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Stories 2 Years 9 Months... You are growing every single day and we cannot believe it is happening before our eyes. Each and every day you become more and more a little girl rather than a toddler. You are strong, independent and definitely just like your Mommy :-) Although we get a run for our money most of the times, it keeps us on our toes and we know that she is growing into the woman she will be one day. She knows all her shapes and letters and can even count to 15! She loves to sing her ABC's and any song for that matter. School was something that she loved until we moved schools on June 1st...so there has been an adjustment getting used to new kids and teachers, for all of us. We took our trip to Panama City for the National Discovery Network and had a great time. Savana was loved by 4 talent agents, 2 of which were close enough to consider working with in the future. We have had one professional photo shoot in order to create her Models Books and portfolio which the agnts will use to find her work....nothing happening yet as we are still waiting ont he official portfolio to be delivered and the finishing touches to be placed on everything. One agency in Atlanta and one in WPB want to work with her. We are excited by what might happen, but no matter what we are excited about the opportunity it has given her to come out of her shell, and for us to spend some one on one time with her. I will keep postings updated if it ever takes off! I have posted a coupld of the pictures that were taken in her first photo shoot here. Now that the summe rhas officially arrived in Florida, we are spending a lot of time in the pool Savana loves to swim and if it was up to her would be in it 24/7. I think we may have a fish on our hands once she gets a little older and can actually swim alone :-) We plan to put her in swim lessons this year...if we can find the time! We are completely potty trained and too smart for our own good! I think we are in trouble in the years ahead!!!
25 Months....... We are now 2 years old and the chatter has increased from single words and 3 word sentences to complete sentences of 7,8, and 9 words...it is truly amazing. We are working hard on riding our bike, swimming and just being a terrible two all together! A few weeks back we took Savana to one of those children's discovery searches and they loved her....of course we weren't surprised! We are excited at the fun we hope it will be. It will start with a trip ti Panama City in April...we are looking forward to it! Her brother Logan is taking to her.....if she just walks by him he gets all excited and smiles...she is so great with Logan and has really taken to the role as a big sister quite well. Who knows what will happen when he starts crawling and walking and bothering her 24/7!! Our birthday party was a huge hit with The Backyardigans and all the trimmings, including the coolest cake ever....thanks Grandma!!
22 Months.... We are talking up a storm now and starting to put 2 and 3 words together to make sentences. Savana has taken to the water like a fish....she absolutely loves swimming or playing in the water anytime and anywhere. We go to grandma and grandpa's where she swims with grandma, daddy, or whoever will take her in, and when we are at home, she will just sit in the small pool we purchased for her and pour the water from one pail to the other, over and over again! Amazing how far $8 can go during the hot summer sun in Florida :-) As you can see, our little girl has turned into just that, a little girl....no longer the baby in the house, she is showig the strong personality that she has (I wonder where she got that from?!?!?), and is begining to grow into a great little girl before our eyes! We look forward to the summer again and the days we will spend taking walks around the neighborhood, playing outside in the evenings and swimming any minute we can!
Learning our Shapes 17+ Months..... We have just started to work hard learing our shapes. We did them for the first time the night before, and here is how well she did the next morning! Quite the little "Einstein" wouldn't you say? Well.....maybe not, but we think she is pretty darn smart :-) Next project.....letters and numbers :-)
Where we are today-17 Months Old..... Hard to believe it has almost been a year and a half since Savana joined our family. So much has happened and every day that goes by we marvel at the little girl that she is becoming. Her favorte word is "Ball" and she is a little sponge...loves to read books and play games. She is constantly wanting us to read to her and would rather point to objects and have us tell her what they are than watch a TV! It can be exhausting...but we love every minutes of it! We are thrilled at the news that we will be expanding our family in May. We are expecting a boy on May 21st, so Savana will be getting herself a playmate. Not that she had much chocie...but we are pretty sure she will enjoy the company! We have decided to name him Logan and cannot wait to introduce Savana to her new baby brother! In the meantime, we are spending every second we can spoinling our little girl and focusing all our energy on her happiness. Each weekend we spend as much time outside playing as we can and Eric has become a pro catching her moments on film....it is fabulous. We are looking forward to her vocabulary developing so that she can tell us what it is that she wants rather than pointing and grunting :-) She is such a pleasure and is learning something new every day. We are now brushing our teeth like a big girl and even go to bed when we say it is time...hard to believe, but it is actually true....like I said, we are truly blessed!
