Our Inspired Journey

With all the excitement of Cole's surgery, Cora's arrival has been pushed back in my thoughts lately but with her rolls, kicks and my growing belly, I can't forget about her completely! She is definitely preparing her entrance into the world. This week I've had an increasing number of braxton hicks contractions (false labor) that have made John and I pray a little harder for her to wait until my mom arrives on the 30th to come! With each "fake" contraction, we start thinking about her inevitable coming and what it means for our family.

Her Room...
As a preparer, I love to have things ready ahead of time. I think I get this from my mom since she truly is the queen of preparation and being ready for everything, especially guests arriving! I like to be prepared for every scenario. I've been thinking through what would help our family make the easiest transition from being a family a 4 to becoming a family of 5! (Wow...that's a lot!) The one BIG thing that I cannot prepare yet is her room, since Cole will still be king of the crib through January while my mom and Ryder sleep in the "brother room" on the infamous bunk beds! Cora will spend her first month or so in our room in a pack 'n play (portable crib)...it's funny how often the smallest members get the largest places to themselves! So her beautiful bedding from my grandma and decorations from our friends the Clays will have to wait, though every instinct in me wants to set everything up now! I have gotten to wash and put away the adorable little outfits that she's been given so far since I switched Cole's clothes over to the "brother" room already. It's great to be forced into having an eternal perspective on petty things such as this...what a gift it is to have a roof over all 5 (6 with my mom) of our heads and beds for each one. It is during these times when I'm reminded of Paul's perspective on contentment in the following passage...

Phillipians 4:11-13
I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength.

As I look back on our journey to this point, this is my prayer...that the Lord is teaching me and continues to teach me what it means to be content in ALL circumstances, thriving not on what I have but instead what can be gained from knowing Christ through it all. What a gift.

Her birth...
It has been so much fun to think through and prepare for my last time giving birth. Much of this preparation has entailed going over Ryder and Cole's births in my mind and deciding on things I'd love to have happen again and things I'd like to do differently this time if I can. Before Ryder's birth, John and I took a 12 week long class on the Bradley Method of birthing which is called "Husband Coached Childbirth." My mom also used the Bradley method in having my brother and I, and I wanted to follow in her footsteps in having the most natural experience possible. All went as planned as I labored at home as long as I could and then went to the hospital at the very end to have Ryder 2 hours after we arrived. Though of course painful, it was just as we had hoped it would go.

Cole's labor was different, in that my water broke with no contractions for a very long time. Since I had also tested positive for Group B Strep (an infection the baby could catch as they pass through the birthing canal), I couldn't wait much longer for contractions to come on their own though I was doing everything I knew how to start them! This forced us into being induced with pitocin, I had an epidural and then Cole came hours later after both John and I took a long nap...John on the couch and I in the bed of the hospital room. It sounds peaceful but it was very unlike what I had prepared for, making it a much harder birthing process for me. I know there are many women that love having pain medication during birth and having gone through this experience once, I understand the escape from the pain it provides! The nap was nice but I did feel like I missed something in the process...

In thinking about Cora's upcoming birth, I am excited to be having her at Carle Foundation Hospital...the same place Ryder had his appendectomy, Cole had his cochlear implant surgery and still goes for speech therapy and now where we will have our little girl. The Labor/Delivery and Postpartum Floors have all been remodeled recently making it a beautiful and soothing place to have a baby! We are so excited. Last week we had a tour of the maternity floors and were so pleased to see all they had there to make laboring mothers more comfortable. As we entered the labor floor, we were shown the "jacuzzi room" complete with slate tiles, deep spa tubs with jets and an area to change. John and I decided we were going to move into the hospital as soon as they'd take us! We were then shown the things we could request to use during labor including birthing balls, birthing chairs, and a birthing tub if we chose to. It was incredible to see a hospital in such full support of natural childbirth...how encouraging! Then we were lead to the room where I would labor...it was huge! Beautiful woods floors, big windows bringing in natural light, a flat screen TV with DVD player and lots of space to bring in any of the above mentioned items for laboring. We were excited so say the least. The nurse even told Ryder that after mommy has the baby, he could bring in a movie to watch and a bag of popcorn, and the nurses would pop it for him! What service! Here are some pictures of what we saw...

This is the nurses station where we check in once we're in labor... This is the waiting room where the masses of friends and family will be waiting...(I wish, but not this time!)This is one of the rooms where the nurses determine whether or not I'm in labor before I'm admitted, and I don't have a picture, but a much larger version of this is the laboring room where she'll be born :)And finally, a postpartum room where we'll go to recover once she's arrived safely :)Well, the stage is set...(and it's a beautiful one!) now all we need is Gramma here safely to take care of our 2 little monkeys while God unravels the story of her birth...one I can't wait to share. It's another chance to see how amazingly God cares for us in the details and in the grand scheme of things...our God is good!

So until then...

• We are celebrating Daddy's STRAIGHT A's this semester!!! (Way to go Daddy... he'd hate it if he knew I said that, but we're so proud of him pulling off a great semester even with everything else going on!)
• We're helping our Coley continue his healing process...please keep praying the incisions wouldn't get infected. It's hard to tell, but one is starting to look more red today...
• We are celebrating Jesus' birthday for the last time as a family of 4...we already got to go Christmas caroling through nursing homes in our city with a group of people from our church, and look forward to having God open doors for more ways for us to love outside of our home over the next few weeks...
• Last but not least...we're counting down the days to Cole's activation of his cochlear implants on January 2nd! I'm so thankful my mom will be here and I'm determined to figure out how I can post the video here on my blog so you can all see the moment he begins hearing for the first time!

May you listen to the voice of our Savior this Christmas. He calls us each of us to draw nearer to Himself this year and the incredible gift of grace that comes from knowing Him more.