A break...

Our home was broken into. It's a long story...ugh, but one of the things they took was my Mac. My sweet, sweet Mac Book. Heart broken. :(

So, I am not able to really blog until I get another one. This is Jason's computer and he has to use it for work or something...whatever.

Until then,

ADIOS!

A week of Thankfulness and Cowboys

My first full week without Jason ended up not being all that bad. I have enjoyed some down time and cuddling with baby Madi. What a gift she is. I find myself savoring every moment with this baby girl since it's my last baby (yay, no more morning sickness EVER again). Now that I am feeling so much better, I am able to have a much better perspective on life. Funny how that happens. I still need to make a hair appointment to complete my new found "mood", but nonetheless, I'm happy. ;-)

I'm so thankful this week for:

My MIL who picked up the kids for me this week.
a good baby dr. appointment
meals brought by our amazing friends.
Jason, who I am so in love with more than ever.
a visit from Breanna. :)
lunch out with Jenn.
my occasional glass of iced tea.
my iPhone that keeps me occupied in the middle of the night.
the Word. What a gift.
God's provision.

And last, but not least...
My cowboy (who actually said in this picture, "Does this pose make me look awesome?")




and cowgirl. :)

It's been a good week.

2 weeks old

Today Madison is 2 weeks old. Wow, 2 weeks. That went by fast. There isn't much that has changed since she was born, but we are enjoying every minute of it.

Madison..
has such a sweet disposition.
wants to eat ALL the time.
sleeps wonderfully!!
hates having her diaper changed.
is very alert and loves looking around.
was born 9 lbs. 1 oz, weighed in at 8 lbs 5 oz a week later and gained it all back (and more) at 9 lbs 7 oz! Made mommy very happy. :)

We love, love, love her! I am feeling great too. The c-section kicked my butt the first week and a half, but I'm feeling really good now. I have lost 30 lbs already. I gained 32. I need to lose about 20 more. I'm not stressing though. I was just glad to see that 30 lbs come off!

Madison's Baby Dedication

My first big outing was Sunday to have Madison dedicated. I felt well enough to drive and because Jason had to be there at 7am to work, I had no choice anyway. Ha. I somehow managed to get all 3 kids ready AND got there on time. Hallelujah! However, it took me 3 hours. No joke.

Once again, I am so blessed to have a an amazing mother-in-law who also happens to take amazing pictures. She captured the most beautiful moments. I'm so glad I will always have these memories.

We are so lucky to work at a place where we can call each other family. Sean is not only our pastor, but our friend...(also know as "Uncle Sean" to Jack and Reagan). You can't tell he loves babies or anything. ;-)


Psalm 22:10
"From the day I was born
I have been in your care,
and from the time of my birth
you have been my God."

Happy Valentine's Day

The first time I saw you I knew it was true.
That I'd love you forever and that's what I'll do.

Love,

The Powers Family

My Sunday Song: #2 & 3

I missed last week and this Sunday. I had a baby though, so have some grace with me. :)

I figured I'd just post 2 songs to catch up. I have a soft spot for country music. I grew up on country music. My mom has always worked in billboard or media type advertising and was always getting free tickets to the Houston Rodeo. We saw George Strait, Reba, Garth Brooks, Martina McBride and more. I remember sitting in the legendary Astrodome in Houston and being amazed at how many people would come to see one guy sing. There is always something very familiar & comfortable to me when I listen to country music. There is some that I can't stand, but then there is some I love. I definitely can be picky about country music and what I usually fall for are the lyrics more than it just "sounding good" or being "catchy".

This post is the SAME song, but sung by 2 different artists. Jason loves Garth Brooks' version. I love me some Garth Brooks, but I really love how Trisha Yearwood does this song too. And of course, it's on the Hope Floats movie soundtrack and because I adore that movie, it makes it all the more lovely. Truly, I would listen to both on repeat over and over again. It's fun to know that Bob Dylan wrote this song too. It gets 5 stars from me.

Which one do you like?

Trisha Yearwood

Garth Brooks

Kuddos to Mommy & Daddy

We somehow just managed to get all 3 kids down for a nap...at the same time.
This is our first major accomplishment as parents of 3.

Good things.

I figure that I need to remind myself of all the good things. Here are my random thoughts.

Yesterday my MIL came over and did all my laundry.

Reagan wasn't whiny.

Jackson had a great Valentines party at school.

Jenn made us a fabulous meal and I ate well over what I should have.

My house has stayed relatively clean.

I watched American Idol.

I laughed hysterically at the Valentines episode of The Office.

Madi continues to be a great baby.

I'm somehow getting in 7 hours of sleep at night. Praise the Lord in Heaven.

I am thankful for my iPhone that gets me through feedings at 2:30 in the morning.

Jesus is still on the throne. :)

Really now? Come on!

