Well, it has been awhile since I have written. Things have been busy. A lot has been going on around here. We have been battling allergies in our family on top of all the busyness. Joshua is getting new furniture soon, and we have been getting his room ready for that and Rachel's room ready for the crib and her other furniture. Rachel will have the room that used to be the office so we had a lot of rearranging to do. I have started to wash Rachel's things, and there is a lot of it!
Updates regarding my pregnancy: I passed my second gestational diabetes test! Yay! No diabetes here. It finally felt like things were going well. Nothing else could be wrong. We have checked for everything. I saw my OB last Tuesday and she said everything was looking good. I hated that we didn't get to see my girl on the ultrasound. Hopefully next time. Then on Friday, I ended up at the hospital. I was having contractions that were about 7-8 minutes apart and Rachel wasn't moving much. Matt talked me in to getting checked out, even though I was hesitant. After we got hooked up to the monitors and found Rachel's heartbeat, she started moving around like a crazy girl! Everything ended up being just fine. My contractions were probably a combination of Braxton Hicks and dehydration. You would think that I would learn that I need to drink more! I was a little swollen when I got there so the nurses started to check for preeclampsia. And I did not have the protein or the blood pressure symptom! Praise God! They did the preterm labor test and it came back negative; no labor for me in the next two weeks! I felt really good when we left the hospital. I made a decision when we left the hospital: I am not going to live every day of this pregnancy waiting for something to go wrong. It is in God's hands. He took care of my little boy, and He will take care of Rachel, whatever happens. I have to be reminded pretty frequently that He is the one in control, not me!
I got the ok from my OB to go to Annual Conference this year. I was worried that she would not let me. That means a lot, especially since I am being commissioned. Now, I won't have to miss it! I just pray I don't end up on permanent bedrest between now and then. I am looking forward to a few days away, and another step in my journey being accomplished. It should be a good time.
Monday, May 14, 2012
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
More News
Well, I received some unexpected news on Tuesday. I figured since I was not called on Monday that all was well with my gestational diabetes test. Wrong! They called me on Tuesday (yesterday) to come in today for the longer test. I was worried and anxious. I spent a lot of Tuesday afternoon and evening thinking about what that could mean. So, needless to say, I was not very happy. It just seemed like I was left asking "Now what could go wrong?"
I felt better when I got there this morning and was talking to the lab tech. She said more than half of the pregnant women who come through their office fail the first test. She said it often is due to what the woman eats the day before. Apparently, most women are careful with what they eat the night before, but what you eat that whole day matters. I ate several things that day that could cause my sugar to be high. So, I went today for the longer test. I did not enjoy the three needle sticks. But I will have results tomorrow. I am praying for good results.
Overall, I feel really good. And I still feel very blessed. I think this is another opportunity where God is teaching me that He is in control. I know whatever happens, Rachel and I are in his hands and we will be okay. I will update sometime after the I get the results.
I felt better when I got there this morning and was talking to the lab tech. She said more than half of the pregnant women who come through their office fail the first test. She said it often is due to what the woman eats the day before. Apparently, most women are careful with what they eat the night before, but what you eat that whole day matters. I ate several things that day that could cause my sugar to be high. So, I went today for the longer test. I did not enjoy the three needle sticks. But I will have results tomorrow. I am praying for good results.
Overall, I feel really good. And I still feel very blessed. I think this is another opportunity where God is teaching me that He is in control. I know whatever happens, Rachel and I are in his hands and we will be okay. I will update sometime after the I get the results.
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Blessed
Blessed....that is the word that sums up how I feel right now. Things are going well. And I continue to be reminded daily, especially in this pregnancy, that I am not in control. I have no control over anything. And it kind of feels good that it is outside of my hands. All I have to do is take care of myself and pray, God is handling the rest.
