A quick note:: Yes, we're okay...

…and doing well. We've just been busy, busy, busy. 

The baby came home on the 12th of February and I've scarcely had a moment to catch my breath, let alone gathering my thoughts together enough to write a blog post. Honestly, any spare moment I might have is usually spent with my eyes closed. So, please forgive me for falling so woefully behind in sharing here. I didn't mean for so much time to pass before giving an update.

The baby (still haven't come up with her blog nickname) is healthy and growing very well. She came home from the NICU with oxygen and that was quite the pain in the tush (she mastered the ability to find the cannula tube, wrap her wee fingers around it and pull it out every. time. I. turned. around.), but thankfully the home health nurse gave the okay to discontinue it on Feb. 27th, a week before she turned 2 months old. Two months old!?! I know, I can't believe it either! At her last weigh-in last Thursday she was up to 7lbs 2 oz. She's a fantastic eater and a fairly good sleeper…during the day. sigh. Yeah, we're working on that. 

Gotta go for now. It's time for me to get the kids their lunch and then pump and then feed the baby and then dishes and then run to the market to get some things for dinner tonight and….well, you get the picture. Before I jump off though, I'll leave you with some pictures I've been sharing on Instagram. Because really, it's all about seeing pics of the baby anyhow, right? ;)

Homecoming 2/12/13

Valentine's Baby at her first doctor appt. 2/14/13

Adorable baby feet. Is there anything more precious?

3/8/13
My oldest and youngest girls together.
 March 8th was my oldest daughter's 14 birthday and the baby's due date. 

Birth Story:: An Unexpected Journey

I am beyond grateful to introduce to you...

Baby A

born January 6, 2013 at 1:18 am

(31 weeks 2 days)

3 pounds 13 ounces

17 inches 

*The photo above was actually taken when she was 4 days old this last Thursday when I was discharged from the hospital. It's my favorite photo of her so far.

**Also, I'm sharing her real name for now, but I will probably go back and edit it out in a week or so. She is named after a favorite saint, and my own beloved grandmother. 

***This will probably be much more than you ever wanted to know, but this is my journal of sorts where I put things I want to remember. So you've been warned. Proceed with caution.

Okay, the birth story…..where to begin…

I'm calling it an unexpected journey, because though I knew what could happen I had steeled myself in the thought that it probably wouldn't happen like that…that is, that hopefully, most likely, everything would go without a hitch; smoothly and uneventfully. 

I was wrong.

If you remember I was admitted to the hospital after my second episode of spotting. The day after that post on Thursday, Jan. 3rd, I had my first full bleed. They moved me back down to the Labor/Delivery floor and began to prep me for surgery and even had me call my husband to tell him it would probably happen that night. My bleeding stopped shortly after being moved to the L&D floor, though. After close monitoring, watching and waiting for a few hours they decided not to go through with the surgery to see if they could get the baby a few more days in the womb. It was a miserable next few days. I was so worn out with blood loss and anxiety. They wanted to give me IV iron to bolster my levels, but the IV site didn't react well at all. It was such intense pain. They had to stop the infusion and remove that IV. Because of my high risk of having another bleed and going into emergency surgery they absolutely needed at least one working IV in me at all times. Unfortunately, because of my very low blood pressure they couldn't get another one going. Two nurses worked at it. They tried 5 times before calling in another "specialty" nurse (the ones that fly on the helicopters) to try to get one started. He finally succeeded. Ouch. My arms look worse than a junkies; bruises, discoloring, and pokes everywhere. I was strapped down with monitors, tubes and wires. I could only moisten my mouth with the little sponges on a stick because they didn't want me to eat or drink in case of immediate surgery. This was very hard, but considering I was only allowed a bed pan, maybe it wasn't such a bad thing. I think I cried more in those few days than I had all year. I missed my children and husband so much. I was very worried about the baby. And after days in the hospital, experiencing the close call on Thursday night and having the medical staff treat me like a "dead man walking" it was pushing me to my physical and emotional limits. It seemed everyone at the hospital knew about me and my condition. One nurse that was very kind and actually requested to care for me, confided in me that the other nurses were nervous about being the one to care for me or flat out didn't want to take care of me because of my high risk status. I can't blame them. I was a ticking time-bomb. 

