Thankful List ~ March 2015

March Thankful list

March was ushered in with a tremendous outpouring of love from those at Calvary Baptist Church.  Quite a few people worked together to prepare a Baby Shower and House Warming party for us.  Josh and I didn’t know what to expect but we were amazed at how many people came, the wonderful gifts they brought, and the love they are continuing showing us.  We are so thankful for the wonderful people at Calvary.

Both my mom and Josh’s mom came up for a visit this month.  Ms. Terry came for a little over a week.  She was so helpful.  She made sure to keep up with the dishes and pick up around the house.   My mom came two weeks later and stayed for five days.  She played with Addi and Josiah the whole time.  Both of them were such a blessing to me and I hated to see them go.

After we brought Elias home from the hospital he lost a lot of weight even though he was eating like a champ.  At his one-month appointment he had gained it all back and had surpassed his birth weight weighing 8lb.8 oz.  I’m thankful for the way God has allowed me to provide milk for my sweet baby.  You never know how important this is to a momma’s heart unless you’ve been that mom who desires to nurse and can’t.

I’m thankful for modern medicine.  I had a bout of mastitis and Elias was struggling with severe reflux.  I am feeling 100% better and Elias is showing great improvement.

We had a preschool tour at Englewood Baptist Church this month to evaluate if it would be a good option for Josiah for next year.  It was wonderful.  Josiah had such a great time and we are pretty convinced that this will be the most beneficial option for him.

My sweet Addi girl got the 48-hour stomach virus twice this month.  She was so pitiful but I’m so thankful she recovered quickly and it didn’t spread to anyone else in the family.

I was reminded about God’s perfect timing and his provision several times this month.  One time was when I had my van tire blow out.  I was half way between our church and our house (only a couple miles from each) and it happened right in front of a fire station.  I just kept thinking about if it would have happened the night before when I was trying to get my mom to the airport or later that afternoon when I was taking Elias to the doctor how much more difficult life would have been.  Instead, God was gracious to allow that to happen where Josh could join me quickly, where it was safe to pull over and let the kids play, at a time when Elias had recently eaten and was napping, on a beautiful sunny day, and close to places we could replace the spare and buy a new tire.  Although it was an inconvenience I really did have a lot to be thankful for.  This misfortune also allowed us to meet the firemen at the station.  Josh hit it off with them and returned later with doughnuts to say thank you for their willingness to assist me before he got there.

After being in our new house almost 2 months, we finally were able to meet some neighbors.  We pulled out the baby stroller, went for a walk, and let the kids ride their bikes.  We are excited about the warmer weather so we can hopefully meet a lot more people.

We are so thankful that Josh was given several opportunities to preach over the past month or so.  He loves being able to use his giftings in this area and is excited to continue to grow in this area as well.

Treasuring Christ Church celebrated their 10^th Anniversary this month and I was thrilled to be able to attend the festivities.  The people at TCC have such a special place in my heart and I am so thankful for God’s grace of this church.  For more about why I love this church so much, please check out this post.

We also found out this month that Rion and Kristen are having a little girl!  I love this baby so much already and I can’t wait until August when I get to meet her!

Josh coordinated a Youth Group trip to Charlotte for the Student Life Conference.  They had a great time, learned a lot, came back excited but most importantly one of the youth accepted Christ.  It was a special moment for Josh to walk through the gospel with this young man and to pray with him.   We are so thankful for the work of the Lord in his life.

While Josh was at the conference I had the great privilege of visiting our former neighbors who had moved to Charlotte.  Our family absolutely loves the Jackson family and it was great to catch up with them in person!

The kids and I also went down for a very quick visit to see family in Atlanta.  It’s always so fun to visit.  Although this trip was purposed to see Papa Don who was recovering from open-heart surgery and Nana who is battling cancer with daily radiation treatments, we got to see lots of other family too.

