Good Decision, Bad Decision

After looking at all the digital cameras in Best Buy, Circuit City and Wal-mart (Matthew did most of the looking; I have a problem with change and was quite overwhelmed with all the new-fangled bells and whistles which these cameras have), Matthew very wisely decided to order a "gently-used, like-new" camera from Amazon.com identical to our prior one. This way we can still use our old memory sticks and I won't have to read a new operator's manual! Plus I can again take pictures of my sweetie boy, Philip!


Now for the bad decision. Our friends Les and Melody came over last night and graciously brought dinner. It was a wonderful meal of lemon chicken and rice casserole, salad, breadsticks and lemon pie! Everything tasted wonderful however I did not even think how all that lemon would affect Braewyn. I found out around 1:00am last night when she was crying in pain and having diarrhea. She seemed a little fussy around 10:00pm (I had nursed her at 9:00pm), but after her 11:30pm feeding, she was miserable until 1:30am. She kept pulling her little legs up to her belly and then when I changed her diaper before hoping to lay her down for the night, she had diarrhea which got all over her bottom, her pajamas, and the blanket I was getting ready to wrap her in. After two doses of Mylicon gas medicine, patting her back, and rocking her to sleep in our glider, Braewyn finally fell asleep at 1:30am. I fed her again at 4:30am and she seemed to be ok. Off and on throughout the morning she was fussy, and then we had a repeat of the gas and diarrhea around 10:00am this morning. It was a blessing that my friend Christy had picked up Philip at 9:30am and was letting him play with her kids through lunch (they went to McDonalds!). Well, I didn't want Braewyn to suffer any more than she had so at 1:30pm and 4:30pm, I gave her a bottle of some frozen breastmilk I had pumped earlier this week (I pumped after giving her those bottles and threw that milk out). After the bottles she didn't seem to have any problems. I just nursed her again and she seems to be ok. Hopefully all that lemon juice has left my system. No lemons for us for a while!


Feeling good after drinking a bottle of lemon-free milk. :)

Week in Review -- Two Kids Are Tough!

This has been a tough week to say the least. Monday was good as I had little scheduled so accomplishing little meant I met my expectations (all three of us were fed and clothed by the end of the day at least!). Tuesday, I planned my first solo with the kids outting and well, it failed. I showered after Matthew got out around 7:30am. Philip was awake shortly thereafter and then Braewyn needed to be fed around 8:00am. Between making mine and Philip's breakfast, getting us dressed, doing my hair and make-up, trying to keep Philip occupied and contemplating just how much tv he should watch while I'm getting ready, making sure he doesn't squish or hit Braewyn in her bouncy seat, changing her diapers, remembering that Philip still wears diapers too and changing him, nursing Braewyn again, and finally realizing I had NO CLUE where my keys were (in the bottom of my purse of course!), it was suddenly 11:30am and I was too frustrated to go anywhere. I did then take the kids outside. I pushed Braewyn in the stroller around the cul-de-sac while Philip stood in Hayden's yard. Sharlene had not yet seen Braewyn so I told her we would drop by in a few minutes after I got my stress out through walking a little.

It was greating showing my daughter to Sharlene and seeing how little Braewyn really is (in comparison with seeing her next to Sharlene's four-month-old Jordan), but then Philip had his second breakdown of the day (yeah, I forgot to mention that I gave him a bath around 10:00am and he screamed throughout the entire process; he's funny about morning baths like that). He did not like the idea of just visiting for a minute and wanted very much to spend the afternoon playing with Hayden. I got him back out of their house and had to carry him while pushing the stroller back across the street. Matthew came home a few minutes later to a frazzled household. Lunch was followed with putting Philip down for his nap, nursing Braewyn, hoping I could get a nap only to sleep for 15 minutes before the phone rang, and then hearing Philip banging on his wall (he's great about not getting off his bed until told he can and so he's developed the "bang on the wall until they come get you" method).

Luckily, Matthew was home shortly after that. However he had a softball game at 6:30pm so he was out the door pretty soon after arriving home. After Philip's third breakdown of the day (he didn't want to eat dinner), I put him and Braewyn in the car as we would be attending half of Matthew's game. Philip would stay at the game while Braewyn and I would go to my friend Kim's house for a Sunday School get-together (one of our 10th grade girls is moving next week so it was a going-away party). Ruth Ann took Philip off my hands in the parking lot and I headed to Kim's house without getting to watch any of the game as I was later in getting there than I planned. Anyway, the party was fun and then home by 9:45pm. Tuesday night was the normal 2 hours of sleep, nurse Braewyn, 3 hours of sleep, and it's morning already!

