Updates, Updates, Updates

To my Jazzy Baby:

You are getting so big and hitting so many milestones. So I just wanted to do a quick update on what you're up to these days.

You loved your pacifier in the hospital, but since then you won't take one! We got you a pacifier with a giraffe on the end, you love the giraffe, but hate the pacifier. You love sucking your middle and ring finger though! I guess thats what I used to do when I was your age. Like mother like daughter I guess!
You are quite the eater these days! You eat about 8 oz and eat about every 2 hours. We just started you on rice cereal on July 5, you weren't sure what to think of it at first but once you got realized it wasn't a bottle you started to like it. You kept wanting to suck the spoon! And you got more of it on your face than your mouth. We finally figured out that if we got it in your mouth and then put your middle and ring finger in your mouth you'd suck it and keep the cereal in your mouth. You love holding your own bottle and when I'm nursing you you love to hold onto me.
You always have to be near me! And most importantly you always have to be holding onto me. Whether its my shirt or my hair or my fingers, you always have to have a grip! It makes me feel good that you do that, but I can never get things done! haha If we go out and other people try to hold you I can't be in your sight, cuz if I am you scream and scream til me or your dad takes you back :)
You are a PERFECT sleeper! You sleep about 12-13 hours a night and take a 3-4 hour nap in the morning and then a 2-3 hour nap in the afternoon. I think the key is your swing. You love it! When we first moved to hawaii and didnt have a bed for you (cuz your swing was being shipped) so we made a comfy bed for you on the floor, you loved it and slept so well. But your reaction when your swing got here and we put you in it was priceless! You will always turn to the left when we first put you in the swing and the your push your face into the side. It's pretty cute. And you'll always find a way to get at least one foot outside of your blanket, no matter how we put the blanket. But I think we created a monster because when we are out we can't get you to fall asleep...you'll only sleep in your swing. Unless I swaddle you, rock you, and let you cry it out for a couple minutes.
You such a jabberer. We love to hear your voice and hear your little baby talk. And you have the cutest laugh. You are getting pretty active these days and are always swinging your arms. You love your play mat and your stuffed duck. You're getting pretty good at sitting up too, you still need help but you like to sit up. You love to see whats going on and love to people watch. You get so excited when you see kids too!...And fans and Tigger. You enjoy swimming but are not a fan of the beach. You like taking walks in the stroller, but not so much in the front carrier. Whenever you have your hat on you like to bring it down over your face. We love you so much and you have brought so much happiness into our lives. Even though you were a surprise and we weren't expecting to have a baby so soon we are so thrilled that you came when you did and are on this adventure with us in hawaii! We wouldn't have it any other way.