The next night a Urologist came in to talk with me about the possibility of the "situation" involving my bladder. Oh, Lord. I was so upset by this new possibility. I really didn't need one more thing to be worried about. Like I had done from the moment I entered the hospital I offered it up to Our Lord in union with His sufferings for my own special intentions and those I had promised to pray for. This was very comforting for me. To know that the suffering was doing good for someone else. It wasn't meaningless. Meditating on Our Lord's Passion and Our Lady's Seven Sorrows were my main consolation. One of the things that bothered me about the hospital was that though it is a Catholic hospital and they did have a cross up in every room, it was without the traditional corpus and had instead a more modern "risen Christ". How I missed my suffering Lord. I told Mark to please bring up one of my children's standing Crucifixes to have at my bedside along with my wooden statue of the Blessed Mother. We cannot fully experience the Resurrection without first going through the Passion. 

The night of January 5th I had my second full bleed and this time it did not stop. 

I'm pausing here. This is painful for me to relate and my thoughts become jumbled…

It was late and I can't recall the exact time, but I had already turned out the room lights and tried to settle myself to sleep without the help of my new friend Ambien. I rolled to my side and felt the gush of blood. I first said, "No. Oh, please, no." Then I pushed the call button for the nurse..."I'm bleeding." I laid there as motionless as I possibly could and still the blood flowed. Within seconds I was surrounded by the whirling turmoil of nurses and other medical staff working around me. I think an "on floor" doctor was there, too, but I can't remember for sure. A second IV was started after several tries and a catheter put in place (usually done after you're put under, but in my case they had to save time). I called my husband and told him that this was it and I would be in surgery probably before he left the house. 

They took me, still laying in my bed, several floors down to the main OR. I was shaking uncontrollably, though they had covered me with several blankets taken straight from the warmer. This is my very annoying response to intense stress…that or I was going into shock.  They stopped right outside the OR and continued to prep me placing those sticky monitors all over my body. At this point the anesthesiologist came up to me and began his onslaught of questions. How many past surgeries? Any adverse reactions to anesthesia? Any allergies?… while he paused to breathe I got in my own question. Will I be able to stay awake as I have for previous c-sections? The answer was no. He told me I would be put completely under because of all the risks and complications this surgery may have and the fact that my blood pressure was already very low. There was no changing his mind on this. I panicked. I wouldn't be able to see my baby immediately following delivery.

I might never see my baby. 

As they moved me into the OR and onto the table I couldn't hold back my tears... just as I can't hold back my tears now. That sterile, cold operating room might have been the last thing I saw. I began to pray like I've never prayed before. The only thing was that I couldn't remember the simplest prayers. Prayers that I had known by heart since I was a small child. Even my favorite daily prayers escaped me. Because I couldn't remember an Act of Contrition, I instead prayed, "Lord, forgive me." Instead of an Act of Love I prayed, "Lord, I love you." And instead of An Act of Faith or Hope I prayed, "Jesus, I trust in Thee." and finally, "Lord, if I do not live through this, please, let me be with you."

My arms were stretched out, cruciform, and strapped down as they are for any surgery. But unlike with my past surgeries, this image was not lost on me this time. As I repeated over and over, "Jesus, I trust in Thee" and "Jesus, I love you", they put the drugs into my IV and the O2 mask on my face. It seemed to take a long time, but I eventually went to sleep. 

Now is where I fill in from what my husband, nurses and doctors told me afterward…

By the time my husband got to the hospital the baby had been delivered. He was informed that I was in recovery under observation and that I would probably be out in an hour. Before that hour was up a nurse came to tell him that I had begun to hemorrhage and that I had been taken back into the OR. They opened me back up and decided the only way to stop the bleeding was to remove the uterus. Even after they had removed the uterus I continued to bleed. I was told that I had lost so much blood that although they were transfusing me my body just would not begin to clot. I'm still not quite sure how they finally got the bleeding under control, though somehow they did… no, I do know. It was all of the many, many prayers that had been offered up for me and the baby.  All in all I required 10 units of blood, two bags of fresh frozen plasma, two bags of platelets, and some fiber (?) something or other that was applied which gives the body something to begin to clot to. The second surgery lasted about 2 1/2 hours. 

