A Little-Jenkins

Oh, how time flies...

2009-10-03T15:45:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I know that it has been almost eight months since my last blog and most of you thought that I gave it up. On the contrary, it has been in the back of my mind the whole time but it just hasn't made it to the top of my priority list. Now that things have changed and I have more free time on my hands, (don't get excited, when I say free time, I mean an extra hour here and there...) I can devote some spare time to updating our loved ones more often.
Brad and I are completely different people than how I described in the last blog. Maya was only a couple days old and we were running on pure adrenaline and joy. Oh how naive we were. We had no idea how many petty arguments we would have, how many sleepless nights we would share, how many grudges we would hold against each other, and how many tears I would shed. But, we made it through the rough times stronger than ever, more in love than ever, and happier than ever.

Our happy little family sharing some love.

I am not even going to try to elaborate on everything since Maya's birth, so I decided to post a ton of pictures instead. We have enjoyed Mother's day, Father's day, visits from family, a visit to Pennsylvania, and most importantly, the development of Maya. It is hard to believe that she is almost eight months old! Soon enough we will be celebrating her first birthday and before we know it she will be old enough to talk back. Trust me, we make sure to relish in the now moments because they will end soon enough.
Maya is still trying to learn to crawl. As of now she just lays on her belly and kicks her legs as hard as she can. If she does get anywhere, it is usually backwards. She will get it soon enough. We actually think she may walk before she crawls. She is starting to learn to pull herself up on me when we are playing on the floor and she loves to stand up (with me holding her of course). She is also quite the chatterbox. I was lucky enough to enjoy her first word of mama. Of course, I have been training her with this since she was born. She can say ma-ma, ba-ba, blah blah, ooh, and aah. No da-da yet. I am working on it.

A happy little Maya at 6 months.

As far as Brad and myself we are doing great. I just finished up my schooling and now have a bachelors degree in Organizational Management. I am so proud of this accomplishment since I did it while pregnant, and finished up with a squirmy and moody baby on my lap. I graduated with a 3.49 GPA. To answer the question everyone seems to have, the next step for me is to continue what we are doing. We are priviledged enough that I am able to stay at home with Maya and avoid daycare. We have no regrets with this decision and I thank God everyday for allowing me to do so. Once Maya goes to school, I plan on entering the education field so that I can work the same general hours she will be in school.
I am also looking to join some local mommy-and-me groups to allow Maya to socialize and also allow mommy to do the same.
Brad is doing great at Colonial Country Club. He is doing so well, that there is a strong possibility that he will be transferred to his company's biggest country club they manage. Venus and Serena Williams are members. We are very excited and if all goes well, we will move in a year. Maya and I are very proud of him.
We are also celebrating our 1 year anniversary. If all goes well, my dad and Linda will be coming to stay with Maya while Brad and I go to Disneyworld together. Although I will be a nervous wreck and miss Maya severely, it will be nice to get to know my husband again (and get my first break away from baby duty in 8 months).
That is our life in a nutshell. Just happy and thankful. We hope you enjoy the pictures. I put some pics in from her newborn days to show just how much she has grown. Notice how much hair she had in the beginning and how little she has now...
I also put recent pictures of her grandparents. Maya's grandma Linda is missing. She was unable to make the trip down, but she gets to see Maya next week! I will make sure to have pictures of the two of them next update!
We love you all and wish you the very best in your lives. Until next time, adios!

Our little hula baby at 6 months.

Maya's first day home and only 2 days old.

Maya swimming in her clothing at 2 weeks old.

Pretty in pink at 1 month old.

Deep in thought at 2 months old.

All smiles at 3 months old.

Happy times at 6 months old.

Bath time with daddy at 6 months old.

Hugs to grandpa Ralph, 6 months.

Maya with Tutu Pattie, 6 months.

Smiles with Grandpa Dennis, 6 months.

Smiles with Grandma Sandi, 6 months.

Relaxing with Grandpa Zack, 6 months.

Family fun at the Tampa aquarium, 5 months.

Fun with stickers, 7 months.

First time in a high chair, 7 months.

Introducing....Maya Jamie Jenkins!

