First Non-Crying bath time!!

So, up until yesterday, bath time was a drama filled event for Ella. It appeared that this supposed "calming, soothing" bedtime ritual was just the opposite for her. While she was still small enough, we were using the little basin that the hospital sent home. Adam had to hold her up while I washed her. And she cried. Me and my mom tried the kitchen sink. And she cried. We tried a larger baby bath tub. And she cried. Finally I found this little contraption of my sister-in-laws in storage at my mom's house. I put it in our tub, hopped in with her, filled it up with nice warm water, and...........TUH DUH!!!! A cry-free tubby time! Yeah!!!! This may not seem like a big deal to you, but to a mom who has been wanting this bonding experience with her baby daughter, it was a great accomplishment :)
She is almost 6 weeks old now. She also has started to give smiles!!! She gave my mom two good smiles on Tuesday, and today she has smiled at me several times. It is so nice to get some positive reinforcement from you baby. You start to wonder if they are happy, or if they love you...(silly, I know, but my hormones must still be out of wack!) so a little smile here and there does so much to boost your confidence as a mother! I will attempt to get a smile on camera and post it so you can all see just how dang cute and special it is ;)
Here's to many more happy milestones!!!!!!

Ella Sophia one month old

My goodness, today my little girl is one month old! It's crazy, in some ways, I can't believe it's been a month already, but in other ways, it feels like she's always been here. Our past month has been full of lots of different emotions! The first week having her home was an emotional roller-coaster. Feeling blissful one moment and completely blue the next. After that the emotions got more stable, but adjusting to this new routine did not! My day literally revolves around this little person and her needs. It's a little overwhelming sometimes to know that this little girl relies entirely on me! No pressure!
It's been a learning experience, but I love it. I love her. I love my husband and everything he is doing for us both. He is madly in love with her, and it is so fun to see them interact with one another. I'm afraid he is in big trouble when she gets older and is able to use her powers on him for evil doing ;)
So, I'm going to pat myself on the back for making it through this first month, and having high hopes for the months to come. Hopefully we can continue to settle in to this new life as a little family!

