We had a follow-up echocardiogram yesterday at Brenners. It went as well as can be expected.
The doctor saw a couple of tiny holes between the chambers of the heart. Typically in a Trisomy 18 baby they expect to see a very large hole. He did not seem to concerned with these tiny holes and said that holes that size typically don't pose a problem for babies until they are a little older.
If Rebecca did not have Trisomy 18, the typical path to repairing these holes would be to do surgery when she was a couple of months old. However, because she has Trisomy 18 these holes will most likely not be addressed.
He said that last week's ultrasound findings of the small stomach and problems with the esophagus, would be the more pressing issues immediately after the delivery.
Dan and I really need to start thinking about what level of care we want for her after delivery.
Are we going to press for surgery to repair the esophagus? Are we going to have feeding tubes put directly into her stomach? Are we going to press for another echo of the heart to see if there are any other problems? Are we going to just request that she be kept comfortable and enjoy any amount of time we get with her?
These are all things that have been weighing on my mind. I think we will be in a little better position to make some of these decision after another ultrasound on the 30th. And at that point, we can begin the process of consulting with surgeons to get their opinions and to further figure out our options. The more information we can get from these ultrasounds, the better prepared we will all be at her delivery.
However, all of this seems a little futile to me. Because her diagnosis is "lethal" (such a lovely term to be used when discussing your unborn child) the doctors are less willing to do any type of surgery because it would not extend her life. So even though they are presenting us with some possible options, I am not sure they would actually do any type of surgery (except inserting the feeding tube).
So where does this leave me?
Still loving my sweet little Rebecca. Still treasuring every single kick and punch (and man, does she like to kick and punch!). Still enjoying her sweet movements every time I get to see them on an ultrasound machine.
And still praying to God for healing for her.
I know healing on this earth might not be in His plan for her, but I continue to pray for a miracle.
Wednesday, January 15, 2014
Monday, January 13, 2014
Life with a tween. Learning a few do's and don'ts.
I've gotten into the habit of using all those hip and cool abbreviations. (And does it make me even less hip and cool that I am calling them hip and cool? Probs.)
You know. I say "totes" instead of "totally". I say 'whatevs" instead of "whatever". I say "cray" instead of "crazy".
I started saying these as a joke around my kids since apparently many teens use these in their every day convos. (See what I did there?)
Anywho, the other day I used the word "totes" in conversation and Peter said, "Mom? Did you just say totes?"
"Um, yeah. I guess I did. Why?"
And then he lit into me. "Don't ever say totes again! It's sounds stupid when 14-year-old girls say it and it sounds really bad when YOU say it!"
"Okay."
And then I accidentally said it again yesterday and I got the lecture again.
Whatevs.
And on a related yet completely different note. Peter has an Instagram account. He's had one for a while now but he just got an iPod for Christmas and has recently starting posting things to his Instagram account. Being the good mom that I am, I follow him so I can keep up with what he's posting.
But apparently I made a huge faux pas.
I left a comment!
He came home from school one day last week and checked his account to see if his friends had liked his picture or left a comment. When he saw my comment he freaked out.
His eyes got wide. His face turned red and he shouted, "Don't leave any comments on my stuff Mom!"
I laughed and told him no problem. I promised not to leave any more comments and asked if it would be okay if I could at least like his posts. He calmed down, apologized and told me that if I wanted to leave comments I could. I assured him that I didn't want to leave a comment if it was going to embarrass him and that I actually thought twice before I left that other comment.
And on another related yet compeltey different note. At the basketball games on Saturday, when Sarah scored a basket I screamed and cheered and applauded like any normal slightly deranged mom would do. Peter was sitting behind me waiting on his game to start after Sarah's finished.
"Hey, Mom. Do NOT cheer for me like that at my game. Okay?"
I guess all of these little things mean that my boy is growing up on me!
You know. I say "totes" instead of "totally". I say 'whatevs" instead of "whatever". I say "cray" instead of "crazy".
I started saying these as a joke around my kids since apparently many teens use these in their every day convos. (See what I did there?)
Anywho, the other day I used the word "totes" in conversation and Peter said, "Mom? Did you just say totes?"
"Um, yeah. I guess I did. Why?"
And then he lit into me. "Don't ever say totes again! It's sounds stupid when 14-year-old girls say it and it sounds really bad when YOU say it!"
"Okay."
And then I accidentally said it again yesterday and I got the lecture again.
Whatevs.
