Katie... the little stinker!

Last week Brigetta and I were going shopping for a few last minute Christmas gifts. Just before she showed up I asked Andy about my outfit and after some critiquing I changed my pants. I was about to walk out the door when Katie came running down the stairs yelling at me, "Wait! Mom, are you wearing your glasses? I told you they don't look good with your outfit." What a little stinker! It's not like I could go without those... sorry girl!

Katie has been a little more than sassy lately and a recent comment that made my jaw hit the floor needs a little background. She likes to wear her skirts up to her chest... yes, they often look like tube tops. I'm sorry, but I don't care what age you are they are not appropriate and especially not for a 4 year old. Granted she does wear pants under them so it's not completely immodest. However, I am constantly telling her to pull it down around her waist. One day I told her yet again to pull her skirt down. She said, "Mom, this is the way I like to wear them and you just have to deal with it." Oh, yes, it was said complete with the sassy head shake and all!

I don't know for sure, but I think I might be in a little bit of trouble. Andy and I don't even want to think about what the teenage years will bring!

Look Who's 8!

Happy Birthday Sammy! We hope that today is filled with fun and giggles! We love you and are so proud of the good choices you make in your life. You bring joy to our family and we are so glad you were born! Here are a few pictures of our cute Sammy.

Family Pictures!

I've been a slacker and haven't posted these sooner. My wonderful friend, Becky, has taken so many great photos of my girls and our family. Here are some of my favorites. And if you like what you see go to www.becloserphotography.blogspot.com and contact her for your own session. Thanks so much Becky, we love them!!!

These two were from Ashley's birthday photo shoot.

More Marathon Photos

Just a few more photos from the marathon. I know these are a month late, but life has been crazy around here and I figure it's better late than never.

Here we are bright eyed and bushy tailed at the crack of dawn... oh wait, it was earlier than that. I think we left about 4:30 in the morning.

*For those of you that don't already know, Emily is Andy's sister and she is married to Nate, my brother... and we've adopted Sarah and her hubby, Adam (not pictured) as part of the family.* Emily, Nate, Sarah, Me, Andy

I think this was about mile 15... still happy as a clam!
I love this picture! To me Andy's face said it all, "Relief! We are finally done! And I did it!"

Yippee! We did it together, we are still married, and still smiling!

This one made me laugh... which couple are we? I thought it was ironic that the couple behind us were dressed almost exactly the same. The guy is even wearing a white hat!

If you ever have the opportunity to do something like a marathon with your spouse don't let it pass you by. It's amazing to see what you can do and accomplish together. I am so glad Andy and I ran along side each other the whole race. Thank you for a great memory my love!

Another cool thing to think about is that I was able to run this race with my brother and Andy with his sister. It's not often I get to say that. Nate is the only sibling I've ever run a marathon with... and maybe the only one.

Marathon #3 and #1

It's been a week and a half and I feel like a slacker for not posting this yet. I finished my 3rd full marathon and Andy finished his 1st down in St. George! We ran slow and steady and took breaks when we needed. Andy hardly talked or even smiled... so I had to dance around him to make him laugh. He thinks I'm one of those "crazy people with energy at the end". My dancing paid off at mile 15 when some guy said, "You get the best dance award. Here's a whole cup of ice." Whoa was I excited and Andy was glad I shared. I was so proud of him for not giving up and we even sprinted to the finish line! Seriously! We ran at least an 8 minute pace for that last stretch! We crossed the finish line hand in hand, all four arms raised in excitement. It was such a great experience and I am so glad we did it together. Our official time was 5:28:27! I keep getting slower, but I'll take slow and happy over fast and crying.

Our other household members were Nate & Emily Koenig, and Adam & Sarah Smith. They were with us last year but this year Sarah and Nate both joined our running crew as you can see. Sarah finished in 4:59:17 and did awesome!!! Nate and Emily also ran together and their time was 5:06:35. They are completely insane! They were flying the first half and then Emily got sick and started puking. They walked pretty much the second half and still finished before us. Even though they will disagree, I think they rocked it!

