26 days and Counting...

First picture ever of Baby Libby #2 after the embryo transfer

4D picture at 30 weeks

Went to a massage at AMOMI, the only physician supervised spa for pregnant women and Babyshots photography was there taking pictures...for free!!!

I looked awful but I thought, oh well...why not remember how I looked...not that sometimes I think.... why remember how I look??? :)

The last few weeks of my pregnancies have always been difficult...I can't sleep, I can't breathe, heartburn...swollen ankles, swollen everything!!!!...going to the bathroom every hour...on the hour....Must be the same for everyone!

BUT...what a feeling.... helping God create a human being...your own son or daughter...

I almost feel like I am complaining but, I am not...I am happy and just can not wait to meet him, what a gift for women to do this!

Time flies and now I am waiting to meet my baby....then you blink and they are talking to you saying "Need to listen..No!" (Bennett)

Working is good for me, it allows me to concentrate on my patients and not think about my struggles...plus I just love seeing the kiddos and watching them grow! Last week one of my patients brought my flowers...another one made me a book on her computer....how can you not love working with children!!!!. They make you feel special and loved....and the feeling is mutual they are all special and loved!

Any ideas for swollen ankles? or should I say cankles, elephant ankles? :)

Gearing up for Mother's Day!

Mother's Day has a new meaning to me...not so much because I am a mom now but because now I appreciate my mom's hard work and sacrifice a bit more. I can understand the worries of everyday life that no one thinks about BUT a mom.

At work, I understand the "crazy moms" more and better because I have officially become one of them!!!

One of the great things about my "job" is talking to moms...I learn soo much...women in general are amazing...how do you do what you do and find time for MORE? How do many get through delivering a baby the MacGyver way and not think about it twice....BLOWS ME AWAY!!!! Could men do this? NO WAY!!!

As we approach Mothers day...I absolutely want to make it a point to celebrate moms in our office...just because moms are....awesome! So, the whole week leading to Mother's Day we have special little treats for moms...the whole week whether their kiddos have an appointment or not...so come by and let us spoil you just a bit...

EARTH DAY

Mount St. Helen pictures from USDA Forest Services

I wonder how many people realized it was Earth Day sometime last week...what is Earth Day anyway? So, I did what everone else does and I went online and typed "What is E.D"?

Here is what I came up with:
Established in March 1970, "a global holiday to celebrate the wonder of life in our planet"...The wonder of life in our planet...

I went on with my search and found another website that says "the world is in greater peril than ever and that climate change is the "greatest challenge of our time" and it blames humankind for it.

Also found that most of the research was biased and manipulated...the evidence that does exist does not justify the social, economic cost of reducing CO2 emissions.

So, my questions are:
Are we celebrating the wonder of this planet?
No, I don't think we are...do we ever stop and think why we recycle...don't use or try not to use paper towels...etc? I don't, maybe you do... When I see a beautiful animal, a beautiful sunset, a beautiful flower I do think...WOW!!! there is a God who created this....Am I celebrating the wonder of life on this planet when I think that....I don't know.


Is the world in greater peril than ever and is humankind to blame?
No, I think we would think too much of ourselves to remotely think that anything that we do can have an impact...I mean a real impact on our planet...

For instance, when Mount St. Helen erupted in WA. Its cloud covered the earth ..."THE EARTH" in 15 days, the blast was 400 times more powerful than the atomic bomb that leveled Hiroshima. It blew down enough trees to build 300,000 two-bedroom homes. Nearly 7,000 big game animals (deer, elk and bear) perished.
Did we cause Mt. St. Helen to erupt? No.....Can humankind cause this kind of disaster from CO2 emissions....Come on!!!...Rest my case....

Is this all false and a political platform to make a lot of money for some?
Possible...

So, should we celebrate Earth Day? Yes, absolutely we should...for what it is....Celebrating the wonder of life on this planet...not throwing away my son's crayons for ones that have no petroleum in them...among other crazy things like that...

I think its about being a responsible adult and doing what is right...teaching our children to appreciate and respect others and our differences, nature, animals and to not be wasteful of the resources we have been given but, preserving them for others to enjoy. So, to me it boils down to responsibility...to teach our children to do what is right....Isn't that what we are supposed to do anyway?

I am sorry if many disagree, I realize this is a touchy subject...I welcome any comments...just don't be mad...:)

EASTER SUNDAY

Bennett 10 minutes old!

Bennett in his Easter egg hunt!!

Getting ready and making a big mess!!!

Easter Sunday is an incredibly special day for me....I will explain....

