Christmas with the Wisley's

Merry Christmas to all my followers, if any of you actually still follow this blog. I haven't written in several weeks so I just wanted to give a quick update on how the Wisley's have been doing.
Joe and I spent a few days apart before Christmas because he worked with his brother in Bedford to make some much needed cash. When we returned on Wednesday afternoon we opened gifts that we got for each other. I got a gun holster for my hand gun, hunting coveralls for next years hunting season, the BigTop cupcake bakeware that you may have seen on infomercials on TV, and a 4 foot frame that Joe and his brother made me to display our A.T stuff. Oh and he got me this really warm and soft blanket that is just like a blanket Jake has, which I love! After opening gifts we packed up the car, loaded the dog, the baby and ourselves and headed to Chicago for Christmas to visit with my parents, sisters, Aunt, Uncle, Cousins and future Brother-in-law. It was a good trip aside from the freak freezing rain storm on the way there. We watched several cars slide off the road in front of us. It took us 4 hours to get to mom and dad's which wasn't bad considering how slow we had to drive until we reached 80-94. Jake is normally a good baby when we travel, but this time he decided to surprise us with a fit. It was probably my fault since I swaddled him in his car seat and when we got to my parents he was soaking in his own sweat! Poor guy! I thought he was throwing a fit because he was overtired. We spent Chrismas day opening a few gifts with my family and then headed to my Aunt's house for a Ham dinner. My cousin had identical twin boys last week and they were able to make it out of the house so we could see the boys! They are so precious and made me miss my little guy when we was a few weeks old.














This is a picture of the Panda blanket my mom made for Jake to go with his black and white room at home.

The frame Joe made for me to display our Appalachian Trail map, pics, and completion certificates and patches.

Jake is now 15 weeks old and grows cuter everyday. He rolled over from his belly to his back for the first time last week! He also giggled a little for me too! The picture above was taken a few weeks ago. His neck is becoming so strong. He is so close to losing the bobble head!

The last picture is of our favorite dog in the whole world Maximus. He has been with us for a year on January 1st. He was a Christmas gift last year and is probably the best gift I have ever gotten! Here he is with his cousin Zeke's santa outfit on that Denise got for him. He wasn't to exciting about wearing it as you can see. The best part are the bells on his cloak that jingle when he walks around!

Well, that is about all for now until I decide to write another blog three weeks from now. Hope you all had a great Christmas!

I'm not complaining, just explaining!

Life is a little boring right now, but I am going to blog about it anyway. I tend to be a pessimist and hate that about myself so I decided I was going to work on reducing the negativity in my life, so if it seems as though I am complaining, I'm not, I am just explaining. I seem to get this way during the months of Dec-March because it's cold out and I love being outside, but not when it is cold and windy. Last winter we adopted our dog Maximus and I took him for walks everyday even if it was 15 degrees out only because we were working on training him to go on walks without pulling on his leash and eventually to walk without the need to be leashed. Now that we have Jake, it is too cold to take him out, so I am stuck in this little house doing my best to keep the television off and workout, clean, read and nap(if possible) instead of sitting in front of the boob toob all day long. Poor Maximus lays around bored to death and day dreams about life before the baby. I have actually enjoyed having the TV off because it has pushed me to do the things that I hate doing, but when they are done I feel so much better about myself. I started to workout out consistantly this week and it feels so good to get back into my normal routine of breathing hard and sweating it out. I feel energized and sleep a little better at night because of it. Joe and I are going to Florida and Puerto Rico in March so we have 3.5 months to get into bathing suit shape again. I was looking at my pictures of what I looked like before we hiked the AT and it depressed me a little because I looked so good! I don't feel that I look terrible now, but I have not had to work this hard to look better in a long time. I am just thankful that I don't need to loose more than 15 pounds, unlike so many Americans today who are 50+ lb overweight.
Thanksgiving was spent in Bedford this year with all of Joe's side of the family. We stayed with Josh(Joe's twin) and his wife Denise. They have a black lab, Zeke, that Maximus loves to play with. I had a total of three thanksgiving meals this year. One with Joe's mom, a second with Joe's Dad, and a third with my sister-in-law's parents. Sadly we did not make the trip up to Chicago to visit with my side. Traveling with a 2.5 month old is tiring and stressful so we have made the shift from visiting boths sides of the family to only one side per holiday.
Being back home from the holidays is nice but the pessimistic side of me wishes we weren't home as much because of how boring life can get being at home doing the same thing everyday. Even though I would have to do the same thing anywhere else it doesn't seem as boring when I am not at home.
Wake up to feed Jake, burb and change him, play until he gets cranking for a nap, get some house work done while Jake naps and then do it all over again four times before it's time for bed. I can't say that I miss the life I had before he came into it, but there are times when I day dreams about my adventure hiking the AT and wish that I could have lived out a couple more dreams before we decided to start a family. Don't get me wrong I love having a son and wouldn't go back and change anything if I had the oppotunity to. I love seeing him grow, smile, jibber/jabber, and suck on his fingers. He is becoming so much more observant over the week. One day Jake will be apart of the dreams we have to put on hold for a few years. I hope he likes hiking!
I thought about training for the mini- marathon in Indy this May and was excited about it until I realized I would have to start training for it out in the cold. Ehhhh, think I will pass on the mini for at least this year.
Christmas is pretty much here and although I love this holiday more than any other I loath Christmas shopping! I really don't care to shop unless I know what I am going for and since I never really know what I want to get people I usually don't end up going. Joe loves getting gifts for others so he does a good job of going into any store, not having any idea what he is going to get someone and coming out with something cool. I have decided the only people I am shopping for this year are Joe and Jake. Gift exchange is not my thing lately. I find it a waste of money to exchange to gift with someone who doesn't need it when there are so many other people who are in need, and I end up with something that I may like, but end up not using it enough.
Well, those are my thoughts in a nutshell. My feet are cold so I am going to put on some socks and drink some tea. If you feel like cheering me up send me a comment that will make me laugh or something. (It may sound like I am in a bad mood, but I am not. It just may sound that way)

Stay away from Fabric Softner. Use this instead!

Go to this website and read about fabric softners and why you shouldn't use them anymore. Baking Soda and Vinager are cheap and safe and can do so much more than just clean and soften your clothes. Check it out!
http://www.sixwise.com/newsletters/05/02/08/the_toxic_danger_of_fabric_softener_and_dryer_sheets.htm

What's your Love Language

Several years ago I read the book "The Five Love Languages" and discovered my top love languages. The five are: Recieving Gifts, Acts of Service, Quality Time Spent, Physical Touch and Words of Affirmation.
My top two are Quality Time Spent and Acts of Service with Words of Affirmation coming in third place.
Recently I have been asking my close friends what their top two love languages are so that I can have a better understanding of my friends needs and how I can be a better friend to them by showing them that I care for them the way they need to feel loved by me. It really helps to know this because usually the languages that are low on my list are the ones that are high on the list of my friends which can make this a big challenge for me. My husbands love languages are completely opposite from me. He needs words of affirmation and physical touch to feel loved by others. At least the physical touch part by me. I am so bad at meeting his needs because I don't share those same need so I often don't think to compliment him or give him touch as much since I don't need those things to feel loved. Boy! I wish it was easier, but it isn't!
So what's your love language?

