Nada Mas

The Cardiology appointment didn’t really go the way we wanted it to.  We are quite blessed that things haven’t gotten worse with my heart, however they really haven’t improved much either (1-2%).  This means JD is our only child.  Yes I know, we can always adopt, and we will see in a few years where the Lord takes us.  Right now we are planning to just remain a family of three.

The doctor does want to see if my heart will be ok without the medication so they are slowly taking me off of it and I go back in a month to see how it’s going.  I’ve been given the ok for light exercise but they said “You’re young, don’t try to get into shape overnight right now.  Your heart couldn’t take it.”  I can go for walks but nothing more really until I see them in a month and they can judge how I’m doing post medication.  I’m praying I can go off the meds with no problem since I hate taking them.

While we’ve preped for this outcome it was still a bit of a shock to us.  Deep down we were really hoping for the ok to have at least one more baby.  We are increadbly blessed with JD.  It was so hard to get him and I thank the Lord daily for the joy he brings to our lives.  I’m sure I’ll battle a rollercoaster of emotions over the final verdict but that is ok.  This too shall pass.

Jeremy and I just want to let you all know how much we love each of you.  The love and concern we’ve been given has been just tremendous and we are in awe of the support family and friends have shown.   It’s been a long process, and we are happy to move on from here and start the next chapters of our lives.

Food and Family

Today I made some more baby food for JD.  Broccoli and then a vegetable mixture of zucchini, carrots and potatoes.  I’ll let you all know how it goes down when he gets up from his nap.  So far he hasn’t been picky at all when it comes to food.

Yesterday JD had the last of his 6 month shots and he wouldn’t take a nap all day.  Finally I got him to go down at 5pm and he slept through the night till 6am.  The picture was taken right after he went down.  He LOVES that blanket!! Today he’s back to being an angel.  We were having a discussion today about how many nicknames the kid has already, I thought I’d share them all with you:

• JD
• J-Dizzle
• Dizzle
• Diz
• J-Dieter
• Dieter
• Deeds
• Uno
• J-DAM (his initials)
• Baby Jake
• Mr. McGoober
• Dieter Dieter Doo
• D-Head
• Dieter Face

Poor kid eh?  They are almost all used daily too.  We are such a fun family.

Tonight we are starting our 2 day family reunion.  It’s for my mom’s side of the family.  Jeremy can’t come to anything tomorrow thanks to work so I’m glad he’ll be able to spend time with us this evening.

Jam Recipe and 6 months

Rose Petal Jam

• 1 cup fresh rose petals (must never have been sprayed with any chemicals)
• 3/4 cup water
• 1 lemon, juice of (1/4 cup)
• 2 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 package pectin (ie. Sure Jell)
• 3/4 cup water

1. Puree rose petals, 3/4 cup water and lemon juice in blender until smooth.
2. Slowly add sugar.
3. Blend till all sugar has dissolved; (leave in blender) Stir 1 package pectin (ie. Sure Jell) into 3/4 cup water, bring to a boil, and boil hard for 1 minute. Pour mixture into blender with rose petal mixture until well blended.
4. Do this very quickly - it sets up FAST!! Pour into baby food jars.
5. Let set for 6 hours, till firm.
6. Will keep one month in refrigerator.
7. Freezes well.

As you can see it’s quite easy.  The darker and more fragrent the roses the better the jam, if you ask me.

JD had his 6 month well check today.  I can’t believe it’s already been 6 months!  Here are some stats:

• Birth: 6 lbs. 9 oz. ~ 6 Month: 18 lbs. 5 oz.
• Birth: 19 in.  ~ 6 Month: 27 in.

Rose Petal Jam

When I was younger a neighbor gave my mom a recipe for Rose Petal Jam.  Having never heard of such a thing and we were quite cautious about the whole idea.  I made it once, and we all loved it.  It smells great, and if you truly are what you eat then I want to be a rose!  I’ve never made it since then, it’s not hard, I just never remembered when we had roses in bloom.  It’s best to use dark and very fragrant roses, and we have the perfect bush in the back yard that were just asking for it.  Jeremy was still gone (got home in the wee hours) so I decided to make some Jam!  Here are the spoils of my labor.

I also worked on a baby quilt for Bequi.  I can’t decide if I should post a picture or not since she will see it on the blog before her shower.  I’m sure I’ll buckle when its all done and post it, but until then I will just keep you in anticipation.

Christmas In July

I am almost finished with a Christmas Quilt that I started last week.  I normally have them done much faster, but this one took me a while to get it down to a science.  I need to head out and get some fabric for borders and the backing. 

Jeremy stayed with his brother in Salt Lake last night.  He was working late and since he has to be back up there at 5am it makes sense to have him stay.  Poor guy also has to work until the wee hours of the night tonight.  JD and I sure miss him.

Waiting

Two posts in one day, I’m on a roll!

I got a call today telling me that they need to reschedule my heart echo.  I’ve had the appointment next Monday for the past 6 months, so I was a bit frustrated that they called the Friday before to change it.  I now don’t go in until the 22nd.  I know it’s only an extra 8 days, but after waiting for 6 months it’s a bit agonizing to wait another week.  Steph said it’s like being 9 months pregnant and then going over by a week.  Yes, you’ve already waited 9 months, but the thought of one more week is torture.

