Gorgeous Girl

Almost 4 weeks (We already have a guitar teacher for her!)

Photos by Ashley Lowder Photography
She's a friend of mine and does GREAT work!

5 weeks

Bluebird Pictures did my niece's newborn pictures. My sister invited us to Maci's 3 month pictures for a little cousins photo shoot. We had so much fun! I'll post those when we get them.

By the way, Bluebird Pictures has a free photo session contest going on right now!

Who Needs a Gallbladder?

Two weeks after having Luci, I was feeling pretty good. She came two weeks before I was supposed to be induced, so I had already been recovering and was moving around. I decided to go to Back to School Night so that I could actually meet my students and their parents before I turned them over to my substitute for the first four weeks of school.

The night went pretty well and I met the majority of my students. I decided to cut out a little early because I could (and I had to get home to feed Luci). On my way out of the school I called Eli to see how he and Lucia were doing. While I was talking to him, I broke out in sweats and felt really dizzy and nauseous. I figured I just needed something to eat since I had just had lunch that day. Eli asked what he should start for dinner and I told him I didn't care because food sounded gross.

As soon as I got to my car I couldn't move. I climbed into the driver's seat and was doubled over. I couldn't move and I could barely talk. I was in so much pain. I sat there for 15 minutes while Eli debated calling an ambulance. I told him I would grab my co-worker/friend and have her drive me to the hospital. Eli took Lucia to a friend's house and came to meet us at the school.

My friend Nicole drove me to the hospital while Eli followed and my mom met us there. By the time we got to the ER I was feeling much better. I was a little dizzy, but felt so much better. Eli and my mom insisted that I get checked out. So I was admitted and examined. I had an ultrasound and blood work done. Turns out that I had major gallstones and inflammation of the gallbladder, but I was doing better, so I was sent home with pain meds and a number to a specialist because I needed to have my gallbladder removed.

I called the specialist Tuesday morning and settled in for a day with my baby girl. I was taking a nap with Luci on my chest. Eli was downstairs working. His company was nice enough to let him take half days on Tuesdays and Thursdays to help me out. I called him up to get Luci because I could feel an attack coming on. I don't think he realized how much pain I was in, but he just stood there while I writhed (I really did) in pain. I screamed, cried, whimpered, etc. He finally called my sister to come stay with Lucia and his pal Jordy to come give me a blessing. Not to mention he made a few phone calls to the specialist demanding I be seen as soon as possible.

We were finally able to get to the doctor's office where they got me in right away, but of course it took some time for us to be seen because of all the paperwork. The doctor finally came in, looked at my ultrasound (and was shocked they sent me home), got me in a wheelchair and Eli rolled me to the hospital. There we had to wait a little longer for more paperwork and admittance stuff, plus a urine test (to make sure I wasn't pregnant!), and an IV hookup.

I don't really remember the surgery because I was completely under. I remember waking up though and having the worst sore throat ever. I've never experienced a breathing tube and hope I don't ever have to again. I could barely sit up in bed because my incisions hurt so badly (I have four). Not to mention I was pretty incoherent. I was in and out for close to six hours. I really had no concept of time. I was finally released when I could hold down some soup and walk around without too much help.

At the end of the day, it was a crazy experience. Recovery wasn't fun, but fairly quick. The lortab they gave me knocked my baby out when I fed her. But Eli was home the rest of the week to help out. I love him. Oh, and if you're interested in seeing a gallbladder removed, go Google "gallbladder laparoscopic surgery". I'm so glad I didn't see it before. Nasty!

One more thing, this attack hit me out of nowhere. I'm relatively healthy. I asked the doctor why this issue hit so hard. He told me the risk factors are : genetics, fertile, female, and fat (having it and eating it). I have all of the factors, so I would have had to had it removed eventually. If you feel pain or discomfort when you put your hand under your right ribs, breathe in deep, and give a little push, you might want to have your gallbladder checked out!

Captain America Induces Labor

It was Saturday night, August 6, and Eli and I decided to go out for date night. I was getting bigger and more uncomfortable. Baby Girl was due in 3 weeks. We figured we might be running out of time on how often we'd be able to go out. We settled on our typical date, dinner and a movie. You can never go wrong with that combo.

