Happiness

I am happy...it has been a while since I have been able to say that and mean it whole heartedly. I LOVE being a mom, I love my job, and just feel really blessed. I know this would make Jon extremely happy, the only worry he expressed to his mom before he passed was to make sure Maddox and I were taken care of. I can say that our family and friends have done an amazing job taking care of Maddox and I and we are both happy.

Maddox is now 7 months and 1 week old. WOW! She has a tooth coming in, and has started to scoot, rock, and army crawl. She is so much fun. She has MANY expressions, which I am sure you can imagine how funny they are with my expressive eyebrows and Jon's silly faces. She enjoys going for walks around the neighborhood and swinging at the playground. We have been enjoying being M&M (Maddox and Mom) I wish I would have thought about that before I got her Halloween costume. Maddox is going to be a Zebra this year! I will post pictures after halloween.

Just a heads up I will probably be changing the name of the blog to "Our Journey" if I can figure out how to do it ;)

Hope everyone is enjoying fall! Here are some photos from our recent trip to the pumpkin patch!

Anne

First Day

My first day was great! I work with 2 other designers that are really nice, and easy going. Since it was a Friday the office was pretty quiet, some people choose to work at the stadium on fridays. When I got there my boss, Ken showed me to my cubical, where I had a brand new Mac Pro with a 27" monitor waiting for me! My computer is amazing :)

I worked with Ken for a little while learning about the servers and  files, and other company things. After he showed me where everything was he gave me my first job, it was edits to a Ravens Rookie flyer. The edits were pretty simple and only took me a few minutes. Then I received another job, this one was updating an ad for the Festival of Trees. After that I put my time in and then it was time to leave. I was so excited to see my munchkin, she was REALLY excited to see me too, she was all smiles :D

Sunday night isn't so bad, I am really looking forward to going to work tomorrow. I am going to enjoy my job! :)

I am sitting here watching this ridiculous game, the regular refs need to come back. Lets hope for a Ravens win! (did I just say that?!) I even bought purple chucks on Friday! Jon would be so proud :)

I'm back!

It has been a while, a long while! Sorry about that. I have been enjoying my main squeeze Maddox! She turned 6 months old Monday, its so hard to believe she is already 6 months old. Time flies when your having fun. ;)

Maddox is really starting to show her personality, she enjoys sitting up, and dancing! She kicks her legs  to the beat when being held, it's great to watch :) She has started eating fruits and veggies, her favorite is apples! I can't feed her fast enough when it's apples. I would say favorite veggie would be sweet potatoes. I have been making my own baby food in the baby bullet and she loves it, most of it! Not a fan of broccoli. Overall I have the happiest baby ever!

A lot has happened in our little life, some of you may know I am no longer working at Buck Wear. I have been off all summer just enjoying being a mom and it has been amazing! However it is time to go back to work. I will be starting my new job with the Baltimore Ravens (Jon would be so proud, and ridiculously excited) and I couldn't be happier. I will be working 9 miles from my house at the Owings mills facility. I knew it was the perfect job when my boss said "family comes first" that statement had me wanting this job more than anything! I will miss Maddox but it will feel good to get back to a normal routine. I will try to post this weekend about my first day :)


Sorry for the long time off, I will do my best to post more regular :)

Talk to you soon!

FIrst Fathers Day, tough post :/

Well today is a little tough…Maddox is 3 months old today, and it's fathers day. My heart breaks when I think about Maddox not being able to meet her dad. It really is the only thing that will make me cry every time I think about it. I will do my best to make sure she knows everything about him through pictures, stories and videos of her amazing dad. The hardest part of this was not knowing what was going to happen. Through out the whole journey Jon fought his hardest, not for himself but for Maddox and I. We found out his cancer was back the same week we found out we were pregnant. After we hugged, kissed, cried (tears of joy) Jon picked up his computer and began looking into different cancer websites trying to get information on how to get better. He became determined! When it came to the end and we got the awful news that he didn't have much time we didn't want to know how long, we just asked, will he get to meet our daughter? Unfortunately, the answer was no, a few minutes later Jon and I took some time with each other and he looked at me and said "I am going to fight like hell till March!" His determination and the love that he already had for Maddox was amazing. Hearing him say her name and smiling is one of the best memories I have. I am the only person who has heard him say Maddox Faith Bruce and that is something that I will cherish for the rest of my life.

