Willa's Birth Story

I wanted to document this story here because even though I journal, I also go back through old blog posts occasionally and read the "polished up" stories of my history. I also love reading birth stories and thought just maybe, there's someone out there who would enjoy reading mine.

We didn't find out the gender of our baby until she was born, but we had a boy name and a girl name picked out from the very beginning - before we even knew I was expecting. We didn't tell those names to anyone, not even our family! They knew the middle names would be mine or Brandon's depending on the gender, but that was all. All along I knew I wanted Brandon to tell me who it was I had given birth to.

I was due on December 17, but I was ready to get that baby out by Thanksgiving. Pregnancy was definitely NOT something I have any fond memories of. It was fun feeling her move, but that's where the good times ended! However, nothing was progressing...at all. I believe I may have had some Braxton Hicks but even that I'm unsure of. I was so incredibly swollen and around 7 months my stomach went pretty numb. I'm not sure what I felt beyond discomfort.

I was at the point where I was going to the doctor every week. At around 36 weeks the baby was already measuring over 7 pound so our bags were packed, carseat installed, and Brandon was instructed to have his phone on him AT ALL TIMES! No one thought I'd make it to my due date but after every appointment I had to text my parents, in-laws, and siblings and say "nothing yet".

Finally, at one of those appointments a couple of weeks before my due date, we went ahead and scheduled to be induced on December 19. I love love love my doctor, and this insured she would be on call and I wouldn't miss her by winding up going into labor over Christmas. Plus, this baby was big and none of us thought my body could handle going much longer.

Sure enough, December 17 came and went like any other day. Then the 18th passed us by, and December 19 was here. That week was an eternity long! It was a Thursday, and I spent the day resting, packing the rest of my things, showering and curling my hair, and I made BLT's for supper. We were supposed to be at the hospital at 8pm so we cleaned the kitchen, then tried to watch a show. I was fighting a panic attack the entire time and broke down sobbing on the way to the hospital. I still get weepy thinking about it. It was our last night just the two of us, and oh how I loved my time just the two of us! Brandon will always be my favorite person in the entire world and I was so excited to give him this gift of our baby but I also needed to say goodbye to this phase of our lives. HE played Christmas music the whole way there and pointed out all the houses lit up for the holiday. It's my favorite season, and how special we were on our way to have the best gift of all.

We got checked in and I got checked and sure enough - NO PROGRESS! It's funny now, but we just shrugged our shoulders. Whenever someone would ask me my birth plan I told them I had one step: get an epidural. I'm honest about my lack of pain tolerance, and I was TERRIFIED of labor and delivery. I knew I would have to "suck it up" for the healing process, so I wanted to enjoy having this baby as much as possible. Being induced isn't ideal and I hope next time I go on my own, but I will always hope for an epidural! It was truly amazing (for me).

They started the induction that night and Brandon and I tried to sleep. I was constantly being checked and his "bed" was pretty awful so it was a sleepless night. I don't remember when they started the pitocin but it was sometime the next day. They ended up giving me a pain killer in my IV that allowed me to get some sleep through the contractions, and then that afternoon the epidural went in. I still wasn't progressing much though, and it was pretty disheartening. I was getting so hungry, and I kept sending Brandon out to drive around, eat something...anything to help him kill time. I had really bad sinus drainage my entire pregnancy and this day was no different. I started feeling pretty sick that afternoon and chugging water and sprite to "fill up" my stomach only helped me empty it. I only thought the past 9 months had been miserable...

I finally started progressing more late in the afternoon. We'd pulled an all nighter and just wanted to have this baby! At some point the epidural rerouted itself and I was in a ton of pain. Brandon talked me through each contraction but I was sobbing and the nurses were doing everything they could to help me. I ended up getting a second epidural and relaxed so much. I was talking about how I couldn't decide between Chick-fil-A or Arby's once I could eat again (I craved fast food the whole pregnancy) but at this point we were getting close to midnight. 

I don't know what time the nurses checked me, but I was finally close enough that if nothing happened in the next couple of minutes they were going to have to get me ready for a ceserean. Like I said, I had a simple birth plan. I only wanted to get my baby here as safely as possible for both of us. They called my doctor, I gave one practice push, and we were good to go! 

