Schools Out and Armani is 10 months!

The last week has been very busy. I had finals this week, D'Angelo ended up with the flu, and Armani has had a rough couple of nights.

Last Saturday D'Lo and I went with my parents to our family friends Christmas party in Hubbard. It was a great time. They always put in so much work. There were Christmas lights everywhere, unlimited alcohol, and tons of great food and music! Here are a few pictures from the night.

Last Sunday we took Armani to go see Santa for the first time!! We got lucky and there was no long line to wait in! Armani was very confused about who this big man was that he was sitting on. We could not get Armani to smile but at least he did not scream and cry... yet.

I am finally done with my second to last semester of college!! I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel and I cannot believe that I only have one semester left. I know graduating from college is a huge deal and that it takes a lot of hard work and effort, but it will have taken me 7 years to graduate when I am finally done. I have a lot of excuses as of why it took me so long; transferred school three times, switched my major, flunked out, took a year off, and had a baby. But all in all I know I will appreciate my hard work so much more looking back on how long it has taken me! This will be a life lesson I can tell my kids as I have wasted A LOT of money and time!! I will definetly be enjoying my break, spending time with my family, and living it up in Arizona!

D'Angelo NEVER gets sick and I feel like I am always running around with a cold or something. Unfortunately D came home Thursday from school not feeling so good and now it is Saturday and he still isn't feeling the best. I would much rather have an ongoing cold than have the flu... I am literally afraid to throw up and will do anything and everything not to. D just went to urgent care so hopefully they can give him something so he can start feeling better.

Like I stated in my last post, Armani was battling RSV and an ear infection. I noticed a rash all over his body on Thursday and rushed him to the doctor. They said that some babies get a rash after they got a virus and that it would go away in a few days. Then Thursday night I was sleeping in the room with him due to the fact that Dlo had the flu (I wanted to make sure I was far away) Aramni woke up at about 1:30 in the morning and I knew he couldn't be hungry because he has been sleeping through the night and when I went to check he had thrown up in this crib a couple times. My poor baby, I thought for sure he had the flu as well. That night it was impossible to get Armani back to sleep, I was up until about 4 am. The only way I got him to sleep was in bed with me so that meant I had a very sleepless night. On Friday he was still a little fussy,  but did not get sick again. Thank goodness. But Friday night again he woke up around 1:45 and he was wet all over so I changed his diaper and his clothes and laid him back down praying he would fall back asleep. Well, he didn't. He was up until almost 5 am and thank God my mom and dad were nice enough to take turns staying up with him with me. I still couldn't sleep knowing that he was up. Let's hope these sleepless nights end and SOON!

Friday night my dad stayed home with Armani so me, my mom, and D'Angelo could get out of the house for a little bit. While we were at the mall my mom bought Armani his first ornament and I got D'Angelo and I our first ornament as well. I hope that this turns into a tradition where we get a new ornament each year to hang on the tree.

Armani's

The Dunbars
 

My mom and I also got our trees and decorations up around the house. I love Christmas and I cannot wait to get my own house to be able to decorate! I hope I can do as good of a job as my mom.

<3



 



Armani is ten months now and I feel like I need to start planning for his first birthday which is crazy to think about. I think back to the day I went to the hospital to give birth to him and how much my life has changed for the better. Armani is still getting into anything and everything and loves to play with other little kids. He recently noticed his hair and starts to pull it really hard when he is angry or tired. He now has 6 teeth with a 7th on the way. Three on the bottom and three on the top. The top 3 all came at one time. Armani is pulling up on everything and loves to stand up in the tub. We definetly can't take our eyes off of him for a second! You never know what he is going to pull onto himself or what you will find in his mouth. He really hasn't said any new words yet but when he is upset he will set his head on the ground or when he wants to be picked up he will sit on the ground and raise his hands in the air. Armani's favorite toy is the vacuum cleaner and will crawl to where ever it is when it is out. He is a little afraid of it once it is actually turned on though. We still try to do as much as we did before like going to basketball games, out to eat, etc, but it is much more difficult now! He is so busy and would much rather be getting into everything and crawling every where than sitting on our laps or in the same spot for too long.

the vacuum

Gotta do anything to keep him entertained

Finally, I decided it was time to chop my hair. I have sported the long hairstyle for quite some time now and I found myself always wanting to put it up in a pony tail because it was always in my face. I am loving my short hair but I know that it will probably be short lived so I will enjoy it for now. I am proud of myself for actually curling it and making it look cute because I am horrible at doing my own hair.



