the moss family

We had some amazing snow flakes two days ago and I was able to get some great pictures of the boys.  Enjoy!

homemade hot chocolate!

lip licking yummy!

Levi’s teacher, Mrs. Holderby, sent home some toothpicks and marshmallows for a fun activity.  Levi made a cube and a rectangular prism.  Jake made a square and triangle.  To finish off the activity, Levi made an octogon…then I told him to make a heptagon with the same pieces…and guess what?  There was a marshmallow left over…and he got to eat it!  Next he made a hexagon with the same pieces…and guess what?  You got it!  There was a marshmallow left over…we kept going until we got to a line (two marshmallows, one toothpick)…then he got to eat two at once 🙂   

It was a great way to make a snack fun.  The boys had lots of fun and so did mommy!

Levi’s basketball cheering section is always full!  Thanks for coming to see him play Grandma and Papa!  (oh…and thanks for keeping Jake entertained so I could actually watch the game!)  Levi made another goal…woohoo!  I love it when his own teammates block him (the boy just wanted Levi to pass him the ball 😉 )

Here are some pictures of Levi’s school dance and party…

I surprised the boys with a trip to Chuck E. Cheese today since Levi had a half day of school.  Here are some pics…

I cleaned out my car today.  It was pretty scary in there…but I felt safe and protected.  How could I not with this guy around?

Levi made two shots today in his second basketball game as a Falcon!  He was SO excited!  I didn’t get a picture of them…I was too busy cheering him on 🙂

A little teamwork D!

Taking it to the hole 🙂

It takes me about 15 minutes to take a shower and get dried off. 

This is what I found after my shower today…

And when I asked Jake…”Did you have muffins?”  He answers “Yes” 

And when I asked Jake…”Did you have a sucker?”  He answers “No!  I had two!”

Looks like I’ll be taking shorter showers from now on!

As a mom, I have a lot of jobs…chef, janitor, snuggler, book reader, nurse, laundry doer, chauffeur, … the list goes on and on.  But, one of my favorite jobs is volunteering at Levi’s school.  Starting when Levi was in Pre-K, I have been volunteering in his class once a week.  Playing, teaching, and loving on the kids there is fun!  Plus, Levi thinks it is really cool that his mom spends that time with him (his mom thinks it is cool too 🙂 ).

Yesterday was Groundhog’s day.  Not one of the holidays I am very familiar with, but one that school’s find fun to teach Kindergarten kids.  Levi’s teacher, Mrs. Holderby, asked that I do a craft with the kids when I came in to volunteer.  So, I did some research and learned all about Punxsutawney Phil and I bought all the supplies for the kids to make a banana groundhog.  The kids had a great time…Wesley even said “Mrs. Moss…I wish you would be here everyday!”  It was awesome :o) 

If you are able, I highly encourage you to volunteer at your child’s school…in the classroom.

I’m not sure why, but I’ve been thinking about Levi’s birth a lot lately.  Maybe it is because of all the prayers and excitement over the adoptions from Haiti that are finally coming to an end.  People are bringing their children home.  It has me thinking about when I brought my first baby home.  And since I started this blog when Levi was 5 years old…his birth story hasn’t been recorded on here yet.  So here goes.

I was 25 years old when Eddie and I decided to have a baby.  Why were we in such a hurry?  I’m not sure…but nowadays my advice to young married couples is “Take some time to enjoy life without kids.  Everything changes when you start your family!”   Please don’t misunderstand…I love Levi and Jake with every I there is in me…but there is something to be said about taking your time.  We had gotten married, purchased a home, and paid off  one of our vehicles…and I guess that since we had been together for 10 years already, we felt we were ready. 

HA!

No one…and I mean no one is ‘ready’ for that first baby!  What a turn-your-life-upside-down event having a baby is! 

Back to the big day of Levi’s arrival…well…the day before he arrived anyways.  I was 5 days shy of full term and had a check up with my OB.  Out of the blue, Eddie decided to take the morning off and come with me.  I had stopped working two weeks prior due to prehypertension and had been kind of bored around the house…just waiting for that first contraction.

So we show up at the OB and the first thing I am told is that they wanted to do an ultrasound to see how the baby was doing.  I was excited to have the US and see my little man.  So we go through the whole thing…cold jelly and all…and then wait for the Dr.  He comes in and ‘checks’ me (this is a nice term for a very unpleasant activity).  I’m not dilated at all and nothing indicates that labor is coming anytime soon.  Then he checks the US results.  “Hmmmm…well, it looks like the baby is no longer thriving in the womb.  See…his head measurement looks a little small.  I’m going to get you in today to induce.” 

Mixed feelings.

