Getting to know you...my heart belongs to Boston

It has been so fun getting to know you over the past 12 days! We are really starting to see your temperament and your likes and dislikes. My nickname for you is “pumpkin pie.” You have been smiling and making little giggly noises from almost day one. In fact, we have a picture of me holding you when we were still in the OR and you had a big smile on your face! You absolutely hate getting your diaper changed and always get all worked up into a screaming fit whenever we change you. As soon as you are done, you calm down again and everything is peachy keen. You have been such a relaxed baby with a calming, soothing effect. You have been sleeping well; I nurse you, change your diaper, wrap you up all snug in the miracle blanket and then we usually go down around midnight and you wake up again around 3am. I change your diaper again, nurse you and then we’re off to dreamland again for about another 3 hours. By this time, it’s about time for breakfast so we nap for a little bit and then get up for the day. You take lots of naps throughout the day am I’m lucky to get one if I can squeeze it in.

Even though you don’t like to get undressed, you LOVE to eat! Grandma P. started saying that you have a bird mouth because you always seem to have your little mouth and tongue moving and smacking (just like a baby bird hoping for a worm), looking for more food, even right after I nurse you! And when I get you to latch on, you have a suction like a Hoover vac that almost throws me back, but luckily you then let up as the feeding progresses. You just found your thumb and seem to like sucking on it every now and then. You have a little tiny blister on your upper lip; I think it’s from you sucking your thumb in utero. And you also seem to get the hiccups about once a day after eating. (Grandma P. and I discovered you doing this the night before you were born when I put her hand on my tummy).

One main difference between your first few days of life compared to your brother is that we don’t tiptoe around when you are sleeping. We are trying to get you use to loud noises since they are bound to happen around our house with Benz around! You’ve done so well so far since I think you’re used to hearing all of his screaming from when you were inside of me. You do tend to flinch or jump when you hear the microwave door close, but you have slept through most of our car rides, vacuuming and just about anything else! And I just love the little noises and sighs you make when you’re asleep. And it’s too cute to watch you crinkle up your forehead and see how it wrinkles when you have a bad dream. Your Daddy and I feel so very blessed to have you in our lives. Benz has been so high strung, loud and busy lately that it is nice to have a baby that sleeps through just about anything and is just so precious and calm. Grandma P. put it perfectly: “The angels sent Boston down to help calm your family.”

To my boys: You're Never Alone...

Never Alone~ featuring Lady Antebellum & Jim Brickman

May the angels protect you
Trouble neglect you
And heaven accept you when it’s time to go home
May you always have plenty
Your glass never empty
And know in your belly
You're never alone

May your tears come from laughing
You find friends worth having
With every year passing
They mean more than gold
May you win but stay humble
Smile more than grumble
And know when you stumble
You're never alone

Never alone
Never alone
I'll be in every beat of your heart
When you face the unknown
Wherever you fly
This isn't goodbye
My love will follow you, stay with you
Baby you're never alone

Well I have to be honest
As much as I want it
I'm not gonna promise that the cold winds won't blow
So when hard times have found you
And your fears surround you
Wrap my love around you
You're never alone
My love will follow you, stay with you
Baby you're never alone

Boston Edward Brawley...inquiring minds want to know why?

When everyone was gathered, Grandpa P. asked us what we were going to name this beautiful boy, so we told him your middle name first. It would be Edward, since that is the middle name of many of the strong and honorable men in my family: starting with Great-grandpa Paulhus, Great-grandpa Meynier, Uncle Mike and Grandpa Paulhus. And we finally spilled the beans that you would be called Boston. We went through so many names, looking for something meaningful, one of a kind and something that flowed well with our last name. We decided that since your older brother is named after Daddy’s side of the family, your name would represent something special from the Paulhus side. Grandpa P. was born and raised in Rhode Island and has been a Boston Red Sox fan since he can remember. Uncle Mike and Uncle Brandon (your godfather) both graduated from Boston College. We also wanted a name that started with a “B.” So when we came up with this name, we thought about it and made sure it was perfect before committing to it.

