Tuesday, October 22, 2013
Happy 3rd Birthday!
Saturday, October 19, 2013
Welcome to the Family!
We are so excited to announce that my sister Meredith got engaged today! We are thrilled to be welcoming her fiancé, Craig, into our family!
Friday, October 18, 2013
Dallas Arboretum
Today Aunt Emily drove over to Dallas and met Aunt MerMer at the Dallas Arboretum. Since she had an extra car seat in her car and Lily was the only one of my kids not in school, she invited her to come along to enjoy the pumpkin exhibits with Aubrey and Ryan. I've never been to the Arboretum before, but after looking at their pictures, I really hope it is somewhere we will be able to take all three kids next year. They had some amazing pumpkin exhibits and I know Lily had a great time! I am so thankful for my sisters and that they love spending time with my kids. Thanks Aunt Emily and Aunt MerMer for a fun day!
Sunday, October 13, 2013
We Have a Bike Rider!
One of the best things about being a parent is watching your children reach their milestones. With every stage comes new milestones. From learning to smile, starting to crawl/walk, hearing their first words, and learning to read, all milestones bring a certain amount of excitement!
I am finding that the older my kids get, the more exciting the milestones are for me. Watching Parker learn to read last year was perhaps my favorite milestone yet. I know that being a reading teacher makes me a little biased on this, but there is nothing like listening to your child read to you for the first time.
This past week, Parker reached another milestone. He FINALLY learned to ride his bike! We've been trying since April to get him interested in learning to ride. I thought that getting a new bike for his birthday would motivate him but I was wrong. Then I thought that seeing Addison, Jolea, Alexis, Trip and Cole riding their bikes would motivate him but, again, I was wrong. He just had no interest in learning and seemed perfectly content riding on his Big Wheel.
Cory and I worked with him sporadically over the past few months but he would always give up after a few tries. Then one day a few weeks ago, we told Parker that if he would learn to ride his bike, we would buy him the new video game he was wanting. And that's all the motivation he needed! Within three days of working with me, Cory, and Uncle Jon, he was riding everywhere!
A whole new world has been opened for him and he asks about 10 times a day if he can go out and ride his bike. I am so proud of how quickly he learned to ride! Now if we can just teach him to tie his shoes!!!
Friday, October 11, 2013
Pumpkin Patch 2013
Yesterday we loaded up the kids for our annual trip to the pumpkin patch. It was just as chaotic as every year prior to this and getting a group picture proved to be almost impossible (again!).
Getting a good picture of Parker, Eden and Lily was almost as impossible as getting a good picture of all six kids. They just wanted nothing to do with it!
Emily was a little more successful with her three!
I did get a few good individual pictures of all of the kids.
The hay stack was another favorite!
But the best part of the pumpkin patch outing was just being with our cousins!
Wednesday, October 2, 2013
Katelyn's Story- Part 3
I know that the last few posts have been very long, but I want to tell her whole story and I know that if I don't finish it today, I'll probably never go back and finish it! So thanks for hanging in there with me!
The week I came home from the hospital was manageable because Cory took off of work and he never left my side. I had strict orders to rest as much as possible. We had several more visitors and the teachers at my school provided dinner for us all week. Towards the end of the week, I had a checkup with Dr. Deem to make sure my blood pressure was staying down. She went over the results of the amniocentesis with us and confirmed that Katelyn had triploidy. She also confirmed that Katelyn was a girl (there had been a little confusion due to the complications of triploidy).
Dr. Deem wanted me to take off another two weeks of work to let my body recuperate a little more but I wanted to go back after one more week so we compromised and I agreed to take one more full week off and then work half days the next week.
Unfortunately, Cory had to go back to work the second week. I thought that I was going to be ok being at home alone, but it was a lot harder than I had expected. Being in an empty house with just your thoughts is not a good idea for someone who is starting the grieving process. I can remember laying in bed, sobbing, and just thinking, "I just want my baby back". Some days were better than others and I somehow made it through another week.
The next week was hard because I went back to work part time and I had to face everyone that I worked with for the first time. Most people were encouraging and supportive, but there's always that one person who doesn't know what to say so they say the wrong thing. I spent several moments in my room between classes crying over hurtful words.
The months that followed were full of firsts... first holidays, first baby showers that I just couldn't make myself attend, first time back in church (I spent most of that in tears), etc. Christmas was very difficult because all I wanted was something that no one could give me- my sweet baby girl. It was VERY hard to find any Christmas spirit that year. The only positive thing that happened around the holidays is that I was able to travel to Prague and spend the week before Christmas with my sisters. It was nice to get away for a week and spend some time in a new place.
