BLESSINGS (It's a long one!)

I apologize in advance... its going to be a long blog... and not as funny and lighthearted as I like to spend life in general. I guess I am throwing my fairytale life out the door for a few minutes while I type this out.

Its been a crazy few months! I feel like so many things have happened, they've really helped me to put things into perspective. I'm really just in the mood to hide in a corner and read a book since the kids are in bed and the men are watching a movie that I have no interest in. But I will do my best to quickly tell our story! 2010 started out quite interesting!

So here is the condensed version! (Very condensed... leaving out many of the roller coaster emotions in between.)

BLESSINGS PART 1:
In January the doc said the baby had a hole in her heart. We went to the specialist and they said "No, she is fine!" In February, the doc said the baby is too small and that she is being starved. He gave me a series of steroid shots to develop her lungs because we possibly might have to deliver her at 28 weeks and put her in the NICU for 3 months. I had to set up biweekly non-stress tests at the office, weekly doc apts and weekly ultrasounds to monitor her closely. If she started to get too weak, we would have to immediately induce. Wow! Stressed out! But guess what... they sent me to the specialist and they said "No, she is fine! She is not too small and she is growing." I'm losing my trust in the ultrasound tech at my doctor's office!

So I go back to my regular doc... he decides he still wants one more ultrasound to make sure everything is ok. He says my previous ultrasound at their office also showed very low levels of fluid. The doc is flustered, but quite patient with me while I break down in his office. I'm frustrated about the constant good and bad reports back and forth each week. I call Doug and he is the sweet hubby who allows me to rant on the phone. He offers to let us live in Utah for the next two months so my old doc can deliver this baby too! I was seriously thinking about it. So after another week of stressing about it, I get another ultrasound. This time a different person does it. He seems to be much more experienced... and the results ... "the fluids are just fine!"

So my doc finally agrees nothing is wrong and that I don't have to have all the extra tests, ultrasounds and weekly doc appointments. So life is back to normal! Yay! Baby is growing, has a healthy heart, moves around all the time... and I've actually started showing! I keep telling people if they just get fat before they get pregnant they can hide it for a long time! Plus, they are already used to carrying the extra weight. Life is good! :)

So the baby stress seems to be old news... and now we can actually start thinking about names. We have no idea, but this is not normal for us. Its usually a decision made in the 4th quarter anyway.

Wow, that wasn't quite as condensed as I wanted, but I digress... here are the other things we were dealing with!

BLESSINGS PART 2:
My mom found a lump on her lower eyelid in December. She went in, had a biopsy and found out it was cancerous. They had her come back in and they did surgery to remove the cancerous area. Her last check up last week verified that they did get all the cancer out and the cancer is not a type that travels through the blood stream. So it did not and would not spread anywhere. But meanwhile... there was some stress and worries between January and now!

BLESSINGS PART 3:
Great Grandma has not been feeling so hot. Doug and I visited her at the end of February and she was having dizzy spells and muscle spasms that were causing her to fall to the floor while she was walking or even sitting on the couch. Her arms and legs would just start flailing everywhere. She didn't know if she was having a seizure, if she had brain cancer, or what. She had a nasty bump and split her skin open on her head just before we got there. She had a really bad cut 5 inches long up her shin from one of her falls earlier that week. She had been talking to her doctor, but didn't know what to do. She went into the hospital and her pulse and blood pressure were really low. They realized that she needed a pace maker! They flew her up to Spokane to do her surgery as soon as possible. Everything went well and she is now as spunky as ever! I haven't seen her this energetic for a while... and she is still recuperating from the surgery. Amazing!

BLESSINGS PART 4:
We've known for a while that Doug was possibly going to lose his job. When I say a while... I mean over a year! He has the lowest seniority in his office, so when the state was laying off, he was naturally at the bottom of the totem pole. But here it was and they were getting memos from the DOC administration saying all the layoffs are over... oh, but wait, just kidding! They just hadn't finished in the Kennewick office where he was working! So they offered Doug a job in Yakima (sorry, we are NOT moving there) or he could be on the layoff list. We chose the layoff list. His last day at work was March 5th. We were scared and excited for a new step in life... until on March 2nd, Doug also got a letter from the state saying "Just Kidding, you still have your job." Please show up to work as normal! It was frustrating, but it's a blessing to not have to worry about that too!

CONCLUSION:
So within a month, we were dealing with some of the most stressful incidents anyone can have in their life... well almost anyway! We didn't have to change jobs, didn't lose a child or a loved one, and didn't have any major issues from my mom's cancer. It all seems so silly now, but at the time I remember thinking... "I can't take anything else! Why is everything happening at once?" I guess it's because Heavenly Father knew I could handle it and I needed it to learn to rely on Him.

I am so blessed to have such a patient and loving husband. I have not been the most patient or loving wife the last few months and he has really put up with me. I am so thankful for my kids. Somehow through all of the stress, I love and appreciate my kids more now than ever. What a blessing it is to know that Heavenly Father is there for us. He gives us peace and strength all at once. For one of the darkest months in my life, it's amazing how everything has turned out just fine. What great blessings!