Some of the runner up names were: Brayden, Bienville, Bentley, Blakely, Berkeley, and Brennan. Once we put it all together, Boston Edward Brawley, we knew it was perfect. We wanted you to have a name that will set you apart; people will remember when they meet you because they will probably never meet another Boston again. [Although as a side note, the second night we were in the hospital, the nurse mentioned as she was returning you from the nursery that there was another Boston in the nursery at the same time!] It sounds so strong and stately and how cool will it be to wear a Red Sox jersey with your name on the front! By the way, the Red Sox came from behind on your birth day to win the game! And coincidentally, the city of Portland was almost named Boston too! Everyone seemed to like it; I’m sure it through a few people off (like your Great Grandma Paulhus later asked me why we chose Boston, since it was such an unusual name), but we think it fits you to a tee!

Please help us welcome our new baby boy to the family!

We loaded up all of our baggage and then headed with both cars to the hospital. Ironically, on the way to the hospital, the song “Bleeding Love” by Leona Lewis came on the radio. The lyrics say: “You cut me open and I keep bleeding, keep keep bleeding…” That wasn’t exactly the most calming of songs to hear right before having a c-section!!

We arrived at Legacy Salmon Creek Hospital around 11am and checked in at the front desk. My parents stayed in the waiting room for the next few hours. Matt and I were led back to a triage room where I changed into a gown and got an IV put into my arm. Matt had to don a face mask, hair net, a full white pantsuit and these huge blue space booties. Finally it was time for me to be wheeled into the operating room. Matt was kept in a holding room until the entire surgery room was set up. In the meantime, they administered my spinal and luckily there was not that horrific electric shock sensation this time around. My legs started going numb almost immediately so they helped me to lie down and then put a wedge under my right side. The catheter went in and the partition went up and they rubbed my belly down with iodine and my doctor came in all scrubbed up. They brought Matt in at the very last moment and the surgery immediately began.

Dr. Slayton-Milam reassured me during the process that everything looked OK and before we knew it, at 1:22pm, we heard a beautiful cry echoing throughout the room. Dr. Slayton-Milam mentioned how much hair you had and how long your fingers were before we even saw you. Finally I got to lay eyes on my beautiful baby boy! You were adorable and were crying vigorously as the baby nurse assessed you. Your apgar scores were an 8 and then a 9 mainly just for a little blue color in your hands and feet. Daddy and I couldn’t believe how dark and long your hair was! As you were lying on the warming table, you decided to shower everyone with your first pee! We were all anxious to see how much you’d weigh in at and everyone made their guesses and we officially found out you weighed 8 pounds and 14 ounces and you were 20 ½ inches in length. I noticed how long and skinny your little feet were, just like Daddy’s! Your profile looked just like your big brother, Benz, when he was a newborn!

Daddy took lots of pictures of you and was the first one to hold you after they put on your blue striped hat, eye ointment, took your footprints for your birth certificate and then swaddled you in a tight bundle. They finished stitching me up and moved me onto my recovery bed. Finally I was able to hold my little angel boy. It was almost surreal to hold you in my arms after all we had been through and it felt so right. I knew you were meant to be a part of our family from the moment I held you close to me. They put me in the recovery area where I stayed for the next 90 minutes or so. Finally they rolled us into my postpartum room where we would spend the rest of our hospital stay. Gma & Gpa P. and Babe were in the room waiting as I was wheeled in with you all snug in my arms. Everyone took their turn at holding you for the first time and kept saying how gorgeous and precious you are.

Around 4pm, Grandma and Grandpa B. brought your big brother, Benz, to room 403 to see you for the very first time. He was so happy to see you and came over to kiss you on your head. He was a little shy at first but warmed up pretty quickly, especially after I gave him your present to him. He loved the “My heart belongs to Boston” t-shirt and a Sesame Street game collection. He began smiling from ear to ear and he announced he was ready to hold you. He sat so calm and gently in the rocking chair and put the Boppy pillow on his lap. He held his arms in a cradle position and we placed you all snug in his arms. He had such a proud look in his eyes, like he had been waiting forever for that moment to arrive. Gma & Gpa Brawley were tickled to death to hold you too. She mentioned that on the way to the hospital, Benz told her that he “missed his baby brugger” before even meeting you! I had the nurse wait until Benz had arrived so he could help give you your first bath. He stood on a stool next to you and helped the nurse wash you and get all of the vernix cleaned off and put on your very first diaper. You were screaming a bit and didn’t seem to love the idea of splishing and splashing!

The big day is finally here...what will it have in store for us??