I am so thankful for doctors who God allows to grow in wisdom so they can care for so many people.  I’m thankful for the doctors who have operated on Papa Don and Nana and are continuing to treat them.  I’m thankful for a great pediatrician, Dr. Dirk, who loves my children and truly cares for our family.  It’s always encouraging when we go to see him because we never feel like just another patient, but like a family friend.  I’m thankful for my doctor, Dr. Diebel, who has walked with Josh and I through the miscarriage and the entire pregnancy, delivery and postpartum with Elias.  And, presently, I am most thankful for Dr. Hey, Josh’s surgeon who operated on his back.

The thing I am most thankful for this month is that God protected my husband during his back surgery.  Josh had been having back problems for years. He had X-rays done about 6 months ago and did some physical therapy but nothing really helped. After we moved a few months ago he started working out in hopes to strengthen his back muscles. However, it gradually got a lot worse. Recently he lost feeling in his left leg. He had an MRI, which revealed a severe ruptured disc. After seeing a few different doctors and getting multiple opinions they all told him his only option was surgery. They went in and removed part of his disc (between the L4 and L5 vertebrae) and then they had to shave part of the vertebra to make room for the nerves again (since they had been pinched for quite awhile). He has been in a lot of pain so I'm just so thankful he will hopefully have some relief! He will be in bed for the next 2 weeks and then can gradually get back into a "normal" routine over the next 4-6 weeks.

We have already been loved on by so many individuals in the midst of Josh’s surgery and recovery.  I am thankful for Traci Gallaher who kept Addi and Josiah the day of the operation. I’m thankful for Pastor Brandon, Pastor Matthew, and Robbie Haynes who came to sit with Josh and pray over him before the surgery. I’m thankful for the Bells who transported our kids and came to visit in the hospital.  I’m thankful for Cary Brege who kept my kids the first night Josh got to go home, and for the Prices who also cared for our kids and came to visit Josh in the hospital.  I’m thankful for the Niemanns who visited in the hospital and set up a way for people to bless us through meals and other means.   I'm thankful for Teresa Sanders who brought me dinner at the hospital since I hadn't eaten all day.  There are so many others who’ve asked to help and we are thankful for them as well.  Most of all we are thankful for all the prayers our friends and family have been lifting up for us.  If there is anything that is evident we certainly have a lot to be thankful for!

Thankful List ~ February 2015

February Thankful list

The greatest thing we are thankful for this month is the birth of our new healthy baby boy, Elias Samuel Kelly.  He was born on Friday, February 13^th, weighed 8lbs 4oz and was 21 inches long.  For the full story of his arrival please check out this blog post!

We started the month out having a Super Bowl party for the Youth Group.  It was so much fun. We had beautiful weather and a sweet family in the church opened up their home. Over 50 people showed up, including several visitors to the church, which was amazing! We had lots of snacks.  People played basketball, table tennis, many just sat around and talked.  The little kids played on the playground and in the playroom but, funny enough, not too many people ended up watching the game.  My favorite part was all getting together during halftime and listening to Josh share his testimony with the Youth.  He challenged them to make their faith their own.  This is something I not only pray for the Youth, but also for my own little kiddos.

We had a difficult 1^st week of February when everyone in the house, except myself, came down with the flu.  It may seem weird to put this on our thankful list but here are just some of the ways I saw God’s graciousness in the midst of this trial:  1) Josiah had a 104.7 fever the night we discovered something was wrong.  We are so thankful for God’s protection of his little life and that it wasn’t anything more serious than the flu.  2) We were thankful for the timing.  Had it been a week or two earlier we would have been in the middle of our move and had it been a week or two later we would have had a newborn.  3) After getting medicine, everyone bounced back really quickly. I’m just so thankful it only lasted about 6-7 days instead of 8-12!  4) I never got sick!  The Lord spared me, and my 38-week pregnant self, from having to battle the flu.  I can’t even begin to tell you what mercy that was!

The weather.  Yes, I know- everyone has been complaining and complaining about the weather but here’s my take on it:  It’s technically still winter.  I’m not a huge fan of ice or snow and I definitely don’t like cold weather, but that’s kind of what winter is supposed to be like.  I’m thankful that it snowed right after Elias was born and we were kind of stuck in the house for a bit.  Josh was able to take Addi and Josiah out to play because he had already planned on working from home so he could be available to help me.  In addition, we have had two or three really warm days.  It’s February, so those should incline our hearts to thankfulness, not just more grumbling because everyday is not a sunny 70-degree day.

