Introducing Robert Steven Brooks: Part 2

While this post will likely be as long as the last one, this one will actually have pictures of a cute baby!

My mom wasn't due to arrive in CA until two days before my due date.  The Sunday before her arrival, my contractions started coming pretty regularly...about every 8-10 minutes.  My midwife had told me to let her know when they were every 4 minutes apart for an hour.  By Monday, my contractions were coming every 4-6 minutes, and I was pretty stoked, even though my mom wouldn't be there to help with my other kids at this point.  However, by evening, I was getting stressed out and tired...and my contractions stopped all together.  I tried to not get discouraged over the next few days and took the time to finish up some random projects around the house.  I had never gone past my due date before, but I had also been induced with all but one of my kids.  Still, I was convinced that once my mom arrived, I would go into labor...except I didn't.  It seemed like every other day I would have contractions all day long, only to have them stop at night and the whole next day.

Two weeks before Robert was born.

I was due on Friday, May 20th.  When I woke up on the 21st without any contractions, I was determined to not be discouraged.  We made plans for our family to go to a fun town in the mountains nearby called Oak Glen.  They have a kitschy village area there with a petting zoo, lots of shops, and other miscellaneous activities.  We discovered an area where the kids could feed some peacocks, but I felt like I wanted to keep walking, so my mom and I walked a short distance away from the peacocks where it looked like you could feed some goats.  As we got closer, however, we realized that there were two fawns in with the goats.  Now, I have a fairly persistent fear of deer, but since they were babies, I joked with my mom that feeding the deer corn through the fence might cure me of my fear.  It took me a few tries (my hand was shaking pretty badly!), but I finally succeeded in feeding a baby deer by hand!  I was actually enjoying myself until out of the corner of my eye, I saw another deer and a goat charging us from a different corner of the pen!  I shrieked and doubled over, hyperventilating a bit.  My mom was likewise doubled over...only she was in tears with laughter!  After my encounter with the deer, I started having contractions every minute and a half to 3 minutes for well over an hour.  They weren't exactly painful contractions, but with Seth (the only child I hadn't been induced with), I only had a handful of painful contractions before he was born.  So, I texted Tammy and she told me that she was already at the birthing center and to come in.  When I arrived, however, she checked me out and said that I was really only at 2 cm and that he still hadn't dropped much.  She suggested I keep up with the activities we had planned for the day, so we went home.

Feeding the deer at Oak Glen

While we'd been in the birthing center, my mom told me that she'd overheard Renae tearfully praying in the back seat of the van that if the baby was about to be born, that it would somehow turn out to be a girl instead of a boy, despite the convincing ultrasound photos and blood work that told us otherwise.  I sensed that she needed some girl times, so I convinced Brandon to let her get her ears pierced a few months early (we had previously agreed she could get them pierced when she turned 8).  Renae was thrilled!  My mom and I took her to the mall to get them done, as well as to walk around some more.  What made that experience even more fun was running into our bishop's family at Claire's because they were there for one of their daughter's to get her ears pierced, too!  After we watched their daughter get hers done, their family cheered on Renae while she had hers done.  Renae loved the attention! 

Ears finally pierced!

When we got home, I rested a bit and then our family went outside to play and walk around the neighborhood.  During this time, my contractions never let up, and actually intensified quite a bit.  However, as the evening wore on, they once again stopped around bedtime.  I was so worn out because these contractions had actually become quite painful, so I went to bed around 9:00...and I was NOT in a great mood.

The next day was a Sunday, and I was still just so tired and achy from everything my body had been through the day before.  At this point, I was not in a good place mentally, physically, spiritually, or emotionally.  I stayed home from church to rest, which was probably a good thing because a lot of people had been asking if the baby had come and then there had been a lesson in Relief Society that talked, in part, about birth and motherhood.  When my family got home, I shut myself up in my room and was just sobbing.  Both Brandon and my mom came in to talk to me, and I hated telling them how I was feeling.  I felt like I'd lost any sense of maternal bonding with my baby.  I was feeling like when he was born, I'd just want them to hand him off to Brandon because I couldn't handle it any more.  I felt like my prayers were just going to keep going unanswered, and I felt very alone.  My mom suggested that I come downstairs before my depression surrounding my continued pregnancy got worse and interact with the kids while she made dinner and then we could all go for a drive after dinner.  I reluctantly agreed, but still had a hard time not spontaneously bursting into tears for the rest of the day.