We stayed a few extra days in St. George and had a blast! We sat by the pool... jumped in the pool... and then climbed in the hot tub... went golfing (guys)... shopping (girls)... bowling... eating out... and watched tv and ate junk food to mention a few. Bowling took place on Monday and it was comical to say the least. It was league night and I'm sure all the old folks were thinking we were the worst bowlers on the planet. We looked funny trying to just bend our legs. Sarah would swing her arm back and then just drop the ball. Every time it hit the floor we would all cringe a little. And then she kicked our butts the first game with a score of 141... I bowled a 60! It was humiliating so we had to play another game. During the 10th frame it was close for the girls for the losing spot. And it was close with the guys for the win. Emily finished her game ahead of me and Sarah only needed 3 points to beat me. I thought, "Great. As long as she doesn't get 2 gutter balls I will be the loser again." She sent her ball down... GUTTER! We all laughed and she sent her ball down again... GUTTER! We all couldn't believe it in comparison to the rest of her night. Next up was Adam. Nate already pulled ahead of Andy and was in the running for the win. Adam bowled his 10th frame and beat Nate by 1 point!!! It was so much fun to be with everyone and I hope it becomes a tradition.

To see our other pictures before they're posted go here. From there type in our last name and the race was St. George Marathon. Sorry, I tried to link straight to our pictures but it wouldn't allow me.

Embarrassed

Saturday night I went to the Relief Society Broadcast with my friend, Erin. We met up with some other girls in our ward and had a great time at the dinner provided. We then proceeded to the chapel for the broadcast. Elder Uchtdorf was a few minutes into his talk when all of a sudden I heard, "I hate it when a guy doesn't get the door even though I told him yesterday and the day before!" I turned to Erin and said, "That's your ring tone." She just looked confused and said, "I'm not calling you." I grabbed my purse and quickly slipped out the side door. Erin's husband was trying to get a hold of her because their baby was running a pretty high fever and started shaking. Turns out she had an ear infection and Erin was apologizing for making me leave. I told her it wasn't a big deal and her children are more important. So the fact that her child was sick was not funny at all... but how we found out was a little embarrassing and comical. Keep in mind I DID set my phone to vibrate. From now on I think the phone will stay in the car or at home during those sorts of meetings.

On a side note... my friend, Becky, has started up a photography business and she took Ashley's birthday pictures last week. Here is a preview. I think she did a great job and I can't wait to see the rest.

Funny, but interesting conversation...

Yesterday when Sammy came home from school she started asking me questions about babies. The questions were more intelligent than in the past and I have no problem discussing it with her. I would much rather she come to me than her friends. So we're having this conversation and Ashley and Katie get in on it. Then one of them asks me, "Mom, do you want a boy or a girl?" Then both Sammy and Ashley said, "I want a baby brother." Katie chimed in, "I want a baby sister and a baby brother." From there they thought they would plan out our future and that I should have 8 kids. I explained to them that even if I wanted that many babies my body wouldn't handle it. Love my Katie! She throws me off guard sometimes and makes me laugh out loud. Her logical answer was, "That's okay, mom, we'll just steal them from other people." Of course I explained to her that we don't do that and it's called kidnapping. However, I'm glad she's optimistic and seems to have a solution to problems of all sorts.

Ashley turned 6

We started off the birthday celebrations with taking cupcakes to Ashley's class! Then came home and prepared for her Barbie/bike party...
The cupcakes were so cute!

All the little girls brought their bikes and we made personalized name plates. Ashley had no idea that we bought her a new bike for her birthday so we brought it out just before decorating. She was so excited and giddy! She is happy with anything we get her and is so grateful that it makes it fun to shop for her. (She'd be happy with new underwear.) So it was especially fun to get her something big and totally unexpected! She actually ran straight to Andy and hugged and thanked him before going to the bike. So sweet.