Thanksgiving and Baptism

Time has been flying and I cannot believe that it is already December. I am looking forward to posting about Christmas; family traditions, special gifts, Dlo and my birthdays, and traveling to Arizona.

Thanksgiving came and went. I always love getting to see all of my cousins, aunts, uncles, and grandparents. I have such a big family that it is always filled with laughter and joy.

D'Angelo and I have been debating on when and where to get Armani baptized, but we finally came to a decision that my Uncle Joey (my moms brother) who is a deacon, would baptize Armani on Thanksgiving morning. It just so happened to work out this way. Joey lives in Gretna and the church we got to in Sioux City only does baptism's the last Sunday of the month and for the next few months we are going to be busy and so Joey came up with the idea to baptize him on Thanksgiving morning at my grandparents church. My mother and father stood in as our Godparents, my grandparents, my uncle Joey, and his wife Pam were all in attendance. It was really special to me to have my uncle baptize my son. It really meant a lot to us that Joey was able and willing to do it. After the baptism we headed up the hill to my grandparents house where a bunch of wild and crazy Hartnett's would soon be arriving.

Family members filed in and soon enough my grandparents house was packed. I love the caous and all the noise, without it I don't know what I would do. Soon after everyone arrived it was time to eat. We always say an Our Father and thank the Lord for the food and family. One by one we went through the line and filled our plates with delicious and tummy filling food. Later, when people were done eating and chatting some of the cousins and aunts went downstairs to play a friendly game of heads up. Armani was taking a nap so it was the perfect time to school all my cousins in this fun game.

D'Angelo had to work that evening and the next day because it was black friday. He left my grandparents house a little after 5 and slowly people started to call it a night and head home. We left around 7pm. I was pooped and a little tipsy. I had drank a little too much wine and not eaten enough food. My friend Sam Burns was in town for the weekend from Conneticut so she stopped by and said hello to Armani and I! It is always good to see her and catch up!

The next day D'Angelo, Armani, and I were going to head to Kansas City, MO to see D'Angelo's mom, brothers and nephews. Since Dlo had to work from 7am to 3pm that day we were debating whether we should leave when he got off or wake up early and go the next day. I knew that we would be much happier if we left after he got off and just got it over with. So when he got off we packed up, got gas, and finally got on the road about 5. It took us 4.5 hours to get there and the last hour Armani did NOT want to be in his carseat any longer and we had to pull over for a little bit and let him out. Driving long distances with a child is not ideal. We made it there a little before 10 and we were all pooped. The next day I knew Armani was not feeling well. He was fussy, running a fever, and not his usual self. Him being sick did not make the trip has fun as it could have been but it was still great to see his family and watch D play in his alumni basketball game! We headed home Sunday and Armani was still not feeling well. We knew he was teething because we could see 3 teeth on the top of his mouth coming in, but we knew it had to be something more than just teething. We took him to the doctor Monday and they declared that he had RSV and an ear infection :( poor little man. They prescribed him some antibiotics and by Tuesday you could already tell he was feeling a little better.

Thanksgiving reminded me just how blessed and thankful I am for so many things in my life, especially my family, health, and friends! I can't wait to blog again soon about Christmas, Armani's 10 months, and birthdays!

Armani's Baptism

Taking a nap after-finally feeling better

Sleepy baby <3

Shannon and Armani when he wasn't feeling good

Just had to share this adorable pic!

Armani's halloween and nine month check up!

I am a little behind, but a lot has been going on lately with me starting to work, school, etc. Armani experienced his first Halloween this year and it was so much fun to dress him up! We dressed him up as a lion. It was pretty cold and windy that evening so we weren't out for very long. We stopped by our next door neighbors and then went out to my grandparents house in Hubbard to show our little guy off! We had a lot of fun catching up with my grandparents and after we left there we headed to my dad's morningside basketball game where he is a coach.

