3 weeks old!

Hadlea is another week older! It just DOES NOT seem possible for her to be 3 weeks. It almost makes me kind of sad, but these have been the greatest 3 weeks OF.MY.LIFE! I just wonder how I ever made it in life without her! She is definitely the greatest thing that ever happened to Justin and I! Here is what Hadlea is up to:

• She eats every 3 hours during the day
• She eats every 4-5 hours at night
• She is wearing Newborn diapers
• She LOVES bathtime
• She LOVES to ride in the car
• She is still in newborn clothes
• She turns toward Justin and I's voices
• She is definitely putting on the weight

Hadlea and I at 3 weeks old!

Hadlea and Berkley!

This is how I spend most of my time...and couldn't ask for anything better!

Our 1st Christmas

Our 1st Christmas together as 3!

And a sweet girl, smiling at her little brother!

just a little tear...

Most of you have heard of Mika Beth Edwards Photography, and if you haven't, then you are COMPLETELY missing out! If you have ever talked to me about photography or pictures in general, then I have given you her website. I have looked at Mika Beth's blog for quite some time. I truly believe that photography is art...and you either have it or you don't! I have waited YEARS for a newborn photo shoot with Mika Beth. I am pretty sure I scheduled my session like 6 months in advance! I wasn't about to take a chance on missing out! And you can see why below....

I am pretty sure I shed a little tear of pure joy every time I look at this picture!

I just cannot believe that is MY little girl!

We have not seen all of the pictures yet, but these are a few that Mika Beth tagged me on Facebook. I know some of my family does not have facebook, so I wanted you to see them. Mika Beth is located in Arkansas and I would highly recommend her to ANYONE! There is no place in the USA that is too far to travel! :) And I will officially be broke after ordering! Ha!

2 weeks old!

I honestly cannot believe how fast these past two weeks have flown! I cannot even imagine how fast the next two years will go! I try not to think about it and enjoy every second I have with her here at home before I go back to work! I could definitely get used to staying here at home with her! :) She is such a great baby. We have only had a couple of nights since we have been home where she didn't want to sleep. Other than that, we have to wake her up every 4 hours to eat.
We went to Hadlea's two week checkup yesterday and she is quite the little pig! :) The doctor said the point of the two week checkup was to ensure the baby was eating well and back to birth weight. Hadlea was 6lbs 11oz at birth and was 7lbs 2oz at her appointment...definitely above birth weight! She LOVES to eat and is definitely her momma's daughter! Ha! Here are the stats from her appointment:

Length: 21inches - 78%

Weight: 7lbs 2 oz - 19%

Head: 35cm - 29%

I honestly had no idea how time consuming a new baby at home would be. Since Hadlea will not breastfeed, I have to pump and feed...which can sometimes get old! :) I would MUCH rather be holding her and feeding her, but she does eat well so we cannot complain! She is eating every 3 hours during the day and 4 at night. The doctor did say we could allow her to go 5 hours without eating at night since she obviously is eating very well. I try to remember to take pictures each day, but sometimes I forget. Here are a few of my very favorites from the hospital through today at two weeks!

Getting to hold her for the first time in the special care nursery!

Our first family photo out of the delivery room!

I could take these pictures EVERY.SINGLE.DAY!

With her, "Daddy Loves Me" shirt!

Headed to our two week appointment!

We are two weeks today! Wednesday, December 23, 2009

1 week old!

We have made it 1 week! She is absolutely the most perfect baby EVER! She hardly ever cries and is somewhat getting a sleep schedule. We are so thankful for her. I just NEVER imagined loving something so much...and it has only been 7 days! And of course, big brother never gets very far from her!

a new beginning...

We are all home...the 4 of us! Berkley still doesn't know exactly what to think, but I am beginning to think that he will be VERY overprotective of her. Whoever is holding or feeding her gets Berkley too! If she is in her cradle or playpen where he cannot see her, he will go over and jump up and down to try to see her. We pick him up so he can get a quick peek!
We do not have any type of schedule what-so-ever and I know it will take days/weeks to get one. I never knew how busy you could possibly be with a new baby, but I wanted to get some new pics we took today on here. Santa(or Grandpa) came for a visit so we snapped a few shots!
You can also go to the link I posted on the previous post and see the rest of the pictures we took!