Standing on our own (8 1/2 months)... Time has gone by so fast that we find outselves pulling out the camcorder and wondering where the time has gone! She was having a ball playing with this new table I bought and she was very rareley even holding onto the table. She was in just her diaper (just had a bath) and a bib (of course...we are teething like crazy), so it was qite a funny site...but the best part was that when she let go of the table, it wasn't to just catch her balance and stand there...she did so much more than that. We hope you enjoy it as much as we did watching her test herself over and over again!!!
How I found out we were expecting.... It was New Years weekend and we were relaxing around the house. As a matter of fact, both Eric and I were in the garage doing miscellaneous things. I was sanding a desk, prepping it for paint, and Eric was cleaning up around the garage (actually, I have no idea what he was doing, but he was happy just to be in the garage....you all understand!). I had a feeling that I may be pregnant, so I went inside and took a test. I did not tell Eric becuase I did not want to freak him out! Anyhow, when I went back in to see the test, it was just a faint line, I did not know if it was truly a positive result. So, what else would a girl do......but to take another one.....as a matter of fact.... I took 3 more!!! All of them the same....a faint line. UUGGHH!! So, I decided to call my doctor, who calmly said it was probably a positive result, but they would not see me until I was at least 8 weeks pregnant. Well, this just was not good enough for me...I had to know for sure. I decided to visit a women's clinic here in Mandarin, and take one of their tests, just to be 100% sure. Now, the tests I took at home were on a Sunday. The next day, on Monday afternoon, I finished up work early and stopped at the clinic...only to find that they were closed and would not re-open until 6pm that evening. I went home and paced for the 2 hours I had to wait, and was there waiting in the parking lot when they opened back up. I took their test and met with one of the nurses there who read the results. Low and behold.....she was not sure. The line was still so faint, that she could not guarantee it was a positive result. Needless to say, I felt defeated, and frustrated. They told me to come back in the morning with a urine sample so that the pregnancy hormone would be at it's highest level and they could be positive about the results. I made it home just in time to beat Eric....I didn't want him to ask questions just yet! So, that next morning, Tuesday January 4th, I went back into the clinic for my 6th pregnancy test to be run. This time, it was a definite positive.....I was pregnant and we were going to be having a baby!!!
How I told Eric we were expecting...... That Tuesday, I spent the day in Fernandina Beach visiting agents as I always do. It was a difficult day. I wanted to call Eric so bad, I could not stand it. I needed to tell someone!! I found myself with a big grin plastered on my face all day long, so anxious to get home I could not stand it. When I arrived home that evening, I kept myself busy, awaiting the arrival of my husband. When he arrived, he immediately went in to change out of his work clothes, and we decided we were going to go to a nearby Mexican restaurant for dinner. I was standing in the kitchen waiting for him to come out of the bedroom, sweating, and wondering what his reaction was going to be.....I was not sure what to expect! When he stood in front of me and said "Are you ready to go" I told him that I needed to tell him soemthing first. He looked at me concerned, wondering what was about to come out of my mounth. So, here is what I said: "First, I want to let you know that in 9 months we will be finding out if the Weschs' only make boys!". He looked at me for a second, and then with a huge smile on his face exclaimed "Are you pregnant?". Of course, I said yes, and then started to cry. He grabbed me into the biggest, tightest bear hug ever, and together we enjoyed the moment.....OUR moment. The moment we knew we were going to start our family!!!
