Two Months

Little man, you are already 2 months!

You are quite the talker and love to sing songs.  You especially love to do this on your changing table.  Not sure if it's the lights on the ceiling or being at eye level, but this is your happy place!  You also LOVE bath time with Daddy - he cherishes this special time with you.  We've been taking lots of walks in the stroller and you fall asleep almost immediately!  You are definitely a fan of your car seat!  We laugh that you are obsessed with ceiling fans, and you definitely could look at one all day.

This past month was a lot of firsts!  It was your first halloween and you were a lion.  On Halloween, we picked up Abby from the airport and surprised Grandma for her birthday.  It was so fun to see her reaction :)  It was also your first Thanksgiving and we spent it in town.  Both of your grandmas cooked a mean meal - and gave you TONS of attention!  You are very lucky to have two loving grandmas!  We watched some football and enjoyed being together with family.

You are sleeping longer stretches (YAY!) at about 4-5 hours.  You usually go down around 9, wake up at 2 or 3 and then at 6.

It's crazy how you're changing each day!  I am loving my time at home with you and you've definitely become a little attached to me (I secretly love this)!  I love being your mama.

Love you to the moon and back buddy.

One Month

James, it's so hard to believe you're already a month old! Mom has been a bit busy, so this is a little late ;) 

The first few weeks were definitely a wake up call for mom and dad! You were 9 lbs at your 4 week weigh in and that made mom very happy since we've been nursing. Speaking of nursing, I'll be writing a whole post just on that topic-what a learning experience but it's getting better by the day! You started "gooing", prefers mommy's chest to sleep on, and are getting stronger by the day. Even in the middle of the night, your smiles make my heart so happy. You already know how to work us! 

We've watched a lot of football and the Cardinals in the World Series. Daddy loves dressing you in jerseys. 

You make funny faces!! 

You love to move your arms and kick your legs! 

We've had so much fun with you and I'm cherishing our time together during the day. We are completely smitten with you little bud! 

Love you to the moon and back. 

James Brett

First of all, I had prayed and prayed that I would not have to be induced and that he would come on his own.  I was terrified of being induced and thought for sure I would be late.  We even booked the induction just to be on the safe side.  It all started on Friday night as Justin and I were watching TV and eating dinner.  I started to feel some intense cramping and thought, hmmm, are these contractions?  I was 2 cm dilated and had really dropped.  I even had to google "what does a contraction feel like" because I had no clue.  I felt them off and on all night and even woke up once to one.  Saturday Justin did yard work and I mostly laid around the house watching movies because I felt so weird and tired.  We watched football and I was still having contractions, but they were not consistent at all.  Sunday we woke up and went to church where our young married Sunday school teacher prayed for us to have a fast delivery.  Boy would that prayer be answered! I started to notice they were a bit more intense, but still very inconsistent.  I even went to a baby shower that afternoon!  I had a few at the shower and downloaded an app to start monitoring the progress (thanks, Leslie!).  I even stopped by a friend's house on the way home.

Finally, I made it home around 5 pm and of course, was hungry.  Justin suggested that he would go pick up a Milano's pizza for me and then head to Spring Creek to play poker with a few guys.  The pizza would end up being a BAD idea.  Justin left around 6:30 and I laid on the couch watching TV.  Around 7 pm, they were really ramping up.  I texted him at 7:30 to leave and come home, because they were 10 minutes apart.  He made it home soon after and we went on a walk to see if these were the real thing- I had heard that if you had to stop on a walk because of one, it was probably a real contraction.  Well, on the walk they went from 10 minutes to around 5 minutes apart.  I called the dr (of course mine wasn't on call) and she told me to head in when they had been 5 minutes apart for an hour.  I tried to hop in the shower, but wasn't too successful because they were really getting intense!

OF COURSE Justin hadn't packed a thing (I on the other hand had been packed for days), so I waited on him for what felt like ETERNITY to get his things together and then we jumped in the car pretty quickly around 9 pm.  It was like a scene out of a movie - he was speeding and even ran a red light!  He dropped me off at the front and I proceeded to look like a zombie while checking in.  We finally got  admitted around 9:30 pm after I had said quite a few cuss words while waiting.  My contractions were coming so regular at this point I honestly felt like I didn't have a minute to relax between each!  I was in the process of telling justin to take the last pic pregnant and they announced our name! This was the last pic we got!

Our nurse, Crystal, proceed to ask a MILLION questions and then checked me - I was already 6 cm!  We were definitely staying and this baby was coming tonight!!  We waited probably an hour for the epidural - which again, felt like an eternity.  I asked for only 50% of the meds, and the doctor was very concerned and even a little ticked that I requested this.  It ended up being amazing, though.  Once I got the epidural/miracle drug, we finally could relax and I stopped acting like a mad woman.  Not even 30 minutes later, Crystal came back in to give me oxygen.  

She said I was progressing really fast and the baby needed more oxygen.  Of course, this kind of freaked me out a bit.  As she went to check me, my water broke on her and she jumped which made everyone in the room jump!  I was 10 cm and ready to push!  This was around 12:45 at this point.  

