Faye's first 3 months

A few pics of the new lady in our life:

First outing to Joe's Farm Grill & to see the Gilbert Temple (1 day old)

 First Balloon Release for Big Brother 

First (of many I'm sure) photoshoots

First custom made dress by my talented cousin, Whitney!

Check her out HERE!

 First Halloween - cutest ladybug EVER!

Introducing Faye Désirée Crumpton

Absolutely healthy, more beautiful than I had imagined, and in short - PERFECT! I want/need to record her arrival so feel free to scroll thru the pics if birth stories aren't your cup-o-tea.

The OB at the office I had been seeing the last few appts. was strongly encouraging me to schedule a day to be induced. I really detest that word...it makes me feel like they're telling me that my body can't go into labor on it's own - which obviously it hasn't these past 2 pregnancies but I haven't gotten the chance to really let it! They were concerned with her measuring small, which she pretty much had been the entire pregnancy. Last ultrasound on Aug. 7th said she was measuring about 6lbs. 4oz. and at 39 week gestation, that was in the 10th percentile which makes them nervous apparently. I realize I'm not a small girl by any means...but who decided that someone my size is required to have a 9lb. baby?! I was not worried - but the dr. was. She said given my medical history (my miscarriages, Cannon, etc.) it would be dangerous to postpone this little girl's arrival.
On Aug. 9th, I let the dr. check my cervix after 4 weeks of refusing. Dilated to a 3, ZERO effacement. She stripped my membranes (which did not hurt, have always heard it does) and told me she'd have the office call me later that day to let me know what time to be at the hospital the next day.
I told Rod to head to the gym the next morning, like he always does and that I'd get settled into the hospital on my own b/c I knew this baby would not be coming while he was away. Carrie refused to let me go by myself, so she joined me at 7AM at Mercy Gilbert Medical Center. I'm sure we looked like quite the "pair" strolling up to my L&D room together. HA!
I had agreed to try the Cervidil first - if those did not work I was going to let them break my water and we'd go from there. We did the first round at 9AM and my nurse Deanna said I was a 3 and 50%. Good, that meant I was atleast somewhat effaced! You have to lay flat on your back for the first hour b/c of gravity and that was needless to say, ANNOYING! I never do well sitting still in general. I was having pretty regular contractions almost immediately so I was hopeful that I would only have to do one round of the gel. Around 10AM I was allowed to get up and walk around the floor, I felt like the contractions were tolerable but I could tell they were decreasing in intensity. Crap, round 2 was in my near future.
Around 11:30AM I got my 2nd round. OW. Deanna made sure to, as she so sweetly put it, "SHMEAR" that stuff real good. She informed me I was 4 and 70% (which is exactly what I was walking into the hospital with Cannon). Another hour flat on my back and again, contractions were regular and getting stronger. I had asked for a laboring tub but had not gotten it just yet b/c they were waiting to see if the gel would work. I walked the halls after my hour was up and had to stop quite frequently to hang onto Rod. I got back into my room and labored over a medicine ball for awhile until my nurse informed me that she had to monitor the baby b/c it had been awhile and she needed to check to make sure she was doing ok. I asked if I could atleast sit on the ball instead of in bed and she agreed to let me do that. I felt my body go into transition. I had asked for a wet rag b/c I was getting super overheated and while it felt great during the hot moments, it ended up soaking my hospital gown and then I was freezing! Deanna said my position was not allowing her to get a good read on the baby so I had to lay flat on my back and had to get hooked up to fluids to get oxygen to the baby. I asked her to check me b/c I knew transition was almost over and the end was in sight. She said, "You're a good 5." I  about cried...infact, I think I did cry a little. There was NO WAY I was only at a 5 after all of that! I was flat on my back, not allowed to labor in the tub b/c I was hooked up to an IV and having to be monitored for atleast an hour b/c of the previous non-readings. My mom was there and asked for some warm blankets b/c she saw how bad I was shivering. She worked on my feet and Rod was right by my side as well, obviously as irritated as I was that I couldn't labor the way I wanted to. I got my warm blankets and my contractions at that point were literally on top of eachother. I told Rod if I had to stay this way for much longer that I had to get an epidural b/c I wasn't going to last, especially if I had only progressed to a 5 in the last few hours! Deanna came in and let her know I was requesting some pain relief, I cried and told her I didn't want one but I wasn't going to last. She grabbed my hand and told me that crying was not going to help, that I was totally capable, but that she would get me one if it's what I needed. I told her it was and about 10 mins later she brought in what I can only assume was a prep table for the epidural. Still having constant, hard contractions...I was in my mind enough to tell Rod to make sure she checked me again before I got the epidural.
At about 3:15PM she took me off the monitor b/c baby was doing great, checked my progress and said, "Oh girl, you're at an 8, you have GOT this!" Changing positions from sitting on the ball, having my mom work on my feet and getting those warm blankets were what I attributed to the faster progression. I had Rod help me into the bathroom and we planned to fill up the tub now that I was FREE from wires. As I went to sit down I instantly felt the urge to push. Uh oh. I shouted to Deanna that I had to push and she yelled back at me NOT to do so. I HATE when they tell you that! HA!
I could hear her running out of the room trying to page the doctor to get into our room ASAP! Rod helped me back to the bed where I sat on my hands and knees trying to keep myself from pushing. The next voice I heard was the doctor telling me to go ahead and flip over to my back after I was doing with my contraction. I will spare you some of her less than professional words she shared while in our room for at the most 7 mins total...good thing I only needed her there to catch my baby. I flipped over, put my feet in the stirrups just long enough to brace myself, pulled my legs back, pushed once and there she was! 6lbs 9oz and 18.5in long at 3:47PM. I held her while Rod cut the cord and the doc stitched me up. Kara had literally just walked into the room and got to see her arrival, (mom had walked out about 20 mins prior to take a break from watching me be in pain.) What a difference it was to actually enjoy that special moment with this brand new miracle instead of having them whisked away and left to wonder what could be transpiring while you're in a completely different wing of the hospital. Made me appreciate it that much more.

