Saturday, April 28, 2012
New Project
I bought a quilt kit online over a year ago, and I finally started piecing the top together during spring break. It's coming along quite nicely, though most of the fabrics are crazy ugly not my style (definitely NOT how the kit looked online!). Actually, the fabric doesn't nauseate me as much as it did at first, since it's cut into small squares. I'll be sure to post a picture of the final project...probably a year from now! :O)
"Rashie"
Just a quick post to update everyone on our sweet boy...
Jonathan is feeling much better - he's had two good days in a row...and he actually has (some) of his appetite back! He finally broke out in his rash andlooked like a red-spotted leopard we have never been more thrilled to see spots on our baby! (For those of you who don't know, the Roseola virus is "gone" once the rash appears, so Jonathan is officially not contagious! Good thing, too, because he's been missing his friends!)
I appreciate all the prayers that were lifted up on Jonathan's behalf. Though we still replay the scenes from that day in our minds, our nightmare is almost over.
Jonathan is feeling much better - he's had two good days in a row...and he actually has (some) of his appetite back! He finally broke out in his rash and
 |
| Someone's feeling better! |
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Nightmare
Yesterday was "Daddy Day", so Jonathan spent the day with Darin while I was at work. Apparently, he had a low-grade fever in the morning, so it was treated with Ibuprofen around 8 am. His next dose was about 6 hours later, and he still had a fever. When I got home, I found Jonathan sleeping in Darin's arms on the couch. Darin informed me that Jonathan was running a fever, and it seemed to be getting worse. I was not very worried, as he's little and gets little colds here and there a lot. I called his doctor's office, but couldn't get through. I waited on hold for a while, and then hung up and tried again later, to no avail.
We decided to take Jonathan to urgent care because his fever reached 105.4 and his heart was racing. We loaded him up in the car and weren't even a half mile down our street when Jonathan started having a seizure. His lips turned bluish-purple, his eyes rolled back in his head, his head flopped to the side, and he started drooling. By this time, Darin had stopped the car in the middle of our street and I was unbuckling Jonathan from his car seat. Darin ran to a neighbor's house to get someone to call 911, while I ran towards a car driving down the street to get help. By the grace of God, because there are no coincidences, a woman (in the medical field) answered her door and called 911 immediately. We ran inside her house and she let us lay him on the couch. Another neighbor, a nurse, ran inside and helped us get him out of his clothes and roll him on his side, as directed by the 911 operator. She also checked his pulse and made sure he was breathing. Thankfully, by this time, he was no longer seizing, and was sound asleep. (Apparently, seizures take a lot out of people.) Another neighbor arrived (a friend from church), and she called my sister for us, who then started the phone tree. Once the fire engine arrived, the sweet nurse waved good-bye and we never saw her again. His oxygen level and heart rate were checked. His heartbeat was about 134 bpm. Once the paramedics arrived, the decision was made to take him by ambulance to the hospital so that the doctors could check him out. I rode with Jonathan, and Darin drove our car.
Jonathan slept through much of the ride. He did look at me a few times, and he scowled at the paramedic when he called his name. His heartbeat climbed from 160 when we got into the ambulance to 173 bpm en route to the hospital.
When we arrived at the hospital, Jonathan was pretty out of it, but very calm. He just wanted to be held. His temperature was still over 105, so he was given Tylenol. The doctors and nurses were great, and they explained that because of the sudden spike in his fever, he had what is known as a Febrile Seizure. You can read more about that here.) We were there for a little over four hours. Jonathan slept some of the time, and watched a little television. He didn't say a word until "Bob the Builder" was mentioned. When he heard that, he said he wanted to go "upstairs" at Grandma Thomas' to watch it. We were surrounded by many loved ones, which made this nightmare a little more bearable. By the time we left the hospital, Jonathan's temperature was down to 99 - success!
