So, August was tough. No doubt about it. I don't know what the future holds, but I know Who holds it. And that's what I'm banking on as I step into the unknown.
I've added some pictures of the kids so this post isn't entirely depressing...
Friday, September 7, 2012
The Dog, or rather DARK, Days of August
August is done. And I'm glad. It was a rough month for us. Our water pump died - there goes $3400 dollars down the drain (pardon the pun) to get a good pump that utilizes all the water we have in our well. Thankfully we have a great "loan shark" who helped us out! Two days after that was fixed we brought the van in for some squeaking and shaking. Adios $500. And then on the last day of summer break a power line coming into our house blew, blowing over $1500 worth of stuff, among those a lot of electronics and our dishwasher :( BOO HOO for us. And through all of this has been my father-in-law's health: diabetes and a very bad case of pneumonia. We now know that he has also been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Yes, cancer has reared its ugly face, and we are left wondering what the future holds. Praise God for his grace and peace during this time. It has truly been felt!! However, there is more. In the past few weeks I have been struggling greatly with being a mom to the three oldest. I am so short with them and don't even really want to be with them. All I hear is arguing, crying because someone did something, whining, and generally trashing the house. I know, they are kids and they are doing 'kid stuff'. But somehow lately it has been too much for me. I'm so thankful that they are back in school right now. It gives me less time to be a bad mom to them... I'm certainly not proud of the way I'm acting; in fact I hate it. I am disappointed in my responses and reactions to them. Regardless of what is going on around me, regardless of the crap I'm dealing with, it is no excuse for my attitude and actions toward my children. I was feeling like things were getting worse today, and it came to me out of the blue: maybe this is an attack. I have to say, God is using me to start something in our church that has got to be pretty upsetting for the enemy. In fact, tomorrow morning I will be the speaker at our church's Ladies Breakfast, then on Sunday I'll be speaking in both services. And on Thursday I'll be starting the actual group - Hidden In My Heart, the goal of which is to get people into the Word of God and begin memorizing it. I am really excited about where God is going to take this! I am but the vessel, but sometimes that is what is attacked. I can't be sure that that is entirely what is going on with me, but I do know that God is going to receive glory for this and more people are going to be gripping firmly the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God (Eph 6). It makes sense that satan would want to get a grip on me so I cannot be effective. Now that I am aware of this possibility, I am going to be more intentional about fighting, and fighting with scripture. If you think about it, please pray for me and this new ministry.
So, August was tough. No doubt about it. I don't know what the future holds, but I know Who holds it. And that's what I'm banking on as I step into the unknown.
I've added some pictures of the kids so this post isn't entirely depressing...
Zane - 3 months
Ready for school!!
So, August was tough. No doubt about it. I don't know what the future holds, but I know Who holds it. And that's what I'm banking on as I step into the unknown.
I've added some pictures of the kids so this post isn't entirely depressing...
Saturday, July 28, 2012
Michigan Trip - summer 2012
I really look forward to going to Michigan each summer! The kids have so much fun being outside and swimming at all the lakes we are privy to :) This year, as of May, Jared has been with Pfizer for 10 years and has earned another week of vacation. We are really quite spoiled with vacation with this company. Jared now has 4 weeks, plus the week that the site closes down at Christmas. So, he really gets 5 weeks this year!! He took some time for Zane's arrival, and we decided to use a full 2 weeks this summer in MI. We are limited at Christmas due to school schedules, so we figured this would be a great time - plus we had a new baby to show off :) We really had a great time there, and I certainly did my part to take advantage of the extra time by filling it with "reunions". Just ask Jared ;) Beyond family, we met up with 1) a couple good friends from high school, and their families 2) one of my best friends from elementary school 3) our old Bible Study group from our Holland days 4) my housemates from my senior year of college 5) and literally on our drive home, we stopped at a rest area and met w/ Jared's cousin who provided ice cream treats for the family :) What a trip! We kept busy with family too. We even got to be there for the birth of our 4th niece. It was fun to be able to go to the hospital and see little Aliyah Joy :) We went through Canada for the first time since moving out to CT, and it was actually one of our better trips. We drove home through the states since we were already down that way, but I think we'll do Canada at Christmastime. Zane did really well on the trip - can't complain about that. Hopefully he'll do great when he's 7 months and we do the next one :) As always it is really hard to say good-bye to everyone and make the long trip home. I still hope that God's plan is to move us back to our family some day. I am so grateful that He has surrounded us with good friends here and an amazing church family. I am content, and that is good.
