A Little Bit of Randomness

...or maybe a lot. There really is no theme to this post other than sharing a few tidbits here and there.

A couple of comical things Joshua has done or said lately to begin. He is really interested in spelling things now. I'm not sure if he actually figured it out on his own or if it became a sight word, but he can read 'baby'. He started to sound out the 'b' and 'a' when he saw it on a card, and then he blurted out the word. So, one day I was pumping and he read the brand name on my pump:
"M-E-D-E-L-A...Micah's milk!!!"

Joshua is also making up songs lately. He will change the words to a song he knows or sometimes will create his own songs, original melody and all. Keep in mind that some of the words he sang I am dictating how it sounded because I have no clue what he was actually trying to sing.

(To the tune of "The Farmer in the Dell")
The Vitamin Song, The Vitamin Song
Ho-way-in-joo
The Vitamin Song

One day last week Darrin took the kids for a ride on his lawn mower. Don't worry, the blades were turned off!



Doesn't everyone have a pic of dad and baby like this? Sometimes dad is sleeping too.


Micah is staying awake for longer periods of time and is much more alert. Isn't he adorable?!?! I just love my baby boy!


I totally see Rebekah here too. He favors her when she was a baby. See what I mean?


Darrin's sister Donise and her husband Mark came through on Sunday for a brief visit. It had been a while since we had seen them. Although Joshua wasn't too sure about them at first he warmed up quickly, as did Rebekah, and they were showing off for them. Of course, Micah got a lot of attention as well.



I just so happened to get a cross-eyed baby in this shot. It cracks me up!


This week is my first week going solo with the kids. Darrin went back to work on Monday. I had to get the kids dressed, fed, and out the door for preschool my first day. It was hard not to stay in bed, but I did get up earlier than normal. We managed to get out the door and to preschool right after the doors locked, which was better than I was expecting. Joshua proudly helped me to push the stroller down the hallway, especially after picking him up to go home.

Today was a bit more of a challenge because I had the kids all day at home. I had high hopes of doing some homeschooling with Rebekah today, but it didn't happen. How do homeschooling moms do it with a new baby? Micah loves to be held a lot, but I put him down as much as I can so that I can tend to other things around the house. I'm going to try wearing him some so that I can do other things as well.

Speaking of homeschooling, we have decided to let Rebekah go to school for kindergarten next year. We applied and interviewed for the Christian school where she and Joshua attend preschool, and she was accepted. We are thrilled she will be able to attend there in the fall. It was our first choice for schooling other than at home. Part of me really wants to homeschool, but Rebekah desires to go with her friends. For now (through the spring and summer), I will still do some things occasionally with her at home since we have the materials, and I enjoy teaching her. When Rebekah was a baby I never thought in my wildest dreams that I would desire to homeschool. My heart changed a lot over the past five years. We will take it a year at a time. I may still have the opportunity to homeschool in the future, but for now we will send Rebekah to school. I have to say, though, that I am extremely impressed with the academy. They place an extremely high emphasis on praying over the students that will attend there, and they discipline using Scripture - what does the Bible say about this? Every subject they learn has something biblical that ties in with the lesson. I am confident it is a great school, and I'll be eager to see how Rebekah does there.

So, back to the present, Rebekah is starting to show some more interest in her baby brother. She doesn't ask to hold Micah like Joshua does, but she will gladly hold him when I ask her if she wants to. Joshua, on the other hand, will jump and seek to help with his paci or watch me change his diaper with great interest. He will also check out Micah while I'm holding him and say, "Awwwww, he's so cute!" It is just precious! Now tell me, does this not look like the proudest big brother?



Alright, so here's some brotherly and sisterly love. :-)



And finally, the moment you've all been waiting for...a SMILE! Actually, he smiled bigger than this, but I didn't have the camera handy.


