LET IT SNOW!!!

LET IT SNOW!!!

LET IT SNOW!!!

3 Months Old Today!

Brinley is 3 months old today! This is a picture from the day she was born. Followed by a picture taken a couple of days ago. We have enjoyed watching her grow and develop. It is amazing how much she has changed and learned.

The past 3 months have been full of many . . .

bath times...

goofy faces...

naps (not for us, just Brinley)...

tummy time...

not so happy times...

lots of smiles...

learning new things like holding onto her bottle without help...

and just today she started sucking her thumb instead of her whole fist. It was neat to see her finally do it, but we don't really want her to be a thumb sucker. She still likes her pacifier a lot and hopefully she will continue to perfer it over her thumb. We have really enjoyed the past 3 months and are so thankful for Brinley. We are excited to watch her continue to grow and learn new things.

The Month of November

A lot has gone on this past month. Brinley had her 2 month check up November 6th. She weighed 11 lbs. 14 oz., 23 1/4 inches long, and as healthy as could be. She also got 4 shots and she did great. She screamed when she got stuck but when I was able to pick her up she calmed down and stopped crying. It didn't seem to bother her the rest of the day.

I went back to work on the 12th. Right now I am going into the office on Monday, Wednesday and Fridays and working from home on Tuesdays and Thursdays. This is a HUGE adjustment. To get everything done in the mornings and to work by eightish, I have to get up around 5:15. The days I don't go to the office I try to get up no later than 6 so I can get some work done before Brinley gets up. By the weekend, I am exhausted.

After a week of being back to work, I took the week of Thanksgiving off. I wanted to get things ready for Thanksgiving at our house. Monday I got the grocery shopping done and that was about it. I got sick on Tuesday and layed around the house pretty much all day. Wednesday wasn't much different. Alex wasn't feeling the best either but he cleaned most of the house for me still. He did great. Thanksgiving day, I was in bed most of the day. Alex and Craig smoked the turkey and it was soooo good. We are definately going to have to use our smoker more often.

On Friday, my brother and sister-in-law came to see Brinley for the first time. It was fun to see them and we can't wait to meet their baby boy in February! We also found out that Brinley is now going to have a new cousin in June. That makes 4 new cousins in about 7 months.

That pretty much sums up our month. Alex is feeling much better. Last night, Brinley finally slept through the night again for the first time in almost 2 weeks! She would wake up because it was hard for her to breathe from being so congested.

Here are some random pics from the month.



A few pics from Thanksgiving Day.

Happy Halloween

When people asked me what Brinley was going to be for Halloween, I would say I hadn't really thought about it much. Later, we got a ladybug costume (borrowed from Laura) and a Pumpkin costume (borrowed from Tara). The ladybug was a little big for her, so plans were to wear the pumpkin. Well, about 2 weeks before Halloween, Alex and I were at the mall. I was getting my haircut and we were just going to walk around. We went into Children's Place just to look. I decided to scan through the costumes and saw a turtle. I thought it was so cute but couldn't bring myself to pay $10 for something she would only wear a couple of hours. The next week, I kept thinking how cute the turtle costume would be. On the 27th, our bible class was having a Halloween party. The kids were supposed to dress up. So that afternoon, I decided to see if the turtle costume was still there. It was! But not in Brinley's size. I decided to run to Penn Square mall to see if they had one her size there. It wasn't until I got there that I realized they don't have a Children's Place. When I got home, I was disappointed that I didn't get the turtle costume. I then started thinking about the other costume that the Children's Place had. It was a duck. It was cute, but not as cute as the turtle. Two hours before the party, I decided to go get the duck. When the cashier rang it up, I was surprised when she said it was $5. Here I was expecting to pay $10 and I only had to pay $5. Then the turtle popped back into my head. There was a size 6-12 month turtle left. It is only $5 right? So I went ahead and bought it knowing very well that she probably won't be able to wear it next year. Oh well, no matter what time of year our next kid is born, we have a Halloween costume.



