Ten on Tuesday

1. It is finally warming up here. Yesterday it was almost 60 and is to remain in the 50's for the foreseeable future! I'm ready for Spring!
2. I recently tried the, shamrock shake from McDonald's. It's only brought out in the month of March and a fan favorite...except for me, I wasn't a fan. Maybe the crew member didn't make it right?!
3. What I am a fan of though is the Snickers Frappe from Starbucks! Its a Java Chip with 2 shots of toffee nut, caramel in the cup and caramel drizzle-yum!
4. Saturday, my newbie is going to be 3 months old? How? Where did that time go???
5. I would post a pic; but haven't watermarked any recently. And yes the pic would normally go here!
6. We are now a 2 car family! So happy and thankful! We were able to purchase a 2007 Buick Rendezvous, bucket seats in the middle and a 3rd row seat! Much roomier for our family than our Jeep and I feel so much safer now that the kids aren't literally crammed in.
7. Klayton has now lost a total of 5 teeth...crazy kid. I owe it to the fact that he was an early teether. Hoping his permanent teeth come in stronger.
8. Justus is getting his words-slowly; but surely they are coming! My guys are just late talkers and that is okay!
9. Speaking of Justus, he has become quite the climber. This is a new experience for me and I can safely say it makes me slightly nervous.
10. Tomorrow, I PROMISE to be back with a Wordless Wednesday picture!
Happy Tuesday!

How I Know I'm a Boy Mom (Ten on Tuesday)

1. My teaspoons and tablespoons are used as toy guns.
2. If someone passes gas the sound it makes is hilarious and draws laughs from the littlest guy.
3. I know who all the superheroes are.
4. There is constant dribble on the toilet seat.
5. Even I know that if there is a totally awesome sports car in the store parking lot that I should park next to it. Even if it is the furthest spot from the front entrance.
6. We go to stores with toy guns and rocks in our pockets.
7. I can usually find one of three items in each room a ball, car or a toy gun.
8. When I have a great hair day no one notices.
9. Our seasons are defined by football, basketball, baseball and golf.
10. Even after grocery shopping there is still not enough food in the house.

Kolton's Birth Story

December 12th, 2015 was the long awaited day to welcome our surprise baby-baby #3! A few weeks back it was decided that I would be induced because of the gestational diabetes and I decided that if induction was how things were going to go that I wanted my doctor to be delivering the baby. That is why, I was induced on a Saturday and it seems crazy to people that inductions can happen on a Saturday; but they can when your doctor is on call! I am also grateful that I went ahead with induction, because about two weeks before delivery day I really started to struggle with fear and anxiety over delivering another baby. Now, I admit that I always get nervous, because lets be real-delivering a baby is no walk in the park…it is one of the most painful experiences of my life yet amazing experiences that I have done twice before. But, this time the fear was a new feeling that I was experiencing-I didn’t like it, this wasn’t my typical self. I spoke with my doctor about it at my last appointment before induction and I cried about it with my husband. I just kept praying that when 9 a.m came on Saturday that I could put the fear aside and put my game face on.

Saturday came and I actually woke up feeling rested! I enjoyed a light breakfast and just focused on keeping myself busy after a mini meltdown with my husband. I was able to keep my composure pretty well until it was time to say goodbye to my boys. I just couldn't get over the fact that the next time I saw them I would be holding baby #3 in my arms.
I was thankful that as soon as I arrived to my hospital room that the nurses were quick to get me settled in and ready for the day before my doctor came to see where we were at. I had only been 1/2 a fingertip dilated for that two weeks prior and my doctor wanted me to be at a 2 so he could simply break my water. I was hopeful. Unfortunately, while yes I had progressed more it was very slight-I was almost a fingertip. This was not how we wanted to start the day. My doctor gave me 50 grams of cytotec in an effort to get things moving and get baby to descend with contractions. After receiving the cytotec I had to stay in bed for 30 minutes to have baby monitored and then the walking began. We lapped the labor and delivery floor a gazillion times-or so it felt. At 2:40 my doctor decided to check me and I was barely at a 2 and baby was still high. My doctor decided to go ahead and break my water as he left his fingers inside me to make sure the cord didn’t drop first. I had a lot of fluid, just like I did with Justus-I filled 5 chug bags and gushed through to my mattress and with that came instant back labor. Oh what joy that was! Thankfully, I had the use of the whirlpool and was allowed to labor in there-a new experience for me I had never been allowed to do that with my other two boys. I could feel the contractions getting stronger; but the use of the tub took the edge off. I just knew I was progressing.

