Time is passing quckly. The days go by so fast, already Clara Bea is 5 weeks old. I thought I would be so much further ahead and ready to take on the world again, but I'm not! I can't seem to get anything done before noon. I've never relied on other people's help this much in my entire life. Right now I feel like I will never be ready to take on our fall schedule with homeschooling, soccer practices, PE and zumba classes, let alone daily household chores.
I thought having child number four would be a breeze, especially with the older girls help. They are helpful especially when they will sit and hold her for 30 minutes while I simply take a shower. But my time is so divided right now. I am nursing so many times in the day, the baby wants to be held all the time, and the others require some of my attention, which they have unfortunately gone without lately. Anna has stepped up to breakfast and lunch duty. She has many times prepared cereal, sandwiches, or spaghettios for her and her sisters. I guess it will take some time to learn a new way of managing the household.
Today some of my girl friends had apparently sensed my stress. They purchased a baby bjorn for me to have. For the fifteen minutes that I used it this afternoon I already was able to accomplish more than I had the whole day before. Clara Bea likes to be with mommy and I guess feels comforted by the bouncing around as I walk from room to room. I think this will be my saving grace in the days to come.
Each mom talks about the transition from one child to two or from two children to three and so on - and which time seemed the most difficult. Well, this is definately my limit! I'm sure it has a lot to do with the fact that I am a bit of a control freak but four children to manage is going to be about all I can handle. Thank you Lord for knowing my capablities and for giving me the grace to handle it all. May I serve You in all that I do.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Friday, July 10, 2009
Moving Day!
We got the keys to the rental house yesterday. We went over to clean which ended up being a huge task. The house had been sitting vacant for some time so there were many cobwebs and dead bugs to vacuum up, not to mention general cleaning of the bathrooms, kitchen, windows, and hard wood floors. Without the help of some very dear friends I could never have gotten it done on my own.
The house seems huge compared to the little apartment we have been living in for the past year. The kids are so excited and were sad that we didn't sleep there last night. They even discovered a secret hide out place behind a full size mirror in the downstairs bathroom. There is a cutout in the wall and they have made it their clubhouse.
Today I continue to pack the apartment. I feel like things are moving in fast forward right now and I can't keep up. I am not quite as prepared for this move as I'd like to be. And when things are out of my control I tend to panic a bit. Like last night when I was up with Clara Bea for a 2a.m. feeding and then couldn't seem to go back to sleep.
I will post pics of the house soon.
The house seems huge compared to the little apartment we have been living in for the past year. The kids are so excited and were sad that we didn't sleep there last night. They even discovered a secret hide out place behind a full size mirror in the downstairs bathroom. There is a cutout in the wall and they have made it their clubhouse.
Today I continue to pack the apartment. I feel like things are moving in fast forward right now and I can't keep up. I am not quite as prepared for this move as I'd like to be. And when things are out of my control I tend to panic a bit. Like last night when I was up with Clara Bea for a 2a.m. feeding and then couldn't seem to go back to sleep.
I will post pics of the house soon.
Sunday, July 5, 2009
4th of July
We celebrated the 4th here two nights in a row. The first evening we met some friends out on the lawn of the YMCA field for a picnic with live music, activities, and a fireworks display. The weather was absolutely perfect, in fact I even got a little chilly when the sun went down.
The second evening we celebrated at a friends house with homemade strawberry icecream and our own NC state approved, Daddy managed, fun-filled, front yard fireworks show - sparklers and all. Today I am a bit exhausted and took almost a three hour nap. I may have overdone the festvities with a week old infant. Oh well, I can sleep this week.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Back to reality
We are home now, adjusting to life with four children. Another blessing - John only had a two day work week this week. He has been able to be at home with us making things a little easier. More evidence of the perfect timing God had for Clara Bea's arrival. Our church friends have set us up with meals coming to our home. My dear friend, who watched our other three children during our stay at the hospital, has outdone herself with gifts and a welcome home banner posted at our door when we arrived at the apartment. She has showered me with love and kindness beyond what I could ever have imagined. THANK YOU!
I am healing quickly and regaining my strength. Clara is nursing well and has already gained four ounces in the two days since we left the hospital. I am adjusting to the night time feedings and am able to at least take one nap during the day to catch up on my sleep. Things are going well.
Yesterday we were awoken by a phone call from my dad. He called to let us know that my granddad had passed away in the night. I was very saddened by the news, partly due to post partum baby blues and also just the same emotion one feels when losing a loved one. My first instinct was to figure out how to get to Illinois for the funeral. By examining the atlas and mapquest we realized it would be a 700 mile trip one way. This was a little too much to handle with a five day old baby. Flights are too expensive with too many stops and connections in between. My last alternative was to drive to Nashville and then ride the rest of the way with my dad. But still a 400 mile trip with a nursing infant was going to be too hard to do by myself. So with the encouragement from my dad, or should I say with strict orders from my dad I have decided not to go. I hate missing this one.