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Zane
So, now that Zane is 7 weeks old, I figured I should actually get on this and record some memories of the last week before he was born and the birth experience. Zane was a bit of a rascal on all accounts mentioned above ;) My parents arrived 4 days before I was due, thinking we could spend a little time before Zane arrived. As it turned out, we spent about a week and a half before he came. I kept going to appointments, trying everything I could think of to go into labor: teas, evening primrose oil, that which got us into this situation, jumping jacks, and castor oil. All to no avail of course. I would have bet money that I wouldn't make it to my induction day, but alas, that day came too and I was still pregnant. So, it turned out that May 31st would be Zane's eviction day :)
We went in at 7:30 to break my water and see what happened. My parents came in after they dropped Nora off at school to see how things were going. Since nothing was going on, they left for a bit. Mom came back a little later since she was going to be in the delivery room with us (the first grandchild she witnessed coming into the world!) After walking about and hr and only having about 3 contractions, they decided that they'd start a little pitocin around 10:00 to get things moving. I was told it was the lowest amount and things would happen gradually. I decided to use the birthing ball (which I hadn't done before) and very shortly after they started the "pit" while I "bounced" on the ball, the contractions began. Gradual is NOT the way I would describe them. Going from a few very low-key contractions over a long span of time to super intense contractions every couple minutes is more like "insane" not gradual! I tried to be tough for a few of them, but then I called it a day and asked for an epidural. Unfortunately I should have called him sooner, because as I waited for him, things only got worse. Though he didn't take long to get here, by the time I got the epidural I was so miserable it didn't do much. So, after noticing I was not in a state of comfort, they "upped" the drugs. This made for a very interesting and frustrating birth experience later. Finally I could rest! Jared and Mom went to grab some McD's around noon since it didn't seem like anything was going to happen any time soon. However, at about 12:30 (before they returned), the nurse asked when they would be back, since I looked like I'd be ready any time now. Luckily they made it back in time, but I don't think they actually finished their lunch. They were eating in the corner while I was being prepped. I began pushing about 1:00.
I was so insanely doped up though that I felt pretty helpless. When it came time to push, I was very ineffective since I couldn't feel a thing or move at all. I could only feel the very top muscles of my stomach when I pushed and therefore only seemed to get 1 out of every 3 pushes to do anything. People had to hold my legs (which were pretty much dead weight), and I have to say that they were dropped a few times too. I didn't feel it at all, but I didn't have some "battle scars" on them to show for it. Zane was being difficult and not wanting to be born (as was already proved by the fact we were evicting him!) so everyone was twisting and turning me, propping a leg up on some sort of blow up "peanut" as they called it. I felt like a beached whale flopping along on the shoreline longing for a rescue. After about 1/2 hr of pushing, and feeling unusually exhausted, they told me to take a bit of a rest and then we'd get back to it. I had asked them to lower the pitocin earlier, but they didn't think it would happen soon enough, but finally after our 'break' they did. It wasn't enough to help me feel though. I pushed a little longer and finally was told the Dr. was going to come in and "help". "What does that mean?" I asked. They said it just meant he'd use the "suction cup" to help me along. With that, it didn't take long and out came Zane (at 2:04pm), with his little hand right up at his face. No wonder it was so difficult. I hope this isn't a sign of the way he's going to be! Isn't the fourth supposed to be super laid back, and just go with the flow??? I sure hope so! The "little" guy was 9lbs 8oz, smaller than was I would have guessed since he was a week late. The kids came in after school and were very excited to finally meet baby Zane :)
