A new language

NovoLog, Lantus, lancets, Glucose, insulin...On Thursday our life took a turn, I won't say for the worst because I am already seeing so many great blessings come from it.  Jackson our just shy of 3 years old was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes.  It is the kind that will require insulin for the rest of his life!  I blame it on Jeremy, if his family gets the choice of being in the majority or being on the least likely side, the latter is the route they go on.  90% of all diabetes cases are Type 2, and 10% are Type 1.  Type 1 is insulin defendant, Type 2 can sometimes be regulated by diet alone and you can not change from Type 1 to Type 2.

Here is how we found out which I think is a small miracle myself.  We were having a conversation with Bev, Jeremy's mom.  We were complaining how Jackson would wet through a diaper in an hour, like running down his legs full!  We would change him in the middle of the night and he would still wake up covered in pee, and sometimes when we changed him the first time too.  She had also noticed that he was crying for water a lot.  I just thought he was holding it because of potty training and drinking more water due to the new water dispenser in the refrigerator door.  She said "I know I tend to think the worst and worry too much, but these are symptoms of diabetes, you may want to have him checked."  Later I found out as a teacher they train you to look for these signs so they can suggest to parents to get tested.  Diabetes unchecked can be a very bad thing.  So I emailed my doctor and she sent back a message rather quickly saying get him tested that day.  That was a shock because I wasn't expecting her to act on it.  So I didn't quite obey because I had no reason to believe there was anything wrong with Jackson, most symptoms were reasonable with a terrible two/torturous three little boy.  I went first thing the next morning (yes I got my non potty trained little boy to go in a cup!)  Then we left for a play date with a friend. 

On my way home Jeremy called and asked where we were telling me he was at home FOR THE REST OF THE DAY, yipee!  He had taken the afternoon off to take us all to lunch and a movie.  When I got home I checked his lab results on line.  There were two lines that were not right.  The glucose where a normal range is 0-29 his was <1000 0-9="0-9" 15="15" 1="1" 60.="60." a="a" an="an" and="and" anyone="anyone" asking="asking" at="at" be="be" been="been" being="being" bit.="bit." blood="blood" broke="broke" call="call" called="called" checking.="checking." coordinated="coordinated" correctly.="correctly." could="could" couple="couple" course="course" diabetes="diabetes" diabetic="diabetic" doctor="doctor" duress="duress" else="else" emailed="emailed" er="er" even="even" expected="expected" explanation.="explanation." fabulous="fabulous" for="for" genius="genius" going="going" googled="googled" got="got" guess="guess" had="had" happening="happening" have="have" heart="heart" his="his" hospital="hospital" i="i" in="in" is="is" jackson="jackson" ketones="ketones" key="key" least="least" led="led" looks="looks" mean="mean" medical="medical" minutes="minutes" more="more" my="my" nbsp="nbsp" night="night" normal="normal" not="not" of="of" on="on" one="one" or="or" our="our" over="over" p="p" pedi-endocrinologist="pedi-endocrinologist" pedi="pedi" pediatrician="pediatrician" pretty="pretty" rare="rare" said="said" seriously="seriously" she="she" shocked="shocked" so="so" stay.="stay." stay="stay" still="still" straight="straight" stuff="stuff" symptomatic.="symptomatic." take="take" talking="talking" test="test" that="that" the="the" there="there" they="they" this="this" though="though" thought.="thought." times="times" to="to" today="today" told="told" type="type" urgent="urgent" us="us" was="was" we="we" went="went" were="were" when="when" where="where" will="will" within="within" word="word">

We got there at 4:30 and by 6:30 we were in our room, getting instructions and information that was almost foreign to me.  I went and Jeremy took care of the rest of the kiddos.  We were told the overnight stay was really to train us on how to care for Jackson, so I went since I would be the one with him most of the time.

All of the sudden my little spaz of a boy became a sick fragile little thing with one test result.  He was a fantastic patient.  We stayed two nights in the hospital and they helped to get us home on Christmas Eve at 7:30pm.