Monday was a better day, perfect for running some errands and cleaning up around the house.  Once again, my contractions started up and drained my energy quite a bit, so I rested up for most of the afternoon.  Renae was supposed to be teaching our FHE lesson that night, but I asked her if it would be okay if we went on an easy hike instead.  While Seth spent most of the hike freaked out about rattlesnakes and other wildlife, the rest of us enjoyed our evening.  I was determined to sleep well that night and to remain positive.

My pregnant shadow on our FHE hike

On Tuesday the 24th, I woke up in a rotten mood, though.  Brandon kept asking me how I was feeling, and my curt response each time was, "well, I'm still pregnant."  Even though he'd worked from home the day before, I told him to just go into work because I wasn't having any contractions and there was nothing he could do.  However, I also didn't want to stay home, so we dropped Brandon off at work, and then my mom and I took the little boys to Target and Hobby Lobby for a little retail therapy.  That seemed to help my mood a bit, but my body was pretty achy, and I didn't want to keep walking.  I did, however, really want a diet Coke.  I had been pretty good about staying away from it with my anemia issues, but I thought I deserved one at this point!  So we went to a McDonald's with a play area to get a drink and some cookies while the little boys played.  After pulling into the parking lot, my mom got the boys out of their seats, and I got out of the van, but before we even had the van doors shut, my water broke.  I looked at my mom and said, "maybe I should run inside to make sure?"  She looked at me like I was crazy and told me to hand over the keys and get back in the van.  Seth and Andrew were not terribly happy about not getting a treat at McDonald's, but I was suddenly in a pretty good mood!  That was at 10:15 am.

I called the midwife, but she was at her other office an hour away.  She wanted me to verify that I didn't have a prolapsed cord and that the amniotic fluid was clear (indicating that he hadn't passed any meconium yet).  Since we were about 15 minutes away from home, I couldn't do that, but I told her I'd call as soon as I got home.  Then I called Brandon.  I had to tell him several times that my water broke before he actually heard me.  Then he rushed out of his building and started walking in our general direction so that we could pick him up on our way home.

It wasn't until around 10:45 that we were able to get home.  While the cord had not prolapsed when my water broke (or in other words, the cord had not been delivered before the baby...a very dangerous situation), our little guy had passed some meconium, so I was a bit worried that he'd inhaled some.  I relayed that info to my midwife, and she told me to just go to the birthing center because her assistant was already on her way there.  We arrived at the birthing center by 11:15.  Janine, the assistant, checked me out, and breathed a sigh of relief that I was only at 3 cm.  She jokingly said that she needed to let Tammy know how fast she needed to drive, but that since I was only at a 3, she probably didn't need to risk getting a ticket.  Tammy and Brittany (Tammy's daughter and other assistant) arrived by around 11:45.  After setting up the IV line in my arm in case of a hemorrhage post-delivery, my labor and delivery team left Brandon and me alone for a few minutes to relax while they went across the hall to the kitchen to make some coffee.  

My midwife team: Janine, Tammy the midwife, and Brittany

At this point, I just wanted Brandon to rub my feet because the contractions were starting to get pretty painful.  Moments later painful turned into the need to push!  I had only delivered one of my children without an epidural, and I thought I remembered the pain being manageable.  This time around, however, I'm pretty sure I could have ripped a pillow to shreds with my bare hands!  Fortunately, baby Robert didn't make me wait too long and was born at 12:28 pm without relatively any problems.  He was pretty blue when he was born, but he pinked up pretty quickly after his lungs were immediately suctioned.  My midwife team joked that he didn't even give them the opportunity to finish making their coffee and change into scrubs.  For about an hour after he was born, Brandon and I were able to just sit side by side on the bed in a dimly lit room just enjoying our little guy.  It was pretty perfect.

When it was time for the birthing team to come back in, we were all pretty excited to see just how big Robert was.  My "little" guy weighed in at a whopping 10 lbs even and was 21 inches long!  His big ol' noggin was also 15 1/4 inches in circumference.  All of those stats put him in about the 98th percentile in each category.  So, while he was huge, at least he was proportionate, right?

One of my favorite things about having Robert at a birthing center was that 3 hours after he was born, we were released to go home.  My mom had met Nick and Renae at the school to pick them up with the exciting news that they had a new brother.  By the time we got home, everyone was pretty excited to meet Robert, and I was just thrilled that I would be able to sleep in my own bed that night and not be interrupted every hour to be poked and prodded.

