Today was another mile-stone for us. We had our first OB appointment with the High Risk specialist. The appointment was 3 hours long and quite eventful.
We started out at the desk where we filled out the usual paperwork and back I went to run to the bathroom stop. I went into a room on my own as the nurse (Karen) asked for information. I am 35 now, and not considered a spring chicken anymore, so they asked right away for genetic testing and an Amnio. I denied the tests and signed papers denying each genetic test. While I'm sure they have their reasons for them, I find no cause for us to have them. If God created this little Miracle and has since continued to care for him or her, I am faithfully trusting HE will know best and there is no reason to cause fear and discontentment. God doesn't create trash and thus, our baby is wanted no matter the outcome. While we pray our baby is healthy and happy, we also accept it's diversity if he or she has a genetic predisposition. I find no good in this testing for me and actually put more trust that God knows what He is doing with the miracle He has created as our Great Physician. Praise Be To God for such a miraculous creation!
My husband was brought in the room shortly after, where we discussed insulin questions and agreed to focus on getting the "pump" for insulin regulation. We want to keep this baby safe and having regular "good" readings through pump regulation will help lessen a WHOLE lot of stress. So I'm doing the paperwork as we speak, will call the company on Monday who will get the ball rolling with our insurance company ((please pray Pomco doesn't give us any problems. The sooner I get on the insulin pump, the better and healthier it is for me AND the baby)). If all goes well, in a month or two, I will be hospitalized for 2-3 days to place the cathetor and pump inlay. I'm hospitalized because I'm pregnant and they MUST watch the baby.
After our questions were answered, I asked if they would give me a sonogram to date the baby and make sure our baby was doing well. We got into the room, and the Dr. couldn't see anything or hear anything. My heart skipped a beat...but I just kept praying that God would again provide a miracle to see the baby and hear his or her heartbeat so early.
He got up and asked to have a pelvic sonogram done to get a closer look. While we waited, I had the basic checkup done, breast exam, paps, heart rate, etc. Then was led to the room with the sono technician.
She too had a hard time seeing the baby and then had me put both hands under my back and lift my bum up. Sure enough...there was our wee little one with a heart. The heart monitor was flat and I began to pray again to ask God to help us hear the babys heartbeat. Please God....Let us hear the babys heartbeat. Bless us dear Father with Your presence. Give us confirmation though many have said it's too early. Sure enough......We heart the heart beating. Praise God! 129 was the heart rate. Not only was there a heartbeat, but a GOOD heart rate. We prayed and God answered.
Shortly after, we found out we are 6w3d and are due February 23, though the Dr. is confident it will be earlier. Would you believe our Wedding anniversary is February 9th? What a blessed month in February....when most find winter to be a time of death and spring to be a rebirth, I have found nothing but LIFE in the winter. God has been VERY good to us and my life is an absolute testimony to His grace, love, protection and mercy. I do not deserve anything I have, yet I am blessed by His gifts and am content where we ARE.
Well, the decision has been made about our son wanting to live here. The answer is no.
However, we are going to ask him to come here (maybe in a hotel) for a few days to a week to "get his feet wet" and to look for a job. We will put out the offer for meals and maybe even laundry to wash their clothes for awhile.... and we will even help buy baby things, but they cannot stay here.
We have too much in our lives right now, too much with still raising 2 teenage girls and trying to keep our own lives on an even keel....
And as a few folks have said, "Not allowing him to live here will show IF he has changed like he said he has..."
I know, Summer just started, and I'm talking about Fall already!
But, in order to have a Fall garden, some things should be done now- planning, ordering seed, planting seeds to transplant into the garden when it is time, adding compost or any other needed soil builders, etc.
In my area, July 1 was the suggested date for planting tomato, pepper, and eggplant seed. I'm a few days behind schedule, mainly because I'm trying to keep up with harvesting the tomatoes that are ripening like crazy right now!
Most of the Fall planting for my area comes a little later, since July and August are always HOT. The bulk of planting comes from September to November. But, if I don't at least make a plan now and make sure I have seeds ready, I may miss my planting date when it arrives.
Many of the same vegetables that grow in the Spring garden can be replanted for Fall, they like the cool weather and will do well if they have time to mature before a frost gets them. You can probably get a list of what grows well in your area in the Fall either online, from a local nursery, or from your County Extension Agent.
Here's a little chart to show when the first predicted Fall frost date is:
Zone 3 - Sept 1st - 30th
Zone 4 - Sept 1st - 30th
Zone 5 - Sept 30th - Oct 30th
Zone 6 - Sept 30th - Oct 30th
Zone 7 - Oct 15th - Nov 15th
Zone 8 - Oct 30th - Nov 30th
Zone 9 - Nov 30th - Dec 30th
Zone 10 - Nov 30th - Dec 30th
Zone 11 - Frost Free
If you aren't sure what zone you live in, here's a map that will show you.