Last Thursday I went to Columbia for my interview with the Board of Ordained Ministry. There were ten of us there for interviews. We got started late, but I was one of the ones to be interviewed in the first time slot. I was thankful to get it over with, but it meant I had to wait the rest of the time. And we all know, waiting seems to be the worst part of anything! I finished my interview at 11:05, and I found out my results at about 12:50 my results. I passed!!! I will be getting commissioned at Annual Conference in June, if I don't miss it due to pregnancy issues! I am so excited and proud of myself. I knew I could do it. Thank you to anyone who prayed for me throughout the ordeal. It means so much.
Then on Friday I went back to the OB. My fluid levels were much better. Rachel looked and sounded good. My cervix still looks fine. My blood pressure was low, no excessive protein, and no swelling (pre-eclampsia symptoms) so things seem to be looking good. Rachel is still measuring a tad on the big side. My iron is still a little low, but we are watching that. It is from the anemia, and if that is my only struggle the remainder of my pregnancy, then I am doing good. I took my gestational diabetes test, and was told they would call me today if I needed to take the 3 hour test. I did not get a call, so I am assuming that I did not fail the first test, which means no diabetes. My OB was so pleased at the appointment with how I am doing and how things are going. She even said to me that over the past several weeks she had been looking for, even expecting, something to go wrong, and she just can't find it. She said over the past 2 weeks that they had looked for everything and I am pretty normal. She said this is as close to a textbook pregnancy as you can have after pre-eclampsia. I can't tell you how I feel, other than thankful. I am finally starting to believe that we will get further than I got with Joshua, and maybe even pretty close to term. Please continue to remember us in your prayers!
Last Thursday I went to Columbia for my interview with the Board of Ordained Ministry. There were ten of us there for interviews. We got started late, but I was one of the ones to be interviewed in the first time slot. I was thankful to get it over with, but it meant I had to wait the rest of the time. And we all know, waiting seems to be the worst part of anything! I finished my interview at 11:05, and I found out my results at about 12:50 my results. I passed!!! I will be getting commissioned at Annual Conference in June, if I don't miss it due to pregnancy issues! I am so excited and proud of myself. I knew I could do it. Thank you to anyone who prayed for me throughout the ordeal. It means so much.
Then on Friday I went back to the OB. My fluid levels were much better. Rachel looked and sounded good. My cervix still looks fine. My blood pressure was low, no excessive protein, and no swelling (pre-eclampsia symptoms) so things seem to be looking good. Rachel is still measuring a tad on the big side. My iron is still a little low, but we are watching that. It is from the anemia, and if that is my only struggle the remainder of my pregnancy, then I am doing good. I took my gestational diabetes test, and was told they would call me today if I needed to take the 3 hour test. I did not get a call, so I am assuming that I did not fail the first test, which means no diabetes. My OB was so pleased at the appointment with how I am doing and how things are going. She even said to me that over the past several weeks she had been looking for, even expecting, something to go wrong, and she just can't find it. She said over the past 2 weeks that they had looked for everything and I am pretty normal. She said this is as close to a textbook pregnancy as you can have after pre-eclampsia. I can't tell you how I feel, other than thankful. I am finally starting to believe that we will get further than I got with Joshua, and maybe even pretty close to term. Please continue to remember us in your prayers!
Monday, April 16, 2012
Life at this point in my pregnancy
Hey Everyone! I am sorry it has been an eternity since I have written. I promise I will get to the point with more regular updates.
What can I say? It has been busy. Since I work at a church, Lent and Easter are a busy, busy season. I was happy to have the day after Easter off! This Thursday I go for my final interview for commissioning. If all goes well, I will be commissioned in June! Please keep me in your prayers!
So with Easter, work, chasing after a two year old, normal mom and wife duties, and being pregnant, I have been busy and tired! Our little Rachel is still a Rachel. Three ultrasounds say so! We are excited! I made a registry for her, and it is so much harder to do that for a girl than it is for a boy. There is so much more stuff for girls! It is overwhelming!
