It’s funny how life twists and turns and brings us to face situations we never imagined. Sometimes life forces us to trudge through hardships only to find the most inexplicable blessings on the other end. When we’re right there, in the thick of it all, it can be so hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel. I don’t know how many times I’ve found myself saying “I can’t do this,” only to find myself on the other side…

Last year, my family was in the midst of one of the most trying times we’ve been through. Life was pretty rough and it would have been very easy for us to lose hope. As I was reading in my devotions one day, I found the following passage, and the following Scripture quickly became anchor verses for me throughout that difficult time.

2 Corinthians 4: 16-18-“So we’re not giving up. How could we! Even though on the outside it often looks like things are falling apart on us, on the inside, where God is making new life, not a day goes by without His unfolding grace. These hard times are small potatoes compared to the coming good times, the lavish celebration prepared for us. There’s far more here than meets the eye. The things we see now are here today, gone tomorrow. But the things we can’t see now will last forever.” (The  Message)

Little did I know at the time just how literally I could have interpreted these verses….While everything else in our life was very seemingly falling apart, God WAS creating a new life…He was orchestrating His perfect plan and creating for us one of life’s richest blessings. Harper is a permanent reminder for us that God DOES provide, and will make a way….even when the way seems impassable. Even in the midst of all of the financial and emotional stress we were under, God was working on something more beautiful than words can describe…preparing a special gift for David and I to remind us not only of his provision, but of his perfect plan.

Was a fourth baby in OUR plan? No. Are there times when I find myself in the midst of a stressful afternoon with my existing three children and think, “How on earth am I ever going to do this?” All the time. Then I think back to everything I HAVE gotten through….and the amazing and unexpected blessings that were waiting on the other side. Just like it says in 2 Corinthians, “not a day goes by without His unfolding grace.” I know that just as He brought me through previous trials and life’s unexpected pathways, He will be all the strength I need as we face this new adventure that begins tomorrow.

I am confident that God can (and will) bring you through whatever it is that you are facing right now. I’ve been there….and I’ll be back there, because life is full of peaks and valleys. What has changed for me is knowing that sometimes the richest of blessings can be waiting on the other side. When we were certain we weren’t going to make it another day financially, and were wondering how on earth we would be able to provide for another child, God brought us through, providing a new job, new community, and a renewed faith in His timing and plan. When everything fell apart, we couldn’t see a way out. When I learned I was going to have to go through pregnancy again (which is VERY rough on me physically), I didn’t think I was strong enough to do it. However, I’m here….ready to come out on the other side of the tunnel…ready to receive that unfolding grace of God….(the grace He’d been providing every step of the way!)

As I sit here and feel the kicks, twists, and turns of my little girl for the last time, knowing that today is the last day I’ll ever be pregnant, I’m reminded of my God who loves me, and who has faithfully gotten me through all of life’s kicking, twisting, and turning….and given me something worth all the pain each time…Have the last nine months been fun? No….Tomorrow when I see the face of my little girl for the first time will there be any doubt in my mind that it will all have been worth it? Absolutely not. I’ve learned that trials and periods of difficulty make us better…stronger…more reliant on the only One who can help us get through it all.

As I sit and wait for Harper my prayer is that you will find the strength to make it out of your tunnel….that the light of day will shine for you soon, and that you will receive the blessings on the other end, knowing that it was all worth it. I leave you with another amazing piece of Scripture.

Psalm 27: 13-14 ” I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; wait, I say, on the Lord!”

I’m going to be all Mary Poppins for a moment, and express that I think that “in any job there is to be done, there is an element of fun. You find the fun, and SNAP, the job’s a game!” Making chores fun helps keep a child’s interest up, and minimizes any fussing or resistance. The game I am going to share with you today is something my kids actually ASK to do. (And it works!)

10 Buttons

What You’ll Need:

10 buttons

kid-safe spray/cleaner

paper towels

small prize

Goal:To help a child thoroughly clean a room in the house (and have fun while doing it!)

