Showin' off the Teefers

This photo honors the start of week two with solo mommy and her two little boys. Monday and Tuesday on this rotation are more difficult days because JB doesn't get home until well after 7pm. These long days seem even longer when the rain keeps us from getting out for a walk. Even longer when the eldest of the two boys is a fairly cranky Isaac. For about three days Isaac seemed to be feeling fine but is now not acting himself again -- very irritable, tired, and cranky. We aren't sure if he is teething or just growing up or sick or what.

Despite a very sick little boy last week, I survived my first week, and quite honestly, found it much easier than I thought it was going to be. I truly feel that a lot of people were praying for me because I had total peace the entire week. Some other keys to my success?

• Staying home. At least for right now I am trying to keep our adventures away from our home to a minimum. I need to learn how to do things at home before I try to do them on the road. In addition, when Elijah needs to eat every 2-3 hours, it really limits what I can do. I am not in a position to stop and feed him while out as I then wouldn't have anywhere I could put Isaac. In talking with my friends who have multiples, they say that being home for feeds helps keep stress to a minimum. That is definitely true.
• Daily walk/runs. Both boys seem to love them. Elijah sleeps the whole way and Isaac just rides in complete peace. I feel rejuvenated and energized as well.
• Getting rest whenever I can. If both boys are asleep, I try to lay down on the couch, if only for a few minutes.
• Praise music. If you haven't visited the site http://www.pandora.com/, what are you waiting for? You can pick a song or a singer and it will generate a play list for you. It's awesome! It really helps keep the peace in our home and keep stress to a minimum. I love it.
• A well-exercised dog. Taking ten minutes to play "rings" or "flashlight" with Scrubs help him behave like the dog we know he is. Even when I don't feel like it, this always works to my advantage (and sanity) in the long run. I really thought Scrubs was going to be my biggest challenge of the three boys, but so far, he's been the easiest. You go Scrubby!
• Breaking up the day by "feeds." While I am feeding Elijah, I try to plan just for how I will do things until the next feed. I don't look farther ahead than that. Elijah is currently feeding every 2-3 hours. Each feed takes between 30minutes and 1 hour. I try to plan what needs to be done during the 1-2 hours after I am done feeding. Baths, changes, naps, food, play, etc. This is especially important so that I am not "strapped down" with one child when the other really needs something.

Thank you to all of you who have encouraged and prayed for me during the last week. I really feel it, and I am really doing great! Despite JB being gone over eighty hours last week (including a dreaded Saturday call) and Isaac being really sick, things went great! I am exhausted but incredibly blessed.

In closing, I wanted to post a video that I took earlier today. When we went to Minnesota for Hans & Rachel's wedding, our good friends Brandon & Kristen gave us some gifts for Isaac which included this duck -- a representation of their Oregon heritage. I brought it out today for Isaac while he was playing in his crib post-nap. Way fun!

Go Louisville

Back when I played Bball at WKU, we had an assistant coach by the name of Jeff Walz. Back then he was mainly known for being Jaime Walz' brother. She was my teammate and one of my closest friends at Western. She also came to the program as the Gatorade national player of the year. She and I still stay in touch online, and she is now a high school coach in Kentucky. But now Jeff is known for taking his Louisville Cardinals to the Final Four! They upset Maryland tonight. A huge congrats to Jeff! I'm so proud of him!

I'm baaaccckkk!!!

Well folks, you've been asking for my return, and today, I give my fans what they wanted ... me. Isaac John Kit.

I have so much to tell you all, and no idea where to begin.

Hmmmm ...

Well, let me start with the biggest news. My little brother Elijah turned eight weeks old on Saturday. And in celebration he decided to sleep through the night. He went to bed at 10pm and got up at 6am. Then last night, he did it again. This time he went from 9:30pm to 6:30am!I'm still not feeling this is very fair. I'm the big brother and I go to bed at 8pm! How does a little brother get to stay up later than me? Well, Daddy and Mommy insist that this is only temporary and these through-the-night sleeps are key to me getting to stay up later. I'll believe it when I see it.

Did I tell you all I have learned how to walk? I will do as many as ten steps by myself. I could do more, but right now, crawling is much faster. Man, I am a super fast crawler. You should see me. Open a door and I'll be there to crawl through in nanoseconds. This is especially difficult for Mommy when she is holding Elijah as she has to figure out how to get back out of the room with Elijah and me so as to not leave me alone in rooms that aren't completely baby-proofed. Today she resorted to picking me and Elijah up at the same time. That gave me a belly ache as she had to scoop me up under my armpits and squeeze my belly pretty hard to pick me up. She said it was a bad idea, and she doesn't plan to do it again. Anyways, I am a great crawler. My Daddy says I look like a rhinoceros when I crawl cuz' I stomp my little hands and feet so hard. They don't think I'm going to be known for my gracefulness. I think that's good because I am a boy! Duh!

Next topic. My favorite topic. The bathtub. Man, I looovvveee my baths. I could stay in there all night. Sometimes, however, when I get bored and am ready to get out, I have learned that if I do something in the bathtub, it makes everyone go crazy. Daddy yells, "Code brown" and pulls me out of the tub and sets me totally wet on the floor of the bathroom. Mommy comes running in to scoop up my toys and throw them in the sink to wash them. Then they bring bleach in and hose everything down while I crawl around completely naked in the bathroom. It's quite hilarious and a ton of fun. I've done it twice now. Two nights in a row. How cool am I?

All right so back to my new little baby brother. He's a pretty cool kid. My Grama Di taught me how to give him kisses. When I see him, I smack my lips, open my mouth wide, and turn away right before his forehead gets to me. That's how I kiss him. I also love to play with his toes. Mommy always says, "Gentle" when I come near him. I'm really trying to figure out what that means.

Another topic I love is Scrubby. Man that is one cool dog. He and I are becoming great pals. I have learned how to feed him from my high chair even though my Daddy and Mommy don't like this. I've also learned how to put toys in his mouth and put my face right next to his so that he'll lick me. I can't wait to get bigger so Scrubby and I can play more and more. Scrubs is super gentle with me and with my new baby brother.

My Mommy stays at home with us during the day. We do lots of fun things. We play with our toys in the living room a lot. We read books more and more because this is something I am enjoying more and more. We also go on a walk/run nearly everyday. I love this. I just sit there and watch everything and don't cry at all. Well, I cried that one time because Daddy drove by and said hi but didn't stop to walk with us. Sometimes we go over to the Bay so I can watch the doggies wrestle. Silly doggies! They are really funny together!

I'm not really talking much yet. I say, "hi" but I am not sure I know what it means. I say "Da da" too but to a lot of things, not just my Da Da. I also do sign language. I do the sign for "milk" and "all done" and "please". I am trying to learn "eat" and "thank you" also.