About to head home!  I think it's pretty funny that my hair looks awful here because after making sure my hair was done every day for about two weeks (just in case Robert were to come, I wanted to have decent hair for any pictures), I finally gave up on the day he was actually born because I was so annoyed to still be pregnant!

So, while the months leading up to Robert's arrival were pretty awful, his entry into the world was pretty smooth.  He has also been extremely healthy since he was born and hasn't had any issues with jaundice or low blood sugar, both common issues with big babies and both issues are ones that Seth dealt with when he was born.  Robert eats very well, is learning to sleep better at night, and is generally a pretty content little guy.  He loves to be snuggled by Mom, but puts up with Dad if he has to.  He hates being swaddled, but tolerates a pacifier.  We also like to joke that when he looks into your eyes, he can see deep into your soul.  We are so grateful that our baby Robert is finally here!

Just after arriving home from the birth center.

Grandpa Robert meeting Baby Robert via Facetime

I've also been humbled that those trials I went through before his arrival actually turned out to be blessings.  I hated being diagnosed with high amniotic fluid levels because my abdomen was always tight and uncomfortable.  In fact, those high fluid levels are what caused my contractions to keep starting and stopping because my muscles would just get super tired from trying to squeeze down on all of that extra stuff.  However, it helped him to move ever so slowly into place so that the cord wouldn't prolapse, and the extra volume also helped to dilute the meconium so that even though he did inhale a bit of it, he wasn't in any great respiratory distress.  So, even though I had felt pretty depressed and alone, thinking that God didn't really care about the pain I was in, I am so glad that Robert's birth was delayed until the conditions were just right for him to be born safely.

Introducing Robert Steven Brooks: Part 1

Renae loves to ask me to tell her about my six most favorite days ever, and if I answer her with any days other than my wedding day and the day each of my kids was born, I am in big trouble!  Fortunately for me, I had one of my "favorite days ever" last week when my little Robert was born.  His birth has quite the back story, too.  Forgive the novel...

When we found out I was pregnant, I was so certain we'd be having another girl.  When I was in college, I had a very vivid dream of my daughter being baptized, and her name was Abigail.  Time passed, and when Renae was born, Abigail just didn't seem to be the right name for her.  Then I had two more boys.  In the days leading up to a positive pregnancy test this time around, Seth came up to me one morning and asked, "where is my sister Abigail?"  I was floored because Seth didn't know anyone named Abigail, but that dream was always in my mind.  Pretty soon, however, I started having some pretty fun (not!) morning sickness that reminded me of when I was pregnant with Renae, and I just knew we were having a girl.  Until I had some early blood work done that told me we were having a boy.  I wasn't disappointed, but I was a bit confused...and perhaps even a little relieved.  The two miscarriages I had left me with a strong impression that they were both girls.  One we had been planning on naming Penelope, but had never discussed the other name.  A few days after we learned we'd be having a boy, I prayed to know why I had felt so strongly that we'd be having a girl.  I received a very strong impression that word for word went "aren't you glad that you now know the name of your other daughter?"  Peace replaced the confusion in my mind, and combined with a few other experiences, I really feel like that was the answer to my prayers that I needed.

The day we learned that we would, in fact, be having a boy was the day before we were scheduled to move to California.  Brandon had received an incredible job offer with a mapping software company in Southern California that would allow him to be home every day.  The difficult part in all of this was coordinating the cleaning and packing of our house while Brandon was still traveling and while I was still nauseous and/or exhausted 24/7.  Fortunately I have some tremendous friends in Oregon who helped out with boxes, food, and numerous offers to watch my kids.  I don't think we would have been able to pull off our move successfully if it hadn't been for them!

For as exciting a time as moving to California was for our family, the timing was also pretty difficult for any continuity in prenatal care.  I only had one early ultrasound and one check up with my sweet midwife, Holly, in Oregon before we moved.  I was just barely into the second trimester when we arrived in California, but our insurance wouldn't start until I was about halfway through my pregnancy.  By the time our insurance kicked in, and I was able to start scheduling appointments, I had learned that my OB options were not great in this area.  I finally settled on one practice, but when I called to make an appointment, I was told that I wouldn't be able to be seen for almost 2 more months!  They did agree to bring me in for a "tummy check" before that appointment to listen to his heartbeat and to schedule an ultrasound.  I was told that my appointment would only last about 15 minutes.  Boy were they wrong!