To Play:

1. Hide 10 buttons around a given room in the house.

•  If  my kids are dusting/cleaning a bathroom, I hide the buttons in spots where they need to spray/wipe.
• If we are using the buttons to help them clean their bedroom, I put a button on ten messy areas in the room.

2. The kids work through the room, trying to find each of the 10 buttons.

• Each time a child finds a button, they know they need to either spray/wipe that area, or clean up that area appropriately.

Examples

• When we are using the buttons to dust/clean, some places I hide the buttons are: under the centerpiece on the coffee table, behind the plant on the end table, at the base of the lamp, etc.
• When we are using the buttons to clean a bedroom, some places I hide the buttons are: on an un-made bed, on a pile of clothes to be put in a hamper, a pile of books to be shelved, etc.

3. The kids work until they have found all of the buttons, and cleaned each of the areas where they found a button. At the end of the game, they must show me all ten buttons, and let me check through the room to make sure they are done.

This game is great because you know they are hitting all of the areas they need to clean up, as you control where the buttons go! You can make sure they are dusting behind the knick-knacks, because you put a button there! You can know they will organize their stuffed animals, because you hid a button in their midst.

The kids love working to find the buttons, and the little treasure hunt of sorts, takes their mind off the fact that they are cleaning a room!

This game works great for young kids. My kids who are almost 6 and almost 4 love to play this game. At the end of the game, if the kids bring you all ten buttons, and have done a great job, you can feel free to give them a small prize. Things like a roll of smarties or another small wrapped candy work great for my kids. Have fun and get your kids busy helping!!

I wrote a post awhile ago on getting kids to help around the house that you might find useful. Check it out! The “Chore Store” : A New Take on the Chore Chart

You might also LOVE, Getting Your Children Involved in Household Chores (And Getting Them to Like It Too!)

I also have a whole section on cleaning on the website! If you’d like to check it out for some great hints/tricks for yourself, click HERE!!

My mom LOVES cherry chip cake. Last year, I made her cherry chip cakeballs. This year, I wanted to see if I could turn her favorite cake mix into a soft and chewy cookie…and I did!

Are you ready for a soft and tasty cookie with get this…3 ingredients??!!! You will LOVE these cherry chip cookies!

Ingredients

1 cherry chip cake mix

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 eggs

(Seriously, that is all you need! Told ya these were easy!)

To Prepare

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

2. Mix together the cake mix, oil,and eggs until well incorporated.

3. Drop by rounded spoonfuls (I always use my Pampered Chef cookie scoop) onto a cookie sheet.

4. Bake for 7-8 minutes. (Oven times and temperatures really can vary. I highly recommend watching your cookies closely! I always pull out my cookies when they are still slightly soft in the middle, and before the edges have gone brown. I let my cookies finish baking outside of the oven for a minute or two.)

If you like, you can top these with some cherry frosting. I sent my mom home with the can of frosting I bought, so we have been enjoying the rest without, and they are still scrumptious! These cute little cookies are great for Valentines, a pink birthday party, or any day! I hope you enjoy the world’s easiest cookies!!

Like Cookies? Check out these other great cookie recipes from Chasing Supermom!

Soft and Chewy Peanut Butter Cookies

Jumbo Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

No Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies

Cookie Cups

Cookie Salad

Red Velvet Cookies

1. While watching Sid the Science Kid, you wonder, “Where on earth can I find a preschool class for my child that only has four students??”

2. You’ve hoped and prayed that the hot dogs the gang from Mickey  Mouse Clubhouse are always eating are chicken or pork  hot dogs, as that would just be cruel to poor Clarabelle if they were made of beef…

3. Speaking of Mickey, you’ve wondered just how old are Mickey and his friends supposed to be? Are they adults with learning disabilities? Emancipated children in seemingly adult relationships?  I mean, they live alone with no mention of parents, yet they still play with coloring books and need help counting to 10….

