Gender Reveal!

On December 1, we took a quick trip to Stork Vision in Tyler, TX to get a glimpse of our newest addition. Our family had planned a Gender Reveal Party for the next day, which meant that we had to wait an additional 24 hours with the results in hand! We didn't peak during the ultrasound, so we had no idea what our newest little one would be. Needless to say, later that night we went to Santaland to help pass the time. ;) Here are the pictures of our party as well as some of the ultrasound pictures of our little one at 17 weeks.

Our fun invitation!

Madden almost revealed it before we were ready! ;)

Boy or Girl? Pink or Blue?

Can you guess from the look on my face? LOL!

Blue it is! Daddy was right! :)

Aunt Madi lost a bet! She was betting on a girl, therefore she got a camo/blue cupcake smashed in her face! 

Don't worry..she got him back. ;)

Precious baby boy, Tegan Allen Arreguin.

We chose to name him Tegan because it's different and that's what we like! :) Allen is after my Pappaw Charles and my Dad. His initials (T.A.) are in memory of my great-grandfather, T.A.

* There were lots of other great pictures but my laptop is not wanting to cooperate with me. I'll try to re-post them later.

Pregnancy Journal: 14 weeks 3 days!

How far along: 14 weeks 3 days!

Maternity clothes: I'm into a few borrowed things, but can still wear a lot of my non-pregnancy clothes.

Best moment this week: I felt my first flutters and nudges! That feeling will never grow old. Baby looooves when momma eats a bite of something...(s)he goes bananas! I love it! :) I also lost 2 lbs this week! Definitely a "best moment". :) And the heart rate was 159!

Miss Anything: I've allowed myself some caffeine now that I'm past the 12 week mark so I'm not missing that anymore. ;) I've craved a lot of salads and I looove me some Ceaser dressing. So I'm definitely missing that.

Movement: Yep!

Food cravings: Grilled chicken salads, fried pickles, and Coca-Cola. What a mix, huh.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Queasiness has settled some but still lingers here and there. If I eat too much, too quickly, or too little I'll get sick. Still haven't quite found that "balance".

Have you started to show yet: I'm definitely rockin' a bump nowadays. ^

Gender: Don't know yet! December 1 is the day! Just two and a half more weeks! Eeeekk!

Labor Signs: Not yet!

Belly Button in or out: Definitely in.

Wedding rings on or off: On.

Happy or Moody most of the time: Still a mixture. I'm always happy, but those mood swings can come out to play anytime. ;)

Looking forward to: finding out whether Madden has a baby brother or sister on the way!

Pregnancy Journal: 11 weeks!

Baby Arreguin #2 is on his/her way! :)

How far along: Almost 11 weeks!

Maternity clothes: Not any tops, but I've definitely already pulled out some of my "comfy" pants. If I could get away with wearing them outside of pregnancy, I would! ;)

Best moment this week: We (mommy, daddy, and big brother) got to hear your precious heartbeat! Wonderfully, amazing music to our ears. :)

Miss Anything: Caffeine! Oh, how I miss my lattes.

Movement: Not yet, but I'm super excited about it! I hear that you feel 2nd timers earlier than 1st babies.

Food cravings: Nothing particular. Mostly sweets though. :-/ No bueno.

Anything making you queasy or sick: No THING..it just comes from out of nowhere. I've noticed if I have an empty stomach or if I've eaten too much that will do the trick, also.

Have you started to show yet: Just a bloated "bump".

Gender: Don't know yet! December 1 is the day! :)

Labor Signs: Not yet!

Belly Button in or out: Definitely in.

Wedding rings on or off: On.

Happy or Moody most of the time: Hmm..that's a tough one. If you ask my dear husband he'd probably agree on the latter. ;)

Looking forward to: Feeling you move and finding out if Madden will have a baby brother or sister to play with! :) 

I'll have to post a pic of daddy next time! :)

Madden Luke : 19 Months Old

I have been terrible and haven't posted an update on my sweet boy since February! I am now changing that fact. :) Enjoy!

Shown wearing his Uncle Bubba's (Amp's) Stink Bait tshirt ;)

Age: 19 months

Height: 34.5" (95th percentile!)

Weight: 29.2 lbs (90th percentile!)