The doctor came to talk with Mark and to tell him all that had happened. He was in shock. I guess he was in just as much a state of denial as I had been. At this point they had moved me into the ICU for continued recovery and observation. Mark came right up to see me, but I was still under anesthesia. I guess the anesthesiologist came in to talk with Mark and informed him that during the second surgery I had started to wake up. He had had to back off from the amount of anesthesia he was administering because my already low blood pressure continued to drop. But I guess he had backed off a little too much. He told Mark that there was a possibility that I could remember some of the surgery and that I may have nightmares. So far I have not remembered anything, thanks be to God. I'm not sure I could handle it. I'm already having a hard time sleeping since being released from the hospital. Within a half hour of being in the ICU I woke up. I had no idea where I was, but I immediately went into a panic. I was in an incredible amount of pain and still intubated. I had no idea how truly terrible being intubated while awake could be. I had uncontrollable gaging, my hands were strapped down, I couldn't talk and although I was breathing, I felt as if I wasn't. A nurse had her back to me typing something on the computer, a few other medical staff were working around me and I was desperately wanting to tell them how much pain I was in. I kept motioning that I wanted to write. I was ignored and when Mark told them I was wanting to write something he was ignored as well. I remember one nurse or CNA being very concerned with my wedding ring. It was tight because my hand was swollen from all of the fluids given during surgery and she wanted to remedy it. Are you kidding me?! My ring?! I'm in excruciating pain and gagging uncontrollably  over here and you're concerned with my ring?! Get these tubes out of me! ….Mark still cannot talk about me in this state without openly weeping. They had to take an x-ray of my lungs to make sure there wasn't any fluid in them before removing the tubes. More pain as they moved me gaging and foaming onto a hard board for the x-ray. The respiratory lady (not her official title) declared me fluid free so they slowly removed the tubes. I wish they would have just pulled them out all at once, but instead they removed them one at a time and slowly. What was terrible before became unbearable now. I was gaging, foaming, barfing and hyperventilating as they tried to suction out my mouth and pull out the tubes. Mark had been taken to the NICU to see the baby and to sign some papers so he wasn't there to see this. I was very glad of it. When he came back I was free of the tubes and had been set up with a pump button for my morphine. For whatever reason this was next to no relief for me. Really I never felt my pain was under control until I was taken off of the morphine and given percocet in pill form. 

I had two days in the ICU before moving me onto the regular OB floor. Before releasing me from the ICU though they gave me two more units of blood, IV iron, potassium, and magnesium. My blood pressure continued to be low as well as my electrolytes. I spent another 3 days in OB recovery before being discharged. I was so torn when I left the hospital on the night of the 10th. I wanted to go home to rest and recover (you really can't do that in a hospital). Plus I missed my children at home. But leaving the baby in the NICU was SO painful and continues to be so. I miss her so much. I come home after a trip up to visit her and I feel like someone is missing. I go through counting all of the kids and realize that it's the baby I'm looking for. I do this several times a day. It doesn't help matters that I'm half crazed with postpartum hormones, I'm sure; laughing and crying at the drop of a hat. My poor husband. 

I guess out of all this ordeal what was most unexpected is the profound loss I feel for my fertility. My husband and I truly feel like we are in mourning. We've shed many tears the past few nights lying in bed talking about it. That's not to say that we do not feel very grateful for our little girl or our other 8 children. Goodness knows we have been abundantly blessed. Yes. We have been blessed and I had thought that it wouldn't bother me much to lose my uterus. But to now have it actually happen…to know that this is it for us…Baby A will be our last baby…well, it makes me so, so sad. All of those prenatal flutterings and little kicks….no more.  Every milestone and development Baby A goes through will be for the last time for us. I'm left feeling very empty. 

