The drive from Oregon and all that time that happened up until New Years!

I.will.never.get.behind.again! NEVER! This post covers almost 6 months. I know I left out some things and I am sure as I realize what they are..I will come back and update this post. I hope to say more about the first few months in TX but I know the pictures tell the story! :) I also realize that the grammar, punctuation, etc in this post are not the best. Wyatt one day when you read this :/ Mama was just trying her hardest to get this in the blog so she didn't forget these special moments. I am having a hard time wrapping my head around that I am just now finishing this post on 5-24-12 ( you are 10 months and 3 days old) and daddy and I feel like you just arrived and we just left Oregon! Yes I backdated the publish date so it would flow!

So after the drive "home" (which was so much fun because I couldn't believe they were letting me take this little guy home) we arrived and my dad was a minute ahead of us. Daniel got the dogs outside and I walked up with Wyatt. We introduced the babies to our new baby with help of my parents. Our babies did great and were interested however, they were way more excited that we were home. I was happy to be able to love on them after spending four days away! Of course this goes without saying, but we watched them like hawks and still do.

We all started finishing the packing process as we were set to leave on Tuesday. Luckily we all got a much needed nap. The next day Daniel and I took the little guy to the doctor for what would be a first visit and my parents headed over to Oregon City for a day on the coast. We got a good feeding plan for the road and spent the day running last minute errands in town. The little guy even went to Target and Fred Meyer for the things we didn't know we needed until after he arrived. We clearly like to start the shopping experience early! Tuesday we got up let the neighbors meet the little guy, said our goodbyes, and then hit the road.

Last picture in park

My dad wanted to celebrate Wyatt's one week birthday (a few days early) so he got the best chocolate cake! It was yummy and we all enjoyed it!
7-27 (Wed) Salem OR - Idaho We didn't get as early of a start as we wanted but, we loaded up on local cherries, blackberries, and other local yums and hit the road. We were able to still stop and do a little sight seeing at Multonomia falls and got some great pictures.  I am certain we were all very excited to be on our way to start the big trip! Here we go.... The drive most of the day was gorgeous as you drive right beside the Columbia river..amazing!

Cabbage Hill Overlook in Oregon - This is a huge 

Cabbage Hill is a huge winding mountain that you have to cross over before you get out of Oregon. We drove over it on our way and it was amazing.Wed was all so the day I experienced the "emotion dump!" I  was confused because my emotions were already out of control. I had no idea this was going to happen and I am sure my friends told me, but I never expect anything like it. Emotion dump is exactly what it means!Ok now back to the story- Right before we got to Boise my mom noticed the bike rack on the 5th wheel was bouncing more than normal. Of course none of us had cell reception to call each other so the fiasco of yelling at each other as we drove down the interstate was  like the scene in Trains, Planes, and Automobiles.  Well after we pulled over it was discovered the bike rack did fall off and we were dragging it!  (The bikes weren't even messed up!) Daniel took it off only to later discover at a gas station a few miles later the bumper was about to fall off. In that same stop we also discovered the extra ladder almost fell of as well. We were so LUCKY that no-one got hurt and we were able to keep everyone on the road safe. After that delay, we finally stopped right outside of Boise, ID, for the night at an rv park.

Drive Day 2 (Thurs)  7-28-11 ID, UT to WY - Snake River, Twin Falls, ID

We drove through ID, UT, and WY. Daniel and I made sure we stopped at Snake River where Evil Kanivle jumped the river. We were in the spot he jumped and got some great pictures. The river has made a gorge through the land kinda like the Rio Grande George we one visited north of Santa Fe. It was so hot that little guy didn't spend a lot of time sight seeing in this stop. We also saw few hang gliders take off down into the river. NEAT!

1 week old

First time in stroller

 

We stopped for the night on the UT WY border.

Day 3 (Fri) 7-29-11 Drove in WY This day was pretty uneventful.  We took in the sights on the drive, visited Little America, and walked around an old west town.  We did have dinner and attend a street festival in Laramie WY. This is a town Daniel and my dad have always wanted to visit so they were like little kids. Its a western "feel" and had some old parts to visit. We had a great time relaxing for a few hours. It was Wyatt's actual first time in a real restaurant. That night we had a hard time finding an RV park and ended up staying at WalMart!

Laramie, WY

Hershey the babysitter

We had to stop at Little America. My dad and his parents stopped here when he was a kiddo when they made a trip across the country to California.

