4 Weeks

Brandon is officially four weeks old today. And I am officially half way through my maternity leave. Where has the time gone?? I'm not ready for this! I am already having anxiety over going back to work. (No surprise there). My plan is to go back part time the very last week in April... and work only mornings... in order to get myself used to a new morning routine and having to leave Brandon with a sitter. Then I'll go back full time the first week in May. (That's the plan anyway - we'll see what our bank account looks like in another month - yikes!) A million thoughts rush through my head when I think about work. And I know just like I got used to it after Jaden was born - I'll get used to it this time, too. I am fine with leaving Jaden with a sitter now... because he can talk to me about his day when I pick him up. I know he looks forward to coming home at night and I know he is having fun when he's gone. I know that he understands that Mommy or Daddy will always come for him. But Brandon... he can't talk to me about his day. And he's going to be reaching so many milestones all the time... what if I miss one? I need to relax -- I know every mom goes through this -- but being home with him full time is such a blessing... it's going to be hard to get back to reality. And I already feel like there aren't enough hours in a day -- there isn't enough time to spend with Cody, and with Jaden, and with all of us together. How am I going to feel like I see them enough when I get home after 5:00 and then have to worry about taking care of the house, and the bills, and the tons of laundry we have, etc etc etc?? We're also trying to get Brandon to drink out of a bottle every once in a while so that he will be ready to do this at daycare -- but he's not doing real well in that area. So that's a little bit of a stress on me, as well. As much as I am dreading returning to the routine of things... part of me wants to fast forward a few months so I can see that everything will be fine, I will get used to this, and we will develop a new routine - just like we did when Jaden was born.

Aside from my anxiety over the near future... Brandon is doing wonderful. He is a good baby -- only cries when he's tired. He eats anywhere from every two - four hours. He usually goes four hours once every night and the other night, he actually went five whole hours without waking up to eat! And compared to how Jaden was at night, Brandon is a piece of cake. I usually have to feed him twice, and most of the time he goes right back to sleep. (Although babies don't sleep nearly as peacefully as older people do -- so even when he's sleeping, he's usually making some kind of noise and that means that Mommy doesn't sleep so well). But this shall pass. And it's amazing how you get used to things. Before he was born and after Jaden started sleeping through the night, if I had to get up once for some reason -- it was torture. Now, it's no big deal :) Jaden continues to love his baby brother... and he's starting to finally get used to Mommy not being able to spend as much time with him one on one. We've picked up some new routines. For example, now when he goes to bed, I always make sure to spend some extra time just laying in bed with him and talking about his day. He and I always sing "Jesus Loves Me" together -- this is one of my new favorite times of day. When it's just me and him cuddled up right before we say goodnight. We still notice that he's extra needy... but the poor kid had to deal with his world being shaken up at the same time that he started the "terrible/terrific two's" -- so as far as how he's doing -- I'm pretty proud of him.

I am healing very nicely. My soreness is almost completely gone now. My tummy muscles are still a little sore every once in a while -- especially after sitting/lying down for long periods of time -- they get a little stiff. But my incision has completely closed up, and for the most part - all the pains that were causing me some grief - have gone away. I'm even picking Jaden up again (although the doctor still wants me to do it as little as possible). I'm anxious to reach the six week point so that I can start doing some workouts. I have some pilates videos that I'm hoping will do miracles to my lower tummy area ;) Sometimes I think it was really stupid to have a baby right before the spring/summer months because my body will definitely not be at its best for shorts weather. But at the same time -- if I were to have a baby right before winter, there would probably be less motivation to get back into shape!

Cody's getting busier again now. Last night he didn't get home until almost 6:00. With the nicer weather, his days will get longer, and we'll never really know each night when he'll get home. But at least when he does get home, it will be nice enough outside that we can enjoy time out as a family - going on walks, etc. Jaden walks around inside the house saying "outside! outside!" all the time. He will be a happy little boy with the warmer months. We're also excited to do a lot of grilling. We were getting sick of "winter" food! ;)

That's all for now - Brandon will want to eat soon, so I need to sign off!