Armani the day before Halloween

Armani and his dad

Armani and I



Our adorable little lion


 

At Armani's nine month check up they weighed him, measured him, checked his ears and eyes, and this time no shots but they did have to prick his finger to draw some blood.

Armani weighs 22.4 pounds and is 28 inches long. He has three teeth on the bottom of his mouth and everything looked great!

Armani at the doctor's office

Armani LOVES LOVES LOVES to scream!! I think it is a combination of getting peoples attention and the fact that he likes to hear his own voice. But man does it hurt the ears. He screams at basketball games, during church, in restaurants, in stores, and at home. It honestly just makes us all laugh because he is so cute and funny. He also can clap and loves to have books read to him. Armani also likes to get into anything and everything as usual. The living room is always a disaster because he knocks everything down or gets everything out. He is trying to pull himself up just about every where and if he is standing by the coffee table hanging on he can walk around the whole thing. Armani has been sleeping great and we have been introducing him to tons of new foods, chicken, eggs, bread, mashed potatoes, anything that he is able to digest. We all have so much fun with Armani and it is such a blessing watching him learn and grow! I am super excited to spend his first Thanksgiving and Christmas with him!

found an apple on the ground

Clapping

Sleeping beauty

Helping put up lights

Happy 9 months baby!

Get to know me:)

I have been having a difficult time coming up with blog topics, but I wanted to let people get to know some of my favorite things and some of the things that keep me grounded and sane!

First off here is a little bit about myself.

Full name: Molly Pearl Fuchser Dunbar

Birthday: December 28, 1989

Natural Hair Color: Dirty Blonde;-)

Height: 5'1" 1/2 - gotta get that half inch in there!

Favorite Color: Blue

Favorite Sports Teams: Huskers, Heat, Duke

Number of kids I hope to conceive: 3

Favorite Food: Broccoli Casserole, wings, rotel, chips, and most definitely PIZZA! I could eat pizza everyday

Favorite Soda: Diet Cream Soda or Diet Mountain Dew

Favorite Movie: Elf

Favorite Holiday: Christmas

Best Moments: Winning State Championship in high-school, becoming a mom, getting married

Favorite thing about me: My big heart

Favorite TV Shows: Right now The Voice, Sons of Anarchy, How to get away with murder, greys anatomy, biggest loser, revenge, and scandal

Where I want to live: Phoenix, Arizona

Dream Job: My dream job would be to work in a gym, I love working out so why not spend all my time there. Obviously this is not possible because it does not pay hardly anything even if I were to become a trainer.

There are many more things I could go on and on about but I don't want to bore you all.

Recently I have been reflecting on how I remain grounded, less stressed, and more healthy.
I grew up in a huge Catholic family and church has always been a big part of my life. When I was young I am sure I dreaded going to church, CCD, first communion, etc but I am so glad my parents took me. My relationship with God has what has gotten me through the most difficult times and the happiest times. I believe going to church and praying every night has not only caused me to stress less, but to live a happier life as well. I am catholic and Dlo is Baptist and we have had discussions about how we want to raise our child in the church and which church. We are going to get Armani Baptized Catholic, but as long as he has an understand of God, the bible, etc and attends church that is all I care about in the long run.

Working out has ALWAYS helped me when I am feeling stressed and also has helped me to live a healthier life. I used to be a workout freak and eat super healthy. Now I still workout, not as much as I liked too but as long as I still get 45-hour in I am fine. It is hard to take time to go to the gym when you have a family so right now I have been doing insanity in the basement and going on walks around the lake by my house. I encourage people to work out even if it is only for 30 minutes. It not only helps you clear your head, but you feel so good about yourself after!

Said good-bye to tanning. Before I had Armani I would tan all the time as much as I could. I loved the way I looked tan and never worried about skin cancer, wrinkles, or dark spots. During my pregnancy I couldn't tan so I felt extremely pale and ugly. When Armani was born I jumped right back into my bad habit and tanned almost everyday. Shortly after that I noticed that I was developing dark spots on my face. As soon as I saw those I knew it was time for me to give it up. There are so many tanning lotions available and I can always get a spray tan so in the end I have many ways to keep my skin tan without having to go to a tanning bed.

