Jul. 31, 2008 - The Weight Loss Reveal
I know, I know who talks about their weight, much less shares pictures. Well, I don't care, I am too excited and I want to share.
May 2007, I had a beautiful baby girl,Rachel, and she weighed a whopping 5 pounds 7 ounces. Considering my largest baby was 9 lbs 3 oz she was so tiny to us. The problem with her weight was that my weight gain of 45 lbs looked terrible. If she had been at least 10 pounds I could have said that at least 25% of my weight had been her. Not so for me this time!
So any way, I have lost all 45 pounds! It took me 13 months and now at almost 15 months it is still off. I hope to lose 5-10 more pounds after she is done nursing. I share all this to give someone else hope if they have gained an absurd amount of baby weight.
My tips are these:
- drink lots of water
- eat as many fresh fruits and veggies as you can
- stay out of fast food
restaurantsbuildings (can you really call them a restaurant?) - Always eat breakfast, I eat either steel cut oats or shredded wheat cereal
- don't deny yourself the sweets you want, just eat a much smaller portion
- park further out in the parking lots as you go shopping ( for those of you who know me in real life it really is because of weight loss not because I can't park my huge van
) - and don't forget to drink more water!
Jun. 26, 2008 - Our vasectomy reversal story
Let me begin our story by making it clear that I believe God has a plan for each and every one of us. This is our story, so please don't take offense if you choose to live your life differently.
The best place to start is after Sam's birth. He was our second son and a sweet amazing little boy. When he was a little over a year old we began to "try" for another. I use that term loosely because at the time we really believed that if we desired anther child, then God would grant our prayer. We were so foolish to think that we had much control over another conception. We rightfully believe now that God is the creator and the one who opens and closes my womb.
So we "tried" for 7 months and could not believe that I wasn't conceiving since our first two boys were conceived almost instantly it seemed. At this point I stopped praying for a girl only and praye d instead for a healthy child. We did conceive and we were so excited. I felt terrible, like many women do, and threw up several times a day every day. Once the first trimester was over, I began to feel better and we began to househunt. The day we found out Katie was a girl was also the day we found our house! It was a joyous day on so many levels.
A month later we moved in and spent the first few days unpacking and setting up the kitchen. Good thing we did because on the 7th day in our new home I fell down the stairs and ended up going into preterm labor at 24 weeks. I spent the next 12 weeks on the couch only getting up to eat or relieve myself. I didn't drive, go grocery shopping, or even to church. Any movement, walking etc, would start contractions that would quickly become regular and increase in intensity.
Katie ended up being born at 39 weeks and weighed in at 9 lbs 2 oz! She was a great baby. I was then at home full time with a 3 year old, a 2 year old and a newborn. I had lost so much muscle tone from laying down for 3 months and I had no energy. I was drowning and didn't even know it. I wish now that I had asked for help. I kept trying to be supermom and was constantly disappointed in myself. The feeling of being so overwhelmed was terrifying. I dreaded going to bed at night because I would have to face my day all over again. Now remember this was a wanted child and we loved our kids but it was really hard.
I was used to handling my mothering just fine and suddenly I couldn't do it all by myself. I truly believed it would always be that hard and convinced myself that I was not cut out for being a mother of more than three kids. I wish I had known that it was a temporary time in my life and yes, it would be over before I knew it.
When Katie was 6 months old we made the decision permanent and John had a vasectomy. Now those of you who are parents, you know that when you start to get some sleep and everyone has some time to adjust to a new baby in the house, it is easier to think clearly.
So as you can guess it only took me a few months more to realize that horror of what we had done. At first I was stricken because I really wanted more children but as time went on I was convicted that I had messed up God's plan for our lives. We fixed something on John that wasn't even broken! I struggled with my thoughts and finally prayed and asked God to forgive me of my sin. I knew in my heart that we had not given God control over this aspect of our lives and that we needed to make ammends if at all possible.
About 6 months after the surgery, I approached John with a request. I wanted him to consider reversing the vasectomy. I hadn't told him about my change of heart or the hours of research I had done on vasectomy reversals until now. One book that really helped firm up what we believed, A Full Quiver by Rick and Jan Hess. John had his own revelation as well about our sin.
We had no savings of the caliber it took to pay for a reversal but we went ahead and made the appointment for September 2004, 16 months after the original surgery. The surgery was deemed a success from an anatomy point of view but only time would tell if we would be blessed again. God is so good, let me tell you, we conceived 6 weeks after the surgery! We made records with the doctor's office! They couldn't believe it! It is unheard of to concieve in under a year much less in 6 weeks. Were we so humbled to have been blessed. We had come to a point in our lives that the surgery was really an act of obedience to God and if He chose to bless us so be it. We had to reverse the damage that had been done to John and put ourselves back in line with God as our authority.
Also, the Lord was so gracious to us and John was able to secure a new job and we had the whole surgery and birth paid for within the year of the surgery. All $10,000 of it. I know it is impolite to state actual figures but I want you to know that this was not a simple decision with out sacrifice on our part.
Since that reversal in September 2004 we have had two little girls who are the light of our lives. I can't imagine life without them. God has used them to be a blessing to others and to our family. They are a walking testimony of God's forgiveness and love.
We now live our lives free of the worry of when to have children or when to prevent. We choose to accept what God has in store for us. We may never be blessed again or we may have lots more, but that is up to God not us.