2009-02-25T08:58:00.000-08:00

Greetings family and friends! As I am sure all of you know, the moment we have all been waiting for finally happened and Brad and I are now officially the happiest couple on earth. As you can imagine, I am pretty exhausted so this will be little talk, lots of photos.
As some of you know, I was scheduled to be induced Monday the 23rd since I had been 4 centimeters dialated with no labor in sight. Maya had plans of her own. On Wednesday night Brad and I went to a breastfeeding class hosted by Babys R Us and dinner. We made it home in time to catch Top Chef and as they were sending the losing chef packing, my water broke. I always pictured the TV births with a gush of water so I thought maybe I had an accident, but later realized it was the real deal. Brad had fallen asleep so I gently said, "Brad, I think my water broke." The only response I got was louder snoring. After repeating myself 3 more times with no response, I finally screamed at the top of my lungs, "My water broke and the baby is coming!!!" I have never seen a person jump up so fast in my life.
We arrive at the hospital around 1am and after confirming that it was indeed my water that broke, we were admitted. After 6 hours of just tiny contractions and no sign of them getting worse, I was put on pitocin (a medication that causes contractions) to speed things up a bit.

Still chipper since the contractions hadn't intensified yet.

I'm starting to feel something now...

Daddy getting rested before showtime.

Our last photo as a childless couple taken in between contractions.

THiI I'm smiling because the contraction finally ended...for now.

The pitocin finally kicked in full force around 6:30 pm. I had fully prepared myself for the pain and agony I was going to be facing and still decided to attempt an all natural birth. By 6:45 I decided to not get an epidural, but try the painkillers they offer. All this did was make me loopy and super high inbetween contractions. They did nothing to help me during them. By 7:30pm I was begging for an epidural. I am telling you, any of you moms out there that did it all natural, my hat goes off to you. You are truly a tough woman. That was the worst pain I had ever felt in my life and can say pushing was easier than the contractions.

Once the epidural kicked in, Brad and I took a nice nap. I was awakened at 9:10pm by the nurse to tell me I was 10 centimeters dialated and it was about time to push. I had no idea since I was numb from the waist down. By the time I was close to crowning, the epidural had COMPLETELY worn off and I was in agony again. My push time was 2 hours and 30 minutes. During this time I managed to yell at the doctors repeatedly for both physically hurting me and lying to me by saying "one more push." In the end after 23 hours of labor, Maya made her apperance into the world kicking and screaming. Brad says she came out with her eyes wide open and alert. She immediatley turned pink, which the doctor says is unusual.

Maya only 2 minutes old, getting weighed.

The happy and exhausted family.

Maya Jamie Jenkins made came into the world on February 19, 2009 at 11:52pm. She weighed 7lb 1 ounce and was 20.5 inches long. She has an amazing set of lungs on her and used them until she was in mommy's arms. Brad was an amazing husband and father throughout the entire process. He kept his cool and was a great support system. He watched the entire delivery while holding my right leg and cut the cord afterwards. Brad says he became the man he's supposed to be at that moment.

We had to stay in the hospital for 48 hours after the delivery and we were grateful for it. We had 3 meals a day, including a filet and lobster dinner provided to congratulate us. We also had nurses 24/7 to help us with any questions and the ever so tricky breastfeeding. Trust me, it is not as easy as it looks.

Daddy and Maya getting to know eachother.

A cranky Maya waiting to be fed.

Our friend Kirby visiting our new addition.

A happy Maya finally at home.

Relaxing before her appt for a blood test.

She definately has a lot of my mothers Asian features in her.

Sadie protecting her new master.

After we were discharged we had an appt to bring Maya back for a blood test to see her bilirubin level. This is a test to see if she is jaundiced. An hour after we got home from the test, we recieved a phone call saying her levels were high and we needed to admit her immediatly. Maya was in the hospital for 2 nights and 3 days for treatment of jaundice and dehydration. I was lucky enough to be able to stay with her the entire time and Brad was a trooper by traveling back and forth to tend to Sadie, work, and stay the nights with us. Her levels are finally back to normal and we were discharged yesterday late afternoon.

Brad had a smile a mile long once we were leaving the hospital and it hasn't left his face yet.

Maya in her little tanning bed.

Her treatment set up. We could only hold her to feed her. It was torture.

After they finally turned the lights off.

A elated daddy ready to take his daughter home for good!