This year was the first year Bennett got to have an Easter egg hunt. I did not expect him to be into it but...HE WAS!!! So, we decorated 3 eggs..it took about 10 minutes and we made a big old mess...then on Sunday, he had fun finding eggs in the backyard with his cousin Ian.

I must admit that I did put jelly beans on the plastic eggs (3 jelly beans on each), luckily, he had no interest in them !!! Daddy and Mommy ate them all!!! (ONLY ON EASTER!!!) ....Confession....Greg and I love jelly beans....is that awful or what??? this is classified information!! ok???? and we only eat them on special days...like Easter! The rest of the eggs had cars and aliens....which he is now getting into....

I want to make all these celebrations "special" for him. I want him to have great memories of growing up in a loving home. I think we all love to think back about the "old days" and remember fun times, loved ones and those little things that make us who we are. I hope someday he will be able to do the same with his own kids...and remember!

I Love Easter Sunday because we celebrate Jesus' resurrection and the meaning that has in our lives. The sacrifice of love for us although we don't deserve it. God is so merciful!!!

My Bennett was born Easter Sunday...it was a very difficult and scary delivery...I was out for almost 2 days and did not get to hold him because I was so sick... but, what an incredible gift and just like the resurrection is...a new beginning...a new beginning as a mom...a dad....a family!! I am sooo grateful for the incredible opportunity to be a mom and I look forward to life with my boys...the 3 of them....Bennett, dad and baby Brock...coming end of May...

Do you feel so blessed to be a mom? scared like me sometimes? what gets you through?

Anyway, thanks for reading...this is my therapy before going to bed... :)

Jesus is Risen.......He is Risen Indeed!!!...this is what gets me through!

Anonymous Wisdom

I received an email from a parent of one of our patients and wanted to share these "words of wisdom" with everyone else.

"...And as to the Cares, they are chiefly what attend the bringing up of children; and I would ask any Man or Woman who has experienced it, if they are not the most delightful Cares in the World..."-Benjamin Franklin: Collected Works, Lemay, ed. (249) Your work, your service and dedication to doing good is helping to create the bliss that comes with raising these "delightful Cares" and is one more swatch of fabric that makes our community so wonderful. Do your best at all times. Be good, kind and polite to others at all times. Be truthful at all times even if it hurts sometimes. Do unto others as you would have done to you."

Thank you for those wonderful words of wisdom!

Is there a Happy Medium??

Do you ever wonder...how can I be a better mom, better wife, better daughter...better everything???

Growing up I never remember thinking, "I want to be a mom", I remember thinking I want to be a doctor like my dad... as I got older and "wiser" I began to feel the NEED to be a mom. I struggled through infertility for almost 5 years and thought I would never have my own baby.. I thought "God has a plan" and although I cried myself to sleep many nights I trusted that God knew better than me...and He did!!

I decided to concentrate on my "other love" WORK... I got such joy and fulfillment from seeing my "babies" at the office that it helped me get through my struggle with infertility...its truly amazing the love that you get from children...

When I finally was able to conceive through IVF and I had Bennett...I thought....Oh my...what am I going to do now? I am blessed because my parents moved to Arizona and help me care for him...(which was in God's timing...not mine) ...but, many times I think, how can I be a better mom to Bennett and not feel guilty about working...I think all women that work feel like I do...so how do you find a happy medium?

Many of my friends that stay at home tell me, "I wish I had a job, I wish I was more accomplished, I wish I had a career like you" and I tell them I am jealous of them....I am in a way...but, I also love what I do....so, again how do you find a happy medium??

I guess there is no happy medium...and I can only speak for myself, I do know, by talking to "moms" at the office...we give 100% when we are at home with our kids, our husbands, our parents...and we give 100% when we work...or at least try! or die trying :)

Women are amazing...they find strength and courage where there is none to keep going, so, we do that...keep going!

This is therapeutic to me...please share with me....I would love to hear from other moms...

Why Blog?

Why Blog?....there are many things about my job that I love...I love meeting my patients and seeing them grow...seeing the changes they go through and making a positive impact in their lives...they amaze me everyday and I am thankful for the opportunity to provide care for them.

Another thing about my job that I have found to be extremely rewarding, is the relationships I have been able to build with the "moms"... I have learned a lot from them, laughed, cried...prayed for and been prayed for and it was something that I just never expected...I enjoy that just as much as I enjoy the kiddos...

Soooo....because I enjoy moms so much and I dont get to spend enough time with them, I thought...well, why not reach out and share thoughts, feelings...ideas....about being a mom...juggling life, children, husbands....work and more...so thank you for visiting, I will at least try to blog once a week...Blessings!!! Dr.L