Our Sweet Summer

Oh summer. What a fun one it's been. We have done so many different things this summer, and I have Cache Valley Unplugged to thank for that. Working on our Brag Tags got us out of the house and to places we have never been. We did bowling, hiking, "fishing", the zoo, playgrounds and parks. We made crafts, and treats and helped our neighbors. We showed off our smiles and had so much fun. And now summer is gone. But we have these sweet memories. 

One thing I also did this summer was jump back into Bzz Agent. You sign up, fill out short surveys and then get matched up for Bzz Campaigns. Different things to try and talk about. I was doing it a year ago and was very into it, but then life happens and you get busy.

Speaking of life... (like that intro??) one of the Bzz Campaigns I'm in right now is for Coca Cola Life! You know, those green bottles of Coke you may have seen in the store. I have walked past them and never once stopped to look at them. I mean, there's Coke, and Diet Coke and Coke Zero....do we really need ANOTHER Coke product? But thanks to this campaign, I got to try Coke Life for free and let other people know what I think.

First, I love the green. And if you purchase it in bottles, it's tiny 8 oz bottles of Coke. In glass. Yes! Cute, little glass bottles. Imagine the Pinterest crafts you could do with those. And there's just something about drinking soda out of a glass bottle that takes you back. 

Second, it's sweet, but not fake sweet. I HATE aspartame with a passion. I refuse to buy things with it. It tastes gross and it's the bi-product of e. coli. Um - eww. But Coke Life is sweetened with Stevia. You may have heard of this stuff - it's a plant. In fact, Mike planted a stevia plant in our garden this year and we made some sweet tea with stevia instead of sugar. It has a good sweetness too it that isn't calorie loaded sugar. 

I wish they made different flavors of this stuff! I'm a Cherry Coke kind of girl, but this is only available in the classic Coke flavor. I haven't tried Mexican Coke, but I hear this tastes very similar. Probably because Mexican Coke is made with sugar cane instead of high fructose corn syrup.

Coke Life has less calories, a great crisp flavor and cute bottles. Who could ask for more??

#GotItFree #GotADiscount #CokeLife #GreenBottles #Stevia

Got it Free from Bzz Agent!

Power breakfast in the morning. Some caffeine and fuel

Pretty good! Must buy more :)

Franklin's Birth Story

We found out we were expecting our 4^th kid on Mike's birthday. Another complete surprise. Kind of threw a hiccup into our debt freedom plan, but fortunately we hadn't received any taxes or bonuses yet. We were finally heading into a pregnancy with a plan! We planned on saving enough for the the prenatal care AND for maternity leave.

Mike is now working at Swire Coca Cola which was nicer hours, nicer pay and nicer insurance. I am still at Beehive Grill and slightly scared to tell my boss. But I did and she wasn't too mad :) Like all my other pregnancies, I worked through it and didn't slow down.

I wanted a different pregnancy and delivery. Instead of calling my usual OBGYN, I looked into a midwife and a birthing center. With a recommendation from my friend Nicole Stepan, I called Birthwise Maternity Care in Layton and met with Heather and Janell. I instantly felt at ease and knew this was where I wanted to delivery my baby. I knew I wanted a natural birth and decided to have a doula this time to help encourage me and keep me focused. Nicole filled that role for me :)

Pregnancy problems this time: charlie horses. A lot of them. And in not just in my calves. I'd also get them in my thighs when I was walking. It sucked a lot. I also had heartburn (like usual). And morning sickness. I threw up a few times and would get nauseous a lot. Mostly in the morning.

I met with Janell mostly because Heather was in school. Janell helped me realize what foods to eat and had me write down a food journal for a few months. This helped keep me accountable with what I was eating and since I had just lost a lot of weight, it helped me keep my weight gain under control. This pregnancy I only gained 35-40 lbs. Nice!

Janell also went over every test they offered. She explained everything they did. I had hour long appointments. Unfortunately they were in Layton. I had to take the kids with me for an hour long ride down, an hour long appointment and then an hour long ride back. I did the appointments early enough that Grace was in school so I only had the little kids and they were usually pretty good.

We did our 20 week ultrasound at Cache Valley Specialty Hospital in North Logan. Saw the baby's hands, and feet, and heart. But we didn't see the face. Baby was hiding. We also found out that were we going to be the proud parents of a boy! Mike was pretty stoic about it but later that week told me to make sure I was feeding his son manly things. Things like hammers. Silly. Grace was extremely excited. She kept saying she was going to move out if the baby was a girl. Being a boy meant we didn't have to worry about finding her a place to live.