So now, here we are, finally at home with our daughter, trying to find some normalcy. Thanks to adrenaline I am moving along fine with only about 8 hours sleep since last Thursday. All I have to do is look at her beautiful face, and we keep on moving. Thanks so much for all the prayers and kind thoughts we received from friends and family. It is so nice to know that Maya is surrounded by so much love. Here are a few more pictures of our little bug. Bare with me if it takes awhile to respond to calls and emails, since you can see I have my princess to watch over. Speaking of, I better go, it's lunch time for Maya. We love you all!

Ready to be dressed for the day.

We just love her big eyes. We aren't sure what color they are yet.

Swaddled and ready for anything. She has a Vikings blanket too!

I'm hungry again!

Relaxing in her boppy.

And now we wait...

2009-02-15T12:26:00.000-08:00

Greetings friends and family! I hope this finds you all well. This will be our final post as a childless couple so bear with me if it takes awhile to get the next one out. I have a feeling I will be lucky to have the energy to even check my email. Life has treated us well this past year and this past month is no different. Brad was taking every Sunday off for awhile which allowed him to practice his golf swing by "stealing" golf here at the house. What I mean is, Brad waits until the sun is about to set and the golfers are done and he heads out to the course to sneak in a few holes on foot. I am his accomplice since he helped me inprove my putting average on a couple of these outings. Plus Sadie loves chasing after Brad's golf balls when he practices his drive. It's a win-win situation!

Me at 37 weeks.

With the baby clock winding down we have been on a mad run to finish our mile long "To Do Before Maya" list. Since Brad is going back to work basically immediatly after Maya's birth, it is vital we accomplish the list sooner than later. Yet, as you go down your list and start to mark things off, they only remind you of other things you need to get done and the list just continues to grow. Even though we had a ton of household chores, school projects, and personal duties to accomplish, our main goal was the nursery and we are proud to say it is finally done! Here are a few pictures of Maya's future hideout.

Gifts of love. The blanket on the left was made by Great-grandma Martha as well as the pink pillow. The blanket on the right was made by grandma Sandi. We know Maya will love them as much as Brad and I do.

Beautiful curtains made by grandma Linda. They are my favorite part of the room.

Maya's crib. I especially love her name on the wall and her awesome safari mobile. Thanks Melissa and Pete!

Sadie in her favorite spot of the nursery. Hopefully she will play the role of protector!

Some cute girlie stickers I put up and a shelf of cute knick knacks from Grandma Sandi. My rocker is usually here, but its temporarily in our room until Maya officially moves into the nursery.

Changing table, loaded supply basket, and diaper genie ready to go!

Maya's entertainment center filled with toys and books. Thanks Grandma Sandi, for giving us everything to fill it up with.

During my time of "nesting" in Maya's preperation I have also been busting my hump with school. My hard work paid off and I made the 2008 Dean's List! That had been my goal all along and I am elated to say I did it. Now if I can do it again with a baby on my hip I will really have a reason to be proud! Since my current class ends on the same day as my original due date I had to work extra hard to ensure all of my assignments were done early just in case. Luckily I have a great professor who was willing to work with me and I am now officially done with school for the time being.

Since our last post I have been going to my midwife on a weekly basis. Four weeks ago they discovered that I was already 3 centimeters dialated and Maya was on her way into the birth canal. Panic immediatly set in as all I could think about was our "To Do List". Pictures of the car seat still sitting in the garage, baby clothes still unwashed, and an unpacked hospital bag on our bedroom floor sent shivers up my spine. I immediatly got to work and was almost ready by the next week. At this point I was now 4 centimeters dialated and 80% effaced. Maya was also farther down the birth canal. (yet I already knew this since I now walk like there is a stick or foreign object lodged in unmentionable spots) It has now been three weeks and I am still at 4 centimeters. I cannot describe how uncomfortable it is to walk and function at this state, but I am hanging in there. I have had a couple breakdowns since then out of pure frustration and I swear she is never coming out. Brad has been simply amazing in this time and I know I could never do this without him. He comes home from his 14 hours shifts and will fix me dinner, make sure I have a drink, and always leaps out of his chair to help me up from the couch. Maya and I are two lucky ladies.

