Time goes by so fast, the moment comes and the moment passes by in the blink of an eye

Although this is hard to write about without crying, probably more because I am pregnant, but also because I am the oldest out of seven children and I have watched each one of my siblings grow up into great individuals and I couldn't be more proud of all of them. One advantage of being the oldest is being able to watch your siblings go from one stage of life to the next rooting them on in their adventures. That time has come when my little brother (not so little anymore, in fact taller than me) has turned 19 and he will be venturing out into the world as a missionary representing our church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints. He has chosen to spend two years of his life serving the Lord and has been called to do so in the Texas, San Antonio Mission.  He is the first of my siblings to go on a mission (because he is the oldest boy). My brother inspires me through his example, his hard work, his willingness to serve and his testimony of the gospel. I am quite a bit older than him so we have never been super duper close but this kid is amazing! It's so weird that I won't be able to just call him up or text him whenever I want, and more than anything it will be so weird having a piece of our family missing but I am so excited for him and the fact that he will be an excellent missionary. I pray that the people of San Antonio Texas will take care of my little brother and be his family while he is away. Joshua, I love you so much and I am so proud of you and the decision you have made to serve a mission. You are so awesome and you will inspire and lift up many! 

"You're off to Great Places!

Today is your day!

Your mountain is waiting,

So...get on your way!"

-Dr. Suess-

Getting fitted for his suit pants for his mission

Also getting fitted for his suite jacket for his mission

Most of the family after church on the day he gave his talk in his Orem ward

One Ladybug Shower coming up!

I think one of the greatest parts about pregnancy is the exciting time when you get together with friends and family to celebrate the life about to be brought into the world! Everybody pretty much knows that I love a great party no matter what or who it is for. I mentioned to my Grandma and my aunts that if I had a baby shower the best place to do it would be in Orem at my Grandma's since all my friends and most of my family is there. They concurred so the planning has commenced! I am pretty bored with nothing to do at home so even though, traditionally, the mother to be is supposed to stay out of anything to do with baby shower planning I have asked to help in the planning. Because my little brother is going into the MTC on August 8th, and I want to be there and I am starting school at the end of August we decided the best date would be August 11th since I will already be down there and my travels have to stay limited due to all my complications so this date naturally seemed perfect!

The chosen theme is my personal favorite LADYBUGS! This theme is quite fitting since I am a fan of everything ladybug and I will be gently but forcibly passing that on to our baby through her nursery decoration. I have found so many fun and cute things that can be made, and my Aunt Brittany and I have gotten pretty giddy about everything. My Aunt Brittany made the baby shower invite and I think it is the cutest thing I have ever seen. It was inspired by two different invites on Etsy and she went above and beyond to pull them together and make it look stunning. In the search for everything ladybug I have come across from very fun things, thanks to talented women everywhere!

Here are some other things we have found:

We got this set from Etsy.com from a company called LeeLaaLoo (and by set I mean just all the things you see like all the signs and water bottle covers)

This idea was taken from http://pinterest.com

This idea was taken from http://bestfriendsforfrosting.com 

I just can't wait to celebrate our sweet baby and the blessing she has already been and will continue to be in our lives, and I am grateful for my family who is making the celebration happen!

One crazy eventful pregnancy!