 Day 4 (Sat) 7-30-11 CO,KS    We got a later start on this day as we loaded up on lots of snacks, drinks, and had some breakfast before hitting the road. Things we going pretty smoothly in our eyes Then...Saturday night in Colby, KS, we had a blowout on the Cargo trailer. We had just stopped to get fuel during the day, have lunch and feed Wyatt. My dad calls and says they had a blowout. We had to drive 30 miles to turn around and got back only to see they were sitting just past the entrance ramp to the interstate at a truck stop. The only option was to unhook the cargo trailer on the side of the interstate and have my dad stay with it, the truck, 5th wheel, and the dogs. So mama, D, W and I loaded into the Sequoia and drove again 30 miles to turn around and go to the truck stop only to find they didn't have the tire in stock but the one up the road 30 miles did. Two new tires at 1 truck stop $100. D decided to get another for the trailer $140 at another truck stop. I got a migraine so mama and I made the trip to the truck stop with Daniel while my dad stayed with the truck, 5th wheel and the dogs on the side of the road. I am sure this wasn't much fun but, we were afraid to leave the 5ht wheel and small cargo trailer just on the side of the road for anyone to drive up upon and take. When we arrived back Daniel decided we would just spend the night at an rv park nearby and he and my dad would go back and change the tire. We left the trailer. Daniel decided to take a shortcut into the median, where we immediately got pulled over by a State Trooper. We should have known this was not a good idea. Luckily the trooper was nice as he saw we were out of state and just gave us a warning...otherwise it would have been 2 vehicles and double the tickets for us. WHEW!! It was a completely unsafe move also because the turn was in a curve of the road and the Trooper was involved in a 90 mph car chase...so he almost hit us!  Daniel and my dad made the 30 mile trip back to pick up the tire. I went to bed. When they got back we watched Four Christmases and had a much needed laugh.

The next morning after Daniel bought another tire and put it on the cargo trailer after parking as were about to get on the road when my dad came inside and said that the tire on the Sequoia looked "bad." So Daniel decided to change it. After about 30 min of looking for the spare and trying to get the tire off, it was decided that it was torqued on. So the only option was for Daniel to take it somewhere. It took him awhile to find a place that would take it off. Everyone else waited at the truck stop having lunch (yes we only dine at the best truck stops with several restaurants in them) while he drove around and finally found some sweet man to help him. The guy was originally from AR, lived in Austin and was working in the area! Blessings to the man with a kind heart! We were able to finally get back on the road.



Day 5 7-31-11 (Sun) KS, OK, AR to Parents
 After all the fun we had with the tires we decided to drive in the rest of the way on day5. We arrived at my parents house around 2 am! We all slept great! 


Total side note on travel - We knew my parents were doing us a huge favor by helping us drive from Oregon however, they were even more of a help that we ever thought. We knew we would need the help and possibly experience "complications" as we always do during our travels but I really am not sure it would have even as gone as smoothly if they weren't with us. They were able to keep both of us calm..ok well as calm as we could be when things went wrong. It also taught Daniel and I that our normal is not normal to most people. In my personal perspective they are not used to traveling full time so for them this was a huge deal. It is huge to us as well however; we often forget traveling is not a way of life so the constant pressing, moving, packing, unpacking, jumping over boxes, stepping over dogs, and moving furniture to sleep on the road can be overwhelming. So we thank them from the bottom of our hearts with the patience they had with us and we hope we had the same with them. Daniel and I also easily forget that we are 99.999% of the time on our own and we heavily rely on each other or just do it ourselves when handing problems and packing up...we had to realize that they had no idea what to do, how to do it, or what was next to come. I hope that on the trip they were able to see some pretty country and travel through areas they had not been to before. I also hope they had a great time and made memories. I know the story of Wyatt traveling from OR to AR at just a few days old will be told over and over and we are glad you were both a huge part of it! Thank you guys for all of your help!