Introducing Brandon Louis Ubben

What a difference a week makes! One week ago today we welcomed Brandon Louis into our lives and our family. The plan was for me to be induced at 7 a.m. on March 2nd, but Cody and I have learned many times that things very rarely go as planned! When we got to the hospital, Dr. Moussa checked me and discovered that I was 3 cm dilated. She then broke my water right away to make the process start going faster. However, after breaking my water, she did an ultrasound and realized that he wasn't head down again. Little stinker. Instead she was able to feel his shoulder - but not his head. For just a few minutes she thought she might be able to turn him since he wasn't completely turned the wrong way... but then Brandon's heart rate started going up really high, and she thought it best to just do the c-section because it would be safer for me and for the baby. Things moved really fast at that moment. Doctors and nurses were all over me to get me ready for this unplanned surgery. I have to admit I was quite terrified. For me, the thought of being awake (even though I was numb) during a surgery on my own body was horrifying. I won't go into details of everything that went on the c-section room, but I was so relieved when it was all over and when Brandon was born safe and sound and healthy! I also was surprised that he was only 7 lbs. 11.3 oz. I was definitely thinking he was a bigger baby. It was an exhausting week after that. Jaden was able to come up to the hospital the night Brandon was born... and I was so so proud of how he responded to mommy and the baby. He immediately wanted to kiss him and touch him and he wasn't at all upset to see me holding another little person. Being in the hospital for four days wasn't real fun... I missed Jaden like crazy and was very eager to start our new life as a family of four. The recovery process has been going pretty well. The first day after the surgery was definitely tough. I could barely move, and the incision was quite painful for a while. But once my meds got under control, it's really been much easier than I expected it to be.

Now that we've been home for a few days, I am still very impressed with Jaden. He has his moments... and there have been some rough moments for me as well... but overall, he really seems to love his little brother. Jaden is growing a stronger attachment to Cody now -- which is good for the two of them (but selfishly, a little difficult for me!) I am not allowed to pick Jaden up for the first six weeks... that has been the cause of most of the difficulties. Jaden doesn't understand how I can hold Brandon all the time, but yet won't pick him up. It breaks my heart but it won't last forever.

Brandon has been a very good baby so far. He's averaging only needing to get up and eat twice a night. He definitely does not like his sleep to be interrupted... that's really the only time he cries! (That - and for diaper changes). He's cute as can be, too. I am a lucky girl to have three adorable men in my life! I am enjoying my maternity leave and am very anxious for the weather to get somewhat warmer so we can enjoy some time outside. I love my little family and am very grateful for all of our blessings!

My Favorite Things

For a couple of reasons I have decided to write a blog entry devoted entirely to things in life that I absolutely love... the things that make me tick, smile, get through the bad days and have shaped who I am as a person and made me a unique child of God. I have to first give credit where credit is due -- I got the idea for this after reading my good friend Annalisa's blog. Her writing always makes me think deep and remember our good times together throughout high school and beyond. (So thank you Annalisa - I love you!) The other reason I wanted to write this blog is entirely selfish. I have become the type of pregnant woman that I used to laugh at. I never could understand how some pregnant women get so dang impatient when they are SO close to their due date. I would always think to myself... "you're gonna have that kid any day -- why are you so crabby?? You should be HAPPY!" Well now I get it. I am officially just 10 days away from my due date, and I am crankier than ever. (Sorry Cody). Each day now seems like an entire month. Some hours I almost convince myself that I will never go into labor and that this baby doesn't want to meet his mommy. I've been throwing myself a pitty party. So in order to try and snap myself out of it (at least for as long as it takes me to write this) -- I am going to think about all the positive things in this world. So here it is...