Now that I am home I am trying desperately to bring in my milk. I'm pumping every three hours with a five to six hour break at night. At most I'm getting a total of 40 ml. I'm told this is very good considering all of what my body has been through and fluid I've lost. We bring up my milk every day for her feedings. We're still only allowed two times a day when I can hold her during her "care times". This is so frustrating. I hate putting her down at the end of our visits. I feel like I could hold her for an eternity. *sigh* She is doing fantastically well, though. She's been making daily progress in all critical areas. She is down to room O2 levels at a slightly positive pressure to help her lungs stay more open, but they tell me that it is minimal help and she is above where other preemies are usually at at her age. Her IV has been removed and she is tolerating her gavage (tube) feedings very well and they increase the amount she takes in at every feeding almost daily. She has needed to be under the bilirubin lights a couple of times and may need to be under them more in the days ahead, but I have been told this is very normal for most preemies. It would be more unusual if she did not need it. She is alert and amazingly beautiful…of course I'm probably a little biased. But all the nurses say the same thing, so it must be true. ;) Seriously though, to us she is total perfection.

I'm still sore and tired, but I'm off of the pain meds. Every day is a little better than the last and our focus now is on Baby A's development and going to see her as often as possible. They tell you in the NICU to not fixate on when the baby will be released and to just plan on the baby being in there until his or her actual due date. Even though it could be sooner they do not want the parents to get their hopes up only to be let down by a set back. They never rush a preemie baby's development. 

So, we wait, pray, and look forward to the day we can bring her home with us.

I would like to thank you all for your prayers you have offered for me and our little girl. I know that is why I am still alive and why Anna continues to make such good progress. I feel so humbled by the love and outreach of those I have never even met in real life. I'm astounded at God's goodness and the faithfulness of this Christ-centered online community I am so blessed to be a part of. 

May God bless you all. 

All praise and honor be to God!

An update from the hospital

Sorry, no pic for this post.

The internet connection has been intermittent here in the hospital and I'm taking this opportunity to quickly type this up. 

So, yeah. You read that post heading right. I'm in the hospital on bed rest. For how long you ask? Well, possibly for the next 6 to 7 weeks…if all goes well. If things do not "go well" it will be when the doctor deems that it is no longer safer for the baby to remain in the womb and needs to come out sooner rather than later. This most likely would be from placental abruption with bleeding within the womb or labor that cannot be stopped resulting in bleeding too much / hemorrhaging. With my last pregnancy, where I also had a complete placenta previa, Little Man was delivered at 32 weeks because of bleeding that led to contractions, which in turn led to more bleeding which led to more contractions…it turns into a vicious cycle that cannot be stopped. It really is completely unpredictable and it could be tonight, the next week or the next month.

I was admitted on December 27th early in the morning. I was not sleeping well that night because of stomach pain. I ended up catching the stomach bug that the kids had been going through. While still lying in bed I had felt something suspicious and went to the bathroom to check. Sure enough it was blood. Not a lot, but enough for me to have to call the doctor. I had already had my first spotting on Christmas Eve and was put on bed rest at home. Because of my high risk state I was already warned that I would be given only two bleeds/spotting before needing to go into the hospital. Mark drove me up at 4:30 in the morning on horribly foggy and icy roads. They first admitted me into the labor/delivery floor and kept me there for 3 days. Then after I showed no renewal of fresh bleeding they moved me to the postpartum ward where they have much more comfortable beds but a slower emergency response time. Hence the doctors reason for waiting to be sure I was stable before moving me there. For the first few days I was completely strapped down with an I.V. and baby monitors and nearly constant checks by the nurses. It was horrible and scary. But once I was moved they stopped the I.V. (I do still have a "buffalo cap", the I.V. tube is in place, but the bag of fluid is gone) and went to only monitoring the baby at every shift change. 

I'm not going to lie. This is hard. Probably the hardest life experience I've been through (not including the loss of loved ones). 