I carried this baby differently. I was all belly. And people kept talking about it too. I actually had an old employee run into me and comment that I had lost weight. And then noticed I was pregnant. Crazy! In the last month, I had a lot of people commenting that I hadn't popped yet. Everyone was sure I was going to go early. I figured I would be 3 days late. Grace was on time, Mercy a day late and Bethany two days late, so in my mind, baby would keep the trend going.

I worked up until a week before I was due. I was tired, but I didn't complain. I didn't really have time. I had a 50 hr a week job and 3 kids at home.

We got closer to my due date (September 22^nd) and I was done working. I had some mild contractions but not much. I had a feeling I was going to go early (around the 20^th) but that day came and went with no baby. We even went and walked at the zoo and nothing happened. We went to church the next day and still no baby. Grace started religious education and had class on Sunday and Monday and since I was due on the Monday, I assumed she'd miss class. She made it to class.

Tuesday I had an appointment with Janell and Mike decided to start his vacation. He didn't want me to drive to Layton alone (well with the kids) and end up going into labor on the highway. So we went down and had a quick visit. Janell was with another client and we did a quick visit with Melanie. I really wanted to have Janell check my cervix but we didn't want to wait too long. The kids were running amok. Finally Janell came out and I asked for a quick check. I was 4 cm! I was stoked. That was further than I had been with any of the girls at that point. And I had barely had any contractions! She asked me if I wanted my membranes stripped and I said no. We left and stopped at Red Robin for lunch before heading back up to get Grace from school. She was disappointed that there wasn't a baby yet.

That night my contractions started up more and stayed pretty steady. I had Mike call Jamie and take the girls over around 7:00 or so. They were excited for a sleepover. I texted Janell and told her my contractions were about 10 min apart and steady. Told her they weren't too bad so we were going to wait them out and keep her updated. Then they slowed down. A lot. We went to bed and I hoped that I would wake up with some contractions in the middle of the night. I woke up at 8:00 am with no contractions, my water still intact and no baby.

Wednesday we took the girls to the River Walk and tried to get things moving. A few contractions here and there but nothing. Wednesday came and went with no baby.

Thursday I woke up at 3:00 am with major anxiety. I knew that the stroller was in the car and not our bags and I was scared that my water was going to break and we wouldn't make it in time. I couldn't go back to sleep so I stayed up and surfed the internet. After the girls got up and Grace went to school, Mike and I tried some other things to get baby along :) We were going to go for a walk but Bethany didn't want to get in the stroller so we just let them ride bikes up and down the street for a bit. My contractions were starting back up and staying steady. I had some bloody show and was feeling good. Around 12:30 I told Mike that I think the girls should go back to Jamie's. We stopped by Grace's school and told her that Jamie would pick her up. Then took the little ones to Jamie's. I called Nicole and told her I was headed down. I figured in a worse case scenario, they could at least tell me if I was any more dilated. I had a contraction every 5 minutes on the way to Layton. Nicole met us down there and Janell checked me. I was at 5 cm. I was pretty upset about it. I was sure I was further along. So Mike, Nicole and I walked around a few blocks of Layton and tried to let gravity take it's course. Contractions were steady but not crazy. Then we went back to the birthing center and watched a movie on the iPad. Janell left to make dinner and told me to keep her updated. Nicole and I walked for another hour.

I got to eat during labor, which was new. I had beef jerky and graham crackers. And a lot of water. My hands did swell up during our walks, but this was the only swelling I had during the entire pregnancy.

At this point (around 8:00 pm) I told Mike he could probably head home to let out the dog and take the girls their lovies. None of them had stuffed animals or blankets. I thought the baby would be there by then and we'd be going home. He left and make it back by around 11:00 pm. I was having slightly stronger contractions, but not much. Let Janell know they were lasting longer and wanted her to come back and check me. She showed up and said I was at a 6 cm. Ugh.

I wanted to take a shower to keep things movings. Janell suggested I rest. I relented and laid down on the bed by Mike. My next contraction was intense. I moaned a little. Then the next one was intense again. And the next. Mike started rubbing my back. Finally I had to sit up because laying down sucked. I would lean up against Mike's chest (he was sitting on the bed) and Nicole would push against my lower back. That was awesome. Mike will claim that I bit him on the head at this point. I will counter argue that I was trying to kiss his head, it was just during a contraction and it was a rough kiss.

