so long, 2011

As 2011 draws to a close, I have been thinking of all the events that made up this year. The event that defined 2011 for us was the birth of our precious daughter, Stella Joy. Everything else preceding and following her birth revolved around expectation and adjustment to this joyous gift. Let's see, a year ago at this time, I was eighteen weeks pregnant, and visiting Brett's family in Ohio for Christmas. I was still taking Zofran for pregnancy-related nausea, but beginning to feel so much better. After coming home from Ohio, I still had my job at Express Scripts, which I did not like that much! Also at that time we were having one of the snowiest and coldest winters on record. I remember so many days sitting in my cubicle feeling sick and exhausted from pregnancy and looking out the window and seeing the snow falling and knowing that my commute would be terrible. Many times I would just crawl into bed after a long work day and feel so sick because working exasperated the pregnancy symptoms and I would just have a good, cleansing cry. I so looked forward to January 12th when we would find out the gender of the baby. We didn't have the clearest ultrasound in terms of gender identification, but the tech said she was 70% sure it was a girl. We later had a second ultrasound at a women's center January 25th, where one of my friends works part-time, and that tech was able to see a clearer picture and give us a better confirmation that she was indeed a girl. So exciting! Brett skied in Vail January 26-31. While he was away, I went to work and hung out with my family that weekend; Mom and I went to St. Paul for a gaslight tour of the James J. Hill mansion and dinner one of the evenings and I bought a sweet little long-sleeved onesie from a baby boutique. February brought more snow; we got together with friends throughout the month; I had my glucose tested to see if I had gestational diabetes (pregnancy-related diabetes), and was relieved to know that I did not have it; I started my Pottery Barn Kids baby registry online. March kicked off the beginning of my third trimester of pregnancy; my friend Tiffany had a baby girl; Brett flew out to California for work; I started showing a little baby bump during this month which was very exciting; my last day at Express Scripts was March 30th, a very happy day for me!

April 2nd we attended the labor and delivery class at Methodist Hospital for most of the day; I had the honor of attending two bridal showers for my sister; I turned 29; my friends hosted a baby shower for me April 30th; May signaled 8 months of pregnancy and this is when my feet started to swell and lots of discomfort set in due to my burgeoning belly! I had a couple bridesmaid dress fittings; I bought things for the baby; I hosted a bachelorette party for my sister; Susie and Jesse got married on the 14th and I was Susie's maid of honor at 8 1/2 months pregnant; two more weeks to go to my due date...lots of discomfort, lots of sleeping, lots of reading, lots of wearing flip-flops because I couldn't bend over to put on shoes, much less tie shoelaces; lots of mulling over labor and delivery scenarios; this month I was going to the dr. for checkups once a week; May 30th due date came and went without incident. Friday, June 3rd saw X-Men with Jared and Corinne. Saturday and Sunday, June 4 &5 enjoyed beautiful weather and spent one of the days in Wayzata and Excelsior, barely being able to walk because I was so big and Stella was so heavy. Monday, June 6th: doctor appointment. Dr. calls Methodist to see if there is a room available for me so I can get induced. Put on waiting list. Tuesday, June 7th: Methodist calls me in the morning and says to come in a little before 10 a.m. It's 103 degrees in the Twin Cities. I am induced at around 10:30; the next day I experience the exhaustion and exhilaration of giving birth: Stella Joy is born at 2:38 p.m.

Life as we know it changes for Brett and me. Big time.

June and July: we find ourselves in a sleep-deprived fog of joy/exhaustion/trying to figure out this baby. I benefit from frequent visits from my mom during the week; people bring us meals; Susie comes over and helps on the weekends. My aunts host a baby shower for me.

August: Stella starts to sleep longer stretches and we begin to feel human again. Brett's sister Barbie, her husband Walter, and their two boys, Clint and Nolan, pass through on a road trip out West to meet Stella; I take Stella out for many walks in the stroller through our neighborhood.

September: Stella is dedicated at church; Brett's parents visit; Brett goes on camping trip in the Boundary Waters with his brother.

October/November: Enjoying life; starting to find my stride as a mom. Stella's personality continues to blossom.

December: Christmas hectic-ness and fun. Unseasonably warm. I love being a mom.

18 weeks pregnant

Exciting week-20 ultrasound!

Twins season kickoff party (they ended up having a terrible season)

Baby shower; my sister-in-law, Corinne

Evening before Stella's birthday; at that point, I was only allowed to eat graham crackers; this was the calm before the storm of back labor and long night of nausea and other exciting labor-related stuff

Stella's heartbeat on top; the contractions on bottom

This is the point in the photo shoot that Stella was starting to lose it; you can see Susie's reflection in the painting. Susie, bless her heart, was there the whole time my cousin was taking pictures, and getting Stella to smile in nearly every shot!

To all my friends and family and any others who have stumbled upon my blog: thank you for reading, commenting, speaking into my life, encouraging me, being my friend, my support throughout this life-changing year. May God bless you and teach you wonderful things about himself throughout 2012. May you know him more than ever. May you grow in ways you never thought possible.

Much love from the Johnson family.