When Reagan got sick on Sunday and then told that she was positive for the flu, I knew that it was going to be a hard week on everyone. When our car battery died immediately after that appointment at sonic AND we had to spend money on a brand new one, I took a deep breath and swallowed my pride. But when Jason came home today with the flu, I just wanted to sit in a corner, eat fudge and watch "Beaches" over and over again. I mean for real. I didn't just have a baby or anything.

I know that I am complaining and I know that it I definitely seems like I am throwing a pity-party over here. Okay, I probably am. I just really want my family to be healthy. I had visions of the kids going to school this week and enjoying some time with hubby and Madison. Poor Jason is now sick and in bed. I know that next week it will all be over (please, Lord) and that I'll look at this post and criticize myself for being "faithless", but for now I am just going to be real and say that I don't like it. I don't like it one bit.

However, I am immediately reminded of 3 things as I write this.

1. It's not that bad and I am a big baby.

2. "Psalm6:6 I am weary with my groaning." This was in my daily bible reading today and sounds a lot like me. ;) It encourages me though that King David was pouring out his heart in tears to God. He was honest before God. He cried out to God. But in that He wasn't a victim of circumstance, instead He turned his attention toward Jesus....and that always changes our perspective.

and

3. Well, this just says it all.


3.

Madison's Birth Story: Part 2

Our stay at the hospital went great. It's a totally different recovery process with a c-section. Nursing was different, my diet was different in the beginning and I really wanted to take a shower, but had to wait 24 hours. Our nurses were awesome though. I don't know how they do it! When the Dr. asked me when I'd like to go home from the hospital, I didn't hesitate to say that I wanted to stay 2 nights and then go home on Friday. Because I was doing so well with my recovery, he granted my wish and we got home late Friday. Our first night home went wonderfully. Madison slept every 2-3 hours, woke up for me to feed her and went right back to sleep. That has never happened before in the history of newborns. Well, at least in our house. They also still had me on Vicodin and 800 mg of Motrin, so I was feeling pretty spiffy. It felt very strange to be a family of 5 the next day and all Jason and I could think about was how blessed we were and how we would have 2 weddings to pay for. Ha! No, but for real...2 weddings..

The weekend went well. I started crying from the pain on Saturday and thought that I should have never left the hospital. ha ha. But I survived. :) I had help on Sunday from 2 amazing, beautiful friends. Jenn and Lauri split up the day on Sunday and came over to take care of me while Jason went to church. Lauri even vacuumed and folded my laundry! I was happy to see that none of Jason's underwear were in the mix! ;) Reagan ended up staying home with me because she had a fever, but she sure loved hanging out with 2 of her favorite ladies ever. At one point she told me to close my eyes and go sleep so she could hang out with Jenn alone. She really loves me. A LOT. Unfortunately Reagan got worse that night and was diagnosed with the flu on Monday morning. She was at the end of it though and there isn't much you can do for that anyway since it is a virus. I ended up going to stay at my Mom's Monday because we wanted to be sure it was all cleared out. I probably didn't have to go, but it actually gave me a night to kind of rest. I watched The Bachelor, threw up in my mouth a little (because he is such an idiot) and then went to sleep. That's a separate post though and I know...I can't believe I watch that show either..

I also prayed over Madison, our family and was able to gain a fresh perspective. When Reagan was born Jackson came down with a vicious stomach flu 4 days after she was born. It was so hard. I can't believe that we have another sick child with a newborn! Ugh. I am just so glad it's not vomiting!

I am feeling a lot better. A c-section is a different deal for sure. It's major surgery for crying out loud. I have had good days and really bad days. I'm past the bad days though. My staples are out, I'm walking better and I'm staying on top of the pain with meds. I wasn't doing very well at that because I tend to think I'm super woman or something. I still can't believe that it all happened that way, but it did and I have a healthy baby girl. One day I'll share what happened with the surgery, but for now I'll save it and spare the drama. ;)

We have been overwhelmed with meals, gifts, diapers, love, encouragement, prayers and well wishes. I have NEVER been so thankful in my life. I am so humbled by what God has given us. I told Jason that I feel so grownup when I think of us as parents of 3. That makes no sense whatsoever, but it just hit me that we are like...grownups or something. ;)

Madison is truly an amazing baby. We are seriously blown away by her beauty and how peaceful she is. I keep saying it and I'll say it again...

Thank you, Lord!

Madison's Birth Story: Part 1

Well, things are never not adventurous around this place! I figured I'd let you know how everything is going, but I needed to start with how it all started. Madison's birth. :) So, sit back and enjoy. I am not sure if people really like reading these things, but if I don't write it down, then I'll forget how things went in 5 years. At least I'll have this!