4. Yes, you’ve asked yourself MANY a time why Caillou is four years old and has no hair….BUT, you may have also wondered why his father is outside in a sweater and turtleneck, while Caillou is in shorts and a t-shirt…Poor Caillou….always seemingly under-dressed…

5. You find it a little creepy and “big brother-esque” that a spy satellite watches the children on Special Agent Oso….and then wonder why none of the parents find it the least bit odd that a talking bear shows up at their door to “help” their child. (Even when he doesn’t know how to do the most basic of things like wash vegetables or put on pants…)

6. Even though you found out years ago, it STILL bothers you that Blue is a girl on Blues Clues….I  mean really, she’s a girl??

7. You’ve repeatedly tried to figure out the genders of the animals on Wonder Pets….especially the guinea pig…There’s a definite androgynous vibe he/she puts out there…

8. Can Dora’s parents NOT find a top that fits her properly?

9. You were more upset than your child when they swapped out “Marina” on Fresh Beat Band. (Doesn’t work on grown-up shows….doesn’t work on children’s shows either…..We didn’t buy it on I Dream of Jeannie or Roseanne…) They could have at least changed her name and called her a “new friend.”

10. You’ve wondered if Milli’s hair (on Team Umizoomi) is made out of fruit by the foot….

Have fun being a mom today!

Yesterday,  I spent a few hours (give or take, since I was amusing three children simultaneously) freezer cooking. In about 2 hours with ingredients I had on hand, I was able to make:

• Chicken Pot Pie Filling
• Creamy Chicken and Veggies
• Asian Chicken and Rice
• Beef Stroganoff
• Mini Meatloaves
• 24 cinnamon rolls

Want to know how YOU can stock your freezer with these meals? Here is what you’ll need!

Ingredients

Canned and Dry Goods

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 can cream of celery soup

1 can golden mushroom soup

3/4 cup rice

chicken stock (2 1/2 cups) (You can also use the little bouillon cubes)

beef stock/broth (1 cup)

Produce

2 stalks celery

baby carrots

1 large red potato

1 package sliced button mushrooms (although this is optional)

1 bag frozen mixed veggies (I used carrots, corn, and green beans)

Fridge Items

margarine

milk

eggs (3)

1 bag boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 lb. stew meat

1 lb. ground beef

Spices/Basics

parsley

bay leaves

cinnamon

1 packet meatloaf seasoning

salt, pepper, vegetable oil

butter

milk

Baking Ingredients

flour (about 7 cups)

oatmeal (1/2 cup)

brown sugar

Condiments

honey

soy sauce

apple cider vinegar

ketchup or Catalina Dressing

Ready to Cook?? Here are a few of Chasing Supermom’s Timesavers!

1. Start your cooking by poaching your chicken. Put 4 frozen chicken breasts (depending on size) in a large pot of salted water. Poaching the chicken is a super quick way to make a ton of cooked, shredded chicken, and this will save you time! When your chicken is cooked through, put the chicken into your KitchenAid mixer, and use the paddle attachment to shred the chicken for you! Trust me on this one…it works! (And I will never shred chicken with a fork again!)

2. Defrost your ground beef and stew meat if necessary. Having your meat ready to go when you are will save you time.

3. Have several meals going at once. Don’t try to do one meal after the other….Multi-tasking is key in freezer cooking.

4. Clean as you go. Have an empty dishwasher before you start cooking, and don’t leave yourself a giant sinkful of dirty dishes. Wipe down your counter as you work, and keep a neat space.

5. Have gallon sized, heavy-duty, freezer bags ready to go. (Spend the money on the freezer bags!) Label everything with what it is, and the day you prepared it.

6. It is easier to fill the freezer bags if you set them in a large bowl or pot. Trying to pour hot sauce into a bag you have propped open on the counter can be messy! Use a bowl, and a ladle when necessary!