Dr. Dulaney came in (looking very groggy, I apologized for having to wake her) and I can't remember a whole lot at this point.  I remember pushing only a few times, resting between, and then feeling the baby come out at the last push.  Our gift from God arrived at 1:26 am.

I remember looking at James and thinking, this is the most beautiful baby I have ever seen and HE IS MINE!  I MADE HIM!  He came so fast that we had no family in the waiting room, it was just Justin and I.  And it was awesome.  We stayed in the L & D room for an hour or so, just the 3 of us.  Justin and I just stared at James the entire time and cried.  We had waited almost 4 years for this moment and it still brings tears to my eyes.  That first hour was the best moment of my life.  Justin probably took 100 pictures.

Around 3 am, we were moved up to the recovery room, and I wanted to shut my eyes for a few minutes before family arrived.  I was exhausted.  I tried to doze off for a minute, but adrenaline was pumping, so I wasn't able to go to sleep.  James was wheeled off to the nursery to have his check up and before I knew it, our family had gotten there!  We had so many sweet friends come up to visit that day and the next as well to see our little guy!

Overall, the birth experience was amazing (and fast!).  The nurses were wonderful and we even stayed another night to enjoy the extra help. 

Now on to the hard part...

Praise The Lord. 

James Brett Miller

Our sweet baby James was born on September 30 at 1:26 am weighing in at 7 lbs 1 ounce and 20" tall. We are so in love with this beautiful little boy.  Here's some pictures from the hospital.  For now, we are learning and loving on this little peanut.  More to come.  Praise God.

Thankful and Blessed

A lot has changed around the Miller household lately...we are expecting our little miracle October 3!  I feel like this pregnancy is moving slowly and going by way too fast at the same time.  I really wanted to track and write down everything once I got pregnant, however, I have done a really bad job at that!  I think I've wanted this to happen for so long, that I was worried about writing anything down.  It sounds weird, but it's true.  I've been weird about looking for baby clothes, baby stuff, etc until now (AT 21 WEEKS!).  Deep down, I think I was doubting God and His plan.  I was worried.  Worry = not trusting God's plan.  I've just started to realize this and thus have given it all to Him.  It's ok to be start planning the nursery, determine a name, and start imagining our life as a family.

So, back to the pregnancy!  We found out over 4 weeks ago that we are having a BOY!  As soon as I found out I was pregnant, I knew it was a boy.  I've also been very lucky that I haven't been very sick.  I'm definitely tired, but extremely lucky to have an easy pregnancy so far!  As far as cravings, I've definitely been craving more meat and sweets lately.  Actually, just more food in general.  The baby is perfectly healthy and I'm starting to feel him moving/kicking!  It is such an amazing feeling.

More to come...once I figure out how to upload pictures from our new computer :)

2012

The Millers have had a very blessed 2012!
January: Wonderful visit to see our beautiful niece, Aubrie.
We got new cabinets in the kitchen!

February: Colorado trip! Mom and dad officially bought a home in Breck and it is beautiful! Lots of memories to be made there! We were able to celebrate 4 years of marriage!
Also, I travelled to CA for work and stayed at a 5 star resort! Amazing!! It was hard to go home :)

March: applied and received a promotion to a new position at FedEx!

April: my 29th birthday! We celebrated at Flight and met some friends at Jim's Place grill for drinks. Not ready for next year!!
Celebrated Brandon's 30th birthday at an 80's themed bowling party! It was a blast!

May: Justin turned 30! We had a crawfish boil at the house and had a bunch of people over. Exactly what the bday boy wanted!!

June: finally got my amateur status back and played in the TN State Am. I felt pretty old, but still was able to kick some youngster's butts. Got to stay with Abby and even my mom came to see me!
Another trip to see family in Mo!
Celebrated mandi's 30th birthday at Las Delicias!

July: trip to MO to celebrate Kenny's birthday!
Ryan and Tara's beautiful wedding in Michigan! Whenever the Davis side of the family gets together, it's always fun!

August: work trip to LA, met some really tall famous NBA star
Played in the US Women's Mid Am qualifier at Old Waverly.
Enjoyed football games at Mississippi State. 1st year as a season ticket holder!

September: work trip to Chicago.
MUST NEEDED VACATION!!!! Spent 5 days in beautiful Jamaica, enjoying steel drums, lots of food, sun, and fruity drinks! It was amazing.
Work trip to Boston.

October: Aubrie's first birthday!
Alumni weekend- Ashleigh and I WON our match against the current players! We still got it! We had a fabulous weekend with Ash and her fiancé, Wil. We had a great celebration for Coach as well!

November: girl's weekend in Nashville. We ate, bowled, and even roller skated! It was a blast.
Thanksgiving with the Millers in MO. Aubrie discovered her love for Tory Burch.

December: Annual Tweener party. Trip to Nashville to celebrate Amanda's 30th birthday!
Christmas in Memphis. Celebrated New Year's with the Jerkins, Burkes, and Redings! The women dominated at Catchphrase :)

This is the first time to use an app to blog, so we'll see how it looks!