Cat's out of the bag!

So, I've been dying to post this... but held off for a couple reasons. But no longer!

I'm pregnant!

Mark is going to have a sibling in early July--I'm actually due on his 2nd birthday, July 9! I've been sicker than a dog, so the last couple weeks have been even more horrendous given Mark's illnesses, working over a weekend, etc. I am praying, praying, praying that it goes away at the end of the 1st trimester, which should be around New Year's. The holidays this year are definitely more sedate just because I'm mostly focusing on surviving each day. But honestly, I don't think that's a bad thing at all.

The baby was looking good at my 7 week appt a couple weeks ago. The baby was measuring a couple days smaller than I thought, but he/she had a good heartbeat, and the doctors think the baby looks good. My next appt is at the end of the month, so I am really anxiously awaiting that. I think I'll feel better once I can hear the baby's heartbeat again and know that things are STILL going well.

We're in the midst of switching to an OB in Raleigh. I delivered Mark in Chapel Hill, and as awesome as that was... it will be nicer to be closer to home and Mark. The hospital where we plan on having this baby is only a couple minutes from our house... and that will be so great for Isaac when I'm still in the hospital. He'll be able to get to Mark quickly and maybe even go home and get a good night's rest at home!

So, that's the latest. Keep us in your prayers, and I'll update you on the next appt as soon as I can. Merry Christmas!

Sick baby

Our poor baby Mark is sick again for the second time in a week. Last week, he had a high fever which turned into a rash... which probably meant roseola. Too bad we made him endure another catherization to rule out another UTI b/c we didn't know why he had a fever so long.... Then he got well, only to get sick on Sunday with a horrible cough and another fever. We took him to the pediatrician yesterday and he has an ear infection, although his lungs are clear. So, we've been nursing a sick baby, trying to juggle work and house stuff... and we are essentially WORN OUT!

I had to work all weekend for an upgrade at work. Getting home at midnight on Friday and working on Saturday... and then sick baby on Sun, Mon, and today is NOT a recipe for success. Isaac and Mark got our Christmas tree, but it's undecorated. We're trying to wait till Mark feels better... perhaps in a couple days?

I have no idea if I'll get Christmas cards out this year. But fortunately, we are really simplifying gifts this year. We are doing a gift exchange with my nieces and nephews, and only buying for our nephew on Isaac's side. Our bank account has been bleeding since we moved into the new house in July, and we have to stop it somehow. Hopefully it will help us all reflect upon the real reason for the season?

I'm feeling a little down and depressed. I am ready for a new year... and hopefully an extended well time for our family's health. Thanks for any encouragement and prayers you can offer.

Bullets

I'm scatter-brained so I'll do some bullets! : )

• I have loved the beautiful fall weather we've been having. Our grass (what grass we have) is nice a green. I mowed it for the first time on Sunday and it looks much more even. We still have a couple big patches of NOTHING, but I guess it's still a work in progress. No trees or shrubs yet. Not sure when we'll get to that!
  
• We had a great first Halloween with Mark. He was a trooper even in the rain. We only went to a couple neighbor's houses, but it was a great night of memories. Here is a picture of Isaac and Mark trick or treating.

• We cheered my sister Carolyn on at the Raleigh marathon this past Sunday. She came in 6th place overall!, 3rd in her age group, and 3rd in the Master's category (over 40). She is COMPLETELY AMAZING! She even won $$$ for her performance. Seriously, I wish I had the running jeans Carolyn and my brother Chris have. It was also a gorgeous day so we really enjoyed being on the course and cheering her on.
• Isaac and I are signed up for the Turkey Trot 8k on Thanksgiving day. The race goes right past our house! We ran the course on Saturday and it went pretty well. It's a super-hilly course, but it will be a good way to work up an appetite.
• I have tomorrow off for Veteran's Day. It's a joke in our house that the veteran in our household (Isaac) is the one who works, while I (the non-veteran) get a day off! Pretty neat that tomorrow is 11/11/11.
• I guess that's all for now. Happy weekend everyone!
  

Heart broken

I've been putting off writing this, but I need to get it out.

We found out what's going on with my mom. She has a disease called Pulmonary Fibrosis. She also had pneumonia, but this is the much more serious issue. Pulmonary Fibrosis is terminal, meaning it will not go away. The damage to her lungs can't be reversed or halted. It's a progressive disease that causes scarring on healthy lung tissue. The result is difficulty breathing, and over time, it gets worse and worse.

We are still trying to figure out how rapidly this disease is progressing. It could be that we have several more good years with her. She will have CT scans every 3 months to see what's happening. There is a chance they will do an open lung biopsy to do a definitive diagnosis. But I don't want her to go through that unless it is absolutely necessary. She had some complications during her broncosopy last month, and that was scary enough.

There isn't much we can do right now except wait. I'm grateful mom is going to meet the new baby in DC this week. I think it will do her a lot of good to get out of the house and meet her new grandson. I almost wish I had gone with her... but there will be more time.

She goes back to the dr in early December for a follow up appointment and to receive the results of the CT scan (that's in late November). Please pray that we'll all get through the waiting as best we can, and that we can lean on one another and God to walk this path.

I have to say, this is not what I wanted. I need my mom.

Back from Iowa

We had a great trip to Iowa City for Homecoming. Iowa beat Indiana on a beautiful, sunny Saturday afternoon. Mark was SUCH A TROOPER flying to Chicago then riding with us on the 4 hour drive to Iowa City. He didn't really nap more than 20 minutes each day, but he slept like a champ at night, and did so, so well.

