Merry Christmas!

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Happy Fall Y'all 2011

I took some impromtu Fall picutes of Gracyn the other day before work.  They aren't the best, but not too bad for spur of the moment. I love my little pumpkin!

A girl and her pumpkins.

I love this one!



Halloween is tomorrow(as is her 7 month birthday), so I'll post more pics of her, and my grandson, in costume soon.

Happy Fall Y'all!

We have a sitter!

It's been forever since I've had time to update my blog....so much for my New Year's resolution, huh?  Anyway, our little lump we brought home from the hospital is now a big girl.  She's sitting up on her own as of yesterday, and I can't believe it!

At her 6 month appointment she weighed 17.5 lbs, and was 28 inches long.

We're working on using a cup, and she's getting pretty good at it.

She makes me laugh everyday.

And I just love her more than words can say.









Another chickie has left the nest.......

and while I'm not thrilled about it, that's what they do I guess.  Kayla, my 2nd daughter, graduated from high school this past Saturday.

And she left this morning to embark on the rest of her life.  She's decided to move back to our home state of Texas and give grown up life a try there in the Lone Star State.  I know it will be good for her, and hopefully she'll learn a lot.  But I also know that I'll miss her terribly, and worry about her constantly...because that's what mothers do.

Here's a picture of our family...plus one, our niece Maddie.  Please excuse our "comfy" clothes.



I gave Kayla the book 'Oh the Places You Will Go' from Dr. Seuss, because I know that life will take her on a journey, and I hope it's an amazing one.



Here's a picture of Kayla and her boyfriend Robert, who came to NC to drive back to Texas with her...thanks Robert!

Even though you've driven us crazy over the last 18 years, we love you very much, and hope that life only holds good things for you, although we all know that's probably not the case, but know that you always have a soft place to fall, and a family who loves you!





More Gracyn pictures...just because I think she's precious!



Just realized.....

That in all of the chaos of taking care of my own newest addition,

I never posted about my grandson...yup, I have a grandson!  Jordan delivered him on April 29th, at 12:07am, and his name is Tristan.

2 months old already????

I can't believe Gracyn is 2 months old already.....I mean, where did the time go???  She had to go to the pediatrician on Tuesday(5/31) for her 2 month check up and her shots.  Here are some pictures of her before her appointment....and when she was still in a good mood.

She weighed 11pounds and 14 oz, and was 23 inches long.  She is in the 75th percentile for both her height and weight.  Her head circumference was 40, so she was in the 60th percentile for that....which is really shocking because she is a Carnes after all!
She got 3 shots and one oral dose, and she was pitiful. She cried so hard, and it broke my heart!

Here is Gracyn later in the day, after her appointment:

She's a fabulous baby....she sleeps most of the night, and if she gets up at all, it's only once a night.  She does have a fussy period from about 4 in the afternoon until bath time, which is about 7.  She's smiling now, and starting to coo at me, which I totally love! 
It's been an amazing 2 months, and I can't wait to see what else she has in store for us!

Gracyn is 3 weeks old already....

Where does the time go?  I'm already dreading my baby girl getting bigger!  I love this baby stage, and just want to sit and snuggle with her all the time so I don't miss a moment.  I'm much more aware this time of how quickly the time flies by, and am trying to enjoy every minute...which is much easier this time around since I'm not in survival mode with 3 kids under the age of 4!  If I could keep Gracyn this age forever, I totally would!  She's starting to make noises when you talk to her....like she's trying to talk back, and she gives a little smile here and there, but I'm not 100% convinced that it's not still gas!  She really is a fabulous baby, and doesn't really wake up during the night....she makes noises here and there, which wakes me up, and then I usually wake her up to feed her so my boobs don't explode.  She had a weight check yesterday, and is up to 8lbs 7.5oz, so I guess the Mommy Moo Juice is working.

Here's sleeping beauty:

 Smiley Face:

I think this smooshy face might be my favorite!

Snuggling with Kacie

Snoozing again!  She always has a hand in her face!