Daniel and I stayed the night and then headed onto to Pine Bluff. I have to be honest when I say the pickins were slim on the parks. We only had one option and. it. was. out. of. control! We were not thrilled but didn't have a choice. When we arrived the owner started to panic saying that our 5th wheel was large and he wasn't sure he had a spot big enough. Luckily he found one and I would not have wanted to be any deeper into his property than we were. He actually put us right across the street from his "house" and that gave me a sense of comfort. It was very hot when we arrived and the electricity didn't work very well. I am not going to lie..the first few days were very frustrating and I spent a lof of time out of the 5th wheel with a newborn trying to stay cool. We finally came with a solution (call us electricians as well) and were able to get our portable air conditioner powered up. We kept ourselves busy so we didn't have to stay around White Hall on the weekend. We made several trips to see my parents, were able to visit with the Yount's, and even a trip to NWA;
Our amazing friends, Andrea, Kerryanne, as well as my mama hosted a fantastic traveling shower for us. We decided due to being in Oregon we wanted to wait to have showers until after Wyatt's arrival. I know this probably decreased the opportunity for people to come as we had them right before football season after everyone was back in school, but it is what worked for us. We felt very blessed by our friends though several people were not able to attend due to last minute issues. We completely understood and still had a great time. Our friends put in so much work on an amazing fun couples shower. The theme was traveling and well fitting! We enjoyed seeing our friends so much! Wyatt is certainly dressed to impressed in all his cute things! It had been along time since we had been around our friends so we loved catching up and learning a lot from pro parents!  Thank you guys for hosting and to everyone who was able to make it. 

1 month

Daniel's mom came to visit us for 2 weeks and to meet Wyatt. We picked her up from the airport and were able to take her to a few sights in Little Rock before heading back to the Hall. We weren't very exciting during this visit. Whitehall is not very impressive or have much for the sightseer. We did make a trip to visit the Yount's and another to my parents house. I am glad we were able to make it up everyone as we quickly learned we were having our last week in White Hall and the frantic search for another location began. We got extremely lucky and Daniel's company had an opening in Hot Springs. I was thrilled as we had been talking about going over for the day to visit. Mary, Wyatt and I made a trip over to Hot Springs to pick out a park. I am glad we did because I was also able to show her the bath house district and a few other areas of the town.

Historic High School

Visiting with the Younts

 

We had to make the move on the weekend we were heading to Austin for Wyatt's welcome barbeque. Daniel and I decided to just drop off the 5th wheel on the way. We were very fortunate that my dad and Daniel's mom were able to help us make this move. We were not expecting it and nothing was packed. We moved the 5th wheel, set up and headed on down to Austin celebrating Daniel's birthday on the drive. Yep Taco Cabana was the party place! HA! The barbeque went off without a hitch and we were able to introduce Wyatt to several of our Austin friends and family. The Schellenberger's let us have it at their house which was great because we had a big crowd. We had several kinds of barbeque and sides ended with cupcakes. We had so much showing off Wyatt to everyone and he got to meet all of his cousins at the party. It is so much fun to celebrate with the ones you love. Thank you everyone for the amazing gifts and the overwhelming love and joy you showed us as we welcome Wyatt into our lives!

Cousins meeting

We traveled back to Hot Springs on Sunday and were ready to begin setting up "home" and begin a new normal in a town that I personally love! I am so glad Daniel and I were able to experience the town and all that it has to offer.

We were pretty busy after our trip to Austin. My cousin Jordan got married, we went to Garvin Gardens with Kerryanne and Aaron, and went to an amazing Hot balloon festival, played many times in the lake, made a trip to Dallas meet R and R visit Mom, and discovered Hot Springs.

Hot Springs Hot Balloon Festival

Jacob's game in Maumell - they played Hot Springs

Time to move...

Things were going great in Hot Springs and we were so happy to be living on the lake. We were making plans to go to Ozark for Halloween until Daniel came home with those words I never want to hear. "Well it looks like we are moving again."  Luckily we were so close Nannie and Papa came to visit just  few days before we left. Oh the devastation to leave a place you love so much. Anyway, we packed up and before we knew it were traveling to East TX.We arrived and soon it was time for Halloween, our anniversary, thanksgiving, Christmas, then new years. We have visited a pumpkin patch, gone to a Texans game, Texas Bass Classic Tournament, and much more.

My mom spent so much time making this Lifesaver outfit perfect! She could not have done a better job or made anything more perfect! Donna put the words on it and I LOVE IT! Thank you both for your hard work. I know it was a lot!

Texas Bass Classic

Texans Game

First Plan Trip to AR

First Thanksgiving

Jill's Surprise 30th!

Nap time

First Time in Santa's Lap

Tummy Time

First tooth!

First Christmas

Santa came!

Christmas Celebrate in Austin with cousins

A favorite Christmas toy from Nannie and Papa

New Years! Mission Impossible and dinner - N and P kept Wyatt

My first Christmas PJ's

Rice Cereal for the first time- just after the Christmas holidays

So as you can see the first 6 months of his life have been pretty busy. Wyatt is rolling over, babbling, and eating rice cereal! He will be driving before we know it! :) Daniel and I can't believe how much we already love this little guy and can't wait to see what the future holds!