So, that's been life in a nutshell. Of course, I didn't share all the loudness in our home, the fighting between the two older children, the daily singing of "Fruit Salad" by the Wiggles - Rebekah- and Joshua-style (yeah, they changed the words to 'yucky, yucky' which has been banned at the expense of being dismissed from the table for time-out), all the fun we've spent outside the last several days, etc. It's been a bit crazy at times. There is no break for mama unless by some miracle Micah is napping at the same time as Joshua, and I can give Rebekah quiet time in her room, but we're still working on that. However, after having had a whole day at home, (and yes, I'm impressed the T.V. stayed off ALL DAY today), I'm looking forward to a day out tomorrow. More to come about that in another post. For now, I'm signing off and heading to bed to get about 3-4 hours of sleep before feeding time.

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.

Update on My Pregnancy

So, it's been a while...again. I finally gave my blog a fresh, new look to take it into winter, so now it doesn't feel out of season. Maybe I can stay better on top of it now that I feel like it's up-to-date in its look.

Today marks 35 weeks of pregnancy. It's hard to believe! I only have about five weeks left before our new bundle of joy will arrive, and we will have THREE blessings in our family. Darrin and I have tossed around names and just could not make up our minds. I leaned toward one name while Darrin leaned toward another. We finally came to a compromise, and our new baby boy is going to be called Micah Andrew. His initials will spell M.A.C. which is a little nickname we have been calling him for the three top names we had for a first name: Micah, Andrew, and Caleb. I am in love with the name Micah, and Darrin really likes Andrew, so we're using them both instead of a family name for the middle name as we have done in the past. So, it looks like MAC is going to stick, but that will be our little pet name for him around the house.

Almost three weeks ago I got to have a 4D ultrasound. We thought Micah was not going to cooperate because his back was actually facing us in the images, but he finally turned, and we got some decent shots. The tech offered to allow us to come back again since the fluid around his face was not as much as it could be, but by the time my next appointment was approaching, his head was settling down pretty low into my pelvis where the fluid was even less prominent. So, I just decided to cancel my second appointment and settle for the photos I did get, which weren't bad. In the first photo you can see his leg and knee pulled up to his face.




I also made the big decision to go for the VBAC. It was a difficult decision to switch doctors, but I really love my new OB, and with each visit the more I like him. I am getting really excited about trying for a VBAC as well. My doc told me the other day that he and another OB in the practice believe I am a PERFECT candidate. I pray all goes well and that my recovery will be smooth, especially with having two older children to care for in the meantime.

I am feeling pretty well lately. I get tired, so I take frequent rests, I'm on an Rx for acid reflux, but other than that I am feeling pretty good. I feel big, although I don't really look it. The baby is measuring small, although not small for my kids. Micah will probably weigh around 6 lbs. or so, right about on target with Rebekah, although smaller than Joshua. Of course, you never really know until the baby is delivered.

Rebekah is pretty excited about having a new baby in the house. She came up with some ideas that she can do to help out, such as dressing him and such. I am more concerned about Joshua. He is such a "Momma's Boy", cuddles a lot in my belly and chest, and wants to act like a baby himself sometimes. I know it will be harder on him, so I'm going to really try to focus on including him during feeding times and give him extra attention when his baby brother is sleeping.

I will close for now and return with updates on what the kids are doing these days. There's just too much to share in one post!

Please comment if you're still reading! I'm so sorry it's been a while since my last update. I hope to still have an audience with whom to share our adventures.

The Big Announcement

And the result is......

Check back...

...at 6:00! Sorry for the delay! Very important things had to take place before I could make this post happen.

The Results Are In!!!

So, we went to see Dr. Brody this morning. I ended up taking Joshua too since he's over his fever. Rebekah, being the oldest, was particularly interested in the ultrasound machine. Dr. Brody got a great look at our baby who looks wonderful! The baby's spine and brain look great and the heart rate was really strong.