This past week I started experiencing some problems with my pregnancy, and you know that worried me. Last Wednesday I was having some minor contractions. My OB said it was probably a little early for Braxton Hicks, so she wanted me to come in. She did an exam and thought I might have an incompetent cervix (means premature delivery - oh no! not again!). She sent me to the hospital to have a detailed ultrasound to check on baby Rachel. Rachel looked really good and healthy. She is even on the big side. The ultrasound tech told me that probably means I won't have preeclampsia again because preeclampsia babies are small (Yay! Great news!). I also have no symptoms at this point, and in my last pregnancy I started with symptoms around 12 weeks (Thank God). Then I had a test to check my cervix. My OB called me on Friday and wanted me to come in ASAP. My cervix, it turns out, is fine. No incompetent cervix. But my amniotic fluid levels were low. They did a non-stress test to check Rachel. Rachel was fine; moving a lot, her heartrate was good, and I was having no contractions. My OB thinks my levels were low because I was dehydrated. She ordered me to drink plenty and rest when I can, but no bedrest. I go back this Friday and we will take my gestational diabetes test to see if I have that. If I do, that could explain some of the dehydration and fluid issues. But we are trusting God that everything is okay with our little angel.
Overall, I feel pretty good. And I feel good about the news from the OB. I hardly ever drink enough when I am not pregnant, so of course it would be an issue when I have a human living inside of me taking my nutrients. I need to work on drinking more overall. I just feel blessed. It appears we have no preeclampsia, we have no incompetent cervix, and I am not at risk for pre-term labor so that all says there is no reason I should not carry Rachel to term. That makes me happy!
Carrying her to term is my goal. In February, my OB asked me at one of my appointments to make one goal for my pregnancy or delivery and she would try to help me achieve that. She said no one's delivery goes as planned, and I had a lot of hiccups with my last one. She said I can't have everything I want, but to pick something and we would focus on that part of my birthplan and try to make it happen. My goal: to bring my little girl home with me. Carrying her to term or very close to it (like 36 weeks) will help me bring her home with me. Now, that is my OB's goal. It is what we are working on. Unless you have been there, you can't possibly know how hard it is to leave your child at the hospital when you are supposed to be at home bonding. And you can't know how bad I felt delivering early. My body appeared to be a hostile environment for little people. I thought I couldn't do something women were supposed to do and that made me feel like a failure. If I walk out of the hospital with my little girl this summer, I will feel so thankful. I will be the happiest woman in the world. And then I will be able to say that I did it. Please keep us in prayer for the remainder of our pregnancy. I need to make it at least 11 more weeks, but hopefully 12 or 13, and ideally my OB is hoping for 14 more.
What can I say? It has been busy. Since I work at a church, Lent and Easter are a busy, busy season. I was happy to have the day after Easter off! This Thursday I go for my final interview for commissioning. If all goes well, I will be commissioned in June! Please keep me in your prayers!
So with Easter, work, chasing after a two year old, normal mom and wife duties, and being pregnant, I have been busy and tired! Our little Rachel is still a Rachel. Three ultrasounds say so! We are excited! I made a registry for her, and it is so much harder to do that for a girl than it is for a boy. There is so much more stuff for girls! It is overwhelming!
This past week I started experiencing some problems with my pregnancy, and you know that worried me. Last Wednesday I was having some minor contractions. My OB said it was probably a little early for Braxton Hicks, so she wanted me to come in. She did an exam and thought I might have an incompetent cervix (means premature delivery - oh no! not again!). She sent me to the hospital to have a detailed ultrasound to check on baby Rachel. Rachel looked really good and healthy. She is even on the big side. The ultrasound tech told me that probably means I won't have preeclampsia again because preeclampsia babies are small (Yay! Great news!). I also have no symptoms at this point, and in my last pregnancy I started with symptoms around 12 weeks (Thank God). Then I had a test to check my cervix. My OB called me on Friday and wanted me to come in ASAP. My cervix, it turns out, is fine. No incompetent cervix. But my amniotic fluid levels were low. They did a non-stress test to check Rachel. Rachel was fine; moving a lot, her heartrate was good, and I was having no contractions. My OB thinks my levels were low because I was dehydrated. She ordered me to drink plenty and rest when I can, but no bedrest. I go back this Friday and we will take my gestational diabetes test to see if I have that. If I do, that could explain some of the dehydration and fluid issues. But we are trusting God that everything is okay with our little angel.