The week of Katelyn's due date was extremely difficult. Luckily, I was on spring break so I was able to grieve at home alone rather than trying to put on a happy face at work.
Little by little, the days and weeks got easier. I would still have moments of horrible grief where the tears just wouldn't stop and Cory didn't know what to do with me, but the day to day living was better. The worst times were when I would find out about someone else being pregnant or when I would see newborns around town. It was so hard to find joy for those who were expecting, especially when we were having such a hard time conceiving again. There were moments when I never thought I'd get to be a mom and then when I finally did get pregnant with Parker, the fear that I felt was overwhelming. I think I spent most of Parker's pregnancy thinking "I wonder if this is going to be the day that I lose him too". I'm pretty sure the first time I felt relief was the day I finally held him in my arms.
The experience of losing Katelyn changed me forever. I am so thankful that I have an angel waiting on me in heaven but I would give anything to have her back. I still think about her every day and am reminded every year on her birthday how much I miss her.
"Tears may flow in the night, but joy comes in the morning." Psalm 30:5
A good friend sent me this verse after I lost Katelyn, and I have to admit that there were times when I never thought that this would apply to me. It took many years, but I can now truly say that when I look at my three healthy, beautiful kids, I am full of joy! Katelyn made me a better mom because she made me realize what a gift my children are and what a privilege it is to be their mom every day. When I start feeling frustrated with the daily ups and downs of motherhood (and I'm not perfect- I do this all of the time) or when I start taking my kids for granted (again, I do this all of the time), all I have to do is think of her and my mindset is immediately changed.
Happy Birthday, my sweet angel! I can't wait to hold you when I get to heaven. Thank you for helping make me the mommy that I am today!
The week I came home from the hospital was manageable because Cory took off of work and he never left my side. I had strict orders to rest as much as possible. We had several more visitors and the teachers at my school provided dinner for us all week. Towards the end of the week, I had a checkup with Dr. Deem to make sure my blood pressure was staying down. She went over the results of the amniocentesis with us and confirmed that Katelyn had triploidy. She also confirmed that Katelyn was a girl (there had been a little confusion due to the complications of triploidy).
 |
| Triploidy is a genetic condition where each chromosome has three copies instead of the normal two copies, or 69 chromosomes instead of 46.. |
Unfortunately, Cory had to go back to work the second week. I thought that I was going to be ok being at home alone, but it was a lot harder than I had expected. Being in an empty house with just your thoughts is not a good idea for someone who is starting the grieving process. I can remember laying in bed, sobbing, and just thinking, "I just want my baby back". Some days were better than others and I somehow made it through another week.
The next week was hard because I went back to work part time and I had to face everyone that I worked with for the first time. Most people were encouraging and supportive, but there's always that one person who doesn't know what to say so they say the wrong thing. I spent several moments in my room between classes crying over hurtful words.
The months that followed were full of firsts... first holidays, first baby showers that I just couldn't make myself attend, first time back in church (I spent most of that in tears), etc. Christmas was very difficult because all I wanted was something that no one could give me- my sweet baby girl. It was VERY hard to find any Christmas spirit that year. The only positive thing that happened around the holidays is that I was able to travel to Prague and spend the week before Christmas with my sisters. It was nice to get away for a week and spend some time in a new place.
The week of Katelyn's due date was extremely difficult. Luckily, I was on spring break so I was able to grieve at home alone rather than trying to put on a happy face at work.
Little by little, the days and weeks got easier. I would still have moments of horrible grief where the tears just wouldn't stop and Cory didn't know what to do with me, but the day to day living was better. The worst times were when I would find out about someone else being pregnant or when I would see newborns around town. It was so hard to find joy for those who were expecting, especially when we were having such a hard time conceiving again. There were moments when I never thought I'd get to be a mom and then when I finally did get pregnant with Parker, the fear that I felt was overwhelming. I think I spent most of Parker's pregnancy thinking "I wonder if this is going to be the day that I lose him too". I'm pretty sure the first time I felt relief was the day I finally held him in my arms.
The experience of losing Katelyn changed me forever. I am so thankful that I have an angel waiting on me in heaven but I would give anything to have her back. I still think about her every day and am reminded every year on her birthday how much I miss her.