Jake's First Check-up

Today Jake is two months old and Jake had his very first doctors visit today in Kokomo. He is as healthy as can be and the Doctor was impressed with how strong Jake is at two months old. He weighed in at 13lb and is 24 inches long. So he has gained nearly 5 lb in the last 8.5 weeks and grew 3.5 inches. I wish I could post some more pics but my computer won't let me.
All is well in the Wisley household! Jake slept from 9:30-5am for me. It was awesome to wake up and not feel tired when I fed him. 6.5 hours of sleep was wondefrul and I was able to get another 2 hours after I fed him so I didn't feel the need to nap today. First time since he was born I didn't need a nap.
He is smiling a ton lately and very close to giggling for us. He likes to talk to me right after I feed him and while he is settling in his crib for a nap if he spits his pacifier out, which doesn't happen very often anymore because he is able to hold it in his mouth so much better now.
Jake still spits up a lot when I feed him but it should last too much longer from what I hear. Nursing is going well and he is nursing a lot faster now so I don't feel like I am feeding him all the time even though he still eats about every 3 hours.
I love having him on a schedule during the day. It makes things so much easier for me because I know what he needs when he cries 95% of the time. I have been using a Feed time/ Wake Time/Sleep Time schedule and it has worked great! Sometime he tries to fall asleep on me when I nurse him so I do all I can to wake him up to make sure he gets a full feeding and not just a snack. This allows him to go a full 3+ hours before he needs to eat again and allows him to sleep longer during the night. I have had some people tell me to just demand feed him whenever he cries. but I didn't want him to grow up thinking that anytime he was upset to turn to food for comfort. I feel that in a way I demand feed him since he demands it when he really is hungry! I just know that not every cry is a means for food. That is why pacifiers are so great. In the words of my dear friend Kari, "Pacifiers are boob savers!"
He has taken a bottle very easily. We have already left him with someone for a couple differents night so Joe and I can get some alone time. This has been hard for me because #1: I miss him a lot #2 I know him better than anyone else and #3 I don't want his schedule to get messed up. I am a little anal when it comes to certain things like Jake but hey, at least I am getting to the point where I am okay leaving him with other people already! I am a first time mom. You know how it was with your first baby. Remember!
Yesterday we went to Shipshiwana to visit our friends Nate and Kari who just had their second baby girl, Jada about 5 weeks ago. It was crazy to see the difference between Jake and Jada. 3 weeks is a big difference. Jake has lost his infant look. Jada was so cute and so tiny! Love and Miss you guys a ton!
Welp, gonna go write some thank you cards that I am three weeks behind on.
God Bless!

The things I love most about being a mom

I love

being a stay at home mom.

seeing the beautiful person that Joe and I created

watching Jake change on a weekly basis

learning his needs based upon the way he cries

seeing him smile at me when I talk to him

knowing that I know what is best for him better than anyone else

being the only person to satisfy his belly when he is hungry

the bond we make during the day because I get to be home with him all the time

reading books to him before he takes a nap

learning how to pray for him and becoming better with my God-time because of him

watching him sleep

watching Joe love on him

seeing positive results from the way I parent

taking pictures of him

hearing people compliment him on how cute he is

playing with him

knowing that it only gets better and better the older he gets

kissing his little head and checks

rocking him to sleep every now and then

hearing him coo

watching him suck on his tongue because he thinks he is still sucking on his pacifier



There is so much more to love about being a mom, especially a first time mom because it is so new to me and I know it will only get better the longer I am a mom.

I prayed a lot for Jake before he was born. I asked God to guide me in all the choices I would have to make for him and also that Jake would be a good, happy little guy, which he certainly is. I prayed that God would direct Joe and I with our parenting in such a way that we will know how to make good decisions for him that follows the way God would parent our son. I continue to pray for him on a daily basis which is something that I was never good at before I had Jake. I always sucked in my prayer life and now love to spend time thanking God for my family and praying for my husband and son on a daily basis. Having a son has changed not just the way my body looks now but the way I want to live my life. I want to live in such a way so that when Jake grows up with us he lives to love others, love God, and serve the world. I am nowhere near doing that the way I really should, but want to teach my son to look to the needs of others before his own and to be generous with everything he has in life. I want him to be a forgiving person when people hurt him and to find forgiveness when he hurts others. I pray that he will understand that no matter what, mom and dad love him, but that the world doesn't revolve around him. I pray that he will think of Joe and I as loving parents and will forgive us for the mistakes we make against him, because I know we will make many of them.

There are so many things to pray for when you really think of it. I trust God in helping me be the mom that he has made me to be and if I can be obedient to the way he has asked me to parent then I know our family will be blessed in more ways then we could ever imagine.

If you are a mom, what are your favorite moments as a mom and what would you do differently if you could go back to when your kids/kid was a baby?

Kate Gosslin and the Swine Flu

Kate Gosslin and the Swine flu are all over the place within the media. To be quite honest I am getting quite tired of hearing about what is going to happen to Jon and Kate and their uninteresting show Jon and Kate plus 8. Today Kate was a guest on The Ellen Degeneres show and was asked all the same questions she has been asked on other shows such as my favorite morning show, "Regis and Kelly." Kate has stated many times that her kids are her number one priority and she is a mom first before any other title she may have in her life. Hmmmmm. Not so sure I agree with that. I am glad that she loves her kids. I mean, I can't imagine how hard it must be having two sets of multiples and dealing with all the insanity of having her own TV show. I have watched a large share of Jon and Kate episodes and felt bad for Jon because of the way Kate treats him on national TV. She treats him like he doesn't know what he is doing half the time and yells at the guy in public. Now I know that it probably isn't all Kate's fault for their divorce, but I also think Kate drove Jon crazy enough that he is relieved to move on. I don't agree with their decision to divorce and even if it is mostly Kate's fault I still think Jon is rather selfish. Maybe he has tried his best to work on their marriage and Kate refuses to comply, but regardless it's a mess and is really none of my business nor the media's. I wish Kate would drop the show and give her kids the peace they really need. In my opinion I think if Kate would have put her marriage first this may not have happened. Jon was in her life first and if she really cared for her kids she and Jon would both have tired to save their marriage. The one thing Joe and I vowed we would do when we started a family was to put each other first and our kids second because you can't have a happy, healthy family if mom and dad aren't putting each other first.

Now the Swine Flu is just one of those annoying topics that seems to be on ever single talk show and News channel that exists. I know people are dying of this flu but holy cow you would think we were about to be invaded by aliens or something. They just won't shut up about it. I think we get it! If you don't get your shot we are all gonna DIE! Sometimes you just can't avoid catching a cold no matter how healthy you are or how hard you try to avoid sick people. What about the sick people that don't avoid the healthy people? A huge pet peeve of mine is when sick people don't stay home away from everyone until they are over their illness! Do those people really think they want them around. My husband came home the other day and said that people were coming in sick to work. What?!!! Why do people think this is cool? I'd just love it if someone got my husband sick, came home and got me sick and then I pass it onto my son Jake! This makes no sense to me at all. Stay home if you are feeling even slightly ill people! We don't want your germs and neither do their families. Common sense is all it takes to avoid passing crap around. I certainly don't think I am immune to the swine flu but the fact that I am home 90% of the time and not around that many people I think I will take my chances on pass on the H1N1.

Jake Pictures

Here are a few of my favorite from the past couple of weeks. He is a happy little guy.

I brought Jake into Sear last Tue and had his one month picture taken. We got some pretty good shots and he even smiled for a few of them. I kind of wish I would have just gotten a little creative with taking some at home shots and printing them out instead of blowing 150 bucks on professional pictures. Oh well, you have to do it at least once in their life.

I am heading to Chicago today for a few more baby showers. I feel like I have had 10 of them already but this will only be number 5. I am very blessed to have so many friends and famly to spoiled him rotten.

