Some things never change

Four years ago today, my life changed forever. I made a gutsy move and sent flowers to a girl I had just recently started dating. You see, Christy and I had been friends for 6 years. But on that day our relationship was taken to another level. We spent the next several months driving back and forth between Fayetteville and Conway further developing our relationship. It didn't take either of us very long to figure out that we had found the one we wanted to spend the rest of our life with.  Jaylee and I packed up and moved to Conway that summer.

Looking back now, it seems like that was such a long time ago. So much has changed in the last four years. Jaylee is now 10, going on 18. She's a wonderful daughter and excellent big sister. She's grown physically, emotionally, and spiritually over the past four years. She makes me proud to call her my daughter every single day. Speaking of sister, that's obviously another thing that has changed. We welcomed a beautiful baby girl into this world on September 20th, 2011. She is absolutely adorable in every way. We are so blessed to have her in our lives. 

A lot of things have changed in the past four years, but one thing remains the same. Christy and I love each other today the same, if not more than we did four years ago. We're able to communicate and share our daily struggles with one another. Our lives our crazy busy, but we always seem to find the time to spend alone with each other. And when we do, we still have things to laugh and talk about after all these years. We still enjoy each other's company. Christy is my best friend and I'm proud to say that in less than 6 short weeks, I'll be able to call her my wife. 

We are traveling to Massachusetts to legally be married at the Rookwood Inn in Lenox. We will be spending the week in Bentley Brooke snow skiing and then will travel to Lenox on the 23rd to officially make her my bride. We have the once in a life time chance to spend our honeymoon in New York City before traveling back to Arkansas. 

It's sad that we have to travel so far away to get legally married. And it's unfortunate that most of our family and friends don't get to be a part of our big day. But our daughters will be there to witness and participate in the ceremony. I'm so glad we get to share this moment with them. I look forward to that day and each day I get to spend with my family for the rest of my life.

It's been a long time.

A lot has changed since my last blog. We have a new addition to the family. Julian Elizabeth Garrett-Jones was born at 4:10 p.m. on Tuesday September 20th. She weighed 5 pounds 5 ounces and was 17 and 1/4 inches long. She wasn't scheduled to be in this world until the end of October but my body apparently couldn't take it anymore. I made several visits to labor and delivery because my blood pressure was out of control. I was initially put on half days at work and then on bed rest before the doctor decided it was time for us to meet Julian. We are all so glad that she is finally here.

Little miss had surgery just 7 weeks into her little life. She was born with a solid mass tumor in front of her sacrum. That was a scary experience for all of us! ACH is a great hospital with very talented surgeons. But just knowing that they were going to sedate my poor little angel and cut into her was just horrific for me. Thank God we have so many wonderful people who prayed for us and God reminded us that miracles do happen. By the time the surgeons went in to remove the tumor, God had already taken care of it. The surgeon was so confused because what he saw in the MRI wasn't there when he went to do the surgery. He removed a tumor but it was so much smaller than what was seen on the MRI. We go for a follow-up MRI at the end of this month because apparently the surgeons don't believe in miracles.

Julian was 4 months old on January 20th. Time is going by too quickly for me. She's wants so badly to get up and walk around. She's so independent already! She has so much to say but just can't find the right words just yet. But she is definitely a chatterbox...and such a happy baby! She laughs and smiles and makes everyone around her do the same. We certainly were blessed with a beautiful, happy baby girl! She has definitely found her voice. Her new thing is fighting sleep and she has a serious high pitched squeal when she's trying to stay awake. It's quite comical. She's not a huge fan of tummy time, but she rolled over tonight on her own. She only did it once and refused to do it anymore after that. So we'll keep working on it.

Jaylee is such a great big sis! She's so good with Julian and helps out anytime we need her to without complaining about it. I'm sure a that will change in years to come. I'm sure as Jaylee gets into her teenage years, Julian will become her annoying little sister. But for now they're enjoying each other and I love it.

Sarah and I are as busy as ever but really don't mind it too much. I don't think we would know what to do if we weren't constantly on the go. It is nice that my mom gives us a break pretty much anytime we need her to. It's nice to be able to spend time without the kiddos sometimes. And I love that when we do have date nights we still enjoy each other's company as much as we did when we first started dating. Our 4 year anniversary is coming up soon. I think we might do something really special!

