Updates to come...

Allie is here! She is such a miracle and are hearts are overwhelmed with love for her. I will post an update about the delivery as well as an update on how Allie is doing. I will also be posting pictures soon. There is a lot to come and I can not wait to share.

*Allie is in the NICU for respiratory problems and trouble eating ( which stems from her ability to eat and breathe at the same time) please pray that she can learn to stabilize her breathing and thus is able to eat without problems.

She is beautiful and I can not wait to post her pictures.

Happy Birthday To Me...

I am 26 today. I don't really feel any older and don't really feel 26. It doesn't really feel "old" or " young" to me. It just feels like a number. It does seem that as I get older the years go by faster. It really does feel like we just finished pumpkin season and that I just bought Christmas gifts.
This past year has been filled with the best and worst moments of my life, but I am happier in my life than I have ever been. I feel that over the past year I have gotten closer to God: some through trials and heart ache and some out of my own seeking. Since my last birthday 1) I married my best friend. He has truly helped make me a better person and brings out the best and often silly/ dorky side of me. I am blessed to call him my husband. ( we also got Gracie somewhere in there and bought a house) 2) watched Auburn win a national championship 3) traveled to Vegas 4) got pregnant with twins 5) lost little Emma 6) learned what true heartache is and what it means to do anything for someone else 6) learned the power of prayer and watched miracle after miracle take place in Allies life.
This past year has been a roller coaster but I am more than blessed and look forward to the coming year with Stewart.
It isn't easy writing about this past year and the loss of Emma. I don't imagine it will ever be easy but I am thankful for all the wonderful moments of the past year and look forward to the coming year with Stewart and Allie.
Have a great Monday!

A Little Bit of Everything...

Allie

We went to my doctor yesterday for the last time. Everything looked great and Allie looks like she is 6 lbs 1 oz. Please keep praying for her health, that she doesn't have down syndrome or cerebral palsy. Also pray we both handle the C-Section well and have no problems. I have to admit I am not the best with pain...it isnt the pain as much as the anticipation and the way I work myself up. Keep me in your thoughts and prayers Wednesday morning around 6-7 as they prep me for surgery. Please pray for Stewart, me, and our families as the birth of Allie will be joyful and we know that she is a miracle many times over, but we will also be mourning Emma. Please pray the miracle of Allie is not over shadowed by the loss of Emma and that we are emotional strong for one another and Allie.

Gracie's First

Gracie had her first (well her first noticeable) shiner Sunday. She plays hard with the other dogs at the farm and Sunday she came home with proof. They were just rough housing and having fun but here is what Gracie looked like when she came home. She was pitiful...Okay so it doesn't look as bad in the pictures but it is over her left eye.

New Jumping Pillow At The Farm

A Day in the Life of Gracie

Saying Goodbye

Today was most likely our last visit to see our specialist. He was out of town, but his ultrasound tech Raquel said he probably woulnt need to see us next Tuesday since she is coming on the following morning. She is going to call us and let us know but I do not for see us needing to go back. It was a little sad. We have seen them weekly for about 12 weeks. I can not say enough good things about Raquel and Dr. Gonzalez. I will soon devote an entire text to him and Raquel. Dr. Gonzalez is a doctor who will be graceful in his words but does not sugar coat any problems. This is exactly what we wanted. We wanted to always know what problems he was looking for, what he saw on the ultrasounds and what it meant...good or bad. He has taken us step by step and taught us what he was checking and why as well as what he saw with Allie specifically. We have learned what he looks for when he looks for signs of strokes in her brain, fluid in her abdomen, how to read her fluid levels, what to look for in her dopplers and so much more. We have been blessed to have a knowledgeable dr that would teach us, be up front with us, and take Allies best interest in mind at all times. I coulnt recommend him more and we are beyond grateful that he was our doctor.

It's Official

We will be meeting little Ms. Allie on Wednesday, September 28th around 8-9ish.

Wordless Woof Woof Wednesday

We Have A Date!!!

