Thank you for your prayers!

This past week has been a bit hectic... yet so peaceful all at the same time. A little hard to explain. Due to the personal nature of Noah's injury we really need to make sure that our words are very guarded at this point since he is now in our care. We really just want to thank you all so very much for your continued prayer and support. He has really enjoyed all the new toys and gifts and is adjusting very well to our family. He is a sweet heart and has proven to be quite the talkative young man.

He will get his stitches removed next week and then he is so excited about "going swimming" as he has never been!!!!

At this time I wish I could offer up more information however we really are trying to take all the necessary steps and follow all the rules set into place by the state until certain matters come to light. We just discovered this today and are really just praying for the Lord's will in all things.

Keep praying for grace and peace and that the clarity of what is on the Lord's heart for Noah would be made manifest to all the parties involved.

Thank you all again. We love our friends and family!

Almost Monday.....

Most people are usually excited about Friday... but not us! We can't wait for Monday morning when we finally get to go get to bring Noah home! Paco texted me today and said that our house feels so empty without him. We feel so blessed to get to share our home with him!

*He was telling me something important. Francy is eating her first cheeto.... he was sharing.

Thursday we all went to visit as a family. He pushed Frances up and down the halls in her stroller. He was so excited he kept telling all the nurses it was his baby. :) Then he shared his "chips" with her and his cookies. He made sure that she got her own bag and that every time she wanted one of his, he gave her one. We played trucks in the hall ways and made way too much noise. We sang loudly and played with balloons. It was like we all fit. It was hard to leave. We made him a little calendar so that he can mark down the days until he gets to come home. He is so excited and was telling all the nurses that he gets his "own room".

I asked him what he wanted in his room and he said "well some toys, please". "What kind of toys Noah?" "CARS!!!" he yelled. He also is so excited because we said we would all go to see the Clifford exhibit at Crown Center once he gets to feeling better. He wants to see "the big dog".

Yesterday I had to work and Frances had a fever all night so daddy went to visit Noah alone. They played some more and watched a movie. When it came time for Paco to leave Noah kept asking him why he couldn't go too. Paco said "I promise you can come home soon, just not today." He gave him a hug and smiled... Noah was smiling too.

I called him to say goodnight... he said "Hi Mommy!" At this point I don't know if he understands... he mostly calls me that because the nurses do but it still is so cute....

We will start his out patient therapies on Tuesday along with our first social worker in home meeting. Paco is going to take a few personal/family days and we will just spend the time getting to know this little guy! We can't wait.

*Noah took this picture. He loved the camera.

We just wanted to say Thanks again to everyone for all your love and support! Seriously, we have been overwhelmed at the response from everyone in our community and even people we have never met! Everyone's prayers and encouragement has meant so much to us. Thank you!

At the end of the day it is all about Jesus and brining glory to His name.

We are truly blessed.

*Frances has had her purple flower blanket since she was born. We got Noah the brown one so that they could have matching bedtime blankets. He wanted to sleep with both until he came home.

Getting to know Noah

Wow.... I feel like so much has happened in the past 72 hours. I am pretty sure God does it this way because otherwise your brain might think too much. Sounds off I know... but if I think too much then I can get myself into trouble. So where are we now... Oh yes,it's Wednesday and I am updating my blog. Ooooofta, okay I am really my mothers daughter.

So, day three in the getting to know Noah. Yesterday I

went to meet up with a few of his therapist. Mainly his physical therapist and his speech therapist. Both gave him a glowing report. The speech therapist has been the only person to voice any types of concerns for his future progression. She says he is doing amazing but still thinks his language skills are too "broken". I am not sure she really understands that he has only been in the US for about 8 months.... and that 2.5 of those were in the hospital so of course his language skills are a bit broken. I actually think his English is better

than my sister Haly's was after her being in the US for 8 months and that is with a brain injury. He doesn't like to use complete sentences but can and will when prompted and he is still a bit forgetful at times. I feel like I can hear a bit of his little Ethiopian accent and can tell in some of his mannerisms. His physical therapy mainly consists of playing *hehe* which is so fun and working on his motor skills. He only has problems with his left side being weak if he gets too tired. They say eventually he will learn how to compensate and it will go away. I couldn't even tell when I was there that he had any difficulty at all.

