December...before Christmas

Nolan started off December weighing 6lbs 10oz and 18 inches long!  He is completely out of preemie clothes and into newborn...getting bigger by the minute! Here is a picture of the first time Jason held Nolan...he had to wait awhile due to a cold he had when Nolan came home but he was so excited!

Here is Nolan and Daddy relaxing together...Nolan loves his daddy time

This is my attempt at a Christmas card shoot...I think went ok...I mean who doesn't love a baby in a stocking!

This next picture cracks me up! Jason, Megan and one of Megan's friends were playing hide and seek inside and this was Jason's hiding spot! It took them for ever to find him...it was so funny to watch them search for him when he was right in the middle of the living room!

These are just a few pics of Nolan that I love! He just gets cuter and cuter! I may be a little biased ;)

At the end of December we had some family pictures taken...Here is Nolan sporting his Santa hat.

Here is one of all 5 of us...I always wanted a big family! lol

This one is a little charmer and will have you wrapped around his little finger...

Miss Megan was horsing around with Jason 2 days before this picture was taken and pretty much bit through her lip but luckily no stitches!  She didn't want to take pictures but I told her they were memories and one day we would be able to laugh about it!

Next is the Christmas post...

November...another long post with lots of pictures

Nolan started November off with a bang by getting moved to big boy open crib! He was weighing in at 4lbs 3.9oz!

These are some of the first pics we have with absolutely nothing on Nolan's face and I love them!

This is the 1st time JD fed Nolan a bottle...he was a little nervous but caught on quickly!  He is such a good daddy!

On November 12th weighing in at 4lbs. 10.3oz Nolan passed his car seat tolerance...the 1st of his two big test he had to pass to come home. 

We decided that we weren't going to tell anyone that he was so close to coming home and if any of you know me you know just how hard that was for me.  On November 16th weighing in at 4lbs 15.2oz, he passed(barely) his sleep study...Here is JD and Nolan the day he went home from the hospital.

This is Nolan and his progress board...We looked at this board every time we entered his room. It told us who his nurse was at that time, if he lost or gained weight and how much, and what his current was.

This Nolan being pushed out of the NICU by three of our favorite day nurses, Norene, Libby, and Didi, we had so many favorite nurses these three just happen to be there the day we left!  They all were rooting for Nolan on each and every milestone he reached...Libby would even sit out side Nolan's room and get on to him if he looked like he was going to set off his alarms...he was a little ornery!

So once we left the parking garage JD saw how much I wanted to call someone and tell them the GREAT news so he told me to call my parents and tell them!  So here are my parents holding Nolan for the 1st time...they were so excited!

Here is one of my Mimis holding Nolan.  The best reaction though goes to my sister Heather...I took a pic of my mom and mimi holding Nolan and sent it to her email(she has an iphone and can't receive picture text) and then I sent her a text telling her to check her email...Within minutes I received a phone call from her screaming at me for not telling her he was home and she was on her way over...I think she made it here in record time! lol

Here is Nolan taking his 1st bath at home.  He loves the water!

All bundled up for our first doctor's visit after leaving the hospital...he didn't seem to mind too much.

Happy 1st Thanksgiving to me!  This outfit was still a little big but oh so cute.

This is Nolan and Hunter.  Nolan is actually 4 days older than Hunter but Hunter was full term...

Here Nolan is all dressed up for his 1st bedlam game...We lost but you can't say we didn't show our support! lol

On to December....these post will eventually get shorter I promise!

October...Warning long post with lots of pics...What can I say it was a LOOOOOOOOONG month!

Well Nolan started the month of October weighing in at 2lbs 6.9oz (he lost to 2lbs 5oz right after birth).  He did really well all things considering.  He was so tiny but the nurses and medical staff at St. John's were amazing.  We loved all our nurses.  They saw this momma melt down a few times but I hung in there pretty well.  Here is a pic of Nolan sporting his 1st OSU hat! It fit him pretty well even as small as he was.

This is Nolan's you wanna fit look...He was one tough cookie through all the poking and prodding they did on him.  He was loved by all his nurses...they called him the easy baby and sometimes the drama king! lol We used to tell him that he only set off his alarms because he missed his nurses.  By October 15th Nolan was really packing on the pounds and weighing in at 3lbs. 1.6oz!