That's the extent of my life right now. I better get off of here and get back in my crib fast asleep before my Mommy sees that I have gotten away. Stay tuned for more in my life at a later date. And stay tuned for an Elijah journal at some point as well. He's nearly big enough to type now!

Bye everyone!

Subscribing to my videos

I take a lot of videos of all three of our boys (including Scrubs). I do this for myself but also because all of our family lives at least ten hours away. I put very few of the videos I take on the blog -- just some of the better ones here and there. Mostly, I just send the links to the grandparents and let them view the videos.

Anyways, many of the videos are rather boring and just "plain old" videos featuring the kids playing or sitting around. You know, the kind of videos grandparents would like. However, I wanted you all to know that if you want to be able to view my videos whenever I add one, you can.

Here's how. I am including some links to some of my recent "grandma" videos below.

• Waking up Isaac
• Playtime
• Elijah smiling
• Head buster
• Playing by the kitchen
• Isaac attacks the pillows

When you click on these links, you will come to a screen that plays the video. Out to the right is a big yellow button entitled "Subscribe". I have included a screen shot of it below:
All you have to do is click on "Subscribe" and, if I understand things correctly, you should get an email anytime I load a video. Please correct me, anyone, if I am incorrect as to how this works. You will have to create a youtube account as well.

Please do not feel obligated to subscribe or to watch these videos. They are, as I said, designed for the Grandmas. But if you are feeling a bit grandma-like, you can join in on the fun too!

Can you see this picture?

Some of you said you could not see the previous picture that I loaded celebrating Elijah's arrival into the world two months ago today. I am trying a different web browser with this one. Those of you who couldn't see it before, can you see this one?

When You Really Need a Flashlight

Last night we learned that our dog's infatuation with chasing flashlights (click here to see Scrubs chasing a flashlight as a big puppy and click here to see him do this as a little puppy) is sort of a problem when your electricity goes out and you need to use a flashlight.

Lights going out on this base are not that uncommon. However, it usually seems to happen during the day. Yesterday it happened right after dinner. The entire base went completely black. You, literally, could not see your hand in front of your face. I was so glad JB was home to help me. He was right in the middle of cleaning a rather traumatic Isaac diaper when the power went out. Wendi to the rescue! I knew exactly where a flashlight was. We keep one on the bookshelf to give Scrubs his daily chase-the-flashlight-exercise-sessions. I grabbed it and returned to the nursery, shining the flashlight on Isaac's bottom so JB could finish the most necessary of tasks.

It is in a moment like this that you realize you are totally unprepared for the disasters everyone is always telling you to prepare for. What if this were a real emergency?!

Post diaper change, JB handed me Isaac and took the flashlight. I scuffled my way down the hallway and into the living room and sat down next to a sleeping Elijah while JB went on the prowl for necessary items. Candles. Matches. More flashlights. Batteries.

Scrubs, however, was convinced that this was all a game. Especially when JB got a second flashlight out. Lights! Everywhere! We finally had to gate him in the kitchen to prevent him from trying to chase any light he saw. Never really thought about the fact that his love of chasing lights would be a bad thing. Until last night. JB wasn't in a patient mood. He was trying to find necessary items while the dog was trying to run circles around him. Bad Scrubs!

In addition to learning that we have a neurotic dog (as if we didn't know that before), we also learned that we need to be more prepared for events like this. We don't have enough candles. And the matches weren't accessible. We were also out of batteries meaning that if these flashlights went dead, we were out of luck. Lots to think about and get prepared for in our spare time.

I was glad, however, that this happened last night when JB was home. Glad it happened last night instead of tonight. He is on OB call today. He went in at 7am and won't get home until sometime on Sunday. I can't imagine if I would have had to try to scour the house for items with two babies and a dog to look out for in the dark.

Good news about JB's call day is that right now nothing at all is happening up there. If it stays this way, the boys and I are going to head up as soon as Isaac wakes up from his nap and hang out at the hospital for awhile. Hopefully no ladies will decide to go into labor before we get there. Or while we are there for that matter.

Not sure why the electricity went out last night, but I imagine it has to do with the fact that it has rained for THREE DAYS STRAIGHT! I kid you not. Today is the third day that there has not been a single moment that I could get out of the house with the dog or the boys or myself for a walk. Poor Scrubby now believes he will be destined for only brief runs outside to use the bathroom as fast as he can under the overhang. Long gone are the days of walks and romps at the Bay with his buddy Deuce.

Okay, so the rain will eventually stop. A bit dramatic on my part. But I am ready for the rain to go away so we can get a little fresh air and exercise. Especially now that Isaac is feeling better. His fevers are still present, but they are much lower and seem to be responding a bit to the Tylenol and Motrin. He still isn't completely back to himself, but he's having moments of play in which our little Isaac re-emerges. Elijah seems unfazed by his big brother's illness and is as healthy as can be! What a blessing.

Okay, off to pack a diaper bag for a hopeful trip to see Daddy!

Two months old

Celebrating eight weeks on this earth!

Who does he look like? I must admit he is a mixture between John and ... my brother. LOL.

So glad I'm retired

I love March Madness. I really do. While I don't follow basketball much anymore or watch many games, when March rolls around every year, I excitedly find myself tuning in for more Sports Center and staying up a bit later to see the conclusion of a possible upset. I especially love that Sports Center is usually on when I get up for Elijah's three a.m. feed!

Truthfully I watch more Men's basketball than I do Women's Mostly because they are on the prime time stations and they get more coverage on Sports Center. And also because, well, the games are more exciting. I may be a woman, but it's the truth.

I betcha there are quite a few blog readers that don't know that I was a basketball player once upon a time. Actually I was a basketball and volleyball player in high school. I was on travelling teams and state teams and the whole caboodle. I wanted to play both in college, but playing any sport with basketball is very difficult due to the length of the basketball season. In the end, I chose to be a basketball player in college.

After a very lengthy recruiting process I ended up at Western Kentucky University playing Division I basketball on a full scholarship. People ask me often if I liked it or if I miss it. Those are difficult questions. Playing big-time basketball is not an easy thing to do. It is, truly a full-time job. Practices and games are only the tip of the iceberg. Add in individual work-outs, weightlifting, media and press appearances, film, and I truly lived in Diddle Arena.

I miss the locker room. I miss the relationships with my teammates. I miss practical joke and road trips. I miss living in the dorm with Kristi. I miss staying in such good shape.

I do not miss your life not being your own.

Tennessee women's basketball players were reminded this week that their lives do not belong to themselves. Seriously. Check out this video featuring Head Coach Pat Head Summitt forcing her players to practice the day after their season ended! I kid you not.

A bit of background: ever since I was being recruited, Tennessee women's basketball has been at the pinnacle of the sport. Led by Coach Summitt, they are consistently ranked in the top few spots in all polls and have won more NCAA tournaments then I care to discuss. We played them one time, and were pretty happy when we only lost by twenty.

