My Jack Jack

Gosh. I cant believe my little nugget is almost 8 months old. Clearly its been a while since I blogged. I dont feel like I really have time, and if I do have free time, I want to spend it doing something else. So whats going on with Jackson lately. He is sitting up. He is saying dadadadadadadadada. When I say "mamama" he just smiles like there is no chance he will ever say it. He belly laughs when we tickle him. He claps when we sing "Im so happy" or "If youre happy and you know it" Its really cute. He cant straighten his hands all the way. He tries! He has started reaching for me. I love that. He loves watching the dogs and thinks they are hilarious. When he starts laughing at Beyonce, she starts licking him which makes him laugh more which makes her lick more. Its hilarious. Bailey is curious but wont get too close to him. I've never enjoyed something so much in my life. He is a precious angel. Here are some pics. The first four are ones that I took, but the rest are pictures that my sister in law Conni took. She has started a photography business!! She is REALLY talented and running a great special! go to her blog at www.connilambphotos.blogspot.com

6 weeks old

Jackson is 6 weeks old and will be 7 weeks in just a few days. I cant believe how quickly he has grown. He is a wonderful baby. I realize that its not normal to have such a good baby. Im sure our next child will cry more and not sleep through the night until he/she is a year old. BUT for now, I am enjoying my almost perfect baby (would be perfect if it wasnt for that sinful nature part).

Some of the things I love about him:

His smile - He is just now starting to really smile. You can talk to him and make silly faces and he will smile. I am not good at baby talk, and I am not a big fan of it. I try to do it, and just feel like an idiot. Luckily he will smile at my silly faces.

His laugh - I have only heard it a few times, but it is precious! I dont think he has done it on purpose, but I LOVE IT! I cant wait until this becomes more consistent.

His Cooing - The sounds he makes are the most precious sounds in the world. I cant even explain them. There is nothing better.

The way he wakes me up in the morning - For the first few weeks, he woke me up by screaming bloody murder. For the past few days, he has been waking me up with his cooing and his smiling. Melts my heart.

His manly grunting - He grunts so much and so loudly when he has to poop. I just think it is hilarious

The way he Holds me - When I put him on my shoulder, he puts his arms around me and curls up his knees. I feel like he is my little koala bear.

The way he smiles in his sleep - Its precious. Ill be watching him and all of a sudden he will smile.

The many different facial expressions he can have in under a minute - he can go from sad, to lower lip, to angry, to confused, to happy, and then off to a peaceful sleep look.

His face when John burps him - John holds him on his lap and leans him over. He places his hand under Jackson's chin and then pats Jackson. Jackson loves it and looks relatively drunk. It's quite humorous.

The fact that he is starting to look for me when he hears my voice - I'm not going to lie, I want to be his most favorite person ever. I might not be the best mother in law...I already hate all those skanks out there...not that all the girls are skanks, but if any hussies try to mess with my little boy, Im not gonna play nice. Ok, I probably will because I know thats what God would want me to do, but it will be hard. I want to protect him so much!

Jackson's Birth Story

We went in to the hospital on Monday night May 9th after having a delicious dinner at Pei Wei. We were admitted at six and I was given Cervidil to soften my cervix. The plan was that the Cervidil would help me dilate the next day when I got the pitocin. They informed me that they give all patients Ambien to help them sleep that night. I had had a bad experience with Ambien in the past, but decided they must know what they are talking about. WRONG. The Ambien had the complete opposite affect on me. I was wired. I literally did not get a minute of sleep that entire night. I was wired.

At 4:30 am the nurse came in and checked my cervix. The Cervidil had done nothing. She then informed me in horrible bedside manner that there was a good chance that the pitocin would not work either and that I would go home that night without my baby only to come back another day. I was so depressed. Thankfully she was the night shift nurse and about 3 hours later "Rocky" came in. She was going to be my nurse for the day and she told me the second she came in that the baby was going to make his debut. She pumped me up. I was ready for this.