The things (big and small) that I LOVE (in no particular order):
-The FIRST snow fall of the winter
-Life in Iowa
-Cookouts
-70 degree weather
-Owning my own home
-Watching Jaden grow up every single day
-Cody's hugs
-Jaden's smile
-Jaden's voice
-Walking while holding Jaden's tiny hand
-Everything about Jaden
-Date nights with Cody... fancy or not fancy... it's a piece of Heaven since it happens so seldom
-Memories
-Pictures of all of my memories
-Buying a new piece of home decor
-Orchard Hill Church
-The smell inside the UNI-Dome (call me crazy, but that place holds an infinite amount of memories for me going all the way back to when I was a baby -- and the smell in that place reminds me of all of them -- and of all the people associated with them. I love walking into that building after not visiting it for a while and breathing it in... it usually forces a big sigh out of me as if to say "welcome home, Nicole.")
-The UNI Panthers
-Disney World
-Romantic comedies
-Football
-Fall and spring
-When the sun sets around 8/8:30 at night and the temperature is perfect
-Lit candles
-Christmas, decorating for Christmas, the reason for Christmas... everything about Christmas
-Dogs - especially the ones I had growing up - Duffy, Shane, Lucky -- you were all beyond special!
-Dolphins
-My scentsy pot (no idea how to spell that)
-Being a mom
-Being a wife
-Freshly washed bed sheets
-Thunderstorms during the day
-A book so good you have to force yourself to put it down
-DVR - a sincere ginormous thank you to whoever invented this
-Thinking about the "beginning" moments of Cody and my relationship... there is nothing like new love!
-Our family -- we are lucky to have such supportive parents, siblings, grandparents, etc. Most people say this but we truly are very blessed.
-Knowing that I have the same best friend I've had since diapers - Casey - no matter how seldom/often we talk
-Thinking about my high school and college days... I really did have the time of my life
-When the seasons start changing... Variety is the spice of life!
-Walks with my boys when the weather is just perfect and the sun is just starting to settle down for the day
-Cody's grilling
-Facebook
-Music
-Finding a song that you swear was written for you and how you are feeling at that particular moment in your life
-Ultrasounds of my babies
-Starbucks Frappuccinos (again.. spelling?)
-Game nights (why don't we ever have them???)
-Sweatpants and sweatshirts
-Diet fountain pop
-Watching old home videos
-God
-Watching Jaden learn how to pray.. a recently new development!
-A night time sky full of stars
-Laughter
-Looking at our wedding pictures
-Getting emails and snail mail that AREN'T work related or bills
-Ordering something online and getting home from work to find it waiting for you
-Babies
-The childhood that I had. I grew up in an awesome neighborhood surrounded by good people, and I have life-long friendships due to that neighborhood. As well as a lifetime full of memories - riding bikes, swimming in our backyard, etc. etc.
-Chocolate shakes
-Lightning bugs... we have a creative God don't we??!
-Pink flowers
-Nights spent with our entire family... dinners out, cook outs, whatever it may be...

...I'm realizing I could go on and on but these are the first things that come to mind. This list will soon no doubt be added to with the birth of our second baby. (If he ever decides to meet me... Ha! Just kidding...) ;)

Pregnancy Update

Well I finally feel like there's a light at the end of the tunnel! We are now officially just two weeks away from my due date. The end of this pregnancy definitely feels different than it did with Jaden. They planned my induction date with Jaden almost months in advance for special reasons... so we KNEW when he was coming. This time around... we're on the edges of our seats.

At my appointment last week, they checked me for dilation for the first time. During this appointment I wasn't dilated at all and Dr. Moussa was unable to feel the baby's head. She immediately worried that he was head up instead of head down so she got us into the ultrasound room right away. Sure enough -- his head was up by my ribs -- not the right way to be by that point in the pregnancy! Her plan was to give him a week to turn around on his own. She looked at the placenta and realized that with the way it was positioned she did not want to try and turn the baby herself because she felt she could cause damage to the placenta... which would not be good. So we spent a week thinking good thoughts and praying that he would turn on his own. If he didn't turn by Wednesday of this week, she was going to possibly schedule me for an early c-section. I'm trying to avoid a c-section at all costs!

