Our second-born

Jessie Grace is our second born. We had originally wanted to have our kids two years apart so when Jaylyn was a little over a year we started trying. We thought since it really didn’t take too long to get pregnant with Jaylyn, it wouldn’t take too long this time. We tried and tried and tried with no success. After two years we decided to go to a fertility clinic. I was diagnosed with PCOS and started on medication. Still nothing happened. It was onto the next step. We tried something new the next cycle with no success and it was onto the final option. Because of how that cycle progressed, the outlook of success was looking very dim. To make things worse, at the beginning of that cycle, my grandmother passed away. We were all so sad at how things were turning out.

Amazingly, there was success in that cycle. I still remember to this day waking up in the morning and taking that pregnancy test. My parents were staying with us and we were all getting ready for church. I remember knocking on the bathroom door and telling my Mom and just crying with sheer joy. We found out around 20 weeks that we were having a girl and we didn’t even really need to think of a name. It was a given, we would name her Jessie Grace, after my grandmother. It was perfect.

Today, Jessie is a very energetic 5 year old. She is and always has been our most sensitive child. She loves to cuddle and is the most excited for the new baby. She LOVES soccer, basketball, anything sports while still being a real girly girl. She is our most personable and loves to ask people to tell stories. She gets so involved in learning other people’s stories, it is really fascinating. In a lot of ways, she really does remind me a lot of my grandmother.

We are so blessed to have her, and I am so happy we are able to keep a part of my grandmother alive in her.

Our first-born

We got pregnant with Jaylyn the first month we had officially started trying. The pregnancy was fine until 31 weeks when I developed pre-eclampsia and was put on strict bedrest. I remained on bedrest for 5 weeks and had steroid shots twice a week to help her lungs develop. Little did we know, those steroid shots would probably save her life.

When Jaylyn was 10 days old, she stopped breathing and turned blue, multiple times. We took her to the ER the first time it happened and the doctors did not believe us and sent us home. We then drove her to the pediatrician’s office as soon as they opened. I don’t think that doctor believed us until he witnessed an episode himself while he performed a spinal tap on her. I will never forget sitting in the waiting room during the procedure and seeing an ambulance pull up, just knowing it was coming for her.

The next 33 days are not a complete blur, but pretty close. I remember one nurse soon after we were admitted saying it was probably just an infection and she would be home as soon as we knew it. I also remember just a few hours later, the doctors putting Jaylyn on a respirator and asking our priest to come and baptize her in the NICU. The doctors could not figure out what was wrong with her for the first few weeks and we actually celebrated with them once we knew her diagnosis of pertussis!!

Looking at her now, it is hard to imagine how sick she was back then and during her early childhood years due to several bouts with croup and other infections because of scar tissue from the respirator.

Today she is a wonderful and caring daughter.
Today she is a devoted Christian and loves God with all her heart.
Today she is the best big sister to Jessie, Jovie, Jax and is adored by all of them.
Today she is just about a straight-A student despite diagnosed with ADHD.
Today she is a determined swimmer who just made her first B time.
Today she is our miracle, just as she was eight years ago as she fought to stay alive.

She is such a blessing to our family and we thank God for her everyday.

A day in the life

We have a big family and LOVE it. I guess that is pretty important since we will not only be raising an 8, 5, 2, and 1 year old but a newborn as well shortly. One of the best things about having a big family is there is always something to do. One of the worst things about having a big family is there is always something to do. :)

Being as busy as we are, it is difficult to remember the important things in life. We decided to start a blog to help us focus on what is important since most days come and go in the blink of an eye. Just to illustrate this, check out our Saturday:

7:00-rolled out of bed and get all of us fed and dressed for Jessie’s basketball practice
8:00-9:00-attempted to watch Jessie’s practice while wrangling the other three kids
9:00-9:45-grabbed a quick bagel with Mimi and Papa while noticing all the stares we get because of all the kids
10:00-10:30-went to watch our nephew earn his white belt in karate (go Dylan!)
10:30-11:30-attempted to watch Jaylyn’s basketball practice, see 8:00-9:00
12:00-2:00-rushed home to watch the Tarheels crush State (yeah!)
2:00-3:00-supervised all the kids trying to drive a Barbie Jeep around the neighborhood
3:00-5:00-went bowling with all the kids plus Jennifer, Ryan, Michele, Dylan, Mimi and Papa…a birthday request of Jessie’s
5:00-5:30-rushed home to pack Jaylyn up and get her to a sleep over birthday party
6:00-8:30-made dinner and gave showers to all the kids, gave Jovie her first haircut, got all the kids to bed
8:45-Howard and I finally sat down to eat our dinner and settle down to watch a movie which I will inevitably fall asleep watching (I wonder why!)

Yeah, our lives are crazy…but we wouldn’t have it any other way. Come along for the ride.