Introductions

Hi! I'm Ashley. I used to blog pretty regularly over here! Then I dropped off the face of the earth and life has changed. A LOT!! 

Let me tell you a little bit about me and why we are here. 

I grew up in Louisville, KY. Not my whole life, but age 10-30. So I consider it home. I was born in WI, moved to IL, then NJ and finally KY. Even though we moved around a bunch, I had a pretty normal childhood. My sister and I were blessed more than we knew when we were kids and something I don't take for granted as an adult. 

I graduated from the University of Louisville. Found a great job, literally on my graduation day, and life just kind of went as 'planned'. My friends started getting married and I met my first husband at one of their weddings.   

I got married at 28, divorced at 29 and welp, that really threw my life for a curveball. I wore some pretty dark rose colored glasses during that time and while I don't have regrets, it's not something I ever want to relive. The positive is that it all brought me to where I am now. And as chaotic and messy as my life can be sometimes, there is a reason I'm here and I'm bound to figure out the exact 'why' someday! 

I moved to Tennessee on Christmas Eve of 2015. I had been divorced long enough to not feel like I was running away, but more so needed the change of scenery and a fresh start. So, I found a job, moved in with my sister, who's been living here for years, and that is really where it begins!

I'm still working for the same company I moved down here for, but now I'm married with two step kids and a special needs baby. Yea, that last one is the main reason I'm back. That is the 'why' I'm trying to figure out. My faith has been tested and my life expectations have been thrown out the window...

These past 16 month have been a struggle to say the least! So, let's have a quick recap. 

I met my now husband in November of 2017, married in September of 2018 and found out we were pregnant in August of 2019. 

I had a pretty normal pregnancy. (this seems to be a theme of my life; until now) Nothing crazy happened. I wasn't overly sick, was able to workout till I was about 31 weeks and ate whatever and whenever I could. If there were nacho eating contests, y'all, I would have dominated. I could not get enough Mexican food while I was pregnant!! And Diet Root Beer... who knew! Cravings and taste changes are legit when you are pregnant!

Fast forward to March of 2020. I had been working from home for a week or so due to COVID and was about 36 weeks pregnant when Jeremy was let go from his job. Insert sheer panic here because this girl does not make enough to pay all the bills... and oh yea, we were about to have a BABY!! Luckily, we were able to jump on my insurance without any issues. 

On top of all that, no family/friends were allowed in the hospital to wait for baby, see baby, be in the delivery room for baby... THAT was a hard pill to swallow. I don't know if I'll have more kids and to not have that 'expected' day of delivery and family and friends being there is HARD. Especially my mom not being a part of it all. I remember both of my nephews being born and I took for granted that that was exactly how my pregnancy would go.  

Thankfully, Jeremy was allowed in the delivery room, thank God, But even that was touch and go depending on his health. My doctor decided to schedule me for an induction, in hopes to get in and out of the hospital before the large surge of the virus was predicted to break. 

So on April 14, 2020, my precious little nugget was born! A pretty uneventful day I can tell you. (again, do you notice a theme of my life?!) We arrived around 5am, got meds to induce around 6:15am, the beautiful epidural later that morning and officially went into "pushing" labor around 4pm. Henry David arrived at 4:56pm!  

And this is where our journey begins. And the reason I started back blogging. Henry was born with some major, let's say neurological issues. We've been through the ringer on tests with no clear answers, so that's what I'm going with these days. 

I want to document our journey. I want to remember the good moments, see the strength in the bad and possibly reach out and connect with other mom's/families who have had similar experiences. It's hard doing it alone. I have a whole support system around me. But with them not being in the thick of it everyday; knowing the exhaustion both physically and emotionally, makes it difficult to relate. I am incredibly thankful that I haven't lost friends or family due to this. I know sometimes it takes a toll and for those who don't know how to deal with it, their response is to run. I cannot express how thankful I am that those who were already my cheerleaders are still standing there cheering for me and now my son, regardless of his challenges. 

So, I'll leave you with a sweet pic of my Henry! New post starting to chart more of our story coming soon!!