Marcus Laurance

We’ve added another boy to the family on Sunday, August 12, 2012 at 8pm!

Marcus Laurance

7 lbs. 13 oz. (my smallest by FAR – early induction will do that) and 21 inches.

Feeling much better today.  Even with all that had to happen for his arrival, I feel better than I have after any of my five prior deliveries.  There were five issues affecting the pregnancy, and all of them were a factor in deciding to induce.  Thank goodness we were in good hands throughout.  My little wish to experience birthing a smaller baby became reality, and for me, it was definitely easier and shorter.  Not that I’d recommend replicating my experience/pregnancy.  We arrived back home on Tuesday, late afternoon.

My wonderful mother has been here since Saturday, as we were scheduled for a morning induction that day.  However, due to the high number of laboring mothers who came in that morning, we were asked to wait.  So, the grandma’s, who were so excited to learn the gender of this baby, had to wait another day.  You see, I’d known Marcus’s gender for quite some time, but because Eric didn’t want to know, I kept it secret. 

Happy, Healthy, and Home.

Lahlum Homeschooling

For the first year, ever, I plan to begin our school year before Labor Day.  Baby is due mid-August and I don’t want to feel pressured during the year if it takes me a while to recover after delivery.  In addition, my track record on delivery is so sporadic, delivery could occur anytime between mid-August to the end of August.  I’d rather be doing something productive if I do go past my ‘due date’.  It’s better than just hang around waiting for the most exciting event of the Fall to start.

So, all the syllabi and materials are prepped and ready to go on August 6.  Dash will most likely start football practice on the 7th, so it will be an adjustment for him, especially.  Dash will be a sophomore, Angelina a 7th grader, Zeke a 4th grader and Graham a 1st grader. 

Louis is my busy toddler boy, but is entertained by tractors (hopefully we can all stand the noise that accompanies tractor play!).  I hope to have a few activity boxes set up for him, and Angelina will also be doing crafts with him throughout the year.

Our schoolroom has been rearranged a bit.  I brought in another cabinet for supply storage and that really helped me feel more organized.  The room also received a thorough cleaning…much needed!

Thankful Thursday!

1. For smiling boys after receiving their sacraments of Confirmation and First Holy Eucharist.

2. The end of dance lessons today and the recital on Sunday.

3. Date nights.

4. Kids who are old enough to babysit while Eric and I go on a date night.

5. Dr. Pepper and Chai Tea.

6. The gifts of the Holy Spirit.

7. Being able to order online any gifts, necessities, books, school materials, etc. that I need.

8. Reading magazines on my kindle so there is less paper coming into my home (paper I would then have to sort or ‘do’ something with!).

9. Being able to sleep better at night.

10. Being able to fit into my regular jeans with help of the Bella Band!!!  (No, this is not a pic of me.)

11. The end of the school year being closer, rather than farther.

12. The thought that greenhouses will be opening up in a short couple weeks!  I cannot wait to get some more color in my yard and garden.

Just Stuff

The ultrasound shows baby is growing well and pretty much confirms the due date I had in mind.  Of course, with me, you can add at least a week!  I pray the summer is mild.  While in Fargo, I also ate lunch with a friend (Mrs. No!) at the Cajun Café and we chatted away the afternoon.  It was indulgent and wonderful – almost felt guilty, it being Lent.

Within the last year, three blogs I read have decided to close up shop.  That certainly does narrow down the reading pool, and I just haven’t found anything to replace their wit, humor and faith.  Sad to see them go, but blogging is a personal choice and we each have our own reasons for ‘putting ourselves out here.’

It is appearing likely that my youngest, Louis, has some pretty serious allergies.  So far, the reactions have been to raw soybeans and tree nuts (even trace amounts).  Thankfully I will be able to get him in to see our physician – who is very difficult to see on short notice because he’s in high demand! – within a week.  I’m not sure how much, at this point, our lives will need to be amended.  I can tell you it makes me thankful we are more isolated from group functions and that we homeschool, but I’m not quite sure how to handle the group functions we do attend.  After the past three weeks, my perception of his reactions/symptoms is heightened and I’ve become much more observant.  I’ve found that it’s certainly easy to ignore my allergies, but not quite so easy to ignore them in my child.

Dash is visiting my parents this week.  He brought schoolwork along, and my mom is a true blessing for volunteering to give us some time apart.  Dash was in Minot on Monday for the State FFA crop judging contest.  My mom attended the awards ceremony  and picked him up afterwards .  He received a bronze ribbon for his efforts.  A good reward for his first state FFA meet.

I was able to attend the ND Homeschool Convention on Friday this past week.  I truly enjoyed the two workshops I attended.  One of my favorite vendors, Miller Pad & Paper, was not present.  Although a bit disappointed, I hope they’ll be at the MN Catholic Convention this summer so I can stock up.  A homeschooling friend from the area and I went to lunch and before we knew it 1.5 hours has flown by!  So much to talk about when we don’t see each other often.  She has five boys and I gleaned some good ideas from her during our chat.

Here we go again…

I’m pregnant!

We told the grandparents yesterday (they were supposed to all come for dinner, but one of the kids got sick… and both sets of grandparents are set to take long trips this week.  So, the party was cancelled.)  We told them with a bouquet of Valentine flower with the note included.

