God is in the Details: Part 1 (My pregnancy Story)

Proverbs 3:6

King James Version (KJV)

In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

I’m not sure how to start this post really. I’m battling with a sinus infection once again so my head is foggy, but I still feel the need to put this post out there and thank God for always working behind the scenes. God’s guiding hand is a wondrous blessing, and He never fails to show up.

God has brought some very special people to my family right when we needed them. The first was my Obstetrician when I was pregnant with my son. At my 28 week doctor appointment I knew something was wrong when the nurse asked me to lie down and said that she would be right back with the doctor. My blood pressure had skyrocketed. The baby and I had been textbook healthy until that appointment, so it came as a bit of a surprise.

I was at the doctor’s office for a long time as they monitored the baby and my blood pressure. At the time my baby was fine, and my blood pressure came back down to normal levels. My doctor was concerned, but sent me home with orders to rest as much as possible, check my blood pressure daily, and to call immediately if my blood pressure spiked again.

Though I am known for being a stubborn woman who usually insists on keeping up the house through sickness or injuries of any sort, I begrudgingly obeyed the doctor’s orders and rested as much as I could. The next week I went in for another checkup. My blood pressure was still fluctuating and I had trace amounts of blood in my urine, but I wasn’t leaking any protein (which was a good thing). The doctor explained that my symptoms weren’t textbook but he knew that something was going wrong with the pregnancy.

I agreed to get the shots to protect my baby’s lungs should I go into premature labor, and was sent home to face bed rest once again. The bed rest was tough for me, but I did it. I felt fine! Surely this was all a mistake of   some sort – my blood pressure wasn’t staying elevated, it just liked to jump around a bit. I was seriously wondering if the doctor was overreacting. How could I feel healthy yet be told that I could go into labor at any time? It seemed ridiculous to me.

When I woke up from a nap on February 13^th, 2007 I checked my blood pressure for what seemed the millionth time during this ordeal. I can’t remember the exact numbers, but it was a crazy high number. The top number was over 200 and the bottom number over 100. I called the doctor’s office as required and the nurse told me to come right in. My second call was to my husband at his work to tell him what was going on. He told me to wait for him to get home and that he would take me to the doctor. My husband was obviously more aware of the situation than I was, because he told me to bring my hospital bag. I laughed and said that I was sure when I got to the doctor’s office that my blood pressure would have returned to normal and I was just going to be sent home again. I was wrong.

My blood pressure was still high when I reached the doctor’s office. There was more blood in my urine, but I still was not leaking any protein. Doppler and ultra sound showed that the oxygen levels and blood flow levels to my baby were near borderline. I was immediately admitted to the hospital.

My doctor still wasn't sure what to diagnose me with at this point. My blood pressure did go down to near normal levels again, so it wasn’t classic pregnancy induced hypertension. Also since I wasn’t leaking any protein into my urine, it wasn’t preeclampsia. At the time my liver levels were also showing as normal, which made the blood in my urine a bit of a mystery.

Every time my blood pressure read as normal, I apologized for wasting the doctor’s time and asked if I could go home. I felt great! I mean, what I felt was just pregnancy exhaustion and boredom from being on bed rest, right? He said no, that I was at the hospital for what hopefully was the long-haul. (as opposed to pre-term delivery) The doctor still didn’t know what was wrong with me, but said that I needed constant observation.

Of course the first photo I post of myself is the one where I look terrible!
I felt fairly fine, but I think the photo says more with my coloring being off, and how puffy I  look.

On the morning of the 22^nd my doctor informed me that my liver levels hit critical and that I needed to deliver my baby that day. The diagnosis finally presented itself – HELLP syndrome. H is for hemolysis (the breakdown of red blood cells), EL is for elevated liver enzymes, and LP is low platelet count. God held off the full symptoms and protected us just long enough for my baby to grow and be able to survive without any major problems. I never went into labor, never felt a single labor pain, and had no idea that my baby and my body were in distress.

My boy was born by cesarean section at 31 weeks gestation. He weighed in at 3 lbs. 11 oz. and has always been a fighter and an optimist. Even with the steroid shots while pregnant, his lungs weren’t fully developed and he spent five long weeks in the NICU due to Infant Respiratory Distress Syndrome (IRDS). I was hooked up to a magnesium drip and my liver levels soon returned to normal.