Wednesday was a little better as I actually got out of the house as intended. MOPS had a scheduled playdate for strawberry picking which I thought would be fun for Philip and me. I stopped by Mom's house first to drop off Braewyn. Mom's sister, Cindy, is visiting this week and she was excited to babysit for me. Off to the strawberry field, but then I pass Jo Ellen on the road who tells me the event is off as the people who own the field are no where to be found. Well, Philip and I are dressed and in the car so I drive us over to the park for some mommy and son playtime. It was a good time together and then I took him for an overdue haircut. Back to Mom's for the afternoon. I had an eye exam at 3:00am so again no nap. Finally to church for supper as it beat going home to cook for myself, and yes, my eyes were still dilated from the exam so everyone must have thought the sleepless nights were REALLY wearing me down as I looked strung out. Wednesday night was actually restful as I only got up once during the dark of night (nursed Braewyn at 11:30pm before we went to bed, again at 3:00am, and then heard her grunting at 6:30am when it's already getting light!).

I needed a good night's rest as Thursday morning was the first day of a Beth Moore Bible study at our church. I needed to be on time for this and third time proved to be the charm as they say because I was! It was motivation that my neighbor and friend Roz would be riding with me. The Bible study was good although I was somewhat distracted having Braewyn in with me (she slept for almost an hour but then I nursed her trying to be as quiet as I could). Thursday afternoon proved again unsuccessful in the nap department, but I did lay down for a short rest after Matthew came home.

Today was great in that I again had no plans and actually stayed in my pajamas until 3:15pm. The kids were in pajamas all day, but I thought I could shower and then nap before Philip woke up. Wrong, I heard wall banging about 3 minutes after getting out of the shower. Again, I took a short nap (roughly 15 minutes) after Matthew came home. I greatly appreciate that he made dinner and then played with Philip outside for a good bit. The little munchkin has been in bed for an hour now, Matthew is holding Braewyn on the couch, and I should go to bed asap as I might have an hour before she wants to eat again.

I am SO BLESSED to have Matthew and our two children. The hectic level of things these days is fleeting (3-4 more months at the most as Braewyn will one day sleep through the night) and my energy level will return to normal. In the meantime, I need to be a faithful servant of my time and daily pray each morning for God to order my days. As my friend Julie reminded me today, taking care of my husband and kids is God's will for my life right now. There will be plenty of time later for adding other activities back in to the mix.

If you've read all of this, thank you. Please let me know if I'm not alone and if you can say, "I've been there."

Jo Ellen's Blog

I've added another friend's blog address to my list of links. Jo Ellen and I met two years ago at Bible Study, but we have a crazy list of connections between our families. Her daughter Emma is one of Philip's best buddies, and I know in a year or so Emma's little sister Meredith and Braewyn will get to be friends too. I'm sure you'll enjoy reading Jo Ellen's blog as almost every post makes me laugh out loud!

More photos of Braewyn

As "addicted" as I am to blogging, I'm having a major crisis. Our camera is broken! Either the battery has become faulty or Little Fingers damaged it. "Little Fingers" is what Matthew and I say when Philip has obviously done something which neither of us saw happen. The lens on the camera was going in and out literally three or four after hitting the power button and then two days ago it just got stuck out and won't do anything. We might be going to Best Buy tonight or tomorrow!

Anyway, here are a few more photos I did take of Braewyn over the last week. Unfortunately she is asleep in all of them but still beautiful! Hopefully, we'll have a working camera soon as she is beginning to stay awake a little more each day and is quite cute awake too!

We're A Mess!

Overall things are going well. Braewyn weighed 8 lbs. 13 oz. at birth, dropped to 8 lbs. 3 oz. at her newborn check-up last week, and bounced back up to 8 lbs. 11 oz. as of today at her 2-week weight check. However, that's all for the good news. Yesterday, I went to my OB and my suspicion was confirmed... I have a urinary tract infection. Antibiotics for me! At Braewyn's appointment today, I asked Dr. Shelley to look at her mouth and bottom as a friend of mine commented that it looked like she might have thrush (name for a yeast infection in babies). Again confirmed and now Braewyn will be on medicine starting tonight and antifungal cream on her bottom. I'll be eating yogurt daily starting tonight also in hopes that she won't spread it to me or that my body will regulate itself if on the verge of having a yeast break-out. Finally, I got Philip up from his nap yesterday to find a bloody faced boy. His first nosebleed! The blood was only on his pillow so I just exchanged the pillowcase for an old pink flowery one. Well, this morning the blood was back and on that pillowcase, the fitted sheet and Lamby. Needless to say everything went in the washer and thankfully came out clean including Lamby!


