Arabella's Trach

Yesterday morning, Arabella had surgery to get a trach. As strange as it might sound, it was a great day. She was so tired of having the tube down her throat and she had been through so much just to be able to breathe that the trach is a blessing.

It is amazing to see her pretty little face.

We are so excited to start working on her oral feeding so we can bring her home.

2nd Extubation

Today, Arabella was extubated again. It was such a beautiful experience. I held her all day long and she peacefully slept in my arms. She did so well with her breathing when she was resting. Everybody was so hopeful and very surprised with how well she was doing. She was extubated at 10 and cruised through the day with no problem. Rich and I went home to have dinner with my family who came our to Florida to spend Christmas with us. After dinner we went back to the hospital and found Arabella struggling to breathe. The respiratory therapist tried a breathing treatment but it didn't help and she had to be re-intubated at 8:30pm. While intubating her, the doctor looked down her throat and saw what he thinks is the main issue...vocal cord paralysis.
Where do we go from here? Well, the ENT will have to do another bronchoscopy to make sure that is the problem and then he will do the tracheostomy. We feel that we have done everything that we can do and unfortunately it has come down to the trach but we are soooooo grateful that there is that option. The surgery will most likely be on Monday.

Arabella Update

It has been a busy few days. I haven't been very good about keeping everybody updated. Arabella's surgery went well. She was extubated 3 days after the surgery and did well for about 2 hours. After the first couple of hours her breathing went down hill. She struggled for over 12 hours and then was re-intubated. It was so hard to watch her fight for each breath. It felt like somebody ripped my heart out. It's been about 5 days and she will be extubated again tomorrow morning at 8:00. I can't even explain how nervous I am. Is she going to do better? Has the swelling gone down enough that she will be able to breath? Is that even the problem or does she have vocal cord paralysis like Aidan did? Tomorrow will determine whether she will need a trach or whether she will be able to do it on her own.
Tonight, when I was holding her, I was overwhelmed with gratitude. I was looking at her perfect face and playing with her head full of hair and thinking how blessed I am to be able to do that. I am so grateful and blessed to have her. She was gone for a few minutes and then brought back to life and for that I am and will be eternally grateful. I thought to myself what a miracle it is that Rich and I have 3 kids and not just 1. We have personally witnessed 2 miracles. Whatever happens, I am grateful.

Going Private...

So we've decided that we are going to go private in about a week. I didn't think I would ever really care who read our blog but given some of the most recent things going on in our lives I think it would be best. There are some things that I would like to share just a little more privately. Please leave me a message with your e-mail address if you want to keep following our blog. Don't be shy, even if I don't know you very well, leave me your e-mail and I'll add you. Thanks!

Arabella's Surgery

I'm sitting in the OR waiting room...anxious, excited, nervous, hopeful. I feel more hopeful than anything. Don't know what news I will be getting in a few minutes. Dr. Singer said he will take a look at her vocal cords but we will really find out in 2-3 days if this surgery will fix the problem. This is my little beauty just minutes before going in to the OR. I got to hold her :D They had to put an IV in her head. That will be coming out soon, hopefully. Isn't she gorgeous?

I GOT TO HOLD HER!

We went to visit Arabella for the second time. We were so excited! It has been so hard being home without her. I miss her.

The nurse said that she loves to sleep on her right side. She said that she didn't make a sound for 6 hours and so she started to get worried. She changed her diaper and not a peep. Then, she turned her to her left side and Arabella go really upset. She switched her back to her right side:) I got to give her her very first bath. She didn't like it much but she was still really good. I got to hold my little angel for the very first time. She melts my heart.

I gave her lots of kisses and told her how much I love her. She looked at me. She smiled twice.

After about 40 minutes she fell asleep in my arms.
I love her so much. My heart aches not having her with me.
Tomorrow morning she will go under anesthesia and the ENT will be able to tell us what is wrong. I am so nervous. I'm hoping for a miracle...praying for a miracle.

Happy Birthday Arabella Skye

Our baby girl, Arabella Skye, was born last night at around 10pm. She weighs 7lbs 1oz and is 20 inches long. She is absolutely GORGEOUS! I'm so sad to announce that our baby girl is currently in the Joe DiMaggio NICU. After a very fast delivery Arabella came in to the world and immediately had to put up a fight. She couldn't breathe and after about a minute of struggling for that first breath her heart stopped. Because she came so quickly the doctor wasn't there at the time but thankfully came in time to perform CPR and keep baby Bella going. Her heart beat came back and she was intubated and bounced back quickly. She was then taken to the NICU where they realized that she didn't need supplemental oxygen. They decided to extubate her and she immediately began to struggle with her breathing. She was reintubated and they decided that she needed to be transferred to the Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital. She was transferred this morning at 10:30 and will fortunately be seen by the same Ear, Nose and Throat specialist that saw Aidan when he had the trach. We feel so blessed that Arabella made it through her rough start and are praying that she will be able to join us at home very soon.