This pregnancy seems to be going by so fast when I look back at the past few months. It is crazy to think that I am now 23 weeks and more than halfway to D-Day. We are entering a whole new realm of exciting experiences from feeling the baby move, being able to purchase baby things and even planning a baby shower! Of course this fast paced pregnancy has come with a few scares. On Friday the 29th of June I woke up with what I thought was just a routine backache that I had pretty much gotten used to. I was staying at my Grandma's with my mom and siblings who were also there visiting so I tried to just go about the day like there was nothing wrong...unfortunately this plan failed as the back pain got significantly worse and more focused on the left side. I was hot and sweaty and threw up in my moms car on our way home from BYU's campus (where we went to the Bean Museum, and I tagged along because my mom and aunt said it would be good for me to walk around). After fighting the paid for a few hours and after failing to try and sleep it off I called my doctor in Cedar City...who as luck would have it was out of town, which meant I had to deal with a doctor that I don't know and really doesn't know me. After a few phone calls back and forth they told me to go see the doctor I had previously seen when I lived in Orem. Unfortunately, all the doctors were out of that office so I was told to go to Labor and Delivery. Now I was just barely 21 weeks at this point and they just told me to go to the LABOR & DELIVERY!!! Not somewhere I want to be at 21 weeks! After bawling to by myself then texting my mom telling her what needed to happen (she had to take children to swimming lessons) she came home and we reluctantly went to the hospital. After about 3 hours in the hospital, finding out what a catheter felt like, finding out I had kidney stones, an IV and bag of fluid and two percocet later I was released. Although kidney stones really stink, I was thrilled it was nothing more. 

FAST FOWARD a little more than 24 hours later on Sunday...

I was back home in Cedar City in the comfort of my home with my husband, however, I woke up Sunday morning with cramps... which is another thing I have gotten used to... when it happens OCCASIONALLY! These cramps were coming about every 6-7 minutes and knew exactly what I was feeling...CONTRACTIONS!! After laying in bed waiting for them to go away, drinking a lot of water and walking around for a little while I finally called Labor and Delivery here and told them what was going on. They told me to drink some water, take a warm bath and take two tylenol and if that didn't stop the contractions to call back an hour later. By this time it was about 5:30 and I decided I should probably wake up my husband and update him on what was going on. My poor husband was a mess...he wouldn't say it but he had worry in his eyes and a sad face. I told him it was probably nothing  and that the kidney stones probably started the contractions (which they are known to do, along with UTI's and kidney infections). Well, after the hour was up I was still have contractions so we went in. Again, not somewhere I wanted to be and quite frankly not somewhere my husband wanted me to be. So after about 3 1/2 hours, monitoring my contractions, an ultrasound of my kidneys and bladder, another urine test and blood test they sent me home telling me to take it easy, which for me is easier said than done. Although we were grateful that it was nothing serious I was really starting to get frustrated, especially when Tuesday afternoon rolled around and I got sick again with what I was sure was a bladder infection- by this time I'm mad...ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME! All I wanted was a semi easy going pregnancy, if not for my sake, for my poor baby's sake who I was just praying was protected from everything. After another urine test and two prescriptions from my understanding doctor who was thankfully back in town things have slowly gotten under control but I have really tried to stop pushing myself and I am grateful for my husband who waits on me hand on foot. We are so blessed to have made it this far and I am amazed at our baby's strength through all of this. Shaun and my dad gave me a blessing which calmed my fears and let me know that my baby would be coming to my home as soon as she was healthy enough!

Our Growing Girl

This week we had our 20 week ultrasound, which was super exciting and felt like another milestone we can add to the board. We are thrilled to have made it this far, and everyday I feel so blessed to be carrying this little girl. Addyson is 8 oz. (as of Monday) which is exciting, although that is still not very big. She is an active little thing as well as quite stubborn. When we first started the ultrasound and the Ultrasound tech wanted to double check to make sure she was a girl Addyson had her hands covering her private parts (apparently she is modest as well). Once she moved her hands it was verified that she is definitely a girl. Next we tried to get a look at her face...well her hands moved up there and she kept her face covered for the first half of the ultrasound.  She is a silly baby but eventually we saw everything we needed to and wanted to. We saw her kicking her legs and waving her arms and opening and closing her mouth. It was so surreal and amazing to know that in 4 more months she will be in our home and we will have a sweet baby in our home! Counting our blessings everyday...

The best picture of our little girl. She wouldn't give us a full shot of her face but we'll take it!

Addyson's Profile

Her cute little feet

We were very excited to know that she is definitely a girl

She had her hands up by her face.

It's A Girl!!!