As far as things I have observed.... he is your typical four year old boy. He likes to tease and play with basket balls... those are his favorite. He says "no" a lot but will still do whatever it is you ask him to do any way. They think it is because he may not be able to remember or think of what he wants to say fast enough. Him and Frances both have the same favorite word. I am going to have to find them a new one. Like "sure"! He loves animals, and music! He loves music. The Lord knew who his daddy would be. IHOP here he comes!!! Maybe a new drummer in the house soon. :) When I talked to his doctor today... finally she also gave him a glowing report and said he would be discharged without any special instructions aside from the eating pre-cautions because his swallow reflex is still delayed, and the need for more basic therapies.

Today, he got to meet Frances for the first time. He was

looking at her picture when we walked in and his face completely lit up. He was so excited to see her! At one point she even accidentally bumped his head and he showed no signs of anger... he said OUCH!! followed by a "that's ok". Even when she took toys away from him he let her. She wanted to be near him.... Frances loves other kids despite the fact that her sharing skills are poor at best, just ask Odessa. ;) But he was calm and patient with her. In a matter of a few minutes of them being together they were both smiling and sharing and mos

t of the fear and anxiety I have been feeling were almost instantly gone (yes folks, even when you say yes and know it's God it is still a bit nerve racking. It's a lot to chew on in three days.) It was as if the Lord was giving me my own personal ministry time and just showing me a glimpse of His sovereignty that I so often take for granted. His goodness is all around me, I have lacked for NOTHING in my lifetime.... I grew up in such an amazing family and married an amazing man of God. I have the most beautiful little girl. What more could I ask for... seriously. And yet God in his kindness still continues to blow me away with his constant goodness and desire to meet me in my weakness.

On a side note....

This past year I have really just been pressing God to increase my faith and my favorite song these days per John Thurlow.... "Help me to trust you. Lord, help my un-belief. I want to be dependent, I want to be dependent on you." I have really just been praying this since probably last November when the Awakening meeting first started. When you grow up in the American culture it's so hard to put aside the desires for your own "American Dream". Where does God fall into all of that I just kept pressing myself. Not that any of that is bad... please don't get me wrong. I love my cozy house and my nice car and my privacy fence however my dependency has to be on Jesus. I didn't want to take the goodness of God that I experience EVERY DAY for granted. I wanted him to help my un-belief that he

REALLY IS THE GOD OF MIRACLES!!! I have never doubted or questioned the goodness of God but was just pushing my heart to press in for more and asking God to really open up my heart to step out in faith.

Saying yes in the un-knowing is really hard for me. Sometimes we pray prayers and don't really think about what we are praying.

"Lord, let YOUR kingdom come and YOUR will be done" how many times have we all prayed that one!

The Lord has invited our family to not just pray the prayer (which by the way, is how we got to where we are right now)... but to actually give him complete control and to trust in his complete sovereignty. He is sovereign in all things. He is teaching me every day. One day at a time... because He is always good and always faithful. He who began a good work in the Arteaga family will be faithful to complete it.

The fact that Noah is even alive... much less can function completely normally and will be neurologically intact for the rest of his life is overwhelming to me!

Seeing Noah with Frances was like a literal kiss from God. He knew my biggest fear and concern and he addressed it almost instantly. Yes, of course there will be tough days... but that is to be expected. Kids are aways and adventure that is for sure... there will be ups and downs. I am very aware that this isn't just some romantic idealization. For real people, you have one kid and you think that's tough... then you have another and one kid seems like a piece of cake. But I do know that it is about taking it one day at a time and praising God for friends and family who are willing to help and be your support team.

So..... in closing THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU all so very much for your love and support. I am so blessed and truly amazed at all of the love and prayers we have received in such a short amount of time. Many people have asked how they can help and Lord knows we really will need it. Today we are just working on getting the basics as we have NOTHING for little boys. How I can be swamped with girl stuff and have nothing for boys still amazes me but we will fix that soon I hope.

Any way, thank you all again for your love and support. We will keep you updated!!!

News about Noah!

As I sit here and right this.... I am still in shock! I can't even believe I get to write it! What a crazy insane day!!!

After what has felt like FOREVER of un-knowing we finally got a call today and to the point they said "he is ready to go home"! This happened at about 12:30 today. I was like seriously.... after weeks of calling and not knowing anything at all.... whether he was even out of a coma they were ready to send him home! Like tonight?? In a week?? When!!!!

So initially that is all we knew... I was freaking out, okay what does that mean is he okay, can he talk, walk, eat..... ahhhhhhhhh what is his prognosis what will his life look like. The case worker had NO IDEA!!! I was like okay... well can I talk to someone who does. Waiting for 20 minutes to talk to someone who did was like waiting for paste to dry.... for real!

