Much Needed Mommy Time

I have a new found love for spending quality time with other moms or moms-to-be. This unfortunately causes me to neglect my single friends or even my married friends with no children. Sorry to those of you reading this who are in that category...it's not you, it's me. I just feel like I can give and gain so much from the women who are in the same season of life as I am. My life and conversations used to evolve around shopping, Facebook, the latest gossip, staying up all night to watch the latest movie, meeting up with friends at Applebee's when I got off work at 8 p.m., etc. Now my life and conversations evolve around baby milestones, sleeping habits of baby's throughout the night, which mom is actually getting to sleep through the night, breastfeeding, cloth diapers, nap time, staying fit without losing your milk, how much milk you are producing, when to start solid foods, etc. Obviously it is a big change of lifestyle. When I am around other moms it's always so encouraging and it challenges me to be a better mom. I think everyone can agree with me when I say that I LOVE being around people who challenge me to be a better person wherever you are in life, single, married, parents, or even empty nest.

Things I have learned from spending time with other moms:

-Nurse on command (Your baby knows when he/she is hungry)
-Hold out till AT LEAST 6 months for solids simply for health purposes
-Each baby is different and shouldn't be put on a milestone calendar
-Caffeine is okay, just drink it before the afternoon time and your baby should still sleep at night
-Cloth diapers are worth washing every other day in comparison to the $ you'll spend on disposables
-Enjoy these little moments of nap time in your arms, they don't last forever
-Not bathing your baby daily does NOT make you a bad mom (whew!)

The list continues to grow the more I spend time with these amazing ladies. I write all this because it has been such a long week for me and tomorrow I will be leaving the house at 8:30 am to go with TWO other moms and their little ones to the Whole Food Market. Normally this wouldn't be an exciting adventure but I can't wait to spend time with these special women. After a hard week this is exactly what I need to refresh myself. It gives me a new perspective on why I love being a mommy. I will make sure to take a picture of all three of us + 3 babies packed up in a mini van before we go. I'm sure plenty of funny stories will be created on our little excursion to the Market.

Sincerely,
Excited Mommy

Labor and such

New seasons is the perfect title for this state of life that I am in. So much has changed since last year. This year has adventures lurking around every corner, I can feel the exciting times and challenging times on their way with every passing day.

October 30, 2012 I gave birth to a beautiful baby boy. He weighed 9 lbs. and 8 oz. "They" say they only get bigger but I am praying they only get smaller. I'm not sure I would enjoy birthing another big boy like that. I planned a home birth through the whole pregnancy. We had midwife appointments all nine months, got the pool set-up in our house, and the labor began. It was Monday, October, 29th at 1:30 a.m. when I was awoken to a huge cramp. I've never felt contractions before so I didn't think, "Labor!" I got up and went to the restroom and on my way back to bed another one hit me. It was about that time that I realized I may be in labor. I tried not to wake James up as I fiddled on my phone for my contraction timer app that I had recently downloaded. Much to my attempt, James woke up. As I was trying to tell him that I MAY be in labor, obviously still in shock and denial, I doubled over against the wall with discomfort (the midwife always told me not to call contractions painful, just uncomfortable, ha!). A few minutes later we gave our midwife a call and she headed right over. We all expected me to be just a cm or two along but when she checked I was already 5 cm! James and the midwife quickly got the pool filled up so that I could be more comfortable through each contraction. From 1:30 a.m. till 4:30 p.m. the contractions continued to progress my body for the entrance of our son. It was a long day and I was so tired. After long hours of walking around the house and breathing through the "discomfort" I was finally passing out in between each contraction that came. This is a picture of me asleep while waiting for the next contraction to come. I was so tired that I didn't even realize that each time I fell asleep my midwife, her assistant, and my husband (James) were putting pillows all around me so I would be more comfortable. They were amazing!

