August Events & The Baby Story

I'm going to sum up August events briefly, and then write the baby story - don't want to forget all the events leading up to Landon's birth!

First I'll start with August 10th when Marcus's parents came to visit and took us all out to dinner for Marcus's birthday which was the next day. We had an enjoyable evening with them and they were so generous to come out here and spend the evening with us. 

August 11th was Marcus's birthday - I made him breakfast in bed and Kaylie and I made cards for him too. We had dinner and treats later at my parents home. Marcus opted for Sinfully Rich Fudgy Brownies as his birthday treat this year. Yum!

August 22nd - Marcus and I celebrated 5 years of marriage this year. 2 Bachelor's Degrees, 2 beautiful children, Marcus with a great new job... our love has grown so much. I couldn't love anyone more. Marcus has been a loving and supporting husband from the beginning. He makes me laugh every day and encourages me to try new things and shows me a different outlook on life. My life would not be complete without him in it. I'm so glad that my grandma had the crazy idea to hook us up back in 2007. I married my best friend!

THE BABY STORY

On August 16th I went in for my 38 week appointment - I was actually 38 weeks and 2 days along. My mom suggested that I ask the doctor if she could strip the membranes to possibly speed up the process of contractions. Well, the doctor did that and later that evening Marcus and I were playing card games and I was feeling some small, uncomfortable contractions, but didn't think much of it. They just felt like stretching or tightening like Braxton Hicks Contractions. The next day, the 17th Marcus wanted to spend some of his birthday money, so we went out to Roseville to do a little shopping. I was feeling those small contractions that morning too and I thought it would help to go out and walk around to continue to speed up the process. We were out for a couple hours and by the end of shopping I was tired and wanted to just get home and get something to eat. I was feeling pretty warn down. Around noon I was feeling some contractions pretty close together, but they were still bearable and not too painful. By 2pm I was starting to feel more serious pain and the contractions I was having were a lot closer together. I called my mom to ask her what her opinion was since the contractions were still bearable but I was able to just breath through most of them without a problem. She said to wait just a little bit longer and see if anything changes. My dad, who was out in Utah for Allie Harrison's wedding, gave me a call not long after I hung up with my mom. He asked how I was doing and after explaining to him how I was feeling, he suggested that I call labor/delivery at the hospital just in case they want me to come in. He said there is no harm in calling and he said he would feel better if I did. So, I called in around 3pm and after discussing my previous birth and complications with Kaylie and discussing how I was feeling at the moment, the lady asked me to come in. Marcus and I headed to the hospital after Jason and Mom came to stay with Kaylie. Around 4pm we arrived at the hospital and a doctor checked to see how I was progressing. I was 3cm dilated! I was having contractions every couple minutes! So they admitted me to the hospital and around 5pm I was in my labor/delivery room. My mom joined Marcus and I not too long after I was admitted and Jason stayed to watch Kaylie. We called Marcus's parents and they came to Sacramento that evening as well. Melania joined us around 10pm in the hospital while Dan stayed with Kaylie. I was progressing very well by 10pm. I had been breathing through all the contractions, which by the way, never let up - every 2 minutes still and I had reached 6cm by 10pm. Marcus and my mom were both helping a lot with keeping me focused on breathing out the contractions and not hyperventalating. I was actually very proud of myself for doing so well for so long. However, I was wiped out! The contractions never let up and since I was progressing like the doctors wanted me to, I opted for the epidural. I knew I would need some energy for pushing and I was so tired. I'm really glad I got an epidural. I got the epidural around 11pm and after 30 minutes to an hour, I was feeling pretty good! By 12am the next morning I wasn't feeling hardly anything from the contractions so I got to rest. The doctors and nurse said I should get some sleep, but I was so excited about this baby coming that I couldn't sleep! Marcus, Melania, and my mom were the best team throughout the whole process. Around 3am I was fully dilated and ready to go. The nurse was doing some pushing with me. My mom helped me the most through this process too. She stood by my side and helped me almost to the end. Marcus took over right at the end. Pushing that baby out was the hardest thing I've ever done in my life! Talk about exhaustion! I am so glad I got the epidural so I could relax for a few hours. Although, by the time we started any pushing, the pain was back and I could feel a lot of those contractions. After lots of pushing and little breaks in between those pushing sessions, baby Landon arrived at 4:23am! There is no better feeling in the world than having a newborn baby resting on your chest after long, hard labor. I look back now and I can honestly say it was totally worth it. Marcus and I were overwhelmed with happiness as we welcomed our little boy into the world. He looked perfect! 7lbs 14 oz. and 19 inches long. He was almost exactly Kaylie's size. Just one ounce lighter and 2 inches shorter. And he had lots of black hair just like Kaylie too. Marcus and I loved Landon instantly. He was so calm and awake for about 3 hours after he was born. We tried to get a little feeding in and he did pretty good for the first time nursing. Of course, it helped me to have done it before. Everything was so natural again as Marcus helped me take care of Landon on the first day. My mom also helped us a lot and let us get a little rest. Melania and my mom both took lots of pictures for us as well. Nothing was better than seeing Kaylie greet Landon for the first time. We knew right away she was going to be the best big sister! She even sang him "I Am A Child Of God". It was such a tender moment to see the two of them together.