We have been scheduled for a C-Section on September 28 or 29th. The doctor's office is going to call the hospital to set up a time and hopefully in the next day or two we will know the exact day and time. I am so glad to have a final date and not have to go week by week. Unless Allie's dopplers etc. take a turn for the worse or I go into labor we will see Allie in about 2 weeks. It appears that Allie is now about 5.5 lbs! It looks like we wont need her preemie clothes after all. The doctors and nurses are still amazed at how much she has grown and how far we have come. Please continue to pray for a safe delivery for both of us and that she will remain and arrive healthy.

Allie's Room and Doctor Update

Disclaimer :This is a SUPER LONG POST!

I meant to post pictures of Allie's Room over the weekend, but due to not being at work (where I normally post) and feeling "pregnant" I did not get them up. Here are pictures of Allie's room. We had a lot of financial and labor help from our parents and the room has turned out perfect. We are really happy with her room.

This is the View from Allie's door looking in from the hallway. 

(I probably should have cut on the lights to make it look brighter)

From the opposite corner of the room looking back toward the door. 

Our goal in designing Allie's room and picking out items for her room was to pick items that would grow with her. We did not want a "themed" room that she would outgrow by the time she was 2, but instead wanted a room that would grow with her.

Allie's Bed and Bedding: 

We got the Bed at All About Baby in Huntsville. We love it. It is solid so that when you touch it or shake it, it does not budge. It also converts to a full size bed. Everyone that comes in her room is drawn instantly to her bed. We could not be happier with it. We also had in mind her growing and that was another reason we chose this bed since it will grow with her. I have to give Stewart credit. He picked out her bed and was very picky about it being made well and not being wobbly and he did a great job. 

Allie's room started around her bedding. We wanted something that wasn't too princessy/girly. We got the bedding from Pottery Barn Kids. 

The pillow in her bed my mom gave us as a shower gift. She had it made and it turned out great. It matches her room perfect. I love Owls for decor right now and since we did not want a Themed room the owl accents allowed us to play around without having a cartoon/design on every piece in her room. As she grows if she hates owls we can just remove those items and not have to redo her walls etc.

Allies Curtains:

Again we wanted curtains that would grow with her. Trina Whitaker at church made these curtains for Allie's room and they are fabulous. She did an awesome job. Me and mom picked out the design and fabric and Trina sewed them for us. They turned out great. (sorry the pictures are a little dark)

Allie's Tree

I saw these tree vinyl stickers on Etsy. I was able to change the colors the lady had on her website to match Allie's room. Once we ordered it, it was at our house within a week. Stewart put it up this past week and it looks great. We were able to tie in all colors of her room as well as the owl accents. 

I wanted a Owl Hanger to go on Allie's Wall to hang her coming home outfit on. I searched high and low and could not find anything. Mom found this owl and it is exactly what I had in mind. It gave us the owl accent without being too babyish. She gave it to us at one of her showers.

Mom also had a lady on Etsy make this picture. I like it alot and need to get a stand for it to sit on, but for the time being it is just propped on her dresser.

The bookself when you walk in her room is from Land of Nod. I wanted a white bookshelf that was not 'plain.' I wanted it to have some design to it. I am going to put one of Allie's newborn pictures above it once she is here.

Brayden got Allie the puppy. He had a blue version when he was little. Next to the puppy are my baby shoes and bibles. I probably wont leave these here long term but until she acquires her own items they will take up space.

Of course Allie got the first pumpkin of the year. It is sitting proudly on her bookshelf. She will be THE pumpkin baby for our family (see details on her due date below). I got the frame for her/Stewart. It says "Daddy's Girl"

Below the puppy are a sand pail with an A on it. It currently houses her headbands so I can find them easily. I sure hope she likes headbands and bows because she has a boocoodle of them. Mom made the blocks. They say ALLIE on one side and if you flip them they say TIGERS. We will have to flip them each Saturday and hopefully even roll her tree in her room :) (I know my Gran probably rolled her eyes at that last sentence but it is okay)

Mom also got her the owl next to the blocks...I think off Etsy. Can you tell we are Etsy fans?

Allie's Hairbows.

Needless to say, she has a good start at hair bows. They are so cute I cant help but buy them. The hairbow holder mom made out of an old mirror frame. It was another shower gift. Sadly she is already running out of room on it.

