Always Behind...

My week in the Tri-Cities went too quickly, and soon it was time to get back home. God timed it all perfectly again, so I was able to spend the morning of Thanksgiving with Megan, Ryan and Casey, then catch a plane home for Thanksgiving Dinner with the rest of my family. We had a nice French toast breakfast and I got to see Casey in his sweet "Little Turkey" outfit. We took lots of pictures and I held that darling little bundle one last time before we headed to the airport. Kissing everyone goodbye was hard, and I admit to sitting in the airport with very teary eyes as I waited for my flight. I wish Megan was close by so I could be of more help to her on a daily basis. I am comforted by the fact that she has a wonderful husband who is fully engaged in parenting!

Matt picked me up at the airport in Seattle, and soon I was home with all the rest of the family, with a baby back in my arms. The boys all looked so cute! We took lots of pictures and had a wonderful dinner, thanks to Kirk.

I just cannot believe where my life is now, as compared to last Thanksgiving! I am now healthy and have three more adorable grandsons! God is SO amazing! And I am SO thankful!

Casey is Here!

It is 4:30 in the morning, and I am sitting here gazing at my new little grandson, while Megan and Ryan try to catch some sleep. Yes, Casey Neal French is here and he is home! We have been a little busy, but I will try to catch up.

After Megan got up on Thursday, Nov 19, she decided to go to her prenatal water aerobics class, to try to get things moving. I watched her bounce around in the pool for an hour, then we went to Subway for lunch. We went back to her house, planning to try some shopping next. As I was checking my e mail, she came out of the bathroom with an excited, but somewhat surprised look on her face. "My water just broke!", she exclaimed, "now they (the hospital) can't send me home again!" Isn't God's timing just perfect, I thought.

So off we went to the hospital! But not before I took some final pregnancy shots of Megan and Ryan, of course.

When we got to Kadlec Hospital, about 3 pm, they had to verify that her water was broken with a lab test. They finally checked her into Birthing Suite 7, at about 4:30 pm. Thus began a very long, but exciting, night for all of us.

They started an IV of antibiotics and oxytocin about 6:30 pm. I took photos of Megan updating her Facebook page at 7 pm, still feeling great. Megan and Ryan did quite a few laps around the birthing unit, and they checked her at 9 pm. She was still only at 2 cm, 70% effaced, baby at -3, not much change. We watched Grey's Anatomy, and she started to have some contractions that hurt around 9:45 pm. The doctor placed internal monitors at 11:30 (very painful!) and she was at 4 cm. He said she could have an epidural,and it was placed at about 12:30 am. Ryan's parents arrived sometime in the midst of this, I think just before the epidural.

With her pain relieved, Megan was able to sleep for a few hours, and everyone else caught a few winks here and there in chairs and on couches. At around 5 am, Ryan texted me to come back, she was wide awake, and at 7 cm, 100% effaced, baby at -1. At 6:50, I texted Shauna that Megan was at 10 cm and would start pushing soon. Kirk and Kelly and Matt were all texting me, saying "no baby yet?" She pushed from 7 to 7:30, then they told her to rest for 15 minutes. At 7:45 she began pushing again. At 8:23 am, November 20th, 2009, Casey Neal French arrived!What a miracle to see! He weighed 7 lb 13 oz (at 3 weeks early) and was 21 inches long, and he was (IS) beautiful!

I think there is no greater gift my daughters have ever given me than to get to be a part of the births of their firstborns. It was amazing beyond words both times, and made me so incredibly proud of them. There are just no words....

Casey is here, he is cute as can be, Ryan and Megan are awesome parents, and I couldn't be happier. The blessings are overflowing. It feels like it should be Thanksgiving every day! For me, it is!

5

On the Journey Again

I will soon be a grandma for the fourth time. Little Casey is taking his sweet time in arriving. He is not actually due until December 10, so he is going to be early, but he is really dragging out the process for his poor parents. Megan saw her doctor on Tuesday morning (Nov 17) and had gone from 0 to 2 cm. He stripped the membranes and said it would probably be a few days. This caused Megan to have a lot of cramping and discomfort on Wednesday, leading to contractions that were pretty steadily 5 minutes apart by Wednesday night.

Meanwhile, all of us on the other side of the mountains were wondering what we should do. At 10 pm, I finally booked a ticket to fly over in the morning. As I was getting ready to leave for the airport around 4:30 am, Megan texted me that she was being sent home from the hospital to sleep. Dilemma for me: should I go or change my ticket to later? With no ride to the airport later, we decided I would just trust that God would work it all out for the best, and go.

After a minor issue with security (I got frisked!), I had an easy flight, Ryan picked me up, and here I am in Tri-Cities. Waiting to greet my newest grandson. But he is not quite ready, apparently. Megan and Ryan are napping, after a long night, and I may do the same, after getting up at 4 am for my 7:50 flight. And little Casey is just hanging out where it's warm and cozy, deciding when to make his grand entrance.

