Camdenisms

Today we decided to do a little yard selling and try to find some clothes and toys for little Camden. One of our stops involved a girl I graduated with and two little girls, one was 3 and the other was 1. Both of these little girls LOVED Camden, and he was absolutely amazed by them. I think I am going to have my hands full. He sat and flirted with them the entire time we were there. He talked and smiled, it was the most adorable thing ever.

In other news, Camden laughed out loud for the first time last week. Its not an everyday thing yet, but he is getting there. He has started talking a LOT louder. He is fascinated by Baby Einstein. He can sit in his bouncy sit and it will keep him entertained for awhile. I know they say not to let kids watch TV, but he was starting to look at it so I figured Baby Einstein is better than other programs.

We are currently starting to work on rolling over. For some reason during tummy time he always spits up. I don't know what the problem is. Maybe just his pleasantly plump little tummy. He is getting closer and closer to sleeping all night. We can usually make it until at least 4 or 5. I think once we start cereal in a little over a week we might be able to go all night. x fingers crossed x

I hope everyone has a great Labor Day weekend. We have some of Carmon's family in from Michigan so most of our time will be spent with them, but we may make an appearance at Nieghbor Day to watch Tyler sing.

Asking for a Hand Out

In my new found frugalness I am asking a favor of you, my fellow coupon clippers. If you get this weekend's P&G Brand Saver and have no use for those Pampers coupons I would gladly give them a home and put them to good use. My sister, aunt, and I are all using Pampers so they will definitely not go to waste. The rumor is that there are two $1 off coupons in it!

Also, if you or anyone else you know uses any other brand of diaper I am interested in doing some kind of coupon swap. Jess has some Enfamil Next Step coupons that she will swap for Similac coupons if anyone has them. I'm wanting to set up somewhere to initiate a website that people can find others to swap baby coupons with. Do you know of a website that does this already? I think it would be a great idea.

Wordless Wednesday

Jase is getting so big. Yesterday Jess said that she turned her back on him and the next thing she knew he had climbed IN the laundry basket. He's too big for his britches. He'll be 7 months old next week.

For more Wordless Wednesday, head on over to 5 Minutes for Mom.

Our First Swimming Adventure

On Saturday I decided that it was a nice enough day to take Camden swimming. I figured he would really enjoy it, seeing how much he loved his bath. He decided that he didn't want to take a nap that morning so he was sleepy. The water ended up being a little cold from the cooler temperatures and all of the rain.

He cried when he first got in the water. As long as I held him close he was okay, just okay. I tried to put him in a floatie...



After a short nap...



it was a little better.



I bought him a small pool for home and can't wait to get him in it, but first I have to figure out a way to keep the dogs out of it.

Word To Ya Mother

Photo Deal

I don't know if any of you are like me, but most of my pics just end up hanging out on my camera or computer. So much like that commercial. Well, Walgreens had 50 prints for $5. I noticed that as long as you hit the initial 50, they are only 10 cents after that. I had 350+ pictures that I needed printed off. I figured now would be the opportune time to do it, especially with the $5/20 coupon for today and tomorrow. I can't wait to get them back and actually see how much my precious angel has changed...did I mention at least 300 of the pics are of him?

Bargains Galore!

This post comes a little late for you guys to get in on the deals, but Carmon is working late and Prince Camden in sleeping. What's a mom to do?

I have been finding awesome end of season deals on clothes for Camden. Hopefully I'm guessing sizes right.

First, my amazing purchase at Macy's last week. I got all of this for $28.33. I thought it was a good job if I do say so myself.



Then my trip to Sears yesterday for a pool for Camden led me to this good finds. I think I spent around $21 for them.



I had to go to Cape AGAIN today to do some things for my hardworking hubby and Jess had called and told me about the great clearance sales going on in Spfld. Unfortunately ours weren't so great but I managed to find some stuff. I spent $9 for this.



But, my most AMAZING purchase last week was this...



all for the unbelievable price of $2.79. It should have been 50 cents less, but whose gonna complain! The pens were 2/$1 and I had a $1/2 coupon. The make-up was on sale BOGO and I had BOGO coupons, making it FREE...except for the extra $.50. And the little jacket was on clearance for $3.50 with 40% off, making it $2.10. I was proud. I had a good cashier too, she didn't mind my coupons.

Happy Shopping to all!

Free Toys for a Year!

I know the chances are probably slim to none, but worth a try. Fisher-Price is giving away free toys for a year in their Grow As You Go Sweepstakes. What are you waiting on-Go register!

Wordless Wednesday

For more Wordless Wednesday, visit 5 Minutes for Mom.

I've GOT to Have It!!!