This year they lost in the first round for the first time in the school's history. This means that their season is over. Mind you, they started working out for this season in August! Now it is March! They have lost. And they are practicing.

This is the reason that the NCAA has so many rules regarding player-athletes. There are rules about when practices can start (you can't practice after April 15th.) There are rules about how many hours a week you can practice. There are rules about how many hours a day. There are rules about anything and everything. Teams loosely follow these rules. There are always sneaky ways to get around things. Penalties for breaking these rules are severe. But these rules exist because coaches do things like this. I cannot imagine having had to practice the day after eight months of basketball comes to an end in an unfortunate way! The day after eight months of basketball came to an end for me at WKU, I would sleep in for the first time in nearly a year. Geesh.

Anyways, sorry, I needed to vent about this. I know it is just a practice, but I think it is so important to remember that a basketball is just air pumped into a rubber ball. While I am amazingly grateful for the athletic talent I was blessed with and the wonderful people and coaches I had the opportunity to work with over the years, I do think it is important that we keep a sport in perspective. It is just a sport. It is just a game. It is not life. It should not be the most important thing in your life.

I think my father, who was my coach in all my sports in high school, instilled in me a healthy outlook. I never felt pressure to play the sports I loved. I remember telling him during the recruiting process how frustrated I was and that maybe I just wanted to go to a little po-dunk college somewhere and play for fun. I know that was probably difficult for my Dad to hear, but he told me that if that is what I wanted to do, he was okay with that. (In the end, I obviously didn't do that -- but it sounded like a good idea when the pressure got to be too much.)

I have to be honest. I will support whatever my boys want to do. But I would be totally fine if they wanted to play the trumpet or be a boy scout. They don't have to play sports. I think any activity, when kept in the right balance, is healthy for a child, teenager, and young adult. It's when that balance gets out of whack that I start having a problem.

Obviously Tennessee is good for a reason. Probably reasons like practices after season over. It's just that I really felt for her players when I read this. It's okay if you disagree. It's just my opinion. It's just my opinion that after an eight month season, it is time for some down-time. I think the down-time can be just as good for you as a practice seven months before your next game.

So there you go. A quick return to a topic that dominated my entire existence for a decade of my life. Truth be told, I have not touched a basketball since I quit coaching in 2004. And I have only played in about three scrimmage games since I ended my college career in 1999. I know this probably brings tears to some people's eyes (like Hans), but it is just the truth. I burned out big-time on basketball, and therefore much enjoy volleyball over the bball now-a-days.

Okay, time for some more March Madness . . .

P.S. You have to make sure to read the comments to this post. My teammate Katie W. from WKU (one of my favorite gals during my time there) left a great comment. I agree with everything she said 100%. Sports are a FANTASTIC opportunity to learn, grow-up, meet wonderful people, and have opportunities galore. I don't want anyone to think I didn't love that about my time at WKU. I was given fantastic opportunities and met wonderful, awesome, amazing people. Honestly, everyone who helped me there was awesome! I don't have a bad story for you. I think my overall point though is that we do need to remember that basketball is just a game and that we have to keep things in perspective. I also think that I did get a little burnt out on the sport during college -- just ready for it to come to an end and do some new things with my life. Katie is a coach now herself and definitely knows what she is talking about so make sure you read what she has to say.

Back

Back from the hospital. Isaac's temps have dropped to the 101's. Cultures look good. Still no known source for the infection but the big bad things have been ruled out. We'll watch him for the next few days and make sure things continue to improve.

Please excuse me a moment while I go kill my dog for barking for no reason and waking Elijah . . . sigh . . .

Quick update on little Isaac

Thanks for all of you checking in on and praying for Isaac. He had a rough night (and since Daddy was on Isaac duty while Mommy was on Elijah duty, so did Daddy), but today has been better in spots. Lots of crying and clinging to Mommy will be followed by a short period of play which is good to see. We are headed back to the hospital at 3:00pm. I'll post a quick update this evening to let you know if there is anything new to report, but the urine analysis and chest x-ray came back negative yesterday which are very good signs. Apparently, when you can't find a "source" for the fevers and they are not responding to medication, you look at a few "bad" things. Dr. G. was able to rule most of those out yesterday. However, since his white blood cell count was so high, he is definitely fighting an infection somewhere. Hopefully he'll be back to his normal Isaac self really soon.

Isaac

If you think of it, we'd appreciate your prayers for our little Isaac. We were up at the clinic from 12:30 until 5:30 today. He had a fever that got as high as 103. The biggest "issues" with the fever were that they couldn't find a cause and it wasn't responding to Tylenol or Motrin. Our poor little guy had to be catheterized four times and stuck who knows how many times for a blood draw. And he had a shot. He was so tired that he kept falling asleep on JB. Thank goodness JB was able to be with us most of the time as Isaac wanted nothing to do with me. He just wanted Daddy the whole time. There was talk that we might have to admit him, but Dr. G. decided to send us home. We'll watch him overnight and come back at 3:00 tomorrow to see if he has improved. I'll keep you all posted.

Evolution

I can just picture my husband. He can't access my blog at work. But he does get an email generated copy of every blog I write. I can just see this email popping up on his screen with the word "Evolution" plastered across it. JB gets excited. Wendi is writing about science. Finally something with a little scientific substance coming from the defrosting Polar North.

Dream on oh hubby of mine!

Science! Forget that! It'll be a scary day when this blog ventures into talk of scientific-related matter. No, this evolution I am referring to is a blog evolution. The evolution of my blog.

What started as a blog about infertility morphed into a blog about international adoption and then domestic adoption and then pregnancy. 1,835 posts moving through our journey to parenthood in ways no one but God could have ever imagined.

Prior to Elijah's arrival, the evolution of my blog was easy for me. It was natural. Adoption went hand in hand with infertility, at least for us. Isaac's arrival, at least I hoped, was not painful for people to read about. Adoption is something we can choose to achieve, (in most cases), while pregnancy is something we cannot choose. If we could, there would be no infertility.

Pregnancy changes all that. Changes the blog I mean. Pregnancy does not always go hand-in-hand with infertility. It doesn't happen to everyone. I don't know why, but it doesn't.

I truly never thought, especially after our fourth failed IVF in 2007, that I would ever be that woman. Pregnancy happened after adoption. But it happened to other people. (People like Amy!) (That's a joke Amy. I know you were thinking the same thing I was when you found out as well.) When people said the usual, "Just watch. Now you'll get pregnant," when we told them of our adoption, I rolled my eyes when they couldn't see me. Sometimes it does. But they didn't know our story. They didn't know about how much money we had spent and how many treatments we had done and how most everyone, including our doctors, had given up hope for us.

When we agreed to adopt Isaac, I was in the process of moving through the hopes of biological children. I was getting very close. Certain things were still painful for me: pregnant bellies and birth shows on TV to top the list, but certain things were less painful: trips to the park and birthday parties for example. I would experience those things as Isaac's Mom and so I had begun looking forward to them instead of dreading them.