As part of the surgery prep, Mommy needed to fast 8 hours before surgery. I happened to wake up this morning around 4:45am and decided to eat a banana, protein bar and a glass of milk, my last good meal for a few days. Too bad I was not able to fall back asleep, but my nerves are starting to build. I'm not sure what is better: with Benz we found out the night before we'd be going in for a c-section since he was breech. We had a little time to prepare by reading books and talking to a few people who had recently been through it though the fear of the unknown can be killer. But I really had no idea what I was getting myself into and sometimes ignorance is bliss. This time around, I know pretty much exactly what to expect but that might not be the best thing afterall...I have a long road ahead of me. I am fearful of the anesthesia, the pain following surgery and the horrific recovery, especially since I have to now look after a baby and his big brother. But my doctor did ask me what my worst case birth scenario would be and I knew that if I labored for 20+ hours and then had to go in for another c-section that that would be much worse than having it scheduled. So at least I am avoiding that situation today, having my wonderful OB perform the surgery, and I can be much more calm and rested. And for those of you that know me well enough, this really is right down my alley. I am the ULTIMATE planner and to be able to mark the births of both of my children on a calendar in advance plays right into my need to be in control of everything and we all know how much I hate surprises!

I have so many different feelings as I contemplate today, which is probably the last day of my life that I will spend pregnant. For the most part, this has been such a smooth, uncomplicated pregnancy for which I feel so blessed. I am saddened to stop feeling my little one kick and hiccup inside of me and I will miss Benz rubbing my belly, singing songs to baby in utero and wishing baby brudder a good night with kisses. In a way, I will miss all of the pity looks random women have been giving me over the last month or so, as if to say with their eyes "hang in there, I feel for you 'cause I've been in your shoes, but it's going to be OK." But I am ready to move on to the next step of being a mother of two and welcoming this little one into our loving family. I am so excited to see who he will look like, how much he will weigh, how his personality will develop and most of all, the interactions between my two boys. I am a bit nervous to see how Benz will handle sharing my attention, as he's been the center of the universe for the past 4 1/2 years; I am praying for a smooth transition for everyone's sake. And I'm a bit worried that I may not remember the basics of baby care, but I think it will all come back naturally to me. This little guy's arrival has been a long road coming and it's hard to believe that I will be finally holding him in less than seven hours! So I spent the rest of this morning trying to cherish those last sweet kicks from inside my belly.

As the pregnancy chapter closes, a new one opens...

So as you can imagine, the last few weeks have been a bit crazy. My nesting instincts really kicked in about two weeks ago, in the anticipation of the arrival of my parents from New Orleans. I started cleaning the house from top to bottom and finally attacked those little projects we all put off (like dusting the door frames and baseboards). I must admit that I was pretty darn anxious about having everything perfect before the baby arrives, as I know life will be chaos once he joins the family (at least at first!). So I spent this past week scrubbing, grocery shopping, organizing and everything else in between. My parents arrived late Fri night (6/20) and we have been spending quality time together ever since. They will stay with us for a little over 2 1/2 weeks which is such a huge help and Matt has taken this week off from work.

Baby update: it seems like this little guy is way too comfortable in my tummy and has no plans of coming out anytime soon....so when I went to the doctor's for my last appointment this past Thursday, we made a plan. Even though I had been feeling some pressure, not much progress on the contraction forefront had been made. So we decided to schedule the c-section date for today (Tues. 6/24) but we were all secretly hoping I would go into labor before then. Well no such luck; so I went to the hospital yesterday morning for my pre-admission bloodwork and even came home wearing my hospital tag in preparation for the big day! My mom & I went shopping this morning since I knew it'd be a while before I'd get out of the house. When we told my Grandma Meynier the details of the day, she couldn't believe I was out and about less than 24 hours before the little man was due! She said: "Melanie better watch out or that poor baby is going to be born on the sidewalk!" And incidentally, my Grandma Paulhus told my Dad that she "can't wait for it to be over." We tried to spend the remainder of yesterday resting and tying up any lose ends. For dinner we took my parents out to eat at Le Bistro Montage, a yummy Cajun restaurant in Portland. We were celebrating Benz's last day as an only child. And it also just happened to be his half birthday, making him 4 1/2 years old as of yesterday.

