my fitness blog

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Monday, February 15, 2010

not again...

easter 2009
st. george marathon 2008
its hard to believe that last year at this time i was driving home from utah after staying there for a month to help my dad recover from emergency open heart surgery due to endocarditis. months of IV antibiotics, no driving for 12wks, and tons of other unforeseen complications
dad was a really brave and a hero through all of it.
But now it seems he has to go back in again to replace the mitral valve that didn't heal/take properly. he has only had 20% of his heart functioning and was having pulmonary problems since about Sept. I can't imagine having to have open heart surgery again, let alone only 13months from the first surgery. it was so hard the first time around to see my dad a marathon runner, strong powerful man, better repair man than bob villa himself, go through so much physical pain and torment after taking such good care of his body all these years.
So tomorrow is the surgery day, and as i sit on bed rest i hope and pray that all goes well. its a tough and complicated surgery and i wish i could be there to help him recover, or just wish him well face to face and give him one last hug. but for now i pray and try to control all my emotions. I know he is in good hands and he is truly the bravest man i know, and has never asked the question why all this has happened to him, yet as he says has, "come what may and love it."
i love you dad, your my best friend and greatest model of seeking joy through everything.
love, billy
one of many training runs organized by dad

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

26wks

wanted to do a quick update on the babies.
we finally have made it 26wks which is amazing:) i am the opposite of most pregnant women i tell the babies everyday to just keep swimming in my tummy as long as possible...we are in no rush to get them here and as uncomfortable as i may get sometimes it doesn't out weigh the hope for some healthy chubby babies.:)
last week was a rough one, late tuesday night i started bleeding a lot and our dr said if this happens to just head to labor and delivery. so at 10pm spence loaded me up in the car and we headed to the hospital. little did we expect to be not only admitted but to stay 2nights:( and poor spence of course had a test wed morning and neither of us got any sleep. can i just say i have an amazing husband.
it was and is extremely emotional and unfortunately all i really want to do is cry just a tear or too because of how scarey everything is...but if i get emotional i can't control it and then i have way too many contractions. but i will say with the dyer need to cry and let it out comes great comfort from Heavenly Father and i will say he has really done some miracles in this pregnancy already. and i will be eternally grateful for this chance to be a mom of two little girls.:)
the nurses were good...expect i would have loved it if my mom and sisters could have been there, but i realized spending a night alone in a hospital bed how brave spence and i are and have been through all this. i am surprised how when bad news comes spence just takes all the fear away and reassures me. we are trying to be like what little lucy says, "tough as nails" through all this and we are managing somehow through all this.
i wanted to thank all the wonderful friends here in AZ that have really come through the last couple months. dinners, rides, magazines, more dinners, prayers, emails blessings, phone calls, you name it they have done it without even thinking twice. so i guess through the last couple months i have realized how brave i can be, how much my Heavenly Father really loves us, and how valuable true friends really are. so thank you to all that have helped and for being so understanding during this wild roller coaster ride of a pregnancy.
at the hospital we saw an amazing perinatologist (who chastised me about eating more, gaining a certain amt of weight by certain weeks, and that it wouldn't hurt to eat a hamburger every once in awhile as she scolded me for lack of protein in my diet. spence loved that she was disciplining me on the need to eat more protein which i totally agree but just not in the form of a cow) we discovered that it seems like the bleeding is coming from one of the placentas. but miraculously it is healing itself pretty good so the plan is to wait it out day by day and week by week all while on strict bed rest. i'm still taking (everyday because i have so many contractions) my wonderful contraction medications to minimize going into labor this soon which really freaks me out. but i know these babies can hang in there just a couple more months. as my dr said if we need to hang me upside down and put a cork in me for a couple months we'll do it!
the fun news is, is that baby a is measure great and weighs est. 1lb 12oz, and baby b is 1lb 6oz. which is amazing:) i know it seems crazy to be glad for a 1lb baby but when you are having so many complications and they could come any time now its nice to know they are growing good and strong.
so theres the run down on a never dull pregnancy. thanks again to everyone that has helped out, sent flowers and done special things for spencer and i. hopefully the next two weeks will be extremely uneventful. until then, lots of love car and spence and babies:)
and a special congrats to my bff heather and kevin who welcome their baby boy Ladd a little early than expected but way to be so brave heather!!!

