"Firsts"

Hi Everyone,

Wow! Five weeks have already passed us by since the arrival of our little Aubrey Jaye. It really doesn't seem like that long and I can't believe how fast she is growing. Everyday she looks a little different to me; like she sprouted a little more overnight. One day she fit her newborn clothes and the next day they were all too small. One day she didn't have eyelashes and suddenly I noticed beautiful, dark, long ones as she fluttered her eyes at me while drinking her bottle one night. Her eyes are starting to change from their grey color to a really pretty blue. It's one of the most amazing things to watch her grow and develop and yet I'm already sad to see those days come and go; they're simply a memory and a photo. We've already made some wonderful and amazing memories with our sweet baby girl and she has already celebrated so many 'firsts' in these five weeks of her life.

Our first Christmas and first New Year's celebrations were AMAZING! It was such a blessing and wonderful feeling to have little Aubrey with us. We had all of our family and friends in town and at some point or another Aubrey, Justin and I were able to share a little bit of Christmas with each of them. Aubrey was sooooo incredibly spoiled by all of her family and friends that all of her gifts literally took over our living room! Seriously, I'm NOT kidding! It took Justin and I about a week to sort through everything and find a place for it! Oh and we learned all about how toy companies make their packaging next to impossible to open. Anyways, she received MORE clothes (as if she didn't have enough) and tons of toys that she will be able to enjoy throughout the year. What a lucky girl! We couldn't make it to the mall to visit Santa Claus, so it was such a GREAT surprise on Christmas day when he stopped and made a personal visit with Aubrey!

For New Year's we went to our Aunt Jackie's house and enjoyed a delicious dinner and a relaxing evening. Aubrey didn't make it to midnight (and I almost didn't either) but I think she enjoyed the night being held by all of her family and friends. Oh and she was dressed to break hearts might I add. ;)

It is so exciting to think that this is just the beginning. We have so many more holidays to look forward to sharing with our little girl. Looking back I can think of so many wonderful memories from the holidays and I owe that to my Mom and Dad; they always made every effort to make every holiday special (thanks). I can't wait to do the same for Aubrey and cherish all of those little moments that life has to offer.

Anyways, that's about it for now. I leave you all with a bunch of pictures to look at. Aubrey is such a gorgeous baby that she makes me look like a pro photographer. :)

Love,
Justin, Candice & Aubrey

Miss Aubrey Jaye Lopez

Hi Everyone!

First of all let me apologize for the HUGE delay in this VERY important blog update! As you all know the big day finally came and we welcomed Miss Aubrey Jaye Lopez into this world. She was born on December 16th, 2010 at 2:20am; she weighed 7 pounds 12 ounces and was 20.5 inches long. The entire delivery experience was long, painful and the most amazing accomplishment of my entire life. This is a rather LONG blog because this was a rather LONG journey so bare with me as I try to document all of this to look back upon one day and share with our daughter.

I woke up on Monday morning feeling some slight pains. I wasn't really sure if they were contractions or just some random "preggo pains" but I kept an eye on them throughout the morning...mostly because they kept waking me up. Turns out the pains kept coming on about every 15 minutes so I told Justin that I thought I was having contractions and this might be the beginning of labor. We called the hospital and told them what was going on and how I was feeling. The nurse said it sounded like I was in 'early labor' and to continue to monitor my contractions. The hospital won't admit patients until their contractions are 2-3 minutes apart and you are 4cm dialated...so that's what we were waiting for. This was going to be the theme of our entire labor and delivery process....hurry up and wait.

I called my Mom later that morning and let her know what was going on and of course (as worried Mother's do) she called me all morning to check in and finally decided she was coming over even if it was just to sit with me. Well we decided sitting around staring at the TV wasn't the best thing for me and so to get my mind off things for awhile, we went and got mani's and pedi's. The rest of the day progressed about the same; contractions every 15 minutes or so with no change.

Finally, on Tuesday morning I started to feel different. The contractions were getting closer together and MUCH stronger. However we stayed stuck in the same 'hurry up and wait' holding pattern. For the entire day the contractions were 4-5 minutes apart with no change. Eventually we got to about 3 minutes apart and at about 11pm I decided I had had enough and we headed over to the hospital.