Ella's Story

So our 9 month wait is FINALLY over! Ella Sophia Miller joined our family on Sunday, April 17th at 6:40am, weighing 7lb, measuring 19in long. It all started for me on Saturday morning. I had decided that there was just NO WAY I was going back to work on Monday. I was tired, in pain, and just exhausted in every sense of the word. I was going to do everything I could to get Ella here ASAP! So Saturday morning I put on my walking shoes (which were a little tight due to my swollen feet and ankles) and went for a walk around our apartment complex. We have beautiful grounds here at Cobble Creek and it was a great day to take a walk with my unborn daughter. I gave her an official eviction notice, telling her that mommy was worn out and didn't think she could handle one more day of caring her around in her tummy. After I got back to the apartment, I looked up how to do accupressure to induce labor. There's a spot on your leg that you are supposed to press, so I did this for a while. Then that night, Adam and I went to Z'Tejas at the Gateway to celebrate his Grandmother's birthday. I ordered a nice spicy pasta dish :)
When we got home, we decided to watch a movie. About 3/4 of the way through, I was sitting on the LaZ Boy chair when a felt a "POP" and then a gush of water. I told Adam to pause the movie and ran to the bathroom. Sure enough, my water had broke!!!!!!! I told Adam and he literally jumped about 5 feet in the air off the couch and started getting our bags together that we had packed. In the middle of hurrying around, he pulled me into our bedroom and asked that we have a prayer together before we left. After that I felt much more calm. We got in the car and continued on to the University of Utah Hospital. We were both in such a daze and were so happy and in shock that the moment was finally here!
We got checked in to the Hospital around 10pm. The nurse asked if my contractions were painful. I told her they were not, and she suggested we take a walk around the Hospital to get things going faster. Well, it didn't take long for those contractions to become painful once I was up and moving!!! We booked it back to the room and they checked me out. I was dialted to a 4 and fully effaced. I still did not get the epidural at this point, and the reason is kinda gross, but I'll share in the most tactful way possible. I really wanted to be able to use the lady's room BEFORE I became numb from the waste down, in order to avoid an embarrasing incident during the pushing part of labor, if ya know what I mean!!! So, I waited until 2:30am to get the darn thing! Once I got it, it only worked on my right side. They turned me over and asked me to try and sleep (yeah right) and hope that the medicine would work it's way over to my left side. It did a little, but for the most part I was feeling a lot of labor on my left, which would end up being a blessing later on.
At 5am, they checked me again. They said they were going to have me start pushing in 1 hour. So we called our family and told them to get to the Hospital ASAP!! My mom and brother Randy arrived first, and I had Randy and Adam give me a blessing. Then Adam's parents and sister Amanda arrived. After a few minutes, we cleared the room and waited for my doctor. Unfortunately, she is the mother of twin boys, and the wife of a surgeon, who was operating that morning. So that left her stranded at home with her sons. BUMMER!!! I had really wanted her to be part of my birthing experience, but it just wasn't happening. I got over it quick, because the anticipation of meeting my daughter was really kicking in. A very nice resident Dr. Yi was there, along with my wonderful nurse Melanie.
We started pushing at 6:15am. They kept telling me what an amazing job I was doing, and that it would not take long for me to get the baby out. Once her head was close to being out, they realized that the cord was wrapped around her neck. I didn't know this right away, they didn't want to alarm me too much, but they just said that I had one more chance to push her out or they would have to use the vacuum. Well, I was not about to let them stick a vacuum hose to MY daughters head, so push I did! I felt this total relief and I looked down and saw my baby!! They took her aside to check her vitals, then brought her to me and laid her on my chest. She just started at me and I stared at her. It was such a beautiful moment between me and her. Then Adam got her bathed and dressed. He was so happy (and tired), as was I. It all went by so fast, I still can't believe it's all over. It's like that Christmas morning feeling, but on steroids!!
I'm so grateful for everyone who came and visited in the Hospital, it was so special to share that time with you!!! We are loving parenthood and learning and growing together everyday!!!

9 months.....ready or not.......

Well, I've got under 3 weeks left! I'm carrying this little girl mostly out front, from what you can tell from the pic's. And yes, the back is killing me! At my last visit, they told me I'm about 85% effaced and at 2cm dilated, and her head is VERY far down....so it can't be too long before she gets here! I'd like her to wait at least until April 13th, because that's when my doctor gets back in town! But the fact of the matter is, she'll come whenever she wants to come, and no matter when that is, I will be THRILLED to meet her! If Adam had his way, she would have been here yesterday :) But the exact moment she'll get here.....your guess is as good as mine?!?!

Miller's Shower (Baby Shower's part 4...)

I had my 4th shower at the Miller's house on March 12th. It was so beautiful! Linda and all my sis-in-laws did such a great job. It was complete with delicious (and beautiful) food, flowers, and decked out with bird decor. It definitely had a Spring feel to it :) I'm so blessed to be a part of this family. Everyone went around and told me why they thought I was going to make a good mother....and it got a little emotional! I'm surrounded by amazing women and I love them all so much!

The great spread! So yummy :)

Me and my mama. Also we played "How big is mama's belly". It's always so funny to see how big some people measure it!

I got some great gifts! The letters are actually supposed to read "E.M" for Ella Miller, but I had them switched for the picture and it looks like I'm making it all about "ME"! Hahaha!

Thanks to everyone who has come to/thrown all of my showers. I feel so loved and supported on this journey. It has certainly been a long one, I'm having a hard time remembering not being pregnant! But I'm so happy that I've been able to experience this and feel my little one grow. It's an amazing, miraculous thing. Adam and I are literally buzzing with anticipation to finally lay eyes on this girl. We already love her so much, it's going to be crazy to feel that love grow once she's here!

Friend Shower (Baby Shower's part 3.....)

My friends Stacia, Helina and Brittney threw me my friend shower. It's always fun to have all of my friends in one room!!! We played some cute games and ate some very good food :) There were five of us all together who were pregnant!! The weather wasn't the best that day, so I really appreciate everyone who came out to help me celebrate! I have great friends!!