Welcome Baby Boy!

First I feel the need to jump into real time and explain (if nothing else but for myself when I look back to read the blog book) why it has taken me so long to blog about Wyatt's birth up to this point. 1. We have moved 3 times in the past 3 months. This is a bit more than normal, as we typically only move every 3 months. We traveled from Oregon to Arkansas when he was just a few days old (more on that later) to Pine Bluff, AR. Then at just around a month at that rotation we had to abruptly move to Hot Springs. We got very lucky as assignments in AR are never on the board. Again after about a month another abrupt move and this time to east TX. We made the move 2 weeks ago are hoping to stay here at least until the holidays. It seems as though just as I finally get things set up, we were moving again. 2. We have been busy showing this boy off! We visited my parents several weekends, made a trip to NWA to see friends, Daniel's mom came to visit us for 2 weeks, made a trip to Austin, went to a wedding, have had several visitors, and we have been on the road. Anyway, it is time to get back to blogging and as a result of us being a way from both sets of grandparents...I promise, cross my heart, fingers, and toes to update more often! Promise, promise, promise! Its not like some of you (you know who you are) won't call me out anyway! :)

Now back to the story...I got set up in a room, hooked to monitors, and it was time to wait. I will say this..I thought the whole process was going to be a lot quicker! I knew that my doctor was on call on Thursday so I was very excited! I had a feeling for some reason that things would just work out and she would be the one to deliver our baby. I felt very comfortable when the on-call doctor came in and told me that my doctor was coming in around 7am so we would just wait to see what happened. The nurses kept telling me I should get some sleep however, that was not going to happen. I was too excited to meet my baby. I still couldn't believe I was in labor. I did get up and walk a few times but nothing was changing and in my mind..heck let me go run. I think sometime around 4am the doctor came in and said they were going to start some Pitocin. I was a little nervous because I really wanted my doctor. She walked out of the room and I looked over at my parents and said "Wait, I thought my doctor was going to deliver..." My three cheerleaders supported me by saying they were sure things would work out. I was so nervous because my doctor knew all of my migraine concerns and honesty I didn't want to have to go through this process without her. It took a little while (although I have no idea how long) for contractions to start. My doctor came on shift and some of my self imposed nervousness was relieved. I was so happy to see her.
When the contractions started I was in bed and wanted more than anything to get up. In fact I finally asked if I could and the nurse said it was fine. My thought process - moving around would help things and make me not concentrate on the contractions so much. I honestly only remember that I would count each contraction and the time between them all while swaying back and forth. I remember watching the contraction lines on the monitor thinking that would help as well...then they asked me if I needed something to take the edge off. I agreed and that is when all time frame sequence went! Finally after hours of standing and swaying in circles Daniel convinced me to get an epidural. I agreed but was very nervous. The anesthesiologist was fantastic and could not have listened to my fears or talked me through the process in a better way. My doctor had been coming in and out to check on me and apparently she agreed I should get the epidural. After another hour my doctor came back in...almost 15 hours after beginning labor her words were powerful and we all decided a C-section was necessary. I wasn't in real danger neither was baby (we thought) but this was the next step as things were not progressing as they should. I just remember thinking something along the lines of whatever I am ready to be done with this pain. I was exhausted. Daniel started crying so I did as well. I also had a confidence and not much fear about a C-section although my doctor and I had not ever really discussed one. Previously a friend had mentioned to me that I should be prepared "because you just never know what is going to happen." My parents were amazing to calm us and help Daniel get ready while the doctors talked. Before I knew it I was being wheeled off.
Fast forwarding to what seemed like the the longest ride to the operating room. I was freaking out only wanting Daniel. Thank goodness the nurses were so sweet as well, as the anesthesiologist. I talked nonstop and made them talk to me as....I told them I was about to freak out in not so many words. I asked them if they like to snowboard, where they went to college, told them about more of our travels, and may have possibly even taught them how to call the hogs. I told my doctor to be careful, Daniel came in, and it all began. A few seconds later at 3:54pm we heard a sweet cry and everyone was cheering and saying happy birthday! I asked if he had all his fingers and toes and my doctor assured me he did. :) (Loved Dr. M..if you can't tell!) The next thing I know...Daniel was holding the sweetest little boy I had ever seen. I immediately started getting a headache so they gave me some medicine. (Love those doctors!)