Sunday after church, we had the Fortes and Carnageys over for lunch. I had to to put the turtle costume on Brinley to show them. Thanks Amy for the pics!

The last 2 weeks

When I was about 10 weeks pregnant, my boss anounced that they were taking us on a cruise. It was scheduled for 6 weeks after my due date, so I was out. I was the only one who was't going so I got to go work while everybody was snorkling, swimming with stingrays, eating lots of food and having a great time. Okay so it wasn't that bad staying behind. My wonderful boss gave me a little something since I couldn't go and my main job was answering phones and getting the mail. I also get to stay home with Brinley an extra week! I got to take Brinley up to the office with me and she did great.

Friday after we got home from work, we left for York. Brinley got to meet her great grandma Collins.On Saturday, it was a nice day outside so we decided to do a photo shoot with Brinley.



Brinley is getting a personality now. She likes to smile a lot.

Here is a preview of pictures about the next post.

Husband Tag

I was tagged by Elizabeth

1. Who is your man? Alex
2. How long have you been together? 5 years (married for 3 1/3 years)
3. How long did you date? 1 2/3 years (engaged for 10 months)
4. How old is your man? 28
5. Who eats more? I do. Alex tends to skip lunch a lot if he is busy at work.
6. Who said "I love you" first? Alex
7. Who is taller? Alex
8. Who sings better? Alex
9. Who is smarter? depends on the topic
10. Whose temper is worse? Alex
11. Who does the laundry? Mostly me, but sometimes he helps
12. Who takes out the garbage? both of us
13. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? I do
14. Who pays the bills? I do
15. Who is better with the computer? Alex
16. Who mows the lawn? Both of us
17. Who cooks dinner? Mostly me
18. Who drives when you are together? Alex
19. Who pays when you go out? Alex most of the time
20. Who is most stubborn? Alex, but I am not far behind.
21. Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? Alex (I never have too. I am always right!)
22. Whose parents do you see the most? I would say we see them about the same
23. Who kissed who first? He kissed me
24. Who asked who out? He asked me
25. Who proposed? Alex
26. Who is more sensitive? Me
27. Who has more friends? Alex
28. Who has more siblings? same
29. Who wears the pants in the family? Good question

The Itsy Bitsy Spider

Okay, so it is more like huge, scary spider. Alex was doing yardwork one day and came across this spider on our fence. We found out it is a banana spider and completely harmless. So we decided to let it be. When the Hobbs were at our house, we showed them our new little friend. Tara told us we needed to throw a grasshopper in the web and watch it catch its prey. Later, Alex and I were outside and we happened to see two grasshoppers. So we caught them and took them to the backyard. We were amazed at how fast the spider worked.



A couple days ago, Alex went to go check on our little friend. She was nowhere to be found, but left us a little gift. It was a huge egg sack. We didn't want hundreds of little banana spiders and decided we couldn't keep the gift.

Quit the Traveler

We were on the road a lot last week. We left on a Wednesday to go to Kansas so Alex could take care of some work. We planned to be back around 4 or 5 Thursday afternoon. However, some unexpected things came up and we didn't leave until 10 p.m. That put us getting home around 1:30 in the morning. Thankfully, Brinley did great in the car! I stayed up until 4 getting things ready for our next adventure to Midland.

We planned on leaving around 8 or 9 Friday morning. It was closer to 11 when we finally got around to it. The high school that Alex went to was having their 50th aniversary celebration and homecoming so we decided to go for that. We arrived in Midland about 6 that evening. We then went straight to the homecoming parade followed by the pep rally where we ate BBQ sandwiches while we waited until it got dark. Brinley got to meet 2 of Alex's brothers and their families for the first time too.

We had another busy day on Saturday. We went to our nephew's soccer game then to the homecoming football game. It was a close game and Midland Christian ended up winning! That night we stayed at the house. Alex's brother and his family came over and we just relaxed the rest of the night. Our nephew Hayden loved holding Brinley and didn't want to give her up. It was so cute!

