First (and Last) Week at Home

Asa's been home just over a week, and tomorrow we move!  We are so thankful he came when he did because I had time to recover from the delivery before packing became a priority, and also time to rest and enjoy our little big man for several days before our minds were consumed with the details of moving.

Our darling Asa loves to sleep, which has proved helpful the past couple days as sorting and packing has taken precedence over nearly all else.  Although he wouldn't let us put him down for several days after he was born, Asa is now content to sleep in the bouncy seat so our hands are free to do other things as needed.  He simply loves to sleep, almost all the time.  Occasionally he'll be awake enough to look around and acknowledge the world around him, but mostly he just sleeps.  Even though I'd love to see his eyes a bit more, a sleeping moose baby is one of life's greatest pleasures!  He's absolutely scrumptious :)

Another of life's greatest pleasures: a moose baby's little hands and feet.  Even though they're really not that little.  He is, after all, a moose baby.  His footprints didn't quite fit into the allotted space on the footprint card at the hospital.  But gosh those toes are irresistible!  I love tickling them while he nurses, which helps him stay awake to keep eating but also delights my heart.  And those little hands!  How I love to watch those wrinkly fingers stretch during the rare moments when he's awake.  Yes, little hands and little feet are one of life's greatest pleasures :)

Someone who has yet to understand the pure scrumptiousness of Asa is Kai.  He is mostly indifferent toward his baby brother.  It was several days before Kai really acknowledged his presence.  He definitely knows Asa's name, however, and will now acknowledge his brother's presence by declaring that he's taking a nap or having his diaper changed.  Kai is mostly indifferent, but at least he's not antagonistic!

Caleb, on the other hand, heartily welcomed Asa the moment he came home.  Although Caleb was shy while meeting his new brother at the hospital, he was thoroughly excited about Asa once he came through our door!  Caleb loves "helping" take care of Asa.  And he simply loves having him around.  He often reminds us to bring Asa along when we're going somewhere.  Caleb is a remarkable big brother!

We've been adjusting well and we thank God for that.  We should be stressed.  We just had a baby and now we're saying goodbye to friends and moving away, and dealing with one potty-training kid and two sick kids on top of it all.  But, by the grace of God, we're doing quite well.  His grace is sufficient!

So it's been a good first (and last) week at home with our newest moose baby :)  Tomorrow we leave Duluth and begin a new chapter with new adventures, and we're so excited to have Asa along for the ride.  He'll never remember the one week he lived in Duluth or the transitions we're about to experience, but we will.  Whenever we remember his birth, we'll also remember this crazy time of being here and there and everywhere, and we'll be so thankful he was there along with us!

Family of Five

He's here!  Our beautiful boy is here: Asa Everett Horn.

This precious bundle arrived on Wednesday, September 16, right on my due date!  We had been praying specifically that the baby would come last week.  Eli worked his last shift at the ER a few days before, and we were only a couple weeks from our move date.  We were praying that God would bless us with this baby once Eli was done working and would be around to help, but also before it was too close to moving day.  And God was good!  I started having contractions on Tuesday afternoon.  It was the first time my body has gone into labor on its own, which was a blessing in and of itself.  I was induced with the other two boys and since the new hospital policy is that no one can get induced until at least 41 weeks, we were concerned that I would go past my due date and cut it close to moving day.  Hence our fervent prayers that this baby would come on its own before crunch time!  And God, in His mercy, let Asa come right on time.  By 5am on Wednesday, my contractions were close and painful and it was apparent that we'd be having a baby that day.

