Update

Wow...I can't believe it has already been a month since our last post. So much has happened. First off we decided it was time to head back West. We want Sam to be blessed by his grandparents and know them well and feel that it would be difficult for him to have that if we are living 3000 miles away. We had such a wonderful time with our families visiting and we can't wait to be near them again. Sam is doing wonderfully. He had his two month check up early April and is a healthy chubby baby boy. He now weighs in at 13lbs, 8oz and is 23 inches long. We've been so blessed by him. He is smiling like crazy and starting to make a lot of cooing sounds. He has been much more alert as of late and greatly enjoying his surroundings. He is constantly taking things in and looking around. He loves to sit on our bay window on his tummy looking outside. What an amazing blessing he is. We did find out at his appointment that he prefers to lay on the left side of his head which is causing a flat spot on his head. This could turn into something very serious so the doctor told us that he needs to have a lot of tummy time to round it back out. Now, first off, no one ever told me that it was possible for a baby's head to do that and second, tummy time in a house full of hyper kids is pretty difficult. I don't want him on the floor for obvious reasons but I don't want him in the back where I can't supervise. So, we've been holding him in his carrier and giving him tummy time after the kids go to bed and while the toddler in the house is napping. I have difficulty not holding Sam or being able to be within an arms reach of him if the kids are around. I know they would never do anything to him but I don't fully trust leaving him on the couch or floor without my presence next to him. I guess my real fear is that they will try to assist with something that I would rather they not. Oh well, I love the kids we have despite the difficulties and will miss them greatly after we leave. I am already having difficulty with the idea of leaving. I noticed a general desire to check-out and have been attempting (very hard) to stay present both emotionally and mentally. However, I feel at every turn I am getting knocked down by something I forgot to do or by not doing something. It has been very stressful. I love our lives here and all that it has afforded us (time with Sam and a ton of parenting tools, good friends and wonderful kids - yes, all of them). I have been a lot more sad lately and tired. I don't feel I ever get the amount of rest I need and the idea of actually being able to enjoy church is out the window. Our church doesn't have a Sunday school program because they believe it is good for the kids to observe what worship is through the adults in their lives. I agree but it makes it difficult because they do not want to sit and be quiet for over an hour. Michael has been such an encouragement to me. He allowed me to sleep for a couple of hours (actually it was more just resting) on Monday and has been working at giving me more of a break if I feel I need it. I feel so tired and have such mixed feelings concerning our leaving. I hate leaving our kids but I feel so burned out that I don't feel I am doing them any good by being here. I know they love Michael and I (and Sam of course) but I try to just keep telling them that we will continue to talk to them and be involved in their lives after we leave. Well, I've gone on long enough. Michael and I are going to go pack some more in a short while and I am hungry (again...it has become my comfort at night after the kids go to bed, plus with the stress during the day I don't eat too terribly much). Thank you all for your continued support and prayers over the last year. We can't wait to see so many of you again. God bless and enjoy the pictures!!

Visitors

Well, Sam is now 2 months and 3 days old. I can't believe how fast the time has gone. He is gaining weight so fast and is such an amazingly good baby. He is so laid back, perfect for the work we are doing right now. I can't imagine having 5 foster kids who are high maintenance and my own. Well, all of our family has been able to meet the little squirt. First Grandma Gayle and Uncle Erick visited in February (18th-25th). We, unfortunately, did not take any time off while they were in town and quickly regretted it. It was such a busy week, it seemed like I was taxi cabbing kids around daily to appointments (which I was). We had such a wonderful time and it killed me to see them leave. Uncle Jacob and Aunt Heidi were next to visit (March 5-8). We made sure we had at least 2 nights to ourselves on vacation. it was such a wonderful blessing and we had such a great time. It wasn't as hard to say goodbye although I still hated to see them leave. Next was Grampa Frank and Gramma Linda (March 18-24). We had most of their visit on vacation. It was awesome. We were able to show them around and rest up. I loved having them. They were able to watch Sam while Michael and I went on a walk. It was awesome to have some time with the hubby. They also took him for two nights and he ate out of his bottles. I haven't experienced a full night's sleep since January so this was a wonderful time to recoup before returning to work. It was also difficult to see them leave. Mom kept a smile on her face until she was out of sight and they've missed him like crazy since they have left, as has every other family member. I can't wait to see them again. It was so wonderful watching them interact with Sam and Sam smiled at all of them.

