[ Posted by Maggie
Fri, 18 May 2007 15:31:38 GMT ]
So yesterday I tried out a theory. I have been feeling like no matter what I do it doesn’t really make a difference on my back/hips, so I might as well start doing things. I was really quite tired of taking it easy due to my back and yesterday I didn’t feel too bad, sure I felt my pelvic bones and hips move around whenever I walked, but it didn’t hurt so I considered this an improvement. Well for one of Hannah’s friend’s birthday we bought him a zoo membership so we could all go to the zoo together. Well yesterday was the day, I decided that it wasn’t going to happen unless we just go, so we decided on just an hour or two at the Wild Animal Park and we would avoid the huge hills. I also decided that I would make dinner today. This hasn’t happened for quite some time, and I mean dinner from scratch, the way I’m used to making dinner, not out of a box.
So before our friends came knocking on our door, I started to clean the kitchen so it would be ready for me to make dinner when I got home, and I marinated the chicken for Kung Pao Chicken. I iced before we left and put on my brace (helped with the moving parts that are supposed to stay still) and we were ready to go. We had a great time as did the kids, and I was doing ok, my hip started to hurt, but it hurts about that time everyday so no biggie. We watched an animal show and ate ice cream and let the kids play in the play area. I was still doing pretty well. We got home and then visited with another neighbor for just a little bit who is doing some wonderful home improvements, so they showed them off for us. I then started dinner. Again making dinner wasn’t so bad, we had egg drop soup and Kung Pao Chicken with brown rice, both were pretty easy to make and was sure to get the pre cut veggies when possible so I wouldn’t have to stand too long. It was so nice having a meal that I made. I’m very grateful for everyone that has brought us meals, but providing healthy, delicious meals for my family is a treat for me. But then I sat down. Bad mistake, I should’ve eaten standing up, because after I sat down my body said it was done. I was able to move to my recliner, but that was about it. I eventually was able to get up to put the food away, but clean the kitchen, no way. I was in bed before Hannah was, and she didn’t have a nap, so it was early for her!
So this morning I am up and already in pain. Normally I’m just a bit stiff in the morning, but not in pain. Oh, and last night I had to move to the recliner to sleep, because the pain woke me up. So my theory did not pan out, and I am paying for it today. I will have to clean the kitchen, I did a really stupid thing yesterday and didn’t put the chicken breasts that were still in the Costco bag on a plate in the fridge to defrost so now I have chicken cudies all over my fridge. Thankfully I put them on the bottom shelf, but I wouldn’t come over asking for an apple, at least not until I can scrub them. Maybe I’ll have to make apple crisp or something, to make sure all the cudies are gone. I figure the oranges and mangos have pretty thick skins, so a good wash and they should be fine.
So now I’m going to go, drink a ton of water and ice and pray that I’ll at least be able to get the kitchen done, so my dear hubby doesn’t have to deal with chicken cudies.
