Florida=Pure Excitement!!!

So we leave for tomorrow. This will be my second Christmas in Florida! It's not like we where going to have a white Christmas anyway... i mean there is a chance of snow here but it's been such an awkwardly mild winter... no icy roads... or parking lots for that matter... no slipping and almost falling on my butt... which i could always do without (they don't sand or salt the road... why bother it's just going to rain and wash it all away and then snow again)! No just rain... since after Thanksgiving it's been mild here! We actually re-insured my car, you see during winters here my car couldn't even make it to the center of town and we live a block away! Don't get me wrong the few days it was bad here Becca crashed her car (on my street actually) and Amy crashed April's SUV (that's right a 4- wheel drive car can slide too) but that was made apparent last year when Bryan crashed our 4- runner into his truck... kinda ironic actually!

Anyway it makes it kinda nice cause then i don't have to take my poor baby out in the freezing cold! I bundle him up like crazy when it's snows but still run from the apartment to the car to the store to the car back to the apartment... poor guy i don't want him to get cold! He has some of the cutest snow suits ever though lol!!!

Well we leave for Florida tomorrow with a stop in VA in the middle! I am so super excited i cannot wait!!! Oh i miss all of my family in the lower 48 so much!!! I am so excited my Mother-in-Law and I are going shopping as soon as we get there and then sometime while where there we are going to our yearly Spa Trip! I can't WAIT!!!

~BTW it's almost five in the morning in FL and it's 78 degree's!!!!!!!!!!! AHHHHHHHH YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Tommy Update

So as some of you know little Tommy had an enlarged Kidney during his 20 week ultrasound. This ultrasound sent us to Anchorage a couple weeks later. We where told that it wasn't that bad and it was likely that it would correct itself before he was born. So he had an Ultrasound on the day he was born and all looked normal... well you must be asking yourself why i bring it up now... Well we had another ultrasound and it is Enlarged again... i guess babies are dehydrated when they are born and that is why his kidney looked normal.

This completely scared me... so many things went through my head... luckily we went and spoke to one of the doctors and he explained everything. And there is nothing we could have done to prevent this and there is a 1 in 10 change that he will need surgery but it usually fixes itself. So we won't find out wether or not he needs the surgery until the 28th of January and if he does he has to be 6months old to have it... Also this is pretty commen and it's nothing to worry about... so we'll just keep praying and be thankful that he is healthy otherwise.

SAD...

So my parents came to visit us and see the Baby, they got here on Tuesday morning and left last night ;(  it was a short trip but fun. My dad finally got to meet my husband which was so wonderful! They loved the baby and i have a few pics to post of them with Little Tommy. I am so sad that they left but am so thrilled that we get to see them late december early january during our trip to Florida... (and then are parents get to meet each other!) I have to try to not get too excited cause we still have another month before we even get to go!

My Teddy bear...

Well we received a little Teddy bear hat from one of my friends... Brittany... and it's still a little big however they little guy has such a huge head ;D that none of the other hats really fit him anymore!!! It just looks so cute with his little Kimono outfit from one of his Great-Grandma's (Tom's grandma) so here are a couple pics of him in his hat... my brother (Tommy's Uncle Jake) says he looks like a teddy bear :D

Raspberries

Well it's official...

...Tommy does not like raspberries!!!

Little Mister Independent... well Kinda

So It's official Tommy does not like to sleep in his Pack and Play... he actually prefers his crib, or Mommy or Daddy's Chest! He has a doctors appointment tomorrow so we find out if he has grown at all! He is getting a little too long for his clothing but he is still small enough width wise... so the 0-3 month clothing would just fall off of him. He eats good and is on a very good schedule.  We are just so excited to have him in our lives!

Announcements!

Here are our wonderful announcements thanks to my awesome sister!!!

