update

Jenn, I'm glad to hear things are improving healthwise for the grandparents. I hope the rest of you are doing well. Things are fine here. I'm still in Ohio and it's been nice being with family. Josh is working all the time, so I really appreciate havig other people to hang out with while he's working. I feel like I never see him. He'll be in Columbus in August and I will only get to see him on weekends. I'm dreading that rotation. But, then we'll be back in Tulsa and his ER rotation in September should be quite a bit lighter. He just has to work like 15 12 hour shifts throughout the month and he'll have the other days off. Which will be nice because I will be needing him quite a bit that month as I will be ready to pop and we've still got a few things to do before baby #2 comes. The pregnancy is going well for the most part. All seems to be quite healthy. I'm still having a kind of rough time with nausea. It's lasting a lot longer with this baby than it did with Seth. But the worst thing recently has been back pain. I seem to have damaged the muscles in my lower back and it just won't get better. Dad and Josh gave me a cortizone injection last week and it helped, but then the muscles got inflamed again a few days later. There's nothing else I can do medically. So, dad has me on complete bedrest until it heals because it's been so bad that I can't walk or stand up. This happened when I was pregnant with Seth a couple times too but it healed in about 4 days and I'm going on 2 weeks this time. According to dad, my bones are splitting apart in my hips and lower back to make room for baby and this is causing my muscles and tendons to stretch beyond their capacity and get inflamed which causes crippling pain. Ah... the joys of motherhood! Anyways, I don't mean to bore you guys with my complaining. I only mention it because I would actually really appreciate your prayers that the back pain heals and goes away. It's not such a big deal right now, but I'll be in trouble if I'm still struggling with this when I have to go home because I can't lift Seth at all. My mom is basically taking care of Seth 100% right now, but I'll be more on my own in September. Daniel's girlfriend has offered to come stay with us and help with Seth if I'm still on bedrest in September, but I hate to ask her to do that. Plus, I just miss being able to hold my baby and cuddle with him and take care of him. Seth's been acting wierd the last few days and I think it's because he doesn't understand why mommy isn't taking care of him anymore. It hurts my heart. I was hoping to really be able to give him some special attention this summer since the baby's coming and he'll have to start sharing me soon. But now I can't even give him a hug. Anyways, your parayers are appreciated. I miss you guys and hope to hear some updates from all of you soon. Love you!

another update

thanks for all your prayers ladies, they are making a difference! Grandma is home and doing very well. She is able to drive once again. The angiogram is scheduled for thursday afternoon. Grandpa is still in the hospital and will remain there until thursday. He will see an infectious disease specialist friday in Iowa City. The antibiotics are making a slight difference still. Hopefully my next blog will be a report that everyone is home and doing well!

update on grandparents

Grandma went home yesterday! Grandpa though, is still in the hospital. They have ruled out a blood clot in his leg at the site of the infection and his white blood cell count is lowering little by little. On the flip side, they are doing an ultrasound today to see if the infection has spread to his stomach. He is still bed-ridden and had another fever last night. Keep praying!

praying

Hey girls! I just wanted to let Angie and jen know I'm praying for you guys. Angie, I'm so sorry for your loss. I'm glad you were able to get to spend timed time with family. I'm sure that meant a lot to them too. Let us know if you need anything at all. Jen, I'll be praying for both of your grandparents' quick recovery as well as for your family as they deal with the situation. It can be awfully tiring to be there to meet all the needs when loved ones are in the hospital. I'll pray for you all to have extra energy and peace. Keep us posted on how the grandparents are doing. Love you guys!

grandpa's turn

Now both grandma and grandpa are in the hospital. At least they placed them just across the hall from each other. Grandpa was admitted Saturday when he started shaking violently due to a fever spike to 103. They are unsure where the infection is, but are keeping him on 24 hour antibiotics. Meanwhile, Grandma has a nuclear stress test this afternoon. If all goes well with that, she could go home tonight. My mother is there this week taking care of both of them.
Oh, and my parents were named citizens of the year in Waterman, IL this weekend :)
Angie, so sorry for your loss. I'm glad you were able to make it to visit with the family after all. Those times can be quite precious.
much love,
Jen