Calvary Baptist Church- One evening at church we had a Deacons and wives prayer meeting and dessert fellowship.  It was wonderful to get together with a group of women and just encourage one another and pray.  I had written an entire blog post about the difficulties of the past few months and the transitions we’ve been through as well as how much we appreciate and love our new family at Calvary.  I wrote all about how I see God’s grace in people especially in the area of sacrificial service.  However, after searching through tons of files on my computer, I have come to believe that at some point I accidentally deleted the post.  During this season of my life I unfortunately don’t have the time to rewrite it, but I do want everyone to know how incredibly thankful we are for those at Calvary!

Josh started watching some YouTube videos with Addilyn and Josiah this month.  These videos were created by a group of guys called “Dude Perfect.” These guys basically spend all day-every day practicing trick shots with any and every kind of sports equipment.  It’s been so much fun to watch Josiah get such a thrill out of these and try over the past few weeks to replicate a lot of their trick shots.  He specifically loves trying soccer and basketball shots with his little Jake and the Neverland Pirates ball.  LOL. In addition, at the end of each video the guys usually “sign off” by giving the camera pounds (or some people call it knuckles) and one guy even leans his head in and says, “Noggin.”  Josiah has become adamant about giving “Pounds and Noggins” to just about every body.

We are very thankful for our friend Dana Haynes, who came over and took newborn pictures of Elias completely free of charge!  Her (and her husband) always find creative ways to show us love and we are so thankful for their friendship!  There are just some people who you know you’ll be friends with for as long as you’re living here on earth.  Robbie and Dana are definitely those types of friends!

Welcome Eli

I’m not sure who came up with the phrase, “The days are long, but the years are short” but it is so very true.  This past week has flown by.  I absolutely cannot believe that Elias is already 10 days old!  In honor of my little man I wanted to share his birth story.  Okay, let’s be honest this is really more for me than anyone else.  I love to have a written record of things because I quickly forget or confuse details and I love being able to go back and reminisce.  So, here is a snapshot of Elias’ birth story and events from his first week.

Thursday, February 12th

4:45 a.m.       I woke up to use the restroom (for the 4^th time since midnight) and felt my very first contraction.

6:00 a.m.       After noticing that my contractions varied from 4-7 minutes apart and lasting only 10 seconds (not strong at all) I decided to go ahead and shower but I was seriously doubting that this was the real thing.

6:15 a.m.       I woke up Josh just to let him know; however, he was very concerned that since we lived over an hour from the hospital we should begin preparing to leave.  In his defense, the Friday before (at my last appointment) my doctor said I was 2 cm dilated and 60% effaced so the labor should go very quickly. 

6:30 a.m.       I called my OBGYN to get their opinion. They asked me to come into the office.  We finished packing the van.

6:45 a.m.       We woke up kids and got them dressed. I still was not convinced this was the real thing and was hesitant about spending the time, money, and energy driving out to Raleigh.

7:00 a.m.       We left the house and made our way to Raleigh.  Contractions averaged 5-6 minutes apart and 15-20 seconds long.  They were getting a little stronger which gave me a little more hope that today was going to be the day.  Josh was speeding.  I think he just wanted an excuse to drive with his flashers on (silly husband).

8:00 a.m.       Because I’ve always gone into labor in the early morning, it’s kind of our tradition to stop by Chick-fil-a and grab a biscuit on the way to the hospital…so, we made a pit stop at North Hills.

8:15 a.m.       We arrived at my OBGYN.  My blood pressure was very high.  This actually did not concern me at all because I typically have an excellent read on my blood pressure; however, during both of my other labors it was elevated on the day I delivered. Unfortunately, during the hour I was in the doctor’s office my contractions slowed to 7-8 minutes apart.