I was in the pool when my water broke around 4:30 p.m. To be honest, I thought I had peed in the pool and the thought of that embarrassed me but my midwife exclaimed, "Your water broke!" I got so excited in that moment because I knew the next step would be pushing and I would soon be seeing my baby boy! The "discomfort" only grew in intensity and the pressure to push never came. I was encouraged to move out of the pool and into bed so that I could labor on my right side, then my back, then on my left side so that maybe Josiah could move to a better position that would encourage him to move out. It seemed like hours but I'm sure it was only minutes later of laboring in bed when my midwife checked me and told me the hardest thing to hear, "you've closed back up to 5 cm, it might be good to go ahead and check in at the hospital." Ugh, all that work to get to 10 cm only to have my body reverse. Obviously this was not an emergency because both baby and I were doing just fine but just a few minutes later we were checking in at the hospital. They were amazing and so caring for me. I felt like I was a queen or someone of high importance. I received the epidural and went bak to my normal smiling happy self that my husband had not seen in hours.

(a little blurry but you get the picture, I was good to go) When James walked back into the room after the epidural kicked in, I was smiling and talking and he said, "my wife is back!!" He was so happy to see me doing well. My body opened back up after a few hours to about 8 cm but was not progressing any further. The next morning they presented us with the option of scheduling a csection. They said that the reason Josiah was not coming out could be that his shoulders were wide and he was not in the correct postion. They told me that I could continue to labor and get back to 10 cm but that I might end up in the same situation that I was in at home where he wouldn't come out and my body would close up again. If that ended up being the case they would have to do an emergency csection. My family prayed with me and my dad gave me great wisdom before they left the room to let James and I decide. All we had to do was look at each other and we knew we both agreed without question, we would go ahead and schedule a csection.

So at 2 p.m. they wheeled me into the surgery and at 2:31 p.m. Josiah Evan Draper was born!

James was the best daddy and husband a woman could ask for. I never once saw the "tar poop" filled diapers. He changed every single diaper while we were in the hospital and would bring Josiah to me for nursing. He really took great care of us. I think the worse part about it all was simply the recovery. After a week or two I felt fine though. 

While my labor did not go as planned, I'm still so grateful for my son getting here safely and the care we both had. I wouldn't have it any other way. Maybe next pregnancy, if I play my cards right, I'll have a natural labor. I thought I would never get over not wanting to go through labor but almost 4 months later I can't WAIT to have a due date, wondering if tonight will be the night, and feeling the contractions as they progress my body in labor. I'm so excited for another chance to be a mommy. Till that time though I will continue to prepare my body through healing and healthy choices. 

Sincerely,

New Mommy 

***Just as a side note: I am ALL for home births. I support them 100% but I also support hospitals and a need for them. I think there is always a healthy balance. 

March 6, 2012 --First Doctors Appointment

What a great first visit to the Women's Wellness Center. First off, I would like to say "Wow!" to how quick we got in our room and how quick the whole thing went. We were only in the waiting room for no more than 5 minutes. As soon as we got to our room a nurse came right in and right after she left two more came in right afterward to talk more about what to expect. The ladies were so polite and made us feel super comfortable with this new season we are coming in to.

Second, I would like to tell everyone how amazing the visit went. It was confirmed that I AM pregnant...after taking two test I had already made that assumption but it was nice to hear it confirmed by a nurse. We were in our room when the nurse came in and told us: 1.) I'm pregnant 2.) I'm about 6 weeks and 4 days and 3.) The baby is due October 26, 2012 ! It was such a relief to finally put a date and time on all of this. Up until that point I had been guessing that I was almost 7 weeks and it was guessed that October 26th would be the due date but again to have it confirmed was very reassuring.

The biggest event at our doctors appointment was getting the first ultrasound. We got to hear the little ones heart beat and see it on the screen. While it is still approx. the size of a piece of rice it's heart beat was so loud and steady I almost fell off the bed in shock. Everyone has asked me if I cried and the answer is no (I think James was about to though) but I did have this rush of falling in love with another human being right there in the room--and I have yet to meet the little one. It was an amazing experience that I will never forget. In that moment our little baby became real to us. I can only imagine how much our love will grow each doctors visit.

Look who made it to the fridge! :) You see that spot in the corner of the black circle? That's our little one.