Sam has been doing so well. He can now hold his head up and is smiling at us a lot more often. He is taking bottles without a problem and his daddy has been able to feed him. It is so precious. Sam received his SSC in the mail yesterday as well as met the Easter Bunny at our Easter Egg Hunt for the kids. He was wide awake and it was a beautiful day. He looked right at the camera for the picture but I haven't downloaded it yet. Another post I guess. Life here has been hectic and I have been very tired. I miss my family and can't wait to head to Portland. I look forward to Sam meeting even more of his family. The kids have been doing pretty well although they have been going through a hard time (yes, all of them) although each of them has a different way of expressing their emotions which greatly depends on their maturity level. Here are some pictures from the visits we've been blessed to have. Hope you enjoy.

Sweet Sam

I can't believe it has been almost a month since our sweet little Sam was born. He has grown out of his preemie clothes and is close to growing out of his newborn size. He is awake more often these days but still sleeping well at night. He looks so much like Michael but has a few of my features. He found his thumb the other day and that shows that he is like me. I sucked my thumb until I was 9 years old...I am hoping he enjoys the pacifier and ignores his thumb. Only time will tell. Right now, Michael's mom and brother are visiting and they brought pictures of Michael as a baby. Samuel looks like his dad with lighter hair. I feel so blessed to have a healthy baby boy who is growing (although a little too quickly). I have mixed feelings, I look forward to seeing more of his personality as he grows and being able to play with him and his toys but it is so difficult seeing him grow so quickly and knowing he'll never be small again. Such a sweet angel. I love him to death and can't imagine life without him. I am already looking forward to another. I wanted to post some pictures so enjoy.

Samuel Owen Hollifield

Born 1:27 pm on 1/25/2010. He is 5 pounds and 14 ounces, 20 inches long. Blond, blue-eyed and beautiful. And grumpy...he's had a long day. Jen is doing wonderfully. We are both very happy and enjoying our new son. Thanks for all of your thoughts and prayers. More pictures and stories will follow.

Home Made

When I got pregnant I thought it would be a fun project to let each of our kids tie-dye a onesie for Samuel. Well, the kids had this last Monday off school and to keep them busy we decided it would be the perfect day to let them make a mess. So, we will now have a hippie kid this summer. Here are the results:

The first four are the ones Michael and I did and the other four are the kids' creations. They had such a wonderful time. I have also been working on a blanket since I found out I was pregnant. It was a pattern my Great Grandma Carter used to knit/crochet a baby blanket for me when my mom was pregnant and my grandma knit one for Samuel as well. The edging in the pattern has tassels and I decided to do something different so that each blanket is unique. I really like the way it turned out. I have it in the wash now getting clean. Here are the pics:


And lastly, I have explained a few times about my swollen feet. I had to post a picture for everyone to see. It is pretty sad. Michael has been amazing and rubs them daily.

So Close

Well, I am two weeks from my due date (13 days to be exact) and I can't wait. At my appointment two weeks ago, I was told that I am 2cm dilated and 80% effaced. I was hoping that at my appt. last week they would tell me that I have made more progress. However, I was hit with the information that I had made no progress whatsoever (I was told that he is at a minus 2 station), I had gained a pound a day (I attribute this greatly to having a afternoon appt. for the first time and having just eaten lunch), and I was positive for group B strep (which means 3-4 intervals of 30 minute IV meds. once I go into labor and Samuel is going to have to be monitored for 36 - 48 hours). I was not a happy camper when I left the office. I was so disappointed and concerned that I would have to leave my newborn son at the hospital while they discharged me. I quickly called my doctor and asked if that would be the case as I forgot to ask it while in the office. I learned about 2 hours later that I would be staying with him. Praise the Lord!! I am so glad I do not have to leave the hospital empty handed. After that worry was over, I began to do some research on Group B strep and found that it can be fatal to the baby if he contracts it during labor (thus the meds). I have yet to ask if I can still have a water birth despite the need for antibiotics but my assumption is that they will have me in the bed during the antibiotics and then I can chill in the tub (hopefully). I'll find out on Friday as long as my memory reminds me to ask. I quickly perked up and remembered that God has it all under control.