Milestones: Nothing specific was established this month except that he learned to lie down on his back in the bathtub and "float". He loves doing that! Such a water baby. ;)

Sleep: Since he was 6 months old, he has been a wonderful sleeper. . .through the night and everything! Here lately? Not so much. :( He's been waking up after only being asleep for 2 or 3 hours and it wanting nothing more than to play. This makes for a very grouchy mommy and daddy the next morning. :-/

Best Moment: This will sound horrible but he is going through his "separation anxiety" stage and clings to me when he thinks I'm going to leave him. :( I know it's sad but it's also a bittersweet feeling to know he wants to be with me.

Worst Moment: This is contradicting, but when he cries for me when I do actually leave him. :( He just started doing this lately. So sad. :( It's even sadder when JR leaves for work. We ball right along with him.

Health: Super healthy baby boy! Growing like a weed and very, very tall for his age! He didn't get that from us. ;)

Eating: Loves food! Now that, I'd say he inherited from Mom and Dad. Hee hee! But he's also having some food allergies that we are checking into soon!

Teeth: All baby teeth are in! I'm pretty sure he's getting an early start on those 2 year old molars though. Fun stuff!

Extra Comments: Madden is as cuddly and lovable as he was the day he was born. He melts my heart in every way and is the brightest part of our day. We love you, turkey!

This momma is being given a GOOD run for her patience. . .

You could definitely say that we have been blessed with a happy, easy-going child. I had a wonderful pregnancy that I thoroughly enjoyed (and quite often miss!) and the past year has been the best in my life! On that note, I've never really had to worry about much with Madden, with the exception of his upcoming surgery. He never spit up, he breastfed VERY well until he weaned himself (how lucky is that?) at 10.5 months, he sleeps in his crib all night long with the exception of every-now-and-then sleepovers with momma and daddy, no allergic reactions, not a picky eater, no diaper rashes, and no sicknesses other than the occasional common cold. He's just an all-around easy baby. He plays well by himself as well as with others. I could go on and on about him and the blessing he has been to us, but there is not enough time in the day, nor space on this blogspot.

Lately though, I guess since the beginning of January, he has started having some of these issues. He developed a slight diaper rash the week before his 1st birthday. Mind you, that was one whole month ago. It has progressively gotten worse. On January 25, which was his one year check-up, Dr. Huggins stated that it was not a yeast infection and was possibly something from his diet. She made no prescriptions because it really wasn't that bad...just a little red. Also, during that appointment she found that he had a double ear infection. We gave him the meds as prescribed, but he's still picking at them.

Also, I've been lucky enough for him to grace me with his poop all over himself and his crib TWICE in one week. Yep, I just had my second round with it and THIS time I was alone. Yuck. That's really all I have to say about it. The last time it happened I was very easily able to laugh it off. This time, though, was a different story. I stripped him down and put him in the tub. After I got him all cleaned up and went to put his diaper on, I noticed his rash is the worst it's been. It's RAW. It looks like he's been burned. :( I have tried everything that everyone has suggested to me but nothing has worked. I've returned his diet back to basics and still no change.

I gave Dr. Huggins a call and they want to see him this afternoon. Along with his ears still bothering him and his diaper rash being horrible, he's also developed a really bad cough (which I'm sure is just another cold), but oh how I feel for him, especially because of his other ailments he has going on. Our baby went from easy-breezy to Needy Petey in .5 seconds!

On a good note, he has been exceptionally good, behavior-wise. He doesn't fuss or whine about anything which makes me feel better knowing that he's not in pain. Did I mention he's cutting his molars too? I guess I'm just making up for all the not fun times I missed in the past year. Haha.

And believe me when I say that I KNOW things could be much, much worse. I'm not complaining at all, I just find this whole experience to be quite humbling. There is no such thing as a perfect child but if I had to I'd say that ours is pretty close. I've learned a LOT in the past month. I feel this is more a test from God on myself rather than Madden. The good Lord knows I'm impatient and a bit of a control freak. I know this is His way of letting me know that I am not the one in control...He is. Things will not always be perfect and I need to count my blessings DAILY and be grateful that his issues are all something that can be cured, and of that I am ABSOLUTELY grateful for. (I'm also EXTREMELY grateful that this second time around with the poop in the crib that there were ZERO traces of it on his face! LOL!)

So I just thought that I would give you a laugh at my expense. ;)

So, of to the doctor's office we go! Wish us luck and pray for our sweet child.