And on a related yet completely different note. Peter has an Instagram account. He's had one for a while now but he just got an iPod for Christmas and has recently starting posting things to his Instagram account. Being the good mom that I am, I follow him so I can keep up with what he's posting.
But apparently I made a huge faux pas.
I left a comment!
He came home from school one day last week and checked his account to see if his friends had liked his picture or left a comment. When he saw my comment he freaked out.
His eyes got wide. His face turned red and he shouted, "Don't leave any comments on my stuff Mom!"
I laughed and told him no problem. I promised not to leave any more comments and asked if it would be okay if I could at least like his posts. He calmed down, apologized and told me that if I wanted to leave comments I could. I assured him that I didn't want to leave a comment if it was going to embarrass him and that I actually thought twice before I left that other comment.
And on another related yet compeltey different note. At the basketball games on Saturday, when Sarah scored a basket I screamed and cheered and applauded like any normal slightly deranged mom would do. Peter was sitting behind me waiting on his game to start after Sarah's finished.
"Hey, Mom. Do NOT cheer for me like that at my game. Okay?"
I guess all of these little things mean that my boy is growing up on me!
Sunday, January 12, 2014
Friday, January 10, 2014
No good news.
We got zero good news from Rebecca's ultrasound yesterday. However, I did enjoy seeing her beautiful little face and watching her kick and punch. Yesterday, I realized, that unless God does decide to heal her miraculously, I probably will not get to see those typical baby movements in real life.
1. She is tiny. Currently she's measuring in the 20th percentile for her age. As of yesterday she weighed 1 pound, 7 ounces. (I can't remember how long she was.) All Trisomy 18 babies are small and usually this smallness is due in part to problems with the esophagus.
2. The doctor confirmed that he sees a problem with her espophagus. Either she has a blocked esophagus or she has a tracheoesophageal fistula (TEF) which represents an abnormal opening between the trachea and esophagus.
3.Either way, all the amniotic fluid (food) she is trying to ingest isn't making it's way to her stomach which means she isn't getting what she needs to grow properly. This is also confirmed with the fact that her "stomach bubble" as the doctor called it is measuring too small.
4. Because she isn't ingesting and then expelling the amniotic fluid as waste like she should be, extra amniotic fluid is building up in my uterus. If this continues to happen, my body will think that the baby is big enough and ready to be delivered when in fact it's just excess amniotic fluid. This means I could go into premature labor.
5. At the echocardiogram we had last month, the cardiologist could see no problems with her heart. We were so excited to get that news because most T18 babies have heart problems and we were hopeful that we would get a little extra time with her. However, the doctor yesterday said the heart appeared to show signs of thickening. Which means her heart muscle is working extra head to do it's job so there might be an issue. We have another echo on Tuesday so we will see if the cardiologist sees the same issue.
6. I could clearly see in the 4D images that her head is strawberry shaped as they call it (it comes to a bit of a point in the back) and her ears are tiny and low set. Both of these are traits of Trisomy 18 babies.
7. Her hands continued to remained clenched and at one point in the ultrasound, I could see the index finger and the pinkie finger laying over the two middle fingers. Yet another trait of Trisomy 18.
The doctor, who was absolutely the sweetest doctor we have met yet, confirmed that everything he saw was further proof that the Harmony test,which gave us the diagnosis of Trisomy 18, was accurate.
At dinner last night, Dan stressed to the kids that Rebecca was very sick and most likely wouldn't live very long. Peter understands the gravity of the situation and yesterday was telling me that he's mad at God that Rebecca is sick. I've been trying to make sure that Sarah understands the situation for several weeks now but she continues to make plans and asks questions that make me realize she's not truly getting it.
I want her to be prepared for what is probably the eventual reality. But every time I try to explain things to her, she gets mad at me and tells me that I should be praying for a miracle. Which trust me, I am, but I need her to be ready in case a miracle is not in God's plan. She is very adamant that God is going to heal her. Oh, how I hope she's right.
Even though all signs point to Trisomy 18 and a very, very short life for Rebecca, we are continuing to pray for a miracle. We appreciate any and all prayers for her and our family.
1. She is tiny. Currently she's measuring in the 20th percentile for her age. As of yesterday she weighed 1 pound, 7 ounces. (I can't remember how long she was.) All Trisomy 18 babies are small and usually this smallness is due in part to problems with the esophagus.
2. The doctor confirmed that he sees a problem with her espophagus. Either she has a blocked esophagus or she has a tracheoesophageal fistula (TEF) which represents an abnormal opening between the trachea and esophagus.