Chicken Pot Pie Filling

1. In a large skillet, saute 2 stalks of diced celery and diced baby carrots (to taste) in 2-3 T butter.

2. Dice 1 large red potato and add to the skillet.

3. Stir in 2 T flour and mix well to make a rue.

4. Mix in 1 1/2 cup chicken stock/broth and 1/2 cup milk.

5. Season with parsley (I don’t measure), and 1 bay leaf. (And of course, salt and pepper to taste.)

6. Let this sauce simmer, as it will reduce and thicken, and become nice and creamy.  When the sauce has thickened, add in a cup or so of the shredded chicken.

To serve, simply defrost, and pour into your favorite crust or pie-pan. Easy peasy lemon squeezie. (Yes, I live with children…)

Boom! One meal down! Ready for more?

Creamy Chicken and Veggies

1. Mix one can cream of chicken soup, and one can cream of celery soup together in a large skillet. Stir in about one can of milk, and 1 cup of chicken stock. (*I saved the liquid from the poached chicken, and used that in this dish!)

2. Season with parsley, salt and pepper,and one bay leaf.

3. Add in your bag of frozen mixed veggies, and allow the soup and veggies to cook until the veggies are heated through.

4. Add in your shredded chicken.

(This is awesome over rice, but would be great over pasta too. This is a kid-friendly meal. No, it’s not gourmet, but it can be counted on to feed a hungry family!)

To serve, just defrost and re-heat!

Done! Two Down! You are zipping through this!

Asian Chicken and Rice : (This meal is special to me, as it was not only the first freezer meal I put together, but the first meal I ever prepared with my young daughter!)

This one is super easy, as you don’t have to cook a thing! This one is great to whip up while you’re waiting on meat to cook, etc.

1. In a mixing bowl, mix together the following: 1 can golden mushroom soup, 3/4 cup water, 3/4 cup rice (not instant), 2 T honey, 2 T apple cider vinegar,and 2 T soy sauce.

2. Pour the sauce/rice mixture into a freezer bag.

3. Add in your chicken breasts. (I cut 2 large breasts into four portions.)

To serve, defrost, and bake at 375 for 45 minutes.

Wow! Three meals ready!

Beef Stroganoff

You can find my recipe for Beef Stroganoff  HERE! To make this for the freezer, simply omit the sour cream, and add that to your sauce on the day you serve it. All you will need to do to serve this, is defrost the sauce, re-heat, stir in the sour cream, and boil your egg noodles. Super easy, and very tasty!

I made this in my dutch oven on freezer cooking day, and it was very quick and easy.

One more to go!

Mini Meatloaves

1. Mix together your ground beef, along with 1/2 packet of meatloaf seasoning, 1 egg, 1/2 cup oatmeal, and a splash or two of milk.

2. Press your meat mixture into mini loaf pans or a cupcake pan to make individual servings. (It just makes it more fun for the kids, and it easy to freeze, and pull out how many you need!)

3. Pop the tray of meatloaves or meat cupcakes into your freezer for a few hours, or until you’re able to easily pop them out without losing their shape. Place the individual meatloaves in a single layer in a freezer bag.

To serve, defrost and bake at 350 for 35 minutes, or until meat is no longer pink. (The little loaves cook faster than a traditional meatloaf.) You can top these with a ketchup/brown sugar “frosting” the day you serve them.

Cinnamon Rolls

There are about 12 million cinnamon roll recipes out there, and to tell the truth, I make a lot of them. However, I didn’t know you could freeze a cinnamon roll, and will be doing this from now on!

Simply make your favorite cinnamon roll recipe as the recipe calls for. (In the interest of time, I chose one that didn’t require a ton of rising time. If your recipe does call for a lot of rise time, simply start the dough for the rolls first, before you start your other cooking. Remember..multi-tasking is key! While your roll dough is rising or while you’re waiting for your yeast to foam, you can be chopping celery or shaping meatloaves!)