Finally, I get a call from his social worker at KU... who by the way, is amazing. I truly appreciated her candor as she felt no need to paint a flowery picture or give me an overly optimistic outcome based on what I wanted to hear, yet she was so helpful and answered my questions so thoroughly.

Ok, drum roll please.... in a nut shell. She told me that he has had the most extensive craniotomy procedure done they had ever seen at their facility! In order to allow the brain to swell without causing more damage they remove an actual portion of the skull. She said that initially the doctors had given him 24 hours to live and that was being optimistic. She also said he will continue to need extensive therapy for the next several months, probably every day..... long pause.

Okay, I said but what does the future look like???? Well, she said as my heart sunk, "the nuero surgeon who did his surgery said that in a year from now, you probably won't even be able to tell he even had an accident." LONG PAUSE.... and I am sobbing. I just kept saying "we were all praying" and then more tears. She continued to tell me of how all the doctors and nurses have fallen in love with Noah and how he is truly a "miracle boy"! That he can walk, and eat, and talks ALL THE TIME!!! She said "I don't know what you were all praying but whatever is what don't stop because it's working!" "Would you like to meet him?" More tears.... followed by a when... today?

At 2:00 Paco and I headed to KU to meet our little Noah boy. Just last night my husband sent out his monthly news letter and had an entire section dedicated to Noah. He just kept saying I feel like God has such a plan for his life, to be like Noah in the Old Testament and that his body will be restored and that it will be a sign and a testimony of Jesus and His coming Kingdom.

We get to KU and I am on an adrenaline rush and we run into the gift shop and grab a stuffed giraffe. We get to the PICU and they let us right in. We walk into a room filled with balloons and streamers and the most adorable little Ethiopian boy and my heart just melts.... I look at my husband and he gives me that "don't cry" look. He has a large scar across the top of his head that extends from ear to ear. He is still pretty swollen but the nurses said the swelling has gone down a lot since his last surgery on Thursday when they replaced the portion of the skull that initially had been removed.

"Hi Noah, my name is Liesl, how are you today?" Big smile, "Okay i guess". He starts blowing a kazoo. "I like your little piggy" (he had a stuffed pig on his bed) The nurse says, "Noah can you show her your pig". He lifts it up for me to see. "what does a pig say" I ask. He wrinkles his little noise and proceeds to grunt like a pig. "Pigs stink!"

"haha, yes they do stink". The nurse came in with some medicine and asked if she could put it into his PICC line (a fancy IV).... he say no. She said she had to and so he let her. I asked him if I could sit on his bed, he said "sure!" He was watching Airbud quite inattentively. He proceeded to tell me all about what would happen next, but still remained rather quiet. He looked tired. We stayed for about an hour and he fell asleep.

They said that since his surgery he is on IV pain medications and has been more tired and not eating much however prior to that he was riding bikes down the hallway and eating several bananas at every meal. The said I have my work cut out for me as he eats NON-STOP!

He was very polite, saying please and thank you often I was surprised.

We discovered that he just celebrated his 4th birthday on July 16th!

We will probably get to bring him home this up coming Sunday or Monday so we have our work cut out for us! I have to go every day to learn his therapies and then next week we will have to drive down town every day to continue them but they say he is doing remarkable and is extremely determined! He still has some left sided weakness but is expected to do well.

Now we are just getting things ready for his arrival! If you would continue to keep in your prayers. He has already had such a rough adjustment this year already being adopted from another country and then having this accident occur. (In case this wasn't clear before.... Noah had been previously adopted from Ethiopia last November.) Pray that the Lord would give him peace and joy. That he would bond quickly and that him and Frances would both adjust well. That our house would be filled with the Holy Spirit and the fullness of God.

Pray for provisions as we will be needing a lot in a short amount of time.

I also work 2- 12 hour shifts this up coming weekend so our time is a bit crunched.

Thank you all so much for your prayers... KEEP EM COMING! We need them! Will keep you all updated as I know more.

God is so good and what more can I say. :)

Never even seen your face.

