Friday Updates

Our new pet, Willow is doing great. She has spunk and energy. I like that about a pet. Taking care of people and animals makes me happy. I'm sure that is why I went into the nursing field. Now I take care of kids and animals all day. My husband said we should get our own TLC program: Chuck and Kelly plus Eight (2 kids and 6 pets.)

I'm not sure if my cat wants to be friends or have Willow for lunch? We are being very careful just incase.

Yesterday, I almost drove off of the road trying to swirve and miss a squirrel. It ran right out in front of me. The roads were really snowy and slushy and I slid onto the shoulder of the road and almost spun out. Hope the squirrel appreciates me.

I think it is funny, I'm such a HUGE pet lover yet I'm married to this:

This is my husband and son. We went to Wyoming (where I'm from) for Thanksgiving and went along with my brother in law to watch him hunt for Elk.

If you can't beat em' join em'

I went along too, because I LOVE the outdoors, love the mountains, and love hiking. We saw A LOT of Elk, but couldn't ever get close enough for a shot. (Oh darn.) If they did, I would have just put my fingers in my ears -done the "La La La La...I can't hear you shooting an animal" thing and closed my eyes.

I LOVED IT so much. I love trying to find them in such a wide open space. Looking for tracks. Looking for them through binoculars. I felt like James Bond. Then we would see some from 300 yards away and sneak sneak sneak to where they were. It was so much fun and so EXHAUSTING. We hiked up some big mountains. The Elk totally had the advantage.

They are huge and a beautiful part of God's creation.

Happy Friday and spay or neuter your pet! :)

Why Volunteering is Bad!

My daughter, Brooklyn and I volunteer each week at the Humane Society. We are HUGE pet lovers. We really enjoy doing this together. We are part of the TLC team there, and we provide lots of love and attention to all of the pets. We take the dogs outside to sniff and on a little walk. We play with the little kittens. We play with the pups. It is so much fun.





It is so heartwarming to go there. The animals are SO HAPPY to see people. They wag their tails, they jump up and down, and when we go into their kennels, they climb all over us and try to get their whole bodies onto our laps. They have so much love and they just want love in return.





Well...now to why volunteering is bad.





MEET MY NEW PET!
I'm a sucker.

This is Willow. She is only 6 weeks old and was born at the H. Society. Her mom is still there. Brooklyn and I totally fell in love with her. She loves to snuggle. She has been handled a lot so she really enjoys being held. We already have 4 cats and a bird. Oh ...what is just one more pet?

My husband totally approved the purchase. Bless his heart! He understands me and my sickness with animals. Brooklyn and I totally high fived as we drove home with Willow, our new pet.

She completes me. (Until the next time I go volunteer and find another pet I MUST HAVE)

The Final Chapter-The Birth Story

Hello and welcome to the final chapter of A Birth Story.

Sorry to have kept you on the edge of your seat (or not.)

I left off at going into labor on July 3. Imagine breathing, epidurals, pain, and a long night, and that gets us to July 4.

Because baby A (my daughter) was positioned correctly in the birth canal (that being head down) I was able to have a natural delivery. Baby B (my son) was breech (is that how you spell that?) but they said not to worry, they could "turn him" in utero. OUCH...but okay, you are the physician. Do what you gotta do!

I gave birth to my daughter first, and she was just so CUTE! I had one second to peek at her, and had to move on to having baby two. Baby boy was breech still so they turned him with a mighty force and it HURT! They did a quick ultrasound to make sure he was in the proper position and then turned to put on new sterile gloves (thanks) and in that short moment of time, he flipped to breech again and came flying out FEET FIRST. He got stuck with his shoulders above his head IN MY BIRTH CANAL (ouch). The whole situation became a huge emergency. They shoved my poor husband out the door, the room became a frenzy of rushing and medical terminology you never want to hear. Being a nurse, I understood every single word they were saying...."call the code team" " call the NICU" I saw the Dr.'s faces and I just knew it was a serious moment. The last thing I remember was calling out to Jesus to save my baby.

I woke up a few hours later in recovery and saw all of my family all around me. I wondered why they would let so many people in my recovery room, and then instantly thought my baby boy had died. I found out that he was alive and doing okay. ALL PRAISE TO GOD.