The Name Game....... So what is in a name anyhow? We were not sure, and spent countless hours going through books to come up with a list of those we liked. In the end, the list consisted of at least 25 boy names and 25 girl names. The girl names seemed to come much easier, the boy names were more difficult. At first we thought we did not want to know the sex of our baby, but as time went on, we just could not handle the pressure....and just had to know! The day we found out we were having a girl was an exciting one at that. After the doctors appointment, we headed to USA Baby to look at nursery furniture. After that, we visited a nearby restaurant to have some lunch. As we sat patiently at our booth awaiting our server, we giggled about the thought of haivng a little girl! When our server arrived at our table, she introduced herself by saying, "Hi, my name is Savana and I will be taking care of you today." Eric looked up from his menu with a huge grin. We both looked at each other, and at the same time, said, I love that name! Well, we immediately added it onto our already long list to consider for our baby! After months of consideration, the list narrowed it's way down to 4 qualifiers, this is what they were: Emily, Victoria, Savana, Madeline. The middle name had been decided....Paige...not because it was a family name or anything, we both just really liked it and it went with every first name we picked. In addition, it was a lot like Eric's mom's maiden name, Payne. So, the final decision had to be made.....not for any reason other than the fact that I am a planner, and had to know what I was going to call this baby. We narrowed it down once again, this time to Madeline and Savana, and as you can see, Savana won. Since this was Eric's first choice, he was delighted with the final decision. So now, here we are, awaiting the arrival of our Baby Savana!
35Wks 4 Days Doctor's Appointment....... Yet another doctors appointment and still everything is going well. My blood pressure is excellent, and my weight is.....well......according to the nurse and doctor, it is excellent as well.....I have only gained 23 lbs to date! According to Nicole (my nurse/midwife), I am all baby....and should have no problem losing the weight after she is born (I am making her guarantee this in blood!!). Regardless, I have enjoyed the ice cream nights with my hubby and "cheating" on goodies whenever I got the chance. Hey....you don't always get an excuse like this to eat cookies :-) In this visit, Nicole mentions the possibility of inducing me at 39 weeks. For no reason other than it is an option available to us, and if we would like, she would be willing to do so. Being the planner that I am, I became instantly intrigued by her offer, and decided to consider it. In addition to planning, it would ensure that Nicole was the one to deliver Savana, versus one of the other doctors in the practice! My next appointment is in 2 weeks, on August 21st, at which time I will start my weekly visits. It is amazing, and scary to think, that she could come anytime now!!!Needless to say, our bags are packed and ready to go, just in case Savana wants to grace our presence earlier than expected!!
37 Weeks 4 Days Doctor's Appointment..... Yet another doctor's appointment, but this one was just a little different. It was the first of my weekly visits and all was still status quo with my blood pressure, weight (no weight gain since my last appointment-YIPPEE!) and of course, with Savana. Her heartbeat is strong and she is still in the head down position. Nicole indicated that she had in fact "dropped" into my pelvis, which is probably the reason I can now eat an entire helping at dinner time again :-) She checked me this week to see if I had started to dilate.....no such luck just yet, but my cervix had in fact started to soften, which means that we are on our way! She hopes to see me at least 1-2 centimeters dilated by next Monday......if we could only be so lucky!! We gathered ourselves and prepared to leave the office, but this time, Nicole slipped us her cell phone number and said..."Just in case!". So the countdown now begins!!!
The Big Day Has Arrived.... Labor began on Sunday, September 3 at 2am. I awoke to some cramping in my belly and removed myself from the bedroom and settled into the TV room for what ended up being a long road ahead of me. At 7am I decided to go for a walk through my neighborhood. I know, it sounds silly, but I had remembered hearing that if you change your activity and the contractions continue that it is the real thing....so I just wanted to know. Well, when I continued to have contractions as I walked the 15 minutes around my neighborhood, I knew it was the real thing!