A prayer for Noah

I have never even seen your face

but today I pray for peace and grace

I pray that hope and love would abound

That you would rest safe and sound

That you won't feel so all alone

That His heart would be your home

That you would know your in our dreams

And that it won't always be as it seems

His ways are just and true

His love is just for you

No matter what's been done

You will always be the one

The one He came to know

The one He came to claim

The one He died to love

The one He lives to rename

I have never seen your face

Or held you in my arms

But He's the one who formed you well

And will deliver you from harm

Noah is a three and half year old little boy from Ethiopia who was recently adopted in the past 6 months. As many of you know my parents have adopted 3 girls almost two years ago from Ethiopia and so because of this my mother was approached by a friend of hers who is an attachment therapist. She asked my mom if she would be willing to have Noah come over for visits and meet my three Ethiopian sisters because that might be comforting for him. The attachment therapist had evaluated little Noah and felt that he was very appropriate and sweet but quiet. She felt concerned for him and wanted to help him adjust.

My mom immediately called me and said "now Liesl, I am not going to tell you what to do but please just pray about it. There is a little boy named Noah and...." Well of course my heart was immediately burdened for this little boy and I told my husband casually over dinner just to see what he would say. My husband is my perfect half in every way... I would be the one who would say YES! all the time and then get in over my head... at least when it comes to kids. Which isn't always a bad thing mind you but he is a wait and lets pray and see what is on the Lord's heart type of guy which is exactly what I need! So I already knew what he would say, which he did, but he also said "hmmmm, I really want to meet him." Now, you have to understand my husband loves kids but he wants the perfect will of God for our family and doesn't want to do things just because it's seems like it's a good idea. I so appreciate that. In everything I do I want it to be done within the will of God for my life and for our family. We prayed for a week or so and Francisco (my hubby in case you didn't know his real name) said one night... "well if anything happens we will take him." I love that man.

Any way, to shorten things up.... we all started praying for Noah and had set up a day to meet him. The day came, but Noah never showed up. We still prayed. My mom, husband, and I all agreed that there was just something about Noah and somewhere in our minds thought maybe God was going to make him a part of our family somehow. Then again, we were able to set up another play date. Thursday morning on my mom calls me and all she says is "he's in the hospital, and that is all I know!" I knew exactly who she meant and felt as if I had been punched in the gut. She quickly hung up to see if maybe she could find out why, where, since when?? We didn't even know at this point why he was in the hospital or what had happened but we both knew that regardless we were to pray. For the sake of the people involved I cannot go into details however as of June 29th, 2010 little Noah has been in critical condition in the PICU (pediatric intensive care unit) due to injuries resulting from shaken baby syndrome. We have not been given much information as there is to be an investigation. Also, we have not been allowed to visit because of the extent of his brain injuries and the doctors not wanting him to become over stimulated. We do know that he is alive and occasionally alert but nothing more. PLEASE continue to pray for Noah that he would make a full recovery! Shaken babies usually have a very poor prognoses and there quality of life is greatly diminished. Possible outcomes range from seizure disorder, mental retardation (mild or severe), life altering disabilities, paralysis, blindness, deafness, or even being in a completely vegetative state.

We do not know what the outcome for little Noah will be in regards to his health or even in regards to his living situations. We hope to be able to make him a part of our family somehow if at all possible. Thank you for reading and for joining in praying for Noah.

Uterus for occupancy... utilities included.

Our little one is almost 15 months old and boy are we ready for another one! My husband said to me the other day, "We just make em so cute, why don't we just have a bunch!" Golly, now I know why I love that guy! It is true though, despite me being a partial momma, we did make a pretty cute little munchie the first time around. The hard part is in the waiting..... and then remembering that God's timing is always perfect!

So, Jesus thank you so much for our beautiful little girl. If your ready so are we! Please give us another little blessing soon and many more to come! Amen

Because who wouldn't want another one this cute!!

I love my momma!!

I am sure you have heard of Christmas in July.... well this is Mother's Day in July, sort of. I figure I can't have a mommy blog and not talk about my own mother!!!! Mostly just an excuse to brag on my mommy cause she deserves it! Just being a mom has got me thinking a lot about my own mom. All the nights I spend up with my little girl. All the alone moments, all the silly moments and uh-oh moments, and then there are the so sweet moments where I am just undone by how much I love my little person I don't even know how to handle myself. Then I think about how my mom must have felt/feel about me. Did she love me like I love my daughter? Does she still worry about me even though I am all grown up. How many times can I count as a child that she sacrificed so that I could do something or have something. How many nights did she sit by my bed and play with my hair or scratch my back so that I could fall asleep. How often she drove me to and from events spending hours upon hours just taking me wherever I needed to go as often as I needed to go there. Besides all those little things that mommies do that no one ever notices she taught me how to love Jesus. She taught me how to be the kind of friend a friend would want to have. She taught me how to take care of others and love my siblings. She was my greatest advocate! Constantly pointing me in the right direction. She is wonderful of course but mostly I just want her to know that maybe I didn't notice or appreciate all the wonderful things you did for me then but I am remembering them now. Thank you thank you! From the bottom of my heart. For always loving me no matter what. Yes, of course I know... it's your job but thank you for doing it so well! You are one of my best friends and greatest inspirations. Love you so very much! xoxooxoxo

Cloth Diapers.... oh boy!