"Tears may flow in the night, but joy comes in the morning." Psalm 30:5
A good friend sent me this verse after I lost Katelyn, and I have to admit that there were times when I never thought that this would apply to me. It took many years, but I can now truly say that when I look at my three healthy, beautiful kids, I am full of joy! Katelyn made me a better mom because she made me realize what a gift my children are and what a privilege it is to be their mom every day. When I start feeling frustrated with the daily ups and downs of motherhood (and I'm not perfect- I do this all of the time) or when I start taking my kids for granted (again, I do this all of the time), all I have to do is think of her and my mindset is immediately changed.
Happy Birthday, my sweet angel! I can't wait to hold you when I get to heaven. Thank you for helping make me the mommy that I am today!
Tuesday, October 1, 2013
Katelyn's Story- Part 2
As I was waiting in the observation room for the nurses to prepare a delivery room for me, Cory started making phone calls. My blood pressure was still rising (they were checking it every 10 minutes) so the nurses made me lie on my side and stay very still. I think the only thing that would describe how I was feeling is numb. And scared. We were both in complete shock from everything that had just taken place over the past few hours and I had just been told that I was going to have to deliver my baby with a doctor I had just met.
My first nurse was Skipper (Is it weird that I can still remember that after 8 years?!?!). She was young and sweet and did everything she could to put me at ease. Her first job was to start me on a magnesium sulfate IV drip that would prevent seizures. Unfortunately, you can not have anything to eat or drink while you are on this medicine and it also makes you feel very hot. She turned the air conditioner down as low as she could and told Cory to grab a blanket!
Dr. Thigpen was not on call that night so he transferred my care to his partner, Dr. Howard. Dr. Howard started the induction process about 5pm and explained that since my body was nowhere close to being ready to deliver a baby (I was only 17 weeks along), the process could take up to 24 hours before I delivered.
My mom and sister had arrived by that point and they sat with me while I waited. I was still having to lay on my left side and the nurses encouraged me to be as quiet as possible since my blood pressure was still so high.
The nurses changed shifts that evening and my next nurse was named Babette (I know... it's really weird that I still remember both of my nurse's names!) She was older and so kind. She knew how miserable and thirsty I was on the magnesium sulfate and snuck in some ice chips for me to suck on even though she knew it was against the doctor's orders. These two nurses were truly my angels that day. I can not say enough good things about them and the compassionate care that they gave me.
Things were still progressing very slowly around bedtime so my family decided to go home so Cory and I could try and get some sleep. We all assumed that it would be well into the next day before I finally delivered. Boy were we wrong! About midnight, I started having some minor contractions. My nurse told me to start thinking about whether or not I was going to want an epidural once the contractions started getting stronger. Around 1am, I started having some very strong. painful contractions. I told Cory that I thought I needed the nurse to come and check on me. As soon as we finished hitting the call button, I had one last contraction and then it was over. Cory was the only one in the room when I delivered Katelyn. He ran out into the hall and within seconds, Dr. Howard and several nurses were in my room.
After the chaos had subsided, Babette encouraged me to take the pain pills that Dr. Howard had prescribed so that I could get some much needed rest. I agreed and was asleep within minutes. Several important things happened over the next few hours but I was in such a fog from the medicine that I don't remember a lot about them. I remember talking to my mom and sister on the phone, but I have no idea what we talked about. A few hours after delivery, the hospital chaplain came in to pray with us. They laid Katelyn next to me in my bed and as she prayed, I just cried. It was the only time I ever got to see Katelyn and it is something I will never forget. All I could think about was how perfectly formed her 10 fingers and 10 toes were. She had so many things wrong with her, but her fingers and toes were absolutely perfect. Finally, about 6am (right before the next nurse shift change), Babette brought me a heart shaped plaque and gave it to me. I was still so foggy from the meds that I didn't realize until much later that day that the plaque had Katelyn's handprints and fingerprints on it. I still treasure that plaque so much.
Right after the shift change, they moved me up to a regular room in the maternity wing. The nurses put a special sign on my door that let everyone who entered my room know that I had lost a baby. Looking back, I thought this was one of the most thoughtful things they did. They eliminated me having to retell my story to everyone who walked in the room looking for a newborn. I was finally taken off of the magnesium sulfate drip and was allowed to eat lunch. They continued to take my blood every few hours to check my levels. I had several visitors in the hospital, including Dr. Deem, my regular OB, who came by to check in on me. That night was one of the longest nights ever. My head was finally clear enough from all of the meds that everything was starting to sink in.
Early the next morning, Dr. Thigpen came in and talked with Cory and I for a long time. He told us a little more about what triploidy was and explained that it was not genetic so any other children we had in the future had a little to no chance of having it too. He also told us that my preeclampsia had turned into HELLP syndrome which is where the liver starts to be affected. He told me that my blood pressure had reached seizure levels and that if I had not come in for the appointment on Thursday, I probably would have started having seizures at home. Finally, he said that as long as my morning blood work came back normal, I would be able to go home that day.