This next picture is one of my very favorites...This is Nolan and Daddy holding hands he was just so tiny.  I want to always remember this and never take for granted that we got to keep this miracle baby! Thank you Lord for this precious gift.

This is a picture of the 1st time I got to hold him September 29th 2009...I fell in love with him all over again.  This was also the day I had to leave him in the hospital and go home...1st day home in 26 days.

This Daddy holding Nolan...We hated all the tubes that were connected but after IV came out(October 2nd)  it was a lot easier.  Daddy loves this boy so much!

Here is a close up of him...he was so tiny...

This pic was taken on October 10th when he weighed 2lbs 15oz...sorry for the naked shot but that's how they weighed him in the NICU. He can be mad at me later! lol

On October 14th they tried him off his oxygen for the 1st time...he made about 12 hours before he needed to go back on it.  This same day he took his 1st feed by bottle and he took it like a champ. So here is a pic of both from that day...He is such a big boy!

I just love this picture of his face up close...nasal canal and all...

On October 25th, Nolan turned 1 month old and weighed in at 3lbs 12.7oz.  Here is a picture of him at 1 month old next to JD's hand...see how much he grew! He was 1lbs 2.7oz from his birth weight.

He didn't like his oxygen in his nose very much so he decided he would just pull it out himself! He is very independent!

I had the first of two showers in October...this one was given by my sisters and my mom.  I loved this frame...it says "Once in a while right in the middle of an ordinary life love gives you a fairy tale"...so cute!

My sister Heather AKA Aunt Heder got all 3 of her nieces and nephew shirts that say "My Aunt Heather ROCKS!" Too cute!

My diaper cake

The regular cake...The theme at the shower was "King of the Jungle".  My cousin Elizabeth made the cake...as always she did an awesome job!

This is Megan and Jason dressed up for Halloween...

Megan as Lola from Hannah Montana...

Jason as the White Ninja...

And Nolan as Super man! Being a super hero is tough work! lol On October 31st Nolan weighed in at 4lbs 3.4oz...so in one month time Nolan gained 1lbs 13oz! Aunt Heather made his costume and it was so cute...Thanks Aunt Heather!

Well that's it for October...On to November...

Catch up time...September 2009

Well from my last post you know I was put inpatient at St. John's for high blood pressure and Nolan's placenta did not form correctly so with those two issues together we were in there for the long haul! But more on that later...This is a picture of my sister Cheri and her newest little girl Ella Lynn. Ella was born September 19th via emergency C section due to a cord wrapped around her neck but everyone is doing great! So shortly after I was put in the hospital it was discovered I had a very slight case of preeclampsia and was order to have daily ultrasounds and monitoring of Nolan twice a day. After 3 1/2 weeks of being in the hospital Nolan started to drop his heart rate so I was placed in Labor and Delivery on September 24th to monitor Nolan over night to see if did it any more. After 12 hours of monitoring and Nolan dropping his heart rate 3 times during the night my specialist Dr. Blake decided that it was "Baby Day"! I was only 31 weeks and 4 days...We were very nervous but knew God was with us no matter what...

Nolan James Crider

Born at 1:14pm

September 25, 2009

2lbs 10oz
14 1/2 inches

He was breathing on his own but needed a little help so he was on the ventilator for less than 24 hours. When he born he wasn't much bigger than JD's hand but he already had us wrapped around his little fingers...;)This mommy and Nolan's 1st picture together...Oh how I loved him already. I have prayed for this moment for 41/2 years and I couldn't believe I was finally here!

JD got to stay with him all the way down to the NICU and stayed with him for awhile and then came back to check on me and show me pictures of him. Since I had a C section I could not get out of bed for 12 hours so I got to see him through pictures or through the monitor (the NICU has a camera that they would put on him and I could see him on the TV in my room). This was a picture JD took of him for me and for me to send out to people.

Well this post #1 of several but after I get caught up I plan on blogging a lot more for family and friends to stay updated and to record things for my memories and for Nolan as he grows up.