Things that entertained Mark on our journey:

• The moving walkways and escalators at the airport. We must have circled and ridden them back and forth and up and down a million times over the weekend. He LOVED it and he got a lot of smiles from other air travelers. It truly helped us pass time in the airport while we were waiting for our flight and luggage.



• Yogurt raisin boxes. You'd think he'd want to EAT the raisins, but he mostly wanted to take all the raisins out of the box, and then put them back in the box one at a time. Same with the airline pretzels. SCORE!



• Airline drink with lid and straw. Our sweet flight attendant brought Mark his own drink with a lid and straw. Mark loved taking the straw out of the lid and putting it back in. Then he loved trying to fish out the ice of the cup and even put some in his mouth.



• Flirting with other people. I swear my child is a little Romeo. He was referred to as "Smiley" no less than a million times on our trip. How can you resist the sweet smile of a cute 1 year old? I sure can't! At one point, we were at the homecoming parade. Mark had gotten an Iowa flag and was running up and down the sidewalk with his flag. People were smiling, laughing, and giving him high-5's. It was priceless!

We had perfect weather for our trip (although it will start snowing there soon!). We enjoyed catching up with old friends, attending the open house at the Engineering school, and cheering on the Hawkeye's at the football game. Isaac has some wonderful friends, and they were so generous with their time and resources. We are truly blessed.

Mark decided he had enough on the way home. We didn't fly into Raleigh until about midnight on Sunday night, so technically I consider that boarderline child abuse. He didn't start melting down till we landed, so luckily our fellow passengers only had a couple minute to endure our very tired child's crying.

I'll post pics as soon as I find the USB cord to our camera.

Bullet Points

Another bullet style post for today.

• We're going to Iowa this weekend for Isaac's homecoming at the Univ of Iowa. I'm excited about going, yet a bit nervous about the flight to Chicago and 4 hour drive to Iowa City with Mark. We have free plane tickets on SW Air, so Chicago was the closest we could get. Plus, we have a non-stop flight from RDU so we won't have to deal with any plane changes. Our plane leaves at 6 am on Friday am! Whew. I hope we're ready for that. : )



• We had a lovely weekend with Isaac's mom and sister. We had beautiful fall weather, and enjoyed getting outside for a walk, picking out pumpkins, and even painting a couple. I'll TRY to post some pictures later. They are coming back for Thanksgiving and we can't wait! It is such a pleasure to have them visit.



• My mom's pneumonia isn't going away. The chest x-ray she had last week is not clear. I visited her on Sunday and I can tell she is short of breath. She has a follow up dr's appt today, and my sister is going with her. So I hope to have some more answers soon. The drs have talked about doing a lung biopsy to see what might be going on. That's a scary thought, but we need to know what's going on. She's been ill for over 2 months now.



• Our grass is starting to sprout, but much more slowly than we'd like to see. There are huge patches of dirt as well. We can see the grass seed laying on the top, and are watering like crazy. Our lawn man said if things aren't better by next week, he'll come by and check it out. I would really have expected it to look better than it does right now.



• Isaac bought a hay bale from the farmers market, so we have a lovely fall display outside: pumpkins, gourds, mums, and corn shalks. I found a pumpkin-shaped placemat at Target for a couple dollars, and taped it to the front door. So, we have a very festivey house! FUN.



• I'm trying to be better about reading my bible and praying. I can tell the more I do it, the more I WANT to do it. But it's still a struggle if I'm honest. I'm meditating on Paul's words in Galatians today:

"I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.

The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." (Galatians 2:20)

• I once read a biography of Amy Carmichael--missionary to India--and the book talked about how one of her goals was to walk with God all day long. I'm praying that I--and YOU--will be able to do this. Come Lord Jesus and abide with us!

He's Always Been Faithful!

Have you ever heard the song "He's Always Been Faithful" by Sara Groves? If you haven't, click here. The song is based on verses in Lamentations 3: 22-23 which is also what the hymn "Great is Your Faithfulness" is based on:

"Because of the LORD's great love

we are not consumed,

for his compassions never fail.

They are new every morning;

great is your faithfulness."

How I need to be reminded of this on a daily basis. God never fails us, and every day we have a new opportunity to live in His love and be encouraged in the greatness of our God.

Later in Lamentations (3: 31-33), we find these verses :

"For no one is cast off by the Lord forever.

Though he brings grief, he will show compassion,

so great is his unfailing love.

For he does not willingly bring affliction

or grief to anyone."

What a relief! He does not willingly bring us pain, and he will show us compassion when we ask for it. I love meditating on the compassion and love of God (when I can remember to do so), probably because I need these things so desperately. How I deceive myself time and time again that I can do it on my own! And how quickly I wind up mired in pain and grief--all of my own doing. But all I need to do is remember God's faithfulness to me and remember my need for Him. He isn't going to force me to follow him, but he gently reminds me to follow Him on a daily basis. I struggle so, so hard with this!

And still later in Lamentations 3: 55-57:

"I called on your name, LORD,

from the depths of the pit.

You heard my plea:

“Do not close your ears to my cry for relief.”

You came near when I called you,

and you said, “Do not fear.”

So, God, I'm asking for your help. I need your guidance on career, life balance, and in trusting you more. I need your help to stop relying on my own strength. It's just a facade, when in reality, you are the reason anything goes well in my life. Without you I am nothing.

I need your strength and courage to follow your leading, and it use my gifts and talents for YOUR glory.

Amen.