Overall, I feel pretty good. And I feel good about the news from the OB. I hardly ever drink enough when I am not pregnant, so of course it would be an issue when I have a human living inside of me taking my nutrients. I need to work on drinking more overall. I just feel blessed. It appears we have no preeclampsia, we have no incompetent cervix, and I am not at risk for pre-term labor so that all says there is no reason I should not carry Rachel to term. That makes me happy!
Carrying her to term is my goal. In February, my OB asked me at one of my appointments to make one goal for my pregnancy or delivery and she would try to help me achieve that. She said no one's delivery goes as planned, and I had a lot of hiccups with my last one. She said I can't have everything I want, but to pick something and we would focus on that part of my birthplan and try to make it happen. My goal: to bring my little girl home with me. Carrying her to term or very close to it (like 36 weeks) will help me bring her home with me. Now, that is my OB's goal. It is what we are working on. Unless you have been there, you can't possibly know how hard it is to leave your child at the hospital when you are supposed to be at home bonding. And you can't know how bad I felt delivering early. My body appeared to be a hostile environment for little people. I thought I couldn't do something women were supposed to do and that made me feel like a failure. If I walk out of the hospital with my little girl this summer, I will feel so thankful. I will be the happiest woman in the world. And then I will be able to say that I did it. Please keep us in prayer for the remainder of our pregnancy. I need to make it at least 11 more weeks, but hopefully 12 or 13, and ideally my OB is hoping for 14 more.
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Update on Baby B.
It has been awhile. Things have been pretty busy. It's a lot different being pregnant when you are chasing a 2 year old around and you have a more demanding job than you did last time. But things are good here.
Things with this pregnancy started off a little rocky. And I have been pretty sick to my stomach throughout this one. Also, I have been struggling with my anemia during this pregnancy so I feel weak, dizzy, and faint pretty easily. Other than that, this pregnancy has been so different than my last one. Even though I had never been pregnant before, I felt like something was wrong the entire time. This time, even though I am chasing around Joshua and working hard, I feel so much different in a good way.
On March 1st, because we didn't want to wait for our next ultrasound, we went to an ultrasound place to see the gender of Baby B. If I waited for my next appointment at the OB, we would have missed all the spring/summer consignment sales in our area. I learned really quickly with Josh that consignment is the way to go to buy clothes. They outgrow their clothes so quickly! Plus, since the baby is due in August (we are probably looking at late July) we wouldn't need a lot of summer clothes. I decided that I would rather Mom and I buy the baby's clothes, so that shower gifts could be for the other stuff we would need.
So the verdict was.....Baby B. is a.....GIRL!!!! I am excited. I have felt this whole time like it was a girl. I was secretly hoping for a boy so Josh would have a brother, but I am really excited about this. I get to buy dresses and hairbows! I can't wait! Matt wanted a girl, Matt's parents wanted a girl, and my mom wanted a girl. Joshua also said he wanted a sister, but I think it's because he doesn't want to share his toys. But he will be a great big brother. He will want to teach his sister everything! I am kind of skeptical about whether or not the ultrasound was right or not. I have a fear that it might not be right. I was almost 18 weeks when I had the ultrasound done. Now, I am 20 1/2 weeks. I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow. If they do my ultrasound, I will be anxious to see what the verdict is. But all the stuff we bought at the consignment sales is not returnable! That would be my luck. We will have to wait and see. I may have an ultrasound at my appointment tomorrow. It depends on a couple of things. If Baby B. really is a girl, then her name will be Rachel Elizabeth. I think I would be disappointed if it wasn't a girl. I will update again soon, especially if there is a change in baby's gender.
Things with this pregnancy started off a little rocky. And I have been pretty sick to my stomach throughout this one. Also, I have been struggling with my anemia during this pregnancy so I feel weak, dizzy, and faint pretty easily. Other than that, this pregnancy has been so different than my last one. Even though I had never been pregnant before, I felt like something was wrong the entire time. This time, even though I am chasing around Joshua and working hard, I feel so much different in a good way.
