Knox Remington Brannon - Birth Story

Monday, June 9th, we went for a check up on little man.  I had been feeling a lot like he was going to be joining us any second.  I was 38.4 weeks and 3 centimeters!  My doctor seemed excited tell to me that I was in "early labor" and he was looking forward to seeing me in the next day or two at the hospital.  We were thrilled!  Blake and I just couldn't wait to meet this little man.  

The next day, Tuesday, I just knew it was time to go to the hospital.  I was very nervous because I was induced with Gabbi and didn't know what to expect or even what contractions actually feel like.  After a disappointing and emotional trip to the hospital we drove back home to continue this "early labor" phase for another 36 hours or so. 

Blake and I went to bed Wednesday night still very anxious and a little frustrated about the unknown. I woke up at 3:30am on Thursday, June 12th with a stomach ache.  A laid in bed, wide awake, and 4am I was having very strong contractions every 3 minutes.  I immediately felt crazy for thinking I was in active labor Tuesday.. silly me!  I was prepared and planned to labor at home as long as possible, I was NOT going to be sent home again!  I woke Blake up at 4:22 and told him what was going on.  He asked, "does it hurt?"  Hah, does it hurt?!  About that time I had another contraction and he swiftly jumped in the shower and got ready to take me in.  We called my mom to come stay with Gabbi who was happily sleeping in her bed.  

By 5:30am we were checked in to the hospital, 8 centimeters, and waiting on an epidural.  This happened so fast!  Gosh, I just can't put into words the feeling of those contractions.  Thankfully, the anesthesiologist came in to give me spinal anesthesia around 6:15am (much quicker to work than the epidural, most commonly used for c-section births).  What a wonderful man he was!  I immediately needed to push and was so happy to see that my doctor had walked in during the spinal, he made it in time!  And finally during the 3rd push, at 6:28am, just as the medicine began to work Mister Knox Remington joined us.  

Blake and I cried as they laid him on my chest and we couldn't believe how much he looked like Gabbi.  Just beautiful.  They took him over to clean him up, measure and weigh, and by the time I got to hold him again he had already changed.  He was beginning to look just like his handsome daddy, and I couldn't have been happier.  

The grandparents came in to meet the new addition.  No one else made it in time, it was very early and an extremely quick process compared to last time.  By 8am Blake and I were enjoying our sweet baby and breakfast from Denny's and by 9am we were settled in our recovery room.  After Gabbi's afternoon nap Thursday she came to meet her new brother.  Just 9 days shy of a year old, she was the cutest little big sister I've ever seen!  

In just 24 hours we were headed home with our new roommate for the next 18 years.  This experience was dramatically different from our first born.  I am so thankful for my doctor, the sweet nurse that comforted me with her resume when we didn't think my doctor would make it in time, my amazing husband that reminded me to breathe when I was about to pass out, and our supportive families for encouraging me those last few days and loving on Gabbi while we were away.  

I have to share a quick story of how God works and how good He is.  About a year ago I wrote a post about my grandfathers passing.  I was unable to go to the funeral as I was 38 weeks pregnant with Gabbi.  I have missed him desperately since.  Around the time Knox was conceived (before I knew I was pregnant) I had a dream of my sweet grandfather giving me a hug and a kiss and waving goodbye to me and two small children.  I woke up angry at God for giving me that little glimpse of him in my dream and missing him even more.  A few weeks later, I was begging for more dreams just to see him again.  And a few weeks after that, I found out we were expecting - just maybe expecting that second child in my dream.  When we went to the doctor and got a due date of June 15th, I immediately told my family that this baby would be born on June 12th, the day my grandfather went to be with the Lord.  You see, my grandfather has a sense of humor similar to God's!  And he would have wanted nothing more than to turn that sad day into a day of celebration.  So thank you Dad Sales, for being in cahoots with God.  I couldn't be happier to have woken up that morning, going into labor, and knowing that you were standing next to God, watching over us.  

