Tag Archives: birth

Recap {2011}

Posted on December 31, 2011 by Kelley| Leave a comment

2011 was a year to remember. As we are gearing up for spending our last day in 2011 and ringing in 2012 at midnight, I have to reflect on this past year and everything it has brought me and our whole family. This year certainly brought more joy than 2010 and I feel confident leaving 2011 saying God blessed us this year in more ways than one. So let’s take a look back at this year and reminisce!

January 2011 – Kyle started his new job. After 10 months of living the unemployed life, he started his new job as we embarked on a year full of blessings. What a great start to an amazing year!… I also turned 25 and we found out (on my birthday) we were having a baby girl!

February 2011 – In February, we got to have a 20 week peak at our little lady and my bump continued to grow. We also officially chose her name and made the big reveal right here on Forever’s Like a Dream! We also geared up for a certain little man’s 2nd birthday which was right around the corner in ……

 

March 2011 – Landyn turned 2! We celebrated with some amazing friends and Mickey Mouse even made an appearance! We also got to take a good 3D look at Miss Lavery as she continued to grow!

April 2011 – Kyle turned 28 and we had our annual Virginia Beach trip with my aunt and uncle! We even got to see this beautiful rainbow and we all felt my mom there with us.

May 2011 - Two awesome friends threw me a fabulous baby shower, we finally got the nursery set up and decorated, and we started a new and special tradition on Mother’s Day releasing balloons to my mom. May and Mother’s Day is always a bittersweet time for me, but seeing LC release the balloons and yell “Love you Nana” was a special memory and moment that I look forward to repeating every year.

June 2011 – We had our last set of family photos taken before Lavery was born and I walked around for weeks having contractions. This was the month that we can now look back on as “the calm before the storm,” because it was our last as a family of three!

July 2011 – Lavery Elizabeth Crowe was welcomed into the world at 8:55am and was 8lb 8oz and 20 inches long! After watching my belly grow right here on Forever’s Like a Dream, Lavery was born and brought so much joy to our family.

August 2011 – I completed my final course in my BA and graduated college! After all this time and obstacles I’ve crossed, completed my Communications degree felt so sweet!

September 2011 – Kyle and I celebrated our third anniversary together. After five years of dating, a wedding, my mom’s funeral, and two kids later, we aren’t sick of each other yet!

October 2011 – Lavery had her first Halloween and dressed up as a lady bug while big brother was his favorite… Mickey Mouse! We went trick or treating with some very special and awesome friends and LC had a blast! His signature line? “I got CAAANNNNDDDYYY!!!” He even fell on his face once, and still got up screaming for his candy!

November 2011 – We celebrated our first Thanksgiving as a family of four and felt so blessed to have all that we have been given. Look how blessed our family is…

December 2011 – Our first Christmas a family of four. We celebrated this Christmas and Jesus’ Birth, LC even sang Happy Birthday to Jesus in his Christmas performance at school. We reflected on this last year and looked at how lucky we truly are.

I have met some amazing people in 2011 and I’m so thankful for the wonderful friends I’ve made and relationships I have had the opportunity to form. To everyone who came into my life this year, thank you for being you and I can’t wait to see what 2012 has in store for my relationships with you all! This year over all the others since I’ve lived in Charlotte, I finally feel a sense of home and I have some strong friendships I am so thankful for, and I look forward to bonding more and creating even more long lasting relationships with those of you I met this year!

 2011 was one of the best yet! I hope you and your family can look back and see as many blessings as I can and HAPPY NEW YEAR! May 2012 be filled with just as many blessings and wonderful memories!

 

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Medela’s Virtual Breast Milk Collection Campaign in Honor of Prematurity Awareness Month

Posted on November 2, 2011 by Kelley| Leave a comment

As each year passes, many months represent something or a cause that many people can find a personal relation to in one way or another. This month, November, marks Prematurity Awareness Month which is something I can personally relate to as well as many mother’s I know.

My brother (now a 23 year old healthy man) was born very premature and I remember as a young child visiting him in the hospital and watching my baby brother through the glass wall hooked up to countless monitor’s and cords. As a mother, I thank God everyday I have been blessed with two healthy babies born at 37 and 38 weeks and I pray for the mother’s who are facing their weak and tiny premature babies as they fight to get stronger and survive.

