One month...and then some

Ok, so you are officially 5 weeks old, and I'm just getting time to write your one month entry.  Mommy is sorry for not getting it done sooner...we will eventually get back on a routine.  Well, Kyrie...you have been with our family for 5 weeks now, and we are so glad that God has allowed you to be a part of our family.  You are truly a wonderful baby...so laid back.  Really the only time you cry is when you are hungry or tired...hey, I can live with that since your brother and sister both had colic and cried ALL the time!  You have started smiling some--we love how your whole face sparkles when you smile.  You are sleeping anywhere from 3 to 4 hours at a time before eating at night.  You are starting to stay awake more during the day.  During the day, you are wanting to eat more and more, but I would rather you get loaded up and sleep longer stretches at night.  You are growing so well...the doctor said your weight gain is textbook--something we NEVER heard with your brother or sister.  You are beginning to follow us with your eyes and you like looking at our faces.  We love all the noises you make while awake and even sleeping.

There are times when Mommy wonders if you are getting enough attention...sometimes, I feel like you are not and feel guilty about it, but know that we DO love you very much and are so thankful for you.  We look forward to seeing how God is going to use you and how He is going to grow you.  Don't ever doubt our love for you...you are truly a gift from God just like your brother and sister...and we will always be thankful for the blessing all of you are to us!

We love you and Happy 1 month...and then some...Birthday, Kyrie!

1 month

Love a sleeping baby

Happy Birthday, Kyrie Eleison!

Well, Kyrie Eleison has made her entrance!  We got up early Thursday morning...like 5am early to get ready to go to the hospital.  The plan was to go ahead and turn Kyrie if she hadn't already turned.  When we got there and the doctor finally came in, she said Kyrie was still breech.  She was going to have to go ahead with the external version.  She asked if I had made a decision about getting an epidural and I told her I still didn't want one.  So she went ahead with turning the baby.  She got her head turned down, but for some reason couldn't get it straight down.  When the doctor did an ultrasound, she saw that her feet were down where my cervix was.  We had to wait four hours because I had eaten, so even though they were talking c-section they said she might move her feet in that time.  Well, she ended up not moving her feet and started laboring some, so it was off to get ready for the c-section.  I am so against having an epidural that I even asked to be knocked out during the c-section.  There were too many big risks to be able to do that, so I had to just trust the Lord with this whole situation.  The c-section was so quick from start to finish...we were walking into the OR around 12:05pm and they were pushing me into recovery by 12:40pm.  Kyrie Eleison joined us officially at 12:24pm weighing 6 lbs. 8 oz.  and measuring 19 inches long.  We are so thankful that she is here safely and is absolutely healthy.  Please pray for us as we transition to being a family of four to a family of five. 

Here are some pictures from our very busy day!

Mommy and Daddy getting ready to go to the OR

Dr. Daddy.

