An Insight into Molly's Future Dating Life

If Mr. Butterfly is like any of Molly's future beaus, we may be in for a drama-filled dating adventure.

She loves him.  She hates him.  She loves him.  She hates him.  Or maybe... she is playing hard to get.

One minute, she is gazing into his eyes for what seems like forever.  She flashes a huge smile and what sounds like a little flirtacious giggle.  I've even caught her winking at him a few times.  She leads him on by acting interested in all his high-tech gadgets.  She is particularly fond of his mirror and noisy wing.  Mr. Butterfly is feeling good about himself... like he actually has a shot.

Then out of nowhere, Molly gets angry... really angry.  Her smile turns to a grimace.  Her wink transforms into an evil glare.  Her giggle becomes a monstrous scream.  She doesn't stop there.  She clinches her fist and starts pounding Mr. Butterfly.  This continues for several minutes.  Was it something he said?  Was she getting tired of the mirror and noisy wing?  Not even a binky can fix this one!

But Mr. Butterfly holds his composure.  His smile never leaves his face.  He doesn't fly away.  He stays there and takes it.  He takes it because he knows that in a matter of minutes she will fall in love all over again.

And he's right.  She remembers why she loved him in the first place.  Her smile returns, along with her giggle and wink.  She's back to admiring the mirror and noisy wings.  Everything is happily ever after... for now.

Molly has already mastered the dating game.  I'm not sure who she inherited it from.... actually, I do.  But,  I'll let you decide which one of her parents she gets this from.  ;)

Happy News and Sad News

The sad news first...

          My favorite newborn sleeper that Molly looks so cute in is too small!!!  She is getting so big way too fast! 



The happy news...

          Molly slept for NINE hours straight last night!!!  Not a single cry all night!!! That's the longest she's gone.  We put her to bed earlier than usual last night because she seemed extra fussy because she was so tired.  We put her down at 9:30pm.  She went to sleep instantly and slept till 6:30 this morning!  Bravo, Molly!


Josh is working from home today to keep an eye on Molly while I go to the doctor this afternoon for my 6 week check-up.  He was spoiled with eggs, bacon, and toast this morning.  I told him to not get used to this kind of treatment! :)

Missionaries and Mirrors

Andrew and Angie have always been such wonderful friends of mine.  It has been amazing to know them before they even dated to knowing them now as a Godly family with two beautiful daughters serving in Haiti. I love when they come back to the states to visit and hear how the Lord is working though them in Haiti.  Faith has grown so much and I can't believe how well she is walking around.  She knows the Haitian language so well and even taught me a few Creole words!  This was our first time meeting Glory and what a treat it was.  She is so sweet with the most gorgeous eyes.  She was so alert and focused in on everything.  She is so fortunate to have such a nurturing and caring big sister!  Faith just adores her.  And both girls are so fortunate to be blessed with such amazing parents!  Here are just a few pictures of our time together.  I thought we got one with Andrew but I guess not... we will get plenty more this weekend with them in North Carolina!

Faith and Glory lovin'!

Kisses from Faith!

Now here are just a few pictures of Molly when she FINALLY noticed the mirror on the back of the stuffed apple.  I think it scared her at first... then she loved looking at herself!

Total giggle box here!

Then she couldn't take her eyes off herself and all the faces she was making!

Our big weekend!

This has been a BIG weekend for Molly.  We hit three big milestones.

1 - She met her great-grandmother, great-aunt and great-uncle! My grandmother, aunt, and uncle drove up from Warner Robins, GA to meet Molly.  We spent Friday evening with them.  Then this morning, we all went to the Brooklyn Baptist M.O.M (Moms Of Multiples) consignment sale and the trunk sale at Springdale Baptist.  We had a great time.  While most of the Moms there shopping were by themselves or with their husband, I had with me Molly, my mom, my dad, grandmother, Aunt Marsha, and Uncle George.  We had quite the posey walking around.   This evening we celebrated my grandmother's 92nd birthday!  She is such a sweet, Godly woman.  This was her 2nd birthday since she lost her husband (my grandaddy) in February 2011.  We miss him so much.

 Molly loved spending time with them and I'm pretty sure the feeling was mutual.

