Saturday, December 1, 2012

Our Ongoing Journey to Baby #2

I have decided to share our experience in hopes that I can encourage someone else, and receive encouragement.  I have learned in my life that when I share things I have gone through, or that I am going through, I can open the door for other people to have someone to talk to when otherwise they wouldn't.  I have been through a lot in my 32 year old life, and I am willing to share with others in hope that I can help someone else.

So, here is the story of our current journey...

It only took 5 months to get pregnant with Kenna with no complications. We started in December of 2010 trying to have another baby and a sibling for Kenna.  6 months later in May of 2011 we learned we were pregnant!  We were so excited!!  I had to have early blood work because in 2003 I had an ectopic pregnancy which left a damaged fallopian tube and increases your risks to having another ectopic pregnancy.  To learn more about ectopic pregnancies, click here.  The blood work showed that my HCG levels were not increasing as they should be.  We had an early ultrasound that showed the baby was developing behind schedule.  We continued with blood work for a few weeks, which still showed my HCG was increasing, but not at the rate it should be.  However, I had started to experience nausea and felt like things were going to be ok!  We had another ultrasound on July 19th, 2011 that showed the baby had not developed at all and that there was a 99% chance the pregnancy would miscarriage.  We had a D&C the next day.  My heart was broken.

We tried again, month after month, for a year without any success.  I feared something was wrong, and went to see my doctor because I had been diagnosed with endometriosis with my ectopic pregnancy in 2003.  I had laparoscopic surgery on August 30th of this year to determine if it was back, and it was back, along with findings that my left fallopian tube is almost completely damaged and not "usable" from the ectopic pregnancy.  Also, the scar tissue from my c-section with Kenna was excessive and was causing my uterus to be moved up and against my abdomen - in a place it should not be.  My doctor fixed what he could, and told me after surgery he was optimistic we would be able to get pregnant.  We were told to try 6 more months, and if we are still not pregnant, we will be talking to a fertility specialist.  We have been trying now for 3 months post surgery with no baby on the way...YET.  We just crossed the 2 years of trying mark...which for anyone who has really had to "try" to get pregnant, you know the emotional roller coaster that each month brings.

We consider ourselves so blessed with Kenna who is perfectly healthy and happy.  My goal was to have Kenna and her brother or sister 2 years apart, and we are getting closer to 4 years apart now if we were to get pregnant anytime soon.  We just continue to pray for a healthy and happy baby in our near future, and continue to thank God for the beautiful little girl we have.

I wanted to share our journey, because there is such a thing as second child infertility, which not many people have heard of.  For those of you that are still trying for your first, please try to be patient with yourself, and talk to your doctor if you feel you need to.  Trust me, I know being patient is much easier said than done...and hearing "just relax and it will happen" gets really old!  Please share your story with me or share my story with someone else, and we can encourage each other.

Love,

Carla

Sunday, November 21, 2010

Kenna Turns One!

Our baby turned one 2 weeks ago on November 7th. In one moment I think it has gone by so fast and it feels like I just had her a few days ago. In the next moment, I realize how much has happened in her one little year of life, and it feels right.
I am so proud to be this little girl's Mama. She is just so SWEET! I love when she sees me across the room after a few minutes of playing alone, and she comes over just to give me a big smile and hug, then goes off to her merry little way to play some more.
We got to have her party on her actual birthday at our house. We decided to keep it "small" with just family, but that included a lot of people! We're blessed to have so many family members that we are close to.
At one, she could walk about 6-7 wobbly steps. She was saying the words "uh-oh", "thank you" (in her own way), "da-da", "easy" and tries to say "itsy bitsy" for the itsy bitsy spider song. No "Mama" yet, but I'm patiently waiting... As patient as I can to hear those sweet little syllables!
Here are some pics from that very special day:



Good morning big one year old!



Kenna's Great Grandaddy & Grandmother



Brian with his dad and stepmom


Kenna and her Aunt Cici


Us with our birthday girl


Kenna loves her cousin Teaghan & giving hugs!



Big one year old!


Reading birthday cards


Yummy ladybug cake


Grandmother and my pretty Mama


Opening presents


Family of 3!


The aftermath of the cake!