I've had some very dark moments. But I've also had some very grace-filled moments when I truly felt the peace of the Holy Spirit. This is the gift of your prayer, I know. The result is my experiencing Actual Grace from God. If you could, if I can ask you for just a little bit more, could you please offer some of your prayers for my family. Mark is managing the best he can…the man is a saint, I tell you, but he is overwhelmed and tired. He is back to work full time this week and the kids were scheduled to start their studies again the week of the 7th. He is receiving help from his mother and a few other relatives and the older kids have been a huge help to him in maintaining and holding down the fort. Honestly, we were not prepared for this as much as we should or could have been. I was doing so well and since it was over the holidays (which completely encompassed all our attention) we were a bit blindsided. 

As for myself, I'm taking one day at a time. If I think beyond that I become too overwhelmed and put myself into a panic attack. And really, sometimes it's one hour…one moment at a time. A priest was finally able to get to me today and I was able to receive the Anointing of the Sick and Holy Communion. Thank you, God, for the sacraments and priests to administer them!! Another pretty cool thing is that I have known this priest since I was a child, though it had been years since I had last seen him. It was wonderful to be able to catch up with him and show him photos of my children and husband. Mark brought up some of my knitting, books, laptop and magazines. The knitting has been a real help to my sanity. I'm working on some bright and cheery yellow socks for my son and I'm just waiting for Mark to be able to bring up my newly arrived Madtosh light merino to begin a Sunday Sweater for the baby. I'm going to have to talk him through finding the pattern in my closet along with my needles. LOL, that should be interesting. He's been able to bring the kids to see me 3 or 4 times since my admittance and it does my heart such good to see them. Everyone tells me to enjoy my time away from the chaos, but I miss them all SO much. Anyway, I guess when it's your chaos it doesn't so much feel like chaos. It just feels like my life. 

Okay, well, that's it for now. My right hand (where the buff. cap is) is starting to ache from the typing and it's almost time for the nurse to come in and check my blood glucose levels. I'll try to update again later. I've been thinking about maybe having one of my blogging buddies be able to "hack" into my blog just incase something happens and I'm not able to update myself. I've come to rely on your prayers so much that I'd hate to go without them in an emergency situation. 

Wishing you God's blessing and lots of love to you and yours in the New Year.  

~Kelly

p.s. I apologize for any typos. I'm not going back over the post to check. I'm sure you understand. ;)

{this moment} :: Our first 3D baby pic with an Update

{this moment}- A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, please visit Soule Mama…Amanda is taking a break for the next week, but I wanted to share this photo as a {this moment} anyway. 

Please continue to pray. I know you already are. Thank you!!

We had a bit of a blow when meeting with the specialist yesterday afternoon. I'm sure he was just preparing us for anything that could happen (especially the worst case scenario), but it was pretty scary for this hormonal momma to hear. They will be delivering the baby in the actual surgery room instead of the labor and delivery cesarian room. He told me that I will probably need a transfusion and a stay in the ICU for day or two. He also said that because he could not rule out an accreta (when the placenta won't detach easily or at all from the uterus causing severe bleeding/hemorrhaging…or worse) there is a 50/50 chance that I will lose my uterus and have a hysterectomy directly following the birth of the baby, so I should prepare myself for this. He agreed with my OB doc that if all goes well, they will take the baby between 36 and 37 weeks. I went in this morning to our local hospital for the first of two steroid shots to prepare the baby for the possibility of premature labor/delivery. He also said that though he was happy to hear that I had not had any bleeding yet, that I would, indeed, have bleeding. He couldn't even see the cervix on the scan because of all of the placenta covering it. It could be today, tomorrow or a month from now, but that I should be prepared for it to happen. 

On a bright note (I'm clinging to the bright notes), the baby is doing wonderfully well. She is above average on the growth chart and all of her development and growth are looking picture perfect. 

Thank you again for your ongoing prayers. They mean the world to me right now. 

May God bless you as you prepare and make ready for the birth of Christ. 

Baby Update :: 28 weeks

This photo was taken a week ago at 27 weeks.