After about an hour of this, Nicole suggested the tub and I jumped on that. Janell got the water going and I stripped to my underwear and my sports bra. The water helped ease the contractions and was very relaxing. Whenever a contraction would hit, I would lean up against Mike's knees (he had them in the water) and Nicole would lean in and press my lower back. That was honestly what helped me get through it all. I would also breathe in a color (like blue) and then with each exhale, in my mind, a flower would open up. By the end of the contraction, the flower was fully in bloom. Each successive contraction I would change color of the flower and went in rainbow order. It helped (kinda) keep my mind off the pain of the contraction.

The water was hot. It felt good. I would sip cold water between contractions. Janell never left and after a bit of me being in the water, she came over and was coaching too. She helped by saying to “breathe it down”. At first I just endured the contractions. Then I started “pushing” or flexing my muscles in my abs. I didn't think I was ready to push the baby out but I definitely think that helped to get me to transition and move the baby down to the birth canal.

Thursday came and went. It was probably about 1:00 or slightly thereafter when I suddenly said I felt like I needed to poop. I know that's gross (especially since I was in the water) but that's exactly what it felt like. I felt a contraction start but I waited and pulled my underwear off first. Now I was on my hands and knees, leaning against the back seat of the tub. The tub looked similar to this:

This wasn't the exact tub, but the seat part in the back and the shape of the rest of the tub is very similar. I would lean against the seat and Nicole or Janell would do presses on my lower back. The urge to poop was strong so I just went with it. I was actually pushing my baby down and getting him to crown. I swore. Nicole says just once, but I know there was an “f-bomb” in there. Janell told me after the fact, that when I hit transition, I swear. That way I will know for next time (I know, I know, Mike. No next time). Also, right before I started pushing his head out, my water broke. It felt like a pop and then fluid came out. No mechonium.

I felt his head crowning and in my head he was further out that he was. Janell kept telling me to release and let him go back inside and I didn't want to. I wanted to push him all the way out. But by releasing and letting him go back, I was stretching and making it so I wouldn't tear. But in the moment, all I wanted was my baby out. I did this for about 4 contractions before his head finally came all the way out. That relief was amazing. The cord was around his neck once and Janell slipped it off while I rested. They told me after I pushed him all the way out, they would push him under the water and through my legs so I could pull him right to my chest. I said ok but at that point I just wanted him out. The next contraction started and instead of waiting for it to peak and then push, I just started pushing, which just really tired me out. And I did bite Mike this time. On his arm. Oops! Two pushes later, Franklin was out and Janell directed him under my legs. I felt all the waters rush out with him and then I was grabbing him and pulling him to my chest. Franklin Dale was born at 1:49 am on Friday, September 26^th. I was so relieved to have him out that we didn't even check to make sure he was in fact a “he".  It took a bit before we checked. Yup, all boy.

It was intense. It was amazing. I remember telling Mike, Nicole and Jesus that I loved them. Not sure when that happened. Mike had a moment where he saw how tired I was and didn't think I could go much longer. Thankfully, that was right at transition and baby was close to arriving.

My placenta delivered easily. And floated along side of me in a bowl. We left him attached so he could get all the blood out of the cord and placenta. I think we stayed in the tub for at least an hour. They checked all his vitals while he was snuggled on my chest. He started nursing right away and had a pretty good latch.

Finally I wanted out of the tub so Mike held him while Janell and Fara dried me off and got me settled on the bed. I was a little woosy, but that was mostly because of getting out of the hot tub. After probably 30-45 more minutes we finally cut the cord (Mike got the honors), checked baby for reflexes and measured and weighed him. He was 9 lbs 4 oz! Our biggest baby yet and I did it all naturally. He was also 21” long, which I figured because of where his feet always kicked me.

Things I loved about my birth:

All natural

Supportive and no pressure to do something I didn't want to do

Immediate bonding

We got to leave! We left the birthing center at 5:00 am and drove home. We were more than welcome to stay and rest, but Mike didn't want to sleep for an hour and then try to drive.

This was my best birthing experience. I wouldn't change the way I did my girls, because I feel like it shaped each subsequent birth. But having a natural birth, and being informed about it, was amazing. I wish more women knew their options before birth. I did run into my former OBGYN at my work and he knew I was having a different birth. For a while we considered a home birth but changed our mind because I didn't want Janell stuck up here for a long time if I was going to have a long labor. She didn't feel comfortable using LRH as a backup incase something happened, so it worked out well to just use the birthing center. But I did make sure to tell everyone I was having a natural birth. Most people thought I was crazy, but a lot of people thought I was a rockstar. I think I'm a rockstar too!

