Poor Baby...

LOL We were not able to get him him circumcised at the hospital because of that hurricane threat. So I scheduled it for Oct 7th. He was 4 weeks by then, but that's the soonest they could get me in. Then he ended up with a fever. So they sent us to the hospital. Apparently anything over 100.4 in a baby 1 month or younger is cause for concern. And they are supposed to hospitalize them and have lots of tests run to rule out anything serious. So we were admitted at the children's hospital and he had blood drawn. He made such a fuss over it that they had to try again in his little foot. Then they tried to insert the IV. They couldn't get it so they ended up putting it in the other foot. Then they had to run a spinal tap on the poor baby. Then the IV ended up clotting so they had to move it to the other hand. I felt soooo bad for him! I was able to stay there with him. Luckily my husband was home so that he could take care of the other two kids. We were in the hospital for two days. The test results all came back normal. TG.

So we set up another appointment with the Dr for his circumcision. Well this time he found a heart murmur! So he sent us to get some x-rays done and to see the pediatric cardiologist. He had to be held down for the x-rays, which he didn't really mind. And then he had lots of sticky things attached to him for the EKG. Again he really didn't mind. Then he had to have an ultrasound to look at his heart. They used his blanket to hold his arms down. He seemed to be very comfortable though. In fact, he almost fell asleep. LOL It's about time he went through something that wasn't so harsh on him! Our next appointment there is in April of next year. So we aren't looking too bad.

I am almost scared to take him back to see the pediatrician. What else could he find?! At this rate we are never going to get him circumcised!

Well other than all of that, he is doing great! He sleeps well, eats well, potties well. LOL You know what I mean.

He was born at:
7lbs, 13oz
21 1/4 inches

At 1 1/2 weeks he was:
8lbs, 2oz
21 inches

At 2 1/2 weeks he was:
8lbs, 12oz
21 inches

At 4 weeks he was:
10lbs, 2oz
22 inches

And at 5 weeks he is:
10lbs, 12oz
23 inches

So he gaining a lot of weight and growing bigger every day! I keep telling him to stop growing, but he won't listen to me. He's my last, I want him to be a baby for a long time. I started noticing today how much bigger Kaleb really is. It kind of makes me sad... :(

Finally! He is Here

And doing wonderfully! I went in at 5:30 am. They got me changed and hooked up to the monitors. I signed all the paperwork. They put the IV in me and started the pitocine by 6:30. At 8:00 my Dr came in and checked me. I was at 4cm and about 80% effaced. So she broke my water for me at 8:30, since it hadn't gone by itself. Contractions started getting worse after that. I asked them to put me in line for the epidural right away, because I knew I would want it, and last time I had to wait a long time because he was doing two other emergency c-sections. He got in there at around 9:30. I was dilated to 5 cm, still at 80%. He hit a nerve on the way in and it sent a really sharp pain down my left leg. He got the procedure done by 9:30 but he messed it up. It was only working on my left side. So my left side went numb and I couldn't even move it. It felt like it weighed a ton. I couldn't even bend my toes. So I could only feel half of my contractions. That was an odd experience. They had me lay on my right side to try to get some of the medication to go to that side too. It took a while but eventually both sides were feeling exactly the same. They came in to check me at 10:30 and I was up to 7cm. But the baby was still pretty high. So the sat my bed up for me. Since I had no control over the bottom half of my body I kept leaning to my left. LOL I had to use my hands to move myself over. At around 11:15 the nurse came in and asked how I was doing. I told her that the contractions were feeling completely different now. I could feel the baby really low and it felt like he was trying to come out now. So she checked me, had me do a trial push and called the Dr. I was completely dilated, 100% thinned out and baby was engaged. It was time. It took a while for the Dr to get there. What seemed like for ever! But it wasn't really that long.The Dr finally got there and I started pushing. She made laugh during every contraction. LOL There was a Hurricane threat, Hurricaine Ike. So when he started turning she called him Ike. LOL I couldn't help but laugh at what ever she said. I don't remember it all. So it took me four or five contractions to get him out. Not bad at all! He was born on Sept 9th at 12:01 pm. He weighed 7lbs 13oz, and was 21 1/4 inches long. He's my biggest boy. Christian was 7lb 12oz and 20 1/2 inches. And Kaleb was 6lbs, 11oz and 19 inches long. Also Keegan is the shortest labor I had.