We told the kids this morning at breakfast, although some had already guessed because it’s been very hard to find ‘regular’ shirts that fit well.  It’s not my first pregnancy, so the body knows what it wants/needs to do!

While open to the possibility of another child, I’ve had an ongoing health issue that made the probability quite slim.  And, I was caught off-guard because I had what I thought was a cycle in December.  However, I wasn’t ‘really’ charting (ie. no temp taking) and I wasn’t ‘really’ paying attention to other signs.  I’m not so young anymore, cycles do funny things at this time of your life.  So, when I completely missed the January cycle, I knew something was up.

The goofy thing is that on Epiphany, I wore an outfit that didn’t make me look as slim as I normally do… and THREE people asked if I was pregnant!  Of course, I said no.  My dear friend, Beth, even told one inquirer that I’d had a Colorado Bulldog at her home the day before (Bison FB team in Championship game)…and I had.  I honestly had no idea I was expecting.  However, since that day, I had a few symptoms that really made me wonder: swollen fingers (couldn’t put my wedding ring on or take it off), almost fainted in the shower, suddenly too hot on one of the coldest days in January, tired at odd hours, my jeans are a little snug (I’d attributed that to Christmas eating, but not anymore!).

Trying to keep a pregnancy incognito when you’ve had a few pregnancies really isn’t that easy.  Let’s just say I’m thankful we were finally able to get the word out to our parents so I could dig out the maternity clothes!  The body just knows what it wants to do … expand the waistline.

So, while the first appt. has yet to occur, we know we’ll be due sometime in late September or early October.  One can never really tell with my kids who have all been various amounts over their predicted due date.  Thank goodness I’ve been feeling pretty good this time around.  Only tired in the evening, when I should be tired!

Thank goodness for Bella Bands.

I've always wondered why manufacturers don't construct longer maternity shirts. When I make my own, I always add at least two inches to the pattern. I thought I'd done a pretty good job of shopping for longer shirts during this pregnancy (yes, I did need t-shirts), but they are all getting short and I'm just starting the third trimester.

Normally I wouldn't want to add an extra layer to an already warm body, but when it comes to exposure ... I'd rather be UN-exposed. So, these nifty Bella Bands do the trick. They cover me and they help keep my more comfortable maternity pants 'up', if you know what I mean. I purchased two colors, brown and black, with lace around the bottom. I wear the brown Bella Band A LOT. I haven't noticed that it makes me warmer than I want to be, but it's been a pretty cool summer so far.


Early in pregnancy, I used them to extend the wear of non-preggie jeans. It wasn't that comfy, in my opinion. However, they really helped keep 'up' a few pairs of larger jeans and dress pants ... and are now doing a great job of playing cover-up. I imagine they'll help with post-maternity dressing options, too.

** Yes, here I am, UP at this hour again. I tell you, this little one likes the early morning ... I hope I'm ready.

Thoughts on Thursday

My second pre-natal was Thursday morning. I went to Fargo by myself ... a real treat! The appt. went well. I'm still gaining weight ... yes! or yuck! ... whichever you prefer. I'd prefer not to have gained SO much with a large chunk of pregnancy still to go.

My doctor has agreed to let me do the glucose test at home ... that's a big YES! from me. So, I'm all set up with the glucose testing kit - a sample kit from doctor and the same type of kit diabetics use for testing. I'll do two fasting observations (after waking up from a night's sleep) and two - 2 hr. post meal observations. It's easy and much better than sitting in the doctor's office waiting room twiddling thumbs for an hour or more.

Upon leaving, I wanted to schedule two months in advance to coordinate with a couple of the orthodontist appointments. That's tricky when my doctor only has three open days in August and none coincide with current trips = add another trip to Fargo in August. Thank goodness I was able to combine September appointments.

That first appt.

Today, I finally had my first doctor appointment for this pregnancy. That meant a trip to Fargo by myself. Grandma and Grandpa Green Acres kept the kids all day. It rained this morning, so they were spared the trip into town for baseball ... I would have appreciated that reprieve, but I suppose going to Fargo by myself is a bigger reprieve from my normal duties!

I scheduled lunch with a friend who can 'do that' because she has older kids who can watch the youngers. We had a great meal at Applebee's and the conversatin is, as always, wonderful. Also had an appointment with the window-covering lady to go over the selections/estimate and made my order. Thankfully there was time before and afterward my appointments to get a few necessary shopping errands done, as well. A productive day in the city.

The appointment went well. Nothing unusual to talk about; although this is the first time I haven't had to restate my entire maternal history at the first OB. That was a nice surprise. I measure normal for this stage - that would be about 20 weeks.

However, there have already been enough comments about being 'big' from non-friends and family to make online shopping very appealing! I'm tired. Tired of creative come-backs and tired of feeling the need to answer. Why do people comment on your size during pregnancy??? I haven't figured that one out, yet. Even if I thought it ... ever.... I would never. ever. mention. it.

So, I know I'm 'big'. I usually have big babies, though; doesn't that count for something!?! I hope that I don't gain as much this time (I did really well in my last pregnancy), so that is my prayer for this pregnancy. I have no other worries and am at peace.