Stay tuned for more! :-)

Our weekend

Rebekah was supposed to have her birthday party with her friends on Saturday, but we ran into a roadblock. Friday evening my parents came to the house to give Rebekah her gift. It was already getting late for dinner, and neither of the kids were eager to eat. They finally did eat, but not much. Rebekah looked rather peaked by the time my parents left. I figured she was just really tired from all the birthday celebrations and adrenaline from the past couple of days.

The next morning Rebekah acted really tired. She laid down on the couch to watch cartoons with Joshua and ended up falling asleep. Wow! She must be really tired! Not long after she started vomiting. We spent that morning getting Rebekah and everything around her cleaned up, taking care of her, calling the location of the party for reschedule, and calling parents of our guests.

Rebekah felt much better by the afternoon, but we opted to keep her home on Sunday morning from church as well even though she never had a fever. My mom offered to keep Rebekah for us so Darrin and I could attend church together. When Joshua woke up he was acting rather abnormal, unlike himself. He was more testy than usual, and he just didn't seem right. Since my mom was already keeping Rebekah we decided to let Joshua stay home as well. After church my mom informed us that he had diarrhea, and when Darrin check his temperature he discovered Joshua had a low-grade fever. We were so thankful we had kept him home!

Rebekah was tired most of Sunday, but by the time she got a fair amount of food on her stomach she was feeling back to normal. We decided to let her attend Cubbies while my mom kept Joshua again that night. Rebekah attended preschool yesterday while Joshua stayed home with me. He was still sick with a low-grade fever and not eating as much as normal. However, he wasn't thrilled about missing preschool after I dropped Rebekah off through the car line, but he calmed down quickly on the way home.

As of last night, Joshua still had a low-grade fever. If he is still sick this morning I will call the doctor. I'm thinking it is probably just a little bug he has, but today will make it day 3, so I want to be pre-cautious as well.

Good news, however!!! Today at nearly 17 weeks we are going to see the OB and should find out if the kids are having a little brother or a little sister! Be watching for the big announcement! I had accidentally scheduled for last Monday when the kids were in preschool and then remembered I wanted them to go with us and find out when we do, especially Rebekah. When I was pregnant with Joshua Rebekah went with us to see the ultrasound and see that we were having a baby, so I wanted Joshua to have this experience as well, but since he's been sick he won't be going with us this time. However, I'm really glad that Rebekah will go with us to find out what her little sibling will be.

So, what do you think? Do you think it will be a boy or a girl? I really don't have an inkling this time other than that Rebekah had prayed for a baby sister before we even got pregnant. I will be happy with either another daughter or another son. I love having both a girl and a boy, and they each have their special advantages. So, I leave you guessing until next time.

First Trimester Ends

At 11 weeks 5 days on Monday we went to the doctor to see my baby via ultrasound and for a regular check-up. When we arrived I noticed Dr. B's sign-in sheet was not on the counter. He had left to deliver a baby, so I would be seeing one of the other two OB's in the office.

I had always heard good things about Dr. H from a friend who switched to him with her second child. He is a Christian, and he prays with his patients at delivery. Dr. B is a wonderful doctor. I've been very pleased with him. I know him well because he has delivered my other two children, and he understands my thyroid history as well. He is passionate about his job and grows to love each and every family and baby. I also love Dr. B's nurse. She is a precious woman, is comforting and encouraging to the patients, and she goes out of her way to help. She is really wonderful.

Since I had heard good things about Dr. H I hoped to see him that day, and it turned out I did. After being weighed I joined Darrin in a small waiting room where a painting was displayed on the wall. It depicted a surgery that was taking place, and Jesus was standing with the doctor overseeing the surgery. Scripture was found on the walls as well.

We finally got to see Dr. H. He has a very good bedside manner and did an ultrasound to see the baby. We could see him/her laying on his/her back with the legs tucked some and the arms out in front, then the baby turned to look toward us (or rather toward the tool used to take the picture).


The baby measured exactly 12 weeks (2 days ahead) and had a good, strong heartbeat.

