Numbers

I've been thinking about some numbers today. Today I completed a full week in the hospital and I'm actually thankful for that. I hope to be here much longer. Here are some numbers that came in my mind this evening.

7 - number of sonograms I've had since being here; also the number of days that I've NOT been outside one time (seeing how hot it looks, I can't complain too much about that).

3 - number of hours that I spent on the heart rate fetal monitor just TODAY

14 - number of times (at least) that Landon has driven back and forth to see me

2 - number of cribs Landon put together this weekend at home :)

253 - roughly the number of times I've changed the channels on the TV here only to find NOTHING on worth watching :)

28 - number of times I've had blood pressure taken this week; also the number of weeks I'd like to carry these babies - at MINIMUM!

21 - number of VISITORS!!!

6 - number of flower arrangements received!

One million - roughly the number of prayers I've said for our babies; that number probably safely includes all the other people that are praying too!

1,000 - tears shed over the overwhelming amount of encouragement received as well as the overwhelming since of fear and helplessness during this time.

May the prayers increase a million times over for Kaylan and Dylan. I can't believe how much we already love them.

Absent Blood flow

Today, our sonogram revealed consistently absent blood flow. So, things are, unfortunately, trending in the wrong direction. We will, however, keep trying to holding out until things get to a reverse flow situation....we just don't know when that will be.

I'll be at 27 weeks, 4 days tomorrow. We'd like to coast through to next Thursday but that will be contingent on the daily sonograms, as well as my blood pressure. We're trusting that God has this already worked out and that He already knows exactly the time. We just hope it's a few more weeks from now :)

On a positive note, we experienced, yet again, the power of God's hand in our sweet church family. Landon went to our Saturday night worship while I was laying here resting at the hospital. At about 6:15, just after our service started, my cell phone rang. It was our pastor's mom on the other end of the line, sitting there in the front row of the service. She said, "Jennifer, I'm going to hand the phone to Chris (our pastor) and he's going to put you on speaker and pray for you in front of the service." WOW! I've never experienced anything like this. So, as I lay there in the hospital bed, I listened "virtually" as our pastor announced to the audience that I was on the phone and that he felt led to lift us up in prayer. They called Landon to the front of the stage and the church reached their hands out towards him as he represented our family. I got to listen as he prayed for health and life for our sweet babies. It was an incredible experience - one that neither Landon or I will ever forget. We are truly blessed to be at a church that practices what it preaches. I know our church is united behind us and our little ones are being lifted up by so many.

We're hoping for another stable report tomorrow. Sometimes I feel like my prayers may get a little repetitive to God, but I'm going to keep asking for a miracle. It's all we've got.

Still holding on

Happy Memorial Day weekend. I hope everyone is enjoying their nice long holiday weekend in the sun. I feel sure this will be a Memorial day that I won't soon forget. Today has been good. My doctors had said that they would not do a sonogram today, but the on-call Perintologist decided we might as well do it -- no since in changing protocol just because it's a holiday weekend. So, they wheeled me down the hallway. Today, the blood flow was intermittently absent. So, it appears we may be trending back towards some blood flow concerns. The doctor said that sometimes we can get a little bit of a grace period (or improvement) for a few days after steroids are administered and that may have been why the reports were looking better the past couple of days. However, he didn't necessarily say that we should look at this as a step back. He said basically the steroids may have treated the "symptom" but not the "problem." The blood flow issue is still there whether you can 'fix' it for a day or so. That being said, the main concern would still be if the blood flow starts to reverse. So, we're not there yet. The reverse issue is just a matter of when, not if. They will continue to monitor me with daily sonograms. If we get to a reverse flow situation, my guess is that they will deliver within a couple of days of that. So, as long as the blood flow stays intermittently absent or absent, I think we'll keep trying to squeeze some more time out of the pregnancy.

If you are a follower of this blog and would like something specific to pray for, this is what we would ask you to pray for: For God to provide sufficient blood flow to our babies so I can continue to carry them as long as possible. Additionally, we still need Miss Kaylan to grow, grow, grow! She's hovering around 1 pound right now, and we just need to keep her getting bigger.  We'd also ask for you to pray for my blood pressure to stay down. It's been pretty decent over the past few days so the bed rest does appear to be helping in that respect.