The end results are pretty great – my son has had no complications from being a preemie and was the second tallest boy in his preschool class this year! He grew fast and strong, and has more than made up for his early start in life. My doctor warned me that I would probably have high blood pressure later in life, and one year after my son’s birth I was diagnosed with mild hypertension. I consider it a small price to pay for a healthy child, and would do it again in a heartbeat.

At my six week post-op appointment, my doctor informed me that he officially retired from the obstetrician side of his job, and that he was going to be a gynecologist only until full retirement. He said that he wanted to be at home in bed with his wife each night instead of driving back and forth to the hospital at 2am for labor calls. My son was one of his very last deliveries.

I truly believe that God hand-picked this doctor for me and my son. Since my symptoms weren’t consistent or textbook, another doctor may have just downplayed them instead of being so watchful. I was certainly downplaying my own symptoms – perhaps I was in denial, but my doctor was concerned and worked hard for a positive outcome. I believe that God orchestrated the entire thing so that my doctor was still in practice until my delivery.

Sometimes we don’t even know that we need him in certain situations, but God knows everything and is working behind the scenes for those who love him. I know that I am definitely thankful to him for that and will sing his praises to all who will listen.

What has God done for you when you didn’t even know he was working behind the scenes?

~This Glorious Day~

I link up with these blogs!

Lazy Day Blackberry Cobbler

Psalm 139:14

King James Version (KJV)

I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.

Recently my husband, son and I drove to the country to visit the in-laws on their farm. They have over a hundred acres, and the cows had recently had their babies. It was a nice visit, and the spring weather was perfect. My son loved watching the animals, riding around the farm in the old pickup truck, and seeing his grandpa's train room. 

The crowning highlight of his visit though, was picking the wild blackberries that grow out in the pasture. They were perfectly ripe and just waiting for little hands to gently pluck them from the branches. We ended up with three quarts of fresh blackberries! We ate a bunch of them fresh, stored another bunch in the freezer, and I made my mother's blackberry cobbler recipe with the rest. 

I believe my mom's recipe came out of her old red and white checkered Better Homes and Gardens cookbook. It was probably a 1970's or 1980's edition. She didn't have many cookbooks, but I remember this one on the shelf. I have a 1990's edition myself, but didn't see this recipe in it. It's another solid, old-fashioned recipe, and these are the ones I treasure. It has easy to find, traditional ingredients, and is so easy to make. Perfect for a lazy day. Hence, I give you...

Lazy Day Blackberry Cobbler

**Printable Version Here!**

Ingredients:

1 quart fresh blackberries (thawed frozen blackberries work well too)

1/8 c. water

1 stick butter (either salted or unsalted works)

1-1/2 cups sugar, divided

1 c. self-rising flour

3/4 c. milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Place butter stick in 1-1/2 or 2 qt. casserole dish and place in oven to melt. 

Meanwhile, rinse blackberries, and pour into a saucepan with the 1/8 c. water. Heat over medium heat for approximately 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to make a little bit of "sauce" for the cobbler. 

In medium bowl, mix together 1 c. sugar, 1 c. self-rising flour, and 3/4 c. milk. Pour batter over the melted butter in the casserole dish, but do not stir. 

Pour the blackberries and "sauce" over the batter and once again do not stir! You'll see the magic later as the batter rises over the blackberries to form a delicious crust! 

Sprinkle 1/2 c. sugar over the blackberries and place into oven. Bake for approximately 30 minutes or until crust is golden. 

Serve warm with vanilla ice cream!

~This Glorious Day~ 

First and Fifteenth

Proverbs 31:30

King James Version (KJV)

Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised.

~This Glorious Day~

Two Birds and a Psalm

Psalm 143:8

King James Version (KJV)

Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee.

I hope this week has found you well. I especially hope that you mothers had a great Mother's Day! Mine was pretty nice and I got a new Tervis tumbler cup! I so love my Tervis tumblers - for those not familiar, when you use the matching lid, they become adult sippy cups! They're perfect for klutzes like me! (and they're made in the USA!) No, I was not paid to promote these cups, I'm just a huge fan! I love them so much that I bought two of the "teacher" cups for my son's teacher and assistant for Teacher Appreciation Week!

I received "Trendy Bird"!

I've also been busy on a new craft project - I really like this one too! I recently set up my "new" office in the guest bedroom. I use the quotation marks on "new" because all of the furniture for my office was scavenged from other parts of the house. I did get some truly new accessories at TJMaxx and Target though and am so happy to have made me a new girly-style Christian decorated haven! The rest of my house is mostly neutral to appease the men in the house (husband and son) so this is the first place I've let my true girly style loose! There are flowers and candles, a soft-glowing salt rock lamp, and a swirly metal cross I found at Hobby Lobby. 