Well, last week at my appointment my midwife told me that if I do not deliver this week she will schedule me for an induction. That was music to my ears. So now that there is a light at the end of the tunnel, life has been a little brighter. We are hoping for Wednesday at the latest, but we know it is for sure next week. I won't be overdue by next week, but she explained that she couldn't in good conscience let me walk around this way for another week. Thank God for her! So now we sit on all day alert awaiting her arrival. If she is anything like her mommy and daddy, she is stubborn and will not come out until she is drugged.

Brad and I want to thank all of our family and close friends who have kept contact to check in on us and sent our Maya all the gifts she will grow to enjoy. We couldn't have done this without you and we love you all! Next post will be filled with pictures of our little princess, so stay tuned!

A girl or not a girl: That is the question...

2009-01-08T11:37:00.000-08:00

It's only been two weeks since our last blog entry, yet this is probably going to be the most informative one since we announced our pregnancy and engagement. I know you are all sitting at the edge of your seats, biting away at your fingernails with anticipation, so I better get started! :)
First I want to start by saying that Brad and I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season filled with love, family, and laughter. We love you all and wish you all the best not only this time of year, but all year long. Our Christmas was a wonderful one. It was Brad's first day off since we returned from his brother's wedding so it was highly anticipated. The weather was warm in the low 80's and a tinge of humidity. Not exactly what you expect during late December, but we had a great day anyway. We woke up at our leisure, (I'm sure this is our last Christmas with that luxury) and got a pot of coffee started, the Christmas tune's playing, and the tree lights glowing.

Brad decided to take advantage of the golf course being closed to the public for the holiday and he played a free round of golf. He came back energized, sweaty, and in the best mood I have seen him in awhile.

With the baby quickly arriving, we decided to be sparing on gifts to each other so we ended up splurging on our fur covered baby, Sadie. Although Sadie got a lot of gifts, Brad and I got the better end of the deal. Brad got me the beautiful rocking chair and ottoman I had registered for and Brad got a BluRay player and "The Dark Knight" on bluray. We were both happy campers. Here are a few pictures of our Christmas. Brad might be a little sore at me for posting all these pics minus his shirt, but I warned him.

Santa's little helper. Yes, she was miserable so I took it right off after pictures.

Brad enjoying his annual tin of Christmas popcorn.

Sadie posing in front of the tree.

Brad checking out his new BluRay player.

Brad getting excited to see his stocking filled with Monster energy drinks.

My stash from my stocking. Brad is the best stocking stuffer!!

Sadie opening one of her gifts. It's her favorite part.

She can't decide what to play with first! Please excuse my bedhead hair. :(

After gifts, golf, coffee, family phone calls, and relaxing, we started on dinner. When I say "we" started on dinner, I actually mean I sat at the kitchen bar and watched Brad cook an amazing meal. How lucky am I? Back off ladies, he is all mine! Since we did the traditional dinner for Thanksgiving we decided to go with a different menu. Brad prepared a beautiful surf and turf consisting of 10oz. filet Mignon and hog snapper baked to perfection. He paired them with Gorgonzola mashed potatoes, broccoli and asparagus. It was fantastic!

Our yummy dinner prepared by Chef Brad.

Yummy!

I can't tell if I'm this big because of dinner or the bambino!

We ended the night watching Brad's new movie and passing out with grins on our faces. The next day, I anxiously awaited my dad's arrival. My dad and his wife Linda were scheduled to arrive the next day around 6 or 7pm. It wasn't until almost 9:30pm that they arrived. It turns out they missed a turn and almost ended up in Miami!! (sorry daddy, I had to throw it in here, but I love you!) No matter what time it was, I was elated to have them here. Brad came home shortly after and we all sat down for dinner and catchup chat. Unfortunately, even though I brought my camera with me the next day, I hardly took any pictures to document their visit. :(

The next day we had breakfast on our patio and watched the golfers play through as we planned our day.

We spent the afternoon shopping and checking out the HUGE Bass Pro Shop we have here. We then had lunch at Brad's country club, made a stop at Baby's R Us and headed home. Brad got off early that day to have dinner with us so we went to our favorite Chinese restaurant, P.F. Chang's and enjoyed our last night together.

My dad and his wife Linda at dinner.

The four of us sharing the best dessert ever! And yes, we are sitting outside in December.