Today, I'm 27 weeks and 2 days. Each day continues to be imperative. I'd love to still be sitting here (not delivered yet) on next Thursday - the 28 week point. That would definitley be the next big stepping stone.

I'm planning to continue resting, laying, hanging....nothing to exciting. My memaw, mom and cousin came to visit today along with my sweet friend Johnna. We had a great time hanging out and laughing.  Here's a few pictures from their visit.

Thank you all for the continued prayers.

Random Rambling...

I have been thinking a lot over the last 6-7 weeks about James 1:2-3. (“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, when you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.”) It is one of those cliché scriptures that sounds good. And when all is going according to plan, it’s a pretty easy one to stick on the fridge or bathroom mirror and throw around.

When the doctor told us 7 weeks ago that Kaylan probably would not survive, (due to severe, severe growth restriction), this scripture just kept popping up in my head over and over. But I just couldn’t get my head around it. The doctor is telling me to give up hope because our daughter probably won’t survive, and according to the scriptures, I am supposed to consider that “pure joy”?

Pure Joy? When I think of pure joy, I certainly don’t think of grieving the loss of a child. Especially one that we prayed to have long before she was even conceived. Pure Joy. My wedding day. Graduation. Buying our first house. Promotions. That is what I think of when I’m thinking of joyous occasions. But now here I am, faith being tested, and I am supposed to “consider it pure joy”?

Well, if the story ended there, with that doctor’s words, I would have a pretty horrible view of this scripture. So I have done my best to thank God for “choosing” us to be the ones that get to go through what we have gone through over the last 2 months. It is not always easy, and my faith is not always strong. (I still think it is better to have weak faith in something strong, then strong faith in something weak). But as the scripture goes on to say, “…the testing of your faith develops perseverance”.

And thank God for that perseverance. That determination of faith. He has been so faithful. Over the last 5 days, I have experienced “pure joy”. I have seen God work in ways that I have never seen before. In people that I have never met before. In people I know very well. And I have to believe He is not finished with this story. We still have a long road to go. There are still many hurdles to overcome. But on this journey, this walk, I will consider it “pure joy” when God selects us to become testimonies about his goodness and grace.

27 Weeks!

Happy Thursday all....and it is a happy....Thursday! Our babies are still on the inside and not yet on the outside!

The morning sonogram revealed, yet again, good blood flow. My blood pressure was decent today...nothing too alarming. I had some blood work done today to check liver enzymes and that also came back good. So, all around for today - good report!

We continue to be amazed at the amount of stories we are hearing (I'll call them miracle stories) from people who have delivered even earlier and live to tell about their healthy growing children today. God is so faithful.

Our pastor's mother, Sheila, stopped by last night to pray with us and for us. Wow - what a powerful prayer warrior this lady is. She just felt convicted to come see us and drove up here about 8 p.m. last night just so she could spend  few minutes in prayer over us. I was also visited by our associate pastor (also our neighbor) with his wife today. I loved getting to see them too and experience more powerful prayers.

God's even working through some of the nurses and staff here. One nurse in particular, Nancy, openly told me today she was praying for us and said that God is in control and that nothing is impossible with Him. How cool is that to hear from our nurse? She's a sweet heart...she actually wasn't my nurse today...but I met her the first day I was here, and she just came by to let us know she was praying for us and wanted to check in.

Now for your daily laugh...so...probably the "worst" thing about today was that I now have to wear these really "cute" compression hose and cuffs on my legs...all day...nice. Below is a picture for your viewing pleasure. This is to prevent blood clots...hey guess you gotta do what you gotta do right? ;) If I need to go to the restroom, I have to unplug myself from this compression machine first....Good times...I'll be wearing these bad boys until delivery.

Nighty night!

Flower Shower!

Wow, we've gotten FOUR flower arrangements in just 3 days!! I'm posting a picture below of all the ones we've received. It's been so sweet and we love it! Today was a good day. Decent blood pressure today...plus good - no scratch that - GREAT sonogram this morning. Praying this will be the case tomorrow as well!

Thank you for the continued prayers for our sweet little fighters.

Jen & Landon

Day 3...now we're talking!

Okay people the prayers are WORKING!!! THANK YOU SO MUCH! We had a morning sonogram today and we had the second day of CONSISTENT GOOD BLOOD FLOW!!! Praise GOD for this!

