To Do List:
Thank you notes:
Aitran
Maggie Ascanio- Gift certificate, dinner
Sister Johnson *-gift card
Liz Brown*- gift card
Kathy Holt*- gift card
Seanna Jolly-
Seminary Teachers-play gym
Marian Pickard*
Andrea Nelson*
Paula Jurinak*
Carolee Weber
Behtany and Andy- CD, doula
Emily Van Orman* *Blankets, towels, pacifiers and gowns
Doula supporters
Leah- clothes, onity, coming to help, doula
Johanna
Ann
Tiffany
Shima
Jessie
Grandma Allred- Blankets*
Tyler and Andrea- Lot of baby clothes
Jared, Debbie, Kyle and Daniel- Gift Certificates
Kelly- preemie gowns*
Mom-preemie clothes
Bridget- dinner*
Tanya- Dinner*
Samantha- quilts
Help-Jacki, Jana, Samantha, Sister Stay (diapers, Onsies) Marci, April Young
Susan- Quilts
Tara- Thing 1 & 2
Patsy- visit and afgans
Ann- onesie- Big Lots*
Sister stay- diapers, onesies, dinner
Terri and Toby- Snugglies and Clothes
Laura- lots of clothes/help
Cuban neigbor- clothes
Lopez- clothes*
jacki- Pecan candy, teddy bears
Dawn- clothes
sandy and suzie-clothes blanket*
Tara Bauer- Blankets*
Bauer Family- Target card*
Place Family-*
3185 W 132 Place
Leanwood, KS 66209
Peggy Willams- Check
Fiet- Target card*
DeGraffs- Childrens Board Books*
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Monday, April 7, 2008
Names, names, names...
So we've been discussing baby names for some time. It's complicated enough when you just have to think of one name, but we have the duty to name two kids at the same time. We're pretty settled on the name Maya for a girl, and we even have a back up girl's name in case both are girls. But we haven't really settled on a name for a boy. We have a front runner, but we thought we'd do another poll to see what you (our friends and family) think of various boy names. Please feel free to make comments and add suggestions. You aren't going to hurt our feelings, so fire away. By the way, we reserve the right to name the children whatever we like, and you might want to be careful about expressing your opinion to Alisa once the names are set. You know how mothers get protective of their children. :)
-Lonnie
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Thursday, March 6, 2008
and the winner is......
I went to the doctor's office again today and had another ultrasound.
Of course we won't know 100% until the babies are born, but we were told that baby A is a girl and baby B a boy! Yes, a set. One of each.
I guess we won't have to ever worry about telling them apart, we can always just check.
We are thrilled! (of course we were thrilled when we thought it was two girls also) It is so fun to think about what life might be like with two little babies.
Of course we won't know 100% until the babies are born, but we were told that baby A is a girl and baby B a boy! Yes, a set. One of each.
I guess we won't have to ever worry about telling them apart, we can always just check.
We are thrilled! (of course we were thrilled when we thought it was two girls also) It is so fun to think about what life might be like with two little babies.
Monday, March 3, 2008
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
what would faustina do??
Since getting pregnant, we have started to think more specifically what type of parents we want to be. I have also been stressing about gathering all the equipment, gear and stuff that babies require....car seats, strollers, crib, cradles, pack and play, swings, bouncer chairs, bottles, changing table, clothes, baby toys, monitor, custom quilts, boppy, carriers, diapers, wipes, just to name a few.
What would Faustina do? This is a questions I ask myself a lot these day. Faustina is an amazing mother of 5 who lives in Santa Catarina Ixtahuacan, Guatemala. I first met Faustina when I was on a BYU Anthropology Field Study in the summer of 2000. I lived with her and her family in a small Mayan village in the Guatemalan highlands. Faustina and I became good friends and I have returned to visit her her several times. I took Lonnie to met Faustina in May of 2005.
Faustina does not have a lot of material possessions. She lives in a very small adobe home and cooks her meals on an open fire. I am quite certain that her children never had any of the list of the things that I consider necessary for a baby. Yet she manged to raise her beautiful, happy children. Of course, many of the things available to me will make my life easier and the babies lives safer. Also, Faustina lived in a different type of society than we live in; her sisters, mother, and extended family all live within feet of her home and all took part in raising and watching over her children. Still, it seems like we become convinced that we need so much stuff in order to have a baby living in our home. So where is the balance? What do we really need? What can we do without? How do we find the balance between consumerism and necessity? Can all of that baby equipment distract us from the actual baby and deny our natural abilities as mothers?