He had gotten stuck in a dangerous breech position, this was the first time my OB Dr. had delivered a baby in that particular breech position. Her job was to hold the umbilical cord so it would not prolapse and cause brain damage. Another Dr. rushed in and had to break my baby's arm to get him out. He had an apgar score of 2 and had to be intubated at delivery. Meanwhile, I had a HUGE grapefruit size hematoma from all of the trauma. OUCH again. We all stayed in the hospital 5 days. My son was in the NICU the whole time, but my daughter was in the regular nursery and we got to spend a lot of time with her in my room. I went up to see my baby boy as much as I could (but had to go via wheel chair because I could not walk due to the hematoma.)

The twins weights were 6#9 oz (boy) 5#9oz girl- HELLO that is more than12 pounds of baby in there!

I'm thankful every day that God spared my son and that he is now ten years old. Our kids are the best gift God has given us, beyond His salvation.

Birth Story Part 2

Greetings!
Sorry I've kept all two of you waiting for part two. :)

As I sit by the fireplace watching the snow fall down, I thought now would be a good time to blog about part two.

So....I last left off with finding out we were having TWINS. Today as I was going into the Y to exercise, a cute mom was going in too, and she was with her cute little twin daughters, about 2 years old, both wearing little pink coats. I held the door for her and she said, "Thank you so much no one does that anymore." I told her I had twins too, so I remember how I needed an extra hand from time to time. We had a quick chat about the blessings of twins, and she was encouraged that I made it through the hard years of having little tots. :)

Okay..so back to the story. So..I left off being in SHOCK that I was FINALLY pregnant, after all that waiting, praying, and pleading for a baby. We had an ultrasound appointment within a week after I found out I was pregnant. At this time, I just assumed there was just one baby.

Chuck (my husband) and I went to the appointment, and the whole way I prayed that the baby would be okay. I was only about 5 weeks pregnant. We got there, got all set up for the ultrasound and the Dr. came in. He started the ultrasound and right away said, "Oh there are two!" I didn't get it...I said, "Two what?" He replied with a laugh, "Two babies silly."

WHAT? I was in total shock......you would think after having multiple fertility treatments, I'd possibly get pregnant with more than one baby, but the thought JUST NEVER held in my mind..I just begged and prayed for one baby, never expecting God to bless us with TWO. I looked at Chuck and he had a huge smile on his face, but seemed a bit shocked too. I just couldn't believe it.

There they were...two perfect little sacs of peanut looking babies.....God's gift to us!

I was so happy to call my sister and tell her "I'M HAVING TWINS!" What fun that was, to tell people.

The Dr. wanted us back in one week to re-check the babies. He told us that usually one of the twins won't make it past this next week. I was DEVASTATED to hear that. Once I KNEW there were two babies, I WANTED THEM BOTH so badly. I prayed every single day for God to protect them and save them.

The next week we went back. I was so scared to hear bad news. I was already in love with both of my babies and didn't want to lose either one or both.

The Dr. started the ultrasound again, and this time said, "Oh there are now three" WHAT???? Every time I go, he keeps adding a baby.

So..now I'm pregnant with THREE? I'm scared to go back the next time, and have four, five, when will it end?

I was so grateful my twins were okay, and now I had three....but, the next time we checked the ultrasound, the third baby had not made it. I was so sad, but so thankful the twins were still there. I trusted God with his sovereign control over our lives, and just felt thankful to be given the blessing of twins.

To this day, I still think about that third baby. Wondering what it would have been- a boy or girl. Wondering about what that baby might have looked like and how our lives would be, with triplets. However, I refuse to let sadness overtake me, when I've been so blessed with the twins we got. I am excited to maybe one day, see that baby in heaven.

Well, now our adventure started with being pregnant with twins. I felt great until 7 weeks, and then the throwing up started...but through it all, I would thank God every single day, for the gift of being pregnant. I would throw up constantly and then in the next breath thank God for the gifts.

One time I had to pull the car over on my way to work at the hospital to throw up. I was late to work because I was throwing up. I walked into work looking quite green. I had to run from patient's rooms to go throw up quite often. :) It was a rough time, but I felt so thankful. I really think the years of infertility gave me this outlook, and I'm thankful in hindsight for it.

I started reading the popular book, What to Expect When You are Expecting. Each week it would show the growth and development of the babies. I would pray for each of those developing organs each week. I just felt a huge calling to pray each day and each week for our growing babies.

At 20 weeks, I had to have stitches placed in my cervix. This was preventative so I wouldn't miscarry. My cervix was weak due to the fertility medications and after my Dr. consulted with his fellow Dr.'s they decided this was the best plan for the health of our babies. I was so thankful, once again, to God. When the Dr. went in to do the stitches (an outpatient surgical procedure) I was already dilated to 2 or 3 cm...and any more and I would have miscarried the babies. There would have been nothing they could have done. Any more dilated and they wouldn't have been able to put the stitch in. They caught things in JUST THE RIGHT TIME. I was so thankful! Yet again, God had proven faithful to us.

