Baby Tag!

1. WAS YOUR PREGNANCY PLANNED?
YES AND NO. WE SAID FOR ABOUT 2 WEEKS WE WANTED ONE AND THEN REALIZED WE NEEDED TO WAIT, BUT IT WAS TOO LATE.

2. WERE YOU MARRIED AT THE TIME?
YES FOR 8 MONTHS

3. WHAT WERE YOUR REACTIONS?
I KNEW BEFORE I ACTUALLY FOUND OUT, BUT WHEN I HELD THE LITTLE STICK IN MY HAD, OKAY THE 3 STICKS I GOT BUTTERFLIES, AND THEN THREW UP.

4. WAS AN ABORTION AN OPTION FOR YOU?
NOT EVEN A THOUGHT!

5. HOW OLD WERE YOU?
20

6. HOW DID YOU FIND OUT?
I THINK I WAS SICK FOR ABOUT A WEEK BEFORE WE ACTUALLY WENT AND BOUGHT ANY TESTS.

7. WHO DID YOU TELL FIRST?
WELL I WAS TEXTING DAVID BUT I THINK MY MOM WAS THE FIRST PERSON I TOLD AND I WAS SCAAAARED!!!

8. DID YOU WANT TO FIND OUT THE SEX?
YES I EVEN FOUND OUT EARLY BECAUSE I COULDNT WAIT

9. DUE DATE?
ORIGINALLY IT WAS FEB 16 BUT I WASNT AS FAR ALONG AS WE THOUGHT I WAS SO IT CHANGED TO MARCH 16 AND THEN SOMEHOW IT CHANGED TO MARCH 20 AND THEY JUST NEVER TOLD ME

10. DID YOU HAVE MORNING SICKNESS?
FOR 4 1/2 MONTHS. I LOST 20 LBS

11. WHAT DID YOU CRAVE?
ORANGE JUICE, FRUIT, KRISPE KEME AT THE END

12. WHAT IRRITATED YOU?
MY BACK ALWAYS HURTING, MY FACE BREAKING OUT, DAVID LEAVING ME TO GO OUT WITH RYAN. THE LAST WEEK EVERYTHING IRRITATED ME.

13. WHAT WAS THE SEX?
LITTLE GIRL!

14. DID YOU WISH IT WERE THE OPPOSITE?
NO, I WAS AFRAID SHE WAS GOING TO COME OUT A BOY AND I HAD SPENT ALL THAT TIME GETTING TO KNOW A LITTLE GIRL IN MY BELLY SO I WAS GOING TO FEEL LIKE I DIDNT EVEN KNOW THAT BABY IF IT WERE A BOY.

15. HOW MUCH WEIGHT DID YOU GAIN?

UM I THINK 30 LBS

16. DID YOU HAVE A BABY SHOWER?
I HAD 2 SHOWERS

17. DID YOU HAVE ANY COMPLICATIONS DURING YOUR PREGNANCY?
NONE AT ALL, THE DR KEPT SAYING MY BODY WAS ON AUTOPILOT, EXCEPT MY IRON WAS LOW BUT IT NORMALLY WAS BEFORE I GOT PREGNANT.

18. WHERE DID YOU GIVE BIRTH?
ALTA VIEW HOSPITAL

19. HOW MANY HOURS WERE YOU IN LABOR?
I GUESS IF LABOR STARTED WHEN I GOT THAT MEDICINE THEN IT WAS 16 HOURS?

20. WHO DROVE YOU TO THE HOSPITAL?
DAVID

21. WHO WAS IN THE ROOM WHEN YOU GAVE BIRTH?
BESIDES THE DR AND NURSES, DAVID MY MOM AND TERESA

22. WAS IT NATURAL OR A C-SECTION?
NATURAL WITH EPIDURAL

23. DID YOU TAKE MEDICATION TO EASE THE PAIN?
THE EPIDURAL, SOMETHING BEFORE THAT AND SHOTS AFTER

24. HOW MUCH DID YOUR CHILD WEIGH?
8 LBS 11 OZ

25. WHEN WAS YOUR CHILD ACTUALLY BORN?
MARCH 23, 2009 4:12 PM

26. WHAT DID YOU NAME HIM/HER?
MARLEE ELIZABETH JOHNSON

Marlee is here!

This is me sleeping with my epidural


Still waiting to be fully dilated...



Finally time to start pushing..



