Hudson's first photo shoot

Since Hudson is was a premie we were told to limit the time that he spends outside of the home and be very cautious about taking him out.  I was sad to think that we wouldn't be able to take him to get any newborn photos.  I have a very good friend that does this as a hobby, and she offered to come to my house and take some.  I was so happy at her offering and even more happy with how they turned out.  Thank you Shannon Evanson for taking time out of your schedule to do these...you're the BEST! 

Here are a few of our favorites:
(I apologize this is a lot of pictures, but I couldn't narrow it down)

Dad likes this one with the flag and his army gear.

My baby isn't a baby anymore.  What a handsome young lad he is!

He's making the face that his brother makes so well...

Those dimples are to die for!

These pirate photos may seem a little silly, but the unit that Drew was deployed with were the "Air Pirates." These are for our Army family :)

Back to Ft. Hood

Today we took Drew to the airport.  He is going back to Ft. Hood to bring the rest of the 1-211th soldiers home to their families!!! It was one year a ago that I sent him off to Ft. Hood the first time, and it hits way too close to home saying goodbye again.  I know that this time is different, but there is this place in my brain that takes me back to those same feelings I felt last year.  I forgot how lonely I had become.  As I sit here on a Sunday evening without him, I am reminded what a hard year it was.  He will only be gone 2 weeks, but it seems like forever away.

Feeling sorry for myself I realized that I am in no position to complain.  There are over 200 wives and/or families anxiously awaiting the return of their soldier that has been gone an entire year! I cannot believe this deployment is officially coming to a close.  For a while it seemed as if it would never come, and I'm sure those still waiting are feeling this way now, but here we are at the end of this journey.  What an amazing group of soldiers who are an example to us all.  I have met some of the strongest women along the way, and have made some of the best friends too.  Hang in there ladies...your soldier is coming home THIS month! 

Man problems

Today we took Hudson in for his circumcision (dun, dun, dun)...

I was a little worried how he'd tolerate it since he was six weeks old.  Max had his done prior to leaving the hospital, and I would much prefer it that way.  

Drew was more than a little worried, he was fearful.  Not enough to stop me from getting the procedure done, but in a loving dad kind of way. 

It went really well.  Hudson was a champ and dad survived as well.  He wasn't even all that fussy after having it done. (dad or baby)  

While we were there he was weighed and measured...let's just say he made his daddy proud!!! 

These are his 6 week stats (he made it off the premie chart and on with the regular babies):

Weight: 8.3lbs- 12%

Length: 20.5 in- 5%

Head: 13.75in- 2%

This means I don't have to wake him up every three hours any longer! Yay for more sleep. Yay for healthy a baby. Yay for his chubby little cheeks. 

Happy New Year

It was our anniversary, but we weren't very motivated to go out. The baby couldn't leave, but I didn't want to leave him. I hate the chaos of big events and traffic, it causes some serious anxiety! So it was decided... We were staying in.
Some friends of ours, Brett and Shannon, came over with their little girl Hadley. We had fondue, played cards, and all of us adults made it to midnight!! Max stayed up until about 11:30, he was so close! And it must be noted that I won both games of Screwy Louie.
It was the perfect way to ring in a new year.

My husband, for an entire year!

I cannot believe that it has been one year since I married my best friend.  In some ways it seems like yesterday.  We are so connected, so in sync with one another, we have experienced a lot during our short relationship, and our love is durable, strong, and deep.  On the other hand, we have only known each other for a year and a half and have spent more of that time apart than together.
This deployment has taught us so much about ourselves, but even more, it has taught us so much about our marriage.  We have had to learn to communicate in a whole new way. To not have any sort of physical connection, and have to focus on the emotional, was a different approach than most couple's first year of marriage.
We spent a lot of that time learning more about one another.  We had only dated for six months prior to getting married, so we took advantage of our current situation as much as possible.  Andrew and I had, what I thought to be, very good communication skills and this experience has strengthened that even more.
Because of all of our time apart, we have learned to appreciate our time together that much more.  We have also learned to appreciate the little things a relationship has to offer. To fall asleep holding hands, to have a family prayer before bed, to sit in the same room together simply because we can, a kiss goodnight that isn't blown through a computer screen.  These are just a few of my favorite things.
As our first year of marriage comes to a close, I can only imagine what life has in store for us.  We survived a deployment, some health issues, living on opposite sides of the world, and started our family together this year. It has been a year that I will never forget and I cannot wait to make many more memories.
I wrote this for Andrew when we were dating, and I meant every word.  It's crazy to think back to these days and these feelings, and still be every bit of twitter-pated now as I was then.