This one is my favorite. He looks so small but he was so big. But so small. 

I needed glasses to see him :)

Daddy cutting the cord

Weighing him. I love this scale! Mike likened it to fishing :)

Baby feet

Sleeping before the ride home

Big Sister Grace

Big Sister Mercy

Big Sister Bethy

This is Grace's version of the birthing story. She is learning typing at school so she thinks work processors are cool.

HOW MY MOM HAD FRANKY WHEN HE WAS BORN.Franky was born on september 26.I was so exsideid when I fownd owt .When I got to see my brother.Now Franky cry's a lot and ete's a lot.

Now when I do my homework my mom feeds Franky.Franky is so cute but Franky has acne.Frankys baptism is on november sencend.It is my first brother.Writen by Grace Dicus.

Less than a month

Less than a month till we meet baby Frankie. Less than a month till my charlie horses and heartburn stop. Less than a month left of what is probably my last pregnancy.

I know we are slightly leaving it up to God but it does feel like this is the last. It makes me sad. But then I remember the charlie horses, and the peeing all the time, and the heart burn.

And then I remember the baby hiccups that are special between me and him, and the movement when he is awake. And his heart beat close to mine.

I wish ... I wish.

Can't wait to see Frankie! Can't wait!!

Coppertone Clearly Sheer

Summer is here! Hooray! And truth be told, I suck at remembering to put sunscreen on myself. And my kids. Unless we're doing something fun like the splash pad or the beach. I have some sunscreen somewhere in my house. From last year. Which means it's probably expired. 

Then I got into the Bzz Campaign for Coppertone Clearly Sheer. You know Coppertone, right? Cute girl with the puppy pulling down her swimsuit. Makes you think it's just for kids, but this new line is awesome for adults too! Especially since they don't smell like normal sunscreen does. So I can put some on before heading to the park, or on a walk or just to garden without smelling like the beach.

I tried two kinds. One was specialized for sunny days with a SPF of 30 and came in a bottle that fit perfectly into my purse to take along on our outings. The other was specialized for the beach or pool with a spf for 50 and was in a spray! I have used spray sunscreens before and always had to spray it and then rub it in. That left streaks and smears, especially if I was spraying it on myself. This spray went on clear and I didn't even need to rub it in.

The only thing I didn't like about the spray was if my kids breathed it in, they hated it and fought me about putting the sunscreen on the rest of their body.  No, I didn't spray it on their face, but if we did it outside and it was windy, it carried the mist. It reminded me of bug spray smell and they weren't having that. But being able to spray it on myself rocked! I could get my back and shoulders without worrying about missing a spot. 

Both formulas are water resistant for up to 80 minutes which was nice since that's about how long before my kids are tuckered out and ready to rest up.

We headed up to Bear Lake and to the Idaho side because the beach is much nicer and had a day of it. 85 degrees and not a single sunburn! Hooray!!

 Here's a few photos.

Daddy with Mercy & Bethany

It took a bit but Bethy did eventually go in the water. They loved looking for shells. 

It was windy and chilly if you got out of the water, so I stayed in as long as possible. Grace was a little guppy and barely came out of the water. She came back in for a photo.

Mercy needed a cookie break. Notice the Coppertone spray next to her. She had gotten into the other bottle and it was all over her face and hands. Unfortunately, I was in the water and no where near my camera to snap a pic. Shoot.

When Bethy finally got out of the water, she was shivering and needed a snuggle with daddy. She's such a sweetie.

So while it was nice to have the sunscreen at the beach, it's also nice to have something to apply that doesn't make me smell like I'm going to the beach. And it also didn't clog my pores or make me break out. Coppertone's Clearly Sheer is clearly a good choice!

I received this product for free to try and review because I'm a Bzz Agent.

#GoitItFree

Good2Grow

I've been a BzzAgent slacker lately. I was in a ton of campaigns and life got in the way and I didn't Bzz as much as I should have.

But I'm in a truly awesome campaign right now (three actually, so stay tuned for more posts in the future).

The one I'm currently loving in the good2grow juices with reusable SippaTops. We have used drinks like these in the past, and I can't honestly remember the brand of them. Usually they last a few weeks in our house because we reuse the bottoms. And the tops would be washed in the dishwasher and reused as well.

We haven't had one in our house in a long time.

Until my Bzz pack came in the mail and we got three new SippaTops! Thomas the Train, Sully from Monster's Inc & Ariel. Having 3 girls, this was a good assortment of characters. They drank the juice fast. So fast, in fact, that I never had a chance to really look at it so I could brag about it.