She inserted my IV and started my pitocin drip at 6:45. My contractions started pretty quickly. Not fun ones, but really not too bad. I kept thinking...I can do this...ha. At 2:00pm I asked for my epidural. Contractions were coming every 30 seconds and because of the pitocin, I'm told that they were stronger and more painful than normal contractions. Who knows. All I know is that I could barely breathe through them and with them coming every thirty seconds, I wanted some relief!

Thank goodness I didnt realize how big the needle was! Of course, I was in enough pain, that I probably would not have cared anyway. The Dr. came in and gave me my epidural, Rocky put in my catheter (quite nice to not have to get up an pee), and I then took the best two hour nap of my life. I highly recommend an epidural to anyone and everyone. It completely takes away all pain. It was like I wasnt even having contractions anymore.

After my two hour nap, Rocky came in to check me.I was only 5 cm dilated. That wasn't too bad. They say that once you hit 4 cm dilated, the rest goes quickly. She started to put me in these funny positions that would get Jackson to move further down. (I had been 90% efaced for a while) Well, two hours later, the Dr. came in and said that I was still only 5 cm dilated. She gave me the option of continuing to contract in hopes that I would dilate or have a c-section. She said that the chance of me dilating was not likely but that it was my choice. I, (credit I can only give God and my sister in law Erin) had complete peace about the c-section and knew that it was what needed to happen. The peace came from God in the obvious ways, and it also came from Erin because she had reminded me that week that she had had a c-section with my niece and had been perfectly fine. (Thank you Erin!!!)

Once I decided to get a c-section, it was only 30 minutes before they wheeled me in to the operating room. They moved quickly. Im pretty sure my Dr. wanted to get home for dinner. It was about 6:45. I had been in labor for exactly 12 hours. 12 hours sounds so long, and maybe I am already at the forgetting stage, but it really wasnt that horrible. I do remember during the bad stage of my contractions, telling John that I definitely deserved a "push" gift and that I would be getting a Nook and a nice camera once it was all done:). I am now lucid again and remember that I pay the bills and I will not be getting either of those:)....although John keeps saying I deserve it....smart man.

Anyway, they wheeled me into the operating room and one of the Dr.s came in to add some hard core medicine to my epidural. I decided that I didn't want to hear what was going on, so I asked if I could listen to my ipod. They said yes. So while I was lying on the table, waiting for them to start, I started my God of Victory CD from The VIllage Church. It was the perfect thing to listen to. Listening to songs about glorifying God and worshiping Him puts a lot of things into perspective while they are cutting open your stomach. I wanted to have the headphones so that I couldn't hear anything, the problem was, that I could still smell everything, and it did not smell good. You could smell them soldering my skin. Mmmmmm.

So, the entire time I was sitting there, I was listening to awesome music and I had John sitting beside me. He was holding my hand the entire time and looking at me. He looked adorable in his outfit they had him put on. It was really funny because in between songs, I could hear the Dr.s talking. They were having the most normal conversations while they were cutting me open. "So, what are you doing this weekend?" "Have you tried out this restaurant?" It was kind of funny. I guess you know you are in good hands when they are having casual conversation. Thats when you know they know what they are doing. At one point, I heard them say, "Oh he would never have come out that way." That confused me. What did they mean? Well, I found out after that Jackson's head was turned to the side, and there was almost know way he would have come out with me pushing. So glad I had the c-section.

They told me I would feel lots of pressure and that one of the Dr.s would be pushing on my upper abdomen to get the baby out. Oh my goodness. I felt that. I could barely breathe they were pushing so hard. I just focused on getting Jackson out. I just had to breathe through it. The next thing I knew, my little boy was held over the curtain. I looked at John and he had tears in his eyes. It was a sweet moment.

The baby nurse grabbed Jackson and started cleaning him off. Thats when I really got a good look at him. He was BEAUTIFUL! He had a cone shaped head because he had been trying to come down the birth canal. He also had a serious receding hair line because of his skull moving. His hair was black and kinky. He had tons of it. He was a great color. Beautiful baby. John got to go over and stand next to him. I watched him kiss Jackson. Another sweet moment...then the nurse snapped at him to put his mask back on because I was still "cut open"...not what I wanted to hear.