So, I was wondering what all the buzz about Etsy was. I saw it as I browsed blogs. Yesterday, I decided to browse Etsy for personalized stuff. I want something "motherly" with Camden's name on it. As I was browsing, I came across this. Perfect. Only one problem, its $42. I'm pretty sure Jess and I WILL be sporting these by the end of the year though.



This is located at The Vintage Pearl.

There is a story that goes with this. When Grandma was battling with her cancer, after it had spread to her brain and made it like she had had a stroke, she lost most of her speech. The speech pathologist told us to have her sing to get the monotonous tone out of her voice. We would always sing "You Are My Sunshine". Now, as you could only imagine, that song has a VERY special place in the hearts of everyone in my family.

Not only would this necklace put Camden's name around my neck, it would also serve to honor my strong-willed Grandma that he never got to meet. I really wonder if babies can "talk" to angels because he sleeps with his mouth open just like Grandma Joan. If you ask him if he's sleeping like Grandma (while he's sleeping) he will just smile. It's so cute. He even did it before his "real" smiles started. One thing is for sure...Camden is my Sunshine!

It's Amazing How Fast Things Change

In a couple short months we have went from this...



to this!



He is still learning to splash so he has to concentrate on it, but its oh, so cute! Dad said he was making a mess everwhere-I said Who cares!?!

My New Addiction

Have your tried the sun-dried tomato dressing from Kraft? AMAZING. I haven't had it on a lettuce salad, but I'm sure it would be yummy too. It all started on the 4th of July when my cousin used it in a pasta salad. Just noodles, cheese, olives, veggies, whatever you choose. Last night I marinated some chicken in it and then grilled it. So scrumptious. It's simple. I also brushed the chicken with it while I was grilling it. Think I could make it again tonight?

Wordless Wednesday...a day late

This is the morning I went to be induced. Is the baby in the front or the back? :)

For more photos visit 5 Minutes for Mom.

Why not send some snail mail?

My sister found this fun little website where you can create and send postcards, absolutely FREE!!! There is supposed to be a limit to how many you can send everyday, but you can exceed it.

Head on over to Hippopost and check it out!

GBNF, The Finale

The day after my birthday was a Friday, June 28. My boss was out of town and I decided that I would leave work a little early. What's the big deal. I had had an awesome week. Carmon was working nights that day and I wouldn't get to see him if I didn't leave a little early. I was finally pregnant, Jess and I were gonna have babies that were so close together! I had went shopping and got baby clothes and a super soft blanket that were on clearance at Macy's. We had told almost all of our family that we were expecting. I had dropped hints on my Myspace page.

I got home and was just kinda chillin' when the phone rang at 5 o'clock. Unknown caller. Wonder who that is? I was Dr. Carns herself. She was my nightmare. She ruined my wonderful week. She told me that I was miscarrying. That my HCG levels were lower than what they had been and tried to prepare me for what was going to be some of the toughest times I had EVER been through, both physically and emotionally. I try to look on the bright side and am glad that I knew what was coming. I didn't just start bleeding and freak out on my own.

Carmon went ahead and went to work that night, it was too late to try to find someone to cover for him. That night was awful. I cried and cried and cried. We were both so devastated. Why does this happen to good people? It's so unfair. Saturday the physical pain came. My back ached, my stomach cramped. Every time I would go to the bathroom there would be what was supposed to be my precious baby. I don't want to get to gory, but you would wonder if that clot you saw was your baby.

Dr. Carns just told me to take pain meds and to not go to the hospital unless I got to bleeding extremely heavy. We made an appointment for me to come back in on Monday for some more blood work to make sure my levels were falling off like they should. I called my boss Sunday night and told her what had happened. I hadn't been at my job for very long so I hadn't even told her I was pregnant. I took Monday off because I just didn't think I could handle it. I also had to go to the hospital to get a Rhogam shot because of my blood type.

I know how hard it is to lose a baby early on in pregnancy, but I can't imagine losing one later on. Once you feel those first moves, hear the heartbeat, see their cute little body parts only you can make out on the ultrasounds. I feel fortunate to have experienced this miscarriage, there are those who are unable to even conceive. Pregnancy is truly amazing and I know that I am extremely fortunate to have had my precious Camden. There is not a day that goes by that I am not extremely grateful for him and all of the joy he has brought into my life.

I will always wonder what that first baby would have been like. Was it a boy or a girl? Would it look like me or Carmon? Only God knows, and I know he had his reasons for not letting us have that baby. I will never forget it though. It made me stronger, more appreciative. As far as the e-mail updates that I get for my baby that would be 6 months old in a couple weeks, I think I'll keep getting them. Then I'll look at my baby and know how lucky I am.

For another heartbreaking story on learning to live again after losing a baby in uetro, visit I Should Be Folding Laundry. She lost twin boys. Thanks Alaina, now I'm addicted to her blog.

Camdenisms

So, I have decided to start a new post that will hopefully turn into a weekly thing as Camden starts doing more fun and exciting things.