Allie's Rug

We got the rug from Pottery Barn as well. Stewart's parents helped us buy Allie's rug and his mom helped us make the final decision on choosing the rug. I debated over what type rug for awhile and I am happy we chose this one.

It Isn't What It Seems

Yes, it appears Allie has more clothes than Stewart. But they range from preemie to 24 months. Most of her clothes fall between 6-12 months. I dont see anything wrong with the amount of clothes she has (at least not at this point, but when she is older and her clothes are more expensive she probably wont have such a full closet)

Random Pictures of Details:

Allie also has a chair for her room but like everything else we tried to choose a chair that we could use in the house once she outgrew the "rocking" stage. Well since she isnt here we put the chair (la z boy) in the living room. After watching football and tv sitting in the chair, I am not sure I am going to be able to pull it out of the living room. We love the chair and Allie may just get rocked in the living room each night :)

SPECIAL THANKS:

Our parents really helped us out on Allie's room. From buying the paint and painting (Thanks Mom) to putting up the crown molding (Thanks Brett) to Financially helping us on our larger items like the crib and chair (Thanks Bruce). They also helped us on some of  the smaller (but not always cheaper) items such as bedding, mattress, rug, curtains, and  accents. Stewart and I had a vision and they all helped us create it. With everything going on the past few months it was nice to not only have help in putting her nursery together, but also have people there to make me start working on her nursery. I will admit I put off doing hardly anything in her room until about a month ago. So much was changing week to week that I was not allowing my self to fully get excited and prepared. Thanks to all the prayers and support (and major encouragement by Stewart), I finally have been able to turn over all (as best I can) of my worries to God and Allie not only has gotten healthier but I have been able to relish and enjoy each moment. Also, thanks to everyone that came to the showers we had for Allie. I had put those off once or twice as well, but as much as the showers helped us get prepared they also helped me get excited.

DOCTOR VISIT

Allie looked great at the doctor's appointment today. Her dopplers are getting closer to being ready for her to come but in the mean time they are still good enough for her to stay. Her fluid was a 13 I think which is great. We actually got to see her profile today. She has changed soo much since we last saw her profile more than a month ago. I am convinced she has Stewart's nose. We will see once she comes. Good News is although she is still in for another week (which is great for her development and wearing me out), the doctor said he sees no reason in going past 36 weeks. We are 34 weeks Thursday so only 2 more weeks MAX. That was like music to our ears. I like finally have a "goal" or due date and Stewart is happy that he will be able to finish setting up the pumpkin farm before she comes. I now expect her to make her arrival (via C Section) between September 28-October 3rd. We will know closer to time which day they schedule but HOORAY! I wont be pregnant forever.

It is amazing that she has made it this far. As much as I am ready not to be pregnant for peace of mind more than anything, I will miss her movements and the roundness of my belly. It is just neat to be pregnant. The doctor and ultrasound tech can not believe we made it this far. They never thought we would be looking at 34 weeks, much less 36. It is still amazing to me the amount of people that are praying for her and the power of so many prayers. She is already a miracle many times over and she is not even here.

Please pray for her continued health. Pray that she has not suffered any brain damage or strokes and does not have Cerebral Palsy. Also pray that she does not have Down Syndrome or anything else that we are not even aware to pray for. As much as I look forward to her being here, I look more forward and am anxious to have some answers regarding her health. I pray each night starting with her head and work my way through her body (heart, lungs, kidneys, liver etc) all the way down to her feet. We pray for another miracle to take place and her be healthy. Please pray for a delivery with no complications. Pray that she and I handle the C-Section and recovery well and also for knowledge and wisdom for our doctors. As great as they are, they have not been the ones to heal her, but they have been given the knowledge needed to care for her.

'Woof Woof' Wednesday

Each Tuesday night, Stewart reminds me that tomorrow is 'Woof Woof Wednesday.' (Yes he made the name up) I told him last night I do not have enough pictures of Gracie for every Wednesday's blog to be about her. He has informed me that I'll just need to take more pictures of her. In fact, when I told him last night that I planned on putting pictures up of Allie's room he told me that Gracie will just need to be in the shot since it is Woof Woof Wednesday. Gotta Love Him :) So here is to Gracie and Stewart's Woof Woof Wednesday.

