For the love of Ice and Dr Pepper!

As much as I'd like to blog about what a *insert your choice word here, mine would be idiot* President Obama is, I am going to refrain. All I can say is this country needs prayer. Where we're headed I dont think we can even imagine at this point in time. With whats happened in the first month of his Presidency I can not imagine where we'll be 3 years in to this awful mess!
And now...moving on.....
Well, we've made it through another week! Ive been feeling really tired this week and Im wondering if my anemia is coming back. When they drew my blood at the beginning of this pregnancy the Dr said all my numbers were great. I was a bit surprised but thats great since my last two pregnancies Ive been anemic. Other than major fatigue the big sign that clues me in to my iron level is my NEED for ice!! Sonic ice to be specific! I only ever crave it while I'm pregnant and my iron is low. And when I say crave I mean I buy bags of Sonic ice and it only takes a matter of days to devour it! Its actually a disorder (for lack of a better term) called Pica. Pica is a craving for something non-food I guess. Anyways, ice falls into the Pica category, even though it is edible. The Dr who delivered Ava told me what it was called and said I should be thankful Im only craving ice. He said some women, like in the backwoods of Tennessee and Arkansas crave dirt! Can you imagine?!?! So anyways, the past few days along with feeling really tired again Ive started dreaming about Sonic ice. Oh the thought makes me want some right now! And the closest Sonic is at least 20 mins away!!! Oh well....I need to move on :)
Im ending day 3 of NO Dr Pepper (or any cokes for that matter). This is a big thing for me. Let me rephrase that...this is HUGE for me. I am majorly addicted to Dr Pepper. So, even though Derek and I have never been apart of a church that practiced Lent we decided a couple of years ago that we would give something up every year. Its a good time of reflection and a good time of drawing strength from the Lord to overcome the urge for whatever we've given up. Every year we give up cokes. :) And I am NEVER successful. :( But this year I hope to be successful and go the entire 40 days (and hopefully beyond) Dr Pepper free. It might sound kinda silly but the past few days as Ive craved a DP or gotten in a mood where I "needed" a DP Ive prayed instead. Ive continually told myself I CAN do all things through Christ who strengthens me!!! That might sound silly to some to have to draw strength from the Lord to fight a coke (that would be soda or pop for you northerners!) addiction but trust me I need His strength here! And, of course, so far its worked! Ive even prayed about my moods and not being grumpy with the girls while Im going through the caffeine withdraws. It actually hasnt been that bad. I did get a caffeine headache last night but it wasnt nearly as bad as ones Ive had in the past. So, pray for us as we go through these next 37 days until Easter. I will succeed this time!!!

My Sweet Girls

Last Friday we took advantage of the wonderful weather and met some friends at the park. This was Audrey first real time to get to "play". The days of sitting content in her stroller watching and not insisting on running around are over. At least theyve lasted this long! Now, when we go fun places we get to chase her :)

These next 3 are completely off center and unedited. I took them while we were driving so thats why theyre so off center. I didnt feel like editing them before I posted them on here.

Halfway there!