Kyrie Eleison--12:24pm--6 lbs. 8 oz.--19in

Mommy meeting Kyrie for the first time

All tired out from a LONG day

Jen and Hootie Hoos 1 & 2 meeting Kyrie

Less than a week

WOW!  Less than a week, and we will be a family of five!  The last week has been pretty eventful--more eventful than I would like.  A little over a week ago, the kids and I were on our way to meet Chris for lunch.  I started feeling really hot and little sick to my stomach. Then there is a time period that I don't even remember--guessing I blacked out.  I remember waking up at a green light and seeing no cars and thinking, "I need to go so I don't hold up traffic."  I called Chris and told him that we were just going home b/c I didn't feel well and feel like I had blacked out.  He came home right away.  Shortly after he got home, a police officer showed up looking for the driver of our van.  We understand he has a job to do, but he was really insensitive to the fact I wasn't feeling well and was 37 weeks pregnant.  Once he saw me, his tone changed, and he became a little more understanding. He did say that I needed to go back to the accident or that he would have no choice, but to charge me with a felony.  So Chris loaded the kids and me back in the van, and we headed back to the accident--I NEVER knew that I had hit anyone--the impact didn't wake me up. The damage to the bumpers made it look a lot worse than the accident really was--nobody was hurt--Praise the LORD!! They didn't charge me with a felony, so I'm so THANKFUL for that.   I did call my OB when we got back home because I was still feeling pretty bad.  She wanted me to go to the hospital and be monitored in the Labor and Delivery wing for a few hours.  After being there for awhile, they decided that Kyrie was doing fine, but they wanted me to go to the ER to be monitored for a few more hours to make sure I was doing OK.  After being there for a few more hours and having a few tests done, they couldn't find anything wrong.  The conclusion we came up with is sometimes an artery can get blocked in pregnant women from sitting the wrong way and the weight of the baby which can cause them to pass out.  We were so thankful that our good friends the Porters and the McLeods were flexible enough to come watch the kids while Chris and I were in the hospital.  We knew the kids were in loving hands, so it made it easier to focus on what was going on at the hospital. After being in the hospital for 8+ hours, we headed home.  We decided that it would be best for me not to drive until after Kyrie gets here--wasn't expecting to be laid up in the house this early, but I know it is best and safest for all.  The next couple of days, I was pretty tired.  It was hard to tell if being tired was from the incident, Josiah getting up 3 to 4 times a night for a couple of weeks or just pregnancy related.  Chris was supposed to be on a camping retreat with the youth, but earlier in the week we had a conversation, and I told him since this summer and planning the trip I never felt like he should go.  I told him a couple days before again that I felt like something bad was going to happen and that he may need to make plans to have some other leaders be in charge...little did I know what was going to happen, but Chris made plans to be around.  I'm so thankful that he listened and took me seriously.  We made it through the weekend for the most part.  Josiah started getting this cough in his chest that was very wet sounding.  On Monday, we decided he needed to go to the doctor, so we called to make an appointment for after my OB appointment.  We dropped Sophie off at another friend's house (Thanks, Cruzes!) while we went to the doctor.  While at the OB, we found out that Kyrie is breech with her head under my ribs--the first blow of the day.  Then we headed to Josiah's appointment and found out that he has a form of bronchitis/asthma and needed to start breathing treatments--second blow of the day.  It was a hard day...let's just say a hard week, but I am so thankful for our church family!  I have received LOTS of encouraging phone calls checking in to see if we needed anything from the store or if I needed help.  We have someone organizing meals.  It is hard to not have family right down the street to call when help is needed, but the Lord has taught me the last few days that family doesn't have to take the form of being related physically by blood, but family is those who are covered by the blood of Jesus.  So I need to say a BIG THANK YOU to our RPC church family for stepping in and taking on the role of "family" this past week and the weeks to come as we adjust to having Kyrie here.  God has truly blessed us with a wonderful and amazing VA family!

It's a GIRL!!

Well, we have had our Reveal Party.  We had LOTS of fun with our church family and my mom who surprised us with a visit.  If you haven't heard by now...IT'S A GIRL!!!

The party was LOTS of fun...we had a great time of fellowship, eating and playing some games.   All the food consisted of cravings Chris and I have been having throughout the pregnancy.  The first game we played was the name scramble game.  We gave everyone the letters for the boy's name and the girl's name.  If it was a boy, we were going to name him Richard Elias.  If it was a girl, we were going to name her Kyrie Eleison.  After the name scramble game, we played a game where I had to answer questions to old wives' tales. According to the way I answered the questions, it was a boy.  After that game, we shared with everyone how we came up with the names and what they meant.  Richard means "rich and powerful ruler."  We came up with that name because of my brother who passed away 19 years ago.  Elias means "the Lord is my God."  I have always liked the name Elijah, but so many of our friends have named their sons Elijah, and I wanted something different,  so we used a derivative of Elijah.  Kyrie Eleison means "Lord have mercy."  I had actually picked out the name Ella, and we were trying to come up with a middle name.  I found the name Kyrie in a liturgical chant called "Kyrie Eleison."  Chris liked the name Kyrie and felt like if we were going to use that name, we should use it as her first name.  I wasn't too sure at first, but after a few days of using that name, I began to like it.  So Ella Kyrie became Kyrie Eleison.  After sharing the meaning of the names, it was time to cut the cake...Chris and I had NO IDEA what we were having, so it was a surprise to us when saw the pink frosting inside.  We were both surprised to find out we were having a girl.  Chris and I were both dressed in blue--I guess Josiah was right.  He has been certain that the baby was a girl from the beginning.  He even told us if it was a boy, he would be very sad...I'm glad that he wasn't disappointed. :)

 Well, that is all for now.  We are so excited that we are having another girl.  We can't wait to meet Kyrie Eleison in November--it is going to be here before we know it.  Please pray for a continued safe pregnancy and delivery.  