Only a few days left

I have been to my very last Dr's appointment! I am dilated to 3 1/2 cm now. Last week I was at 2 cm. So if the trend continues I will be at 5 cm next week. I go in to be induced on the 9th, next Tuesday. So that would put me half way there by the time I get to the hospital. Of course that all depends on baby. LOL I mean he could decide to come a little earlier than that! I have been keeping myself busy for the past week. I've been cleaning, rearranging, and organizing everything in sight! Have you ever heard of a pregnant woman's need to "nest"? I don't think I ever had it this bad with the other two. But I guess it's a good thing. At least the house is staying clean on a daily basis right now. LOL DH certainly is loving it!

Anyways, I am probably going to be just getting home from the hospital on our second annual International Crochet Day. So I don't believe I will be doing anything on that day. However, I am working on the Care Bear for my little boy. I'm doing Bed Time Bear for this one. I'm using Caron simply soft. I love that stuff! I guess I will be working on that quite a bit for the next few days. Hopefully I can find the time to get it finished before he arrives.

That's all the time I have for now. I guess I'll be putting in my labor story and the arrival of our new little boy the next time.

Wish me luck!!!

Getting Ready!

I think I am almost ready for this baby to get here! I only need to get a few more things. I set up the crib last night. I finally got all of the stuff out of it and put clean sheets and all of the bedding on it. I love it! Dragons. It's not a very common theme, so I had to order the set online.

Here it is all set up.









And here's a pic of the blanket that I made for him. For all you crocheter's out there, this is the Diagonal Box Stitch. I have come to love doing it. It's very quick! I can't remember the yarn that I used. It was Bernat though. And it is soooo soft. I used my Jimbo Hook, it's a size H.


Any ways, back to my baby! I have everything but a car seat and stroller. DH wants to be here when we buy it, so I am waiting for him to get home on Monday. I have all of the things that I need for the hospital all piled up. I just need to put them in a bag. LOL I have 4 weeks till my due date. And I am hoping that I don't actually last that long! I guess we shall see.

The kids are getting excited! Christian likes to help me set things up. And Kaleb loves to pick things out. They are going to get New Big Brother Gifts on the day the baby comes. I got a digital camera for Christian. I am going to pick up a replacement wedding band for Jason. He lost his months ago! I picked out one that has 3 diamonds in it. It's pretty simple looking other than that. It's made out of a really strong metal too. Tungsten. It's supposed to be the strongest one available. It should be able to stand up to working in the oil field! I will pick up something for Kaleb. I'm not sure what yet. But he's easy to get for, so it shouldn't be a problem.

I am getting so big this time! Well not me, but my belly is!!!

At least it's for a good cause.

Here is Keegan Blane. 28 weeks and one day. Everything looks great. I think he looks like Kaleb in the chin and like Christian in the eyes and nose. The sonographer said it looks like he has no hair. She said sometimes they can see hair if there's enough of it. Both my other boys had very thin hair. So there's still a chance that Keegan does too. We saw him yawn and change his expressions. Saw his hands and toes move too. It's so cute! There is one picture of his legs and feet. It looks like they are really big feet! He also liked to keep his feet up by his head. It's amazing how flexible they are in there!

I guess I could tell a little bit about the day we had. The kids were a hand full! They started off the day like that. So they were not on their best behavior for the ultrasound. But they still enjoyed it. The sonographer said they can sometimes see if there is any hair on the babies head. She saw none on Keegan. Doesn't surprise me though. Both my boys came out with very thin hair. So that could be why she didn't see any. He is already in position for birth! That doesn't surprise me either. Kaleb was like that for three months before he was born too. Keegan likes to keep his feet up close to his head. I wish she had gotten a picture of that. But she specifically tried not to. She wanted his hand by it instead. Which he did have them up there. But they were tucked away so she couldn't get a pic of them. It is an awesome experience! I wish these ultrasounds were covered by insurance though.

Kaleb kept on saying, "that my baby? My baby in yours tummy? Doctors get my baby out yours tummy?" I kept on having to tell him, not yet. He was pretty amazed by all this too.