At 6:30 my nurse took me out of the tub to monitor baby for a bit and check my progression…Joseph and I were pretty sure that I had to at least be dilated to a 6 because that is when I usually start to really feel the contractions. My doctor checked me and I was only at a 4 and 80% thinned. I immediately vocalized how ridiculous this was and was unsure of how I was going to handle the 6 centimeters I had to go…it really felt like I was in hard labor already. I asked to get back into the tub after a few minutes of monitoring because the contractions were feeling intense. My nurse Beth, told me no that with how the contractions were going that she thought it could be soon and told me that things could be drastically different in a matter of 30 minutes. That annoyed me because I couldn’t see how that would be possible. At a few minutes before 7 my doctor came in, without being called and said it appeared it was delivery time. Um, really? I couldn’t believe it. But, then I had to push! Apparently, my doctor is a doctor for a reason-he knows more than me! Ha!

At 7:00 I started pushing and at 7:10 Kolton Miles made his debut into our world! This was the best job I have done with pushing a baby out, I always stink at that; but my doctor was awesome and encouraged me between pushes with awesome instructions that I could follow. I felt proud of my “pushing job” and with popped blood vessels I just look at them as marks of being a good pusher! This was also the first baby I didn’t have any tears with, but I assumed it was because he was SO tiny. I couldn’t get over how tiny he was-he looked smaller than Justus was at birth. I asked for them to weigh him because I couldn’t wait to see how tiny he would weigh…was I in for a surprise when I discovered he was my fattest baby and shortest baby weighing in at 8 lbs 5 oz and measuring 20 inches long. We still can't believe his size!

In spite of labor taking forever, there were no issues. I felt silly for being so fearful and I was also grateful for a successful delivery. However, about 11 that night the nurse decided it was a good time to give Kolton his first bath and his first mohawk! Holli (the nurse) and I were laughing at how even only being a few hours old he could already pass for a baby with an attitude. She laid him on the bassinet and was getting ready to dress him when he suddenly started to roll over. I would like to say it was because I birthed an advanced baby; but it was because his body stiffened up and he stopped breathing. She called for help and I took myself out of the room. He struggled to breath for 5 minutes and once it was under control they took him to the nursery for observation and to run labs and tests to see if they could find the root cause of the episode. They could find nothing, chest x-rays looked perfect…the initial blood work came back fine. The pediatrician was baffled. The following morning when my doctor arrived for his rounds he was surprised to see us sitting in the nursery with our baby hooked up to monitors. He went over the labor and delivery notes and looked over it all to see if he missed something; but once again it was a “textbook” birth. At the 24 hour mark some blood cultures came back positive for some sort of skin contamination; but the pediatrician reordered that test because he didn’t believe it. However, until the results were received we had to put Kolton on antibiotics and he was unable to be released. Those results came back negative and on Tuesday we were able to be released from the hospital! Kolton hasn’t had any episodes since and no signs of problems since, it continues to remain an unexplained mystery. Or just maybe it was God working?

10 on Tuesday

1. I really am back to blogging; but I have slacked in disappointment because my watermark program is giving me issues.
I love to use photos on my blog, so trying to figure out that little bug.
2. The last couple of weeks have been super busy and it has been hard keeping up with everything.
3. Found out that we will be meeting Kolton on 12-12-15, unless he decides to make his appearance sooner. Though, I am not counting on that as my boys don't believe in being early.
4. Slowly getting my Thanksgiving dinner menu planned for my little family.
5. Klayton had his first earache last Friday and I discovered those come fast and suddenly. So grateful for an excellent hospital and walk-in clinic! Awesome doctors and nurses!
6. On Friday evening, Klayton came to me in my room and said, "Mom, thanks for taking care of me today to get me better-you did a good job!" I may or may not have teared up a little bit. Those moments make up for hard days.
7. Since learning that Kolton will be here in basically 5 weeks, I am in major nesting mode. I can't wait to tackle the boys room tomorrow. Yes, I realize it will only stay clean for about 5 minutes.
8. I am so grateful for my husband. He works hard and does his best to provide for our family. I know he would prefer not to work a secular job; but he does to provide for his family.
9. Last week I received a phone call that Klayton won a prize from the fall festival that the local police station hosted. I was SO excited and decided to walk there with the boys after the receptionist stated it was only a couple of blocks away. About 1/2 way on our walk, I realized it was more than 2 blocks and checked my phone GPS. The station was 1.2 miles from our apartment. We decided to keep walking-after all we were just SO excited! When we arrived I learned that BOTH boys had actually won a prize. And the prize Justus won was quite large...lets just say I am sure we looked like quite a sight walking home. Two boys, a pregnant woman pushing an umbrella stroller and me trying to balance a big box on top of the stroller as we walked home. The whole journey from start to finish lasted about 2 hours...we were exhausted.
10. Well, Tuesday is almost over. I hope your day was well and that you all have a great rest of the week.