First time I actually remember holding my baby



I was too out of it to know what was going on



Our awesome nurse giving Marlee her first bath.



She really doesnt like it



All clean and happy, this is a small smile



Daddy loving on his baby girl



She got all prettied up the next day



This is her on the first day after her bath



Me and my baby




Okay so story time....as hard as I tried to get her to come out with tips from everyone on how to get her out. She just didnt want to come till she was good and ready. We were walking every where and going out visiting family all week. I was cleaning and even moving some furniture around until I decided it was pointless to put myself thru the pain of contractions when she wasnt budging!
So we took the last few days easy, went out on our last date alone for a long time, spent time together at home trying to calm our nerves. All day Sunday we didnt know what to do to waste the time! We still hadnt packed a hospital bag so that was on the to do list. The base for the car seat still needed to be put in the car and we wanted to go see baby Neolani in the hospital before we went in. Well being the procrastinators that we are, we ended up doing all this last minute. My mom was on her way to meet us to go see the baby while I was packing the bag and David was trying to figure out how to install the base. The instructions were only in spanish so he couldnt figure it out and was getting frusterated. We ended up leaving the base at home thinking we wouldnt need it, we were wrong. We got down and saw the baby for a little bit and headed up to my dads house in Bountiful so I could get a blessing before we went to the hospital.
We got to the hospital at 8:45 just as it started snowing! Snow just seems to come on all our important days (our wedding day it snowed) We got to our room, I got in my lovely buttless gown and the nurse came in to start the night. She was the only nurse we didnt like thru our entire stay at the hospital. She didnt like to talk very much and she was really grouchy. She gave me the medicine that goes next to your cervix (not sure what its called) and started my iv around 10. My mom came to drop off my little brothers cell phone charger so we could call or text every one when things started happening, she was there for maybe 5 min and the nurse came in and kicked her out.
Around 3am my water broke on its own. I was about to get up to go to the bathroom so I thought I had just peed myself but when it didnt stop coming out I woke up David because I couldnt reach the button to call the nurse. He thought I was making it up because the Dr was supposed to pop my water in the morning. When it started dripping on the floor he realized I wasnt lying.
The contractions started getting bigger and worse so around 445 I got my epidural.
The anesthesiologist was really nice, and another nurse came in to help with it. She was awesome too. It hurt, but not as bad as getting the iv did. I got the shakes really bad but was burning up the whole time. I HATE the feeling of being numb. I didnt know what to expect after getting an epidural but not being able to move wasnt even in my mind!! I kind of freaked out when I woke up and couldnt push myself up. I did sleep a lot better tho.
I dont really remember too much during the day, just being really hungry and nauseous and sleeping. I did get to drink water and sprite and I could eat popcycles. David didnt sleep much after my water broke, but tried to get little naps in here and there. We played family fued on the internet to keep us busy but I fell asleep a lot.
Our nurses that came in at 8 were awesome! We had the one nurse, but she had a student following her all day. We originally said we didnt want any trainees or students, but she was so awesome and the other nurse only let her do certain things and watched closely while she did.
We started calling people to come to the hospital around 1ish because every one showed up right as the Dr announced I was fully dilated and needed to start pushing. I was in shock! The last time they checked me about an hour before I was only at a 7. I was really scared and didnt know what was about to happen, but pushing wasnt bad for the first hour and a half. I think it was about the last half hour of real pushing that it started to hurt.
My epidural was wearing off a bit and by the time I hit the button again it was too late. Her head coming out wasnt so bad but her shoulder and everything else about killed me. I didnt even know it but I let out screams of pain when that happend. I was really seeing every thing in a blur I hurt so much. The Dr ended up needing to make a small cut, and I tore a little more.
As soon as she was out they put her on my chest right next to my face. I remember grabbing whatever I could in front of me and I could feel her little hand grabbing my face, but my eyes were either closed or I was hurting too much to see anything. The Dr was getting my placenta during that and then went straight for the stitches...no breaks in between. I dont even know when or who took the baby off my chest. I could feel the needle from the stitches so they had to give me shots to numb me more, those hurt real good too.
After that I dont really know what went on. My mom was holding my hand, David was running back and forth from me and the baby getting checked out. I saw blood and just decided it was time for me to close my eyes. I could have fallen asleep right then and slept all night if I didnt have such a beautiful baby to look at.
Some time after she was all done getting checked and weighed and what ever was going on over in the corner David brought her over to me and I really got to see her for the first time with goo in her eyes.
Maren and Linda came in to see the baby but I was too tired for anyone. Every one got kicked out of the room while we got cleaned up, I got some food, Marlee got her first bath and we gathered our things to move to the next room.
By the time we were in the next room my dad had come, my litte brother and my uncle and I some how got a small spurt of energy back. The rest of the time in the hospital was really nice. I was pampered, Marlee was loved in the nursery by any one who got to see her. They kept me on pain pills so I never even felt any pain in the stitches till I got home.
I did get a UTI but I am not surprised, I get them very often and very easily. We came home Wed afternoon and for some reason I wasnt too tired. I think I slept off and on every now and then but really I was too awake waiting for the baby to wake up ready to eat again.
I only got 2 lessons of breast feeding in the hospital before I left and was feeling really unsure about it when I got home so that started a big cry session. I really underestimated the power of postpardom blues. They are hitting hard and at very random times over really dumb things. My mom has a friend who is a lactation person so she came over to save me. I may need her to come again because I still dont feel confident in what I am doing. I keep worrying that everything I am doing is wrong, that some thing is wrong with the baby, or me. I just dont know as much as I thought I did about caring for a newborn and its scary. I guess it is just some thing that will come with time.