To the left of my small armoire-style desk I have a cute narrow bookshelf. I found baskets to fit each shelf for $5 each at TJMaxx. They fit perfectly, blend well and hide the clutter well. Above the bookshelf needed some artwork though and I had already maxed out my budget on the other accessories.

(5 year old hand model not included)
Sorry about the glare! I have no idea how to photograph glass without a glare.

 This was the perfect opportunity for a craft project, and it cost under $5 to do! I found the picture frame for $3 at Walmart and the scrapbook paper was like .30 for each piece. I just ran a piece of the scrapbook paper through my printer for the Bible verse, and used my son's Elmer's Xtreme hold glue stick to attach the pieces. 

The best part? I'm giving you the templates for if you want to do this project yourself! All you have to do is buy an 8x10 frame, some scrapbook paper in the colors you desire, print/cut/trace/cut (including cutting the 8-1/2"x11" paper down to 8x10 to fit your frame), glue the pieces and enjoy your new artwork! (I didn't include templates for the flowers or leaves because I just freehand cut those out. Get creative and have fun!)

Here are the links to the PDF file templates:

Birds:https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B10l7m7A2WkobWRWUHhJU1BaeUk

Branch: https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B10l7m7A2WkoTS1JQl96NE5HNkE

Verse: https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B10l7m7A2WkoMkVxUnJFaWY0WE0

Be sure to check back tomorrow for a new First and Fifteenth church sign of encouragement!

~This Glorious Day~

Cheesy Macaroni with Beef

1 John 5:14-15

King James Version (KJV)

And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.

Apparently I'm on another recipe roll. Cooking for me is like riding the ocean waves - for a bit I'm at the top of the wave cooking every night and trying lots of new recipes; then I'm down in the valley between the waves lamenting that I don't want to cook and serving my family fish sticks or even declaring it "Cereal night!". Did you know that if you say "Cereal Night!" excitedly with a big smile on your face they might think that it's actually a fun planned event and not realize that mommy really just doesn't want to cook tonight? Sometimes it totally works.

Today's recipe is something your mom or grandma would make - delicious comfort food with simple wholesome ingredients. Lean beef, pureed tomatoes, big noodles and cheesy goodness. This recipe filled my Pyrex lasagna pan, and we have been noshing on it all week. My husband told me to definitely add this to our permanent menu, and for me that is the biggest compliment I can hear! It has heated up wonderfully each night - I love to cook meals like this! 

Cheesy Macaroni with Beef

adapted from here.

**Printable Version Here!**

1 medium onion, diced

2 tbsp. canola oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp. paprika

2 tbsp. fish sauce (found in the Asian section of your local supermarket)

salt/pepper

28 oz. can whole tomatoes

8oz. dry large elbow macaroni (1/2 of 16oz. bag)

2 lbs. lean 90/10 ground beef

3 cups shredded cheese (I used 1 cup each of Italian blend, mozzarella, & cheddar)

Add canola oil to a large pan and heat on a medium setting until shimmering. Add the diced onion and a large pinch of salt over the onions. Sautee until onions are almost translucent, and then add the ground beef. Brown the ground beef and onions, breaking up any large clumps of beef. Drain any grease and return beef and onions to pan and reduce heat to low.

Puree the tomatoes to desired consistency. (I poured most of the tomato juice into the pan with the beef and onions, then used my immersion stick blender to puree the tomatoes right in the can. You can also just use a regular blender if desired.) Add the tomato puree to the pan of beef and onions.

Add another pinch of salt, along with the paprika, fish sauce (adds depth to the dish), minced garlic, and a couple grinds of fresh black pepper to the pan. Give it a stir, cover the pan, and simmer for one hour.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Cook the large elbow macaroni in boiling water for 9 minutes. Drain and add macaroni to the meat sauce. Turn off heat and let sit for 10 minutes to let the macaroni soak up some of the tomato juices. 

Grease a 9x13 baking dish, and transfer the noodles and meat to the dish. Top with the cheese, cover with foil, and bake in the oven for 30 minutes. Remove foil, turn oven to broil, and let the cheese broil for up to 5 minutes.

~This Glorious Day~

First and Fifteenth

Job 19:25

King James Version (KJV)

For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth:

I am ever so thankful than even though people here on earth may fail me and disappoint me time and again, I know that I can always trust God to never leave me nor forsake me. I put my trust in Him.

~This Glorious Day~