On the upside, we finally received the birthing tub, car seat and diapers. I am so excited. I can't wait to have him. I had a friend explain to me what a contraction felt like as I have no idea and nobody has really explained it in a way I have experienced. Sure enough, as soon as she explained it, I started feeling them. They are not regular and although they have increased at times in intensity it is never consistent. Michael and I had a couple friends visit today and we went on a walk and then a hike. The whole time I was hoping that it would help in either moving this kid on south or begin the laboring process for real. Three hours later and I still had more contractions yesterday than today. I guess I just need to continue walking more. However, my kankles make it very difficult. My toes are so swollen that it hurts at times to walk because they get bent. Michael has been great about rubbing them for me. The other night he told me it felt like he was playing with Playdoh. A fun analogy that I would have to agree with. So, I am trying to guzzle water and keep my feet up as much as possible but that is very difficult with 5 kids and so much around the house to do (plus the nesting instinct has kicked in full blast). Speaking of which, it is time for me to go pick up the kids from the bus stop. Hope our next post has some pictures of our son (if not, at least something interesting :)

New Year Plans vs. Reality

Well, our New Year's eve was quite eventful. Not in the way we had wanted it to be. Our plan was to spend the day at home nibbling on finger foods and watching movies before the ball dropped. What actually happened was far different. I woke up at about 1:30 am as one of our kids was feeling nauseated and wanted some meds. As I was getting back into bed I realized that I also felt sick to my stomach and sure enough a half hour later I was in the bathroom. I'll leave out the fun details but needless to say I could not keep anything down and was feeling very sick. I spent the entire day attempting to keep down liquids which was very difficult as I wanted to guzzle something as I was dehydrated. I spoke to the triag nurse at my doctor's office several times and she informed me to be highly aware of any contactions as sickness like this at 35 1/2 weeks can induce labor. THAT IS NOT SOMETHING I WANTED TO HEAR. Since I have never had kids before, I had to ask what a contaction feels like and how she described it did not help. I may have felt a couple during the day but I'm not sure. We decided at about 6:30 to go the emergency room and got me hooked up to some IV fluids (as I was still unable to keep anything down - no worries, Samuel is still in the belly safe and warm). My temp. at that point had gotten up to 101.7 and I was feeling less nauseated but very tired. I slept through most of the IV stuff although the bed was killing my back as there was very little support for my growing baby bump. Poor Sam. I was so concerned that he was not getting what he needed. My dad reminded me that he gets first dibs on anything he needs and I get the left overs, which at this point was little to nothing. After the fluids, my temp was back to normal and I was ready to sleep. We got home by 10 (a super quick trip to the ER, I believe due to the fact that I was pregnant). Michael woke me to watch the ball drop and then I was back in bed. Michael and one of the kids made the finger foods and all the kids enjoyed eating them. Yesterday I was mostly tired and Michael let me sleep/rest most of the day. Sadly, this morning I woke up at about 5:30 to Michael doing the same thing I did hte other night. He has been in bed all day not feeling well. I am taking care of him and hoping and praying that he can sleep through most of the day. Unfortunately about an hour ago one of the kids told me that she was feeling sick to her stomach as well. She is now in her room resting and hopefully will be feeling better soon but I have a feeling it is going to take about a day. My prayer is that this stomach bug will leave our house soon as it seems to be going around and around. Hopefully our next update will include some good news concerning a healthy family. In the mean time, we appreciate your prayers for patience and healing. Thank you.