I didn't think I was at the 4cm mark but I did think I had to be pretty close and I was hoping they would admit me anyways. Well after being hooked up, monitored and examined, the doctor told us that I was only at about 2cm! ::Sigh:: We figured they were going to send me home to 'hurry up and wait' a little longer. The doctor told me she needed to go meet with the other doctors and would be back in a little bit. Justin and I sat and waited for what seemed like forever watching the baby's heartbeat and my contractions on the monitor. When they finally came back the doctor informed me that they would be admitting me even though I wasn't very far along because my blood pressure was extremely high. (High blood pressure during labor and delivery could be a sign of preeclampsia) From there it was like everyone around me went into action; I had my IV inserted, blood drawn and sent to the lab, setup in my labor and delivery room, given a medicine to help speed up my labor (like pitocin...but it wasn't pitocin...yet). Justin went and got our overnight bags and we settled in for the long haul to 'hurry up and wait.'

Right around here is where I kind of lose track of days and times because they all kind of blend together. Basically the nurse checked on me about every 30-45 minutes and the doctor came in and checked me every 4 hours. Oh and they drew my blood a few more times because my blood pressure kept spiking. Eventually they decided to give me pitocin to help things along a little more and at that point I decided that I was going to need the epidural. While I was thankful for the relief that it provided for me, the experience of getting it was awful. The anesthesiologist that did the epidural had to do it THREE times because he kept hitting bone. Justin was furious while he watched the doctor keep trying to get it right, but he stayed calm and helped me through it.

Once I received the epidural and the pitocin we continued to (you guessed it) 'hurry up and wait.' Let me just say that between Justin, my Mom and my Dad, I had the best coaches anyone could have asked for. They all helped me through so much and were so incredibly supportive. Justin was there by my side the whole time getting me everything I needed, holding my hand, brushing my hair, getting me water...anything. He was amazing! Oh and he didn't pass out during delivery. :)

After a long few days, Thursday morning finally came (ironically this was my actual due date) and my blood pressure was beginning to spike again. I guess it must have really started getting high because they decided at that point to put me on magnesium sulfate to help control it and send more blood work to the lab. I'm sure it was necessary to do all of that but it kind of seemed like a waste too because not too long after that it was finally time. I felt a huge contraction and an unbelievable need to push all of a sudden. We called the nurse and she said it sounded like it was time and she would go get the doctor. The contractions started coming faster and faster and the urge to push was getting stronger and stronger. We kept calling the nurse and telling her that I wasn't going to be able to wait for the doctor much longer but the doctor just wasn't in a hurry to get to the room. Finally my Dad went out to the hall, said something to someone and minutes later the doctor and her team appeared!

I pushed for about an hour and FINALLY our little miracle was plopped on my chest! I loved this little girl so much even when she was in my belly, but seeing her for the first time...well I'm surprised my heart didn't explode from all the emotion I felt. I cried. We all cried and then she was whisked away to be cleaned and checked. The next thing I remember is looking over to my left and seeing Justin holding our daughter...my family. It was a moment of sheer bliss and happiness...nothing else in the world mattered.

Because of the high blood pressure and the magnesium sulfate during my labor, we weren't released from the hospital until Saturday but all three of us are home now and doing well. Justin and I are adjusting to our beautiful new life with this beautiful and perfect little girl. She is such a good baby and I am so thankful for her everyday. I can't wait to see what life holds for us and what life holds for her. The last two weeks with her have already been an amazing journey and it's only just begun.

Love,
Justin, Candice AND Aubrey

Giving Thanks...

With Thanksgiving just around the corner I wanted to take a minute to share what we are thankful for...

We are thankful for our amazing family and friends...
I know I tend to say this a lot, but Justin and I are blessed with the most amazing family and friends anyone could hope for. You all have been extremely supportive, helpful, giving and loving throughout this entire journey! We cannot begin to express how thankful we are for each and every one of you and all of things you've done for us and the baby! It is such a great feeling knowing that we are bringing our baby girl into a world where she is already loved soooo much!

I'm thankful for the great women in my life...
The baby and I were very spoiled these last couple of months by all of you with not one but two BEAUTIFUL showers! Both days were very special and I was touched by all of you who took the time to come and celebrate the life of our soon to be daughter. Justin and I are also very thankful for all of the gifts for baby! I must say...this girl will be dressed in style for quite some time! It was such a blast playing all of the silly games, catching up and opening all of the ADORABLE baby things! Thank you to my Mom, Kristen and the Wolf Family for the great showers!

We are thankful for mass amounts of diapers...
In addition to the two showers, Justin had a really great diaper party! Again, we were very touched by everyone who took the time to show up and support us on this journey. Justin received about two and a half months worth of diapers (at a rate of 12 diapers per day haha) and we couldn't be more thrilled! This is such a big help for us as we prepare for the little one to arrive! Thank you to Chris and Jeremy for putting this great party together!