Made it to another visit

I had another doctors appointment on Tuesday. I just think it's kind of funny that 2 weeks ago she told me I could go at any time and I totally panicked and got everything ready. I have been expecting her to come every single day since then. I had another false labor last night. I decided that after a really long day at home with the kids I needed to go to Michael's to buy some Christmas decorations. I was feeling pretty good. Strolled in and looked around. After about 15 minutes of walking around I started feeling like my water was going to break and I could barely walk. I was totally praying that I would be able to waddle to the register to pay and then to the car to drive home without having to ask for help. I did make it to the car and had to recline the seat to be able to sit comfortably. I made it home and told Rich all about my fun trip to Michael's. We decided that this little girl was coming tonight and got all of the kids stuff ready. So the contractions continued but they weren't very consistent and I only had a couple of intense ones so we waited and waited and waited. Rich thought we should get a couple of hours of sleep while we waited to make sure I really was in labor. I told him ok but I just knew we were having her that night. *side note: Rich is in finals week and yet he has very willingly been at my beck and call through all of this. LOVE HIM!* We went to bed and fell soundly asleep. Contractions stopped and I felt normal today. I have 2 words to describe our baby girl...DRAMA QUEEN!

Thank You Heidi

I just want to say thank you to my dear friend and neighbor, Heidi. I made the post "Make Your Prediction" last night before I went to bed and Heidi commented that she predicted that the baby would come last night because she is up at 3am and could watch my kids. Now let me just tell you what happened last night. Did the baby come? No. At exactly 3am I felt a horrible pain in my stomach and had to get up to use the bathroom. I will not go into detail about that but from 3am on I had pain in my stomach that felt more like food poisoning than contractions. This continued until 11am when my bathroom visits ended and the pain turned into regular contractions. Rich and I got the kids ready to go and the contractions slowed. It is now 1:30pm. Kids are napping. Contractions have stopped. What? I'm so confused? Is she coming? Is she not? This fake labor stuff is not fun. So that is the update and I just had to thank Heidi because I am convinced that she cursed me or said a prayer or poisoned me because she is very competitive and wanted to win the prediction.

Make Your Prediction!

So it's been a good 2 weeks since the doctor told me that she could come at any time. Every day it feels like she is coming but then I make it through the day! I keep making predictions and she keeps proving me wrong so I want to know what YOUR prediction is! Here is where I currently stand:

*Dilated to a 4

*50% effaced

*Have about 3-4 decent contractions a day

*I am feeling more pain in my hips

* Due date is December 8th, the day Rich's finals start. Yippee!

*Aidan was 1 week late, Maya was 3 days late

*My mom is flying in on December 5th

What do you think? How much longer until we get to meet this little girl? Oh, and by the way, we have changed her name. Funny story. I went to my appointment last week and was seen by a different doctor because mine was out of town. She walked in and the first thing she said when she looked at my chart and saw what we were naming our baby girl is, "Oh no, not ANOTHER Isabella." Apparently this is a very popular name thanks to Twilight. Rich and I had picked out the name before Twilight became huge but still cannot seem to escape the hype so we have decided to change her name ever so slightly just to give her a little more individuality. Her name will be announced after she is born :)

In The Spirit Of Thanksgiving

This video has been circulating on facebook for a couple of weeks now but I just watched it for the first time today. Totally got me in the spirit of Thanksgiving and made me think about what I am thankful for. Click here and watch this video.

So in the spirit of Thanksgiving I am thankful for:

-The gospel of Jesus Christ in my life. It makes everything else that I am grateful for more meaningful, beautiful and eternal.

-Rich and his good heart. He gives service by using his talents. He is so compassionate and giving when he sees others needs. He is an amazing husband and father. He is such a good example to me and makes me a better person.

-Aidan and his strong will. It's been a year since Aidan got his feeding tube and trach out and yet I still think about all that we went through often. I'm grateful for the miracle of his life, his sweet disposition through it all and who he is today. The fact that he is completely healthy is something I am thankful for every day.

-Maya and the light that she brought into our family. From day one she was always exactly what I needed her to be. She brought with her peace and comfort and replaced the fear that I had. She is so happy and active and so much fun to be around!

-I am grateful for my mom for all of the sacrifices she made so that I could have all of the opportunities that I've had in my life. I am who I am and I am where I am because of her example.

-I am so grateful that I am going to have another baby any day now!!!!!!

I could seriously go on and on and on but I will stop there. I will be sure to thank my Heavenly Father for all that he has blessed me with, not only on this special day but everyday. HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

One of my favorite things to watch. Rich reading our kids a bedtime story :)

One Week Later...