29 Weeks-Surprise Baby

To celebrate 29 weeks I did my one hour glucose test and failed. Fun times? Blah. I had gestational diabetes with Justus and kind of expected to fail it this time. Apparently, I'm not an optimist! I failed it by 30 points and after talking with my doctor I requested to forego the 3 hour test and treat the remaining time of my pregnancy as if I have GD. I am really not enthused with the idea of 4 blood draws for the 3 hour test and I know my diet has been terrible this pregnancy. So, welcome to life with 4 pokes a day!

Total weight gain/loss: 13 lbs gained. Expecting with a diet change that will drop.
How much does baby weigh?
Maternity Clothes? Yep; but I admit I am also wearing some regular clothes!
Stretch marks? I haven't noticed them? Mmm...I'm sure they are there.
Sleep? I am already uncomfortable at night. So yeah,sleep isn't my greatest success.
Best Moment this week? Hearing his heart beat! It was ranging from 160-172 thanks to finishing my glucose drink!
Food cravings? Nothing right now. I really haven't had many cravings this pregnancy.
Food aversions? None right now. The only thing that has sickened me this entire pregnancy is Taco Bell.
Pregnancy Symptoms: Exhaustion. Back aches. Uncomfortable.
Gender: Boy-Kolton Miles.
Labor signs? Nope and hopefully won't have any anytime soon.
Belly button in or out? In.
What I miss? Nothing yet.
What I am looking forward to? 30 weeks because then I will really feel as if I am on the downward slope.
Milestones? Made it to the 3rd trimester!

Ten on Tuesday-Bring You Up to Speed

1. We are now living in Wisconsin and have been here for almost a month! We are loving it.
2. Justus is now 16 months!

3. Klayton is getting ready to celebrate his 5th birthday and is in pre-K!

4. I am 28 weeks pregnant! And I "get" to do my glucose test on Friday.

5. We are excited to meet this little guy in December.

6. Klayton has lost 2 teeth while Justus is getting 2 new teeth.
7. Thursday my hubs will celebrate his 36th birthday. Upward swing to 40-he's getting old.
8. A little laugh for this Tuesday, courtesy of Klayton! My mom had a deer in her garden that she told Klayton about. He told her that he needs to get his gun (don't worry he doesn't have a real one) and come shoot. She asked him, "why? are you going to eat it?" His reply, "I don't like deer meat-I like people meat!"
9. God gave those little children to you, Mama-to you. No one else can mother them like you can. You may have your work cut out for you, but you're the one cut out to accomplish it.
10. Have a Happy Tuesday and I am promising to be back this week!

Baby #3 Reveal and Brotherly Dismay

It's another boy-Kolton Miles.

I am NEVER good at predicting baby gender...even my own baby's gender. With Klayton I thought girl up until about two weeks prior to the ultra sound telling us, boy. With Justus, I thought girl because my pregnancy was so different than it was with Klayton. When we left after finding out it was another boy, I felt so guilty. BUT, this time my gut instinct knew. I did waver once..at 11 weeks the heart rate was 172 and I thought maybe a girl. Then I went in for a dating ultrasound and the heart beat was lower and my instincts were back to boy and never strayed again.
Klayton, really wanted a sister this time. He told everyone he was getting a sister and I would tell him that it might be a boy. He would then speak to my belly:

"Baby are you a girl or boy?
He would then proceed to put his ear to my belly and "listen" for a moment.
You are STILL a girl! Ok!"
He would smile at me and run off to continue doing whatever it is boys do.

Since I was so convinced that it was another boy, Joseph and I began to have more conversations with him to prepare him for the gender reveal if my instincts were indeed correct.
The week prior to the ultrasound he informed me daily,

"Mom, I only like Justus and girl babies!"
or
"Mom, if its a boy I won't like it."

"Mom, if its a boy I will be mad/sad."

Then the kicker came the night before the ultrasound during our nightly prayer time.

Jesus, if its a boy baby please change it to a girl before morning."

Now, taking it to the Lord-that is some serious business!