Thursday, November 4, 2010

Catchin' Up to Speed

Wow. I haven't written in here since August. I constantly feel like I have so much to do with not enough time to do it in. I mean, I know everybody probably feels that way. Who has time to put photo books together, write in their blogs, keep up with their kids calendars of milestones, read magazines, exercise and keep up with their favorite tv shows (my DVR has 3 weeks worth as of now) on TOP of everything else? If you have the time, please do share your secrets with me. :)
Since I have last wrote, to catch up with just me, I have 2 surgeries scheduled for this month. One, to drain the hematoma from my leg that I got after falling down a flight of stairs at work - action movie style - and two on my left shoulder. I think I hurt my shoulder playing on the playset we have in our backyard. But it just hurts so bad sometimes I have to do something about it. I also just went to the doctor Wednesday about a lump I found in my neck about 4 weeks ago that hasn't gone down. Call me paranoid, but I'd rather be safe than sorry. Since Daddy died from cancer, I'm pretty scared I will have cancer too. I pretty much convince myself when one thing is wrong with me that it's cancer. I really need to work on enjoying TODAY instead of worrying all the time. I do have a cold right now too, which makes me have other swollen nodes, but this one in particular has been there for weeks! My doctor said it's probably just from an infection and he gave me some antibiotics to help it go down. He also did blood work which came back fine, thank God. I'm still going to an ENT doctor next week though because they want to make sure it's taken care of before my surgeries. The shoulder surgery is scheduled for Nov. 19th and my leg isn't scheduled yet because worker's comp has to approve it. THAT's been a fun experience. :)
I turned 30!!! It really didn't bother me and I think it's just because I am so happy in my life. I have a beautiful healthy sweet little girl, a loving husband with a heart of gold, a good job where I am respected and appreciated, a nice warm home, a mom and sister I could call any time of day who are also my best friends, and a best friend who I know will always be there (who also made me the awesome "Sugar Cube" T-shirt below for my birthday - check out her blog at Lele Green Captures). There was nothing sad about celebrating the 30th year of my life. I had an 80's party to appreciate the year I was born. See mine and Brian's pic below :)
Kenna has grown so much and simultaneously it's hard to believe she'll be ONE in 2 days because I can remember the day she joined us like it was yesterday, but then I think of how much has happened since she was born, and it's been a lot! She is taking 5-6 steps at a time now and considers walking her main source of transportation. She wants to hold my hand a lot to get around and it is so sweet. She has learned how to say "uh-oh" and will push things off her highchair just so she can say it! She also says "da-da" a lot! We're not sure if she completely associates it with Brian yet, because she says it to other people too. She can wave bye bye, do "Indian girl" by making indian noises with her mouth, and she tries to do the Itsy Bitsy Spider with her hands. She is a sweet child who gives hugs and pats you on the back at the same time. She thinks that dogs are HILARIOUS and laughs at them more than I can get her to!
Brian and I took a cruise 2 weeks ago on the Norwegian Pearl to the Carribbean. It was wonderful. I'm going to write a separate post about that, so I'll give more details there. Kenna's first birthday party is Sunday! We got her decorations the other night and I'm so excited! I didn't really do a "theme". Just pink :)
Here are a few of my favorite pics from the past few months.








Saturday, August 21, 2010

The way a Saturday should be...

We have spent this Saturday at home.  We left the house once for only about 30 minutes to take some paint to the dump (which was closed on Saturday) and then to an antique store called Rooster Tails.  I have absolutely loved this day with my husband and little girl.  We talked about how every Saturday should be just like today.  We played with Kenna all day (when she was awake and felt like it) and I ate it all up.  Kenna got tubes in her ears this past Thursday.  She has had 4 ear infections in 5 months, and the doctors decided she was the perfect canidate.  Unrelated, she has a horrible cold and my little sugar cube hasn't felt well at all the past 2 days.  She still plays like a little trooper until she just can't do it anymore!  I miss her so much during the week when I am at work.  I know I am doing what is best for our family by working, but I wish I had more time with her during the week.  I'm sure there are TONS of other parents that feel the same way. 
Brian and I cleaned both of our cars inside AND out!  And of course...it's raining now and Brian's 4Runner is outside.  :)  We also cleaned up the garage and got it organized some.  Brett stopped by to help Brian hang a large mirror that goes with our new dresser.  We also got my office put together finally and got some stuff on the walls that had been sitting on the floor since we moved in.  Kenna is sleeping soundly and I just heard the garage door open from Brian's run to get us a bottle of red wine :)  That's my cue...

Sunday, June 27, 2010

Over the river and through the woods...

To Grandma's house we went!  Brian went with the men's church group yesterday to white water raft the Ocoee River and Andy went with him.  So on Friday, me, Mama, and Kenna went for a visit to my Grandma's.  She hadn't seen Kenna since April!  She was so excited.  When we got there she had a HUGE meal fixed and her house was spotless!  Kenna just smiled at her and that made Grandma's day.  I love my Grandma.  Growing up when I ever answered the question who do you want to be like when you grow up, my answer was my Grandma.  She is such a caring, Godly like, strong woman.  Here are a few pictures from the visit.


