Just some things on my heart this morning

When I was growing up, I knew that someday I'd be a mom. I knew there were other things I wanted to be, of course I had ambitions, but above all else, I wanted to hear a tiny, little voice call me mommy. When I was 19 years old, and enlisted in the Air Force, that dream became a reality. I knew full well that I wasn't ready to be a mom, and I had NO idea how I was going to pull it off, but when that pregnancy test read positive, I never once considered not having it, and to this day, if I could do it all over again...I absolutely would. 9 months later, I gave birth to the most perfect little boy. He was absolutely beautiful and he changed the way I thought about everything. There's this quote that says "I never knew how much love my heart could hold until I was a mom." Truer words have never been spoken. It sounds cliche, but you just don't know until you're holding a life that you created. It's amazing. Each day passed and saw my little guy growing up and learning more. He's always been exceptionally smart for his age. Sometimes-he even busts out with something that I don't know. It's astounding. He was talking incredibly early, and it took the rest of his body a little bit longer to catch up with his intellect. Once he finally did start walking though, he was all over the place, and more like a 3 year old than the 1 year old he actually was. I knew he was destined for great things. Truthfully, I still DO know that. As Jason gets older, he exhibits other traits just as strongly as his intelligence. He's strong willed, he's stubborn. He's articulate, and he's brave. He's pig-headed, he's kind, he's thoughtful, he's loving, and he's generous. These are all qualities that I LOVE about him. They are qualities that are going to take him SO far in the long life that he has ahead of him. They are things that are going to make him an amazing father someday. They are going to drive his career so that he's successful. They are going to make him successful in everything he does. For all of those things, Jason is also high strung. He's anxious, and he's frustrated. He's energetic, and impulsive. He's intelligent and confused. These are the things that are not so easy to deal with most days. It's hard as a parent to know if you're doing right by your child. I never wanted to be the kind of parent that threw him on some kind of medication and let him go. I never wanted to consider that I'd need to do that. Lately though, I watch as my sweet boy, the light of my world, continues to struggle. As smart and generous as he is, he's also incredibly defiant and disruptive. He brings notes home that frequently feature the words "impulsive" and the phrases "out of his control". These are the kinds of things that you can' t fix as a parent. There's no magic mommy wand that I can wave, nothing I can say to him that is going to change the way he's wired. So this is when we're faced with those difficult decisions, about putting the life, personality and feelings of my 7 year old little boy in the hands of western medicine. I know it's what he needs. I truly do. I know he needs to see a doctor, and deal with whatever is plaguing his little heart. He needs to deal with the anger that he feels, over whatever is causing it. He needs to deal with the things that cause him anxiety, and he needs an outlet for the energy. The question has never really been whether or not to have him treated, the question has ALWAYS been "To what extent?". You see, I know this little boy. I know him better than any other person in the entire world. I know him better than he knows himself. I have watched him grow from a tiny infant, just learning about the world into the amazing person he is today. I know what makes him tick, I know what he loves and what he hates. I know what stresses him out, what sets him panicking, and what calms his nerves. I KNOW him in a way that only a mother can. The struggle in my mind, today and everyday, is: what do we treat, and what is just Jason? He has quirks that he's had since he was old enough to display them. He's got ways about him that make you say "Well, that's Jason." I so badly want to take care of my son, yet am so afraid to be treating a personality rather than a condition...if that even makes any sense. Sometimes, I can't make sense of what's going on in my own head. I wonder often if this is how his brain feels. 

So the first step in moving forward was calling the pediatrician this morning. We're going to start the process by finding someone that he can talk to. Someone who is going to take the time to get to know my Jason for every amazing thing he is before throwing him on some random medication, regardless what it is. And then we're going to wait it out. Once we come to whatever determination it is we come to, we're going to have to pull together as a family to be the very best we can be for him. We're going to have to be more tolerant, less emotional, and less impulsive ourselves....because he's going to need support and love more than he ever has. Jason can be so frustrating, but truly all I want for him is for EVERYONE to see the amazing person that's under the anxiety and impulses. I want a change to the way the talk about him. Instead of "Jason's a great kid, and we love him, but...", I want to hear "Jason's an awesome kid, and we love him." There truly is so much to love. I've got to get some resolve, and pray on the changes that we'll need to go through. I know that God is holding my little guy in His hands, and I know that He's going to point us in the direction of what is best for Jason, regardless the opinion of anyone else. It doesn't matter what I think, or what D thinks, or what anyone else thinks, because God knows...and He's going to put the right people in our path to make my boy happy and whole again. I just have to hand it to Him and give Him the opportunity. Sometimes that's the hardest part. 

