How We Met You

Brenli,

Today you are 2 months old, and what a wild 2 months it has been.  On April 13th I got test results back that said my bile acid levels were too high which is dangerous for you.  I had just finished grocery shopping when I got the news.  My plan was to spend the weekend meal prepping.  Those plans were put on hold because they would be inducing me at 3:30pm - just 3 hours after I got the call.  I immediately called your dad.  He was almost to work.  We were both so shocked when we realized we would be meeting you so soon!  To be honest, I was terrified.  I had a specific birth plan in place that  I wasn't sure would be able to happen.  Go figure that a birth plan wouldn't work out.

I met your dad at home.  He was packing his bag and taking care of some house things while I showered again before going to the hospital.  We sat down at around 2:45pm because we were done with everything.  I looked at your dad and said, "So...You want to just head out now?"  He quickly replied, "Yep!"  We took one last photo of the two of us with Cobie to document the last time it would be just us.

We checked into the hospital, got our room, went over our birth plan and a few other decisions before the process finally began - which was around 7pm.  They gave me misoprostol and used the folly to get things moving from 1 cm to 3 cm.  At 10:31pm, they gave me more misoprostol to get things going again.  By 1:00 AM, I was dilated 4 cm and my water broke!  I had said to our nurse, "Um...I just went to the bathroom, and I'm not entirely sure if I just peed again or..." She laughed, checked, and found that it had broken!

Things really started moving the, and it was painful!  I tried to labor in several different positions to help with the pain, but each time I did, your heart rate would drop - so they I just stay in bed to labor, which was disappointing for me, but at least I knew you'd be safe!

By 4 AM I was around 5 cm dilated and had barely any time between the intense contractions.  It felt like only seconds between contractions, and the pain was so much and I finally decided to get the epidural, which was around 5 AM.

After getting the epidural, I fell asleep almost instantly.  A few hours later, I woke up and was 9.5 cm dilated and it was almost time to start pushing!  Every contraction that hit, we would push for 3 sets of 10 seconds each.

I'll never forget the look on your dad's face when he saw the top of your head.  He looked so excited and said, "She has so much hair and it's dark!  Oh my goodness!"  The doctor echoed this and said your hair was definitely long!  Just a few more pushes, and you made your appearance after 8 hours of active labor, and 43 minutes of pushing.  I was instantly enchanted by you.  Brenli, you were stunning and just so amazing!  I knew I loved everything about you in that instant.

The next hour was a whirlwind.  I got to hold you the entire time.  We tried to feed you and you latched right away.  Dad cut your - and after that golden hour, they finally told us your birth details:  Time: 8:34am, Weight: 6 lbs 12 oz. Length: 20 in.  Your dad and I were speachless and so in love with you.  We prayed for you each day and here you were, 8 months, 3 weeks, and 2 days later.

We were moved to our room where we learned to bathe you, breastfeed, diaper, and a ton of other fun things, including swaddling, which you dad is a pro at.

We went home the next day.  It was crazy that they just let us leave the hospital with a tiny human just over 24 hours later.

And that, Brenli, is how we met you.

Today you are 2 months old.  This is the most challenging thing we've ever done, but you are so very worth it.  Your dad and I love you so much, Brenli Lynn Arruda.

<3
-Mommy-

Welcome to the world, Brenli Lynn Arruda!

She is here!  Brenli Lynn Arruda arrived on April 14th at 8:43am, weighing in at 6lbs 12oz and 20 inches long.
Brain and I are so incredibly in love with our girl.  <3

-jennilea

Baby A is a...

Well, friends, we found out the gender of our little one!  Before we get into that, I want to say a huge "Thank You" to Meloney, Chris, and Emily for putting together such an incredible gender reveal party, with tons of touches of my favorite show: How I Met Your Mother.

I mean, look at some of these details!
This board was made by our Aunt Tammi, including some old wives' tales to help people guess the gender, which they did using their thumbprint on this super cute umbrella page.  Most guessed baby is going to be a boy.
















Brian and I didn't have a preference either way.  I didn't have any sort of gut feeling - but I think part of me was hoping girl just because boys are terrifying.  Haha!