Sunday afternoon we celebrated Allan's birhtday. We ended up leaving Midland around 6 p.m. and arrived back home around 2 a.m. Brinley did great on this trip too. She slept almost the whole time we were in the car. She is such a good baby!



Our friends had there baby September 26. So on Monday we drove to Norman to go meet Adam. There is 20 days difference between Adam and Brinley. I didn't realize how much Brinley had changed until we saw Adam. Adam was born 1 pound 4 ounces more than Brinley and I couldn't believe how much bigger she was than he. Good thing this was the last of our travel plans for a while because Brinley was starting to get really tired of being in her carseat all the time. She wasn't very happy on the way home from Norman.

2 weeks old!

I can't believe it has already been 2 weeks since Brinley was born. Before we left the hospital, we found out that she was tongue tied (the skin underneath her tongue went all the way to the tip of her tongue). When she was 5 days old, we got her tongue clipped. She did really good and is eating so much better now. Monday we took her in to get weighed and she was already 7 lbs. 13 ounces.

She has been a busy little girl. She has met many friends and family and she can't wait to meet the rest of her aunts, uncles and cousins.

Our new little family!

When people first meet Brinley, they are amazed at how long her fingers and toes are.

Brinley and her friends.

Cousin Carter layed down next to Brinley and had to position his feet like she had her feet.

Brinley Grace Awtry

Brinley Grace was born Thursday afternoon at 12:38. When we got to the hospital a nurse got all our information and started hooking me up to an IV to help keep me hydrated and a very low dose of pitocin. At 8:30, Dr. Houk came in to break my water. The nurse also up the pitocin. About 15 minutes later, the contractions were getting pretty strong and I was wanting the epideral. I had to wait another hour becasue the anesthesiologist was in a c-section and one more person was already waiting. After I finally got the epideral, I felt soooo much better. About 10:15, a nurse came to check my progress. I was dialated to a 6 and almost all the way efaced. Alex asked if he had time to run to the cafeteria to get a bit to eat. The nurse said he had plenty of time and that I probably had a few more hours until it was time to push. While he was gone, I started to feel a lot more pressure so the nurse decided to check my progress. By the time Alex got back, I was almost to a 10. I was relieved when he made it back to the room. The nurses called Dr. Houk to see if he wanted me to start pushing. He wanted me to wait until he got there. While we were waiting Linda, one of the nurses, said I just might be able to laugh that baby right out. About 12:15, Dr. Houk showed up and I started pushing. While we were waiting for a contraction, Linda told Dr Houk to tell a joke so I would laugh. So a few knock knock jokes were told in between contractions and we were all laughing, even though the jokes weren't that funny. At 12:38, Brinley Grace was born. She was a healthy 6 pounds 15 ounces and 20 inches long. She has the skinniest and longest fingers and toes I have ever seen on a little baby. We came home friday night and doing well. Just a little sleep deprived.

3 Days Past Due

Still no baby, but we do have a car. Thursday night we looked at a 2000 Infiniti I30. It has 95,000 miles and very well taken care of as far as we can tell. According to Autocheck it had one previous owner and no reports of any accidents. Even though it was kind of inconvenient, it has been a blessing. We now have a better car and no money out of our pocket.

Friday night, I started having stronger contractions but nothing consistant or very often. Our next appointment is Wednesday. Our doc said if we made it to our appointment, we would schedule to be induced probably on Thursday. Hopefully, we won't have to wait that long.

Still Waiting

We had a doctors appointment Monday and there was not much that changed from the week before. At least we have been busy the last few days and not just sitting around waiting. We have been car shopping the past 4 out of 5 days thanks to the effects of tropical storm Erin.