Hospital Picture!

Resting at home

Nana (Justin's Mom) holding her for the first time...she was sick at the hospital.

Checking out Santa

Grammie, Hadlea and Santa

Diaper cover from Nana

wednesday, december 9

is now the greatest day of my entire life! I will definitely share Hadlea's birth story at another time, but I wanted to let everyone know she did arrive at 08:52 PM on Wednesday, Dec 9. She was 6lbs 11ozs and 20 1/4 inches long. I had a fever towards the end of the delivery, which she ended up having when she was born. She was having muscle tone, temperture and oxygen issues. She has been in the special care nursery since birth. We are able to go see her, and I am able to go breast feed her, but it hasn't been too much as she gets stressed often and we have to step back. She is absolutely the most beauitful thing I have ever seen.

Here is a link to some of the pictures we have taken as I don't have time now to post too many. I have a baby to go feed and hopefully get well before tomorrow so she can make the trip home with us! :)

  http://picasaweb.google.com/heatherlkhuskey/HadleaEastonDec92009852PM#

and we have a due date!

TOMORROW! Yep...you read right! Justin and I went to our doctor's appointment today. Dr Gehring was out of the office so we seen Dr Beal. My blood pressure was up and I had protein in my urine. I had not dilated anymore and neither doctor thought she would come on her own in the next week so they didn't see any reason to wait. They called Labor and Delivery and there was an opening for an induction on Wednesday. I will get Potosen tomorrow and my water will be broken about 4 hours after that.
I am beyond nervous...which probably does not help the high blood pressure what so ever! Ha! It is back down tonight so things are looking good. We would definitely love any thoughts and prayers you can give us tomorrow.

I will be posting once she arrives and all is well! I cannot believe I will be a mommy tomorrow!

and waiting...SOOO not good at this game!

It is Monday, Decemeber 7, 2009...STILL.NO.HADLEA! Alot of the dates people had given us as 'THE' day have come and gone. I still do not want to be induced, but I am running completely out of room...I am tired, achey, tired and READY to see her! :) I tell her every single day how wonderful her life will be, how many people are ready to meet her, how the phone is ringing off the hook to see if there are any pains going on...but I have a feeling she is safe, warm and just fine where she is! I know she will make her arrival when she is ready...but I have never been SO ready for anything in my entire life. I do not like surprises, and I am NOT good at the waiting game! So sweet girl...please come, today!!

I go to the doctor tomorrow. Hopefully there will be some changes! :)

and still waiting....

No Hadlea! Next Friday is my official due date, but I cannot even put into words how ready I am for her to arrive! :) I am sure everyone feels this way at 39 weeks, which probably starts about a month before! She is moving like crazy...what used to be kicks are now jabs as I am sure she is completely out of room. This week off of work has gone SO fast! I have been to Wal-Mart and the mall a dozen times as I am not one to nap or sit and watch TV. I am constantly trying to find things to entertain myself...which Berkley always helps do!! I did take a nap with B one afternoon...he is such a sweet little guy. He completely melts my heart!

My house is COMPLETELY spotless and I cannot think of one more thing that needs to be cleaned. We have our bags packed, car seat installed and are just waiting! Since it has been so cold in Oklahoma the last few days, we have spent many nights watching TV in front of the fire. Berkley LOVES that we have been staying home so much and will not leave either of our laps. He goes back and forth and brings us a new toy every time he changes laps.

Justin said we HAVE to get out of the house tonight so we plan to go walk around the mall and check out some Christmas deals. We are not buying for each other this year so I guess we are open to get anything we want/need....but I am pretty sure there is only ONE thing we both want at this point! :)

No more work for me!

Monday was my first day off from work. It has been a busy week so far, but it has been so great not to have to work! :) At this time, I do not plan to go back to work until February...which seems SO far away, but I know the time will FLY by! So in the mean time, I am making the best of it until Hadlea arrives. I had previously scheduled a maternity massage and facial on Monday and it was such a great gift to myself! It was so relaxing and was a great start to my time off!
On Tuesday, I worked on getting my Christmas decorations up. I didn't do too much this year since it might be February before I get them all taken down! :) I LOVE Christmas time and all of the lights. Hadlea's arrival will make it so much more special this year!

