4th of July

Okay, so I've been a little slow in updating. Saturday, of course, was the 4th
of July and we spent the bulk of the day at Kelly's house (well, I did.
Jeromy had to work until 6:00). There was quite a crowd and a lot of
food! We had a lot of fun hanging out, talking, and eating. Some people
went swimming, but I was having fun talking so I did not go there.

At around 6:00, we left Kelly's house to go to my mom's house for
fireworks. Andy bought a large amount of fireworks this year. Laura
says that the 4th is his Christmas. Here is a picture of all the fireworks he bought.



I really don't know if that is an accurate picture. It seemed so much more massive in person. After arriving at mom's house, Andy had to then transport it across the river that has formed in her backyard to the dry spot beyond it. Here is a picture of
him doing that.



It's hard to see, but the water, at times, came up to his knees. Well, we watched the fireworks and they were beautiful! The next day, I joined Mom, Kelly, Gail, Aunt Cindy, Aunt Judy, Uncle Jim, Jim and Jen in cleaning up Mom's backyard of all theshrapnel. It took us about 2 hours. Of course, then we ate.

Oh, Julie and Lee are making a video of the festivities. Once I get it I will see what I can do about posting it.

The Rain, Rain, Rain Came Down, Down Down...

Any Winnie the Pooh fans should recognize the song in the title. Just
imagine Pooh upside down in a honey pot being swept away by a flood.

We had that kind of rain last night. Much of Toledo is flooded. We are
lucky because our yard is so high that we are not much affected by the
rain. Our side yard is flooded and as a result our garage is probably
kind of wet, our pool is also filled to overflowing. But, other than
that, we are okay.

Mom's house is fine because of how high it is as well. But, she has a hill in her back yard and at the bottom is now a lake. It flooded so much her sandbox began to float away. Here is a picture of it in the neighbor's yard.



Kelly said the creek next to her house has
overflowed but has not affected her house either. However, the golf
course behind her house is flooded. I have not heard from Laura. I'm
sure their house is fine, but they live in Findlay which always floods.

A Trip to MaGee Marsh

This morning, Mom called to see if Jeromy and I would like to join her
and Alex as they traveled out to Crane Creek. So, they picked us up and
we began our trek out Rt. 2. Jeromy had the pleasure of sitting in the
backseat with Alex reading to him. (He is becoming a good little
reader.) Well, we soon discovered that Crane Creek no longer exists, it
is now simply calledMaGee Marsh.

While at the park we visited
the visitors center (Alex's favorite thing to do) and climbed to the
top of the observation tower. We also went for a walk on the boardwalk,
but it was really buggy so that didn't last long.

Afterwards, we drove back and went to eat at McDonald's. It was fun to get out of the house.

Here is a picture of Jeromy and Alex at the top of the observation tower (Alex said it was too sunny).

Update on Baby

Today we had to travel back to the Toledo Hospital to meet with Dr.
Gonzales (our Maternal Fetal Medicine doctor). I had taken the 1st
Trimester Screening Test two weeks ago. Essentially this involved an
ultrasound where the measured the baby and I had blood taken from my
fingertip. This test essentially tests forDowns Syndrome and other
(worse) varieties along the same lines. A normal score is 1/220 or
lower. My result was 1/210, which is abnormal. So, we had to go see Dr.
Gonzales.

He told us the same thing that Dr. Kanios (my OB/GYN)
had told me. Essentially, because I will be 35 when I deliver my score
is nothing to worry about. Actually, it is considered normal for my age
range. Dr. Gonzales was required to meet with us and talk about the
results. He told us about theamnio test, but we are not doing it (he actually did not encourage us to have it done).

An
unexpected benefit of today's visit was that we had another ultrasound.
They just wanted to check and make sure the baby was growing fine.
Everything checked out! So far so good! We are going back on August 18th for more tests (because of all my genetic issues) and an ultrasound to determine sex!

Very exciting!

Congratulations Dr. Jeromy!

On Saturday night Jeromy finally graduated from residency at St. Vincent's Mercy Medical Hospital in Toledo! I am so proud of him! His graduation was held at the Navy Bistro at The Docks overlooking Downtown Toledo. His mom, dad, and sister traveled up from Dayton to attend and my mom, sister Laura and Andy also attended. Life Flight did a fly-by over the Maumee River and we had a delicious meal. Jeromy earned one of the Research Awards. He thought this was funny because he absolutely hated doing the research and didn't work very hard on it.

To celebrate his graduation, we had a barbecue at our house yesterday. We ate a lot of good food (probably too much) and had a good time.

I am so proud of him!!!!

5th Anniversary Vacation!

Over the weekend, Jeromy and I went on vacation to Hocking Hills (that's in southern Ohio). It is a beautiful area with some intense hiking trails.

The vacation began on Wednesday when Laura picked me up to take me to her house. Jeromy was working at the Putnam County Hospital (outside Ottawa, about 20 minutes from Laura and Andy's house). I spent the night at Laura and Andy's and then Jeromy picked me up Friday morning.

