46XY

We finally got the results of the amnio. They came back as 46XY, normal boy!!!! So at least as far as chromosomes go, everything is fine. The reason it took so long is they kept looking and growing the cells because something was supposed to be wrong and nothing was. Thank you so much for all the prayers!!!!! We have the 20 week ultrasound in a couple weeks where they will look for any abnormalities the amnio didn't pick up, but anything they find at this point should be fixable with surgery.

I'm relieved and exited, but I think I'm still mentally in shock. I was waiting to hear WHAT was wrong, I wouldn't let myself even hope that it would come out alright. So, it's all still sinking in. It has been a long 9 weeks, waiting and worrying. I still have to wrap my brain around that fact that it's all going to be okay. I hadn't even been able to pray that the baby would be healthy-- they kids did, they would pray that the baby would live and by healthy-- I just kept praying that we would have the strength and support to get through whatever trial Heavenly Father was sending us.

Wow, it still doesn't feel real. I asked the nurse 4 times when she called if they were really sure. I feel like I'm in one of those snowglobes and everything was shaken up like crazy and it's just starting to settle again.

Thank you again for all the prayers and love.

Still Waiting

I just got off the phone with the nurse, and we won't be getting any results from the amnio until MONDAY!!!! She called the lab and for some reason, they are being super slow. Our results are showing as pending and they wouldn't tell her anything else. My guess is that the guy who has to read them and write the report is on vacation or something. So, I guess I get to practice patience for a while longer-- 4 more days!

I wish I could just go in to the Idaho Genetics Lab and yell at them or something. I've been jumping every time the phone rang since Tuesday!!!

I HATE learning Patience!!!! I read a long time ago about a lady who realized when she prayed for patience, her days were harder and longer and the kids were more challenging, so she stopped praying for it because she didn't want the practice. I don't think patience is a talent I want to develop either-- If only I had a choice!!!!

Amniocentisis

Well, today was the day of the amnio. It went pretty well, the only part that hurt was the numbing shot and that only lasted about 15 seconds. Then they inserted the straw and the needle inside of it to pull out the amniotic fluid. They had a little trouble getting the fluid to come into the needle, a piece of membrane or something seemed to be blocking it, so they had to try several times, but the straw kept them from having to poke additional holes. So the 30 second procedure took about 2 minutes, which feels like forever when you are not supposed to move and breathe shallow. We saw the baby briefly on the ultrasound, but they mainly just used it to keep focused on the pocket of fluid and the needle. The baby did keep kicking over by the needle and trying to get one leg in the way, but that was about all we really saw.

They sent the fluid out to a lab and said the results would be back in 7-10 days, usually closer to the 10 day end, so now we just wait.

I have realized that I would be a lousy bedrest patient. I'm supposed to take it easy for the rest of today, and I already feel like I'm running out of things to do. I finished my book, played a game with T, read a magazine, and just laid here. It's really quiet, Stephen took the kids to the part, and I keep thinking of things I need to do. Luckily Stephen has started telecommuting 2 days a week, so he has the laptop here, so I can sit in bed and type. Maybe I'll get all my curriculum figured out for the coming year.

Thank you for all the prayers and support, I'll post results once we hear something.

Father's Day

Stephen is the most wonderful father!!! He is so glad with the kids and they love doing things with their dad! So this year for Father's Day, he got a better than normal Father's Day present. Instead of a T-shirt or a tie, he got a big screen TV! (He used money he's been saving from Christmas and Birthdays too, so thank you to everyone who chipped in-- even if you didn't know it.) We started out just looking for a flatscreen a little bigger than our old TV (a $99 Walmart special from when we first got married), but then we found a 42 inch on a really great sale that brought it down really close to our planned price range and we decided it was worth the splurge!

He has been like a kid in a candy store--- we bought a new $30 rabbit ears antenna too, so now we get all the digital versions of the channels, plus channels we've never picked up before. We used to just wiggle the end of the cord against something metal or hold it against your thumb while you watched TV to get reception and even then it was really hit and miss how good most of the channels were. But now we get 4 PBS stations, all of the local ones, and 24/7 which is the local channel that reruns the sporting events like the BSU games half a dozen times. We never got that one before, so Stephen is thrilled. He keeps commenting on how huge the players look and how clear they are. It's fun to see him so excited about something he's been saving for for awhile.