Thankful

Tonight I am feeling very thankful. One year ago tonight I was coming out of brain surgery. I don't remember much of that night, but my kids tell me I was kinda funny in Recovery. I only remember later, about 2:30 am in the Neuro ICU, when my blood pressure "went through the floor," as my nurse put it. I remember lots of people working on me, sticking me with needles on every extremity. I blew five lines, and they failed three attempts at getting a central line in. I was in and out of it, but I had a real sense of calm, in spite of the frenzy going on around me. I just felt God's presence with me, and I knew I was completely in His Hands.
They finally managed to put some kind of stent thing in my arm that was very painful, but allowed them to start the first of two units of blood into me. I think I had an IV line in my leg too, but I 'm not sure. The memories are kind of fuzzy.
That blood is something else I am so thankful for. I am thankful for the two strangers who donated that blood. I used to donate blood on a regular basis, until they gave me a permanent deferral because of my heart problem. It always felt good to be able to help someone in need. I never expected to be on the other end of the transfusion. I suppose no one does. But you sure appreciate it when you need it!
Today, I got to go to a baby shower for my best friend Julie's daughter. One of the guests was telling me about a friend of hers who just died from a brain tumor, and I was reminded again of how blessed I am to be alive. Tonight I got to go to church and praise the God who brought me through the worst time of my life, never leaving my side, constantly meeting every need that I had. Two people gave their blood to save my life here on earth, but Jesus shed His blood to give me an eternal life. I cannot begin to measure how thankful I am.

Baby Shower #3!

Saturday, Nov 7, Kelly and Shauna hosted Megan's baby shower at my house. Our THIRD baby shower this year and it was lots of fun. We had a house full of babies, including Caleb, Keegan and the Cady twins, Maggie and Gibson. I had a baby in my arms the whole time! Megan got lots of wonderful things for Casey, and we had great, mostly low carb food (because of Meg's gestational diabetes), except for the cake, of course. Our cake designer at Fred Meyer did an amazing job again and made a cake to match our farm animals theme. We are getting pretty good at throwing showers. We are thinking of going professional, lol!

So the next time I see Megan, she will have Casey in her arms. Amazing. And wonderful! She and Ryan are going to be great parents. Casey is a lucky boy. I can't wait to meet him!

One Year Later

Last year, November 3rd, was probably the darkest day of my life. I was diagnosed with a "very large and very agressive brain tumor."

It hit Kirk and I like a kick in the stomach, it was so unexpected. I think we were in shock, and numb with fear. And oh, the sadness. It came over us in huge waves, making us fear we would drown in it. We held on to each other all night on that first night, crying and hoping that if we held on tight enough, this thing couldn't separate us, couldn't steal me away from him, from my family.

My children were so strong, so supportive. They wanted me to fight, but I just didn't know how much I was willing to go through, to put them through, if the outcome was likely to be the same. I didn't want to put my family through the pain Debbie's family went through.

Yes, November third, 2008, was the saddest and hardest day of my life, as were the next few days, before we saw Dr. Sarah Jost and got a glimmer of hope. How much different is November third, this year. Today Caleb Joseph, my second grandson is three months old. After the sadness of their miscarriage, Matt and Kelly are now parents to this sweet little boy.

In the midst of our sorrow and hardship last November, God was blessing us beyond our wildest dreams. Not only did He create Caleb, but also Keegan Jameson (the little angel in the photo above). While I was mourning that I probably wouldn't live to meet any more grandchildren, He was blessing me with two! And this November I have those two precious little boys in my life, and am expecting another, Casey Neal, in the next few weeks. God is so amazing! I don't think it was a coincidence that I found out about Caleb and Keegan on Christmas Day, and Casey on Easter weekend. God gave us His Son on Christmas, and Jesus gave us His life on Easter. The two holiest days of the year.

This November, 2009, my health is restored, my life is restored. I got to spend Halloween with all three grandsons, then celebrate Cooper's second birthday the next day. This weekend we will shower Megan with love and gifts for little Casey. My life is busy and full, rich with blessings and love. My heart is overflowing with gratitude to God for this place He has delivered me to. He has walked with me every step, through the difficult weeks of sickness, and through the present days of joy. I cannot thank Him enough.

Cousins

Well, here they are together. Our two new grandsons with proud grandpa. That is Caleb on the left and Keegan on the right. On Saturday night, 8-19-09, we had all the family for dinner at our house. It was the first time the new cousins were together. Megan and Ryan were in town to see their new nephews, Grandma De and Grandpa Al came up, Kelly's mom, Jeanne, was here, as well as her aunt and uncle, Lee and Ray, so we had a full house! (grand total of 16!) It was controlled chaos, as usual, but a house full of love and happiness! And so much gratitude to God, we are blessed beyond measure.