Asa did not come right away, however.  It wasn't until 4pm that I started pushing, and even then we had no idea how long of a process that would be.  I was hoping the delivery wouldn't take long since I pushed out Hezekiah in three pushes last time.  It quickly became obvious, however, that this babe was not facing the right way and was not going to make it easy to bring him into the world.  Long story short, he was sunny side up - facing upward - and because of that he basically got stuck for quite awhile.  My doctor knew what the problem was and did everything she could to get this baby to turn around on his own.  Long story short, he wouldn't budge.  After pushing for over 2.5 hours and being completely exhausted and out of strength, I turned to Eli and asked how much longer this could go on.  He solemnly said that after a few more pushes without progress, they'd probably start discussing a C-section.  That comment made me panic and become angry and motivated all at once.  I remember saying,  "No!  Please, God, no!"  And a truly God-given adrenaline came over me.  I suddenly had strength and energy that had long since faded and I pushed like a mad woman.  The doctor had briefly left the room and the nurse had to call her back because, within a few minutes of Eli making his comment about a potential C-section, it was obvious this baby was finally coming.  A few more pushes and that baby was out, sunny side up and all!  The threat of a C-section was enough to motivate me to finish the job :)

We didn't know beforehand whether our baby was a boy or girl, so it was delightful to get the news: a boy!  He was absolutely perfect!  He did come out with a major conehead from being stuck so long, but otherwise he was the image of perfection :)  Lots of hair, lots of cheeks, lots of him.  Asa looked big in the way our other boys did, but I didn't realize just how big he was.  The nurses immediately started making comments: "Look how big his hands are!  He's so long!  What a big boy!"  Since they see newborns all the time, I took their word for it.  He wasn't weighed for almost an hour, but the scale finally revealed just how big this moose baby was: 11 pounds, 1.6 ounces!  We broke our own record.  Biggest moose baby yet!

It was only a month ago that we finally picked a name for a boy.  We had already used the two we knew we loved, so it took us awhile to decide on another name.  We knew we'd keep the theme of using Old Testament names because there are so many we like and because we love their meaning and the significance of many biblical characters.  The name Asa was in the running for a long time and ultimately came out on top.  Asa means "healer" which of course drew our attention because we are called to do medical missions and believe strongly in the ministry of healing.  Our hope and prayer is that our son will be a reminder of our call and will offer healing to those around him as he grows in the Lord.  Also, King Asa was someone who "did what was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God....He commanded Judah to seek the Lord, the God of their ancestors, and to obey his laws and commands.  He removed the high places and incense altars in every town in Judah, and the kingdom was at peace under him" (2 Chronicles 14:2-5).  Furthermore, "Asa's heart was fully committed to the Lord all his life" (2 Chronicles 15:17).  Our prayer for our son is that he too will be fully committed to the Lord all his life and do what is good and right in the eyes of the Lord.

The name Everett means "strong and hardy, brave" and is also the name of Eli's maternal grandfather.  We pray that our son will also be strong and brave as he follows the Lord.  

Asa's name and size have already led us to adopt a few nicknames for him: Ace, Mt. Everett, Moose...  I'm sure there'll be more that pop up along the way :)

Asa is joined by Caleb and Kai, who came to meet their brother at the hospital the day after he was born.  Caleb was a bit shy and didn't want to get too close, although he did know the baby's name and wanted to show him some "animal friends" (as he calls all of his toy animals).  Kai was completely uninterested in Asa and didn't even want to see me, which was highly unusual.  Thankfully, Grandma and Grandpa Horn had thought to bring donut holes along, so both boys were content despite being in a weird place and not understanding what was going on.  They also loved watching the crane and construction site just outside the window :)

So we are thrilled to be a family of five!  Life is a little more crazy, but more full too.  Full of joy and full of gratitude and full of all things moose baby :)  Asa is tugging our hearts and we are delighted beyond measure to call him ours and to add him to the Horn tribe!

What NOT to Say to a Super Huge Pregnant Woman

Here's the short list:

"Are you having twins?"
"How long ago were you due?"
"Are you having twins?"
"I've never seen anyone as big as you!"
"Are you having twins?"