BTW - Keegan looks like he has chin like Kaleb's, but looks more like Christin with the chubby cheeks.

Some Good News For A Change

We have had a good summer so far! We went down the Comal River, near San Antonio. The boys went to a baseball camp, we've been to the beach and to the pool. Me and Megan have been shopping. We've been to the Texas State Aquarium.


In other words, we have kept busy every day so far since the twins have been down! For those of you that don't know, I have twin step kids. One girl one boy. They are 6 months younger than my oldest son. So I have had my hands full, with four kids at our house. One week left! They've been here for two weeks already. Being pregnant makes this a harder feet than normal. LOL But we are loving it anyways.


On Tuesday we go for the 4D ultrasound. I get to take all of the kids with me too! We are all excited about that one.


I'll add a few pics, then I am off. We are going to a baseball game tonight. I need to get all the kids ready to go.







I like this one of the kids on the hammock.

The Boys looked great on the playground this day.

This is one of my favorite pics so far this summer.

He looks so sad, but cute. Isn't he?

This is a pic of what Kaleb has to wear every time he goes into the water now. If you read my last post you will understand why.

Dreams???

Have you ever had a dream and then it came true? I'm not talking about just thinking about something you really want, "dreaming." I am talking about really having a dream then a day or two later it comes true! At least the main event in the story....

The other night I had a dream that I was walking with Kaleb(my 3yr old). He ran way ahead of me and I thought it was OK because there were some people we knew ahead of me. Then in my dream there was a pool. Well, Kaleb jumped right in! The lady that was close to him jumped in and got him out before anything bad happened. But it scared the **** out of me! In all the excitement he threw up and as I walked away to get a water hose to wash him off with, I threw up too. Then I woke up. This was the day that I was going to my family reunion. Well one of my dogs decided to get sick that night all over the bathroom, where he sleeps. He does that sometimes for no reason because he has a very week stomach. Half way through cleaning it up I had to run to the other bathroom to throw up. I just thought what a weird coincidence, and continued on with my day. Later that day, at the reunion the kids followed an adult outside to go swimming. Kaleb decided to go with them. I thought it's OK, there's an adult with him. She will keep him from drowning. Little did I know.... He followed the big boys right into the pool! He was fully clothed, because we had already gone swimming about 30 minutes before that. So my cousin had to jump in after him. I was right behind them so I was there right after it all happened. As soon as that boy had me in his arms he asked if he could go play again! It didn't faze him a bit!!! Talk about a scary account!

It's enough to make me scared to dream anymore. Any ways last night I had another dream. I was talking to my mom while we were watching a show about c-sections. I was telling her how scarred I was about having to have one. Then later on in the dream my water broke. I just stood there terrified! It was way too soon for that. I am only 5 months along. Then I woke up. I really hope those "fortune telling" days are over! LOL I guess I will know within a couple of days.

An Outlet of My Thoughts

I woke up early this morning thinking about an old friend of my moms, Marsha. I hadn't even thought about contacting her before this morning. I feel bad for forgetting. So this morning I called my grandpa to see if her number was in my moms address book. It wasn't though. And all of her calls had been erased from her phone. So I did a search on Google. But I couldn't find anything. So I called my grandpa back to see if I was spelling the last name right. Well, I wasn't! What do you know. So I re-searched for her and found her number and address of her work place. I guess she owns it, or at least runs it. So I called her there. I think that one day I want to talk to her more about my mom and dad. Marsha and her husband were real good friends of both of my parents. They were around when my dad died and I was just 2 yrs old. Marsha said that my mom had called her around Mother's Day weekend. She said she told her that she had cancer and had just found out. Knowing my mother, I'm sure she did tell her that. But also knowing my mom, I'm not sure weather to believe this to be true or not. She always told me and my sister different things about her health. Cancer was one of them at one time. But then she also denied it many times. So that brings up a whole new set of questions. What exactly did she have wrong with her? As soon as we are able to get the death certificate I will be going to get her medical records. But there is a 4-6 week waiting period for the certificate. And it's a 15 day process to get the records from the hospital. With as many times as she has been in there, there is sure to be a lot of pages. And at $1.35 per page I'm sure it's going to cost a lot. But that's OK. That's at least 1 1/2 months from now, if not two. I have been wanting to do that for a long time now anyways. I was just never able to.