Jessie, Ali, Rachel, Me, Stacia, Lacey, Tammy, Brittney, Helina (and her cute boys Bennet and Gabe)

Ali, Me, Jodi, Brit and Lacey are all expecting!! Lacey is due any minute.. Jodi and I are due the end of April, Ali is due in a couple of weeks, and Brit.....well, I'm just not sure!! I think closer to October!

Lindsay and Me :) I haven't seen her in so long, I'm so glad she came!

Ali ad JJ (that's what I call Jessie, but I won't say why:) )

Stacia and Helina...people always mistake them for sisters! I can see the resemblence :)

Tammy and Lacey...I worked with these girls and LDS Hospital a long time ago, but we've stayed in touch and get together at least a couple of times a year.

Beehive Tea Room Exclusive! (Baby shower's part 2..)

So my very best friends Phyllis and Liz through me a special Baby Shower with just me, Phyllis, Liz, Ellie and Jill. We had it at a place called the Beehive Tea Room in Salt Lake....it was SOOOO cute! It's got several rooms all decorated with different old fashioned art work and furniture. It was so nice and thoughtful of them to do this for me, and it was really fun to spend the afternoon with them!

Some pic's of everyone together enjoying our tea and Italian Soda's :) These girls are all like family to me. Phyllis and Ellie have since gone back to London where they live. I miss them so much, but applaud them for doing what is right for them in their marriage. Ella will know how much they love and cared for her before she was even born :) Jill was always like a 2nd mom to me growing up, I think I probably spent as much time at her house as I did my own! And Liz and I have been like sister's from birth. We were born three days apart! Love you all sooooo much!!
Some pic's of me opening presents and drinking my Italian Soda. I got such cute gifts from everyone, thank you so much!!
We had some great drinks, scones, sandwiches, and desserts here. It was all so good!
We decorated bibs for Ella after we were done eating :) I'm sure they will all come in handy!! Thanks again girls for such a special day!!

Fancy Nancy Baby Shower Soiree Extravaganza....(Baby Shower's part 1...)

My mom threw me my first baby shower....and what a way to kick off these fun parties!!! It was themed around a Fancy Nancy Tea Party. It was decorated BEAUTIFULLY, my Aunt Kathryn brought some fancy hats, we were dressed in fancy clothes, and we ate very fancy food! I am so grateful for my mom and sisters and everyone who contributed to this special day, I had such a great time!!!!

I got so many great gifts from my family. My sister Amy made me an amazing quilt, I've never seen anything like it!!

These are some of my family members that came out to support me in celebrating Ella's arrival. I have the best family!!

The beautiful decorations and delicious food. Mom and the girls really went all out...I don't think anyone can deny just how fancy this soiree was :)

Some pic's of me and some of my guests....my best friends Phyllis and Liz came to my family shower, because they are just that.....more like sisters than friends :)
Thanks again everyone for such a great day!!!!!

Preggo Belly Pic's

I've always been a big fan of maternity photography, so I was excited to have my sister in law Alex take some pictures for me. She took these of me at about 29 weeks. She is so talented and I appreciate her taking time out of her busy Saturday to do this for me!!! I hope my daughter will look at these one day and know how much her mama loves her and enjoyed being so close to her for 9 months!! It's funny how you can feel so much for some who you have yet to see or hold, but me and Adam already love her soooo much!

P.S.....sorry if you are not a fan of the pregnant belly, but I think it's great :)

New Ella Pictures :)

These are just a couple of shots from the last ultrasound we had on Thursday. It is always so fun to take a peek at our little girl, she always gives us a show! She is developing beautifully and seems to be having a ball in there :) At one point she put her face up to the screen and we could see her little chubby cheeks, eyes and mouth opening and closing. I can already tell she is a gorgeous little girl :) As far as I go, my cervix is now measuring at a completely normal length, which is a huge blessing! We were so worried before, but now we can just relax and enjoy these last few months. Adam and I are so excited to meet our little girl!!! It's been just the two of us for so long, and although I'll admit that there's a little part of me that is going to miss our one on one lifestyle, there's a much bigger part of me that is so excited to take this next step with Adam and start our family. I'm about 28 weeks now, only 12 more to go!!!!!!