As I sit here and type this I am in tears, but I am okay, sometimes it really feels good to talk about the hard stuff and remember just how amazing of a person Jon was. He would have been the most amazing  dad. I am going to do my best to raise Maddox in a way that he would be proud.

Sorry for probably making everyone cry :(

Happy Father's day to all the dads :)

Softball tournament for Jon's Birthday :)

SO!! We are a WEEK away and everything is set and ready to go! Ben and I have scoped the field out and we couldn't have gotten a better venue. The park has a HUGE playground set for the kids and lots of picnic tables to enjoy some delicious Salarnos food or Rita's Italian ice during games! We have 14 registered teams signed up and will have 4 fields going at a time if needed. We will be selling extra Tournament T-Shirts for those who want the Black & Orange colors or who aren't participating and would just like to have a sovenier! Again, Salernos will be selling burger's, hot dog's, French fries, and soda while Rita's is selling ice to cool off. PLEASE BRING CASH. We will be accepting credit cards for shirts and extra wrist bands but, vendors will probably prefer cash.... Also, we will be bringing some cornhole boxes and ladder golf for participants and spectators who would like to play some other games during some down time. YOU WILL NEED TO BRING YOUR OWN GLOVE AND TEAM BAT!! We have some extras but, please don't rely on others for your team. We have 8 new game balls and bases are being provided by the park. Lastly, get ready for the 50/50 Raffle aaaannnnd......wait for it....THE HOME RUN DERBY!!! The fields don't have fences but, Home Depot has donated some orange mesh fencing we will be staking up on the center field just for the DERBY! So bring your "A" game!

For those who don't know already, this Jon's Birthday weekend too! So, we will be ending the day with some birthday cake donated from Jon, Ben, and I's old employer from highschool Martin's! A big thanks to our old boss Gary! We would also like to give another big thanks to SERRA BROTHER'S, MOONLIGHT AUTOMOTIVE, SALERNO'S, AND RITA'S for making all of this possible!!!

Thank you to everyone who has supported us and who has been so generous thus far! See everyone out there!!!

Posting more regular

It has been a while since my last post, Maddox is now 11 weeks old, 12 weeks on Saturday! Time has been flying by but I have been enjoying every moment. Everyone asks my family and friends, how I am doing? I doing okay, I still take each day as it comes and i don't think that will ever change. I am enjoying being a mom to a wonderful little girl that brings joy into my life everyday! Of course I miss Jon and wish that he could be here but I know he is watching and in a wonderful place. I focus on the things that bring happiness each day. I recently got a tattoo my first one, on my wrist for Jon. The whole time he was sick we talked about tattoos. I told him I wanted one to remember this battle. In my mind I knew what I wanted if the worst happened. The day the doctors told us that Jon wasn't going to make it I looked at Jon and told him what my tattoo was going to be "I love you" in his handwriting, Jon laughed and said "why would you want that?! my handwriting is terrible!" Now everyday I look at my wrist and its like him letting me know he loves me which brings a smile to my face :)

Now back to Maddox, everyone also asks who she looks like…she is a great mix of Jon and I. The top half of her face, eyebrows and eyes seem to be me, her nose I think is more me, Jon's was bit wider. The mouth is ALL Jon, she has the shape and fullness of his lips.The shape of her chin also seems to be Jon. It is so cool to look at her and feel like I am looking at a baby picture of myself and then get a Jon expression. Here are pictures of Jon and myself as babies.

We have been keeping busy. For the Memorial day weekend Maddox and I went with my sister Erika, my mom Patsy, Tyler's sister Claudia, and his brother Kyle to Jacksonville Florida to welcome Tyler (my sister's fiancé) home from Japan. It was nice to get away for a few days. We left Thursday at 4:00am and came back late Monday night. Maddox did wonderful in the car, it took us 14 hours to get there, and little longer to come back because of traffic but she was a trooper! While we were there Maddox went in the pool for the first time as well as put her feet in the ocean at St. Augustine! She didn't like the pool too much, but when her feet were in the ocean she was all smiles. It is so exciting to try all these new things with her to see how she will respond to them. I hope she gets used to the pool so we can swim all summer.