What should have been the start of steady, routine prenatal care was the start of a kind of nightmare for me.  My "tummy check" had been scheduled with a pretty  awful nurse practitioner who arrived at my 8:30 am appointment 45 minutes late and came in wiping crumbs off her mouth, but offering no apologies.  She then proceeded to demean me and treat me like an ignorant human being, even going so far as to tell me that she wasn't comfortable with my prenatal care choices up to that point.  What?!  She treated me like I was being criminally negligent in the way I was caring for my unborn child just because I wouldn't let her repeat tests I already had done in Oregon.  I was livid when I left her office.  I felt so helpless because my options seemed to be so slim.  While I had never really considered a traditional midwife before, I decided to explore those options approved by our insurance.  In fact, that night, I had a dream that I contacted the only midwife practice on our insurance.  When I woke up the next morning, I felt really good about pursuing that option, and after running it past one of my friends, I was encouraged by her response, "call the midwife!"

I called up the Birth Your Way Birth Center in Yucaipa, CA that day, and they arranged for our family to come tour their birth center the VERY NEXT DAY!  We didn't need to wait two months for an appointment, and I was treated with respect, which was so refreshing after what I'd just gone through.  At our appointment, we met with midwife Tammy, who gave us a great tour of the birth center (an old church!) and answered all of our questions.  Since I'd given birth without medication before, I wasn't too worried about the prospect of a natural birth, and I was very impressed with the medical equipment they have on hand in the event of an emergency.  Plus, I wouldn't need to find a sitter for my little boys for each check up because there was a play area just off the examination room where I could literally keep an eye on my boys while having the baby's heartbeat checked and my tummy measured.  It was such a great experience!  In fact, before we left, I had even had my first prenatal check done at the birthing center, with another 3 appointments scheduled before the OB's office had even scheduled my first official appointment.

I did, however, keep the ultrasound appointment that I had scheduled through the OB's office for the following week.  I was about 26 weeks pregnant and anxious to see my boy!  The ultrasound went well...or so I thought.  A few days later I received a voicemail from the nurse practitioner's assistant telling me that there was something wrong they detected in the ultrasound and that I'd need to schedule a follow-up ultrasound immediately.  Talk about putting a pregnant woman into panic mode!  Since I'd filled out a form at the ultrasound office to release my records to my midwife, I called her to see if she'd received the ultrasound report.  She hadn't.  So I called the ultrasound office, and they didn't seem to want to release the records to her, even though I'm pretty sure legally they were obligated to do so.  Instead, they told me I could come pick up a disc with the photos on it the next day, but that the report wouldn't be ready for another week at least.  Long story short, I had to return two more times to the ultrasound office to retrieve my records and take them to my midwife.  I also played phone tag for a few days with the nurse practitioner's assistant before anyone let me know that the issue that came up in the ultrasound findings was that I had borderline high levels of amniotic fluid--a condition called polyhydromnios.  This could potentially be a really big deal because it could indicate issues with the baby's kidneys or carried with it the risk of premature delivery or having a prolapsed umbilical cord when my water broke.  Once again, the nurse practitioner treated me like I wasn't doing enough for the health of my unborn child, but fortunately my midwife went over the risks associated with polyhydromnios and cautioned against panicking.  We agreed that I'd have a follow-up ultrasound about 6 weeks later, concentrating on his kidneys and rechecking my amniotic fluid levels.

Of more concern to midwife Tammy, however, was the blood work I had done.  Not unusual for me was that my hemoglobin levels indicated pretty serious anemia.  I've been anemic with every single pregnancy, however, legally midwives aren't allowed to deliver babies outside of a hospital if the mother's hemoglobin levels drop below a certain point.  Mine were borderline at that point.  So, I was to take 2 iron pills a day for 6 weeks to boost my numbers.  At the end of those 6 weeks, my blood was drawn again...and my hemoglobin had actually dropped.  That was devastating.  I was told that if my numbers didn't improve or hold steady in the next two weeks, I wouldn't be able to deliver at the birth center.  So, I switched to a plant-based iron source called Hema-plex for the next two weeks and held my breath.  Fortunately, my hemoglobin increased by a whopping tenth of a point, so I was cleared to deliver at the birthing center!  The major risk with my anemia was that I could hemorrhage after delivery and need to be transferred quickly to a hospital anyway.  As a precaution, I needed to continue taking iron and would have an IV line ready to go in my arm during labor so that pitocin could be administered quickly in case of a hemorrhage.