On March 1st, because we didn't want to wait for our next ultrasound, we went to an ultrasound place to see the gender of Baby B. If I waited for my next appointment at the OB, we would have missed all the spring/summer consignment sales in our area. I learned really quickly with Josh that consignment is the way to go to buy clothes. They outgrow their clothes so quickly! Plus, since the baby is due in August (we are probably looking at late July) we wouldn't need a lot of summer clothes. I decided that I would rather Mom and I buy the baby's clothes, so that shower gifts could be for the other stuff we would need.
So the verdict was.....Baby B. is a.....GIRL!!!! I am excited. I have felt this whole time like it was a girl. I was secretly hoping for a boy so Josh would have a brother, but I am really excited about this. I get to buy dresses and hairbows! I can't wait! Matt wanted a girl, Matt's parents wanted a girl, and my mom wanted a girl. Joshua also said he wanted a sister, but I think it's because he doesn't want to share his toys. But he will be a great big brother. He will want to teach his sister everything! I am kind of skeptical about whether or not the ultrasound was right or not. I have a fear that it might not be right. I was almost 18 weeks when I had the ultrasound done. Now, I am 20 1/2 weeks. I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow. If they do my ultrasound, I will be anxious to see what the verdict is. But all the stuff we bought at the consignment sales is not returnable! That would be my luck. We will have to wait and see. I may have an ultrasound at my appointment tomorrow. It depends on a couple of things. If Baby B. really is a girl, then her name will be Rachel Elizabeth. I think I would be disappointed if it wasn't a girl. I will update again soon, especially if there is a change in baby's gender.
Monday, January 9, 2012
New Year, New Plans, New Journey
This is completely unacceptable! This has been the longest I believe I have ever gone without blogging! Well hopefully that will not be the case this year. One of my goals for this year (I make goals for the new year instead of resolutions) is to blog at least twice a month. I want to stay in better contact with the people in my life. So I will try my hardest to be committed to this.
I had a busy fall. I submitted my questions for commissioning the day before my birthday. I am supposed to meet with the board of ordained ministry sometime between February 7 and 9 to interview. Then I should find out if I will be commissioned in June. It sure was a relief to get all that stuff done, and I felt pretty good about most of it. I also had my second charge conference in October and it went well. And then it was time to get ready to celebrate the holiday season, and boy, did we ever have a busy one! But it was very nice and very enjoyable.
On Thanksgiving, I got pretty sick. In fact, we left my mom's early because I was flushed, nauseous, light-headed and had a horrible headache. One week later, on December 1, I turned a pregnancy test positive! Matt and I are having a baby! I suspected I might be. One test before that was negative and another one looked like it might want to turn positive, but I was unsure. It was wonderful to wake Matt up that morning (he works 2nd shift now), and say "hey, look at this!" We are so excited. But I am a little nervous given my last experience.
We told Matt's parents and my sister. I had a plan to tell my parents in a different way. I ordered Josh a shirt that said "I have a secret" on the front, and on the back it says "I'm going to be a big brother." I figured my mom would like that. I knew it would be hard to win her over after my last experience. She thinks I can't handle being pregnant. Well, our plans changed on December 8. I started bleeding and cramping. We went to spend about 9 hours in the ER just to find out my pregnancy hormone levels were low and I could be miscarrying. My appointment with my OB was for the 12th. I was put on bedrest for the weekend, and I worried. I had to tell my parents then because we needed them to keep Josh. I couldn't lift him.
At my OB appointment on the 12th, we found out that there was no pregnancy in my uterus on the 8th, but she found it on the 12th. She took blood to test my hormone levels on Monday and I went back that Wednesday for more blood work. My pregnancy hormone continued to rise, which is what we wanted. We set an appointment for January 3 for another ultrasound. She said if there was no heartbear we would know where the pregnancy is headed. On January 3rd (also Matt's and my anniversary) we went to the OB. The ultrasound showed a baby that had started to look like a baby, and right away we found the heartbeat. I was so relieved! Thank God! I was measuring right about 9 weeks. That surprised my OB because she was expecting me to measure younger/earlier than what we initially thought (based on my cycle), but I really was only about 4-5 days off from counting from the first day of my last period. But we found the baby and the heartbeat and that is all that matters! My tentative due date is around August 9.