One of the things that Dr. H discussed with us is a possible VBAC. He believes I am a prime candidate since I have only had one C-section, and the circumstances surrounding it make it promising for a vaginal birth this time around. He told me the chances of having the scar on my uterus open are 1-2% and the chances of a uterine rupture are 1-2% of the scar opening, so it's extremely small. Dr. B will not do a VBAC at all. He lost a baby once, and it devastated him. He just can't go through that again. I respect him for his decision, although if I could stay with Dr. B and have a VBAC I would. I had never considered a VBAC before because I knew Dr. B didn't perform them, but also because I was under the impression they were rather risky.

Now I have the decision whether to stay with Dr. B, who I absolutely love, and have another C-section or switch to Dr. H and opt for a VBAC. I had such a wonderful vaginal delivery with Rebekah while my C-section delivery with Joshua was not good. I dealt with the baby blues after Joshua's birth due to the emotional stress. The recovery from a C-section is also longer and harder. It's much more difficult when a toddler is in the mix who wants to topple on Mommy and doesn't understand there is an incision healing there. Another thing was that since Joshua's delivery (although not an emergency C-section) was hurried I had no time to pray with Darrin prior to my surgery. I felt that was sort of stripped from me. I know Dr. H would be quick to pray first and foremost before any action was taken. However, I was in great hands with Dr. B, and I'm sure I would be with Dr. H as well. I think one hard part is that I know Dr. B so much better too, and he took great care of me with my issues surrounding Joshua's birth.

I have not discussed any of this with Dr. B or his nurse yet. I am praying for wisdom and will talk to Dr. B at my next visit to discuss my situation. When you think of it would you lift me up in prayer as well? This may seem like such a minor decision, but I'm really struggling about what to do. I surely don't want to go with a VBAC just for my own personal experience or for selfish reasons, but for the healthiest thing for the baby and myself.

If you have any experience with this or know someone who has I would also love to hear stories - success or not. Ultimately, I need wisdom from the Lord and to know what is the best decision surrounding this pregnancy.

In addition, I have found that I cannot take Reglan for nausea during the day like I could when I was pregnant with Rebekah and Joshua. It makes me sleep! I cannot function during the day when I take it. So, I talked to Dr. H about taking something else. He prescribed Zofran. Let me tell you, even though our insurance will only cover 21 pills each month (even the generic is expensive!) that drug is wonderful!!! I took my first dose yesterday morning and felt great! It's crazy that if I fill it at a drug store that it costs $22 per pill, but if I pay cash at a local hospital's pharmacy I can get it for $1 per pill! A friend of mine said that is the kind of healthcare reform we need, and I agree! So for now I'll try to get by on the 21 pills per month. Thankfully I am not very sick every day, and hopefully it will be enough to get me through the rest of my pregnancy. I wish I had gotten this drug when I was pregnant with Rebekah and Joshua! It's great!

Meet Baby Church

Today, at 7 weeks 5 days, was my first appointment with Dr. Brody. We got to meet our newest addition to the family, hear the heartbeat, and solidify the due date. The baby measures almost 1 1/2 cm which confirmed the estimated due date to be March 17. Since I will have a repeat C-section the date will be bumped up to around March 8-9. Darrin's brother Derek was born March 9, so he may be sharing his birthday with his new niece or nephew.

Even though the shock is starting to wear off some I still couldn't believe that we were looking at a baby growing inside of me! It finally seemed real. After we got home I showed Rebekah the ultrasound picture. She is so proud! She carried off the picture to her chair, sat down, and just stared at it. She is going to do great with a new little baby in the house. She is always talking about the baby inside my tummy and asking if it's a boy or a girl. She's hoping for a sister, but I'm sure she'd enjoy another little brother as well.

I'm having some "morning sickness" again with this pregnancy. Some days I feel better than others, but the sickness has been worse this weekend. I now have some medicine to help fight the nausea, so I hope to feel better as a result. The main thing is to keep myself healthy and able to take care of the children.

Thanks for all the prayers! We are getting more and more excited about this baby. We are definitely entering another adventure as we prepare for a third little blessing.