36 Weeks

Wow Knox, how did we get this far so fast?!  We went for your 36 week checkup today and measured your sweet, smooshed self!  Your 6.5 pound body is running out of room, and boy are your legs long!  We are getting close to meeting you and we are so excited.  We love you sweet boy! 

How far along:  36 weeks

Gender:  Boy

Movement:  Ouch!  

Weight Gain: 12 pounds

Maternity Clothes:  So ready for regular clothes!

Stretch Marks:  I'm sure they are hiding under there somewhere, but I certainly can't see it!

Sleeping Habits:  Sleep.. what is that again?

Miss Anything:  Lots to miss, but I am enjoying this while it lasts.

Appetite:  Heartburn is killing me and causing a light appetite. 

Cravings:  Still sweets and lots of ice!

Symptoms:  Just feeling pretty large and waddely these days. 

Belly Button:  Out a little.

Mood:  Well, while I am certainly ready to be unpregnant, I'm not so sure how I feel about bringing home a second baby.  I'm freakin' a little, but for whatever reason God thought this was a good idea so I'm going with it. 

Favorite Moments:  I have been enjoying baby hiccups and his constant movements.  He is a very busy little boy in there but quickly running out of room. We also really enjoyed our ultrasound today to measure him!  He is right on track and about 6.5 pounds, except his legs are measuring 38 weeks!  Yay for Daddy's height :)

Gabriella Grace - 9 Months

I can't believe I haven't written in 4 months!!  Where do I even begin?!  

Little Miss Gabbi is the light of our lives.  She brings so much joy to our day it is hard to describe.   She began crawling on Christmas Day at 6 months old and hasn't been still since.  She started pulling up around 7 months.  Gabbi's 8th month of life has been one of my favorites! (Besides the 1st month, that was good stuff!)  She STILL doesn't have a single tooth but she eats like she has a mouth full of chompers.  She is pretty much over baby foods and would much rather feed herself table food.  

As I wrote last time, she started day care at 6 months, and it is really working for us.  Gabbi just loves her teachers and friends, she is such a social bug waving at everyone when she gets there.  She does realize that I am leaving, but she is so distracted with breakfast time that she could care less!  (The girl likes to eat!)  I will admit, with a very selfish heart, that I take full advantage of the time she is there to keep my body rested and healthy.  My back is taking a beating carrying her and this belly around since she can't walk yet. 

Yesterday she had her 9 month checkup.  She is in the 80th percentile for both height and weight, coming in at a whopping 20 pounds!  Being as vertically challenged as I am, this 80% makes Momma happy!  She may have actually gotten some height from her daddy ;)  Gabbi's current happenings have us laughing most of the day.  She yells some type of gibberish constantly and says DaDa all the time.  Sweet Gabbi has the most heart melting smile I have ever seen, she is such a happy girl.  She is pulling up on everything, opening cabinets and banging tupperware, walking down anything she can hold on to, standing alone, and crashing and burning after about two steps!  She is getting very good at falling, and as you can tell from the picture above, she is not still for more than a second.  Being the busy girl that she is, she is sleeping for 12 hours or more at night.  Again making this tired Momma a happy lady!

Daddy and I have had so much fun watching her grow and her super fun personality develop.  I have a feeling Miss Thing will keep us on our toes for many years to come.  For the next couple of months before her brother arrives we are soaking in every single moment with her.  I get very sad thinking about sharing my time and energy, but I am certain we have enough love for both of these miracles - so bring it on!

25 Weeks

Son, your due date changes every time we see the doctor.  This is kind of exciting for me because I have a feeling you will surprise us when you are good and ready, but on the other hand I am so ready to meet you I can't stand not knowing for sure when that will be.  Keep growing little man, we love you to pieces! 

How far along:  25 weeks

Gender:  Boy

Movement:  Very strong kicks and punches!  

Weight Gain: 3 pounds

Maternity Clothes:  Bring 'em on.

Stretch Marks:  Nah

Sleeping Habits:  Not too bad, big sister keeps me busy so I have no trouble falling asleep.