5 comments
[ Posted by Maggie
Thu, 17 May 2007 16:39:38 GMT ]
So I talked about Hannah’s birth and now I’ll be talking about my plans for this birth. I believe whole heartily that God made our bodies (female that is) to birth babies without all this medical intervention. Now I do realize that we live in a fallen world and not everyone gets that privilege and I am very grateful for the doctors that can provide assistance when things aren’t quite right. However, after much reading and thinking, I am convinced that for the vast majority these medical interventions do more harm than good. (Again these are my convictions, and I won’t hold it against you if you don’t agree ;-) ) Frequently one intervention leads to others and then after delivery you don’t only have to recover from giving birth, but you also have to come off of all those drugs they gave you in order to manage your birth, as does your baby, which does get some of any drug that gets put in you, even an epidural. No one really knows how “safe” these drugs are for our precious little ones. All of my interventions almost led me to surgery, when after some reading, other options were available, I just didn’t know about them. So now I’m stepping down off my soap box and will tell you what we’re doing. :)
First off, we’re taking Bradley Classes, the goal of these classes is a drug free birth. The first thing they advocate is being in good enough shape to be able to do it, and stay low risk. So we’re given some exercises to do and an eating plan to follow to make sure that the baby and mommy gets everything it needs and that mommy has the muscles to push that baby out when the time comes. We’re also given a vast amount of information on the different stages of labor and different ways to cope with each one (I wasn’t given all of that with our hospital class). This week I started the Brewer’s Diet (the diet they advocate) and I can tell you my baby will be well nourished if I can only get all of that protein down! I have yet to meet all of the requirements for one day, but I’m working on it. It certainly keeps me away from junk because I have to leave room for my 2 eggs a day, 4 servings of milk, 2 servings of greens, 80 grams of protein, etc. Yes, women do gain more weight on this diet, but most of it is for baby and most of it goes away soon after the birth (according to the research, lets pray my body is average in this sense). :)
The other thing we’re doing differently is hiring a midwife and having this baby at home! :) The midwife we have chosen was referred to us by 2 families from our church. She’s a nurse midwife, meaning she has a nursing degree, and a Christian woman. We pray at every prenatal visit and she asks how my devotional times are going. It’s interesting going to someone’s home for prenatal visits. She has 3 kids and home schools 2 of them, so they’re there, she also has a smaller house and it isn’t very orderly (things are clean, just not orderly). This actually makes me feel more comfortable. I can relate to her on more levels, she’s just a homeschooling mom trying to do her best who happens to have a degree and catch babies. :) And she seems to know where everything is, so she must have some sort of system. :)
The home part was a big decision. I didn’t want to go this way with Hannah because I wanted everything available to me, should an emergency arise. Well after my last experience, I want those things a bigger distance away from me so they’re used in only a true emergency. We live 10 minutes away from the hospital, and our midwife is well trained, so I am confident should a need arise she could keep us ok until we arrived at the hospital. Plus, we have a wonderful God who is in control of all things, even births away from all of that medical equipment. There are several advantages of a home birth that I am realizing. 1, it’s your home, I’m comfortable here and I can make it the environment that will be most relaxing to me and the new little one. 2, it’s my own germs, we don’t have to go to the hospital where sick people are, I’m already used to the germs here and baby will be more immune to them as well. 3, no need to move locations. I can move freely in my own home and not worry about when to go to the hospital. If I call the midwife too early, oh well, she gets to stay longer, or she can go back home. But she said we call her when we want her, I don’t have to be so many centimeters along or anything. I get to take my time. 4, Hannah won’t be away from us for long. I think this may help in the initial bonding of the new siblings, I can’t wait for her to meet her little brother or sister. 5, no need to worry if the clothes I brought to wear home will fit, I’ll already be home and have my whole wardrobe available for when I decide I should get dressed and presentable.
Well those are the things that we’re doing different this time around. I’ll let you know how things are going as we move along. So far my back and hips are still giving me a lot of trouble, but I’m trying to look at it positively. If I can endure constant pain for this long, then certainly I can endure labor. Plus I get to practice those relaxation exercises with real pain, so I can see if they really work. :)
Tags Birth | 2 comments
[ Posted by Maggie
Mon, 14 May 2007 20:09:32 GMT ]
I have realized that lately I’ve been talking a lot about birth, especially when I mention I’m seeing a midwife instead of an OB and as such we won’t know the sex of this baby. So I thought I’d write about birth and my views of birth. I just want to preface by saying these are MY convictions, and MY views, I can feel passionately about them at times and that may be portrayed in my wittings, but I do know this is a decision that each family needs to make on their own and the outcome can be different for each one. Another warning these posts will be LONG! So first I’ll talk about Hannah’s birth, since it was a big reason why we’re doing things differently this time, and then in another post I’ll talk about how I hope things will be differently this time and what we’re doing to make it happen.
