2015 Review

Well.....I didn't exactly stick to my goal of regular blog updates in the year 2015. I am slightly disappointed in myself but I have learned from my errors. This year I WILL be updating more regularly and I have a plan in place in which I am keeping track of my updates and am reminding myself to do them. Since I am using this blog more like a journal for me and my family I will review a few major events that occurred last year.

The BIGGEST change in our lives and most precious is the addition of Victoria Danielle Baggs to our family! She was born October 29, 2015 at 2:19 AM via C-section. She was 4lbs. 3oz and 17 3/4" long. She wasn't expected to arrive until December 9th but she had other plans for us. She ended up arriving 6 weeks early. Victoria did have to stay in the NICU for 13 days but she is healthy and strong with no adverse affects. We couldn't be any happier or more in love.

We had a couple of heartbreaking moments throughout the year. We had to make an unexpected trip to Utah in April when Dave's uncle, Dale Gowen, passed away from cancer. Dave then attempted to make a second unexpected trip to Utah when his cousin, Russell Gowen, unexpectedly passed away from a heart defect. Dave was unable to attend the funeral because I went into labor a couple days prior.

The rest of the year was fairly uneventful as far as major events go. We had a really good summer. We spent the majority of it doing anything we could outdoors. We had weekly trips out to the mountains on the days Dave had off. We took Jason camping for the first time and it went so well that we ended up going camping in Glacier for our second anniversary. We took a few other camping trips and also spent time shooting, hiking, paint balling, and just hanging out in the mountains. We were unable to make our annual summer trip to Utah because I had to have surgery but we will be making up for it this year. 

Hike to Memorial Falls

Camping at Bowman Lake

Hiking in Glacier

We had a great holiday season this year. It started shortly before Halloween when Victoria was born. Dave had a month off of work then. Mark and Kari and their kids came up to visit for a few days in mid November and we also had a weekend visit from Gran and Grandpa Stuart around the same time. Dave had asked for annual leave during Thanksgiving before we even knew about Tori so he was able to be home then. We had a low key day with my Mom and brothers but it was still enjoyable. Dave also had annual leave in December and was off for two weeks around Christmas. We had a great time as Jason started to understand more of the excitement of the holiday. We finished off the year by celebrating Jason's second birthday. I can't believe hes that old already! 

All in all we had a great year and are excited for the adventures that the new year is sure to bring.

Baby Steps

This time of year there are all kinds of resolutions that are being made. I am not really one for resolutions. It seems that they don't really last for more than a month or two. But at the end of last year I did make some new goals that I am attempting to achieve. I like the word goals much better. I want to be successful in my goals and one way to help do so is to write them down. So here they are!

The goals i'm striving for involve lifestyle changes related to my health. I'm not going on a specific diet or trying to really loose weight. I'm just trying to be in better shape and keep my body healthy. I've got to be able to keep up with my little boy! I am going to start out small and slowly increase things as they become habits and become a regular daily thing. 

The Changes:

1. Reduce the amount of fast food I eat each week.

2. Drink 4 glasses of water a day.

3. Do a cardio workout at least 3 times a week.

4. Take a daily multi vitamin.

5. Reduce the amount of soda I drink.

6. Limit the amount of junk food in the house.

7. Increase the amount of fruits and veggies in my diet.

These things are nothing too big at this time. I have no plans to run a marathon in the near future. I just want to do a little better each day and one little step at a time. I have been doing well thus far. There is very little junk food in the house and we no longer have a huge stash of pop that takes up half the fridge. We have been playing floor hockey once a week for several hours. We have also been cooking meals at home much more frequently. I constantly have a glass of water nearby and drink from it constantly. I have a ways to go to reach these goals but I feel that I've got a good start.

One Year Later

It is amazing how time flies! And it seems almost impossible that I have a one year old. We took Jase to the doctor on Monday for his one year well visit. Boy has he grown! My tiny little NICU baby is no longer little. When he was born he weighed a whopping 5 lbs. 8 oz. and measured 19.5 inches long. He couldn't even fit into newborn sized clothes and spent quite awhile in preemie sized diapers. It's true he was born a few weeks early therefore contributing to his size but you wouldn't know that by looking at him today. Jase currently weighs 21 lbs. 9.5 oz and is 30 inches long. He has just started wearing 18 month sized clothes and is graduating to size 5 diapers. I never thought he would be so big after starting out so small!

Jase has developed quite a personality as well. He loves to play with the dogs and his toys. He is crawling and furniture walking all over the place and is so close to taking a few steps on his own. Jase is a good helper when it comes to laundry and the dishes. He's very good at pulling all the silverware out of the dishwasher and removing clothes from the dryer. He loves to look at guns with Daddy when we are out shopping and greatly enjoys going for rides in the truck. We sure do love this little boy and are glad he is part of our family.

Goodbye 2014!

And hello 2015! The past year has just flown by at a ridiculous pace and one of the biggest things I lacked doing is updating our blog. Therefore with it being a new year and all I figure it's a good time to start making more regular updates for our family and friends near and far.

2014 was a big year for us. We welcomed Jase into our family at the end of 2013 and have taken the past year learning how to be parents. I have a feeling that this learning will never stop. Everyday he seems to learn more and more which is constantly keeping me on my toes. Having this little boy in our life is probably the best and most fun thing to ever happen other than marrying my handsome husband.