I love my life and I thank God every day for blessing me so abundantly!

Christy

Oh the joys of pregnancy!

All this time I've been bragging about how easy my pregnancy has been. I haven't had any morning sickness. I've been able to eat whatever I want and it doesn't bother me. I haven't had any heartburn or indigestion. Everything has been easy breezy. Well I'm eating those words now. A lot has changed since my last post. The obvious has happened...I've gotten much larger, at least my belly has. Luckily I haven't ballooned out all over the place. But I probably should watch what I say there too because I still have 10 weeks to go. And at the rate I'm eating, I could gain another person between now and then.

Over the past month, I've realized how precious a good night's rest really is. It's quite difficult to get comfortable when you have a basketball inside your belly. Just rolling over becomes a task. The headboard has been quite handy...I use it to hoist myself out of bed each morning. :-) My feet swell on a regular basis, whether I'm on them or not. I come home every day and sit on the couch for about an hour so that I don't look like Gwyneth Paltrow in Shallow Hal. And apparently all this extra weight has taken quite a toll on this 35 year old body. For a week, I was unable to move without being in the most unbearable pain I've ever dealt with. Little Miss Julian and all the extra weight that's come along with her has pushed my sacrum out of place which causes rather excruciating pain. I had the pleasure of using a walker for about a week, which sounds pretty crappy. But it's better than being dragged down the hall on a blanket by your girlfriend and daughter...which is how I got around for the first night of that wonderful experience.

Luckily, I was able to get in to see a physical therapist who has done wonders for my shifting sacrum. I am seeing her twice a week and my body is feeling so much better. She showed Sarah how to push me back into place, which she's had to do several times. And because of that and some hydrocodone and Tylenol 3, I was able to go on family vacation and actually enjoy it. So all in all, things are looking up. :-)

We are now seeing the doctor every 2 weeks, which makes Julian's arrival that much closer! Her room is almost done and it looks sooooooo good! Sarah really outdid herself creatively on this one. I don't think either of us knew she had it in her. I can't take any credit for how great the room looks because I don't have a creative bone in my body. But Julian is going to have an awesome room when it's all said and done.

We are all getting more and more excited about the arrival of this beautiful bundle of joy. She is growing so big and is extremely active! I hope her sleep schedule when she gets here is better than it is now. Because she doesn't sleep much at all. She is constantly flipping around and kicking and hitting...it's a little painful sometimes. :-) I find myself walking around with my hand on my belly constantly and it's because she's always moving around. I can't wait to see her sweet face! Until then, here's a sneak peek.

Making new memories

Last week was a week full of memories for me to store in the back of my mind. The week started off with us finding out if we would be blessed with a boy or a girl. And to mine and Sarah's surprise, we will be welcoming Julian Elizabeth into this world on October 23rd...or at least that's the date right now. This whole time I've been pregnant, we've just known it was going to be a boy. All of our blogs and comments reference 'him' or 'he'. But boy were we wrong. God is giving us a baby girl to add to the estrogen in this house. I feel extremely sorry for Spike, our teacup Yorkie. He's the only male in this house. Poor guy is going to have to deal with me, Sarah, Jaylee and Julian as well as Nina and Bella, the other two dogs in the house. Poor Spike doesn't stand a chance.

Jaylee can't wait for Julian to arrive. She is so excited that she's going to have a baby sister. She got to come with us to the doctor's appointment last week and got to see Julian moving all around in my belly and she got to hear her little heartbeat. When the tech told us we were having a girl, Jaylee's immediate response was "I got my wish". Not only did Jaylee get to come with us that day, but Ethan and my mom got to experience it too. Ethan was amazed! He just couldn't understand why we couldn't take the baby out that day. At one point, you could see Julian's hand on the tv screen and we told Ethan she was waving, so he waved back at her. :-) Man, I love that kid! It was good to have my mom there with us. We have always been close with one another and having her experience that with me and Sarah makes me smile.