That night after putting him to bed Jeremy kindly suggested I take a shower (since I hadn't for three days!  GROSS!)  I finally had a moment to cry my heart out until it hurt.  I do truly know and believe that great things will happen in our family.  I know that he will be a normal little boy, and be able to live a normal life, but the thought of him having a "disease" that requires insulin for the rest of his life was difficult to comprehend.  What if he decided he doesn't need it or fights it when he gets older and stronger then us.  Just scary!

It was lousy timing, or so I thought.  I will remember this Christmas for ever as a turning point in our lives.  The next day was Christmas.  Let me tell you the night before I wasn't feeling joy just sadness, especially when we had to stick him with a needle to test his sugars then give him his first does of insulin on our own.  He really is a super cute and sweet little boy.  Before going to bed I calculated the carbs in our traditional Christmas breakfast of bear claws and banana eggnog.  Truly the diabetic breakfast of champions!  It is a new life, and tomorrow it would begin.

And so it did.  With the minor interuption of testing blood sugars, calculating what he ate, and giving a shot, we continued as normal (oh and showering before his insulin), it was a perfect morning.  We got to attend Sacrament (our first church meeting of our Sunday Block).  It was so fabulous to spend the morning thinking about our Savior.  It was a morning of stories and music.  I was near tears during every musical number, sometimes frustrated at Jackson's diagnosis.  Then it hit me when one of the speaker said that Christ suffered for all of our sins.  This wasn't a sin, but he suffered and felt all our pain, he felt our joy too.  But it was the reminder that he felt what I was feeling.  His gift to me was to not let me suffer alone.  I love my Savior, I love that he loves me enough to comfort me in times of weakness, and to celebrate when I realize that he already knew and was waiting for this to happen and lift me up.

A little back story because this post is not long enough...I had prayed recently that Heavenly Father would help me be more consistent and really be able to function with clear thoughts.  I had been so overwhelmed and living in the moment that I was forgetting commitments all the time.  I needed to have meals ready on time so we could have some family time before bed.  I needed this all to happen so the kids could get to bed on time and get there much needed rest.  I needed time with Jeremy when I wasn't too tired to have a conversation.  I am not sure Jeremy prayed for that but I do know he really hoped I would gain these characteristics.  I expected a gentle learning experience, not an abrupt turn for the better.  Because of this diagnosis, meal times are very important, I need to be on a good schedule so Jackson never gets into the low blood sugar zone, and regulate his blood sugar so it doesn't stay too high for too long.  It will involve many things where I have to be organized.  I know it wasn't just this prayer being answered (which I still adamantly insist I would have got there eventually...maybe with out such a dramatic answer) but that He wants me to grow and has something great instore for me and Jackson, and our family since this affects all of us.

So here's to the beginning of our new forever.  Cheers!

Conversation piece

I feel I have neglected my blog when it comes to kid-isms.  I find it so much easier to put the little quip on facebook, like on Friday when we were unpacking from our little jaunt to LA, two police officers showed up at our door responding to a 911 hang up, shockingly the culprit was NOT Lauren but Jackson, yes our 18 month old baby.  He dialed about 15 numbers after 911 but it went through none the less.  It kind of freaked out my sister-in-law who was working dispatch.  She called our home and cell phone numbers but it was a blocked number so we didn't answer on any of our phones.  OOPS!  In our defense, Jeremy had just picked up a telemarketer call, his cell was not on him and I was in the car elsewhere so I had no idea.

So this morning I was getting ready and I start listening to Haylie and Hannah's conversation.  It went something pretty close to this:

Haylie "I am taller"
Hannah "Does that mean you have a taller head."
Haylie "I think yes because you have a bigger head"
Hannah "My head is fatter?"
Haylie "Yes, I think so."

We always tell people how Hannah is a little shorter and thinner than Haylie but she Hannah has a rounder, fuller face.  It cracked me up that we must have said it enough for it to be ingrained in their psyche.

Where we store things

You can only image that things are a little tight in out home.  While we don't feel cramped we often wonder how things are going to change over the years.  I can tell Jackson already has some concerns about what his next bed is going to look like! I think he feels this is sturdy enough to hold him.