A quick update

By request of my sister in law Denise I am writing a quick update. Quick, because I am trying to get a nap in today and Jake is now just falling asleep. I tried to post a few new pics but my computor is jacked up. Everytime I go to a new page on the internet a page comes up that tell me that the website I am going to is a phishing wesite. Hmmm. not sure how that is happening. I feel like my computor is being hacked. Need to get that checked.
Well, Jake is now 5 weeks old, around 12 lbs and right at 23 in long. He has grown a ton and changed much to quickly. He is a good sleeper when he is in a deep sleep that he doesn't startle himself out of sleep, a good eater besides the messy throw up during and after he eats, and he has been starting to respond to us by smiling a lot. He loves his pacifier, but also tries to find his thumb when I get tired of trying to hold the pacifier in his mouth at night.
I am a few weeks away from putting him in his own room at night. He has been keeping me awake at night when he should be sleeping after I feed him. We were going to wait until he was aleeping through the night to move him into his own room, but last night I fed him at 2:30am and I wasn't alseep again until 6am after I fed him a second time. He had fallin asleep for about 45 min but then suddenly woke up fussy. I let him cry for about ten mins and when I turned the light on realized he had scooted of his sleep positioner and kicked all the blankets off of him. He wasn't too happy about that so I cuddled him in bed for a few minutes to warm him up and then realized that it was time to feed him again. So now I am trying to catch up on the 2 hours of sleep I could have gotten last night.
I love being a mom. Every week gets better and better. I love getting to know him and what he needs when he cries. Sleepless nights are worth it and I treasure every moment I get with him.
Off to take a nap. I will try to post some picture later today. I don't expect it to download but I will give it another shot. You can check facebook for a three pics I posted two days ago.

Infant Acne Solution

For those of you who have kids or babies and you are dealing with infant acne, or even have acne yourself I have a solution that worked for my 3 week old. He started getting a little acne at 3 weeks old. I hated to see all those little red bumps appear on his cute little face. I know he didn't know any better, but I didn't want him to look that way so I dug through my natural remedies kit and found some Melaleuca Oil. I put a drop of the oil on a warm wet wash cloth and wiped the cloth all over his face. Within a day the acne dried up and the red bumps were gone. He still gets a few red spots here and there so I just wipe off his face once a day with the oil. There you have it. Just like Magic!

The past couple of weeks

Being a mom is fun, though very tiring and I will be glad when I get to the two month mark when I can start working on getting Jake to sleep through the night. I know some people may think that two months is too early for a baby to sleep through the night but I have had several friends who were very successful at it with all their babies. It may take a little longer for him to get into that kind of routine but I know it is possible.

Hearing your own baby cry is much harder to listen too then I thought it would be, however, the times that I have let him cry himself to sleep has only lasted about 5 minutes and he was out cold. It always seems longer then it actually is. There have been a couple of times we have been in the car and I had no choice but to let him cry it out and that gave me confidence that I can let him cry sometimes. It isn't going to hurt him, it just sounds horrible.

Nursing is going great! He loves Boobs that's for sure. Jake is a spitter, but we have figured out that the more breaks we take to burbs him the less vomit to clean up. I was very unsuccessful at burping him this morning and 15 min after handing him over to Joe so I could catch a few more Zzzz's I guess Jake lost so much of his meal he soaked threw two towels and his outfit and a couple of burb rags. I ended up having to feed him again shortly after that.

We went to church for the first time since Jake was born today. He slept right through the whole service. I was amazed at how much babies are a magnet for attention. Everyone wanted to come and peek at the baby. I was glad that he was asleep in his car seat so I didn't have to hand him off to everyone and their grandma. I love it that people want to hold him, but at the same time, I am a little selfish and like to have him all for myself most of the time. This is also a really bad time of the year to have a baby since everyone is always getting sick. I am not the kind of person that has hand sanitizer all over my house and require hand washing before anyone touches him. Personally I think hand sanitizer is silly, especially the anti-bacterial stuff. You not only kill bad bacteria, but the good bacteria too which is what we all need for a better immune system. A good old bar of Ivory is best!

Joe came home alive from his climb up Mt Rainer. It is a good thing I didn't know how dangerous that trip actually was until he got home. He said it was the hardest thing he has ever done, but glad he got to do it.

Having people bring you meals for a week or two is a lifesavor! I am so thankful for all those people who have brough us dinner this past week and for my mom and mother-in-law for making meals for us! That's one less thing for me to think about.

Mice are gross and they are starting to invade our house. I keep a clean house, so when I see bugs and mice it makes me feel like I have a dirty house. I know that isn't true, but they poop all over the place. I got up to feed Jake two nights agi and we set three traps out on our counter top. We were successful at traping the little stinker. He was still alive when I found him. I threw him out the back door and left him to suffer in the cold. I felt bad and wish I had a heavy boot close by so I could finish him off quickly, but I had Jake alseep in my arms.

It's time to feed the boy AGAIN! I feel like that is all I ever do now a days, but only about 6 more weeks of the every three hours routine and I will hopefully get a little more freedom and some shrinkage in my chest. I thought I would enjoy having a bigger chest. Nope! I won't ever complain about my chest size ever again!

Pics of our handsome little man

A whirl wind of EMOTIONS!

It has been eleven days since Jake came into my life and I have experienced a whirlwind of emotions I never thought would take a hit at me. I've been told that this is normal. I am glad to hear since I am typically not an emotional person. At least not this emotional.
I have enjoyed being a mom so far. Each day brings more joy and love into my life as I bond with my little man, and my big man too. Joe and I both knew that we didn't need to have kids to improve our life or make us happier because we were perfectly happy just they way we were. However, now that Jake is in our life he has opened up a new kind of love that Joe and I have never felt for each other and for another person. I understand more of how God loves us because of the way I love Jake. I would do anything for him, just to see him happy, safe, and healthy.
My first week as a mom was full of visitors, a lack of sleep, many tears shed, making hard decisions about what is best for Jake. Should I use a pacifier? How long should I nurse him? Should I rock him to sleep? How long should he stay in our room with us before we move him into his own room? Does he have gas, or is he just fighting sleep? Is he hot, or cold? Should I wake him up to feed him? I know, it seems like I am probably over thinking things a little too much, but when you have never had your own child to nurture and your world revolves around him, you want to make sure you are doing the best possible thing for him.
Nursing is going really well, except for all the spitting up. Yuck! At least it doesn't stink. Our first couple of days were a little tough but he has caught on to it quickly and even though it make for a very mundane kind of life right now I do enjoy the time I get with him that no one but me gets to share. Evening feedings aren't so bad. He consistently eats every 3 hours, sometimes sooner, but I do end up getting a good couple of hours of sleep in between his meals.
We took Jake to the hospital on Saturday morning for his circumcision. Not a fun thing to watch! Have I expressed my distaste for hospitals? I am glad we have doctors and nurses, but when you walk into a doctors office and the nurses and doctors treat you having a baby as an illness, and ask me if I am seeing an OB to make sure things are healing well etc etc, it is just slightly annoying to me. Hospitals are for sick people. Being pregnant is not an illness, and having a baby is a completely normal part of life. Sure, there can be complications that require the expertise of a doctor, but holy cow, I have a perfectly healthy baby who gained an once and a half in the first week, and I have healed rather quickly. Our pediatrician was so worried to do the circumcision because Jake hasn't had his Vit K shot. I told him he would be fine and to go ahead with the procedure. He did great and healed nicely.
Joe is gone for the next several days, hiking up Mt. Rainer with our friend Todd Rielage from Anderson. I am glad he can have this opportunity to live out a dream. Thanks Todd and Bethany for making this trip happen for him. Even though I miss him like crazy and he misses us, I know he will be glad he went. He comes home Monday night. I can't wait!
My mom and sister Heather are here with me for the week/weekend. My dad other sister Kim will be here tonight. It is so nice to have family to keep me company. It can get a little lonely around here when it is just me and Jake so if you ever want to come visit me, give me a call.
Well, time to nurse, again!

My Baby Story

In my nine months of being pregnant and not having a whole lot to do but clean the house and wait on Jake to arrive I spent a lot of time watching "A Baby Story" on TLC. I often thought about what my story was going to be like and was excited to be able to share my experience with everyone. I am not quite sure how to share this experience with you since it was everything I hoped it would be, but then again, in some ways not what I expected it to be. So I will just start from the beginning and end with the ending.