Saturday night, Sarah took me out for my birthday...it's not until this week, but she has to work on my birthday so we celebrated early. We started off the night by shopping for maternity clothes. And to my surprise, I actually found some things I like. At this point, I think they could be the ugliest things in the world, and I wouldn't care...as long as I could sit comfortably and breathe. But luckily the jeans and shorts are cute and comfortable. I'm pretty excited about the dress I got. It's not a maternity dress, but it will be worn as one, and I'll still be able to wear it after I have Julian...so that makes it an even better buy! We ended the night at my favorite place...Cantina Laredo. That place has the best salsa and spinach enchiladas I've ever eaten! I should've put my new pants on before we went in, but instead I walked out with my jeans unbuttoned. I couldn't help it, the food was just too good to leave any on my plate.

Sunday started off with us being able to feel Julian move for the first time. She started moving all around while I was getting ready for church and she kept on all through the service. Jaylee thought it was pretty cool. And I have to say, I thought it was too. I've been pushing all around on my stomach since then hoping to feel her move some more, but I guess that's all we're going to get for now.

After church we headed out to take family pictures. And even though it was 95 degrees outside and we were all sweating bullets, it was so much fun! Crystal was a trooper taking the pictures. She had 9 of us to deal with...taking pictures of the whole group, taking pictures of each individual family, taking 20 different single shots of Cessy so that she would have tons of Facebook profile pics to choose from...Crystal was laying on the ground trying to get every single shot we asked for. She's the best! I can't wait to see the pics. I know they're going to look great!

After pictures, we all headed back to my mom's house...much to my surprise to have cake and ice cream for my birthday and get more presents! I love my family! Sarah bought me a freakin awesome camera! I can't wait to use it on our Florida vacation. I probably won't be doing anything other than taking pictures since I'll be big and pregnant by that time. I'll get to use the Old Navy gift cards from my mom and my sister to buy more maternity clothes, so I can make it comfortably through the blazing hot summer. And I got an ice cold spit shower from Crystal. She thought the card my mom bought me was so funny she spit her ice water out as she laughed uncontrollably.

Oh the memories. :-)

Christy

It's a girl!!

    Christy and I both had this gut feeling that we were having a boy.  I'm not sure why, we just knew..or so we thought.  Needless to say, we were both a little surprised on Monday when we found out we are going to be having a beautiful baby girl.  I'm sure the shock on my face was quite apparent.  But the look on my face wasn't just from the shock of the news.  When the technician said "It's 100% girl," I experienced the exact same feeling I did when they told me Jaylee was going to be a girl...WE'RE IN TROUBLE.  Double trouble to be exact because now we're going to have two of them.  That's a lot of estrogen in one house.

    Jaylee is super excited.  She's been hoping for a little sister the whole time.  I'm sure the first few years will be a breeze.  Jaylee is going to want to play dress up with her and paint her little nails.  They'll get along great...until Jaylee turns 13.  I can hear it know, "MOM, get Julian outta my room!!"  And by then I'm sure Julian will be quite assertive herself (if she takes after her mommy) and will be screaming right back.  

   Not only that, but I really do believe the old saying "You pay for your raising."  Jaylee acts exactly like me.  My parents think it's hilarious.  I can't even talk to them about the struggles of parenthood without them cracking up because apparently they had the same struggles with me.  I'm sure we'll experience the same thing with Julian.  And if any of you knew Christy or have heard stories about her when she was a kid, you'll understand my concern.

   All joking aside, I am really excited we are having another little girl.  In fact, the last couple of times we've gone baby shopping, I've caught myself browsing through the girl's stuff and secretly wishing we were having a baby girl.  I love Jaylee and wouldn't trade her for anything in the world.  She's been a joy to raise and I'm sure Julian will be as well. 

 

Sarah

Remembering the past...while looking to the future

My friend Casey once bought me some Gingko pills for one of my birthdays...a joke to remind me that I was getting older. But those are really something that I should take every day. My memory is horrible! I can have a conversation with Sarah and a day later never recall that it even took place. It's become a joke around our house, but it can also be quite frustrating.

Since I can barely remember yesterday, remembering deep into my past is not something that comes easily to me. I've told myself my whole life that I chose to block my childhood out...which may very well be the case. But you would think that if I was going to block anything out, it would be the bad stuff. And ironically, that's the only stuff I seem to remember. I don't remember camping trips that we used to take when my mom and dad were still married. I see pictures that prove they actually took place, but it's as if I was never actually there because I don't remember one single moment of them. I don't remember family get togethers such as Thanksgiving or Christmas. My mom just told me a few months ago that we used to travel to Jonesboro almost every year when I was young to have Thanksgiving with her crazy side of the family. I remember the crazy people, but I couldn't tell you one single thing that happened at those get togethers.