And then I got pregnant.

I spent the first half of my pregnancy going through an identity crisis of sorts. An identity crisis on the blog and an identity crisis in person. I didn't like people to talk about my pregnancy or mention that I was starting to show. I was, in a sense, embarrassed. I felt, in a sense, guilty. I hurt for those who were still waiting while I had one boy and another on the way. I was ecstatic. I was thrilled. But I felt horribly undeserving of these two blessings. I know that sounds dumb. But it is the truth.

Midway through the pregnancy, I somehow came to terms with things. I'm still not sure how. Prayer probably. Prayer from a lot of you especially those of you who were close to me and were aware of how I was so precariously straddling the world of the infertile with the world of the mother. Midway through I began to open up about my pregnancy on my blog and with other people. Midway through I began to accept that I was now no longer infertile. I was already a mom, but I now was a pregnant mom.

So anyways, evolution. The evolution of this blog. Lately, writing on this blog has left me straddling two worlds again. There is the world that I hold so dear to me. The world of the women who have supported, encouraged, and stood by me during some very dark days. Many of those ladies have gone on to get pregnant themselves or adopt. But many are still waiting. Many still read my blog. I fear hurting those women when I write of my boys and my adventures in parenting.

And yet, that is the evolution of my life and this blog and my very being. I am a mother now. I cannot change that. I know when I struggled regarding putting pictures of myself on the blog of me pregnant, many of you encouraged me. You told me that this blog had followed our story and it was only logical that it continued to follow our story. The back story was what made our story our story. People needed to hear "success" stories as much as those that were unsuccessful. Goodness knows our story had seen both sides.

I'm rambling. Sorry. I'm not really sure where this is going. I guess I am writing to apologize? Or maybe I am writing to explain? Or maybe just to ask the opinions of those reading this? Where does this blog go now? My life, right now, is that of a full-time mom. I can't possibly come up with blog entries that avoid talk of that. That is what my life is now. Just like my life was infertility treatments or a new puppy or the adoption of Isaac. Now my life is diapers and bottles and fevers of 101 (like today! -- poor Isaac!)

I'm trying to come to terms with that. I'm trying to figure out how to keep my heart and head in adoption and infertility, two things that are very dear to me, while also fully embracing this new world I am in. I am so sorry if my attempt to be in both places causes anyone pain as they watch our story which will include additional IVF transfers and possible adoptions, evolve. I am sorry if I ever sound ungrateful after a long, hard day. I am sorry for any pain that the evolution of my life and my blog emits. I am sorry if I ever forget and am insensitive to any of you -- and by "you" I am referring to those in both worlds that I am now living in between.

I am working to allow my blog and my life in general, to evolve, but please know that my heart is still very present in both worlds, at the same time. I am a mom, yes. But I am also a woman who has adopted. I am a woman who struggled to have children. I am a woman who hopes to never forget the pain of infertility, the fear and amazement of adoption, and the awe of conceiving Elijah.

I really hope that this made sense . . . I am hesitant to even re-read this in fear that I'll realize it's just a mumbo jumbo of words and fail to post it. So I am clicking "publish post" right now before the perfectionism of my writing stops me or before I ramble onto another topic . . . something scientific maybe?

Thanks for listening. This blog is my online journal, and I know I have to allow it to be an accurate representation of where I am now. If it continues on for years, decades, then it will eventually a blog of new life events ... an empty nests and settling into retirement. Woah.

P.S. Happy Birthday Cousin Josh H.!

(Not so) Funny

Funny is Scrubs, falling asleep with his head under the coffee table. Loud noise. Scrubs wakes up. But Scrubs forgets head is under the coffee table. Scrubs clunks head. Hard. Of course Scrubs doesn't appear concerned at all and still goes to discover the source of the loud noise. I don't think he ever figured out that it was a bomb being tested somewhere in the wilderness of Eglin Air Force Base. Is it mean to laugh at your dog for hitting his stubborn head on a table?

Not so funny is washing your cell phone. That isn't really funny at all. Phone didn't like being washed. Not one little bit. Phone is broken forever. Still have to make a trip to T-mobile to find out if memory card survived the wash. The good news is, we still have JB's phone from when we used to each have a phone. Hoping memory card in my phone is alive and can be slipped into JB's phone. A broken memory card would be even less funny then a broken phone.

How God must feel

Wandered onto Funky Monkey's blog the other day. Read a story. A regular old story. A story of Funky being forced to watch Monkey (aka ... her son) be strapped down to have a wound on his forehead stitched shut.

She writes:

For the next 10 minutes, I listened to my child scream, plead and beg for me while he’s scared, in pain, and cannot move. The fear in his eyes was the worst. I was watching my son go through an immensely fearful and painful process and yet just KNEW that it was in his best interests to let him go through it. I know he was confused and didn’t understand why Momma and Gramna were contributing to this torture. My heart was breaking!

Funky was writing about her Monkey. And I read about Monkey. But while reading about her little boy, I couldn't help feel that this must be how God feels everyday.

Picture God. He sees bad thing happen. He stands there as bad thing is repaired. He listens to us cry and plead for an end to the pain. But he knows that what is happening is for our own good.

After my c-section, I was in tremendous pain. The pain was nothing compared to the contractions I had endured during labor. It was horrible. They aren't sure what caused me to have such bad pain. A few theories were proposed including my uterus rolling onto my intestines or a bad reaction from one of the pain medications. Either way, I was screaming in pain. I know the whole floor could hear me. I was also bleeding badly and I nodded my approval as they discussed the possibility of a blood transfusion.

I remember during that pain various doctors and nurses pushing on my stomach repeatedly. I had no idea why they were doing this. It hurt so bad. I begged for them to stop. I could not understand why they were pushing on my stomach and causing me to hurt even more!

Later, JB explained to me that they were pushing on my uterus, trying to get the bleeding to stop. They were hurting me for my own good. They were allowing me to be in pain because that pain was necessary to a successful recovery. I didn't know that at the time. If they told me, I was too drugged to remember. But they knew it.

Just like little Monkey's Mom knew in the emergency room.

And just like God knows as he watches me and you navigate life.

I can picture the Lord watching JB and I sob together after each of our failed IUIs and each of our failed IVFs. I can picture him watching and knowing that this pain, while not something he caused, was necessary. He knew this was for my own good. Even today I'm not positive what that "own good" was. Maybe it was the testimony I could share with other women experiencing my same pain. Maybe it was Isaac and his future in our family. I'm not sure.

But the image of Funky standing over her little boy really painted a picture of God standing over us. He isn't doing it with an angry fist. He's doing it with love. He's doing it because He loves us and because this pain, for reasons we do not understand, is necessary. I don't know if Funky tried to paint that image when she told the story of Monkey's first visit to the ER. But it came through vividly for me.