All during this time, I was shaking like crazy. My teeth were chattering, my arms were shaking. I think it was the epidural plus the adrenaline. It was a crazy feeling and I was not a fan of it. Once they cleaned Jackson off, they put him on my chest. I got to kiss him. I fell in love right away. My sweet baby. I couldnt believe that he came out of my stomach!! He weighed 7lbs 5 oz. Was 20 1/2 inches long and was born at exactly 7:30pm.

They wheeled him out to our room and John went with him. The surge tech asked me if I wanted something to help me stop shaking. I said yes. The next thing I know, its 15 minutes later and I had passed out. Apparently, it stopped the shaking. I was stitched up and they wheeled me to our room.

Our family had all been in the waiting room, so when John and Jackson were wheeled into our room, they were all allowed to come in. Apparently, based on pictures, everyone had a great time seeing him. At some point they were given the boot and it was just John and Jackson. John somehow still had my iphone playing in his pocket and he said it was a sweet time because he and Jackson sat there and listened to worship music together.

They wheeled me in about 20 minutes later. I couldnt hold Jackson right away because they were doing his tests. I had gestational diabetes so they had to check his sugar levels. Well, his sugar levels came back very low. The nurse was very worried and said that she had to give him some formula ASAP to get his levels back up. Im convinced that that is one of the reasons he wont breastfeed now, but if it protected him, it was all worth it.

Once they got his sugar levels up, they brought him to me. I got to hold him skin to skin. It was a sweet moment. He calmed down the second he was put on me. There is nothing cooler than that. He still does it. If he is crying and we put him down on me, he stops. I love it .

About 30 minutes after I got him, they allowed family to come back in and see him. It was fun showing him off. My grandma got to come hold him, which was a precious thing. (Mark, Erin, and Ryan are living in Seattle so they didnt get to be there, but we were able to skype with them a few days later. Jackson had a blast meeting his Aunt, Uncle, and Cousin via the internet.)

Everyone was asked to leave a little bit later and John, Jackson, and I were wheeled up to our postpartum room. I was given some pain medicine. (thank goodness) We had nurses coming in to check on me and Jack. Jackson got his first bath. (He loved it). I kept trying to feed him, but he wouldn't latch on correctly. They eventually brought a breast pump for me, and I was able to feed him via a little green tube and saringe. At 3:30 in the morning we still hadn't gone to sleep. Keep in mind, I hadn't slept at all the night before, labored for 12 hours, and then had a c-section. We were both beat. So, we sent him to the nursery for 2 hours. I had to get some sleep. I was physically and emotionally exhausted. I missed him the entire time he was gone, and we didnt send him to the nursery again. Might as well get used to lack of sleep....thats my life now.

Thats basically Jackson's birth story. It was the most amazing experience I have ever gone through. I wouldnt have changed a thing. The hospital (Plano Presby) was AMAZING. I have never been taken care of by such amazing women...the things they had to help me do....

We had many visitors that week and were allowed to come home on Saturday May 14th. Things have been great since. He sleeps pretty well and doesnt cry often. He is a precious baby, and I am overwhelmed every day with how amazing he is. God is good.

Jackson

Hey bud. Im in the middle of labor right now. You are being a stubborn punk and are refusing to drop. My water has been broken (not a fun experience) and I have been having some serious contractions for about 3 hours now. Because you are refusing to drop, I am not dilating. Im finding this a bit annoying. I dont mind the contractions as long as I know they are getting me somewhere, but if you arent moving down, they are basically pointless. So, my dear son. I want you to know that your time in my stomach has come to an end. I want you out. Right now, the reasons that I want you out are completely selfish. I know the second I see you, I will be thrilled that you are out for maternal reasons, but right now, those are not my reasons. I have made a very nice nursery for you at home and I promise you will be just as comfortable. So lets head on down and move on out.