9:15 a.m.       My doctor told me that I was still only 2 cm dilated but about 80% effaced.  She said, “It could be today or it could be next week.  We will schedule you an appointment for Monday morning.”  I was majorly disappointed.  I was confused and frustrated because I didn’t know what we needed to do.  All I could think was, “What happens if we drive an hour back to Rocky Mount and then my water breaks and we don’t make it back to Raleigh in time?”  We decided to spend the day in Raleigh and see if the contractions would progress.

10:00 a.m.     We took the kids to Cameron Village story time so they could sing, dance and read books with Mr. Erik.

10:45 a.m.     We went over to Alexander YMCA (since my membership didn’t expire until February 16^th) and let kids play with the Haynes kids in the childcare.  Josh was able to work remotely in the lobby for a few hours.

12:45 p.m.     We had lunch at Moe’s.  At this point my contractions were consistent at 8 minutes apart.  I was still pretty bummed and very tired by this point.

2:15 p.m.       Traci Gallaher invited us over to her house so the kids and I could take a nap.  This was helpful so Josh could continue to work as well.

3:30 p.m.       We woke up and I began timing my contractions again.  They were back down to 5-6 minutes apart.

4:30 p.m.       We drove over to State Street.  Dana Haynes made me a delightful peppermint hot chocolate and then she, Robbie, and Josh took all the kids to Marbles Kids Museum while I rested. 

5:30 p.m.       I walked down the street to visit with Becca McInnis where we started making plans to go out to dinner for Ben’s birthday.

7:00 p.m.       On our way to Mellow Mushroom, my contractions quickened to 3-4 minutes apart and got quite a bit stronger.  We decided to go ahead and drop our kids off with the Gallaher’s (who were having small group at the Round’s house) and head towards the hospital.

7:20 p.m.       Because we had not had dinner and were both pretty hungry, Josh quickly ran into Chubby’s Tacos and grabbed a burrito for us to split. My contractions shortened to only 2 minutes apart lasting about 45 seconds so we scarfed our dinner down in the ½ mile drive to the hospital.

7:45 p.m.       We checked into triage at Rex.  My contractions were 1.5 minutes apart.

8:30 p.m.       The triage nurse told me that I was still only 2cm dilated.  Josh and I were completely shocked!  Hospital policy states that they cannot admit a mom or place her in a delivery room until she is at least 4cm dilated.  Because of how often I was having contractions and how far away we lived my doctor recommended that we try walking for a while.  He said he would check me again at 10:00 p.m.

8:45 p.m.       In the not-so-fashionable hospital gown, escorted by my amazing husband, I started walking laps all around that hospital.  Okay, to be honest, I wasn’t just walking.  I was so determined to stay and have that baby that I was speed walking…and praying…and pleading.  We walked, and walked and walked.  We practically wore out the tiles on the 2^nd floor of that hospital.  We did laps through the ICU, the heart center, by the gift shop, and all through the women’s center.  And then we walked some more (all while still having contractions 2 minutes apart).  At 10:00 my doctor wasn’t around because he was delivering another baby so I took that to mean I was being given more time to walk.

10:30 p.m.     With much anticipation and anxiousness I met the doctor to be checked.  Praise the Lord my cervix had dilated to 4 cm!  We were admitted and sent to room 231 where I cried I was so happy.

11:10 p.m.     I showered and the nurse hooked me up to monitor my blood pressure, contractions, and the baby’s heart beat.

Friday, February 13th

12:25 a.m.     I was exhausted from only getting about 3 hours of sleep the night before, timing contractions for almost 20 hours, and the emotional roller coaster we had been on throughout the day.  Josh and I agreed for me to take stadol and try to rest.  Although it gave me temporary relief from the contractions I was unable to rest well because of noise from another room and outside my door in the hallway (Josh slept well though- ha ha).

1:30 a.m.       The night nurse was concerned that I had not dilated any further and began strongly suggesting that I take Pitocin.  I argued that I didn’t want to take Pitocin but would rather walk.  However, because of my blood pressure they would not let me walk anymore.

3:00 a.m.       The contractions were causing a lot of pain in my lower back so Josh gave me the most amazing back rub ever.