Love you baby girl!
7.7.14

Jaz's Birth Part 2

Those couple days in the hospital were so fun and so tiring. Never have I been so happy to get up 3-4 times every night! She is a sleeper, that's all she wanted to do! When I had to feed her during the night, it took us like 15 minutes to get her awake enough to eat. And we had to keep all the lights on and keep wiggling her to keep her awake. Poor Wes was still in school and didn't get much sleep while at the hospital! Jazlyn did awesome breastfeeding and ate like a champ. Her first night her blood sugar was low so they made us give her formula...which she ended up throwing up! It scared me half to death because she started chocking on it, but thank goodness my mom was there to help. My family was there during the day to help out while Wes was at work and school... he didn't want me to be alone and my family wasn't complaining about spending time with Jazlyn :) Jazlyn was so perfect those days in the hospital! She ate a ton, slept a ton, and rarely made a peep. I loved being taken care of too, to have all my meals brought to me was probably my favorite. The night after my c-section I got up for my first walk, I needed some help but it felt great to get out of bed! We made that our morning and night routine while there, to go on walks down the hallways with Jazlyn. And one of our friends ended up giving birth the day before me just down the hall, so it was fun to go see her and her little girl! We loved our delivery nurse, but weren't too big of fans of all our recovery nurses. They yelled at me for bringing my own tylenol and getting up out of bed so much. But it really helped my recovery go faster. We got released after 3 days, a day earlier than the doctors wanted, but they finally gave in and let us go home. The day we were released I had to get the staples taken out of my incision, I freaked out but I was still so numb that I didn't feel a thing. And then as we were putting Jazlyn in her car seat she started screaming bloody murder and we couldn't figure out how to loosen the straps...talk about embarrassing. I was in tears and Wes was about to freak out. It was stressful to say the least when a nurse is standing there watching your every move, making you feel like you don't know what you are doing. But finally we were in our car and pulling away to take our daughter home. She slept the whole car ride. When we got home Wes had a meeting to go to but he made me go take a nap and rest after our crazy morning and my mom showed up to take care of Jaz. Next thing I know it was hours later and my whole family (siblings, parents, grandparents) were there, including some of Wes' family too. I can't believe I slept for so long with all that noise. The next week went by so fast. It was so fun to have family over every day and to have so much help. I don't think I changed one diaper or burped her while they all were there. And I had a lot of help with me too, since there was still a lot of things I couldn't do quite yet after my surgery. My mother cooked every meal, made sure I got my rest, took my pain meds, brought me stuff while I was feeding, and on top of that all she deep cleaned our whole house. It was amazing and such a blessing! It helped me out and Wes. Since he had school and work it made him feel a lot better than Jaz and I were taken care of. I couldn't thank my mom and family enough! It was so much fun to wake up and watch Say yes to the Dress with my little sister, even if it was like 6:30 in the morning! It was also a relief to have them there cuz I wasn't cleared to drive with all the meds I was on and Jaz had to have her foot pricked every day for Jaundice. Thankfully it wasn't as bad as I thought and she only had to use the Billy Blanket one day. But it was still pretty sad. After my mom left it was hard. I held in the tears but when she walked out the door I had a major meltdown. I think it was the fact that I was going to be alone during the day with Jazlyn and be on my own. And I just love my mom and love when my family visits. But Wes was very sympathetic and helped out a ton, whenever he would get home at night he would do whatever he could and during the night feedings he would help a ton too. There was even a couple nights that she wouldnt sleep at all that he made me go back to sleep and he took care of her for a couple hours. It's the best sight to see your baby cuddling your husband and they are both sound asleep. It was almost like we would do shift work some nights...he'd stay up with her for a few hours then we'd switch and I'd take her and so on. I don't think I've been without sleep for so long! It's funny that when you're that tired how you can sleep in just about any position anywhere in the house. And it's funny the things you'll say to your child to make them sleep. I remember promising her things if she'd sleep and begging her, crying with her, praying....whatever would make her go to sleep and stay asleep! After I finally caught up on some sleep after a couple weeks, I let Wes sleep at night and I would stay up with Jazlyn. We'd spend our nights rocking in my big comfy leather lazy boy recliner/rocker, watching netflix or just staring at each other. It was so nice to have some bonding time with her but I missed going to bed at the same time with my husband and waking up at the same time! He would go to bed and Jaz and I would just be starting our night, I'd finally get her to sleep around 1 or 2. Then Jaz would be up again at 5 and I'd feed her and have her back in bed around 6 and go back to bed, just when wes was waking up! We'd sleep til about 10 or so then start our day. Mostly we would just sit in the recliner and eat and sleep and hangout watching survivor or army wives. Honestly, I miss those days! They were simple, lazy, wonderful days. Jaz will now sit with me for a little bit, but won't really cuddle or sit still for very long. The newborn days were the hardest, most stressful, tiredest days but the were the best!! I miss them, but I love how active she is now.

Smiled: 1 month old
Rolled over: June 22
Laughed: June 16

Pregancy/The Day Jazlyn was born

I've been meaning to get back to blogging ever since Jazlyn was born....better late than never I guess! If you know me you know I'm not big on writing, like at all. So keeping a journal is like a chore to me, one that I avoid at all costs! But I really wanted to keep a log of Jazlyns life so that Wes, Jazlyn, and I could be able to look back on it. So while Wes is keeping a journal about her, i'm keeping a blog about her! And I will try my hardest to keep it updated as much as possible, especially now that we live so far away from our family and friends! 

So to start things off I think I better reminisce on my pregnancy and the day we welcomed our little angel into the world! And if you're reading this please do NOT feel obligated to read the whole thing...I know it's long and I babble...and the reason I go on and on and put in all the details is cuz this is taking place of keeping a journal. And I want to write down every detail so we can always remember and when we read it feel like we are there again.

