How are the other kids adjusting?

(I wrote this post a while back, but for some reason it didn't post- trying again).

I get that question quite a bit... Overall, I think they are all doing really well. Havana, at first, was all into holding Asa, but that has died down a little bit and she is back to doing life as normal. Jonah really has no interest in Asa unless he is crying- then he will ask why he is sad. Selah, on the other hand, is obsessed with Asa. She is constantly trying to see him and will ask us to take her to him at least 10 times a day! She always blows him a kiss every time she sees him and she will sit down and extend her arms often throughout the day which is her way of asking to hold him! She can't get enough of "ba-ba"

Overall they are doing well! Lots of emotions and fights between them but that most likely has more to do with their age and that we have been house bound for a few weeks! Ha!

Indoor Snow!

Today, we made indoor snow out of cornstarch and shaving cream! The kids LOVED it! It kept all three entertained for about and hour and then Havana played for about another hour in it! We put buttons and paper clips and other fun treasures in there. The kids used forks and spoons and cups to dig around and scoop up the snow! It was a blast!

Havana did ask me at one point if we were making "Compost"- I told her no and she said, "well, it smells like compost so I thought we were making compost." - um, I think she has had enough science lessons for one week! Ha!

Has anyone ever told you?

Today, Havana said to me,

"Mama, has everyone ever told you that you are so beautiful?"

My heart melted!

In Charge

Well, Havana is obsessed with being "in charge" -- she always wants to know who is in charge and when will it be her turn to be in charge. Don't know if this is an age thing or a an oldest thing, but it has been going on for some time. She doesn't hesitate to let me know that she is in charge of Pluto (her favorite stuffed animal) when I remind her that mommy and daddy are in charge. She also talks about one day when mommy, daddy, ms. erin, ms. chelsea, ms. sadie (her babysitters) aren't here that she will be in charge. I would tell her that okay, one day she will be in charge when no one else is around, but Jason was telling her that she isn't old enough yet and so I changed my message to be the same as his. :)

The other day, I was out with Baby Asa and when I got home Havana told me that they watched a show while daddy got in the shower. She then told me that she was in charge of Jonah and Selah because he wasn't around. I asked Jason if he told her she was in charge - he had not, but she took it upon herself. Sneaky girl.

This morning, I went in to get the girls up and Havana was already out of bed playing next to Selah's crib. I told her I was really proud of her for playing so well with Selah while she was waiting for mommy and she said, "I told Selah that she was never going to get her "this" (the name of a stuffed animal) back ever if she didn't obey me because I was in charge." Oh goodness. She is a control monster. haha. 

Oh my gosh!

Havana recently started saying, "oh my gosh" and she quickly taught it to Jonah. We have tried to correct this speech. We tell them that it isn't very respectful and we tell them, "the Duggers say oh my goodness."

The other night I heard Jonah talking to himself in his crib. He would say in a deep voice, "oh my gosh. Oh my gosh." Then he would say in a high voice, "The Duggers say oh my goodness! The Duggers say oh my goodness!

Those nighttime conversations are so funny to me. I gives me a glimpse into what they are thinking about and what sticks with them! :)

Asa's First Week Recap!

Well, yesterday (January 11th), Asa turned one week old! I can't believe he has already been an active part of our family for a week. It is just further proof that time flies.

His first week has certainly been atypical. He was born on Friday and that was a smooth and fun process. On Saturday, Jason returned home to deal with the children. His mom came down on Saturday afternoon and so she, Jason, and the children came to visit us quickly in the hospital. Shortly after they left, I got a phone call from my mom telling me that my grandmother (and last living grandparent) had died. It was a certainly a weird experience to be "isolated" in the hospital and be excited about our baby and sad for her passing. It took a while to process.

On Sunday afternoon, around 2pm, Jason and the children picked me up from the hospital. He had a pizza in hand and we went home and ate lunch as a family. It was good to be home and together with everyone. For dinner that night, I made pork chops. I had to hit the ground running in terms of catching up on laundry and dishes, but it made my heart happy to be back.