I'll add a picture as soon as he uploads them for me.

Our newest addition

We added a new addition to the family for Mother's Day-- just a little late.

Picture coming as soon as they are uploaded.

She is 9 months old and so much fun! The kids named her Lucy. She loves to chase bouncy balls and play with yarn or just sit in your lap with her little purring motor going! I had always wanted a calico and when the kids started really wanting a pet-- they wanted a dog, but this was the compromise for now-- I started watching for one. We got her from the Animal Shelter, so yes, we paid $20 for a cat. :) But she is spayed and has all of her shots. The kids wanted to adopt ALL of the cats there, luckily none of the dogs really caught their interest and attention.

All of the kids love her. T keeps calling her his cat, and then J gets very defensive and says, "She's not your cat, she's all of usses cat." The boys have made a deal to take turns cleaning out the litter box, they both wanted the job everyday-- let's hope that enthusiasm lasts. A loves her too-- and is constantly going to the sliding glass door and saying, "kitty, kitty, kitty" and wanting out. It's the first thing he does in the morning-- she even trumps breakfast. She is so good and gentle and lets the kids carry her all over, purring as loud as she can.

Run, Run, Run

R and T ran in the St. Alphonsus Children's Capitol Classic last weekend. It is a one mile race from the Boise train depot to the Capitol-- one mile. It is the largest children's race in the country for ages 6-14. T ran it in 11:02 and placed 21st out of 83 6 year old boys and 601 overall out of 1096. R ran it in 11:09, 50 out of 93 for 7 year old boys. Their cousin ran it with them an he finished in 11:56. Pretty good for 6 and 7 year olds. Here are some pictures.
There were a bunch of mascots milling around while the kids waited for the race to start, here are both boys posing with Smokey the bear.
This is the mob at the start of the race-- and this is only the boys. R and T are there somewhere, but good luck finding them!!!!
Here is T midway, he had a mega grin the entire race!!!!
Here is R with his medal at the end. All of the kids got a T-shirt and a medal and both boys were SOOOO proud of their medals.

At the end of the race, they had a big party in the park with lots of free hot dogs, pop, yogurt, milk, fruit, and free stuff for the kids. Here they are posing with the Boise State mascot, Buster Bronco and showing off their medals.

Ramblings, Dr, and testing

We've been visiting family the last two weekends and between packing, unpacking, and keeping up with everyday craziness, I haven't had a chance to post. We spent Memorial Day with my family, then left T for a fun week with Grandma and Grandpa so he could be "spoiled." We finished our homeschool co-op for the summer which the kids loved-- we're planning to do it again in the fall. Then last weekend we headed to Utah for a baby blessing and to visit the other grandparents, aunts and uncles, and lots of cousins. We stopped at the sand dunes on the way home and the boys, even A, enjoyed digging in the sand. J just wanted it to stay out of her eyes!!!! I think I'm all traveled out for awhile.

Yesterday we had another Dr. appt. We heard the heart beating and scheduled the amniocentesis for June 17th-- then it will be another week or two before we know anything. So, it's just more waiting for now. I'm past the numbness and really feel pretty at peace with the likely options considering none of them are very good-- I just wish I had a crystal ball. The waiting would be easier if I knew exactly what was going to happen and when. But I guess then I wouldn't learn to trust and have patience. I was a little apprehensive going into the Dr, knowing that there was a chance there would not be a heartbeat anymore. I will be very happy once I start feeling the baby more and can more easily know he or she is still alive and active.

On a more positive note, R had his academic testing yesterday to see about skipping 2nd grade and moving into 3rd next fall. He missed the Kindergarten deadline by a week, so he'd really only be moving up with kids a week older than him. And where we homeschool, it doesn't really matter, but if he ever goes to regular public school, he'd be closer to where he's working. Most of his scores ranged from 4th grade to 9th grade, with Reading and Math both being very high. He scored end of 2nd grade on spelling and writing fluency. And the writing fluency is probably my fault because I had told him to use his best handwriting, so he was trying to do his neatest, not his fastest. But he came out of the test completely motivated to work on spelling this summer. I'm very proud of him and how well he is doing. He is very self-motivated and as long as the work is challenging he thrives!!!! And I love being able to watch things click!