While the polyhydromnios and anemia weren't fun and left me feeling very uncomfortable/in pain and tired all the time, life also threw us some curve balls during the second half of my pregnancy.  Soon after we moved to CA, I was bitten by something on my leg that left a good 6 inch bruise on my leg that became dry and itchy while it was healing...a process that took a good month.  We also had issues with ants in our kitchen and critters in our attic that took a while to resolve.  Unfortunately, roof rats are a pretty common problem here in Southern CA, and even though our pest control guy was pretty confident that he closed up all of the holes leading to the attic, he closed them up with at least one rat still in there.  Needless to say, that rat died in the attic right above our bedroom and made our room reek for about 6 long weeks.  During those 6 weeks, I pretty much couldn't go in our room without almost vomiting, so I slept (uncomfortably) on the couch.  Just as the smell was dissipating, our family was hit with the flu.  Renae and Seth caught it...and then gave it to me.  I was knocked out for about a week and a half with a fever, sore throat, cough, no energy, and no voice.  It was awful.  It shouldn't be legal for women in their third trimester to have a cough.  It is painful!  Because of the extra amniotic fluid, it was also pretty easy for Robert to flip into a breech position, which he did frequently.  In fact, just a week and a half before he was born, I spent one painful evening with him in a transverse position (sideways across my abdomen).  Then some pretty intense lower back and hip pain set in, making walking difficult some days, which wasn't helpful when our van decided to start leaking fluid two weeks before the baby was due.  I was without a vehicle for almost a week and needed to walk to and from the school to pick up Nick and Renae.  I think I was in near-constant pain the entire last month of my pregnancy and just prayed every day that our little guy would just come and put me out of my misery, though the thought of all of the possible complications that could arise during labor and delivery left me feeling pretty scared and overwhelmed at times.

And the winner is...

So even though we always go into our baby name polls knowing what we will be naming the latest Brooks cutie, it is always fun to see what our friends and family members think would make a great name.  This time around, here were the results for Brooks Baby #5:

I'm not terribly surprised by the front runner...it is one of my favorite names, too!  However, Baby Boy Brooks will not be Patrick Allen.  We are excited to welcome (drum roll)........Robert Steven Brooks to our family in (hopefully no more than) 6 weeks!  When we found out that we would be having another boy, it took us about 5 minutes to decide on his name...Robert is my dad's name, and Steven is my father-in-law's name.  Actually, while I was relaying the news to my mom on the phone that we'd be having another boy, Brandon jokingly said that we'd stay away from generic names like Bob (he likes to tease my dad about his name).  However, as soon as we got off the phone with her, Brandon said, "actually, what if we did name him Robert Steven after our dads?"  It immediately felt right, While my dad often goes by Bob, we will probably use the nicknames of Rob or Robbie with our little guy, though I tend to refer to him as Baby Robert, so I'm sure I'll call him that often enough.  

Now we just need to get through the next 6 weeks.  I've been nesting like crazy trying to get all of the baby gear that we gave away replaced.  I have another ultrasound in two weeks to verify that his kidneys are working well because my amniotic fluid levels were borderline high at the last ultrasound, which could indicate kidney issues.  However, at my prenatal check today, the midwife said that my belly seems to be pretty much all baby, and she's not terribly concerned about the fluid levels.  The kids are keeping me pretty busy these days, so I'm sure that the next 6 weeks will fly by...or at least that's what I keep telling myself.  Now if I could just magically find a way to sleep comfortably...

Baby Name Poll!

Since I am now in the 3rd trimester, and nothing about this pregnancy has been fun, I decided it was time for our latest (and final!) baby name poll!

Baby Boy Brooks!  This does not look like a comfortable position.

When we found out at the end of November that we'd be having a boy, Brandon and I were able to decide on his name within about 5 minutes.  That really surprised me because we had such a difficult time deciding on a name for Seth and Andrew!