In the first weeks after his birth almost everything went really well - all except for nursing :( Unfortunately he wasn't very good and as much as I tried (got some help in the hospital from the consultant) it wasn't working. When we went in for his 2 week appointment, I told the doctor that he doesn't seem to be very happy and I was afraid he wasn't getting enough to eat. I was right. I felt so horrible when I learned that since his release from the hospital he had only gained 2oz! Usually babies are back up to their birth weight by then, but Zane was only 8lbs 14oz, over 1/2 pound less than birth weight. No wonder the poor baby was fussy - I was practically starving him :( So, the supplementing began. From there it was downhill w/ the nursing and after battling emotionally about it, I finally decided to call it quits when he was 4 weeks. Aside from the financial aspect, it has been a very good decision. Now, at 7 weeks, he is thriving (though sometimes gassy and uncomfortable - just switched to soy formula) and is pretty happy. We've seen some really cute smiles already and he's been cooing for a couple weeks too. What a joy and special addition to the family. The kids all adore him and have been quite helpful. Now that I'm not nursing, they all can even help feed him! SO nice :)
Next post: our trip to Michigan...
We went in at 7:30 to break my water and see what happened. My parents came in after they dropped Nora off at school to see how things were going. Since nothing was going on, they left for a bit. Mom came back a little later since she was going to be in the delivery room with us (the first grandchild she witnessed coming into the world!) After walking about and hr and only having about 3 contractions, they decided that they'd start a little pitocin around 10:00 to get things moving. I was told it was the lowest amount and things would happen gradually. I decided to use the birthing ball (which I hadn't done before) and very shortly after they started the "pit" while I "bounced" on the ball, the contractions began. Gradual is NOT the way I would describe them. Going from a few very low-key contractions over a long span of time to super intense contractions every couple minutes is more like "insane" not gradual! I tried to be tough for a few of them, but then I called it a day and asked for an epidural. Unfortunately I should have called him sooner, because as I waited for him, things only got worse. Though he didn't take long to get here, by the time I got the epidural I was so miserable it didn't do much. So, after noticing I was not in a state of comfort, they "upped" the drugs. This made for a very interesting and frustrating birth experience later. Finally I could rest! Jared and Mom went to grab some McD's around noon since it didn't seem like anything was going to happen any time soon. However, at about 12:30 (before they returned), the nurse asked when they would be back, since I looked like I'd be ready any time now. Luckily they made it back in time, but I don't think they actually finished their lunch. They were eating in the corner while I was being prepped. I began pushing about 1:00.
I was so insanely doped up though that I felt pretty helpless. When it came time to push, I was very ineffective since I couldn't feel a thing or move at all. I could only feel the very top muscles of my stomach when I pushed and therefore only seemed to get 1 out of every 3 pushes to do anything. People had to hold my legs (which were pretty much dead weight), and I have to say that they were dropped a few times too. I didn't feel it at all, but I didn't have some "battle scars" on them to show for it. Zane was being difficult and not wanting to be born (as was already proved by the fact we were evicting him!) so everyone was twisting and turning me, propping a leg up on some sort of blow up "peanut" as they called it. I felt like a beached whale flopping along on the shoreline longing for a rescue. After about 1/2 hr of pushing, and feeling unusually exhausted, they told me to take a bit of a rest and then we'd get back to it. I had asked them to lower the pitocin earlier, but they didn't think it would happen soon enough, but finally after our 'break' they did. It wasn't enough to help me feel though. I pushed a little longer and finally was told the Dr. was going to come in and "help". "What does that mean?" I asked. They said it just meant he'd use the "suction cup" to help me along. With that, it didn't take long and out came Zane (at 2:04pm), with his little hand right up at his face. No wonder it was so difficult. I hope this isn't a sign of the way he's going to be! Isn't the fourth supposed to be super laid back, and just go with the flow??? I sure hope so! The "little" guy was 9lbs 8oz, smaller than was I would have guessed since he was a week late. The kids came in after school and were very excited to finally meet baby Zane :)
Next post: our trip to Michigan...