I don't know how long I pushed or how many times I did. I remember feeling so sick from the reflux laying flat on my back and they "broke the rules" and let Brandon give me some Tums. He picked a blue one and a pink one and melted all the nurses hearts. 

My doctor was the only one who knew the gender so each time a nurse's shift would end she'd tell the next one to text her when the baby was born and tell her what it was. I will never forget pushing (thankfully not feeling a single thing), and feeling like superwoman with the nurses, my doctor, and Brandon cheering me on and telling me how great I was doing. At 2:45am on Saturday, December 21, the baby was finally born. A misconception about epidurals is that you miss the experience...let me tell you, I did not. I fully enjoyed the experience and knew the second the baby was no longer inside of me. 

I'll never as long as I live regret not finding out if the baby was a boy or girl. The moment Brandon turned back to me and said, "It's Willa" will forever be engrained in my memory. It's a priceless moment to me, one I'd been looking forward to my entire life. I was shocked because I was convinced it was a boy, and the nurses were crying. 

She weighed 8 pounds, 4 ounces, and was 21.5 inches long.

We brought her home on Monday, December 23, 2019.

Our Christmas baby, a little angel.

My niece Josie was born in January two years ago, and my brother brought a huge bag of her pink clothes to the hospital for us!

I believe the "fourth trimester" is real and hard, and I'll talk about that (hopefully) in my next post. Thank you for reading!

our little one

Willa Marie

December 21, 2019

 2:45am

8 lb. 4 oz. 21.5 in.

The best gift of all.

Christmas 2018

lately

Where has the time gone? I had plans to post more often since August, but it went by so fast. I suppose for now this is a "hit or miss" blog, but in 2019 I want to be much more diligent with it.

Right after my last post we celebrated Brandon's birthday at the most beautiful campground near where we live. He'd been talking about camping and they'd been so busy with work so I secretly made the reservation, bought an air mattress, tent, and food, and asked him to take a Saturday off. We spent Friday night there and his family was able to join us for supper Saturday evening. I'm not going to lie, I'm not much of a camping person, and next time we'll use a bigger tent because there wasn't much ventilation in ours! August is a muggy time of year for us, so I'd love to go in May or October sometime!

first weekend in August

Thanksgiving was so much fun! We spent Thursday at my parent's, Friday with my mom's and dad's families, and Saturday at Brandon's parent's. It was a very tiring 3 days, but I'm so grateful to have both of our families close. I don't ever want to take it for granted!

finally home after three days going back-and-forth

While at his parent's house we walked out on their land and picked out our Christmas tree. We were keeping our tiny living room in mind but even the smallest tree in the field was huge in our home! Brandon took it outside and trimmed it a few times and now we have our extra-large Charlie Brown tree and I love it!

Getting it inside Saturday night!

finally decorating after trimming it 3 times

I'll probably do a Christmas house tour sometime because I'm loving the way it looks right now and want it to stay up all the time!

The first weekend in December we went down to Decatur, TN to have Thanksgiving and Christmas with my mother-in-law's family. Brandon and I headed down a day early and got an Airbnb in Chattanooga. We hadn't gone anywhere overnight together since our honeymoon so it was nice to take our time driving down and eating at City Cafe.

stopping at an overlook on the drive down

This past Sunday (December 16) was my parent's 40th wedding anniversary and marked one year since Brandon proposed. It's crazy to me to think that amount of time has gone by!

And now it's time to wrap Christmas gifts (I'm done shopping!), listen to Christmas music non-stop, bake lots of goodies, and enjoy this last week before Christmas. I'm ready for it to slow down. I would love for time to just crawl by this next week. I know that's a pipe dream, but isn't it a lovely one?

Candid photos are my favorite but we never have any of us because every photo we take has to be a selfie! Amie (who's getting married in 3.5 weeks!! Jan. 11) took our Christmas card photo (which I'll share later), and when I got my phone back I found a couple of candids. One was of him getting a bug out of my hair so I'll keep that facial expression to myself, but I liked these!

