Kaitlyn's first month

Well, it's been a month and I know I haven't been very good at updating. My excuse is a C-section incision to heal from and a newborn with a yeast infection that cries and fusses and wants to be held all the time!
Here's the updates:
Jared turned 25! I am so grateful for this wonderful man in my life, even more so now that we have a daughter. Saturday I was taking a bath & reading (Jared was taking care of Kaitlyn so I could have a relaxing morning) and while I was there, I heard Jared singing to Kaitlyn. The BYU fight song, I Am a Child of God, and World of Imagination were among the soundtrack. She loves his voice. Kaitlyn has become a great football watching buddy with Dad...too bad the Cougars decided not to play on Saturday.
Anyway, Mom Brown was in town for a week, taking care of us and playing with Kaitlyn. We are so grateful for her help, meals, love, and advice. While Mom was here I took Kaitlyn to the Dr for the first and second time. She hadn't made it back up to her birth weight at 2 weeks, and by 2 1/2 she had a very groggy morning where she didn't wake up much and didn't eat hardly anything. Also, she had the beginnings of a very nasty diaper rash. The doctor suggested measuring everything she ate, which meant that I go up at 2 to pump, then feed her. Long nights. He also suggested a cream for her rash, since desitin hadn't been working. The following Monday Mom Brown had gone home and Mom Zaelit had a birthday. She wanted to spend it with her family at the zoo - Kaitlyn's first trip. I don't think she cared much. Later in the week I took Kaitlyn back to the dr to be weighed and to discuss her rash, which had started bleeding. I did some research and was pretty sure that it was a yeast infection. Her weight was up - yay!, and the dr (a different one this time) said he was pretty sure it wasn't an infection and suggested a different cream. Three days later she was crying whenever she filled her diaper and it was still bleeding, I took her back, asked specifically about a yeast infection. The dr once again said no, and suggested yet another cream. Two days later it still wasn't better, so I called and wanted to see the first dr again. They double booked him and fit us in, thank heavens. He gave us two perscriptions and a different cream (seriously, I feel like a lotion store here). Thank heavens, it's started clearing up and Kaitlyn has been back to her usual sweet and smiley self.
That's the update. Kaitlyn weighed 8 lbs 15 oz on her one month birthday and has loved all the attention she has gotten from family. Especially the visit from Great Grandma Brown. She has also started smiling at us, especially when we're singing. Her favorites: Dancing Queen, World of Imagination, and California Girls. With Grandma BrownCousin Thomas came to visitGreat Grandma BrownGrandma ZaelitFamily photoGo Cougars At the Zoo

Kaitlyn - 23 weeks

I went to the doctor yesterday and everything is going well with Kaitlyn. It's that lovely time of pregnancy where they test for gestational diabetes, so I get to go in next week for that test. Kaity hid from the heart monitor for about 3 minutes and the lady was getting really concerned. I told her I wasn't worried: I'd felt Kaity playing all day yesterday, she just likes to be stubborn when it comes to other people feeling, seeing, or hearing her I guess. She'll be kicking up a storm and then if Jared puts his hand on my tummy she immediately stops. I'm not worried, though; she'll run out of places to hide soon and then everybody will be able to feel her. One nice thing, though: she's decided she likes to play and there isn't enough room in my back to play, so she hasn't been in my back for a month! I know that won't last, but it's a nice reprieve right now, hopefully we can continue for another month until school gets out.
I actually made a list of questions for my doctor this time, usually I forget all my questions when I get there. She gave me a prescription for Zoloft - I love that this doctor listens to me. She said that I know my body and if I feel like I need the meds then she doesn't have a problem with them. Zoloft, she said, is her favorite for pregnant/nursing moms because it has never shown any effects to the baby. Also, I am cleared to fly to Dallas for my friend Mandy's wedding! Provided, of course, that I'm not having any contractions or complications, I'm good to go up until 36 weeks; I just have to take someone with me in case. Finally, I asked about childbirth classes. There is a nurse who works in labor & delivery at UVRMC (the hospital that we are going to deliver at if we don't move before delivery) who runs a class. She crams everything into one Saturday, all day event. The class costs $65 dollars and includes lunch and snacks for two people, as well as a tour of the hospital. Jared isn't really looking forward to a childbirth class, but he says getting it over in one day is better than dragging it out for 6 weeks. Also, since it's on a Saturday it won't interfere with any jobs, and since it's all in one day we won't have to worry about moving out of state mid-classes. We'll probably be taking it the first or second Saturday of June.