Ahoy! It's a Boy... A Baby Shower for the Brawley Fam

This past Saturday, 6/1/08, turned out to be a wonderful & memorable day for our family! First, Benz was able to spend the day with his Grandpa Brawley. They went to OMSI (OR Museuum of Science & Industry) and also took in an IMAX movie. Meanwhile, Matt & I were busy attending the best baby shower EVER, and it just happened to be thrown for us! My best gal pal, Traci, has been planning this event for months now and it all came together so perfectly...the theme was sailboats or nautical, just like baby's nursery. So she was able to host it at the Dolphin yacht club in Camas, WA. It was on the Columbia River overlooking a marina and there were sailboats everywhere; what perfect scenery! When you walked up the deck, she had bubbles blowing and wave music playing and even seashells lining the sidewalk! The room was decorated so cute, with sea creatures, sailboats, nets and seashells everywhere. I had a personalized sailor hat and Matt wore his "World's Greatest Dad" pin. My mother-in-law helped out with the food and setting up and my other gal pal, Julia helped bring all of the final touches together.

The food & cake was delicious; Traci had the event planned out to a tee. We played some games, there was a station where people could paint toy sailboats and take them home and we opened some lovely (& practical gifts)! Some of my favorites were Julia's homemade "diaper cake," a sailboat sweater & hat from Aunt Louise, and a linen sailor suit and hat from Heather. We had a little less than 20 family & friends attend and a great time was had by all! The favors were adorable too...salt water taffy in little white sand pails! I can't thank Traci enough for all of her work and I know we will remember this party, in honor of Baby Brawley, for many years to come!

Melanie's Baby Registry.....

My beloved friend, Traci, whom we met while taking our childbirth classes for Benz, has been kind and generous enough to throw me a baby shower! She is planning it for Sunday, June 1st at the Camas Yacht Club Marina. More info will follow in the invitations but for those of you who are up here near Vancouver, mark your calendars:) (And for those of you down near New Orleans, I plan to bring Baby Brawley down to see all of you in early August and we will try to have some sort of "Meet the Baby" get together, so don't feel too left out!) As Traci gets more involved in planning this lovely event, she asked me where I was going to register...

Well, as some of you know, the second time around is SOOOOO much different than preparing for your first baby. I remember going into Babies R' Us over 4 years ago with that handy scanning gun and feeling completely overwhelmed. I must need all of it or else they wouldn't be selling it, right??? WRONG! Learned that the hard way after finding bottle warmers, diaper genies, and newborn toys a bunch of gimmicks! And to think I needed my stroller to match my swing to match the playpen to match the high chair! When would all of those things be next to each other anyways???:) So this time around I've thrown my pride to the side and been very lucky in begging and borrowing other moms that I know for a temporary loan of their baby stuff. I got rid of most of the essentials from Benz, not knowing if or when we'd have another child. But dear friends like Traci have been so kind to lend me just about anything and everything I need for this child's first two years of life.

So the answer to the question, "What does Melanie need for this new baby?" is a tough one. I decided that instead of registering at a baby store for items I am already borrowing, I would create my own registry with much more practical and necessary things; no store carries all of them so I made up my own list at mygiftlist.com. It's a little unconventional but has all of the things we'd really love to use on it. The direct link to it is:

http://www.mygiftlist.com/giver_main.asp?code=GUEST&buid=80110

As you can see, we are hoping for some diapers, wipes, lotion, various gift cards and some other cool things I know we will use. I just feel so blessed to have so many family members and friends welcoming this child into the world; thanks for all of you who have continued to support us on this journey!

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all of you mothers out there, and for those of us who are becoming mothers again or for the very first time! We had a very nice day yesterday, which started with a beautiful outdoor mass at the Grotto sanctuary in Portland. The three of us attended with my in-laws and toughed it out in the cold and light rain mist. Mass was followed by a delicious champagne brunch at the Grotto that we all enjoyed. Matt and Benz waxed Grandpa's boat when we got back to Interlachen (yes, it's almost time to get that boat in the lake again!) and I headed off for a little shopping at the outlet stores. Matt and Benz treated me to some beautiful cards and a generous Ross gift certificate and my in-laws gave me some lovely flowers to be planted in our front yard. All in all it was a nice day which made me feel very appreciated and I look forward to celebrating Mother's Day next year with our family of four:)

Baby Brawley's New Room...