So today, we picked up a refill pack. And a new SippaTop because Mercy saw Cinderella and HAD to have her. Cinderella was on the apple juice flavor and the refills I picked up were strawberry kiwi. They also had a refill pack of apple and tropical fruit medley.

Loves:

• There were a ton of different tops from Tinkerbell and friends to superheros and even Keropee frog. 

• They are 100% juice! I love that there isn't any added sugar, especially no high-fructose corn syrup. 
• Washable. Even in the dishwasher. This makes cleaning them so much easier. 
• Spill-proof. My kids never leave drinks sitting upright so it's nice to let them have one and not worry about spills all over my carpet. 

• The shape of the bottle is nice for little hands to hold. It's "hourglass" shaped so their little hands can grip the middle with ease. 

Not so much love:

• Really there isn't much. The "Strawberry Kiwi" ingredients are water, apple, carrot & beet juice concentrate, citric acid, ascorbic acid, natural flavor, D-alpha-Tocopheryl Acetate (which they say is Vitamin E) and Vitamin A Palmitate. Don't see with Strawberry or Kiwi listed there. Which means it's just flavored like strawberry kiwi. Prob won't go for that flavor again and I'll stick with the apple juice. 

That's about it. Like I said, not so much "not so much love". These help keep my kids hydrated (especially good since summer is sneaking up on us) and I can control what they're drinking. Plus they like it and I'm not giving them sugar laden beverages. 

And how much fun would a birthday party with good2grow drinks be?! You can enter here: win.good2grow.com/bzzagent for a chance to win. Good luck!!

#GotItFree

I received these products for free to try and review because I'm a BzzAgent

By the way...

Yes, I know what causes "this". If I didn't, I wouldn't be pregnant again.

No, I'm not getting my tubes tied, or my husband snipped, or anything like that. I don't believe in altering my body because I want or don't want something. Some times what we want isn't what we need.

I don't know if we will have more children. Part of our faith is trusting God knows what we need. He won't give us anything that we can't handle. He may provide challenges that shake us, but in the end we are stronger.

I'm not sure if there are two babies inside of me. If there are, then there are and my heart gets to double again. Every body is different. Telling a woman she is big or must be carrying twins in rude and insensitive. I don't tell you what is wrong or not normal with your body. And if I did, you wouldn't appreciate it. Please respect that.

Birth is natural. We were made to do this. I'm not sick. I don't need a hospital. I need positive energy and support.

I wouldn't change my children for the world. I don't regret them. I don't wish I wasn't pregnant. This is a miracle and I feel blessed every day.

I'm blessed to have a husband who is strong, faithful, moral and kind. He loves me. He loves our children. He supports my decisions and stands by me. He is my warrior. He is my protector. He is my soul mate.

I'm blessed to have three beautiful girls who are inquisitive, smart, funny and kind. They love to explore and learn new things. They make me laugh and light up my life.

I'm blessed to be carrying another child and bringing new life into this work. Baby depends on me to provide a warm, nurturing environment for growth and a loving and welcoming home when he or she is born.

I'm thankful that my life is the one I have. There isn't anything I would change.

I am blessed.

18 weeks

I'm 5 months pregnant already. It's going by quickly. We'll find out if Frankie is short for Frances or Franklin in just 2.5 weeks. Crazy!! Today Frankie is the side of a bell pepper. That seems sooooo big! Very wiggly and moving around a lot. I have felt movement on the outside but it's not frequent and not hard enough for someone else to tell.

I weighed 150.2 lbs today and considering all the candy I ate yesterday, I'm surprised it's not more. Didn't track my food too well last week but it was crazy. Who am I kidding? Every week is crazy, so I can't use that as an excuse.

I did catch up on the Catechism and I'm 40% of the way through it. It's kind of cool because it changed how I perceived church yesterday. Oh church yesterday...Bethany threw up all over Mike. Blech! At Easter Mass, no less. And we keep having kids. Must be crazy.

Had a lady ask me if I knew what causes "that" (Meaning my pregnancy). I said yes, and it's fun. Ha! If I didn't enjoy it, or children, I wouldn't keep having them!!

I'm at 34 of 100 books done for the year. Been listening to Room by Emma Donoghue. It's an interesting book and I'm pretty into it now and want to know how it ends. And I've been cross-stitching a lot. Hooray!

Other than that....we're pretty boring!

Happy Easter!!