So here is the real story:  The sound of silence, yes it is a sound that causes weaker moms to tremble, alerted me to no good.  I walked down the hall and heard Lauren's pitter-pattering little feet heading away from me.  As I rounded the corner I say the above scene.  Upon closer inspection I realized that Lauren probably helped Jackson into the drawer where they both proceeded to clean off the top of Logan's dresser that happened to be covered in little (6 years and up only) Legos!

He actually was enjoying himself, pink cheeks from the sun, and all.  And just because he is probably the cutest little 16 month old ever I wanted to show you how much of a big boy he is growing up to be!  I love this kid!

On a side note:  Today I went to the park to meet some friends.  Jackson has been so good about the play structures I wasn't too worried and wasn't paying close attention.  Jackson decided to walk down a twirly slide and went right over the edge, it was a pretty good distance.  Luckily he landed on his side and the turf was extra spongy.  He ended up getting right back up and try for another trip down the slide.  I paid more attention.  I only share this as a gentle reminder to keep an eye on your little ones, I feel so very lucky that Heavenly Father protected him and reminded me that I need to stay focused!  With so much going on with the warmer weather, and heading into summer it is so easy to get distracted, but it is so important to keep an eye on these precious children.

Jackson

This is it, it is official, we no longer have a baby in the house. Our baby turned one last week. Oh that kid is so sweet and one of a kind. He has been the perfect addition to our perfect family (I can say that with humility, because I am pretty sure you think your own family is perfect as well!)

I love being his mom and feeling him cling to me as he watches the world around him. He is a mover and you can believe he knows life is not a specator sport. He gets in there and has no idea that he is not the same age and size as all his siblings. Jackson and Logan continue to adore each other. Lauren and Jackson are probably going to be Bonnie and Clyde as soon as Jackson becomes of some use to her. As it stands she is waiting patiently for that change. When he wakes up from his nap she opens the door and closes it, that's the easiest way to not get caught. then she climbs in his crib and talks to him, he enjoys it and I think she loves a student to teach!

Jackson about 1 week...

...about 3 months...

...about 6 months...

...about 9 months

...about 11 months

...finally Jackson at 1 year.

We celebrated his birthday a little bit late but we did get the traditional smearing of the cupcake!

He enjoyed his cupcake and had no problem making a mess. He also enjoyed the bath and nice warm jammies afterwards. Not to mention the many gifts from his many adoring fans. Thanks to all of you who helped us celebrate this milestone!

Can you believe it?

My baby is nine months old today! This little tyke has stolen my heart. He is such a happy baby. He is independent, in a nice entertain myself kind of a way. He says "Mamamamama" and the rest is gibber jabber. That just melts my heart, even if "Mamamamama" actually translates to "Feed me now MOM!" It still means ME! He is crawling all over the place, up and down steps. He is pulling himself up on to the furniture. He has also already learned that during dinner time it is perfectly acceptable to either a) sit by my feet and cry while I am cooking dinner or b) pull himself up on my leg and stand between me and the counter so I can not move with out knocking him over. He is taking steps along the couch or other various furniture. He is a smart one! He is eating everything, no matter the location or staleness of food. That means he will eat anything on the floor, eeewwwww! He is also eating eggos, gold fish, cheese-its, cheerios, cheese sticks (cut up of course!). As well as the baby food staples, he is my first one to love rice cereal.

We were at a friends house where there is a baby Jackson's age. It was adorable to watch the two of them crawl towards each other and at the last minute put their heads down like to deer trying to lock horns. They would bump then back up and do it again. I loved to watch him interact with his destined-to-be best friend.

I just scheduled his next appointment so his "Stats" will be posted at a later date. Hopefully they won't label him skinny again, but I do know he eats like a champ so it just may be his destiny. He has been a perfect addition to our family. All the kids adore him. Especially Lauren! She will talk to him and they will giggle at each other, I will have to get it on video it is priceless.

They're GROWING!!!!