We are so excited and a little nervous at the same time. But we know God is in control. We were not actively trying. I felt that if God wanted me to have another biological child, he was going to have to make it happen. I feel much different about this pregnancy. Even though I had never been pregnant before, during my last pregnancy, something felt off the whole time. It didn't feel right, and it didn't surprise me that something was wrong. But this one feels much different, and no matter what, God is in control. We will most likely delivery Baby Baird 2 via c-section, even if he/she does not come early. I have a 70 -75% chance of having a successful vaginal delivery, but there is still that chance that I could have a uterine rupture and end up getting an emergency c-section anyway. Doing it this way, we can schedule our c-section (unless it comes early), know when the baby is coming, go in early in the morning and have a baby a few hours later. I like that. Plus having a c-section will allow my OB to deliver me instead of going back to a big practice that keeps a doctor in the hospital.
Those of you who know me well, or who have read my blogs, know I was upset about what I missed last time. Joshua was born at 33 1/2 weeks. I had started to dilate and efface, but no active labor. My water never broke. I had to have a c-section. And then I left my baby in the hospital for 37 days. I was sad and angry. But since then I have heard several people say I should be thankful I missed labor. I am still sad about missing out on natural birth, but I have had one c-section so I know what to expect. This time I plan to pick up some of the things I missed last time, while not being bitter about the c-section. I hope to give birth to a normal sized child as close to term as possible. And my other goal is to leave the hospital this summer with my newborn in my arms. I do not want to miss any of the firsts I missed while Josh was in the hospital. I don't want another child to have to be poked and prodded because of preeclampsia. I hope to follow my birth plan this time. But even if it doesn't work out the way I want it to, I know God is in control. He took care of Joshua and he will take care of our new angel.
I would appreciate your prayers throughout my pregnancy. So far, I have no symptoms of preeclampsia. It is early yet, but in my last pregnancy I had my first UTI by now. Please pray that no matter what we will have a healthy baby. Thank you!
I had a busy fall. I submitted my questions for commissioning the day before my birthday. I am supposed to meet with the board of ordained ministry sometime between February 7 and 9 to interview. Then I should find out if I will be commissioned in June. It sure was a relief to get all that stuff done, and I felt pretty good about most of it. I also had my second charge conference in October and it went well. And then it was time to get ready to celebrate the holiday season, and boy, did we ever have a busy one! But it was very nice and very enjoyable.
On Thanksgiving, I got pretty sick. In fact, we left my mom's early because I was flushed, nauseous, light-headed and had a horrible headache. One week later, on December 1, I turned a pregnancy test positive! Matt and I are having a baby! I suspected I might be. One test before that was negative and another one looked like it might want to turn positive, but I was unsure. It was wonderful to wake Matt up that morning (he works 2nd shift now), and say "hey, look at this!" We are so excited. But I am a little nervous given my last experience.
We told Matt's parents and my sister. I had a plan to tell my parents in a different way. I ordered Josh a shirt that said "I have a secret" on the front, and on the back it says "I'm going to be a big brother." I figured my mom would like that. I knew it would be hard to win her over after my last experience. She thinks I can't handle being pregnant. Well, our plans changed on December 8. I started bleeding and cramping. We went to spend about 9 hours in the ER just to find out my pregnancy hormone levels were low and I could be miscarrying. My appointment with my OB was for the 12th. I was put on bedrest for the weekend, and I worried. I had to tell my parents then because we needed them to keep Josh. I couldn't lift him.