Thanks friend. May I remember this when future pain threatens to overwhelm me and suffocate me. May I remember my Lord standing near.

P.S. Happy Birthday to my sister-in-law AD and Happy Anniversary to Ray & Gabbi!

Please read!

I received this email from my Mom. I can honestly picture this happening to Scrubs someday.

If you are an owner of a dog and small children visit your home, please take this as a warning. Don't ever leave your dog with the child unattended under any circumstances. Only a little moment was enough for the following to happen:

News alert!

This morning, Scrubs licked my legs!

Now this may sound gross or incredibly undesirable. But when it comes to adults, Scrubs really isn't a licker. He mainly licks when salt is present (or a child's ear, but that's a whole 'nother story.) And salt is more present when a person sweats. And sweat is more present when a person exercises. This means that today, I actually exercised, thus resulting in aforementioned sweat!

I never thought it would happen again, and six weeks ago when I was lying in that hospital bed for a week, I definitely didn't think it would be happening so soon.

But it's true. Today, I went for a jog!

Okay, so to be honest it wasn't really a jog-jog. (JB says that only women say a word twice in order to emphasize it, but I am not otherwise sure how to emphasize it in this instance, so I'll prove him right and call it a jog-jog.) In truth, my jog was more like a walk-jog. I walked for about a half a mile and then would jog for about a quarter mile. I tried to do it at moments when I thought no one was watching because my pace was so incredibly slow it may have evoked laughter. But I really didn't care. I was jogging. Even better was that I did this with both boys in the double jogger and Scrubs along with me.

And it wasn't just the run that left me feeling good about today.

First of all, JB always tries to sleep as long as possible on the Sunday following nights. This is to help him get his sleep properly flipped around and leave him feeling a little less nocturnal. He often will sleep until 9 or 10 but this morning he slept until 11! (Needless to say, church was halfway done by the time he emerged from his slumber.)

My Mom pulled out around 4am. I only know this because I called her later to ask when she left. We said our good byes the night before.

That left me, the boys, and Scrubby, all on our own this morning. Since I haven't done a morning by myself in over two weeks, I went to bed last night both excited and overwhelmed at the prospect. But it went awesome!

Here's a quick outline:

• 5:00: Elijah wakes to eat
• 5:00-6:00: Feed Elijah
• 6:00-6:30: Change, talk, and play with Elijah; let dog out and feed him
  
• 6:30-7:30: Mommy & Elijah fall asleep together on the couch
• 7:30: Isaac wakes up
• 7:30-8:00: Changed Isaac and give Isaac a bottle
• 8:00-8:30: Feed Elijah; Isaac plays in living room while Scrubs naps in kitchen
• 8:30-9:30: Go for a walk-jog with the entire family (minus JB)
• 9:30-10:00: Feed Isaac breakfast in high chair while Elijah continues napping in his car seat
• 10:00-10:30: Feed Elijah while Isaac plays and Scrubs whines in kitchen
• 10:30-10:45: Put Isaac down for a nap; swaddle and set Eiljah up on couch looking out the window
• 10:45-11:00: Play rings with Scrubs so he can get tired and fall asleep at the same time as both boys
• 11:00: JB emerges from slumber; I take an hour nap

While the morning was obviously busy and well-timed, it really went flawlessly. This was such a blessing. I was very emotional about my Mom leaving. Both my mother-in-law, Joan, and my Mom were integral to me being prepared to tackle both babies on my own. The rest and recuperation I was able to get during the last seven weeks has left me nearly completely recovered (even well enough to jog) and truly ready to face our new life. The antibiotic for the additional infection I incurred has left me feeling great and has shown no ill effects on Elijah.

My plan this week is to hunker-down at home and really get into a schedule and routine. I am going to skip MOPS on Tuesday and host the Wifia-Wednesday at my house in order to stay close to home and really come up with strategies and ideas for the best way to do things without someone else here to help me.

JB is moving to OB days. While much better than nights, he is still facing quite a few weeks in a row of very long days (usually 12-13 hours a day). While it will be an incredible blessing to have him here each evening, it still leaves me running the show from about 6:30am until 6:30pm.

Thank you to those of you who commented on my post entitled "Focus on Today" with encouraging words. It is incredibly comforting to know that I am not the only who who struggles with not looking ahead to the future. As JB and I walked along the boardwalk at Turkey Creek yesterday, he reminded me that we want to enjoy the journey and not be anxious for the destination. While his two weeks of nights is not something he looks forward to, he said he made a point to really enjoy his time there instead of wishing it to be over. I want to strive for the same thing. I want to enjoy each and every day instead of looking ahead to the next milestone that will possibly make things seem less stressful. I want to enjoy every single day with my husband, my boys, and yes, even my Scrubby.

I especially liked these two passages from Joan and Joy. I thought I would share them again in case of any of you did not get to read the comments from the post:

Trust Me and refuse to worry, for I am your Strength and Song. You are feeling wobbly this morning, looking at difficult times looming ahead, measuring them against your own strength. However, they are not today's tasks--or even tomorrow's. So leave them in the future and come home to the present, where you will find Me waiting for you. Since I am your Strength, I can empower you to handle each task as it comes. Because I am your Song, I can give you Joy as you work alongside Me.

***

Many a questioning, many a fear,
Many a doubt, hath its quieting here.
Moment my moment, let down from Heaven,
Time, opportunity, guidance, are given.
Fear not tomorrows, Child of the King,
Trust them with Jesus, ‘DO THE NEXT THING.’
Do it immediately; do it with prayer;
Do it reliantly, casting all care;
Do it with reverence, tracing His Hand
Who placed it before thee with earnest command.
Stayed on Omnipotence, safe ’neath His wing,
Leave all resultings, ‘DO THE NEXT THING.’”
--author unknown

CPR

JB and I were talking today about CPR. I have taken CPR classes, but it has been quite some time. JB gave me a GREAT website where you can watch really quick videos teaching you techniques for various aged individuals. I really encourage all of you to spend some time learning or reviewing these techniques. The videos are very short and well worth the time. This is a video that he directs his patients to, and I found it incredibly helpful (and easier than trying to demonstrate on a squirming Isaac.)

Turkey Creek & A Clean House

In celebration of the conclusion of two weeks of nights, my amazingly wonderful Mother kicked all of us out of the house so that she could CLEAN it for us. I argued for a few days about this until I finally realized I wasn't going to win. And besides, I had to admit that the idea of spending time with my three favorite guys while my house was cleaned was mighty appealing.

JB took about a three hour nap when he got home from work and then we headed out. He'll try to stay awake all day today so that he can flip his sleep back around again. We picked up some BBQ and headed to Turkey Creek for a very relaxing walk on the boardwalk. Afterwards, we ran a few errands and then returned home to a really clean house! How awesome is that?!