Here we go-
 (Part 1)

June 2013 I got a bladder infection that turned into a kidney infection and as a result I had to go into my OBGYN. After they told me it had turned into a kidney infection and gave me a shot in the back they told me that I should probably take a pregnancy test since this is a common thing for pregnant women. And in my head I was like 'Pregnant? There's no way.' So I just nodded, said thank you and left. As I drove home I remembered an experience I had in the temple in Hawaii a little over a month before. And when I was sitting in the temple a picture popped into my head of Wes walking up and down a halfway in our house holding a baby in a pink blanket. My thought was, 'Oh that's cute! He's gonna be such a good dad one day.' Little did I know how true that picture that popped into my head was. A couple days later I just couldn't get those words that the nurse said to me out of my head. So I went to the store, took a test (okay I took like 4) and voila! I was pregnant. Surprise!!!

Holy crap. A flood of emotions overcame me: happy, excited, scared, confused. We were on birth control so how could we be pregnant? But I guess it's true what they say, that babies come when they want to! Even though kids weren't in the plans for us for a while we were very excited. Yes, it may have taken us a couple days to get used to the idea, but then we couldn't stop thinking about if it was a boy or girl or what it's going to be like to be parents or the day she's born...the list just goes on and on! And once our excitement hit we just couldn't keep the secret and leeked the good news to our families and friends. 

My pregnancy was good, I definitely lucked out. I was nauseous, but only threw up a handful of times. I didn't really swell a ton, didn't have a ton of cravings except for KFC, pizza, diet dr pepper, and ritz crackers with chocolate milk. But around 24 weeks I started getting really dizzy whenever I got up and couldn't really do much. So I went into my OBGYN and they did some tests and an ultrasound and then broke the news to me that our baby was quite behind growing wise, especially her stomach. He then referred us to a perinatologist. We saw the peri the next day and he confirmed what my doctor had said. She was about a month behind and her stomach was a little bit more behind. So he was concerned about her getting enough and concerned with the position of my placenta. As for the dizziness it was just a bad case of vertigo. They kept a close eye on me and her for the rest of the pregnancy, hoping that I could keep her in me til she was at least full term. We prayed so much for her to grow so she wouldn't have to be delivered early. At about 34 weeks I started getting strong contractions and was put on bedrest. At 37 weeks I was taken off bedrest and already dilating. We all thought the baby would come so fast. But even with all the intense contractions I wasn't dilating enough for them to admit me. So at 39 weeks they induced me cuz she was so small and in the two previous weeks her heart rate had gone crazy high then crazy low so they thought it was best to get her out, but induced me so they could be there for the whole labor to keep a close eye on her and her heart rate. So February 18th at about 7pm I was admitted and they began the process. The drugs worked fast and my contractions were in full swing about 15 mins later. At about midnight I gave in and got the epidural. Which, let me tell you, is heavenly! At 9am I was only a 5. At 9:30am I was an 8 and my water had broke and at 10 I was fully dilated but they didn't want me to start pushing til 10:30. 

10:30 rolled around and I started pushing. Within 20mins her head was in the canal and you could see her. The doctor said it'd be any minute. OH how he was wrong. I pushed for 3 more hours and still no baby. We tried so many things and still nothing. So the doctor came in and said that he was going to use some forceps and she'd be out in a couple minutes. He made a little cut down there, placed the forceps, and told me to push while he pulled. Now for those of you who don't know they are NOT gentle when they do this. He was pulling like no other and I thought he was going to yank her head off! He did two big pulls and she was not moving an inch. He then got very concerned and saw her heart rate drop a little and rushed me into the operating room to get her out. 

I was in the operating room probably less than 5 minutes later and Wes joined a couple minutes after that once he got his gown on. Once I was in there they wasted no time. The anesthesiologist was there and quickly drugged me up a ton. Another doctor joined and I was opened just like that. At this point I could hardly keep my eyes open, I had been awake for over 24 hrs and been pushing for 3 and a half hours. They were both in me up to over their elbows (which I still can't believe) and were searching for her. They couldn't find her apparently cuz she was so far down in the birth canal. Once they found her it took a while to get her out cuz she was stuck pretty good. As Wes accounts all my insides were outside of me and he saw my whole abdominal cavity. I told him he needs to record the next one so I can see! But once they un-wedged her they pulled her out and there was our baby girl!! 