Saturday September 12th at 6am I woke up feeling my water break. After 20 days of waiting for Jake to arrive I was so relieved, excited, and nervous all at the same time. I actually shook for about an hour wondering when my contractions were going to pick up. I thought for sure I would have him by that evening! I called my midwife and she told me to try to time contractions once I able too and give her a call around 12pm. I felt nothing more than a small cramping sensation so we repeated that process until three. Still Nothing! Midwife called around 8pm saying she was heading to bed and recommended I should too in case my labor starts in the middle of the night we would both be rested.
Sunday morning rolls around and nothing had happened that night. Crap! What is the deal with this kid? Midwife decides to come by and observe around 8am while she sat on the couch and knit socks. Around 9am she asks Joe and I to go into the bedroom and strip down to nothing and just cuddle with skin on skin contact. I guess this is one way of getting labor to start. Well after an hour of cuddle time I was having consistent contractions and labor had officially started. I should also say that when she first arrive she did give me a antibiotic because of my water breaking over 24hours prior.
I labored for several hours in bed and around 1pm was able to get into the doula tub. Once my stomach hit that warm water I felt instant relief. Contractions were still painful but not quite as hard to manage. After several hours in the tub the midwife decided that we needed to speed things along and had me go back to bed to lay on my left side. Left side lying is the best way to get full dilation so that I could start pushing. It was around 5:30pm that she checked me and said I was between 8-9 cm so the next little while would be the hardest part of labor but go quickly. She was right about the intensity I felt like my stomach was being beaten by a bat! No, it was worse than that! I give credit to all the women out there that have more than one kid and delivered all of them without drugs. The whole time I was in those last 2 cm of dilation I was thinking about how nice an epidural would have felt at that time. Oh well, a few hours of pain didn't kill me once all was said and done. By the time I was ready to push we ended up trying three different positions. First side lying. Then a full squat. Then the tub. After an hour of wimpy pushing we decided the best position was full squat. Yes, I was a wimpy pusher. I thought that once I got to be able to push I would feel relief and enjoy that part. Boy was I wrong. I hated pushing which is probably why I didn't push like I was supposed too. After some serious coaching from Joe and the midwife I was able to put my back into it and within a half an hour of correct, hard pushing Jake slid right out for Joe to catch him and hand him to me. Joe said he was more excited about having a boy than he thought he would be. I was happy either way.
Okay, here comes the part of the story you might want to skip if you have a weak stomach.
About an hour after Jake was born I had yet to deliver the placenta. I tried to push hard but was so tired and weak that I felt like I was going to pass out if I kept pushing. The midwife was getting concerned about the time past and gave me a shot of PIT to prevent my uterus from bleeding out. She decided she was going to have to go in and see if it was stuck. That was more painful than anything I have ever experienced, even after delivering a 14.5 in head. She failed her first attempt at getting it out. Her second attempt I got mad and started pushing as hard as I could to get it done and over with. Finally, success! He was born at 10pm and was declared a 40 week baby according the the apgar test. I was so glad that we waited until Jake decided it was time to come out. I know there were many people concerned about the length of time past our due date but as much as I prayed over the situation I trusted God and the midwife to wait.
The best part of the story for me is when we were having hard time delivering the placenta the midwives layed their hands on me and prayed that God would take care of the situation. It was so comforting to have two women their with me who loved the Lord just and much as we do give everything over to God and let him do what he does best.
Even though the experience was one of the hardest things I have ever done I would totally do it over again. My midwife told me that if I had had the baby at the hospital they would have induced me, I probably would have screamed for the epidural since PIT intensifies your contractions. I may have also had an episiotomy because of the size of the babies head and could have very well been given a C-section because the babies head came out a little crooked. His cone head was slightly to the side instead of directly on top. I did end up with a little tear, but no biggy. Tears heal faster than episiotomies anyway.
I am more than happy to answer anyones' questions that I may not have answered in this blog.
So there you have it. My baby Story. I am glad it is over, but when looking back would not change a thing about it.

Pictures of Jake Owen

Here are some pictures of Jake Owen Wisley, born on Sept 13th at 10pm. I will post a blog on my home birth experience soon!

Update on WHY Baby Wisley isn't here yet!

Hey everyone! I know, I know you are all wondering if I have had this baby and if not, why it hasn't happened yet? Well, these things take time and obviously the baby isn't ready to come yet. There are several reasons for this. I shall explain so you can all relax and work on your patience as I have been trying too.I had an appointment with my midwife today. It went very well. We did a non-stress test to make sure the baby is healthy and that the placenta is still working properly. After laying down for 10 minutes. She checks for the baby's heart rate and then bangs a metal pan with a metal spoon right next to my belly. She then checks the heart rate again to see if the baby's heart rate increased any. Well it went from 128 to 140. So that was a postive test that things are going great. We have bascially determined that we have my due date off by 7-10 days so that puts me at only a week or so behind my actual due date now. I am also measuring at 40.5 cm which also means that we are very close to baby time. I am very glad that I have not decided to induce. I am a firm believer in God's timing and really wanted things to happen when he wanted them too vs. my timing. My midwife also said that babies who go to 40 wks plus are better nursers because they are more developed then an early baby. That sounds good to me since I want to nurse. So just a little bit longer, maybe tonight. I appreciate your excitement and your prayers. I will post an update as soon as labor starts! I promise!

When desperate drink castor oil. Yum!

So here I sit on day 13 past my due date and suffering the symptoms of castor oil. Okay, I wouldn't call it suffering but it certainly isn't comfortable. I slept well until about 3:30am this morning and decided to get up, drink some milk, watch Family Matters and check my email. I finally got an email from a girl who is using my midwife. She was due on the 9th and went into labor on the night of the full moon. The night I thought for sure I would be in labor. Well, she had her baby after 24 hours of labor. Another girl had her baby Saturday as well. She was due on the 1st. Then there is me. Due on the 24th of August and still no baby. How annoying! I think I may have my due date off by a few days but who really knows. So in my desperation for make something happen I have had many people tell me that castor oil can do the trick but be very ugly and painful. I told Joe that if I did it he would have too drink it too. That didn't work.
He went to church this morning and I stayed home to avoid all the gasps from people who were hoping to see me with a baby in my arms and not in my belly. Joe comes home around 12pm and asks if I am going to drink the stuff. I broke down and drank 4 tbs with 2 oz of orange juice. 30 min later drank another 2 tbs and then another 2 tbs 30 mintues after that. It wasn't nasty at all, but what was to come could be very nasty. One of my birthing books said that if it works I would be having contractions within half a day or may start sometime tomorrow.
I took a nap at 330 and woke up around 415. Joe decided to go for a run with Maximus and I decided a walk might help get things rolling a little. I didn't get more than .3 miles away from the house when I suddenly realized I wasn't going to make it home in time to get to the bathroom. Luckily, a thicket of woods were just to my right and I was able to duck away and take care of business without embarassing myself with all the cars driving by. That happened 6 hours after drinking the oil and nothing has happened since then. So I guess we will see if I wake up with contractions tonight or not. I am guessing it's not going to work, but I only say that because I am starting to loose hope in that this baby will ever be ready to come out. I had Joe measure my uterus and it's at 40-41cm which is about 1cm more than last Tuesday. I am praying something happens before Tuesday because that is when I see the midwife again. Our next step will be to sweep the membranes. I really don't want to go that route,but if I must then I must. I am still feeling great. The baby is still moving around a ton and I am sleeping better at night. Now if only I could have some sort of sign! Joe is leaving for a trip with a friend to climb Mount Rainer on the 23rd, so as each day passes he gets a little less excited about having to leave us for five days. I am glad that he gets the chance to go and it was me and our friend who arranged the trip as a surprise, so don't think that it was all Joe's idea to leave his wife and new baby. I am totally okay with him being able to experience this adventure. I'm guessing by the end of this week we will have a baby so check in and I will post when something happens. You can also check my facebook. Be praying for me! I am loosing my mind and my patience!

