Funny Kids

Rebekah has said a couple of funny things lately. Yesterday she and Joshua were not feeling very well. Both had a very low-grade fever or slightly elevated temperature. Joshua definitely got my cold, although yesterday Rebekah just laid around for part of the day. Last night as I was brushing her teeth she told me, "It's dangerous to brush your teeth when you're sick." Then today as she was holding Micah and looking at his lips she saw his milk blisters and said, "I see his baby teeth."

Joshua has become a little dare devil on his tricycle. This is the latest thing he has started doing. The first time I saw it I about freaked as he went over the curb at the bottom of our driveway. I was afraid he would head down the hill and run into the swing set.



Darrin said one time he headed straight for the slide and steered just right to go under the slide. Whew! I'm glad I didn't see that one!

This past week Darrin's mom has been here for a few days. She was tickled to finally get her hands on Micah upon arrival on Sunday. She went back home today.


I am hoping to start getting into a routine this week. I'm not sure how I'm going to juggle mornings without Darrin once he goes back to work. It has been so great having him home to help out, especially to take the kids to preschool. I'm sure we'll figure it out, but it's going to take some working out since I'm breastfeeding too.

However, Micah has been a great baby! He goes about four hours between feedings at night, so he's really only up twice in the night. He is nursing really well too. I took him to Breastfeeding Support Group on Wednesday, and he is gaining nicely. He was 6 lbs. 12 oz. which is already 5 oz. past his birth weight. In addition, it was nice to get out of the house for a change. I'm looking forward to the day we can get out of the house on a regular basis, but, oh, am I enjoying our precious son!

One week old

Friday marked one week since Micah's birth. I decided to try to get some shots of my newborn baby boy as well as some photos of him with the kids. Here are the results.








Question for you all: would it be totally confusing if I change my blog address to our-3-blessings? I can keep the same address if it's too much trouble for my readers, but it would obviously make more sense if the address was appropriate to our family. If I do change the address I will give ample time for everyone to make the modification on your blog rolls and favorites. Please respond on my blog or send me an email and let me know. Thanks!

Check-ups and Life with Three

OK, so I need to update my header, but that is the last thing on my mind right now. It's more about sleep and life with a newborn.

We've had a couple of check-ups in the last week or so. Joshua's 3-year check-up was just a few days before Micah's birth. Joshua is 33 lbs. and 38 inches. He is really gaining on big sister who is about 38 lbs. and 44 inches. His build is just rock solid, so he often feels heavier to carry than Rebekah. Joshua had his blood drawn for a CBC (white blood cell count) test as well as a RAST test to determine if he was still allergic to casein, the protein in milk which gave us suspicion for causing his chronic ear infections. Darrin received a call Friday while at the hospital that the test returned negative, so Joshua is no longer allergic to dairy! We are so thrilled! We have decided to reintroduce dairy gradually as if it is a new food for a baby to make sure there is no allergic reaction, so he's not drinking straight milk yet, but he's enjoying all these foods like mac and cheese. Praise the Lord for that report! I am so excited to get to prepare and eat casseroles again!

Micah had his first office visit with the pediatrician yesterday. When we left the hospital he had lost 6 oz. which is right at around 5% of his original birth weight. He has already gained two of those lost ounces back, so he's well on his way to returning to his birth weight. Micah is nursing really well, and my milk has come in which seems to be lasting him a little longer than the colostrum did.

Some of you have been praying for the kids as they adjust to having a new baby brother. I had told you how concerned I was, particularly about Joshua taking to his little brother and dealing with jealousy. Things have gone much more smoothly than I could have dreamed. Rebekah doesn't want to hold Micah as much as I thought she would, however, she loves taking care of him! She is already a little mother hen, and she prides in the opportunity to watch him for a couple of minutes while Darrin and I tend to other things. She has already determined and learned that she can give Micah a paci if he starts to cry. Micah has fallen in love with the hospital paci, and Rebekah will put her thumb or finger inside it and hold it in his mouth to soothe him.

Likewise, Joshua is all about his baby brother! He loves to hold him or just look at him. Every morning when he gets out of bed he has to go see Micah. He is totally in love with his brother; it is so precious! Joshua has had a few meltdowns which could be related to Micah, but overall, I've been really pleased with how Joshua has taken to him.

Now, I just hope all this love and the kids have for Micah does not wear off! I'm concerned Rebekah will tire of helping out with him, but I'll take what I can get for now. Hopefully it will last a good while.

Here are a few pics of our last full day at the hospital, going home (well, visiting the kids at my parents' first), and spending time together as a family at home.

Little MAC

Soon after my last post Dr. Harnsberger arrived to break my water. It was great timing because my contractions were already around 5 minutes apart and regular, so my body was starting to go into labor on its own, but with a little help. It took a while for my cervix to reach 6 cm and 90% effaced. After a while I felt like my epidural was starting to wear off, so I called for extra. One of my nurses checked me to discover I was 7 cm. She left to see about extra medicine, but my next contraction hurt a lot more, and another nurse came in to find me complete! It was 5:50 PM, and Dr. Harnsberger was scheduled to be off at 6:00! I got a little extra medicine and then started pushing. Dr. Harnsberger came in at 5:55, and Micah was born after about 3-4 pushes. It was an amazing experience! I had really hoped for a similar delivery as Rebekah's, and it was even better. I only labored for about 3 1/2 hours, and I got the perfect VBAC.