Well here I am....1 day away from being halfway through with this pregnancy. I really can't believe it. To think a year ago we were only wondering when the Lord would choose to bless us with another baby and here we are...expecting our first boy! This whole pregnancy is really exciting for us because we know everything is God ordained. We prayed that the Lord would bless us with another baby in HIS timing. Then we prayed (yes selfishly) for a boy. And now my last prayer, (other than a healthy baby of course!) is for a successful VBA3C. (Vaginal Birth After 3 C-sections)
After having such an awful recovery from my c/s with Audrey I really started looking into VBACs. Prior to this I was very *brainwashed* into thinking once a c/s always a c/s. I have big babies and Im a small person, it didnt "work" the first time so it never will. What a lie from the pit of Hell honestly! I came to the realization (duh) that as women God designed our bodies to birth babies! Now, there are circumstances that c/s are medically necessary, so those are not what Im referring to. Im talking about the c/s done day after day that are for the convenience of the Dr or even the mom. The c/s that are done bc the mom is told she "cant" have the baby on her own....for whatever reason the Dr can come up with. Women are scared into these c-sections, thinking that if they dont follow the commands of the all-knowing Dr that they are somehow bad moms. Or the c/s done bc they (like me) thought they couldn't have a baby vaginally bc they were induced when their body wasnt ready to birth that baby.
So, on my journey of educating myself on this issue I discovered some very startling things. First, I was surprised to find out that studies have proven that the risk of uterine rupture during a VBAC is only .7%. The risk after multiple c/s only rises to .9% chance of uterine rupture. That means that you have a less than 1% chance of that happening with a VBAC. (Or as my Dr put it, you have a 99.1% to a 99.3% chance of having a successful VBAC without uterine rupture!) So why on earth do Drs and other sources spread the lie that the risk is soooo great. That by attempting a VBAC you're possibly taking your life and the babies life in your own hands. That you're a selfish mother/woman for trying the natural way other than the surgical way. Hmm....I would say to add that to the books on the powers of the almighty dollar, if you ask me. (And since youre reading my blog you get my opinion :) ) The risks with having a c/s actually outweigh the risks with having a VBAC. So, I just dont understand why most Drs wont even allow their patients to have, or attempt, VBACs.
Once we found out we were expecting I began my search for a VBAC friendly Dr. First I thought my only option would be to find a midwife. Since we live so far out in the country, away from a decent hospital, I knew I didnt want a homebirth. I dont think I could live with myself if I fell into that less than 1% of women who have uterine rupture and I was an hour away from a good hospital. So, I searched for a midwife with a birthing center. The 2 that were even halfway close wouldnt accept me as a patient. After 3 c/s they didnt want to take the risks *read: liability*. One I talked to referred me to 2 Drs in the Dallas area who preform VBACs. I felt something in my spirit lead me to call one over the other. Then, I posted on one of my yahoo groups and asked about a VBAC friendly Dr. This same Drs name came up and was talked extremely highly of. Then the icing on the cake was talking to a friend I used to go to church with who went through midwifery (sp??) school. She also shared this same Drs name with me. So....I figured I had found my Dr! The only problem was he was an hour and a half away! I went ahead and made the appt and at the first appt was convinced I was in the right place with the right Dr. Despite the drive. Turns out this Dr is an awesome Man of God whose faith directs him through these VBAC births. I feel so blessed to have been led to him and every appt I am so encouraged about the outcome of this birth!!!
I guess in the end I just felt like I was missing out on a big piece of bringing life into the world by not getting to experience a normal vaginal birth. So now, we are praying that God allows us to experience the birth of our first son the way He intended life to enter the world!
So, halfway through this pregnancy I am so excited about every pain and uncomfortable sensation (well ok, Im trying to be!) I feel bc I know in the end we will see an awesome picture of the hand of God working in every area of this prenancy.

Picture overload!

Here are the promised sono pics and some of the girls. Enjoy :)

Its DEFINITELY a boy!!!! YAY!!!!!

Sweet little profile pic

He's raising his arm saying "Yeah!! Im a boy!!" Or as my friend Crystal said...looks like hes rockin out! :)

Getting ready to go to a Valentines Day party.

Almost the same pic as above but the face Audrey has is just so classic! She makes this sweet face all the time!

Super Ava

Sweet little Audrey. I love this picture. She was so pleased her sister let her hold the Valentines card box. She didnt want to let it go!

IT'S A............................

BOY!!!!!!!!

That's right...I'm growin' an Owen!!!

I'll post the sono pics later :)

You will gain life

Lately Ive been worrying alot (Im sure too much) about everything going on with our govt and whatnot. There's fear of losing our freedoms as Americans and as Christians. With issues being snuck into bills that could threaten our way of life as Christians here in America, I can't help but worry. With the news out recently that the UN Convention on the Rights of a Child is being urged to be pushed through Im out and out scared for our future. What does the future hold for our families and the raising of our children? But, as a Christian I'm told not to worry....numerous times in fact. This is easier read than practiced Im afraid. How wonderful to serve the God I do!