When I became pregnant with Hannah I knew I didn’t want an epidural from the start, mainly because the idea of a huge needle going into my back creeps me out, but also because I believe the more natural you can live the healthier you will be. I also knew some of the risks (which are greatly minimized now, but can still happen) such as being paralyzed if they get it in wrong or horrible headaches for an extended period after the birth. (Another side note, I won’t be siting references for where I get my info, as a lot of it I do not know, but I did do a lot of reading on the issue and if you need me to find an article or book on something in particular please feel free to let me know. I just don’t feel like writing a paper with bibliography right now. ;-) ) So we took the birth class that the hospital recommended, took the hospital tour, breastfeeding classes, the works, I didn’t know at the time there were other options. I think I may have read a little bit about Bradley but also read that they tended to be pushy and not listen to their doctors. At that time I still had a lot of faith in my doctor knowing what was best, so I didn’t want to be pushy. Also, my mom and aunt both gave birth naturally in hospitals with only taking the hospital classes, so it would be good enough for me too.
In our class I was the only one that was certain I did not want drugs, and I enjoyed the relaxation times and learned some great techniques, that even helped deal with the back pain in my last weeks of pregnancy.
As my due date came and went my doctor started talking about induction. I was able to delay it once, but the next time she was on call she wanted me at the hospital. She said something about fluid levels and it sounded so serious, so I agreed. I had let her know that I didn’t want an epidural though unless absolutely necessary. So on April 9th we went in in the evening and they started cervidil. We watched Stargate (yes we’re sci fi geeks), and then we went to bed. We had everything all set though. CD player, nice music, swim trunks for John, a birth ball, everything we could need. In the morning the cervidil hadn’t done a thing and they started pitocin after I convinced them I needed to eat something. Generally they won’t let you eat if you arrive in labor, but I wasn’t even dilated and no contractions so they brought me a small breakfast. They started pitocin after I was done eating. Pitocin wasn’t doing a whole lot to start with, so she broke my water. After that contractions came immediately. By this time my aunt and cousins arrived and I told my cousins to go shopping, and we’d call when they could come back. John and Aunt Debbie were great support, but pretty soon the contractions were less than a minute a part, some overlapping and I wasn’t coping well. I really didn’t want an epidural, but I didn’t know about any other options. We tried different positions and had relaxing music play (Living Room Sessions, by Chris Rice, hymns played on the piano, no vocals, it’s wonderful!). The nurse was great and help me find the best positions, but I couldn’t take a shower because of the IV and with the pitocin I needed continual monitoring so I couldn’t even walk around. They would unhook me to go potty, but that was it. I finally asked for an epidural, I was only 3 cm and there wasn’t an end in sight and I couldn’t catch my breath, I was in tears and devastated that I didn’t make it far at all before getting an epi, although the nurses kept telling me they hadn’t seen someone be induced and make it so far. The anesthesiologist came and told me to be very still. After a contraction ended he started to work, but a contraction came before he finished and he emphasized that I could not move, so I just prayed. The next contraction already felt better and soon I was quite happy. I called my cousins back and they came to keep me company and John was able to eat lunch (he hadn’t eaten all day and before the epi I wouldn’t let him leave my side), it was early afternoon by now. My dear friend Jen came down from LA and had arrived and our friend Dan was also there. I laid in bed and my friends and family kept me company. I wasn’t very tired since I slept all night, so it was fun having a little party. When the doctor came to check me I had progressed quite well, the epidural gave me a chance to relax and my body do what it needed and around 9 pm I was ready to push. By this time the epidural had worn off just enough that I could tell when I needed to push, but not enough for me to feel anything. The doctor asked my 2 friends to leave so that there would be room for extra nurses for Hannah because there was meconium in the fluid and wanted to make sure she was ok. So when it was time to push John and Aunt Debbie helped hold my legs, the nurse gave me some tips and the girls cheered. Part way through the doctor said something about an episiotomy and then snipped, at that point I wasn’t going to argue. She also mentioned something about the heart rate and that if it didn’t improve soon she would have to take her out via c-section. This was my worst fear. Aunt Debbie stepped out and called my dad and everyone was praying for me. The girls continued to cheer as I pushed and about 10 minutes later Hannah was born, 9:43 pm. “Come Thou Fount, of Every Blessing” was playing on the CD player (someone informed me later). We hadn’t changed the CD all day. The doctor was quite impressed at how quickly I pushed her out, I know it was God answering our prayers. She was placed on my tummy for half a second and the nurses took her away to make sure all was good. She couldn’t of been in better shape though, she was gorgeous from the minute she was born. Huge eyes, slightly curly hair (it was actually mostly straight, but with all the wetness made it look curly), pink skin not a trace of jaundice, and she didn’t even have a cone head. :) The doctor stitched me up, gave the spectators a lesson on the placenta and I soon had my little girl my in arms.