We decided to hit up Asian Buffet. It probably wasn't the best choice, but I was major craving and due to the gestational diabetes, I'd held off on carbs for a LONG time. I wanted to reward myself a little. After dinner we headed next door to watch Captain America. We're big fans of the Marvel comics movies (and are super excited for The Avengers).

As soon as we settled in and ready to watch, the contractions started. I wasn't too concerned. I'd been experiencing Braxton Hick's contractions for the past couple of weeks. I sat back and did my best to enjoy the movie. About a quarter of the way through the movie, I realized that I was still having contractions. I told Eli and he whipped out his phone and use the contraction app he had downloaded earlier. My contractions were consistently 20 minutes apart. By the end of the movie they were 15 minutes apart. I still wasn't too worried though because the contractions weren't painful.

Sunday morning, August 7, I woke up and realized that I hadn't felt Baby Girl very much. I did a kick count and was a little concerned. Eli and I decided to go to the hospital and do a non-stress test. I was supposed to be doing them twice a week anyway due to the diabetes and I missed the second time that week.

I got to the hospital and got hooked up to the monitors pretty quickly...and then was left there for almost two hours. Usually the NST takes about 30 minutes. The nurses were pretty busy. I believe there were 8 babies delivered that morning and they were running all over. I'd done enough tests that I knew everything was okay. The baby's heartbeat was strong and consistent and my blood pressure was fine. I did ask the nurse (when she finally came back) about my contractions. They were about 10 minutes apart. The nurse informed me that it was normal and I shouldn't worry unless they were hurting, 3-5 minutes apart for 30 minutes, or if my water broke. We were sent home and told to rest.

We got home, had some lunch, and after deciding that I couldn't sit through 3 hours of church, we settled down to take a nap. That was about 2 hours after leaving the hospital. I got all comfy and laid down. As soon as I got in bed I felt a sharp pain in my abdomen and my stomach got super hard - another contraction. It went away and I tried to get comfy again. Not too long after I went through another contraction. Eli started timing. 20 minutes later he called the hospital, told them my contractions were 5 minutes and painful. We headed to the hospital again.

As soon as we got there, they hooked me up in the same room as before and checked my vitals. The nurse came in and informed me that I was dilated to 4 cm and had a "droopy bag". Side note* The week before at my appointment I was at a 2 and 100% effaced.* The nurse said that they would go ahead and admit me. I was sure to tell her that I wanted an epidural. The anesthesiologist had just left, so it would take a while to get him back, but they would get him.

I got moved to a delivery room and hooked up to all the machines there. By the time I was admitted and hooked up, it was about 4:00. It had been about 2 hours since my contractions started and they were getting pretty intense. The nurse checked me again and I was at 6 cm. She was surprised. Most people moved about a cm an hour and I had changed 2. No biggie though. The anesthesiologist made it then and hooked me up with the good stuff.

After that it was just a waiting game. My family showed up. My in-laws were on their way (from Scipio and Logan). I could still feel the contractions, but they weren't painful anymore, just uncomfortable. I was stocked up on ice chips and Eli was being awesome. The doctor came in and broke my water when I was about 7 cm.

The nurses came in and checked and kept me posted. Around 6:45 I called in the nurse because I was pretty sure something was going on. I had the nurse check me again and I was at 9 3/4 cm! I was super freaked out. Labor was happening and I really felt unprepared. The nurse came back about 15-20 minutes later and checked me again. I was at a 10!

I was waiting for the doctor to come in, but the nurses reminded me that the doctor typically doesn't come until a head is seen. My brothers and father-in-law left the room and I was left with the nurses, Eli, my mom, my two sisters, and my mother-in-law. I know that's a lot of people, but it made the delivery so much easier!

The nurse started me pushing. I was so scared that I was going to have to push for hours. When it was time for Melissa to push with Maci, she only pushed for 30 minutes. I was convinced that since I progressed so quickly, I was going to have to push for a long time. The nurse ran for the doctor on the second contraction. Eli had seen a head of hair already! When I finished with my fourth contraction, Miranda asked the doctor about how much longer. The nurse said, "Probably another five contractions." The next contraction hit, I pushed, and my baby was delivered! 19 1/2 minutes of pushing. My doctor held the baby, looked at Eli with a grin, and said, "Five more. Pish!"
It was such an amazing experience! Our little Monica Lucia was born at 7:25 pm, was 5lbs. 8 oz., and 17 inches long. Eli cut the umbilical cord and went with her to the nursery. She had retractions when she was born and didn't cry, so they had to suck her lungs out. She had about 15 ml of amniotic fluid, but she was healthy!

