A Not So Ordinary Moment

I was sitting in the old blue chair that I inherited after my Grandpa passed away. Maddie was drinking her bottle as I watched Noah and Alice tease each other by the stairs. Noah didn't want her to come downstairs so he was blocking her way. She thought it was a game and continued to go back and forth. Lilly was in the living room watching TV.

Suddenly,  there was a noise. The sound of a key in the lock. Everyone froze. Cocking their heads to be sure of the sound. Sure enough,  Daddy was home! Lilly cried, "Daddy!" Noah and Alice ran around the corner with cheers and clapping; Alice jumping up and down. All three kids were jabbering and talking and filling him in on their day the moment he walked in the door.

As I sat there feeding Maddie I could hear the excitement that happens every evening in our house when Daddy comes home from work. But what I noticed this time was that in addition to the kids being excited Shane was home, he was excited to see them too. He cheerfully hugged, praised, responded and encourage his little ones as they mauled him before he even got in the door. Never once did he say calm down, be quiet, or let me get in the door. He truly missed his kiddies and made sure they knew it.

I was overwhelmed with gratitude that this amazing man is mine. That he is such a wonderful father to the Littles that I love so much. That he takes those ordinary everyday moments and makes his kids feel special. Shane is such a blessing to me and I love him more than I could ever adequately explain.  I'm so very thankful to be married to him for eternity. 

Welcome Madeline Reese

Alice was 9 months old when I finally stopped nursing. And it would seem that my body, which use to have a hard time getting pregnant, took that as a sign that I needed another baby. 2 weeks later I found out that baby #4 was on the way.

I delayed telling anyone but Shane because Alice was still so little. So we waited a couple of months and shortly after her 1st birthday we made the announcement.

The pregnancy was a difficult one. My pain started coming back, my blood pressure spiked, I was constantly exhausted. But I managed. I started having SVT and had to wear a heart monitor for 30 days. Every time I took my heart rate it was 185! But it was normal sinus rhythm so the Drs weren't worries.

Shane and I were convinced we were having a boy. The pregnancy was so similar to how it was with Noah and we felt that the next girl would be the baby of the family not this one. But the ultrasound proved us wrong. We were so surprised that we could not come up with a name. Months and months we tried but nothing felt right.

We were nearing the end. I was 8 months pregnant, we had no name picked out, I was having non-stress tests two times a week (only because I couldn't fit the 3rd one my dr wanted into my schedule), and I got sick. Then my sister got married and it was a long exhausting (but beautiful and fun) day. Two days later my non-stress test showed I had no amniotic fluid. I was 37 weeks along and I really wanted to keep this baby in at least 2.5 more weeks. I told my Dr that I didn't want to deliver early because I didn't want a sick baby. He replied that a sick baby was better than a dead baby (he used better words) and convinced me to be induced early.

I went to labor and delivery and got checked in. The fellow wanted to give me a med to ripen my cervix then start the pitocin in a few hours. I wasn't having it. I knew it wasn't necessary.  So when I asked to do pitocin at the same time he just agreed to do that instead. He told me it would be several hours and I laughed. I know my body and how I respond to pitocin. I was judging about 3 hrs and I was right. About 3 hrs later I was ready. Again the student Dr/fellow/intern whatever said I probably wasn't ready yet. Luckily my amazing Dr was there because I rolled over and out she came.

Madeline Reese was born at 9:12pm. She was 5lbs 12 oz and 19 inches long. She was healthy and had fabulous apgar scores. But man was she tiny.

I know there is more to the story that I am forgetting. I should have written it before Maddie was 5 months old. The first few months were super hard. Maddie has really bad reflux and she cried and cried all the time. She couldn't be laid down because she would instantly start to choke and aspirate the spit up. But by about 8 weeks the meds were working better and she started sleeping. Now she is a complete angel. Never cries. Is happy being held or laying down. And she sleeps great. She still wakes up several times a night to eat but then goes right back to sleep.

She looks so much like Shane and even smells like him. I absolutely adore her. I can't get enough kisses and snuggles. I'm so glad she joined our family when she did.

Maddie vs Mastitis

When I have a baby I usually have them sleep in a bassinet next to my bed for about 6 weeks and then I move them to a crib in their own room. Maddie is 4 1/2 months old now and still sleeping next to my bed because her reflux has been so bad that many times during the night I've had to quickly pick her up to help keep her from aspirating and choking. The only problem is that I can hear every time she wakes up and in a rush to keep her from waking every one else I would feed her. She always went right back to sleep but this still meant that she was eating every three hours around the clock.

Lately she's been doing better and not choking as much so I've been contemplating moving her. What finally sealed the deal was she got a little cold and needed a humidifier. There is no way I could sleep with extra humidity in my room so I figured it was time to move her. Since Alice is still sleeping in the crib in what would be Maddie's room (that's a whole different story), I moved the bassinet to Alice's room next to the unused bed. I set up the humidifier and the baby monitor and we gave it a try.

