Finally resting.

Maegan's happy!

She just got her epidural and she is so much more comfortable.

Unfortunately she is STILL NOT MORE dilated!! We are predicting a c-
section, but the nurse is hopeful that the epidural will help relax
her uterus and move her along.

Also, the anesthetist was so freaking grouchy and rude. If she hadn't
been the bearer of bliss I would have had to put the smack down. She
had a grouchy little comment about everything! Ugh.

-SM

They just checked her again...

She is still barely a 2... And they won't give her the epidural until
she is a solid 3.

Also she had me set the air so that it's an igloo in here! Brrrrr!

-SM

Water is broken

Lots of pain now but still not dilated enough for epidural. :(

-SM

Maegan started Pitocin

And is having frequent contractions. She's being really tough. Still
not dilated but is 50% effaced. (this is Sheriece)

Think Green

I have tried to live a more 'green' life by using the reusable shopping bags (which I LOVE because they are so sturdy and hold so much more) and recycling. Well, I am adding cloth diapering to the list. I am so excited about this. Have you ever seen a cloth diapered baby's bottom? Oh, it's so scrumptious to me! However, that's not why we are choosing to cloth diaper. We will save money, prevent hundreds of disposables from going to the landfill, keep those nasty chemicals from coming in contact with our baby's skin...and to top it all off, they're so cute! Ron has been on board with it from the beginning and I'm so thankful. A lot of dads aren't so receptive.

These diapers are one-size, all in ones...meaning, they are basically just like disposables except you wash them when they get soiled AND he will be able to wear them until potty training! I'm not really looking forward to the cloth diapering laundry but I think the benefits far outweigh the negatives of extra laundry.




These are our cloth wipes. They are made by a work at home mom who does this for a living! They are so soft. One side is velour and the other is flannel. The cloth diapering community is stocked full of work at home mothers who make things like this and they make so much money! I need to learn how to sew!


I have gotten so many ugly looks from people when I say that we are going to cloth diaper. You would think that I had just told them that we were diapering our baby in sandpaper! A lot of people think it's a lot more work and completely unnecessary but I would beg to differ. I am very proud of our decision to use cloth. I think it's everyone's responsibility to at least make an effort to preserve our beautiful Earth.

On a sad note, I saw my first stretch mark today. It's on the underside of my belly and is about an inch long. How much damage could another week and a half do? I guess we'll see.

RIP, my beautifully smooth pre-pregnancy stomach.

Our deployment adventure

We all know that Ron is currently serving in Iraq. We just hit our 7 month mark and I couldn't be more proud. Our relationship has blossomed with trust and confidence and it really has been an eye opening experience. I have heard a lot of people say that these deployments will make or break your relationship and I'm so thankful for how we have made it work so far!

It's been hard, don't get me wrong. Being married to my husband over instant messenger definitely comes with some difficult moments but I am so thankful that I get to talk to him at all. I can't imagine how difficult it was for the wives of the men who fought in past wars when communication was little to none. I can't even imagine.

We really are lucky. I haven't taken any of this for granted. Ron's life has been in extreme danger more than once and I thank God everyday that he is one day closer to coming home to me.

Here are some pictures of Ron in Iraq. We will be able to call him Sergeant Swain on November 1st! He makes me so proud.