My grandpa Jones was probably my closest grandparent growing up. Even though we lived miles apart, when we were together there was always a close bond between us. I share many great memories of his visits to TN and our visits to IL, the many card games of ukure that were played, and his contagious laughter. I am pleased to know that he now lives in heaven with no more pain here on earth. This day he has waited for for so long.
I am healing quickly and regaining my strength. Clara is nursing well and has already gained four ounces in the two days since we left the hospital. I am adjusting to the night time feedings and am able to at least take one nap during the day to catch up on my sleep. Things are going well.
Yesterday we were awoken by a phone call from my dad. He called to let us know that my granddad had passed away in the night. I was very saddened by the news, partly due to post partum baby blues and also just the same emotion one feels when losing a loved one. My first instinct was to figure out how to get to Illinois for the funeral. By examining the atlas and mapquest we realized it would be a 700 mile trip one way. This was a little too much to handle with a five day old baby. Flights are too expensive with too many stops and connections in between. My last alternative was to drive to Nashville and then ride the rest of the way with my dad. But still a 400 mile trip with a nursing infant was going to be too hard to do by myself. So with the encouragement from my dad, or should I say with strict orders from my dad I have decided not to go. I hate missing this one.
My grandpa Jones was probably my closest grandparent growing up. Even though we lived miles apart, when we were together there was always a close bond between us. I share many great memories of his visits to TN and our visits to IL, the many card games of ukure that were played, and his contagious laughter. I am pleased to know that he now lives in heaven with no more pain here on earth. This day he has waited for for so long.
Shortly after delivery
A couple of hours after delivering Clara Bea and the epideral had worn off I began feeling the same severe pain that brought me to tears in my chest and all the way around into my back. The doctor ran some lab tests on my blood. They treated me with pain meds and malox. By late in the evening the Dr. determined that I had symptoms of preclampsia. Usually the only cure for this is delivery. But that had already happened. So he put a magnesium drip into my iv which made me very sleepy, somewhat like a muscle relaxer would do. Nurses and doctors kept asking me if I had heaaches or blurred vision. Apparently the danger was that I could have a seizure or bleeding on the brain or the liver. My blood was drawn about every four hours to check my blood platlet count. It slowly dropped for the next 24 hours.
The good news? Well, I have looked for all the little positives in what was going on. For one I was catherized for the night - so I didn't have to get up to go to the bathroom every couple of hours - you women know what I'm talking about. I was able to lay in bed with Clara and nurse her as often as she wanted which in the long run made my milk come in much quicker this time. They gave me great drugs, so I felt a little drunk most of the time I had visitors. This made me relax. And I got an extra nights stay at the hospital, giving me a little more alone time with Clara.
Thanks to all who prayed for my recovery. I know my mom was very worried especially since she was miles away. It was a comfort to know many of you were thinking about me.
The good news? Well, I have looked for all the little positives in what was going on. For one I was catherized for the night - so I didn't have to get up to go to the bathroom every couple of hours - you women know what I'm talking about. I was able to lay in bed with Clara and nurse her as often as she wanted which in the long run made my milk come in much quicker this time. They gave me great drugs, so I felt a little drunk most of the time I had visitors. This made me relax. And I got an extra nights stay at the hospital, giving me a little more alone time with Clara.
Thanks to all who prayed for my recovery. I know my mom was very worried especially since she was miles away. It was a comfort to know many of you were thinking about me.
Contractions or not contractions
We did indeed go into labor that Thursday evening. I was having some contractions throughout the week but mostly a pain in my upper right rib cage area that I was unfamiliar with. I couldn't sleep yet again for the thrid night in a row. I decided to get up and try to time the contractions. The pain never seemed to go away but I could calulate some contractions happening. I tried twice to lay back down but was unsuccessful. I finally got in the shower, thinking it might relax me. But when I got out I decided to wake John.
At 4 a.m. we got the kids up, called our friends, and told them we were on our way to the hospital. I was only dialated to 2cm when I arrived at the hospital. I was really afraid they would send me back home. I got in the jacuzzi tub thinking it might help but it only relaxed me enough to stop my contractions and even took away the upper right quadrant pain I was having. The doctor came in to check me one more time and praise God I had gone to 3, maybe 4cm and I was staying!
I got an epideral, the Doc broke my water, and then the waiting began. I stalled out and they added some potosin to my iv. In a matter of five minutes I went from a 5 to a 10 and it was time to push.