Felicity

Congratulations, you're pregnant!

Wait.....what?

So...by now, all of you know that D and I are expecting again. Whoa. Yea, I pretty much would have rather been disemboweled than pondered the idea of having a 4th (5th) child. It seems as I get older, I lose the patience for the shenanigans that once were so easy to follow. People who say parenting is easier as you get older lied. I got the news and thought to myself that it was impossible, of course they had to be wrong. After all, I'd had my tubes tied, I'd been on birth control, and frankly, hadn't had the time or energy to be very sexually active anyways. God had other plans. After putting it off for weeks, I finally made the trip to the ER to find out what was going on....and SURPRISE! There's a BABY in there. Yikes. 14 weeks of tiny, growing fetus. I told D when I got home from the hospital that night, and watched as his jaw hit the floor. I could definitely relate to that feeling. Both of us were feeling...overwhelmed. (Honestly, we kind of still are.) One day and a visit to my primary OB later, we decided to embrace the plans that God has for us, and the first step in THAT difficult direction was telling our family. We chuckled about it a little, because no one was going to expect to hear I was pregnant after my tubal. Boy. The support was overwhelming. Instead of the frustration, harsh words, and anger we were expecting, we got love. I could go on and on and not cover how much it meant to us to NOT have to endure lecture after lecture. After all, no one was as shocked and frustrated as we were. We kept chugging along, making sure everyone from the family knew, and then before we knew it, it was time for our gender reveal. The best part of finding out you're pregnant at 14 weeks is that you only have to wait 2 weeks to find out what you're having! So, we headed out to the doctor, prepared to hear the news that we would be adding a 4th boy to our already competent soccer team. God had other plans though, and we both sighed and I cried when the ultrasound technician said... "It's a girl!" We excitedly told the rest of the family that we were expecting the girl we'd been hoping for. The rest...as they say-is history.

    Today, I am 23 weeks pregnant. Which means, what? I'm halfway through this thing, with just 16 weeks left to go. This pregnancy has been so complicated. It's been extremely high risk since day one. I've basically been on bed rest since I found out I was pregnant. Honestly though, that's the part that's easy. The part that's hard is emotional. Each time there's a pain that's a little more extreme than the rest, my mind goes to that dark place. Any time I go the day without feeling her move, I automatically begin to mentally prepare myself for the worst. It's funny how loss changes you in that way. I remember being grateful for the times when Logan wasn't kicking because I could sleep. With Owen, I panicked when he didn't move around. With this one, it's a calm sort of resolve. I don't freak out and rush to the hospital---I just begin to prepare myself for the bad news. The thing I "know" is coming. Then she kicks me hard in the belly, and I cry. Being jaded is hard. The end of this week will see me officially out of the "danger zone". Since my latest loss happened at 23 weeks, we are to be on hyper vigilant alert mode until the end of this week. After that, it's business as usual until she decides to make her appearance. She has overcome so many odds to still be kicking, with her little heart beating so strong...i have a feeling that she knows she is for this world. She is supposed to teach D and I something, she's supposed to be here. She's supposed to touch the lives of everyone in some way. It's easier to keep from freaking out when I think of her in this way. God has a purpose for her, that much is clear. I am so looking forward to watching her grow and discovering what that purpose actually is. Until then....I'll probably be a little overly worried, a little hysterical, and a little bit of an alarmist. When you've lost and hurt as i have, no pain is insignificant, and everything is worth worrying about until it isn't anymore. There's so much to love about this pregnancy and what it means though, that I'll have to be hysterical while remembering to enjoy every single minute. <3