I can't remember if it was my dad or Isaac or both that interrupted our "photo session" here

I thought he was looking at me, but he was trying to figure out what was stuck in my hair haha

I hope you're all having a terrific holiday season! It's truly the most wonderful time of the year.

Christmas to Me

One of my favorite Christmas songs is by a group I really cannot recommend, but it played on Pandora last year and I really liked it. It's called "That's Christmas to Me", and it just reminded me that while there are so many holiday traditions, the special ones are the ones that each family has for themselves.

Christmas can be a bit of a touchy subject in Christian groups. Celebrate or don't celebrate? Tree or no tree? Christmas music or no?

While my family does celebrate Christmas, and we do set up a tree, and I've had my Christmas cd's playing on repeat, I have several friends who don't, and that's ok. We don't try to shove our beliefs on each other, and we respect the differences in opinion.

But do you know what Christmas is to me?

It's not about unwrapping presents, it's about spending the time picking out those perfect gifts that let the other person know you've been listening, that you truly do know them - likes, dislikes, wants, and needs. You heard, and wanted to do something special for those special people. This year, I'm most excited to give my mom her gift. In one way I want her to open it right now, but in another way, I want to put it off as long as possible because once everything's been given, the excitement of anticipation is over.

Anticipation. That's my most favorite part. The weeks leading up to the 25th. For us, it starts on Thanksgiving Day putting up the tree and the lights and all the decorations. In the following weeks we go shopping, we bake, we stay up late watching Christmas movies. I wish it lasted 2 months, if I'm being honest - it goes by way too fast!

Christmas is about family and friends, and spending quality with those you love the most. It's helping others who are maybe a little lonely or have a little less. 

It's telling the story of Christ's birth over and over while Lena Rae moves our nativity magnets where they go. Mary and "Jophus" making the trip to Bethlehem to have baby Jesus, the angel telling the shepherds who were watching their sheep to find the sleeping baby, and the wise men from the east following the star that pointed to Jesus. Then we move it to the other side of the fridge as we tell it again.

It's our quiet Christmas Day (which we spend as Christmas Eve), playing games, eating good food, and ending with "It's a Wonderful Life". I cannot tell you how much I love this movie, I truly look forward to watching it every year and I don't think Christmas would be the same to me without it.  "Remember, no man is a failure who has friends."

cousins! matching was a BIG deal :)

It's making Stromboli with the kids and buying them pajamas to wear while we drive around town with our hot chocolate looking at Christmas lights. They're old enough now to remember and realize that it's an annual tradition, and their excitement makes me even more excited. Just the aunts and our nephews and niece! 

I always try to take some extra time to contemplate (and usually write) about Mary and Joseph and what the birth of Jesus must have been like for them. There's no way to even come close to imagining carrying the maker of your own body inside of that body. To nourish and clothe and raise the One who gave you life. If I had the chance to sit down and talk to Mary and ask her questions and hear her stories, I would never stop listening. I would always want to know more. 

Christmas doesn't have to look the same for everyone - indeed, I hope it doesn't! But I do hope you don't get caught up in the commercialism of it. The stress and worry of trying to get everyone you know a present. My friends and I try to get together for coffee or just a talk, but we made a "no gift" rule several years ago because that's just not what it's all about. 

Anyway, I just wanted to tell you a bit of what Christmas is to me and I hope you have a very merry one. I will be spending it in church with my very large "extended" family! Thank you for reading, and I'll "see" you in 2017.

december

This might be my last post for 2016. It's been a busy month, but the next two weeks are relatively empty, and even though that's (usually) when I post more, I think I want to focus 100% on family time and Christmas baking. 

So far December has been a busy month, and for me, that's made it even happier. I can tend to be a slightly obsessive person, especially when it comes to over thinking, so when I'm busy and focused on something else, that's when I'm happiest. If my brain isn't occupied with things in my control, it's way too occupied with things that are out of my control!

