Reading with purpose

I love to read... there is nothing better than a good book-whether it is on the couch with a cup of coffee, on the beach listening to the waves roll in, or just a simple quick read when I have time (this is more the norm these days with two littles at home). I love to read for enjoyment, but I also find myself reading  more with a purpose these days- a purpose to grow in Christ, to be a better wife, and to be a better mom. Here are some things I have been reading lately.

I have said it before and I will say it again- I love first5.org . It is a daily devotional and simple, but helps you to grow closer to God and learn about scripture at the same time. 

My husband and I just started this challenge. While we don't get to it every night, because kids are demanding and we both work and are tired, we do our best. It has scripture to read, prayers to say, and acts to do together. It has been great for us and helps us to really have some in depth conversation about God, life, and so much more. I highly suggest it for anyone who is married and just looking to grow together in your journey and be closer to Him.

Another great book! It really gets you thinking about how you as a mother set the tone for your household. It is easy as a mom and wife to feel overwhelmed and tired. It is easy to let the negativity come over you. This helps you realize you are alone in a lot of those feelings that people just don't talk about enough. I think there is this false sense of what mom life is like. It is not all yoga pants, trips to target and Starbucks. It is HARD work. Today when I was reading, it talked about 10 things you can do to create a home of warmth and grace. Get Rest, Time with God, Simplify Schedules, Clutter Busting, Give Up Perfection, Meal Plan, Schedule Mom Time Out, Play Music, Give Grace for Limitations, and Scripture Memory.

I try to do many of these. The ones that spoke to me most today were Give Up Perfection and Scripture Memory. I am too hard on myself and lately I have had to really take a step back and say "It is ok that the house is a little messy, we live here and it's not for show".... "It's ok if it doesn't get done today"- I am not perfect. The Scripture Memory is something I want to try and do with my family. I am going to be looking for a cute way to display a scripture every week and work on that. 

What are some books that you read for enjoyment on for a purpose? I am always looking for suggestions! 

Lydia's Birth Story

Here is the crazy story of how sweet little Miss Lydia entered the world. This story is very different from my last delivery, which I will back track and do a post about soon. 

So, this was my second pregnancy. The whole pregnancy was different. I got pregnant first try, which did not happen last time. I was sick this time. I made it to my due date this time. All in all, it was just a different experience. Boy vs girl pregnancy? Maybe. I think every pregnancy is just different. 

With my son, I made it to week 39 and then he came into the world. Lydia was not coming early. I was due on Thursday, April 18 and honestly shocked when I made it to that day and went in for my 40 week appointment. My doctor is truly amazing (Dr. Patel at UTMB if you are looking for a great doctor) and she wanted to be supportive and do whatever I felt was right. She did tell me I couldn't go more than a week overdue. She gave me the option to come in that night or Sunday night or Monday.... as long as I did it soon. I was so torn. I was scared, honestly. My water broke the last time and I was still induced with Pitocin  but I have heard horror stories about inductions and I just wasn't sure. The husband and I headed for a Target run and discussed it. (Doesn't everyone go to Target when you are stressed? LOL)

Luckily, we had packed bags just in case. We started thinking about our options. We ultimately decided to go ahead and go into L & D that evening after one last good dinner. We headed to Chili's (this turned out to be a bad idea later) to have dinner with his parents and Landry before heading to the hospital. 

We arrived at the hospital and I was in the room at 7:30. We met the doctors that were on duty that night and I was hooked up to a monitor. Immediately the nurse noticed something that didn't look right. She told me the baby was having a variable in her heart rate. Her heart rate would take a dip and stay there for a minute or two and then go back up. I was also having crazy long contractions- 5-6 minutes long. I really wasn't feeling these. These drops in heart rate were happening with the contractions. This is when the doctor came in and started explaining other options to us, in case we had to go that route. I knew then that this was not going to be easy. The plan was to give me some medication to help my cervix prepare for birth, but they chose not to go that route and use the bulb to help open it up instead. That was inserted. The heart rate drops continued to happen. My doctor arrived. We discussed more options. They had to stop making me contract, so they gave me some medicine for that. Everyone was so supportive and wanted to let me know we could keep trying for a vaginal birth. My doctor knows me. She knows I can't make a decision. She knows I just need her expert advice. She was honest and told me she felt the baby would not handle the stress of labor. It could be caused by so many things. She could be holding on to the cord, the cord could be wrapped, etc. The main problem was contractions. I have to contract to be able to give birth and when I did, the heart rate dropped. It wasn't likely going to work. We began to talk about a c-section. I am not one of those moms that goes in having an elaborate birth plan. I don't get my hopes up or stress out when things don't go as planned. I just want a healthy baby at the end of it all. Whatever you have to do to make that happen, I am game for it. Tyler and I talked it over and we chose a c-section. The chances that I would endure 12, 14, 18 hours of labor and then have to have an emergency c-section in the end were high, so we chose not to wait on that and have it be a panic situation. We chose to just go ahead and opt for it. We wanted to get the baby here and not put her through anymore stress. 