Image © 2008 Bella Paperie

Baby Boom of Kodiak

Well this last month and a half has been the baby boom of Kodiak... lol especially this last week! First Amy had her beautiful baby... little Matthew at the beginning of September, Then i had my sweetie at the beginning of October they are almost one month exactly appart... then Melissa had her boy two days after i had Tommy... and now i am happy to say that Tawny had her little girl Kris within the last day!!! Amazing four babies just a little over a month in time!!!! GO KODIAK WATER

Wow the days have flown

Well the last five days have flown... however i am on a weird schedule... due to my baby boy so i am tired pretty much all the time but am able to wake up at night with no problem.

I think he is getting even more cute as the days go on. Tom and i sit and stare at him. It's so crazy to think that he was inside of me for so long! He has already started rolling onto his side and picks his head up on his own... lol... Tom and i both freak out cause he'll pick his head up and so we quickly grab it so it doesn't fall... but so far so good!

He looks so much like me when i was a baby, of corse i haven't actually seen pic's of Tom yet but i am excited to because i can already see simularites... at least he got Tom's langth seeing how all of the New Born clothing is a little short. We all think it's so funny cause in comparison to Tom, Tommy looks so tiny but when i hold him he looks a lot bigger! (He's still TINY)

Thomas Aaron

Well we finally had our little baby boy! He was born at 1245am yesterday... He weighs 8lbs 9oz is 20 1/4 inches long and has lt brown hair and blue eyes... he is my perfect sweet little one! Although he likes to sleep and is very content with being held :D he didn't want to come out... he was ONE week late.

I was to be induced at 7 am on Monday morning... i finally was able to fall asleep at about one and thought at least i will get about six hours of sleep... NOT seeing as i was woken up at 3:30 am having crippling contractions... i knew i was in labor! An hour after going to the hospital my water was broke and i was in hard labor. However he still didn't really want to come out! I was in hard labor from 3:45 am till 10 pm when i was finally ready to push, at 7 i started to feel my contracts... not pressure but pain again... told the nurse and she just said it was good to feel pressure... i told her it was not pressure... i could handle pressure it was the pain that worried me she told me to give myself the little boost, i did and i felt a wet spot on my back... i told her she felt my back and said it must be cold... durning delivery i had to reposition because my doctor thought the baby might be facing the wrong way when i repositioned i noticed a large wet spot on the bed where my epideral was on my  back. So after 2 hour and 45 min of pain my little man was in my arms! My wonderful husband Tom was there the whole time holding my hand and making sure i had everything i needed and was well taken care of! 

Well for all of you that where worried about the kidney... the ultrasound taken yesterday showed his kidney's where completely normal!!! We most definately thank GOD for not only helping me on Tom out but blessing us we such a perfect little boy!

"IS the world ready for another Tommy Briese?"... Get ready world here he comes!!!

Well My Mom gets here on Saturday which i am totally stoked about! I cannot wait to see her... and if the baby hasn't come by then we are going to be walking and doing squats to help things move on down ;D

I feel as though i have been pregnant forever! LOL I almost can't remember how it feels to be not pregnant!!! I guess i am just getting ready to be a mom then i will always be a mom no matter what... wow i am going to be a mom weird!!! ;D I've been really sore the last couple days and kinda nauseated which is not fun... pretty much miserable! But soon (trying to be optimistic) enough the baby will be here! I started getting really swollen which is not fun my shoes don't fit anymore as well as my rings (although they have been on a downhill slope for about two months now)!!! BUT it's so worth it! I would do it again any day... and the baby isn't even here yet but i knew he's coming... as James (Tommy's best friend whom he grew up with) put it... "is the world ready for another Tommy Briese" well get ready world cause here he comes!!!

Finally Saturday

So last night Tom and I went to Matt Cole's (yes his name is Matt Cole) wedding... It was very short... 15 min to be exact then we went to the Powerhouse... I started having a lot of contractions and they really haven't stopped. I have been getting a couple every hour rather than 1 every couple hours... I am trying to not get too excited but i almost can't help! 

Back to their wedding... LOL... Courtney (sp) looked Beautiful wearing a off white floor langth dress, and Matt had on kakis and a white button up... (Jake was in a full suit lol). It was very sweet simple and cute!

I am so looking forward to a nice relaxing weekend!!! I am just waiting for my wonderful hubby to get home (he had to go to a CPR class).  37 weeks finally but not going soon enough!