From here, I had an awesome pregnancy. I felt great. I worked until I was 30 weeks. I was measuring big (normal for twins) ..so at 30 weeks I measured more like 35...I just could not work the long 12 hour nights anymore. Being on my feet all that time was just not good for me or the babies. I started getting getting early contractions and had to go to the ER a few times. Finally, I just had to stop work. I was never on bed rest. I was pretty active at home (moving into our new house just 6 weeks before the babies were born.) I'm kind of like that in life.....I don't sit down for long. Even being huge pregnant with twins, didn't keep me down, sometimes to the dismay of my Dr.'s

At 34 weeks the Dr.'s took the stitches out of my cervix and figured they would see me by the end of the day for delivery. I didn't go into labor until 37 weeks (term for twins.) That is me, always a rebel.

On July 3, 1998 I went into labor and on July 4th delivered twins. The delivery story is QUITE A STORY - I'll tell that next time......my baby boy almost died, and yet again God was faithful to us and our babies. Stay tuned for the final installment of A BIRTH STORY PART 3.

Glory to God. He is faithful. Keep praying for what you desire in your life.....God hears you and will answer in His perfect time.

Blog Pause

I interrupt this blog, to just say how annoyed and embarrassed I am for the shallow-ness of some in America......I was at the Y today-sweating on the Elliptical Machine, while watching CNN.....you know what seems to be the important question of the day?

What Michelle Obama's style will be while in the White House. What she will wear, what designer she will choose.

Seriously?

Really?

While people are losing jobs, struggling, without health care, dealing with disease, while Cancer is still without a cure, while we are at war in Iraq?


Luke 6:45 For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.

Next up; My Birth Story Part Two! :)

Carry On.........

My Birth Story

Halloween is always special to me. This is the day I GOT PREGNANT!

We had been dealing with infertility for 4 long years. It was a very painful time in my life. I wanted a baby so badly! We had gone through many tests, many treatments and a failed in-vitro. I was personally devastated, when the in-vitro didn't work. I was DONE and didn't want to try anything more. I was at a place, where I thought I'd never have a baby, so I gave up. Thankfully, my husband talked me into one more try. It took me a few months to agree. I finally gave in. I had a very negative attitude during all of the tests and treatments leading up to our final try of having a baby. This was a defense mechanism for sure. I didn't want to go through the pain of getting my hopes up only to be devastated again. We didn't tell ANYONE we were attempting one final try. The first in-vitro attempt, we told EVERYONE, and it was almost more painful to have to tell everyone who loved us and was praying for us, that it didn't work.

So, on Halloween day, 1997 we had our final shot. We both knew if this didn't work, we would be done. Financially and emotionally, we had to be done.

I left it all in God's hands, and I really did feel peace. I had come to terms with the fact that maybe a baby, was not in our future, for a reason. I trusted God and told Him I would praise Him no matter what. I think that was the KEY! Up until that point, I begged, worried, cried, and refused to totally give it all over to God. I was finally at a point, where I knew this was it, and God knew what was best for us.

Two weeks later, it was a Friday-opening day for hunting season. I was working as an RN at the hospital and had to work the whole weekend. We had a Dr.'s appointment that Friday. My husband said he would not go up to his sister's house for opening hunting season that weekend so he could go to the Dr.'s appointment with me. But, I told him "Why bother- I won't be pregnant anyway, and I have to work all weekend, so just go and have fun." I went to the Dr.'s appointment alone, KNOWING I was not pregnant. I had started to feel period type cramps a few days before, signaling to me that my period was coming. This was a sign I knew too well, after all those years of infertility. I knew I wasn't pregnant.

The Dr. wanted me to go for a blood test to see if I was pregnant. He said he needed to know, so I could go off of the Progesterone I was on. He told me to call the lab later, after 5 p.m. for the results to see if I was pregnant. All along, I had a bad and negative attitude. KNOWING I wasn't pregnant. I almost didn't even bother to go to the lab....why bother! I went anyway.

I had to be to work at 7 p.m. The old me, the anxious me, would have called the lab at 5 sharp to get my lab results. But this new me, didn't bother....I didn't call until almost 9 p.m. that night. I was sitting at the nurse's station and decided I might as well call to get the negative results, so I could move on with life.