It's just a Different Viewpoint

I feel like I need to clairify a few things I have posted in previous blogs about my different way of thinking in regards to my choices to have a home birth, to use a midwife and not a doctor, avoid a medicated birth, and not be induced as well as several other topics I don't need to mention to protect myself. I know that I am the minority in these decisions. 95% of the people I know don't do things the way that I do and I am okay with that. When it comes to my difference of opinion on any subject matter I do not want people to think that just because I have choosen a different path that my way is better than your way, that I am right and you are wrong, that because I have a difference of opinion that your opinion doesn't matter. Does that make sense? When I feel strongly about something I want people to know why I believe the way I do, but I also know that in the past I have sent a false message that if you don't do things the way I do, I think you are stupid and irresponsible. That couldn't be further from the truth, especially since a majority of the people I know may not agree with my way of thinking.
So if you have read my blog in the past, and been offended by anything I said, or felt attacked, demeanored, or that I was trying to tell you the way you do things is wrong, I apologize to you for causing you to feel that way. My intentions are not to hurt people. I simply want to explain why I do the things that I do because I am usually in the minority in the choices I make. I also want to raise awareness on the many different options that are out there for having babies that can work better for you. I don't judge those that have hospital births, have epidurals or inductions etc. Whatever works for you isn't going to change the way I think of anyone. It just isn't the way I want to do things. It is as simple as that. Don't take it personally please!

No Baby Yet!

I am getting so tired of waiting for this baby to come out and join the family. Every night is a whirl of mixed feelings. Is is going to be tonight? Will I get up to pee and find that my water breaks? Surely something will happen tonight? Oh well, I guess that means I am not ready yet, or that the baby needs a few more days to develop. I am really tired of my routine right now. I think I am ready for a little stress in my life! I say that now, and two weeks from now I will be dying for relaxation instead. You never can win, can you!
Poor Joe has to go into work everyday and is bombarded by the same questions he gets asked everyday. Any changes yet? Has she felt any contractions? Etc Etc Etc! I feel for him. I just don't answer my phone unless I know it is someone that won't ask me those annoying questions. Even though I am only three days away from the due date I still feel like it will be ages before it happens. I having felt a single contraction, or been super tired, or super energetic. I feel like I have been in my nesting stage for the past 4 weeks now.
I feel like when I do go into labor I will probably cry out, "NO, not today! I am not ready!" :)
Summer Camp is over til next year. Joe is glad to have some extra freedom and more rest at night. We already miss the summer staff and aren't prepared for a long boring winter. Actually, it probably won't be boring with our baby around to hang out with.
As of right now Joe is out on a run with Maximus training for his hike up Mount Rainer. It started pouring about ten minutes ago. He He He! They are going to be soaked! Joe leaves on the 23rd of September with our friend Todd Rielage from Anderson. They will be gone for 5 days. My mom will hopefully come stay with me for the time he is gone.
That is pretty much all I have for now. I hope to have more interesting things to blog about after the little one is here.

Thoughts on Being a MOM!

The picture to the left is of some wonderful women from Beford IN. Most of them are sister-in-laws, mother-in-laws, and neices and one nephew. The others are from Joe's home church, Popcorn Christian Church. We drove down to Bedford a baby shower given by these wonderful ladies. We had a great time eating and opening gifts. I received a lot of great items that I can't wait to use.

I've been getting restless during the past week. I often walk into the baby's room and pace around wondering if I am missing anything, or if there is something I can do to get my mind off what labor is going to be like. It has been hard not having much to do since I am prepared for this home birth. I got my birthing kit in the mail at the beginning of last week and bought the list of things my midwife wanted to me have at the house.

I often spend most of my time thinking about being relaxed and releasing any stress that I may be feeling in the present. My goal during the past month has been to focus on all the positives, to feel strong and confident, so that when the time comes I know the labor I experience is going to be normal and the pain is only temporary.
During my last appointment with my midwife she asked if there was anything I feared. My only fears are the point at which my contractions are so close together and the pain so intense that I will not be able to focus on using the relaxation techniques I have been practicing over the past two months. I have no fears of pushing what so ever. She said she is very curious to know how I will handle labor versus the way I handled hiking up and down mountains for 6 months. She seems to think that it won't be much different. Hiking up mountains all day long was no easy task but I don't think it wil compare to having a baby. So far hiking for 6 months is the hardest thing I have ever done but I'm guessing that will change once I experience delivering a baby.
As far as my feelings about being a mom I am indifferent. Two weeks ago I would have told you that I was not excited about being a mom at all. The last 7 years with Joe have been amazing and it is hard for me to picture our life being interupted with a new member of the family. Joe and I love the time that we get to spend together. We have spent a lot of time talking about how we will juggle time together and time with our kids. We understand the importance of nurturing our childrens' needs but also see the importance of nurturing our marriage. We both feel that in order for us to have a better than stable, crazy in love and meeting each others needs marriage, it will require us to make "Joe and Mel Time" a big priority. I want my kids to grow up seeing Joe and I madly in love with each other to be a good model of a healthy marriage. I don't want my kids to feel our stress because we put our marriage on the back burner. When kids see that their parents are in love with each other that gives them a confident and secure feeling in themselves and the life that they live in.
Being a mom is such a big idea for me to wrap my arms around and understand at this point. However, I know God gave me all of the abilities I will need to be the mom that he intended me to be.

Baby's Room Preview and more Belly Pics

Well, there it is, your sneak peak. I spray painted this table back to a new white finish and bought the baskets at Walmart.

I love how I don't look pregnant from behind!

Oh my belly! Can't wait to do this same pose again except without the belly!

Is it really the middle of July already? Summer is passing much too quickly, although I am partly glad for that since it means I am only 5 weeks away from my due date! Who knows? I could go much sooner than 5 weeks which would be awesome. I am so ready to be a mom and not have this basketball belly anymore (please keep your comments to yourself about why I shouldn't wish away my belly). The one thing that has probably annoyed me the most about being pregnant are the comments I get after I share my feelings about pregnancy. I have had it very easy, but that still doesn't mean I need to love being pregnant like some people think I should. My least favorite comment has been, "Oh just you wait until the baby comes and you have sleepless nights, then you will wish you were still pregnant." Really any comment that starts with the phrase, "just you wait" irritates me to no end! Maybe, just maybe I will have a baby that sleeps well through the night, or I just happen to not stress out about stuff like that and am able to get enough rest to keep me sane. Alright, dismounting my horse and moving on.

The babies room is started and will not be finished until after the baby is born. I registered for curtains, bedding and a few other things for the room and won't be having any other showers except for one until after the baby comes. So for now you just get a little sneak peak of my black and white theme.

I am going on my 36th (?) week and still feel great. The ol' bladder likes to send me to the bathroom about once every hour and I toss and turn during the night to stay comfortable. My lower back hurts if I am on my feet for too long but I am still very mobile and stay as active as I possibley can be at this stage in the game.

My midwife is making a house visit this coming Monday to become familiar with our home so she is ready for action when the time comes. She is the best thing that has happened to me during this pregnancy! I am so glad that God sent her my way!

Joe is still working incredibly hard at the camp. We only have three full weeks of camp left and then he will get some down time before lil Wisley shows up.

I made a random trip down to North Carolina to visit with my sister Heather. My youngest sister Kim picked me up on her way down from Chicago and we had three wonderful days of sister time; our last before the lil terd makes its' appearance into our lives. We had a great time a laying out at her pool, going to watch "My Sister's Keeper," which instead of crying our eyes out, we actually laughed so hard Heather and I peed our pants. I know it sounds so insensitive because the girl dies at the end but I ended up thinking of something so funny I busted out laughing and got the other two on the laughter train with me. All three of us had our shirts over our mouths pretending we were crying so the other movie watchers wouldn't be disgusted with our insensitive response to a very sad movie. Anyway, my sisters and I are one of a kind and a lot of people don't get our sense of humor.