This past Tuesday we finally went to the long awaited doctors appointment where we got to find out our baby's gender. We didn't really have a preference because we feel there are great things that come with having both a boy or a girl, and we have waited for so long just to have a baby that we really just want a heathy baby. Before we went I made sure I drank something with a lot of sugar so the baby would move, and boy did it work! The baby was waving her arms and kicking her feet which made the ultrasound tech happy as she worked to get a good imagine. After a few minutes she was finally able to confirm about 90% that we are expecting a baby girl! We are so thrilled to have a little princess in our home. Her name will be Addyson Mae Hill, and we can not wait for the arrival of our sweet baby girl!

Our little girls cute little toes

A closer look at her little girl parts

Growing Strong

Today I am feeling very blessed to have a healthy baby growing inside of me. The past few days I have been spotting, which with my history, instantly freaks me out and I become an emotional wreck.  I am grateful for prayer and my husband who holds the priesthood and is able to give me a blessing. The Lord has truly blessed me and given me the comfort that I need to make it through the first trimester of this pregnancy without loosing it. There is nothing I want more than a baby, and I feel this baby growing and I know there is a Child of God in there and I feel so lucky that this baby is still growing. I had a doctors appointment this morning and the doctor found that I have placenta previa, meaning my placenta is at the bottom of my uterus and over my cervix. As of right now it is not a big problem, but if it doesn't move I will have to have a C-section. The placenta previa is what is causing my cramping and spotting, which is a huge relief.

8 weeks and counting...

There were some things that were concerning me yesterday so I called the doctor and he had be come in this afternoon just to make sure everything was ok. I was a little concerned but after having another ultrasound the doctor confirmed that everything is ok and our baby is growing rapidly and has a very strong and healthy heartbeat!

A to Z

A. Age: 23
B. Bed size: King
C. Chore that you hate: Cleaning the bathroom
D. Dogs: 1, Mari- she is such a great dog loves to play and loves attention.
E. Essential item in purse: Chapstick and lotion
F. Favorite color: Red!
G. Gold or Silver: Silver
H. Height: 5’3"
I. Instruments you play: I can kind of play the piano...
J. Job title: Baby incubator and student
K. Kids: in November our baby will arrive!
L. Live: Cedar City
M. Mother’s name: Stefani
N. Nicknames: Lyss
O. Overnight hospital stays: Only when I was a baby.
P. Pet peeves: Sound of people clipping their nails, smacking gum, people with bad hygiene....and so many more but I'll stick with those
Q. Quote from a movie: "Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not. - Dr. Suess from The Lorax
R. Right or left handed: Righty.
S. Siblings: 3 brothers and 3 sisters
T. Tv Shows you watch: Bones,all three CSI's, Grimm, The River, Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice
U. Ultimate Vacation: Hawaii
V. Vegetable you hate: Brussel Sprouts
W. What makes you run late: Waking up Late.
X. X-Rays you’ve had: on my knee and my teeth
Y. Yummy food that you make: Creme Brûlée
Z. Zoo animal: Elephants and Giraffs

Feeling Blessed

Today I am feeling so grateful to be pregnant still. Everyday is truly a blessing that we are so so thankful for. I am almost at 8 weeks and we are thrilled. I am nauseas pretty consistently throughout the day, i have no apetite most of the time and I have several bruises on my stomach from my shots but everyday I tell Shaun it just let's me know this baby is growing, and for that I am so thrilled.

My latest food aversions:
Salad...not sure if it's the dressing or the salad itself but the thought of it makes me want to hurl.
Leftovers- I have never really been a leftover fan but I couldn't even bring myself to eat my leftovers from Pizza Factory, which was a bummer.
Pretty much any fruit except grapes and bananas (even though I used to hate bananas)
Really sugary drinks-which is probably a good thing.
Onions- which bums me out because I use to love onions

Cravings:
I don't have many cravings because I'm pretty nauseas but here are a few things that always sound good.
Ice cold water
Bananas- which again, is really weird because I never liked bananas before
Vegetables- cucumbers, carrots, mushrooms
Saltines
Beef Jerky