3.Either way, all the amniotic fluid (food) she is trying to ingest isn't making it's way to her stomach which means she isn't getting what she needs to grow properly. This is also confirmed with the fact that her "stomach bubble" as the doctor called it is measuring too small.
4. Because she isn't ingesting and then expelling the amniotic fluid as waste like she should be, extra amniotic fluid is building up in my uterus. If this continues to happen, my body will think that the baby is big enough and ready to be delivered when in fact it's just excess amniotic fluid. This means I could go into premature labor.
5. At the echocardiogram we had last month, the cardiologist could see no problems with her heart. We were so excited to get that news because most T18 babies have heart problems and we were hopeful that we would get a little extra time with her. However, the doctor yesterday said the heart appeared to show signs of thickening. Which means her heart muscle is working extra head to do it's job so there might be an issue. We have another echo on Tuesday so we will see if the cardiologist sees the same issue.
6. I could clearly see in the 4D images that her head is strawberry shaped as they call it (it comes to a bit of a point in the back) and her ears are tiny and low set. Both of these are traits of Trisomy 18 babies.
7. Her hands continued to remained clenched and at one point in the ultrasound, I could see the index finger and the pinkie finger laying over the two middle fingers. Yet another trait of Trisomy 18.
The doctor, who was absolutely the sweetest doctor we have met yet, confirmed that everything he saw was further proof that the Harmony test,which gave us the diagnosis of Trisomy 18, was accurate.
At dinner last night, Dan stressed to the kids that Rebecca was very sick and most likely wouldn't live very long. Peter understands the gravity of the situation and yesterday was telling me that he's mad at God that Rebecca is sick. I've been trying to make sure that Sarah understands the situation for several weeks now but she continues to make plans and asks questions that make me realize she's not truly getting it.
I want her to be prepared for what is probably the eventual reality. But every time I try to explain things to her, she gets mad at me and tells me that I should be praying for a miracle. Which trust me, I am, but I need her to be ready in case a miracle is not in God's plan. She is very adamant that God is going to heal her. Oh, how I hope she's right.
Even though all signs point to Trisomy 18 and a very, very short life for Rebecca, we are continuing to pray for a miracle. We appreciate any and all prayers for her and our family.
Thursday, January 9, 2014
What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.
This morning Dan and I are going to another ultrasound to check on baby girl. This ultrasound will give doctors more information about all of her health issues before her delivery.
And as always, we thank everyone for their continued prayers!
Before Peter and Sarah were born, we kept their names a secret. We knew the sex of the baby and shared that information but we wanted to keep the name between the two of us until the big day. Plus, that kept people from telling us they hated the name because they knew someone in 3rd grade with the same name who was a big jerk. (For some reason, people don't mind giving their opinions on a name before the baby is born. Something they would never do after the baby is born, though.)
And that was always my plan with this little one. But it just seems more important to start calling her by her name now so that we could start praying for her by her name, so last night, we told the kids her name:
(I think Sarah was a little disappointed that we didn't use the name she chose - Stella. Nothing against any Stella's out there but...
Since her parent's names are Daniel and Elizabeth and her siblings are Peter and Sarah, we knew her first name was going to be a name from the Bible.
And since her brother's middle name is Robert (named after Dan's father) and her sister's middle name is Donna (named after my mother) we knew this baby's middle name would either be George (my dad) or Irene (Dan's mom). And since she's a girl, Irene it is! (But just so my Dad doesn't feel totally left out of the name game, his mom's middle name is also Irene.) Our little lady is named after two extremely strong and God-fearing women.
Irene was a given once we found out we were having a little girl but we went back and forth on the first name. I had a favorite. Dan had a favorite. And of course, they weren't the same.
I love Jennifer Aniston. (And please do not even get me started on Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie! Yes, I realize it was a long time ago but Team Jenn!)
So when I told Dan I wanted to name her Rachel, he immediately started giving me a hard time saying it was because of my crush on Jennifer Aniston and the fact that her name was Rachel Green on Friends. In fact, if I remember correctly, I originally wanted to name Sarah Rachel but Dan put up the same argument and I liked the name Sarah better with Donna anyway so all is well that ends well.
And the funny thing about the name Rachel Green is that we know a Rachel Green. She is sweet, smart, funny, kind and pretty....so really, wouldn't Rachel be the perfect name?
But, alas, Dan couldn't seem to get over the fact that he felt like I was naming our daughter after a character on an old TV show. However, he told me that if I really loved that name, (and I would like to reiterate that while I do love that name, it has nothing to do with Rachel Green from Friends) we could call her Rachel.