I cannot even explain the elation I felt when she was born. When doctor put her in my arms (messy and all), everything else disappeared. The love I felt at that moment for Luci and Eli is unexplainable. Everything in the world was right and perfect.

Tender Mercies

My dad passed away almost a week ago, Tuesday night (5-31-11). He was in a fatal car accident while driving with his friend in his Shelby Cobra (for those of you who know my dad, it was fast). I have replayed Tuesday night over and over in my head. I was concerned with finishing up the last week of school and getting some sleep. Eli and I had had a few late nights in a row.

My sister and mom were in St. George. Melissa had an appointment with her doctor. She was planning on being induced on Saturday (6-4). My mom was going to stay with her the week because J, her husband, was in Texas working. My two brothers were on their way to California to help a family friend move. Miranda and my dad were at home.

I got a call from my brother Josh telling me that I needed to call Miranda and pick her up because Dad had been in a car accident. I called Miranda and talked to her. She was staying at a neighbor's house and said she would be fine there. I then called my mom and asked her what was going on. She was on her way home with Melissa. There had been an accident and no one knew anything, not even where my dad had been taken. Jake and Josh were going to get on a flight as soon as possible and come home as soon as they got to their destination.

I couldn't sit around. Eli and I were restless. I called hospitals trying to find my dad. I didn't want him to be by himself. Nothing. No one had someone checked in by the name of Jared Budge. Eli has a friend on the police force, so we called him to see if he could help us. He advised us to call dispatch. I did. They knew nothing but "would call as soon as they knew something." I still haven't heard from them.

Eli and I went to pick up Miranda and wait at my parent's home to hear something and meet my mom and sister when they got back three hours later. While we were there, the bishop of my parent's ward came to check on us. He asked if we'd heard anything. After we told him no, he said he'd come check on us later. He came back 10 minutes later. I knew something was wrong.

Bishop was with us when we called my mom. He was there when she told us that Dad had not made it; he had been killed instantly. Eli, Miranda, and I held each other while Bishop looked on. I couldn't believe it. This is the second father I've lost; the second husband my mom has lost.

Since then, we've gotten so many letters, phone calls, messages from all of our family and friends. It has been absolutely amazing. Among many of the messages I have received, I've read many of the same words: "It's not fair," "Why did it have to happen?" and "You must feel terrible."

I would like to let you know of the peace I feel. Although this tragic event has happened, I'm okay. It sounds strange to word it this way, but the Lord has truly blessed us. Let me explain why I named this post "Tender Mercies."

My brother Jake has been gone for the past two years in Mexico. He's been serving as a missionary for the Church for the past two years. He came home Saturday, May 28th. Three days before my dad passed on. Jake's plane was delayed twice. He was supposed to be in around noon, then 4 pm, and he finally came in after 5 pm. As a result, Eli and I spent the whole day with my dad and family in Salt Lake. We were also with my grandparents, aunts, uncles, and several cousins.

2 weeks ago, Bishop asked Jake to speak in church the day after he got back. Again, the whole day with even more family and friends, ALL DAY. Memorial Day was Monday. Eli and I again spent the day with my immediate family. We had a BBQ, we played rummy, and just relaxed and listened to music. Three AMAZING family filled days. My dad was so happy.

Tuesday morning, before everyone went their separate ways, Dad took Jake to the honey house. He taught him how to bottle honey, how to do the paper work, took him on a delivery, and gave him all his best sales pitches. Now, Jake knows all about the business.

Two weekends ago, my mom and dad were able to spend a few days in San Diego, away from everyone. My dad had been on business for two weeks and felt the need to spend time with my mom. They had a blast. I've never seen two people more in love.

My sister Melissa's doctor wanted to induce her Tuesday at her appointment. Her husband still wasn't in from Texas, so she said no. If J had been there, she would have been induced and in labor when the accident happened. Because she said no, she and my mom were able to turn around and come back home.

My dad has been trying to do his own thing for work with a partner the past couple of years. Three months ago, he started a new job with Adobe that he kind of fell into. It was a well paying job with benefits that started immediately, including life insurance. He loved it there.