As soon as the decision was made, things happened very quickly. They started prepping me for the OR. Tyler got ready. They took us down to the OR and set me up. I was given a spinal tap and it began. No more than 10 minutes after it started, at 11:16 p.m., Lydia was crying and it was over. The scary part was that the cord was not only wrapped, but wrapped THREE times around her neck. I would not have been able to deliver her without causing her stress and likely a c-section would have happened anyways. We made the right decision. 

I think of what could have happened. What if I had waited a few more days? What if I had chosen to keep trying for a vaginal birth? What if...what if... I know God was guiding us in the right direction. I am so thankful that we went that night. I am thankful that I had an amazing team of doctors and nurses that took great care of me. I am thankful Dr. Patel is so amazing! I am thankful that my baby girl is here with us, unharmed, healthy and happy. 

The worst part of my recovery to this day was throwing up that Chili's after the c-section. This was caused by the anesthesia. It was awful. If I could go back, I wouldn't have eaten. Other than that, I am on the mend. I have to take it easy and can't lift things or do much. That is hard for me to do, but I am trying. I plan to do more posts about vaginal vs c-section, the differences in my pregnancies, etc. More to come. 

Pregnancy

Today's post is all about that bump!

 

That pretty much sums up this pregnancy for me. This is my second time around and the two pregnancies couldn't be more different. 

Pregnancy #1- Landry, my son

With my son, my husband and I tried for close to a year to get pregnant. We had actually just started seeing a fertility specialist to ensure everything was ok when I ended up getting pregnant naturally. I truly believe God led me to that doctor though, because I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism early in my pregnancy. I also had low levels of progesterone. Who knows if I would have sustained that pregnancy had I not been under the careful care and supervision of Dr. Schnell at the Center of Reproductive Medicine. She was amazing. My time there was amazing. I can't imagine life without Landry, so I am forever grateful to them for taking such good care of me.

With Landry, I never felt an ounce of sickness. I never threw up. I never felt nauseated. Nothing. I felt totally normal. Cravings with him were egg rolls and corn dogs, a tall glass of milk every night and sweets! I could eat a cobbler anytime. My thyroid was an issue though and the weight would jump on me so fast. It took quite some time for them to get my levels under control. However, I did workout all the time when I was pregnant with him. I stopped working out at 38 weeks and had him a week later. The weight I gained was all over- in my face, legs, booty, everywhere! I gained about 36 pounds with him. I only swelled when I was on my feet too long teaching. My blood pressure was amazing. My doctor was a little worried I was going to have a big baby because I was measuring 2 weeks ahead at some point. She had me convinced that I was going to have a 9 lb baby! WHAT?! I was terrified. Luckily, that was not true. Exactly a week before my due date, I delivered a healthy and normal sized 7 lb 6 oz baby. My water broke at home the night before and I went in. I was in labor for 23 hours- took me forever to dilate fully. About an hour and a half of pushing and he was here. I did have to be induced and I had an epidural. Not sure if any of that played into the length of my labor, but I was so close to having a c-section. I am glad I didn't have to go that route! Whew! Landry turned 2 in December and is the most amazing little boy. All was worth it!

Pregnant with Landry

Pregnancy #2 Lydia, my daughter

I am currently pregnant with my second baby. I am nearly 32 weeks along. This one was completely different. My husband and I wanted to try and time this one. Landry was born in December, right in the middle of the school year. I wanted to try and have this baby closer to the end of the year so that my time off would roll into summer. We literally got pregnant our first month trying. I was shocked, given it had taken us so long to get pregnant with Landry, I wasn't expecting that. I took all the necessary precautions to get on progesterone again to ensure things were ok. I have a new doctor this time and I love her. BUT, this pregnancy is different. For the first trimester I felt sick nearly every day. I had to suck on preggie pops, take unisom and vitamin B, I threw up (once but still!), nothing sounded good to eat. I mean NOTHING. My energy lagged severely. Every day tasks were hard. Overall, it was better than a lot of people I have known, but for me it was the opposite of the first time. This time, I have gained almost all my weight in my belly- it's huge! I haven't had any really big cravings this go around. Mexican food and soup and salad are some of the things I have preferred to eat. I find I don't eat as much and I have gained as much yet, but I am on track to gain about the same amount as I did with Landry, maybe a little less. Again, my blood pressure is great, no swelling, and I still workout 4-6 times a week. I found that being active helps me feel better, sleep better, and get back to pre-pregnancy weight faster. Lydia is due in April and I can't wait to meet her. 

Were your pregnancies different? How? I would love to hear some other pregnancy stories! :)