Hooray for Missed Flights!

My dear friend from college, Kristin, and her family (well, most of them) missed a flight to Haiti for a mission trip, and they just had to spend the day with us. It was spur-of-the-moment, it was serendipitous, it was AWESOME. The kids played to their hearts' content outside on this beautiful property, I got to catch up with my friend, we shared lunch and dinner together, and we looked at pictures from college. Good stinkin' times. 

The first time I met Sydney, she was barely walking at our wedding. Now she's holding Mikey!

Here are most of the O'Berskis. We missed you Ellie and Hudson! Maybe we'll see you next time your family misses a flight...

A Blast from the Not-So-Distant Past

Now that I have my fancy pants phone, I never take pictures with my regular camera. It is a little beat up, after all, and it's just so much more convenient to take pictures with my phone. I finally whipped out the old one today to reminisce about times with family and friends before we came to Miami, and I realized that I never posted any of these pictures!

Coming home from a walk in Cali. June took this picture.

With Aunt Deanie

Olive Garden lunch with Mrs. Grueber and Amy

Meeting Uncle Matthew for the first time

At the sip and see with Mary Lou

Coach and Dee come down to Atlanta from Big Canoe.

Katie and Jenn

Anwhitney and Sally still think he's cute despite his receding hair line.

Natalie didn't mind Mikey spitting up on the Auburn sweatshirt she borrowed from Bev. Nat went to Alabama.

In the Georgia mountains with Mr. and Mrs. Bramblett

Down to Miami with Pappy Parker

I know I'm super behind with blogging and posting pictures. I hope to get some more updates soon about our new life here in Miami, including Nathan's ordination and installation, as well as Mikey's baptism this past Sunday.

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.

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.

Kirby Time

These are our friends, Gary and Heather Kirby. We were buddies from church in Atlanta, but then they moved to Greenville, South Carolina, and we moved to England. When we got back to the South, we decided to meet them halfway in Commerce, which is a small town with a giant outlet mall and a colossal American flag. When we saw it, Nathan and I put our hands over our hearts and sang some patriotic songs.

Cracker Barrel sounded best, since we were on healthy diets (right?!). Nathan asked the waitress which was healthier, brown or white gravy. She said, "Probably brown." He said, "I'll have white." Chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes, cheese grits, biscuits...

I went for the chicken and dumplings, mac and cheese, and green beans.

And then we rocked out on the porch for a few hours just talking away.

We miss these guys so much.

We love you Kirbys, Cracker Barrel, and America.

The Best Shopping Experience Ever

Nathan hates shopping. I generally dislike it. I really hate shopping for him together because he is usually a big baby about being too hot, clothes costing too much money, and trying things on. That's why we bring the big guns, a.k.a. our dear friend Mary Lou, when we need professional shopping help. Mary Lou knows menswear like nobody's business, and she keeps Nathan on his best behavior.

Three and a half years ago, we went to Jos. A. Bank, a men's clothing store, with some hefty gift cards to spend from very generous church members in Atlanta. I think they were sick of seeing their youth pastor in cargo shorts. The economy was going down the tubes and everything was on crazy-sale, so it seemed like a great time to buy some big boy clothes. While there we were entertained/helped by Philip. He was very Southern and stinking hilarious.

He asked Nathan what he did for a living while taking his measurements.

"I'm a pastor."

"Put your arms down."

"I can't. That's just the way they are."

"You must be Pentecostal if you can't keep your arms down. You see, I'm Baptist. I like to eat... Your waist is a 36."

"I don't want to be a 36! I want to be a 34. I can squeeze into a 34."

"Um hm. One church social and you'll be out of them pants."

Fast forward a few years and a few beers later, and we were back at Jos. A. Bank to spend the remainder of our gift card with Mary Lou. Philip was still there, and when I saw him I couldn't wait to start the mental filming for this post.

Philip took Nathan's measurements again, but Nathan was busy cracking jokes about his recent increase in size and how he was going to lose weight.

"Can you just hold still a minute?! A 36 waist is going to be too tight. You need a 38."

"What?! I swear, I'm going on a diet!"

"We've had this conversation before."

Mary Lou, Philip, and I kept throwing clothes into the dressing room for him to try on: trousers, polos, a sport coat, dress shirts, etc." I'm not the hugest fan of pleats, so I tossed Nathan some flat front khakis to try on. He came out looking like he was trying hard to fit into them.

Philip was aghast. "You can't put that butt in plain front pants! He needs pleats! And what size are those? If he refuses to try on the 38s I'm getting him the 36s with the expandable waist. The man's got to breathe!"

Meanwhile, Mary Lou went to the belt section because Nathan needed a black one. The 38-inch belt looked silly-snug. She took it back over. Philip walked by her and said, "If you get him a 40-inch belt he'll whip YOU with it."

Nathan was in major distress. "I will starve myself before I have to buy 38-inch pants, and I'm sure as heck NOT buying a 40-inch belt."

Philip's response? "Well, you can fast for the Lord, but anorexia ain't in the Bible."

Basically, gems like these were bantered back and forth for over an hour of shopping. We ended up buying some great stuff on Labor Day sale for Nathan and managed to laugh the entire time.

We highly recommend shopping with Philip at Jos. A. Bank at the Dawsonville outlets. It's worth the drive for the discounts and the amazing service. The man knows what he's talking about, and he is highly entertaining. Tell him Nathan, Nicole, and Mary Lou sent you! :)

A Beautiful, Blessed Baby Shower

Nathan and I were really, really blessed by some wonderful friends in Atlanta who threw us a gift card open house baby shower. It was wonderful. We caught up with a lot of friends who stopped by, ate lots of yummy, diabetic-friendly foods, and just enjoyed being loved.

Beverly, Anne, Paulette, Mary Lou, Anwhitney, Laura, and Julie hosted it for us. Thank you so much, ladies!

This is Laura's youngest son, Peter. He's so darling.

Mary Lou is putting her famous peach pie (made with Splenda, just for me) on the table. It was quite a spread!

Apple slices with chicken salad and pecans

A colorful veggie tray

Fruit salad galore

Cheeses and dips and whatnot. That artichoke and spinach dip in the back changed my life.

Yummy cupcakes with little blue safety pins

A close up

Friends enjoying the food... I asked Nathan to take pictures for the rest of the afternoon of people who came. He actually forgot but did a photo blitz the last five minutes of our time there. 

Thanks to everyone who came and spoiled us with love and generous gift cards for little Michael. We are so grateful and feel so blessed to have you in our lives!