My name is Amanda and I gave birth to Rebekah Nichole on December 28, 2007. I followed my pregnancy with I_am_pregnant.com but never became a V.I.P. member. I wish I had because I feel like I know many of you that were due around my due date. I enjoyed reading your pages and comments throughout my pregnancy and cried each time I discovered one of you had given birth. Most of the time I felt like you were the only people who understood everything I was feeling, especially those last few weeks when time seemed to stand still and the waiting carried on forever. I really hope to make some new friendships as I share my little bundle of joy with all of you. Let me start by telling you a bit about my pregnancy and the birth of Rebekah.

I found out I was pregnant on a Saturday in the very end of April. It came as quite a shock to my husband, Kevin and I and we did not believe it to be true until the doctor confirmed it the following Monday. You see, this was a great miracle for us since we had been trying to conceive for over 5 years! I have Polycycstic Ovarian Syndrome or PCOS. This means my ovaries are filled with cysts, making it nearly impossible for me to ovulate. This also means that many of my eggs are malformed and are not viable for fertilization...oh yeah, and I have a much greater risk of miscarriage.

God was very good to us and through much prayer, our pregnancy went perfectly! At our 20 week appointment we found out we were having a girl. We were thrilled beyond belief that we could finally call her by her name and not just "the baby" anymore. All of the sudden everything seemed so real...we were really having a baby!

The month of December dragged on for ages (I'm sure many of you can relate with your last month before giving birth). I loved being pregnant until those last few weeks when I just felt huge and uncomfortable all the time. And I was tired of anticipating Rebekah's birth, I just wanted to experience it. I had been dilated and effaced for several weeks and my body was ready to have her. Thank God for my doctor! She very kindly scheduled us for induction on the 28th of December!

Friday morning of the 28th, we arrived at the hospital bright and early. I was given the Pitocin drip at 7 am and steadily started contracting almost immediately. The pain was tolerable and I was able to breath through all my contractions without much problem. It did take a lot of focus, but felt very natural, easing my discomfort and allowing me to prepare for hard labor. Labor went very quickly for me and I was ready to push sometime around 1 pm. It took several long contractions and a lot of prayer to get Rebekah out, but she finally arrived at 1:35 pm! I made it through the whole labor without any medication!

I just want to say a huge thank you to all the husbands and partners out there. My husband was unbelievable with his support and encouragement. This was all new to him as well and he doubted himself throughout the whole process. But he was wonderful and knew exactly what I needed. I also want to say thanks to all the labor nurses out there. What a job you have! You are changing lives everyday and I know you probably don't get thanked enough...lets face it, most women are in too much pain to think straight during that time.

Well, that's my story. I plan to update Rebekah's page fairly often, sharing new pictures and milestones with you all. Please write when you have the chance and I will happily reply!

Here's the proud daddy with his new baby girl!

Here I am just a few hours after giving birth...I felt so much better!
Grandma Gaylan time! This is her first grandbaby!

Snoozing with daddy. We're both huge cuddle-bugs!

Talking to mama, I just have so much to say!

Me and Gramma D are best friends.

Grampa loves me so much!


1/28/08 - Well, Rebekah is a month old already! And we have certainly had our challenges. While she has been a true delight this past month, we are currently battling a really bad bout of yeast. It all started with a couple tiny spots on her bottom that wouldn't go away with regular diaper rash cream. Then I noticed a white spot on my breast and it was sore when she ate. Well, to make a long story short, Rebekah has thrush in her mouth and the yeast has transferred to my other breast. Yuck! So were are both on prescriptions for this mess. It seems to be clearing up already, but may take a while. If anyone has any suggestions to keep this from happening again, I'm all ears!



2/5/08 - Is anyone else exhausted since the birth of their little one? I feel like I may never get enough sleep again. I mean, having her is totally worth every moment of sleep deprivation, but it's really taking a tole on both my mind and body. My husband is doing what he can to help, but I really don't think he understands what I'm feeling right now. I was sick with the flu last weekend and am still trying to recover, which is making life even harder at the moment. My family has all come and gone, so we are now permanently without any extra help. Argh. Would it be wrong of me to ask my husband to take more time off of work? I know I have to get used to my new life as a mom, but I still feel so overwhelmed.