Early the next morning they packed the car and left for their 10 hour drive back home. You know my daddy loves me to travel 23 hours in the car for a 24 hour visit. Even though it was such a short visit, I am so glad to have seen him. It was probably my hormones, but I spent most of that day crying my eyes out after they left. Brad thinks I am insane. :)

Now things are back to normal and we are patiently awaiting the arrival of our little one. Is it a boy or a girl? Dylan or Maya? The answer is..... hold on, Brad and I have one thing to announce and then we will announce the verdict. Sorry, but I have to make sure you people are actually reading these things from beginning to end.

There are numerous reasons for Brad and I keeping this information from you, but we decided it was time to get it out. Brad and I are married. We "eloped" in Las Vegas October 11, 2008 on our road trip to Florida. Aaaaah, that feels so good to get out! The main reason we kept it from everyone was that we did it for financial reasons. Although we were engaged long before this, we did it the way we did because we lost all of our insurance we had for the baby's birth. In Oregon we qualified for the state to cover all of our medical costs. We were declined in Florida. The only way Brad's company would cover us was if we got married, so that is what we did. I want to make this clear in case some loved ones are under the impression that we did this because we felt our child would be "happier" if we were married when he/she was born. That is NOT the case. We had no choice.

Another reason we didn't want to disclose our decision was the timing of it. Brad's brother was getting married in two months after we did and we did not want to take away from their upcoming plans. We also didn't really take our ceremony seriously. We knew our reasoning for doing it and that was it. I will not be taking his last name until we have a ceremony and nor will we exchange rings until then either. I haven't even ordered a legal copy of our marriage certificate and do not plan to until we do it our way. Ok, so that is that. And no, we are not letting our parents find out by reading a blog. We made sure to tell them first.

On to baby news!! Brad and I had our latest ultrasound on Tuesday. I have to say this visit was much better than the first two. The ultrasound technician was super friendly and explained everything to us in a nice way and answered all of our questions without making us feel stupid.

I have to say that these ultrasounds are amazing. We didn't do the 3-D ultrasound, yet we could still see so much detail. The first thing she told us was...yes, we are having a girl! We are certain of this too. She showed us some specific pictures to assure us. She has a head FULL of my curly hair, big eyes with Brad's long eyelashes, my lips, and a slim torso and long lean legs. I am hoping she is blessed with Brad's body shape since when I was young I was long and skinny. Now I am long and not so skinny, yet Brad still has this amazing athletic build. Brad has the ultrasound pictures in the car so I will have to post them on our next blog. I know I am being biased, but she is the most beautiful little girl I have ever laid my eyes on. Oh, and her name is Maya Jamie Jenkins. A lot of people have asked where we came up with this so here goes. Maya is the only girl name that we both loved and I thought of it as I was reading a Maya Angelou book that Odessa had sent me. (thanks Dess!) Jamie was the name that my mother wanted me to have as a middle name. She learned to speak English watching the "Million dollar man and the bionic woman". Her favorite character was Jamie Summers. My parents couldn't afford the fee to have Jamie added to my birth certificate so I am legally just Suki Little. So I am legally giving the name to our daughter for my mom. There you have it, Maya Jamie Jenkins.

Well, once we came back from the doctors we decided it was high time to put the furniture in the nursery. The room is not done yet, not even close, but at least it's put together. Last night after all the furniture was put in place we turned on some music, lit up the Twilight Turtle that Colleen and Matt sent Maya, turned off the lights and sat in the nursery and talked about Maya's future for about 2 hours. Such a great night! In case you are wondering, a twilight turtle is a stuffed turtle with lights and colors on the shell that light up and illuminate the ceiling. They are stars that form 8 different constellations in three different colors. An amazing gift! Thanks Colleen! Here are a few before and after pictures.

The room empty. There was a desk and office chair here.

A shot of the middle of the room.

We don't have a bedding set yet so don't be alarmed by the lack of a bumper on the crib.

My new rocker and mini ottoman! Don't worry, these curtains are not staying. Linda, my dad's wife who is an alterator, is making us curtains for the nursery! Thanks Linda!

Closeup of the crib with the blanket and monkey Grandma Sandi got Maya.

The changing table and rocker. We are installing shelving over the table for storage.