And crazy enough, to make some decisions easier, about five days before he passed away, my dad was talking to Josh and Melissa about where he would like to be buried. He had been thinking about it lately. He was torn between Malad (where everyone else in the family is buried) and American Fork (where he's lived the past ten years). He said American Fork was home and they had a nice cemetery and always kept up with the landscaping. We found him a gorgeous plot in AF City Cemetery.

With all of the difficulty that comes along with losing someone you love, we've felt extremely blessed. We have been given so many wonderful memories and opportunities to spend with my dad. He was the happiest he's ever been, spiritually, physically, family-wise. He went out at the top of his game. The peak. He was only 45 years old, but lived more than most do at 90.

The night we found out, we were able to have the Bishop with us. As a result, I was able to receive a blessing from him and my husband. I cannot tell you the peace and love I felt that night. I was not angry, I did not question God. I knew, without a doubt, that it was my dad's time to go. I don't know why it was, but I knew that all would be okay. It will take time, but I know that we will all be okay.

I know that God loves me. He has blessed me immensely with love and support from family and friends everywhere. He has not left me alone to deal with this. Because of the things that I know and believe, I know that I will see my dad again. I will be with my family forever. I know that the power of prayer is real. There is someone who hears me and loves me and knows me. I have seen His mercy in all of the events leading up to this tragic accident.

And most of all, He gives us things to buoy us up. Yesterday, the day after my dad's funeral, my sister Melissa had her baby. She had a beautiful, healthy baby girl named Maci Jayne. She was born June 5th at 11:57 p.m. She is 19 1/2 inches long and 8 lbs. 3 oz. She has the sweetest, calmest disposition.

I know that my dad will always be watching over us. I know that I will see him again.

*Some people have been asking. We have set up a memorial fund to help my mom and family still at home out. You can find the information for the fund at Budge's Honey. We are all in deed grateful from all of the love and support. Thank you again.

Recover Restart Japan Benefit Concert

I don't know how many of you know, but I have family in Japan. My uncle served a mission for the LDS Church in Japan back in the day, ended up moving back after college and getting married, and raised his six kids there. Since then, three of his kids also served missions for the Church there in Tokyo and Sendai. I currently have one cousin who lives in Tokyo with his wife and two kids.

My cousin L was working in Tokyo when the earthquake hit. He said that while looking out the window of his office, he could literally see the building next to his swaying. His wife (who was pregnant) was at home with A. With all of the constant aftershocks that were going on, phones and transportation were down, and L ended up walking home in 3 hours.

A few days later, with aftershocks still hitting and after the devastation caused by the tsunami, L decided to fly B and A back to the states. B was having major contractions and baby C was majorly stressing in the womb. Not only that, there was no food or water. I talked with B when they got here to Utah and she was in tears going grocery shopping and seeing the full shelves here. The baby calmed down and she came a few days after their arrival. They now have a beautiful baby girl.

After growing up in Japan and having tons of friends there, my other cousin, David, decided to put on a benefit concert with his amazingly talented band and other equally talented people. Eli and I went last night and it was awesome! All of the donations made are going straight to Civic Force in Japan and it will directly be used to help over there. I just wanted to show some highlights and share their talents and if you feel so inclined to help Japan out a little bit, David is still accepting donations at Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief.

You can also check out my cousins band. They're pretty good and play a TON of local shows. You can check out the other guys too. Not too shabby.Blind Actuaries (my cousin is the guy in the back)
Fun fact: The 3 white guys grew up in Japan and attended ASIJ together. The Asian did not.

Caleb Blood

Nik Day

Our little Coconut is...

For those of you who don't know what I mean by coconut, I mean brown on the outside and white on the inside. Of course I am assuming that my darker coloring will be dominant, but in all reality, we could have a blonde hair, blue-eyed little GIRL!!

I was so surprised and shocked! This whole time I've really felt like we were having a boy. We had a name picked out, I had chosen the bedding that I wanted for the nursery, and I was so excited for my sister to make me a little onesie with a vest and tie.

About 2 seconds after the initial shock wore off, we were ecstatic! We're having a little girl. Maci, my niece who is due in June, will have another little girl to play with. My dad is going to go out and get the play kitchen he wanted for the playroom. My mom is overjoyed! And my nieces are excited for us to continue with the tradition of having girls first.