As SOON as you slice your rolls, place them on a baking sheet and freeze them. Place the tray of frozen rolls in your freezer for several hours. When the rolls are frozen, place them in a freezer bag.

To serve, pull out the desired amount of rolls the night before, and leave on the counter. When you wake up, the rolls will be ready to pop in the oven! I am so excited to enjoy one cinnamon roll at a time! We used to make all 2 dozen at once, and either have half of them go bad, or gorge ourselves on way too much sugar. Freezing cinnamon rolls allows you to have a special breakfast all the time….and gives you back portion control on a sweet indulgence!

Did you have fun? Was it worth it?! You have a freezer full of meals ready to go, and several mornings of special breakfast! Good for you!!!!

In “My Very Own Name” (the title we were blessed to receive and review), the animals in the forest are so excited to welcome a new baby into the world. After announcing the child’s birthday (something my daughter LOVED), the animals take turns bringing letters for the child’s name. The book ties in letter and name recognition beautifully, as animals that also begin with each letter bring the letters for the new baby. In my daughter’s book, the hippo brings the first letter, an H. On each subsequent page, your child will watch their name come to life. When their first name is spelled, the animals will begin to bring the letters that form their last name! (How cool is that?!) My daughter also loved that she found her own name on the title page in a special dedication! This book certainly made Hannah feel special and I cannot express enough how much she loved seeing her name come to life in this adorably written (and rhyming!) story by Maia Haag.

This book has quickly become a cherished favorite of my sweet girl.I love that she will always have a reminder of how special she is to us, and love that we had an easy way to do something truly JUST FOR HER. It was so much fun to delight with her as she would say, “I know that the next page will have an N!”, and then watch her excitement over seeing which animal would bring the letter. The charming prose of Maia Haag and the gorgeous illustrations of Mark Mille make My Very Own Name a truly special gift for any child.
Want to see how the book works? You can watch the video below, or click HERE to take a virtual tour!

I See Me! also offers a wide variety of other personalized books, that are the PERFECT gift for any occasion! They even make books for Christmas and Hanukkah, and books to honor a new big brother or big sister! Whether your child loves pirates or fairies, there is a personalized book just right for them.

You can purchase a copy of “My Very Own Name” HERE for just $32.95 (see the special February offer below!). I See Me! even offers a personalized puzzle that corresponds with this title that you can purchase HERE! (Wouldn’t these items be a great way to show a child JUST how special they are?!) I encourage you to check out the I See Me! website and see everything they have to offer!
 

However, one lucky Chasing Supermom reader will WIN a copy of My Very Own Name, and be able to personalize it for a child they love! Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

And, right now, through the month of February, I See Me! has a special on the “My Very Own Name” book and gift set! Just enter code “special” at check-out, and receive 15% off!

It’s that time again….time to lay it all down…confess our sins and guilt…free ourselves from self-inflicted shame and self-doubt….letting the world (okay, the Chasing Supermom readers) know that we are NOT perfect. (And we never will be.) (And ya know what…that’s okay!) In The Confessional, we recognize that nobody has it all together…Every mother makes mistakes. You’re NOT alone! The next time you feel like you’ve lost all hopes at ever winning “Mother of the Year” read a confessional, and realize that we all win that award every single day…because we keep going….we keep trying…We keep right on mothering when things don’t go our way…Keep your head up…You’re doing your best…We all are…Let’s just keep chasing…Here we go….

To check out all previous volumes of The Confessional, click here: Confessional Archives

I would like to welcome Lindsey to The Confessional today. You may remember her from her guest post on the blog back in December (which you can read HERE!) She is the author of the blogs, www.lindsey-bell.com and www.livingwholeagain.blogspot.com. She posts thoughts on marriage and family, as well as handy (and printable!) preschool lesson plans each week, as well as runs a wonderful support blog for mothers dealing with a miscarriage. You can also find Lindsey Bell on facebook! Show her some love and “like her page!” She is VERY close to 100 fans…let’s help her out! I found myself nodding along with many of her confessions today, and I know you’ll appreciate her honesty and genuine spirit!

