December Photo Dump

We celebrated my grandma's birthday with some chocolate cake. I ate some and then fell asleep in her wheelchair. I was that tired.

My dad got Mikey this pacifier. He looks like a sailor with that onesie as well.

I'm sure Nathan took this. I think Mikey looks like the statue of Jesus in Rio.

Papa and Mikey asleep in a chair at the beach house.

Mikey's first trip to the Pacific Ocean. I did not allow Nathan to put Mikey in the frigid water, although he was persistent in begging me. That would have been torture for the poor baby.

He was content sleeping in my arms, wrapped up in his blanket and protected from the wind.

Family photo in the usual style...

The Next Chapter of Life

What's that Mikey? What are you trying to tell us? Are those palm trees and alligators on your blanket? Why the bright green onesie?

What my key lime cutie pie is trying to say, is that we're moving to Florida! Yes, the Lord has answered our prayers for full-time ministry work. It's finally official and public news. Nathan has accepted a position as the senior pastor of Pinelands Presbyterian Church in Cutler Bay, Florida.

We will head to Atlanta as a family on a red-eye flight on January 4th to see family and friends and collect our belongings, and then we'll make the drive down to our new hometown on the 18th. Nathan will preach his first sermon on February 2nd. To hear Nathan's candidating sermon preached at the church a few weeks ago, you can click here.

Since our departure from England - well, our whole lives, really - God has provided for us in amazing ways, from housing to transportation to wonderful people who have loved us incredibly well. We look forward to seeing the ways that he will continue to provide for us in Florida.

In the mean time, you can pray that God would help us in the following areas:

- Saying goodbye to my family in Bakersfield (I'm crying already!)

- Traveling with Mikey and all of our stuff on planes and long-distance drives

- Finding a permanent home in Florida (the Lord has already provided a temporary place with a church member)

- Beginning healthy ministry habits

- Loving our new church family well

- Strengthening our bonds as a married couple and as a family as we go through all of this change

Start planning your next vacation to south Florida and come see us! We'll be very close to Miami, the Keys, and to all the cruising ports.

A Christmas Brother Update

Merry Christmas from the Sampleys/Onaindias/Parkers. We had our family Christmas last night, all the while thinking of my brother, Matthew.

To make a long story short, he was hit as a pedestrian by a Chevy Silverado about a week ago. He is in ICU at the same hospital where Mikey was born. He sustained a host of injuries including bleeding in his brain and stomach, broken ribs, a broken back, and lots of abrasions. He's already had surgery, and he has a huge scar with stitches from his chest to his groin. It looks like he is going to live, but yesterday he took a turn for the worse. Both of his lungs re-collapsed, he has double pneumonia, and he is back in a medically induced coma. He is in a lot of pain and confusion and is not very cooperative when awake, which means he's had to be restrained at times. This is really hard for him and our family because he is deaf and uses his hands to communicate. He NEEDS them to tell medical staff how he can be helped. Please continue to pray for him and us, especially my parents.

Anyway, it's been bloggy silence on this end because of all the excitement over here... and my old faithful computer is dying a slow but sure death. I'm on Nathan's right now.

Enjoy the Christmas Eve pictures!

Holding Baby Mikey

June took this one. She's quite the photographer.

Dad/son Christmas bonding

Winnie and Mimi made cupcakes. Yummy!

Mean Muggin'

I found these pictures on the camera today. Nathan took them last night and said to me, "I don't want to say I provoked him, but..." and then he trailed off. 

I love his mean muggin' face.

Thanksgiving Fun, A Week Late

We woke up Thanksgiving morning and went to the park to eat donuts and play some football! Thanks go to my sister and brother-in-law for organizing it with all for all of our friends and neighbors.

Auntie Twine getting ready to rumble!

Winnie learned how to ride a bike recently.

And I think this picture is so cute of her with her hand in her pocket.

Time for Mikey's first football game!

It's getting serious out here!

Post-Thanksgiving dinner turkey coma...

Time to pick out a Christmas tree!

It was shorts and t-shirt weather, but I still busted out my leggings and boots for the occasion. It lasted about an hour before I got too hot and had to cool off with yet another diet cherry limeade from Sonic. That's been my go-to drink these days, especially between 2-4 (happy hour!) when they're half price. :) 

It's hard to believe that Christmas is almost here!

Various Photos of People Sleeping Alongside Mikey

Mom/Mimi

Dad/Papa

Me

Nathan's thumbs up for Mikey's sleeping. Not sure why this is sideways, but I can't fix it right now. Bah humbug.

Mikey's First Visitors

Okay, so I'm worse than usual on posting pictures that are weeks old. These photos are from Mikey's first few days at home.

Actually, this is one of him and my sister in the NICU.

On Mikey's first morning home we went to the park for a play date with my nieces and their friends. It was a great way for him to meet lots of new people at once!

Kathy's visit was so timely and special. They look like they could be in a catalog together.

BFF came and brought us a tasty meal. I just realized that my mom stole my scarf from picture #2. I love that scarf. I wear it 24/7.

Auntie Al and Uncle Dave paid us another visit. So glad they could make it again! There's never enough time with these two.

Miss Amy brought us another tasty meal and showered Mikey with lots of gifts. She is the queen of gift giving. I wish I could hire her to do all of my gift shopping.

June holds Mikey for the first time...

And what a smile from Winnie!

There are many more people who have come to visit, but I don't have pictures. :( Thanks to everyone who has given us sweet cards, calls, texts, gifts, meals, and lots and lots of love these days. Mikey and I have been getting used to each other, feeding, and trying to settle into a routine. Nathan and I are grateful for your support. It's been a difficult transition, but one that gets easier with time. And now to download more pictures for you of Mikey's first Thanksgiving.