I called....waited.....the lab lady on the phone said, "You are pregnant". WHAT? ARE YOU KIDDING ME? I was in SHOCK! I made her repeat it...then I hung up and called back (and got someone different) and got the same results...I'M PREGNANT! I'm sitting at the nurses station....in shock.....with my jaw open. I finally jumped up from my chair and ran to my friend and fellow nurse and jumped on her, and screamed "I'm pregnant" WOW.

I called my husband up at his sister's house....he was asleep. (Hunters go to sleep early, so they can get up at the crack o' dawn to hunt) and I told him WE ARE PREGNANT! He was so happy but said he knew all along it would work this time. (He is so positive.)

Here I am...the happiest day of my entire life...and I'm at WORK ..for the whole weekend....working 7 p.m.-7 a.m. for 3 shifts in a row....with my husband out of town all weekend...but I still celebrated and thanked God for an amazing gift.

Two weeks later..we had an ultrasound..and found out we were having TWINS!

More of the story later.

Blogging Rambles

Well, just as I predicted, I would have a hard time getting over to the blog to update. (I'm really not sure who I'm updating, because there are only 3 readers.) :)

Homeschooling is an awesome gift, however, wow....it takes diligence and work! This is our 6th year, and it is going really well. I have to really focus on keep our mornings open for SCHOOL ONLY...or we get carried away with other things, and don't do the job we should with our school. I don't answer the phone in the mornings, which helps, and I try and sit near my kids so I'm available to help them. In the past, I would find myself doing jobs around the house and then getting frustrated when they yelled out, "Mom I need help". I need the mornings to be all about them and school, and if I get chores around the house done, great, if not....they are my priority.

Trying to fit exercise in every week is a challenge. I make a point to get up and get my workout clothes on, so I'm ready to run out the door the minute we are done with school (at 1 ish)....then I'm home by 2:30 and hop in the shower...but by then it is 3:30 or so, and the day is 1/2 over. My husband comes home at 5:30 and we eat dinner. He works with the kids on whatever they missed on math during their lesson in the a.m. and then we read or play a game, and they are off to bed. The day goes SO FAST!

Tonight my daughter starts basketball practice, so we add that into our already FULL and busy schedule. But, she really really wanted to play, so I'm happy to cram it in. Tonight, after basketball I have to drop the kids off at our neighbor's church, where they will attend a Harvest party....whew!

I guess this is the season of life we are in.....busy and full lives. It is all good. I'm happy we have such great things to do, and happy I have good energy to do them all. If I didn't exercise, I'd be a slug and have no energy to keep up with my kids and our busy lives.

Finally.......I'm really enjoying BSF this year. BSF is Bible Study Fellowship. We have been a part of this for 9 years. I've been teaching the children in the children's program for 3 years. This year we are studying the life of Moses. I have 16 little 1st and 2nd graders in my BSF class this year. I adore them all. They are so excited to learn! My kids have been in BSF since they were 2 years old (they are 10 now.) I'm so very thankful for all they learn each week. We study the Bible together, and this year they are able to work on their homework on their own. It is teaching them to have a daily time in God's Word. I love that.

So, those are my rambles. Is anyone out there........reading my rambles?
Happy Fall!

Running like the wind.

Lately I've felt like I've been running like the wind in life. There is always so much to do. I'm a perfectionist, so I always struggle with needing everything to be in its place, having a clean house, being caught up with laundry, serving healthy meals to my family, exercising, and on and on it goes. I place impossible standards on myself, and it drives me nuts. At least I'm aware of it, right?

I'm such a freak that I'm already buying Christmas gifts. I just hate for Christmas to sneak up on me, and for me to rush rush rush through the season and not be able to enjoy it and celebrate the reason we celebrate. We take 2-3 weeks off from our homeschooling in December, so I don't want to be out shopping with all the crazy people and crowds. I'd rather be at home, with a fire in the fireplace, reading to the kids.

It is hard to balance life and be a good wife, mother, sister, friend, daughter in-law, servant of the Most High God, and on and on the list goes.

I want to make the most of my days, and use my time wisely. Sometimes I just want to STOP being productive and just BE STILL and relax.

I'm a work in progress! I'm trying to be aware and intentional with all I do. Cutting out things that don't have eternal purpose.

Sin

Church was so good today. Our pastor taught about the four words for sin that are used in the Bible.

1. To miss the mark. There is a target of righteousness, and no matter how hard we try, we miss every single time. (This particular Greek word for sin is used 174 times in the Bible.)

