Hello everyone, It's time for an update! My blog itself needs an update but the wonderful gal that normally does my blog makeovers just had a baby so I am just waiting on her to have some spare time to work on my blog :) First off. Maddox turned 3, yes THREE years old on March 23rd. It's hard for even me to believe it's been 3 years already. Time just really flies! He is such a loving little guy. But he also is very very very frustrating. We are having a lot of difficulty with the "terrible threes." I thought the terrible twos were horrific enough but sure enough three is worse just as everyone warned us. He is into EVERYTHING. He is very defiant and does not like to listen. Punishments seem to have little effect on him and I am really just at my wits end. Parenting is truly the hardest job. You have this little person YOU are in charge of. You are in charge of their well being. It is YOU who influences how they will be when they grow up and become adults. I just want my son to be a polite, caring, giving man who works hard and contributes to society. I feel like I am some how failing him. I am at a loss of where to go from here. But together, (my husband and I) we will figure it out. Our son has a good heart and he IS a loving little boy. His attitude just needs a LOT of work. Then, we have Sawyer. Our 6 months (almost 7 months in 4 days! How is that even possible???) who is the sweetest, lovingest, smiliest little baby i've ever met. He is just such a beautiful soul. When I was pregnant with him and found out I was having yet ANOTHER boy, I was more than devastated. My whole life I have dreamt of having a daughter and here I was having my second son. But, now that he is here, I can't imagine having another baby. He is such a blessing and I love him more than words can possibly ever describe. God sure knew what he was doing, as always. <3 Sawyer is so different from his big brother. Maddox was always early to do everything. He sat early, he crawled early and he he walked super duper early. Sawyer just does things on his own his time schedule. He is almost 7 months and is just now FINALLY what I would call a full on sitter. :) We are so proud of him. I blogged a lot more often when Maddox was little and had all his stats from all his well checks written down. So, even though I don't blog as much as I did then, I am going to post all of Sawyer's stats so that I can remember them.

Birth: 7lbs 11oz, 18.5"

16 days (he was in the NICU until 15 days): 8lbs (25th%) 19.75" (40th%)

1 month: 10lbs 11oz (80th%) 20.5" (25th%)

2 months: 12lbs 3oz (75th%) 21.75" (15th%)

4 months: 13lbs 13oz (8%) 24.25" (15%)

6 months: 16lbs 4oz (20th%) 25" (4th%)

So, we pretty much have a little peanut on our hands ;-) Which is so different from Maddox because he was ALWAYS at the upper ends of the charts for both height and weight. Once he hit 9 months, his height never went below 90th% lol! Eric's side of the family is short, so I think Sawyer is destined for shortness :) It's okay though, he's got the brains to make up for it. He is 6 months months old and already loves books! He is going to be so book smart! I am so proud of my children. They are so different but both perfect in their own ways! <3 Now time for a few photos!

This is Maddox at Red Robin on his Birthday. Is he not one handsome little dude? <3

blowing out his candle at Chuck 'E Cheese!

Here is Sawyer on his half birthday! <3

Today at the park.. Sawyer was looking super enthused with mommy! lol ;-)

Here's my sweet Maddox at the park today :)

Sawyer enjoying the scenery now that he can OFFICIALLY sit up! <3 So proud of my munchkin!

Maddox was having a great time :)

playin' in the gravel =)

This is where we were hanging out today. Such a beautiful day with a beautiful view. <3

Time for a MUCH needed update. Around 30 weeks pregnant, things got just a little big CRAZY around the Lloyd house hold. First of all, I had SEVERE SPD (Symphysis pubis dysfunction) which makes walking, sleeping, bending down and just moving basically excruciating. It was at this time we made the hard decision that I would stay in GA at my parent's house where I could get help with Maddox (my 2 year old) since Eric's work schedule was less than ideal for him to be much help. It wasn't his fault, he just had a job to do and that was that.