Tuesday evening, Justin and I worked on getting the car seat installed and the playpen up. We had such a good time. We laughed and made several comments about someone letting us take a LIVE baby home with us...we both wonder if we are truly responsible enough to be parents, but I guess time will tell! :)

I am in to my weekly doctor's appointments and as of today, I have started dilating, but not even to a one. I have been this way for two weeks now. I am hoping she decides to make her arrival ANYTIME now. This is definitely the best Christmas gift I have EVER received, and because I do not like surprises, I sure wish she would go ahead and come to get the surprise over with! Ha!! I just want to see her sweet face...hear her first cry...see our parent's faces when they see her for the first time...bring her home for Berkley to see, smell and try to lick...I could go on and on, but I am SO ready for the number of first we are about to experience...but I would have to say the number one thing I am so ready to see is her daddy holding her for the very first time. I love Justin more today than I did the day I married him, and I am completely sure that love will continue to grow as we raise her together. He is my VERY best friend and I cannot imagine experiencing this part of my life with any other person.

Top Ten Reasons...

NOTE: This was written by the ladies I work with. It was given to me at my work shower, but I am just now getting a copy to post. These are definitely all related to my work and to the people I work with so alot of them will not make ANY sense what so ever....but they gave me a good laugh!

Top Ten Reasons Heather Will Need Time to Adjust

10. Heather needs to know that she can talk to Hadlea at any time and does not need to scheduled time via a calendar appointment.
9. We need to train Heather to make sure she does not expect a 3 business day notice before changing diapers. An emergency after the fact change is not necessary either. All diaper changes will be handled under the Advisory rule. (Pending DAG approval – Dad and Grandparents)
8. We’ll need to make Heather a checklist of what to look for in a babysitter. Debbie E will be the example of what NOT to look for.
7. We will need to re-program Heather so she does not reject anything her little girl does, and we will need to find all forms of Heather’s non-conformance letters to make sure she doesn’t send one to Hadlea.
6. Following new guidelines, Heather will have to purchase her own text messaging machine for Hadlea. It will not be supplied by the company.
5. We may have to confiscate Heather’s phone that takes pictures. In the parent business, pictures should be taken only while the baby is growing or doing something really cute. DO NOT repeat pictures like some people in our group, i.e., Cats ring a bell...
4. We will need to be brave for Heather; any emails from her requesting to come back to work in lieu of a member of the team switching places until Hadlea is ready to go to school, will NOT be accepted. It is called tough love.
3. We will truly miss Heather while she is out, however she must promise to have lunch with Debbie E. when she comes into work, or at least take her shopping.
2. No one will be allowed to talk shop/work to Heather during the growing years which is from day 1 to Hadlea graduating college.
And the Number One reason why Heather will need time to adjust is...
1. She may be tempted to describe in great detail her Birthing Experience and after Debbie Evans last medical update: Tom just couldn't take It!

Riley & Hannah at the house...

We had Riley and Hannah last weekend. I wanted to get them one last weekend before Hadlea arrived. They are always so fun...you never know what they are going to say or do! We talked ALOT about Hadlea, and Hannah is so ready for her to arrive. She would go into the nursery and look around and ask a TON of questions about all of the baby stuff. She said she cannot wait to feed her and change her wet diapers, but she is NOT touching a dirty diaper! :)

Friday night we went out to east with some friends. Saturday for lunch we picked up happy meals and headed to the park to play. They are both not scared to try a thing! I cannot take my eyes off of Hannah!

Saturday evening we ordered pizza. Hannah and I made cookies and she couldn't wait to lick the beater. She reminded me constantly that we could NOT double-dip into the dough!

Before bed on Saturday night the kids wanted to watch a movie so we made a bed in the office and put on Shrek. Justin and I were finishing up a football game when Riley came running in...he had pulled one of his loose teeth! We cleaned up the tooth and put it in a baggy for him to put under his pillow. We quizzed him about the tooth fairy and wanted to know how much she usually left. He told us that he got $9.25 for his last tooth. Now...I don't know about you all, but I think I may have received $.75 to a $1.00 when I lost a tooth. Justin and I COULD NOT stop laughing about him getting $9+ for a tooth!