Sunday, May 6, 2012
2 1/2 weeks to go!!
Where did March and April go?? I have to say, the shortest month of the year, Feb, was one of the longest - and March and April have flown by. However, it still seems like this has been a very long pregnancy. Jared was just saying the same thing last week. I know there is an end though!! We've got just two and a half short weeks until my due date of May 24th. I took Caster Oil with both of the girls to go into labor (3 days early w/ Aliza and on my due date w/ Nora). I get very impatient at the end of my pregnancies!! For both of them, 6 hrs after I took it, I went into labor. So, now I'm having the dilemma of whether or not to do it again, and if so, when? Because of the similarities, I feel like it really did work, but who knows for sure... Also, I keep thinking if I hadn't of taken the Castor Oil, how much longer would it have been. And on that note, if I don't take it for Zane, how long might I wait. Oh, these kids - they have you going crazy before they're even born :) I guess at this point, the plan is to take it the morning after I'm due. This way Jared can go to work, get a 1/2 day in and we'll head to the hospital sometime around noon. Look at me trying to plan out when I have my kid.... I figure because I've got it all "figured out", it will go a very different direction. Oh bother... So, that's the story on that. Physically I am feeling so much better than I did with Nora, which has been such a blessing. It still is uncomfortable and a bit of a bother to lug this giant basketball around (I've had at least 2, maybe 3 strangers make comments about me having a basketball under my shirt), but I don't have all the aching that I did w/ Nora. Thank you God for that! I am getting SO incredibly excited to meet this little guy. The clothes are washed and hanging in his room. We have everything we need. His little bassinet sits in the very crowded office waiting for him. (sigh) I just want to hold him. I still can't grasp that we're going to have a tiny little baby join our family. It's been the 5 of us for so long that I can't imagine a 6th. I know - it won't be long before I can't remember life w/o Zane (or Zaney, as the girls like to call him). I am so interested to see how the kids handle the transition, especially Nora.... time will tell on that one!
I've included some pics of what's been going on the past two months. We had a great time with the Anibles when they came out! We went to Mystic a couple times, the guys took the kids hiking, and we went to Dinosaur State Park where we saw actual dinosaur footprints that had been discovered at a construction site years ago. It was pretty cool. Bed time was always a challenge, but we make it work :) It will be very interesting this summer at my parent's house..... The kids were very sad to see their cousins leave :(
While he was here, Craig took down our pool and successfully sold it on Craig's list in about a day. Its kind of weird not having it back there, but a relief not to have to deal with it. There was sand under the pool, so for now its kind of a play area for the kids. A lot of our outside kid toys are back there. We'll see if it will turn into anything else.
We went to a birthday party today with the theme of Woody and Jessie from Toy Story - that's why there is a picture of the kids with Cowboy/girl hats on. They had a blast!
Its been 4 months since I began memorizing Philippians and I just finished chapter 3 a couple days ago. I usually go through the whole thing at least twice a week, but for some reason it didn't happen this past week and today when I tried to do it, I got caught up a few times. Kind of discouraging, but I guess that just means I need to review more often. I'm so excited about starting up a ministry called "Hidden in My Heart" this Fall. I've gotten the Pastor's ok, and I'm actually going to be the speaker at the Ladies Breakfast in September to kind of kick it off. God laid this ministry on my heart a few months ago, and I'm super pumped about it. Basically it will be an 8-week accountability group that encourages each other to memorize scripture. I'll talk about why we should learn scripture and also some tips on how to do it. I shared the first chapter of Phil with my small group a couple months ago and just this past Thursday I was so encouraged to hear that one of the girls in the group was challenged to begin memorizing James. Praise God! That is SO what I want to happen!! I hope God will use me to bring many in our church deeper into His word!!