Ready to feel better? Here we go!

Father forgive me…

1. My son rarely wears pants at home. But hey, at least he has a shirt and underwear on,
right?

2. I often eat my son’s candy. Of course, I like to call it “sampling” or “making sure he
doesn’t eat too much.” But really, it’s just because I love candy and we adults don’t get it
nearly as often as kids do.

3. Every Sunday, my son gets fruit snacks after church. Not a week goes by that I don’t
eat one of them as I’m opening the bag for him.

4. I sometimes change into my pajamas before dinner. They are just SO much more
comfortable than jeans.

5. I allow my son to spend way too much time in the bath so I can have a few more
minutes of quiet time.

6. I rarely wash the sheets on our bed. And the decorative towels in the bathroom? Maybe
once a year. Who wants to add more to the mountain of clothes in the laundry room?

7. Sometimes when I don’t want to get up in the morning, I let my son eat straight from
the cereal box for breakfast.

8. I secretly like that my children have started doing chores. Now, I hardly ever have to
put the clothes into the washing machine.

9. I frequently use my phone to distract my three-year-old, especially while grocery
shopping. But it’s just so nice to get all of my groceries in peace and quiet while he
enjoys Cars or Horton Hears a Who. Please tell me I’m not the only one!

Until next week, you are exonerated. Go and sin no more! (And PLEASE, contact me if you’d like to confess!!! This weekly post doesn’t work without YOU!)

This dip is cheesy, gooey, and full of pizza flavor! You’re going to love this one! Here is what you’ll need to make this tasty dip!

Ingredients

Bottom Layer:

8 oz. softened cream cheese

2/3 cup ricotta cheese (you could use cottage cheese as well)

1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese

1 egg, slightly beaten

1/2 t minced garlic

1/2 t oregano

1/2 t salt

1/2 t pepper

1/2 t chile flakes (optional)

Remaining Ingredients

Pizza sauce

Assorted pizza toppings (Pepperoni!)

Grated mozzarella cheese

olive oil

To Prepare

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

1. In a medium bowl, combine the cream cheese, ricotta, Parmesan, egg, garlic and spices. Spread the mixture evenly into an oven-safe casserole or baking dish.

2. Top the cheese mixture with your favorite pizza sauce.

3. On top of the sauce, place any pizza toppings, included diced pepperoni, grilled onions and peppers, sauteed mushrooms, etc.

4. Sprinkle with grated mozzarella cheese and a drizzle of olive oil.

5. Bake for 20 minutes.

Enjoy!!

This would be great with crackers or crostini! Guy recommends using toasted pizza dough strips! I think breadsticks would also be great!

Like Dip? Try these other great dip recipes from Chasing Supermom!

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Dip

Buffalo Chicken Dip

Shrimp Dip

Introduction:
My husband and I would still consider ourselves newlyweds when our first child was born just 3 months after our 1^st Wedding Anniversary. I was 25 years old, a recent college grad (with my Masters’) BUT not yet employed. Finances were tough and living 4 states away from ALL of our family was quite hard on us both emotionally.

Which type of birth did you choose and why? (vaginal, c-section, natural, water, home birth, etc.) We tried to do some research in regards to our choice and hoping to make the most educated decision. We had planned (and were hoping) to do a medication free vaginal birth – I was nervous about any drugs passing through to my child.

Did you have a midwife or an ob/gyn? Did you use a doula or another support person? Why did you make the choice you did? Would you make it again?

We chose to use an Ob/Gyn practice, mainly because there were a few women and at the time I thought that I wanted a woman to help me through labor/delivery. (I now have a single practice, male Ob/gyn!)