It is very bitter sweet to see my Mom leave. I know that she needs to get back to my Dad and that we need to start doing things on our own. However, her presence here over the last two weeks was so comforting and helpful. Me and the boys (including Scrubs) will really miss her. We love you Grama Di!

Focus on today

Once again I stole a picture from Joia's blog entry. Last night Elijah and I went out on the town. Okay, so actually it wasn't the town. It was the home of Dr. S. This was the doctor who did my c-section. His wife has been attempting to get some of the residents wives together and this was their second get-together -- the first that I was able to attend. We had a wonderful evening talking, compiling lists of helpful information for incoming wives, and eating food including one awesome dessert by Joia.

Today was a very up and down day for me. The morning went incredibly smoothly and the lunch hour included great food and conversation with Becky at our favorite Greek restaurant while my Mom watched the boys. The late afternoon, however, included some moments of stress as I attempted to balance the two babies and dog. (Some spit up blood by Elijah and a huge hole in the backyard courtesy of our black and white friend were some of the highlights.) These moments are always compounded by a bit of fatigue and currently, an urgent readiness for these weeks of nights to come to a close.

I have realized that I must focus on the day at present. Usually, during these stressful moments, it is not what is currently happening that is causing me stress. It is the thought of how I can handle these stressful moments when I am on my own that cause me to worry. How silly is that? The moment itself is taken care of. The moment itself is not the problem. The moment itself is one that I handle and get through. Yet during those moments the fear of upcoming moments and my inability to handle them causes me spiral into a tailspin!

What will I do when my Mom is gone? How will I handle nights in the future without someone here with me? And these are just my current worries. I must admit that worry has been a sin I have struggled with for my entire life. When I was a child I worried about someone who was mad at me or an assignment that I had forgotten about. As an adult I still worry about upsetting someone or letting someone down. When I was working I worried about juggling all my responsibilities and not letting my boss down. There will always be something to worry about. Currently it is my family responsibilities. But next week it could be something new.

Just writing this out makes me feel so silly! If I am handling the current moment, then why I am fearful of the upcoming one? It's just worry about things that haven't happened and probably won't happen! JB reminds me of this on a daily basis. He keeps telling me that I am doing a great job taking care of that day. Just take care of that one and stop worrying that there will come a day I am unable to take care of.

My Mom reminded me that the Israelites were given enough manna for one day. That meant that they had to gather it and not think about what they would have for the next day. Saving the manna for the following day only caused it to go bad. They had to gather with complete trust that God would do the same for them the next day.

I know most of you reading this probably have your own little "thing" causing you some concern. Anyone want to share what your "trust God for the manna" event in your own life is? Or maybe how you choose to keep your focus on the day at present and not get ahead of yourself. I think it might make us all feel better (or at least make me feel better) to know that this is not something we are dealing with on our own.

As I move into the living room to feed Elijah before bed, please pray that I work to simply concern myself with the day at hand and let tomorrow worry about itself!

^{Matthew 6:25-34}

And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

You asked for it!

Here's a picture from last night showing off my new cut and highlight. Great job Tiffany!

Scrubby is woken up from yet another nap

Home from work! Only one more night to go!

Thanks Mary!

My Mother's coworker Mary made a blanket for each of our sons when they were born -- a blue one for Isaac and a white one for Elijah. I have been meaning to take a photo of the boys with their blankets but being as that requires planning, forethought, balance, precision, organization, and a host of other things I can't even think of right now, I have found myself saying, "Maybe tomorrow" nearly every day. I continue to watch Joia's blog and see all the photos of Moriah in a variety of outfits and think to myself: I want to be like Joia when I grow up!

Tonight I am going to a residency wives hangout night thingy and Elijah is going with me while Isaac stays with Grama and JB goes into the clinic for his second-to-last night of nights. I put Elijah in a new outfit from Becky (which she picked in honor of JB since it says "little explorer" on it). After I put it on him, I thought, that kind of matches what Isaac is wearing for play clothes. This lead to me saying: Maybe I could actually take this photo. With JB and my Mom there to help, we got it organized and a pretty decent photo was the result.

All right so this post got a lot lengthier than I was planning on it being. I write all this to say: THANKS MARY! WE LOVE THE BLANKETS!

P.S. Have to end this post with a BIG-TIME CONGRATULATIONS to Brandon & Kristen who get to stay at Mayo for five more, long, cold, wonderful, years. Great job Brandon!

What a guy!

Yesterday my JB broke the news to me. We had been assessed a substantially hefty sum of money by our condo association in Rochester, Minnesota. We still own our condo there and are renting it out to two great twin brothers. Therefore we are still liable for any assessments that come our way. An assessment is when the "powers that be" on the condo board decide that work needs to be done on the building. The owners pay that money.

Only after he broke the bad news of how large the assessment was did my husband tell me about our tax return. Thanks to some governmental reimbursements from adoption, we would be able to pay off our assessment and have quite a bit of money leftover! In addition, we'll be able to apply some of that reimbursement to next year's taxes as well.

What my husband only admitted to me later was that he had known about the assessment for quite some time. However, he didn't tell me about it in the hopes that he could soften the blow with some good news from our accountant. He said he just knew that with everything going on in our lives right now, I wouldn't have handled an assessment very well. And he was right. I definitely tend to worry more than my husband, and he kindly took the worry for me.

I am so blessed to be married to such a wonderful guy, and even more blessed that he is willing to shoulder some extra stress and concern to prohibit me from having to. What a blessing. And what a guy!

Big events in the Kit. home!

Isaac stacks blocks and stands!



Isaac walks!

Hotdogs

So, uh, Mom, why did you wait so long to introduce me to hotdogs?! These things ROCK!

I knew that

Picture it. Me, so excited about my new potato peeling discovery. (See previous post if you have no idea what I am talking about.) JB, waking up from his daytime sleep and wandering to the computer to catch up a week's worth of my blogs. Wendi waiting until JB finishes watching the potato peeling video. JB turning around. Wendi saying, "Isn't that the coolest thing?" JB nodding. Slowly.

And then JB says what we should have known he would say. "Wendi, that's how I always do my potatoes."

Oh.

Sigh.

So much for some exciting new discovery. Not that I even peel potatoes. JB peels potatoes. I should have checked with him before I posted a discovery that has already been quite discovered. Oh well. Good for you though Lisa for giving it a try! At least I helped someone out there.

This daytime sleeping has confused me about more than just potatoes. I'm confused about how to regulate the temperature in our house. JB likes it cool when he sleeps. But this means that we are absolutely FREEZING while he is sleeping. I'm embarrassed to admit this because I truly am a quite an environmentally friendly girl, but I've actually succumbed to opening the windows in the living room area to warm us up while the air is on in the house. (The only people who would dare do this are families who don't pay for their own electric bills!) But what else is a girl to do!? I can't wear mittens in my own house.