Jeromy and I drove to Mt. Vernon where we met with one of his former professors. We ate lunch at a local Chinese restaurant and then gave him some supplies that our church collected for a mission trip he was going on. We then drove on to Logan, OH where Jeromy had rented us a cabin. On Friday, we went hiking all around the state park. Some of the trails were quite intense. I was proud because I never became physically tired. However, my asthma did act up quite often. After, a few trails we decided to stop. We decided that the asthma attacks were not good for either me or the baby.

On Saturday, Jeromy and I traveled to the nearby town of Nelsonville where we rode an old passenger train. We were able to see a lot of the countryside and learn some of the local history. We also went out to a nice restaurant for dinner because it was our 5th Anniversary. We had some difficulties finding a restaurant, but it all worked out in the end.

I became a little nervous early Sunday morning when I woke to some cramping. By morning they were not very intense. Jeromy and I decided to relax on Sunday (instead of going canoeing like originally planned). We spent the day in the cottage watching movies, playing pool and card games.

Early Monday morning, we headed home (after stopping for breakfast). Don't worry about the cramps. Halfway through Sunday I decided that they felt like an UTI. I called the doctor and she had me go in and get a urine test (we stopped at St. Charles on the way home). It did show that I have a bit of infection. While at St. Charles, Jeromy took me to the ER so he could do an ultrasound. Mom joined us so that she could also see the baby. She was very excited! So, don't worry everything looks fine! False alarm!

The Happening

Yesterday, Jeromy and I spent the whole day together. We went out to
breakfast and then shopping. We also decided that we would go see a
movie. We are big M. Night Shyamalan fans and we thought we would go see
his new movie The Happening. I should preface this by saying that I am not one to see horror movies and this is his first rated R movie. While watching the latest episode of Battlestar Galactica on Friday night I kept seeing previews of the movie that made it look very creepy.

Now,Jeromy really wanted to see it and I had wanted to but was very nervous
that I wouldn't sleep for a week. So, I made a deal with him. We had to
go in the middle of the day (so I would have enough time to calm down
before going to bed) and it had to be a day where he would be home over
night for a few days (so I wouldn't have to sleep in the house alone).

We went to the 1:55 showing and it wasn't as scary as I thought it would be (at least not any more suspenseful/scary then any of M. Night's other films). I would have to say that it was definitely more gory (a man lays down in front of a lawnmower- to name one incident) than any of his others. One disappointment for us is that
we enjoy M. Night Shyamalan films because they make you think. They
often make you think for days about what he is trying to say about
society or the world. This movie was not like that, you quickly catch
on to what his overarching message is. (Of course, it was not nearly
bad as the movie Crash, which I watched
Friday afternoon. You could be a total idiot and know what the message
of that film before five minutes were over).

All in all, I would suggest The
Happening if you like suspenseful movies. It does make you
think about whether or not it could truly happen (scary thought!).

Everyone is Zooin' It

Yesterday, Jeromy and I packed up Elena and Alex and headed to the zoo. Kelly met us shortly after we arrived with Makenzie
in tow. We had a lot of fun, but it was very hot! The kids started
falling apart about half-way through the zoo. We decided that the
benefit of having memberships is that we can leave and see the rest of
the zoo another day.

Today, Kelly and Monny had to go to a funeral so I was left in charge of the kids again. It was raining, so we stayed inside to play Wii
and then watched a movie (Aunt Traci's house is without toys currently
since we already packed them and put them in storage at Grandma's
house).

After the movie we ran some errands to the bank and post
office and the we went to McDonald's so they can play. I think everyone
had that idea because it was crowded and there were many annoying
children whose parents weren't paying attention. We left McDonald's and
went to Grandma's house (they are spending the night with her since
Kelly has to work). Since it had finally stopped raining I made them
play outside on their bikes. All in all it was an enjoyable day!

A Fun Night with Alex and Elena

Kelly had to work tonight so I agreed to babysit the kids over night. They came over around 2:00 and played Wii
(always an adventure). Shortly after Kelly left, the kids and I went
swimming. Then, they were starving (at least that's what Elena said),
so we called Grandma and picked her up and headed to Burger King. After
dinner, we took food to Uncle Jeromy and dropped Grandma off so she
could go to work. Alex had ate A LOT of food so I thought it would be
wise if he worked some of it off, so we went to the playground at Coy
Elementary. Here are a couple pictures from the fun:




We returned to my house and Alex once again played Wii (he loves that thing). Then we watched Scooby Doo and then they went to bed.

There
will probably be more news tomorrow since Uncle Jeromy and I are taking
them to the zoo. Elena has been looking forward to the trip almost all
week!

Weekend Happenings!