I've been thanking God so much for His allowing me to have such a great delivery and that I could avoid another C-section. I am also so thankful that my OB got to deliver. Another OB from the practice was on his way to perform the VBAC, and although I'm sure he would have been fine, I really wanted Dr. H. to do it. We had a special moment afterwards when Dr. H. prayed with us over Micah and our raising him.





Dr. H. praying over Micah





We had the option of letting Micah go to the nursery for his newborn tests and bath while I move to a mother/baby/recovery room or stay in the labor & delivery room while they transition the baby in the same room. I opted for the latter so that Micah could stay in the room with us. It put moving me to a recovery room late that night, but it was so worth having him in the room for those 2+ hours instead of being separated from him.

In the meantime, my parents brought the kids over to meet their baby brother and to spend some time with us for a little while. Rebekah was very interested in looking at Micah, but she didn't want to hold him. Both the kids seemed more interested in hanging out with me, although Joshua was intrigued with Micah as well. Both the children did give their brother a quick little kiss, and Joshua held him with me. They are looking forward to seeing Micah again today, so that is encouraging.





Our little "MAC" - Micah Andrew Church. He was 6lbs. 7oz. and 18 3/4 inches long.

The Waiting Game

Please excuse any typos...I have a monitor on my finger keeping track of my heart rate.

Yesterday morning I woke around 4:00 with contractions. I couldn't sleep, although the contractions were not regular. I had a hunch our baby boy could arrive that day, but I wasn't sure. Darrin decided to take off work for the rest of the week, and we got up and ready in case we needed to head to the hospital. Contractions reduced significantly, so we just waited it out throughout the day.

I had a pedicure scheduled, and I really wanted to get my toes done before having to go to the hospital. When I got out of the shower Darrin asked me if I was nervous. I told him that I just really wanted to get my pedi in before Micah's birth. We had a good laugh about that.

As the day went on I had some more contractions, although they were pretty sporadic. They calmed down overnight, although I had to get up in the night due to discomfort and pain.

This morning I was having a fair amount of pressure and some pain along with sporadic contractions. Sometimes I'd have them 5 minutes apart and later it would be 30 minutes before I had another one. Darrin and I felt it would be best to go see the doctor to be checked. Dr. Harnsberger found me to be 3 cm dilated and 80% effaced. He believed I would go into labor tonight. We had the option of waiting it out and having another doctor deliver our baby or being induced. We really wanted Dr. H. to deliver Micah, plus with the rainy weather Darrin didn't want to risk having to fight traffic and all. My parents were already picking up the kids from preschool, and we were already prepared to go straight to the hospital. Darrin and I prayed about it, and we decided to go on to be induced.

Since then we were able to eat lunch, and I have been prepped for delivery. Contractions have increased on their own, although I have not progressed any, so they have started pitocin to help things along. My epidural has kicked in as well, so I'm not feeling much pain at all during contractions, and they are continuing to feel more like pressure than anything.

So now we just wait on Dr. H to break my water and for our precious baby boy to arrive. We are looking forward to meeting our new son soon.

Two Tea Parties

In the past couple of weeks Rebekah has gotten to be a part of two separate tea parties. Recently I had pulled out her ceramic tea set that she received for her second birthday. I had put it away to save it for when I felt like she was mature enough to take good care of it while playing, and now seemed like the perfect time. She was enjoying it so much that I promised her we would host a tea party for one of her friends before Micah's birth. Rebekah selected two of her good friends, and we set the date.

In the meantime, the mom of one of Rebekah's friends from her former ballet class at The Little Gym had contacted me about having a play date. Jasmine was going to have a tea party with another little friend, so Rebekah was invited to join them. The girls dressed in princess dresses, and we painted their toenails. Some of them had their hair done and/or make-up applied. Rebekah prefers not doing her hair, and we applied body glitter and lip gloss in place of real make-up.

Jasmine and Rebekah, a.k.a. Belle and Snow White


The brothers played together while the girls did their thing.


The girls all dolled up


Tea time!




Then on Saturday Rebekah hosted her very own tea party for her friends Maggie and Heidi and their moms LeeAnne and Jessica. We sent out invitations to our friends so the girls would have something to receive in the mail and open.


The girls are ready for tea!


Our guests:
LeeAnne and Maggie


Jessica and Heidi


And, of course, me and Rebekah


I pulled out my Royal Albert "Old Country Roses" china I have collected over time. My Grandma got me interested when she gave me a bud vase several years ago. I started collecting the pieces and received several from my parents and MIL. It was perfect for an elegant and classic Mother/Daughter tea party!






My mom had found a book of Victorian games children used to play. A few were common games played in the parlor at parties. One game was called "I Have a Basket". The person holding the basket says, "I have a basket." The next person says, "What's inside?" The first person replies with something that starts with the letter A. The basket is passed to the next person and the game continues for the letter B, and so on.


I turned on some music for the girls to play "Hot Potato" at Heidi's request, but they ended up dancing instead.






As soon as our guests left Rebekah was already asking to have another tea party for different friends! Tea time has definitely been a highlight over the last couple of weeks.