Clara Beatrice Shand came into this world at 1:36 p.m. on Friday afternoon, June 26th. She weighed 6 lbs and measured 18 inches long. She immediately knew how to nurse and latched on well. My two dear friends Kassandra and Kristen were there to witness her birth. Soon after her sisters joined us in the room. They were very excited to finally meet their baby sister.
At 4 a.m. we got the kids up, called our friends, and told them we were on our way to the hospital. I was only dialated to 2cm when I arrived at the hospital. I was really afraid they would send me back home. I got in the jacuzzi tub thinking it might help but it only relaxed me enough to stop my contractions and even took away the upper right quadrant pain I was having. The doctor came in to check me one more time and praise God I had gone to 3, maybe 4cm and I was staying!
I got an epideral, the Doc broke my water, and then the waiting began. I stalled out and they added some potosin to my iv. In a matter of five minutes I went from a 5 to a 10 and it was time to push.
Clara Beatrice Shand came into this world at 1:36 p.m. on Friday afternoon, June 26th. She weighed 6 lbs and measured 18 inches long. She immediately knew how to nurse and latched on well. My two dear friends Kassandra and Kristen were there to witness her birth. Soon after her sisters joined us in the room. They were very excited to finally meet their baby sister.
updates
I have many things to update you about so I decided to do them as individual posts, like chapters in a book. So I will start chronologically with the events of the day for last Thursday.
We had spent the week swimming each day, taking advantage of the pool here at the apartment complex. Each day was spent with a different group of friends, so we had kept pretty busy. We were also in the process of submitting a rental application for a house here in Statesville that we looked at and really liked.
I decided to be up front about our credit issues with the property management agency. We had since realized that this was the reason for our last denial. So I wrote a letter that we submitted with the application, just stating our intent to pay the rent on time and that we were basically a nice family that would take care of the property well. I had even considered puting a picture with it but then thought that might be a little much.
Well, John turned it in on Thursday morning and he was called back within an hour. They called to ask us when we wanted to sign the lease! Praise God! He told me the news early afternoon. We had friends here at the time that had come over to swim. She commented that wouldn't it be great if we got a house and went into labor on the same day. Little did she know...
Along with each victory, there have been set backs. When we returned from the agency after signing the new lease, we decided to stop by the apartment office to notify them of our move out date. When John came walking back to the van I could tell he was frustrated. "What's wrong now?" I asked. The apartment complex has us signed to a lease agreement through the end of August. Apparently when John moved into the apartment it wasn't available until the 5th of June, this making it not a full month, so the 14 month agreement wouldn't end until August.
The property management office has been so kind and very nice in the whole process that we really didn't want to change anything to jeopardize that situation. We are trying to figure out how we will yet again be able to financially manage double months rent for July and August. I give it to you God, trusting that you will provide for us.
One cool little thing that happened yesterday. I got our monthly utility bill in the mail. We have no payment for this month and another $100 credit for next month as well. John had to put down a deposit last summer and we had totally forgotten about it. See the ways in which God provides!
We had spent the week swimming each day, taking advantage of the pool here at the apartment complex. Each day was spent with a different group of friends, so we had kept pretty busy. We were also in the process of submitting a rental application for a house here in Statesville that we looked at and really liked.
I decided to be up front about our credit issues with the property management agency. We had since realized that this was the reason for our last denial. So I wrote a letter that we submitted with the application, just stating our intent to pay the rent on time and that we were basically a nice family that would take care of the property well. I had even considered puting a picture with it but then thought that might be a little much.
Well, John turned it in on Thursday morning and he was called back within an hour. They called to ask us when we wanted to sign the lease! Praise God! He told me the news early afternoon. We had friends here at the time that had come over to swim. She commented that wouldn't it be great if we got a house and went into labor on the same day. Little did she know...
Along with each victory, there have been set backs. When we returned from the agency after signing the new lease, we decided to stop by the apartment office to notify them of our move out date. When John came walking back to the van I could tell he was frustrated. "What's wrong now?" I asked. The apartment complex has us signed to a lease agreement through the end of August. Apparently when John moved into the apartment it wasn't available until the 5th of June, this making it not a full month, so the 14 month agreement wouldn't end until August.
The property management office has been so kind and very nice in the whole process that we really didn't want to change anything to jeopardize that situation. We are trying to figure out how we will yet again be able to financially manage double months rent for July and August. I give it to you God, trusting that you will provide for us.
One cool little thing that happened yesterday. I got our monthly utility bill in the mail. We have no payment for this month and another $100 credit for next month as well. John had to put down a deposit last summer and we had totally forgotten about it. See the ways in which God provides!
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