What would Faustina do? This is a questions I ask myself a lot these day. Faustina is an amazing mother of 5 who lives in Santa Catarina Ixtahuacan, Guatemala. I first met Faustina when I was on a BYU Anthropology Field Study in the summer of 2000. I lived with her and her family in a small Mayan village in the Guatemalan highlands. Faustina and I became good friends and I have returned to visit her her several times. I took Lonnie to met Faustina in May of 2005.
Faustina does not have a lot of material possessions. She lives in a very small adobe home and cooks her meals on an open fire. I am quite certain that her children never had any of the list of the things that I consider necessary for a baby. Yet she manged to raise her beautiful, happy children. Of course, many of the things available to me will make my life easier and the babies lives safer. Also, Faustina lived in a different type of society than we live in; her sisters, mother, and extended family all live within feet of her home and all took part in raising and watching over her children. Still, it seems like we become convinced that we need so much stuff in order to have a baby living in our home. So where is the balance? What do we really need? What can we do without? How do we find the balance between consumerism and necessity? Can all of that baby equipment distract us from the actual baby and deny our natural abilities as mothers?
Friday, February 22, 2008
we're not so sure anymore....
So we thought we knew the sexes of the babies, confirmed twice by an ultrasound.....and we were keeping it only just a little bit quiet (I usually told anyone who asked).
But then yesterday I went to the doctors and had another ultrasound. Now we are not quite so sure. The nurses discussed and could not come to a consensus, other than to tell us to wait for another ultrasound in another two weeks.
So the voting is still open. Feel free to change your vote, if you so desire.
But then yesterday I went to the doctors and had another ultrasound. Now we are not quite so sure. The nurses discussed and could not come to a consensus, other than to tell us to wait for another ultrasound in another two weeks.
So the voting is still open. Feel free to change your vote, if you so desire.
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Monday, January 28, 2008
Once upon a time....
How the story began....
We feel that we should tell a little more background on how this pregnancy came about. That may seem kind of funny at first because people are normally more discrete about discussing conception, but this conception didn’t happen the “traditional” way, as it resulted from a process of undergoing several infertility treatments. Infertility is an difficult trial because it delays or (in some cases) impedes the fulfillment of the desire to bring children into this world. Infertility tested our patience and faith because, beforehand, we didn't really expect to have difficulty in having children, and then during the process we didn't know if we were going to be able to get pregnant. As we met disappointment followed by disappointment, we were comforted by others who had experienced infertility. We were strengthened as they shared their stories and provided advice to us. Maybe our story can provide comfort and strength to others as well.
The pregnancy occurred when we did a round of intrauterine insemination (IUI). IUI is a procedure where they take a semen sample (in this case, mine), wash the sample to concentrate the good sperm, and (using a long, narrow syringe) inject the sperm directly into the uterus (in this case, Alisa's) within 24-48 hours after ovulation. We had attempted IUI once in Utah just before we moved to Houston, but it was obviously unsuccessful. We have been told that IUI only has a 25% success rate. So this was the first time we did IUI in Houston, and we weren’t extremely hopeful that it would be successful. For one, a 25% success rate doesn’t put the odds in your favor, and for another, Alisa hadn’t ever been pregnant even with two years of attempts during our marriage. Although two years is not as long as many people struggle with infertility, we were a bit worried considering we didn't get started until we were 30. Alisa also feels that she gets to count the years between 23 and 30 (at the very least) that she was not married but really wanted to be a mother.
So we (especially Alisa) were losing hope that we would be able to get pregnant, but we still wanted to try IUI to see if it could work out. And it did! The week after our IUI, we travelled to southern California to spend some time with Alisa's family. Alisa felt few a few pregnancy symptoms, but nothing that a strong desire to be pregnant (often to the level of obsession) wouldn't bring on. We decided not to do a pregnancy test. Possibly being too superstitious, we felt that pregnancy tests (those evil little test strips) were bad luck, considering Alisa had peed on many of them and we had never seen one with a positive result. Two weeks after the IUI, Alisa went into the doctor's office for a blood test. Our fertility doctor regularly schedules these tests after fertility procedures in order to gather more information. The kind nurse who took Alisa's blood offered a short, sincere prayer with her that the tests would come back positive. Later that afternoon, Alisa got a call with the results. Alisa had elevated levels of HCG, indicating a pregnancy! We were very surprised! Alisa went back to the doctor's office again two days later for another blood test, and the results were also positive! We felt very blessed that the time had come, and we kept praying that pregnancy would progress normally.
