Growing Quickly

Can't believe how much my babies have changed!

Daddy and Jonathan

I absolutely love this picture of two of the most important men in my life. What a precious moment captured on film. Although Daddy doesn't like pictures of himself, I am sure that years from now Daddy will really appreciate this picture. I love you both so much!

Sleeping Princess

Marc and I checked on Grace before going to bed last night and this is what we found...a sleeping princess. We always place her in bed with one pillow every night. She had gotten up and stacked three pillows on her bed and decided that this would make for the most comfortable sleeping arrangement. Silly girl!

Sunday Morning

Although she appears sad above, she did allow mommy to place piggy tails in her hair. She usually did not let me put things in her hair in the past. She's a big girl!

Grace's Accident

On Sunday afternoon Grace fell at the playground. She was having such a great time just moments before the event. While running on the sidewalk I heard her daddy tell her to stop and she fell. I didn't witness the event because I was tending to Jonathan. I did hear daddy tell her to stop running and then I heard her crying. I immediately turned to find her on the ground, her daddy quickly sweeping her off the ground. As I quickly walked to look at her I noticed some blood droplets on the sidewalk. I looked up at her face and there was so much blood coming from her mouth. I screamed several screams that you wouldn't want to hear repeated and went to put Jonathan in the stroller. Daddy was trying to comfort her and tell me that it would be okay, but I was so worried about our daughter. A nice couple came to assist us. I ran back to him with the burp cloth and he kept trying to put pressure on where he thought the bleeding was coming from. I was trying to assess the damage. Grace was crying and I couldn't see the damage because of all of the blood still. Because there was so much blood I thought that we were going to have to take her to the emergency room for sure. Jonathan and I ran back to the house to get the car, but when I got there I forgot that Marc had the keys. While the nice gentleman from the park watched Jonathan in the stroller, I ran back to meet Marc and I met him half-way. Marc said that Grace was calm now and that she was sucking her thumb. There was so much blood on both of them, I was so scared. We quickly got her inside and gave her a bath to clean her up. We were then able to take a better look at her mouth. He lip was very swollen and I found two deep lacerations that appeared to be made from her lower anterior teeth. One of the lacerations was right over what is called the maxillary frenum. It is the tissue attachment in the middle as you raise your lip up. Due to this area being highly vascularized, we knew that this must have caused most of the excessive bleeding. Although I did not get to look at her teeth for very long, I didn't notice any huge damage. Slight mobility in the upper front teeth but no bleeding from the teeth, excessive chips, and the teeth had not been shifted in position. Thank goodness! We gave her some ibuprofen, and soon she fell asleep with me holding her in the tub. I called my fellow dental buddy and she assured me that everything that we were doing was correct. We got her dressed and made sure that she was given a soft food diet. She won't let me put ice on it. I have been keeping an eye on her lip daily. The swelling has decreased and it appears to be healing very well. I haven't noticed any change in her teeth. Marc and I still can't seem to get the accident out of our minds. It is like a nightmare thinking about it. When you see your child injured, it cuts you deeply. I even went to the playground to inspect the scene. There is still blood on the sidewalk. Until it rains, it will be there. I don't think that I want to take her back until it rains first. We just got rid of the burp cloth. I didn't want to take any pictures of her injury because I didn't want to continually be reminded of the event. We are both thankful that her guardian angel was looking out for her when she fell. Although it looked like the most gruesome image we had seen before, we knew that it could have been worse. She seems to be recovering very well. She is so brave and strong, much more than her mommy. I screamed in terror when I saw her and I am sure that this probably did not help the situation, but it was my reaction. I know that although we hope not, there will probably be more accidents in the future as she continues to get braver. I hope and pray that she will always be protected. I know that God and her guardian angel will always look after her. I am so thankful for our faith! We love you Grace Marie!

My Valentine

How could I forget to say that I had a wonderful Valentine's Day with my husband, as always. He wrote me a letter and it was the most romantic thing that I could have received. Thank you Marc for making me the happiest girl in the world! Loves yous Babes!

Cute Outfit

Grace sporting one of her new favorite outfits. Thank you Grandma!

Mommy's Hair

It has been several months since I have had anything done with my hair. The last time I had it trimmed and highlighted it was the beginning of my second trimester in Abilene. Let's just say my hair was desperate for some pampering. Marc suggested on Saturday that I get my hair trimmed because he knew how badly I had wanted to. So I looked up a place and got it fixed. The picture may not do justice but I think that it turned out well. My hairdresser flat ironed it straight. I had been walking outside just moments before taking this picture. I usually don't have time to flat iron my hair. I usually just let it remain naturally wavy. Thanks honey for making the suggestion. I feel much better now.

