One Week Birthday!

I'll try not to do too many post with pictures, but I'm a proud momma right now.

Some Pictures

We're home and doing well. We're enjoying spending time with this precious little girl!

Our First Sights of Audrey

My first time to hold her. (Operating Room)

Michael holding her in the nursery.

We finally both get to adore her in the recovery room.

Baby Audrey

It took quite awhile, but Audrey arrived at 6:01 Sunday night. I dilated very quickly and began to push at 2:00 and pushed for 3 hours. Poor Audrey was not positioned well (sunny-side up) and was being pushed into my pelvic bone each time I pushed. This caused us to do a C-section. It was even hard to get her out even in the C-section! She has a poor little bruise on her forehead as a result. She must have such a headache! She is 7 lbs 6 oz and 20.25 inches. She has some black hair and is just beautiful! She has very long fingers and toes. She has been very alert every time we've seen her. Michael is so in love with her - too sweet! We also have been pretty succesful with nursing. God is good! Hopefully I will have some really sweet pictures coming my way soon and I'll post those when I receive them!

Audrey is coming!!!

We're back at the hospital. The contractions started last night and have not yet stoppped. The doctor expects Audrey to come some time late afternoon or early evening. We can't wait for our little girl to come.

...and now leaving the hospital - but worth the wait

That's right. Baby Audrey is still sitting happy in my belly. My doctor thinks my cervix is sealed with cement. So, we're leaving while I'm still having fairly strong and regular, yet ineffective contractions. Michael and I decided we should wait a while longer before doing anything that would pretty much send us into having a C-section. So now, we're aiming towards the 19th and the countdown at the top should be fairly close to that date, our original due date. The best news is that Audrey is doing very well. I also have figured out the hospital routine and I might be able to sleep better next time since I will be more familiar with everything. God will send her to us when He is good and ready. I'll let you know if we return earlier than the 19th.

At the hospital

Things should begin rolling at 7:00 Friday morning. We will try to keep the blog updated, but you can always call my phone to hear the latest update.

Mary, Mother of Jesus

When thinking about pregnant women in the Bible, this was the first to jump into my head. But, of course, I knew I should wait closer to Christmas time to share this new perspective I have of Mary.

First of all, how strange it would be to be thrown into this predicament. This could not have come at a worse time for her. How scary for such a young lady to carry such a HUGE responsibility?! How would Joseph react? I'm sure she was grateful when God took care of that. But then there was the public scrutiny. I simply can not imagine what she went through.

I often wondered if God spared her from morning sickness. My thoughts are that He had compassion on her and made this one of the easier pregnancies - but what do I know?

Now that I'm closing in on the end, I have so much respect for Mary. I thought teaching was hard to do while being so uncomfortable. Mary had to get up on a mule or donkey and travel to Bethlehem. How difficult! I wonder if they had little bags of snacks for her to munch on when she got terribly hungry? Did she have to stop and "go" several times on this trip? Joseph had to be one patient man. The mode of transportation alone probably sent her into labor.

Then they finally arrive, and there is no place to stay. (Joseph was probably recounting all of those bathroom stops in his head each time they were told to go elsewhere.) Most people these days would see a very pregnant woman and do anything they could to find her a place. This may be how they ended up in a stable. I'm sure Mary was thrilled and was thinking, "Yea, this hay will be soooo comfortable while I'm pushing!"

One last note on Mary. She was one of the few that knew what she was having before sonograms. Too bad she couldn't register for all of the cute blue things at Babies R Us back then.

Fare Thee Well

Friday was my last day of teaching for a very long time. I do not think it will sink in until I'm staying at home and taking care of a baby.

I was very blessed the last 4 years to work with a wonderful staff. They were so very supportive of me this last year. I never had to deal with the ugliness that I hear occurs when one leaves in the middle of the year.

I worked with some of the best principals at this school and with the best team. They are thoughtful, hard-working, and so much fun!

I will miss the students a bit, but not as much as the staff. I have to admit I was burned out on teaching after 6 years. I don't know how others, like my dad, do/did it. I am so happy not to deal with state requirements/testing, grading, poor behavior and blatant disrespect anymore!

I did have some very sweet kids that hugged me or brought me cards before moving on with their day Friday. I will miss some of their humor and jokes. I also ended on a positive note with one student that really made my day. His grades had been falling drastically after carrying a 100 average. Thursday, it was apparent that he had just given up. He was upset with me, so I knew that talking with him would not work. I ended up writing a quick note to him, telling him not to give up and he was capable of so much more. He didn't change his attitude on Thursday, but he was totally different on Friday. He was positive and scored a 100 on his test! He told me it was his gift to me...and I really see it as a gift!

Now that I am not teaching, I will be in prayer for all of those in schools. I can only speak for the kids that I have seen in my low-income schools, but the world is a very scary place for these teens. In looking at the last week alone, there were students dealing with gangs and fights, deciding on keeping or aborting a baby, and family members in jail. Believe me, a science test is not high on their lists of concerns. There is a real and true concern for the education of the children in the US. Keep that in mind when you vote for the next president.

What Would Jesus Buy?

Perhaps this documentary is irreverant, but I will be wanting to see this movie when it comes out. In what I've seen, it has a great message.

Upcoming Posts: My last day of work and my thoughts of Mary, mother of Jesus, and her pregnancy.