Here's the bunch of girls that came to the party (left to right):
Ellie Robertson, Sammy, Mallory Wadsworth, Georgia Mecham
Ashley, Gracie Knight, Lindsey Klotthor, and Katie.

We then went on a short bike ride. I stayed in the back and it was so cute to see 8 little girls riding their bikes. I wish I had a picture, but left the camera and phone at home.

I asked Ashley what she wanted for her birthday dinner and she handed me a can of chili. What?! After realizing she could choose anything/anywhere she chose Wendy's. The girl is easy to please.
We came home and had cake, ice cream, and presents with Grandma and Grandpa (+kids), and the Grow family. Grandma spoiled Ashley, too.
When Grandma asked Ashley what she wanted for her birthday she responded with, "A Barbie." After convincing her she should ask for more than just a Barbie Ashley decided she wanted a Barbie car. Grandma looked and looked and couldn't find one... so she got the next best thing. (I think it's cooler than a car)


Ashley is a joy in our home and we are so glad she is a part of our family. She is so tender and loving and tries hard to be a peacemaker. We love you, Ashley!


Some of Ashley's favorite things...
Food: yogurt
Restaurant: McDonald's
Dessert: sugar cookies
Color: blue
Song: Scripture Power
Activity: play games
Toy: Baby dolls and Barbie dolls
Book: Collection of Disney Fairy Tales

(This next part is for journal purposes so you can skip it if you would like.)
Ashley Paige came into our family September 8, 2005 at 8:53 am in American Fork. She weighed 7 lbs. 12 oz. and was 19 inches long. There was no labor due to a scheduled c-section and hers was the only birth video taped from start to finish. (It's quite fascinating to watch in my opinion.) No labor was nice, but it was a long and painful recovery of about 10 weeks. We found out my uterus had adhered to my stomach muscles and resulted in a lot of extra cutting during surgery. (Both my mom and Brigetta came to help take care of me for a total of nearly 3 weeks. Which was wonderful since we made the move to Colorado just after we came home from the hospital.)


We actually couldn't decide on a name for a long time. The night before going to the hospital I told Andy that we had to have at least a list... anything. His solution was to each pick our favorite and then decide when we saw her. I put my foot down because I knew I would lose since he hated the name Isabelle... there's a story behind it. So we, again, went through the baby name books. We went to the hospital with a list longer than most parents.


The names were Ashley, Brooklyn, Courtlind, or Madison with the middle name Paige or Emma. And after she was born we decided either Ashley or Brooklyn with the middle name Paige. Andy and I would talk about it every few hours and say, "What do you think she looks like? Ashley or Brooklyn?" Andy would respond with, "I think she looks like an Ashley." I would then say, "Really? I think she kind of looks like a Brooklyn." We would revisit the conversation a few hours later and Andy would say, "I think she looks more like a Brooklyn now." And I would respond, "Really? I think she looks more like an Ashley now." She was just baby girl Wyne for about 3 days and the nurses kept bugging us to pick a name so they could decorate her name card. Every time they came in the room, "Have you picked a name yet?" Our good friends, Kurtt and Marilyn came to see us in the hospital and we FINALLY decided on Ashley and they said, "Oh good! We hated the name Brooklyn." Thanks guys, we might use it later. ;)


Ashley was definitely a mama's girl from the beginning. We went back to Utah for Christmas and of course all the Aunts wanted to hold Ashley. I passed her off to someone and helped Andy unload the car. By the time we were done Ashley had been passed around the whole room. She was crying and each person was trying to calm her down. I came into the living room, picked her up, and she made a few sigh noises and stopped crying. Andy told his sisters, "Don't worry, she does it to me, too." In fact it was hard to leave her with a babysitter because she would cry the whole time. Thank goodness she grew out of that phase and is happy with anyone now.