You would think from the title that a lot happened this weekend, but
actually it didn't. On Friday, I had to have a 3 hour glucose test (I
failed the 1 hour). According to Jeromy I barely passed with a C-. My
OB said that if I failed I would have to see a dietitian. Jeromy thinks she still may send me to a dietitian with my score. Oh well...we'll see.

After
the test, I met up with Mom and we headed out shopping and then to
Kelly's house. We all went to Alex's t-ball game and then to dinner at
Burger King. Afterwards, when I had arrived home, a huge storm hit! It
wasn't too bad here in Oregon, but a tornado hit close to Laura's house
and near the hospital where Jeromy was working that night! Scary!

I honestly don't remember what we did on Saturday. Oh well!

Sunday
was a bit more exciting. Jeromy, Michelle and I went out to dinner at
Tony Packos and then to a Toledo Mud Hens game. Our
church had reserved about 120 tickets, so we had a nice sized group at
the game. We had a lot of fun, but it did start to get a little boring
toward the end. We lost the game to the Columbus Clippers.

A Few Interesting Happenings

First of all...two of my sisters finally joined the ranks of bloggers everywhere. To check out their blogs click on the links in the column to the right. Welcome Kelly and Laura! I could use the help!

Second...Today
was the last day of school! (at least with kids) The funny thing was
that we had a two hour delay today because of all the fog. It messed up
our exam schedule, but that's okay. We still finished them, I just
didn't have as much time in the afternoon to grade them.

Third...We met with Mark Rigg
(our builder) on Monday. The price for our house came in just where
Jeromy wanted it. So, I still get my pool (what would I do all summer
without a pool?) Anyways, the truly exciting news is that Mark said he
can begin building when we sign the papers and officially own the land.
That's in about 2-3 weeks! Crazy! Hopefully, if all goes well, we will
be able to move in well before the baby comes.

Lastly...This is
really cool...I went to St Charles today to have Jeromy perform an
ultrasound. It was neat to have him actually doing the ultrasound. The
equipment in the ER is not as good as at my OB, but we were able to
make out a shiny blob and see the blob move. That, to me, is a good
sign that things are going well. At least the little peapod is holding on.

Please Be in Prayer...

Shortly after I wrote my last post, around 11 a.m., Grandpa George passed away. Garnetta said he was gone within 10 minutes of them finally removing the BiPap
machine. The funeral is this Friday at 2 p.m. with visitation at 1 p.m.
They did not think Grandma could handle a longer visitation and they
are probably right. Please be in prayer for Jeromy's family, especially
his grandma, we are not sure if she even understands what has happened.

Jeromy's Grandpa

On Thursday night, we received a phone call from Jeromy's mom informing us that his grandpa was being admitted to the hospital with pneumonia. His grandpa has been very sick for the past four years. In February? of 2004 he was in a serious accident where a semi truck ran a red light and hit his minivan as he was turning left. At that time, we thought he would not make it. But, God healed him. Since that time he has been in and out of the hospital. After his last bout in the hospital Aunt Jo and Garnetta decided that they would order a DNR. So now that brings us to today.

Garnetta called us yesterday morning to tell us that it wasn't looking good. Without tubing him and placing him on a ventilator he would probably pass away either Monday or Tuesday. Obviously, Jeromy wanted to be down in Dayton with his family. So I headed to Clay to prepare my things for a substitute for the next two days, we packed, and then headed down the road.

When we arrived, Aunt Jo, Grandma, and Jamie were leaving after a long hard day. Grandma is also sick and she had been there for about six hours. Grandpa was awake but unresponsive the entire time we were there. We stayed until about 9:30 p.m. (with a short dinner break). Before leaving we learned that the doctor wanted to take him off his BPAP machine. By doing this, it would not be much longer before he passed. Garnetta decided (after Jamie called Aunt Jo) that we would wait to remove the machine when Grandma could be there in the morning.

So, that's where we are now. I am out in the waiting room because the room was too crowded. Jeromy said he would let me know if anything happened....As I wrote that Jamie came out to bring me some milk. She said the doctor hasn't even been in yet. So, we are still waiting.

We're Pregnant!

Believe it or not...WE'RE PREGNANT! We have kept it a secret because of past history. On some level we are still nervous, but I feel more confident now and definitely excited! At this time we are due on December 21st. So we are having a Christmas baby! The ultrasound picture was taken yesterday. The little balloon thingy is what is left of the yolk sac. Isn't it amazing clearly you can see the head when it is only an inch long?

Please keep us in your prayers as we are still very early in our pregnancy!

Evolution of a Playset

Yesterday, Jeromy and I went to Kelly's house early in the morning to put together their new playset. Okay, it wasn't that early, but around 10:00. Anyways, Jeromy and Monny worked on it all day with short breaks for lunch, dinner, and Alex's t-ball game. After about six hours of working (this does not include the breaks) it is still not finished. Jeromy is planning on going over tomorrow to at least put the slide together. Here are some pictures from the day. As you can tell, Alex and Elena spent a lot of time supervising.





Hopefully I will soon have pictures of the completed project to share!