We did the reveal using a colored smoke bomb under my How I Met Your Mother umbrella.  Our brother-in-law lit the smoke bomb and out came...

PINK!

Brian and I are so very excited to welcome our little girl into the world in April 2019!
Brenli Lynn Arruda, we cannot wait to meet you!

-jennilea

The Hardest Part of MY Pregnancy

Can I be real for a moment?  Well...this is my blog so I'm going to be.  Please bear with the complaining for a moment.  I promise it gets better toward the end.

The hardest part of my pregnancy thus far has been other people!  They are often so quick to jump to the most negative parts of a pregnancy and about having kids.  I hear more negatives from the world than I do positives.  It's enough to make anyone terrified.

The clichés drive me the most crazy...
I say jokingly that I was up peeing all night. They say "You think you aren't sleeping now, just wait until she is here."
I say I'm in an awkward clothing stage.  They say, "One day you'll wake up and won't be able to see your feet and your ring won't fit!"
Brian and I talk about traveling.  They say, "Better get all of that out of the way.  You won't be doing much of that for at least 18 years."
I'm working out.  They say, "Careful! Baby on board!"
I'm living life and...[insert any other another annoying cliché]"

Brian and I prayed for this.  I've read more books on conception and pregnancy than I can count.  We prepared for this as much as possible. I am a planner and I feel like this is one of the most important things we have ever planned for in our lives!

I was prepared for a lot of unsolicited advice, but what I wasn't prepared for was the amount of negativity from so many people - especially when I see this entire life stage as such an incredible blessing.

Do I think I know absolutely everything about pregnancy, babies, and birth - absolutely not.  Is it all going to be sunshine, rainbows, and positivity- Nope! But I am extremely aware of the typical things like lack of sleep and the fact that my body is changing.

I'm also so very aware of my own personal limits, like when it comes to lifting weights and running.  I've been doing insane workouts for years!  Do I plan on deadlifting 225 lbs during my pregnancy? Absolutely not! But it is so very healthy and important to me that I would stay active, which is why I'm lifting light weights and running just as much as I was before.  My doctor cleared my level of activity and is proud to see how well I've been doing, and I've been really proud of what I've been able to accomplish.

When it comes to traveling with kids, I'm a believer in the fact that you have the ability to do anything you set your mind to.  I am incredibly passionate about adventure and exploring the world.  Am I planning on taking little one out of the country tomorrow? Nope! But Brian and I want to instill a sense of adventure in our little one's life.  We want her to explore and experience other cultures and ways of living.  We want to show her places we've fallen in love with, and inspire her to dream and dare mighty things.  In that, we do plan on traveling with her, and traveling often!  In doing so, I am so very aware that it's not going to be easy, but nothing in parenting is easy.  We learn and we adjust, but we don't have to stop living out those things we are so passionate about.

Maybe you're not trying to be negative Nancy.  Maybe you're just trying to let me in on something you may have personally not been prepared for.  I see your heart in that, but maybe consider this before jumping to share the first negative thing you can think of:  The reason I need some positivity is that I'm already terrified, but for completely different reasons.

On Saturday, Brian and I FINALLY bought something for Brenli.  It's been over 5 months, yet I haven't purchased a single item for her.  I mean, girls should be fairly fun and easy to buy for, but every time I decide to take that step, fear grabs a hold of me, and I put back the cute dress I found because...what if something goes wrong?  What if something happens to her and I never get to put her in that dress?  These are the things I am scared for.  These are the things that keep me from feeling like I can breathe late at night when I worry the most.

My friend Christina shared some really good words of wisdom for me today, when I finally voiced those fears to her, "Honestly, I don't think it will go away.  I think part of being a mom is being afraid all the time.  You just have to not let the fear take away from the joy...baby deserves happiness, excitement, love, even if they're not going to be with you for long."

I can't explain in words how much I truly needed to hear that.

Most of the time, I'm excited - I mean REALLY excited about baby coming.  I'm excited for the fact that this is going to be hard and challenging because I know Brian and I are going to grow through it. I'm so excited and blessed to be able to go through these difficulties because there are others in this world who can't.

Rant over.

Ps.  Here is a picture of me at 23 weeks!  :)

-jennilea