Here I sit. One week later. No baby. I had another appointment today and once again she said, "That baby is ready to come out!" I am almost dilated to a 4 so I have a feeling this little girl is gonna come fast! It sounds strange but I feel like I've had more time to prepare for Bella's arrival than I did with either of my other two. It has been fun. Her room is set up, clothes are washed and hung and her family is anxiously awaiting her arrival. Rich and I couldn't be happier with our lives at this point. We have been so blessed!

She Walks!!

2 Days short of being 14 months old, my baby girl WALKS!! She actually did it for the first time on her own yesterday but today I got the proof :D

Oh Bella where art thou?

I went to the doctor yesterday and got some very exciting/nerve racking news. She said that she could feel her head which means that she is REALLY low and that I am dilated to a 2 and 50% effaced. I have to admit, I wasn't super shocked because I've been feeling more uncomfortable the past couple of days. I've also been feeling the nesting urge like crazy! So the doctor said that she could come tomorrow or she could hang in there for another 2 weeks. I'm just not sure what to think because last night I had a horrible nights sleep but today I feel the best I've felt in weeks! I've gotten lots of cleaning done and I'm feeling more ready for baby Bella to join us! So excited!! I am soooo excited to meet her!

Slacking

So this pregnancy has been a little rough. This is why it's been quite a while since I've made a post. I probably shouldn't complain because I know that there are others that have it a million times worse than I do. This is for me to be able to look back on and remember the reality of being pregnant before I decide I want to have another baby. Don't get me wrong, I love my kids but I enjoy them soooo much more when I'm not pregnant.

Varicose veins :) They have not been fun. It's not even the actual veins that bother me so much, it's more the achy legs and swollen feet. I've discovered that the best thing to do for this, other than wearing the compression hose which work wonders is to put my legs up. Seriously though, I have a 1 year old and a 2 year old, when am I gonna get a chance to do this every time my legs start to ache?

Back pain :) I have been having back pain almost since the beginning of my pregnancy. I learned from my doctor that apparently all of this is because my uterus is not as strong as it used to be. I am carrying really low and this is causing all of the pressure I've been feeling. She said that everything I would normally feel at the very end of my pregnancy I will feel a lot earlier on. She was right. Now that I'm getting to the end of my pregnancy...ouch.

Muscle spasms :) I have muscle spasms randomly throughout the day that stop me in my tracks. Kind of funny to watch. Not so fun for me.

Every night at around midnight Bella wakes up and begins to practice her kick boxing. If I'm not asleep yet I won't be for about 30-40 minutes. If I am asleep...I'm not anymore. Thus, I am a bit sleep deprived which makes for a grouchy mommy in the morning. My kids are great! They are usually well behaved and good natured but they still want my attention. I want to give it to them but I'm often short tempered and impatient. I am not the mom I want to be...when I am pregnant.

Like I said, this is not meant to be a pity party. It is for the future me. Also for the future me...

they are soooooo worth it.

Beautiful Disaster

Here she is...Maya in a nutshell. Now we call her our "beautiful disaster" because it is our best description for her.

At one year old she is incredibly active and can pretty much get anywhere she wants to be. I also call her my little monkey because she loves to cling and climb. This is what happens every time I try to do dishes.

Her hair is really long and she hates having it done but loves baths in the sink.

She can get up on the couch by herself now. Here she is reading a book that her Aunt Rebecca sent her with her hands AND feet, of course.

Some other things about Maya at one year old...

*She is a total momma's girl.

*She loves to read.

*Aidan's favorite playmate.

*Not walking but favorite way to move from one place to the next, on her hands and feet.

Just a bundle of fun!

Aidan-n-Maya's Birthday Feast!

I was so excited about Aidan and Maya getting to celebrate their birthday's together so I decided to throw a little party. I made these little invitations for our closest friends and started planning!

Unfortunately, the night before the party I changed my mind about the cake I was going to make. I decided on a much bigger cake that would take a lot longer than I expected.

Lucky for me, I married a "Baker"! Rich was awesome and helped me soooo much!

We finished the cake just in time for the party. Fhew!

Ahhh, the finished product. No, nobody turned 21.

Happy Birthday Aidan & Maya!

Finally, Maya's big moment...

It was such a memorable night. We are so grateful for all of our friends that joined us and made it a special night. Both Aidan and Maya have filled our lives with so much happiness.

6 Month Picture

Here it is! My first post of a prego picture...for this pregnancy :D There's no denying it, the belly is obviously there. It was kind of crazy because it just seemed to suddenly pop out and then within a couple of weeks it just doubled in size. I'm bigger than I was at this point with my other two but according to my doctor I am still just a little under weight for 6 months. That made me feel good.