 Getting ready to leave the hospital!

 Snuggles with Daddy

 My furrowed brow baby

I have been meaning to update for quite some time now, needless to say I am preoccupied soaking up every single second with her. We are in love all over again. 

A year ago today...

I found myself snuggled next to my sweet little boy in his hospital bed on what would be his final day on earth. I will never forget that moment in those early morning hours. As I held his hand, I remember asking him to help mommy and daddy know what we could do for him. I told him how much we loved him and that we didn't want him to leave, but if he needed to - we would try to be strong like him, and let him go (for now). A feeling rushed over me...and I just knew. I knew he was tired, that he had completed his earthly tasks, and more importantly, that it'd all be ok.
So here we are, it's early morning again - and I am snuggled next to Cannon's darling little sister, in my own bed. How lucky are we to be holding this precious baby on what will probably be one of the hardest days we'll have to endure year after year. Plain and simple, God is good.
There are words I'm sure...but I can't seem to write them. So for now, I'll share a song that Anais showed me that makes me smile/cry.
"Happy" tears ofcourse :~).


Brad Paisley & Dolly Parton - When I Get to... by merlin0758


Love you & Miss you Cannon.

Chadge & Niece come to visit!

We are at 34 weeks! I have one more week working full-time, then I'll be switching to part-time and fortunate enough to be able to work from home. My boss rocks.  I hope I'll actually have that "nesting" feeling which I didn't get with Cannon. With him, I finally had my first day off in which I had barely snuck in a pedicure, went to my OB appt, and then got sent to the hospital! So I wanted to make sure to give myself some time to get things done before this lil' girl makes her debut!

Our "winter visitors" came over Memorial Day weekend. 

We took a trip down to Tucson to stop at Grandma J's cemetery, and to see our Grandpa who's been in and out of the hospital recently.

 Gibson having fun with Uncle "Chadge"

Always eating at Grandma's...seriously could not get a single pic without this kid holding, chewing or admiring his plate of strawberries. 

equally as guilty...