Also, Kaylan's fluid even looked a little bit better today so they said they think the rest I'm getting is helpful!!! Now I'm just so excited about today's news that I just gotta remember to actually REST! :)

But basically, I think we've bought ourselves another day with this news. I'll be 27 weeks tomorrow and they will do a little more blood work tomorrow to watch liver enzymes (they've been fine so far).

Anyway, I am OVERWHELMED by the OUTPOURING of encouragement we've received. I am seeing faith and strength grow in OTHER people, not just us. It's amazing. These babies are such a testimony of God's grace. I can't tell you how many emails I've received from not only friends and family but from complete strangers. It's just unbelievable. And it is sustaining us like you wouldn't believe.

I have to share another cute picture below. A sweet dear co-worker of mine stopped by last night and brought by the most adorable little stuffed dolls called "Lil Peanut" and "Sweet Pea". I took a picture of Landon holding them in between two beautiful vases of flowers we've received -- one from church and one from mom and dad.

Anyway, I told Landon that our babies would not be much bigger than these little dolls and we're going to ask the NICU nurses if they can put these dolls in their little cubbies with them :)

So, until tomorrow, fingers crossed and prayers up for continued blessings!!

Love to all,
Jen and Landon

Day 2 Evening Report: Pre-Eclampsia

Well this has been a day full of ups and downs. Our afternoon revealed that I am now officially pre-eclamptic. So, now we've got a mama concern, AND two concerns for the babies. It's the tri-fecta of problems. My doctor told me earlier that if I failed the pre eclampsia test that we would deliver tomorrow. And I failed. However, he (my doctor), spoke with our perintologist about it and they agreed that they would sit on this for at least another day. He didn't classify it as "severe" preeclampsia, but the fact of the matter is -- I have it and it's not going to get any better.

So, they've now administered the two steroid shots (which is good for the babies). We need to get through a morning sonogram tomorrow with some good news and if that looks ok then when we may have squeaked through tomorrow too. So, barring nothing totally crazy with blood pressure tonight and sono tomorrow we'll keep holding on.

It's still just a day by day thing...sometimes hour by hour. They want me to lay down a lot more....I've been in bed all day but probably have been sitting up too much.

So, now for the what you've all been waiting for...some preggo pics...Here's a couple particularly for my extended family who hasn't even seen me at ALL since being preggers. :) You're welcome...even though I hate these pictures....I'll post them. And if anyone copies this and posts it on FB, you will elevate my blood pressure so please don't do that ;)

Day 2 -- morning report

Good morning all...and let me tell you it has been a GOOD morning! Today, I had a morning heart rate fetal monitor test as well as a sonogram.

The fetal heart rate test was normal and looked good...but the better news is that I went for my sonogram and today there was NO ABSENT BLOOD FLOW!!! PRAISE THE LORD!!!

It wasn't even intermittent today --- it was perfectly normal!!! So, that being said...it could change daily, but today we will take it.

It was such a relief to hear those words I can't even explain it...I hope to hear those same words for SEVERAL more days or WEEKS!

We are continuously encouraged by all of your emails and comments so please keep them coming...they really help us get through the days.

My mom is out here today and I expect to have several other visitors. :)

On another note, I just have to share how AWESOME my sweet co-workers are. They've put a bunch of candy on my desk in my office and each time someone walks by to take a piece of candy, they are asked to say a prayer...one piece of a candy per prayer. They sent me the below pictures. I love them and miss them already!!

Day 1 (Hospital Monitoring)

Today's dr. appointment with the specialist revealed that everything is pretty much status quo. Dylan had grown a little bit but Kaylan was weighing about the same. Both heartbeats were good, but Kaylan's diastolic bloodflow has worsened. So when we left the specialist, we were sent to the hospital....indefinitely.

Jen was admitted to the "HIGH-RISK OB" wing of Plano Presby. It has been about 3 hours of paperwork, fluid samples, heart-monitoring, questioning, shots, nurse visists, and doctor consultation. She was given a steroid shot that helps preemie babies' lungs get ready for the outside world. The doctor has given us the reality check that Jen very well could be delivering at any moment, but for now, we pray that things just stay stable. She will be staying on hospital bedrest until delivery.