I remember the layout of almost every single house we ever lived in when I was growing up...which was a lot because we were constantly moving from one house to the other. But I don't ever remember being tucked into bed at night. I don't remember watching tv with my parents, or eating dinner with them or playing outside. I don't remember any of that. I remember things like standing on the front porch of our house on South German Lane...which is now ironically where the new Faulkner County Jail is...and screaming for someone to call the cops because my dad was once again beating my mom bloody. I remember seeing my dad kick my mom in the face with a pointy cowboy boot and ripping half of her face off and then having to watch her drive herself to the hospital because I was only in the 5th grade and not old enough to do anything to help her.

So when I hear stories like Pastor Rick told in church today about a father coming down to an alter call with his 2 daughters and saying that his daughters had been praying for him, tears immediately start flowing down my face. Because I begin to feel cheated. Cheated out of a relationship with a father I never really knew because he never gave me the chance. Cheated out of memories of a happy childhood because for whatever reason I can't remember anything good. I'm not angry about it, just very saddened by it. I'm sad that no matter how much I prayed for my dad to love and forgive himself, he just couldn't find it in his heart to do that. I'm sad that my memory is so bad that I can't remember good things about my dad...only that he was a crazy alcoholic that physically abused my mom. I'm sad that I missed so much of his life and he missed so much of mine and now nothing can ever be done about it.

In the midst of feeling sadness, I'm trying to look to the beautiful future that is ahead of me. Three years ago I was given the wonderful blessing of helping Sarah parent Jaylee who is now 9 years old. That is one of the greatest blessings God could have ever given me. As I tucked Jaylee into bed tonight, I thought "these are the moments I want her to remember". I want her to look back when she's 35 and have nothing but good memories. I want her to grow up knowing how much her parents love her. I want her to love this baby growing inside of me as much as me and Sarah love him...or her. And I don't ever want either of them to feel like the bad overshadows the good. I look up to my mom because she raised me and my sister the best way she knew how...a single mother for most of our lives working as much as she possibly could to keep food on the table and a roof over our head. We never had the coolest clothes...as you can see in many of my old pictures or the best games or toys, but we were loved by her and that is something I will always remember. And that is something I want my kids to never forget...I love them more than anything in this world.

We have another doctor's appointment in just a few weeks and we will hopefully find out if we will be welcoming a boy or girl to our family. The anticipation is about to kill both Sarah and Jaylee. I want to know, but I'm kind of just taking it all in right now. Just knowing there is a life growing inside of me is enough to make me smile. We visited a friend today who just had her beautiful baby girl on Friday. And holding little Evan was enough to make me cry. I held it back because I didn't want Mandy to think I was crazy. But just knowing that in a few short months, I will be holding my own beautiful child is such a blessing to me. I wish that I could remember more good things from my past, but I guess it's time to stop wishing for something that I can't control and start making the best memories I can so that Jaylee and Jaydon or Julian will always have something good to look back on.

Christy

Be Patient

    I've never been very good at being patient.  My mother used to sing a song to me when I was a kid about being patient when I would insistently nag her about what time we were gonna get there, or what we were having for dinner, or how long we were gonna have to wait.  I heard the song many, many times as a child.  The lyrics are ringing in my head as I am typing...."Be patient, Be patient, Don't get in such a hurry."  I hated that stupid song when I was a kid.  I just wanted answers and I didn't want to wait.
    Apparently I never grew out of that.  I am dying to know if we're having a boy or a girl.  Everyone says, "You'll know soon enough" or "It goes by so quickly."  But they don't know me very well.  When I am waiting anxiously on something, nothing goes by very quickly.  I have a room to paint and decorate.  I have furniture to buy and things to build.  I have things I need to get done that I can't get done until we know the sex of the baby.  It's driving me crazy.
    We went for our 2nd ultrasound today.  Christy was only 6 weeks pregnant when we had the first ultrasound so you couldn't see anything but the yolk sack.  Only 4 weeks later and our little baby is growing so fast inside of her.  You could distinguish it's little facial features and see it's little fingers.

    Our next appointment is on April 28th.  Our doctor said "if it's a definite boy, we may be able to tell."  I'm hoping it's a "definite" boy.

Sarah