 Jazlyn Amy Haskell

5lbs 14 oz 19 in

Born at 1:41pm

But they took no time wisking her away, Wes followed, and worked on getting her to cry. For some reason it took her a while to start crying which really worried me. And made me even more nervous that I couldn't see her or know what was going on. But a couple minutes later we heard that beautiful voice! But it was so soft and short, she didn't really end up doing her first loud cry til that night. While Wes was with Jazlyn I was still on the table listening to the two doctors talk about snowboarding and such haha. But they had me sewn up about a half hour later and had my placenta sent to the lab. Wes was able to bring our baby girl over to me for me to see her and for our faces to touch. 

To see the tears in Wes' eyes and to have my babies face touch mine was the best moment of my life. It is such an incredible feeling that I cannot describe. It's a love that you cannot describe. But that moment was short lived when they had to take her away to bathe her and had to get me to recovery. Shortly after I was back in the room where Wes and our families were waiting for us and had more meds put in me I was able to hold this angel in my arms. But that was also short lived cuz I was so shaky that I didn't feel safe holding her. But it was amazing to watch Wes and everyone else hold her and gaze into her eyes. I couldn't believe that not even an hour earlier she was in my belly and now she was here and ours! That whole day was so surreal and incredible. 

For Time and All Eternity

It's finally happened. I am engaged to my best friend and love of my life! Wes and I will be sealed for time and all eternity on December 14th. Crazy huh! Crazy to think that in just a couple short months we will be married and be spending the rest of our lives together. I couldn't be happier! He makes me the happiest girl. He really, as clique as this sounds, is my prince charming. He makes me want to be a better person each and every day. He has blessed my life so much and I can't believe that I get to keep him! I am one lucky girl. 

Now enough about the mushy stuff...I know you all are really just wanting to hear how he did it! As some might know I am a very nosey person...especially when it comes to him. And, well, he did a really good job at surprising me.I didn't even suspect anything that night! So he showed up that night and I had surprised him by making dinner (which I normally don't do) and I had dressed up all cute and did my hair (which I normally don't do since I have to have my hair up for work) and I guess when he walked in the door he thought I was on to him and knew what was going to happen....which I didn't! But he didn't say anything, he was just nervous that I might know. Anywho we then went to dairy queen with 2 other couples for a quick little ice cream/diet coke:) Then the boys told us that they had rented a U-Haul for that night and we were going to watch a movie in the back of it up in the canyon. I've never been in the back of a U-Haul for a date, but there's a first time for everything! So we hopped in the back, which they had put couches and rugs in it to look nice, and drove to our destination. We then parked and watched Taken. Which if you don't know about is about the kidnapping of a teenage girl. So needless to say I was pretty stressed the whole movie. At the end of the movie the 2 other couples jumped out and closed the back of the U-Haul. They then started driving away! We drove for about 10-15 minutes, with me scared the whole way. (Perfect way to keep me distracted I guess haha). Towards the end of the drive we suddenly felt that we were going backwards and scraping against some trees, which really scared me. Then the back opened up and I realized where we were at. We were at the place where Wes had first kissed me and there was a table all set up with a rose and a video that he had made. The four others had taken off by this part in some get-away car. I then knew what was going on :) Wes got down on one knee and I sat on it to watch the video, which sadly died in the middle of it! So then he stood me up and did his little speech, which was the greatest thing i've ever heard, and I guess I didn't even let him ask me before I starting saying yes! So then he got back down on one knee and asked me if I would marry him. Then he placed the ring on the wrong finger, which neither of us really noticed in the moment! But we got it on the right finger immediately after:) I can't describe how happy and excited I was in that moment. It was one of the most emotional moments of my life that I will remember forever. And to top it all off I got to drive the U-Haul home. What a perfect night! The only day that could beat this one is the day when I get to kneel across the alter from my best friend and we make those covenants to one another. I cannot wait for that day! And to become Mr. and Mrs. Haskell. A team forever. Wow that gives me goose bumps.

 I love my life!

And my handsome fiance!

12/14/12

"God has been nothing but good to me."

Where do I begin? There has been so much that has gone on in the past 2 months! And i'm sorry that I haven't been better at blogging. I've been nagged and nagged about writing a new post, but life has been so crazy that I haven't really had time. But no time like the present now, eh? :)

Just an update on the Broadhead life so far Brittney graduated from BYU a few weeks ago in dietetics and was able to celebrate it with most of the Broadhead clan!