Miss Anything:  Leaning forward.. he wants to take up ALL the space I have available.

Appetite:  Pretty good but I am already getting heartburn.

Cravings:  Non fat, decaf, iced white mocha, whip first, then shake!

Symptoms:  So very tired!

Belly Button:  Out a little.

Mood:  Pretty calm most of the time, Blake is kinda freaking out because I'm not ;)

Favorite Moments:  Well this picture and these facts are from 25 weeks, but I am currently 27.5 weeks and last week my Meme was in town to help us move so she came to my checkup.  I asked for an ultrasound since it had been 10 whole weeks since I had seen Knox last, I had no idea she had never seen a baby via ultrasound!  It was neat for my sweet doc to show her all of his limbs and beating heart!  So that was my favorite recent moment!

Pregnancy So Far.. Round 2

Surprisingly similar to Round 1 at 20 weeks!

Today I am somewhere between almost 21 or 22 weeks.  Since this pregnancy was so close to my last, and I was still nursing, we can't quite pinpoint the weeks.  My due date has stayed at June 15th but this little man is measuring a little bigger!  So far I feel better good.  I wasn't near as sick as I was with Gabbi, which is wonderful!!  But boy am I tired.  I can literally fall asleep in mid conversation, standing up, with my eyes open, holding my 7 month old.  And that's the truth!

Knox seems to move much less than Gabbi did, and he is pretty sweet about it.  Soft, steady kicks mostly in the morning and at night.  He has seemed to stay in the same position so far so he isn't doing all the flipping over his big sister did.  He is probably just bracing himself for this crazy world he will be entering in 4 short months.  4 months.  Yikes!  Mother of two in just 4 months.  I have tons of emotions going on surrounding this thought.. mostly excitement.  But tons of fear, anxiety, wonder of how people do this with 5 and 6 children.  I know how quickly these last months go (remind me I said that around 34 weeks!) so I am trying to soak it all up and enjoy every step without fear of the future!

Here we go, for Round 2!

How far along:  21ish weeks

Gender:  Boy

Movement:  Mostly in the morning and at night

Weight Gain:  I lost 10 pounds during the first trimester so I'm working on getting that back right now!  5 lbs to go before I start actually gaining.

Maternity Clothes:  Just broke out the bottoms this week!

Stretch Marks:  I have one tiny mark on my lower stomach left over from Gabbi.  I never saw it until she was out.. little stinker!  We'll see what homeboy does to me!

Sleeping Habits:  What is that sleep thing again?  Gabbi still eats once during the night sooo.. 

Miss Anything:  STILL a glass of wine and normal clothes.

Appetite:  Ehh, one day. 

Cravings:  Definitely sweet and plenty of caffeine. 

Symptons:  Moody, pudgy, sleepy.

Belly Button:  In

Mood:  Excitedly overwhelmed!

Favorite Moments:  Daddy feeling him kick.  And the fact that he clearly knows he has a very loud big sister and prefers to kick hardest after she is quietly put to bed!

Deja Vu

There is only one way to start this blog post...

{we are having ANOTHER baby}

I read over the post announcing the news of our first baby, that I wrote less than a year ago, before writing this one and I have to say the feelings of excitement and fear are EXACTLY the same.  The only difference is that we did not wait so long for this precious one.  

"Was this planned?"is the question we have been getting, and the answer is.. ish.  

Because it took quite a while to get pregnant with Gabbi, we thought maybe it would take a while this time too, so we decided that we would just let it happen and be ready anytime.  The morning we found out was pretty funny because we wanted to yell and scream but we had a 3 and half month old snoozing not far from us!  We laughed and cried and hugged for a long time.  

I quickly called our nurse to make sure it was even possible and asked if I should take more tests to make sure, and she says "oh yeah, it's always possible but if it makes you feel better you can test again!" so she made us an appointment.  We took Gabbi with us to meet her new sibling, even though she didn't have a clue what was happening, and sure enough there was the tiny grain of rice with a heart beating away.  The time is flying by this time.  Today we went for our second appointment and my blood work.  I am 11 weeks and we couldn't believe how big the baby had gotten.  Fast heart beat like Gabbi's was and already moving all around!  Our doctor laughs at our jokes about having just gone through this and suggested we name the baby "Deja"!  

