Moving On

SO THANKFUL that God healed me over night- THANK YOU for your prayers! I woke up fever-free, chill-free, and ache-free! Hallelujah! I feel pretty weak, but I will take that any day! No one else in the house is sick, and we are very grateful. Our God is Healer!

I heard back about my ultrasound, and I do have cysts, but they should dissolve on their own in time.

I had my 6 week after birth appointment this week (even though I'm not six weeks yet, but needed to get my ovary checked out). It was a really helpful appointment! My doctor told me the reason my blood counts were so low, and the reason I had blood transfusions in the hospital was because I lost a lot of blood during delivery. Though the flu didn't help my situation, it was not the reason for my low blood counts. I realize it's not good to lose a lot of blood, but I am so happy to have an answer. I've always been confused as to what actually happened while I was in the hospital. Now I know, and I'm grateful!

I am ready to put all these weird physical issues behind me. I am ready to get physically stronger. I am ready to feel good. I am ready to say Hello to Spring. I know it will take time, but I am ready!

Thank you for checking in, and thank you most of all for praying!

It Can't Be...

I've been feeling lousy all day. I heard Jase fussing at 6:45am so I went in to check on him. When I got back in bed I just KNEW something wasn't right with me. All day long I've been hoping I've just been having a weak day. Chuck even worked from home while Jase napped so I could sleep this afternoon. I woke up still feeling lousy. I had to have an ultrasound today due to pain in my ovary. (I've had this before and it was cysts, so I hope that's all it is this time.) While I was laying on the table I started shivering. Not a good sign. As the night has progressed, I've continued to feel lousy, chilled, and achey. I took my temperature earlier tonight and it was normal, but I just checked again and there you have it. A fever. This can't be. Of all weekends to get sick (AGAIN!) this is NOT the weekend that would work.

If you're out there, please pray for me. For us. Pray for strength for Chuck as he cares for all of us- especially as he's getting little sleep. And pray for protection over Chuck and the babies from this sickness. Once again, my babies are at risk of getting sick because of me.

Remember the days when getting sick was kindof fun? When you could lay in bed, watch TV, and sleep with not a care in the world? I digress.

It's perfect timing for me to be memorizing Galatians 5:22-23, "But the fruit that comes from having the Holy Spirit in our lives is PEACE!" Thank you Jesus.

This

This guy! This girl! Sigh...

One Month

Happy 1 Month Birthday, sweet girl! You are joy! 

Jase at 1 Month

I can not get enough of this little bow! Girls are way too much fun!

New Reality

We sure do miss GG around here. My Dad came down last week to pick up my Mom, and to see us- and by "us" I mean the grandkids. ;) I just love spending time with my parents. It's a new experience to watch them love our kids. They get a huge kick out of Jase, and just adore Basye. My Mom is my best friend, so to have her here for the last month was not only a massive help, but I had a friend around to fill the lonely days. It was sad to see both of my parents go, and the reality of real life without my Mom is setting in. 

Everything feels a lot harder without my Mom here. Thankfully, Chuck has been home with us all weekend so I haven't had to manage on my own yet. Still, we've both had our share of lost sleep. I've been able to take naps, which is a big help. I keep thinking my amazing husband is going to snap as he's sacrificed so much for all of us, but he hasn't. We've really enjoyed our family time the last couple of days- especially yesterday as we celebrated the day of Love! 

Today I feel especially weak and worn out, but I know it's because a little someone kept us up for several hours last night. I keep reminding myself this phase is temporary. It's perfect timing for a new verse to memorize. Today starts the 4th week for SSMT. I chose Galatians 5:22-23 in the NLV. "But the fruit that comes from having the Holy Spirit in our lives is: love, joy, peace, not giving up, being kind, being good, having faith, being gentle, and being the boss over our own desires. The Law is not against these things." 

We miss you Geeg!

We love you Grandpa & GG! 