But I was torn because I wanted him to like the name too. So I decided to think about his pick - Rebecca - long and hard.
So I thought and I prayed and I thought and I prayed and I thought some more and I was still stuck.
And then I began to pray for her using the name Rebecca and well, now that's her name!
Please continue to pray for miraculous healing for little Rebecca Irene Cotell.
(And Sarah is already very excited to start calling her Becky even though I think I prefer Becca.)
And as always, we thank everyone for their continued prayers!
Before Peter and Sarah were born, we kept their names a secret. We knew the sex of the baby and shared that information but we wanted to keep the name between the two of us until the big day. Plus, that kept people from telling us they hated the name because they knew someone in 3rd grade with the same name who was a big jerk. (For some reason, people don't mind giving their opinions on a name before the baby is born. Something they would never do after the baby is born, though.)
And that was always my plan with this little one. But it just seems more important to start calling her by her name now so that we could start praying for her by her name, so last night, we told the kids her name:
Rebecca Irene Cotell
(I think Sarah was a little disappointed that we didn't use the name she chose - Stella. Nothing against any Stella's out there but...
Since her parent's names are Daniel and Elizabeth and her siblings are Peter and Sarah, we knew her first name was going to be a name from the Bible.
And since her brother's middle name is Robert (named after Dan's father) and her sister's middle name is Donna (named after my mother) we knew this baby's middle name would either be George (my dad) or Irene (Dan's mom). And since she's a girl, Irene it is! (But just so my Dad doesn't feel totally left out of the name game, his mom's middle name is also Irene.) Our little lady is named after two extremely strong and God-fearing women.
Irene was a given once we found out we were having a little girl but we went back and forth on the first name. I had a favorite. Dan had a favorite. And of course, they weren't the same.
I love Jennifer Aniston. (And please do not even get me started on Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie! Yes, I realize it was a long time ago but Team Jenn!)
So when I told Dan I wanted to name her Rachel, he immediately started giving me a hard time saying it was because of my crush on Jennifer Aniston and the fact that her name was Rachel Green on Friends. In fact, if I remember correctly, I originally wanted to name Sarah Rachel but Dan put up the same argument and I liked the name Sarah better with Donna anyway so all is well that ends well.
And the funny thing about the name Rachel Green is that we know a Rachel Green. She is sweet, smart, funny, kind and pretty....so really, wouldn't Rachel be the perfect name?
But, alas, Dan couldn't seem to get over the fact that he felt like I was naming our daughter after a character on an old TV show. However, he told me that if I really loved that name, (and I would like to reiterate that while I do love that name, it has nothing to do with Rachel Green from Friends) we could call her Rachel.
But I was torn because I wanted him to like the name too. So I decided to think about his pick - Rebecca - long and hard.
So I thought and I prayed and I thought and I prayed and I thought some more and I was still stuck.
And then I began to pray for her using the name Rebecca and well, now that's her name!
Please continue to pray for miraculous healing for little Rebecca Irene Cotell.
(And Sarah is already very excited to start calling her Becky even though I think I prefer Becca.)
Monday, January 6, 2014
Back to normal!
After 17 days out of school and away from any regular schedule, the kids headed back to Our Lady of Mercy today! And I'm not the only one that was happy.
They both jumped right out of bed with minimal prodding on my part and were ready in record time. They are excited to see their friends. I'm sure tomorrow will be a different story when the reality of school, school and nothing but school on the horizon hits them like a ton of bricks.
And back to school, means back to regular life. We've got scouts, basketball practices, piano practice and guitar practice. Not to mention homework, homework and then more homework.
Peter is excited to meet him new guitar teacher today. He's had a two month break and I think he's ready to get his rock on! (Although, I will admit it has been nice having one less thing we have to do.)
I'm hoping this new teacher will take Peter to the next level in his guitar playing. Peter just hopes he will teach him lots of heavy metal songs.
Dan's got lots of issues to deal with at work and I've got lots of laundry, grocery shopping, bill paying and grade parent planning to do. So around here, it's back to real life. Or as I prefer to call it - back to normal!
They both jumped right out of bed with minimal prodding on my part and were ready in record time. They are excited to see their friends. I'm sure tomorrow will be a different story when the reality of school, school and nothing but school on the horizon hits them like a ton of bricks.
And back to school, means back to regular life. We've got scouts, basketball practices, piano practice and guitar practice. Not to mention homework, homework and then more homework.