Jonathan slept in our bed last night, and he was pretty jumpy. At one point, he sang, "Ruby, Ruby. Baby, Baby," but his eyes were closed and he went right back to sleep. Around 3:30 this morning he woke up singing Peter Frampton's "How Do You Feel?" and "Show Me the Way." He was in much better spirits! He looked around in the bed for his Clifford dog, but couldn't find it. When I gave it to him, he looked at Darin and said, "You take my 'Cwifford'? You stinker butt!" Darin and I were thrilled to see that our little guy had his sense of humor back! Jonathan stayed awake talking and singing for about an hour, and then went back to sleep until around 7 am, and his fever was back.
We made a follow-up appointment with Jonathan's pediatrician, and
took him in around 10:30. His fever had climbed to 105.6, and his heart
was racing again. He wouldn't take his medicine because he thought
that's what made him go to the hospital. (Earlier conversation:
"Jonathan, did you go to the hospital?" "Yes, I see fire engine."
"You're right, buddy. Did you see an ambulance, too?" "Yes." "Why did
you go to the hospital?" "'Cause Daddy gave me medicine."). In his
mind, medicine was "bad", so he got worked up when taking medicine and
threw up each time.
He fell asleep in our arms at the doctor's office, and his temperature went down to 103.4. His heartbeat also slowed down to 124 bpm, so he was improving and we were relieved! His doctor thinks that he has Roseola (read more about that here), and that he should be fever-free tomorrow evening.
Much of the day was spent watching "The Land Before Time" (two times), "Boz", "VeggieTales", and YouTube videos of Peter Frampton and Heart. He was not interested in playing until late this evening, but it took a lot out of him. We read a few books and then he decided to put himself to bed. He was still awake when my dad arrived, so he got up and ate half of a pretzel (Grandpa's special pretzels from the meat store!) and a small piece of cheese. He started falling asleep, so we put him back to bed and he went right to sleep.
Thanks for all of the prayers - we felt them! God's hand was in this, putting key people in the right place at the right time. We are so grateful that our little guy is feeling better. We're still reliving the nightmare in our minds, and it's very difficult to talk about right now.
We decided to take Jonathan to urgent care because his fever reached 105.4 and his heart was racing. We loaded him up in the car and weren't even a half mile down our street when Jonathan started having a seizure. His lips turned bluish-purple, his eyes rolled back in his head, his head flopped to the side, and he started drooling. By this time, Darin had stopped the car in the middle of our street and I was unbuckling Jonathan from his car seat. Darin ran to a neighbor's house to get someone to call 911, while I ran towards a car driving down the street to get help. By the grace of God, because there are no coincidences, a woman (in the medical field) answered her door and called 911 immediately. We ran inside her house and she let us lay him on the couch. Another neighbor, a nurse, ran inside and helped us get him out of his clothes and roll him on his side, as directed by the 911 operator. She also checked his pulse and made sure he was breathing. Thankfully, by this time, he was no longer seizing, and was sound asleep. (Apparently, seizures take a lot out of people.) Another neighbor arrived (a friend from church), and she called my sister for us, who then started the phone tree. Once the fire engine arrived, the sweet nurse waved good-bye and we never saw her again. His oxygen level and heart rate were checked. His heartbeat was about 134 bpm. Once the paramedics arrived, the decision was made to take him by ambulance to the hospital so that the doctors could check him out. I rode with Jonathan, and Darin drove our car.
Jonathan slept through much of the ride. He did look at me a few times, and he scowled at the paramedic when he called his name. His heartbeat climbed from 160 when we got into the ambulance to 173 bpm en route to the hospital.
When we arrived at the hospital, Jonathan was pretty out of it, but very calm. He just wanted to be held. His temperature was still over 105, so he was given Tylenol. The doctors and nurses were great, and they explained that because of the sudden spike in his fever, he had what is known as a Febrile Seizure. You can read more about that here.) We were there for a little over four hours. Jonathan slept some of the time, and watched a little television. He didn't say a word until "Bob the Builder" was mentioned. When he heard that, he said he wanted to go "upstairs" at Grandma Thomas' to watch it. We were surrounded by many loved ones, which made this nightmare a little more bearable. By the time we left the hospital, Jonathan's temperature was down to 99 - success!
