Almost 2 Weeks Post-Surgery......

Last night was such a good night after a long string of terrible, sleepless ones! Let's hope the sleep continues:

Erika Lindsay Maxfield

Leighton was in bed from 8pm-7:30am(and was completely asleep by 9pm after a couple potty trips) with no medicine in over 24 hours. I hope this means she is recovering and I'm going to get some more 8-hour nights of sleep to myself... I am so thankful for how easily she is breathing now and that she is not in so much pain. Makes this exhausting experience seem so small in the big picture!

· · a few seconds ago

Leighton's Surgery (11/4/11)

Last Monday(Halloween), I was finally able to see a doctor about Leighton's breathing problems. She has snored since infancy, but month after month it has grown worse and worse until she would stop breathing for up to five seconds at a time during the night, then wake up gasping for air. When I brought this up with several doctors in Idaho, I felt like I was too overprotective when they'd say "It's just a cold" or "She must have allergies" -- not that we didn't love the doctor that we settled on in Idaho, but the pediatricians made me feel like it was completely normal for a 1-2 year old to breathe louder than a train all through the night.

After about 5 minutes at JC Pediatrics, the doctor confirmed that I was right to be worried and recommended us to a specialist although she said it would take a week to get us in. Then that afternoon they called and asked us to come in on the 3rd. After one look in Leighton's throat, the specialist said we needed to have her tonsils and adenoids taken out as soon as possible and they scheduled her for the first surgery the next morning. I was really surprised because I'd been warned that they only perform this surgery in children over 3 unless the case is severe. It was a 30-minute procedure and after 1 and 1/2 hours the surgeon came out to tell me they took out her tonsils and adenoids, but as she was coming out of the anesthesia she experienced a lot of bleeding. Some blood got on her vocal cord and caused her to have throat spasms, so they had to put her back under anesthesia and go in to stop the bleeding, then take her off anesthesia slower the second time. They also told me that the airways to her nose had been completely blocked off and that is why she hasn't breathed through her nose the past six months.

After the surgery, we spent the next 3 days in the children's hospital trying to get Leighton to eat or drink. It was tough for me to watch her in so much pain and know that it was for her own good. By the third day, she was already breathing through her nose when she slept better than I have ever seen...she has always breathed through her mouth while sleeping. My mom came and stayed with us in the hospital and it was nice to be able to leave to shower since we live so close. The second night, Leighton ate some jello and they said if I could get her to drink a sippy and eat again, we could take her home. So I tried...all night and morning...with no luck! If there is one thing she gets from me, it's her stubborn will. And two-year-old's are hard to bargain with!

Finally, around noon on the third day Leighton pointed to a bag of Ranch Dorito's and said "Can I have chips please?" I was really hesitant because she is supposed to be on soft foods, but the girl ate two snack bags of DORITO'S! They must have "scratched an itch"(as Annemarie put it!) and they discharged us that afternoon. Grandmother, Grandaddy, and 'Nana'(Tiawanna) came up for the night to stay at our house and give Mom a ride home(since she brought our car up!) and Leighton loved having them at our house!

Yesterday was probably the worst day yet. Leighton whined and cried for 11 hours straight, but her medicines were giving her problems going to the restroom so we had to cut back some till she could go and would eat again. Today she is still acting somewhat sore, but is getting back to herself and playing! She loved having preschool at our house today -- sometimes her galpals are the best medicine! And her breathing is better than it ever has been, I am so happy to see such a quick improvement. It definitely makes it worth it to hear her breath so easily at night.

Here are some cell phone pictures to remember the hospital stay...I only took happy pictures:

Leighton was 'high' or 'drunk' on the medicine before the surgery... and Jack and I were dying laughing! She would move her hospital bracelet up to and away from her face and tell us how much she loved Dora and stickers(which the nurses were letting her watch and play with). It was hilarious!!

Watching Dora before surgery.

Playing in the playroom at the hospital (we were hoping she would wear herself out after they took her off the IV and realize how thirsty she was).

We love our TN friends! Madalyn and Audrey brought her surprises and played for a while. Hollidae also came to play and AnneMarie brought us dinner(I wish I had gotten a picture, but Leighton was really upset by that time).

Playing some more -- Lei loves letters and her new Minnie slippers that Jammin' brought to the hospital for her!

And finally DORITO'S!! I will never forget this, she is so unpredictable sometimes after I offered her pudding, popsicles, jello, ice cream, and yogurt for days! I love this girl and I'm so thankful we have gotten this over with :] but wanted to 'journal' it all the same!

BOY oh BOY!!

Okay, this is cell phone picture quality and although it's going to take me a while to catch up on the last week or so of festivities that need to be blogged, I just wanted to post all our good news! Baby Maxfield #2 is a BOY! Neither of us could believe it and made them double check because everyone kept saying "With how sick you are, this is gonna be a girl!" So I built myself up saying it's a girl, I'll probably never get a boy... Goes to show that all those pregnancy myths are crazy. We are ecstatic!! We are so excited to have one girl and one boy in our house... it'll even things out! And although I love dolling up Little Miss Leighton, shopping for a boy is a whole new world of fun!

We are so excited to meet you, Little Buddy...as your big sister is already referring to you! Now, let's just see if Mommy and Daddy can agree on a name!

In other exciting news, Jack was offered an ICU position at Holston Valley in Kingsport and has accepted it! He is really excited and this is another big accomplishment for him! He's itching to start graduate school app's and this is just one step closer to our main goal.

Leighton and I are so proud of all his hard work!!

