On March 8, 2007 at 5:35pm Joshua Kenneth Stone came into this world. He weighed 7lbs 7 oz and was hungry immediately post partum. (Little did I know, this baby would prefer to be on my chest, not just post partum, but 24-7 for the next 4 months) I arrived at the hospital at 7 a.m. that morning, received an epidural that worked and 9 hours later he arrived with only 3 pushes. His birth was much easier however; my pregnancy with him was where I paid my dues. I had to give myself Lovenox shots twice a day from week 7 to week 36. After that I switched to Heparin, which was comprised of 4 shots a day until week 38, when he was delivered. I took the shots to combat a genetic mutation called MTHFR. While I only have a single mutation, not a double, it was determined that the MTHFR was causing clotting in the placenta and was the reason for my previous miscarriages. At week 7 we thought we were going to loose Joshua’s pregnancy, however the Lovenox shots kicked in just in time to fight the over coagulation my body was demonstrating.

The above picture was from the night before I had Joshua. Note the bruises on my belly from the shots and the cankles. Gotta love the 3rd trimester!!!

After my third miscarriage and my diagnosis with a genetic disorder, I had a breakdown. I assumed that I would never have another child. Not because I couldn’t but because I didn’t think my heart could take another possible loss. As I sat there that day after my doctor’s appointment I opened up my Bible and asked God to tell me something, anything, that would bring me comfort. This is what He said:

“But this precious treasure, this light and power that shines within us is held in perishable containers, that is, in our weak bodies. So everyone can see that our glorious power is from God and not ourselves.” 2 Corinthians 4:7

It may not seem like much but I could hear Him saying that although my body was weak, He would deliver a child through me so that He could have the glory. He is a keeper of promises, even when circumstances seem grim.

Joshua’s name is also from an Old Testament story. His name means, the Lord is God. Essentially it is the declaration that God is Almighty and He is the only One. In the midst of my personal anguish over miscarriage, God was and still is, sovereign. Joshua is representative of that sovereignty.

Joshie was an easy baby for the first few weeks. He slept well, he ate like a champ, and he smiled a lot right at 4 weeks. After that however, things got a little tough. He decided at some point that sleep was unnecessary and by about 10 weeks old, could go most of the day without a nap. He has been slower to reach all of the “milestones” but his temperament has developed into a sanguine, affable, joy of a child. He is usually ready for anything and his favorite thing is to get in the car and go someplace.

As of his 1^st birthday, Joshie still isn’t walking but he is very close. He can crawl amazingly fast and he prefers that mode of transportation at this point. Joshua is infatuated with his older brother and will do anything to get close to him. I hope that this continues, as it is my deepest desire that my children have a close relationship.

I know, mostly, what this next year will hold for Joshua, first steps, words and lots of learning. What I don’t know is how I am going to handle my baby turning into a little boy. The second time around it is so much more difficult to let them grow and be independent.

• started out the week with jet lag from a trip across the country for work.
•  then I had a root canal.
• then my youngest got pink eye… in both eyes. You really haven’t lived until you’ve held an 11 month old down against his will and tried to put drops in his eyes.
• then I had to plan/shop/prepare for a birthday party for both of my children. Did I mention their birthdays are only 5 days apart?

Next week I have to travel again for work. I am exhausted and ready for March to be over.

Yesterday I had a root canal. Two weeks ago I had an appointment at my dentists office where I was informed that for no apparent reason one of the roots of tooth #30 had up and died, necessitating a root canal. Mind you there was no cavity, just root suicide. How awesome is that?

As to be expected, the root canal sucked. Actually, it was horrible. It was the culmination of all things wretched and wrong with this world….There were: needles, drills, annoyingly late doctors,  ugly wallpaper, Glade plug-ins, bubble gum scented nitrous, credit cards, bad paintings and…I almost forgot PAIN! Now for those of you saying to yourselves “She is such wuss/complainer/whatever”… I say to Thee - I had a 9 lb first born child delivered by vacuum after 3 hours of pushing with NO FUNCTIONING EPIDURAL. Top that! Haters.  

After this appointment I have decided that the fall of man can be illustrated by one procedure: the root canal. Thanks Eve for taking a bite of that apple because, wow Sweetie you might as well have been sucking down Pepsi and chewing on jelly beans!

Luckily, prior to this lovely appointment I had mixed myself a nice cocktail of pharmaceuticals to ease my anxiety. So, that final numbing shot that went directly through my splayed open tooth and into the nerve on my jaw didn’t actually catapult me out of the hideous pink chair that was comfortably resting me on my HEAD.

Do I sound bitter Dear Internet? Don’t answer that…

So the question today is why would anyone become an Endodontist? Seriously all they do is root canals. Is not a root canal the most dreaded dental procedure? Do people not generally dread anything involving dentists, let alone a ROOT CANAL? I just don’t understand why someone intelligent enough to be a doctor would choose Endodontist as a profession. People hate you. I mean really hate you. They have to pay you nearly $1,000 for you to “irrigate the root of their rotten abscessed tooth.” I can’t think of a worse job description.

Can you?

I love my new camera. So if I bore you with pictures, I am sorry but it is my favorite past time. Well, aside from politics and make-up. Seriously.

This morning while Joshua was napping I took some pictures of Isaac and it is shocking to me how much he looks like his father. That stubborn type-A personality of his however, is all Mommy….