Spending time with my family has always been something that I love to do. Now that I have a husband and a son there is no better feeling than to come home to the two of them. I love that we live with my parents for the time being as well. We all get along so well and no matter what they always put a smile on my face and make me feel better.

Of course an ice cold beer or a glass of wine can always help me feel better. I have been on a mike's hard lemonade kick and it's not very often that I have a drink but when I do this has been my drink of choice. I love to kick back, relax, and enjoy a drink every once in a while.

I am getting really excited for Thanksgiving and Christmas and Armani's 9 month checkup is right around the corner so there will be many more post to come! If you have any tips to being less stressed or healthy please share! :)

What's Happening with the Dunbar's

It been a couple weeks since my last post. I have been SO busy and I haven't had any time to just sit down and blog. A lot has been going on with the Dunbar's. For the past month D'Angelo has been helping coach 7th and 8th grader girls basketball. He gets along so well with the girls and everyone he is around. He loves having something to do and he also is a great basketball player so he is able to help these girls out as well. Next month he will be helping coach the 7th and 8th grade boys. He works all day as a paraprofessional and then has practice or a game until about six and then he is finally home to see me and Armani! I love that D'Lo has something to keep him busy. 

Armani is now crawling every where! I love that he has the freedom to move and go where ever he wants. It is a hassle though because he will get into anything and EVERYTHING he is not supposed to. I recently started feeding him cheerios, bread, crackers, puffs, bananas and he is drinking water out of his sippy cup! On top of this he is still getting his formula. I love being able to watch him eat and enjoy new flavors and textures. He is sleeping through the night (AMEN) and still takes about three hour naps a day. He absolutely loves bath time and will kick and splash every where. I love that Armani still will let me snuggle and cuddle with him, but that is becoming less and less. Every time I pick him up he wants to get down to or grab for everything that is around us. He talks all the time and by talk I mean a blah, blah, blah, ma, ma, ma or da-da.

Snuggles with Armani

Bath time

As far as for me I just recently got hired on with Better Living Counseling Agency. I had training all last week and have it all this week. I am feeling a bit overwhelmed with all the material and information, but I know once I actually get out on my own and have a better understanding of what I am doing or supposed to do that I will feel much more comfortable. It's just like in college when the teacher throws the syllabus at you and you look at everything you have to get done that semester it tends to be a bit much until you go along and realize you are going to make it through. What I will be doing (basically) at BLC is supervising visitations between parents and their children. There are different varieties of this and different situations, but to be brief that is what I will be doing. Redirecting and reteaching parents how to be parents or helping them with every day things as a family. I am also going to school M-F except for Thursdays. So the last couple weeks have been crazy between driving to Wayne for class and driving to Fremont for training, homework on top of that, being a wife, and a mother and you pretty much have me beat. I know that once this week is over and training is done I will be able to better prepare myself and I know that my schedule won't be as crazy as it is right now.

This past Saturday my parents, D'Lo, and I got to go to the Nebraska football game! It was so much fun and we couldn't of asked for better weather! We left Armani with two lovely babysitters that split up the day because we knew we would be gone for most of it. The first babysitter got here right at 7 and we were on the road. We got to Lincoln about 9:30 and stopped by our family friend Bob's tailgate to chug a few beers before it was time to head over to the game. The game started at 11 and we had amazing seats thanks to Josh Mitchell (#5). D'Lo is friends with him and he was nice enough to get us all tickets. Our seats were on the 50 yard line, row 10! We enjoyed Valentino's pizza and left the game with about 8 minutes to spare because we were going to meet my cousin, her fiancé, aunt, and uncle in the Rail yard. Before I could make it to the rail yard I had to stop at Brix & Stone, the restaurant I used to work at when I lived in Lincoln, and saw hello! It was great to give everyone a quick hug and tell them how much I missed them. After that we walked over to the rail yard enjoyed a few beers and listened to some music outside. I knew my friend Emily Calvert and her little sister Kacie were going to be at the game so I asked them to meet me in the rail yard for a couple of drinks. It was so great to catch up with them and I am so glad I got to see them even if it was for a short period of time. It was about 4pm and we were all getting hungry so we walked over to Lazlo's, ordered another drink, ate, and caught up with one another. We got back on the road and arrived back home at about 8. I had a great day, but I hate being away from my baby that long so I was happy that he was still awake when we got home so I could play with him a little bit before he went to sleep.