She did great but started to stir around 10: 30. I should have let her settle herself but I was about to go to sleep and figured I would just feed her. She slept while eating and settled down quickly when I laid her down. It ended up being a good night for her because she didn't wake up again until 6: 40 which is close to her normal wake up time. I fed her and she went back to sleep and its now 9am and needs to wake up shortly to eat again. So even though I worried and had to check on her a lot, moving her was a good idea.

Too bad I didn't sleep well though. My breast is plugged (the result of not pumping enough) and it hurt all night long. I really want to pump until Maddie is a year to help keep her from getting sick but I'm finding it very difficult to fit in more than 2 or 3 pump sessions a day. Which is obviously not enough according to the awful pain I'm feeling right now. But I'm finishing up pump session #2 (I pumped in the middle of the night to help with the pain) so I'm already trending better for today. And now its time to wake Maddie.

Still Can't Do It

It's been too long.

I sat down determined to write a post as I've been unable to shake the desire to start documenting the life of my family again.

And yet....

I've started, erased, and started again about 5 times now. I have lots to share but I can't do it. I might need to switch to a private venue.

Crystal Be A Hero. Be An Organ Donor.

A Very Merry Un-Birthday

To Me!!

I was born at 7 minutes to 11 on Christmas morning. I swear I was. The fact that my most favorite treat ever is a coke Slurpee found only at 7-11 is not lost on me. I'm the oldest of 5 kids and was my parents joint Christmas gift on the first Christmas they were married.

When I turned one they realized how royally jack-up my birthday was bound to be as I got older and never truly got to have my own special day. So instead of celebrating my 1st birthday, they waited. Beginning that very first year, I celebrated my birthday on April 6th. In what can only be considered Divine Inspiration, my parents decided that since we celebrate Jesus' birth on Christmas that I could celebrate mine on what is truly his birthday, April 6th.

I LOVE it! I love that on my "real" birthday I get to be with my family and have yummy food and now that I'm older I get to watch my kids experience the "Christmas Magic". It's always a wonderful day. Then, a few months later, I get to have my own special day and do fun things all over again. It's a total win-win.

This is all I've known. I've never NOT celebrated my birthday on April 6th. To me, it's as much my birthday as the day I was born. So it's always really bugged me when my friends (or usually the guy I was dating) would say "I'm not celebrating your birthday because it's not really your birthday." Then Christmas time would come around and it was always "I'm not celebrating your birthday because you celebrate it in April." The meanies. Most of the time, though, I was spoiled on both my birthdays.

Since I never expected much for my birthday on Christmas, I was always so incredibly touched (beyond what words can even describe now) that my Grandma Brown would always give me a special birthday gift AND a Christmas gift in addition to whatever she gave me in April. It wasn't much, usually a book, but it told me that no matter what, she remembered me and I was important. (But that was a common thing when it came to my Grandma Brown. She always made you feel like her favorite.) My brother and sisters would also wake me up every Christmas morning by coming into my room and singing Happy Birthday to me. That was all the recognition my birthday ever got on Christmas but it was always enough.

At our family Christmas party, the year I turned 16, my parents brought out a decorated birthday cake for dessert. Everyone sang Happy Birthday to me and I was so surprised and touched that I cried.

Those things aside, if I didn't celebrate my birthday in April, I really wouldn't get to have a traditional birthday experience. So, especially as a kid, I've always loved celebrating my birthday at a different time. Growing up, it usually meant that I got to go shopping with my mom then we got to go out to dinner. When we all got older, we started gathering in the immediate family and all meeting up for our Birthday Dinner.

This year has been no different. Yesterday was April 6th and my birthday has been wonderful!

• First, Shane and I both took the week off from work. Not to celebrate my birthday but just to have a break. This alone was a gift. It's been so nice to slow down the pace and feel a bit rested and not so stressed out all the time. (Although, the thought of my inbox come Monday morning is starting to get to me. I'm going to pay for the PTO, I'm sure.)

• Second, Shane has gone out of his way to make me feel special. He brought me lunch, gave me red roses (I never get flowers.. ever), a coke Slurpee, and a Flip HD Video Camera! Uhm, hello. My name is SPOILED!

• Third, we got to go out to eat with my parents and my sisters which is always a good time.

• Fourth, Lilly gave me a very thoughtful gift. She knew I had lost my ring (my wedding ring replacement since the original doesn't fit) so she found one of her rings and put it in a box and wrapped it up and gave it to me. So sweet and thoughtful. I love that girl!

• Fifth, Shane is taking me out on a secret special date-night tomorrow. My parents offered to watch the kids (since they are the only ones I can leave Allie with at this age) so Shane is taking me out. BUT- I have no idea what we are doing. He won't tell me. Which is very different than in years past. I'm sure we'll do dinner and a movie but where we go will be a surprise. It's fun having something surprising to look forward to.

All-in-all... it has been a fabulous week. My family has made me feel special and loved. It was just what this tired, over-worked mommy's heart needed. So, I've gotta tell you... having two birthdays really is the only way to go. You might want to try it sometime.


Crystal
Be A Hero. Be An Organ Donor.