3:30 a.m.       The night nurse told me that if I did not start dilating there were only a few options:  1) I could take Pitocin to induce labor, 2) I could get the doctor to break my water, or 3) I could leave.  I told her that if I was not progressing by 5:00 a.m. then I would get the doctor to break my water.

5:00 a.m.       After 24 hours of contractions, and knowing that my doctor was about to break my water, I decided to go ahead and get an epidural (Josiah came within an hour of my water being broken).  Although I was still having very frequent contractions I was still only 6cm dilated.

5:45 a.m.       My doctor came in and broke my water.

7:05 a.m.       Unfortunately, the epidural had slowed my contractions down to 5 minutes apart (However, I was so thankful from the relief that came from the lowered intensity of the contractions).  Josh had been asleep for about an hour when the day nurse burst in the room.  She was a little firecracker.  Moving through the room at high speed she opened the blinds, wheeled in the table with the doctors tools, turned on the baby warmer, and started rearranging furniture to prep everything for delivery.  Josh and I looked at one another confused.  Without trying to be rude, I asked her if she had checked my monitor, how long she had worked in labor and delivery and basically if she knew what she was doing.  With full confidence she said she had been doing this for 30 years and that she promised we’d be having a baby within the next hour or two.  I asked her how she was going to do that.  She said she was going to do whatever it took to get my contractions going strong again and she was going to start by, “flipping me like a pancake.”  She had Josh and I laughing like crazy.  While Josh went and grabbed breakfast, she moved me all around, she poked and prodded my stomach, and sure enough my contractions quickened again.

8:35 a.m.       I told Josh that I felt "pressure" and was going to call in the nurse after the next contraction.  She walked in as I was finishing that sentence, lifted up my blanket and said, “Yep, 10cm dilated.  Call the doctor.  Time to push.”  Josh and I were astonished.  Finally, the time had come.  We were SO ready to meet our little one and find out if it was a boy or a girl.

8:45 a.m.       My doctor arrived.  Josh, my doctor and the nurse coached me though about 7 contractions (12 -15 minutes) and…

9:00 a.m.       Josh announced that baby BOY Kelly was here!  We finally got to meet Mr. Elias Samuel Kelly!  (8lbs 4oz and 21 inches long).

Highlights from his first week:

*  Within moments of Elias being born I was able to hold and snuggle with him! He almost instantly began rooting so I tried to nurse him. He latched on by the 3rd or 4th try. To me this was practically a miracle because I’d had so much trouble nursing my other kids.
*  Addilyn and Josiah’s response to meeting their baby brother will forever be one of my favorite moments in life. I expected Addi to want to help and sure enough all she wanted to do is hold him. I was amazed at Josiah’s response though. Siah, was beaming and wanted to examine Elias from head to toe. They both were enthralled with how tiny he was. Josiah wanted to keep touching his little ears, and toes, and he kept rubbing his head. It was absolutely precious. This little boy is greatly loved by his siblings, that is for sure.
*  Saturday, Elias began cluster feeding. I could not get over how much this little champ was eating.
*  Sunday we got to go home! Josh and I realized we have brought home each of our children in a different vehicle to a different house. Kinda funny how that’s worked out.
Sunday night, Elias’ medicine wore off from his circumcision and he also had terrible gas (I’m talking stinky man gas- not just baby gas- lol). All day Monday he was stinking up the house. Addi and Josiah nicknamed him “little stinker.” He had also not had a bowel movement since his operation. We made a trip to Wake Forest to see the pediatrician and they told us he had lost 10% of his birth weight (I’m not sure how that was possible because of how much he’d been eating). I was also advised to cut out dairy to help with both his constipation and gassiness.
*  Tuesday the snow and ice came in which worked out perfectly for us to stay in and cuddle.
*  By Wednesday, little man was not struggling with gas anymore. Since then, I’ve had to wake him up at night to eat. I’m pretty sure he would already be sleeping 5-6 hours if I didn’t have to wake him.
*  Thursday we went back to the doctor and Elias had gained 6oz back already! The doctor was very impressed at how well he was doing!
*  Friday, Elias started smiling in his sleep. I’m not sure if it was gas, dreams, or just a happy thought, but I love those sweet toothless smiles all the same. He also started holding his head up much better, looking around more often, and focusing his eyes on things.
*  Saturday we had a dear friend come over to take newborn photos of Elias. She is SO talented and I cannot wait to share the pictures with you all! That evening we also had some of our Wake Forest and Raleigh friends over to meet Elias and see our new home, since most of them had not been able to make it out yet. It was such a great time.
*  Today, Sunday, was Elias first time at church! He was warmly greeted by lots oohs and aahs. Josh presented him to the Youth the way Rafiki presented Simba in the Lion King. The youth were distracted from listening to Josh because of Elias’ persistent hiccups. I also successfully wore him in the Moby wrap for the first time and he slept all the way through the service.