Happy 8 Months Armani!

Armani turned 8 months this past Friday. I say every single month that time is flying by! I soak up every second I have with Armani and the times when I am around him and I am on my phone I always remind myself that I need to be in the here and now so I don't miss a thing.

Nothing could bring more joy into my life than having a child. I can't wait to have more babies!! It wont be for a couple more years but I am already excited because I've always wanted kids. Dlo says he only wants one more but I am hoping I'll be blessed enough to have three. Three would be the perfect number for me because there are three on Dlo and I's side.

Armani at 8 months-watch out ladies

So what is this adorable 8 month up to these days?

Well right now he is starting to pronounce sounds like Blah Blah, Ma Ma, Da Da, Ga Ga, and Ba Ba. For some reason he lovessssss to scream! He gets excited and will just scream out of no where, it is the cutest thing. Now that he has recognized his voice he loves to hear himself. Whenever people are having conversations around him he will start to make sounds and join in on the convo.

Teeth: Armani has two teeth on the bottom that came in a couple months ago at the exact same time. I think he is teething again because he has been a little fussier and pooping a lot more! He will chew and put anything and everything in his mouth and he loves toys that you can put into the fridge and get cold because it feels great on his poor gums.

Food: When Armani was 6 months I started introducing him to vegetables. He loved the fact that he got to experience something else besides formula! I knew right away that he loved Carrots, sorta liked squash, and he really isn't a huge fan of sweet potatoes. After a month of just veggies I started to give him fruit as well. He LOVES apples and is not the biggest fan of peaches or bananas yet. I think they may be a little too sweet for him still. He also enjoys crackers and puffs that are made for babies that dissolve quickly in his mouth. I am ready to start trying new foods with him that we eat but Dlo is a little hesitant but I think he will slowly come around to him trying new things.

Crawling: Armani has been getting up o his knees and rocking for a while now but the last few weeks all of us have been trying to teach and encourage him to start crawling. Now he is able to get his arms and legs moving a little at a time but it still wouldn't be considered crawling just yet. My parents, D, and I all wrote down on a piece of paper when we thought Armani would actually start crawling and the loser has to buy treats. (Such a competitive family) We all wrote a date down within this week so it should be any day now that we will be spending a majority of our time chasing after this little guy.

Sleep: Armani finally has become a good sleeper! He is also finally on a really good schedule since he started daycare. He takes about an hour to 2 hour nap in the morning and then again in the afternoon and he may need a quick cat nap around 5 depending on the day. We try to keep him up until 10 and he will sleep until 5:30 take a bottle and go back to sleep until 7:30. This varies because if he is very tired we will put him to sleep at 9 and he may be up for about an hour from like 630-7:30 and watch cartoons and then fall back sleep. Before we had to rock Armani to sleep or pat his back until he was asleep, now we can just lay him in his crib and he will fall right asleep. Amen!

Clothes/Diapers: Armani is wearing a size 3 Diaper and wearing 6-9 months clothes or just 9 month clothes. I can't wait to start putting shoes with his outfits because right now all he basically wears is socks.

Weight/Height: We haven't had a doctors appointment since he was 6 months but I can guess basing it off his last checkup that he is around 20-22 pounds and 27-29 inches. He is a big boy!

Armani loves his bath time! He loves splashing around every where, rolling onto his belly, and playing with all his bath toys. He also loves watching Mickey Mouse in the morning when he is up and gets the chance to watch it. He stares at the TV and I think it is the greatest thing because my niece Caprilee loves Mickey Mouse as well so when we go out to Arizona over Christmas I am hoping that they will be able to sit together and watch it <3 How cute would that be :)

Armani loves to have books read to him and he loves getting into things he's not supposed to even more...just wait until he starts crawling! Going on walks and enjoying the fresh air is not only one of my favorites but Armani's as well.