Contractions continued and became more and more intense. At 5:30pm, while sitting at the dinner table with Eric and Kristen, we decided we had to make the trip to the hospital. We called Nicole, my doctor, who advised us to head on in. When we arrived, they checked me only to find out that I had not yet begun to dialate. This was extremely frustrating, especially since my contractions were getting more and more intense. They sent me home with some medication which would encourage sleep. At 4am, after an entire night of intense contrations (no sleep as they had promosied), we headed back into the hospital once again, sure that I had made some significant progress. Well, much to our dismay, once again we were told that I was not dialating and that I would have to go home. I could not believe it. I had thought that I had a high tolerence for pain, but now, I was starting to wonder just how bad these contractions were going to get, and I was wondering if something was wrong with me. So, this time they gave me a shot of a pain killer and something to help me sleep and sent us back home. I did manage to fall asleep for 2 hours, at least I thought I did. Apparently, although I was passed out from the medication they had given me at the hospital, I was awking every 5-7 minutes and bracing myself for yet another contraction. At 9am, I felt as though I could not continue. I had Eric call my doctor and explain that I just could not continue and that I wanted a C-Section. This was the one thing I wanted to avoid more than anything, but the pain was too intense to continue for yet another day. So, we headed into the hospital, aware that we would be meeting a different doctor, the one that was on call today.....Monday, September 4, Labor Day of all days. We arrived at the hospital at 2pm and checked in. Dr. Rosado arrived and introduced herself and then proceeded to check me for dilation. Unfortunately, I was still not dilated.....but then a moment later, she made the discovery. My cervical opening was being held together by scar tissue which was not allowing my body to dilate. She took a tool and broke through the scare tissue and then broke my water at the same time. The pressure immediately subsided. She looked at my husband and myself and said...."You are now 6 centimeters!! Let's have this baby the right way!" Eric and I began to cry uncontrolably. This baby was coming, and not by C-Section! Our family began to arrive. First it was Kristen and them my mom and dad. As my contractions got more and more intense, I awaited my epidural. About the time my contractions reached 4 minutes apart and were lasting a complete 2-3 minutes, I didn't think I was going to be able to take it anymore. I was given oxygen due to the fact that my sinuses were so stopped up that I was having difficulty breathing, and they then checked me for the second time since my arrival. This was 2 hours after the first time, and I was already 10 centimeters. Dr. Rosado said it was time to have a baby! But wait....what about my epidural? No time for that I was told, this baby is coming! So, they prepped me and the room, and at 4:45pm I began to push......with no epidural I might add!!! Just 10 minutes later and after 4 contractions, at 4:55pm, we welcomed Savana into the world!!! They placed her on my chest, and Eric cut the cord. She was the most beautiful sight I had ever seen. To this day, I don't think I can recall the pain....but I will say that the excitement, and emotions that ran through my body at that particular moment are something that I cannot describe. It was the most wonderful moment in my life. Eric and I stared at our new daughter and cried.........we were a family!!!
Roll Over.... Savana surprised all of us on wednesday October 6th at 12:12pm. As I went into the kitched to prepare lunch for Eric and I, I left Eric in the family room to watch Savana. He placed her on her belly for a little tummy time play. As he watched her wiggle and squirm, he began to yell to me in the kitchen......"Baby,..... Baby,..... Baby,.....Come here!" Well as I began the walk into the family room, he yells, "You missed it"! Of course, I had no idea what I missed. But apparently Savana picked up her head and pushed herself up with her arms, and at the same time, twisted her hips and VIOLA, rolled over onto her back! Of course, we immediately looked it up in one of my dozens of books to see when this wonderful event is supposed to occur......and we were surprised to find that this usually does not take place until a child is almost 3 months old! Well, it looks like she is ahead of the game already! We would expect nothing less!!!!