Sleeping Situation

It has been about a week and a half since I placed Jonathan in his crib at night for the first time. I was quickly surprised at how well he would sleep away from me. I still get up two times during the night/early morning to nurse him, but he and I sleep much better in between these sessions. How it was bitter sweet to put him in his room already, but I know that it is for the best. I put Grace in her nursery around 3 months, so Jonathan did go in his a little bit earlier. However, he is doing so well. I think that he likes his space, and I am sure that he likes staring at the barnyard bumper and mobile as well. I can't believe how much my baby boy has grown and changed already. He is so sweet and is such a joy to be with!

Eye Spy

Daddy and Jonathan looking over the couch to see what Grace is doing at the table. They have to be the cutest spies that I have ever seen.

Fun Pictures

I love you baby boy!



Look at those long eye lashes. I think that she is adorable!




Grace in pigtails.


Grace loves drawing and painting.


Grace also loves to watch the Price is Right.







My children always make me smile!

Family Memories

We sure enjoyed time spent with our families over the last few months. Mom and Dad (Cunningham) came to visit on Christmas Eve through the first week of January. We shared many moments including meeting Jonathan, Christmas, Our Anniversary, and Grace's 2nd Birthday. Mom and Dad (Gretencord) and Father Tim came mid-January to celebrate meeting Jonathan, Jonathan's Baptism, visiting the school book depository in Dallas where JFK was assassinated, visiting SouthFork Ranch where Dallas was filmed, eating at the Cheesecake Factory, and Shopping. We cherish the memories of all of those occasions! We love and miss you all so very much!

Precious Moments

After I was finished nursing Jonathan this afternoon, he smiled. And he held this smile for quite sometime while his eyes started closing. As his eye lids were slowly closing, his eyes started rolling in the back of his head. He was truly content and happy. Grace comes into the kitchen and says, "Ma" and grabs my hand and starts to signal that she wants me to go back into her room to play. We enjoyed fine dining as Grace prepared me some eggplant. I don't believe that she would enjoy eating that for real. Later, Grace goes into the kitchen and starts dancing in beat to a 90's rock ballad. I saw her and started to dance along with her. She loves it when I pick her up and we dance together. I wouldn't trade anything for these precious moments with my children. I love them so much!

Grace Marie turned TWO!

My daughter Grace turned TWO years old on December 30th 2010 and although she did not share a birthday with her brother as was forecasted, she had a great time celebrating it with Elmo, her favorite and devoted playmate. Can't believe that my baby girl is already two! With each passing day she amazes me. She is so smart! She has been picking up more words by the day. Her favorite foods are mac-n-cheese and strawberries. She loves fruit and yogurt. She has a passion for art and music already. She loves to play drums, dance to music, sing out loud, and draw pictures. Her hair is getting longer but the curls are still hanging on, which is good because I think that they are adorable. She is much more beautiful than I ever was, that is for sure. She will make your heart melt with her giggles. She is very motherly. She is always taking care of her baby dolls. She likes to wear necklaces and dress up. She regularly blows kisses at all of us throughout the day. At nighttime she tells me "Night-Night" and blows me kisses when I am leaving her room. It is the cutest thing ever! Grace is also very determined to learn and try new things. She doesn't give up easily, which usually means that she may holler out if she is frustrated while doing a task. She takes me by the hand and escorts me into her room for a play session. This usually involves her bringing me all of her pretend food. She even taps the chair at the table in her room advising me to take a seat. This girl has always had a love for books. She has been looking at books since she was just crawling. Now she is getting into the longer stories. She likes to take my finger and point to an object or picture and wait for me to say what it is. She is learning rapidly and it is so amazing to watch those changes in her. I hope that she knows how much she is loved. She brightens up each of our days with just her smile. She has always been a joy! Highlights of her party include: Experiencing a lit candle and the consequences of touching a flame (very sad, broke my heart but I guess that is how you learn), enjoying her birthday Elmo cake, unwrapping gifts to include her rocking horse, playing with every blown up balloon in the house, reading Elmo books, and enjoying time with her family and friends. We love you our little Spagoog.

To My Husband

For all that may not know, my husband and I celebrated our third wedding anniversary on December 29th 2010. It has been one adventure after another with this man of mine. He has taught me so much about love, patience, and the beauty of making sacrifices. From the moment since we said "I Do" the Lord completely changed our lives forever. I can't imagine a greater gift each day than the love of my husband. I can't wait to see what adventures will be before us in the next many years of our marriage. Highlights of our day together on December 29, 2010 include the following: Lunch at Uncle Julios Mexican restaurant. Marc and I enjoyed a fine Mexican dinner. Especially noted were the chips and unique salsa dip, and the free dessert that they brought us which was fried and dipped in honey (very much like an elephant ear, but better). Of course we also enjoyed time spent with the family and our children.