The Big 25

I have to say, Jack spoils me every year, but 25 is my favorite birthday yet! He had to work all weekend, so we celebrated Thursday-Monday! I loved every minute of it, especially when Leighton was singing me Happy Birthday! On Sunday(my actual birthday), Leighton made the whole nursery sing Happy Birthday to Leighton's Mommy for their songtime! How sweet is that?! And since it was the Primary program in Sacrament, we had yummy cupcakes in Primary... so I told my class I was pretending it was my birthday party :]

When Jack got off from work, we were supposed to grill...but it was so late we hit up 5 Guys instead...where they have cherry coke on tap...Mmmm! On Monday, Jack had asked our friends to babysit and Leighton got to play with Hollidae (Thank you Annemarie and Sean!), so he took me out to the movies. It was so much fun to have a date! Then we picked Lei up and went to Amigo's for family birthday dinner -- 75cent tacos on Monday's...woot woot! And Jack let me help pick out some birthday stuff this year, but I'd say he did pretty dang good!!

I got a Canon Rebel T3i with the portrait lens and telephoto lens (say goodbye to the long delay and hello to cute baby pictures!) and some B&BW swag...y'all know I love smelling like Christmas all Fall/Winter long!

BEST BIRTHDAY EVER! I am so lucky to have such an awesome husband and family!

I really need to start a new blog. Mostly because this blog is my only form of journaling/scrapbooking right now and I probably need a bigger outlet to express all of the feelings and emotions running through me at this stage in my life, but as this is really the only place I write about our family I try to post pictures and keep it light. However, I don't want to let this morning pass by and lose memory of it...because let's face it, whether you're a mom of 1 or 10, you just get busy and forget things if you don't write them down! :)

Every morning while I am pregnant I wake up somewhere between 3 and 5. Rarely can I fall back asleep within an hour.... I am envious of people who are "back asleep before their head hits the pillow." My thoughts get going, and my to do lists, and before I know it my mind is reeling! In fact, if it weren't for a half a Unisom every evening(which is BABY SAFE, so no lectures) I doubt if I would fall asleep at night to begin with. And it's not because I'm not tired... I am EXHAUSTED! I just can't sleep.

I usually use this time now (since I know I'll be up at least an hour) to process what I'm feeling about the new baby, to think about how I can be a better Mom to Leighton, and just to try to have a minute to myself to relax, because those will be far and few between in about 5 months(a reality, but I'm so excited anyway! YAY!). I also go take Leighton to the bathroom **side tangent** she has not had an accident during the day in quite a while -- she even takes herself to poop in the potty now, which was her worst struggle with potty training. Night training on the other hand, she wakes up and tells me she has to go.....from her bed. If I don't hear her at first, she gets upset because she's tired!**

So this morning was like every other morning. I wake up around 3am and have a hard time falling back asleep. But around 3:45am I doze off. And the sleep when I doze off is wonderful because I am so exhausted and will have to take Jack to work at 6am. But at 5am, Jack grabs me and wakes me up and I hear Leighton screaming. This isn't a "go peepee" cry, this is a terrified, weeping crying that instantly has me running to see if she is hurt. I calm her down to a slow sobbing and take her to the bathroom. I let her go potty and I wipe her face with a warm washcloth, but she just has little tears and keeps saying things half asleep that I can't understand. After about 5 minutes, she has calmed back down enough to say she wants to go back to bed.

So I take her back in her room and just can't shake this feeling because I know she's not happy and that breaks my heart. And I know all kids have bad dreams now and then, but as a mother you just can't go back to bed when your baby is so sad. We don't let Leighton get in our bed until 6:30am. It's our rule and for the most part she doesn't ask to, but occasionally when Jack is off it's nice to just all lay in bed for an extra hour and she is so happy that she'll sometimes go back to sleep with us -- till 8 or 9 -- woohoo! This said, I wasn't going to take her to our room because I think it's important for her to be able to go back to sleep in her room and Jack needs good sleep before work.

I lay her back in bed and ask her if she's okay. She quietly leans over and says, "Mom, sing me Heavenly Father?" (A Child's Prayer from the Primary Songbook) At that moment, the Spirit in the room was so strong and I just had this overwhelming feeling that although I have been feeling inadequate about motherhood (whether because I compare myself to other Mom's in the Church, or because I feel like a comment was directed at me, or because simply you never feel like you are everything your child needs and will need) I knew that Heavenly Father is always in my home and with my family and that I am doing everything I need to do to teach Leighton to be a righteous daughter of God. After I sang her this song and she hummed along with me, I hug her and ask "Can Mommy say a prayer with you, Leighton?" And she said, "Mommy say prayer for me." So I quietly said prayers with her that she could be comforted and I know she will be. Right before I got up to come back to bed, Leighton leans over and says "Mommy sing I'm Child of God" and while I sang her another one of her favorite Primary songs, I was once again so overwhelmed by that peace and calm that I knew that the Lord is watching over my family and I felt so much comfort and faith. I am so grateful for the gifts and blessings I have seen in my life and with my family. I know that we are watched over and protected. I love that I can feel so close to my Heavenly Father in my own home and that I can make it an escape from worldliness. And I know that although Leighton is small, she can feel the Spirit too and receive comfort. I am so grateful that Heavenly Father found me worthy to be her Mother.

Some Family Fun in Jonesborough!

My friend Lauren asked me to snap a few photos of her and her family in downtown Jonesborough, so I had her snap a few of us too. (Thanks Lauren!)

Here are a few I think turned out great!

Charity Photoshoot

An awesome photographer in our ward told us about a food drive/photoshoot that was going on last Friday and did some pictures of the girls all dressed in their costumes. She was supposed to leave, but let Leighton sneak in at the last minute before she left. To see a sneak peek of her photos of Leighton and a bunch of other cute kiddos, check them out here:

http://brandilyndavidsonphotography.com/

I'll post them after she emails them to me, but I also had to take a few of all the girls together :]