WHEN A BIRD SINGS....

Sometimes I think of it as all a dream. Like who would have imagined. God blessed us with a beautiful boy. He is literally perfect. Everything I could have never imagined him to be. I am forever grateful for him. Its been 6 months since our Magnus graced us with his earthly presence. It’s been a joy. We have watched him grow ever so quickly. Everything a parent once told me, is absolutely correct! (and I hate when folks are right lol). But children grow very quickly, you must stop and take in every moment you have with them while they are tiny. We have experienced so much. I remember pushing this little one out. I remember being so sad when we had to put our little one “under the lights” due to jaundice. I remember bringing him home and having Reese so interested in the new being. I remember struggling with clogged ducts and having to get my baby to latch on the boobie again. I remember nights of unbearable crying due to colic. I remember hearing his first sounds. I remember ...

First day home! And finally the day has come. Magnus Baimarro Barley was born on New Year's Day! What better way to start the new year! Magnus entered this world on January 1, 2019 at 12:13 EST. He weighed 6.36 pounds and measured at 19 3/4 inches. Magnus is literally everything I could never imagine. And this is the story of how he entered the world... Ever since I hit 38 weeks, I became more and more anxious about his arrival. I literally was dreaming about it constantly. I would constantly wake up in the morning hoping my bed was wet from my water breaking. It had seriously become an obsession. Not only an obsession, but also causing great anxiety. As I was approaching my 40 week mark, I had to start having conversations with my doctor about scheduling an induction at 41 weeks. So, we had that on the schedule. But, I really didn't want to have to be induce because of what I hear about how it can extend labor. So, I started to look into ways to naturally induce. Pineapp...

Photo Taken by Daddy, Edited by Mommy Well what a journey this has been! I would say it doesn't feel like it has been that long, but I would definitely not be telling the truth. LOL. It has been very long, but I am not rushing it. I want him to take the time he needs to be fully developed, strong and ready to go. Photo Taken by Uncle Roy; edited by Mommy At this point, I am about 95% prepared for his arrival. I have taken the hospital visit, birthing classes, crib and baby things are up and organized, bookcase is being constantly filled, interview with pediatricians this week, etc etc. I have to pack my hospital bag, but I am not going to over do it. My main essentials are my wireless speaker because I need some good music bringing life into this world, a candle because I want a nice aroma, and other lady essentials because I don't want to get caught up feeling gross. LOL The body is tired! I am still working however; but the body is tired. It is like my mind can...

Art in the back is so representative of this experience. Local DC Artist Officially 8 weeks away! I'm getting more excited everyday just to see this little boy of ours. My pastor continues to remind me that "when a child is born, so is the mother." I am still having a hard time imagining what this means to be someone's mother. Although, I have 'mothered' the cutest little yorkie for 9 years, lol, I only imagine this experience being so much differently.   At this point, I am mostly just tired. Like tired all the time. Like tired and easily annoyed. Like tired and don't want to be bothered. Like tired! LOL. I am looking forward to maternity leave. I am not rushing my delivery, I just want to be at home, cuddled up and eating, lol. My mom got me this 'maternity ball'. It is basically the big ball in any gym/exercise room. OMG, this things works wonders. The lower back pain is something serious. But sitting on this ball and moving around helps...

My 3 loves! So, I am officially 6 months pregnant! Woohoo! Thank God for the journey so far. (technically at this moment, I am 27 weeks, took me a week just to get this blog out, don't judge me lol) At this point, we have had our baby shower. Because of a previously planned trip to California, we decided to take full advantage. Thanks to my mom, Courtney and Coco, the baby shower was exactly what I needed. We are so grateful to everyo ne that came out and contributed to the welcoming of Baby Bam.  It was also very funny for people just trippin' out on Raven being pregnant. Good times.  Well, I am definitely noticeably pregnant at this point. Its no hiding that. During this period, I am mostly focused on getting exercise apart of my routine. This is not easy. When you work full time and get home; honestly, all I want to do is eat and sleep. But, I have been pushing through at least 3 times a week with doing a pregnancy workout video or taking a long walk. What I do k...

Its only right....my favorite would have the perfect song for my Bam Bam...." You'll always be a part of me I'm part of you indefinitely Boy, don't you know you can't escape me? Ooh, darling because you'll always be my baby"

So, I am officially 20 weeks along. At this point, I have adjusted to this new (yet, very temporary) body of mines. My symptoms have mostly settled down; besides, the occasional nausea, moodiness, back pains, tired. Okay, okay, okay...lol, guess I am still feeling pregnant. LOL. But for the most part, I feel like my normal self.  Now, everyone wants to know...have I felt the baby moving yet? Well, I will say yes. But, I haven't felt major kicks yet. The movement that I have felt is sort of hard to explain. It feels like movement lol. Like a shallow "thump" here and there.  The next big thing is..."so what are you having?" We found out this week it is a bouncing boy!!! Marvelous is definitely excited. I would say, I had not had my mind set on either or. I initially always thought I wanted a boy. Why? Well because I always felt more masculine than feminine. And I felt more comfortable with the idea of raising a boy than a girl. I was not comfortable with my ...

So, at this point, I look obviously pregnant. However, I am still getting those looks from folks where they aren't too sure, so they just decide to stay silent. But, I do have folks that just come out with it "are you pregnant?" Well, luckily I can respond yes! lol because that would be totally embarrassing for all parties.  My cravings have mostly settled down (besides the urge for the $1 McChicken and the occasional frozen hot pickle lol). But, my appetite is just all over the place. It is like when I hear something, then I instantly want it. But that could also change. So, I am still not cooking as much as I would like, but I put forth the effort mostly for the man in the house. He be missing my cooking lol. The pregnancy hormones do have me bugging sometimes. I get extra emotional about stuff. I am already a very emotional person; although, I have a hard exterior. I cry quite often lol. And now it doesn't take much for someone to hurt my feelings or for me to ...

OMG! Something pretty unbelievable has happened.....I am pregnant! It is like a whirlwind of emotions. But I am excited to finally let people know. The longest 12 weeks ever! What a way to get me back blogging more regularly. I would love to share my experience, not only for public consumption, but mostly for the baby to view one day (after learning how to read at a very early age of course ;). Also, it will be good for me, so that I can remember, cherish and reflect on the journey. Sooooo......the first 12 weeks! How did I find out? Well, let's just say this...it was no accident. My boyfriend and I had decided that we would start to try. So, I got rid of my last packs of birth control pills, downloaded an app called "Flo" which tracks your ovulation and ordered an ovulation kit (March 2018). Well, we never got to use the ovulation kit because the app worked pretty well. I was a bit nervous about this "getting pregnant" situation because since I have been ...