The night that it rained for serveral hours during the night, Alex got a call from one of his managers about 5 in the morning. He had been sick all night, so around 6 o'clock in the morning Alex made his way to one of his Norman stores to open. It was still pouring down rain and dark outside. About 2 blocks away, Alex couldn't tell how much water was covering the road until it was too late. As he noticed people waving at him to stop and not go any further, his car died. The guys helped push his car out of the water and about the same time workers from the City came and placed road closed signs out. What great timing! After getting the car to a mechanic, they said if we tried to fix the car more than likely it would have problems a month or so from now. So they declared the car totaled.

Car shopping has been kind of frustrating. Usually we would take our time to find something that we really like and fits our budget. However, I don't really want to find out what it is like going car shopping with a new born baby. I'm afraid that is how it is going to be though. Whenever we find a car that appears to be well taken care of, it has already been sold. Hopefully we will find something soon.

Any Day Now

So I haven't kept up with posting once a week. Sorry! We had an appointment today and things are progressing well. I am now dilated to 2 - 2 1/2 and over 50% effaced. We are just waiting now and wondering when the big day is going to be. She is still constantly moving. Tonight during church, she was the center of attention for those sitting next to me. About 4 or 5 people were watching my stomache move all over the place. Besides having a cold/sore throat last week, I have been feeling pretty good. The worst part right now is sleeping. I wake up several times a night to trying to get comfortable.

39 Weeks

We finally finished the nursery about a week or two ago.

I guess you can say I was in the nesting stage last night. I spent about 3 hours cleaning and getting things ready for Brinley's arrival. We got the car seat base put in my car and the play yard put together.

I will TRY to be better at updating the blog, especially when Brinley comes. I am sure we will have lots of pictures to post.

What! July is almost over?

I can't believe how fast July has flown by. Alex and I have been busy with softball games on Mondays (don't worry I just watch), birthing classes on Tuesdays, and church on Wednesdays. Thursday, Friday, and Saturdays we try to get caught up on house chores and maybe rest a little unless something else come up which usually happens. We also helped with the Capital Hill VBS the 2nd week of July that our Bible class at church helped coordinate. It was very successful and the kids enjoyed it a lot.

We had family and friends come to visit us the past 2 weekends. Both our parents came into town last weekend for a baby shower. The girls that put it together did a wonderful job. Thank you all very much. We are pretty much set for Brinley to come now!

When I showed Alex everything we received, he was most excited about one thing.

The "Spit Happens!" bib.

We had a doctors appointment about 2 weeks ago. The doctor said she has dropped and is head down. He said at this point it is rare for a baby to move out of this position. I am definately able to breathe a lot easier now! Our next appointment is a week from Tuesday. I will start going every week after that. It is getting close! I will try to post once a week now. Sorry it has been awhile.

35 weeks

My brother and sister-in-law, Jeremy and Hannah, came to visit from the St. Louis area. It was nice spending time with them this weekend. My neice and nephew, Camdyn and Carter, were so excited to see them. We had a lot of fun! Today we got the slip-n-slide out. Jeremy and Craig even had some slides themselves. One time Camdyn started sliding a little too early and went right into the mud. Of course, nobody had a camera handy.

Alex is having some fun of his own. Friday afternoon he left for Arlington, TX to surprise his dad at a couple of Ranger games. His dad was really surprised when he showed up at the hotel. He is at one as I am writing actually. That brings me to this next topic, the baby.

Everybody was over at my house this afternoon (Jeremy, Hannah, Laura, Craig, and the kids). They all left about the same time and the house got real quiet real fast. So I decided to update my blog with my 32 week picture. Just one problem. I'm the only one home. So I decided to take the picture myself.

After everyone left and I sat down for a little bit, Brinley started moving a lot. So without anything better to do, I started recording my belly moving. Below is a short video.

Okay, so the video isn't working. I will try to figure it out later.

My work had a shower for me on Monday. We got lots of good stuff including a car seat, a bouncy seat and a running stroller! They even got Dairy Queen icecream cake which is one of my favorite cakes.