Here are some pictures from our gender reveal party:

The voting station

It looks like girl is in the lead

Table decorations

Little sweet treat

Cutting the cake

Realizing that there is pink frosting

It's a GIRL

Still in shock...I really thought it was a boy

Listening to Chris explain how we came up with the names Richard Elias (boy) and Kyrie Eleison (girl)

It's a GIRL

Kyrie Eleison will be joining our family in November

 

The Secret is Out

So I have been journaling quite a bit over the last few weeks, but hadn't been writing it down here because we hadn't shared that we are expecting Baby #3.  Now that the secret is out, here is what has been going on:

 

March 1^st

Well,  I just took a pregnancy test about 3 minutes ago...and?  We are EXPECTING Baby G3.  OK, my hands are so shaky right now that I’m having the hardest time typing.  The last few days, I’ve really been struggling with wanting to take a pregnancy test.  I know I was totally being distracted by it.  I spent quite a bit of time praying about it last night—telling God sorry for being so distracted.  In and out of sleep, I would dream that I had taken a pregnancy test and each time it came back positive.  So I got up at 5:15am (because I REALLY had to go to the bathroom and you are supposed to test first thing in the morning) and just asked God if I had His blessing.  I felt like I had a green light unlike the HUGE red light I felt yesterday while I was at Target to buy a cheap pregnancy test because I didn’t want to use an expensive one this early.

So the way that I told your Daddy---I texted him.  He isn’t big into the cellphone thing¸ so I decided to see how long it takes him to check his messages. 

Well, I’m sure I will post more later.  We love you G3 and are so very thankful that God has chosen us to be your parents.  Know there will be LOTS of prayers lifted up for you during the next few months until we meet you and many more after you arrive.


March 5^th

Well, it’s just been a few days since we found out that Baby G3 is growing inside of me.  I called to make an appointment to see the OB, and it is scheduled for April 18^th—I will be in my 10^th week.  Why does it feel like I am already showing?  They say that with each pregnancy you show sooner and sooner—I guess they are right.  We are going to wait until the beginning of April—maybe even April 1^st to tell our parents.   J

Tomorrow would be your Uncle Richard’s 42^nd birthday.  He was killed in a plane crash in August of 1992.  Mommy will be saying some special prayers for your Mimi because I’m sure it will be a hard day for her.  If you happen to be a boy, then you will somehow be named after your uncle.   I wish you,  Josiah and Sophie could have met him—he was a little wild and crazy.  I know he would have been a great uncle.

Well, that is all for now.  Please continue to pray that G3 does what he’s supposed to do—stay put and keep on growing.


March 20^th

Hey, Little Baby!  Well,  we made it safely back from our crazy trip to TN/GA.  While we were gone, Mommy really started feeling morning sickness.  I’m not going to complain though because morning sickness is a good thing—that means you are growing like you are supposed to.  Last night was a rough night…I had a hard time falling asleep because I was so nauseas feeling.  Daddy was super understanding though and was very sensitive to Mommy—I want you to know you are so blessed to have Daddy as your daddy.  Since Mommy didn’t sleep very well and was still feeling a little icky, Daddy took Josiah and Sophie to Sunday School for me so I could stay home and rest—I told you that we are super blessed to have him in our lives!  We have about 3 more weeks before we tell everyone about you---by that point I will be 9 weeks along.  Don’t know if we can hide you for that long since I’m wearing these nice SeaBands to help with the morning sickness.  Mommy is so excited to have you growing and can’t wait to meet you.  Even though I’m so very excited to meet you, you need to stay put for a lot longer!!!!  Well, I guess I should get going so I can go get ready for church.

March 21^st

Well, we have told all the grandparents and one set of great-grandparents about your upcoming arrival.  There is a lot of excitement!  We won’t tell the rest of our friends and family until the beginning of April.  It has been kind of funny the reaction of some of the grandparents.  We got Josiah a t-shirt that said, “Big Brother” on it—nothing unusual.  Then we got Sophie a t-shirt that said, “Big Sister” on it.  It was amazing how long she wore it without anyone really noticing what it said.  Chris actually had to mention Sophie’s t-shirt before it clicked in.  J  Auntie Corey sent some maternity clothes back with Lin-Lin for down the road—little did she know that down the road was going to be sooner than later!


April 1^st

Well, it has been quite a week.  We have been trying to get me and Sophie better again…and keeping the boys healthy.  We have had a cold and Sophie has been teething—she has 3 teeth that have come through and a couple more working their way out!  I have had some morning sickness and nausea, so as you can see, we have just been surviving.  I have been trying to pack for our trip to FL—we leave in 2 days!!!  Josiah is extremely excited—he can’t wait to go see the whales and dolphins so he can get wet.  It looks like we will be sitting in the splash zone if he has a say about it.  J   The next couple of days will be busy—painting the nursery at the church, packing and getting the house in order before we leave.  I will be excited about Sunday 3:30pm when we are sitting in FL.