An Answered Prayer

Two months ago after returning our visit with my sister and her family and meeting Katelyn Rebekah told me that she wanted a baby sister. Actually, she had mentioned it in the past, but when I told her she would have to share her toys with her Rebekah changed her mind. However, after having had a taste of being around her baby cousin she wanted one of her own. So, although Darrin and I had planned to have no more children, I used the opportunity as a teachable moment and told Rebekah she could pray and ask God for a baby sister. When she finished her prayer I jokingly told Darrin, "You'd better watch out!"

This isn't the first time I've teased Darrin about the possibility of having another child. He encouraged me to get back in the church choir last fall. I finally decided to rejoin in January, which was the same time of year I rejoined after Rebekah weaned from nursing. Six months later we found out we were pregnant with Joshua. I reminded Darrin that when I get back in the choir we tend to get pregnant.

Well, a couple weeks ago I was having some slight cramping like my menstrual cycle was going to make full circle, and I kept waiting for it to take place. I didn't think a whole lot more about it until I was a week late. One night I was watching a program on TLC called, "I Never Knew I Was Pregnant". It was about these young women who went their entire pregnancy not knowing they were expecting until they went into labor! I watched a couple other programs and went to sleep. When I awoke around midnight it suddenly hit me that I was late and could be pregnant. I tossed and turned in bed going through the "what if's" and trying to figure out how far along I would be.

I never said anything to Darrin because I wanted to be sure of it, and I didn't want to worry him if I was late due to stress or something else. I struggled all day, though, but I had errands to run, and that helped me get my mind off of it some. I picked up a pregnancy test, and as soon as we got home I took it to find that in fact, we ARE pregnant! What a total surprise!

Although we are running out of room in our house, we sold a number of our big baby items in a recent garage sale, I am considering homeschooling, and this was totally unplanned, I know that God is in this. He will provide for our needs. I also had a difficult end of my pregnancy with Joshua. I developed pre-eclampsia and Joshua was surprisingly delivered via C-section a month early. I need prayers for my health, for taking care of myself and the children, and that God would give me grace with the morning sickness and fatigue I have.

To be honest, we have had mixed emotions about this pregnancy. We are excited, but we are nervous too. But I have more peace about it than I did almost a couple weeks ago when we found out. I know that God's grace is sufficient, and He will provide for ALL our needs.

Rebekah is looking forward to having a sibling, and she is still hoping for a sister. Joshua doesn't understand yet. I'm most concerned about him because he didn't handle my attention to Katelyn well during our visit in May. I pray that he will change with maturity and he will love his new little brother or sister. This baby will arrive sometime after Joshua's 3rd birthday.

Newest Member of the Family

This morning amy sister Carrie had another little girl, Katelyn Elizabeth. She was born at 38 weeks all on her own timing. Carrie was having contractions last night but wasn't sure if they were real or not since they were not very painful, but by the time Daniel was getting ready for work they were 4 minutes apart and Carrie knew they would be welcoming their new little girl into the family. By the time they got to the hospital and Carrie was prepped for delivery she was already 7 cm dilated! Too late for an epidural! Four pushes later Katelyn was born at 9:56AM at 7lbs. 8oz. and 19 3/4 inches long.

They discovered that Katelyn had moved around so much that she formed a perfect knot in the umbilical cord. Had Carrie gotten an epidural Katelyn would have dropped more slowly and could have endured a drop in blood pressure and other complications due to the knot. The Lord's hand was in it all, and His plan was perfect for such a quick labor and delivery, so quick that Carrie had to go natural.

Mommy and baby are doing great! Katelyn latched on to nursing right away, and things seem to be going much more smoothly than it did following Taylor's birth. I am very eager to get my hands on my new little niece, but we will go down in about three weeks or so to give them time to settle in as well as for Rebekah to get out of preschool for the summer.

Here are some pictures Daniel has taken and shared. I think she resembles Carrie quite a bit.