We started our "Birthing Healthy Babies" class on Tuesday at the hospital. Even though there might other ways we want to spend our Tuesday nights, we learned a lot of interesting things. I think it will definately help us feel more prepared when Brinley decides to come. Only 8 more weeks to go!

Getting Bigger!

I am now at 31 weeks and feeling pretty good! The picture is when I was at 30 weeks. I feel like I am getting bigger and bigger everyday. Two weeks ago at my appointment, the doctor said that the baby is growing right on track and everything is looking good.

Alex and I have decided to name her Brinley. We have not yet decided on a middle name. It is between Brinley Paige or Brinley Grace. Of course, I lean more towards one name and Alex likes the other.

We worked on the nursery a lot yesterday. We bought a recliner and a changing table. Alex put them together when we got home. It is starting to look more like a nursery!

Sorry this is the only picture we got of our furniture. Just about the time that we are going to be taking pictures on a regular basis, both our cameras stop working. One doesn't work at all and the other decides when it wants to work. So this is the only picture I got of our furniture we bought.

I also started to make a wall hanging using Brinley's name. Again, I was not able to take a picture of the final product. The picture below is a VERY rough draft. I took it when I was trying to decide how I wanted to make it.

Yes, the pink round thing at the bottom of the picture is my belly!

28 Weeks

We are 28 weeks along. I am feeling pretty good besides a little back pain. She has been a very active little girl lately especially when I am sitting still. It is entertaining to watch my belly when she is moving around a lot.

We have made some progress on our nursery the last few weeks. The ceiling and walls are all painted. We received our crib on Friday. I put it together before Alex got home from work. There is a piece that was damaged so we have to get a replacement. When Alex got home and saw the crib he said, "Whoa, we are going to have a baby!" It is becoming more of a reality to him know. Only 12 more weeks to go!

24 Weeks

I am now 24 weeks pregnant. I am feeling really good for the most part. My biggest compaint is that my lower back hurts a lot more than before. I guess I have it pretty easy.

We have been working on the nursery a little bit. We are painting the walls green. On Saturday I was standing up on a ladder edging by the ceiling. I was at a point where I couldn't reach any further and had to move the ladder over. As I was stepping off of the ladder, I was surprised by a wet, slimmy feeling on my foot. I reacted quickly and placed my foot somewhere else. I realized I had started to place my foot in the paint can. When I quickly stepped on the floor, my foot was dripping in green paint and was just a couple inches from the edge of the drop cloth. It was a close one.

For those of you interested, I have posted some more pictures of our Cabo trip.

Cabo Trip

We got back from our trip Saturday night. Tim and Kelli Barker and their two kids went with us. We were in Cabo for 9 days and the time flew by. We spent most of our time at the beach, the pool, and eating. The food there was good but we decided we like the Americanized mexican food better than the more authentic mexican food. One exception was the guacomole. It was delicious! We also ate a restuarant called Edith's where they made a caesar salad in front of us. It was the best caesar salad we have ever had. Another restuarant we ate at was called The Office. It was on the beach and we decided to go on Mexican Fiesta Night. The entertainment for the night was a game similar to musical chairs and a pinata.

Dinner at The Office

We spent most of our mornings at the beach. We went on walks, played in the ocean, built sandcastles and watched the waves. The last couple of days we were there, the waves got really big and loud. Sometimes they were so big and loud they would shake the condo. We built 3 different sandcastles. Each time they got bigger and better. Thanks Kaden for sharing your sand toys with us!


Playing at the Beach

The building in the background of the picture is the condo where we stayed. Click on the picture to view slide show.

Our afternoons were mostly spent relaxing by the pool. My time was spent reading while Alex played in the pool with Kaden and Jack.

Alex also enjoyed taking pictures of landscaping. The picture below is one of his favorites!

I finally got some more pictures on here. For those of you interested, I will let you know when I get Alex's landscaping pictures posted.