In Need of Prayer Again

Alright, I had two appointments today. The first was for Daniel. He has some speech concerns like Nathan (not nearly as bad) and the doctor just wanted a speech pathologist to just look at him. Well at UNC (our doctors) you can't see the speech people until you get checked out by audiology to rule out hearing problems. We had an appointment this morning and they did a test on his ear drums and found out that both ear drums are not responding the way that they should. The right ear drum especially had no movement. He can still hear okay. It did take him a while to respond to the softer sounds they tested him for. The audiologist said it could be as simple as an ear infection or just a lot of fluid in his ear. She did say it was an unsual time of year to have as much fluid around his ears as he did. She said it is normally a winter thing. I need to call his regular doctor to see what they want to do. They might want to send us to an ENT to make sure everything is okay. So I know it is an unusual request but be praying he just has an ear infection and nothing more serious.
My appointment was later in the afternoon. Daniel and I just went to the mall and walked around in between appointments. HE loved just having mommy time. When they checked me at my apoointment they found that this little guy has flipped once again to transverse. In fact this time he is an even more precarious position. His feet are towards the cervix and his back is towards my chest. This means that if my water does break the cord is at high risk for prolaspe. I got the whole scary lecture about not doing anything to put myself in labor. I was also told that if my water does break to go immediately to ER, not even to drive down to UNC (an hour away). It was kind of a scary apoointment and made me nervous. Next week I will be monitored again and if he has not moved we need to decide if we just want to try a version, induce, and try to deliver right away. They are afraid he is just going to keep flipping back. They don't want to take any chances. The risk of a prolasped cord they said is very high especially since this is number six and things tend to move faster. I am scared and nervous but I do have a sense of peace. This baby is lying this way for a reason and maybe a c-section is the only way this child is to be delivered safely. I am so glad that the technology is out there to check things like this. I just remember how lucky we were with Alex and his cord being so short. Maybe this little one is the same way and the Lord is protecting him by keeping him right where he needs to be. I know this is all in the Lords plan and everything will work out according to his will. Just pray that I do not get discouraged or stressed. I know this is long but I do have one more thing. My mother has not been doing well. Her lupus has beeen flarring up. She has been suffering with vertigo badly and is almost to the point where she can't function. The doctor thinks it might be just a really bad sinus infection. She has already been through one dose of antibiotics and she started a new round today. If she is not feeling better after this round she goes to see a neurologist to rule out something more major. Again, I know this sounds weird, but pray that it is a sinus infection and not something more serious. She feels bad because she is trying to help me out with the kids a lot. She is the one to watch the kids when I go into labor. Just pray for healing for her. My dad can't take care of all the kids by himself. His heart problems have returned.
So just pray and pass these requests along to our church family up there. We love you all.

Go,Go Jonah

The kids had their summer musical performance last night. They did Jonah this year. Last year they did Esther. The kids did an awesome job. Alex actually stood up there the entire time and sang. Everything ran smoothly which I was worried about. At the dress rehersal on Saturday three of my girls who had speaking roles did not know their lines. We only had one mess up last night on lines. I was the drama director by the way. The lady who ran it set it up as a dinner theater so we had an intermission and everything. It was a full scale music with lights and sound and sets and the whole nine yards. I love going to a church where we can do things like this. My mom said that they are lucky if get someone to help the kids sing one song. The kids had so much fun and loved every minute. William actually had a singing solo and a speaking part. He was one of the sailors. Carl worked sets and also had a speaking part. He was the captain. He was hilarious. Who knew my husband could act. Ha Ha. During the storm scene with Jonah being thrown out the boat there was a real storm outside that knocked out of sound system for a second. You should have seen the sound people running around trying to fix everything. All in all it was an awesome night. Everyone had fun and the kids can't wait to see what bible character they are doing next year. Neither can I.

You Have To Read This!

I found this on the site Well Tell Me and you have to read it. Anyone who has ever been shopping with children will find it hilarious. For those of you who have not, this is really how it is. Here is the link.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=130144061675
I read it to Carl and the kids and they just were rolling on the floor. I even printed it out so I could have it later to remind that I am not the only mother who has kids who do this in stores. I am so thankful Carl works it out that I go grocery shopping by myself. My friends all laugh when I get excited about grocery shopping. Reading this they will understand why. Plus I like the rush I get when I come under budget. Ha Ha!