One other thing that was kind of strange is that Marsha told me that she never agreed with what my mother did. I'm not sure what that means. I'm sure it has something to do with my mom and dad splitting up and probably something to do with him killing himself. So one day I may have to go visit her and have a long chat. I have always been very curious about that time in my life. I would love to know more about my dad too. And they were very close to him. I wonder if they have any pictures of my mom and dad? I am big on pictures. Especially old ones of family.

For My Mom

I had to shorten it just a bit. So the pictures go by much faster than they usually would. And the song Amazing Grace is no longer on there. I had to chose one song to cut off so that it would all fit. And the other two are just to perfect for my mother to loose. So this is it. This is the video slide show that I made in her honor. I miss her already!

Sad Times Around Here...

I lost my mother. I don't know how to feel about it. I am sad. But I still don't feel like it can be true. I cry in bed at night because I know I can call her tomorrow anymore. It's too late now. I found a beautiful poem that expresses my thoughts very accurately.


Everyone has their time
But why did yours have to come so soon?
There are so many people in the world
So why did God have to pick you?
They say things like this make you stronger
But how can that be?
I feel so weak inside
It all feels like a dream
I didn't get to see you
You passed away too soon
But I feel you watching over me
And someday I'll see you again

Andrea Nickel


The last time I saw her was the Monday after Mother's Day, on the 12th. The last time I talked to her was on the 19th or 20th. She sounded so good. She wanted to go to the family reunion. And she wanted to take Dillan (my niece) with us. She had just talked to Yvonne (another close family member) and was excited to get to see her. My grandpa called me on Thursday the 22nd to tell me that she wasn't feeling well. She hadn't gotten out of bed for two days and wasn't eating. She was crying out in pain in the middle of the night. He called me because he just didn't know what to do. He was worried about her. I could hear it in his voice. It worried me a little bit to. Just knowing that she hadn't gotten up out of that room for two days. Not even to eat. She didn't want him in her room, or to even bother her. I told him that the only thing that he really could do would be to call the ambulance to come get her. He didn't want to do that, because she was drinking. He thought that she just wasn't getting up because she was too drunk. Which I guess could have been the case. I feel horrible for him. He had decided that if she didn't get up and at least get something to eat then he would call 911 in the morning. But when he went to get her up, she was gone. God had taken her pain away. That's the only thing that gives me comfort anymore. Knowing that she isn't in pain any more. And knowing that she is in better hands now. With someone that can guide her and take care of her the way she needs it. Like none of us here could ever do for her. She called me to ask if I could stop by on my way home from picking up Christian from school. She wanted to see the kids. But I was being selfish and didn't want to. I hated taking my kids over to see her. I didn't like them seeing her in this dirty place, with liquor on her breath and cigarette smoke all around. Would that really have hurt anything that badly if we just drove by for a minute or so? She could have seen her grandchildren one more time before she died. The last time she saw them was at Christian's game on the 10th. Christian was in one of those moods. And he wouldn't talk to her. He felt bad about that later, and talked about it for a week. That was one of the first things he said when he found out the news. After why did she have to die? And why do people have to get sick? And why does mostly our family have to die? What do you tell an 8 yr old that has lost two grandparents in the past three years. It was harder to tell him about his Mini than anyone else in this world. He did ask me the other day why we called her Mini. I told him that's the name she wanted you to call her. Because she is your skinny Mini! I got half of a smile from him. She was very skinny.
I have been working on a video slide show of pictures of my mom. I have almost 80 pics of her throughout her life. It's a shame really that I don't have more of her in the resent years. I put them together with a few quotes/poems and songs. I used Desperado, by The Eagles, Bridge Over Troubled Waters, by Simon and Garfunkel, and of course Amazing Grace, this one was done by Leeann Rhymes. The trio of songs is beautiful! I think it has helped me in my grieving. Although, I don't think I am done. I am far from it actually. It still doesn't feel right to me. It still feels like I am talking about someone else when I talk about her memorial service. I still can't believe it has happened.