Halter Monitor

This past Monday-Tuesday I wore a halter monitor for 24 hours. My doctor just wanted to make sure my heart was functioning well, even though it races at times. As suspected, my heart is great! She definitely saw peeks where my heart did race, but not enough to be alarming. Once again, my body is just recovering. Since all my tests have come back with pleasing results, my doctor has encouraged me to push myself even more. (Besides my iron levels still being a little low which is being remedied with continued iron supplements.) I've been able to stop by to visit Chuck at work, pick up some things at the grocery store, get some Valentines cards for all my Lovies at Hallmark, and have driven for the first time since giving birth this past week. Even though I end up being pretty worn out after my little excursions, it's still been really nice to get out and about. Though slowly, I do feel myself improving bit by bit! I have to say, when I was walking through the grocery store it was an AMAZING relief not to have to worry about what to buy and make for dinner. It's such an incredible gift and blessing to have meals provided by so many friends- THANK YOU ALL! It means more than I can express!

The song, "Forever" in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=huFra1mnIVE  by Kari Jobe has been a gorgeous encouragement to me. I think I've listened to this song, and watched the video over 5 times the last couple of days. When I find myself giving into fears and discouragement, God has guided me to the most amazing worship songs. In the middle of the video, there is a "Spoken Word" segment that I just love listening to. My favorite part is, "Joy has a Name! Peace has a Name! Love has a Name! Hope has a Name!" That name is Jesus, and I love Him so.

Knocked Me Flat

Warning: this is a long post. If you prefer only reading our prayer requests, you can scroll to the *** at the end. =)

I believe the best way to sum up my doctor's visit yesterday is to say that the body is a mystery. My life long friend Amber said that to me one time and it's always stuck with me. She said as much research and information we have about the body these days, there is still so much we don't know. God has created the body in such a complex, and incredible way. And sometimes- a lot of the time- we just don't know the answers to why we feel what we feel.

Yesterday I met with my family doctor, and it was so good for me to be able to share my story of what happened in the hospital when I delivered Basye. Throughout this whole journey I have been surprisingly unemotional. Don't get me wrong, while I was in the hospital I shed my fair share of tears, but then they just stopped. I think I've been so sick I haven't had the strength to let all of this effect me emotionally. I even made it through the finale of, "Parenthood" without crying because I just don't have the capacity to shed a tear for fake TV families right now. 

All that to say, when I was finally able to share my physical journey with a medical professional I found myself getting quite emotional. I had to really work not to cry as I recounted our stay in the hospital. I choked up while sharing with the doctor but kept pushing through because I did not want to cry about it. I realize now it was such a relief to be able to share with someone who could potentially help me physically. And who could potentially shed some light on WHAT HAPPENED TO ME. 

I've had several friends who have said to me, "So what happened?!" And as I've thought through the order of events, I really don't know. Even while we were in the hospital the doctors were confused as to what was happening to me. One doctor even said, "Trust me, I know this is hard for you to understand, but I want to know what's going on with you even more than you do." That may have been true, but I'm sure she's forgotten about me by now, and I'm still living with the questions. 

My doctor yesterday was extremely thorough. Thank you Jesus! She took her time listening to me, and combing through every detail she was given in the hospital reports. Thankfully all that information is in the system, and with a few clicks on the computer she was able to read about it. That was a huge help because I don't know how to explain a lot of the things the doctors explained to me. 

I had blood work done at the appointment, and miraculously, my blood levels are already up to 11.9! The average range is between 12-14 so I'm pretty much back to where I need to be. My doctor said I have "amazing bone marrow" to get me back to those levels so quickly. But I disagree. I KNOW it's because I have a powerful God who heals, and an amazing army of friends and family who have been praying for me. THANK YOU ALL! Our God is Healer! I only have to be on such strong doses of iron for 1 more week.

Because of my heart racing issues I had an EKG done, and that also came back normal. Thank you God! Since there is still concern about why my heart races, I'm going to have a 24 hour heart test done next week. It's still unclear why my heart pounds doing the simplest tasks- like lifting Jase out of his crib, walking up the stairs, or reading an intense scene in a book. (That last one is a little bit funny- I'm reading a book a friend loaned me that takes place in the "Cowboys and Indians" era and the Indian scenes scare me!)