So here we are. Sitting. Waiting. Praying. Worrying. Believing. If Kaylan's heart monitors remain good, we repeat the above. If things show signes of distress. Delivery happens within about an hour of the monitor. These monitors will take place twice daily. The doctor's dilemma is how long do we wait. (We don't want to deprive Dylan of his chance to stay in and grow, which he needs to....but we don't want to leave Kaylan in too long, and risk losing her). So the doctors work on this balancing act. Don't wait too long. Don't pull the trigger too soon.

If Jen has to spend the duration of her pregnancy in the hospital, we are so thankful it is this hospital. We just had lunch and we agree that it is the best-tasting hospital food we have ever had. The menu is 5-star for a hospital. The amenities are very nice as well. And while no one wants to stay in the hospital for a prolonged time, this place ain't all bad. She will have people waiting on her hand and foot. (Just like she has it at home!)

We are asking everyone for continued prayers. As crappy as this whole situation seems to be, we still very much feel that God is in control. We are trying to trust His plan, because we know that His plan for us is good.

I do believe; Lord help me with my unbelief.

It's Saturday afternoon and this could be the last couple of nights for me in my own bed for awhile. After a visit to my (new) OB on Thurs, we learned that I could be admitted to the hospital for monitoring and bed rest as early as this coming Monday. My latest sonogram showed "intermittent absent diastolic blood flow" (Huh?)...Basically, that means the blood flow is starting to shut down for Kaylan.

I will be getting another sonogram on Monday morning at 9 a.m. Depending on what that reveals about the current level of blood flow, I will most likely head straight to the hospital...not necessarily to deliver immediately, but to monitor me VERY closely.

Even if for whatever reason they decide not to admit me, then I've still got to take it easy at home and I'm not working (at the office) anymore. I can still respond to client emails as necessary, but I won't be back in my office for a long time.

We are at an extremely critical time right now where I REALLY, REALLY need to stay pregnant as long as possible. They would like to get me to 28 weeks but we just don't know if we will be able too. If I deliver before 28 weeks, we are looking at some major, major, extreme prematurity issues, if not survival of BOTH babies. :(


Please pray for God to sustain this pregnancy to AT LEAST 28 weeks. That'd be 10 days from Monday. I'm pretty scared but I'm trying not to totally stress. My blood pressure was pretty high on Thursday, but the doctor sort of gave me a "pass" because of the situation and it was the first time I was meeting him, etc.


On a positive note, I'm seeing a new OB that will be handling the delivery. He's very conservative, thorough and gentle. I really liked him. I feel like we are going to be at the right hospital with the right doctors.

Now I'm just in wait mode until we see what the sonogram reveals on Monday. I'll be packing a bag tomorrow to plan for an extended stay at Plano Presby.

I'm so thankful for all my friends and family that have been so supportive. Landon's parents sent some beautiful flowers to cheer me up (and they did). Chelsea brought me some snacks and magazines for the hospital. Mom and Dad are letting me borrow their lap top in the hospital. What more does a girl need? ;)

It will be difficult to be in the hospital for a long time, but I'm honestly hoping that it will in fact be a LONG time. I'd like this pregnancy to be prolonged as long as possible. I will miss my bed, my own shower, going to church, and I'll miss Landon like crazy. He's my rock during all of this.

I don't understand why we've had these complications, but I'm just trying to trust and believe God still has this all under control.

"I do believe; Lord help me with my unbelief." - Mark 9:24

Encouragement...

I don't know if I have permission to post this or not, but I am going to do it anyway. This email was sent to Jen by her cousin (my cousin-in-law) this morning. We have had so much encouragement from so many people, but the timing and words we received in this email were golden...

Hey Jen,

Thanks for the update. I hope that you are still at peace and know that God hasn't somehow forgotten about what Kaylan needs. I know how quickly perspective can change with one word from "people." Like you said, this is not bad news, it's just not quite as exciting as last week. I always have to remind myself that so many times in the Word, He hardly ever does the something the same way twice...He never appeared to anyone else in a burning bush after Moses, He never spit and put mud in more than one persons eyes to heal them, and He never parted an ocean more than once, so just because there's not a repeat of events doesn't discount at all that He is still working things out for our good. Whatever He does and however He does it, it is good because He is good (I'm preaching to myself...lol). We are praying for a prolonged pregnancy and for continual growth. God's got this covered and His fingerprints are all over this situation. I'm praying for you to have peace in your mind and in your heart and absolutely NO TORMENT from the enemy!! Though it is kind of the scariest part of the situation, I love that there is absolutely nothing that you or anyone else can do to control or improve the situation, because that means that no one can take credit for it in the end. It will all be for His glory!!!! I know you are, but stay in the Word and His Presence because that's the only way to keep His perspective!! I love you so much!! Until next week...we will keep battling for our babies!!!