What a sweet "Good Morning" face!

Looks like Lamby had a rough night too!

Mother's Day Reflections

God really used our pastor's sermon this past Sunday to help me look at some new aspects of motherhood. The Scripture passage was Exodus 2:1-10 which tells the story of Moses' mother giving birth to him, hiding him for three months (the Egyptian Pharaoh had decreed that all Hebrew baby boys be killed!), placing him safely in a basket in the Nile river, being paid by Pharaoh's daughter to nurse him (I need to find someone who will pay me to nurse Braewyn; great side income!), and then releasing Moses back to Pharaoh's daughter for good.

The sermon was entitled, "A Godly Mother Chooses Life." The first point was "She Chose Life for Herself." Moses' mother was a godly woman herself. If it is my goal to be a godly mother, I also must be a godly woman. By striving to know Christ more each day, I become a better mother too.

The second point was "She Chooses Life for Her Children." This is done obviously in giving birth to children and caring for them physically, but there is so much more involved.

1. She Expects (Exodus 2:2b "When she saw that he was a fine child...") Moses' mother saw something special in her son and determined for him to live out the plan God had in store for him. As mothers, we all think of our children as special. We must take it a step further and diligently pray for these children to receive salvation in Christ and to desire to seek God's direction in their lives.

2. She Protects (Exodus 2:2c "she hid him away for three months.") Being given the responsibility of raising a child means protecting him physically, emotionally and spiritually. As our culture continues to decline, this challenge becomes more difficult by the year. Upon voicing my concern about what it will be like when Philip is a teenager, my pastor gave me some good advice. "The same God who was there for you will be there for Philip." There are countless accounts of people in the Bible who lived fully for God despite troublesome circumstances and He is just as powerful and present in our current day to help our children too.

3. She Connects (Exodus 2:7-9 "Then his sister asked Pharaoh's daughter, "Shall I go and get one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you?" "Yes, go," she answered. And the girl went and got the baby's mother. Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Take this baby and nurse him for me, and I will pay you." So the woman took the baby and nursed him.") We should be as involved in our children's lives as we can be. When friction arises (especially during the teenage years), never give up at connecting with our children. At the same time however, we cannot try to control them beyond what is normal. We must entrust them back to God and His protection as they are each truly gifts from Him.

In the midst of temper tantrums and typical toddler wildness, I can easily lose perspective. It is my prayer to raise Philip and Braewyn to be God-honoring people.

Philip's Morning Out

Because we have been home all week, I thought today Philip could use some time with someone his own age. He spent the morning with his buddy Hayden who lives across the street. Thank you Sharlene for letting Philip spend the morning with Hayden. Glad they both had fun!

Braewyn's First Week

After waiting 39 long weeks to meet our daughter, time is flying fast now. Braewyn is 8 days old today! We've had a good yet challenging week. Taking care of a newborn really came back to Matthew and me really easily. Having a toddler in the mix adds the challenging part. I am trying my best to make Philip feel loved and included and always reminding him of what a great big brother he is. He really does love Braewyn (even putting his beloved "Lamby" in the bassinet with her) but must be watched every moment when close to her. He has only been mean toward her once but it was because I was on the phone and he was trying to talk to me too.

Matthew took off work while I was in the hospital (Wednesday thru Friday) as well as this past Monday and Tuesday. We had a good time together as a family. My mom has come over yesterday and today and will again tomorrow. I really appreciate her help as she has gotten me to rest more than I would (it's not my nature to sit still unless it's Sunday afternoon!), but I'm looking forward to next week and developing my own routine as a mom of two little ones.



We arrived home! Seeing our "precious cargo" in their carseats proves we are officially a family of four.



As an infant, my parents called me "Chipmunk Cheeks." This is DEFINITELY my daughter.


This picture is a flash back for me. Matthew loves sitting our babies on his chest and talking to them. Here he is with Braewyn...



and here he is with Philip. (Philip was two months old in this picture.)


Braewyn received her first bath this week. Philip helped a little but then started saying "I not do it." He lost interest quickly.




Look at that face!