Two weeks after finding out that she was pregnant, Alisa went in for her first ultrasound, when they heard not only one heartbeat, but two! Twins! To be honest, we didn’t really pray for two to come at once, but we’ll definitely take it. Because some infertility treatments increase the odds of having twins (or more), I had joked with Alisa several times that we might as well start with twins just to catch up. I didn't really believe that the jokes would become reality. In fact, IUI doesn’t increase the odds of having twins, according to what we have read and been told by our doctor. The medication Alisa was taking to help her ovulate (Clomid) did increase our odds of twins, but our doctor told us that it only gives an 8% chance of twins. So the twins were even a surprise to our doctor.
We obviously don't see this pregnancy as an answer to all of our struggles (it has already introduced new ones, as we'll share in future posts), but we feel blessed to have this experience in our lives. We are striving to rely on the Lord, attempting to align our will with His, and our faith in Jesus Christ has strengthened as we have felt His influence in our life.
-Lonnie
We feel that we should tell a little more background on how this pregnancy came about. That may seem kind of funny at first because people are normally more discrete about discussing conception, but this conception didn’t happen the “traditional” way, as it resulted from a process of undergoing several infertility treatments. Infertility is an difficult trial because it delays or (in some cases) impedes the fulfillment of the desire to bring children into this world. Infertility tested our patience and faith because, beforehand, we didn't really expect to have difficulty in having children, and then during the process we didn't know if we were going to be able to get pregnant. As we met disappointment followed by disappointment, we were comforted by others who had experienced infertility. We were strengthened as they shared their stories and provided advice to us. Maybe our story can provide comfort and strength to others as well.
The pregnancy occurred when we did a round of intrauterine insemination (IUI). IUI is a procedure where they take a semen sample (in this case, mine), wash the sample to concentrate the good sperm, and (using a long, narrow syringe) inject the sperm directly into the uterus (in this case, Alisa's) within 24-48 hours after ovulation. We had attempted IUI once in Utah just before we moved to Houston, but it was obviously unsuccessful. We have been told that IUI only has a 25% success rate. So this was the first time we did IUI in Houston, and we weren’t extremely hopeful that it would be successful. For one, a 25% success rate doesn’t put the odds in your favor, and for another, Alisa hadn’t ever been pregnant even with two years of attempts during our marriage. Although two years is not as long as many people struggle with infertility, we were a bit worried considering we didn't get started until we were 30. Alisa also feels that she gets to count the years between 23 and 30 (at the very least) that she was not married but really wanted to be a mother.
So we (especially Alisa) were losing hope that we would be able to get pregnant, but we still wanted to try IUI to see if it could work out. And it did! The week after our IUI, we travelled to southern California to spend some time with Alisa's family. Alisa felt few a few pregnancy symptoms, but nothing that a strong desire to be pregnant (often to the level of obsession) wouldn't bring on. We decided not to do a pregnancy test. Possibly being too superstitious, we felt that pregnancy tests (those evil little test strips) were bad luck, considering Alisa had peed on many of them and we had never seen one with a positive result. Two weeks after the IUI, Alisa went into the doctor's office for a blood test. Our fertility doctor regularly schedules these tests after fertility procedures in order to gather more information. The kind nurse who took Alisa's blood offered a short, sincere prayer with her that the tests would come back positive. Later that afternoon, Alisa got a call with the results. Alisa had elevated levels of HCG, indicating a pregnancy! We were very surprised! Alisa went back to the doctor's office again two days later for another blood test, and the results were also positive! We felt very blessed that the time had come, and we kept praying that pregnancy would progress normally.
Two weeks after finding out that she was pregnant, Alisa went in for her first ultrasound, when they heard not only one heartbeat, but two! Twins! To be honest, we didn’t really pray for two to come at once, but we’ll definitely take it. Because some infertility treatments increase the odds of having twins (or more), I had joked with Alisa several times that we might as well start with twins just to catch up. I didn't really believe that the jokes would become reality. In fact, IUI doesn’t increase the odds of having twins, according to what we have read and been told by our doctor. The medication Alisa was taking to help her ovulate (Clomid) did increase our odds of twins, but our doctor told us that it only gives an 8% chance of twins. So the twins were even a surprise to our doctor.
We obviously don't see this pregnancy as an answer to all of our struggles (it has already introduced new ones, as we'll share in future posts), but we feel blessed to have this experience in our lives. We are striving to rely on the Lord, attempting to align our will with His, and our faith in Jesus Christ has strengthened as we have felt His influence in our life.
-Lonnie
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