Jasie

Not out of the woods yet...

We had our Dr. appointment today with the specialist. The outcome of the visit wasn't quite what we were anticipating. I thought we would go in, they would tell us how much Kaylan had grown and we would go ahead and check another week off of the list. Not so. We did not get any new bad news, but we weren't given really any new good news either.

So here is the long and short of it. Both babies are basically still the same size as they were a week ago. I think we may have had an inflated expectation of what should have happened in 1 week's time. The reality is, there's not much growth in one week's time for any baby. Kaylan's amniotic fluid still looks OK, she is moving, and her structure still looks fine. The new issue of concern is her diastolic blood flow. Not that it was necessarily bad, it just needs to be monitored very closely. If it starts to slow from where it is now, the only option for a chance at survival is to deliver both babies. This means, that every visit from this day forward, we should be prepared to deliver if it looks like Kaylan's blood flow worsens. (Sorry Dylan, I know you want to stay in there and play, but you are sort of at your sister's mercy on this one.)

I do want to say that we absolutely LOVE our specialist (Dr. Gore). There is no doubt in my mind that God placed him in our path. His bedside manner and positive approach are very much needed.

Jen's next appointment is this coming Monday, May 24. We ask for continued prayers for Kaylan's growth and blood-flow.

Fariss Family Physical Fitness...

It is really awesome that our babies are trying so hard to be like their mom and me. Jennifer and I have always tried to incorporate fitness and a healthy lifestyle in to our day-to-day routine. It seems that both Dylan and Kaylan are trying to pick up on this already.

I went to the gym this morning and ran my normal 5-mile Tuesday workout. The D-Man has been very active as well. His workout routine includes a few minutes of kick-boxing finishing up with some mixed-martial arts. Kaylan is not as active (yet), and she prefers a more subtle routine. Her workout regimen involves yoga and pilates. She uses her routine to channel positive energy and maintain a calm presence. And Jen, well in spite of her being on "partial bed rest", she still finds the patience to be the "gym" that has been facilitating their workouts. Some people think the athlete is only as good as their training facility, so our babies have a membership at the best gym God could make for them.

Tomorrow is our next appointment with the specialist. We will get to see what progress has been made over the past 7 days. Last week, we were praying for any amount of growth; God gave us a miracle. This week we are praying for God to reveal that same miracle to us again. May God show us more of his faithfulness and grace. And may Kaylan continue to be a living (soon-to-be breathing) testimony of the power of prayer and God's goodness!!

No Gestational Diabetes!!

Quick update for the first of THREE appointments this week. I went in this morning to receive the Rhogam shot (because my blood type is negative). It prevents me from creating antibodies against the babies if they have positive blood type (which we won't know until they are born). 


Also, I learned the results from my Glucose test --- no Gestational Diabetes! Praise God! Just one less thing to worry about. I'm a little bit anemic (apparently), but nothing severe...can be adjusted with taking some delicious iron pills (insert sarcastic sigh here). 


1 appointment down this week....two to go. The most important one is Wednesday where we'll have another sonogram. Please continue praying for growth in our babies, especially Kaylan. 

Snakes on the Ground...Snakes on the Ground

Yesterday, I was leaving Plano Presbyterian hospital after Jennifer's visit. (We had just been given the news of Kaylan's growth, and it had exceeded our greatest expectations. She basically doubled in size in a 2 week period. NOTHING but a God thing, no doubt.) And as I was driving toward 121 on the very rural part of FM-544, I ran over an extremely large snake crossing the road. It was probably close to 3.5 feet long!!

And as I was still trying to sober up from receiving the incredible news about how God had just performed a miracle in our little girl, I ran over this snake. Instantly, I started thinking of Genesis 3:14:

So the Lord God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this,

Cursed are you above all livestock an all the wild animals

You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life.

And I will put enmity in between you and the woman,

and between her offspring and hers; he will crush your head,

and you will strike his heel."