Well, that is all the news we have for now. We love all of you and are so happy to share the news of our lives with each of you. I will probably be doing only one more post before Maya's arrival. We are due in 7 weeks and I have an immense amount of school work to do before she gets here. Thanks again for all of the love most of you have sent our way as well as the gifts. They are greatly appreciated. Until next time, take care!

Escape to Arizona...

2008-12-23T12:45:00.000-08:00

Welcome back family and friends, to the exciting life of Brad and Suki! Ok, so it really isn't all that exciting, but to us it is. :) First I have to start by saying, "Thank goodness our country pulled together to elect Barack Obama as our next president, and we are not doomed to another four years of Bushisms." I had a strong feeling he would win, but worried that it would be really close. After seeing him win by a landslide, it's good to see that the majority of the country agrees that it is definitely time for change and Brad and I are excited to see the good that will hopefully come in the next four years. Ok, enough of that, on to the family scoop. By the way, this is a REALLY long one.
So in our last post I stated that I was going to go and register for baby items. Let me start by saying, "ladies, it's not as fun as it sounds." First off, our baby's-r-us is the size of a super walmart. You start off all excited with your little pre-made list and your scanner gun ready to shoot till your hand falls off. Then as you go down each isle and you start to realize exactly how much crap babies need, the smile on my face changed into a look of terror. Not only do you have to make sure you don't leave anything out, but there are at least 5 different varieties of each item to choose from. Being a first time mommy, the pressure to make sure you pick the right one is enough to make your head burst. Four hours later I left the store with a sore back, a huge set of cankles, a major migraine, and a really bad attitude. I'm just glad that I don't have to do that ever again. The best advice I can give is to go all neutral so no matter what the sex is of the second baby, they can share everything. I know a lot of people have said they don't have a baby's-r-us in their area, but if you go to baby's-r-us.com and go to registry you can do it online. It is under Suki Little as the main registrar, and Brad Jenkins is listed as the co-registrar. Our address is 9062 Leatherwood Loop Lehigh Acres, FL 33936 and you can use our address to find our registry also.
After that was done, finding a new midwife was next on the agenda. I went with a woman that some nurses I spoke with recommended. So I go to my first appointment excited to meet the woman who is going to deliver our baby. As I wait in the tiny, packed waiting room 20 minutes after my scheduled appointment time, I finally get called to be weighed by a woman who forgot how to smile and be pleasant. Once I meet Teresa, our midwife, I change my negative attitude and decide to give the place a chance. She was really nice and welcoming and seemed very excited to meet me. Since I am in my third trimester, (I'm due in 9 weeks!!!) I have to see her every 2 weeks. Yesterday was my latest appointment and I went in early with all my paperwork ready to ensure a quick process. My appointment was at 10:30am and I get called in at 10 till 11. All the other women in the waiting room were scheduled at 11 or later. As I sit in the exam room waiting for Teresa, I hear her conducting appointments in the neighboring rooms. (the walls there are paper thin) She is taking care of her 11:00 and later appointments while I sit waiting! At 11:25 she finally comes in the room as if all was right in the world. Being VERY pregnant and irritable, I ask, "did you forget I was here?" She gave me a string of excuses, but no apologies. So now I am stuck with a midwife that makes me feel like a number instead of a person. I miss my ladies in Oregon more than you can imagine. Lisa, I miss you!!! The good news is, the baby is almost completely upside down in the birth canal. She/he is currently diagonal. I say it's good news because that means it won't be a breach birth, but at the same time, I could deliver a lot earlier than the 27th of February. It definitely seems like he/she is trying to kick his/her way out the majority of the day. Speaking of he/she, we have an ultrasound scheduled for January 6th so finally we will know for sure what we are having! I've been referring to her as Maya for the longest time, so I hope if it is a boy, I pray I haven't caused any psychological trauma. :)
Some other great news is that Brad's little brother Matt recently got married to his long time girlfriend Marisela! We were very excited to be able to fly out and share in the celebration! On the night we arrived Brad went to Matt's bachelor party and I met with my two dear friends Kim and Marie for dinner. It was so nice to see them again but sad to know that I probably won't see them again for a long while. I miss you girls!

Me, Kim and Marie at Chevy's Mexican restaurant.

The wedding was at a place called the Boojum Tree and it was absolutely beautiful. It was like a huge garden full of trees, plants, and fountains with fish. There were cobblestone paths and a nice banquet area full of white Christmas lights and a fountain. It was the perfect place to start a life together. Brad was best man and very proud to watch his little brother and best friend make such a wonderful change in his life. Here are just a few of the pictures we took at the wedding.

