Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Happy Birthday, Carsten!!

Little man's birth story:

8lbs 15oz
21 inches
12:33pm

It's the early morning of April 22nd...induction day! Of course I didn't get any sleep the night before(or the previous 6 months!)because I couldn't wait to meet little man & because I was extremely uncomfortable at this point! I gave up trying to get any sleep at about 3am & got my big belly out of bed & put on makeup for the big day;-) We were to be at the hospital at 5:30am to check in. By the time we got checked in, got to our room & got hooked up to IVs, it was about 6:30am. Since Cruz's labor was a short & sweet 4hrs, I was fully expecting to be done around 10:30am so I could eat pancakes...lol;-) After my doctor came in & broke my water around 8:30am, things were going really smooth & fast...UNTIL I got to 9cm. I was stuck at a 9 forever. The nurses would have me lay on my right side, then my left side, then with my knee bent at a 45 degree angle while singing "The Star Spangled Banner"...not really the singing part, but it seems like they tried everything in between to make me progress to a 10. It was now about 11am & little man's heart rate would drop when I had a contraction. Nothing too low, but the nurses kept an eagle eye on me & my stats. My doctor had another induction that day & was delivering her around noon. The nurse came in & told me that I would deliver after that...BUT, I was still stuck at a 9. At 12:15pm, about 6hrs into labor, the nurse came in & "stretched" me to a 10. Praise The Lord I had an epidural! My doctor came in shortly after & she was concerned about baby boy's heart rate. She said that his cord was more than likely wrapped around his neck & that I needed to bear down & push him out in 2 minutes or less...or things could/would get worse for baby boy. She explained it like holding our breath. We can possibly do it for 2 minutes, but cannot for 30 minutes. By this point, Caleb moved out of the way & relinquished his coaching skills to the 5 nurses that were on me. Two nurses holding my knees up, two nurses holding my shoulders up & one nurse pushing on my belly to move baby down. By now, my doctor had called in a nicu nurse just in case. Obviously, I couldn't see what was happening, but Caleb did. He said he'd never been more scared in his life. First, the cord was wrapped around his neck. Thankfully, my doctor got that off smoothly. Then, his shoulder was stuck & he would NOT come out...mind you, this is all in about 45 seconds, but in the moment seems much longer. I was not waiting for contractions to push. I pushed consecutively until he was out, which was right around 2 minutes. Caleb said little man came out purple & he wasn't moving. He was handed over to the nicu nurse & she got some whimpers out of him. His first apgar score was a 3, with 10 being best. He wasn't doing well that first minute of life. Finally, we heard crying! Best sound in the world:-) My doctor was scared that little man had shoulder dystocia due to his shoulder being stuck...she thought she broke it trying to turn him so he would come out. His second apgar score was a 9!!! God definitely had his hand on him:-) They weighed him and he weighed in at a whooping 8lbs 15oz, which is why I had so much trouble. He was just too big! I got to hold him for a split second before they took him to the nicu to monitor him. We decided on the name Carsten while I was holding him. His name means 'Follower of Christ, anointed one.' We thought that was a very fitting name considering what we'd all been through:-) Carsten was brought back into my room about an hour later & he was perfect! No broken shoulder, breathing on his own, absolutely perfect! Big brothers, Corban & Cruz came to see their new baby brother later that afternoon:-) Carsten is now 10 weeks old & I thank God for him everyday:-) Our family is now complete! He's such a sweet baby. His favorite pastime these days is smiling...& he's pretty good at it;-)




















Wednesday, May 22, 2013

We love you Nana!

As everyone knows, Lenora finally got her long awaited kidney transplant on her one & only son's 30th birthday. It was just a few weeks later that she went to be with Jesus. We questioned, "Why would God give her a perfectly good kidney when He would take her less than a month later?" Caleb & his dad talked about this & decided that Lenora left this earth not wanting anything. She wanted her transplant for so long & she finally got her wish. She went to Heaven perfectly content:-) She was such a wonderful person, a loving & caring mother, wife & nana:-) In lieu of everything she had been through, she always had such a positive attitude & outlook on life. She was truly an inspiration to so many people in her life! Nana, you will always be loved & greatly missed! We'll see you in Heaven!




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Thursday, January 3, 2013

January 3rd, 2013

January 3rd holds a very special place in my heart. This is the day that my dear husband was born...at 29 weeks old. He weighed 2lbs, 11oz & doctors told his parents that "if" he lived, he would be a vegetable his entire life. His mom went in for a regular checkup that day & doctors told her that they needed to take the baby because her kidneys were shutting down. She's had kidney problems ever since she was a little girl. Wow! What a miracle Caleb is today!! Thirty years later...he has been very involved in 4-H his entire life, became State 4-H President, received a college degree, married his lovely wife(lol!!), maintained a job that he loves & has 2(almost 3)ornery sons of his own:-)

Okay, now fast forward to today, January 3rd, 2013. Not only is it my husband's dirty 30 birthday, BUT his mother received her kidney transplant today(in surgery as I type)!!!!!!! Prayers have been answered!! Caleb's mom started dialysis 3 times per week right after Caleb & I married 8 years ago. She has ALWAYS kept a positive spirit & attitude about everything she's gone through, including her breast cancer days. God definitely made her an inspiration to SO MANY people:-) We love you, Nana!!! Here's a picture of her on her way to the OR!