2/9/08 - Yay for daddy! My wonderful husband did the middle of the night feeding last night and I feel like it made a world of difference! It was a long 7 hour stretch of uninterrupted sleep! My body and mind really needed the long rest.



2/13/08 - Here's our family photo! It looks so much better than the one taken in the hospital when I was all pale and tired looking. Rebekah looks like a little diva in her pink leopard outfit. We also think she looks like a chipmunk with her cheeks full of nuts in this photo! She's just too cute!

This week has been much better for me. It's the first week where I have felt more like my old self. Not that I don't like how my life as changed. It's just nice to feel like you can have a bit of a life of your own, separate from the duties as a wife and mother. I was able to get out and visit with my best friend for the first time in weeks. She had come to visit me a couple times, but her two year old son makes it more difficult for her to visit me. I don't have all the fun toys and books like he has at home. Plus, he has to be in bed so early that we barely begin visiting and they have to go home so he can get into bed. So it was nice to feel well enough to visit with each other at her house again.

I also finally feel like I have a bit more energy. I have been able to keep up with the housework and finally feel healed enough to start working out again. I'm sick of this winter weather and look forward to the spring warmth...as well as the longer hours of sunlight. I can't wait to go walking with Rebekah. Not only will I get the workout I so desperately need, but she will get some time outside in God's beautiful world. It will be so nice!



2/14/08 - I just LOVE watching my husband play with his baby girl! She smiles at his beard and enjoys hearing his voice when he talks specifically to her. It melts my heart to see how much he loves her. I am so thankful to God for giving him these joyful moments and I hope and pray my husband will have many more babies to love!




2/15/08 - My beautiful baby girl was in such a great mood today that I had to rush to get my camera. The poor girl, she has flashes in her eyes all the time! Her professional photos came back a couple days ago and they came out absolutely beautiful. We also had family photos taken, so we should get those back in a day or so. I can't wait to finally have our family photos hanging on my wall! We remodeled over the summer of last year trying to ready things for Bekah to get here. Since then my walls have been bare, just waiting for her gorgeous face to be plastered all over it!





2/20/08 - Here they are! The professional photos we have been waiting for! They came out beautiful and we are very happy with them. They look a bit grainy on the website, but are perfect in real life! Check out Rebekah's professional pictures on her own page!

2/25/08 - It's times like these when I feel blessed beyond my wildest dreams! Bekah and daddy were snoozing away! He loves her sooooooo much, which fills my heart with unspeakable joy. I feel the same way, of course! And I love him just as much!

That is why we have already decided to try for another baby. I know it seems very soon, but my doctor is supporting us 100%. With the PCOS as an issue, my doctor suggested we try sooner rather than later for another baby since the chances of conceiving again go down the longer you wait. No problems here! We're all ready! Now we just have to pray and hope that God has some wonderful plans in the works!

2/27/08 - Last night I took some pictures of Rebekah with my best friend's son. His name is Alex and he is 2 & 1/2. He loves his fake cousin and likes to show her by kissing her on the head! She certainly doesn't mind getting all the attention!

2/27/08 - Here is Rebekah with my best friend Kate and her son Alex. They came to visit us while we were still in the hospital. We consider them to be family and have been known as Auntie and Uncle to Alex since the day he was born. I love them both very much. It has been so wonderful to watch Alex grow up and I am looking forward to spending lots of time sharing Rebekah with her Aunt Kate!

FYI - Kate just joined Talkingbabies, so she's looking for some other moms to chat with. Her screen name is darkhairedbelle and you should be able to find her in the VIP search.

3/3/08 - Well, we had an eventful weekend. Bekah had to get her shots last Thursday and she was not very happy afterward. She slept for almost two days straight and then was wide awake all weekend. She ran a low fever and was fussy from being uncomfortable. The poor girl, we felt so bad for her. She seems much better today, which makes us very relieved. But we are not looking forward to her next set of shots in May.

On another note, we as a family are doing very well. My hubby and I have been much closer these past couple weeks now that I am not nearly so tired anymore. It has been wonderful to feel madly in love with him again...not that that ever changed. But with a new baby in the house, everything else changed, including time for each other. I REALLY missed him more than I even knew and am very thankful to God for helping us to adjust and keep our relationship the number one priority. After all, if we are doing great then Bekah should feel safe and content herself...which makes for a much happier baby!