2 - She slept through the night!!!  Since day one, I've had to wake her up to feed her in the middle of the night.  I hated it.  I knew she needed to be fed but I hated having to wake her up when she was sleeping so well.  After getting the "okay", we tried it last night.  We put her to bed around 10:30 after her last feeding.  As usual, she went to sleep with no problem.  I rejoiced in not having to set my alarm clock.  Which was good because I didn't even know where my cell phone was last night.  We slept allll through the night.  I woke up at 5:30am and decided to pump.  One not-so-bad problem I am having is that my body is overproducing milk.  So, I shouldn't be pumping much since my body doesn't need to produce more.  But they were so sore, I decided to pump anyway.  As soon as I get back in the bed just after 6:00am, Molly starts stirring.  I decided to go ahead and feed her.  After that, I put her back in her crib and she went back to sleep... and so did I!  Great success!!! :)  Can we do that again tonight, Molly???

3 - She had her first bottle!!!  Josh and I have been trying to set a time to give her her first bottle this week but things kept getting in the way.  So this afternoon, we had the time to try it out.  I pumped and Josh gave her the bottle.  She took to it right away.  I was so proud of her but inside it was a wee bit sad to watch her feed from somewhere other than my breast!  I guess it's that feeling you get when you realize your daughter has outgrown Barbie dolls or your child starts driving.  But that's just my hormones going crazy... ha ha!!

Our little 5 weeker is getting so big and so active.  She will fixate her eyes on just about anything.  She will always win in a staring contest.  She smiles so much now and it makes our hearts melt everytime. 

Motherhood is "transforming"

From a blog post - "Motherhood is application"  I thought this was really good.  The author, Rachel Jankovic, writes a lot about motherhood and compares it to the Gospel.  This post in particular pulled at some strings this morning.  This is just a small part of her post... three random paragraphs that I thought summed it up.

If I had to pick one word to describe motherhood, I think that word would be “transforming.  The days of a busy mother are made up of millions of transformations. Dirty children become clean, the hungry child fed, the tired child sleeping. Almost every task a mother performs in the course of a normal day could be considered a transformation. Disorder to order, dirty clothes to clean, unhappy children to peaceful, empty fridge to full. Every day we fight against disorder, filth, starvation, and lawlessness, and some days we might almost succeed. And then, while we sleep, everything unravels and we start again in the morning — transforming.

In the same way we take the food we eat and make it into something the baby can eat (and our bodies simply do this without us willing them to), so we take what we believe about God and the gospel and faith and life, and we apply it in the places that seem too little for it.

As you go about your daily transformations, set your heart on the truth. Mimic the gospel in what you do. Bring peace, bring order, bring joy, bring laughter. Bring it because it was brought to you. Give, because it was given to you. The gospel is not too big to fit into little situations. It is too big not to.

Read it in full:   http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/motherhood-is-application

Friday nights??

Josh asked me the other day what it's like going to bed every night like it's a Friday night...

I literally burst into laughter.  Are you kidding??  Friday night?  I don't even remember what it's like to have a "Friday night"! 

But I do remember that "Friday nights"were nothing like this..

     I go to bed every night anxious that Molly is going to have trouble falling asleep and keep the neighbors up all night... that something bad will happen to her in the middle of the night.  I am even worried that while I'm watching her sleep on her baby monitor that I'm going to see a set of hands reach down and grab her or that I'm going to hear a man's voice in her nursery when Josh is right beside me in bed... yes, I watch too many crime shows.  I worry that she may be too hot or too cold.  Is she REALLY comfortable in that swaddle thingy??  All this worrying will keep me up, then I realize her feeding time is creeping up and I haven't slept a wink.  So, as I try harder to fall asleep the more I stay awake. 

That, Joshie, is what it's like going to bed every night.

But despite my worries, she goes straight to sleep without a single cry all night (MOST nights).  We've managed to keep the bad guys away.  And she hasn't proven to be uncomfortable in that swaddle thingy.  Praying this lasts! :)

Happy 1 Month, Molly!