This room has been a long time coming. It feels so amazing to have it done and off of my mind! It has been a vision in my head for quite a while but to finally put all of the pieces together has been rewarding and relieving. As you can see, Baby Brawley will be surrounded by a sailboat or nautical theme in his new nursery. Matt & I started many weeks ago gradually taking down his collectibles and storing them. Then he moved down the heavy equipment and we've been selling some of it on Craigslist. Then we had to patch the walls and prep it for painting. This past Sunday we painted it for 6+ hours! Everyone was tired and sore by the time it was done, but the end result is really beautiful. After buying 4 different sample paints, I decided on this color and it is just perfect!!! It is a very calming baby blue that reminds me of the sky or water, which ties in perfectly with the theme! I have been collecting things from stores all around the area to hang on the walls and ordered the crib set from Ebay. Our parents helped out with the antique dressers. I even have all of the clothes hanging in the closet and socks, shoes, bibs and blankies in the dresser drawers! The only thing we are waiting on is hanging the white wooden letters on the wall above the crib. Since we're keeping his name a secret, you'll have to wait to see the update on that one!

Pregnancy update...I'm getting bigger and bigger each day!

Had a doctor's appointment and ultrasound on 4/3 and everything is going very well! Found out that my placenta has moved up and I'm no longer in the previa danger zone! This is HUGE news since it means that I am out of the high risk category and I'm able to attempt a VBAC (if all other factors are perfect closer to the due date). I'm feeling well but I'm starting to get very tired without doing anything too crazy; it's catching up to me. And it's getting harder and harder to sleep comfortably so I have to have an extra pillow tucked underneath my tummy to make it through the night. And I've definitely graduated into the "waddling" stage:)

Last weekend my father-in-law came over and helped us get some odd jobs done. We officially started the conversion of Matt's exercise room into the baby's nursery and things are really starting to roll now. We'll be painting it baby blue tomorrow and will move up the crib and dressers. I was getting pretty anxious with only 2 1/2 months left but I'm feeling a little more at ease now and will be even more relaxed once I'm able to decorate the walls !

I'm Officially Outnumbered!

So I think you'd have to be living in a cave or off on a faraway island not to have heard the big news a few weeks back. Matt & I found out via ultrasound that we will be welcoming another baby boy to our family in June. It blew us all of the water that day, as many of us were expecting this one to be a little girl. It's a very sensitive topic for me, but we are thrilled that this baby is healthy (from what we can tell) and Benz is so over the moon with the idea of having a little bro to chase around.

For the most part, I'd say my pregnancy has been physically uneventful thus far; I've just been trying to take it a bit easier than I had been. According to my doctor, I have what they call a marginal previa. For those of you that aren't versed in gynecological terms, it translates to being a low lying placenta. From what I've learned, most times the placenta attaches high on the uteran wall. If it attaches low and covers the cervix, that can mean big trouble. Mine is just above the danger zone, closer to the cervix than they'd like. And I guess placentas can travel over the pregnancy and generally move upwards towards the end of the second trimester. So that's what we're hoping for and I will have another ultrasound in about 3 weeks to check on the progress of its voyage. Who knew this blog would be so educational?

Other than the above anxiety, been feeling well and this little guy is kicking up a storm! It's almost to the point where Matt & Benz can feel him from the outside; he just needs to get a little bit stronger. I've been shopping for the nursery (soon to be formerly known as Matt's exercise/Blazers memorabilia room) and we've decided to do a nautical/boat theme. And I've been begging, borrowing and stealing just about any baby item I can get my hands on (I sold most of them after Benz was born and only have his clothes from 2T and up). It's so funny how you don't blink an eye at used clothes or other things the second time around. We've come a far way from my obsession with having to have the stroller match the swing that matched the playpen that matched the carseat!:)

Many of you have asked and inquiring minds want to know.....what will be this baby's name? Well to be honest, we had several girl names all set and ready to go but having to choose another one-of-a-kind boy name has stumped us a bit. So we have one that is meaningful that we both keep coming back to, but we want to be certain it is perfect before commiting. Benz has such a unique name that we feel pressured not to come up with any ol' name like Joe, Bob, etc. And I think the one thing we have agreed on is we're going to keep his name a secret until the big day....so stay tuned; at least that's one surprise that is still to be revealed!

Baby's kicking and the clock's a tickin'!

Some very exciting news from the homefront: I felt the baby kick for the first time yesterday! For those of you who haven't experienced that miraculous sensation, the best way I can describe it is like little butterflies dancing around in your tummy. I think baby may have had hiccups last night as I could feel some little flutters, one after another on the right side! It truly makes the pregnancy come to life. I am thrilled that things have gone so smoothly thus far and feel very blessed to be bonding more each day with this new miracle inside of me. Can't wait for big brother to be able to feel the baby's kicks on my tummy!