Wyatt G.P. Basham arrived at 3:54pm on 7-21-11 weighing 7lb 2oz , 19 in
I was off to recovery while Daniel went with the doctors and Wyatt to do all the measurements, footprints, etc. The nurse brought Wyatt to me and I loved just looking at him! Daniel came back in recovery then my parents arrived shortly after. I was so happy to have them with us and for Daniel to be able to capture the pictures of their faces meeting Wyatt.
I was moved to my room in the mother baby unit and honestly had no idea what time it was. I was just very excited to have Wyatt here and my family with me. I knew everyone was exhausted however, for some reason (I guess I was running on adrenaline) because I could not sleep. Wyatt was awake some throughout the night wanting to eat and as I have said a thousand times..I never expected feeding to be so challenging. I was so lucky to have amazing nurses in both labor and delivery as well as, in the mother baby unit. They were so kind, helpful, and patient. Allison in L and D and Jody in Mother baby were so supportive when I wasn't sure of my baby care abilities. :) It was amazing to my entire family how much they welcomed us. I think that our life is so different from they were intrigued...Daniel worked PT in this hospital, the fact that we were from out of state, and that my parents flew in from Arkansas, we talked about our four legged babies, etc! The next few days were filled with phone calls, texts, surprise flowers, and lots of loving on the new little boy. We are so thankful for all of our family and friends who checked on us while we were miles and miles away celebrating the arrival of our bundle.

My parents and Daniel did an amazing job taking care of me in the hospital. I had a hard time at first realizing that I had to take care of myself and that I had just had surgery. I knew at first I could not get up..however I didn't want this to slow me down. They had to make me rest and to accomplish this even my mom stayed at the hospital one night so Daniel could get some sleep, :) The next four days seemed to fly. We had pictures, videos to watch, forms and more forms. Wyatt had several tests including hearing and passed all of them. The doctors concluded we had a healthy happy baby boy, we just had to get feeding down. I also have to add...he was and still is a very content baby only fussing when hungry or tired. We. Are. Truly. Blessed!

First Family PictureThe last night the nurses came in and asked if they could keep Wyatt for a while. They said they really wanted to get some good snuggle time in and that he was adorable! It warmed my heart! The last day my mom and dad went to the farmer's market before coming to the hospital and brought us some special treats: blackberries, cherries, organic bread, and vegan chocolate chip cookies..yum! I am sure everyone was tired of the hospital after 4 days. I know I was ready to get home and see the puppies!! I could not believe they were going to let me take this sweet tiny baby home! ;)

He looked so tiny in his car seat and his coming home outfit was enormous! (I completely rethought the outfit I had planned because after pictures I concluded he was swimming in it!) The nurses, pediatricians, lactation consultants, etc. could not believe we were about to drive across the country with a newborn. They were excited and made us promise to keep them updated after we arrived. (I think they thought we were crazy!) The last day so many people came by to give best wishes and to have a safe trip. I was amazed that how many people knew about us, who we were, and that we were taking our new baby on a long road trip! I chose to walk out because if I could walk in..then why not walk out! HA! We left the hospital full of joy and excitement for what was to come. Up next - last few days in Oregon and the adventure to Arkansas!

Happy Anniversary!

Happy Anniversary to the love of my life! It seems like it was just yesterday when we walked down the isle.I remember all the excitement I had about marrying the man of my dreams! I will never forget the love, laughter, and great memories made with our family and friends over that weekend.
Daniel, I love you more today than the day I married you! I love the way you make me laugh, the way you always try and convince me (no you do not need more hunting stuff or a new truck and yes we can go look at new 5th wheels again), the way you love our family and friends, and the way you love our little family! Four years means we are quickly approaching four years of traveling. Crazy!
We had only talked about traveling and I would have never dreamed some of the things we have experienced. I love that you wanted to travel full time and the fact that you convinced me we needed a truck and a 5th wheel to live in with 2 labs. Neither one of us would have thought we would spend a winter in the tundra, a summer in the desert, the rainy season up north, live in towns so small we thought we might not make it out, mountain bike all over the country, camp in the heat of the summer and the dead of winter, live on the lake and the slopes, drive across the country, have a baby, and move more in 3 months than we ever imagined!!! (All while dealing with constant frustration from the 5th wheel..but we won't talk about that!) Its the little things in life! HA!
I adore watching you interact with Wyatt and seeing how much you absolutely love that little boy. We were determined to not let life really change or slow down with the arrival of the little one. So far we have stuck to our promise and I can't wait to see what this year holds. I love you Daniel and can't wait for many many more years of love and fun!!