Over all we are doing very well, we are both healthy. I am feeling good getting back to normal and trying to get the baby weight off. Maddox has had 3 check ups and is doing amazing, she had 2 shots and did very well with those. She is up to 10 lbs. and is ahead of the game with everything. She has been lifting her head A LOT, she doesn't like to lay down she prefers to sit up. She is still a little wobbly at times but for the most part can hold her head up on her own. She has started to sit in her Bumbo seat and look arond. Everyday is something new…

I will do my best to try and post each week even if it is a short post. :)

A few of my favorite pictures…

Dove House

This week many of us recieved a newsletter from the Dove House. It was really nice to see Jon's name in the newsletter and the different events going on.  Thank you again to everyone for your generous donations in Jon's memory.

The newsletter also included a wish list for items needed for Carroll Hospice patients and families. The items in need are as follows:

Boxes of cake, cookie and brownie mix
Dove® chocolate candy
Individually packaged snacks (chips, popcorn, crackers and pudding)
Single serving sized of fruits and vegetables
Dove® liquid soap and lotions (small size)
Yarn for Prayer Shawl Ministry (red, white, blue and yellow especially needed)
New soft and cuddly teddy bears (10-12 inches tall)
Coloring  books
Crayons (eight count).

If you are interested in helping with their needs, I will be collecting items from May 1 - 31. Items can be dropped off to me, my mom Patsy Carey, mother-in-law Susan Loper and/or step mother-in-law Shawna Bruce or directly to the Dove House.

Thank you in advance for your support, the Dove House holds a special place our hearts :)

6 Weeks!

I want to thank everyone for the their support at the Dedication game for Jon at Liberty High school. It was great to see everyone and meet a few new friends. The game was very exciting it came down to the last inning and Liberty pulled out a win. 

Wow the last 5 weeks have flown by! We have settled in and are doing great. Maddox is growing bigger and bigger each day. We got on the scale last saturday and she is up to 9.5lbs! It is hard to believe  how much she changed over the past few weeks. This week she has been smiling more, and I don't think its gas, haha. I have been blessed, Maddox is an extremely pleasant baby. We only had one issue a few weeks ago where Maddox became very upset right around 6:00 in the evening. She would cry like she was in pain and nothing would help. We later found out, that I had soda at lunch. I am thankful we figured out what the problem was and it has been resolved. (no more soda for mom for a while) 

I realized last week that either I have shrunk her clothes, or she is growing really fast! I went through her clothes and all the really cute newborn stuff is now in a bag in the attic :( She is currently wearing 3 month clothes! Good thing she has a lot of really cute 3 month clothes too ;)

Dedication Game For Jon

As most of you know Jon was an amazing baseball player for many years. He played for the Maryland Cardinals, Baseball Factory, Liberty High School, and Frederick Community College. Jon whole heartedly enjoyed everything that had to do with baseball. Once he became a teacher, he even combined both of his passions, his love for baseball and special education. Jon was the head coach for the allied softball team at Dulaney High School.

Jon's coach from Liberty High school contacted me a few weeks ago about having a game in honor of Jon. The game will be Friday April 13, 2012 at 4:30 against South Carroll. To attend the dedication ceremony plan to arrive around 3:30, it should take place between 3:30-4:00. Contact me if you have any questions. :)

Maddox and I will be there supporting Liberty, hopefully I will be able to find something that is blue that will fit her ;) I went to South Carroll so this is always a fun game. ;)

Hope to see you guys there!

One week home!

We have officially been home for one week! Maddox and I are doing well. We have had lots of help from my mom, my sister Erika, and my Aunt Connie. They have all stayed overnight and helped me.

Maddox has been doing really well with nursing, sleeping and lets not forget pooping ;) she is a very easy going baby, and does not fuss much. Last night I put her on her stomach and she is already lifting her head! When holding her and burping her we have to watch out because she is constantly lifting her head and she is able to hold it! Dr. Wells her pediatrician says she is very strong! she should not be doing this for another month!