Gracyn Pics

Just wanted to post a few updated pics of Gracyn.....I love this little girl soooo much, and she's soooo stinkin' cute!!!

Oh what a day! 

Sweet Dreams!

2 weeks old and chillin' with daddy.



4 Days Old...

Took her to the pedi today for a weight check, and she's down almost 1 pound from her birth weight....to 6lbs 14.5 oz, and she wasn't having enough poops and pees...which I already knew because I don't think my milk started coming in until last night sometime.  We met with one of the lactation consultants and it seems that she's only getting about 10oz after a 20 minute feed because she doesn't like to latch on correctly and only wants to put the nipple in her mouth, and is pretty lazy about doing it correctly.  So, I'm feeding her every 2-3 hours, giving her 2 oz of formula after each feed, and pumping for 10 minutes after every feed...needless to say, my boobs are freaking killing me!  We go back to the pedi on Wed to check her weight again, and will meet with the LC again on Monday or Tues, and go from there. 

I am finding that being the milk maid is wearing me out, to say the least.  I have to feed her every 2-3 hours, give her a supplement feed, then pump for 10 minutes, and then clean everything up so it's ready for the next go-round...which it almost seems time for by the time I'm done with all of the above!  I'm totally pooped, and a hormonal mess anyway, and with all of this going on, I think it's a lot worse( I busted into tears at the lactation consultant's office yesterday...haha).  So eventhough I'm exhaused, you do what ya gotta do, right?  Ok, off to feed again!

Gracyn Faye Carnes...

Arrived at 10:03 PM, on Thursday, March 31st, 2011.  She weighed 7lbs13oz, and was 20.5 inches long.  We are in Heaven!

Welcome to the family Baby Gracyn!

3 more days....

Here's my giant baby belly at 38w1d.....not sure how much more baby I can grow in here!  She was squirming all around last night and this morning, so I think she's trying to break out( of course maybe it was the Lucky Charms I ate)...lol!

I spent the weekend trying to finish up last minute errands and enjoying the last calm weekend before the storm of a newborn hits....I'm really starting to freak out and hope that I still know what to do with a baby...it has been 16 years after all.  Almost there...ack!

6 more days.....

and Gracyn will arrive!  I can't believe that in 6 days, I will have a new baby.  I can't wait to meet her, but I'm also freaking out because I haven't done this in 16 years.  I hope it's like riding a bike...once you know how to do it, it just comes back to you.  I'm worried about how the dogs will do with their new sister....I'm sure Layla will be quite annoyed with me for quite some time, and Luke will probably just be his clueless self...although he'll probably lick her to death. 

6 more days!

Gracyn's Goodies.....

The stuff I ordered for Gracyn to wear while in the hospital finally arrived Yesterday, and I love, love, love it!  I think I might have to order a couple more things.  I got her two gowns, a hat,  a bow, and two burp rags.  Here's what they look like....I can't wait to see her in them!

5 weeks from tomorrow, she'll be making her appearance into the world....I can't to meet her!

Week 32 in Babyville.....

In the latest womb reports, your amazing baby has now developed sensitivity to temperature!

Which means you’re likely to get a swift kick if you put a hot pad or bag of ice on your ginormous belly.
For the Elton John lovers out there - baby’s got blue eyes.  Actually, even if you're too young to know who Elton is, all babies have blue eyes at this point.  This could easily change after birth (or even between now and labor), but for the time being, blue it is.  Thanks to their recently matured lungs and a strengthening immune system, over 90% of babies born in their 32nd week survive!  So - go ahead and throw a mini-party right now because it’s pretty much a done deal - you've got a human-bean that's going to make it!
That's not to say you actually want your wee womb-squatter to pack their bags and move out now, because they'd still end up in the ICU for a good while, rather than in your arms at home.  Babies are best when fully baked!

31 weeks in Baby-ville



This week, your amazing growing baby is around 3 pounds and 17 inches tall.