Jun. 23, 2008 - Our first reversal baby is THREE!
At 2:20 this afternoon, Lily will be a complete 3 year old!
The time has flown by. I still remember the day she was born like it just happened. Here is an excerpt from my journal, It took me from June until August to write it all down!:
Monday, August 1, 2005: At my 35 week appointment, I told them I had been feeling funny over the weekend and that my blood pressure at home had been kind of high. My blood pressure was 155/85 and I had trace to +1 protein in my urine. It is usually 100/60. That was enough to put me on bed rest at home for one week then we will reevaluate. Later, I had a pressure reading of 162/95. The cut off for the preeclampsia was 140/90. So I went in the next am and had an ultrasound done, which showed a healthy baby and that she, weighed about 7 pounds or so. I stayed on the couch all weekend missing the family reunion in Alabama and tried to take it easy. On that Monday, at 36 and 2 days I saw the Dr again and we decided it would be best to induce on Thursday of that week. So I finished getting all of my stuff together and enjoying the kids for a few more days. Then we went to the hospital at 6am on Thursday, June 23rd. (My first THREE kids all broke their collar bones and had issues with shoulder dystocia at birth, so we hoped an early induction would solve those issues too.)
6am: arrival and registration process. I 'm not really all that nervous, just ready to get the show on the road!
7:20am: I met Jennifer my labor nurse.
7:30am: Pitocin started in my IV. My blood pressure was 132/75 and I am surprisingly 1 cm dilated and 40%effaced. The contractions I had yesterday must have been doing something. Lily's heart rate was 150s and Jennifer said she would increase the Pit every 20 minutes.
8am: I just had my first real contraction. Not bad at all though.
8:45am: I'm having contractions every 3-4 minutes and they are starting to feel productive. I'm still able to sit down thru them but I don't talk thru them. I will probably have to stand up soon. A friend just came by to visit and check in on me. The contractions are lasting 45-60 seconds long now.
9am: I just put my headphones on and I am starting to breathe thru them.
10:30am: I am 3 cm and Lily is having late decals. The contractions are stronger now and I have to wear an oxygen mask to help Lily's heart rate come up. The Pitocin seems to be affecting her badly. So the Dr said to maintain, not increase, the Pitocin and see what happens. My contractions have slowed down now and I am not having any trouble dealing with them.
11:30am Pitocin upped again since 8:30 ish.
1pm: Still 3-4 cm so Dr Brody broke my water to get things moving. It was very painful to have my water broken this time. I think he missed the bag of waters a few times! Contractions are really intense now. I have used the bed, the rocking chair and the birthing ball to help with the pain. So far no pain meds or anything. 1:30pm: I am starting to lose control and am having a hard time focusing. I am 5cm and decide to try and wait for 2 pm to get checked again and decide on an epidural. I don't want one but the pain is definitely increasing.
2pm: The Dr came into the room to wait. I am really getting vocal now. I had no idea the pain could be this intense. The contractions are really one on top of another. During the few seconds of my break I lie there and fall asleep. I have to squeeze John's hand during a contraction and later on he has lots of red marks from my grip. There isn't enough time for an epidural now but that doesn't stop me from asking for one.
2:20pm: I started pushing a few minutes ago on my own because I just had to do something. After a couple of pushes, the Dr guided the head out then the shoulders and then I pulled her out and laid her on my stomach! I was so relieved it was over. I couldn't believe I did it all natural and delivered her myself! I finally got the birth I was dreaming about. I'll have to say though that I did not recognize transition. I got real hot and antsy so I should have known. I couldn't believe how much yelling I did though. Of course you'd have to be dead to not say something about the pain. Looking back on the experience though I will definitely try to do it again. I have such great memories of the labor and delivery. Yes transition was a devil but it only lasted 20 minutes and I felt great immediately afterwards. I even took a shower in the labor room. The best part was being able to deliver her myself. I was the first person to hold her. John got to cut the cord this time also. Oh and no broken collarbone!
Lily weighed 7 pounds 3 ounces.
I'll post soon about how Lily became our first reversal baby!
Happy Birthday Lily!
Jun. 19, 2008 - Babies, Babies!
Oh how I wish this post was about me . . .
Tonight I went to visit a friend who delivered her twin boys this afternoon. They are 5 weeks early and in the NICU as a precaution until they get the hang of breathing. I saw a video of their first few moments and they are so precious. Sweet, little boys.
I am so excited for this family as they begin their new lives as parents. I remember when I brought Austin home from the hospital. It was so new and exciting and yet so scary. I felt like I needed someones permission to bathe him or feed him on demand. I actually remember calling the pediatrician's office to how long it was ok for him to cry. We were trying to let him cry it out and we lasted about 8 minutes!
I have loved becoming a mom. It has changed me and stretched me beyond measure. I have learned sacrifice, patience, endurance, joy, sorrow, selflessness, and how to trust in the Lord. I can NOT be who I am separate from Him. I wake each morning praising His name and praying for our day.
I have also become more of me. Follow me here, in high school and even college I wanted to be just like everyone else. I wanted to be someone my mom would approve of, someone my friends would like, etc. I love who I am now. I have taken some chances and become who God wants me to be. I dare to be different, not for the sake of being different but in order to be in this world but not of this world. (See John 17: 13:16)
I don't strive to fit in or look like those around me. I know God has a plan for my life and I long to follow Him. There is more peace that way. He is my Father and for that I am grateful.