The tooth fairy ended up leaving $10.00 for his tooth! He was SO excited! (However, we did find out later that the tooth fairy normally only leaves $5...so, I think someone was trying to make some extra money! :)

Thankful!!

I have a few other things to blog about, but since today is Thanksgiving, I thought I would post about a few of the things I am most thankful for today!

- I am THANKFUL to be a Christian...I know there were times over the last couple of years that I thought my prayers would never be answered...and I was SO wrong! Jesus knew the perfect timing for the things I was praying for to happen and I will never be more thankful or take it for granted!
- I am THANKFUL for my husband...he is my VERY best friend, and I wonder where I would be today without him. He knows me better than I know myself! At times I get so mad because he is SO laid back and I begin to think he doesn't care about things that are important to me and he ALWAYS proves me wrong!
- I am THANKFUL for my parents and brothers...my parents are two of the greatest people I know. They have worked their entire lives to ensure my brothers and I got exactly what we wanted, they taught us how to love and respect others, but most of all, they have never judged us for the mistakes we made growing up! My brothers mean more to me than they will ever know. They are two of the most caring people in this world and I would do anything to protect their feelings from others!
- I am THANKFUL for my father-in-law Rusty, mother-in-law Carolyn, SIL, BIL, nieces, nephew, extended family and friends! Justin and I have truly been blessed with amazing family and friends, and we have definitely been shown that over that last few months!
- I am THANKFUL for a special little girl...whom we are DYING to meet! We have prayed for Hadlea for so long and I CANNOT wait to see her for the first time!
- I am THANKFUL for a special little boy...well, a furry little boy! I love Berkley more than I EVER imagined possible. He got me through some of the hardest times of my life and never complained one time! Ha!
- I am THANKFUL for a Dallas Cowboy win on Thanksgiving Day! (Sorry...but so true! :)

I could continue to go on and on about how grateful and thankful I am for the life I live. I know there are SO many out there that are not as fortunate as I am and I try to remember that every day. I am truly blessed....and there will NEVER be enough words to express it!
Now onto our Thanksgiving recap...Justin and I spent Thanksgiving alone. We had such a GREAT day just relaxing. We decided not to travel since I am only 2 weeks before my due date...38 weeks!

We went to lunch at Mimi's Cafe and it might have been the best Thanksgiving meal I have had in a LONG time! I HAD to take a picture because I couldn't believe the amount of food. They also served a soup or salad and a desert, but I had to take the desert to go!

Later in the day, we drove to the lake and walked around. Berkley LOVES to go walk the trails at the lake. He smells EVERYTHING and is so much fun to watch. I cannot wait to add a little girl and a stoller to our walks!

I hope everyone had an equally WONDERFUL Thanksgiving Day!

by far...the cutest kids, EVER!

I am pretty sure that everyone out there is partial to their kids, nieces, nephews, dogs, etc. I, however, am no different! Here are my nieces and nephew: Riley, Hannah and Mackenzy! These are Justin's sister's kids. Justin and I were only dating when Riley was born, but I was able to be in the delivery room when he arrived. Riley and I have always been VERY close and he has stayed nights with us since he was very young. When Mackenzy and Hannah came along, I always wondered if I would have the same relationship with them as I do Riley...and I do! They are the funniest kids and have the greatest personalities. I love them more than they will EVER know. When Justin and I started trying to get pregnant, I wanted to see them every single day. There were days when I thought we would NEVER get pregnant and the kids just made me smile and laugh. I think most kids would do the opposite for people. But not for me, they just brightened my day each time I get to be with them. I hope we continue to have the relationship we have now throughout our lifetimes. I often wonder how Hadlea will fit into the mix. Hannah asks when my baby is going to get out of my belly EVERYTIME I talk to her...she cannot wait to hold and feed her...and I CANNOT wait for them to be a part of Hadlea's life.  
My SIL wanted a few pictures for Christmas cards and we planned to go to the park, but it started raining, so we just took a few in my house since they were all dressed up. They were so cute...and completely melted my heart!

Riley, Hannah and Mackenzy

And the Christmas card I made...