We have also just started to let Armani sit in highchairs when we go out to eat and sit in the front of the cart independently. It is kind of frightening but Armani will not sit strapped into his car seat any longer so we really don't have any other options.

Other kids: Armani lovessssss looking at and watching other kids play. Soon he will be able to crawl around and get in on the action with the other kids at daycare. He is one of the two babies at his daycare but there are plenty of older kids that he loves to be around.

Well Armani is getting fussy so it is time for a nap! More blogs to come :)

He loves sleeping in this crib

Trying to crawl

Helping Gma vacuum

Watching cartoons



 

February 10, 2014

February 10, 2014 was the greatest day of my life. The day that Armani was born. I look back and can't believe how time has flown by. I love reliving this day over and over in my head. Of course no one can predict what their labor and delivery is going to be like, but I know we all like to think we do.

Friday, February 7, I had gone to the doctor for my once a week checkup. The doctor had told me that by the way I was sitting and how low the baby was that she would be surprised if I made it to my due date which was February 14. I knew that my due date was right around the corner but I didn't get my hopes up that the baby would come any time soon because my mom had gone late with my sisters and I and my sister had gone late with her daughter.

Dlo came up that weekend like he had been doing every weekend. We just relaxed and enjoyed one another's company because we knew any day now we would be extremely busy and there would be little time for just me and him. Sadly, on Sunday he had to go back to Fremont because he had classes the next day as did I. I remember going to bed that night having a thought that my water was going to break in the night. You may not believe me but I really did have this thought cross my mind. Monday morning, the 10th, just a little after 4 am I shot up in bed and felt what was my water breaking. I ran upstairs screaming "I think my water broke!" I've heard stories and seen in the movies that when someone's water breaks that they are instantly having full on contractions and can barely make it to the hospital in time to have the baby. Well they always say don't believe everything you see in the movies. I also thought that once your water was broken that that was it no more "water" but that wasn't the case, I was wrong. Once your water breaks it doesn't stop until you have the baby.

As soon as my parents were ready we loaded up in the car and headed to the hospital. I had tried calling Dlo time and time and time again. It was 4 am and he happened not to have his phone on loud so that he could hear if I called. Finally, after 24 missed calls he answered. We were in the car on the way to the hospital. Unfortunately, Dlo's car had broken down a couple weeks prior so being the amazing sweet guy that my dad is he drove all the way to Fremont to pick up D and back. I can't thank my dad enough for doing that for us because otherwise I really don't know how D would have gotten to the hospital as quickly as he did.

Since my dad was going to pick up D, he dropped my mom and I off at the hospital and headed to Fremont. We checked into the hospital and they sent a nurse down with a wheelchair. At this point in time I had still not had a contraction so I thought this was about to be a piece of cake. I couldn't have been more wrong. We got into the room and I quickly changed into a gown and got as comfortable as I could in the bed. The nurse checked me to see how far dilated I was. Again, I thought that since my water had broken on its own I had to have been at least a 3, nope, I was only 1 cm dilated. Still, in my head I thought that since my water was broken that I would quickly move from one cm to the next. Almost immediately after the nurse was done checking on me, my contractions hit hard. For those of you who have not experienced a contraction I don't even think I can describe it to you. The contractions were by far the worst part! It felt like a menstrual cramp times 100000 that instantly takes your breath away and you can do nothing but grab onto something or someone as tightly as possible until it's over. Thankfully my mom was there and she allowed me to squeeze and grip her hand as tightly as I could. These contractions were about 5 minutes apart and finally after what seemed like an eternity Dlo and my dad showed up. I couldn't have been happier to see Dlo and he quickly replaced the spot my mom was sitting in and let me take out all my pain on his hand. After a couple hours I was still only dilated at 3 cm so I asked for an epidural. I know they usually don't recommend giving the epidural until you are 6 cm or so but for some reason they allowed me to receive one. The epidural did not hurt at all compared to a contraction and once the medicine was in me I could finally relax a bit.