Monday was our first full day together as a family. Asa struggled throughout the night and so Jason let me sleep in until after 10am! The rest of the day we played together. Eating left over pork chops and pizza for lunch and dinner. Monday night, we put the kids down to bed as usual and then a few hours later, around midnight, Havana woke up throwing up! Now, if you know me, you know vomit is pretty much my number one fear in life. Thankfully I was in Asa's room with him so I didn't have to see it, but I was still thinking, "you have got to be kidding me?!" Wondering why she had to get it our first day together. She got sick a few times throughout the night - I heard it, but thankfully was hidden away in Asa's room. He didn't sleep well that night either, but I was able to sneak out a few times and start some of her dirty laundry.

Tuesday - she was sick. Running a high fever and not eating. She would occasionally perk up after her meds kicked in, but always for brief periods of time. She would drink some juice or water, but wouldn't eat anything. Thankfully, she never threw up, but still was "needy" and sick. Which meant a lot of TV.  Asa slept well Tuesday night going 3-4 hours between feeds. yay.

Wednesday - still sick Havana. Still running a high fever. She would nap on the couch a lot and around 1pm that day finally asked for food. She asked for french toast, but we didn't have any which sent her into a lot of tears. Jason loaded her up and they went to Meijers and got her french toast and some more juice and other quick things we needed. She ate some, but not a lot and then wanted to lay down again. She continued to nap and lay down the rest of the day. I ended up making a homemade chicken noodle soup for us all to eat for dinner. Oh, and normally the kids go to their Bible Study, Awana, on Wednesdays, but we told her she couldn't go that night and she cried for hours. She was so bummed. I felt so sad for her. In other news, Asa slept GREAT on this night only waking every 4-5 hours!

Thursday- I left the house before anyone was awake (9am) to get Asa to his doctors appointment. He weighted 8 pounds, 6 ounces which means he was 3 ounces over his birth weight! That is amazing and the doctor couldn't stop talking about it. He also measured 21.25 inches which meant he grew 1.4 of an inch. Way to go, buddy! Jason texted and said everyone was healthy and happy so we all made the 1.5 hour trip to my grandmother's funeral. I was glad to be able to go. I was planning on just going with Asa, but Jason wanted to drive me because of my lack of sleep and since all the kids were healthy we made a day out of it. He took the older children to Chick-fil-A while I was at the funeral with Asa. This was the first time anyone from my family had met Asa. I told Jason that night I still don't think I have had time to process everything between the newborn, being stressed out with Havana's illness, and the funeral. Asa slept well again this night.

Friday- first "normal" day... everyone was healthy. We hung around and just spent time as a family. It was nice. A friend brought over dinner and so my week of cooking for our family was over. It felt good. Asa was up more throughout the night on this night, but hoping that was a fluke and not a regression. ha.

Throughout this crazy week - Asa has been a trooper.  I can't express clearly enough how great he has been during the day. He put himself on the eat, wake, sleep cycle that I always strive for and has had a few nights of going several hours at night. He is able to look around and entertain himself which Selah struggled with... so that is freeing. His nights have been great - sleeping in his own room. He really is just a great boy. He seems so sweet and mellow. Just like his daddy. :) Jason says he thinks Asa looks most like him of any of our children. We both think he resembles Jonah a lot too. He has proven to be flexible and not needy. He does like to eat every 2 hours during the day, but I'm okay with that.

For me, I felt like I hit the ground running. Came home and had children to play with and housework to do. Then, with the illness, I was cleaning like a mad woman - sanitizing anything that stood still. Less than a week after having a baby loading everyone up to travel for a funeral. My body certainly hasn't rested much and I'm just now beginning to feel the affects of that, but hoping after a day or two of taking it easy and just being together as a family I will feel more like myself. We just got around to giving Asa his first bath today. Poor guy was pretty stinky. Ah, life with a newborn. :)

Tomorrow we are planning on going to church. Jason took the kids last week without me... which is where I suspect Havana picked up her nasty virus. Praying that tomorrow will be germ free. This cold and flu season is one in which I'm constantly stressing out over everything. Which is my problem and one I told Jason I really want to pray through... it isn't normal or healthy and truly robs my joy... it needs to go. So, please be praying for me as I fight this fear.