Been a little preoccupied... finishing up July events!

So yes, I had our little baby boy Landon, back in August, but I've been so preoccupied with so many things that I haven't been able to keep up on my journal/blog. I have to go back to July cause I don't want to miss too much.

July 13th - I took the CBEST finally! Oh, and I passed! I'm trying to get my California credentials so I needed to take that and I still have to apply for them, but its just a matter of getting fingerprints now. Yay!

July 13th - 19th --> Marcus's parents took Kaylie for a week, just so they could have some time with her to themselves. I love this tradition that we've started. I was able to get a couple projects done and make sure the house was spotless. I have to say I missed Kaylie a lot! It was good to have time to myself before Landon came though.

On the 16th we went out to dinner with Derreck and Sarah Cooper. We've been spending more time with them. We haven't made a lot of close friends since we've been back in California but these guys have been so fun to hang out with and we really enjoy their friendship. They lived in the same complex as us so that was fun. Derreck has been super awesome and helpful. He's always helping us with our cars. We told him he's pretty much our mechanic, but Marcus is learning a lot from him too. He wants to be able to take care of our cars by himself someday.

On the 17th I was able to attend the temple with the youth. That was a great experience and I'm glad we had such a great turn out. We even went out to Inn-n-out afterwards and got to chat a little with the youth that came.

July 20th-24th --> Kaylie was brought home to us on the 19th but then we headed to Modesto on the 20th to take care of Lolo while Marcus's parents were in Idaho for Laleinia's graduation. Laleinia will be in South Africa after she does her student teaching, so she walked earlier which is kinda cool.  Only we couldn't go because I was a month away from my due date. Bummer... but it worked out cause I watched Lolo while everyone was gone and Marcus worked back in Sacramento. Kaylie loved being around Lolo. She would play catch with him and hang out in his room with him. I loved watching the two of them together. I also got to spend some good quality time with Lolo and chatted with him quite a bit that week.

July 25th - 28th I stayed with my grandparents in Modesto. Doug and Emily were going to be having their open house on the 27th, so their family was going to stay at the Jankowski's home. It was nice to spend some time with my grandparents too. I sure missed Marcus the whole week though. He joined us on Friday night. We had a fun time at Doug & Emily's reception. It was a small group of close friends and family. We had dinner and watched a little video that was put together. It's always fun partying with the Jankowskis!

Here are some pictures from July:

 Playing at the park with Grandma and Uncle Jeff

 Making Cookies!

 My Project for the kids room

Playing catch with Lolo

 Getting wet at the splash pad in Modesto

 Driving the car in Great Grandma and Grandpa's backyard

Reading with Uncle Doug 

Goofing around with Daddy 

36 weeks pregnant

July 30th Baby Leela was born! 