So today I am sitting in the car with one of my younger sisters and she says to me "So, I hear your obsessed with cloth diapers?" I sheepishly smiled... "ya, it's true". :) What can I say, I am hooked. Not sure it's completely healthy but it could be worse. I didn't realize how excited I was about the whole thing until the other day I ran up stairs with my very own homemade fitted CD in hands and was all excited to show my husband. He just laughed. " I have never seen you like this before." "I think it's kind of cute."

Now I have only been using CD for about 4 four months and just recently started using them overnight. I had bought about 300 disposable diapers on sale in March and so we have been using those at night. I have about 25 hidden in her closet for a road trip we are about to go on in August because yes I am just not that brave yet but as of yesterday all of my disposables are official gone... dum da dum. I honestly can say I was really intimidated by the thought of it initially and even a little weirded out but the more I thought about it the more natural it seemed. I didn't even realize there were so many options!!! Oh my! It's amazing how many options there are out there and all things that go with CD. It's like a whole new world.

The reason I even entertained the idea was the concept of saving money. I only have one child now and was easily spending $40.00 dollars a month on diapers alone. That doesn't include wipes or the newborn stage when I would go through boxes a week!! Not to mention laundry from the outfit changes from her having massive explosions. So I brought it up to my husband who looked at me like I had five eyes. Then I calculated how much we spent each year on diapers (http://www.diaperpin.com/calculator/calculator.asp) and what we would save if we switched. I then compared that to how many kids we are considering having which is definitely more than 1 or 2 and we thought about it for a few minutes and he gave me the green light. I will say that I didn't have a clue what I was getting myself into.

It has been a process and there are for sure some do's and dont's for beginners.

I really had no idea what a pocket diaper was, or a hybrid, or even an all in one. The first kind I tried was a g-diaper. The concept is great and there are tons of people who love this style of diaper but I don't think it's a very good beginner cloth diaper. My husband hated the different steps of having to put new inserts in and pulling the old ones out and having to wrinse the shell if it got dirty or knowing if he should change the whole thing. I never had any issues with leaks but since our little girl is fairly tiny they always left snap marks on her hips and they always made me nervous that they would leak. So, we tried that but I was feeling discouraged. Then someone mentioned an all in one diaper and I thought... okay lets give that a try. I also wanted to make my hubbies life easier so he wouldn't be stressed so I bought 6 brand new bumgenious all in one type diapers off of craigslist. HE LOVED THEM! He said "Now this is a diaper I can handle!" The only thing was he said he would like to also try one with snaps. I held off though because I wanted him to get the hang of just dealing with one kind of diaper. Well, if you know anything about cloth diapers you are probably familiar with Kelly's Closet and they are constantly having amazing deals... like spend $25 dollars and get a free one size diaper. These are the kind of diapers that you can use from 10-30 or so pounds just by adjusting a series of snaps or elastic. So I signed up and bought two more all in one diapers and got a free fuzzibunz! This is a diaper with adjustable elastic AND it has snaps! oooooo ahhhhhh I loved it too! Then I started really researching types and kinds and I was amazed at all my options! It was insane. I always want to be as informed as possible which can kind of be a bad thing at times because I found I was so busy researching diaper types that I would be online for hours at a time! The world wide web is a dangerous thing. So now after a few weeks of true diaper searching I have come to a few conclusions. I love pocket diapers for the day as they are easy to clean and dry fast but all in ones are still my favorite for bedtime and the hubby of course. I really like one size diapers in general but have never diapered a new born and have heard that they are not the best option. I still really only have a modest stash of diapers but also have two flip covers (which are just regular waterproof diaper covers) and can use all of the cloth inserts I bought for my g diaper in those. Now I was on a roll. Or maybe a downward spiral into cloth diaper land but don't worry it all ends well. :) I am still excited about new diapers. I haven't done anything drastic or gone off the deep end. I do occasionally find myself thinking about them in my dreams.... an odd concept yes I know I blame it on how cute they make my little toot sweets tushie.