Around 33 weeks pregnant, I went into premature labor. The contractions were intense. I went into labor and delivery and they were able to stop the contractions with breathine, Terbutaline, and then I was put on procardia every 6 hours. I was already dilated to 1.5cm at 33 weeks. I was supposed to be on modified bedrest, but I still had Maddox to take care of. Even though my mom and grandma were there to help and pick up some of the slack, my mom had a full time job and it was BUSY BUSY season for her. She was so stressed out and felt like she needed to be at 10 places at once. There were many L&D trips to come. Each time I was given shots of terb and breathine and it would seem to calm them down just enough for me to be discharged and so far my cervix wasn't changing much which was good news.

On a Sunday at 36 weeks 4 days pregnant I felt really off and had some terrible pain in my lower abdomen along with my contractions. I went straight to L&D. They did the usual. Put in an IV, drew blood, etc. When my blood work came back my iron had dropped a couple of points and it was then they realized my old c-section scar from Maddox's c-section was pulling apart and abrupting. Within 35 minutes I was back in the OR with a spinal in my back having my c-section. When Sawyer first came out, I heard I cry and I had a sigh of relief but then it all went silent and I could hear the NICU team rustling around whispering things. Finally I heard them shout, "START THE CHEST COMPRESSIONS, PUSH THE EPI" I kept asking if he was okay and noone really answered me. One nurse told me these things just sometimes happened and he probably just had extra fluid in his lungs. However, that was not the case. He had very immature lungs.

After I was all sewn up and everything I was wheeled to the recovery and a bit later the NICU doctor came to see me. He told me Sawyer was on 100% Oxygen on the ventilator as of right now but had just been given surfactant to open up the lungs and they should be able to turn down the settings shortly. He was very to the point. He told me Sawyer's lungs were not mature and over the next couple weeks they would need to have time to mature and develop as they would have in the womb. His birth will definitely stick with me forever as one of the most terrifying moments of my life. I kept thinking "surely my 36 weeker is going to make, surely we are going to get through this!" Sawyer was in the NICU for a total of 15 days and came home nice and healthy. He is such a sweet baby and such a blessing to our family. It's so hard to believe he is already 4.5 months old! His birth stats are as follows:

September 25, 2011
10:25pm
7lbs 11oz, 18.5" long

last preggo picture

hours after birth

his sign the nurses made him

step 1 - off the vent and on cpap

first time holding him - i was soooo swollen

step 2 - off cpap and on nasal cannula

step 3 - just feeding tube!

tube free!!!

my sweet pea the day before he came home!

and here he is yesterday with some Valentine's goodies <3 Time goes by so fast!

30 week update!

How far along? 30 weeks, 1 day

Maternity clothes? Yep!

Gain? 15ish pounds.. ugh!!

Stretch marks? No new ones. <--same

Sleep? Some nights are better than others. I tend to not sleep more than 3-4 hour intervals without waking up.

Best moment this week? I'm in the single digits (weeks) till my c-section. I am so utterly and completely miserable!

Movement? Yes and lots of painful ones!

Foods I am loving? sweets! Hello poundage!

Foods I am hating? Chicken.

Symptoms? Migraines, mood swings, HOT flashes, random waves of nausea, horrible pubic area pain and since last week... HEARTBURN

Gender? Still a boy!

What I'm looking forward to? Holding him on the outside!! Full-term and healthy of course.. just wish I could speed up time!

Weekly Wisdom: I'm fresh out of wisdom lol

Milestones: Made it to THIRTY weeks!!

30 WEEKS!

Your baby's about 15.7 inches long now, and she weighs almost 3 pounds (like a head of cabbage). A pint and a half of amniotic fluid surrounds her, but that volume will decrease as she gets bigger and takes up more room in your uterus. Her eyesight continues to develop, though it's not very keen; even after she's born, she'll keep her eyes closed for a good part of the day. When she does open them, she'll respond to changes in light but will have 20/400 vision — which means she can only make out objects a few inches from her face. (Normal adult vision is 20/20.)