Well, I finished making Zane's birth announcements the other day, so now I've got to get envelopes addressed. That way I'll just take the cards to the hospital to fill in the stuff I don't know yet :) and get them shipped out shortly after we're back home. I hadn't made any cards in so long, that it took quite awhile to get motivated to make them. I'm pretty happy with the way they turned out though.
Craig finishing off the pool
Naphtalia and Nora at the Dino Park
Happy Easter! E- 7.5 A- 5 N - 3.5
Eben, Lyvinia, Aliza, Naphtalia, Nora
37 Weeks...and growing...
The next time I post, I bet Zane will be walking or something....I'm so bad at this.
Later-
I've included some pics of what's been going on the past two months. We had a great time with the Anibles when they came out! We went to Mystic a couple times, the guys took the kids hiking, and we went to Dinosaur State Park where we saw actual dinosaur footprints that had been discovered at a construction site years ago. It was pretty cool. Bed time was always a challenge, but we make it work :) It will be very interesting this summer at my parent's house..... The kids were very sad to see their cousins leave :(
While he was here, Craig took down our pool and successfully sold it on Craig's list in about a day. Its kind of weird not having it back there, but a relief not to have to deal with it. There was sand under the pool, so for now its kind of a play area for the kids. A lot of our outside kid toys are back there. We'll see if it will turn into anything else.
We went to a birthday party today with the theme of Woody and Jessie from Toy Story - that's why there is a picture of the kids with Cowboy/girl hats on. They had a blast!
Its been 4 months since I began memorizing Philippians and I just finished chapter 3 a couple days ago. I usually go through the whole thing at least twice a week, but for some reason it didn't happen this past week and today when I tried to do it, I got caught up a few times. Kind of discouraging, but I guess that just means I need to review more often. I'm so excited about starting up a ministry called "Hidden in My Heart" this Fall. I've gotten the Pastor's ok, and I'm actually going to be the speaker at the Ladies Breakfast in September to kind of kick it off. God laid this ministry on my heart a few months ago, and I'm super pumped about it. Basically it will be an 8-week accountability group that encourages each other to memorize scripture. I'll talk about why we should learn scripture and also some tips on how to do it. I shared the first chapter of Phil with my small group a couple months ago and just this past Thursday I was so encouraged to hear that one of the girls in the group was challenged to begin memorizing James. Praise God! That is SO what I want to happen!! I hope God will use me to bring many in our church deeper into His word!!
Well, I finished making Zane's birth announcements the other day, so now I've got to get envelopes addressed. That way I'll just take the cards to the hospital to fill in the stuff I don't know yet :) and get them shipped out shortly after we're back home. I hadn't made any cards in so long, that it took quite awhile to get motivated to make them. I'm pretty happy with the way they turned out though.
The next time I post, I bet Zane will be walking or something....I'm so bad at this.
Later-
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
2012 - The first quarter
Ok, we we haven't quite gotten through the first quarter of the year, but its pretty close. This winter couldn't be any more different than last winter. We were pounded last year! Backing out of our driveway was a risk in itself w/ the van practically covered on each side. And then driving down our road - the two lane that became one. I remember thinking how huge the road was when the snow finally melted. This year we've barely seen any snow (however I did include a couple pics, just to prove there was some!). I think the kids have gone out to sled once or twice. They had a lot of fun, but talk about a mild winter! Not that I'm complaining, it's just been weird. I could never really figure out what month it was, since it has felt like March since the New Year. In my head I kept telling myself, "after the snow melts it will get warm and then we'll be close to welcoming Zane." Having no snow has thrown me off with that too. Luckily I came up with the idea of telling the kids, "when we get to the red flower on the calendar, then we'll be close to Zane's arrival." It's worked pretty well.