So I started wondering if this was a sign. I wondered if Satan had something to do with Kaylan basically not growing for 6 weeks. Was God showing me that He is in total control? Was he giving me a visual that He had answered our prayers? Was He "crushing the head of the serpent" for me to see? Or was it just a random snake on the road?

And so I dismissed it rather quickly. Sort of a neat thought, but, rather silly the more I thought about it. I had just run over a snake leaving the hospital. That was it. Nothing more. Fastforward to last night. We were leaving Saltgrass after having dinner in Grapevine with Jen's parents. We were driving on Sandy Lake in Coppell and there was a truck stopped in the middle of the road up ahead. I slowed down, the truck drove off, and where they were stopped, was a large snake that they had just been run over. Now I have not seen a snake in the road since I worked in the oilfield over 10 years ago, and now, in one day, I have seen 2. Dead. Crushed. On a day that we have prayed about for 4 weeks.

I guess some people would call that coincidence. My mom calls them "God-Winks". We pray for and look forward to many more "God-Winks" to be seen on this journey.

She Grew!! She Grew!!!

BIG praises today!!! Kaylan has grown EIGHT OUNCES in the last 2 weeks! Amazing! She's now 1lb. 1oz. ! This is a HUGE milestone and we couldn't be happier. We're certainly not out of the woods yet, but we feel like she's trending upward in growth and we're hoping and praying that she stays on this track. She is truly a testimony of the power of prayer. So many prayers have gone up on her behalf --- we just have to give all the glory to God on this one. He is truly the one that has performed a miracle here. 


Dylan is 1lb.13oz.  so he's approaching 2 pounds! Another praise! Keep on, keepin' on D-man! If I could, I would high five my babies right now. I'm so proud of them for being such little fighters in the face of such adversity. 


We'll now start seeing the doctor every week for sonograms and to monitor progress and growth. PLEASE, PLEASE keep praying. This journey is no where near over but we are happy to be celebrating good news today! 


Next appointment: May 19, 2010 -11 a.m. 

Here we go again...

OK, so here we are..again. Tomorrow, we go to the specialist to find out the status of our babies, or as I like to think of it, to see what God has done in them over the last 2 weeks. I am very excited to see just how He has answered all the prayers for baby Kaylan. I want the doctor and nurses to be blown away with her progress.

At the last visit (23 weeks pregnant), she was measuring a little over 4 weeks (19 weeks development) behind where she should , at 9oz. (Mr. Bob Dylan was weighing around 20oz or 1 lb and 4oz.-- right on track) So we are praying for her to have grown at least 5 oz. in the last 2 weeks. That would be huge progress as she went for 4 weeks and only grew 1 oz.

I feel almost like a little kid on Christmas Eve waiting for tomorrow's dr. vist. I cannot wait to see God's faithfulness in the form of growth for Kaylan. Please pray for the visit tomorrow. We ask special blessings on the nurses and doctor and the way they communicate to us. May Kaylan continue to be a living, breathing testimony for the miraculous power and goodness of God's grace!

I got to stand up!

Happy Mother's Day to all the mamas out there. This has been a fun weekend for us. Landon's parents came in town and spent the weekend. Katie was also in town, so we had the whole Fariss crew together. They all left early this morning. Later this afternoon, we're going to my mom and dad's to spend Mother's Day with my fam. 


This is kind of a special Mother's Day for me. Although, my babies aren't here yet, it's a sweet reminder of what the last few years have been like on Mother's Day. When you're trying to have a baby, there tends to be two Sunday's a year that can be a little bit difficult -- that'd be Baby Dedication Sunday and Mother's Day. I don't know about your church, but at ours, we have a baby dedication two to three times a year. All the new parents take the stage with their little ones and we pray and speak blessings over them. It's a really neat time -- but when you're trying to get pregnant, it's kind of another reminder that you're not there yet. And then there's Mother's Day....again, when you're not pregnant or you don't have any children, it's yet another reminder of such a strong desire that surfaces and you want to be apart of this group that gets recognized. 


So, praise God for 2010 being the year for me to stand up at church on Mother's Day! They ask the great-grandmothers, grandmothers, mothers, and MOMS-TO-BE to stand up. This was the year. I finally got to stand up. So, here's to all the first timers who get to "stand up" and join the ranks of motherhood this year. Happy Mother's Day! 