Baby Shower!

My second baby shower was planned by my mom. We were rushing to finish setting every thing up by the time people started showing up. It was a little too long ago for me to remember too much about it. The food was good, I ate a lot haha. Chicken salad sandwiches and fruit and cake. My moms friends all helped with set up, food and games. I got TONS of clothes and diapers. That was pretty much the party....Teresa was there with Star and lots of people from work. David stayed the whole time even tho he said he wasnt going to. My older brother is getting married in August and his fiance came. He picked out the present they gave us. A Baby Jordan outfit. Other than that here are the pics I look half decent in. My face is breaking out horribly so I cant wait to get this little sucker out of me so my body can start going back to normal!

Noelani Cardon

My little brother who lives in Wyoming came down with his girl friend on Tuesday for her brothers wedding. She was 23 weeks pregnant and when they got here she was in some pain and was bleeding so they took her to American Fork hospital. The dr checked her and said it was normal and sent her home. (another reason to add to my list to never go to that hospital) The next morning it got worse so they went back. When she was checked this time the dr could feel the top of the baby's head and had them rushed to Utah Valley hospital.
She gave birth to her 1 lb baby girl, she didnt even get to see the baby. They rushed the baby into the NICU and wouldnt let the mom see her for 5 hours.
The cause was an infection in her cervix, the mom is doing fine and they are planning on moving back to Utah. The baby is also doing fine for now, she is proving herself to be quite the little fighter. She is not supposed to be breathing on her own, most babies at 23 weeks use the machine for a while, but she is breathing on her own about 80% of the time and has the machine just for a back up. She is being fed her moms milk thru a feeding tube and taking it very well. So for now we just get to watch her grow and if things come up its all up to the baby and how she will respond to what the drs can do.
She sleeps on a little water bed attached to a machine that wiggles her to make her feel like she is still in the womb. The pictures are her diaper compared to a newborn diaper, and compared to a face card. Her head is always covered so she cant open her eyes. If she were to open her eyes she could go blind. So her head is wrapped in a little hat and covered with a blanket. She is on her tummy in all the pics because she was starting to get a scare of jaundice so they flipped her to get her back and bum some light.
The NICU has soooo many babies there! Every baby is assigned their own nurse so when we walk in there are dozens of nurses that all sit together unless they are checking on their baby. I always see at least 3 or 4 drs in there at a time too. It kind of feels like I am walking into an egg hatchery because they all have their own little boxes with lights above them.
No one is allowed to hold or touch her, her skin is still not developed. The tubes down her throat are covering her vocal cords, she cries but makes no sound. You just have to watch her facial expressions to see if it looks like she might be crying. The most The mom has been able to do so far is change a diaper.
I definately teared up the first time I saw her, I have been back to see her about 4 times now and hopefully get to go again soon. I cant believe how attached I am getting to my little niece that I wont get to officially meet for at least 5 more months. The biggest tear jerker moment I had so far was the first night we were there the nurse turned off the lights to take the stuff off her face so we could see her, while she was undoing the wrap little Noelani reached her tiny little hand up to grab the nurses thumb, she wrapped her fingers around as far as she could but only got about half of her thumb. It just felt like she knew someone was there and she wants to interact with them, but cant.
This is my first niece, little bugger snuck in and took the first grandbaby spot from Marlee.


