Ben's First Post Ever

This is a tribute to the birthplace (Philadelphia) of the best country in the world and one of it's less-beautiful cities (Allentown). I went to Philadelphia with two classmates, Dave and Jessica, today and experienced the BEST Cheese steaks in the world--hands down. I ate more than two feet of sandwich and honestly would eat another foot and a half if it were in front of me. For those who are familiar with Philly and cheesesteaks, I ate at Pat's then Geno's, with Pat's winning the taste test by a narrow margin. It was also extremely rewarding to see the Liberty Bell, Benjamin Franklin's grave, and of course, Independence Hall. The only way it could have been better was to be eating Cheesesteaks INSIDE Independence Hall on George Washington's Constitutional Convention chair. Maybe another trip. On an interesting note, I thought I saw a balding, over-rated, hack running out of Independence Hall with a copy of the Declaration of Independence and some 1776 3D glasses but realized it was just Nicholas Cage.

The first rotation of this fourth year of podiatry school is a week old. It has been a whirlwind of ER visits, hospital rounds, clinic appointments, and of course, surgery. It has been intense, but a very rewarding learning experience. I have seen a wider variety of medical problems and surgeries the last week than in my entire twelve months of work in DMU's podiatry clinic. Bidding Becca and the kids farewell was one of the most difficult things I've done, so I am grateful to have been busy. Let's get this year over with!

Northern Kentucky--Wow! I thought Iowa was green

A tiny cemetery in Rome, Ohio. We thought it could have been the resting spot for an ancestor. After an hour of reading all the legible headstones, she may be a few counties away after all.

Beware the dirty tattoo needle! This girl got lymphangiitis and a high fever and had to be admitted for IV antibiotics.

This is the free student housing in Allentown. Not bad for free housing, as long as you clean up the mouse nuggets and previous student's underwear.

Independence Hall, through the trees.

Pats' Steaks: a should-be Mecca for anyone who likes beef and cheese.

The Liberty Bell was actually stored in Allentown for safe-keeping during the Revolutionary War.

Everything Little

My fabulously talented friend Chrissy came over last week and took some pictures of Spencer for me. I have always been pretty good about getting the kids pictures taken at all the different month marks (3, 6, 9, 12...etc) but have never had "baby baby" pictures taken. I decided with Spencer that I needed to document and remember how small these babies come (or not small in my case) and relish the brand new baby stage. In these pictures he is between 3 & 4 weeks old. These are just a few of the many she took. Thank you Chrissy for capturing these precious moments and memories of my baby.

Spring Came

(I am playing catch up a little bit here. I am slowly but surely adjusting to life with 3, and my computer was getting fixed so I didn't have access to my pictures.)

When I went into the hospital to have Spencer, Spring was on the verge of arriving. And went we left the hospital Spring was here...and it was beautiful. The Mid-West Spring is unlike anything I have ever seen before. San Diego is always wonderful, but a lot of just brown and green. Provo had me captivated with it's pretty white and pink blossoms, but Iowa blows it out of the water! So after being trapped in the hospital and house for a few days I asked if we could all load up in the car and go look at the blossoms. It was so nice to get out, and such a fun feeling to have all three of kids tucked safe in the back seat. These pictures don't do the blossoms justice, but it will have to do.

My Boy

Spencer is already 3 weeks old (tomorrow) and it is killing me! In so many ways I look forward to him growing and hitting those fun milestones, especially the sleeping through the night one. But with those stages and steps means I am also losing the baby part of it all. The sweet tender coos and sounds, the baby smell, the little smiles (even if they are gas) that melt my heart, the fact that I can hold him and he doesn't fight me to get down, he doesn't talk back (or to be honest talk at all), and he is just all things little! They grow so fast and I have made an effort to savor this as long as I can with Spencer. To sit and hold him instead of doing dishes or writing the many Thank You notes that need to be done. To let the house get messy and laundry pile up while I lay on the couch and listen to my baby breath and make his little noises. He is such a sweet baby and we love him so much. I love all the different stages as babies grow up but I just need to remember (through the sleep deprivation and all) that it always goes by to fast and to soak it all in before it's gone.