Medela has announced a Virtual Breastmilk Collection Campaign to honor Prematurity Awareness Month and to help raise awareness to the benefits breastmilk can have on your baby. The Campaign states:

In honor of National Prematurity Awareness Month and Neonatal healthcare professionals nationwide, Medela will host a virtual Human Milk (breastmilk) Collection Campaign. As part of this initiative, Medela will donate $30,000 worth of breastfeeding support products to neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) across the country – helping moms provide their premature babies with all the benefits of breastmilk. Throughout the month of November, you can vote for your preferred NICU at www.medelapreemieawareness.com. Six NICUs will receive at least $5,000 worth of Medela products or education services for their facilities to help enable moms to provide the life-saving benefits of breastmilk to their babies.

If you want to be a part of this virtual movement to help raise money for the NICO at six different hospitals, even just for registering, you can add 1mL to the Virtual Human Milk Collection Campaign!

Throughout November, you can register on Medela’s website and vote for a NICU to win. One Nicu from six regions will receive $5,000 worht of Medela products or education services for their facility.

The Benefits of Breastmilk

Breastmilk gives many benefits to your baby, including helping them build a stronger immune system, which is why breastmilk is so important for premature babies. You can read more about the importance of breastmilk and why it can be so beneficial to premautre babies here.

How You Can Be a Part of the Campaign

It’s simple! All you have to do is register and vote! I voted for Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center (cHaD) in Lebanon, NH to win, because several members of my family have been cared for here. My brother was born at the old location of this hospital and he has grown into such a healthy adult, I would love to see this hospital from my hometown win this campaign!

Leave me a comment, I would love to hear you voted for!

 

Posted in Breastfeeding, For Mom's

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Nursin’ SMART Silicone Bottle {Review}

Posted on October 2, 2011 by Kelley| Leave a comment

As of yesterday, our Little Miss is now three months old! Where has the time gone!? Every since Lavery was fresh out of the womb, she has been a nursing champ! Literally, latched right on and is one healthy, 3 month old little lady!

I wanted to wait a while before giving her a bottle, but at her one month checkup, our pediatrician advised me it was time for daddy to start feeding her once in a while… without mama in sight. She is attached to me 24/7, literally…. cries when I’m not in sight, although I will say, it has gotten a little better…. much to my like to have a few moments baby-free, but I won’t lie and say I’ve hated having that special bond either!

Per doctor’s orders, I started to pump (and I will discuss my frustration for the small amounts of milk I’ve been pumped later,) and daddy started feeding Lavery a bottle occasionally. I was a little nervous she wouldn’t take it (and the first time was a bit of a battle, not, because of the bottle, but because the milk was a tad too cold,)  but thanks to Innobaby’s Nursin’ SMART’s silicone bottle, we had not only a nursing champ, but a bottle champ too!

When we would feed LC a bottle, I literally researched forever for the most “breastfeeding friendly” bottle out there… as if there was a such a thing! And I ended up using something different, but the moment I even opened the packaging and felt Nursin’ SMART’s bottle, I knew this was much better! Even the design and soft bottle was more appealing for nothing more than just the look of it, so I was excited to be able to try this one out.

Reading about the Nursin’ SMART on its website, it states this bottle is

  • BPA Free
  • Naturally reduces colic
  • Supports babies with feeding challenges (such cleft palates, or born premature)
  • Increases emotional IQ due to the soft silicone bottle, which increases skin to skin contact

Aside from all of those bonuses, this bottle can be used through the toddler years and can be reused from one child to the next. The 5oz bottle starts at $16.99 and goes up from there, but it proves to be an economical choice to be used throughout your babies growth.

Innobaby has an assortment of products too, like check out this Silicone Spoon Feeder I was reading about on their website! Innobaby has proven their motto true providing “innovative solutions for smart parenting.” If you’re looking for a smart bottle choice for your little one, check out Nursin’ SMART…. my full time breastfeeding champ is a perfect example of the success you can have making your baby, an “innobaby!”

 

Posted in Baby & Kid Stuff, Reviews

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Lavery’s Birth

Posted on July 4, 2011 by Kelley| 3 Comments

Lavery Elizabeth entered the world at 38 weeks 1 day on July 1, 2011 at 8:55am. Kyle and I woke up bright and early, anxious to meet our baby girl and missing our baby boy at the same time. We arrived at CMC Pineville early in the morning eager to let Lavery’s birth day begin!