Last Friday was shot day. I have been dreading this appointment since the day we made it 6 weeks ago. I intentionally made it according to Carmon's work schedule so he would be going with us. As usual, Daddy ended up having work away from work to do,(Have I mentioned all my husband does is work) so I called Grandma in as a reinforcement. I didn't want to be the one to hold him down if need be.

We arrived at the Dr. and were called back almost immediately. I am SO in love with a doctor that doesn't make you wait forever and we haven't had to wait at all at Dr. H's. The nurse comes in and does the normal-get Camden naked down to his diaper. She goes and weighs him. Carmon and I had made bets on how much he weighed. I said 12-10 and he said 15 lbs. I think I eventually lowered it a little bit because I didn't want to feel bad if he weighed a lot less. She came back in...13 lbs! Holy cow, my baby is growing. She measures him...23 3/4 in. Man, oh, man. He has went from 25% to 75% on his length and 50% to 75% on his weight. At least he's proportioned.

Dr. H comes in and looks at his chart, "Man he has grown, he's not overweight, he's just had a real nice growth spurt." He goes on to say that Camden doesn't have a neck(its hidden with his chin). He looks at his eyes and ears and all the normal stuff. He then goes on to feel Camden's femoral pulses. He pulls his diaper loose and Camden must have decided to get revenge. I just know he was thinking-I'll show you no neck. He starts peeing on Dr. H. Oh, no! How embarrassing. Luckily it just got his tie and he just laughed it off with a simple, "We know his plumbing works!"

He then ask me if he had met all of the developmental milestones for his 2 month checkup:
+Follows objects with his eyes-Check

+Smiles-Check, those smiles that melt your heart at 2 a.m. when he just wants to play with his bottle and you want to go back to bed. How could you be mad?

+Coos-Check, Yep, my baby is starting to talk!

He then gives me the checklist for his 4 month checkup:
+Laugh out loud-I can't wait for this one, he's trying real hard.

+Rollover-He's done it twice while laying on a couch.

+Start reaching for things

+Bring his hands together out in front of him

Is it just me or is my baby growing too fast?

On to the shots. The girl comes in and I told my mom if someone had to hold him down she was doing it. Camden evidently thought it was play time because he was kicking his legs like crazy, or maybe he just knew what was fixing to happen. She said that he was still little enough she could handle him on her own. She grabbed his legs and stuck in shot #1, then #2, then #3. His face turned red, his lip puckered, and then he belted it out. My heart broke. I started crying too. Luckily he didn't cry for long to we both got over it pretty fast. I kept him doped up on Tylenol for the next 36 hours and he was fine. He got a little cranky but nothing major. Thank God!

Dr. H starts cereal at 3 months and fruits and juices at 4. If anyone has any advice, let me know. Did you have a certain spoon that worked best? A time of day that was better? Anything, I want to hear from you!

GBNF, Part III

I was calling everyone I knew trying to find the right OB. I decided this time I wanted to see a woman. She would know how precious these organs are to another woman, and would take me seriously. I had my aunt ask my regular dr. who she would recommend and I got Dr. Carns name. I had already called the office to see which docs were taking new patients and she was one of them.

My first appointment with her I fell in love and it has just been a blossoming relationship since then. She came here from Arizona and said that PCOS was uncommon there and the thinks it is a geographical thing because there are tons of cases in SE Missouri. She prescribed Metformin and told me I needed to lose weight. I already knew about the weight loss part, losing a mere 10% of your body weight GREATLY increases your chances of getting pregnant on your own.

I don't remember dates exactly, but I know it was in or after March when Dr. J made me mad. I saw Dr. Carns shortly after and between the Metformin and going on my on version of an Atkins/SouthBeach/low carb and sugar diet, the weight started to fall off. Carmon and I also joined a gym, which proved to be worthless because we never used it.

In May 2007 Jess and I took a girls trip to Chicago. She had started trying to get pregnant also just a short time before. We luckily didn't go out bar-hopping too much. Her visitor should have came while we were in Chi-town but never arrived. When she got back to Springfield I convinced her to take a pregnancy test. She called me back and told me she wasn't sure, but she thought she was pregnant. I was like, how can you not be sure. I told her to take a pic of the test and e-mail it to me. I could CLEARLY see the two lines I had been desperately wanting to see for myself.

We figured up her due date which was February 5, 2008. A few weeks later my visitor should have came and didn't show up. How exciting, I thought! We can be pregnant together! I went to my aunt's office to have a blood PT after an at home one came back positive, but another had came back negative. It confirmed it, I was pregnant. I got on those same websites that we had been on just weeks before. My due date was February 21, 2008. Our babies would only be 3 weeks apart if all went well. My HCG levels were really low though. Instead of the 6 weeks I thought I was pregnant, the test only showed 1-2 weeks. The next week I went to see the nurse practioner at Dr. Carns office and they did some blood work.