The Faces of Isaac

Isaac is now officaially the middle child and I think no one has more sympathy for him than Ben, middle of 7 kids! Overall Isaac is handling the transition of a new baby well. I think the hardest part is that I can't pick him up and snuggle that cute face as much as I could before (thank you c-section). Today/This morning I could tell that he needed a few minutes of quiet time to himself. So I put hime in his crib with a few books and shut the door. His whinning immediatley stopped and it was quiet. I knew he wouldn't fall asleep, but just needed some time to himself. When I went in later to get him he was a changed boy. He had pulled his giant stuffed lion into his crib and was using it as a back rest. He had his binki & blanky...a boy, life was good! He just looked at me and gave me this little smirk that said, "...oh Mom...this is the good life!" I wish everyday I saw that sweet face instead of some of the other ones that appear!

...HAPPY ISAAC...

...MY LIFE IS SPIRALING OUT OF CONTROL ISAAC...

(Are you seriouolsy documenting this face???)

Back Tracking

These pictures are from when Spencer was still up in the NICU on the last day. No tubes and just waiting for all the paper work to be done so we could go home. What an angel!

In Love

Natali and Isaac L-O-V-E baby Spencer. All Natali wants to do is give kisses & hugs, and constantly requests to hold the baby. When Isaac sees the baby out he just runs full force at him yelling, "baby"! It's pretty funny. I have to constanly say, "soft Isaac, soft." It makes my heart warm and full though when I see all three of my kids together. It is the best feeling! It may be a rocky road for awhile, the whole sleep deprevation thing, but I sure love these kids.

Little Faces

Here are pictures of each of the kids just a few days old (two are the same of Spencer). I thought it was fun to see how each kid kind of has their own look, except for the chubbiness!
Top Left: Spencer 10.5 lbs
Top Right: Natali 9.9 lbs
Bottom Left: Isaac 10.9 lbs

We Are Home

We are home, and it feels so good! Thursday we said goodbye to Ben's mom which was hard (lots of tears were shed) but we knew she had to get home herself. Spencer was doing well with eating, blood sugars, and he had been off his IV since the day before. His billirubin was going up but not enough to where they were going to put him under the lights. So WHY was he still in the NICU...my point exactly! I talked to the rounding doctor who initially wanted to keep him there one more day for observation, and told him that I thought we should take him home. I could do follow up appointments for his jaundice with his pediatric doctor and if he needed photo therapy we could also handle that at home. Thankfully I was convincing and the NICU doctor gave the okay for discharge. We got me discharged from my room and then were waiting for Spencer. We had to wait till he went "wetties" in his diaper from having his little "manhood" surgery. I have never wanted to see a wet diaper more in my entire life. It took the kid almost 5 hours! Finally around 6:30 pm we were all loaded in the car driving away from the hospital. It felt so good & weird. I was leaving a very controlled enviornment and heading into what seemed like inevitable chaos! I am happy to say we survived our first full day at home, thanks to Ben, and love being all together under the same roof! Life with 3...ready, set, go!

No more Tubes

Today Spencer was able to shed his NG tube and his IV. His blood sugars are stable but unfortunately he started looking a little yellow. His billirubin doubled from yesterday to today so we have to wait and see what his labs in the morning show. If it hasn't raised much than there is a chance we could both go home tomorrow. I don't want to get my hopes up but it sure would be nice to leave the hospital together and forgo the commuting back and forth. The good news is he is still as cute as ever, and has the most perfect chunky cheeks.

Minor Set Back

Last night Spencer ended up needing to be admitted to the NICU. We thought we had dodged "that" bullet since his lungs and breathing were so good, but apparently Spencer had other plans for us. The issue is his blood sugar. It was staying too low and he wasn't eating well enough (too sleepy). It is just a matter of time as his body transitions from not receiving all the insulin and extra sugar from mine. He is already doing great and his sugars are stable. Now it's just a matter of time and getting him awake enough to eat. Now that he has been washed his hair looks more blonde. I love it, and I love his chubby arms and back rolls! I have to confess...I can't stop kissing him.

