five months!

Tucker is five months (and a few days)!

He was just recently sick with the croup so we had to visit the doctor. He was 16 pounds 10 ounces then, so he is probably close to 17 pounds now. And still tall! Probably 27 or 28 inches I bet. 

He is doing better now- after getting both his momma and dad sick, little stinker. 

At FIVE months, Tucker:

is eating "solids". Taylor always thinks this is so funny. When I told him Tucker could start solid foods and proceeded to get out the mashed up fruits and veggies, we both had a little laugh. But Tuck totally has loved everything! I plan on making my own food, but until I know what he likes, I wasn't about to go and make a bunch of stuff he wouldn't eat. So far he loves: carrots, squash, peas, sweet potato, banana, apple, pear, peaches + banana, and carrots + squash. His favorite by far was pears! I love feeding him and watching him trying to grab my hand to shove the spoon in quicker.

has lost the majority of his hair. This makes me so sad. Haha. He is rocking a little baby mullet and this funny little wispy unicorn hair thing. But you can already see the new hair growing in. It's looking pretty light, too! Maybe he'll be a blondie? Can't wait to see!

is rolling over! He has been able to roll from front to back for a couple months but has just recently go the hang of back to front. He doesn't do it all the time and will get frustrated and give up a lot, but he has done it the most when I am out of the room!

is wearing 9 month clothes! Or even bigger sometimes. He can still fit in his 6 month clothes but 9 month almost fits him better. Ah crazy. I think it is mostly because he is tall. 

is a sqealing little squealer! He loves to scream at us and make little faces and have us mimic the noise back to him. I feel like he is going to be one of those kids that just keeps talking and talking...I can't wait :)

will sit up with a little support. I think within the next month or two he will hopefully master sitting by himself. 

loves, loves bath time. We have just recently started bathing him every night instead of every other night. He figured out that he can splash and play and so he loves to have longer baths to play a little bit. 

has discovered himself in a mirror. Before bath time, we strip him down and let him look at himself in the mirror. It is THE cutest thing. he raises his arms up and squeals when he sees himself. So cute.

still loves being naked! :)

eats around 6 or more ounces every 3-5 hours. He is a big eater and loves his bottle.

sleeps through the night like a champ. He will go down a little bit before we go to sleep and then wake up when we do or a little after. 

still is not a very good napper. Working on it. He does NOT like napping in his crib. He will sleep in my arms or in the car but for some reason during the day he does not like his crib. 

is getting better at grabbing things and playing with toys. He will stand in our lap and grab our faces or clothes. 

has become a tough nut to crack! He used to laugh a pretty much anything, but now he is more selective with his laughs. If you tickle his ribs or inner thighs, that will get him every time. And he loves patty cake. But he is very generous with his smiles. He is a total flirt. 

might be teething. He gnaws on anything he can get in his mouth. And has recently been more ornery and waking up in the night. Hopefully it isn't too much worse than it has been. No sign of teeth yet though.

Also- I entered Tuck in the Gerber Baby photo search! I know it's totally long shot, but I do think he is the cutest baby in the whole world and think it would be the coolest thing in the whole entire world if he won. So if you have a spare second, just click here  and vote or the link is on my facebook as well! And vote every day! Takes only a couple seconds, and you'd really be doing us a huge favor. 

This week is Thanksgiving- another first for Tucker! We are so excited to go down to Glenwood to celebrate with Taylor's family and then to Delta to see all of his dad's side of the family as well. 

And one month from today we are leaving for North Carolina to spend Christmas with my siblings! Tucker will get to meet his cousins and his other Aunts and Uncles! It will be Tuck's first plane ride and it will be the farthest East that Taylor has ever been (in the US). We are SO excited!

And about two months from now, Taylor's sister Jess gets home from her LDS mission in Spokane, WA! We are SO excited! I can't wait for her to meet Tuck! 

SO many exciting things coming up!

Until next month!

The best has yet to come.

four months!

Tucker is four months old today!

I can hardly believe it. My little boy is getting so big! Today we had his four month check up so he could get his second round of vaccinations. He cried right after his shots (something that always kills me. i hate how sad he looks initially) but then went right back to his happy little self after a little cat nap. His stats today were:

height: 26.25 inches = 92.64 percentile 

weight: 15.9 pounds = 55.82 percentile

head: 17 inches = 91.56 percentile 

Tall and a big ole head! Just how we like it :)

I feel like he weighs way more than that. Or maybe my "mom muscles" just think that. Let's just say I'm getting (or feel like I'm getting) stronger every day.