After everyone left, the nurse tried to help me nurse her, I don’t remember how that first feeding went, I was pretty spacey. They helped me to a wheel chair and we went to a recovery room, as I still didn’t have full feeling in my legs, and we had our first night as a family. The epidural made me a bit shaky though and I had swollen quite a bit. The nurse brought me some medication, vicodin, a stool softener and something else. I wasn’t sure why I needed all that, but she spouted off some reason and I just took them, still not thinking quite right. The next day was spent trying to get Hannah to nurse, and reading the Easter story (it was now Easter Sunday). She would get hungry, try and latch, but couldn’t find it and then when she did she would be so upset she would just cry and not latch on. The next night we were still in the hospital and she would do this every 20 minutes or so and we were exhausted. The day time nurse was fabulous though and would help just hold her when she wouldn’t settle, change her diaper and help me through every feeding. My perinium was quite sore and I had those ice pack thingies on all the time. As a funny side note, when we got home I would just put an ice pack wrapped in a towel in my undies to provide relief, well you should never ice for more than 10-20 minutes, because you will give yourself a burn, I had to call the on call doctor to prescribe me more epifoam (numbs the area) because it caused more pain.
We called Dan Monday and he met us at our apartment to help me up the stairs so John could carry Hannah. I wasn’t confident of my stair ability quite yet. I was still quite swollen and had to wear John’s clothes home with my slippers, I couldn’t even slip on my tennis let alone tie them. So we got in and settled and then Jessica (my oldest cousin) came by after work and picked up Chinese for us. Hannah still had a real hard time getting the hang of the nursing thing and I was very tired and emotional, but I wasn’t going to give up. About 2 weeks later she was doing much better and quickly gained weight, but I was still an emotional wreck. Family had started to make their trips to see their first grandbaby and when it was just too much I would take Hannah and nurse in our room with the door closed. Although I certainly loved Hannah, I didn’t enjoy nursing, and we didn’t bond well. I had a hard time comforting her, but John would take her and she would settle instantly. I did continue to nurse, knowing that it was best for my baby and not having any physical reason not to, and eventually started meeting with a woman from church to sort through my depression issues, but it still took months for me to feel better again and as soon as Hannah hit 1 year she was weaned and I was relieved.
While I can’t blame all of our postpartum difficulties on the drugs that I did not want, I wonder if it would have been different had the birth gone differently. I wonder if my body would have recovered quicker on its own and if without all those drugs in both of us if nursing would have started better and not made me so discouraged. The Lord is ultimately in control and I can look back and say that the first year of Hannah’s life was one that helped me rely on Him more and in the end strengthened me, it was one of those James 1 trials. I am very grateful for my Hannah, and although the first year was tough, she provided much joy as well. She was a mostly happy baby and after figuring out a schedule nursing at least became predictable, and although she hated, and still does, to go to sleep, once she’s asleep she sleeps real well. She was sleeping through the night fully at 2 months, what a wonderful act of grace from our Lord. I am excited to have another little one, and I pray that I will trust on the Lord from the beginning with this one and that things will go a little better.
Future posts will be on how we’re doing things differently this time and what our plans are for this birth.