Friday, May 11, 2012

Rescue Mission

Every Friday, on Caleb's lunch break, he'll go to Shawnee Rescue Mission & help in whatever way he can. Sometimes, he'll help serve lunch, unload boxes, clean, organize...whatever they need done for the day. On the second & fourth Friday of every month, the mission hands out bags/boxes of food in the evening to those in need :-) One Friday he decided to take a little 5 year old helper with him, by the name of Corban :-) What a perfect night for Corban to help because he got to organize ALL the chocolate syrup! Mmmmm!




Corban even helped carry bags of food to people's cars:-)



I just love his sweet, giving heart :-) He makes his mommy & daddy proud!

Monday, February 20, 2012

Battle of the door=Cruz's 1st ER trip

I hope this was the one & ONLY ER trip for little man, but being an ornery & rambunctious boy, we'll probably see more! The battle of the sliding door got ahold of his pinky & the door won.




Cruz's little pinky got caught in between the sliding door & the stationary window & he lost his nail because of it. What a trooper though!! The ONLY time he cried during the ENTIRE ordeal was when he had to stop watching cartoons on Daddy's phone so the doctor could look at his pinky.
The ER doctor said that he had been his best patient all day! I think he's a bit proud of his injury;-) He gets to wear a really cool blue wrap on it & he tells everyone he sees, "I hurt my finger in da door" with giant puppy dog eyes:-)

Cruz proudly showing off his blue-wrapped pinky;-)




Friday, January 20, 2012

Holidays 2011

We had such a wonderful holiday season! I'm so blessed to have my family :-) For the second year in a row, Santa woke up both boys on Christmas Eve night! Corban just stared in awe and Cruz cried...because he was either tired(my guess) or he was frightened by the holly jolly man!






Then, five days later, we loaded up & headed cross-country to Phoenix, Arizona for the OSU bowl game...like any loyal fan would;-) *Warning...brag moment!! Both boys did SO well on our road trip!! We left Friday morning & headed to Albuquerque to stay the night, making a pit stop in Hereford, TX to see Caleb's old work & friends:-) After our stay in Albuquerque, we rose & shone & made way to the biggest hole in the Earth, better known as The Grand Canyon. Being the over protective mom that I am, I was secretly worrying about taking the boys there & the edge of the canyon...you catch my drift!! But we made it in & OUT & the boys loved it!!















We then made our way to stay with Caleb's Uncle Chris & Aunt Patty in Prescott, AZ. Fun!! Fun!! They have the most beautiful & modern house I've ever seen!! And, it was high up in the mountains:-) Breathtakingly gorgeous!! We spent New Year's Eve with Aunt Patty(poor Uncle Chris was sick that night) & had 3 celebrations(eastern time, central time & mountain time)!! Complete with "party favors." Poor Cruz wasn't impressed!


The next morning, we hiked 1 mile up Thumb Butte(that's some butte!! For you, Aunt Patty!)and 1 mile down! I definitely didn't need to use my thigh master that day;-)

Just starting out...



Lucky kid! Caleb wouldn't carry me on his shoulders:-(



Ahhhh! Finally made it to the top!




This kid would NOT let go of "his" rock!




The thinkers of the family;-)




After all the fun in Prescott, we headed to Phoenix Monday morning for game day. We made it to the hotel just in time for the Cowboy pep rally...and...TO SWIM!!! Swimming outside in January :-)




Corban loving the waterfall!







Cruz...not so much!! "Daddy! That's close enough!"
















Thank goodness for the swimming pool because it wore them BOTH out! :-) After baths & In-N-Out burgers(delish!), we picked Daddy up from the game & headed home! The boys slept from Phoenix until Amarillo...10 hours!! Awesome:-) Good thing I downloaded a ton of "peppy" songs on my phone, because mommy drove until sunrise...only having to slam on the brakes once for a herd of elk...yes, elk...in the road! It was a fast, but very fun trip :-)

Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Friday, October 28, 2011

Birthday Boys!!

Another year has come & gone...which means big birthdays were celebrated! Corban turned the big "whole hand" on September 17th & asked for a "pajama party" for him & his friends :-) We ended up with four 5 year olds, one 4 year old & one 3 year old spending the night! They all had a blast together & behaved quite well!! The night included McDonald's chicken nuggets, a Cars 2 cookie cake(yumm!!), piƱata fun & late night movies & snacks...with no potty accidents at night! Woohoo!!













Now, onto Cruz's 2nd birthday!! Cruz wanted a "Ni-ning Mayno" birthday, which translates to "Lightning & Mater" :-) Easy for mommy!! I just left the decorations up from Corban's party...sshhhh, don't tell! ;-) Our wonderful friend, Tabitha Steward, made Cruz's awesome cake!! Cruz liked his cake SO much that he didn't even bother using a fork!























I am so blessed God chose me to be their mommy!! I love my boys "to infinity & beyond!!" :-)