As far as the pregnancy goes, I feel like I'm gaining a ton of weight, though the Dr.'s don't seem concerned. I just know it will be even harder this time to get rid of it all. It is beginning to be more difficult turning over an night - it usually entails some sort of grunt. And often when I get out of bed, I have to limp to the kitchen before my hip settles a bit. All of this is very familiar though. I've really been treasuring up the moments that I have just laying down and watching my belly dance around. This morning Zane was really moving. I could see pokey things move across my stomach and feel all sorts of jumps and bonks. He is a mover. Hopefully he gets it out of his system now and will be laid back when he is born. I keep wondering if he is going to be bigger than Nora was. 9lb 2oz was plenty big, so I'm hoping not!! The kids are really excited about Zane. Aliza draws pictures of our family every day (no joke!) and Zane is almost always included. I love it :)
Eben had a sleepover at church with the Olympian group (our youth group) and went forward when they did an alter call. He did it last year too, but I was with him then, and I was pretty certain he didn't know what was going on. He just joined the crowd. So, last night Jared and I sat down with him and asked him what his certificate was all about. He didn't know what to say. It sounds like he just went along with the group again. We talked about what it meant and that he didn't have to go up unless he really wanted to. I think he has a better idea what it means to accept God's gift. For some reason he seemed on the verge of tears the whole talk. We aren't sure what that was about, unless he thought he was in trouble. We told him he wasn't, but he still had very glassy eyes. I know he is further along in his faith than I was at his age, and I love that! If we ever move from here, I will really miss the commitment our church has to children's ministry. I haven't seen anything like it before!
Just a few more weeks and Jen and her family are coming to visit!!! I'm so excited to see them, as are everyone else. The kids yell, "YAY" every time I remind them. They'll be here for Easter, so hopefully we can all go to the Easter Cantata at church and we'll also hit up the MOMS Club Easter Egg Hunt and Potluck! I hope its warmer than it was last year!! I won't say, "I'll fill you in on their visit next time," since I know how I am with this thing ;)
I guess that about wraps it up for now. The pregnancy pic included is me at 27 weeks. I'm 29 now, so only 11 to go. Almost to the single digits :)
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Michigan 12/11 Pics
Here are some pics from our trip to Michigan. Lots of family shots and some from our day trip to Double JJ water park. Lots of fun! We may have to do it again next year ;) Enjoy!
Sunday, January 8, 2012
The Trip Home...
I've decided to take a few minutes and relive the trip home from MI last week. It's not something I'm excited about doing because it was our worse trip yet. And unlike our 2nd worse trip (our first drive out to CT), this one was horrible due to things we could not control. Before I jump into the "trip tale", I'll say that it was nice to see family, as always. We enjoyed visiting, playing games, Jared and I got to catch a movie, we took the kids to a water park, and sat back to watch the kids have fun with their cousins whom they rarely see. Unfortunately, Jared felt like crap the just about the whole trip - having some sort of issue with his stomach lining, and we were all waiting with bated breath to see if we would get sick, as some of the family had, or get bit by Oscar. Jen and Craig's dog has taken a turn for the worse, and has become unpredictable when it comes to aggression, so they had to give him away. It will be strange not having him around anymore, even though truth be told I'm certainly not much of a dog person...or animal person for that matter.
Anyway, on to the trip...