Brad and I before the wedding. This is also me at 29 weeks.

Brad with his brother Matt and their dad Ralph. What handsome Jenkins men!

The beautiful bride and groom, Mari and Matt. Congratulations!

Me, Brad, and Brad's cousin Casey. Casey is like 10 years younger than Brad and towers over him.

Matt and his proud momma Sandi.

Brad and I with his mom Sandi and his Aunt Barb.

Brad with Aunt Barb, mom Sandi, Matt, Mari, Pattie, and Ralph.

The day after the wedding we had to fly back to Florida so Brad could get back to work. Sandi, Brad's mom, flew to Florida to fly with us and spend some time with us before heading back to Pennsylvania. Unfortunately Brad had to work her entire visit, but Sandi and I had a good time together shopping, chatting, bonding, and eating. We missed Dennis on this trip but are happy to know we will see them both soon after our little one arrives.

Well, that is our past 2 months summed up. Busy. Even though we enjoyed seeing everyone and celebrating life, we are happy to be back home and back to normal.

Brad and Sadie relaxing together.

Our next blog will be posted soon after our doctor appointment on the 6th. Then I will catch you all up on my dad's long awaited visit and Christmas! We love you all and wish you a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Back by popular demand...

2008-10-29T14:41:00.000-07:00

Ok, ok, I know that I promised to update our blog page once a month and that turned into 3 months. Cut me a little slack, I am carrying a human being inside of me. (by the way, I'm gonna ride the pregnancy train for as long as possible folks so get used to it) After a large amount of emails, phone calls, and text messages demanding that I get off of my enlarged duff and add another post, here we go. I would change into something comfortable, turn off the phone, and use the bathroom, because this is gonna be a long one.

After my last and only blog, I decided that I was bored not working even though being a full time student and partner to Brad is a full time job in itself. So I decided to start an inhome daycare service. This way I could work from home, be my own boss, and would be able to continue work right after the baby was born. My only "clients" were 8 year old twins named Sydney and Ethan. They were great kids who had a blast with me and loved Brad. Especially when he put his culinary magic to use and cut their apples into bird shapes. The twins mother began spreading the word about me and I eventually had a few interviews lined up and was turning mothers away. Then we got the call from Troon corporate, (Brad's company) saying they had an amazing opportunity for him to be the Executive Chef at Colonial Country Club in Fort Myers Florida. With the little one's due date getting closer and closer, there is no way we could say no to more money so he accepted the position. Breaking it to "my" kids was the hardest part. They begged and pleaded for us to stay, even offering to find Brad a job in Florence and were both willing to pay him $100 a month if we would stay. As tempting as that offer may sound, I had to say my goodbyes.

So we packed up the tiny Mazda3 with Sadie and our suitcases and made the 6 day trek across the country to Florida. We got to visit our dear friend Thea (old coworker from Alaska) in Las Vegas and spend the afternoon with Matt (Brad's brother), Marisela (Matt's fiance), Casey (Brad's cousin), and Shawn (Casey's friend) in Flagstaff.

Before I get to far ahead of myself, before leaving Florence Oregon, Brad suggested that we see one last sunset at the beach. So we loaded Sadie and her frisbee and took the 5 minute drive to the ocean. As I am laughing at Sadie chasing the waves I turn around to see written in the sand, "Will you mary me? Circle Y or N" (Yes, he mispelled marry, which makes it even cuter) I laughed and wrote in "maybe". When I turned around, there was my soulmate on his knee with an engagement ring, asking me to be his wife. I'm still thinking about it, but figured I can't let the ring go to waste in the meantime. Just kidding, I screamed yes immediately and we have been on cloud nine eversince.

