The forgotten blog

Gosh, I haven't been here in forever. Going back over some of the posts, I could slap myself for not keeping this blog active. I like to look back on the memories, if anything, to remember where I've been and where I'm going.

But it also serves as a reminder of things I often forget. My memory isn't the greatest and it's sad sometimes to not be able to remember things. So having a blog, or even Facbook, has been helpful to pull up things and go, "OH YEAH, I remember that!"

Since my last post, which was forever ago, a lot has happened. There's no way I can talk about it all in one post so I'll just have to come back and post a million posts over the next few weeks. But I have 3 boys and they thrive off of getting in mischief so I don't know if I'll be able to commit to this like I should. But, I'll give it a whirl.

Let's just talk about the three boys this time around. So, Brendin, my sweet little Brendin was born on February 2, 2015. I will have to say, though I did want another kid because I was so hoping for a little girl, we didn't really "plan" to have another kid. Allen was content with one kid but I was an only child and now that I'm grown, it's sad. I don't have nieces or nephews to spoil and be proud of; I don't have sisters or brothers to be my best friend. I wanted to be sure my kids have that.

But a third boy?? Well, that's not really what I had planned. But it happened, and again, I was reminded that God has a sense of humor and He does not, absolutely does not like it when I make plans for my life and don't include Him in the discussion. So He was like, "Take that Amanda and Allen. I'm gonna give you 3 wild, rambunctious little boys and I bet I can get you on your knees then!"

Yep, it worked.

All my pregnancies have a story but Brendin, sweet, little Brendin, he almost killed me. Towards the end, I was in severe pain. I thought I was dying. I couldn't walk. I felt like someone was inside of me stabbing my insides. But my doctor said he was just positioned awkwardly and was a really big baby and I would have to suck it up and deal with it!

I sucked it up all right! I continued working hard to get things in order for the paper so I could take my maternity leave. And one weekend, the pain felt better and I got this little burst of energy. I had a board meeting on Monday and I was looking forward to getting back to my normal routine and not hurting anymore.The baby really wasn't due quite yet so I thought I had some more time. My publisher, however, was getting worried. She tried to convince me to let someone else cover my board meeting that Monday. But I've become pretty territorial over my board meetings so I said I'd handle it.

It was a long board meeting. It started at 10 a.m. and at some point they decided to take a break. I went to the bathroom, came back to my seat and got this pressure in my bladder like I needed to potty again. And then, just before the meeting started back up, my water broke and I started cramping bad.

My worst nightmare had come true! My water broke during a board meeting! I have vague memories of what happened next; I just know a police officer tried to call 9-1-1 and I was like NO. The clerk is a friend of mine so she called my husband. He just happened to be right around the corner (Thank God) because he would soon be picking Corbin up from school. I was escorted down the elevator and out the door and my pants were soaking wet and I was terrified and a bit embarrassed. I got in the van and Allen hauled tail to the school. I remember him running up to get Corbin and him running back to the van all excited. "The baby is coming, the baby is coming!!"

We had switched doctors and hospitals so this go around, we were supposed to be birthing this kid in Greenville, which is a good hour away if you drive fast. After getting Corbin, we had to pick Devin up at the babysitters. Then we went to Bethel to drop them off.

I had this pregnancy all planned out. We had a scheduled c-section (I can't do the birthing thing naturally, I discovered with Corbin) so I had arranged for childcare and all that. But of course, Brendin had other plans so when he decided to come, no one was around to take the boys. Allen called a friend's mom and asked her to take the boys. But I had a plan and that was not it and I was freaking out about it so that led to Allen and I arguing the whole way to Bethel. Basically, I'm in labor and it's not pleasant and my husband has the audacity to argue with me!!! YES he did!

But anyway, we made it to Bethel and dropped the boys off. Then we headed to my doctor's office. They wanted me to come in to their office first because my water breaking apparently wasn't enough proof that I was in labor.

Let's just cut this part short. They agreed I was in labor and sent me to the hospital. But, it was more of a rush to the hospital because we think something is wrong type thing. They didn't really say that because they didn't want to upset me but long story short, there was evidence Brendin had a bowel movement inside me, which is not normally a good sign during labor.

I  hightailed it to the hospital and by 2 p.m. little Brendin was here! It was terrifying but in the end, all was good and he was awesome! But, the the doctor was wrong about his size. He was only six pounds. He was a teeny, little fella and man, I loved him!

Today, Brendin is a feisty two-year-old. He's still a tiny little fella but he can give his brothers a run for their money! Brendan has a bit of a mean side too. His brothers have worked hard to teach him everything they know, mostly bad things, and they encourage him to show it off! And he does! But, deep down, Brendin is a sweet kid. He's a gigantic momma's boy and I secretly love that. He loves airplanes, trains and Paw Patrol. He also loves his brothers.

Life with 3 boys has been interesting. I can tell you, there's never a dull moment, never a boring day and lots of stories. I hope to be able to start back sharing some of those stories here, when I'm not playing referee, that is!