At my OB appointment on the 12th, we found out that there was no pregnancy in my uterus on the 8th, but she found it on the 12th. She took blood to test my hormone levels on Monday and I went back that Wednesday for more blood work. My pregnancy hormone continued to rise, which is what we wanted. We set an appointment for January 3 for another ultrasound. She said if there was no heartbear we would know where the pregnancy is headed. On January 3rd (also Matt's and my anniversary) we went to the OB. The ultrasound showed a baby that had started to look like a baby, and right away we found the heartbeat. I was so relieved! Thank God! I was measuring right about 9 weeks. That surprised my OB because she was expecting me to measure younger/earlier than what we initially thought (based on my cycle), but I really was only about 4-5 days off from counting from the first day of my last period. But we found the baby and the heartbeat and that is all that matters! My tentative due date is around August 9.
We are so excited and a little nervous at the same time. But we know God is in control. We were not actively trying. I felt that if God wanted me to have another biological child, he was going to have to make it happen. I feel much different about this pregnancy. Even though I had never been pregnant before, during my last pregnancy, something felt off the whole time. It didn't feel right, and it didn't surprise me that something was wrong. But this one feels much different, and no matter what, God is in control. We will most likely delivery Baby Baird 2 via c-section, even if he/she does not come early. I have a 70 -75% chance of having a successful vaginal delivery, but there is still that chance that I could have a uterine rupture and end up getting an emergency c-section anyway. Doing it this way, we can schedule our c-section (unless it comes early), know when the baby is coming, go in early in the morning and have a baby a few hours later. I like that. Plus having a c-section will allow my OB to deliver me instead of going back to a big practice that keeps a doctor in the hospital.
Those of you who know me well, or who have read my blogs, know I was upset about what I missed last time. Joshua was born at 33 1/2 weeks. I had started to dilate and efface, but no active labor. My water never broke. I had to have a c-section. And then I left my baby in the hospital for 37 days. I was sad and angry. But since then I have heard several people say I should be thankful I missed labor. I am still sad about missing out on natural birth, but I have had one c-section so I know what to expect. This time I plan to pick up some of the things I missed last time, while not being bitter about the c-section. I hope to give birth to a normal sized child as close to term as possible. And my other goal is to leave the hospital this summer with my newborn in my arms. I do not want to miss any of the firsts I missed while Josh was in the hospital. I don't want another child to have to be poked and prodded because of preeclampsia. I hope to follow my birth plan this time. But even if it doesn't work out the way I want it to, I know God is in control. He took care of Joshua and he will take care of our new angel.
I would appreciate your prayers throughout my pregnancy. So far, I have no symptoms of preeclampsia. It is early yet, but in my last pregnancy I had my first UTI by now. Please pray that no matter what we will have a healthy baby. Thank you!
Friday, September 9, 2011
I'm Back!
Wow!! It has been a million years since I have been here to write. Well, it feels like a million years. But have no fear, I have returned! I will be more conscious about having regular updates.
Where do I even begin? A lot has been going on. That is why I have not written. Right after Memorial Day, I began my summer intensive unit of CPE (hospital chaplaincy) as part of my education. I have already finished school, but CPE is the last thing standing in the way of ordination, although I did need to be commissioned first. I kind of did things backward, and I was running out of time so I needed to get my CPE unit in. I wasn't expecting to do it over the summer, but an opportunity presented itself and it just seemed perfect. Everything fell into place. I love it when God opens doors like that! So anyway, my CPE unit required basically 40 hours a week, on top of me being a pastor. So any free time I had was for me and I didn't do any writing. But now it is completed and I am relieved to have it done.
Josh has been growing like a weed. He is now over 3 feet tall and weighs around 29 pounds. It is hard to believe he will be 2 in less than 2 months! Ahhhh!!! Where does the time go? I am already starting to plan his second birthday party, and it is just as fun as the last one. Knowing I have a child that is practically 2, it feels like just about the right time to add to our family. Matt and I are starting to discuss it, and we feel like that may be something that will be coming in the near future!