Spencer Chase

Baby Spencer arrrived today as planned at 9:54 am. He weighed in at 10.5 lbs and 21 inches long. Mother and baby are doing well. We're having a few feeding issues, but considering how chunky this guy is maybe he could stand to shed a few pounds (just kidding). Siblings have come and visited and are in love with him. We are so excited that he is here!

B

I Know, I Know....

Everyone is probably so sick and tired of hearing about this baby and my discomfort, I'd apologize...but since this is my blog/journal I feel a need to document and record. Posterity right? Please quickly scroll past the first picture, me and all my pregnant glory. It's been requested by family to see a photo so that they can have a visual as I try to explain how absolutely MASSIVE I really am. I told you...it is HUGE!


Grandma Fluhman arrived yesterday and it was not a moment to soon. It has been so nice to have an extra pair of hands to help with the kids, push shopping carts, and to have adult conversation with. Having her here makes the next couple of days seem bearable. Plus, she has already spoiled us and taken us out to dinner and is going to watch the kids for us tomorrow night so we can go out for my birthday (the big 28). Natali has been in HEAVEN with Grandma here and literally demands her attention every second (hard to imagine I know).

Today I had my last ultrasound. I was origianlly going to have an amnio done to check for lung maturity, but again just like with Isaac, the doctor said there was no point because either way this baby needed to come out. Spencers heart is looking fine, but the walls are starting to thicken and so to prevent any further complications they need to take him out whether or not the lungs are mature. But, I feel good that the lungs most likely will be ready since this will be the longest I have a carried any of the kids (by two whole days I tell ya)! The plan is to go in early Monday morning and get this c-section done! YIPPEE. Here are some pictures of Spencer taken from today. HELLO CHUNKY CHEEKS!!! Yes, that is a double chin you see, and he sat there sticking his tounge out at us! I am giving birth to a sumo baby! He'll fit in perfectly to our family.

SO Ready!

First let me begin this by saying I am truly blessed by being able to have babies. I wouldn't trade it for the world...but right now I am in that 100% MISERABLE stage. There are so many perks of being pregnant, gaining weight and having and excuse, pampering ones self with pedicures, dear friends offering to always watch your kids so you can nap or clean, and obvioulsy a cute little bundle of joy at the end. Right now I am experinceing those "special" perks!

...burning my belly twice on the stovetop
....Natali asking, "mommy, why are you breathing so hard?" while slowing walking around Costco
...random strangers giving you that look that clearly states, "who on earth let you out of the house!"
...the realization that I can not wait to have a catheter put in (sorry, but it's true)
...the knowledge that I am caring at least a 9 pound baby
...the sweet ultrasound tech sharing with me that I am caring twice the amount of amniotic fluid than a normal pregnant lady
...I can't breathe!!!
...I can't bend over to save my life
...There is no position (standing, sitting, lying down) that is comfortable
...Ben saying, "you sound like Darth Vader breathing into the phone!" Me replying, "sorry I had to get off the couch and walk across the room to answer it, I am out of breath (add the sarcasm)"
...Natali looking at my stomach exposed and asking, "mom...is baby Spencer trying to get out?"

Oh, I really am grateful for this little baby! I just needed to document how totally miserable I am right now because I seem to always forget, and Ben wants to make sure that I remember this pain and discomfort for a long time! A REALLY long time.

A Spring Is Here

Spring is finally here and I am so happy. The kids have loved being able to play outside on the deck and I love the fresh air! I wish we could go to the park or on walks but unfortunately due to being about a week away from having a baby, both are overwhelming and painful! For right now we enjoy sidewalk chalk, playing in the backyard, and painting on the deck.

Natali came out of quiet time the other day declaring that she was going to get married. Apparently a white tutu skirt is all a beautiful bride needs now a days! I asked her who she was going to marry. "I want to marry Daddy!" Sorry sweetheart...he's already taken!