. I thought it was a great idea.  The following link can help you along the way. http://www.catholicsistas.com/2013/09/20/foolproof-catholic-craft-craft-challenged/?utm_source=feedburner
The local Catholic store in my area where you can find these Holy Cards is Magdalene Religious Goods and Coffee Grotto https://www.facebook.com/magdalenereligiousgoods
Happy hole punching!

Below is the material that you would need. You will also need a hole puncher which is not shown.

Baby Taggie Blanket

It's funny the little things that you observe while you sit and feed your little one. For example I noticed that Lorenzo likes to rub his little fingers on the tags on his burp cloths. Every single time without fail he would always find where that little tag was. It wasn't until I was on Pinterest that I found that other mommies noticed the same thing with their babies. Someone brilliant, (not I) came up with the idea to make a Baby Taggie Blanket. It was so simple, but it has a purpose. I've also seen them called Baby Sensory Blankets, Lovey Tag Blanket, and Baby Taggie Toy. They were pretty easy to make and really it was an opportunity for me to practice what little sewing skills I have.

To start with I found some very unique Fat Quarters pieces at a great price at our local sewing store And Sew On http://www.and-sew-on.biz/. This is the cutest little sewing store and I strongly urge anyone looking to start a sewing project to check this store out first.
The ribbon I already had from various projects over the years so it was pretty to start. You can change it up and chose different varieties of ribbon. Mine just happened to be all satin. Next I just followed the tutorial below.
http://www.icanteachmychild.com/make-it-taggie-blanket-for-baby/

My first day as a full time Mommy

Today is my first day officially home with my baby Lorenzo. I think he knows that something is different. He strangely seems a little more content. I have spent the day getting him back in our old routine. The last two weeks while I was working he's had a blast with both his Grandma's. They took time off from work to take care of him. Now he's getting used to me doing it all on my own again.

First off and most importantly our day has been full of lot's of cuddles. I love making him laugh and holding him as much as I want. It's so nice to be able to do that. A luxury I know not everyone has. Today my first project is getting nursery re-organized. Now that the seasons have changed and he's growing out of all his newborn clothes. I spent the day re-arranging his entire wardrobe. I'm washing up bigger clothes for him now. I remember the first time we brought him home his newborn clothes fit him a little baggy because he was so small. I wondered how he would look when he finally grew out of them. That day is finally here. Some days he looks the same to me. But then I look at old pictures and realize, yep in just three short months he has changed so much. I'm so happy that I get to spend all day everyday with him. I know there will be good days and bad days just like with any job. Some days my patience will probably wear thin, but that is to be expected. A new chapter in our book has just started, we'll see what this mommy at home life will bring.

My new boss!

2 Weeks Notice

Today I officially gave my two weeks notice to my current employer. After careful consideration my husband and I decided I would be a stay at home mom.  We decided to do this for many reasons. I felt that my current job would not allow me to give that time to my son as it is very demanding. Also years ago we had said if and when we had a kid I would want to raise my kid myself and spend as much time as possible with him. Just like everyone says that time goes by fast.

Also, Josh and I know first hand what it's like to grow up in the hands of several babysitters. Not all of our sitters were good and we have had some awful experiences. Both of our parents were very hard working and did the best they could. But those memories unfortunately always dwindled in the back of our minds. If we could do right by our kid and make those sacrifices to spend this time with our little one, why wouldn't we?

The true test came during my maternity leave from work. We listen to Dave Ramsey a lot on the radio and I  remember him saying, try living entirely on one income during your maternity leave. If you can do it then you can make the financial decision to stay at home. We tried this and we were surprised to know that we were actually able to do it. Of course up until this point we have lived debt free except for our house. All the home improvement projects, medical expenses, furniture, shopping  we pay cash. We have also beefed up our emergency fund for the unexpected. Without this life style I don't think I could comfortably do this knowing that we owe. There's no sense in taking the plunge of quitting my job without detailed planning in advance. Sure there will be sacrifices along the way and some adjustments. But our end goal was for me to be around more. No sacrifice is to great when it comes our son.