I'm so glad that I had James there with me. I believe that even though we may have hard times where we pick at each other we still make a great team. He balances me out so well. I am more of a "I'm 22 therefore I must learn how to grow up and be an adult" where he is more of "I'm 24 and if I want to be silly still I will!" He makes me laugh so much with the things he says and does. One funny moment at our visit was when we were waiting to get our next appointment scheduled and I turn around to see James weighing himself on the fancy weigher. HA! I tell him to get off the machine and that it isn't a toy and he just looks at me and says "I weigh this much. How much did YOU weigh?" At the moment I was irritated because I just wanted him to act all "mature" but looking back I think I would have been bored without him there and I know he'll make all the visits to come so much better with his humor and carefree attitude. I'm one lucky lady and this little one is going to be blessed with a great and hilarious daddy!

I watched Part I of the last Twilight last night with a couple of girls and the whole time I was thinking: "Man! I wish pregnancy was as quick as what Bella had!" Now if you haven't seen the movie then I apologizing for ruining it for you. Bella gets pregnant on her honeymoon and in a matter of weeks is huge and feeling the baby kick and soon after giving birth. In real life you have to wait NINE months. Now I know it's a miracle that shouldn't be rushed but I'm so excited to meet our little one and I just can't help but think that these next months are going to be so slow.

Well I must go eat something before work tonight. I hope to keep everyone updated and I hope everyone wasn't too bored with the details of our visit. Also, as a quick side note: I never claimed to be amazing at writing so try not to critique anything wrong with my sentence forming.

Sincerely,

Excited Parents

Today is Confirmation Day!

Well it was just two weeks ago that I took a pregnancy test and received two lines = PREGNANT! Since then it's been a roller coaster ride up. I've had so many people ask if I have been sick yet and the truth is I've only had one or two times of major nausea for only a few hours. Outside of those couple of days I've been trying to "control" to the extent that I can how sick I get by snacking on a lot of fruit, crackers, and veggies. SO FAR I'm good to go!

This will be the first time I'm mentioning being pregnant to the public outside of my friends and family simply because it still soon in the pregnancy. The reason I decided to blog about it now is because today we are going to our first doctors appointment!! Prayers would be much appreciated today. James and I just finished our last class for the day and are snacking on corn chips with retried bean dip - yummy! 30 minutes till the appointment and we're so excited!

I will keep updating on here more often now that the news is getting out. Please be praying for the health of our little one growing and that I would give my fear of having a miscarriage to the Lord and trust Him with his plans.

Sincerely,
Mr. and Mrs. Draper + baby

I'm going to try this again--

I always make hasty decisions when new things happen in my life: I turn 18, I get a piercing-I get married, I start a blog. The piercing is still in my ear but I have long forgotten my blog. But I have decided, even though nothing has recently happened in my life, that I will get back on here and try this thing again.

So here I sit on my couch with a large cup of coffee wondering what I will write about first. Oh, I know! I'll give you an update on our life. Let's see, last time I wrote we were living in Monroe, Ga in a little barn house on James' grandmother's property. We had a huge garden, chickens, we were canning, James was working construction and helping his grandmother in her thrift store, and I believe we were youth leaders at Campton United Methodist. BUT NOOOOW, we live in a little house in Toccoa, Ga attempting to finish the degrees we started in 2008. I'm working on my Counseling/Psych major while James is working on his Interpersonal Communications major. We also work at a place called "Shepherd's Hill Academy" which is a wilderness program for teens in crisis. We couldn't be more thankful for everything God is doing in our lives here in Toccoa. We've grown so much as a couple and as individuals.

I think the biggest lesson I'm learning right now is finishing what I start. James has a pretty great grasp on this idea. He never wants to quit anything he starts...even if he has a million things he's started. I, on the other hand, have a bad habit of quitting most of the things I do. Ex: the blog, gardening, Arbonne (ha), working out, the 3 or 4 crochet projects I've started, the 2 baskets of laundry that should have been folded two days ago. Do you see the issue here? It's only been a semester and two months since being back in college and I already feel like quitting because "it's just too hard". So maybe this week I'll work on finishing things I've started. I'll fold the laundry and do homework, I'll finish a crochet project and work on the other ones I've started. This will be a week of finishing things!