We are thankful to be blessed with a very normal and healthy pregnancy...
I've always been fortunate enough to be very healthy and I never really thought much of it until I became pregnant. Now I thank God everyday for blessing me with such good health. It's nice to be classified as a "low risk patient" and have the doctor tell you "everything looks perfect" when you go in for the checkups. I pray that this good health will continue to the end of the pregnancy and through the delivery.

We are thankful for each other...
Justin and I are very lucky to have one another and are lucky to be on this journey together. I can't describe how good it feels to have such a loving and supportive partner there by side everyday. As we go into the final weeks, I'm thankful to have Justin there to help me with all of the everyday things I've taken for granted...like getting up off the couch and tying my shoes in the morning! :) Thanks babe!

This week we will be heading into the 37th week of our pregnancy! Baby could be here any day now and we are very excited (and a little nervous). We hope you all have a fun and safe Turkey Day...eat lots! I know we will be!

P.S. My Mom took all of the great pictures you see above! What a natural! Thanks Mom!

Love Always,

Justin & Candice

Everyone Loves Chubby Cheeks!

SHE IS AMAZING!

We have about 7 more weeks to go (if I make it full term) before we welcome our beautiful baby girl into this world! Baby and I are definitely getting bigger and bigger everyday and we can all really feel the big day drawing near!

While there are so many things to enjoy and ‘ooohhh’ and ‘awww’ over during pregnancy, one of my favorite parts is the ultrasound. Yes, it’s really awesome to feel her moving around inside of me and seeing my belly ripple (or bulge) when she moves, but I LOVE seeing her on the ultrasound! We had another ultrasound today to check her growth development and I’m happy to report that she is doing well and looking good...she even has a little bit of peach fuzz!

As of today she is about one week ahead in her development and weighing in at a whopping 5 pounds 8 ounces! The last few ultrasounds we haven’t really been able to get a good shot of her face because she’s always got it buried down and blocked with her arm (see previous blog). WELL, today before I left work for our appointment she was especially wiggly in my belly and moving around a lot…it made me hopeful that we might just see her precious face. I heard that if you drink some caffeine before an ultrasound it helps to get them to wake up a little so you might be able to get a good picture. I’ve really been doing my best to avoid caffeine throughout the pregnancy but today for good measure I had a small cup of hot chocolate. Well that small cup gave me the jitters and shakes by the time I got to the doctor, but baby was definitely moving!

We went back to the ultrasound room, I got all gooped up and low and behold, there was her beautiful face...finally! The tech did a few measurements but then decided to switch to 3D mode before the baby decided to turn. Now let me tell you, seeing your baby’s face for the first time in 3D is so incredibly amazing! I can’t describe the feeling or the emotion! I’ve posted the pictures below for everyone to see! Personally, I really think she looks just like Justin…same nose, same mouth! I’m completely awestruck. If you can’t tell, she’s definitely a chunk and we can’t wait to pinch those cheeks!

As always, thank you all for your love and support throughout this journey; we have the best family and friends anyone could hope for.

Love Always,
Candice & Justin

That's Our Daughter...

Hi Everyone,

So just a short update today. We had another ultrasound and they let us do it in 4D! These ultrasounds are simply amazing! It is unbelievable how detailed of a picture you can get out of them. Essentially you can see what your baby really looks like before he/she is even born. So naturally we were very excited to get see our little girl in 4D! Well make no mistake, this is OUR daughter...no doubt about it! I'm not saying this because she looks like either one of us, I'm saying this because she already has the personality of her Mom and Dad...stubborn. This little girl buried her head perfectly so that we couldn't see any part of her face no matter how much we tried. I tried shaking my belly and rubbing it, but no such luck...she just put her arm up and covered her face even more. So our exciting 4D ultrasound only resulted in a great picture of her little ear...it is a nice ear though! :) Maybe next time we can convince her to show us her precious little face...then again, maybe she'll make us all wait until she makes her debut to the world.

Love always,

Candice & Justin

So Much To Tell...

Hello Again Everyone!

It’s been awhile since I’ve posted a blog and mostly that was because I thought not much had really happened since our big announcement that we are expecting a baby girl. However, today I was working on some stuff in in my daughters soon to be room and I realized that A LOT has happened! So this may be a lengthy blog, but I feel like there is so much to share!