Last Monday I went in for my Dr. appointment to make sure everything was good to go with the baby since I hadn't had her yet. While we were listening to her heartbeat we realized that it was in a different place. My Dr. began feeling around and was pretty sure he felt the head near my rib cage! We did a quick sonogram and it was definitely her head. In the meantime, he told us that he would like to try and turn her. It was a procedure that can be successful, but definitely had some risks involved. He scheduled us to come in at 5:30am on Wednesday morning to see if we could turn her. We left that day with instructions to pray, do some exercises and pray some more. I seriously love that my Dr. believes in prayer. Tuesday night came around, the kids were staying with their grandparents and we decided to go on a "last" date. That night I felt pretty sure that I did not want to go through with the procedure, but I knew that could end up in a c-section and I REALLY did not want to have one. I kept praying and before we went to bed that night we both decided that we would just trust that Jesus knew what was best. In my heart, I am pretty sure God was just teaching me to trust and not to pray for a specific outcome. Around 1am I woke up with contractions. They hurt pretty bad, but were 15 min apart. I got up and walked around, knelt beside my bed and did some breathing exercises and waited. At 4am I woke up Jason and told him I was calling the Dr to ask what I should do since I knew she could still be breech. They weren't stopping and were about 10 min apart at the time. My Dr said to take a shower and head in. When we got to the hospital I was already 4 cm and the baby was coming. We arrived at 5am and in about 20 min I was told that I would have to have a c-section and very quickly. I started FREAKING OUT.

Now...okay, I know that women do this every day, but I have never even had stitches! I was scared out of my mind. I couldn't even ask questions. I didn't know what to ask and they kept asking me a million questions. Finally, I got calmed down enough when I realized that this WAS really happening. The anesthesiologist came in about 5 min later, told me what was going to happen, how I would feel and that I was in good hands. I breathed a little deeper, said okay, cried a few tears and was wheeled into the OR. For real, this all happened by 5:45am. Insanity, I tell you!

So here is where I will stop with my story about the rest of my c-section. I stop only because there were a few scary things that happened after that and I don't want to scare any first time mommas! :) I ended up being put under general anesthesia and didn't get to experience seeing Madison or hearing her cry. Poor Jason had to be out of the room as well when that happened, but did get to see her immediately after. She was born at 6:27am. (an hour and half later...whoa that happened fast!)

Fast forward: I woke up in the recovery room totally out of it. I asked "where is my baby" like 8 million times. Ha! One good thing was that I had NO bad side effects from the spinal or the anesthesia. I felt great afterward. Just a little loopy and I had the shakes pretty bad. I had that with my first 2 babies as well. That part is always so annoying! Jason was able to spend time with her in the nursery and came back with beautiful pics of her. I was so relieved and so happy that it was all over. When I finally got moved into the L&D room they brought Madi to me. The pics you see on my previous post are actually those first moments. Bre was able to be in there when that happened. I cried when I saw Madison. It felt like such a long time and I had been so anxious to see what she looked like and to give her sweet kisses. The whole c-section thing was so crazy for me anyway, so it was truly an emotional moment. By the way, I ended up naming her, but Jason felt at perfect peace with her name as well!

The rest of our hospital stay was awesome and we have nothing, but great things to say about North Central Baptist Hospital and it's staff. Madison is a true JOY. She is such a beautiful baby and has an amazingly calm disposition.

God is so good.

More to come....:)

Madison Joy

Madison Joy Powers
February 2, 2011
9 lbs 1 oz, 21 inches

Thank you Jesus for ALL you have done for us!!!

Another baby post

I realize that all I talk about these days is being pregnant, but I figure I can get away with it at 40 weeks pregnant. :)

We went to the Dr yesterday and found out some surprising (and not so exciting) news. Baby Girl is BREECH. Ugh. There are different options I am weighing right now. The Dr can try to move her around, I could get a c-section or I could wait and see if she turns. I am already overdue though, so waiting seems like a crazy thought, but so does a c-section. I've never had one before and the thought of it terrifies me. I absolutely realize that people have to do that every day and they are perfectly fine. I am just a baby. ;-)

Right now, we are praying. When we left the appointment yesterday our Dr told us to get a prayer chain going (he knows we are pastors) and to get this baby moving on her own!! We have so many people praying for us and I have such a peace about the whole thing. I have been doing different exercises to encourage baby to move on her own. I can't tell if she has moved or not. The only thing I haven't tried is laying upside down on an ironing board, propped up against the couch. Ha! (It really is recommended)

So, we wait! And we wait. I will go in Wednesday morning and see if the baby has turned. I have a feeling that we are going to be in for a ride with this one. I'm sure that when she's 16 I'll be on my knees in prayer for other things too.

In other news, look at this girl. She is a mess. M.E.S.S. She is something else, I tell you.Don't let this picture full you. That face says, " leave me alone, I'm eating."

This week she told me:

"I am the boss. You are the mommy."
"Okay, you can get out of that chair now so I can sit there..."

While talking to her baby dolls:

"You were a bad girl today. You did not listen to the momma". (Yes..."TO THE MOMMA")

She may be a mess, but she is our mess. Her sweet side comes out every once in awhile too....:)