Much love,
Your Mom

First Night in the Hospital

Well, we are here. We got checked in at 6 today. I knew they would put one of those stupid gowns on me, but I didn't realize they would be monitoring me all night while I "slept". I have 4 bands wrapped around my stomach that monitor the baby's heart and my contractions. Then I have a blood pressure cuff that goes off every fifteen minutes wrapped around my arm. They gave me an ambien at 11:30. Said it should knock me out. .....Flashback to my sophomore year on a airplane coming back from Hawaii when my dad gave me an ambien. I acted a fool. It had an adverse effect and made me ack like a drunk fool. I kept thinking that the storage containers were flying at me and would talk extremely loud because I didn't think anyone could hear me. Mark said it was one of his most embarrassing moments and then got worse when I tried to sleep on the floor under my seat.... Now I am in a hospital room and the ambien has done nothing. I am wide awake. And in a really funny mood. Ambien is not meant for me. It's 2:30 in the morning and they are waking me up to start everything at 4:30. So, here's to hoping this ambien does what it is meant to do and that I get at least two hours of sleep. I wonder what childbirth would have been like if Eve hadn't bitten that stupid piece of fruit?....

Last Date Before Jack

Even though I'm supposed to be on bed rest, we decided to break the rules and go out on one last date. Our plans were dinner and a movie. We ended up with dinner at Chili's and no movie. There really aren't any good ones out right now at the theater near us and we ate too much at Chilis to feel like doing anything. So, we rented "The Tourist" and five minutes into it, John fell asleep. It's one of the many reasons I love him. He cannot stay awake when we watch movies at home. It's cute. He tries so hard.

Anyway, I know we have plenty more dates in the future, and I'm sure we will appreciate them even more, so no worries. Two more days till Jack gets here!!!! Cannot wait, but am still quite nervous about the actual birthing part.

May 10th 2011

We found out that we get to have Jackson on May 10th. Im so excited! Its so nice to know a date. I will be able to make sure I have my hair done, makeup on, and legs shaved. Im sure by the time I'm finished pushing, that will all have gone to the crapper, but still, it's nice knowing. I'm also sure the day before, it will also be scary knowing that its coming. The unknown of what its all going to feel like. I'm sure its going to hurt like crap, but unless God makes it clear to me that I shouldn't get one, I will be getting an epidural. No need for the constant pain. When I was admitted last week they went over the epidural contract that I had to sign. Kind of scary all the bad things that can happen. Really hope I dont get paralyzed. That would be pretty unfortunate. I wish I could have Heather Fuentes do my epidural. It would be a lot less stressful. Anyway, I think May 10th is a great day to be born and I'm super excited for it!

5 Years Married to the Greatest Man in the World

Today is our five year anniversary. I cannot believe that we have been married for 5 years. It seems like two or three. They have been the best five years of my life. I have grown so much because of John. He encourages me to be a better person and pushes me to pursue my walk with God. He loves the Lord and that shows through everything he does. He has taught me discipline, self control, patience, and gentleness. He has never really raised his voice to me. I have only heard him cuss two times in the last 8 years (and it was almost warrented because i was being a huge brat). He doesnt ever say anything bad about anyone. He works hard at whatever he is doing. He is rational. He loves others, and tries to live his life to glorify God at all times. I hit the jackpot five years ago. I know he's not perfect, but he is pretty close. His desire to serve the Lord makes him who he is. I cannot imagine being married to anyone else. I hope I get to spend the rest of my life with him.

Over the last week he has taken care of me so well. When I was up at the hospital, he brought me anything I needed and refused to sleep at home. He planned on staying every night at the hospital with me until I had Jack. He never complained and was always positive about the situation. Now that I am home, he watches me like a hawk. He doesnt want me to overdo it and hurt myself or Jack. Every time I stand up he asks me where I am going and what I am doing. Although it is driving me crazy, I greatly appreciate how much he cares.

We were laughing last night as we remembered our promise to eachother. We promised that we wouldn't have our first child until we had been married for at least 5 years. We made it!! Only by about a week, but we made it! I am thrilled that our son will most likely look like him and I pray that he will take after him.

I feel like John really lives out "husbands love your wives as Christ loves the church" He loves me well. I hope that I can submit to him and love him as he deserves to be loved. I feel like the luckiest woman in the world to have married this amazing man.

Thank you John Herrington for making me your wife five years ago. It is the greatest thing I have ever done!

Dr. Update

I realize no one really reads this stuff, so I guess I'm writing this down for Jackson. Maybe he will appreciate it one day...although he is a boy, so maybe he wont care. We shall see.