The day after my appt. was my birthday. We went to Lamberts to celebrate both my birthday and my pregnancy. I couldn't have been happier.

Give me a kiss from that Elvis lip

All I wanna doo oo ooo oooo is love you ou!



Please say a little prayer for me tomorrow, Camden has to have his first shots. My heart is already breaking. I can't believe he will be 2 months old on Saturday *tear*

GBNF, Part II

Dr. J was successful in diagnosing why I wasn't getting pregnant and what was causing the pain and irregularness. The day I found out was when I went for my ultrasound. You could tell the tech found something because she kept measuring these little spots that showed up on the screen. Anyone who has had an ultrasound knows that the techs can't tell you anything. She told me that I needed to schedule an appointment w/ Dr. J and they would tell me more then. I made my appointment and headed back to work.

I pulled in my parking spot and then it hit me, there's something wrong. Why didn't they tell me what was wrong? Is it something so bad that I can't have kids? The questions just starting floundering through my mind. I knew I wouldn't be able to work not knowing so I called the office and demanded they tell me what was going on. They informed me that I had Polycystic Ovarian Sydrome, or PCOS. Okay, I can handle that I know whats wrong. Just cysts on my ovaries, very common thing. My appointment was over a week later, so me being the worry wart that I am, headed to the internet for some answers.

After research I found that PCOS was to blame for a lot of things in my life. Acne, facial hair, weight gain-I gained weight after I went off my pills too. It explained so much of what was going on with my body. Basically, your hormones are out of whack, you don't process sugar right to ovulate, and this also contributes to weight gain.

The next week was filled with internet searching, trying to find everything I could. When I went to my appt. with Dr. J, I made Carmon go with me because I was afraid of what I might hear. I had a list of several questions that I was expecting to get answered-after all we WERE dealing with my baby making organs. Dr. J was horrible. He came into the room, with me on the exam table and Carmon in the chair.

He stood by the sink in the room and said, "Have you heard of PCOS?"
I replied with a "Yeah, they told me thats what I had so I got on the internet and did some research."
He responded, "Everything you see there is pretty much accurate."

He was going to offer NO explanation what-so-ever. I immediately got aggravated, but went to my list of questions. With each question I would ask he got closer and closer to the door. It was like he didn't have the time of day for me. Carmon also noticed this and to this day can't stand him. He said if Dr. J would have walked out of the room he was going to knock the you know what out of him. His suggestion was to put me back on the pill for like 3 months then go on Clomid-a fertility drug.

I know that I would be grateful for however many kids God would bless me with at once, but I didn't want to go straight to fertility drugs because I would prefer only one at a time. With my mom being a twin and Carmon having twins on his side of the family I felt we had a good enough chance of having multiples.
Needless to say as soon as I got back to work that day I was looking for a new doctor, to at least get a second opinion.
Sorry...that's all for tonight.

Giveaway...just not from me!

Head on over to Alaina's blog at Three Ladies and a Dad to enter up to three times to win a $10 gift card. It's an awesome deal-you get to pick from your choice of 5 different places!

Gone, but not forgotten

Today, like any normal day, I checked my e-mail. There was one titled "You're unique 6-month-old: What will he do next?". This sent a whirlwind of emotions through me(I think my hormones are still out of whack, but it's still tough too). As some of you recall this time last year I had to deal with one of the biggest upsets in my life. With this e-mail I decided I'm going to take my blog back in time for a while. With that in mind....

It was the beginning of July 2006. Grandma had just recently been diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer. She had begun treatment and was an inspiration to all of us. The one wish she had was to see her great-grand kids. Carmon and I had been together for 6 years, married for almost 1. It may have been a little sooner than we wanted, but it was worth having babies early if it meant that much to my granny. I stopped taking my birth control and started having CRAZY cycles. I had been on bc since I was 17, so I had no idea what my periods would be like without it. Well, needless to say, "she" came for six weeks straight. Left, came back, left, came back. I never knew when she was gonna come. There was one point when I went 2 months without her- imagine my excitement. I was keeping EPT in business.

During this time Grandma's cancer had spread throughout her body and unfortunately she lost her battle with cancer, not seeing any of her great-grandchildren. She did get to see Matt's son via ultrasound.

Time passed and I could never get regular or two lines on that stick. I had been seeing Dr. J, as we'll call him, for quite some time now. He had always been good to me and I had no reason to change. After about 8 months of trying and irregular periods and pain I decided there may be something wrong. Dr. J did some tests and ultrasounds and we figured out what the problem was. It was his solution and answers to my questions that soon became my bigger problem. I'm ending here for tonight. My PRECIOUS cherub is sleeping and Mommy should be too!