I was up all night the night before sick to my stomach and just anxious overall. I knew I would miss LC, but I also knew I couldn’t wait to hold my little girl in my arms. We were blessed with some amazing nurses prepping me for surgery and throughout our stay, I could not be happier about our experience!

Once I was all ready for surgery, they brought Kyle in and he held my hand while we awaited those screams and and kicks that were before us.

The surgery although overall went really well, I was a lot more sick than during my c section with Landyn. I was so nauseated and throwing up (so thankful for the amazing nurses and anesthesiologists who were so informative and helpful!) Even though it was a little more tough for me, the end result was perfect and I am so blessed to have this beautiful and healthy baby girl to hold! Here is a photo of the very first glimpse I got of my beautiful baby girl…. I remember crying even before she came out and as soon as I heard her and saw this face, all of my fears were instantly wiped away and replaced with joy…. check out those CHEEKS!!

CMC Pineville is honestly an amazing place to deliver. Even though I had a c section, Lavery was instantly given to Kyle and I got to hold her in the bed on my way back to our room directly after surgery. Kyle was able to take pictures of her right away (which is something I hated not having after LC was born at Presby) and we have our first photos with our baby girl taken just moments after shew as born!

Once the surgery was over, we were back in our room snuggling and I was able to start nursing right away (which she is doing amazing with!) We were given the most amazing nurses and I have to say a huge THANK YOU to Elizabeth and Megan for being so amazing during our time in the hospital and so comforting. I couldn’t have asked for better nurses to care for both me and my precious bundle of joy.

We brought our own diapers to use, and the nurses were great and cooperative sticking to what we wanted as well! Instead of wearing Pampers, I am proud to say Lavery has been 100% in either chlorine free disposables or cloth diapers from the moment she was born (even in the delivery room!) She wore her very first all in one cloth diapers today and so far, so good! I can’t wait to try some more!

We were in the hospital until today (Monday) and we really did have the best hospital experience. I am so thrilled with my doctor (Dr. Morris of Carmel OB has been amazing throughout my pregnancy and I was so happy she was the DR to deliver Lavery and be on call throughout our hospital stay too!) We brought her home on the 4th of July an she was of course all decked out in an adorable tutu! (You know my daughter is going to be full of fashion!) Throughout her stay, she was dressed in all things pretty in pink (of course) and I have already changed her multiple times since coming home! Here she is in her tutu getting ready to go home and saying goodbye to Dr. Morris.

And here is a photo of her big brother visiting her. We are so proud of the great and cooperative big brother Landyn is and we are so excited to watch them grow up together each day.

We are so blessed with our healthy handsome little man and now this beautiful healthy baby girl. I’ll be honest and say I am so excited she actually looks like me (considering LC is Kyle’s twin!) and she reminds me so much of my mom too. I know my mom is looking down so proud and I am so happy she has the name Elizabeth after two amazing influential women in my life who will always be very much a part of hers too.

Lavery Elizabeth Crowe

July 1, 2011

8:55am

8lbs8oz 20inches

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Welcome to the world Reed Wesley!

Posted on July 23, 2010 by Kelley| Leave a comment

Our best friends Luke & Audra had their second baby boy on Thursday!! Reed Wesley Pruitt joins our crazy little family of boys and we couldn’t be more excited!!

Audra and I went to HS together, and have been best friends ever since and Luke & Audra are Landyn’s godparent’s! Last summer when we spent time with them, Roman was stealing Landyn’s pacifier’s and looking on as his mommy held baby Landyn with jealousy! Now that he’s grown, I bet he will be a GREAT big brother and LC is so excited to have another godbrother to grow up playing with!!

We love you guys & can’t wait to meet baby Reed!!

With Love,

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Days away from the rest of our lives

Posted on March 7, 2009 by Kelley| Leave a comment

6 more days and the moment we have been waiting for over the last 9 months will FINALLY be here! Words cannot even describe the feelings going through my head right now. Is everything going to go as planned? Is he going to be quiet? Is he going to be fussy? Is he going to want to be held at every waking moment? Will he feel how much love Kyle and I share for our little bundle of joy? All of these things going through my head that I’ve been thinking about month after month are finally going to be a reality and all of my questions will finally be answered. This might sound crazy, but even though I knew this day was coming, it’s always felt so far away until now. Now it really feels real and like it’s actually happening. Days away from the rest of our lives….

With Love,

Posted in Pregnancy, The Crowe's Nest

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