It seems as though we're getting closer and closer to the end. But as a Christian the end is actually the beginning for us. I have such a hope in my future that while the world seems to be falling apart and turning upside down all around me....I have been given hope! While I relish the hope we've been given through Jesus, my flesh is afraid. We've been given some insight through scripture what the end of this world will be like. Scary stuff! But I know I have not been given a spirit of fear. I try and remember the 1st century church and the awful things they endured while refusing to deny their faith. Is our future on this earth similar to that of the first church and the countless others who lost their lives due to their unyielding faith in past centuries? Will my family and I have a strong enough faith to withstand what might happen if we dont deny our faith?

All these thoughts have been rushing through my head lately. Where do we draw the line and stop fighting against what is bound to happen? But then I am reminded had the church of America stood up for truth in the past 50 or so odd years we might not be as far gone in America as we are today. Not having as many battles to fight for truth as we're faced with right now. So, if we still have generations left on this earth....shouldn't we be fighting tooth and nail to save what is left of Truth in our country and world? Surely we cant just throw in the towel now and let the future suffer for our lack of opposition and willingness to stand for what is right. Right??

Where is the balance though? Where do we say enough is enough...I cant be consumed with this anymore? Where is the balance between being wise to prepare for what is inevitable and over reacting?

I see part of the Church with their eyes wide open, seeing the future for what it is. Preparing our lives (spiritually and physically) for it. Then...there is this other half, still sleeping. Eyes shut tight and not wanting to acknowledge what is obviously taking place right before us. Or, worse yet....encouraging, accepting and being "tolerant" of the evil that is seeping in. Im reminded of the Parable of the Ten Virgins. Some were ready for the bridegroom, others were not. The ones who had prepared ahead of time got to enjoy their bridegroom while the ones who didn't prepare were shut out and excluded. While this talks of salvation I can't help but wonder if it means preparation in other ways as well.

All of that to say that I have been in need of peace about all this. As I was reading my Bible tonight I ran across Luke 21:8-19.

8He replied: "Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am he,' and, 'The time is near.' Do not follow them. 9When you hear of wars and revolutions, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away."
10Then he said to them: "Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 11There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven.
12"But before all this, they will lay hands on you and persecute you. They will deliver you to synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors, and all on account of my name. 13This will result in your being witnesses to them. 14But make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves. 15For I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict. 16You will be betrayed even by parents, brothers, relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death. 17All men will hate you because of me. 18But not a hair of your head will perish. 19By standing firm you will gain life.

WOW. What a wonderful hope we have. While the end can seem so scary, and so near, we are told not to worry! When I wonder what I would do if worse came to worse and I were to be faced with denying my faith I am told HE will give me words and wisdom! Some will die and we WILL be hated (we see this already starting to happen because of our faith and stance for Truth?) because of our following Jesus but WE WILL NOT PERISH! We wont die!!!! By standing firm we will gain life!!

Thank you Jesus!

What nonsense!

I was reading another blog I follow and she posted a link to this article.
What nonsense!!!!!!! We (Derek and I) have some pretty strong convictions when it comes to our family size (and birth control...or lack thereof) so I know we're not the "norm" even among Christian families. But give me a break!!!! Our world is NOT overpopulated! Countries like Germany, Italy and Sweden are dying populations. The only reason those populations will survive at all with their current birthrates are because of the (muslim) immigrants. (Thats a whole other can of worms....SCARY!!!) Its only going to take 3 generations from now....THREE, for Germans to be the minority in Germany. In other words, in 3 generations Germany will be a muslim populated country out numbering true Germans something like 6 to 1.
Ohhh how I wish I could get into this topic. I guess I will a little bit :)
Can you imagine what the world is going to be like with the muslim population taking over most of Europe. Theyre having, on average, 6 children per family to the less than 2 children per family most European families have. The Europeans cant even maintain their population rate, much less grow it, with birth rates that low. Countries like Italy and Japan (yes I realize thats not a Euro nation) are actually paying their citizens to have children bc their population is a rapidly aging one. Japan is sending workers home early in hopes theyll have sex to help along their population problem. Read this! Italy offers hefty incentives to have MORE children bc their population is aging so quickly. And they still cant get people to have more kids!
Although I cant say I blame most of Europe. I dont know I would want to be raising my kids in a country that has ratified the UN Rights of a Child either.
If you really think our population is out of control I suggest you watch Demographic Winter if you want the truth about our worlds population. It used to be on google videos to watch for free, but I cant find it there anymore. You can search youtube but you mostly get the trailers. Anyways, what a bunch of nonsense it is to try and tell us our world is overpopulated!!!!
I'll just continue to trust and obey God when He told us to "be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth".