I am looking forward to this next week where Jason will still be home and we can begin to adjust to life and get into a regular routine. For a few days in there we watched a lot of shows because Havana was sick on the couch and I had a newborn so couldn't take the other kids places. The past two days we have cut back to our regular amount and it has been very refreshing. Looking forward to engaging with the children some more. We have plans this next week, but nothing too crazy or hectic and I have friends bringing over meals so I can sit back and enjoy life with my littles. I am extremely blessed!

Fire Station field trip!

The other day the two older children went with daddy to a field trip to the fire station. Jonah LOVES fire trucks and so he was a very happy camper!

Birthmark = BooBoo

Jonah has quite a large birthmark on his leg. Apparently, he just noticed it this week because he told me it was a boo boo! I told him that it wasn't a boo boo, but a special mark that God gave him. He said, "no, it is a boo boo- I got it from the window!" Haha- guess he noticed it for the first time when he was standing in the window! Ha! Kids are so funny!

Prayers please!

Please pray for health for all! Havana is sick (stomach flu, I think) and Asa is only 3 days old! Please pray this virus leaves quickly and that the baby stays well.

Paternity Leave means Spring Cleaning!

Today we have pulled the fridge, oven, and the in cabinet trash can and vacuumed and wiped down the appliances and the floor around them! I guess paternity leaves is also code for spring cleaning!

I took care of all 4 kids solo today! Only for about an hour while Jason ran to the grocery. It went Ok. There was about a 20 minute period where 3 out of the 4 kids were crying, but it passed and things calmed down. I'll get another trial run tomorrow as Jason has a dentist appointment. My main concern about that is the time- his appt. is at 10:30am and this AM Asa and I were still sleeping at 10:30. So we will have to wake up earlier tomorrow. One day at a time!

First Night!

Well, we are all home!! Asa and I came home around 2pm today! It was very nice to all be together! I even made dinner from scratch! I could tell the older children really enjoyed us all being together.
Jonah was sweet always wanting to check in to see where Baby Asa was. Selah always wanted me to pick her up so she could look at him and she kept blowing him kisses! Havana was always very curious and wanted to hold him a lot! It was sweet. Asa is adjusting well and has been fairly consistent.
Tonight, it was about 9:30 by the time we got all three children down. They didn't sleep well for our babysitter and woke up really early for Jason. I was sure it was just their way of dealing with the change of mommy being gone and was hoping tonight would be smooth sailing... Not quite.
Asa has been great- I fed him around 10 and then I fell right to sleep. Jason had to get up with him and moved him from his crib to the swing because he slept better I woke up around 1:15 and fed Asa until about 2am. At 2;44, I woke up to Selah crying and while trying to comfort her woke up Havana. Thankfully Havana went right back to sleep, but I had to go get a sippy cup for Selah. Finally, she went back to bed and so did I. I heard her again close to 4, but woke Jason up to get her. Shortly there after, Asa woke up and so I changed his diaper and am currently feeding him. As I am doing so, Jason has had to get Selah... Again. Poor girl. Hopefully she is not getting sick and this is just her way of getting adjusted! Time will tell, but overall, I think things are going very well and I'm impressed with Asa's first night here!

Asa Joash

Well, our fourth miracle made his entrance into the world on January 4th, 2013. We were worried that we were going to have to have a c-section, but praise the Lord, the baby flipped! We had already scheduled the c-section for the 4th and had child care secure (I was only 39 weeks, but that gave us a longer recovery time). Less than a week before the 4th, I met with the doctor to go over the plan. I asked a billion questions and was so discouraged by the whole idea of a c-section. Before I left that appointment, she went to check the baby and she thought the baby had flipped! WHAT?! He had. Praise God. Our sweet little baby boy was head down and ready to go (to read another blog post about that story, click here).

We considered moving back the induction date, but we weren't able to line up a babysitter on a day my doctor could induce us... so, we decided to stick with the 4th as originally planned. I was nervous going that early, but figured if the Lord could flip our baby then He could help our baby get ready to come a week early. That week of his birth was crazy. Jason worked all the way up until the time, we were trying hard to get the house cleaned and the rooms ready, etc. It was a blur to say the least.