Since then she is a happy little thing and will love and hug anyone. She especially LOVES babies. She cannot contain herself when a baby is around. At the last family reunion Sarah asked each of the grandkids what they wanted to be when they grew up. Ashley's response has always been the same, "A mommy." And of course she says it with a huge smile on her face. (I must be doing something right.) If ever she's crying now it's most likely because she is hungry or tired and an occasion of being teased by her sister. And so far kindergarten is a success. She is excited to go, but is glad she gets to spend some days at home with me still.

Big Kindergarten Kid!

Yesterday was Ashley's 1st day of kindergarten! She was so excited she couldn't contain it!!! We met with her teacher on Tuesday and it was almost torture for her to leave the school. She was so cute in the morning with all her excitement. Here she is in her new dazzling outfit... FULL of sparkles... down to the shoes.Sammy was ready to be the big sister and show her around. She even persuaded Ashley to get the same jeans and same tops just different colors. And Ashley was loving that Sammy was being so nice to her.
And of course Katie was up bright and early at the crack of 6:50 ready to have a day with mommy all to herself.

(Ashley and Gracie) They are in the same class this year and I'm not sure who is more excited.

And of course we have to get all 4 girls... Katie refused to get in this picture.

(Sammy, Ashley, Gracie, Emma)

At the bus stop...

She gave me a big hug and kiss and didn't hesitate at all to get on the big Twinkie.

And she's off!!!

While Sammy and Ashley were at school all day Katie and I had plans of our own. After I was finished with some things around the house we went to a pool party (for those left behind) at our friend, Betsy's house. So at about 10:50 we walked up the street to meet Erin and her kids and then drove over for some swimming on a very hot day. It was perfect!!! The last time we went to Betsy's house Katie clung to me in fear of drowning. Near the end she swam around with floaties and a noodle. This time around she started with the floaties and noodle. After a little while the other little kids started jumping off the diving board and Megan Kotter would help them to the side. I asked Katie if she wanted to try and she said, "No way! Not the diving board." I was able to get her to jump off the side with the first few times landing practically on my head. I would scoot back just a tiny bit with each jump. And finally she was jumping off the side without me catching her and telling her to swim to the side. (She's never had swim lessons.) I told her I wanted to jump off the diving board and asked if she wanted to try. She was timid, but agreed. So the first time off I held her hands and dropped her into Betsy's arms. She realized it wasn't scary because Betsy was there to catch her. She swam to the side with Betsy's help, climbed up the ladder, ran to the diving board, and jumped off all by herself! I couldn't believe it!!! She did it about 10 times and she even went all the way under the water and popped back up. Betsy is so kind to let us come and swim at her house... and even more kind to catch my baby as she jumped off the diving board. That's a lot of work! Her pool is WAY nicer than going to a public pool! It's so clean and she has tons of fun diving toys, water noodles, and floaties. Katie was couldn't wait to tell daddy all about her day!

When the bus dropped the girls off Ashley came running into my arms! She had a fabulous first day and couldn't wait even one second to tell me all about it. She had the biggest grin on her face as she told me all about reading The Kissing Hand, her art project, recess, and the lunch room. I am so thrilled that she is eager to be in school. Now we have to wait 5 whole days before going back... the downfall of full day kindergarten. :(

2nd Grade!

First day of school! First day of school! First day of school! When my kids start I feel like Nemo on his first day. I LOVE when they start again... and so does Sammy if you couldn't tell. I ran this morning and was back by 6:55 and she was already dressed and ready to go. She had sparkle galore and snazzy new jeans and shoes. She couldn't contain her excitement!

Here she is with our neighbor, Emma... the big 5th grader!
She reported back home with a big smile on her face. She said, "I loved it! I had so much fun and I really like my teacher. She's nice."