I still get a bit nervous when we are out and about... not sure why. I think its knowing that if she did go poo it's not as easy to clean in public but for the most part I am sold. Plus, now that I am getting the hang of it I will have it down by the time the next little tootie sweet comes along. I love that even though I have still spent $40 dollars a month for the past few months on diapers they are not diapers I have had to throw away. And as an added bonus my daughter can now fit into all her pants because her cute little fluffy booty is big enough to hold them up. :)

For more cloth diapering resources checkout

http://www.diaperpin.com/calculator/calculator.asp

www. cottonbabies.com

www.kellyscloset.com

www.youtube.com (so many great videos just type in cloth diapers)

www.diaperswappers.com- they have an online forum you can ask questions about ANYTHING even not cloth diaper related things like breast feeding, homeschooling, do it yourself projects and so on.)

Breast feeding success!!

Well, because I am a nurse practitioner and also happen to LOVE LOVE LOVE babies and mommies I often get questions about things like immunizations, birth control, childbirth, and today's topic, breastfeeding (BF). So I thought I would take a minute and give you a quick spin down on my thought for making your BF experience successful and hopefully some tips on how to have a healthy milk supply! Also, I personally did not find my lactation consultant very helpful so in those beginning 8-10 weeks I did a lot of research. Along with my best friend, who had her baby 12 weeks after I did, who also had a bit of a rocky start we read every book we could get our hands on. And between the two of us I think we experienced it all. Now this could encompass a lot but I am going to stick with the basics... how to make it work for you.

I never had given much thought to breast feeding before I had my daughter. Yes, I knew I would do it and yes I knew the basics but I had put so much thought and prayer into thinking about the delivery that it never occurred to me to prepare for breast feeding! I was so lost! It's amazing how much I knew about babies and childbirth and yet knew NOTHING about successful BF. I was clueless. Lucky for me my child was a natural and I had a bountiful supply however, I will also say it sure wasn't easy! Those first 8-10 weeks were tough. M

y lil tootie sweet (my daughter) had the tiniest mouth so I was constantly sore and the initial discomfort that was suppose to go away in a week lingered... and lingered... and lingered. Eventually, her little mouth got bigger and I discovered that I was having a reaction to the nursing pads that I was using and once I switched it was like night and day! Any way, here are my thoughts.

I think that in the wide world of mommies there is so much pressure to do this, or do that. I will start by saying that of course I think breast feeding best! It's the way God made it to be and I do believe it provides the best nourishment for baby and promotes the best times for bonding. HOWEVER!!!!, I will also say that just because you choose not to BF or if you cannot BF doesn't mean your a bad mommy or that your child is any less wonderful. As my best friend says, "By the time they get to kindergarten no one will be able to tell the difference." They will all have hair, teeth, and be able to walk and talk even if some took longer than others. The reasoning I am even brining this up is because I think that BF is very intimidating for some mommies and they give up before they even gave themselves a chance!

1. If you really want to breast feed you HAVE TO STICK WITH IT! Give it time. The post partum period can be stressful in and of itself but if you go based on those few days then 90% of mommies wouldn't breast feed at all. I say truly give it at least 8-12 weeks.

2. I think too many women supplement too early because they are nervous about their supply. By doing this you are actually hurting your supply on the front end. Some schedule for your own sanity is important but initially a baby should eat at least every 1-2 hours so you can establish a healthy supply. The more you put your baby to the breast the more you stimulate your body to make more milk. If you are supplementing with every feeding instead of just feeding more often you are hindering the cycle of supply and demand. I work in a hospital so I know how it goes when the nurse comes in and recommends that you supplement. They are nurses they should know right??? Yes, we are wonderful people but those first few days your baby really isn't eating to "fill up" any way they are there to help you create milk by stimulation. It's not really for a few days your milk supply even comes in. For me it took four days before my milk came in and it was ok! (granted I am not saying don't ever supplement but merely saying be careful not to jump the gun.) Of course your baby is rooting and is fussy when they do that NURSE EM!!!! Even if it's not on schedule or if it's every 30 minutes. That is how you create a wonderful and healthy supply!

3. Create a quiet environment when you are trying to nurse, free from people and well meaning visitors. It's ok to ask them to wait or even to leave because you are trying to BF because those first few days are critical. (I am attempting to avoid all the technical lingo as per my personality but will provide references and a link at the end for those of you who like that kind of stuff.) If you don't give yourself enough time or if you feel rushed then it is more likely you won't give that session enough time to really be beneficial. I know it's hard sometimes when you have other kiddos and even with family but for those first few days just ask for help. Get someone to be with your kiddos while you BF or put hubby in charge of talking with visitors in the waiting area until your done.