I can't believe Molly is already a month old!  Y'all weren't kidding when y'all told me it flies by!  I LOVE Molly and my time together.  A mother is what I was meant to be.  I think back to when it was so hard for us to have a family and wondering if I ever would be a Mom.  But deep down, I knew God's plan was for me to become a Mom.  And here I am with the most amazing little daughter.  He also blessed us with the opportunity for me to stay home with her.  This has always been a desire of mine, too.  Just knowing that all my afternoons will be spent with Molly fills my heart with so much happiness.  Josh is also enjoying the benefits of a stay at home wifey - clean house, clean clothes, home cooked meals, and a wife who's not so cranky!
What we have enjoyed over the last month:

• She now weighs 9 pounds 12 ounces! Thatta girl!


• She still sleeps very well at night, except for just a handful of nights.


• She LOVES her boppy.  She likes to sit up and look around the room.


• She LOVES kisses, especially from her Daddy.  I think it's his stubble.  But it does make her SMILE!


• We have seen a TRUE smile on her pretty face!


• She enjoys tummy time.


• She is getting so strong!  She is lifting her head very well and even rotating it.  Of course, it only lasts about 10 seconds, but we do a little Molly cheer every time she does it!  She has a very strong grip.  Sometimes, I can't even get her legs straight to change her diaper... just soo strong!


• She has certainly been spoiled by her grandparents and her aunts!


• She loves spending time in her swing (and we've loved it, too - whew!)


• Still wearing newborn clothes and diapers - some of it is still big on her!


• Her cord fell off at exactly 2 weeks.


• She is finally not crying through bath time.  I think she enjoys it now.


• She beat jaundice!!!


• She does not like Cheeto's!  I was trying to get her latched and had some Cheeto crumbs on my finger - oops.  But her disgusted face was worth it - ha ha!!  Poor thing.


• She is extremely ticklish!


• She is the queen of spit up!

We love you, Molly Jane!!! And we look forward to many, many, many more months with you!!!

Playtime!

We got the play gym out today which happens to be Josh's favorite of all Molly's things. She had a BLAST! Here are some photos of our play session!

Molly doesn't know what to think, yet!

Oh, hello, owl!

Then... Mr. Owl took a beating.

Wondering if she should apologize or not...

Then Daddy came home and stole her away...

Molly's Story

Molly gave me a very smooth and healthy pregnancy.  There were no problems and I loved being pregnant with her... well, up until the end when it started to become unbearable!  Towards the end of my pregnancy, the doctors started estimating that she was going to be a big baby.  We were not surprised because I was a big baby.  I remember one time walking into the hospital and a woman in the elevator asked me if I was having twins or triplets!  When I told her there's just one in there, she told me I needed to beg the doctors to go ahead and get the baby out! Haha.. Of course, I had to agree.

The doctors decided that I shouldn't go longer than 39 weeks.  So, at 38 weeks, we scheduled our induction date for August 17th.  This whole time my body is not progressing... at all!  No amount of walking, bowling, exercise ball, mini golf, or even primrose oil was helping.  The doctor told me C-Section would be likely since my body was refusing to cooperate.  So, we planned for me to come in the night before to get the induction process started early.

We headed for the hospital Thursday, August 16th.  The doctor on duty offered two procedures to help get my cervix ready.  After a few more examinations, it wasn't looking good for a vaginal delivery.  The doctor explained what could go wrong with a vaginal delivery in my case.  He seemed to think C-Section would be the best for us.  Josh, without hesitation, agreed.  I was bummed as I longed for a vaginal delivery.  We prayed about the decision and decided to go through with the C-Section as it was what was best for our little baby.

Friday morning, we were prepped for the surgery.  I felt much better about a C-Section.  I knew I was going to have my baby within the hour and not even have to labor!  The Lord gave me an overwhelming peace.  The family was able to come back and see us just before the c-section.

When they got me all good and numbed up and the blue curtain pulled up, Josh was able to join me.  We had the best time laughing and joking with the CRNA.  Such a good time that I turned to the CRNA and asked when the doctor was going to get started with the surgery.  She laughed and said, "Girl, you are already cut open and your baby is about to come out!" Haha!!  