She is healthy, strong, and ACTIVE! We got all her pictures taken before we found out what she was because she kept turning and flipping and crossing her legs. Right now her heartbeat is 156 bpm, 15.2cm (if I'm reading her chart right), and she weighs 11 oz. I've been able to feel her a lot more lately. I think it's more her just moving around than kicking. Oh, and she LOVES music! I'll put some tunes on my phone and lay it on my belly and she grooves. Love it! We can't wait to meet her! We're halfway there!

profile (see her nose, lips, and chin?)

5 perfect little fingers

I don't see her legs...

There is her little foot at the top!

She is super bendy! There is her profile on the left and her leg by her nose & eyes!

Tough Decisions

After we found out we were pregnant, we had a tough decision to make. We needed to figure out what we were going to do with our three “kids.” Eli and I have had Lima and Chorizo almost as long as we’ve been married. We were their first family after they were born. We’ve had Bruja since the day she was born. These puppies are our babies.

Unfortunately, as of lately, they’ve spend most of their time cooped up in their kennel while Eli and I are at work. Not to mention, we were worrying that they wouldn’t get enough attention when the baby gets here. AND, we’d like our family members to be able to visit us after the baby is born (some of them have bad allergies). So, we made the decision to find them new homes.

Lima and Chorizo are now with other families. Because they’ve meant so much to us, we were pretty picky about where they went. Chorizo ended up with a childhood friend and her son. He was trying to earn a puppy for having good behavior. He now gets to have Chorizo curl up with him on his toes. Lima went to one of Eli’s friend’s family in Wyoming. They LOVE her!

Now, If only we could find a home for Bruja. Interested...?

Student Involvement

If you have ever taught, then you know that your students try to get themselves involved in every aspect of your life. Before Eli and I got married, they were always asking questions about my dating life. When Eli and I got engaged, the majority of my class asked to be invited. I even had a student come back the following year asking why I didn't send her an invitation.

Naturally, after marriage comes the baby carriage, right? Every year my students ask me if I have kids or if I am ever going to have them or why I don't have any yet. This year's class is no different. I had one girl make me pinky promise to tell her first if I got pregnant.

It was super easy to keep it from them for the first 6 weeks because I didn't know the first month and I had virtually no symptoms. However, I hit week 8 and I was dealing with major morning sickness and I was tired all the time. I had to come up with excuses to run out of the room. I finally had to tell the VP because I was leaving my class so much. He would go in and check up on them or send in an aide to be with them.

The kids started freaking out because I would come back to class red faced and red eyed. I told them I had food poisoning, I ate a pickle from a jar that I didn't refrigerate after opening, and that I thought I was coming down with the flu. The same girl who made me pinky promise her advised me to start paying attention to what I was eating because I was getting sick too much.

On top of all of that, I fell asleep at school. I know. I had taken my students to the library and the librarian took them to the kiva for a book preview. The lights were low and she had such a soothing voice and it was the end of the day. I closed my eyes and next thing I knew I was sitting in the dark alone. I freaked. I went back to class because my students weren't in the library. Turns out the librarian sent them back to class and they were starting on their work (I have them trained well). The next day I had a student say, "I told my mom how you've been sick and how you fell asleep. She says you're pregnant." Ack! I denied it all.

The following week I had my appointment with my doctor. We were having our first ultrasound and were getting to the safe zone of pregnancy. I wasn't just going to tell them,

So much fun! The first girl who solved the puzzle nearly hyperventilated. I have to give her credit though, she didn't blurt out the message. She just asked to go to the restroom because she was so hot and needed to get out of the room! The students were so excited and several of them shouted out that they totally knew the whole time. Ha ha!

Before my 20 week ultrasound, the students wanted to weigh in. Before they cast their votes they made sure they had all the background information. How many brothers and sisters did I have? How many did Mr. Adams have? What about our nieces and nephews?

Out of the 27 students who voted, 81% said the coconut was going to be a boy. I think what did most of them in was the fact that Eli is the youngest of 4 boys and the majority of my nieces and nephews are girls. It was time to add another boy to the mix.