POwer of Prayer

When people found out about the baby not being in the right position they spread the word. People in NC,MD, VA, and CO all started praying. Carl and I had the opportunity to go to a prayer meeting early Tuesday morning. Every person there (about 25) prayed that the baby would turn. At my appointment she started feeling and said with an astonished look that she thought the baby had turned. She did a quick ultrasound and the baby was exactly where he was supposed to be. She was amazed that he had turned. The midwife really believed that he was not going to turn. Talk about the power of prayer. Thanks to all who prayed for our little Samuel.

Please Pray this Baby Turns

I had an ob appointment today. She felt the baby was not lying head down. She did a quick ultrasound and sure enough the stubborn boy is transverse. She is giving me a week to turn this kid on my own and then I get scheduled for am external aversion. I am not looking forward to that. Carl has been encouraging me. The first thing he said when I called and told him was that the baby was going to turn and that I did not need to worry about it. I think I am going to spend the rest of the week on my hands and knees doing pelvic rocks. I really don't want to end up with the aversion or a c-section. I have never had this problem with any of them before. I have to admit I am nervous. The midwife said that he looks really big. She kept asking me how big all the other were. She said if they are really big it is harder for them to turn. I need all your prayers so this baby will turn. She told me I am not allowed to take anything that would help put me in labor. Normally by this point in the pregnancy I am drinking tea and taking EPO. Since I go late anyway I like to do all I can to prepare for labor. She told me no way should I do anything until the baby turns head down or I will have to have a c-section. It was such an encouraging appointment! Just pray for my faith level that it would increase and that I would not get discouraged about this all. I know it will all work out according to God's plan. Oh, by the way. Carl finally decided on a name for this little one, Samuel. A middle name has not been chosen yet. I like Levi.

Consequences of Disobedience

Things always seem to go wrong when Carl is away. We got home from church this afternoon and I went upstairs to change. It is like 100 degrees outside with high humidity. I walked into the kitchen five minutes later and William informed me that Alex had blood all over his hand. I found out that he was trying to open some candy that he received in Sunday School. I had told him to wait until I could do it for him. He decided to try it himself with a kitchen knife. The knife sliced his finger open. It was the kind of wound that I knew he would reopen every time he bumped it. Off we went to Urgent Care, all five kids in tow. They got us in right away and luckily he did not need stitches. They cleaned it out real good and glued it. The nurses told me that the kids were so good. And they were. I was impressed. What a testimony to all the hard work we as parents put into training our children in the ways of the Lord. One nurse told me that the night before they had three kids in who tore the place apart. It was a lesson for me and the kids in several ways. First of all that disobedience has consequences. For me it taught me that the hard work we all do as mothers is rewarded and is a testimony to those around us. People are always watching large families to see how they work. What a light for Christ we can be to a dark world.
On a serious note. While Carl was away this weekend he tried to meet up with a family from his days in Amway. He was driving right past their house and called to see if they could get together. When he called he found out that the wife has brain and spine caner. She had some problems a while back with a tumor but now she has cancer. Their names are Monty and Luanne Wilson. They have three kids , two girls and a boy. They are a little bit older than all our kids but not by much. PLease pray for this family. They are a christian family so that is wonderful. We just want to lift them up in prayer. As a mom I can't imagine what thoughts must be going through her head.

Tales of A Reserve Wife

Carl is in Charlotte all this weekend. For those of you not from North Carolina it is the largest city in NC. It is about 3 hours from where we live. He was meeting with the Battalion soldiers this weekend. He actually has two drills this month. The other one is his normal battle readiness that meets at Fort Bragg. He then has one the first weekend of September. At least it is extra money. He even got a raise because he was just promoted to major. The kids have been extra wild today. They always seem to do that when Carl is gone. They know he can't come home to discipline them. It is now 10:30 and two of the boys are still up. They have been in trouble all day. Esther even had to go to bed early. I guess she needed extra sleep. She fell asleep before 7:30. Church tomorrow should be interesting. It is hard to keep the kids occupied during church. During the evening service we only have nursery for Daniel. Four kids in the service, all by myself, is a lot to handle. I keep thinking back to when Carl was in Kuwait. I could not have handled it without my mom and dad. I am thankful for them everyday. I pray for the families of active duty and reserve soldiers every day. God bless them. Please remember to pray for them.