Jonathan's Birth Story

I remember waking up and going into the bathroom with this notion that I was pregnant again. This was in April and we were still living in Abilene. We soon found out that I was in fact correct. God Bless! We were going to have another baby! How exciting to imagine Grace having a brother/sister to play with. We couldn't be happier. Lots of big changes were happening for us at that time. Marc took a job in Fort Worth. This involved him working there during the week, and coming home on the weekends. I was still working at the dental clinic on base. We had to find Grace a babysitter for the first time. Grace would no longer be home with Daddy during the day. What were we going to do when I separated from Active Duty? No matter what always came our way, things always ended up working out. The Lord always provided for us. My pregnancy with Jonathan was quite different from Grace. I was pretty sick for the first 3-4 months of the pregnancy. No matter what I ate, I had this terrible metallic taste in my mouth, as if I had been sucking on a mouth full of pennies. I really felt like this baby was going to be a boy. I remember them telling me that every pregnancy was different, but I really had a gut feeling that this baby was a boy. The couch became my buddy as I would rest there every night after feeding Grace dinner. I played with Grace but I felt bad that I didn't have more energy and more time to give her. The weekends always went by so fast. Marc came home and as soon as he got comfortable he had to leave again. Marc managed to make it to the ultrasound when we found out that we were having a boy. No questions about it. We knew from looking at the screen that it was a boy and we weren't even experts. She then proceeded in telling us about the turtle sign confirming that it was in fact a boy. How exciting! I can't forget the look on Marc's face. Grace, you are going to have a baby brother. As the time grew near to me separating from Active Duty we decided that Grace,Mommy + baby boy were moving to Fort Worth to be with Daddy. Marc had a good job and I would look for a job in that area. I managed getting a dental job working part-time (3 days per week). I started working mid-September. I hated having to go back to work because I had gotten used to being at home with Grace. It was also nice to be able to rest if I needed to. However, I was happy to at least be home with Grace for 2 days per week: Mon, Tues. This made the weekend very nice and the work week bearable. I got bigger as you would expect with the pregnancy. I felt like I was even bigger than I was with Grace at the given time in the pregnancy. The doctor's did several ultrasounds but never wanted to change the due date, which was supposed to be December 30th, the same day that Grace was born. It seemed like the whole time during the third trimester I had Braxton Hicks contractions. I experienced a tightening in my belly, it would become rock solid, it was uncomfortable, and it would last for a long time. Was this normal? Everything that I read said that it was and that these contractions would be stronger with the second pregnancy. So I kept right on going to work and carrying on my daily activities.