9 Weeks Old...... Savana is doing great. She is growing so quickly, and everyday is a new adventure. I can barely remember how small she used to be! Her two month doctor's appointment was last week on November 3rd and she weighed in at a healthy 11lbs 9oz, which is 4 lbs more than what she was when she was born! She has also grown quite a bit and measured in at 23 1/4 inches....almost 2 inches growth sinc eher birthday! Needless to say, almost all of her newborn clothes and many of the 0-3 month clothes no longer are fitting her! I have already had to start removing them from her drawers and replace them with the next age group!! She is now starting to coo and giggle more often, and the crying times are becoming less and less. The typical times that she will make a fuss is when she gets tired, or when she has gas. But then again, aren't we all fussy during these times :-) ?!?!?! She has successfully slept through the night 4 times, but is has not become a consistent thing just yet. She has proven that she can go a healthy 6-7 hours straight, but we are working on increasing that to 7-8, and making it a regular occurrence! But, we will not complain, at night she is an excellent sleeper! Although the days are tiring, it is all worth it. She is such a beautiful and wonderful gift, we cannot imagine our family without her in it! We are looking forward to the next surprise that she hold for us.....because you never know what it will be and when it will happen, we have to be on our toes at all times!!! We love every minute of the wait :-)
3 Months Old..... It has been 3 months since Savana joined our family and what a journey it has been thus far! Everyday she amazes us more and more with her development and adorable smiles! Sometimes I put her to bed only to pick her up out of her crib in the morning to discover her doing yet another new trick. She is now lifting her head and looking around while on her belly, which will ultimately lead to crawling someday down the road! When carrying her around, she likes to be on Mommy's hip facing outward so that she can see everything that is going on around her. She is not a child that likes to lay down or sit still. As long as she is moving, all is good in the Wesch household! According to Gramma Hensel, she is identical to her Uncle Eric when he was a baby. Apparently he too did not like to sit still, for fear that he was going to miss something happening around him. She has been fascinated with her hands for several weeks now, and it has excalated to wanting to not just suck on her fingers, but stick her entire fist in her mouth! It is really quite humerous to watch! Although she has not started to truly babble, she has started to "talk back" to us trying to mimic the sounds we make. I am looking forward to the babbling that is to follow....and if she is anything like her mother, she will be able to talk to anyone that will listen :-) (even some of those that won't!) She has also started to copy some of our motions such as sticking out her tongue, and the best of all.....waving! The first time this happened we were actually videotaping her....it was unbelieveable! We celebrated her first real holiday....Thanksgiving with Gramma and Grampa Hensel, Pops, Velora, and of course Mommy and Daddy! She only took a short nap and managed to join in the festivities for most of the afternoon. During this time, she managed to whisper her Christmas list to Grampa Hensel who is now busy on the Internet finding all that her little heart desires (hint, hint :-) ) I go back to work tomorrow, Monday November 27th, but since I will be working from home for much of the month of December, it will still be a team effort with taking care of Savana. I think deep down, come January 2nd, she is looking forward to spending all her time alone with Daddy!!!
3 1/2 Months Old and Getting ready for Christmas...... We have conquered our first holiday, Thanksgiving and we had a great time. It was spent at Pop's and Velora's house with a house full of family. We had a wonderful time. We are busy getting ready for Christmas. Although we are disappointed that Mike, Debbie and the kids, and Eric and Jen will not be able to join us, we are anxiously counting down the days until we get to see them all in February. Savana mad out her Christmas list and all the Gramma's are busy buying everythin on it. We will spend Chrismas Eve here at our home, then go to Gramma and Grampa Hensel's house for Christmas dinner. The plans are to then head to South Carolina to visit Gramma Lynn and Great-Gramma Payne, and Ed and the kids for a couple days. We are very excited since we have nto seen them since Savana was only a week old! This weekend is the holiday party for the development we live in, and word is that Santa is supposed to be here. So we will hopefully get our first picture with Santa....we are very excited! In the meantime, Savana is busy cooing and babbling, and every day she gets bigger and bigger. Her favorite thing to do is stand up....wiht assistance from Mommy and Daddy of course. She loves to be moving...so as long as she is on the move, she is happy! This may mean trouble for us down the road....we shall see! She is a great sleeper, and is now sleeping from around 10pm until 8am every morning. Thank goodness......we were wondering if we would ever have a full nights rest again!!!
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