Peter is excited to meet him new guitar teacher today. He's had a two month break and I think he's ready to get his rock on! (Although, I will admit it has been nice having one less thing we have to do.)
I'm hoping this new teacher will take Peter to the next level in his guitar playing. Peter just hopes he will teach him lots of heavy metal songs.
Dan's got lots of issues to deal with at work and I've got lots of laundry, grocery shopping, bill paying and grade parent planning to do. So around here, it's back to real life. Or as I prefer to call it - back to normal!
Sunday, January 5, 2014
WIWS: New Year, New Boots!
It's cold here today. And raining. But I guess it could be worse...it could be snowing.
Here's what I wore to Mass today:
Here's what I wore to Mass today:
Sweater: Target
Pants: Kohl's
Boots: Target
Necklace: Target
Belly: Week 25, Day 6
Photo bomb: My sweet and silly husband.
My mom got me these boots for Christmas. Aren't they the cutest? They have the same wedge heels as my little black booties (which I love and have basically worn out) but they are taller and help make my ever-expanding everything look a little less large.
The old booties accentuate my legs but these new ones detract a little from their size because they are taller. (Check out the link - same pants just with the old booties. Don't these new boots make my legs look a wee bit thinner? Although, nothing on this body could be described as thin at this point!)
And the curls? They are compliments of the new Conair Curl Secret that Santa brought Sarah.
Have a great week and try to stay warm! And for more What I Wore Sunday, head on over to Fine Linen and Purple.
Friday, January 3, 2014
Week 25, Day 3
I have a picture album for Peter and Sarah. Each album contains pictures of me while I was pregnant with them and continues on through their first year of life.
They love to look through those albums. Sarah, especially, will pour over them. She loves the pictures of my big belly and was always amused at the the thought that she was in there.
When we told the kids we were pregnant, one of the things she wanted to know was if we were going to take belly shots like we had done previously.
"Of course we are!" was my exuberant reply.
And that was my plan. We would start taking the shots at 18 weeks, the same time I started taking the pictures of my expanding stomach with Peter and Sarah.
But 18 weeks was the exact time we found out this little one has Trisomy 18. So coming home from the ultrasound to exitedly take pictures of my stomach was not high on the list of priorities.
As my stomach has grown, I would glance in the mirror and think that I really needed to take pictures but at the same time I would think, what's the point. Sad to say, but that's what I keep thinking.
Sarah, however, in her innocence and excitement, has continued to harass me about taking a belly shot. So, yesterday, I decided to oblige her.
We are praying for a miracle. And believing for a miracle. So why not actually act like a miracle is coming and that I'm going to have a little one who will excitedly look back over the belly shots when she's older.
And in attempt to make it up to her, instead of doing the typical every two week shots I did with Peter and Sarah, I will take one every week from here until delivery. And, lucky you, internet. I will be posting them here for you to see!
They love to look through those albums. Sarah, especially, will pour over them. She loves the pictures of my big belly and was always amused at the the thought that she was in there.
When we told the kids we were pregnant, one of the things she wanted to know was if we were going to take belly shots like we had done previously.
"Of course we are!" was my exuberant reply.
And that was my plan. We would start taking the shots at 18 weeks, the same time I started taking the pictures of my expanding stomach with Peter and Sarah.
But 18 weeks was the exact time we found out this little one has Trisomy 18. So coming home from the ultrasound to exitedly take pictures of my stomach was not high on the list of priorities.
As my stomach has grown, I would glance in the mirror and think that I really needed to take pictures but at the same time I would think, what's the point. Sad to say, but that's what I keep thinking.
Sarah, however, in her innocence and excitement, has continued to harass me about taking a belly shot. So, yesterday, I decided to oblige her.
We are praying for a miracle. And believing for a miracle. So why not actually act like a miracle is coming and that I'm going to have a little one who will excitedly look back over the belly shots when she's older.
And in attempt to make it up to her, instead of doing the typical every two week shots I did with Peter and Sarah, I will take one every week from here until delivery. And, lucky you, internet. I will be posting them here for you to see!
Thursday, January 2, 2014
I'm back.
Yes, I'm still here!
My last post was on December 18th. On December 19th we packed up the car and started the long drive to Massachusetts and didn't arrive back home until December 31st.
I'm not one of those well-prepared bloggers who plans and writes posts ahead of time but I am one of those bloggers who needs complete silence, sleeping children (or children away at school), a large mug of coffee and a little time to compose a semi-coherent blog post.
And I just haven't had all of those things until this very minute. So, here I am!