Thursday, June 24, 2010

Gonna be better! I promise! :)

Ok, I really AM going to be better about writing in my blog now. We have FINALLY moved into our new house - we moved in about a month ago. I have my own little office off of our bedroom with some french doors that I just love! So, no excuses!
Here's what's going on in the life of the Moyers: first of all, I'm wondering where my newborn went! I can't believe she's 7 and a half months old. Time flies more now than it ever has! She started crawling last Monday while she was at Mama's house. Mama walked out of the room, and Kenna decided to follow her and just crawled right to Mama! Luckily Mama got a video of it and sent it to me. It seems like it was just a week or 2 before that that she was sitting up on her own! I really think that her going to daycare 3 days a week makes a difference in her development. She sees older children doing things and decides she wants to do it too! Unfortunately, she has also caught a cold and has been really sick the past few days. But hopefully that's on the out! LeAnna took her 6 month pictures also, and I'd like to share some of those. Here is the link to Le's blog with her pictures: http://lelegreencaptures.blogspot.com/2010/06/kenna-rayn-6-months-old-franklin-baby.html
In other news, I left PHHW, tried another job, and now I'm going back to PHHW.  The new job just didn't work out, and it is way too long to write.  I did try my best though, but some things are just not meant to be.
So, PHHW has graciously accepted me back into their firm, and I do feel like I'm going "home". I will start back sometime within the next week or 2, which depends on...
Shoulder surgery, possibly. About 4-5 weeks ago I was playing on the swingset we have in our new backyard with my neice and nephew, and I seem to have moved like a 14 year old in a 29 year olds body while doing a limbo move under a bar while holding on with my left hand. The doctor believes I have torn something which may require surgery to repair it depending on the severity of the tear. I had a MRI this morning which will give more insight. Sigh...
Well, that's news for now! Life is good, and God is greater!
:)

Monday, April 5, 2010

Lots Going On!

There is so much going on right now!  Where to start???  I guess the first thing is that I will be leaving my position at PHHW on April 15th this year after 5 and a half years of service.  It was an extremely hard decision that I prayed and thought over for at least a month.  I have accepted the position of Tax Manager/CFO with a company called Tri Star Sports & Entertainment.  They are an all-inclusive business management firm for entertainers and pro athletes.  I'm very excited about this new challenge and opportunity, but very sad at the same time to leave the people that have become like family at PHHW.  However, this new position will not demand any OT during "busy season" from which most of you know calls for about 65 to 70 hours a week during tax time!  I did not see my baby girl for ONE minute today.  She was asleep when I left this morning and asleep when I got home...I just cannot do that anymore.  Especially when I think about having baby #2 or #3 (possibly)!!

On another note - WE SOLD OUR HOUSE!!!  We closed on March 31st - we are officially DEBT FREE and homeless!  :)  Well, we have a home at Mama's right now!  We are currently waiting on the news from our offer on a home in Franklin.  It is a "short sale", which is a PROCESS....lemme tell ya!  The owners had 2 mortgages, from which one of them has accepted our offer, but the other has not.  We are supposed to find out this Thursday (4/8)...cross your fingers and say a prayer (but not necessarily in that order!) for us :)  This house is incredible and perfect for our family.  We have been staying at Mama's for about 2 and a half months now...we have one big room that makes up our living room, office, bedroom AND nursery!  Well, as of late we have moved Kenna into another room.  Poor baby doesn't even have her crib, just the pack and play!  But, she's happy just the same!

Kenna will be 5 months old on Wednesday!  Crazy!  Time has gone by so fast.  She is such a happy little girl!  Her "laughs" sound more like a squeal you make while sucking in air...really hard to describe in words!  Her eyes are still a blue-green....wondering if they'll stay that way...my mama has green eyes, Brian's mom has blue, both of my mama's parents have blue...guess we'll see!  She is a side sleeper and always rolls to her side to sleep when put on her back.  She also LOVES to squeal!  I really think she's going to be a loud talker like her Mama, which is like her Gran...haha.  She loves riding around outside in her stroller and kicks her legs the whole time.  She is eating cereal now and only spits in back out sometimes.  She is wearing 6-9 months clothes!  I think she's going to be a little chunker!  haha  Her smile is the most amazing thing to me and she is like a magnet that I am just drawn to...she is incredible and I thank God every day for her!

In 10 days busy season will be over and I will have a week and a half off before I start my new job.  I'm going to spend it with my "sugar cube"(aka Kenna), my sweet man, with a little shopping, massaging, and manicure/pedicure added in.  And maybe...just MAYBE...I'll be moving into our new house :)

The Story of Praying

Well, you almost had me fooled Told me that I was nothing without you Oh, but after everything you've done I can thank you for ho...