I think that covers it all for now. Hope you all are having a great summer!

Pimped Out Ride and a Random Facebook Message

Well, there it is! My birthday present for the next 5 years! I never thought I would love it as much as I do. It is a Nissan Quest SL and thanks to our other vehicle for blowing it's engine we are looking forward to hulling our family around in it.

So my random FB message episode this week came from someone that I have never met and who is not one of my FB friends. This person is from Palastine and in her very poorly written English grammar she tells me that "anybody can be pregnant, babies are cute, pregnant women are not, they are not pretty and are ugly." My first thought to this message was, 'wow, apparently someone thinks I am ugly.' I wrote her back and asked her what she meant by her statement. She replied, "It just seems like you think you are the only pregnant women on earth, and your aren't." My reply, 'okay, but what are you basing that opinion on since you don't know me and have no access to my FB profile?' Her reply, "please don't send me anymore messages. I have three kids and a cat to care for and don't have time to read them. If you send me anymore message I won't read them and besides, why would I since you are not my facebook friend." Well there you have it. Odd! Apparently she is an Aunt of someone I know and she had the time to write me to tell me how she felt but doesn't have the time to answer my questions about her accusations against me. After her rude comments she actually requested my friendship on FB. Ha! So to all you pregnant women out there. You are not ugly! You are very pretty and your babies will be very cute!

22 lbs gained and 8 weeks to go to Show Time!

I can't believe how fast time flies when you are pregnant! I am very ready to have this baby and 8 weeks feels so far away, but really, it's not. Before I know it I will have the most adorable Joe or Mel JR. in my arms. I am starting my 32nd week this week and still feeling great. I don't feel like I have gained 22 lbs, but when I look in the mirror, that is a whole different story. I feel huge when really, I'm not. I'm just not used to having a belly in the way of everything I do.
I had my 2nd appointment with our midwife today. We spent a lot of time just talking about our families, our life, our desires, and of course camp stuff. She is very tuned in to getting to know us and I have felt like we are building more than just a professional relationship. Our next appointment will be at our home so she can become familiar with our environment. The last thing she usually does before we leave is check my blood pressure, listen for the baby's heart rate, and feel for the baby's position which is head down, right where it should be!
Other updates in the Wisley family. Joe and I have a new niece from Tailand! Her name is Noni and she is 8 years old and speaks very little english. Joe's step-sister and brother-in-law adopted her two weeks ago and she was so excited to go home with them. We are very excited about having her join the family and she is adjusting very well to the American culture.
I went to visit the Wisley clan last week and on my way there our one and only vehicle died on me about 20 miles south of the camp. Luckily, I was close to home. Joe was out of town, of course. These things always happen to me when Joe is gone. I called our maintainence guy from the camp and he came to pick up the car and take it into the mechanics. For now all we know is that the engine is probably blown and we will more than likely be car shopping this weekend for a family car. Not excited about having to have a car payment because we haven't had one for several years, but we trust God and know we won't have to worry about the finances because God knows our needs and if he wants us to get another car then he will provide us the funds to get one. So there you have it. We continue with a very busy summer at the camp. Joe returned home from his Wilderness trip this past weekend and jumped right into another week of camp that he is co-dean of called Kingdom Week. I don't know how he does it, but he seems to work well with a tight and busy schedule. I always look forward to his days off, but am very glad that I can take a short walk across the dam and see him whenever I want too! I am very blessed!

Who's Problem is it?

I am way past due on a new blog so sorry for the two week absence. So today's blog will be about something that really hit home for me while at church today. I am really not a church type person because I think there are better, more effective ways of doing church but haven't figured that all out yet, however, that is an entirely different topic. My decision to go to church today was well worth my time. Today's topic was about generosity and sharing (2 Corinthians 8:8-15). I think the whole chapter is an excellent chapter so if you want to read it go for it. What I loved about this lesson today was the challenge it gave me to find even more ways to share and give more generously to others. Almost two years ago before we left for our hike I would have defined myself as a slightly selfish person that held onto my possessions tightly. I hated tithing and wasn't good at letting people borrow our things. That soon changed once I gave up all my possessions for 6 months to hike the A.T. I was amazed at how little I could live on, the things I took for grated, and how much generosity we received from complete strangers the entire distance of the trail. It was truly overwhelming to accept the fact that people wanted to help us and let us stay in their home, cook us meals, wash our stinky clothes, buy us a meal or our groceries, and drive us where ever we needed to get too. It was so incredible to gain a new respect for strangers and see that their are people out there that want to serve others. This gave me a big desire to do the same when I returned home from the hike. Joe and I started tithing consistently, which we were before but not always on a regular basis. Our tithe doesn't always go to the same place, or person. We have found so much pleasure in finding people or non-for profits, like the camp, who are in need financially or even something as simple as sharing our things with others. The more often we give the more we want to give and the blessings in return have opened our eyes to God's hand at work. Joe and I have so much less than we have ever had in our marriage but are so much happier now. God has blessed us with so many friends who have been very gracious in passing on items for the baby or things that we can borrow for a few months, like maternity clothes, which are so expensive. Thanks to all of our friends who have thought of us in our time of need. Having a baby is not inexpensive! Friends, family, baby showers, and garage sales, help a ton!
So to conclude, let me explain the title of my blog. "Who's problem is it?" That was the question that was answered in church today. Answer: It's my problem; our problem, to take care of the needy, the starving, the homeless, and the sick. The more we give, the happier we are and more blessed we will be in our efforts towards generosity.
With that said, if their is ever something you need, not hesitate to ask us. We are always more than happy to share what we have!

2 Tim 6:17-19
Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.

Baby Belly Update 29 weeks

Well, there it is! I can't believe that I have less than three months until this little person comes into our life. I have been day dreaming about what that moment will be like for us. My dreams at night have gotten a little crazy too! My favorite thing to imagine or picture is that moment when I see Joe's eyes light up and get to bond with the baby in his own way. I feel that I have had a special bond with it inside of me, feeling it move around all day. It will be so wonderful to see Joe develop a special love for it as well. I am really excited to make my mom and dad grandparents for the first time, and my sisters first time aunts. That is about all for now. Short and Sweet!

My Top Ten Moments In LIfe

#1 - Of Course Marrying my perfect match Joe Wisley!

#2 - Our Wedding night and the honeymoon! (brownchickenbrowncow)

#3 - Finishing our 2200 mile journey on the A.T.

#4 - Finding out I was Pregnant for the first time!

#5 - Moving to Rainbow Christian Camp

#6 - Adopting my Dog Maximus

#7 - The Rock Week (Summer 2006)

#8 - Playing with my sister's and cousin's when we were little girls!

#9 - Being baptised by Joe

#10 - Feeling baby Wisley move inside me for the first time!

Think of the things that give you joy today! God Bless!