Here are the contenders:

- Zachary David
- Patrick Allen
- Robert Steven
- Benjamin Peter

I'll leave the baby name poll up for a week, so feel free to cast your vote during that time!  We will not be offended at all if the name we are going with doesn't end up with the most votes.  This is just something fun we've done for all of the kids (except Nicholas...we did not have a blog then!).  The poll is on the right hand side of the blog.  We will probably announce the name in a week after the poll closes.

Happy 5th Birthday, Seth!

I can't believe it has already been 5 years since our Seth was born!  Here's a few fun tidbits about Seth:

- To say he is into Skylanders (a video game) right now would be a massive understatement!  This kid knows EVERYTHING there is to know about the characters and the ins and outs of the game.

- He continues to be one of the most literal and serious children that I have ever met.

- He hates wearing shirts at home and loves "soft pants" (aka athletic pants).  Seth will throw an absolute fit if he has to wear jeans!

-Seth also likes to sleep in a sleeping bag on the floor.  I'm not sure why.  When he does actually sleep on his bed, he is still a sleeping bag!

- Seth is still our pickiest eater, but when he finds something he likes, he is all in.  His current favorites are chicken and fries, pizza, waffles, cereal, oatmeal, cucumbers, apples with peanut butter, smoothies, and cereal.  Each time I notice that he actually likes a meal that I've prepared, I make a note of it!

- He is super excited for kindergarten this year and starts in just 6 months!  I can't believe it!

- As Renae puts it, "Seth is probably the nicest person in our family."  He is very thoughtful and loves to help everyone in our family.  I'm pretty sure he's the first of my kids to ever volunteer to help me bring in groceries.

Seth's first 5 years.

A Skylanders family birthday party!

We love you, Seth!  Happy 5th Birthday!

January 2016 Highlights

January 2016 was a fun one for the Brooks family as we continued getting to know our new area!  Here are our highlights:

We started 2016 trying something new with the kids...the drive in!  We saw the new Star Wars movie and gorged ourselves on snacks as we rang in the new year.  It was a really fun experience...though we decided that Andrew is not quite ready for a repeat since he was more interested in climbing all over everyone and stealing snacks!

I enjoyed spending most of my days with Andrew and Seth.  They work hard, play hard...and hardly nap.  When they do, it's pretty great!

We also have LOVED the beautiful scenery that surrounds us.  We are just a few blocks from the temple and love all of the surrounding palm trees and citrus groves.  Some mornings that air is even slightly orange-scented, and I just can't get enough!  Renae also earned Student of the Month in her class, and I was so happy to actually be able to see her receive the award!  Baby boy also started really growing, and I finally started looking pregnant.  Mostly, we just enjoyed spending so much family time together this month!

About an hour away from us is a pretty fun zoo...The Living Desert!  Sure, there aren't as many animals at this zoo as there are at other zoos we've visited, but the desert gardens there are pretty amazing!  I also loved how many interactive exhibits there are to really keep the kids entertained.

We finished up January by visiting the Orange Empire Railway Museum.  I think the biggest kid in the group (ahem, Brandon) was the biggest fan of this museum, but I think we all really enjoyed the day.  It's free, which is pretty great, but the number of different trains that we could learn about was impressive!  You also can't beat sunshine and 70 degrees in January!

Best of 2015

My blogging skills sure went downhill after moving to Oregon, but that's life!  I'm not even going to try to catch up on posts and am posting a Best of 2015 for our family instead.  

NICK'S BAPTISM

Our sweet, sweet boy was baptized at the end of April.  His excitement levels were through the roof that day, but he kept telling me just how happy he felt, too.  He also said that he felt so special because of all the friends and family members who were there to support him.  His Grandma and Grandpa Hales flew in from Cincinnati, and his Grandma Brooks flew in from Columbus.  Nicholas, you are so loved, and you make us incredibly happy!

Nicholas was SO happy that day!  I am so blessed to be his mom!

SUMMER VACATION

We traveled down the Oregon Coast and saw the rest of the lighthouses along there that we hadn't yet visited.  A trip along the coast also must include several stops at some of the most beautiful beaches in the world!  Then we spent several days camping, hiking, and relishing all of the spectacular beauty of the Redwoods.  Our trip was cut short by a few days because the weather turned rather too warm for camping, but we still managed to stop and see Crater Lake on our return trip.  We would gladly repeat this trip...it was so great!

We celebrated our 9th wedding anniversary on the trip!

We stayed at a campground at the base of Humbug Mtn. and were within walking distance of the beach.  It was so much fun!