I went to the doctor yesterday for Jackson's 6 month check up...I know he is 7 months, but a girl has to fit it in whenever she can. So here's his stats:

Height: 28.3 " long which puts him in the 84th percentile

Weight: 16.3 lbs which makes him in the 9th percentile

His weight for height percentile was off the charts so we have another tall skinny kid! He is doing great in all other aspects though. He got his shots and took them like a champ. He is now babbling "Mmaamaamaa." I love it.

While there we asked about the process for Asthma for Miranda and allergies. Our doctor is so awesome she asked some questions and prescribed her two inhalers right on the spot. It was fabulous. Then as the kids were getting a tad restless I said we would be doing it all tomorrow and so she said that she would just see Lauren today. So Lauren had her 2 year check up. Here stats are as follows:

Height: 2' 3.25" tall which puts her in the 94th percentile.

Weight: 26lbs 9 ounces which puts her in the 36 percentile for her weight for age

Here's the kicker, her weight for height she is in the 2.3 percentile.

Both kids are instructed to be on high fat diets!

A friend of mine...

is extremely talented. The first week I went to church after Jackson was born he had a major explosion in the nether regions if you catch my drift and a stinky drift it was. As in-experienced as I am with the whole newborn thing I forgot a change of clothes and *ah-hem* another diaper and wipes...

So later that week she came by and brought me a cute little gift for Jackson. I got some cute pictures of him in it this week. This first one should have a thought bubble with "Did you feel that? It so wasn't me! "

He thinks he got away with it!

Think it's cute check out what she's got on her etsy shop Small Threads. She even does custom orders!

Funny stories for the day

I am sure my funny stories are not funny for any one else but for memories sake they are going into the "blogosphere".

As I was getting out of my shower this morning I get bombarded by Haylie and Hannah. FYI when you have 6 young kids there is no such thing as privacy. As I am inside the shower still Haylie comes around the corner crying. Between sobs she says "I was running down the hall and I tripped and hit my head." And from the tone of her voice Hannah probably had her hand on her hip wagging her finger at her beloved mirror image and said firmly with no sympathy "well you know you are not supposed to be running in the house" then with a sweeter know-it-all voice she says "right Mom?" Yes she did actually use "supposed." Hannah is coming into her own and following in Miranda's foot steps as the next little mom.

Later that day...I was holding Jackson after feeding him. He was a happy little camper and then he gassed. From experience he makes his gas heard, but when he creates home made poop it is typically silent and your nose hairs are the first to betray his wicked but necessary deed. Then he ripped another one, this I could feel, but was not too worried. Then came the big one. As I was holding him appreciating the beauty of him pooping, this may sound weird so I interrupt this sentence to explain. My cute nephew has had problems keeping "regular" and poop was typically a painful, once every 10 day, experience. So for some it would be a blessing to have loose regular bowels. Moving on...then there was another noise. Then I think I am so lucky to be a mother I should blog about how grateful I am for poop! (I am not making this up I really thought that!) Then I felt an uncomfortable warmth on my leg. "Weird" I thought, it had only been less than 1 minute since the first "noise." The warmth was too real and too close, so I moved my arm and it was wet so I look down on my cute white linen skirt and there was the markings of motherhood. Jackson's outfit which had been on him for 2.367 seconds before his interruption (that I am making up it was more like 5 minutes) was completely soiled. So let me summarize the story. I am sitting admiring that my son can poop and it quickly turned in to moist poop on my arm and skirt. He is so thoughtful. I am sure he was mentally communicating and thought "Mom if you like it so much I will give you some to hold and some to wear" I am absolutely positively sure that is what he was thinking. Then I cleaned him all up and he giggled at me. Aren't they precious?

While planting flowers, that will probably die in four days time, Miranda was my most avid helper. She was helping me pull weeds and get the bigger rocks out of the dirt. She turns to me and says "this is the worst day ever!" Considering that she had a great time today I asked her to clarify and she said "pulling weeds!" So if this is her worst day ever then I think we are doing something good. Let me remind you she is a SHE which typically equates to dramatic exaggeration!