Anyways, I had a Dr.s appointment today. Everything looked good! My blood pressure was great. I lost 6 lbs of water weight (which means bed rest is working) and I am a little tiny bit dilated.

The Dr. said if we can get him to drop some that they will induce around 38-39 weeks. She said he is fully developed so they arent worried about him, but they want to make sure he has dropped enough so that I wont have to have a c-section.

I appreciate that because I definitely dont want to have a c-section. Id much prefer to stay on bed rest until he decides to make his debut. I have also decided that bed rest isnt so bad. Its nice not having to clean. I do a little bit here and there, but for the most part, I just sit on the couch and watch movies.

Life is pretty easy:) Thats all for an update right now.

ON a similar note, Jack: you will be very lucky if you get any biological brothers and sisters. There is a very good chance they will all be adopted.

They Sent Me Home!

So, last we were told, we would definitely be in the hospital until Wednesday and most likely until we had Jackson. I was so bummed...see previous posts.. Around 5 yesterday a Dr., who is a specialist, came in and performed a sonogram on me. She looked at every single part of Jackson to make sure he was doing ok. Apparently he was doing great because about 30 minutes later, the nurse came in and said I could go home! We were so surprised. I was thrilled, and then a little sad. I had finally come to terms with being in the hospital and was getting used to being "pampered". At the same time, I knew that being at home would be best. I could take showers in my own shower, sleep on my own sheets, and have my puppies. Plus, I wouldnt have to worry about John staying up there every night and being exhausted at work each day.

So, now I am at home and my lovely husband is watching me like a freaking hawk. Every time I start to get up (to go to the bathroom) he looks at me and asks me where Im going. Its sweet that he cares so much, but Im pretty sure he just doesnt trust me to obey bed or bathroom only. I dont blame him either. I do not want to obey this stupid rule. I mean, if I can walk to the bathroom, why cant I walk to the fridge? Why cant I walk to the back door to let the dogs out?

God is teaching me a lot during this time. He has taught me that I am a spoiled brat. He has taught me that I complain way to easily. He has taught me that I am very controlling, and He has taught me that I have nothing to complain about in life. Im pretty sure Im going to be learning more lessons in the upcoming weeks. Hoping its not more than a week and a half. I would love for Jackson to make his debut!

An update 10 minutes later

Geesh. All I needed to do was spend 10 minutes reading Katie and Renees blogs and I am no longer depressed or feeling bad for myself. I mean what in the world do I have to complain about. Sure, Im stuck in a hospital bed and have to dump my pee into a jar every time I go (quite funny really) but I also have a bed, have food to eat, have a restroom to use, and have air conditioning. These women are serving over in Uganda and work with people who have nothing and who are literally starving! Click on Renee's blog link and see the starving children that she helps nourish back to health. Its eye opening. Click on Katie's blog and see all of the children that she mothers and lets into her home. She the people in the villages around her that she takes care of when they are hurt (even though she has no medical experience) Every time I read their blogs its like the Lord is slapping me in the face. I am so grateful for it every time. It brings me back to the attitude I know I need. It reminds me of how blessed I am and it also reminds me that I need to step up and not just live for myself and my family. Who cares that I'm stuck in a hospital room. Thats nothing! It's pretty much pathetic to even start feeling bad for myself. At then end of this hospital stay, I get to bring home a precious little boy. I am blessed, and these blogs have just reminded me that I need to use the blessings that have been given to me, and bless others. So, while I will probably post a ton more (out of boredom) I will not longer be complaining. God is good.

Depressed...nope just a whiny baby.

I realize that I am a complete baby, but this sucks. I think its not knowing when I'm getting out that sucks so bad. Will I be here for 10 days or will I be here for another 3 weeks? 10 days I think I can handle...more than 10 days and I think I will climb out the window. They keep telling me to stay in the bed, but I just cant do it. Sitting in your bed all day is nasty! I feel gross! I start to feel bad for myself and then I think about the girls in the rooms next to me who are here for months. I cannot imagine. One girl is not allowed to get out of her bed and has to use the restroom in a bedpan. She is here for at least three months. Can you imagine?