Tucker these days:

He is very vocal. He will "talk" back to us if we talk to him. He just all around coos and yells more. Mainly yells. I think he likes hearing himself. 

He loves being talked to. Mainly he just wants to be acknowledged and isn't very happy if you have to direct your attention elsewhere. 

He is super observant. His head is constantly moving from side to side to check things out. If he hears a noise or a voice he will look over his shoulder to see where it came from. Or on our walks, where he would normally just fall asleep in the stroller, he now just sits there and stares at everything we pass by with his "ooh" face on. As we speak he is sitting in my lap watching the screen as I type.

He totally knows his name! We will say his name to him and he will move his attention to try and find us.

He is now smiling ALL the time. He is very flirtatious and most people can get him to smile.

He loves being called "big boy" or especially, "silly boy". We say to him all the time: "You're a silly boy" in a really slow voice and he will laugh and smile every time. 

He loves having his diaper changed. Well, just really loves having it taken off so he can be naked. 

Started rice cereal! Still a little unsure about, but we think he likes it!

He found his hands and will try and such on the entire thing. Or just lick each finger one by one.

He attempts grabbing things. Still can't quite hold on to most things though. Lately it's grabbing his shirt and trying to eat it. Or his binky and ripping it out. He will also grab his blankets and pull them  over his face but can't figure out how to get it off.

He loves his play mat and will thrash and squeal on it. 

He's super ticklish on his neck, back, ribs, feet and thighs.

He;s holding his head up super well. Loves to be standing or sitting up in front of you or where he can see things happening.

He is wearing almost exclusively 6 month clothes. We put him in a 9 month outfit the other day and it fit! Ah!

He is sleeping so well at night, He will usually go to bed when we do and then won't wake up till around 6 or 7...and sometimes even later!

Naps on the other hand...are real struggle. Advice is welcome, please!

We love our little guy! Stop growing so fast!

the best has yet to come.

Three months!

As of yesterday, 

Tucker boy is three months old now!

Every day he is learning new things and we are learning more, too!

Tuck is getting so big! We haven't had an appointment since his two month and won't have one till his four month when he has to get shots again, He was around 12 pounds and 23 inches then. We are pretty sure he weighs a little more than 14 pounds but we have no idea how long he is- that's a little harder to find out. :)

Tuck loves:

-Having his diaper changed. Funny, right? but something about it calms him down. 

-Being naked :)
-Warm baths
-His swing
-Car rides
-Stroller rides
-Really any movement. And music!
-His alligator, Foof.

He has learned:
-Smiling!! This one absolutely melts my heart. Since last month he will respond to our silly, high-pitched crazy voices and funny faces and reward us with the hugestttt smile. He's gonna be a real heartbreaker, that's for sure.
-Giggling. Same thing- cutest ever and I about die every time.
-How to entertain himself more. Sometimes during the day I will put him in his swing or on his playmat so I can get a few things done, and I can hear him squealing and giggling and babbling away from the other room. Usually, he is looking at pretty much nothing- but he's pretty darn happy most of the time, so I'll take it. :)
-Where his hands are. He has started shoving almost his entire fist in his mouth to suck on it. It is pretty darn cute and funny. He will ball up his little fist and sometimes start it up by his forehead and work it down his face until he finds his mouth. Too cute.
-Fake crying. This one is pretty entertaining. He will do these "wahhhh" sounds and make a sad face, then look around to see if I am looking or worried. Haha. Clever little dude.
-Holding his head up when in the sitting position. He had gotten kinda lazy (up until the last few days) at holding his head up at tummy time. But he lovessss sitting like a "big boy" facing wherever the "action" is. He holds his head up great like this! He also loves "standing". He will jump up and down like crazy when we hold him in the standing position.
-Kick and kick like crazy. He recently got a play mat and has figured out how to kick every single toy and bar that makes up the playmat. Or just lying on his back, he will kick and flail his arms around like crazy. Wish I had that kind of energy!