Jonathan slept in our bed last night, and he was pretty jumpy. At one point, he sang, "Ruby, Ruby. Baby, Baby," but his eyes were closed and he went right back to sleep. Around 3:30 this morning he woke up singing Peter Frampton's "How Do You Feel?" and "Show Me the Way." He was in much better spirits! He looked around in the bed for his Clifford dog, but couldn't find it. When I gave it to him, he looked at Darin and said, "You take my 'Cwifford'? You stinker butt!" Darin and I were thrilled to see that our little guy had his sense of humor back! Jonathan stayed awake talking and singing for about an hour, and then went back to sleep until around 7 am, and his fever was back.
 |
| Fast asleep in the papasan chair with "Lil' Puppy" close by. |
He fell asleep in our arms at the doctor's office, and his temperature went down to 103.4. His heartbeat also slowed down to 124 bpm, so he was improving and we were relieved! His doctor thinks that he has Roseola (read more about that here), and that he should be fever-free tomorrow evening.
Much of the day was spent watching "The Land Before Time" (two times), "Boz", "VeggieTales", and YouTube videos of Peter Frampton and Heart. He was not interested in playing until late this evening, but it took a lot out of him. We read a few books and then he decided to put himself to bed. He was still awake when my dad arrived, so he got up and ate half of a pretzel (Grandpa's special pretzels from the meat store!) and a small piece of cheese. He started falling asleep, so we put him back to bed and he went right to sleep.
 |
| Watching "The Land Before Time" |
Thanks for all of the prayers - we felt them! God's hand was in this, putting key people in the right place at the right time. We are so grateful that our little guy is feeling better. We're still reliving the nightmare in our minds, and it's very difficult to talk about right now.
Sunday, April 15, 2012
Stork Part I
It will be three years ago on April 19th since we received the most incredible news...we were pregnant! We struggle with a variety of infertility issues, one of which is called Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS). You can read more about that here. I had to take Metformin and Progesterone to help regulate my cycles, and I also took Clomid to help conceive. Well, obviously, it worked!
I remember that day vividly. Darin and I had been told that it could take a few months to conceive while on Clomid, so we decided to start taking it right away, in hopes that we would get pregnant a few months down the road. Instead, the medicine worked right away! I wasn't feeling like myself and had skipped a period, so I decided to take a pregnancy test "just in case." I think I ended up taking 7 tests in two days because I was in shock
I remember that day vividly. Darin and I had been told that it could take a few months to conceive while on Clomid, so we decided to start taking it right away, in hopes that we would get pregnant a few months down the road. Instead, the medicine worked right away! I wasn't feeling like myself and had skipped a period, so I decided to take a pregnancy test "just in case." I think I ended up taking 7 tests in two days because I was in shock
That would be a "cha-ching" - POSITIVE!!!
Here's how I told Darin... While Darin
was upstairs hanging out with Quincy, our nephew, I took a pregnancy
test and took a moment to absorb the shock. Then I listened in the
doorway to make sure no one was coming, and ran to my closet to find
my stork stuffed animal. (I had told Darin a long time ago that my
signal for being pregnant would be a stork on his pillow.) After I
found the stork, I put him on Darin's pillow and took a few pictures.
Stork - the pregnancy bird
Then I waited (not so patiently) for Darin to come downstairs, and when he didn't come down right away, I yelled up for him, and he came down a few minutes later. He didn't notice the stork right away, and when he did, it took a moment for it to register. Then we hugged and sunk to the floor, staring at the pregnancy test. TOTAL SHOCK. We agreed not to tell anyone, but when I mentioned something to my sister, she guessed immediately. I'll admit, I tried to lie about it, but then I felt terrible and ended up calling her that evening to tell her she was right after all.
First Ultrasound!!!
He was so active - just running around!