4. Can't stress it enough but DRINK, DRINK, DRINK!!! and then EAT, EAT, EAT! Seriously ladies you can lose the baby weight later. I had the hardest time remembering to eat because it felt like all I did was feed my baby only to have a ten minute potty break and then start all over. Now when I say eat... I mean good for your body eat not empty calorie eat. Get some healthy snacks prepared beforehand or have a list ready so after someone can pick up snacks you know you can remember to eat. String cheese, almonds, fruits, Lara Bars, whatever is easiest for you yet packs a punch in nutritional value. My new favorite thing is instead of making new mommies a meal is to bring them a munchie care package! Fill it full of heal

thy snacking options so they can quickly grab something.

5. Did I mention time??? Oh ya I think I did. Give yourself plenty of time to breastfeed without rushing your baby or yourself and don't call it quits at the 10 days mark. Give it a couple weeks before you decide. Seriously, at the end of the day some of the best moments I had with my little girl are those when it was just me and her in the middle of the night. Yes, sleep is amazing and yes daddy's are great at giving bottles and there is NOTHING wrong with that but I know I would trade any of those sleepless nights.

I know that so many people struggle with their supply and I truly believe it has to do with a lot of these issues. Stress, trying to put your baby on a schedule too fast, supplementing too quickly, or simply just not allowing your baby to feed as much as they should.

I am all for sleeping and schedules, trust me, I have read books on both sides of the fence but you need to create a balance and also allow your body to go through the supply demand cycle.

Well, I know this was brief and not very technicalbut there were my thoughts in a nutshell.

Some great resources are obviously the the Le Leche League (http://www.llli.org/). They also have a book is called "TheWomanly Art of Breastfeeding" While it is lengthy it is very helpful.

To be or not to be... that is the question.

A real blogger that is! Hmmmmmmmmmmmm

Ok.... so I am not good ol William but per the request of my dearest BFF and my hubby I have decided to actually start "blogging". Ha! SomethingI never thought I would do but here I am. I initially started so I could view others blogs but I guess I really do enjoy writing and even though I am not sure I have something important to say... I always have SOMETHING to say.

So here it goes folks.... a glimpse of me for starters.

My life isn't all that exciting... although there are days when I feel I have just stepped out of a scene from "Everybody Loves Raymond".... or the reality TV show featuring the Duggar family. I guess what I find very ordinary would probably not be all that ordinary to most people.

Why you ask? Well.....

For starters I work in an emergency department! There is nothing ordinary about that. It's not all that glamorous as seen on TV but let me tell you I have had my days! For the sake of those of you with queezy tummies I will spare you the details but somedays I am pretty sure I have just stepped out of the twilight zone. FOR REAL!

Secondly,

I come from a family of 14. Not the biggest family ever but not your average 2 per household family either. :) My ten youngest siblings are all adopted and the oldest four are what we call "bio-babies". I am among the oldest, although some would argue I am bossy enough to be the oldest. I have about as many cultures in my family as there are continents that provide them! I grew up thinking that rice was a staple with every meal. I married into a family that doesn't speak very much English and am constantly saying things in my head in two different languages. My poor child must think I am nuts. :)

I would probably describe my life as easy but constantly moving. More paint by number than connect the dots despite the fact that my personality is TOTALLY a connect the dots. I can roll with the punches but would at least like to know that they are coming. I love life. The ups, the downs, the highs and lows. I love how in each season of life there is always something that should (if we are paying attention) encourage us to cling to Jesus. I love, love, love being a wife and mother and through blogging hope to encourage other young mothers to embrace their journey in life towards His eternal Kingdom AND

their journey as moms and wives. Oh that we wouldn't waste our energy and time trying to wish away seasons or long for changes before their time but that we would embrace the sacredness of living each moment knowing that He is ever present. His grace is sufficient in all things and His goodness evident regardless of our circumstances. I desire to cling to His goodness each and every day as He is my source and daily bread. I can do nothing- wait- I am nothing outside of His constant goodness towards me. In my own strength I will accomplish nothing that will have lasting value but by leaning on His strength my actions can have an eternal impact.

