It's Been a Couple of Years...WOOPS!

The past couple of years are been a BIG change in my life.  I believe in my last post (over 2 years ago) I announced that we were expecting baby #2.  Well, Baby #2 is 22 months old! 

Lucas Gail Melvin was born by C-section on November 21, 2012.  He was breach (very uncomfortable!!).  He was 7 pounds 6 ounces, and 21 inches long.  He appeared to be a pretty healthy baby boy.  Over the next few days and weeks we noticed little things about him that caused us to worry.  When we were still in the hospital we were told that he had an inguinal hernia and would require surgery at 6 months of age.  We also noticed A LOT of projectile vomiting.  The nurses assured me that he was just spitting up, but I knew better.  I felt like they didn't listen to be.  He just cried, cried, and cried.  When I would ask for them to keep him for awhile because I was tired and sore I was made to feel like a terrible mother.  The doctor ended up keeping us an extra day because eh vomited all over the head OB nurse right before we left.  They figured out that he had terrible acid reflux and we started medicine.  He also had a couple bent toes, an ear that was kind of bent over, some plates in his head were also over lapped.  When he was about a week old I noticed that his right pupil wasn't shaped correctly.  We went to his doctor who informed us that he could see normally and not to worry.  He continues to struggle though his crying non stop and "spitting up" AL THE TIME!!  Every time we asked the doctor about trying different acid reflux meds, he said that it wouldn't work.  We'd just have to wait until his tummy muscles got stronger.  FYI - That turns out to be the other thing the doctor was right about.  By the time he was 6 months old the over lapped plates were fixed due to some manipulation, spitting up was still terrible, his ear was a little better, we thought he could see in his right eye, toes would never change, and we were preparing for the hernia surgery.  By this time his 1 inguinal hernia and turned into 2.  In May of 2012 we asked the doctor about the surgery and he said that thought we should wait until he was a year old.  I asked if we could go ahead and see the surgeon anyway because I really wanted to have it done over the summer vacation.  We were in Columbia the first week of June.  Dr. Ramachandran (pediatric surgeon) made us feel really bad because he said that Lucas's hernia's were some of the biggest that he'd even seen.  He thought we should have had then repaired right away.  The next week, he was having surgery.  During the surgery, Dr. Ram discovered that Lucas tummy muscles were actually 2 separate muscles instead of being attached.  That explained a lot to us.  At the post op visit a couple weeks later he asked us if we had ever considered having genetic testing done on Lucas.  We actually weren't sure what that was.  After he talked to us about it we decided to go ahead and see if there was anything wrong.  It took a couple months to figure out how we were going to pay for this testing.  Our part would have been around $3000 with insurance!!  We ended up finding the "Children and Youth with Special Needs Program" and qualified for that.  That program was a God sent during that time for us.  Around October of 2012 we received "the call" and were told that Lucas had a thyroid issue and a syndrome called Recombinant Number 4 (I'm probably spelling that wrong).  Basically each set of chromosomes is a pair.  One side is short and one side is long.  On Lucas's fourth set of chromosomes, his short side is too long, and his long side is too short.  So he has some extra information and is missing some.  He has some of the same qualities as other children with this disability: bend toes, coloboma of the eye, delayed muscular strength, delayed speech development, and the thyroid.  Some other kids had much worse effects of the disorder.  We feel lucky to know what is wrong with him and how we can help him.  We also feel fortunate that the situation could be so much worse than it is.  He is really delayed with his muscles and speech.  However, he eats well, is very happy, and you can tell that he loves us.    He is such a "mommy's boy" and I love it.  He eventually will develop into a "normal" child.  Until then, I will love that my baby is staying a "baby" a lot longer that most kids. 

It's Been Awhile...

It's been a long time since I last blogged, but not much has really happened. School didn't get out until the first past of JUNE - yes that's right, June! I'd never gone to school in June except for teaching summer school and when I was getting my masters degree. I hope that I never have to do it again!

Then end of June we were able to find out the sex of our little baby. I'm sure everyone knows, but it is a boy. We picked out a name and I started working on the nursery. I was pretty sure that Lydia was going to be a boy, so most of the nursery stuff that I had was boyish. We have red bandanna curtains and changing table cover both left from her. The crib bumper is black with white spots, also left from her. Most of the wall decorations are also from her: metal stars, cowboy hat, lanterns, mirror, and candle holders. I guess that the only new stuff I got were some red and black baskets for the changing table, a couple of blankets for the crib, and Darla got some tractor toys. Of course all of the clothing is different, but I've had several people give me baby boy clothes so I haven't had to get to much. I did pick up a really nice play pen with changing area and bassinet from a garage sale. I also bought a new car seat and really nice stroller off a friend of mine. We had these with Lydia, but the newer ones are MUCH nicer!! I guess I've made you wait for the name long enough - Lucas Gail. We are excited to meet him, but have awhile to wait.