He is now:
-Eating around 4-5 ounces every feeding and more at night.
-Waking up once a night. Hopefully sometime in the next couple months he'll decide he wants to sleep through the night. :) He will go down around 10-11 and wake up to eat anywhere around 1-3. Then he will usually wake up again around 6-7 and eat and then I'll put him back down and he will sometimes sleep till 9:45! We are still working on the afternoon nap in his crib, but he for sure gets tired around 2 or 3 ish and could take like a two hour nap. Today, for example, he slept later in the morning and then didn't go down for an afternoon nap, after much crying and waiting, I just got him out and put him in his swing. He entertained himself for a while and finally fell asleep probably a half hour ago. He is still sleeping away looking as sweet as ever. :)
-Grown out of his 0-3 month clothes! I packed some stuff away the other day and got super sad! I can't believe how quickly my baby is growing! He is wearing 3-6 month clothes, but is probably on the larger end of that. Gotta prepare myself for the colder months to come and find him some warm clothes!


We are loving our sweet boy and have so much fun every day learning from him. He is teaching us how to be better and we are learning more and more how to open our hearts and grow from this love. I feel so lucky to be able to be with him every day. Even on days when I am exhausted and feel like I can't do anything right, I look at his sweet, smiling little face and I know I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be.




We love you, sweet boy!

the best is yet to come.

2 months!

our sweet Tuck is two months (and one week) old! 

at the beginning of August, Tucker was able to come off of his oxygen! he did an "overnight" test where he wore a monitor that measured his levels while he slept without his oxygen, and he ended up passing! we feel really relieved to not have to carry around all of that equipment anymore. and because of those tubes, we weren't able to do a newborn or one month photo shoot. and now he is getting so big! i'm kinda sad about it. but we are having so much fun watching him grow and learn and develop every day.

Tucker now weighs 12.1 pounds and is 23 1/4 inches

He:

-can hold his head up off the ground for tummy time for a long time

-is getting stronger and better at holding his head steady when we sit him in front of us

-is cooing and "talking" to us a lot more

-is drinking 4 or more ounces every feeding

-is only waking up once each night (and then there are "those" nights.. :) 

-is handing out a few smiles here and there

-pretty ticklish and does not like it one bit. (takes after his momma on that one)

-can roll from his tummy to his back

-still loves cuddling

-is becoming more aware of his surroundings

-doesn't like being left alone

-loves being outside and going on walks in the stroller or the baby carrier

-loves, loves, loves his daddy's silly songs and dances that he does with him. 

-is otherwise known as: Tuck, Tuckabug, baby boy, Tucky, silly manilly, sweetie pie, and a bunch of other random ones. 

-is the sweetest babe around!

because Tucker was born almost 5 weeks premature, he is technically still behind on a lot of things developmentally, which is completely normal. we have to think of him as only being about five weeks old at this point because that is about where his development will be. it's hard to not compare to other babies but we just have to remember that he is so healthy, happy and thriving and doing so well. 

it's so fun to watch our little man grow!

we love him to the moon and stars.

the best is yet to come.

Tucker Levi Jeffery: Welcome to the world!

prepare yourself for a long post :)


Friday started just like any other Friday. I had my regular non-stress test appointment at my OB/GYN at 11 in the morning and then I was going to pick up Taylor so he could come with me to the hospital for our follow-up with the neonatologist where we would be getting an ultrasound and see how big our boy was at that point.

My non-stress test was pretty uneventful. He did great on the test as usual. The nurse performing the test asked me if I could feel the contractions that were coming pretty regularly on the screen. I said that I did but they weren't particularly painful, just uncomfortable really. She said to make sure to keep an eye on them and to call if they got worse. My blood pressure was also a little higher at this point, but nothing that caused any alarm.

I left that appointment and went to pick up my husband. Taylor was so excited to go to the ultrasound and see our boy. We got to the hospital around 12:30 and my appointment was at 12:45. We were taken back and my vitals were taken. My blood pressure was higher than before. She tried taking it a couple of times, letting me "calm down" between each one but it didn't seem to help so we just went with what she got. The ultrasound tech came into the room to do the ultrasound before the neonatologist got there. She was going to take his measurements and look at his heart. From the ultrasound, he was measuring to be 7 lbs. and 11 oz. already! That's the size of a full-term baby and I was only 35 weeks and 2 days along. The doctor came in next and said some of the same stuff we had already heard and then Taylor and I had a few questions to ask. I had noticed the last few days that I had been using less insulin that normally (which is the opposite of what should be happening). At this point, it had been more than 12 hours since I had manually given myself anything and my blood sugars were normal- something obviously was off. I had also been getting killer headaches every day for the last few days, my contractions were coming pretty constantly and my swollen ankles were almost unbearable.