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My baby shower is Saturday.. so we have been getting ready for that. It's going to be at my parent's house.. so my mom has been running around trying to get it spick and span for that. That is a daunting task with a 5000 sq. foot home.. especially when a 2 year old is following her around getting into everything! Today I went to the mall and picked up a couple casual comfy maternity shirts for my shower. They're both solid.. one is black and one is white with the ruching on the sides. I feel like it's the only style top that looks decent on me these days. I also got my niece's birthday gift. I got her a pair of Sketcher's twinkle toes and they light up! She is going to love them! She is 2 and already a little shoe freak! Hmm.. not sure what else to say really. Anything else I could say would be me complaining lol. I am honestly soooo miserable and wish I had a time machine so I could speed up the next 9 weeks until my c-section! I am so physically ready to have this baby on the outside! I am in excruciating pain every.single.day. But, I know it will all be worth it when I see my son's little face! Just gotta hang in there a little longer!!!

3D ultrasound and Maddox pictures!

How far along? 28 weeks, 3 days!

Maternity clothes? Yep!

Gain? Still around 10lbs total.

Stretch marks? No new ones. <--same

Sleep? Maddox is sleeping better so I am too! But, my anemia is kicking my butt, I am sooo exhausted!

Best moment this week? Getting my 3D ultrasound yesterday, litte man looks just like his big bro!

Movement? I've been feeling some crazy punches near my bladder, super low in my pelvis and what I think is some knees going across my belly at the top. As of yesterday he was head down and low, low, low!

Foods I am loving? Homemade pizza, grilled cheese, cheese fries (from sonic)

Foods I am hating? Chicken.

Symptoms? Migraines, mood swings, HOT flashes, random waves of nausea, horrible pubic area pain and since last week... HEARTBURN

Gender? Definitely a boy!

What I'm looking forward to? Him getting bigger and being able to indentify more body part (like knees, butt, etc). and my baby shower coming up!

Weekly Wisdom: I'm fresh out of wisdom lol

Milestones: baby is 2.5 + lbs!

28 weeks

How your baby's growing:

By this week, your baby weighs two and a quarter pounds (like a Chinese cabbage) and measures 14.8 inches from the top of her head to her heels. She can blink her eyes, which now sport lashes. With her eyesight developing, she may be able to see the light that filters in through your womb. She's also developing billions of neurons in her brain and adding more body fat in preparation for life in the outside world.

Pictures of baby boy from our 3D ultrasound!

And just for comparison, I did a little collage of Maddox and baby boy's 3D ultrasounds... the top two are baby boy and the bottom two are Maddox!

And again, I was going to post a bunch of pictures of Maddox but apparently they're too big or something and blogger uploader keeps "timing out." I will resize them I suppose and update them later tonight. I have more to upload anyway :)

Okay, Maddox pics as promised!
Maddox LOVES swimming!

Makin' pizza

mommy's monkey!

bubble bath! Maddox says "bobbles!"

my reason for living! <3

Third Trimester!

How far along? 27 weeks, 1 day!

Maternity clothes? Pants, yes! I can still wear some pre-pregnancy shirts and dresses.

Gain? I've gained 5lbs in the last 2 weeks.. making me up 10lbs total now. I think some of it is fluid due to the extreme heat and i've been on steroids from being really sick.

Stretch marks? No new ones.

Sleep? I wake up a lot in the night and my 2 year old has been sleeping like crap! But, I try to sleep when I can!

Best moment this week? Starting the 3rd trimester!!!

Movement? He's been moving a lot lately and some of the kicks feel really weird! Lol

Foods I am loving? Sonic! Bacon, egg and cheese toasters, cheese fries and grilled cheese!

Foods I am hating? Most things just don't sound good these days!

Symptoms? Migraines, mood swings, HOT flashes, random waves of nausea & horrible pubic area pain

Gender? Still a boy!!

What I'm looking forward to? Feeling him roll and my belly getting rounder and bigger =)

Weekly Wisdom: Keep cool in this intense heat and if you have a young toddler... rest when they rest!