John is being wonderful. He is taking care of the dogs, getting breakfast, lunch, and dinner on his own (the hospital food costs too much), getting all kinds of things that I want from home, and sleeping here. I'm going to try to convince him to sleep at home starting Sunday night, but I don't know if he will. He's almost as stubborn as me, but I appreciate it so much. I just don't want him to get exhausted and worn out before Jackson comes, and I want him to be able to work well at work next week.

It's kind of lonely here, so anyone who wants to come visit is welcome!

We've been talking in our homegroup lately about how I don't like to accept help from people. I like to do things on my own. I don't ever want to put people out. Boy is God teaching me a lesson. It's hard to let go and to not try to do it on my own... Guess I will be forced to allow people to do things for me.

On another note...I had to cancel John's 30th birthday party. I'm relieved and really sad about it at the same time. Relieved because I think it would have seriously stressed me out, but sad because he "deserves" to be celebrated. He is such a wonderful person and I'm so glad he was born 30 years ago. I will forever be grateful to his parents.

Tha'ts all I got for now. I'm sure I will be posting again soon. Erin, you've been asking me to update more often...you are gonna get tired of seeing updates:)

Stuck In the Hospital

Decided to post on this so that one day I can remind Jackson of what he put me through:). I have been admitted into the hospital for Gestational Hypertension. It all started on Tuesday when I went in to the Dr and had high blood pressure. She wanted me to come back today (Thursday) to get it checked again to make sure that it went down. She put me on "home rest" (which I obeyed) but apparently, it didnt work. I came in to the Dr.s office today and it was 150/90. So Im sitting there thinking, "ok she'll send me back home again and then Ill come back in a day or two." Nope. She looks at me and says, Im going to admit you and you will most likely be in the hospital for the next three weeks. WHAT?!

Turns out, I will only be here for about a week and a half and then I will be leaving with little Jackson! Im kind of bummed that I dont get to experience the "i think Im in labor" thing, but its also kind of nice to know around when he will be making his debut.

Also, my parents are out of town, which stinks, but they are in Seattle visiting Mark, Erin, and Ryann. Even if I was in labor, I wouldnt want them to fly back. To have to leave the Lamb family early, would be tragic. Im so jealous that Im not in Seattle with them!!! Who knows, maybe Jackson will come early and be born on Mark's birthday April 27th!

Tonight for dinner I had steak, mashed potatoes, broccoli, a roll, and apple pie....not bad. I could definitely get used to the food being prepared for me.

Thats all for now. John and I are watching American Idol together. Its nice having him here. Makes it less lonely. He's a good husband. I think Im going to keep him around....oh man. Just realized Im going to be in here on our anniversary:(

Grateful

John and I have been reading Exodus. I have to admit, at first I was not a fan at all. It has been hard for me to "get into" the Old Testament. I know that He is the same God as the God of the New Testament, but He seems so harsh in the OT. I had been thinking this every chapter I read, when it finally hit me... (Thank you Lord for dealing with me until I kind of got it) The Old Testament makes me sooo grateful for Jesus! Reading about all of the rules they had to follow and the precise way that they had to make the temple and the different clothes that Aaron had to wear inside to make sure God's wrath didnt kill him, and the exact kind of sacrifices they had to make, makes me sooo grateful for Jesus. Once I really started trying to understand (which I never truly will...another reason Im grateful for God and Jesus) I saw how much God put up with the people of the OT. Its like they screwed up again and again and again. I was sitting there judging them, when I realized that that is exactly how I am, except I was blessed enough to be born after Jesus came and died for me. I guess I never would have thought that the OT would make me so grateful for Jesus. I'm so glad that I started reading it before Easter. It gives me a deeper and more meaningful gratitude of God sending his Son and to Jesus for dying for me. Thank you Lord that we cant do it on our own. Thank you Lord for sending your son to satisfy your wrath. Thank you Jesus for laying down your life for us. Thank you for coming into Jerusalem even though you knew what was going to happen to you. Thank you Holy Spirit for working in me as I read the OT.