With each added layer of baby fat, your baby's wrinkly raisin skin starts to look more and more like it will when they're born.  The heavy news: you can expect your miracle-gro muffin to gain about a half a pound of weight per week from now until about two weeks before birth.  Your baby's developing immune system has made some serious gains over the past weeks getting them in full gear to face our disease-ridden world o’ wonders.  Even so, a large majority of your child’s immune strength will need to come from your milk in the first year.  Their cute little noggin’ (which could already be covered with luscious locks or just purty peach fuzz), is still soft because the skull bones have not yet fused together.  As disturbing as having an infant with a soft cracked skull sounds, it's pretty much a necessity for passage through the birth canal during labor.
If your baby is in your birth canal for an extended period, they'll come out with a bit of a cone head, as a result of their skull plates being compressed while in your rather snug birth canal. It's normal, harmless and their skull will even out into a more round, less cone-heady shape in the next few weeks.

Week 30 in Baby-ville

The light is visible at the end of the tunnel! Your oversized self and amazing growing baby have finally reached the single digits (in terms of weeks till birth)! The fine lanugo hair that has been growing all over their little monkey-like body is going to start falling off this week in preparation for the big day. But don’t be shocked if they’re hairier than you’d anticipated, some babies keep their lanugo until after birth. Still, it’s not any cause to be concerned as it will fall off eventually. No surprises here: your little porker is getting even cuter with increasingly pudgy arms and legs this week thanks to the ever-growing layers of subcutaneous fat. In terms of numbers, your baby should be weighing in at around 3 pounds 12 ounces (or more!) and be nearly 16 inches long.

Since I'll be induced just before 39 weeks, our little girl will be here in about 8 weeks!  I can't believe that there are only 8 weeks left....somedays it seems like forever, and somedays it seems like tomorrow!  I can't wait to meet Gracyn and see who she is.  Won't be long now!

28 weeks in Babyville.....



Know how you’ve been feeling a bit like a barn with legs? Well, that feeling won’t subside before… well, you know, when you finally give birth. For the time being, you’ve got yourself a baby in the business of collecting fat and lots of it! In spite of the dubious joys of being a human-barn, this baby fat business is very serious and you’ve got to put up with it because it’s going to keep your little porker warm and healthy after birth. Other good stuff from inside: their eyes are doing lots of blinking this week because they’re now able to respond to light and dark. Also, their industrious little bone marrow is now a major construction site for developing red blood cells, while their super-cute adrenal glands are actually producing androgen and estrogen—which will stimulate your hormones to begin milk production. Can you say, “Moo?”

Gracyn's Room....

is almost done!  I still have to decide if I want a curtain or the valance that goes with her bedding, get a new light fixture for the ceiling fan, and put up a few more things on the wall, and then we'll be all done.  Here's a few pics of what it looks like right now.

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The glider we bought isn't in there because it's in our room, where she'll be sleeping for the first few months.  I love to just go into her room and stand there.....it's all starting to become a little more real!

26 weeks in Babyville.....

Fetal development in pregnancy week 26:

At long last, your little swimmer can see the womb! Your miracle’s little eyelids have finally separated (they were fused closed previously) and they’re probably having their first moments of sight as you read this (or maybe it already happened while you were brushing your teeth or watching Oprah or something). In addition to seeing their little studio in your belly, they’ve recently acquired the ability to say “yes” and “no” in rudimentary sign language as they can now move their head back and forth. This is also the time where your little super star’s head hair is starting to grow! A cute little cowlick or two may be springing into position right now, getting ready for years of cute-but-stubborn bed-head. Also, their toenails have grown in and you little raisin continues to slowly pile up fat beneath their still-loose skin. Most importantly, brain tissue and neurons are all developing at a rapid pace, increasing their (genius-level?) brain activity and will continue to function at accelerated levels for the first seven to eight years of childhood!

Nesting.....

It has begun.  I put away all the inside Christmas decorations on Wed.  And while I was in the attic, I organized that.  Today I organized and shredded lots of old bills and statements, and tomorrow the plan is to organize the filing cabinet.  I've got to get more organization in this house before baby girl gets here in April.  Clutter is driving me crazy right now!