At our appointment two days ago we got a mix of good news and so-so news. The good news is that baby boy did turn himself around and is now head down - yay! However, I still haven't started dilating at all, and she did another ultrasound. During the ultrasound she did a bunch of measurements and the estimate is that he's over seven pounds already. This would be fine if I were going to go into labor any day, but since I haven't even started dilating... we're a little concerned he's going to be huge by the time I do go into natural labor. This could possibly require me to have to have a c-section anyway. So now we play the waiting game again... at my appointment this upcoming Wednesday she is going to check for dilation again - make sure he still is head down - and then if I haven't made any progress, she is going to strip my membranes. I'm hoping that is not needed! Once she strips my membranes I will have to be checked again within a couple of days to see if that made any progress. She still mentions inducing me before my due date to avoid him being too big but she wants me to be somewhat dilated before I get induced so that the labor doesn't take too long. (Sometimes being induced can make for a really really long labor -- so it's even worse if I'm not dilated at all by that point). People have asked me if I'm feeling any contractions -- and I've really only had a couple. They've been very very mild and I haven't even had one in a few days. I never felt any contractions with Jaden, but when I arrived at the hospital with him and they hooked me up to machines - they told me I was having contractions three minutes apart. I hadn't even felt them!

So last week the prayer was that he would turn around - this week the prayer is that I start feeling some contractions so we can make some progress! All of this is making Cody think this is going to be our "difficult" child out of the two ;) Everything else still looks just perfect for mommy and baby. As long as he comes out healthy... that's really all I can ask for!

Jaden's Birthday Week

Whew! As much as I loved making Jaden's birthday a great few days for him, I am somewhat relieved the week is over. I'm exhausted -- and incredibly grateful that I wasn't even closer to my due date than what I am.

Even though I'm not a big fan of my own birthday and don't really care much about it... it is my goal to make my kids' birthdays very special every year... so that they know how special that day of birth really was! I had been mentioning Jaden's birthday to him for a few weeks so that when the celebration took place he maybe had somewhat idea of what I'd been talking about. His actual birthday was on a Thursday with his party being on Saturday. We decided to do a football themed party because he loves football. (Don't know where he got that from). On the morning of his birthday, Cody and I walked into his bedroom with a balloon for him. Anytime we're in a grocery store or any place that has balloons, he gets incredibly excited. But because they're not his balloons - just display balloons - it's always a disappointment for him that he can't actually play with them. I thought it'd be a great way to kick off his day by having balloons for him he could actually play with. I was right - his face lit up when he saw the balloon we carried into his room for him. He held it the entire time we were getting him dressed, and then when he walked out into our living room there were more balloons for him scattered around the floor. He was in Heaven. It was so hard to get him out the door to head to daycare -- he didn't want to leave his balloons, and I didn't want to make him leave! I had made cupcakes for the daycare kids to help Jaden celebrate and decorated them like footballs. So he was able to have an extra special day while Mommy and Daddy were at work. He and his buddy Carter, who is about a year and a half -- both LOVED the treat at daycare. Apparently Carter got the frosting all over his hair and everything. A quick apology to Carter's mommy for the mess! The night of Jaden's birthday, we decided to cook one of his favorite meals - spaghetti. He devoured a whole bowl of it plus two bowls of fruit. (He got whatever he wanted for about three days straight!) We enjoyed the meal just the three of us, and when we were done both sets of grandparents came over with their presents for him. It was funny to see the difference one month makes. Over Christmas he really didn't care that much still about opening presents -- but on his birthday he knew exactly what to do and was even excited about it. After he opened the presents from the grandparents, Cody brought up our surprise for him. We bought him his very first "tool bench." He was pretty excited about it, although he still doesn't really know what it's used for. I think it will be something he gets more interested in as he gets a little older and starts relating it to what he sees Daddy doing around the house. After presents, we lit two candles and sang Happy Birthday to him - then let him eat ANOTHER cupcake. I have this process on video, and I will post it soon. It was hilarious!
The Friday morning after his birthday he had his two-year appointment with the doctor. He had one more shot he needed to get -- but now we're done with shots until he's five! Yay! He is 32 lbs. and 36 1/2 inches long. He is in the 95th percentile for everything!