Telling the Parents

We chose not to tell our parents until it was closer to our ultrasound appointment. We wanted to make sure everything was good to go. We had a scare around 7 weeks and ended up having an ultrasound earlier than we expected. The baby's heartbeat was strong, so we went ahead and told our immediate families.

We used my dad's birthday as an excuse. His birthday isn't until March, but we found something that we absolutely could not wait to give him. We just got a cheap frame from the store and put our baby pictures in it with a picture of the positive pregnancy test. Love the reactions! Our baby will be the second grandchild by three months!



This is when we told Loyal & Tonia. You'll have to excuse the massive amounts of tissue paper; we couldn't find a smaller bag. We did the same thing for Eli's parents. We forgot to give Tonia her birthday present in December, so we just gave it to her late. Our baby will be their eighth grandchild.

Expanding

When Eli and I got married, we always talked about having kids. We wanted them sooner, not later, because we wanted to be young parents. I’ve always loved my mom, but as we’ve gotten “closer” in age, I feel even closer to her. She is definitely still the mother, but I consider her one of my closest friends. I wanted that with my own children. Not to mention, we wanted to be able to enjoy our kids. I can’t tell you how many parents I’ve met while teaching that are already in their mid-fifties when their kids are ten.

Eli and I decided to start “not trying” to not have kids early in 2008, a couple of months after we got married. We’d talked to the doctors and did some research and found that each month a couple has a 20% chance of getting pregnant and most couples take closer to a year to conceive when they start actively trying. We thought our chances would be pretty good since I had never taken birth control.

When we didn’t get pregnant right away, I was a little disappointed. I mean, I was already 24 dang it, I didn’t have forever! ;0) After a little more time, we started actively trying to get pregnant. I was exercising more, trying to eat healthier, and finding out all of the natural ways to make my body ready for a baby. I was taking raspberry supplements, drinking women’s health teas and using ovulation kits and a lot of other methods that I won’t mention.

We really wanted to work on things naturally. I was reading a book called Taking Control of Your Fertility. It’s a book on how to work with your body and cycles as a form of birth control or as a way of getting pregnant. A good friend recommended it to us and she was a witness that the methods taught worked. She was pregnant. Her sister-in-law was and a few other people. It didn’t work for us.

The whole time we’d been trying was filled with “helpful hints” from everyone we knew, but their hints were always the same. My favorite, “Stop trying so hard. If you just stress out about it, it won’t work.”. After hearing that for almost three years, I wanted to punch everyone in the face that said it to me. It had been more than a little bit of time and I was worried. I had been to the doctor to have some stuff checked up on and everything was “good.” I just needed to keep taking care of myself because apparently any slight change in my hormones could mess things up. I was also really jealous (but happy) that my sister was pregnant.

Either way, last fall something came up that I really had to see the doctor about. He said everything looked good, but he finally did something about it. He said that there was no reason why it should take us that long to get pregnant. He sent me in for ultrasounds (I had a “cute, uninhabited” uterus then) and blood tests. Apparently, my hormone levels were good, but not great, so he prescribed chlomid. I was a little worried because I heard horror stories about that medication, but I didn’t have any problems with it.

We didn’t really tell too many people that we were on medication. If it didn’t work out we were going to have to try some more invasive procedures. However, lucky for us, the medication was working. My levels were getting better. My dosage was increased and after another round of blood tests, they were right where they should be.

According to the process (and trust me, it was a very strict schedule and process to stick to), if I hadn’t started my next cycle by the 35^th day, then I could take a pregnancy test. Our 35^th day for that round of medication happened to fall on Christmas day. I couldn’t wait that long. We picked up a few dollar store tests (because we were tired of spending all that money on the super nice ones) and I tested three days before Christmas. The lines were very faint, but there were two. I couldn’t believe it. Eli certainly didn’t believe it. He made me take one again the next day. We ended up taking five tests in five days, just to make sure. And then we took another two tests a week and a half later.

So, just to end a long story, Eli and I are having a baby. We’re due August 28^th, which is five days after school starts. I’ll be starting the year with a sub. We couldn’t be more excited and happy and blessed. Now I feel like I might have some news to post about every once in awhile. I’m sure you don’t want to read about my morning sickness, so I’ll share something a little more appropriate now and then. Oh! and now I’m really happy my sister is having a baby. Our baby’s cousin is due June 8^th, the day before my birthday!