Just so Logan doesn't feel left out he's his funny story. We have given the kids a time limit for Wii time. They get 15 minutes each. While I try to keep on it, it sometimes slides. So today he went to a friends house and played Wii, and knowing Logan it was for a good share of the time. Later that day he came up to me and asked if he could play Wii, I asked "how long did you play for today?" he said I don't know. So I questioned him further by saying was it a long time or short time. After thinking for one minute with his finger on his chin he said with all seriousness "I played for one minute so I have fourteen minutes left!" Well then I had to call him on lying to me. So he put himself on his bed where I found him 20 minutes later. I told him that I didn't send him there. To which he kindly said "well this is where you tell us to go when you are mad at us."

Lastly, today I had a weird experience. The three girls went to a day camp and Logan went to a buddies house. I had three hours of having Jackson and Lauren alone. She was a completely different kiddo. She was quiet and restful and sweet and cute and lovable and cute. Well she is always cute and mostly sweet I am sure the chocoholic in her helps with that part though. As I was packing the two kids in the car I realized Lauren is really no different from the rest of my kids she is just rambunctious because she has 5 other siblings. She is a little almost two year old trying to keep up with her older siblings. It doesn't convert well! Anyways, I came to a new appreciation of her and who she is. She doesn't want to be lost in the mix, she wants to be known and being...I'm not sure what the correct word(s) is/are: creative, energetic, busy, loud, opinionated, is definitely a way for us to remember her and appreciate all those qualities. Which I do. I love that little girl to pieces. She is, simply put, adorable and the best part is she is MINE!

I have chosen a path that includes these 6 precious kids, all of them bring something to my family and I truly appreciate them all, even if i get mad and send them to their beds sometimes!

Being Mom...

The kids are so proud to have me as a mom and the give me the kindest gifts. The latest is a cold! That's OK for as much time as they give me hugs and smiles I will proudly take the germs as well.

Jackson is just over two months, I can't believe how time flies. I have learned from experience that the first three months after birth become a blur, and this is no different. I can't tell you how much I love this little guy. I think I have written that in every blog post about him. I was holding him this morning and I came to the realizations that he is already 10 weeks and he has grown so much. He still seem so tiny to me though.

Last week he had his 2 month appointment. Are you curious to know how he has grown? Just as a refresher he was born at 9 pounds 1 ounce, now he is 11 pounds 8 ounces. He is in the 41st percentile for weight. For height he started at 21 inches long and is now 23 inches. He is in the 59th percentile for height. He is growing well. It is funny going into appointments and hearing I have tall skinny kids, especially when referring to my biggest babies. Look at those long skinny legs! The doctor was surprised to hear that Jackson is sleeping a consistent 7 hours at night. Last night he slept for 8.5 hours, and let me tell you I needed it! The little sweetie will then wake up and just start wiggling with little grunts. It is way too cute. I would typically like more sleep but I am so grateful that he slept for so long that I will feed him. I love our hour in the morning where we can snuggle. I love to stare at him, even with his Freddy Kruger like scratches on his forehead. Jeremy says it reminds him of an extremely ugly wrestler, it was hard not to be offended by that. Jackson is adorable. Now thinking about it Jeremy should be offended since Jackson "looks just like him."

Which reminds me of this cute shirt Jackson got from a dear friend, isn't it fitting!

I have a couple post I need to get up but I couldn't resist writing some stuff about my little baby!

Jackson in Action

I just love how Jackson responds to his sisters. They will start talking to him and he gets this big grin. He loves them almost as much as they love him. I was able to catch in on video.

I just love him! Who knew a heart could hold so much!

One already...

One month that is! Can you believe it? Jackson was one month on the 8th of February, it kind of got overshadowed by the twins birthday but that's OK. Jackson seems to be thriving. He is suffering through the acne/hair loss/cradle cap syndrome. It is getting better. It is like living through three stages of life at once: cradle cap=newborn, acne=puberty, and hair loss=senior living! Poor kid. He is still adorable and is smiling now, especially when I finally get the hint to change his diaper. He is fairly low maintenance as long as he is nursing and I am holding him, it works out well because it gives me a justifiable excuse to read! We have been able to have lots of home cooked meals and maintain some family fun as well. I am sure it won't feel this way everyday all the time, but this is a good time in my life. I look forward to the next stage as well.

