Blog is No Longer Active...

I have kept this blog, to keep the name but I am now actively blogging on my website.
To check it out go to:
www.jenphotographix.com and click on Blog along the top.

Blessings, Jen

Life Lately

Life has kept me busy the last couple of weeks. This blog suffers when life gets hectic but I always try to update when things settle down again. Daniel is in school and that takes up most evenings so for right now I am "winging it" with the boys and life in general. Ian is still our happy, chatty, handsome 3 year old. He loves his little brother and can't seem to get enough of him. Gavin will be 5 months old on May 8th(only 1 week away!) As of last week he weighed in at 8lbs 9oz and was 20.5"long. I can't believe how fast time is flying by. He is rolling over, almost sitting up, cooing, and eating rice cereal. I find myself thanking God for all three men He has given me every day. I love them so much and with the recent death of my precious brother I hold those I love so close to my heart now. Please keep me and my family in your prayers as we struggle to keep going.

4 Months (already?)

3 Years Married

April 5th is our anniversary. Daniel surprised me early with new bedding. Isn't it sooo cute?
I absolutely love it and it puts me in a better mood every time I walk by my bed. Those of you that know

about the loss I have experienced know that I need "bright,cheery things" right now. I think this bedding qualifies! I miss my brother so much and every day that goes by without him here reminds me of where my "treasure" ought to lay. It doesn't hurt to have pretty bedding in the meantime :) Here  are a few pictures...

3 Months

Sugar and Spice {Vaughans}

This gal was so much fun today!!! My awesome friend April met up with me on the Strand in Galveston this afternoon to have Cailyn's 1 year pictures taken. Originally it was planned for tomorrow afternoon but there is some nasty weather headed our way and I was too excited to postpone her pictures for another couple of weeks. Lucky for me, it worked out! Cailyn was such a trooper and I love how her pictures turned out. I have been photographing Cailyn since she was in her Mommy's tummy and it is such a joy to watch her grow into a beautiful little girl.
-♥-
Jen

Joshua Lee Stone

As many of you probably know, my 13 year old brother Josh died on Friday February 26th. I am still not up to blogging, but will be soon hopefully. I have no words right now to express my sadness and the emptiness I feel. Here is a recent picture I took of him at a local park. I miss him dearly and can only hope that time(and God) will make this better.

Beautiful Baby-Even When He is Grumpy

Here are two of my favorites from Gavin's 2 month session yesterday.

Coming up soon: Ian's 3 year pics.

2 Months Old

Gavin at 2 months

Weighs 5lbs 8oz and is 18.5 in.
He loves to be held, especially by Mommy
Sleeps for 1 hour during naps, on a good day
Loves to nurse, he would do it 24/7 if I would allow it
He smiles occasionally
He has begun holding his head up like a big boy
He rolls over whenever he is mad,but not to show off
Ian loves to hold "his tiny little hands"
Daddy calls Gavin his "little squirt" a lot
Mommy loves snuggling her little baby boy

The Keys to My Heart

I am Blessed.
My husband did it again. He surprised me and made me cry over his thoughtfulness. I don't have words to express how beautiful I think his Valentines Day gifts are to me. Let me tell you all he did. First, he ordered those decorative keys. Then he printed the beautiful phrases on pieces of paper.(he wrote those himself,no Google Search for my man) Then he cut each one out by hand in the shape of a tag. He stained each one with coffee to give it an"old" look, and finally tied each one onto a key with twine. The last step is going to be nailing them onto board to hang on the wall as an art piece. He did this for me. Like I said, Blessed.
He also gave me a cute camera bag. It is red and looks like a miniature bowling bag. Totally Me.
And last but not least, a coffee mug. And not just any coffee mug. This coffee mug happens to have my favorite pattern (damask) on it. And there is a spoon attached to stir the many flavors I love into my Saturday morning coffee.
I love that man and I am a very lucky woman.