We had a nice trip to Massachusetts. It's always nice to spend time with Dan's side of the family and my kids just love it up there. For them, it really wouldn't be Christmas if we didn't go.
I always worry that the gifts I ordered aren't going to be there when we arrive, or that something is going to happen and the gifts will be there and we will be here or stuck somewhere in between and then what would happen?!
This year, I had the added worry that I would go into labor before we got there and then we would be here and the gifts would be in their Amazon boxes in Massachusetts and how in the world would Santa magically get them back down here in time for Christmas morning? Just a few of the things that Mama-Santa has to worry about when preparing for Christmas in a different state than her own.
But never fear, the presents were all there and I managed to get them wrapped and ready for Christmas morning in plenty of time and the kids seemed genuinely happy with everything they received. That's also another fear for Mama-Santa, especially for a Mama-Santa whose babies refuse to make a wish list!
When we arrived there was a lot of snow of the ground from a large storm a few days earlier but it was about to melt so we took the kids sledding immediately and it was a good thing because it had all disappeared by that evening. They had a blast and they got their Christmas vacation snow and all was well. It even snowed a little bit a few days later so they were doubly happy.
The only negative on the whole entire trip was some unexpected bad news we received while we were there.
We had gone to visit the Massachusetts State House and to see some sights around Boston when we received the call that Dan's mom (who has Alzheimer's and lives in an assisted living facility) had a nosebleed they couldn't stop and was sent to the hospital.
We left Boston to visit her in the hospital where the doctor's informed us that Nana most likely has leukemia. This was a complete shock to us all.
More tests are being run, and thanks to the holidays they are taking their own sweet time to come back, but all signs are pointing to leukemia. If in fact it is leukemia, the doctor's have given her between 2-6 more months.
As Dan sarcastically said, "2014 is shaping up to be a real winner of a year."
I am trying to remain optimistic about 2014 because I do believe that God works great things in the midst of trials. I am continuing to pray for our baby and for Nana and doing the only I can do...just taking it one day at a time. Just like it says at the top of my blog and in Matthew 6:34:
My last post was on December 18th. On December 19th we packed up the car and started the long drive to Massachusetts and didn't arrive back home until December 31st.
I'm not one of those well-prepared bloggers who plans and writes posts ahead of time but I am one of those bloggers who needs complete silence, sleeping children (or children away at school), a large mug of coffee and a little time to compose a semi-coherent blog post.
And I just haven't had all of those things until this very minute. So, here I am!
We had a nice trip to Massachusetts. It's always nice to spend time with Dan's side of the family and my kids just love it up there. For them, it really wouldn't be Christmas if we didn't go.
I always worry that the gifts I ordered aren't going to be there when we arrive, or that something is going to happen and the gifts will be there and we will be here or stuck somewhere in between and then what would happen?!
This year, I had the added worry that I would go into labor before we got there and then we would be here and the gifts would be in their Amazon boxes in Massachusetts and how in the world would Santa magically get them back down here in time for Christmas morning? Just a few of the things that Mama-Santa has to worry about when preparing for Christmas in a different state than her own.
But never fear, the presents were all there and I managed to get them wrapped and ready for Christmas morning in plenty of time and the kids seemed genuinely happy with everything they received. That's also another fear for Mama-Santa, especially for a Mama-Santa whose babies refuse to make a wish list!
When we arrived there was a lot of snow of the ground from a large storm a few days earlier but it was about to melt so we took the kids sledding immediately and it was a good thing because it had all disappeared by that evening. They had a blast and they got their Christmas vacation snow and all was well. It even snowed a little bit a few days later so they were doubly happy.
The only negative on the whole entire trip was some unexpected bad news we received while we were there.
We had gone to visit the Massachusetts State House and to see some sights around Boston when we received the call that Dan's mom (who has Alzheimer's and lives in an assisted living facility) had a nosebleed they couldn't stop and was sent to the hospital.
We left Boston to visit her in the hospital where the doctor's informed us that Nana most likely has leukemia. This was a complete shock to us all.
More tests are being run, and thanks to the holidays they are taking their own sweet time to come back, but all signs are pointing to leukemia. If in fact it is leukemia, the doctor's have given her between 2-6 more months.
As Dan sarcastically said, "2014 is shaping up to be a real winner of a year."
I am trying to remain optimistic about 2014 because I do believe that God works great things in the midst of trials. I am continuing to pray for our baby and for Nana and doing the only I can do...just taking it one day at a time. Just like it says at the top of my blog and in Matthew 6:34:
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.
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