In my baby news so I dont have to do another post....My dr didnt even check my dilation last time because he is determined that Marlee is going to be induced on the 23rd. His plan is to have us come to the hospital Sunday night the 22nd, get started, get the epidural. Sleep all night and then have her sometime Monday. He guessed she will weigh between 8 and 8 1/2 lbs. If she doesnt come on her own then she will be here Monday and this Friday will be my last Dr appointment. FINALLY!

Leading up to Marlee...

My Husband...
What is your husband's name?: William David Johnson
How old is he?: 21
When we first met...
Where did you meet?: We met at a castle dance in Provo.
How old were you when you met him?: 18
What was the first thing you noticed about him?: He was the first guy I ever danced with so I felt really dumb because I had no idea what I was doing.
How long was it before he noticed you?: A really long time, he was interested in my friend first.
What was your first conversation about?: I had a boyfriend at the time and David was trying to talk me into staying at his house (so he could have more time with my friend)
Did you like him right away?: Sort of
Did you have mutual friends at the time?: Just Carissa, I didnt know his friends yet.
Do you think he was attracted to you that first day?: For a while I thought so, but no he wasnt.
Were you dressed to impress that day?: Dressed to be a skank haha, we were at a dance!
Was he?: He still has the clothes he was wearing but its an average day outfit, nothing special.
Getting to Know Each Other...
How did you start hanging out?: After that day we met we didnt hang out for a long time, one of my other friends started dating one of his room mates so I would go with her to their house all the time.
Where was your most frequent hang out spot?: His house, the apt me and my friend lived in was smaller and their house was just fun.
Who did you guys usually hang out with?: All the guys that lived there plus me and my friend.
What sorts of things did you talk about, to learn about each other?: I was really shy at first so we didnt really have any good conversations for a while, but after I came out of my shell we talked about everything.
Did he become more attractive as you got to know him?: Yes, but he also started showering more after I got to know him better.
Getting Closer...
Do you remember the first time you touched?: Well we were touching when we danced that first night.
What was it like the first time you hugged each other?: I dont remember. We were movie cuddlers before we were anything else.
Describe your "first kiss" scenario?: I was watching a movie and he was drinking, but came and sat by me and it was really awkward and he ended up leaving because I wasnt letting him do anything more with me haha.
What were your first terms/phrases of endearment?: Um just cheesy stuff, I think the most used one was "I kinda like you"
When did you first realize that you truly loved him?: It was really soon for me, but he wouldnt say it back for a long time. Prob after a couple months of dating.
When did he first say that he loved you?: I really dont remember.
When was the first time you really snuggled?: One of the first times I came over with my friend to watch movies, they had giant love sacs in the front room with a big tv so it was perfect for movies.
Describe, using adjectives, the feeling of being in his arms?: Safe and loved.
"The M Word"...
Who was the first to bring up marriage?: Our parents haha.
How long had you been together when it got brought up?: I dont know about THE very first time, but it was really being pushed after about maybe 8 months.
How was it first talked about?:Well between just the two of us he kept saying he wasnt going to get married just because our families wanted us to.
Were either of you afraid of committment at first?: We both were.
Did your parents know you were talking about marriage?: They were the ones who brought up the subject.
Did they approve?: They were pretty much saying either get married or break up.
What did your parents think of him at this point?: My dad had his own concerns about our future, but for the most part he liked David. My mom just thought he was another guy that I was dating, she got along with him pretty well.
What did his parents think of you at this point?: I was always really shy so I dont think they hated me, but just didnt know me.
Engagement...
When did you get engaged?: Dont remember exact day, but it was in late August 2007
How long had you been together?: 10 monthsish
Who proposed to who?:David proposed.
How was the question popped?: We went back to the castle where we met and walked around for a while, we found a cute little pond area with a bridge and trees and he was so nervous he couldnt even make small talk. So he finally started his little speech when we got to a tree and got down on one knee and pulled out the ring.
What was the response?: A fake "oh baby" (I knew he was going to so it was hard to act suprised) but then I really did get suprised because I didnt know he had a ring.
Who did you tell first?: I think we went straight to a family party so my dad was the first to know at the party, but then my cousin announced it to everyone very loud.
