Bronson: 14 Months

It is hard to believe that Bronson is 14 months old today. It is also amazing to realize that he has now officially been home for 1 year. His homecoming day was the 26th of February. On March 3rd will be his original due date. He is getting so big and it seems that his development is growing exponentially. Until one week before his first birthday he didn't have any teeth and now he is sporting 6 new ones. He continues to make me one happy mommy and I am so incredibly blessed to have him as my son. Just today he made me laugh so hard when he decided to start playing a game while he was asleep. In his sleep he kept smearing me with kisses and laughing. I was cracking up because the kid was totally asleep while doing this. He must have been dreaming or something. It was way too funny!!!

Here are Bronson's newest stats:

-I moved him forward facing, I will not disclose his weight right now!!! (It is close enough)
-He has six teeth
-He says all sorts of baby words, but his favorite continues to be dada
-He says mama the entire time he eats
-He can take several steps on his own, but chooses to hold on to the ottoman to get around
-He is starting to climb things, including into the bathtub and up the stairs
-He continues to have days when he doesn't eat, it worries me but I know it won't last
-He LOVES monkeys!!! He got a new one today and can't quite pick it up which is making him go crazy.

Bronson on the Move!!!

I am honored...

I have been asked to prepare a speech for the upcoming March of Dimes: March for Babies event in Avery Park on April 25, 2009. I am so excited!!! This is such an honor to be able to take the time to speak about my son and experiences as a mommy of a preemie. Our team goal has already been reached too; I have ten walkers signed up. Now we just need to work together to reach our monetary goal, $1000. If you are wanting to walk or donate money to our team, please let me know. This is such a great event to honor Bronson and remember Jackson. Our two Angels.

Super Excited!!!

I am super excited for the following things. Some of them are more exciting than others, but still I am so excited.

1. Tomorrow is the day that my dear friend Summer finds out the gender of her next baby. Her son Ayden is Bronson's best friend. Our super good friends, Matt and Alex are having their 3rd boy in June and we couldn't be more happy for them.

2. I had my March of Dimes luncheon yesterday and it was the best small event that I have been to in a long time. Kimmy (our event coordinator) is a woman after my own heart. I am so excited to work with someone on a charity event that is so organized. The luncheon got me super pumped for the upcoming March for Babies. I even won a sweatshirt.

3. I am planning our 10 year class reunion. Our class president contacted me asked for help. I have a great group of girls that are helping me and I am sure that it should be a great event. I wasn't really sure if I would even go, but now I am looking forward to it.

4. Although my husband is sick, I am excited for this weekend. We have NO plans!!! Our only plan is to spend time with each other and maybe take our son out to lunch. He is loving food of all types right now, so we were thinking about Red Robin. (We have a gift certificate, another thing to be happy about.)

5. We finally found a family doctor in Dallas. This has been a prayer of ours for awhile. Kyle and I both wanted a more local doctor and we found one that just so happens to go to our Church. Two bonus points for this answered prayer. Thanks Mitch for the referral.

6. Bronson is getting so close to full-time walking. All of his new steps in life are making me so excited. Last night he had his first "fast-food" of a Quizno's sandwich. It might sound weird but it made me so happy to give him something like this. I guess that it validated the feeling that he is OKAY and SO STRONG!!!!!

7. Last, but not least. I am excited for the new Men's Bible Study at our church. Kyle is getting to go once a month to this event and it will give him a chance to reconnect with some of his friends that he doesn't get to see all of the time.

Clarification

In my post about breastfeeding, I was not trying to make a judgement against those that do not breastfeed. Bronson was severely premature so in the NICU formula was NOT an option. He either had to have milk provided by myself or donor milk that costs close to $3 an ounce. I was not trying to offend anyone that isn't able or wanting to breastfeed. As I posted at the beginning of my blog, I wasn't pro-breastfeeding prior to having Bronson. It worked for me, but it doesn't work for everyone. I also know several blogger friends that weren't able to breastfeed for various reasons and their kids are just as healthy as Bronson. Just wanted to clarify so no one is offended.

March of Dimes

Have you noticed the button at the right of my page? I am walking this year in the March for Babies in Corvallis, OR on April 25, 2009. If you would like to donate or join our team, please visit http://www.marchforbabies.org/ and type in my name. It will lead you to our team page and give you options for helping. Last year we will able to raise $1200 in Jackson's name for our non-profit organization, Jackson Deets Memorial Fundraiser. This annual March for Babies will be our physical way of remembering our journey of loss and strength in dealing with a stillborn and premature pregnancy. We hope to make this event a special event for Bronson and would love for any and all of our friends to come and walk with us. You don't have to donate to support the cause. Walking with us is support enough. Let me know if you just want to walk with our team.

Farewell Faithful Friend

If breastfeeding posts make you squeamish, skip this post. This is an ode to my speedy companion, the breastpump. Today marks my final day of washing parts, bottles, and various other things that accompany this pump. Yes, I am filled with a huge sense of relief after pumping full-time for over 13 months, but I am also a little sad.

Prior to getting pregnant, I was always one of those people that could never imagine myself breastfeeding. Everything seemed so foreign to me. It wasn't until I discovered that I would be having a premature baby that the need for breastmilk became a reality to me. The doctors told me the day that I was admitted to Sacred Heart the importance of Bronson never having formula and I took this is as doctor's order and never let an once of formula cross his lips. I am also sad to say that except for twice in his life, my son had no desire to breastfeed, so hence the need for full-time pumping.