Such a slacker!!

Wow I hate when I slack off and then have to catch up with this whole blog thing. Christmas came and went......It was awesome because my doc took me of partial bed rest right in time for Christmas :) We spent Christmas Eve and Christmas morning at the Millers. We did our traditional activities of pinata and limbo. Then in the morning we opened presents with Adam's parents and then went to the Jones' for breakfast. Then we headed over to my parents for lunch and presents with the entire Pinson clan. The Holidays are always hectic, but I love having so much family time :) Although, when about 7pm hits on Christmas night, I'm ready to get on with life! I had my decorations down the very next day. Although that might have something to do with the fact that I have a baby due in April and am a little anxious :)
My bump is growing more rapidly now, and although I quite enjoy the appearance of it, the discomfort that comes along with your insides being relocated and your skin being stretched beyond it's limits is less desirable. These pic's were taken when I went to dinner and a movie with Phyllis, Ellie and Liz. It was our last time to all hang out together for a while. Phyllis and Ellie moved to London on Sunday (somewhere where they actually get some rights). It was really hard to know they were leaving, but I know they are doing what they have to do, and I really respect them for it :) I'll miss them lots though!!! They'll be back in February for a few weeks to get the rest of their stuff, and then hopefully they'll be back again for the Holidays :) My laptop has a camera in it, so we are going to Skpe a lot!!!

Well, that's all I feel like writing for now, more to come later ;)

**UPDATE!!**

Yeah!!! So I went and talked to my doc today and she said that she looked at my most recent ultrasound and she said that my cervix actually looks longer than it did last time! Which means I'm not on partial bed rest now! Yeah!!!!!!!!!! Still gotta be smart about my activity level, but I'm just happy to have a little freedom back :) Merry Christmas to me :)

Resting---Easier said than done!

So, for anyone who actually reads this and doesn't know, I'm on "partial bed-rest". Meaning, for the time being, I'm allowed to go to work, due to the fact that I sit at a desk most of the day, but after work, it's feet up! This is because during my 20 week ultrasound when we found out we were having an "Ella" and not a "Jack", the ultrasound tech also noticed that I have what is called a short cervix. A normal, ideal length for the cervix of a pregnant woman is 4 cm. Mine is measuring at 2.8 cm. When Adam and I first got this news, we were a bundle of nerves to say the least. Of course we were both on the internet looking at the risks involved with the diagnosis, and the internet did a darn good job of scaring the crap out of us! Fortunately we were able to go talk to my doctor and she assured us that while it's not the best news, it's definately not the worst news either. I have since had a follow up ultraound and I'm still at 2.8cm, which is great news :) If it get's shorter, there's the possiblity of having to go on full bed rest and maybe even surgery to close my cervix until baby Ella is ready to join us.

Now, there was a time when if someone told me, "After work, I don't want you lift a finger! Come home, kick your feet up, and relax." I would have thought I had won the jackpot. It turns out that's not the case. It's a lot harder than it sounds to depend on others to do things for you that really you feel perfectly capable of doing yourself. Not only that, but my mom just had a total knee replacement and I'm not able to help her out with anything, which sucks. Lucky for me, I have a great support system which is making this a little easier. Adam has been busting his butt working two jobs, doing all the dishes, all the laundry, and the food prep. He get's to bake cookies for the neighbors and make food for Christmas day lunch. I don't know what I would do without his constant concern and support. I've also had my mother-in-law over here to clean, which was a HUGE help. And I'm sure I've had many prayers and thoughts on mine and Ella's behalf as well. Hopefully we can continue the trend of staying the same and Ella can stay put as close to my due date as possible.
Luckily I was able to go to Midway before I was put on pbr and have dinner at my friend Britney's house. Her place looked beautiful and we had a lot of fun eating and talking :) We try to get together every Christmas.