Saturday was party day. We held it at my parents because our house just isn't capable of comfortably holding the number of people we invited. We had all of the little cousins, grandparents and big cousins over. Here is his awesome cake from HyVee -- and I'd like to thank Coach Farley for gifting Cody and me with this nice UNI appetizer helmet for our wedding a couple of years ago. It came in very handy! ;)
We asked everyone to wear their favorite team's football jersey/shirt for the party... in order to keep with the theme ;) I was pleasantly surprised that everyone participated. Including baby Lily! Jaden absolutely loves her!!
The big surprise for Jaden was having the UNI mascot TC make an appearance. I thought of this idea a few months ago because when he saw TC for the first time at a football game, he was immediately in love with him and had no fear whatsoever. He even chased him half the length of the football field after a game one time. He quickly learned how to say "TC" and has continued to talk about him quite frequently since then. I was pretty nervous leading up to the party that he would turn out to be afraid of him when he saw him again... so I couldn't wait for the big moment to arrive -- and to be over with in case it didn't turn out very well ;) But Jaden LOVED having TC show up on Saturday. He immediately went to him and pet his nose and gave him a high-five. The whole party he kept saying "TC!" "TC!" TC was GREAT with all of the kids (and the adults, too) -- and it was fun to get pictures of him in my dad's "Panther Pit." TC also brought TC coloring books and trading cards for all of the kids -- and made a special coloring page with a message to Jaden on it - "Happy birthday Jaden." This will go great in Jaden's new room. We have pieces of the old UNI football turf that we are going to be hanging in his room with a bunch of Jaden's sports pictures on it - kind of like using the pieces of turf as a bulletin board. This special picture from TC will be proudly hung on the piece of turf! It's now funny to think that TC surprised Cody and me at our wedding reception, too. It's beginning to seem like we can't have a big event without him! ;)

TC also autographed Jaden's stuffed TC for him - a very special memento!

I have a long video of our TC visit that I will upload soon. Thank you TC and all of Jaden's birthday guests for making it a very fun day for him and for his mommy and daddy. Every day Cody and I continue to be in awe of our little boy. Can't believe it's been two years since we met him -- don't remember what I ever did without him!

December/January Videos

This first video is of Jaden and Coco on Christmas Eve:

These are Jaden's dance moves:

Jaden likes to sing to us now:

Head, shoulders, knees and toes:

Playing Possum

Jaden continues to do incredible in his new bed. I keep waiting for a bad night -- it hasn't happened yet. (I'm sure it will though)! It is funny to wake up to different sounds now though -- when he slept in his crib, we would wake up to his shrieks and talking and his yelling for Mama or Da-da. Now if he does wake up earlier, he just rolls out of bed and starts running around his room. There are some pillows in his room that are shaped like a football and baseball, but to him they are just regular balls - not pillows. So he loves to throw those around when he wakes up and is trapped in his room! I'm grateful he hasn't learned how to open the door yet on his own... that will be a new challenge!

Last night however, he was a little extra hyper when we put him to bed. So a few minutes after we'd left him in his room and Cody and I were in the living room, we heard a lot of noise coming from his room. I was almost positive he'd gotten out of bed so Cody went in to check on him. When Cody walked into his room, Jaden was lying on his tummy on his mattress with his head in the pillow and his eyes shut. Cody walked over closer to him and leaned over him for a little while. After a while of staring at Jaden, Jaden opened up one little eye, peeked at Cody from the corner of his eye and gave him a big smile as if to say - "Gotcha!" Cody just told him to go to sleep and walked out of his room laughing. There was complete silence after that :) I don't think Jaden had gotten out of his bed at all - I think he was just jumping or rolling around a bit. Stinker.

Jaden's other thing he does a lot lately is to say "I don't know" when he can't find something or doesn't know where something is. Usually it means he's looking for his blankie -- or he'll say it when we ask him a question about something such as, "Where's your shiny football??" We always get told - "I don't know!" And then when he finds it, we always hear "There it is!" But lately he's been taking his "I don't knows" to a new level. Like this morning. Cody had to be out moving snow very early so he wasn't at home when Jaden and I woke up and were getting ready for the day. After a while Jaden realized Cody wasn't there and started walking around the house shaking his head and saying, "I don't know Da-da! I don't know Da-da!" because he didn't know where Cody was :)

Big Boy Bed and Baby Room

On New Year's Day Cody's parents came to town and helped us get things ready in the baby's room even more. My parents had helped me paint about a month ago, and on New Year's Cody and his dad put up the chair rail. We're still waiting on Jaden's bedroom furniture to get here, but his parents got us the mattress for it so when they were here, we were able to move the crib into the nursery, and Jaden spent his first night on his big boy mattress! I was completely prepared for this to be a rough transition with him fighting us every step of the way. But so far -- (knock on wood) -- he has been perfect! Once we put him to bed, he stays in bed and seems to sleep really really well. We can't believe how lucky we are with such an amazing little boy! I'm sure there will be nights where it isn't so easy or when he decides to become more strong willed.. but so far, we have had no issues at all. I'm anxious to get his full set of furniture so that I can start decorating it. Right now his room is just kind of blah while we wait to get his bedding and decor, etc.