Blessings, hugs, & kisses!
Danah

Madden Luke - 12 Months Old

My goodness how this year has flown! Yesterday you had your one year well visit and three rounds of shots. You topped the scales at 26 lbs and are 31.5 inches tall! That puts you in the 93rd and 95th percentiles! I shouldn't be surprised because of the amount of food you can easily put away. . .you're like a bottomless pit! Between you and your daddy we probably pay Walmart's light bill. ;)

Your Dr. visit did not start out so great, however. I told the nurse that you have been sticking your fingers knuckle deep in both of your ears. You've always messed with them but here lately that's all you seem to want to do. You haven't been fussy though. She began to perform the routine hearing test that all one year olds get at their well checks and it just so happened that you failed it. Immediately I began to worry because you aren't quite speaking yet. Lots of gabbing and making syllable sounds but no words. (Dr. Huggins wasn't worried about that at all, by the way. She said it's totally normal, especially for boys!) It turned out that you have a double ear infection. :( You have been a real trooper about too since you haven't fussed at all!

You are quite the little busy-body too. Between chasing balls all over the house, pulling up on Gizmo's cage and "playing" with him (that's the only time you like him. . .when he's in his kennel), "driving" your monster truck, singing songs along with your piano and drums, reading books, and watching some of your favorite movies I'm surprised at the fact that you haven't taken those first steps yet. Nope, still a crawling machine! You are becoming more brave each day though. You cruise all around furniture with no problem, and push your little walkers around so I know you have the ability, you just aren't concerned with it. And I don't blame you. I'd do the same if I had someone to tote me around all day!

You are the BEST snuggler. You love sleeping with us. We allowed it for about a week when I was painting your room and I absolutely loved it. So occasionally I'll sneak in a nap with you just to get those extra cuddles. :) You also give the sweetest sugars. You give them freely too, to anyone, even if they don't ask! I love it. :)

Madden Luke, you are most definitely the sweetest, most laid-back, easy-going, loving and happy baby I've ever met. You make our duty as parents the best in the world! I cannot picture a more close-to-perfect son. I love you, sweet angel!

Some pictures from your birthday month. . .

One of my most favorite pictures of you!! How could anyone NOT adore the preciousness and adorableness of the photo? It's absolutely priceless. :)

And here you are right before your first haircut!

You did great!

All done!

The morning of your actual birthday. :) We spent the night with Mammaw & Pappaw because daddy had to work out of town. It was your first time to stay!

The night of your birthday. We had cupcakes at our house. You clearly knew what those were all about, lol.

Oh yeah. Definitely knew what it was all about! You loved every bit of that cupcake!

Sharing some of those yummy sugars with daddy!

And if you look closely, momma too!

Some news clothes for the birthday boy! You wear size 2T in clothes and 3T in pajamas. You're in a size 5 diaper, and a 4.5 shoe. Such a healthy, growing boy!

Obviously your 1st birthday party theme was monsters. Not the scary Halloween kind, but bright and silly ones. :) Here's a family picture of us right before the party started!

We had a smorgasbord of breakfast foods: pigs-in-a-blanket, strawberry and blueberry muffins, do-nut holes, quiches, and fruit kabobs!

Your awesome cakes that Mrs. Diana Gordon made!

Here you are being pushed around at the beginning of the party by Uncle Bubba. You sure do love your new monster truck that your GiGi bought for you!

Everyone had a great time visiting. :)

So many awesome friends and family came to help celebrate your birthday!

We had a "Make Your Own Monster" table. It was a hit! Aunt Madi and Meme helped everyone decorate!

You love to play ball! Thanks for soccer, Poppa and JoJo!

I had one of these when I was little. Thanks, Nat Nat and Uncle Caleb!

Your amaaazing new toy box that Pappaw built! It's HUGE so there will be no excuses come clean-up time!

Such a sweet and thoughtful gift from Aunt Bran, Uncle Dusty, and Lexi Poo. It's your very first silver cup!

You got so many gifts so I won't post them all, but there are a few! :)

Cake time!

You were so tired after eating all of that cake that we all thought you were going to pass out right then and there! LOL!

Such a sweet photo of you and Lolli.

Two of the best women in the world!

Pappaw and Mammaw! Love them!

You sure love that GiGi and she loves you!

Getting kisses from JoJo!

Sweet sugars from sweet aunts!

Your turn to return the favor! ;)

Momma's boy!

I think this is probably the funniest picture of the day. We were trying to get a good picture of you with the girls but neither you or Lexi would cooperate. Rylie was acting the opposite...she was wired! This picture explains it all, lol. I think she was trying to calm you down. ;)

So there you have it and here's to another wonderfully blessed year!