Levi is finally here!!

So I know it has been forever since I have blogged, but cut me a break, I just had a kid! ;) Levi was sooo ready to be here on May 18th. He sent me into labor AGAIN with contractions coming every 2 minutes. They were getting more and more painful so I went to the hospital. They soon told me that they were going to give me pain medication to ease the contraction pain and that I wasn't dilating. I was only 2 1/2 cm and 80% effaced. So, I went home in pain and my doctor told me that if I was still contracting and in pain at 37 weeks, she would induce me. Needless to say, I ended up in labor alllll week long! I called my family and Lolly, Poppy, Aunt Megan and Aunt Brooke were able to get here by Monday. I was induced on Tuesday, May 25th.

The night before I was induced, I enjoyed a pedicure and a yummy dinner at our favorite Mexican restaurant called Pueblo Real. I did not sleep a wink and woke up at 5 am ready to head to the hospital. I was super anxious and nervous about the epidural. I wanted to see what real labor was like and then have the option to get the epidural when I was ready. That morning, my doctor broke my water at 8:30am. I was on a small amount of pitosin to help speed up the process. I was dealing with the pain pretty well and was dilating quickly. Once I was 5 centimeters, I knew I couldn't take it any longer. I asked for the epidural and was feeling pretty good. An hour and a half later, I was pushing!!! The nurse called me "complete" and had me do some practice pushes. They were looking good and the babies head was coming out. The doctor came in after about 15 minutes of pushing. She looked surprised that I was already pushing after only 5 1/2 hours of labor! I did about 3 more rounds of pushing and baby Levi entered the world!



Wow, was he beautiful! Everyone stayed in the room for the delivery and while my dad was video taping, Brandon stayed by my side and enjoyed every moment of his son's birth. He even cut the cord!! They laid him on my chest and I immediately began sobbing uncontrollably because I was so happy and relieved that he was alive and okay. The doctor said that he was ready to be here and that I did a great job. He looked so tiny and so precious! He was looking all around and had blonde curly hair. I could not believe he was mine! Brandon cried and watched the nurses clean him up. He weighed 6 pounds 7 ounces and was 20 inches long. He was born at 2:56pm. It was one of best days of my life and we feel so blessed to have Levi here with us! We cannot wait to watch him grow and pray everyday that he will grow to have a relationship with the Lord. Please be praying for us to have wisdom in raising our first child. It is going to be a fun and rewarding journey. :)

Made it to 35 weeks!

I am sooo thrilled that I have made it to the 35 week mark, as of yesterday! This is a HUGE milestone as it means that I could go into labor and they would not try and stop it. I am also officially off of bed rest! I have started exercising which feels great and have even been able to go to the grocery store. At my 35 week appointment, my doctor said that I am 2 cm dilated and 60% effaced. She said that she thinks I will go on my own before my induction in early June at 39 weeks! I hope that I go into labor by 38 weeks. I'll be updating soon!

32 week mark!

So, it has been a long while since I have blogged. You would think I would have plenty of time to do so since I am on bed rest, right? Well, I have actually been enjoying the art of scrap booking! My sweet mom bought me a lot of scrap book supplies so I am making a book.
I had my 32 week doctor's appointment on Tuesday. I had high hopes that it would go well because I had been taking it easy and had been off of my medication for a whole week! I hadn't been having hardly any contractions so I thought my appointment would be a breeze. However, she decided that she should do another FFN test to double check for preterm labor. My last FFN test was negative! When she checked me, I was dilated 1 cm. and a little bit more than 50% effaced. An hour later, I received the phone call saying that my FFN was positive for preterm labor AGAIN. This meant more relaxing, more bed rest, and less shopping for Levi. I am almost 33 weeks and I hope to deliver at 34 weeks or later! Brandon and I have packed our hospital bags, installed the car seat base, and finished up the nursery.
I guess until Tuesday, I will sit, relax, and enjoy scrap booking! I hope next weeks appointment goes better than this weeks.