I guess that is it for now.  We will go back just before Christmas to see if we can see any boy or girl parts!  For now I will be praying for big {little} sister, a healthy new baby, an appetite, energy, and that the awful heartburn does not happen this time!  All encouraging comments are more than welcome.  I have mostly been getting comments like "this is going to be hard" or "wow that will be tough" or "Gabbi won't even get to be a baby".  You can imagine that those are a little discouraging so I'm working through that.  God's plan is perfect, all the time.  With our first miracle His timing took much longer than we liked,  and with this miracle it was a little sooner than we expected.  But either way, it is perfect and we are just thrilled.  Why God thinks I can handle 2 babes 11 months apart I do not know, but I know that He can handle it!

Thank you Jesus for this new sweet baby, thank you for the sweet baby we already have and that you have always wanted her to be a big sister, thank you for your perfect plan, and thank you in advance for being patient with me. 

Gabriella Grace - 5 Months

I am not really a fan of the time passing so quickly.  It seems like just last week we were bringing her home from the hospital.   At the same time, it seems like this angel has been a part of our lives forever.  She changes everyday and keeps us on our toes.  

At 5 months Gabbi is rolling all over the place and sitting up by herself for a quick second.  She is getting very frustrated that she can't crawl yet, however scooting backwards seems like something fun for her!  She loves her paci, mostly when she is tired, but is becoming very aware that it's something she wants.  (yikes!)  She has also started fruits and veggies and absolutely loves baby food!  Peas and Apples are the favorite for now!  The bouncer is her best friend right now and any toy that has lights.  She is becoming interested in the mirror and touching her reflection.  Her voice is getting very loud, especially when her paci is on the floor in front of her and she can't get to it!  She still loves the swing for naps. She sleeps well at night still waking up for one feeding.  She loves being tickled but she hasn't really let out a full blown giggle yet, a couple of laughs, but I'm waiting for a belly shaking giggle!  We almost have a tooth or two, her gums are swollen, so we'll be praying that those come in smoothly!  She is going to Mother's Day Out twice a week and just loves it!  She is all smiles when I drop her off and a very happy baby when I pick her up.  In January she will begin "full-time" day care, although I won't keep her there all day. 

As for mommy, I am so enjoying her.  She is reaching for me now if someone else has her.  And when daddy gets home in the evening she reaches for him, you can tell she missed him all day!  Mornings are my favorite time with her.  She snuggles for a while and touches my face with her sweet hands.  It is getting hard to go to work with her because she is so much more active and only taking 2 short naps during the day, which is why we are starting day care.  I dread the first day I take her.  The day she started Mother's Day Out I cried the whole way to work, and as my receptionist says, I still cried at work!  She will be in the school where my mom works though so that helps a bunch.  The guilt though, oh the guilt.  It is truly a double edged sword.  I feel guilty for taking her to work and not playing with her as much during the day, she is so active and needs the attention.  On the other hand, being with someone else all day means she doesn't get as much of mommy and that breaks my heart.  However, getting to know her personality more everyday, I know that she loves being around people and playing and interacting so I'm sure she will be a great fit there.  (I say that now, until I drop her off!)  I am happy to report that the initial feelings of a new mommy, you know the ones, (pure exhaustion, being inadequate, constantly overwhelmed, crying at the drop of a paci) have all passed as Gabbi and I learn each other better.  I am slowly able to (or at least thinking about it!) leave her with family members for longer periods of time.  Very slowly, but I'm getting there.  Hey, we are even getting on a plane in a couple of weeks.. look at me go!

I was about to add pictures but she is stirring so you'll just have to check out Instagram, there are plenty..  (this also means I am not spell checking or grammer checking so I hope my sister doesn't read this)  

Until next time!