As the picture above indicates, we're all just slightly anxious to find out if the nursery will be painted blue or lavendar. To help keep our sanity and try to explain time and space to Benz, we created the "ultrasound countdown" chain. Benz tears off one strip each morning and then counts out the remaining ones. 5 more days, in case you're wondering:)

ABC's, 123's and everything in between

Ok, ok so it's about time to update you all on the happenings of the Brawley Bunch.

First of all, Benz has been sprouting before our eyes! Not only has he gotten taller, but his learning has blossomed over the last few weeks. He recognizes all of his letters and is able to spell his own name, Matt's name, Grandma Brawley's name (Pat) and my dad's (Ray). He clearly counts from one to ten and is working up to twenty. We are so proud of all of the hard work he is doing; the speech therapy preschool that he has been attending has really made a difference since he started over a year ago. His attention span has increased tenfold and he's able to entertain himself for a much longer time (which will come in super handy later in the year). Benz just loves building barns and zoos from wooden blocks and then carefuly places all of his animal figures according to category. It's just too cute!

Matt is keeping busy; he's got a lot on his plate these days. It's a busy time of the year in the finance arena at Papa Murphy's. When he gets home at night, he tries to work out and when he's not working or exercising, he's studying for the final part of his CMA exam (certified management accountant). And on his free time, he enjoys chasing after Benz at our local park and attending Blazer games with his buddy. The good news is that things will slow down for him come spring, right when I'll need him to transfer his beloved exercise room into the baby's nursery:)

I've been keeping busy running Benz around to school, swimming lessons and everyday errands in between. When I'm not tidying the house, I'm reading up on baby topics and working from home. Pretty soon I'll be creating a very thorough manual and will start training my temporary replacement for the super busy summer swimming season that I'll be missing out on. I've been feeling well overall; had a few "sick to the stomach" incidents but I think it has passed (knock on wood). Just extra tired so I relish the two hours naps Benz and I take in the afternoons. We're excited to have gotten a phone call from the doctor's office today and we had to reschedule the anatomy ultrasound. Lucky for me we were able to move it up three days!!! So we'll know hopefully know what color to paint the nursery in two weeks from today:) And by that time, half of my pregnancy will be behind us and we'll be heading towards the homestretch!

Happy 4th Birthday, Benzie Boy!

OK, OK so it's been a bit since I last posted but all of you out there can surely forgive me, seeing that we were planning for Benz's birthday party, his real birthday and Christmas. I think I must have wrapped 100+ gifts the other night. It only took me a little over 2 hours! Benz had his 4th birthday party at a local place called JJ Jump. It is a large warehouse that houses about 8 inflatable houses/slides or "Space Walks" like we call them down South. He was lucky to have lots of friends and family who gathered to spend the special day with him and the rest of those who care about him (but live many miles away) were there in spirit. Good food, good friends and great cupcakes made for a super fun day! I'm not sure who had more fun, Matt or Benz! They both jumped until they dropped:)

Not much other news for the Brawley Bunch...feeling OK as I move into my second trimester of pregnancy. Only 40 more days until we find out if we're welcoming a baby girl or another boy into our family (not that anyone's counting)! Benz continues to amaze me each day at just how well he seems to comprehend that I am growing his younger sibling inside of me. I am blessed at how sensitive and sweet he is. Every morning he greets us with "Good morning, Mama" and then "Good morning baby." He ends his night with "I love you Mama" and then "I love you too baby." And he'll run over and hug my tummy and kiss it randomly throughout the day. And all of this without any prompting! He keeps telling us how badly he wants the baby to be a boy and I keep telling him "we'll see!"

Twice Blessed....

So it's been a while since I last blogged and lots has happened since my last post. Thanksgiving Day at our house was a huge success! We only had 8 people total but it was nice for us all to be able to gather around the table and eat together. My very first turkey turned out to be moist and delicious; what a relief! Believe it or not, I was so stressed I could barely sleep the night before:) We broke the big news to Aunt Pat, Uncle Steve & Kyle; Aunt Pat was super excited to have another little one running around at future family gatherings.