 We went to see Men In Black 3, took a trip to IHOP and Mi Amigo's, played and lost to them AGAIN at Celestial Companions. Super annoying. HA! Can't wait to see you guys again in August!! 

 Nursery project BEFORE pic. I haven't gotten a picture of the AFTER yet. We bought this beauty on Craigslist months and months ago for a smokin' deal! I knew I didn't want to completely redo Cannon's room, so I figured we would just add a different accent color and rearrange the layout. Problem solved! 

Chief, overseeing the project. Couldn't have done it without his help :~)

30 weeks

My old roomies and I got together for a little GNO at the Cheesecake Factory a few days ago so this is a 34 week pic. This is the first, and possibly the last time we are all pregnant together! Good thing we don't live together now...PHEW! :~)

Left to right: Dano - due in December - finding out the gender in a few days!

Ashlie - due in September - GIRL

Me - due in August - GIRL

Nicole - due yesterday...still waiting - BOY

Cannon's Bday Trip to CALI

Wow - it's been a month since Rod and I took our quick getaway trip to celebrate C's birthday. Time has and is flying by it seems. I didn't take enough pics but the weekend involved lots of shopping (mostly Rod, bc shopping while impregnated is NOT as fun), eating at scrumptious new places - and some old favorites. I just may have intentionally booked our hotel in Laguna Niguel that was at most 1..5 miles away from the closest Tommy's. How convenient right?! :~) Rod made it a point to find a CrossFit gym to do a sesh. Did I mention he and his friend AJ opened up their own CrossFit in N. Mesa?! I didn't?!...whoops!! Well you can check 'em out HERE!

On Cannon's big day, we wanted to make sure it was a fun day but had also reserved a spot at the Newport Beach Temple for an endowment session. Rod and I haven't been back here since before we were married, almost 5 years ago! What a neat experience for both of us...very spiritual and uplifting - exactly what we needed to refocus and revamp! Afterwards, we went out to eat at a nice restaurant close to the beach and just enjoyed being together and remembering our sweet son & the blessings he's brought and continues to send to our family.

This was a self-timed pic in which I had to literally run thru some shrubbery to my spot and try not to look winded! Whew!

Rod's photo skills! :~)

Shot from our hotel balcony - our last night in CA. We went to eat at this place called King's Fish House. Oh.My.Goodness.Gracious. I could not stop talking about how fabulous the food was! Highly recommended! See...even my belly thought it was good! :~)

Speaking of which - I'm 28 weeks now and have no complaints. I've joked that I could literally be the next Mrs. Duggar b/c being with child is thankfully something H.F. apparently blessed me to be good at. I think it's b/c he thought he'd take it easy on me in that department. I do not take it for granted either! So if you ever hear me complain (which I'm usually very good about making sure I don't)...slap me!

Happy Birthday to our Cannonball - we love and miss you dearly!

He Lives

I love April! General Conference, Easter, the Easter Pageant, Cannon's Birthday...lots of things to remind us what's really important in this life! I didn't get to see the pageant this year b/c en route to it, I received a phone call that my best friend was headed to the hospital to give birth to her twin girls! What a neat experience that was to be in the room during the delivery and afterwards! Seriously, such an amazing feeling that I'll never forget!

General Conference had a very significant talk by Elder Ronald A. Rasband of the Seventy. I'm sure you know which one I'm referring to. I loved it and Rod & I felt like it was just for us:

“For reasons usually unknown, some people are born with physical limitations. Specific parts of the body may be abnormal. Regulatory systems may be out of balance. And all of our bodies are subject to disease and death. Nevertheless, the gift of a physical body is priceless. …

“A perfect body is not required to achieve a divine destiny. In fact, some of the sweetest spirits are housed in frail frames. …

“Eventually the time will come when each ‘spirit and … body shall be reunited again in … perfect form; both limb and joint shall be restored to its proper frame’ (Alma 11:43). Then, thanks to the Atonement of Jesus Christ, we can become perfected in Him.”

Easter 2011

Easter 2012

Here's the family visiting Cannon for Easter. My mom wanted to include our little man in the festivities so we did an easter egg hunt and blew some bubbles with Gibson and Lennox @ the cemetery. 