I had to go put flowers on my father's grave sight the other day. This has hit me hard. I have no parents now. My father committed suicide when I was only 2 yrs old. And now my mother is gone too. And I can't help but think about how I could have done more in the past couple of years to include her in my family's life. I don't want to feel like that. But I do.

Now I want to go visit San Miguel de Allende. Where we lived for a while, in Mexico. My mother loved living there. She was free to be herself. People didn't judge you like they do here. It's a beautiful country too. So primitive compared to here. I have always wanted to go back some day. I would like to show my husband where I lived for a while. I would like to show him what a beautiful place it can be. But with the baby on the way, now is not a good time. I guess it will be a few years before I can even think of going back.

I think I've rambled enough for the time being. Maybe I will try to get the slide show downloaded next week, and put it up on here.

It's A Boy!

We are very excited! And this way we aren't going to have to spend all of that extra money on bunches of cute girl cloths. LOL All I need to get is the big stuff, like a crib! And then a few cloths for the first few months. I'm sure the family will give a gift or two as well. But everything looks great. Baby is measuring right on schedule. And the heart rate was 153. We are having a hard time getting Kaleb to remember that it's a boy and not sissy. We picked out the name Keegan Blane. So now we just tell him it's baby Keegan. He's getting the hang of it. My MIL and Christian both went with me to the ultrasound. They had a bet going. If it was a girl, Christian would pull weeds at Nana's (my MIL) House, and if it was a boy Nana would buy Christian a toy. Christian won! He was very excited about that!

I had really wanted a girl. But it looks like God had other plans for me. This is going to be my last baby. DH is going to get "fixed" and we are going to look into me getting it done as well. We may have to wait untill we can pay for it though. It's cheaper for DH so we know we are gong to do that one. But I have been very sad lately, because that means that I will not get a chance to have a little girl of my own. Then I start feeling bad about feeling bad! I know it will be alright, I guess I just need some time. I wanted to go shopping after I found out, but I didn't end up with the time for it. So I went the next day with my sister, my aunt, my grandmother and my cousin. I looked around at cloths, but didn't see anything that caught my eye. Not for a boy at least. I saw tons of stuff for girls! I finally settled on a couple of outfits on the clearance rack. But I wasn't thrilled about them. I actually ended up finding a lot of maternity cloths that I liked though. I ended up splurging and getting myself an outfit too. I have tried to get into shopping, but every time I go I gravitate towards the little girl stuff. Then I get sad again and don't want to shop anymore.

I know that I am excited about the new baby boy. I am in love with the name we picked out too! I'm getting upset now because my need for a little girl is getting in the way of me enjoying this little guy! It's making me mad at myself. I better get over it soon! But then every time I tell some one else that we are having a boy they all say, "aww...", or "I'm sorry." I hate that! Don't be sorry! Be happy that he is a healthy baby. I am. I am only sad that I won't have a little girl, ever.

Maybe it's just all of the hormones going crazy inside my body that are making me feel like I am crazy!

1 on 1 time

I got to spend the day with my oldest son yesterday. We had a blast. And he must have said a million times that that was his best day ever! Enough to make me want to do it more often!!!

It all started when my husband got called into go to work. He was told that they needed him on a different rig out of town. It's a "sit down" job, so that means he stays in a trailer out on the rig untill they are done,, or untill they don't need him anymore. He is taking over someone else's job because they needed to take care of some things at home. What ever. So his mother decided to have lunch before he has to leave town since his birthday is on May 2nd. And he will not be here. At first our youngest son was saying that he wanted to see Papa Dean(my father-in-law) and Nana(my mother-in-law). Well Papa Dean had to be at work so it was just going to be us and Nana. He wasn't so happy about that, but still OK with it. We get there and Papa Dean shows up too! OMG!!! Kaleb was soooo happy! He sat on Papa Dean's Lap the whole time!When it came time to leave he told me, "Be go you" and pointed to my in-laws. This means he wants to go with Papa Dean and Nana. I tell him no, you have to go with mommy and daddy. You can go with Papa Dean and Nana tomorrow. The kids both stay over at their house every Saturday night. But he just kept saying "no, be go you," and pointing to them. So we all walk out together and he runs to Nana and holds her hand out to the car. We all went to look at her rental car. So when it was time to go he gave her a hug and wouldn't let go! It was like it was a life or death situation! He wanted to go with them so bad! I have never seen him want to go with anyone that badly before. It was actually pretty funny, I have to admit. Well, Papa Dean ended up giving in and taking Kaleb with him. He was just ever so happy!