I'm taking advantage of this quiet Gaudete Sunday to give an update on how things are going with the pregnancy. I feel bad that I haven't been posting more frequently or consistently, but we've been pretty full up on busyness and when my plate gets full blogging is usually the first casualty. There have been some physical reasons I've had a harder time keeping up, too. 

About two weeks ago I had my blood glucose screening to check for gestational diabetes. I failed that test and had to go in last week for the 3 hour test, which is actually more like 4 hours when it's all accounted for. I was poked 4 different times at one hour intervals. I failed that one, too, so I get to go in to see the dietician for a consult and pick up my glucometer and testing strips. Blech. I've had to do this before, so I have some understanding of what is expected. The last time I had GD was with my 5th child and I was able to control it with adjusting my diet. I'm hoping to be able to do the same this time, too. Along with the GD stuff they also found out that I am anemic. I had a feeling this might be something I was dealing with since my energy levels have really dropped since Thanksgiving when my energy seemed to be at it's peak. I've started taking a liquid iron supplement and tried to incorporate more iron rich foods into my daily diet. I had pretty low iron levels with the last pregnancy, so I know that if I don't actively work to keep it up it can become severe. I narrowly escaped a transfusion before being released from the hospital after having Little Man. I remember being so weak that I couldn't get into my husbands truck without assistance and couldn't help slurring my words at times. I do not want it to get to that level again. 

On a good note, I have not had any bleeding or spotting yet. Yay!! 

I can't tell you how happy this has made me or what a relief it has been. There are some restrictions to my daily routines, of course, but for the most part I am free to do as I normally would. In the last pregnancy I had my first bleed at the end of my 26th week so this is good, good, good! I do, however, still have a complete placenta previa. At my 24 week ultrasound it was looking like it might move up a bit, but no. It was confirmed at my recent ultrasound last week that it is still completely covering the cervix and at this point, according to my OB, it will not move anymore. This was disappointing, but expected. For this reason alone it is even more surprising that I have not had any bleeding yet. I credit all of the prayers I have received from friends, family and my online buddies. I would like to thank you if you have been praying for me and our little girl. It means so very much to me and my family. May God bless you for your spiritual generosity. 

We have an appointment to meet with the specialist this Thursday to determine whether or not we are dealing with an accreta and/or worse. Honestly, I'm trying not to go there in my mind. So far, I am feeling very good (other than the recent lack of energy) with just occasional contractions. They are just a few a day and sporadic, but when they do come I really feel them. The doctor said that if all continues to go well then they will plan on taking the baby via c-section around 37 weeks (the baby would be considered full term at that point), which would be around mid February. 

I'd like to thank you again for your prayers. They truly are the crutch I lean on when I find myself going down a dark path in my mind.

Wishing you all a blessed and JOYFUL Gaudete Sunday!

Wordless Wednesday:: Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for us!

Baby Update:: 24 weeks

Yesterday we had our OB appt. and ultra sound scan to check on the location of the placenta again. Our baby girl looked wonderful. She was SO cute wiggling and moving her mouth during the scan. Unfortunately, the placenta was still very low with the bottom of it resting right over the cervix. It had moved up a little (which is to be expected as the uterus grows), but not enough. The doctor was very pleased to hear that I had not had any spotting or full bleeding. I didn't start having bleeding last time until I was 26 weeks (I think) along, though. So, this really didn't comfort me much. It's just a waiting game now. Fun, right? It's always fun to feel like you're waiting for the other shoe to drop. Blech. 

My next OB appointment and scan is in a month. If the placenta is still low we will probably meet with the same specialist we saw last time. He will be the one to determine how deep the implantation of the placenta is on/into the uterine wall. Until then we pray and wait. 

Thank you SO much for your prayers for the baby and I that you have already offered for us. I'm going to beg more prayers from you. Please. 

Thank you in advance and may God bless you.

*Btw, I decided to turn back on comment moderation. I've been getting a ton of spam and a few snarky "anonymous" comments. Thanks for understanding. *

A photo heavy Daybook

Outside my window…

…bright, clear, and chilly. It's 47 degrees out right now. That's going to be today's high. Last night we had a low of 15 degrees. 

