HAIR

Savannah officially has enough hair for me to actually do some fun things with. One of my favorite parts of getting her ready for the day is being able to experiment and do cute things with her hair. The longer it gets the more fun I can have! ;)

I plop her right in the sink and she loves it. That is the only way I can get her to stay in one place while I do it. ;)

We had fun curling her hair and putting a little headband in. 

Love her and love that I can do her hair now!

Playing catch up...

Being a mom of two girls has been so great. I couldn't ask for a better baby and Savannah is doing so good with the adjustment to not having my attention all my time. I was mostly worried about how Savannah would do being only 19 months but it has been a breeze. She loves/adores Tammy Lee and is my little helper. She likes to help with the diaper changes by throwing away the diaper and when she hears Tammy Lee fuss she gets the binky right away and puts it in her mouth. I can't wait until T-Lee is older and they can really interact with one another.

This picture was taken right after I brought Tammy Lee home from the hospital. I was over the moon this day. It was so nice to have her home with us and to not go back and forth to the hospital multiple times a day. It was so sweet to watch Savannah meet her for the first time. She was giggling, pointing, and giving kisses. So sweet!

Stephen loves his little T-Lee. He is such a great dad and I know one day our girls will know how lucky they are to have him. The minute he gets home from a long day of studying at law school the books go away and he gives us his full attention. He chases and plays with Savannah until bed time. She gets so excited when she hears the garage door open and daddy is home!

My mom got Savannah this cute cabbage patch doll as a gift when Tammy Lee came home. Savannah adores this doll. She rocks it, swaddles it in a blanky, and even shares her smoothie with her.

I really need to remember to not put snack time close to nap time because this is usually the end result. But hey it makes for a cute picture thats for sure.

Grandma and Grandad Jett came to see Tammy Lee.

Like I said Savannah has been really good at distracting herself when I need to feed, hold, and change Tammy Lee. She came downstairs with a pair of my wedges and loved clomping/falling as she walked in them.

Tammy Lee is still on oxygen and the monitors which can be kind of a pain. There are chords and wires everywhere. When you hold her you have to carry tons of supplies on your shoulders. Giving her a bath and getting her dressed is a huge task. I am truly grateful for technology now a days though... she is doing so well despite being six weeks early and I will take the chords, wires, and luggage to carry around any day if it means my girl is healthy.

"HI" from Savannah!

Love these moments... they happen multiple times a day. Lots of kisses from Sav!

This little firecracker is getting so big. She has so much spunk and personality I love it! 

I can't believe she is already 20 months. Before I know it she will be turning two!

She LOVES this teddy bear. I mean LOVES... she tries to carry it everywhere and it cracks Stephen and I up cuz it is bigger than she is! She wants the teddy to eat next to her, do puzzles with her, sit by her when she watches Elmo, sleep with her...etc!

Well there ya have it... we are doing great. Adjusting well to life with two kids and feel so blessed for our sweet girls!

Home at last...

Tammy Lee is finally home with us! She came home Friday morning and it has been so nice having her here with us. I feel like our lives have gone back to normal now that I don't have to run to the NICU every 2 hours... that was not easy! Stephen and I love our little family of four and feel so blessed to that Tammy Lee is doing so well even though she was 6 weeks early.

My two girls

Right now I feel like I am living two separate lives. One is at home with Savannah and the other is at the hospital with Tammy Lee. First I will update on Savannah!

Savannah seems so big to me. It is probably because I am comparing her to my little 5 pound baby, Tammy Lee. Savannah is now 19 months old and is full of energy and personality. She is a determined little girl and is so fun to interact with. She loves to read and will point and make the sounds for different animals. She loves to color... and doesn't necessarily always color on paper like she should. She loves when Stephen and I are together and when we can do things as a family. She loves playing outside and coloring with chalk on the cement. She is getting better at talking instead of just using signs. She loves to play hide and seek, get tickled, and be chased. She makes us so happy. I can't believe how fast she is growing up!

I still can hardly believe I can do pigtails. My next goal is to be able to braid her hair. haha She is really good at letting me fix her hair. In the morning after she gets dressed I say, "Savannah do you want to go sit in the sink so we can do your hair." She nods her head yes and sits very still for me... it is so cute.

The fake smile she gives me when I tell her to say cheese for the camera. ;)

Playing hide and seek. Behind the dryer is her favorite spot... I can always count on her being there.