What did your friends think?: They were excited and wanted to be in the wedding line.
Describe the ring?: A modern version of my moms ring, we even used her diamond.
Was the proposal suspected?: Not till that morning. We were living with Maren and I was asleep but the door was open and the first thing I heard when I woke up was Maren yelling at David "You have to do it today she has a wedding to plan!"
Was the proposal public or private?: Private.
How did he tell his parents?: They knew already, his whole family did. They were all there to get the ring.
How did you tell your parents?: I just showed my dad the ring I didnt know what to say, my mom was grouchy when I went to tell her so I dont even remember what I said I just know I was scared out of my mind.
What were their responses?: My dad tends to over exaggerate facial exprecions because he doesnt say things very well, so his mouth shot open and his eyes got real big....I can still see his face now haha. My mom was doing dishes and just asked how long we had to plan the wedding.
The Wedding...
When did you get married?: October 20, 2007
Where did you get married?: Mellor Hidden Meadows
Who performed the ceremony?: I think he is my Uncle, or some relative.
Who was the best man?: Jason, the best friend David has ever had!
Who was the maid of honor?: It changed every other day, but ended up being Carissa
How many guests were there?: Mostly family and a few friends.
What were the wedding colors?: Green, Cream and White.
Did it feel like you had to pose for a thousand pictures?: A thousand of the same people. My family kinda just left and came back thru the whole thing so we didnt get any of my moms side of the family.
Did you get through your vows without crying?: I dont think we said vows, just I do. I was too nervous to cry.
Did he get through his vows without crying?: No vows, but during the cerimony he did tear up a bit.
Did both of you really mean those vows?: NO VOWS!
The Honeymoon...
Where did you go for your honeymoon?: Oregon lol. We just stayed at Anniversary Inn on our wedding night.
Did you splurge a lot?: The room was a lot of money, for us.
What was the most romantic part of the honeymoon?: If Anniversary Inn counts as our honeymoon I guess the most romantic part was the giant tub, but it took us about 45 min to get it working. It was broken.
What was the funniest part of the honeymoon?: That nothing worked in our room so we were constantly calling the front desk the whole night.
Was the honeymoon long enough?: I would have liked another night, or at least been able to sleep in the next morning.
Home...
Where did you first live?: We moved to Oregon that next morning, but stayed with family for a few days till we moved into our apt.
How much was rent?: I think it was 450?
Did you have any pets?: No pets right when we got there, but we did get our dog Frankie not too long after.
How many cars did you have?: 1
Did you have bookshelves made out of cinderblocks and plywood?: No but we did use plastic storage bins haha.
Did you know how to cook yet?: I could only cook a few meals, Im not too creative when it comes to coming up with meals.
Did he know how to fix things yet?: He tried.
How long did it take before it began to feel like a real home?: Oregon never felt like home to me, which is part of the reason why we moved home so quick. Then we didnt have our own place for a few months when we got here. I dont think it felt like home until just recently.
What was your first major purchase together?: We havnt really made any big purchases. Maybe school?
What was your first fight as a married couple about?: Oh man, there were SO many those first few months. I think the first argument was about the way he spent his bachelor party.
What is the most romantic thing you've done together since getting married?: Either for our first anniversary we went to Armstrong Mansion for a couple nights, or there were a few nights in great life that were pretty intimate.
Do you ever wish you weren't married?: Some days, when things are not going my way...but I HATE thinking of life without David.
A Quality Man...
Is your husband understanding?: Most of the time.
Is he patient?: The most patient!!! He has to be with me and its not fair to him.
Is he hard working?: He can be, but he has to put his mind to it first.
Is he financially wise?: Neither of us are.
Can he make you laugh?: All day long
Does he make you feel safe?: Yes, but usually he has to calm me down first
Does he know how to communicate?: Not so well.
Does he occasionally help with the dishes? Occasionally
Can you trust him completely?: With most things
Does he still romance you?: Were not really a romancing couple, for what he calls romance, yes he still does.
Is he careful with your feelings?: NO! but its not his fault, my emotions and feelings are all over the place right now.
Does he appreciate you?: Some times.
Does he make time for you?: Some times.
After All This Time...
Is he as handsome as the day you met?: More, he is cleaner and cuts his hair :)
Is he as wonderful as ever?: Most days.
Do you think the marriage will truly last "till death do us part" ?: Yes but one of us is going to cause the death lol.