Ok, so back to the present. We arrive in Florida on a Thursday, with just enough time for us to get Brad a cell phone, some sneakers, and dinner. Then the very next day he was off to work, leaving me to find us a place to call home by the next Thursday, which was the day before the movers were expected to arrive with our furniture. After a couple tear filled eruptions and a few verbal disagreements, we finally found the perfect place for us to hang our hats. We found the place the night before the movers were to arrive, so we made it just at the buzzer. As we checked out of our hotel, the staff told us they would miss us and to take care. (we lived there for a week)

So here we are, newly engaged in a brand new place waiting for our little one to arrive. For those of you that don't know, we did have a final ultrasound before leaving our fantastic midwives in Oregon. Since at the time of the ultrasound I was only 19 weeks and 4 days, they can't be 100% sure as to what the sex is, but she was pretty sure it is a girl. I guess there is a slight chance that his testicles hadn't dropped yet. So it's either a girl, or a boy with a really small package. Let's hope for a girl. I've had a strong feeling all along that it is a girl, and I finally had a dream that she was, so I'm sticking to that.

The right top pic is baby's foot. Looks like she will have big feet like mommy and daddy.

This pic is her hand. Brad had long fingers as a baby so she gets them from him. Maybe a career in the WNBA?

At this point in my pregancy, she is an extremely active child that kicks all day and night. I can finally see movement through my belly and it is very similar to the alien movies. I felt so guilty getting to feel her move all day and Brad only got to hear about it. Until finally last week, Brad got the priveledge to feel his daughter move. Afterwards I said, "Brad, you just felt your daughter move to the sound of your voice." It brought tears to our eyes.

I am only 1 week and 3 days away from my third trimester and I am already feeling my bad symptoms return. I find myself sleeping most of the day and having quite a few dizzy spells and mood swings. I'm not looking forward to being miserable the rest of my pregnancy days, but whatever it takes to bring our little girl into the world, I can handle it.
Well, that is about it for now. I promise to be much better with these blogs. I am going to a new doctor in about 2 more weeks and should have new ultrasound pictures soon after.
Here is our new address and phone numbers.
9062 Leatherwood Loop
Lehigh Acres, FL 33936
(239)368-1450 house or
(541)999-9197 Suki's cell or
(239)292-0514 Brad's cell
I am registering at baby's r us tomorrow but will not be having a baby shower. Kinda hard to throw a baby shower when you know zero people. :( Fortunately all 3 sets of parents intend on visiting us when the baby is born, so I will have lots of love surrounding us in February!
Ok, so here are a few pics. Sorry there aren't more, but we are working on it! Love you all and cannot wait to see most of you soon.

Our bedroom. Saving the wall space for future pics of our daughter.

Front of the house. Never seen the seperate garages before, but both are ours.

Living room. Trying to get used to tile. Sadie seems to like peeing on it.

Suki at 23 weeks. Sandi, recognize the shirt? :)

Fortunately the cankles I acquired on the road trip have left.

10 weeks down, 30 weeks to go...

2008-07-25T15:48:00.000-07:00

Ok, so this is my first one so bare with me. So as most of you know, on July 7th we got the news that we were both about to enter into the depths of parenthood. After lots of hugs, kisses, and tears we have finally settled into the fact that we won't be the "fly by the seat of our pants kinda couple" again until we are 50! Small price to pay to have the honor of creating an amazing life with your soulmate. Ok, enough mush, on to the baby!
On Monday we had our first official prenatal appointment and we arrived prepared. Two hours later we both left with matching migranes and no recolection of what we had just heard. The only things I remember are, "Eat all the spicy food you want...", "Sorry, no more sushi or medium rare steaks...", and "We will get you an ultrasound to determine a due date." Two out of three ain't bad.
So yesterday was our ultrasound appointment and after sitting in the waiting room with a bunch of 80 and overs who lack the ability to control whether their mouths hang open or not, we were excited to talk babies. The first thing she did was allow us to hear the heartbeat. Even though she only played it for 5 seconds, it was the most beautiful sound we have ever heard. Then we got to see the baby. To most he/she looks like a lima bean, but to us he/she looks like an angel.
Sorry about the picture and a half, I'm still working on my scanning skills. The head is at the bottom and you can faintly see the imbilical cord. Our official due date is now February 21, 2009. Just in time for tax season!! (just kidding... a little)
Our next ultrasound is in my 22nd week and that is to determine the baby's sex. So that is it for now. We will post some belly pics next month since I only have a tiny pooch as of now. Also, thanks so much to Sandie and Dennis for the baby's first gifts! Thanks to you two, we (when I say we, I mean me) have decided to do a turtle theme for the nursery. We love you all and will keep you posted on the next post!
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