I Mean... RIGHT?!

I can't even get over this.

It's the same face!!!

So adorbs, right?

Bustin' Out of the NICU

We brought Baby Mikey home from the hospital on Monday night, and it's been a bit of a blur ever since. Before we even got him, I went through his clothes and put away all the newborn outfits. So sad he'll never wear them, but he was 10 lbs. 8 oz. when he was released and quite... husky. I tried to squeeze him into a special monogrammed jumper from our friend, Katie, and he was a bit unhappy about it. We sang him "Fat Guy in Little Coat" from the movie Tommy Boy to try to soothe him. It didn't really help.

But he looks good, right?

You can't see it really well, but his jumper says MHP and has a little sailboat on it. It's so stinkin' cute, but he's already worn it for the first and last time.

"Mom, my legs are too long for this."

Here he is getting his ankle bracelet off. It's like he was getting off of house arrest.

Yo. Let's bust this Popsicle stand.

We came home around 11 p.m. to very doting grandparents in their pajamas.

Next up, a post about Mikey's first batch of visitors...

He is Born!

This is a picture of the end of the story.

So last Thursday my dear friend, Allison, who is always around for my major life events no matter where in the world she is living, just happened to be in town from Bangkok and we were planning to spend the day together. She showed up at my house from her parents house in Visalia super early. Our plan was to go do my non-stress test at the hospital (which I had passed many times before without incident), go to Sonic to get cherry limeades (diet for me!) and then get some Mexican food. I was stoked to spend the day with her catching up and laughing a lot. 

Imagine my non-stoked-ness when the nurse told me my blood pressure was super high, I was spilling proteins in my urine, and that I wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. She was sending me upstairs to triage and whispered that I should probably eat something because they wouldn't feed me. I started stuffing my face with peanut butter crackers as soon as I got on the elevator.

Here I am on my way upstairs really sad about not getting Sonic and Mexican.

Checking into the labor and delivery ward. Notice the crackers on the dash of the window. I was also sad that I would be in triage by myself for a few hours before getting a room that would allow visitors. I mean, my friend came all the way from Thailand for one day, for Pete's sake! Now she was in the waiting room 50 feet away and I couldn't talk to her.

Finally, we got into a room, and I started making calls to my family, mostly telling them not to get excited and that it was going to be a long process.

The doctor said I could have a small lunch before we talked about induction options with Nathan, who was on his way to the hospital. Subway 6 in. turkey on wheat to the rescue, with extra avocado. After Nathan came and we discussed things with doctors, we were getting a pretty clear picture that the dream labor and delivery scenario that we had hoped for (but were holding loosely) was not going to happen. We wanted Mikey to come on his own, to labor at home for as long as possible, and to deliver without any meds. However, before too long I was hooked up to every kind of machine because I needed to be. Disappointing? Yes. Worth the result? Yes.

I told my family not to come for a while because the pre-eclampsia meds and induction meds would be fighting each other, and it would be a long battle before we could figure out which one would win. They came in the evening and hung out in the waiting room taking selfies.

So, after all the competing meds and being in the hospital for 30 hours, I never progressed past 6 cm. and Mikey never engaged in the birth canal. It was time for a c-section.

I know this is not a flattering picture at. all. but I have two comments: 1) ET phone home, and 2) Can you believe how high up he still is in my belly 24 hours after my water broke? Geez, boy! At least it made the decision to do the c-section an easy one and I didn't even have to try pushing him out.

And then he was born! 10 lbs. 4 oz., 21.5 inches long. A big boy. While they were pulling him out and cleaning him up we kept hearing things like, "Look at those cheeks!" "He's a linebacker!" and "He's ready for kindergarten!" It felt like a long time before we got to see him ourselves, but we got it on video, and I'm forever grateful to whoever recorded it (a nurse? medical student? resident? intern?). I had no idea it was even on the camera until today, and I am tearing up just looking at it. I'm not bawling because I'm distracted by how mid-western I sound when I keep saying, "Oh my gaaahsh!"

I love this picture so much. Nathan's eyes communicate so much excitement, and Mikey looks like a little pharaoh. I can imagine Moses saying to him, "Let my people go!" and Mikey saying, "NO! I will not let your people go. Now, make more bricks... WITHOUT STRAW!" 

My hubby, me, and our little pharaoh.

Shortly after he was born they checked his blood sugar, which was low (to be expected because of my diabetes) and they took him to the NICU. I'd look out of it like him if my sugar was 36 too.

Nathan accompanied Mikey to the NICU and stopped by the waiting room to meet the family. My mom is doing the ugly cry and is being consoled by Nathan and her BFF, Kim. I love it!

I didn't end up getting to see him or hold him again until Sunday night, more than 48 hours after he was born. It was very sad for me, but God was faithful in sustaining me. As in, I didn't have an emotional meltdown like women do in the movies, getting all hysterical and saying, "Where is my baby? Who is keeping me from my baby?" The time alone in the hospital passed surprisingly quickly. 

This is us last night in the NICU. His blood sugar issues were resolved fairly quickly, but then he developed some feeding problems, mostly gagging and spitting up and changing colors, which necessitated some extra care. Hopefully he can come home soon. The soonest it would be is Monday, so we pray on for that.

I'm sure this will be developed in another post for another time, but I want to say how absolutely wonderful everyone at Kern Medical Center has been in caring for me and Mikey. Nathan and I are so, so grateful to each one and to God for his faithfulness to us.