To be clear, I am huge.  I'm super pregnant and super huge.  And apparently everyone in the public knows it.  Also, apparently, an unfortunately large percentage of the public has 1) no filter, 2) no social intelligence, or 3) no concept of how to speak to a super huge pregnant woman.  I'm the kind of person who smiles and laughs at the comments because I don't want to embarrass anyone by pointing out how rude they are, but I also smile and laugh because I have a legitimate excuse for being a super huge pregnant woman: I've birthed two 10-pounders already and I've earned the right to look this way!  I usually tell people this factoid because it mollifies me to justify to the public why I'm as big as I am, but also because the shock value is funny.  The look on people's faces can be quite entertaining when they hear that I've had two 10-pounders already :)  But whether I have a justifiable reason for being so big or not, why do so many people assume it's okay to ask if I'm having twins?  (I cannot begin to tell you how often I'm asked that question.  I've been asked that question during every pregnancy, but never as much as I have this time, and it's unbelievable how often it's asked of me!)

at 37 weeks, over two weeks ago now

I don't mind the attention I receive because I'm pregnant.  I usually welcome it, even if the comments that are given in poor taste.  There are days when it's hard to be reminded how big I am because coping with the weight gain and absolute hugeness of being pregnant isn't always easy.  But most days I accept the fact that this is how my body does pregnancy: large enough to attract more attention than the average pregnant woman.

During my last two pregnancies I read a fabulous book entitled Creating With God by Sarah Jobe.  I highly recommend it.  I was reminded recently of a particular chapter called Redefining Attractive that came at just the right time during each of my last two pregnancies.  During each pregnancy a particularly hurtful remark was made regarding my size, which led me to tears each time, and shortly after these instances I found myself reading the chapter in this book about being attractive.  The fortuitous timing was a blessing from God each time, and it restored my self-esteem even while being a super huge pregnant woman.  Here's a short section from the chapter:

Pregnant women are attractive in that they draw others to themselves.  Pregnant bellies have a power to invite touch, to welcome stories, to open the possibility for relationship....Cultivating this kind of beauty means asking, "How can I better welcome those who are attracted to me?  How can I, like Jesus, invite their stories?  How can I, like Jesus, see the specific needs and joys of each person who comes?  How can I, like Jesus, bless the tummy-touchers and send them in peace, even when I feel almost crushed by the crowds?  How can I, like Jesus, know and rest in my own power to attract and to heal?  Pregnant women teach us that attraction is not primarily about how we look, but about how well we attract others to ourselves and how well we welcome them once they draw near.  (69-70)

I can testify that being pregnant attracts attention.  People are drawn to me, whether it's out of curiosity or shared excitement or plain shock.  How I respond to the well-wishers and the questioners and the gawkers has an effect, and I don't want to rebuff the person who says I'm the biggest pregnant woman she's ever seen, even though it's uncomely at best and downright rude at worst.  So instead of glaring or rolling my eyes or retorting with an equally rude comment about where she learned her manners, I smile and laugh and agree that yes, I know I'm huge.  Because it's true, and I know it just as well as the rest of the world does.  And smiling and laughing usually invites small conversation and hearing other people's stories.  And I think that's better than turning a cold shoulder to all the people who don't know how to keep their foot out of their mouth.

So yes, I'm a super huge pregnant woman and I get asked on a regular basis if I'm having twins (which I'm not) and I roll with it because it's better than being offended every time.  But just for the record, something TO say to a super huge pregnant woman would be: "You look beautiful!  Best of luck with everything!"  Even though I don't feel beautiful these days, it's always refreshing to hear someone say that I am, especially when said without hesitation.  You can't go wrong with a comment like that :)

Happy Labor Day!

We completely forgot it was a holiday, but the rest of the country seems to remember such things.  So Happy Labor Day!

Here's one of the better pictures of our boys together recently.  They were playing at Grandma and Grandpa Horn's trailer on Lake Superior.  I love this picture: two little boys wearing superhero rainboots on a sunny day and eating fruit snacks back-to-back.  A perfect picture to close out the summer!