As for me, I am healing more and more each day. I feel like I am getting around a little better with each day. I have stopped taking the intense pain meds and am only taking Motrin. I am able to drive again on Saturday which will be nice. Maddox and I can start getting out of the house.

Thank you everyone for your thoughts and prayers, we really appreciate all the support everyone has shown us.

HERE SHE IS...MADDOX FAITH BRUCE! (hanging out at the Grilled Cheese and Co.)

Home Sweet Home

(This is from last wednesday I forgot to publish)

We started our morning bright and early, we were both checked out by our doctors and nurses to make sure we were both healthy enough to head home. Maddox passed her check up with flying colors. Dr. Vietz removed my staples and checked my incision and and cleared me to head home. We were not in a rush so we laid back down and rested for a little while before we started our day.

Around 8:00 we started our day with showers. My mom showered first so she could watch Maddox while I showered. After that is was time to pack up our room. My stepdad Donnie came to help us get home, he brought us breakfast and loaded the car.

We made it home safely and introduced Maddox and Fisher :)

1st Annual Jon Bruce Memorial Softball Classic

We have finally found a venue that is able to handle the amount of interest and support that we have for the  1st Annual Jon Bruce Memorial Softball Classic! I wanted to post the information here for anyone that doesn't have have facebook to see the details. Ben Poole-McCullough is the contact for the event, his information is included in the event details. 

Thank you everyone for the support, can't wait to celebrate Jon's Birthday with everyone! It will be a great way to spend his birthday. 

1st Annual Jon Bruce Memorial Softball Classic

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

At 1:56pm, weighing 7.4 pounds, and 20inches long, she has arrived! Everything was going good, we ended up having to have an emergency C-Section, but we are both happy and healthy. Maddox Faith Bruce and I thanks everyone for their thoughts and prayers.

Hospital Time

I went in for my appointment this morning and nothing was happening. The doctor sent me for a non stress test and while I was being monitored I had a contraction that I did not feel. However the baby did feel it, and her heart rate went a little low. Nothing to be alarmed by, but they wanted to keep me hooked to a monitor. So...Here I am typing a blog post from my hospital room. I am being monitored and induced tomorrow.

I am feeling good and waiting for her arrival.

Rescheduled again...

The doctor had to reschedule my appointment again he had another delivery. I have an appointment tomorrow at 11. 

:)

Appointments

I know that all of you are hoping for a post saying that I am at the hospital, but unfortunately we are not there yet. I was supposed to have an appointment on Tuesday, but the doctor had a delivery and had to reschedule my appointment for today. I have an appointment at 6:15 this evening and will hopefully find out when we will meet little miss Bruce. I will try to post another blog after my appointment or tomorrow to let everyone know what he says at today’s appointment. 

I would like to ask that we keep her name and pictures private when she arrives. I know everyone is DYING to know the name but Jon and I did/do not want her all over facebook right away. Please respect our wishes and privacy during this time. I promise her name will be revealed when she arrives but not as a facebook status.

Due Date…Still Pregnant.

When we first found out we were pregnant, I went to the doctor and they confirmed it. Yep we would be having a little Jon or Anne running around in 9 months! Yikes! We were very excited, the doctor originally gave us the due date of March 12, 2012. We really liked that date…3/12/12 kind of cool and easy to remember. However when we went for our sonogram they predicted my due date to be today, March 13. We decided to stick with the first date because the doctor said the later the sonogram the farther off they are. Some may already know this, but Jon was born on his due date, and I was born on mine. We were hoping she would decided to arrive on hers as well. We technically gave her two days, the 12th is gone so maybe later today. ;)

She seems very content, there are no signs of labor yet…we still have 9 hours left of today ;)

I am feeling good, slightly swollen but it's not terrible. I am trying to drink plenty of water and keep my feet up. I will do my best to keep everyone posted on our progress. I might have to call on a guest blogger for the next post ;)

Still Pregnant...