Tags Birth | 2 comments
[ Posted by Maggie
Fri, 11 May 2007 19:21:42 GMT ]
I’ll start with a funny Hannah story that happened just this morning and then give you an update on things.
Hannah skipped her nap yesterday and was asleep soon after 8 (very unusual for her) and as a result woke up at 7:30, so while John and I were getting ready for the day Hannah sat on our bed and played with things on my dresser. One of these things is a small box that I keep change in. She was having fun bouncing the coins on the mattress and hearing them clink. I came and sat with her for a little while (making sure nothing was going up the nose, or in a ear, or anything) and she asked to get down. We have quite a tall bed, I need a stool to hop in, and she can get up, but down is a little difficult for her. So I helped her and a fist full of change down. She looked back at me and said “I’ll be right back” (in her own language of missing letters of course), so I sat patiently to see what she would do. Usually those words result in something quite amusing and today was no different. She came back with a piggie bank that Grandma Rita got her for her birthday and put the change in it and asked for “mo’”. So she went through out our room finding any change she could and Daddy let her empty some of his change bank and now her piggie bank is quite full. When she received the bank for her birthday my aunt and uncle put change in it for her, but that was over a month ago and since then the bank has just sat, until this morning. It amazes me what picks up on and what she remembers that may not emerge for months later!
Updates: My back was in quite a bit of pain after the popcorn incident, but I’ve had some better days since. We purchased a La-Z-Boy just my size and that is one place that I can sit/lay very comfortably with little pressure on my back. I also got a back brace from my chiropractor that works wonderfully and has significantly reduced the pain while I’m wearing it. Some wonderful ladies have provided some meals for me and have offered to help me clean, which has helped me be able to rest more. We are so blessed to be in such a wonderful church family. I hope to be able to take over some of the light housework soon.
Some people have asked about potty training, well she’s back in diapers for the time being. Right now there are more important behavioral issues with her that need to be addressed and a fresh start later may be more productive. She does still go before bedtimes in order to delay, but not much else than that.
I had my first appointment with my midwife yesterday and we were able to hear the baby’s heart beat. I’m excited to have a Christian caring for me and my baby during this time and am excited about having this little one in an environment that I am so comfortable in. I’ve been a birth story junkie lately and am dreaming up my own ideas of what I want this birth to be like.
Posted in Parenting, Family, The Princesses | 1 comment
[ Posted by Maggie
Sat, 05 May 2007 16:58:30 GMT ]
I’m on a blogging roll! Well my daughter is making it easy, and I have to write this one down before I forget all the joys of last night (it was Friday night, 5/4/07, I had to take a break from writing this one). So last night started out like a mostly typical night. The only differences is we babysitting 2 other little girls so we had 3 to watch over instead of just one. No biggie though, we know and love these girls and are happy to take them whenever we can. So we had dinner and a movie night, and of course movie night includes popcorn.
Well the movie wasn’t really holding their attention, the 2 other girls were looking at a book with me while I was laying on the couch, John was so wonderfully cleaning our bathroom, and Hannah…. well apparently she was sticking popcorn kernels up her nose! I didn’t notice this until she came and was trying to pick her nose and then complained when I told her to stop. So I told her to grab a Kleenex, thinking it was just an ordinary booger bugging her, but no… it was popcorn kernels! Notice the s? Yes, not just one, but two! One in each nostril. I yelled for John, we tried squeezing them out, but Hannah wouldn’t have it, then I briefly tried tweezers, but they were a little pointy and I was afraid of pushing them up further. John had just been cleaning and wasn’t dressed to go out so I grabbed her, put on my flip flops and ran out the door to go to Urgent Care.
I am so thankful for our Urgent Care office, they only see patients of the doctors in that group and they’re right around the corner. I am very thankful for them, except for last night. Hannah and I got there and I was starting to unbuckle her a very nice lady in the car next to me said she just went up and there’s a note on the door saying they’re having computer problems, so they’re closed and we need to go to the ER!