Words are great but pictures are so much better. Here are some recent snap shots.

We have two presents that we haven't given from Christmas time. They have now both been un-wrapped by Lauren. Who decided to congratulate herself by eating a Go-gurt, well trying anyways, she hasn't managed to open those yet. That is probably on the agenda for next week. She is extremely smart or busy. On Sunday I just went to the bathroom and to change out of my church clothes. Do you want to know where Lauren was? She got three DVD's put one in the DVD player and was getting ready to put two in to our CD changer. After feeding Jackson I come in to the family room and she is at the computer with the keyboard pulled out and the monitor turned on. I know mimicking is part of a developmental stage of childhood, but seriously there should be a limit that she can show me only a few of my faults not all of them.

This is my most relaxing time of the day. When she is asleep! As much of a little turkey she is, I can't help but love her to pieces. She is the whole package: personality, energy, cuteness, and loves to snuggle. How can you resist such a combo?

Lots of updates...

February 1st was the day Jackson was blessed. We didn't take too many pictures, actually we only took one.

Jeremy gave our little caboose a beautiful blessing. The people in the circle with Jeremy were great friends. We are extremely fortunate to be surrounded by so many people who will be a part of our lives and a good example to Jackson. In the circle there was, President Score, Bishop Lopez, Uncle Chris, Rossi, Tim, and Matt.

I took Lauren for her 18 month check-up, it's late and I was pre-occupied. She weighs 24lbs, that's the 30th percentile for her age. For her height she was in the 95th percentile at 34.75" tall. She still is our lollipop, tall, skinny with a beautifully round head.

Logan lost his second tooth, it's been loose since September! While rinsing it off in the sink it went down the drain. Brave Aunt Tamra dug through grossness to no avail, the tooth is gone. 1 week later and the silly tooth fairy has still not come even though there has been a note explaining the situation. The fairy needs to be fired.

Haylie and Hannah turned 4 yesterday. We began celebrating by getting traditional birthday donuts and dancing to Happy Birthday from the Splash Dance CD. We ended the day by going to Mimi's for dinner. Just the 8 of us, and it was enjoyable and the kids were awesome. After we came home and watched Igor. The girls opened a few presents but will get their big presents tomorrow when we celebrate with family. If I get some time I will put together a video to the Happy Birthday song. It's really catchy.

And just for kicks since most people only put the good stuff on blogs I will share a good story about me. Today as I was leaving for church with Jackson in arms I slipped on a hanger that was haphazardly lying in the hallway. We were both unharmed, with the exception of my ego. I picked up the hanger and threw it down the hall, it broke. I then lectured the kids on why they need to put stuff away. Seriously folks I am a klutz with out the help of objects. So we get home from church (yes to be spiritually uplifted and all that jazz) and the kids are to finish cleaning up the mess they made before church (it is amazing what two hours with out dad at home can do to a house!) So Logan comes out to show Jeremy a broken hanger, he threw it in his room. Jeremy said, where did you learn that? Logan's mumbled response "from mom!" To defend my self a little the kids were in the car when I threw the hanger so it was not in anyway directed at them. They just happened to be looking at me threw the windshield! Maybe this is where Lauren has learned to throw fits?!

With that I am signing off until next time when I have something worth while to share. And for kicks one last picture of my beautiful girls.

Nursing woes

I never know if it makes people uncomfortable using the word breastfeeding or if nursing is the better term, either way this is what this post is about, so if it makes you uncomfortable you may want to skip this post. I have been lucky that I have had no problems with nursing, besides of course, the nipple soreness and cracked skin, etc. I assumed that this would be a piece of cake, I had been successful 4 other times including twins. When Jackson was born he latched on immediately and seemed to be eager. I would say he latched on the best of any of the kiddos. In leaving the hospital things continued to go well, with the exception that he had tongue-tie. I figured the uncomfortable latching on, was normal. As it turns out it is a problem. By Monday I was engorged with milk and had a big blood blister on the tip of my nipple. I had been pumping which is awesome when you are engorged, I highly recommend renting a pump for the first month. We gave him the bottle, which he takes, just not very expertly. Now he doesn't latch on and goes on and pulls off and cries and kicks his little leg like he is in pain. I cry, he cries and the cycle continues. Yesterday we got his frenum clipped, he latched on right away and I cried, do you sense a post-partum pattern? I was thrilled. Jeremy kindly stated that it doesn't mean everything will be perfect, and he was right. He hasn't nursed since. Although now he will sort of latch on, he will not suck.