I am thinking…

…about the election. I just can shake the feeling that something is off. Something wasn't completely legit if you know what I mean. It just doesn't make sense with the numbers that were being reported  just a day before the election. 

I am thankful…

from my Instagram

…for family read-aloud time. My husband just wrapped up re-reading The Hobbit to the kids. We're all ready to see the movie now.

From the kitchen…

Also from my Instagram

…a preggy safe mimosa using orange juice and Perrier I enjoyed this past Sunday. YUMMY! Also, Hachis Parmentier (my mémé's recipe), oatmeal, soups and stews. Anything hearty and warming. If anyone is interested in the Hachis Parmentier recipe which is kinda like a French meatloaf or shepherd's pie let me know in the comments and I will post the recipe. 

In the school room / What I'm reading…

…still more books for our study of the Exploration and Colonization period of American History.

Living the Liturgical Year / What I'm creating…

…helmet liners to send to the troops in Afghanistan. I started one on Sunday, the feast of St. Martin of Tours (a soldier famous for tearing his cloak in half and sharing it with a cold beggar) and Veteran's Day, and I'm on to my second one today. I thought it was a fitting project. I hope to have two more done by Thursday to drop off to the local yarn shop that ships them off to the troops.

Favorite things / What I'm wearing…

Just a smidgen shy of 24 weeks! Yay!

…my favorite black sweater, preggy jeans, Converse (shown below) and my chains (thank you, Barbara!).

Again from my Instagram (can ya tell I'm loving Instagram?) 

I'm noticing…

…that I seem much bigger than most other preggy mommas at 23 or 24 weeks. *sigh*

I'm hoping / praying for…

…good news at my next OB appt. this Thursday afternoon. We're scheduled to have another ultra-sound to check on the position of the placenta. Much depends on the results. My Jesus, I trust in Thee!

Around the house…

…still working on my master bedroom after being inspired by Auntie Leila's recent post. Not sure I really want to post before and after pics. The before was pretty bad. 

Plans for the week…

…taking oldest kids to their few outside classes, final gymnastics class for oldest son, tutoring, swim lessons for the 5 middle kids and OB appt. for me and the baby.

Picture thought I'm sharing…

…I came across this photo of my papa when looking through old photos on Veteran's Day. There are other much more formal photos of him while in the military, of course, but this one just cracked me up. One of those bitter sweet moments, you know? The kind that make you smile through your tears. My papa is the fabulously awesome one on the left. This photo really captures the goofy side of him. He was strict to be sure, but he was also funny, lovable and generous. He came to the United States in 1958 and entered the military not too long after (against his parents wishes, though my pépé served in the French army during WWII). He learned to speak English while in the army…yikes! I couldn't imagine. He loved this country and was so proud to have served in her military. I miss him SO much and wish that my children could have known him. 

God bless all of our military servicemen; past, present and future.

Wordless Wednesday (a day late)

{pretty, happy, funny, real}

Joining up with the lovely ladies at Like Mother, Like Daughter for this weeks phfr post. 

Pretty

We all thought my oldest daughter looked pretty as an Elf from LOTR.

Happy

We had a very happy crew head out for Trick-or-Treating last night. 

My oldest son was the only one to not dress up this year. I think he knew there would be plenty of candy to go around. He stayed home with me and handed out candy while Mark took the kids around the neighborhood. 

Funny

My 10 year old son dressed up as a skeletal clown. 

He wasn't sure what to be this year and kept changing his mind. As we dug through the mega box of accumulated costumes he found the clown suit my mother had made for me years ago. As my son was trying on the clown suit to see if it fit my husband pulled out the skeleton costume. We laughed at the idea of a skeleton clown and my son loved the idea. It turned out SO CREEPY!! :)

Real

(First I apologize for the poor photo quality. It was taken with my iPod Touch.)

Bright and early this morning the kids began the great candy trade. I did insist on them eating breakfast before they ate any of their candy. Gee, I'm so mean. ;)

Wishing you all a very happy All Saints Day today. May God bless your festivities!

All Holy Men and Women, 

Pray for us!!