On the morning of December 6th (about 2 am) I woke up with what I thought were the usual Braxton Hicks contractions. I was 36 weeks and four days pregnant. I had been used to turning frequently in bed to get the contractions to pass, but I knew that Marc had to get up and go to work. This was my day off so I decided to move out to the couch as to not disturb him. I would wake up from time to time throughout the morning with the same tightness. So I drank some water and ate a banana and went back to bed on the couch. It became time for Marc to get ready to go to work. He was surprised to find me on the couch. I told him why and then explained to him what I had been feeling. As I got up and started moving around I noticed the tightening (Braxton Hicks)? I told Marc not to worry because I had an appointment with the doctor that morning at 11 am. I planned on picking up Marc on the way to the appointment because we had a scheduled ultrasound to look at the positioning of the baby. He got his phone and left for work. I got Grace up and dressed and gave her breakfast. It seemed like the contractions were becoming regular at this time. So I decided to start timing them. They were coming about 3 minutes apart. I went to the bathroom and experienced what I thought was bloody show. It was at this point, I knew that I must be in labor. I called Marc and told him that I was going to call the doctor's office to see if I should come in early for my appointment. They advised me to go ahead and come in early. Meanwhile, the contractions seemed to be getting a little stronger. I called Marc and told him that I think that he better come home. I started packing my bags for the hospital. Everything was packed and ready to go when Marc got home. What were we going to do with Grace? If this was labor, I really didn't want her to have to experience me in pain. I also knew that if Marc was with her in the waiting room, I didn't think that I could go through it without him. We tried to call Adam and Sharon in Austin, and we couldn't reach them. We called mom (Marcia) back home and asked if she could get a hold of Adam and Sharon. In the meantime we called the Daycare that Grace attended and asked if we could bring her there for the day, even though Monday was not her regular scheduled day to attend. They agreed. When we got in the car the song "We Will Rock You" started playing. We took Grace to Daycare. We both went in to drop her off. Grace started crying as they took her to her classroom and I didn't want to see her go, but we knew it was be for the best until we found out what was going on. We left the car seat so that Grace could be picked up by Sharon if needed. Sharon called us and we asked if it was possible that she could come to Fort Worth and take care of Grace tonight. She right away agreed to come and stay with us in Fort Worth. She was going to bring all of the kids as well. We were so relieved and thankful to have such a caring and loving family. She would be traveling 3 hours with her four children. Marc and I drove to the hospital, which was about 15-20 minutes away in Grapevine. We ended up arriving to my appointment at 10:20 am. I checked in and told them that they informed me to come in and be seen early. I then sat back down. Soon Marc and I were timing my contractions to be about 1 minute apart. Every time the contractions started I got up and paced around the waiting run. As the contractions seemed to get even more intense after waiting for 5-10 minutes, I went back up to the desk and said that I had to see the doctor because I am in labor now. You can imagine the looks on all of the ladies faces in the waiting room watching me pace, but continue to smile. They called us back and weighed me and took my blood pressure. Then, I went to a room to wait for the doctor. He came in shortly and examined me. I was dilated 8-8.5 cm. He told us that we needed to go ahead and go to labor and delivery because we were going to have a baby today. They gave us a map to get there. We ended up stopping in the hall for rest breaks, and we also managed to get some help locating labor and delivery by asking a patient walking down the hall. When we got to labor and delivery, she asked us some questions and I continued pacing around the halls until they took us to a delivery room. When the nurse came in she took me to the bathroom to help me get changed. Then, I came out and squatted on the bed hugging the back of the bed. Another nurse came in and placed an IV in my left hand as I was hugging the bed. They kept asking me if I wanted help with the pain. We told them that I was having a natural birth. The contractions were very intense at this point. I wasn't left with much time in between to rest and breath. I was also scared because I knew that I was having this baby early and I was fearful of possible complications. Thinking of our dear Lord, my fear went away. They came in to examine me and I was 9.5 cm. The next thing you know our doctor came in with some other nurses. He had me move down on the bed into position for the baby to be delivered. My legs kept falling off of the stirrups. I knew what they were telling me to do but I felt like my legs were numb and that I could not move them. I felt a huge urge at this point to push. It seemed much more intense than I felt when giving birth to Grace. It was then that I let out a shout. Some of the delivery staff asked if something was wrong to the doctor and he calmly smiled and said, "No, she is going natural." Apparently, this is not a common preference these days. The doctor said that I could have had the baby out with the first push but my legs were not open enough to allow the baby to come out. So, by the second push, our baby was born. I remember feeling like a huge ocean was coming out of me at that moment when they pulled him out. Water just gushed all over. My water was not broken earlier. I heard him cry out and they took him over to the warmer to suction him and check him out. He was born 11:54 am. Soon, they placed him on my chest. He was so beautiful! His name they asked, Jonathan Gabriel. We named him with a devotion to St. John the Apostle and St. Gabriel the Archangel. I cried and enjoyed the short moment with my son, as they told me that although he was breathing that he was working very hard and had some mucous in his chest. They told me that they were taking him to the neonatal unit to care for him until he was cleared up more. I remember saying yes, do whatever you need to do to take care of my baby. I didn't even get to nurse him. He was taken away. Although I knew it was for the best, I was saddened. I wanted to hold him and talk to him more and just be with him. I told Marc to go with him. The remaining nurse helped me get cleaned up and placed into a new room. After Marc returned from the neonatal unit he went home to pick up Grace and meet Sharon and the kids at our home. I was alone again. I went down to see Jonathan and to nurse him every 2 hours. I was with him for about an hour and half each time, which left me about 30 minutes until the next visit. You can say that I didn't get much rest, but I didn't mind. I looked forward to each visit with him. It broke my heart seeing that tube running up his nose. They had placed it there to help assist in feeding him to help him get stronger until my milk came in. Because some of the mucous remained in his chest they decided to keep him over night. I really wanted to have him with me in my room but knew that it was the best for him. I continued to nurse him every 2 hours on schedule. They ended up releasing him from the neonatal unit the next evening. I got to have him by my side that night for the first time. It was wonderful! Sharon and the kids stayed with Grace for the second night as well. I had Marc go and get Grace and bring her to hospital on that day. She came to have dinner with us and meet her new brother. I was so happy to see her for I had missed her so much. Marc said that she was having a good time playing with her cousins. Marc, Grace, Sharon, and the kids even ended up all going to church that morning. I was sad because I couldn't go, but much to my surprise I was able to receive communion at the hospital. They released us to go home on Wednesday around 1 pm. By the time we made it home with our new family, Sharon and the kids had already left to return to Austin. The house was in order and there was even stew cooking in the crock pot. I really wished that I could have been there to thank Sharon for everything that she did for us, but I understood why she had to go. We called to thank her over the phone. And so it began, life at home with our new family. Marc and I looked at each other and then at the beautiful children that we had created together in our love. We are so blessed! And would I do it all again? YES! Absolutely! What an honor and a privilege to bring forth new life into the world! Life is beautiful!