I am not one to believe that nursing is the only way to go when feeding your baby, it is what I want for my newborns though. As I was trying to nurse him and he was pulling away crying, I realized how bad I want this to work. I know he is not rejecting me but it feels like I am broken. I can't describe it, like I am having an out of body experience. It has worked so effortlessly before and now I have no control. I also know that Jackson is my last baby and I want to be able to bond with him that way.

I finally got on the net today and looked up a few related things. I was encouraged to come across a story that a lady had dried up and wanted to nurse again. After 5 months she was able to produce milk and her baby latched on. It was a long road and she persevered and it eventually worked. My endurance is not that great but knowing it happens is encouraging. I talked to the Lactation consultant at our hospital and she also gave me some good advice and encouragement. She explained that since his tongue was basically chained to the bottom of his mouth, he needs to learn to use that muscle in a new way. Then she gave me homework!

I am truly grateful for the time that we live, for the information that surrounds us. I know there are lots of things that would make me wish for a safer time, but I know this was the time I was meant to live. I am grateful for the people I come into contact with that have had their own experiences that put mine into perspective. If Jackson never gets the hang of nursing he will not suffer, at least he eats and he is still getting breastmilk. I know those two things are a blessing and I am extremely grateful. Not nursing will not have him end up in a hospital, he will continue to be in my care. I do love this little guy, I know I have said it a ton of times, but he is gorgeous. I am not just saying that because he is mine, well maybe I am!

Thinking back we have had concerns with each of our "healthy" children. Miranda was born with Hip Clicks. She was in a brace for the first month, then we got to ween her down by the third month. Logan was fairly normal. We had to deal with the circumcision, which was new for me, I came from a family of all girls, boys are weird. His belly button bled a lot and his eye had tons of discharge. Again, these are normal but we spent a lot of time with the advice nurse. (when he was older his rectum would push out, luckily that is just a muscle weakness and has since corrected itself). With Haylie and Hannah it was mostly the beginning. They weren't getting enough food and I had no idea, I thought they might be colicky. Nope, I was starving them and didn't know the signs. Lauren was born at such a large birth weight that I needed to make sure she was fed every two hours. It was a concern that she couldn't regulate her blood sugar. And now with Jackson it is breastfeeding. None of these have any life long repercussions, but all caused tears and fears for a short time.

When all is said and done this will pass and I am sure I will wonder why I was so worried.

A Video about the baby!

The Grand Finale

...The Jacobs Caboose, The Cherry on Top of the Jacobs Family Sundae, our baby!

He's here and we are home! our family is complete. Everything went well with minor complications. I don't think he enjoyed being to close to the birth canal so he stayed head down just not "engaged." They were afraid to break my bag of water for fear that his umbilical cord would get pinched and it would end in an emergency c-section. Finally they let it be my choice if I wanted to take the risk. I did, I wanted to get the show on the road! I got the epidural, it worked wonders for most of the painful parts. There were two spots that it wasn't touching. The happy-dural lady tried to help even it out and she was able to take the edge off of the pain. In about 3 hours I went from 4 to pushing, 15 minuets later little dude was here. He was born January 8 (Elvis' birthday, we will allow you to call him "The King" if you want).at 5:50 pm. He weighed a mere 9lbs 2oz, and was 21 inches long. His head was 15" round. He looks a lot, well exactly like Logan did in his baby pictures. His name is Jackson Ralph Jacobs. Jackson after my Great Grandpa Jack (although his name was really John, I really don't get the nickname) and Ralph after Jeremy's Grandpa. Both men were remarkable.

We have all our kids at the same location and had mostly great experiences. This one was by far the best. My doctor actually delivered my baby which is unusual. It is usually whoever is on call. The nurses in Labor and Delivery were fabulous and the ones who were in Post-Partum were equally fabulous. It was good enough that I almost would do it again, but not really that good.

