Happy 18th birthday Matthew Lane!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I know the photos are not the best, and they didn't scan in too well since a certain soon-to-be-18-year-old did them and didn't want to redo them. :) :) :) But I wanted to post a few photos tonight. I want to share the memories of Matthew's birth-day another day soon. It went so differently than we envisioned it at the time, and he almost didn't survive, but thanks to God, he is still here. The hospital he was airlifted to told us at discharge that we'd have to keep a close eye on him as he would be "puny, sickly and have a lot of health problems." I'll let you judge for yourself how that turned out below. :)

This is Matthew at about 2 weeks. We went back to the hospital he was born at to get his newborn photos. All our babies wore that outfit at discharge- a St. Louis Blues t-shirt we got when I was pregnant the 1st time and a knitted sweater that was made by Rob's grandma.

These two photos are my favorites of Matthew!

And now, my 6'5" "puny" boy!

Thank you Father for being with us that day 18 years ago. For keeping me safe as I was in labor all day long & as I delivered. For keeping Matthew safe through delivery and in those hours immediately afterwards when he was so in danger and we didn't know how bad it was yet, for the hospital that took him, for the chopper team that took care of him in flight and helped him get to St. Louis, for all those that cared for my baby and helped him when he was so very sick. Thank you for my Pop who went over and sat with him, talked to him, told him about his family, took photos of him for me, and let him know he was loved while I was still in the hospital or home with the other two babies. For being with us in that very bleak, stressful time when we had two little ones under 2, one baby in NICU, and a parent in ICU in critical condition. What an awful time that was for Rob & I!

Thank you Father for getting to bring my baby home (oh, how I remember all those other families up there with babies so much sicker than mine, many of whom never came home). And God, thank you so very, very much for EVERY single day of the past 18 years of our lives. Thank you for the blessing of being a mom and for every trial, hard time, good time, in-between-time and everything else. Thank you God!

Please pray for Stellan!!!

If you haven't heard of this little boy, please go read his momma's blog. He will have a very risky and dangerous surgery tomorrow. Please, please pray for Stellan, for his family, for his team of doctors that God would guide their hands and give them wisdom.

Meet a Miracle

Okay, so now that I've been all serious and journalled my guts out, opening myself up to show my true "ugly" side (boy I'm scared about being that honest), let me share this with whoever might come along. :)

You see that button to the side- the MckMiracle one? Well you should go visit this site! I "found" MckMama late spring sometime I think & have been reading her blog ever since. God healed her son- a true miracle- through the prayers of TONS of people who were also following her online. I know the internet can be used for a lot of creepy things, but God can use it too. Her baby, Stellan, was supposed to die in utero, was supposed to not make it, was supposed to maybe survive birth but have all kinds of problems, was supposed to have a severe heart condition. BUT, God took their lives in a whole 'nother direction, and Stellan was born and is now doing great at home- no problems, no death....

Wow, those two words- but, God- well, there' s no other words needed. In fact, that has me thinking about looking for other "but God's" in the Bible. Hmmm... Maybe that's just what I need right now. Wow, God you're amazing! I start this blog entry to enter MckMama's Fryday contest, after blogging my heart out and being honest with You, myself, & a few people who read my blog, and then You show me something to do that is just what I need. God is truly amazing!

So anyway, go "meet" MckMama. If I hadn't "gotten fixed" that would have been me- four kids 3 & under! I had three kids under 3 at one point. :) Of course, I was not as "with it" as this mom since I was so young & poor & in college, but hey, I made it & they were awesome kids in their own right and now awesome young adults! :) Seriously, want to read some uplifting stuff? Go read about Stellan's short life but big journey so far!

Embryology 101

A long time desire of mine has been to do a "chick-hatching" project in my classroom. When I taught in Illinois, it was a project that was the "property" of another grade. Boy, teachers can be so territorial. :)

Now, in North Carolina, my principal said I could try this project. It is without a doubt, the most AWESOME thing I have ever done with my kids and that I have ever seen! As a mother of three, I know how wonderful an unborn child is- feeling the baby move inside, hearing its heartbeat, etc. I did not know watching a chick develop inside an egg would be so exciting or amazing!

I've learned or been reminded:

• baby chicks move inside their eggs
• you can see the changes through the egg (not clearly or super detailed, but still)
• how precious life is
• kids value life too

Our class has been eagerly watching the chicks development through our candling experiments and via the wonderful chart loaned to us by our poultry expert at NC State. The kids have been able to share this project with many other staff members, siblings, other classes, and even some parents/family members. They have helped me "teach" other visitors- including our special guest from the local news station. This opportunity has given them the chance to "be a teacher" while learning. So many kids and adults have stopped by to "peek" in on our little chicks and it may even make the school's morning show. I have tried to include the school, and get my kids excited about learning and sharing. No matter what else has gone wrong this school year, this project has been worth all the hard work and preparation. My kids may remember nothing else, but they will remember this.

And as I've checked on my little chicks periodically, monitoring each egg's progress and growth, watching them move around in their eggs, I am reminded once again of how awesome and amazing God is. Only He could create life in all its vast forms and varieties with all the intricacies, and then set it in motion to be able to reproduce itself. I will never cook an egg or look at a little bird outside my window without remembering the value and importance and the wonderful gift of life itself. God, you are truly so awesome!