Happy Father's Day, Frank!

Happy Father's Day to the most wonderful man I've ever known. I love you, and couldn't be more pleased that God chose you to be the daddy to our children. I wouldn't want to face this parenting adventure with anyone but you.

Some things never change...

Yesterday I had the priveledge of spending the day with one of my dearest friends from WAY back. For those of you who don't know, Beth and I were inseparable from the time we were about 13. She moved to Ohio (booo....hissss!) toward the end of our Junior year in high school. Since then, we've only gotten to see each other a few times. This time was especially sweet because I got to meet her precious little girl, Amelia, and introduce her to my handsome Everett. Amelia is only 2 days older than Everett. We are currenly working on the conditions of their betrothal. We did lunch, drove around our old haunts, and got really, really silly. Boy, a lot has changed since we were 13... but I think we both discovered that some things never do. I love you, Beth! Thanks for the trip down memory lane.

Water Babies

On Thursday, the small ones and I went out to Memere's (that's Frank's mom's French grandmother name) house on Lake Granbury. The pool was warm, so we enjoyed the first swim of 2009! Lilly wore her swimsuit with the built-in floaties. We call it her "suicide bomber" swimsuit. I'm sure you can see why...

I wasn't sure I was going to get Everett in the water, but once I realized it was nice and warm, we decided to go for it. He wasn't sure what to think at first, but after a few minutes he figured out how to splash and kick, just like his sister.

The four of us had a really good time. I'm thinking we may make a habit out of this!

After about 15 minutes in the water, Everett was wiped out. So Memere shaded him from the sun, and rocked him... poolside. :)

Catching Up

I know it's been a long time since my last post! I had a glitch with my picasa/blogger, and couldn't get pictures up. Since I knew that's what everyone wants anyway, I just waited until I had a "free minute" (Yeah, right! What's that?) Now that I figured it out, you can see ALL our updated photos by clicking on the "Our Family Photos" link on the right.

But for you readers out there, here's our life in a nutshell:
Everett is 10 weeks old already. He's such an amazing little guy! At his 2 month check-up, he weighed 14lbs 8oz, and is 25 1/2 inches long. So in two months he's gained 5 pounds and 4 inches. Needless to say, nursing is going well. He's holding his head up well, and is very strong. He's got the most precious smile, and isn't afraid to use it. Over the last couple of days, he's started cooing at us more. He's so much fun!

Lilly currently holds the title of "Best Big Sister EVER!" She is wonderful with Everett, and tells him daily that he's her best friend. Her imagination has really blossomed over the last few months, which is so much fun to see. She really is such a bright and beautiful little girl, even if she is mine!

Frank and I were officially "prayed-in" as shepherds of our community group at church. It's been a smooth fit for us so far, because of the love we share with our church family. Frank is still loving his job, which makes me very happy. I'm enjoying being home with my babies, although there are days I really miss my girlfriends at work.

Everett's Unexpected Homebirth - March 5, 2009

As a doula (still in training), I have a ton of head-knowledge about birth, and I totally believed that birth is a normal, natural, healthy thing. But my Lilly was born in the hospital (in my pre-doula days) with all the bells and whistles. So I had doubts deep down about whether or not I could really do it. My plan this time was for an unmedicated hospital birth. Fortunately, it didn't turn out that way. Here's my story:

I was 39 weeks on Thursday, March 5. I woke up at 3:00am thinking my water might have broken. I was finally sure that's what it was at about 3:30. So I called my doula, Gina Phillips, to tell her my water had broken, and that we were going back to sleep to wait for my body to do it's thing. By 4:15, I was feeling crampy and uncomfortable... enough that I couldn't sleep. So Frank and I got up, e-mailed work, threw a few last minute things in our bags, and basically wasted time. Then around 5:00, I noticed that my cramps were coming about every 4 minutes apart, lasting more than a minute, but I was going to wait to do anything until they had been that way for an hour. At 5:15, we called our doula and said things felt really intense, and that I thought I could use her help. We also called our friend Kim, who was going to watch Lilly, to come over. At about 5:30, I decided I needed a change of scenery, since I couldn't find a comfy spot in our bedroom anymore. So I got up and walked into the living room and laid down on the couch just in time for another "cramp." It was then that I felt the baby's head come off my pubic bone (which is where he'd been resting for several weeks) and slide all the way down. It was the most dramatic thing I've ever felt in my life. Suddenly, my body was pushing and I couldn't make it stop. I was scared to death, but stayed calm. My husband was oblivious, and I didn't tell him what I'd felt because I couldn't even explain it to myself in my own head. I crawled over to my birth ball and stayed there for several minutes. Kim came at 5:45, and I couldn't speak to greet her. My doula came in at about 6:00 and found me on the floor making "pushy sounds". She helped me get up and walk to the bathroom. Up to then, I hadn't had any bloody show, but boy, that had changed drastically! I was freaking out, telling her I was pushing and couldn't stop. I think she and my husband both just thought I'd lost control and was starting to panic, so she tried to get me to reach and see if I could feel the baby's head. I couldn't tell what I was feeling, so she offered to look, just to reassure me that he was not falling out. When she looked, she could see his sweet little head right there! She said, very calmly, "We have two options. I could call 911 and a paramedic could deliver your baby here. Or I could call my friend, who is a midwife, who lives 10 minutes from here, and she could deliver your baby here. Either way, you are about to have a homebirth." Thankfully, in that moment I firmly said, "call the midwife!" That was about 6:10. For the next 13 minutes, my doula had me on my back, blowing through the intense urge to push, trying to buy some time for the midwife, Ann Crowell, to arrive. She came in at 6:23 and immediately got in position to catch my little one. I flipped to all fours, then down onto my side (which was way more comfortable for me.) She coached my pushing beautifully (strong push here... gentle push here... breathe here....) At 6:40 am, my sweet Everett James was born into my arms in the comfort of my own bed. He was 9 pounds, 9 ounces, 21 1/2 inches long... and I had NO TEARING!!! It was the most amazing thing that has ever happened to me. The next 2 hours were so amazing... nobody took my baby away, nobody rubbed goop in his eyes, nobody asked anything absurd of us. It was beautiful. We got into a wonderful herbal tea bath, and we felt so healthy and wonderful.

God gave me, not just the blessing of a healthy baby boy, but the gift of true belief... in His perfect plan, in birth, in my baby, and in myself. We thank God for this overwhelming gift. All the glory belongs to Him!

Here's a link to the picture montage of the birth.
http://www.onetruemedia.com/otm_site/view_shared?p=8354a766378ec560013157&skin_id=601&utm_source=otm&utm_medium=email

Long Overdue Post

I can't make any excuses for why I haven't blogged lately... unless, of course, you count being a zillion months pregnant, and having a two-year old, working, helping shepherd a cg.... then I guess I do have an excuse or two!

Lilly "ice skating" on our "pond" on the ice day, 1/28/09.

She just loves to blow the dandelions!

Big sister, helping Mommy open Everett's gifts at the baby shower at Mommy's work.

Isn't this the cutest thing!?! Thanks, Amanda, for such a sweet gift!

His name is on the door... we're ready when he is! For more shower and nursery pictures, visit our family photos link on the right side.

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas from the four Rebarchiks (well, one of us was saying "bah, humbug!")
If I were with-it enough to send cards this year, this would have been on it.

Lilly's first face-to-face with the man in the red suit.

Our excited girl, first thing Christmas morning.