Weekend Whirlwind

Hey girls... I wanted to update you on the latest in my life.
Unfortunately my grandmother passed away this past Thursday, which put our whole family into a whirlwind for the weekend. Because of Amish things I don't entirely understand, we were under the impression that the grandchildren were not invited to the funeral. We were allowed to go to the viewing, but with it being in Indiana a lot of us did not think it would be worth the trip for only a couple of hours with the family, etc... I had planned to go anyway and spend the day out there on Sunday, and drive home on Monday when the funeral was. Well... Last minute they decided to bump the funeral till Saturday. Unfortunately I had plans Friday night that I felt I couldn't get out of and thus had decided to not go at all. Well, my whole family went out Friday morning and I felt bad that I couldn't be there. Friday night at 7pm they called me and told me to fly out Saturday morning so I could at least spend time with the family after the funeral on Saturday. So after getting home at 3:30am on Saturday morning I packed, slept for an hour, and left for the airport at 5am. I am so glad I went. The time with my family and especially with my grandfather was priceless. He is doing well, coping well, and already looking for things to keep him busy. Please keep my family in your prayers as we all adjust to the change. It was not a sudden death, she had been dealing with tumors in her body for a couple of months and there was not much the doctors could do for her. We are all sad for the loss, but are rejoicing that she is in heaven and no longer in pain.
I returned home Sunday and now I am back to work.
Thank you all for your prayers and support. I miss you all.
Jen - I will be praying for your grandmother.

gramms

Hey girls, keep my grandma in your prayers. She went in the hospital Sunday with pain in her abdomen which they determined to be gall stones. Wednesday evening she had surgery to remove the gall bladder. In recovery, she had a minor heart attack. Hopefully today she will be moved out of the CCU and into her own room, providing her condition improves. I'm hopeful that she will recover and then we can continue finding out where the blockage is in her heart. It's really hard on grandpa, so also pray for him please... the man doesn't know how to make coffee, use the microwave, etc, etc. He just wants to take her home and asks for that every 5 minutes. Their names are Gerald and Marian (nicknamed 'Red' and 'Pat'). Thanks girls, love you all!

missing you!

Hey girls! I'm missing you all a whole bunch. Nothing is as much fun after being with all my girls for the weekend. I hope you've all been having a good week. Steph, I can't wait to see your dress! I'm sorry your location didn't work out. I'm sure you'll find something else that will be great. =) Congrats Jen on your new nephew. Very exciting! I'm glad you're having fun in San Diego Jamie. All is fine here. I've been in Ohio and it's been nice. Josh has been working 15 hour days and every weekend, so I'm thankful that I have some family to keep me company and help out with Seth. It's been pretty relaxing for me because there are so many people wanting to play with Seth and mom has been getting up with him in the mornings a lot so I get to sleep in. Very nice! =) It's kind of hard not having our own place and I have to admit that I struggle a bit with living in a house that I can't keep as organized and clean as I like. (Two of my brothers are still living at home and nobody in the family seems to enjoy order and cleanliness quite as much as I do, so keeping things clean enough for my taste is pretty much a lost cause and I don't have the energy for it). But at least I'm not really lonely like I would be in Tulsa. =) Seth is doing well and loving all of his family in Ohio. He seems to prefer his grandmas over me and I'm not sure how I feel about that. He never just wants to cuddle with me anymore and he cries for my mom. I'm afraid he's going to go through withdrawal when we have to leave and he'll be upset that he's stuck with me. Oh well, at least I'm getting a break for now. Well, I'd better get some sleep. Love you girls!

A dress

Hi everyone!
I hope this finds you all doing well! I haven't had a chance to post any of the pictures that I had wanted to from the weekend, but I have a goal to get that done this week!
Just some updates on the wedding...we didn't get our deposit in on time for our place, so we are starting from square one. I can't tell you how frustrated I am that people charge so much for these places. We really need your prayers to find another one in our price range soon.
Better news, though, is that I bought my dress yesterday! I spent a total of two hours at David's Bridal yesterday and found "it" as well as bridesmaids dresses. SO that's a big checkmark of my list. Again, I have pics of that, too, but haven't downloaded them yet.
I'd love to know how life is for you all, so email or post a blog!
Love you all!

Yippee!

Yeah! Congrats Aunt Jen. Sounds like a beautiful baby boy. I can't wait to see pictures.

I so enjoyed seeing you all this past weekend! I don't know if I can even express how much your friendship means to me. :) Thank you thank you thank you! I will try and keep this up a bit more this year.

Nick and I are in San Diego right now, and we must have a reunion here someday! This city is absolutly amazing. :) The conference that I am attending is a lot of fun for me. Nick calls it "Geek Fest 2006". There are a lot of techies here, but they are all teachers. It is so great to be among people to aren't afraid to use techonolgy. :)

Well...I hope you are all adjusting after this weekend. I love you lots!

PS. Could you all email or post your current address and your and your hubby's birthday and anniversery? I will put together a sheet for you all and send it to you! :)

Aunt Jen

I'm an official Auntie! Bailey Christopher Duncan was born at 12:30 this afternoon. He's 8 lbs, 4 oz, has dark hair, and likes to scream. I'll get to meet him tonight! The labor went very well for my sister-in-law, Carol. She went from 5cm to 10cm in about 45 minutes and didn't have to push very long. Julie, I'm praying your second one happens like that! I'll sent pictures out soon!
Thanks for the great weekend, girls. I had a blast!