She asked if I had had my cervix checked yet and I hadn't. She said that she was going to send us up to Labor and Delivery and have them check that to see what was going on and possibly run a few labs. She said, "We will schedule a possible amniocentesis for when I was 37 weeks along to check his lungs if I hadn't already delivered by this point." But she was very clear that she was certain I'd have the baby before then. So, thoroughly freaked out, we collected our things, made a "follow up" appointment, and went up to Labor and Delivery.

When we got up there, they checked us into the hospital and took us to a delivery room. The nurse told me to put on a gown and where to put my stuff and such. At this point, I was freaking out. It felt permanent when we walked into that room- like I wasn't going anywhere. Why does she want me to put a gown on? We are only going to be here for a little bit and then we're leaving...right? Wrong. So I changed and then a little while later she came in and checked to see how far dilated I was. I was at almost a 2 and 70% effaced. WHAT?! Holy cow. She said we were going to run a few labs and then decide what the plan was. All of this was happening around 2:30. An hour and a half later she checked again and I was at 2.5 cm and 80% effaced. "You're in labor dear," she says. My heart fell into the pit of my stomach. At this point, my contractions were getting pretty strong and were coming every 2-4 minutes. 30 minutes later at 4:30, she came back with the lab results. "Your lab results are in. You're having a baby today!"

My lab results came back that I had preeclampsia. If I hadn't have had an appointment at the hospital that day, I don't know if we would have found out. It only would have gotten worse, so it is a huge blessing that we were where we were supposed to be...and that I was going into labor all on my own! After she broke the news to us, we were informed that the doctor was going to come in shortly and break my water and that I could get an epidural anytime. I was given advice beforehand to get the epidural before having my water broken so I asked for that immediately. Around 5 o'clock, the anesthesiologist came in to give me my epidural. I had already been poked around 6 times because the nurses couldn't get an IV started, so I wasn't super excited about this- but I was ready to get a little relief. I wanted Taylor to hold my hand but the nurse said he couldn't stand by the bed because they had too many people pass out before. Funny. So I made him stand to where I could see him and then I curled up in a ball and mentally prepared myself for what was coming. It hurt more than I was expecting because he couldn't get it in the right spot. I also had a lot of fluid in my back from being so swollen so I guess I bled a lot, which I didn't particularly notice or care to think about. Out of sight, out of mind- right?

After the epidural I was feeling good. By this point, my mom and Shayla were there as well. We were chatting and taking pictures and trying to stay calm- the baby was coming..and fast! The doctor showed up around 6 to break my water. I made everyone vacate the room and then she broke my water. After that, contractions started coming about every 2 minutes to every minute and a half.

Around 7 I was at a 4. An hour later at about a 5. Around this point, the nurse brought in a peanut-shaped yoga ball. It was put between my knees the way you would put a pillow between your legs. This was supposed to help open up my hips and help baby boy's head to drop lower. And it was supposed to speed things up as well. An hour later at 9:10 ish I was dilated to a 6. Then she checked me again at 10, which wasn't quite an hour later. After she checked, she didn't say anything. So I assumed not much had happened but had a feeling I was probably wrong about that at the same time. So I casually asked, "Oh, am I about the same then?" And she responds with a funny, excited look in her eyes- "Nope!...Guess!" So Taylor blurted out- "An 8??" And she said, "Well, you're more like a 9 and a half." WHAT! It hadn't even been an hour and I was almost at a 10! So she said she'd come back in about an hour and check again and told me that we'd be pushing soon.

I was freaking out! This was happening so fast. Taylor, my mom, Shayla, Quin and Natalie were there at this point. Everyone was shocked at how fast things were going! An hour later she came back again and I was fully dilated. Then she proceeded to tell us, "Well you've actually been fully dilated since I last checked you, but I didn't want to freak you out too much." Ha, so funny. Our doctor had come in earlier and told us to expect to start pushing before midnight. We were going to push for part of the way in the delivery room and then they'd wheel me into the operating room to finish the job. They wanted to do this so that we were close to the NICU and the area where he would be assessed. Time was going by so so fast and midnight was approaching.