Our baby story:

My actual due date was on a Thursday, and after 9 months of preparing the day came and went with no signs/symptoms of anything starting anytime soon. I had an appointment with my Dr on Friday and was hooked up for a stress test and no contractions were noted, after an ultrasound to check fluid levels (which were fine) we began the induction talk! The Dr. wanted us to return to the hospital on a Sunday to begin the induction that night with a baby on Monday and I stubbornly refused and agreed to come in on Monday night for a Tuesday baby –I always felt (and still do) that a baby is much easier when I am carrying them inside, and having a Tuesday baby would mean that it would share the special day with my father! Well the baby had other plans! On Sunday I spent the day laboring at home, but due to it being my first I had no idea and simply thought that I was uncomfortable until late afternoon/early evening when we decided to head to an evening Church service. We arrived at Mass and I knew that I had made a mistake and should not be there but decided to try to labor through Mass – about halfway through (actually during the collection, which STILL humors my husband) we left Mass and headed home to call the Dr. I was handling the contractions in stride but they were coming much closer together and once the Dr heard how close we were told to rush to the hospital. I do not remember that drive to the hospital, I spent the entire drive throwing up – we walked into the front doors of the hospital and I was beyond miserable & even more fatigued from getting sick. I was quickly brought in and checked out, and pumped full of fluids due to dehydration (I spent the day chugging water and napping so this confused me at the time!) I was admitted and given the room right across the hall from the OR and they made sure to mention that multiple times (but never told me they thought that they were doing a c-section, just told me ‘just in case’) The nurses did their typical intake full of a million questions and my husband and I walked back and forth in the room to the bathroom (they had me connected to the monitors so no walking the halls or anything else for me!) I still can’t remember how long we were in that room but it wasn’t more than 2 hours…. I remember it like it was yesterday. I worked my way through a contraction; my husband got a puzzled look on his face (he could see the monitors and watched contractions) and the staff rushed into my room. The Dr. politely rubbed my feet, checked me, broke my water and informed me that it was time for a baby and he was going to go change his clothes. The nurses rushed me out of the room, demanded that I take off my wedding rings in the hallway as they were wheeling me into the OR and told me that they ‘act now and explain later’. I remember feeling very scared and crying asking for my husband as the cold OR awaited me, I remember hitting panic inside as I heard the page ‘NICU team STAT’, I remember and felt the catheter being placed, the change in medications in my IV and the anesthesiologist trying so hard to be nice but rushing to give me medication, and the last thing that I remember is hearing my Dr tell the nurses that there was no time – if they wanted to save this baby they had to go in now. The next thing that I remember is hearing this voice say, “It’s a boy”, to which I rather confusingly asked, “Who had a boy”? My husband tried hard to comfort me and tell me that we now had a son but due to my drug induced state I was more of a comedy show for him than anything else. Once I started to come out of the fog a bit I asked him the list of questions; who did he look like, how big was he, did he have any hair, etc. Sadly my husband couldn’t answer any, he was left in my room and watched them rush a baby down the hallway and was only told that it was a boy. He watched from the windows of the nursery as the baby was washed & weighed. I was wheeled to my room once the paper shuffle was complete (and those nurses sure did need some driving lessons because it was quite a scary trip down a few hallways!) I was offered food and drinks, blankets and entertainment but my baby was something that I had to beg to see! It was so hard for me to even understand at that point, the bonding at birth didn’t happen. It was over 2 hours after he was born before I saw him and demanded that they place him in my arms. I had planned to nurse but at this moment was forced to nurse my baby with 2 nurses basically in my chest and doing it for me. Somewhere inside of me I finally snapped and demanded that they leave but that my baby was staying with me! My husband had originally planned to go home at night while I was at the hospital due to us living so close – after our situation, leaving was not really an option for him, he was just as scared as I was about our baby. Our sweet, content, cuddly, 8lb 4oz baby boy seemed perfect to us! The nurses came in at shift change to take him back to the nursery and away he went until I called and begged that he be returned only to learn that he had been shipped to the NICU for rapid breathing. That was my breaking point; I had spent almost 8 hours with him and not noticed a thing. The nurses helped me up, removed all of my ‘attachments’ and helped me into the shower. I refused to sit and wait for someone to take me and told them that I wanted directions, but they were scared that due to just having surgery that I wasn’t safe, so I agreed to push a wheelchair. I met my husband at the NICU doors and signed my life away to get inside – and there was my chubby, sweating baby boy content as can be in that warm NICU bed! He spent 24 hours in there and I stayed by his side the whole time (much to the dismay of MY nurses!) He was finally sent back to the regular nursery but due to the antibiotics that he was on he had to stay an extra day for his medicine and to be monitored. Thankfully my Dr agreed to keep me also and we were not separated. We found out (on my discharge papers) that an emergency c-section was performed due to fetal distress (heart rate bottomed out), meconium (he pooped) and dehydration.