Hooded towels are so cute. This is Philip...


and here's Braewyn. He lost about 1 1/2 pounds his first week home, but she only lost 10 ounces. I suppose it's due to being more comfortable nursing this time around. We'll see if she remains higher on the growth charts than he has. Philip is one tough boy so Braewyn will need to be strong to keep up with her brother!

We're home and settling in!

It still doesn't seem real that I am now the mother to two beautiful children. To fill you in on the details of Braewyn's birth, here's a recap. I had been having contractions all day on Tuesday, but they just were not becoming constant enough for me to go to the hospital (or so I thought). I called my doctor and was reassured to not come until they were 5 minutes apart. I had an appointment at 8:15am on Wednesday so I just decided to go to sleep and see what I was measuring in the morning. Well, we obviously didn't make the appointment because I woke up at 3:30am having very serious contractions (walking to the bathroom, I had to stop and do the dramatic breathing while gripping the foot board of our bed!). I told Matthew we had to go to the hospital because I really needed some drugs fast.

When we arrived at 5:00am, I was shocked and terrified to be told that I was 9 centimeters dilated. The nurse said they would try to get me an epidural but couldn't promise it. She did give me a sedative-type drug which just made the room spin and took the edge off a little. Around 6:30am, I did receive the epidural and remember saying, "I thank the Lord for that man!" referring to the anesthesiologist. About 7:00am, my doctor, Dr. Bingham, said I was fully dilated and could start pushing. I tried several times but couldn't get it just right due to that druggy feeling from the first medicine. Dr. Bingham decided to let me sit up and let gravity pull Braewyn further down to make pushing easier. During that 30 minutes, I felt like I could really get her out if they would just let me squat beside the bed. Maybe I could deliver a baby in the field and then get back to work as we hear about women doing! Anyway, just before 8:00am, I began pushing again. I was making progress but Braewyn's heartrate was dropping during contractions. A few more pushes and a vacuum on her head and my beautiful baby girl was out in the world!

At Philip's birth I was overwhelmed with fear (I didn't know what to do with him), but this time I almost cried from joy. Knowing the wonderful times we've shared with Philip these last two years made seeing Braewyn that much more precious to me. I was stitched up (seemed to take forever!) and then given the chance to nurse Braewyn (another scenerio which I was much more comfortable attempting this time as it was familiar again after nursing Philip for a year).

We stayed in the hospital Wednesday, Thursday and left Friday morning at 11:00am. I had desired no visitors the first day as we really wanted Philip to have a good chance to bond with his new sister. It was a blessing as the entire time in the hospital, our local families and three other friends were the only guests. The day Philip was born we saw about 20 people that night! I love my neighbors and church friends, but they will all have many chances to meet Braewyn over the next few weeks.

This has been such a different experience than the time surrounding Philip's birth. Caring for Braewyn has been relatively stress-free (it really does come back) other than the lack of sleep and irritability that comes with it. Philip is such a loving brother. I did have tears streaming down my face when my parents brought him to the hospital Wednesday morning and he kissed "Baby Sister". He has since held her a few times, kissed her hands and feet over and over, and even sang "Jesus Loves Me" to her! He also asked her if she wanted to play ball. I know they will have lots of fun together through the years.



Thank you Lord for this new miracle in our lives. She is just perfect and another reminder of Your abounding love for us. I pray to follow Your direction in raising her and I pray she would come to love you, Jesus, as her own Lord and Savior.

Braewyn's World Premier

Hello, this is Matthew. I'm just taking a minute while I came home to pick up a few things to post some pics.

Braewyn weighs in at 8 lbs 12.7 oz. We did find out now that she was 21 inches long.

Braewyn asleep with Grandma


The new Brooks Family Portrait



Philip loves his new baby sister, Braewyn.

It's A Girl!!!

Hi! Guest blogger Aunt Lori here. Kim and Matthew headed to the hospital around 5 a.m. Kim was having hard contractions but her water had not broken. When she arrived, she found out that she was 9 cm dilated. They broke her water and gave her an epidural. Braewyn Faith Brooks entered the world at 8:14 a.m weighing 8 pounds and 12 ounces. Kim wasn't sure about her length. Mom and baby are both doing well. Kim is anxious for Philip to meet his beautiful baby sister. Philip will be spending the day with his family in the hospital, so Kim and Matthew have requested that local friends please wait to visit until tomorrow or once they have returned home. Thank you for your continued prayers for baby Braewyn and family!!!