Crib Building 101...
Let’s start here. Justin and I have really gotten down and dirty and started getting this little girls room ready! I was completely dreading cleaning out our guest bedroom and finding new places for all of the things we keep in that room, but to be quite honest, it was quite freeing! It felt so good to go through all of our junk and get rid of the crap we just don’t need. I also noticed that we are showing many of the symptoms of hoarders and I’m now committed to stopping that (although you couldn't tell from the looks of our garage...one room at a time)! Anyways, we got the room all cleaned out, shampooed the carpet and painted the room a cute lavender color.. I’m totally loving it so far! Once the room was clean, we were ready to bring in the furniture! Justin’s Aunt Jackie was so sweet to us and bought the baby a BEAUTIFUL cherry wood bedroom set; crib, changing table and dresser! Now three pieces of furniture to build seemed like quite a daunting task to me, but my wonderful hubby was determined and VERY excited to get it all together. Well it took around 3 to 3 ½ hours, but the result was three gorgeous (and sturdy might I add) pieces of furniture and no extra parts! Success! Justin and I are total pros at building a nursery…ok…it was mostly Justin, but I helped…a little. There is still work to be done, but as you can see, it’s really coming along and looking absolutely amazing!

Spoiled Little Girl Alert…
Now let me say, this girl has yet to grace us with her presence and she is already so incredibly spoiled! She has so much AMAZING family and friends surrounding her and awaiting her arrival! As I mentioned above, her Great-Aunt Jackie bought her some beautiful furniture (probably the nicest furniture in the house…I’m jealous). In addition, her Grandma & Grandpa Perea have a carload of stuff for Justin and I to take home almost every time we see them; a swing, bottles, monkeys, clothes, a jumper, a highchair…just tons of stuff! THEN her Grandma & Grandpa Lopez are the same way! Carloads of clothes & toys! And finally, her Vento family in Texas loaded us up with two GIANT boxes of baby stuff galore before we came home from our vacation this past week. Now this is just her family that I’m talking about, I haven’t even mentioned all the friends that keep showering her with some of the cutest outfits ever! Just checkout this girls, room and closet! I think she has more outfits than me!

Big Kicks…
This past week or so finally marked the time when we could feel her on the outside! I have felt her moving and wiggling around for quite awhile now but Justin has been waiting and waiting for the day when he could finally feel her too. Well, that day finally came and it was so exciting! I know he was happy to finally feel her move and the experience was amazing for him! He always wants to know when she moves even in the slightest bit and his hands are always on my tummy now. While it’s always amazing to feel her moving around inside me, it was also an amazing and precious moment to see Justin’s face light up when he felt that first kick. Now, we have been trying for a little while now to see if he could feel her move but she is kind of a brat about it...just sayin. As soon as I feel her move and Justin puts his hands on my tummy, she immediately stops…like she’s playing a game with us or something…it’s really odd and funny! Anyways, one afternoon I told Justin she had started moving and the kicks felt pretty big and so he immediately put his hands on my belly and was staring intently at it just waiting for her to move and SUDDENLY there it was…a nice big kick straight into his palm! His head perked up and he looked at me with wide-eyes, “Was that her?!?!” I don’t think I’ll ever forget that moment.

So that about sums it up for now! I just want to say thank you to all of our family and friends that have been there for us on this journey; we are incredibly blessed to have you all.

Love always,
Justin & Candice

It's A Girl!

IT'S A GIRL!

I'm so sorry for the long delay in this post, but hopefully word has spread through other means and you all haven't been waiting for this blog! I had planned to write it on Friday evening when we got home, but I passed out on the couch for hours...too much excitement I guess...and well I don't know what happened to the weekend!

Her hand was in her mouth the whole time, so that's what you see sticking out of her face.

Justin and I had our first official ultrasound on Friday, August 6th and found out that we are having a little baby girl! The tech asked us if we wanted to know the sex of the baby if she could tell and of course we said, "YES!" Well, she put the jelly goop all over my belly and then put the transducer on me and the first picture we saw was a little butt in air! The tech looked for a second, put a little arrow to her parts and declared her a girl! We continued on with the ultrasound and the test and she is absolutely perfect! She is about one week ahead in her growth development and weighs about one pound, so she is a big baby right now...and I'm starting to really feel that in her kicks! She is constantly moving around in my belly and as time progresses, they are starting to be stronger and stronger kicks. Future soccer player?

Our first family photo

Justin was completely convinced that it was a boy and so it is taking him a minute to adjust to the fact that we are having a girl, but we are both VERY excited! Daddy's Little Princess! We went to the store over the weekend and bought some SUPER cute outfits, bows, shoes, everything! Girls clothes are soooooo much fun! We also picked out a theme for her nursery...pink and purple (duh) jungle theme! I LOVE it!

We're working on names now, so I'll let you know when we've decided something. We can't wait to meet our little girl!



Love,
Justin & Candice