So to the ER we go. We sign in and are next to see the nurse. By this time I’m realizing that I didn’t put shoes on her, so I’m needing to carry her the whole time, not good on my back. We do get in to see the nurse fairly quickly, and she says we’re next for a room. So we go back to the waiting room. But while we were talking to nurse I feel my lap getting wet. I should’ve changed her Pull Up before leaving too. So I go and change her, at least I grabbed a Pull Up from the car. So now not only does she not have shoes on, but no pants either, because they’re wet.
2 hours later we make it into a room. Praise the Lord! We’re finally going to get to go home soon. Well not really, turns our the doctor is 3 hours behind on patients, so we get to wait in the room for 3 hours. By this time the girls have gone home and John has come to join me. I’m very grateful because Hannah has not been fazed one bit by the popcorn kernels and they seem to be making her hyper, but with no shoes on she needs to stay very contained, I needed a break. The doctor sees us a little bit before 1 am. He was looking for some nurses to help him with Hannah, decided not to wait and had us hold her down, less than a minute later the kernels were out and we were out the door. On the way home I was looking at the papers they gave us and on the home care sheet, number 3 was “teach your child not to put objects up his/her nose”. It made me laugh, I would think that would be obvious.
So I learned a few things from this, and if you’ve read this far, I thank you. :)
1. Popcorn bowl needs to be put away immediately after popcorn is finished.
2. Objects up the nose is not so urgent that you should not think through what to take with you. Especially if your child is not in pain, you will be low on the priority list at the ER. Shoes are a must, several diapers will be needed and possibly a book or small toy for your child to play with.
3. Popcorn kernels up the nose is a stimulant apparently and will make your child bounce off the walls, it will also make you forget all about your back problems, until the kernels are out, then child will fall asleep on Daddy and your entire body will ache.
Have a great day everyone and be sure to watch out for popcorn kernels up the nose! :)
Posted in The Princesses | 4 comments
[ Posted by Maggie
Thu, 03 May 2007 19:23:49 GMT ]
So as many of you know, I’m expecting our second little one. I’m ending my first trimester, feeling less fatigued, able to handle more smells and able to eat more healthy foods. I’m so thankful for this. But literally the same week I started to feel better my back started acting up. But the Lord is good.
I had a bad back when I was pregnant with Hannah as well, and I also have a condition called ligament laxity (loose ligaments), when I’m not pregnant, so when the relaxin starts doing it’s thing I turn to jello. So while this is not unexpected, it did come earlier than anticipated, and it’s a whole new thing with a 3 year old under foot.
What is very odd to me, is that the Lord is using this time where I can’t do much of anything to teach me (once again) about my responsibility, as a godly wife, to care for my home. I’m going through a book, A Woman After God’s Own Heart, by Elizabeth George, and learning how we are on assignment from God to care for our homes (Titus 2, Prov 31) and I am unable to do so at this time. But it is encouraging me to do what I can. I may not be able to sweep or vacuum or scrub bathrooms, but I can be cheerful when my husband comes home, I can discipline my daughter wherever she lands (I can’t lift her to take her to her room, but I can bring the rod to her), I can teach her God’s Word, ABCs, 123s, colors and shapes, I can make the bed and keep things tidy, and I can put a quick meal together. Also through this the Lord is crushing my pride, I have to ask for help, I don’t have a choice. He is also teaching me how to be joyful in trials.
I am learning so much and I have so far to go. I don’t do half of those things that I can do, and I often complain. I have various degrees of pain throughout the day, and am unable to take anything for it, but the Lord will not give me any more than I can handle, so I can handle this, with His help. He has provided us with good insurance that will take care of some of the chiropractor bills, and it is getting more manageable, but I still have a long ways to go. He has also provided us with a good friend that comes and helps me once a week, and a park right outside our door where Hannah and I spend many hours so I can rest and she can play.