One annoying thing about the appointment is that while the doctor was listening to my heart she found a "suspicious" looking mole on my back. I have to go back in to get that removed. =( As if I want one more health issue to deal with. Throughout both of my last two pregnancies I've had all kinds of crazy skin things appear. ICK. 

Anyway, after a long, two hour appointment we were about to leave when I had one more slightly traumatic incident that involved Chuck finding the doctor, and ended with her joining me in the bathroom.  I won't go into details but let's just say having a doctor put her hand on my shoulder as she said, "Wow! You're just going through a lot!" while I sat in a very vulnerable place was what finally set me over the edge. I couldn't help but cry after that. A woman can only handle so much. 

So while we have many reasons to thank God, we're still unclear about why my heart races and why I have headaches. I think what makes the most sense to Chuck and I is when the doctor said, "You've been knocked flat!" Meaning the flu/giving birth/loss of blood combo is not something you just bounce back from after a couple weeks. 

***Moving forward, we're asking God to heal my racing heart, weakness, head aches, and that mysterious mole! THANK YOU for praying! We praise God He has protected both of our babies, as well as Chuck and my Mom from the flu. That is no small miracle. THANK YOU JESUS! Basye still has her tummy issues, so we're asking God to heal her. Thankfully, her eyes have been looking wonderfully clear!***

And now this officially concludes the longest post ever. If you made it this far, thank you for reading- you're a true friend! ;)

Appointment

I see a doctor tomorrow. I am both excited and very nervous about the appointment. I am hoping for an encouraging visit, with a positive update. The nervous part of me wonders if something is "seriously" wrong with me. Either way I believe God knows exactly what my body is going through, and that He will heal me. I trust He has our family in his very strong, very loving, very good hands. A friend pointed out to me earlier today that I have been making great improvements, and she is right. I thank God I am able to spend longer amounts of times with my babies, and that I have more energy than I did two weeks ago. I am thankful for these two AMAZING GIFTS right here...

"Look at Mama!"

"Be gentle!"

He LOVES this girl. He giggles and smiles any chance he gets to touch her.

Precious Moments

Thank you God!

~My Mom is STILL HERE! Hallelujah! She is a bigger help than words can describe. (THANK YOU MOM!)
~I am flu-free and flu-symptom free!
~No one else in our family caught the flu!
~God has been clearing Basye's eyes up- super fast!
~Jase climbed out of his crib for the first time, whacked his head hard, but is otherwise OK!
~Wonderful friends have been bringing us meals!
~Jase has been napping every afternoon which gives us a nice, quiet break.
~Chuck has been getting up with Basye at night- an amazing gift.

Please pray for:

~Strength for Chuck as he is up at night with Basye, and works all day.
~Strength for my Mom as she cares for TWO babies all day, and has been away from my Dad for over 2 weeks now.
~God to heal Basye's tummy issues.
~My blood levels to rise. This would really help me for many reasons. To name a few- my energy would increase, I would have more strength, I wouldn't be as tired, my heart wouldn't race, I wouldn't have to be concerned about blacking out, and in general I could care for my babies in a safer and healthier way once my Mom leaves.

THANK YOU for praying!!!

GG works so hard and never complains! 

Precious Moments. 

SSMT #3

For anyone out there memorizing verses with the Siesta Scripture Memory Team and Beth Moore, verse 3 starts today! If you're using Beth's blog, you can post your verse here.

Even after only one month God has already used this discipline to greatly encourage me. When I was in the hospital I kept my trusty spiral right next to me at all times. It brought such comfort to look over and see my verse for that week. For the next two weeks, my verse is going to be:

Psalm 3:5, "I lie down and sleep; I wake again, because the LORD sustains me." 

Thank you God for the beautiful gift of your very own words in the Bible!