Rod had to show his bubble-blowing skills ofcourse! :~)

Grateful for my Savior. Grateful for the Gospel. Grateful for my eternal family. 

Just Grateful Period.

March Madness...ok not really.

Here's the video Danna took on my phone of us revealing the baby's gender to our families. Ronnie and Elaine were in town visiting too so we thought we'd do something fun to share the news while they were here. Ultrasound went great...they said her heart was "beautiful"...RELIEF! I wanted to see that ticker more than anything else!

Here we are at 20 weeks. First belly shot and I feel like I'm just in that weird, "I have a beer belly" phase. Not complaining...I would just much rather look "pregnant" already instead of "awkward!" Feeling great - the only real difference with this pregnancy is I can eat meat instead of being repulsed by it. That was the only thing that made me think this baby could be a girl!

Chief just turned 2 on March 19th! His latest and greatest trick/realization is jumping up onto Rod's shoulders to get his belly scratched. Seriously...what was I thinking getting a Great Dane? He's humongous. 

We finally got Cannon's headstone placed! It took us a long time to decide what we wanted it to say b/c we could not agree on anything! I felt like there was a lot of pressure to get it just right b/c it's literally...IN STONE! Rod had read a talk by Russell M. Nelson and as soon as he showed me this quote...I knew that was it! In case you can't read the saying, it says "Life does not begin with birth, nor does it end with death." I just liked the thought of ppl seeing it and hopefully realizing that death is not the end and we will be with our loved ones again. And how sweet is that little angel boy in the moon? :~)

 I had told my cousin Meghan and my Aunt Becky that I wanted to get Cannon a BIG pinwheel but hadn't bc Rod thought it was kind of obnoxious to put in the cemetery. So...they were sweet enough to get it for me as a gift so Rod couldn't say no! It's perfect and I love watching it start to spin like crazy when we get there! Makes me feel like it's Cannon saying, "Hi there Mom and Dad!"

That's it for now - hopefully I update more frequently since we got a sweet new DSLR! I'm counting it as one of my "push presents"! :~) 

Despite the heat it'll be alright...

A fitting lyric to describe the way I'll be feeling come this August... for more than one reason.


The 1 yr anniversary of Cannon's departure back to heaven on the 29th. How has it almost been 6 months!?!

I will turn 27 - I had to double check b/c that just sounded much too high to be correct. Unfortunately...the math don't lie.

I plan to be quite ROUND in the mid-section area...b/c yup...we're having another baby! I'm 15 weeks and due August 11th. We are shocked, excited, nervous, anxious, but most of all - THANKFUL! We have been blessed - and I can just imagine lil' C with his arm around his little brother or sister telling them all about us! I hope he tells them not to be scared and that it's ok to stay here awhile!!! :~)

Alot has happened in the past few months so I've got some catching up to do! We are grateful for the prayers  and are thrilled to be welcoming another precious spirit into our home. We have our anatomy ultrasound in 3 weeks so stay tuned!

Celine's Talent Show - Make You Feel My Love

A Christmas Poem

I see the countless Christmas trees, around the world below.
With tiny lights, like heaven's stars, reflecting on the snow.

The sight is so spectacular, please wipe away that tear.
For I'm spending Christmas,with Jesus Christ this year.

I hear the many Christmas songs, that people hold so dear.
But the sounds of music can't compare,with the Christmas choir up here.

For I have no words to tell you, the joy their voices bring.
For it is beyond description, to hear the angels sing.

I can't tell you of the splendor, or the peace here in this place.
Can you just imagine Christmas, with our Savior, face to face?

I know how much you miss me, I see the pain inside your heart,

But I'm not so far away, we really aren't apart.

So be happy for me dear ones, you know I hold you dear,

And be glad I am spending Christmas, with Jesus Christ this year.

Please love and keep each other, as the Father said to do, 

For I cannot count the blessings, or the love He has for you.

So have a Merry Christmas and wipe away that tear,

Remember I am spending Christmas, with Jesus Christ this year.