Just an Update

Life certainly hasn't slowed down for us lately. I have spent the last couple of weeks working out in the yard pulling weeds and redesigning our landscaping for a little more curb appeal than the way it was before. I love working out in the yard! Guess I get that from my dad, but I love working in the house too, cooking, cleaning and organizing which I for sure inherited from my mom. Summertime is my favorite time of the year, even though it means I have to suffer through some major sinus issues from all the pollen. I would trade any other season, especially winter, to have summer around for a few more months.
The baby's room is no where near being started. I decided not to repaint the room and stick with the neutral taupe that was in the room when we moved in. I hate painting and figured the baby doesn't care about the color so why bother. I do have my crib, rocker and dresser in the room ready to be placed and a few other items for the baby that I have found at resale shops, garage sales and craigslist. I am still looking for a white or natural, unstained wood colored changing table although I may change my mind on getting one since it will only be one more piece of furniture that I will have to store away when I don't need it anymore.
I am going on my 27th week of being pregnant and starting to feel more and more tired the closer it gets to August. It is so hard to listen to my body and take naps when I have so many other things I would rather be doing. Don't get me wrong, I love naps, especially on rainy days or during the cold winter months. I spent most of today relaxing, reading, doing some light yoga, napping and walking Maximus around the camp so I had my fair share of rest today.
Speaking of camp! The busy season is here for Joe and all the other staff. Our college summer staff arrived for training a little over a week ago, which means Joe's day starts at 8am and usually isn't over until 9-10pm, but only for these first two weeks. They have been working hard to get the camp back into summer shape, CPR and lifeguard training, as well as high ropes training. Our high school summer staff will arrive early next week and then the fun begins with week #1. I am so excited to see all the kids arrive and watch the camp come alive again.
My mom and dad came down for a visit from Chicago this weekend. It was so nice to have family around and a little help with some house work and advice about yard work from my green thumb of a father. They brought my cute little cradle with them that I found in Chicago as well as a few other cute baby items which included a Chicago Cubs onesie, bib and booties! I will not force my kids to be Chicago fans but as long as they don't know any better I will dress them in Cubs/Bears outfits when Joe isn't looking. :)
Well I think that is about all for now. I will post some pictures of my growing belly soon. Hope you all had a wonderful Memorial Day!

So Why a Home Birth?

I have been reading frantically and praying a lot over the last couple of weeks about where I wanted to have our first child. There has always been something about Doctors and hospitals that had made me uncomfortable. It all started about 3 months ago when I began to question the drug industry in why drugs are almost always the answer to people's illness and pain. I asked myself if drugs were truly the way to a ill-free/pain-free life? I came to a conclusion that drugs are not the way for me to deal with illness and pain and I wanted to live in such a way to avoid the toxic side affects of drugs and other chemicals. An example from my own life stems from the effects I saw in taking birth control pills for almost 5 years and my story is nothing compared to others I have heard. I began to notice my emotions taking a turn towards the worst. I became numb emotionally and rarely did I ever feel happy or sad. I was an emotional zombie per se. I also noticed that my desire for sexual intimacy with my husband had faded away to nothing. This was frustrating for both he and I. I spoke with my OB/GYN about the issue and the only thing she could recommend was trying a different pill or using hormones as a way to deal with the problem. I decided against her recommendations and went off all birth control and within a month felt like a completely different person. One other thing that bothered me about the situation was I had also asked my doctor about Natural Family Planning as a way to prevent a pregnancy. The only answers she gave me were discouraging and still made me feel that some form of drug was my only option for preventing conception. So, I made the choice to take a risk and stay off the pill. After a year of being off the pill I was able to control when I wanted to conceive and became pregnant without any troubles. I have heard and read of so many couples having a hard time conceiving and I feel many of those cases result from the side effects of the chemical hormones in birth control that mess with a women's body. That brought me to wonder about medicated birth experiences. Why do women get epidurals? Is it really safe for the baby? Does it slow down labor and lead to more drugs and/or C-sections?
This raised my curiosity and through lots research and asking lots of questions of mothers who have had both hospital and home births, the info I given was eye opening! Therefore I am choosing to have the baby at home with the assistance of a midwife from Wabash IN. If I had the space to write all I have learned about hospital vs. a home birth or unmedicated vs. medicated births, I would explain everything I have learned. I encourage you to look into it yourself. I am so glad that I did because it has empowered me to feel in control and confident in my own body and I no longer fear the upcoming event of bringing this baby into the world. I have always feared being in labor and not knowing what to expect when the time came. Now that I know what I want and what to expect I feel confident and prepared. A few books I found to be very helpful are: "Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way" by Susan McCutcheon, "Gentle Birth Choices" by Babara Harper, and I am now starting to read "Husband Coached Childbirth" by Bradley. I also highly recommend that you find the dvd called "The Business of Being Born." It is a documentary by Ricki Lake who had a hospital birth for her first and a home birth for her second. Talking with my midwife last week and looking at her stats made Joe and me even more at peace with the decision. Our first appointment with her was 2 hours long and it was free! She had an 18 page Informed Consent Form that we went over together and she shared her stats and philosophy of care. I found out that each of my prenatal visits with her will last an hour because she really wants to get to know us and make us feel comfortable with her. The average time a male OB spends with his patients each visit is 7 minutes. For a Female OB it is about 10 minutes! Isn't that crazy? Midwives attend over 70% of births in Europe and Japan, but less than 8% in the U.S. The U.S. also has one of the highest maternal mortality rates than anywhere else in the world and 95% of women are giving birth in hospitals in the U.S. Hmmmmmm? In 1900, 95% of births in the U.S took place at home. By 1955, less than 1% were at home. It remains that same number today. I could go on...
After all the reading and documentaries I have watched I also learned that all of the medical technology (fetal monitors, meds, forceps, vacuums, surgery, episiotomy, etc.)that doctors use during a women's labor are most of the time unnecessary. Doctors simply don't let a women's body progress on it's own time before they decide that they need to intervene to get the baby out on their own time versus the mother and baby's time. Most doctors have never attended a natural delivery before they started their practice and most have never attended a home birth that was done completely natural without all the drugs and technology. 1 out of 4 women have c-sections and 80% have had some form of drug during labor today. Those numbers are just way too high! My philosophy now is that women were created by God to give birth in their own time and can be in complete control of their labor. I understand that having a midwife, or a home birth is not for everyone but I still encourage you to look into all of your options before you decide on where you will have you first, second or third baby. Since I haven't had the baby yet I have nothing more to go by than what I have read or heard from others. When the time comes I will be more than happy to share every detail of my experience with you. Have a wonderful day and God Bless!

Price Comparison for Cloth vs. Disposable Diapers

If you were curious about the money you can save by using cloth diapers here is a little incentive for you to start using them. This info comes from toastybaby.com. I am registering for my diapers from nickisdiapers.com because I feel they have more a of selection to choose from. I am doing prefolds with diaper covers and a gracious friend of mine is passing on around ten all-in-ones for me too. Cloth diapers are not like they used to be so check em out.


Amercians spend about 7 billion dollars on disposable diapers every year. The cost of cloth diapering can easily be less than 1/2 the cost of buying disposables.Cost Savings: Cloth Diapers vs. Disposable Diapers

Disposable Diapers = $2,214.00
1st 3 months ($270.00)
30 days/month x 10 diapers/day x 3 months = 900 diapers a month
900 diapers x $.30 = $270.00
4 - 30 months ($1,944.00)
30 days/month x 8 diapers/day x 27 months = 6,480 diapers
6,480 diapers x $.30 = $1,944.00

Chinese Prefold & Bummis Super Whisper Wraps = $734.00
Chinese Prefolds ($132.00)
36 infant prefolds @ $2.00 each = $72.00
24 regular prefolds @ $2.50 each = $60.00
Bummis Super Whisper Wraps ($242.00)
8 small covers (white) @$11.00 each = $88.00
8 medium covers (white) @$11.00 each = $88.00
6 large covers (white) @$11.00 each = $66.00
Laundering Cost
24 months x $15.00/month = $360.00

Bumkins All-In-One = $1,807.95
Small (White)
36 @ $15.99 = $575.64
Medium (White)
30 @ $15.99 = $479.90
Large (White)
24 @ $15.99 = $383.76
Doublers for overnight
3 @ $2.95 = $8.85
Laundering Cost
24 months x $15.00/month = $360.00 Assumptions:

Average cost of disposable diaper = $.30. Based on price review at local area Kroger.
Laundering Cost is estimated at $15.00/month. This may vary based on the age and style of your washing machine.
Babies who are cloth diapered are potty trained on average in 24 months versus 30 months for those who wear disposable diapers.
Wipes & other accessories are not factored into this comparison. There would be further costs for both disposable and cloth and could vary greatly depending on the accessories used.