Completely Random

Yesterday as Andy and I were finishing up our long run we put our headphones in to pump out the last few miles. I clipped my ipod to my running belt and shortly after it fell off. I went to grab it as it was dangling and... STING!!! I didn't see anything or feel anything other than an intense sting throughout my hand and up my forearm. I looked at my palm where the initial pain was coming from and there was a stinger still in my hand. I got it out but was utterly confused since I didn't feel or see the actual bee, but that's what it must have been. Who gets stung by a bee while running?!!! So random.

Look Who's 4!

Katlyn Emma, aka: Katie, Kate, Katie Bug, Baby That's right! 4 years ago this darling little princess joined our family and it's been an adventure ever since! We spent the day by making her birthday cake, having lunch with daddy, painting fingernails and toenails, and then my dear friend took some fabulous pictures of her in her new outfit. I am amazed she got so many great pictures. Katie was being a stinker and didn't want to cooperate. These are just a few of my favorites.

I had YW in the evening so we celebrated on Thursday. I finished her cake (HOT Pink and brown ladybug as requested), then we went swimming. After daddy got home from work we met grandma Laurie at Jalapenos ("The place where they put the big hat on your head and sing happy birthday.") and then went back to our house for cake and ice cream. She got a lot of fun things but I think grandma's present (Frisbee and a gun that shoots big plastic balls) was the overall favorite... well, at least for the rest of us. Katie loved her baby doll and outfit the most.

Katie has the biggest imagination ever! She is completely happy to play alone with her thoughts. She loves to dress up and make me have a mountain of laundry daily. If there is anything that has to do with baby dolls, princesses, Barbie, or anything girly in general she is all over it! She's almost always a very happy child (in my eyes), and has a lot of spunk. Although she's shy in public once you get to know her she'll talk up a storm. She has the cutest voice ever!!! One lady once told us, "I thought my son had a cute voice, but I could listen to her all day. Katie, keep talking." Even strangers tell me how cute her voice is. She says the funniest things and has the best expressions to go along with them. She doesn't like animals in general but cats are the most terrifying to her. I think it's because the neighbor's cat taunts her. She is a complete mama's girl. I am wrapped around her tiny finger and she knows it. Although she's 4 she still climbs into bed with mommy and daddy on a regular basis. Oh how I love my little Katie Bug!

Katie's favorite...

thing(s) to do: Dancing, singing, and twirling

food: poppy seed chicken, string cheese, and bread

friend: mommy... and Gracie (Knight)

color: pink, purple, blue, and red... ("Wait. My favorite, favorite, favorite color?") Pink

movie: Princess and the Frog

primary song: Scripture Power

other song: Ever Ever After by Carrie Underwood

Here are some of my favorite pictures of Katie all in random order as are my memories.

Blessing day

3rd birthday

She fell asleep with her head in my lap while I was folding laundry. I thought she would wake up once I stood up, but stayed in this position.


So cute with her lil' bum in the air.

Halloween 2009, age 2

This afternoon I could NOT get Katie to calm down. I tried everything I could think of and then passed her to Brigetta and she exhausted all her ideas. Brandon walked in the door and sniffed at Katie's head and she crashed! Brigetta and I were both stunned that all she needed was her Uncle Brandon to hold her.

At the park with the Eisley family.

2nd birthday!

Valentines Daddy-Daughter date 2011

Wyne family reunion 2010. She played constantly in that path of dirt... it was so fine it almost seemed like powder.

4th birthday! She was so excited to get her new outfit! She saw the skirt at Costco and fell in love with it! And she specifically asked for pink leggings.

Easter 2011, this is a typical outfit for Katie. She is constantly changing her clothes and putting on crazy combinations. Usually there are a minimum of 3 layers of clothing. In this picture the dress up skirt was her wedding veil.

Now for the long part... you can skip over this since I'm just putting it down for posterity... and it's not sensitive to the weak stomach crowd. I don't think I've ever written down her birth story so here it goes.