My ultrasound took forever-a student did it-which I don't mind-USUALLY! I have had students in the past; but when you are impatiently and anxiously waiting to see who baby is...well, just, ugh. Finally, after about 40 minutes of her looking around and not even peeking at where "the goods" were the regular technician came in and our little baby #3 was quick to reveal my instincts were indeed correct! Another boy.

We went to the ultrasound as a family and as we left we kept an eye on Klayton to see how he was reacting. He seemed fine. So, maybe he didn't realize it was a boy and we would take him to McDonalds to gently break the news! You can never go wrong with "Donalds" as he calls it. But, as I organized my stuff in the waiting room we realized he did hear and he was not happy. Klayton did not want to tell anybody that he was having another brother. Later that afternoon, Joseph told him that we need to be thankful for another brother to help protect mommy and that we needed to say, thank you Jesus.

Klayton's reply,
"I will not say thank you Jesus for a boy."

Joseph and I decided not to rebuke him for his feelings and for expressing them. We knew he was honestly disappointed; but we also knew that in time he would come around. We didn't want to make it worse and I knew not to let the comments bother me. We just remained excited and continued to show Klayton we were thankful and excited for another boy. Within a day we could see that he was coming around as he liked to tell people the baby's name-Kolton Miles.

I truly am excited that I have the label "boy mom"! I was not disappointed to discover ANOTHER BOY. I let everyone else be disappointed for me! Haha! I am excited that God has seen fit to let me attempt to raise a few good men for Him and to guide their lives to serve Him and please Him.

Most of the time when people learn its another boy-they say, "maybe next time you will get your girl!" I know they are well intended; but I don't need a next time to try and get what I want. God wants me to have 3 BOYS and thats what I want! The other day though someone asked me what this baby is and I shared that its another boy and her reply was, "wow, what a blessing you GET to have ALL boys-you are blessed!"

Blessed. I am definitely blessed.

I'm Back and I Have News

Yes, its been 5 months of silence. I think about this blog often and how I miss it. SO, TODAY, I am back to share some pretty important news with you!

April 21st, was welcomed early and with me sick to my stomach. Not the most pleasant start. But, with a weeks worth of naps and two days of nausea I knew something had to be done. So, yep, I opened the pregnancy test that I had bought the day before.
Before I could even set the test down to wait for the result a plus sign appeared. Normally, I hyperventilate right on the spot; but in my heart of hearts I already knew what the test had only confirmed.
We had not been trying for another baby, it doesn't happen easily for us. I had been selling ALL my baby items as Justus had outgrown them. Saying, this is a surprise is quite the understatement of the year. However, with the shock came excitement and happiness to prepare for a baby come this December! I am also still in belief that I will have two babies under the age of 2! Yes, we are crazy; but God knows what He is doing and His surprises are some of the best!

Justus-11 Months

Justus, you are 11 months!

One month away from being ONE...

YOU:
*Wear 9 month and 12 month clothes.
*Wear size 3 diapers.
*Weigh in at 18.4 lbs. Yes, I did have to include the ounces and not round it down or up!
*Are working on finger foods.
*Still not keen on veggies, you will eat them mixed with fruit.
*Scoot around on your bottom.
*Still no interest in crawling, though you are getting restless.
*Hate tummy time...I think this will be a life long hate.
*Love being outside.
*You have a short quick scream of sorts to get our attention.
*Love to use your hands.
*Clap.
*Wave.
*Found out you get to be a big brother. Wow.
*Love bath time.
*Know how to go backwards in your walker.
*Have 3 bottom teeth and evidence of 2 that could be on their way on top.
*Mama's boy all the way.
*Love apple/blueberry and cherry/blueberry.
*Sleeping through the night except for an occasional rough teething night.
*Have a fascination with peoples faces.
*Love to dance, or shake yourself up and down its so cute.
*Have decided that you are not to fond of naps anymore unless they are in mommy's hands. This has been a rough battle.

Oh, My Justus,
Last year I was so anxious for your arrival and now I am so sad as we approach your birthday. The time has just flown by. You are not so tiny anymore, you are my chunk! Thank you for being my boy. Thank you for always wanting me. Even on the days that I am like you need to just let Daddy or someone else deal with you so I can get things done, I am secretly deep down smiling that you only have eyes for me. I am going to enjoy these last days of baby life and I am going to look excitedly to more milestones with you. I love you and I am so glad that you are my guy!
Love, Mama

Resurrection Day

It is finished, the battle is over
It is finished, there'll be no more war
It is finished, the end of the conflict
It is finished and Jesus it Lord!"

Thankful for my Lord who paid the penalty for my sin and did the work I could not do!