JB continues to wander into the house each morning around 8am to a very excited Scrubs and Isaac. He tries to spend some quality time with us while my Mom takes Scrubs for a walk, but usually, within less than an hour, his eyes go glassy and his whole body starts to exude fatigue. He wanders back out of his room around 4:30pm still glassy eyed and groggy. I attempt to fill him on what I've done that day but but inevitably say something like, "It was a beautiful day," which causes JB to say something like, "I wouldn't know."

Today though, he actually got up a bit earlier and all of us except Elijah and my Mom took a walk over to the Bay. While Scrubs and Deuce romped in the grass, we enjoyed some beautiful seventy degree weather, cool breezes, and soft grass while the waves crashed up against the rocks. I think it made JB feel a bit human again, if only for a few moments.

Now if I can just find a moment to get a shower, I think I can get a bit closer to human as well.

Is this for real?!

Has anyone ever tried this?! My Mom sent me this video, and I can't help but think that if peeling a potato were so easy I'd have heard of this before?

More than half way done!

Monday night was JB's sixth of ten nights on call! That means we are now more than halfway through nights!

Isaac decided to celebrate by taking four steps. Even better, he saved the steps for a moment that JB was actually awake and home at the same time. Wendi decided to celebrate by cooking some dinner. Granted it was pizza casserole which requires nothing more than five ingredients and the ability to read a recipe card. However, the fact that nothing burned and it was actually edible is a major accomplishment and worthy of celebration itself.

Mom is such an angel. She agreed to watch both boys and Scrubs while I got a haircut and highlight. I have to admit it was kind of nice to get out of the house in my empty mini-van and spend a couple hours chatting with Tiffany D. from church while she attempted to fix what many months of negligence had created. She did a great job and I feel incredibly happy to finally, after over a year and a half here on Eglin, to have finally found a hair dresser instead of always waiting until I go back to Fort Lauderdale for a visit to get my hair done.

Mom held down the fort flawlessly. Elijah took his second-ever bottle. Mom discovered that the presence of the bottle doesn't sit very well with big brother. Why is there a bottle being given to little brother?! Bottles are what Isaac drinks!

Maybe it is a bit of sleep deprivation, but I found myself drawn back to the post I wrote on unmade beds. Man you guys came through with some incredibly interesting comments! I've decided that making the bed is actually interesting enough to warrant a Part B so I can comment on so many of your comments. I'd write that Part B right now if it wasn't for the fact that it is now 9pm, and I am preparing to feed Elijah and head to that unmade bed. But stay tuned everyone . . .

Oh and is anyone else watching American Idol? Survivor and AI are the only two shows I am currently watching. Danny, Megan, and Lil' are currently my three favorites. Anyone else watching with me?

Monday

Today I:

• Went on a walk with both boys, my mom, and Scrubs. The walk went well other than the fact that JB drove by to leave for work midway through the walk. This was a very happy occurrence until JB drove away. JB driving away greatly upset Isaac. Isaac started crying. Sobbing actually. Elijah decided this meant he should cry too. Unfortunately we had just missed a possible "turn around" point for our walk. We had no choice but to chug onward towards the house. We walked the second half of the walk amongst tears from both sides of the jogger. Only Scrubs appeared unfazed by all the crying. I may need to map out a new route for my walks.


• Let Deuce out two times. Deuce's human is gone for the week so I am letting him out to play two times during the day. Because my Mom is here, I am able to quickly run over, let dogs play for twenty minutes, and quickly return home. It was drizzly all day, but I found two relatively dry periods to allow them to romp a bit.


• Visited with Becky. It is always so wonderful to catch up with her. She is doing really well, and we are going to grab on lunch on Friday as well. They will be moving to Washington D.C. in May so we have to get in all the visiting we can.


• Saw Joia. She stopped by with a balloon for Isaac from Keenan's birthday party since we left the party a little bit early and didn't get a balloon. When Isaac got up from his nap he immediately fell in LOVE with the shiny silver balloon. It is a very popular item in our house as of current. Thanks Joia!


• Slept nearly eight hours over night with feeds at 8:30pm and 5:30am. Go Elijah!


• Took a one hour nap mid morning. Yay for naps (and Moms who watch kids during naps!)


• Banished Scrubs to his kennel for chewing on one kiddie toy. He goes immediately when caught in fear of being sprayed with "bitter yuck" spray -- the usual punishment for chewing on anything not belonging to him. The spray-him-every-time-he-steals-something was the BEST punishment we ever came up with. It curbed the stealing immediately, and he very rarely participates in these activities anymore. Very important when your home now has toys, well, everywhere.


• Made dinner (pizza casserole) for dinner tomorrow night. Hurrah for easy recipes and planning ahead! (More my Mom's idea than mine.) Don't worry everyone. JB is still the chef in our house but a night rotation means I have to help out more. My Mom has been helping too. She made Hawaiin chicken last night. It was awesome. Up until two weeks ago, we were still having meals coming from amazing friends about three times a week. What a great blessing that was.


• Pulled out 0-3 month clothes in preparation for Eiljah's obvious growing. Wish that I hadn't taken everything off of the hangers after Isaac used them!


• Ate brats that JB cooked on the grill. He was able to come home after his half day of clinic and before he started nights and was up for cooking for us on the grill. Way cool!


• Changed and fed some babies.

Okay, I think that's my day. This is my last week having someone here to help me with the boys. One week from today I am on my own. I am feeling more and more upbeat about my ability to handle this -- especially because I have started my antibiotic and am really feeling better. Please keep us all in your prayers as we prepare to transition to a Grandma free house!

Gentle Giant

Seriously, can you ask for a dog to be better with kids than Scrubs is? As frustrated as I get with this dog for his constant follow-me-around-the-house-and-stick-his-nose-into-everything-I-do and his ability to get under foot and get hyper at the most inopportune moments and block me out when I know he can hear me, the pup is a gem with both our boys and especially right now, Isaac. Take a look at this beating he took from Isaac last evening. (Oh, and if you listen carefully, you can hear Isaac's first "hi" and "uh oh". Not clear at all, but definitely a start at mimicking.)

Also, if you are interested in some other videos we took last night, you can visit either of these links:

More Isaac crawling on Scrubs

Daddy bugs Isaac

Half way done

JB is halfway done with his two weeks of nights! Of course last night was one of his roughest nights of all. He is now home and in bed. However, we did have time for a quick family photo before he turned in for the morning. As you can tell, he is quite popular when he gets home. In fact, this morning, Scrubs and Isaac both went crazy when they saw him drive up. Scrubs went so crazy he jumped the ottoman (a big no-no) and then jumped OVER Isaac to get to JB first (a very big no-no!)


We also realized that our little "spider monkey" Elijah not only has some long arms and legs but some pretty good size feet as well. Take a look at this photo below:


Today is also a day to celebrate! Elijah is six weeks old. This means that Mom (aka ... me) is six weeks past her c-section and now able to begin participating in regular activities like going for a walk (which I did yesterday -- it was glorious!) and vacuuming (bummer!) Elijah decided to celebrate as well by going EIGHT hours in between feedings last night. You go little dude!