Mommy's Binky Stash

Before Lorenzo was born I found this idea somewhere. Since every experienced mom knows a binky is bound to get dropped, lost or misplaced when you need it most. And if you don't already know, if a Soothie drops those suckers can bounce pretty far. Why not be ready for that moment? I took this piece of advice and it has worked fabulously. I have about 6 Soothies always washed and ready to go since that is what he uses now. I also have the regular pacifiers for when he graduates from the Soothies. This container hangs out in our nursery and has saved us multiple times. My advice for expecting mothers is be prepared...binky prepared!

Easter Basket for Baby

It's that time of year again. I always loved Easter as a little kid. Something about the tradition of going to church with family then the family get together in the afternoon. And of course the Easter Basket with goodies and a Easter Egg hunt to top off the day. We plan to carry in that tradition with Lorenzo, and what better way to start that tradition than making him a Easter Basket? I made one for my little brother years ago that grew with him and it worked out really well. The beauty of this it's not the pre-packaged Easter Basket you can get at the store. You can tailor it to your child and the basket itself will grow with them.

Even though my son is 2 Months old for his first Easter there is still plenty we can give him. Some of the items I included were inspired by BabyCenter.com.

Below are the supplies I used. You can change it up and make your basket unique and to your taste. There is plenty you can get your baby that are useful without going overboard on your budget. Hint: Dollar Tree has great Easter items as well as the $1.00 section at Target.

The items that you will need:

-Basket (I chose a larger basket, again the idea here is that it grows with your child)

-Scissors

-Hot Glue Gun

-Something to decorate the side

(I used a wooden chick egg tag and the L for his name to personalize it)

-Glitter

-Ribbon (Any color is fine, but pastels work best for Easter)

-Craft Glue (Elmer's Glue works great too) 

-Grass

Items I used in my basket:

-Flash Cards

-Bubbles

-Pin Wheel (Babies love color! We got one for at home and one for our stroller when we go on walks)

-Rubber Duck for bath time

-Sleep and Play Outfit

-Blanket

-Spring Outfit

To begin with start with your basket. I began by wrapping the ribbon along the handle hot gluing each end to the base. 

Next I made I worked on my hanging tags. One was pre-made, but I modified it by taking off the purple ribbon it had and replaced it with baby blue to match. I also added a dot of hot glue for added security.

For the other side I used the Initial L I bought. It was already pre-painted white, but I wanted to add some color to it by adding blue and green glittered polka dots. I then hung the L on the opposite handle end and added a dot of hot glue for added security.

Next I made two additional bows with the same Ribbon as the handle. I hot glued those above the tags. Another idea to try is maybe using Rafia for the bow.

Once the basket is decorated you can arrange your items in the basket. I try to make things symmetrical so that the presentation is nice. 

If you have older kids it might be nice to use cellophane to wrap it all up. A local store Pak-N-Wrap always has cute decorative cellophane. (http://www.paknwrap.com)  It's always more fun for kids to unwrap things.

He's a Fighter

Shortly after we came home Lorenzo started getting sick. He was really stuffy and had a hard time breathing when he was feeding. After taking him to the Dr.'s they did a RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus) test. It came back positive and I have never been so worried. Funny how you can worry so much for someone you have just met. We had only been home for four days and we had to go to the hospital again. For most people RSV would be like a common cold, but for a newborn baby it is very dangerous. If not treated it could develop into Bronchiolitis or Pneumonia. Because of this we were told to go up to Primary Children's Hospital where he would be watched and treated. There is no medicine for RSV, and the treatment they do is suctioning.

They would often have to do NP suctioning (Nasopharyngeal) which is a way to remove mucus in the back of his throat. Watching him get suctioned is the most painful thing for a parent to watch. Whenever Lorenzo would sound snotty like he could not breathe the nurse would come in and would stick a very small suction tube (Catheter) up tiny nostrils that goes all the way to the back of his throat. It doesn't actually hurt the baby when they do this, but the discomfort is so great that they cry the hardest their little lungs allow. I felt so bad every time they came in to do this. At first I had to walk away because I wanted to cry right along with him. After a while you get used to it because they come in so often to do this. It's easy to feel helpless sitting around. I knew sitting around feeling sorry for myself wouldn't do any good. The last thing I wanted to do was to be posting things on Facebook making others feel sorry and ask us questions that we didn't have the answers to. That doesn't help the situation. My way of coping with it all was trying to make myself feel useful. Along with taking care of Lorenzo and his needs I would constantly go to the Breast Pumping room to do my part so that my little one would at least have my antibodies to help him fight. That was my way that I felt like I could help him. It was something small, but like I said I felt useful.