Romans 3:23 For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

2. Without righteousness- to act unjustly, to harm others. This Greek version is used 27 times in the Bible). It is a legal word, meaning acknowledging or declaring someone is guilty.

2 Corinthians 7:2

3. To slip and fall- accidental sin, not thinking about it, but we still do it. (Used 21 times in the Bible)

Matt 6:14 -15

4. To cross the line- transgressors, law breakers, INTENTIONALLY crossing the line even though we know it is wrong.

James 2:9-10.

Finally, something our Pastor said today, REALLY struck me......Hell is where all of your FILTH is exposed. There is no hiding it, no running from it, everyone will see it....

I'm so glad I'm not going there! I'm so thankful I recognize my sinfulness- all the different ways. All of my righteous acts are filthy rags to God, but he can make them right.

Do you call your sin what it is, SIN, or do you justify it, hide it, or rationalize it? I'm trying to be more aware of mine daily and keep a short account with God.

Blessings!

Treasuring God's Word.

Sometimes it feels as if there is a storm going on all around us.

Gas prices, bailouts, divorce, cancer scares, sickness, death, pain, financial difficulty, and on and on it goes.......

I'm so thankful for the foundation of God's Word that is trustworthy in all circumstances.

Job 23:10
But He knows the way I take; when He has tested me, I will come forth as gold. My feet have closely followed His steps; I have kept to His way without turning aside. I have not departed from the commands of His lips; I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my daily bread.

Don't panic, pray! Stay in God's Word, believe what He says. Don't fear what everyone else fears, be still and know that He is God!

I completed a 1/2 marathon!

Today was a GREAT day for me. A goal of mine was to complete a 1/2 marathon.

Today I DID IT!

My cute friend Renee and I walked and ran it. We mostly walked!

Our goal was to finish in 3 hours 15 min. Which would be a 15 minute mile pace.

BUT- we finished in 3 hours 19 seconds, which amazed us both. That is a 13.46 mile pace! YAY!

It was a great experience, even though my right hip is SCREAMING out in pain and I have a big fat blister.

I'm pretty sure I won't win any "pretty feet" awards in the near future either. My feet HURT right now.

Here is Renee at 5! We were feeling GREAT here. We had to wait until all the hard core-serious 1/2 marathon people passed so we could be geeks and take pictures of ourselves! :)

Here we are at the finish. Hot, sweaty and tired, but feeling VICTORY!

The Quest for Better Health

I'm on a quest for better health.

I've slowly been making changes in our diet and lifestyle.

I am over 40 now you know. It is TIME!

Whole Wheat bread and flour
Healthy Peanut Butter (good bye creamy, tasty high fructose corn syrup Skippy)
Flax Seed
Purchasing better quality vitamins
Drinking More water
100% Juices (in moderation)
Homemade oatmeal for breakfast with sliced almonds
More exercise (I've kept an exercise log since Feb. and I've personally logged 220 miles of walking.)

I've started seeing a Dr. that is wise in the area of health: I just did a saliva test to check my hormone levels. I had 16 tubes of blood taken to test for everything from Thyroid health, Adrenal health to Cardiac health.

We have gotten rid of all the bad plastics in our house. I tossed out my favorite Nike water bottle!

Started using Organic foods as much as possible.

I'm a label reader. Virgin Olive Oil user, vegetable growing woman now!

My beautiful sister just gave me a NutriMill for a surprise gift. Now I can mill my OWN FLOUR! (Okay, it might help if I could find the wheat berries to actually mill. I'm learning all about this now.)

When you mill your own whole wheat, all the great nutrients are left in, so it is very healthy!

However......I'm a work in progress......I have a vice I can't let go of:

No ones perfect!

My first blog post

Well, I fell for peer pressure. Here I am BLOGGING!
I've enjoyed reading blogs for a year or so. I've never wanted to start a blog, because I did not want to spend all the time it takes to keep one up. But, here I am anyway.

Who knows what I'll write about...I certainly have plenty of every day life stories.

More importantly-who knows who will read my blog. It might just be ME!

Things about me:
Yesterday was my 15th anniversary. :)

I have 10 year old twins, a boy and girl.

We have homeschooled since Kindergarten-this is our 6th year, we love it!

I am walking a 1/2 marathon on Sunday. This has been a goal of mine for a long time. I figured GO FOR IT. Now or never! My friend Renee and I are doing it together.

I love Bible study! I love to read, I love animals. I'm always trying to rescue an animal. Today it was a moth with a broken wing.

We have four cats and a bird.

There is that exciting enough to keep people coming back for more?

Stay tuned!