So right after that I had to pick up Christian from school. Who, by the way, made the A honor role again this 6 weeks! We started off thinking that we would go practice throwing the ball at the park, then go for ice cream. But we had to go pick up my husbands meds before he went to work. And we were stuck waiting for them to sort out the details for 45 minutes! Ugh... And that's because I called it in the day before! Any ways, he changed his mind and wanted to go to a movie instead. My father-in-law, said that he was going to bring Kaleb back home at 8:00 pm that night since he had to go play music that night. So we ran out of time to go see a movie too! It was already 5:30 by the time we were finally able to leave the house. That's the time that daddy left for work to. So we ended up going to McDonald's for dinner. Mmm... *sarcasm added here* I hate McDonald's. Then we went to Target to exchange one of Kaleb's birthday gifts, that was a double. While we were there I told Christian that if he wanted to get a toy and settle for an icee instead of an ice cream we could do that. And, of course, he agreed. So he picked out an Iron Man toy. Then we came home and played 3 games of Yahtzee. He won every one of them, fair and square! That boy has the best luck on games. Just after that he was saying how much fun he had. And how we should do this more often! That just made my heart melt. He even said, but I know we can't get a new toy every time. So we should just have our special day more often. Aww... My father in-law called about that time and said that Kaleb had already fallen asleep so he could just stay there for the night. So Christina and I could have gone to the movies after all! But Christian didn't see it that way. His first thought was, cool, more time for me and you! So we ended up going to Hollywood Video and renting a couple of movies. Then going to Marble Slab next door and getting some ice cream. We picked out the Bad News Bears (the old one with Walter Matthau) and Benji, a classic. When we got home we popped some popcorn and watched Bad News Bears in my bed. Christian must have said this was the best day ever about 20 times! LOL I love that boy so much. And I was so glad that I was able to spend some time with him, and with out his little brother. He finally was able to get some much needed attention from me. Now I know I am going to have to do this more often!


Well, since my hubby is not going to be here for his birthday, that also means that he won't be here for the ultrasound that we are going to have that day! I had set it up for his birthday, and at a time we knew he could make it. Well that was for the job he was on. We didn't expect them to pull him off of this one to put him on another! Ugh... I hate the oil field! It's so unpredictable. Even when you think it is for the next few weeks or so! So I asked my mother-in-law to go with me since my hubby won't be there. I am so disappointed! We are hoping to find out what we are having then too! And he won't be here for that!!! Oh well, at least I don't have to go alone. And I can call him. At least he can know about it on his birthday.

Baseball Season Is Here!

My oldest son is playing little league this year. We put him in it when he was 5 but he just didn't have to patients for that yet. They put him as catcher for t-ball. LOL Like there is anything to do there! So he built sand piles and jumped in them. And when he was in the outfield, he just picked the grass and threw it in the air. LOL Well this time he is much more attentive. He is catching very well, throwing better, and batting with coach pitch! He's not the best, but he's catching up! His team won their scrimmage last week. They had their first game last Friday. They won that one too! So now his confidence is supper high.

Kaleb loves baseball now too. He just has to be like his big brother! So everyday he talks about playing baseball. I ended up getting him a glove and ball so he can catch like bubba. He is getting a t-ball stand for his birthday. Witch is coming up on the 20th! He's going to be 3 yrs old! My, my, my, where does time go?! Kaleb has also learned to ride his bike. He peddles, steers and breaks now.

Everything else is going great! I no longer have morning sickness so that's always nice. I started to feel the baby moving a few weeks ago. And as of yesterday I can officially feel it with my hand! Dh still won't touch though. He has the Alien fear. LOL Too many scary movies! What a sissy! I have still been neglecting my crochet work. :( I'll get back into it sometime though. I like it too much to stop forever.