The over all stay at Primary Children's was not comfortable. The amount of children that come in for RSV is so great that they have more than one patient in a room separated by curtains. So there are only 2 visitors allowed at a time and there's only space for one person to stay really since it was a tiny cot next to his crib. I heard a lot more than I wanted to hear sitting in that small space. I got to hear the situations of others and how their child was coping. For some it was a short stay, for others it was a long stay. There was a 6 week old patient next to us that went from bad to worse all in one night. The baby ended up spiking a fever and was not doing well at all. They had to do tests and it was not looking good. I don't know what ever happened to that mother and her baby. I think about them often. When I reflect back on that whole experience I am so grateful that Lorenzo is doing as well as he is now. It opened my eyes to see that it could have been so much worse. We took it one day at a time grateful for all the small moments. One night without having to drive up to the hospital for additional suctioning was a huge milestone for us. His first weeks of life revolved being connected to tubes and wires so even just holding him and cuddling him without the oxygen and monitors was a big deal to us. We prayed a lot for a little one, both before and after he was born. And I'm certain they will not be the last, but we are so grateful to have him home. Home sweet home....

Delivery Day

Currently I work from home. Although this particular day my boss was coming into town which required me to go into the office to meet with him. I didn't mind, it's always nice to see my co-workers once in a while to catch up. That afternoon I started feeling a little bit of cramping. I didn't think much of it since once in a while I would feel cramps and my Dr. said that was completely normal. By the time 4:00 pm rolled around it seemed like they were happening like every hour. Since this was my first baby I didn't want to confuse this with braxton hix. Keep in mind this is 3 weeks prior to my due date. I left work just a little early because in the back of my mind I worried that my water would break. (All the silly things you worry about when you are expecting.) By the time I got home I did a little chores around the house then put my feet up. I knew Josh would be getting off of work soon so I called him and let him know that I was strangely having more of that cramping feeling.

That night I had my Breast Feeding class scheduled, something I absolutely did not want to miss as I had it scheduled for months now. Being the trooper that I am I went anyway. As I sat there in the class I could not focus. At this point I knew for sure this was contractions. They were coming 30 minutes apart now. I felt awful because I made us go and I couldn't even sit still. We left the class early and went home. I stayed home until my contractions came closer together. It gave me a chance to get things in order with our dogs.I made little notes for the dog schedule and serving size for whoever would be taking the shift to come feed them and let them outside.That was the last thing on my To Do List.

They always say how you go through that "nesting" period and I never really believed it until I thought back to the weeks prior to this day. Luckily all of the nursery furniture items had been built by Josh months ago. Although I was like a mad woman getting things done. My hospital bag, diaper bag and car seat had been sitting at the door for weeks already. I spent a whole weekend cutting tags off of new baby clothes and baby blankets making sure every last Newborn and 3 Month clothing item was washed and put in it's place. I organized all the rest of the clothes by size and put them away in totes so that I don't miss an outfit. I even spent that day before staying up late boiling bottles and pacifiers. (Josh thought I was nuts!)

So here we were with my contractions coming 5 minutes apart. My mom who was there with me at the house while we waited said. I think it's time, you guys need to head up to the hospital. As we arrived they checked us in, but were almost hesitant to believe that I was actually in labor since I was so early. Once they started taking my vitals they saw that I had a fever. Which was strange to me because I felt perfectly fine. They began checking me for the flu which came back negative. They didn't actually admit me into the hospital until the following morning as my labor progressed more. I stuck with it because my ultimate birthing plan goal was to make it through my labor with the least amount of pain medication as long as possible. I only made it dilated to a 7, Josh said it was actually 8. But who's really counting at that point. I was feeling pretty out of it and was beyond exhausted. I had been up for more than 24 hours and wanted my precious baby to get here already.

On January 27th 2015 at 8:45 pm Lorenzo was born. It had been so long since I have held a new born I forgot how tiny they are. He was born 5 lbs 11 oz and was 18" long. You always see movies where the mother gets emotional once they hear that first cry. I didn't think that would be me, but I did. He was here and I was so relieved. I have been imagined what that moment would be like for so long.