I tend to be an all or nothing type of gal... I can also be very goal orientated. I like my ducks in a row, I like things to make sense, and I like knowing how I can take charge! Being a mom has taught me so much about my own weakness's and has humbled me in ways I didn't expect. I will never again judge another mother for her screaming child in Target, or the mother whose child is covered in some funky brown goo. I now say "Oh man, that will totally be me down the line". Why, HA! Because it will. All the things I thought I knew about being a mom and all my pre-conceived ideas are out the window. I am learning how to be gracious in the un-knowing. Gracious with my child and husband AND yes, even gracious with myself because Lord knows I need it. There is a time to follow the rules and there is a time to fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants. (As I am constantly learning) Never thought I would say that knowing my personality.

You know that saying "do your best and let God do the rest"? Cliche purhaps, but boy is it true. So for starters... and in closing by the grace of God this journey will end up revealing more of Him and less of me because all I can do is my best at leaning into Him and then letting him do the rest.

Jesus, would you give me eyes to see and ears to hear what it is that you are doing and saying in my life. That I would live each and every day with true convictions from the Holy Spirit and that in all things would bring glory to your name. Teach me to lean not on my own understanding but to cling always to your goodness as it is never failing.

Amen

Preparing for a party!

Sooooo, Francy, my soon to be one year old... her birthday party is coming up this Sunday. I always get all these

wonderful ideas of things I would like to do and sometimes I bite off more than I can chew. Well, for her first birthday I was really hoping to make a paper mac

he Pinata! I know, I know, very messy and you can buy them for cheap BUT since my daugthers birthday happens to fall on Cinco De Mayo I thought I would start a pinata tradition. It looks so fun!

Well needless to say I also was hoping to have a beautiful cake at her first birthday and had planned on a friend of mine making it but due to some last minute changes she was unable to. Soooo, I also thought well hey I can just make that myself too! Why not! So in the works for her birthday weekend is three tiers of vanilla cake with lemon and raspberry filling and Italian Meringe buttercream frosting! I think I can I think I can.....

so I tried. Needless to say both turned out ok. The cake was a bit dry... due to the fact I made it two days ahead of time and stuck in the fridge... el mistako numero uno. I also think something was off with the frosting. It was a bit too buttery?? If that is possible. I think I will have to try that one again.

As far as the pinata goes... well that was a bit interestin

g as well. The first attempt resulted in a too big head. The second one was more to scale but I didn't have time to embellish. Oh well, now I know for next year.

Man all these things I want to try now that I am a mom and just not enough hours in the day. What ever did I do when I didn't have a kid! Ok, yes now I remember I was in school ooofta don't feel as bad.

Dearest Frances

Dearest Frances,

My little darling, the way you move my heart you may never know! Having you in my life has been a true kiss from Heaven.

As I hold you in my arms each night before you sleep my prayer for your life is always the same... that you would love Jesus and love Him well. Every night it is the same, I rock you quietly and whisper prayers only He can hear and as I lay you down with one last kiss I remind you that I love you but that He loves you more.

I will always hold you when you cry...

but He will hold you forever.

I will always feed you when your hungry...

but He is the Bread of Life.

I will always try to meet your needs....

but only He will NEVER fail you.

I love you so much....

but He loves you more.

I cannot promise I will be the perfect mother or that I will never let you down but I can promise that He is the perfect Father and that He will never let you down. Choose Jesus in all things! Let this be my greatest gift.

I love you little one, but He loves you more.

-Mommy

"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus." 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

This passage, although brief, could very easily sum up my goals as a mother. Oh to be a joyful mother who imparts the gladness of the heart of God to all my children! Granted at this point I only have one but I am learning every day what it means to choose joy!

Praying continually.... that my heart posture would be one of true relationship and communication with my Lord and King. After all, isn't that the gift of prayer! That it would be the path on which we walk hand in hand with Jesus. Not just an avenue of requests but a true place of relationship with God. Declaring who He is to our hearts and to our children! That place both in word and thought that no one can alter or steal away. The avenue of renewing our hope and re-affirming His identity.

Praying is such an essential aspect of motherhood. It is often times done unconsciencly and yet other times takes so much effort. Lord, let my prayers be free flowing from my heart to yours. Unrestrained communication and relationship with You at all times. That both in the secret place and in the not so secret place I would seek you first!

From a thankful heart I come before Him.... but how easily dismayed and fickle I can become. I will choose to give thanks in all things! Teach me Lord how to declare your goodness despite my circumstances. For your goodness is not dependent on me rather You are Goodness and you never fail me!

That as a mother I would walk in Your will because I know Your heart!