Bed Rest Fun

So, as most of you already know, I am on bed rest until the end of my pregnancy! (Or at least until 37 weeks) My sweet mom came to visit me the day after I got out of the hospital and stayed for a week! We were able to discuss a bunch of important stuff and also begin to get things ready for the baby. Speaking of the baby, we have decided on a name! It is going to be Levi William Lozano. We have loved that name ever since we were dating and swore we would use it for our first son!
My mom rented a wheel chair so that she could get me out of the house safely for the next month. I would go crazy inside these small walls of our apartment! The doctor was very encouraging and said that I could get out a couple times a week, but not to walk or move around. AKA: Wheel chair bound or getting dropped off at the curb. Brandon has been a HUGE help as well. He and my mom have been doing all of the cleaning, laundry, cooking, and grocery shopping. Let's just say, being the control freak I am, this is God's way of teaching me a lot of patience and how to give up a lot of my control.
I cannot believe we have made it another week without having this baby boy. It is so exciting to know that God is growing him stronger and healthier every day. He weighs almost 3 pounds and is about 17 inches long now! I am going to the doctor every week and I am able to get updates on how the baby is doing. I am looking forward to having my dad and sister here this week to help arrange furniture in the nursery and also get things ready! Here are some new pics of the baby bump:

At the hospital...

So, most of you know what has been going on but I thought I would inform you of some details. I was having labor contractions, not just braxton hicks, on 3/11 and came in after I fell down my apartment stairs. I was in the hospital over night with medication, but I went back to work the following Monday. Then on Tuesday I felt AWFUL. The baby was putting a lot of pressure on me really low and I started having contractions every 2-3 minutes for 2 hours. I finally fell asleep and woke up feeling great. I went to work and after lunch I had contractions again. Then they came back about an hour later. I had an appointment scheduled for the next day but called and the doctor said to come right in. At this point contractions were hurting pretty badly. They checked me and I was 50% effaced and 1 cm. They did an ultra sound and the baby looked great. They did an FFN to predict preterm labor and it was positive so they sent me to L&D right away. I received every possible medication to make the contractions stop and nothing was working. I was going to have to be transferred to a city hospital in Nashville to deliver where the NICU was really good, but I ended up not making progress with my cervix. Anyways, after grueling medication, lung stabilizing steriod shots for baby, and constant monitoring I am still in the hospital. I will probably leave tonight but will be on bed rest until this baby boy comes. It stinks because I have no idea when he will come and I cannot even prepare because I can't get out of bed. My mom is coming tomorrow to help but I know that God is taking care of our situation. I am only 27 weeks 2 days but he is weighing around 2 1/2 pounds already!!! I am hoping to make it to at least 32 weeks. My shower in Dallas is going to be canceled because I can't travel. :( We will just plan it for after the baby comes!!! If you are reading this, keep praying for us! My doctor says that there is even hope to go full-term if baby cooperates like he is.

Love Love Love

Coming Home Outfit!

So, all of my friends probably know that I am OBSESSED with the traditional baby look! I love when babies are dressed like babies. I can't stand it when people put their little babies in teenage looking clothes. They are only babies for a short time and I want to take advantage of that! So, with that being said, Brandon and I went and purchased baby Lozano's coming home outfit. There were an abundance of choices, but this is what we decided on: Blue Feltman Brothers' bubble outfit, bonnet, white knee socks, and leather lace up shoes. It is hard to believe we will be parents soon!

Reveal Party!!!

IT'S A BOY!!!!!

So, my wonderful family threw us the most amazing "gender reveal" party! The anticipation was so high and we were anxious the entire day. When it finally came time to cut the cake, we were shocked to find out it was a boy!!! We are so happy to have a little Lozano to carry on the name. Here are some cute pics from the party...

Doctor's Appointment!

So, I don't have gestational diabetes! Woo hoo! However, the doctor told me that my iron was a little bit low and that I should take a supplement once a day. I figured this is definitely not the worst that could have been. The baby sounded great and its heart rate was 140 bpm! This is a lot lower than the previous 150's... Baby Boy maybe? I go back to the doctor on March 9th for another ultra sound! I will get to see the baby and all its parts. They are checking on a part of the heart they couldn't see and I will also find out what it is weighing. Speaking of weighing, I have gained 15 pounds total and I am trying to keep the weight gain to 4 pounds per month... I hope I don't cave! Anyways, only 2 more days until we find out the gender and we could not be more excited!!!!! We will keep you updated!
Love Love Love

CONTRACTIONS?!?!?!

Yes... Contractions. Last night I was laying on the couch and began to feel extreme pain and tightening between my hip bones! I could barely stand up and was telling Brandon I didn't know WHAT was going on. I layed down in bed on my back and there was like a hard ball between my hips. (I always thought contractions were up around the belly button) It went away after about 1 minute. But sure enough... an hour later, it happened again! I was beginning to worry. Finally, I fell asleep. I woke up 4 times in the night with these pains. I called my Dr. and she said that after hearing my description it sounded like contractions and baby moving from breech to head down. It has been breech the entire pregnancy. :) She said as long as there was no blood, pain while urinating, or lack of baby movement I should be fine. She was very assuring and said she would look for me if I was worried. I told her I would call on Monday. Preterm labor could be a possibility but if it was, it would be coming more often. SO... all in all I am finally feeling the pain. I can't imagine them being WAY worse than this! AHHHHHHH!!!!