With that information you can see how long it takes a particular crop to mature and then count backwards to get an estimated planting date. Of course, it all depends on the weather, and it is good to give your plants at least a week or two of a head-start if your area often has early frosts. I live in Zone 8, and sometimes we don't even have a frost until close to Thanksgiving. Fall is a great time for growing here.
Please share what you grow in your Fall garden and any tips you have. Those of you who live in colder climates, please share your wisdom, as this Texas gardener has never had to garden where it really gets cold !
Hope you have a great holiday weekend, and maybe next week, spend some time planning (and perhaps planting) for the Fall garden!
Brianna is the "little" sister now. I always knew she wasn't meant to be tall. She was the daintiest little baby you ever did lay eyes on and quite unlike her older and younger sister.Good things come in small packages and I LOVE this small package ;--)
This week our Classical Conversations homeschool group got together to have a picnic and sign their yearbooks. It was a lot of fun. The kids went around and spent the first hour signing each others books and laughing at the pictures and the memories of this past school year.
Then they were off to do what kids do best, have fun. They played a game of volleyball and some swung on the swings. It was a glorious day with a cool breeze blowing. Thanks be to God for such a wonderful day and for these young people who are learning and growing in the Lord. May they all be kept in the Lord's merciful arms. Madly signing yearbooks...ds is seated and so is dd, in the green shorts.
Have a Day Full of Blessings!
Lori
Here is a plug for Classical Conversations. They started in NC and have grown unbelieveably the past 10 years. We have been involved for the past two years and plan to continue this coming school year. It is a wonderful homeschool group who meets once a week using the Classical model of education. We just love it! And what an education the kids are getting....look them up on the internet...Classical Conversations.com. They may be in your area.
I believe that if there is one thing which pierces the Master's heart with unutterable grief it is not the world's iniquity but the church's indifference.---John Owen
Kristi was board earlier today and decided to play wii. She played monopoly with Hope! Hope is our soon to be 10 year old golden medical alert service dog. We train the dog to all kinds of stuff some funny and silly but this is too much!
Titus is doing great in his service dog training. We took him out for the first time to go shopping and he was wonderful. If we stopped and looked or spoke to someone he would lay down with out being told to. I thought it was odd, so I kept testing him. I would walk and stop not look at him he would just lay down . That is amazing for a six month old puppy to do on his first outing in stores. I wonder if Kristi is going to teach Titus to play monopoly??
We start training them as soon as they are born. Also having good parents helps too. It took me two years to find his parents, to find the lines I was looking for. Now we need one more female golden. We might get one from Alex's breeder.
This morning we were up early. Harold and I were outside by 7:00. I got the beans planted while he finished hoeing the rows were we were going to plant corn. Emily and Josie planted the corn. They did almost 3 full rows. The end of the third row is where the green onions, leeks, lettuce, and cabbage are. I came in and fixed pancakes and sausage gravy for breakfast. I did a double batch and we will freeze the rest of them.
Once breakfast was done, and dishes were done, RaeAnne helped me can 6 quarts of raspberries. 2 of the quarts didn't seal. I made a batch of strawberry/raspberry jam. I used the Pomona pectin that I bought last week. I figure that was a great deal. I used 4 cups of raspberries and 2 cups of sugar. It set fine. I may keep buying this pectin. I don't like using all the sugar in Certo's recipes and I don't like buying the low sugar pectin (it is to expensive). I ended up with three pints instead of the 4 pints with Certo. We will see how it tastes later.
I picked some Kohlrabi today for lunch. We peeled it and sliced it up. We ate it raw with other veggies. It was very good. I think we will keep planting that each year.
After lunch, all the company and our three girls went to visit Harold's aunt. A couple of his other aunts came over to visit as well. Harold and I worked around the house and yard. I made creamy chicken and noodles for supper. We also had a salad (made with lettuce from the garden), peaches, and garlic bread. The girls finished their scarecrow today. Emily got it put in the garden by the corn.
Welcome to my blog. I'm Sandy, and my husband and I live outside of Los Angeles. We are homesteaders at heart and Catholic by faith. We started on a path to urban homesteading in 2007 after attending a conference on stewardship and our responsibility as Christians to care for God's creation. Thru this blog I hope to share our journey and learn from others on a similar journey.
Update: Starting in 2009 I will also share our journey thru adoption.
I look like you or is it you look like me?
Look Mom at what I learned :
Just one little bite that's all:
Are you sure they taste like chicken??
Are you sure they are in here???
That's all for now, Blessings,Mj
. The bulk of planting comes from September to November. But, if I don't at least make a plan now and make sure I have seeds ready, I may miss my planting date when it arrives. 
I always knew she wasn't meant to be tall. She was the daintiest little baby you ever did lay eyes on and quite unlike her older and younger sister.Good things come in small packages and I LOVE this small package ;--)
Madly signing yearbooks...ds is seated and so is dd, in the green shorts.
Topic for Today: Church