So now, I’m scared that the baby isn’t doing well, but I’m also really excited about going into labor and giving birth!  I had done little preparation for delivery…I mean…women do this all the time, it shouldn’t be too big of a deal, right?  My mom’s best comment was “Contractions are more like pressure…not pain.”  The Dr. tells me to go home…don’t eat anything…and wait for a call from the hospital saying they have a room ready for me.  At about 9 AM we head home thinking that in a couple of hours we’ll have our baby!

Wrong.

Hour upon hour go by…the time passage feeling even longer because I’m not allowed to eat.  (That is just crazy asking a 9 month pregnant lady to not eat!)  We call everyone and let them know that we will be having the baby sometime today and to hurry to Dallas.  At 4:30 PM we get the call to head to the hospital.  I still vividly remember the drive to the hospital.  It was the last time in a long time that Eddie and I would be alone together in a car.  Here’s a picture of me right before we head out…

We arrive at about 5PM and start all the paperwork.  By 6:30PM I’m started on a pitocin drip to start labor by a very nice nurse…I don’t know her name, so we’ll call her Nurse Mindy.  I ask her “How long do you think it will be before I give birth?”  She answers “Probably between 8 and 10 hours.”  At first the contractions aren’t too bad.  I’m having them every 3 minutes.  My in-laws and sister arrive for the big event and we are just kinda hanging out.  I’m covered in blankets because I’M FREEZING!  Nurse Mindy comes in to say goodbye as her shift ends at 8PM.  As time progresses, no progress is being made, so the Dr. breaks my water.  I am no longer smiling…and I’M IN PAIN!  Sorry mom…but the contractions I had were not pressure…they were PAIN!  At 11PM(ish) the Dr. ‘checks’ me again and says I am 2 centimeter dilated. 

Um…excuse me?  2 centimeters after 4.5 hours of this?

Give me an epidural.  Yes…I know they slow labor…but at the rate I’m going there is no way I’m going through this without some kind of help.  So at about midnight my best friend in the whole world arrives and gives me an epidural.  He asks…”How did that contraction feel?” and I answer “What contraction!!!”  Now, I smile and sleep and it is wonderful.  I wake up at about 6:30AM.

Day 2

I’m pretty rested, but notice that something isn’t quite right.  I can’t feel any contractions, but I can see on the monitor when they are happening and I notice that every time I have one, Levi’s heart rate slows drastically.  That doesn’t seem good.  It’s now 8AM and nurse Mindy arrives back for her next shift and her first words are “You are still here?”  Gosh, really?  Yes…I’m still here and scared to pieces!  When the Dr. comes in at 9AM we discuss and decide to do an emergency c-section.  Now I’m really scared.  Something is wrong with my baby.  I’m not prepared for a c-section…I didn’t even read up on them because I just knew I wasn’t going to have one.

Blur.

The next hour and a half are a blur, so I’ll tell you what I remember.  I remember them giving me medicine to stop labor (like I was ever really in labor).  This stuff is not fun.  It made me even colder and nauseous.  I remember being wheeled into the OR.  I remember Eddie wearing that little face mask thing.  I remember throwing up while the c-section was taking place.  I remember the Dr. saying that the cord was wrapped around the neck.  10:12AM  I remember hearing Levi cry.  I remember Eddie saying “He’s beautiful”.  and that’s it…they knock me out.  I never saw Levi.  I know now that they knocked me out so I wouldn’t choke on my own throw up.  Nice, huh? 

I was asleep for a good six hours.  My body has always been really sensitive to meds.  When I woke up, the nurse handed me a baby and I was thinking…ummm…okay…I guess he’s mine…? 

So…my experience of giving birth to my first baby involved lots of things I didn’t expect…but I did end up with a pretty amazing little man.

We we in the hospital for 6 days…some highlights…

1.  Eddie and I learned to love someone we didn’t know or understand.

2.  Me waking Eddie up in the middle of the night telling him to talk to me…because I just knew that the balloons were going to attack me.  Did I mention I’m sensitive to pain meds?

3.  Trying to nurse Levi with two lactation consultants, one nurse, my mom, and Eddie all in the room.  I never thought I wouldn’t care about being exposed.  Eddie never thought he’d be in a room with my mom and I while I was so exposed 😉

4.  My mom setting off the security alarm because Levi’s ankle bracelet thing had fallen off and ended up in her pocket. 

5.  Learning how a cow feels when it gets hooked up to those milking thingys.  Mooo.

Finally we were allowed to bring our baby home.  (I’ll spare you the stories – yes there is more than one – of my c-section incision getting infected and having to be reopened and remain open…)

Anyways…If you are still reading…I’m sorry to write such a long blog.  I just wanted to record all this before it is forgotten!

Oh…by the way…there was nothing wrong with Levi’s head size.  The lady doing the ultrasound made a poor measurment.  He was just fine.