After having 2 c-sections my doctor was willing to let me try a v-back. This is almost never done and I had to go into labor completely on my own. I was overdue, but not in a hurry to have girl number three. We had just moved into an apartment about a week earlier and I was barely settling in. I went on a motorcycle ride with Brandon and got a ton of dirty looks. What? I was wearing a helmet.

My due date came and went... two days later (June 28, 2007) I was cleaning the apartment and doing our normal routine. I felt a little trickle and thought, "Did I just wet my pants?" I went to the bathroom, changed, and didn't think much of it. A little while later it happened again. I went to the bathroom for a second time and thought, "I am an adult and I just wet my pants. What is wrong with me." I went about my business. It happened again! This time I thought maybe it wasn't my bladder. I called my sister-in-law, Mindy, and asked her what it was like when her water broke at home. She replied, "It was a huge mess---Why?! Are you in labor?!" After talking for awhile I told her I didn't want to go all the way to the hospital for them to send me home. I really didn't know if I was in labor or not so I called and left a message with my nurse. Then I called Andy to give him a heads-up on what was going on. He told me to call Emily who used to be a labor and delivery nurse. So I called my sister-in-law, Emily, and asked her if it had to be a big mess when your water breaks. She said, "No. It can be just a trickle, but you'll feel a little trickle ever time you have a contraction. Are you having contractions?" (Yes) "How far apart are they?" (About every 5 minutes) "Get yourself to the hospital!" I wasn't in any kind of pain whatsoever and I only had a few trickles, so I still wasn't sure if I was in labor. Emily and I talked for a few more minutes and decided that it really wasn't a big deal if I waited since my labor with Sammy was about 15 hours. (Ashley was a scheduled c-section.) I got off the phone with Emily and called Mindy back to let her know what was going on. I said, "My gut feeling is that I'm not in labor." I leaned forward and gasped, "Never mind! My water really just broke!" It was a mess that time! Mindy said she was on her way to pick me up. I changed, cleaned up the mess, packed my bag (I know, it seems that should have been done already), and then finished up my kitchen. Mindy walked in and said, "What are you doing?!" I kind of laughed because I knew it would be a long time waiting and I still was not in any pain.

We texted Andy 911 for his cue to meet us at the hospital. We loaded up the girls and we were off! Sure enough, just like Emily said, every time I had a contraction another trickle followed. I was so embarrassed! Beside the fact that I forgot a towel and I continued to make a mess in Mindy's car the only clean outfit I had that actually fit my whale of a body was khaki pants and bright blue underwear. Yep! It definitely was visible to everyone by the time we reached the hospital. Mindy laughed and said, "I don't think they're going to send you home."

Andy and I walked to the maternity floor and the lady at the desk said, "Are you sure your water broke?" If there wasn't a desk between us I would have kicked her in the shin. Of course my water broke!!! Everyone I walked by could see that my water broke! They admitted me, started my IV and we were on our way. My doctor came in to see how I was doing and said, "Things are going well but if anything goes wrong I'll go right in and get her out." Andy and I tried to pass the time by talking about baby names. We wanted the middle name to be Emma, but were undecided on a first name. He had his heart set on Riley, and i kind of liked Maddison. Later Andy said, "What do you think of Katlyn? And call her Katie for short." We had a small list and decided to look at her first and see what she looked like.

About 6:30 pm they started my epidural. Things were progressing but very slowly. The nurses would come in and check my cervix occasionally and then about 11:00 things started to turn for the worst. The nurse showed me my bag of urine and it looked like blood. My blood pressure was low, the baby's heart rate was dropping, my epidural wore off, and I was on oxygen. The nurses kept a close eye on me and stayed in touch with my doctor who was delivering other babies. They upped my epidural and decided to monitor me for a little while longer. My epidural wore off again and I was in pain. I was crying mostly because I really didn't want another c-section. I asked Andy to give me a blessing to help calm my nerves. The nurses came back in and found that my cervix was starting to close. At that point with everything else that was going on my doctor pulled the plug on a v-back. He said that it was too dangerous to wait any longer.