Monday, January 11, 2010

top 9 of 2009

In no particular order (except for #1):
9. Trip to Havasupai, 114 degrees, hiking 30miles with pack while pregnant(but we didn't know it), wild dingos and lots of fun in the sun!
8. SheRock tri, the only race i did in 2009:(
7. Getting hired to do my dream job at 24hr fitness
6. Finished and survived 1st year of medical school
5. Dad recovered from: meningitis, septic staph infection, endocarditis, and open heart surgery all at the same time.
4. Having our car stollen from our drive-way never to been seen again, oh little honda how we miss you:)
3. spence playing Bob Villa and completing the ultimate honey-do list- de-popcorned ceilings, added shelves in the closet, moved/removed cupboards, added recessed lighting
2. Becoming addicting to the TV series LOST
AND THE MOST IMPORTANT
1. discovering we're having twin girls...that are a little too eager to get here:)but we will be making them wait until april whether they like it or not.

Thursday, January 7, 2010

brown christmas 2009

the whole family...minus paul, mom, and 5children.(if you can imagine) but we got
jason and norman and that's what counts!
this was our 4th christmas together but our first brown christmas!!! we almost weren't able to make it do to the contractions with the twins but the dr finally said it would be ok to go if i never ever, ever left the couch/bed. (hince me way in the back laying down)
we had a great time, i haven't been home for christmas for so long that i was dreaming of all the good food way back in september.
we kept all the brown's traditions taco's, fudge, eggnog, and lots and lots of laughter.
my favorite thing was Brown Jeopardy hosted and created by JO. it was fun to go down memory lane and laugh at so many memories.>>>>Jo you out did yourself like always.but i still think the redheads won!
every year the kids put on the navity, rotating parts. we did this when i was a kid with my dear aunt sue and it was fun to see the kids participate, this year there were several piano solos!! and only one mishap with the baby Jesus...tay bug wanted to steal her baby back:)

me and my folks! don't they both look so good, especially dad its crazy to think we almost lost him again and christmas just wouldn't be the same without him
--promise dr erickson this was the one time i stood up(and it was on the way to the bathroom)
what else did we do??
Reese took good care of me, doing my hair, painting my nails and refilling my waterbottle
Spence bought us a new camera for christmas...we aren't about gifts just about spending time with each other and with family:)
saw how much all the little kids have grown!!
had the best pedicure ever thanks jo and pam and abbie
ate my weight plus some in tacos and all sort of junk
laughed a lot with spencer:)
spence played endless hours of swords with cy guy
did an ultrasound at my old office and showed the whole family the twins...it was fun to finally have family around to see the twins kicking each other and what they look like:)
did i mention we ate a lot:)
spence was able to go to a killer spin class with the master spinner Jo,
he saw Avatar with the fam, and swam at the legacy center, he was the kids jungle gym several times, and abbie painted his toes!!
drove in the car for 12hrs during snow storm with me laying down seeing nothing out the window but white heavy snow, and occationally hearing
spence say"wow another car off the road!"
watching old home videos from 1968-to the 80's!
and of course seeing the newyorkers and all their charisma!!
last but not least, having another wonderful christmas together and celebrating the opportunity to become parents!!
i can only imagine what next christmas will bring!!

christmas cont

any good guesses on what santa brought CY??? balls and jerseys and that about it!
he couldn't be happier!!
ms Reese got some cute clothes from aunt jessi, and santa brought a ticket to phoenix!!!
now all she can talk about is coming to phoenix to help take care of car-car:)

Taylor bug got a shopping cart....we didn't see her the rest of the day she was busy
shopping with her baby.

and here are some wild reindeers:)

and of course grandma pink/black/brown cuddling with Tay and doing some christmas story reading....all the babies love grandma