We started the month off with a bang during Missions Conference. I feel like I probably say it every year, but this year was my favorite. It was our 25th Conference, every single missionary was friendly, sweet, and really bared their hearts to us during their presentations. It doesn't always happen that way, but I just fell in love with all of them. The countries represented were New Zealand, Botswana, Papua New Guinea, the Republic of Georgia, Trinidad, and from our own missionaries, Ethiopia, Fiji, Indonesia, and Belize (our missionaries to Australia came last year!) 

As I type this, I'm halfway curled up around the space heater in my office. Monday night of the Conference (it goes Sun.- Wed.), we had a rather big *ahem* leak in the basement where all of our offices are. It didn't affect the meeting in the slightest, but it ruined the flooring in 3 offices and the entire lobby. We're nearly done replacing it all but mine will be last and I've gone from carpet to bare concrete and it's currently 26°! I'm upgrading from carpet to tile and a nice rug though, so I can't complain. :)

Jace turned 8 on the 5th, and I might have been a little tiny bit emotional about it. He's up to my shoulder now, and he's reading chapter books and looks a little snaggle-toothed.

a seven year difference

Lena Rae's best friend, her cousin Sophie, came a couple of nights to the conference. They're 11 months apart in age (Sophie's older) and such happy little girls together. Sophie has six brothers, Lena Rae has four, so they just love being around each other (they've managed to be the girliest of girls despite - actually, because of - being surrounded by boys).

 

Sophie on the left, LR on the right

 

To "wrap it up", here's a summary of Christmas parties this month:

Saturday (10th) - my Sunday School class took a trip to Bellbuckle, TN. 

That was a morning/afternoon event, and that night at 5:00 I headed two minutes down the road to help my friends get ready for their Christmas party  - ugly sweaters, gag gifts, and a waffle bar with all kinds of holiday beverages!

of course I had to buy her baby Klay an ugly Christmas sleeper!

Last night in my Wednesday night class (I'm the "helper" for the 8 & 9 year olds), we had a fun party - I provided snacks and made my own favorites, cookies & milk and apple pie apples. No pics because they all have the kids in them, but the teacher had the cutest games and it was a lot of fun!

Friday (16) - my next door neighbor is "hosting" a Christmas party - he's single, so a bunch of the girls in our group are kind of taking over and making a bunch of soup and we're going to just hang out and play games. It's also my parents 38th anniversary! (but they've been together for 40 years. that's a really long time)

Saturday (17) - Christmas at my grandparents! This takes most of the day and is so relaxing and fun. We play white elephant and the little ones get stockings. We eat a big breakfast, then after playing the game have a "snack extravaganza" for lunch - we all bring finger foods and it's chaotic madness but great fun. (4 kids = 17 grandkids =  = 8 great grandkids + a slew of in-laws and a great aunt = lots of people)

Sunday (18) - we have our annual Open House for the members of our church after the evening service. That's a lot of people in our home, but it's a lot of fun! It is slightly overwhelming, but our church family is very sweet and no one really stays overly late so while a lot goes into preparing and it's a little loud, it's also a lot of fun.

Monday (19) - Amie and I will have our "Christmas Party with the Aunts" with the kids. Now THAT'S a lot of fun! Strombolli and pj's and games and a Christmas movie and snacks! 

And THEN we can sleep until Christmas! (just kidding ;) ) We will be having church on Christmas Day, so everyone is coming over on the 26th for our family celebration. I can wait. My favorite part is the build up, the anticipation, the whole atmosphere of this time of year. I hope you've had a lovely December, it truly is a wonderful life! 

 

merry christmas | 2015

From my family to all of you, I hope you've had the merriest of Christmases! 

"Love and joy come to you, and to you glad Christmas too, and God bless you and send you a happy new year."

thanksgiving week | monday

 

Making cupcakes AND frosting from scratch isn't always my idea of a good time, but during the holidays it's my favorite thing ever. I started Thanksgiving week early this morning by mixing these up at 7am. I did not have one for breakfast, but the finished product this afternoon was well worth the wait. Try them out! 

An annual party that kick starts the holiday season around here! There were 53 ladies that participated in the White Elephant style ornament swap. It took awhile, but it was so much fun. I'm so grateful for sweet church members and friends willing to host that many people for so many years in a row!

Merry Christmas!