Our doctor was in another room helping deliver a baby and she said as soon as he was done, that we would be ready to go. I had been feeling the urge to push starting at 11:15 but we were going to wait as long as possible. Around 11:42 we started to push in our room. I didn't know what the heck I was doing so with the first push nothing happened. Then she got the mirror and I pushed two more times with contractions in our room. She quickly made me stop because our baby was starting to crown! She told Taylor to quickly put on his "outfit" which consisted of a zip-up gown, cap, and shoe covers. I was laying there trying to breathe through the contractions as the minutes inched on. Then Taylor and the nurse wheeled me into the operating room and the rest of our delivery crew assembled. This took about five-ish minutes to get ready. When they finally got the mirror positioned, they had me push and I again pushed two more big times. They got his head out and I did one "half push" that the doctor asked for and our baby was born! I had only pushed for about 18 minutes total!

Tucker Levi Jeffery

born 12:01 AM on 6/21/2014

7 lbs. 12 oz. and 20 inches long

looking into sweet Tucker's eyes for the first time set my heart on fire. i couldn't believe that i already loved him so much! i was in tears from the moment he took his first breath. after months and months of imagining what he would look like, i looked at him and felt like i had known his face all along. 

giving birth was not at all like i had imagined. it was so so special and spiritual. i feel like i was closest to God in those moments. i feel like i understand better the love that Heavenly Father feels for us because i have a sweet angel to call my own. 

after Tucker was born, he was immediately taken to the NICU (newborn intensive care unit). they put him on a CPAP breathing treatment and watched his blood sugars for a couple hours. after a couple days, he was upgraded to the "better" NICU and remained there for the rest of his 12 day stay. it was a really long 12 days. Taylor and I had to check out of the hospital on Sunday after a 48 hour stay. leaving the hospital without my sweet baby about killed me. after returning back to our room before we checked out after seeing Tucker for one last time before going home, both Taylor and I just held each other and cried. everything seemed so impossible in that moment. for the next few days i was at my end emotionally. i went back and forth to the NICU three times and day, and taylor came whenever he could work it around his work schedule. it was hard. we were both physically, emotionally, and mentally drained. we were being bombarded with information, numbers, stats, etc. it was a lot to take in. we both talked about how it didn't really feel like we had a baby because we only saw him a few times a day. as the days inched by, Tucker got stronger and more awake and we were able to get him to feed better- the thing that was ultimately what was going to get him out of the NICU and home with us. finally, on July 2 after a two night stay in the hospital with him, we woke up, strapped him in his car seat, walked down with a nurse, put him in our car and drove home! (not without me completely bawling my eyes out first, of course.)

since then we have been loving every single second with our sweet boy! he is so so cute and fun and probably tell each other that we think that multiple times a day. he is eating more and more all the time and growing like crazy! he has gained about 1.5 pounds since birth and grown a little over an inch. and we're convinced his dark, fluffy hair has grown too! 

Tucker loves: 

-milk :)

-his swing

-snuggling in anyone's arms

-kicking his feet out and around like crazy

-putting his hands by his face

-stretching and arching his back

-tummy time

-sleeping all day and staying up all night ;)

-his car seat and car rides

-bath time (sometimes)

-going for walks in the BOB stroller

-his daddy, momma, nanas/grandmas/grandpas/uncles/aunts

Tucker doesn't love:

-doing anything that's not on his agenda

-having to sit still when he's awake

-being hungry

-being left alone

-his oxygen tube and the stickers on his face

he has quickly become the most photographed child in the whole world. i may be a little biased, but he is the cutest little boy ever. prepare for three-weeks-worth-of-pictures-overload!

he will be on his oxygen for probably a few more weeks and will remain on his apnea monitor till about his 2 month birthday. they are both a hassle to haul around, but we are grateful for the peace that they give us. however, i will be more than excited to finally be able to take him to different rooms in the house without all of his cords!

sorry for the long post, but now you are all caught up on all things Tucker! 

stay tuned :)

the best is yet to come.