SO Excited!!!

So, after going through about a week of strong nerves and anxiety, I am finally getting super excited! Don't get me wrong, I was excited before, but now I am truly looking forward to EVERYTHING this baby will bring. I keep having these crazy dreams of walking in the park with Brandon and our baby and I think of all the weekends we will get to share together. I can't wait to go on walks together, go to the park, go on family vacations, the whole shabang. I am even excited about the challenges that I know will be here soon. I am so blessed to have such awesome family members who know what they are doing. (And who have let me practice on their sweet children all these years.)
I am starting to train Brandon on how to do "baby" things. We read all about life with a baby and he is so ecstatic and can not wait to be a "hands-on" daddy.
Also, my belly is finally growing! I think strangers can finally tell I am really pregnant and not just fat. At 22 weeks today, I bought my first pair of maternity jeans! They are so awesome and I can't wait to wear them. They are called Maternity LA. I bought them at Pea in a Pod. On a not so cool note, my belly button is beginning to pop out and is getting pretty ugly. haha
Last night, Brandon felt the baby kick so hard that he pulled his hand back and screamed! We were laughing so hard we were crying. That thing sure is kicking ALL the time now.
On Feb. 22nd, we have a doctor's appt. to have the diabetes and glucose testing done. I am totally NOT looking forward to that. Keep us in your prayers please.
All in all, this is just to say how amazingly blessed I feel to be having a baby! I just want to know if it is a BOY or a GIRL!!!!!

LOVE LOVE LOVE

Pregnancy Nerves are Kickin In!

So, after almost 5 months of being pregnant, I am finally starting to get nervous! I have been starting to think a lot about this whole "motherhood" thing! I am so overwhelmed with excitement and joy. However, I am starting to wonder how I will do a lot of things while I am working. I have been reading the book, Baby Wise, which I love! Here are just a FEW of my questions, feel free to comment with advise:
1. How will I continue to breastfeed while working? Is it possible?
2. How much will we be spending on daycare?
3. Will I ever get the opportunity to stay at home with my babies?
4. What is the gender of this baby?
5. What happens if I end up having to have a c-section?
6. Will my family be here long enough to help me become a good/healthy mother?
7. How will Mister adjust to the change?
I am usually not a nervous person, but I must admit, I am starting to freak out a little bit! I know that God is going to provide, and money is not even a concern. He has been faithful in His promises. I am also assured by His love and I know God is going to bless our family in so many ways. The anxiety mostly stems from the overwhelming desire to have many children and to get to spend as much time with them as possible! I am continuing to pray for doors to open for Brandon and his work. I am hoping my full-time job in the future will be to be the best mother possible! Please continue to pray for us during this awesome time.

Attempted Snowman!

So, yesterday we were trapped in the apartment watching the snow fall for hours... After laying around all day, we woke up bright and early this morning with the excitement to build our first snowman! We ventured into our storage closet and found all of our ski gear, which were FREEZING cold. We threw them in the dryer and began collecting items around the house that would soon become our beloved snowman.
We decided on chocolate kisses for the mouth, foil for the nose, an apron, a scarf, and some rocks for the eyes! (We were a little low on snowman items if you couldn't tell.) We got dressed, set up our camera, and ventured out.
On my way down the stairs I realized things didn't quite feel right underneath my feet. I began to feel more and more unsteady as I explored the area we had declared for our snowman. It was complete ICE! We had about 4 inches of snow yesterday, which we believe melted and refroze over night. We were bummed to say the least, but made the most of our time taking funny pictures with our camera.
Here's to our day playing in the ice!

Me peeking behind the tree :)

The view from our parking lot!!

Brandon pretending to "layout"

The big chunk of ice!!

First Lozano Blog!!

Hey everyone!
So my lovely mother gave me the idea to start a blog. Since Brandon and I live so far away from our families, we thought it would be a fun way to stay in touch. Facebook is about to charge monthly fees, so this oughta do it!
I plan on blogging our pregnancy milestones and also after the baby is born. I will upload photos and captions on a weekly basis! I may not be a faithful blogger, but I am going to give it a shot!

Love to All!