It's so funny to see so many changes in everyday life when you're pregnant. I have never gotten this so far so everything is new and exciting. This weekend my amazing Grandma took me to Old Navy and bought me two pairs of maternity jeans and some shirts. Yes, my pants are already getting tighter. It's so weird. I don't necessarily NEED the pants quite yet but they sure are more comfortable. It also helps to not have something tight on my stomach because of my bruising. My Grandma also got me a dress and two pairs of Sanuk flip flops which I guess are made out of Yoga mats, either way they are the most comfortable things in the world. My Grandma said she wants me to be so comfortable and she knows that all I wear in the summer are flip flops. She is so sweet! I am looking forward to many more updates. My next appointment will be April 12th and I will be ten weeks!

Baby on the way!

Here we see the heartbeat but couldn't hear it. Once the doctor got the baby on the screen we saw the heartbeat instantly. 

Here is where we heard the fast little heartbeat. Greatest moment in our lives. Shaun through his arms in the air and yelled "YES!"

Here is our cute little bean, still very very little

And here is the baby again

 Many of you have been following our painful journey to try and get pregnant so we thought we'd announce the birth of our baby as a blogger exclusive for now. I am 7 weeks, which is still early but this Monday we had a doctors appointment and we were able to see and hear the heartbeat. My levels are great and this is the furthest I have ever made it. Seeing the heartbeat decreased my chances of miscarrying 90%, which of course still leaves 10% but that 90% decrease was music to my ears and the number we are focusing on! I am nauseas pretty much everyday, but I love every minute of it because it lets me know this baby is in their growing. We feel extremely blessed because although we have not done anything to prevent a baby this was completely unexpected given the fact that next to keeping the baby, getting pregnant is very difficult. I am on several different things to keep this baby growing, this includes: Prenatals, folic acid (in addition to the prenatals), a B-complex vitamin, baby aspirin, progesterone, and I also have to have two shots of heparin a day. Praying everyday this baby will be coming to us this November. We feel so blessed!

Dear Future Child

In one of my classes one of the assignments due today was a letter written to either a child we have now or will have in the future. This was actually really great "therapy" for me.

January 13, 2012

Dear Ayden or Addison,

This letter started out as a class assignment, but the more I started thinking about it and what I would write in this letter, it became a way for me to express my desire to have you in my arms today and let you know how much I love you even though we don’t have you yet. Your dad and I have always wanted children and we thought it would happen right off the bat. We were married December 2007 and we thought it would happen shortly after. Unfortunately things don’t always turn out as you plan and after several years of trying we became discouraged and sad because we wanted to start a family. If there is anything you should know it is that we want you so badly that sometimes it hurts to see others with children. We are willing to do anything to make having children a reality. When you do make it to our home you will be our miracle and our dream come true.

            The one thing we are learning from having to wait so long is to never take anything for granted. We are getting a lot of practice with my cousin Juliet, who is one, along with Early Childhood Development being something I am going to school for. I feel confident that when you enter into our home there will only be minor adjustments and we won’t screw up too bad. Your dad knows CPR and I know how not to treat children so together we should do ok. I am sure we will make mistakes but I hope that the one thing we will always do is show you how much we love you.
We plan on being the kind of parents that have unconditional love, parents that are patient and apologize when we aren’t, parents that are there when you need to talk, parents that don’t expect you to act like an adult when you are clearly not but don’t treat you like you are less smart just because you are a child and parents that are available 24 hours a day, 7days a week.  I hope that we raise you in a way that will be inspiring to you as you go out into the world and get married and start your own family. I pray that you do not have to go through the pain we have had to in order to start a family. Just remember that no matter what happens, or how bad things get your Heavenly Father is always there to talk to; even when you feel a lone, you’re not. Remember to stay true to who you are and what you were taught. We love you more than you could ever know. Even if you aren’t with us yet, I know you are waiting for the perfect moment, and when that perfect moment comes, your dad and I will be ready with outstretched arms ready for the wonderful, and amazing challenge of being a parent.

                                                            With all our love,

                                                                        Your Mommy and Daddy