They had me move from the bed to the gurney then to the operating table. I was crying at that point because I was having hard contractions on top of each other and then it took a few more minutes for the epidural to start working again. My doctor stayed right beside me and held my hand till Andy was allowed in the operating room. I was freaked out and crying hysterically. The meds were working and they started to cut. My doctor said, "Alanya, is there something that happened that I should know about?" I was confused as to why he would ask that but I replied, "Well, my daughter fell on my stomach after my last c-section." He said, "Did she jump off a building?" I was more confused and it seemed it took forever for them to get the baby out. Once she was out the nurses worked quickly on her and found she was healthy and had all her fingers and toes. At some point my epidural wore off for a third time... but this one was during surgery! I was in the most pain I've ever been in! They were going to knock me out but didn't want to put a breathing tube in. So they quickly upped my meds and tried to hurry. The nurses took the baby out and said, "Okay, daddy will meet you in recovery." I was scared because they never make him leave before me, and I didn't want to be "alone". As soon as Andy left I heard my doctor say, "She's bleeding out! We've got to hurry!" It was almost like those TV shows ER or Grey's Anatomy when there is a true emergency. I'm sure the tears were like a river at that point. 2 and a half hours passed and they finally finished the surgery.

I was wheeled out to recovery where Andy was waiting with the baby. The nurse monitored me and never left my bedside. When the doctor came in he said, "That went better than we expected. That was one of the worst c-sections I've ever done... and I've done a lot. Your uterus was adhered to your stomach muscles and your bladder. I couldn't tell where one organ ended and the next one began." It all made sense at that point and he continued to tell us that I hemorrhaged and they were pretty scared at that point they were going to lose me. I am so grateful I had an amazing doctor who stayed calm and did his job even in difficult circumstances. (Later Andy told me that my uterus looked mangled.)

Andy and I looked at our beautiful little baby girl we were just blessed with. We looked at each other and said in sync, "She is not a Maddison." That narrowed it to Riley or Katlyn. We called my mom and Mindy who both requested us to call no matter the hour and let them know she was born at 3:17 am, weighing in at 7 lbs. 13 oz.! My mom laughed out loud because she asked me earlier what I thought she would weigh and I said, "She has to be 7-13 because Sammy was 7-11 and Ashley was 7-12. It would just make it easier to remember." I totally called it!!!

By about 7 am we were able to go to our room. Dr. Hodges came in to see how I was doing. I told him that after my last baby my recovery was so painful they ended up putting me on morphine. I asked if I could just request that now. He said, "Oh, honey, we are putting you on something much, much stronger than morphine. You are going to be in a lot of pain." Whether it was the meds, the lack of sleep, or tons of crying, I was wiped out and I crashed hard!

Mindy called for the details and I remember crying... again... on the phone. My emotions were so out of whack and I couldn't stop. She ended up coming later that day with Sammy and Ashley. She took a few pictures and got the word out to the rest of the family the details and that we decided on Katlyn Emma, but didn't know the spelling at the time. Other phone calls came in and I was still so tired I mostly had Andy talk. I even fell asleep while on the phone with my sister-in-law. We told my mom and Brigetta that they could come to the hospital but I wasn't ready to see anyone else.

The recovery was extremely painful and I mostly wanted to either sleep or sit in the shower, but getting back and forth was quite the challenge even with it being my 3rd c-section. I had nearly 30 staples and my insission was from hip to hip. And of course I couldn't just recover normal. I was running a fever and I was on an IV longer than the other 2. So they watched me closely and kept me meds coming. My fever finally went down and we were able to take our baby home July 2nd, but didn't actually walk in the door till after midnight on the 3rd.

It took about 12 weeks for me to completely recover and it was very painful... but I would do it all over again for my little Katie Bug! I love her so much and I couldn't imagine my life without her. She is such a joy to me and I absolutely love being with her. I love you with all my heart Katlyn!!!