Knowing that this precious gift was just about to emerge was such an incredible moment.  Josh and I looked at each other and knew that our life was about to change within that very minute.  The gift we have been blessed with, that we have waited for, prayed for, longed for was about to be here.  We were about to be able to hold, hug, and kiss this little blessing.  When the baby came out, everyone shouted, "It's a GIRL!"  In that moment, an overwhelming sensation overcame me.  It was such a beautiful moment to find out our "Baby K" is a beautiful little girl.  Both Josh and I were filled with tears of joy.  Finding out at that moment was totally worth the wait!  That moment was so incredible that Josh and I have already decided we will wait to find out the gender with each one of our children.

In hindsight, a C-Section was the absolute best option for us.  It was a very pleasant delivery full of smiles and laughter.  The Lord always knows what is best for each of His children.  I am so thankful that we put our  trust and faith in Him.  His ways are always perfect.  

Our Miracle Story

     I have been saying for a while that I would start a blog and tell our story about getting pregnant.  It is a story that truly shows the Lord's grace, faithfulness, and perfect timing.  

     We knew from the beginning that it would be difficult to conceive.  We began praying about starting a family at the end of 2010.  At the beginning of 2011, I began taking fertility drugs while being closely monitored by my doctor.  Five long months into treatments, my body was showing no signs of being able to conceive.  It wasn't that I just wasn't pregnant, but my body was not even capable of conceiving.  

     In August 2011, we were sent to a fertility specialist, Dr. Moore.  I use his name because he was the most AMAZING doctor!  We went through more fertility treatments in August and September.  This consisted of pills, shots, and IUIs.  Still... nothing.  In November, Dr. Moore decided to try a different drug.  We were so hopeful.  If this failed to work, we would be looking to adopt in the summer.  November 21, 2011, we went to the doctor's office.  After an ultrasound and some testing, it turned out the medicine did not work.  He told me that day we would not be able to conceive.  My body was just not doing what it needed to.  I was so upset.  We both cried on the way home.  I remember stopping by the store to buy some make-up hoping that would make me feel better!

     I kept thinking about Abraham and Sarah and how Sarah had such faith in waiting for a child.  I prayed for the same kind of faith and the courage to continue to wait in the Lord.

     On December 21 (exactly a month after being told I would not be able to conceive), the Lord revealed His miracle in His perfect timing.  I remember it very clearly.  Josh and I were both on Christmas Break.  We woke up and chatted before getting out of bed.  I remember thinking that I needed to call in my monthly prescription to get my cycle.  Every time I call the doctor, he asks me if I have taken a pregnancy test as he will not give me the medicine if I am pregnant.  

     So, I get out of bed to go take a pregnancy test so I can tell Dr. Moore that it was negative.  Of course, I knew without a doubt it would be negative.  It was just something I had to do to get my prescription.  I didn't even tell Josh I was taking a test.  It had become such a devastating and depressing thing.  

     I took the test without even looking at it because I knew it would be negative.  As I went to pick it up to throw it away, I saw TWO HUGE PINK LINES!  I could not believe it.  I figured it had to be wrong.  I yelled for Josh and ran back to the bed.  He was already sitting up and scared to death! ha ha!  I did not know how to tell him because I still didn't believe it.  I've dreamed of the way I would tell Josh that we are pregnant and it certainly was not like this!  As soon as I get to the bed, I literally throw the stick at him (yes, my urine was on it... kind of gross... poor Josh).  He looks at it and jumps out of the bed. 

     Then he says the most beautiful words - "Let's pray right now!"  It was a beautiful prayer.  We are both crying and so full of hope.  I made him run out to the store to get a digital one.  The whole time I am praying to the Lord asking in His name for this blessing.  That, too, said I was pregnant!  

     I called Dr. Moore's office and they told me to come in right away for a blood test.  I remember we threw some clothes on - no shower or anything - and headed out the door.  It was pouring down rain but it was such a beautiful day to us.  The nurse called later that afternoon to confirm our pregnancy.  They scheduled an ultrasound for us a few days later to find out we were six weeks along.

     I truly believe this story shows the Lord's grace and power.  We continued to rely on His word and prayed for His will in our life.  We were willing to accept whatever path He had for us.  I think it is a great testament that even when science said NO, God said,  "YES, watch ME!"