Yikes, I can't believe it has been a month! It has been a busy month, many things have been accomplished. The nursery is mostly finished, there are just a few things left to hang on the wall. However most of them have to do with her name so they will not be hung till after she is born. With the help of my step dad the closet is complete until I need to add more rods to hang clothes on. Right now I need the storage to stack things, like diapers.

I want to say a HUGE thank you to all the people that helped with my baby shower, it was amazing! Thank you to Dave and Jen for having it at their house, and my mom, Laura, Erika, Aunt Connie, Alex, Ms. Pat, Courtney, Sarah, and Mrs. Sue for doing everything they did to make it wonderful! As well as everyone else who attended, it was so nice to see everyone! :)

I have posted a few pictures of the nursery once she is here I will do my best to post some more once all the artwork is hung.

Baby Bruce is doing great, we had an appointment last thursday and my blood pressure is still good, and she is very active. I am 38 weeks today, she was considered full term last week so I am ready for her arrival. I am hoping she will come on her due date because Jon and I were both born on our due dates. I think it would be amazing if she were to. However, I will not complain if she would like to grace us with her presence earlier. I am feeling good, still getting around doing things, just uncomfortable at times. The hardest part is after I have been sitting for a long period of time I get stiff, but once I start moving again I am good to go.

Maybe my next post will FINALLY reveal her name because she was born, or it will be just another update ;)

February 6, 2012

We have an update on the nursery, it is painted and has a few pieces of furniture in it! Together Jon and I picked out the color and the way we wanted it painted. It is a soft yellow called Haystack with white chair railing. When we were discussing the nursery I asked him if he wanted to do a theme and he looked at me like I had 3 heads and said what do you mean?! I explained it to him and he didn't like that idea. We decided to just put things up that we like that have pops of color. I have found a lot of different pieces of art  for the walls and can't wait to hang them. I plan to put her name on the wall in wooden letters but that will have to wait till after she is born… ;)

A couple of weekends ago I put the crib and the dresser together with the help of my sister Erika, and my mom helped a little when she wasn't busy washing Baby Bruce's stylish outfits that we have already received. Once we had the dresser put together mom went right to work filling it up with all the freshly washed baby clothes…Yes we used Dreft not to worry. For now the nursery is still not ready to be revealed but once I have it the way I want it set up I promise to post a picture.

As for me, I am tired and a little sore but overall I can't complain. My appointments are all going well and they have no concerns. This week and here on out I will be seen every week! Yikes…She is coming! :)

Sunday 1/22/12

I had to deal with a tough thing this week but it went well. Friday afternoon I picked up Jon's ashes from the anatomy board. I was having a hard time preparing for it and was a little nervous about how I would feel doing it. Once I arrived at the building it was a numb feeling, almost like this is a job, this isn't Jon he isn't here. I dealt with people that knew nothing about about me or him, and it made it easier. I showed my drivers license, and signed in. Went where the guard told me to go, signed another paper and then they were mine. It was strange to think about what I was holding but I immediately became very protective over this box. I plan to have the ashes buried in westminster in the spring.

I also did not get to have my appointment for Baby Bruce because my Dr. had a delivery. It is rescheduled for this week. 

The rest of my weekend has been filled with lots of surprises…3 surprise parties! Happy 16th birthday to Claudia Dorsey, Happy 30th Birthday to Joe Fiorani, and today I will help surprise my grandparents as they celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary! It has been a happy weekend which was needed after Friday. 

I will also be rooting for the Raven's today for Jon he would be so excited that they have made it this far, and he would be pretty impressed with all the nice things I have been saying about the Ravens. For those that don't know, I am a REDSKINS fan all the way! However I made a promise with Jon a few years ago, once the Redskins season was finished if the Raven's were still going I would support my home team. These past few weeks I have been fully supporting the Raven's for Jon. I hope this is the year they win the super bowl for him :)

This is a picture taken last year when again, the Redskins coudn't get their act together. He lent me his Ray Rice jersey for the day. He was very happy to see me wearing black and purple. I was still a little unsure how I felt about the black and purple at the time. This year I am 100% okay with it :)

GO RAVENS!