Until Bronson was 10 months old I pumped every three hours of every day (8 times a day). I was able to slow down a bit after that, but still pumped at least 6 times a day. Yes, this is kind of a brag. I am proud to say that I stayed with the program and allowed Bronson this precious gift. I also share this as encouragement to those that have had difficulty with nursing or pumping. I was so lucky to have 24 hour help with a lactation nurse for the first 2 months of Bronson's life. It also helps that one of our favorite NICU nurse's became one of our bestfriends and has helped me during those extremely difficult times.

I was also blessed with an extreme abundance of milk for the first six months of Bronson's life. My body still felt the need to produce for multiples. It wasn't able to adapt, because of the lack of nursing and the full-time pumping. I feel that this was God's way of allowing Jackson's legacy to carry out. I was able to donate several coolers of milk to our dear friend, a mother of triplets. I never thought in a million years that I would do something like this, however when asked I didn't hesitate. My thought was if someone else's preemie needs milk, why let it go to waste. This was such an amazing experience for me.

As I write this blog that was originally supposed to be short, I am reminded of several situations that this has put me in. I will never forget having to pump in the backseat of the Starker's car during Civil War half-time while Jim kept guard of the car for me so no one would see. I also recall having to pump in route to Sunriver because Bronson ran out of milk. I became less and less worried about what others thought and more focused on providing nutrition to my son. Thanks to those of you that have provided a "private" room for me in the past year so that I can pump. I am so thankful for such a supportive and loving group of family and friends. My goal to pump for Bronson's 1st year would not have been reached without the loving support of people willing to step in and hold Bronson once in a while so that I could pump. I think that it will be a life long joke around the Deets when someone says, I have to go pump. These five words have became a very often heard word around here.

As I end this post I want to say, this isn't for everyone. It requires a great deal of patience, time, and support, but it was way worth it. I only hope someday that if we have more children they choose to take the more natural way of nursing. The following is a list of benefits of pumping that were true for me:

1. I lost tons of weight. I am about 7 pounds from weighing what I did when I got married.
2. My son did stay healthier while his diet consisted of only breastmilk.
3. I stayed healthier.
4. It was tons cheaper. Our grocery budget has became so much more since he started eating whole foods.
5. I felt a strong attachment and validation of being Bronson's mommy knowing that I was able to provide all of his nutrition for his first 9 months completely and then after he started on solids, all of his milk until 12 months.
6. He has never had any food allergies, a strong bonus of breast fed babies.

Kind of tagged...

I thought that this little tag was fun. Take the 4th picture from your 4th folder and randomly post it on your blog. Mine isn't like Kelleigh's (dead fish), however it is pretty cute. And for you Beaver's fans it makes me want football season to come sooner. I plan on taking Bronson to his first game!!!

Sharing Recipes

I haven't tried this exact recipe yet, but my friend Jill Fery is a wonderful cook and loves this one. Shyann asked that we all help her out by posting some recipes on our blogs. She has all of her cookbooks packed away and needs some help. If you have a recipe to share, please share...I know a few of you are wonderful cooks.

TURKEY MEATLOAF

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, chopped (1 1/2 cups)
2 garlic clove, minced
3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon pepper, divided
1 1/2 tablespoons Worchestershire sauce
1/3 cup fat free, less sodium chicken broth
3 tablespoons ketchup, divided
1 3/4 lbs ground turkey, 97% lean
3/4 cup dry breadcrumbs
1 large egg, lightly beater
1 large egg white lightly beaten

Preheat overn to 375. Heat oil in medium skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring frequently, until soft, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; cook, stirring, 1 minute. Stir in Worchestershire sauce, broth and 1 tablespoon ketchup; transfer mixture to a large bowl and cool.

Add turkey, breadcrumbs, egg, egg white, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper to mixture in bowl and mix well (mixture will be very moist).

Cover a baking sheet with aluminum foil and coat lightly with cooking spray. Form the turkey mixture into a loaf and place on the pan. Brush meatloaf evenly with remaining 2 tablespoons ketchup. Bake 1 hour or until termometer inserted into center registers 170. Let meatloaf stand 5 minutes before serving.

CANCER...

This is one word that I can honestly say that I hate. It has touched my life so much that I have always sort of assumed that someday it would touch someone even closer. I have prepared myself that it may someday touch a parent, sister, or myself. Yet, I don't think that anything can prepare anyone for the moment that they hear that their mom or dad has cancer. Two of our dear friends are dealing with this battle right now and my heart breaks for them. One has asked for anonymous prayer at this time, but the other requests lots of prayer and so I will gladly add them to our blog so that our fellow friends and family can add them to their chains.

Please pray for our great friend, Paul Mortenson. He is the dad to our friend, John Mortenson. Last weekend we had a wonderful visit with all of the Mortenson's; including Genie, Heather, and Keith too. We love this family so much and ask that God provides healing for Paul's body and for his family member's hearts. Once again we are reminded that no one is without trials in this journey called life. I always try to remember that the word Cancer has the word CAN. God can and will provide healing with prayer. John, Heather, Genie, Laura, Nathan, Keith, and Taylor; we are praying a whole lot of love and healing your way.

For my other friend that needs to remain quiet right now, please know that God hears every word that you speak and that I am here for you too. I can't begin to put into words how you must feel right now. Please blogger friends and family add our friends to your prayers.