 I also graduated from the Center for the Advancement of Leadership with Distinction. And was lucky to have my mom there to see it!

Life is so full of surprises. And it's when I don't expect it, that something appears, or reappears, into my life. But what I have realized lately is that I wasn't ready for these 'blessings' when I thought I wanted them. And that's why the Lord is so amazing. He knows exactly when we need something and the right timing of everything. A few weeks ago I had something happen that changed my life. I thought I had lost something forever and had to mentally prepare myself to kinda change my life and my outlook. It was one of the most mind-blowing, mind-opening experiences I have ever gone through. It really made me put into perspective what was really important to me and what I wanted out of my life now. And as painful and hard as it was, it made me make some crucial decisions in my life. And for one it helped me decide my career path among some other things, which is something I have been struggling to decide. And through this time I have had many opportunities open up. Which I could not be more thankful for. Life may not turn out the way you planned it to, but the Lord has a way of making it turn out better than we ever could have planned. 

I came across this video a few days ago and it really made me think. What would happen if the person you were in love with suddenly had an accident. Would you still love them the same? What would you do? Would you still do anything for them? Would you still want the same life with them? Then after thinking about that it got me thinking about marriage and what it really means to me and to our Heavenly Father. Marriage is so sacred and so precious. It is so hard, but is so worth it and will bless us immensely. And this video taught me the importance of communication in a marriage and most of all, love. Love for your spouse no matter what the circumstance. Whatever happens, whatever is going on, love your spouse. Love them for who they are and what they believe. 

Come What May and LOVE It

Life is so full of surprises. In fact, life is so FULL. I had never really stepped back and realized how much there is in life. You've got school, work, some people have more than one job, internships, friends, boyfriends/girlfriends, religion, extra projects, family...the list goes on and on. Its a miracle how we all seem to fit everything into our already busy lives. And also how we have motivation to do it all. But then when one of these things falls apart our world suddenly feels like it is crashing down. Then we have no motivation to do any of it. One thing. Just one thing can bring us down and feel like we have nothing left. Somehow that just doesn't seem right. Just because something doesn't turn out the way we want it to or we get fired or whatever the case is, that shouldn't have an affect on the rest of our lives. I mean, sure it can have a affect, but we don't have to let it completely turn our life upside down. Sometimes we feel like being a 'frump' in our room and not doing a single thing. But that is exactly when we need to do something. That is when we need to have faith in our future. President Thomas S. Monson once said, "Be of good cheer. The future is as bright as your faith." The future is as bright as WE make it. It's our choice whether we drown in our sorrows or do something about it. It's all on us and how we react to a situation. I know it's easier to say than do, but I have experienced it in my life and have a great testimony that it is true. Everyone has their own trials, whether they be big or small, everyone has them. It's a part of this life that cannot be avoided. But it is in those moments of trials that we find out who we really are, and what we really want. It's in those moments when we have to just love it. No matter how bad it is, we just have to love it. And know that we will become strong because of it. We have to have faith. Without faith we are nothing. Life is nothing. Those who love every moment of life, whether it be good or bad, will become truly great. We have to learn to love every moment, for one reason or another. As Joseph B. Wirthlin said, "Come what may, and love it."

A dear  friend of mine showed me this video when I was going through a hard time. Changed my complete outlook on the trial and my life. 

 

I was having a conversation with a great friend the other day and it really opened my eyes to a lot of things. When we were talking he brought up a very valid point. He said that often when we go through a hard time our focus turns inward. We think, 'What am I going to do? How am I going to handle this?' All of our thoughts are about ourselves. But it is in that moment and time of hardship that our thoughts need to be directed outward. That is when we need to be thinking 'Who needs me right now? Who can I serve today? Who is having a hard time?' It is through serving others that we can get through our trials and have joy. It is when we put others first that we will find true joy. And also when the Lord speaks to us the most, at least in my life. I know my prayers get answered when I am serving others and not thinking about myself. I am so grateful for everything and everyone I have been blessed with in my life. There is no reason to be unhappy. Life is too great. And if we are frumps in our rooms we will never get to experience life's greatest blessings. I don't know about you, but I want to experience EVERY blessing that the Lord has in store for me.