The nurses were in and out of the room for a while checking my vitals and temperature and making sure the baby was doing fine as well. My parents left to grab some breakfast for themselves and for D. While they were gone there was kind of a panic moment where the nurses were checking me and all the sudden they were rushing around flipping me from side to side and even put a breathing mask on my face. I had no idea what had happened and no one said anything to me for a couple of minutes. What had happened was the baby's heart rate had gone down while I was laying on my back so for the rest of the day I had to lay on my side with one leg propped in the air and every couple of hours they would flip me in the opposite direction. The babies head was facing my leg so they thought that by laying this way that the baby's head would eventually face down like it was supposed to be. I was already uncomfortable and laying like this made it 10x worse. My grandma Hartnett volunteers at the hospital I was at so she had come up to see me and handed me a rosary to carry with me. I loved that small gesture so much, my grandma is so important to me so I was so glad I got to see her.

The nurses had gotten my hopes up and thought that I would have the baby by 2 pm at the latest, well they were wrong. Since I had gotten the epidural so early my progress had slowed way down. By 2pm I was only 5 or 6 cm dilated and was running a fever. I was exhausted, hungry, anxious, and uncomfortable; not a good combination. After a while my epidural started to wear off and once again I was starting to experience those awful contractions. I was lucky enough that the doctor came up once again and gave me another dosage of the medicine.

The next few hours consisted of waiting, playing on my phone, and constantly being checked on by the nurses. At one point in time I had a break down. I was so uncomfortable and ready for the baby to be here. I was running a fever, I couldn't rest at all, and I was frustrated that I wasn't progressing quicker. My parents and D never left my side and we were all ready for this baby to get here.

Finally, at 10 pm (my water broke at 4 am) I was able to start pushing. In the room there was my dad, mom, D, two doctors, and about 3 nurses. Again, my epidural had started to wear off so I could feel my contractions again and just about everything! So I like to say that I had a natural labor because I could feel everything. If you ask my sister she didn't even know when to push that's how magical the epidural can be. When I started pushing the doctors gave me pitocin (a medicine used to speed up contractions) so my contractions were coming about every minute. I was told to push every time I felt a contraction coming so with D on one side holding one leg and my mom on the other I would push for 10 seconds, break, and repeat. Everyone in the room knew how exhausted I was becoming so at one point in time I had to play tug a war with one of the nurses. She had me hold onto a towel and she had the other end and we would pull and pull and pull. The doctors kept saying, "We're making progress" so in my head I was thinking ok not to much longer they can see the head. This was not the case. After a little over an hour of pushing they finally could see the head!! Due to the way the baby's head was laying they had to get out a vaccum to help ease his head out. Man was that part painful. (I am trying not to be gory and scar everyone so I am leaving out the graphic details) After a few more pushes the baby's head was out. D'Angelo could see how much pain I was in. I looked over at him and I could see tears building in his eyes. I could tell how much he was sympathizing for me and just how much he truly loved and cared for me. I couldn't have asked for a better partner. After I looked at D starting to cry, I looked over at my mom and she started to cry!! All I could say was "YOU GUYS GET IT TOGETHER! The baby isn't even out yet!" I knew that the finish line was near and with a couple more big pushes and me gripping onto D's shirt, out came Armani! At 11:46 pm, weighing 8 pounds 10 ounces, 21 inches long, and after a 19 hour labor Armani made his first apperance into the world. D instanly burst into tears and I have never felt emotinally closer to him than on that day. I on the other hand was so exhausted I didn't even know what to do or feel. After D cut the cord I finally got to hold my precious baby. I was overhwelmed with the love and joy I felt at that very moment. It is a lifechanging moment to hold your child for the very first time.

After 19 hours of what I call a natural labor I felt a sense of empowerment and I could do anything and everything that anyone asked me to. Delivering a child is something you cannot understand unless you have been through it yourself.

Once the doctors were done "fixing" me back up and doing all the tests that needed to be done with the baby, I finally got to enjoy some time with just me and my family. My mom, dad, and D each took turns holding Armani and around 2 am my parents headed home and D, the baby, and I were moved into a different room.

The time at the hospital flew by and many of our family and friends stopped by to see this beautiful bundle of joy. After two days at the hospital it was finally time to head home and start this new incredible journey.

Right after Armani was born <3

First time being held by daddy

Leaving the hospital to go home

Our first picture as a family!

Daddy and Armani <3 :)))))