Nothing like starting the day at 5AM, knowing it won't end until 10PM... or so we hoped... And what a thrilling way to imagine your 32nd birthday - poor Jared. Spending 17 hrs in the car with the kids isn't really the best birthday gift. However, we did enjoy some Little Debbie cakes on the road and sang Happy Birthday. Since it was Jared's birthday, you would have thought I'd have jumped right in and started driving, but somehow that didn't happen, and he got stuck driving the first part of the trip, which was one of the worst! Slow traveling until south of Grand Rapids. All in all, it took us about 5 hrs to get out of MI - that put us an hr behind already, and it was only 10AM :( Ohio wasn't too bad, though we did get some white-out conditions here and there. Nothing too bad. Pennsylvania - oh Pennsylvania.... now THAT is a whole different ball game.... If I don't set foot in PN for years it will be too soon (and I know for a fact we'll be there in 6 months, so what's the point of that statement...) Although we figured roads would get better and snow would cease, we had lots of slow moving traffic, bad visibility on and off and then there were the stand-stills. Our first one lasted about 1 1/2hrs. By the insane number of emergency vehicles it was clear that there had been a bad accident (new reports we checked out later revealed an 18-20 car pile-up!! Amazingly no one was killed!) We sat patiently for awhile, wondering how long it would last. Nora had to go to the bathroom, so we got the little potty out and she went. I dumped it on the side of the road. After some time had passed, Aliza informs us that, "something sneaked out into her panties". I asked if it was pee and she said "no". Oh bother. I walked around the van, climbed in and stripped on her pants and underwear, then proceeded to put her on the little potty (thank-you Jesus I brought that!!!). It was rancid and didn't take long to stink up the car. The only clothes available were the dirty ones from the day before, so that's what she got to wear. By now my pregnant bladder is feeling very full and I'm guessing the opportunity for a real toilet would not be presenting itself any time soon. So, joy of joys, I tell the kids to look out the window while I proceed to gracefully attempt to go to the bathroom in the little potty too. It was not a pretty picture, nor did it smell good since I had yet to dump out Aliza's runny deposit. Just so you know, squatting over a tiny potty doesn't work, you basically have to be on your knees. Oh, it was dreadful. And then I had to get up. I felt like I was in a movie with Clark Griswold... After getting myself together, I emerged from the van to dump the disgusting contents of the little potty over the guard rail on the side of the road. nasty. That's all I can say. nasty. I cleaned the toilet with some wipes and finally sat back down in my seat. Before long we see an older lady walking along the side of the road (don't look over the guard rail, I'm thinking!!). She begins walking into the woods in her heals, only to stop much too soon to be in any kind of cover. I guess she didn't care at that point. We chuckled and noticed the ladies in the car next to us were getting a kick out of it too. I'm glad they couldn't see me in our car... A little over an hr passed and finally someone started coming car to car to tell us to turn around and make our way to the other side of the highway and take a detour. It could be 2-3 hrs before the accident was cleared (later we found out it took 8hrs!!) So finally we were back on the road - frustrated, but moving. We stopped for dinner hoping the stops were now behind us. We were wrong. The next stop was for 1/2 hr, no snow on the road, no snow coming down, no idea why it was happening. We were very frustrated by this point. Again, we finally got moving again, only to get stopped yet again (still in Penn!!). Luckily this time it was only for 10 minutes, but the fact that we were stopped once more on the highway put us over the edge. Jared told me next Christmas I could fly home and he'd stay home with the kids. It was not a pretty scene. When we FINALLY left Penn, our GPS told us we would not get home until after 1:30AM. All said and done, we spent 9 hrs in Pennsylvania. Ridiculous! The kids were sleeping by then, but of course Nora had to do her thing and wake up every 1/2 hr or so and cry. I was in the passenger seat, so it was up to me to console her and try to get her back to sleep. That got old fast! We ended up getting home at 1:40AM, 20 HOURS AFTER WE LEFT!! Worse trip ever. And now it is recorded to remember forever :) Aren't you glad you only had to suffer reading about it!!
Oh, and before I go, it must be said that the long trip did bring about something wonderful - its when Jared came up with the name of our next baby - Zane Thomas. It means God is gracious. Through that trip, and in the lives of our healthy children, God has truly been gracious!!
I'll get some pics posted later this week from our trip.
Anyway, on to the trip...