We stayed at the Elk Prairie campground and really liked it.  Our campsite was surrounded by some of the most beautiful trees I've ever seen!

We really wish we could have stayed longer at Crater Lake.  However, as temps were reaching into the 100's, we opted to just stay a short while.  The water was so blue and beautiful, and I'm glad we made it a point to visit.

JUSTIN AND SAM'S WEDDING

In October, Brandon took Renae and Nicholas with him to North Carolina to attend his brother Justin's wedding to the super cute and wonderful Samantha.  Renae was the flower girl, and Brandon was a groomsman, and I must say the two of them cleaned up well!  We are so glad that Sam is part of our family and are so happy for her and Justin!

Justin and his groomsmen...aka the Brooks bros + dad

Justin, Sam, Nicholas, and Renae on the beach at Topsail Island where the wedding was held

Sam and her flower girl, Renae!  We had so much fun texting back and forth coordinating her dress with one for Renae...I think it worked out well!

NEW JOB

In late September, I was having a particularly difficult evening dealing with Brandon's travel schedule.  I just sobbed and prayed for something to give, and I immediately felt great peace.  The next day, Brandon texted me and said that the company, Esri, wanted to interview him.  After what felt like the longest interview process ever (it took another 7 weeks and several more phone and in-person interviews), he was offered what could only be called his dream job working as an instructional designer for the company.

MOVING TO CA

This new dream job that Brandon was offered also involved moving from Beaverton, OR to Redlands, CA.  While I wasn't crazy about moving from one of the most beautiful, lush, green places I've ever seen to what I could only assume was a desert, the thought of having Brandon home EVERY SINGLE NIGHT was well worth what I felt was a sacrifice.  Fortunately, our neighborhood is pretty great.  We are within a few blocks of the places we most frequently visit and can walk almost everywhere.  Redlands is like a little desert oasis, and I've come to appreciate our grassy, shady neighborhood with surrounding palm trees and citrus groves.  Our home is definitely more spacious than what we've been used to, and while we love the added space, we aren't in love with the rats in the attic!  Hopefully that will soon be dealt with...

The kids on their first day of school posing in front of the palm trees and our neighboring orange grove.  They are adjusting well!

We love the grassy area in front of our home.  And the mild temps and sunshine.  I might not be as thrilled during the summer heat wave, but at least we have air conditioning now!

We enjoyed visiting a local desert/dinosaur garden/museum.  It is quite a quirky place, but it was free and surprisingly entertaining enough to warrant future visits!

VISITS WITH FAMILY

Despite living across the country from the majority of our family members, we were blessed to have lots of opportunities to visit with our extended family this year.  Brandon's mom came in January for a class in Portland and then again in April for Nick's baptism.  My brother, Jason, was in town for work in March and stopped over for dinner at our house in March.  Brandon's dad wasn't able to come for the baptism, but did come out for Memorial Day weekend.  My parents both came for Nick's baptism in April, and then my mom came out (to save my sanity!) in October.  I was able to go back to Cincinnati in August to see my parents, two of my aunts, and a cousin for the annual rubber stamp convention (so much fun!).  Then, on our way to California, we went to Idaho Falls for Thanksgiving with two of my brothers and their families. We continued on down through Utah and saw Brandon's grandparents, his aunt, and some cousins.  The support and love we've felt from all of our family this year has been so needed and appreciated; I'm pretty sure we wouldn't be where we are now without all of their prayers and encouragement!

FUN WITH FRIENDS

I know that we wouldn't have made it through the year without all of the love and support of all of the wonderful friends we had in Oregon, either!  Play group, trips to the zoo, campouts, berry picking, and girls' nights out were my saving graces when I thought I was losing my mind!  One of my very best friends came to Portland for some training, and catching up with her always makes me grateful for the 27 years we've been friends!  I was also able to attend church with another one of my oldest friends while I was in Cincinnati, as well as visit with my sweet former neighbor who is just like another mom to me.  

A NEW ADDITION!

Finally, we are so excited that we are having another little boy joining our family in May!  Renae isn't entirely thrilled about getting another brother, but I have a feeling she will come around.  I thought it would be difficult to choose a name for him, but we had one picked out immediately.  I think our next blog post will probably be the baby name poll that we love doing!

2015 really was a good year for us.  It had its fair share of difficult moments and trials, but we only feel gratitude for all that has happened to us this year and for where we are now.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!