Fortunately, my God is bigger than PCOS and infertility. Thank you, God, for blessing me with the most amazing son. Jonathan Daniel is full of life, laughter, and love. He already has a heart for You, Lord. He prays, makes prayer requests (tonight's prayer requests involved the "scary" monkey, "Toby" - the brown bear at the musuem, and "Paul" - the polar bear at the museum), sings praises, and lifts his hands to You as we sing praise songs at church. He ends each evening reading his Bible, and he especially loves the stories about Jonah and Samson.
This is the life verse that we chose for Jonathan:
"I prayed for this child, and the LORD has granted me what I asked of Him. So now I give him to the LORD. For his whole life he will be given over to the LORD."
~1 Samuel 1:27-28
We started talking about another child over a year ago, and after a doctor's visit last summer, we were cleared to start trying again. We used Clomid last summer/fall, to no avail. After some minor medical issues in February, we were told to wait another 6 weeks before trying again. Well, we are officially taking medicine again (Metformin, Progesterone, Clomid). Please pray for us as we once again pray for the miracle of a biological child, as we wait upon the Lord to bring about the miracle of adoption.
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Life Lately
Spring Break has been over for a week, and I'm officially back at school working hard to prepare my students for the Ohio Achievement Assessments (joy!). Only 37 days left in the school year (if the students counted correctly...I certainly didn't double-check). I am looking forward to spending the summer with Jonathan and have already planned many summer activities (Parky's Farm, Miami Whitewater, Movers and Shakers classes at the local library, swimming at the family pool, etc.). Although my dream of being a stay-at-home mom cannot be fulfilled at this time, I certainly have the best job because I get so many breaks from school!
Here's a glimpse of "life lately", including some Easter pictures. Enjoy!
Here's a glimpse of "life lately", including some Easter pictures. Enjoy!
Playing at an indoor park during Spring Break.
Favorite picture of the month!
Jonathan and Grandma Jeank!
Best Buddies.
All of the grandkids, plus my sisters.
Daddy helped Jonathan find Easter eggs.
Checking out the loot.
One happy kid. Could life be any better?
Cousins.
Balancing his winning egg on a spoon.
I love my big brother. He won't admit it, but I think we look alike. :O)
Quincy and me - he's awesome!
This picture is truly worth a thousand words. I love my dad.
Sunday, April 8, 2012
He is Risen!
"He is risen He is risen
And He lives forevermore
He is risen He is risen
Come on and celebrate
The resurrection of our Lord!"
And He lives forevermore
He is risen He is risen
Come on and celebrate
The resurrection of our Lord!"
I love celebrating Easter. You know, the REAL Easter. The Easter that reminds me of Christ's life, death, burial, and resurrection. I love sharing Jesus with my son, remembering Christ's sacrifice on Good Friday, and celebrating his resurrection on Easter Sunday with my church family. Don't get me wrong; I love the traditions that involve going on Easter egg hunts, dyeing eggs, and getting goodies in an Easter basket. However, I think that Easter, like Christmas, has become too commercialized. Many non-Christians celebrate Easter by doing all of the fun things, but they leave out the key element: Jesus, and instead replace Him with the Easter Bunny.
On this Easter Sunday, I enjoyed spending the morning with Jonathan and preparing him for church by talking about Jesus...much like other Sundays...but this time stressing more so that this Sunday Jesus rose from the grave. Now, I'm sure Jonathan, in his two-year-old-mind doesn't quite understand everything I say, but I truly believe in teaching him as much as I can so that he can grasp bits and pieces. And believe me, he is. He loves to read his Bible and can share about Biblical characters and stories, especially Samson and Jonah! Sometimes he can't seem to get enough of his Bible and wants to read dozens of stories before bedtime. I long for the faith and dedication of my sweet child.
Saturday, April 7, 2012
My Family
My husband, Darin, and I married nearly six and half years ago. Believe me, it has been quite a journey of love and patience as we have worked to blend our lives together. We have an adorable son, Jonathan, who is almost two and a half and is currently in the potty-training stages! We are deeply committed to Christ and are actively involved in our church, where Darin is the Worship and Programming Minister. I hope you'll join me as I share the joys of my family's journey...wherever God may lead us!
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