I longed to be loved for quite some time, I longed for a love that I could call mine.
In search of a man genuine, loving, and kind. In search of a man seemingly impossible to find.
I had given up faith, hope and trust.  I had given up the idea of ever finding "us".
When I least expected a knock at my door, when I least expected to find what I had been looking for.
My prince charming, my love, my better half, you allowed me to forget the pains of my past.
In you I see my best friend, my husband, and our life, together forever, with me as your wife.
Our family, our future, our journey ahead, are the things that I dream of when I go to bed.

Drew-

To my husband, my best friend, I would not have taken this journey with anyone other than you.  You give me strength to get up when I'm down, you encourage me when I'm feeling blue, and you make me feel beautiful when I'm at my worst.  You bring out the best in me and you inspire me to be a better woman, mother, and wife.  I do not know what I did to earn a love so strong and so true, but I give thanks every night for whatever I did to deserve you.  

Thank you for your unconditional love and your unwavering faith in us.  Thank you for choosing me to be your wife. 

With love, to Afghanistan and back 

Hollie

Breast Feeding/Migraine from HELL!!!

When I had Max my milk never came in and I was heartbroken that I wasn't able to breastfeed.  I thought with this baby, I'd give it a try, but if it didn't work out I would be okay with that.  After delivery I started pumping, and to my surprise my milk supply came in great! I was so happy that I was able to perform that motherly duty for my child. Since he was in the NICU, it was one thing that only I could do for him, no nurse would suffice. 

After I was discharged from the hospital I was pumping every three hours, whether it be at the hospital or at home.  It was such a horrid task.  It was difficult to wake up to hook myself up to a machine, one that was incredibly uncomfortable at that.  I was soon to discover just how much work breastfeeding was, and I applaud any mom for any amount of time that they devote to this task. 

Since he was a premie I was having to wake him every 3 hours for feedings, but since he ate so little, I was also having to pump off the excess milk.  Needless to say, by the time I took care of the baby and pumping, I was getting 1 to 1.5 hours of sleep at a time. 

Max was home from his dad's house and while I was running on about 3 hours of sleep each night with no naps, I was feeling quite well.  

The house was being taken care of, dinner was on the table when the hubby got home, I took showers daily...I was thinking "why do people say this is so hard?"

AND THEN, I ate all of those words and I crashed and burned.  

I can't tell you much about my crashing and burning, other than the fact that it lasted for about a week and a half.  After 1 trip to the ER, four doctor's appointments, and several different medications, I am happy to say that I am back up and running.  Those 10 days are seriously a blur, I slept through Christmas, I couldn't care for my children or husband, I was worthless.  All I can say is thank heaven for my husband.  This man took care of a lethargic miserable woman, a newborn baby, a four year old, and he kept it all together.  He is so patient and selfless and didn't complain once.  Thank you baby for all that you do for our sweet family.  

Since I was taking medications that weren't safe during pregnancy, I was having to "pump and dump". As if I didn't hate pumping bad enough, try doing it while you are sick as a dog only to dump it down the drain.  Ew, the thought of that still disgusts me.  And so the saga goes, I ended up having to give up breast feeding, and my poor husband had to add emotional wife/mother to the list of things he had to deal with.  Poor fella!

Here's to a Happy and healthy new year!

  

Merry Christmas

Since I kinda missed Christmas this year, here's how I hear it went down :)

Max was at his dad's house the entire day, so we had to do Christmas a little differently this year.  We celebrated on Sunday morning before he went to his dad's house.  We had my parents come over and we waited for him to wake up and run to the living room to see all of his presents.  As most children are, he was very excited and tore through presents like it was nobody's business.  Santa didn't come to our house though, we explained to him that he only comes on Christmas Eve to the house that he is sleeping at.   

Mom and Dad got him a BB gun, some movies/games, and a dinosaur kit.  He was very spoiled by all of his grandparents and family with toys and clothes and treats. But his biggest surprise was a present from Nanny and Poppy.  He waited at the door as Drew and my dad brought it in the house, and the only thing I remember about that day was the look on his face as he saw it. He got a blue "vroom vrrom" of his very own.  He was surprised and excited and jumping up and down.  It's an electric four wheeler equipped with his own blue helmet to match. Unfortunately, because mom was under the weather I have no pictures of this.  

Christmas is a time to celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ.  This year has been a spiritual journey for Andrew and myself, and I find myself feeling a whole new spirit about this day. Also, I had planned on spending it alone and much to my surprise the holiday season was shared with family and friends, as it should be.  I want to make traditions within my new family that our children can look forward to and enjoy.  I want our boys to know why we celebrate this day, and feel the spirit in their hearts.  I want to teach them these things so that they can grow up and experience these things with families of their own.  

Merry Christmas to all!