Nothing like starting the day at 5AM, knowing it won't end until 10PM... or so we hoped... And what a thrilling way to imagine your 32nd birthday - poor Jared. Spending 17 hrs in the car with the kids isn't really the best birthday gift. However, we did enjoy some Little Debbie cakes on the road and sang Happy Birthday. Since it was Jared's birthday, you would have thought I'd have jumped right in and started driving, but somehow that didn't happen, and he got stuck driving the first part of the trip, which was one of the worst! Slow traveling until south of Grand Rapids. All in all, it took us about 5 hrs to get out of MI - that put us an hr behind already, and it was only 10AM :( Ohio wasn't too bad, though we did get some white-out conditions here and there. Nothing too bad. Pennsylvania - oh Pennsylvania.... now THAT is a whole different ball game.... If I don't set foot in PN for years it will be too soon (and I know for a fact we'll be there in 6 months, so what's the point of that statement...) Although we figured roads would get better and snow would cease, we had lots of slow moving traffic, bad visibility on and off and then there were the stand-stills. Our first one lasted about 1 1/2hrs. By the insane number of emergency vehicles it was clear that there had been a bad accident (new reports we checked out later revealed an 18-20 car pile-up!! Amazingly no one was killed!) We sat patiently for awhile, wondering how long it would last. Nora had to go to the bathroom, so we got the little potty out and she went. I dumped it on the side of the road. After some time had passed, Aliza informs us that, "something sneaked out into her panties". I asked if it was pee and she said "no". Oh bother. I walked around the van, climbed in and stripped on her pants and underwear, then proceeded to put her on the little potty (thank-you Jesus I brought that!!!). It was rancid and didn't take long to stink up the car. The only clothes available were the dirty ones from the day before, so that's what she got to wear. By now my pregnant bladder is feeling very full and I'm guessing the opportunity for a real toilet would not be presenting itself any time soon. So, joy of joys, I tell the kids to look out the window while I proceed to gracefully attempt to go to the bathroom in the little potty too. It was not a pretty picture, nor did it smell good since I had yet to dump out Aliza's runny deposit. Just so you know, squatting over a tiny potty doesn't work, you basically have to be on your knees. Oh, it was dreadful. And then I had to get up. I felt like I was in a movie with Clark Griswold... After getting myself together, I emerged from the van to dump the disgusting contents of the little potty over the guard rail on the side of the road. nasty. That's all I can say. nasty. I cleaned the toilet with some wipes and finally sat back down in my seat. Before long we see an older lady walking along the side of the road (don't look over the guard rail, I'm thinking!!). She begins walking into the woods in her heals, only to stop much too soon to be in any kind of cover. I guess she didn't care at that point. We chuckled and noticed the ladies in the car next to us were getting a kick out of it too. I'm glad they couldn't see me in our car... A little over an hr passed and finally someone started coming car to car to tell us to turn around and make our way to the other side of the highway and take a detour. It could be 2-3 hrs before the accident was cleared (later we found out it took 8hrs!!) So finally we were back on the road - frustrated, but moving. We stopped for dinner hoping the stops were now behind us. We were wrong. The next stop was for 1/2 hr, no snow on the road, no snow coming down, no idea why it was happening. We were very frustrated by this point. Again, we finally got moving again, only to get stopped yet again (still in Penn!!). Luckily this time it was only for 10 minutes, but the fact that we were stopped once more on the highway put us over the edge. Jared told me next Christmas I could fly home and he'd stay home with the kids. It was not a pretty scene. When we FINALLY left Penn, our GPS told us we would not get home until after 1:30AM. All said and done, we spent 9 hrs in Pennsylvania. Ridiculous! The kids were sleeping by then, but of course Nora had to do her thing and wake up every 1/2 hr or so and cry. I was in the passenger seat, so it was up to me to console her and try to get her back to sleep. That got old fast! We ended up getting home at 1:40AM, 20 HOURS AFTER WE LEFT!! Worse trip ever. And now it is recorded to remember forever :) Aren't you glad you only had to suffer reading about it!!
Oh, and before I go, it must be said that the long trip did bring about something wonderful - its when Jared came up with the name of our next baby - Zane Thomas. It means God is gracious. Through that trip, and in the lives of our healthy children, God has truly been gracious!!
I'll get some pics posted later this week from our trip.
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