Thankful List ~ January 2015

January Thankful List

The biggest blessing from this month included selling our Raleigh house, buying our Rocky Mount home, and the help we had moving.  It was very sad to say goodbye to our Raleigh home.  I cried and cried over the course of the last few days there especially as I realized I would not be across the street from some of our amazing friends. I’m thankful in the almost 3 weeks we’ve been gone I have been able to talk to and visit many of our Raleigh friends.  It was amazing to see how the Lord worked out the details in us closing on our Raleigh home at 9 a.m. and only a few short hours later we closed on our Rocky Mount home.  Our relator, Zach Angle, was amazing and I recommend him to anyone.  We are also so very thankful to have been welcomed to our new home with over 30 people from our new church.  When we pulled up with the moving truck people were waiting to clean and help us unpack.  It was incredible.   The rest of the month was pretty much consumed with unpacking, getting settled, and making all the transitions to life in a new community, church, school, etc.  We are very thankful for it all and are excited to see what February hold for us, especially since we are guaranteed it will include a new baby!

Thankful List ~ December 2014

December Thankful List

Josh officially started in his position as the Pastor of Families and Discipleship at Calvary on December 1^st.  He LOVES it.  He comes home almost every day talking about how thankful he is.  We are excited to get to know new people and have been warmly welcomed by everyone.  For myself, I think once we move to the area it will be easier for me to build deeper friendships.  I am so thankful for everyone who has hosted us on Sunday afternoons so our kids can nap between services.  In addition, I am grateful for the constant encouragement and prayers from new friends at Calvary.

We are glad to announce that after only 2 ½ weeks we went under contract with a couple who wants to buy our home in Raleigh!  We have looked at over 70 homes online and 15 homes in person in Rocky Mount and we are officially under contact.  We are just waiting on the results of the home inspection but if all works out we will be closing on BOTH homes on January 16^th!  It really is quite amazing how the Lord has orchestrated everything so far.  I am thankful for our relator Zach Angle who has been absolutely wonderful.  I would recommend him to anyone.  In addition, my amazing husband has tirelessly worked on rounding up files, signing documents, and contacting anyone and everyone to make this process actually happen.  I understand about 5% of what’s going on so I’m more than thankful for my husband who is loving our family well by taking care of all the challenging administrative tasks.

I am thankful that this year I got a jump-start on celebrating advent and was able to focus and reflect on Jesus even in the midst of 1,001 other things vying for my time and energy.  At the end of November I began reading “Good News of Great Joy” by John Piper.  It was, by far, the best advent devotional I’ve ever gone through.  It helped me not to be anxious in the midst of all our transitions by reminding me that the Lord is sovereign and he will provide exactly what we NEED in His perfect timing.

As usual we had lots of fun with the kids this month.  We went to see Disney’s Frozen on Ice as a field trip through Addi’s school.  We did several Christmas crafts and hosted an ornament making party for a few close friends.  We used our free Marbles Kids Museum tickets.  My back was feeling completely better so we went to the YMCA a lot and we took advantage of living close to friends and played with neighbors often.

I’m also thankful that baby seems to be very healthy.  I passed the glucose test and little one just moves and grooves ALL the time.