Later that morning, I was cleared to be dismissed from the hospital. Leaving the hospital was one of the hardest things I had to do. Being wheeled out of the maternity ward without a baby in my arms was extremely difficult. Little did I know that the next few days, weeks, and months were going to be just as difficult.
My first nurse was Skipper (Is it weird that I can still remember that after 8 years?!?!). She was young and sweet and did everything she could to put me at ease. Her first job was to start me on a magnesium sulfate IV drip that would prevent seizures. Unfortunately, you can not have anything to eat or drink while you are on this medicine and it also makes you feel very hot. She turned the air conditioner down as low as she could and told Cory to grab a blanket!
Dr. Thigpen was not on call that night so he transferred my care to his partner, Dr. Howard. Dr. Howard started the induction process about 5pm and explained that since my body was nowhere close to being ready to deliver a baby (I was only 17 weeks along), the process could take up to 24 hours before I delivered.
My mom and sister had arrived by that point and they sat with me while I waited. I was still having to lay on my left side and the nurses encouraged me to be as quiet as possible since my blood pressure was still so high.
The nurses changed shifts that evening and my next nurse was named Babette (I know... it's really weird that I still remember both of my nurse's names!) She was older and so kind. She knew how miserable and thirsty I was on the magnesium sulfate and snuck in some ice chips for me to suck on even though she knew it was against the doctor's orders. These two nurses were truly my angels that day. I can not say enough good things about them and the compassionate care that they gave me.
Things were still progressing very slowly around bedtime so my family decided to go home so Cory and I could try and get some sleep. We all assumed that it would be well into the next day before I finally delivered. Boy were we wrong! About midnight, I started having some minor contractions. My nurse told me to start thinking about whether or not I was going to want an epidural once the contractions started getting stronger. Around 1am, I started having some very strong. painful contractions. I told Cory that I thought I needed the nurse to come and check on me. As soon as we finished hitting the call button, I had one last contraction and then it was over. Cory was the only one in the room when I delivered Katelyn. He ran out into the hall and within seconds, Dr. Howard and several nurses were in my room.
After the chaos had subsided, Babette encouraged me to take the pain pills that Dr. Howard had prescribed so that I could get some much needed rest. I agreed and was asleep within minutes. Several important things happened over the next few hours but I was in such a fog from the medicine that I don't remember a lot about them. I remember talking to my mom and sister on the phone, but I have no idea what we talked about. A few hours after delivery, the hospital chaplain came in to pray with us. They laid Katelyn next to me in my bed and as she prayed, I just cried. It was the only time I ever got to see Katelyn and it is something I will never forget. All I could think about was how perfectly formed her 10 fingers and 10 toes were. She had so many things wrong with her, but her fingers and toes were absolutely perfect. Finally, about 6am (right before the next nurse shift change), Babette brought me a heart shaped plaque and gave it to me. I was still so foggy from the meds that I didn't realize until much later that day that the plaque had Katelyn's handprints and fingerprints on it. I still treasure that plaque so much.
Right after the shift change, they moved me up to a regular room in the maternity wing. The nurses put a special sign on my door that let everyone who entered my room know that I had lost a baby. Looking back, I thought this was one of the most thoughtful things they did. They eliminated me having to retell my story to everyone who walked in the room looking for a newborn. I was finally taken off of the magnesium sulfate drip and was allowed to eat lunch. They continued to take my blood every few hours to check my levels. I had several visitors in the hospital, including Dr. Deem, my regular OB, who came by to check in on me. That night was one of the longest nights ever. My head was finally clear enough from all of the meds that everything was starting to sink in.
Early the next morning, Dr. Thigpen came in and talked with Cory and I for a long time. He told us a little more about what triploidy was and explained that it was not genetic so any other children we had in the future had a little to no chance of having it too. He also told us that my preeclampsia had turned into HELLP syndrome which is where the liver starts to be affected. He told me that my blood pressure had reached seizure levels and that if I had not come in for the appointment on Thursday, I probably would have started having seizures at home. Finally, he said that as long as my morning blood work came back normal, I would be able to go home that day.
Later that morning, I was cleared to be dismissed from the hospital. Leaving the hospital was one of the hardest things I had to do. Being wheeled out of the maternity ward without a baby in my arms was extremely difficult. Little did I know that the next few days, weeks, and months were going to be just as difficult.
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