So much is riding on this one stupid heart echo and I’m really trying not to stress about it.  It’s been causing me a lack of sleep for the past week or so.  For those of you that don’t know, I was diagnosed with Pregnancy Associated Cardiomyopathy (PACM) while I was pregnant with JD.  While I knew it was a big deal, it wasn’t till after JD was born that my OB told me they were honestly terrified about me delivering.  I’ve still been on heart medication since having JD.  They wait till 6 months postpartum to do the followup echo so that they can see the true effect labor had on my heart.  This one silly ECG could really be telling Jeremy and I a lot about our future.  Here are the possible results, and the ramifications of each:

• Great: Heart has regained normal function, I’m given full release on the restrictions I’ve had (like exercise), and they start to take me off meds.  This outcome would also mean that the doctors would feel comfortable with the risk involved if we chose to have more children.  It would require a lot of monitoring during the pregnancy, and always a chance of relapse, but the odds would be in our favor.
• Bad: My heart function is still below normal and I have to continue to be monitored and stay on medication.  We would not be able to have any more biological children (yes, I know we could adopt one day).
• Worst:  My heart function has decreased a bit.  I would have to stay on medication and be put on even more meds.  Monitoring would continue, and once again, no more children.
• Terrifying (but HIGHLY unlikely): My heart function is so low that they not only have to medicate me but we have to look at other options, the worse being a heart transplant.  This should NOT be the case because I’d be showing massive symptoms and would probably be in the hospital already.

I’ll keep you all posted.  Jeremy and I are almost positive that things have improved and everything will end well but I have still been mentally preparing just in case.

While waiting for a prescription today at the pharmacy I found these hidden mickey’s in their fence outside.  I’ve seen them before but this is the first time I’ve remembered to take a picture.  I just had to share.  If you don’t know what a hidden mickey is, go to my other posts about them here and here.

The Wall

While I’m reading blogs this morning I put JD in the bouncer Kelly and Nic gave us.  I stack some toys on the tray and he is silent for about 20 minutes.  All of a sudden he can’t stop laughing.  I turn around to look at what is so funny.  All I can see is him, facing the wall with all the toys on the floor.  Apparently the toys are a waste and a good blank wall will do.

I love my kid.

My Head

I have had a headache/migraine all week.  There are times during the day where it’s not as bad as others but it’s meant a lot of time in my room, in bed, with the curtains drawn.  I know it’s bad when I can feel each hair follicle.  JD, like always, has been an angel.

While laying down I’ve been reading a lot, often out loud to JD.  He loves it.  There were times I had to put the books down and just close my eyes.  Even with those times I’ve made it through all 3 of the Twilight books (the next one comes out soon), and I’ve started on the Eragon books (the 3rd one comes out soon as well).

The only really interesting thing that has happened this week was when I woke up one morning to find my bedside table moved and things rearranged on top of it.  Neither Jeremy or I remember touching it.  Apparently one of us does things in their sleep?  I keep blaming Jeremy since he talks in his sleep already.  Since I was reading vampire books at the time it did make me jittery the next night when I went to bed.  I have an overactive imagination.  It didn’t help when the dogs woke us up around 3am growling in their kennel.

56 Men

This post is a few days late…

July 4, 1776 - 56 Men signed a document that would change not only the course of their lives but many future generations.  These men knew that what they were doing would be considered treason, and if the act of independence failed that history would remember them as traitors.  I can not even imagine the thoughts in each mind as the decision was made, and the ink put to paper.  I am humbled and grateful for the freedoms I have now, 232 years later.  We are such a young nation, may we continue to grow and never forget our humble beginnings and the Lords will.  I pray that future generations never forget the price that has been paid, and continues to be paid for the daily freedoms that can so easily be taken for granted. 

Back to School

No, not Jeremy… me.  It’s been a long time since I was in a classroom.  I have wanted to go back for years but things just kept falling through.  The worst was right after we got married and I was finally enrolled full time and then got into a bad car accident 3 days before classes.  The thought of going to school part time for 8 years to get a degree doesn’t mesh well with out family situation.  Jeremy and I had a lot of discussions about my schooling.  While I’d love to go back to school, take my time, and enjoy taking classes in English and History the reality is that we needed me to get done quickly and help support our family.  Enter my Mothers Day gift.  After getting my massage I made the comment that I bet I’d enjoy massage therapy.  Next thing I knew Jeremy had gotten on line, requested information and we were looking into the program.  I didn’t mention anything here since I wanted to see how things panned out.

I’ve been quite stressed about our financial situation since JD was born.  I’m sure I’m preaching to the chior here, and that many of you are in the same boat.  No one ever grows up and thinks… by the time I’m 28 I want to be divorced, never finished school, remarried with a baby, and living with my parents!  Life sometimes goes where it needs to take you and you just need to have faith and hold on for the ride.  Thanks to our financial difficulties however we qualified for a LOT more grant money than I thought we would.  Last night I walked out of the school, all admitted and ready to start classes Aug. 4th.

The classes are 4 days a week in the evenings, so we are trying to work things out so the few nights Jeremy can’t take JD a family member can.  Graduation is next Aug, so the program is a year long.  I know a few of you out there that read this blog are Massage Therapists (Laurie… )  Any pointers would be great.  I’m feeling very humble at the moment and the thought of jumping into a classroom after not being in one for over 8 years is frightening, but very exciting.