Moving on to Tammy Lee. She is such a trooper. She is under the photo therapy lights for jaundice, she has multiple chords in every direction, she gets pocked and pricked with needles daily, yet she is still sweet as can be. I love the time I get to spend with her and the time I get to hold her during the day. 

Did I mention she is a pro nurser! She does such a great job which the nurses are so surprised about because usually 34 weekers haven't developed the suck, swallow, breath yet. 

We can't wait until Tammy Lee can come home. I wish I knew how much longer but I don't. It is all according to how she does when she gets off the IV's.

Love my 2 girls... SO much!

NICU

These last 4 days have kind of been a blur. I had my second little girl on Wednesday but came home from the hospital on Friday without her. It is hard for me to accept the fact that she is no longer in my belly and that she can't be at home with me for now. The nurses say she could be in the NICU for 3-6 weeks while she continues to grow and develop. Her lungs are fully developed so she is breathing great on her own but she is just so little and still very sleepy. Since she is so sleepy she doesn't wake herself up to eat so they have to feed her through a tube. I am only allowed to hold her twice a day and feed her twice a day because they don't want her to get over stimulated. Once she is waking up on her own and showing cues of hunger and wanting to nurse she will be able to come home as long as she does it consistently for 48 hours.

It has been hard for me not knowing how she is doing. Wondering if she is warm...if she is hungry... if she is uncomfortable... if she is stressed.... or if she knows how much I love her. I know the nurses are so great and do all they can but I just pray every night that they will have a soft spot in their heart for T-lee. Sometimes I just feel like they look at her as just another baby they take care of and I just wish they loved her like I do. 

I can't wait to bring her home with us someday soon. All the things I had taken for granted I won't anymore. I can't wait to dress her, wake up in the middle of the night with her, feed her, swaddle her, and change her diaper. I can't wait for Savannah to meet her little sister.

As of now I get to see her at 10:30am and 7:30 pm. I love the time I get with her... it is amazing how much love you can have for your children. I am grateful every day to be a mother. I love both my girls so very much!

Our sweet Tammy Lee

Tammy Lee was born on September 19th. She wasn’t due until October 31st but she was apparently ready to come 6 weeks early. I started feeling contractions Wednesday around 12:00 that were more painful and crampy than any contractions I had ever felt. I kept blowing them off and took some Nifedepine that the doctors gave me at the hospital to help stop my contractions. I figured once I took the Nifedepine my contractions would slow down but they did the opposite. They continued to get closer and closer together and continued to get more and more intense. By 5:00 I told my mom that I was pretty sure Tammy Lee was on her way and we needed to get to the hospital. I quickly called Stephen and told him to meet us at the Utah Valley hospital. Luckily my amazing cousin Stacey happened to stop by and said she would watch Savannah while we ran to the hospital. I could barely walk to my mom’s car by this time and was in excruciating pain. My contractions were now 1 minute apart and were lasting about 60 seconds long. I barely had time to breath before the next contraction started. At one point I thought I was going to have her in the car… it was pretty scary! 

We got to the hospital, Stephen was waiting at the front door with a wheel chair, and we headed to the 4th floor. Once I got into a room I was 8 cm dilated and sweet T-lee was on her way. My water broke shortly after and I had Tammy Lee 30 minutes later. She was 5 pounds 5 ounces and 18 inches long. I was so nervous about her being healthy because she still had 6 more weeks to grow. The nurses said she was doing great but they have to take any baby under 36 weeks to the NICU right away. Her lungs were fully developed from the steroid shot I got the week before and she was breathing great on her own. I will post an update on the NICU and how she is doing soon. I am so happy she is healthy and doing well. I feel like we have been so blessed in these last couple weeks and I know Heavenly Father is watching over T-Lee. We can’t wait until she is at home with us and we can be a family of 4.

Day 3: Good news

Day 3 has been a better day in the hospital. I have had so many wonderful friends and family come visit me to keep me company and I am so grateful for them. Thank you!
The doctor came in to check my cervix again and because of the medicine they have been giving me to stop my contractions my cervix has shrunk to a 2 1/2 instead of a 4. I was thrilled! This means they may let me go home today on strict bed-rest. I still will have to lie in bed all day and will only be able to get up to go the the restroom or shower but at-least I can be at home in a familiar environment and I can be with Savannah and Stephen. I am also so grateful for everyone who has offered to come over and help with Savannah and for all the prayers sent our way. I feel so overwhelmed with gratitude for you all... even people I don't know as well have offered to help in so many ways. Thank you!

Lets keep our fingers crossed that I get to go home today!!!!