Having to Keep a Schedule Sucks!

Ever since Joe and I returned home from the hike life seems far to hectic with crazy schedules and feeling like the months go by so fast because we are either gone all the time or have some sort of event going on. One of the hardest things to make time for is visiting all of our dear friends who we left when we moved to the camp. I miss everyone so much but you don't know how hard it is trying to keep in touch and making visits until you are the one moving away from everyone! It is not easy, especially when you have to work around other people's crazy schedule's as well as your own. Don't you just wish life could slow down enough to where you felt like you had one week out of every month to throw out your schedule book and enjoy the comfort of home? I know I would, so as a result of that wish I am inventing a month out of every year where Joe and I do not go anywhere unless we really want too. I don't know what we will call that month yet, something like, "Stay at Home Month" or something like that. During this month, whatever month we decide on, the schedule book goes out the window; we don't travel anywhere, only to the necessary places like the grocery store, church, bank, work, going on dates, etc. We also don't make plans with anyone unless they want to come out to hang at our crib. I have really enjoyed being home and not having an out of home job, but still feel like the schedule book fills up and life gets hectic. I guess hiking 6 months in the woods has changed my perspective about the hustle and bustle of life and how I can learn to slow down and smell the roses. Anyone else out there feel the same way I do?

Kids are kind of like dogs.

I once had a friend tell me that babies are much easier than puppies. If that is the case then my up coming responsibilities of training my kids will be a breeze. Ha! I am so sure that I won't fall for that lie but if I can train my kids to listen to me and behave as well as my dog Maximus than I am actually looking forward to being a parent. For the longest time I put having kids at the bottom of my list of adventures to pursue. I have always loved kids, other people's in particular since I have never had my own, but I could always give the kids back to their parents when I had my fill. I will admit there are many kids that I find very unpleasant to be around, and very few that are so well behaved I could take them for my own. Based on that I am making it my goal to have children that my friends will enjoy just as much as I do, just like my awesome dog Maximus. He is only 6 months old and the handsome little guy steals peoples hearts with his precious face and his near perfect behavior. I am so glad that we decided to give up our other demon possessed dog, Sadie. She probably would have ended up having one of our kids for dinner, even though she never showed any kind of aggression towards any child until we got back from our hike as went after my nephew. I think dogs are a lot like kids. Either you like them or you don't, or, they are either annoying and not cute or pleasant and adorable. There are very few times that I don't like my dog and that is usually when he has smelly farts. Now I know some of you may be thinking how silly that comparison sounds but I think it all comes down to how consistent a parent or dog owner is in training their child or pet. So I have a few resources for you all if you like to read or if you have a pet you would like to develop better behavior patterns. First, go to nogreaterjoy.com and buy the book "To Train Up A Child." It is a very short book but very helpful in the biblical truths of training up an angel rather than a demon. Now, if you don't agree with spanking than I still recommend you read it anyway. If you still disagree with spanking after you have read the book than pass the book onto me and I will pass it on to someone that does agree with spanking. Second, for your pet, google The Perfect Dog and order Don Sullivan's training system. Well worth the money! We used his techniques with our three year old dog Sadie and with Maximus who we started training at 9 weeks. I only wish we were able to work with Sadie at a younger age. We made a lot of mistakes with her which is probably why she was so aggressive and protective. Maximus however, is proof that Don's system works. I have never had so many complements on how well-behaved he is and have even had people ask us if we would sell him to them. I would never consider selling him for any price. He is the best dog I've known! Well, there's my two cents worth of advice.

Happy Training!

22 weeks and the baby bump keeps growing

Well, there is me at 22 weeks looking bigger and man am I pasty white, and I look tired, but I'm not! I should have put on a little makeup for this shot too but oh well. That is as natural as I get. So being pregnant isn't so bad. I am actually excited that I am starting to show enough that I can't hide it. We had our first ultra sound a few weeks ago and that was also a very exciting experience. We were able to get a few face shots and the baby looks as though it will have the famous Wisley nose. After about 10 minutes of the technician pushing around on my belly I was ready to relieve myself. My bladder was screaming by the end of that session. I have gained about 10-12 pounds since days one. I haven't been over 130 pounds since my freshman year of college! Fun to have an excuse to put on some weight.
Oh let's see what else has been going on the past couple of weeks. I am thinking of have a home birth and hiring a midwife. The thought of having our baby at home seems so much more peaceful and comforting. Being in our own home with only a few people to have to deal with sounds much more enticing than being stuck in a strange room with strange people for two to three days. Now I know all you ladies out there that opted for an eppidural (sp) would tell me otherwise but the fact that they cost like $2500 and we don't have health insurance to cover it makes me just want to live through the pain. I am going to talk with a friend from my old church who had three kids with no pain meds and see how she got through it. So if anyone of my blogging buddies out there has ever had a midwife or went without the pain meds give me a shout.
The babies room isn't anywhere near being started. I should take a picture of it now so you can see that I have a lot of work to do on it. I actually spent the last week painting my weight room at the camp and putting a rubber floor in so that we can have a nice place to work out. I wish I took a picture to show you but it looks pretty slick if you ask me. The walls are a sapphire blue with one wall being a slate gray. I love it! Can't wait to use it full force after this baby comes out! I so miss my hardcore workouts.
Well, that is all for now. Joe and I are heading to Bedford for the next 7-10 days for a little vacation. We haven't seen his family since Christmas and are looking forward to hanging out with all of them. It is nice that we can go to one city and be able to see all of his side of the family in one visit. Peace out everyone! Oh and I am not going to proof read this blog because I have to bath the dog and finish packing so all you grammer freaks out there need to hold back on any snide comments. God Bless and enjoy the wamr weather this weekend! Finally!

The Beauty of Motherhood

I was driving home today from Lowes and came across a Revive Our Hearts Broadcast on 97.9 FM. The title of the broadcast was the title of my blog and I was hooked from the beginning since I am entering the journey of motherhood within the next 4 months. Nancy Leigh DeMoss had a guest speaker today. Her name is Holly Elliff and she shared her views and a feminist view of what motherhood means in our world today. I must say that it was an encouraging broadcast and would write a summary about it but since I don't want to misinterpret anything she said it would be better if you listened online for yourself. If interested go to:
oneplace.com/ministries/reviveourhearts and listen to April 15th, "The Beauty of Motherhood."
The reason I was encouraged by this 20 minute broadcast is ever since I got back from our 6th month hike and soon found out we were having a baby I made the decision to not rush into getting back into a full time career as a personal trainer. I do miss the relationships I built with my co-workers and my clients, as well as my paycheck, but thinking about being a mom and having to be away from my kids five days a week didn't sound like the best option for me. I understand why a lot of mom's choose to work and know that finances are a constant struggle for many of my friends that choose to work. I have more respect for them as mom's because of the sacrifice they make to be away from their babies to support their family. It is a very hard decision that one day I may end up going back too.
Lately I have felt slightly guilty about the fact that I am choosing not to work. Mainly because Joe is now considered a missionary who has to raise his salary to be able to work at the camp. We knew what we were getting ourselves into before we left our other jobs, but also knew that God would bless us if we listened to his calling, which he is. No, we don't have his full Salary raised yet, but that doesn't bother us because we are surviving, and making it through. His support slowly comes in one month at a time and even though we have less than we have ever had, we are more happy then we have ever been. So, in my own mind I feel at peace with the decision I have made to be a full-time mom. A lot of people have asked me, or assumed that I am back to work, or have a position at the camp, probably because they know our financial situation and may think that I should work to help out with our income. Well, regardless of what people think or feel about working/non-working moms I feel both parties should be respected for their decision. As long as you make choices that will glorify God and look at your kids as a gift from God and not an inconvenience or parasite, then God will bless you in whatever you decide.