3/7/08 - Oh my, Rebekah is 10 weeks old already! The time has flown and she is getting so big! At her appointment last week she weighed 11 lbs 12 oz and measured 23 3/4" long! She is holding her head up really well now and she enjoys sitting up more rather than reclining on our laps. She's not the same tiny little girl we brought home from the hospital. Part of me is a bit sad to already have that stage over with. But I am eagerly anticipating the new and joy filled times to come.

3/7/08 - Kevin loves to play with Bekah just as much as I do. But he did tell me the other day that he is looking forward to the time when she can kick a ball with him and run around and rough house. I'm not nearly ready to be at that time in her life. I just want to hold her as long as I can! She's just so squishy and cuddly!

3/10/08 - My sweet baby girl slept through the night for the first time last night! She went down at 10pm and didn't wake until 7:30 the next morning! WOW! The irony is that I got up 2 or 3 times to make sure she was still breathing...I haven't done that in weeks. It would be awesome if she does the same tonight, but I guess I shouldn't get my hopes up, yet!

3/17/08 - Well, we haven't had as long a night as the one above, but Bekah's been sleeping a solid 7-8 hours all week. Even when we traveled overnight on Friday she kept with her sleeping schedule...which was great since hubby and I stayed up super late! At least we got to sleep in a bit to make up for our lack in judgement!

3/24/08 - We had a great week! Bekah has continued sleeping through the night and is doing 9-10 hour stretches sometimes! She's been such a wonderful baby. We love her so much! And great news...she had a new cousin born this morning! His name is Troy Brendan and he came by c-section at 9:19 in the morning. 5 lbs 9 oz! When I have pictures I'll post them to my page.

Here he is! Troy Brendan, Bekah's newest cousin!!! He has so much hair. Isn't he adorable! I can't wait to meet him and am so excited that Bekah has a cousin so close in age. Babies are truly miracles, aren't they?

Here's my step sister Bonnie and her husband Troy right after the birth of their beautiful new son!

My big girl finally fits in her cloth diapers! Yay! Talk about a HUGE money saver! I'm so glad they finally fit!

4/10/08 - Well ladies, the evil AF showed late last night, so no pregnancy this month. I think we're going to give up for now...I mean, what are the chances of concieving when you're nursing and you have PCOS on top of it? I do have faith in God's miracles and I know he answers prayers in his own time. He certainly did the last time! I'm just not ready to give up nursing Bekah because what if this is the only time in my life I'll ever be able to nurse a baby? It's just such a beautiful and wonderful thing to give up too soon. So we wait...

4/11/08 - So I went into Bekah's room this morning to find her wide awake and playing with the elephants on her bumper. It was the cutest thing! She didn't realize I was in there at first and she was talking to them in her little baby language. Silly girl! It wasn't until I snapped the first picture that she finally realized she wasn't alone and then she turned and gave me the biggest gummy grin! I was laughing SO hard! If all mornings were like this I wouldn't have any trouble dragging myself out of bed!

4/29/08 - Well, I haven't updated my page in quite some time! My goodness, I've been so busy this month! Bekah went with me to a wedding shower, so we got all gussied up! You can see us in the pic above, pretty in our pinks! We bought Bekah an exersaucer this weekend and she loves it so much. She likes being able to stand up on her own and she coos at all her new toys on the top. It's so adorable! I'll have to upload a video when I have the chance. Also, she goes to the doctor's on Thursday for another round of shots...ugh...I dread going...but I know it must be done. I'll have to update everyone on her weight and length when we get home. She's so huge I wouldn't be surprised if she's past 15 lbs by now!

5/5/08 - Hehehe! Well, I know this bow is probably a bit much but I can't get over how cute she looks with it on! What do you think?

5/11/08 - Well ladies...I had the most wonderful Mother's Day gift imaginable! As you can see from above we're expecting another baby! Tiny he or she should be due on January 21, 2009...just 3 weeks after Bekah turns one. God is so miraculous and wonderful!!!! We just can't stop smiling and praising his name!!!!!