Jacob & Christine, Jace, Jackson, Tanner, Lena |  Kelley, Amie | Ron & Rhonda | Stephen & Tara

 

 I hope each of you has a wonderful day surrounded by your loved ones.

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!

pondering

"But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart."

The weather that night was so insignificant in light of everything else that she promptly forgot whether it was cold, hot, or just right. The things that stood out in her mind were details – the smell of fresh hay mixing with the musty, dirty scent of the animals.  The incredible clearness of the night sky. Her husband wrapping his tired and blistered feet after their long journey. The look in his eyes: a mix of fear and the responsibility ahead, disappointment in his inability to provide more than a stable, and awe at what had just taken place. And love. Lots of love.

Even more, the details of her new son. The silky dark hair, the incredibly fine eyelashes and nearly invisible eyebrows. The tiniest of finger and toe nails. The unbelievable softness of his face that she couldn’t stop touching. The warm puffs of new breath on her hand as she memorized his features.

She couldn’t remember any pain or discomfort from her journey or experience – she knew it had happened, because it was forever ingrained in Joseph’s memory due to his fear and doubt. Perhaps it was her joy and relief at the safe delivery of her son, perhaps it was the mighty hand of God, relieving her of memories best put away. What she did remember was how soft the hay felt under her exhausted body, how attentive her young new husband was, bringing blankets and cool water.  How she couldn’t stop staring at the tiniest of miracles. Her miracle.

She remembered his hand wrapped around her finger, how peacefully he slept, and how for a minute, he wasn’t the Messiah, he was simply her baby son. She was filled with more joy than she’d ever known, and it was as if a multitude of angels joined the song of her heart, “glory to God in the highest.”

The Lord was there. She remembered knowing, in the midst of everything, that He was there. Of course He would be there for the birth of His only Son. In every breath she took, in every cry in the night, He was there looking out for them and He too was aware of every detail of His child.

It was the night that changed everything.

They were sitting there studying and touching this tiny miracle when the shepherds showed up.  How many there were was never clear to her, but they bowed, and they worshipped Him, her son. They knew what she and Joseph knew – the Messiah had come in the form of the most innocent of humans. A baby. Her baby. The One who would save the world was nestled warm and asleep in her arms.

She was aware of the look in Joseph’s eyes, one of love, but also recognition that he had no tie to this child other than the man who would raise him, and the weight of that responsibility shone through the look in his determined eyes. He would do his best, and he would do well. Of that she had no doubt.

Her son. So innocent, so peaceful, so beautiful. Did his Father guard his heart so he could sleep tonight? The weight of the world would fall heavy upon him soon enough. She remembered praying “Lord, for tonight, let him be a baby. Let him be my baby boy. This peace will all be gone so soon.”

A simple carpenter and his young wife, raising the King of the world, God’s only begotten son. The responsibility was heavy, the privilege so great. She remembers how young she was, and how much she loved her son – so much so, that she would never be able to put it in words to anyone.

And now, as she waits to join Him and her husband in heaven, she ponders these details she's kept in her heart all these years for the thousandth time. Not the weather, but the star. Not the pain, but the love. She watched his death, she saw them torture her baby boy. She also saw him alive and well again. Her baby? No, her Lord. Her Savior and Redeemer. She simply bore Him and raised Him, His life and accomplishments were of Him and His Father, not her. As John handed her the mug of cool water, she drank and went back to when Joseph brought her water all those years ago.

“Joseph, look at him. Jesus. He’s here.”

DIY Christmas | brunch + 2 recipes

Welcome to DIY Christmas, Sincerely, Kelley style! (where "this is how I did it" would be more accurate!)

It's been busy, busy around here! So busy in fact, that this brunch almost didn't happen. But when my nurse friend is off work and my Kentucky friend is in town on the same day some getting together must happen, whether it's in the middle of Missions Conference or not! :)

We planned a brunch at my house for 9:00am, perfect time to sleep in a little extra, but still get home with plenty of time to spare. Here's what we had!

Pumpkin cream cheese muffins, eggs, sausage balls, and apple pie apples. And of course, plenty of hot tea and coffee!

Writing this post is making me hungry!