Whoa Baby!

He he he...

Well I had my first ultrasound on Friday, the 20th. All looks great with baby and me! The Dr. didn't tell me what the heart rate was. But we did get to see the heart beat. She did say it looked great. That's got to be better than good. I could see the little arms the head and body and the umbilical cord. I couldn't pin point the legs though. They must have been curled up. Anyways my 2 yr old son now says there will be two babies. Him and the new baby. LOL Got to love that boy. He just refuses to give up his title!

On the crocheting side of things, sadly, all is not going well. I haven't done any work since my last update. I have had all of this morning sickness and fatigue for this first trimester. And it's kicking my but! But the good news is that I only have 3 or 4 more weeks untill it should all be over! I need to get busy on the house and my crochet!

Time for an update

I went to the Dr on Monday to get my progesterone levels checked. Everything looked great! I am right on schedule. Dr said I should be at at least a 10 and I am at a 15. I am so relieved to hear that. I am having different symptoms this time. When they say every person is different and every pregnancy is different, they are right! This time I feel slight cramping(normal for the pulling and stretching) and some mild nausea. With my other two guys I didn't have any of this cramping, at least not so soon. And I didn't ever have any morning sickness! TG!!! But this time I can only eat up to a certain amount. If I get to full I feel sick. And then I am hungry with in an hour or two. I hate it! I like to get full and eat only twice a day, sometimes three. Now I have to eat at least three times a day, plus a snack or two. Oh well. Such is life... hahaha. I love being pregnant though! I can't wait until I get to feel the baby. And I hope this one moves more than my youngest son. I love feeling them move around inside my belly. Until, that is, the last month when they are kicking my ribs and bladder. That's no fun! I have my first ultra sound on Feb. 20th. I should be 9 and a half weeks by then. So I should be able to get some good pics of a baby shape in there instead of just a bean. LOL

On to my crochet! Well I haven't really done too much. I don't seem to have the time to sit and do that to much lately. But I am almost half way done with a baby blanket for my neighbors new little girl. I am using an H hook and Bernat Satin in Sea Shell. It 's the Diagonal Box Stitch. I have grown to love it! It's so simple to do! It does get pretty monotonous at times. But that's OK. It doesn't slow my down because I love the look! Here's a couple of pics.

Exciting News!

I just took a home pregnancy test. The results are a (+) I am pregnant!!! Kind of a surprise, kind of not. See my husband and I decided that I would go off of birth control several months ago. So we used other means for a few months( ok maybe only one or two). Then went off completely. It has been at least 6 months since we last used anything. I was beginning to wonder if it was going to happen at all. My periods began to get to normal and I was never a single day late. Until today! I actually started spotting on Monday. It lasted until Wednesday. Then I was supposed to start today. We were out of town on a tiny vacation, so I tried not to think of it. When we got home tonight, I decided to go ahead and use the last home pregnancy test I had here. The plus sign showed up almost immediately! There is no doubt in my mind that it is true. I am pregnant! The only thing is that now I have to wait untill the first of February to see my Dr. That's when the new insurance kicks in. I hate that!!! My last pregnancy I needed to take progesterone pills for the first trimester to keep the pregnancy going. I had lost two prior to that due to not enough progesterone being produced naturally. There is a difference this time though. With the home pregnancy test that I took those times, the second line on the + came up very faintly. This time it is dark, just like the other line and the test line. That shows that the hormones are there. Now what worries me is the spotting that took place for three days.

I need lots of prayers for this one to work out for me. At least good thoughts!

We have decided not to tell anyone in our family about it until I can get to the Dr and know that all is well, for sure. I'm not sure how long I can keep it a secret. I need some help with that too! That's why I am posting it here. I can't hold it in. I need to tell someone, everyone! But it needs to wait for a little while longer.



Mean while I have found a pattern to use for the blankets I will make. It's the diagonal box stitch. It's not hard at all, and I love the way it looks. I went ahead and used a different hook though, size H. The Jimbo Hook is just to big for most blankets(size J). =( But given the news above, I think I will put that hook to better use! No harm after all. lol

Well, I guess I better go now. I have a lot to do before bed.