After that we had Lydia's birthday party. We had a house full - about 50 people (20 were kids). I actually ran out of food, which I've never done. She got completely spoiled with attention, love, and gifts. Her cake was an Ariel cake. It ended up pretty good.

Since then, we've just been trucking along. Gail's been doing hay every evening after work. The summer is quickly coming to an end - BOO!!! We still have a trip to the Des Moines Zoo that we need to take before school starts. Lydia wants to go ride the camels.

Exciting News...

Before I get to my exciting news, you have to read all of the background information. And to forewarn you, it is pretty detailed.

Since I was in college my periods have been irregular. I could go for months and not have one. It bothered me, and whenever I went in to the doctor for my yearly they would just put me on the pill. However, that wasn't giving me any information about why it was happening. When Gail and I got married I starting worrying about being able to have children because doctors had always put me on the pill and that obviously doesn't help when you want to have a baby. We weren't ready so I just put it out of my mind. After being married for 3 years, I wanted to start our family, but he wasn't ready yet. I talked to my sister and Gail's sister about my worries. I told them that I figured I would have to do fertility treatments to be able to have a family. Both informed me that insurance companies would not pay for those treatments unless you have been trying for a year. Gail and I talked about it and decided that I should go to the doctor so that it would be "documented". She put me on a pill that was to regulate my period. Two months later, we were expecting. I still didn't have a reason as to why I was so irregular. We were shocked and overjoyed that we were going to be parents. The local doctor does not deliver babies so he gave me the option of staying with him until I was seven months along and then going to a different doctor, or just going ahead and going somewhere at that time. We talked it over and decided to go with Dr. Carr out of Kirksville. At my first appointment he did an ultrasound and found a cyst in my right ovary. At first I thought "Wait a minute. I'm not pregnant and it was just a cyst!!" However, I had both a baby and a cyst. He monitored if for several months and over time it grew from the size of a pencil eraser to the size of a softball. It was a dermoid cyst (you'll have to look that one up) and could have been potentially deadly to the baby and myself if it burst. Plus, with it being inside my ovary, if I would have survived, the chances of having any more children would be slim to none. So, at just over 3 months pregnant it was removed. The rest of my pregnancy was smooth sailing and on July 1, 2007 (2 days overdue) little Lydia Eileen joined the world. What a wonderful day that was!! Three years later at my yearly check-up, Dr. Carr found more cysts in my ovaries. He ran some tests and I finally figured out the cause of my crazy cycle. I have polycystic ovarian syndrome. I did some reading about the syndrome and realized that I had several of the symptoms: crazy cycle, being overweight, random hairs on my face, etc. I had a name!! Dr. Carr also told me that when we were ready to have more children he suggested I go on fertility treatments. That thought worried me because I did not want more than one child. I talked to Gail about it and decided to put it off for a year and see what happens because we weren't ready to start trying again. Well, in December we had the talk and decided to start trying. I wanted to go back to Dr. Carr and start treatments because I was afraid that it would take forever. Gail did not want the treatments. He talked me into waiting until the summer by saying that we should just try naturally for awhile and if it didn't work then I could start them. We tried for three months. January and February my cycle started. (I figured that it would come regularly for awhile because I had been taking the pill.) Then in March it didn't come. I took a test after "the first day of your missed period" and it was negative. I was heartbroken. I talked to Gail about wanting to get started on the treatments, but he didn't want me to. I was furious, but didn't want to do something that major without his agreeing to it. So I decided to just wait. Later that week, I had symptoms that it was going to start, but it didn't. Those symptoms continues the entire next week. I finally talked myself into taking a test (knowing that it too would be negative). I waiting until first thing in the morning when they say to take them, and praise the Lord it was POSITIVE!! We had done it!! I sat on the toilet and cried for about 5 minutes and then started wondering if it was a false positive. So, on the way to work I called my sister to tell her (she was the first person I told with Lydia) and I stopped at Wal-Mart and bought 2 more tests. Later that morning I took another test, and it was positive as well. After school that day I went all over Kirksville to find one of the "Going to be a Big Sister" shirts for Lydia as the way to tell Gail, but I couldn't find one anywhere. I couldn't wait to tell Gail so I have to come up with a new way. I had to pick him up somewhere when I got home so I just took out the 2 positive tests and showed them to him while I was driving down the road. He just smiled and said, "I told you so." I order the shirt that night on the Internet and that is how we told our parents. The due date is November 27, 2011. After I went to the doctor (Dr. Speak now because Dr. Carr retired) he found another cyst in my left ovary this time. At the appointment it was 1 cm and five days later it was 3 cm. I'm worried about it and the possibility of having to have surgery again, but I know that the baby and I are in God's hands. So, start praying for us!!