Happy Woof Woof Wednesday!

SNEAK PEEK...

YEA!!! We are almost done with Allie's nursery. Last night we received the last BIG item we were waiting on to arrive. I should be able to share pictures of her entire nursery by this weekend, but in the mean time here are a few glimpses.

This will have to suffice for now. After we finish the last bit tonight (and I clean the room) I will share pictures of her nursery. 

Determined Child

She Is Content

As much as I thought this week would be the week, Allie is determined it is not. We just left the specialist and everything continued to go well. This was her "big" growth appointment that she gets every 4 weeks. This appointment normally takes a little longer, but I had not eaten before the appointment and started to get light headed so they took her measurements quickly so I could sit back up and get some water. Therefore, I do not know exactly what her fluid or any other numbers are. Everything looked good with the development of her body and her brain. She weighs a whopping 4.5 lbs and is in the 34th percentile of growth. Her fluid looked good and her dopplers were the same as last week. They are decreased from where they were a few weeks ago, but they are not worrisome at this time. We could see Allie's hair floating around on the ultrasound screen. It looks like she will have quite a bit of hair when she decides to come. As for now, she will continue to stay in for at least another week.

I keep feeling like she will be coming any time, but she keeps on holding on. The longer she is in, the better off she will be. Her development should allow her to come home with us assuming she has no complications. This is huge. I never thought we would even have the possibility of bringing her home and now if she stays in another week or so, we most likely can bring her home. We are glad she has more time to develop, but living week by week has made us ready for her to be here. When the doctor finally says it is time to take her I think we will both be relieved to not have to go week by week anymore and actually be able to see her, hold her, and have some sort of a consistency with her.

*FYI: Stewart was a 9lb something baby and I was about 8.5. So Allie has everything working in her favor to be a little butterball if she stays in. Thankfully, I have not washed any of her preemie clothes.

Until Next Week....

Gracie Gracie Gracie

When I started this blog it was meant for others to be able to follow Allie's journey before and after she arrives. It was meant for us to post the little daily things that make her Allie. But we also wanted to keep others and our family up to date on our daily lives as we wait for Allie and as we become new parents.

If you know us well or ever see us out we will probably have a spoiled four- legged friend following us around. We got Gracie when she was about 6 weeks old last June/July. She is just over a year now. She is both Stewart and my first dog ever. I think we have done pretty good at raising her and over all she is a very well behaved puppy. I will have to admit, Stewart does most of the work and spends the most time with her. Although I like dogs, I do not like dogs that bark all the time, I do not like dog poop in my yard, I do not like dogs that jump on me or lick me...etc. Thankfully, Gracie must have figured all this out really quick because she is still with us one year later. Gracie is like Stewart's long lost friend. They go EVERYWHERE together. Details will come on their ODD  sweet relationship later.

Meet Gracie

We had just gotten Gracie in this picture. 

Since neither of us had ever had a dog we did not realize that she was still pretty young to take to the creek and other bodies of water, but she was a trooper and she loves Sunday afternoons at the creek, Pat's pond, or any other water she can find.

This is their "wrestling" match. It is odd that whatever "position" Stewart takes she does the same. It is funny to watch. Needless to say these matches have stopped (at least while I am at home) because as her nails have gotten longer/stronger she has gotten larger I worry about them scratching the floor when she is excited in the house. (I know you are thinking...Wait til Allie is here and see what damage she creates.)

She is very well behaved MOST of the time. On this occasion, we left her in the garage to go somewhere and when we came back the door that leads from the kitchen to the garage was open and there was no Gracie to be found. We found this mess in the living room. She had taken all of the toilet paper out of BOTH bathrooms and rolled our living room. Odd thing is she had to carry them one by one from the bathrooms to the den. She messed nothing else up not even the baskets she got the toilet paper from. I guess she was just ready for Football season :)

Stewart has been pestering me about writing about Gracie to the point of designating Wednesdays at "Woof Woof Wednesday" where all things Gracie and Allie will be combined. I am a day late but to satisfy my sweet husband here is Gracie her own post.