July 4th Celebration

Just a little post about the 4th of July. We got Kaylie so excited to see the fireworks, so that day we gave her a late nap so she could stay up and enjoy them with us! We spent the morning at home with Marcus who had the day off. Then we headed over to my Aunt Debbie's house around 2 for swimming, ice cream, and dinner. Kaylie took her nap from 4-6 and around 8:30 we headed over to La Sierra Community Center to park and get a spot to watch the fireworks. We didn't get home until around 10.  I love watching fireworks every year and listening to the patriotic music that plays in the background. I am proud to be an American!

Swimming at Aunt Debbie's house with cousins

Eating yummy snacks before the fireworks started!

Marcus and Jessica

My parents and brothers, Jeff and Jason, joined us at the firework show!

 When the fireworks began, Kaylie started covering her ears - after a while she put her hands down and just started commenting on all the fireworks. She loved it!

Our Beautiful Daughter

I have to do a little blurb on Kaylie because she is growing so much every month. She is learning new words and phrases and becoming so creative and imaginative.  We love her to pieces! This past month we have been going walking to parks, swimming in the pool at our complex, playing with all her favorite toys, reading books, doing puzzles, coloring, watching her favorite shows, baking cookies and all other kinds of fun stuff. I have even introduced her to painting her fingernails and toenails! One morning she noticed that I had painted my toenails and she said, "Mom! Your toenails are blue! Can you paint my toenails too?!" It was SO cute. Ever since that day back in late March, we have been keeping her fingernails and toenails painted all kinds of colors. She is my girly girl and I love it! I've also been trying new hairstyles on her too since her hair is getting so long. I've figured out that if I want to do something like, french braids, the only way to keep her still long enough is either having her play with all her hair clips at the counter, or watch a show.  Her favorite shows these days are: Doc McStuffins, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Dora the Explorer, and SuperWhy. She also loves Winnie the Pooh but we only have The Tigger Movie, so occasionally we will watch that.

Here are some clever things she has been saying lately:
Whenever she is sick, even with the slightest cold, she will say, "I'm not feeling so good." and sometimes she will ask for a check-up. (We use her doc mcstuffins doctor tools for that.)

On July 9th we were playing with puzzles in the front room and she decided she wanted to do something else. She asked me if we had ping pong paddles because she wanted to hit her toy balls around with them. I told her we didn't and she looks around for a minute and says, "Maybe we can pretend that these are ping pong paddles" and she picked up a puzzle piece and hit her little soccer ball with it. It's so funny the way she gets creative and explains herself so well!

On July 10th Kaylie climbed into bed with me when she woke up. She was playing with the curtains hanging over our bed and she said, "When I hear the dogs barking, that means the windows open... that's my problem." Ha ha! She is so funny - she has been using, "that's my problem" every once in a while. And she always uses it at the right time too.

She has been using big words lately, and in the right context too. She hears everything I say and then adds it to her vocabulary so quickly. Words like, "actually" and "obedient". She is growing up so fast! Here are some pictures of her over the past couple months.

May 9th - Learning to climb at the park

May 12th - Playing with Uncle Jason

May 14th - Going for a walk in our complex

 May 17th - Helping me build a dresser for the kids room

May 26th - Sleeping with her baby dolls

May 28th - Painted her fingernails for the first time!

 June 7th - baking chocolate chip cookies!

June 13th - playing at the park

June 17th - got creative and transformed her bed into a car - she puts mommy and daddy in the back and says, "We are going to the beach and then to the park and then home." So funny!

June 20th - Kaylie decided she wanted to put her pjs over her play clothes - see the yellow shirt hanging out under her top?! Ha ha!

June 21st - Steph and Colette French came to visit and Kaylie loved Colette

Kaylie just wanted to hold her and be near her - it was so fun! She can't wait for baby boy to be here!

Same day - I did a photo shoot with her and she was so great for me!

 June 27th - French Braids! 

Baby Boy Update

Well we are just about 6 weeks away from the due date and we can't wait for our little boy to be here! Everything has gone fairly smooth this pregnancy and we are hoping it will continue to go well. We had a tour of Kaiser in Roseville labory and delivery on the 11th and we got even more excited! Kaylie came with us and she enjoyed sitting in the comfy chairs in the different rooms. She was so funny. Here are some pics of the baby bump!

28 weeks

30 weeks

32 weeks