Perfect Neighbors...

When I was a little kid I would ride my bike EVERYWHERE!! We lived in the country and I would ride all over our farm, to my grandparent's house next door, and another eldery couple lived up the road from us. We never had to worry about strangers, really fast drivers, or anything happening to us. Half the time I don't even think we told out parents where we were going. We just took off. It was fun, but I secretly wanted to live in town. I wanted to be able to ride my bike to my friends' houses, go to the park, or spend the day at the pool. In college I lived in a "town" (if you can call Canton, MO a town). I loved having people around. My senior year of college I lived with my sister during my student teaching in Lancaster and later rented a little house. I liked living in town. I liked my neighbors. I liked just getting in the car and running to the store. After 3 years of town living, we bought our house and moved to the country. At first is was hard to me being alone (Gail worked evenings the first year we lived there). I kept busy with my master's classes and school work. Now, I wouldn't trade it for the world. Our neighbors are the best ever. Here are some photos.

Make Up

I'm taking a break from my "catch up posts" to share with you are fun day at home for Martin Luther King Day. We just spent a lazy day at home. Well I was lazy, and Lydia played dress up - ALL DAY!!!

This is what she started with. Eye shadow on her cheeks, a little on her eyes, and a lot of lip gloss.

She was very proud of herself.

I know this is blurry, but it really shows check.

Check out all that lip gloss. It was literally dripping off her lips.

This was about half way through the day. Every time I turned around she was in her room putting on more eye shadow. I kept telling her to not put anymore on, but she didn't listen.

This is the last make up application. After this I put it high up on a shelf in her room (mommy got smart). She was really proud of herself and didn't understand why she couldn't sleep in it.

She more the dress all day to complete the outfit. It was a fun day!

Halloween...

Halloween was fun for us this year. She actually kind of understood the whole concept of going house to house all dressed up. Oh, and she LOVED the candy part. We started with Trunk of Treat at the Lancaster Christian Church for Awana. She had a blast. The theme was Cowboy/Cowgirl. My mother-in-law and I bought candy and had a station. We had a lot of fun watching all the little kiddos go around. I hope that we are able to do it again next year.

Here is Lydia in her cowgirl outfit: western shirt, pink books, pink belt, pink bandanna, pink hat with sequin headband around it, and pig tails.

She's all ready to go!

For Halloween she wanted to be Cinderella. Wal-Mart had these adorable costumes in her size for $20, but I couldn't bring myself to get it. She already had 2 Cinderella dress up dresses at home (which is where the other on would have gone afterwards). So she picked one out and I got it cleaned up (sewed some tears) and that was it. I put real make up on her for the first time and curled her hair.

Look at those eyes!!

Here you can see the dress. By the way, this is the smile I always get when she is DONE with pictures and wants to do something else. It's what she does when she hears, "Come on, just one more big smile."

They lasted for about an hour - if that.

This was the finished Cinderella - My Beautiful Little Princess. Gail doesn't like this picture because it makes her look so much older. I don't think he even wants to think about that stage of her life yet.

Best Friends...

Lydia has 2 best buds. One is her cousin Claudia. They are a little over a year apart, but you can't tell that my looking. Claudia is tall for her age. I hope that they will always be close - like sisters. They love playing together.

Claudia and Lydia in their matching shirts from Grandma Jerri and Papa.

Her other best friend is Faith. These 2 are like sisters. She is of one our friend/baby sitter's (Tina) daughters. Faith is 9 months older than Lydia, but you can't tell that my looking either. Faith is tiny for her age. They get to spend every day together. They are like 2 peas in a pod when they are around each other. I'm glad that they will be in the same class at school together. I think it will make it easier. I also know that Tina is able to attend class parties and such during the day that I won't always be able to attend.

Here is Lydia and Faith at my house. (I have a couple other really cute pictures of these 2 at home that I'll try to add later.)

This is what happens when all of them get together.