And to those of you who are still waiting, may God give you the desires of your heart soon! (Psalms 20:4)

Bragging Rights

I need to brag on the two men in my life - Landon and Dylan. Landon woke up at 3:30 a.m. this morning to head up to our church for a 4 a.m. commitment he made to spend an hour of his time today in prayer for our country, family, church, and friends, among other things. After he spent an hour praying, he hit the gym at 5 a.m. like the total stud that he is....then came home, cleaned up, got all my lunch snacks ready for the day, then went to Market Street to meet a friend for breakfast. Did I mention he had to be at work by 7:30 a.m. and I was still sleeping? He's planning to mow the yard tonight after work. Did I marry Super Man or WHAT?! I love it! He's so sweet, and loving and committed and he's going to be SUCH an amazing Dad. Are you listening to this Dylan and Kaylan? You are already loved so much by your Heavenly Father, but your earthly Father can't wait to meet you and love on you! 

I need to brag on my little growing Dylan too. He's getting more and more "active" these days. He definitely lets me know who he likes and doesn't like on American Idol ;-) (By the way, he's a Casey James fan). He's constantly moving, and squirming and kicking. I love it...most of the time ;) Now, could you please tell your sister to fatten up and start moving around in there too?! 

I am forever changed already by this pregnancy. I haven't even met these babies yet. I think I'm getting a tiny glimpse of how much Jesus must love us. I can't see or touch them yet, but I love them so much already. Thank you Jesus for loving me and loving these babies that you made. 

National Day of Prayer

I'm wondering if it is just coincidence that the National Day of Prayer is the day after all the Cinco De Mayo festivities? Just a thought. Anyway, although today is the National Day of Prayer, I am so thankful for the everyday prayer and interceding for our little babies. I was SO blessed by this email from 5/5/2010:

"We'll focus on Kaylan, but I'm gonna have a serious talk with her one day for the anguish she's causing everybody! Knowing girls, she'll smile and say, "Yeah, but, I'm worth every minute of it!" And, of course, she is!"

-"Brother Bill" Anderson, Former Sr. Pastor, First Baptist Euless

Two Heartbeats!! Praise God!

So, here's a quick update on today's doctor visit. I was supposed to do the Glucose test, but apparently I’m one day short of being able to do it – can’t do it until 24 weeks (which is tomorrow), so I rescheduled for next week. Ugh, and to think, I specifically didn’t eat my Honey Nut Cheerios this morning to avoid extra sugar! C'mon doc, didn't you know I wouldn't be able to do it? I had myself all mentally prepared for this silly test and I've purposed NOT to eat the Vanilla Blue Bell frozen yogurt that's been in my freezer -- again, to try and reduce the amount of sugar I have in my system. I think I need a cookie today. :) 

Most importantly – I heard two heartbeats! YAY! Such a big praise for this! Kaylan’s was 153. Dylan’s was 150. This really lifts my spirits (even if temporarily) :) 

My blood pressure was good too, which is another praise. Actually, the doctor said it was "perfect". So good to hear that SOMETHING is PERFECT! 

Anyway, that’s basically it…so, no Glucose test yet…but both babies are still plugging along. Next sonogram is next Wed. Glucose test will be next Thursday.

Thank you for all the continued prayers! Happy Cinco de Mayo ;) 

Prayer x 3

Tomorrow, Jennifer goes in for another OB doctor's appointment. First and foremost, we are looking to see that there are (still) two strong beating hearts. We want to hear that Kaylan's heart is as strong tomorrow as it has ever been. That will be the first praise!

Also, we want Jennifer's gestational diabetes test to come back negative. The doctor already tried to prepare us that it is pretty common among mothers carrying twins, but we do not want another added stress to deal with right now. Jennifer has done extremely well eating over the past few days, we do not want to have to alter her diet (which has been very healthy) to deal with this gestational diabetes thing.

So, I guess we are really asking for three prayers. First, pray for a strong heart for BOTH babies. (By no means does Mr. Bob Dylan need less attention than Little Kaylan.) Second, we would ask for prayers for NO GESTATIONAL DIABETES for Jennifer! And third, we just want to pray for the doctor and nurses to show compassion and grace in tomorrow's visit.

We look forward to updating with a positive post tomorrow!!!!