Both me and Jackson are doing well and healthy. Jackson is what they called tongue-tied. The little skin that attaches your tongue to the bottom of your mouth goes all the way to the end of his tongue. I guess it is really no big deal we can have it snipped if we want. We will see how breastfeeding goes and go from there.

Our favorite quote before Jackson was born Logan was telling Jeremy what Jackson would say when he was born:

In case you can't understand Logan says "Helllooo Lay-tees" (Hello Ladies!) We have a picture of Jackson with his hands in a similar position. He just had his Vitamin K drops in his eyes.

He is an awesome baby and is doing well all his siblings are excited to have him be a part of our family. Lauren took some time getting used to him. I realize now that she thinks he is her doll. She was extremely possessive of him and when she wanted his hat on or off him. She was also a little bossy about how his blanket would cover him. This is going to be fun! Logan can sit there and hold him or just look at him for hours. The other three girls adore him and will want to do everything they can to take care of him. This is going to be one loved little cutie!

In honor of 300

This is post 300. Who knew I had so much to share! If you know me you may actually be surprised that this is ONLY post 300. If you don't know me then I am a very quiet person who hardly shares anything, so 300 is a big deal. In honor of post 300 I am here to announce I am officially 30 weeks along in this pregnancy. So I must share another cartoon.

This one is particularly funny to me since just this morning Logan said "Mom your belly is huge, it keeps getting bigger!" Well he may not have said huge but that is what I heard. As hard as it is to see my girth getting bigger, I am happy that Baby Jackson and I are extremely healthy, and I will say that my weight is mostly in the belly region and most importantly I am still a ways away from how much I weighed with Lauren and the twins. Nonetheless I am still huge. If you want to laugh at my aches and pains or commiserate, email me and we can talk. I'll give you a laundry list...well not that many, this pregnancy has been pretty good that was. Give it another week and I may be say "This is Terrible!"

Here's to 30 and 300! Please don't get them confused I don't want to be 300 weeks pregant!

Baby Jackson

Earlier this week we were walking to school and Logan was saying his legs were tired. As usual I was a slave driver since we were running too close to late so I made them walk fast. I told him I know, I'm sorry we are running late but I am tired too, I have a big belly to carry. That was the end of the exchange or so I thought. We dropped Logan and Miranda off at school and were headed home at a leisurely pace. When Hannah said "I think Baby Jackson is tired." I usually tell them when he isn't kicking that he is sleeping, but you never know the connections little minds make so I asked why? and she told me that it was from all the walking! Oh the irony! He sits in a fairly comfortable stretched out womb with a warm bath being gently rocked a lot of the day. I can see why HE is so tired!

Then yesterday as we were walking home, Haylie said "I think Baby Jackson is taking a bath." Now this was another opportunity to see how creative my little twinies are! I asked how he got the soap in there. They didn't get the question, so after I asked for the third time I changed the question, "Is he using soap?" " Yes" was the reply. "What kind of soap?" "Pretend soap!" Don't know why I didn't see that one coming!

Week 27

I wish this only happened during pregnancy! Well I have been mostly emotionally balanced but that can change tomorrow as the cartoon illustrates. If this was animated it would have the hubby's eyeballs rolling! I think besides counting down week by week, I will look forward to these cartoons.

Enough about me...

...let's talk about me! Just wanted to announce a major milestone....

LESS THAN 100 DAYS UNTIL MY DUE DATE!!!

Which means about 110 days until baby Jackson is here!

OR

14 weeks until my due date

15.5 weeks until Baby Jackson comes!

I know you never know when a baby will come this may be the lucky time pitocin will not be needed, but I can hope for that miracle but expect the norm... a 41.5 week pregnancy!

(I know Logan didn't require pitocin, but very painful scrape-ing process was involved!)

Week 26..tomorrow!

I came across this and thought it was kind of funny since I just got poked for a blood draw on Monday. I guess this is opposite of true since they are usually taking blood out not putting unknown stuff in!