Oh, I just remembered: HAPPY VALENTINES DAY! Although I've never been a fan of this holiday and James and I never celebrate it I will acknowledge on here that I am very thankful for the love I have from Jesus Christ, my family, and my wonderful husband. I am one blessed little girl.

-Mrs. Draper

Busy busy fun!

It's been a while since I've had the time or desire to get on here and write but here I am! I made myself sit down and read, comment, and write. I'm glad I did. I have enjoyed it thus far :)

Big recent news: I HAVE A JOB!!! I am officially employed (sp?) at Target! Woot! Woot! I will be doing stock and floor organization! I'm so so excited. Not only will it keep me busy and allow me to meet new people that live around here but I'll be getting a pretty good full-time pay check which would help out a good bit! I can't wait to start next week!

Me and James have been super busy this past week. He was out of town Mon.-Wed. and then Thursday we left to go meet our cousins, Whitney and Bethany, in Alabama at their house to do a "fake wedding shoot". They're photographers, Glass Jar Photography if you wanna look them up, and they needed to shoot a wedding for the "Once Wed" blog and also to send examples to help them book a wedding in another area. We were pretty pumped to be asked to be their "fake" Bride and Groom. A wedding all over again! This time with less stress and strictly photos. We got their and took some engagement photos then I put on my wedding dress and James wore sweeeet khakis, blue button up, a tie and a handsome vest :) He looked SO good! ha ha All their friends and family were there and we went through all the motions of a real wedding. We even got to cut the cake, feed it to each other, and throw my bouquet! It was so much fun. I have never enjoyed an evening so much!

We spent the night with them and Friday James dropped me off in Ringgold to be spend the night with my sister at home for the last time before she moved to Toccoa for college! Saturday we got up and packed her stuff and headed to Toccoa!!! I'm really excited for her new journey. She's going to LOVE college. It's going to be unlike any experience she's ever had. It'll really grow her too! Being there and in the girls dorm and seeing all my friends back again made me kind of sad. Part of me wanted to go back in time and be there again and live on the hall with everyone. I miss it so much. It really took some time to shake the sadness and jealousy of Lauren off. I love James and being married and being here and I know God has us here for a reason! I'm just so excited for sister!

Well I have to go get a drug test for work! I love all of you! It won't be FOREVER till my next blog. Promise!

The storm.

Let me just say from the start, I've never experienced such a hard long week or two of my life. It's been pretty stretching and pretty tough. I think I'm just not coming out of it and the fact that I'm writing this blog means that I survived it. Thank goodness!

You know, when you start writing all this "godly and encouraging" stuff for other people I think you got to be careful because you begin to be tested in it and let me say something again, I failed.

The world can deceive me and look so good. It can look so harmless and so happy and carefree. It's hard not to desire it or want what others have. It's hard to remember that even though they are looking like they're living the complete happier life than say, me, a Christian, the end for them is so much worse than I have it right now and everything the do, fun or not, is in vain apart from our Lord. I've really been struggling with being a good person, a "happy" person, a satisfied person. It's like this massive storm cloud hit me out of no where and took me down this super muddy track in the woods. It's been a long since I had felt that "out of myself" and empty. It was really hard to get out of and it began to have an effect on me and James which crushed me.

We spent the morning at the kitchen table after breakfast just talking about anything that is hurting us or working on communication and working on how to communicate hurt feelings and pain. Even after the talk I was still down for some reason but, as spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning everyone room in the house, the rain stopped and the thunder stopped and the lightening stopped. The sun is beginning to peak through the clouds and I can feel the warmth and joy it is bringing. I pray so hard that things stay this way. I don't know what it was that brought me down so much but I'm going to work hard to stay in the Word and keep encouraged and try to have a good and positive attitude. I know this trial/storm is almost over and I'm so ready for the sunshine.

I love it when no one has any idea what you're going through but they decide to comment on your wall and tell you they miss you and love or send you a text and tell you they love you or send you a message with a favor to ask because they CHOSE you to help! Those kinds of things help the sun shine a little quicker and a little brighter.

This message is kinda dull and boring but it's all I got to give today. Thanks for sticking around and reading this stuff ha ha It'll only get better from here.

I love you all!!!

Devan Draper