Milestones: Just hit my 3rd trimester yesterday and realized I have about 83 days until my scheduled csection!!

27 weeks!

How your baby's growing:
This week, your baby weighs almost 2 pounds (like a head of cauliflower) and is about 14 1/2 inches long with her legs extended. She's sleeping and waking at regular intervals, opening and closing her eyes, and perhaps even sucking her fingers. With more brain tissue developing, your baby's brain is very active now. While her lungs are still immature, they would be capable of functioning — with a lot of medical help — if she were to be born now. Chalk up any tiny rhythmic movements you may be feeling to a case of baby hiccups, which may be common from now on. Each episode usually lasts only a few moments, and they don't bother her, so just relax and enjoy the tickle.

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I've been really sick pretty much the entire time we've been in GA visiting. It's some type of viral sinus/bronchitis crap that almost everyone in my family had a least a touch of. Everyone is better now and i'm still wheezing and hacking up a lung like an 80 year old man who smokes a few packs of cigs a day. Yesterday I went to the doctor for the 4th time lol. Apparently, my asthma is seriously acting up this pregnancy. I've never had issues with my asthma like this. I always have a lot of wheezing and chest congestion when I get bronchitis due to my asthma but it never lasts this long. My doctor (who was my doctor pretty much my entire childhood/young adult hood and is my mom's dr) consulted with an OB in town & together they put me on a serious course of steriods (prednisone). I'm taking 2 - 20mg tabs a day for 10 days. Yesterday I also got a steroid shot (decadron) in my bum for fasting action till the oral steroids kick in. I'm still on breathing treatments (albuterol) every 6 hours and taking Advair and antibiotics - just in case although it's likely totally viral since i'm still having issues. It's been really difficult being pregnant.. especially big and pregnant and this sick. Last Friday was the 3rd time I went to the doctor and they did 2 breathing treatments in office and sent me for an xray thinking it was possibly pneumonia. Xrays are like forbidden when pregnant, so I know my doctor was really worried. Xrays came back okay, thankfully, but when the breathing treatments didn't do much and I was having horrible body aches and a nasty migraine, they sent me over to the ER to get fluids and iv pain medication. I've definitely felt a bit better since the fluids and my body aches haven't been like they were then. I'm just still dealing with this annoying wheezing and coughing. Well... enough about my sickies.

I'm trying to think of anything else pertinent. Oh - I have my 3D ultrasound scheduled for July 30th! I'm really excited to see my little guy again! Also, my mom and best friend Liz are about to start planning my baby shower. It's going to be about a week before I leave.. so maybe August 13th or 14th. Other than that nothing much is going on! I have seriously been slacking on taking pictures of Maddox... but I am going to try to get back in the picture groove asap! When I get some, I'll make a picture post!

For some reason I am having lots of issues adding photos on here and it's annoying me! LOL. I will figure it out! But for now, i'm going to post my weekly pregnancy survey. Being that is technically Thursday.. I am 25 weeks pregnant! =)

How far along? 25 weeks!

Maternity clothes? Pants, yes! I can still wear some pre-pregnancy shirts and dresses.

Gain? up 4lbs

Stretch marks? No new ones.

Sleep? I just found out from last weeks blood work that I am anemic and that explains why i've been feeling so exhausted. Today was day 2 on iron supplements. When I do sleep I can not get very comfortable. Due to my SPD (basically my pelvic bones are loose) I can't sleep on my sides as it's much too painful. Sleeping on my back is getting a bit uncomfortable b/c my belly is growing more each and every day. I foresee me sleeping in the recliner starting in the near future lol.

Best moment this week? I felt some seriously hard kicks! I can also feel baby when i'm standing up and walking around as of lately.

Movement? This little boy has his personality already. He seems pretty laid back. There are times i'll barely feel him and i'll get a little freaked out and then there are some times where he's moovin' and groovin' all over!