On Thursday night, our babysitter arrived and spent the night at our house so she could watch the new bedtime routine (now that all the children have moved rooms!) and so that the children, especially Selah, would recognize her in the AM. After the children went to bed, she helped us take this photo of my belly. :)

I finally went to bed around 2am that night and I still didn't get everything accomplished. I told Jason I wanted to sanitize the floors and he said, "I think you are going to have to let that go. Tomorrow you have to push a baby out of your body and you are going to need strength." I always appreciate his wisdom in those moments. After about an hour and half of sleep, my alarm went off and I got into a quick shower and then we left for the hospital around 4:30am.

We checked in on time (5am) and I took my time getting set up in our room. The nurse hooked me up to all the monitors and said that they like to observe the baby for 30 minutes to an hour before beginning the induction. Jason used this time to get some sleep and I used it to pray about our baby's name, our children still at home, and the day's events.

Around 7am they came to check the baby via ultrasound to make sure he was still head down. He was. With that, they got me hooked up to IVs and started the pitocin medicine. Every 20 minutes or so they would turn up my dosage and were trying to get me into a regular contraction rhythm. My doctor came in around 9am to break my water and then I got my epidural - which went in smoothly and perfectly! They also allowed Jason to stay in the room which they didn't allow with Selah so that was a special treat.

Once my epidural was in, I laid down and took a nap. I woke up close to noon and they said I had progressed from 3cm to 8cm. I was having a small "window" of pain in my lower right side - which they said was most likely due to where the baby's head was. Aside from that, it was pain free. With all three of other births, I always had moments during labor where I thought I was going to puke - I did not have that even for a minute with this one. I kept thinking, "I can't be ready yet, I haven't felt sick." Ha. I felt so alive, so awake. I was chatting up my friend Lisa, who was there to take photos, and my husband. I could feel every contraction, but never any pain (until the end when that "window" would hurt, but that was very small and very brief). Around 12:55pm they said I was ready to push and they set things up. I pushed one time and out came our little boy at 12:56pm. It was so quick and easy. They held him up to me and my first thought was that he was small. The doctor kept saying how big he was. Clearly we had different opinions of big and small. ha. They placed him on my chest and Jason was able to cut the cord. That was the first time I was able to see him do that. I can't express, again, how clear headed and alert I was. It was amazing and makes me realize how bad my epidural was with Selah's birth.

He weighted 8 pounds, 3 ounces and was 21 inches long. He was, by far, our smallest baby. Havana was 8 pounds, 12 ounces... Jonah was 8 pounds, 7 ounces... and Selah was 8 pounds, 14 ounces. I remember the doctor telling me that she didn't have to work for her pay check that day because I made birthing so easy. Jason said, again, that I always do make it look easy. That always warms my heart. I got to snuggle with him for a while and the nurses brought me food (which is always an important part of my recovery!). Lisa, Jason, and I stayed in the room for almost two hours holding our newest miracle.

We named him Asa Joash Dugger. Here is the story behind his name:

When we gave birth to Selah, we did not know if she was going to be a boy or a girl. We had decided a few months before her birth that if she was a boy we were going to name her Joash. Joash was a young boy who became king at age 7. We loved what the Bible tells us about him in 2 Kings 12 where it says, "Joash did what was right in the eyes of the Lord all the years Jehoiada the priest instructed him."  We liked that Joash had similar letters to Jason and Jonah and we just thought it fit well. However, Selah was a girl and with her name she became our third child whose name ended in the short "a" sound. After we found out that this baby was a boy, we discussed keeping the name Joash, but Jason didn't feel comfortable having one child whose name ends differently than the others.

So, we began to look at boy names that ended in the "ah" sound. We liked a few names... our top runners were Zephaniah, Hosea, or Obadiah.. but if we had chosen any of these names it would have been based on the fact they were a Biblical name and not much more. Plus, none of these names sounded "good" with Joash as a middle name. I was pretty firm that I wanted to keep that name as his middle name because I had attached to it so much.