I went to Festival of trees with Phyllis and Ellie earlier this month. This is when I was still quite cocky about the fact that I'd had such an easy, sick free, complication free pregnancy!! Life has a funny little way of putting you in your place, doesn't it?! I had a great time with my friends though :)

My friends Phyllis, Liz and Ellie (who was taking this pic) came over to my place and did our Christmas tradition. Ever since we were little (as far back as I can remember!) we've watched a series of vintage Christmas cartoons and exchanged Christmas gifts. We did it a little early this year because they were going to Las Vegas the week of Christmas. They are such great friends and have been so supportive and concerned for mine and Ella's well being through this!

Girl!!!

So I went to my 20 week ultrasound yesterday, and they informed us that we are going to be having a baby girl! Adam said he already knew, because he had a dream about her about a week prior. Everyone had some kind of intuition except for me! Oh well, I know who's in there now and I'm so excited to be welcoming a daughter into my family next year. Adam couldn't be happier either, he kept saying "I can't believe I'm this excited!" He's been such an amazing support system to me during this pregnancy. He's really been there for me to help out with chores and just be there for me emotionally when I'm having a hard time with something. I'll try to keep updated on how the second half of my pregnancy goes!

Thanksgiving/Moab 2010 (warning: lots of pictures!)

This year was such a great Thanksgiving!!! I started it out with a little tradition. Every year on the week of Thanksgiving I go to my Grandma Pinson's house and have a sleep-over with my cousins from California. We drove up to Logan and put some Christmas flowers on my Grandpa's grave and told little memories about Grandpa. He was a very colorful guy!!! We miss him a lot and miss the house that Grandma and Grandpa used to live in. We drove by it just for old times sake :) My cousin Haley is pregnant too, so we got to swap prego stories! Her little boy Jackson is so stinkin' cute, he has so much personality! I had a lot of fun spending that time with my family. Me and Haley at Logan Cemetery
My second cousin Jackson and my cousin Kelli


Jackson checking out the Kindle

Jackson getting a smoocher from his mama Haley


The night before Thanksgiving, I went to my mom's to help her cook. My sister Amy and her family were there as well. We stayed up lating cooking, baking, and laughing :) I didn't get any actual Thanksgiving feast pictures, but it was AMAZING! We had 8 different pies, two rotisserie turkey's, yams, potatoes, carrots, jello, rolls, and so much more! Adam said it was the best dinner he has ever had (I think he says that every year though!) After dinner we had a little birthday party for out November/December Birthdays. It was a busy, fun, noisy, yummy day!
I caught a glimpse of the couch and saw all of my nieces piled on top of Adam while he was reading them Rudolph. Soooooo stinkin' cute, right???



The day after Thanksgiving, we woke up bright and early and headed out for Moab with the Millers. They go every year, but this was my first year going. My brother-in-law Greg rents out a beautiful condo for us to stay in. The first day everyone wanted to go repelling. Due to doc's orders, I was not allowed. So me, Steph, Mandi and baby Jude hiked off trail down to the slot canyon where they would be landing. Not the easiest hike in the world for us! I did manage to twist my ankle in the slot canyon, so I had to hike back up injured, but I toughed through it :) The next morning Adam and Greg went on a bike ride, then we all hiked to some beautiful arches. Adam was there to help his pregnant, injured wife, so I managed pretty well :) We had so much fun outdoors and we played lots of games and ate good food indoors. This is definately a trip I will want to repeat!

The whole clan (minus Steph, who was taking the picture)

Just the girls :)

Me (5 months) hikin' it up in Moab!

Nate enjoying the amazing view

Mandi, Josh and baby Jude(who was such a good little sport, considering it was like 20 degrees!)

Josh and Jude hiking

Josh and Jude again :)

Greg checking out the sites

Brian taking in the view

Brian and Nate

Brian(the mountain man!) and Kelli

Me and Adam. He was such a big help helping me get through some of the tougher spots of the hike! Thanks babe :)

Adam needed a rest after lifting me through a lot of the hike!

Of course he had to find a boulder to climb!