Jackson's Room

I dont have any before pictures of his room, but you can imagine an empty room with white walls. This has kind of been our storage room for the last two years. I have been dying to get my hands on it, but saw no point until we were pregnant. I was kind of bummed when I found out he was a boy because I was dying to turn that room into a girly girl room. BUT, alas, God has given us a boy and I am now uber excited about that. I made his room as girly as possible without being too feminine. Plus, he's a baby. He wont know any better.

Ordered Jacks crib from Walmart and put it together all by myself. Im pretty sure it would have been quite humorous to watch me put this together, but I did it! I painted the canvas above his letters. I love the Bible verse and am grateful that God chose to give us this little guy. He has been prayed for like crazy, and I have a feeling this is just the beginning of our prayers.

A full view of his room. I love the paint color I chose and am kind of proud of myself for painting it in my third trimester. (I used pregnant friendly paint)

Here is a picture of his dresser and comfy chair! His dresser spells out his name on the middle drawers. Big fan of Hobby Lobby where I got his drawer pulls 50% off. The dresser was my moms when she was a little kid. I painted it white and distressed it.


Here is his bookshelf from Ikea. The bulletin board above was made my sister in law Conni. Cant wait to put some of his new born pictures on it. The diaper cake was made by my lovely neighbor Heather. So cute!

33 Weeks Pregnant

Amazingly, I am 33 weeks pregnant. I guess I never really thought this day would come. I was so worried that I would have a miscarriage, that I dont think I allowed myself to picture getting this close to delivery. I am beyond excited, but also beyond uncomfortable. I feel like he is taking up my entire body, but I went to the Dr. yesterday and he is not weighing more than he is supposed to. I found out a few weeks ago that I had gestational diabetes and we were worried that Jackson was going to be over weight. He is weighing in at 4.8 lbs so we are thrilled. I really dont want to have a c section and I am at a higher risk if he weighs a lot. More exciting than that... The sonographer said that he has tons of hair! I am so excited about this because I didnt have any hair until I was about two years old. Looks like he is going to be getting his dad's hair. YAY!

Here is the latest picture of our little guy. I might be biased, but I think he is super cute!

22 Weeks Pregnant

I haven't posted in a long time, but I guess Im just in a blogging slump. I guess a lot has gone on in my life over the last few weeks though. I have quit my job and am now a stay at home wife, soon to be mom, and I am 22 weeks pregnant. I feel beyond blessed that I have reached the 22 weeks mark. After having a miscarriage and being around women who are constantly have still births or talking about the disabilities that their children were born with, I kind of expected the worst. I dont mind if my child is born with a disability. I will love him no matter what. OF course, I would prefer that he be healthy, but my main concern is just getting him here. I cannot wait to meet little Jackson. I'm grateful to God every day that I am pregnant.

My life is pretty fabulous right now. I feel SO blessed that I am able to stay home from work. I am spending these few months organizing the house. So far I have completely cleaned out my closet and reorganized it, cleaned out the drawers in Jackson's room (They have been my drawers for the last year) cleaned out Jackson's closet and his entire room, organized the furniture in his room, and cleaned the house every day (Which is amazing when you think about the fact that it manages to get dirty every night) Also, I have woken up early every morning to cook John breakfast before he goes to work. I have actually enjoyed it. Our time together in the morning is fun and I love that I can serve him in the morning.

I'm very grateful for this time off and plan to use it to relax but also get everything in my house organized. LOVE IT.

You Bring Restoration

what our little man might look like right now. This is a baby from 14-18 weeks, so he is somewhere in that mix
So last night we went to a prayer meeting at The Village's Flower Mound campus. It was all three campuses coming together to pray for God's leadership over our church. (This is something I love about our church. They are very aware that it is easy to become a church that cares about numbers and can get away from God's leadership. They dont want to be that church, so they continuously seek Him in prayer for guidance.)

Anyway, in traffic, it was about an hour drive and I was kind of hoping we wouldnt get in because I really wanted to go eat at this pizza place called Pallios near by (AMAZING pizza and Im pregnant, but still...pizza over prayer?) Needless to say, God had different plans for me last night. We did not get turned away and were able to go to the prayer meeting. I would say there were about 700-800 people there. Matt had us break into groups of two (I was with John) and start praying that God would reveal to us how much we needed Him. I of course then had to confess that I wanted pizza over prayer time with God:)and Im pretty sure he forgave me for that one, but then John and I both prayed together that God would show us Himself even more and remind us every day how much we need Him.