Day 1...Warning long post

Well we made it to week 28 with out any major interventions with me and Nolan. On August 18th we were told by my regular Dr. (Dr. H) that Nolan's legs and head are measuring right on track but his tummy was measuring small and she wanted me to go see a specialist to have him looked over. Dr. H also ordered some blood work be done (18 vials to be exact) just to rule out everything possible. Needless to say the devil had me scared out of my mind at first but I gave everything over to God and felt a complete peace over everything.

On August 25th we got up early and went and had a 3D ultrasound. That was so neat to see him moving around. He kept his hand by his face through most of the session and I told my dad that was the Fisher part of him because anytime you want to take a picture of my aunts or my Mimi they always put their hands in front of their face! lol Later on that day we had our 1st appointment with the specialist (Dr. B). At this appointment we discovered why his belly was small...your placenta is supposed to grow flat like a pancake against your uterus with the umbilical cord in the middle and mine decided to grow up around Nolan's umbilical cord causing the blood vessels from his umbilical cord to his tummy not to function properly. The blood vessels going to his head and legs seem to be functioning just fine because they are right on target. He is developing just great other than being skinny.

Dr. B decided she wanted to see us every week for the next 10 weeks and she would probably have him delivered around 37 to 38 weeks so that meant the beginning of November verses the end. So we saw Dr. B on September 1st and everything looked the same which was good but my blood pressure was a little elevated and I had been swelling quite a bit lately. Dr. B told me that she wanted me to have my blood pressure checked at a local pharmacy a couple times a week just try and stay on top of it. My blood test came back also that day and I had two minor issues come up:: 1) is that my body doesn't process folic acid like it should so she put me on a new prenatal vitamin 2) I have a blood clotting issue...now there are two types of this A and C...C is a scary one...but I have A so she just told me to take a baby aspirin a day and it will be fine.

I have always known that God has been in this pregnancy from the beginning and after the blood test results were back it was just confirmed even more. Because my body doesn't process folic acid right Nolan could have had spinal deformities but God is AWESOME and Nolan is completely normal and healthy!

On Wednesday September 2 I went to the pharmacy to pick up my new prenatal vitamins and check my blood pressure. Well the blood pressure was 139/82 and I had been told to be watching for 140/90. So the next morning I called the nurses line at Dr. H's office and she wanted me to go have it checked again...it came back as 143/91. So after talking to the nurse again it was decided for me to come in a see the Physicians assistant to make sure everything was ok. I met with the PA and went over everything then she decided she needed to talk to someone...a few minutes later Dr. H came in asked how I was doing and then she informed me that she thought I needed to be admitted in to the hospital so that they could keep a better eye on Nolan's issues and my blood pressure. So as of right now we are in St. John's just hanging out and waiting to see what happens. I did have my 1st normal blood pressure this morning (Sept. 4th) it was 119/77!!

So stay tuned for more updates as they are to come!

Love always,
Brandi

Meet Nolan James...

Update:: I meant to post this back in July but never got around to putting his original ultrasounds on my laptop...so now you all can see his 3D pics...

I am now 22 weeks pregnant and still feeling great! We found out Tuesday that we are expecting a baby boy this November! We have decided to name him Nolan James. Just wanted to give you all a quick update!

Dear baby...

Today you are 8 weeks 3 days old. I am so excited every time I think about this Thanksgiving. We don't know for sure if you will be here by that exact day but some time around then. So far I haven't been sick at all. Just really tired everyday. Your daddy is so understanding with me in all my moodiness and taking over our bed with all my pillows just trying to comfortable. Your daddy is so excited he keeps asking when we can go register for stuff and I have to remind him that we should probably wait till we find out if you are a boy or a girl. lol He also wants to buy a "Baby on Board" sign for the new mini van. He is so funny. Just wait he will have you laughing in no time. You already have so many people that love you and can't wait to meet you! Your daddy and me have wanted and prayed for you for many years and are just so excited to meet you and watch you grow!

7 months seems like a long time but I know it will pass by before I know it!

Can't wait to meet you!
Love always and forever,
Your Mommy