Since we were able to move the crib into the nursery, I washed the baby's bedding and started organizing all the baby clothes in his closet, etc. I'm very excited to move the dresser in there so that I know exactly where I want to hang things on the walls, etc. Jaden likes to go into the room and look at the crib -- a couple of times he has wanted to get into it, but I think we're getting past that now, too.

Christmas Break

Just like last year my company decided to close between the Christmas and New Years holidays so I was able to have an entire 11 day break without having to use PTO days and while still getting paid. It was Heaven! But of course so hard to come back to work now.

My vacation time was busy enough that we didn't get bored and relaxing enough to actually feel like vacation. It of course started off with Christmas Eve. We were supposed to have a Christmas at Cody's Grandma Grayce's house, but the weather was bad so that got postponed. With the weather forecast saying it was going to be worse on Christmas day we decided to head to Aplington to do Christmas with Cody's parents, sister and niece on Christmas Eve night. That left Christmas day to just spend the morning at home and then head to my parents without worrying about having to head out of town at all. I thought Jaden would be more into opening presents this year, but he still wasn't all that interested. Although he did think that every time we opened a new present, we had to get it out of the box right away before opening another one. We had Christmas with my mom's side of the family a couple of days after Christmas and just wrapped up our last Christmas at Grandma Grayce's yesterday.
Jaden and I on Christmas day -- such a cuddle bug!:
The rest of break was spent working on the baby's room, doing some shopping and hanging out as a family. Cody was able to have a few full days off as well, which was nice after all the snow removal he'd had to do over the last month. I did take Jaden to daycare two days just so that he would be able to keep somewhat of a routine and not get too attached to Mommy --- although we failed at that because he is now more attached to me than ever. There are many days where he doesn't even allow me to leave the room and cries for Mama, Mama whenever I'm not in site. He is such a little sweetie, and every day he becomes an even bigger punkin! He loves giving out kisses and hugs now, and I can't get enough of him!

For New Years Eve, Cody, Jaden and I as well as Cody's parents and our friends Terry and Jeri Noonan gathered at my parent's house for what was supposed to be a "game" night. We didn't play one single game, but shared lots of laughs! I was teasing Cody as we were heading home at 1:00 in the morning . This was our fourth New Years together, and we've yet to have a very exciting one ;) Our first year I was a senior at UNI, and we had gone out late the night before so on New Year's Eve we were both asleep on the couch by the time midnight rolled around. Our 2nd year I was pregnant with Jaden and asleep before midnight. Last year and this year we went to my parents' house. Maybe next year, Cody and I will hit the town together??! ;)

Now being back at work, I'm really struggling. I wish this baby was due at the end of January like Jaden was. Coming back from so much excitement and fun makes March 5 feel like a very very long time from now. And this extremely cold weather is really making me anxious for nice mild spring nights when Cody and I can take BOTH our boys for walks outside in the double stroller.

I forgot to mention -- I had to be tested for gestational diabetes on Christmas Eve morning and the results came back negative. Whew! What a relief that was -- though the test for that is an absolute pain in the butt :) I also had a doctor's appointment on the 28th, and the baby is measuring exactly where he is supposed to be. Although I do think I've had a few very minor contractions -- including one in the back. But they are usually so mild that I probably wouldn't feel them if I weren't sitting down. The doctor is seeing me every two weeks now, and at my 36 week appointment she will start checking to see if I am starting to dialate. (I'm at 31 1/2 weeks now). Getting very anxious to meet this little one!