Jase Dec. 26, 2013

Jase on Dec. 26, 2014

Dave had a really busy summer with work. It seemed to always be one thing after another. Hopefully things won't get too crazy anytime soon so he can focus on the next steps in his career. Dave is a great Father to Jase. He has a good time playing with him and enjoys spoiling him way too often. Jase always lights up as soon as Daddy gets home from work even when it's 3 o'clock in the morning.

Christmas Morning

I had to put a hold on finishing school due to lots of pregnancy complications but being a stay at home Mom has become my new career and education. I am very blessed to be able to stay at home with Jase and I wouldn't trade it for a thing. Someday I will finish school. I feel education is important but there are other more precious things to be doing at this time.

We had a great holiday season spending the time as a family and having the opportunity to have other family members over from time to time. We ended the year by celebrating Jason's first birthday. He has turned into quite a toddler, I realized as I was sitting in church a few weeks ago, while Jase was wildly throwing his toys about the pew, that I don't have a little baby anymore. I am not so sure I'm ready for this little independent dude but I am looking forward to the next phase of the adventure. 

A blessing in disguise

Blessings seem to come in all shapes and sizes. Sometimes we can identify them right away but other times it takes a ripple effect to recognize it as such. I've had several blessings in my life lately but the ones I reflect on most recently are related to my pregnancy. This pregnancy has been full of all kinds of ups and downs. The first down was at the very first ultrasound. I was about ten weeks along and it appeared that the baby had developed a condition called gastroschsis. This is a condition in which there is a hole in the abdominal wall that is causing the intestines to form outside of the body. It was a concerning thing to hear but we were told that it was an easy procedure to repair the problem, once the baby was born, and he should not have any lasting complications from it. The doctor made plans to do more frequent ultrasounds and to check on the problem often so that we could be prepared.

A few weeks later I had my second ultrasound and they could no longer see a problem. It appeared to have corrected itself but it was still too early to know for sure, I had two more ultrasounds over the next several weeks and they both confirmed that the condition had been resolved and was no longer anything to be concerned about regarding the gastoschisis. But....there's always a but.....another more severe problem was discovered and I was immediately placed on bed rest at only 20 weeks. Of course it was late on a Friday afternoon right before labor day and my doctors were out of town or involved with deliveries. I had to wait through a long three day weekend at home with very little information and understanding of what was going on.

On Tuesday morning I went in the see a specialist in high risk pregnancies. Upon examination it was determined things had continued to get worse over the weekend and that I would need to have surgery because I was starting to dilate already. I was admitted to the hospital that very afternoon and had the operation the following day. After a 6 day stay in the hospital and a successful procedure, I was finally allowed to go home. Once home the trials continued as I was to be on bed rest for an unknown amount of time. Dave was my hero during this time. He went above and beyond in making sure I had everything I needed and was as comfortable as possible. My Mom was also great at helping out daily along with several individuals from church. After 8 weeks of bed rest I was finally allowed to resume my normal activities.

Throughout this entire ordeal I have been to more doctor appointments and ultrasounds than i ever wanted to. I have been unable to work or go to school so it has put a few things behind schedule but I wouldn't trade all the money in the world or all the education I could get for the little boy that will soon be joining our family. Most individuals who are diagnosed with my condition don't find out until it is too late and have endured the pain of a miscarriage or two. When the baby was first diagnosed with gastroschsis, it saved his life. Having the extra ultrasounds caused us to find the more serious issue before it was too late. I am very grateful that we had the blessing of what seemed to be a trial at the time. We still have a couple weeks to endure through til my next surgery and Baby Baggs arrival  but it has all been worth it and will continue to be so when we get to finally bring our little guy home.

Our Story

It all began on the evening of February 12, 2013...Dave picked me up that night for our first date. We went out to a new restaurant in town to enjoy a steak dinner. After dinner we watched the latest James Bond movie and became inseparable from that time on. A lot of people would describe our short courtship as a whirl wind romance. Three short months after we began dating, Dave and I took a trip to Utah to meet each others families. He had met my parents already but no one else other than that. Once we had fulfilled the "meet the parents" formalities we quickly became engaged on May 18th. Unbeknownst to most, we had already had a wedding date set for weeks prior to our trip down south. For us it was perfect. We knew what we wanted and figured that there was no reason to wait. Therefore we were married on August 10th in a nice secluded park in Great Falls, MT. The day was perfect. The weather could not have been better and things could not have gone any smoother. We had lots of wonderful family members and friends that made the trip to join us on our special day. I don't think I had ever felt happier prior to that moment in time.

Life has continued to be fantastic since that time. Dave and I were able to spend a few days in the beautiful town of Couer d'Alene, Idaho. We stayed in a really unique hotel that had once been a mansion and then converted into separate quarters. We spent time hiking at Tubbs Hill Park, drove around the lake, ate at all the restaurants we could that we don't have near by, went shopping in East Spokane, found a Cabela's in Post Falls, enjoyed several walks on the beach, and many trips to downtown Couer d'Alene. Once home, we started back to the daily grind. Dave headed back to work with the Highway Patrol and I prepared to start the physical therapy assistant program at school. Everything was going according to plan as we began our life together. 

The Big Day

Dave at the Lake

Hiking at Tubbs Hill Park