Last winter, our church studied the King Asa from the Bible. I loved his story and even though at the time we weren't even pregnant, I did think, "hm, Asa would be a good name for a son." The Bible tells us in 1 Kings 15 that Asa did what was right in the eyes of the Lord and that his heart was fully committed to the Lord all his life. I loved the part about his heart being fully devoted to the Lord all his life. Something else about King Asa that Jason and I liked was his determination to stand up to society and even his family to worship the Lord with a pure heart. He was determined to be a cycle breaker from the idols of their day and we want that for ourselves and for our children. We loved the name Asa, his story in the Bible, and thought it was a perfect fit for our son. It had a special meaning and ended in the short "a" sound.

We went back and forth on Joash. Did it sound good with Asa? Are we sure we still wanted to use the name? King Joash in the Bible did what was right in the eyes of the Lord all the days he was instructed by a priest, but later in life he chose to worship idols instead. Did we want that legacy in our son's name? We thought and prayed about it and decided that we still liked the name. We like his leadership and child like faith at the young age, but we also realized that everyone of us and everyone we read about in the Bible (save Jesus) has a time when they fall short. Which is why we need Jesus. It seems like Joash followed the Lord when others were instructing him to do so, but not later on in life. How easy would it be to simply spoon feed our own children our faith and never let it become their own. Hopefully, as I say and pray for Asa Joash, I will be able to take that to the Lord and ask that my children won't make that mistake, but that they will develop their own relationship with the Lord rather than simply adopting our faith. That would be a different name legacy for our little boy than the boy king he was named after.

Asa Joash Dugger. I love his name. It is unique, follows our pattern, and has a special meaning.

The rest of his first day was great. Jason was able to give him a bath while I finished recovering. We made our way to our nice room where Jason actually had a bed to sleep in! We texted friends the news, enjoyed time with our little boy, and prayed together. We were up almost all night with Asa who kept having horrible reflux and choking. I was worried about him, but Jason's calming presence kept me calm.

Today (the 5th) has been much better as he has only choked a few times (unlike every few minutes like yesterday). He is getting into a better eating, waking, sleeping pattern and is enjoying some much needed snuggles. Jason left around 11:30am and then he quickly brought the children back to meet the baby. Asa met his grandmother (Jason's mom), his brother and sisters today. Havana was very excited to meet him and did a great job holding him. It is neat now that she is 4 how she can get excited and want to be very maternal. What a big helper. Jonah was a little more unsure - not wanting to hold him. Selah loved him and thought he was a baby doll. She quickly said, "Aw" and then gave him a big hug (which was really her slamming her head down on his... it is the thought that counts, right?!). Jason then took the children home and it has been just me and the little boy all evening. I will admit I am a little sad to be away from my other children, but Jason has been very good about sending me photos of all that they are up to. I am thankful he is such a great dad and can handle all three children while I am here.

Freeze Bad Guys!

Yesterday we took the kids to bass pro shop and they found the toy guns. This was this first time to see/play with guns and the two older ones kept asking what they were. Jason took it upon himself to show them how to work the guns and that you should say, "freeze bad guys" before shooting. They spent about 20 minutes saying that phrase and then shooting the gun. When we got home, Jonah found an old wrapping paper roll and kept yelling, "freeze bad guys" while pointing it! Ha!

Wish I could remember...

About a week ago Havana and I were drawing and for the first time I wanted to save her picture because I was so impressed! She had this elaborate story that went along with her drawing! I remember telling Jason about it and he said that I should write the story on the back.

Well, a week later, I can't remember! :(it had something to do with Jonah who was sad for some reason and the Care Bears came to rescue him... But that is all I can remember. Hoping I can remember more, but wanted to post her drawing before I forget it all together!

And, before I forget, we watched a Curious George the other day and he made a para scope to be a spy. As soon as it was over she asked if she could make one. We used a tube from old wrapping paper and she decorated it with construction paper and tape and colored it all her own! Then she was a spy the rest of the night! When did she get so big?!

Acting out Bible stories!

My kids love acting out Bible stories! David and Goliath is still Jonah's favorite and for Cmas we have him a David and Goliath figurine! He loves playing with it! Havana has been into acting out the Cmas story and she likes to play Mary! The other day we were playing and Jonah (who is usually Joseph) said, "I'll be baby Jesus!" Then he ran around yelling, "it's my birthday!!!!" Funny kiddos!