Christmas "Blessings" of '09

Now that the Christmas season has officially come to a close (well, actually we still have on more Christmas to go to tomorrow, but we're close) -- Cody and I took down the decorations yesterday, and it's on to the next chapter of our lives. Looking back on this Christmas, we received some very nice gifts, and I wanted to have a record of them - for myself if anything ;)

Some of our favorite gifts (but definitely not all):
Both of our parents are splitting the cost of getting us a brand new double-stroller. This is awesome as it definitely would have been a big expense for Cody and I to take on by ourselves. The nice strollers - the ones that allow the older child to be sitting in them up to 50 pounds (which is necessary for us since Jaden is a BIG boy!) - cost at least $250.00. We don't actually HAVE the stroller in possession yet, but it is picked out, and I am excited for it.

Cody's parents purchased us a new video camera. This was somewhat a sigh of relief for me. My dad had gotten us a video camera two years ago when I was pregnant with Jaden, and we loved having it, but it unfortunately stopped working all together a few months ago, and I was starting to feel really sad about not having one to capture the same moments for our next little guy. Not to mention the fact that Jaden is doing all sorts of cute and new things all the time - I wanted to be able to capture it on video.

This might seem silly to some, but one of my favorite gifts this year was from my parents - a set of "Christmas" pillows for the couch in our living room. Now they aren't technically Christmas pillows - but they are the right color to match our Christmas decorations. Normally our living room's main color is a deep purple, but during Christmas I like to switch everything over to blues, silvers and golds for the whole month of December. The pillows on our couch are normally purple, so I had been looking for a couple of months for pillows that I could use only during December - blue ones - that wouldn't cost me a fortune. I wasn't willing to spend $40.00 per pillow for pillows I could only use one month out of the year - at least not this year with a baby on the way. I failed to find nice inexpensive pillows on my own, but my mom found the PERFECT pair. The blue color matches our decor perfectly, and the best part about it is that I don't have to store them during the other 11 months of the year because they actually match our bedroom colors, as well. So -- now that Christmas is over, they are displayed on our bed :)

Cody's mom picked out some new perfume for me this year. She gives us perfume/cologne every year which is awesome because again - this is an expense that I don't like to take on for myself. I always feel spending that much money on perfume could be better spent somewhere else (like on something the whole family really needs) - so it's nice to look forward to a new bottle every year. This year I had mentioned a couple of months ago that I loved Jessica Simpson's new perfume, and that is what she got me. I love the smell, and it came with a complimentary purse that I really like as well. My mom got me my other favorite perfume that I always have on hand but had recently run out of, and she put in my stocking. I am now stocked up on perfume, and very happy with both choices :)

My parents got us the new best baby thermometer. It's the one that you just swipe across their forehead really fast, and it gives you a reading right away. It's the new one most recommended by hospitals/doctors, and it is so fast and convenient. You can even do it when they're sleeping, and of course it works on adults, too. Another relatively expensive but necessary tool.

My grandpa got me a Target gift card, which I used completely on baby things. (This wouldn't excite Cody - but I love shopping for baby things, so this was a fun little shopping trip for me!) I hadn't bothered saving any of Jaden's bottles because they had been used and washed a million times. All of his pacifiers have vanished into thin air, etc. I went out and bought new bottles, new pacifiers, a new bottle washer, some 0-3 month and 3-6 month sleepers (I never felt Jaden had enough of these during those first few months when they like to poop, pee and spit up all over their clothes countless times a day). I also found really cool new teething rings that are much smaller than the ones Jaden had. When they're really little those big round teething rings can barely get into their mouth, and when they start getting teeth further in the back of their mouth, Jaden was never able to get the teething ring far enough back there to make it work. The ones I found I never saw when Jaden was a baby, and I think they are the perfect size. My cousin Michelle stocked us up on some new bibs and burp cloths, so we are pretty much set. All we need now are some diapers, one thing of formula in case nursing doesn't work right off the bat like it didn't with Jaden... and I want a new bouncer. But regardless -- so much less to buy the second time around!

Cody and I also both got mall gift cards, which I love because then you can go on shopping sprees without worrying about your bank account! I found some really nice things on sale for the house, and Cody used a lot of his on a brand new set of knives that were originally expensive but he found for half off.

I didn't mention everything, but these were some of the highlights. Thanks to our Moms and Dads and family members -- I now feel like I am prepared for what's to come in about two months!