This past weekend, Benz helped me to put up and decorate our artificial Christmas tree. There were Christmas carols playing in the background and snow was falling on Saturday morning as we "decked the halls." It really put us in the Christmas mood! We've been reading Christmas stories, making a list for Santa and singing "Frosty the Snowman" every night before he falls asleep. My sweet Benz "stops to smell the roses" in life and took a moment to look at the tree once it was all decorated and said "Pretty, Mommy. Thank you Mommy Christmas tree." It is so touching for him to point out the small things in life that he appreciates! (He similarly thanked his Grandpa Brawley for putting up Christmas lights outside of their house). We sent out our annual Christmas card photos this week, only this year we announced our big news to the remaining family & friends by saying "With love, Matt, Melanie, Benz and Baby Brawley...coming June 2008."

Today was my first appointment with my doctor; she was able to find baby's heartbeat, which I put into the video above. The heartbeat was 166 beats/minute and for those that don't know, there's a theory that anything above a 140 is conducive of a female:) We don't want to get our hopes up....so we'll see! I also had an ultrasound and was able to see the baby moving its' arms and legs...it was so amazing! I truly feel blessed to have two children in my life and a loving husband who is very excited about this pregnancy. Today made everything feel much more real and official for us both. We'll all have to wait and see if I'll be on the hunt for pink or blue...the magic date is January 31st. Not sure if I can wait that long, but it is something to look forward to!!

Benz, the nurse...

So I'm sad to report that I did, in fact, lose my breakfast this morning. I was feeling great last night so I decided to meet my BFF, Traci, for dinner at Old Spaghetti Factory. Big mistake because I think the starchy food threw me over the edge. I went to bed feeling horrible, praying that it would digest and I would wake up feeling like a new woman. No such luck. After hugging the ceramic thrown for a while, you could not peel me off of our couch for the rest of the day. I lay there listless and just downright sick to my stomach for hours upon hours. Benz started to wonder what was wrong, and came up and laid down beside me on the couch. He rolled over and said: "Mommy owie?" And I said, "Yes, Benz. Sometimes when Mommies have babies in their tummies, it makes them feel kind of sick." You could see the wheels spinning in his head. He seemed to accept the explanation and then jumped up and began to massage my tummy. Before I knew it, he had picked up my ginger ale and was putting the straw to my lips! After taking a few sips, he carefully set it back down and picked up a Saltine cracker. With the best of intentions, he kind of forced it into my mouth, but the thought was so cute, even if half of it ended up in a pile of crumbs on the floor:) Then he ran over to Matt with a book I had bought for him called "Baby on the Way." He frantically searched for a page until he came to the part where the Mommy was feeling sick to her stomach and the author suggests that the child help Mommy by getting her crackers, fizzy water and staying real quiet. I hope this is the last time I get so violently ill over the course of the next 6 1/2 months, but if it happens again, I have the best (almost) 4-year old caretaker a person could wish for!

Eating for two...buffet anyone?

Well, the first trimester has officially hit me. First, let me tell you how this is different than what I experienced with Benz in utero. I felt tired for the first few months with him, but with no cravings and no morning sickness, UNTIL around month four when I would lose my cookies on a regular basis. The second time around, I'm feeling oh so different. As soon as I got back from our trip to the East Coast some strange symptoms emerged. I am super tired; perhaps I was run down from making the cross-country voyage or perhaps it has a lot to do with chasing after a 4 year old and working part-time. All the energy I had a few weeks ago when I was reorganizing the entire house, is long gone. Picture someone sticking a needle in your arm and sucking out all of the energy you had stored away inside; I'm sure there are other moms out there that can relate. I could stay in bed all day if you'd let me.

The second change I've had to deal with is appetite. I barely have one at all. I feel dizzy in the morning until I eat something; but when I sit down with a light breakfast, I feel as if I've gorged at a buffet only after the first bite! I can't seem to knock this sensation of feeling so full that I'm sick to my stomach, almost as if every day was Thanksgiving. We all know that yucky feeling when our stomachs are screaming "too much food!" So on a positive note, I guess it's better than the flip side of stuffing my face and never feeling full, but I've got to assure you this is not much fun. Especially since I consciously know I have to eat 3 square meals a day to provide proper nutrition for this little one growing inside of me.

Other than the above complaints (which I'm sure are more common than I'd like to admit), all is going well. I think Matt & I are still getting used to the idea of me being pregnant. Since I haven't yet had my first appointment, it doesn't seem 100% real yet. On December 4th, we'll get to hear this angel's heartbeat as well as meet with the doctor to come up with a birth plan. Funny thing about that, the new doctor I will be seeing is from New Orleans! I don't know her whole story as of yet, but she received her M.D. from LSU Medical Center in good 'ole NOLA. So it'll be a fun conversation to have with her, I'm sure.