Overall, I am feeling pretty good. I am definitely not back to the pre-pregnancy Wendi but everyday I feel better and better. We also found a Walgreens that has the antibiotic we need. I ventured out with Isaac while my Mom stayed with Elijah to pick up the antibiotic and visit Target.

One problem with having JB sleep during the day is that he wants it very cool when he sleeps. This isn't a problem when you are sleeping too. But when you are awake and FREEZING it is a bit frustrating! Another reason he needs to hurry up and finish nights up.

Having my Mom here for nights has been WONDERFUL! I honestly could not have done it without her here.

Glimpse into our life

Elijah usually gets up at 4am to eat. After he eats, my wonderful Mom takes him out to the living room for some snuggle time. She keeps Isaac's monitor and also feeds and pees Scrubs. She does all this while I go back to bed until 7am when Elijah needs to eat again. This morning I woke up to find that my Grandma Di had things very under control. All three boys were definitely being adequately loved!

JB comes home from nights around 8am and usually has about one hour before he completely falls into bed exhausted. Here he is during breakfast with Isaac. I've been having Isaac sleep in his scrubs (from Brandon & Kristen) so I thought I needed to get a picture of Daddy and boy in their scrubs.

Here is a video of Isaac at lunch. He lovessss bananas!

And here is a video I talk last night of Elijah. I want to make sure I capture him as often as I can since he is changing so fast! We are now getting some tiny smiles!

Moms of Irish Twins

I know that over the past few weeks and months I have had a number of people visit my blog who, like me, are "Moms of Irish Twins." Basically, this means that your babies are nine months apart or so. I know there are a few of you who had them closer (Jess) or farther (Amy, Lisa) apart than nine months. However, we are just trying to talk about the ballpark here -- somewhere around the nine month mark.

I recognize that the term "Irish Twins" might be a bit offensive as it has to do with the Catholic faith and their ability to have children in quick succession. However, my "little sis" Kelsey is the strongest Catholic I know, even considering becoming a nun, and she has told me that she is not offended by the term. So I've decided to use it.

If you are in the "club" of having Irish twins, would you mind shooting me an email with your email or putting your email in a comment in this blog? I would love to get a list together and put together a little "virtual support group" of some sort so that we could share stories or ideas. I'm really not sure, actually, what I am going to do with the list, but just felt like there have been so many people who have emailed me or left a comment, and I didn't do a good job compiling these individuals.

Even if you think I have your email or know you, would you still send me another email or comment? I don't want to leave anyone off the list.

Also, if you know someone else in this club, would you forward them a link to this blog and encourage them to shoot me an email or post a comment?

Thanks everyone!

P.S. Also, if you get a chance, please pray that a pharmacy somewhere in the area would decide to carry or stock the antibiotic I need to find this C.diff thing. We can't find anyone that has it! Ugh!

Swaddling 101

My husband is a fantastic swaddler. A few of you have asked me to have him demonstrate his technique on video. So, here it is:

Clostridium difficile

Well, I am not happy to report that I have a new infection. However, I am happy to report a reason for the month long bout of GI issues I have been plagued with.

I try to keep "bathroom talk" to a minimum on my blog so I'll spare you all the details. However, I can quickly summarize by telling you that ever since I came home, a week after Elijah was born, I have been plagued by stomach aches and diarrhea. This has gone on, non-stop, for four weeks.

At first, we thought it was due to the antibiotic they gave me to treat the mastitis. So they changed me to a different antibiotic. But when the mastitis went away and the stomach issues continued, we began looking for another cause. I tried eating different, drinking more, anything, and everything to no avail. I just kept feeling sick.

So yesterday, I went for some other testing and it seems I have an infection called Clostridium difficile -- often called C. difficile or "C. diff." According to Mayo Clinic's website: "your intestines contain millions of bacteria, many of which help protect your body from infection. But when you take an antibiotic to treat an infection, the drug can destroy some of the normal, helpful bacteria as well as the bacteria causing the illness. Without enough healthy bacteria, C. difficile can quickly grow out of control."

That's what happened to me. The antibiotic they gave me back in the hospital to help defeat the endometritis and get rid of the ileus, caused this new infection. Geesh! The never ending saga of Elijah's entrance into the world, continues. I was so blessed with a fantastically healthy pregnancy. It was the post-pregnancy that has just caused us to almost laugh at this point! Both JB and I are just so ready for me to be done being sick!

It gets a bit tricky because in order to treat C.diff, I need to take another antibiotic. The two commonly used to treat C.diff can both go through breast milk. One of them is not advised in breastfeeding mothers. The other can be used but can cause Elijah to get a bit of diarrhea himself. We have decided to use this antibiotic as I can't go on like this for months and months and because any issues for Elijah should be quick and fleeting.

Please pray that this antibiotic works for me and doesn't make Elijah sick. We are very blessed that we have finally found the source of this infection! Thanks for those of you who have already been praying for me. Hopefully this will be the last of my post-surgery related complications.

Random, non-bed talk

So yesterday's post generated some great discussion! Who knew we were all so opinionated about a topic as simple as beds. If you haven't had a chance to read and share your own personal feelings, please scroll down to the post below this one and give it a whirl! Since that post is so text-dense, I'll go with mostly photos for today's blog. I can't be a chatterbox every single day or I'd bore everyone to death.

My Mom's friend Marty gave Isaac this shirt. It finally fits. Thanks Marty! (Not sure what JB is doing -- probably hoping Isaac doesn't grab his lip or nose!)

JB captured a few photos from his race last week which were taken by the photography crew on hand. This is proof that JB did actually run the race and didn't just drive down to Seaside for a fun, relaxing afternoon. :) Did I tell everyone how proud I am of JB for running 13.1 miles!? You go John!

I actually brought my camera to the park today when we met with the gals for lunch but just didn't have the opportunity to take it out. What would I do without Joia!? She always comes through with a snapshot or two.


It was a beautiful summer day today! I was actually worried Isaac was going to get burned. I didn't come prepared for that -- didn't bring a hat or sunscreen or anything. I have realized that going to the park with both boys without someone to help me would be a little difficult unless Elijah decides to take a nap -- which he didn't want to do today. I really am reliant on the extra set of hands.

I really like this picture of my Mom with Elijah. When I hold Elijah, he just wants to eat, even if he just did, so snuggling isn't something we get to do much unless there is food involved. But he calms down and falls asleep on my Mom nearly every time without fail. He is still quite a skinny guy -- all arms and legs!

Here is a link to Joia's post on our lunch today: Wifia lunch.

I also wanted to put a link up to a March of Dimes fundraising site. A friend of ours from Mayo is raising money for the March of Dimes and premature infants after the loss of their daughter, Marie, last year. Would you consider supporting Cassie & Nick as they raise money?