So Sad

Well some of you might have read this on my myspace but i figured it should be put up here too... (and i have the new article as well)...

So Today i picked up my husband from work to go to my OB appointment with me and he informed me that a 65 from Barbers Pt. crashed today. Three people where found and pronounced dead and the fourth S.O.B. (soul on board) was not found... this really hit me hard, for all who don't know Barbers Pt. is in Honolulu Hawaii... we had a 65 Helo on our boat from Barbers Pt. for our summer patrol.

I immediately started asking Tommy who the people on board where. He only was sure of one name and that was the LCDR (the pilot). My heart sank our lead pilot was named the same name Wischmeier. He said that he was the only officer and they all had families which meant that three out of the four of the rest of our former air crew where not on it. I later called one of my friends on the boat and found out that it was the same pilot and we also "knew" the fourth guy that is missing. 

This really hit home for me. Not only because i knew the two guys, the LCDR gave me a lot of advice on my career and everything. But because they where in the CG doing small boat ops... i've done small boat ops with a Helo before in Montauk... as a matter of fact i did helo ops on the cutter with Mr. Wischmeier... 

Please Keep their families in your prayers. Life is unpredictable.

Here is the news article...

3 dead, 1 missing in CG helo crash off Hawaii

By Philip Ewing - Staff writer
Posted : Saturday Sep 6, 2008 7:44:35 EDT

Three Coast Guardsmen are dead and one remained missing Friday after an HH-65C Dolphin rescue helicopter crashed at sea Thursday night off the coast of Hawaii during a training exercise with a motor lifeboat.

The Dolphin was practicing raising and lowering its rescue basket with a 47-foot motor lifeboat when it crashed, said Lt. John Titchen, a spokesman for Coast Guard District 14, which covers Hawaii. A Honolulu Fire Department boat pulled three of the crashed Dolphin’s crew members from the water and transferred them to another Dolphin, which flew them late Thursday to a hospital, where they died.

The dead were identified as co-pilot Lt. Cmdr. Andrew Wischmeier, 44, of Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; rescue swimmer Petty Officer 1st Class David Skimin, 38, of San Bernardino, Calif.; and flight mechanic Petty Officer 2nd Class Joshua Nichols, 27, of Gloucester, Va., according to the Coast Guard. The name of the missing crew member was not released.

There was no early indication of what caused the crash. A Coast Guard announcement described the weather conditions at the time of the crash as “favorable,” with winds below 15 knots and seas below 8 feet.

The crew members of an Air Force C-17 Globemaster III cargo plane radioed the FAA and the Coast Guard that they had seen the helicopter crash Thursday, Titchen said, and circled the crash site until other boats and aircraft could get to the scene. The Coast Guard continued searching through the night for the missing fourth crew member, Tichen said, including the 110-foot patrol boat Kiska, homeported in Hilo, and a C-130 Hercules patrol plane from Coast Guard Air Station Barber’s Point. The Honolulu Fire and Police Departments were set to join the search after first light.

The crashed helicopter, one of four Dolphins stationed in Hawaii, had completed the Deepwater modifications to upgrade it to a “C” model by the end of 2007, Titchen said. The “Charlie”-model Dolphins have more powerful engines and improved electronic systems than the stock variant.

Rear Adm. Mason Brown, the commander of District 14, called the crash “a terrible circumstance” in an announcement, and Titchen said that the deaths were devastating for Coast Guardsmen everywhere.

“The Coast Guard’s a small service, especially here in Hawaii, and this loss is felt by every Coast Guard member, especially here, and our hearts go out to the families of the missing, and our lost shipmates. We grieve for them. It’s been a really hard day.”

36 Weeks and Counting!

It's all going so fast! Where in the last month, I am so tired beyound belief! I can sleep all day and all night and not even miss a beat! The baby is in the proper position and the doctor says any day now! As for the baby shower last week... well it didn't go quite as bad as i thought it was going to go! I still felt as though i was a last minuet thought. There was supposed to be a home made cake... there wasn't and it wasn't from the bakery that i said if the cake was to be store bought that is where i wanted it from... i would have even payed for it! Everything seemed so last minuet and no one even knew where i was registered!!! (well except the person throwing it!) I think the worst part was that the person throwing it at her house LEFT THE TV ON... and it is one of those big screen tv's  and this like 52 inch.... so it totally was almost like the main focus the whole time... I got home and almost started crying, like i have said before i guess i should be happy that they threw it in the first place.