Now, for the recipes...

 

 

My cousin made these for Thanksgiving, and our entire family absolutely loved them! I've made them twice since then, and I'm going out today to buy the stuff to make them again! They're super easy, and once you slice them up, they won't last long!

You will need...
Granny Smith Apples
Caramel Apple Wrap (cheat and use these instead of dipping, it's so much easier!)
Vanilla or White Chocolate Almond Bark
Cinnamon Sugar

• Wrap your apples with the caramel and put them in the oven on 200 for 5 minutes.
• Let them cool while you melt the almond bark
• Once they've cooled off, dip them in the almond bark and immediately sprinkle cinnamon sugar on them.
• Let them harden, then slice and serve! SO YUMMY!

 

I got this one straight from Pinterest, and I'm just going to copy and paste the recipe, because I just exactly follow it when I make these!

Ingredients

For the filling:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 cup confectioners’ sugar

For the muffins:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 tsp. ground cloves
1 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
4 large eggs
2 cups sugar
2 cups pumpkin puree
1¼ cups vegetable oil

For the topping:
½ cup sugar
5 tbsp. flour
1½ tsp. ground cinnamon
4 tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces

Directions

• To prepare the filling, combine the cream cheese and confectioners’ sugar in a medium bowl and mix well until blended and smooth. Transfer the mixture to a piece of plastic wrap and shape into a log about 1½-inches in diameter. Smooth the plastic wrap tightly around the log, and reinforce with a piece of foil. Transfer to the freezer and chill until at least slightly firm, at least 2 hours.
• To make the muffins, preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Line muffin pans with paper liners. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, pumpkin pie spice, salt and baking soda; whisk to blend. In the bowl of an electric mixer combine the eggs, sugar, pumpkin puree and oil. Mix on medium-low speed until blended. With the mixer on low speed, add in the dry ingredients, mixing just until incorporated.
• To make the topping, combine the sugar, flour and cinnamon in a small bowl; whisk to blend. Add in the butter pieces and cut into the dry ingredients with a pastry blender or two forks until the mixture is coarse and crumbly. Transfer to the refrigerator until ready to use.
• To assemble the muffins, fill each muffin well with a small amount of batter, just enough to cover the bottom of the liner (1-2 tablespoons). Slice the log of cream cheese filling into 24 equal pieces. Place a slice of the cream cheese mixture into each muffin well. Divide the remaining batter among the muffin cups, placing on top of the cream cheese to cover completely. Sprinkle a small amount of the topping mixture over each of the muffin wells.
• Bake for 20-25 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely before serving. (It may be hard to resist immediate consumption, but the cream cheese filling gets very hot!)

 I hope you try these recipes out, and let me know if you do! They have become favorites at my house!

I hope everyone is having a very merry holiday season!

Merry Christmas!

We wish you a Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year!

Hello.

My name is Kelley and I haven't been blogging a lot lately.

I'll get around to it soon, please be patient with me!

Brown paper packages tied up with string...

...these are a few of my favorite things!

 brown paper packages

matching Christmas pj's

the boy's excitement

calling Steedee and Tara to wish them Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas to all, and to all, a good night.

Merry Christmas!

From our family to yours.

Love,

Ron, Rhonda, Kelley and Amie

Stephen and Tara

Jacob, Christine, Jace, Jackson and Tanner

Seven Smiles on Saturday (12.01.12)

I'm posting this on Friday night because tomorrow is going to be quite busy.

1. Getting most of my Christmas shopping done.

Thank you, Cyber Monday! :)

2. Decorating the outside of our house for Christmas.

3. Getting ready for our Missions Conference that starts on Sunday.

"It's the most wonderful time of the year...." means Missions Conference!! :)

4. Decorating the church with poinsettias and red bows.

So, so pretty, if I do say so myself. :)

5. Trying on my dress for Hannah's wedding today.

Yay! Weddings are just so glorious! :)

6. Homemade cheesy broccoli soup.

With lots of sour cream.

7. This quote: 

“I have one desire now - to live a life of reckless abandon for the Lord, putting all my energy and strength into it.” –Elisabeth Elliot