Cinnamon Doughnuts..Mmm Mmm

I am going to be randomly sharing stories of the events that go on in our lives so if there are any followers out there anymore, please be patient as I try to get them all in the right order. I am starting back in November 09'.
It is a tradition in my husband's family to make home made doughnuts every year, around Thanksgiving. I started attending this annual event back when we were still dating(5 years ago!!!) I don't know if I have ever been much "help" but I love to help eat them! Here is the wonderful recipe my Mother in law follows as well as a few pictures of the doughnut team. Seems like I missed Bethany somehow, but she was here too.

-♥-
Jen

Just a Few Pictures

Gavin's Official Birth Story

Because a lot has gone on in the last few months, I am only now getting to tell the story of how Gavin Cole Duke came into this world. Starting at 26 weeks things started going "not normal". But actually it was even before that...
I had my usual blood work done by 18-20 weeks and expected everything would come back normal. When my OB herself called me a few days later, I knew something was wrong. She told me I had elevated numbers that indicated Gavin may have Spina Bifida. Very scary! I immediately went online and researched. I didn't want my baby to have that. She recommended I get amniocentesis done but I ended up requesting a high resolution ultrasound to look for it. We found out at the same time that baby #2 was a boy and he did NOT have Spina Bifida. They did watch for it over the course of the pregnancy but all was fine.
At 26 weeks I went in for a routine check up and as the nurse was looking for a heartbeat, could only find one in the 80's. We thought maybe it was picking up mine so the doc came in and very quickly determined that Gavin's heart rate was way too low. So off I went to get another high res. ultrasound. This time they found that he had wrapped his little neck in the cord and was actually squeezing it with one of his hands and was the cause for the temporary low heart rate. They were fine with him holding the cord, it was that it wrapped around his neck that wasn't ok. So I started going in weekly, switching between regular and high risk appointments. I only made it in to my 2nd appointment to see the high risk specialist when she saw that Gavin had somehow wrapped the cord around his neck twice and was now in the frank breech position(ruling out a natural birth) and my fluid was very low. I was in my 29th week. This time I was sent to the hospital to be on continuous monitoring. Let me tell you, it was NOT fun to be restricted to a hospital bed for almost 3 weeks.

While I stayed there, I was seen daily, had ultrasounds every other day, ate the awful hospital food. BORING. The whole goal of me staying in the hospital was to keep Gavin in until 34 weeks. So my OB and I scheduled my c-section for Friday December 18th. We did this in hopes that he would grow big enough to not have to spend very long in the NICU. The next morning I had my ultrasound. It was my last one. Gavin wasn't doing too well anymore. My placenta had died and was no longer providing nutrients for him. He was also measuring small, her guess was 3lbs. 2 oz. That afternoon of December 8th at 2:38 p.m. I heard my sweet baby boy's tiny little cry for the first time. I couldn't hold him because he needed support pretty immediately but I got to see him and kiss him before he was rushed off to the NICU. He weighed 3 lbs 3 oz. and was 17" long. He had dark hair and by the time he left the room, his cry was a loud one. I didn't get to see him until the next morning due to recovering from the c-section but I will never forget the feelings that flooded me. I couldn't believe how tiny, how frail he looked. I was so grateful for the care he could receive. I knew God had a plan for this baby, He has been so good to us. During the time Gavin stayed in the NICU, he only grew stronger each day. No infections. No health set backs. He came home to meet his big brother for the first time on Thursday, January 7th, 2010. Three full weeks before his due date. We have a little fighter! (he fights his sleep very well nowadays)

Gavin still in the tummy, only a few hours before his birth

Gavin Cole Duke

So my pregnancy was not the "ideal" thing. But he is here and safe and sound at home!!! Gavin was born on December 8,2009 weighing in at 3lbs.3oz and was 17" long. He spent one month in the NICU and came home on January 9th. He weighed 4lbs. 13 oz when he came home. I am so happy to finally be getting my life back in order. Ian adores his baby brother and is always saying"he is sooo cute". I guess he has heard a lot of people say that, not to mention his mommy :) Here are some pictures from the past few weeks at home. I hope to get some more up soon!

Love, Jennifer