In other news Tommy and i wen to Anchorage on Tuesday... that was a lot of fun we got some much needed clothing for the two of us and had a relaxing day hanging out and enjoying each others company!

The babies room is almost completely set up.... it looks so cute all of his green stuff... speaking of such i ordered his car seat stroller base and pac and play from gracobaby.com and i got the car seat on Monday and then again yesterday... yes that's right no stroller base and no pac and play they sent me the car seat AGAIN and no packing slip which sucks... so now i have to call graco and hope the other things will come at the right time! I couldn't believe it!

It's getting closer... well everything is getting so much closer! The baby is due in a month and a week!!! It's crazy to think that it's so close! Tom and I are thrilled!

My Mom and Dad are coming my Mom is going to try to come a week before and stay a week after and my dad will come the week after! It's going to be so awesome to see them!

Well my friends here in Kodiak are throwing me a baby shower... I am so thankful that they are doing that for me! However I am trying my hardest to not be worried about it but it seems like EVERY part of it is an after thought! I keep telling myself to be happy that at least they are throwing this for me but it's nerve racking thinking about how it's getting taken care of.... (i need to just relax :D ).

Well I don't have to work anymore, well not until after my maternity leave is over! Which has been the most relieving thing ever! I was so exhausted for so long and now i finally feel like i have some energy! I don't feel like i am going to pass out! (I think Optimus is stoked that i am home) i don't think he has stoped purring since i got home this morning...

Well here is the newest Prego Photo Taken Today 35 Weeks!!!

Blessed

I cannot wait. Only a month and a half left! I am so blessed with a wonderful Husband and an awesome family! My mom is coming about a week before the due date and my dad is coming after! I am totally excited! I cannot wait to see them. I don't think anything could top the way i feel right now! God has surely blessed me beyound belief. Time sure has flown from when we first found out till now! I am ready for Thomas Aaron to come! September is bound to be an amazing month!

Me and my honey are going to the beach today... it' s finally sunny in the horrible place! He takes such good care of me :D

The Life!

A Briesey Check Up

Well I thought that that i would finally start a blog. Mainly to dedicate it to my life with my Wonderful Husband and the baby that is due at the end of September! So here is a brief Photo Catch up of my Year in Kodiak AK enjoy!

Last Summer I spent May through the End of July in Hawaii and a small island Named Kwajelien (it is an Island that is part of the Marshell Island's):

Me on the Fantail of the Boat... look at that sun

Me and Another girl on the Boat Amy Dressed

 up... something you cannot do in Kodiak!:

Me and Amy at the Water park:

This was my favorite person on the boat DC1... His last night!

Me and my halibut... yes i pulled it up all by myself! WHAT NOW!? :D

The Slaughter house... AKA the Faintail

Me filleting my FISH! :D I almost Died in the evolution... and we weren't moving!!! (oh and thats the DOC right behind me :D)

Luckily i have always liked being out doors because in Kodiak that is how i spend my time. Here are some Kodiak Pictures!

My last patrol on the Alex Haley we went to the Bering Sea... have you ever watch the worlds deadliest catch? Well imagine that...

December 29th 2007 at Howard Beach in Tarpon Springs Florida

Here is him Purposing

We got married on February 9th 2008 in one of the Little Chapels on Island. Thanks to all of our friend we where able to have a peaceful little wedding!

Our Addition Due on September 23rd

Thomas Aaron Briese:

This was taken a week ago

Our Swing and Bouncer Seat

The crib....

I look like i've swallowed a beach ball and have gotten very uncomfortable! Luckily i have a wonderful husband to take care of me :D. I haven't had any complications thank GOD and have been working the whole time. Luckily my work is very understanding and if i don't feel good they let me go home!