Lots of fun things coming up in the life of the Brawleys. We're hosting Thanksgiving at our house this year, the first time in our married life. If I were you, I'd pray that this turkey is edible, as it's my very first attempt! We plan to tell my mother-in-law's family about our newest addition on turkey day. Then Benz will celebrate his 4th birthday at JJ Jump (a big warehouse with inflatable jumping houses or space walks to some of us) on Dec. 15th. That's when we'll officially announce this pregnancy to the rest of our family, friends & co-workers. Then look out for our annual Christmas picture card, which will deliver the good news to any other family or friends whom the big news has not yet reached. May we all take time to thank God for our blessings this year; Happy Thanksgiving from our family to yours!

Tricks, Treats, Pilots & Babies....

Happy Halloween! Benz visited his Great-Grandma Paulhus (92) today and she got such a kick out of his pilot costume as well as the suitcase he was dragging behind him to hold all of his candy. [By the way, Benz's costume was such a big hit while we were trick or treating tonight, that we actually had one guy whose house we went to tell us to wait at his front door for a minute. We assumed he was going to grab the candy bowl but came back with a camera and snapped a pic of Benz all decked out. He explained that he was a pilot himself and couldn't wait to show all of his colleagues! First time I've ever exchanged a photo for a Butterfinger!] My Grandma P. hasn't seen Benz since he was toddling around at the age of 11 months and now he's almost 4! She must have said "Is he cute or what?" and "he's just sooooo cute" like 100 times! It was pretty darn cute. She was so excited when I told her that we were expecting another one, that she started crying and saying "how bout that!" And she must have mentioned at least 10 times how much she hopes that it is a little girl. No pressure for me or anything!!! She loved it when I told her that I was due on June 24, which was her and my late Grandpa's wedding anniversary. We also told Aunt Lucille and Uncle Gerald that they would have another great niece or nephew and they too, were happy to hear the news. So now all of the key players have been informed of our exciting info and I can finally rest easy, even though the fun has just begun!!!

It's over but it's only just begun!

So to catch you up....I've been on a rampage to get our life organized. I've reorganized the kitchen, sorted our pics & mementos, and donated over 10 garbage bags full of STUFF to Goodwill last week. I was like a maniac on a mission, probably working harder than I should have and overexerting myself, all for the hopes of less worry and better sleep at night. But no such luck...I've still barely been sleeping averaging 5.5-6 hours per night (as compared to my normal 8 hours). Could it be the anxiety of being pregnant or raging hormones? Not to mention the fact that I had to get everything packed and ready to go for our trip to Rhode Island. Other than the above sleeping issues and some dizzy spells here and there, I've been feeling well and enjoying my pregnancy thus far.

And perhaps my anxiety was in part due to the fact that I was keeping this new addition a secret from my parents for almost two weeks! Every time I talk to them on the phone I nearly spill the beans. Some topic comes up that makes me carefully screen every answer. So I was glad and relieved to finally tell them EVERYTHING and congratulate them on becoming grandparents....again! [On a side note: Benz and I headed out early this morning for our trip to Providence, RI via Detroit. On our last leg, we told the flight attendant that Benz was dressing up as an airplane pilot for Halloween and she was tickled to death. She gave us a seat-belt to take home? and also arranged for Benz to meet the captain at the end of our flight. So I'm proud to say that Benz got to do what most kids only dream about....climb into the captain's chair and play with all of the buttons in the cockpit. He was in his glory!] Benz was wearing his new "I'm gonna be a big brother" shirt when my mom first saw him at the airport. It took her a minute to read the shirt and when she did, she looked at me and said: "is this for real??!!!" We told her yes and Benz said he was a "big brudder" and she was smiling and hugging us! My dad came in a few minutes later and he read the shirt (upon being prompted) and was very happy as well. As he walked away to the bathroom, we heard him say "Holy Cripe!" My mom and I stayed up tonight talking about how I was feeling, when & how we found out, and lots of other things baby related. I think we were all on cloud 9 and beyond exhausted! And don't tell Matt, but we stopped by Papa John's tonight to pick up pineapple pizza, giving in to one of my main cravings! It's not allowed at our house since it's a direct competitor of Papa Murphy's...but man was it DELICIOUS!