I am quite enjoying this pregnancy. As strange as it may sound it has been easier being pregnant and taking care of both Aidan and Maya than it was with just Aidan + all that his medical condition demanded at the time. I have a lot of lower back pain that never goes away and I absolutely have to get at least 9 hours of sleep or I can't function the next day but other than that I am feeling good and sooooo excited to add Baby Isabella (Bella) to the bunch!

Today Aidan sported his new look! I finally discovered that pomade will keep his hair spiked up so Aidan has a whole new look and I'll tell you what, the ladies at church just thought he looked like quite the stud!

It's a little hard to see but he looks pretty stinkin' cute!

Random...But Cute

I was looking through my pictures and realized I missed a few great pictures and events that I really wanted to remember so this is my random post of cute pictures...

A few weeks ago we went to the annual Nova BBQ! We went last year after we just moved here and didn't know anybody. This year was a little different. We went with a bunch of our friends and had a great time and we have an addition to our family :) Last year it was just Aidan.

Rich and I both remembered the bubble castle from last year and were so excited that this year Aidan was old enough to go in. He loved it until he slipped and was buried under bubbles. This is him after we got him out and he stopped screaming.

Such a fun night

I took this random picture because this is after Maya choked twice in one day on her hair clip. I decided she needed to be punished by making her go all day without a clip or hair tie to keep her hair out of her face

Then I decided to have mercy on her. Little stinker!

Just a random picture of Maya having a good time on the beach.

Ready for church!

Since Aidan is now in his big boy bed and we have moved Maya into his room, I can finally start putting up some decorations! These are the letters I made a while back. I thought that maybe by posting this picture it might motivate my sister to send me Maya's and Isabella's name (hint hint) I don't have a scroll saw and I'm desperate for something to paint!!

Aidan is doing great in his bed! We occasionally find him halfway out of his bed and this morning he woke up with a fat lip. Other than that he's doing pretty good.

Just the other day Maya started cracking up when I would raise my arms and bring them down really quick. Luckily we caught her on video and there are moment when I stopped and she would try to raise her arms to tell me to do it again. Enjoy!

Well, that is my post of random cuteness!

Aidan's Day!

Fun, fun, fun! We had a great time with Aidan today! We called around to the play places around here but none of them had open play time today so we decided to take him to BURGER KING! Yeah, originally not my first choice but he had never been and he loved it.

He loved the play ground. Especially since daddy played with him.

I think even more than the playground, he loved the ice cream he got to cool down. The crown was a bonus too.

Then we headed to the beach because he loves to play in the sand.

And just to bring an end to the perfect day he got to go to bed for the very first time in his big boy bed!

Happy Birthday Aidan Bug!! You are the best 2 year old ever!

Aidan at 2:

*He loves, loves, loves his daddy! Seriously, he is a daddy's boy.

*Gives the best kisses!

*He is a comforter when he hears a baby cry.

*Likes holding hands.

*Really likes toy cars.

*Calls everybody's belly button a baby.

*Likes to help dress himself.

*Loves buckling things.

*Favorite snack is fresh fruit, especially red grapes.

The Birthday Boy!

There he is. The birthday boy. 2 years old today and I still can't believe it! Unfortunately we couldn't do anything fun with him today but tomorrow is HIS day! We are going to drop Maya off at a friends house and Rich and I are going to take Aidan out for a fun day of 2 year old stuff. I am so excited!! I will update and post lots of fun pics tomorrow!

As far as a birthday party goes, that is in the very near future. We are going to have a combined birthday party for Aidan and Maya with all of our friends. Both Aidan and Maya are very loved by everybody in our ward so we look forward to having a fun birthday bash with everybody we love, minus our family. Like I said, tomorrow is Aidan's big day so we will post again later!

Where are they now?

Just a little update on what is going on with our kiddos. Aidan will be 2 in just 1 month!! Maya just turned 10 months old and is always full of new tricks so here are some videos and pictures to update where they are now.

Aidan is becoming quite the little helper. He wants to help me do everything and is getting very good at it. He is A LOT more obedient than he was just a short month ago and seems to really be in touch with what is going on around him.

I have never seen a little boy be so loving to his little sister as Aidan is to Maya. He loves her so much! They play together, watch Baby Einstein together...

Sometimes Aidan will even pull up a chair to eat with Maya.

I feel blessed to have them close in age even though it can be tough sometimes.
Maya is blossoming into quite the personality. At 10 months old she isn't quite crawling, refuses to eat baby food, loves being read to and has lots of cute and funny quirks.

Pat-a-cake

This video doesn't quite capture it or do it justice but Maya has kind of a freaky growl. When she does it in public people give her weird looks but we love it. Aidan thinks it's so funny and eggs her on when she growls.

Crazy kids! That's our update for now!