Phred Updates

We went to the doctor again on Wednesday and it was a pretty uneventful visit. No ultrasound this time, bummer, but I did get to hear Phred's heartbeat again. It's amazing how such a funny little sound can be so reassuring! The doctor said that everything looks good and since I live West of the Mississippi I can eat whatever kind of fish I want as long as I don't eat it every day. That's a nice thing to know. We find out on March 25th whether Phred is a boy or girl (if Phred is willing to cooperate, that is). So we have a poll on the sidebar now. Vote for what you think (or want) Phred is. The poll closes on the 25th and then we'll post after that along with pictures and updates. So far we're just happy that both Phred and mom are doing well and seem to be healthy. I am also very happy that I've only gained 3 pounds total - yay! I know that I'll be gaining more weight as Phred grows, but it's nice to know that he's using up some of my squishy reserves in the meantime. :)

Happy in Love Day!!!

I know that a lot of people hate Valentine's day, and I think that a big part of that is because (especially at BYU) there is a lot of pressure to be dating and married and in love. However, my mom has always been wonderful at celebrating all of the little holidays with us. For Valentines we usually had a nice dinner at home, got new pink or red shirts to wear to school, and came home to our beds made and chocolate or candy of some sort. Sometimes she even bought each of us a rose. My mom worked full time when I was growing up, so her being able to take the time to make our beds when we weren't at home was a big deal, at least to me.
Now that I have Jared, Valentines day is still wonderful. Jared dreads the holiday and doesn't like cards or gifts, so this year when we got a flyer in the mail for Hale Centre Theatre and I mentioned that I liked the play that was there at the time, he jumped on the idea. On Valentines day we slept in (as far as my parent's dog would let us, that is). Then we went to Hale and saw Cash On Delivery, a funny British comedy about a man who is cheating the Social Security Department of Britain and is trying to get out of it but can't. Of course, everything is crazy and just gets worse from there - hilarious. Afterwards, we went to the mall to pick up a few random items. While there, Jared bought me a chocolate covered strawberry from Godiva. One is about the size of my fist and very yummy - and all of the chocolate that Phred will currently let me eat in one day:) Then we decided to go to McGrath's Fish House for dinner and that was very delicious, too. It was a great day, Phred and I were feeling good, and I got to spend it with just me and my honey.
Speaking of Phred, our next doctor's appointment is next Wednesday. I'm not entirely sure that I like the office, although I do like the dr that I go to. It's almost impossible to get ahold of them since they don't monitor their answering machine and they are closed from noon on Thursdays until Monday morning. I don't feel right calling the on call dr about a simple question, but I'm also not a fan of having to wait four days to talk to someone if I have a concern. Also, I never received a call back about my blood tests, and I got a few more done than just the standard slew because the dr had a few extra concerns about my thyroid. I guess that means that everything is okay....? Oh, well. Phred and I are doing well. I am finally to the point where I'm not exhausted all the time. Phred still makes me nauseous if I haven't eaten much, but that's understandable. I have stopped expanding for a little bit, which is good because Phred popped out so fast in the beginning that I've been in maternity clothes since the 8 week mark. We still have no ideas as to Phred's gender, but we hope that he/she won't be shy at the end of March and we'll be able to share with everyone Phred's real name :)
Anyway, we are back in town and getting caught up on housework that we've not done since we were gone so much. This Sunday is my grandpa's birthday party, though, so we'll make it to Sacrament then we'll have to leave and head up to Salt Lake again. A whole month without going to our Relief Society....sigh. Hopefully March will be less eventful.