The week in review

I dont know why I haven't posted in the past week. Theres been many "blog-worthy" things to post about. Lets see....where to start.

Well, a week ago either Weds or Thursday night we decided to night wean Audrey. (Finally!) Actually it wasn't such a conscious decision but just kinda happened. I had a really bad cold Weds and was very achy so Derek delt with her every time she woke up in the middle of the night that night. She actually did ok and didnt give him too hard of a time not getting to nurse. So, we thought...we should continue this. The second night she did just fine too. She only fussed a little when he would pick her up and tell her mommy wasnt gonna feed her. She whined but eventually took the paci. By the third night she was only waking like 2 times!!!! Now, this may seem like a lot to some people. I always have to laugh inside when people complain about their 3 or 4 month old waking up once a night. Im thinking I have a 15 month old who still wakes up, on average, about 5 times a night. Anyways, I cant tell you how good I started feeling. It was amazing the difference I felt!!! By the end of last week she was down to either just waking once and Thursday night she SLEPT THROUGH THE NIGHT!!!!! I rolled over and looked at the clock and it said 5:45.....I was like omgosh! I nudged Derek and said "look at the clock...now look at the bed...its empty!!!!!!" I could hardly contain myself, lol. I cant believe we've waited this long to night wean...considering how easy it was!

Friday night the girls went to a "real" babysitter for the first time. Theyve only ever been watched by family or really close family friends (Crystal and Shannon). Well, we wanted to go to dinner with my parents, kids free, so we asked some girls from our homeschool group and church to babysit. They do it at their house, so their mom is there to supervise....just in case. They have 2 younger sisters, one a year older than Ava (and in Ava's Sunday school class and co-op classes at our homeschool group) and the other a year older than Elisa (and in Elisa's class during our Bible study class) so that was an added bonus. The girls had soooooooooo much fun. It was more of a playdate for them then going to a babysitters house, lol. Audrey seemed to do great too. She had 2 young teenage girls playing with her the whole time, so I dont know how she couldnt have! Anyways, it was just overall a great success, and blessing!

We (FINALLY!!!!) got a new digital camera!!!! Now I can start documenting life again. And posting for everyone to see!!! Saturday I finally found some maternity jeans that fit decently, so that is GREAT! I got 2 new maternity skirts too....which Im excited to wear once the weather warms up!

Another great thing was that God totally showed Himself faithful about something I had been praying about. I dont want to get into it but the answer was very obvious and just reminded me how much He really does love and care about us!!!!!

I guess I should post some pictures :)

Tuesday/Weds we had an ice storm. This was one of those mornings. It was pretty creepy looking. All the trees were iced and there was major fog.

Random picture of the girls. Ignore the messy table.

We never buy chips or junk food for the most part around here. My mom sent these chips home with us one day. Audrey and I had been snacking on them while Elisa and Ava played upstairs. I told Audrey they were all gone and to go throw the can away. She walked it to the trash can but had her own plans. This is what I found..... The camera doesn't do it justice. There were chip crumbs everywhere. She was determined to get every crumb possible out of that can!

This is my toothless girl. She has lost 3 top teeth since the begining of Dec. The last 2 were about a week too late for her to sing "All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth". Too bad, would have been cute!

Here is Ava's silly face. Notice the red ring around her mouth? Its her kool-ade ring. But...we dont drink kool-ade around here. Shes been licking her lips and now we're waiting for her to stop and for this ring to go away!!

And here is a picture of me at 17 weeks 1 day. Im making a crazy face :)