After that little prayer session, Michael Bleeker (my most favorite singer EVER) started singing the song "Your Bring Restoration" It is the most beautiful song and is something that I have enjoyed singing since working through my last miscarriage. The lyrics go like this: "You take my mourning and turn it into dancing. You take my weeping and turn it into laughing. You take my mourning and turn it into dancing. You take my sadness and turn it into joy. Youve taken my pain, and you call my by a new name. Youve taken my shame and in its place, you bring my joy. Halleluja! Halleluja! You make all things new." Its an awesome song, and I always love singing it.

Last night, however, was especially special. The song always makes me kind of emotional because it's awesome to see how God has taken away my pain of the miscarriage and its amazing to see the joy that I have had since then. Well, when we were singing it last night, I had my hands on my stomach where the baby is (I think im going to be one of those weird pregnant people that always touches thier stomach...)and he started moving around during the song. He was gettin down with his bad self. I hope I never get used to him moving. I hope it amazes me every single time until he is born. It is a miracle that I am growing a child inside my stomach and I hope that it never ceases to amaze me. It was precious to be reminded even more so that our life is in God's hands and that he has a perfect plan for us.


Psalm 30:11 & 12 says "You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing. You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy, that I might sing praises to you and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give you thanks forever!

Do You Really NEED Something New For Christmas?

So, My hubby and I were discussing last night the fact that we dont need anything for Christmas. This is easier said than done because both sets of parents are not happy with not getting us anything. BUT what if you told your family you wanted a pig, goat, chickens, ducks, or a cow this year? It's a tangible gift, yes?

Well, you are in luck. World Concern (a fantabulous non profit Christian organization that my brother works at) has a GLOBAL GIFT GUIDE of all kinds of crazy fun things you can purchase for the poorest of the poor. Want to give someone a goat? No problem and it only costs $40.
Want to give twenty chickens to a family? Twenty chickens that will produce eggs and more chicks? Only $30!
You can provide water wells. Schooling for children who have been saved from sex trafficking. You can fill a lake with 2,000 fish fingerlings that will give struggling families an ongoing protien source and a way to make an income for $65.


For the last year, John and I have been more and more convicted about how much "stuff" AKA "Crap" we have. We dont need it. Why would we ask for more at Christmas? For us, we are just starting to feel selfish and this is such an awesome way for people to still get you gifts and feel like they have given you something. Plus, they dont have to wrap anything! Even if you want some Christmas gifts for yourself this year (which Im sure I will still be getting some) this is a great way to think about someone else and donate the money yourself. YAY WORLD CONCERN!!!

Click HERE to go to the World Concern Global Gift Guide!!!

Our Baby

I was having terrible cramping last night. (terrible in my books because any cramping while pregnant freaks me out) Anyway, it started around 6pm and lasted until this morning. This is not normal. I know that round ligament pain is normal, but this was too constant to be normal. So, even though I had promised many people that I would not be getting many more sonograms, I decided to get one today at work. The second the ultrasound probe hit my stomach, my beautiful baby popped onto the screen. Praise GOD! (Seriously, God is so good. How do people not believe in Him?!) He (what I'm calling him right now because I'm almost positive) was hiccuping. So cute! He was wiggling around and even cuter, he was covering his eyes with his hands. I fell even more in love with the little guy today..so much so that I'm even OK with it if he is a boy. (I really wanted a girl) I'm just so in love now, that I don't care what gender the baby is. So, here are some pics to enjoy and please no lectures on how I don't need to get anymore sonograms. I'm done until I find out the sex of the baby:)

This is the little guys side profile. He's a cutie. I'm a proud parent.

OK, so this one was a lot easier to see on the sonogram machine, but you can kind of see his arms covering his face. It was super cute when it was all live

I titled this one creepy baby. Its his face, but I think it looks creepy. Glad to see that the eyes and everything else are in the correct spot though.