Foods I am loving? CHOCOLATE <3 and grilled cheese yumm

Foods I am hating? onions.. the smell of onions.. yuck!

Symptoms? Migraines, mood swings, HOT flashes, random waves of nausea & horrible pubic area pain

Gender? Still a boy!!

What I'm looking forward to? Feeling him roll and my belly getting rounder and bigger =)

Weekly Wisdom: Keep cool in this intense heat and if you have a young toddler... rest when they rest!

Milestones: 2 weeks until the 3rd Trimester! It's hard to believe. Oh and I PASSED my gestational diabetes test!!!

How your baby's growing

Head to heels, your baby now measures about 13 1/2 inches. Her weight — a pound and a half — isn't much more than an average rutabaga, but she's beginning to exchange her long, lean look for some baby fat. As she does, her wrinkled skin will begin to smooth out and she'll start to look more and more like a newborn. She's also growing more hair — and if you could see it, you'd now be able to discern its color and texture.

It's been a while (again!)

*I wrote this post on Wednesday night and then blogger wouldn't let me post it! Then I tried again a couple days ago and it wouldn't post.. so everything is in past tense now lol. We are in GA and i'm currently 24 weeks 3 days pregnant!*

It's been a little bit again since i've last blogged! I just can't seem to get in the blogging mood daily or even weekly like I used to! I blogged nearly everyday of Maddox's pregnancy and I really need to blog more often about my current pregnancy!

Tomorrow I will be 24 weeks!!! 24 weeks = viability which is a huge milestone. This pregnancy has gone by so much quicker than Maddox's ever did! I guess it's very true that being a mommy already and having a toddler to keep up with makes the weeks go by much faster! I took my 1-hour gestational diabetes test today which was totally yucky! Hopefully I will pass and not have to take the 3-hour test. They will only call me if the results are abnormal, so no news will be good news! I am starting to feel baby boy more and more.. but today he's been pretty quiet. I hope he perks up here in a little bit.

Tomorrow evening we will be headed to the SEA-TAC airport and headed for a long visit in Georgia! I am so excited! Unfortunately Eric will only be there for a few days, but Maddox and I are staying until August 20th! We will definitely miss Daddy, but it will be nice to spend time with some family and be back in the South again. I know Daddy will also enjoy the bliss of a quiet house and just having his own time.. for about a week.. then he'll be wishing we were home Lol! I know by August 20th I will be more than ready to be in my own house again as well! Eric will be out in the field from the beginning of August until August 19th which is another reason we are staying so long. My mom and best friend Liz are throwing me a baby shower some time in August, so that is something to look forward to!

Here are several pregnancy questions I am going to try and do weekly (at the very least, even if I don't post much else) so I can remember baby boy #2's pregnancy better. =)

How far along? 23 weeks 6 days!

Maternity clothes? Pants, yes! I can still wear some pre-pregnancy shirts and dresses.

Gain? up 3-4 lbs depending on the day.

Stretch marks? No new ones.

Sleep? I am so tired during the day that I almost always end up napping with Maddox and then have a horrible time falling asleep at night.. therefore i'm tired again the next day lol.

Best moment this week? I think i'm feeling baby's hiccups!

Movement? Yes. More each day.

Foods I am loving? Hershey's milk chocolate recently & foods with tomato sauce/products like ketchup, spaghetti, spaghettios lol, stuff like that!

Foods I am hating? Not a fan of fried stuff lately.

Symptoms? Migraines, mood swings, HOT flashes, random waves of nausea & horrible pubic area pain

Gender? Still a boy!!

What I'm looking forward to? Feeling him roll and my belly getting rounder and bigger =)

Weekly Wisdom: If it's hot outside and you're going to be walking a lot (at the zoo for example)... DON'T wear maternity jeans with the full belly panel. They are so hot! Lol

Milestones: Tomorrow we reach viability! =)

Blogger is currently not letting me post photos! When it does I will post a few of Maddox and the newest ultrasound photos of baby boy!