This is getting very long, but I need to tell you all how wonderful my husband is through all of this. He works full time, comes home takes care of Hannah, puts us both to bed and then takes care of the kitchen and any other pressing chores before going to bed. And although he gets very tired, he does not complain and does not blame me for not doing it. The Lord has truly blessed me with him. :)
Posted in Spiritual Growth, Family | 1 comment
[ Posted by Maggie
Thu, 03 May 2007 15:35:34 GMT ]
Well it has again, been quite a while since I’ve posted an update. Well here’s some funny things Hannah has done recently. A few weeks ago Hannah would start talking about Dodo while we were in the car. Dodo is her grandfather, my dad, and she loves him very much. But then I started noticing a correlation. When ever she talked about Dodo she also saw a motorcycle. You see Dodo has a motorcycle and last time we were in Sacramento Hannah got to sit on the motorcycle. So now whenever she sees a motorcycle she points and says “Dodo!” It’s quite cute.
The other funny things that she has done both happened yesterday. We went to Pei Wei Asian Diner and of course, when we have Chinese food we have fortune cookies. Well this time she wanted to do it all by herself. So she broke the cookie in half, removed the fortune, held it up to her face and “read” it. She was looking quite intent at it and mumbled something, it was so funny.
And then last night. She went to bed and she was yelling for Da (Dad). John was about to go in and discipline her, for calling yet again, but then we heard something very funny. You see Momo and Dodo bought her a dog a couple of years ago that you can push one ear and record a message and then push the other ear to play it. Cute idea, but the message doesn’t stay for long. Well Hannah had pushed the record ear right before calling for Da and then the next thing we hear is this electronic dog calling for “Da!” We just laid in bed laughing. So now she has a dog that will do her calling for her. :)
I’ll write more about what’s been going on later. Sorry it’s been so long.
Posted in The Princesses | 1 comment
[ Posted by Maggie
Tue, 03 Apr 2007 18:28:08 GMT ]
It’s been over 3 weeks since I’ve posted! Just wanted to let you know what all has been going on. Our trip to SLO was wonderful, we were able to see lots of friends that we hadn’t seen for a very long time, and the wedding was beautiful. And then after SLO we got in the car very early Sunday morning and drove to Sacramento to surprise Cindy for her birthday! She was very surprised. We had a few surprises for her that weekend. First was us showing up. Second was the fact that we’re expecting our second child sometime in November and third was given to her Monday morning when Dad told her to get ready because she was driving down with Hannah and I, along with Dad to go back home. John had flown back Sunday night to go to work on Monday. Cindy thought I was going to drive all the way by myself with Hannah, but she was wrong. It was great being able to be there for the big celebration.
The past few weeks I haven’t posted because I hadn’t told my mom or her side of the family our exciting news about expecting another child. I knew we were going to be seeing them and wanted to tell them in person. So I didn’t post of fear of spoiling it. We did go back up to Sacramento area this past weekend for my Grandmother’s 80th birthday! It was so wonderful to be able to celebrate it with her and to spend some special time visiting her and my aunt and uncles that we don’t get much time with usually. The big party was held at my mom’s new house that she’s renting. It was great to be able to rejoice with her in being able to entertain again and have a yard for Hannah to run around in. Her house is nice and I’m very happy for her.
So the past few weeks have been spent with many hours in bed due to extreme fatigue. I’m learning better how to handle it, but it’s still difficult. I end up sleeping when ever Hannah is sleeping, which leaves a lot of things undone, but this too shall pass. :) I’m greatful for friends close by. A neighbor took Hannah for an hour last week and I was able to get the whole living room looking very nice. Today a friend is coming over to help me get some house work done as well. I’m looking forward for a time of fellowship and productivity. Praise the Lord I haven’t had too bad of nausea. I do have it some, but if I eat regularly I’m ok. The only problem is smelling foods as I’m cooking is not pleasant and does not make me want to eat the food I make. I’m trying to figure out if it’s all food, or just certain ones. And maybe if I make quicker meals so I don’t have to smell it as long that’ll help too.