What could you not have lived without at the hospital?
The only thing that I needed by my side was my husband!

What do you wish you would have known about labor and delivery beforehand?
I wish that my Dr would have talked to me about the possibilities of a c-section, what would happen to me/baby and information about recovery.

What do you wish people had NOT told you?
I wish that I had not heard about the very easy (for them) medication free, vaginal births. I think that (for me) the expectations were high and I felt like a failure for having a c-section (although my mother did have 4 c-sections, so it was not something that I didn’t think about and ask about often, it was just not talked about by my Dr.’s!)

What was recovery like for you?
Once I left the hospital I was ready to conquer the world! I had quickly learned how to get up from low surfaces and how to get out of bed, I had a willing partner to help in the middle of the night and was prepared for the guests that would be arriving at our house to see the new baby

Describe the day you took your baby home from the hospital.
The gender of our baby was a surprise for us so we did not have an outfit, my husband was able to do the honors of heading to the store and choosing the first outfit and returned to the hospital with an outfit and the car seat. I remember changing our son, loading him into the car seat and being wheeled out to the car. My paranoid husband drove the long way home with the least amount of traffic and drove rather slowly (which now humors me!) We just stared at our son once we were home and spent the remainder of the day snuggling and fighting over our new baby!

What things were most helpful to you after you were home from the hospital?

Meals! The food that others brought over gave us more time to spend with our new baby. My husband was also amazing getting up with EVERY feeding to do all of the diapering!

*My experiences are not normal! I know this and do not mean to scare anyone and hesitate to share my story with others. When I returned for my follow-up appointments my Dr informed me that we would be doing a VBAC with the next baby – I was scared that the same thing was going to happen again (although I still do not really know what happened!) It took almost 3 years for me to finally feel ready to have another baby (and start to overcome my fears)– we had moved and a new Dr. was found. I walked into his office scared out of my mind and he spent the ENTIRE 9 months re-assuring me that it would be nothing like my last delivery! Thankfully he was right! I had our first daughter a year and a half ago with a repeat c-section and a quick recovery. The experience was nothing like with my son and the fear of having more children (the labor part) quickly vanished and 2 months ago we welcomed another little girl into our lives!

Thanks again to Josephine for sharing her story! If you would like to share YOUR Baby Story, please contact me!

Here is what you’ll need to make these sweet and gooey treats!

Ingredients

6 cups chocolate krispie cereal (I actually use the Coco Roos from Malt-o-Meal)

6 cups mini marshmallows OR 40 big marshmallows (You can even use the chocolate/vanilla swirl marshmallows to make these even MORE special!)

3 T butter or margarine

To Prepare

1. Melt the butter in a large pan.

2. Add in the marshmallows and stir constantly over low to medium low heat until the marshmallows are melted.

3. Remove from heat and stir in the cereal.

4. Spread in a greased 9×13 pan. (You may need to butter your hands to spread the mixture into the pan.)

These are SUPER good and oh so easy to make! Enjoy!

Like easy  and kid-friendly treats? Try these other great recipes from Chasing Supermom!

4 Tasty Chex Cereal Snacks!

Dirt Cups and Ant Hills

Frozen Fruit Pops

Rainbow Cake