I haven't actually made anything in a while. Well it's been about a month now. I got Jimbo's hook in the mail on Saturday night! It's a beauty!!! So nice to work with and comfortable to hold. I went to JoAnn's on Sunday to get some pink yarn. I am going to make two blankets for some new born baby girls. I am searching for the perfect stitch! I would like to have a beautiful stitch to go with the beautiful hook that I am using. Some one from Crochetville recommended this pattern Crossed Ripple Preemie Afghan. But I'm not satisfied with it. Maybe I'm just not doing it right, or maybe it would look better in a different yarn. I was able to do it though, so that's a plus! I didn't think I could just from reading the pattern. Anyways I am off to look for a different pattern. I'll have to frog the few rows I got done but that's OK.

This is My Jimbo Hook!The picture just wouldn't come out right, so sorry about the quality.
It's tulip wood and has a kind of pinkish tint to it.
I just love it!

On another note, today is my 4th anniversary to my wonderful husband! We've had our ups and downs. But that's to be expected I guess. Especially when his father died, we lost a baby and we had a baby. All within the first couple of years. But life has been good in general. He got hired on with a new company today too. He is there right now filling out paper work and picking up his company truck. I love the fact that he can get those! It saves us a lot of money!!! Any ways, I look forward to many more wonderful and loving years!

We aren't really doing much to celebrate right now. But we have decided that we are going to book a cruse for the summer. We just have to decide which one! We are calling that our gift/honeymoon(since we never got one).

Retinoblastoma

"There are approximately 350 new diagnosed cases per year in the United States. Retinoblastoma affects one in every 15,000 to 30,000 live babies that are born in the United States." http://www.retinoblastoma.com/frameset1.htm

That's not many! However this is a condition that affects my cousins little girl.

Macy was under a year old when she was diagnosed with Retinoblastoma, a cancer of the retina. At first it was unilateral, meaning in one eye. By the time she was two years old it had become bilateral. Macy had to have both of her eyes removed by the time she was two years old. In there place there are now some prosthetic eyes that matched hers.

She is now 5 or 6 years old. She uses a cane to walk with and reads braille. Just last year this wonderful, strong little girl played baseball! Yes, you read that right, I said she payed baseball! They used a special ball that made a whistling noise. She was on a team of little kids that could see. She loved it! Just not enough to play this year. My son was the same way though. Baseball is a pretty slow game. And little kids, like these two, lose interest quickly and become board. So I don't blame her there.

This little girl is the strongest little girl that I know! She sets her mind to do something, and she does it! Just this Christmas she asked to have a camera. Well, no one can say no to her so of course she got one. And from what I hear, she has taken at least a couple of shots where the people are right in the center of the picture! See what I mean. She CAN do anything she wants to. Having no sight doesn't slow her down!

Any ways, Jimbo's interest in getting the word out there for his cause got me to thinking. What if I can do something to get the word out about this condition as well?! I know what you are thinking now, especially if you know his blog. But no! I don't carve wood. So I can't make you a nice, pretty crochet hook. And I doubt that I will have time to make anything to auction off or to give away as a prize. But I thought I would put the word out there for those few people that might read my blog. Maybe one day I will get around to holding a contest something like what Jimbo is doing on his blog. But I wouldn't hold my breath if I were you.

So here are some links that you can go to, to find out more about Retinoblastoma. The first link is where you can find some stories about the survivors as well as information about the condition. The second one is where you can find some information that is easier to understand(for me at least). The other two are just some links that I found by googling.

http://www.retinoblastoma.net/about.html
http://www.retinoblastoma.com/index.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Retinoblastoma
http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/retinoblastoma/


Thanks for reading!

Friedreich's Ataxia

I would like to share my support for Jimbo's Front Porch. He is helping to raise money for Friedreich's Ataxia. There he puts the website info. He is giving away a hand carved crochet hook to one lucky winner. No donations are required. He just asks that you go to that sight and read about it. Then click on some of the stories from the family's of those with Friedreich's Ataxia. You can read more about it in his blog. He is also trying to sell hooks made from chopsticks. You can order yours on his sight here. Please take a look. Even if you don't crochet, or have a need for a crochet hook.

It's all about getting the word out!

http://www.curefa.org/