Well that’s it for now. I have a lot to do today.
Posted in Family | 5 comments
[ Posted by Maggie
Thu, 08 Mar 2007 15:31:00 GMT ]
My baby is sick. There is never a time when my almost 3 year old is more my baby than when she’s sick. I agonize at every sneeze and cough, when she’s tired and weak and all she wants to do is cuddle in my lap, I gladly take the job. It’s not often that my preschooler really takes time to snuggle anymore. But my heart hurts because I know she’s not her cheerful self. I know that she’d rather be running around the living room, dancing with her daddy.
She also seems to get sick at the worst times. Last time she was sick was when we were in Sacramento for Christmas, it was so hard for her to get the rest she needed to get better, it took a couple of weeks. This time she got sick 2 days before we’re supposed to leave for San Luis Obispo for a wedding. Yesterday we watched videos and I let her sleep as long as she needed and gave her juice in with her water so she would drink more. Today will be more of the same. I’m praying that she will be better for our trip. We haven’t been to San Luis Obispo for a couple of years at least and it will be so good to go back to where we went to school and met each other. There will be some friends there that we haven’t seen since school either, we’re really looking forward to it.
We’re also going to see David, John’s brother, who goes to Cal Poly. Hannah gets to stay with Amu David while we’re at the wedding. It’s very nice of him to be willing to give up his Saturday afternoon to watch his little niece. He’s a very good uncle. We are very fortunate to have such wonderful family, what a wonderful blessing from the Lord.
Another exciting thing is happening this weekend, it is my Cidny’s birthday, and it’s a big one this year. For those of you who don’t know, Cindy is my step mom. But I don’t always like calling her that, because “step mom” often has a bad connotation, and my Cindy doesn’t fall into that category of an “evil step mother”. The Lord has truly blessed our family with her. Cindy, we’ll be thinking of you on Sunday while we eat breakfast in SLO (perhaps at the Apple Farm, yum!). I pray that you have a wonderful birthday and that my other siblings treat you very well! We love you and look forward to seeing you in a couple of weeks when we’re up for Grandma’s birthday.
Speaking of our trip I have much laundry to do and picking up. With Hannah being sick, I’ll also be doing some tomorrow morning before we leave so that way our home is germ free when we come back (hopefully all healthy). Have a great weekend everyone. I’ll write more when we get back and settled.
Posted in Family | 3 comments | no trackbacks
[ Posted by Maggie
Tue, 27 Feb 2007 23:57:58 GMT ]
I promised more about Hannah. Here new words: “I do it!” and “I did it!”. She really likes these phrases when crawling into the van. She can get all the way in her car seat now, she just needs us to buckle her. She keeps us smiling! :)
Potty training-She’s really coming along. She’s had a few accident free days now, including naps! Hurray! Of course she had three accidents today before noon, but that’s ok. I have been putting her in Pull Ups only for sleep times, and she seems to do ok with that, and I’m now able to wash our clothes and not just sheets. :)
Discipline-Still reading Shepherding a Child’s Heart. WOW! I have becoming more and more convicted of needing to be constantly in the Word and to pass that down to Hannah. I pray that God will give me an unquenchable desire to be in His Word and to take EVERY opportunity to pass His Word down to Hannah. Oh, how I desire for her to grow to love Him, and for me to love Him more and more.
New things- I started a Scrapbook Night in our Clubhouse and invited some neighbors and ladies from church. We had our first one last night. 3 people showed up, 2 ladies for the neighborhood and my cousin. We had a good time and I was able to work on my 2007 album. My goal is to keep current with 2007 and then work backwards. First the Grand Canyon (in progress) and then Hannah’s baby! Praise the Lord for digital cameras! We have everything on the computer, by date, so it at least won’t be too difficult to work backwards. By the way, if anyone (who I know) wants to come, let me know and I’ll get you the info.
Posted in Parenting, Spiritual Growth, The Princesses | Tags discipline, potty, scrapbooking, training | no comments | no trackbacks