If you remember (if I talked about it on here) Josh got sick for the first time in April with strep throat. They said at that appointment his ears looked kind of bad. Well, Josh has been fighting ear infections and strep throat since then. We have been to the doctor 6 times I think. It has been rough, and we are sick of it. We went to the ENT on August 26, and found out that Josh will be having surgery on September 26 to have tubes put in his ears and his tonsils and adenoids removed. I am very nervous and worried, but relieved that the doctor told me this is a 15 minute surgery. I imagine I will be a wreck the day of. But then it will be over and behind us. Then we will be able to move on with a healthy little boy!
I had surgery myself on August 29. I had been having some stomach issues. After a trip to the ER when I was in excruciating pain, we found out that I had like 5-6 gallstones. The doctor said the best way to deal with it would be for me to have surgery. So I had surgery 11 days ago, and am feeling much better now. I haven't had any of those horrible painful attacks since, and I can eat the things I want. Yay! And the surgery itself wasn't that bad at all. I would do it again if I had to, knowing the difference it made.
The next several weeks will be particularly busy for me. I am going through the process of commissioning in the UMC. I am hoping to be commissioned next June. Part of the process of being commissioned is presenting a sermon, doing a Bible Study, and answering 17 questions. I am done with the sermon. I have about a third of the questions done, but I haven't even began the Bible Study. I am just in the thinking stages on the study. Thank goodness I have until October 21 (the day before my birthday). But it also is the season of charge conference, and my charge conference is October 12. There is a bunch of work to be done to prepare for that. So I will be busy, but I will try to find the time to update, hopefully weekly. Until next time!
Where do I even begin? A lot has been going on. That is why I have not written. Right after Memorial Day, I began my summer intensive unit of CPE (hospital chaplaincy) as part of my education. I have already finished school, but CPE is the last thing standing in the way of ordination, although I did need to be commissioned first. I kind of did things backward, and I was running out of time so I needed to get my CPE unit in. I wasn't expecting to do it over the summer, but an opportunity presented itself and it just seemed perfect. Everything fell into place. I love it when God opens doors like that! So anyway, my CPE unit required basically 40 hours a week, on top of me being a pastor. So any free time I had was for me and I didn't do any writing. But now it is completed and I am relieved to have it done.
Josh has been growing like a weed. He is now over 3 feet tall and weighs around 29 pounds. It is hard to believe he will be 2 in less than 2 months! Ahhhh!!! Where does the time go? I am already starting to plan his second birthday party, and it is just as fun as the last one. Knowing I have a child that is practically 2, it feels like just about the right time to add to our family. Matt and I are starting to discuss it, and we feel like that may be something that will be coming in the near future!
If you remember (if I talked about it on here) Josh got sick for the first time in April with strep throat. They said at that appointment his ears looked kind of bad. Well, Josh has been fighting ear infections and strep throat since then. We have been to the doctor 6 times I think. It has been rough, and we are sick of it. We went to the ENT on August 26, and found out that Josh will be having surgery on September 26 to have tubes put in his ears and his tonsils and adenoids removed. I am very nervous and worried, but relieved that the doctor told me this is a 15 minute surgery. I imagine I will be a wreck the day of. But then it will be over and behind us. Then we will be able to move on with a healthy little boy!
I had surgery myself on August 29. I had been having some stomach issues. After a trip to the ER when I was in excruciating pain, we found out that I had like 5-6 gallstones. The doctor said the best way to deal with it would be for me to have surgery. So I had surgery 11 days ago, and am feeling much better now. I haven't had any of those horrible painful attacks since, and I can eat the things I want. Yay! And the surgery itself wasn't that bad at all. I would do it again if I had to, knowing the difference it made.
The next several weeks will be particularly busy for me. I am going through the process of commissioning in the UMC. I am hoping to be commissioned next June. Part of the process of being commissioned is presenting a sermon, doing a Bible Study, and answering 17 questions. I am done with the sermon. I have about a third of the questions done, but I haven't even began the Bible Study. I am just in the thinking stages on the study. Thank goodness I have until October 21 (the day before my birthday). But it also is the season of charge conference, and my charge conference is October 12. There is a bunch of work to be done to prepare for that. So I will be busy, but I will try to find the time to update, hopefully weekly. Until next time!
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